Fortress of Solitude.
J'onn, Thor and Wanda had teleported outside the fortress then a Kelex robot guided them through the complicated maze that was the hallways. They passed various robots repairing what looked like dents and gaping holes in the walls then proceeded to find Clark scolding Ben 10 and Kara.
At first, J'onn and Thor had moved to attack Ben 10, thinking he was Lobo but the two kryptonians quickly made them aware of the situation. They all stood in silence, watching him in intrigue.
Wanda's excited eyes roamed and surveyed the enormous detainment wing. She had never seen such a futuristic structure before, thus her curiosity had made her to feel the texture of the walls, trying to decide whether it was made of ice, crystals, or diamond. Her conclusion was inconclusive.
Clark and Kara were occasionally glancing at her because she was 'on fire'. A thin layer of dark red mixed in with black energy flames enveloped her form, making them to conclude she was insulating herself from the cold. It was obviously magic since the red flames didn't cover any of the scientific principles.
Ben 10 wasn't surprised because he recalled how she'd used the same technique to immobilise the mercenaries that had attacked team arrow. J'onn and Thor were also not shocked at that display because they had seen it before.
After everyone came to terms with Ben 10, Clark went ahead to fill them in on everything that had taken place as they watched a holographic projection put up by Kelex.
"I don't get it. If you managed to fend them off, then what happened to the fortress?" asked Thor, gesturing to where they had passed through. Wanda and J'onn tuned in, also curious about that.
"Oh, those? Why don't you ask them?" Clark said, tilting his head to point at Ben 10 and Kara, the latter still glaring at the former.
J'onn tuned back to the projection because he could guess what had happened while Wanda, who could sense her Kara's emotions, just chuckled. Thor was still confused but decided to dismiss the matter. He had experienced his fair share of glares from women to know when to walk away from a certain topic.
J'onn watched apokolips lackeys, worried that Darkseid was no longer using proxies who operated in the shadows. They were getting bolder. His gaze went to the fury in the holding cell. She was standing an inch from the barrier, watching and sizing each of them up. "They thought she was dead?" He asked no one in particular.
"I think so, though she has refused to talk." Clark answered, watching the projection.
Thor looked at the fury, observing her physique, sensing the dark aura she exuded. In more ways than one, she reminded him of Asgards finest female warriors, The Valkyrie.
"She won't talk." He spoke up, no doubt she had trained for such a scenario. "I know the type." He added after seeing their questionable gazes.
"You could just read her mind." Wanda said, the chaos magic flowing in her sensed the same thing.
"Invading someone's mind without permission is not right." J'onn shook his head. It still concerned him that the scarlet witch didn't have any reservations when it came to that.
"It was just a suggestion."
"Ben 10 says it's fair since she is a bad guy." He seconded, feeling the glare the fury and Kara sent his way.
"Only you would think that." Kara retorted, "I wouldn't be surprised if you suggested torture."
Ben 10 thought it over, "actually, that ain't a bad idea. I volunteer." He winked at the fury.
"No ones torturing anyone." Clark butt in before they started up again. "She may be from apokolips but we are still heroes and we have rules."
"For real? How's that working out?" Ben 10 shot back.
"The fuck!" he muttered, soothing a spot on his forearm before staring at Kara. To the girl of steel's benefit, her focus never strayed from Clark.
Thor shook his head in disapproval, having never understood why people on Earth believed that evildoers should be treated compassionately when they would harm others whenever they had the chance. Although it didn't explain why superior beings like Clark or J'onn tolerated it, he had come to the conclusion back in their midgard that they had a less developed and rudimentary style of thinking.
Wanda resumed marvelling at the expansive, high-tech filled room.
"Then how will you get her to talk?" the god of thunder asked. Maybe he could learn a thing or two from him since the only non violent way employed in Asgard, was Loki using his magic on the target.
Clark thought about it, "We can use the lasso."
Everyone eyes lit up, seemingly agreeing with that suggestion.
"Have you forgotten Diana has gone back to Themyscira?" Kara said, having been following the conversation from a far. She was glad that the new arrivals had taken her cousins attention away from the fact that she almost destroyed the fortress. Her small bout with Ben 10 had quickly turned serious when the idiot egged her on by dismissing all her attacks while continuously throwing suggestive comments at her. Her cousin intervened when one Kelex was destroyed thus setting off warning alarms all over the fortress. She glared at the czarnian.
"She is bound to return sooner or later." Clark said.
"Later, considering the invasion and all." J'onn pointed out. No one knew how much time it would take for the queen to let them return or when rebuilding their home would finish.
"I doubt that." Ben 10 said, as Kelex added another projection to showcase Diana and Maxima talking outside the fortress.
"This can't be good." J'onn spoke up, watching their stand-off.
"Let them in." Clark ordered and Kelex opened the door thereby disrupting whatever argument they were having.
"Why would you let her in?" Kara demanded, flying to Clark. The entitled queen was the last person she wanted to interact with right now, and judging by most of their facial expressions, she wasn't alone on that.
"She came with Diana, I can't leave her outside in the cold." Clark argued, "after all, she's been here before."
"What? When!?"
"The day you were kidnapped."
The two royals arrived just as Kara was about to speak. She shut her mouth.
Wanda's gaze moved to Thor, who was looking at the queen with a stoic expression while J'onn resumed watching the projected video.
Ben 10 observed Diana tense, then paused mid-air to look at him and relaxed again when her gaze landed on the omnitrix symbol on his belt buckle.
Maxima on the other hand, stopped to levitate in place, "Lobo? I thought you said he had left earth?" Diana didn't answer her and flew straight to J'onn and Clark.
The queen, livid by the immature and rude dismissal, glared at the princess. 'One of these days I will teach her to respect me.'
Her mood lightened when she caught Thor looking at her. Everything else faded into the background. "Thor, my beloved." She flew to him.
Wanda rolled her eyes and moved away from them.
"You must understand I did not have anything to do with my subordinates plan."
Thor arched an eyebrow at her, "you are his queen."
"Yes I am, but I am not one to micro manage everything he does." The prince had to believe her. "Do you think so little of me that I would put your friend's lives in danger just to indulge in the best sex I ever had?"
An audible gasp escaped Kara's lips followed by a deafening silence that spread across the room. Everyone except J'onn and Wanda looked at them in surprise.
"You got to hit that!?" Ben 10 grinned and hurried towards Thor, who looked like a deer caught in headlights. Maxima was oblivious to what she had just revealed, evidenced by her pouting up at Thor.
"That's what I'm talkin about!" he brought his fist forward for a fist bump but Thor refused.
Instead Ben 10 slapped his back in excitement as he gave the queen a once over. He didn't know why, but he seemed to really 'appreciate' her choice of attire.
Maxima, still thinking he was Lobo, frowned and glared at him, worried that he might reveal their dalliance.
