The sky was covered in a turquoise hue fading off in the distance, it gave him the feeling of being constantly under water. In the past, maybe he would've thought about drowning or felt at the very least uncomfortable, but he now felt more like it was a sign he was safe, where he was meant to be.

After first arriving, servants took his luggage out to his room, his... old room. Knowing he would've grown up there, slept there and simply lived in there was so weird, but just like getting the Omnitrix, he'd get used to it eventually. Though he doubted having servants around at all times would make it easier any time soon...

Upon entering the castle, he was greeted by some weird fish guy named Psyphon, who was quick to call him "Prince Benjamin". Closest he could get him to stop after two weeks was "Prince Ben", and even then, Ben was still on the fence about the way they were all respecting him to a ridiculous degree. Maybe it'd be normal for his dad, but Ben usually needed to show people around that he needed respect, and have it given to him right off the bat was... so weird.

Vilgax wasn't wrong, Ben was welcomed by all their people pretty well. For some reason, having a human prince wasn't so much of a problem, but at the same time, he guessed his dad would've ordered everyone on the planet to find him nine years ago, they would be all well aware of what he was. Of what he is.

He never thought about eating sea food only before, but he had to admit the cooking at the castle was a hundred times better than what Ma- than what he used to eat on Earth. Back in Bellwood, he'd starve himself until tomorrow's breakfast if he saw his mo- Sandra-

He frowned, staring at the ceiling while laying on the king-sized bed. He'd been there for a few days, reluctant to ever step out of his room if it wasn't to eat. It was furnished with more things than he could imagine was possible to have for a 10 years old: a climbing wall, a skateboard ramp (did he even bring a skateboard along? He did have his hoverboard though), his own bathroom, some kind of weird sci-fi blobby computer (of which he still understood none of the letters), closets big enough to hide a car in those...

One would wonder if Ben's room wasn't an entire playground instead. Then again, his dad did spend a good portion of his life not having him around, all that time missing him must've pushed him to make up for it, even if he had a very original way of doing it. Ben wasn't complaining, even if he wasn't used to these kinds of gifts. Now that he left his room on Earth, he still had to unpack some of his stuff.

In the meantime, he had traded the cargo pants for light grey and white pants instead, matching his shirt, as well as replacing his shoes with black sandals (he still wore his socks underneath, something the maids wanted to comment on but cut themselves short the first time they saw him).

The servants took the liberty of getting his clothes out, but they seemingly had no idea what some of the items he brought were (in what galaxy is a yo-yo anything like a flail?). His room would become a mess if they let him be, but for some reason, it made Ben feel uncomfortable that people were cleaning up after him, he wasn't one to really value privacy at home. There were no secrets between-

There were. There were secrets and they never told him about it. He was never told about being a Vilgaxian and he couldn't trust anyone with something that personal anymore.

"Gwen! Wait!"

"I don't care!"

She ran off in the night, tears coming out of her tired green eyes as she ignored the calls of her family.

Two weeks, two weeks since they've failed. Two weeks since Ben was gone and she was worried sick about him. Two weeks during which she spent countless nights looking for a spell to bring him back, two weeks during which she had begged Max to get Azmuth ASAP. She barely ate, barely paid any attention in class, barely thought about anything else in the time her cousin was gone.

News spread around the street and at her school. Everyone knew that Ben Tennyson, her cousin, was now an official missing person case. She had received many calls from classmates and a few supportive texts from Emily she didn't have the time to answer yet. She had just gotten back from another spell searching session when her uncle and aunt visited.

She wasn't that much in good shape to begin with, but what they told her finished her off. She had hoped they were bringing good news, that maybe they needed more support too, that they wanted to talk about why Ben was gone... instead, they told her Ben was adopted.

Like she cared! It didn't matter whether or not Ben was related to her or descended from a brainless chimp, he still was her cousin! Hell, it meant nothing to her at all, nothing! He still grew up in the same town as her, caused her a lot of trouble on many family gatherings before, acted like a disgusting slimeball when she was around, acted like the doofus he was, and nothing could ever change that!

She was so mad, why did it matter to tell her this? As if it'd bring Ben back! All they've done is shut Max out from the problem the day after the entire mess happened. She wasn't given details, but her parents and uncle and aunt warned her against going to Max, as well as telling her she wouldn't spend her next vacations with him anymore.

What did they think, that getting mad would solve all of this? She wished! Ben was gone, he was gone and he could be gone for good for all she knew! She wasn't even sure she'd ever be able to track him down even if they knew where he went, his aliens gave off the same energy as he did.

