Disclaimer: none of the characters who appear in this story are mine nor do I claim them to be.
Authors Note (PLEASE READ): A warm welcome to my first ever fanfiction ladies and gents! But before we get started I just want to expand upon somethings from the description of this story. This takes place one year after Ultimate Alien and the Heroes United special. Omniverse is not canon in this story, though I will be using some elements and aliens from that series. Secondly, this will pick up in the middle of the Battle for Beacon and a LOT is going to change from the original. And thirdly, this story IS going to deviate quite a bit from Volumes 4, 5 and whatever else is released in the future, so don't take them into account for now. There WILL be changes, so fair warning to you guys. That said, let's get on with the show shall we? This is...
Ben 10/RWBY Volume 1: Dimension Twist
Chapter 1: The Day that Changed Everything
...
One year has passed since Ben Tennyson, Hero of Earth, defeated not only his arch foe Vilgax, but also took down the extra-dimensional demonic entity known only as Diagon. Since then, things had gotten back to a relatively normal state for the Omnitrix wielder, though you wouldn't have guessed it if you'd seen him at the moment. Ben was currently spread out across his bed, staring at the ceiling with a forlorn expression. Normally, Ben didn't get upset that easily, but considering what was on his mind at the moment, you'd probably understand.
'I still can't believe it's over between us. Heh, I guess nothing really lasts forever does it?' the 17-year-old hero thought to himself. He was pulled out of his thoughts as his cellphone vibrated in his pocket. He pulled it out and looked at the caller ID: Gwen. He smiled and answered his cousin. "Gwen! What's up?"
"Ben! Glad you picked up. I'm doing great actually. How 'bout you?"
"Eh, can't complain. Stopped Zombozo from stealing some weird chemicals today. So how's your last week of the semester? You done with tests?"
"Ugh, yes FINALLY done! I love college, but their tests are absolutely AWFUL!" Ben laughed. "We're actually on our way back right now. I'm calling from Kevin's car."
"Really? Great! Just one week away from our trip! You excited?" The two cousins, Kevin and their Grandfather were taking a cross country trip to South America in a week and Ben couldn't wait any longer.
"Yeah, it's gonna be great. So how 'bout you? You holding up okay?"
"Yeah, I'm doing pretty good. Though things at base have been pretty hectic lately. The Incarcecon prison around Vexis-6 is ready for our... guest. I've just gotta see him off planet and we should be good for the summer... and hopefully the rest of our lives."
"That's great... but that's not entirely what I meant. Ben... it's been a week and I was concerned that you didn't try to call me after it happened... Are you okay?"
Ben instantly knew what she was talking about, but it didn't really help. He looked over to a photo on his night stand, one that had been taken at his grandfather's sixty-sixth birthday cookout last year (don't ask how the food was). The picture was of him, Gwen, his best friend and former enemy, Kevin, and his now ex-girlfriend, Julie Yamamoto. There were disadvantages to dropping out of school and this was one of them. Ben had dropped out a long time ago to focus on his hero duties, but Julie had stayed in and graduated this year. However, she decided to go overseas for her degree. In the end both she and Ben agreed that, knowing the ups and downs of their relationship, long distance would not work between them. The two parted ways at the airport a week ago, and Ben could still remember how it went.
...
"Well, guess this is it." Ben said as he and Julie arrived at the terminal. They were standing just outside the entrance gates, Julie with a duffel bag strapped around her shoulder and a large suitcase beside her.
"Yeah... guess so." She said sadly. They had tried. They REALLY tried to keep the relationship going. But as much as they loved each other, they both lead very different lives entailing different things. It was something that Julie couldn't keep up with and Ben couldn't make time for. She turned to face him. "Ben." He turned to her with the same look of sadness that she herself wore. "I don't want you to beat yourself up over this. This has been one of the best relationships that I've ever had with anyone and I'll never forget what we've been through together. But... there comes a time when... people have to move on." She was choking up. She swore to herself that she wouldn't choke up. She felt Ben's hand, a sensation that she was very familiar with, lift her head up by her chin and made her look directly at him.
