Variable (REWRITE) - {Fusion/SI/Multicross}

[Nyrmac]

Ugh, what time is it? I feel like crap. I moved my hands across the… sand? That's not right. I put my palms on the ground and lifted myself up. I got to my knees and began to open my eyes. I had to blink away the droopiness and waited about a minute for my neurons to get warmed up like a car on a cold morning. I turned my head and saw... water? The sand and water were definitely not correct. I should have been in bed with three of my many cats. One slept on my feet, the other beside my head, and the third in my lap. The sand was dry and grainy, while the air was salty.

Obviously, I wasn't in my bed or my house. I didn't even live near any kind of beach. I sniffed at the air and was met by a heavy, salty scent. I listened to the tides slowly and quietly moving along the shoreline before they retreated back to whence they came (That sounded pretentious as hell). Which meant that I was by an ocean. I searched over myself and breathed out when I saw that I wasn't shirtless. Nobody needed nor wanted to see a twenty-year-old, hairy, fat guy's gut.

I began to dust my arms off because of the annoying, grainy sand before my attention was suddenly brought to an oddly familiar watch. It was a bulky wristwatch about half the length of my forearm. There was a green button facing towards me. It had a black and gray color scheme with white pipes on the sides. At the center of the thing was a green and gray hourglass symbol. Overall, it looked virtually identical to the classic Omnitrix from Ben 10.

What the hell is going on? Where the hell am I? Why the hell am I on a beach? Why do I have a watch that looks like the Omnitrix? So many questions that needed answers, and I didn't have them.

I stared at the watch on my arm and thought long and hard about my situation. Was I kidnapped? If so, then why put me on a beach in the morning? It was morning, wasn't it? To confirm my assumption, I looked at the horizon and saw that it was indeed early. The sun had just risen, so I would assume it was around eight-thirty in the morning. Just... why? I need to know more. Maybe I'm just dreaming, and I'll wake up soon? I felt the morning cold on my skin and began to shiver slightly.

It would certainly explain this. There's just no way that I could be in a fictional world. That's just impossible... right? It's just not possible! I have to be dreaming!

"This… this isn't… this isn't possible! It's got to be all fake!" I yelled out to nobody in particular.

I snapped myself from my rationalizations and reached for my arm. I pinched my arm and winced at the pain. It felt real; I read somewhere that hitting someone dreaming wouldn't do anything. So maybe this is just a dream. Perhaps if I kept telling myself that, I'd believe it. To be honest, I don't.

If this is real, then... why? It's really the only thing that I can ask right now. Why am I here? Oh, wait! Maybe I can try to manipulate my dream if this is one. I began to think of something that I wanted to eat. A chicken biscuit and hash browns sounded good right now. After a few moments, nothing materialized. This... wasn't a dream.

This wasn't a dream.

THIS WASN'T A DREAM.

Holy crap. I... I can't... what is even... happening. I looked down at the black and white wristwatch. I stared at it for about five minutes. "You have something to do with this, no doubt," I said to no one.

I raised my arm to sternum level and reached for the green button on the side of the watch. I pressed my thumb down, and the watch's core popped up. The core was about an inch and a half long and had that unmistakable green circuitry pattern. I looked at the dial, reached for it, placed my slightly shaking fingers on it, and twisted it to the right by forty-five degrees. The hourglass symbol inverted into a diamond; a black silhouette with spiky hair/horns, large forearms, and a rugged, rocky shape appeared. I twisted again and again, looking through the silhouettes that appeared. Each one was familiar to me. The original ten were all here. And... I could turn into one of them. This was an actual dream I've had since I was two when Ben 10 first aired. But I never thought that I'd ever be able to do this.

I took a breath and raised my hand high into the air. "Here we go, it's hero time!" I slammed my hand down onto the watch core. I waited for a moment, and nothing happened.

What.

Annoyed and confused, I glared at the device and saw the hourglass turned green to blue. Recalibration mode. It was likely to give me a new playlist and a new model. What a kick in the nuts! It completely ruined the moment! ARGH!

I huffed angrily at the Clarketech watch. Another minute was spent trying to get it to work to no avail. I tried everything I could think of. I twisted the dial like a madman, but I only got beeps that sounded like the thing was powering down. I tried tapping the dial with my pointer finger, but I got a noise that sounded like it was actually out of power. There was an attempt to press the side button, but the core didn't pop up. Finally, I just started slapping down on it out of anger. Predictably, nothing happened.

I huffed out of frustration and looked for something to do while I waited. I peered out towards the city that I just noticed. I looked at what I could see and saw some pretty big skyscrapers in the distance. It wasn't far away, but I doubt I could walk there.

I took a quick glance down at the Omnitrix. Still blue, crap. I honestly don't remember how long it took for the watch to finish recalibrating itself in Alien Force. I… think it was like a few minutes.

"I swear…" I groaned out. "Why can't I just transform and get around easily? Stupid freaking watch." I whined.

Annoyed with my situation, I decided to walk over to the city. I didn't know what I was getting into here. It seemed pretty big, and I didn't even know what state I was in. Was I even in the USA anymore? The question was only going to be answered by exploring and discovering where on Earth I was. If I was even on Earth, that is. For all I know, I could be in RWBY or something.

With some hesitation, I put on my big man pants and entered the city via the boardwalk. Since it was so early in the morning, barely anyone was out. The barber shop had a few cars near it, but they might belong to workers. Then again, I liked going to the barber early so I didn't have to wait too long. Maybe there was someone there getting a haircut.

Anyways… I just kept walking before spotting what appeared to be a restaurant. Before I went in or got there, I ducked into an alley. I honestly didn't know why I was trying to be sneaky. No one would notice me, especially when people were likely just finishing their morning routine.

I checked my pockets for money, and I didn't have jack-diddily. I knew this already, so I shouldn't have been surprised. I took my hand from my pocket and brought it to my chin. The moment finger-met-chin, however, I noticed something. I felt no hair on my chin. There was no mass of unkempt, scraggly hairs. I swiftly felt my cheeks and felt no hair there, either. What the hell? Was I aged down?!

"Okay, this isn't funny!" My tone expressed annoyance and slight concern. I looked at my hands and saw that they looked smaller. I spent the next minute and a half checking to see if I was aged down. I couldn't really tell what my age was, unfortunately. Ugh, the unfortunate thing about being short and having a baby face. I sighed and tried to look on the bright side. At least I didn't have a crappy beard that made my face look like a mangy poodle's rear end. I chuckled at my little joke and puffed out a breath.

I glanced at the Omnitrix. The dial was still blue. Nuts. How long was this going to take?

"Okay, Camryn. Just stay calm. You can get through this." I tried to tell myself. I was taking this rather well when you consider the situation. Maybe it was because I had one of the most overpowered objects in fiction on my wrist… even though it was recalibrating for me. That sucked hard. But that doesn't really matter right now. I could only wait until I got to transform into one of ten different aliens. And that was only ten of more than one million. Yeah, the Omnitrix was freaking insane. Oh sure, there were even more versatile tools and weapons, like Power Rings from DC. But the device on my arm was technically more powerful due to having transformations that could rewrite the laws of reality with a mere thought.

I'm sure there are more powerful things than the Omnitrix, like the cosmic power siphon from Marvel. But the Clarketech watch was far more versatile. This thing has the potential to do incredible things that a mere human could only dream of.

And this powerful device fell into the hands of a ten-year-old named Ben Tennyson. The ten-year-old boy would go on to do amazing things with this device. His achievements include saving his home planet (and Universe) from space nazis to saving it from a giant planet-eating space tick. He even held the Universe in his hands at one point. Ben is the ultimate escapist character (In my opinion) and one of my favorite characters ever. This was the case despite his Flanderization and constant Aesop amnesia turning him into an idiot and borderline narcissist. Perhaps 'narcissist' was too strong. More like an egotistical jerk most of the time.

And now I find myself in his place. A device that practically defines versatility and power was on my wrist… and was still recalibrating! Why me, universe? Don't answer that.

CRASH

I was snapped from my thoughts as I heard the sound of glass shouting and masculine yelling. I quickly looked down at the Omnitrix again and groaned. Still recalibrating. I turned my head and peered out of the alley. What I saw was completely unexpected.

A woman was wearing what looked like tribal armor on the ground, groaning, bleeding, and appeared to be in pain. I mean, yeah, she did just get thrown out of a window, I think. That was a pretty good reason to be in pain. She was surrounded by glass shards, all of them of varying sizes. Her blood was pooling around her while glass shards dug into her skin. Ouch. I stepped out from my hiding place out of curiosity or plain stupidity. A young, blonde-haired girl with red eyes stepped out from the broken window, not caring about the shards.

She had a dark gray business suit on with a red tie. The suit looked quite good on her, and her breasts were big for her petite size. She walked towards the injured woman with a casualness that didn't belong to normal people. Specifically, people who were near broken windows that were broken by a woman's body. Her most notable features, besides the breasts, were her crimson eyes.

"Now honey, I'm going to have to ask you to leave now." She said sternly. Her voice was very mature and motherly. She didn't sound happy with this girl. I began to wonder how old she was.

The woman finally seemed to find her bearings and stood up. Her face was covered by her mask, but I could tell how her face twisted with anger. Her blood exploded from her wounds. The blood hardened into blades around her arm and more turned into shields(?). She rushed at her and prepared to gut her like a fish. I wanted to try to help the blonde, yet I couldn't. What the fresh hell was I going to do?

The suit wearer raised her hand, and the angry woman stopped suddenly. A gentle smile curled across her lips. "Now, now," She said sweetly. "Don't make me have to hurt you even more."

The attacking one tried to move forward but couldn't. She screamed with impotent rage and shouted threats. Her screaming was like nails on a chalkboard, annoying but not damaging. I really wanted to try to help, but it appeared that the apparently magical blonde had it covered.

The suit wearer then held up her hand before she snapped her fingers. For about five long seconds, nothing happened. And then the hemokinetic's disgusting weapons and shields dissolved or shattered into pieces. Her blood went everywhere, and her flailing and screaming became more lethargic. She was losing a ton of blood. She had to be. Did I mention that she was floating in the air as well? No? Well, she was and has been doing so since her attempted charge. How was she even awake?

"I-I'll fu-ucking kill y-you!" Her speech was beginning to slur as well.

"NO! You won't do that!" A new voice shouted. I looked over a very tall, muscular woman decked in tribal wear. Her clothing/armor was adorned with more spikes. They were also bigger, and her mask covered her face.

"Ma'am, can I ask you to please let my subordinate go?" She asked politely. Which was rather wise, being polite to the scary telekinetic.

"Now tell me why I need to do that? Your little friend threatened my children, and you broke into my restaurant. Give me a good reason why I shouldn't make her explode." She was rather upset, clearly. I couldn't blame her.

The taller woman sighed. "If you do that, then you'd have every cape in the city gunning for your head. I'm sure that you wouldn't want that."

The magic-user brought her hand up to her chin and stroked it. "Hmmm, that's a pretty good point, but I honestly don't care about these so-called "unwritten rules" and the idiotic "game" you capes play." Unwritten rules? Crap. I'm in Worm?!

"All they seem to be are some unofficial guidelines that the strong can selectively ignore whenever they become inconvenient. And that doesn't even get into my many personal issues with Parahumans." She put her hands on her hips and tittered.

"But I'm in a pretty good mood. I'll let you and your little friend here off with a warning. Never mess with me, my restaurant, or my children ever again. If you do, I'll have to make some examples out of you." She threatened casually.

The tall woman, who I assumed was the Butcher, sighed again and nodded. The bleeding woman was suddenly dropped on the ground, right onto the glass shards. Once again, ouch! The Butcher walked over, broken glass crunching underneath her boots, and picked her fallen comrade up. She carefully walked away. I think she was whispering something as she went by me. I couldn't hear what though.

"Excuse me. Young man, why are you out so early?" The woman asked me. I looked up at her slack-jawed and tried to speak. Emphasis on tried.

"Uh… eh…"

"Are you okay?" She asked me with worry written on her face. Other than feeling sleepy, I didn't know what happened within the next few minutes. The last thing I heard before I passed out was the woman calling for someone.

---

Hey guys! The first chapter of the rewrite is finally done! I wanted to ask y'all a question real quick. What aliens would you like to see for the starting ten? I've already got a list of aliens to go, but I'm willing to change things up. Do you want to see the original ten(If you want, I could substitute some aliens with others.), the Alien Force starting ten minus Alien X, or would you like to see my hand-picked selection?

 

[Nyrmac]

Hey y'all! I've come to make an announcement. SHADOW THE HED- No, I will open up a poll for three to five days over on Sufficient Velocity and Spacebattles to decide which alien will take the final chosen slot. I've got the playlist planned out except who will be the big brute alien. I, heh, actually used ChatGPT to help me decide. The reason why I'm using it now instead of Grammarly is because Grammarly is being stupid.

I actually gave it the option of choosing between two aliens and I told it to possibly provide me with an alternative. The alternative ended up being the one other alien that I was considering! Anyway, I will be doing this only on the two websites mentioned above. It starts… NOW!

 

[Nyrmac]

The humans of this Earth are drastically different from "real-life" humans. The first difference is the superpowers. It's actually impossible for someone not to be able to have superpowers, at least with EO humans. EO humans are capable of being more powerful than "real-life" humans. They should be even stronger than they are now, but something prevented them from being so. Anyone "powerless" can still develop powers, even if they have to train for it or someone has to help them unlock it.

The reason why all humans on Earth Omega can develop superpowers is because of the presence of dormant genes. To be specific, this is where things like the Metagene, X-gene, Quirk Factor, and Inhuman Gene come into effect. There are no Smart Atoms like in Invincible. Magic isn't just genetic per se; it's also in the soul. Same with Stands and Aura. Ki isn't something that you get at puberty; you have to learn it. (AN: No, not like that stupid "ten percent of your brain" crap. The people who believe that clearly only use ten percent of their brain.)

They could train intensely to gain low-level Brute and Mover rankings, though this isn't easy to do. (This is how I justify characters from MHA gaining small Brute and Mover rankings. Same with OPM humans like Saitama. Well, his rankings are not small in any capacity.)

As a result, they're drastically different genetically from Camryn. His existence shouldn't be possible by their standards. He can't have superpowers at all, at least genetically speaking. He can't even learn how to use magic. He has no soul, technically, making him more like a humanoid abomination. He'd freak out those who could sense it and intrigue others, likely unwanted parties. It also means no Aura, no Semblance, no Stand, nothing like that.

One of the only things he could learn is maybe Ki or something related to Pokémon. And even that's stretching things hard. He could possibly trigger and become a Parahuman, but the Omnitrix wouldn't like a brain parasite trying to attach itself to its host. The Omnitrix would sense the Shards and the Entities' presence and wouldn't be amused by what they were doing.

He's also far more squishy. Sometimes, EO humans can live through things that, by all means, should kill them, possibly resulting in superpowers or mutations. Camryn can't do so.

 

[Nyrmac]

Oy vey… What happened? I opened my eyes and rubbed them. I blinked away the drowsiness and stretched my entire body, causing me to let out an odd noise. "AAAIIIIEEEEEHHHH!" The noise was punctuated with another noise that sounded vaguely like radio static from a person's throat. I honestly don't know how I made that sound.

"Ooohh, where am I?" I looked around and took in the visuals of the warm room. Judging from the overall feel, it seemed to be an office. The walls had a few paintings, mainly of overviews of meadows. I looked towards the floor and saw a black carpet covering the whole thing. The walls were hibiscus red, and a window on the left. Numerous pink crystals decorated the top of the walls and window. They hung from little strings that were held up by gray nails.

I looked at the desk and inspected it. I also noticed that I didn't need glasses. What the hell? Oh right. I passed out, and I forgot that I was apparently in Worm now: a world notorious for being a hellhole with superpowered psychopaths in almost every corner. And a lot of "adults" tend to be useless at best or corrupt piss babies at worst. And to add to the horror, the best "superheroes" were also in the back pocket of a shadowy cabal called Cauldron. Well, no. Not all of them, but a good few of the higher ranking ones. That's only the bare basics of what makes it horrible…

(AN: I'm underlining the text below for how info-dumpish it is. Gloss over it if you want to! {6/16/2024})

The superpowers in this world weren't like the Quirks of My Hero Academia. They weren't like the Mutant and Mutate powers of Marvel. They weren't just incredible superpowers. They were handed out by space worm whale monsters. Worse, they were meant to be used for conflict as part of a giant experiment.

The Shards, which were the source of the powers and pieces of the mentioned monsters, nudged them subtly into making dumb decisions or self-defeating decisions for the sake of conflict. Most of the time, the conflict drive was subtle and not heavy-handed. This wouldn't be too bad if the Shards didn't choose to give people their powers at the worst moment of their lives. Specifically, when the flight or fight response is past its highest, something horrible happens to them, or when they're in a bad or inescapable situation. Adding some context for why the Shards did this, they're trying to collect data. They believe they gain more data through conflict, so they want to be used through these means.

What makes it even worse is that the demographic for Parahuman, the name for the superhumans of Worm, powers are skewed towards bad parts of the world and women. This means that the vast majority of Parahumans have been screwed by society in some way and want payback. I can understand this; I'd probably be the same way. Unfortunately, it also means that there are a lot of people who should have never been given so much power. There were a lot of monsters out there with superpowers.

I was interested in the desk (Yeah, I know. I'm autistic. I go from having an inner monologue about Worm, and then I focus on a freaking desk.). It was a very nice one. It was made out of dark wood and looked to be professionally created. Not a single splinter or stain ruined its appeal. It had a pristine, white mug with a red heart on it. There were words written in said heart that read "Number 1# Mom".

A closed Dell laptop rested in the center. Books and a tall stack of paper sat on the ends of the desk. A nice, comfy-looking leather chair stood behind everything, completing the set of comfort and business. "Wow, what a place. But why am I here?"

In an attempt to find out more, I listened carefully. I heard a commotion from one of the rooms, well… I assume there are more rooms. It sounded like… people eating and talking. I heard children running around and playing. People were outright yelling sometimes. I think I heard… Animal noises? Mostly, it was just talking, lips smacking, eating, and the occasional hearty laugh. A lot of background noise for me to "enjoy" while I wait.

Right. I was in a restaurant. I smelled the air and was met with many delicious scents. I could only pick out a few that were familiar. I could smell fried chicken, hamburgers, pasta, and maybe some pizza. "Man, now I'm hungry."

