Dr. Animo rode his mutant cockroach with disturbing confidence, the massive insect's chitinous legs clicking against the pavement in a rhythm that echoed through the street. In his hands, he gripped a submachine gun, the weapon looking almost comically mundane compared to the biotechnological horror he sat astride. Behind him came the nightmare army, enhanced ants the size of large dogs, their mandibles clacking hungrily, and overhead, a giant wasp droned through the air, its stinger glistening with venom.
Clancy perched behind Dr. Animo on the cockroach, his blue-green skin stretched tight over clenched fists, veins bulging across his knuckles. His face twisted into a rictus grin that showed every one of his sharp teeth. "Asher!" he called out, his voice carrying that distinctive edge of mania. "I should thank you! If it weren't for you, I'd never have met such a brilliant like-minded colleague!" His eyes gleamed with malicious glee. "As a reward for bringing us together, I'll make your death quick!"
Inside the restaurant, Asher's tactical instincts kicked in immediately. His eyes swept the scene, civilians frozen in shock, Ben and Gwen still processing what they were seeing, Max already moving toward the back. They had seconds at most before this became a massacre.
"Everyone OUT!" Asher's voice cracked like a whip through the stunned silence. "Back door, NOW! As far away as you can get!"
The sheer force of his command shattered the paralysis. Chairs scraped back. Tables toppled. People scrambled toward the rear exit in a panic, abandoning plates, purses, everything. A woman tripped, and Max caught her arm, steadying her as he ushered people through. "Move! Go, go, go!"
The staff didn't hesitate. The cashier vaulted over the counter. The cooks abandoned their stations, one still clutching a spatula. Within seconds, the restaurant emptied through the back, everyone except Max, Asher, Ben, and Gwen.
"Grandpa, you need to, " Asher started.
"Not a chance," Max cut him off, his Plumber training already evident in his stance. His hand moved to something concealed beneath his jacket.
CRACK! CRACK! CRACK!
The front windows exploded inward in a cascade of glittering shards. Bullets punched through the glass with explosive force, spraying fragments across the restaurant floor. Tables splintered. The counter erupted in puffs of plaster and wood.
The ant swarm hit the door next. Their enhanced mandibles chewed through the reinforced frame like it was cardboard, spraying wood chips and metal screws across the floor. The door collapsed inward, hinges screaming in protest, and suddenly the ants were inside, their bodies filling the entryway with clicking, chittering horror.
"Transform!" Asher barked, already reaching for his Omnitrix. "I don't care what you get, just transform in sixteen seconds!"
His finger came down on the watch face.
Beep!
Dr. Animo raised the submachine gun from his perch on the mutant cockroach outside. His finger tightened on the trigger.
BANG-BANG-BANG-BANG!
Muzzle flash illuminated his manic grin. Hot brass casings arced through the air. Bullets screamed through the already-shattered windows, trailing glass fragments, punching through what remained of the restaurant's facade. They found their mark with terrifying accuracy, straight toward Asher's wrist.
The rounds were moving fast. Too fast. The heat signature reached Asher's skin before his eyes could track the projectiles. His hand was about to be blown apart,
"Not today!" Gwen's hands snapped up, fingers splayed. Magenta energy erupted around her, crackling with power. "STOP!"
The bullets froze mid-air inches from Asher's Omnitrix, suspended in Gwen's magical field. But they didn't stop completely, they continued to crawl forward in slow motion, the kinetic energy too powerful for even her magic to fully halt. The air shimmered around them as they fought against her spell.
"Hurry!" Sweat beaded on Gwen's forehead, her arms trembling with effort. Her magenta aura flickered. "I can't hold them long!"
"Got it!" Asher yanked his wrist sideways, rolling away from the bullets' trajectory. "Thanks, Gwen!"
"Release!" She opened her hands.
The bullets burst forward, freed from her magical grip. They punched clean through the cashier counter, leaving fist-sized holes in the wood. The register exploded in a shower of springs and circuit boards.
"How touching!" Dr. Animo's voice echoed through the ruined storefront, theatrical and mocking. "Family cooperation! But Dr. Aloysius James Animo is not so easily thwarted! Did you think your little girl's parlor tricks would stop true genius?" He adjusted his hippie glasses with theatrical flourish. "Your family has become quite the obstacle, hasn't it? First that tiresome grandfather with his 'Plumber' training, now this... magician. But without your precious transformations, boy, you're all just meat!"
