Forgotten Falls was quite possibly one of the most beautiful locations on the planet, at least as far as Alice had seen. She hadn't seen every space of the world, but she couldn't deny the majesty as she stared at the water falls which gave the land half of its name. Historians believed that the land was also under the rule of the Hani-Baba Tribe, and there was some evidence to back up the claim. There was rubble that certainly matched the building materials of the temple scattered across the land, and a statue of the warrior woman defying all logic by having water spiral upward around her larger-than-life depiction was positioned in front of the falls, hovering over the river's water. It was breathtaking to look at, and the best way to view the spectacle was from the walkway that hovered close by the statue. Unfortunately for Alice, the team was not in Forgotten Falls for sight-seeing.
"The water doesn't seem to be in any danger," Junior pointed out to Suzy, waving his hand at the waterfalls in front of them. "You sure that Numbuh Vine girl has the right info?"
"Of course," Suzy answered honestly. "She'd never lie to me."
"Okay, but it doesn't look like anything is wrong with the water," Junior insisted, waving his hand at the waterfalls. "Mac already told us nothing's contaminated it."
Junior was correct - the water was a crystal blue color, showing no signs of Fusion Matter contamination. Before leaving the K.N.D. Jungle Outpost, Junior had checked with Mac about the state of the area's water. There had been no reports of the water being contaminated, and Mac was insistent that he and Numbuh Four would crush up the Magic Tree's leaves once a week to keep the water clean on the chance that something did slip in, so there was no possible way the river was being affected. Yet for some reason, Numbuh Vine was positive that something bad was happening to the river, and that it was originating at the falls.
"She didn't say something has happened," Suzy argued. "She said something will happen."
"There's no one here," Junior countered, waving his hand around their empty area. "There isn't even any Fusion Monsters, right Alice?"
Alice startled a little from being pulled into the discussion, but she nodded her head.
"I can't sense any in the immediate area."
"That's because I've been clearing them out."
In sync, the team turned to look behind them at the new voice joining them. It was a girl older than them, stepping off the cobblestone of the floating sky-way and making her way over to the team. The most noticeable thing about the girl was the purple jacket she wore over a pink shirt with a green familiar symbol. Alice immediately recognized that the symbol was of the Earth; the symbol of the Planeteers. The Planeteer - whom Alice was able to identify as Gi - held up her hands to show she didn't want a confrontation.
"Sorry, didn't mean to spook you guys," she said. "My name's Gi. I saw you coming and wanted to catch up with you all. There isn't a lot of foot traffic through here, especially with those Skyway Monkey agents flying around."
"They're missing out on such a beautiful place," Suzy commented, sweeping her arm in the direction of the of the falls.
"Agreed," Gi said with a nod.
"You mentioned you've been clearing it out?" Alice asked, tilting her head slightly.
Gi grinned. "That's right. I've been clearing out the monsters that've been out here and cleaning up what Fusion Matter I can. Some mini-Terrafusers have been trying to make a home here, but I've stopped every one of them. I can't have them contaminating the beautiful water."
"That's actually why we're out here," Suzy stated. "A source said the water's going to be tampered with."
Gi looked startled by the information. "What-"
"That's all we've got," Junior cut in.
"Not necessarily," Suzy countered, raising a finger at the boy. "Numbuh Vine was adamant that it wasn't a Fusion behind this."
Junior rolled his eyes. "Oh yeah, that's helpful."
"Have you seen anyone who might look like they want to tamper with the river?" Alice asked, looking at the troubled Planeteer.
Gi frowned in thought, no doubt reviewing every interaction she had with everyone she crossed path with. After a moment of review, she finally shook her head, looking unhappy.
"No, you three are the first people I've come across in the last week," Gi answered. "And I've been checking the river every day to make sure Fusion Matter hasn't spread to it."
"And with Mac and Numbuh Four crushing magic leaves into the water on a weekly basis..." Junior trailed off.
Gi picked it up, "Whoever this culprit is, is going to strike today."
"You already came from there, right?" Suzy asked, gesturing to the islands at the foot of the waterfall. She got a nod in answer. "Okay then, we should keep heading up and go to the origin of the river. That's probably where we'll find our person."
Junior shrugged. "It couldn't hurt. As long as we stick near water, we'll find whoever it is eventually."
"If it's alright with you all, I'd like to join," Gi requested. Her brows came together in determination. "I can't have anyone contaminating the water."
"Of course, we'd be happy to have help from a Planeteer," Suzy said. "Welcome to the team. I'm Suzy, and they are Alice and Junior."
Alice gave a small wave when her name was called, and Junior gave a nod. Gi smiled back at the two, returning their greetings with a wave of her own.
"Nice to meet you all," she said. "Now let's keep Forgotten Falls beautiful."
The team was just hopping off the floating bridge back onto the mainland when they noticed a figure walking toward the riverbank. From a distance they couldn't get a good idea on what the person looked like, although they got the idea that the figure was tall and skinny. The figure didn't notice the team, so Suzy motioned for everyone to hide behind the trees to surprise the figure. Before they'd make a hasty move, the team wanted to check to see if the person was a friendly who was just strolling through the jungle, or if they really were interested in contaminating the river. Moving hastily could scare the figure off, and if they were up to no good, the team didn't want to have to chase them.
As the figure approached, completely unaware that their movements were being watched, it was easier for the team to get a look at the person. Their assessment that this person was tall and skinny was correct. The person - now recognized to be a male - was wearing a strange attire. The top part of his head was covered by a spiked helmet, covering the eyes but leaving his nose and mouth exposed. His full body suit was blue, his cape was red and black almost suspiciously like Grim's cloak, and he had darker blue armor boots. In all it made him look like he had been picked out of the history books, though the color of his skin was an unnatural pale green, so he was ruled out as a human. There was an unidentified object in his gloved hands, though a cursory glance indicated it was machinery in nature.
Junior's eyes widened behind his glasses, his mouth dropping open in surprise. While the girls were trying to study the strange looking man and get a read on his intentions, Junior stepped out from behind his tree and headed in the man's direction. His actions surprised his teammates, who looked at him in startlement. Suzy hissed out his name, but he ignored it. Gi made an attempt to grab him as he was passing her hiding spot, but he sidestepped out of her reach and continued out of the tree. The mystery man didn't see the half-demon approaching, but that was rectified when Junior opened his mouth.
"What do you think you're doing, Pain?" Junior demanded.
The being named Pain startled for a moment, surprised that the jungle he had thought was empty now had an occupant. He directed his attention to the approaching half-demon, quickly hiding the machine behind his back. The action garnered a suspicious eyebrow raise from the teenager.
"It's Lord Pain, Nergalson," the costumed being corrected impatiently. "The Great and Terrible."
Junior rolled his eyes, crossing his arms. He huffed in irritation, tapping his finger against his arm.
"Fine, Lord Pain, whatever," he remarked, another eyeroll accompanying the sarcasm. "Answer my question."
"And your question was...?"
"Why are you here?"
"I am fulfilling the wishes of the Master!" Lord Pain declared exaggeratingly.
Junior released a sigh and put his head in his hand. "Of course," he groaned.
Recognizing that Lord Pain and Junior knew each other, the girls stepped out of their hiding spots and approached the pair, standing beside Junior.
"Who's the Master?" Suzy asked.
"Why Mandy is my master," Lord Pain answered. "She is a most wonderful master."
"Ooooh," Suzy said, her eyes sparking in recognition. "So this is the guy-"
"This is the guy," Junior confirmed, speaking at the same time as Suzy.
Alice and Gi were still left in the dark on who Lord Pain was – and Gi was even more confused on who Mandy was - but there wasn't any time to hash it out. Gi's only concern was whether or not he was going to do something terrible to the river.
