Thor cried out as he hurled Mjolnir at the Purple Energy Woman. The Godly weapon tore through the air like a missile. In response, the Purple Woman raised her hand and generated a sizeable pink energy shield.
Mjolnir struck the shield with such force it generated a shockwave that rattled the entire mansion. Those on the surface felt a slight tremor as several car alarms started going off.
The Purple Woman's eyes narrowed as her shield held back the hammer. Thor focused as he willed the hammer forward. The power of his weapon caused the Energy Woman to be slightly pushed back.
In response, she shoved her hand forward, and her energy shield expanded and forced Mjolnir away.
A sphere of purple energy formed in her left hand as she blasted a beam of energy at the Asgardian.
Thor quickly called Mjolnir to him. Lightning crackled around the mystical weapon as he batted the energy beam away.
She then cupped her hands together and formed another energy sphere in her hands before thrusting it at Thor. However, instead of launching, multiple beams of energy arched out of the sphere, curving in the air and converging on Thor.
Acting fast, Thor flew out of the way to avoid the beams. However, the beams changed course again and pursued the Asgardian, like serpents on the hunt.
The Prince of Thunder dodges and weaves to avoid the beams. Thor often boasts that he can move as fast as the lighting he commands, and he is nothing if not honest.
Moving in a blur, Thor avoided one beam as it struck the floor of the training room. Another struck the wall, narrowly missing him. The third stuck the wall of the far end of the training room as Thor reversed course and shot across the room towards the Purple Woman. The energy beams chase him with extreme prejudice.
Thor willed himself towards the Woman, Mjolnir out in front of him as he shot towards her like a spear.
The Purple Woman narrowed her eyes as Thor approached her. She moved as if to block him. However, the Prince of Thunder swiftly pivoted and shot past her at lightning speed. Leaving her at the mercy of her energy beams.
Instead of being surprised by the turnabout, the Purple Woman simply smirked as she raised her hand and snapped her fingers. Instantly, the energy beams vanished. Like mist in the wind, they faded from existence.
This took Thor by surprise. But he couldn't afford to be distracted as the energy Being turned and launched a barrage of energy blasts from her hands.
Thor twirled his hammer like a fan in front of himself. The spinning weapon acting like a shield to block the energy bolts with ease.
The Prince of Thunder aimed his hammer and blasted lighting at the Energy being. In response, she vanished in a flash of light and reappeared behind Thor, slamming him in the back with an energy beam.
Thor grunted in pain as the blast sent him flying into the wall, cratering it on impact.
Gritting his teeth, the Asgardian attacked with another lighting blast, but the Purple Woman raised a shield to block it and countered by firing an energy ball at the God of Thunder.
Thor dodged the attack and charged at her, swinging Mjolnir at her head.
Again, the purple woman vanished in a flash of light, teleporting behind Thor. The Asgardian attempted to strike her again, but her glowing hair struck out like a whip and wrapped around Thor's arm, restraining him.
She generated several energy tendrils from her scalp, which bound Thor's body and prevented him from moving.
Her eyes glanced towards his hammer as the tendril that bound his hand tightened in an attempt to force him to drop the magic weapon.
Thor gritted his teeth before his eyes glowed with power. The lights flickered throughout the room as thunder rumbled overhead.
Suddenly, a storm cloud manifested in the room as a bolt of lightning blasted from it, striking the woman in the chest and sending her back a few meters.
With her concentration broken from the surprise attack, Thor was freed from her grasp. His opponent, momentarily stunned, Thor seized his moment and charged straight for her, swinging Mjolnir with all his might.
The mighty weapon struck its target with full force, sending out a shockwave and sending the Energy Being flying into the wall. The impact destroyed the metal structure as she broke through to the earth on the other side.
A dust cloud burst from the wall obscuring the Purple Woman from view. Thor gripped his hammer tightly. Even with a well-placed strike from him, Thor doubted it would be enough to take her down.
From the moment he laid eyes on the woman, Thor knew she was dangerous. Her aura emanated pure mystical energy unlike anything he'd ever sensed before. Such raw power rivalled that of the Phoenix Force.
He would not repeat the same mistakes with this being as he did with the Fire Bird.
Purple light illuminated from the dust cloud. As it dissipated, Thor saw the Purple Woman glowing; he could see magenta energy flowing from the earth behind her into her hand like she was pulling power from the planet itself.
Acting fast, Thor brought Mjolnir in front of him. Grabbing its handle with both hands, he aimed his weapon's flat face towards the Energy being as he focused.
An intense pressure built up around the hammer as golden energy formed around the hammer's head.
"Enough!" The Purple Woman screamed as a pulse of energy erupted from her body.
The pulse blasted across the entire training room, knocking every Avenger away and landing on the other end of the room.
As the Avengers recovered from the attack, they saw the Purple Woman floating over them. Her aura glowing so intensely that they found it hard to look at her. Her purple hair was divided into multiple tendrils that lashed around violently.
The members of her team regrouped under her as the Avengers all got into fighting stances.
"Well, this certainly escalated," Iron Man commented, growing more nervous as his HUD displayed the Purple Woman's ever-increasing power level.
"Don't blame me. Purple People Eater started it." Hawkeye quipped as he notched a new arrow.
"Who cares," Hulk growled. "Let's just smash them." He then punched his fist into his palm and cracked his knuckles.
"Oh yeah." Wasp said, raising her hands as they glowed with energy.
"Heads up, Team." Cap ordered as he raised his shield.
The Purple Woman raised her hands as energy gathered around them.
In response, the Avengers readied themselves for round 2 with the intruders. Iron Man charged his uni-beam, Hawkeye drew three arrows from his quiver, Hulk clenched his fists, Wasp charged her stingers, Black Panther combined his daggers to form his energy spear, and Thor readied Mjolnir with his golden energy once more.
"I shall ask you only once!" The Purple Woman's voice boomed across the room with an intimidating aura.
Her body glowed as her pink energy started to spread throughout the room. The floor, walls, and ceiling glowed with pink energy, and the room started to shake. Sparks shot from the gaps in the metal, and lights flickered as energy surged all around them.
The Avengers felt immense pressure start to act on their bodies, like the very air became heavier, making it hard to breathe. Iron Man was brought to his knees as his systems went haywire. Warning lights flashed in his HUD as the unknown energy flooded the room.
All this power. Coming from one being. Even Thor found it difficult to concentrate. But he held strong, focusing his power and prepared to unleash his full might on this foe.
The Purple Woman held up her hand, gathered a dense sphere of energy in it, and aimed it at the heroes.
