Ben 10: The System

Ned stood there, frozen, for a moment after Zombozo left him. The laughter and cheers around him seemed to fade into a distant hum. He could still feel the cold touch of Zombozo's hands, sending shivers down his spine. He looked around. The faces that were once happy and excited now had a vacant look in their eyes, like they were not really there. He shook his head, trying to focus. "What's going on?" he muttered under his breath, his body still shaking from the encounter.

He decided to walk towards the exit of the tent, it was crowded, but he was getting more used to moving between people. He needed to leave, think and understand what he was seeing and what was happening.

He managed to push his way through the crowd, his eyes scanning the faces around him. The smiles were still there, but they looked hollow, like masks. It was as if the joy had been drained from them. He felt like he was in a nightmare.

He finally reached the edge of the tent, pushing past the curtains, stepping out into the cool night air. He took a deep breath, trying to calm himself, the circus music sounding more distant. 

It didn't work. 

He still felt the unsettling feeling. He turned around to look at the tent. He could now see, a weird green fog, coming from the tent. "What is that?"

He didn't hesitate this time. He knew that something was wrong, very wrong. The system was still silent, but he didn't need the system to tell him that. He was a hero, he had to do something so he started to create a plan.

He walked away from the circus tent, hiding in the shadows of a nearby caravan. He wanted to be unnoticed. He felt more relaxed the further he was away from the tent, his body slowly calming itself.

He focused on his mind, trying to see the system screen. He focused and then, it appeared when he opened his eyes.

[NEW MISSION AVAILABLE!] 

[MISSION: DEFEAT THE CIRCUS.]

[REWARD: 50 EXP + 1 SKILL BOOK]

He blinked. 

Finally, a mission. He felt relieved, as if the system was telling him he was right. But a skill book? What was that? He decided to ignore it for now, he needed to focus on what was happening with the circus.

He looked back at the circus tent, the green fog was still there, but now it was slowly getting bigger, covering the entire tent, like a second layer of the fabric. He squinted his eyes, trying to see what was happening inside. The green fog was now surrounding people as if it was wrapping around them. He could now see it clearly, the fog was slowly wrapping around them, and their bodies were becoming more and more transparent, their life was being drained.

His eyes widened, his heart sinking. "Oh no," he whispered, his voice trembling. " Is he… stealing their souls?" Took a few step, doubting himself for a bit. 

'can i really handle this?' He was scared and wanted to run but the thought of seeing people get hurt made something inside of him drop, it reminded him of his own suffering and he did not like that.

He clenched his fists, anger boiling in his chest. 

He wanted to be a hero, and now it was his chance. He just needed a plan, he needed to go back inside, find Zombozo and beat him. He thought about all the missions he had done, the level up he got, the skills, the stats, he had to use them. "I am strong enough," he told himself.

He tried to formulate a plan, but he was still too overwhelmed with the situation. "I need to create a distraction, and then go for Zombozo," he thought, looking around to see what he could use. He saw some barrels near the caravan, they were old, filled with some kind of oil. He smirked. "This will do."

He slowly approached the barrels, being careful not to make any noise. He grabbed the first one, lifting it with ease and started walking towards the tent entrance. He stopped a few feet from the entrance, took a deep breath, and threw the barrel up in the air, towards the tent. The barrel hit the entrance, the top falling off and the oil spreading all over the place. He quickly jumped away from the place, running into the shadows again.

The sounds of panic and confusion echoed from the tent, the music quickly stopping. He could hear people yelling, the one that were not under Zombozo's influence yet.

"He must be pissed by now" he thought, deciding to stay hidden, for a few seconds. He needed to see what would happen next.

He took a step forward, ready to go back inside, but a voice stopped him.

"What do you think you're doing?"

He froze. The voice was sharp, female, and laced with a mocking edge. Slowly, he turned around, his heart racing.

There she was, stepping out of the shadows like something out of a nightmare. Her wild, snake-like hair writhed as though alive, her piercing eyes narrowed, and a twisted smile spread across her lips.