"Do you think this is the guy Numbuh Vine was talking about?" Gi whispered to Suzy.
"One way to find out," Suzy whispered back. Louder, addressing Lord Pain, "What did Mandy send you down here to do?"
"I am here acting out her will."
"Yes, but what does she want you to do?" Junior stressed.
"Does it have something to do with the river?" Gi added on.
Lord Pain gasped. "Have you also been sent to do her will?"
Junior, having reached his limit with Mandy's minion, grew two tentacles out of his back and sent them at Lord Pain. The tentacles circled the tall demon and grabbed the item Lord Pain had attempted to hide. The demon attempted to regain his hidden object, but Junior's tentacles were too fast and the item fell into Junior's hands. Gi took it from him, turning it over to study it.
The cylinder-shaped machine wasn't very large, only being the size of Junior's hands. While trying to get a read on the purpose of the machine, the team noticed the symbol of a purple helmet plastered on one side of the cylinder. The symbol looked suspiciously like the helmet Mojo was known to wear, which immediately raised red flags.
"What is this?" Suzy asked, looking away from the object to the demon.
Lord Pain's amiable attitude had completely shifted. His frown turned meaner, and though his eyes were hidden, the slit in his helmet actually shifted downward in anger. From his back, he pulled out a mace and raised it upward in a threatening manner. Only Gi tensed up upon seeing the weapon; her companions stood completely calm.
"Return that object to me or forfeit your life!" Lord Pain threatened.
Alice frowned and raised her hand. The mace flew out of Lord Pain's hand, startling the owner. Alice floated it over to their party, before dropping it to the ground behind the team. If Lord Pain wanted his weapon back, he'd have to go through the four of them.
"Young lady, I will ask you return my weapon AND the object, or you shall face severe consequences for the actions you have taken against me," Lord Pain demanded. "As the lord of Level 9, I-"
"Level 9 was wrecked by Billy," Junior interrupted, crossing his arms. "You're the lord of rubble."
Lord Pain's face flushed red at the reminder. "I have been rebuilding!"
Junior rolled his eyes but didn't further goad the tall demon.
"Sir, we just want some answers," Gi put in, attempting to negotiate with him.
"If you won't cooperate, then I'll ask Mandy," Suzy said, holding up her NanoCom.
Lord Pain's angry red face suddenly dropped to a pale white color. He raised his hands up and shook them frantically.
"No, no!" he protested. "You mustn't! If you speak with the Master, then she will know I have failed her." He dropped to his knees and clasped his hands together, shaking them back and forth in a pleading manner. "Please, please, please do not tell the Master."
"You'll answer our questions?" Gi questioned, raising her eyebrow up inquisitively.
"I will, I will!" he answered emphatically.
"Alright then," Suzy agreed, putting her NanoCom away. She pointed at the machine still in Gi's hands. "Start with what that is."
"My Master called it a Current Diverter," Lord Pain explained, getting off his knees so that he stood over the kids again. He pulled himself together so well no one would have known he had just been a groveling mess a second earlier. "I was instructed to place this device here in the river."
"What for?" Gi asked, narrowing her eyes slightly. "Where does she want the current to be diverted?"
"Master Mandy did not tell me what it was for. She merely told me to place the device in the water and to await further instructions," Lord Pain replied. "Apparently she is working with some primate called Mojo Jojo."
"That explains the logo," Suzy commented, tapping on the helmet symbol.
"Mandy and Mojo working together?" Junior said, his brows furrowing. "I don't like the sound of that."
"I've heard of Mojo," Gi said, glancing around at the team, "but who is Mandy? Is she worse?"
"Yep," Junior answered.
"And this is why she is an amazing master," Lord Pain chimed in.
"Yeah, yeah, we get it," Junior grumbled.
"So why exactly are these two teaming up? What do they want from the river?" Gi inquired.
"I am unsure, but my Master told me to put in the Current Diverter before the primate sends a ship to the area," Lord Pain answered. "He intends to drop something into the water, but needs this contraption put in place first."
"If it's Mojo Jojo, then there's only one thing he's after," Suzy said.
"Chemical X," Alice supplied, her brows turning upward in concern.
"I am not going to let that happen," Gi stated, dropping her eyebrows. "I've been keeping it clean from Fusion Matter, and I'm not about to let some monkey bent on world domination contaminate it."
"Agreed," Suzy said. "And to start that off..."
She took the object out of Gi's hands and threw it into the air. Just as Lord Pain made a swipe for it, Suzy pulled out her Crayon Cannon and shot it to pieces, letting the shrapnel fall to the jungle ground. Before touching the ground, Suzy tapped her NanoCom and had the pieces sucked up into the electronic device, keeping the jungle floor litter free. Lord Pain released a cry of dismay, both his hands clutching his helmet as he stared at the redhead.
"How could you!" Lord Pain roared in the redhead's face.
Suzy didn't flinch from the roar and placed a hand on her hip, twirling her pistol around her finger before putting it away. Her nonchalance over his outrage only served to make him more infuriated.
"It's something from Mojo's. Whatever he's planning, we can't just let him mess with the river," she reasoned.
"I was given explicit orders-"
"Just tell her you did your job," Gi cut off. "You brought the current diverter to the river. That's what your master instructed, right? So just don't say anything else than that."
"We're already going to be messing with Mojo's plans, so she can't even get mad at you if she ever finds out," Junior pointed out helpfully.
Lord Pain looked stumped for a moment. He pulled away from the redhead and tilted his head sideways, humming in his throat.
"Hmmm, I see your point," he agreed. He nodded his head. "Very well. I shall take my leave."
"Wait," Alice called, stopping the demon.
She levitated the mace back to his side. The demon grinned upon seeing the weapon back by his side.
"Ah yes, thank you," he said, putting his weapon away under his cape.
Without another word he disappeared into the jungle, heading back to Devil's Bluff to report back to Mandy. The team watched him go silently, Alice frowning in worry as his figure retreated.
"Is it safe to let him go back to Mandy?" she questioned. "Especially if she's working for Mojo?"
"Mandy doesn't really work for anyone," Junior corrected. "She's probably working with him on the surface, but doing her own things behind the scenes, which is even scarier."
"How so?" Gi asked.
"Her schemes rarely fail," Junior answered, frowning as he shifted through his mental memory bank.
"The only time would be her temporary run as Soopreme Leaduh of the Kids Next Door," Suzy put in.
Gi still looked mildly confused with the conversation but got the gist that this Mandy character was pretty good at getting what she wanted. What bothered her was that someone like Mandy was teamed up with someone like Mojo, who Gi was well aware of.
"Can she be trusted?" Gi further questioned. Mojo was a bad guy, and if Mandy was willfully working with a villain...
"We can trust her to be against Fuse," Suzy answered, and this answer didn't settle the worries of Gi and Alice.
"And we at least stopped whatever this was supposed to be," Junior added, waving his hand at the river next to them. "If she finds out it was us, we're definitely going to be on her list."
Suzy waved away the teen's warning. "We'll be fine. I'll smooth things over if she comes after us."
"Somehow I find this just as terrifying," Junior murmured.
"Should we have someone tail Mandy to make sure her plans are thwarted?" Gi proposed.
"Alan's in the area," Alice spoke up. "Maybe he can keep an eye on her?"
Suzy thought the suggestions over for a moment before grinning and nodding. "We'll let Ben know what went down and get his opinion on it. Someone may already be watching her, so we don't want to cause any interference if so."
"If anyone is smart, they'd already be watching her," Junior.
"On the subject of that guy, we probably should have asked when that ship of Mojo's would be coming," Gi commented.
"I doubt he'd know," Junior replied with a shrug. "Mandy was just using him as an errand boy, so she probably limited his knowledge to just 'go here and drop this off.'"
