Villain
A/N: This chapter is dedicated to SofaKingDanny, who has been feeling ickies for a while. Danny, feel better soon! X3
Chapter 4
Mojo Jojo made us a special dinner that night. He said it was to celebrate our new partnership in evil, but I could tell he was sort of excited about having someone to cook for. I remembered as a kid him bragging about his hibachi chef skills when he somehow became our babysitter one night. I also remembered that the food tasted like crap. But I was just a kid then, and now it tasted alright. I still hoped that he wasn't planning on preparing that stuff every night from then on though. I was more of a pizza and cheeseburgers type girl.
After we finished our meals, we spent a few hours just talking at the dinner table. It was weird. I never talked this much and for this long of a time before in my life. Mojo did most of the talking though. And I guess because his talking could get to be pretty repetitive from time to time, that's why our conversations were as long as they were.
We spoke of my newfound power. We laughed at how nobody in Townsville knew who was responsible for my destruction, and how shocked they would be when they learned it was me. I shared with Mojo the truth of what happened at school. I told him about how I got my scars and how people treated me because of them. I told him about what happened when I killed Mitch Mitchelson. He shared his own stories as well. He told me of the inventions he was working on, and the book he was currently reading. And after I had asked him, he also told me about when he first realized he was meant to be a villain.
He described it as something he always knew deep down, but like me, he needed a trigger of some kind before he was able to fully realized it. Like me, he was abandoned by everyone and outcast as a freak after his own accident. He tried suppressing his hatred and violent thoughts just like me. But it was only a matter of time after receiving his oversized brain and green colored flesh before he snapped. When a drunken, dirty, homeless man suggested that Mojo needed to take a shower and "a new hat" one day, he had enough. Knowing Mojo, I could see how this would offend and humiliate him greatly. He was a proud person. To be told that he smelled by a no good bum... I'm sure it was one of the worst insults he could imagine getting. So of course I wasn't all that surprised when Mojo said what he did to the homeless dude. He beat the man dead, just as I had beat Mitch dead.
"That same night, I realized how I must gain respect from the despicable citizens of this city," Mojo told me. "No one would understand me having the deformities I had. They did not care about me. They had such small, narrow-minded minds. Minds the size of peanuts! The size of a penny! Minds that did not have the capacity to process that my appearance did not measure my worth! No. People like that do not comprehend what is different from them. They just toss us aside, pretending that we do not exist. That is why we must show them what we are truly made of, and that is why we must gain control of a world like this. So that we can show everyone who has shunned us just who the monsters really are. Them. They are the hideous beasts. They are the true monsters, and they are not good. No. There is no such thing as good in this world! There are merely different kinds of evil! They are the lame kinds who do not even realize their own wickedness. We are the superior kinds of evil! Yes. The villains who harness the sin within us and use it to our greatest advantage. And just for using our God-given gifts and doing what is instinct to us, we are punished and labeled 'bad,' while those who give us that name, name themselves and their own so called ways of life as 'good.'" The monkey shook his head. "The world needs to learn a lesson, and it is us who must teach it to them."
I nodded slowly. I really truly believed what he had to say. He put things in such a perspective... it left me in complete awe. The way he explained things to me made me proud of who and what I was. I was then glad that I chose to run away to Mojo. He and I had so much in common, and I could really learn from him. He was very wise, and I admired him. Then more than ever.
"Now, Junior," he began while clearing the table. "You may do the dishes."
"What?" I said raising an eyebrow. I never had to do the dishes back home. And I may do the dishes? As if it was some great priviledge or something! "Are you serious?"
The short chimp walked over to the kitchen sink, carrying a stack of dirty plates. He had to use a small stepstool in order to reach the faucet of the sink as he rinsed the dishes. I walked over beside him and peered into the sink. It really wasn't a lot of dishes. In all honesty, I could do them in two seconds, but I still didn't feel like it.
