98Within the sleek, metal corridors of the Hero Association Headquarters in City A, under the illuminating ceiling light, a groan filled the somewhat silent air, followed by a complaint to the sassy child telekinetically pulling him by the metaphorical leash.
"Alright, alright. I saw everything in your headquarters. Can you put me down now?" Ben groaned, already reached his limit with the bratty child they call Tatsumaki, The Tornado of Terror, S-Class Number two and one of the Hero Association's greatest weapons against Dragon-Class monsters, the highest level monsters the Hero Association encountered to this day.
While dragged through the building, Ben learned many things. One, Heroes here were ranked from C to S, with C being the lowest, and S being the highest rank there was.
As for the monster and disaster hierarchy, they ranged from Disaster Level Wolf, Tiger, Demon, Dragon, and, finally, God. So far, the world did not encounter a God Level threat, only dragon monsters like the one known as Beefcake. Ben inquired specifics, details, and examples for each rank.
According to Tatsumaki, and the pamphlet specially designed for upcoming S-Class Heroes, civilians can defeat Wolf-Level monsters, or any B or C-Class depending on environmental and ability factors. Tiger Level threats require A-Class and, if needed, a group of B-Class to fight. As for Demon, only S-Class can handle them, Dragon Class reserved for the higher S-Class heroes as well.
As for Demon Level threats, there were a few Ben could consider as Demon. Estimating Genos as S-Class and the few mutants from the House of Evolution, Ben rated the cyborg gorilla as Demon Level. The Beast King, on the other hand, Ben placed between Demon to Dragon. Somewhere around Dragon in the lower levels considering his destructive might before Saitama offed him like always.
Carnage Kabuto was indefinitely Dragon. Anything that can decimate an unevolved Rath was something enough. Carnage Kabuto convinced Ben that not even Ultimate Rath could defeat him, not after witnessing his blood-curling berserk mode.
For examples in the Hero category, using a reference for C-Class, Tatsumaki compared them to the ones Ben most likely met when he was unaware, unable to handle monsters that only a group of people can beat up.
For S Class, Tatsumaki mentioned her abilities, tearing giant monsters with her psychic might, rending flesh from bone and grinding bone to dust. Her extremely graphic depiction reminded Ben of a certain caped baldy one-punching all the monsters seemingly belong in the Dragon category with ease, wearing his usual irritating poker face.
Back to the classes, C-Class Heroes were obligated to actively patrol and contribute to society, lest they're compelled to leave the Association's ranks for good. In blunter terms, the Hero Association will fire any slackers that failed to live up to their occupation and name. Only when a hero achieved B-Class or higher would they no longer suffer such deadlines.
As for the S-Class Heroes, Ben took his time memorizing their names and abilities via pamphlet, one limited only to a small number of individuals detailing the lives and skillsets of the Association's trump cards against the most dangerous of monsters. While A-Class heroes did possess somewhat high-level members, the S-Class was far above them, actual superhumans compared to the rest.
The number one hero, Blast, was a mystery to even most of the Association's staff, including the upper echelons, but the Association recorded his accumulating feats firsthand. Thus his existence was true.
Said feats were beyond outlandish, almost Saitama-level, reducing many monsters to pieces of meat and once brutally pounded a giant centipede monster to flee with its metaphorical tail behind his legs. They reminded him of Saitama's handiwork, but Tatsumaki later confirmed that he had hair once asked, so he dismissed the possibility of mistaken identity. Blast's existence served to escalate Ben's wariness that others like Saitama could exist in this world. He wondered if he could take on any of them without relying on his strongest aliens in a test of might and skill.
The number two hero was the green-haired girl dragging him by the psychic leash. According to her, the Association utilized her talents almost daily, exterminating all manners of monsters from Demon to the occasional Dragon, although the increasing number of monsters started to worry the Association's leaders somewhat.
Ben made a mental note of this particular minutia, to try his hand uncovering hidden clues leading to the monsters' origins. If not, at least some insight into their biology and the fundamental concept of monsterfication.
