I think four years later is an acceptable time for an update to this little thing.
During the time it took me to get the motivation and courage to continue this story, FusionFall was rereleased by the fans as FusionFall Retro! Check it out today to get your FusionFall fix, and even meet the protagonist of this story in game!
Special thanks to my friend zerowing21 for beta reading this chapter for me.
4 March 2044
"Order!"
Mr. Kilroy Green was never the type to raise his voice. After teaching kindergartners for so many years, one learns to control and contain outbursts like this. He didn't want to scare the children, fearing his green skin and black horns did that job already. However, this wasn't a kindergarten classroom. This was the Underworld, and the outburst was targeted at the other demons sitting at the conference table with Kilroy. Seated at the opposite end of the table was a tall and slender creature whose smile could strike fear into the hearts of the bravest warriors. The demon lifts one of his arms, using his lobster claw to adjust the color on his deep red suit. He begins to snicker, eyes locking with Mr. Green.
"My, my," the entity's two-toned voice rang out. "I never knew little Kilroy was capable of such vigor."
"I'm not in the mood to play games today Him." Kilroy replied, adjusting his posture as he stares down the table.
Seated between Him and Kilroy were several other high-ranking demons in the Underworld. A skeleton draped in black moped next to Him, his skull moving to glare at both demons at the head of the table. The bag of bones released a noticeable yawn, triggering the small, yellow-horned and green-skinned demon next to him to grow a sour expression. This creature turned their head, rolling up the sleeves of their suit and resting their elbows on the table.
"What are we here to do then?" the suited demon remarked, looking to Kilroy.
"Well, Them, if we could all remain silent for just a minut-" Kilroy began to answer, only to be cut off by the skeleton.
"Just get on wit' it." he grumbles. A creature with a flaming blue head next to Them begins to chuckle, as well as a small elephant creature next to him. Kilroy's eyes narrow in on the blue-flamed demon.
"This meeting concerns your master Demongo." Mr. Green grunted.
"Ehrmp..." Demongo stuttered, his demeanor quickly shifting, "W-What do you desire to know of Demongo's Master?"
"As I'm sure you're quite familiar with," Kilroy begins, his gaze shifting to address all the beings in the room, "Our Underworld is quite fortunate enough to be the home-dwellings of the Dark Wizard. His unthinkable power is known across the universe, so it's usually not a huge issue if he's gone for a few days or-"
"Get to da' point!" the skeleton interrupted again.
"Aku is missing," Kilroy snapped back, "Is that quick enough for you Grim?" Demongo audibly gulps.
"Ahhhh!" Him clamped one of his claws, causing all heads to turn to him. "I was wondering when it would be brought up!"
"Aku's been missing for exactly 11 months." Kilroy released a soft sigh. "I understand he's not bound to this world by any means, but it is strange... Demons rarely jump ship to another Underworld. Further more, we would've heard about him visiting another by now if he did." His eyes find Demongo again. "Do you know of your master's affairs?"
"D-Demongo, uhrm, hasn't spoken to his Master in a very long time..." The blue-flamed demon began to sulk in his seat. "And even then, Master Aku wouldn't divulge all his secrets to Demongo."
"I just wonder why silly ol' Kilroy is so interested in the doings of the Dark Wizard, hmm?" Him sneered in reply, covering his chuckling mouth with his clawed hand.
"I..." Kilroy trailed off, looking to the eyes of each creature seated before him. "I had a feeling."
"A feeling?" Them, the suited demon exclaimed. "We were called here for a damn feeling!?"
"Yes!" the small, green elephant demon peeped.
"A feeling that the Underworld... Nay, the whole planet...!" Kilroy released a deep sigh loose as a new figure entered the room. "Something is coming to threaten us."
"By what exactly?" the new face asked as he leaned in the doorway. "Brother?"
"King Abyssal!" Both Demongo and Them scrambled to bow before the Demon King. The tall and slender demon stepped forward, coming to take a seat next to his sibling, Kilroy. Although related, Javerick Von Abyssal's hair didn't share the same green color as Kilroy's, and instead was an intense red color. His hair grows long to cover his back, and drape over the King's wings. His skin is a fair color, almost looking as a human Caucasian and his outfit was jet black with hints of red. A suit fit for a King.
"Javerick..." the king's brother muttered as he watches him take a seat. "I called this meeting to bring Aku's disappearance to light."
"This isn't news," Javerick scoffed, leaning back in his chair. "I asked what is supposedly threatening us."
A sigh escaped from Mr. Green's lips once again. "I- I'm not positive, brother, I ju-"
"Then we have nothing to worry about." The King shrugged as he cuts off his brother. "Imagine how crazed the masses would get if we always acted on feelings."
"If I may," The skeleton interjected, holding his bone of a finger up to draw attention.
"You may speak, Grim." Javerick nodded in the Reaper's direction.
"Mista' Green might be 'rite." Grim took hold of his Scythe, using it to summon a scroll on the table. A long scroll. The bottom of it fell, unraveling to reveal hundreds upon hundreds of names, each one a human living on Earth. "'Dis be da list of all deaths to happen in da next 24 'ours. Ain't never been a disasta' cruel enough to claim dis many names before."
A strange hush fell over the room as all the demon glanced at the elongated scroll, and then to the Grim Reaper. Even Him and King Javerick sat with bewildered expressions on their faces. As quickly as the group's eyes laid on the scroll, they moved to Kilroy, and in turn, the Demon King seated next to him.
"... Like I said," the green skinned man said after a few moments. "I had a feeling. Which is why I wanted to ask if anyone knew where Aku was at."
