After running down several corridors, Ultron finally led the Avengers to their destination. A large door with several guard standing in front of is. But unfortunately for them, the heroes were in no way going to let that slow them down. In one swift motion the group disabled the guards rather easily, Ben didn't even need to transform to fight them. After Captain America took down the last guard, the Avengers opened the door and entered through it. Ahead of them, the very source of the Tachyon energy. The ships time drive, albeit a giant version due to it having to keep this massive ship anchored to this timeline. It was a massive transparent pipe that seemed to go on for miles in both directions, with yellow energy glowing inside it.
"This is it." Ant Man informed the others as they gathered.
"Big." Hawkeye stated bluntly.
"I don't care how big it is. It's getting smashed." Hulk growled as he stomped forward and raised his right fist and punched the time drive at full force.
However instead of smashing, the area around Hulks fist started to glow and a burst of energy travelled up the Gamma Giants arms into his body, shocking him before blasting him back, sending him sliding across the floor.
"Well that didn't work. Anyone got a Plan B?" Ben quipped.
Just then the sound of alarms started to blare and the heroes all looked up to see several lights flashing on the ceiling. Just then several bolts of energy, burst from the lights heading straight for the heroes. Captain America instantly reacted by raising his shield to block the energy bolts. However, Ant Man was not swift enough as the bolts struck him dead on, knowing him unconscious instantly. Seeing his friends in danger, Hulk did not even hesitate as he got to his feet and stood over them and using his own body to block the energy blasts, grunting in pain as the bolts struck him in the chest. Tacking advantage of the situation, Hawkeye from his position under Hulk, drew several explosives from his quiver and fired them at the energy blasters in the ceiling, destroying two of them.
Ben also used the situation to find the alien he needed for this situation, and once he did, he slammed the dial down. In a blinding flash of green light, Ben was transformed into a tall humanoid alien being, it was primarily black in colour with two long antennae on its head and a long tail, all of which ended with a golden, circular, plug like structure at the tip of each. Similar plug structures were also present on the tips of all four fingers on each hand. It had two toes on each foot and a green pattern on its chest and a single green eye on its head. The Ultimatrix was present on its chest.
"FEEDBACK!" The new alien shouted, with an electrical charge present in his voice.
The new alien then jumped out from behind Hulk and then pointed his finger tips directly at the energy beams that where striking the green giant. Suddenly the energy that was hitting Hulk was redirected away from him and flowed into the plugs on his fingers, absorbing the energy into his body. Once the alien was charged up, Feedback then pointed his hands at the source of the bolts and a blue beam of electrical energy blasted out of his fingertips, destroying the remaining blasters.
However, the battle was far from over, as several machines that lined the walls suddenly sprouted four mechanical appendages and proceeded to detach from the walls to the ground. The machines then fully unfolded into a group of towering Scarab Drones all armed to the teeth. The Avengers quickly dove into action, with Captain America hurling his shield at the closest Drone, slicing through it like tissue paper, destroying the war machine quickly. This was Followed by Hulk, who immediately lunged at the closed Drone to him, causing it to fall back into the Scarab behind it, causing a domino effect to any Drone in that line. Hawkeye then fired several explosive arrows at the Scarabs, destroying each one with ease. However, he failed to notice a Scarab Drone from behind him charge up its cannons and fire an energy bolt at the archer. Luckily for him, Feedback jumped right to his team mates aid and aimed the tips of his antennae at the bolt, which proceeded to be absorbed by the antennae. Feedback then fired another electrical bolt from his hands back at the Drone, destroying it.
But the Avengers weren't the only ones that were getting in on the action. As Ultron then deployed an energy weapon from him right forearm and fired a concentrated beam of energy at one of the Scarabs, causing its circuitry to overheat and explode violently.
As the fight raged on, Hawkeye ducked through the slow-moving Scarabs like a nimble cat and managed to make his way onto the top of one of the drones. From that vantage point, the Archer was able to fire arrow after arrow at rapid pace, but it seemed the number of Scarabs were endless as more kept coming no matter how quickly they were destroyed.
"We need a plan!" Shouted to the others from his position, as he casually aimed his bow to the side without looking and fired it into the Scarabs claw as it tries to reach him. "We can't get past the time drive shield. So, what now?"
Elsewhere Feedback absorbed a blast from a Scarab Drone before using the energy he absorbed to blast the Drone to pieces. As the Alien Hero held of the attackers, Captain America went to check on his downed teammate.
"Hank! Ant-Man, we need you. Ant-Man?" The Super Soldier yelled, shaking the unconscious scientist, in an attempt to wake him. But his efforts were unsuccessful.
Just then Hawkeye backed up to where the Super Soldier was, his bow at the ready. "He's out. Cap, come on. We need to shut down the computer systems. Maybe we can reprogram the thing."
The Archer then fired several trick arrows at the advancing Drones, but their increasing numbers were starting to overwhelm them, even Feedback, Hulk and Ultron were being forced to fall back to cover their teammates.
Once again Captain America looked down at his unconscious friend. "Dr. Pym!"
The Scarab Drone had now completely surrounded the heroes as Captain America stood up and raised his shield to defend his teammates for a final show down.
"Enough!" A voice suddenly called out. Immediately the Scarab Drones halted their advance and then proceeded to back away from the Avengers. The Heroes then looked to see the Drones make a path where the source of the voice revealed himself, Kang the Conqueror.
