Nightmares of the Past
Chapter 2
A Halloween-Fic by Secret7
4 Years Later: October 13th 2004, 3:33 PM
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Professor John Isaac Utonium sat quietly in his chair. He closed his eyes, and thought to himself about death. This was the anniversary of his girls' death investigating that murder so long ago... John took a swig of his wine. He'd let himself go ever since the girls had died. He was still physically fit enough, but he was becoming an alcoholic. He sat in peace, and wondered if he should be dead along with his three daughters. Suddenly it was if something was pulling him.
It isn't worth living...It's been four years, they died long ago! Go with them! the urge told him. It was if he wasn't in control. As if something was trying to make him die. He was running towards the kitchen, grabbing the scissors and—
"What am I doing?" he asked himself. He gained control of himself, dropped the scissors, and sighed. Everything had changed in so little time. Of course, everything would have changed anyway, the girls growing up to be, if they were still alive, 9 years old. But things had changed differently, and John Utonium could barely believe it. Two years after the girls had died, the Rowdyruff Boys had taken over the superhero biz (Even they'd felt bad about the girls' deaths. Most probably because they couldn't destroy them themselves...)
Disturbing Utonium's peace, the doorbell rang. It was surprising, since no one ever visited the Professor anymore. He strode to the door miserably, and opened the door, and was surprised to see that, for once, it wasn't a prankster. It was a woman, with golden blond hair and green eyes. He knew this woman, she had been the one to first tell him about the deaths.
"Detective Shirley?" asked the Professor quietly.
"Yes. May I come in?" she asked.
"Sure...sure..." said Utonium, opening the door.
Detective Shirley nodded, and walked in. She glanced at the Professor.
"It's been four years since your children died," she stated frankly. "And we need your help."
The Professor was taken aback. "What?" he asked, shocked.
"There's been another killing. Of course, you know about that."
"Yes...I've seen it on the news..."
"And you know how many of them there have been since 2000. 13 of them. All horribly mutilated. Some with body-parts missing, some with the blood sucked from their body, some seem to have died of fright itself. And you know the worst part?"
"What?"
"You aren't stopping whatever it is."
"What?"
Detective Shirley just stared at the Professor. "Even the RowdyRuffs can't go in there. They know that their predecessors, your daughters, were killed in there. They're too afraid. And you know you're the only one who can stop them. You're our resident super-genius, and without you, we'd all be either on the Gangrene Gang's new hangout, in some monkey's world, or in a hell-dimension. You're the best hope this town has. Cook up an invention, man, and use it! We at the TCPD need you," she concluded.
"No. It won't bring my daughters back," The Professor said quietly.
"That's the interesting thing," Shirley began. "You see, in every murder there's been sightings of your girls, scared or uneasy. It's quite possible they're trapped in there. There bodies were never found, you know."
"I know damn well!" The Professor said anger.
"But I know you're also damn ready to go in and save your daughters," Shirley said.
John Utonium gazed at her eyes, unmoving.
"I'll go," he said at last.
"Good. I've got holy water, crucifixes, and other--"
"You actually think it'll do any good?" Utonium asked angrily.
"You may not be a superstitious person, but I am one fuck of a one," she said. "Get on your coat, we're going out."
5:00 PM
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It was raining on the streets of Townsville. The city had gotten pretty slimy since the Powerpuff Girls had left. Sure the Rowdyruffs had taken over, but they weren't nearly as...thorough as the girls had been. The Professor remembered Buttercup—she loved the rain. And she'd always splash Bubbles, and Blossom would scold them both, and--
"No...no...I have to get my mind off of this," the Professor murmured.
"What's that?"
"Nothing. Where're we going, anyway?"
"An exorcist."
"What?!?" The Professor burst out. "You believe that it's actually HAUNTED?!? There's no such thing as ghosts or demons or goblins or all that other crap!"
"Then what killed your girls?" asked Shirley.
"..." He was silent.
"I'm sorry..."
"No...I guess I should be more open-minded...OK, let's see this self-proclaimed exorcist..." he said.
They walked into the large apartment in front of them, walked in, and Shirley screamed.
"What's happened?!?" the Professor shouted.
"Oh god..." Shirley whispered. "Look..."
It was a puddle of blood. A man, or what used to look like a man, was lying in it, mutilated. He was wearing a priest's outfit, though it was hard to tell, because his arms weren't connected to his body, nor was his head. There was a note in the pool of guts that was once a man:
YOU SHALL SUFFER A FATE FAR WORSE THAN DEATH
The Professor stared in horrible morbid fascination.
"Now do you believe in ghosts?" Shirley asked.
7:13 PM
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"God...I...can't believe it," the Professor muttered. They were looking through the former exorcist's papers and books. Utonium was studying one of the large tomes, entitled "The Eyes of the Paranormal".
"All of this...this is real?" he asked.
"What do you think, science-boy? I've seen the monster at the house. Only it's shadow, but I've seen it. It's a cold-hearted bastard. It killed my lover."
"What is it?"
"I...don't know. C'mon. Grab the crucifix and some holy water, we're going out."
The Professor nodded in agreement, but saw a sword hanging on the wall of the apartment. He felt strange...as if he needed to take it. It glittered brightly in the light...He grabbed it, unable to resist, and stuffed it into his leather bag of protection.
They both climbed into a city taxi.
"We're going to #3 Natas St., Pokey Oaks," the Professor said.
"You kiddin' me?" asked the driver. There was a silence. Lightning flashed through the air.
"No. Does it look like it?" asked Shirley.
"I'm not goin' there, lady. I--"
"See this badge, asshole?" she shouted. "See this?!? You're GOING to take me there, whether you like it or not!"
"Damn..." the driver murmured. The cab rolled over the cement.
The Professor stared out of his window blankly. The town didn't matter anymore. He didn't care about anyone anymore. Except for those long dead.
There was a flash of lightning, and the Professor's eyes widened. During that brief flash, he had seen the form of his daughter, looking menacingly at him. He shook his head, wondering if it was real.
"Turn back. I want you safe..." a voice said in his mind, and there was now not a doubt in his mind that it was Blossom...
To be continued...