Oa was a large planet, set in Space Sector 0000. It was a planet that laid in the very center of the Universe and where the Guardians resided and the home of the Green Lantern Corps.

In the assemblage center, over a dozen short blue-skinned individuals hovered. They wore white and red robes that covered the majority of their body. In the center of their chests, the Green Lantern Corps sigil shined brightly upon their chests. Each of them looked alike, yet different. Their hair was a pale white and their skin was completely blue. However, they didn't share facial features. There, they differed from one another.

One Guardian spoke.

"I believe we should start the meeting. We have waited long enough to discuss this matter." The Guardian known as Galex spoke, his voice stern and brisk.

"I agree," another spoke, his voice just as heavy.

"As do I."

From there, more responses aired, all varying in words, but one thing everyone had in common was that they all agreed.

"Benjamin Tennyson, a human in the possession of the Omnitrix. The boy was thought dead," Galex said.

Zogno frowned, but said, "all of us did. He vanished and only faint whispers echoed throughout the Universe regarding him. We were given no reason to believe otherwise." He defended the corps. His own job was to keep watch over the Universe and he felt like Galex was implying that this was thier fault.

"But he is among the living, yes?" Morle asked.

Everyone nodded.

"And Darkseid..."

Just the very mention of the dreaded name, caused a shiver to run down their spines.

"His defeat does not bode well with the New Gods."

"As does it here," Morle said, a small sneer upon his face. "To think there is someone alive that could take that fiend down... it is just as terrifying of a prospect as Darkseid living among us."

"Benjamin Tennyson," Magad began, "What should be done of him?"

"He is a threat," Galex said immediately. "The Omnitrix is far too of a powerful weapon to be in the hands of a human."

Another voice spoke, this time calm and patient. "Yet two of our finest are humans," Tedok said, smiling. "They have used the rings well. Used them for good and decency, they have."

"He is not Hal Jordan or John Stewart." Galex retorted sharply. "We have no clue on who this Ben Tennyson is."

That was saying something. The Green Lantern rings knew what the Guardians knew and the Guardians knew nearly nothing of what happened after Benjamin Tennyson disappeared in the dark abyss that was the Null Void.

"All we know is that he is in possession of the Omnitrix and that he was able to defeat a New God with it," Morle said, a small shiver traveling down his spine.

"He is powerful, yes he is." Tedok conceded. "But he may be an ally, I feel. He has given us no reason to prove otherwise, you must see."

Galex frowned intensely.

"And he has given us no reason to believe he is not a threat."

"We do not meddle in affairs of the Universe," Nusga interjected.

"The Omnitrix has the potential to destroy entire universes! The wielder was able to defeat Darkseid himself!" Galex's voice was rising now. "We cannot leave this human unchecked. Even our collective knowledge cannot confirm exactly what samples Azmuth was able to acquire! He is too big of a threat to be left unchecked!"

Soder shook his head and responded.

"Nothing shall be done to the human." His firm gaze traveled through the gathering. He met Galex's narrowed gaze but held steady. "If he proves to be a threat, then the Green Lantern Crops shall bring him to justice. Not before. Do I make myself clear?"

Everyone nodded. Some more reluctantly than others.

"Yes, sir."

Magistrata stood tall, her back stiff. Sweat rolled down her cyan skin as she overviewed a new batch of Plumber Recruits.

Today, she had received troubling, yet gratifying news. Darkseid had been slain. Whether this was purely speculation or a widespread rumor, she was not sure. However, she was sure that the rumor was spread far throughout the Universe. Benjamin Tennyson had also become a pushing concern.

The man was supposed to be stranded in the Null Void. A boy with the power of the Omnitrix lost in the Null Void. Even with the possession of the watch, no one thought he would be able to escape. Much less stay alive for eight years. He was a child of ten summers after all. At first, Magistrata was upset when she heard that the Omnitrix bearer was stranded in the Null Void. Though, as time passed, she grew to be... grateful that the Omnitrix was lost forever. In the Null Void, nothing escaped. The Omnitrix would be lost forever and she would never have to even consider the possibility of it wandering off into the wrong hands. Now though... now that the Omnitrix was back and the bearer, along with Vilgax the Conqueror had escaped the Null Void, more pressing concerns were thrust on her shoulders.

For the past year, she had been monitoring Earth, where aliens from all over the Universe gathered. Some were extraordinarily strong, others incredibly smart and wise, others with inexplicable powers... Her contact on Earth had assured her that while there were aliens on Earth, they were of no threat. Most of them were here to protect it. The majority of them even learned to live alongside the humans and fight for their protection.

Such a thought, while admirable, still left her with an if scenario. There was a possibility - a large possibility that some of those life forms could go rogue and try to conquer the Earth. Now add that to an escaped convict, who was in the possession of the Omnitrix, who was also living on the planet... that just made everything more confusing and conflicting. To hear that this person was able to beat Darkseid—a being that made many tremble in fear from just hearing his name being uttered made her pause and reflect.

The night was brisk, filled with clouds and an ever so present full moon hovered above. The absent wind brushed passed the trees and the near-dead grass shuffled from the light breeze.

Ben stood, a dark leather jacket hugging his form. His dark jeans were stained from what looked like dirt. It was unlikely that his pants had even been washed in the past week. He just snatched them randomly and put them on. He felt no need to dress fancy or wear his armor. The last thing he wanted to feel right now, was security.

His dark hair shifted in the wind and just stared blankly at the open land. His green eyes barely held any emotion at all. Painfully, he continued breathing at a steady pace - it felt like he was trying to swallow glass, every time he took a breath of air. The muscles along the side of his mouth throbbed from how hard he was clenching jaw. If he continued on, his teeth were liable to shatter. As he stood, he absently pinched his index finger and thumb together. Silently, he rubbed the two back and forth, feeling his rough, calloused skin.

A shiver ran down his spine - not from being cold, but from the raw feeling of his skin. He swallowed thickly before allowing a shaking breath through his nostrils.

During his brooding, he barely heard the footsteps raking towards him in the sand.

"Are you alright?" Gwendolyn asked quietly, not sure at all on how to approach the situation, much less how to approach him.

Ben brought up his hand and drug his fingers underneath his nose.

"Yeah... I'm great." He didn't care to hide the dryness or sarcasm. "You know what? I can do ya one better; I'm perfect!" He laughed. But the gesture or the words didn't reach his eyes. Even without looking into them, Gwendolyn knew that.

"Ben..." she sighed, caressing her creased brows. "There was nothing you could have done-," she was cut when he rounded on her.

"That's bullshit and you know it!" He roared, his control over his own emotions slipping. "I..." he sighed, his footing shifting, and his hands moving on top his head. "I let him die."

Gwendolyn pinched her lips together. "You didn't let him die, Ben."

Ben laughed humorlessly, his gaze empty. "Really? I could have easily used one of my faster transformations and transported them across the planet. Without a doubt. But no... I left them both there..." He looked at her, his facial expression was painfully hollow.

"It's easier to look back in hindsight!" Gwendolyn reminded him swiftly.

"That doesn't make it any better, Gwen!" Ben shouted, spit flying from his mouth. "Everything I touch, I kill! That's the truth!" He roared, his voice sending tiny tremors throughout Gwendolyn's body. "Dad's dead because of me! Mom's in a coma she might never wake up from because of me! Me! Me! Me! Me!" He shouted, slamming his pointed index finger at his chest.

