"Confirmed."
On top of the mountain, Professor Paradox (known here as Dr. Contradiction) let out a long breath of relief.
"Not only is this universe not contaminated," he said, eyes gleaming with fascination, "it's astonishingly powerful. There exist two Omnitrixes here—and the wielder of one is beyond extraordinary."
A glowing projection appeared before him, replaying the scene of Ethen's Colossal Giant Bloxx obliterating Vilgax in an instant.
"This young man's power isn't his only strength," Paradox murmured.
"He possesses something Ben doesn't—he's not the traditional selfless hero… he's more like a moral vigilante. It's been a long time since I've seen someone like that."
He smiled faintly, tapping his cane, "Brother Ben, could he one day surpass you?"
The thought made him chuckle softly. But then his expression turned grave.
"It's time to visit the corrupted timeline—to see what's really happening there."
A pulse of golden light shimmered from his cane, condensing into a radiant sphere. Paradox pointed forward.
"Hey!" A cold voice cut through the silence.
A ghostly figure suddenly appeared beside him—Ghostfreak.
"I just came up here for some peace and quiet," Ghostfreak hissed. "And I end up finding a stalker spying on me?!"
But then he froze, recognizing the man in front of him.
"...Professor Paradox?!"
Ding! Mission complete.
Reward: +10 points.
"Ugh!!"
Paradox flinched in surprise and reflexively swung his cane—
Whoosh!
A burst of golden light struck Ghostfreak, tearing open a glowing portal behind him.
Before Ghostfreak could react, the pull dragged him inside!
The portal closed instantly.
Paradox clutched his chest, gasping. "A ghost, at night, on a mountain—are you trying to give me a heart attack?!"
Then his eyes widened in horror. "Oh no… I sent him into a corrupted world! Ethen, don't die in there!!"
Inside the Corrupted Universe
Ghostfreak spun helplessly in a cosmic whirlpool, tumbling through chaos until he shot out of a rift—
Swoosh!
—and landed hard on a deserted street.
He phased invisible, scanning the area cautiously.
"What is this place…?"
The ground was scattered with human remains—some still wearing Plumber uniforms.
The surrounding buildings were half-destroyed, windows shattered, walls clawed apart.
The air reeked of death.
From somewhere ahead came a sound—faint, broken singing.
Ghostfreak floated toward it.
At the intersection sat a blood-covered man—young, wild-eyed, wearing a tattered Plumber jacket.
He held a guitar in trembling hands, strumming it with manic energy.
"Haha… this is hell…" he muttered, voice trembling, then started playing a frantic tune.
"The smartest being in the universe...
A machine built to destroy it all…
Just to erase existence…
(Error detected… Error detected…)"
The music was chaotic—distorted, haunting.
Ghostfreak frowned. That melody… he'd heard it before.
Then the man screamed, veins bulging, fingers thrashing across the strings.
"The story begins with a watch from space…
It chose him—brought endless pain and slaughter!
It's too cruel… someone end this suffering!!"
The lyrics pierced Ghostfreak's mind—
and something deep inside him clicked.
"This… this is the theme song of the Error Omnitrix!"
His memories surged back instantly.
He shot into the sky, looking down over the city—and froze.
Everywhere, wreckage. Burned-out vehicles, toppled helicopters, countless corpses.
Scattered among the bodies were bounty posters—each one depicting horrific variants of familiar aliens:
Error Error Rath
Error Four Arms
Corrupted XLR8
Ghostfreak's voice dropped to a whisper, "This… is the Error Omnitrix Universe."
He looked at the ruins below.
"This city… was massacred. That musician went insane after seeing the truth."
A chill crept through his veins, "This place… is pure hell."
A golden rift opened behind him.
Professor Paradox stepped out, scanning the devastation with grim eyes.
"Ethen, it's dangerous here," he said quickly. "Come back with me. I'll explain everything once we're safe."
Ghostfreak reappeared beside him, silent but tense.
Paradox smiled faintly. "Good—you're listening."
He turned to reopen the portal—
Ding! New Mission: "A tribute to the legendary hero Locomotive — the Terror Star."
Objective: Stop the Error Rath, who is imitating the Locomotive and slaughtering citizens.
Reward: 20 points.
Ghostfreak narrowed his eyes.
Error Rath… an Error-version alien.
This could be huge reward points… but also death.
He hesitated—until his gaze fell on the mangled bodies of innocent civilians.
A quiet fury rose within him.
He turned back toward Paradox, his voice cold as steel.
"I don't know who you are or what this place is… but whoever did this—I'm going to take them down."
"You're strong," Paradox warned. "But he may be stronger."
"I don't care."
Ghostfreak's voice deepened.
"I'll kill him."
A flash of green light—
Ethen transformed into Clockwork.
"Clockwork…" Paradox whispered in awe. "You're not thinking—"
"I'll rewind time itself," Clockwork said firmly. "He can't escape me—not through space, not through time."
He raised his arms, golden energy swirling between them as time itself began to flow backward across the ruined street.
Paradox watched, stunned, "He's not just good with brute-force aliens… he's a genius with complex ones too."
Clockwork's mechanical voice boomed.
"Time… Rewind!"
The golden waves expanded across the city.
Destroyed buildings mended.
Dust reversed its fall.
And all of the time energy converged at one point—
Far away, Error Rath—a monstrous, twisted alien—raised its claws over a terrified girl.
But suddenly—its arm froze mid-swing.
"Wha—?!"
The creature roared, struggling against invisible force—but time itself held it prisoner.
The girl scrambled away, sobbing, as the beast was yanked backward through the streets like a ragdoll.
Clockwork lowered his hands and clenched his fist, locking onto the direction of the time distortion.
Paradox's expression tensed. "Wait—you're going to fight it directly?!"
"Just watch," Clockwork said coldly.
"Ben and the others trusted me before. I hope you can too."
Paradox fell silent.
WHOOSH!
The golden current of time dragged the Error Rath forward—right toward Clockwork!
The monster sneered. "You think you can stop me?!"
As they collided—
Clockwork's form flickered—
—and was replaced by the towering Ultimate Humungousaur form!
The beast didn't hesitate. One mighty punch—
BOOM!
The Error Rath's body shattered, bones snapping as it flew backward, howling.
Ethen smirked, his voice echoing from within the colossal alien form.
"I already studied the Error Omnitrix, you fool. Your danger alerts can't fool me. Clockwork was just a decoy."
He cracked his knuckles.
"Now it's my turn to break you."
[A/N: The beloved multiverse arc begins! Next up—Ethen battles across timelines, taking on the Error Omnitrix and joining the grand Multiverse War! Stay tuned, and show your support if you love this arc!]