PR 14: Lock Down
Ok I realized that I never fully explained things in this story, only ever spoke to individuals that actually reviewed. So I'm gonna say a few things that I find important to know.
First of all I hate all that sparkles and sunshine and rainbow crappin butterflies shit. I'm not writing some story where their all innocent little angels cause as my own personal saying goes "The horns hold up the halo." They are not gonna be saving every little bug that decides to fly by. They aren't gonna help every single person that asks for it. I'm looking at this from a realistic view point, they can't save everyone, they won't always do the right thing, THEY HAVE FLAWS!
Now don't get me wrong, I'm not, I repeat NOT, going to turn the good guys into mass murdering psychopaths or anything like that. They aren't gonna go around hurting innocent people for fun or any shit like that but that docent mean their gonna be following all the rules like little saints. There's no such thing in my opinion, everyone has a dark side, everyone makes mistakes, nobody's perfect no matter how hard they try to be.
With that said, anyone that wants to complain about how 'They're the Powerpuffs girls, they can't do that' or 'The girls would never do something like that' or the most annoying of all the 'the girls wouldnt do that, you have to change it' they can all shove it cause I don't give a rip. You can grumble about it all you want and maybe I'll read them but if I don't feel like changing those particular things you dislike I'm not gonna change it.
I've had enough of those flamers grumbling and trying to bully or argue or spam others into changing their work into ways they see more fitting and I'm sick of it. You guys can spam and bash all you want but if I decide to write my characters a certain way and like it, guess what, I'm gonna keep it that way. Then again, who knows, maybe I'll agree with you and change it or not who knows.
I'd also like to remind all of you that I am a dark writer for a reason. I know the story had been more or less upbeat so far but things are about to get dark. Some questions are gonna be answered, some now ones are gonna pop up but more than any of that, the shit is finally gonna hit the fan. So if y'all don't like blood or gore and all that jazz ya better be leavin now.
Disclaimer: Still don't own anything. I want a cookie…
•••000•••
Clack clack, clink, clack clack.
Bleary green eyes open, shifting around randomly before settling as the teen recalls where he was. Forcing himself up, Butch rubbed at his eyes trying to figure out what had woken him in the first place.
The clatter of shifting glass ring dimly through the room. The sounds so soft normal ears wouldn't even notice it.
'Ugh… do I even want to know… its probably one of the girls or something…'
Deciding to ignore it the raven teen flopped back onto the bed in the room he had been given for the night. Yawning loudly he rolled over facing the wall, settling back to sleep.
A sudden crash of shattering glass followed by a muffled curse woke him back up just as the fringes of sleep seeped over his consciousness. Green orbs snapped back open to glare viciously at the wall.
'Grr…whoevers out there better have a damn good reason to be wakin me up at this time!'
Rolling off the bed, Butch hovered just off the floor. Thankful that he had sneakily fitted the chip into his collar and could take it off at will. Turning the door knob he slipped into the hall just in time to spot his brothers making their way down the stairs.
While Boomer looked groggy and ready to pass out at any second, Brick was obviously wide awake and annoyed.
'Guess I'm not the only one…whatever.'
Reaching the bottom of the stairs the three crept, well Brick crept Boomer stumbled and Butch float, silently over to the kitchen door way.
The sound of scraping glass clattered together, soft thuds followed as Butch could only guess the person was throwing the glass into the trash. The clattering of what he could now distinguish as bottles resumed as they peered into the kitchen.
A tall black clad figure stood just beside the window, sifting through the upper shelves of one of the cabinets. With what he could only describe as a grateful sigh, the person pulled down a tall slim bottle, popped it open and tanked down the contents.
Butch found himself blinded, his advanced eyesight making his head scream in agony as Boomer suddenly flicked on the lights.
"Who the Hell are you and what are you doing?" Brick demanded, his voice a low threatening growl.
Vision returning, Butch caught sight of the person for the first time. Whoever it was was rather tall, probably around Boomer's height of 5'11 though not nearly as large. If it was a girl as he seemed to believe, she had pretty good taste in clothes.
A jet black jacket covered the top half, it's back embroidered with a nine tailed fox snarling ferociously. It's fangs and claws dripping in blood as it bared it's teeth beneath the full moon. The bottom was more plane, baggy black jeans with a studded belt and combat boots.
This person was either stupid, insane, had a death wish, or possibly all three, completely brushing Brick off with a non committed snort and tipping the bottle back into the air. Well the girl had guts, he'd give her that before she died.
