The scorched grassland highway lay in ruins, littered with burning machine parts and wreckage, mingled with the ashes of charred grass scattered across the ground.
The Rustbucket roared forward, bumping and rattling as it crushed debris beneath its wheels, racing toward the edge of the battlefield. Grandpa Max and Gwen jumped out, staring anxiously at the two figures locked in fierce combat amid the blazing inferno.
At that moment, Four Arms was surrounded by over a dozen massive robots, all attacking furiously. The scene was perilously intense.
"I'm going to help Lucian!" Gwen said, taking a step toward the flames.
"No, Gwen." Grandpa Max grabbed her arm. "A fight like this is way out of your league. You'll only put yourself in danger, and you won't be able to help."
He was right. Though Gwen could use Water Magic, its destructive power wasn't strong enough. The entire grassland had turned into a deadly sea of fire—the scorching heat and thick smoke were far beyond what any human could withstand.
"But…" Gwen hesitated. She wanted so badly to help her Cuz.
Ben's situation wasn't too bad. He was facing spider-like robots, and Heatblast's attacks—both close and ranged—made handling them relatively easy.
"We'll wait for an opening, get them out of there, and then head to Mount Rushmore," Grandpa Max said, eyes fixed on the battlefield. Inwardly, he prayed that Vilgax wouldn't appear here.
BOOM!
Heatblast turned into a blazing streak of light, his palms firing rapid volleys of fireballs that blew apart several spider robots in quick succession.
"Hahaha! Who's the baddest now?" Heatblast shouted proudly.
But in the next instant, dozens more robots surrounded him, making his fiery form tense. Another brutal battle broke out.
In the middle of the inferno, Four Arms stood tall like an unshakable war god, facing waves of giant robots attacking from every direction.
Two massive robots lunged at him, raising their enormous claws that swept up a violent gust of wind as they slammed down with crushing force.
Boom!
Four Arms raised his arms, letting out a furious roar as he blocked the attack. His powerful legs tensed, bursting with raw, beast-like strength as he heaved both robots backward.
He moved with incredible speed, leaping and smashing the robots' heads one after another. Each impact erupted in deafening explosions, flames shot skyward, and metal parts flew in every direction.
"Awesome! Cuz is so strong!" Gwen cried out in awe.
Boom!
Another massive robot attacked. Four Arms sidestepped quickly, grabbed its leg, braced his stance, and spun like a whirlwind before hurling the robot violently away.
BOOM!
The tremendous strike wiped out several more robots.
Four Arms didn't slow down. He charged straight into the swarm, unleashing a relentless barrage of attacks. He was getting used to the intensity of the battle.
A few minutes later, every giant robot lay destroyed. Four Arms stood amidst the ruins, his clothes scorched black, bathed in the glow of blazing fire. All around him, debris floated down into the sea of flames below.
In the sky above, Heatblast had also finished his fight.
"Hey Grandpa, we're here!" Heatblast rode his cloud toward the Rustbucket with a roar.
"Ben, Lucian, hurry over! We're leaving immediately!" Grandpa Max shouted, determined to avoid any further mishaps. The urgent priority was to return to Mount Rushmore and summon reinforcements.
"Got it." Four Arms stepped over the charred debris, about to charge out of the searing inferno.
Whoosh!
Suddenly, a massive iron sphere appeared in the sky. Its surface was covered in spikes, resembling a curled-up hedgehog spinning rapidly through the air.
The blazing Heatblast couldn't dodge in time and was struck head-on, crashing into the ground and scattering a cloud of burning ash. The massive spiked sphere, wreathed in flames, slammed violently into the sea of fire.
Crack!
The iron sphere split apart, revealing what was inside.
Grandpa Max's eyes widened, his heart pounding wildly. Inside the metal shell sat a towering alien, his mouth lined with tentacles, skin a sickly green, and eyes glowing a fierce blood-red that radiated a savage killing intent.
The creature rose slowly to its feet. Towering and muscular, his body was covered in bulging veins, his presence overwhelming—like a primordial beast emerging from the dawn of time.
"Vilgax!" Grandpa Max clenched his fists, shocked that the warlord was still alive.
"Long time no see, Tennyson," Vilgax said coldly, grabbing Heatblast off the ground.
"Release my grandson!" Grandpa Max roared.
"Water Dragon Soul!"
Gwen formed a ferocious water dragon before her. Steam billowed around it as it coiled and roared, surging toward Vilgax in a spiraling charge.
Vilgax didn't move an inch.
Boom!
The dragon struck his thigh, only to shatter instantly into a glimmering mist that faded into the air.
"Was that supposed to tickle me?" Vilgax sneered, his crimson eyes glancing at Grandpa Max. "So the Omnitrix's owner is your grandson? How amusing."
He reached out a massive claw, moving toward Heatblast's Omnitrix to deactivate the transformation.
"That's what you get for tickling me!" a furious voice shouted from behind.
Before Vilgax could react, a tremendous force slammed into him, sending his massive body flying into the blazing inferno.
Four Arms lowered his fist and helped Heatblast to his feet.
"Ouch~ That really hurt," Heatblast groaned, rubbing his head.
"What? Two Omnitrixes?" Vilgax growled from where he had fallen, his eyes flicking between the Omnitrix on Four Arms' chest and the one on Heatblast's arm.
Even a Galactic Warlord like Vilgax was momentarily stunned, his mind unable to process what he was seeing.
What was going on here?
"The ship's scanners clearly picked up only one signal. Why am I seeing two now?" he muttered in confusion. Could one be fake? But both could transform—that didn't make sense.
Four Arms remained silent. He knew the answer.
Ben's Omnitrix was a duplicate—undetectable by radar and beyond Azmuth's control.
"Never mind." Vilgax shook his head, snapping out of his shock. Then he laughed. "Two Omnitrixes? Perfect. Twice the power for me to claim!"
It was clear he intended to seize them both, already treating them as his trophies.
"It's you—that stinking squid from my dream!" Heatblast gathered blazing energy in his palm. "Didn't think you were real, but since you came knocking, this hero won't mind beating you down!"
"Cuz, just beat him up!"
No sooner had Gwen shouted than Heatblast launched forward on his fiery cloud, charging straight toward Vilgax in the sea of flames.
"Ben, wait!"
...
If you'd like to support my work and unlock advanced chapters, you can follow me on P@treon.
[Upto 50 chapters ahead for now]
[email protected]/PinkSnake