This couldn't be the end of it, she won't let it happen! Ben got into bigger trouble before, whether it was Vilgax, or gladiator-loving kidnappers, other weird alien creatures from space, or even-

"Ouch!"

"Hey, watch where you're going!"

"Sorry!"

Gwen hadn't even realized she ran onto someone until she fell down. Breaking her out of her thoughts, she shook her head and got back up.

"I'm sorry, I should have- Kevin?!"

The black-haired kid looked up and his eyes widened before they both took a step back. What was Kevin doing here, settling scores? And... was he back to looking human now? When did that happen?

"You're Tennyson's cousin! What are you doing over here, getting ready for a date or something?"

"Ugh, grow up." She rolled her eyes. "I should be the one asking you that! What are you doing in Bellwood?"

"I thought you were the smart one and your cousin was the idiot." he mocked. "Speaking of which, Tennyson and I need to talk. What about you? Did you run away at this time of the year because you realized school was boring? What's a nerd like you doing in Bellwood anyway?"

"My family and I live here."

"...oh."

Kevin suddenly wondered how come he never managed to run into the Tennysons while he was still in town. Then again, if people heard about the trouble he brought, their parents would not let them anywhere near him. Still felt weird knowing Tennyson had the same hometown as he did, maybe there really was something attracting all the weirdness to it.

"Well, did you come to fight me or do I have to make you scream to make Tennyson come."

She suddenly sent him a chilling stare that, despite what he's been through, momentarily froze him. She looked really mad, guess it was normal when he kept coming after her cousin, though he'd expect her to be more sarcastic about it.

"Well?"

"Ben's not coming."

He raised a brow. "Why not?"

"You don't know anything, do you? Ben's gone! Ben was kidnapped by Vilgax and taken into space, he's gone."

A stunned silence placed itself between both kids. Kevin's hands shook.

'No, it can't be! He can't be gone like this! She's just pulling my leg, that's it!'

"But he's coming back, right?"

She sent him a mixture of a shocked and disgusted look. Was he seriously asking her if Ben would come back so he'd beat him up?!

"I don't know! He's never been gone for this long, okay?! In fact, he might even be-" She stopped herself, frowning as she angrily wiped tears off her eyes.

"That can't be real! Tennyson wouldn't give up this easily, even against a squidface like him!"

"I don't know what to say, Kevin! I- wait, hold on, squidface?" she realized. "You... you met Vilgax?"

Kevin huffed. "I might've asked for his help once. He just stole the alien powers I got from your cousin and brought me back to being a normal kind of freak."

"So you know him. Do you have any idea how to contact Vilgax or at least track down where he went?"

"Hell if I know! Last time I checked, he was at Niagara Falls before I ran off. I don't have any clue where your cousin would be if it's not in whatever underwater cavern that fish face lives in."

"That's not how- oh never mind, why am I talking to you?" she sighed. "You got a beef with Ben, you wouldn't be of any help. What took you so long to come after us anyway? We've been in town ever since summer was over."

"I had my own stuff to take care of first."

"Like what?"

A young boy wearing an orange shirt with a fire sign on it ran up to Kevin, a boy she didn't think she'd seen before. Kevin was traveling with someone? And they didn't look related either.

"Kev', I think I got a clue but, you're not gonna like it. That Ben guy you're looking for, he's..." Alan paused noticing the girl Kevin was talking to. He never saw her before, did he? And they looked busy before he came. "Oh, I'm sorry. Didn't know you were meeting up with your girlfriend."

Outraged noises escaped both pre-teens as they blushed bright, letting a few curses out before mustering the right words.

"She/I'm not my/his girlfriend!" they both shouted, earning a laugh from Alan.

"You sure? Your superpowers look the same though."

Gwen realized she was making a few pink sparks with her hands, having clenched her fists hearing the kid's dumb joke. Did she always have to hang around idiots with lousy humor?

"I don't absorb energy like Kevin does." said Gwen. "Unlike him, I know when to pick my battles."

"That's not much with Kevin." he said, making the boy in question groan.

"Alan, can you like, give us some space. And not that way!" he precised once he saw the smug smirk the younger boy gave him. "Anyway, what are you even doing here out at night? It's not even the weekend yet."

"Avoiding my parents so they won't lecture me about... you know..." she crossed her arms, looking away. "And you? Are you really back for another fight?"

