Villain: Redux
A/N: OK, here's chapter 5. Reviews and comments are very much appreciated on this one.
!Chapter 6 will be posted on TUESDAY, APRIL 7TH!
And after chapter 6, we will begin Part II. :)
Part I: Remote Control
Chapter 5 - Family Beach Day
"OK, we don't have a lot of time, so I need you to pay close attention." Blossom sat at her work desk and typed rapidly onto her laptop's keyboard, "Nobody has step foot on that island since the Isle Walls went up. So we have no idea what sort of scenario we may face there. We have to be prepared for anything, got it, Buttercup?" she angled her laptop screen so that Buttercup could see the map she brought up.
Her green eyed sister stood behind her and leaned forward to get a better look at the screen. "Got it. Be ready to kick ass," she pounded her fists together and licked her lips with anticipation.
Blossom smiled, "The Isle Walls encompass the entire island perimeter," she continued to explain as she traced the map with her finger. "The steel walls are over two-thousand feet tall- that's nearly half a mile high- and approximately twenty-five feet thick. Completely sealed, with no entrances or exits, and considered to be impenetrable."
"'Cept for us," Buttercup grinned deviously as she cracked her knuckles.
"Our entry has to be careful, Buttercup," Blossom's tone was serious as she swiveled in her chair and turned to face her sister, "We can't just go bashing through the wall like nothing. It would be irresponsible of us to risk letting any monsters out. It's summer, and there will be lot's of people across the way at the beach who we can't put in any danger! Not to mention, we definitely can't risk getting caught."
"OK, so how do we get in?"
"There's a steel grate that runs along the top of the Isle Walls. Still, pretty thick stuff, but at least not as solid as the perimeter walls. The spacing is there to let birds freely migrate to and from the island. The openings aren't quite big enough for us, but if we use our laser eyes to cut through a couple bars, slip through, and quickly use our lasers to weld the bars back in place- I think that would be our safest option."
"So you two are going to lock yourselves in a steel cage with monsters?" Bubbles interrupted from where she had been standing quietly waiting for her sisters to finish scheming. The blonde girl wore a look of mild concern as she stared at both Blossom and Buttercup. A part of her felt guilty for interrupting such a rare bonding moment between the two, but another part of her couldn't ignore the bad feeling in her gut. "I don't know if I like this plan anymore..."
"Aw, come on, Bubbles," Buttercup groaned. "Don't be a baby."
"It will be fine, Bubbles," Blossom turned in her chair to face her shorter sibling and gave her a confident smile. "Did you and Robin come up with a good diversion for the Professor today?"
Bubbles nodded, "Yeah, we have a plan. We should be able to keep the Professor out of the house for at least a few hours. Robin's next door getting everything ready."
"Perfect!" Blossom clapped her hands together, feeling as if everything was falling into place. "Operation Diversion is yours to command, Bubbles. Buttercup and I will be counting on you!" she gave her sister a proud smile, and Bubbles couldn't help but smile in return. Blossom turned her seat so she faced her laptop again. "So Buttercup," she continued seriously once more, "I'm thinking we should enter here," she tapped the northern area on the map with her finger, "Mount Ira. It's highest peak of the island, and landing there should give us the advantage of having a good vantage point of the entire area. There, we can use the cover of the mountain's heavy forestry to get a safe look, and see exactly what we're dealing with once we're inside."
"Sounds like a plan," Buttercup nodded as she knelt beside her sister once more and studied the map.
Blossom's finger traced the screen once more and ran down the left side, "Our ultimate destination is the north-western shore side," she showed Buttercup, using her computer mouse to zoom in on the area of the map, revealing a dark, rocky terrain, "There, we should find a canyon that should lead us to the lost mines of Monster Isle."
"Cool," Buttercup cracked a smile, "Sounds haunted." Buttercup felt a tug on her shirt sleeve, and looked to her side to see Bubbles frowning up at her with giant blue eyes. "What?"
Bubbles kept quiet, but motioned towards their redheaded sister with her eyes. Buttercup glanced back at Blossom and watched as she rose from her seat and quickly made her way over to a nearby cabinet, "Almost forgot something!" she gasped as she flew to retrieve whatever it was.
"She seems really determined to fix what she broke, but," Bubbles squeaked quietly. "You think she's all better now?"
Buttercup paused, suddenly remembering the earlier incident. She had gotten so distracted by the opportunity of seeing some action, she had momentarily forgotten. "Yeah..." Buttercup spoke unsure.
Blossom zipped up her red colored backpack, stuffed heavily with supplies, and slung it over her shoulder, "We better get going before the Professor gets back. Ready, Buttercup?"
Buttercup hesitated. "Yeah, but," she paused, "Maybe you should bring a sweater or something? In case you get freakishly cold again or whatever."
Blossom placed her hands on her hips, "It's like a hundred degrees outside, and I said I'm fine," she frowned. "Really," she insisted. Blossom looked from one worried looking sister to the next and sighed, "OK, I admit my powers got away from me for a moment, but I'm in control now."
"Got away from you?" Buttercup repeated with a raised eyebrow.
Blossom shrugged casually in response, "It happens." Her sisters stared back, unsatisfied with her simple answer. "It happens, but I always regain control," she said again with confidence.
"Yeah, you telling us that 'it happens' doesn't make me feel any better," Bubbles frowned. "That means it can happen again."
Blossom's pink eyes fell on the wall clock on the opposite wall of the laboratory. She began to feel the pressure of getting started on their mission before it was to late to do so. However, both Bubbles and Buttercup stared back at her with obvious concern on their faces. Blossom made her way to the corner of the lab and retrieved the microdose of Antidote X. "We'll take this then as a precaution, OK?" Blossom said as she carefully placed the syringe inside her backpack's front pocket.
"What's that?" Buttercup questioned.
"If you see me losing control of my powers again, just give me a shot of this, and everything will stop, OK? I doubt that will happen, but if this makes you two feel better, we'll take it just to be sure." Blossom zipped up her backpack once more, "That should cover everything," she said with a firm nod, "So. Are we doing this?" Blossom approached both her sisters and stuck her hand out, palm faced down, and in front of them. She held it there and waited for an answer.
Buttercup was first to stack her hand over Blossom's, "I'm in." A sly grin swept her face, and Blossom smiled, too.
Bubbles hesitated for a moment, but the eager smiles of her sisters persuaded her. She threw her hand in next, placing it over Buttercup's, and completing the team-stack, "OK," she smiled, "I'm in, too."
Blossom's grin widened, "On three."
Huddled in a circle, with their hands stacked on top of one another, the trio counted together:
"One-"
"Two-"
"Three-"
All three girls swung their arms into the air with enthusiasm as they cheered in unison, "Let's go!"
From her bedroom window, Robin watched the streaks of pink and green lights zip across the bright blue sky. As the pair of bright neon streamers faded into the distance, Robin turned to her orange tabby cat, Ginger, who sat beside her on the window's ledge. She patted her feline companion lovingly on the head, "Ready, Ginger?"
The cat purred loudly in response as she rubbed her head affectionately against her owner's touch. Robin scooped her up in her arms and carried her over to her bed, where she had Ginger's purple colored cat carrier waiting. She placed Ginger inside, and locked the door shut behind her.
"Well, Buttercup and Blossom are off to Monster Isle," Bubbles spoke as she entered her friend's room. "Professor should be home any second now. Are you two ready?"
Robin smiled as Bubbles approached her, "We're ready!" she answered enthusiastically.
Bubbles knelt down in front of the cat carrier and peered through the grated door at Ginger, "You remember what to do when the Professor gets here, right, Ginger?" Bubbles purred to the cat.
Ginger rolled onto her back in response, and closed her eyes. The cat remained completely still, and held the pose for several seconds before turning back over and giving Bubbles a small meow: "Like that?"
Bubbles grinned. "That's perfect, Ginger," she encouraged with a purr, "Just be sure to keep still the whole time until we're on our way to the vet, OK?"
"This is so exciting!" Robin bounced with giddiness. "You guys have never included me on a mission before!"
Bubbles smiled at her friend as she watched her skip across her room to the window to check for signs of the Professor once more. "Yeah, thanks for helping." Bubbles heard a low meow from the carrier behind her. "Of course, Ginger," she responded to the cat, "Thanks to you, too."
Robin turned back from the window, "Do you think Buttercup and Blossom are going to have to fight a lot of monsters on the island?"
Bubbles shrugged, "No idea, but Buttercup's hoping so, that's for sure."
"Yeah!" Robin cheered as she jabbed at the air several times. Bubbles giggled as she watched her friend demonstrate her best karate moves against an imaginary foe. Robin stopped as she and Bubbles heard the Professor's station wagon pull into the driveway next door. The brunette gasped loudly as she rushed back to the window and reported her findings back to Bubbles behind her: "He's here!"
"OK!" Bubbles placed her hands on her hips and gave a firm nod to her friend and then Ginger, "Ready, girls?"
"Ready!" Robin wore a look of determination on her face. A squeaky meow was also heard from the carrier.
"Remember," Bubbles told Robin before she left, "The more tears, the better."
Robin nodded, and watched as Bubbles disappeared with a flash of baby blue light.
As Professor Utonium shut the door to his car, he turned around and was met with Bubbles skidding to a stop just before him. "Woah there," he began with a chuckle, "Where's the fire?"
Bubbles immediately took her father by the hand and began to lead him towards their neighbor's home. "Professor, something's wrong with Robin's cat, Ginger!" she shouted in high pitched desperation, "I think it's serious!"
Professor Utonium stumbled to keep up with his blonde haired daughter, "What? Her cat? What's the matter?"
"I don't know!" Bubbles said as she continued to drag him behind her into the Snyder residence, "I've tried talking to her, but she's not responding!"
As Bubbles lead the Professor into Robin's bedroom, they found the young girl on her bed, hugging her cat's carrier tightly and sobbing. "Oh, Ginger!" she wailed with tears so convincing, Bubbles herself was taken a back by the performance, "Please don't die! It was supposed to be your tenth birthday soon!" she cried loudly. "We were going to throw you a party, and I was gonna make you a cute little hat to wear, and Bubbles was gonna make you a tuna cake and everything!"
Professor Utonium frowned as he knelt down before the teenager, "There, there, Robin," he gently took the cat carrier from her, "I'm sure little Ginger will be just fine." He looked into the carrier to see the striped orange cat lying completely rigid and on her back. The Professor cringed a little at the sight of what appeared to be a dead or, at the very least, a nearly dead cat. He cleared his throat before speaking softly just to Bubbles, as to not to upset the crying girl more, "Honey, I think Ginger might need to see a veterinarian as quickly as possible."
Bubbles nodded as she took the cat carrier from the Professor. "Don't worry, Robin," Bubbles said with determination, "I can get Ginger to the vet in no time!" The super-powered girl held the plastic carrier against her securely, as she shot off immediately through Robin's open bedroom window.
Professor Utonium watched as Bubbles flew away, and sighed deeply as he returned to Robin. The young teen sat on her bed, with her head in her hands as she wept. "The vet will know how to help her, Robin," Professor Utonium tried to sound hopeful, "and Bubbles is certainly faster than any ambulance. She'll make sure Ginger gets the care she needs."
Robin lifted her head and sniffed loudly, "Mr. Utonium?" she squeaked softly between sniffles, and gave the Professor her best puppy-dog look, "Will you drive me to the pet hospital so I can be there, too?" she asked. "Both my parents are at work, and I-I don't have any other way there," she paused as her bright teal eyes filled with more tears, "Ginger's been my best friend for as long as I can remember, and I-I just wanna be there... in case... in case..." the teenager's voice trailed off as she buried her face in her hands again and sobbed loudly once more.
Although the girl's tears were all an act, Professor Utonium could not tell, and he played right into the girls' plan. "Of course, Robin," he gave the girl a kind, reassuring smile. "Let's go."
The pink and green Powerpuffs soared side by side as they quickly made their way across Townsville and towards the beach. The two traveled at a high enough altitude in the sky, so that they stayed hidden by the layer of white, fluffy clouds that hung far up above the city. As they sped through the air, Blossom looked to her left at her sister who wore an eager grin on her face as they approached the coastline. Blossom couldn't remember the last time she saw that look on Buttercup's face, and she smiled to herself, as well. She began to feel her heart pound faster in her chest as her own adrenaline began to rise. Her pink eyes focused on their fast approaching destination, and she shouted loudly at her sister over the roaring wind that ripped past their ears, "OK, Buttercup! Remember: We go in quick, and quiet!"