When he discovered that most monsters were mutated humans, Ben nearly passed out from the fear of his committing homicide. However, Tatsumaki calmed his nerves, informing that not only their belligerent nature posed a great danger to society, but also that the process of monsterfication was a choice in the end. Those Ben killed willingly abandoned their humanity to become something 'more,' which, ironically, also included Ben in a sense only for the greater good. In short, Ben should feel no guilt in slaughtering them, as all attempts for peace will lead to wasted time and energy in the end, proven by previous failed attempts at parlay with the inhuman terrorists.
Unlike the monsters, Ben never abandoned his humanity. Not wholly, merely swapping his human DNA for power at brief moments in time. The truth of monsters made Ben wonder… where was the thin line separating him and them? Both Ben and they sacrificed their forms for power. Only Ben's case was more, vaguely put, clean, risk-free through the aid of the device on his wrist.
Though in the end, that prospect failed to dismiss their similar mindsets of which he relied on power not his own. The one similarity Ben had with the monsters, was his reliance on a different strength, not that of a human's to achieve his goals.
Still, Ben cannot help but wonder. Will he even use the Omnitrix knowing that he can never be human again?
For the next hero, the number three of was an old, hunched back man, one even older than Grandpa Max, but his feats and accomplishments in the field dismissed Ben's comparisons. The one known as Silver Fang was more than a thousand times more vigorous than Grandpa Max could hope to be.
For others, there was a man that could be mistaken for the avatar of gluttony in human form, A heroic version of Billy Baxton, a samurai copied from the anime shows back on his Earth, a pretty boy ninja in white, a cyborg like Genos, a scarred warrior considered as the mightiest man on earth, an African-American bodybuilder, and etc.
The heroes among the S-Class were a colorful variety, gently put, though Ben questioned the validity of the hero known as Puri Puri Prisoner, an S-Class homosexual charged with repeated attempts of rape against those of the same sex.
For the first time in Ben's life, he felt genuine fear on this day when he learned of the lowest S-Class. He made a mental note to stay away from him at all costs even if it was the last thing he'll do.
As for the one known as the Strongest Man on Earth, Ben rummaged through the various feats he… 'accomplished.' A few of his exploits were eerily familiar now that Ben scried them with meticulous detail. All of them died by one punch, or so the story said, from the tallest giant to the most apocalyptic.
The graphic descriptions of his activities seem eerily similar to Saitama's methods. He shrugged them off, chalking them off as nothing more than coincidences. If there was one man that can kill anything in one punch, why not another? Though the report on the man decimating the giant whose height reached the clouds need investigating. He would have to ask Saitama on that later on.
During his tour, Tatsumaki showed him the S-Class meeting room, their military strategist room, the room where Child Emperor works for the Hero Association as tech support and strategist. The boy was absent at this time so that Ben couldn't meet him in person.
When Ben read about Child Emperor, he must admit that he was pretty impressive, becoming a hero at such a young age, a professional one at that. He accomplished the end goal at the age every kid dreamed of being, even earlier than Ben himself with just his own power…
'His own power…' Ben dropped his sight to the floor, in deep contemplation.
Ben only became a hero because of the Omnitrix falling from the sky, delivered for Grandpa Max, not him, his young ten-year-old grandson. Ben looked at his watch, contemplating a dangerous thought.
Could he still be a hero if he didn't found the Omnitrix? How would he grow? Would he be like the Ben without the Omnitrix?
"Yo, Alien Boy. You listening?"
Tatsumaki's sassy, mind-grating voice chimed at his displeasure.
"What is it this time, Terry?" Ben replied, using his moniker for Tatsumaki, mainly to return the suffering he endured listening to Tatsumaki's ego.
"Hmph, well, are you gonna join the Association or something? We're done here, you know?" Tatsumaki asked again, floating before Ben with her hands on her hips, her finger tapping on the hem of her somewhat revealing hero uniform. Still, her dress was quite revealing. Sometimes Ben could even see her panties under her triangular flaps, though he held no love for little girls.
Pondering his choices, Ben looked up in thought.
The benefits of joining the Hero Association were alluring. The pay was very lucrative, and Ben could perform his civic duties freely, saving time and effort. That, if he could bypass the danger of those like the Hero Association hunting him on the grounds of accusing Ben as a dangerous shape-shifting 'monster,' then now was his time.
