Chapter 27: Betrayal of Memory
Deep within the Watchtower, in a restricted archive only accessible through special authorization, Ben sat alone before the Omnitrix's memory projection system. Gwen had helped him activate a hidden memory recovery function inside the device, hoping it might hold answers to the growing questions gnawing at his heart.
But what he saw… wasn't an answer.
It was betrayal.
A holographic image appeared before him—Azmuth, the brilliant scientist, speaking with a figure shrouded in dark mist. The words were distorted at first, but soon became horrifyingly clear:
> "The Kairus core might be the key… If we can contain it inside the Omnitrix, we may be able to stabilize the universes."
Then Azmuth's voice grew hesitant:
> "But if we fail, everything could collapse."
The other figure's face was obscured, but it shimmered with a crystalline glow—one Ben had come to know all too well.
Ben gasped and sank to the ground, as if stabbed in the chest. He muttered:
> "He agreed… Azmuth agreed to merge the Kairus core? And he knew what could happen?"
At that moment, Supergirl rushed in, sensing his emotional outburst. She found him pale, surrounded by the hovering images.
> "Ben? What happened?"
He pointed to the screen, his voice barely more than a whisper:
> "What happened to me… wasn't an accident. It was a choice. Azmuth's choice."
Then Ben stood abruptly. His body swayed as if the ground beneath him had vanished. He reached toward the Omnitrix on his wrist… and hesitated.
His fingers hovered over the dial, trembling.
> "I trusted him… I saw him as a symbol of good… of science."
He looked at Supergirl, his eyes brimming with tears.
> "But it turns out… everything I am was built on a lie."
Then he grabbed the Omnitrix tightly and screamed in raw, burning anguish:
> "Get out of me!!!"
He pressed down hard on the sides, and the green circuitry across his wrist flared with an unnatural red glow—the device resisted, as if it refused to let go.
A surge of power erupted from his arm, sending sparks flying. Ben cried out in a voice that tore through the silence:
> "AAAAAAAHHH!!"
He dropped to his knees, the floor beneath him cracking as the energy built up. Crystal strands peeled from his skin like torn wires, wrenching free.
Supergirl tried to reach him—but a shockwave of energy repelled her.
And with one final, violent motion, Ben ripped the Omnitrix from his wrist. It clattered to the floor, pulsing faintly—like the last beats of a dying heart.
Ben gasped for air, tears streaming down his face as he whispered:
> "I was just a vessel… and it was poison."
He stared at the Omnitrix lying on the ground, like someone mourning a grave.
> "It's over."
And he walked away, stumbling, while Supergirl remained where she was—watching him go with eyes full of heartbreak.
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