"Let me go! Let me go! I have to get to the Veritas Award Ceremony and prove that I'm the greatest scientist in the world!" Dr. Animo screamed desperately, his voice cracking with desperation as he struggled against Max's firm grip.
"I'm sorry, Animo, but what awaits you is a prison sentence," Asher said with finality. Without hesitation, he reached down and carefully removed the DNA transmodulator from the mad scientist's head. The helmet-like device came off with a soft click, its red glow dimming instantly as the connection was severed.
Asher examined the dangerous invention for a moment, then threw it recklessly onto the museum floor. The alien-looking device shattered upon impact, its intricate components scattered across the polished stone.
CRUNCH!
Not content with simply breaking it, Asher lifted his foot and brought it down hard on the remaining pieces, shattering the delicate circuitry and control mechanisms into useless fragments.
"NO!" Dr. Animo let out an anguished wail, desperately reaching for the destroyed transmodulator with his bound hands. The scream echoed through the museum like the sound of a wounded animal.
The moment the device was completely destroyed, its effects began to reverberate throughout the building. In the distance, the massive Triceratops specimens began to shrink back to their original size. The giant parrot that had been peacefully eating from Gwen's hand suddenly contracted, its feathers ruffling as it returned to normal size. The reanimated Tyrannosaurus Rex and Tyrannosaurus skeletons crumbled back into lifeless bones, their artificial flesh dissipating like smoke.
Ever since Dr. Animo had unleashed his giant creatures to attack the mall and then used prehistoric monsters to set traps to harm Asher and his family, his fate had been sealed.
WOOOOOO~~
The distant wail of police sirens grew louder as several squad cars approached the museum.
"All right, Grandpa, please turn him over to the authorities," Asher said, gesturing toward the museum entrance where several uniformed officers were cautiously entering the building.
"What's going on?" the lead officer demanded, his hand resting on his service weapon as he took in the destruction around them.
"Sir, please let go of that man and step back slowly," another officer ordered, pointing his flashlight at Max, completely misunderstanding the situation.
Several police officers rushed toward Max with their guns drawn, mistaking the weathered veteran for the perpetrator rather than the hero who had subdued the real criminal.
Max quickly raised his hands in a gesture of surrender. "Officers, there's been a misunderstanding. This man on the ground is Dr. Aloysius Animo, he's on your most wanted list for the attacks earlier today."
After some explanation, and the fact that Dr. Animo was indeed a particularly notorious wanted criminal, the police quickly cleared up the confusion. The mad scientist's pale, gaunt appearance and the scattered remains of his bizarre inventions helped convince them of the truth.
What Dr. Animo had done was simply too heinous to ignore, terrorizing innocent civilians, destroying public property, and endangering countless lives with his mutant creatures.
"How exactly did you four manage to deal with these giant monsters we heard about?" one of the escorting officers asked curiously as they secured Dr. Animo in handcuffs.
Max gestured proudly to Ben, Gwen and Asher behind him. "My grandchildren took care of the situation," he said with unmistakable pride in his voice.
"Haha, you've got to be kidding," the other officers laughed dismissively, looking at the three children with obvious skepticism. "These kids couldn't handle anything more dangerous than a house cat."
"You idiots, what he says is absolutely true!" Dr. Animo growled, even with his hands cuffed behind his back, his face contorted with humiliation and rage. "If you don't believe me, grab that boy's wrist, slap that watch, and he'll turn into a four-armed monster!"
"Hey, Animo," one of the escorts said mockingly, "we were originally going to put you in a maximum security prison, but now we're seriously considering putting you in a mental institution instead!"
The officers patted Dr. Animo roughly on the back and dismissed his claims as the ravings of a lunatic.
Dr. Animo's expression looked as if he had just eaten something disgusting. His teeth were clenched so tightly that his jaw muscles bulged, and his angry eyes never left Asher as the police led him away into the night.
"Well, that's finally over," Asher said with a weary stretch. "We were supposed to go fishing tonight, but those plans got completely screwed up. Guess we'll have to try again tomorrow."
"Dinner," Max announced as he walked toward the rust bucket. "Let's head back. I'm sure you're all getting hungry."
At the mention of food, Asher's eye involuntarily twitched. Eating Grandpa Max's experimental cuisine was somehow more terrifying than facing Dr. Animo and his prehistoric army combined!
"Oh no," Ben and Gwen groaned in unison, following Asher with expressions of pure terror. Only their brave cousin had the stomach for their grandfather's "nutritious" cooking!
Back at the rust bucket...
While eating their surprisingly tasty dinner (Max had apparently decided to take it easy after the day's adventures), the family gathered around the small television to watch the evening news.
Gwen grabbed the remote and tuned in to the channel carrying the live Veritas Award ceremony. "I'm curious to see who won the Veritas Award this year," she said with genuine interest, her scholarly nature always drawn to academic achievement.
"Of course you are, nerd. Who wants to watch such a boring show?" Ben quickly grabbed the remote from the table and started flipping through the channels.
"Hey, dummy, don't grab it!" Gwen held out her hands, trying to get the device back.
"Breaking news: Alien incidents reported throughout metropolitan area..." Ben had already switched to a news program when the headline caught everyone's attention.
He was immediately drawn in by the unfolding story, his finger hovering over the channel button.
Gwen completely forgot about the Veritas Award ceremony and stared at the television with growing concern. It could be about Asher's activities throughout the day.
"Are they talking about me? Could my identity have been discovered?" Asher felt a chill of worry as he watched the screen intently.
Fortunately, the security cameras at both the mall and the museum had not had sufficient coverage to capture clear footage. The images they did show of Four Arms and Heatblast were extremely blurry and indistinct, more like Bigfoot sightings than hard evidence.
The screen then cut to interviews with ordinary citizens.
"I met a man this morning who was on fire, and I'm convinced he was an alien!" declared an excited witness.
"I met a man covered in diamonds yesterday..." added another person.
"There was this huge guy with four arms who saved everyone in the mall!"
The people interviewed were all, without exception, people who had been rescued by Asher during his heroic interventions throughout the day.
Their faces were filled with admiration, and their eyes shone with genuine gratitude. They couldn't wait to see their mysterious hero again; they had become devoted fans of the alien savior!
Although many viewers at home might dismiss these testimonies as fantasy or delusion, the rescued people knew the truth in their hearts. They had witnessed miracles with their own eyes.
More precisely, they had become die-hard fans of Heatblast, Four Arms and Diamondhead, not knowing that all three heroes were the same person.
"Asher, I can't believe you're famous on TV," Gwen said with obvious envy, though her tone was more admiration than jealousy.
Ben added excitedly, "If people knew that all these different alien heroes are actually the same person, and that person is sitting right here, they'd definitely rush to interview you!"
"I'd rather be an under-the-radar hero than chase fame," Asher shook his head with sincere indifference. "I don't care about the recognition."
He really didn't care about celebrity status or media attention. What mattered was protecting innocent people and keeping his family safe.
Compared to fame, he was much more interested in tomorrow's fishing plans.
After asking Max about their destination, Asher borrowed Gwen's laptop and began casually researching the location.
But when he opened the search results, his blood ran cold.
The very first news article made his heart skip a beat:
"Local Lake Monster Sightings Increase Ahead of Summer Tourism Season."
"There's definitely no such thing as a lake monster," Gwen said with a dismissive smile as she noticed the article on the laptop screen. "Don't worry about these silly rumors."
"Yeah, I'm sure it's just folklore," Asher replied absentmindedly, though privately he remained on high alert.
In the Ben 10 universe, "folklore" and "urban legends" had a disturbing tendency to turn out to be very real, and very dangerous.