"Did you not expect to have any responsibilities while you stay here?" he asked. He jabbed a chubby finger of his into my stomach. "You will do the dishes every night from now on! Yes! After I prepare a meal for us both, you will clean the plates, cups, forks, knives, spoons, spatulas, pots, pans-- anything that is dirty must be cleaned! And they will be cleaned by you! This is your responsibility from now on, my son!" He still repeatedly poked me in the abdomen with his finger, and it only made me growl with anger. "No, this is not vacation! This is not a holiday! You are not relaxing on some sunny beach in Miami! You are not at Disneyland! You're not even at that god-awful California Adventure! You are here! With me! In my top secret observatory! And you will contribute to this family! And the way in which you will contribute is by washing these dishes!"
"Do I have to do them now--"
"Yes!"
"But I can--"
"No buts!" Mojo hopped down from his stepstool. I sighed heavily and began scrubbing everything clean in the sink with the fastest super speed I could manage. "I will be waiting for you in--"
"Done," I interrupted.
The monkey stopped in his tracks abruptly. He looked over his shoulder, and saw that I was indeed finished with the dishes. I stood there, leaning on the counter and drying my hands with a dishtowel. I laughed a little at his surprised look.
"Very well," he began with a huff, "Go and get ready for bed. I shall bring you a blanket and pillow."
I went and retrieved my sweat pants from my backpack. I took off my jeans and pulled on my sweats, and took off my jacket. I put everything back in my backpack and slid the bag underneath the couch. I sat there on the couch, waiting for Mojo.
I looked at my hands, remembering the power that shot from them earlier that day. I wondered if I'd be able to do it again. My body seemed to want to do it all on its own when I had heard Blossom's voice, so it couldn't be that hard to do it again… right? I only hoped so. I would definitely need some practice with my new ability before I could be able to handle it completely. After all, when Blossom discovered her ice breath it took her months before she could fully control it. There were times when her nighttime snoring ended up turning our room into an icebox.
"Man, I hope I don't blow anything up in my sleep," I muttered to myself, staring at my palms.
"What was that?" came Mojo's voice as he walked over with a small blanket and pillow.
"Nothing," I said looking up.
Mojo stared at my hands for a moment. "Ewww," he said with a disgusted look after seeing my scars.
He'd only seen my hands, and only for a short time. Now I had my whole arms exposed because of my short sleeve t-shirt. I had forgotten how shocking my arms looked to people who hadn't seen them before. I had made damn sure to wear my jacket in order to hide the wounds from others for the past four years. The only ones who regularly saw them were my sisters and the Professor from time to time.
"Yeah, I know," I said. I took the pillow and blanket from him. "Thanks."
"Get some rest," Mojo said leaving the room. "We have much to do tomorrow."
"G'night," I said lying down on the couch. I pulled the blanket on me, which was so small it barely covered all of my body. I'm sure it was the perfect size for Mojo though. I was just thankful that the couch wasn't Mojo-size.
That night I dreamt about returning home. I didn't mean to in my dream. I just somehow ended up there, and was trying to find my way out, only everything was all crazy. It was like I was trapped in a maze of some kind, and every corner I turned, I kept running into dead ends. The walls of the house were oddly shaped mirrors that were decorated with millions and millions of photographs of my sisters looking perfect and beautiful. At every dead end in the maze my sisters and the Professor stood. They kept trying to grab me, but I managed to escape every time. Just as I had seemed to find an exit from the hellish place, they got a hold of me. Blossom and Bubbles held me down, as I kicked and screamed for them to let go. The Professor had a rag in his hands and he used it, attempting to wipe something from my face. I still kicked and screamed and fought for my freedom. As my head whipped around, I caught my own reflection in one of the mirror walls. The Professor had wiped my scar from my face. My sisters finally let me go, and they and the Professor left me alone. I gazed down at my hands and they too were clean of any scars. Bubbles said something like "See? Don't you feel better?" in a creepy, echoing voice, as they all disappeared into the darkness. But I didn't. I sat on the floor, cradling myself, staring at my scar-less reflection, and sobbing.