"Where is my Grandson?!"
….
"Wait, what?" Wasp asked in genuine confusion.
Suddenly, a metallic click grabbed everyone's attention as the metal hatch on the floor swung open.
"Seriously, guy!" Grey Matter shouted as he dragged himself out of the tiny compartment. Finally recovering from his mild concussion. Though, his head was still pounding. "I get everyone's excited about the new features, but you couldn't have waited a few more…"
The Tiny alien froze the moment he saw the unknown group. His eyes were so wide that they almost matched his size.
A similar expression of shock was present on each of the alien team members.
The Mud Alien transformed back into her human form, retaining her look of utter disbelief.
"B-Ben?" She gasped, her voice choking from the emotions building up in her voice.
A flash of green light, and Ben returned to human form. The Teen Hero looked at each individual before diverting his gaze and rubbing the back of his head.
"Well. This is awkward." Ben said in a humorous but also melancholy tone. "Had I known you were coming, I would have…"
Before he could finish the sentence, the Giant Rock-Bug creature suddenly charged the Young Avenger. Its massive head knocked him over and enveloped him.
"Ben!" Wasp screamed as the other Avengers moved to help their teammate.
Only to stop at the sound of his laughter. Looking closer, they saw the massive creature nuzzling and licking Ben with its enormous tongue, drenching him in saliva as he laughed like a little child.
"Zed! Down Girl! Come on, that's gross!" Ben chuckled in between licks. He eventually managed to push the giant creature's head away enough for him to place two fingers into his mouth and produce a whistle.
In response, the creature morphed back into its Dino-dog form and proceeded to jump on Ben again, licking him while wagging its short tail.
"There, that's better." Ben commented, patting the alien dog known as Zed on her head and giving her a scratch. "Glad you still remember that trick.
"Oh, Ben!" the blonde girl cried as she tackled Ben in a tight hug, not caring in the slightest that he was dripping with drool.
She was quickly joined by the others in the group, minus the Purple Woman, who hung back as they all chuckled in a massive group hug.
The Avengers looked on with surprised and confused looks.
"I guess they know each other." Hawkeye bluntly surmised, placing his arrows back into his quiver.
"Indeed." Panther chimed in. "It would appear that Benjamin has some explaining to do."
On that note, Iron Man stepped forward and addressed the affectionate display. "Not to break up this little reunion. But, someone wanna fill in the context here?"
Ben suddenly realised that he'd forgotten his manners as he broke up the little huddle. "Sorry, guys. Just a little caught up in the moments."
He then stepped in between the two sides.
"Everyone, meet Everyone." He said in a joking tone. "Avengers, meet the Plumbers. Guys, meet the Avengers. They've been looking after me when I arrived in this world."
"Hi." Wasp waved with a cheerful expression.
"Ah, I see." Captain America said as he recalled what Ben had told them before. "The Plumbers were the name of your old team. The Extra-Terrestrial Law Enforcement agency."
"That's us!" The Blonde Girl giggled enthusiastically. She then gave Ben a playful nudge. "Well, don't leave 'em hanging, Ben. Introduce us."
Ben smirked as he rolled his eyes at the girl. "I was getting to that, Lucy. Give me a sec." He turned to his new team as he gestured to each member of the Plumbers.
"Anyway, this is Alan." He pointed to the Short Heatblast.
"Hey." Alan waved.
"Manny." The skinny Four Arms.
"Sup." He gave a slight nod.
"Helen." The Female XLR8.
"Hi." She waved.
"Cooper." The blonde man.
"A pleasure," Cooper said, placing a hand over his chest and bowing slightly.
Ben crouched to introduce the two alien creatures. "These are Ship and Zed." He introduced the Upgrade Baby Seal and Dino Dog, respectively.
"Ship, ship." The little Upgrade said, wagging its back half like a tail, while the Dog Alien barked in a friendly manner.
"Up next is…" Ben started to say as he stood up. Only for the Blonde Girl to jump on his back in a playful manner.
"I'm Lucy!" She giggled as she tussled Ben's hair. "Nice to meet ya. Thanks so much for looking after my cousin. Hope he hasn't been too much trouble for ya."
Silence fell upon Earth's Mightiest Heroes as they absorbed what the girl named Lucy had just said.
Cousin? This girl just identified herself as Ben's cousin. But Ben told them that his family was killed. Was he wrong? Did she survive?
Before they could even ask any questions, Ben continued to the last member of the Plumbers team.
However, Ben's cheerful attitude turned sour as he introduced the glowing woman. "Finally, this is Verdona… My grandmother." He seemed to hesitate before admitting that last detail.
"Huh?" Wasp exclaimed with evident shock.
"Grandma?" Hawkeye's jaw was so close to falling off, all he needed was a tap from Panther to knock it loose. "You have an alien cousin and grandma?"
Captain America stepped forward with a stern look on his brow. "I think the better question here is. You have family members that are alive?"
The atmosphere in the room immediately changed. The happy Plumber members evaporated into gloom and sadness. At the same time, the Alien Shapeshifter felt a wave of awkwardness wash over him as he shrunk in Cap's glare and avoided eye contact.
That did little to relieve the pressure of the Super Soldier's glare as he walked up and stood over the Young Hero.
"I think you have some explaining to do, son."
The Plumbers and Avengers gathered in the living room upstairs, where Ben gave the Avengers proper introductions.
Lucy already received her introduction, along with Verdona, so Ben moved on to the others.
Cooper is a friend that Ben has known since childhood. Like the Alien Shapeshifter, Cooper's grandfather was also a member of the Plumbers. Like him, he's following in his footsteps. Due to his family bloodline, Cooper inherited the ability to control and construct technology with his mind, making him the team's resident tech head.
Alan, Manny, and Helen are all the children of Plumber Agents, though in their cases, they're all half-alien. One of their parents was an alien, while the other was human, allowing them to inherit their parents' abilities.
Ship is what Ben described as a Galvanic Mechomorph Symbiote. A dog-like alien that was spawned from another member of Upgrade's species. Like Upgrade, he can merge with machines and control them. However, he can also turn into anything he's previously merged with, no matter how big or small.
Finally, there's Zed, a dog-like alien who once belonged to an alien bounty hunter hired to kill Ben. The collar on her neck is called the Nemitrix, a device similar to Ben's Ultimatrix, only this device turns Zed into the Predator species of Ben's aliens.
After Ben defeated her original owner, she became Ben's old friend Kevin's pet. The Nemitrix was taken into custody so that it couldn't be used. However, they apparently gave it back to her when they began searching for Ben.
