Demashitaa! Powerpuff Girls Z:
Suteki da ne?
The monster roared once again, jerking Blossom out of her daze. She just managed to roll to the side, avoiding Dokioushi's reckless charge. She spun around, backing away, bringing up her yo-yo in defense. Her mouth fell open, a small terrified moan escaping her lips when Dokioushi batted aside a telephone pole in his path. Just a backhand and he tore it completely from the ground. Blossom stumbled, opening and closing her mouth.
She couldn't find her voice!
"Blossom, do something!" Another injured citizen cried, screaming and narrowly avoiding a slab of cement thrown her way. The cry only terrified Blossom further. She stumbled back another step. Dokioushi snarled and took a deep breath. It shouted at her, this time with enough force to actually knock her off her feet.
"Stop it! Fight him, Blossom! I'll hol-OH!" The old man from before had grabbed the monster by its ankle. Without even giving him a passing glance, the monster slapped him back. He fell through the smashed window of the jewelry shop behind him, unconscious. That was finally what it took to bring Hyper Blossom to action.
"Ojiisan..." she murmured, staring at the old man's limp form. He was breathing but...that old man had been braver than she had, even with her powers. She looked up, suddenly. The monster was charging, roaring once more. Blossom narrowed her eyes and gripped her yo-yo tight in her fist, "I won't let you down, Ojiisan," she hissed, dodging the monster's charge and whipping around.
"You hideous monster! You've ruined the afternoon and hurt all these innocent people! Whoever sent you, I won't forgive them! And I won't forgive you! I'm Hyper Blossom, of Powerpuff Girls Z! I will protect Tokyo City, and I will defeat you! Smashing Sugar Shot!" Fueled by new righteous fury, Blossom fired her yo-yo at the monster, glowing bright white.
It slammed into the monster's side, causing it to stumble. Dokioushi roared and snatched her weapon. Blossom's eyes widened.
"Oh no," With a snarl, Dokioushi swung her around and threw her across the street, slamming into the side of a nearby car. Blossom gasped, all the air forced from her lungs. She slumped to the ground, struggling to catch her breath, and climb to her feet. The monster caught her before she could, slamming her into the car once more with one of its massive hands. With another roar, it hurled her across the street, bouncing and skidding like a stone on a pond.
XxXxX
"AH! NO!" Kuriko screamed, staring at the TV in disbelief. She scooted even closer when the monster brushed off another of Hyper Blossom's attacks. Thankfully, the heroine managed to dodge the follow up attack, but everything she threw at him—and she'd begun to throw rocks, along with her own attacks—just bounced off his armored hide.
Kakiko slid to the carpet, pulling her youngest daughter away, and into a tight hug, "This doesn't look good for Blossom," she pointed out, wincing and gasping when Blossom managed to avoid a car door thrown like a frisby. It still managed to slice her side, but she seemed none the worse for the wear. Kuriko rubbed her eyes angrily and jumped to her feet.
"It's okay! The others will show up to save her! That dumb monster can't beat Powerpuff Girls Z!" she exclaimed. Kakiko nodded, biting her thumb. She wanted to believe, but...just where were they?
XxXxX
The soccer team burst into the school foyer, laughing and jeering, throwing playful insults and banter back and forth. Their star player stretched and yawned, running her hands through her sweaty bangs. It had been a hard practice, but the team was shaping up to be a force to be reckoned with! They had a great shot at going all the way this year, Kaoru thought with a grin. The door to a classroom opened and a junior came out, shushing them. She seemed torn between angry and worried.
"K-Keep it down, everyone! We're t-trying to watch the news in here!" She scolded them. Behind her, they heard a scream from the television. She gasped and hurried back in. While a few of the others began to disperse, Kaoru's blood ran cold. Taking a deep breath, she hurried into the classroom. The entire cooking club was huddled around a small television. None of them looked up when she came in.
"What's going on?" she asked. They all looked horrified.
"A monster!" A heavy set boy exclaimed. Kaoru swallowed and moved so she could see the screen. Her heart skipped a beat and any excitement she'd felt before drained from her.
"No..." she moaned.
XxXxX
"Turn it back on!" Miyako shouted, uncharacteristically stern. She gripped the edges of her desk with trembling fingers, staring both demanding and pleadingly at the president. Mitsuru, normally collected and unflappable, was taken aback by Miyako's demeanor. Without moving for a vote, or even glancing at the other members of the student council, she turned the television back on.
The scene was bad. The monster had begun to wear Hyper Blossom down. Though she'd managed to avoid most of its deadliest strikes, even one was enough to nearly knock her into unconsciousness. And the monster...the monster was relentless. How the news crew was managing to get such a good shot of the action was a miracle in and of itself.