"Demongo." Javerick called out as his attention remains on the scroll. "You need to get a hold of Aku, ASAP." he demands.
"Yes." the elephant creature piped up once more, only to get the glares from the others in return.
"What are we supposed to do if something is actually happening...?" Them asked timidly.
"Without Aku," Kilroy sighed, "We're going to need a real hero."
4 March 2044
The city of Townsville! A bustling urban zone full of the modern age's most advanced technologies and the most interesting people on the planet. What's not to love? Mutant toddlers, imaginary friends, giant robots, child geniuses, EVOs, cryptids... Not to mention your occasional alien hero. Townsville really is the epicenter of all things wild and imaginative in the world. From the the beautiful bays of Orchid Bay in South Townsville, to the sleek skyscrapers condensed in the city's center, to the surrounding neighborhoods that branch into the jungle, there's a place and an interest for everyone here.
The most notable figures of Townsville were probably what made the city such a popular destination. Young Dexter created his own scientific business and laboratory in Tech Square when he was just 13. Just three years later, DexLabs proves to be quite the powerhouse. The genius even had two rival labs to compete with, Mandark Industries, run by Dexter's childhood frienemy Mandark, and Exervent, a mysterious and quiet lab to the north of Tech Square.
Townsville is also home to an array of superheroes who protect the land from alien threats, giant monsters, and super-intelligent monkeys. You probably wouldn't get too far into town without hearing mention of the famed Powerpuff Girls, Ben 10, or even the MEGAS robot! Living in a place that invites such hellish creatures would usually be a turn off, but nobody bats an eye thanks to the local heroes and even thanks to few forces under the radar, such as the Providence team in Townsville Park or this strange army of child soldiers fighting against adult tyranny.
Many people who decide to live in Townsville, whether it be for the heroes or for the city, typically settle down in one of the surrounding neighborhoods. Endsville sits right outside the thick of the city, and is reportedly home to many supernatural entities. A large nuclear power plant connects Endsville to the neighborhood of Porkbelly to the north. Elmore, or Habitat Homes as the local anthropomorphic animals call it, sits to the west of Endsville, with Pokey Oaks laying to the east past the cemetery. Pokey Oaks is home to the Powerpuff Girls and houses a treehouse base for the army of children. Peach Creek sits further east and splits off, leading to the junkyard and the small town of Bellwood to the south, while feeding into the forest on Wilson Way to the north.
The wilds of the forest are mostly unpopulated, but plenty still occupies the space. It holds two summer camps, Camp Kidney and Acorn Flats, as well as another treehouse base. Tons of kids flock to the wilds daily to hang around the creeks that run through the land, and some even set up cute little shops. Many mountains hide large canyons and ancient ruins and an active volcano sits in the north past a vast waterfall. The east of the wilds is home to the grand desert of Nowhere, with a population of only four. Within the desert lays the Area 51.1 wreckage, as well as the military base Los Soledad and the entrance to the Caponata Catacombs. A small island sits near the coast of Area 51.1, but not much is known of it.
From the sea at the north tip of the wilds, some say you can venture to a vast barren land to the northwest. Of course, the citizens of Townsville knew this so called Darklands couldn't actually exist. They already had enough crazy on their plate with Monster Island dooming the city from the south seas, not to mention the mysterious going-ons coming from the Beach City east of Bravo Beach. Those Darklands however, were very much real and hid a snapshot from time full of dinosaurs, volcanic plains, and even sharp abysses holding secrets lost to time.
Where else could humans, super-humans, aliens, EVOs, imaginary friends, robots, and demons all live together in harmony? Er... Almost harmony. Everything was about to change.
The air was soft and cold in the early morning, and Pokey Oaks was just awakening to start the day. The ever noticeable Utonium residence can be seen with lights illuminating two of the three round windows on the home. But our story begins next door, to the left at the Leeblossom household. Inside the small three bedroom home, an alarm begins to ring, the time reading 6:15 AM on a pink digital clock. A strange and gooey glob of webs shoots across the room, smacking the snooze button. This odd substance came from the alien limbs of the young girl laying in bed. She looked like any other 16-year-old girl her age, aside from the four large purple spiderlegs extending from her back.
The blonde sat up in her bed, having just taken a deep inhaling breath and releasing a mighty yawn, her arms and spiderlegs stretched out together in tandem. Throwing her blanket off of herself, the girl swung her legs around to scoot off her bed. Once on her feet, she wiggled out of her pale-pink pajamas and puts on her typical attire. White socks, but the kind that don't show over her red and white sneakers. Baby blue short-shorts, the length her mother definitely didn't approve of, but she bought them anyways. A long-sleeved, pastel pink shirt that hangs from her shoulders, supported by black straps. The back of the shirt had four holes poked in them, just big enough for the girl to shove her spider appendages through.
"Roxanne!" a woman's voice called from elsewhere in the house.
The girl's head whipped to the side, looking to her closed bedroom door. A scoff escaped the girl's lips as she turned back to her dresser and looks into her mirror. Her blonde hair was a mess from sleeping on it, but that was no issue. Using a comb and the sharp points of her spider-limbs, the girl began to brush out her locks, straightening them to fall to the middle of her back. Her hair wouldn't lay there for long as the tanned skin girl pulled her hair tight on her head, pulling the bundle of hair in her hands to the side. Once her ponytail is in place, two of the girl's four spiderlegs reached their points to her hands, and began to expel that sticky web substance. Pulling her hands away revealed the webs acting as a homemade hair-tie.
