Chapter Text
A horrid beast digs its claws in the tarmac. The ground shreds like tissue paper against the beast's power. With limbs as thick as ancient tree trunks and curling tusks the monster rampages through the streets of Bellwood. Its limb jut out at strange angles as it hoists itself upright to release a prickly roar. Massive dark eyes dart about as the EVO spots something soaring overhead. A black splotch, humanoid with long flat wings. It moves like a plane, the figures arms pressed neatly at their side. The monster reaches upwards trying to snatch the armored figure from the air, but as it curls its fingers the figure explodes. A neon green firework that pops loud enough to make the EVO recoil. Julie Yamamoto slams downwards, delivering a mighty punch to the beast's head. She plants her feet on the beast's head, quickly slamming her arms together to mold them into a single large cannon. The EVO thrashes backwards, and Julie stumbles but she doesn’t fall. Julie leaps upwards hovering in the air in front of the monster's head. It releases another awful roar, sending ripples in the air. With a surge forward, it tries to clamp its jaws onto Julie but again she reacts hastily zooming upward before she points her arm cannon downward.
“See you in hell.” Julie grins behind the translucent green visor of her armor. The round end of her arm cannon glows, she begins to be pushed upward as the green energy swirls.
A green light beams across the sky, and the EVO lifts its head up screeching a hoarse yelp of pain. From a nearby rooftop several survivors watch on in awe, as the monster collapses onto the ground. With its impact it shakes the earth and kicks up a cloud of dust that briefly envelopes the entire block. Julie floats downward, breathing heavily as she approaches the rooftop. The four begin cheering, one leaps into the air and screams at the top of his lungs;
“Jen Ten! Wahoo!” He throws his fist in the air as he leaps upward, burning through the adrenaline that had built up watching the fight.
Julie lands on the roof, staring down at the young man. He’s in his teens, with messy light brown hair and a big toothy grin. Julie stares him down, the sweats beading down her forehead. The boy is wearing a Jen Ten jacket, green with the little number 10 emblazoned on the chest. Ship emits a confused beep, and Julie sighs.
“Jen Ten isn’t here, we have to save ourselves.” Julie says,
“Come on, you have to have more faith in her!” The boy grabs at her arm, he has this stupid grin on his face. “I understand why you might be worried, considering your history but I assure you that anytime the earth is in parallel Jen Ten will be there to save us.”
“What the hell do you know about that?” Julie grabs the boy's collar, lifting him up in the air. He squirms in her grasp, swatting at her hand trying to make her drop him.
“I’m Jimmy Jones' private investigator and, uh.” Jimmy pauses, now he’s the one beading with sweat and he didn’t even have to fight a massive Evo. “I’m the, um, the creator of the Jen Ten fan forum.”
“Are you the kid who leaked Jen’s identity to the press?” Julie shakes her head, dropping Jimmy onto the ground. He lands on his butt, but quickly makes his way back to his feet.
“Yes ma’am, I understand now that I may have um hurt some people by doing that.” Jimmy holds out his hands defensively, “but honestly all I wanted to do was let Jen get credit for her work. She’s fantastic, the most badass superhero I’ve ever seen.”
“Be quiet.” Julie holds up her hand as she walks past him. She scans the survivors, the group is almost all Jimmy's age. One with brown hair peppered with little streaks of black, her hoodie is rolled up past her elbows and her jeans are cuffed far past her ankles.
“I’m Sam.” She holds out a hand for Julie, but Julie's attention is focused on something else. Standing between two others is a small fuzzy creature. Bigger than a racoon, a rodent alien with digitigrade back legs and little arms that it holds up in front of itself. Its torso is coated in thick fuzzy fur, and its beady black eyes stare upward at Julie.
“Do you know what this thing is?” Julie asks, glancing back to Jimmy. Sam takes a step back, stuffing her hands into the front pocket of her hoodie. Jimmy stammers a bit, but then the little alien begins to speak.
“Come on Jimmy, are you really going to let this robotic woman intimidate you?” The alien leaps onto Julie’s arms and scampers up onto her shoulder, before leaping onto the top of Jimmy’s head. “I save your life and this is the thanks I get?”