"You're probably right..." Gi trailed off, seeing the half-demon's point of view.
"It'll probably be sooner than later," Suzy said. "If Chemical X is involved, Mojo will want to use it as soon as he can, especially before the Powerpuff Girls find out he's got it."
"Should we warn Blossom and Bubbles?" Alice asked, leaving Buttercup out of the question simply because the girl was still recovering her memories.
"Their hands are full," Suzy responded.
"Okay, but they've dealt with Mojo longer. They probably should deal with this. Bubbles isn't that far from his lab," Junior argued.
Suzy waved off the argument. "We can handle this. It's one less thing for the Girls to worry about."
Junior groaned but didn't offer up a further argument. Suzy's mind was made up and getting her to shake it was near-impossible. The transport ship would probably arrive before he would be able to successfully convince her. Sensing the argument was put away and that the team would be staying at the falls, Gi offered up a suggestion for passing the time.
"Since we're going to be waiting for Mojo's ship to come this way, then let's take care of the Great Terrorpins while we're waiting."
In the hour it took for Mojo's ship to arrive at the falls, Team Super Stars and Gi managed to bring down over a hundred Great Terrorspins. The official number was unknown because Gi had lost count after one hundred and twelve, so they opted to just say that they had taken out over a hundred. They even brought a Terrorspin shell to Plumber Carol, who had been wanting it in order to make better armor. She was in desperate need of it because some Scythe Simians had stolen Max's Shag Carpeting CDs and she had to get them back. If the team hadn't been waiting on Mojo's airship, Suzy would have certainly offered their services, but the Plumber went up to Monkey Mountain on her own to complete the job with her newly crafted armor.
The whirl of blades sounded over the treetops, alerting the team who had been on a break from mowing down Fuse's forces of its arrival. At once, the team was on their feet, watching as a helicopter the size of a city bus fly into view, hovering over the famous waterfalls.
"It's showtime," Junior commented.
Suzy placed a hand over her eyes, shading them from the sun. With her eyes covered, she inspected the scene before them.
"My weapon's long range, but even this is a little too far for it. I'd have to get in closer. Junior's probably the same way," Suzy announced, getting a nod of confirmation from the boy. "Anyone have something better?"
"Let me give it a go," Gi said, raising her fist that had the magic ring on it. "Water!"
A spiral of water shot up from the falls and smashed into the side of the helicopter, battering it around. The helicopter wobbled side-to-side midair, but managed to get its barring and righted itself. Gi frowned and sent another stream of water at the copter. The transport ship, recognizing it was under attack, began firing off its laser beams at the water. The shots hit the water, but it didn't do much against it.
"Anyone else have something up their sleeve?" Gi asked, keeping her concentration.
Alice nodded, although Gi was too busy to see the action. With a hand raised, Alice sent an energy beam at the copter's blades, cutting through them and causing them to fall off the flying machine. The copter pitched forward, and in a last-ditch effort to complete its assignment before it could fall into the water, a hatch opened underneath it and a cannister fell. Two black tentacles shot out and grabbed the cannister, stopping its descent to the water below and pulling it away.
While Alice and Gi had been handling the helicopter, Suzy and Junior had hopped onto the floating staircase in order to get closer to the copter. When the cannister had been ejected, Junior had sent off his tentacles to grab it, keeping the water safe from Chemical X contamination. The only matter left to deal with was the falling helicopter now that its blades had been destroyed. Gi had a stream of water under it, to cushion its fall, but gravity was pushing the helicopter down. Seeing the other girl's struggle, Alice raised a hand in the direction of the helicopter, using her telekinesis to first hold it in place, and then raise it upward. The strain of holding a helicopter and its severed blades against gravity caused sweat to pool on her forehead, but she concentrated and moved the copter slowly through the air. She brought the vehicle down gently to the open space to the open space at the edge of the forest, kicking up minimal dust when it touched down.
Alice dropped to her knees at the same time as her energy dropped, her power and energy drained from the exertion it had been put through. She didn't use her telekinesis often, and certainly not for something as large as the helicopter. Gi knelt at the younger girl's side and rested a hand on her shoulder, looking at her in a mixture of worry and awe. She offered a shaky thumbs up to nonverbally assure the Planeteer that she was alright. It gave Alice flashbacks to her first fight with a Fusion Monster, and she was selfishly proud of how far she'd come since then. Back then, she had been a mess, vomiting up her breakfast from the usage of her powers. Now, she was merely out of breath and just needed a moment to collect herself. Amber's stamina training was working in spades.
"Holy Toledo! Did you get that, P.K.?"
The exclamation came from the helicopter, making Alice tense in preparation for a fight. To her surprise and relief, it was not a minion that had spoken the words. Instead, a brown-haired girl in glasses was standing beside the helicopter, inspecting the downed craft in surprise. She waved her gloved hand to a red-head boy behind her. On his shoulder was a high-tech video camera pointed at the helicopter, moving over the wreckage slowly.
"Got it," the boy, P.K., replied. "Man, this footage is sick!"
"Alice!" a third voice joined the conversation, and Alice was surprised to find a familiar head of pink hair racing her way. When she drew closer, Cherry knelt down so she could be at eye-level. "Are you okay?"
"Cherry? What are you doing here?" Alice asked instead of addressing the girl's concern.
"A rumor sent us down this way," Cherry answered, running a concern eye over the blue-haired alien. Seeing no injuries and surmising it was nothing but exhaustion plaguing the girl, Cherry continued. "We were getting some establishing shots when the helicopter arrived."
"We caught the whole thing," the brown-haired girl added on, coming to stand behind Cherry. The impressed look on her face shifted to an intense glare when she glanced over her shoulder at the boy with the camera. "That is if P.K. did his job right."
"I just said I did!" P.K. complained, glaring at the girl. Since he was not recording, the video camera hung at his side. "Why do you need to keep badgering it?"
"Because up to now, we never had footage of a girl moving a helicopter out of the air," the brown-haired girl explained. Her eyes twinkled brightly in excitement when she turned her attention back on Alice. The girl leaned forward so she could be in Alice's face, invading the alien's personal space. Alice moved back only a fraction, just enough so she wouldn't go cross-eyed. "How'd you do that, by the way? Magic? E.V.O.? Are you secretly a Powerpu-"
"Okay, Allison, I'm cutting you off there," Cherry said, putting her hand in the girl's face and pushing her back away from her victim. The girl in pigtails flushed pink in embarrassment over her friend's antics. "This is Alice, and I've already told you about her."
"Oooh," Allison said, a spark of recognition going off in her eyes. "So this is the Alice you told us about."
"Wait, that Alice?" P.K. questioned. "The one Haran-GUH!" He yowled in pain and wrapped two arms protectively over his stomach, doubled over as the pain worked its way through his body.
Allison and Cherry glared threateningly at him, having been the culprits for the boy's misery. Alice winced at the gesture of violence, but it was probably for the best - Junior and Suzy had rejoined them by this time, and the glare Junior was shooting the boy dressed in Candy Pirate garbs was threatening an unkind visit to the pits of the Underworld; maybe even Tartarus itself. Allison and Cherry's handling of the situation kept Junior from acting on his own.
"Anyways, I recognize the Planeteer," Cherry said, giving a nod of acknowledgement to Gi. She then jerked her head at Suzy and Junior. "But these are some new faces."
"Hi, I'm Suzy Sunshine," Suzy introduced, her lips spread out in her patented winning smile. She rested a hand on Junior's head, shaking his head slightly from side-to-side. "Mister Grumpy here is Nergal Junior."
"I am not grumpy," Junior complained. If it wasn't for the fact that he was carrying the cannister containing Chemical X, he would have crossed his arms in defiance. Instead, he fixed his redhead teammate with an annoyed frown.