"Roxanne Jade!" the same voice called from outside the door, this time closer.
"Chill out, mom!" the girl shouted back as she stomped her foot on the carpet.
"Don't make me come in there, young lady!" her mother's voice rang from outside the door once more, followed by muffled grumbling.
"Stop calling me that old lady name!" the girl barked at her door, began to stomp over and pulling the door open. Her mother would be standing right outside, holding a basket of laundry under her arm as she fixed her long brunette hair with her free hand.
"I can call you the name I gave you, honey." the woman snickered lightly. "But now that you're up Roxie, you can stop wasting time." The woman winked at her daughter slyly before walking down the stairs.
"That's more like it!" the girl, Roxie, called out in triumph. How dare that middle-aged lady try to keep this girl down!
Roxanne Jade Leeblossom. Just like any other girl...
Roxie followed her completely human mother down the stairs, following her into the open kitchen and living room the house had. On the table already sat a full breakfast of eggs, toast, bacon, and hashbrowns set up. The girl took a seat in front of the food, stabbing a piece of toast with a spiderleg and shoveling it into her mouth. Her mother glances over, raising an eye at her daughter.
"Oh, I'm sure your father's side of the family would just adore the fact that you use those things like that..." the woman sighed, though her tone showed clear amusement. Roxie's eyes focused in on her her mother and she quickly chewed and swallowed.
"Ya' really think all those alien apes haven't done the same thing?" Roxie sneered, immediately going back to shoveling the food with her alien limbs.
"You better wash your hands when you're done, Roxanne."
"It's Roxie!" the girl blurted out with a jaw full of half-chewed food.
"Oi, I gave you both of the names." the woman laughed as she took a seat at the table. "Don't make me call your brother over to call you Spider-Man."
"AtleastSpiderMandoesn'tsoundsoboring." Roxie grumbled before going back to her breakfast. The two sat in silence for awhile before her mother, Diana, speaks up.
"You have that big geometry test today, right?"
Roxie only nodded her head in response.
"You're prepared for it, aren't you, Roxs?"
"Uhm..." Roxie used one of her spiderlegs to scratch the back of her head. "Well, I studied with my friends last night, you know."
"I was a teenage girl once too, Roxie." Diana said with a smirk. "Granted, I wasn't a human-alien hybrid-"
"Human-Arachnichimp hybrid sounds better, mom." Roxie remarked, cutting her off. "Human-Spidermonkey hybrid even sounds better, since everyone knows it from that Ben 10 kid's watch."
"Oh, I'm sorry, Roxie," her mother reached across the table. "You know I didn't mean to offend."
"Yeah, yeah, I know, mom. Don't sweat it." Roxie shrugged it off, finishing her food before speaking again. "If dad was alive, he'd probably want us both to say Arachnichimp though."
The pair shared a laugh as they think of what it would be like. Roxie never met her father, but from what she's heard, he was very proud of his alien origins. Their laugh is cut short when a knock rattles the front door. Diana gets up from her seat, patting Roxie on the shoulder as she passes. The young blonde turned to the seat next to her, which Roxie's neon pink backpack sat on. She rummaged around inside for a moment before grabbing a stick of gum from the bottom, then zipped the bag shut. Diana opened the front door to reveal young Blossom Utonium, outfitted in her typical pink Powerpuff garbs and holding a pink book-bag of her own. The young woman waved as the door swings open.
"Good morning, Miss Leeblossom!" Blossom greeted with a warm smile. Diana gave the girl a smile of her own.
"Oh, good morning, Blossom." Diana answered as she stepped to the side. "Please come in dear."
"It's alright!" Roxie called as she walked up to the door, her backpack hanging on her back between the spiderlegs. "I'm good to go."
"Good morning, Roxie." Blossom said upon seeing her neighbor. Roxie turned to give her mom a hug and kiss on the cheek before stepping outside.
"I'll see you later, mom!"
"Good luck on your test today, sweetheart." Diana said as Roxie and Blossom begin to walk away. "Have a good day at school, girls! I love you, Roxie!"
"Love you too, mom!" Roxie replied after rolling her eyes, giving her mother one last wave before they reached the sidewalk.
Pokey Oaks High was only a couple blocks away from where Roxie lived, so she walked to school every morning with her neighbors. Waiting for them outside the Utonium house stood a young boy the same age as Blossom and Roxie. His messy, fuchsia hair laid over his eyes, causing him to shake the hair out of the way to see his friends coming. Holden Wren was orphaned when he was young, but was fortunate enough to find Professor Utonium, who had been fostering him for a few years now. Holden walked up to join the pair of girls as they approached and they continued onto school.
"Hiya, Holden." Roxie greeted the boy as they join, grabbing his hand and squeezed it before letting go.
"Good morning, Roxie." he replied quietly, but his smile shows his joy in seeing her. After a pause, Roxie glanced around, then glances behind her.
"So, uhm..." Roxie stopped dead in her tracks, causing Blossom and Holden to stop as well. "Is Bubbles sick today or something?" she asked the two, referring to Blossom's blue, bubbly sister. Both Holden and Blossom stood silently for a moment.
"Ro-Roxie..." Blossom chirped up. "Today has been exactly a year since-" The Puff cut herself off, turning away from her friend and wiped at her eyes.
"A year since...?" Roxie muttered to herself before realizing what Blossom meant. "Oh... Oh! Oh my god, Blossom, I'm sorry..."
