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She hit a guy with her pick-up truck!
It was an accident!
Jenny looks horrified at what she had done. She had just gotten a call from Glenn and Kevin to come pick them up from whatever alien plot they unfoiled. As their only ride to get back home, she was just mindlessly driving in the dark country roads while Green Day is playing on the radio to keep herself entertained and distracted and-
Bam!
She hit a guy. Accidentally. And Glenn and Kevin saw her do it, their faces wide and surprised.
“Ah shit-” Jenny hurriedly turns off her truck and gets out to see what she had done.
The three look at her victim, red, multiple limbs, big, many battle scars, and oddly alien garbs that seem fancy…? Is that gold wrist bands and matching ankle bands? Glenn and Kevin just glance at her and back to her victim with wide eyes and mouth.
“I’m going to space prison, fuck…” Jenny mumbles while clutching her hair frantically.
“Uh, hey so cous’, you saved us.” Glenn after a moment somewhat becomes calm, or calm as he can be. Meanwhile, Kevin looks like he is having a mild existential crisis. Truly concerning.
“I- huh- whaaa??” The brunette blinks confused as she looks back to the figure on the floor, he is twitching, thank the universe he is alive.
“What the fuck man, I hit him with a boulder and he shrugs it off like its nothing, but a pick-up truck!?” Kevin mutters angrily to himself before he starts to mess around with his plumber badge.
Huh, so is she all good? She’s not getting a criminal record or anything, right? Just a warning? Jenny wonders if accidentally hitting a criminal would cancel out her crime. If possible, space laws are so vast and many, hopefully there is at least one that can save her from her wrong doings.
“Kevin, what are we going to do with Prince Red Wind? We can’t just leave-” She filters out her cousin’s words, fixated on the prince part. Royalty? Alien Royalty? Fate is so cruel and there will be no parole in the aftermath of her crime.
“-Ny? Jenny? Jennifer!?” Her cousin calls her and brings her mind back to reality, back from her resigned mindset thinking how the space court room might have played out at the end. “Do you still have the galactical standard first aid kit?” Glenn is now crouching down on the fallen prince and checking him for any injury.
“Uh, I think so?” Physically, she is here on earth, in the forest with them. Mentally, she is being served indefinite prison time in a far far away space station with other dangerous criminals. Or it's the Null Void. She really doesn’t know where.
Kevin clicks off from his plumber badge, having been on a call with some higher up in the plumber organization. It snaps her back to reality, where she finds herself hurriedly going through her truck to find the first aid kit.
She doesn’t know, she really doesn’t know anything. With the plumbers and all. Hell, she’s not even an official member! Just a back up call for when they need to drag her grandpa out of base since he is a chronic workaholic, giving the plumber agents over due earth assortment of snacks incase the cabinets are full with weird alien food again, and whenever Rook is unavailable or off doing solo missions because he is cool like that. She is just an unofficial member of the group, an occasional caretaker and chauffeur!
In a team of galactic space patrollers stationed on earth, she is not a universe renowned hero with a cool watch like Glenn. Nor is she a plumber agent with cool Osmosian powers like Kevin. Nor is she a seasoned all star veteran like her grandpa. Nor is she a fresh new highly trained agent like Rook. Nor is she magically inclined to mana like her other cousin Ken. She’s just, well, Jenny.
(Which she likes, because she has ulterior motives. Like opening a cafe in Bellwood. Cute theme cafe with cute yummy snacks on sale with cute matching drinks… the dream.)
“A-ha!” Jenny finds the first aid kit underneath the driver's seat.
“He seems okay,” Glenn puts the Tetramand prince on his back, his large body, four arms and two legs, she notes his well toned muscles littered with deep purplish bruises. “Nothing seems broken.”
“Obviously, he's kind is bred for battles, to be the best warriors in the universe.” Kevin snorts as he massages his forearm. Taking a quick look at him, he too is not looking good.
Jenny opens the galactic standard issued first aid kit she got for her 16th birthday, by seven different plumber agents colleagues to her cousin and grandpa, and five from her extended family members. Three of which gave heartfelt letters, encouraging her to join the plumber academy. She won’t be using these in the academy, but on the field. At least she knows how to treat injuries made by high tech laser guns.
The brunette is about to finish bandaging up the Tetramand prince when his eyes start to roll behind his four eyelids and groan.
“Hey so, what happened?” Jenny warily asks them as she treats the prince’s last injury in ointment made out of alien herbs. “Because usually, if I’m not correct, you guys like… deal with alien wrong doings, not.. Uhh.. royalty??” She scrunches up her face, thinking back to all the conflicts she was dragged in to help out. Extra hands in infirmary rotations and all.
