Chapter 20
What are Friends For
Everyone has a hard day, even Superheroes. Despite all their incredible powers and abilities, they still have days where they have worked so hard that all they want to do is go home and sleep. And for the Avengers, today was one of those days.
It had been several days since the Kang Invasion and the heroes have been working around the clock, helping the people of New York recover and rebuild from all the damages. Everything from helping clean up destroyed buildings, rescuing trapped civilians, to even reuniting lost people with their families…. And comforting them when they couldn't.
But they were not the only ones working to help the city recover from the invasion. Other heroes that also inhabited the city and surrounding areas chipped in to do their part. It was during that time, Ben saw a few familiar faces, such as Spider Man and Carol. But there were others that he was new to him. Such as a female hero, with raven hair, wearing a red and yellow skin-tight suit, that appeared to be flying around the city with what appear to be web wings on her arms. Ben wasn't sure if this woman was related to Spider Man in any way, but he was too occupied with his own efforts to ask.
It was also during the clean-up that Ben was introduced to an organisation called Damage Control, a government agency that was devoted to the clean-up and restoration of public areas in the event of a Super Villain encounter. Equipped with advanced tech provided by SHIELD, to take care of any collateral damage that may have taken place during a Super Heroes battle with a villain.
At first, Ben was quite surprised that an organisation like this even existed. But the more he thought about it, the more it made sense to the teen hero. With so many people in this world possessing extraordinary abilities and with hero and villain classes on a weekly basis, it made sense to have an organisation set up to take care of the damages, in order for normal everyday life to resume as quickly as possible. But still, even with Damage Control working around the clock to return things to normal, the heroes still did their part to help.
Needless to say, the work was not easy, and after days of tireless working, the Avengers were just about ready to collapse, by the time they returned to the Mansion. Black Panther, had returned to the city a couple of days after the invasion, after making sure that his people in Wakanda were ok and in good hands before he left. Thor returned to active duty a mere hour after he had awoken in the hospital, despite the medical staff's objections.
As for the Alien Shapeshifter himself, he was tired and weary from everything that had occurred, both during and after the invasion. From finding out he was destined to end the earth, to fighting to save it, to aiding the others to rebuild it afterwards. To say he was exhausted was an understatement.
The teen hero groaned as he entered his room and shuffled across the floor to his bed. Ben removed his jacket and sat on the edge of his bed, where he then proceeded to kick off his shoes and socks. He tried to aim for the closet, but both shoes and socks ended up scattered on the floor. But the teen was just too tired to bother to pick them up, that was something he would deal with tomorrow.
Ben leaned back and lay on his bed with his feet dangling over the side, taking in a deep breath through his nose and exhaling through his mouth as he did. It was in that moment that the Young Hero realised something… He reeked. It wasn't that much of a surprise really. He had been working all day in the heat, shifting through rubble and other things, so it made perfect sense that he was filthy. And regardless how tired he was, Ben Tennyson was not about to go to bed feeling dirty.
Letting out another groan, the Alien Avenger forced himself out of bed and ambled his way to his bathroom, removing his clothes as he did so. He then entered his bathroom and closed the door behind him.
A few minutes later, Ben emerged from the bathroom, steam flowing from the open door as he did. He then walked out of the bathroom, towards his closet, his towel casually wrapped around his waist leaving his chest bare and exposed. The teen hero let out a sigh of relief as he felt refreshed from his shower. His mind as calm as it has ever been for a long time as he opened his closet door and searched his draws for his evening wear.
"Hello Ben." A voice suddenly greeted from behind him.
But in his relaxed state of mind, Ben hardly reacted to the voice as he casually spoke of his shoulder. "Hey Laura."
However, a few seconds passed, before the teens eyes suddenly widened in alarm as his head immediately snapped around to see, none other than Laura Kinney aka X-23, sitting on the desk chair by his bed, wearing her usual attire consisting of black pants, boots and a black sports bra that showed off her mid-drift.
The teen hero let out a rather womanly squeak as he grabbed the door of his closet and positioned himself behind it, to shield his half naked form from her view, his face growing hotter as he does so.
"Laura! What are you doing here?" The Teen Hero asked/demanded. He did not mean to sound so forceful, but it wasn't everyday a beautiful girl suddenly appeared in his room while he was half naked.
Laura's expression remained neutral, which is common for her as she rarely showed any emotion. "I had not heard from you, since the Invasion ended." Laura responded calmly. "I was worried about you. So I came to make sure you were safe."
While her face may have remained frozen in its neutral state, Ben could see the emotion in the mutant girl's eyes. Indeed, they did show her concern and even her relief, seeing him unharmed. It was in that moment that Ben started to calm down and even give himself a mental smack in the head for putting her through that.
Ever since their little adventure involving the mercenary Kimura, the mutant clone and alien shapeshifter had grown rather close as friends during that time. With Laura calling to talk to Ben at least once a day to go over the events that happened during that time. It was during those calls that Ben had learned that Laura had returned to the X Men and was slowly building a relationship with her genetic template/father Wolverine.