Of course, the mysterious event that occurred a year ago is when the Powerpuff Girls shrunk from a trio, to a duo. During another one of the evil Mojo Jojo's schemes to defeat the Powerpuff Girls, the supervillain knocked the third Powerpuff, Buttercup, into the ocean. It was the last time she was ever seen. If she died that day, her body was never found. And if she survived, well, she hasn't come back to Townsville yet. Even though Bubbles may be taking a personal day because of this, Buttercup's disappearance hasn't affected anyone like it's affected Professor Utonium. In fact, Roxie couldn't even recall the last time she's seen him in the past year.
"You don't have to apologize." Blossom waved her hand. "It's just a part of life we have to get used to... I'd stay home if we didn't have that math test today."
"I'd bet Buttercup would stay home too," Roxie said with a grin, dreading inside that she was saying the wrong thing. "For a different reason, of course. She wouldn't want to take this test either." Blossom blinked at the hybrid girl before cracking a smile, and eventually snickering. Holden would join in the giggle.
"I'm sure you're right, Roxie." Blossom laughed. "Even if I'd get mad at her for skipping, I wish I had the opportunity to still..."
Another hush fell over the trio as they crossed the street. A hovercar would float by leisurely, fellow students inside on the way to school. More students walking came into view as Roxie and her friends reached the school grounds, which were buzzing with junior high and high school students unloading from buses and cars or arriving at the school. Several students stopped to talk with their friends, while others rushed inside. A normal school day. However, something didnt sit right with Roxie this day. Blossom and Holden went on ahead, leaving Roxie as she wondered, thinking of what could possibly be out of wack.
"... It's probably just that test..."
Unlike the other teenagers his age, Dexter didn't have to attend school. In fact, the boy graduated high school when he was just ten years old. Instead, Dexter had a business to uphold! According to DexLabs' slogan, it's always a fine day for science, and today was no different. Dexter was overseeing revisions for the Downtown Slider System, an organization called the Kids Next Door helped build when Computress, Dexter's busty android assistance, entered his lab.
"Mr. Dexter." Computress buzzed as she floated over to the large computer Dexter sat in front of. "I have today's report if you'd like to hear it."
"Go on." Dexter said, waving his hand at the android without taking his eyes from the screen. Computress' eyes glowed with small screens of their own.
"The Mayor is interested in extending the Slider System from Marquee Row down through Orchid Bay and ending in Beach City." Computress began, trailing down a list of technological tasks Dexter should do today. "... The Test sisters have sent over the data samples you asked for. Also, your mother is calling line two again."
"Of course she is..." the genius grumbles to himself. The corner of Dexter's screen opened a small box with a camera icon ringing on it. The name Nigel Uno pasted under the icon. The ginger stared at it for a moment, eventually pressing his sensor over the icon and opening a video feed of a very young kid, at most 10 years old who was standing with his arms crossed. This child was completely bald, and covered his scowl with black sunglasses.
"Dexter." the boy said firmly.
"Nigel." Dexter replied in the same tone.
"Ahem..." The video showed the boy's brow furrow.
"... Numbuh One."
"Better." the kid nodded. "You must know this matter not only concerns the Kids Next Door and Townsville, but potentially the world."
"I'm sure." Dexter's eyes immediately rolled at Numbuh One's words. "Get on with it."
"Sector V and all other Kids Next Door treehouses on the planet have lost contact with the Moonbase, our base of operations. I'm forwarding you the last transmission we received before we lost their signal."
"Downloading..." Computress buzzed. Dexter sat up a bit in his seat.
"DexLabs isn't here to provide charity work to your organization of rebels, Nigel." Dexter grunted to the screen. Computress made a dinging sound, beginning to play the downloaded transmission.
"This is the Kids Next Door Soopreme Leader and this is a red alert. I repeat, this is a red alert. The Moonbase is lost. There's too many of them. How did we miss a whole planet...?" The voice of the girl who was speaking is suddenly cut off by another girl's raspy voice in the background.
"Rachel! They're coming!" The second voice cried. Shuffling is heard before the clip cuts to static.
"Transmission complete." Computress buzzed. Dexter simply stared at his android deep in thought. He wasn't a fan of dealing with Nigel Uno, the leader of Sector V under the operative name Numbuh One, but he knew the Soopreme Leader of the Kids Next Door, Rachel T. McKenzie, better known as Numbuh 362, quite well. He even preferred to talk to her when matters dealt with her organization.
"And have you or your Sector heard from Miss McKenzie since this transmission?" Dexter asked, turning back to the screen.
"Unfortunately, no." Numbuh One sighed. "You know I wouldn't be calling you of all people if I didn't think I needed to."
"... I suppose I do..." Dexter leaned back, moving his gloved hand to adjust his thick-rimmed glasses. "Computress, activate the atmospheric scanners."
"Right away, Dexter." the blue robot smiled as she floated off to a nearby computer terminal.
"Kids Next Door Operative across the globe are already prepared for battle." Numbuh One said with a nod. "I felt it was only safe to assume if something got to the Moonbase, it'd come to Earth next."
"With the amount of off-world travel the Plumbers do, the citizens probably wouldn't bat an eye at irregularities in the sky..." Dexter mumbled to himself, glancing to a second screen to his right. The scan he called for appears on the monitor, revealing nothing close by. "... Nigel, my scanners aren't telling m-"
"The scan is not complete yet, Dexter." Computress chortled from her terminal. The scan updated once more, showing a circle where the Moon is, followed by a much larger life mass behind it.
"Mother of...!" Dexter exclaimed at the sight.
"What is it?" Numbuh One asked the genius. His brows raised as Computress sends the scan to Sector V. "What... Is THAT?"