"Ben, you have the best medical equipment on the planet working on her, every second of the day. Give it some time," she tried, smiling ever so slightly. "Have faith."

"Faith?" He asked, his voice cracking. "What's that?"

"You have to find out for yourself, Ben. No one alive is capable of telling you what you should have faith in. That's just something you have to find out yourself."

Max walked into his room. As he walked, his back leaned forward, slouched. His face was covered by the shadows as he stepped throughout the room, a destination in mind.

Now in the very corner of his room, he crouched down and opened up the small refrigerator he kept inside his bedroom. Opening it up, his face was assaulted by the cold of the machine, but he didn't react. He just reached inside and pulled out his fourth beer of the night. Slamming it shut, he walked back over to his chair and sat down.

The blinds were shut, but even now, crack in the morning, some light beamed through, which illumined Max's dark-rimmed, sunken eyes and tear-stained cheeks. As he sat down, he easily popped the cap off the beer and quickly downed a large couple of mouthfuls. Max sighed deeply as he drew the bottle back and tilted back his head.

Helpless...

He was helpless.

His son... his son was supposed to outlive him. He was supposed to be completely unaware of the supernatural world. He... he was supposed to be safe!

But no... Vilgax... he had to do it. He had to kill his son! That monster he had to make it about someone else!

Just the thought caused Max to sneer hatefully. His grasp on the bottle trembled as he struggled for control.

There was nothing he wanted to do more than scream and pound the walls in outrage and overwhelming grief. But no... he held it in. He was a soldier. Death was never far out from a soldier. He had to be like a soldier... he had to be strong like one. He had to be a Plumber...

The dark look in the old-man spoke volumes.

He had to be a Plumber... he had to become that person again...

'Make my words... Vilgax... you're going to pay in blood for what you did to my son!'

It was the early morning of the very next day. Most of the team were already awake and roaming the calls of the living area of the tower. Some of them were wearing some gauze around their limbs to keep some of their wounds uninfected. However, most of the team was just fine.

Courtesy of the magical wonders of the team's highly-advanced Medbay.

As some of the team wandered into the kitchen, they started smelling something in the air.

Kevin paused, his nose crinkling as smelt a heavenly aroma travel throughout the halls. Looking to his right, he spotted Raven, who was casually levitating throughout the halls, wearing a dark purple cloak. She too paused before taking a quick whiff.

"I smell pancakes." The woman intoned.

"Pancakes?" Kevin muttered before a grin split across his lips. "Don't wait up!" He yelled, dashing through the halls like an excited child on the morning of Christmas.

Raven watched him before calmly making her way to the kitchen. With her current pace, she reckoned she make it there a few seconds after Kevin did. She could have just teleported there, she realized, but she figured it was a little too early for that. Raven knew that teleporting around the Titans Tower often startled most of her teammates. So she decided not to fall into the same grove and took the patient route as she accompanied her fellow hybrid.

Once she neared the doorway, she eyed Kevin. Though, she immediately noticed that he wasn't moving. He was just standing in the center of the automatic double doors, which refused to close due to his presence and the motion-sensitive doors, with his eyes widened like saucers. Humming curiously to herself, Raven floated over and gazed into the room, trying to find the cause of Kevin's shock. Immediately, her eyes too briefly widened.

There in the kitchen was Ben, clad in nothing but a formfitting black T-shirt, black cargo pants and a pair of slides, flipping pancakes across a four-foot-long griddle. Apparently, he hadn't taken notice of their presence. After a moment, he began scooping them off the griddle and onto a large, tire-sized plate. Once he was finished, there was somewhere upwards of forty pancakes stacked up on the island.

Sighing, he flipped the high-powered griddle off and walked over to the sink. Dropping the metal spatula into the sink, he began running some water, cleaning off most of the mess. He looked up and shut the water off, deciding the dishwasher could handle it from there. Once he did that, he turned around spotted Kevin blinking owlishly at him and Raven oddly staring at the pancakes with repressed hunger.

'Huh, my senses must be getting dull.' he thought, having not even sensed them.

"You know, you two could have come in. Food's for everyone."

Like a madman, Kevin rushed in, grabbing a plate from the island before plucking off pancakes for himself. He also grabbed a few syrup packets before speed-walking to one of the restaurant-style tables. Raven followed his example, though much more controlled and calmly. Once she got close him, she offered him a small smile before floating over to the tables.

Ben made sure that her smile was reciprocated. After she sat down, he noticed that the rest of the team, including Alan, Starfire, and Gwendolyn had made it the kitchen. No doubt they could smell the wonderful aroma of his cooking and they came running, he thought with a mental smirk.

"Grab a plate everyone," Ben instructed them, doing the same.

He himself had grabbed a modest five pancakes before walking over to the tables. Gwendolyn shared a look of surprise, as just last night he was angst-ridden and now he was cooking? If that made sense at all, she failed to grasp it. However, she followed his instructions and grabbed a few plates, handing them to the youngest of the team before handing another one to her fellow female member, who graciously accepted it.

As they finished grabbing their food, each and every member of the team was now seated in the same room. Some of the more hungry members, like Kevin and Starfire, ate like slobs, while the others ate patently with the manners they were taught.

"So, Alan," Gwendolyn began, catching the teen's attention.

"Uh, yeah?" He asked, swallowing a mouthful of pancakes. Which were surprisingly really good.

"You thinking about going to college or university? Now that you've graduated High School?" She asked, garnering Ben's attention.

Alan paused before shrugging.

"Honestly I don't know. I mean, it doesn't sound all that fun to split up from you guys just to go to college."

"There are online courses you can take." Ben intoned, carefully cutting one of his pancakes in half, but cutting that piece in half as well.

Alan blinked, "Oh yeah! I remember seeing some infomercials talking about them."

"You want to further your education, go ahead. I don't think anyone here is going to object." Gwendolyn said encouragingly while shooting a look at Ben, to make sure he wasn't going to object. Surprisingly, he said nothing and went back to eating quietly.

"Sure, I'll look into it. Thanks." Alan smiled gratefully.

"So, what's our next point of interest, as a team?" Raven asked, looking at the leader of their team.

Ben nodded lightly before answering.

"Honestly?" He asked and Raven nodded. "Recon, recuperation, and training."

"Recon?" Starfire asked, speaking up for the first time.

Ben nodded. "It's the day after an alien invasion. I don't want to be kept out of the loop with anything."

The Tamaranean nodded in understanding before going back to eat.

"I know that you all performed as good as possible while operating as a team," Ben said before taking another bite of his breakfast. "As of now, I want you all to focus on improving your own skills and further your own power."

Everyone nodded, even Kevin, who looked ready to raid the kitchen for another round of pancakes.

After everyone had finished eating their breakfast, they had left the room to do their own things. However, Ben remained and as did Gwendolyn. He walked around, cleaning up after his team's mess, tossing plates and plastic silverware into the garbage. Gwendolyn stood behind him, her arms folded over her bountiful chest.

"Are you alright?" She asked quietly, not sure how to approach him. She did, after all, just watch her cousin have a mental breakdown the day before. But then suddenly, he was fine and dandy. Gwendolyn didn't buy it. Not one bit of it.

