Once everyone got their smoothies and Optimus, Glyph, and even Sky Runner parked their vehicle modes, the heroes all gathered at various tables. \u201cSo,\u201d began Ben, \u201cwhat brings you back here? Social call?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cI wish it was, Ben,\u201d said Megumi. \u201cA person known as Khan is travelling to various universes to find the Sources of the Horsemen of Flourishment, the opposites to the Apocalypse Horsemen. We believe one of them is here in your universe.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cIt\u2019s a pretty big universe here,\u201d remarked Ben. \u201cThis Horseman could be on any planet.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cWell, we have their names,\u201d said Optimus. \u201cStop us if any of them sound familiar. Let\u2019s see\u2026Life.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cHold up, we DO have a person calling herself Life at Plumber HQ!\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cYou do?!\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cYeah, she\u2019s a woman that looks like she came out of a black and white cartoon. Her skin\u2019s a more inky-black, so we assumed she was an alien. She\u2019s working as a secretary right now.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cWait, what did that Vilgax character say about associates?\u201d asked Arsha.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cOh no!\u201d realized Ben. He then made a call through the Omnitrix. \u201cPlumber HQ! Vilgax is transporting an enemy to kidnap Life! Repeat! Vilgax has a plot against Life!\u201d No one replied. \u201c…Rook?! Grandpa Max?! Patelliday?! I\u2019d settle for Blukic and Driba! SOMEONE RESPOND!\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cLet me try!\u201d called Megumi. Ben held the Omnitrix near her face. \u201cPlumber HQ, this is Megumi Hishi-!\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cYour voice is as unchanged as your body,\u201d chuckled a voice. \u201cThe arrogance lacing it is still there, but I doubt you\u2019ve seen much combat the last time we met.\u201d It was a man\u2019s voice and it made Megumi, Optimus, and Arsha\u2019s respective blood run cold.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201c\u2026Th\u2026that\u2019s impossible!\u201d breathed Arsha.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cHe\u2019s dead, right?!\u201d asked Optimus.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cI was,\u201d replied the voice, \u201cbut now I\u2019m back! Megumi, my daughter, it\u2019s only fitting that you are made aware of the resurrection and triumph\u2026of Adachi Hiro, Lord and Master of Shocker Rift and the original Kamen Rider Rogue!\u201d Megumi said nothing, she was too scared to come up with anything in the face of her biological father returning from the grave.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201c\u2026Megumi?\u201d asked Sonic.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cHave you nothing to say?\u201d asked Hiro.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cMegumi, it\u2019s all right!\u201d urged Sonic. \u201cWe beat him once! You, more than any of us!\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201c\u2026You died,\u201d Megumi finally addressed Hiro. \u201cRight over Chizara Prime! Right after Vortech\u2019s second death! I saw your ship fly into an unstable pocket dimension! \u2026I tried to save you!\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cBut it took one stronger than you to bring me back to the mortal plane,\u201d remarked Hiro. \u201cI believe you met him, one Khan. Totally different to the former Dalek we knew. He used his power to bring me and my wife and child back to life after we all languished in Hell!\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cThat\u2019s impossible, Heaven and Hell are locked to people like us! Only the Horsemen, gods, and god-like beings can pass freely between life and death!\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cAnd yet, here I am, in Plumber HQ, thanks to the Author. Oh, he had to take several major precautions to safely pass through but imagine it! A single, simple human succeeded where Kamen Riders, Transformers, and Kitsunes failed! A testament, don\u2019t you think, to my remarkable savior.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cAnd you formed a new cabal with him.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cHim and others that Optimus and Arsha sent to Hell. We all wish revenge on you! You and your pathetic friends, too afraid to kill with your bare hands! I have a clear goal in my head, Megumi. What do you have now?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cAfter all this time, everything we saw, everything we lost, I have only one thing to say to you\u2026\u2026\u2026SAYONARA!\u201d Megumi ended the call.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cGreat, and Hiro\u2019s probably broken Vilgax out already!\u201d complained Ben.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cOthers that we sent to Hell?\u201d muttered Optimus. His optics then widened. \u201cNo! Not Starscream!\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cPrime?\u201d asked Arsha.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cStarscream\u2019s the first Arti-Vok! He died when Primacron did! He\u2019s out for revenge!\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cOptimus,\u201d replied Megumi, \u201cI doubt Starscream\u2019s involved. He\u2019s too much of a backstabber for the Author.