Zs'Skayr stood before Ben, his form finally corporeal after being imprisoned within the confines of the Omnitrix for what felt like an eternity. His body was tall and slender, with skin that appeared to be made of shifting shadows that never quite settled into one definite shape. Obsidian veins pulsed across his surface, glowing with an eerie purple energy that seemed to ebb and flow with his emotions. His face was sharp and angular, with hollow eyes that burned like distant stars in the void of space – ancient and cold.
"I have been trapped in this watch by Azmuth for so long,"Zs'Skayr said, his voice reverberating with a metallic undertone that made Ben's skin crawl. Each syllable carried the weight of centuries of confinement. "For some pity crimes."
The way he spoke made it clear that what authorities considered crimes, he viewed as mere inconveniences. His posture shifted subtly, straightening with pride as he recalled his past. There was something unsettling about how his form seemed to absorb the ambient light around him.
"I have been waiting for this moment," Zs'Skayr continued, raising his arms as if to embrace freedom itself. When he moved, he didn't simply occupy space; he commanded it, displaced it, bent it to his will. The air around him distorted slightly, as though reality itself was uncomfortable with his presence.
The Omnitrix started beeping, and suddenly Ghostfreak and Ben were separated. Ben staggered back, disoriented by the sudden split, while Ghostfreak hovered uncertainly between them. Ben's gaze locked onto Zs'Skayr, who stared back with those cosmic eyes that seemed to see through him rather than at him.
Ben felt his heart hammering in his chest. The watch that had made him special in this world was actually a prison, and its prisoner now stood before him.
"What do you mean you were trapped in the Omnitrix by Azmuth?" Ben demanded, his voice steadier than he felt. His hand instinctively hovered near the watch on his wrist, though it was now unclear what protection it might offer.
Zs'Skayr laughter started as a low rumble, like distant thunder, before crescendoing into something that made the windows vibrate. When he laughed, particles of dark matter seemed to dance around him, responding to his mirth like obedient servants.
"Because plumbers could never put me in prison," he said, prowling in a slow circle around Ben. Each step he took left momentary afterimages, as though his body existed in multiple planes simultaneously. "They threw me in the Null Void."
His fingers traced patterns in the air as he spoke, leaving trails of that same purple energy hanging in space for seconds after his movements ceased. There was something hypnotic about the way he moved, fluid yet precise, like a predator that had evolved beyond the need for brute force.
"I, the king, came out from there," Zs'Skayr continued, his chest expanding with pride. The shadows comprising his form rippled with the memory of past triumphs. "And was on achieving my goal, but Ben—" he jabbed a finger toward Ben, and the air around it distorted like heat waves above asphalt, "—came and foiled me after so many attempts."
Ben listened, studying his opponent. Zs'Skayr movements betrayed his emotions: when he spoke of the Null Void, his shadows contracted slightly, betraying a deeply buried fear; when he mentioned being king, they expanded, responding to his ego. This being was powerful, yes, but also vain—a weakness Ben might exploit.
"Ben knew he could never truly put me in prison," Zs'Skayr continued, his voice dropping to a conspiratorial whisper. When he spoke quietly, it somehow demanded more attention than his shouts. "So he handed me to Azmuth, and that toothpick, not knowing how to deal with me, imprisoned me in the Omnitrix he created and sealed me with the watch in a safe."
Ben's eyes widened as the implications hit him. "So that god stole the Omnitrix from a multiverse and gave it to me?" he thought aloud, trying to make sense of the revelation. The idea that his greatest tool—the one that had given him purpose in this Marvel universe since his reincarnation—was actually a prison for beings like Zs'Skayr was disturbing on levels he couldn't fully process.
Zs'Skayr noticed Ben's distraction and clapped his hands, creating a sonic boom that snapped Ben back to attention. The shadows around Zs'Skayr hands momentarily dispersed at the impact before reforming.
"But now that I have this gun," Zs'Skayr said, producing a device that looked like a cross between a pistol and a small satellite dish. It pulsed with the same energy that coursed through his veins, suggesting a connection between the technology and Zs'Skayr himself. "I don't need to bring my army here. I can let them come and roam all over the multiverse."
The gun hummed with power, its components shifting and realigning themselves as if it were a living thing. Zs'Skayr cradled it with the tenderness one might show a beloved pet, his fingers stroking its surface almost lovingly.
Ben, trying to diffuse the tension and buy himself time, scoffed. "Zs'Skayr, don't you think that's too much of a leap? From planet-level thug to multiversal thug?"
Something dangerous flashed in Zs'Skayr eyes. The casual dismissal touched a nerve, and the shadows of his form bristled like the hackles of an angry wolf. The temperature in the room dropped several degrees.