"Stealth mode! Got it!" Buttercup shouted back in response. Her green eyes narrowed as she focused on their target below.
Monster Isle was less than forty miles from Townsville's coastline. From the beach's pier the island was just a shadow in the distance to the average person's eye. The small island and its monstrous inhabitants were encased by a steel prison. The construction began at the same time as the Villains Ward. While a wealthy billionaire with a guilty daughter had been the one to fully fund the twenty billion dollar project of the Villains Ward in exchange for his only heir's guaranteed freedom, it was the city who paid for the twice as expensive Isle Walls which would trap the monsters of Monster Isle. It was a controversial proposition that year on the ballot, but the state's voters were narrowly persuaded by the promise of jobs the history-making project would bring- not just for Townsville, but for all nearby citizens of the West. After all, the massive steel cage was designed to be twenty miles long, and seven miles wide to fully surround the island. It took a record-breaking crew to complete the project in the desert within the year's time frame Mayor Bellum had ordered. Once it was completed, it was the Powerpuff Girls themselves who carried it from the desert, to the ocean, and delivered the steel cage to the island.
They had dropped the massive prison on top of the island over three years ago. Since then, Monster Isle had been out of sight, and completely out of mind. Monster attacks on the coast became a thing of the past, and there hadn't been an incident since.
Blossom lead the way as the two descended upon their destination. The two girls carefully, and quietly touched down on top of the steel grated ceiling of the island's cage.
As Blossom began quick work of using her laser eye beams to cut into the steel, Buttercup peered through the grate's spacing, just wide enough for her head, and took her first glance at the land below. As the teen stuck her head between the steel bars, she reported back to her sister, "Dude, the mountain top is like right here! I wonder if I can touch this tree branch-"
Blossom hushed her sister, "Shh!" she whispered back, "Any monsters in sight?"
Buttercup used her x-ray vision to scan the thick tropical forest below for signs of life, "Not that I can see," she sounded almost disappointed. She lifted her head once more and saw Blossom remove a perfectly cut piece of the steel grate.
Blossom held the cut steel in her hands, and smiled at her sister. "After you."
Buttercup grinned as she made her way over to the freshly cut opening and swiftly dropped down onto the nearest tree branch, just about ten feet below. She waited there as her sister slipped through the opening, and placed the piece of grate she had cut back in place, and used her laser-beams once more to weld the metal back together.
Blossom joined Buttercup on the tree branch. From where they perched, they were still some two hundred feet from the ground. The tomboy cupped her hand over her eyes as she scanned the forest floor ahead of them. She pointed towards the west, "I can see a small clearing that way," she whispered, "We can probably see the beach from there."
"Let's go," Blossom took off swiftly, and Buttercup followed after her.
The super-powered teens flew through the dense, bright green jungle at a steady pace. They kept their eyes peeled for any creatures that may be lurking in the wilderness. The terrain sloped downwards, and became less green and more rock the closer they got to the edge of the mountain side. As they neared the clearing Buttercup had spotted, Blossom was the first to notice what appeared to be a gigantic scaly beast in that very area. She gasped and stopped immediately, pulling her sister by the wrist quickly with her, as she darted behind a massive tree trunk at the edge of the forest opening.
"I thought you said you scanned for monsters!" Blossom whispered harshly as the two stayed out of sight.
"I did!" Buttercup whispered back with a glare, "I thought that giant lump was just a rock, or a boulder, or whatever! It's not moving!"
Blossom raised an eyebrow, before slowly peering around the tree trunk to get a second look at the scaly giant. The massive, bright red-orange reptilian had to be nearly twenty stories tall, though it was hard to tell, since the beast was lying on its side. Like Buttercup had said, the monster was completely still from where it lay near the mountain's cliff side. Its back was towards them, and as Blossom curiously studied the beast, she likened its pose to something like a fetal position. She then noticed the peculiar sight of several small birds, casually perched upon the sharp, pearl white spikes that ran along the giant lizard's back side.
"Is it... asleep?" Blossom whispered to Buttercup, who stood behind her, observing the same strange scene.
When her sister didn't answer, Blossom turned to face her only to see that she had gone. Blossom turned back around towards the statue-like giant and saw that her sister had already flown over to the beast. As Buttercup near the giant, she halted for a moment as she pinched her nose, completely gagged by the strong odor as she drew closer. She flew around the colossal lizard's head, which was the size of a school bus, and face down in the dirt.
"More like dead," Buttercup announced as she forcefully kicked the massive lizard so that it turned onto its backside. It flopped lifelessly over with a great big thud, creating a large cloud of dust, and scaring off the flock of birds that had been resting on its corpse. As the deceased beast turned over, Blossom joined her sister in the clearing.
"Oh my God," the redhead winced as she cupped her hands over her own nose and mouth. The stench alone was enough to keep her from getting as close as Buttercup had managed to get.
The green Puff removed her hooded sweater she kept tied around her waist, and used it to cover her nose and mouth as she hovered over the giant to get a better look. There were several deep wounds peppered along the beast's front side. The lesions were like dark, deep wells of decomposing flesh and rotting organs, and Buttercup could see that maggots had made their home inside the giant. Its neck had a particularly large gash which seemed to burn all the way down the monster's throat.
As Buttercup studied the gory sight, her sister remained on the ground. Blossom removed a bright pink handkerchief from her backpack and held it over her nose and mouth as she dared to get closer. She noticed the left arm of the beast seemed to curl around something, as if it had died protecting it, and she was curious to discover what it was.
"You think another monster did this?" Buttercup shouted down to her sister from where she rested on top of the Monster's snout as she stared into the lifeless yellow eyes of the reptile. Her voice was still muffled by the hoodie she held to her face.
"Possibly," Blossom responded simply, muffled also by her handkerchief as she tried not to breathe in the foul air around them. She climbed on top of the beast's left arm and looked down at what it held.
"Dude!" Buttercup exclaimed next, "I think I remember this guy!"
"Girl," Blossom corrected.
"What?"
"She's a girl," Blossom repeated as her sister leapt from the monster's head onto the ground beside her. As Buttercup landed, Blossom pointed to what she found in the monster's arms.
There was a large nest, made of brush and branches resting safely in the lizard's grasp. The massive bed of sticks and leaves held three enormous eggs. Buttercup and Blossom circled the nest as they stared up at the cluster of eggs three times their size. Blossom carefully touched the brightly red spotted shell of one of the eggs, wondering if the unborn creature inside was still alive or if it had perished like its mother. She next pressed her ear against the shell, and tried to listen.
Before Blossom could make anything out, she was quickly distracted by the sight of her sister lifting up one of the eggs, and hopping back over the monster's arm as she carried it, suspended over her head. "What are you doing?!" she shouted at Buttercup.
"I thought you said they needed to clear the area before the mayor would let Professor on the island," Buttercup said as she moved closer to the mountain's cliff side. "Well," she held the egg as if she were getting ready to chuck it from the mountain top, "Let's help clear it for him."
Blossom quickly followed after her, "That is not our mission, Buttercup," Blossom pointed out sternly as she flew back over the beast's corpse, "Our mission is to find the lost mines, locate the ore we came for, and get out before the Professor gets back home. That's it."
As Buttercup reached the cliff's edge, she suddenly stopped, "Woah," she breathed as her green eyes widened while she stared down at the land below.
Blossom joined her by her side and looked down at what Buttercup saw.
From where they stood, the two Powerpuffs could clearly see the west shore of the island. The silver sandy beaches were littered with hundreds of lifeless, decaying monster bodies of various species. Buttercup slowly lowered the egg she held, and placed it back onto the ground as she stared at the scene before them in disbelief. "It's like a massacre happened," she breathed again.
Blossom nodded slowly and spoke low, "This must be the result from the airstrikes Bellum talked about to reduce the monster population."
Buttercup glanced at Blossom, and then back down below, "Looks like it's working."
"Come on," Blossom said before she began to descend from the mountain side, flying towards the rocky beach below. Buttercup followed shortly behind her.
As the pair touched down on the beach, they were once again overwhelmed by the rotting stench that surrounded them. Despite it being early day, the shore side was dark. The western side of the Isle Walls sat just some ten yards from the land, protruding from the ocean water. The massive steel barrier cast a dark shadow over the entire beach, trapping the land in permanent darkness. The lack of light enhanced the already eerie atmosphere of the graveyard. The corpses that lay in the sand were so many, some were stacked on top of one another. There was a steady hum of buzzing flies and insects that swarmed around many of the decaying bodies. Pieces of fur, hair, scales, feathers and bone stuck out of places in the sand, suggesting that there were even more buried beneath the shore.
While Blossom took a moment to retrieve her compass from her backpack, and check her map, Buttercup continued to explore the wasteland. The raven-haired teen used one hand to shield her nose from the smells, and her other to swat at the flies that buzzed past her, as she moved closer to where the land met the ocean water. She glanced at the piles of bodies around her, and noticed that casts of crabs picked at the rotting flesh of some of the monsters. She curiously studied the way all the monsters seemed to face towards the ocean; many seemed stretched in positions as if reaching towards the lapping waves just out of their reach. Some perished within the water altogether.
Buttercup glanced back over her shoulder at her sister, "Is it me, or does it look like they were all running towards the water before they died?"
Blossom either didn't hear the question, or ignored it. She studied a small book, with a blank white cover for a moment before tucking it safely in her back shorts pocket. She pointed towards a rocky cliff-side straight ahead, "I think it's this way." She then took a moment to glance around her chilling surroundings one last time before shuddering, "Come on. Let's get out of here."
The two girls flew side by side as they curved around the rocky terrain, and found themselves at a narrow passage way. The canyon walls were tall and jagged, and the space between them was so narrow in places, they had to fall behind one another to squeeze past. As they traveled deeper into the gorge, the air became hot and stagnant, as the terrain continued to slope downward.
Suddenly, the two girls stopped as they both picked up on the same sound at once. They darted against the rocky walls of the canyon, and listened more intently at the sounds of growls and teeth snapping which echoed from further down the ravine. The sisters glanced at one another and communicated only with a single nod, before they carefully continued to creep forward. The two remained as quiet as possible and stuck close to the canyon walls as they neared the source of the noises.
There was a massive heap of striped purple and pink fur- another dead monster. Only this carcass was surrounded by a pack of winged jackals who had made a feast of the dead furry beast. There were five of them ripping apart the carcass with their tiny, but dangerously sharp teeth. The monstrous looking canines were completely hairless, and their thick, leathery skin was dark and rough. Their blank white eyes shone like opals, and each beast possessed four of them. Behind their hunched, bony shoulder blades were a pair of bat-like wings.
Beyond the pack of monstrous jackals, Blossom's pink eyes fell on their destination at the far end of the canyon. Blossom quickly and quietly retrieved the text from her back pocket and flipped to the page she had bookmarked and held it up for comparison. The black and white, ink sketch of the tunnel entrance was identical to what lay before them. That dark tunnel carved into the side of the mountain was the entrance to the lost mines of Monster Isle. Once she confirmed her discovery, she returned the book to her pocket and returned her attention to the monsters which blocked their path.
Blossom whispered as low as she could into her sister's ear so as to not alert the enemy. "You go left. I'll go right."
Buttercup gave a single nod as her green eyes narrowed on her first target. A devious grin swept her face as she imagined the surprise she would soon give the winged monster. She felt an instant surge of adrenaline as her body began to anticipate the much desired action. She cracked her knuckles and held her breath, waiting for Blossom's call.
The pink Puff stood behind Buttercup, planning her first maneuver. Once she had a course of action in her head, she leaned towards her sister's ear once more, "Now."
Each girl descended upon the pack of wild dogs with bright flashes of pink and green light.
Buttercup was quick to snatch the first beast by its wings and hurled it with full strength against the sharp, jagged edges of the hillside, rendering the creature unconscious. Before the next jackal could react, she threw a fast right hook, knocking the beast hard across its snout and shattering its shark-like teeth. It fell forward, knocked out cold by the single punch.