But since the Invasion, Ben had not spoken to her since he the invasion first began and had not contacted her after it had ended. It was in that moment that the Alien Hero felt terrible for not checking in.
"Laura, I am so sorry I didn't call. After everything that happened in space and the clean up after, it just completely slipped my mind." Ben said, he didn't expect her to accept his excuses, but his concern about upsetting her, not to mention how tired he is, it was all he could think to do at this moment.
But instead of looking mad or being upset in anyway. Laura simply nodded to his response. "Very well."
Ben raised an eyebrow in confusion. "Seriously? You're not mad?"
"Is there a reason I should be?" She asked. "You have never lied to me and your reasons are perfectly understandable."
"Huh… Ok then." Ben responded.
Just then Laura looked at Ben and tilted her head to the side, appearing confused.
"Is there a reason, you are hiding from me behind that door, Ben?" She asked.
Bens cheeks then started to turn red again as he remembered the predicament he was in. "Ahh… Well… You see Laura, I'm not wearing any clothes right now."
"So?" Laura asked, still looking confused.
Ben sighed, even with all her time with the X Men, she still hadn't grasped normal human interaction.
"Well Laura, it's not normal for Girls and Guys our age to see each other like this outside of a romantic relationship." He tried to explain as best as he can, hoping that would make her understand.
For a moment, Laura sat in silence as she pondered Bens words. "We are friends, Ben. You don't need to worry about stuff like that, with me."
"I know, Laura. But still I'd rather you not see me like this." Ben responded.
At first Laura just sat still and looked at him for a moment. Then she nodded and rose from her seat.
"Would you be more comfortable if I were to look away?" She asked.
"I'd be more comfortable if you left the room." Ben said mentally. But he could not say that to her out loud. "Um… Yeah, could you turn around, please?" Ben asked out loud.
Laura nodded as she turned until she was facing the opposite direction to him. Seeing that she was no longer facing him. Ben cautiously opened his closet door and stepped out, one hand securing his towel to his waist.
"All right, I'm gonna get dressed. No peaking." The teen hero said firmly as he turned back to his draws.
"Ben, you know you can trust me. If you say not to look, I will not look. You are my friend and I trust you. I will follow any order you give me, to the letter." Laura responded, strongly.
From her tone and words, it sounded more like she was a soldier under Bens command rather than a friend. Something that Ben wasn't too comfortable with. But again, this was just Laura's inexperience with humans again. She had grown up her whole life with people giving her orders and treating her like a tool to be ordered around. Hopefully, she will be able to adjust to normal human interaction. But for now, they'll take it one step at a time.
Ben finished putting on his PJ's which consisted of black boxers and a green shirt. The teen hero then turned to face the Mutant Girl, who was still facing the wall.
"Ok, Laura. You can turn around now." Ben said.
Immediately the cloned mutant turned a full 180 degrees and faced him with a straight posture. For a moment, Ben half expected her to salute him, but was glad she didn't. Just then, Ben felt his fatigue start to settle in as he raised his hand to cover his yawn.
"Well, Laura. It was great seeing you. Thanks for dropping by and I'm glad to see that you're ok too. But I should really get to sleep." He said wearily.
"Understood." Laura said, as she started to walk passed Ben as he made his way to his bed.
The teen hero, pulled back the covers and proceeded to climb into bed. Just as Ben started to settle in under the covers, he looked up to see Laura was now sitting in her chair at the foot of his bed, looking at him.
And awkward feeling spread through the Alien Teen as the Mutant Girl continued to stare at him.
"Umm.. Good Night." Ben said awkwardly.
"Good Night, Ben." Laura responded causally.
Any subtle indication that Ben wanted her to leave, was completely lost on the girl as she continued to sit across from him and watch him.
"Is everything ok, Laura?" Ben asked, slightly concerned.
"Yes." Laura replied.
Well subtly was clearly not working, so now it was time to be blunt.
"Laura, I am going to sleep now. You should go home and get some rest too." Ben stated firmly to his friend. While he didn't like to run this risk of hurting her feelings, Laura had a tendency to be blunt with her statements and upfront with what she's thinking and feeling, regardless of other people's feelings. And in order for her to understand, Ben had to be just as blunt with her.
But after he finished his statement, Laura then shifted in her seat and averted her eyes from him for a moment and for the first time, since she appeared in his room, she now looked uncomfortable.
Ben was surprised by this sudden shift in character, which only increased his concern.
"Laura, what's wrong?" He asked.
For a moment, Laura looked away, avoiding eye contact. But then she looked him in the eye, her own filled with worry and… fear.
"I don't want to leave you." She responded weakly.
The teen hero blinked in surprise. What was going on with her that she wanted to stay in his room for the whole night?
"Huh? Laura, what's going on? Did something happen with the X-Men?" Ben asked her.
She shook her head. "No, everything is going well with the X Men. Logan has allowed me to stay and the others are very cautious of me but have been very kind."
