The Jumper Chronicles: Ben 10 – Chapter 7

~Chapter 6~

The Dewitchery
Diamond is being used as a spiritual nexus, channeling the unfocussed
ectoplasmic power of the astral plane into a focused beam that
sustains Vilgax form, Hex gestured toward the shimmering stone
for emphasis. For the particular amount of power that were
using to sustain our Chimera Su generis, it takes the collective life
force of five souls.

Ben had not released
his cannon arm, nor had Vilgax or Driscoll released their stances.
If you would make your point, Hex. Driscolls voice was
filled with anger, and the diminutive sorcerer had no doubt that the
Forever King wished hed let Vilgax squeeze him to death moments
earlier.

Hex favored the direct
approach. Mister Bradt, you died recently, and were none to
pleased about that, yes?

The question had an
instant effect on the teenager, whose eyes flickered to the small
mage, What the hell are you talking about?

The pair leapt upon
him, forcing him to the ground as they struggled to keep him pinned.
Hex rapped his staff on Vilgax back, Let him up, hes not a
risk to us. Not anymore.

What are you talking
about? The alien narrowed his eyes, He is the only threat to
us!

A wave of his staff and
both of them were thrust off of Ben by red orbs of force. You died
unnaturally, and you held tightly to something in the void, some
powerful regret.

How do you know all
of this? Ben rose to kneel, eyeing Hex in confusion.

Fascinating. Hex
chuckled darkly, When the stone tried to draw upon your being for
power, your bitterness and feelings of rage held you together, and
your spirit was manifested in this plane just like his was, he
nodded toward Vilgax.

What does this
mean? Driscoll had since gotten up, Are you saying that hes
is connected to the stone as well?

More than that.
Hex turned to face Driscoll, Mister Bradt and Vilgax are spawned
from the same cosmic essence; that is why his attacks are so powerful
against him, because he is the same power source, and the attacks
only serve to disrupt the flow of power from the Dewitchery diamond.
They are both invincible, and interconnected.

What do you mean?
Bens eyes had widened, Are you saying that . . .

Driscoll smiled smugly,
steepling his fingers together, How deliciously ironic . . .
Mister Bradt, Ben, is it? I have a proposition that I am confident
you will see as mutually beneficial, and most impossible to turn
down.

—

As she sped along on
her scooter, Gwen did a double take as Benjamin brushed past her,
hands in his pockets, eyes focused on the ground as he burned by at a
quick clip. She skidded to a halt and turned around, racing after.
Ben, there you are! Concern spread over her face as she saw the
haunted look in his eyes, You just disappeared in the middle of
the night, weve been looking for you all day! We were all
worried.

Needed to think,
lots of thinking. The teenager was rambling, Everything is
messed up, gotta fix it.

Leading him over to a
bench, Gwen pulled out her cell phone, dialing her grandfather.
Grandpa, I found him. Hes all weird, and he keeps going on
about everything being messed up.

Keep an eye on
him, well be there soon.

Im at the park on
North Highland and Westlake. Gwen hung up her cell phone, Grandpa
and Ben are on their way. What happened to you last night?

Vilgax, the one
name sent a shiver down her spine, I cant stop him.

What do you mean?
You were cleaning his clock yesterday! Gwen laid a hand over his,
blushing slightly at how hard her hear heart had begun to pound.
Besides, you dont need to fight him alone; were all here to
help you, and together, we CAN beat him.

Thats what I am
afraid of. Bens hands were shaking fiercely, like he had
Parkinsons. I cant do that again. I cant go back. I dont
want to disappear.

What are you talking
about? Youre not making any sense!

Hey! The
Rustbucket rumbled to a stop nearby, with Max and Ben bailing out and
approaching the others quickly. What happened to you last night,
man?

You look like youve
been through something pretty serious, son. Max laid a hand on the
teenagers shoulder, Come inside the Rustbucket. Well talk it
out over some food and a hot cup of tea. Ben and Gwen exchanged
glances; if their grandfather was offering out conventional food for
once, it had to be serious.

I cant . . .
he pushed Max hand off his shoulder, I have to get far away
from all of you.

Bens face slackened
in shock, What? What did we do?

Nothing, and it
needs to stay that way. Benjamin Bradt rose from the bench and
took to a run, fleeing past them. He ignored their shouts, vanishing
in a flash of blue light, leaving no trace of himself to be seen.

Humph, a voice
form behind them snorted in cruel amusement. The trio turned to find
the diminutive figure of Hex standing nearby, arms crossed. What a
childish response, one would think that running away was a foolish
idea. His lips pulled back into a grin, Wouldnt you agree?

Ben was a blur as his
form shifted, his silhouette barely visible against the pulse of
emerald light. Hex grunted in surprise as a hard, crystal hand
wrapped around the infants throat, slamming him into the ground.
I dont know what you have done, Ben-Diamondhead growled in a
harsh tone, but you are going to take us to see your bosses right
now.

The small wizard threw
his hands up in surrender, Okay! Okay, just dont hurt me.
His mouth curled into a wicked smirk as he turned away, The
Forever Kings stronghold is this way . . .

—

The sea breeze as it
rolled over the pier railing caressed his face. Benjamin Bradt
started ruefully out over the water, sighing. His regret over the
girl . . . Meiru . . . had landed not only himself, but the Tennysons
in a terrible predicament. The creature, Vilgax, was unstoppable; no
matter how much damage Ben heaped on it, he would recover and grow
stronger. That was how the child wizard had explained it, and
somewhere deep down, he knew he was telling the truth. I have the
power to stop him, the teen thought ruefully, but if I do, Im
just going to die again.

He felt a tremble run
through his perch, and as he looked over, he saw a woman standing on
the top of the rail. He couldnt see her face, as the wind kept
whipping her long sable hair across it, but he knew in an instant she
was prepared to take her own life. As he looked up at her, the wind
grew still, and as her hair fell back he caught a good look at her
face. She was young, in her mid-thirties at the most. Her cheeks were
wet with tears that continued to pour from her icy blue eyes; she was
an image of sorrow, but that wasnt why her presence stirred him.

It was that he
recognized her. Her name was Sarah, Sarah Bradt. . . . Mom? The
word was strangled in his throat.

She closed her eyes,
leaning forward.

Mom . . .?

Her heels tipped up as
she reached out for the horizon.

MOM! Her eyes
flew open as he pushed off of the railing, sprinting toward her as
fast as he could. He watched in horror as her hair lifted up, gravity
wrapping stingy fingers around her waist, and as he approached her
she began to descend from view. He hurled himself over the railing,
stretching his metal hand out after her as she fell. MOOOOOOOOM!

—

The darkness of the
cavern clung to them as they worked their way through the passageway.
Hex had led them to a doorway concealed in a run-down bookstore that
had been closed some time before, and in the shops basement, there
was a passage into the bowels of the world. You sure youre not
leading us into a trap? Max said with a suggestive jab to Hexs
back with his gun. Ben had to change back at an earlier point, so Max
took up the responsibility of keeping their guide covered. Because
if you try anything funny . . .

I would not dream of
it, Maxwell Tennyson, the mage said with a sigh, There is no
way I could possibly avoid a blast from your weapon at such range.

You just remember
that, slime ball. Gwen scowled.

As the trio passed,
they were unaware of a pair of eyes that opened behind them, darker
than the shadows themselves. It made no sound as it separated from
the wall they had passed, following them down into the unknown.