Allies and Rivals III
My two stories, Allies and Rivals II and The Date, were, for some reason I don't know, deleted from this site. I decided to repost the stories.
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This fic happens after Allies and Rivals II: Commander and the Leader. But reading that fic and my other fics is not necessary for understanding or enjoying this fic. There are references to my other fics, notablyAllies and Rivalsand Allies and Rivals II. However, the only thing that needs to be understood in this was that a certain Dr William Edwards was the one who recreated the Rowdyruff Boys, not Him, after they were first destroyed by the girls by being kissed, and under his guidance, they were not evil anymore. And they were in alliance with the girls, called the Ruff Puff Alliance, with Blossom and Brick alternating as leader.
Summary:The Powerpuff Girls and Rowdyruff Boys race against time to prevent an evil from escaping to this world. Who are your true friends, allies, and enemies?
Disclaimer:I don't own the Powerpuff Girls or their characters. The Powerpuff Girls are owned by Craig McCracken and Cartoon Network. I only own my own characters, the most prominent of which is Dr Edwards.
Chapter XVIII
The Missions of the Girls
A. Walter's Instructions
The City of Townsville, and at Dr. Edwards dream…
Walter was peeved at the treatment he had gotten from Blossom, but was exhilarated with what he saw. He then gave a rant. "You are all disrespectful and rebellious kids! I'm just having some fun! Why back in my days, we never ever hit our elders! Kids these days! Have no respect for their elders! But all right, I'll tell you. If you want Doctor Edwards to be free of the Voice, you'll have to do the following things."
"Yes?" Bubbles asked eagerly.
Buttercup smirked. "Finally, we're getting somewhere."
"Well, east of here, seven hundred miles away, you are to retrieve an object. It is a faceless statue, kinda like an Oscar at the Academy Awards," said Walter. "It is the size of an Oscar, and like an Oscar, it is gold. Now, it has a square base, and you can know that it is what you're looking for by seeing if it has this sign."
Walter waved his hand, and a piece of paper with a series of lines and crosses appeared. "This is the sign that you will be looking for. Now, the statue is hidden in a cave guarded by three giant wolves. Kill the wolves so you can take it. But I must warm you that those wolves are really strong, so be careful. Dr. Edwards here is lucky. If you three can't enter the dreams of other people, then he would have to do it. And I assure you, he won't be able to survive. So go!"
And the three girls flew off.
"Dang! How'd those lasses know how to enter other people's dream? I was so sure when you retracted your wish that they'll disappear along with the others, so it was quite a shock to me to learn that they weren't part of your dream world," said Walter.
"Well, I don't know. Hell, I only learned about it when they told me about the Voice," said Dr. Edwards. "I suppose I can thank my lucky stars that my kids in this dream didn't beat them up when they first showed up here unlike what happened when they entered the Professor's dream."
"Hey sonny, do you have some, well, tapes? Or at least, magazines?" asked Walter. "We could have some fun while we're waiting for the girls."
"Huh? What do you mean?" asked the Doctor.
"Well, you know, adult videos and magazines, like Playboy!" said Walter. "Don't tell me you don't have a secret stash that you watch when you're alone. Or when you're with your wife. Don't deny it. I am an all-knowing being. I know that you and your wife have got some of your really neat lovemaking ideas from those tapes!"
Dr. Edwards blushed. "You've been looking at us?"
"Calm down, sonny boy! I'm just kidding," he laughed. "I just want to get your goat!"
"Oh well, you see, we sold those tapes and magazines a few days ago. We've been planning to purchase a new set but then, I learned that I've been living in a fake world when that happened. Sorry, I have no stash," said Dr. Edwards.
"Aw darn it! There goes my fun!" said Walter.
"By the way, what does that statue do? How could it help?" asked William Edwards.
"You'll soon find out soon enough," said Walter.
B. The Three Gray Wolves
Meanwhile, the girls have arrived at their destination about thirty minutes after they took off. There was a huge mountain rising from the earth into the heavens, it's towering peak disappearing into the clouds above it. At its base was a cave, the height about the same as a one-story house. The plain surrounding the mountain was a barren wasteland, punctuated by various rock formations that reminded the girls of the American Southwest. Guarding the entrance to the cave were three wild and savage wolves.
The three wolves were identical in appearance. They had dark gray fur, and had gray eyes. Their fangs were bared to scare anyone who tried to trespass their territory. Their low growls sent a chill to the girls even though the wolves haven't seen the trio yet.
"So how do we get inside the cave?" Blossom asked.
"I say we kill those wolves and get this over with," said Buttercup.
"No! They're only animals!" said Bubbles. "We can't kill them!"
"So what do we do then, Blondie?" Buttercup replied.
"Well, we could distract them. Okay, you two, go and make a ruckus. Lure them away from the entrance of the cave!" ordered Blossom. "When they're gone, I'll go in and swoop the statue. When I have it, quickly use your superspeed to lose the wolf. Understand?"
Both her sisters nodded.
Bubbles and Buttercup emerged from their cover behind some rocks. Quickly, they went in front of the three wolves and began taunting them.
"Hey poochies, I heard that you're just some overgrown mutts that can't even catch mice!" Buttercup shouted.
"Yeah! And you look ugly too!" Bubbles added.
"And do you smell that smell? Phew! Human dung smells better than you three mutts! And I bet that you're dumber than a sack of hammers!" Buttercup shouted. As if to emphasize her point, she blasted them with laser from her eyes. It was weak enough not to kill them, but strong enough to seriously annoy them. "Angry? I bet a sloth or a snail is faster than you three! Ha ha! Catch us if you can!"
The three wolves growled, and barked terrifyingly. The two girls were not fazed at all, as they simply landed on the ground, and ran—fast enough that the wolves can't catch them, but slow enough that the three canines could catch up with them.
The three wolves angrily chased after the two girls.
"As gullible as I thought they'd be," whispered Blossom to herself as she quickly took advantage of the distraction. The wolves didn't notice her entering the cave. Seeing that it was dark, she made an energy ball from her hands, and used it as a lamp. She quickly found what she was looking for at the end of the cave.