“Oh, it’s kinda funny actually,” Glenn snorts before pointing to disgruntled Kevin, whose ears are quickly turning pink. “This guy is the prince’s fiancé.”
“Fiancé!?”
“I was young and stupid and needed an engine to complete my spaceship! I just struck up a deal with his dad! Okay?” Kevin frantically defends himself.
“Yeah sure, a deal with the prince’s dad, the King of Khoros, Gar Red Wind.” The red head just rolls his eyes playfully, but he glances back at the Tetramand prince with an unwavering look for a brief second. Jenny catches it, and glanced back at Kevin. No way, Glenn is dating Kevin! She is so going to write that in her diary. Right next to her detailed crime, if everything goes back to normal-okayish-mundane life.
“Prince Loomus here showed up out of nowhere, apparently have been tracking us down-”
“Stalking me!” Kevin shouts.
“-Stalking Kev, to tell us his marriage deal is still on and needs to be done ASAP. Oh, and the Tetramand fleet is going to arrive here soon on earth. I shit you not, I don’t know how this diplomatic trouble is going to end up, Cous.” He draws out. Trying to seem like it’s nothing. Well, to him at least, he is literally the hero of the universe. He had many events like this before, more dangerous or daunting than this. He is supposed to be a diplomatic expert with all the experience under his belt.
“Soo…” She can feel sweat forming on the back of her neck. Man, she needs a drink, wait no, she’s not 21, she needs a red bull.
“The usual, earth might perish if Kevin doesn’t marry Prince Loomus.”
Jenny worriedly glances at Kevin.
“On the record, I am not marrying this muscle bound creature.” He states.
“It’s fine Cous, I will pull some diplomatic bullshit as always. I’ve done it with Vilgax before, this is going to be easy.” Glenn waves off her worry.
Jenny thinks back to when she got dragged as a pilot to help revive Petropia. Her pick-up truck was demolished after she was encouraged by the two to ram it into Vilgax. (It was planned and supervised, Glenn and Kevin sweared they would cover everything if anything bad happened. So technically, even if it hit a blow on her morals, it was partially a-okay.) She had to fly a space ship, unlicensed and wary of space police, stressed out, and deliver the two agents to the remains of the dead planet.
Or that one time, she hit the warlord with a baseball bat really really hard. He must have hit his head when he fell, because he was looking at her weirdly.
Needless to say, it’s going to be bad. Bring trouble to her already off course mundane life. She might as well prepare for the apocalypse.
Jenny was just fiddling with the last touches of the Tetramand prince’s dressings, looking back and forth at her cousin and his partner as they tried to outline what they should do. Distracted, she was oblivious to the twitching being under her hands start to flutter his eyes open.
Loomus Red Wind opened his eyes, back from the dark void he was forced in by incredible feats of power. Such drastic force of nature not even the hero of the universe or his supposed fiancé showcased. The human above him, soft features, long wavy brown hair that reflected the deep earth, and steady hands on top his hissing wounds caring for him. A delicate creature of earth, who he would have given no second glance in the past because of her daintiness. She has now bested him with her mighty metal chariot. His eyes can’t look away from the human above him, as she has captured his interest better than his fiancé had done all those years ago.
The prince, using all his energy left in him, held the human’s caring hand with all four. He watched her jump in surprise, cute, untouched by years of violence. Yet, her hands still dictated life and death at the tips. Two brown eyes meet his four unblinking golden ones.
“Marry me.” He lets out, almost a whisper, before the void takes him once more.
Jenny looks down at the Tetramand prince with shock. Glenn’s eyes twitch before he shouts. And Kevin looks bewildered.
“Jenny! Get your hands off him! I’m going to make sure that fucker does not get what he wants! Fuck the diplomacy, shit face brute so fucking high off adrenaline. I swear extraterrestrials are always looking for trouble! Alien royalty be damned, get back in the truck and hit him again, if murder happens I’ll cover for you! Alliance be damned, I’m the goddamn hero of this god forsaken universe and I-” Kevin grabs hold of Glenn’s mouth, but even then he cannot stop Glenn’s sudden manic episode. She should know, he is quite protective of her. Must be, since she is his last somewhat normal person he clings on to. Kevin might be his love, but she is his grounding anchor while he facades as a hero.
The sudden switch is reasonable but still, scary.
Glenn’s mouth foams behind Kevin’s hand as he struggles. Luckily, his watch is still on time out. Jenny tries to pull her hands off the Tetramand prince but his four hands holding hers tightly, she is stuck.
“As much as I like how I’m out of the thick, I don’t like how this is going either.” Kevin grits his teeth, as Glenn’s protectiveness is extended to him as well. Glenn manages to shake Kevin’s hand off his mouth.