"Ben! Aren't you a bit too young to talk about such?" Thor said, concentrating on him but feeling everyone else's stares on him.
At that statement, Maxima scanned his form again, extremely surprised at how accurate his mimicking abilities was. Right down to the attitude. 'The general will have to investigate and draw up a report on him.' She was impressed.
"Nonsense!" he refuted in a booming voice. "The world's greatest hero is old enough to get any piece of ass he wants." He gave the queen a once over again.
Maxima scoffed, "You are not my type," then turned to concentrate on Thor, leaving behind a bewildered Ben 10.
"What!?"
Wanda coughed, trying to suppress her laugh but Kara outright laughed.
"Ben 10 is everyone's type." He declared, flexing his muscles.
"Go disturb someone else, can't you see we are busy!" Maxima shoved him away. Thor just looked on, not intending to draw more unwanted attention.
"Yeah...well...Ben 10 doesn't want you either." He said, moving to join J'onn's group, who had resumed their discussion.
"When?" He heard Clark inquire.
"Today. Everything has been prepared." Diana answered, giving Ben 10 a once over look now that he was near her. "Him too."
"Me too what?" He said, reciprocating her look while definitely appreciating her regalia.
Diana caught him staring and snapped her fingers in front of his face. "My face is up here."
"Oh, I know." He replied, offering a suggestive smile.
'Whack!!!'
"Ouch." He groaned when Clark slapped the back of his head.
"Focus."
"He's too dumb to focus." Kara retorted in a murmur.
"I forgot you got dibs on that." Ben 10 said absentmindedly while soothing the aching spot, not aware of what he'd just insinuated. "What is it with Kryptonians and hitting me."
"Excuse me?" Diana said, her eyes widening instantly like someone had flipped on a light in a dark room. Clark just stared, caught between disbelief and offense, his lips slightly parted as if words had started forming but couldn't quite make it past the wall of stunned silence.
J'onn and Wanda just looked on while Thor and Maxima paused their discussion and turned to stare at them.
Ben 10 tensed, his 6th sense tingling, and cursed at his unfiltered mouth, "Uh...what did you say about me?" he blatantly assumed his previous statement.
"What did you say?" Diana fully faced him. That was such an outrageous accusation and disrespect towards someone so kind and honest plus he was in a relationship.
Kara, knowing that Ben 10 would just get into more trouble, decided to step in since Clark seemed to be tongue tied at the moment. "You've been invited to Themyscira."
"Me? Why?" He asked, relieved that the stare down was over when Diana faced Kara. She turned to him again and narrowed her eyes. 'He is lucky to be just a child.'
"For aiding Thor in stopping the attack." She said. "The queen is putting together a minor ceremonial feast for you."
The prince of Asgard, having heard the whole thing, walked over to them.
"Sweet!!! When do we leave?" Ben 10 asked, reviewing all his footages of Themyscira.
"Yes, when will it be?" Thor asked, eager to return to the mystical land. He especially wished to learn more about their culture, gods, plus to review their fighting techniques.
"Immediately for whoever agrees."
"We all agree." Maxima spoke up from beside Thor, holding onto his biceps, smiling broadly.
"Not you." Kara said. Her smile did not reach her eyes, it was all teeth and intent, stretched too wide to be anything but mocking.
Maxima's gaze travelled to her, then slowly from head to toe, taking her time, lingering just a second too long on the maroon-red thigh high boots, the outfit, the long blonde hair. Her expression didn't change, but the silence said everything. A flick of an eyebrow then a faint curl of her lip, barely there, but unmistakable. It wasn't curiosity; it was judgment, wrapped in a smile that also didn't quite reach her eyes. When her gaze finally returned to the Kara's face, it was with the kind of dismissive amusement that said, 'That's what you went with?' without ever needing to say a word
"Watch how you address me, little girl." Maxima spat.
Diana clocked Kara's rising anger. "She is right. You are not going." She confirmed, telling Kara to stand down using her intense stare.
The queen was about to complain but Clark's next statement stopped her in her track.
"You are a guest of the earth and not the sovereign nation of Themyscira. Queen Hippolyta, and in extension Princess Diana have the final say."
They all watched her deflate, knowing that her status did not mean anything to the amazons.
"Fine." She conceded then looked up at Thor. "But you don't have to leave immediately, do you?"
"Uh..." Thor stammered, feeling the stares on them. He was man enough to admit to himself that some part of him, a tiny primal part, wanted a repeat of their 'sparring session.' Now that he's experienced unrestricted fucking without holding back, there was no going back to just regular fucking.
Kara nudged Diana's back. "Actually, we do. The Queen is waiting for them."
"What!" Maxima had a good mind to think that the princess, partnered with the kryptonian, had it in for her. "Who am I supposed to talk to with you gone?" She looked between Clark and Thor. "When are you coming back?"
"There's literally an entire watchtower full of heroes." Wanda suggested, earning an eye roll from the queen.
"Boring."
"You could always go back to your planet." Kara mumbled to herself.
"Kara!" Clark warned, knowing she was just goading the queen. Something that could turn violent in an instant.
Maxima looked at her for a moment then smiled and kissed Thor.
"What? Can't I give my lover a proper goodbye?" She said, loving the reactions from everyone, especially Thor, whose lust filled eyes promised to take her right there and then. She really loved being her.
OA
Ever since the destruction of war world, green lanterns from all sectors in the universe found their way back to OA to discuss how their various sectors would be affected. Word had spread that some war lords were consolidating their resources to create a replica of Monguls Empire. This would turn out to be dangerous and costly for the civilians living in the chosen galaxy. Not to mention the violence that would erupt from their competition against each other.
"What the hell is going on here?" they would ask themselves after noticing the umped up security. Which was odd for a planet housing the most elite peacekeeping force in the universe. Several groups of lanterns were constantly patrolling, covering the whole planet while specific buildings were off-limits, two of them being the sanctuary and laboratory.
In the sanctuary, a holographic video depicting the showdown at the fortress of solitude was playing in the middle of the room while a picture of earth was projected beside it. The guardians no longer got surprised by any information they received concerning it, the only other planet apart from Apokolips and war world to cause such a ruckus.
In fact earth, through the kryptonian, was currently more famous than the dark place and the dark lord respectively.
The guardians couldn't bypass the fortress' firewall without setting off alarms so they settled for the overhead feed taken by their long range drones strategically positioned all over earth.
The only intriguing thing from the fight was the presence of the black mercy plant and Ben's more evolved czarnian alien. Both were classified under near extinct species in OAs databases with their scientists not having a chance to conduct extensive research on them.
Queen Maxima's unexpected visit was also being covertly documented by various intergalactic news channels, further solidifying the planets newly acquired reputation. This forced them to hold a meeting just as one of their long range drones picked up on Lobo's space hog breaching earths orbit at top speed, heading for the fortress.
"It is safe to say that Darkseid knows about it." One of them said as he zoomed in on cyborg who was flying above the battlefield, no doubt recording everything.
