Ben 10: Ultimate Convergence

Ben gasped, his vision swimming. The immense power of Alien X, the clash with Malakor – it had all vanished. He wasn't floating in the Timestream anymore. He was… small. Tiny, even. He looked down at his hands, chubby and infantile. He was a child again, no older than five or six. His clothes were oversized, clearly not his own, and the Ultimatrix was gone. Replaced by…nothing.

He was in a room unlike any he'd ever seen. It was sterile, clinical, all white walls and polished metal surfaces. There were no windows, no doors, just a single, humming light panel in the ceiling. The air was cold, sterile, and carried a faint, metallic tang. Fear, cold and sharp, pierced through his confusion.

Where was he? What had happened? Malakor… the name echoed in his mind, a chilling reminder of the power he had faced, and apparently lost to. Had Malakor somehow reversed his age? Imprisoned him in this… place? The questions swirled around him, a chaotic vortex of terror and uncertainty. He tried to access the Ultimatrix, to call upon one of his alien forms, but there was nothing there. The connection was severed, the power gone.

He stumbled to his feet, his small legs unsteady. The floor was cold beneath his bare feet. He took a tentative step, then another, his heart pounding in his chest. He had to get out of here. He had to find a way to understand what had happened, and to find a way back to himself.

As he walked, he noticed details he hadn't seen before. Small monitors were embedded in the walls, displaying complex equations and strange symbols. Wires snaked along the ceiling, disappearing into the walls. The room felt like a laboratory, a place of experimentation and… something else, something darker.

Suddenly, a voice echoed through the room, cold and clinical. "Subject designated Beta-7 is exhibiting expected signs of disorientation. Commencing Phase Two."

Ben froze, his blood running cold. Subject Beta-7? Was that him? Phase Two? What did it all mean?

A panel in the wall slid open, revealing a small, robotic drone. It floated into the room, its single optical sensor focusing on Ben. The drone emitted a high-pitched whine, and a beam of light shot out, scanning him from head to toe.

"Physiological parameters within acceptable range," the drone reported in a monotone voice. "Administering cognitive stimulant."

The drone extended a small, metallic arm, and a needle-like injector appeared. Ben's eyes widened in horror. He didn't know what the stimulant was, but he knew it couldn't be good. He tried to run, but his small legs were no match for the drone. It moved with unnerving speed, its metallic arm closing in on him.

He screamed, a high-pitched cry of terror, as the needle pierced his skin. A jolt of energy surged through his body, and his vision blurred. He felt a strange tingling sensation in his brain, as if his thoughts were being rearranged, rewritten. The world around him began to spin, and he collapsed to the floor, unconscious.

When he awoke, he felt… different. His memories were fuzzy, fragmented. He remembered being Ben Tennyson, a hero, a wielder of the Omnitrix… or was it the Ultimatrix? The details were hazy, indistinct. It was like trying to grasp smoke. He knew he was supposed to be someone, something important, but the specifics eluded him.

He looked around the room, his eyes filled with confusion. It was still the same sterile, white room, but it no longer felt quite so alien. He felt… comfortable here. Safe, even.

The drone floated into the room again, its optical sensor focusing on him. "Cognitive integration successful," it reported. "Subject Beta-7 is responding as expected. Commencing psychological conditioning."

This time, instead of an injection, the drone projected a series of images onto the wall. Pictures of happy families, smiling children, peaceful landscapes. The images were designed to evoke feelings of warmth, security, and contentment.

As Ben watched the images, he felt his resistance fading. The memories of his past life, the battles he had fought, the sacrifices he had made, began to recede into the background, replaced by a sense of calm, unwavering acceptance.

He started to believe that this was his life. That this sterile, white room was his home. That the robotic drone was his caretaker. That he was simply Subject Beta-7, a child destined to live a life of peaceful contentment.

But deep down, a tiny spark of defiance still flickered. A faint, almost imperceptible whisper of his former self. A reminder that he was Ben Tennyson, the hero who had saved the universe countless times. A hero who would never give up, no matter how dire the circumstances.

And then, a new image flashed on the wall. An image of Malakor, his face twisted into a cruel and triumphant grin. And a single word appeared beneath the image: "Father."

Ben's heart leaped into his throat. Father? Was Malakor controlling all of this? Had he rewritten his mind to believe that Malakor was his father? Was this all a twisted game, a psychological torture designed to break his spirit?

He felt a surge of anger, a burning rage that threatened to consume him. The conditioning, the false memories, the fabricated sense of peace – it all shattered, replaced by a fierce determination to resist, to fight back, to reclaim his identity.

He may be a child again, trapped in a strange and hostile environment, but he was still Ben Tennyson. And he would never, ever surrender to Malakor's will. But how can a child overcome such powerful manipulation? And what does Malakor truly intend to do with a childlike Ben Tennyson? Find out next time!