"Fireside Diaries"
Story Written by Freedom Fighter
So, apologies for the unexpected week off. I just got really busy and didn't have any time to write. Luckily, it was only a week off, and if it gave you a few extra days to prepare for this!
What is 'this,' you may be wondering? Well, remember 'Final Fantasy Month' from last season? Let's just say this is a belated last-minute entry which didn't see the light of day.
Until now.
Disclaimer: The characters of 'Phineas and Ferb' belong to Disney.
Entry #419 - Written by Candace Flynn
Gather 'round, pipsqueaks and you... others. You want a story? Candace Flynn'll give you a story!
Ahem... in a parallel universe, somewhere not anywhere near us...
"Show your papers or be destroyed!" barked a menacing, hovering robot.
Suddenly, the mechanical monstrosity lost its head, as it was whacked off by someone wielding a bo staff. Upon landing on the ground, the robot head lowered its mask, revealing the face of a man.
A man named Norm.
"I have the feeling we are not tea buddies," he stated sadly, before shutting down for good.
All around the junkyard, a number of other Norm Bots were being harshly dismantled, sending wires and circuitry flying every which way.
...there was a Resistance taking place, as a melancholy band of kids fought to free the Tri-State Area from an evil dictator.
The kids were a group of eight, all girls with the exception of one big-boned boy with a mohawk. They were methodically taking down a sea of Norm Bots a few at a time, using an assortment of weapons, rope tricks, and in the boy's case, pure muscle.
The leader of this troop?
A Norm Bot's head slid off as his attacker had kicked him to the ground and was now straddling him. The pale-skinned girl had jet black hair; she was wearing a uniform of gray and dark green coloring. And she had a catchphrase that would send shivers down any man's backbone.
"Whatcha doin'?" she asked him rhetorically, in a stern, cold voice.
Isabella Garcia-Shapiro.
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Entry #419 [FSD411] - The Resistance (08.26.13)
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Truth be told, though, this doesn't make sense unless I start back at the beginning. Especially when you see that Isabella was not the hard-nosed kicker of bot behind that you just saw. Not that she had to be before.
Or any of us, for that matter.
"I give you THE AMAZING BAGGO!"
It all started on that day Phineas and Ferb set up a cirque in the backyard...
Candace, who was wearing sweats and had a paper bag over her head - to cover up her red face after coming in contact with wild parsnips - was guided against her will onto a catapult.
"Guys, cut it out!" she shouted, in a deep, manly voice. "Let go!"
Before she knew it, though, not only was she on the catapult, but she was launched out of it just as quickly. Candace screamed as she tore through the fabric of the tent, flying high into the air.
"Hmm," Phineas murmured. "He must have been lighter than we calculated."
Buford, who was the one to be launched, saw an opportunity to still take credit for his stunt. He made a break for the mud pit. Before he could get there, though, dozens and dozens of Norm Bots stormed into the cirque tent. They surrounded both performers and onlookers alike.
"I don't remember anything about robots," Phineas thought aloud, before glancing over at his brother. "Ferb?"
Ferb shook his head in denial. Meanwhile, one of the Norm Bots stopped at center ring. A large monitor popped out of his chest, from a pair of swinging doors. It turned on automatically, and an evil face appeared on it.
"Hello, citizens of the Tri-State Area! I am your new ruler, Dr. Heinz Doofenshmirtz! Surrender or be destroyed!"
Everyone in the crowd started to murmur, particularly the adults, who did not whether to take the threat serious or not. But their question was answered when the other Norm Bots put their masks down and started shooting up the tent with laser shooters embedded in their wrists.
"Return to your homes or be destroyed!"
Mass panic erupted as everyone scrambled out of the tent as fast as they could. Good thing, too, because it collapsed shortly thereafter, coming down on those not quick enough to escape. Those lucky enough to get out of the yard and onto the street were greeted by a line of even more Norm Bots, who were standing in front of a series of transporter helicopters.
"Conform or be doomed!" they all exclaimed.
They started rounding up people at random, pushing them into the nearest available copter. They did not discriminate, taking whomever they could get their hands on, whether it be man, woman, or child. While everyone attempted to escape the herding, back in the yard, there was a small group not willing to just let these evil automatons walk over them.
"Girls, let's show them what we're made of!" Isabella shouted to the members of her troop.
Before they could give an affirmation, one of the Norm Bots fired at them. Luckily, he missed hitting any of them, but the laser ended up leaving a black scorched circle on the ground, more than a foot in diameter.