"I guess all Bens from every universe have trashy mouths," Zs'Skayr snarled, his voice suddenly devoid of its earlier playfulness. His form expanded, growing taller and broader, consuming more space as his rage manifested physically. The shadows comprising his body now seemed to have weight and substance, no longer just visual aberrations but physical threats.
Before Ben could react Ghost Spider. but she phased through Zs'Skayr.
Zs'Skayr attention shifted to Ghost Spider, his eyes narrowing with interest. "Another bug," he murmured, his voice taking on an analytical quality. "But not from this universe."
Ben reached for the Omnitrix, but before he could activate it, Zs'Skayr lunged forward with astonishing speed. His movements were impossibly fast, leaving trails of void-like darkness behind him. He covered the distance between them in milliseconds, his hand already reaching for Ben's throat.
Ghost Spider reacted instantly, firing a web that caught Zs'Skayr extending arm. The webbing seemed to momentarily disrupt his shadowy form where it made contact, causing sections of his arm to dissipate into smoke.
Zs'Skayr hissed in pain, pulling back. "Your webs," he snarled at Ghost Spider. "They're imbued with interdimensional energy."
"Comes with being a Spider-Woman from another universe," Ghost Spider replied, dropping from the ceiling to position herself between Zs'Skayr and Ben. "Now back off before I show you what else I can do."
Ben took advantage of the distraction to twist the dial on the Omnitrix. "Going hero!" he shouted as green light engulfed him. When it faded, he'd transformed into Heatblast, flames already forming around his fists.
Heatblast quipped, launching a fireball at Zs'Skayr .
The shadowy being twisted his body in an impossible angle, the fireball passing through where his chest had been a moment earlier. The way Zs'Skayr moved defied conventional physics; it was as if his body remembered being intangible and still partially existed in that state.
"Impressive," Zs'Skayr acknowledged, his voice now echoing as if coming from multiple sources. "But fire cannot burn shadows, boy."
He extended his hand, and tendrils of darkness shot forward, wrapping around Heatblast's wrists. Where they made contact, steam hissed as heat met cold void. Ben grimaced, feeling his energy being sapped where the shadows touched him.
Zs'Skayr seemed amused by the development. "How interesting," he said, his voice dripping with malice. "Two Gwens, one Ben, and a creature trapped between worlds." He glanced at the unconscious form of Superior Spider-Man in the corner—the villain Ben had already defeated earlier—and his eyes gleamed with new purpose.
Heatblast broke free from the shadow tendrils with a surge of flame. "Ghost Spider!" he called out. "His shadows seem vulnerable to your webs!"
"On it!" Ghost Spider replied, launching a barrage of web shots at Zs'Skayr. Each one that connected seemed to cause him momentary pain, his form flickering where the webbing touched him.
Angered, Zs'Skayr raised the multiversal gun. "Enough games!" he roared, the weapon beginning to hum louder, parts spinning and glowing brighter.
Heatblast launched himself forward on a jet of flame, targeting the gun rather than Zs'Skayr himself. As he closed the distance, Zs'Skayr twisted away, but not before Heatblast managed to graze the weapon with a flame-covered fist.
The gun sparked, its delicate internal mechanisms damaged by the intense heat. Alarm flashed across Zs'Skayr face – the first genuine concern he'd shown – as the device began to emit an unstable, pulsating glow.
"What have you done?!" Zs'Skayr shouted, his form fluctuating wildly as his concentration broke. The shadows comprising his body stretched and contracted chaotically, responding to his panic.
The gun's components began spinning faster, the hum growing to a painful whine. The air around it warped and distorted, reality itself bending under the strain of malfunctioning multiversal technology.
"Everyone get back!" Ghost Spider warned, her spider-sense screaming danger at her. She fired webs at both Ben and Gwen, pulling them toward the door.
But before anyone could escape, the gun emitted a blinding flash. When vision returned, a tear in space-time hung in the air where the gun had been – a ragged wound in reality itself, edges pulsing with unstable energy.
"The connector of the multiverse," Zs'Skayr whispered, his voice a mix of awe and terror. "It's falling apart."
As if responding to his words, the tear widened dramatically. Beyond it, the swirling chaos of the Null Void became visible – that prison dimension of floating rocks and predatory creatures. A powerful vacuum effect emanated from the portal, pulling everything toward it.
Furniture skidded across the floor. Papers and smaller objects were the first to be sucked in. Heatblast dug his fiery hands into the floor, melting the material to create handholds. Ghost Spider anchored herself with multiple webs, while also trying to secure Gwen, who was being dragged inexorably toward the portal.
"Hold on!" Ghost Spider shouted, her voice barely audible over the roar of the vortex.
Zs'Skayr fought against the pull with surprising strength, his shadowy form stretching and contorting as he attempted to anchor himself to reality. "No!" he screamed, his voice distorting. "Not back there! Never back there!"