There were three identical golden statues of faceless men. It was exactly as Walter described it, except that there were eyes that were made of red rubies. Blossom quickly took the paper with the symbol, and took one statue. She looked at the base. The first statue that she saw has no symbol at it's base, so she put it back were she saw it and picked up the second. It had a symbol on it but it was the wrong symbol so she put it back. She took the final statue, and compared it to the symbol on the paper that Walter had given.
It was identical.
"You're so smart, Blossom, not to mention beautiful, and strong!" said a vain Blossom to herself at her mini-triumph. "Ha, I can't wait till Dr. Edwards regain control of his body and then I can shove it to the Brick's face when I am leader! Ha, I, sole leader for a whole year? Oh I'm going to get back at you, Brick! Not that you've treated us bad. Oh no, you've treated us better than all others who'd taken us hostage, but life's not fair, is it?"
Blossom snapped from her daydream when a rock on the roof of the cave loosened and hit her on the head. She flew as fast as she can until finally, she was out of the cave.
"Girls," announced Blossom on her watch. "I got it. Lose the wolves and we'll meet at Dr. Edwards' house."
"Okey-dokey!" announced a cheerful Bubbles.
Buttercup and Bubbles suddenly rose to the air, and at full speed, flew away, leaving the wolves in the dust. They stopped and wondered what happened to the girls that they were chasing. Confused, they finally went back to the cave they were supposed to guard.
C. The End of the Wolves
The old man and the young man were chatting in the patio of his house. Suddenly, they received a jolt when Blossom arrived.
"I've done it!" said Blossom. She presented the statue to Walter and Dr. Edwards. Walter took it and examined it.
"Where are your sisters?" asked Dr. Edwards.
"Oh they'll come along," said Blossom cockily.
Seconds later, her sisters arrived.
"So, what happened?" asked Dr. Edwards.
Blossom's cocky mode took over. "Well, I went in alone in the cave while my sisters were running around, and I was the one who identified which statue was the correct one! I was the one who took it out of the cave, and I was the one who went here with the statue, and I was the one who gave it to Walter."
"Why did it have to be always you?" Buttercup said. "You virtually ignored us!"
"Well, it's true!" said Blossom cockily.
"We distracted the wolves, you know. Without me," said Buttercup, "you won't be able to brag about how—"
"You didn't kill the wolves?" asked Walter. "You didn't kill the wolves!"
"How'd you know they didn't?" asked Dr. Edwards.
"The damned ruby eyes aren't glowing, damn it!" shouted Walter in his squeakiest voice. "Why the hell didn't you kill them?"
"There's no need," said Bubbles. "Buttercup and I just distracted the wolves, and Blossom was able to get it!"
"Idiots! Look at the ruby eyes of the statue! It ain't glowing! That's because the wolves ain't dead!" shouted the old man. "Kill them!"
"But why? It's cruel to kill innocent animals!" Bubbles protested. "They're not monsters!"
"Look, do you want him to be freed?" Walter asked, pointing with his left hand to Dr. Edwards. "Because if you don't kill those three, then this statue won't work, and he'll be stuck here forever!"
There was a bit of silence among the girls. They didn't notice Walter's shoes slid until it nearly touched Blossom's shoe, but not quite. Walter was gazing at his shoe after he shouted. All was quiet. Blossom looked down to think, then she saw it. There was a mirror on Walter's shoe that allowed him to peek under her skirt unnoticed.
Blossom's face flushed red, as she took a frying pan on a small table besides her, and gave a powerful smack on his head using it, then smacked his shoe breaking the mirror.
Everyone were startled by this. There was a dent the shape of Walter's head on the frying pan. "Hey, what was that for? I'm the one helping you here!" Walter protested.
"Mr. Walter, you're peeking under my skirt using a mirror on your shoe!" Blossom shouted at the top of her voice. "Really! If you aren't so crucial to freeing Dr. Edwards, I'd leave you a bloody pulp on the ground, dead even, the moment I caught you peeking!"
"Walter!" everyone else shouted at the old man.
"Why are you trying to peek under Blossom's skirt? Really, they're only ten years old for crying out loud!" shouted Dr. Edwards.
"Well, Buttercup wore pants, while Bubbles' dress is too long, so I can only peek under Blossom's—"
That comment earned a punch from Dr. Edwards to his face, and Bubbles and Buttercup each smacked him with Blossom's frying pan.
"What is this age coming to? When young girls threaten to kill their elders? Why back in my days, young and small girls, and boys too never strike their elders! Not look at them! They don't even follow our sagely advice! Look! You didn't even kill the wolves! What the hell are you thinking? I told you to do it, didn't' I?"
Walter's attempt to divert the conversation to other topics was successful. "Look," said Blossom, "it was Buttercup's job! Only she ran around instead of killing the wolves!"
"What? You ordered me to distract it! You never mentioned anything about killing it!" Buttercup protested.
"Will you three shut up?" Dr. Edwards shut-up. "I don't care whose fault it is! Just go there and kill those flea-bitten dogs!"
"Well, I'll finish the job!" said Blossom.
"No I'll do it!" said Buttercup. "I sure leader girl will again mess up!"
"Oh shut up! Okay, you do it," shouted Blossom, "because I order you to!"
Buttercup spat on the ground, but nevertheless went to the cave.
Bubbles just shook her head. For some reason even she couldn't understand, Buttercup and Blossom's latent rivalry, at this crucial moment, again showed itself.
After Buttercup left, Blossom turned back to the group. "I, Blossom, leader of the Powerpuff Girls, just made a brilliant plan to see this mission through to conclusion by ordering Buttercup to kill the wolves! Again, my brains will save the situation!"
"Oh no! She's at her peacock mode," said Dr. Edwards.
"Her what?" asked Walter.
