Marvel’s Omnitrix

Chapter 23: Converging Paths

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The hoverboard buzzed beneath my feet, its metallic sheen cutting through the cool morning air like a knife through butter. Wind whipped past my face as I banked into a steep turn, scanning the forested landscape below for any sign of our targets.

"This is Tennyson, checking sector four," I said into the communicator Grandpa had insisted I wear. "Still nothing but trees, trees, and hey, guess what? More trees."

"Keep looking, Ben," Grandpa Max's voice crackled through the earpiece. "Hex couldn't have gotten far. His energy signature is still fresh according to Gwen."

I rolled my eyes. "Roger that. One evil skull-faced sorcerer, coming right up."

Three hours of aerial reconnaissance had yielded exactly zero results. The "debugged" hoverboard Tetrax had given me performed flawlessly – banking, accelerating, and stopping on a dime with just the slightest shift in body weight. 

Under different circumstances, I'd be having the time of my life.But not today. Today we were hunting a sorcerer who was hunting a gamma monster who was being hunted by the military.

"My life is officially insane," I announced a few weeks too late, executing another wide turn.

The rural Virginia countryside stretched out beneath me, all rolling hills and dense forests occasionally broken by small towns and winding roads. Perfect hiding spots for fugitive scientists-turned-monsters... and apparently, power-hungry magicians.

After another fruitless sweep, I brought the hoverboard to a hover, floating a hundred feet above a clearing. This wasn't working. I needed better eyes, a better nose – something that could actually track.

"Time for an upgrade," I decided, setting the hoverboard to auto-follow mode. The Omnitrix interface glowed green as I cycled through my alien options. "This should do the trick."

I slapped down the dial, feeling the familiar rush of transformation. 

My body stretched and morphed, bones liquefying and reforming into an exoskeleton as four wings sprouted from my back. My vision split into four separate perspectives as my head reconfigured into Stinkfly's multi-eyed form.

"Stinkfly!" I announced to no one in particular, my wings buzzing to life. The hoverboard dutifully followed as I dipped and weaved through the air, my enhanced senses scanning the forest below.

Stinkfly's compound eyes picked up details my human form could never catch. I saw disturbed branches, subtle patterns in the underbrush, and even the thermal signatures of animals scurrying through the trees. 

But of magic users or green rage monsters? Nah not today.

"This is ridiculous," I whined, my voice higher-pitched in this alien form. "I'm literally tracking a pair of magicians who are tracking a scientific aberration. What's next? Vampires hunting werewolves?"

I caught myself. Given what I knew about this world, that wasn't outside the realm of possibility.

After thirty minutes as Stinkfly, I gave up. 

The Omnitrix started beeping anyway, signaling the approaching timeout. I landed on the hoverboard just as the transformation reversed, the familiar red light washing over me as I returned to human form.

That was interesting, though. I lasted for quite a bit. Was it because I wasn't doing much other than flying around?

"This is pointless," I said into the communicator, directing the hoverboard back toward our coordinates. "Heading back to base."

"Copy that," Grandpa replied. "Gwen might have something."

Might have something? Interesting.

When I returned to the Rust Bucket, parked discreetly off a rural highway, I found an unusual scene inside. Gwen sat cross-legged on the small dining table, her charm necklace glowing with three violet energies now instead of two. 

I'd gifted her a new one now that she seemed to be used to the previous ones. It was the Charm of Lightning, which should allow her greater battle power than before. Her eyes were closed in concentration, copper hair falling across her face as she swayed slightly.

She'd changed into black leggings that hugged her curves and an oversized purple sweater that slipped off one shoulder, revealing the strap of a tank top underneath. Her face was flushed with exertion, a slight sheen of sweat making her skin glow in the dim light of the RV.

"What's she doing?" I whispered to Grandpa, who sat at the driver's seat, fingers poised over a keyboard I'd never seen before. The dashboard had transformed, revealing a hidden console with screens displaying maps and energy readings.

"Magical resonance tracking," he replied without looking up. "The charms you gave her can attune to other magical signatures they've encountered before. Since these were originally Hex's charms..."

"They can find Hex," I finished, impressed despite myself. "Smart."

Gwen's lips parted slightly as she took a deep breath. "I can feel it," she murmured, her voice distant. "It's like... oil on water. Slick, dark, spreading outward."

Grandpa typed something on his keyboard, and one of the screens zoomed in on a particular area. "Direction?" he prompted.

"Northeast... following something else. Something angry." Her fingers flexed, the charm pulsing brighter. "There's a bridge. Metal. Old. It crosses water that tastes of coal and rust. Beneath it, darkness pools. That's where the trail is strongest."

Grandpa's eyes widened in recognition. "Maddox Bridge," he said, typing rapidly. "Abandoned railway crossing over the Blackwater River. About twenty miles from here."

I couldn't help but stare at Gwen, a little impressed. "Since when can you do the whole psychic tracking thing?"

Her eyes fluttered open, the glow fading from the charms. "Since I actually research my powers online, unlike someone who just wants to smash things with four arms."

"Hey, smashing works," I defended, stepping closer to examine the map on the screen. "And you've been learning magic off the internet?" 

Gwen frowned and crossed her arms. "Yes, and? You got anything to say?"