"It's only a matter of time before Maxima becomes aware of it." The others nodded in agreement.
"It's hard to believe they fended off an attack from Apokolips and Lobo," another pointed out.
"True. The watch turning him into its czarnian was the ace in their sleeve," another replied, a thought crossing his mind. "I didn't know that it took such a short time to process DNA."
"A clone that is no doubt superior to the bounty hunter." The strategist said, slowing down the video when Ben 10 was cloning himself.
"Don't forget those other aliens," another added before Diamondhead and Rath were displayed in separated holograms. "They are capable of keeping up with Apokolips top generals. That is troubling."
The others simply nodded as they watched.
"That is why we need to retrieve and secure the watch immediately. We can't give Darkseid a chance to launch an invasion because of it." The strategist declared flying off his seat and coming to hover at the centre, looking over every one of his brothers.
"We agree with you but it may be easier said than done," one spoke up. "Now he can turn into a Czarnian. How can we restrain him long enough to remove it from his body?"
"How?"
"He's right."
"We can't forget about his other aliens."
"Yes, kryptonian."
"Martian."
The room was filled with worried murmurs.
"Clockwork." That utterance ignited another debate among them.
"Brothers. I understand your concerns." The strategist raised his voice above theirs. The room quieted down.
"It's more than concern. What will stop him from turning to Clockwork and simply jumping to a time before we made our move?"
"Yes."
"Exactly."
"Precisely."
"That would be very dangerous to us since he will know when and how we take the watch from him."
"That doesn't make sense." The strategist said, looking at the one who commented, "How will he know when we take it, if we are successful?"
"True, but how sure are you that it has not yet happened?" another challenged. The others simply nodded, thinking about it.
The strategist wasn't sure. He couldn't be sure, but he knew for a fact that they would not fail. His plans never failed.
"I know. Let us stop talking about time." He advised. Those that do, usually ended up confused and paranoid. "Let me tell you what I am sure of. That watch is too powerful to be left at the hands of that earthling. Especially now that Darkseid knows about it while the rest of the universe is focused on earth."
Everyone stared at him in silence, their eyes following his every move across the room while interacting with the holograms.
"You keep saying that yet you haven't revealed how you intend to acquire it from him," another pointed out, much to the others agreement.
"How can we trust your plan when we don't know what it is?" another asked.
Over the millennium, they never bothered with any of his plannings because they always turned out successful, but this was a different case. One wrong move and they could end up with Ben, the avengers, and the Justice league as enemies. Not to mention having a falling out with Hal and some of the lanterns.
Feeling their sense of doubt, he decided it was time to unveil his master plan before he lost their support since it only took one of them to disagree with it for it to be vetoed.
"Follow me." He announced, heading out as the rest flew out of their seats before forming a line.
The strategist led them to his personal laboratory where a green beam shot out from the reinforced door and scanned him twice. The two scientists inside got startled and rushed from their work stations to meet them just beyond the entrance.
"Why have you never informed us that you've made such a significant progress in your projects?" one asked, as they looked around the lab. They knew of its existence but were only aware of a few of the projects.
The strategist did not answer him and led them to the centre of the room where a humanoid android was laying on top of a raised green platform with cables attached all over it.
Every guardian gasped, shocked, and surprised when they figured out what it was. Some hovered higher to get a good look at it.
They saw an android resembling a tall, muscular bare-chested human man, with minor differences such as pointed ears and a lack of eyebrows or nipples. Its face was stern, with chiselled cheeks, a square jaw, and a narrow, aquiline nose. Most of its outer surface was formed from un-textured metallic segments with visible joints and edges. The segments resembled exposed skin (its face, arms, neck and chest) were pale grey; the crown of its head was orange to imitate close-cropped hair; segments resembling clothing (its legs and bands around its wrists) were coloured dark green. Its eyes were red.
"What have you done!" one exclaimed.
"I thought we destroyed every trace of it."
"Obviously not."
"This is unacceptable."
They argued amongst themselves because all the schematics detailing how to recreate amazo had been destroyed. At least that was what Hal assured them the Justice league had done.
The scientists, the weapons of Qward, stood behind the strategist, nervous while also in awe from seeing them up close. When they had been scouted and recruited by him from their world, it was an honour for them to be working for a good cause since Qward was sort of infamous. So the guardians reactions confused them. 'Didn't they know?' they thought.
This android was the most advanced and sophisticated machine they had ever built, which said something since their race was known for creating the yellow lantern rings.
The strategist waited till they had all calmed down. "This is how we get the omnitrix."
"It is too dangerous." Another refuted. "Do you not recall how amazo turned out?"
"Yes! Professor Ivo's artificial intelligence was corrupted by the power it gained from the Justice league." Another said as he examined the inactive android, tracing his small fingers on the lanterns emblem on its chest.
"It was not advanced enough." The strategist revealed.
"What?"
"Can you compare professor Ivo's Artificial Intelligence to ours?" He asked them.
"No, but still..."
The others kept quiet, thinking about it.
"We are the most advanced race in the universe, and so is our technology." The strategist said. "We can develop contingencies should it attempt to evolve. I... I mean we..." He gestured to the weapons, "have made sure that any power it replicates is not permanently gained. I see no other way to efficiently retrieve the omnitrix."
They all stared down at it in contemplation, weighing the pros against the cons.
"Won't it replicate the omnitrix?" one asked.
"I take it this is the exact duplicate from Ivo?" another asked.
"Yes it is." He answered. "If it does, we can use it to study the watch plus any alien he turns into won't be able to overwhelm it." The guardians nodded in understanding, looking at each other, some of them engrossed in a mental discussion.
"Can I ask how you came about a copy of the schematic?"
"No you my not." The strategist answered, waiting for their decision.
"It seems we have no choice." One said, and the others nodded. "I take it you need our help to activate and configure it."
The strategist nodded. "It's the only thing that remains. We can also set up the various contingencies."
"Very well."
One by one, the guardians shut their eyes, levitated off the floor and started meditating. A green hue extended from each of them to the Android which started powering up, its eyes glowing green. The scientists stared, awe struck to be witnessing the guardians doing their thing.
Mount Olympus.
The Kings palace, located atop the tallest mountain was a majestic and awe-inspiring master-piece, built from gleaming white marble and gold, shining brightly in the divine sunlight. Columns rose high into the clouds, and everything radiated a sense of divine power and permanence.
The sky around it was clear, with a golden aura. The air filled with the scent of ambrosia and the sound of soft, divine music.
Surrounding the palace were lush, magical gardens with ever-blooming flowers, sacred trees, and fountains flowing with nectar and ambrosia.
Zeus's throne room was situated at the heart of the palace. His throne, strategically placed inside the room, was massive, carved from gold and adorned with eagles and thunderbolts, his sacred symbols.