He turned around and gave her a smile.

"Of course I am," Ben told her before taking the garbage bag out of the trashcan and began tying it up.

"Are you sure, Ben?" Gwendolyn asked worriedly, a small tilt of her head.

Ben nodded, walking over to the trash shoot. He pushed open the panel and tossed the garbage bag down before closing it back up. Dusting his hands off, he faced her once more.

"Yes. I'm fine." He smiled.

Gwendolyn sighed, dipping her head. "Look, Ben, are we really going to pretend that nothing happened last night?"

Ben sighed.

"I'm not pretending anything. I just needed to get some stuff off my chest. That's all."

"Seriously, Ben," Gwendolyn mumbled, frustration clear in her tone.

"I am being serious, Gwen." Ben offered a brief chuckle. "I'm fine."

She looked at him, long and hard before sighing deeply.

"Fine. If you won't tell me what's really going on with you then I'll leave you to brood about it." With that, she left the room, leaving him all alone.

"Gwen..." he said, but it was too late. She was already gone. "Goddamnit." He sighed, caressing his forehead.

He didn't have time for this, he had places to be.

"Thank you for meeting with us on such short notice," Superman said, his imposing figure sitting firmly in an expensive lounge chair.

Beside him, Batman sat, in the chair next to the Dark Knight, the Flash sat. Further to his left, Wonder Woman sat in a noble-like stance - her legs crossed neatly and her expression impassive. Beside her, Aquaman and Martian Manhunter occupied the next seats. Beside Martian Manhunter, the famous Black Canary sat and finally, one of Green Lantern sat.

In the large half-circle, in front of them all, Ben Tennyson sat, casually lounging deep into his chair. For the occasion, he wore a highly expensive dormeuil vanquish ii suit, with a diamond-studded Rolex on his right wrist and the Omnitrix gleaming proudly on his left. He sat with his legs crossed as well and eyed the Leaguers with a small, confident smirk, his emerald eyes glimmering.

"It was my pleasure, I assure you." He said, tilting his upper-body downwards, in a sort of bow while flashing a pearly-white smile.

Superman shot Batman a wry look before speaking.

"Firstly, before we get into business, I think I can speak on behalf of the whole League, is thank you," Superman said, smiling as well. "If you hadn't stepped in, I don't want to have to imagine what would have happened."

"Huh, speak for yourself, Supes." Green Lantern mumbled to himself, onto receive a sharp kick to his foot by the curtesy of Black Canary's razor-sharp heels.

Ben smiled and waved it off.

"Don't worry about it. I'll be here next time something like this happens." He said casually.

"Next time?" Batman asked, an impassive look blanketing the bottom half of his face.

Ben nodded, "Look around. Every time there is a fight, there's always going to be five more that come after it. It's the never-ending battle."

Batman didn't react to the response, but he too agreed. It was the never-ending battle. The Dark Knight knew that better than anyone.

"That's an incredibly nihilistic thing to say." Black Canary said, narrowing her eyes.

"But true!" Ben coolly pointed his finger at her for a second before placing that hand back down onto his thigh. "I mean seriously, do you see an end to the wackjobs with superpowers? Cause I have to say... I don't." He popped the last letter of his sentence, earning a subtle frown from the Dark Knight.

His words were truthful. Batman was sure of it. He wasn't frowning because this individual shared his views about crime, but because he was so casual about it.

Superman saw the course this conversation was going towards and decided to change its direction.

"Nonetheless, you helped avert a threat that could have been much, much worse. For that, we would like to extend our gratitude. But I also want to take this opportunity to get to know a bit about you."

Ben shrugged, "Sure, as long as the beautiful ladies sitting in front of me promise to share something of themselves, I'm game." He flashed a charming grin towards them and Wonder Woman couldn't help but narrow her gaze at him, while Black Canary warded off the blush before it came.

"First of all, how old are you?" Batman asked, interrupting everyone's thoughts and not even mentioning the emerald-eyed man's request.

Ben pouted slightly at not getting his way before answering brightly.

"21 years old."

A bit young to be a hero.

Batman, however, knew just how young they could get. Yet not all of them have the power to destroy a solar system or more, he reasoned.

"What is the device on your wrist?" Batman asked. While internally, he knew Ben's powers came from it, but it didn't know the specifics. Plus, rule number one of information gathering, was to never let someone else know exactly what you knew. It's better to play the fool than to actually be the fool, Ra's Al Ghul instilled that lesson deep into his brain.

"Oh? This little thing?" He asked, gesturing to the rose-gold diamond Rolex on his wrist. "Just a really expensive watch, I'm afraid."

"Don't play coy." Batman's tone hadn't changed. It made his warning all that more intimidating. If Ben was a normal person, he might have shivered. Might have...

"Damn." He whined aimlessly. "You know, you're way too serious." He pointed out to the caped crusader. "You got to learn to take life like a joke - one punchline at a time." Ben chuckled, getting looks from every Leaguer in the room.

Especially Batman, who had a brief flashback to one of his many encounters with the joker.

"You got to learn to take life like a joke, Batsy - one punchline at a time! AHAHAHAHAHA!"

Underneath the cowl, Bruce Wayne had to withdrawal a shiver.

"But I guess I'll tell you," Ben drawled, talking as if he was talking to a child begging for a new toy. "The Omnitrix, at its core, is a portable library of sorts, storing interuniversal genetic data that allows the wielder to alter their DNA at will and transform into a variety of diverse and complex alien species, each with their own bizarre and unique abilities."

"That's where you get your powers?" Batman asked, eyes narrowing. "By using a device that allows you to consciously alter your own DNA to match another alien species."

"How fascinating..." Wonder Woman muttered, amazed that such a thing exists.

"Humph, doesn't have anything on the Green Lantern Power Ring." Green Lantern huffed.

"Apparently it doesn't have such shoddy name either." Ben retorted, earning a growl from the man.

"What are you planning now that you've made your debut?" Superman asked.

Ben cocked his head, a confused frown stretching onto his lips.

"Debut?"

Superman nodded affirmatively.

"You... you think this was a debut?" Ben asked, gazing around the room. "A debut to what, exactly?"

"Your hero carrier," Superman said, barely having to think for his answer.

"Hero?" Ben asked, cocking his head to the side. "I'm sorry, but you're under the impression that I'm a hero."

Instantly that put everyone on edge.

"Then what are you?" It was Batman who asked this.

Ben shrugged, "Just someone who doesn't want to watch the world burn."

"And that's not being a hero?" Wonder Woman asked, tilting her head in confusion.

Ben shook his head, licking his dry lips as he did so. "No, you see, my dear, 'heroes' as you call them are just self-deprecated assholes in tights. You 'heroes' cling onto your morals so tightly and when you walk away, you desperately say to yourself; I did the right thing."

If Black Canary was offended by what he said, she didn't show it. Much like half of the people sitting there. However, Flash, Green Lantern and Wonder Woman were exceptions.

"So yeah, great job. You did the right thing by sending this super-assholes off prison." Ben shook his head. "I mean, how could you be held responsible when he or she busts out of prison and continues to kill more - continues to steal more - continues to destroy more. That's why it's a never-ending cycle, because you're all too afraid to break it."