I didn't catch the name of the place. Then again, I was distracted by the curb stomp battle. No, it wasn't a battle. The word "battle" implied that Hemorrhagia, I think that was her name, stood a chance. She obviously didn't. Did that woman take me in? Why would she do that? This is Worm. Finding actually compassionate, kind people was like finding a needle in a haystack.

How long was I in here for? As a matter of fact, how long was I out for? There were a lot of questions that needed to be answered. I peered down to the level twenty alien technology on my wrist. The dial was green, finally. I was so tempted to just try and transform to escape, but this is a world where superpowers were commonplace. I'd be found out almost immediately, and there's no guarantee that the woman does/doesn't have a way of tracking me. Considering what she showcased outside, I wouldn't be surprised if she did. I knew one thing: I didn't want to upset her. Even if I was stronger than her, I'd only have ten minutes to fight her with the Omnitrix. I don't need to attract attention to myself either. That doesn't consider that whatever form I have for flight if I have one, was fast or capable of stealth.

I need to find out why I'm here. I shifted my position and stretched my legs. I stood up, feeling my joints pop. When I went to start walking, the doorknob twisted, and the door opened. My heart began to beat much faster. I froze in place and didn't know what to do.

The person stepped in, and HOLY CRAP, WHAT DID THEY FEED HER?! STEROIDS?! The first thing I saw was her face. Pale skin, blonde hair, and red eyes, just like the woman from outside. Her complexion was perfect, with no blemishes nor a single hair out of place. Her chest was massive, and she was nearly six feet tall! She was wearing a simple worker's outfit for a restaurant. There were stains from the various foods she prepared. She was built like a linebacker. I'd kill to have a body like that! She didn't have any jewelry on her, which was good. You shouldn't wear that stuff near food, lest it fall in it. People can be stupid. Oh yeah, she also smelled like food.

"Hi there! Glad to see you're awake!" She said with a smile. It appeared that she was kind. For now… I should keep my guard up. "Yeah… um, can I ask you where I am?" I tried to be polite.

"You're at Thunderstorm, little guy. It's a restaurant in Brockton Bay." Wait, Brockton Bay? Why are the Teeth here? I thought they were supposed to be in Boston or somewhere close. Maybe I was here before the Slaughterhouse Nine, who were an infamous band of roaming serial killers, came here for the first time.

"Wha-What year is it?" I asked her. I know it would be a weird question to ask, but in Worm, it was known that alternate Earths existed. It probably wouldn't be weird by their standards. At least, not too out there. Then again, the people of Earth Bet, the primary setting of Worm, laugh at those claiming they are magic when superpowers are commonplace. As well as things like the Endbringers killing people and causing colossal amounts of damage.

"Obviously, there's no such thing as magic. Aliens don't exist, and neither do cryptids. That's all fantasy! What? What do you mean they exist? That's impossible! You don't know what you're talking about!" It's like people don't want to acknowledge that humans may not be the best thing around or God's gift to existence. Idiots. Why are Worm humans such idiots? Superpowers were also considered imagination at one point, the same with parallel worlds. Why is it so difficult for them to accept magic and stuff?

"It's November 1, 2010. Why?" Oh no. That's not good. This isn't canon Worm. This is an alternate universe! My eyes widened, and I tilted my head down slightly before looking at the ground.

"Hey! You okay?" The tall girl asked me. Her voice carried worry with the question. "No. I'm not okay." I hesitantly answered.

She closed the door behind her. She looked at me with worry in her eyes. I looked back up and saw her approaching me. She stood before me and put her hand on my shoulder. She was icy cold to the touch. I shivered without being able to hide it. It's like she was dead.

"It's alright. My mom wanted us to take you here until we could find your parents." I flinched at that. You won't get far. I tried to maintain a neutral expression. Judging from the fact that she still had that worried look, I wasn't successful.

"Hey now," she said warmly, "it's okay. I'm sure we could find them. Unless there's something that you want to tell me…" She gave me an expectant look. She wasn't going to stop, was she? I sighed.

"It's pretty complicated. A-Are you sure you want to know?" I don't think that trusting people will work out in this world. This was Worm, for frick's sake! You can't trust anyone here!

"Yeah, I'd be happy to help you. This city is pretty fucking dangerous." She told me. I know that this city sucked donkey nuts. It's filled with scum like human trafficking wannabe yakuza, neo-nazis, drug dealers, a wannabe Bond villain, mercenaries, and a whole lot more crap. And now I can add the Teeth to the mix. Fan-fricking-tastic.

"Ugh, I guess," I gave in, "it goes like this. I was on the beach, and I just woke up there." I really hoped that she'd believe me. I continued.

"I made my way over here after having a minor freakout. That's when I saw the woman in the suit taking down that cape." Maybe I shouldn't have mentioned the term "cape". Unless she thinks I come from a world that commonly uses that term.

"Afterwards, I passed out. I'm assuming you brought me here." I waited for her answer to my story. Please believe it. Don't laugh in my face…

"Well, I should say that I'm not surprised." What? What did she mean by that? "You, heh, wouldn't be the first person we've met who ended up in your situation." Well, at least she isn't laughing in my face. I also made sure not to mention the Omnitrix. You never know what kind of power-hungry psycho could be lurking around…

She smiled at me. "We can definitely help you. Do you want us to help you?" She asked me.

I met her gaze, yet couldn't look her in the eyes. "Well, I don't really have anywhere else to go."

Her look softened before she started smiling brighter. Her expression radiated warmth and care. Was she a sister? Mother? "I think we could help you." Her smile turned warm.

"You're welcome here, no matter what or who brought you. If you need to, you can stay with us for as long as you need." She held out her hand. I didn't really have any other options. I shook it with hardly any hesitation.

If I want to stay with them, I should give them my name. That… does make sense, right? "Um, I guess I should give you my name. My name is Camryn." She raised her eyebrow at my name. (AN: I'm not giving my last name.)

"Okay, Camryn, my name is Riley. Riley Grace Davis." Hmm, that name sounds familiar… I can't put my finger on it. I'm sure I'll remember at some point.

She looked at me. Her eyes wandered up and down for a few seconds before she spoke again. "You know… you look a lot like my brother. And you sound like him too… and you have his fucking name…" What? Seriously?

"You're not joking, are you? Because if that isn't the case, that's a pretty hefty coincidence." I remarked dryly.

She stared at me. "There are no coincidences. I've learned that shit the hard way…" She said ominously.

"Okaaay," I said awkwardly, trying to change the subject, "can you tell me a little about Brockton Bay?" I questioned. I have to do significant research since this is an alternate universe. Who knows what could have changed. For all I know, Cauldron may not even exist, and I might be in an even worse version of Earth Bet. According to Wildbow (AKA word of troll), Cauldron is why there weren't S-Class threats in every other city. They are far more competent than the Worm fandom gives them credit for, even though their big plan is crappy. TL;DR, it ultimately boils down to "hit the childlike, eldritch, space god really hard with superpowers that he gave out."

Riley's face softened. "Okay. I can do that shit easily." Confidence was rolling with every word. She asked me to take a seat. I fought the urge to actually take a seat with me and run out. It wouldn't make for a fine first impression.

She went over to and around the pretty desk. The chair was moved out before she sat in it. I peered around to look and see if there was a chair I could sit in. After a few seconds, Riley told me to look down, and I saw a small stool. It was not made out of the same wood as the desk. Instead, it was made of birch wood, giving it a light color. Its cushions were brown and seemed to have some strings loose. The small thing didn't seem new, unlike the work surface. I planted myself on it, and Riley wasted no time getting to business.

Her words came out quickly. "Alright, so what do you want to know? Are you interested in history, interesting facts, or general life?" I took the time to consider my options. I did want to know about Cape life here. Once again, an alternate universe means things could change heavily.

My mouth opened to start asking questions, but I was interrupted by the door opening behind me. They really needed to oil the hinges on that thing. It was squeaking like crazy.

I turned my head over to see who it was. Standing in the doorway was that telekinetic from before. She hasn't changed her clothes. Wouldn't someone who worked in a restaurant change? Then again, I don't know anything about working in a restaurant, so maybe I'm just talking nonsense…

"Glad to see you're awake." She said calmly. There was something about her… I just couldn't put my finger on it. She… kind of looked like Helena from the '90s Hellsing anime. She looked older, obviously, like a young adult rather than a young child.

"Thanks," I kind of mumbled. "What's your name, ma'am?"

A polite smile graced the suit wearer's face. "Camryn, welcome to Thunderstorm. My name is Maria. I'm the manager here." So that was her name. Noted.
Stepping towards me, Maria extended a hand for me to shake. I took it and felt her grip. It was firm, like seriously, holy crap.

"It's quite the pleasure to meet you, ma'am," I replied politely, attempting to match her professionalism.

"You too, Camryn." She let out a sigh and straightened up. "It seems like you've had quite the morning."

I nodded quickly. "Understatement of the fricking century. First, I wake up on the beach on a cold November morning. Secondly, I wander into a city and witness a cape fight out of nowhere. Thirdly, I passed the hell out, and now I find myself in a restaurant. You could say that I've had a morning and a half." I said with a totally professional and not-at-all dry tone.

Her eyes glinted with amusement. "Mhm, definitely not a normal day for you, I assume?"

Once again, I nodded. "So, Thunderstorm. What kind of establishment is this place? Aside from it being a restaurant, obviously." I queried.

She gestured towards the door, pointing out the bustling activity in the other room. "Thunderstorm is more than a mere restaurant. Here, this is a neutral zone for everyone. We aim to create somewhere where people can escape the chaos and come together peacefully. Capes, creatures, and normals alike are welcome here."

I took about thirty seconds to take in the ambiance again. The animal noises(?) were a little louder, the chattering of families and friends continued with the same intensity, and the wonderful aroma of delicious meals wafted through the air. Ultimately, it seemed like a fine diner where everyone was just happy.

"That's very nice," I commented genuinely.

"We believe in fostering connections. As a plus, the food is great, too."

I couldn't really argue against it. The scent wafting from the kitchen was phenomenal. It served to deepen the hunger that built up in my stomach. Then again, I was always hungry…

I looked over to see Riley, but she had already left.

"If you're hungry," she said to get my attention, " don't be afraid to ask. You just got here, after all."

"That sounds great, but I've got so many questions right now," I said with my mind racing with thoughts.

Her smile grew a little. "Ask away. Be mindful that there are some questions that I can't answer, but I'll try my best to answer."

I took in some air before breathing out. I tried to collect my thoughts. "Okay, so what is the deal with this city," Pretty sure I know the answer to that question. "And what's with all the superpowers and stuff like that?"

Her hands went on her hips. "You're in Brockton Bay, a city like many others. Superpowers are simply a fact of life. They have been for more than a hundred years." What? Okay, Parahumans have been around for much longer here, or there are more than just Paras here.

"What about that woman from outside? Who was she?"

"That was my daughter, Riley. A sweet girl with a very complicated past." I noticed a hint of somberness in her voice.

I made a frown. "Complicated how?"

Maria hesitated before elaborating. "For now, I'll just say that… she's had it rough sometimes. No thanks to my own mistakes when raising her." Oh…

She continued. "But, thank God, we've managed to get this far; my son was the same way." She looked to the side very briefly. There was something that she wasn't telling me, but I assumed that it was none of my business.

"This place is practically a sanctuary for us." The pieces were beginning to fall into place for me. Unfortunately, the puzzle remained unsolved due to the lack of information.

As if she read my thoughts, the blonde leaned in. "Camryn, you've landed in a dangerous city. This place is huge. Life here can be tough, but we can be here for you. It might be best for you to find somewhere, fast."

I mulled over her words. It was now the gravity of my situation had finally set in. Capes, Brockton Bay, the Omnitrix, and a world teeming with superpowers - looks like my life has gotten a lot weirder and much more interesting.

---

Hey, you guys! Wanted to say a few things. First off, Merry Christmas! Or happy holidays! Secondly, this chapter was supposed to include Riley explaining the gangs to Camryn, but I decided to nix that. The reason is simple: it didn't fit well with how I wrote it. It was too info-dumpy. I removed it since it would have been after they sat at the desk. Too much at once, and I didn't write it in smoothly at all.

The third thing is the recommendation!

I recommend Compulsion! Holy crap, I love this fic! I've never touched Prototype before, but reading this fic makes me want to try it out! Of course, it's a great read too!

Also, I'm highly tempted to delete the original version of this fic and wipe it from the internet. I reread one of the chapters and put it into Grammarly… so many errors. I honestly regret writing it like that. I'm sure some may like it for one reason or another, but I just cringe at it now for all of the errors and how I wrote it. I had some decent ideas, but some of them either didn't work well or would have been missed opportunities in hindsight. Like me choosing not to merge SHIELD and the PRT in some way. So dumb… And not to mention how terrible the beginning chapters were.

 

[Nyrmac]

Slade x Terra - NOPE! EW EW EW EW!

Doctor Bright from SCP Foundation - Uh, ha, NO! You're going to have to look it up about this one.

Fucking up Spiderman's life - Why do Marvel writers want to make him miserable?

BatGod Batman - Don't get me wrong, I love Batman! But I hate how ridiculous the BatGod stuff gets. I could understand him being (one of) the most competent member(s) of a team (Possibly). But not him being the best thing to grace the DC multiverse.

Stupid, paper-thin excuses to justify the status quo staying the same - This one is self-explanatory. It's one thing to have a logical reason to keep the status quo the same, but not dumbass reasons like the fans being whiny brats or because the 'world is too savage for the cure to cancer.' And I fell victim to this with my first attempt at this fic. Is that me living in a glass house? What I mean by a logical reason is there is an Avengers and Night at the Museum crossover where that golden tablet thing stays where it is despite SHIELD policy requiring it to relocate. It's not moved because the tablet could've interacted with artifacts that SHIELD had and could have ended very poorly. That's the sort of reason I could understand.

Ben's Flanderization and Aesop Amnesia - I've explained that I hate this shit. Nobody liked this at all. I don't care if people find his AF season one and two personality boring. What? Do you want him to be a ten-year-old for the rest of his life? No character development? Just stripping it away to recycle the same damn character arc repeatedly? I don't have to bow to such dumb limitations like network demands and unpleasable fan bitching, so fuck that.

Ben x Kai or Ben x Gwen - Again, I hate this. A lot of people hate it, too. Ben doesn't need a jerk of a girlfriend who doesn't respect him just because of the stupid network's demands or the writer's piss-poor attempts at forcing their relationship. If he'll be shipped, it won't be with Gwen, that's for sure. I'm not into incest.

Charizard having Wolverine Publicity - Charizard is my favorite Pokémon, to be honest. But I hate this so much. We don't need Charizard in every fucking game, Nintendo! Charizard will not have as many roles unless it is like Detective Pikachu or Ash's Charizard. Leon's signature Mon won't be Charizard; it'll probably be something like Dragapult, which is what it should've been.

Kanto pandering - Most of the Pokémon fandom is sick of it, and so am I.

Leon's Character Shilling - No. It wasn't funny. I don't care if he's the champion. It was annoying how his "BEING THE UNBEATABLE CHAMPION AND HE HAS AN AWESOME CHARIZARD" was brought up every five fucking seconds. Yes, it did phase out at certain parts, but my point still stands.

JLA: Act of God - Fuck this comic. I haven't read it, but from what I've seen online and in reviews, it seems to suck (Maybe I'm being unfair to it.) And the writer seemingly didn't know shit about DC characters when he wrote it. Of course, it glorified Batman as usual for DC.

Teen Titans Go! - Nothing needs to be said. The ONLY thing I'd EVER be willing to add in would be Cyborg not angsting about being a cyborg.

Certain Memes - I don't want to be too bitchy, but there are certain ones that I won't ever have in my fic.

Kill La Kill nudity stuff - I'm uncomfortable doing this. I don't think showing a ton of skin is all that attractive anyway (Weird, isn't it?) I'll have to change certain aspects of Kill La Kill if I want to add it. I don't want to get in trouble, so that's another reason.

Incestuous Shipping - As an American, no.

Shipping the MC with real-life people like celebrities - This would be creepy and wrong. The only time he'll get a relationship if I even bother with that shit, will be with fictional characters.

Lucoa and Shouta's dynamic - I used to find it funny, but as I've gotten older, I've found it very uncomfortable. Oh yeah, and it might get me banned too. So I'll make them more like a big sister/little brother duo.

Kanna's more "questionable" behavior - Once again, it might get me banned, and it's uncomfortable. Putting that stuff in the bin!

Superhero Wars - Why does this exist? They don't need to fight each other; they need to fight their actual enemies! You know, like supervillains, terrorists, and evil in general?

Character Bashing - I'm going to try to be fair here. I'll try not to bash characters, at least too hard. At least the ones that I dislike.

X kills the Marvel Universe - No.

Power Creep, Power Seep, Strong as they need to be, and Popularity Power - No. I don't care if I or you guys like the character or not. There will be no power-ups or downs for popular characters unless they earn them or I add them for the sake of story reasons. Like for the sake of fusing them into the setting. That means the Punisher is staying a street level hero. Batman isn't going to be fist-fighting Gods without armor; he'd die otherwise. Spider-Man isn't going to be punching out cosmic level opponents easily. No nerfing or weakening characters for the sake of having difficult or easy fights, etcetera.

 

[Nyrmac]

This Omnitrix is not the Canonical one. Instead, it comes from a long-dead universe that lay dormant and unused for several thousand years. Everything in the universe was dead. The device merely floated in nothingness and has never been touched by another user for a long time until now.

It has the same functions as the Canon Omnitrix but was designed to be easier to use. It adapts to the user and selects what's available when they transform into every alien in their beginning playlist. Of course, this one has a few more functions due to differing circumstances.

This device has six purposes rather than three. It was meant to be the bridge between different species. The intent was to allow one member to understand an entirely different species by letting them walk a mile in another's shoes.

The second was to revive any species in its nigh-omniscient database if they were to go extinct.

The third was to fight and defeat rogue cosmic beings. Beings like the Chaos Gods, Eldritch Abominations, the Celestials, the Celestialsapiens, etc.

The fourth purpose was to serve as a prison for beings too dangerous to be free. This Omnitrix was designed with an unremovable failsafe that prevented DNA samples and prisoners that were still conscious, like an Ectonurite, from being removed. After many models, updates, and modifications, the creator of the device, Azmuth, wizened up to the escape attempts over several millennia of development for the Omnitrix.

The fifth purpose was to help the Celestials perform their experiments and collect sapient species.

Its sixth, secret, and final purpose was to show Azmuth's former lover Zennith; who left him when he created the sword Ascalon- that he had changed from his old ways and would return to him.