I awoke the next morning to hear Mojo on the telephone with somebody. I lay in bed for a while, slowly dragging myself out of a sleepy state and listened to Mojo drone on.
"Yes, that is of course why I called you ahead of time," he said to whoever was on the other line. "I would not just bring someone unexpectedly, without warning or permission, to our top secret meeting! Of course not! Which is why I telephoned you to ask for your permission to do so, seeing as you are head of the council and such. As president of the group you should know of my intentions to bring with me a stranger, which is why I am telling you now: I wish to bring along someone who wishes to be a villain, and should therefore be a part of our assembly."
A pause.
"Who is it? Why does that matter? You will meet him there in person and know for yourself! After gazing upon him with your own eyes, you will then learn who he is!"
Another pause.
"Well if you must know," he began with a sigh. "Have you been watching the news lately? Yes? The destruction that happened yesterday at-- Yes. …Yes, it is him who I wish to bring. …Yes. …Of course. Yes, he is very powerful, indeed. …What's his name?" Mojo hesitated. "Just keep your eyes on the news and you will learn that soon enough!"
Another long pause.
"Yes! I really must be this secretive! I simply cannot reveal this person's name to you! I cannot share his identity, his name, or who he is! It is much too complicated a situation, and frankly you would not believe me even if I told you! Now, this person is my newly adopted son, and he will be accompanying me to the council meetings from this point on. We shall see you this Thursday. Goodbye." He hung up the phone.
I sat up, sleepily and stretched out my arms up high, and yawned. "Who was that?"
"Watch where you point those things!" exclaimed the monkey.
I then noticed that my hands were glowing green again. "Shit!" I brought them down from the air, but just as I did, they released a quick zap of my death ray, which hit a house plant in the corner of the room. The small shrub immediately withered then exploded into a cloud of dust.
My hands still glowed, and I kept them tightly clenched, and buried between my legs and underneath the blanket, trying desperately to avoid shooting the things off again.
"Will you learn to control that?!" Mojo shouted, quickly making his way from the telephone to behind the couch, which was probably the safest place to be then.
"I can't help it!" I yelled back, annoyed that he thought it was my fault. My hands only began to heat up with more fire and electricity. I quickly shut my eyes and started singing "Row Row Row Your Boat" to try and get rid of the spheres of potential destruction.
It took me sixty Row Row Row Your Boat's before my hands returned to normal, all the while Mojo screamed at me: "This is no time for nursery rhymes and songs!"
I held my hands in front of my face and blinked at them dumbly for a while. Mojo stared at them too. "The same stuff happened to Blossom," I said after a while.
"What?"
"When she discovered her ice breath, it would go off all on its own just when she breathed a little too hard. It did that for a while before she finally got the hang of how it worked and stuff."
"Exactly how long is 'a while?'" Mojo inquired.
"For Blossom… I think it was about two or three months."
"Well, you do not have two or three months!" Mojo said folding his arms. "You do not have even one month! I will not be running for shelter every time your freaky little hands gain minds of their own! No way, Jose! You must learn to control your new power and do so quickly!"
"But I dunno how!" I argued. "I need to like practice with it or something and it's not like I can do that!"
"Who said you couldn't?" Mojo said raising an eyebrow.
He turned and began to walk away.
"Mojo," I said, causing him to stop and face me. "Who was that on the phone?"
"A very important person," he said.
"What meeting are we going to this Thursday?"
"A very important meeting!"
I rolled my eyes. "Can't you be specific when I want you to be?"
The chimp scratched his chin for a moment. "Very well. It is the Villains' Council."
"What's that?"
"A very important board whose members are all worthy enough to be called 'villains.' A very selective group-- a proud organization! We are the persons who will change the world someday! We are the superior evil!" the monkey shook his fist.