"Then why don't you want to go back there?" Ben continued to question.
"Because I want to protect you." Laura stated, getting up from her chair. "You told me this invasion was caused by someone who was targeting you. And the entire time, I could not get to you and keep you safe. You are the first and only friend I have, Ben. I don't want to lose you like I lost the others. I can't lose you too."
At that moment she started to tremble, causing Ben to immediately get out of bed and walk over to her. Placing a hand on her shoulder as he did.
"Hey, hey. It's ok, Laura." Ben said in a comforting tone. "I know that everything that happened must've been pretty scary for you. But I promise I'm fine. I'm still here, aren't I?" This at least got Laura to look at him. But she still looked worried.
"I know you're worried about me. But that's what being a hero is all about. Putting our lives on the line to protect others. And a job like that makes enemies. I know you want to protect me, believe me, I feel the same about you. But I can assure you that I am not in any danger right now. Nothing bad is going to happen to me here. And if something does, you'll be the first one I call, ok?"
For a while, Laura looked at Ben, her expression, still full of concern. But eventually, it started to soften as she started to calm down.
"Do you promise?" She asked.
"I promise." Ben replied with a confident smirk.
Laura then let out a sigh, before pulling Ben in for a hug. Even after all their time together, Ben is still surprised every time she does that.
"I apologies, if I made you feel awkward, this evening." Laura said, her voice slightly muffled within the hug.
"Hey, It's cool. You were worried about your friend and you did what you felt was necessary. But hey, if got nothing going on tomorrow, how about you and me hang out?" Ben asked as he broke the hug.
"I would like that." Laura replied, a subtle hint on enthusiasm in her tone.
"Cool, I'll see ya then."
Laura nodded as she turned to head out the window, something that Ben found a little odd. But then again, she did sneak in here, bypassing Tony's security, so going out the window wasn't that much of a stretch.
Just as he was walking back to his bed, Ben suddenly remembered something important.
"Oh shoot. Um Laura." Ben called out, just as the Mutant was just about to exit, causing her to stop.
"I forgot, that I had already promised Carol, I'd spend some time with her tomorrow as well. Do you want to try some other time?"
For a moment, Laura was silent. A chill suddenly blew through the room as Laura's eye became dead and cold.
"Carol Danvers, the SHIELD agent, you said that betrayed your trust?" Laura asked, in a chillingly calm voice.
"Um, yeah. But we cleared all that up now. And I'm very happy with her now."
"…. Then I would like to meet her." Laura then stated.
"Umm, you sure you want to do that, Laura?" Ben asked, as he could tell that Laura was upset, by his mention of Carol. But Ben was pretty sure it was because he was rescheduling their time together for her.
"Yes." Laura replied calmly. "She is your girlfriend. I am your friend. It only makes sense that she and I could meet and interact with each other."
Despite his initial objection. She had a point, after all It's only normal for a couple to meet each other's friends. However so far, they were anything but a normal couple. But they should at least make the attempt.
"Ok, Laura. Tomorrow, I'll introduce you to Carol." Ben said, hesitantly.
"Good. I look forward to confronting her." Laura responded. She then turned around and jumped out of the window, disappearing into the night.
For a while, Ben just stood in silence as he looked out the window. An uneasy feeling, slowly rising up within him as he started to dread, what tomorrow will bring. But whatever worries he had, will have to wait until tomorrow. His fatigue rose once again as the teen hero, crawled back into bed and turned out the light. Finally, able to drift off to sleep.
Not since the Kang invasion, has a morning in New York looked so peaceful. The streets where oddly silent as it seemed the city itself was holding its breath on the off chance that it could be attacked again. But with the buildings all restored and the debris of the battle all cleaned up. It seemed that the city that never sleeps, has finally decided to take a break.
Not that anyone was complaining. Especially the heroes in Avengers Mansion, as Ben Tennyson stretched in his bed, the warm light of the sun, shone through the gaps of the curtains.
Just as usual, Ben was greeted by JARVIS, who once again updated Ben on his sleep patterns. Needless to say, the teen was pleased to hear the A.I report that he had achieved a healthy night's sleep. Guess saving the future can really help improve one's mental health.
The Teen Hero then got up and started to get ready for the day. He had not forgotten what he had promised Laura, the night before. Today he was introducing his overprotective friend, to his girlfriend. For a normal person, this is a normal thing and shouldn't be awkward at all. But Bens life is anything but normal. He just hoped that they could at least tolerate each other for his sake.
He had just gotten out of the shower and put on his pants, when he approached the window to pull back the curtains. But the moment he opened them and the intense glow of the sun floated the room, a dark figure suddenly burst through the window and tackled the Alien Avenger to the ground.
It had all happened so suddenly that Bens eyes couldn't register what was attacking him. A mixture of dark and light flashed across his eyes and he struggled to fight off the mysterious attacker. But it seemed this unknown being was stronger than he was as it easily pinned Ben to his back and grabbed both Bens wrists, restraining his arms. The Teen Hero struggled to free his arms, but it was futile. The attackers grip wouldn't budge.