The way the user's own transformations are created is somewhat simple. The Omnitrix uses tiny strands of the user's DNA when making the transformations for the first time. The transformations are what the user would look like if they were born as said species.

The Omnitrix's transformations are all modified in some way. For example, transformations like a Vulpimancer or Flora Colossus cannot articulate the usual way or in a limited manner. The Omnitrix "fixes" this "issue" by modifying them. They'd still have some form of speech quirk.


The Omnitrix has many different functions and features. To name a few:

• Each species representative is the strongest, healthiest, and most versatile. Though health defects and disease can affect the transformations.
• The age of the forms is relative to the user's age. They are not the exact same age. It would be very awkward if the user had a 100+-year-old lifespan and turned into a species with a 20-year-old lifespan and was much older than 20.

• The Omnitrix has a body cam that can record fights, crime scenes, daily activities, and much more. It can also create a perfect 3D reconstruction of the surrounding area. Of course, these can be projected holographically.
• The body cam has a phenomenal frame rate, good enough to the point where it can capture flashes of light that would be invisible to the naked eye.

• The Omnitrix has voice commands.

• The Omnitrix can create a new species.

• The Omnitrix can create fusions of its forms. These fusions can affect how much power is used while the user transforms. The user can do this through experience, skill, and modifying the device's settings.

• Unlike the canonical Omnitrix, this particular one doesn't necessarily need DNA for a sample. As long as the creature being scanned is sapient and sentient, merely having a soul would suffice. This means that Camryn can become an Anodite if he wants to.

• The Omnitrix has a settings menu that can allow the user to change the look of the Omnitrix, their clothing, the color of the watch, the form they take if they were knocked out, etc.

• The Omnitrix can upload memories and basic instincts of a given form to the user's mind. This is incredibly useful and valuable if the user transforms into a new form in the middle of a dangerous situation.

• Users can create new functions when they access the settings menu or voice command.

• User can create playlists for different forms if their alien list gets too cluttered.

• The Omnitrix can store clothing and tools for the user by breaking said clothing down by using powerful nanotechnology.

• The Omnitrix can also enhance its forms but can't do so when it has chosen a wearer. The wearer has to wait for several weeks before they can do this.

• The Omnitrix can lock the user into a form with a life-form lock; this is dangerous to use often.

• The Omnitrix has a universal translator. The user can use it the old-fashioned way or with All Speak.

• The Omnitrix has a setting called Master Control. This is essentially removing the training wheels of the Omnitrix. The user will not gain access to the entire library of transformations. They might gain an expansion to their current playlist, but this isn't likely. However, once activated and as long as the user doesn't choose to remove the Omnitrix permanently, Master Control can NEVER be removed, destroyed, or locked. (AN: The reason why I made it like this is because I am FUCKING SICK AND TIRED OF AN OMNITRIX USER LOSING THE MASTER CONTROL SOMEHOW. It's ridiculous! It doesn't matter if it's the show or a fanfic. It's annoying and utterly stupid. I don't care if it's too OP; don't have it if that's your worry.)

• The Omnitrix has a randomizer. Unlike canon, it chooses a set of transformations, of course in sets of ten, and randomly swaps between them.
• The user can turn off the randomizer by simply talking to the Omnitrix.

• This particular Omnitrix has an AI. The AI is fully sentient and sapient. Due to the Omnitrix's dead universe, the AI has complete and total control over the device. The AI is amoral, snarky, and cares only for its safety and its user's safety and desires.

• The Omnitrix has a DNA scanner and a Soul scanner.
• This Omnitrix can scan mutants.

• The Omnitrix has an imprisoning function.

• The Omnitrix has fail-safes and safeguards against magic, hacking, forced removal, tampering, etc. In general, the fail-safes and safeguards are impossible to get around unless you know the device.

• It's infused with hyper-advanced technology from the Celestials.

 

[Nyrmac]

It was a lot to take in. The fact that I was in an alternate version of Worm was unimaginable. The fact that I had the Omnitrix was even more absurd. And then… well, everything from the boss woman, I assume that she is the boss, stomping Hemorrhagia to me being in Thunderstorm. If anyone had ever told me anything like this would have happened to me, I would have laughed in their face for a good minute.

It's just... surreal. The fact that I'm here and I'm not dreaming is... I-I don't have any words to really explain it. 'Surreal' or similar words are not enough. The Teeth just returned to Brockton Bay sometime after Leviathan hit. That gang of barbarians came back much earlier, or they were never driven out. I can't tell right now. I have a lot of work to do here, don't I? Great.

I peeked up at the suit wearer. The woman was examining me expectantly. I didn't talk to people well. I've never been one to initiate conversations since I stink at it.

"Um, can I have a few moments alone? So I can think for a minute or two?" I politely requested.

Her expression turned from grim and grave to understanding and warm. She nodded, turned around, and walked to the door before opening it. I felt a cool breeze as she closed the door behind her.

Once again, I was alone. I looked over at the laptop. No, that's a stupid idea. I don't know the password, and I'm no cracker. I also don't think it's wise to go on someone's laptop without permission. Why would I even think to do that?

Wait. I just remembered what was on my wrist. I lifted my wrist up and glanced down at the DNA-manipulating gadget. It wasn't recalibrating anymore. Good.

I took my finger and pushed down the activation button. The core popped up, and the hourglass symbol gave that faint emerald glow. I lifted my slightly quivering hand and moved the ring to the left. The process was slow, so I didn't screw anything up.

The hourglass inverted into a diamond shape, and the first silhouette appeared. It was the same as the first time I attempted to transform. However, it was a foolish move to transform into that one now. That choice would lead to destruction and collateral damage. Maria and Riley seemed so kind; I didn't want to wreck this place and make enemies out of them. How dumb would that be?

I twisted the ring again to the left. It clicked when I rotated it thirty degrees; the silhouette changed. This time, it was different from before. I really did get a new playlist.

The second silhouette was... who was this one? The body shape was vaguely familiar, but the head was slightly different. The arms and legs were too bulky.

I shook my head and stopped trying to skim through the playlist. I sighed before glancing up at the ceiling.

I need to make a decision. I don't have anywhere to go. I'm assuming that I probably don't even exist here. Even if I did, I couldn't just make myself suddenly materialize. People would notice that. You can't just easily cover that up.

I sighed again and looked forward. Hmmm. Would it be too much to ask if I can get a place to stay? I don't necessarily need to stay here; where would I go?

I began to think of places to go in the city. Not going to the Undersiders and Coil. I'm not interested in the pedophile snake or sucking up to his not-so-merry band of pests. No matter how sympathetic the Undersiders are, they're still criminals who probably have a list of crimes under their belt. I'm not following the common trope where somebody (OC or SI) sucks up to the Undersiders for some reason instead of going for something else.

I don't care how useful they could be in the future. I'm not going on a team with so much baggage. Tattletale, a parahuman with super intuition, would be up my ass about the Omnitrix. That is... if the thing doesn't give her an aneurysm. And she's also an annoying little bi-

Oh God... the amount of Parahumans that are going to be up my ass... I grumbled at the thought. This city had a lot of them. As soon as the Shards get a hint of an outside context problem or a rich source of new information to their cycle, they'll slowly begin to nudge their hosts in trying to fight me. I don't think the "heroes" would be exempt from that.

I need a team or at least a home. I don't think that Maria would be interested in cape stuff. I mean, that's what she said to the Butcher before. Taylor shouldn't have triggered at this point; that marks her out.

I might have to kick this alone in the meantime. I could pick up Chariot, but he's months or a year away. Circus? No. They're a villain and probably don't care about being a hero. Über and L33t is a negative. I'm not interested in guys who beat up hookers for fun. (AN: I'm perfectly aware that L33t's name is canonically spelled 'Leet,' but this is how I'm spelling it here.)

Wait. Would any of that even exist here? It's an alternate world; things could be peaceful, not slowly crumbling down. But that would make my life easier, so I'll assume that things are similar or worse.

I broke myself from my introspections. I... I might have to ask if they have anywhere for me to stay temporarily. Ugh. I don't want to be a freeloader. Do I really have another choice? Not really. I can't go to live with Taylor and Danny. They probably can't afford another mouth to feed. I'd be able to stop Taylor from triggering, but that takes away a powerful ally and an extraordinarily potent power. Ugh, but do I really want to let something so traumatizing happen to her? Does she even exist?

I flung my hands in the air again and let out an irritated groan. I don't have many good options here. My fists clenched, and I was beginning to get mad. Mad at my situation. Why me?

I... I'll... I'll see if I can try to dwell here. If I can't, then I could stay at a homeless shelter. If anyone gets wind of the Omnitrix, the PRT, standing for the Parahuman Response Team, will inevitably track me. At that point, I could say hello to enslavement to PR and goodbye to common sense.

No, I'm not joining the Wards. Not in this century or the next. If I was a Tinker only, then I might consider it. However, I'm not just a Tinker. I was practically a whole team, hopefully. The Omnitrix usually arranges its playlists in sets of ten for simplicity. These sets are generally balanced; one has flight as their biggest draw, and another could toss buildings and stomach grenades as if they were at a buffet, or one could be used underwater and in the water generally, etc.

However, I'm aware of what happened with Ben's starting ten. He didn't have many specialists or counters beyond 'this form is very strong,' 'this form is smart,' 'this one is fast,' etc. I could either have the same issue or not. It all depended on chance. I cycled through my playlist and... I was rather shocked.

It was far more... balanced than I anticipated. I recognized every single shape aside from the second one. This was good. No, it was great. I had a whole team of ten on my wrist. Certain ones could wreck most Parahumans by themselves. That's not acknowledging that several are a one-person army on their own.

I could easily take control of this city. All I needed to do was remove the gangs. But if I do that, the idiots would get all whiny because I took away their easy access to good PR. They claim they want to help humanity; they only care about themselves and their image. If you make them look bad, then they go after you. Yes, they'll target you instead of concentrating on the villains. Except you're a villain to them because you dared interrupt their "game." Fricking... worthless, idiotic man-children!

Then again... not all of them are like that. A lot of them seem to be okay people trying to do good.

Despite my thoughts, I sneered at the idea of the problem on Earth Bet being called a "game." Only a child would believe that. Or a delusional sociopath. The fact that anybody could believe such a ridiculous notion was baffling. Do they rationalize it away as "nobody gets hurt" or "It's fine, as long as everyone plays by the rules?" My face contorted in irritation, and my fists clenched once again.

I breathed in. I breathed out. I despised selfish people. Absolutely loathed them. I will never try to understand how they can put themselves above everything and every one as if the world revolves around them.

I could only think about how my presence in the Cape community could affect things. The shards are guaranteed to nudge their hosts to fight me. I wonder if this world is like the traditional Worm fic, where people are dumb, and the escalation drive is real. Or it could be like canon Worm, which isn't any better.

I can't just try to ignore things. Acceleration demonstrated what happens if the Powers That Be are aware of you and you attempt to stay out of things. It'll be nonstop manipulation from every side. Same with A Survivor is Born. I'd never get any peace!

I suppose that settles it. I'm going to be a... Cape. Lord have mercy, do I hate the term "cape." It implies that all Superhumans are supposed to dawn a costume and break their backs fighting crime. I don't believe that for a second. That's just gaslighting the naive and taking advantage of them. There's a literal police/military force for that.

I need to use a better term. How about... Super. It would undoubtedly aggravate the bigots out there. That's a plus to me. I giggled to myself.

Am I only doing this to stick it to Cauldron and the PRT? Mainly yes. No doubt about it. Screw them. They're the primary reason why this world is so messed up.

I looked at the door. It was time. I took in a deep breath in an attempt to harden myself for what lay beyond that door. I don't know what was beyond that door, but I was prepared... Even though it was probably just the dining room.

I trotted over to the door, gripped the handle, and gave it a twist. The door creaked open, and I stepped out into the unknown. I found myself, get this, in the dining room. As soon as I strolled out, my nose instantly picked up the strengthened scents.

It was dim; the only lights were small lamps on the walls in the booths or candles on the tables. I looked around. People of varying sizes, ages, and ethnicities populated here. What really caught my attention, however, were the sources of the animal noises.

My eyes widened, and my eyebrows practically ripped from the strain. The noises weren't coming from animals. They were coming from Pokemon. Holy crap. Real life, flesh, and blood... Pokemon. As in the real creatures.

A pair of Patrat and Purrloin chased each other in one corner. A Pidove sat in a little booth alongside two Vullaby, three Rufflets, an Emolga, and its (the Pidove's) evolved form, Unfeazent. Specifically a female one since it lacked the pink things on its face.

They weren't the only ones here, of course. A woman had a Granbull on her left. She seemed to be sharing some of her food with her. A tall, black cop had, you guessed it, an Arcanine dozing beside his chair. The three elemental monkeys, Pansage, Pansear, and Panpour, were each on the shoulders of younger children. Obviously, they weren't all on the same child's shoulder. I mean, how much do they weigh, like twenty-plus pounds? How are those kids even holding them up?

"Hey! Kid!" A voice hollered out. I looked around for the source. It was that girl again, Riley. I... think she was calling me over to her. I braced myself and went over to her. I weaved around running kids, playful Mons, and waltzing servers. (AN: I tried to use the word 'waiter'; apparently, that's "potentially sensitive," according to Grammarly.)

"Hey, Riley," I spoke casually. She grinned as I approached her. "Hey there! Glad you made it out of there in one piece!"

"Uh-huh, it was... something," I replied with a hint of uncertainty. I rubbed the back of my head as I did so.

The tall girl grinned and chuckled. "You can tell me about it. Mom can be pretty intense at times, but she means well."

I nodded; my own small chuckle escaped me. "Seems to be... a very passionate woman."

She laughed, a light, melodic sound that seemed to ease some tension. "It's alright. You get used to it eventually. I mean, hey, at least she didn't scare your little ass off!"

I smiled, feeling more at ease. "Nope, not scared off yet. I may not be a drama fan, but I like good food."

We settled into our conversation; the restaurant's ambiance washed over me. It was a vibrant cacophony of laughter, chatter, and an occasional Pokemon cry. Overall, it's a charming and comfortable place. I could easily see this place being popular.

The muscular lass nodded, and her smile widened. "Damn smart choice, and the food here is top-notch."

I glanced around and took in the bustling activity of the restaurant. "So... what's good here? Got any recommendations?"

She leaned back in her seat and tapped her chin. "If you like spicy food, you might enjoy the Inferno Burger-Steak Curry. If not, then you'll burn your asshole. If that doesn't tickle your fancy, you might want to try the double cheeseburger or the chicken alfredo."

Man, that sounds good! Wait. "Inferno... Burger-Steak... Curry?"

She smiled again. "Yeah, it's pretty popular in the UK. Mainly in Britain, though."

Honestly, I liked her. As we conversed, I couldn't help but feel a sense of camaraderie with Riley. How we met was weird, but there was a sense of openness and warmth to her. It was a definitely welcome change from the chaos and uncertainty from earlier.

I found myself nodding along with Riley's suggestions, feeling my stomach growl in agreement. "Sounds delicious. I'll give the Inferno Burger-Steak Curry a taste, even if it means endangering my taste buds."

Riley giggled, her eyes sparkling with amusement. "Gutsy choice. Just make sure you have a glass of milk handy."

"Got it," I replied with a grin, feeling a surge of anticipation for the meal ahead.

As we continued chitchatting, the aroma of sizzling food filled the air, heightening my anticipation. Suddenly, a commotion at a nearby table caught my attention. A group of kids gathered around, their faces lit up with excitement as they watched a Magneton perform tricks in mid-air.

Waves of yellow energy(?) came off its magnets, lifting up undersized metal orbs.

One of the kids yelled, "Whoa, that's awesome! How does it do that?"

The Magneton hovered briefly, almost as if responding to the question, before gracefully spinning the orbs around, creating a mesmerizing display. Riley nudged me, pointing to the scene with a grin. "Looks like you're getting a taste of the Pokemon entertainment. The good shit. They love showing off here."

I watched, captivated, as the Magneton continued its performance, eliciting cheers and applause from the kids. The atmosphere in the restaurant was infectious, filled with a mix of joy and wonder. It made me forget, at least momentarily, the strange circumstances that brought me here.

After the Magneton's impressive performance, the youths dispersed, still buzzing. I turned back to Riley, still smiling. "This place is great. Pokemon performing tricks, a lively atmosphere... it's like a whole new world. I didn't have any of this where I'm from."

She chuckled, "Well, in a way, it is. You're on Earth Omega now, and things here are different. We've got Pokemon living among us; they're part of our daily lives. It's pretty cool, isn't it?"

"Yeah, definitely," I replied, feeling a sense of amazement at the uniqueness of this world. "I guess I have a lot to learn about Earth Omega."

Riley grinned, "Don't worry, you'll get the hang of it. And hey, if you need any support or have questions, feel free to ask. We're like a big family here."

I appreciated her offer and nodded appreciatively. "Thanks, Riley. I'll keep that in mind. Now, let's see how this Inferno Burger-Steak Curry holds up."

As we continued our conversation, our orders arrived. My God, the scent was delectable, and the food looked fantastic. The vibrant colors and sizzling sounds made my mouth water. I eagerly took a bite, savoring the blend of spices and the kick of heat from the curry.

"Good choice, huh?" Riley asked with a knowing smile as she enjoyed her own meal.

I nodded, my mouth still full. "Definitely. This is great. Thanks for the recommendation."

We continued to enjoy our meals, exchanging stories and laughter. The restaurant buzzed with life, creating a comforting and welcoming environment. I looked around, observing the diverse clientele and the Pokemon partners by their sides; I couldn't help but feel a sense of belonging in this unique corner of Earth Omega.

Little did I know that my journey wasn't even beginning, and countless adventures and discoveries awaited me.

******

"Ugh, oh God! My mouth is on fire!" I groaned out. I had just finished chugging a glass of milk. It barely helped.

Riley chuckled. "I told you so." She said smugly.

Despite my mouth screaming for the sweet embrace of death, I couldn't help but shovel more steak into my mouth. The flavors danced on my tongue in a tantalizing tango of zest and sweetness. As I savored each bite, the discussion flowed effortlessly between us. It was punctuated by laughter and shared anecdotes. The ambiance of the restaurant was like a blanket. It enveloped us in its embrace, amplifying the sense of harmony and joy in the air.

I looked across the room, marveling at the eclectic mix of diners. Each of them was deep into their conversations and culinary delights. There were seasoned veterans, families of at least four, veteran trainers, and their trusted partners; the entire place felt like a close-knit community.