"Blossom, like all human beings, has her faults. One of her more glaring ones are her vanity, her big ego, her bossiness and her grandiosity. She is also a brilliant subordinate, but she absolutely hates being second to anyone, lest of all, Brick. She is a brilliant leader, a great one even. Brick also is a brilliant leader, but, he is, like Blossom, very bossy. He can be very stubborn in his beliefs, and sometimes, unprincipled. He doesn't trust anyone except few people. He only believes what he sees, unless I tell him something. Buttercup has a very short temper, sometimes has a need to contest every order of Blossom, and blindly attack enemies unless restrained by her sisters. She also despises her sisters' 'girliness.' Butch never ever disobeys me or Brick, is rude, is not nice to the girls, like Buttercup prefers to attack headlong, and almost always makes the wrong decision if put in charge of anything except if it involves making money, where Butch is simply brilliant, even as a ten-year-old. He holds grudges for unnecessarily long periods of time. Boomer is too trusting of his brother. He wouldn't even think of defying Brick, or me. He's gullible, naïve, a coward when it comes to girls, especially Bubbles, utterly ruthless in executing his brother's orders, can't make correct decisions, and thus should not be put in any leadership position. Boomer is fine as a staff of someone, as an assistant, as Vice-President or secretary to anything, but if he became head, he can't make a decision if his life depended on it. He's indecisive. As for Bubbles, she's too naïve, often lives in fantasy, often becomes divorced to reality and thinks her daydreams are real, too trusting, and too nice. And she's the least mature of the six. She's the kid sister, the youngest, if you will, even if all of them are of the same age."
"Oh," said Walter. "I never knew that you knew so much about them."
"Heh, being father to the three boys, and being best friends to the father of the three girls, I ought to know," said Dr. Edwards. "I don't know. Lately, those kids have been fond of giving me and the Professor headaches. You can never guess how mischievous those kids can get, especially when they're at each other's throats! But be very afraid if you become the target of all six's fury. Just like what happened to all their teachers a few months ago. Did you know, that at Brick's instigation, all three ruffs and all three puffs humiliated the entire faculty of the school by cruel pranks just a few months ago? If they didn't save the school afterwards from a monster attack, they would've been expelled. As such, they only got detention for the rest of the school year. But you never know. They then threatened that they would not save the day if their detention wasn't cancelled, and all of a sudden a monster showed up in front of the school, and the Principal had to practically beg the kids on his knees to save them. So their permanent record was as clean as a whistle, and their teachers and fellow students were left very afraid of them. And they even ended the school year with top honors. But even then, Blossom and Brick nearly ripped each other's throat out because they both wanted to be the top one of the honor roll. Boy, you should have seen the brawl that happened then. The gold medals reserved for the number one was simply destroyed as both fought over it."
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Meanwhile…
Buttercup reached the entrance of the cave. Finally spotting at least one of their quarry, the wolves growled at the green puff, ready to rip her to shreds.
Buttercup looked intently on the three wolves, deciding the best way to dispatch them. 'I might as well make it nice and quick,' she said, and she immediately discharged three thin concentrated laser beams from her hands.
The first beam hit the first wolf in the chest, piercing his heart inside, killing him instantly. The second one hit the second wolf in the head, passing through his brain, his throat, and his stomach, killing him too. The third beam simply hit him between the eyes, passing through the brain of the third wolf.
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Meanwhile…
"Look," said Bubbles, "the red ruby eyes of the statue are glowing!"
"That meant that she killed all three giant wolves," said Walter.
"Well, you can thank me!" said Blossom. "Because I ordered her to do it!"
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Meanwhile…
Buttercup looked at the three gigantic carcasses below her. The blood of the wolves was scattered throughout the land. She decided to hightail home before she became sick to her stomach of the sight of the dead wolves' body.
She finally arrived a minute later at Dr. Edwards' home.
"So they're dead! Now bring him back!" Buttercup shouted to Walter.
Walter was silent, his eyes gazing intently on the golden statue with red glowing eyes.
"Not yet. You still have other things to collect and other beings to dispose of," said the old man. "That statue is not a panacea, but rather, a piece of the solution. It's like a missing piece of a puzzle."
"Oh, so what's the next thing we need? And where do we get it?" asked Blossom.
"Well, I don't know. Anyway, I'll tell you about it—"
"Yes, yes?" Bubbles asked in anticipation.
"In four days!" he finished.
"Four days! Four days! Why can't it be now?" Blossom asked.
"Because it won't appear for four days. If you want to go around on a wild goose chase, then fine! Look for it now! But if you want to not waste your time, then you'd wait," said Walter. He then gave a scary laugh that caused everyone's hair to stand on end and shudder.
While laughing, he just faded out until he disappeared.
"Dag nab it!" shouted Buttercup. "I thought this would be over tonight!"
Blossom had a disappointed look on her face. She was so sure that Dr. Edwards would be freed, and that they'll be untied and let go, that she was very dismayed when she learned that it would take four days. "Oh this just sucks! Why does fate laugh at us? Are we some victims of some practical joke by the gods? Ha, ha, if that is so, they must be laughing now!"
Bubbles was disappointed. "Well, four more days spend being hostages and being tied-up and gagged. Well, we've pulled through during the past five days, and the boys are kind to us, so I guess we can wait."
"Don't worry girls," Dr. Edwards assured. "I promise, the moment I regain control of my own body, I'll order my sons to release you. At least we know that I can be freed, and it would only take time."
"Time that we haven't got. What if they find the bottle before we're able to free you? Oh I shudder to think of the consequences of it!" Blossom said. "Well, let's hope that the boys decide to delay it long enough for us to release Dad."
"Oh to spend the next four days with a sock or scarf in your mouth, heck, what a way to spend the next few days!" Buttercup sarcastically commented.
The girls spent the rest of the night talking with each other and with Dr. Edwards. What they talked about was nothing important in particular, just words of comfort, some stories of the past, some sharing of secrets, and jokes, and Buttercup and Blossom trying to state who among them was more important.
D. The Day After
It was the morning of August 21, and the Powerpuff Girls and the Rowdyruff Boys followed the same routine that they have followed for the past few days.
"Well, what's your decision?" asked Blossom after she swallowed her bacon.
Brick was watching her eat breakfast, though his mind was on other things, so he didn't get the question immediately. "Huh? What's that, Girl?"
"I said, what's your decision? Are you going to delay the digging?" asked Blossom.
"Oh that!" said Brick. "Well, I'm still thinking, you know. I haven't made a decision yet. Sorry Blossom, but these kinds of things shouldn't be taken too lightly."
Blossom swallowed her mouthful of breakfast. "What had happened to the quick and decisive Brick that usually makes the right decisions within seconds?"
Brick, however, didn't fall for it. Displaying false modesty, he replied, "Well, you always are calling me rash and stupid for making snap decisions, even though most of the time, I am correct, but I decided to take your advice, Girl, and take the time to think about what I'm doing. So please follow your own advice and let me take the time so I can absolutely be sure of my decision."
