Chapter 203: Are You Staying Up Late to Be a Hero, Ben?
Morning sunlight filtered through the curtains, casting a warm glow over the bedroom. Klein, having been thoroughly occupied throughout the night, slowly opened his eyes. He untangled himself from Gwen's soft embrace, stretching his arms with a quiet yawn.
After a quick wash and throwing on some casual clothes, he made his way downstairs. The rhythmic sound of sizzling bacon echoed from the kitchen, where a summoned Mummy servant was diligently preparing breakfast. Klein grabbed a glass of warm water, took a slow sip, and flicked on the living room television.
The local news anchor appeared on screen, looking unusually serious. "Late last night, a massive fire erupted in the dense forest just outside city limits. After emergency crews managed to extinguish the blaze, authorities uncovered the ruins of a medieval-style castle hidden deep within the woods. A local witness claims to have spotted a creature with blue-black skin and two pairs of wings—resembling the urban legend of the Mothman—fleeing into the night sky. We now go to our on-site reporter with the witness."
The camera cut to a middle-aged, balding man with a severely receding hairline. He stared wide-eyed into the lens. "Listen, you weren't there, but that giant blue butterfly flapped its wings and took off like a rocket! I gotta say though, it had a surprisingly good figure. I even snapped a picture on my phone, look!"
The reporter squinted at the blurry phone screen. "Uh... sir, what exactly is all that white slime covering the ruins?"
The man waved his hand dismissively. "Oh, don't sweat the small stuff. Just look at the wings!"
The broadcast displayed the grainy photograph. Despite the terrible resolution, the distinctive blue-black wings and slender silhouette were unmistakable. Klein raised an eyebrow. It was Big Chill.
Soft footsteps padded against the hardwood floor as Gwen walked into the living room, wrapping her arms around Klein's waist from behind. She peered over his shoulder at the television, her eyes widening slightly.
They exchanged a knowing look. Gwen hesitated for a split second before asking, "Is that... Ben?"
It obviously wasn't Klein. He had been far too busy playing poker with her all night in bed to go out and demolish a hidden Forever Knight stronghold.
Klein took another sip of his water. "Yeah, that's definitely him. No mistake."
The odds of a wild Necrofriggian randomly wandering into their quiet corner of Earth were practically zero. Let alone one that just happened to harbor a deep, destructive grudge against the local Forever Knight faction.
Still, there was no need to jump to conclusions. They could simply interrogate Ben about his midnight joyride later. There was no rush.
Gwen clearly shared the same sentiment. Her hands slid further up Klein's chest, a playful smile touching her lips as she tugged him back toward the stairs for a morning continuation of their poker game.
Later that evening, the streets were quiet and bathed in the orange glow of streetlights. Kevin's sleek muscle car rumbled to a halt right outside the Tennyson residence. The engine purred before shutting off, and Klein, Gwen, and Kevin stepped out onto the pavement, making their way up the driveway.
Klein rapped his knuckles against the wooden front door.
Almost instantly, the door flew open. Ben stood in the doorway, his hair a messy bird's nest and dark circles under his eyes. Before anyone could speak, he lunged forward, throwing his arms around Klein's neck. "Cousin! You have to save me!"
Klein's expression flatlined. He placed a hand on Ben's face and shoved him backward with absolute disgust. "Get off me, Dweeb. Calm down and explain what kind of mess you've dragged yourself into this time."
Gwen brushed off Klein's jacket, clearly unimpressed by her cousin's dramatic display. "You really outdid yourself this time, Ben. Sneaking out to demolish a Forever Knight castle in the middle of the night?"
Kevin leaned against the doorframe, a smirk playing on his lips. He actually respected the sheer overkill of leveling an entire enemy base.
Ben, however, just stared at them with a blank, exhausted expression. "Huh? What castle? I was stuck in my room reviewing physics all night! When would I even have the time to go pick a fight with a bunch of guys in tin cans?"
Klein crossed his arms, the pieces falling into place. "Let me guess. The life-or-death crisis you need me to solve is..."
"I have a massive physics make-up exam tomorrow morning!" Ben wailed, looking like he was on the verge of genuine tears. "If I fail this one too, my mom is going to end my life! Literally! Cousin, please! You're basically a god, you definitely have some secret cheat code to help me pass, right?!"
Ever since they were kids, Ben had harbored a blind, unwavering faith that Klein was completely all-powerful. Even sitting in the exam hall, Ben would silently pray to his all-powerful cousin for good grades. Unfortunately, Klein's reality-bending powers did not extend to magically implanting physics formulas into a slacker's brain. Ben had flunked, and now he was facing the ultimate judgment.
Still, Klein wasn't entirely heartless. He could at least attempt to force-feed the boy some basic knowledge. "Since you apparently weren't the Big Chill on the news, we'll drop the castle issue for now. Grab your textbooks. I'll tutor you."
Klein stepped past the bewildered teenager and walked into the living room.
Kevin blinked, his smirk vanishing. "Wait, boss, that's it? We're just going to do homework?" He had been fully prepared to hunt down a rogue Necrofriggian tonight.
Klein paused and shot Kevin a look reserved for absolute idiots. "What else do you suggest? Do you have a magical radar tracking its exact coordinates?"
Kevin opened his mouth to argue, found he had absolutely no counterpoint, and snapped his mouth shut in defeated silence.
The tutoring session dragged on late into the night. They gathered around the dining table. Gwen carefully highlighted key formulas and summarized the core concepts, while Klein broke down the actual problem-solving steps. Kevin, who had never willingly stepped foot inside a classroom, sat entirely sidelined. With nothing else to do, he busied himself by devouring a massive container of chili fries.