CRASH!
The remaining wall section gave way. Enhanced ants poured through the breach like a chittering flood, their segmented bodies flowing over each other in waves. Their mandibles clacked together hungrily, and their compound eyes reflected the restaurant's fluorescent lighting in a thousand different angles. Behind them, the giant wasp squeezed through the entrance, its abdomen scraping against the doorframe.
"Quick!" Ben was already sliding across the floor on his knees. "Get down behind, "
BANG-BANG-BANG-BANG!
More gunfire. More bullets chewing through their cover. The cash register disintegrated under the sustained fire. Coins scattered across the floor like metal hail.
Asher glanced at his Omnitrix, already turning the dial. The holographic display cycled through options. Come on, come on... anything but...
The icon that appeared made his stomach sink.
Wildmutt.
A bestial alien with incredible senses but no way to block bullets. No ranged attacks. Nothing that could take down swarms of insects from a distance.
No time to reroll!
He dove behind what remained of the cashier station, using the bulky machine as cover from another burst of gunfire. Bullets punched through the floor around him, leaving smoking holes in the linoleum.
"Useless!" Clancy's laugh was shrill and unhinged. "Your little heroes are cowering like rats! My children, tear them apart! Leave nothing but bones!"
The ant army surged forward in a coordinated wave. They ignored the scattered tables and chairs, simply climbing over or pushing them aside with their enhanced strength. Furniture scraped and toppled. Glass crunched under their legs. The wasp's wings beat the air with a deep, thrumming drone that made the remaining windows vibrate.
Gwen stood her ground, but her face had gone pale. Her hands trembled at her sides. Around her, her magenta aura flickered weakly, barely visible.
Most girls would've fainted at the sight of a single cockroach. This? Hundreds of mutant insects, each the size of a dog, with jaws that could bite through steel? It was a living nightmare made manifest. The way they moved together, like a single organism with a thousand bodies...
She'd managed not to pass out. That alone was a testament to her mental fortitude.
"Gwen, hold on!" Asher frantically cycled through his Omnitrix options again. He needed something with firepower. Four Arms had strength but no range. Diamondhead could create barriers, but these insects could probably chew through crystal given time. What he needed was,
"Don't worry, Asher!"
The voice came from above.
A golden-armored figure descended through the hole in the ceiling that the earlier gunfire had created, landing with a heavy THOOM that cracked the floor tiles. Sunlight streamed through the opening behind him, creating a dramatic backlit silhouette.
Ben landed in a three-point stance between his cousins and the approaching swarm, the arc reactor in his chest glowing brilliant blue-white. The battle suit's paint gleamed despite the dust and debris. He straightened slowly, servos whining, repulsors charging in both palms with an ascending whine.
"Achoo!" Ben sneezed inside his helmet, the sound echoing metallically. Then he locked eyes, well, visual sensors, on the swarm. "You wanted a day off, right? Leave this to me and Gwen!"
Beep!
His palms came up, targeting systems painting the floor with dozens of red laser dots.
FWOOOOOOM!
Golden flames erupted from his repulsors in twin torrents, washing across the restaurant floor like a tidal wave of fire. The heat was instantaneous and overwhelming. Ants caught in the initial blast combusted instantly, their carapaces blackening and cracking. The ones behind them tried to retreat, but the flames spread too fast, following the trail of insects back toward the entrance.
Screams, high-pitched chittering screams, filled the air as hundreds of enhanced ants burned. The smell hit immediately: burning chitin, scorched meat, acrid smoke. It was simultaneously like burning plastic and overcooked seafood, a stench so thick it was almost visible.
The floor itself began to melt, linoleum bubbling and peeling away in blackened strips. Metal table legs glowed red. The air shimmered with heat distortion.
"What?!" Clancy's eyes bulged from his position outside. "Where did that come from?!"
Dr. Animo's face contorted, his theatrical composure cracking. The corner of his mouth twitched. "That's... that's Ben! The armored brat from the other day!" His grip tightened on the submachine gun. "He has powers too?! Since when does the Tennyson family have this much talent?!"