This... this is not what Superman had in mind when he invited the new hero to the Hall of Justice. No, he expected to get to know him, make sure he wasn't a threat and possibly invite him to the Justice League. But no, that all turned sour and now this kid was, as Flash would so crudely put it, 'taking a shit in their front lawn.'

"I think it's time for you to leave," Batman said expressionlessly.

Ben stared at him and Batman could've sworn he felt a shiver run down his spine before the emerald-eyed man stood.

"Sure. It was nice meeting you all. Ta-ta~"

Once those words left his mouth, a bright green flash blanketed the area and Ben was nowhere to be seen, with a blue and black streak shooting out of the front door.

Superman stood, sighing.

That went well...

"That went well," Ben commentated casually while Gwendolyn and Kevin frowned.

"How can you say that went well?" Gwendolyn was the first to the punch.

"For real. You just painted yourself as a target by the strongest force on the planet!" Kevin chimed in not so subtly.

Ben just continued smiling, "It's called lying bait. They "know" I dislike heroes, but I also left them in curiosity and anger. I insulted their pride, not just as people, but as heroes. Most of them will think out of emotion now, not logic. There is only one person who I can guarantee that is thinking with his head."

"And who's that?"

"The Bat, of course."

Kevin's eyes widened when he realized what Ben had meant by his statement. "You're putting a divide in the Justice League..."

Ben shrugged unceremoniously, "I'm starting to," he corrected his ally.

"Why are we going against the Justice League?" Gwendolyn asked, a worried crease in her forehead.

"Because," her leader started, staring off into the distance longly. "They will never let us operate because they will deem my methods immoral and incorrect. Truthfully, they do more good than harm. But... they're making too many mistakes. Too many people are dying because of their mistakes. I can't stand by and watch as innocent lives are lost they prance around in tights and bright colored capes."

"Are you sure about this, Ben?" Gwendolyn asked.

"Are you doubting me?" Ben asked gently.

Gwendolyn gulped before softly shaking her head. "No... I'm just making sure you're one-hundred-percent about this." She admitted simply.

Ben sighed. "Unfortunately love, I am."

With that, the three members of the team drifted back to the base. Once Ben arrived back at base, he decided to train.

Now, running through an advanced course in the training room in his human form, he activated his suit, the retractable helmet covering his entire head and then some. Simply put, the training course was made to test his, strength, speed, and strategic mind. It was meant to test his explosive attributes in fast-paced fights. Usually, one run of the course only lasted a few minutes and tended to leave him a bit winded. But it wasn't made to test and push his stamina.

Sprinting through rocky terrain, Ben ducked under a heavy blow from a twenty-foot-tall drone. It was tall, with lanky arms and legs. On its palms, rested one large blaster respectively. As he dodged the attack, he fell to his knees in a split second slide, his protected knees skating across unruly terrain. With one palm grazing the ground as he slid, he launched himself forward through the drone's legs. Coming to a brief stop, he bounced up and grabbed his blaster from his hip. While upside down, the top of his head pointing down to the ground, he unleashed a fury of searing, blue blaster fire.

It crashed against the drone's massive body, barely denting its hull. Grunting as he landed, quickly took notice as attacks were doing little to no damage. Nodding placed his blaster back into its holster before grabbing a small disk on his hip. Touching the blue circular button, the device expanded before rapidly changing shape, forming a large, grey pole, nearly as tall as himself. He gripped it firmly and shockingly, from left-to-right of his hand, the grey on the pole faded, displaying a blinding blue doubled-edged energy-blade.

Aggressively, he charged toward the monstrosity and the drone whirled around, facing the charging warrior. Urgently, the drone aimed both its blasters at the aggressor before firing dual, ruby red bursts of energy. With laser-like focus, Ben spotted a lane to dodge and exploited it. Dodging, he continued closing the distance before ducking underneath the drone's legs once more.

His thigh skidding down on the ground, he spun the blue pole-like weapon, slicing right through where the drone's achilles heel should have been. He paused before dashing to the other leg before executing the exact same maneuver, causing the giant drone to collapse.

Standing slowly and upon mental command, the helmet retracted back into his suit, displaying Ben's barely sweating face. However, his ears twitched and his eyes narrowed.

Behind him, the drone raised its arm, apparently not quite finished yet. Without a moment's hesitation, it released a lightning-fast laser from its hand. Whirling around, he expertly swung his weapon downwards, at an angle, parrying the blow. The laser flew down and exploded once it made contact with the ground, creating a thick, rocky-mist. Uncaringly, Ben threw his pole like weapon. It soared through the mist with precise accuracy and pierced right through the drone's forehead. It let a mechanical whine before short-circuiting, creating a fiery explosion as it imploded on itself.

Slowly, Ben walked through the mist and neared the fiery haze. His helmet sealed up his head and he stepped through the flames, his suit diligently protecting its wearer. Once he neared his ideal destination, he reached down with his protected hand and yanked his glowing weapon out of the charred ground. Giving it one last twirl, the weapon reverted back into its pole-state before then returning to its disk-like state. He calmly slid it back onto his utility belt before looking up into the bright blue sky.

"Computer; Training Level 10. Off."

With the simple verbal command, the blue sky vanished, revealing a large dome-like structure. The rocky terrain too vanished, revealing the monochrome colored walls and before long, the fiery haze and the slight remains of the drone too vanished.

Walking towards the set of grey double doors, a green light blinked above it before they simultaneously opened as Ben neared the proximity switch. Passing through, he began walking through the hallway and with a short mental command, his helmet faded back into his bulky suit.

The main purpose of some of the training courses was to allow him to freely train in his human form, to further push and improve his base level strength. There over a thousand different courses, all made to test a different species of alien. So say, Ben wanted to train using his Pyronite transformation, he had made at least a dozen different levels just train that form. It was like that with many of his favorite transformations. The levels all were made specifically to challenge the set form's weakness, to make it that much more productive and challenging.

From then on, a few weeks passed since the private meeting between Ben and the Justice League. Ben had spent most of his time training and improving himself while interacting with most of the team members. Though, a few days after the meeting, Kevin had been dispatched to investigate a nuclear energy signature that was moving across Chong-Mai.

Apparently, the Justice League had been involved as well. Ben just sent him because his objective was to observe and only step in if his presence was needed.

Ben had immediately been notified with the help of some of his tech and promptly sent out Kevin to deal with the problem. However, he did tell Kevin that the number one priority was to find out what was causing it, in order to prevent it from happening again and the second most important priority, was containing it before it moved across the whole country. The last thing Ben wanted right now, was to deal with Asia being polluted with nuclear energy.

Other than Kevin's departure, he had also been sending out other members as well for short-term missions. Nothing that involved assassination or anything even resembling that. That was purely his job. He promised each and every one of them that he wouldn't force them to make that choice. Going beyond that line; ending another life. He would never force them to do that. He knew Kevin was okay with killing, but even he requested to not be sent on one of those missions. Ben understood completely and silently granted him that.

Kevin had enough with the shit. He was forced to become someone else in the Null Void. Now, he had to come to terms with being that person.

His training with Gwendolyn had also progressed. Though, while her physical training with hand-to-hand combat and strategy training was going as good as to be expected, she still, however, lacked a teacher to instruct her about magic. There was only so much she could accomplish with a spellbook she had read a hundred times over in the past decade. She only had a dozen combat-focused spells at her command and nearly every single one of them sapped her dry within just one use of even one of those spells. So, until Ben could find her a qualified teacher, he instead had her focus purely on her skills in hand-to-hand combat, strategy, and even weapons training.