The king of the old gods, sat on it, thinking over everything he had recently discovered and done. All guards stationed in the palace had been relieved from their posts till such a time he'd instruct otherwise.
He did not trust anyone, not since he discovered his two sons working together. One, a master at manipulation and the other, a master at craftsmanship.
Tapping into his magic, he waved his hand and something that looked like a hologram appeared in front of him. It started displaying everything that happened from the time Thor and Hippolyta arrived in Themyscira. He was equally proud and angry at his son for being the inventor of such a powerful yet dangerous machine like the annihilator, especially using it against his people.
'He'll get a pass for now,' he thought. This was due to it being the reason the omnitrix was brought to his attention.
He watched Blaze's arrival through the dense magic surrounding the island. According to Hippolyta, he was a copy of Thor, the asgardian, who was still too young to matter to him.
Blaze on the other hand, was a different story, since he could feel his presence every time the human turned into him. He continued watching.
Earlier, after departing from his sons layer, he went to his brothers realm to pay him an overdue visit. Poseidon was surprised because for millennia, they had never physically seen each other and used projections whenever any urgent matter arose. Nonetheless, he was welcomed.
After catching up on the normal stories regarding the cosmos, Zeus broached the subject about Thor being in their midst.
Poseidon claimed he was aware. Zeus wasn't surprised by that. His brother further explained that he occasionally sensed the divine presence but not of the actual entity.
They discussed, trying to find out which cosmic being could be responsible for violating the existing cosmic laws. All signs pointed to the recently discovered new gods, specifically Darkseid, the most powerful among them. They reasoned his insane search for the anti life equation while messing about with cosmic antiques must have ripped some barriers between the universes, causing unfathomed changes to theirs. Case in point the hulk, an unknown being to them, destroying war world, something necessary for their universe.
Poseidon also pointed out that any cosmic being with enough power could be easily responsible.
Zeus considered it, but dismissed that theory because there was no record of any active cosmic being. Those that were taught to him by his father were all trapped inside the source wall. He did not tell him about the omnitrix.
His next stop was New Genesis.
The High Father expressed similar concerns to them and even backed up their notion that Darkseid might be behind it all. His reason was that the dark lord increased the rate of his invasions of the lesser worlds which could only mean he was preparing for something. They didn't know what it was. Even his spies in apokolips were in the dark. In matters concerning Blaze and Thor, the high father didn't want any part of it, since whoever made it possible for them to cross into their universe was no doubt keeping tabs on them. He even joked that the 'powers at be' could be introducing a new kind of deity.
That take away was stuck at the forefront of his thoughts. 'Is it possible that a different kind of deity was evolving just the way the technologically advanced new gods had made a sudden appearance all those eons ago?'
He watched how Ben easily changed to different aliens, each with their own ability. Something that made the amazon populace think it was Thor's presence that had blessed their land.
He didn't flinch or acknowledge his wife who materialised into the room in a bright white flash of light. She was the only one who could find a way passed his magical barriers.
The king put up another magical hologram displaying the doomsday fight. Now that he knew about it, his concentration was fixed on Supreme.
The queen sauntered over to her husband and sat beside him on her throne. She watched the holograms for a couple of minutes before her gaze travelled sideways. Zeus had never taken this much interest in the affairs of mortals, especially since she received word from Poseidon and High fathers wives of his unexpected visit.
Every god stayed within their realms, no matter what.
"Is all this about the prince of asgard?" she asked as the video, in a loop, showed him fighting the annihilator. Zeus didn't answer her.
"Is that why I don't get to see any of my children?"
Zeus gave her a peripheral glance. "What do you mean?"
"This," she pointed to the projections, "is all Ares and Hephaestus watch all day. They think they're being subtle by keeping quiet whenever I am around." Aphrodite had also unknowingly complained to her that both of them didn't obsessively fawn over her anymore.
She sensed Zeus attention draw back to the projection. "Why are you all so worried? I doubt he is a danger to any of us."
"Don't you have anything to do other than bother me?" Zeus said, agitated, bringing up another hologram of Ben in team arrows bunker. His idea of setting up surveillance in the lair was brilliant. It was a good thing his divine power was leagues above his children's.
Hera rolled her eyes and watched the new projection, everyone was dismissing her. Her eyes widened in shock when she saw the frightened look on her son's face while confronting whatever the shape shifter had turned into. The only thing visible was the back of its helmeted head.
"How can Ares be afraid of that human?" she asked when he teleported out of there. Zeus was the only one to ever invoke such a reaction from the god of war. Hera extended her arm and gestured to the hologram, restarting it.
'So that's why he teamed up with him,' Zeus thought. The son he had raised and mentored into his role as the god of war would have never willingly asked his brother for help. "Whatever it is must have clearly outmatched him."
"That's no excuse!" Hera shouted, "Ares is The God of War! My son!"
"You mean your favourite son?" He knew of her favouritism. How else would she explain not condemning him for sleeping with his brothers wife.
It was Hera's turn to ignore him. "How can a shape shifter scare him so easily!"
Zeus let her rant while replaying the hologram as much as she wanted. She thought back to her recent encounters with him. "That is why he has been so jumpy lately."
Zeus shrugged.
"How can you be so calm! Anything that threatens Ares, can cause us problems." She said angrily, fully turned to look at her husband.
"I know that." Zeus said and sighed, the last thing he wanted was Hera to go about telling everyone about it. "I am looking into it."
The queen glared at him, then turned to look at the other holograms. The shape shifter was in every single one of them. "It is not the asgardian you are concerned about. It's him."
"Now will you leave me alone? I can't protect your child if you keep on disrupting me." Zeus said, drawing her attention.
"Don't worry. I can handle a mere human." She said, standing up to leave but discovered that she could not teleport. She tried again, the same result. She looked to her husband, who staring at her intently.
"You will not interfere in matters you do not know or that which does not concern you!" he ordered, his eyes sparking, the air around them charged up.
Hera glared. "Let me go! Now!!!"
"I forbid you to interfere!" Zeus reiterated, standing up to tower over her. "If you do, I will punish Ares and Hephaestus for a millennium for attacking Themyscira," he pointed to the annihilator.
Zeus' declaration just confirmed what she had been suspecting ever since the attack. She knew her husband well enough to know he would carry out his threat, so she backed down. "Fine."
Zeus sensing her resolve, unsealed the palace and she disappeared in a flash of bright white light. He sat back down and brought up a live hologram of Themyscira. His wife's confrontation had unwittingly started a countdown for his plans since she would no doubt find a loophole to intervene in the matter.
He leaned back, a satisfied grin on his face when he saw that everything was ready for the celebration and his youngest daughter had also returned home safe. Thinking of her and the princess, he smiled. His legacy would no doubt carry on forever among the earthlings.
He used his magic to zero in on Diana's unique signature and put up a hologram to display her whereabouts. His already beaming smile, broadened at the sight of her in the embassy alongside the required guests.
Themyscira.