The villainous time traveller floated towards the heroes, several feet off the ground and looked down upon them as if to show his superiority. "You came to fight me, Avengers? Here I am."
The assembled Avenger, minus the unconscious Ant Man, glared at the time traveling Conqueror. All the pain and grief that they had to face in the last 24 hours had all been because of him. Needless to say, every hero had a bone to pick with him.
"Hey, you know what?" Hawkeye spoke up as he notched his arrow. "I'm glad Ben's gonna wipe out your timeline, because any future ruled by you has to stink."
The Archer then proceeded to fire his arrow. However, Kang merely raised his finger and the arrow froze in mid-air. Then Kang flicked his finger and the arrow spin around and was sent screaming back at the Archer, who barely had time to dodge before the explosive arrowhead, struck the ground behind him, resulting in a large explosion that sent Hawkeye flying and tumbling to the ground, stunned.
Hulk then leaped at the Future Villain, roaring at the top of his lungs while raising his giant arms up in an attempted to crush the Conqueror. But Kang simply activated a green barrier in front of him that Hulk proceeded to slam into. Then some unknown force, blasted the Hulk away, sending him crashing into the crowed of Scarab Drones.
Seeing the Hulk go down, Ultron then took the opportunity to try and attack the Time traveling Conqueror. Kang raised an eyebrow at the sight of the Robot as it charged up energy within its mouth and fired a concentrated beam at Kang. However, the energy did nothing to the Time Traveling Villains shield. Feedback then tried to aid the robot's efforts and fired his own energy blast at the shield. But that seemed to only make things worse as Kang's shield somehow used the combined energy blasts to generate a burst of energy blasts. Multiple bolts of energy rained down on the heroes, where Feedback instinctively jumped in front of Ultron to absorb the bolts while Captain America used his shield to cover Ant Man.
Just then the Scarabs that had previously gathered around the Hulk, were suddenly tossed to the side like rag dolls as the Gamma Giant, now swinging one by the arm like a flail, swung the war machine at Kang. Unfortunately, Kang's shield, once again, stood up to the attack. But it didn't stop there, Kang then dropped the shield and then green energy surrounded his gloves. The Time Traveling Conqueror then flew at Hulk at high speed and delivered an uppercut to the Hulks chin, before he could even react. The Green Giant was then sent flying into wall with enough force to create a massive crater. The Hulk then fell to the floor unconscious.
Needless to say, the remaining heroes, save for Ultron who is a machine, were shocked. Kang just took out the strongest being on Earth with a single punch. Had the Avengers not been weary of Kang's power before, they were now. But that didn't stop Feedback from springing into action.
Feedback rushed forward, Firing a beam of energy from his hands. But Kang managed to raise his shield just in time to block it. However, that didn't faze the Alien Hero in the slightest. In fact, that was exactly what he expected Kang to do. He then quickly closed the distance between him and Kang, and then placed his fingers on the outside of Kang's energy shield. Suddenly the energy from the shield started to flow into Feedbacks plugs, causing the shield to dissipate leaving Kang exposed. Feedback then lunged forward intending to use his forms energy absorbing abilities to drain his opponents armor to leave him defenceless.
However, Kang didn't seem concerned in the least about the disappearance of his shield, as he merely raised his hand and Feedback was lifted off the ground inches away from Kang's form and was forced out of reach from the Time Traveling Villain. Captain America and Ultron tried to move forward to come to the Alien Avengers aid, but Kang simply pressed a button on his gauntlet and two energy spheres appeared around them, trapping them within. Kang then turned his attention back to the Transformed Teen.
"Ben Tennyson. You and your teammates have fought well, Boy. But this outcome was never in question. I will do whatever it takes to ensure the survival of my timeline. The survival of humanity." The Time Traveling Conqueror said with conviction.
Feedback grunted from his position as he struggled against whatever Kang was using to restrain him. "We want the same thing, Kang." He said confidently. "And we can work together to make sure that your world and mine can survive. I can help you, if you'd let me."
Kang narrowed his eyes at the Alien Teen, completely undeterred by his words. "No, you are part of the problem, not the solution. Conquest is the solution."
Feedback narrowed his eyes at the Conqueror and then sighed. He knew that Kang wouldn't listen to reason. People like him are too stubborn for that.
"If that's where you stand. Then we're done talking."
Feedback then focused his power and suddenly released a massive bolt of energy from all the plugs on his hands, antennae and tail. Energy beams blasted out in all directions, catching the time Traveller off guard as he barely had time to raise his shield to block the attack. But in his haste to protect himself, he also unintentionally released Feedback from whatever force he had on him and the Alien hero dropped to the ground. Feedback then reached up and tapped the Ultimatrix dial.
"Clockwork!" The Alien Avenger cried out as he aimed his arms at Kang. "Time to end this."
Clockwork then fired a green time ray at Kang, striking the Villain dead centre causing him to be bathed in the chrono energy. The Alien hero smirked as his attack landed. Once Kang's gear had been aged to dust, he'd be completely defenceless. And with nowhere left to run, the invasion would finally be over.
However, the flames of hope that had ignited in the Teens chest, were quickly extinguished when Kang suddenly immerged from the ray completely unaffected. Now it was Kang's turn to smirk confidently at the Teen as he raised his arm, his fist then glowed with green energy as he fired an energy beam directly at Clockwork. The teen hero was so shocked that he didn't even reach to the beam until it struck him right in his left arm, tearing through the armored shoulder as it did so.