Though while Gwendolyn did admit she didn't really like using weapons, she did listen to Ben, when he told her that it would help in the long run. So, Ben led her to the armory and had her pick out one blade she truly liked.

It didn't take long, as within stepping a few feet into the massive vault of weapons, she picked out a pair of duel Sais.

While the weapon choice surprised him, he wasn't surprised why she chose them. As Sais could be used for both close-range and medium-range combat. As they could be used like normal knives or normal melee weapons, but they were also useful when thrown from range. Which, as Ben thought about it, made perfect sense.

Gwendolyn, at the moment, was a close-range/medium-range fighter. But while she could use other long-range spells, they tended to tire her out completely, so that led her to only using those types of spells as her last resort trump card.

Though, there was another magic user that Gwendolyn could learn from; Raven. At first, Raven was skeptical about helping Gwendolyn, as most of her spells derived from dark magic and demonic energy. Normally, Raven wouldn't even give this issue the light of day. She would normally just shrug it off and tell them to find help elsewhere. But since her arrival on the team, Gwendolyn had been nothing but pleasant toward her. She had done her no wrong and Raven honestly did want to help and repay the kindness Gwendolyn offered to her.

So, she did and offered her to how to better control her magical energy and how to direct and manifest it properly. With an actual teacher that gave her hands-on instructions, Gwendolyn progressed well. Faster than a good portion of people would. Though, Raven chalked that up to Gwendolyn not only have experience beforehand in magic before being taught the basics, but also a mixture of natural talent.

Alan was still giving thought on taking online College courses, but in the meantime, he essentially trained most of the time. Mostly alone, but sometimes Ben would invite him to the training room and teach him a few things about his Pyronite half.

Starfire had mostly spent her time around Raven and Ben. She was practically glued to the hips of both of them. It had become common knowledge in the tower that if Starfire wasn't with Raven, she was with Ben and if she wasn't with Ben, then she was with Raven. Which was true. Starfire hardly spent time away from either of them. But she was still her natural friendly self. Even if she tended to not interact with anyone outside of Raven and Ben and maybe Gwendolyn on the separate rare occasion.

Due to that increased exposure, Ben found himself growing close to the Tamaranean princess. Most of the time he spent away from training and scouting, was spent with either Starfire, Raven, and Gwendolyn. Because of that, Ben found himself growing even closer to the three beautiful ladies. Even though he regularly spent his time alone after his father's brutal passing, Starfire continued to bug him.

Unbeknownst to him, that was her way of keeping his mind off of the matter. Starfire knew what it was like to lose someone. She knew just how hard and difficult it was just to live on, much less deal with it. So she privately convinced Raven to help her with distracting him, by regularly conversing him in order to distract him.

Though, it wasn't long until Ben picked up on what they were doing. The moment he realized it, he smiled as he felt a sum amount of weight being lifted off his shoulders. For once, he felt that he didn't have to grieve alone - he didn't have to deal with it alone. He actually had someone that cared enough to help him and take some of that awful burden and place it upon themselves. That thought alone brought a true, genuine smile to his face.

Now, as Ben roamed the halls, wearing a black hoodie, black cargo pants that clung to his form perfectly and black boots that went passed his ankles. He walked down the hallway, both hands in the middle pocket of his hoodie. Although, once a loud alarm blared overhead, Ben stiffened before a bright green flash exploded off him. Before the green flash even faded, he was gone.

Gwendolyn and Max stood in the Viewing Room. The room itself was large, with one main door being at least twenty-meters wide and twenty-five meters tall. In front of Gwendolyn and Max, was a huge monitor that displayed a huge map of the Earth. Above them, a cycling red light rotated and on the map, a red blip beeped right in the center of Chicago, alerting them all. Just then, the door opened vertically and XLR8 sped in.

Coming to a screeching halt right between Gwendolyn and Max, his visor slid up, revealing his face. Squinting his green eyes, he stared at the map.

"What are we looking at?"

Max coughed before answering, "A Level-5."

"Pull up the security came footage," XLR8 ordered.

Gwendolyn immediately began typing away at the see-through keyboard. Within moments, various images and videos flickered into view. XLR8's eyes scanned them within a second. The threat came in the form of a blond man in regular looking clothes. Although, the golden aura surrounding him deflected the idea that he was normal. The person he was holding up by his throat also said plenty. However, Ben narrowed his eyes when he caught a particular detail.

The man he was holding... his skin was turning a deep grey and his body... it was shriveling up! Within seconds, the blond man uncaringly flung the body to the side before reaching for snatching another person, who was in the midst of fleeing. Frowning deeply, XLR8 took command and came up with a plan.

"Alright, I'll head out to confront it. Send Alan and Gwendolyn to evacuate as many as possible. Dispatch Starfire and Raven to contain the threat should he make it passed me." XLR8 hissed.

Gwendolyn and Max nodded immediately. Max reached down, hurriedly snatching the microphone.

"Stage 5 Threat! Chicago Illinois! This is not a drill!" Max took a brief pause before continuing. "Alan, Gwendolyn, you are on Civilian Evacuation! Starfire, Raven, you are on Threat Containment! Exact coordinates have sent to your phones!" He took a breath before dipping his head. "Good luck. Stay safe."

Downstairs, Alan immediately shot up from his desk, sending his rolly-chair into the wall. Grunting, he immediately ran over to his dorm room and dashed out. He didn't even bother to close the door behind him.

Raven and Starfire, a floor above their male teammate, were much more composed. The two being roommates, they both stood up and instantly began getting ready. Raven's heroine attire was mostly already on. Although, she calmly hovered over to her closet and opened it up telekinetically. On the top rack, sat a brand-new pair of arm bracers. Without hesitation, she telekinetically grabbed them and they floated down to her arms and once they neared, they instantly snapped onto her arms before gleaming a black aura.

Unfortunately, Starfire had just gotten out of the shower and was only in a towel. Though she had been in such a situation once before and due to that, she remained calm. Raven, noticing her friend's suit, she snatched it out of the closet and tossed it over to her.

Seeing it, Starfire dropped her towel and caught it midair. Casting her friend a smile in gratitude, she began suiting up, uncaring of the fact that Raven could see her nude form. Though, it wasn't like Raven hadn't seen her nude before. It didn't take her long and once she finished, Raven channeled her magic before aiming the palm of her had at Starfire. With a small breath, she summoned her power.

Underneath Raven and Starfire's feet, a dark circle appeared.

"Suscipe me dominus tenebris locat, heu domine da mihi tenebris EXTORQUEO!"

With that, a dark pillar of energy rose from the ground, encasing them completely. In the very next second, the duel pillars shrunk back into the ground before vanishing along with the two women.

Gwendolyn, from the command room, was already ready and grabbed onto XLR8's shoulder. She nodded and XLR8 immediately grabbed onto her and sped off. They advanced downstairs to grab Alan before dashing out of the tower. It only took them a few moments to reach Chicago and once they reached the exact coordinates, they noticed both Raven and Starfire appear in two dark pillars of magic. The two appeared beside Gwendolyn, and Alan stood beside Ben, forming a perfectly straight line.