"Forgot you guys were here… whatever." the bell like voice reached them just as the light sent of alcohol, copper and strawberries reached his nose. Butch stood there, trying to match a face to the voice, it sounded so familiar yet so very foreign at the same time. "Go back to sleep, it's not like I'm entertainment or something so get lost."
"Is that alcohol?" Boomer asked, quietly snuffing the air.
"Maybe, what's it to ya?" With one last gulp, the bottle was tossed haphazardly into the trash. Turning around the shorter girl stalked over, rudely brushing past them. Butch was shocked to find that she possessed the strength to do so as she practically shoved him out of the way.
Something warm and wet smeared across his arm as she brushed past him. Looking down Butch was alarmed to find a faint trace of red on his arm and spotted along the floor. It looked eerily like blood…
•••***•••
It took what felt like forever before Brick could finally convince his brother to go back to sleep. Boomer was still half out of it and didn't put up much of a fight. Butch on the other hand was much more difficult to persuade. He had seen the blood on the floor, some of it was on his arm too but even he had given up after a while.
He had complied far too quickly for the reds liking though. Knowing Butch the boy was probably just playing passive and would follow the first chance he got. Brick would have to keep an eye out for that one.
After making sure they had at least gone back to their rooms the red followed the trail of crimson liquid down to the basement door. Stepping into the small room inside he closed the door behind him looking for the glow of the hidden key pad and punching in the number code Buttercup had them memorize.
He waited a few moments after the door had opened for his eyes to adjust to the dark area. The green lava lamps illuminated the room just enough for him to distinguish the dark spots on the white carpet. There were only a few now that led to the left and over the railing towards the kitchen.
Hopping the rail Brick landed in the doorway only to slip on a puddle. Landing on his ass he groaned irritably, rubbing his sore spot. He spit out a few choice curses as he got back up.
His quickly straightened upon seeing the now distinguishable trail along the floor and smears on the wall leading down the hall. Picking up his pace, Brick zipped down the hall, following the trail of blood to a steel door. The infirmary if he remembered correctly.
Stabbing in the code once more, Brick waited impatiently for the door to open. What awaited him wasn't the least bit comforting.
He had known who she was from the second she had opened her mouth, how could he ever not know that voice, had known something was wrong from the moment he had seen the blood. This was more than he expected though, far more.
It looked like someone had dragged a bleeding carcass along the floors, there was that much blood. The surfaces of the tables were smeared with the stuff and so were a few cabinets, the room looked like the set of some horror move who's producer had gone overboard with the decor.
"Shit!" A large bottle came flying across the room, white pills spilling from it's open mouth.
Brick managed to catch it just before it hit the wall, wayward tablets plopping onto the bloody puddles.
"Whada ya want?" following the angry growls and trails of blood to the far back corner of the room he paused.
A pair of black jeans legs stretched along the floor just behind the desk. Dreading what he might find Brick peeked slowly around the large desk.
Piercing magenta bore into him, promises of pain and torment swimming through haunted orbs. This definitely wasn't the girl he usually dealt with, the cool calculative redhead he was used to was long gone.
Slumped against one of the desks drawers, lying in a pool of her own blood was none other than Blossom. The jacket she had been using was now a crumpled wad at her feet soaking up blood like a sponge. Fiery ember hair lay limp and tangled, tattered remnants of her shirt hanging off her frame. Blood trailed down her body in rivulets snaking across her left side.
With a sort of morbid fascination he watched one of the drops slide down from her hair line, meeting up with another it snaked down the pale flesh of her neck. He stared as it glittered over her collar bone before disappearing into cleavage.
"If your just gonna stand around starring get lost!" Blossom snarled, not caring about the blood she literally spat in doing so. Grasping something small and white in her hand she shifted, turning away and bringing her palm to her face.
Without thinking Brick shot forward, grasping at her wrist. A sharp tug sent a couple of small white tablets skittering across the floor.
"The fuck-?!"
"What do you think you're doing?" Brick snapped, tightening his grip on her wrists. "I though you were the good guy so what the fuck are you doin over here chugging vodka like a dehydrated fish and poppin pills like their fucking tick-tacks?!"
"It's not vodka dumb ass!" Blossom snapped back.
"But your still trying to swallow pills! And don't even try to bull shit me, I can smell the alcohol from here!"