I got lost in the moment. This wasn't just a meal. It was a symbol of my new life on this alternate Earth. I heavily doubted that I'd see my old Earth again anytime soon. Or ever again. It was... rather bleak. My family, cats, dog, my games...

However, I didn't let my worries or sadness overwhelm me. I just kept feasting, just slightly slower.

The tantalizing aroma of spices and the mouthwatering flavors continued to weave their magic. It gave me a welcome distraction from the thoughts of my old life. Each bite seemed to carry a hint of comfort, a reminder that, even in this unfamiliar world, there were moments of joy and warmth to be found.

Right now, though? I reached over to chug more milk to put out the blaze in my mouth.

******

I leaned back in my seat and shut my eyes. I took in a pleased breath. The food was fantastic. Things were peaceful. Life was good. A lot of the restaurant's clientele had finished their meals. A lot of them had left; others came in to replace them.

After a few minutes, I had to go hug the porcelain god. I glanced over to Riley. She had just finished her chicken alfredo and was chugging a Diet Coke. Ick.

"Uh, Riley? Where are the restrooms?" I asked politely.

She wordlessly pointed in their general direction. Of course, this was followed by a mighty belch escaping from her mouth. She brought her hand to her mouth, blushed, and looked around in mortification. I chuckled at her embarrassment until she noticed me; she answered my quiet mockery with the single-digit salute. I giggled a little less quietly before I got up from the table. I wanted to get away in case I needed to escape retribution.

I race-walked past clientele, Pokemon, chairs, and tables to get to the restrooms. I swiftly found myself in the cool and clean lavatories. It had a citrus scent with a hint of chemicals. I spotted an open stall with my name on it. Not literally, of course. That would be weird.

I entered the stall, yanked my shorts down, and got to business. (AN: I'll skip this little part since you don't want to read about doing the business.)

After I met with my ceramic consultant, I rose from the cold, porcelain seat and flushed. I rushed out of the stall and shut the door behind me.

I got to the sink, turned the knobs, and watched the cold water flow from the faucet. I sat my hands under the flow and shuddered. Thankfully, the slightly unpleasant feeling didn't last long. I quickly washed up and dried my hands.

Unfortunately, I was interrupted by a gunshot going off. My eyes widened. My face stretched in fear. Panic began to set in. Adrenaline began to pump through me. Without thinking, I reached for the Omnitrix. Thankfully, I was alone in the bathroom. Convenient.

I pushed the button down and started to swiftly cycle through my playlist. I listened to anything that might be happening. I couldn't hear much through the fan. There was a notable absence of screaming. Shouldn't there have been screaming and panicking?

I listened more carefully; what I heard was chilling. Judging from words like "subhuman" and "inferiors," it was obvious who it was.

I didn't need any more prompting. Lives were in danger! I went through some mental gymnastics over the optimal choice in this situation. The fourth and ninth options were immediately eliminated. They wouldn't have been able to even fit through the bathroom door.

Option six could prove to be useful, but I needed speed. Alien number one was out of the choices due to widespread collateral. Number ten was not chosen for the same reason. Five was too slow. Eight would handle bullets and guns easily, but I was rushing too fast to consider this.

Two was also too slow(?) and looked to be heavyset. Seven it was! I raised my hand up and slammed on the dial. A flash of green light erupted from the core. A few moments passed. I opened my eyes, expecting my perceptions to be slowed to a near halt, but nothing happened! What the hell?!

I glared down at the watch. My glower intensified when I saw the hourglass flashing a lime green. Why!?

I was interrupted by the sound of a masculine yell and wood breaking. The following sound heard was a windy sound and glass shattering. If I had a weapon, I'd be out there, trying to do something. Unfortunately, there wasn't much I could have done since the watch was being uncooperative!

I noticed that there weren't any more gunshots, but I heard the sound of fighting, grunting, yelling, and Pokemon noises. I carefully went over to the door. I gripped the handle and slowly opened the door. I peeked out the tiny crack and scrutinized the action.

I couldn't tell from here what was going on. I pushed the oak door a little more and peeked my head out. There seemed to be some commotion at the front of the restaurant. A small bead of sweat dripped down the side of my face. What was I going to do about this?

I left the washroom entirely, silently shutting the door behind me. I squinted my eyes and saw that some police officers had gotten up. They quickly made their way over to whoever had the gun.

I decided to do something thoughtless; go over to see what happened.

I swiftly jogged past the various diners; most of them kept their heads down. Since they were cowering, they didn't notice me. A few people did, mainly kids. They tried to get me to get back to no avail. I ignored their whispers as I trotted past, doing my best not to trip or bump into anyone.

I stopped close at the entrance and took in the sight before me. The police pinned the nuisances down, specifically, three of them.

"Get the fuck off me, damn pig!" One of them, let's call him Harpo. Apparently, he didn't expect resistance.

"No can do, buckaroo." The cop restraining him deadpanned.

The other two, Groucho and Chico, predictably demanded release and ineffectually threatened the people who secured their pathetic selves. Did they really not expect this to happen? Even if they didn't know that Maria was a C-Super, they should've known better than to do this IN THE AFTERNOON WHEN THE PLACE WAS FULL.

I looked up as I heard footsteps walking over to the scene. Lo and behold, there was Maria. However, there was someone beside her. They looked like me; in fact, we were virtually identical. The main difference between us was their paler skin color and red eyes.

They looked at me and stared intensely. I blinked at them and looked at Maria instead.

"Do these idiots ever quit?" She asked... I'm assuming she's being rhetorical. Despite my assumption, I answered her.

"You think idiots make good decisions?" I asked ironically. Well, I didn't actually answer her.

On further inspection of the witless morons, I saw that their heads were shaved. They had racially insensitive tattoos, mainly on their necks and arms. Oh yeah, they didn't even have masks on. These guys need to be shown on World's Dumbest...!

Fittingly, they were part of the Empire Eighty-Eight, a gang of Neo-Nazis in Brockton Bay. How and why those delusional fools exist in the modern day is baffling.

I was distracted from my negative thoughts by Maria addressing me. "Camryn, why did you come out here?" Uh oh. I didn't think that one through. Wait! I can salvage this!

"Well, I figured that since you soloed that Cape this morning, you would've been able to handle it."

The boss hmmed as if she didn't believe me. It was a rather flimsy cover for my impulsiveness. I looked back at the apparent 'me' lookalike; I'm going to guess that they're my alternate counterpart native to this Earth.

Tension was in the air as the alternate counterpart examined me with suspicion and possibly a mix of curiosity. Red eyes bored into mine, then they looked down at my... wrist? Oh... the Omnitrix. Did they somehow pick up on its weirdness?

"Camryn meet Camryn," Maria said with a wry smile, gesturing between us.

Camryn's smile twitched into a slight smile while their/his(?) gaze remained intense. "It's a pleasure." Their voice was masculine yet young. Their tone was neither warm nor hostile.

I nodded, acknowledging his courteous greeting. Being in the same place as someone nearly identical to you was bizarre, yet he felt completely different. He was far more intense than I was, and his body language was distinct. "Likewise," I replied, trying to mask my uncertainty by matching his pleasantry.

Maria's attention shifted to the nitwits on the ground. Her expression hardened as she glared. "Boys, we can deal with these idiots," she said firmly, her tone not leaving room for argument.

I exchanged a look with other me, wordlessly agreeing with Maria. Despite the lingering questions and tension, we understood the importance of staying out of trouble, at least for now. Uh-huh, coming from the guy who ran to a hold-up without a plan, that's fricking rich!

As Maria led the way out of the restaurant, I couldn't shake the feeling that this encounter was just the beginning of something much bigger. With my alternate counterpart by my side, I felt the road ahead would be filled with twists and turns I couldn't imagine.

******

At nearly nine o'clock, the overall ambiance of the eatery shifted as closing time approached. Most diners were gone, and bussers cleared tables; a sense of winding down settled in. Only a few groups remained, each still engrossed in their meals, but time was running out for them to finish.

The aftermath of healthy appetites and peckish eating was evident on the tables. Most plates were wiped clean. However, remnants and nibbles of edibles still lingered, mere traces of the various savored culinary delights.

I looked down at the watch. Still beeping after nearly two hours. It's already recalibrated. What was happening? Despite my curiosity and slight annoyance, I focused on the calmness surrounding me.

Unfortunately, a sudden jolt disrupted the calm. A cold, athletic hand firmly slammed on my shoulder, startling me briefly. Reflexes kicked in, and my head instinctively twisted. I shot a glare over my shoulder.

It was Riley, wearing a grin of mischief that didn't entirely hide her amusement at my reaction. Despite my surprise and slight irritation, a chuckle escaped my lips at the prank. Her sense of humor injected some fun into my semi-hectic day. I'm frankly grateful for having the chance to end up here. The day wasn't over yet; there was plenty of time for more mayhem and camaraderie.

******

A weary sigh escaped from me as I looked at the lady before me. We were in the process of deciding where I was going to go. We sat in the main dining space not too far from the entrance.

Maria sat upright and crossed her arms. "There's no way I'm sending you to a foster home." She... didn't like how I attempted to offer alternate options, so I didn't stay with them. I don't see how it would be so bad.

"You know how expensive it would be to take in another kid, right?" I asked while trying to avoid eye contact. I genuinely didn't want to be a mooching leech! I slouched while my hands kept fidgeting.

Other me huffed in the chair beside us. A slight smirk appeared on the boy's young face. "We've got the money to afford another mouth to feed." He was sitting back in the most casual way he could.

"You ain't gonna win this," Riley said bluntly, shaking her head and smiling. Thanks a lot, Riley. Really appreciate your help. "The difficult thing would be creating an identity for you." She crossed one leg over the other and leaned forward, the tabletop sinking into her gut.

I brought my hand up to my bare chin and rubbed it. After thinking for a few seconds, a lightbulb turned on. I snapped my fingers and began to lay out my realization. "If I'm right, this world has had contact with other worlds. There is a non-zero chance of people arriving here and being stranded. Logically, there's possibly a program to help them."

Maria took on a reflective look as she considered my resolution. However, as she opened her mouth to speak, the other Camryn interrupted. "What do you mean by "this world"?"

I turned my head, glanced at him, and narrowed my eyes. "I have my sources," I said, sounding mysterious.

"Sure thing, oh ominous sounding one!" Riley remarked jokingly. She had a mischievous glint in her eye as she said that.

"Hush you," I told her playfully.

Maria giggled briefly. The other me, really have to call him by a nickname or something, smirked slightly. I leaned my head back and sighed. I... guess I could see their points. I sucked in a breath and let it back out. "Oh, alright. If you're okay with that, I... guess I could stay with you." I was desperate and too mentally exhausted to put up a fight.

The powerful Esper smiled softly and clapped her hands.

******

We walked to the car, an apparently new, bright red Ford. The vehicle had silver rims without a single scratch. The rubber wheels were new, or at least washed perfectly, and only had a few pebbles trapped in them. The boardwalk streetlights reflected off the vehicle's shiny exterior while illuminating the dark, chilly November night.

The boardwalk was next to a lovely beach with a stunning view of the rolling, foamy sea. Next door to Thunderstorm was a barber shop with those weird, red, and white tube things at the front. It was the only shop still open, and the barber was cutting away at their presumably last client's hair. They were busy chatting away, and I couldn't tell what they were saying because of the distance. It wasn't any of my business anyway.

My gaze wandered around, and I picked out the things of highest interest. The famous/infamous Fugly Bob's was across the street from us. I needed to go there. I loved greasy fast food, and that place was calling me over to it.

I saw a nest of Wingull and their mother, a large Pelipper, snuggling with them. Cute.

"So Cam. How does it feel knowing that you're gonna live with us?" Riley questioned me suddenly. I rubbed the back of my head.

"It-It'll probably be pretty awkward." My voice was an indicator of that. My words came out slowly and shaky as I comprehended what I was going into.

Oh, come on! I'm worrying over nothing! They literally offered me a place in their home out of presumable kindness. I don't need to be so negative.

I let out a breath I didn't realize that I was holding. "I'll just have to get used to it." I ground out.

"Don't worry!" Maria told me cheerfully. "I'm sure you'll fit right in."

"We shall see, Mom. We shall see." The other me spoke flatly.

As we approached the well-kept vehicle, Maria pressed a button on her key fob. The car beeped softly while the lights blinked, indicating it was unlocked and ready to be opened.

Each of us went over to a door, although Riley opened my door for me. She gestured for me to enter. A mix of emotions swirled in me, causing me to hesitate, but only for a moment. I was knocked out of my stupor as I glanced at the others. A wave of gratitude washed over me as I swallowed my hesitation.

I climbed into the car and sunk into the soft, plush seat. The interior had a faint smell of leather and... a hint of... vanilla? The scent was comforting, almost like a blanket of warmth and security.

We pulled away from the restaurant, the cracking and popping of rocks on the road and the parking area mixing with the growling engine. A sense of anticipation and excitement washed over me, but it was ultimately overshadowed by my fatigue. Despite the uncertainties and challenges that awaited me, I knew that I was in good hands.

The car journey was quiet; the only sounds were the occasional conversation between us and the soft hum from the engine. I kept an eye on the passing scenery and the moonlit sea. The main eye-catcher was the Protectorate ENE HQ sitting gloriously and roughly in the middle of the bay. It didn't seem immense from where I was, but I knew it was massive. I could barely make out the forcefield protecting the site.

I couldn't help but wonder what the point of having it would be. Yes, having more protection on top of the automated turret system is perfectly understandable; the thing is out in the bay! It's far from turrets, cannons, or Tinker-made offensive vehicles like tanks. Maybe I don't know what I'm talking about, and I'm overthinking it...

I took in my new surroundings, from the dim lighting of the vehicle to the passing scenery outside, and basked in my new world.

We drew near a wealthy neighborhood with considerable houses and freshly cut lawns. The lawns had decorations like fake flamingoes and garden gnomes scattered here and there. Some of them had bird fountains in the middle. Others had simple decors like faux flowers and animals.

I even saw a few dog kennels and houses on the side. A handful of houses had guard Mons like Stoutland and Herdier keeping watch. They were far more intimidating in real life.

We came to a slow as I noticed the sound of popping, cracking, and crunching rocks as we pulled into the driveway. I looked at the lawn, and like the other homes, the lawn was freshly cut. It seemed like it was cut recently, possibly today, since I noticed trace amounts of grass clippings.

I was snapped from my musing by Maria's voice. She turned to me with a warm smile. "Welcome to your new home, Camryn," she said gently. Her voice carried reassurance and kindness.

I smiled back at her with gratitude and optimism surging through me. "Thank you, Maria. I'm grateful for this." I replied, sincerity coating my words.

A click was heard, and the engine stopped its purring. We exited the vehicle, and I scrutinized the impressive house before me. It was no mansion, but compared to homes I've lived in, it was practically one.

It had a nice, pure white coating of paint gracing its walls. The roof was dark brown, with a satellite dish on the left side. Its windows were closed, and floral pattern curtains hung up, protecting the indoors from outside viewing.

Maria led the way to the front door, unlocked it, and held it open for us to go inside. When I stepped inside, it felt warm and comforting. Well... it would have been warm had it not been so frigging cold! I shivered as the lights were flicked on. It was colder in here than it was out there! I breathed out and saw a little puff of air. Why was it so frigid!?

"Do y'all live in a meat locker?" I queried sarcastically.

"Whoops, sorry Camryn!" Maria apologized.

I looked at the other two, and they seemed fine. "How are you not shivering right now?"

The presumed athlete rubbed the back of her neck and looked sheepish. "We generally don't keep the heat on all day; we wait for it to come on. We don't have guests often, so we tend to forget."

I looked at the other me; I needed to call him something different. He just shrugged.

Well, at least I'm not homeless!

******

I rubbed my hands together as I stared into the bathroom mirror. The bathroom air smelled of citrus and a hint of chemicals. The walls were coated with cyan paint. I examined the shower; there wasn't a tub, only a shower. The paneling reminded me of a granite countertop.

The toilet was cold and sterile. The plunger beside it seemed slightly worn down, primarily the handle. The stick looked like someone gripped it too hard and decompressed the thing.

My eyes wandered over to the walls. They were... very yellow! It was a champagne yellow, meaning it was not obnoxious. Thank God.

My eyes began to droop every minute I was not in bed. I took this as a sign to hurry up. I quickly got finished. Unfortunately, I did not have a toothbrush, so I had to make do with mouthwash.

I flicked off the light switch. My hand shot out, gripped the doorknob, and twisted it open. I made sure my used towel was in the hamper before I left.

There were some paintings in the hallway. I found myself wishing I could see them since it was dark! I didn't dwell on the thought because of my drowsiness. I looked to the left and found the room I was supposed to sleep in. Their guest room wasn't ready for me to sleep in. Apparently, they had a bunch of boxes that needed to be emptied, and none of us, especially my lazy self, were in the mood to move them.

I came to the door right next to the bathroom. Shutting one behind me, I opened the other. I was introduced to Riley sitting on the bed beside her brother. Great, we're sharing the same bed. I took care not to roll my eyes.

"You're finally done?" She casually asked and peeked up at me. I nodded my head.

Cam, let's call him that instead of 'other me,' didn't even spare me a glance. Instead, he typed away at his phone. He only wore a dull blue-grey casual shirt and underwear, no shorts or pants.

The... older(?) sibling was wearing obnoxiously flamingo pink pajamas. I slowly went over to the bed and crawled onto it. The thing easily held the three of us, but only us.

The comforter was soft and comfy, at least. It didn't even have a pattern, and the color was a simple red. It felt like a home, for lack of a better term.

I examined the dimly lit room closer. I could make out everything just fine, but it was still dim. I noticed a poster for the Power Rangers on the wall. A quick examination of the rest of the room didn't reveal anything that I didn't expect.

The walls seem to be painted black or at least charcoal grey. The closet had a single, pale white door with a shiny, golden doorknob. The ceiling had one boob-like light with a little knob resembling a nipple. Did those things really have to look like a boob? It even had a mole-like dot on its side.

My gaze wandered downwards. I was just about to start talking to the other two as my eyes snapped onto something... worrying. Two fricking coffins were leaning on the walls.

 

[Nyrmac]

Hello everyone! Since I forgot to do my recommendation, I'll give it to you here: Hybrid Hive: Eat Shard?