"And you were talking to the President of this… Villains' Council?"
"Precisely!"
"Who is that?"
"A very powerful and evil man-- supposedly the most powerful and evil being alive!"
I thought for a moment. I thought Mojo was pretty powerful and evil, but it obviously wasn't him. "Do you mean… Him?"
Mojo simply nodded. "Bathe, and get dressed. After breakfast, we shall get you your practice."
Mojo Jojo informed me that I was going to have to prove myself to the Villains' Council. This is where my "practice" came into play. I was going to go into the middle of Townsville and just start experimenting with my newly discovered ability. Of course, my sisters would eventually show up, and then I could try my power on them.
"This way you will learn how to control your new ability!" he said as we made our way into town. We were simply walking there, so that my attack would be a surprise one. Mojo said there were probably a lot of people looking for me for what I did at the school, so it was best to keep low. People would definitely notice a familiar green streak in the sky.
"But I don't wanna control it," I said. "I want to just let it all go! And let it hit 'em hard! And just let it kill my good for nothing sis--"
"No! There will be no killing of the Puffs today!" he yelled.
"What?! But--"
"No killing! Absolutely none! Now, civilians-- why yes of course! You are welcome to destroy as many of them as you wish! But the Powerpuff Girls are off limits! You must prove yourself to the Villains' Council before you go ahead and destroy your enemies! The Council will not appreciate you if you just destroy the thing they've sought after all their lives. Therefore, you cannot kill your sisters. You'll never gain membership if you do that! And believe me, for many reasons, this an organization you must be a part of! Do not jeopardize any chance at this! It will already be a challenge for you to be accepted as it is. Yes, you're going to have a difficult time trying to gain membership to the organization…. A very difficult time…." Mojo's eyes narrowed and he clenched his fists tightly.
"Why? 'Cause I used to be a Powerpuff Girl and kick all their asses all the time?"
"Correct! That… and I imagine some other things…."
"Like what?"
"Just a few simple complications! We'll discuss this another time," he said with shifty, suspicious eyes. "We are almost at our destination!"
"Is it 'cause I'm a girl?" I asked.
"Don't be ridiculous! We have plenty of female members! We have, let's see, that brat Princess Morbucks! Yes. She and… hmm….Sedusa, and…. Well, actually now that I think about it that's all the girls we have…. But that is beside the point! The Council does not discriminate against one's sex or gender! And how many times must I remind you?! You are my son now! Son! As in boy! As in male! As in guy! Chap! Fellow! As in the spitting evil image of your father, who is me! Mojo Jojo! You are Jojo Junior! Otherwise more fondly known as Little Joey!"
"You do realize that no matter how many times you call me 'Junior' or 'son' that it ain't gonna change--"
"Silence, Junior!" he shouted stubbornly. "We're here."
We both looked around the busy little city. We both grinned evilly, imagining the chaos that was about to take place. How stupid and ignorant everyone was… they had no idea what was going to happen in just a few minutes. Mojo and I laughed evilly together at the idiocy of the people around us.
"Okay," Mojo said, calling an end to our laughing fit. "I will be in this library, watching from the top floor." He motioned at the building we stood in front of. "Whatever you do, do not hit this library! For I will be inside! And if you destroy this library, you destroy me as well! Which is not a good thing! So keep the destruction in that direction!" he said pointing across the street.
Suddenly the monkey had me embraced in a hug again. "Make me proud, Son!" he said before releasing me and gleefully climbing the stairs up to the entrance of the library.
I waited until he was out of sight, before I slowly began to float up into the blue sky. I removed my jacket and let it fall to the ground below me. I looked down at my scarred arms and hands. Slowly, I lifted my right hand and let it gently touch my face. I slowly traced my 'V' shaped scar with my fingers.