Out of options, Ben grunted as he looked up and glared at the unknown being, the harsh light of the sun keeping its features hidden from him. Then the being moved its head into the suns path, revealing a black, spiky haired head with a black mask covering the whole face save for two big white eyes. The figures entire body was covered in a skin-tight black suit, which clearly showed of a slender feminine figure with a white Spider pattern in the middle of her chest.
"Rise and shine sleepy head." The being spoke in a friendly manner as the mask suddenly retracted, revealing the beaming face of Andrea Benton aka the symbiot hero in training Mania.
"My, my Ben, have you been working out? You look good." Andrea commented as she eyes him up and down from her position on top of him.
Ben however was not amused. Ben had first encountered Andrea a few weeks ago when she accidently bonded with a cloned sample of the Venom symbiot. And after fighting her, then teaming up to fight a newly created Anti Venom symbiot, the two became friends, with Ben calling in a favour from Eddie Brock, the original Venom Now Agent Venom, to help train her to control her new powers, since she was determined to be a hero.
Since then the two kept in touch, with Mania occasionally teaming up with him on street patrols and invading his personal space a lot. Ben figured that due to her being an outsider at her school for so long, she's excited to have a friend, explaining why she's so overly affectionate. But that still didn't stop Ben from trying to reign in her affections towards him. And sitting on top of him with him lacking a shirt is definitely stepping over the line.
"Andi, what have we talked about?" Ben asked in a monotone voice.
Andi giggled as she gave the Alien hero an innocent look. "Why, Ben. Whatever do you mean. I'm just swinging in to check on my buddy after he saved the world from a time traveling invasion. And of course, say thank you."
She then proceeded to lean down and plant a kiss on the Teens cheek, making him blush in response. He then shock it off and glared at her seriously.
"Andi, that's enough. Get off." He ordered.
Andi then responded with a pout, however made no attempt to get off the pinned teen. "Aww come on Ben, just a little longer?"
Ben rolled his eyes in response. "Andi, I…" The words go caught in the teens mouth when he felt a sharp pain shoot through his arms. He could feel And's hands tightening around his wrists like she was constricting them, cutting off all the blood flow to his hand. The teen hero gritted his teeth and groan in pain.
"OW Andi! Too tight, Too Tight!" He yelled.
"Huh?" Andi responded in confusion, clearly having no idea what was going on. She then looked up and noticed Bens hands going purple from the pressure his wrists where under. Her eyes widened in shock as she immediate let go and leaped off him. Allowing Ben to sit up and rub his sore wrists.
"I'm so sorry, Ben. It wasn't me." Andi stated in an assuring manner. She then looked down at her own suit and gave it an angry look.
"Bad girl. That's not how we treat friends." She said to her suit, in a tone much like how a parent talks to a misbehaving child. She then proceeded to slap herself on the arm, like she was punishing it.
To virtually anyone not aware of her situation, they'd think she was nuts. But Ben knew all too well that she was talking to her Symbiot.
"It's fine, Andi." Ben responded as he stood up, still rubbing his sore wrists. "I know it's not your fault."
"Symbi's still a little mad at you." Andi admitted in an ashamed tone, clearly still beating herself up over it.
"Yeah, I get that. After all, I'd hold a grudge if someone tried to fry me," Ben casually replied while shrugging.
True in their first encounter, Ben did try to burn the Symbiot off Andi the first time they met. And ever since that day, the alien parasite has been holding a grudge against him. Whenever Ben gets a little too close to Andi, the Symbiot generates spikes or blades or other forms of painful objects that hurt him whenever they come into contact with each other. And since Andi has made a habit of show affection to Ben whenever she's around… the Alien Avenger now had a good idea to what a pin cushion feels like.
It was in that moment where, now that Ben was up, he could see Andi clearly now and he noticed something different about her. The Spider Symbol on her chest. Before the symbol was similar to Agent Venoms, with the legs more spread out over her shoulders and down to her hips. But now, the symbol had changed, with all the legs not together in a shape that kinda looked like a M.
"Hey, you're Spider Symbol changed." He stated.
Andi then looked down at the symbol and then shyly held her hands behind her back as she started tracing circles in the ground with her foot.
"Oh yeah, I changed it a while ago, cause I didn't want people to just think I'm like a female version of Eddie. Plus, it also looked like an M. Like the first letter of my hero name. Mania. Do you like it?" She asked in a bashful tone.
"Yeah, I think it looks cool." Ben said honestly.
Andi then looked up at him beaming as her hands then clasped together in front of her. "Really? You mean it?"
"Yeah, of course I do." Ben insisted.
"Aww thanks, Benji." Andi replied blushing as she placed her hands behind her back and swayed slightly on the spot.
Ben just grinned in response as he walked over and grabbed his shirt to put it one.
"Well thanks for stopping by, Andi. But I'm gonna be heading off soon. I'm meeting Carol and Laura for breakfast today." He explained to her.
