They got home just past midnight.
Their parents were still awake, sitting at the kitchen table. Their mother had a mug of tea. Their father had the look of a man who already knew his night was about to get longer.
Nico and Bianca sat down.
"So," their mother said, calm but alert, "explain everything again. Slowly. And without skipping the alien parts."
Ten minutes later, their father rubbed his temples.
"Okay. So. A space watch bonded to my son. It turns him into… predator monsters. And now you want to go on a cross-country trip to find another kid with a different space watch."
"Yes," Bianca said.
"Yes," Nico echoed.
Their father opened his mouth. Closed it. Opened it again.
"…Do I at least get to say no?"
Their mother sighed and placed a hand on his.
"Honey. We both know if we say no, they'll just sneak out anyway. At least this way they take the RV."
He stared at her. Betrayed. Defeated.
"…Fine. Is the family RV still working?"
Their mother nodded. "Had it serviced last month. Runs fine."
Nico brightened immediately.
"That's perfect. More space. Beds. Storage. And we don't steal Dad's car."
Their father pointed at him.
"I heard that."
Nico leaned back.
"Also, you have a job. And bills. And adult responsibilities."
His father stared.
"…I am proud and offended at the same time."
Bianca stood.
"Great. We'll start packing."
An hour later, bags were lined up by the door.
Clothes. Snacks. Tools. First aid kit. Flashlight. Bianca's books. Nico's notebook. And one alien watch that could turn him into nightmares with legs.
Bianca zipped her bag shut.
"Tomorrow morning, we leave."
Nico looked at the Nemetrix.
A long road ahead.
Ten beasts to master.
And a boy with a watch waiting at the end of it
The next morning came.
Sunlight poured through the driveway. The RV sat there like a loyal old beast, paint a little faded, engine humming steady.
Their mother hugged them both tight.
"Stay safe. Call every night. No excuses."
Nico sighed, but there was a small smile on his face.
"Yes, Mom."
Bianca hugged her next. "We'll be fine. I promise."
Their father stepped forward. He didn't hug. He placed a firm hand on Nico's shoulder instead.
"Listen to me. You have power now. Real power. That means you protect people, not show off. And most importantly—"
He glanced at Bianca.
"—you keep your sister safe."
Nico met his eyes. No jokes this time.
He nodded.
"I will."
For a moment, nobody spoke.
Then Bianca jingled the RV keys.
"Well then. Road trip time."
Nico climbed into the passenger seat. The Nemetrix sat heavy on his wrist. Not just metal. Not just alien tech.
A responsibility.
The RV rolled out of the driveway.
And the journey began.
Meanwhile, far from Earth…
A massive ship drifted through space.
Inside, robots moved along metal floors. Screens glowed. Alien workers whispered in low voices. All of them avoided looking toward the throne.
Seated upon it was a thin figure wrapped in a ragged cloak. His skin was a sickly green. Tentacles hung where a mouth should be. Red eyes burned like dying stars.
Vilgax.
Not the conqueror of armies.
Not yet.
A servant stepped forward and bowed.
"Lord Vilgax. We have found something."
Vilgax's eyes sharpened.
"Have you found the Omnitrix?"
The servant hesitated.
"…No."
Silence.
Heavy. Dangerous.
Vilgax leaned forward, his tentacles twitching.
"If I still had my full power… you would already be dead for wasting my time."
The servant trembled and backed away.
"I—I'm sorry, my lord."
Vilgax rose from the throne. His cloak dragged across the floor like a shadow.
"Do you understand why I need that watch?" he said quietly.
"No, Lord."
Vilgax's voice turned cold.
"That bastard Azmuth didn't just create the Omnitrix. He sealed half of my original essence inside it. My strength. My true form."
His red eyes flared.
"I am incomplete."
He turned toward the star map where Earth glowed.
"And somewhere on that planet… a child wears my missing half on his wrist."
Vilgax's tentacles curled into a smile.
"I will have it back."
Vilgax took a slow breath. The ship felt colder for it.
"Now," he said, "what did you find?"
The servant hurried to a console and tapped the screen. A symbol appeared. Red. Sharp. Familiar.
The symbol of the Nemetrix.
"We don't understand it yet," the man said. "But its energy signature matches the Omnitrix. Almost exactly."
Vilgax stared at the symbol.
His eyes widened just a little.
"…What is that?"
The room stayed silent.
Then Vilgax's tentacles curled upward, not in anger…
But in interest.