I clenched my fists tightly. "I'm not going to hide my face anymore," I swore to myself then. "Not my face and not my arms or my hands…." I surveyed the city below me. Nobody had yet to notice me. "I want everyone to see me for who I really am," I gritted my teeth. I felt my hands begin to heat up, and soon they were engulfed with fire and electricity. I took aim of a tall, apartment complex in the distance. "And they're going to fear me," I grinned. "Because I'm a villain!"
Gradually, my hands grew hotter. I opened my clenched fists and expanded my fingers wide, and my death ray was unleashed. It wasn't as strong as it was when I first discovered it. I figured it was because I didn't let it heat up as much as I did last time. I let the beam travel long enough until it hit its target-- the apartment building, which was about a hundred feet away from where I hovered. The wall of the building which faced me crumbled, exposing those who hid inside.
I clenched my fingers so that they formed into a fist again, and the death ray ceased, and my palms returned to glowing spheres of fire and electricity. "Ah, so that's how you work, huh?" I smiled at my fists.
I looked at the people in the building who had erupted into complete anarchy. Some ran, some scrambled to gather belongings, and some just stupidly stared back at me. The people on the streets seemed to notice me at last too, as many of them began to scream and run. I heard a hundred voices all cry out at once: "HELP!"
"Open," I said opening my fingers and unleashing the ray again so that it hit those who remained in the building. I held it there for about fifteen seconds, until I saw the roof of the building start to cave in on itself. "Close," I said closing my fingers, and stopping the beam.
"Open. ...Close. ...Open. …Close." I was really enjoying myself, as I watched everyone panic and run scared before me, all with a simple opening and closing of my fists. Soon, the apartment building collapsed and more screaming and desperate cries of help ensued.
I laughed evilly, and let myself float down onto the pavement below. I clenched my fists tightly, focusing on the pain and anger inside me, allowing the fire and electricity to grow hotter and hotter. Hundreds of people ran crazily around me. They pushed and shoved each other to get away. Many fell and tripped to the ground. Some were even trampled by others. There were kids, crying for their moms and dads, after being separated in the frenzied crowds, and selfish oafs who cared only for their own safety, who knocked everything and everyone out of their paths.
I focused on my building energy. I was going to try and recreate the destruction I did the other day. I let the pain build and build, until I couldn't stand it any longer. I braced myself, and made sure that my feet were planted firmly on the ground. I held out my palms towards the rubble of the apartment building and let my death ray loose. It exploded into that large block of light just like the other day. It hit the collapsed building which instantly turned to dust, and it kept going, plowing down everything in its path.
There must have been a lot more souls in the way of my destruction, because I hardly lost my stamina. I only felt myself grow stronger and stronger, as I claimed more and more lives.
A few minutes later, my death ray stopped itself. I studied my hands. "So I have to recharge you guys from time to time, huh? Oh well, I guess plain and simple continuous demolition would get boring after a while." I let my arms fall to my side as I floated up to the sky again. From the air, I could see I succeeded in causing another mile of devastation. How much destruction could I create if I learned to handle even more pain? If I could endure it, could I charge my death ray twice as long and cause twice as much annihilation?
The streets below me were almost deserted now. I saw a few slower citizens running for their lives. A few good Samaritans had stayed behind to help those who had been crushed by the herds of panicky people, trying desperately to drag the victims to safety. I could see that the street was littered with dozens of lifeless human bodies. There were some people who tried reviving their fallen comrades, and others who just wept beside the bodies, pleading for their friends to wake up.
I decided I wouldn't let these individuals escape with their lives. That would be a cruel thing for me to do. Their mothers, fathers, brothers, sisters, friends, and neighbors were all deceased. They should have the opportunity to be reunited with them all. It was only fair of me.
I began to charge up again, but just as I felt the spheres of green fire and electricity begin to form, I heard it:
"Not so fast, Kid!"
I smiled to myself, and relaxed my fiery fists.
My sisters had arrived.