"I'm Cherry Blossom," Cherry introduced. "This is my friend Allison, and the boy there is Prince King Morbucks."
"Prince King?" Suzy questioned in confusion.
"Morbucks?" Junior questioned, just as confused.
"Like Princess Morbucks?" Gi asked.
"She's my cousin," P.K. boasted, smirking and rubbing his finger under his nose.
"She's a brat," Junior countered in a deadpan.
"Hey!" P.K. shouted. "She may be a brat, but she's still my cousin!"
"Whatever."
P.K. frowned but then smirked as he looked at the half-demon haughtily. "Ooooh I get it, you're just jealous of how much cash the Morbucks have."
"I am not jealous of some pompous, greedy-"
"Uhh, I think someone's still in the helicopter," Cherry cut in, ending the fighting.
She was pointing at the downed helicopter, where there was indeed movement inside. The side door opened, and an injured Monkey Minion stumbled out of the cockpit, landing hard on his knees before rising up to his feet. The minion looked upward at the seven pairs of eyes looking back at him. Panicking, the minion frantically hit the harness strap around his chest, trying to activate the jetpack on his back. Either he was too frantic to hit the thing correctly, or the pack had been damaged during the fight, but the jetpack refused to activate.
Nano Megas appeared in a flash beside Junior, flexing its arms. Zipping across the open space, Nano Megas appeared above the minion and performed its Garden State Slam upon the minion's domed helmet, putting the monkey to sleep. Nano Megas hopped around mid-air, celebrating itself for a moment before it returned to Junior's NanoCom.
"We should probably check to see if anyone else is inside," Alice suggested, realizing that should have been the first thing they did.
"Oh, before you do that," Allison said, snapping her fingers at P.K. The boy understood what she wanted without her needing to say a thing and hefted the camera back up onto his shoulder. "Mind telling us what went down here? We're currently getting documentation of things going on in the war for when this is all over with. You know, like a movie version of a yearbook kind of thing."
"Sure, we don't mind," Suzy said.
"While you do that, I'll go and look through the helicopter," Gi said.
"I'll come with," Alice offered.
"Are you able to get on your feet?" the older girl asked in concern.
Alice nodded, smiling reassuringly. She wasn't going to be able to move a helicopter anytime soon, but investigating the wrecked helicopter wasn't going to eat up any of her energy. Gi helped Alice up to her feet anyways, just to assure herself that the girl would be okay. When she saw that Alice wasn't going to collapse again, the two headed over to look over the helicopter while Suzy and Junior - but mostly Suzy - explained what was going on with the Mojo helicopter and the Chemical X. While Gi checked over the Monkey Minion knocked out on the ground to make sure he wasn't going to die on them, Alice went inside to look for any other survivors. It was a single-seater helicopter, and there was no evidence of there being any other Monkey Minion aside from the one being checked over by Gi. Convinced that this was a single-minion operation, Alice joined Gi on the opposite side of the minion.
"He's just knocked out," Gi informed the girl. "His helmet's got a crack on the side and his armor's ripped, but otherwise he doesn't need a hospital."
"I didn't think Mojo would send a minion," Alice said. "I figured he'd have sent a drone."
"If there's one thing you can count on with baddies, it's that they're not dependable," Gi pointed out, chuckling at the end. "Mojo's got some monkey camps in the Foothills. When he's awake, I'll take him up that way."
Alice agreed and then eyed the copter. "What about this?"
Gi looked over her shoulder at the aircraft and frowned in concentration. They were too far away from the Jungle Outpost for Alice to just levitate it over, so they'd have to get it moved in a different manner.
"The Outpost may have a vehicle that can get this. If not, they can at least dismantle it and transfer it back to the post in pieces," Gi explained. "I'll work on getting this recycled."
"Maybe the Plumbers could help with that," Alice suggested.
Gi nodded in agreement. "Any help would be great. I'll get in touch with Mac to see if he has anything that can come out this way."
"Nano Megas' sleep ability won't keep him out for long, so I'll stick nearby and make sure he doesn't move," Alice told the older girl.
Gi nodded and got up from the minion, taking a couple steps away from the roaring falls beside them in order to make the call. Alice kept her eyes on the minion, removing his weapon and using her telekinesis to rip it in two, rendering the thing useless. Not like it would have done much against an alien with powers, a Planeteer with a magic ring, a half-demon with tentacles that could electrify its captured prey, and at least two girls armed with weapons ranging from close combat to long-range firing. Still, it was prudent to be on the safe side. She levitated the broken weapon into the equally broken helicopter so that it would not be missed when the Outpost would send a clean-up crew; she didn't want to pollute, after all.
Cherry suddenly appeared at her side, taking a seat on the grass beside her. She ran an eye over the minion as well, to check for any signs of opposition before side-eying the blue-haired girl.
"Soooo...levitating helicopters out of the sky," Cherry began conversationally. "That's new."
Alice smiled sheepishly. She had come a long way from struggling to maintain and shrink a sphere around a Soulo.
"Yes," Alice agreed. "Although, I don't think I'll be able to repeat that for a while."
Cherry grinned in response. "You know," she started, "I was pretty surprised to learn you were number one on the Leaderboard. No offense, but you were pretty meek when we first met."
Alice nodded along, not offended by the statement. It was a fair assessment, especially back when she first began.
"But after seeing what you did today, I can understand why," Cherry continued. She used her shoulder to nudge Alice. "You're pretty impressive."
Alice smiled bashfully at the compliment. She didn't actually think so, but any argument she might have come up with went out the window by the Monkey Minion stirring. He groaned and put a hand to his forehead, coming around slowly. The moment everything came back to him, the monkey gasped and sat up. Alice placed a force-field the shape of a cube around the prisoner, ensuring he wouldn't run away.
"Hey! Unfair! Let me out!" the monkey complained, banging his paws against the cube's wall. "I must fulfill Mojo Jojo's will!"
"Not today, pal," Cherry remarked.
"Oh, good, he's awake," Gi commented upon returning. She looked away from the minion to Alice. "Numbuh Four's on the way down with something they call a S.K.Y.C.L.A.W. It'll be here in a couple minutes."
"What!" the minion protested. "You can't take my helicopter!"
"Technically, it's not even yours," Suzy corrected, stepping into the conversation. "It's Mojo's, and since he was using it in an underhanded measure, we can take it."
The minion balked at the assessment. He opened and closed his mouth multiple times, but nothing coherent came from it. Considering the record was set straight, Suzy put her attention on Alice.
"Since a cleanup crew is on its way, we're going to head out," she told her teammate. "Allison said there's a wild boy out here, and we're going to tag-along with them."
"You mean the jungle kid?" Gi asked. "I've spotted him a few times, but he's always running off before I can even get a word in."
"Based on Allison's description, I have a theory on who it might be," Suzy continued. "I want to test out my theory."
"But what about him?" Alice asked, pointing at the monkey.
"Give me a minute," Cherry said, getting up to her feet.
She walked over to her friends, and swiped something off of P.K. The boy released a loud complaint, but it went ignored by the pink-haired girl. She silently returned, and motioned for Alice to drop the force-field. Despite Alice's reservations, she obeyed. Before the monkey could make a run for it, Cherry pounced on the captive. She pulled the minion's arms behind his body and wrapped up his wrists with a bandana, ensuring the knot was tied tightly. Cherry put her foot on the minion's back, smirking down at him.
"See? Not a concern."
Gi and Alice stared in shock, amazed by how quickly she had tied the monkey up. Suzy giggled and clapped her hands appreciatively.
"Impressive," Suzy complimented. "Very impressive."
Cherry did a mock bow, removing her foot from the monkey's back.
"He'll be good enough for travel," Cherry remarked. "Where do you plan to take him?"