"Well, why not? Quick question, do I have to, you know, do some boring paperwork or…"
Tatsumaki placed a finger on her chin, her eyes staring the lights of the hallway ceiling in thought.
"Well, you'll need to answer a few questions. How do you transform, what kind of 'aliens' you have, or something you might need to mention regarding the risks of your watch doohickey."
Tatsumaki pointed at the Omnitrix.
"Oh, right. That…" Ben widened his eyes upon realizing a crucial fact.
If he somehow messed up and lost control of the Omnitrix, resulting in mass destruction of property or needlessly scaring the populace, then the Association might issue a manhunt on his head. The last thing Ben wanted was a large red target painted on his back, and hunted by humans that won't hesitate to kill him if they labeled him as a 'monster.'
"Well, none that won't be a problem. You have my word."
Tatsumaki narrowed her eyes at Ben with slight suspicion.
"...I don't believe you."
Maintaining his forced smile, Ben repressed a twitch.
"I'm serious! No problems here!"
"Ehhhh…"
She still didn't believe him, her blank eyes and accusing tone more than obvious.
"Oh, come on! What will it take to convince you?"
Several seconds later, Tatsumaki suddenly smiled, as if a brilliant idea dawned on her.
"Hmmm, I wanna fight you. Face me in a duel, and I will vouch for you if you can entertain me enough."
His body remained inert, unresponsive for a brief second.
"What?"
"You heard me. You see, I am quite bored lately, and spent my free time hunting you down in hopes of entertainment. You've amused me this far, so why not see if you can amuse me further."
"..."
A thought that she was Saitama's relative crossed Ben's mind for a second there.
"Okay… well…" Ben paused in thought, wondering how he should handle her.
"...!" Then a brilliant idea dawned upon him. No, not brilliant. Complete genius. A means of revenge in the form of a harmless bet.
"...but if you want to fight me, you might have to fight someone I know first."
"Huh?" Arms crossed, brow scrunched, one eye narrowed, her jaw opened in confusion, her anticipation died significantly.
"Oh no, oh no. This guy is the strongest guy I know, don't you worry. If you can beat him, well, I will do anything you say for a week."
Ben made a dangerous bet. While he couldn't estimate the baldy's power, he had a feeling the baldy could beat Tatsumaki. Unlike Saitama, her power derived from her psychic might, not the same illogical power that is 'The Caped Baldy.'
"Oh ho? Is that a challenge?" Tatsumaki smirked as anticipation swelled in her soul while her heart trembled with excitement at the prospect of obtaining a heroic manservant.
"You chicken?"
Like a match to dynamite, Tatsumaki grinned as anger swelled in her veins.
"That's it. You're on. When will it start?" She returned his smirk with her own.
"Gimme a week, and I'll let you know. Think you can wait that long?" Ben had an idea how he could coerce Saitama into accepting the bet.
"Oh ho ho, take your time, runt. Prepare to be humiliated as you'll never believe."
Tangible, violent sparks clashed between the two, one with absolute confidence in her victory, while the other envisioning her unsightly defeat by 'hand of baldy,' as a historic rivalry was born on this very day.
When he returned home that day, the sunset in the east, already starting to cast the dim shadow of the night. The sudden abduction into the Hero Association shaved most of his time, especially after the imposed tour given by Tatsumaki, the child in an adult's body. Or was it the other way around? To Ben, no matter how old the child-woman was, he will always consider her a child via verisimilitude, in both mentality and bodily structure.
Once he returned home, he met up with Genos along the way and updated him on his day. Genos was not surprised that there was a Hero Association, instead he also recently discovered its existence as well, and was convinced to join the Hero Registry so that the populace would recognize him and Saitama as heroes. But, most critically, Genos would officially become Saitama's disciple.
"Are you serious?" Ben asked if he was serious.
"Yes. Saitama-sensei said so himself," Genos confirmed.
"What? Really?" Ben dropped his jaw in abject disbelief.
