Chapter 9: The Sludgepuppy Nest and a Plumber's Past
With the last of the Sludgepuppies dissolved into inert puddles, Four Arms led the others toward a large, unassuming dumpster situated in the heart of the junkyard. With a grunt of effort, he shoved the heavy metal container aside, revealing a hidden hatch set into the ground. He wrenched it open and, hoisting his grandfather into two of his powerful arms, leaped down into the darkness.
Klein, still in his aquatic alien form, followed with a splash-like sound as he dove in, and Gwen floated down gracefully behind him, her mana casting a soft pink glow.
They landed in a small chamber that branched into several dark, earthen tunnels. Just as they were about to choose a direction, the Omnitrix symbol on Four Arms' shoulder began to flash an insistent red. With a final beep, a wave of crimson light washed over him, and he shrank back into Ben.
"Aw, man! This is so annoying!" he grumbled, shaking his wrist.
"Ben, you pick a path," Klein said, his voice echoing slightly in the enclosed space. He had no idea which way to go and lacked the enhanced senses of an alien like Wildmutt. Their best bet was to rely on Ben's inexplicable protagonist-level luck.
"Alright, cousin. This way!" Ben declared with confidence, pointing down a random tunnel.
They followed him to the end, only to find… the end. The tunnel terminated in a solid wall of dirt and rock. It was an unfinished passage.
"Heh heh, sorry," Ben said, rubbing the back of his neck sheepishly. "My bad. Didn't know I was leading us into a dead end."
With no other choice, they trudged back the way they came and picked another tunnel at random.
This time, they hit the jackpot. The tunnel opened into a vast, cavernous space filled with countless large, pulsating green eggs. In the center of the chamber sat a metallic, disk-shaped structure that looked suspiciously like a flying saucer.
Ben cautiously approached one of the eggs, peering through its translucent shell. "Whoa… there's an old lady in there."
"They must have captured all the senior citizens from the retirement community and brought them here!" Max realized instantly, his expression grim.
"Grandma Vera!" Gwen cried out, rushing to an egg a short distance away. "She's here!"
"Let's get them out of here, now!" Max said, grabbing one of the pods and preparing to lift it.
"Don't even think about it! That's our food! Put that down right—" Several Sludgepuppies materialized from the shadows, their gurgling threats cut short as a high-pressure torrent of water slammed into them.
"What is this, some cheap B-movie?" Klein scoffed, the sound distorted by his alien form. He stood with his hands outstretched, water still jetting from his palms. "You don't get a monologue. You just get washed out."
The remaining Sludgepuppies, hidden in the darkness, saw their comrades blasted apart. They knew they stood no chance against an opponent who could control water, their natural counter. In a desperate, decisive move, they dissolved into puddles of green slime and seeped through the cracks and seams of the grounded flying saucer.
VROOOM!
The saucer hummed to life, its engines igniting as it began to rise.
Klein raised his hands again, unleashing two powerful jets of water that hammered against the ship's underbelly, shattering panels and denting the hull. But the saucer was already gaining altitude, and his aquatic form's power wasn't enough to drag a vessel of that size back down.
With a final shudder, the ship smashed through the ceiling of dirt and rock above, bursting out of the junkyard and streaking into the sky, disappearing from sight as it left the planet's atmosphere.
"Alright, no time to worry about them," Max said, turning his attention back to the overwhelming number of pods around them. "We need to start moving these people. This is going to take hours… Can we call a moving company?"
"Relax, Grandpa! Where there's a problem, there's a hero!" Ben's Omnitrix, having finally recharged, glowed a healthy green. "With Fasttrack on the job, I promise this'll be done in a few minutes!"
Ben slammed down the dial on his watch. At the same moment, Klein casually tapped the Omnitrix symbol on his chest.
A flash of brilliant green light erupted alongside a pulse of eerie, dark blue energy.
Whoosh!
When the light faded, two nearly identical, lightning-fast aliens stood in their place. Both were lean, blue-and-black bipeds built for speed, their movements a barely perceptible blur. To a human, they looked the same, save for the color of their Omnitrix symbols.
'Heck,'Ben thought, even in his alien mindset.'Most of these aliens look alike anyway. Remember that Diamondhead guy who wasn't me?'
Then, in a synchronized blur of motion, they were off.
A moment later, a flash of red light and a smooth shimmer of blue light signaled their return. Ben was back to normal, while Klein had reverted at will, the transformation seamless.
"Alright, Grandpa, that was the last one," Klein announced calmly.
"Incredible," Max said, shaking his head in amazement. "The speed of a Citrakayah is really something else. You two finished in just a few minutes."
"Grandpa, you're doing it again," Gwen said, her eyes narrowed suspiciously. "You know the name of Fasttrack's species. What exactly did you do when you were younger? You said you were a plumber." She folded her arms. "And speaking of which, how exactly did you meet Grandma? The one who's an alien?"
"Yeah, Grandpa!" Ben chimed in, the gears finally turning in his head. "Are you hiding something from us?"
Klein, for his part, showed no particular reaction. He leaned against the wall, an impassive observer, already having a good idea of Max Tennyson's real identity.
"Uh…" Max sighed, realizing he was cornered. "Alright, alright. I'll explain everything, I promise. Once we get back to the Rustbucket." He looked over at the pod containing his sister-in-law. "But for now, let's take care of Vera until she wakes up. Then we can say our goodbyes."
"Goodbye, Vera!"
"Goodbye, Great-Aunt Vera!" the kids chorused.
"Goodbye, Max. And you too, Ben, Gwen, Klein."
With their farewells said, the Rustbucket rumbled back onto the highway, continuing its cross-country journey.
"When I was young, I was a plumber," Max began, his eyes on the road. "Just not the kind you're thinking of. I was a member of the largest intergalactic law enforcement organization in the Milky Way. We… we liked to call ourselves the Plumbers."
He went on to explain his past, a secret history of aliens, conspiracies, and galactic peacekeeping.
"So cool!" Ben's eyes were wide with excitement, practically vibrating in his seat. "Grandpa, can I join the Plumbers? Can I?"
Gwen and Klein weren't quite as hyper, but the shock was evident on their faces.
'Huh,'Klein thought, feigning mild surprise to match Gwen's.'He's adding a few details that weren't in the show… Not that I remember every single episode perfectly, but I definitely remember the Plumbers being a big deal.'
Whoosh!
The Rustbucket sped down the highway, a humble-looking RV carrying a universe of secrets, heading toward its next destination.
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