"I told you, I came here to talk with your cousin." said Kevin. "But, I guess that'll have to wait..."

They stayed silent for a few minutes, not finding anything else to say. Alan on his part wished he had something to munch on, this sounded like some cheesy soap opera. With sci-fi, mutants, aliens and runaway kids. He wished he knew what else they talked about before he came back, seemed he missed the best part.

"Yeah, I think you two will talk better without me around. See ya!"

"Hey wait! Ugh, what's up with him tonight?" complained Kevin.

Gwen hesitated. She really had no one else to talk to about Ben and all this alien stuff without getting in trouble. She wanted to say it was better than nothing, but Kevin made her doubt it severely.

Still not like she had a choice.

"You know what, he's right."

"Uh, wha? Right about what?"

"You met Ben. I knew him." she said taking seat on the sidewalk. "We both got something to say about him. So, let's talk. About Ben."

As Alan got away, he wondered what could be so important about that Ben guy that she sounded so solemn about it. He disappeared recently but, if he was such a strong alien superhero, he'd probably be home in two to three days, tops.

Sometimes, he almost wished he could turn into an alien too, would make running away much easier if he could just fly.

Though while he was unaware of what they were saying, he wasn't naive either. As soon as he walked far enough, he turned abruptly to face the two kids following after him.

"What do you want from me?"

Ben sighed heavily as he stepped out into the halls. He needed a serious time outside, get out of his own head and see people. He didn't feel like talking to any maid or servant they had, he was too annoyed for now. He doubted people outside wouldn't recognize him on sight, but it was still better than nothing.

He didn't want to disturb his dad yet, Vilgax was busy working on his ship. Juryrigg could help, but Vilgax insisted he took the time to forget about the Earth a bit rather than wasting his energy on war supplies. In the end, he had been on his own for most of the day, he'd love to take his mind off everything happening to him all at the same time.

As he was about to turn around the corner, he stopped as he saw two familiar figures.

"Ah, young master! Our apologies if we made you wait." said Kraab. "Lord Vilgax has requested a full summary of everything that happened while we took care of guarding you on Earth. We were told we could resume our jobs today now that your father Lord Vilgax has decided you were safe enough without us."

Ben stared, unsure if the last part meant they had done a good or terrible job keeping him safe. Nonetheless, he was overjoyed, grabbing both hunters and giving them a hug.

"I missed you guys so much! I don't care what you were doing, you're spending the rest of the day with me."

"You're... not mad at us?" translated Kraab from SixSix's grunts.

"Oh I'm still mad at you big time." said Ben. "But you guys are the only ones I can actually talk to and not, you know, feel too much like you're putting me on a pedestal. At least, you two know me."

Both Bounty Hunters pondered over their liege's words. They weren't ones to comment, but it didn't look like he had any rest until they came over to talk.

"Is everything alright?"

"Yeah! Now come on and let's get out of here!" he said, slamming the dial as he went XLR8.

Though they did not have super speed, they were able to follow him back to the gate, panting as SixSix grabbed his hand.

"We apologize, young master, but your father has requested that we do not attract too much attention to you. News of your arrival are still too recent and they could spread over back to the Plumbers if we don't give it some time."

"Oh come on! Seriously?! Dad and his weird rules, blegh!" complained the Kineceleran. "Hey, hold on, everyone here knows I'm human, right? Do they know about the Omnitrix?"

Would saying 'no' be a bad idea? Considering they later walked around the city with a young Chimeran instead of a human, they realized it was indeed a terrible idea. How they managed to keep their job while answering to Ben's whims was anyone's guess.

"So you don't remember fighting Ben that day?" she asked.

"I don't know, it's such a huge mess..." said Kevin, bringing his head into hands. "Squid Man got me cornered while I was still a mutant. I don't remember a thing of what happened that day. You said he's had some Master Control on?"

"Ben himself said he lost it to you. Maybe you were under mind control when that happened."

"Mind control? Like in Brain Stealers From Outer Space, perhaps? Get real."

"Ghostfreak once took control of a few kids at a school I visited. If a ghost alien can do it, I think someone like Vilgax would have the technology to do the same. He once got a biker gang leader to look for the Omnitrix."

"Talk about desperate." laughed Kevin. "Hey, uh, I know this sounds dumb but... sometimes, I get these weird dreams, or visions. I don't know what to call them."

"Huh?"