"No, no, no, no..." Miyako moaned, wringing her hands. Her chest tightened and she could feel tears starting to well up in her eyes. Why was she here? She needed to be there! Momoko needed her!
"Wow, I've never seen anyone in Powerpuff Z take a beating like that," Hidetoshi, the head of the discipline committee, commented.
Mitsuru watched Miyako flash through a hundred different emotions at once, "I've never seen you so worried Gotokuji-san...I'm sure Blossom will be fine once Bubbles and Buttercup arrive," Mitsuru smiled, hoping that would put Miyako's concerns to rest. She cocked her head when Miyako seemed devastated.
'When Bubbles arrives...' the phrase repeated over and over again in Miyako's head. They could almost hear other clubs scream when the fight suddenly came to the news crew.
XxXxX
"It's no use...every one of Hyper Blossom's attacks just bounce off this creature! Maybe if Powered Buttercup were here to lend her strength they would be able to-AH!" The reporter screamed and collapsed to the ground, covering her head. Blossom appeared in front of them in seconds, smashing the rock thrown at them with her fist. She winced, but took up a defensive stance in front of the two.
"Are you alright?" Blossom asked, glancing back over her shoulder.
The cameraman nodded, his body numb, "I...Y-Yes...we're..." he trailed off, nearly dropping his camera. The reporter jumped up, steadying the expensive piece of equipment. When she looked up, she dropped her microphone. Blossom was gasping, trying to catch her breath. The moment she stopped, the monster roared. Instead of charging, it dug its massive hands into the piles of stone and glass lying around it, and, its arms moving like windmills, began to hurl it at them.
Blossom looked behind her, directly into the camera for a second, then took a deep breath and turned back. With a battle cry, her arms flew like pistons, batting aside and smashing the rocks and glass coming at her. The reporter whimpered, scooting back.
"This is...I can't...B-Blossom is all that stands bet-tween us and c-certain death I...you can do it, Blossom! Be strong!" she begged into her microphone. Blossom grit her teeth, her hands moving even faster. The cameraman blinked, feeling something wet and sticky hit his face. He looked down at his camera—there was a stream of red across the lens.
"B-Blossom..." he whispered, wiping the blood away from his lens. Her knees began to buckle, but Blossom wouldn't, couldn't, let up. Even as more debris and shrapnel flew her way, she continued to bat and smash it away from the citizens behind her. The monster finally roared and slammed its hands repeatedly into the ground, its red eyes lit up like torches.
"Ah...ah..." Blossom swung her arms a few times, still caught up in her own momentum. Her vision was blurry, but even through her glassy-eyed stare, she could see her hands. Rather, what had become of her hands. Her gloves were in tatters, her hands were streaked with red. So much blood, there was so much blood she couldn't see her own skin. Tears flooded down her cheeks; the adrenaline wore off and pain began to shoot through her arms like lightning. Blossom collapsed to her knees, staring at her bloodied hands, torn to ribbons by the monster's assault.
"HYPER BLOSSOM!" The monster roared and rushed at her. Blossom made to grab her yo-yo, but she couldn't close her fingers around it. She collapsed in pain, taking the full brunt of the monster's charge, sending her flying back. She slid to a halt, fighting against the pain, she got to her feet, panting...panicking.
"I can't grab my yo-yo...I can't...I can't grab it...I can't use my hands...I can't, it hurts..." she cried, sniffling and sucking down air desperately. She screamed when the monster backhanded her again. This time he caught her by her leg and swung her around, smashing her into the pavement. He threw her up into the air and roared. As she was coming down, he caught her in his in powerful hand. It was nearly the size of her torso. Her arms were pinned to her sides.
She could barely breath, and his grip was quickly cutting off her oxygen. She threw her head back to scream, but only a whimper came out.
XxXxX
"Blossom NO! WHERE ARE THEY?!" Kuriko screamed, stomping her feet and staring at the television. She couldn't believe it, it couldn't be real! Why weren't they there?! Where were they?! She resisted her mother's hold, crying and stomping her feet.
"Where are Bubbles and Buttercup?!" she cried, "He...He's going to kill her!" She wailed, finally throwing herself into Kakiko's arms. Kakiko couldn't speak. She was on the verge of crying herself, staring at the image of Blossom's quickly reddening face. She couldn't believe for a second that this was real. They had to save her, they wouldn't just let her die, would they?
XxXxX
"Blossom!" Miyako screamed, flying to her feet. She grabbed her cheeks, her face flushed with fear. Hot tears fell down her cheeks; her heartbeat blasted in her chest.