After the introductions were finished, the two groups left the training room and went upstairs to a more comfortable setting.
Ben was sitting with the Plumbers, catching up on everything that's happened since he arrived. Seeing the Young Hero so happy and excited made some of the Avengers feel happy for him.
However, the question of Ben having family members still alive weighed on a few members.
Ben, the Plumbers, Iron Man, Hulk, Panther and Thor were all in the living room as Ben caught up with his old friends.
Meanwhile, Wasp was in the kitchen with Cap and Hawkeye as she prepared refreshments and snacks for everyone.
"So… We are gonna talk about this, right?" Hawkeye asked as he leaned against the kitchen bench with his arms crossed. "This whole thing about Ben lying to us about his family being killed?"
Captain America narrowed his eyes at the Archer, not liking his accusation. "We cannot jump to any conclusions until Ben has had a chance to explain, Clint," he said authoritatively. For all we know, Ben didn't know they were alive."
Clint scoffed. "Come on, Cap. We saw his reaction. If the kid really did think they were dead, he would've been a blubbering mess."
The Purple Archer grumbled as he picked up a cheese knife next to him and started spinning the blade between his fingers. "Kids been here for almost a year now and we still know nothing about him. Did he ever mention any of the Plumbers by name before? I certainly don't remember any of them coming up in a conversation."
"He has mentioned Gwen, Kevin, and his Grandfather, all of whom were Plumbers," Cap retorted.
"And that's another thing." Hawkeye pointed out. "Ben never once mentioned his Grandma. Forgetting the fact that she's an alien who can go toe-to-toe with Thor without breaking a sweat. Don't you find It the least bit curious that he never mentioned her? She never came up in his list of dead relatives when he told us the story. Naturally, you'd assume she was already dead. But, turns out she's alive and I'm betting he knew and never told us." He put the knife down and lowered his head. "Makes you wonder what else he's been hiding."
"That's enough, Barton." Steve ordered, walking over and getting in the Archers' face. "Ben Tennyson is a hero who risked his very life to protect this world and its people. How can you, of all people, doubt his integrity, especially after our last battle?"
Captain America has tolerated the Archer's attitude for a long time. But he will not stand idly by and let him besmirch Ben's good name.
Hawkeye, however, did not seem phased. His eyes drifted over to Wasp, who continued to stack her tray silently. Her silence did not go unnoticed by the men.
"You're awfully quiet over there, Janet. Thought you'd be the most curious about this sudden revelation."
Wasp seemed to ignore him as she placed a freshly blended smoothie on the tray. Her hand lingered on the beverage momentarily, and a melancholy look appeared. She then closed her eyes and let out a deep sigh.
"Let's just hear what he has to say." Wasp said in a downtrodden tone.
This earned a concerned look from both men as they shared a look confirming they were on the same page.
She picked up her tray and walked out of the kitchen.
"Would you like a hand with those, Janet?" Captain America offered.
Janet shook her head. "It's fine, Steve. I've got it."
Captain America and Hawkeye followed her out as she padded towards the living room.
Just before she rounded the corner, Janet paused, took a deep breath, and her posture changed. A big grin appeared on her face as she rounded the corner.
"Who's thirsty?" She asked excitedly and cheerfully, a complete 180 from her previous attitude.
The Super Soldier and the World's Greatest Marksman quietly decided to follow her lead until they had a chance to talk to her. They rounded the corner and joined the little party as Janet offered drinks to everyone.
"I can't believe you've been living here this whole time." Alan said to Ben, amazed.
Not wanting the walking fireball to destroy any of his fancy furniture, Tony offered to put down some fireproof covers for Alan to sit on. However, much to everyone's surprise, Alan revealed he could shift between his alien form and human. Turning into a young African American teen with short black hair and black eyes. Like the rest of the team, he wore a plumber's uniform. However, his was different. Instead of the white armor, he wore a grey body suit, with black gloves and boots, most likely due to his shapeshifting ability.
Ben chuckled as he took his smoothie from the tray. "Yeah. I still don't know how it happened. One minute I'm driving out of Bellwood. Next thing I know, I'm here."
Cooper leaned forward. "Interesting. And you still don't have any clues?"
Ben shook his head. "Nope. Though, with everything that's been happening. I haven't really looked into it. Things sorta escalated the moment I landed here with the Break out and all that."
"Understandable," Helen said from her seat next to Manny. "Tracking down 72 escaped super villains would be a lot for anyone."
Manny, however, didn't share that sentiment as he turned to his partner with a raised eyebrow. "Seriously? We've been busting our humps looking for this guy, and we find out he's have been chilling in another world, and his excuse for not trying to come back is, 'I sorta forgot', and we're just supposed to accept that?"
"Manny." Helen hissed, elbowing the four armed Plumber to shut him up.
Lucy just giggled. "Come on, Red. This is Ben we were talking about. We all know he'd never leave anyone when there's hero work to do."
The others nodded in agreement, with Manny begrudgingly following suit. Even he couldn't argue against Ben's nature.
After Janet had done a full lap of the room, everyone had taken a drink from the tray. She finally set the snacks down before taking her drink and sitting beside Ben.
"So are we gonna address the fact that Ben has two alien relatives?" Hawkeye asked, unable to hold back his curiosity. "I thought his whole deal was he was a human with a watch that turns him into aliens. What's the deal with you two?"
"Oh well, Ben and I aren't related by blood," Lucy explained. "It's more like we're cousins-in-law. My cousin Camille married his first cousin once removed, Joel."
Ben smirked at Lucy's explanation. "Yep. That was quite the wedding. The bride's family tried to ruin the whole thing. Made the whole trip worth it in the end."
Lucy snorted with laughter as she recalled the memory. "Oh yeah. You were such a downer at the rehearsal dinner. The only one who didn't want to be there more than the bride and groom's parents."
That earned a chuckle from the group, with a few of the Avengers becoming invested in the story.
"That's nice of you, being there for your cousin's wedding, Ben." Wasp praised, though her tone was unusually neutral as she took a sip from her drink.
"Not like he had a choice. He was the ring bearer, after all." Lucy stated.
This caused all eyes to turn to Ben, who groaned in embarrassment. "Don't remind me."
Lucy, however, continued. "I was the flower girl. Gwen was gonna do it. But I was able to make it to the wedding in time. You should have seen Ben in his little tux. Same one his Grandpa wore at his age."
Ben braced himself for Janet to start hugging him, commenting on how adorable he would've been and demanding pictures of the event. However, the Size Changing Heroine made no such move. In fact, she continued to stir her drink and listen with mild contempt.