Clockwork screamed in pain as he clutched his wounded shoulder and sunk to his knees. In a flash of light, Clockwork turned back into Ben, still holding his now broken arm. The alien Avenger grunted as he forced himself to look up to see Kang float above him, glaring down like a hawk preparing to finish of its prey.
"You think I am a fool, you Primitive Child." Kang spat at the Alien Teen as he glared down at him. "I have learned from our past encounter and also been made aware of all your transformations and their capabilities. So, I prepared myself as such. Equipping my armor with the precise counter measures to eliminate you. Such as tachyon generators to cancel out you time manipulation abilities."
Bens eyes widened at the Time Conquerors revelation. Not by how well the Conqueror had prepared for him. But by how stupid he was in thinking that a man like Kang would actually be defeated by the same move twice. It should have occurred to the teen that Kang would've taken precautions to counter Clockworks time powers. But the Young Hero was too eager to finish the fight, he failed to take that into account. And now he was about to pay for that mistake with his life.
At that moment Kang reached out his arm and a small portal opened up. Kang reached inside and from the portal, drew a long, double sided, green bladed broad sword. The sword itself looked like it was made of advanced technology, much like everything else in Kang's arsenal. The Time Traveling Conqueror then lifted the weapon to its zenith, right over Bens head.
Seeing what Kang was about to do, Captain America's eyes widened in shock as he desperately smashed his shield against the barrier in an attempt to free himself.
"Ben, no!" The Super Soldier yelled.
In the energy prison, next to him Ultron was also witnessing the events that where unfolding. And in keeping to his programming to protect others, the machine then started to analyse and calculate the best means of escape from their confines. The Ultron bot then charged up his mouth lazer and faired a powerful beam into the energy bubble. Thanks to the calculations the machine had made, the energy it had fired had been calibrated to cancel out the energy of the bubble freeing them from their prisons.
But before they could even move, Kang thrust his sword down towards the injured young hero. In that moment, Bens mind went blank. He could see the end coming, after everything he'd been through and fought for, now it was all ending at the hands of a tyrannical dictator from the future. The sight of that blade barrelling towards his face, filled the Teen with such fear he was unable to think of anything. His body on the other hand, reacted on its own in a final desperate act of survival. Using what strength, the teen had, his right hand leapt to his left wrist, activated the Ultimatrix and slammed the dial down, just as the teen closed his eyes.
A bright flash of green light erupted from Bens body, blinding everyone looking in the general direction, even Ultron's visual receptors received interference from the lights intensity. A loud clank echoed through the room as everything went silent. Once the spots cleared from the eyes of everyone present, they all looked to where Kang's sword had landed…
Right in the floor, imbedded in the cold metal a few inches deep. And Ben was gone, simply vanished into thin air.
"Gone?" Kang's voice suddenly cut through the silence, dripping with rage and annoyance.
"What have you done, Kang?" Captain America growled as he stood into a fighting stance.
For a moment, Kang seemed to have ignored the Super Soldier as he stared at the spot the Alien Avenger had once lay helpless at his feet. Suddenly the Conqueror smiled and started to chuckle. He then turned to face the Super Soldier.
"It would seem your ally has abandoned you, Captain Rogers." Kang taunted. "It would seem he's more of a coward than I had thought."
"That's a lie, Kang!" Captain America spat back. "Ben Tennyson is not a coward. He is one of the strongest men I've ever known. He has more heart than you'll ever have."
Kang simply scoffed at the Soldiers words. "Your belief in him makes you weak, Captain. I have shown you what a future with his existence can bring for this world. You Avengers claim you wish to save the world, and yet you allow the very being that will doom it, walk among you. Your attachment makes you unwilling to do what is necessary. Where I will do whatever it takes to save this world."
In a way, Kang's words made sense. If one person could cause so much destruction, it only makes sense to prevent the worse possible outcome from happening. But Captain America knew that taking the life of an innocent person, especially a good soul such as Ben, is wrong. The Super Solider sighed and shock his head.
"I've heard all this before, you know? You're not the first would-be conqueror I've fought." He stated.
"I will be the last, however, Captain." Kang retorted as he approached the Super Soldier. "Though I do enjoy the irony that you, a man out of time, thinks he can beat the master of time."
At that moment Captain America noticed movement out of the corner of his eye and he glared back at the Time Traveling Villain with strong determination.
"I don't think I can beat you, Kang. I think Iron Man can."
Kang's eyes widened as he turned to look at the entrance to the chamber. Sure enough, the Armored Avengers stood proud and tall, read for battle.
"It's over, Kang." Iron Man stated confidently.
However, Kang merely smirked as he payed the Armored Hero no mind. "Please, you are no…"
His sentence was suddenly cut off when Iron Mans repulsor ray blasted him in the chest, sending him flying into the time drive. The Master of Time, then fell to the floor, stunned in both mind and body. Upon the initial attack, Kang's Scarab Drones immediately started to advance on the heroes, causing Ultron to get into a fighting stance.
"How did you…" The Conqueror tried to ask as he picked himself off the floor, his mind still stunned trying to understand how a primitive managed to get past his defences and harm him.
"My tech may not be as advanced as yours, Kang, but I'm a quick study." Iron Man explained in his usual cocky tone. He then turned to see the approaching Scarab Drones. But instead of moving to dodge them, Iron Man casually raised his arm and his gauntlets release a wave of energy towards the Drones. Upon contact the Scarabs froze in place, before falling apart into a pile of scrap metal. Iron Man then repeated the action of the Drones advancing behind Cap and Ultron and they fell apart just as easily.
