Chapter 127: Myax, How Did You Get So Strong?...I Am Vilgax.
"Thanks, Cousin."
Ben finally stopped struggling. Truth be told, he had grown accustomed to using the Omnitrix purely for the thrill of it, treating his heroics and villain-busting as a secondary game. But deep down, at the very beginning, he only wanted the watch for one simple reason. He didn't want to be powerless anymore. He wanted to be a hero, just like his older cousin.
Ben Tennyson refused to disappoint him. Today, even if this broken watch exploded into a million pieces or Azmuth snatched it right off his wrist, he didn't care.
He wanted to be a hero, even if he had to do it with nothing but his bare hands!
The wind whipped past them as the group rode a fleet of sleek hoverboards, charting a course toward a towering, jagged mountain in the distance. Tetrax, despite his stoic and hardened Petrosapien exterior, harbored a surprisingly deep obsession with hoverboards. When Klein and the others had first cracked open the bounty hunter's storage bay, they were met with a staggering, floor-to-ceiling collection of custom boards.
Myax took the lead, her posture rigid as she handled the treacherous air currents. "Azmuth's headquarters are hidden just behind this valley," she called back over her shoulder, her voice barely cutting through the roaring wind.
They banked sharply, descending into the gaping maw of a massive, shadowy cave system.
Just as Klein's board crossed the threshold into the darkness, he abruptly hit the brakes. The repulsor engines whined as he hovered in place, his gaze snapping toward a seemingly empty stretch of the distant horizon.
"What is it, Cousin?" Gwen noticed the sudden halt and pulled her own board around, her brow furrowing in concern.
Klein offered a dismissive shake of his head. "You guys go on ahead. I need to take care of something. I'll catch up in a minute."
Without waiting for a response, he banked his hoverboard hard to the right and shot off into the desolate wasteland. Gwen watched him go, a sigh escaping her lips. She knew better than to question his cryptic detours by now. Trusting his judgment, she turned and followed the rest of the group into the cavern's depths.
Klein skimmed over a series of jagged, rocky hills, the barren landscape blurring beneath him until he reached a wide, desolate clearing. He brought the hoverboard to a smooth halt, letting it idle above the dusty ground.
He stared at the empty space ahead of him, his expression flat. "Do you actually need something, Paradox, or are you just loitering?"
A soft, familiar hum vibrated through the air. A swirling portal of azure temporal energy tore open the fabric of space, casting a blue glow over the rocks. Professor Paradox stepped out, his usual eccentric, dimension-hopping aesthetic fully restored.
"Long time no see, my friend," Paradox greeted with a polite smile. "Though, I assure you, I am not here to ask for your assistance this time."
Klein crossed his arms over his chest, his eyes narrowing with clear displeasure. "Then why are you stalking me across the cosmos?"
Paradox casually adjusted his white lab coat, entirely unfazed by the hostile reception. "Must there be a catastrophic reason for a visit? Is it not perfectly normal for old friends to catch up and share a quiet cup of tea together?"
Klein's jaw tightened. He shot the time-traveler a deadpan glare that practically screamed, Have some self-awareness, old man!
"That right there," Klein muttered. "That is exactly why I do not want to get tea with you. Take a wild guess as to why."
Paradox blinked, the realization finally dawning on him. Ah. The hostility made perfect sense now. Klein fully expected the time-traveler to scam him out of another free meal. During their last encounter, Paradox had managed to drain a rather painful amount of Klein's personal pocket money.
Paradox cleared his throat, a rare look of awkwardness crossing his features. "Ahem. Yes, well... I seem to recall misplacing my wallet during that particular timeline. Regardless, I am actually here to deliver this."
Reaching into the deep pockets of his coat, Paradox produced a small, sleek black disc.
Klein snatched the device from his hand. He tapped the center of the disc with his thumb. A soft chime rang out, and a high-definition, three-dimensional holographic projection flared to life above the metal surface. The glowing blue light formed the distinct, diminutive shape of a Galvan. Specifically, a female Galvan, her features sharp and intelligent.
"And this is?" Klein asked, raising an eyebrow at Paradox.
"Zenith," Paradox replied softly. "Azmuth's former lover..."
A short while later, Klein's hoverboard glided back into the cavern entrance.
