Chapter 159: He's Dead. No, He's Not.
"Nobody move! Hands where we can see them!"
A squad of heavily armored Forever Knights fanned out across the chamber, the barrels of their sleek, high-tech pistols leveled squarely at Ben and the rest of the group.
"Not a chance." Kevin sneered. He slammed his palm against a nearby stone pillar. A wave of gray texture rippled up his arm, rapidly encasing his flesh in dense, impenetrable rock.
Without missing a beat, Kevin plunged his stone-coated hands directly into the floor. He gritted his teeth and heaved upward. The heavy stone tiles buckled and shattered, rising in a violent, jagged wave that crashed into the front line of the Forever Knights, sending them sprawling across the ground in a clatter of metal.
But the gap was instantly filled. More armored figures poured into the room, stepping over their fallen comrades.
Realizing that their targets had absolutely no intention of surrendering, the Forever Knights abandoned all pretense of a peaceful capture. They opened fire. A deadly hail of searing red lasers crisscrossed through the air, tearing toward the group.
Gwen reacted instantly. Her hands flared with brilliant pink light as she thrust them forward, projecting a massive, domed shield of pure mana. The red lasers slammed into the barrier, splashing harmlessly against the energy surface. Her eyes narrowed. Channeling her mana outward, she seized telekinetic control of the Knights' weapons, violently jerking their arms around so the blasters aimed directly at their own ranks.
Beside her, Ben slammed his hand down on the Omnitrix dial.
A blinding flash of emerald light illuminated the cavernous room.
"Echo Echo!"
The small, silicon-based alien hit the ground running. "Echo... Echo... Echo..."
His voice layered over itself as his body split down the middle, dividing into two. Those two instantly split into four, then eight, swarming forward like a tidal wave of white sound-suits. The clones planted their feet, opened their mouths impossibly wide, and unleashed a devastating sonic scream.
The sheer force of the sound wave distorted the air itself. It swept through the chamber like a physical wall, shattering the stone pillars and sending a dozen Forever Knights collapsing to their knees, desperately clutching their ringing helmets in agony.
Taking advantage of the chaos, Kevin charged into the fray like a wrecking ball. He threw a brutal right hook into a Knight's chest plate, the impact sending the armored man flying backward with enough force to bowl over three of his allies like bowling pins.
Just as Kevin was getting into the rhythm of the brawl, a lone Forever Knight crept up behind him, raising his blaster for a cowardly, point-blank execution.
"Kevin! Watch your back!"
The veteran Plumber barked the warning as he drew his own weapon. He fired a precise, glowing shot that struck the sneaking Knight's blaster dead center. The kinetic force ripped the weapon from the Knight's grip, sending both the man and the gun tumbling backward.
The blaster hit the stone floor several meters away with a sharp crack. The casing splintered, and volatile red electrical sparks began to violently arc across the damaged power cell.
But the Knight, blinded by fanaticism, scrambled to his feet and snatched the sparking weapon right back up, determined to put a hole through Kevin's back.
The Plumber's eyes widened beneath his visor. "Don't fire! The containment cell is broken!"
The Knight scoffed beneath his faceplate. 'Broken? Nice try, you cunning old fool.'He aimed the weapon squarely at Kevin.'I'll shoot! I'll shoot you all to pieces!'
He pulled the trigger without a second of hesitation.
Instead of firing a laser, the entire barrel of the gun began to emit a blinding, unstable crimson glow. The high-pitched whine of an overloading energy core pierced the air.
The Knight froze. 'Oh... crap. It's going to—'
"Get down!"
The Plumber lunged forward, tackling Kevin to the ground just as the world erupted in red light.
The broken Level Five blaster detonated with the force of a heavy explosive. A shockwave tore through the room, blowing a massive, smoking crater several meters wide into the solid stone floor. As for the sneaky Forever Knight, the blast obliterated him entirely, leaving nothing behind but a scorch mark on the pavement.
The Plumber lay sprawled on top of Kevin, exhaling a long, shaky breath as the dust settled around them.
