Ben 10: Radiant War.

The Killer

The Alarm rang. 

The first sound he didn't want to hear, and yet he knew for a fact that it was only there because he set it to go off at this particular time. 

Blindly.. he reached out his arm from under the warm covers, willing his eyes to stay shut as he attempted to smack the top of the source of his pain, to grant him the sweet reprieve of five more minutes. 

Was it... here? No..

Here..?

Nah..

Wait. 

Ben sighed with relief as his hand felt the sweet button on top of that digital clock and pressed it.  The alarm stopped.

But just as Ben was about to drift off again, another alarm assaulted his senses with its hailstorm of beeps. 

Ben moaned. He forgot he also turned on his phone's alarm just in case he pulled a stunt like this. Once again.. he was his own worst enemy.

Ben sat up on the futon mattress, his bleary eyes taking in the sunlight streaming through his window from the massive yard outside. 

As always, his bedroom was mostly big and empty except for a few video game posters, a bamboo wooden floor, and his own house slippers. 

He still wondered frequently how on Earth he got such a massive home to begin with. His friend Tay sometimes gave him grief about having such a massive yard and not even bothering to get a dog or other pet of some sort. 

But for some reason Ben always felt his home was borrowed, as if he should not get unnecessary things that would dirty up the place before the next person used it.  Which was very weird. As far as he remembered, which wasn't much, his family had left him this home after they died.

Who was his family? Well everyone who knew him seemed to know more than him anyways. 

There was a large knock on the door. "BANG BANG BANG!"

"Ben wake your butt up already!! You need to get to school at some point in your life!!"

Ben sighed and smiled slightly. "Just let me get dressed Mika, please. Yeesh you're loud."

"Well if I'm not loud you'll sleep for another dozen years!" said the muffled girl's voice behind the screen door.

Ben sighed. Mika turned up so often it was almost like she lived here now. Not that he complained much. She always cooked when she was around and her food was top notch. But it kind of bugged Ben how she requested nothing in return other than just hanging at his place and maybe watching TV or playing some video games. 

Every time Ben suggested he come to her place and cook her something, she'd always go silent and nervous and say something like "Now's not a good time." or "My family really isn't at that point where we can have visitors or something."

Ben opened his closet and pulled out his black shirt and green hoodie before pulling on some dark green pants, some sneakers and running his fingers through his hair in front of his one wall mirror.

Ben shrugged as he glared at the brown haired boy with green eyes gazing drowsily back at him. 

"Heyo mystery man." Ben grunted. "What's shaking? Don't suppose I remember anything today right?"

His reflection offered no other response than copying his every movement.

"Yeah, thought so." Ben said, shoving the screen door open and walking out into the hallway of the Japanese styled home.