I wanted to mock her, but whatever she read by some internet basement dweller was clearly working. "No. So that's where Hex is?"

"Was," Gwen corrected, yawning and uncrossing her legs as she stretched. My eyes observed as her movement caused her sweater to ride up slightly, revealing a strip of pale skin at her midriff. "The trail is a few hours old but heading in a clear direction."

"Then what are we waiting for?" I asked, already moving toward the passenger seat. "Let's go catch ourselves a magician!"

Grandpa Max started the engine, the Rust Bucket rumbling to life. "Remember, kids, observation only. If Hex is tracking the Hulk, we need to understand why before we interfere."

"Hulk?" Gwen questioned, arching an eyebrow at me. "Where did you get that name?"

"Uh, that's what the news called it, right?" Grandpa backpedaled quickly. "The green guy. Hulking. Big. You know, the monster we're following."

Looks like he talked to his Plumber buddies about this, I noted while Gwen narrowed her eyes, but didn't press further. She returned to her charm practice as Grandpa steered us toward Maddox Bridge.

****

The bridge itself was exactly as Gwen had described. A rusted relic of industrial-era infrastructure spanning a river that had seen better days. But what awaited beneath it wasn't just magical residue.

"Holy..." I breathed, staring at the scene before us.

An overturned military transport lay half-submerged in the shallow riverbed, its armored plating peeled back like a banana skin. Surrounding it, the remnants of what must have been a small platoon – mangled jeeps, crushed equipment, torn canvas, and scattered supplies. No bodies, thankfully, which meant the soldiers had either escaped or been evacuated.

"Something powerful came through here," Grandpa observed grimly, kneeling to examine a massive footprint pressed deep into the mud. It was easily three times the size of his hand.

"You think?" I muttered, unable to keep the sarcasm from my voice. "What gave it away? The truck folded like origami or the five-foot-wide footprints?"

Gwen wandered toward the bridge supports, her charms glowing faintly. "Hex was here," she confirmed, tracing her fingers over strange symbols etched into the rust. "He performed some kind of ritual. Something to... track the creature?"

I approached, studying the symbols over her shoulder. They resembled nothing I'd seen before – not in this life or my previous one. "Why would he want to track the Hulk? What could he possibly want with a gamma-irradiated scientist?"

"Scientist?" Grandpa looked up sharply. "What makes you think it's a scientist?"

Damn it. A slip. "Just... you know, guessing. Gamma radiation, laboratory, scientists – stands to reason, right?" I shrugged, hoping to look casual. "Besides, who else would the military be this intent on capturing?"

Grandpa's gaze lingered on me a moment before he returned to his examination. "The pattern of destruction continues northeast," he noted, indicating the trail of broken trees and disturbed earth leading away from the river. "Toward the interstate."

"What's an interstate?"

"Interstate means populated areas," Gwen said, the concern evident in her voice. "If this thing reaches a city..."

The images from the MCU flashed through my mind, of Hulk and Abomination tearing through Harlem, buildings collapsing, civilians running in terror. And now, potentially, Hex and his magic adding magical chaos to the mix.

"We need to get ahead of it," I said, trying not to sound too knowledgeable or urgent. "Where does that interstate lead?"

Grandpa consulted his Plumber-tech GPS. "I-95 North. Washington DC, Baltimore, Philadelphia... eventually New York."

"New York," I echoed, already knowing that. "Lot of people in New York."

"Lot of heroes too," Gwen pointed out. "The Fantastic Four, Spider-Man, Iron Man if the rumors are true."

"All the more reason we need to intercept before it gets that far," I argued. "Grandpa, what if we take state routes? Cut northeast and try to get ahead of this thing's path?"

Grandpa Max studied me for a long moment, his expression unreadable. Finally, he nodded. "Good thinking, Ben. We'll try to intercept rather than follow. Maybe we can figure out what Hex is planning before this situation escalates further."

As we climbed back into the Rust Bucket, I cast one last look at the demolished military convoy. The damage was extensive, far worse than I'd expected. If the Hulk were already this powerful, the Harlem incident would be catastrophic.

Sometimes the hardest part of being a hero is knowing the disasters you can't prevent, I thought, buckling my seatbelt as Grandpa pulled away from the bridge.

"Hey, dweeb," Gwen said quietly beside me, her expression serious. "You're being weird. Weirder than normal."

"What do you mean?"

She leaned closer, lowering her voice so Grandpa couldn't hear. "You're too worried. That's not normal. You know something?"

I met her gaze, those familiar green eyes so similar to my own that somehow saw right through me. "I know we're chasing forces way beyond our usual pay grade," I replied carefully. "And I know that when powers like these collide, innocent people get caught in the middle."

"And?"

"And I know we're the only ones who can stop it."

Not the New York heroes, but just ourselves.

The universe doesn't give you power without expecting you to use it.

As the Rust Bucket accelerated toward the highway, I realized we were driving straight into the storm of the century. At the eye of the storm.

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Author Note: Didn't meet the goal unfortunately since competition at the Top 3 stage is hard. I'll increase the bonus chapter to bait more stones.

If we reach Top 2, I'll post three Chapters tomorrow.

If we reach Top 1, I'll post four Chapters tomorrow!

Tomorrow is the last update of the week, with Saturday as break, so be sure to vote for bonus!!