The revelation that Saitama out of all people will teach Genos how to move forward was beyond the scope of the word 'shocking' to Ben. Even if Saitama somehow possessed a hidden talent for teaching, Ben still chalked Saitama's choice as a disaster waiting to happen. He cannot stress how terrible it will end, both for Saitama and Genos.
Ben made a mental note to watch how Saitama will 'teach' Genos, mostly to see how the baldy will blunder his way out.
"...okay, I don't know what to say other than… you know what, never mind. I'll talk to you later. Hope to see you and Baldy turn into S-Rank at the exam, dude."
"Likewise. Have a safe night, Ben."
As Genos left the premises, Ben bid Genos goodnight before entering his abode. Once inside, Ben ate his dinner, prepared himself for bed after brushing his teeth and taking a nice, hot shower. He can feel the stress already leaving his system.
After finishing his nightly rituals, he jumped onto his bed, snoring his worries away as he drifted to his slumber.
However, his dreams did not arrive untampered.
Opening his eyes, the very same mercurial skies and three moons from before greeted his sight, causing Ben to jump up to review his surroundings and confirmed that he was, again, in Ersi's immaterial domain.
"What? Again? Seriously?" Ben complained, shooting up to his feet as he looked around for Ersi, hoping to wake up or something.
"Is your appreciation of the stars so ignorant?"
Glancing behind out of his prior experience, Ben saw Ersi stargazing again, still levitating above the ground in a lotus position like before.
Ben wondered if he considered walking beneath him, of which was a stray thought for another time.
"Dude, this has nothing to do with your 'stars.' Besides, why the heck did you bring me here?" Ben inquisitively probed.
Ersi had no business with Ben as far as he knew, absolutely no relationship whatsoever. If there was were words that could describe him, 'intrusive' could count as one of them.
"You speak as if I'm a bother."
"Well, I barely know you to be honest. And this is the second time you've dragged me here. So care to explain yourself this time?" Ben asked, wanting answers to Ersi's background and motives.
"The first time was curiosity. This time, a notice. I sense a member of your diverse family attempting to reach you from the infinite stars. The lengths this one traversed to even speak with you is, shall we say, admirable. But vain."
With a wave of his hand, Ersi conjured a steel-grey crystal ball the size of a bowling ball before Ben floating a few meters above ground, the opaque glass revealing Gwen in her secret lair left by Hex.
Like Ersi, she also sat down in a lotus position, except she laid in the center of a seven-pointed star, one of which resided in a magic circle, with each of the various candles placed on each of the seven angular points, burning polychromatic lights at the seven nodes around the caster. Not only that, Gwen's eyes were shut in her intense focus, while her body was in Anodite form, signifying the gravity of her efforts.
"Her attempts are futile, like crossing the oceans on foot."
Seeing Gwen, Ben grabbed the crystal ball and shouted.
"Gwen! Gwen! Can you hear me?!" He cried to reach his cousin across the stars.
However, his actions only earned a somewhat mocking scoff from Ersi, of which Ben responded with an irritated scowl.
"You're holding a looking glass, not a telephone. You cannot speak to someone behind the screen of conventional televisions, Ben," Ersi interjected.
Looking back at the red Celestialsapien, Ben aggressively questioned.
"What do you mean?! Can't you just zap her here or something?!"
"…" Ersi remained silent, staring at Ben with his white sun-like eye.
Ben gulped upon receiving his piercing cold gaze, forcing Ben to realize the extent of his rude outburst, and that Ersi was a Celestialsapien.
"I mean, can I please talk with her, oh great Celestialsapien Overlord, sir?" Ben politely asked with caution and respect this time, trying to appeal to Ersi's supposed ego.
Still, like a statue, Ersi locked Ben in his gaze with an eerie silence, unreadable, forebodingly mercurial.
"Do you know why she cannot contact you in this realm?"
"Uhh…" Ben slowly shook his head in confusion, unsure of the meaning behind his question. Or the point.
"Synastry. The laws of this universe are, hmmm, a rough equivalent to yours, but still disparate beyond your comprehension. Mana from your world, life energy, functions in a frequency unknown to its natives."