Blossom flew at her first enemy at full speed, coming down from above and landing a hard elbow on top of the creature's head, causing it to bite down violently against its own tongue. It whimpered as Blossom kicked it to the side before grabbing the next jackal by its tail and using it to catapult against the retreating jackal she had just faced. The two canines slammed against the other with such force, they tumbled several times across the rocky ground before lying defeated in the dirt.
The last jackal flapped its wings and howled out loudly, releasing a bright blue flame from its mouth as it shrieked. The sapphire-like fire that erupted from its mouth ignited the fur of the dead corpse before them. As Blossom made quick use of her ice breath to extinguish the fire, Buttercup yanked the beast hard by its tail and brought it back down to the earth. She tossed the winged dog hard against the ground. She then stomped on its head with such power, her foot drove right through its skull. Its head instantly exploded like a bursting water balloon, filled with blood and brains.
Blossom finished putting out the small fire and then watched as Buttercup slowly lifted her submerged right foot out from the dead jackal's shattered skull. "Jeez, you didn't have to take it so far," Blossom shook her head as she placed her hands on her hips.
"Oops," was Buttercup's simple excuse. She shook her leg to try to loosen some of the bloody goop that clung to her high-top sneakers.
Blossom continued to watch her sister with disgust, "Gross, Buttercup."
The teenager only smirked in response.
The two approached the opening to the mines together. As they stood at the dark entrance, Blossom fished around in her backpack for two flashlights. She handed one to her sister and kept one for herself. Once they were equipped, they both headed inside.
"The last known location of cinnabar x was found somewhere in the fourth level of the mine, so that's where we should go," Blossom explained as they entered.
Buttercup shone her flashlight on tunnel wall to her left as they entered the eerie cave system. As she walked behind Blossom, she could make out something carved along the wall, "Lasciate... ogne... speranza... voi... ch'intrate," Buttercup read the strange writing out loud as they passed it.
Completely distracted by the writing on the walls, Buttercup bumped into her sister who had come to a stop in front of her. Blossom stared at the forked path in front of them, before consulting her white book again for answers.
"We could split up," Buttercup suggested.
"No way," Blossom shook her head as she flipped through the book, shining her flashlight on the pages so that she could read them. "In case you haven't noticed, this mine is incredibly old, Buttercup." Blossom moved her flashlight so that it illuminated the many wooden beams that ran diagonally across the rock ceiling of the tunnel. "One wrong move, and everything might just cave in on us. We need to stick together, and we need to travel quick, but carefully. Understand?"
"Yeah, yeah," Buttercup shone her light down the tunnel to their left, and strained her eyes to see what lay ahead.
Blossom sat her flashlight on the ground, balancing it on the rusted iron tracks that ran throughout the abandoned mines. She retrieved her cellphone from her shorts pocket, "Bubbles texted," she shared, "They've got the Professor successfully out of the house and can keep him busy for another four hours," she smiled, before putting her phone away and retrieving her flashlight once more.
Buttercup felt a buzz from her own cellphone next. She shoved her flashlight in her armpit as she retrieved the device and checked it. The tomboy snorted as she laughed at the message.
"What's so funny?" Blossom questioned. Buttercup passed her the phone, and she took it. It was a photo sent from Robin of the Professor fast asleep in the pet hospital's waiting room, followed by a text that read: "Guess he never got his coffee."
Blossom giggled, too. "Poor Professor." She returned her sister's phone to her, and smiled weakly. "Come on, it's this way," she motioned to their right.
Bubbles smiled to herself as she watched Ginger chase the brightly colored streamer Robin dangled above her. The orange tabby cat pounced on the multicolored ribbon and yanked the wand from her owner's hands, bringing it to her belly and kicking it with her hind legs rapidly. Robbin couldn't help but giggle at her feline companion's adorable antics. Bubbles hushed her, "Shh. Ginger's supposed to be sick, and you're supposed to be sad," Bubbles reminded her as she hovered to the door.
A pair of bright blue eyes peeked from behind the small crack of the doorway, and fell upon the pet hospital waiting room. Professor Utonium had been told to wait there while Ginger received her treatment. He had his laptop propped up on his lap, but his head was slumped backwards over the headrest of his seat, and he had fallen asleep before accomplishing any work. Once he had dozed off, Robin joined Bubbles in the first examination room where she waited with Ginger.
Bubbles carefully closed the door to the exam room once more. "If the Professor wakes up, you have to go back out there, and tell him the doctor needs more time with Ginger. I told Blossom we'd keep him away until at least four."
Robin nodded firmly, "Got it." She sat cross legged on the tiled ground of the veterinary room with Ginger curled up on her lap. "Dr. Weaver's pretty cool for helping us."
Bubbles floated over to her friend, and lowered herself onto the ground beside her. "Yeah, she said she owed me for always helping her around the hospital, but honestly, I always felt like I owe her. I know I'm just a translator most of the time, but... I dunno," she reached for Ginger's chin and gave it a gentle scratch, "It's like the only time I get to really use my powers to make a difference anymore."
Robin smiled at her friend, "Maybe you can be a veterinarian, too, one day."
"Maybe," Bubbles smiled a little. Her bright blue eyes fell on the second door to her right as it swung open and a short, elderly woman with long silvery blonde hair walked into the examination room. She was the pet hospital's single veterinarian- Dr. Weaver. Bubbles had known her for as long as she could remember. The blue Powerpuff was always a friend to the animals of Townsville, so naturally she and the city's top veterinarian became fast friends, as well. Whenever Bubbles encountered an animal who needed medical attention- Dr. Weaver was the one she could count on to help.
"If you ask me, you'd make a fine veterinarian, Bubbles," the woman adjusted her thick-framed eye-glasses, "You're already the best assistant I've ever had, and I'm not just saying that because you're free," Dr. Weaver chuckled. "Although I've missed seeing you around this last month or so."
Bubbles stood and faced the veterinarian. "I know," she frowned a little. "My sister got grounded by the Professor, and I've just been trying to keep her company at home. I promise when school starts again, I'll be here every Friday after school like I used to."
"That's quite alright, Bubbles," she smiled. "I do have a staff to run things. Although as talented as they may be, they don't possess quite the same gift as you," she chuckled again. "Speaking of which, would you mind having a chat with one of our patients in the back?"
The blue Powerpuff replied quickly and eagerly with a wide grin, "Of course!" She gave a small wave to her friends Robin and Ginger, and then followed Dr. Weaver who lead her through the staff's entrance to the back area of the hospital.
"He's a young stray that showed up this morning on our hospital doorstep," the veterinarian continued to explain to Bubbles as they walked down a narrow hallway. "Or at least we think he's a stray. The poor little cat was cut up pretty badly. Several puncture wounds along his back right leg. We've stitched him up as good as new, and have him on antibiotics, but the little guy sure is pretty traumatized by whatever he faced. Maybe you can ask him what happened, and if he might have a home somewhere?"
Bubbles nodded, "Sure thing."
Bubbles stepped into the hospital's kennel area, and continued to follow Dr. Weaver walked past the many rows of caged dogs and cats, to the room's designated "Quiet Corner." These kennels were spaced far from the rest of the boarding animals, and reserved for the facility's more sensitive patients. All the cages were empty, except for one. The scrawny black cat was almost invisible from where he hid in the very far end of his kennel. As Bubbles and the veterinarian approached, two saucer moon-like eyes began to glow with fright from the darkened cage.
Bubbles spoke in a low, soft purr to the scared cat, "Hi there. My name is Bubbles. What's your name?"
The cat stared back at Bubbles, his black coat still stood on edge as he replied hesitantly, "Jet."
Bubbles smiled, "Nice to meet you, Jet."
The feline blinked back in confusion for a moment. "You look like a human, but you can talk like me." The cat's curiosity was enough to distract him from his prior fears, and he crept closer to his kennel door. His whiskers twitched as he wiggled his black nose and meowed, "Are you a human, or are you like me?"
Bubbles giggled a little, "Actually, I'm a Powerpuff Girl."
"A Powerpuff Girl?"
"Yeah," Bubbles smiled, "We help people. Well, and animals, too." She knelt closer to the kennel, "Dr. Weaver helped with your injuries, and once you're all better, I can help you get back home."
"Home?"
"Yeah. Do you have a home?"
The black cat's skinny, long tail flicked as he lowered himself onto his belly. His ears lay flat, but he vocalized no answer. He just shut his eyes and flicked his tail once more.
Bubbles could read the situation anyway. "That's OK," she gave a reassuring smile, "Dr. Weaver will help you find a home. Until then, you can stay here. And I come here all the time and visit, so maybe you and I can be friends." The teenager pressed her palm against the grated kennel door, and the small cat nestled his forehead against her touch, feeling comforted.
Bubbles waited for a moment, allowing the cat to calm down fully before continuing, "How is your leg feeling?"
Suddenly the cat's paranoia returned. He retreated to the safety of the shadows of his kennel, before replying with a low purr, "It hurts."
Bubbles watched as the young cat curled into himself, hiding his yellow eyes from her, and Dr. Weaver who looked on curiously. Bubbles began again with a soft mew, "I'm sorry, Jet. It must be awful, but Dr. Weaver says you will be as good as new," she paused again, "Can you tell us what happened?"
The black cat's fur stood up rigid once more as a chill ran down his spine, "A dog tried to eat me alive."
The blue Powerpuff frowned, "I see. Thanks, Jet. Get some rest, OK? I'll come visit you again really soon." She turned to Dr. Weaver and shared the cat's answer with her, "He said it was a dog."
Dr. Weaver crossed her arms, and shook her head, "Suspected as much. Probably was a coyote," the veterinarian gave a long sigh. "Did he say that he belongs anywhere?"
Bubbles blinked back at the vet, taken aback by her initial response. "Um. No, he's a stray," she answered.
"Ah, well," Dr. Weaver began as she and Bubbles started back down the winding corridors of the kennel, "We can add the little guy to our adoption efforts. At least he'll have a good adoption story, surviving a coyote attack, and all that. Pretty impressive."
Bubbles followed along side the veterinarian, still wearing a look of slight confusion.
Dr. Weaver glanced at the teen, and chuckled a little, "I know it sounds pretty superficial, but a good backstory really can make all the difference when closing the deal on these animal adoptions."
Bubbles blinked back, "But why do you assume it was a coyote, Dr. Weaver?"
The short woman gave a simple shrug, "Well it'd be the third incident we've seen this month. I lost five patients the month prior- treated about ten coyote incidents altogether, I believe- and we lost two patients the month before that. Why, just a week ago, a Yorkshire terrier was on a walk with his owner, and one of these menacing coyotes had the audacity to snatch the dog straight off the leash. Within seconds," she snapped her fingers, "He was gone like that." She shook her head, "It's becoming a real epidemic around here."
Bubbles frowned, but said nothing at first. As disturbing as the story Dr. Weaver shared was, she couldn't imagine any of her coyote friends committing such acts. "That's terrible," she finally replied. "But, I know most of the coyotes mean well. They're just... hungry." As they passed by the final row of kennels, Bubbles blinked at the lineup of canine orphans who resided at the hospital. Her blue eyes lit up as an idea crossed her mind, "Dr. Weaver, what if we found homes for the coyotes!"
Dr. Weaver stopped to face Bubbles, "What?"
"Think about it," Bubbles continued with enthusiasm, "If we find people to adopt the coyotes, then they won't be hungry and on the streets anymore! The coyotes get families of their own, and they won't starve anymore."
The veterinarian couldn't help but laugh at the idea, "I don't think that's quite the right solution, Bubbles."
"Why not?"
"Well, coyotes are not domesticated."
"All pets weren't domesticated at some point," Bubbles pointed out with a hopeful smile. "We could change that! I could help!"
The elderly woman couldn't help but smile at the young girl. "You have a big heart, Bubbles," she said sweetly, "but I'm afraid you're fighting for a lost cause. They're coyotes, not dogs."
Bubbles' smile faded as she watched the veterinarian continue past the doorway and into the hospital's back hallway. She followed after her, "But they are like dogs, really," Bubbles protested with a frown. "I speak to them. I know," she insisted. "My friend Victor is the sweetest little coyote ever! I've met plenty of dogs who are pets, and aren't nearly as sweet as him!"
