Chapter 31: The Chase of the Ten Tyrants
After regrouping, Klein and the others strolled down the bustling street, the afternoon sun casting long shadows over the pavement.
"I'm telling you, it was all Kevin!" Ben practically vibrated with nervous energy, walking backward to face the group. He waved his arms frantically as he recounted everything that had just gone down in the subway, desperate to clear his name. "The recent alien crimes? The robberies? None of that was me! Kevin was using his powers to frame me!"
"Alright, Ben, we get it," Klein said, his voice dry and unbothered. He reached out, grabbing Ben's left wrist. Without asking, he tapped the faceplate of the Omnitrix, twisting the dial a few times. The device beeped in response. "This guy is for you. Consider it an apology on behalf of Gwen and Grandpa for misunderstanding you, and a little reward for actually helping them out."
Ben blinked, his rant instantly forgotten. He raised his left arm, his eyes widening as he scrolled through the holographic silhouettes of his alien roster. "Diamondhead, Heatblast... wait a second. This guy is...!"
"Awesome! Thanks, Cousin!" Ben cheered. Overcome with excitement, he launched himself forward, wrapping his arms around Klein in a massive bear hug.
Klein immediately planted a hand against Ben's face, shoving the boy away with a look of deep disgust. Ben didn't even seem to notice the rejection, too busy admiring his newly unlocked alien.
"Ahhhhh!"
A piercing scream shattered the casual atmosphere. Klein and the others whipped their heads around. A city bus was tearing down the road at breakneck speed, swerving wildly through traffic. But it wasn't the reckless driving that caught their attention—it was the vehicle's exterior. The entire bus was coated in a shifting, black-and-green techno-organic circuitry.
It was Upgrade.
The hijacked bus roared past them, the sheer force of its passing kicking up a violent gust of wind that snapped Klein's jacket and sent trash tumbling down the sidewalk.
"It's Kevin!" Ben yelled, instantly recognizing the alien form.
"Quick, we have to save those passengers!" Grandpa Max shouted, his seasoned instincts kicking in immediately.
Ben and Klein didn't waste a second. They bolted into a nearby alleyway, out of sight of the panicked pedestrians. Moments later, a massive, orange, dog-like beast with no eyes bounded out of the shadows. Wildmutt hit the pavement running, his powerful claws tearing into the asphalt as he sprinted frantically after the runaway bus.
However, amidst the chaos, none of them noticed the glint of binoculars from a nearby rooftop. A figure crouched in the shadows, speaking quietly into a wrist-mounted communicator.
"Captain, an unidentified alien lifeform just ran out of the alley shortly after those two kids went in."
"Alright, I understand," a crisp voice replied over the static. "Stay put. I am on my way."
Down on the street, Gwen looked around frantically, her hands on her hips. "Where did Cousin go?"
"Gwen! Grandpa! Get in!"
A sleek, dark blue sports car suddenly drifted around the corner, its engine purring with a deep, predatory growl. It pulled up flawlessly beside Gwen and Max, the tinted windows rolling down.
Both of them stared at the vehicle in shock. There was no driver. But right in the center of the steering wheel, glowing with an unmistakable light, was the emblem of the Another Omnitrix.
Without hesitating, they yanked the doors open. Max slid into the driver's seat while Gwen hopped into the passenger side.
Max gripped the steering wheel, running a hand over the smooth leather dashboard. "Automatic driving, huh? Actually, my Rustbucket has a feature just like this."
"Cousin, what's the name of this alien hero?" Gwen asked, leaning forward to inspect the glowing dial.
"Decimator. You can think of it as... a Transformer," a synthesized, mechanical voice replied. The emblem on the steering wheel pulsed in time with the words, broadcasting through the car's high-end speaker system.
"Grandpa! Gwen! Buckle up!"
The engine roared, a deafening sound that rattled the nearby storefronts. Decimator's tires smoked against the pavement before the sports car launched forward like a rocket, tearing down the street in pursuit.
"Ben! No dogs allowed in the car!"
Up ahead, on the roof of the hijacked bus, Wildmutt was locked in a desperate struggle. His massive claws dug deep into the metal chassis, trying to find purchase against the shifting, liquid-metal surface of Upgrade.
Suddenly, Upgrade's single-eyed face emerged directly from the roof of the bus, glaring at the orange beast. The techno-organic alien muttered something unintelligible, and a split second later, countless sharp, black-and-green spikes erupted from the metal surface.
Caught off guard, Wildmutt instinctively released his grip to avoid being impaled. He tumbled backward, falling off the speeding bus.
He hit the asphalt hard, rolling end over end. His massive body crashed straight through a sidewalk fruit stand, sending oranges, apples, and splintered wood flying in every direction. Of course, no high-speed chase was complete without the mandatory destruction of a local fruit stand. The impact finally killed his momentum.
Wildmutt scrambled to his feet, shaking the dizziness from his head. He let out a low growl, his gill-like nostrils flaring. Using his enhanced radar senses, he realized the bus had already sped far out of his immediate reach.
Whoosh!
A dark blue blur streaked past him, leaving a trail of displaced air in its wake.
"Ben! Head back to the Rustbucket and wait for us!" Decimator's mechanical voice echoed out from the speeding sports car.
Wildmutt sat on the ruined pavement, staring blankly at the spot where the dark blue car had vanished in less than a second. He let out a confused whine.
