Heightened Tensions- Chapter 7
It was very dark out that night, and Bubbles wasn't too happy about it. While she wasn't as afraid of it as she used to be, she'd always hated the dark and the way it seemed to close around the body. Bad things always seemed to happen when there was no light.
Bubbles walked quickly down the road, clutching the plastic bag in her hand. It was late, and she was heading home after an emergency trip to the store. School had only been in session for two weeks, and already she had a huge project to finish.
As she walked, she started thinking about what was going on. Ever since that incident on the first day of school, Buttercup had become even more recluse than before. In fact, the only time she would ever show her face was when it was time to eat. She shut herself up in her room, and never made a sound, only exiting to trudge around the house with a very grim expression on her face. Needless to say, everyone was getting worried about her. The only person she ever talked to was Mitch, and well, Bubbles absolutely despised him, so she wasn't about to go up to him and ask him what was wrong. Besides that, she seemed perfectly fine when she was talking to other friends at school.
Blossom was a whole different story. She seemed perfectly fine in her mannerism, but for some reason she'd started getting really anxious. She was always looking around her wherever she'd go, as if expecting that someone was going to sneak up on her. She also started shutting herself up in her room, the one that they shared, and often times Bubbles thought she heard Blossom talking to herself. That was just a bit strange, and when she'd go to investigate Blossom would seem totally surprised and absolutely rattled when she'd enter the room. It was almost like she was hiding something, but instead of prying into her sisters personal business, she'd decided to leave it alone. Surely if it was something important, Blossom would tell someone.
So far, school was much better than she thought it would have been, at least for her. She'd barely had any homework, and the project she now had to do was so far the most amount of work she'd gotten. It had been so nice to get back to the life she had missed in Townsville, and to see all the people that she hadn't seen since they'd moved away.
But what had probably excited her the most was the new people she'd met, and one person stood out in particular. It was common for people to naturally be drawn to her, and her other sisters, seeing as who they were, so often times it wasn't so special when a stranger wanted to be their friend. Perhaps you could say they were just being used. But there had been one person in particular that she'd noticed, who hadn't seemed to care who she was, and hadn't been clamoring to be her friend in the first place; Dexter.
He was certainly a strange kid, very eccentric and intelligent like none other, and that was probably why Bubbles had been drawn to him. He hadn't treated her like a celebrity, which was what usually happened when she'd first meet people, but he'd treated her like a normal teenager. The first thing she'd noticed was his out-of-place personality among the rest of the students, and she had instantly found that intriguing. That was why she'd been so eager to be his friend, and after a while, he'd finally caved in. Now they were partners in labs all the time, and he had actually started to come off as being more friendly then he had originally let on.
Yet, he seems to be hiding something as well… she thought blankly as she past by Pokey Oaks Kindergarten. She looked at, sitting gloomily in the darkness as she passed, and started to think back wistfully to her younger years. How she missed those days, when everything seemed so light-hearted and carefree… even their tussles with Him hadn't seemed so serious back then, and briefly she wished she had some sort of time machine that could take her back. She'd never have to grow up again. At least then, she wouldn't have had to experience last summer.
Bubbles walked, and let a small burst of cold wind toss her hair around. She wrapped her thin sweater tightly around her body and sighed. She was tired, very tired, and just wanted to go home and sleep. If only she could still fly-
-Then something instantly caught her attention. A sound, something happening that definitely wasn't supposed to be there. Then all at once she felt her insides tingle as her fighting instincts kicked in, her body suddenly growing very tense as she dropped the bag onto the sidewalk. That sound… it almost sounded like-
-A laser, charging up. Something was about to attack.
There was a tremendous burst of sound and a flash of light somewhere to her right. Bubbles moved in a fit of panic, leaping out of the way to avoid the gigantic blast of energy that torpedoed into the pavement, creating a crumbling explosion that dusted her with bits of debris. Completely horrorstruck, Bubbles leapt up, in a partial crouch, and began scanning the darkness around her, heart beating madly in her breast.
Then she heard it, the rumbling whir of geared joints as a tremendous shape in the shadows of Pokey Oaks kindergarten moved towards her. It was slow, and its form barely distinct amongst the darkness, but she definitely saw something, something huge.
