Ben 10: Carnitrix Without Downsides?

A terrifying blood-red light flickered at the mouth of the tunnel.

Despite the sweltering heat radiating from the passage, the temperature around the exit suddenly dropped.

Gwen instinctively pulled her sleeves tighter, her breath visible in the air. Grandpa Max subtly stepped back a few paces, unsettled.

A massive silver-white iguana slowly emerged from the tunnel.

Its mouth was lined with sharp, jagged teeth. Spikes jutted from its back, and a row of shark-like dorsal fins ran down its spine. Though it wasn't particularly large, it radiated an aura of immense pressure.

Upon closer inspection, one could even see its internal organs faintly glowing beneath its semi-transparent shell—an unnerving sight.

"This guy is…" Ben stared at Zack in disbelief, instinctively taking a step back. "The Grave Glacier!"

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Zack grinned coldly as he walked forward to the tunnel's mouth. "Then I guess it's time for the Grave Glacier… to wipe out these Sludgepuppies. Heeeeeh~~"

"Ahh! Please don't smile like that!!!"

Whoosh!

The smoke cleared slowly.

Towering, hulking Sludgepuppies emerged from the haze, muscles bulging and expressions twisted in fury.

"Another alien transformation?" one of them growled. "Just how many of you want to die today?!"

"Take them all out!"

"Damn it—could he be from a distorted alien DNA from a lizard species…?!"

Each of the Sludgepuppy aliens stood over three meters tall, their hulking forms packed with muscle. They looked more like sludge-covered demons than anything else.

With heavy steps, they charged directly at Zack!

"Haaah!!"

"Fuuaaa!"

Zack drew in a long breath. His stomach visibly expanded like a balloon filling with air—then—

"Fuu!"

He exhaled violently.

A blast of deep blue frost shot from his mouth in a concentrated beam, hitting the incoming group of Sludgepuppies dead-on.

They froze in place for a moment.

Then, their skin rapidly turned a pale sky blue.

Their limbs locked up.

And finally, their whole bodies crystallized—frozen solid in the exact pose they'd charged in, now silent ice sculptures.

Within seconds, seven or eight Sludgepuppies had been completely immobilized.

"Wha—?! Noooo!! It's a monster that can freeeeze us!!"

"Quick, ruuuuun…!"

Seeing their frozen comrades, the remaining Sludgepuppies panicked and scattered, sprinting away in fear.

"Run? You're not getting away!" Zack narrowed his eyes and exhaled again, this time sending condensed blasts of cold air like missiles—ice bombs that chased after the fleeing aliens.

His aim was precise, landing direct hits almost every time.

One by one, more Sludgepuppies were frozen mid-escape, turned into eerily lifelike ice sculptures scattered throughout the base.

Eventually, only two were left, staggering in terror as they bolted toward a secondary tunnel exit.

Zack, slightly winded, clutched his chest. "I'm out of breath… damn it. I'll deal with you two in a minute!"

Bang!

Just then, Ben stepped forward, conjuring a fireball in his palm.

"Ben, they're not afraid of fire!" Gwen quickly warned.

Boom!

Ben ignored the warning and hurled the fireball——but it didn't target the Sludgepuppies.

Instead, it exploded at the tunnel entrance ahead of them, triggering a cave-in!

The two Sludgepuppies skidded to a stop, their faces slack with horror as rubble completely blocked their escape route.

Ren: "Heh~"

Helplessly, they slapped at the sealed exit with gooey fists, utterly dumbfounded.

"Here I come! Fuua~ Fuuuu!!"

As Zack's breathing steadied, he unleashed a long-range freezing ray once more!

The icy beam blasted through the air, hitting the two remaining Sludgepuppies dead-on. In an instant, they froze solid—perfect ice sculptures sealed into a magnificent glacial fortress where the tunnel collapse had been moments earlier.

"Phew… that's that."Zack let out a breath and smiled in satisfaction.

Ding! The host has defeated a large number of Perfect Sludgepuppy-class Extraterrestrials. Progress +1!

Template Progress: 12/100

Unlocked: Carnitrix Feedback, Carnitrix Upgrade!

Zack's eyes lit up, and a surge of excitement spread across his face.

He'd just gained two new aliens—Feedback and Upgrade—both capable of manipulating electric-related stuff. Feedback was one of the coolest aliens from Omniverse, and Upgrade will be a huge upgrade for him... lol?

Heheheh.. With these added to his arsenal...

He was now well on his way to unlocking all of the core transformations from the original Omnitrix. He wasn't quite at the Way Big level yet, but he was getting close.

While Zack was still riding the high of his new upgrades—

"I'm not a meathead…" Ben muttered from the side, lowering his arms.

"And for the record, Gwen, that fireball earlier wasn't meant to attack. I was just trying to block their escape path!" He sounded oddly defensive.