“Get your hand off me!”
Glenn had managed to use his watch to transform. Green light engulfs him, and Kevin is soon found holding a tall lanky eldritch looking Mummy, a Tep Khufan. The alien’s body and limbs start to fall apart, bandage by bandage, easily slipping out of the Osmosian’s stronghold. The mummy thwarts him off balance with one of its tendrils.
Snare-Oh, still formless, sneers angrily before using his tendrils to pry off the prince’s hands off hers. Once off, he ties him up with parts of himself.
“If the King of Khoros doesn't accept a hostage deal with his dear prince, I will rage war.” The hero states ominously.
“Uh, Glenn, I’m sure that’s not what he meant. And I’m sure your, uhh, experience in previous diplomacy will surely help with-” Her cousin cuts her off.
“No.”
“Yeah, I’m alarming Code Latte.” Kevin throws in all the first aid items back into the bag without care and zips it up. He fishes her truck keys from her pocket, then helps her up from the ground, holding her like a wet cat by the waist with feet dangling. Code Latte is derived from the lattes Jenny had made all the time in base, especially for other agents. Hopefully, grandpa Max can handle this better than Glenn.
Arriving in base, Kevin nods to Glenn before they split. The dark armored Osmosian puts his strong arm around her shoulders and drags her out of the hanger to somewhere in base. Opposite to where Glenn was dragging the unconscious Tetramand prince, possibly the infirmary, but Jenny has an inkling he might just throw the prince in one of the cells while planning something dubious.
“Where are we going?” Jenny looks at Kevin. His long black hair shades his face making him look more ominous, dangerous, like the times before he joined the plumbers. Him smiling does not help the mood.
“You're going home.”
“You sure?”
“Definitely.”
Turning a corner in base, they see grandpa Max and Rook speaking under hushed voices. Grandpa Max spots them and the conversation dies instantly, his face is bright, welcoming, and fake. Beside him Rook’s face is neutral. They are both hard to read.
“Package delivery.” Kevin transfers her to her grandpa.
“Good work. I’m sure Glenn is handling the other?”
“Of course.”
“I got agents dealing with the coming Tetramand armada, take Rook for extra precaution.”
Kevin nodes before he and Rook disappear down the hallway. Now Jenny is left alone with her grandpa.
“Uh, so…” She looks warily around the base’s control room. All sorts of agents are working seriously, she internally panics. Her unsure eyes look at her grandpa for answers, but all she sees is a tight smile and crinkled eyes.
“Come, let’s go home. The boys can handle this smoothly.” His voice, soft and comforting, yet authoritative, leaving no room for further questions. He slowly guides her out of the control room. From her peripheral, she can see two familiar personnels, Magister Gahlil and Magister Patelliday take over the commanding force of the room. Jenny glances back to her grandpa to note his own plumber uniform on him and belt full of gadgets, which is unforeseen most times as he is retired. She really shouldn’t have rammed the Tetramand prince, it’s all her fault.
Boom!
Suddenly, the base shakes in echoing vibration. Walls shake and dust trickle from the ceiling, but the control room moves unphased. She sees Magister Arnux bolting in.
“The hostage escaped!”
Her grandpa’s hand on her shoulder tenses. He sighs and mumbles in gritted teeth, she catches phrases like ‘sending them back to academy for additional training’ and ‘upping security measures in base’.
“Uhh..” Jenny doesn’t know who the specific hostage might be, but with everyone's weird tense behaviors she has an inkling. Not too good.
“We’re leaving.” With Grandpa Max’s firm words, he walks her out of base while she can feel more trembling vibrations making the facility shake and hearing faint yells.
In fact, she does not get to go home.
Jenny, seated next to the driver’s seat of the camper, watches the sky slowly be filled with the armada. Unlike the slick-back galvanic models she was familiar with, they were bulked up. Bricks in the sky floating above the city. The camper passes the large welcome signs of Bellwood.
“I’m not going home, right…?” She glances at him. He doesn’t reply.
“Am I in serious trouble? For hitting the Tetramand prince with my truck?” She asks again. She is locked in the camper with her grandpa, her truck taken (confiscated) by Kevin, and in the opposite direction to where her suburban house is located.
“Ah, well… It's complicated. Don’t worry about it too much, Jenny.” He answers back, eyes hard on the road.
Out in the window, she watches another fleet arrive, this time the outer plumber’s fleet.
“Say, how do you feel like a good ol’ camping trip with your grand papa, ah?” He uses the nickname she stopped using since middle school.