I've gone ahead and rewrote the last section of the chapter I wrote before posting this. I changed it from a fight against the Empire Eighty-Eight to some idiots trying to hold up Thunderstorm. There's actually a rather good reason for me doing this. Someone pointed out how reckless the Empire would have to be to start a fight in the afternoon while the place was packed. In canon, they might be able to get away with it, although I highly doubt it since it was near the Protectorate HQ. Here? This is a world packed with people who have superpowers. And that doesn't even take into account Pokémon. It's common knowledge that you shouldn't be doing stuff like hold-ups willy-nilly. I've removed the fight and made it up with a longer chapter. I'll also do a pole in Questionable Questing for the last spot on the starting ten. I've changed my mind, and I'm not choosing Humungousaur. I'm doing this for variety and to do things a little differently. I'll be posting the link here!

 

[Nyrmac]

My eyes were glued onto the disturbing and unexpected sight before me. Coffins. Why? I turned to the muscular young woman who apparently stopped paying attention to me. My eyes were still wide with shock as I tapped her on her forearm.

She looked up at me and tilted her head at me. I wordlessly pointed to the wall with the object of my discomfort. I didn't even try to mince words as I bluntly spoke.

"Why the hell do you have coffins leaning against your wall?"

Her eyes widened as she shifted uncomfortably. I turned to Cam, and he didn't look up. He was glued to that phone. My eye twitched as I glanced at Riley.

"Uh..." The girl stuttered.

"Seriously? That's it? 'Uh?' is all you have to say about," I stabbed a short finger at the eerie objects, "that?" My tone was incredulous while having a hint of terror mixed in. The tight clothes I had on weren't really helping my discomfort, either.

She reached her hand to her neck and scratched it. "W-Well..." She began but didn't finish.

I crossed my arms. "Come on, out with it!"

She puffed out a big breath as she finally spoke to me with more than one word. "D-Do you believe in magic?"

Without missing a beat, I sent her a very unamused look. "What."

The younger, skinnier sibling finally made a noise. An annoyed grunt. We both peeked over at him as he inserted himself into the weirdness. He glanced up at us with those red eyes of his. I really should've considered the red eyes as a hint to this... whatever is going on!

"If we tell you this," he spoke, "you have to promise us that you won't freak out or start running out of here like a damn maniac." He articulated dryly.

Riley breathed out once again. "We're... oh God... we're not normal."

"I could've figured that out because Maria is an Esper." I expressed blandly.

"Riley. Stop stalling and tell him." Cam enunciated without skipping a beat.

She glanced at him with an annoyed expression before turning back to me. She took a breath and let it out for the third time. It was much longer and more drawn out than the other two. I crossed my arms out of impatience again. A lot of repetition here, huh?

"That's not what I meant. I mean... we aren't normal Capes."

I bobbed my head before silently motioning for her to continue.

"We... we're... vampires." She eventually let out.

I raised my eyebrow in slight disbelief before it went back down. This is a world where Pokemon and Superhumans exist. Vampires existing isn't really weird. Just unexpected. If she is telling the truth, that is. Considering my opinion of the arbitrary skepticism of people, I'd be a hypocrite if I tried to be skeptical.

"Your vampires." It was not a question. It wasn't anything but a simple, obvious statement. It was an embodiment of my mental state right now. Too tired for wit, not enough mental processing power for complex comprehension.

I puffed out a breath. "There's a lot of things I was expecting. Vampires definitely weren't one. The fact that I'd live with them was certainly not in the cards." I expressed tiredly and blandly.

I heard the soft thumping of footsteps in the hall suddenly. Maria's voice rang out in the hall, calling our attention.

"Kids! Are you getting along in there?" She had this tone in her voice that implied she somehow knew what was going on. Of course, being a vampire means she likely has superior hearing to me by a wide margin.

I shot a glare at the door. Riley gaped at it with aggravation. Cam didn't seem to care.

"Really, Mom? Did you let this happen on purpose?" The fidgety female beside me asked.

The laughter the vampiric matriarch gave off answered the question. My expression twisted into a smile of irritation and amusement. Riley sighed in resigned annoyance, implying this was probably a regular occurrence. The skinny boy beside us smiled slightly at the situation.

More footsteps were heard, but they were going away from the door. I glimpsed over at my new brother and sister(?). The muscled lass just gave me a resigned, pained face.

Cam finally looked up from that phone and gave me a prying stare. "Alright, since we've gotten this settled," we did not have it settled, "I want to know what that watch is."

Well, it won't be something I could avoid for long. I palmed my face and attempted to prepare for the lengthy, inevitable explanation of aliens and the Omnitrix. I swear if they don't believe me, I'll be livid.

I removed my hand from my face and stared at the still-blinking device. I needed to figure out why it was blinking. The symbol wasn't flickering yellow. If that happened, an uncatalogued DNA sample was nearby. The light was green. Did I have a message?

The door opened behind me, but I paid no attention. I didn't see a reason to since Maria would have found out eventually.

I raised my wrist to sternum level, pressed the button on the side of the watch, and watched the core pop up. What happened next wasn't expected. Seemed like the unexpected was happening to me a lot here.

The vibrant green hourglass stopped blinking and began to glow with no pause. The symbol inverted into a diamond shape as the outer ring spun. A mist-like haze of emerald energy, I assumed it was energy, spread out from the dial.

After a few moments of a dramatic light show, the dial finally stopped without letting itself slow down. The haze of energy faded and was absorbed back into the powerful gadget.

The hourglass symbol stopped blinking as it returned to its original, unassuming state of seeming inactivity. I raised my head and looked around the room, no longer quite as exhausted for the time being.

"Well, that was... something." Maria quipped.

"What. Was. That?" Cam asked flatly and slowly.

"The fuck did that thing just do?" Riley questioned vulgarly.

"I don't have a clue. I just got this thing." After I finished saying that, they each turned their heads at me.

I shrugged my shoulders. "I know; I don't know how, but I have it now. I know I didn't say anything about it before, but I wasn't sure if I could trust anyone."

Maria asked me if I trusted them since I was telling them about it now. I smiled and then bobbed my head.

I turned my attention back to the Clarketech on my wrist. "I don't know why this thing is acting up."

Cam was the one to speak up this time. "Probably some dumbass tinker discarded their damaged tinkertech. I'm going to assume Professor Haywire or L33t's crap. Though Haywire is much smarter with how he uses his tech than the world's worst Tinker." He snarked. I scoffed inwardly. Obviously, he had no reason to know how ridiculous this device was. Tinkertech wasn't anywhere near the level of this thing.

A small flash of worry washed over me briefly. I'll have to think up a cover for it at some point. What if Ben 10 existed in this universe? The franchise, not the character. Then again, he might also exist.

I distracted myself from the thought as I decided to pull up on the core. If this worked, then I could unlock other aliens with ease. If not, then it wouldn't be the end of the world. I could make do with ten transformations for now.

I took my hand to the dial and pulled on it. At first, it wouldn't budge, so I had to put some slight effort into my tug. It rose with a click and beep. The hourglass symbol changed or faded; I couldn't tell. Another much less intense light flashed like a flashlight from the now empty(?) circle.

A screen popped up with a plain loading symbol and an unknown dialect in the center of it. An unmistakable loading bar was underneath both of those and was filling up quickly. It took a mere ten seconds. Of course, it would be ten.

I noticed the other three gathered around me to see what was happening. When the bar finalized loading, the screen changed to a more comprehensive one that brought to mind video game menus that gave way to flavor text.

I scrolled through each menu, taking my time to read the fundamental information. The first one had a simple introduction; it vaguely reminded me of a user's agreement but also reminded me of an introduction page.

The second menu was also straightforward, but I couldn't access the pages. There was a big lock sitting in the middle of the screen. Every time I clicked on it, nothing happened. With a roll of my eyes, I swiped my finger across the screen to hopefully access something that wasn't locked.

Unfortunately, no such luck occurred. I silently fought back a barrage of cussing as annoyance washed over me. I desperately wanted to smack the device; I knew what could happen if I followed through.

"Well, that was a total bust and a massive anticlimax," Riley spoke curtly. I wordlessly agreed with her as I groaned.

"I know I'm repeating myself here, but I don't know what happened."

Maria put her hand on my shoulder. "It's alright." She kindly told me. "Maybe it's just getting used to you." I grinned at her courteous words.

Cam hmphed beside us. "You haven't had it for twenty-four hours yet, and you've already fucked it up. Congratulations." He snarked. I wondered if I could get away with whacking him upside his head. Thankfully, I didn't need to ask since Maria seemed to share the same brain cell as me. The matriarch gave him a light smack.

<You know,> an unknown, synthetic, British accented and vaguely female voice spoke unexpectedly, <you could ask the watch!> For some reason, the AI, I presume the voice to be an AI, had an English accent.

We all looked down at the now apparently talking watch. <I am the Omnimatrix AI. I am sure we will get along nicely.> Somehow, the thing (Probably shouldn't call an AI in control of a powerful device a thing.) sounded sardonic.

Several beats were skipped over as I stared at the gadget. I lifted my head and numbly conversed with the others. "Was the food you served me bad by any chance?" I said as I pulled on my shirt neck.

Maria responded to me absentmindedly. "We always make sure our food is okay in the morning."

"Maybe someone laced our drinks with drugs." Riley's voice was utterly flat as she communicated.

Without pause, Camryn's turn to speak came. "Drugs don't affect us, Riley." He was trying to remain serious, but he was failing. His tone was equally as impassive as mine.

The AI sighed from their position. <I can confirm that you are not high on any form of narcotic or pharmaceuticals.>

What the hell? <If you have any questions, and I am sure you have them, I am open to responding.>

Riley was the first one to ask a question. "What the fuck are you?" Of course, she asked it in her typical foul-mouthed way.

<My, my. How polite of you.> The intelligence deadpanned. <I am level twenty Galvan technology. My primary purpose was to spread peace throughout the universe and serve as a bridge between sapient species.>

"None of us know what that means," Cam responded dryly. I chuckled at that.

If the device could have rolled its eyes, I imagined it would have. <I am perfectly aware of your ignorance of what goes on in the greater universe.>

"The... greater universe?" Maria questioned with a quirked eyebrow and an expression of cautious interest.

<Yes, the greater universe.> The intelligence parroted unironically. <I come from a universe very different from yours. Even the ambient energies around us are drastically different.>

I opened my mouth to ask what my new companion meant about the 'ambient energies,' but I was interrupted. Riley began to ask multiple questions, each being something I wanted to ask.

<To answer the first of your inquiries, I did not come here on my own terms. Nor was my user.> That was... worrying. <I am not aware of who brought us here, but whenever it does happen, it is always for a good reason.>

"Does this... happen often to you?" Maria asked with worry. "I'm not exactly fond of the idea that anyone would be ripped from their world to another to be used as a glorified soldier or a diplomat." I had to think about that for a second. I could understand her worry, but that was the burden that came with the Omnitrix.

The ghost in the machine chuckled. <No, this has not happened to me in over a thousand years. And I would never do such a thing to my user; my creator would have never done so either.>

My eyebrows rose, and my eyes widened at the casual statement. Over a thousand years? How old is this Omnitrix?

<Unfortunately, the user I was programmed to be used by is long dead. I suppose you will do, user Zero-Zero-Six-Nine.> Long dead user? Is it referring to Ben?

<Ah, so you're familiar with my desired user?> Oh crap, you can read my thoughts.

<Yes. I can read your mind. After all, I am attached to you.> I peeked over at the others who were now examining me. I hated being put on the spot like this. I glowered at the annoying contraption.

Before any uncomfortable questions were raised, the machine continued on. <I do enjoy annoying my user.> Stupid thing. <Normally, I would not do something like this. I prefer to work in the background and indirectly help my host. Things like giving you new forms or functions for the current situation or changing your transformation if I find your choice unsuitable. I was lonely being inactive for so long, so I will make the most of this situation.> The intelligence sounded... almost yearning. I couldn't condemn it for doing so. What have you been through? How long has Ben been dead, assuming the "preferred user" was Ben?

"New forms?" The younger(?) boy questioned.

<Yes. I have many different transformations for my user stored within me. I have well over one million stored and will continue to gather more here.> There was nothing but silence after that sentence. All that was heard for some moments was the sound of the AC unit blowing out hot air. I knew about the almost unlimited power within the palm of my hand. Well, not in the palm; my wrist is more like it.

"It's insane, isn't it?" I queried rhetorically.

Riley crossed her arms and huffed. "You are aware of whenever some power-hungry jackass hears about that-" I interrupted my new sister as she attempted to voice her worries.

"I know what's going to happen. Every idiot that hears of it is going to come after me. They're either going to force me to give it to them, tear it off, steal parts from it, study it forcefully, enslave me, or would see me as a weapon or tool to be used." I articulated with vexation. That's how it always goes with being mighty. That's why I'm going to use a secret identity.

My thoughts briefly brought up the Unwritten Rules, if they existed. I mentally made a note to ignore them. Why would I care about some stupid unofficial guidelines? Nobody else does whenever they think they could get away with it.

"I know damn well those fucking idiots in the Protectorate and SRT would want to have something like that under their thumb." She declared as she crossed her brawny arms. There was a lot of bitterness and venom coating her words. Wait. SRT? Not PRT? Oh no...

Yet another sigh came from my new mechanical companion. <That is how it has always been. I was firstly intended as a tool for peace and unity. There was always scum attempting to seize me for their own selfishness.>

Riley responded by sharing her feelings about others trying to exploit her for a reason. I made a mental note to ask her about it at a better time.

I mentally went through what possible questions I could ask the Omnitrix. An imaginary lightbulb went off as I thought up a good one. "If you don't mind, how about you explain what went on in the bathroom at Thunderstorm?"

"That's why you ran out to a hold-up. What was your plan?" Maria voiced her curiosity.

"Well... I wanted to use super speed to deal with it efficiently and safely." I explained. "I'm well aware of my... oversight regarding me running out of the bathroom despite the apparent malfunction." I shrunk slightly at the mention of my blunder.

<It was no malfunction.> That got my attention real quick. <When I performed a hard reset on myself, I noticed something dangerous in your genetic code.>

My facial features stretched in horror. "What do you mean?! Do I have cancer?!" My outcry was laced with dread. My family has a history of cancer, and it would be my luck to get it.

<No.> My mechanical companion answered tersely. I let out a breath I didn't realize I was holding. However... "If I don't have cancer, praise God that I don't, then what do I have?" The question, despite its recent birth, was gnawing at me. What could I have?

<The danger was the millions of strange, nanoscopic machines attempting to forcefully mutate you intracellularly.> The realization practically punched me in the face. My blood ran cold while my heart nearly skipped a beat. Nanites. Generator Rex nanites were on this Earth. What in God's name am I going to do!?!

"You're talking about the nanites," Cam expressed casually as if the watch hadn't dropped a huge bombshell.

"Oh yeah. Those are a thing." My sister added. I wanted to scream at their casualness about the situation.

"Forgive the other two, Camryn." Maria spoke calmly," Nanites have plagued the world for a few years. We've just gotten used to it." She gave the other two a countenance that read, 'Really, you two?'. I believe the expression was also known as 'the mom look.'

<These machines are absolutely fascinating!> The artificial intelligence made its excitement clear. <I am amazed at how humans have made such incredible technology.>

My brilliant wrist companion went into detail about these machines. It was a lot of information. We were told the basics of how they could do many incredible things. Things like curing diseases effortlessly or even evolving organic beings to a new evolutionary level. They apparently had the capability of utterly defying the laws of physics.

I zoned out slightly as my mind raced with a thousand and one questions. Does Providence exist here? What about Cauldron? Are they responsible for the Nanite Event? Does Rex exist? How are the Entities, Endbringers, and Shards affected by all this? Oh God, how were Pokémon affected?! I had so many questions and approximately zero answers for them.

I stopped asking these questions and listened to the info dump. <I am not surprised how humans managed to mess up horribly with them.> And there was the snark.

<When user Zero-Zero-Six-Nine and I arrived here, he was immediately infested with these nanomachines. Had I not acted, he would have been mutated instantaneously.> Well, that's not horrifying whatsoever...

While I simmered in fear at the thought, Maria began to speak. "That might have something to do with him being from another world. You mentioned that you came from a more mundane world." She paused, then continued. "There's a non-zero chance of you being different from the humans here."

That... made a lot of sense. Ben didn't go EVO when he went to Rex's universe. Maybe the Ultimatrix was countering the Nanites?

<I spent several hours bonding with you while I prevented these nanites from harming you. This is why I did not allow you to transform.> My eyebrow lifted at the statement. That's... really good. However, I couldn't shake the feeling of how close I was to go EVO when I got here. God knows how that would've turned out. I could've become a groaning, moaning living tumor that absorbed all it touched. I doubt I would've gotten lucky and retained my intelligence and sanity.

We continued the chat well past eleven o'clock. Time flies when you're chatting about the implications of nanotechnology, aliens, vampires, magic, and other fantastic things.

******

I stretched my limbs and body as I opened my eyes to a slightly dim room. I blinked away the grogginess as my sleepy brain tried to rev itself up. One part of it, the lazy side, told me to lay back down and keep sleeping. The other one, the (barely) lucid side, was telling me to pull myself up.

To my dismay, I found myself listening to the lucid side. I grunted in irritation as I looked around myself. I wondered where I was before the memory of the previous night struck me like a sack of bricks.

...

...

I blinked as I failed to clearly remember. I shook my head, rubbed at my eyes, and forced them to stay open. There wasn't much success there since I nearly fell back asleep.

With another, less irritated grunt, I lifted myself off the bed... and found myself eating carpet. A small amount of pain made a home on my front side. An aggravated growl escaped from me as I got up from my impromptu, accidental breakfast of carpet.

My mouth twisted with annoyance as I eyed the door. I noticed that I was apparently home alone. The others must've been at work. It would've been nice if they had given me a heads-up before they left. Maybe they did, and I didn't remember since I would've been barely cognitive.

I sauntered over to the door and reached out for the doorknob. My hand wrestled with it out of lingering drowsiness hampering my routine. I opened the door and peeked out into the hall.

The walls had several pictures decorating them. One was a lovely field of flowers; the flowers were arranged in multicolored rows. It was also a probable magnet for pollen allergy-induced sneezing. I shivered at the thought. I always had pollen-related issues when Spring rolled around.

The other pictures were pleasant, a frozen lake, a pretty beach, and a warm Autumn forest. I didn't bother to really get a good look at them as I went past.

The wooden floor was cold on my bare feet, making me wish I wore socks. I walked into the hall to the lit-up living room. I winced and sucked in a sharp breath as my dark-adjusted eyes were blasted with sunlight.

