Early the next morning, the sun hadn't fully risen, and the fog on the lake was still very thick. Everyone headed to the agreed location of the fishing boat. Because it was still early, there weren't many people around, making it feel a bit desolate, but the air was refreshing.
"Grandpa! Believe me! There really is a monster in the lake! If I haven't transformed, I'd be done for." Ben clung to Grandpa Max, recounting the thrilling events of last night.
"Alright, Ben, we'll talk about the monster later. We're going fishing all day today. I was a fishing master when I was young. I'll show you all later." Max was clearly looking forward to fishing.
He didn't take Ben's talk of a big monster too seriously; he had seen creatures more terrifying than big monsters. Besides, he knew that there were such unknown creatures on Earth, and generally, they lived peacefully there, so he wouldn't pay too much attention to them.
Evan and Gwen followed behind.
Evan was somewhat interested in going fishing, after all, his deadbeat 'father', Stay Gold, never took him or any one of her kids out fishing.
Soon, everyone walked to a fishing boat where a grumpy-looking old man was organizing things.
"Hello! Are you Captain Shaw? I'm Max Tennyson, and these are my grandkids. We booked your boat today for a fishing trip." Grandpa Max called out to the old man.
"Then what are you waiting for? An engraved invitation? Get aboard. I ain't got all day." Captain Shaw's temper was indeed not good.
"Well then, let's get on board," Max said to Evan, who was looking at the lake, and to Ben and Gwen, who were playing around.
"Okay, Grandpa, I'll be right there." Evan responded.
"Ugh! How disgusting!" Ben was holding a pile of worms for bait in one hand and reaching out to Gwen.
"Alright, stop messing around, let's get on the boat quickly." Max urged his grandchildren.
...
On the lake, the fog had thinned a lot, but visibility was still very low.
"Captain Shaw, how's the fishing today?" Max started a conversation with Captain Shaw.
"Very good! Better than you can imagine... It seems your grandson is planning to use today's breakfast as bait." Captain Shaw saw Ben leaning over the side of the boat, his face facing the lake.
"Dweeb, what's wrong with you now?" Gwen asked Ben.
"I must find that big monster from yesterday!" Ben looked up and saw a black shadow floating in the distance.
"Ah! It's coming!" When the black shadow got closer, Ben realized it was just a piece of driftwood.
"It's called Krakken." Captain Shaw said.
"You know it?" Ben was a little happy to finally find someone who cared about the big monster.
"Of course, it's famous in town." Captain Shaw took out a photo. Although the black shadow in the photo was blurry, its general outline could be seen, and it was indeed the big monster they encountered last night.
"I must catch the big monster! Everyone in town says I'm crazy, they all say the big monster doesn't exist at all." Captain Shaw put away the photo.
"I don't doubt that." Max whispered to himself.
"I can take you to where I saw it, but you'll have to be brave enough to go on an adventure with me." Captain Shaw showed them a smile of unclear meaning, a rather ugly smile.
Then they saw floaties with yellow "do not enter" tapes strung like barriers stopping them from entering.
"What's going on?" Captain Shaw said, walking out to see those makeshift barriers.
"Looks official. Maybe we should turn back." Max said.
"Nonsense. This is my lake, and I'll go wherever I-" Captain Shaw said, but his words were interrupted.
"Hey! No fishing allowed here! Go back quickly!" A large boat approached from not far on the lake.
Several people came out of the boat, and the leader said, "I am Jonah Melville, the founder of Friends of Fish. We've closed this section of the lake for an environmental study. You'll have to turn your boat around."
"This is my lake! You stinking fishing friend! I can be wherever I want!" Captain Shaw immediately retorted.
"Ahem, Captain Shaw, I chartered this boat today, so whose orders should we follow?" Max subtly reminded him.
"Hmph!" Captain Shaw was helpless.
Ben looked reluctant. "But what about the Krakken?!"
"The Krakken?" Jonah laughed with his coworker beside him. "Not that old fish story. Look, I'm a marine biologist, and anybody who tells you they've seen a monster in this lake is casting without a hook."
...
Onshore, the situation had already grown tense.
"Those stinking fishing friends!" Captain Shaw grumbled loudly as he stomped across the dock, waving his arms in frustration. "They actually sealed off the entire lake!"
His frustration quickly shifted into determination as his gaze fell on his own boat tied nearby. Without saying another word, he marched straight toward it.
"I must catch the big monster," he declared stubbornly while untying the ropes. "I am the greatest monster expert!"
The engine roared to life a moment later, and before anyone could respond he had already pushed away from the dock. His boat cut across the dark surface of the lake, disappearing further out into the fog as if he had no intention of cooperating with anyone else.
Max watched him go for a moment before letting out a small sigh.
