3 Chapter 3 : Mount Rushmore
[3rd person POV]
After over 14 hours of driving, the Dodge Challenger finally arrived at Mount Rushmore, one of the most famous landmarks in the United States.
As Kevin approached the granite faces of the four US presidents carved on the mountain, he was impressed by the breathtaking scenery. The size of the sculptures and the majestic natural beauty of the Black Hills mountain range surrounding them left him in awe.
Afterward, Kevin decided to have a meal at Carver's Cafe, located within the Mount Rushmore National Memorial. The restaurant offered a variety of delicious dishes, including burgers, salads, and sandwiches. He enjoyed a tasty meal while admiring the iconic landmark from the panoramic window of the restaurant.
Although he could afford it, Kevin chose to stay at an ordinary motel to avoid any paperwork hassle. After all, he only needed a place to freshen up, not luxury.
Next, Kevin went shopping to stock up on enough supplies for a few days before he and his beloved car hit the road again.
After exploring Mount Rushmore for a while, the car came to a stop in front of a "Road Closed" warning sign. This area was off-limits, but who would stop him?
Stepping out of the car, Kevin began to transform into Upgrade. His body dissolved and merged into the ground beneath the car. Surprisingly, the spot where he parked was not actually solid ground but the camouflage of a gigantic elevator, with a deep bottomless shaft underneath.
Relying on his immortal body, Upgrade Kevin jumped down, emitting a green light from his singular eye, acting as a flashlight to illuminate the depths of the pit. As he neared the bottom, Upgrade's body stretched out like a parachute, slowing down his fall and landing gently.
In no time, Kevin found the elevator control and lowered it, bringing along the Dodge Challenger.
With all the lights activated, Kevin continued deeper into the facility to explore.
Fans of Ben 10 would not be unfamiliar with this place; it was a base of the Plumbers, an organization created by George Washington to defend Earth against extraterrestrial threats.
At present, the organization had been disbanded for unknown reasons. Many believed it was because they had successfully defeated Vilgax, a powerful conqueror revered throughout the galaxy.
However, Kevin wouldn't accept this explanation. After all, the universe was vast, and it was abundant with powerful forces. Vilgax was not the only threat worth worrying about.
But it didn't matter. Regardless of the reason, the disbandment of the Plumbers was a fact. They had completely abandoned this base, leaving behind numerous weapons and advanced machinery that Kevin was sure not to waste.
With a body composed of countless nanomachines, Upgrade could merge and split his body at will, making him virtually invulnerable to most human weapons and traps.
His ability to control machinery made him the number one enemy of all types of locks, unless they were magically enhanced, extremely complex in structure, or specifically designed to counter Galvanic Mechamorphs. Kevin could guarantee that the Plumbers didn't meet any of those criteria.
He arrived at a room with walls made up of countless drawers. Opening 20 of them, a bright smile appeared on his face.
Inside the drawers were various types of weapons with different functions and shapes. Among them was a massive weapon that Kevin had seen used to confront Vilgax before.
But when he saw a peculiar gun levitating on a pedestal at the end of the room, Kevin couldn't help but burst into laughter: "HA HA HA HA..."
He regretted not being able to give the goddess of luck thousands of kisses at this very moment.
The device in front of him wasn't a powerful weapon of any kind; it had only one singular function: to open a portal to the Null Void, a pocket dimension found by the Galvan to imprison dangerous criminals across the universe.
Ordinary people might wonder what there is to be happy about, as if he wanted to imprison someone, right? The answer is no.
"Others may see the Null Void as a prison, but for me, it's nothing short of a luxurious buffet feast. Ha ha ha."
In a previous timeline, Kevin was trapped in the Null Void by Ben, which was one of Ben's biggest mistakes. He had given Kevin the opportunity to come into contact with countless other criminals inside and absorb their abilities. The day Kevin escaped the Null Void, not even Ben's most powerful alien at that time could inflict harm on him.
Currently, Kevin only wanted to immediately rush into the Null Void and recreate the glorious moments of that time. However, the experience and rationality he gained from another life prevented him from doing so.
The storyline of Ben 10 that Kevin knew was a mess with many inconsistencies in its content, and to this day, there hasn't been a 100% satisfactory explanation. It can be used as a reference but cannot be fully relied upon. There may be many dangers inside that he cannot foresee.
Furthermore, the timeline mentioned is set in the future, where Ben has grown up and continuously supplies the Null Void with numerous dangerous criminals over the years. Currently, it is uncertain whether there are enough powerful individuals in there for Kevin to absorb.
Despite the regret, our main character can only leave this device untouched.
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In the next few hours, Kevin used Upgrade to explore this massive facility and learn the structure and principles of any machinery he could find.
Next, his body transformed once again, this time into a completely new form. He shrank down to a tiny gray-skinned alien, a hybrid between a human and a frog, with two arms and legs, standing only six inches tall (approximately 15 cm). He had large green eyes with rectangular pupils and horizontal eyelids. This was Grey Matter, a member of the Galvan species from the planet Galvan Prime. Unlike Kevin's other current forms, this form had very low combat abilities, not even comparable to that of a human child. However, that is not a reason to underestimate it.
[Pic of Greymatter]
What makes the Galvan famous is not their fighting prowess but their superior intelligence. The creator of the Omnitrix, as well as the Galvanic species (the species of Upgrade), is recognized as the most intelligent being in the five galaxies - Azmuth, who is a member of the Galvan species. When he created the Omnitrix, he gave it the ability to receive the DNA of any species and transform the host into the most outstanding individual of that species. And the most outstanding individual of the Galvan species, without a doubt, is Azmuth himself.
This clearly demonstrated Grey Matter's intelligence, the only thing he lacked compared to Azmuth was the accumulation of knowledge, which Kevin partially supplemented with the knowledge he acquired from the library and the analysis of the devices in this place.
Even with the speed of XLR8, it would be impossible to become a top-notch scientist in various fields within a few days just by reading books. The amount of information is too vast for the human brain to process, but for a Galvan, it's different.
In this form, Kevin felt like an ocean of knowledge surrounding him. His thoughts became clearer than ever, and the words he glanced at appeared as a vivid image in his mind. He felt like a god of intellect, where if he wanted to create something, a detailed model of it would instantly appear in his mind.
This feeling was completely different from when he was just a foolish human. The stark contrast overwhelmed him, making his mind feel like it was about to explode. Kevin immediately canceled the Grey Matter form.
[End POV]