"That so. Must've been a special heirloom." She commented calmly.
Cap and Hawkeye were concerned before. But now every Avenger has picked up on Wasp's unusual behaviour. Her lack of bubbly energy and high spirit was deeply concerning to everyone.
Lucy was completely oblivious as she giggled in response. "Boy, Grandpa Max got so mad when you wrecked it."
"Only cause you made me slip on your muddy feet!" Ben retorted quickly. Raising his voice defensively. Which only made Lucy laugh harder.
"Oh man, it was priceless." She hollered with delight.
The Teen Hero chuckled as well, along with the other Plumbers. Save for one.
For some reason, the Purple Energy Being, Verdona, has remained relatively distant from the group. She sticks to the background and hardly says a word. Her only actions have been watching Ben interact with the others.
Despite Ben's revelation to be her grandson, the Purple Woman has not shown the same level of enthusiasm and affection towards him as Lucy has.
Thor took particular notice of this. Due to him not taking his eyes off the energy being since their first encounter. Even with the misunderstanding and apparent kinship she shared with Ben, his unease had not diminished in the slightest.
"Pray tell?" Thor asked, stepping forth. "We hath been enlightened to the connections between Young Ben and Fair Maiden Lucy. However, Thou hath yet to expose thine connection to the Mistress Verdona."
Ben's expression immediately soured as he looked down at his drink and shrugged.
"I'm Verdona. Ben's grandmother." Verdona introduced herself. A cheerful and friendly smile on her face. She turned to address Thor and bowed in a respectful manner. "I deeply apologise for attacking you so suddenly. After months of worrying about Ben's safety, I initially believed you had abducted him and kept him prisoner here."
Iron Man nodded in agreement. "Makes sense."
"Indeed." Black Panther agreed. "It is easy for irrational thought to prevail when a family member is involved."
The Wakandan King couldn't help but be reminded of his actions after his father's murder.
"First time for everything," Ben grumbled aloud.
Silence fell across the room. All eyes fell on the Young Hero, even Wasp was surprised by his cold reaction to her.
"Ben," Cooper said, rising from his chair. "Verdona has been the one teleporting us across the Multiverse looking for you. It's because of her that we were able to find you."
"Yeah, Ben." Helen chimed in. "She's been worried sick about you."
"Least you can do is be happy about it." Manny bluntly stated.
Ben scoffed. "Happy? Sure, I'm happy." He said in a sarcastic tone. "Happy that it took the death of everyone else just for her to pay attention to me!"
Verdona recoiled in response to Ben's words. Blows from Thor barely left a mark on her, yet a few words from him hurt.
"Ben, that's not fair." Lucy starts to speak, only for Ben to snap at her.
"Don't talk to me about fair!" He yelled. "I lost everyone! Grandpa, Gwen, Mom and Dad, Kevin, and Julie. All gone! I was alone…" He turned to glare at Verdona, his eyes red as tears swelled up in them.
"And you weren't there."
Verdona looked at her grandson with a pained expression.
"Little harsh, dontcha think, Kid?" Hawkeye commented. The sudden change in Ben's attitude was cause for concern to the Archer.
Ben's head snapped to the Marksman. "Shut it, Clint!" He hissed.
Shocked silence gripped everyone. They'd never seen Ben like this. Sure, he's been upset before, but never to the point of snapping at his friends. The Teen Hero's emotional state has been a long-time issue for him whenever the topic of his family comes up. But this was unlike anything they'd ever seen before.
Ben turned his attention back to Verdona, who seemed to shrink the more the Teen spoke.
"It took me disappearing from the Universe for you to finally show some interest in me. I'll bet if Gwen was the one who survived, you would've been there in a heartbeat. Anything for your Favourite grandchild, right?"
Like a knife to the heart, Verdona winched at Ben's words, to the point that she had to turn away from him in shame.
"That's enough Ben!" Captain America ordered, stepping forth. "You are out of line, Son."
Ben snarled through his teeth. After a moment of uncomfortable silence, he stormed out of the room without a word or making eye contact with anyone. Vanishing through the door and his footsteps echoed across the room, growing fainter the further he went.
It wasn't until the sound of his shoes vanished that everyone realised how long they'd been silent. Various expressions of shock, awkwardness and worry were on Avenger and Plumber alike. Even the alien creatures Ship and Zed were stunned to silence.
The only ones who did not share any of the mentioned expressions were Janet and Verdona. The former remained stoic, while the other gripped with guilt.
"Ben." Verdona croaked out, her voice hoarseness despite being made of energy. She started to float towards the door.
However, Janet swiftly rose from her seat and seemed to glide across the room with swift precision as she got ahead of the Energy Being.
"Please. Allow me to talk to him." She requested, though her tone made it clear she was not asking. Just giving her a formality before leaving the room.
Once again, leaving behind an awkward silence as everyone was unsure what to do next.
Suddenly, Manny raised one of his fists to his mouth and coughed into it, clearing his throat.
"So…" He turned to the Hulk, who glanced down at him. "Sorry about laying the smackdown on ya earlier. Had I known you were one of Ben's buddies, I wouldn't have beat you up so much."
He pumped his fists in front of him in a boxing fashion with a cheeky grin.
Helen groaned as she facepalmed at her partner's vain attempt to save face.
Hulk raised his eyebrow at the Tetramand hybrid before a smirk appeared on his face.
Up in his room, Ben sat on the edge of his bed, facing away from the door. His heart roared in his chest, and his breathing was rapid and sharp. His eyes were misty with tears, and his jaw clenched in anger and sadness.
A knock on his door caused him to stir from his musings.
"Ben? I'm coming in." Janet's voice called out from the other side.
Ben hastily wiped away his tears as he heard the doorknob click and creak as it swung open.
The Young Avenger didn't turn around. He heard Janet walk over to him and felt her weight on the mattress as she sat down.
The pair sat side by side, not looking at each other or speaking. For a while, they sat in silence and stared ahead.
Eventually, Janet let out a sigh as she clasped her hands together.
"I have to say, Ben. I'm disappointed in you." She said bluntly.
Ben's head snapped up as he looked at her, shocked. He was not expecting that.
"Huh?" Was all he could muster.
Janet didn't look at him, continuing to look ahead as she responded. "You told us that you lost your whole family. Everyone you've ever loved." She finally turned her head to look him in the eye. "Today, we just found out that not only do you have two family members still alive, but that there's even more of your family that you have never mentioned."
Her disappointed look stabbed through Ben's very soul. He had a feeling this would come up, but he didn't expect Janet's reaction to be like this.
