26 Chapter 24: Grandpa's Lore

[Gwen's POV]

Yesterday might have been the craziest day of my life, and I can't even recall how many times this thought popped into my head this summer. Just when I thought things couldn't get any weirder, reality slapped me in the face. Thank goodness my parents didn't have me earlier; just a few years older and I'd have met the criteria for a cardiac arrest.

Despite everything eventually being reasonably resolved, or at least I hope so, this sense of the whole world being shrouded in mist made me incredibly uneasy. That's why today I absolutely needed to extract every bit of information from Grandpa Max.

The wheels of the car rolled smoothly on the road, but the atmosphere within the RV wasn't as relaxed.

Just like me, Ben was urgently seeking answers, even more so than I was. After all, he was the one mostly harmed yesterday, narrowly escaping losing an arm.

"It's a bit of a long story, where should I start?" Max spoke up.

"Perhaps from that strange organization you were involved with. Dad said you've always been a plumber, so when did you start hunting aliens?" Ben inquired.

"And how does Kevin relate to this organization?" I added, recalling Max's peculiar attitude towards Kevin. Kevin's swift familiarity with the Plumber base in such a short time made me realize that they might belong to the same organization, but that contradicted the Kevin we first met.

"Alright, alright, kiddos. Slowly but surely, we'll get there," Max assured, and then the story began. "Your dad isn't wrong, Ben. I am indeed a Plumber. It's just that our job isn't fixing toilets or pipes. We were the guys who fixed the problems no one else could: extraterrestrial, extraordinary.

Earth has been visited by visitors from outer space since ancient times, long before people even existed. But it wasn't until the 1700s, with Vilgax's invasion and the rise of extraterrestrial forces, that the founding fathers of the United States decided to establish the Plumbers.

Due to the nature of our mission and our non-interference in Earth's political affairs and conflicts, we don't exist in any official documents. But that's also why we can easily expand our international influence."

"Wow! That sounds really cool. Maybe someday I'll join it too. Can I get a cool suit and a special badge?" Ben eagerly chimed in.

"What name are you planning to take? Clumsy Agent? Or perhaps Ultra Ben," I teased.

"Oh come on, how...?" Ben's face reddened a bit, much to my absolute delight. This was the nicknamethat he had given himself. He'd muttered it in his sleep more than once, and now, it was finally time to use it.

It seemed like Max didn't want us arguing. He intervened, shifting our attention. "This might disappoint you, Ben. The Plumbers disbanded about 10 years ago."

He succeeded; both of us were shaken by this news. So that's it—this explained how Kevin easily took control of the Rushmore base; it had been abandoned. It also clarified why we encountered so many bizarre incidents; the Earth had lost its specialists in handling such matters.

"Why though?" Ben asked.

Max seemed satisfied with the impact of his words. "It's a complex affair, and the events occurred after my departure from the Plumbers, so it's challenging to pinpoint the exact reasons. Do you both still want to hear the rest of the story?"

"Of course!" We both replied in unison.

And so, Grandpa continued his tale. "I joined the Plumbers in 1962 when I was 17. At that time, Vilgax had risen among the warlords of the universe. With a powerful military force, he became our main adversary. It wasn't until 1971 that we managed to resolve things with him, or at least that's what we believed. This event was a significant milestone for the Plumbers specifically and the world in general.

It allowed us to spread our reputation across the stars, asserting that Earth wasn't a pushover for anyone looking to invade."

His voice brimmed with pride and nostalgia but gradually grew somber. "However, this was also the spark that ignited an era filled with blood and fire. After Vilgax disappeared, we easily cleared out the remnants and other opposing forces. And due to the fear left by Vilgax, no new extraterrestrial force dared to come close to Earth, peace once again enveloped this planet... for 6 years.

You see, while Vilgax was powerful, he was far from the strongest. His defeat rattled many other forces but also made Earth a target for many others—some factions even more formidable than Vilgax's. They wanted to know why such a backward planet could entice Vilgax for so long and be powerful enough to defeat him.

Due to the unclear military capabilities of Earth and the unwillingness to inadvertently destroy its value, no faction opted for an all-out war. However, reconnaissance teams were incessantly deployed worldwide. Although this period was a bit challenging, we still had enough strength to easily drive them away. However, later on, warships began to appear, and their tactics became more aggressive. Our Earth was too primitive, too poor at that time, lacking fresh flowers and delicious food to entertain "guests from afar, so we "reluctantly" used bullets and gunfire instead. Thus began a new era, an era known as the Great Onslaught."

He spoke gently, sprinkled with some jest, but neither of us laughed. At this moment, Grandpa seemed to have returned to the past, back to the fierce battles beyond our wildest imagination.

"By now, I'm sure you've realized just how powerful these extraterrestrials are. Each individual, with a moderate level of danger, can easily wipe out an entire military unit. Imagine their potential danger when not constrained by numbers or equipment. We were gradually overwhelmed, losing a Plumber almost every day, not to mention civilians. Fortunately, the war also unearthed numerous hidden factions from around the world, who joined hands with the Plumbers, easing the pressure and helping stabilize the situation."

"The hidden factions" I inquired.

"That's right, Gwen. Aliens have been on Earth for a long time, and not all of them remain solely in the U.S. This world is vast, and many people share the same ideals as our founding fathers. Ah, Ben, you've met one of them," Max suddenly directed his attention to Ben.

"Really? When was that?" Ben asked.

"The day we went to the water park, the place where you were captured belongs to the Forever Knight, a faction from Europe," he replied.

"Those metal heads? Can't believe they might be the good guys too?" Ben was a bit bewildered. Suddenly, in just two days, his archenemies turned into potential allies, leaving him unsure whether to feel happy or sad.

"That's a tough one. All we know is that they harbor a hostile attitude toward extraterrestrials, yet they don't want to collaborate with the Plumbers. It's like each of us has our own battlefield, no one encroaches on another's, and I never expected they'd start establishing territory in the U.S."

"Grandpa , you haven't mentioned Kevin's involvement in this. Why are you so familiar with Kevin, and why does he seem to understand the Plumbers so well?" I blurted out, feeling a mix of regret, frustration, and a belated sense of remorse.

"You've been quite fixated on Kevin this morning, Gwen," Ben didn't miss the chance, a foolish smirk gracing his face again.

"No, I'm just... Just curious why his attitude changed so fast. I want to understand if Kevin has some ulterior motive. Don't you find his abrupt shift suspicious?" I quickly retorted.

This time, Ben somewhat nodded in agreement. "You're right, what you're saying, I can't believe he's helping us."

I sighed inexplicably, rubbing my face, feeling a bit heated for some unknown reason.

"No need to rush, we'll get to that part in due time," Max redirected back to the main story once again.

[End POV]