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cSpeculation won\u2019t help,\u201d remarked Sora. \u201cMaybe infiltration is needed.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cOoo! Ooo! I wanna try!\u201d called Glyph.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cHey, save some for me!\u201d snapped Sky Runner.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cABSOLUTELY NOT!\u201d shouted Optimus and Arcee.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201c\u2026Really?\u201d remarked Sky Runner.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cIt\u2019s WAY too dangerous! You\u2019re not exactly a fighter!\u201d argued Optimus.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cDaddy, I don\u2019t think we have much choice here! Besides, I\u2019ve fought before!\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cIn Seeker Tournaments! This is actual warfare!\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cDaddy, I\u2019m scared too, but we\u2019re in this whether we like it or not.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cWell, Glyph\u2019s not going!\u201d declared Arcee.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cMama!\u201d protested Glyph.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cYou\u2019re an Archaeometrist!\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cI\u2019ve shot a gun before!\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cOn a firing range!\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cGirls, I\u2019m sorry,\u201d said Optimus, \u201cbut you\u2019re not going and that is that!\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201c\u2018Absolutely not\u2019 I said,\u201d grumbled Optimus later as he, Megumi, Xiomara, Galen, Arsha, and Willmef watched through Sky Runner\u2019s optics from a screen. \u201c\u2018Way too dangerous\u2019 I said. \u2018You\u2019re not going and that is that\u2019 I said. Until Ben, Amelia, Charline, and Orbak offer to go with them and Megumi and Arsha override me! \u2018Yeah! Sure! I can protect them! I don\u2019t need working legs!\u2019\u201d Galen then swatted the back of his head.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cWill you be quiet?!\u201d he hissed.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cBesides, Orbak HAS fought in that wheelchair,\u201d said Arsha. \u201cThe kids are safe.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cYeah, well, one of the parents doesn\u2019t share that feeling!\u201d replied Optimus. Xiomara then clicked the call button.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cSe\u00f1orita Sky Runner, how are things?\u201d she asked.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cJust surrounded by metal walls. Green metal walls,\u201d replied Sky Runner. \u201cSeriously, Mr. Tennyson, what\u2019s the deal with the green?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cI dunno,\u201d replied Ben as he pushed Orbak\u2019s chair. \u201cAsk the Galvans. They came up with the symbol.\u201d Just then, the Omnitrix beeped as its faceplate flashed green. \u201cA distress signal!\u201d he said. \u201cA Plumber\u2019s in trouble!\u201d He activated a locator. \u201cThis way!\u201d He led everyone down the hall to see two women, one standing over the other. They were both Appoplexians, tiger-like humanoids with a single black claw on the back of each hand, long eyebrow protrusions above each eye, and very muscular. One of the women wore the white suit of the Plumbers and the other wore a yellow skirt and top with a golden flower pinned to the back of her head and a string of gold beads running across her brow. The most damning thing of all was that the women looked exactly the same. \u201cPHURY!\u201d called Ben. \u201cAnd\u2026Phury?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cYou must be the Ben Tennyson of this universe,\u201d remarked the skirted woman. \u201cYou\u2019re right. I AM Phury, but not the one you\u2019re dating.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cDating?\u201d asked Megumi over the Omnitrix. \u201cWhat happened to Kai?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cWe broke up,\u201d replied Ben.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cWas that Megumi Hishikawa?!\u201d snarled the skirted Phury. The Phury on the ground was convulsing in pain as she strained to look at Ben.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cB-Ben!\u201d she gasped. \u201cRun! T-Too\u2026dangerous!\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cTakes right after her Pa, wouldn\u2019t you say?\u201d scoffed the skirted Phury.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cWhat did you do to her?!\u201d demanded Ben.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cJust administered something to her systems,\u201d replied the skirted Phury. \u201cNot my concoction, though. It\u2019s his.\u201d She pointed behind the team. Someone stepped out of the shadows. It looked like Optimus in the old days, but his armor was purple and his helmet was black.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cAdmiring the work?\u201d he asked.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cSickened by it!\u201d hissed Orbak.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cOh, don\u2019t tell me you\u2019re not crazy enough to try and cure her!\u201d complained the other Optimus. \u201cI mean, what rational being sends a guy with useless limbs down here in enemy territory?! \u2026Speaking of limbs, think they\u2019re shiny enough?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cWho are you?!\u201d demanded Glyph.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cA743642.