"Azmuth…" he whispered. "What did you build this time?"
The servant swallowed.
"We traced the signal. It activated on Earth. Yesterday."
Vilgax didn't move.
But the air in the room felt tighter.
"A second watch," he said slowly. "On the same world. With the same signature."
He stepped closer to the screen. His clawed hand hovered inches from the symbol.
"That means Azmuth didn't just make a weapon of creation…" Vilgax murmured. "He made a weapon of hunting."
Another worker leaned in, nervous.
"Our scans show the device bonded to a human. A teenage male. Approximately fifteen years old."
Vilgax's eyes burned brighter.
"A human… wearing a counter to the Omnitrix."
He straightened, cloak falling behind him like a curtain.
"This changes everything."
The servant dared to ask, "Lord Vilgax… should we pursue the Omnitrix first?"
Vilgax turned his head. Slow. Deliberate.
"No."
His voice was calm. Too calm.
"If that watch is truly what I think it is… then whoever wears it can track the Omnitrix."
A thin, sharp smile formed under the tentacles.
"Which means… I don't need to search for the boy with the Omnitrix."
He tapped the Nemetrix symbol on the screen.
"I only need to follow the hunter."
Across the stars, Earth glowed.
And Vilgax set his course.
Back on Earth
The RV rolled down the highway. The morning sun painted the road gold.
Inside, the dashboard hummed quietly. On it floated a small red hologram projected from the Nemetrix. A blinking dot. Moving. Always moving.
The Omnitrix.
Bianca squinted at the projection while driving.
"We're always going to be one day behind the Omnitrix user."
Nico leaned forward, resting his chin on his hand.
"Unless we pull an all-nighter."
Bianca glanced at him.
"You realize I'm the only one driving, right?"
Nico blinked.
"…Right."
She smirked.
"So unless you want your big heroic journey to end in a ditch, we're sticking to normal sleep schedules."
Nico leaned back, stretching.
"Fair. Didn't think my first mission would involve respecting traffic laws."
Bianca nodded seriously.
"The true final boss."
They shared a quiet laugh.
Outside, the world passed by.
Inside, the hunt had begun.
The RV rolled into a quiet gas station just off the highway.
Nico stepped out first, stretching his arms over his head.
"Ugh. My legs fell asleep."
Bianca walked past him toward the pumps.
"I'll get the gas. Don't wander off and start a fight with aliens without me."
Nico gave a lazy salute.
"No promises."
Then—
Hop.
A heavy impact shook the ground.
Both siblings turned.
A giant frog stood near the station roof. Slimy. Wide-mouthed. And sitting proudly on top of its head was a man in a ridiculous lab coat and goggles.
"Doctor Animo will get you next time, Ben 10!"
He shook his fist at the sky dramatically.
Silence.
Nico blinked.
Bianca blinked.
Nico slowly leaned toward his sister.
"…Did a mad scientist just threaten a ten-year-old from a frog throne?"
Bianca didn't look away from the scene.
"Yes."
Another hop. The frog turned to leave.
Nico lifted his wrist.
"Well. I guess we found the Omnitrix user."
He pressed the symbol.
Red light exploded around him.
Metal cracked. Earth shook.
A massive beetle-like monster stood where Nico had been.
Crabdozer.
Bianca sighed, still holding the gas nozzle.
"Try not to destroy the gas station."
Crabdozer roared.
No promises.
Crabdozer slammed one heavy leg forward.
The concrete beneath him cracked like glass.
Doctor Animo turned mid-hop, finally noticing the new monster behind him. His frog let out a confused croak.
"What—? Another mutation? Ben?!"
Crabdozer shook his head. Slowly. Clearly.
The Nemetrix clicked, translating the growl into words.
"I'm not Ben."
Animo adjusted his goggles, squinting.
"…Then who are you supposed to be?"
Crabdozer leaned forward, horn lowering like a battering ram.
"The one making sure Ben doesn't go bad."
Bianca finally finished filling the gas tank. She put the nozzle back calmly, like this was a normal Tuesday.
"Please don't wreck the convenience store," she called out. "We need snacks."
Animo pointed dramatically.
"This doesn't concern you, mystery monster! My feud is with Ben 10!"
Crabdozer's horn scraped the ground.
"Then today, your feud is with me."
The frog croaked nervously.
Somewhere, far down the road…
A kid with a green watch sneezed for no reason at all.
Crabdozer charged.
