A/N: Hey guys! Guess what? I'm still alive!

I apologize for all the waiting on this wrap-up. You see, the authorities were very upset that I told the story of their humiliation, and I've been on the run ever since the last update. Now that I'm safe, I have been able to post the final chapter of this story to let you know how it all turned out. Ben, Danny and I all greatly appreciate your support.

Ben's eyelids were like paperweights, and his head was pounding like a bass. His arms and legs were bags of sand.

Something had happened… back at Area 51… what was it? Harangue… the machine, how it hurt… but then something else. Someone else.

His vision was still foggy, but he saw above him a gray ceiling. The soft mattress underneath him at first made him feel safe, but then he felt something on his left arm, fiddling with the Omnitrix.

Panic surged over him, and he struggled, despite his exhaustion. He refused to let any more of the crazy scientists get to him. Perhaps he should have thought it odd that he was unrestrained, but he didn't care.

"Ben Tennyson, you must relax!"

He stopped. That voice… it was familiar. Where had he heard that voice before? Raspy, firm, with a bossy intonation and a general attitude of superiority…

Ben looked to his left and blinked, clearing his vision. Weakly, he mumbled, "Azmuth?"

The bug-eyed Galvin sighed. "You should really be more careful with the Omnitrix. Those government goons have messed with it enough as it is. Much longer, and they could have damaged it permanently."

"Right. I'll keep that in mind next time I'm abducted by humans."

A large hand patted him on the shoulder. "We're just glad you're safe, Ben." Grandpa Max smiled down on him, and Ben felt all his tensions release. Azmuth rolled his eyes, but stayed silent as he kept working.

"Where am I?"

"In an old Plumber base, about 20 miles north of Belwood. It's top secret, so they shouldn't be able to find you here," Grandpa Max replied.

"But what about—"

"Shh. We'll talk about it later. You need to regain more of your strength."

As soon as the words were spoken, Ben felt his limbs going weak and his eyes falling shut.

The next time he awoke, Azmuth and Grandpa Max were gone. Instead, he saw a familiar red-headed person with bright green eyes.

"Morning, sleepyhead," his cousin said playfully. "Feeling better?"

"Loads better." It was true. The heaviness in his arms and legs was gone, and he sat up without much difficulty. "What happened?"

"Well, when Julie told us what happened, I was able to track you with manna."

"You communicated with me in the dream," Ben recalled.

Gwen nodded. "Right. After that, I managed to get your location, and Kevin, Julie and I went to get you out."

"Julie!" Ben exclaimed in sudden realization. "Is she—"

"She's fine. She was the one who got you from the extraction chamber, remember?"

Oh yeah… The gentle hands that guided him out of the chamber, into the open air. Thinking back on it, he remembered her face as she pulled out the wires and tubes, lifting him off the lab table.

Gwen continued. "After you escaped, the facility blew up, with some assistance. Then we rushed you here and called Azmuth." She paused. "He'll never admit it, but he was worried about you too."

Ben chuckled. "That would be the day. Azmuth admitting he has feelings." He took a breath. "How long have I been here, exactly?"

"Just three days. Very resilient, given the circumstances."

"The circumstances being…"

"Harangue drained you of 70% of your energy. About 20% of it went back to you after the explosion. They thought they could use the energy to build weapons, and who knows what else. Except most of the energy required for transformations comes from the Omnitrix. Probably they would've harvested that next, once they were done with you."

Ben let that all sink in. Then a sudden though occurred to him. "What about the other kid, Danny? Did you get him out too?"

"Funny thing about that," Gwen replied. "On our way in, we ran into some friends of his. Their goal was the same as ours, so we worked together. In fact, they're the ones who transported you here, in something called the Fenton Jet."

"Hmm. Quite the coincidence, don't you think?"

Gwen shrugged. "I guess. Lucky though."

"Yeah." Ben paused, then with a crooked grin, said, "Hey, you know what would make me feel loads better?"

A knowing smile started creeping on to Gwen's face. "I have a hunch."

Sitting at Mr. Smoothie, it felt like nothing had happened at all. Kevin was wearing his usual semi-angry expression while silently sipping a banana smoothie, with Gwen at his side, enjoying a strawberry-kiwi. As for Ben, he went for the dragonfruit-kale-guava with energy supplements.

"So," said Kevin, "how about you don't get kidnapped again. I don't really fancy driving for six hours just to drag you back home again."

Ben laughed. He was still tired from the ordeal, but it was comforting to have his friends there, sipping their smoothies and acting like everything was normal. And now, he supposed, it was. Well, as normal as it gets when you're Ben 10.

In the corner of his eye, Ben spotted something black and silver flying through the air. He turned, and saw a boy about his age with snow-white hair and glowing green eyes smile and salute. Ben returned the gesture, and the ghost-boy, Danny Phantom, sped off. Whether he'd see him again, Ben didn't know. All that mattered was that they were safe for now.

He stood up. "I think I'll go over to see Julie. She's probably been worried."

Kevin grabbed his keys. "I'll drive you over there. Hop in."

"Thanks."

When the three of them were settled in, Gwen spoke. "Do you think Harangue will be back?"

Kevin shrugged. "Don't know. I don't think so. I'm pretty sure the stuff he was doing in that lab wasn't approved. Now that we've destroyed it, he's ruined."

Gwen nodded. "Good."

The green Camaro pulled out, and the trio sped off into the horizon.