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cIt\u2019s bad enough you steal my dad\u2019s old look, now you steal his serial number?!\u201d snarled Sky Runner.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cYour dad\u2019s look?\u201d asked the Optimus lookalike. \u201cSo your daddy is Optimus Prime? Tell me, did he ever talk about a guy he threw onto a heap of Korlonium Crystals?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cYeah, his only kill that he doesn\u2019t regret. Some schmuck named-\u201d Sky Runner\u2019s optics went wide. \u201c\u2026No! \u2026No, that\u2019s impossible! You\u2019re-!\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cSome schmuck?!\u201d The Optimus duplicate advanced menacingly on Sky Runner and her team. \u201cThat\u2019s all the history books call me?! SOME SCHMUCK?!\u201d He turned to the skirted Phury. \u201cI\u2019ll take on the Transformers! You get the results to Hiro and Borg!\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cWill do!\u201d replied Phury.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cWait, what did you say?!\u201d called Orbak. Evil Phury didn\u2019t listen, she just charged out of Plumber HQ.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cAfter her!\u201d called Sky Runner.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cBut we gotta get my Phury back on her feet!\u201d protested Ben.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cYou get her to a medical ward!\u201d said Sky Runner. \u201cWe\u2019ll-!\u201d Her father\u2019s evil duplicate wrapped his fingers around her neck.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cIf your father is listening,\u201d he snarled, \u201ctell him Nemesis Prime is back and ready to sow fear into his blasted life, starting with the death of his daughter!\u201d A fireball then struck him in the back, forcing him to release Sky Runner.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cYou were right,\u201d hissed Optimus as he stepped out of the shadows, \u201cI WAS listening. It\u2019s why I used Locus the instant I saw you throttle her! Sky Runner! Glyph! Help Ben get his Phury to the medical ward! Nemesis Prime is mine!\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cWill do!\u201d After Sky Runner confirmed her orders, Ben pressed a button on the Omnitrix, activating a holographic selection ring that scrolled through the heads of aliens.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cCome on! Give me something fast! Jetray! Astrodactyl! Fasttrack!\u201d he begged. He then slid the faceplate back and revealed a cylinder with the green hourglass symbol on it. He pushed the cylinder down and his body changed. His skin turned blue, a tail sprouted from his rear, his head became angular, his stance became that of a velociraptor, his fingers became three black claws, and he had black balls on his feet. \u201cXLR8!\u201d he called out. \u201cPerfect choice, Omnitrix!\u201d He scooped up his Phury and he, Glyph, and Sky Runner dashed down the hall to the medical ward. Nemesis Prime smiled.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cOh Lords!\u201d he called. Lords then appeared in the usual Borg teleport beam. \u201cDeal with the smaller ones and pursue Ben 10. Optimus is mine!\u201d The Lords attacked the rest of the team as the two Primes fought.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Once everyone got their smoothies and Optimus, Glyph, and even Sky Runner parked their vehicle modes, the heroes all gathered at various tables. \u201cSo,\u201d began Ben, \u201cwhat brings you back here? Social call?\u201d \u201cI wish it was, Ben,\u201d said Megumi. \u201cA person known as Khan is travelling to various universes to find the Sources of […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":6278,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_bbp_topic_count":0,"_bbp_reply_count":0,"_bbp_total_topic_count":0,"_bbp_total_reply_count":0,"_bbp_voice_count":0,"_bbp_anonymous_reply_count":0,"_bbp_topic_count_hidden":0,"_bbp_reply_count_hidden":0,"_bbp_forum_subforum_count":0,"footnotes":""},"categories":[754,880],"tags":[130,482,9,146,337],"class_list":["post-6279","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-journey-through-wonder","category-story-journey-through-wonder","tag-ben-10","tag-fantasy","tag-kamen-rider","tag-sonic","tag-transformers"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/samueljvinton.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6279","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/samueljvinton.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/samueljvinton.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/samueljvinton.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/samueljvinton.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=6279"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/samueljvinton.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6279\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":6281,"href":"https:\/\/samueljvinton.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6279\/revisions\/6281"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/samueljvinton.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/6278"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/samueljvinton.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=6279"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/samueljvinton.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=6279"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/samueljvinton.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=6279"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}