Once the Gwendolyn and Alan both got off, his visor slid up.

"You all know your jobs. Minimal casualties. This is not a threat to be taken lightly." XLR8's raspy voice informed them.

Every member of the team nodded.

Raven and Starfire both flew up while Gwendolyn followed their example a few moments later. Alan smirked cockily before he effortlessly shredded his skin and transformed, his skull burning alight with flames. With each member ready, everyone left to do their jobs.

XLR8's visor gleamed, a white scanning light appearing. It scanned upwards before going downwards. Once it was complete, the scan ran back and the results were presented before his eyes.

'He's outputting dangerous levels of energy. At this rate, he'll be a living nuke. I can't let him absorb any more energy and risk him imploding, thus risking wiping off Chicago clean off the map.'

"ATLAS, I want Level: 5 Mobile Containment Fields dispatched on my command."

"Of course, sir."

The Mobile Containment Fields were just in case he failed and this moron ended up blowing himself up. If he failed, those Mobile Containment Fields could reach half-way across the country in a few minutes. With that, all they needed was a few seconds so that they could be set up and operational.

The last case scenario just in case the situation became anymore favored in the blond's grace, than what it was now.

Nodding to himself, XLR8 zipped over to the blond but made sure to stay within a few meters distance, in fear of setting him off. He glared at the blond, and his posture went rigid. He was fighting off every instinct that screamed at him to take his head off right then and there.

"Buddy, you really don't want to be doing what you're doing!" XLR8 hissed.

The blond smirked and began floating even higher into the air. He clenched his fists before throwing them to the side. Around him, a circular-field of see-through golden energy flickered to life.

"And why's that?!" He asked in a booming voice.

"Because nimrod, your body can only take so much energy before you implode. Killing yourself and over ten-million people with you in the process."

"You're lying!" The man cackled, the energy certainly giving him a power-high.

Beneath his visor, XLR8 sneered. He was already too late. He was far too unstable. XLR8 knew that if he killed the blond here and now, all that energy would just exploded outwards, nuking the city, killing everyone in the process. He also doubted he could safely transport him to barren wasteland and let him explode there, where no one would be hurt. There was too much land to cover and he wasn't safe if the blond could react quickly enough and just light his fuse mid-process, lest running the chance of him nuking some other place.

"You're just jealous of my power! Everyone always has been!"

He bit back a growl, XLR8 nearly snarled. Although, he clenched his jaw and continued to watch as the man continued on unraveling. This wasn't good. He was absorbing too much energy. The guy was at the point where he was subconsciously absorbing power by just being the general vicinity of someone. And that included XLR8.

He looked down and noticed small orange sparks flickering around the Omnitrix symbol on his chest. His eyes widened, horror flashing in his green gaze. No... he wasn't absorbing his energy; he was absorbing the Omnitrix's energy!

Right as the realization hit him, a massive shockwave exploded outwards, sending XLR8 back a few hundred feet. The force of the wave shattered every building within a hundred-meter radius. XLR8 watched in horror as the high-rise building came down crumbling. Underneath it all, nearly about to be crushed by hundreds of tons of dropping concrete, were two little children. One girl, one boy. They both were dirty and positively covered with soot and fresh tears.

Fighting against the oppressive wave, XLR8 sped off.

The little girl looked up and with saucer-like eyes, she watched mountains worth of concrete fell on top of her. Right as it neared her, she closed her eyes and balled up into a little ball. She waited for the pain to come and she stayed in that formation for what seemed like an eternity. However, the pain never came. Slowly, with a hammering heart and fear fresh in her stomach, she cracked open her eyes. She wasn't dead?! She thought with a heavily confused expression. The little girl looked around, only to find she and her little brother on top of a roof, a half-a-mile east of the madman was killing people.

With fear and exhaustion clinging to her heart, she collapsed and embraced her clueless brother and cried. With all her strength and desperately, she never let him out of her grasp. Not for one second.

Back at the standoff, XLR8 appeared back at his previous standing point. He glared heavily at the blond and the green Omnitrix symbol glowed dimly before a bright green flash erupted off his form, blinding everyone that was still watching.

"You son of a bitch, I was gonna take you down, not out. But after that... your ass is grass." Stepping out of the green aura, Feedback proclaimed.

The blond would have gaped in shock if he wasn't so high and demented because of the drastic increase in power. His mind was horribly warped, he barely registered the green flash. He didn't even remotely register Ben's change in form. He only floated higher and tilted his head back further and continued to drain more power. His reach never extended back past Feedback. He didn't have to. All the power he could ever want was there. Why would he reach out for even more?

Calmly, Feedback held out his hand before launching a large blue sphere. The blond didn't even notice it as it harmlessly passed right through his body. However, he did notice when the sphere suddenly expanded outwards from the innards of his body. Somehow, the sphere grew out of his body in the same fashion it passed through and grew inside until he was completely trapped within it. From a safe ways away, Feedback watched as the blond's body began deforming.

His limbs began growing until they reached a grotesque form. His midsection grew as well, but his body was still horribly misshapen and Feedback watched with shame and hidden disgust. With a deep sigh, he closed his hand the sphere shrunk a little bit before the blond began screaming. Blots of electricity began discharging off the blond's body and smacked against the transparent shield. Only it did no damage at all.

Feedback stood back as he felt the energy that was being discharged from the threat being directly fed into the shield and by extension, him. He continued to hold out his clenched hand before he applied even more focus. The blond's screams increased as he began desperately pounding on the shield.

"GET ME OUTTA HERE!"

Feedback didn't react to his desperate cries. Instead, he pressed harder and began absorbing more energy. By now, his grotesque form had receded and his power was just above where it was at before he got there. Nodding, it was working. So he pressed on and he clenched his hand further. The blond collapsed, his golden aura and eyes fading. However, Feedback continued on.

"You killed hundreds of people by sapping them dry. You sapped so much of their energy, when they had nothing left to give, you absorbed their souls! Because of you, those people will never go into the afterlife. They just cease to exist! So I will do to you, what you have done to them! I'm here to make you pay for your crimes and to prevent this from happening to anyone else."

"Stop! You're killing him!"

Feedback looked up and to his side and spotted the two Green Lanterns, Power Girl, and Wonder Woman floating down to the ground. The two Green Lanterns were the ones that touched down first and Power Girl and Wonder Woman reached the ground at the same time. One of the Green Lanterns, Hal Jordan, immediately turned and raised his fist - the one with the ring attached to his ring finger - and out came a beam of emerald-colored energy that began combatting the blue shield.

Feedback winced, a large wave of energy rushing through his system.

"Stop! You're just giving me power!" The same burn he felt when he channeled the Omnitrix's energy covered him and barely withheld a heavy wince. Normal Feedback wasn't equipped to be absorbing so much energy. If he was in his Ultimate Form, he would have no problem.

Power Girl took notice and instantly grabbed Hal's arm and yanked it back. The man's concentration slipped and thus his construct faded.

"What are you doing?! He's gonna kill him!" John Stewart yelled as he took Hal's place.

"You don't understand, you're giving him more energy to deal with!" Power Girl said, her voice rising. The last thing she wanted was to have this psycho break out of the prison Ben made and then proceed to nuke the whole place. She was sure they would all survive. But what about the 10 million other people that lived here? So she appealed to them and made it look like Ben was the good guy here.

