> "Before you rewrite life, you must prove you can protect it.
Your choices will be tested. Not in the real world… but in the realm of consequence."
— Omnitrix Intelligence Core
---
Location: Omnitrix Interface Core — Unknown Dimension
Ben had only just accepted the Glivarus Directive when the Omnitrix activated without warning. His vision dimmed. His senses were torn away from the physical world, leaving behind his body in a frozen stasis.
He opened his eyes… somewhere else.
He was standing in the middle of a colossal black-and-green arena, surrounded by ever-shifting terrain. Lava lakes. Frozen wastelands. Jungle ambush sites. Space station corridors. All cycling rapidly like glitching memories.
A deep voice echoed in his mind:
> "Welcome, Ben Tennyson. This is the Virtual Combat Realm.
Simulation Thread: 001 – Morality, Tactics, Consequence."
Ben instinctively tried to activate an alien.
But the Omnitrix dial didn't offer him a choice.
Instead, it spun itself and chose: Four Arms.
Ben's body morphed violently — and before he could even get his bearings, the simulation began.
---
Round One: Echo of the Past
Out of the shifting fog walked... Vilgax.
But not the one Ben had fought before. This Vilgax was faster. Sharper. His body seemed enhanced with tech that didn't exist yet. The simulated battlefield was a crashed Galvanic battle station, filled with ruined drone husks and collapsing plasma conduits.
Ben lunged forward — Four Arms crashing fists like thunder — but Vilgax was smarter than expected. He countered each attack with surgical precision.
And when Ben tried to overpower him, Vilgax whispered:
> "Brute force is a child's answer. You're not ready to uplift anything."
Ben growled and smashed a power conduit, using the explosion to blind his opponent — then used the debris as cover to strike from above.
Critical hit.
Vilgax dissolved into code.
> "Round one: Pass. Tactic Score: 76%. Emotional Control: Incomplete."
Ben gritted his teeth.
> "This place is judging me."
---
Round Two: The Consequence Mirror
This time, the terrain shifted to a ruined Earth city. The sky was red. Ash filled the air.
Out of the rubble walked… Gwen.
But not his cousin as he knew her. This Gwen wore armor. Her eyes glowed violet. Her expression was cold. And on her belt… was her own Omnitrix.
> "You didn't stop the Protocol, Ben," she said. "You escalated it. You created me."
She launched a force bolt — faster than anything he'd ever faced. It knocked him through a digital building.
Ben morphed again — this time, the Watch chose Upgrade.
He fused with the crumbling city itself, creating a mechanized counter-force to hold her off.
But this battle wasn't about winning.
It was about the price of his ambition.
> "Ascension changes minds," Gwen warned. "Do you even know if you'll still be you in ten years?"
Ben froze.
And in that moment, she struck again — hard enough to "kill" his Upgrade form.
He awoke in the arena, panting, human again.
> "Round Two: Fail. Emotional Compromise Detected. Reassessment Required."
---
Round Three: The Future Self
The final challenge was silent.
The arena shifted into a lush, balanced utopia — hybrid cities, alien fauna, peace.
A world he had built.
And standing in the center was another Ben.
Older. Calm. Wearing a robe woven with circuitry and a crown-like interface across his head. His Omnitrix glowed white, no longer green.
He didn't attack.
He simply asked:
> "What are you fighting for, really? Evolution? Justice? Control?"
Ben stepped forward. "To stop people like Vilgax. Like Kevin."
The elder Ben shook his head. "Those are short-term answers. What happens when you become the threat?"
Ben clenched his fists. "Then someone will stop me."
His older self nodded… and vanished.
> "Final Round: Passed.
Sufficient Tactical Insight.
Ethical Trajectory: Unstable but within acceptable thresholds."
A glowing green gate formed before Ben.
> "Exit unlocked. Proceed to Directive Execution."
---
Back in the Physical World
Ben gasped awake, collapsing to his knees. Gwen rushed to his side. Max held his shoulder.
"You've been still for hours," Gwen said. "We couldn't wake you."
Ben looked at the Omnitrix. It now had a new glowing node, pulsing with quiet power.
> "Omniscend Protocol: Directive Level 1 Complete.
Field Access to Ascension Options… unlocked."
Max stepped back. "So… you passed?"
Ben didn't smile.
"No. I survived."
---
Final Scene – Preparing for Glivarus
Ben turned toward the distant stars.
The Virtual Combat Realm had shown him more than enemies.
It had shown him the future.
Now… he had to make sure it didn't come true.
> "Next stop," he whispered, "Glivarus."