Klein's pen glided across the scratch paper, writing out a flawless, highly detailed equation. He tapped the pen against the final number. "It's simple. You carry the variable here, apply the kinetic friction coefficient there, integrate the curve, and you have your answer. Understand?"
Ben stared at the paper. The silence stretched on for a painful ten seconds. Finally, Ben blinked his heavy eyelids. "Huh?"
Klein looked into his cousin's clear, entirely empty eyes and let out a long, suffering sigh. "Right. I severely overestimated your foundational intelligence. We are going to have to strip this down to an elementary school level."
"Heh... yeah, sorry," Ben chuckled awkwardly, rubbing the back of his neck. His brain felt like it was melting out of his ears. Seeking comfort, he reached blindly toward the center of the table for a chili fry. His fingers scraped against empty cardboard. He looked down. The large food container was completely spotless. He slowly raised his head, locking eyes with Kevin, whose face was currently smeared with grease and chili sauce.
Kevin froze mid-chew. He swallowed hard, the corner of his mouth twitching. "Uh... they were really good?"
Ben let out a defeated groan, letting his head hit the table. "Great. Now I have to go buy another batch just to survive this night."
Across town, the neon sign of the local fast-food joint buzzed in the quiet night.
The glass door swung open, and Ben Tennyson marched inside. His posture was stiff, his eyes slightly glazed. He slammed a crumpled bill onto the front counter, glaring at the late-night fry cook. "You people make me want to vomit," Ben spat, his voice carrying an odd, hollow echo. "You produce this foul-smelling sludge... it is disgusting! Stinky! Greasy and utterly unbearable! It makes everything in a ten-mile radius reek!"
The tired cook didn't even bat an eye at the bizarre insult. He simply scooped a massive portion of chili fries into a paper bag and shoved it across the counter. "Yeah, kid, whatever you say. It's probably just the extra onions."
Ben grabbed the bag, tearing it open. He leaned in and took a massive, shuddering breath. The pungent aroma of grease, chili, and melted cheese hit his face, and a look of pure, unadulterated bliss washed over his features. "But despite the sheer horror of it all... I absolutely crave this disgusting experience. It must be a flaw in the host's DNA."
Without another word, he turned on his heel and marched out the door, mechanically shoving handfuls of fries into his mouth.
Barely five minutes later, the shop's entrance bell chimed again.
The real Ben trudged through the door, looking completely drained from his physics torture. He pulled a few bills from his wallet, dropping them onto the counter. "One large order of chili fries, please."
The cook stared at him, wiping his hands on his apron. "Look, kid, I don't judge, but eating two of those massive servings back-to-back is a fast track to a heart attack."
Ben blinked, his exhaustion momentarily replaced by pure confusion. "I'm sorry, what did you just say?"
"Just giving you some friendly advice. Take it or leave it," the cook muttered, bagging up another fresh order and handing it over.
Ben grabbed the warm bag, his brow furrowed in deep thought as he turned and walked back out into the cool night air.
Outside the restaurant, Kevin's sports car sat idling in the shadows of the parking lot. Klein, Gwen, and Kevin were crammed inside, keeping a casual watch on the brightly lit entrance while waiting for Ben to finish his food run.
Inside the cramped cabin, the silence was deafening. Kevin gripped the steering wheel, his knuckles turning white. If Ben didn't hurry up, he was going to lose his mind. It wasn't that Klein and Gwen were doing anything inappropriate—they were just sitting quietly—but the sheer, unspoken chemistry radiating between the two of them made Kevin feel like a massive, unwanted third wheel. When Ben was around, at least they could be third wheels together. Now, Kevin was flying solo in the awkward zone.
Just as Kevin was about to fake a coughing fit to break the tension, the diner doors swung open.
The first Ben stepped out onto the sidewalk. Kevin let out a quiet sigh of relief, his eyes lighting up as he reached for the door handle, ready to call the kid over.
But before Kevin could even roll down the window, Ben raised his left wrist. Without a second of hesitation, he slammed his hand down on the Omnitrix dial. A flash of brilliant emerald light illuminated the parking lot. Where the teenager just stood, the ghostly, moth-like figure of Big Chill now hovered. The alien spread its massive blue-black wings and instantly launched into the night sky, disappearing into the clouds.
Gwen leaned forward against the front seats, her brow furrowed. "What in the world is wrong with him?"
Klein's eyes narrowed, his lazy demeanor vanishing as he tracked the alien's flight path. "Kevin, follow him. Don't lose sight of him."
Kevin didn't need to be told twice. He slammed his foot on the gas, the muscle car's engine roaring to life as it peeled out of the parking lot, burning rubber as it chased after the airborne alien.
A mere ten seconds later, the diner doors swung open again.
The real Ben stepped outside, clutching his fresh bag of chili fries. He looked up just in time to see Kevin's black and green sports car drifting around the corner at breakneck speed, leaving him entirely in the dust.
Ben stood frozen on the sidewalk, his jaw dropping. "Hey!" he yelled, sprinting a few steps forward. "Hey! I haven't even gotten in the car yet! Guys! HEY!"
His shouts echoed uselessly down the empty street. Realizing he had been completely abandoned, Ben let out an exasperated groan. He set his food down on a nearby bench, activated his own Omnitrix, and reluctantly transformed into Big Chill, taking to the skies to chase down his own runaway getaway car.
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