"Their pain killers-" she broke into a series of wet hacking coughs, entire body shuddering from the effort. Gasping for air, Blossom snatched her wrists back. "You know what, think whatever you want. I don't care."
Brick didn't know what to think, he didn't know what to do. Butch was right, this wasn't the same person he had known so long ago. This wasn't the little girl he had so often picked fights with as a kid. To further prove his point, Blossom forced herself up on wobbly legs, shoving him away with more strength than he would expect from the obviously anemic girl.
Not quite sure on how to deal with the situation Brick watched as Blossom stumbled her way to the closest of the examination tables. Leaning heavily against it she fumbled with one of the cabinets, pulling a large clear bottle out.
Plucking the top off she poured the entirety of it's contents over herself. Brick could hear her growl, a deep yet high sound rumbling in her throat as the liquid washed away the blood. The strong smell of rubbing alcohol burned into his nose making him cringe as he took in the sight of her left side for the first time.
It was no wonder the girl had done it, he would be drinking himself into a drunken stupor if he were in her position. Heck he doubted he would even be able to move.
She was mangled. And that was an understatement.
Her left arm looked like someone had sliced it with a rusted butchers knife then burned it with hot irons.
Her waist was even worse. Just below the ribs he could see what looked like a series of bite marks, the blackened flesh oozing blood like a broken hose. Over that was a series of deep set lacerations that were turning a very unhealthy shade of purple.
Brick let out a strangled yelp when she tore the remnants of her shirt off, unbuckled her jeans and let them drop to the floor without the slightest bit of embarrassment.
"Wha- what are you-?" he hardly had the time finish before she suddenly hissed, collapsing onto the table and clutching at her thigh.
Brick should have simply walked away, he hated this girl with every fiber of his being. The sole purpose of his existence was to destroy her. He was made to enjoy her suffering, to inflict pain upon her and laugh as she squirmed.
So why was it that he found no amusement from this situation? Why wasn't he enjoying her pain and laughing at her discomfort? Why wasn't he attacking her or trying to kill her? Why was he suddenly angry? So what if the pain inflicted had been by hands that were not his own. A wound was a wound no matter where it came from.
More than any of that, why did his legs carry him to her side?
•••***•••
Grinding her teeth, Blossom tried her hardest to subdue the searing pain erupting from her entire left side.
This wasn't anything new, pain had become a very familiar feeling throughout her lifetime. It was like a drug, the more you take it the less it affects you. But that didn't stop it entirely, especially considering where these particular ones had been acquired. The memories from hours prior were just the distraction she needed to drown out the pain if only for a moment.
Collecting her wits about her, the redhead was surprised, when the pain had dulled to a light throb, to find a hand, not her own, pressed against her side.
She faintly recalled that someone had indeed been here with her. Who it was though was another matter entirely, the coherent portion of her brain wasn't quite working right at the moment blinking on and off with large gaps of darkness in between. Not a good thing at all, with the rate she was going she would pass out completely. If that happened… she couldn't let that happen… not if there was someone nearby… not at all.
It wasn't the priority at the moment though. What was important was getting those damn fangs out of her side, and pulling out all those metal bits from her leg and arm. Staying conscious was useless if she was hurting the whole time.
Every time she moved they would rub against one another and cause more pain than she would have felt otherwise considering that a few were rubbing the tendons. Once those were gone, then she could worry about who the heck was touching her. Besides, the hands were being gentle and didn't seem to pose a threat. On the contrary, they were rather soothing at the moment… yah, they could definitely stay until later.
•••***•••
He wasn't sure what was going on anymore. The tense and pained Blossom suddenly went slack before him, flopping over the table in a boneless heap.
Using her good arm she pulled some kind of tongs or tweezers out of seemingly nowhere. A moment later the girl was tearing into the muscle of her shoulder with the tool, widening the wounds.
'What is wrong with this chick?' Brick mentally screamed, he just couldn't follow her train of thought. It was all over the place. One minute she was fine the next she's self mutilating.
"What is wrong with you? Are you trying to hurt yourself?" His hands shot out, snatching the tool from her.
"Needa get them out." Blossom mumbled casting a weird look over her shoulder. Something was different about her, he was beginning to notice but he couldn't place his finger on what it was.
It took his brain a few seconds to process her words and when it did he glanced at her wound. Blinking rapidly his red irises flashed black, the pupils turning paper white as he peered through the tissue with x-ray eyes. It was a good thing he had left his hat with that chip on the nightstand or he was sure he wouldn't have been able to do that.