"Not everyone can speak to animals, Bubbles," Dr. Weaver continued with a shrug. "And when it comes to the wild ones, well, they're labeled wild for a reason. And so that's where they belong- the wild. It's not something you can just change over night."
Bubbles felt pretty disheartened having her idea shot down immediately. Dr. Weaver was always a champion for the animals, and witnessing her dismiss the coyotes' plight so easily didn't make sense to her. "But I don't understand," Bubbles frowned. "What makes them wild? Living outside? If we change that, they won't be wild anymore."
"There's more to it than that. Changing an animal's environment, doesn't magically make them appropriate pets. One cannot alter certain behaviors that are instinctual to them. Feral animals, like your coyotes, are wired in a different way entirely. It takes generations to change something like that."
"But how? I don't see what makes them so different." Bubbles frowned. She watched as Dr. Weaver approached her office door. She stood, waiting for an answer as the veterinarian unlocked her office.
"They're simply... unpredictable."
Blossom continued to lead the way down the dark tunnel path, while Buttercup followed closely behind. The two girls had grown quiet as they traversed through the winding mines of the mountain. Buttercup had been distracted by an ongoing text conversation between herself and Robin, and Blossom had tried her best to ignore it. They were on a mission, after all, so Blossom had to remain vigilant. "There's our next path," she pointed to sloped entryway several yards ahead of them. She focused her flashlight on the wooden-framed tunnel-way. "It should take us to the second level of the mine."
As the two made their way down the steep, dropping pathway, Blossom watched as her sister typed a response to Robin on her phone while wearing a wide grin on her face. The teenager's cellular signal dropped while they descended into the second level of the mine, and her smile was instantly replaced with a pouting sort of expression. Buttercup shoved her phone back into her skinny jeans back pocket, and caught her sister staring at her, "What?"
Blossom smiled. "Nothing," she stopped to retrieve something from her backpack. She reached into a side pocket and pulled out a simple, red hair tie. After she returned her bag to her back, she began to fix her hair into a ponytail, "Jeez, it's like a thousand degrees down here."
As her sister finished with her hair, Buttercup slowly continued on ahead. Blossom quickly caught up and walked beside her. The two both began to feel the heat intensify more the further they traveled.
Buttercup wiped the sweat from her forehead, "Is it gonna get hotter the deeper we go?"
"Hope not," Blossom also began to sweat, "We still have have to get to the fourth level."
"Great," Buttercup muttered as she tugged on her t-shirt collar, feeling smothered by the sudden humidity. She walked alongside her sister and illuminated their way ahead with her flashlight. Blossom's flashlight bounced off the walls of the tunnel, and would occasionally stop on Buttercup's face, who tried to keep her focus on the path forward. The stagnant, hot air they pushed through was enough of a bother, but the sudden glow on the right side of her face only made Buttercup feel warmer. As the green-eyed girl winced under the bright beam for the seventh time, her growing annoyance got the best of her. She shielded her eyes as she glared at her sister, "What the hell, Blossom! Quit shining that thing on me!"
"Sorry!" Blossom moved her flashlight once more. "It's just so dark in here, I can't see you otherwise."
"Yeah, well, quit it," Buttercup muttered, as she wiped away more sweat from her brow. "I'm right here."
"I said I was sorry," Blossom rolled her eyes. It was so uncomfortably hot inside the narrowing tunnel, she could feel her tank top stick to herself with sweat. She tugged at her top, uncomfortably. "This is too much," she stopped in her tracks, and handed her flashlight to Buttercup for a moment. Buttercup focused the second flashlight on her sister, and watched as Blossom cupped her hands together and softly blew a frosty, cool breath against her palms, lowering her own body temperature instantly. Her skin tingled from the relieving sensation, "Much better." She smiled at Buttercup, "Here, let me help."
"Nah, that's OK-" Buttercup began to protest, but her sister interrupted her with an icy breath anyway. The tomboy quickly shut her eyes and held her breath, as Blossom stepped towards her and blew a soft, icy breeze across her face. Buttercup shuttered a little as the sudden chill radiated throughout her body.
Blossom smiled as she took her flashlight back from her sister and shone it on her. "Much better. Am I right?"
Buttercup narrowed her eyes at Blossom, but said nothing. The redhead gave her sibling an innocent smile, before the two continued forward.
"So," Blossom began after several moments of silence. "Have you made your move yet?"
"What?"
"With Robin."
Buttercup blushed slightly, but shook it off fast, "Nah." She paused. "I don't know if I will anymore."
Blossom blinked back at her, "Why not?"
Buttercup shrugged. "I dunno." She avoided looking at her sister, but her face grew hotter as Blossom's flashlight beam illuminated her face once more. As she continued to feel Blossom's stare, and she knew she would have to say more. She sighed heavily, "I just don't think I want to anymore."
"Why?!" Blossom shouted, causing her voice to echo throughout the vacant mines. The redhead blushed from the embarrassment of her own loud reaction. She waited for the echo of her own voice to fade, before continuing more calmly, "I don't understand, Buttercup. I thought you really liked her."
"I do."
"So?"
"So," Buttercup groaned, "Ugh. So," she repeated with obvious annoyance, "Is it so bad that maybe I don't like liking somebody like that?"
"What?"
Buttercup shrugged as she continued to walk beside Blossom. She kept her green eyes on the ground before them where she kept her flashlight shining, "It was one thing to have these stupid feelings that I can't control, but now," Buttercup shuttered a little, "Now, just thinking that she might have those same feelings. I dunno. It's weird. It's creepy. I don't want to think about it, and I definitely can't imagine myself asking her about it either. I thought I wanted to, but now that I guess I can... I don't know anymore."
"How is love weird and creepy?"
"Ugh, don't call it that."
"What? Love? Why not? Isn't that how you feel?"
Buttercup stopped in her tracks, and thought about the question for a moment. She shook her head, "I don't know." She shook her head faster, "And I don't want to know."
Blossom studied her sister's brightly flushed cheeks, hidden behind a forced scowl, and she couldn't help but laugh a little. "Oh my God," she said out loud as it seemed more obvious to her then, "You really do love her," Blossom grinned.
Buttercup's face got redder, and she quickened her pace once more. Blossom kept up beside her as she shone her flashlight on her face which only enhanced the bright color in her cheeks. Buttercup still forced herself to glare angrily, "Back off, Red."
Blossom giggled. "I'm sorry," she couldn't control her laughter, "It's just... this is like the cutest I have ever seen you, Buttercup."
"Ugh! Don't say that!"
"You know what I think?"
Buttercup rolled her eyes. "No. What do you think, Blossom?"
A sly grin swept Blossom's face as she answered, "I think you're scared."
Buttercup stopped in her tracks once more. "What?"
"You heard me," Blossom teased. "Tough rebel Buttercup is afraid to fall in love."
Buttercup glared back at her, "It's not that, alright?" They began to walk again.
"Then why are you blushing so badly?"
"I'm not. It's hot down here, OK?"
"I still feel fine, but if you're hot again, I can-"
"No way!" Buttercup interrupted with a shout which echoed back loudly. She gritted her teeth as she waited for her voice to fade down the narrowing passage way. "Keep your stinking ice breath off of me."
"OK," Blossom shrugged, unconvinced.
The two reached a new juncture, and Blossom led the way through a diagonally sloped path, which dropped down to the third level of the mine. As the two touched down onto the rocky path and continued forward, Buttercup grew annoyed by the smug smile that Blossom seemed to still wear on her face. "I said I'm not scared of stupid love, OK?!" she shouted.
Blossom waited for her sister's echo to fade once more before responding, "OK," she said again. "But if you were scared about falling in love," Blossom continued, "I'm just saying that would be completely natural, Buttercup."
Buttercup bit her lip, and stopped for a moment. She raised an eyebrow, "Would it?"
Blossom nodded.
Buttercup stared back at Blossom for several moments. Her scowl was gone, but her face was still flushed. She pushed past her sister, and continued on in silence.
Blossom followed shortly after her. She chose to keep quiet, as the two moved through the dark tunnel together. She could tell that Buttercup was genuinely struggling with her complicated feelings, and Blossom could empathize with her. That was her the day prior before she had decided to give up pursuing Robin herself. For Blossom, seeing her sister so bashful about something- try as she might to hide it- was a refreshing thing. Buttercup rarely showed a vulnerable side to herself, and it had been such a long time since Blossom had last seen a glimpse of it, she wondered if there was any softness left in her sibling at all. As sick as she used to feel by the idea of her sister with Robin, Blossom could at least now find some comfort knowing that her sacrifice would be for a greater good. Perhaps Robin would be the solution to Buttercup's unhealthy levels of rage.
The mines' third level was thankfully not as hot as the prior level. The curving tunnel was wider and taller than the previous floors, as well. As massive as the mine shaft was, as Blossom and Buttercup traveled they still had to duck low every few yards as they passed under clusters of wooden box fixtures which protruded from above. Some of the giant bins overflowed with rubble and dirt that spilled across the ground.
As they passed one of the large wooden chutes, the bottom of it burst open, and an avalanche of rocks spilled out. Buttercup and Blossom whipped around quickly, surprised by the sudden, unexpected noise. Quickly, they focused the beams of their flashlights on the waterfall of rocks. They watched as the heavy sand and debris piled onto the ground.
"Did you knock that while you passed?" Blossom questioned as the spill finally came to a rest.
"No," Buttercup answered. "Did you?"
"No."
They exchanged glances. Buttercup smirked a little as she raised her flashlight to her face and spoke in a low, creepy tone, "Haunted miiines," she waved her hand in her sister's face who looked genuinely spooked.
Blossom swatted her sister's hand away, "Cut it out, Buttercup."
The two sisters turned back around, and continued down the path ahead. Each took extra precaution as they carefully maneuvered around the repeating pattern of suspended wooden ore bins. "There should be another drop up ahead," Blossom explained as she continued to lead the way.
Sure enough, as the mile long tunnel curved, they came to another diagonally placed drop. The wooden framed winze seemed to glisten as the girls shone their flashlights on the opening. As they walked closer, Blossom stopped as she noticed a strange resistance from the bottom of her sneakers. She shone her flashlight on the ground and noticed a silvery, stringy substance. She knelt down and touched it gently with her fingers and found it to be incredibly sticky. Blossom rose to her feet again and took a step back as her flashlight traced the webbing spread all across the floor, and stretched around the wooden framed entrance. "Buttercup, wait," Blossom instructed.
Buttercup stopped at the entrance of their next path downward. She turned back around, and faced Blossom with a confused look. Blossom held a finger up to her lips, signaling for her sister to remain quiet. She then motioned with her hand for Buttercup to back away from the entrance as she focused with her super hearing on the distant sound of something unknown drawing near.
Buttercup slowly turned back around to face the darkened pathway before them, and slowly inched backward towards her sister as her ears focused on the same, scurrying noise which grew even louder.
Blossom spoke low to her sister in a quiet whisper, "We need to go that way. So we got to draw whatever it is out of there, got it?"
"Got it." Buttercup gulped. "It's going to be a giant spider, isn't it?"
"I don't want to scare you, Buttercup," Blossom kept her eyes focused on the tunnel opening as the scattering noise grew louder and their enemy drew closer, "But yeah. I'm pretty sure that's why there's all this webbing here."
"Fuck," Buttercup muttered. Out of all the giants to have survived the government funded warfare, it had to be her least favorite. The arachnophobic teenager shuttered a little, but remained ready.
"I have a plan."
"OK, what is it?"
"You wait here, and as soon as it comes out, I need you to lead it back the way we just came, OK?"
"Wait what?" Buttercup looked for her sister to her right, but she had already flown away to her position. "Dammit, Blossom!"
Buttercup whipped back around, and her green eyes widened as her flashlight's beam reflected off eight glowing red eyes that stared back at her. Buttercup could hear the enormous spider's fangs click creepily as the monster probably imagined how its new prey would taste. Buttercup remained completely still, and so did the spider, save for its clicking fangs which began to salivate with dripping venom. Buttercup knew as soon as she made a move, the beast would strike, and she remained too scared to even blink. The tension grew as she continued to stare down the spider. She silently cursed her sister in her head for leaving her behind, and giving her no choice but to face this fear.