"I know Jules, I know. We tried. Dear god we did, but... I guess things just... didn't want to work out for us." That was the last straw. She flung herself into his arms and cried her eyes out, him doing the same into her shoulder, though his were silent. She didn't want this to end, but something had to give. Either she had to give up what she wanted to do with her life, or he had to stop being the galaxy's protector. And she couldn't be so selfish. When she was done crying, she spoke again.
"Promise me something."
"Mmhm." Ben hummed a response into her shoulder.
"Promise me, that where ever you go, where ever you end up in this universe, that you stay safe. And always, ALWAYS come back home. Okay?"
Ben sniffed. "Okay... I promise." A moment passed and he pulled away from her shoulder, a sad smile on his face. He looked her in the eye and said the last thing that she would ever expect on that day: "One last goodbye for the road?"
She smiled back. "One more couldn't hurt." Their lips met in a soft and tender kiss. This one would be their last together.
...Ben? ...Ben?!
...
"BEN!"
"Gah!" Ben snapped out of his memory. "Y-yeah?"
"I was asking if you were okay." Gwen repeated. "I just... I wanted to know if you think you made the right decision. Breaking up with Julie."
Ben sighed. "Gwen, I know that ending it wasn't the easiest thing to do... but it was the RIGHT thing to do. In the long run, it'll save us both a lot of pain. Besides, you know Julie, she's not made for this kind of stuff. And I think she might of gotten sick of it just a little bit."
Gwen sighed. "Alright, just... don't beat yourself up over it okay? It's not healthy to keep your emotions bottled up like that. You're free to talk with me anytime, you know that right?"
"Heh, yeah, I do. Thanks, I'll see you soon Gwen, bye." Gwen said her goodbye and Ben hung up the phone, sprawling onto his bed again. He gave a sad sigh. "She's right, I've gotta get my mind off of this." At that moment, the lights in his room suddenly all went dark. Ben sat up in annoyance. "Oh, great. Just perfect!" But then, just as quick, the lights flickered back on. "Huh, well that was—"
BOOOM!
Ben's head jerked back at the explosive noise that shook not only his eardrums, but his entire room. The Omnitrix started blinking and beeping, signaling that someone was calling him. Ben tapped the watch face and spoke into it. "Ben here, go ahead."
"Ben, it's Max, we've got a situation." His grandfather answered on the other end.
"Grandpa, what's wrong?"
"The base just experienced a short term electro-magnetic pulse. I'm on my way there now. From what the officers said... I'm afraid a certain inmate's making an escape attempt. We need you here on the double."
"Who's trying to escape?!"
"Look outside." Ben flew to his window, seeing a billow of smoke rising up from the Plumbers secret Bellwood headquarters. It was only when he gazed further up that he knew who was trying to get a "Get-Out-of-Jail-Free" card.
"Crap." Ben said in a hushed tone. Floating about 10 meters above the city was none other than one of Vilgax's mighty warships. He spoke into the Omnitrix once again. "I'm on my way!" Ben touched the watch face of the Omnitrix and a holographic ring came up from it, showing the faces of his aliens. He selected one and the watch face slid back, the Omnitrix core popping up from its resting place. Ben slammed it down and turned into the alien he chose, a humanoid made of molten rock and fire.
"Heatblast!" Ben shouted in a raspy voice. Heatblast jumped out of the bedroom window, willed the earth that was now underneath him up out of the ground and lit it ablaze, making a platform for him to fly on. The Pyronite rose up and shot off toward the Plumber base. "No time to mope Ben," he told himself, "there's work to be done."
...