Little flecks of silver began to appear decorating the tears in her upper arm. With a little reluctance, he grabbed her, holding the arm still as he worked the tweezer into her flesh.
She cringed, wriggling slightly in his grasp, a high pitched whine piercing the air. If he had been paying attention to anything other than her wound he may have noticed Blossom's magenta orbs flash or the way her hair seemed to move of it's own free will along the sides of her head and lower back.
As it was, Brick was preoccupied though, absorbed in his task of removing each bit of metal. Moving on to her side he pulled out a set of large fangs. Marveling at the sheer size of them. It was like nothing he had ever seen before.
Now came the awkward part. Reaching down Brick grabbed the outer edge of her thigh, ignoring how soft it felt against his calloused palm in favor of glaring at her as she growled at him. Growling louder, she bared her teeth, k-9's surprisingly sharp.
He waited a while for her to calm back down. Once he grew impatient Brick let out a growl of his own, glaring at her, a very obvious warning for her to stop. It backfired, if anything his efforts only proved to irk her more the low growls now nearer to snarls.
"Blossom." He growled, irritated at how ridiculous she was being.
She made an odd, squeaky, chattering noise then blinked once before settling down, glaring all the while but at least she had stopped growling.
She was still a little tense but put up no fight as he moved her leg so he could better reach the metal bits. Shifting a bit he moved the flesh around until the metal shone bright in the muscle. Pulling out a particularly large piece he watched it fall with a dull 'clink' into the small pile beside her.
'Ok, I've had some crap jammed under my skin before but this is ridiculous.' eyeing the pile of metal and fangs he began to wonder just how she had gotten all of it in the first place.
"So… wanna tell me who ya got your ass kicked from?" Brick asked, returning to his previous task. "Not that I care, I'd just like to thank em if I ever get the chance."
She just continued glaring, not that he really expected a reply anyway. The room fell silent once more, the only sounds remaining was the occasional soft 'plink' of falling metal. Finally turning away Blossom folded her arms before her and lay against them.
"Meteor Shower."
"What?" Brick jumped, startled that she had actually spoken. The tweezers slipped in his hand causing Blossom to hiss as it pinched the raw muscle. "Ops."
When she was done hissing at him she turned away once more, huffing loudly. "It's a type of advanced weaponry. The beam it shoots creates acceleration in the surrounding particles causing massive burning to the target. After that it shoots off a cluster of spikes, created from a variety of different materials, depending on the target."
"Uh-hu…" She twitched again as he pulled on a particularly stubborn piece. "So you got shot huh? Surprised your not crying."
"I don't cry."
"Course you do. You used to cry all the time."
"No… crying gets you nowhere."
"Ok, who are ya and what have you done with my pink bitch of a counterpart?" Brick questioned, half serious. Pulling out one last piece of metal he dropped it into the pile.
She turned back, starring him straight in the eye. She didn't need to answer, that one look spoke volumes. For once he looked, really looked, at the dark magenta, so different from the rose pink that he remembered. This wasn't the innocent brat that thought she knew everything, the kid that believed she could save the world and make some utopia where everyone could live happily ever after or some shit like that.
This was a person that had seen the horrors the world had to offer. Someone who had witnessed first hand what evil was capable of and would fight, tooth and nail to protect what she cared about.
Brick watched as she shifted past him, reaching into the cabinet for a another bottle of rubbing alchohol. This time she let out a high pitched whine as she poured it into the still bleeding wounds. Brick cringed in sympathy, he could literally hear the hiss as it foamed, bubbling pink as it mixed with her blood.
"You know you still didn't answer my question."
He made a point of not looking at her as she dug around the cabinets contents again. The situation was bad enough without him being accused of starring at her or some shit like that while she pranced around half naked like it didn't bother her in the least.
Not to mention he was still kicking himself in the ass for helping her at all. To think that he had willingly helped her and was even being semi nice, or at least not making things worse, while he could easily pick her off in her weakened state. There was something definitely wrong here, especially considering that he was certain she was ignoring him again and he wasn't trying to pick a fight over it.
If there was one thing Brick hated more than Blossom it was being ignored, Blossom ignoring him? He should be throwing a total bitch fit right about now, yet here he was, quietly questioning her… he should probably have his brain scanned for possible damage later…
"Which question?" Blossom asked, fiddling with some sort of thin container. Popping it open she grabbed up one of an assortment of syringes and stuck it into her side directly next to the purpled flesh before the red Ruff could say anything about it. "You've asked several questions."