Ben had absolutely no idea what that word meant. He could barely even understand half of the Ersi's words.
"The 'mana' here is the same, tuning in a frequency alien compared to that of your realm's. The Message spell she is casting only works in the range of her universe, unable to interact with the life force attuned in a wavelength different from her own. Thus, she cannot contact you no matter how hard she tries, how many repeated attempts, unless she understood the frequency of this universe which is next to impossible. Also…"
Raising both hands, a magenta orb of pure mana emerged from one palm, while its jade green relative appeared in the other.
"Years are required even to realize that for any mortal or Anodite to contact this realm; she requires the other side to respond in turn, to reach out. But in the end, all is moot if either can't follow or attune to the other's frequency. Unless one of them can translate for her, which requires a level of skill far above her own."
With a snap of his finger, Gwen seemingly appeared in front of Ersi, confused and seemingly nauseated as she wobbled to her hands and knees with fatigue.
"A level of which I am far above. Cherish your time together. Remember, your timespan in this realm is not unlimited."
Gwen arrived in her Lucky Girl costume, blue all over in theme. A blue domino mask veiled her eyes, light blue gloves reaching up to her wrists, a blouse leaving her stomach and arms naked, and a skirt around her waist with a few Charms of Bezel hanging from her cloth.
"Gwen!"
Rushing over with joy, Ben immediately pulled her in with a bear hug, joyous in his reunion with his cousin.
"Huh? B-Ben?" Gwen blubbered, still recovering from her sudden transfer, surprised by the sudden bear hug.
"Ben!" Gwen hugged Ben back with a smile, overjoyed that she finally managed to contact Ben.
"Enjoy catching up."
Ersi said as he levitated away, leaving Ben alone next to the Mr. Soothie restaurant, returning his focus to the stars above.
Turning her head to Ersi, Gwen widened her eyes at the sight of a Red Celestialsapien before her, the confounding view inciting Gwen to break off her hug and widened her stance. Wary of the stranger, Gwen already primed her spells in each hand, pink lights shrouding her palms, ready to attack at any signs of hostility.
"Wait, Gwen! Don't attack! He's friendly-ish!" Quickly, interjected between Gwen's line of sight and Ersi, frantically waving his arms to deter Gwen from unjustified violence.
Seeing Ben desperately defending the Alien, Gwen eased her guard, dispersing the pink coronas around each her hands in ease.
"Ben? Who…"
"Long story, but he helped bring you here. Don't worry. He's cool."
"And my ears are in range," Ersi remarked as he snapped his finger.
The next second, a table for two appeared, with chili fries, smoothies, burgers, and chips, and two bottles of smoothies resting on the flat top, providing a veritable feast for the two cousins.
"Enjoy yourselves while you can."
Staring at the table of fast food, Gwen awkwardly scratched her hair, unable to process the level of hospitality Ersi provided on their reunion.
"...uh, thanks?"
'...thank you.'
As for Ben, he secretly thanked Ersi with the bottom of his heart, his eyes sparkling with wonder as his stomach roared for its fix. After a month of no Smoothies or Chili Fries, the withdrawals kicked in, leading to heightened stress and anxiety which also lead to slight sleep deprivation. Ben did try eating the fries and smoothies here, but, in the end, it was not the same. His tongue was already addicted to the taste of chili fries and smoothies, and there was no cure for such an addiction.
Thus, leading to Ben to see Ersi as the most decent Celestialsapien he ever saw, more so than Bellicus and Serena.
'Why can't they be more awesome like this guy?' Ben complained. If they were as sensible as him, he wouldn't be here, banished in a bizarre world. In fact, he wanted to complain to them once Starbeard uplifted his banishment.
"So, Gwen… care to catch up?" Ben asked, offering her a seat.
His offer sounding enticing, Gwen smiled and accepted his offer, sitting on one of the seats with Ben seating himself athwart her.
"Alright, where should we start?" Gwen asked, picking her cup of smoothie and slurped the juice by the straw.
Author here. Yeah, busy a little, and this might be short, but here it is. I'm still looking for an editor/co-writer. Also, check chapter one if you haven't. Changed a lot of problems there hahaha.