Pokey Oaks High housed a large and wide array of students. Why, all the human, and human-looking kids went to Pokey Oaks schools! Except for that Adam Lyon kid, of course, whom got sent off to Charles Darwin because Lyon is his last name. Due to the large number of students, Pokey Oaks held three separate lunch periods. Roxie got stuck in the final lunch period, getting the last pick of all the food the nice lunch ladies made. However, the grub didn't concern Roxie, as her best friends all shared the same lunch.
"Girls!" Roxie cried as she approaches her lunch table. Already seated were six girls, the self-proclaimed popular girls of the school. Sarah was the oldest, a junior who was a member of the cheerleaders. Stacy, an airhead with rich parents. Thanks to her, all dumb blonde jokes avoided Roxie and get directed to her. Arabella was the youngest and newest member of the friend group. A new freshman this year. Tiffany and Delilah were juniors as well and twins! They're the captains of the Pokey Oaks Dance Team and gave Roxie the best makeup tips, even if their skin was darker than hers. Matilda was the quietest of the group, and probably the most surprising member. She was not as preppy and popular as the other girls, nor as intimidating as Roxie thanks to her alien limbs, but had always been friends with the girls.
"Hey, Roxs!" several of the girls called out as their friend took a seat.
"O-M-G, Roxie, girl, have you taken the geometry test yet?" Stacy asked, twirling her blonde hair in her fingers.
"Not yet, sis." Roxie shrugged while she unscrewed the top of her water bottle. "Next period."
"Oh, girl, I was not prepared!" Stacy pouted. "I definitely failed, but that's ok! I have in F in that class anyways."
"I'm not prepared either..." Roxie slumped over, sucking from the tip of the water bottle as she rested her shoulders on the table. "My mom thinks we were studying last night."
"Oh, you didn't tell your mom about the cheesy movie and cute boy we texted all night?" Arabella snickered. "Big surprise."
"You talked to boys last night without us?" Delilah scoffed.
"Was it Roxie's hot brother, Jasper?" Tiffany snickered, making a face to Roxie. Roxie stuck her tongue out at her friend before looking away.
"Guys, come on..." she sighed. "Let me complain about my grades in peace."
"Maybe you'll get lucky and not have to take the test." Matilda shrugged, offering a warm smile to her friend. Roxie laughed, but shared the smile as she wrapped her arm, and two spiderlegs, around her friend.
"I wish my luck was that good." Roxie and her friends giggled all at once, almost not noticing the sound of the Powerpuff Hotline in the cafeteria. Blossom, who shared the same lunch period, glanced at her cellphone turned hotline. Within the blink of an eye, the Powerpuff shot out of the cafeteria, then the school, only leaving a pink streak of light in her wake. The "Seven Wonders" friend group all blinked as they look to the commotion.
"Who wants to bet it's another giant Blowfish downtown?" Tiffany asked the girls, waving a five taro-bill in the air.
"Oh, my money's on that Mojo monkey again." Arabella added her own bet, placing a few taro-bills in the middle of the table.
"Puh-lease." Roxie waved her hands and spiderlegs around. "She obviously just went to open the Mayor's pickle jar."
"I change my mind, put my taros on that!" Arabella cried out before releasing a giant chuckle.
Just as suddenly as Blossom left, the bell that ended the lunch period rang and echoed through the halls. Roxie paused at the sound, realizing this meant her test was soon. She sayid goodbye to her friends, aside from Matilda, who shared the same class as Roxie. The girls walked through the halls, chatting quietly about the subjects they should've studied for. As they neared the stairs, Roxie stopped in her tracks.
"'Tilda..." the hybrid pouted, clutching her geometry textbook to her chest. "I don't think I can do it. I know I'm gonna fail, and I already have a D in this class... My mom is going to kill me..."
"You can't beat yourself up like this, Roxie." Matilda walked over to wrap her arm around her friend. "If it makes you feel any better, my girlfriend took the test first hour, and she said it was easy."
"It doesn't." Roxie hunched forward, dropping her head. "Your girlfriend is, like, a genius. DexLabs level smarts!"
"She has a B- in geometry, Roxie..." Matilda replies quietly, but smirked as she lets a small giggle loose. "At least we'll fail together, right?" Roxie turned and trapped Matilda in a hug.
"This really is true friendship, isn't it?" she dramatically cried as she burrowed her head next to her friend's. "Our lives are so har-"
Roxie's words were not that important once the entire Pokey Oaks building began to vibrate, a fierce tremor shook the ground below them. The girls stayed together in their hug as the tremor raged, knocking billboards and student artwork from the walls of the hallways. The storm calmed, but for just a brief moment. In fact, this was the last moment Roxie could remember, as the second tremor was paired with something large and gooey crashing into the school from above, crumbling it...
.
..
...
...
Everything hurt. It was almost as if she couldn't feel her body, but felt every little disturbance to grace her skin.
She was... deaf? No... She could hear something. Just ringing. A sharp ringing. Roxie couldn't hear anything clearly.
White. Everything was white. The girl frantically blinked her eyes as her vision returned to her, along with her hearing.
She wasn't sure how long she was unconscious, or what just happened to her, but the school she once stood in was gone... At least, in pieces. All around Roxie laid the crumbled remains of Pokey Oaks High School under a sickly green sky. The junior high on the same grounds still stood, but was blemished with a large, green spore-like orb pulsating atop the building. Sick green goop oozes down the sides of the building, seeping into the rubble Roxie lays in.