"Sometimes, I imagine I'm still trapped by Vilgax, and your cousin's here." said Kevin. "He talks, apologizes for a bunch of stuff that makes him sound like a wimp, and I don't know why, it keeps coming up."

She stared at him, unsure of what to make of what he's just said.

"I just don't know why but, I feel like that really happened. Maybe he was talking to me when I was zoned out, but it's as if he was there when I lost my powers."

"Or maybe you're just feeling guilty you chased him around with his own alien powers." she suggested, smiling as the boy had an expression that screamed 'drop dead'. "How does this weird 'dream' even end anyway?"

"It... doesn't make sense. I guess it's normal because it's a dream but, after he's done talking, he's suddenly gone and I see Vilgax trying to eat me up." he admitted. "It's dumb anyway but, I can't get those images out of my head, it's replaying itself like a tape recorder put on loop."

"Maybe I could figure a spell out to look through your brain, but dreams are a lot more tricky than memories. I have to look for something your brain made up, and I don't even know how to see memories yet."

"Oh yeah. Magic."

"Yeah."

"..."

With that, Gwen had just agreed to help Kevin. Would she do it? Maybe. Was he going to help her in return? Maybe not.

For now, they had their own lives to take care of. Gwen had to go back home before her parents blew a gasket, and Kevin was apparently babysitting. This wasn't what she had expected going back home, but if she was honest with herself, she should've known not to have any expectations from the moment Ben put on the Omnitrix.

Things would be moving soon, she'd have to accept that for now, Ben's gone and he's not coming back. Possibly never. Until she proved that wrong, she was stuck in town with her cousin's other archnemesis in tow. She genuinely hoped whenever Ben was, he wasn't having the time of his life in space. He'd better not be enjoying himself while the rest of the family was worried, otherwise she'd send him flying back to the cosmos right away.

She spotted Alan, Kevin's new friend, coming by with two other kids. For some reason, Alan reminded her of Ben for a bit. Silly, a goofball with bad taste in humor that actually just didn't know better and could be annoying talking too much. Maybe it was also his shirt that reminded her of Heatblast. Maybe it was a lot of things, she honestly didn't know.

"Kevin, I think you got some fans." said Alan.

"What?"

"Is it true that you fought off those robots heroically when Bellwood was attacked?" asked the blue-haired girl.

"And is it true you got superpowers?" asked the boy that was with her.

"Uhhh, Alan, who are they?" said Kevin, confused.

"Oh well, looks like your fanclub's there." joked Gwen. "I gotta head home, see you around."

'What's it with everyone leaving when I need it the least?'

"Who was she? Another superhero?" asked the boy.

"Oh, her?" said Alan. "Yeah, she is. That's Kevin's girlfriend."

"NO SHE'S NOT, STOP SAYING THAT!" shouted the mutant, outraged.

Pierce and Helen exchanged a look before subtly nodding to each other. If what this Alan guy said was true, then maybe this Kevin dude could be trusted. Though they weren't convinced by his looks, if he really did use his powers to help the town when it was in danger, then maybe they misjudged him.

From the way he was acting now, he didn't really sound like a good guy, berating the younger boy for what he said. But at the same time, they really didn't know who he was yet.

This did not feel allowed at all, Ben's authorization might not exempt them from punishment this time.

Walking among his own, Ben went unnoticed by the townspeople. His Omnitrix was not all that obvious with the jewelry many inhabitants were wearing, and he wasn't exactly wearing anything royal-looking either. As unusual as being on an alien planet (...that he came from.), being an alien (...which he was since last summer vacation began.) and walking around looking like that was, this was the most normal he had felt in a while.

Back in Bellwood, everyone just saw him as a loser. Out of town, he had stayed with Gwen and Max most of the time, and it was anything but normal. Here however, he just... didn't feel a thing. Yeah, he was transformed, but his Chimeran form felt more natural than any of his other alien forms, it was his body and it was him. He didn't need to hide as much as he did before, he was finally free.

No one but his guards and dad knew him there, he could start anew, make a fresh entry on Vilgaxia and let everyone else know him better than what people on Earth did. He wouldn't have everyone's general belief of what he was and who he was ruining his social life anymore, he was the new kid in town.

"So, any place you guys would know about? Are there any comic shops around here? Where are the soccer fields?"

The uncomfortable silence everyone threw back and forth to each other today settled itself again as he didn't get an answer straight away.

"Young master... we haven't been on Vilgaxia for much long, we've only come here whenever Lord Vilgax summoned us prior to being hired to protect you." said Kraab.