Blossom knew that he's just making up excuses, but decided not to pursue the matter further. "Just make it quick!"
"Hey, do you want to hear what happened? How I killed the giant wolves?" Buttercup suddenly said.
Butch yawned. "Even though you're lying, I'll listen. There's nothing good on TV anyway."
"Well, it all began when we reached your father's dream. Walter, that dirty old freak, was disgusting! He even peeked under Blossom's skirt, twice!"
"Yeah! If he wasn't useful to us, if he wasn't the only one who could help us, he'd be just a pile of ashes by now! Oh how I love to kill that bastard!" said Blossom.
"Having murderous thoughts, aren't we?" Brick teased. "Well, I thought your story would be interesting, but it only turns out to be about dirty old geezers. Besides, what kind of person would want to do that? On such an ugly and hideous girl as you, Blossom! It's a miracle that I didn't vomit everytime I see you! Just seeing you makes me nauseous."
"Look who's talking," Blossom angrily shot back. "For your information, I am the most beautiful, smartest, and proudest little girl in this world! And who else would have such lovely hair as I?"
"And humble and modest too," Buttercup sarcastically added.
Blossom thought that Buttercup was giving a complement and missed her sarcasm. "Thank you, Buttercup. Anyway, he gave us this mission, of getting this statue, so I, Blossom, leader of the pack, went into the cave using my carefully crafted plan to distract the guards—which happened to be three giant gray wolves."
"You're taking too long! And it's all about what you did! Never what I did. Or what Bubbles did! Anyway, the simple matter is that I killed the wolves so Blossom here could get it, and gave it to Walter," Buttercup summarized.
"Yes, it is technically correct, but it is misleading. You have omitted details that would make it make is seem that your contribution, while in reality negligible, was decisive, while my part, which really is overwhelming, was minuscule. So the account should have all the juicy details about it. Anyway, to continue, I, using my carefully developed contingency plans, went into the cave and using the power of the energy from my hands, used plan 6TG to retrieve the statue, and I gave it to Walter! Because Buttercup bungled in killing the wolves that she should have been killed, I in a flash of brilliance, ordered her to kill it…"
Blossom continued until she was interrupted by Buttercup. The boys, and even Bubbles, had a field day watching the two argue who really should have the most credit in completing the mission. More so for the boys, because they thought that Blossom and Buttercup were just making it up.
Buttercup shouted. "No! I am the one who did the most—"
"Okay, you three, shut up!" said Butch. "It's time for your half-hour breaks." He then untied Bubbles, and she got her clothes and went to the bathroom, but Buttercup and Blossom continued arguing, ignoring his order. "Look, shut up, or I'll gag you now!"
At his threat, both girls decided it's not worth arguing, and kept their mouths quiet.
So the boys and girls kept the same routine for the remaining day. After the girls had their bath and change of clothes, they were tightly retied and regagged, and at lunch, only their gags were removed while the boys spoon-fed them. After that, the boys left them alone so the girls could talk for an hour, then they'd gag them again and leave them alone till about seven in the evening. Then they'd strap them to the chair, then untie their hands and ungag them, then after dinner, the girls each would have their half-hour break, after which the girls would be tied. After that, the boys would leave for their one hour of talk, then they'd return to gag them, and tie their feet to their bed and tucked them in and say good night. When they fell asleep, they'll just go and keep Dr. Edwards company in his dream. The same old boring routine, really. Especially for the girls. They weren't even upset anymore. They're just plain bored.
E. Proposed Visit
The next day, August 22, at City Hall, the digging was going nowhere, as the crew was stuck blasting various tunnels and rerouting underground wires. It was indeed very very slow. In addition, several of the equipment just weren't prepared to deal with underground structures. Plus, they had to ground every concrete block in order to make sure that the bottle that they're looking for wasn't inside it. As a result, the adult evil authorities were getting impatient.
"And we thought that the dealing with what's above ground is hard. Getting out all those underground structures is hell!" said the Professor.
Dr. Edwards was very nervous, and it showed by the sweat that continually dripped by his body. He was smoking large cigars at a faster rate than he used to. His hands were shaking.
"What's wrong with you, William?" asked the Professor with some concern.
"It's Walter. He's back. In my dreams," said Dr. Edwards.
"Walter? That old geezer?" Professor Utonium commented.
"So the real Dr. Edwards has repudiated his dream? Don't be too sad. You see, he's a mere human being with no powers whatsoever. I doubt he can survive the guardians while trying retrieve those stuff he needs to get back his body."
"You see, I found out by watching my own dream world while I'm asleep that the Powerpuff Girls can enter my dreams. First I thought they're just creations of the Master as part of his dream world, but then, when his world disappeared when he repudiated his wish, they didn't disappear along with the others. That's when I realized they came from outside. And that's why the real Dr. Edwards know that his world was just one big dream. The Powerpuff Girls told him it was so. And the girls were the one who killed the three wolves, and because of their sheer power, they'll likely retrieve the other objects Walter said they need to free him. You know Walter! Perverted he may be, that he's definitely our most formidable enemy! Ack! I thought that after such a long time, we wouldn't have to deal with that stupid immortal."
"Calm down," said the Professor. "Look, we know Walter is powerful, but he can't go to the real world, or have a real physical body in this plane of existence, so he can only go to your dream, and that only if that person specifically repudiated his wish. We can still fix it. I know, why don't we kill the Powerpuff Girls?"
"Are you crazy? Kill them? We're not powerful enough by ourselves! And the Rowdyruff Boys? Forget it! Those boys like those girls, and the only reason they did what they did is because of loyalty. They're willing to kidnap them and tie them up for me, but that's about it," said Dr. Edwards. "If I make another kill order, well, bye bye loyalty! Then we won't be able to free the Master. Surely, you must remember how the Rowdyruffs looked at you when you suggested that we kill the Powerpuffs?"
The Professor remembered that event day six days ago, and shuddered. "So you're saying that they might not be loyal?"
"No, they are loyal."
"What if the boys are just pretending to guard the Powerpuff Girls? You never know, but I think we better check on them now," said the Professor. "I don't know, but I have a feeling things aren't what they seem."
"I think you're paranoid, but what the heck," replied Dr. Edwards. "Let's go."
"Well, how many times do you personally check on your prisoners?" asked the Professor.