"Why is she alone!?" Ayane cried, throwing her hands out.
"I know! Why aren't Bubbles and Buttercup with her?" Hidetoshi exclaimed. The meeting was over, long lost to the blood-streaked image on the television. The sight of Tokyo City's last remaining protector slowly dying while her partners, her friends, were nowhere to be found.
The one who could save her stood in cold horror, unable to move, or even feel, her legs. Miyako choked back a sob and spun on her heel, darting for the door. She fumbled with her white belt, tearing the compact from it. No one had noticed it all day. Now she was glad she'd worn it. A blue ring appeared on her hand and, barely able to find her voice, Miyako threw her hand across her compact.
"ROLLING BUBBLES!"
XxXxX
Blossom screamed another silent, breathless scream. The bystanders heard a sickening crack as the monster tightened its grip, crushing her. Dokioushi, it's bright red eyes bulging with anger, snarled and pulled her close to his face. She kicked at him with all her might, but her strongest blows barely made the monster flinch. With a growl, it roared in her face.
"Hyper Blossom! Crush! Kill!" It roared again. Blossom kicked her leg. She was growing weaker. She wasn't strong enough to break his hold...She clenched her eyes shut, struggling to find some way out. If she could just get some leverage. If she could just find more strength...with a flash of insight, Blossom opened her eyes and pulled her leg back. As she threw another kick, she fired the jet in her shoe, launching her knee toward Dokioushi's face. This time, when the blow hit, it threw his head back and weakened his hold.
"It worked!" She gasped, sucking in air. Blossom threw another rocket-powered kick, and another, smashing her foot into the side of his head again and again. When his grip finally weakened enough, she pulled free and launched both knees at his face. Dokioushi groaned, finally knocked off his feet. She didn't have time to think, with a shameless cry of pain, she summoned her yo-yo and gripped it in her bloody fingers.
"Miracle Pudding Snap!" She hissed, smashing Dokioushi in the chest with the strongest hit she could muster. It wasn't enough to pierce his armor, but it sent him flying toward the ground.
"Popping Pumpkin Pickle Pinwheel Something or Other Snatch!" she wasn't making sense anymore, but she didn't care. As quick as she could, she grabbed Dokioushi by his neck and launched herself straight into the air, pulling him with her. He fought back, flailing and swinging his powerful arms, but she held on tight. Blood streamed down the string of her yo-yo.
When she was finally high enough, Blossom gave him a tug and pulled her yo-yo back. She spun around and fired herself down, slamming her bloody fists into his chest and firing them both toward the ground. In the street below, everyone watched in horror as the pink stream of light shot down like lightning from above.
The entire city shook when they collided with the street below, leaving behind a large crater in the ground. The reporter and cameraman held their breaths, creeping closer to the sight of impact. Someone gasped. Hyper Blossom crawled out of the hole, holding her head and groaning. Instantly, the people gathered, and those watching, began to cheer. Hyper Blossom looked around dizzily at them and continued cradling her head. She stumbled away from the crater, unable to walk in a straight line.
The cheers vanished when a roar rang out from the crater. A massive hand reached out and Dokioushi pulled himself free.
"Blossom!"
"Behind you!"
"Turn around!" Despite the desperate screams of those around her, Blossom continued to stumble away from the crater holding her head.
XxXxX
"P-Papa! Professor! Sh-she...she isn't...why doesn't she hear them!?" Ken exclaimed, watching as the monster clawed its way out of the crater. The attack had done a number on it, but now it looked more furious than ever. Professor Utonium swallowed the lump in his throat.
"Professor! Blossom is in trouble, wan! Doesn't she hear him, wan?" Peach asked, pacing back and forth, whining. The Professor watched the way Blossom cradled her head. He stuttered, eyes wide.
XxXxX
"He's still alive! Mama! Why isn't she looking!? Can't she hear him!?" Kuriko yelled, jumping up and down and pointing at the screen.
Kakiko covered her mouth, "Oh no..." she whispered, "She can't hear him...she can't understand them," she explained.
"Wh-what?! Why? How do you know?" Kuriko demanded, once more inches from the TV. Kakiko pulled her back again, but she was shaking.
"She hit her head...the poor thing must be disoriented. She may even have a concussion," Kakiko explained.
Kuriko went limp, watching as the monster roared, "She...she really doesn't know..."
XxXxX
"Oh, what the hell! Turn around! Blossom!" Kaoru shouted, shaking the TV. One of the cooking club members fought it out of her grasp and shoved her away from it.
"That thing is gonna kill her if she doesn't turn around!" another student pointed out. One cleared his throat and shook his head.