It takes, roughly, one week with her grandpa, somewhere deep in the woods off roading. Another week-ish with granduncle Gordon and his wife Betty Jean, who were with Joel and his wife’s side of the family over. Full ten days with grandaunt Vera, who constantly pampered and fed her. Then finally, she got home to her dad, who was looking sternly at his own father while holding her tightly against his chest. By the time she returns back to Bellwood, the armadas in the sky are gone, and Jenny almost passes out relieved. And during the whole time, no one told her anything, besides from grandaunt Vera who just thought she was visiting her in surprise.
(Jenny thinks back to her stay at Gordon and Betty’s place. The adults, four seasoned veteran plumbers and three veteran Lenopans who had fought them in the past, were all together talking in hushed voices over a plumber badge that doubled as a communication device. Jenny tried to ease drop on the conversation, just trying to feel around the situation she found herself in, but was caught by Lucy.
“Hey cous,” The blonde smiled at her friendly, before dragging her away.
“Can you at least tell me what is going on?”
“Nothing much, tense diplomatic negotiations, it’s going to wrap up soon though.”
“And those are…?”
“Classified.”)
After about a month since she hit an alien prince with her pick-up truck, her peaceful mundane life is back.
Her truck is back in good shape and all her CDs intact. (It all looks freshly new.) Aside from her dad occasionally asking where she is going, her cousin occasionally asking who she is meeting at times, Kevin and Rook occasionally checking up on her, and her grandpa occasionally having dinner with her and her dad, everything is well.
(Jenny had always been a good child, it’s in her blood. Hell, she can’t keep secrets even, she needs to tell or her mouth itches.
“I’m going out with Julie to the mall! I’ll be back before dark!” She yells before leaving the house.
Her dad nods from the couch.)
One day, she finds herself alone in the house just relaxing. Until the door bell rings.
Spooked by the sudden noise, she throws on a beige zip up hoodie hiding her lounging string tank top and plain black pajama shorts as she wrangles her messy hair presentable before answering. There is a big bouquet of flowers right in front of her face. From the messily bound wild flowers she slowly looks up to see a familiar red face, stretched in a wide feral grin.
(For what is worth, as much as she loved being oblivious to everything around her, especially important galactical news or stuff that is linked to the plumbers. She knows the baseline of her knowledge is still dangerous if fallen into the wrong hands. She’s weak, she’s a liability to her cousin, grandpa, and the organization. And as much as she tries to stay small, she finds herself dragged into the inner circles, knowing too much. Everyone else knows it. She expected the alien prince to show up at one point, but it was too soon.)
“Uh, who..?” Jenny greets, knowing exactly who he is. The Tetramand prince holds a sack over his shoulder.
“My love! Do not say you forgot about me!?” Prince Loomus looms over her, the front door can barely fit him. Ah, she kind of wants to now, to not know. Maybe Kevin had the right mind to run the other way if a Tetramand suitor came tracking you down. Kevin, always giving his problems to other people.
“...I hit you with my truck?” She gives a tiny recognition. Only a tiny bit.
“Yes! You do remember me! Forgive me, I have not given you a proper introduction of myself,” He pushes the self made bouquet into her hands. His cheeks become darker as he looks over her small stature. “I am Loomus Red Wind, Son of King Gar Red Wind, crown prince to planet Khoros. You have become of high interest to me while I was on my own excursion to find my ex-fiancé. You have defeated me with your metal chariot, such force used to knock me out into darkness. No one, not even my own soldiers, warriors I have fought, nor my ex-fiancé had achieved such feats.” He puts down the mysterious sack and goes down on one knee. There is a faint groan coming from the sack, she gives a quick glance at it.
“With my father’s new blessings, with new treaties with earth and their protecting warriors, I have come to you, charmed by your powerful force of nature. I ask you to take my offerings to court you, and to ask for a match to finalize our engagement by rites of combat!”
What the every loving hell is this guy talking about!? Is what she should be saying, no screaming, but she can only let out an exasperated “Huh?” and confused blinking, making sure this is not a dream, but reality.
The mysterious sack squirms. And she can hear faint voices under it.
“What is this…”
“Traditional Tetramand courting gifts, darling! Do you have a holding cell, a basement to hold the specimens I gift you?” Prince Loomus says eagerly.
Suddenly, the sack is ripped open from the inside by an orange energy based blade. Rook’s proto-tool. From inside Glenn, Kevin, and Rook jump out. Glenn is bruised and scratched, but feral, an almost growl resonates from him as his quick eyes glance at her than at Prince Loomus.
“You!” Glenn shouts angrily.