"Oh I haven't seen them since the boys showed them to us at City Hall six days ago," said Dr. Edwards.
"What? You didn't even check on them?" asked the Professor.
"Oh I let the boys take care of them," said the Doctor.
F. The Chaotic Visit
It was a few minutes later, at three in the afternoon, when they arrived at the house to inspect the girls.
"Boys, come here!" shouted Dr. Edwards.
Five seconds later, three blurs of light—red, blue, and green, whizzed by and stopped to reveal Brick, Boomer and Butch. They looked at the Professor, and they glared hatefully at him, then looked at their father, and looked loyally to him.
"Yes Dad?" Boomer asked, though without the eagerness that the Doctor earlier associated with him.
"Well, we want to take a look at the girls," said the Professor.
"What? No way!" shouted Boomer. "We won't let you take them away from us! You'll kill them, and we won't allow that!"
His two brothers simply nodded, signifying that they largely agreed with Boomer's sentiment.
"Hold on there, my sons," said Dr. Edwards. "We're not taking them away from you. Since I know you three are in love with them and want to keep them for yourselves, who are we to interfere?"
The three boys blushed and then complained. "Dad, we are not in love! And we will never be in love!" Butch shouted.
"Yeah! They're sissies, and have cooties, and are girly too!" Boomer added.
"Not to mention ugly!" finished Brick.
Dr. Edwards chuckled, but then became serious. "We just want to inspect them, you know, to take a look. After that, we'll leave."
The boys looked at each other for a few seconds before Brick finally said something. "Oh sure thing, Dad."
"Come on," said Boomer, as the three boys led the two men to the training room turned prison.
Butch punched the numbers and opened the door and let the two men in. All three girls, of course, were tightly bound and gagged. Buttercup was sitting on the couch alone, watching some action TV, with the remote in her bound hands behind her. By this time, she knew the buttons of the remote control by touch. And since it was a powerful remote, she can change channels at will. Blossom was squatting as much as her bound legs would permit her in a carpet besides the bookshelf in the room. There was a book besides her, and she was reading it. When she needed to turn a page, she simply stood up, turned around so her back faced the book, then squatted or sat, then her fingers would turn the page, then she would stand up and turn around so she can see the book, and she would squat or sit so she can read it. Bubbles was at another part of the room, exercising by hopping at various squares of the tiled floor. She was hopping, like a rabbit, very fast considering that she's all tied-up and all. Sometimes, she'd roll or crawl like a snake, trying to get from one end of the huge training room to the other.
The boys sighed, and they gently took them from their activities and sat them on the couch besides Buttercup. Butch then took the remote from her hands and switched off the TV. The girls were ticked that they interrupted their activities, but simply sat back on the couch, knowing full well they couldn't do anything about it. Or say anything, for that matter.
"There, you see?" said Brick presenting the three girls to the Professor and his father.
The three girls looked at the two men, and at once glared at them. Blossom and Buttercup tried to give an earful to them by shouting angrily at the top of their lungs, but all that came out of the multiple layers of socks, bandanas, tape, and scarves gagging their mouths was soft muffled grunts that could not leave an ordinary room.
"Wow, boys, you really know to make them quiet," Dr. Edwards commented.
However, Brick wasn't satisfied. He grabbed both his brother's shirts and lifted them up in the air. "Who the hell gagged them? Why is the sound coming from their mouths still loud?"
"Well you see, am, maybe we asked them to shout really loud to test it, they didn't really shout that loud so we thought it was effective," Butch explained.
"Okay. After Dad leaves, I want you to add, let's say, two more sock in their mouths except for Blossom to make it four," Brick ordered. "Put another scarf in Blossom's mouth. Then get three really long bandanas to replace the one holding it in, then get three really long and wide silk scarves."
"Son, don't you think that's excessive?" Dr. Edwards asked when he heard it.
"Nah! Blossom has a very big mouth," he replied.
"Well," said Boomer to the girls after Brick barked his orders, "your father," he said the word very distastefully, "and Dad wants to inspect you."
The two men looked at the girls. They were tied hand and foot, and gagged, but that was not what surprised the men. The girls' clothes were clean, there was no mark of violence on them, and they were quite healthy. Their eyes showed that they have a lot of spirit, which surprised the Professor.
"Wow, you really took care of them!" said Dr. Edwards, not knowing whether to be proud or to be disappointed.
The men soon talked among themselves, while the boys watched them.
They didn't notice Bubbles, who hopped to her feet on the floor, then hopped as hard as she could on the Professor's left foot, then on his right, then on Dr. Edwards' left foot.
"YEAOUCH! MY FOOT!" shouted the Professor as he started to jump all over the place before falling down on his face. Dr. Edwards grabbed his left foot and held it with both hands as he started shouting in pain while hopping with his other foot.
The boys saw the scene, and laughed.
Meanwhile, Bubbles turned her head, and was surprised at what she saw. The males, when they entered, forgot to close the door to the training room.
She turned to her sisters and grunted some sounds. Her sisters fortunately saw her and what she saw. Luckily for the girls, the boys were too busy laughing to notice that the Powerpuffs were hopping to the wide-open door.
The girls hopped for freedom, as they took their opportunity to escape. Not that they knew what to do once they're out since the only one who could undo the knots was Boomer himself, and the only one with the key to the cuffs that bound their wrists and ankles was Brick, and the only one who had the equipment to cut it off was Dr. Edwards, and if they managed to go out, passerbys would most probably simply take them and turn them over to the Mayor for the cash reward.
Boomer was laughing hard when his eyes saw no sign of the girls. He dismissed it until he saw that the door was wide-open. "Oh shit," he said to himself as he flew and went out, leaving his brothers laughing on the floor.
The girls didn't have a chance. They were on the stairs, hopping very slow to avoid falling down, when a flying Boomer suddenly scooped them from above. The girls grunted. Unlike the first two attempts, the third attempt utterly had no chance of succeeding. The girls, annoyed, just sighed, for they were, by this time, used to being tied-up and gagged.
Before he can carry all three puffs back to the training room, he saw that his brothers were coming out of it carrying the two men. Brick was carrying his father over his arms, while Butch simply clutching the Professor's collar, refusing to even touch him. Both men were still crying and moaning in pain.
"What's going on?" asked Boomer.