In hindsight, at least from Max Tennyson's perspective, he knew that keeping the arch nemesis of your family in the secret underground base was a bad plan. However, Plumber High Command, being the absolute GENIUSES that they were, insisted that NOTHING could go wrong by just keeping Vilgax there for a year while they prepared a new maximum security prison that could actually hold him. But Max knew something was wrong from the moment that Vilgax was locked up, that being the warlord's compliancy in just about everything. He hadn't even been any escape attempts in the time that he was there. At least until now, on the day that the new prison for him was finished. Max knew why as well, to lull the Plumbers into a false sense of security, and then strike when they least expected it.
These were the thoughts that were running through his head as he pulled up to what remained of the outer facade of the Plumber base and saw the Chimera Sui Generis standing amongst the rubble. Vilgax was now donned in an armor that was similar to the one that he had worn seven years ago, with the addition of a headpiece on top of his head as a sort of crown. The once bright afternoon sky had turned dark, arcs of lighting shooting through the sky marking the alien warlord's return. Max exited his motorhome, the Rustbucket, and began to approach Vilgax, who didn't waver from his spot. Before he could make himself known to his old foe, he saw a body moving amongst the rubble out of the corner of his eye. It was a Plumber, in full uniform, one with a familiar head of messy blonde hair. Max's eyes widened. "Cooper!" he exclaimed.
Cooper Daniels, Plumber, technopath, a young man who once had a crush on Gwen, but most importantly, a friend. He was laying there, half buried by rubble, struggling to break free. Max made his way over to him while Vilgax turned in his direction, now fully aware of his old enemy's arrival. As Max worked to get Cooper out, the young Plumber started doing the first thing that came to his mind: apologize. "I'm so sorry Mr. Tennyson. We had no idea this would happen and it happened so fast and I—"
Max cut him off before he could start rambling. "It's okay Coop, none of this is your fault. I've always suspected this would happen, but I guess no one in the higher ups likes to listen to us old timers anymore."
"Heh, respect your elders right?"
"Exactly." Max slung Cooper over his shoulder and asked: "Can you feel your legs?"
"Yeah, and they hurt." Max got a brief chuckle out of that before his attention was redirected to the shadow that was now looming over them. Vilgax had stridden over while the two were talking. The two old enemies simply glared at each other, one knowing he and the boy he was carrying were in no shape to fight, and the other feeling like the most powerful being in the universe once more.
"Ah, Tennyson," Vilgax spoke in his raspy yet guttural voice, "I suppose you didn't see this coming did you?"
"To be honest Vilgax," Max retorted, "I almost expected you to make your escape once you were off world and on your way to your new home. But on the other hand, destruction IS your forte."
The warlord scoffed. "I suppose the unfettered snark must run in your family."
Max smirked. "More than you know."
Vilgax however, turned around and waved him off, walking into the middle of the road underneath his ship. "But that is of no matter right now, I must be on my way back to my world. I shall let you live for now Tennyson, but know this, when next we meet, it will be our la—AAARRRGGG!"
A ball of hot fire hit Vilgax square in the jaw, sending him sprawling on the ground, clutching at his face. From out of nowhere, Heatblast flew down and leapt off of his earthen platform and next to his grandfather. "Hot stuff, huh Vilgax?" the hero taunted.
"TENNYSON!" Vilgax cried out from his place on the ground.
"Which one? Me or him?" Ben asked as he pointed a thumb between him and the elder Plumber.
"Ben, this is hardly the time for smack talk." Max pointed out.
"I know Grandpa, but I had to at least get a few good ones in. Besides, you heard him, we Tennyson's are naturally snarky. But from here on, it's strictly business." Ben redirected his attention to the blonde hanging off of his grandfather's shoulder. "Hey Coop."
"Hey Ben," the technopath replied. "Come to kick ass and take names?"
"Yep, though I suggest you sit this one out in the Rustbucket. Things are about to get ugly out here." He turned back to Max. "Get a Null Void projector ready Grandpa, we're gonna need it."