Diana emerged from the portal followed by Clark, Thor, Ben, and Kara to find Cate and a few warriors waiting for them, each carrying a beautiful bouquet.
Cate rushed forward, closing the space between them and wrapped her friend up in a fierce hug. "I missed you so much!"
Kara smiled, "I missed you too." She was looking at the amazons, specifically their attire. She now understood why Diana was so comfortable dressed as she did.
"What about me?"
Cate glanced over her shoulder, turning to the voice. "Why would I hug you?"
"Coz you missed me..?" Ben replied, smiling.
"Yeah...no." Cate said, then grabbed a hold of Kara's hand and led her out of the room, following the others.
"How rude!" Ben said, walking out. There was something different. He studied the amazons posted along the corridors. There were more than he had seen on his last visit, plus all were clad in full warrior armour.
Walking out of the exit, his eyes widened at the sight that befell them. Amazon warriors stood in two disciplined rows facing each other, forming a corridor. As Diana, Thor, Clark, Cate and Kara were walking through, the warriors drew their swords in unison with practiced precision. Then, in a coordinated movement, they raised their swords high overhead, crossing the blades with the warrior opposite them, forming a gleaming arch of steel.
In his glitching HUD, Trixx had some kind of explanation that the raised swords symbolized readiness, strength, and protection, but their non-threatening posture...held high and away...signified peace and reverence.
The clinking of steel, the synchronized motion, and the solemn expressions of the warriors all contributed to a powerful, almost sacred atmosphere, as the honoured person, no doubt Thor, walked through the steel corridor with dignity.
Ben guessed with him being a seasoned warrior, he was used to such displays. The only other person remotely impressed as he was, looked to be Kara who paid mild attention to whatever Cate was telling her.
They were led to the royal palace where the queen was waiting patiently at the entrance that turned out to be the end of the warriors line up.
"Welcome to Themyscira." Hippolyta said, stepping forward to meet them, happy that her daughter was successful.
Thor managed a crooked smile, half in admiration, half in disbelief, and muttered the only thing he could manage: "Wow..." he wasn't sure if it was her attire, the way she carried herself...or all of it...but something about her hit deeper than it should have. It disarmed him.
"I mean... Your Majesty." Thor said, as Philipus raised an eyebrow at his behaviour.
Clark subtly bowed, his eyes looking around in interest, then settled on the queen. He was now convinced they went all out for Thor's visit unlike his.
Diana, who was walking ahead with the god of thunder, also looked at him then at her mother, giving her a once over since she had never seen her current regalia before.
Atop the queens brow sat a finely wrought golden tiara, more than just ornament...it was a symbol of ruler ship and divinity. Forged from a sacred metal gifted by the gods, gleaming with a soft, ethereal light just like her tiara and bracelets. The front was shaped into a stylized star or eagle's wings, representing Amazonian freedom and divine right. Subtle engravings along its edges depicted the sun, moon, and stars, a nod to the Amazons' bond with celestial forces. Diana was sure the tiara could turn into a sharpened weapon, capable of being hurled with precision when in battle.
Her hair, thick and dark as obsidian, flowed in waves down her back, catching the wind like a banner. Her face was framed with natural strength, cheekbones high, eyes steady and commanding, lined with a touch of kohl to enhance their intensity. A golden circlet was wrapped around her forehead. Her upper body was protected by a form-fitted cuirass made of gold, and enchanted Amazonian metal, sculpted with elegant lines that accentuated her strength and femininity. A rich crimson cloak flowed from her shoulders, fastened with lion-headed clasps. On her forearms she wore bracers of polished metal, known not just for defence but as sacred relics which sparked with divine energy, reminders of her people's pact with the gods. Around her waist, she wore her famous Girdle, a wide, jewel-encrusted belt, said to grant divine strength, leadership, and unshakable will. Her lower garment consisted of a layered skirt made of armoured strips, while the panels were embossed with scenes of Amazon victories, flowing like feathers in motion. Her legs were shielded by golden greaves, custom-fitted and engraved with vines, waves, and lightning bolts.. symbols of nature, wisdom, and divine wrath. She wore leather boots reinforced with bronze and strapped at her side was her sword, forged by Hephaestus himself, its blade gleamed with a bluish tint that whispered of divine fire. Her shield, round or slightly oval, bore the sigil of Themyscira, a stylized phoenix. She also carried a staff topped with a sun disk or winged emblem, symbolizing her rule.
"I have heard so much about you." The queen said when it was Kara's turn to greet her.
"Thank you for inviting me." She replied, smiling, not being able to look away from her intense gaze.
The queen nodded and turned to Ben, then looked at his watch. "No surprise today?"
"Nope." He replied, coming to stand beside them.
"Thank you all for honouring my impromptu invite to our home," She stated, "Please, this way." She gestured to the palace entrance and they followed.
The team went on to meet the members of the council who concentrated on conversing with Thor more than any of them. Thor, not a stranger to such attention, humoured them with stories of his family members, the golden city of Asgard and the great battles he has fought in. He also described to them how his people perceived Themyscira while some of them tried but failed to lift Miljonir.
Clark on the other hand, was cornered by the queen and the general, then pulled aside from everyone. There, the queen insisted he narrate everything that happened in War world because neither of her daughter's gave her a comprehensive report. The man of steel tried to signal for Diana's help but she merely shook her head, leaving him to deal with her mother on his own. Any time he purposely avoided explaining something, the queens hand would brush past her sword making his gaze land on it. Clark was sure it was magical which meant it could cause a lot of harm to him.
Phillipus subtly smiled every time the queen silently threatened him and was satisfied that the kryptonian was smart enough to see it. She felt sorry for him because the queen would milk every detail out of him, something that she couldn't do with her children.
Across the room, Cate, Kara and Ben were knee deep in an argument about what really happened in the fortress concerning the unexpected visitors. Ben brought up how he had single handedly saved them all but Cate didn't believe him and sided with Kara when she mentioned how obnoxious Ben 10 was, just like the original bounty hunter.
Kara had even dared him to turn into Ben 10 so as to prove her wrong but Ben knew that she was baiting him, something that Trixx warned him in bold letters on his HUD. His refusal led to the ladies criticising him more than before, thus making him glad when Cate asked him about the annihilator. That was another topic that furthered their argument. Cate insisted the indestructible machine was 'not that powerful' because there wasn't any evidence of the battle. Again, Ben tried his best to defend against their snide remarks, but he was getting fed up of them. It was one thing to argue with Kara but when he added Cate to the mix, they dismantled any form of defence or retort he could come up with, which reminded him of the times Gwen teamed up with Julie against him.
He'd had enough and told them he could prove how strong the annihilator was, but only where they had fought it. He planned to use clock work to make them witness it first hand. This caught their interest and they agreed.