"I could ask the same to you," said Brick, noticing that the blond boy was carrying the three girls.
"Well, while we were laughing our asses off," explained Boomer, "I noticed they were missing. Then I remembered that we forgot to close the door, and I put two and two together, and left. I found them hopping on the stairs."
"That was fast," said Brick. "How the hell could they hop so fast when their feet were tied together?"
"They're the Powerpuff Girls," Boomer replied. "We could do the same."
"Yeah. Well, as for this, well, right after you left, it was suddenly plain that it was serious. I think their feet were sprained at best, or the bones in their feet broken at worst," said Brick. "Bubbles didn't know her own strength when she did that. So we're taking them to Ms. Lawrence. She knows how to operate the equipment of the mediroom so they should be alright in a couple of hours."
"Oh," said Boomer.
"As for you, put them back in the room and hogtie them on their beds," Brick ordered. "That should keep them still. And get the things I mentioned earlier, you know, the extra silk scarves, bandanas and socks, plus a roll of duct tape. We're going to see to their treatment."
Boomer nodded and went to the training room to do as ordered.
Brick soon went back to the training room after he left Butch to help Ms. Lawrence heal the two men, who were still in excruciating pain. He entered where he saw the three girls hogtied in bed, with a look of resignation on their faces. To their surprise, Brick wasn't even angry.
"That was a funny trick you pulled there," said Brick, who suddenly laughed. After controlling his laughter, he ordered Boomer to release the girls from the hogtie, much to the relief of the girls. "Anyway, do that again, and you'll be permanently hogtied, understand?"
The three girls nodded.
"Anyway, as your punishment, we'll add extra layers to your gag," said Brick.
The girls groaned as they can't imagine what else could be added at their already enormous gags.
After that, Brick and Boomer untied the two bandanas wrapped over the duct tape in their mouths, then they peeled the duct tape itself slowly so it wouldn't hurt their skin. They then removed the bandana under the duct tape pulling the packing deeper into their mouths.
To their surprise, instead of extracting the packing, Boomer instead took two socks, and pushed it into their mouth over the socks already in their mouth. He carefully inserted it in Bubbles and Buttercup's mouths until all of it was past their teeth. Their cheeks bulged as it was filled with it. Brick took a scarf, folded it into a ball, and inserted it into Blossom's mouth, forcing the scarf already in her mouth further back. With difficulty, he finally inserted all of it past her teeth, but it strained Blossom's mouth to the full.
Boomer took the extra long bandana, then pushed the wide center past her teeth, pushing the four wads of rolled socks deeper into Bubbles' mouth. He then wrapped it around her head and over her mouth past her teeth twice, before he pulled it tight knotted it behind her head. He did the same to Buttercup while Brick did the same to Blossom. It was way tighter than the previous gag. But they weren't finished.
"Now, close your lips over it," Brick instructed. With difficulty, Blossom was able to close her mouth over all that was in it. He took the tape, and put the end of the strip carefully over her closed lips, then wrapped it tightly around her head about ten times. He wrapped it over the bandana in her hair to avoid her hair sticking on the tape. He then wrapped two more bandanas over the tape. Boomer did the same.
The girls thought that they were finished, but the boys were not.
Brick a very long silk scarf, about one and a half yards long, and covered Blossom's mouth until the nose, and over her chin. He wrapped it around her head, completely covering all the layers of gag underneath it, until there was only a short length of silk left behind her head. He pulled tight, and knotted it off behind her head. Boomer did the same to Bubbles and Buttercup. All of the their heads below the nose, including her chin and jaw, was now covered with some kind of gag.
"Now, could you scream as loud as you can? And please, don't pretend that it's your loudest. Just make it really your loudest, because if not, then, we'll even gag you tighter," Brick instructed. "Use your sonic screams please."
The girls shuddered at the thought of more things wrapped around their head, so they shouted, using their sonic screams. To their surprise, only a tiny almost inaudible grunt was heard.
"Ah, perfect," said Brick. "Well, sorry for this, but you're still too loud a while ago. Well, get use to it, because you're going to be wearing it till we set you free."
At that, the boys left the girls to themselves, this time locking the double doors of the training room.
The girls groaned, but this time, not a sound was heard, unlike before where at least something would be heard from them. At that, after the girls adjusted to the new gags, they resumed their activities that they had been doing before they were interrupted a few minutes ago.
1111111111111111111111111111111111111111111111111111111
The next day, August 23, both the feet of Dr. Edwards and Professor Utonium were healed from the pounding that it received from Bubbles. The housekeeper, Tiffany Lawrence, was knowledgeable enough of the equipment of the mediroom that she was able to use it to accelerate the healing. So what could have taken days, weeks, or even months were accomplished in hours.
Both of them were at City Hall, and were talking.
"That was really surreal," said Professor Utonium. "Well, you're right. The boys are loyal. Anyway, let's forget for a moment what happened yesterday. We still have the problem on how to prevent the girls from succeeding. Well, how about you don't sleep at night?"
"Nah, find some other way," said Dr. Edwards. "I need to have my sleep, you know."
"Well, how about keeping them awake?" asked the Professor. "We can order the boys to keep the girls up all night."
"No, it would only make things worst. You see, you see, well, the boys told me that they don't believe the girls' stories. However, if I ordered them to keep the girls awake, then they would ask questions. And it might even make them believe that the girls really are telling the truth."
"So what do we do?" asked the Professor.
"Find the bottle before they free the real Dr. Edwards," said the fake Dr. Edwards. "Walter is a slowpoke, so we wouldn't have to worry. If we free the Master first, then it wouldn't matter anyway if they free him or not afterwards."
G. Another Set of Instructions
It was August 24, the next day, the night of Walter's return.
Walter was a bit early, so when he arrived at Dr. Edwards' dream, the Powerpuff Girls themselves had not yet arrived.
They were simply chatting while waiting.
"Hey Doctor, look at this," said Walter. He waved his hand, and suddenly, the entire ground around the house turned into a gigantic mirror.
The Doctor stared wide-eyed at his grounds. "Um, why did you do that?" he asked.
"Remember four days ago with that mirror on my shoe? Well this time, with the entire ground as a mirror, I only would have to look in the ground and we could peek without them noticing their—"
"Walter, they're not even teen-agers! They're still ten-year-old little girls for crying out loud!" shouted Dr. Edwards, disgusted.