Ben turned away. He couldn't bring himself to face her. But her disappointed glare continued to bore holes in him.
"Why Ben?" Janet asked. "Why didn't you tell us that you still had family back in your dimension?"
His hands clenched. No answer he could give would be able to deprive her of that disappointed glare. If anything, any answer would only further tarnish his image in her eyes. But he couldn't remain silent. He had to tell her the truth. He owed her that much.
"I… I was ashamed," Ben admitted, his voice cracking from the emotional build-up. "It's my fault they're gone. I know it. They know it. After the funeral, I couldn't bring myself to face them. I figured they'd be better off without me."
The knot in his stomach tightened as the pain increased the more he spoke. Not from reliving the memories but the guilt of what he did and finally admitting it aloud.
"The day I arrived in this universe. I had decided to run away. Leave everything and everyone behind. When I arrived in this universe. I figured it was the perfect way to start over. Meeting you and the others. Hanging out with my friends. Saving the world. Being your little brother." He turned to face her, a single tear rolled down his cheek with a warm smile on his face. "I never thought I could be this happy again."
His smile vanished as he faced forward again. "If I told you that I had other family members back in my old universe. I was scared that you might make me go back. I was scared to face them. I couldn't handle them hating me."
There it is. The truth laid bare. Ben Tennyson, the noble and selfless hero who put his life on the line for the people he cares about. Just admitted he abandoned his family for a new universe.
He didn't deserve to be called a hero, he wasn't worthy to wear the Ultimatrix, heck he didn't deserve to be an Avenger. He's nothing but a selfish little coward who had no place among Earth's Mightiest Heroes.
Ben waited for Janet to yell at him, hit him, zap him with her stingers, anything because he knew that he deserved it. He'd even accept her walking out right now and never speaking to him again.
He could feel movement. He braced for what came next. Only for Janet's arms to gently wrap around him and pull him into a warm embrace.
The Young Hero was surprised by this action. He did not expect this to happen. His body tensed as his eyes widened in surprise.
"You've had to deal with so much, Ben," Wasp whispered to him, stroking his back in a comforting manner. "I know it's been hard for you. You've tried to hide it, be brave for everyone and put on that smile of yours. But if you keep holding those feelings back. You're going to break."
Her hug tightened before she moved back and looked him in the eye. "It's time to stop running from the past, Ben. I know it's scary. But I promise you. No matter what, I'll always be here for you. Nothing's gonna change that."
Ben felt his emotions swell up inside him as he embraced Janet and squeezed her tightly.
For a while, the pair remained in silence. Just comforting each other and letting their emotions calm down.
When they separated, Janet sniffled and wiped a tear from her eye as she composed herself.
"But, this is your family, Ben." She said in a severe yet reassuring tone. "Regardless of what happened, family is family. They could never hate you. Today is proof of that. Your grandmother searched the multiverse to find you. If that's not love, I don't know what is."
Ben knew she was right. Heck most of the time she is. But there were still parts of him that hesitated. With a crestfallen expression, Ben lowered his head.
That look alone was enough for Janet to figure out what was going through his head. "I'm not gonna pry about what's going on between you and your grandma." Janet assured him, placing a gentle hand on his shoulder. "But she came all this way for you. Was willing to take us all on to save you. Do you really think she would do all this if she didn't care about you?"
As much as he wanted to deny it. He just couldn't. Truthfully, he always felt his Grandmother cared about him in her own way. It just felt overshadowed by the deliberate favouritism she showed Gwen. He couldn't help but feel jealous of that.
Growing up, Ben often competed with Gwen for their Grandpa's attention. However, Grandpa Max always made sure to show equal love to both of his grandchildren. But with Verdona, there was no contest. Verdona made it clear from the get-go that she preferred Gwen. Since Gwen inherited the Anodite spark from her, she blatantly dismissed him from the start.
He often acted like it didn't bother him. But deep down, it was like a thorn in his heart. A festering splinter that dug itself deep and throbbed every time he was overlooked.
So he found it hard to believe that she would be willing to go this far for him. Even with all the evidence before him.
"I don't know Jan." Ben responded, hesitantly. "I mean. You don't know her like I do."
"True." Janet responded. "But I do know that there's two sides to every story. You can be mad at her, but you should at least hear her out. You said you were scared about your family hating you for what happened. Don't you think she might've felt the same way?"
The Alien Avenger sighed. At this point, Janet should update her title from Winsome Wasp to Wisdom. Because she just keeps hitting him with ironclad logic that makes it so hard to argue. Doing so would just be stubbornness on his part.
With a sigh of defeat, Ben relented. "Alright."
"Good." Janet said, with a bright smile on her face as she stood from the bed. She held out her hand to the Young Hero. "Let's go back down, and you can talk with her."
"Nah," Ben replied as he stood on his own and brushed the wrinkles from his jacket. "There's no point. Grandma. You can come out now." He called to the room.
Wasp looked at the Young Hero confused, before a flash of purple light illuminated the room, and Verdona appeared before them.
The Energy being floated at the centre of the room and looked down at Ben with a soft smile on her face.
"Just like your Uncle, you can tell when I'm watching." Verdona praised her Grandson.
Ben shrugged in response. "When you've been ignored for so long, even the slightest bit of attention becomes noticeable."
Verdona's smile disappeared, and Ben mentally scolded himself. The words just flowed out of his mouth before he knew what he was saying. A mental floodgate had been opened, and he had a hard time closing them.
The Energy Being floated down to the ground and landed on the floor. Standing at eye level with Ben, she looked him in the eye.
"Benjamin. I am so sorry for the way I treated you." Verdona said, her tone full of regret. "I admit I favoured Gwen over you. Because of my own Anodite pride. To have a grandchild inherit the spark and embrace her heritage. I was so excited about the prospect that I did not realise how it affected you."
Ben said nothing. He just kept looking at her and waited for Verdona to continue with her excuses.
Verdona lowered her head as she gripped her right arm. "Anodites have always embraced freedom. Feeling the joy of life and experiencing it to the fullest. I used to think there was nothing better than that… Until I met your grandfather."
Her body trembled as she spoke of him. "He taught me what it meant to be human. Something that was so 'alien' to me." She let out a small chuckle at the irony. Even Ben's stone expression showed a slight crack.
"I almost embraced that life fully, but my longing for my Anodite roots kept pulling me away. Even though we may have gone our separate ways, I never lost the love that connected me to my family. Not to Max, Frank, Carl, Gwen, or even you."
She looked at Ben with a warm and loving smile. While he still kept a stoic expression.