Brick scowled, waiting just long enough for her to remove the needle before taking it from her along with the container. Seriously, he takes his eyes off her for a moment and this again. She was worse than Butch.
"The one about where you got these from." Brick gestured to her maimed side, snatching up the gauze lying on the table and angrily wrapping it around her before she could do some other stupid shit when his back was turned.
"Can't answer that." Blossom hummed, surprisingly compliant as he tightened the white material.
"And why the hell not?" Brick growled, he had expected at least some form of reluctance, not for her to hold still. "I think I deserve some sort of explanation since I'm helping you."
"Telling you would entail divulging information I'm not at liberty to speak on at this time."
"Bullshit," he mumbled under his breath knowing she could hear, but for whatever reason she didn't respond. "Could you at least say what you got it from? Wait, don't tell me, you can't say that either huh?"
Blossom turned her head slightly, confirming that, no, she would not answer that question either.
"What about that crap you were drinking earlier?" Brick huffed, growing annoyed as he moved on to wrap her torso as well. "I don't care how many times you say it wasn't it smelled like alcohol."
"It was an iron supplement to raise blood cell count."
"Uh-hu…" he didn't believe that for a moment.
"Alcoholic based to enable faster reaction time."
Now that he might believe. Cutting the ends of the wrap he tied them off. Now came the awkward part…Not quite knowing how to set about this Brick debated just letting her finish bandaging herself up on her own, to hell if she decided to do some other shit to herself.
He glanced between the bleached white bandages in his hand and the several pill bottles he had already snatched from her during the process of simply wrapping her arm and side. Where the heck was she even getting them?
'Damn it all!' He frowned, he didn't doubt that she would be grabbing for them again if he turned away for a second. Stupid girl would probably overdose herself on something and seeing as he was the last one to be near her he would most definitely get pinned with the blame. 'Freaking stupid Powerpuff…'
Her explanation of the bottle had run out some time ago now and the silence in the room was quickly becoming uncomfortable. He still wasn't willing to say anything though, not that he knew what to say anyway.
Something towards the top of her head caught his attention then, looking up he could only find hair though. With another huff Blossom leaned back down against the table again, saving the boy from his predicament, even if it did present an even more daunting task before him.
Mentally kicking himself in the ass again for being stupid Brick snatched her leg up by the knee, wrapping the bandage as quickly as he could, trying his best to ignore the feel of soft skin on calloused palms.
Could this situation get any worse? That was sarcasm! DON'T get any worse! Please!
"You know, there's a lot of things you haven't answered." Brick continued on, letting his mouth run on autopilot.
"Like…?" Blossom questioned evenly, surprisingly not bothered even when he quite literally just whacked her wound in his haste.
"Well now that I think about it, why are you and Mojo so chummy?"
"Call it a guilty conscience."
"Guilty? Pu-lease." Brick scoffed, scowl deepening when he realized he had tangled the the bandage. "Mojo's never been one to have a guilty conscience."
"Not after what he did…" she mumbled, so quiet he almost didn't hear.
"What about how the two of you seem to disappear at the same time huh?" He questioned, wanting to ask further on the subject but somehow knowing he wouldn't get an answer. "Too much of a coincident to have you both vanish at the same time with similar parting words about staying in one place. Seems too suspicious if you ask me."
"What is with you and all these questions anyway?" Blossom grumbled, folding her arms. "I told all of you as much as I can, if I could say more I would, so can't you just wait?"
"No, I can't, we both know where that wound me up last time." Brick half snarled, knotting the bandage as uncomfortably tight as he could, anger bubbling back up again at the mere thought.
"That wasn't my fault!" She whirled around, glaring at him dead in the eye, knowing exactly what he was referring to.
"I highly doubt that." Brick stated, still pissed but mildly pleased with how much that one sentence had riled the girl up when nothing else had.
"You have no idea what happened back then!" Blossom growled, teeth bared, were her k-9's always that sharp?
"And who's fault is that?"
The rumbling growl grew into a high pitched snarl, usually something he would have laughed at, but coming from her it was oddly unnerving.
He refused to be intimidated though, not backing down an inch as he stepped into her personal space to glare down at her. It was around this time that he noticed the odd set of her eyes again.