Max nodded. "Good luck, Ben. Do me proud." Ben nodded back and Max went back into the Rustbucket, helping Cooper alongside him. He laid Cooper down onto one of the bunk beds and went to work. Max reached into a secret compartment and pulled out a strange device that looked like a handgun with a big lens attached to it. The Null Void projector, a device to send intergalactic evil-doers to an alternate dimensional jail, was just what they needed in this situation. All Max had to do was calibrate it correctly.
Back outside, Vilgax stood up, his attention focused squarely on his Pyronite opponent. He let out a roar of frustration and pointed a clawed finger at Ben. "Tennyson! I have had enough! You and your compatriots have been a thorn in my side for far too long!" However, Ben wasn't paying any attention to Vilgax. He was too focused on the green and black muscle car that was fast approaching the warlord from behind. The car swerved around and knocked Vilgax down from underneath himself. It screeched to a halt and the driver's side door opened, revealing Kevin Levin, a big smirk on his face.
"I'm sorry," the black haired Osmosian said sarcastically, "but did somebody mention us?" The passenger side door opened and out stumbled Gwen, looking rather dizzy and a little green. She covered her mouth and gagged, trying her best to keep whatever was in her stomach down. She turned to her boyfriend and gave him a sharp glare.
"Kevin Ethan Levin... please... never do that again!" She said in between breaths.
Kevin put a steady hand over Gwen's shoulders, supporting her as they made their way over to Ben. "Sorry," Kevin apologized, "just wanted to get the drop on ol' Vilgy over there."
"Well next time, could you just fire the plasma cannon that I know you have in that car?"
"Oh, okay." Kevin sighed. "Just wanted to have a little fun with it. Do you know how hard it is to make a badass entrance like that?"
"Practicality over badassery sweetie." She saw her cousin and smiled. "Hi Ben."
"Hey Gwen." the Pyronite replied. "Looks like South America's gonna have to wait huh?"
"Eh, what can ya do?" As Gwen regained her composure, Vilgax stood up, clenching his clawed hands in an attempt to restrain his rage.
"Must I always expect interference in ANY attempt to escape this wretched planet?!" he bellowed.
"Yes, yes you will." Heatblast said while lighting his fists ablaze. Kevin reached down to the pavement and absorbed it, turning his hands into a pair of maces in the process. Gwen's eyes lit up in a bright pink color with her own hands lighting up with mana of the same color. Ben gave the word. "It's Hero Time!"
The following battle was seismic in proportion. As the two sides clashed, the impacts became more intense. You could almost hear the thunderous sounds of colliding punches from miles away. The trio of heroes desperately tried to keep Vilgax down, but nothing seemed to faze the warlord, getting up every time they put him down. A good five minutes passed before Max finally came back out, Null Void projector in hand.
"Kids!" Max hollered. "Get clear!" The three teens retreated as fast as they could as Vilgax got up once again. When the warlord found his footing, his vision cleared... only to see Max pointing the projector directly at him. "Make my day, Vilgax!" Max shouted as he pulled the trigger.
However... nothing happened. No portal, no ray of light, nothing. Max was confused, he was sure he calibrated the thing correctly, so what was happening? He tried pulling it again and again, but nothing came of it. The projector suddenly began to spark in malfunction, shocking Max's hand so much that he tossed it to the ground in-between himself, the kids and Vilgax. What happened next, no one could have guessed.
The projector broke apart and a burst of light came out of it, a portal to the Null Void opening up in the ground. The group stood in shock as they saw something trying to claw its way out. As it moved out further they could finally get a clear view of its body. It was a reddish-orange colored creature that appeared to be entirely made out of flames. Its face and chest were clearly defined by a brighter orange color with white slits for eyes. It spoke in a tired raspy voice: "Free... at last."
Gwen, Kevin, Max and Vilgax looked on, the warlord speaking first. "What IS this creature?"
"That's what I'd like to know." Gwen responded almost out of obligation, not really talking to Vilgax himself. "Kevin, Grandpa, any clue?"
"Nope."
"Not a one."
A green flash caught the corner of Gwen's eye. Ben had changed back to normal... and wore a horrified expression. "Ben... do you...?"