“Who are you?” Julie’s eyes narrow, as the aliens narrow face twitches. Its little nose lifts up.
“We should find someplace safe, if one of those winged beasts snatches me up for lunch I will be very unhappy.”
“Yeah, we can do all the introductions later.” Jimmy lifts the alien off his head, and it scrambles out of his to land on the ground. “Let’s find someplace we can hide from those monsters.”
“Fine, let's get moving.” Julie storms across the rooftop, heading toward the door to the staircase. As the group follows her one of the boys punches Jimmy in the shoulder.
“Fucking told you that wasn’t Jen Ten, dipweed.” The boy sneers at Jimmy. He’s a year younger than his peers. His face and dark hair coated in soot.
“Shut it, at least we have a superhero to help.” Jimmy retorts,
“We don’t need a superhero, if my dad was here he’d be shooting those monsters eyes out.” The boy holds up an imaginary rifle and pretends to shoot something out of the sky. He even makes a ‘pachew’ sound as he does so.
“Your dad probably is one of those monsters now.” Julie snaps, turning back and jamming a finger into his chest. Beneath the green visor of her face is scrunched up in anger, but her eyes are shiny and watery. “He could be the one I just killed.”
“Julie.” Jimmy puts a hand on her shoulder, but she pushes it away.
“Don’t Julie me, do you know what you did to my life?” Julie shouts, and Ship sadly beeps at her. Slowly she pulls back, closing her eyes. She takes a moment to collect herself before she speaks again. “Let's get all of you safe, that’s the only priority right now.”
In the sky of Bellwood the Evos fly through the sky, tunnel beneath the earth, and crawl through the street. The monsters control the city now, as they do the earth.
Jen burrows out of the ground in front of the cabin, still transformed into Armodrillo. She pops up right in front of the house they’ve been staying at. On the porch Gwen is petting Kevin, he’s sleeping. His massive body rises and falls, Gwen hopes he is having a pleasant dream, something to keep his mood lulled. Jen’s head darts around wildly, then she bursts out of the ground. The soil slides off her smooth meat body, as she walks toward the porch.
“Hows he doing?” Jen says hunching forward to fit beneath the porch's roof.
“Better, I think. He’s been sleeping a lot, hopefully he can calm down enough to transform back.” Gwen puts her hand over her mouth as she watches Jen approach her, she looks massive against the forest.
“I hope so…” Jen transforms into Big Chill, her wings fold around her body making a cloak which falls over her face. Her big green eyes disappear beneath the hood, and a cloud of icy mist falls from her mouth.
“No Cooper?” Gwen asks, she watches Jen as paces across the porch.
“I couldn’t get him out.” Jen says, her mind spinning somehow everything was going to work out, but how? A feeling rare for Jennifer creeps through her, it slithers through her body and coils around in her frigid skull. Doubt.
“Yeah well you rushed off to fight Alpha by yourself.” Gwen glares at her, it only makes the feeling worse in Jen's mind.
“You’re mad at me?” Jen looks back at Gwen, trying to read her mind by watching her eyes.
“Yeah.” Gwen simply says, and Jen releases an exhale which makes Gwen shiver. “Of course I am.”
“Well it’s not my fault you backed the cops, that was always going to end poorly.” Jen rubs her forehead with her dark bony hand, before she sits down on the edge of the porch staring out into the woods before her. The trees in the distance seem to be twisting, reaching out for something.
“You ripped our family to pieces because you wanted things done now.” Gwen's eyes flash pink, Kevin’s whole body suddenly shakes and Gwen takes a deep breath. “The worst part of it is that. That, it all is so fitting. You think you can just wave your hand and everything will sort itself out.”
“The plumbers were tearing apart Anur Millgan for resources, they were essentially occupying Anur Transyl. If that was Vilgax you’d be by my side tearing down drilling rigs and knocking satellites out of orbit.” Jen shakes her head,
“Jen, that isn’t the point, you should have talked to us about your plans before you go to war with Grandpa." Gwen runs her hand through Kevin's hair,
“The plumbers aren’t Grandpa, they are a galactic organization.” Jen leaps up off the porch, watching as Gwen glares daggers at her.