For the first time, genuine fear showed in those cosmic eyes. Whatever he had endured in the Null Void had left scars deeper than any physical wound.
But as the pull intensified, evenZs'Skayr supernatural strength wasn't enough. He began sliding toward the portal, his clawed fingers leaving deep gouges in the floor as he struggled to resist.
Then his gaze fell on Superior Spider-Man's unconscious form, which was also slowly sliding toward the vortex. A terrible smile spread across Zs'Skayr] face as a new plan formed.
With a sudden, violent motion, Zs'Skayr stopped fighting the pull. Instead, he propelled himself toward Superior Spider-Man, his shadowy essence colliding with the villain's body.
Instead of a physical impact, Zs'Skayr form seemed to seep into Superior Spider-Man's suit and skin, disappearing completely. The villain's unconscious body convulsed, his back arching unnaturally as internal conflict played out across his muscles and nerves.
When Superior Spider-Man's eyes snapped open, they glowed with the same purple energy that had pulsed through Zs'Skayr form.
"This vessel will serve," Spider-Man said, but the voice was Zs'Skayr metallic undertones and all. The possessed villain moved with Zs'Skayr fluid grace now, but with Spider-Man's strength and agility added to his own considerable powers.
The possessed Superior Spider-Man leapt toward the malfunctioning gun, which was now floating near the center of the vortex. With remarkable precision, he shot a web that attached to the device and pulled it toward him, catching it in mid-air.
"No!" Ben shouted, transforming back to human as Omnitrix beeped again
. But the timing couldn't have been worse – without Heatblast's anchoring flames, he was immediately caught in the vortex's pull.
Ghost Spider tried to extend a web to reach him, but the interdimensional energies disrupted her aim. "Ben!" she cried, losing her own anchor as the pull intensified.
Gwen Stacy reached out futilely toward them both, her own grip failing as she too was pulled toward the portal. "This can't be happening!" she screamed, terror evident in her voice.
The possessed Superior Spider-Man clutched the multiversal connector to his chest, a triumphant smile spreading across his face – Zs'Skayr expression on Spider-Man's features, an unsettling combination.
"See you on the other side," he taunted as the vortex finally pulled him in, the connector still clutched in his grasp.
Ben, Gwen, and Ghost Spider followed shortly after, all of them sucked into the swirling chaos of the Null Void. The portal snapped shut behind them with a thunderclap of collapsing reality, leaving the room eerily silent and still, scattered with the few objects too heavy to be pulled through.
Inside the Null Void, Ben tumbled through the alien atmosphere, disoriented by the transition between dimensions. Floating islands of rock drifted through the reddish void around him.
Ghost Spider managed to stabilize herself mid-air, her spider-sense adapting to the strange environment. She shot a web that caught Gwen as the girl fell, pulling her to safety on one of the floating rocks.
"Ben!" Ghost Spider called out, shooting another web that attached to Ben's arm, arresting his fall into the abyss below.
As Ben landed on the rocky surface.
"He's possessed Superior Spider-Man," Ben explained quickly to Gwen and Ghost Spider. "And he's got the multiversal connector."
Ghost Spider's mask couldn't hide her concern. "Superior Spider-Man was already dangerous enough on his own. With Zs'Skayr controlling him..."
On the distant island, the possessed villain examined the damaged connector. Some components still sparked, but the device remained largely intact. making repairs with the villain's scientific knowledge.
"We need to get that device back," Ben said, reaching for the Omnitrix again. "Before he figures out how to use it."
Gwen looked around at the alien landscape, fear evident in her eyes. "Where are we?"
"The Null Void," Ben answered grimly. "Zs'Skayr old stomping grounds."
Zs'Skayr now in Superior Spider-Man's body, could feel the villain fighting against his control. It was like having a second consciousness constantly pushing against his own, trying to reclaim territory. But Zs'Skayr hadn't survived millennia of imprisonment without developing formidable mental fortitude. He compartmentalized Superior Spider-Man's consciousness, boxing it away in a corner of the mind they now shared.
"Your body is magnificent," Zs'Skayr murmured aloud, feeling the raw power in Superior Spider-Man's enhanced muscles. "The strength, the reflexes..." He shot an experimental web, watching it arc perfectly to attach to a nearby floating rock. "And these abilities. So useful."
The connector in his hands hummed, responding to the unique energies of the Null Void. Here, at the crossroads of realities, the device seemed more active, more alive. Despite the damage it had sustained, its core functions remained intact. Zs'Skayr could feel the multiversal energies pulsing through it, waiting to be harnessed.
"With this," he whispered, eyes gleaming with anticipation, "I won't just escape the Null Void again. I'll rule it, and every other dimension connected to it."