Ben 10: Justice Incarnate Chapter 33 (Early Preview) (Patreon)

Chapter 33: The Main Man Part 3

Elsewhere

Metropolis Streets

Lobo cracked his knuckles. "You ready for this, kitty-cat? Or are you just gonna purr and play dead?"

"Lemme tell ya somethin’, Lobo! Nobody, and I mean nobody, calls Rath a kitty-cat and gets away with it!" Rath's arm snapped forward in a punch, sending Lobo reeling back into a nearby light pole that crumpled. Rath bared his teeth. “Time to teach you how to hunt, ya muscle head!” He leaned closer, fists clenched.

"Who you callin' a musclehead, musclehead!"

“Lemme tell ya somethin’, Lobo. Nobody, and I mean nobody, tries to hunt Rath down without getting beat down!”

Growling, Lobo ripped the broken light pole out of the ground and swung it like a bat. It smashed into Rath, sending the tiger alien hurtling through the air. But Rath twisted mid-flight, correcting his position, and dove straight back toward Lobo.

Lobo jumped off a nearby ledge, catapulting himself into the air just as Rath charged back. He whistled, and his flying motorcycle roared to life, swooping in to catch him mid-air. Lobo revved the engine and tore through the sky, but he didn’t get far.

Rath leaped up and grabbed onto Lobo from behind, his claws digging into the back of the bike. “Hey, no riders!” Lobo barked, trying to shake him off, but Rath held on with feral determination.

Lobo struggled to maintain control, twisting the handlebars sharply to swerve and throw Rath off-balance. But Rath’s grip only tightened as he snarled, “Lemme tell ya somethin’, Lobo. Rath’s goin’ nowhere ‘til I’m done with you!”

Rath held on tightly as Lobo swerved his flying motorcycle back and forth through the Metropolis skyline, doing his best to shake the tiger alien off. But Rath swung himself forward, throwing a wild punch at Lobo.

Lobo’s head snapped back, blood trickling from his lip. “Oh, so that’s how it’s gonna be, huh?” Lobo grinned with excitement. He twisted the handlebars, sending the bike into a sharp spin.

Rath’s grip slipped for a moment, but he held on with his claws digging into the metal frame. “Lemme tell ya somethin’, Lobo!” Rath roared. “Nobody tosses me around like a frisbee and gets away with it!” He swung his other fist, catching Lobo in the ribs. The impact buckled Lobo’s torso. Rath landed another punch, and this time, Lobo lost his grip on the bike, tumbling off mid-air.

They plummeted, grappling with each other in a blur of fists, until they crashed into the pavement below, leaving a smoking crater in the middle of the street. People scattered, gasping and staring in shock, as the two aliens rose from the rubble, unfazed.

Lobo wiped the blood from his chin. “You’re a real piece of work, kitty cat, but I got nine lives to burn through!”

“Bring it on!” Rath crouched low and bared his claws. “I’m gonna pound you so hard, you’ll wish you were back in fraggin’ preschool!”

Lobo lunged and punched on the alien target.

Rath dodged the blows, but when he saw an opening, he struck, driving his knee into Lobo’s gut, doubling him over. Rath followed with a powerful uppercut, launching Lobo off his feet and crashing into a parked car. The vehicle crumpled under the impact, and alarms blared.

“Not bad, kitty!” Lobo wheezed, stumbling back to his feet. He cracked his neck, then grinned as he reached behind him to pull out a heavy chain and hook, swinging it in a dangerous arc. 

Rath’s eyes narrowed, a wild grin spreading across his face. With a ferocious roar, he charged again, dodging the swinging chain and landing a kick to Lobo’s side. Lobo snarled, whipping the chain around to try to entangle Rath, but the tiger alien caught it mid-air, using it to yank Lobo forward. 

Rath’s claws dug into the pavement, his tiger-like snarl echoing through the air. Wielding his massive crowbar, Lobo grinned wildly at the Appoplexian, clearly enjoying the fight. 

“Nebula Strike!” With a roar, Rath lunged forward, his clawed hand jabbing into Lobo’s midsection. Lobo staggered but retaliated by swinging his chain, which Rath ducked under before delivering a swift knee strike to Lobo’s ribs. “Meteor Knee!”

Lobo grunted, gripping his side. "Not bad, stripes. But let’s see how you handle this!" He charged forward, swinging his crowbar. 

Rath sidestepped and countered. “Cosmic Headbutt!” His forehead slammed brutally into Lobo’s face. The bounty hunter stumbled, his nose bleeding.

"That’s what ya get for messin’ with me!" Rath growled. “Galaxy Spin Kick!” His legs spun through the air and landed squarely on Lobo’s shoulder, forcing him to one knee.