"When I felt Max, Gwen, and Carl's mana signatures snuffed out," her voice shook as a pained expression warped her face. "I was devastated. I was lost in my grief, drifting aimlessly in the cosmos. It was as if a part of myself had been cut from me, and I felt this empty void in my heart."
She clenched her eyes shut as she held her hands over her heart. Magenta's tears flowed from her cheek before she eventually turned back to Ben.
"Then you vanished from my senses." She reached out her hand to him like he was a ghost. "And in that moment, I truly had nothing left. It wasn't until I realised that your mana signature was still lingering like embers that I found hope. Now I've found you. Words cannot express the joy I felt when I finally felt your mana again."
Ben continued to listen, not showing any emotion. Janet felt more anxious and uneasy the more she observed this exchange. The way Verdona talked and acted made one thing clear: This truly is Ben's grandmother. His true family, who shares more with him than she ever could. That realisation made the Size-Changing Heroine feel saddened.
Verdona's eyes drifted to a Display cabinet in the corner of Ben's room, and she walked over to it. She eyed the items displayed on each shelf. Various memorabilia and souvenirs that Ben had collected over his heroic career, starting that fateful summer.
Her eyes landed on one particular item, and she picked it up. Turning back to Ben, he saw what she had. It was an old game cartridge. The kind used for the original Gameboy. The colour was faded, and the label was peeling off slightly. But the logo of Sumo Slammers was present on it, clear as day.
"I remember this," Verdona commented in a nostalgic tone.
Ben raised an eyebrow in confusion. What did she mean by that?
Walking over, he took the game cartridge from her and examined it. "This was the first video game Mom and Dad bought for me," Ben stated, his mind swept up in that fond memory.
"Back when my obsession with Sumo Slammers first started. I wanted to play the game so badly. They bought this and my first Gameboy because they couldn't keep driving me to play at the arcade…"
"At the Bellwood Mall." Verdona finished with a smile on her face.
Ben was stunned. "H-How did you know that?"
Verdona stepped closer to him as she explained. "You were five years old. Your parents were shopping, your mother for new clothes for you and your father was after some new tools. You got bored and wandered off to explore. Eventually, you found yourself in the Arcade." Verdona chuckled as if she was replaying the events in her mind. "You had such an excited look on your face when you saw all those games."
"I remember that," Ben said as he found himself doing the same. "I was watching all the game demos, wanting to play. But I didn't have any money so I couldn't. That's when I met this nice lady…" His eyes widened as he looked up at Verdona, who simply smiled at him.
"She talked to me, and she made me laugh. Then she and I ended up playing…"
Verdona snapped her fingers, and, in a flash of purple light, an arcade console appeared with flashing lights and the logo for Sumo Slammers printed on the side with various characters from the game.
"The original Sumo Slammers game," Verdona stated.
She and Ben stood side by side as they watched the little pixel graphics of the game's hero, Ishiyama, performing his signature moves on various enemies and bosses.
"We played together for two hours." Verdona reminisced. "You were so immersed in the game that time flew by. Eventually, your parents managed to find you. Carl was so angry, and Sandra was a mess." She giggled at the thought. "They had the entire mall security team searching for you."
Ben reached out and touched the console. His hands moved to the controls as he playfully moved the joystick and pushed the action buttons. The characters on the screen didn't respond, as he had to put tokens in to play. But the nostalgia of that moment. He remembered every detail. The way his father chewed him out, his mother squeezing him so tightly that he thought his head might pop off…
Then there was the woman. He could never remember her face. But he remembered her warmth, her kindness and her sense of humour. He had so much fun playing with her and it all started with this very console.
"Ever since then, I've loved Sumo Slammers," Ben said quietly. He turned to face his grandmother. "All this time. It was you?"
Verdona nodded. "It's been one of my fondest memories. You had such life in your eyes, a passion so close to a spark that I was almost fooled."
The Emerald Avenger's body trembled, and his eyes watered. All this time, it was her all along.
"Why. Why wait until now to tell me?" Ben asked, hesitation creeping back in.
Verdona tilted her head to the side, looking slightly bashful. "It was our little secret. One only you and I shared. But, I didn't take into account human biology and forgot how your memory at that age would not be as sharp as mine."
Ben smirked at her ditziness. Despite being the oldest being here, aside from Thor, she can still be immature. Guess it runs in the family.
The Energy Being turned to him. "While I did not show it the way I should have. I love you, Ben, and I am so proud of you. I know I don't deserve it. But I would like the chance to do better and be a part of your life."
Ben walked forward and wrapped his arms around her in a warm embrace.
"Of course, Grandma. I'd love nothing more." Ben responded.
Verdona got choked up as she hugged her Grandson back. Finally, reunited as a family once more.
Janet stood to the side, barely holding her tears back as she sniffed and whipped them away. She couldn't be emotional, not at a time like this. She needed to be strong now. For Ben and the others.
Now that Ben has reunited with his true family, she has no right to be selfish.
When the two Tennysons finally separated, Janet took this as her cue to step forward. She walked over to Ben and placed her hand on his shoulder.
"I'm happy for you, Ben." She said genuinely.
Ben returned the smile. "Thanks, Janet."
"That should be my line," Verdona said as she took Janet's hand in hers and looked the Size Changer in the eye.
"Thank you so much for looking after my grandson. You and the others. Giving him a home and keeping him safe. I cannot express my gratitude enough."
"Please." Janet casually responded, waving off the compliment. "If anything, he's saved us more times than we saved him."
"It's true, I am awesome." Ben gloated smugly, causing the two women to laugh.
Janet then gave him a warm hug. Which he returned, though this time, he felt that a hug was unwarranted.
"You know you'll always have a home here, Ben," Janet told him, her voice cracking slightly as if the words pained her.
With that, she broke the hug, and Ben looked at her with a confused look.
"What are you talking about, Janet?" He asked, completely bewildered by her behaviour.
The Winsome Wasp raised an eyebrow. "Well, your families here," she explained, gesturing to Verdona. You're finally able to go back to your home universe. Back to your family and friends."
She stepped back, clasping her hands, looking slightly ashamed. "I'll admit, I wasn't thrilled about the idea of you leaving. But I want what's best for you, Ben. Just promise that you'll come and visit every once in a while."
It finally clicked in Ben's mind. This is why Janet's been acting strange all day. He thought it was because he never mentioned his family. Turns out, that was only part of the reason.
Ben and Verdona shared a look before they both smirked. "Jan. I'm not going anywhere."
Janet's head shot up, her eyes wide in surprise. "Huh?"