The girl didnt say anything. Could she even say anything? The shock of this sight, not the mention the trauma, completely froze her up. It would take just one abnormal sound to cause Roxie to move. A sinister roar rings from Roxie's left, causing her head to shot to that side. In the rubble stood a tall, slender green figure who almost appeared to be melting. It swiveled around, roaring again and triggered Roxie to finally move her body. She sat up, immediately feeling the pain of part of the school's ceiling pinning her leg down.
"Sh- Shit!" she cursed, grasping her leg and bite her lip as to not to attract the gooey creature. However, the horror below her causes Roxie to release a loud shrill of a scream. Pinned under both the ceiling tile and Roxie, laid the lifeless body of Matilda, who's head was hanging strangely due to her broken neck. The manic scream drew the green creature's complete attention. It looked to Roxie, and the two set of eyes met and they simply stared for a moment. The monster took a step back, looking to the green sky and unleashed another threatening howl.
It stepped forward and began to charge at a helpless Roxie. The girl screamed again, cowering with her arms above her head, and her spiderlegs pointed at the creature. Her instincts kicked in, having all four of the pointed spiderlegs shot her webs at the creature. Two of the webs rockeedt right through the goo, but the latter two give Roxie a lucky break, and attached the creature to rubble it stood on. She stayed cowering for a while longer, slowly realizing her safety and lowering her arms to see the monster jumping and clawing in her direction. Roxie blinked, glancing at her special limbs and blinking again as her sights settled back on the monster.
"W.. What happened to us...?" she muttered under her breath, shaking as her arms wrapped around her torso. Looking around, this situation was even more horrid than she imagined. More of those green creatures lurked all around, in different shapes and sizes. They were pouring out of the green spore atop the junior high. Bodies littered the rubble of the high school, with blood and the green ooze coating the scene. Screams were heard all around. Pillars of smoke billowed into the west sky, and directly above Roxie in the sky sat the amalgamation of planets entrapped in a ball of the ooze covering the scene.
Before she can even process it all, another scream was heard. No, a scream is too generous to describe this. This was a battle cry, followed by the uproarious replies of the army behind it.
"KIDS NEXT DOOR!" the voice of Numbuh One cried out into the air. "BATTLESTATIONS!"
At the sound of the cry, Roxie witnessed an army of literal children march onto the scene, shooting their advanced homemade weapons at the globs of monsters. Several of the kids branched off to other areas, while the others begin to look for the survivors. All of them wore blue or green armor with the letters K.N.D. hastily panted on them in white. Two members noticed Roxie almost immediately, shooting the green creature she webbed down as they approached. The creature cried in agony as it's shot, then quite literally melted into the same green ooze all around.
"Don't worry, ma'am!" one of the kids grinned at Roxie. "K.N.D.'s here to help, are you alright?"
"Uhrm... My- My leg is stuck-" Roxie pointed to her leg as she looked around again. "What is going on?" The second operative began to shove the ceiling title off Roxie's leg.
"Your safety is the most important right now, ma'am." the kid replied. "But the short story is, we're in the thick of an alien invasion. We gotta get you out of here." The other child managed to free Roxie's leg, which is revealed to have a gash cut into it once freed.
"Oof..." Roxie grunted at the sight of her bloodied ankle. Both kids reach a hand out, helping her to her feet.
"Can you stand, miss? Can you walk?" the second child asked the girl. Roxie gave a small nod.
"Barely... I'll manage." She didn't say much else, staring down at her lost friend. Both of the communicators strapped to the kid's waist begin to buzz.
"Find survivors and send them to the nearest safehouses first." a voice issued from the mock walkie-talkies. "All operative retreat from Porkbelly, I repeat, all operative retreat from Porkbelly. It's too dangerous. Help us secure the rest of the Suburbs while we have the chance."
"We need to get you up north to Sector V, miss." one of the kids nodded to Roxie, offering their hand out again.
"... M- My mom!" Roxie gasped. She turns around towards the direction of her home, beginning to limp off.
"W- Wait, ma'am!" the K.N.D. operative shouted. "Not that way!"
As if on cue, the rev of a engine roared and a sleek sports car rolled up to the rubble. Roxie stopped, grabbing her thigh and wincing at the pain from her ankle. She knew exactly who's car this is, but didn't recognize the two metal sheets pasted on the front of the car, both creating a point when they touch. The driver's window lowers, a hand holding a gun being revealed. The gun shots, sniping a nearby green glob in the head. The hand lowered, revealing the face of Roxie's older brother, Jasper Leeblossom.
"I'll take her from 'ere, operatives." he grunted to the pair of kids, who quickly clam up at the sight of the adult. "She's my baby sister."
"The nearest safehouse is the treehouse in Sector V..." One kid called out before running off to aide elsewhere, the other following. Sighing, Roxie limped to the car, scrambling to get into the backseat. Once inside, Jasper sped off, using the metal sheets on the front of his car to mow through any globs of living ooze in the streets. He brushed his hand through his short brown hair, looking to his sister in the rear-view mirror.
"Hell yeah, Spider-Man." he chuckled as he drives past the ooze. "I knew even invading aliens couldn't keep my sister down."
"... Jasper!" Roxie shouted, beginning to sob in the backseat. "What is happening!?" she quite literally screamed as she clutched onto her leg. Her spiderlegs spit out webs from their tips, wrapping around her ankle as a makeshift bandage. "M- Mom! We can't leave Mo-"
"She's ok, Roxs." Jasper sighed. "Chill the hell out for a second..."
"Matilda is dead!" The girl sucked up the snot running from her nose as she cried. Ugly-crying, to be specific. "She was just freakin' laying UNDER me! DEAD!"