Gwen blinked, then shrugged. "Sure, whatever helps you sleep at night. But Zack was amazing! Um.. Ben?"

Gwen glanced at Ben with a tinge of guilt—it was her turn to be at a loss for words.

"Uh… Ben, thanks for blocking those Geeks just now." To lighten the mood, Zack offered his thanks, even though it wasn't really necessary.

They got along well, and a small thing like that usually didn't warrant a thank-you. But he was just trying to smooth things over.

"No problem."

Ben shrugged casually, trying to act unfazed. "Let's get Grand Aunt and the others home! Come on!"

"MonXTR can handle the cleanup," Zack said, breathing a sigh of relief as he reached for the Carnitrix and selected a new transformation.

As the MonXTR alien appeared, it immediately got to work transporting the remaining Sludgepuppy egg sacs from the base.

The others joined in silently, lending a hand without needing to be asked.

During the process, Grandpa Max noticed Ben still sulking and let out a thoughtful sigh.

"It's rare to see Ben feeling this discouraged," he murmured. But a little frustration isn't necessarily a bad thing. Ben, I hope you'll take this as motivation… and learn to use your watch better.

He still had faith in him.

As long as Ben was willing to put in the effort, even if he couldn't surpass Zack, at the very least, the gap between them wouldn't be so huge.

About half an hour later…

All the townsfolk who had been trapped were safely returned to their homes.

When they eventually woke up, they miraculously had no memory of the past few days—chalked it up to old age or simple forgetfulness.

Just like that, the crisis with the alien Geeks quietly faded from everyone's memory.

Zack and the others stayed at Grand Aunt Vera's house for another day. That evening, the two boys even used Upgrade to help repair parts of the town's water and power systems, doing plenty of good deeds before bed.

The next morning.

Aunt Vera crouched down and gave Ben's cheeks a thorough pinch.

"Hohoho… Ben, Zack, you two be sure to visit often, you hear?"

"I know, Grand Aunt…" Ben replied through puffed-up cheeks, his voice muffled by the pinching.

Zack, on the other hand, smartly avoided the same fate by darting over to give their uncle a quick hug instead—successfully dodging Grand Aunt Vera's iron grip.

Finally, under the watchful eyes of Grand Aunt and their uncle… Everyone boarded the Rustbucket once again.

And with a rumble, their journey continued toward the next adventure.

Inside the Rustbucket, Zack sat gazing at the Feedback and Upgrade icons glowing on the Error Watch. A small, confident smile played on his lips.

"Heh… If I remember correctly, some bounty hunters are supposed to show up today. I forgot exactly who… but whoever it is—if they run into Feedback, they're in for a bad time."

Error Feedback… I ask you, are you scared or not?

Across from him, Ben sat with a serious expression, staring down at the Omnitrix strapped to his wrist.

"I was seriously lame yesterday," he muttered, clenching his fist slightly. "I won't be that lame again."

Frustration doesn't always guarantee growth… But when it came to Ben, it was practically a given—he always grew stronger from setbacks.

——

Meanwhile, in outer space.

Aboard the spaceship belonging to Mojas, in a dimly lit lounge…

A golden combat robot stood silently, polishing the massive crab-like pincers attached to its arms. A huge sword rested sheathed across its metallic back, and each of its crab legs gleamed under the overhead lights.

Leaning against the far wall, a bounty hunter clad in heavy full-body armor rested silently. A hovering gravity board floated beside him, humming faintly.

"keh keh keh…"

A third figure, wearing purple samurai-style armor with a belt lined with firearms, occasionally let out a low, eerie chuckle. His laugh echoed hollowly from within his helmet, a sound that sent chills through the air.

Something dangerous was coming.

Whoosh—!

The lounge door slid open with a hiss, and a sleek, metallic robot stepped inside.

"Can we begin now?" the golden robot asked impatiently. "Our test."

The newcomer replied in a cold, mechanical tone, "The enemy is stronger than expected. The Lord has decided to cancel your assessment."

"Cancel it?" the golden robot blinked. "Why?"

"Because instead of evaluating you," the robot continued, "the military units originally prepared for the test will now accompany you—your objective is to eliminate the targets directly."

The golden robot let out a distorted chuckle.

"Let us lead military robots… just to deal with two Earthlings who possess the Omnitrix?" he scoffed. "This mission is going to be laughably easy!"

Across the room, the heavily armored bounty hunter slowly raised his head. His eyes glinted beneath his helmet, though his expression remained unreadable.

"Those two Earthlings..." he muttered, voice low and detached, "they're finished."

But inwardly, his thoughts were more complicated.

I'll observe first. If those two kids can survive this… then maybe—just maybe—I'll consider lending them a hand.