This quickly put a damper on Andi's cheerful demeanour.
"Oh." She said at first. Then suddenly a cheeky grin started to spread across her face.
"Hey maybe I should tag along too." She said, phrasing it as more of a statement than a request.
Immediately Ben stopped in his tracks and his heart suddenly stopped for a moment. He was already anxious about Laura and Carol meeting each other, but Andi as well. Those where too many worlds colliding at once. Sure he'd like all his friend to get along with his girlfriend. But it was hard enough getting the Avengers to even tolerate Carol. And Laura was arguably even more protective of him than Janet. Getting her to get along with Carol is hard enough. But getting Carol, Laura and Andi to all get along, is a challenge even he could not figure out how to accomplish.
"Umm…" Ben replied in a nervous tone, unsure how to respond without hurting her feelings. "… Look Andi, as much as I enjoy hanging out with you. This whole situation is kinda sensitive. Maybe some other time."
"Really, Ben?" Andi asked sceptically. "Cause I've never meet Carol or Laura. I've heard you talk about them constantly. So, I thought this would be a great time for me to get to know them."
"Don't you and Carol work together at SHIELD?" Ben asked, raising an eyebrow.
"Technically I'm still a trainee. And that's when I'm not trying to pass my midterms at school." Andi explained. "Plus no one knows the names of everyone they work with. Do you know everyone you work with?"
"I work with eight people and live with most of them." Ben stated, contradictory.
"… Oh what do you know." Andi remarked defensively. "My point is. You're have all your friends meet and get to know each other and bond. I should be there too. Unless you don't consider me a friend?"
"No, no! You got it all wrong, Andi." Ben tried to explain. "It's just that I wanted to introduce everyone one at a time, so they'd each have a chance to bond. That's all."
In all honesty, Ben wasn't entirely convinced that was the reason he didn't want her there. He just didn't want the situation being any more awkward than it already was.
But any hopes he had of that actually working, where quickly dashed when a mischievous smile spread across her face.
"I think I get it now." She said in a suggestive tone.
"You do?" Ben asked surprised. Then quickly shook his head and looked relieved. "Ok great. Well I'll take off and we can meet up some other time."
"You don't want Carol to see how close you and I are." Andi stated in a teasing tone.
Ben immediately froze as he looked back at her.
"I'm sorry, what?"
"It's fine, Ben. I know it must be difficult. But you can't deny the attraction between us." Andi said in a flirty tone as she started to walk towards him, putting a little extra swing into her hips. "You don't have to hide it, Ben. We both know what's going on. You can't deny there's chemistry between us."
She then closed the gap between them as she started to slide her hands up his shirt, her face getting so close to his, that her breath tickled his lips.
Bens eyes widened in shock. Andi had always been a little flirty towards him. But that's always been harmless fun between the two. Never had Andi gone to this level. It all so confusing and unexpected, that for a moment the Teen Heroes mind went completely blank for a moment. He had no idea how to react in this situation. Then suddenly his mind drifted to Carol. And all his feelings towards her rushing through him and he was immediately aware of the position he was in. He had to put a stop to it, cause there was no way he was gonna do anything behind Carols back.
However, before he could make any move against her, Andi suddenly burst out laughing and backed away from the stunned Alien Hero as he stood there motionless, his head as red as a tomato.
"Oh man, you should see your face, Ben. HAHA!" Andi laughed as she started to hold her sides in her glee.
For a moment Ben just blinked in response, too stunned at what almost happened to register what was currently occurring. Then when it finally did click, he simply scowled at her before exiting his room and started strutting down the hall.
"That was a low trick, Andi. Even for you." Ben grumbled back at her.
Once Andi calmed down from her laughing fit, she started chasing after the embarrassed boy. "Oh, come on, Ben. I would never try something like that on someone who's already taken? What kinda girl do you think I am?"
"You really want me answering that question, right now?" He replied, coldly.
"Oh, come on, Mr Grumpy. Lighten up." Andi said teasingly. "Besides you are just too easy. I wasn't sure how far you where gonna let me go with that. You were like a deer in headlights. But I never thought you'd actually let me go all the way."
"I was not gonna let you do that." He snapped back defensively. "I was just about to push you off, when you backed away."
Andi then looked at him condescendingly. "Yeah, sure you were."
"I was!" Ben insisted as Andi simply giggled as they continued walking.
"Sure, keep telling yourself that." She continued to mock, grinning cheekily as the Alien Avenger became more flustered and frustrated.
Eventually Ben just sighed in defeat as he then increased his pace until he moved passed her. "Doesn't matter what you think. I know the truth."
Once more, the Symbiot bonded girl laughed at the embarrassed teen. Staring at him, like a cat with a ball of yarn she loved to play with, as they entered the main hall of the mansion.
"Oh, come on, Ben. I was just teasing." Andi called out to him.