And this battle suit, the energy output readings, the precision of those flames, the integrated targeting systems... This wasn't just some off-the-shelf military hardware. This was custom work. High-level engineering.
Ben rotated his aim upward, tracking the giant wasp. The creature had retreated toward the ceiling, its wings beating frantically to stay airborne. More ants dangled from its legs, ready to be dropped as living bombs.
FWOOOOOM!
The repulsor blast caught the wasp dead-center. Fire engulfed its body, spreading along its wings. It shrieked, a sound like tearing metal, and spiraled downward, crashing through what remained of the ceiling. Burning debris rained down. The ants it had been carrying fell like meteors, already ablaze before they hit the ground.
The ceiling gave way under the assault. Wooden beams cracked. Support structures collapsed. The entire roof section crashed inward, and suddenly warm sunlight flooded the ruined restaurant interior. Dust motes danced in the golden beams, beautiful and surreal against the backdrop of carnage.
The battle suit gleamed in the natural light, standing triumphant amidst the flames and wreckage. Blue-white arc reactor light pulsed in Ben's chest like a mechanical heartbeat.
"Nice one, Ben!" Asher stood up from behind his cover, surveying the devastation. Burnt insect corpses littered the floor. The walls were scorched black. But the immediate threat had been neutralized.
He raised one hand, palm out.
Ben reached up with his metal gauntlet and clapped against Asher's hand in a resounding high-five that rang like a bell. The impact actually pushed Asher back a step, making him grin.
"You're getting better with that suit!"
His own Omnitrix had already cycled to a new form during the chaos. The holographic display now showed Heatblast's distinctive flaming silhouette.
But looking at Ben standing there, covered in soot and glory, at Gwen slowly recovering from her fear, at the smoldering remains of their enemies...
Asher hesitated.
They need combat experience, he thought. Real experience. Against actual threats. I can't always be the one swooping in to save the day.
His mind flashed to potential future threats. Vilgax would return eventually, that was inevitable. When he did, if Ben and Gwen were still relying on Asher to solve every problem, they'd be slaughtered.
He needed to let them grow. Learn. Fail safely now so they wouldn't fail catastrophically later.
Speaking of which... Asher's expression darkened. Vilgax has been way too quiet lately. No drone attacks, no assassination attempts, nothing. What's he planning?
That was a problem for another day.
"Hey, stupid!" Gwen's voice cut through his thoughts. She'd turned from the sea of flames, color returning to her face. The worst of her terror had passed, replaced by that familiar competitive fire. "I've gotta admit, you're actually somewhat useful."
"Are you complimenting me or insulting me?" Ben's voice crackled through his helmet speakers, tinged with exasperation. "Because it really feels like you're doing both at once."
BOOM!
Something massive slammed into Ben from the side, hitting him like a freight train. The impact was so sudden, so violent, that his feet actually left the ground. He rocketed sideways, crashing through what remained of a wall section and disappearing in a cloud of dust and debris.
"BEN!" Gwen screamed.
From the flames, figures emerged.
Not ants this time.
Worse.
The fire had hidden them, concealed their approach in the smoke and chaos. But now they stepped forward into the light, and the temperature in the room seemed to drop despite the flames.
Three cockroaches, each the size of a large car. But these weren't like the one Dr. Animo had ridden in on. These were changed. Enhanced. Their carapaces looked thicker, denser, with a metallic sheen that suggested more than just organic material. Their mandibles were the size of industrial excavator scoops, and their legs ended in points sharp enough to puncture concrete.
And riding the center cockroach, arms spread wide like a conductor before an orchestra, was Dr. Animo. His white hair flowed dramatically in the heated wind. His hippie glasses caught the firelight, making his eyes seem to glow.
"Did you truly think Dr. Animo would fall for such a simple tactic?!" His voice boomed through the restaurant. "Those ants were merely scouts! Expendable troops sent to test your defenses! And you fell for it beautifully!"
Behind him, Clancy cackled, his sharp teeth bared in a feral grin. "My children are not so easily defeated! You burned the weak ones, yes, but now you face the strong!"
The enhanced cockroaches' eyes, dozens of compound eyes per insect, all focused forward.
On Asher and Gwen.
"Now then," Dr. Animo purred, adjusting his glasses with one finger. "Let's begin the real experiment."