"Yeah," he answered, "That... that thing shouldn't be alive. It's the Alpha Nanite."
"You mean that thing you said you beat up with the help of some dude with machine powers in another dimension?" Kevin asked.
"Yep."
"...The story that we didn't believe you on?" Gwen added.
"The very same."
"Oh... sorry."
"Yeah, sorry dude." Kevin added.
Ben shrugged. "No big deal. I probably wouldn't have believed myself either if I wasn't there." Another lightning strike came thrusting down from the sky, directly onto the portal and Alpha. The Nanite creature screamed in agony, the combined energies being too much for it to handle. As if things couldn't get any stranger, the portal imploded around itself and, out of its center, a dome of light began to expand. "What the hell's going on?!" Ben screamed.
"The portal!" Vilgax yelled in a panicked voice. "It is destabilizing! Flee you fools!" Vilgax was beamed up into his ship which blasted off into space while the four humans were left in front of the expanding dome.
"RUN!" Max hollered and the teens followed suit. However, the dome of light was growing faster and faster. It encapsulated the Rustbucket, Kevin's car and the four humans... before finally bursting into nothingness. There was nothing left on that city block in downtown Bellwood but a crater with no sign of the universe's greatest heroes in sight.
...
Meanwhile in the world of Remnant, Blake Belladonna was NOT in the best of spirits. Why? Because she was fighting a losing battle. Her old partner and ex-lover, Adam Taurus, was now standing over her, berating her for the choices that she had made. And she was pleading with him to stop.
"This could have been OUR day! Can't you see that?!" he yelled at her.
"I never wanted THIS!" Blake reasoned. "I wanted equality! I wanted PEACE!" She fired her weapon, Gambol Shroud at him, but Adam drew his blood red blade, Wilt, from its sheath, blocking the shots and absorbing the energy as he did. With venom in his voice he retorted:
"What you want... is IMPOSSIBLE!" Adam drew his hand back and slapped Blake in the face, sending her to the ground. He loomed over her, now in a seemingly calmer mood than before. "But I understand. Because all I want is you, Blake." Blake knew what he was trying to do, but she was having none of it. She moved to get up, weapon in hand, but he kicked Gambol Shroud away before she could do anything, sending her to the floor again. Adam spoke with the toxicity from before. "And as I set out upon this world, and deliver the justice that mankind so greatly deserves, I will make it my mission to destroy everything you love."
Suddenly from outside, a feminine voice called out: "Blake?!" the two Faunus turned their attention to one of the far windows to see a girl about Blake's age, one with fair skin, violet eyes, and long blonde hair, a yellow gauntlet adorning each hand. It was Blake's best friend and partner, Yang Xiao-Long. "Blake where are you?!"
Adam's attention returned to Blake, who now had a look of pure terror on her face. "Starting with her."
'NO! Anyone but her!' Blake thought to herself. Yang was the one person who helped support her through all her troubles. Whether it was the White Fang, her (still budding) relationship with Sun, the dance, everything! She was like the sister that Blake never thought she would have! 'He can't just—' "AAAAAGGH!" Adam stabbed Blake in the abdomen, right near her left hip and she let out a cry of agony. A cry that got Yang's attention. And seeing her partner getting stabbed had NOT improved Yang's mood.
"GET AWAY FROM HER!" she shouted at the top of her lungs. Adam didn't seem phased at the threat as he faced the blonde. In fact, he smiled. That just made Yang even angrier. Ignoring Blake's pleas to get out of there, Yang lunged forward, drawing back a fist with tears in her now red eyes, ready to make a massive blow, one that Adam was about to receive. He drew his blade, but before he could make his mark on the girl... something happened.
A glimmer appeared between the two combatants and it exploded in a burst of light, sending both of them flying in different directions. Yang landed on the ground with an audible THUD while Adam did a backflip and landed in a crouch, digging his boots into the cement floor. Blake had shielded her eyes from the harsh light, but once it died down, she uncovered them. She looked over to her partner, still conscious and intact. 'She's alive! Thank god!' But it was then that Blake noticed that Yang was staring at something.