"There's some kind of shield around the time device." Cap explained to the Armored Genius. "If we can take that down, we can destroy it."
However, Iron Man shock his head in response to the Super Soldiers plan. "No, we're not going to destroy the time drive. We're going to use it." He then turned to the Robot. "Ultron, prepare to download a data stream."
Ultron then stood at attention and his eyes started to glow brighter. "Receiving data." The robot confirmed.
"This is everything I've learned about your tech, including how to access your computer systems." Iron Man said in a mocking tone as he addressed Kang.
The Time Conqueror glared at the Armored hero as he stood to his feet. "You fool. You think one of your robots can control my station?"
"Uh, yeah." Iron Ma responded in a condescending tone.
Suddenly a large holographic screen appeared in front of Ultron, which proceeded to display layers upon layers of code. "Accessing Damocles Base computer systems."
Iron Man then smirked under his face plate as he continued to taunt the villain. "Ultron's A. I. is based on the human mind. It can adapt to your systems faster than anything I got. And I'm betting anything you've got."
"Damocles attempting lock-out. Overriding. O-Override successful." Ultron stated, though it voice seemed to have some static in it as the Robot broke through the final firewall to Kang's systems.
In his outrage, that a piece of primitive technology could ever override his station. Kang fired a green beam of energy from his helmet at the Robot. Only for Captain America to leap into action and block the energy beam. Iron Man then responded with a repulsor beam of his own, striking Kang in the chest and sending him sliding back. The Time Conqueror grunted in pain as he used his sword to steady him. He then glared at the two Avengers with pure venom dripping from his eyes.
"You wish to fight me? Then so be it." Kang snarled as he opened a small portal to his right side and pulled out a high-tech axe, which he then duel wielded with his sword and charged Iron Man and Captain America.
Meanwhile in an unknown part of the ship. Ben gasped in shock and pain as his eyes burst open. The last thing he remembered seeing was Kang's sword blade head straight for his face. At first, he thought he was dead as the area he was currently in was dark and silent, making the young hero start to think he was in some kind of purgatory. Then suddenly his left arm started pulsing with pain and the Teen quickly realised that he wasn't dead. And once he realised that, his other senses started to come into focus and the Teen Hero realised that he wasn't even human right now. He looked down he blue four fingered limb and could faintly make out the chilling vapour of his breath for him to come to the conclusion that he was Big Chill.
The Moth like alien then got to his feet and looked around the room. It was clear to him that he was no longer in the Time Drive room, meaning that in his panic, he must've phased through the floor to escape from Kang. And in that moment, Big Chill released that Cap and the others were still in there with Kang. He needed to get back and help them as quickly as possible.
But as the hero took the first step, a beeping sound was heard and the lights on the ceiling suddenly turned on to illuminate the room, revealing what was inside it. Upon seeing the contents of the room, Big Chill eyes widened in shock and horror.
The Room was long and tall, easy for someone like Humongousaur to walk through without any problem. But lining each side of the walls, was the equipment of heroes. The Alien Avenger could see gear that belonged to many heroes the he had come to know; several Iron Man armors where set up on display, a faded version of Captain Americas shield, Black Panthers Cowell and Vibranium daggers, Ant Mans helmet and belt, A chipped and cracked version of Mjolnir, what looked like a metal skeleton with three claws coming out of both wrists, clearly wolverines and many, many others. It was in that moment that Big Chill knew exactly what he was standing in. Kang's Trophy room.
Big Chill froze in shock as he looked at all the remains of fallen heroes, many of which Ben knew personally, being displayed on the walls like some twisted museum. It made the Alien teen sick to his stomach to see the remains of people he cared about butchered like this. For a moment, Big Chill forgot all about his broken arm as he clenched his fist in anger, even though he knew all these heroes where currently alive and well, there is still a future where Kang slaughtered these heroes and took souvenirs from them as trophies. And he wanted to make Kang pay for that.
"Quite a sight. Isn't it, Ben?" A voice suddenly spoke out from behind him. Upon hearing the sound of that voice, a cold chill slithered down Big Chills spin. Acting on instinct, the Alien Hero dived out of the way, just as a Purple sphere of energy flew past him and stuck an Iron Man armor, instantly causing the suit to age to dust.
Big Chill then got to his feet and glared at the source of the voice. From the other end of the room a figure emerged from the shadows. He looked to be a man over muscular build. He wore a silver helmet with a purple visor that blocked all view of his face, leaving only two glowing purple eyes visible. He wore black bodysuit, and had silver boots, gauntlets, and a chest plate, a purple cape was also hanging off his shoulders.
The Alien Hero glared at the Purple being with absolute hatred. "Eon." He snarled.
Eon chuckled as he casually approached the Alien teen. "So, this is where you've been hiding? A time line full of powerful heroes and villains. I must say it's quite a fit for you, Tennyson."
"What are you doing here, Eon?" Big Chill demanded coldly.
"What, killing you wasn't clear enough?" Eon asked rhetorically. "I would think you would've gained a little intelligence in our last battle, Ben."
Eon then fired a purple time ray from his hands, which Big Chill quickly dodged by flying into the air. However, before he could attempt to counter attack, he hissed in pain as his broken arm started pulsing from all the movement.