The last time he was certain it was just his mind playing tricks on him. Now… he wasn't so sure.
There was only so much he could brush off as accidents or tricks of the mind. The curve of her eyes had shifted again, this time he was quite certain of it. The almond slant that curved down like a cats, the thin diamond slits of her pupils set agains the swirl of red toned colors.
This time he was quite aware of the lightness in his limbs, the foggy haze that clouded his mind, it was all due to his lack of breath. The longer he stared into those darkening orbs the harder it was for him to breath. It felt like he was being suffocated yet she hadn't lain a single finger on him.
His vision began darkening at the edges. If he didn't get some oxygen soon he was sure to pass out.
'Just breath you dumb ass!'
A high pitched shrill snapped him out of whatever spell the Puff had cast. He shook his head, dispelling whatever lasting effects remained as he stepped back away from her. If anything Blossom looked even more mad now, stalking back to the desk he had found her behind, a notable lack of her earlier stumbling.
Dragging the rolling chair back over Blossom plopped down on it, snatching up her blood soaked jacket and wringing out some of the red liquid. Shrugging it back on she hastily wrapped the front close and slapped her hand on the underside of the desk.
A thin wide panel opened up, much like the earlier keypads from that computer room, a bright light flashing out. Brick squint at the blinding white color before it faded into a pitch black as all the other lights clicked off.
Just like that the room erupt into chaotic sounds, nearly deafening the teen. Explosions rang full circle, inhuman shrieks, grunting growls, and loud angry bellows echoing about.
"You ssslimy little ssslug!" A blood chilling hiss roared into the room, monstrous yellow eyes flashing menacingly on the screen. "When I get my handsss on you-!"
"What's going on!" Blossom shouted back over the sound.
"They're everywhere!" The figure screeched, fangs like daggers flashing ivory white into the screen close enough that Brick could almost make out a narrow face. "It'sss a war zone out here!"
"What?!" Blossom jumped out of the chair, leaning into the holographic screen as if the action would allow her a better view from the other side. "That's not possible! I was sure I cleaned them all out, there were only twenty Basilisk and five Hell Hounds total!"
"Well then you didn't finish the job!"
Something exceedingly large landed in the background, the person on screen whipping around with a blinding explosion of acid green light, a howling scream unlike anything Brick had ever heard before and the shadowed thing collapsed, a large portion of it missing.
"There were only nineteen when we got here!" Yellow eyes blurred, slitted pupils dilated, agonized howls and splattering sounds left in its wake, the shadowed figures in the background seeming to literally melt apart in glowing green froth. "There'sss a hoard of rabid'sss now!"
"RABID'S?!" Blossom noticeably palled, the shock apparent on her face. "HOW IN THE SEVEN HELLS ARE THERE POSSIBLY RABID'S?! THOSE ARE SUPPOSED TO BE ISOLATED!"
"How the fuck ssshould I know?!" Ivory fangs ducked low towards the screen, the background spinning wildly, Brick thought he caught a glimpse of green tinted skin but he wasn't too sure for the person leaned back away. "We couldn't contain them all! There'sss at least a dozen that breached the border and took off in your direction, they ssshould be ssshowing up on your sssenssorsss any sssecond now!"
As if on cue the steel doors flew open in that instant, grinding angrily as an impatient hand shoved it away.
"We got a problem!" A disheveled Buttercup panted in the doorway, sleep pants sagging low on her waist, loose green sports bra straps hanging from her shoulders. "The alarms on the west side tripped, fifteen heat signatures closing in and FAST!"
"I thought you said only a dozen?!"
"I SSSAID AT LEASSST! YOU CAN'T EXPECT ME TO KEEP TRACK OF THEM ALL IN THE MIDDLE OF A SSSWARM WHILE THEY'RE ALL TRYING TO GORE ME!" The screen flashed green again, a litany of curses and more howling, several more explosions, and a loud booming bellow. "FUCK! ONESSS GOT GATOR!"
A guttural bellow unlike any of the previous ones echoed out agonizingly before the screen went completely blank. The lights chose that moment to flicker back on, the contrasting light blinding, the silence deafening.
"Fuck!" Blossom swore, pounding her fist on the desk revealing a layer of titanium as she splintered the wood.
Faster than he could blink she had him by the wrist and was dragging him out of the room. When everything stopped blurring he found himself surrounded by the Puffs and one jittery brunet at the base of the stairs to the upper level.