Eventually Ben slowed his pace, before coming to a halt, letting out a deep sigh as he did so. He turned around to face her. "Yeah, you're right. Sorry for overreacting like that, Andi. Guess I'm not used to being the one played like that." The teen admitted. "You really had me going for a moment."
"It's understandable." Andi replied. "After all, my feminine wilds can enchant, even the strongest wills of men."
She then punctuated her point with a playful wink. Causing Ben to chuckle in response.
"Oh yeah, your movements get the guys closer. But it's your attitude that sends them running." He countered in his own playful tone.
"Oh, you jerk!" Andi playfully commented with a mock pout.
Ben just laughed as he continued to walk towards the door. Just then he felt a sudden weight on his back as Andi's arms then slid around him as her chin rested on his shoulder.
"Just for that, you have to carry me around, as punishment." She giggled.
"Hey Andi, come on. Get off." Ben commanded as he tried to pry the girl off him. However she refused to release her grip as she giggled in his attempts.
The two continued this little dance, with Ben desperately trying to her off, knowing that her symbiot was about to cause him some form of pain. In all the commotion, the two were so wrapped up in their own thing, that they were completely unaware of their surroundings.
That is until a small "Ah Hem." Cause their attention. And the pair turned to see Carol Danvers, standing in the open-door way, staring at the two with her arms crossed.
"Am I interrupting something, Ben?" Carol asked, her tone not sounding the least bit amused at all.
Sweat started pouring from the Teens neck as he felt the intense start his girlfriend was giving him. It was in that moment he could swear he heard Andi's Symbiot laughing at him, for landing in this situation.
"I swear I can explain this." Ben started to say.
Turns out explaining things was actually easier than Ben thought. Since Carol already knew who Mania is, since they're both apart of SHIELD and knew all about how Ben helped her during the Anti-Venom situation. So, Ben establishing their friendship was pretty simple. Though she still looked pretty annoyed about her coming along with them for their brunch with Laura.
Currently all four of them were sitting in a booth at a diner. With Ben and Carol sitting together on one side and Laura and Andi sitting together on the other. In that moment all four were sitting in somewhat uncomfortable silence. Mainly cause Laura sat perfectly still as she stared intently at Carol, who was sitting opposite her, and Carol returned her stare with equal intensity. Ben on the other hand was nervously glancing back and forth between both girls, wondering what was about to happen next. The only person that did not seem nervous in the slightest was Andi, as she had a cheerful smile on her face as she ate the pancakes she'd ordered when they first sat down.
But her happy behaviour did not hinder the awkward tension between the others and the staring contest of SHIELD Agent and Mutant Assassin continued. All the while Ben continued to monitor the situation from his seat. In all honesty he was more worried about what Laura might do, more than Carol. He knew the female clone well enough to know how fierce she can be when it comes to people who mess with those she cares about. And with the table hiding her feet from view, all it took was one wrong move and those foot claws will pop out. So, diffusing the situation was currently Bens top priority.
"Ok, so I know that this isn't the most ideal way to introduce people. But I'm hoping that we can all get along and become good friends by the end of the day." Ben said in as confident a tone as he could muster.
"I'm sure we can all be professional here." Carol agreed, without breaking her eye contact from Laura.
"As professional as you were when you betrayed Bens trust, by informing Nick Fury about all his strengths and weaknesses?" Laura then shot at Carol with venom in her voice.
Immediately Ben face palmed. He had a feeling that this conversation would come up. He just didn't expect it to come up so soon. As expected Carol did not take that jab well as the stainless steel knife she was holding in her hand, bent like it was made of Aluminium.
Ben then shot his mutant friend a look. "Laura, I told you…" But before he could continue, he was immediately cut off by Carol.
"That happened months ago. Ben and I have already moved past what happened that day and I promised that I would never do it again." She stated firmly.
"That still does not change what you did." Laura countered. "Ben put his faith in you and you abused that trust. All because you were ordered to. How can I be sure you won't betray Ben again because of Fury's orders?"
"Oh, like you're one to talk. I seem to recall you trying to kill Ben in your first meeting." Carol snapped back.
That statement immediately resulted in a deadly glare from Laura. Rage poured from the mutant clones' eyes as from under the table one of her Adimantium foot claws, started to sprout from her right boot, threatening to stab into Carol shin. However, she was immediately distracted when Ben suddenly snapped his fingers, causing her to look at him as he shook his head with a serious look in his eyes. Indicating that he was aware of what she was about to do and was telling her to stop.
"Well this is certainly fun." Andi suddenly spoke up from her seat. "Didn't think this would escalate this quickly."
"Andi, don't make this any worse." Ben tried to reason.
"Oh, Ben I'm just making conversation. After all isn't this what this get together is all about. All of us, together, talking, bonding." The symbiote teen commented, with an upbeat demeanour.
Carol then glared at Andi with an annoyed look. "Something that you weren't invited to, Benton."
"I don't recall this being a closed event?" Andi replied in a cheeky tone, which only succeeded in angering Carol, even further.