Cate went over to her mother, who was now interrogating Clark and Diana, and informed her that she was taking Kara and Ben on a tour of Themyscira before the official start of the celebrations. The queen quickly agreed and tuned back to her two captives whose reports were contradicting each other. "Not on our holy grounds," was the only directive she gave her.
The committee were also still engrossed in conversation with Thor, not paying attention to anything else, thus they didn't see when the three sneaked out of the palace.
"It's so peaceful." Kara said, looking around as they made their way to the forest through the footpaths. She didn't need to fine tune her enhanced hearing because the only sounds reverberating through the island apart from the amazons, were of the ocean waves crashing onto the shore and that of the various birds chirping about, both therapeutic.
Ben in his normal form couldn't tell the difference but he knew how significant it was from his time as Blaze.
"I know, right." Cate agreed, "It's one of the things I would miss when in your world."
Kara nodded, "the fortress tries but you can still pick up on some things."
"True, I believe it's because of the heavy god magic around the island. It dampens your senses." Ben spoke up.
"How do you know that?" Cate asked, glancing sideways at him then at his watch. She still couldn't wrap her mind on how it kept turning him into Supreme and those other aliens.
"He doesn't coz it's not him answering. It is Trixx." Kara said, focusing past the trees. Her x-ray vision could not penetrate most structures but she could see what looked to be a medium sized colosseum where some warriors looked to be sparring. Everyone in the island was dressed up for the occasion.
"The watch?"
"No it's not. I thought that's Kryptonian powers 101." Ben shrugged, "can't believe you didn't know."
"Of course I knew! Who do you think updates the watchtowers database about Kryptonian stuff?"
"Batman?" "Superman?" Ben and Cate replied simultaneously.
"Superman makes a lot of sense," he corrected, thinking back to the time Trixx was resetting the entire leagues server. She discovered that everyone apart from the dark knight had some kind of profile in the bat caves database but not the watchtower's. "I doubt batman is the sharing type."
"Unbelievable! So that's what everyone thinks?" Kara said. "He gets credit for everything."
"You can't blame him. He's 'Superman'," Cate said absentmindedly, deep in thought then smiled. From everything Diana told her about him plus what she read, Superman was 'Superman', no other way to describe him.
"What's that supposed to mean!?" Kara stopped walking and turned to look at her.
Cate checked her smile immediately and stepped back, "what?"
"He's 'Superman'." Ben reiterated.
"I know his name. What do you mean that he's 'superman'" She air quoted and mimicked the tone they were using.
"What? You're the one who's complaining he gets all the credit. I just told you why." Cate said, not knowing her bluntness was not helping.
Ben, now knowing the signs of an angry Kara, chipped in, "he's a hero."
"I am also a hero. You are also a hero. Diana is also a hero." She gestured back to the palace.
"I know but he is 'The hero'," Ben tried again, "you wouldn't get it." He added when he saw her expression. He figured Clark was viewed as the ultimate hero on earth just like he was on his. Most of the times during the plumber missions, Gwen and Kevin 11's saves, were constantly added to his own even if he was absent at the time. The people's perception of him was borderline divinity.
"He's right. You won't get it." Cate said, then looked around. "How far into the forest do we have to go? Not every part is safe." She warned, thinking of the mystical creatures that never appreciated being disturbed.
Kara huffed and continued walking just as a loud crack of thunder assaulted the clear sunny sky. They all looked up but the enormous tree canopies shielded the sky from their gaze.
'Weird.'
"Not far now." He replied. Trixx, having mapped it out earlier, indicated they were almost arriving, then his HUD started glitching severely.
He stopped walking. 'What's wrong?' he asked Trixx, whose voice was stuttering, incoherently.
The girls stopped a couple of metres in front and turned to look at him. "He's talking to her." Kara told Cate, watching the intense gaze in his eyes.
"The watch?"
Kara nodded, turning to continue walking. "He usually does that."
On his HUD, 'System malfunctioning', was displayed as Trixx was trying to conduct an extensive scan on her systems.
"Something is..." He didn't get to complete the sentence because he froze on the spot just like the two girls had in front of him.
In fact everything on Themyscira remained motionless, including the ocean, wind and clouds within the magical barrier. Everyone in the palace stood still, stuck in place, some in mid-sentence, some in the process of laughing while some were half way in motion. Nothing moved. Themyscira was in a statis force field.
Zeus materialised next to Ben in a flash of bright white light, his gaze moving from him to the two girls: his daughter and the kryptonian. Lifting off the ground, he levitated closer to Ben, the difference in their height evident and glaring.
'A child possesses the watch?' he thought, surprised as he looked down at him.
Ben's body levitated up, coming to a stop at eye level with him. The hand holding the omnitrix raised itself up and Zeus focussed on it. His magic feelers moved over the watch in an attempt to figure it out.
The whole area was illuminated by two other flashes of bright white light. The two figures took some seconds to scan the surrounding area.
"I knew you were up to something."
Zeus' focus on the watch didn't waiver. "And I ordered you not to interfere."
"An order you knew I wouldn't abide by," She retorted, then both goddesses flew over to him.
"I can't believe she's grown this much." Aphrodite said, circling the two girls, studying them. "It was only yesterday I saw her in her crib." She smiled, satisfied that some of her divine gifts to Cate was visible, just like her sister. She gave Kara a once over, and just like Superman, she admitted that they had near perfect genes, evidenced by her perfect proportional features. One might mistake her to be an amazon.
Hera assumed Aphrodite's remarks and hovered beside her husband, "What are you waiting for?"
Zeus ignored her, still keeping an arms length away from Ben, pondering on how to remove the watch without it activating. His plan that he technically overheard from Hephaestus, comprised of disabling the watch using magic which seemed to have worked.
"What do you want?" Zeus asked, turning to look at her.
"I want to know how you will take that watch away from him." Hera said, looking at Ben then the omnitrix, then her husband. Aphrodite had also come closer and was looking at both of them, especially Zeus whose face contorted in shock.
"How..?"
"You're not the only one who can get things done." She replied, vaguely.
Earlier, after their encounter, she had tracked down Ares to Hephaestus lair, where she demanded to know why a god of war, their future king, ran away from a mortal shape shifter. There, she noticed her husband was spying on them, increasing her curiosity, thus she forced them to tell her whatever was going on with the mortal world to gain Zeus' full attention. It came as a shock to her that the omnitrix was at the centre of everything while the two gods tensed that their father was aware of what they were doing. Aphrodite decided that joining her on whatever she was doing was better than getting bored in Olympus.
"That watch can be used against us." Hephaestus, her gifted son, had told her, and it was the only thing she could think about.
"It's not that easy." Zeus said, his gaze moving back to the omnitrix, his magic feelers still trying to find a weak spot. He now knew the watch was more connected to him than normal gadgets did to humans. Removing it would mean they sacrifice the child's life.
"For gods sake." Hera said, tired of waiting around and snapped her fingers in order to teleport the watch to her.