"Little hero thinks he's clever, huh?" she taunted, one hand on her hip. "Making a mess in our circus. Bad idea, kid."

He swallowed hard. "I… I'm just here to see the circus, and see zombozo," he said, trying to sound convincing, though his voice cracked slightly.

She laughed, a harsh, chilling sound. "Oh, sweetheart, you're not even gonna see Zombozo. You're stuck with me." She cracked her knuckles, her hair snapping like whips in anticipation.

His system interface flickered in his vision, analyzing her.

[ENEMY DETECTED] 

[LEVEL: ???] 

[REWARD: ???]

"Great," he muttered under his breath. "No level. No weaknesses. Just perfect."

She didn't give him time to think. With a flick of her head, her hair lashed out like snakes. He barely dodged the first strike, rolling to the side as the ground splintered where he'd just been.

"Fast!" She sneered. "Good. Let's see how long you can keep up."

She lunged forward, her hair striking in rapid succession. He dodged and weaved, the system feeding him suggestions. But even at Level 6, his movements felt sluggish compared to her relentless assault.

He ducked under one tendril and countered with a quick strike to her side. She barely flinched. Instead, she grabbed his wrist with one hand and yanked him forward, slamming her knee into his stomach.

"Ugh!" He gasped, the air knocked out of him. He staggered back, clutching his midsection.

"Aww, what's wrong? Thought you were strong enough?" She mocked, her voice dripping with venom.

He tried to focus. He took a deep breath, clenched his fists and charged, weaving through her attacks, more locked in then before until he arrived in front of her, clenched his teeth and punched with all his might. This time, it connected, forcing her back a few steps.

Her grin faltered, replaced by a scowl. "Okay, now you're just annoying."

Before he could capitalize, her hair shot forward, wrapping around his arms and legs. She lifted him off the ground effortlessly, dangling him like a puppet.

"Let's be real, kid," she said, her smile returning. "You're way outta your league. Zombozo's got big plans, and you're just a little fly buzzing around. Time to squash you."

She flung him across the clearing, and he crashed into a stack of barrels. Pain shot through his body as he struggled to get up. His system flickered again, warning him of low stamina.

"I… I can do this," he whispered, forcing himself to stand.

"Can you?" She teased, stalking toward him. "You're nothing, kid. Just another wannabe hero who's gonna get crushed under our boots. You should've stayed home."

Her hair lashed out again, and this time he couldn't dodge. It wrapped around his chest, slamming him into the ground. 

He cried out in pain, his vision blurring.

For a moment, he thought about giving up. Maybe she was right. He was only sixteen, just a kid with a system he barely understood. He'd gotten cocky, thinking he could handle this.

But then he remembered the faces of the people inside the tent, their vacant, soulless expressions. If he didn't stop this, no one would. He was never going to be one of those faces, they could not take his life away.

With a groan, he pushed himself up, glaring at her through the haze of pain. "I'm not… done yet."

She tilted her head, amused. "You've got guts, I'll give you that. But guts won't save you."

She moved to finish him off, her hair coiling like vipers ready to strike. He braced himself, his mind racing. He needed a plan, something clever, something desperate.

He was running out of options—and time.

He focused on his system screen, which was showing a bunch of notifications.

[HOST: NED] 

[LEVEL: 6] 

[HP: 20/60]

[SKILL: DASH – ALLOWS FOR SHORT BURSTS OF SPEED]

He blinked. "How could i have forgotten about that, haha, i need to pay more attention to my stats." 

He could see that she was preparing for the final attack, she wanted to end it quickly.

He activated the skill, his body feeling lighter for a moment. His muscles tensed, a strange sensation spread through his body and then he vanished just as hair lashed out.

"What-" He appeared in front of her and landed a strong uppercut that rattled her brain, making her weak in the knees. Not letting this chance pass by, he kicked her on the side of her head, shaking up her brain even more but he was still not done, he landed another kick to the other side for good measure.

Her body his the ground, limp. "Hah hah, phew, that was a close one." He back down, his legs hurting. 

[MISSION COMPLETE]

[REWARD: LIMIT BREAK]