"Did you really think I was just gonna take off like that?" Ben asked rhetorically. "When we still have a bunch of escaped supervillains to capture. I can't ditch you guys."
She was stunned. "B-B-But what about your family? They'll all be worried about you?" She stuttered.
"Don't worry, Miss Van Dyne," Verdona interjected. "Lucy and I will explain the situation to everyone when we return."
She let out a sigh as she looked over Ben's room. "I had a feeling that when we found him, he would have built a life for himself. Still, just knowing Ben is alive and healthy is enough for me. Now that I've found him, I'll be sure to visit as often as I can. And Ben can come and visit whenever he is ready."
"Thanks, Grandma," Ben said, hugging her once more.
"And for such an occasion," Verdona held up her hand and concentrated. Mana gathered in her hand, and a silver talisman with a pink crystal in the centre appeared.
Verdona handed the talisman to Ben. "This jewel is infused with my mana. If you ever need me or wish to speak to me. Just hold it and say my name, and I'll be there. No matter what."
Ben looked at the talisman, holding it by the chain and watching the mana crystal dance in the light.
"Thanks, Grandma," Ben said sincerely, trying hard not to get too emotional. This was the first gift he'd ever received from her.
"And don't you worry," Verdona said as if reading his mind. "This won't be the first gift from your dear old grandmother you'll be receiving. Your birthday's coming up, and I will have to make up for lost time."
"Speaking of gifts," Janet spoke up, gesturing to the arcade machine in the middle of Ben's room. "Is that staying here? Cause Ben, you know the rules. No video games in your room."
Ben groaned. "Aw, come on, Jan. You let me have a TV in here before."
"That's when you were sick. You're not sick now." Janet responded with a stern tone.
Verdona smirked at the Size Changing Heroine. "Quite the party pooper, isn't she."
"You have no idea," Ben stated in an annoyed tone.
"Hey, you should be setting a good example for him," Janet told Verdona.
In response, the Energy Being chuckled. "I'm a grandmother, Dear. It's my job to spoil my grandson. I'll leave the discipline to you."
The Two Tennysons shared a chuckle while Janet crossed her arms and tapped her foot.
"Oh, very well." Verdona relented as she snapped her fingers, and the arcade machine vanished from the room.
"Let me know when you want to play together, Ben. I'll bring it back, and we'll have a day of it," she said with a playful wink.
Ben smiled. "You got it."
Verdona then clapped her hands together. "Well, it's been fun, kids. But I feel like we've taken up enough of your time."
"Sure, you don't wanna stay a little longer?" Janet asked. "We have plenty of space."
Verdona smiled and shook her head. "I'm sorry, but I have other responsibilities to take care of. Ones that I have been ignoring for far too long."
Ben nodded in understanding. While he was sad that Verdona couldn't stay longer, now that he had a direct line to her, he could always call her back at any time, so it wasn't such a big deal for her to go.
With relationships mended and issues settled, the trio went back down to join the others.
Coming downstairs, they suddenly heard a loud crash, followed by some yelling and the breaking of something, probably expensive.
Rushing quickly into the room, the trio found themselves looking at a humorous sight.
Tony Stark was chasing his own armor. The Suit itself had a black colour scheme with green circuitry lines patterned across the body. The apparent scenario was that Ship had merged and taken over the armor, ejecting Tony from the suit as he took it for a joy ride.
"Come back here, you little snot rocket!" Tony yelled as he tried to tackle the armor, only for Ship to fly over him, laughing playfully as he did so.
Hawkeye was busting a gut alongside Manny, who watched the scene unfold from the couch.
Meanwhile, the other Plumbers and Avengers were mingling nicely. Lucy was chatting with Captain America, interested in hearing about his war stories. Alan and Helen were talking to Thor, with the latter trying to lift his hammer and failing spectacularly. Cooper was talking with Black Panther, the plumber technopath completely fascinated by the Wakandan's Vibranium suit.
As for Hulk, the gamma giant was feeding Zed pieces of leftover meatloaf. The Alien Dog munched down on the meat chunks while Hulk petted her with his large hands, being very gentle as he did so.
"Such a lively bunch," Verdona stated as she watched the scene before her.
"You have no idea." Ben agreed as Wasp merely shook her head.
Verdona then nudged her grandson. "You found a good team, Ben."
"Yeah," Ben agreed, smiling at the hijinx going on. Are you sure you have to go soon? There are so many people you have to meet: my girlfriend, Carol; my best friend, Laura; my buddies, Spider-Man, Iceman, A-Bomb…"
"All in good time, Ben." Verdona interrupted.
Ben slumped his shoulders in defeat. Verdona smiled down at the Young Tennyson. It warmed her heart to see him try to keep her around.
"Hey," she said, placing her hand on the back of his neck, causing him to look up at her. I promise I'll come back."
"You sure?" Ben asked, worry in his voice.
Verdona chuckled. "I only just got you back. I'm not about to let anything keep us apart."
"I'm gonna hold you to that." Ben quipped, causing Verdona to give him a one-armed hug.
With that, they entered the room to join the others.
The Sun was setting over the city. Golden rays of dusk shone through the buildings, casting long shadows over Avengers Mansion.
"So we go through all this, and Ben ain't even coming back with us?" Manny complained as the Plumbers gathered together.
"Don't be like that, Manny," Helen berated. We have to respect Ben's wishes."
The skinny Tetramand grumbled as he crossed both sets of arms.
"Hey," Ben said as he walked over to his friend. It's not like I won't ever come back. Now that you've found me, I'm just a magic phone call away."
Manny pondered it for a moment before relenting. It did make sense.
"We're happy for you, Ben," Alan said with a smile.
"Yeah, you've really come up in the world," Cooper added.
"More like the Multiverse." Lucy giggled, earning a smile from the others.
"You are all welcome back anytime." Captain America said to the group.
Iron Man stepped forward. "But a heads up beforehand would be appreciated."
The Plumbers nodded in agreement before they said their final goodbyes before Verdona opened a portal back to their universe.
Just as they were about to walk through it, Iron Man shouted.
"Wait!" The Plumbers turned back. "You forgot your pets."
The Armored Billionaire pointed to Ship and Zed. The latter was standing at Ben's side while the former was sitting comfortably on Ben's shoulder.
A nervous chuckle escaped Ben's lips as the Plumbers all looked at each other, confused. Except for Lucy and Verdona, who were sporting mischievous grins.
"Didn't Ben tell you?" Lucy asked facetiously. "Ship and Zed are gonna be staying with Ben from now on."