"I see Kang has proven to be a challenge for you Tennyson." Eon taunted as he fired another time ray. "For a wannabe Time Lord, his technology is quite impressive in comparison to other timelines."
"What do you know of Kang?" Big Chill asked, in an attempt to buy time to figure out a strategy.
"Quite a bit really. Considering I'm the one, who sent him after you." Eon replied evilly.
At that moment, Big Chill looked to the Time Villain in shock. "Y-you sent him after me?"
Eon smirked at the teens expression. "Of course, I did. He would have figured it out eventually, that fool is constantly looking through history to find certain moments in time for him to change to benefit himself. In another timeline, it was Captain America that brought about the wasteland future that Kang showed you. But in this timeline, the Captains presence is but a small ripple compared to the tidal wave that your presence has caused to the time line." The Villainous Time Lord continued to explain.
"Your presence in this world has set forth a chain of events that can either save or destroy this world. I for one lean towards the destroying side. Which is why I pointed you out to Kang at this moment in time."
"And provided him with inside knowledge of my aliens and their powers." Big Chill concluded.
"Couldn't let the fight be over too quickly. After all, your power makes you a wildcard in this Universe as no one has ever seen aliens quite like your and therefore have no defence prepared against them. And we can't let things be too easy for you can we." Eon stated in a sinister tone.
Big Chill then turned to the Time Villain and smirked. "if that how you want it Eon. Then let's take this to the next level."
Big Chill then slapped the Ultimatrix dial. "Swampfire!" The plant alien screamed, currently his broken arm looked like a sick, withered twig. But thanks to Swampfire's regenerative abilities, the limb was slowly gaining some colour.
Eon growled at the Teens action and fired a purple time ray at the Alien Avenger. But Swampfire counted the attack, by throwing several seeds at the ground, causing several vines to erupt from the floor and form a plant barrier in front of him. The ray collided with the vines, instantly aging them to dust. But that momentary cover was enough to allow Swampfire to blast a wave of fire from his good arm at Eon, catching the Villain off guard as the fire blast hit him in the chest, knocking him down.
Swampfire then charged the villain and tried to deliver a powerful haymaker to his head. But Eon was able to dodge the strike and maneuverer around the plant alien and charged up his time ray again. Knowing what the effect of Eons time rays had on his aliens in their last encounter, Swampfire instantly reacted by turning his body into a series of vines, creating an opening large enough for Eons time ray to pass harmlessly through him. The plant alien then reformed his arm and delivered a right hook to Eons face, knocking him away, before reforming the rest of his body.
The Time Villain grunted as he got back to his feet. "Your skills have improved, Tennyson. I must say I'm impressed."
"A lot has changed, since I came to this universe, Eon." Swampfire replied, his left arm now almost fully restored.
"Perhaps. But one thing has remained the same. You causing pain to those around you." Eon stated with a sinister tone. "After all, you seem to cause problems where ever you go. To your friends in this universe. To your family in the last."
Those word sent a cold knife right into Swampfire's heart as he gritted his teeth. "You leave them out of this!" He snapped.
But Eon simply chuckled. "How ironic. You left your old world to escape the pain you caused your loved ones, only to cause it all over again. I can't imagine how that must feel."
The Alien Heroes blood boiled at the mention of his lost family. After all this time, hearing that villain bring them up was almost like spitting on their graves. At that moment, the Alien Avenger wanted nothing more than to put that villains head six feet under the hard way. But then he remembered the Avengers and all his friends that he had in this universe, how they have helped him move on and continue on with his life.
The Teen Hero then took and deep breath and calmed his anger. "What happened back then is in the past." He told the Time Villain. "There's nothing I can change about that. But now I've learned to move forward to the future and I'm gonna make sure it's a bright one."
Swampfire then raised his now fully healed arm slapped the Ultimatrix dial and transformed. "Clockwork!"
With his body now good as new, the Time Alien stared down his foe with calm determination.
Needless to say, Eon was shocked by the teens sudden display of strength. From his last assessment of the young hero's mental state, a simple reminder of that tragic day was enough to throw the Alien Hero off balance. But now it seemed the Young Hero has managed to conquer that weakness.
"You have no idea what the future has in store for you Tennyson." Eon said, as he surrounded his hands with purple time energy.
"No. But that is what makes life interesting." Clockwork replied with cheerful optimism.
Eon just narrowed his eyes and blasted his time ray and Clockwork countered with a time ray of his own. The two beams met each other head on and the two opposing energies clashed, each side desperately trying to overpower the other.
"You cannot win, Tennyson! I am a Lord of Time. My power is…" Eon suddenly gasped as his ray was suddenly overpowered by Clockwork and he dove out of the way just as the time aliens ray, struck the wall behind him, de-aging the wall into a pile of ore minerals.
The Alien Hero looked at his foe in surprise, with Eon having a similar look in his face as he gazed at his hands. The Time Villain's body appeared to be flickering like an old TV with a bad signal. Parts of his body where fading in an out of visibility at random.
"No, no, NO! Not now! Not when I'm so close!" Eon yelled angrily. He clenched his hands and tried to concentrate, but whatever he was trying to do, appeared to be in vein as his body continued to fade. Eon then glared at the Alien Avenger and pointed his fading figure at him. "This isn't over, Tennyson. Mark my words, I will have my revenge."
And on that final declaration, Eon's body vanished into thin air. For a moment Clockwork just stared at the spot that Eon had just been, confused by what he had just seen. One moment Eon was there and the next he was gone. Almost as if he was forced to leave and couldn't remain in this dimension.