"Monkey Foothills," Gi answered.
"Hmm, I'd take him back to Mount Blackhead before going there," Cherry advised. "If you walk in with him as your captive, they'll probably turn on you."
Gi thought about the advice for a moment before nodding in agreement. "You're right. I'll follow your advice and bring him to Mount Blackhead. I'll make arrangements from there."
The captive frowned in displeasure; clearly, he had also believed that his companions in the foothills would bring about his freedom in a violent way. Now he was going to be in the hands of the enemy for a lot longer than he had hoped. His fearless leader was going to be so disappointed in him for his failure. Unaware of the minion's turmoil, the girls continued their conversation.
"What about the Chemicl X?" Alice asked her teammate, noting that Junior was still holding the cannister.
"If Gi's okay with it, we'll leave that with her and have it be brought to the outpost," Suzy addressed. "When we get back there, I'll contact Professor Utonium and ask what he wants done with it."
"I'd like to know what Mojo was even planning to do with it," Gi stated, her brow furrowing in annoyance. "We're already fighting hard to keep our waters clean from Fuse's pollution, and now he wants to go and spoil it with Chemical X?"
"Well, you have time till your ride," Cherry pointed out, a smirk sitting on her face. She pointed her thumb at the minion. "Why not use your time to question him on his master's plans?"
The minion cowered as four pairs of eyes landed on him. Then, remembering he was a top member in Mojo's army, he put on a brave face and raised his head in defiance.
"You can try, Homo sapiens," the minion said, practically spitting the word out. "But I'll never betray my master."
"Mhm," Gi said, unimpressed. She glanced back at the girls. "I'll get him to talk."
"Keep me updated, if you can," Suzy requested.
She grinned when she got the nod of confirmation from the Planeteer. With Mojo's plans foiled, Suzy whirled around with an air of excitement.
"Alrighty girls. The search for the lost jungle boy is a-go!"
"Okay team, here's what we know." Allison stood with her hands behind her back like she was a commander handing out orders. Assembled in front of her was her two friends and Team Super Stars, waiting to hear the information the girl had to deliver. "Rumors of the jungle boy implies that he's been wandering around for at least three weeks now. Depending on his survival skills, he's either doing fine and just prefers living off the land, or a raving lunatic ala The Jungles of Madness."
"And you want us to go after him why?" Junior asked Suzy.
"Awh, c'mon. One little jungle boy shouldn't be too hard for the likes of us," Suzy said, her tone lightly teasing. "Besides, I've got a theory on who this person is, and I want to see if I'm right."
Junior sighed but didn't complain any further. Considering the monsters they routinely went up against, a simple boy running around in the wilds really shouldn't be that hard for the team. With the side conversation concluded, Allison resumed her explanation.
"My team and I picked up on his trail a few days ago. He hangs around the falls and the immediate jungle area, so this is the area we need to focus on," Allison continued. She pulled out her communicator and held it up, displaying a holographic map that featured the falls and the jungle. "We've already checked out the jungle, so he's got to be here somewhere by the falls."
"He wouldn't go into the foothills?" Alice asked, wanting to clarify the point.
The foothills weren't very far from where they were; it wouldn't be much effort for him to run off north at the slightest chance he could be discovered. Allison shook her head side to side.
"Not a chance. The tree line dwindles the further north you go, so there aren't many places for him to hide or call a home. He can't really forage for food up that way given how uninhabitable the land is, and the falls provide the freshest sort of water," Allison laid out. "If he's wandering around, he's sticking to the falls and everything southward up to the outpost."
"He's not hanging around there?" Junior asked.
"He was for a bit," P.K. chimed in. "Operatives came across him stealing some of their food and they scared him off. According to them, he hasn't been seen there since."
"We already checked around the temple, so this is the last place," Cherry added.
"Hmmm. Too bad Nanos can't seek out humans," Suzy commented, studying the holographic map still being displayed. "It'd make this go by a lot easier."
"Probably, but it doesn't make for a fun documentary," Allison countered. She closed the map and put her communicator back on her hip. "The plan is to find either him or his camp, though I prefer the latter."
"Wouldn't it be better to find him?" Junior inquired.
"Normally, but if he's been out here for the three weeks like we assume he's been, then he'll have the advantage and run off," Cherry explained. "If we find his camp, we can either confront him there or wait it out till he gets back."
"Either way, the guy has to go back to his home, and ideally we want to be there waiting," P.K. summarized.
"Sounds reasonable," Suzy commented. "We'll search by foot." She looked away from the assembled group and focused her attention on Alice. "Alice, you take to the sky. Given my experience with my own Jungle Boy, there's a chance he may be using the treetops to get around, especially if he wants to avoid going head-to-head with the monsters on a daily business."
Alice nodded in agreement. Allison's eyes lit up at the suggestion, looking in amazement at the blue-haired girl.
"You can fly?" she asked.
Alice nodded again.
"You are officially my favorite person," Allison said. "Sorry P.K."
P.K. jerked in surprise, his eyes wide. "Wait, I was your favorite?"
"Nope. I'm just apologizing to you because you'll be nobody's favorite."
"Ouch, Allie," P.K. griped, glaring at the girl. "You cut deep."
"Okay, let's regroup and focus here," Cherry called to attention, clapping her hands for emphasis. "Daylight is burning, and I don't like filming with infrared."
"Hold it, you don't even film!" P.K. protested.
"Yes, but I have to edit the footage and I hate looking at it," Cherry argued back.
"Regardless of Cherry's questionable tastes," Allison said, ignoring the glare Cherry sent her way, "she is right. We're losing daylight. Jungle boy has a head start, and we need to catch up with him."
"We'd probably have caught him by now if you weren't wasting our time with this side conversation," Junior complained under his breath, wanting to take a jab but not willing to open up another can of worms.
"I'm assuming you want us to stick together?" Suzy asked Allison, helping get the conversation back on track.
"That's right. We don't have to stay in a big group, but we should be withing shouting distance. We don't know what he's capable of, and should have each other's backs." Allison thought about it for a moment and regarded Alice. "Actually, you'd probably be okay to venture further from us. Whatever Jungle Boy is capable, you'd probably shrug it off easily."
Alice's cheeks colored pink at the compliment and she shook her head. "I'll stick with the group."
Allison nodded at the girl. "Okay, then let's set off." She whirled around and pointed at P.K. "Start the tape!"
With professionalism, P.K. hefted the video camera up onto his shoulder and clicked the record button, the red light indicating it was filming. Taking the cue, Alice lifted herself into the air, following behind the group as it split into four. Suzy, Junior, and Cherry all split up, but P.K. trailed behind Allison. Given that he was busy holding a heavy filming equipment, he needed someone to protect him from the monsters that moved in the vicinity. As Allison had instructed, the groups were spread out but still within earshot of one another, and Alice's bird-eye view allowed her to keep an eye on all of them in case they were overrun by a pack of monsters.
Despite being in the air, the Striding Lampreys enjoyed spitting Fusion globs at her from where they were stuck on the ground, taking pot shots as she passed them. She either put up a shield to protect herself or merely diverted out of the path before it could hit. Sometimes she'd deal with the monster herself, hitting it with an energy ball or squishing it in a force field. Other times she'd use Nano Boomer's Batter Up! or Nano Bubbles' Tornado Trap.
When she wasn't being target practice for Fuse's lizard monsters, she was keeping an eye out on the canopy she flew under. She looked for any signs of a human using the tops of the trees as their own personal jungle gym, like bark missing in a strange place or vines hanging in incorrect places; maybe even a treehouse not unlike what the Jungle Outpost had. She didn't find any signs of a human living in the jungle, but did come across a flock of startled birds.