Kevin blinked, staring up at the older alien pinning him to the floor. A faint, awkward flush crept up his stone-textured neck.
'Hold on, old man,'Kevin thought, shifting uncomfortably.'This is getting a little too intimate.'
For a long, silent moment, the two of them just stared at each other amidst the rubble.
Finally, the Plumber calmly pushed himself off Kevin and stood up, dusting off his armored suit.
"Thanks," Kevin muttered, rubbing the back of his neck as he got to his feet. "I owe you one." He knew full well the old man had just risked his own life to shield him from the blast.
The Plumber merely offered a slight shake of his head. He turned his gaze toward the massive, smoking crater left by the explosion. "This is exactly why Level Five technology is strictly illegal on Earth. You Earthlings simply aren't ready to handle it."
The two exchanged a brief look of mutual understanding before turning back to the fight, their coordination suddenly flawless as they waded back into the sea of Forever Knights.
On the other side of the battlefield, Gwen's hands danced through the air. Her mana shifted, igniting into a roaring, localized fire tornado that swept directly into a cluster of heavily armored Knights. The ambient temperature in the room skyrocketed instantly.
"So hot! It's burning! Quickly, take off the armor!" one of the Knights shrieked, clawing at his scorching chest plate.
"Never!" another yelled back, his voice cracking from the blistering heat. "The armor is a warrior's soul!"
"You idiot... wait, why do I smell roasted chicken?"
Their fanaticism didn't save them. Within seconds, the Knights caught in the vortex could no longer endure the heat. Those at the center were reduced to ash by the swirling flames, while those on the edges were literally cooked alive inside their superheated metal suits. The luckier ones merely passed out from the agonizing burns before they were fully roasted.
It was a grim scene, but a necessary one. Influenced by their time traveling with Klein, Ben and Gwen had undergone a subtle shift in their worldview. They retained their core kindness, but they had learned the hard way that mercy to a lethal enemy was cruelty to themselves. When the situation demanded it, they no longer hesitated to strike with absolute, ruthless finality.
Meanwhile, the Echo Echo clones had multiplied until their numbers rivaled the remaining Forever Knights. Coordinating their movements perfectly, they unleashed a synchronized, omnidirectional sound wave. The sheer concussive force hit the Knights like a physical hammer, dropping them to the floor like stalks of harvested wheat.
Silence finally fell over the ruined chamber, broken only by the groans of the unconscious and the crackle of dying flames.
With the battle won, the Plumber gestured for Kevin to help him gather up the scattered Level Five blasters. They piled the dangerous contraband into a heap in the center of the room.
The Plumber then turned to the small army of aliens. "That is all of them. If you would do the honors." He tossed the final pistol onto the pile.
Kevin and Gwen immediately clamped their hands over their ears and backed away.
The lead Echo Echo stepped forward, took a deep breath, and unleashed a point-blank, ear-splitting shriek directly at the pile of weapons.
"Ahhhhh!!!"
The concentrated sonic blast hit the metal with devastating precision, vibrating the internal components until the blasters violently shattered into harmless, sparking scrap.
A flash of green light illuminated the room once more as the clones merged back together, reverting into Ben.
As Ben stretched his arms, his gaze caught a strange sight. A puddle of glowing blue liquid was pooling on the stone floor. He traced the trail of fluid upward, his eyes widening as he saw a jagged crack in the side of the Plumber's armored suit. The blue liquid was steadily dripping from the breach.
"Hey! Are you okay?" Ben asked, his voice laced with sudden alarm as he pointed at the crack. "Your spacesuit is leaking!"
"That is not water!" The Plumber gasped. He clutched his side, his knees buckling as he collapsed heavily onto one knee. A grimace of pure agony twisted his features beneath the helmet.
Kevin rushed forward, his stone armor retracting as he grabbed the Plumber by the shoulder to keep him from falling over completely. "Buddy, hold on. Are you alright?"
The Plumber let out a weak, ragged cough. 'Do I look alright to you?'
Knowing his time was up, the Plumber forced himself to look up at Ben, desperate to pass on his final message. "Ben... you must listen to me..."