“Jennifer. You should have spoken to us.” Gwen says to Jen, putting a hand on her shoulder.
Jen is silent for a moment, her thoughts racing her breath a chilly breeze. Her gaze falls to the dirt beneath their feet, she stares at her toes. Long black claws that split from her foot. Jen presses her toes into the ground, feeling the dirt push up and cover them.
“Stop hiding behind Big Chill, I want to talk to my cousin.” Gwen finally says, she sounds kinder. Like she was telling Jen to be more considerate, like they were sixteen again and Gwen had to impart another lesson onto her.
“I think we should evacuate.” Dr. Animo pops his head out from the inside, “The trees are beginning to move.”
This breaks their argument, as Rook and Swift rush out onto the porch to join them. Rook stops just as he steps through the doorway, he stares at Jennifer who’s eyes are focused on the sky. The wind picks up, as the nanites surge through the forest. Tree limbs arc down trying to scoop Tennyson off the ground, but she flies right through them, her body a bright transparent blue. Swift leaps off the ground, swooping between two twisting branches and blasting them apart with green lasers from her eyes. The monster is the woods, the roots and the branches all flailing and reaching for their prey. The forest hungers, now twisted by the nanites into a malicious mass.
“Gwen, can you teleport us out of here?” Jen shouts, floating back down to the ground.
“I need a few minutes to prepare,” she replies. Kevin’s eyes flicker open, and they begin to dart around wildly. Gwen freezes, looking back at him. The couples breathing slowly moves in sync as they look into each other's eyes.
Above them an evo leaps out of the brush, an insectoid beast with tangled limbs coated in spikes. It screeches as it flies in the air toward them. Rook draws his Proto-Tool, flicking it forward and transforming it into a long staff which he uses to smack the evo off course. It tumbles onto the ground and Rook leaps onto it, then slams his staff onto the creature's head pushing it into the dirt below. It screams again, pushing itself upward with its many legs. Rook slides the Proto-Tool in on itself, shifting it into a rifle which he uses to blast apart the EVOs head.
“Kevin?” Gwen asks, putting a hand onto his cheek. Swift is launched through a window on the front of the cabin, she tumbles over a table and disappears inside.
“Gwen.” Kevin says, as he puts his hand over hers.
Rook dashes across a long branch, which twitches like a tentacle. He transforms the Proto-Tool into a sword and slams it down into the creature, the tree evo shakes vigorously flinging Rook and his weapon onto the ground.
“I’m here. ” Gwen's voice is soft, almost buried beneath the sound of an explosion which casts a rainbow glow over her face. Jennifer hovers in the air, now transformed into Chromastone. She holds out her hands and fires beams of light which slice apart the tendrils of the evo.
“This new power.” Kevin closes his eyes, and tightens his grip on Gwen's hand. His breathing heightens, hot clouds of breath hits Gwen's face as she begins to squirm against his grip. “It gives me focus.”
“Kevin, listen to me, you aren’t thinking clearly.”
“You don’t understand.” Kevin’s eyes flash open, they glow hot with rage. He rises, lifting Gwen into the air. His slimy hand wraps around her arm and sparks crackle along his body. “I am thinking perfectly clear.”
“Alright Kev, let’s dial it down.” Jennifer lands on the porch, the rainbow light fading from her body. The crystals jutting from her back glimmer in the dim light as the monstrous woods begin to cover the sky in a wooden blanket.
“Don’t tell me what to do Tennyson.” Kevin sneers, tightening his grip on Gwen. Then he whips his head back, closing his eyes and growling. “Once I take her powers I’ll be unstoppable.”
“Kevin, she is your wife, you don’t want to hurt her.” Jen holds out her hands, slowly approaching Kevin. He grits his teeth, steam pours from his mouth as a raging fire boils within him.
“You have no idea how I feel!” Kevin growls, tossing Gwen aside. She rolls across the ground, her clothes being covered in dirt.
“Are you really going to let some little machines get the best of you?” She lowers her hands, finally stopping in front of Kevin. She looks up at him with her singular green eye. “ You are Kevin Levin! The toughest baddest guy in the universe, you don’t need to listen to these nanites.”