"Roxie..." Her brother shifted in his seat, glancing at her again in the rear-view. "... I'm glad it wasn't you, but I'm sorry."
"...Wh- Whe- Whe-" Roxie paused to wipe her tears with her dirty sleeves. "Where's mom?"
"She's good, Roxs, she's at Foster's." Jasper cracked a small smile. "She's with Frankie. Frankie Foster. Her grandma's foster home is one of the designated safehouses."
"That girl you're dating...? What about those kids?"
"I guess Townsville is the breeding ground for secret organizations." Jasper reached over to turn the nobs for the radio, slowing increasing the volume. "News has talked about that army of kids and some secret military organizations who'd surfaced in the past couple of hours... We've been invaded by aliens before, hell, my sister is part alien, but we've never had an attack like this." The radio buzzed with minor reports of Townsville fighting back against the aliens.
"... So where are we going...?"
"To mom." The man raised his brow as he glanced to the rear-view once more. "I'd drive you around to see the aliens attacking things if you weren't bleeding in my backseat." Roxie stuck her tongue out at her brother.
"I could have died at freakin' school today and you want to complain about blood on your damn seat?" Roxie barked.
"Bite your tongue, Spider-Man." Jasper laughed, bringing the car to a stop. "We're here."
Madame Foster's orphanage for imaginary friends on Wilson Way, appropriately named Foster's Home for Imaginary Friends, was filled with local families seeking refugees as alien invaders occupy their backyards. Not to mention the copious amount of imaginary friends who already live here day after day, doing their best to keep everyone happy. Roxie sat in the foyer, cuddling up with her mother as a ginger-ponytailed woman fixed up her ankle with real bandages. Jasper sat to their side, intensely watching a small television plugged in nearby. Every few minutes, the screen would buzz with updates on the status of Townsville, and the creatures walking the planet.
"There we are," the ginger woman smiled, patting Roxie's ankle carefully. "This should help that heal better than those webs."
"Thank you, Frankie." Roxie smiled softly. "Can't even tell I was hurt."
"That's what I like to hear." Frankie replied with a grin. Jasper waved his hand at Frankie, beckoning her over to him.
"Babe, the news is back on." he said to her as she sat next to him, allowing him to place his arm around her. Roxie and Diana move their attention to the screen as well.
"Downtown Townsville is still in a state of emergency for the time being." The news anchor began to speak. "We can report that the space women from Beach City in south Townsville have been pushing the invaders back, as well as the, urhm, Kids Next Door. These Kids who apparently live next door have been providing aide all across the city, actually, with the military and the Plumbers doing their part as well. Unfortunately, we can officially report Porkbelly was destroyed. It seems the worst of the initial invasion hit there, at least what we know of. There are no word on survivors."
"NO!" a boy with a head of fiery hair cried nearby, being consoled by his dog and two red-haired girls.
"We also, unfortunately, report both Pokey Oaks and Charles Darwin schools have been destroyed. Again, we still have no confirmation on the number of causalities. We know that it will be a busy night for the Grim Reaper."
"Ain't this something..." Roxie sighed. Her mother squeezes her as she held her. "There are days when demons want to destroy the city, and I don't think anything of it because the Powerpuff Girls always take care of it... Aliens invaded the planet several times growing up, but the Plumbers always wrapped that up with no issue... What are these things...?"
"I'm calling them Fizzles." Diana said to her daughter. "Since they look scary, but just kind of fizzle out when those kids attack them."
"That's lame, mom..." Roxie forced a fake smirk, wanting to lighten this mood. "These things aren't something to nickname silly things..."
"FRAAAANNNNNNKIE!" a whiny groan echoed through the foyer, a small blue cylinder sulking down the stairs and up to the ginger haired girl. She rolls her eyes before the friend even reached her.
"What is it, Bloo?"
"Why can't we go outsiiiiiiide? I'm so bored in here!" the blue mass sobbed, swinging his head around lazily. "I wanna fight the aliens! Plus, Mac was at school when the things dropped from the sky, so he's probably out there kicking butt WITHOUT ME!"
"Mac is fine, Bloo." Frankie assureds him, standing from her seat to move and pat the imaginary friend on the head. "He called about a half hour ago. He's with his mom and brother at a different safehouse. We just have to wait for an updates in here." Bloo crossed his tiny blue arms and huffed swiveling around and sulking away from the woman.
"FFFFFFFiiiiiiinnnnnnnnnneeeeeeee-uuh!"
"Who would want to go outside right now...?" Roxie mumbled to herself, flashing back to the scene of her destroyed school.
"Uhh, your brother?" Jasper snickered, looking over to his little sister. "I was out there for a minute before I found you, Roxs, running those green bastards over like it was my day job." Roxie pouted, clutching onto her mother with both arms and all spiderlegs.
"I'd feel better if you had pointy limbs with projectiles like I do, bro." Roxie said, twitching one of her alien limbs.
"Not all of us have alien dads." he snickered, shooting a silly look to his mother.
"I'd know both of your fathers would be out there helping in anyway they could." Diana sighed, glancing to the high ceilings of the foyer.
"Who knows, maybe since you're part alien you can reason with those things out there." Jasper shrugged, turning back to the television.
"As if..." the blonde scoffed. "Like I'm anything like those murderers outside..."
Diana squeezed Roxie in their cuddle once more as the news anchor reappeared on the screen. He patted some notes together before looking towards the camera.