"Aw, you're a man too! Surely, you want to have some fun!" Walter laughed, surprised at Dr. Edwards' outburst.
"Yes I am, but they're still kids! And even if they're not, it's still wrong! Why don't you find yourself a wife so you can indulge all your perverted dreams without harm? And I demand you remove the mirror, or change the ground back from the mirror," Dr. Edwards shouted in his face.
"Aw, you're no fun! Young people where different when I was young! Yes, we were! Why, back in my days, young men know how to have fun, and we never refuse when our elders suggest something!" Walter ranted. "Oh well! I know, what if I use my magic so their clothes, or at least their outer clothes, would disappear. Then we can see them in their underwear or at least na—"
"Walter, no! I don't agree! Don't do it!" shouted Dr. Edwards.
"Oh shucks!" said Walter disappointingly.
"So what is it? What do the girls have to get, or do, next to get me free?" asked the doctor.
"Well, the next mission is—oh no! I know what you're thinking. Nope! I ain't telling you!" said Walter. "You just want to know so they won't have to pay for it! Ha, you ain't depriving me of my fun!"
A few seconds later, the three girls appeared, and when he saw them, the old man was disappointed. Because Blossom was wearing tight fitting shorts up to her knees, and socks up to her knees too, meeting with the shorts to leave nothing of her skin in her legs to the eye, leaving no chance to peek into anything, unlike the knee length skirt she used to wear before. Buttercup, of course, wore her jeans. Both of them wore loose-fitting short-sleeved T-shirts while Bubbles wore, as usual, a very long dress with at least two underskirts under it and thick white tights on her legs, so he can't peek too.
"So Walter, what's the next mission?" asked Blossom.
"Yeah, it's been four long days you know," said Buttercup.
"Well, first, I will have my payment!" said Walter.
"Oh what the heck! What do you want us to do now?" asked Blossom.
"Do you know how to shave?" asked Walter.
"No," said Blossom.
"Oh. Well, just massage my back then for half an hour," said Walter. "My back is aching, and I think that would be the cure for it."
"Well, okay. It couldn't be worse than massaging your feet," said Bubbles.
"Where do you want it done?" asked Blossom.
"Oh, say in a bed in the extra room of the house," said Walter.
Dr. Edwards sighed and sadly shook his head. "Okay, I'll lead you to it."
When they arrived, Walter took off his sorcerer's robe, and laid down on his stomach with a bare back. The girls proceeded to do their solemn duty. After that, the girls had to kiss his cheeks and lips like before.
"Well we did it! Now cough it up!" said Buttercup.
"Okay," said the old man, and he began coughing, literally, until he coughed out his dentures. He put it in his hand and presented it to the girls.
"Not literally!" said Blossom. "I meant, tell us what we need to do next to free Dr. Edwards."
The old man's eyes grew wide with the realization, and he put back his false teeth on his mouth. "Eh, why didn't you say so? Kids these days! They all talk in riddles and in gibberish that their elders can't understand. Why back in my days, we talk clear enough that everyone could understand!"
The girls and Dr. Edwards glared at him, but Walter simply ignored them as he pushed his way out of the room where he had his back massage. "Follow me," he squeaked. "We're going to the yard."
He walked so slowly that soon, Bubbles and Buttercup were in front of him, while Dr. Edwards and Blossom were behind him to keep an eye on him.
Walter suddenly had an idea. Using his long staff, he reached the end of it to the hem of Bubbles' dress, and tried lifting it while they were walking, hopefully with no one noticing.
He forgot about those behind him, and before he could get the dress up pass her knees, Blossom smacked him in the head.
"Do that again and I swear, I'll leave your face's imprint on this frying pan!" Blossom threatened as he nursed his swollen noggin.
"Ouch! Kids these days! Why, when we were young, we never strike our elders with frying pans!" ranted Walter.
"Well, maybe in your day, your elders didn't always try to peek under our dresses or skirts!" Blossom replied.
H. The Second Mission
Two minutes later, they reached the front porch. They sat on chair around a table, as Walter began talking. "Okay. You're second mission is to get the second statue. It is a statue of a dog. Now, there isn't any symbol on it. Just pick the golden statue of a sitting dog with his tongue out panting. And one more thing. It has two red ruby eyes like the first statue. You must kill the guardian who guards the statue for the statue to work. Otherwise Dr. Edwards won't get back. Anyway, it's located twenty seven degrees southwest, about a thousand miles. There is a mountain, like the one you saw when you grabbed the first statue, and a cave at its base. Now go!"
"Right," said Blossom, and the three puffs zoomed off.
They arrived about thirty minutes later at the base of the mountain and saw the cave. They noticed that there was no one in sight.
"Hey, where's the guardian?" asked Bubbles.
"Who cares? Let's get the statue and get this over with," said Buttercup. She then flew towards the cave.
"Wait Buttercup—" Blossom warned.
Before she could reach the mouth of the cave, the guardian materialized. Buttercup immediately halted a few yards from the guardian, and her sisters were soon by her side, gazing intently at the guardian.
The guardian was about six feet tall. He was wearing a gray plate armor of a knight, and it covered every inch of his body. He was clutching a sword with his right hand and a shield with the other. In fact, the only thing that indicates that he wasn't a medieval knight was the angel wings that could be seen behind him. And even that was covered with chain mail. He was standing straight and tall. They couldn't read his expression because his face was completely covered by his helmet and the visor that was pulled down over his eyes.
"Who are you?" Buttercup demanded.
"I am Xantor, and I am the guardian of the Golden Dogs kept in this cave. I will not let anyone, including you, take it from its place, and if you try to, you will perish by my hands," he warned in a deep voice, flashing his sword as if to make his point.
"Well, stand back, you two, I'm going to kill it!" said Buttercup.
"No. We must devise a plan to take him out! We still don't know how strong he is!" Blossom argued back.
"Plan schmam! Let's just go in and charge! Better yet, let me, and me alone, go in and charge! I'll whoop his butt faster than you can say plan!"
"No, we must do some complicated maneuvers, you know, the one we used to practice at home in our own training room?"
"Look, those plans are quite useless," Buttercup asserted.
"Because you're too stupid to grasp its significance!" Blossom shot back.