"Well… there he goes." The rest of the group could only shrug.
Nearby, Gwen sat on a folding chair with a laptop balanced across her knees. The glow of the screen illuminated her face while she rapidly typed and searched through several pages of information.
"Mm," she murmured after a moment. "I found him."
She turned the screen slightly so the others could see.
"Jonah Melville isn't a member of any fishing association, and he's definitely not some animal protection expert like he claimed earlier. According to these records, he's actually a poacher who specializes in rare animals."
She scrolled through several reports and photos.
"He hunts valuable creatures, packs them into crates, and sells them to the highest bidder. A lot of wildlife agencies have tried to catch him before, but he always disappears before they can arrest him."
Max frowned slightly as he listened.
"That explains why he was so interested in whatever's out there in the lake," he said thoughtfully. "If there really is some kind of rare creature swimming around, someone like him would see it as a payday."
Gwen closed the laptop.
"It seems we'll have to follow him and see what he's really planning."
Max nodded slowly. "Looks like it."
Before he could say anything else, Ben suddenly jumped up with excitement.
"Awesome!" Ben said with a huge grin. "Does that mean we're finally going to look for the Krakken?"
Max gave him a sideways look. "Ben, let's just focus on finding out what's actually happening out there first."
Still, a few minutes later they were already pushing a smaller boat away from the shore and heading out onto the lake themselves.
Out on the water, the darkness made everything feel quieter and more mysterious.
The fog hanging over the lake reduced visibility even further, making the distant shoreline barely visible behind them. The only real light came from a single lantern held at the front of the boat.
Evan stood at the bow, holding the lantern up so the dim yellow glow could cut through the mist and help guide their way.
Behind him, Max sat at the oars, rowing the small boat across the dark water with steady strokes.
"Hoo! Hoo! Hoo! I've still got it!" Max said while pulling the oars through the water again. "Why is rowing so tiring?!"
Despite the complaint, he kept rowing anyway, pushing the boat forward through the fog.
The wooden hull creaked slightly with each movement as the lake water rippled quietly around them.
"Grandpa! Hurry up!" Ben called from the middle of the boat. "Otherwise Jonah's going to capture the Krakken before we even find it!"
Max glanced back at him with a raised eyebrow.
"Ben, don't underestimate your grandpa," he replied. "Back in my day, I was a very excellent member of the Plumbers."
Ben folded his arms impatiently. "Well right now you're rowing like a retired one."
Max snorted at that. "Oh really?"
He gripped the oars more firmly and began rowing faster, clearly refusing to let his grandson question his abilities.
The boat picked up a bit more speed as the oars sliced through the water again and again. "If you think I'm slow, just watch this!"
Evan glanced back briefly from the front of the boat while holding the lantern steady.
...
Some time later, while the small boat drifted quietly through the fog-covered lake, a series of loud splashes and mechanical noises suddenly echoed from somewhere ahead.
The calm surface of the water was violently disturbed, followed by the distant sound of gunfire and shouting.
Through the mist, the group soon spotted a much larger vessel floating not far away. Floodlights mounted along the deck illuminated the dark water while several armed men stood along the railing, firing harpoons and rifles into the lake whenever something massive surfaced.
Below the surface, a mechanical shape moved through the water.
Jonah was piloting a small submersible robot, using it to guide the creature toward the surface while the rest of his crew attacked it from above.
Each time the enormous shape beneath the water surfaced briefly, the men immediately opened fire again.
The creature roared, sending waves crashing against the hull of the boat.
Even from a distance it was obvious that the poachers had seriously underestimated what they were dealing with.
Jonah himself seemed far less worried than he probably should have been.
Standing on the deck beside a large cylindrical glass container, he casually called out instructions to his men.
"Be careful!" he shouted while pointing toward the container. "Protect those eggs! If you break them, you'll be cleaning up the world's most expensive egg whites!"
Inside the container rested two massive eggs, each nearly the size of a large barrel.
Jonah's eyes gleamed greedily as he looked at them.
"Once I sell these treasures to the highest bidder," he continued with a satisfied grin, "I'll be enjoying life in the Bahamas while the rest of you are still fishing for scraps."
Captain Shaw's boat was not there, presumably gone.
Ben leaned over the side of their boat, squinting toward the larger vessel.
"Look over there!" he suddenly said, pointing directly at the large glass container on the deck. "Those must be the Krakken's eggs!"
His eyes widened as the realization hit him.
"Jonah stole the Krakken's eggs. No wonder the thing's going crazy!"
The enormous creature surfaced again for a moment, revealing several massive tentacles thrashing across the water before diving back beneath the surface.
Evan watched the scene for a moment before making a quick decision.
