"So."
Ben raised his wrist, looking at the Omnitrix on it. "This thing is called the Omnitrix. I can transform once every ten minutes — and I can turn into aliens… ten of them!"
"That's right. Just don't mess around with it," Ethen said calmly, giving some genuine advice. "Do good deeds within your ability — like me."
"No wonder there were rumors of aliens in Bellwood before. So, it was you all along!" Gwen stared at Ethen in surprise.
Ben scratched his head. "By the way, Ethen, how did you even know I was gonna find the Omnitrix?"
The question made Ethen sound like some kind of prophet.
Ethen shrugged innocently. "I just said maybe you'd find it. Didn't expect you actually would."
Ben's eyes lit up. "Guess I'm lucky! From now on, I'm gonna be a hero too!"
Ethen suddenly remembered something important. "Oh, and one more thing — whatever you do, don't smack the screen!"
"Don't smack it?" Ben repeated, nodding like he understood… but clearly didn't.
Meanwhile, Grandpa Max had fallen silent, his mind full of questions.
Two Omnitrixes? And six months ago, before the Omnitrix had even appeared publicly… Ethen was already transforming?
"Ethen, come help me chop some wood."
After a moment of thought, Max found an excuse and led Ethen aside. Once they reached a quiet spot, he turned to him. "Ethen, how did you get your Omnitrix? What exactly is going on?"
"Grandpa," Ethen said earnestly, "six months ago, just like Ben, I came across a meteor — and found an Omnitrix inside. I still don't fully understand its secrets, but I'll use it well. I want to become a proper Plumber."
He hadn't really answered the question… but emotionally, it was perfect.
Max's eyes softened. He patted Ethen's shoulder approvingly. "With your knowledge of the Omnitrix and your sense of responsibility, you might just become the brightest Plumber of them all."
Ethen exhaled softly. Phew… passed that one.
They chatted a bit more as they gathered firewood.
But when they returned, they were greeted by a sight that made Ethen's stomach drop.
Just like in the original timeline, Ben was fiddling with the Omnitrix — tapping the screen, selecting an alien…
Then his eyes lit up, and— SLAP!
"My god…" Ethen groaned, rubbing his temple.
A flash of green light burst out.
"Huh? What's this tiny thing?"
A small, squeaky voice rang out. Grey Matter appeared — or rather, a mini version of him — squirming on the ground in disbelief.
"Ben," Ethen said darkly, "I told you not to smack it! Now you've turned yourself into a pint-sized alien!"
"Haha, let me teach him a lesson so he won't forget." Gwen grinned, reaching down and gently scooping Grey Matter up like a hamster.
"Nooo!" Grey Matter squealed in despair, flailing helplessly.
Everyone laughed. The moment was oddly heartwarming.
Then suddenly—
Ding!
Mission: "Vilgax's Mechanical Army Attacks" issued!
Objective: Destroy Vilgax's robot army and eliminate at least twenty drones!
Reward: 10 points!
Ethen froze. "Twenty robots? Really? Is my existence making Vilgax lose his mind already?"
Whoosh! Whoosh! Whoosh!
Streaks of red light flashed across the night sky — a swarm of mechanical drones forming a glowing red tide overhead!
"The enemy's here," Ethen said evenly. "I'll handle this."
"So many alien battle drones… they're after the Omnitrix!" Max warned. "Be careful!"
"Ethen, don't get hurt, okay?" Gwen added, her voice full of concern she didn't even notice herself.
Grey Matter looked guilty. "Sorry, Ethen… I can't help you like this."
Ethen smiled. "It's fine, Ben. Just don't smack it next time."
He turned toward the incoming army, tapped his own Omnitrix, and muttered, "To me, these guys are nothing but walking scrap metal."
With a flash of green light, Ethen transformed.
A massive armored alien emerged — molten energy pulsing through the cracks in his furnace-like armor.
"This is…"
"NRG!" Ben shouted in amazement.
All the robots instantly locked onto NRG, weapons whirring.
They opened fire — a storm of energy blasts and explosions engulfing him in smoke.
The others tensed, hearts pounding.
But when the smoke cleared — NRG stood unmoved, not a single scratch on his armor.
He slowly raised his head. "Now… it's my turn."
BOOM!
A searing nuclear beam burst from the vents in his armor, vaporizing a drone instantly.
Then another. And another.
NRG moved methodically, sweeping his nuclear energy across the field. The drones tried to flee — but it was useless. The air shimmered with heat as they were melted down one by one.
In moments, the battlefield was silent.
Only glowing embers and piles of twisted metal remained.
"It's over?"
Max blinked, stunned. "That was faster than swatting flies…"
Gwen stared, awe flickering in her eyes. "So, he's the alien hero everyone's been talking about in Bellwood…"
Even Grey Matter watched in admiration — that's the kind of hero I want to be.
Meanwhile, far across space—
"Lord Vilgax, Omnitrix signal detected!" a robot reported.
Vilgax's eyes gleamed. "Excellent! And then?"
Fifteen seconds later—
"Uh… Lord Vilgax, it's… over."
Vilgax smirked. "Good! Did they capture both Omnitrixes already?"
"N-not exactly… all our robots were destroyed."
Vilgax froze, then his expression twisted with fury. "Impossible! Send more drones — deploy the ace units!"
Even he couldn't destroy that many bots so fast.
He refused to believe there was anyone in the galaxy stronger than him.