The green Puff took a single deep breath before she gathering enough courage to take off with a flash of green light. The arachnid's senses were just as quick, and the massive, hairy brown spider scurried after her with lightning speed.
There was just enough room within the thirty-foot tall tunnel walls for the great spider to maneuver through, but it remained close behind Buttercup who flew in and out of the labyrinth of ore bins that crisscrossed throughout the dark tunnel. As the spider reached a particularly tight spot between the wooden chutes, a bright pink light suddenly cut across the rocky ceiling of the tunnel, and sliced through the top of several of the ore bins at once.
Buttercup skidded to stop as she watched the monstrous spider become crushed by the avalanche of rocks that rained down on him from above. The giant struggled to fight its way above the rubble, but the volume was too great. Within seconds, the beast was buried alive.
As the dust settled and the heavy spill came to a rest, Buttercup looked to her sister who hovered above her, wearing a proud smile. She lowered herself back to floor, "Good job, Sis."
Buttercup clutched her chest, still feeling her heart race, "Why did I have to be the bait, huh?" she breathed heavily.
Blossom shrugged, "You're faster." As the two squeezed past the fresh mountain of rocks that now made the tunnel path incredibly tight, Blossom continued, "Plus. Doesn't it feel good to face your fears?"
Buttercup groaned. "Dude, seriously?"
"I'm just saying," she smiled as they reached the entrance to the next level once more, "If you can face that. I'm sure you can ask a girl out."
Buttercup shook her head, and rolled her eyes a little. "Sure, Blossom. Whatever you say." She shone her flashlight's beam down the next drop, and still felt disturbed by the sight of all the spider's webbing. She stood aside from the entrance, "You first."
Blossom confidently stepped forward and lead their descending climb downward. Buttercup followed closely behind her, carefully avoiding hanging bits of spider webs which coated the walls of the long tunnel-way. As the two entered the fourth floor, both sighed deeply with relief. Buttercup- glad to be out of the spider's den. Blossom- glad to have reached their ultimate destination.
Blossom sat her flashlight on the floor, so that the light faced upward, illuminating the rocky, jagged ceiling above. She knelt down and began to fish through her backpack, "This is it. The last level of the mine where the Professor discovered cinnabar x."
Buttercup shone her light across the rocky terrain. There were rows of pillars carved from the mountain itself, which stretched down a long, narrowing pathway. From that main path, there were many smaller tunnels which split off in all different directions. There were large heaps of rocks at every small tunnel entrance that spilled across the main path.
"What are we here for exactly?" Buttercup turned back to face her sister.
As her flashlight beam focused on Blossom, the redhead retrieved a wand-like device from her backpack. "Cinnabar x," she repeated. "It's the ore that the Professor needs to make Chemical X." She stood, retrieved her flashlight from the ground, turned it off and tossed it in her bag before zipping it shut. Blossom slung her backpack once more over her shoulder and slid a small switch at the base of the white handled wand she held. The long cylinder-shaped light bulb illuminated in a faint purple light. She held the lamp up to the nearest wall of the tunnel, and began to scan the rocks as she moved down the mine. "It's a mostly black colored rock, so it will be hard to spot," Blossom continued to explain, as Buttercup followed alongside her. "Under this UV light though, it should have a multi-colored glow to it, so that's what we're looking for, OK?" She paused. "Say, what time is it?"
Buttercup pulled her cell from her pocket and checked the time, "Twelve forty," she tucked her phone back.
"Already?" Blossom's pink eyes widened a little. "That only leaves three hours to find it before the Professor gets back home."
Buttercup shone her light on her sister, and quickly noticed that Blossom's breath was visible as the redhead seemed to stare in terror at the mile long main tunnel and its many winding pathways.
Blossom wrapped her free arm around herself, and shivered slightly. While she stood, momentarily stalled by her growing inner anxiety, she felt a nudge on her left shoulder. Blossom glanced to her sister who nudged her once more with her hooded sweatshirt in hand, "Here. Told you to bring a sweater."
Blossom handed the UV lamp for her sister to hold as she slipped on the baggy black jacket. "I'm fine," she insisted as she took the wand back in hand.
"Uh huh," Buttercup shook her head, as she watched her sister closely. "You keep saying that, but make no mistake: I will stab you with that needle you brought if necessary."
Blossom held her hand up, "Buttercup, please only use it as a last resort. Really, I only brought it so you and Bubbles would quit worrying so much." She sighed deeply, "Seriously, if we have to use that, and then we don't find any cinnabar x- that's like the worst possible scenario for this mission. The Professor would be furious if we wasted it over nothing. He made that antidote for emergencies only, got it?"
"Yeah, I got it," Buttercup said as she still shone her light on her sister, "But you can't blame me and Bubbles for being concerned. You said this ice thing happens to you regularly?"
"Not regularly," Blossom rolled her eyes, trying to minimize the issue as best she could.
"OK fine," Buttercup rolled her eyes right back, "But it happens. So why haven't you told us about this before now?"
Blossom frowned, "Look, I'm sorry," she began, "But I swear, I didn't think it was that big a deal. It doesn't happen often. You know when I get overwhelmed, well, I just start to feel a little cold and that's it." She paused for a moment, wondering if she should go on, but Buttercup seemed to be listening, so she continued, "And sure, sometimes... I guess I just feel so helpless, I sorta... freeze up a little. It's only for a few seconds- maybe a minute at most- and then it's done. I never said anything because it's just never been worth mentioning... not until you saw it happen, anyway. Does that make sense?"
She looked to Buttercup who seemed to nod her head slowly. "Yeah," Buttercup said as she nodded, "I get that sometimes, too, I guess."
"You do?"
"I mean not exactly like that, but," Buttercup shrugged, "I mean, sometimes," she paused as she hesitated slightly before continuing. "Well, sometimes I get so mad, I just... tense up really bad..." Blossom watched Buttercup as she clenched her open fist, while her voice drifted for a moment. Buttercup shook her head before continuing, "I dunno. It's like I feel this weird pressure swelling inside me, and my hands cramp up, and start to hurt like hell- punching something helps though, or usually I can just sort grit through it, you know? And then after a few seconds, it's done."
Blossom stared at her sister as she shared her experience with her. Her mind immediately flashed back to the night of their thirteenth birthday, when Buttercup had her big meltdown. "Do you know what happens when it doesn't stop?"
Buttercup blinked back at her, "It always stops."
Blossom shook her head, and began to think out loud, "On our birthday, I think that's when it almost didn't." The redhead frowned, "You still can't remember what happened that night?"
The skinny teen shook her head, "No." Buttercup's mind searched for an answer, but had none. "What happened?"
Blossom stared at her sister. For the first time, she began to draw parallels between her sister's strange power surge and her own occasional chills. The Professor had theorized that Buttercup's emotions were interfering with her powers somehow, but Blossom hadn't imagined the same extreme possibility for herself or even for Bubbles until then. It was clear that Buttercup had genuinely thought her smaller incidents to be normal, just as she had thought her own ice-powers surfacing sporadically was nothing to worry about, but what if there was more to it than that?
Blossom's mind began to race, but before she could get too far, Buttercup interrupted her growing thoughts. "Tell me what happened that night."
"You got really angry," Blossom gulped as she began, "And you just started shaking all of a sudden. Then you balled up your fists like this," Blossom demonstrated with her open hand as she explained in a low, soft voice. "I thought you were going to try and sock me, but then you just started screaming. I tried to talk to you, and ask you what was happening, but I don't think you heard me. You just kept screaming, and then this... green fire engulfed both your hands- I've never seen anything like it before," Blossom's pink eyes locked with Buttercup's, "And you fell over, still screaming like you couldn't bear it. It seemed like you were in so much pain... Your hands glowed green for a while, but then it... stopped. You were completely out of it, afterwards, and then you just... fell asleep."
Buttercup's green eyes were wide as stared back at Blossom. "That's what happened?"
Blossom nodded, "Yeah." She paused. "Has it ever happened like that before?" Buttercup shook her head, and Blossom frowned once more. "We need to find this ore, Buttercup." She sounded more determined then ever, "Without it, there's no more Chemical X. And without that, there is no treatment for any of us."
"Treatment?" Buttercup questioned as she followed Blossom who made her way to the first small tunnel on their left.
"The Professor has been working on a solution for your power surges, but," she waved the UV lamp over the rock pile at the entrance, while Buttercup illuminated the sixty-foot deep shaft with her own light. "I don't think he's even considered having to make enough for possibly all three of us."
"Wow, I feel special," Buttercup muttered sarcastically under her breath. To her, it was no surprise that the Professor would only theorize something to be wrong with her, and not her other two siblings.
"Don't blame him, Buttercup," Blossom began to lecture. "You're the only one to have such a severe incident, after all. It was so self-destructive, it scared him really bad." She moved past her sister as she continued to scan the rocky walls of the narrowing tunnel with the UV light. "This was the last site of excavation, and those miners left it pretty bare according to the Professor's notes. I think we're definitely going to have to dig further to find anything."
"You only have one of those lamp thingies?"
"Unfortunately," Blossom nodded. "How about you dig, and I scan for any traces, OK?"
Buttercup gave Blossom a single nod, "OK."
Professor Utonium rubbed the sore spot behind his neck, as he awoke from his unintentional slumber. He looked around the empty pet hospital waiting room, and was relieved to seemingly have no witnesses to his two hour nap, save for his blonde-haired daughter who sat across from him with a smile.
"Good morning, Professor," Bubbles muffled her giggle behind her hand.
Professor Utonium sat up and couldn't help but laugh a little at himself. "Hello, Sweetie." He glanced around the room once more, "Where's Robin? How's Ginger?"
Bubbles rose from her seat and moved to the chair beside the Professor, "Ginger's going to be OK. Robin's with her now, but the vet still wants her here for another two hours at least for observation." Bubbles smiled weakly. She truly disliked having to lie to the Professor so much, but it was her assigned duty for the day. "Is it OK if we stay here, too, Professor?"
Professor Utonium studied his daughter and sensed something off, but read the situation to be that Bubbles was simply worried about her friend. He gave Bubbles a supportive smile and answered, "Sure thing, Sweetie."
Bubbles reached from across her seat and wrapped her arms lovingly around her father in a sudden tight embrace. "You're the best, Professor."
As the young girl hugged her father, a veterinary assistant peaked out from behind the door to another room, "Sorry, Bubbles. Dr. Weaver was wondering if we could ask for your help again?"
"Coming!" Bubbles answered, before she gave the Professor another weak smile, "Sorry to leave you again, Professor. I'll be right back."
Professor Utonium gave Bubbles a proud grin, "That's OK, Bubbles," he encouraged her with a soft pat on the back, "You go do your thing."
The young Powerpuff's confidence swelled and her blue eyes lit up with joy, "Thanks, Professor!" She gave her dad a quick, loving peck on the cheek before she shot off with a flash of baby blue light.
The Professor retrieved his laptop from where it sat beside him. As he waited for his system to start up, he checked his wristwatch for the time- 1:56 PM. He wondered if Blossom had made any progress with their refinery project at home. He hadn't asked her to work that day, but Blossom seemed to volunteer every day as of late, so he assumed she had. The Professor reached for his cell next, and dialed Blossom's cell, but the call went straight to voicemail. "Strange," he thought to himself, "She's usually quick to answer."
An e-mail alert from the mayor disrupted his momentary concern. The subject of the e-mail: Monster Isle Status. The scientist opened the correspondence, and read it immediately:
"Good Afternoon, Professor Utonium,
I thought you would be pleased to know that I spoke with the governor today, and Townville was graciously granted a small increase on our military spending. With these funds, we seek to speed up our purge efforts for Monster Isle. I still cannot promise you clearance in a month. However, an increase in airstrikes should at least bring your project date closer to the end of this year. I hope this will be sufficient enough for your ongoing research.
Speak to you soon,
Mayor Sara Bellum."
It was the best news he could have hoped for, or at the time, he thought so.
"This," Blossom groaned as she collapsed onto the fresh pile of rubble her sister Buttercup had delivered for her to check next, "is officially a disaster."