Unused to seeing a flying humanoid, the birds startled easily and rushed off in an effort to escape what they assumed to be a predator. In their hurry, they nearly collided with the very thing they were rushing away from. Alice didn't want to hurt them for panicking, so she didn't throw up a shield to protect herself. Instead, she dodged them. As she was dodging the startled flock, she wasn't paying attention to her surroundings.
A shadowy figure watched her pass by from the safety of the trees, and, with a battle cry, launched itself upon her. The cry had Alice craning her head in its direction, but she only saw a pair of bare feet connect with her backside before she was pushed downward. She attempted to right herself, but the thing on her back quickly grabbed her hair, yanking her head back. Her hands flew to the invader's hands, attempting to get them to release her hair. The invader - whom she assumed was the jungle boy - wouldn't relent, and though Alice didn't want to hurt him, she also couldn't let him hurt her. She created a small force-field sphere between the two bodies, and slowly expanded it outward until it forced the jungle boy to release her. Before he could fall to the ground, Alice had the sphere envelop his body, keeping him safe. She spun around and brought herself and the captured jungle boy to the ground, keeping her concentration as the boy flung himself at the sphere's walls.
"Whoa! That was epic, Alice!" Allison cheered, rushing forward with an energetic smile.
P.K. rushed in behind her, the camera lens trained on the wild boy still attempting to escape his confides. Allison dared to move closer, putting her face to the force-field's side. The jungle boy didn't appreciate being spied on, and so he rushed and hit his shoulder where Allison was looking in. The sphere held its shape, and Allison wasn't scared of the violent action; she was even more excited.
"Incredible!" Allison crowed. "He totally went crazy like in The Jungle of Madness."
P.K. cleared his throat, waving one hand at the video camera when he got the girl's attention. Recognizing the unspoken complaint, Allison quickly changed demeanors and straightened up. She coughed into her fist to clear out her throat, and then faced the camera with an air of professionalism found in all newscasters.
"What you see before you is the fabled jungle boy who has called Forgotten Falls his romping ground," Allison explained to the camera, sweeping a dramatic arm at the still frenzied boy. "With the help of Team Super Stars, we have managed to grab him. But the question now remains: who is he?"
The boy grew tired from his attempts, and winded up standing in the middle of the sphere. Because he had stilled, Alice was able to observe him. An abnormal green tongue stuck out of his mouth as he panted heavily, his shoulders moving up down, up down in time with the panting. He was shirtless, making skin that was already dark even darker from his numerous encounters with the sun. What might have been white pants in another life had been cut jaggedly into a pair of shorts, his only article of clothing. The boy was shoeless, something she already knew from when his bare feet touched her back. His head was mostly bald, save for the few bristles at the top. He had a wild look in his eyes, no doubt from being captured. His hands hung loosely from his sides, which somehow felt weird to Alice.
Alice scrutinized the boy for a moment. He certainly looked familiar, clearly a student at the junior high since he looked roughly the same age as her. He was dirty from living out in the jungle, but he probably wasn't dirty beforehand. She thought about it more, trying to pin a face to a name, but it was a little hard. It was like he was missing something that was stopping her from pinning his identity down; and that's when it suddenly clicked. He was missing something; something tied even to his name.
"Jonny?" she said, looking upon him in surprise.
The boy twitched, flashing crazy eyes at her. Maybe he didn't recognize her, but she certainly did him. Jonny 2x4, the boy whose best friend was a plank of wood.
Allison turned to Alice, looking in surprise that she recognized the face. By this time, their friends had arrived, having seen Alice and Jonny in the air. In amazement, the three looked at the caged boy. Alice saw Suzy's eyes light up in recognition. The redhead put her hands on her hips and smirked, looking like the cat that caught the canary.
"Ahh," she said happily. "I was right."
"Who is this?" Cherry asked, coming to stand beside Allison.
"Alice called him Jonny," Allison answered, looking to the third member of her team. "By the way, you owe me thirty taros. I so called it."
Cherry rolled her eyes but dutifully pulled out her communicator and transferred the amount over to her friend. While Cherry dealt with settling a bet, Junior approached and looked at the caged jungle boy, his eyebrows lifting up into his hairline.
"That's Jonny 2x4?" Junior asked in confusion.
"Who's that?" Allison and Cherry asked in unison.
P.K. dutifully turned the camera in Junior's direction, excepting an answer to further clarify on who the heck Jonny 2x4.
"A boy from the Cul-de-Sac," Junior answered.
"You may recognize him as Captain Melonhead," Suzy provided.
Instantly, the confusion lifted off their faces as they observed the boy. He was no longer breathing heavily and he wasn't trying to escape. Since Alice had said his name, he had taken to studying all the new faces, curious of the six of them as they were in him.
"No way," Allison breathed. "How did he get out here?"
"More like why is he out here?" P.K. asked. "Shouldn't he be at the Cul-de-Sac?"
Alice remembered Double D mentioning Jonny's disappearance back when the Cul-de-Sac was having a cardboard fort be built around it. That would mean he'd been away from the Cul-de-Sac for months. How long had he been out here in the Wilds? Certainly for three weeks, as far as the rumors were concerned, but it was possible he'd been out longer. How did he get back here, and more importantly...
"What happened to Plank?"
Jonny jerked at the name, his eyes going wide at the mention of his best friend. Now that she mentioned the missing piece of wood he was never without, the others noticed the 2x4's missing status.
"Jonny 2x4 without his 2x4?" Junior asked, cocking his head sideways. "I better check to see if the Underworld is covered in ice."
"Isn't the piece of wood his sidekick or something?" Cherry inquired.
"Splinter the Wonderwood," Alice answered.
She could recall in vivid details summer days when Captain Melonhead and his trusty sidekick, Splinter the Wonderwood, would thwart Professor Scam's scams. It was strange seeing Jonny without Plank, and a little sad. What had happened to Jonny when he was all alone?
"What happened to Plank, Jonny?" Suzy asked gently, making sure she was looking at the boy eye-to-eye.
Instead of going into a frenzy like Alice feared, Jonny's shoulders drooped downward, looking upset at the reminder that he was Plank-less. Seeing he wasn't going to go on the attack, Suzy waved at Alice, silently instructing her to remove the sphere. Alice did as Suzy instructed, trusting the other girl's intuition. Jonny was free, but he didn't run to the safety of the jungle. Instead, he dropped to the ground, sitting cross-legged. He put his elbows on his knees, head in his hands, and released a long sigh.
"He was captured," Jonny said, speaking perfectly normal.
Allison and her friends were clearly thrown in surprise. They were probably expecting his speech to be broken, considering the mental image they had. Alice guiltily felt the same way; after seeing how feral he had become; she was sure he would speak broken English. It was at least comforting to see that the allure of the wilds hadn't completely changed him.
"Captured by who?" Suzy inquired, sitting down on the ground so that they were still on the same level.
"A Fusion," Jonny answered. "At least that's what I've heard them be called. The crazy thing is, it looked like me! But an evil me."
"Technically, all Fusions are evil," Allison piped in, raising her finger upward as she corrected the boy. "We're kinda in a war with them."
"Yeah, but this was an evil one," Jonny stressed, although Allison still didn't see the difference. "Like a bad version of Captain Melonhead! Instead of a watermelon, it was wearing a gourd!"
"A variant?" Junior asked. "Didn't Utonium's Fusion have something similar?"
"Fusion Plutonium," Suzy agreed, nodding her head. "It has tentacles which I'm pretty sure the real Professor doesn't have."
"Fit in with the mad scientist vibe, though," Cherry countered.
"Guess Fusions don't like watermelons," P.K. quipped, having the camera hanging by his side.
"Ya gotta help me!" Jonny pleaded, flinging himself upon Suzy. "I can't let that fiend have my best friend!"