“Forgive me, darling. Your gifts are running away.” Loomus swings his hammer at them. Glenn and Rook get out of the way just by a hair, but Kevin quickly absorbs the concrete steps below and barely blocks. His arms crack and chip, but he stands his ground. Rook had given himself safe distance before reforming his proto tool into a stun gun, but before he is about to fire Loomus breaks his hammer into two and throws it into his direction. Frozen in her place, shocked, she doesn’t struggle as Glenn takes the bouquet in her hands and throws it on the ground. His hands clamp on her shoulders hard. She looked into his bright green eyes, then over to his bruised, scratched, and dried bloodied face. He talks to her in complete silence, she can only rub the dried blood off his cheek with shaking hands.
“I’ll deal with this.” He says firmly. He lets her go, shoving her back into her house, closing the door on her. She can hear him fumble with the omnitrix, she tries to open the door back, but whatever alien he had turned into had crushed the door knob, locking her inside.
Jenny quickly runs to a window that can see the front of her lawn. She sees her cousin and friends being easily beaten up. She makes up her mind.
“Is this all you got?” The Tetramand prince taunts as he smashes the asphalt with one of his hammers. Glenn, transformed as Rath, roars as he launches himself at him, punching him square in the face, but the grinning face of his opponent is still there. He punches another. They are engaged in combat. Rath silent as he blocks another swing of the hammer, hissing at the pain, but retorts tenfold.
He had been angry since Kevin told him of his past deal. The circumstances to why he understands but how late he shared the information still boils deep down inside him, it sometimes keeps him up at night, thinking what else his boyfriend and partner kept secret from him when he had shared everything. He didn’t concern himself much, because of Kevin’s words, but then the damn prince finally tracked them down. He should have concerned himself the same when he was fighting Vilgax.
And then, to his karma, Jenny had magically stricken him down with her truck.
And as repercussions for her help, the universe had thrown trouble right to the one thing, one person who keeps him grounded. Sane in the darkest nights unconditionally. The only person he can show his vulnerability to.
“RATH TOLD YOU TO STAY AWAY FROM HIS COUSIN!” He grabs hold of the prince and throws him across the street. Before Loomus can get up, from the sides, he spots Kevin throwing a boulder right at his head to keep him down.
“That’s for beating me shitless a month ago!”
“I believe we should wrap this out soon,” Rook limps next to Kevin, having been held by his leg and smashed against the ground, but not before stunning two out of four eyes of the prince. He pulls out two energy cuffs and hands one to Kevin. “I used a distress signal since we were abducted, but I do not know if the signal had been alerted correctly. It could take some time before Magister Tennyson was notified of our new circumstance.”
“Can’t believe we have to do another hostage release with him. Once wasn’t enough already.” The Osmosian touches Rook’s proto armor and turns his skin into the dull dark blue metal.
“I agree. Now we must finish this before he initiates the courting match they do. I quite frankly like Glenn’s cousin to keep making those delicious carrot cake.”
“Don’t remind me. God, I would literally sell my soul for some red velvet cookies and a hot latte.” Rook looks at him worried. “It was a metaphor.”
“Oh.”
Rath and Loomus had now gotten themselves into a tug of war with the Tetramand’s hammer. The Appolexian finally pried off the prince’s fingers and threw it away from his reach.
“No more hammers, just our fists.” He snarls, getting his claws out and ready to take him.
“Hammers are just there to keep me from using my fists!” Loomus’s knuckles, all four of them crack all distinctively, before he rushes to Rath with new found blood lust dancing in his eyes.
She’s running barefoot, her hands tighten around the rusty crow bar, protected by worn out gloves that are just too big, her dad’s, it’s torn and has holes where her hands can feel the cold metal. Jenny manages to loop around the house, escaping through the back door, before making it to the front yard. She might have stepped in something sharp, but she ignores the spikes of pain every time her left foot touches the ground. Just in time to see Kevin and Rook be smashed against each other and let fall to the ground carelessly.
Glenn, her dear cousin, had been pummeled into the ground. A trickle of blood on his mouth, a side of his face purple. He looks defeated, but his green eyes still show fire to continue fighting, for her sake. Jenny just tightens her hold on the crow bar.
Before she can think on what to do, she’s moving. Her naked feet on the asphalt are so silent, only leaving imprints of blood. She’s a blur, acting so fast, faster than she can handle. The adrenaline pumping in her blood is in sync with her heart beat, it’s so loud and drowns every other sound from her ears.
Close enough to her cousin’s assailant, she slides between under the alien’s legs, ignoring the pain igniting as her skin is scraped across burning, she takes the opportunity to hook the crow bar on one of the ankles and make the giant fall. Then she rapidly changes her movements, from on the ground to being up in a split second, kneeing his chin hard as he falls.
She hears sounds, it dances distantly over her ears, but it’s not louder than her heart beat. She can distinctly make out her cousin’s call of her name, but she’s on to her next move. Before the Tetramand can blink from the ground, she uses the metal rod to strike across his face.