"I've been informed that a live update from the Mayor and Dex-"
The anchor is cut off with static, the screen on the television flipping to show boy genius Dexter standing tall next to the short and stout Mayor of Townsville. Both stood at a podium, with a tall, ginger-fro'd woman standing to the Mayor's side. However, she was so tall that her face was out of the frame. Dexter fixed his glasses before leaning forward, tapping on the microphone.
"Uh, good evening, citizens of Townsville." he began. "This is head of DexLabs Incorporated, Dexter. I'd like to provide a more substantial update on the situation at hand..."
"Everyone, listen!" Frankie called out to the people occupying the foyer. They all fell silent, directing their eyes and ears to the screen.
"Early this morning, I received a report from the Kids Next Door, a team of children working to better the lives of those their age." Dexter sighed. "These children have a base on our Earth's very moon... The report I received informed me that all K.N.D. Sectors on Earth lost contact with their Moonbase at once. Upon looking into this, I discovered the sinister bundle of planets you see in the sky. And despite the best efforts of our planet's heroes and military, we were unable to stop these creatures from reaching our land... Ahem!"
"Now, say, uh, Dexter?" the Mayor interjected, raising his finger to the boy. "Now what does this mean for Townsville?"
"While our forces have been able to hold off what we can, Townsville, and the surrounding areas, are officially considered warzones... I beg families and residents not to panic, we plan to get you back into your homes as soon as possible, but we're gonna need help."
Roxie perked up at the genius' words.
"It may come as quite of a shock to have children soldiers fight alien invaders. The Kids Next Door want to ensure your safety, just as our military or the Plumbers might. We've also welcomed the help of Providence Labs to aide us. But if we're going to turn the tide in this fight anytime soon, we need more numbers. The heroes of Earth are calling for the aide of any willing participate, ages 10 and up to enlist in this war effort. Mister Mayor...?"
"Oh yes!" the Mayor waved at the camera before he leaned towards his mic. "Thanks to the Plumbers, Townsville is happy to announce the Academy will be opening its doors immediately to train our citizens to fight against the pickled-monsters! It's not too far, up north in mountains. It's 100% voluntary, but those of youse citizens with the, uhhh, superpowers might wanna think twice!"
Roxie blinked at the announcement. Her eyes slide to her side, seeing her mother's horrified expression.
"Trying to get more children to fight against these things..." Diana sighed.
"Thank you, Mayor." Dexter's voice buzzed through the television speakers. "I'm sure with who we have in our town, some of you might brush this off, but I urge you to consider this... DexLabs will be partnering with the Kids Next Door and Mandark Industries during this time to supply any weapons and armor we can to this cause. We've handled worse than this, I'm sure of it. We urge everyone to stay in their safehouses for the night, and hopefully get perimeters set up to get you and your families home in the morning. Again, we beg for help in this trying time that's fallen on us... The time is now. The hero is you."
The screen went dark, then jumped back to life with static before the previous news anchor returned to the screen. He began to give more minor updates, and the crowd around the television begins to disperse. Roxie wiggled a bit, triggering Diana to loosen her grip around her. The girl sat up straight, stretching her arms and spiderlegs as she yawned. Jasper turned to look up at her from the floor he sat on.
"How about that, huh?" Jasper smirked. Roxie stareed blankly ahead for several moments before shaking her head and looking to her brother.
"I have to go the bathroom." she said, springing to her feet and limping off without another word.
The small bathroom was just out of the way from the crowds of people, making it quiet enough for what Roxie needed. She shuffled inside, locking the door behind her and pressing her back against the door. Slowly, she slided down, eventually sitting on the floor and clutching her stomach. Her own heavy breaths are all she heard. One tear. Two tears. She burrowed her head between her arms and folded legs as she began to sob, just soft enough so anyone passing by wouldn't hear her. She still wasn't even entirely sure what's been happening the past few hours... And on top of all of that, she just can't stop thinking about that geometry test.
"Maybe you'll get lucky and not have to take the test." Matilda's words echoed through her mind.
Some luck. Missing a test to wake up literally on top of your lifeless friend. What happened to the other girls...? Are they alright? Why wasn't it Roxie instead of Matilda...?
Roxie's stomach twisted, pausing the girl's sobs and making her scramble to hang her head over the toilet bowl. Her lunch rocketed up her throat, puking into the bowl with a hearty gag. Anyone passing by the bathroom would hear this. She hung with her ponytail hanging down, touching the bowl. She stared at her own puke, grabbing her hair and pulling it back as she vomited a second time. Breakfast. She pulled her head away, wiping her mouth with a bundle of toilet paper and flushing it away with her vomit. She sighed, sulking down to lay flat on the floor.
"I never took my test..." she muttered, blinking at the dim light illuminating the tiny room. "My school is gone. ... My friends are dead."
Closing her eyes, she lay there silently, her mind drawing a blank. Only one phrase repeated itself to her now.
"The time is now. The hero is you." Roxie mumbled. Her eyes opened, and she glanced around. Sitting up, she used her spiderlegs to pull herself up to her feet and turned to look into the mirror above the sink. Roxie spun the faucet, splashing her face with the water that pours from it, then looked back to herself in the mirror. "I get it...!" she said to herself.
"The time is now, the hero is... Me!"
Reviews are appreciated, whether positive or negative.
Feel free to message me here, or on Discord, with any questions about this story. As always, the footnotes of the first chapter hold the shows being used in this canon.
Them the Demon, Roxie Leeblossom, Diana Leeblossom, "Seven Wonders" Girls, and Jasper Leeblossom (c) Buttercrush
Javerick Von Abyssal (c) Blueyedemoness
Holden Wren (c) zerowing21