Kevin pauses, looking down at Jen. The crystals poking out from her chest, that little glowing device at the center. “You’re such an obnoxious brat.”
“Always thinking you know what’s right.” Kevin grabs Jen by the head, the goopy material wraps itself around her and the rocky core at the center glows. Jen’s body begins to compress, her body cracking and shattering as she is pulled into the gravitational core.
“Sommus!” Gwen shouts, as a snap of pink light explodes around Kevin's head. His eyes fall shut and he slams onto the ground, scattering bits of Jennifer all across the porch.
The Omnitrix glows, as the bits of rock transform into blops of green goop which reconstitute into a humanoid form. Each droplet being picked up the UFO shaped anti-gravity projector.
“Thanks Gwen.” Jen rubs the back of her head sheepishly.
“Let’s go, we need to get somewhere safe before he wakes up.” Gwen brushes the dirt off herself, and moves over to help Rook up. Jen gives her a thumbs up. Green slime drips from her fingers and folds back into her arm.
“Yup, cool. No time wasted.” Jen stretches out her arms, and grabs Swift out from inside the cabin. Swift's red tail flails behind her as Jen yanks her outside.
Gwen sits down with her legs crossed. She closes her eyes, as Rook draws his blade. His face is covered in dirt and his brow furrowed in focus. Animo cowers behind Gwen, trying to make himself as small as he can.
The woods reach out for the team, trying to tangle them up in brambles. A pink glow radiates from Gwen, forming a bubble of light that radiates out to slowly encompass the entire team. Jen stares out into the distance, watching Alpha's satellite hovering overhead a dark spire floating over a twisted wood.
A branch shoots downward, moving like a missile careening toward the earth's surface. The branch twists and grows into a trunk just before it slams into Jennifer, her body explodes out splattering lime green goop all across the forest. Hovering above where she once stood is her anti gravity projector, which tilts forward as Jen begins to reform herself. A stream of slime slides across the log, slipping between cracks in the wood and bursting it apart. Rook leaps upward, slashing apart the remains of the branch with his Proto-Tool. The pink light from Gwen’s spell flashes, and Rook snatches Jen’s anti gravity projector out of the air and then leaps into the light. Jen’s slimy body follows the projector being pulled into the light, as the group vanishes from the woods.
Bellwood smelled foul, an Evo the size of an oil tanker with a hundred eyes and glossy bulbous eyes erupts its bile onto the side of a skyscraper. Its six fuzzy limbs burst through the windows as it clampers up the building. The awful gunk arcs upwards from its mouth and splatters outward, falling toward the street below. Above this creature, a light appears. At first small, the outline of a woman sitting with her legs crossed but it quickly expands out. Twirling into a sphere of magic that glistens above the putrid green coating the skyscrapers windows. The group begins falling, Swift wakes up screaming quickly holding out her arms and flying away from the creature. Animo also screams, flailing his arms around wildly. Gwen holds out her hands, her red hair flying upwards as she falls. Animo’s face slams into the magic barrier and he groans in pain. Despite this Gwen remains calm, forming a magical shield beneath her that catches Kevin, Rook and herself. Jen has already changed into another alien form, reacting quickly to the danger. Her body molds from its amorphous form into something more solid. A head with olive green stalks protruding from its side, four spindly insectoid legs and a large spiked plate on her tail. From the stalks on her heada splattering of goop flies into the many eyes of the Evo, it roars and begins swatting the air with one of its large claws which are coated in the creature's thick vomit.
“Jennifer perhaps stinkfly is not the right alien to fight a creature of this size!” Rook shouts, cupping his hands over. His fur stands on end as he gets a whiff of the creature's awful bile.
“Come on Rook, fighting stink with stink always works.” Jen grins and gives Rook the closest thing to a thumbs up an alien with three fingers can. “You guys get out of here, I got this.”
She buzzes around the monster, shooting blops of goo at its many eyes and around its mouth. Then one of the creature's arms hits Jen and she slams through a window, the glass flies across the abandoned office. She tumbles through cubicles, knocking the feeble things over until she slams into a water cool which breaks open spilling water all over her.
“Oh come on, these things don’t work wet.” Jen quickly flaps her wings, trying to shake the water off as she regains her footing on her four pointed limbs.