Something wet splatters across her face, it's hot, smells of metal, but Jenny can’t really see anything, except the red beast. He grins, stretching across his face widely, with sharp teeth that can easily tear apart her flesh.
The world around them is ignored and forgotten, just a blur of colour she can’t recognize. There is only her and the red beast.
“Are you inviting yourself, my love?” The red beast asks, voice low and shy. The wonder in the remaining three eyes sickened her, making her skin crawl. If this is what loathing feels like she believes it. A large furry hand grabs hold of her left ankle, their claws digging in her skin. She swipes it off with her crow bar, her eyes trained on the red beast, never leaving.
“Let’s dance, darling.” He launches himself up and she finds herself moving again.
When Rook wakes up head spinning, laying on his back, next to an unconscious Kevin disoriented, he hears the ongoing fight and booming laughter. He wonders if Glenn is back up again or someone sent from the organization had finally taken over. He weakly pulls himself up to see, but is stopped by the said red head who was trying to push him back down. The Revonnahgander looks over the fretting hero to see Loomus fighting Jenny, who was fluidly evading his attacks while attacking, diving in to hit then stepping back to dodge until the next opening the Tetramand makes.
“What the fuck…” He hears Glenn whisper. He looks up at him briefly, glancing at his hand holding his shoulder and his arm dangling.
Rook manages to get on his chest, grunting as he feels his sides hurting, his bones are all wrong, it digs into his lungs and furthermore. He props himself up using his good arm, assessing the situation. Prince Loomus, missing the lower left eye, deep rough cut right across the absent eye, rough burns with asphalt chips sticking out, no visible blood, hard to see due to his red skin, but deep purple marks that match the shape of a crow bar. Jennifer, right forearm sprouting a dark hand print, sheer blood on her hands despite the dark gloves, bare feet red, left foot leaving faint blood prints on the ground, left ankle with deep bruise and scratches, the entire right leg red and skin torn, the blood on the crow bar. It’s a blood bath, if only his proto-tool wasn’t smashed into a million pieces on the floor…
“I do not think Jennifer will last long, she is losing blood and despite how good she is fairing, she is not properly trained.” Rook informs Glenn. The hero takes Kevin’s plumber badge and shoves it into him.
“Call someone. Hurry. I’ll..”
“You will…?”
“Do something. Before she loses.” The implication is in the air. And neither want to answer what happens when a male Tetramand wins against a female Tetramand in the rites of courting. Glenn doesn’t want to even think of it, some nobody from space, royalty or not, trying to steal his cousin.
(A Deja vu, to when he was kidnapped and had to be saved. Grandpa Max distracted Vilgax while Jenny somehow disabled his holding machine with a screw driver and wrench, then pushing him inside the rust bucket, starting the engine, yelling at grandpa, and then they were out of the Chimeran Hammer. That night, he held her, face deep in her torso, like she was his mom, and cried since the first time he got the omnitrix.)
Before he can press on his watch to transform into Echo Echo, to burst up his entire vocal cords, a bright comet crashes into the prince. Jenny gawks at the scene in front of her, stepping back, the blank look in her eyes finally snapping back to her normal dark brown ones. The crow bar is forgotten and clatters. She crumbles to the floor, dry heaving, and Glenn quickly gets next to her. He rubs her back as she throws up, ignoring the smell and some getting on his clothes. The red head finds himself breathing in and out deeply as he pulls her to his chest, away from her fight.
Ken floats out of the crater. His bright magenta mana surrounds and illuminates him. Glenn looks at his older brother relieved. But Ken doesn’t match him.
The older red head flicks his hand to the scene. Broken steps slowly mend, asphalt becomes renewed, and everything damaged goes back to how it was before. He then pulls the prince out of the crater to which he created, dropping him on the flat ground, bound tightly with his powers. The air is crisp with his electrocuting power, it’s thick, dangerous, and daunting. (Sometimes Glenn wonders if he had the same power as Ken. Anodites, one of the aliens he just can’t seem to unlock.)
“What is this?” It’s more of a statement than a question. Ken gestures around him, to Jenny in his arms shaking, to Kevin who is out cold, to Rook mouth agape and staring, and to the unconscious prince. Ken’s eyes are cold, sharp, almost cynical if he hadn’t caught worry buried deep in his forest green eyes. Maybe his mom was right, gone was the past he knew of his own brother, who doted on him and Jenny, whatever grandma Verdona had taught him had changed him. Made him powerful, so alien to what he knew of him.
“He has ulterior motives for Jenny.” Glenn points at the red alien. There is so much hate dripping from his voice. He never directed this much to anyone before, it’s new, it shears him like fire. (Not even Vilgax got him like this. Not even Malware when he ripped Feedback out.)