I squinted through my compromised vision and was graced with a comfy living room. The couch was a lovely shade of brown. If I could describe the color, it would be burnt umber or chestnut. Unlike the rest of the furniture, the couch appeared older and more worn. I noticed string hanging out in random places.

A coffee table was between the couch and the 70-inch, plasma wide-screen TV. There were white coasters with the depiction of a bird lying on it, contrasting well with the dark oak. If that TV gets damaged at any point, the shmuck who did it will die painfully. I can't imagine it was cheap.

I scrutinized the living enclosure around me and detected a hot pink sticky note on the door. I stepped over, gently peeled it off, and read its contents.

Camryn,
We're sorry we didn't tell you we were leaving. Don't be afraid to call us. Maria's number is at the bottom of this note.
***-***-****

I saw the word 'sorry' was traced over several times and circled. They must've been super sorry or thought I'd be offended. I was actually okay with this.

I twisted my head around to admire the rest of my new living room. I sniffed at the air and caught a hint of cinnamon, adding to the comfy and homely atmosphere. The walls were beige and had hints of being cleaned recently.

The windows didn't have a single smudge or crack on them. The lamps looked like they belonged to an older house or at least one with a more Gothic style. They really stood out amongst the standard furnishings.

The only sounds were my feet slapping against the floor and the AC unit finally whirring off. Otherwise, it was quiet in the house.

I felt something flow through me. Excitement. I knew what I needed... no, I wanted to do it right now. I brought up the watch for the first time today, and I pressed that side button. I dramatically raised my hand and prepared to slam onto the dial. As I brought my hand down, I stopped myself.

Instead of smacking the device, I slapped my hand over my face in annoyance. "What is wrong with me?!" I almost transformed inside!

With a huff, I walked to the front door and twisted the knob. The bright outside greeted me with a cool breeze. I stepped onto the brown welcome mat and scanned for any people who could see me. Analyzing the immediate neighborhood revealed that everyone was inside or away. I took note of the periodic dog house in side yards but didn't hear any barking. The vicinity was... tranquil.

The only noises heard were faint bird cries and the sparse Pokémon crying. It was very nice. A smile crept across my face as I took in the comforting atmosphere. No annoying kids screaming, no constant dog barking, nothing but the incredible serenity of a peaceful neighborhood.

I threw a glance at the closed garage when something caught my eye. There was a blue bike with a lime green sticky note on it. I jogged over to it and read the contents.

If you try to steal this damn bike, I will know.

I will hunt your ass down to the ends of this planet.

And I will make you wish for death.

...

Several winks passed as I wrestled with the threat of the note. "Well, looks like Cam doesn't like thieves," I expressed dryly.

Deciding that taking the bike without permission wouldn't be healthy, I reluctantly went back inside. I shook my head and moaned in irritation. I couldn't get to the Boat Graveyard in my current state. I want to guarantee I'm hidden if I transform.

I thought back to the AI and swallowed. I shut my eyes and prepped myself for the snark-to-snark combat.

"Hey, watch. Can you hear me?"

<Yes, User Zero-Zero-Six-Nine. I am always here for you. After all, it is not like I can actually leave you.>

I rolled my eyes. "I'm not interested in banter right now," I spoke irritably, probably more irritable than I wanted to sound. "What I want to know is, do you have a way for me to get to the Boat Graveyard without being detected?"

The dry, accented intelligence hmmed as it/they appeared to think about it. <I do have a way. I am not sure if it will work here. Generally, I cannot do so without User Zero-Zero's teleportation network.>

I bit back the snide remark I had. "At least try it. You never know what's going to happen. Maybe we'll be lucky." Yeah, I doubt I'll be lucky...

<We will see.> A trio of beeps and green flashes accompanied one another as I waited. Not even a moment passed as the AI came back with surprising news. <It appears we are fortunate today. There is a teleportation network in this universe.>

My eyebrows rose in astonishment as I grappled with this news. I was right. I shunted away the thoughts about the implications as I giddily clapped my hands. "Can you teleport me to the Graveyard now?" I could barely contain myself as my inner kid was rising to the surface.

<If I had a map, coordinates, or a frame of reference, yes.> How in the world am I going to get that here? I looked around the living room for anything that would help me. I spotted a red smartphone harmlessly sitting on the table beside the couch.

I picked it up, flipped it around, and discovered another note.

Look under this text if you need to use this phone or my laptop. The passwords are under it!
****
****
*********

I grinned. That's certainly convenient. I immediately started to find the laptop. My slightly frantic search brought me into the kitchen. I detected the hot pink computer with stickers covering the back. Before I logged onto it, I took in the homely kitchen.

The space was expansive and smelled like fast food. I raised my eyebrow when I recognized that aroma. A quick glance brought me to the bag of Fugly Bob's on the granite counter. I took slight amusement in the name of the restaurant.

I stared at the bag's bottom. Grease covered the bottom, and the paper seemed to be ripping. Good Lord, how unhealthy was that place? I believe it's mentioned that if you had sense, you'd stay away from there until your arteries cleaned out.

I briefly ignored the health hazard. As I walked back to the solid mango hardwood table, I enjoyed the look of the dining area. The cabinets were made of oak. Their handles were shiny, black, and metal.

The oven had splotches from food spills and possibly drink spills. Unless the red splotch was blood... I hoped it wasn't. If you ignored the messes, it was primarily white. The burners were a dull black or dark grey.

I examined the kitchen further and stumbled upon a dishwasher, a large, metallic refrigerator, an oversized freezer separate from the fridge, and a fire extinguisher on the wall next to the oven.

Just a typical kitchen. I haven't seen any indicators of anything out of the ordinary. Nothing that hinted at their nature as vampires. Of course, they could be lying. I haven't seen any solid proof other than Maria's powers. Even then, she didn't demonstrate anything vampiric, only telekinesis.

I thought about the thrashing she gave the haemokinetic yesterday morning. Hemorrhagia should have been safe from blood loss. Since she seemingly couldn't recover from it, Maria can either disable powers or manipulate blood at a far greater level than the Teeth Super.

I cut myself from my musings and grabbed the edible nightmare. I trotted to the table, pulled a chair out, and sat down. I opened the laptop and turned it on. After waiting, I encountered a tranquil image of Tibet's capital city. I looked at the written password and entered it.

I was greeted by a screen saver of adorable kittens cuddling with their mother and presumed father. I gazed down at the taskbar and clicked on Opera GX. "Weird. Opera GX wasn't a thing in 2011 on my Earth. What else exists here earlier?"

Shunting the question to the 'think about it later box,' I searched for a map of this city. When I found one, I nearly screamed in excitement. I tightened my focus and spoke to the ghost in the machine.

"Okay, here's the map. Now what?" I questioned.

<Give me a second, and I will have our solution.>

"One." I snidely enunciated.

<Quiet. Raise up your wrist and point me at the device.>

I did as I was told and waited. I didn't even wait for a moment before my patience ran out. "Nothing's happening."

A line of green energy shot out from the matrix core in the instance where I expressed my impatience. The energy, possibly nanomachines instead, solidified into a cable. I picked it up, examined it, and noticed the plug was perfect for the laptop ports.

"You can just do this? Why do you have the ability to do this sort of stuff?" I asked somewhat rhetorically.

<I am level twenty Galvan technology.> The intelligence spoke as if it was talking to a five-year-old. <I can do many things you would not expect. I have hundreds of functions that you are not aware of.>

As if I hadn't done it enough recently, my eyebrows raised and nearly tore from the strain again. "H-Hundreds of functions?" I stuttered. "That's... ridiculous."

<You know more than most that I am far more capable than I look.> The AI voiced with pride. That's true. <Now stop wasting our time and plug in the cord.> My wrist companion commanded. I muttered insults under my breath as I did what I was told.

The plug entered the port, and the watch did its magic. Actually...

"Hey. Omnitrix. I need to ask you a question."

<Yes?>

"Do you mind if I give you a name? It's annoying to call you only 'Omnitrix.' Plus, we might have to go into public at some point." I paused, then continued when I thought up another point. "We can hide what you really are by giving you a name. It would probably convince others that I was talking to you through a communicator."

<A name would be nice.>

I sucked in a breath. What name should I give you? 'Omni' is pretty generic, and whenever I see fanart of an AI for the watch, the name is almost always 'Omni.' When I finished my thought, an idea popped into my head.

"How about 'Trixie?' Unless you aren't female, then we could just go with 'Trix.'"

<I do not have any pronouns to speak of. I do not care which name you give me.>

I nodded. "Okay. Your name will now be Trixie!"

<I do like that name. By the way, the map download is done. We can now teleport to the Boat Graveyard.> Trixie informed me.

I clenched my fist and pumped it into the air. "How do we-" I started before being interrupted by the AI. <Think about it, and let me do the hard work.>

Boat Graveyard. Take me there. I peeked down at the device and noticed a soft amethyst color was coating it. The effect was dazzling and reminded me of Fletchette's Sting effect. At least, how I imagined it looked.

I stuck out my arm and pointed my hand forward. A beam shot forth from the watch and phased into the air. Waves rippled outwards from the point of impact, and a portal opened before my eyes. The sound it made when forming sounded like a fax machine sound being played sped up and repeatedly with no pausing. Afterward, it gave off a 'wubbing' sound. It reminded me of a Nether portal.

My jaw was slack. I gaped for several long moments before I collected myself. "Okay... is this safe?" I queried.

<Do not worry. I chose a more secluded area. You will be safe. Just make sure that you are careful. The data I absorbed suggested that parties watch this area to scout for new Capes. Keep an eye out, User Zero-Zero-Six-Nine.>

I drew in air and tightened my chest while a staunch expression appeared on my mug. I grabbed the phone, computer, warm Fugly Bob's, and my drink. I slowly and carefully walked over to the anomaly. I stared at it intensely.

"Let's go see what's on the other side..." I pushed myself through the portal and closed my eyes. There were no feelings of slowness or anything similar because when I stepped down, I felt nippy sand touch my bare soles.

I opened my eyes and gazed forward. I was welcomed by the shoreline and the sea's natural relationship. The waves were high and calm. I twisted my head to look out for trouble. I expected more... carnage. I'm not referring to bodies or blood. Chilly air nipped at me, but I ignored it.

There were far fewer broken boats and ships than I anticipated. Where were they? Did someone finally get off their rear end and do something about the issue? I shoved the sassy thoughts away.

I was surrounded by wreckage despite my assumption. Rusted metal was mixed in piles of broken, waterlogged wood. Further out in the bay were a few sunken ships on their sides. Judging from the damage, I doubted this was caused by drunk dockworkers. Unless they had a lot of explosives, and there were a lot of them.

I placed down my bag, phone, and computer. I strongly doubted this area had internet access. I swiftly scarfed down my chicken biscuit and hashbrowns. I left my drink on a piece of slightly broken wood. I could practically hear the health nuts screaming at me. I'd agree with them. The food was so much more greasy than McDonald's or Burger King.

I reached for my drink and sucked on the straw. I felt at ease when the cold liquid flowed into my stomach. The sweetness of the tea would have woken up a full-grown lion!

I let out a satisfied Ahh! and sat up. It was time. I lifted my wrist to my chest and thumbed the Omnitrix's activation button. I didn't need to select a transformation because Trixie chose it. The diamond shape contained the iconic first alien Ben ever transformed into.

<Pyronite. This powerful pyrokinetic is capable of widespread destruction. They live on stars and planets with extremely superheated temperatures.>

"Um, thank you for the little lesson there," I articulated sincerely.

A small bead of sweat appeared on my forehead. It slid down my brow as my hand reached for the dial. I hardened myself and prepared. There was no going back. I'm not chickening out!

When I raised my hand, it felt like everything was slowing down. My hand pressed down the matrix core, and my world was swallowed by a bright, lime-green flash.

Everything around me went from slow motion to a complete halt. Reddish brown rocks crawled up my arm from the Omnitrix and swiftly swallowed my entire body. Molten hot plasma replaced everything below the stones as the transformation continued. My height rose to over six feet tall as my head was consumed by a white-hot blaze. My arms and legs lengthened as my forearms and hands grew. My toes merged into two toes that were almost shaped into an oval. One back toe sprouted from my ankle.

Things didn't stop there. I was assaulted by the memories of an extraterrestrial lifeform with a vastly different life than me. (AN: No shit, their life was drastically different than yours!) They went by faster than lightning as I lived through what they did. I saw their family and friends. They had a mostly solitary life in their home world of Pyros. Generally, the Pyronite trained their powers up and rarely left his world. I saw things in thermoreception. I could make out shapes, but not fine details. Hotter things were brighter colors like yellow and orange. The colder something's temperature was, the darker their colors were. (AN: Okay, that's enough! We'll finish the info dump later!)

I opened my eyes and was treated to a new way of life. "HEATBLAST!" I yelled out to the world. My voice was much deeper now and raspy. I looked out at the open sea. All I saw was a deep purple. Just two slightly differing shades of purple.

The nippy air no longer troubled me. It wasn't bothering me much, but I couldn't feel it now. It's fascinating to know how the climate of Earth doesn't really bug me as Heatblast.

A quick gaze down revealed my feet sinking into molten sand or glass. I think it was glass now. I grunted as I pried my feet from my accidental trap of melted glass. I needed to control the sheer amount of radiated heat.

I calmed myself, lifted my arms, and pressed my big, burning palms together. I felt the lack of heat in the area further away, but I focused on my personal aura of warmth. I drew it into my body and focused it on my palms. My arms instinctively stretched out as I shot a massive plasma stream at the sea.

A smirk crossed my face as I began to get into the zone. I pointed my finger at the horizon and shot much less intense balls of fire into the water.

"Pew, Pew, Pew!" I was having a ton of fun while transformed. It was exhilarating! Thank you, Trixie, for being awesome!

<You are welcome.> My chest companion said smoothly. I assumed they were on my chest since I couldn't see the Omnitrix symbol. Stupid thermoreception.

I distracted myself from my grumbling with a possibly bad idea. I willed my heat from my body and enveloped myself with an aura of plasma. I rose into the air, encompassed by a blazing corona. I floated there for a moment before I moved along.

I started slowly, relaxed, and took the classic comic book "swimming" position when flying. "I wonder how I'd look to others. I should've brought a camera or something to record myself."

When I started to think about that, I dropped, almost landing in the salty prison below me. I barely recovered in time to fly away from the water's surface. I didn't want to know how quickly I'd sink. I was made of igneous rock and what had to be dense plasma! Then again, Heatblast swam in the show, and he was fine; only his fire was extinguished.

A bit of fridge logic hit me. How does an alien whose home world is a star get put out by water and a fire extinguisher? Logically speaking, the flames would be too intense to put out. It's made me wonder how the aliens would affect real life.

Shaking my head, I continued practicing my calokinetic flight. I knew I could only do this because of my Omnitrix-supplied memories and instincts. Even though I had this massive aid, it wasn't easy to fly without wings.

Several times, I nearly fell into the ocean. Every time I'd do so, a massive cloud of steam would rise into the air. I stared into the water and couldn't even see fish. All I saw was deep purple.

Part of my issue, I think, was my focus. Whenever I let go of my focus, I fall. "Maybe this method of flying was one I wasn't ready for..." I rushed back to the shoreline and plunged into the water. It was a remarkably unpleasant feeling, being submerged as a Pyronite. Considering how quickly I sunk, my body wasn't made for the ocean.

An ungodly amount of hot vapor was created around me. I cringed when I considered the poor fish who were doubtlessly boiled alive. Ouch. That's a horrendous way to go... I immediately shoved that gruesome idea away.

"H-Hey, Trixie. How much time do I have left as Heatblast?"

My guide chuckled. <You have approximately four hours, fifty-one minutes, and twenty-eight seconds left.> If I had eyeballs, they would have bugged out comically.

"E-E-Excuse me?!"

<Yes. You did not slam your hand on me. Your time limit is dependent on how hard you hit me.>

I stood there blinking and gaping for several extended moments, contemplating my situation. That changes... a lot. Holy crap! I'll barely have to deal with that stupid time limit!

I almost began to jump for joy before I regained my composure. "O-Okay," I uttered, "Can you tell me how I can change back?"

<Tap the symbol on your chest.> Trixie said. That answers that question. I reached for the center of my chest and felt an object jutting out. I didn't have the same sense of touch as a human. It feels weird saying that. I palmed the emblem and hopped forward to save my feet from being burned.

A green flash erupted from me as I shrunk back down to my diminutive regular state. I fluttered several times, raised my hands, and massaged my temple. "Lord have mercy, that's a weird feeling!" It was jarring from only seeing heat to seeing in full detail and color.

I shook my head and closed my eyes. I breathed in. I breathed out. My eyes blinked open without me experiencing any dysphoria. "If Heatblast was that bad, how bad would other aliens be?" I wondered aloud.

<I am sorry. I am having more issues with bonding with you than usual. I was not made for your DNA.> Right. You were made for Ben, not me. I shouldn't think about it, or I'll develop a complex about it.

I groaned and looked at my little area. Oh, thank you, Jesus! My laptop, phone, and drink were okay!

I trotted over and picked up the medium-sized tea. I took a quick swig of tea and looked at the massive column of mist rising from the ocean. A regretful expression crossed my face. "I hope no one has seen this." I... didn't totally think this one through.

I took another sip from my super-sweet drink. I looked up into the air and started to think. "I probably shouldn't stay here for much longer. Someone probably saw the vapor cloud." Yet, something was keeping me here. I guess it was the want to experiment with my aliens.

I placed down my quencher and went back over to the shoreline. I cycled through my playlist again to examine it. "I should've brought a pen and paper," I spoke irritably. With those, I could jot down what I lack in my starting ten. Looking at it, I seem to lack a flyer with wings. That's not going to be fun to deal with.

Just in case something unexpected happens... "Trixie. Open a portal back to the kitchen. I want to put the laptop somewhere safe. I also would like to throw my trash away."

The doorway to the kitchen appeared before me. I quickly ran in, set the computer down, and threw my trash away. I ran back out and was about to go back to testing when I heard something. No... I heard someone.

---

Here's the recommendation for this chapter! There Was Once An Avenger From Krypton

Also, this chapter had to be split since I had nearly 10K words in one whole chapter.

 

[Nyrmac]

Oh crap! I scrambled to find a hiding place. I hopped into the wrecked ship closest to me. I was lucky enough to avoid being stabbed by oxidized metal and splintered wood. I fell to one knee and halted. I lifted my hand to my ear, cupped it, and listened carefully.

"Holy shit, what made that cloud?" It sounded like... a guy.

"I don't know," another male replied.