Lobo roared in frustration, throwing his chain like a whip to snag Rath’s leg. He yanked hard, pulling Rath off-balance, but the tiger alien recovered mid-fall. “Comet Dropkick!” The attack sent Lobo flying into a parked car, crushing its roof.

"You’re gonna regret that, furball!" Lobo snarled, pulling himself up.

Rath climbed onto the car's hood with a feral leap, launching himself into the air with a Stellar Slam. His full weight slammed into Lobo, who barely caught himself on the car’s trunk. Without giving him a moment to recover. “Asteroid Dive!” The Headbutt from his jump sent both of them crashing through the windshield.

Lobo groaned, trying to shake off the hits, but Rath wasn’t done. "Supernova Slashes!" Rath bellowed, his claws slicing in a rapid series of strikes that left Lobo staggering backward, his jacket in tatters.

"Enough of this!" Lobo yelled, grabbing a lamppost and swinging it like a club. “Gravity Crush!” Rath ducked the first swing, then leaped over the second before slamming down with devastating kicks, each shaking the ground and pinning Lobo against the pavement.

Lobo coughed, laughing through the pain. "You hit hard, but the Main Man doesn’t go down that easy!" He reached for his bike’s remote, summoning it to his side. The engine roared as the bike sped toward him.

Rath growled, flexing his claws. "Come on, Lobo! I can do this all day!"

Nearby, Superman’s fight with Bedlam grew closer and closer to them as he dodged another blast from Bedlam’s twin laser pistols.

Superman suddenly changed tactics. He swooped to Lobo, grabbing the Czarnian by the shoulder and dragging him directly into Bedlam’s line of fire. The laser bolts slammed into Lobo instead with him.

Lobo barked out a laugh, despite the burns. "Nice try, blue boy. Gonna take more than that to keep me down!" He whistled sharply, and his bike returned. It swooped down just in time to catch Lobo as he leapt upward.

Rath crouched low, preparing to pounce. "Oh no, you don’t, ya fraggin’ geekwad! Get back here and let me put some claws into ya!"

Lobo spun in midair, sitting comfortably on his bike and blowing Rath a mocking kiss. "Sorry, pussycat! This dance is just getting started!" With that, his bike roared skyward, leaving Rath growling in frustration.

As Rath turned, ready to switch forms back to Astrodactyl to give chase, Superman flew past him in pursuit of Lobo. "Ark!" Superman called over his shoulder. "Go after Bedlam! His weapons are tailored to fight me, not you!"

Rath blinked, his feral grin returning. "You got it, big guy! Let me teach cowboy over there a thing or two!"

Bedlam landed heavily on the cracked pavement, his boots kicking up dust as his jetpack sputtered to a stop. The space-cowboy bounty hunter adjusted his wide-brimmed hat. Bedlam, draped in his tattered, cape with his laser pistols holstered.

Across from him, Rath growled low in his throat, claws flexing as his eyes locked onto Bedlam. But instead of charging as expected, the Appoplexian paused. With a flash of green light, his hulking tiger-like frame shifted, replaced by the armored, weapon-laden form. The Sotoraggian’s green and black power armor glinted, his nanomachines already shifting to form twin blaster pistols on his hips.

TenTen adjusted his stance, his four extra mechanical arms rising ominously behind him.

Bedlam’s sharp eyes tracked every movement, and a grin tugged at his lips beneath his mask.

The two faced each other locked in a tense standoff, the faint hum of energy weapons the only sound.

“Well,” Bedlam drawled, casually spinning one of his pistols on his finger. “Ain’t this a sight. Two gunslingers. Looks like we’re at a good ol’ fashioned showdown. Only thing missin’ is a tumbleweed, and we’b be just like the holovids.” Bedlam twirled his pistols before reholstering them. “You sure you’re up for this, partner?”

TenTen’s mechanical limbs shifted slightly, weapons gleaming in the fading sunlight. His voice came through the modulated helmet, calm but menacing. “You talk a lot for someone who’s about to get their tin can shot full of holes.”

Bedlam chuckled, tipping his hat slightly. “Big words from a tin can yourself. Let’s see who draws faster.”

The silence stretched thin, a bead of sweat rolling down the side of Bedlam’s face. TenTen’s armored fingers twitched, his visor narrowing.

For a moment, time seemed to freeze.

The Next Block Over

A black sedan screeched to a halt just as Lois Lane stared at the fighting going on. “Stop here, driver. There they are. I don’t believe it.”

Lois saw Superman and Lobo locked in mid-air, grappling as they veered toward the more buildings. Lobo's bike revved, propelling the two straight for LexCorp.

Lex Corp

Inside, Lex Luthor paced around his opulent office, dressed in a fine suit, addressing a video call. “Believe me, Mr. President,” he said smoothly, “you have my word that my new weapon system will—"

The high-pitched whine of Lobo's bike and the shattering crash of glass cut Luthor’s words short. He spun around just in time to see his window shatter. Superman and Lobo crashed through punching their way up through the building.