The form moved towards the dim light of the street lamp, and all at once Bubbles finally realized what it was. That robot…
It was the very same robot her and Blossom had tangled with at the department store, the very same one that had captured her in its iron grasp. It was partially humanoid, moving on two, thick appendages that glowed dully in the sparse light of the street. The rest of its body retained the same thickness as its legs, almost giving it the appearance of some sort of headless bird; its torso much bigger in girth than the rest of its body. It had no head per say, but a wide, glowing extension that looked like the front end of a very large amphibian, its peculiar hinged mouth expelling an odd mechanical hiss.
As its glowing eyes marked her, one of its impossible thick arms raised in her direction, the end smoking after the blast, Bubbles stumbled backwards. It had more weapons, and she knew it did. Its arms and legs were covered in what looked like the openings to a VCR, hiding what was buried deep inside its metallic hide, hiding weapons that she knew held destructive power beyond imagination.
And she remembered that it was fast. It looked awkward and slow… but it could run. She remembered it running towards her so vividly, she had to force herself from fleeing in terror. But she was a Powerpuff Girl… she was better than that.
A wordless growl emanated from the machine's direction, its elephantine feet thudding into the pavement as it moved ever closer. Bubbles heard its arm weapon charging again… it was going to fire directly at her.
There was an enormous flash of harsh light, followed by the painful sound of an eruption of energy. The machine fired, a sphere of fizzling light hurtling in Bubbles's direction, eager to tear her apart.
Bubbles moved, her legs kicking off of the ground almost an instant before the whirling mass of energy blew past her, so close she felt the heat graze her skin. She fell in a roll, her body biting into the shockingly cold pavement, and she was up an instant later.
The robot was almost upon her, and Bubbles gasped at its sheer size. It was much bigger up close, and it towered over her, its red eyes trained on her face. It was surreal, and for a second Bubbles thought she must be dreaming, hoping that this couldn't be real.
Her eyes narrowed, suddenly realizing that this was nothing more than another one of Mojo's clever little creations. She'd taken down hundreds of these, and had even taken Mojo down single-handedly. Surely this was just another walk in the park. At least, she hoped, gathering her nerve as she stared up into the strange, expressionless face of her attacker.
There was a whirring of gears and machinery as its cannon arm suddenly folded into itself, metal parts fitting and moving together with unbelievable efficiency. There was an ear-splitting, metallic shink of metal scraping against metal as something long and thick suddenly grew from the bulge of its arm, something that looked very much like a ridiculously long knife.
Oh, crap.
The robot suddenly slashed its arm through the air, the dagger on its end burrowing into the pavement like a shovel through dirt. Bubbles leapt backwards, her mind running through different options and strategies, none of them really making any sense. She wasn't exactly used to fighting alone, and really didn't have any knowledge as to how to approach this new threat.
Why didn't I ask Blossom to come with me!
But Blossom wasn't here, and she wouldn't be coming either. Most likely she was too busy to notice that her sister was in trouble. Knowing her luck, that was the truth.
The robot was doubled over, its arm trapping it into the ground with its sheer power. Its head was still turned in her direction, almost like its attention from her would never be broken, no matter what ill fate would occur to its body. It was a very disturbing feeling indeed, and Bubbles just stood there dumbly, returning its emotionless stare.
Then all at once Bubbles was suddenly overcome with what she had to do. She had to kick it while it was down, to beat it while it was trapped, she had to-
-With a burst of speed she plowed forward, kicking off the ground with her left leg as she brought her other forward. She aimed under what seemed to be its chin, hoping her power could decapitate the beast, thus ending its wordless pursuit-
-But her leg connected with diamond-solid metal, barely even budging as her own strength crashed against it. She cried out, both out of shock and pain, the first amount of pain she'd felt in a long time, and she fell back to her feet, her left ankle crumbling beneath her. She fell to the pavement with a loud smack, whimpering as her ankle throbbed in protest. She hadn't even left a dent in it.
The robot suddenly tore its arm from the ground with a violent spray of dirt and chunks of stone. It readjusted itself, its face still on Bubbles, and it regained what little composure it needed. It lifted its arm again and drove it down, attempting to skewer Bubbles on the sidewalk.
She rolled back, wincing as she put pressure on her hot, pulsing ankle. She shrieked in a surge of panic as she felt something cold and sharp slice against her upper arm, immediately followed by the warm ooze of blood. Ignoring that, she let her body realign correctly with the ground, and her eyes burst in a dazzling ray of charged energy, knocking the robot back at least two paces. Only two paces?