My eyes were getting wider by the second. I couldn't move. I was a statue to the world for a few brief moments. My mind raced with a million and one thoughts on how I could get out of there. I couldn't open the portal. When it opened, I could hear the sound it made.

My heart almost fell out of my butthole when I heard footsteps approaching me. One pair of footsteps was heavier than the other. I tensed up when I heard them stop.

"Well, someone was obviously here. There's a drink." Crap!

The younger male hummed. "Yep, someone was here alright. Do you think they'll come back?" There was a brief pause. "Velocity, come take a look at the sand over here, it's melted to glass!"

Velocity? Okay, so they were Protectorate heroes. Assuming that they're heroes here. I'm not going to come out and introduce myself. I wouldn't trust them even if they were good guys. My breaths were rapid and short as I slowly reached for the Omnitrix.

They began to speak again, but I didn't pay attention. I likely should have, but I wasn't interested in snooping on chitchat. I activated the watch and selected the seventh silhouette.

"Hey! I think I just heard something!"

Shoot! Just go! Stop dilly-dallying and go! I slammed my hand onto the watch without thinking of the consequences.

In an instant, time seemed to freeze, reminiscent of the power of ZA WARUDO. My body transformed dramatically, as French blue fur with jet-black spots covered me entirely. My teeth became sharp and pointed, accompanied by the growth of four fangs in the front of my mouth. A lengthy, spotted tail emerged from my lower back while black claws sprouted from my fingertips and toes. The area around my eyes turned black, my cheeks were now covered in blue fur, and my ears elongated and climbed to the top of my head, resembling feline ears. Additionally, pointed fur protruded from my elbows and knees, and the Omnitrix symbol materialized on my right shoulder. My previously snug clothing morphed into a Flash/Quicksilver-like costume, combining black and white colors.

There was a thankful lack of memories as my perception slowed to a near halt. My body felt denser, and I had the impulse to move. I didn't even try to think up a plan as I ran out of my hiding place. I didn't try to grab the cup. I'll go back for it later.

To say I moved wasn't a good enough descriptor. To say I ran wasn't either. When I sprinted past the supers, they weren't merely in slow motion. They were statues to me. As I dashed, it felt like I was drawing in a force. Sound, what little of it, was distorted and distant. There were no simple ways to describe the sensation.

There was a feeling toward the two possible heroes. I wanted to compare my speed with my fellow speedsters. However, this was not the time for that. I especially don't want to tip them off to me so soon.

While I dashed, I left a dark blue and black trail behind me. I could've knocked the two out. It would've been effortless. I didn't know how strong the armor was, however. I looked at the former military man's (Velocity) partner.

His companion wore Greek-style gold and white armor. The warrior carried a spear or lance on one arm and a shield the size of a plate on the other. The spear appeared to have arcs of electricity buzzing around it and shone white. The shield had these "light waves" coming off it.

So, he has Dauntless as a partner? Great, the two who could most likely catch up with me.

Everything began to move at regular speeds when I stopped where the Graveyard limits met the city. Celeste bolts of electricity zapped around my fur. The sheer amount of static built up should have fried me, but I was apparently built to absorb it.

I tried to see if I could hear anything they were saying before I was attacked by an influx of cacophony. I could listen to so much! I felt deaf as a human. My newly enhanced body felt so much... better. It made my normal state feel impotent. I have a hunch that the power rush isn't a good sign.

Being Fasttrack made me feel vastly different from Heatblast. Ironically, I felt more chill as the Pyronite than as the Citrakayah. Ba dum tss. I wanted to do things quicker. I knew I could've taken on both Velocity and Dauntless at the same time. "Was that arrogance talking? Or was it just me?" My voice had a higher, sped-up pitch.

I stopped my musing before speeding off. I could somehow tell that time wasn't being affected by me. I noticed a few people walking down the sidewalk and cars along the street. I did my best to dodge and weave around the pedestrians, not going anywhere near the automobiles. The electricity buzzing around me might light up the gasoline or destroy the vehicle.

Even if they were insulated, there was too much of a risk for me.

I whizzed down the street to the house. My thoughts were speeding at levels that would've been incomprehensible to the unpowered human. I stopped myself at the right moment. I spotted a map giving away my location. I was close to Thunderstorm, and I knew where the residence was.

Out of pure luck, I was going in the right direction. I passed the beginning of a car lineup. I shook my head at the amount of traffic. It happens when you live in a big city near a school.

My fuzzy, muscular legs carried me past the boardwalk. If I had to estimate, I'd say it didn't take me five minutes to get home. As the fence approached me, I leaped. My momentum and powerful legs carried my weight above the border with ease.

As I rocketed through the air, I rolled effortlessly, landed, and halted. I skidded across the ground due to my lack of friction control. I lifted a claw and drummed my chin with it. "I'll have to do something about that..."

In a flash, I was in the middle of the living room. I reached for the emblem on my shoulder and tapped it. My world was consumed by the green light. As the light faded, my "harmless," little self replaced the feline speedster.

My head was spinning from returning to standard human thought speeds.

It wasn't as bad as Heatblast, but I still had to deal with the aftermath. "Okay. Let's try someone else..." I was a bit more hesitant in selecting an alien this time.

I respired as I pondered about it. How about I choose something without loud and flashy powers? Right as my hand hovered over the DNA manipulator, I paused. "Trixie, can you quickly open a portal to my tea? I don't want to step through it in case they're still there."

I didn't have to wait as the quantum anomaly appeared before me. I grabbed my drink, pulled it through while almost spilling it, and took another swig. I cautiously strolled through the home and entered the kitchen. "I wonder if I'd be able to modify the laptop."

I sauntered to the table and hesitated when I dialed the little grey man. I sighed. "No. This isn't my computer." When I began to lower my hands, a thought flashed by me. They have a basement. I wonder if they have any parts down there I could make do with.

I looked towards the hallway and trotted over. I stopped when I realized something weird was going on. "Wait, the bathroom was at the end of the hall last night." I said out loud while recalling yesterday's events. Somehow, the stairtop replaced it, and the bathroom was beside our bedroom.

"What is going-" I paused as a paper sheet fluttered before my face. I grabbed and scrutinized it. There was a drawing of a head without a body taking up most of the paper. The head had an expansive, toothy grin reminiscent of the Cheshire Cat.

"Oh, son of a!" I ripped up the sheet and grunted at the prank. "So apparently, Maria either knows what I'm doing... which would be rather creepy. Or she's got some form of house mastery powers. Which she used to troll me..." I clenched my fists before letting go of my brief irritation. I slowly raised them, gradually clapped, and chuckled.

"That was pretty funny."

I paced the stairs without wasting any more time. I stepped down to the basement and opened the door. I was met with a whiff of the dusty air. I started coughing not even five seconds later.

After my coughing fit, I opened my eyes to a dark room with junk everywhere. I could count the cobwebs in the surprisingly cluttered, messy area. "Why is the cellar so... untidy in comparison to... everywhere else?"

I gazed around, inspecting the perimeter. I took note of the red toolbox. Its drawers were all closed aside from the slightly open top one. I tore my eyes away from the object to scope out other noteworthy items. My attention was stolen by the piled-up junk in the corner. So many broken computers, gadgets, and scraps to build from. I've been waiting to do something like this since I looked through my selection. I rubbed my hands together and smirked.

Oddly enough, there wasn't much dust covering the discarded tech. I wondered why that was. I was about to start wasting my time thinking up a reason for it before I had an idea pop into my head.

I didn't need to think as regular me. I had a solution to my current situation. I pressed the magic button of my watch. I twisted the dial until it clicked on my desired form. The silhouette with large hands, thin legs, and a heart-shaped head was what I needed.

<Galvan. This diminutive, amphibious lifeform is arguably the smartest species in the universe. It is also one of the smallest.>

After the AI finished her exposition, anticipation tingled down my spine as I mashed down the dial.

My height shrank down to five inches. My hands grew more expansive, and my skin turned grey. My head became heart-shaped and oversized. My eyes filled my heart-shaped head and turned green. My clothes became a white jumpsuit with a black line down the middle. My feet became flat, and my toes flattened out and merged into three squared ones. And the Omnitrix symbol was on my back like I expected.

Memories of a hyper-intelligent frog-like alien were placed in my mind. My eyelids shut as I adapted to my minuscule presence. I repeated my earlier actions by scanning the perimeter again. This time, my mind was racing with faster and multiple trains of thought.

A singular peek at something gave me mind-numbingly vast amounts of information now. To make things better, it was pure instinct doing the work for me. I wasn't close to my peak due to my lack of experience and degrees, but it hardly mattered.

I stretched my amphibian-like, skinny legs and made a giant leap over to the toolbox. "Note to self: remember my ability to jump good." I wasn't going to try and pull or push the heavy thing. It wouldn't take a genius to figure out how that would go with my lack of physicality.

Instead, I pushed open the top drawer and appropriated the tools. I grunted as I grabbed a couple screwdrivers and wrenches. I casually tossed them over my shoulder, jumped off the box, and took them to the scrap heap.

Despite my earlier snark about Grey Matter's lack of strength, I could lift items equal to my body weight with relative ease. I dragged each tool over to the pile, causing a harsh scraping noise for each tool. I piled the implements before jumping to the smallest cardboard box. Despite its comparatively slight size to its siblings, it was the most useful to me. I clenched my hands, cracked my knuckles, and analyzed the contents.

"I could construct a couple of high-end computers from this junk. I have several hours of transformation time, so let's get busy!" I enthusiastically yelled.

Over the next hour or two, I worked like an ant drone, entering a fugue state. I briefly thought about "Tinker fugues" before mocking the notion. Why would these be exclusive to Tinkers? It happened to me all the time when I played video games.

I shook my head and readjusted my attention to my newly crafted PC. It almost made me shed a tear at its beauty. <Are you going to continue staring, or will you finish it? If you are going to stare, might I suggest taking a picture?> My ancient partner snidely remarked. I deflated at the snark. "Must you take the wind from my sails?"

<Yes.> My companion declared bluntly.

I palmed my face before walking over to my first creation. Eventually, I'm going to make more and update this one. However, that's not something I care about much right now. I pressed the power button, and the cobbled-together machine whirred on.

I smiled at the fruits of my labor. The machine wasn't entirely finished due to the coding processes, but those would be finalized very soon.

Another couple of hours were spent dealing with the complex process. It wasn't problematic for a Galvan. In fact, it was practically ingrained in their intuitions.

Shunting away my pride in my species, I stood up and looked at the bright screen. "Thank God I turned on the light before this."

It was done. Aside from personally desired applications like Twitch or Opera GX, the machine had everything. I could handle those without Grey Matter. When I brought up my appellation, I had an epiphany.

"Should I keep the alien names?" I wondered aloud. I'm not Ben, so I could differentiate myself from him. I instantly came up with a new moniker for Grey Matter. I pointed to the ceiling and yelled with glee. "Little Grey Man! That's a perfect name!"

My joy wasn't cut short as I heard a droning beeping from my back. The Omnitrix symbol flashed between white and red while it alerted me to the time-out. A massive amount of crimson light flashed from me as I reverted back to Camryn. As it seemed to be a tradition now, I was overwhelmed by the mental shift.

"I'm never going to get used to that..." After a few seconds, I was fine. My head wasn't spinning any more with ideas, but I could still remember them quite clearly.

Kneeling down, I picked up and closed my new laptop. I tucked the machine tightly under my arm and hiked across the basement and up the stairs. I took in a much-needed breath of air that didn't wasn't old and musty. "How long has it been since they last cleaned that place? The fricking stone age?"

******

I gently placed my computer down on the table. The smell of cinnamon wrapped around me like a blanket as I sat down.

I opened the appliance once again and got down to business. I opened the tab on my Google page. I needed to make an account, but that would be simple.

The speed of the prototype laptop was glorious. It was swifter than I intended, but Little Grey Man expected this.

I created my account before downloading my desired apps. It took about thirty-ish minutes in total.

I stretched and sighed. I was lucky to have all that crap to build with. I sat in the living room, pondering about my next move. An idea popped into my head like earlier when I thought of a new name. "I need to check PHO. I have to see who's active now."

I moved my hands to the keyboard and typed into the search bar: 'parahumans online.' After a short period of waiting for the search, my eyes widened when I saw the screen.

The screen had the words: Did you mean 'superhumans online?'

My jaw went slack. If I were in a cartoon, it would have dropped onto the table or floor with a comedically dull thud. "What? Superhumans? Why isn't it-" I paused as my reflections caught up with my mouth.

"Oh my God... are there other kinds of Metahumans out there?" I questioned with mounting horror. I scratched the back of my head as I wondered. I clicked on the blue link and was taken to the website.

Welcome to the Superhumans Online message boards.

The sentence in front of me was the beginning of my search. (AN: DOI!) The website was primarily grey with white text. The occasional and annoying advert appeared on certain parts of the page, mainly forming banner ads. I ignored them entirely.

Scrolling down revealed the links I wanted. Each one was important. The obvious ones were the links to the rules. "Note to self: check those before doing anything."

The following URLs were what I needed. I set up several new tabs and clicked the most important one.

The World of Superhumans! From Metahumans to EVOs!

I hesitantly scrolled down and closed my eyes in uneasy anticipation. I felt my stomach jerk at my anxiety. "Okay, I need to stop this and get on with it." I talked aloud to nothing.

Another look at the webpage brought me to the first words. They were written in a deadpan, almost mechanical way, not unlike Wikipedia. The page had the exact information that I was searching for. Well, obviously, it does. It's not like you could've seen that from the title or anything!

(AN: All underlined text ahead is quite info-dumpish. I underlined it if you want to skip it all.)

The page went into detail about the different types of Supers out there. I made a mental note about each one:

X-Humans. Supers who possess the X-gene, formerly known as 'Mutants.' The term was dropped due to it sounding racist.

Metahumans. They had the Metagene, their powers formerly known as 'Meta Powers.' The word was changed for apparently putting Metas above the others.

Quirked Humans. These people possessed the 'Quirk Factor.' These Supers are different from both the above groups by a few factors. X-humans and Metahumans are dominant and recessive, respectively. Quirks are dominantly hereditary. Quirks can mix with both, but the former can't mingle with each other despite being so functionally similar.

I read more and didn't see a thing about the Inhumans. Did they not exist?

The next group was the Exponentially Variegated Organisms (EVO). The classification isn't just limited to humans. They're organic beings who were mutated on the macro scale by Nanites. Generally, these unfortunate souls are turned feral by the mutations. Some EVOs retain their sanity, but that's unfortunately very rare. The scariest part about EVOs is that you can turn at any point. This applies to anything organic, as I previously mentioned, including the grass in your yard.

The group after EVOs was Parahumans. Notorious for being bullheaded, belligerent, and fight-happy. That fricking conflict drive is going to be a pain to deal with. With my luck, it's likely much worse here. The big difference between them and the others is their power source is blatantly unnatural by superpower standards. The Parahuman abilities are managed and generated from an organ in the brain called Corona Pollentia.

There was much more to the various ilks of Superhumans. However, I clicked on another tab to research the various active groups in and around Brockton. The first group, as predicted, was the Protectorate East-North-East branch (ENE).

The Protectorate was the first and arguably largest group of Supers. They were heroes who fought against threats like supervillains and kaiju. The leader for the Brockton Bay branch was Armsmaster. Armsmaster, or as I like to call him, Halbeard, was a Tinker with a specialization in miniaturization and efficiency. His second-in-command was Miss Militia, a woman who could almost instantaneously swap between lethal and non-lethal weapons from green, misty energy.

The next group wasn't a group of Supers, but I don't care. The Superhuman Response Team (SRT) is a police force/SWAT team assisting the Protectorate in dealing with various threats. They were powerless humans who assisted the Protectorate. They weren't just fighters. There were therapists and a PR team, too. People with powers couldn't hold a leadership position unless they passed a competency and mental health test. Parahumans seemed to be the ones this rule applied to the most.

I brought my attention to the Wards. Like the main force, with many teams across the US and Canada, this organization is functionally a junior Protectorate. If you were under eighteen and had powers, you were eligible for the Wards. I'm eligible, but I have zero interest in becoming a child soldier masked as a child star. The Wards team here is led by Triumph. Triumph was a young, fit man who could send out empowered shouts he could finely control.

I scrolled down some more to see about New Wave. As it seemed to be a running gag, my jaw slacked again. New Wave was not present. They're still the Brockton Bay Brigade (BBB). They never revealed their identities to the public, so Fleur was never murdered. I saw the list of members and never saw any mention of Panacea. "That's... both good and bad. She'll never have to deal with the crap she had to go through canonically, but the city loses its top healer. And we lose one of the canonical reasons for Khepri." I... didn't know how to feel about this development.

The following Wiki page had information surrounding the various villains. The first, and in my opinion, the most despicable, was the Empire Eighty-Eight (E88). This gang was compromised of Ultra Nationalists, Neo-Nazis, and bigots ranting and whining about "white power" and subhumans. My face twisted with disgust and outrage as I read about them. Their leader, to my surprise, was Allfather instead of Kaiser. Their roster of Superhumans was impressive, comparable to the entirety of Protectorate ENE and the Wards combined. The most dangerous ones were Victor, who could steal skills and add them to his repertoire; Hookwolf, a shapeshifter who could take on various forms made of blades and hooks; and Purity, probably the strongest Super in the Bay. Purity was a woman who could take on a glowing form that could fly and shoot powerful lasers.

The next gang was the Teeth. These guys were in some ways worse and "better" than the Empire, but they were nothing more than another tumor in the city. They consisted of drug dealers, anarchists, and general brutes dressed in similar garb. They all had a tribal theme assorted with blades, spikes, spines, and even bones from fallen enemies decorating their aggressive garments. The very thought made me queasy. Their powered forces even had a similarly violent and grotesque theme. The Butcher Fifteen was a dangerous woman who was supposedly less violent than her predecessors.

The Butcher was more like an unstoppable force here. She had at least fifteen powersets to call upon. To give context to this terror, whenever the previous Butcher is killed, the killer receives the killee's abilities and soul. The soul is locked in the current one's head. Listen to the number again. If you don't take up the mantle of the Butcher, all the voices scream at you until they drive you mad. They'll make you just as awful as they were, if not worse. Seemingly, the Butcher also took X-genes, Quirks, and Metagenes. "Truly a lovely combination," I said with scathing sarcasm.