"Bloss, what's going on?" Bubbles squeaked, looking nervous.
"There's Rabid's on their way here-"
"Seriously?!" Buttercup interrupted looking both excited and the slightest bit unnerved, only noticeable to the Ruff because the expression was so very similar to Butch. "Wha'do we do?"
"YOU, will go on lock down." Blossom stated firmly.
"What? No!" Buttercup folded her arms defiantly. "I am not hiding while you go out on your own!"
"If they get past me what do you think is going to happen?!" Blossom snapped, snatching Buttercup's loose straps and using it to tug the taller girl almost into her face. "YOU are the next in line! YOU are responsible for everyone! YOU are the one in charge! Who else is going to fill that role? Besides, you're still borderline…"
Buttercup stared down at the angry redhead, a contemplating look on her features. Within seconds it twisted into a frown.
"Fine." She growled, leaning back and away. "But you better come back or I swear…"
"I know, you'll drag my ass back kicking and screaming." Blossom pulled away as well, a grin on her face for all of a second before returning to its grim set.
"You better believe it." Buttercup smirked, turning towards Bubbles. "Come on."
"What about the boys?" Bubbles glanced towards the upstairs section.
"Don't worry, I need you guys to set up the lockdown, it'll take too long if you go after them too." Blossom turned away looking ready to go. "Mitch?"
"Got em!" Mitch grinned, bouncing around on the balls of his feet he cracked his neck from side to side before running up the stairs just as fast, if not faster, than Blossom herself.
Brick didn't have time to question it before they were gone. Not more than a minute went by and the room had new occupants. Butch stumbled in first, looking remarkably calm, probably eavesdropping and got caught. Boomer on the other hand looked like a fish out of water, cradled in Mitch's arms like some kind of messed up princess.
"Good, now come on!" Buttercup called out, waving them to follow, Bubbles already disappearing deeper into the hall behind her.
"Mind telling me what's going on?" Butch shrugged, following after her without much of a fight.
"Not if I can help it." Buttercup replied, winding down the hall towards the section they had steadfast refused showing the boys before.
Bubbles stood in front of the already open door, hand placed firmly on the scanner. The second she caught sight of them though she continued on, a fleeting blur of gold and blue ahead of them.
"And why is that?" Butch nettled persistently.
"Not now!"
They crossed a long hall, the lights flickering on as Bubbles blurred far ahead of them, flashing back off behind them. At the end they came to a screeching stop, Butch literally skidding across the slick floor as they burst into a large room.
Seeing as they had appeared to reached their destination Butch took time to look around. Bubbles stood at the farthest end of the room, something similar to those black visors on her head, though this time the thing strapped over the top of her head, the eye piece a see though blue. She stood on a sort of wide pedestal, dozens of holographic screens floating around her as she practically danced in circles attempting to reach them all.
Buttercup was in a similar situation, seated on a high backed chair that looked a lot like something you'd find in an arcade with dozens of screens all different sizes, that surrounded a large central one in a crescent shape around her. The difference with her was the sleek metal gloves and the dozens of wires surrounding her like a massive tangle of vines beneath the steel grating that acted as a floor.
With all the high tech equipment on the right and back walls the left side of the room look dull in comparison, lines of wall mounted computers and comfy looking rolling chairs. In the center of the room there was a raised oval platform, something he pictured in all futuristic war meetings, a graphic layout of the area spinning in the center. Hanging down from above it was some sort of machine that honestly reminds him of a metal spider, it's many arms reaching out in various directions before curving back up towards the ceiling.
"Cool!" Boomer squeaked in awe, standing before the holographic landscape, very nearly hanging over it.
"I know right." Mitch grinned, prodding at the corner of the platform.
A loud click sounded as one of the metal 'spider legs' unhooked, spinning around during its decent, an egg shaped hanging chair presenting itself on the end.
"Mitch, stop playing around!" Buttercup snapped, not looking up from whatever she was doing. "This is serious."
"I know that!" He grumbled back. "What's the use of panicking though? Baby Blues already got the lockdown set, you've got the defenses up, and Bloss is at frontline. I've got nothing to do so I might as well try keeping the guys calm or would you rather they be running around like chickens without a head?"
"Ugh, guys-" Butch ventured.
"WHAT?!" The two teens snapped.
"Have you seen Brick?"
Buttercup twitched away from the screen, Mitch gapping at him, both with wide eyes before they turned back to each other. "CRAP!"