John frowned and reluctantly cut the flow of his power off. However, he immediately turned and cocked back his ring hand. With his fist clenched, he threw a punch and a massive green fist appeared. Feedback watched with widened eyes as the fist flew and sent him flying into the air. However, milliseconds before getting smacked, he clenched his fist as tight as he could and the energy the blond had, plus his soul, was absorbed.

When he flew back, the blue containment field around the blond, or rather, former blond vanished. His body fell onto the scarred concrete, his body withered and his form horribly frail. It looked he hadn't eaten a day in his life. Hal Jordan refused to look at his body, as with just one glimpse, he could see the withered man's ribcage and his smoking, grey-brown skin.

Oh god, just being in the same premise of him nearly caused Hal to puke his lunch out.

John looked at the smoking corpse and frowned heavily before shaking his head. This wasn't right. Sure he was a villain, but he didn't deserve a death like this. It wasn't right...

Power Girl frowned but didn't react much to the smoking corpse. That monster got what was coming for him. She heard what Ben said with her enhanced hearing. He killed hundreds because he wanted to absorb their power. As if that wasn't bad enough, he had to take it further and absorb all they had, including the little bit of lifeforce humans had. But he also took it even further and absorbed the thing that made humans and other alien lifeforms so special: their souls.

Souls had power. Pure, unadulterated power. Souls were a spiritual life essence resided within a physical body while they were still alive. After their physical body dies or is destroyed, their soul continues to exist and typically moves on to an afterlife. But they were also wells of restricted power of untold significance. She, while in her home Universe, had fought some sorcerers that used souls to cast powerful spells and sacrifices.

Now, she knew how much danger there was when someone stupid enough decided to absorb them in large groups. He was a ticking timebomb. If Ben didn't absorb every bit of energy those souls provided, she doubted he would be only as strong as a nuclear blast. No, they were looking at something far more dangerous and widespread. No, they were looking at country-wide obliteration if he continued on that path.

Now, a few thousand feet in the air, Feedback floated and he took a calming breath. All the power rushing into his veins; he could barely stand it. Taking a deep breath, he turned upwards into the sky and extended his hands upwards. With a grunt, he expelled all the energy he absorbed by that monster and sent it hurtling into outer space. He released it all in one quick burst.

It was over in a brief flash of light.

Now that, that was done, he floated back down to the ground and landed in front of the superheroes. But before he landed, he carefully handed out an order through the microphone that was hidden inside his ear.

"Threat's clear. Head back to base. I'll take care of the rest. Be back soon."

He didn't hear any reply and he could guess that his teammates recognized his hushed tone. So they wordlessly headed back to base and made sure they weren't being followed.

Feedback touched down and assumed his human form in a burst of emerald-green light. Casually, he walked up to the small group of assembled superheroes. He looked somber, his eyes downtrodden as he gazed at the destruction that was caused. The muscles on his face throbbed as he clenched his jaw. His green eyes reflected anger and overwhelming sadness as he observed the desolation caused by one mad-man with power.

"You killed a man even though you didn't need to." John's tone was far passed accusing. He was stating it as a cold-hearted fact. Ben glanced away from the wreckage that was Chicago and his piercing green eyes found the older Green Lantern.

"No, I killed a monster. There is a difference, you know." His casual and teasing rebuttal made it sound like he talking to someone ten years his junior. But there was nothing in his tone. Only stoicism.

"And that's for you to decide? Who lives and who dies?" Hal followed, his arms crossed.

"And that's for the courts to decide?" Ben asked rhetorically, rolling his eyes. "At the end of the day, his life is in someone's hands. May as well be in the hands of someone that can actually make the right decision. I'm just making sure he doesn't get back on the streets so he can do all this again." He gestured to the destruction that was Chicago. "As much as it pains me to say this, you're lucky the death toll was at the thousands and not the millions. You know, there's one thing you don't get; some men, they need killing. It's the only way to stop them and ensure someone else; someone innocent doesn't die."

"You could, you should have just absorbed all the energy he had and left it at that!" Hal shouted, snapping.

Coolly, Ben turned to him before brushing the bang of his hair that dipped in front of his face to the side. His cold green eyes regarded the Lantern before lightly shaking his head.

"I could have. But we'd be back in this situation again, two or three months down the line. I am preventing another attack and you should leave it at that." Ben said, using his words against him, something of which Hal didn't take kindly to.

Not at all. Evident by him raising his hand and creating a doubled bladed green axe. Wonder Woman, however, stepped in front of him, her arm blocking his path to Ben.

"Don't do this here, Lantern. Please... this place has had enough." Her tone implied sadness.

Hal blinked before he focused on his surroundings.

Buildings plundered, fires, blood, dead bodies - young and old - all withered up and grey. It all surrounded him and finally, the smell of war reached his nose. For the first time today, his knees felt weak and he felt as if he would collapse.

"I took one life to save millions. You would save the life of one dirtbag who has the potential to destroy an entire country in the midst of madness, over a thousand innocent people," he said, earning each and every one of their attention. Especially Wonder Woman, as she agreed wholeheartedly to what Ben did. Even if she didn't allow anyone to notice. "You may only see a number when I say that, but I see a thousand innocent faces that belong to people that expected to go on about their day, only to be horrifically killed and used like a glorified battery. So call me a monster for what I did, but I won't stand by and let my morality rule my actions. I'm doing what's best for everyone." His eyes glinted with a degree of bone-chilling coldness. "Even for you people."

"And it's just that easy for you, huh?!" Ben looked at him like he was stupid. Scoffing, Ben held up his and pointed a finger at the side of his own head.

"Yeah, I can do it. I could kill him and just walk away. But that doesn't mean it's easy. I can live with it, yeah. I can live with anything. There's no peace up here. There's no happy medium that I'm looking for." Ben then scoffed and shook his head, looking right at the older Green Lantern. "And I thought you of all people would know that, John."

John Stewart's eyes widened when his real name was spoken. He clenched his jaw as flashbacks of his time in the Marine Corps sparkled in his view. However, he shook them away and glared minorly at Ben. However, he didn't do anything except hover into the air before soundlessly flying away.

Hal watched, affronted as John flew away, no course in mind. "Hey! Where you goin'?!" He received no answer. Growling, Hal summoned up concentration and soared into the air, flying after his friend.

Power Girl watched them leave. Wonder Woman continued to stare at the young warrior with a spark of interest and curiosity. She paused and turned as Power Girl hovered over to Ben before landing in front of him. Her keen hearing picked up on what they were saying.

"So, how's life been?" Ben asked.

"It's been alright," she said and reached up, lightly grabbing the side of his face. She smiled softly as she planted a kiss on his cheek before resuming her previous position. "You?"

His eyes darkened before he managed a smile. "It's been alright. All things considered."

"Yeah... listen, Ben, I'm sorry about your-,"

"Thanks," he interrupted her, subtly nodding. Power Girl slowly nodded and got the message. He didn't want her pity. To a certain degree, she could respect that. "But I've had time to grieve. I'm fine now." He tried to flash one of his stage-smiles.

If Power Girl was a normal person, she wouldn't have noticed a thing. But she wasn't normal. She could see the sadness and agony within that fake grin. Although, she respected his decision and didn't bring up his loss again.