"Aw man!"

"But I believe we have heard of where a museum could be."

The disapproving look and head shake Ben gave him was enough to shoot down the suggestion. Ben didn't want to go back to school yet on his first day out, he wanted to stretch his legs for a bit. He already didn't like the idea of some old guy telling him about an antique shovel on Earth, he did not want to know if they had the same on Vilgaxia.

"Guess I'll have to look and find out."

Upon walking further through the town, Ben noticed quite a few things. For one, while the town didn't seem all that modern, some people did have devices and technological junk on them. Some construction worker was making his cart fly behind him, a fish salesman had something that looked like a shower head spray blue light on his merchandise, and some woman was dragging back her own squid creature using a dog leash... without the leash, pulling the animal back to its owner as if it was magnetized.

It was a strange blend of a futuristic town and an old village. At the same time, Ben realized some of the architecture he was seeing was similar to the one he had seen in his future self's town on Earth. He had dreaded a bit at the beginning but, it had to be done. He now would have a life here, not on Earth, and there was nothing he could've changed. A part of him wished he could've changed things, but his attempts had been so fruitless he might as well have given up.

Did Vilgax also feel like this when he returned home? He felt both empty and satisfied coming here, as if he had lost interest in everything else once the chance to go back where he... would've started was available. This place was devoid of the worries and bad memories thinking of Max was spurred on. Was he running away? Or did he just feel more at ease here?

He was interrupted by his musings once he saw something come out of a nearby alley. An ordinary white ball fell out, bouncing onto the walls of the street. Curious, Ben got closer and took a turn. One thing that'd never change regardless of the planet he was on: kids playing outside. Or in this case, a kid.

"Darn it! Missed again!" cursed the other boy.

Another Chimeran was standing there, sitting down and pouting. He wore a sleeveless yellow shirt, something that looked like a skirt instead of pants separated with some weird metallic belt. While Ben didn't question the fashion around here, seeing him with his tentacle hair tied back into a ponytail made the young prince wonder if it hurt doing that. His chin tentacles were a bit longer than Ben's and had a few spots on there as well, making him guess he was looking at an older kid.

Upon getting closer, the other boy perked up, letting Ben notice his lime green eyes and his thin lips, different from Ben's. For a second, he feared he had been recognized as he was stared on, before getting an answer.

"Sorry, I hope I didn't make too much noise." he said. "I've been practicing for a while but, I can't ever get better at this."

"Um, sorry but, what are you talking about?"

His question earned him a confused glance. "You're not from the neighborhood?" Ben shook his head no. "Oh, I see. I went away from my house to practice and I was scared I was disturbing the neighbors for a second."

"I guess it's fine. Here." said Ben, handing the item back to the boy.

"Thank you. I don't think I've seen you around here before, have I? You don't look like any of the kids at school."

'School? Man, reminds me, is Dad gonna re-enroll me somewhere here or am I gonna get a private tutor or something?'

"I... just moved in with my family." answered Ben. "I haven't been on the planet since I was very young so, I'm still a bit new to this."

"Really? That sounds amazing! Usually, Lord Vilgax limits the entries and exits on our planet because he doesn't want to risk in invaders." Ben winced at his father's decision. "Your parents must be really important people if he let your family back in."

"You could say that..." snorted Ben. "You know, I could teach you some tricks. You're playing soccer, right?"

"S... sucker?"

"It's a sport where you land your ball into the adversary's net through kicking it." said Ben, putting the ball on his feet and balancing it. He wasn't out of practice even if he spent most of the summer fighting aliens, he already used the Omnitrix to train. Even if he wasn't Heatblast and even if he wasn't balancing a fireball.

"That's how they call it on other planets? Well, it's a tiny bit different here but it's pretty similar, I guess." he said. "Heh, nice! I never get that right, are you good at this sucker sport?"

"It's soccer. And yes, I was one of the top players at... my old school." hesitated Ben. "Think you can beat me?"

"Is that a challenge?" he dared. But before adding anything else, he turned to the corner, where Kraab and SixSix were, for once, not hiding. In fact, they were in plain view since there was no danger around... but it made Ben look suspicious.

"Uhhh..."

"Hey, do you know these guys? They've been staring at us for a while. Are they with you?"

Either blow his cover and say they were, or say they aren't and make them suspicious. Which would end up in his dad firing them and leaving Ben with even less people he knew around. He had to come up with an excuse fast.