To say this little get together was going badly would be a massive understatement. At that moment, Ben felt like he would rather face Kang the Conqueror all over again, than be in the middle of this three-way conflict between these super powered women. Their heated argument, was increasing to the point where people actually started to glance over at them.
It was in those moments where Carol suddenly stood up from the table and stepped out of the booth. "Ya know what. This isn't working out." She stated.
"Agreed." Replied, Laura.
"At least that's something we can agree on." Andi sarcastically remarked as both she and Laura mimicked Carols action and all three of them proceeded to leave the diner in anger.
"Wait. Girls. Come on." Ben tried to plea with them, but his words fell on deaf ears as the girls walked through the door.
Once they were gone, Ben took a deep breath and released a sigh of frustration as he rubbed the bridge of his nose with his thumb and forefinger. He then suddenly realised how quiet the diner had suddenly become and the teen hero looked up to see that all the residence of the establishment all looking at him, having witnessed the girls' outburst.
Embarrassment started to creep its way into Bens mind as the situation became all the clearer to him. But the Alien Avenger was not about to let this slide when the moment could still be salvaged. Ben then put on a confident smirk as he leaned against the side of the booth, propping one arm up on the backrest.
"I just had breakfast with three women at the same time. Cause I'm a stud." Ben announced in cocky overconfident tone as the observers looked at him before they turned away as the event was now over.
And on that note, the teen hero/stud immediately turned around and exited the diner. Once he was outside, his confident mask faded as his mind drifted back to the girls. He'd had girl trouble in the past, but nothing quite like this. Ben was never really good at understanding the opposite gender, despite how much Gwen had tried to teach him when he was growing up. So, the teen had no idea how he was going to get these three to possibly get along. And it wasn't like he could just stop seeing any of them. He was close to all of them, though since Carol is his girlfriend, she is automatically ahead of the other two. Something she would most likely use as an argument the next time they're together. Maybe he could come up with some sort of system so he can still hang with them, but they don't have to see each other? Gosh, when did this all become so complicated?
His mind was so drenched in his thoughts that he almost missed a blast of wind that suddenly blew past him. It was so quick, but Ben could have sworn he saw someone run past him. The Teen Hero shook his head to clear it, after everything that had happened to him in the last couple of days, it would make sense, he'd start to see things. But then Ben noticed something out of the corner of his eye, he turned to face a dimly lit ally way and saw what looked like a man with silver hair looking back at him. Ben blinked his eyes in surprise, but the moment he did, the man vanished from his sight. All that remained were a few pieces of trash blowing in the wind from where the teen thought he saw him.
Now Ben was certain he wasn't going crazy. He did see someone there, and now his curiosity was peaked. The teen hero proceeded to walk down the ally in pursuit of the unknown person. Keeping his hand close to the Ultimatrix in case this turned out to be a trap, which in Ben's case it usually was. But if this turned out to be a call for help, Ben would hardly be the one to turn a blind eye to that. As the teen walked further and further down the alley, he kept on getting this uneasy feeling in his stomach, telling him that something was very wrong. His choice to listen to those feelings arrived too little, too late as the moment the teen edged around the corner, a silver green blur suddenly rushed forward and grabbed the teen and he suddenly found himself slammed into a wall, his head spinning and his internal organs feeling as though they were put through a blender.
The teens head was spinning so much from the motion and the impact that he had a hard time seeing the person, or people that jumped him. At first, he thought his head was messed up so bad, he was seeing multiple, but once it cleared up he saw that, there was in fact a group of people before him. A group of very bizarre looking people, from what Ben could see, there were five of them.
The first one was a man of average build, with short hair as silver as platinum. He was wearing a green jumpsuit with a silver lightning bolt that spread across his chest, starting from his left shoulder and ending at his silver belt.
The man next to him, had a larger build, with broad shoulders and wearing what looked like a grey suit of armor that covered his shoulders and upper body, with metal gauntlets on both his arms and matching boots on both feet. His helmet covered most of his head, but left his eyes and mouth exposed, showing of his short beard.
The next person was one of the more odd-looking members of the group as he had green skin, along with webbed hands and feet like a frog. He wore blue skin-tight wetsuit-like clothes and a red bandana on his head. He had dreadlocks falling down each side of his face that was sporting a big toothy grin as he looked down on the Teen hero.
The next one and by far the most notable of the group, was a man that took the term overweight to a whole new level. The man was easily over 9 feet tall and about as wide as a truck. His double chin had double chins on them and his legs looked like they were barely lifting his massive bulk off the ground. He essentially looked like a giant, fat, angry baby in that black leotard he was wearing. Had Ben not been so stunned by his surprise attack, he'd probably burst out laughing at the sight of him.
The final member and the only girl in the group, was a woman of stunning proportions. She had light blue skin with a dark blue birth mark on her right eye. She had short jet-black hair and a lean hour glass figure. She wore a dark blue, leather jumpsuit that complemented her figure well, with a hole at the top that showed off her impressive assets, with a pair of gun holsters strapped to her side. He thought she looked like quite the attractive badass and he found that birthmark to be cool looking, definitely better than the one he has shaped like New Jersey.