Its gaze was suddenly broken from her as it attempted to regain its balance, extending its arms to gain support. In those scant few seconds she had, Bubbles decided to flee. The pain was getting in the way.
Bubbles turned and ran, biting her lip as her bad ankle slapped against the ground time and again. But she had to get away. This robot, this wasn't like anything Mojo had done before. This was different. This was something not even her or her sisters could fight, because she had the blood to prove it.
Bubbles grabbed her upper arm and squeezed her eyes shut, afraid to look at her hand. She knew what she'd see, and she knew what it meant. She was bleeding, and that meant that Mojo had found a way to hurt them. They could even be killed.
But what would she tell her sisters? Would she tell them the truth? But to imagine the scathing look on Buttercup's face when she'd learn that Bubbles had crapped out and ran from a fight. And to see the air of disapproval on Blossom's face as she scolded Blossom for not being more resourceful. No, that was too much to bear.
Bubbles suddenly stopped and turned, expecting to see the mechanical beast lumbering after her. But she saw only quiet, serene darkness. Nothing moved, and Bubbles held her breath, half expecting the robot to burst from the ground in front of her. It never happened, and Bubbles released the lungful of air she'd been holding in anticipation.
Bubbles looked at her hand, and saw that it was covered in blood. Just as she'd expected.
She shook her head and took a deep breath, shame and guilt clouding her conscience. She then realized she didn't have her bag anymore, and cursing under her breath, she decided that she'd have to let it go. If it was following her, she wouldn't want to walk right back into its path.
Turning, Bubbles began her run home, a new sense of impending doom settling over her. This was something that wasn't going to go away.
***
When Bubbles returned home that night, she was hoping that she'd return to an empty living room, her sisters and the professor turning in for the night. But that was not the case. Blossom was sitting on the couch next to the professor, both of them silent as they went on with their separate activities. Blossom was deeply engrossed in a television program, and the professor was moving his attention from both the TV and to the stack of papers he was grading. They both looked up when Bubbles slammed the door behind her, locking it with a bit more relish than necessary.
"I thought you had to get something-" Blossom started to say, looking at her sister quizzically. Bubbles shook her head quickly, feeling the remains of adrenaline drain from her still amped up system.
"They didn't have what I wanted," Bubbles said thickly, blinking her eyes furiously. She knew that if she wanted to make it seem like nothing was wrong, she wasn't doing a good job at it. But she couldn't shake the tingling nerves from her brain, at least not now. Very dimly, she could feel herself shaking.
"Is something wrong?" Blossom asked, her voice suddenly clouded over with urgency. The professor, who had been marking off answers with a red pen, suddenly looked up at Bubbles. His eyes went wide when he saw her.
"Bubbles, you look like you've just run a marathon," he said, raising his eyebrows. It was true. She did look like she'd been running for hours. Her hair was a mess, her clothes in disarray, and she was covered in a glistening layer of perspiration. What they didn't notice right away, was that the sleeve of her shirt was stained with blood.
"I felt like a jog," she said, taking steps forward, but instantly regretted it. Her ankle gave a quick stab of pain and she cried out involuntarily, her legs buckling beneath her. Instantly, Blossom and the professor were hovering over her, their faces both awash with concern.
"Are you okay?!" Blossom cried, leaning over as the professor bent down to pick Bubbles up. Bubbles tried to shoo him away, but he didn't budge, not when he saw the blood on her arm.
"You're bleeding," he said simply, his voice emotionless. It was almost like he wasn't willing to accept what his eyes were telling him.
"What?! Let me see!" Blossom said suddenly, moving over to get a better look at what the professor was talking about. Bubbles suddenly turned very red and hot with embarrassed anger.
"I just fell, okay! Leave me alone!" and she bolted up to a stand, stumbling as her ankle gave another throb of protest. "I just twisted my ankle, that's all. I was going too fast and I fell, right into a trash can."
Blossom and the professor were looking at her, almost like they didn't quite believe her.
"Stop it! The can shattered okay… I'm fine!" and in an angry huff Bubbles ran up the stairs, leaving Blossom and the Professor standing alone in bewilderment. They wondered if Bubbles was telling the truth, but for now, they had to take her word for it.