“What the devil?” Luthor muttered.

With a kick, Lobo finally forced Superman off, sending him crashing out of the building’s rooftop.

Luthor found himself in the middle of his ruined office, fuming with anger. "Superman!"

Ouitside

Lobo turned, and his bike unleashed a missile aimed directly at Superman. Superman dodged to the side, but his gaze immediately tracked the missile’s deadly trajectory—it was heading straight for a packed monorail. In a blur, he took off after it, the force of his flight sending gusts through the nearby streets.

Inside the monorail, passengers caught sight of the fast-approaching projectile and began to scream in terror, bracing for impact. Superman pushed himself harder as he closed the distance in the last moments. With a final burst of speed, Superman intercepted it just before it struck the monorail, angling it upward. In seconds, the missile detonated high in the sky, and Superman absorbed the brunt of the blast.

When the smoke cleared, he was falling, his cape fluttering like a torn flag as he plummeted toward the ground.

“Look out!” a citizen shouted, as others scattered below. Superman hit the pavement with a heavy crash, leaving a crater beneath him. Dazed and grimacing in pain, he forced himself to try and stand.

“Superman?” a nearby citizen whispered, watching as he struggled to lift himself.

The rumbling of Lobo’s bike grew louder as he descended, parking near the crater. He swung his leg off the bike and strolled over to where Superman lay. Despite the impact, Superman pushed against the ground, trying to stand, but Lobo pressed a heavy boot to his chest, forcing him back down.

“Dang, man,” Lobo said with a grin, “I gotta say, I am impressed. When I saw you go after that rocket, I couldn’t figure out what you were doin’.” Lobo tapped his forehead, pretending to be deep in thought. “Then it hit me. You didn’t want no one else gettin’ hurt—even if it meant you took the fragging yourself. You actually care about these geeks.” He gestured to the nervous, watching citizens.

Superman clenched his teeth, lifting his head despite Lobo’s foot pressing down. “They’re human beings.”

Lobo sneered, pressing down harder, pinning Superman against the concrete. “Yeah, well, they’re gonna have to make do without their big blue babysitter from now on.” He reached into his bike's storage and pulled out a massive, grimy crowbar, its metal gleaming under the city lights. He grinned, walking back toward Superman.

“See, someone’s payin’ me a heap of cash for your carcass, and the Main Man always delivers.” Lobo raised the crowbar high. “Now, the more you move, the worse it’ll hurt. So feel free to go crazy.”

Superman took a deep breath, his eyes flashing with renewed resolve, even as he lay pinned beneath Lobo’s grip, knowing he’d have to fight through every bit of pain to protect those around him.

Suddenly, Lobo felt something light tap his back. He frowned, turning around to see Lois Lane, her eyes blazing, gripping a metal pipe.

“Excuse me?” he drawled, raising a brow.

“Leave him alone. Go on, get out of here!” Lois demanded, brandishing the pipe defiantly.

Lobo rubbed his chin with a smirk. “Well, well… hello, little lady.” He licked his lips, his grin growing wider with interest.

“Lois, stay back!” Superman warned, still struggling to his feet.

Lobo kicked Superman hard in the face, sending him crashing down again. “Pipe down, junior.”

Turning back to Lois, he started walking closer, each step making her grip the pipe tighter. “Lois, huh? Guess that means you know this loser, right, honey buns? What are ya, his girlfriend or something?”

Lois’s face twisted in disgust, and she swung the pipe again, striking his shoulder with all her strength. “Drop dead!”

Unfazed, Lobo grabbed the pipe, yanked it from her hands, and tossed her back. Before she could scramble away, he casually took a big bite of the pipe, chewing with relish, then tossed the rest into his mouth, licking his fingers as if savoring a snack.

“Of course, any babe with real class would rather be hangin’ with the Main Man,” he leered, lowering himself to meet her eye level. “Why don’t you show ol’ Lobo just how classy you are?”

“You pig!” Lois spat, slapping him across the face. She gasped, wincing as pain shot through her hand from the impact.

Lobo laughed, unbothered, and rubbed his cheek. “Ah, I like a babe who plays rough. C’mon, lemme have another. Right here.” He tapped his chin with a smirk. “Right—"

Before he could finish, Superman surged up, throwing a punch that sent Lobo flying into the air.

Lobo spun through the air, shouting back, “You dirty friggin’, back-fraggin’, son of a—”

Lex Corp

Lex Luthor observed the wreckage around him, hands clasped tightly behind his back. “Get maintenance teams on every floor,” he ordered to an assistant. “Put them on round-the-clock shifts if you have to, but I want all repairs completed—"

Suddenly, the ceiling exploded as Lobo crashed through the floor above. “KILL, MAIN, FRAG, DESTROY!”