And from the way each of them was glaring at him, Ben could easily tell that these were not superheroes.
Ben groaned as he shifted his body, in order to lean more comfortably. "Ya know if you guys needed directions to the nearest Circus. All you had to do was ask."
"Hehe. Funny guy." The Silver dude chuckled at the teen's humour. "Better enjoy that while you can. Cause after were done with you, you won't be laughing for very long."
"Before we get into that, would somebody mind telling me who you are and why you'd like to kill me?" Ben asked, both out of curiosity and to buy himself some time to work out a plan.
The Frog man then gave the Teen Hero a confused look. "Seriously? You never heard of the Brotherhood of Mutants before?" he asked sounding almost upset about it.
"Can't say that I have but don't blame yourselves, I'm not familiar with a lot of things." Ben replied casually. Thought after hearing that name, one piece of the puzzle did fall into place. These guys where mutants, evil mutants at that and they obviously knew who he was, otherwise they would've tried to recruit him rather than attack him.
"See, I knew we weren't getting enough publicity." The Frog Man complained to his comrades.
"Zip it, Toad!" The man in Silver berated, causing the Frog Man, now identified as Toad, to flinch. He then turned his attention back to the Alien Hero. "You're gonna pay for humiliating my father, you shapeshifting Punk."
Now that managed to get a surprised look from the Teen. "Father?" He said aloud.
"Yeah that's right." The Silver hair man responded, angrily. "My father Magneto. You attacked him in his own palace and humiliated him in front of our people. Because of you, humans are starting to think that they can actually take us on. That mutants are not as powerful as we had them believing."
"Well considering how easily I kicked his butt. I can certainly believe it." Ben replied with a smirk. Though if the teen was being completely honest with himself, he did feel some guilt about what transpired between him and the Master of Magnetism. He can still recall the look of fear that green haired girl gave him after he defeated her father. But despite that, Ben still wasn't going to let his guilt keep him from antagonizing these guys.
"So, I'm guessing, Old Bucket Head is still sore about me kicking his metal butt, so he sent you freaks to take me out?" Ben asked, though already knowing the answer.
"That's right, Punk," replied the silver haired man, he then gestured to his team. "We're the Brotherhood of Mutants. I'm Quicksilver, Big guys Blob, Chrome Dome is Avalanche, the French delicacy is Toad and the lovely lady is Domino." He continued saying, pointing to the Fat man, armored dude, frog man and blue chick respectively.
Once the introductions were done, Ben raised his eyebrow in response before turning to the girl of the group. "Hmm so your names Domino?"
"Yeah what's it to you?" Domino asked with a cold tone as she spoke up for the first time.
'Man looks like someone could use a vacation.' Ben thought to himself after hearing her tone before continuing.
"Nothing I just find it interesting you're named after a tile game. Though I gotta admit it does seem to suit u since that black mark on your face makes u seem like the 1 spotted tile piece which is always a good piece to have in hand." Ben remarked as he secretly observed his surroundings for the impending fight.
Hearing the teens remark Domino raised an eyebrow but other than that her expression didn't really change. "If you're trying to get me to take it easy on you then sorry but you're wasting your breath."
"I wouldn't expect you to since I'm never really that lucky." Ben shrugged while unknown to him the corner of Domino's lip lifted upward at what he said especially due to the irony that lay within it. He then turned to the largest of the group.
"So your name is Blob? Was Mr. Lard Butt taken or something?" Ben joked at the overweight guy.
That joke managed to get a chuckle from Toad and a smirk from Quicksilver. Blob however was not amused.
"Can we just kill him now?" The Large Mutant asked in an annoyed tone.
"What's wrong, Tubby?" Ben continued to taunt. "Worried you'll miss the buffet line or as you might call it, snack time."
"That's right make all your jokes now, kid." Quicksilver said in a confident tone. "Cause soon all you'll be able to do is push up daisy's."
In response the teen smirked as the Mutant Villains started to close in on him. "Sorry but I never was much of a gardener. My Green thumbs always looked a little… red."
At that moment, he swiftly activated the Ultimatrix and slammed down the dial. Immediately the Brotherhood of Mutants where blinded by a bright green light. Once the light died down, the Mutants saw that standing in Bens place was a red, four-armed alien.
"FOUR ARMS!" the alien cried. He then clapped all four of his hands together, creating a massive shockwave that blew all the Mutant villains, with the exception of Blob, away.
The large Mutant glared at the Alien Avenger with malice. "I'm gonna enjoy crushing you."
"What are ya gonna do Fatty? Sit on me?" Four Arms taunted, raising all four of his muscular arms in a fighting pose.
Blob then smirked in response. "Don't tempt me. Hehe, you gonna keep running your mouth, or are we gonna do this?" He asked, raising his fists in a fighting stance.
Four Arms shrugged in response. "Usually I like to have a little banter with my enemies before I beat them up. But since you asked so nicely."