Soon, the hazy sand-filled mist slowly began to clear.
Under the dim, sinister curtain of rain, a tall, powerfully built wolf stood upright on two legs. Its violet eyes burned with savage ferocity as it stared fixedly at Ben.
"Uh... does anybody want to ask that thing if it brought an umbrella...?" Ben froze where he stood.
"Benwolf!" Lucian's eyes sharpened, and he was just about to transform.
But the werewolf creature didn't attack Ben. Instead, it suddenly leaped into the air.
With astonishing jumping power, it shot straight toward the satellite signal tower, stretched out its sharp claws, and ripped off the "dish lid," the signal receiver.
A strange flash of lightning lit up the sky, illuminating the werewolf's vicious face. Those sharp fangs were enough to send chills down anyone's spine.
Crack!
Another bolt of lightning flashed, but Benwolf had already disappeared.
Leaving everyone present stunned...
...
A short while later.
The middle-aged man, Wes, led the group to the town museum.
"I never thought I'd live to see it," Wes said, still shaken, staring at the mural in front of him.
The mural depicted a massive Benwolf surrounded by several humans, apparently carrying out some kind of ritual.
"Who is it?" Grandpa Max asked.
"Yenaldooshi, the Nahewo tribe's Benwolf." Kai stepped forward, her voice clear and pleasant. "I thought it was just a legendary beast. I never expected it to really exist."
"And its appearance is an extremely dangerous omen." Wes looked grave as he took out a hunting rifle. "I'm going to capture it and lock it up. We can't let it run wild."
"I'm going too," Kai said quickly. She was worried about her grandfather.
Wes refused on the spot. "No. According to tribal rules, only warriors are allowed to take part in battle."
"Hey, I'm going too!" Ben felt that with the Omnitrix, he wasn't just a warrior. He was a hero.
"No. Children can't take part, especially not against Yenaldooshi. It's too dangerous." Wes refused him as well. Even if Ben was his friend's grandson, he wasn't going to make an exception.
"Ben, behave." Grandpa gave him a look.
"Oh, man." Ben hung his head in disappointment.
"Lucian, stay here and keep an eye on Ben and the others. Don't let them run around," Grandpa instructed.
"Okay."
Before long, Grandpa Max and Wes took their weapons and headed into the dark mountains to hunt Benwolf.
That left only Lucian, Ben, Gwen, and Kai in the museum.
After being turned down by Wes, Kai was clearly upset. She hugged her knees and leaned against the wall.
Seeing that, Ben couldn't help feeling a little sorry for her.
"Kai looks really sad. Maybe I can cheer her up!" Ben suddenly felt confident again.
Gwen shot her cousin a suspicious look. "Since when did you start caring about girls'... feelings?"
"Unless you like her."
Ben's face instantly turned bright red. "What? Gwen, don't talk nonsense!"
"Sure, sure. You totally super like her." Gwen grinned slyly.
"I do not!"
"Ben's got a crush, Ben's got a crush..." Gwen sang mischievously.
It even rhymed pretty well.
Ben glanced around, then lowered his voice. "I'm going to help Grandpa in a bit. Since you and Kai are staying in the village, say a few nice things about me."
"Like what?"
"Like how cool I am, or how lucky you are to have a Cuz like me..." Ben said with a grin.
"So basically, you want me to tell a huge lie?" Gwen said, speechless.
"You already said it, thanks." Ben grinned even wider.
Before leaving, he snuck one more glance at Kai in the corner.
"Gwen, protect the other people in the village. Call me if anything happens." Lucian's expression stayed calm.
He was taking Ben to help Grandpa capture Benwolf.
Otherwise, with only Grandpa and Wes, there was a good chance they'd be killed by the creature.
Lucian vaguely remembered that this Benwolf wasn't some Yenaldooshi at all.
It was an alien Benwolf.
If he remembered correctly, it should be a Loboan from Luna Lobo in the Anur Star System.
According to Wes, Yenaldooshi was only a mutated beast native to Earth. It wasn't even in the same league as a Loboan.
The "Benwolf" Lucian had obtained earlier was a Loboan.
Not only was it incredibly strong, it could also unleash powerful ultrasonic waves from its mouth. Its combat ability was terrifying.
If a single hunting rifle could subdue a Loboan, then humanity would have conquered the universe long ago.
...
Tonight was the night of a full moon.
According to folklore, whenever the moon was full, a werewolf's power would peak, turning it savage, bloodthirsty, and ready to kill anyone it saw.
Lucian transformed into XLR8 Star, carrying Ben in one hand. Just before catching up to Grandpa and the others, he immediately changed back to normal.
Grandpa Max didn't mind their arrival. With them there, dealing with Benwolf would be much easier.
Wes wasn't especially pleased, but he didn't show it.
They were already deep in the mountains. Sending them back now would probably be even more dangerous. At this point, the only choice was to keep moving together.
Grandpa Max glanced sideways at Wes, who was carrying a hunting rifle, and smiled. "This reminds me of the time we climbed the Himalayas together to hunt the Yeti."
"Uncle Wes is a plumber too?" Ben asked curiously.
Wes nodded. "I used to be."
As he spoke, he picked up a tuft of wolf fur from the ground and pointed toward the mountain ahead. "Judging by the tracks, Benwolf should be over there."
"Yeah, we need to be careful." Lucian nodded and started forward.
...
Back in the village.
Gwen and Kai sat on a balcony, looking up at the bright full moon in the sky.
"Kai, what do you think of my cousin?" Gwen suddenly asked.
Kai froze for a moment, clearly not expecting the question. But she quickly recovered and smiled. "Him? He's... okay."
"Okay?" Gwen put on an exaggerated expression. "You mean on the doofus scale, where ten is peak stupidity, he gets a nine?"
Faced with such an abstract comparison, Kai let out an awkward laugh, not knowing how to answer for a moment.
"Then what do you think of my Cuz?" Gwen asked again.
"Well, he's tall, and he's really handsome..." A faint blush appeared on Kai's cheeks. After a pause, she asked softly, "Does he... have a girlfriend?"
Gwen ground her teeth inwardly. Wow. You never know until you ask, and once you do, it's a real shock.
This lovestruck Kai actually dared to secretly covet her cousin. Absolutely unforgivable.
Let's see how I deal with her!!
"Heh, sorry, but my cousin already has a girlfriend, and she's way prettier than you." Gwen lifted her chin, as if she herself were that girlfriend.
"Really?"
"Of course it's true. They even have a kid!" Gwen pouted, not sure whether Big Chill's baby counted.
"I don't believe you." Kai shook her head. "He looks so young. How could he already have a child?"
"You're definitely lying to me. Lucian doesn't have a girlfriend at all."
"Oh, you don't believe me? Want to see a photo?" Gwen took out her phone.
"Sure. Let's see it. Who's scared of who?" Kai refused to back down.
Gwen gave a light snort, opened a picture, and held it in front of Kai.
Kai's delicate body trembled, and her eyes locked onto the screen. "What a beautiful girl..."