Six massive legs pounded the ground, each step shaking the gas station like a small earthquake. The giant frog barely had time to croak before a horned beetle-monster slammed into it, driving it backward across the asphalt.
SKREEE—!
The frog skidded, claws digging grooves into the road.
Crabdozer didn't stop.
A huge claw rose and came down like a wrecking ball.
WHAM.
The frog's head slammed into the ground.
Inside the Nemetrix…
Nico stood in the red mental space. The towering image of Crabdozer stood beside him, breathing heavy, primal, eager.
Nico stepped forward.
Crabdozer stepped forward.
Nico raised his arm.
Crabdozer raised its claw.
Their movements matched. Man and beast in sync.
Not domination.
Cooperation.
"Again," Nico said calmly.
Crabdozer roared.
Outside, the claw lifted once more.
Doctor Animo clung to his frog's head, screaming.
"This is not part of the plan!!"
Bianca leaned against the RV, sipping a soda she definitely had not paid for yet.
"This is going great."
The frog tried to hop away.
Crabdozer was faster.
He lunged, hooked one massive claw around the frog's leg, and yanked. The creature crashed onto its side, shaking the parked cars nearby. Alarms blared. Lights flashed.
Doctor Animo flew off the frog's head and landed in a pile of empty soda crates.
"Ow… my spine… my beautiful spine…"
Inside the red mental space, Nico took a slow breath.
The Crabdozer's heavy breathing matched his rhythm.
Not rage.
Not chaos.
Controlled force.
Nico stepped forward again.
Crabdozer lifted its horn and pointed it at the fallen frog.
Outside, Bianca raised her voice.
"Nico. Don't kill him. We're in a populated area."
Crabdozer paused.
Inside, Nico nodded.
"Right. Just end the fight."
Crabdozer slammed its horn into the ground beside the frog's head instead of on it. The shockwave rattled the station windows and sent dust into the air.
The frog froze.
Doctor Animo slowly raised his hands.
"Okay! Okay! I surrender! No more frog violence!"
Crabdozer leaned in, eyes glowing red.
The Nemetrix translated Nico's calm voice.
"You attacked a child. Why?"
Animo pushed his goggles up.
"Because that child has a power! I don't what it is, but it let's him transform!"
Crabdozer's eyes narrowed.
Inside, Nico's thoughts clicked.
'So that kid really is the Watch Holder.'
Bianca walked over, hands in her pockets.
"Well. Mystery solved."
Crabdozer turned slightly toward her.
The red glow around him flickered.
Ten minutes were almost up.
Bianca pointed toward the RV.
"Let's tie frog-man up, call the local authorities, and get moving before your watch times out in the middle of a gas station crime scene."
Crabdozer snorted.
Reasonable.
Very reasonable.
And somewhere far down the highway, Ben Tennyson had no idea a second watch user had just entered his story.
Bianca finished tying the last knot around Doctor Animo with the efficiency of someone who had definitely watched too many crime documentaries.
Animo struggled.
"Hey! What are you two going to do to me?!"
Nico, now back in human form, looked down at him. Calm. Blank. Almost polite.
"You'll see."
Animo did not like the tone of that sentence.
A few minutes later.
The local police station.
Animo sat in a holding chair, still tied up, covered in frog slime, staring at the fluorescent ceiling like his life choices had betrayed him.
An officer stepped out to the front desk, looking between Nico, Bianca, and the bound mad scientist.
"…So," the officer said slowly. "You're telling me you caught Doctor Animo? Wanted eco-terrorist? Escaped custody twice?"
Nico nodded.
"Yes."
The officer squinted.
"How?"
Nico didn't miss a beat.
"He slipped in a gas puddle and hit his head. We saw the wanted poster and tied him up."
The officer stared.
Bianca nodded seriously.
"Very slippery puddle."
Animo jerked in his ropes.
"That is NOT what happened! There was a giant beetle monster! And—"
Nico leaned closer to the counter.
"Head trauma can cause confusion."
The officer looked at Animo.
Animo looked back.
The officer sighed, stamped a paper, and pressed a button to call Plumber transport.
"…Alright then. Thanks for your civic duty, kids."
Bianca smiled politely.
"No problem."
As they turned to leave, Animo whispered from the chair.
"I know what you are…"
Nico paused. Looked back.
"So do we."
Then the siblings walked out of the station like nothing unusual had happened.
Just another day on the road.
To be continued
Hope people like this ch and give me power stones and enjoy