Blake followed Yang's gaze to a large sphere of white light where the explosion had happened. The mysterious orb started undulating as it produced something from its center. It was a young man, about their age, Caucasian, brown hair, green eyes, wearing jeans, sneakers and a black t-shirt under a green and white jacket with the number ten emblazoned on the left pectoral. He also wore a weird watch on his left wrist, white with a green and black hourglass symbol on its face. He landed on his hands and knees as he fell out of the sphere, which shrunk down and disappeared into thin air. He rubbed the side of his head in pain and got up, the first words out of his mouth being:
"Why do explosions always happen around us? That's gotta be the fifth time this month!"
...
When Yang woke up today, this was the last thing she expected to happen. She'd just seen her partner Blake get stabbed in the side by some asshole White Fang guy who was about to have a new hole in his face. She wanted to make him pay for what he had done to her soul sister, but being blown back by an explosion was probably the better option. After all, if the guy had followed through with that slice, she would be less one arm right now. Didn't stop the sudden impact on the ground from hurting any less, but hey, she was still whole, so that was a plus.
When she got up, she inspected her right arm with her left hand, making sure that it was still there. Once she had reassured herself, she looked up to see what had blown her back: an orb of white light. Weird. From out of the orb dropped a young man about her age, clad in green with eyes to match. Again, very weird. After picking himself up and making a random comment about explosions, his head shot up and looked around in confusion. First to Blake, then to the asshole, and finally his eyes met hers.
"Um, okay I know this might come off as a stupid question but where the hell am I?" From the way he spoke, Yang could tell that this guy had a sarcastic edge to him. Interesting. She was about to answer, but the asshole beat her to it. And he seemed to be putting on a faux-good guy voice.
"Ah, worry not my friend. I will kindly explain to you where you are just as soon as I am done taking care of these vagrants. The injustices that these two have brought unto the city of Vale shall finally be put to rest." Yang wore a distasteful expression while Blake rolled her eyes, almost as if she's seen this guy's bad acting before. The green-clad boy looked over to Blake, and then back to Yang. Both of them sent a silent plea: Don't believe him. He turned back to the White Fang.
"Yeah, see, I'd be more inclined to believe you on that if it weren't for two things. One: these girls look completely innocent. And two: heroes don't wear something that's so OBVIOUSLY EVIL! I mean seriously, red and black? I'm surprised that you haven't just dropped the pretense already and attacked me for god's sake!"
"Well then perhaps it's time I did." The White Fang unsheathed his sword and slowly drew closer, trying to add an air of menace to his presence. Something that Green Boy had chosen not to pick up on.
"Yeah? Well, so will I." He pressed down on the face of his watch and a small green holographic disk appeared over it. He scrolled through it, the faceplate pulled back, and a cylindrical... thing with the same hourglass shape sprang up. He slammed it down, and... something unbelievable happened. The three watched as his body began changing. His skin turned into green vines, the hair on his head became a red and yellow flower, and his eyes became almond shaped with his nose disappearing and his face becoming a pitch black color, almost as if it were the flower's center. Once his transformation was complete, the creature clenched his fists and yelled out in a nasally voice: "Swampfire!"
The White Fang had been taken aback, and Yang couldn't blame him. 'What in the HELL did I just see?!' she thought. As much as she wanted to question further, a small voice in the back of her head called out: 'This is your chance! Get to Blake!' Seeing the opportunity, Yang slowly edged out of the two's way in order to check on her partner. About half way to her destination, she heard the voice of the creature behind her.
"Come on man, I ain't got all day. Hit me with your best shot, I can take—" the voice was cut off when she heard the slicing of metal on plant matter. She glanced back and her eyes widened when she saw the White Fang had cut the swamp monster in half at the pelvis. The guy had a wicked smirk on his face, but it didn't last long as the plant creature continued to speak from his place on the floor... in a very sarcastic tone.