A dozen eyes peer through the broken window, staring right at Jennifer. Her mouth twists into a scowl as the creature tries to grasp Jen with its claw. The Evo roars at her, it’s bile dribbles down its mouth.
“You know, you really reek and that’s coming from me.” Jen grins and pretends to pinch the nose she doesn’t have. Then she rushes forward, moving as fast as her little legs can and quickly fluttering her wings trying to pull herself off the ground.
Jen leaps to the side, propelling herself off the ground and dodging another swat from the Evo. She shoots a barrage of gunk from her stalks which sticks the Evos arm to the office floor. Quickly, Jen flies outside, moving past the creature's head. The evo finally frees itself, pulling its body backwards with all its might, causing it to hurtle backwards toward the ground. Jen buzzes past it, and lands on a light post. Then she notices something, causing her to leap off the post and transform in a flash of bright green rushing where the monster is going to land. It roars as it collides with the ground, causing the ground to shake and crack as it pushes the pavement apart. A blue alien stands beside the monster, Jen transformed into XLR8 holds a cat in her alien claws. She glances down at it, a little orange cat with white spots. Its eyes narrow as it studies Jen closely.
“It’s alright little buddy, you’re safe.” Jen says, moving her hand to pet the kitty, but it hisses and leaps out of her arms. Rushing across the street and scurrying into a building.
Above her, Gwen descends with an unconscious Kevin beside her. Gwen's green eyes glare down at Jen, as the platform behind her Rook stands awkwardly adjusting his stance. Gwen looms above Jen, she wears a familiar scowl, there’s something she messed up, it's like she’s ten all over again.
“We don’t have time to fight monsters, we have to find a safe place.” Gwen crosses her arms, watching Jen as she taps her claws together.
“I wasn’t the one who teleported us right above a monster.” Jen shrugs, still fidgeting with her hands.
“That is not my fault!” Gwen snaps back at Jen, and she drops her arms to her side.
“How? Can’t magic just take you anywhere?” Jen retorts, pointing up her claw at Gwen. “Aren’t you supposed to be like the best wizard in the universe or something?”
“I was rushing, without absolute concentration the spell is highly volatile.” Gwen rubs her forehead before sighing in frustration. “You have to stay on mission.”
“Stay on mission? You never even told me we had a mission.” Jen shakes her head,
“How can you not know our mission? We protect Kevin until your machine guy can show up and fix everything.” Gwen looks to Rook for a moment, before returning her glare to Jen who just shrugs.
“We should stop arguing until we have found a safe house.” Rook chimes in, nervously glancing around seeing the Evos climbing across buildings in the distance. His fur stands on end as he watches the monsters make Bellwood their home. The city has been completely overrun; the skyscrapers, parks and sewers have become the habitats of those transformed by the nanites.
“Well uh, I didn’t know the mission either Jen. If that makes you feel any better.” Animo says, his white hair a wiry mess with strands poking up in all directions. He smiles widely with yellowed teeth. “I thought we were going to get eaten by that beast.”
Something screeches overhead, it sounds like a vulture with holes in its throat. Animo looks up, his eyes grow in panic. Jen looks upward, trying to find the creature overhead. From above Swift descends toward the team, she glides with her arms outstretched as she touches the ground.
“So um, do you guys have a plan?” Swift asks, glancing at Jen first then to Gwen who sighs. Something shrieks from overhead, making Swift jump.
“Looking for somewhere safe to settle.” Jen says gliding across the pavement with her wheeled feet. She slides back and forth, doing some circles around Gwen, Rook and the others. “I’ll do some scouting, call if you find something.”
Jen vanishes in a blur of blue and black, dashing across the cracked street of Bellwood. As she reaches the end of the block she pushes upward with her digitigrade legs, launching herself in the air. As she spirals in the air Jen transforms, her mouth juts outward into a sharp beak and her wheels morph into orange talons, from her back two wings snap outward as Jen rockets through the city. Behind her a glowing ring of green explodes out until it dissipates into glitter sparks. Despite the smell, and the Evos the air was nice. Cool on Jennifer's alien face, as Astrodatcyl she flies through the city at immense speeds, disappearing from Gwen’s view.