Did he lose someone? Wonder Woman questioned. I wonder who, she thought. Although, she did feel a bit sympathetic for him. She knew what it was like to lose someone. It was never easy. Her mind then flashed to what she watched him do.

He killed a man. That's all most people in man's world needed to hear before they became horrified. That person would be branded a murderer and as a potential psychopath. But Wonder Woman knew differently. Due to her upbringing as an Amazon Warrior, she knew that in battle, death was inevitable and Wonder Woman enjoyed battle. Hell, she loved it. More than perhaps anything. While she did love to fight and love to participate in battles, she didn't love killing. No, but she knew it was necessary.

She saw killing a madman little more than putting down an injured animal. This man, if what he said was true, said that he was not going to stop. He was a madman. Wonder Woman saw that clear as day. She did not need Athena's intelligence to see that. If killing this man brought the peace of many others then Wonder Woman would have done the deed herself. But while she was a realist, she was also hopeful.

She had a saying: "Don't kill if you can wound, don't wound if you can subdue, don't subdue if you can pacify, and don't raise your hand at all until you've first extended it."

Wonder Woman lived by that every day since arriving on man's world. But now, she was having trouble believing it. Even now, after having lived on man's world for more than four years now, her warrior training was still screaming at her at to not spare her enemies... Hera, if Artemis could see her now... she would never hear the end of it. She was sure her friend and teacher, would be scorning her for her soft outlook.

Sighing, the woman walked over and decided to greet this warrior that had seem to earn Power Girl's affection. Which was no small feat, Wonder Woman was sure. Walking up to him, she held out her hand and smiled.

"Hello, warrior, my name is Diana of Themyscria. I don't believe we have properly met." She said. Which was true.

They only had seen each other in passing events. Like when she and the Justice League arrived to stop Zombozo and when Ben was invited to the Justice League for a meeting. But even then, she hadn't spoken a word to him.

She had seen many human warriors, but this one was different in a lot of ways.

The man was a tall and substantially muscular brunette with spiky hair, a single bang hanging over the front of his emerald-green eyes. His face was, she might dare say, beautiful. Bright green eyes, high cheekbones, clean-shaven face - not a strand of hair to be seen - pronounced eyebrows and thin lips.

He was, surprisingly, dressed in an ornate dark Armani suit with a white dress shirt, black coat, and a black-tie and black dress shoes. She wasn't sure what to take from his appearance.

He was not emitting any aura of hostility at all. He had no presence. He was there and yet not there at all.

Did that make sense?

To her, it didn't. Even the Greek deities had presences, in fact, they seemed hell-bent on showing as much of their presences as possible. This man was different, though...

"Hello, beautiful. My name is Ben Tennyson. Though, you already know that."

Diana blushed at the approval in his voice and tried to give him a dirty look, but his beautiful green eyes distracted her from her anger.

Power Girl watched the exchange with interest. Ben just gave her his real name. Most people in the hero business would be more conservative and only give an alias at most. But not him. Even now, Power Girl was still having trouble deciphering the mystery that was Ben Tennyson.

She watched as the two warriors engaged in a staredown. Diana stood tall and stoic. Ben stood tall, a bit taller than her and he had this confident aura around him. He radiated nothing but casual confidence. Although, there was something else. His body posture suggested calmness, confidence, and natural dominance. Karen wondered if Diana picked up on it. She, herself had surely picked on it when they first met. Though, judging by the fact that Diana was the one who initiated the staredown, she no doubt took notice.

Both instantly took note that the other had the eyes of a warrior, and both instinctively drew themselves larger and taller, as a sign of dominance.

Ben stared into her eyes before he gave her a look down and he scanned her entire form.

Wonder Woman was stunning and beautiful in every sense of the two words with long black hair and blue eyes, and her slightly tanned skin. Ben could see that now. She had a well-toned feminine build that sported a perfect voluptuous, yet hourglass figure with huge breasts that somehow defied gravity and showed absolutely no signs of sagging. The red fabric of her armor tightly clung to her warrior-like midriff, stretching outwards to accommodate a set of wide hips. The star-spangled base of her armor did little to hide away the heavy globes of her huge, heart-shaped behind, but it did stop high enough to reveal her thick womanly thighs and long, toned legs.

Overall, she was a very beautiful woman that seemed to a goddess in human form. But judging by the fact that she was created by the Gods... it shouldn't surprise anyone. Ben couldn't help but stare for a few seconds. However, it didn't seem like Wonder Woman cared. She was used to it, as was Power Girl. They were both incredibly gorgeous women that had members of the opposite sex and occasionally even the sex ogling her everywhere they went. They long ago learned not to take it as offensive, and to take it as a compliment.

Wonder Woman herself had to admit, he was very attractive. One of the most attractive men she had ever had the pleasure of setting her gaze on. Perhaps, THE most attractive man she had ever seen...

"I assume since you aren't either attacking me or berating me, that you don't have any problem with what I did?" Ben inquired. He had to give her credit; Diana barely reacted to his charm. He had gotten many girls enthralled with that smile instantly. Now, all he got was a small smile and a minor blush. He could tell she interested, but not overly. Like she was trying to keep him at arm's length. She was taught to strengthen herself against seduction, he noticed.

Not bad, he thought.

"My people believe in... an eye-for-an-eye, in a sense." It was true. The Amazons did believe in such methods. After all, her people weren't always merciful, loving creatures. No, they were warriors with a sense of undying loyalty to the gods. "I can tell he was killing people by absorbing their life-force. You killed him by absorbing his life-force," Diana pointed out harmlessly.

That he did. But what she didn't know, was that he destroyed his soul, not even allowing the man to enter the afterlife. No eternity in Purgatory was what this cockhole deserved. Hell was too good for him. There was no chance Heaven was taking that bastard. So Purgatory would have to take him. Sucks to be him, Ben thought, but that was what he deserved; living an eternity with monsters just as evil and corrupted as he was.

"He was a piece of trash that would have killed again if given the chance. I have no doubt he would've been given the opportunity. By sending him to jail, all we would have given this world was stalled time. Sooner, or later, he would have busted out of jail and killed again." It was true. Ben knew it, Power Girl knew it, and Wonder Woman knew it.

For murdering over a hundred people in one day, that meant an instant death-penalty on Krypton. If someone would have pulled the same on Themyscira, they would have been put to the sword. Privately, both the two women thought he was doing them a favor.

"You're not like the other humans here," Diana observed, wonder shining in her eyes. "You're truly a warrior."

"Fighting is all I have," he said, gazing into her blue eyes. "I rather use my talents for something good... than turn out like something like him," he admitted.

"You don't have what it takes to become something like him," Power Girl stated with certainty. "You're different."

Ben turned to her and chuckled bitterly. "I wouldn't be so sure," he said cryptically.

Before anyone of the two women could comment further, a green light burst from his body and he was gone in a blue and white streak. A draft of wind assaulted them and they blew backward. Although, neither of them blinked either. Both of them could surely keep up with him. Without trouble, mind you. They both fought with Flash, the fastest man on the planet on a daily basis and he was much faster than Ben's alien speedster form. It was still certainly impressive. Power Girl doubted there were many that could keep pace with him.

That's the end of that. I hope you all enjoyed this long-awaited chapter.