Further down the road, Upgrade's face emerged from the bus roof once again. His glowing green eye swiveled toward the rear, spotting the rapidly approaching sports car.
"No tailgating! Looks like someone isn't following traffic rules!" Kevin's voice mocked through the alien form.
Upgrade's round eye flared, unleashing a barrage of searing green laser beams. The blasts tore up the asphalt, but Decimator swerved with impossible precision, drifting left and right to dodge every single shot.
Realizing he couldn't hit the nimble car, Upgrade shifted his tactics. He aimed his lasers at the towering buildings lining the street.
Boom!
The energy beams shattered the concrete facades. Massive chunks of rubble plummeted toward the street, creating an impassable barricade directly in Decimator's path.
"Hmm... I thought alleys were also roads, weren't they?" Decimator's voice mused through the speakers.
Max and Gwen stared in horror at the falling debris, then looked at the pulsing Another Omnitrix emblem on the steering wheel.
"Cousin, you're not going to..." Gwen started, her voice trembling slightly as she gripped the door handle.
"Grandpa! Gwen! Hold on tight!"
Instead of braking, the dark blue sports car violently accelerated. The engine screamed as it hurtled straight toward the mountain of falling rubble. At the absolute last second, the tires locked. Decimator executed a flawless, physics-defying drift, sliding sideways with a shriek of burning rubber, and shot straight into a narrow adjacent alleyway.
Seeing no car emerging from the dust cloud behind him, the upper half of Upgrade's round eye curved downward, mimicking a smug smile.
"Fools."
But Kevin's victory was short-lived. Barely a block later, the dark blue sports car burst out of a connecting alleyway like a bullet leaving a chamber.
Bang!
Decimator slammed violently into the side of the hijacked bus.
"What!" Kevin yelled, his voice distorted by the metal.
The massive impact sent the bus swerving wildly across the lanes, its speed dropping significantly as the two vehicles locked together. They drove side by side, trading paint and trading blows as Decimator repeatedly rammed the heavier vehicle, trying to force it off the road.
Inside the sports car, Max rolled down the driver's side window. He pulled a heavy Plumber energy pistol from his jacket, took careful aim, and fired several searing blasts directly into the bus's front tires.
The rubber exploded into shreds, but the victory lasted less than a second. Upgrade's liquid-metal substance instantly flowed over the rims, repairing the blowouts and forming solid, indestructible techno-organic wheels.
"Damn it!" Max cursed, pulling back inside.
Annoyed by the constant ramming, Upgrade writhed along the side of the bus. Thick, razor-sharp spikes suddenly extended from the center of the bus's hubcaps, spinning like deadly chariot blades.
Seeing the lethal hazard, Decimator immediately backed off, no longer willing to risk shredding his own tires by ramming the side.
Taking advantage of the distance, Upgrade manipulated the bus's engine, forcing it to accelerate far beyond its normal limits. Once the vehicle reached maximum velocity, the black-and-green mass peeled away from the chassis. The liquid metal gathered together, reforming into Upgrade's humanoid shape, standing triumphantly on the roof.
"Bye-bye, fools!"
Without another word, Upgrade leaped off the speeding bus, grabbing onto a passing streetlamp and swinging away into the city skyline. He had completely destroyed the bus's braking system before leaving, fully aware that his pursuers would focus on saving the helpless passengers over chasing him.
Inside the sports car, Max and Gwen watched in horror as the out-of-control bus barreled straight toward the seaside pier.
The Another Omnitrix emblem flashed urgently. "Grandpa! Gwen! You two go after him! I will save the people on that bus!"
Decimator slammed on the brakes. The sports car screeched to a halt just long enough for Max and Gwen to throw their doors open and leap out onto the pavement. The moment their feet hit the ground, the doors slammed shut, and Decimator's engine roared to life once more.
The sports car tore down the road, its speedometer maxing out. The distance between Decimator and the runaway bus vanished in seconds.
As Decimator overtook the massive vehicle, he aimed for a steep incline in the uneven pavement near the docks. The sports car hit the bump at top speed, launching high into the air.
Mid-flight, the dark blue chassis began to shift. Metal plates folded, gears ground together, and tires reconfigured. In the span of a heartbeat, the sleek sports car transformed into a towering, five-meter-tall mechanical titan.
Bang!
Decimator landed heavily on his metallic feet, the impact cracking the concrete beneath him. He stood directly in the path of the speeding bus. He planted his feet wide, lowered his center of gravity, and raised his massive, armored hands.
Thud!
The bus slammed into Decimator's palms. The sheer kinetic force of the impact pushed the giant robot backward. Ear-piercing screeches of grinding metal filled the air as Decimator's feet dug into the asphalt. Sparks showered the street in a blinding display as the friction between the robot's feet, the bus's locked tires, and the ground fought against the vehicle's massive inertia.
Thick black skid marks painted the road as they slid closer and closer to the edge of the pier. The salty smell of the ocean mixed with the acrid stench of burning rubber.
With one final, violent shudder, the bus ground to a complete halt. The front bumper rested mere inches from the drop-off into the churning sea below.
Silence hung in the air for a fraction of a second, broken only by the hiss of steam escaping the bus's ruined radiator.
"Woohoo!"
A cheer erupted from inside the bus. The terrified passengers pressed against the windows, clapping and shouting their gratitude at the giant metal savior standing before them.
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