Chapter 134: Ditto Gets Drained
A discarded, rusted-out cruise ship sat anchored in the middle of the vast, boundless ocean. Its dilapidated hull listed heavily to one side, scarred with deep cracks and coated in thick layers of orange oxidation. Honestly, it was a miracle the colossal heap of scrap metal had not already plummeted to the seafloor.
This floating wreck served as Dr. Animo's newly claimed base of operations. The mad scientist lacked the funds to purchase a proper laboratory, and forcefully hijacking one would only invite unnecessary trouble. Thus, this broken-down vessel became his best alternative. It offered plenty of space, and for a man like Animo, a quiet place to conduct his twisted genetic experiments was more than enough.
Looking down from high above the churning waters, a massive, shadowy silhouette could be seen gliding just beneath the surface. The gargantuan form of a mutated squid slowly merged with the underside of the old cruise ship. Slipping through a jagged hole in the rotting hull, the monstrous cephalopod deposited Dr. Animo and his captive—one of Ben's Ditto clones—into the ship's flooded interior.
The cavernous belly of the cruise ship was desolate, half-submerged in murky seawater. A few rusted iron platforms jutted out above the water level, supporting a haphazard array of stolen experimental instruments. Perched atop a jagged iron plate nearby stood a grotesque, mutated bird, its beady eyes twitching erratically.
Dr. Animo hopped down from the giant squid's slimy tentacles, his boots splashing against the metal grating. The squid carefully extended another appendage, unfastening the cylindrical glass tank strapped to Animo's back and lowering it to the floor.
"Careful, my darling! Do not damage our precious spoils," Dr. Animo instructed sternly, his wild eyes fixed on the container.
Inside the glass tank, the captured Ditto—let us call him Ditto D—was frantically hammering his small fists against the reinforced walls, desperately trying to find a way out. Unfortunately, his efforts yielded nothing but sore knuckles.
The squid's tentacle twisted the tank, popping the lid open before unceremoniously dumping Ditto D onto the cold iron floor. The Splixon landed hard, bumping his head on the grating.
"Ow!" he yelped, instinctively rubbing his oversized head to soothe the stinging pain.
Before he could even orient himself, the massive mutated bird hopped forward, its razor-sharp beak snapping just inches from Ditto D's face. It clearly viewed the small alien as a convenient snack.
"What is your problem, you stupid oversized pigeon?!" Ditto D shouted, refusing to back down. He marched right up to the monstrous avian, going beak-to-face. "You want a piece of me? I will pluck every last one of those ugly feathers!"
The taunt instantly enraged the mutated bird. It let out a harsh screech and lunged, aiming to peck the loudmouthed Splixon to death.
"No! Stop this instant!" Dr. Animo leaped between them, waving his arms wildly to ward off his own creation. "We must keep the sample alive!"
Seeing the mad scientist distracted by the angry bird, Ditto D realized this was his golden opportunity. He scrambled to his feet, preparing to make a mad dash for the exit.
But the moment he took his first few steps, a thick, suction-cup-covered tentacle crashed down onto the metal grating right in front of him, blocking his path.
Ditto D, who had absolutely zero interest in playing with giant tentacles, slammed on the brakes. He skidded to a halt, staring up at the massive, writhing appendage. Escaping was going to be a lot harder than he thought.
"With your unique DNA, the beasts I create will possess the rapid multiplication of single-celled amoebas! Hehehe..." Dr. Animo rubbed his hands together, an unhinged, evil grin stretching across his pale face as he slowly advanced on the trapped alien.
"No! Dr. Animo, wait! Do not come any closer!" Ditto D backed away, wrapping his arms around his small body in a weak, helpless attempt to shield himself.
But unfortunately for him, resistance was entirely futile.
Meanwhile, on a small sailboat cutting across the vast ocean waves, three identical Dittos let out a synchronized, jaw-cracking yawn.
The trio of clones rubbed their noses in perfect unison, their expressions twisting into identical grimaces. "I do not know why," they spoke together, their voices overlapping perfectly, "but I suddenly feel really, really uncomfortable."