Whatever the reason, Clockwork couldn't focus on that now. His friends needed him and he had to return to the fight. But just as he was about to tape the Ultimatrix dial to turn into Big Chill and phase through the ceiling, the teen Hero noticed something at the far end of the room. A computer terminal.
In that moment, a new thought entered Clockworks mind. If what Kang and Eon said was true, then Kang would have countermeasures for any alien he could use to fight him with. But what if, he fought Kang another way?
The Wielder of the Ultimatrix then made his way over to the terminal and tapped the Dial on his chest. In a flash of green light, Clockwork transformed into a grey skinned, frog-like, bipedal alien that is only four inches tall with large green eyes, which have rectangular pupils and horizontal eyelids. He wears a white jumpsuit with a thin vertical black stripe going down it, a larger version of the same stripe exists on his head, in-between his eyes. The Ultimatrix symbol was present on the aliens back.
"GREY MATTER!" The tiny alien shouted in a high-pitched voice.
The pint-sized Alien Hero then jumped up onto the computer terminal and with its genius level intellect started typing away at the computers keys, though due to his size, there were moments where he did hop to several keys. Even with his incredible intellect, Grey Matter had to admit how sophisticated the coding on Damocles Base is. It was even able to hinder the progress of the Alien Avengers hack.
Suddenly the computer screen started to glitch, as if some foreign code was trying to infiltrate the system. Whatever it was, it was able to open up a passage way for Grey Matter to bypass the ships mainframe and search through the memory banks. The mini-brainy alien then grinned, showing off his needle-sharp teeth as he found what he was looking for.
Back in the Time Drive room, Iron Man and Captain America where having difficulty with Kang. Even with Iron Man being able to overwhelm Kang's defences, the Time Conqueror proved to be quite a capable warrior. Wielding his weapons with such proficiency that he was able to go blow to blow with both Iron Man and Captain America without so much as breaking a sweet.
Iron Man flew around the room firing repulsor blasts as he did so. But Kang was able to dodge the blasts and fire his own beam from his axe blade. However, Captain America then ran up behind him and just as Kang turned to face him, the super soldier used his shield to knock the axe out of Kang's hand, sending it hurtling into the ceiling where it remained imbedded in.
But despite his disarmament, Kang proceeded to elbow Captain America in the gut, winding him, which was then followed by a swift kick to the super soldier's face.
Iron Man then flew down and tried to blast Kang with a barrage of repulsor rays. But Kang was able to avoid them as he used his sword to slash the Iron Avenger out of the air. Iron Man skidded across the floor until coming to a complete stop, a large slash mark was present on his face plate.
Kang then teleported until he was directly on top of Iron Man and prepared to drive his sword straight through Iron Mans back. Only for Captain America to hurl his shield allowing Iron Man to catch it and use it to black Kang's blade. The sudden jolt of the blade bouncing off the indestructible shield was enough of an opening to allow Iron Man to blast Kang with a full powered repulsor beam. Kang yelled in pain as he was launched across the room, landing on his back, hard. His armor now sparking from the damage its sustained and his robed now torn and burnt. Kang grunted as he got to his feet wearily.
But just before Kang could make another move against the Avengers, Ultron's monotone voice suddenly spoke up.
"Attention. Kang's fleet and Damocles Base are now ready for chronal travel." The Robot informed.
"No!" Kang yelled out in rage.
"Do it." Iron Man ordered.
Ultron then reached up to the holographic control panel and placed its hand on the projection. Almost immediately the screen started to show symbols and codes that seemed to represent Invasion Ships that where immediately teleported back to their original timeline, from their locations on Earth.
"Ultron, report." Iron Man ordered.
"Invasions ships, chronal travel, successful." The robot reported, earning a smirk from Iron Man.
Kang gritted his teeth in rage. His invasion force was gone, but there was no way he was going to allow these vermin to leave his ship alive. He then reached down and pressed a button on his belt. Several Scarab Drones suddenly launched from the walls and deployed in combat forms around the Avengers and Kang. At first the Time Traveling Conqueror grinned sinisterly at the hero's situation.
Suddenly the Scarab Drones started to move around the heroes and converged on Kang. The Time traveling Conquerors confident expression quickly melted into one of shock and confusion.
"What is the meaning of this? Halt! I command you!" Kang barked at his Drones, frantically pressing the controls on his belt. But the Drones where unresponsive as they continued to back Kang into a corner.
The remaining heroes all looked at the display in confusion. Captain America then turned to the Armored Genius.
"Tony?"
"I'm not doing this, Cap." Iron Man stated as he looked on. "I mean I'm good enough to bust into Kang's systems and disable his tech. But I haven't gotten far enough to control it."
The two Avengers then looked on as Kang looked up at his own creations in horror as they converged on him. But just as they were about to reach out and attack him, a voice suddenly called out.
"Ok boys. I think he's had enough."
The Scarabs suddenly froze in place at the command and retracted they're tentacles. Suddenly the blue lights in their bodies suddenly changed to green as they then backed away from Kang and made a path. The Avengers and Kang then turned to where the voice had come from and their surprised expressions only grew larger at what they saw….
Ben Tennyson, sitting in Kang's Time Chair.
The Teen Hero had his signature confidant smirk on his face as he casually laid with his head on one armrest of the future chair, with his legs propped up on the other one as the chair glided into the room.