"Oh no! I've been cut in half! What ever shall I do?!" The still standing pair of legs suddenly produced a new vine, one that seemed to have a mind of its own as it went down, went into the swamp thing's torso and reeled itself back, reattaching the body to its pelvis. "Well would you look at that! I'm back on my feet!" the creature quipped while smirking.
The White Fang was stunned. "What the fu—"
"My turn!" The creature hollered as he lit his hands ablaze. He pointed his palms at the White Fang and released a powerful blast of fire, sending the Faunus through the wall as he cried out in pain. Yang finally made it over to Blake and reached out to her hand. The cat girl tried to move herself up off the floor to meet her, but collapsed, grasping at her side.
"Blake! Blake, please don't try to move, it's going to be okay." Yang tried to keep herself calm, something that was hard to do when family was bleeding out right in front of you. But through it all, Blake didn't seem to care about her injuries as she chastised the Blonde Brawler.
"What were you thinking?!"
"Well I—"
"You thought you could take on Adam by yourself?!"
"W-wait THAT was Adam?! That's the guy who you used to be with?"
"Yes, and you could have gotten yourself hurt! Or worse! Why didn't you leave when I told you to?!"
Yang was about to answer when she heard heavy footsteps fall behind her. Blake looked up over her partner's shoulder and Yang turned around, meeting the swamp monster's gaze. With a steely expression, Yang got up and spread her arms out to her sides, making herself into a wall for her best friend. She addressed the creature with determination in her voice. "Get back! I'm not gonna let you hurt her!"
The creature put up his hands in light defense. "Whoa, whoa, hold on a minute. I don't want to hurt either of you. In fact, I actually think I can help your friend."
"Oh yeah? How?"
"You saw how I got up back there. I can regenerate. And I can pass some of that on to others. If you let me see her for just a moment, I can guarantee that she'll be okay." Yang stared at the creature... and saw no malevolent intent. In fact, he wore a genuine smile. After a moment, Yang nodded and stepped aside, allowing the creature to bend down and inspect Blake's wound. The swamp man cupped his hands together, producing a handful of glowing yellow spores. "Okay, now you may feel a bit of a tingly feeling and that's normal. It just means that your wound's healing. So hold still, okay?" He placed his hand onto her wound and Blake gave a small gasp in pain before settling back down, the spores soaking into the deep cut. Within a few seconds, the wound closed up. "There! Good as new! Think you can get up?" the swamp man offered his hand.
Blake nodded, "Yes... thank you" she said still in a semi-state of shock as she took his hand and he hoisted her up. She could feel her energy slowly returning to her, which she was amazed by. Aura usually never replenished this fast. Yang looked on with the same amazement. This creatu—no this person had healed her best friend in an instant! She felt obliged to ask.
"Just who the hell are you anyway?"
He turned back to her and his eyes widened. "Oh yeah, right, forgot. Things have been so chaotic in the last half hour that I haven't introduced myself." He hit the symbol on his chest and turned back to his human form, extending a hand of friendship to Yang. "My name's Ben Tennyson. I'm a superhero."
The blonde looked at the hand and back to the boy's face, smiling back. "Yang Xiao-Long!" she introduced herself before clasping Ben's hand in her own with a hearty SMACK! "Nice to meet ya!"
"Ow."
...
A/N: Told you this was an AU: Yang doesn't lose her arm! Now, the reason that I did this was that I wanted to explore the scenario, what WOULD have happened if Yang hadn't lost her arm? Would it still change her character a bit? Maybe not as much? We'll just have to see. Also, although he may be gone, remember Alpha's roll in the story, it's more significant than you think. But we'll be seeing those consequences much later down the road. So with that, next chapter will be seeing exposition, emotional baggage, Gwen and Kevin's return, Adam's just comeuppance, and we'll put the R and W back into team RWBY, so stay tuned!