Sitting near the bow, Klein leaned back, his expression completely flat. "Maybe Dr. Animo has some twisted, perverted hobbies," he remarked dryly, not even bothering to look up. "He is probably thoroughly enjoying that other piece of you right now."
"Ah?! Cousin, do not scare me!" The three Dittos shrieked in unison, their eyes widening in absolute horror. They looked like they were on the verge of tears.
Grandpa Max, catching onto Klein's mischievous mood, decided to join in on the psychological warfare. He kept his eyes on the horizon but offered a grave, knowing nod. "Do not worry too much, Ben. Splixons are not like Naljians. They are not hermaphroditic, so at the very least, you will not get pregnant."
"Noooo!!!" The pitiful, helpless trio of Dittos clutched their heads, wailing in absolute despair.
Gwen, sitting nearby, did not spare them an ounce of mercy either. "Relax, Dweeb. At worst, a crazy old man is just going to violate you a little bit."
The three Dittos collapsed onto the deck, huddling together in a trembling, sobbing pile of misery.
Right at that exact moment, miles away in the rusted cruise ship, Dr. Animo jammed a massive needle into Ditto D, forcefully extracting his DNA.
The sharp, piercing agony instantly transmitted across the clones' shared sensory link. The three Dittos on the boat screamed, clutching their sides as phantom pain flared through their bodies. Perhaps it was purely psychological, but mixed with the pain was an overwhelming, deeply violating sense of shame.
"Looks like it has started," Klein noted, casting a mild glance at the writhing, groaning pile of alien clones on the deck. "Another Ben bites the dust."
Gwen's teasing smirk vanished, replaced by genuine concern. She spun toward the helm. "Grandpa! Hurry!"
Grandpa Max nodded solemnly, his grip tightening on the boat's steering mechanism. He pushed the small vessel's engine to its absolute limit.
Back inside the dark, damp belly of the abandoned cruise ship.
Bang! Bang! Bang!
Ditto D, having just been thoroughly drained of his genetic material, was once again trapped inside a cylindrical glass container. He pounded his fists against the reinforced glass, glaring out at his captor.
Dr. Animo completely ignored the annoying tapping. He held up a glowing vial of extracted fluid, his eyes wide with manic triumph. "Magnificent!" he boasted, parading in front of the trapped alien. "With just this minuscule fraction of your DNA, I can completely deduce the genetic code of your entire alien species! The replication possibilities are endless!"
Ditto D blinked, tilting his head. 'What does that even mean?'
He was a Splixon, not a Galvan. Big science words went straight over his oversized head.
Realizing that listening to the crazy doctor monologue was a waste of time, Ditto D began scanning his immediate surroundings, searching for anything he could use to break out. His gaze eventually landed on the mutated bird, which was currently glaring at him from across the room. He remembered how badly that overgrown turkey had wanted to eat him earlier.
An idea sparked in his mind.
Tap. Tap. Tap.
Ditto D lightly knocked on the glass, just enough to draw the mutated bird's attention. The moment the creature locked its beady, furious eyes onto him, Ditto D went to work. He pressed his face against the glass, squishing his cheeks, crossing his eyes, and sticking his tongue out in the most obnoxious, mocking faces he could muster. He wiggled his fingers at the sides of his head, taunting the beast.
The mutated bird let out a furious squawk. Completely enraged, it launched itself across the room, slamming beak-first into the cylindrical container.
The reinforced glass shattered instantly under the beast's immense strength. The viscous preservation liquid inside burst out in a tidal wave, flushing Ditto D out onto the rusted floorboards.
"Bye-bye!" Ditto D chirped. He scrambled to his feet, his wet feet slapping against the metal as he sprinted toward the nearest exit.
Hearing the crash, Dr. Animo spun around. Seeing his prize escaping, he furiously backhanded the mutated bird across its beak. "I told you not to touch my experimental sample, you feathered imbecile! Now go and catch him!"
The mutated bird, cowed by its master's wrath, did not dare hesitate. It let out a sharp cry and immediately took flight, diving aggressively after the fleeing Splixon.