"Ah, come on, Red," Buttercup re-emerged from one of the many pits she had dug throughout the final tunnel of the mine's fourth floor. The tomboy's face was smudged with dirt, and her raven black hair was dulled by crusted layers of sand. She carried another large bundle of rocks in her arms and added to the rest of the pile with a careless toss, "I thought we were having fun."
Blossom sat with her face buried in her hands, "We have less than an hour now, and there's been no trace of cinnabar-x," she lifted her head and yelled in frustration, "ANYWHERE!"
As Blossom's voice bounced off the jagged walls of the abandoned mine, Buttercup used her flashlight to look around once more, "Maybe we can try over there next," she pointed at another pathway.
Blossom buried her face once more, "We looked there already," she muttered. "We've literally looked everywhere, and still, it's nowhere to be found."
Buttercup shook some of the sand from her hair as she joined her sister on top of the mountain of rocks. She plopped down beside her, "So then what's next, Leader-Girl?"
Blossom pulled up the zipper to the jacket her sister had lent her, and rose to her feet. Buttercup watched her as she slid down the pile of rocks and continued to wave the UV light over the fresh specimens Buttercup had delivered. "All we can do is keep searching until there's no more time to search."
Buttercup sighed heavily as she rose to her feet next. She shone her flashlight across the main passage way to their left and wondered if she should try digging again elsewhere. As her flashlight's beam scanned the hollow mines, Buttercup felt the hair on the back of her neck rise as an unexpected sing-song whisper filled her left eardrum:
"This way."
The skinny teenager spun around quickly with her flashlight, but saw nothing. "Did you hear that?"
"Hear what?" Blossom responded.
"A voice." Buttercup shone her light next on her sister. "Was it you?"
Blossom rolled her eyes in response, "This is no time for joking, Buttercup." She kicked the pile of rocks at her feet which all had tested negative.
Buttercup turned her back towards Blossom once more as she shone her light on the main tunnel path. She strained her eyes to see in the dark as she waited on edge for an answer to the voice she just heard.
Blossom looked up from her work and strained her own eyes to see her sister. The lamp she used wasn't a very good source of light in the dark, so she could barely make out Buttercup's silhouette some several feet ahead of her. She watched as her sister's shadow began to fade into the dark as Buttercup began to walk back towards the main tunnel. "Hey!" she shouted after her, "Where are you going?!"
Blossom quickly grabbed for her flashlight in her backpack and hurried after Buttercup.
"Seriously, Buttercup. We don't have time for your childish ghost stories, OK?" she began to lecture as she approached her sister from behind. She stopped when she stood beside her, and noticed a strange, dazed expression on Buttercup's face. Her green eyes were wide, and her mouth agape, like she was frozen somehow. Blossom followed her sister's gaze to where she focused her flashlight's beam. As soon as her own eyes fell on the pink mist that steadily crept towards them, she, too, fell into the same trance.
Both girls felt an inexplicable pull towards the growing pink mist in the distance, and they found themselves floating towards it. A high pitched giggle echoed throughout the dark mine, but the hypnotic pink clouds that filled the air overpowered both girls' senses. They were helpless to the strange fog's influence, and they followed it like moths to a flame. Buttercup and Blossom moved slowly down a curving passageway to a dead end, where the mist seemed to evaporate. As the air cleared, Buttercup and Blossom were released from their stupor, and looked at each other, confused as to how they got there.
Before either of them could speak, they were interrupted by a sudden gust of cold wind. The fast breeze ripped past them with such a high velocity, it kicked up the dirt around them. The two girls choked as the cloud of dust took a while to settle.
"What the hell was that?" Buttercup coughed.
Blossom coughed as well, "No idea. Maybe one of our rock mountains caused an avalanche back there," Her pink eyes fell on the ground at their feet, and saw that the dirt that had been blown away suddenly revealed something new. She gasped as she focused her flashlight on her discovery- several wooden boards nailed shut what appeared to be another vertical drop. "Buttercup, look!" she shouted.
Buttercup knelt down to the ground and began to remove the boards that blocked the entry. Blossom retrieved her notes from her back pocket and flipped through the tiny book in confusion, "Another level?" she questioned out loud, "But there's nothing here about a fifth level."
Buttercup finished removing the last wooden plank and rose to her feet once more. She tried to shine her flashlight's beam down the complete vertical drop, but the passage way stretched further than the light could travel. "Looks like it goes pretty far down."
Blossom stepped towards the entrance, "Let's check it out. We don't have much time."
Both girls dropped down at once. They traveled side by side as they descended deeper into the earth. The air began to grow colder the further down they plummeted. After a few minutes of falling downward, their flashlights finally began to reflect off something below. The passage grew tighter, as they came closer to the shiny object- a bright, glistening, cluster pink colored crystals- they protruded from the walls of the vertical tunnel, leaving only just barely enough space for both girls to squeeze past, as they did, they found more different colored crystal shards cutting across their path downward.
Blossom's eyes widened as she gazed at the colorful kaleidoscope they traveled through, "These specimens are massive," she breathed in awe. "The miners must have stopped before they reached this point."
"Do you hear water?" Buttercup questioned as they continued their descent.
Blossom listened and indeed heard running water below, as the drop began to widen once more. The air grew even colder as the space opened up further below them and revealed a monumentally sized crystal cave.
"Woah," both girls breathed in unison as they lowered themselves at last onto the floor of the enormous, glistening underground canyon. They found themselves beside a small, shallow river that stretched across the gigantic rocky grotto. Where the river widened into a pool of water, there was a trickling light, waterfall in the distance. Above the water fall, hung massive groups of stalactite formations, which formed the crystal cave's ceiling that stretched miles above them.
"This is incredible!" Blossom gently touched a large purple crystal structure to her right, "If the ore's anywhere, it has to be here!" she exclaimed at Buttercup.
Buttercup's eyes followed the flow of the river. She illuminated the water with her flashlight and it, too sparkled, from how rich it was with minerals. "So where should we start?" she glanced back at Blossom.
Blossom joined Buttercup on the riverbank, as she drew close, the purple beam from her UV lamp illuminated the water with sudden faint, neon rainbow glow. Blossom couldn't help but immediately cross into the river which only ran just past her ankles. She glided the wand over the river's surface and felt her heart soar at the sight of speckled traces of bright pink, blue and green florescent glowing. She immediately yanked her sister by her arm, pulling her into the stream with her in pure excitement, "It's here! Look!"
Buttercup saw the faint tri-colored glow for herself, but barely had time to react before her sister continued to drag her down the river alongside her. As Blossom splashed along the riverbank, the water seemed to glow brighter and brighter, as they traveled deeper and deeper into the dark crystal cave. She traced the river back to the pool which surrounded the small waterfall at the farthest end of the cavern. As Blossom held up the UV light to the jet black, rocky wall behind the waterfall, an almost blinding fluorescent radiance of bright pink, blue and green shone powerfully.
"Oh my God," Blossom lowered the lamp, and reached through the waterfall with her free hand. She held her breath as her hand gently caressed the ore-rich wall. "This is it!" she exclaimed, still somewhat in disbelief as she stroked the smooth service of the dark crystal. Her pink eyes watered a little as she was hit with relief, joy and wonderment all at once, "I can't believe how perfect it is," she breathed in amazement with her pink eyes glistening. "It's truly just... perfect."
Buttercup couldn't help but roll her eyes. "Jeez, Blossom," she muttered. "It's a rock." She then, too reached for the ore, but with a hard fist, breaking off a sizeable chunk of black ore. She tossed the softball sized rock to her sister, "Mission accomplished."
Blossom caught the piece of ore and glared at her sister, annoyed by her insensitivity. She wanted to lecture her sister on the importance of their discovery, but she bit her tongue and returned her attention to the mission at hand. She held the rock up before her, "Not quite," the pink Powerpuff used her laser eye beams to carefully carve down the mineral to the size of a golf ball. "I lost fifteen grams, so that's what I need to replace." She smiled at her finished product, placing it in the center of her palm and feeling its weight. "That's more like it."
Buttercup blinked back at her, "Are you serious?"
"What?"
"There's like a ton of it here!" Buttercup shouted as she motioned to the massive rock behind the waterfall. "And all we're gonna take back is that?!" she pointed at the tiny rock specimen in Blossom's palm. "Didn't you say the Professor needed more? Well, let's take more! At least more than that!" she scoffed the ore once more.
Blossom's pink eyes narrowed for a moment before she spoke in a calm lecture, "If we take more, then the Professor will know that we broke into Monster Isle. He'll also know that we all lied to him, and he'll know that you were out of the house when you're still supposed to be grounded," Blossom shook her head. "We can't take more than what needs to be replaced. At least when the Professor begins his expedition, I'll be able to point him in the right direction. The rest will have to wait."
Buttercup groaned, "Dude, that is so lame!"
"Fine, I guess I'm lame then," Blossom rolled her eyes.
Buttercup gritted her teeth as she watched Blossom carefully placed the cinnabar x safely in her backpack along with her light wand. The tomboy muttered something under her breath, but the grumble was too low for Blossom to hear.
Blossom slung her backpack back over her shoulder. "What did you say?"
"I said," Buttercup groaned again, "Let's just get this stupid mission of yours over with."
Blossom blinked back, "It's our mission."
"No," Buttercup sighed heavily. "Once again, Blossom, this turned out to be your mission. Me and Bubbles? Once again, we're just along for the ride."
"That is nowhere near the truth, Buttercup!" Blossom defended herself. "We all agreed to do this together!"
"Yeah, but everything was your idea!"
"Are you serious, Buttercup?" Blossom almost laughed, "You were the one who first suggested we could handle the monsters!"
"Uh duh. 'Cause it was obvious!"
"You know, you were all about it when you thought it'd be a parade of monster beat downs, and now I think you're just disappointed that our trip wasn't as violent as you would have liked it to be."
Buttercup glared at her sister, "That's not the only reason I agreed to the plan."
"But you admit that you and Bubbles agreed to this. Again, it's collectively our mission."
Buttercup groaned loudly, "You know if we were really here to make a difference then we'd be taking back what the Professor actually needs. Not just enough to save your stupid Goody-Goody favorite status! I can't believe I didn't catch this bullshit until now!"
Blossom stared back at her sister, "Favorite status?"
Buttercup's green eyes narrowed even more, as she continued to glare back at her sister, "Don't act dumb. You know what I mean."
"I am not the favorite, Buttercup!" Blossom defended.
"Of course you are! You've always been the favorite, Blossom!"
"That's ridiculous! The Professor is our dad, and parents don't have favorites. Everyone knows this."
"Right," Buttercup scoffed, "Dad." She kicked at the shallow water at their feet as she began to stomp angrily back down the river. "Let's go, Dork Junior!" she called back from afar, "Before Dad gets home and finds out you're not the perfect little lab rat he thinks you are!"
Blossom's anger began to surface, but she tried her best to push it back down. She had no idea what suddenly seemed to sour Buttercup's mood, but she tried to remain focused on the task before them. She wasn't going to let Buttercup's bitterness spoil an otherwise successful mission. She caught up to her sister with a flash of pink light, and then continued to travel beside her. "Dork Junior is a new one," she tried to lighten the mood, "I think I like it."
Buttercup's eyes narrowed once more, "You would."
As they reached the vertical climb back to the top, Buttercup stopped in her tracks. A devious smile swept her face, and she laughed a little to herself. Blossom stared at her with suspicion, "Now what?"
"Nothing," Buttercup smirked, "Just thinking about how I'm gonna tell the Professor how we spent today." The green Puff began to ascend into the air, but Blossom yanked her back down.
"What?" Blossom's eyes narrowed.
"Oh, yeah. See, I've decided that when we get home, I'm gonna tell him everything," Buttercup continued to grin maliciously, "That way he gets to learn the truth about his perfect little favorite."
"What?! You can't do that, Buttercup!" Blossom immediately shouted.
"Watch me," Buttercup said with a sly smirk.
Buttercup began to fly again, but once again, Blossom grabbed a hold of her, "Why would you go out of your way to wreck everything after all we accomplished today?!" she yelled. "If you tell him, he's still gonna keep you grounded! Maybe even indefinitely for something like this!"
Buttercup tore away from her grasp and shot her a meaner look. "If it means I get to see you finally get yours, then I really don't care!"
