Ben 10: Carnitrix Without Downsides?

Chapter 6: 06: Dr. Animo Felt Fear



The next morning, as dawn broke, Grandpa Max was already up and behind the wheel. As with most older folks, he was a light sleeper and woke early.

By the time Zack and the others woke up, the Rustbucket had already driven into Washington.

"You guys go wash up," Max said with a smile, listening to the car radio. "I heard there's a new supermarket in Washington that has everything. Let's go stock up on some daily supplies."

"Alright!"

Everyone responded in unison.

A few minutes later, the Rustbucket came to a stop in front of a large supermarket.

Max, Zack, and the rest climbed out and entered the store. It was packed with people and full of lively energy.

"I'm gonna go grab some food. You kids go pick out whatever you want."

Max then turned and casually wandered off… straight toward the pet and plant section!!

He didn't even glance in the direction of the food aisles.

"Ben, Gwen—let's have a look around."

Zack naturally took the lead, walking ahead as the three of them began browsing the supermarket.

As they passed one particular shelf, Ben suddenly froze in place, eyes locked on a familiar display.

"These potato chips might have Sumo Slammer cards inside!"

The shelf was packed with bags of chips—each one printed with identical sumo wrestler designs.

These were limited-edition potato chips tied to the Sumo Slammers series—specially marketed to kids!

Sumo Slammers was the hottest IP in the world right now. Owning a rare gold foil card from the set would instantly make you the envy of every boy in school.

Just like in the original show, Ben immediately went full fanboy mode, ripping open bag after bag of chips, hunting for a Sumo Slammer card. Gwen reluctantly followed, trying to keep him in check.

Meanwhile, Zack stood with his hands in his pockets, casually pacing near the supermarket entrance like a security guard on patrol.

Heh… Dr. Animo, you better show up soon and help me grind some progress for this Carnitrix template.

Bang! Bang!

Suddenly, strange booming noises echoed through the store. The ground even trembled slightly beneath their feet.

Zack looped back toward the entrance but didn't see Dr. Animo anywhere. To play it safe, he slipped into a nearby blind spot to observe unnoticed.

"Come on, Animo… where are you hiding?"

His eyes scanned sharply across the aisles and exits.

BOOM!!

With a thunderous crash, one side of the wall exploded inward.

A massive creature burst into the supermarket—easily heavier than a hippopotamus, barreling forward like a living tank!

But its appearance…

It was just a giant green North American bullfrog—super-sized and lumbering!

Riding on the bullfrog's back was an old man with wild, unkempt hair that looked like it had never seen a comb. He wore a strange horned helmet and pushed up a pair of orange-tinted goggles.

"What I want… is right here!" he declared with a sinister grin.

"Aaaahhh!!"

"Help! It's a giant genetically modified bullfrog!"

The supermarket erupted into chaos as panicked shoppers screamed, abandoned their carts, and ran for their lives. Some were too terrified to even scream—frozen in place by sheer fear.

"There he is…" Zack slowly rose from his hiding spot, eyes locked onto Dr. Animo, standing not far away. "Target acquired."

He raised the Carnitrix on his wrist, quickly selecting an alien and tapping the core.

A streak of blood-red light shot straight up into the ceiling. Within that glow, a terrifying figure began to materialize.

"UGHHH AHHH!!"

"Another one?! It's right here!!"

"That one's even more terrifying than the first!!"

The people who had been fleeing toward Zack's direction immediately skidded to a halt, many collapsing to the floor in sheer panic.

Some people were so terrified, they even fell to their knees in front of Zack!

Whoosh...

A tall, bandage-wrapped creature slowly raised its head.

A blood-red crown was embedded into its forehead, and glowing crimson eyes peered out from between the wrappings.

[Image]

This was the Mummy—one of the Carnitrix's terrifying alien forms.

"W-What is that thing?! Is that… is that a real mummy?!"