"I gotta say, Kang. I can see why you like this chair so much. It surprisingly comfortable." Ben said in a cocky tone.
Kang expression of shock then shifted into blood curdling rage at the sight of the Young Avenger. "You dare sit in my chair!" The Time Conqueror roared in outrage.
Ben however, simply raised his eyebrow as if he was confused by the Conquerors statement. "Your chair?" The teen then sat up in the chair properly rested his hand on his chin as though pondering the words.
"Oh right, I get the confusion. See this used to be your chair. But its recently come under new ownership." Ben explained in a condescending tone.
"What are you babbling about, you primitive fool?" Kang hissed back at the Teen.
Ben smirked as he typed a few keys into the Chairs control panel and brought up a holographic screen that displayed several documents that were related to Damocles Base.
"Your tech is Advanced Kang. Some of the best I've seen in this dimension." Ben said in a mock compliment. "But even human tech in the 41st Century is still a few decades behind Galvan tech. Granted it did take me a while to hack into your systems, but a little help from Ultron sure did quicken the pace. I was able to fine this. Damocles black box. All the memory of your ship and tech in one place. From there it was pretty easy to erase your name as the ship's owner… And put my name in its place."
At that moment, Ben wished he had a camera to capture the face Kang made once the big reveal had been made.
"That's right, Doofus. I am now the proud owner of Damocles Base."
Kang's eyes where so wide that it looked like they might fall out of his head. This Boy had not only destroyed his timeline. But now has taken all hope of his ever reclaiming it. The Master of Time trembled with rage as he roared in anger, firing a beam of energy from his gauntlet at the hero at full power.
Ben however sat calmly as the time Chair activated an energy shield that easily blocked the attack. "Dude. It's over. Give up."
"Never!" Kang shouted back. "I am the Master of Time. And I will not rest, until I purge the Timeline of your infection."
Ben however sighed as he placed a face palmed at the Time Villains stubbornness. "Such a shame. This is a really nice ship. Go ahead Tony."
Iron Man nodded, having gotten over his shock at Bens strategy a while ago and turned to Ultron. "Do it, Ultron."
The Robot then turned back to its holographic screen as Kang dropped to his knees in defeat, gritting his teeth in anger at his failure
"Preparing to jump Damocles Base in 5, 4, 3…"
"Stop!"
The Heroes and Villain all turned to the source of the voice and saw Wasp, standing in the entrance, with three of Kang's guards standing behind her with their weapons trained at her back.
"Wasp?" Ben said in a confused tone.
"You can't destroy the time drive or jump the ship or whatever we planned on doing." Wasp stated in a strong tone.
"Why not?" Iron Man asked.
"Because if we do, Princess Ravonna will die."
Ben, Iron Man and Cap all looked at each other in confusion, trying to see if Wasps statement made sense to any of them. Obviously, it didn't.
"Who is Princess Ravonna?" Captain America asked.
Kang then stood up, rage burning in his eyes. But this time it seemed to be aimed at Wasp, the moment she mentioned that name.
"Shoot her. Do it!" The Time Villain commanded. While he may have lost control of his Tech. He was still counting on his men to follow his orders. Sadly however, that faith was misplaced as the guards lowered their weapons and allowed Wasp to continue.
"Rovanna is the woman Kang loves." Wasp elaborated. "When his future got wiped out, she got caught in it. they're keeping her alive, but barely. If Damocles Base travels back to the future, she'll be erased from existence."
In that moment, the Heroes all felt a great deal of sympathy for the Conqueror. All this time, he was just trying to save the woman he loved. Ben new exactly how the Time Traveling Villain felt. Had he been in his position, he would've done anything to save those he cares about. The teen hero then got out of the Time Chair and walked over to Kang.
"Kang, we can stop this. We can find a way to save Ravonna. But we're not going to let you destroy our world to do it." Ben said in a compassionate tone. Despite everything Kang had done to him, his friend and his world, Ben was still willing to try to help the villain. An action that Captain America and Wasp couldn't help but smile at.
Iron Man then stepped forward. "This is your last chance. Surrender."
For a moment. It seemed that Kang was about to accept the Heroes offer. But then the Time Conqueror glared at the Teen with hatred as he lunged forward, his fist glowing with deadly energy.
"Never!" Kang roared as he prepared to vaporise the Alien Hero, who was too shocked to react in time, making him vulnerable to Kang's attack.
However just before Kang's gauntlet could make contact with Bens face, Captain America, appeared by the teens side, having closed the distance between then in record time and slammed his shield into Kang's face with enough force to send the Time Villain flying to the ground, unconscious.
Seeing the threat neutralised, Iron Man waved off the Robot. "Ultron, stand down. Kang's done. It's over."
At that moment, everyone presents breathed a sigh of relief. Wasp immediately rushed over to Ant Man and helped him up. All around the hanger, the other Avengers were starting to come too. Ben looked down at the unconscious Time Villain with a disappointed look on his face. The Avengers may have saved the day. But at what cost?
Hours later and it looked as though the world was starting to settle after the nightmare that was Kang's invasion. SHIELD had set up mobile bases to help civilians, who's homes were destroyed during the attack as well as aid with clean up. They were not alone in that endeavour as many heroes also helped with the clean-up and rescue of anyone that needed it.