Ken turns and looks down at his prey.
Maybe it’s his protectiveness that somehow changed into possessiveness. Glenn isn’t really sure.
For Kevin, it had always been trying to one up him in their locked rivalry, that turned into mutually shared longing and love the two find themselves in. For Rook, it’s a new feeling, a good friend who is always there, who he can always rely on. For grandpa Max, his constant presence is enough, it makes him feel seen, it makes him sure everything will be just alright. And for Jenny, whatever monster he becomes she is there, if he gets in a tight spot she is there, if he breaks she is there. She is always there. From rolling her eyes when he acts with all ego or to when he curls up on her. She is there rubbing his back and telling him what she should try to bake next time. It’s comfort to which the alien world he finds himself in every corner.
He wants to horde all his precious people like a dragon. Keeping them sealed away in a safe alternate dimension with nothing to worry, like Dagon. But he can’t. He finds himself up late at nights spiraling if one of them dies, especially because of his mistakes.
The diplomatic conclusion he and Rook had bargained is ripped up now. The treaty with Khoros needs to be revised, and he really just doesn’t want to.
The plumbers had held Prince Loomus, not a hostage, but a criminal. Tried to take the prince to galactic court. But the galactic council pulls the rug from under.
He is stuck in base, hunched, hands on his forehead, he almost wishes to pray to an evil god to get fate his way. But stops at the last moment. He thinks back to what has been ruled.
The galactic council had ruled that rites of courting between extraterrestrials are to be untouched upon their laws. There are over tens and thousands of courting methods between alien species, and they cannot oversee all, even if some are down right barbaric. Since Jenny had accepted to step into the fight, in the Tetramand’s rites of courting she had consented to whatever happens in ceremonial combat.
(He smirks how she had taken out one of his eyes. But it quickly died as she trembled at what she had done. And the pure adoring expression on the prince’s face looking straight across the negotiation table to her makes him sick.)
In the end, the King of Khoros shakes hands with grandpa Max. The king laughs loudly, entertained at his son’s new side and his potential fiancé. He tries to propose a proper match to be done. From grandpa Max’s tight neutral face, everything concludes peacefully. But Glenn knows where his protective and possessiveness came from in the family. His superior’s hands had gripped his own so tight throughout the whole Glenn was sure Magister Max’s fingers would not come out unscathed.
Jenny, bandaged up, sat quietly between grandpa Max and himself. Looking down on the table the entire time. Not even daring to look up and meeting unwavering golden eyes. They both know there isn’t much to do. As much as he himself likes to boast about how he is the hero of the universe, which he is, there are still rules to follow. Earth’s plumbers are but a branch of extension to the galactic enforcers' legion. Ultimos has yet to answer his messages back. (He’d have better luck with Vilgax.)
“Get up,” Albedo snaps him out of his mind. “We still got things to finish off.” His albino doppelganger sighs.
“Like what?” Glenn narrows his eyes. He’s tired, all he wants to do is sleep, but he can’t. Not until whatever went wrong is finished.
“Last minute measures for the treaty. Besides that, we also have other problems wrecking havoc. Like Khyber, who you have yet to capture. The Rooters problem, as usual. Oh, and Vilgax is being transferred from our high security prisons to the galactic coalition's, they need someone like you to supervise it." Albedo huffs, his fingers flip through the clip board full of paper notes. It’s so unlike to see a Galvan using paper over tech, he almost snorts.
“Albedo, I have a question for you.”
“What? I don’t have time to dilly dally or whatever you humans call it.” Glenn sighs.
“Do you think King Red Wind will jeopardize Earth and Khoros’s treaty, over-step the lines, just because the prince is… interested in my cousin?”
“Interest is a weak word to be applied here. Prince Loomus looked star struck from what I managed to see, even if it’s seen to us as blood lust. I don’t have words for what you call his expression when he sees Jen, the closest thing I can label is pure adoration. And I’ve seen it all before.” Albedo sits next to him on the couch. He pushes his glasses up with a finger, same brand, same model, and same colour. He picked it out intentionally, just to grate his ego, when he orchestrated the whole musical rip-off. But now they just look like twins, a red head and an albino.
Albedo pulls out a pack from the chest pocket of his lab coat. Glenn finds himself pawing his jean’s pocket for his lighter. Maybe the two were one in the same coin thanks to sharing the same genetic traits, they both like to secretly smoke when no one is looking. His room even comes with good ventilation, which he didn’t know until he found himself stress smoking with his once nemesis.
“Where did you last see it?”
Albedo holds up two and Glenn lights both at the same time. Then taking one from his grasp.