"No! The only reason why you devise such complicated plans is because you want to take all the credit and all the glory!" said Buttercup.
"The only reason you oppose it is because you're too dense to follow it!" shouted Blossom.
"Well, right now, the situation here requires more brawns than brain!" Buttercup asserted.
"Wrong! It's obvious that what is needed is some brains to do it!"
"Hey, are you gonna do something or not?" shouted Xantor who was impatient at the girls' argument.
"Stay out of this!" shouted both of the girls, both of them sending Xantor a laser blast from their hands to shut him up so they can continue their argument.
"Look, the best way to kill Xantor is to simply rip through him like a bullet!" said Buttercup.
"No. You must maximize your strength and minimize his so that we won't have to take unnecessary risks! We should never underestimate our opponents! We should fight smart!" Blossom argued back.
"No! Let's just attack him and be done with it!" Buttercup argued.
"No! It's time for a meeting!" said Blossom.
"Um, girls?" said Bubbles.
"What? We're busy arguing!" shouted Blossom at her blond sister.
"I think he's dead," she said, pointing to the entrance of the cave. There, lying on the ground on the pool of his own blood, was Xantor. When all three girls hovered above his body, they can see two large holes that tore into his body.
They looked at each other.
"And look girls, I have the statue!" said Bubbles, and for the first time, both girls noticed that she was carrying the golden statue of the sitting and panting German Shepherd dog. It's two ruby eyes were glowing indicating that Xantor indeed was dead. The statue itself was far larger than the small faceless human statue they retrieved four nights ago. In fact, it was about the size of a full grown German Shepherd dog.
Bursting in a blue light, she flew back towards the house.
Her two sisters were quiet. "Well, that was way easier than I thought it would be," said Buttercup.
"Right," said Blossom. "Well, let's go back."
Thirty minutes later, Bubbles arrived at the front porch of the house carrying the golden statue of a dog.
"Here it is!" said Bubbles cheerily as she gave it to Dr. Edwards, who immediately put the large statue on the floor.
"Where are your sisters?" Walter asked.
"Oh they're behind me," she said.
"Okay, you did well," Walter complemented. "This was indeed the statue that is needed. And you killed the guardian too. Now let's wait for both your sisters to arrive."
Five minutes later, they arrived, this time, silent.
"Well, what are you waiting for?" Blossom asked. "Free Dr. Edwards!"
"I haven't have all the things I need. You still need to get some more objects," said Walter.
"Well? What and where is it?" asked Buttercup.
"Well, it hasn't appeared yet. Come back after five days!" said Walter.
"Five days! Why can't it be now?"
"Oh kids these days! Always impatient! Can't wait a bit! Why back in my days, we were a patient lot! We knew that patience is indeed a virtue! Not like you youngins! Always running! Always rushing! Well, sorry, it won't appear for another five days! If you can't wait, then I'm sorry!" said Walter. "Oh by the way, expect to pay me again for the next information!"
With that, Walter disappeared.
"Five days!" said Blossom, and she almost fell on her knees at the news. "Five very long days!"
Author Notes
To Tones, yup! Unfortunately for the girls, they really can't choose their saviors.
To Somewei, yes, but it really is very hard to convince the boys, as you said, because Brick is using his intelligence to shore up his stubbornness. Well, we'll see if it really was absurd.
To Kezzer, oh yes, absolutely. Brick will certainly wish he hadn't made the bet if the girls were able to free Dr. Edwards. It indeed would be a long year for Brick.
To Akum, thanks.
To Firespirit, well, he certainly can't believe everything that he hears, now can he? Well, if you can poke holes in something, it's not really that solid.
As for Blossom, well, let's just say she can be as stubborn, an example in my fics would be when she beat the hell out of the boys when she thought they were evil when the boys were resurrected by Dr. Edwards despite evidence to the contrary.
But I largely agree that he is being unreasonably stubborn, that he'll pay for it, and that Blossom will have a field day with him if and when she's proven right.
To BrYtt BRatt, well, he's head is hard enough to withstand bullets! (j/k) Of course, the same could be said to all the other ruffs and puffs.
Well, I used to play pranks too, but it's more mild and usually directed to other boys. And I attended an all boys high school, and the pranks just got worst. But hey, I enjoyed it while it lasted. It was really rowdy!
Thanks for the title of the episode.
Yup! It's a special kind of bravery they showed, huh?
Well, Walter seemed to be helping them, though it's really taking a lot of time.
To Scott Boyo, from the quote "Not saying that I wouldn't have tried exactly the same thing myself though, but I'm closer to their age," I gather that you're willing to peek under Blossom's skirt like Walter is?
Yeah, about the only options left are simply wait till Walter releases Dr. Edwards.
Yup! Brick could be utterly and stupidly be stubborn sometimes.
I agree with you about Walter being an ass!
To Hairy Gregory, well, I won't answer!
Yup! He simply thinks Blossom is pulling his leg, and justified his thinking using Occam's Razor.
I wonder how will Blossom get back at him? Any ideas? She can be vindictive in the petty sort of way.
I don't think Dr. Edwards would need to act evil. For one thing, everything he did was strictly legal, and they didn't violate any law. (Remember, nobody knows that Kaczinsci ordered the killing of Grulp) He and the others made pains to look to the public as if everything they're doing is acceptable, even going so far as buying the land instead of seizing it by force, and made sure each step is supported by the law. (Hm, is there a law against possessing the civil authorities?) For example, they only PUBLICLY declared the PPG outlaws when the girls earlier attempted to kidnap the Professor and the Doctor, and no one knows except Ms Keane and Ms Lawrence where the girls are. Most people think that the girls are hiding from the law.
To Lynx Sarnage, well, they're not sissies. After all, they took great pains to hide it, and also gave insulting gifts simultaneously. They're just being kind and showing their best, and they don't want others to know it.
He, he, I agree with you on Boomer. Imagine if the roles were reversed, and Boomer was Bubbles' prisoner, not the other way around? Oh I shudder to think what might happen to him.
To Zero Unknown, I agree with you, and thanks for the grammar correction.
To John, yup, they tried to hide the fact.
To Dooly, well, if it was really private, and really a secret, I don't think that Dr. Edwards would divulge it. Especially if it looks as if there's another way to escape.
To Kim, yup, it was, the presents I mean. I agree he's going to regret the bet.
