Benjamin Grimm

Ben looks out at the sun as it sets behind the skyline of Manhattan and tries not to think about tomorrow or the day he's just had. Tomorrow he and the whole bunch are heading into the N-zone, the dimension that caused all this craziness in the first place. Will he come out worse than he already is? Or will he come out human again?

As for today…he shakes his head and can't help remembering the cry of panic as that gal's "death corset" went haywire, attacked Susan and before he knew it he threw himself between it and her. It was silly really. It's not like Susan couldn't have saved herself but he had reacted on instinct. That really wasn't what bothered him though. What bothered him...still bothers him is the sense of relief he had felt when he thought he was going to die.

As the sun finally sets Ben turns and mumbles, "Ellen, I just don't see how you find the strength." He doesn't even acknowlegde how weird it is to talk to someone from a different reality who isn't even there.

"This, God help me," Reed says to Mission Control the next day as the all wait within the recommissioned Space Shuttle, "is Awesome to the firing room. We're ready to go."

"All boards on green, Awesome. On your mark."

"Activate the gate."

Sue checks her instruments as the N-zone generators fire up. "Gate is lit, ten seconds to full power. Eight. Everything's green. Superposition codes loaded into the back gate firmware. Four. Three."

"Firing room to Awesome: you are go for launch."

"Launch commit." Reed replies. "Main engine start."

Ben takes a steadying breath as he feels the thrust of the shuttle and the crimson gate to the N-zone fills their viewports.

"WOOOOOO HOOOOOO." Reed calls out as they transition from one reality to another.

Six hours of sitting stationary in the N-zone later…

"I wanna go outside." Ben says finally having enough of Reed and Susan's science chatter. The zero gravity was fun but spending time in close quarters with those two was like going to Hell and finding out it was school 24/7. "I got the suit, right? We ain't moving, so I ain't gonna get left behind. So I wanna go outside for a walk. You got a problem with that?"

Fifteen minutes later he's suited up and the cargo doors are opening to let him out. The glow from the N-zone space is nearly blinding but doesn't really bother him. Carefully he pushes off the shuttle and floats out. He can't help but think of the Observation Window in Milliways.

"…I'm just going for a walk because you people bug me okay? I'm not having fun or anything. I'm just going for some…well, not air. Similar. You know what I mean." He not even sure what he's saying or why. He's nervous, that's for sure but that's no reason for why he's rambling, is it?

"Your tether's fastened?" Reed says through the communications system.

"Reed, you don't look a friction' thing like my mom, so quit trying to do her voice, all right? I'm fine. I'm just…" Ben replies back as he bends for a leap off the shuttle's wing. The red glow and emptiness is breathtaking and gives him pause before he continues, "…just going outside." He twists to look back at the shuttle and sees his line.

"What's he…" Reed asks Sue from inside the cockpit.

The tether is right there, one pull and he'd float free and never have to go back. Never have to lie to his mom, never have to face being the monster. He could die out here in peace. But something stops his hand and he tumbles some more. He can't help the little laugh that escapes as he realizes he still wants to live, that he's not so far gone that taking his own life seems the only thing to do. The laugh turns louder and soon he's laughing for the joy of free fall, of weightlessness and of the impossible place he finds himself.

"You think maybe we set his oxygen too high or something?" Sue asks.

Ben tucks into a ball and spins faster and then pulls himself open and twists laterally as well as horizontally.

"No…no. I think he's fine." Reed replies to Sue. "I swear, I don't remember the last time I heard him laugh. Not since before the accident." Their musing is interrupted by an alien voice which startles them. "What in…"

"That's language, Reed. It's got repetition and cadence. There's someone else out here. Someone alive in the N-zone."

They'd been following the signal for three hours when they found the space station.

"So this 'could be' a space station full of people who've stayed alive in a dying universe," Ben says getting his face in front of Reed's instruments to be sure of his attention. "Now, here's my bit o'science; do you think the people left standing at the end of a game are the nice people? Or do you think they're vicious jerks?"

And of course the aliens left at the end of the game are vicious jerks…

"I think a young universe would suit me much better. And so, with the breeder and the sick one aboard your child's rocket…" the alien Nihil says. "It is indeed time for you to go." He pushes a button on his instrument panel and the translators that he had installed into Reed and Ben's space helmets explode, rupturing the glass.

"Aaaaah. You know…seeing complete strangers slowly die in front of me like this? It warms me like little else in this old, cold universe. Choke on our sweet air, you tiny pink-lunged children. Perhaps you could see your way to thrashing a little for me."

While Nihil speaks Reed has worked his left glove free and uses his elastic hand to seal his helmet. "Sealed! Ben! Hold on! Ben! Pull my other glove free! I can seal your helmet! BEN!" Reed shouts as he hears Ben coughing die out. Has Ben passed out? Is he dead?

"This air tastes like crap." Ben replies ignoring the brief thrill he had felt when he thought he was going to die (and not by his hand) and the disappointment that took its place.

"Ben," Reed says relieved. "It's not air. These people basically breath acid."

"You're kidding me."

"I've splattered my hand over my helmet like bubble gum to stop my insides from boiling. Do I look like I'm kidding?"

"Huh. Okay I guess we found out what my lungs do after all." Ben replies and turns to walk towards Nihil. "And that means I can beat the snot out of you, ya little freak…"

"I'm on fire now, Reed" Ben calls out to Reed. He's torn off one of Nihil's wings, slugged a bunch of cheap b-movie ripoff Star Wars aliens with a support pillar which didn't support anything (unless it was just a perch for Nihil), caused tons of damage to the control room of the station and generally made himself a nice attractive target while Reed does his genius thing at the main control bank. "But don't worry about me, man. You just keep fiddling around with your science stuff over there."

"Actually, I'm good to go." Reed says from behind him.

"All right let's roll."

"Kind of a lot of them."

"You know, I actually liked having a spacesuit…and these jerks ruined it. Kind of a lot of them? Good."
Their momentum carries them through the gate with the space dragon in close pursuit and their engines are stuck in maximum thrust. Reed fires one of the alien plasma guns at the engines within the shuttle several times until they finally die but too late to prevent a landing within Las Vegas. Fortunately General Ross has ordered the air raid sirens to be fired and the main strip is cleared of traffic. Once the shuttle stops Ben kicks open the emergency door and they leap down in time to see the space dragon come crashing right behind them, it's momentum caring it on a crash course straight at them and the hotel behind them. Ben doesn't even pause as he braces himself to catch it and stop it before it crashes into the MGM Grand.

The fighting's over and General Ross is happy even if their cover is completely blown as he finally has his death ray.

"I think we're finally going to get to be super heroes now." Johnny says.
Back in Queens, Mrs. Grimm is watching the Evening News when the live footage of the alien attack in Las Vegas interrupts the piece about the dancing poodles. She pauses her Tivo when the news camera zooms in on the rocky monster who is seemingly stopping the out-of-control monster ship by himself and looks at his eyes for the longest time. Then she sits back with tears in her eyes...tears of pride and love.

"Oh my boy."