“When I worked under Azmuth to collect DNA samples of Tetramands.” Albedo huffs out.
“So, eons ago.” Glenn lets out a breathless laugh. He doesn’t feel like laughing.
“It’s been so long…” Albedo mutters. Glenn looks up to see his albino doppelganger looking down at his human hands. The red head pats his back on top of the pristine white lab coat. As much as the Galvan tries to act all okay, he knows Azmuth’s death by the hands of Malware still haunts him. (And him too.)
(So many lost souls in need of his guidance. But the visionary scientist they all know is dead. With no goal to pursue, Glenn finds Albedo slouched in a diner, Jenny is across his doppelganger with a plate full of chicken alfredo, stuffing his face. If the Galvan was crying, they did not see it.)
Silence fills the room, mixing with the white smoke he tries to find comfort in. It takes a while, when his cigarette is halfway gone he opens his mouth back.
“What should I do to get Jenny out of this?” His own voice sounds rough. So different, so foreign.
“It is not yours nor her fault. No one faults it on you two. Perhaps, a little on Kevin, but he had a rough road he pushed himself out.” The albino sighs. “Tetramands are one of the strongest species out in the universe. They clawed themselves out of their desert planet, mind you, a planet of extreme weather and dangerous killer animals, and yet they thrived. If they were any faster in their technological conquest, the known galactic history would be different. Or, if the galactic enforcers did not make the right contact.
“You are still waiting for Ultimos’s relay?” Red eyes meet green.
“What if?”
“Don’t bother. He wouldn’t endanger one of his biggest supporters. And Tini, you remember Tini, she would have blocked any effort that might have crossed her own opinions, hence your late message.” The room is full of smoke lingering up in the air.
“Tetramands are very straight on about their traditions. Their planet is basically dead, so dangerous, not even I, when I was an enthusiastic apprentice, could do much without the native aids I was given. What survives the planet is the strong, and they will always seek the strong no matter what. Be it to protect themselves, procreation, or bloodlust. Their ingrained constant survival is what makes them so strong, it is all just centuries of gene selection. It is not as intense as the last time I visited, but the royal house of Khoros strongly upholds those traditions and traits.”
Albedo tosses his bud on the pristine floor, killing the fire by stepping on it with his slipper. He lazily leaves the remains of ash there. Getting up slowly before walking to the door, but turns to look at him before leaving.
“Either, she wins and he forever masks for a rematch. He wins and she becomes crown princess. Or you find a secret third option.”
It goes against every cell in her body to be there. Looking directly at the prince.
She shouldn’t be here, she was warned not to be alone with him, but she understands she has to finish it once and for all. Her precious mundane life, to keep that life as it is, even if she is far from that, it’s what she thrived to keep and protect. In the end, this chase will drag on, it’s better to finish it now then later. Who knows what could happen in the future.
To put her normal life on the scale, a price she may pay or a deal she may keep. She is going to jeopardize her life for a foolish deal. But if it keeps earth and her cousin away from one less trouble, she can take it.
Jenny stands in the dark abandoned harbour. Glenn once told her the place was a gold mine when checking for illegal activities, a place he would leave alone unless his quota had to be made. And now she is here to make a deal. A dangerous one.
“Finally, my love. No distractions to come between us.” Loomus grin is feral. He had forgone his helmet and armor, just in his black bodysuit pants with four golden wrist guards, ankle guards, and belt. Jenny can make out his hair tied back. Even without all his gear and hammer, he is still menacing. She wants to just turn around and run, but that’s not an option anymore.
The small brunette stands before him weary and nervous. She wonders if he can smell her fear. She throws that thought away. Unlike last time she had time to prepare. Proper foot wear, new gloves that fit her hands perfectly, long arm guards with fitted black crop top, leg guards underneath her jeans, and the same crow bar she used last time. She hasn't had the mindset to properly clean the tool. She doesn’t care now.
“Before we do this, I would like to voice myself.” Her two eyes meet three golden ones, and a metal eye patch.
“Forfeiting already? Admitting to surrender won’t get you out of this. And I am already giving you an advantage to use your choice of weapon.” He sulks.
“No. A deal.” She hears his breath hitch sharply. His expression becomes eager.
“Ah. A deal, my love?” She points the crow bar at her and his face flushes.
“I want to end this, before this drags out.” She silently gulps. “My deal is that, if I win, I want you to stop your… courting. No fights with me, Kevin, Glenn, or Rook. No revenge either.” She can feel her right leg tremble, still healing since she burned while sliding on asphalt. Hopefully her jeans take most of the brunt if it happens again.
“And if I win…?” His eyes glint under the moonlight.
“I’ll be yours.”
“Deal.”