Kang and his remaining forces were arrested and imprisoned in 42, with Kang not saying a single word since his incarceration. As for Damocles Base, while Ben did enjoy the idea of hiving his own personal time traveling spaceship, it was obvious to him that no one person can have all this power and use it responsibly all the time. Plus, the teen didn't want to paint a bigger target on his back for SHIELD to consider in a threat. So, in an act of good will, Ben turned over command of the Base to SHIELD. And action that was a surprise to Director Fury and Iron Man.
But before he handed over the digital keys. Ben took a moment to lock down several parts of the ship he felt was best SHIELD didn't get their hands on. Such as files for future weapons and the Armory itself, as well as the Trophy room. But that one was more for the fact that no one should ever have to look at that horrendous room again.
One Final thing, Ben insisted on before turning over the ship was ensuring Princess Rovanna would receive treatment for her condition. Kang had already lost his timeline. But he would not lose the woman he loves, if Ben had anything to say about it. The Alien Avengers was assured that she would be well taken care off as her chamber was moved off ship to the Baxter Building. Where she would be treated by the worlds smartest minds. Ben had considered using Clockwork to heal her condition. But since this was the first time, Ben had encountered anything like her condition, he wasn't sure if he could fix her, or make it worse. So, until Ben can gain more control over Clockworks time manipulation abilities, it was best if she was treated by more capable hands.
After that had all happened and each Avenger was thoroughly debriefed by SHIELD, the heroes headed home for some much-needed rest. Ben in particular felt especially emotionally drained. After everything that had happened, including almost dying, the teen felt like sleeping for a week.
But despite his relief about saving the world, one thing still loomed in the teens head. Kang's warning of the future. He already knew that his presence in this universe has changed the timeline and that future that Kang showed him was still a possibility. Ben had yet to tell the others about his encounter with Eon and how his influence could've set them on the path to that future. It troubled the Alien Hero, knowing that at some point he could do something that would bring about the end of the world. How could he possibly go on with his life with that dark prophecy looming over his head.
In that moment, Ben looked around the Quinjet to the other Avengers. And he saw just how happy they were. He could hear them retelling the events of what happened when they were separated. Hulk and Hawkeye told Wasp about fighting Kang's Elite and Wasp regaled them of how she convinced Kang's guard to allow her to help save Princess Rovanna.
It was in that moment that Ben was reminded about what Paradox had said to him. The Future is not set in stone. Just because he was shown one possible future, it does not mean that it's the only future that's possible. There are many ways the future can unfold, and whether they be good or bad, He would face them with his team, his friends, his family. The Avengers.
Just then Bens phone started to buzz as the Quinjet entered the atmosphere, where cell service was finally available. The teen hero then pulled out the device and checked the notifications and a worried look suddenly spread over his face.
"Oh no." The teen said aloud.
"What's wrong, Ben?" Wasp asked, concerned.
"I just remembered. I haven't called Carol back, after I promised her I would." Ben said in a panicked tone as he showed his phone screen, reviling a long list of missed called and messages. "How ticked do you think she'd be?"
"Maybe you should've let Kang, erase you from the timeline." Hawkeye quipped, which made the other heroes howl with laughter. While Ben himself still looked like he was about to face a firing squad.
Once the team landed on Earth, Ben immediately took off to find Carol and explain everything. The other Avengers all returned to either their rooms in the Mansion or they're homes elsewhere.
Janet took the down time to go to the hospital to check in on her Asgardian Teammate. Who had been taken there after his encounter with Damocleses energy cannon. The size changing heroine walked into his room, only to find Jane Foster standing beside his bed. Apparently having not left his side, since he was checked in. The two women didn't wait long before Thor regained consciousness and saw the two women looking over him. Needless to say, the God of Thunder was not very pleased in his current situation. Mainly cause he knew Hulk was gonna rub it in his face how he missed the entire fight.
Meanwhile in Prison 42, Iron Man and Captain America walked along the platform. After the battle, the two heroes decided to check up on the new arrivals. But also used the time to talk.
"I just wanted to thank you, Cap." Iron Man said as they walked. "You really stepped up when I needed help, even after all the grief I gave you. I pride myself on my intelligence, on my tech, I think of myself as a futurist. But to someone like Kang, I'm living in the past. Just like you."
Captain America smiled at the Armored Geniuses statement. "The past isn't so bad. But the future… That's what we're fighting for."
"You've destroyed everything." A familiar voice suddenly spoke up. In the middle of their conversation, the two Avengers almost didn't notice that they were standing just outside the room of Kang the Conqueror.
"Is that so?" Captain America replied with scepticism.
"Oh, yes." Kang responded as he didn't look at the heroes as he sat in his cell. "I know, because I've seen what Ben Tennyson's actions have wrought. His betrayal is just the beginning." Kang then turned and faced the heroes, his eyes projecting an aura of dread.
"The worst is yet to come."
And there it is. The Kang arc is finally over. What happens next? Its anyones guess pretty much. XD
Anyway I hope you all enjoyed the new chapter and the new bits I added in the spice things up. Special Thanks to StarSaber21, Jade and Q and Just Q for all the help and support they've all given me these past few months. And thank you to all the people out there, that have shown their love for this story. I promise that I'm never gonna stop until this story has been 100% complete.
Now for anyone who's thinking that I will have the next chapter up by christmas or New Years. Im afraid this is it for the year. Cause lets be honest here, guys. Given my track record, the next chapter probably wont be out until Easter, Or maybe Valentines day, if a special lady can motivate me X3.
But still, as usual PM me with any questions, suggestions or anything and ill try to get back to you ASAP.
Until next time. Captain Rex 75, Out!