"No! Don't!" Zeus thundered, knowing she was about to do something stupid, but he was too late, evidenced by the human disappearing in a flash of green light.
Aphrodite's eyes widened in shock and interest while Hera looked at her empty hand in confusion.
Zeus watched every move Blaze made, recognizing the familiar god presence he had been feeling ever since the human could turn into an asgardian. No sooner had he transformed, than the hold his god magic had over him was cut, replaced by his own, which enveloped him in some kind of protective barrier. His aura was somehow similar to the old god, Apollo.
Ben brought his hands in front of his face, surprised to see he had turned to Blaze. 'Weird,' he thought. His asgardian senses and magic tingled, a warning to the heavy god magic surrounding him, in extension the island. In his HUD, Trixx was checking her systems while she warned him of an unknown source that tried to remove the omnitrix.
Looking around, he noticed Kara and Cate were frozen on the spot, held down by thick currents of magic. His gaze moved to the two goddesses, the most beautiful women he had ever seen, who were just staring at him. Trixx could not identify any of them. He noticed Zeus, towering over him with an aura so potent that his senses severely acted up while Trixx's HUD became static when she tried to scan him.
"Who the fuck are you!?" Blaze demanded, just as the words, Upgraded catalogued alien DNA detected...preparing to scan... flashed in his HUD.
'Shit! Not now!' He cursed, as he put up his guard watching them watch him.
The watch's ambience turned orange, its capture mode overriding everything, including it's weakness to magic.
Zeus' senses started acting up the moment the omnitrix turned orange. Having seen how the human scanned his son, he put up a strong magic barrier in front of him when an orange beam of light shot forward to scan him. The beam passed through the barrier, albeit distorted, but Zeus was quick enough to teleport Kara in front of him just for it to extend in length towards him. Zeus waved his hand, sending Blaze crashing head first into a huge tree a few metres away.
The King of the Old gods watched as Blaze picked himself up, then take off at super speed towards him.
After a second of thought, he teleported away, leaving Blaze to stand in his place, panic evident on his face.
Kara and Cate continued walking for a few seconds before turning to stare mouth agape at the goddesses, who were also staring at Blaze levitating at the spot where Zeus had been standing, clearly surprised.
"Hera...!" Cate whispered in awe before regaining her composure and quickly bowing down.
Kara guessed that they were deities because of her friend's behaviour plus the unexplainable divine aura surrounding them.
"Did that child just turn into a demi god?" Aphrodite asked, never taking her eyes off Ben. "And did Zeus just ran away from a mortal?" She was confused. 'What the hell?'
Hera didn't answer. She was processing the fact that the watch just tried to scan her husband, the most powerful old god in existence, which could have been a problem. Not to mention her divine powers had not worked on it. 'Impossible.'
'Scan failed...omnitrix shut down imminent.' Flashed on his HUD, while he hovered about.
"Fuck!!!" Blaze cursed, then he saw the girls bow down from the corner of his eyes.
He followed their line of sight and saw the two striking goddesses looking at him. 'What about their DNA?' He didn't have the time to be surprised or fawn over their divine beauty.
'Inferior compared to his. The omnitrix will shut down if the upgraded sample isn't retrieved.' Trixx said as most of her systems were still frozen.
'How am I supposed to know where he disappeared to?'
'Follow him.' She replied.
'Omnitrix shut down imminent...' continued flashing in his HUD.
'Don't you think I tried that?" He said. He wasn't powerful enough to reopen the rift Zeus had used but he could feel it.
'Try this one,' Trixx suggested and Ben disappeared in a flash of bright green light.
"What the...!" Aphrodite exclaimed, her eyes widening instantly as if trying to drink in what she was seeing but unable to believe it.
In Blaze's place stood a tall and broad-shouldered man, his physique sculpted like that of a perfect warrior; muscular, lean, and powerful, built for battle. His skin was sun-bronzed, hinting at countless days under the open sky of the battlefield. His eyes were piercing, a reflection of rage, pride, and the thirst for combat.
His face was striking and symmetrical, with sharp cheekbones and a strong jawline, crowned by a war-hardened expression. His brown, shoulder-length hair flowed freely, dancing against the wind currents.
His armour gleamed with divine brilliance, crafted from celestial bronze, themed colour green and white in distinct places. His breastplate was adorned with engravings of battles, the omnitrix symbol, and monstrous figures; toe pick's helmeted head, ghost freak, meant to intimidate. Around his waist hung a thick leather war belt, holding his deadly weapon, an impossibly sharp scythe.
His presence was accompanied by a thick, unnatural silence.
"Is that..?" Aphrodite looked to Hera, unable to believe what she was seeing. His potent aura, dark borderline malevolent, caused her breath to hitch though she didn't know why. His armour looked all too familiar to that of her lover yet slightly different. Her senses also clocked him as a god, but had trouble pin pointing how powerful he may be.
Ben's instinct made him retrieve the scythe from his waist and was pleasantly surprised by its weight and the engravings on its handle. He brought it forward and sliced open a rift in space where Zeus had used to teleport out of there. When it was big enough, he stepped in and the rift closed back up, leaving his audiences stunned, too shocked to speak. The birds started chirping again, the unnatural silence dissipating with his absence.
Hera couldn't believe what she just witnessed. Regaining her composure, she got a hold of Aphrodite's hand then teleported out of there.
"What the hell!" Kara spoke up after a while, concerned, because whatever Ben just transformed into was... she couldn't explain it. What she knew was that she did not like it.
She looked up, her enhanced hearing picking up movement, to see Clark and Diana touch down in front of them, followed by Thor.
Hephaestuslair.
A rift tore through the air before Ben walked out of it, causing a gust of wind to rush in every direction. He stood in there for a minute, looking at the scythe in his hand, then his body. He grinned, excited and overflowing with his recently discovered powers:
The super strength and spatial manipulation that he was forced to use to pry open the rift into the layer since it initially refused to grant him access through teleportation.
He levitated off the ground to hover higher in the air. 'Of course I can fly!'
'Omnitrix shut down imminent' Flashed in front of his HUD, breaking him from his thoughts.
"Damn!" He cursed, and surveyed around the dark lair shrouded in shadows and lit only by the hellish glow of molten lava. The air was thick with smoke which was not a problem for him or his enhanced vision. The more he fined tuned his senses, the more they tingled.
"I know you're here." He said, to no one in particular but looking in a specific direction.
"Fascinating!"
He turned to the voice and saw Zeus standing with Ares and Hephaestus some distance away. "He could tell we are here!" Hephaestus continued, intrigued that unlike them, Ben was able to sense his father despite trying not to be sensed.
He moved forward to a flaming forge to check on it, "Brother, are you seeing this? He's you!!!" he chuckled, the frown on Ares face deepening as his anger rose.
"Impossible." Zeus said, observing Ben. His senses noted he was an olympian god and his aura, though similar to his sons, was more potent and slightly different. Darker, if he were to label it. His gaze travelled to the scythe in his hand.