The Avengers collectively turned to the Teen Hero in question. Who tried to avoid eye contact and remain casual about the situation.
"Ben?" Wasp said in a stern tone.
"I didn't think you guys would mind," Ben stated apprehensively.
"So you went with the ask forgiveness method instead of the permission method?" Hawkeye asked with a raised eyebrow.
Captain America crossed his arms. "You know better than that, Son."
Ben shrugged. "I'm sorry, but it's really no big deal. They're both well-behaved, and I promise I'll take good care of them."
"That Upgrade dog just merged with my armor and took it for a joyride," Tony replied incredulously. "You call that well-behaved?"
Ship narrowed his eye at the Billionaire. "Ship, Ship." He barked at him.
Ben smirked. "He said he's not a dog. He's way smarter than one."
Tony looked surprised. "That thing can talk?"
"Yes. *He* can." Ben responded harshly, not liking that he called Ship a thing.
The Armored Avenger was taken aback by the Teen's change in demeanour as Zed started growling at him.
Wasp quickly stepped in before things could escalate. "What we're trying to say, Ben, is that having pets is a lot of responsibility, and it might cause problems to take these two away from their home."
Ben's expression softened as he let out a sigh, knelt to scratch Zed under the chin, and pat Ship.
"Ship and Zed don't have anyone else," Lucy explained, stepping forward. "Zed used to belong to Kevin, and Ship belonged to Julie."
The sudden realisation caused the Avengers to sympathise with the Alien Pets.
Zed let out a whimper as Ben draped his arm around her while Ship let out a sad moan.
"Ben's all they have left," Verdona added. "They've been so excited to see him again."
"We did our best to look after them," Cooper said. But they don't like anyone else except Ben."
Looking back at Ben, the young Hero was holding both animals close while putting on a cute pouty face. In a clear attempt to guilt the Avengers into letting him keep them.
Hulk already looked on board with the idea. Hawkeye looked unsure but willing to accept it. Black Panther didn't seem to care. Captain America seemed willing to give it a try. Wasp was cool with it. Leaving Iron Man to be the sceptical one.
However, one pleading look from Wasp and Tony let out a sigh of defeat. "Just keep the metal slug out of my tech, and these two better be housebroken."
Ben grinned as he jumped up with both Alien Pets barking with joy.
"Aw, they're so cute." Wasp giggled as Ship looked over to her before jumping into her arms, wagging his tail as he nuzzled her.
Zed jumped all around Ben before running over to Hulk. He smiled down at her and patted her on the head.
"Puppy." The Gamma Giant cooed at the Alien Dog as she wagged her tail excitedly.
"Well," Cooper said, grabbing everyone's attention. Now that's sorted. We should get going."
"Smell ya later, Cuz!" Lucy called out, letting out her signature laugh.
"Not if I smell ya first." Ben threw back with his signature smirk.
She gave him one last warm smile before she and the Plumbers entered the portal.
When the portal disappeared, Wasp turned to Ben, who looked at where the portal was. A look of serenity on his face.
Like a part of himself he didn't even know was broken has finally been fixed.
While he wasn't ready to return to his old universe yet, he found comfort in the knowledge that he would have the opportunity to do so when he was ready.
He felt a hand on his shoulder as he turned to Janet, who smiled at him warmly.
"You ok?" She asked in a sweet tone.
Ben smiled back and nodded. "Yeah. I really am."
He meant it, too. While he was making progress with his mental trauma. Today felt like a giant step forward in the right direction.
Whatever comes next. He'll handle it with his team. His friends. His family.
Yep. Things were really looking good for hi…
CRASH!
Ben's head snapped around to see Hawkeye thrown across the room, with Zed running past him. His bow was in her mouth as she ran down the hall.
"Give that back, you little….!" Hawkeye yelled as he picked himself up and bolted after the alien dog.
Ben slowly panned over to see Tony and Steve's disappointed glares. Wasp was covering her mouth to stop herself from laughing. Hulk smirked at the Archers' misfortune, and Black Panther was nowhere to be seen. Seemingly got bored and left during the emotional moment.
"BEN!" Hawkeye's voice echoed through the mansion, making the Teen cringe.
At this point, when you've dug your hole deep enough. There's only one thing a hero like Ben Tennyson can do.
He threw up his hands, shrugged and gave a weak smile.
"Oops."
And there we have it. The Plumbers have arrived, Zed and Ship are now living with Ben and Verdona finally patches things with her grandson.
Now I'm sure many of you have questions and are likely confused about a few things. So I'll spell it out for all of you.
This is not Prime Ben.
What I mean by that is, this Ben is not the same Ben from the show. Obviously, because this is fanfic, so of course, he's not the same. But I also mean that, he's a variant of the Ben Tennyson we know and love. The Chronology of his timeline is different from the mainline continuity of the Ben 10 franchise.
Meaning that certain events have happened to this Ben that are different from the Prime Ben. This is why Zed is here and still has the Nemetrix, why Ben still has the Ultimatrix after the Dagon arc instead of the new Omnitrix and why he has his Omniverse transformations while all his UAF aliens have the designs from that era.
The history of this Ben is not the same as Ben Prime's. I did this because I wanted to add more of my own spin to this story. While also making the story less predictable.
Also, some of you might be thinking that Ben is a little too emotional in the chapter and in past chapters.
My response to that is, Ben's dealing with a lot of trauma. Losing your family and watching someone you love die in front of you can cause serious psychological damage. Many people who are affected by trauma react in different ways and it is never easy. It's a serious issue that affects a lot of people, especially people who work in dangerous fields, like Police Officers and Soldiers.
Victims of trauma don't just get over stuff like this. Even with professional help. Ben is getting the help he needs, but as you all should understand by know, whenever Bens family comes up, it triggers a lot of issues for Ben. Which is the same for a lot of people.
Having Ben deal with this trauma and move past it has been a part of this story from the beginning. It's something I've put a lot of effort into.
When I started writing Avenging 10, I had no clue what I was doing. I had just seen some fanfiction's and had the crazy idea to give it a try. I didn't know a thing about writing, how to weave a narrative or anything about proper writing structure. To this day, I'm still learning.
I started this story with the "Ben's family is killed" trope that lots of other fanfic writers have used because that just seemed the easiest to me when I started.
But over the years, I've learned a lot and grown as a writer. So I'm putting in the effort to turn this tired old trope into something more. While also treating the subject matter with the care and respect it deserves.
Anyways, I hope you all enjoyed this chapter and I'll see you all in the next chapter.
Until next time, CaptainRex75 out!