The natural rock formations quickly gave way to a wide, artificially constructed mechanical pathway that plunged deep into the planet's crust. The sheer scale of the engineering left no doubt—this was Azmuth's hidden fortress.
Strangely, the cold metallic walls were choked with thick, withered yellow vines, their dry tendrils clinging stubbornly to the steel. Whether the eccentric creator had planted them for some obscure ecological experiment or if the local flora had simply reclaimed the space remained a mystery.
The rest of the group was nowhere in sight. They had clearly pushed ahead. Klein's eyes flicked down, noting the freshly crushed vine fragments scattered across the floor plates. He shoved his hands into his pockets and strolled casually into the gloom.
Farther down the subterranean corridor, Ben, Gwen, Grandpa Max, Tetrax, Myax, and the towering figure of Vilgax came to a halt. A colossal mechanical blast door blocked their path, its surface scarred and heavily reinforced.
"This has to be it, right?" Gwen asked, craning her neck to take in the sheer size of the barricade.
Before anyone could answer, the group took a cautious step forward. Instantly, a blinding beam of light shot from a projector mounted above the frame. The light coalesced into a massive, three-meter-tall hologram blocking their path.
The figure was clad in a bulky, intimidating protective suit forged from dark gray metal. Hemispherical glass domes rested on its head and shoulders, filled with a thick, glowing black-green liquid that bubbled ominously. A heavy, mechanical scepter was gripped tightly in its gauntlet.
"Why is my Omnitrix on your wrist?" an ancient, raspy voice echoed from the projection, dripping with absolute disdain.
"Your Omnitrix?" Ben shot back without missing a beat. "My cousin bought this at a toy store!"
The sheer amount of time Ben had spent around Klein's relentless trolling had clearly rewired his brain. The blatant lie slipped out with practiced ease.
A second later, Ben blinked. Oh crap. I probably shouldn't have said that to the guy who built it. He opened his mouth, scrambling to backtrack and explain the impending self-destruct sequence.
But before he could utter a single word, Vilgax shoved past him. The massive warlord stomped forward, his heavy footsteps echoing off the metal walls as he glared up at the projection.
The holographic figure paused, its visual sensors zooming in on the imposing, tentacle-faced conqueror. "Myax?" Azmuth's voice crackled through the speakers, sounding genuinely baffled. "How did you get so strong?"
A suffocating, awkward silence descended upon the entire group.
Vilgax's facial tentacles twitched. His crimson eyes narrowed into slits of pure, unadulterated fury. "I am Vilgax," he growled, his voice a low, dangerous rumble that shook the floorboards. "Show yourself this instant! Or I will tear this door off its hinges and slaughter you where you stand!"
Azmuth, naturally, was well aware of the galactic tyrant's bloody reputation. Realizing his mistake, the creator moved to sever the connection entirely.
Seeing the projection flicker, Myax frantically pushed her way to the front. "Boss, wait! It's been a long time—"
"You miserable traitor! It really is you!" Azmuth spat, his tone shifting from annoyed to downright venomous. With a sharp electronic screech, the transmission was cut.
The massive hologram vanished into thin air, plunging the corridor back into dim lighting.
"That arrogant, selfish little scoundrel!" Myax roared, slamming her fist against the cavern wall in sheer frustration. "I guarantee you he already figured it out! He knows the Omnitrix initiated the self-destruct sequence, and he just doesn't want to deal with the mess!"
"So what exactly is the plan now?" Gwen asked, looking between the heavy blast door and the ticking watch on Ben's wrist.
Ben cracked his knuckles, a familiar, chaotic grin spreading across his face. "We don't have a choice. We just do what Cousin would do. We break the front door down!"
Two seconds later.
A deafening explosion rocked the subterranean vault. The massive mechanical door was blown completely off its hinges, crashing down in a twisted heap of smoking metal.
The group marched through the billowing smoke and stepped into a sprawling, cavernous laboratory. The room was a dizzying array of hyper-advanced technology, glowing consoles, and suspended holographic schematics. Standing near the center of the room, with his back turned to the intruders, was the towering armored figure from the projection.
"Azmuth, we need to talk," Gwen called out, her voice steady and authoritative. "First, step out of that ridiculous armor so we can have a proper, face-to-face conversation."
She knew exactly what Klein's ultimate goal was, and to ensure his plan succeeded, she had to force the stubborn creator to fix Ben's watch.