"He's nothing like me! Just a pathetic imitation!" Ares bellowed, but inwardly he was tense. The only difference between them was their facial structure, and parts of his regalia.
"I doubt that." Hephaestus said. None of the old gods was capable sensing Zeus when he didn't want to be discovered. That alone told them how powerful he was, plus they had just seen how he literally cut his way into his overprotected lair. Ben was an unknown olympian god so his protective spells ought to have hindered his entrance.
"I'll kill him myself!" Ares started forward but found he couldn't move. Confused, he looked up at his father whose attention was solely on Ben.
Ben's brow furrowed, "what did I ever do to you guys?"
'I believe he is threatened by your presence.' Trixx stated.
"I'm not here to cause any trouble." his base voice reverberated throughout the layer.
"Then why would a mortal trespass into divine territory?" Hephaestus asked.
"Coz he forced me to. Plus I'm pretty sure I'm just as 'divine' as you guys right now." Ben pointed to Zeus, whose eyes sparked white and he found himself hurled against the rocky wall, held in place by an unknown powerful force. He tried moving using all the strength he could master, but it was futile.
"A mere mortal talking back to gods!!!" Zeus bellowed, steadily increasing the force pinning him against the wall. "You may have cloned my son, but I am the King of all olympian gods! You'd be wise to remember that!" Zeus thunderous voice boomed, the mortals over confidence and nonchalant attitude irking him.
"That... is why I have to get your DNA." Ben stammered, the force holding him too much for his body.
"I am afraid we cannot allow that." Hephaestus said, giddy that the omnitrix was finally in his lair.
"Let me dismember him into little pieces." Ares said, a wicked expression on his face. "It doesn't matter if he's hidden the watch for now, I'm sure it will turn up once it needs a new host."
"I remember you. The last time we met you ran away before I could kick your ass." Ben saw his furious glare directed at him. "What? Ran to daddy like the scared little shit you are." He taunted.
"I'll show you!" Ares bellowed, before a sword that his brother was working on shot forward and impaled him to the wall.
Ben shouted in pain as blood spurt out from his mouth, the forces holding him in place dissipated from his abrupt surge in adrenaline. His hands reached for the tilt and pulled the sword out of his right chest and dropped it onto the ground. The wound started healing albeit slowly. Looking down at the sword, his blood was sizzling on the stainless steel, quickly evaporating into the air.
"If I had enough time, I would have loved to kick all your egotistical asses, but I got something to do." With that, he charged at them, but Zeus waved his hand and he was driven back then held in place by an unknown force again.
"Damn it." He could see the omnitrix warnings speed up, meaning the watch was almost out of commission.
In a flash of green light, he transformed into Blaze, easily breaking out of the hold, and charged, not giving Zeus a chance to acclimate to asgardian magic.
Ares, wanting to conquer his fear of him and the watch, met Blaze head on in a punch that created a powerful shockwave, toppling most of the things in the lair. They were thrown apart but quickly charged at each other again.
Zeus' eyes sparked as he lifted up his hand before a shot of lightning bolt struck Blaze, sending him back violently.
"This is my fight! My watch!" Ares stopped and shouted at his father, the short fight massively fuelling his war empowerment.
With a snap of his fingers, he teleported Ares out of the lair then turned to Hephaestus, who was holding some kind of crystal and the sword that had impaled Blaze. He nodded his head. Hephaestus started chanting.
Blaze shot up, his armour singed, and charged at Zeus, extending his omnitrix hand forward.
A portal opened behind him, halting his motion then began sucking him into it. Nothing in the lair was affected. Only Blaze, who was now unleashing all his strength to push forward towards Zeus.
The king of the old gods, stood his ground, watching the mortal slowly loose to the portals power.
'You will have to scan him remotely. There is no other way!' Blaze's eyes became fiery while his whole body was instantly covered in flames. Slowly but surely he was gaining ground, moving forward inch by inch.
Zeus looked at his son and saw he had started straining, while the gap between Blaze and the portal started manifesting a black hole.
Blaze transformed in a flash of green light then faster than the portal could suck him in, he used his scythe to rip a hole just before he got sucked in.
Zeus, slightly surprised by that, reacted too late when he appeared behind him, using the speed the portal was dragging him by to spear into his back head first. Zeus tanked the hit.
His eyes sparked and am enormous lightning bolt struck Ben, loosening his grip before throwing him into the portal which closed immediately then Zeus snapped his fingers and the miniature black hole vanished.
They had decided to imprison Ben until such a time Hephaestus could find a way to remove the watch from him.
"Such a fascinating mortal, don't you think father?" Hephaestus asked, snapping his fingers returning everything the way it was before the commotion. "Will it hold him?"
"For his own sake, it should." 'Otherwise I will be forced to kill him' was left unsaid.
"What about mother and Ares?"
"Leave them to me. I want that watch. Either find a way to remove it or destroy it." He ordered, having seen just how powerful and threatening it could be to his rule. Should it be able to clone him, all the gods would be in danger.
"No! No! No! No! No! No! No! No! You're spoiling everything!" a squeaky voice interrupted them.
They turned to see a small, imp-like figure, barely over 3 feet tall, with a compact, wiry frame and exaggerated, cartoonish features. His appearance walked the line between whimsical and unnerving, like a living caricature sprung from Ares imagination.
"Why did you have to go do that! Now I'm surely going to lose the bet!" it lamented flying about in the lair.
"Who are you!" "How did you get in here?" Zeus and Hephaestus asked simultaneously, they had never seen such a creature before.
The king of Olympus could tell that despite its comical size and appearance, its eyes portrayed immense power, ancient, and unpredictable.
"I can't believe you just did that." It repeated shaking its head, then flew to the spot where the portal had formed and started looking around. "Now I have to choose another one! What a shame."
"What are you talking about?" Hephaestus asked, cautious. He couldn't sense anything from it, not even its life force or aura. It was like it appeared out of thin air.
It turned to look at them, then grinned, "Ulp! If I tell you that... I won't have the greatest-all-time-saps to play around with anymore! What a horrible thought!"
Zeus, faster than he had ever moved, shot the most powerful lightning bolt he had ever conjured at the intruder knowing a half assed strike won't do.
The imp was struck, electrocuted and exploded in a fiery display releasing a powerful concussive force that trembled the entire mountain housing the lair.
"Pesky creatures." Zeus said, disdain hinting at his voice.
"What was that?" Hephaestus asked, snapping his fingers to rearrange his lair, but nothing happened. He stared at his father confused, thinking it was his doing.
"You got to trust little old Mr. Mxyzptlk." They turned, faster than they would have liked, to see it body reduced in size swimming in a small patch of lava. "I'm the only one who sees the Big Picture," with that he disappeared, his maniac laugh echoing as it dispersed.
Zeus tried locking onto his signature to pursue him but discovered out he couldn't.