"Of course we'll help out, Jonny," Suzy assured the boy, patting his elbow. He stared at her, no doubt surprised by how fast and easily she agreed to his pleadings. "The world needs a hero, and every hero needs a sidekick."
Jonny gasped as his eyes welled up. Unabashedly, he began to cry in relief. Suzy didn't miss a beat, and patted him on the back, whispering words of reassurance that they'd get Plank back.
"Aren't Fusions hard to find?" P.K. questioned. "How are we going to go looking for one?"
From over her shoulder, Suzy sent a smirk Alice's way.
"We're getting close," Alice announced, leading the team from the front.
"We're almost to Plank?" Jonny asked, sticking close to Alice's side.
Alice looked over at the boy and nodded in answer. After he calmed down from his outburst, Jonny had bounced back to being his old self. He was eager to find Plank and have his friend back, and the only thing stopping him from running off on his own was that he needed Alice to point the way for him, so he stuck by her like glue.
"You sure it's a smart idea to bring a camera to a Fusion fight?" Junior questioned, eyeing the camera resting on P.K.'s shoulder.
Allison wanted some footage of Alice leading the way with her Fusion sensing abilities, and so P.K. was filming the entire trek so that Cherry could pick out the best take.
"This will be the first Fusion we've encountered," Allison explained. "We sooo need the footage."
"Plus, you've all had your fair share of fighting Fusions, right?" Cherry asked. When Junior agreed with her assessment, she continued, "We have the same odds fighting this Fusion like we did searching for jungle boy there." She gestured at Jonny. "You three took down Fusions before, so having three more pairs of hands should just sway the odds further in our favor."
"Technically two and a half," P.K. corrected, tapping the video camera's side.
"Plus, you'll have the help of Captain Melonhead!" Jonny declared heroically. Despite him sticking to Alice, he had been paying attention to the conversation.
"With what weapon?" Cherry asked rhetorically, running her eyes up and down his body. He was still only in a pair of shorts, and it didn't look like a communicator or weapon was on him.
"I don't need any weapons," Jonny responded confidently.
"How have you been dealing with -"
"PLANK!"
P.K.'s question was loudly interrupted by Jonny spotting his captured friend. Alice panicked when the boy released the loud scream, and only managed to grab his arm before he moved out of her reach.
The Fusion holding the 2x4 turned in their direction, its red eyes narrowing upon seeing the large group. When Jonny had declared the Fusion to be a villain, Alice hadn't believed him, although now she was seeing what he meant. While the Fusion had the same attire as Captain Melonhead, albeit ragged and disarrayed, there were some stark differences. A brown belt with a large buckle wrapped around its stomach. The gloves it wore on its hands were mismatched. On its right hand, the glove covered the fingers and went to the elbow. On the left hand, the glove was fingerless and short. Wrapped around its shoulders was a quilt that made into a cape. Atop its head, covering half of its face was a large gourd, with eyeholes cut into it so that the red of the Fusion's eyes could be visible. The Fusion copy seemed more like a dark, mirror verse of the hero, quite possibly the most surprising variant Fusion that had popped up since Fusion Wilt.
Jonny struggled against Alice's hold. Being within inches of rescuing his friend put him back into that wild state, and so he thrashed around wildly. When that didn't work, he spun around and bit Alice's hand. She released him with a cry, more out of surprise than actual pain.
"What the heck!?" Cherry demanded from the boy, shocked that he would do such a childish thing.
Jonny didn't hear - or was just plain ignoring the others. He crossed the distance between the two sides quickly, and leaped into the air. While in the air, he stuck out his leg, targeting his opponent. He was able to connect the bottom of his foot into the Fusion's gourd protected head, but had no chance to celebrate this feat. As soon as his foot made contact with the Fusion, the Fusion slapped the boy away from him. Jonny went flying and landed on his back, skidding to a stop a few feet back.
"We'll have to edit that out," Allison commented.
The Fusion gurgled something that might have been a laugh, and then lifted its fingers, giving them a snap. Almost immediately, Great Terrorspins appeared and surrounded the team.
"Oh great!" P.K. complained. "We're surrounded!"
"Gee, thanks Sherlock!" Cherry snapped, pulling out her Zip Zapper and firing at the closest Terrorspin near her. "I hadn't noticed!"
"I'm going to help Jonny," Alice told Junior, pushing a Great Terrorspin with her force-field. "Will you be okay helping them?"
"Don't worry about us," Junior answered. "Suzy and I can- Where's Suzy?"
Alice looked around for a moment, trying to spot their redheaded friend. Allison and Cherry were standing back-to-back, firing off their weapons at the Great Terrorspins. P.K. had put the camera down and was using the Peppermintium Claws on his free hand to swipe at the monsters that tried to get close to the three of them. Junior was standing next to her, and Jonny was fending off his own Great Terrorspin, but Suzy was nowhere near the group.
"I'll find her after I help Jonny," Alice told him.
Junior agreed, and proceeded to skewer the Terrorspins' heads with his tentacles. Alice took to the air, flying over the land monsters and heading for Jonny. For a boy with only his bare hands, he was doing surprisingly okay. He was in the middle of wrestling the jaws of one of the Terrorspin's heads, the other head trying to snap at him from the awkward angle. Despite having his hands touching the Fusion skin, Jonny was showing no signs of being burned. It was a thought for another time. The Fusion was sneaking up on Jonny, forming a gooey ball in its hand.
Alice called out Nano Boomer and her Nano rushed at the Fusion, striking it with his energy bat. The Fusion's own attack it was preparing fell out of its hand and to the ground, causing the ground to be infected. The Fusion spun on the Nano with a snarl, and formed another gooey ball, throwing it Alice's way. Alice deflected the attack with her shield, and that was when she noticed a familiar head of red hair.
Suzy was sneaking up behind the Fusion, Nano Numbuh Five trailing behind her and mimicking Suzy's sneaking movement. Seeing the two made Alice realize what had happened. Nano Numbuh Five's Secret Agent permitted her to sneak past the Great Terrorspins undetected, and the Fusion had no idea how close she was to him. She stopped within arm's reach of the Fusion, but she didn't try reaching out for the stolen property. Instead, she sent Nano Numbuh Five. The Nano flew stealthily through the air and put her little hands on the bottom of the wood. Once she was positive she had a good grip, she pulled. Because the Fusion had set its sights on Alice, it had a relaxed grip on Plank, letting the Nano yank it from its hold. It felt the wood piece be pulled from its grasp, and turned to find who had stolen from it. This is when Alice sent the monster's attack back at it, striking it in the head.
Nano Numbuh Five overestimated the Fusion's grip on Plank and wound up using more strength than she needed. The momentum had her somersaulting in the air, losing her grip on the wood piece. Plank's descent was interrupted by Suzy grabbing him. Once she had her fingers wrapped around the wood she immediately bolted the opposite direction, putting as much distance as she could between herself and the Fusion; her Nano followed as fast as she could. The Fusion didn't notice Suzy's escape thanks to Alice, and now its attention was put onto the floating girl.
The Fusion growled and raised a hand, green matter beginning to form on the spot of earth below Alice. The eruption never finished its formation because the Fusion was surprise tackled by Jonny. The boy tackled the Fusion to the ground, pinning down the Fusion's arms with his knees. Moving fast, Jonny began punching the Fusion in the face, throwing one punch after the other. The Fusion was so surprised by the ferocity of the attacks that it didn't try to stop the human from pummeling him. Alice was equally surprised, especially because Jonny wasn't showing any signs that contact with the Fusion's skin was hurting him.
"YOU NO GOOD, ROTTEN, UGLY, HEINOUS FRIEND STEALER!" Jonny screamed as he continued his assault. "PLANK IS MY FRIEND! MY FRIEND! GET YOUR OWN FRIEND!"