Blossom blinked back at Buttercup for a moment, but her attitude shifted as a new thought came to her then. She laughed a little, "You know what? I don't know what I'm so worried about," she shook her head as she laughed, and looked at her sister. "If that's what you go home and do, fine. It will just be your word against mine." Blossom smirked, "Who do you think he's gonna believe? Dork Junior or you?"
In that moment, the fiery rage within Buttercup was ignited.
The skinny teenager still held a flashlight in her hand, but as her body grew stiff, and her hands involuntarily snapped shut, the light dropped to the ground. Buttercup gritted her teeth as she tried to bear the rising pressure within her, feeling herself begin to shake. Blossom retrieved the fallen flashlight and shone the light on her sister, who stood rigid with her hands clenched at her sides, and her eyes shut tightly.
"Oh no," Blossom watched Buttercup shake uncontrollably, as the surging power within her continued to rise. She gulped and cautiously stepped towards her, "Buttercup, you can get through this... Just... breathe."
Buttercup heard Blossom, but was too distracted by the worsening pain that traveled throughout her body. The worst of that pain centered in the palms of her hands. The green Puff tried her best to keep from screaming but as the torturous power surged more, and she couldn't help it. Buttercup cried out loudly in pain as her knees buckled under the pressure, and she fell to the ground.
"Buttercup!" Blossom fell to her knees with her sister, and tried to hold onto her, just like Buttercup had done for her earlier that same day. She was able to eventually talk Blossom down. Maybe now she could do the same for Buttercup? As Blossom grabbed Buttercup by her shoulders, she felt a static charge shock her in return, and she immediately let go from the sudden, unexpected jolt. The voltage was strong enough to keep Blossom from trying to hold her again. The quick zap she felt was painful, and if that small jolt hurt her, she could only imagine what her sister was feeling as the power continued to consume her.
Buttercup screamed again, still bearing her hands in tight fists, which had begun to glow green. Blossom helplessly watched as Buttercup beat the ground with her glowing fists, in an attempt to alleviate some of the pressure, but the green glow around her hands only intensified. As her fists ignited into balls of green, electric fire, she screamed out in agony once more. The green fire glowed bright enough that it illuminated the entire area around them.
Blossom tried talking her sister down once more, "Please, Buttercup!" she shouted at her with desperation. Her pink eyes began to water as she watched her sister slam both her fists into the ground once more, with such force that it cracked the earth beneath them. "You can beat this!" Blossom shouted again, rooting for her sister to overcome her power surge.
"I CAN'T!" Buttercup cry echoed throughout the massive crystal cave.
Blossom had witnessed enough by then to know that Buttercup's episode was becoming a severe situation. She grabbed her backpack and quickly retrieved the capped syringe she had brought with them. Blossom uncapped the needle and swiftly pierced her sister on her right shoulder. As soon as the microdose of Antidote X was administered, the dark cave grew dim once more as the green fire around Buttercup's hands began to slowly dissipate.
Blossom held her breath as she watched Buttercup continue to tremble slightly with her hands clenched. The strange glow had gone, but the teenager remained hunched forward with her eyes clamped shut. Her forehead dripped with sweat, and she groaned as she at long last stretched her fingers open. She opened her eyes and stared at her palms as she continued to uncontrollably shake. "I c-can't stop sh-shaking," Buttercup finally looked at Blossom again, "Why c-can't I stop shaking?"
Blossom inched closer to her sister and gently placed her hand on her shoulder and rubbed it, but Buttercup immediately pulled away.
"I'm s-still mad at y-you!" she glared at Blossom as she trembled.
Blossom frowned. "That's probably why you're shaking then," she spoke softly, still concerned for her sister, "The antidote calmed your powers, but you still need to try and calm down yourself, Buttercup."
"Don't t-tell me what I need to do!" Buttercup climbed to her feet.
Blossom rose to her feet as well, and watched as her sister wrapped her arms around herself and muttered something low to herself. Blossom returned the now empty microdose to her backpack. She checked her cell for the time and saw that they had about fifteen minutes to get home.
Buttercup sat on a nearby rock, and still clung to herself as she trembled, "It's fucking f-freezing down here," she glared at her sister, "I want my jacket back."
Blossom sighed and quickly unzipped her sister's black hoodie and returned it to her, "Here."
Buttercup snatched the clothing from Blossom, and pulled it on quickly. She said nothing, but continued to wear a scowl as she avoided looking at her sister.
"The Antidote X should only last a couple hours," Blossom explained.
"So I won't have any powers for two hours?!" Buttercup instinctively punched the wall behind her, and immediately regretted it. She felt a sharp pain as her fist met the rock, reminding her of her recent vulnerability, "FUCK!" she shouted. The teenager's knuckles throbbed horribly, and the discomfort only worsened her mood.
Blossom frowned, "Your powers will come back. Just calm down."
"STOP TELLING ME TO CALM DOWN!"
Buttercup's echo rang out throughout the cavern, and Blossom waited for it to fade before continuing, "We have to get going, Buttercup."
"How the hell am I supposed to go anywhere if I can't fly?!" Buttercup questioned angrily. She had finally stopped shaking.
"Well," Blossom shrugged, "I can carry you."
"No way!" Buttercup stubbornly crossed her arms.
Blossom sighed deeply, "Come on, Buttercup. How else are you going to get out of here?"
"I don't care."
"You're being irrational."
"I don't care." She refused to look at Blossom, "I'll just wait here until my powers come back."
"There isn't enough time for that, Buttercup." Blossom began to feel the pressure of the ticking clock. "We have to go now." She approached her sister and tried to stand in front of her, but she stubbornly turned away from her once more. "Please, don't make me drag you out of here by force."
"You wouldn't dare."
"I would, and I definitely could," Blossom placed her hands on her hips.
Buttercup kept her arms folded across her chest, and her head turned away from the redhead, communicating to her that she had no intention on moving voluntarily.
Blossom waited for a full minute for Buttercup to surrender, and when she didn't, she scooped her skinny sibling up in her arms, and exited the crystal cave with a flash of pink light.
Her sister grabbed her so fast, Buttercup only realized what had happened when she found herself suddenly deafened by the whistling wind that ripped past her ears. As she clasped her hands over her ears, she next realized she was cradled in Blossom's arms as they flew at high speed through the maze of tunnels throughout the mine. Buttercup tried to fight against her sister's grasp, but Blossom had a firm hold of her as she maneuvered through the underground network.
As Blossom felt her sister struggle in her embrace, she told her, "Sorry, Buttercup, but you left me with no choice."
Buttercup opened her mouth to yell back an insult, but stopped as she felt her stomach drop while Blossom turned a sharp corner, still flying at high speed. Normally, Buttercup had no issue handling speeds twice as fast, but with the Antidote X still active in her system, she was still very much like an average human teenager. She began to feel nauseous as Blossom made another series of quick maneuvers, before darting upwards towards the first level of the mine once more. "Blossom, slow down!" Buttercup yelled as she felt like her sister only increased in speed as they reached the last mile stretch of the mines.
As they entered the canyon passage outside of the mines, Buttercup had to shut her eyes as her dizziness worsened. "Put me down!" Buttercup struggled again to break free from Blossom's hold.
"No, Buttercup, we're going home!"
"Fine, but just stop!" Buttercup yelled. She felt another drop in her already weak stomach. "Blossom, I swear if you don't stop right now, I am going to puke all over you!"
Blossom immediately skittered to a stop as they entered the island's shore side and gently set her sister on her feet. Buttercup ran directly to a nearby rock formation, leaned over and vomited. Blossom frowned as she watched her sister lay sickly over a beach boulder and moaned miserably. Blossom floated over to her and rubbed Buttercup's back as she lurched one more time.
"I'm sorry," Blossom tried as she continued to massage her sister's shoulder blades.
Buttercup used her jacket sleeve to wipe her mouth. She spit at the sand before answering, "Sure you are."
Blossom frowned, "You wanna ride piggyback style instead?"
Buttercup glared at her.
"I'm sorry, Buttercup, but," Blossom sighed heavily, "What do you want from me? It's not like we have many options here." She felt her cellphone buzz in her pocket and she quickly read the message, "It's Bubbles. We have ten minutes." She frowned at Buttercup, "Please," she begged, "We're so close to pulling this off, and none of us will get in trouble if we just stick to the plan."
"Ugh," Buttercup groaned. "Whatever." She stood behind Blossom and looped her arms around her neck as she began to slowly ascend into the air.
"I won't go as fast this time. Promise," Blossom said as they took off. "Just please try not to puke in my hair, OK?"
Buttercup held onto her sister as they rose above the sandy beaches, and began to fly over the cliff-side and towards the island jungle. While they flew, Buttercup still felt a burning hatred for Blossom in that moment. She was angry about being reduced to weak mortal, and she blamed her sister for the entire situation. Next there would be the inevitable dread she would have to face once they got home. Blossom would continue lying to the Professor as if nothing ever happened that day, and Buttercup could either go along with it or she could try to convince the Professor of the truth. Convincing him wouldn't be easy. If it was Blossom's word against Buttercup's, it didn't look good for Buttercup. Her troublemaker reputation and long history of lying ensured that she lost that scenario every time. If Buttercup wanted to expose Blossom, she would need irrefutable proof, but what?
As they began to enter the tropical island forest, Buttercup decided she would not let Blossom win this one so easily. Blossom flew at a steady speed, and it was just slow enough for Buttercup to effectively time a perfect escape. As they flew through the thick forest, Buttercup grabbed a passing branch and swung herself off of her sister's back. She struggled for a moment to pull herself up on the branch, but managed to get herself safely on the thick branch's surface. She then quickly ducked behind the tree's dense green foliage and stayed low and out of sight.
Blossom stopped as soon as she felt the weight of her sister leave her. She whipped around, confused, and searched the ground at first, thinking that Buttercup might have fallen. She quickly realized that wasn't the case, and that her sister had ditched her purposely. "Buttercup, this isn't funny!" she shouted at the surrounding forest as she tried to scan for sister.
Buttercup held her breath as she stayed hidden. Her plan was simple. If she could delay them getting home on time, they'd be busted. Time was already ticking, and soon it would be too late. Sure, she'd get in trouble, but more importantly it would be Blossom who got in trouble, too. Buttercup smirked slyly to herself as she heard Blossom continue to call out for her with increasing urgency in her voice as the minutes began to pass.
"Seriously, Buttercup?!" Blossom shouted again. "We're running out of time!"
Blossom's heart began to race, as she tried her best to locate her missing sibling. She knew what Buttercup was trying to do. It not only angered her, but her fear of being found out was growing even stronger. As she scanned the jungle one last time, she yelled out in frustration, "Fine! If you don't want to get back before the Professor and get caught then that's on you, Buttercup! I'm going home! With, or without you!"
She waited for an answer, but received none. Buttercup probably thought she was bluffing, but Blossom was serious. She refused to let Buttercup ruin this. No way. Not after everything, and not after getting so far. Blossom figured if she was forced to return home without Buttercup, she could simply tell the Professor she had no idea that Buttercup had gone out. After all, it wouldn't be the first time. As for Buttercup? She'd get her powers back soon enough, and hopefully by the time she returned home on her own, she would have calmed down enough to perhaps reconsider throwing both her siblings under the bus.
Buttercup remained still as she waited in her hiding spot. After a few moments of silence, she finally peered from behind the brush, and saw that her sister hovered on the other side of the island's steel grated ceiling, sealing her exit with her laser eye beams before she zipped off quickly in a flash of pink light. Buttercup stood from her spot and watched as her sister flew away in the distance, "That bitch..."
As Blossom raced through the dusky, late afternoon sky, she could feel her heart beating fiercely within her chest. Thanks to Buttercup's shenanigans, there was no more time to waste, and she felt very much on edge. She had to replace the missing ore in the Professor's lab before he returned home. He would wonder why she hadn't begun it's refinement. There would be a lot of questions to answer, and she had to be smart about it. Blossom imagined she could conveniently use Buttercup as an excuse. If he knew she had to deal with that on her own, he'd understand why no work had been done. "She had an episode while you were out, Professor," Blossom rehearsed the scenario in her mind, "And I had to use the microdose formula to help her, and-'
The teenager's thoughts were interrupted by a fast approaching object in the distance. A single military jet soared at top speed towards her. Blossom quickly dropped downward, and fell out of the path of the speedy aircraft. She turned her head as it whipped by, and followed its path with her pink eyes. A look of pure terror swept the girl's face as she watched the sleek jet swiftly reach its target.