"I have no idea how you primitive lifeforms deduced that this is not my true body," Azmuth's voice boomed from the suit's external speakers. "But you will leave my sanctuary immediately! You have absolutely no right to destroy my property or invade my privacy!"
With a heavy whir of servos, the massive armor turned to face them. A hiss of pressurized gas echoed through the lab as the chest plate unsealed and folded downward. A tiny, green, frog-like alien leapt out from the cockpit, landing nimbly on the command console.
Had Klein been present, he undoubtedly would have leaned against the doorframe and deadpanned, Sorry, but the Tetramand Trial of Combat bylaws strictly grant me the right to blow up whatever I want.
"He's a Galvan?!" Myax gasped, her eyes widening in absolute shock. She had served as his lead assistant for years, enduring his endless demands, and the paranoid genius had never once revealed his actual species to her.
"Enough of this nonsense!" Tetrax barked. The Petrosapien bounty hunter marched forward, crouching down to eye level with the tiny alien. He pointed a sharp, crystalline finger directly at Azmuth's chest. "Deactivate the self-destruct countdown right now!"
"This impending disaster has absolutely nothing to do with me!" Azmuth snapped back, slapping Tetrax's finger away. "It is entirely your own fault! I built the ultimate device to promote peace and mutual understanding among the countless species of the cosmos! It was never meant to be a weapon!"
The tiny Galvan turned his furious gaze toward Ben. "Using the Omnitrix for mindless violence... how are you any different from a monster like Vilgax?!"
Excuse me?!
Vilgax, looming silently in the background, stiffened. His tentacles flared with indignation. He couldn't even pretend he hadn't heard that blatant disrespect. The warlord quietly made a solemn vow to himself: the exact millisecond Azmuth deactivated the watch's self-destruct sequence, he was going to strangle the little green frog with his bare hands.
"Maybe you're right," Ben said quietly.
To everyone's sheer surprise, the usually hot-headed boy didn't yell or argue back. He looked down at the glowing, unstable dial on his wrist. "When I found out the Omnitrix was going to explode, my first thought wasn't about the universe. I was just terrified that if it was gone, I'd go back to being a normal, helpless kid. I thought I couldn't be a hero anymore."
Ben lifted his head, his green eyes meeting Azmuth's gaze with a newfound maturity. "But my cousin told me something. He said that even without this broken watch, I'm still a hero. He saw the good in me when I was just messing around. It made me realize that we have to look for the strengths in other people, too, instead of just obsessing over our own problems. You can't just hide down here and be selfish while the whole universe pays the price!"
Azmuth and Tetrax both froze, staring at the ten-year-old boy as if seeing him for the very first time.
"My cousin believes in me, and I refuse to let him down," Ben continued, his voice steady and resolute. "If I can't be a hero without this piece of alien tech strapped to my arm, then I never deserved to be one in the first place! He told me I'm a hero, and I'm going to prove it."
Without a trace of hesitation, Ben stepped forward and thrust his left arm out toward the Galvan. "Take it. If you want to fix it, then fix it. Once it's repaired, you can take the Omnitrix back and do whatever you want with it. But if you won't help us... then I'll just find another way to save everyone."
Azmuth remained dead silent for a long, heavy moment.
"I simply cannot comprehend this," the Galvan finally muttered. "Why would you so willingly surrender the Omnitrix? Even if it was not designed as a weapon, it possesses immense power. Entire armadas have bled and died just for a chance to claim it."
"You don't understand because you only care about yourself!" Ben countered, a confident smirk returning to his face. "But for me? Even if I lose the watch, I've got plenty of other ways to be a hero."
Ben glanced over his shoulder, looking directly at the seasoned veteran standing behind him. "Right, Grandpa?"
Grandpa Max's eyes softened. A warm, incredibly proud smile spread across his weathered face. He stepped forward, resting a heavy, reassuring hand on his grandson's shoulder. "You've really grown up, Ben," Max said softly. "And don't you worry. Watch or no watch, Grandpa is going to teach you every single Plumber trick in the book."
"I am still not entirely convinced that this universe is actually worth saving," Azmuth sighed. The tiny Galvan stepped forward, approaching Ben's extended left arm. With a swift, practiced motion, his small fingers gripped the central dial of the Omnitrix and popped the faceplate completely off. "But... I have figured it out."
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