Debris rained around him. “Immediately!”

With Superman

Superman and Lois clung to each other, both checking for any injuries in the other’s face, eyes locked with concern.

“Are you all right?” they asked in unison.

Lois managed a small smile. “I’m fine.”

Superman gave a reassuring nod, stepping back. “Gotta go.”

Lois watched him as he prepared to take off. “Give him one for me.”

Superman took flight toward where Lobo landed.

Lois raised her voice one last time. “MAKE IT A DOZEN!”

The Docks

Lobo groaned as he came to, lying face-up on a wooden dock splintered from the impact. He shook his head, still a bit dizzy. “Last call? Already?” he muttered, blinking as his vision cleared.

Then he saw Superman, rocketing down toward him.

“Uh oh,” Lobo mumbled, scrambling to his feet.

Superman was faster, tackling him. The force sent them both crashing through the wooden floor boards. Lobo barely had time to react before Superman lifted him high into the air.

“Get up,” Superman lifted Lobo higher. “I said, get up.”

Lobo chuckled. “You ain't half the boy scout you're cracked up to be. Looks like I'm in for a real fight.” He smirked and let out a whistle.

A second later, his bike slammed into Superman, knocking him back and sending him crashing into a wall. Lobo dropped back to the dock, dusting himself off.

“Think I’ll take five until I’m ready to resume kicking the collective butts of you and everyone else on this dung heap,” Lobo did a mock salute to Superman. “Ciao!” He jumped on his bike and zoomed back to space.

With TenTen and Bedlam

…

…

…

The silence stretched like the moments before a lightning strike. TenTen and Bedlam, stood poised, their weapons ready, their gazes locked.

Then, as if by an unspoken signal, both moved.

'DRAW!'

In a flash, their weapons roared to life. Blazing red bolts of energy streaked toward TenTen, the first grazing his shoulder armor, leaving a smoking groove. Simultaneously, TenTen’s retaliatory blast seared past Bedlam, who ducked and rolled, his cape trailing smoke where it had been singed.

TenTen’s extra arms came alive, whirling into action. One launched a barrage of laser blasts while another hurled an electric disc that bounced off the pavement in a spray of sparks, forcing Bedlam into the air. His jetpack lifted him up as he rained down gunfire. TenTen deployed an energy shield, deflecting the shots while his mounted laser gun returned fire.

Bedlam swooped and spun through the air, his pistols blazing. He threw an explosive charge, detonating near TenTen, who countered by unleashing a salvo of rockets from his jetpack. The rockets forced Bedlam to dodge.

"You’re not bad," Bedlam admitted as he twisted to avoid a plasma burst, his voice laced with begrudging respect. "But you’re still outta your league."

Behind his helmet, TenTen smirked. “We’ll see about that.”

As Bedlam darted to the side, his lasso crackled with electrified energy, snapping toward TenTen like a lightning bolt. With a swift motion, TenTen’s buzz saw arm intercepted the lasso, cutting it in two with a sharp crackle of energy. Bedlam scowled but didn’t falter, his twin pistols firing another volley. TenTen retaliated with his grenade launcher, the explosive payload forcing Bedlam to swerve sharply as a shockwave rattled the ground.

The two combatants circled each other. Bedlam’s jetpack allowed him to dive and weave, while TenTen’s mechanical arms constantly shifted to deploy new weapons. Energy discs ricocheted around Bedlam, one narrowly grazing his arm, while TenTen took another barrage of laser fire with his reinforced armor.

Bedlam landed hard as he aimed for another shot. “You’ve got some fancy tricks,” he admitted. “But fancy don’t win fights.”

“Neither does running your mouth,” TenTen shot back. With a quick movement, one of his arms launched a sonic wave, briefly disrupting Bedlam’s flight path. Another arm fired a rapid burst of energy bolts, forcing Bedlam to dive for cover.

TenTen activated his jetpack and closed the distance. Bedlam fired point-blank at TenTen’s chest, but his armor absorbed the brunt of the attack. TenTen’s arms shot forward, one grabbing Bedlam’s pistol and crushing it while another snatched his cape, yanking him down to the ground with a resounding thud.

Bedlam tried to reach for another weapon, but TenTen’s mechanical limbs pinned him down. A metal pike extended from one arm, aiming squarely at Bedlam’s face.

“Game over.”

Bedlam struggled before sighing. “Alright, you got me. Don’t mean you’ll keep me.”

TenTen’s extra arms bound Bedlam with energy restraints, ensuring he couldn’t escape. He pressed a button on his wrist, opening a comm channel. “Superman, Bedlam’s detained. Sending you my coordinates.”

As Bedlam glared at his captor, TenTen smirked. “Fancy enough for you?”