Aliens For Justice; Book 1: Ben 10 Returns

Ben felt a lump on his throat. It was hard to breathe in the dark, cold, wet space he was in. He squirmed, trying to find a way out as he struggled to breathe—his heartbeat, rapid and blocking out any other sound from entering his ears.

Ben Tennyson gasped as he sat up, clutching his chest. He could still recall the last moments of his battle with Enchantress, and how he had almost been trapped underneath the ground. She was one darn powerful sorceress.

How he had gotten out of that trap, he didn't even remember.

"Ack, I can still feel the sand in my throat!" said Ben, coughing up some spittle. He placed his legs on the floor, taking in the room he was in for the first time.

There was an odd familiarity about the room. It looked exactly like his room back in his parents' home in Bellwood.

He was in bed, gazing at the closed window shutters, lights off like he used to like.

The wallpapers of Sumo Slammers in the partly messy room, with a white desktop computer and a television set connected to a console, brought back memories.

If this was a trick, if Amanda Waller had somehow caught him and was messing with his head again, Ben would be livid.

He was ready for any crazy tricks that he would see. But after a long while of glaring around, nothing happened.

Confused, the green eyed Omnitrix wielder got off the bed and left his room. There was no one at home. He checked all the rooms just to make sure.

Ben furrowed his eyes, stepping out into the streets. The sight he saw almost made him stiffen. There was a girl in his front yard, using a pair of shears to trim a particular plant with all the care in the world.

He couldn't see her face. Even her head was covered in a kind of scarf.

What actually grabbed his attention was her familiar slender figure and the clothes she wore—a pink sweater and white miniskirt, with white sneakers.

There was only one girl that came to mind, at the sight of those clothes. The same girl he had fallen in love with...whom he had loved with his whole heart, despite being so young at the time.

"J-Julie?" Ben voiced out weakly. "Is that really you?"

The girl suddenly stiffened in her movement, dropping the shears. Ben slowly moved closer to her, before embracing her from behind in a big hug.

"I've missed you so much, Jules!" exclaimed Ben. "I can't believe you're alive—after what happened."

"Get your hands off me!" said the girl, sounding exactly like Julie—almost. But something was off—there was no emotion to her speaking. She sounded inhumane—synthetic, like a prototype android.

Before Ben could react, the girl wriggled out of his grasp and ran out of the yard, down the neighborhood.

"Julie!" Ben called after her, quick to be on her heels.