"They're, uh, my... uncles!" exclaimed Ben, getting confused looks. "Sort of. They're friends on the family, they're the ones who mostly got us back home. They follow me around when I go out even when I tell them I'm not a kid anymore. You know. Adults and their helicopter parenting."

The boy didn't seem confused for a moment, then he shrugged. "Yeah, I get it. You should see my parents when I tried to swim all on my own at the kindergarten pool, they were so stressed out they asked a thousand questions to the teacher when they noticed he wasn't helping anyone." laughed the boy. "Ah, talk about embarrassing. Oh! Sorry, I just realized I didn't ask for your name."

A name, he still hadn't thought of that. His Chimeran form felt so natural he didn't ever think he'd need any, but he couldn't go around saying his name was Ben. On second thought, he almost felt like a fugitive on Vilgaxia if he had to hide this way. Ironic when he was the prince, but that didn't change he needed a cover.

Squid-Destroy? Ink-Killer? Tentakick? Suddenly, making a 'normal' alien name instead of a 'hero' alien name was much harder than he imagined. He had to come up with a name, no matter how dumb it could be. Myaxx? She'd make fun of him if they met and bring his lie out, even if she had no reason to come back. Maybe something that sounded like Vilgax's name? But not too much, 'Vilgax Jr.' was an obvious terrible answer.

He mentally blamed himself for not learning any names, knowing he had a lot to catch up with, but in his defense, the only thing he really knew about this planet was the squid monsters. He should've asked his dad if his pets had any names, though he doubted they were used to getting names when most of the time, they threatened to bite off people's heads all while making weird noises and gacks.

Gacks...

"Gax." said Ben. "That's... my name, Gax."

The other boy tilted his head, before snorting. "That's funny, it rhymes with Lord Vilgax's name. Your parents must've really missed home if they named you after the king."

"Haha, yeah, they did." said Ben, while SixSix and Kraab exchanged looks. This really wasn't their liege's most inspired name. "Oh hey, is it raining?"

They looked up, seeing tiny droplets form over their heads, leaving the faraway hue in the sky before landing on them, refreshing their skin. Ben had actually missed the rain for a bit, he was glad to know Vilgaxia had this kind of weather too. Would it be ironic if a squid guy got a cold from staying in water?

His new friend didn't seem all that glad though.

"I have to go home quickly before my parents get mad at me for ruining my clothes. It's a sports shirt but it looks better when it's dry, even if I usually sweat a lot in it. But it was nice meeting you, Gax." said the kid.

"Me too, uh..."

"Azorax." he smiled. "That's my name. See you around!"

"See ya!" waved Ben, turning back as they parted ways.

He looked back at the palace, knowing he had to return soon. He raised his hand, letting the water droplets fill his palm. Coming here, being someone else and talking to aliens he's never met before was a whole other experience compared to the rest of his adventures. Here, the fresh water felt like home and comfort, free of any struggle he'd have to deal with.

It wasn't what he'd call perfect yet, but he had the feeling this new life would all be worth it in the end.

With a happy sigh, he looked at his bodyguards. Both carrying mechanical umbrellas.

"You chickens, you can't stand getting yourself soaked?" deadpanned Ben. "Lame, I should order you to stand outside in the rain for a few hours, perhaps."

The glee of knowing his family was the one making the rules (they were hired for him anyway) made him sport a toothy grin. He had no X-Ray vision, but he could tell his bodyguards were not appreciative of his suggestion, as their complaints came after.

"Gee, learn to take a joke, will ya? I wonder if I could show some of my video games to Azorax..."

As they walked back to the palace, he kept a hand on his cheek, feeling a slight warmth there. For a while, he had almost forgotten how to smile.

Azhorra-Tha was an Outer God in Cthulhu mythos imprisoned on Mars. Has a squid and insect-like appearance, lives in hiding from humans. A good part of that concept would fit Ben's situation as he's avoiding the Earth. Plus, it sounds close to "azure" so :P

The Actually-Not-Amalgam Kids are getting formed! And the Gwevin boat is on the wharf ready to sail! Once Kevin knows how to drive a boat. Or a car. Or anything, really. He's a kid, what'd you expect? That not staying in Null Void lets him keep knowledge of alien engines?

Ben gets a new friend for now and starts to relax despite rough a beginning. How that evolves from that point on is something yet to be seen...

Don't forget to *gets clobbered for late update* review and I hope *dodges hammer of fan wait* I get to see you next chapter! *gets bonked by flail of reasonable impatience*

Heato, out!