Next up was a man named the Marquis. Formerly a lone powered man who led a gang, the osteokinetic has recently added a new powered person to his "team," the Red Queen. The newcomer was evidently a biokinetic with powerful healing capabilities. She didn't need to lay a finger on someone to heal them. Her presence was only required. "Looks like Panacea got a better deal here..." Her powers reminded me of Claire from Another Way.

The Marquis, when compared to the other big players, is practically a saint. He's got a massive list of crimes that included murder, so he's definitely not an innocent man by any means. However, he's known to be an honorable man who rigidly kept to a code. He never harmed children or women, but he was known to be capable of casual viciousness and cruelty.

Those were the most prominent villains around. I had to respect the Marquis for staying around for so long despite the enemies he faced.

The next page I clicked was for the independents of Brockton Bay. I noticed no mention of Coil. If he didn't exist, that would be a massive headache cleared from the board. The wannabe Bond villain could stay away for all I care.

The first independents listed were Über and L33t, a duo of villains with a video game theme. They were despicable incompetents with a penchant for recklessness and failure. Über was somewhat impressive; his power allowed him to reach peak human skill levels at something if he focused. L33t, to put it bluntly, was not. He had the dubious "honor" as one of the, if not the, worst Tinkers ever. His specialty was the ability to create anything once. If what he designed was too close to what he made before, the chance of misfiring increased. "Even here, they still suck..." I spoke dryly.

The following independent was another villain, Circus. The genderfluid clown was a grab-bag Super. A grab-bag was someone with a wide variety of minor powers. Their powers were hammerspace, minor fuegokinesis, enhanced reflexes, and possibly coordination. The page speculated their other powers, but I glossed over it.

The indies afterward were Faultline's mercenaries, the Undersiders, and some other unknowns. There was reportedly only one neutral, Parian. I continued to look through their listed powers and motivations before something in me clicked. "Why am I not downloading this?"

<Idiot.>

I glared at my AI partner before softly palming my forehead. I tapped the dial, and the cord shot out. I quickly stuck the end into the port and began the process. How did I forget about this so quickly?

I shook my head while I waited for the information to be absorbed. After a few seconds, the Omnitrix let out a quartet of happy chirps.

I pulled the cable out and watched it disappear. I planted my palm on the table and continued my search. This time, I was led into the neighboring cities around Brockton.

My search brought up several important, familiar names. Boston, Bellwood, New York, and Gotham. No sign of Metropolis. I'm not getting Superman as an ally, or it's been merged with somewhere else. Bellwood... this is both good and bad. If people already know about aliens, I'm screwed in terms of keeping my weaknesses clandestine. If not, I could come up with a good cover.

******

I clapped my hands together and breathed deeply. "What kind of cover story do I use for the Omnitrix?" I pondered.

<You do not need to be complex about it.> Trixie told me frankly.

I nodded my head in agreement. "I know that. I need to consider holes in the lie."

<Who says you need to lie about it? You do not need to tell an untruth, but that does not mean you must be entirely sincere.> I considered the intelligence's words. That's true. I don't need to lie...

I looked around the living room and listened to the AC whirring off. The air around me was warm and comforting. Not a single noise broke the silence other than my own light breathing. I tugged at my tight shirt. "I need to get myself some new clothes."

I rubbed my chin as I continuously brooded on the subject. After a few minutes of intensity, something clicked for me. "I could use the concept name for the Omnitrix! Yes! I could say you're a nanite stabilizer I got from a friendly Tinker!" I beamed. (AN: Sorry, if this came out of left field.)

<Do you really believe the masses would believe this?> The mechanical wrist attachment incredulously asked.

"Who knows. I doubt people will immediately jump to aliens in a world of EVOs, monstrous appearances, and Pokémon. Plus, I'm not technically lying. You're stopping me from mutating." I explained.

My partner sighed. <I suppose it could work. But it would not stop these so-called Tinkers from attempting to remove me.>

I moaned in annoyed understanding. "There isn't really a way to prevent that. I know that Armsmaster will try something when he thinks there's a Tinker out there that's apparently better than him. He's not the only one out there who'll try it..."

<I will protect myself from forced removal. I do not know how I will fare against this tinkertech, but I will not allow anything to separate us.> Trixie declared with conviction.

I smiled at her determination. "That's good. I trust you, Trixie."

<And I trust you, Camryn.> When my name reached my ears, I briefly pondered about it. "Can you call me something like Six-Nine in public? I imagine you're smart enough to avoid slipping up, but even the most intelligent being can make mistakes."

<I am aware of this and will keep it in mind.>

"Why am I Zero-Zero-Six-Nine anyways?" I asked.

<You are my sixty-ninth user.>

I couldn't contain my immaturity when I heard that. "Nice." I giggled.

******

I swiped a finger across the lime-green screen. The lock that formerly was on the screen was no more. I assumed it was because of my first transformations or because of me wearing down the complete time limit. Regardless, I could now access whatever was locked.

I selected the word 'Notes.' I was taken to a blank screen with a digital keyboard. It didn't take a genius to figure out what I could do with it.

I jotted down the names of Brockton Bay teams and gangs. The heroes came first, the neutrals next, the villains last. I noticed that 'Rogue' as a term did not exist. 'Neutrals' refers to Supers who don't use their powers for villainy or heroism.

Another swipe brought me to my downloaded data. I managed to download the rosters for each group. I thanked my incredible digital guide and looked through each one.


Protectorate - Armsmaster, Miss Militia, Chevalier, Dauntless, Velocity, Assault, Battery, Adamant, Sere, Dovetail, Coil


When I finished reading the last name, I did a double-take. My eyes almost bulged out of my skull in shock. My face twisted with repulse. "How did a sadistic, amoral sociopath like Coil get into the Protectorate?!" (AN: Yeah, I'll explain this hard-to-swallow change eventually.)

That made no sense to me. You didn't just grow a conscience overnight. I thought the point of Coil was to back him for Parahuman feudalism. Did he not commit the crimes he was accused of here? Is the Protectorate even worse here? Did he weasel his way in? My mind ran through many questions yet produced no acceptable answers. Again.

My sense of horror wasn't alleviated when I pushed myself to type the rest of the rosters.


Wards - Triumph, Aegis, Clockblocker, Browbeat, Vista, Gallant, Kid Win, Crucible


After taking a few minutes to calm myself down, I lost some of the fright.


Brockton Bay Brigade - Manpower, Lady Photon, Laserdream, Shielder, Flashbang, Brandish, Antares, Fleur, Lightstar


My eyebrow lifted at the mention of Antares. The name was taken by Victoria Dallon in Ward after shedding the name Glory Girl. I think it was after she finally got back into the hero business. The reason for her dropping out? She got a massive, nasty case of a twisted, bodily nightmare. Grotesque wasn't anywhere near enough to describe what happened to the poor girl. Actually, I believe that was only one part. There was far more to that particular horror.

I immediately pushed the hideous image of the mishmash of body parts out of my head. The very idea of such a fate shook me to my core. Not allowing myself to get distracted anymore, I swallowed and continued.


Empire Eighty-Eight - Allfather, Iron Rain, Krieg, Hookwolf, Purity, Alabaster, Victor, Othala, Stormtiger, Crusader, Night, Fog, Rune, Cricket, Crossbones, Master Man, Fenja, and Menja


Teeth - Butcher XV, Hemorrhagia, Animos, Reaver, Vex, Manslaughter, Bloodhound, Skidmark, Squealer, Trainwreck, Whirlygig, Scrub, Mush, Clancy Brown


Marquis, Red Queen, and followers


Undersiders - Deduce, Grue, Regent, Beastmistress, Chariot, Spitfire


Faultline's Crew - Faultline, Gregor the Snail, Newter, Shamrock, Burnscar


Über & L33t


Parian


There was so much to take in. So many changes and divergences just from some investigation. I jotted down powers, motivations, and personalities on separate pages to prevent information from bloating. I wiped the small build-up of sweat from my forehead. Somehow. Was I really that out of shape? Or was it from stress?

I shook my head and continued. I didn't have the best notes, especially regarding the various powersets. The best way to fix that... was to go out and figure things out. I gulped at the thought.

I haven't had powers for three days yet, and I've already decided to get involved with this crap. A parched chuckle escaped from my throat. I remember a time when I wouldn't have done that.

The screen before me closed while the Omnitrix core slinked back down. I guess the device could tell I was done. I pushed myself off the couch and stood still. I took in the sweet-scented air and stared at the gadget on my wrist.

I dialed up the unfamiliar silhouette and scrutinized the weird shape. I need to figure out who this one is before I turn into it in the middle of a fight at the worst time. I knew how much of a troll this thing could be. I was far from the beach and wasn't returning to the Graveyard.

I shot a glance at my computer. "Bellwood borders Brockton. Bellwood had a desert near it." I muttered, my mind racing with possibilities. I jogged over, opened it, and waited for the start-up. When I got the opportunity, my fingers blitzed the keyboard and mouse pad.

My on-the-fly search brought me to a map. A brief look verified the existence of the conveniently nearby desert. A desert was a perfect place to practice and explore my powers!

"Trixie."

<Say no more.> My attached partner answered smoothly. The core popped up again, followed by the cable.

I jammed the plug into the port and waited again. The happy beep and green glow gave me confirmation. I grabbed my now watered-down tea, around halfway gone. I took a sip of the slightly less cool drink. I deflated at not hearing the satisfying ice swimming in the liquid.

I looked forward and was greeted by a gateway presumably leading to the desert. I drew in a sharp breath and braced. I charged through the reality/spatial distortion.

My surroundings changed to a much less homely, desolate, sand-filled wasteland. I skimmed the area for any sign of people. No sign of humans or the like, but I did see some Cacnea toddling on the sand.

"There's a non-zero chance of me running into a fricking Hippowdon out here isn't there?"

I shuddered at the grim idea. Such a beast, the mighty hippo. Faster than you'd expect, powerful as hell, and a ferocious force to be avoided. That doesn't even count Hippowdon. That thing could summon a sandstorm with ease and cause earthquakes. Just a single one would be enough for me to deal with.

I pushed the terrifying thought away. I glimpsed at a distant rock. I saw a small, light-brown crocodilian with black stripes napping on it. I smiled and walked away so as to not disturb the slumbering Sandile.

I didn't wander for long before a thin layer of sweat covered my skin. I raised my little wrist gadget as the sand crunched beneath my shoes.

I clicked through the images on the watch before I came to my desired one. I raised my hand up. Unfortunately, I was rudely interrupted by a fricking randomly happening with no explanation. There was no wind or any sign of one before. One just happened. The collusion between wind and sand howled in the air. I noticed a faint... singing?

The abruptness of this odd event kicked my thoughts into high gear. In an instant, I realized what was going to happen. Panic set in immediately, and my eyes widened. Oh crap, oh crap, oh crap!

My instincts metaphorically kicked me in the rear. My legs began to move in response. I thumbed the activation button for the Omnitrix.

I tripped and landed quite roughly on my side. Without thinking or selecting a transformation, making sure to not slam my hand on it, I pressed the Omnitrix core. A green flash overtook me as I changed.

Red armor surrounded my body as water flooded under it. My height and bulk grew. My arms and legs grew heavier and bulkier. A hard hood extended from my shell to envelop the back and top of my head. A grey mask covered my face, and my eyes turned blue.

"Waterflow!" I announced my moniker to the world, punctuated by the hint of a watery echo in my voice. I glanced at the wall of whirling sand and dust.

I raised my bulky arm and fired a powerful stream of water. I didn't give thought to the strength of the blast; I just shot. A sound not dissimilar to a fire hose ripped into the air. The attack tore through the whirlwind and split it.

I didn't waste time. I took the opening and leaped through the hole in the storm wall. I looked behind me and noticed two different silhouettes in the dust devil.

The shape on the ground below the flying/hovering one attacked by leaping out of the sandstorm. I didn't stay in one spot. I pressed my palms on the sandy surface and blasted myself into the air. I backflipped, stopped firing, and landed on my feet perfectly. My weight would have cracked stone, but the sand gave me a nice cushion.

The sand tornado stopped whirling, peppering the entire area with the stuff. I looked at my prior location and saw a maroon, bipedal crocodile staring at me. The 'Bully of the Sands' glared at me. As I looked the predator in the eyes, I felt sheer oppression figuratively punch me. It was as if I was looking into the eyes of a giant cat and was a weak, little mouse. Oh, this is going to suck...

The crocodilian rushed at me, powerful jaws raised and ready for chomping. I shook myself from my alarm and ran to meet this powerful opponent. It was not the most tactically sound move on my part. We collided and began to fight claw-to-claw.

I threw wild, sloppy, and reckless strikes at the Krookodile. About half of my attacks actually connected. The other half only barely grazed the tough hide of my foe.

In complete opposite to me, my opponent showcased their experience advantage over me by landing each hit. Mighty jaws clamped down on my arm. Contrary to my expectations, I still felt pain shoot through me even though my exoskeleton could easily withstand the pressure.

Wincing, I stuck my sharp claws under the reptile's teeth and pulled up. A power struggle occurred between an alien and a Pokémon.

After some struggle, I stopped trying to fight the attempt to break or eat my arm. Instead, my hand shot up to my foe's face. I introduced the killer croc's face to a pressurized water blast. Right before I shot, I noticed that the reptile's dark eyes comically widened. The attack separated us as the repulsive reptile was knocked away. Suck it!

I took a moment to catch my breath and calm down. I looked up to see where the draconic shape went, but there was no sign of what could have made the shadow.

A moment passed before I heard the singing again. I whipped my armored head around as I searched for the source. I raised my arms and held them in a threatening position, intending to shoot whatever I saw moving. Where are you, you son of a...

I didn't get to fire or finish my thought because I was blasted in the back by an unknown force. Outraged and slightly afraid for my life, I turned around to glower at the new attacker.

An insectoid dragon stared me down. The creature, a Flygon, opened its mouth. A pale white-purple blaze formed in its jaws. The flames were breathed at me in an imitation of a flamethrower.

I launched myself backward. The draconic insectoid flew towards me, wings whipping up another soon-to-be sandstorm around itself. The gusts of sand revolved around 'the Desert Spirit.' Learning from earlier, I didn't bother trying for a head-to-head clash again. Instead, I rocketed to the side, dodging another mighty burst of dragon's breath.

I landed on my side before leaping back up. I briefly wondered where the Krookodile went before readjusting my focus on the approaching dragon. My DNA-given memories reminded me of a helpful trick. I reached into the well, not literally, and called on the coldest water I could produce.

I lifted my arms again and sprayed the ice-cold liquid at my opponent. Obviously, the Flygon evaded, but I had a theory...

The shifting sand around me confirmed it. I leaped into the air, avoiding the returning crocodilian's toothy jaws as the terrible beast burst out of the sand. I sent a chilling-to-the-touch wave downwards, freezing the ground and presumably my grounded opponent. I adjusted my vision to the Flygon again, only to see the cloud of swirling sand soaring off. The singing in the air escaped with it.

The sound of sand shifting away from me indicated the Krookodile's retreat. It made sense why they'd leave me alone. Healthy prey that fought back wasn't worth it.

I switched over to a more standard temperature and stopped icing the ground. I landed with force, smashing the ice beneath me. I took a look out for anything that might try to attack me. Nothing.

"Holy hell..." I said, taking a moment to catch my breath. My breathing slowed down as my muscles relaxed.

After the adrenaline wore off, I turned away from the battlefield. Okay, let's actually start practicing.

I could feel the water current flowing in my veins as I focused inwardly. As I did so, I could also sense the hydrogen and oxygen molecules in the arid air. I felt like I could easily pull them into myself and create water.

I gave a gentle and straightforward command, reaching out with my hydrokinetic power. The composites for water responded to my call. A thin, almost invisible mist formed and entered the portholes in my palms. It wasn't anything pretty; it was like a miniature cloud being vacuumed. I felt the moisture churning and mixing into H2O in the biological canisters in my arms.

I extended my arms outward, palms facing the azure sky. I felt the ebb and flow of the water's energy coursing through my body. I exerted minor effort, firing a powerful water jet from my hand holes, far from the strongest one I could produce.

With a simple thought, I started to manipulate the water. Thin tendrils swam out from the stream, dancing in the air, twisting, turning, and intertwining with each other. As I performed my feats of aquakinesis, it was like recalling a distant memory and relearning old, unused skills. I'll say it as many times as I need; thank you for the genetic memories, Trixie.

As I dived (Heh-heh!) deeper into my abilities, I kept finding different ways to fine-tune the movements of the water. It was almost like I was in perfect sync with my controlled element. It was harmonious, only without music.

After roughly five minutes spraying the sparse area, I ceased my hydrodynamics. Once again, I commanded the liquid around me. However, I focused on the drenched sand. With a single, simplistic gesture, the drenched sand lost its moistness as I pulled the hydration out. Large volumes of water collected into one oversized mass before levitating in the air as I began to think.

I snapped my... claws? Dactyls? Whatever. My digits snapped, giving birth to an odd noise, like shells snapping together. I started shaping the water into complex patterns and fluid sculptures hanging in the air. As I continued practicing and experimenting, I knew this was the beginning of a lengthy road ahead of me. I had six more forms to experiment with, after all.

******

It's been a minute. Also, the next chapter won't have the training and experimenting. I don't want to bog things down with it like I did when starting out. I'm skipping over the first-time testing of other forms for this reason. Unless it would be fun to write and advance the plot.

Since we didn't have the little intro for Fasttrack and Waterflow, I'll put them down here!

Fasttrack: The Omnitrix's DNA sample of a Citrakayah from the planet known as Chalybeas. Fasttrack is capable of running past 300 MPH. His body is adapted to racing at ludicrous speeds. He also has heightened senses like night vision, enhanced reflexes, and superb hearing, befitting his feline-like nature. Fasttrack can manipulate kinetic energy, absorb and manipulate, but not generate, electricity to an extent.

Waterflow: The Omnitrix's DNA sample of an Oriscan from Kiuscareau. Waterflow is incredibly durable due to his armored exoskeleton and can shoot pressurized blasts of water that can pierce steel and concrete. He possesses hydrokinesis, minor cryokinesis, and phenomenal swimming talent. Oddly enough, Waterflow is quite clever and adept with technology.

Yeah, I combined Water Hazard and Overflow for Cam. It was easier for me since they were nearly identical power-wise, I liked both of them, and I couldn't decide who to use.

In general, Camryn's Omnitrix and its universe will be based mainly on the original series and reboot with some elements from the other shows mixed in. Primarily, the pop-up trivia from the OG series is mostly canon. Ironically, he only has one reboot exclusive in his Omnitrix currently.

Here's the recommendation for this chapter: In Nuclear Fire