"Grandpa, you guys go get the Krakken eggs," he said calmly while raising his wrist. "I'll keep the Krakken company."
He activated the Another Omnitrix.
A bright golden flash erupted across the water.
When the light faded, the alien standing at the front of the boat had a skeletal yet heavily armored build. His body was predominantly brown with a light gray chest and abdomen, while his head was protected by a hard semicircular helmet that curved outward into sharp points along each side. Two narrow eyes looked forward beneath the helmet, glowing faintly in the darkness.
From each of his forearms extended large gray scythe-like blades, razor sharp and curved like the weapons of an ancient predator. Along his back ran a central ridge surrounded by six hard spines, three on each side, leading down toward a thick, pointed tail. His legs were thin but strong, ending in clawed feet designed for gripping surfaces both on land and underwater.
"Shellblade!"
Without wasting another second, Shellblade launched himself directly into the lake.
"Kabutopterid!" Grandpa Max couldn't help but exclaim after seeing it, after all, this species of alien has long went exstinct.
"Grandpa, what are you saying?" Ben and Gwen were very confused by this.
"Uh… nothing," Max replied quickly, clearing his throat. "Let's just go get those eggs before the situation gets worse."
Taking advantage of the chaos created by the Krakken's attacks, Max, Ben, and Gwen climbed aboard as quietly as possible and moved toward the glass container holding the eggs.
As soon as the three of them, Max, Ben, and Gwen, lifted the container with the eggs, they were discovered by a person holding a gun.
Max immediately stepped forward, raising both hands while positioning himself slightly in front of Ben and Gwen.
"All right, buddy," he said calmly while backing up a step. "We can do this the easy way or we can do it my way."
The man only smirked and tightened his grip on the weapon.
Just as he was about to pull the trigger, a flash of green light erupted behind Max.
A sharp crystal shard shot forward and struck the gun, knocking it clean out of the man's hand.
Standing behind them was Diamondhead.
Without hesitation, the crystalline alien slammed his palm against the deck. Jagged crystal structures shot upward around the poacher, trapping him in place before he could even react.
"I'll handle these extras," Diamondhead said calmly.
Seeing the opening, Max immediately nodded.
The three of them lifted the container again and hurried toward the edge of the boat.
Below them, the water churned violently as Shellblade continued swimming through the dark depths while the Krakken pursued him.
"Evan! Catch!" Max called as he pushed the container over the side.
"My eggs!" Jonah shouted in fury when he saw the container being thrown overboard.
Below the surface, Shellblade reacted instantly.
With a quick swing of his blade arm, he sliced the lid open as the container fell. The two massive eggs slipped free into the water.
"Your eggs aren't that big," he muttered.
Using the flat sides of his blade arms rather than the sharp edges, he carefully caught the two eggs and held them securely against his armored body to avoid damaging them.
Without hesitation, he turned and swam deeper into the lake.
Behind him, the enormous Krakken immediately followed.
Jonah ran toward the edge of the ship, frantically trying to activate the submersible robot again.
"My eggs!" he shouted.
But before the machine could move, Diamondhead slammed another crystal formation into its mechanical limbs.
"You're not going anywhere," he said while launching several more crystal shards into the joints of the robot, disabling it completely.
Meanwhile, deep beneath the lake's surface, Shellblade continued swimming through the dark water while the massive Krakken followed close behind.
Occasionally one of its enormous tentacles lashed toward him, but he avoided each strike with quick movements, weaving through the underwater terrain.
He swam deeper for quite some time, searching for the creature's nest.
But the lake floor was vast, filled with rocks, plants, and shadows stretching in every direction.
Eventually, realizing the Krakken was still following closely behind, Shellblade slowed down.
He carefully placed the two eggs on the lake floor before slowly stepping back.
The enormous creature approached cautiously.
Using two of its tentacles, the Krakken gently pulled the eggs closer to its body.
For a moment it studied Shellblade, its massive eyes watching the alien's sharp blade arms.
But when it inspected the eggs and realized they were unharmed, its aggression faded.
The creature curled protectively around the eggs, shielding them beneath its tentacles.
Seeing that the task was complete, Shellblade didn't linger any longer.
He simply turned and began swimming back toward the surface.
Not long after, police boats arrived at the scene.
The surviving poachers were quickly arrested and taken away.
During the search of the surrounding waters, the officers also discovered Captain Shaw clinging weakly to a piece of driftwood some distance away from the main incident.
Considering everything that had happened during the night, the fact that he was still alive was surprisingly fortunate.
When the rescuers finally pulled him aboard, the exhausted captain barely had the strength to speak.
Even so, he continued muttering the same word over and over.
"Krakken… Krakken…"
It seemed that after everything that had happened, he and the creature had developed a rather memorable encounter.