"I thought you were watching him!"
"I had Blue! What were you doing?!"
"I had Butch!"
"Shit, where is he?!" Mitch howled, frantically jamming buttons on the platform, the screen zooming in to a network of corridors, zeroing on a red blip. "Fuck!"
"What? Did you find him?!" Buttercup shouted, back at her screens, fingers clicking away at a keyboard that wasn't there though the monitors still picked it up.
"He's above ground!" Mitch replied. "He must have snuck off and followed Bloss!"
"Dumb ass!" Buttercup snarled, bashing her fist on the arm of her chair. "Fuckers gonna get himself killed! Bastards gonna get Blossom killed! Bubbles!"
"Already on it," Bubbles chirped, oddly calm in her section of the room. "visuals in three."
Directly above the holographic corridors another screen appeared, the dark landscape darting below in the image. Taking a sharp nose dive it dropped down towards a blob of red, Bricks face appearing as it zoomed in.
"Damn it all!" Buttercup snapped again, the central screen on her monitors showing bright blips of oddly shaped heat signatures darting around on what Butch recognized as the front lawn. "Mother fucking dumb ass!"
Clenching her fists she pulled them in close to her chest. One of the screens flashed to a different angle of the lawn, the heat signatures towering above the frame. Clicking her thumbs as if pressing a button and purple lights dart across the screen. Upon impact with the warm red and yellows the purple burst into icy blue, the figures slowing as she aimed for legs.
"Go down!" She snarled, shooting one multiple times until it glazed over a bright blue but still managed to move. "Damn these things are persistent!"
"It's not fast enough." Mitch muttered.
"What's gonna happen?" Boomer questioned worriedly, "Is Brick gonna be ok?"
"Of course he will." Butch folded his arms. "Like some little monster could take our brother out. Don't know why everyone's freaking out over it."
"Butch, those things CAN take your brother out." Buttercup stated, gunning down another red source until it frosted a dark purple. "Just one of those fuckers could take out all of Townsville in a matter of seconds and there's fifteen of them, you do the math."
"Then we have to do something!" Boomer jumped up, running to a door that would no longer open.
"What do you think I'm doing, playing Halo? Buttercup snapped. "I'm gunning as many of them down as I can, their just too fast!"
"Don't worry, we're working on that." Bubbles interjected, drawing everyone's attention, a large cylinder tube closing behind her. "Your brother will be fine. Not so sure about my sister though…"
"Wait a minute! Now where the fuck is Mitch?" Butch glanced around the room, trying to find the mop of brown hair and coming up empty.
"I told you, we're working on it." Bubbles stated again.
"That lucky bastard." Buttercup grumbled, sounding envious.
"Shit! Brick!" Boomer shouted, grabbing at the holograph of their brother as a blob of orange darted at him just before a large form crashed down on the two.
•••000•••
Ok, first thing first I must apologize once again for taking as long as I did to update. In all honesty this chapter had been finished not two days after my last update but while I was finishing up my phone had some kind of glitch and pasted a single word over my entire chapter. I had no idea how to undo it and tried pressing back and instead it turned back to the menu and saved the one word permanently. To think I later found out all I needed to do was shake the phone…
Needless to say I got pissed off. So much so that I actually threw my brand new phone across my room in my fit. On the upside I retained the sense of mind to only throw it at the pillow on my bed instead of at a wall so I didn't need to worry about getting a new phone.
Unfortunately the rewrite didn't go quite as planned, I was too mad to start writing it immediately, and in waiting a few weeks to cool off I forgot quite how I had written it the first time. All I do know is that it's not nearly as good. The reds scene had a lot more insight and details the first time around that I just couldn't repeat. So it turned out this way. Sorry if it seems rushed, I got annoyed every time I see it cause I know I wrote it right the first time, this time it's just not up to standards so I couldn't help but skim.
On a different note I'm sorry to say that this didn't go as planned in other ways as well since towards the end the chapter kind of got away with me before I realized just how long it was and had to stop. So I left with a cliffhanger and will follow up in the next one.
Oh, and before I forget I'd like to ask you all for a little help. You see, I've been looking at my summary of the story and I just don't like it but have no idea what to do. Any of you out there think you could give me a hand or a few ideas on how to change it?
Thanks for reading, thanks for waiting, thanks for just being here. I appreciate you all for taking the time to read my work even if most of you never leave me reviews. Hope you all have a nice day, see you next chapter. ^_^