Dr. Animo, still seated atop the enormous bullfrog, stared at the figure in disbelief.

Though surprised, he wasn't terrified like the others. In fact, he looked… thrilled.

"A mere mummy? Bullfrog—crush him!"

"Croooaak!!"

The giant bullfrog couldn't clearly detect motionless targets, but under Animo's command, its lightning-fast tongue lashed forward, aiming straight for Zack!

"Kekeke~~"

Zack let out a low, chilling laugh.

Whoosh!

The bandages covering Zack's body suddenly unraveled—whipping outward like a nest of writhing tentacles, they snapped around the bullfrog's tongue, locking it in place!

The giant bullfrog froze in shock.

It jerked its head wildly, trying to yank its tongue back—but it couldn't move it an inch.

Its massive form trembled in panic.

Even Dr. Animo fell silent, no longer barking commands.

"Th-This… this is—"

Animo's eyes quivered violently, his voice stuttering uncontrollably.His gaze toward Zack shifted from intrigue to raw terror.

Because—As the last of Zack's bandages unwrapped… What was revealed beneath… was a figure soaked in blood.

What did it look like?

Like a skinned humanoid creature!!

Those bandages… Weren't just wrappings.They were his skin.

"What kind of monster is this?!"

Zack's glowing blood-red eyes locked onto Animo's.

In that instant, Animo's aging heart lurched in fear.

He let out a strangled gasp—And fell off the giant bullfrog in complete panic.

As for the nearby civilians—

The moment they got a look at Zack's true form, their eyes rolled back, bodies twitching—

They fainted on the spot.

What is a monster?

Zack was the definition of one.

"Croak! Croak! Croak!!"

With no one left to give it commands, the giant bullfrog began running wild—slamming into shelves, knocking over displays, even accidentally injuring a few fleeing shoppers in the chaos.

"Kehehe~~ Can't let you run loose anymore." Zack narrowed his terrifying blood-red eyes."Time to end this—hard and fast."

In the next instant, the bandages still wrapped around the bullfrog's tongue suddenly loosened, sending the massive creature stumbling forward and crashing to the ground.

Before it could recover—

Bang! Bang! Bang!

Zack's limbs snapped outward, launching a barrage of bandages from every direction. They coiled around the bullfrog's legs, body, and torso, locking it down like a prisoner under siege.

At first, the bullfrog struggled fiercely, thrashing to rip apart the seemingly fragile bindings.

But as more and more of Zack's bandages unraveled and latched onto it—The bullfrog's movements grew slower… weaker…

Until it finally stopped moving altogether, wrapped tight like a fly in a spider's web.

Mummy's Binding — Finishing Move!

"Sleep tight!"

Zack's blood-soaked face twisted into a grim expression as the bandages across his body tightened all at once—violently constricting the giant bullfrog.

With a heavy thud, the bullfrog's limbs went limp, and it collapsed to the ground in defeat.

"Phew… done."

Zack let out a breath, then turned to the crowd with what he assumed was a kind, reassuring smile. "Everyone okay? Huh… why's everyone unconscious? Was the bullfrog that scary?"

"Well, Zack—uh, I mean, Sir Mummy…" Ben spoke up from nearby, voice trembling. "Next time before you ask that… maybe check a mirror first."

Not far away, Ben stood frozen, visibly shaking and not daring to make eye contact with Zack.

Gwen had her back turned to him, eyes shut tightly, as if in deep existential reflection.

Ding! Host has defeated the giant bullfrog. Dr. Animo forfeited all resistance due to overwhelming fear and fled the battlefield — progress +1!

Holy crap—Animo actually ran off?!

Zack quickly looked around—and sure enough, Dr. Animo was gone.

Template progress: 5 / 100.

You've reached a critical threshold. Carnitrix permissions unlocked…KILLER MODE.

Zack blinked and slowly muttered, "...Killer Mode?"

That sounded… incredibly violent. And more than a little terrifying.


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