To cap off his rage induced episode, Jonny headbutted the Fusion. The gourd that protected the monster's head cracked in half from the hit, and fell apart, briefly revealing the face of Fusion Jonny. Then, the body melted into Fusion Matter and the liquid flew up into Alice's NanoCom since it was the closest technology. Jonny stared at the spot the Fusion had been, blinking in surprise. He looked around, trying to find a trace of where his opponent had spirited away to.
"Hey, where did he go?" Jonny asked in confusion, his anger nowhere to be found on his face.
"And CUT!" Allison yelled.
Jonny and Alice snapped their attention her way, finding her running toward them. She placed her hands on Jonny's shoulders once she reached him. Her eyes were wide in excitement, and the grin she wore threatened to split her face in half.
"That was amazing! You were amazing!" Allison cheered. "The finished project is going to be spectacular!"
"Uh, thanks?" Jonny said in confusion. While he got the idea that she was complimenting him, he wasn't really interested in anything related to a project; whatever that was. "Have you seen Plank? The Fusion didn't drop him."
"I've got him, Jonny," Suzy told him, making her way over. She held up the missing friend. "And don't worry, not a splinter out of place."
"Plank!" Jonny cried, leaping to his feet.
He ran and took Plank from Suzy, hugging the wood close to his chest and doing a little spin. The smile on his face was the sweetest smile, and it made Alice happy to see the two reunited. She didn't understand how someone his age could be so attached to an inanimate object, but she couldn't deny that he felt strongly for his friend. She landed near the boy, looking him over. Frowning, she called out Nano Numbuh Three.
"Rainbow Monkeys!" Nano Numbuh Three delightfully cried for no apparent reason. It was her favorite form a greeting, and Alice didn't have the heart to make her change it. "Who needs love?"
Nano Numbuh Three zipped around the open space, giving her Share the Love hugs to anyone who needed them. Suzy and Alice hadn't been part of the fights, so they were unharmed - and in Alice's case, she healed quickly anyways. Junior and Allison had been lucky and made it out of the fight with the Great Terrorspins without a scratch on them. Cherry and P.K. had only a burn or two that disappeared as soon as Nano Numbuh Three hugged them. She hugged Jonny the longest. Even though he didn't act like he was in pain, there was still the fact that he had been in close - and prolong - contact with a Fusion's skin. Nano Numbuh Three even used Share the Love on Plank at Jonny's request. The piece of wood had some Fusion Matter on his bark, no doubt from where the Fusion held him. Even though Alice didn't think it would work, the spots had disappeared after Nano Numbuh Three hugged him. Maybe the rumors were true; maybe Plank really was alive. Was he influenced by some sort of imaginary energy?
"Awwh, Plank, I'm so happy you're safe," Jonny said, giving Plank another hug. "I missed you so much."
"I really don't get this whole boy and his piece of wood thing, but I have to say what you just did to that Fusion was pretty impressive," P.K. said complimented. "I thought for sure you were going to get us all killed, but you actually managed to save the day."
"Of course he did," Suzy said, grinning at the bald boy.
Alice smiled and nodded. "He is Captain Melonhead."
A glint shined in Jonny's eyes at the mention of his superhero alter ego. It was the same look he had whenever Professor Scam tried to swindle the Cul-de-Sac kids out of their hard-earned quarters.
"After seeing this, I definitely understand why his image is up in Heroes Square," Cherry commented with a smirk. "I'd want a hero like him keeping the streets safe."
"They have an image of me?" Jonny asked in amazement. "In Hero Square?"
"Heroes Square," Cherry corrected.
"A lot has changed since you left the Cul-de-Sac," Alice said. "People have been missing you."
"Dexter's sent people to look for you," Junior added. "With this invasion still going on, the world is in need of heroes."
"After what we captured on tape, I'd say the world could use you especially," P.K. joined in, paying him another compliment.
"What do you say, Jonny? Ready to leave the jungle and return to being a hero dedicated to protecting the innocent?" Suzy prompted.
Jonny glanced down at his buddy Plank for a moment. When he looked back up at Suzy, he smirked. It was the confident smirk Alice had seen on the face of Captain Melonhead, and she knew his response before he struck his pose and declared heroically,
"It's Melon Time!"
Gi broadly stated it, but the mini-Terrafusers is a nod to "One Stinky Fusion" Pt. 1. Lord Pain working for Mandy and having the Current Diverter is from Mojo's guide mission "Water You Doing?" and Mojo sending Chemical X to Forgotten Falls is based on his mission line starting from "Water You Kidding?" to "All Systems Go, Mojo," although I tweaked it. Obviously someone like Gi wasn't going to let a Current Diverter just be placed into the river. Plumber Carol needing a Great Terrorpin shell is based on her mission "Armor Race" while her getting the Shag Carpeting CDs back from Scythe Simians is based on "Bootleg Boo-Boo" Pt. 2.
Allison and Prince King Morbucks are from Legacy's Picture of the Day series, and all three of them going around and filming is from their scrapped season three storyline. I really like the idea of them going around documenting events so that they can compile it for after the war. Prince King's nickname is P.K. just because I think the girls would refer to him by a nickname and as a Digimon girl it reminds me of T.K., so that's why it exists. Also, he was given Peppermintium Claws because it's a candy weapon and he's dressed as a Candy Pirate. Plus, I'm a huge fan of the Elfa Strike Squad and love that they were given some representation in the game.
Numbuh Vine is Lizzie from the 'stop the g:knd' video. Chapter 16 hinted at Suzy knowing Lizzie on a personal level, including knowing her secret as an alien. I was pondering what her role would be in FusionFall if I could put her in and having her be the one monitoring Mojo's habits seemed like a good fit. This would free up Dexter to focus his attention on the missing heroes and let me reference the girl again. Plus, as a plant alien, she probably wants to keep the water sources clean.
Despite Junior having no official surname (and I couldn't find a reason for a demon to have one since that would be a human concept), I still wanted to have Lord Pain refer to Junior as something other than Junior, so I went with Nergalson. Considering it would translate to 'Son of Nergal', I felt this was fine. Most demons would probably refer to Junior as this. Also, in the show Lord Pain refers to Mandy as 'Master' so that's why I didn't change it to mistress.
Mandy's run as the KND Soopreme Leaduh is a reference to the crossover Grim Adventures of the KND. It's one of the known times that I can remember in which Mandy's plans were thwarted. There may have been others, but I think this example was good enough.
Allison was going to make a reference to Lord of the Flies, but I spent way too much time collecting known books within the CN universe that I just couldn't rely on a real-world example, so I went with Craig of the Creek's The Jungle of Madness. I don't know much about this book because it was just a title on Kelsey's shelf, but I figured its title would work for what I needed to convey.
Fusion Mac is the only lair in Forgotten Falls, but I didn't want to use him, so I decided Fusion Gourd (Jonny's Fusion alternate because that sounded too fun for me) wanted a Plank companion, and so it went and stole Jonny's friend. I had him wandering the land because I haven't had Fusions do that in a while.
There was going to be an explanation by Gi on why she was able to use her magic ring normally compared to Kwame who was struggling but there was no way to fit it in organically, so it was cut. The reason being is that the water supply near Gi is clean water. If she were in Leaky Lake, then it'd be a different case since the water there is contaminated. This would be the same for Wheeler, Linka, and Ma-Ti. Since Kwame was in the Fissure, where the ground is super contaminated, his ring was having difficulty; if he was out somewhere in like Sector V where the ground is a little less contaminated, he'd be better.
I forgot to do this when Kwame was brought in, but this is a Planeteer Alert to remind you to do your part in keeping the Earth clean. Recycle your cans and plastics, pick up trash when you see it, and don't litter. The power is yours!