Meanwhile, out on the open water.
Grandpa Max squinted through the ocean spray, finally spotting the massive, rusted silhouette looming on the horizon. "Over there! Head straight for that cruise ship! Quick!"
Ditto C, who had been assigned to man the rudder, snapped a crisp, exaggerated salute. "Aye aye, Captain!"
He yanked the rudder hard to the side. The sudden, sharp turn caused the entire sailboat to tilt violently. Up near the mast, Ditto A and Ditto B, who were supposed to be managing the rigging, completely lost their footing.
"Ow!"
"Hey!"
The ropes slipped from their grasp. The heavy white canvas sail collapsed, burying both Ditto A and Ditto B beneath a mountain of heavy fabric.
"Oh, get off me, Dweeb!" Ditto A's muffled voice yelled from under the sail.
"You are the Dweeb, Dweeb!" Ditto B shot back, a flurry of elbows and knees poking through the canvas as they wrestled blindly.
Watching the chaotic scuffle from the stern, Ditto C slapped a hand over his face and groaned. "Oh, man, this is so annoying. What is wrong with those two?! They are driving me absolutely crazy!"
Gwen crossed her arms, shooting him a deadpan glare. "That is because they are all you, genius."
Ditto C opened his mouth to argue, but could not find a single flaw in her logic. His shoulders slumped, and his expression drooped into a pout.
Suddenly, the bickering stopped.
All three Dittos froze. They slowly lifted their heads, their eyes locking onto the abandoned cruise ship in the distance. A strange, magnetic pull tugged at their very core.
"He is nearby!" they said in perfect unison.
The moment the words left their mouths, the Omnitrix symbols embedded on their foreheads began to pulse with a bright, warning red light.
Without warning, the three Dittos were yanked off the deck. An invisible force pulled them into the air, dragging them helplessly across the water toward the rusted cruise ship.
Inside the ship's dark corridors, Ditto D was currently sprinting for his life, desperately dodging the snapping beak and grasping talons of the mutated bird. Suddenly, his feet left the ground. He yelped as he was forcefully pulled backward, flying uncontrollably out through the jagged hole in the ship's hull.
High in the air above the churning ocean, the four identical clones violently collided.
A blinding flash of red light erupted in the sky. The four Dittos merged back into a single entity, reverting to human form.
Ben plummeted downward, hitting the ocean surface with a heavy splash.
He breached the surface a second later, coughing up seawater and wiping his eyes. "Phew! I am me again!" he gasped, looking down at his normal, human hands with immense relief.
But his relief was painfully short-lived.
A massive shadow fell over him. The mutated bird had followed him out of the ship and was currently diving straight toward him, its razor-sharp talons extended. It clearly had no intention of letting its prey escape.
"I... Oh, damn it!!!" Ben panicked. He frantically slammed his hand down on the Omnitrix dial.
Bzzzt.
The little broken watch remained entirely uncooperative. The dial flashed a stubborn, glowing red, signaling it was completely out of power.
"Come on, work!"
Before he could try again, the giant talons clamped around his waist. With a powerful beat of its wings, the mutated bird snatched Ben out of the water, hauling him high into the sky.
"Let me go, you oversized chicken!" Ben thrashed wildly, kicking his legs in the air. "Just wait until my watch recharges! You are so dead!"
Despite his relentless struggling, the giant claws remained clamped shut, unyielding like a vice.
Suddenly, a loud, roaring sound echoed through the air.
Grandpa Max, strapped into a high-powered jetpack, blasted out from the sailboat. He rocketed through the sky like a missile, slamming shoulder-first into the side of the mutated bird.
The heavy impact knocked the wind out of the beast. It shrieked in pain, its talons involuntarily springing open.
Freed from its grip, Ben immediately began plummeting toward the ocean below. "Ahhhhh!!!"
He braced for a bone-shattering impact against the water, but it never came.
A soft, glowing pink aura enveloped his falling body. Gwen stood on the deck of the sailboat, her hands outstretched, her eyes glowing with raw Anodite mana. She caught him effortlessly with her celestial energy, lowering him safely onto the deck.
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