A fresh wave of pain wracked his body, cutting his words short.
"Hang on," Kevin interrupted, his voice tight with panic. "I have tire patches out in the Rustbucket. Maybe they can seal the leak—"
"It is too late!" the Plumber ground out through clenched teeth, his breathing growing shallow. "No one can save me now."
"Let us help you," Gwen pleaded, dropping to her knees beside him. She refused to just stand there and watch their ally bleed out.
"If you truly wish to help me..." The Plumber's voice dropped to a raspy whisper. "Then find out where this Level Five technology is coming from."
His body began to visibly shrivel beneath the armor, his exposed skin turning a sickly, translucent pale.
Ben swallowed hard and nodded. "We will. No problem."
"This is just the tip of the iceberg, kid," the Plumber wheezed, his grip on Kevin's arm weakening. "The case your grandpa is investigating... it is serious. Aliens are invading Earth... and he is deep undercover. If you solve this case... you might be able to find Max. You might be able to save Earth."
He opened his mouth, clearly wanting to say more, to give them more clues, but his life force finally gave out. His physical form dissolved into a wisp of pale white smoke, drifting up toward the ceiling and fading into nothingness.
All that remained was his empty, cracked Plumber suit, slumped lifelessly against Kevin's arms.
"Damn it! These absolute clowns actually tricked me with a fake robot dragon! I actually thought it was a real magical beast for a second... That's it. This time, I am absolutely blowing their entire castle to the ground."
Footsteps echoed from the corridor as Klein strolled casually into the room, brushing dust off his jacket and muttering a string of annoyed curses.
Hearing his voice, Gwen scrambled to her feet. She ran straight toward him and threw her arms around his waist, burying her face tightly against his chest. Her shoulders trembled with quiet grief.
Klein blinked, looking down at his cousin in mild surprise. He patted her back awkwardly, then glanced over at Ben, who was staring at the floor with his fists clenched tight.
"Cousin..." Ben muttered, his voice thick with disappointment. "He... he's gone."
Klein looked past Ben and spotted the empty, deflated Plumber suit lying on the floor. He let out a long, exasperated sigh of relief.
"Is that all?" Klein asked, his tone completely flat. "I thought something serious had actually happened."
Ben and Kevin snapped their heads up, staring at him in utter disbelief.
'No, Cousin,'Ben thought, his eye twitching.'Isn't it a bit inappropriate to be this insensitive right now? A man just died!'
"Relax. He won't die," Klein said casually. He gently pushed Gwen back by her shoulders, stepping past her toward the empty suit.
"I can save him."
Without another word, Klein raised his wrist and slapped the dial of the Another Omnitrix.
An eerie, ghostly blue light exploded through the cavernous room. The light coalesced into a bulky, copper-plated, mechanical figure covered in complex gears.
"Clockwork!"
Seeing the massive, time-manipulating alien, Ben, Gwen, and Kevin instinctively took several large steps back.
The large, golden mainspring key on top of Clockwork's head began to wind rapidly, emitting a heavy, rhythmic ticking sound. The glass casing on his chest flared with that same eerie blue temporal energy. He raised his mechanical hands, and a concentrated beam of pure, rippling time-light burst forth, striking the empty Plumber suit dead center.
The air around the suit warped and distorted. The white smoke that had dissipated into the air violently reversed course, swirling backward and funneling straight into the armor. The cracked metal sealed itself shut.
As the eerie blue light finally faded, the suit shifted.
"Huh?"
The Plumber sat up abruptly, blinking behind his visor. He looked around the room, completely bewildered. "Where was I just now?"
Kevin's jaw practically hit the floor. His eyes were wide enough to fall out of his skull. "He's alive?!"
It was the first time Kevin had ever witnessed the terrifying, reality-bending power of Clockwork, and his brain was struggling to process the fact that someone had just casually reversed death.
Ben crossed his arms and shot Kevin a look of absolute disdain, rolling his eyes at the older boy's dramatic reaction. Honestly, the guy was way too easily surprised.
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