Monster Isle.
"No, wait!" is what Blossom tried to shout, but she found herself paralyzed in that moment.
Within seconds, the bomber aircraft soared directly over the caged island, and it released a barrage of warfare upon the land. A heavy shower of thousands of blinking, spherical devices dropped from the jet, and fell through the grated ceiling of the monster prison.
The pink Puff was suspended in the sky, as she looked on in horror. She wasn't sure what sort of weaponry was being deployed, but her mind instantly flashed back to the carnage she and Buttercup had discovered on the island earlier that day, and she knew instantly that this was that. Blossom knew she should fly into action. Everything within her begged for her to go, but an icy chill had instantly swept her the moment her eyes fell on the island in the distance.
She could see her own icy breaths escape her mouth in rapid small puffs, as she began to hyperventilate. The girl was overcome by the most powerful sense of dread she had ever faced. She was a gravity-defying statue in the sky, and slowly, she began to freeze over.
Her mind screamed at her to move. "Go! Get Buttercup! Now! What are you waiting for?! Why can't you move?!" She could feel her cell phone buzzing over and over again in her shorts pocket. However, try as she might, Blossom could not budge an inch. All she could do was look on helplessly as the bomber jet curved back around in the sky, and re-approached the island with another heavy shower of falling golf ball sized missiles.
If she had been able to, Blossom would have shut her eyes right then, but that was impossible for her.
Blossom was frozen.
Buttercup sat perched on the tree branch with her back up against the tree's wide trunk. She found herself stuck there for the time being. She was at least forty feet from the ground, and a climb down with no superpowers would be risky. While she rested under the coverage of the tree's thick foliage, she could clearly see the land below. Slowly she began to spot the occasional beast roaming through the jungle. Buttercup rolled her eyes at this, "What? Were they hiding from us this whole time?" she thought to herself with annoyance.
The teenager still stewed in her anger as she racked her mind for a strategy on how to outplay her sister somehow. While she contemplated what she could do, she noticed a six-legged elk-like creature who had been grazing the forest below begin to take off suddenly. Next, a massive flock of birds ripped through the jungle top and towards the island ceiling. The thousands of birds squawked loudly, seemingly in a frenzied panic as they rushed to escape the island. Buttercup watched them soar away in confusion, and then began to hear a distant growing whistle in the sky.
The strange sound was enough to bring the teenager to her feet. Buttercup stood upon the tree branch, and stared upward. A sudden cascade of blinking, round devices dropped from the sky like a passing hailstorm. She watched as most of these strange metal balls ricocheted along the jungle top, and scattered all across the forest floor. As she watched the military devices roll along the ground, she saw that the steady red blinking lights each capsule possessed began to blink faster.
In time with the increasing blinking she witnessed, Buttercup heard a steady beeping noise begin to also grow directly overhead. She glanced upward and saw that one of the capsules was wedged on a branch directly above her. She quickly grabbed the metal device and swiftly tossed it as far away from herself as she could. As it soared through the air, it detonated along with the thousands of others like it. As the tiny bombs exploded, they sprayed a glowing green substance in all directions. Everything the acidic chemical came in contact with began to instantly sizzle and melt away. The capsule that Buttercup had tossed shot a stream of the green substance that splattered across a nearby tree. Buttercup watched as the glowing green acid began to quickly eat away at the branches it infected. The substance worked quickly, and the branches of that tree- and hundreds of others in the forest- began to tumble and fall, crashing violently onto the ground below.
Shrieks, roars, and cries began to fill Buttercup's ears as terror spread everywhere around her in an unbelievable instant. She fell backwards as the tree she was stranded upon began to shake. Buttercup clung to the tree's trunk for security while the entire forest floor trembled below. A stampede of beasts of every species fled from the jungle and traveled down the mountainside. Buttercup noticed that some of the creatures that ran, screamed in agony as body parts of theirs burned from the acid wounds they had sustained.
Buttercup scrambled to retrieve her cellphone from her jeans and quickly dialed for Blossom. As she waited for an answer, she continued to witness the chaos below. Slowly, the size of the herd of creatures fleeing began to die down, and Buttercup could begin to make out several casualties left behind. They lay writhing in pain on the ground as pieces of their flesh continued to melt away.
There was a sudden crashing to her right as another massive tree fell over, and crashed into another tree, causing a domino-like effect across the forest. The unexpected noise had made Buttercup jump, and she clung tighter to her tree trunk in desperation, still waiting for Blossom to answer as she watched the jungle around her continue to fall.
Buttercup's call rang until it reached Blossom's voicemail: "Hi, it's Blossom! Leave a message!"
Buttercup screamed into the phone at the top of her lungs, "FUCK YOU, BLOSSOM!" before she hung up.
Her fingers trembled as she dialed for Bubbles next.
The sun hung low in the horizon as Bubbles walked Robin and Ginger back home for the evening. As she watched the Professor walk along their home's driveway, she heard her cellphone ringing in her overalls pocket. "Hello?" she answered promptly.
"Bubbles!" Buttercup yelled loudly on the other end, and Bubbles could immediately sense the desperation in her sister's voice. She halted in her steps as her sister continued to scream, "Bubbles, I need you! Get to Monster Isle NOW!"
Robin stopped too, and watched Bubbles with concern as her friend's blue eyes grew wide while she listened intently to her phone, "What do you mean?! You're not home yet?!"
"NO! Bubbles, please! Get here fast! I really-"
Bubbles stared at her phone and saw that the call had dropped.
"What's wrong?" Robin questioned as she stood with her cat's carrier still in hand.
"I'm not sure, but I gotta go!" Bubbles shouted her answer as she shot off at once.
The blue Powerpuff tore the through the sky at lightening speed. The moment she heard the panic in Buttercup's voice, her instincts knew something had gone terribly wrong. Determined to reach her sister quickly, Bubbles managed to reach the coast in a minute flat. As she neared the ocean, her blue eyes focused on something suspended in the air in the distance.
She gasped as she began to recognize the silhouette, "Blossom!"
The young hero bolted for her sister immediately. She found the redhead completely encased in ice, and made fast work with her laser eye beams to melt away the ice around her head. As Blossom's face broke through the ice, she gasped loudly for air. She continued to wheeze while her teeth chattered uncontrollably, as Bubbles melted the ice around her as fast as she could. As Blossom began to finally regain mobility in her limbs once more, she gasped to her sister between deep breaths, "We need... to save... Buttercup..."
Bubbles nodded and grabbed Blossom by the wrist. She carried her with her as the two took off quickly for Monster Isle.
"What do you mean?! You're not home yet?!" Bubbles shouted from the other end.
"NO!" Buttercup screamed back into her cellphone as the whistle of the bomber jet returning overhead caused her voice to shake with fear, "Bubbles, please!" she pleaded into her phone, "Get here fast! I really-"
Buttercup immediately dropped her phone as her green eyes fell upon the next round of acid bombs that rained from the sky. A blinking metal capsule came to a rest just two branches above her. This one was too far for her to reach, but it wasn't far enough to spare her from its blast once it detonated. Buttercup's eyes quickly darted about her surroundings as she frantically searched for a way out. She could hear the faint beeping of the acid bomb begin to slowly increase its tempo.
She spotted a branch to a nearby tree which seemed clear of any deadly devices, and although she knew the gap between herself and that branch would be a hard space for her to clear, she didn't see any other choice. Buttercup leapt from the tree branch. She fell short of her target, and plummeted to the forest below.
The teen rolled as she landed on the steep forest ground. She managed to only sustain a sprained wrist from the forty foot drop, but she had no time to react to it. She scrambled onto her feet, realizing quickly that she was now surrounded by blinking capsules in every direction imaginable.
Buttercup took off in a frantic sprint, running as fast as her mortal legs could carry her. As the terrain sloped downward, she tripped and instantly began to tumble down the steep, mountain side. She continued to roll with increasing speed until she found herself on the the island's shore.
Buttercup felt the wind completely knocked from her as she landed face first in the silvery sand. She was badly scraped up from her fall, and the sand in her wounds wasn't a pleasant feeling. Her head also throbbed horribly, as she struggled to lift herself back up. She had felt a hard knock against the back of her head at one point during her tumble. There was a ringing in her ears, as she touched the tender spot on the back of her head and felt a stickiness.
Buttercup blinked at the blood on her fingers, still completely stunned from her fall. As the ringing in her ears began to fade, she next heard a rapid beeping coming from her right side. As she turned her head to look, the acid bomb detonated. All Buttercup could do was throw her hands up in front of her as the green acid sprayed in her direction.
She felt the sting to her hands first, followed by a stinging slap across her right eye. She shut her eyes quickly as she felt the chemical goop make contact, but the burning came quickly. It felt as if her right eyeball was instantly set on fire as the chemical heat from the acid seared her right eyelid. Buttercup screamed out in agony as the acid began to eat away at her flesh on both her hands, forearms and face. She pried her left eye open, and witnessed the skin on her finger tips slowly begin to peel away. She screamed again in excruciating pain as her one good eye looked beyond her melting flesh, and focused on the ocean waves that were not far. Desperate for relief, Buttercup forced herself onto her feet, and sprinted for the water.
"BUTTERCUP!" Bubbles called out as Blossom sealed their entryway behind them. As she hovered in the sky above the mountain top forest, her blue eyes widened in horror at the sight of the hundreds of monster bodies littered across the floor below.
Blossom quickly joined Bubbles by her side and called for her sister next, "BUTTERCUP!" she shouted at the top of her lungs.
Neither could hear an answer and they exchanged fearful glances with one another before quickly darting forward. Both girls scanned the area around them as they flew through the jungle and took turns calling out for their sister. Bubbles spotted a small detail on the ground of the forest floor and took off with a flash of blue light. Blossom followed after with a flash of pink.
As Blossom joined Bubbles on the ground, the blue Puff looked at her with tears in her eyes as she held the bracelet Buttercup had received as a gift from Robin. The tears streamed uncontrollably down Bubbles face as she imagined the worst. Blossom also felt her own heart stop in that moment as she was hit with crippling dread. Just as the two girls were about to speak their fear out loud, their super-hearing picked up on a familiar, distant groan.
In an instant, both super-powered girls were zooming through the air at top speed in that direction. At the same time, they both spotted their sister, faced down in the lapping waves of the sea. She lay flat on her belly at the edge of the ocean water that gently cascaded across her outstretched arms. As the waves receded, the clear water swirled with traces of bright red blood.
While Bubbles increased her speed towards her sister, Blossom found herself screeching immediately to a full stop. The fear of what she may find kept her from going any further. She watched Bubbles reach her sister, and waited with bated breath for an answer.
"Buttercup!" Bubbles cried as she landed beside her sister on the wet sand. She immediately rolled her sister over, so that she was on her back, and carefully rested her body across her lap.
Buttercup choked as she turned over. Her chest heaved suddenly as she began to spit up sea water while her sister held her in her arms. As she fought to regain her senses, it hurt to open her eyes- especially the right one- in fact, it was completely swollen shut. Her body ached so terribly, she found it impossible to move. She looked up at her blue-eyed sibling who stared back at her with streams of tears flooding down both her chubby cheeks.
Bubbles tried her best to ignore the gory sight of Buttercup's fresh wounds to her hands and face. She could tell her sister was slipping quickly back into unconsciousness, and she needed her to stay awake, "Please, Buttercup," she begged as she petted her sister's jet black hair. "Please stay awake." Her tears splashed down on her sister's forehead as she continued to cry, "Please stay with us."
Blossom joined them on the shore. She stood above Buttercup with her mouth agape as she gazed upon the acid burns that were seared into her sister's flesh. Buttercup's hands and forearms were so bloody, Blossom wondered if there was any skin left at all. Then there was the right side of her face- completely swollen and also a bloody mess.
Blossom studied the gash to her sister's right eye, and while she stared, her pink eyes locked with her sister's left.
As Buttercup's eyesight slowly began to fade away to black, she stared back at Blossom, who had the backdrop of the setting sun's radiance shining brightly behind her.