"I don't think Blossom has anything left in her! That last attack was awesome, but...look at her! She's already beat!" he explained. There was a sea of agreement. The soccer team had joined the cooking club. Kaoru stood in the back, arms hanging limp at her sides.
"Momoko...dead?" she mouthed, unable to find her voice. No, the Hero Maniac couldn't...
"If Bubbles and Buttercup don't show up, she's finished!"
"Where the hell are they?!" Kaoru closed her eyes and clenched her fists. Her hands were starting to hurt. She opened her eyes and felt anger overwhelming her. It couldn't. She wouldn't let it happen. She wouldn't just let Momoko die!
"DAMMIT!" She screamed and shot out of the room. Before she was even out the door, she tore the compact from her belt and threw her hand across it.
"POWERED BUTTERCUP!"
XxXxX
Blossom stumbled down the street, looking left and right in a daze. There was a loud screaming in her head; she couldn't seem to focus her eyes on any one thing. She grimaced and rubbed her head again. That monster had nearly killed her...she could still feel his hands around her, crushing her.
"Bl..." Blossom blinked and looked up. The screaming was fading, replaced by screams around her. She kept stumbling forward. She couldn't stop. They were screaming for her to turn around. She heard its heavy footsteps. She could hear it roaring.
The monster was charging at her. Blossom continued walking forward. Unbeknownst to the citizens, a white aura began to appear around her. She grit her teeth and, suddenly, took off running forward. The monster roared, its thunderous footsteps gaining on her with every step. She needed something, anything she could brace herself against. Blossom had a plan...and if it failed, she was going to die. She took a deep breath and said a prayer to any god listening.
If it failed, she would die.
"Okay...just...gotta..." Blossom dove forward, spinning around in mid air. Things seemed to slow down around her. The monster was charging, its blood red eyes practically exploding from its head. The first thing she noticed, however, was its chest. The armor was cracked, quite severely. If she could hit it hard enough...she might be able to.
"Oof!" Blossom hit the ground and slid to a halt against a toppled bus. That wouldn't be enough leverage. She grit her teeth and, without a second of hesitation, dug her broken fingers into the ground and held on tight. She didn't have the strength to hit him, but...
"HYPER BLOSSOM!" Dokioushi roared. Less than a meter away from her, Blossom dug her hands deeper into the ground and, with a small scream of pain, lifted her legs up and braced for impact. Just before he reached her, she shot her legs out, smashing her feet into his cracked chest. Then, with all the strength she had left, she tried to fly. Her jets fired from her feet like blazing fires. Dokioushi roared; Blossom screamed and held on for her life. Just as her legs began to give out, there was a great clap, followed by a small explosion. Pink jets shot through Dokioushi's back, his chest armor fell to the ground, shattered.
Blossom let her legs drop. Before he landed on her, Dokioushi melted into black light and black seeds, which were swept away by the wind. She could hear cheering. It was over, finally over.
Hyper Blossom climbed to her feet, expending the last of her strength just to stand up right. She looked around at the gathering crowd. The reporter and cameraman were rushing to her. She looked into the camera with a smile and lifted her hand. She couldn't even get her victory sign out before blacking out and falling forward.
She, thankfully, never hit the ground. Everyone screamed and jumped back when a streak of blue light crashed into the ground. Rolling Bubbles caught Blossom before she could hit the ground and cradled her close in her arms.
"Blossom? Blossom wake up, it's Bubbles...come on, open your eyes...no, no, you'll be okay. Don't worry, you'll be okay..." Bubbles lifted Blossom into her arms, looking around in a panic. They were speaking, asking questions. She couldn't hear them. She couldn't understand the ones she could hear. She held Blossom close, whispering the same thing over and over again.
"You'll be okay, you'll be okay..." Finally getting her bearings, Bubbles shot into the sky and vanished over the horizon. Just as she left, there was another thump. Powered Buttercup walked through the wreckage, stopping to size up the crater Blossom had left behind.
"Damn, Momoko..." she whispered.
"Buttercup! Powered Buttercup! You're here! Where were you two?! Do you have any idea what just happened?! How could you just let Blossom fight that thing alone!?" The reporter practically yelled the questions, voicing what everyone was thinking. Buttercup blinked, caught off guard. She cleared her throat and took a deep breath.
"Bubbles and I were handling...a different problem. But that's over with now. Powerpuff Girls Z is back together, all of us. And don't you worry," she slammed her fists together, glaring at the camera, "Whoever is responsible for this, whoever sent that monster...they're going to pay. We will find you," she pointed at the camera, leaning closer, "And we will defeat you," With that, she took to the sky and shot off over the horizon.