"You crazy, girl!" exclaimed Holly.
Ginger also voiced her change of mind. "Ginger is out! Peace!"
The girls all ran for their lives, leaving their leader behind. Isabella was about to follow them, but instead, she saw Phineas on the inside of his house's sliding glass door, trying to hold it closed as one of the Norm Bots was attempting to pull it open.
"PHINEAS!"
She took a step towards her crush, but was prevented by someone grabbing her arm, pulling her in the opposite direction.
"ISA!"
"MOM?"
"We have to get out of here!"
Mrs. Garcia-Shapiro tugged her daughter out of the Flynn-Fletcher backyard and across the street, all the way back to their house.
Despite her own daughter's cries to go back, Isabella's mother was only concerned at the moment of the safety of one person… Isabella.
But that safety would not last long.
Seconds after they had gotten in and closed the door behind them, a Norm Bot slammed its way in, breaking the door off of its hinges. Joined by two of his brethren, they cornered Isabella and her mom before they could find an escape route.
The many citizens of Danville were all marched downtown to City Hall, where they were assembled to meet their new dictator face-to-face, who was walking up to the podium just as the last few stragglers were herded in.
That is Dr. Heinz Doofenshmirtz, the evil man now in charge of everything the citizens of Danville would do for the rest of their lives. And all because he lost his toy train as a child.
Or so the story goes… but that's a tale for another day.
Doofenshmirtz unfurled a long scroll listing all of the new laws he was putting into place, effective immediately. He quickly went through them, while his army passed out condensed packets to the crowd, as well as Dooferalls - the outfits all were now required to wear.
"And the last, but most important rule of all," Doofenshmirtz proclaimed, reaching the end of the document, "disobey even one rule, and THIS happens!"
A large monitor came to life behind him, showing a man in chains. He was being led to a rectangular cage, where a hairy creature was being poked and prodded by a couple Norm Bots into a state of anger.
That is a Goozim. Doofenshmirtz imported the foul beasts from Tanzania or some other Pacific island… go look it up!
Already seeing his life flash before his eyes, the man begged for mercy.
"Please! I have a wife and kids!"
"Oh, you mean them?" shot back the malevolent one.
The camera panned to show that the man was chained to his wife and his two kids: one boy and one girl. He was both surprised and dismayed to see them. But the crowd watching at City Hall would be even more distraught as their demise was broadcasted live for all of them to see. Ear-piercing screams filled the air, and adults tried their best to shield their children's eyes and ears. Only after the last of the family members had been devoured by the Goozim did the feed come to a halt.
"Alright, enough dawdling! Curfew is in 30 minutes. Anyone caught out after that tonight is the Goozim's dinner! Now SCAT!"
From that day forward, you were only allowed out of your house if you had received work authorization or had special permission from Doofenshmirtz himself to leave your house.
Isabella sighed with sadness as she stared out the window, at the falling rain.
But things only got worse from there…
She plopped down on her bed and grabbed her cell phone off of her nightstand. She attempted to call Phineas, but she could not find a signal. A second look out her window showed why…
Doofenshmirtz ordered the taking down of phone lines and cell towers…
After seeing a Norm Bot take down a tower, Isabella went over to her dresser and pulled out a pair of binoculars from the top drawer. Heading back to the window, she used them to look across the street and at the window to Phineas' room. To her delight, not only did she see him standing there, but he had gotten the same idea, and was peering over at her.
...and then he ordered the confiscation of any spy materials…
A Norm Bot appeared suddenly in front of Isabella's window, scaring her off her feet. As she got up and opened the window, the robot prompted her to turn over any spy gear. Isabella handed over the binoculars, as well as a telescope, a microscope, a magnifying glass, an eclipse viewer, three used-up paper towel rolls, and a canary that she happened to be petsitting for a friend.
The Norm Bot flew off with all of Isabella's stuff, and whilst looking back over at the Flynn-Fletcher house, she saw that all of Phineas and Ferb's stuff was being taken as well. Even sadder than she was before, Isabella gave up trying to talk to Phineas and just closed her window.
Eventually, out of fear like so many of Danville's other residents, Isabella took shelter in the basement with her family.
Isabella, now dressed in the dooferalls, was huddled around the space heater in the basement with her family. Her loved ones, all fearing for their lives, were frightened to move from their spot except to go to work or pick up their weekly food allowances from City Hall.
Isabella was ready to join them; ready to live out the rest of her life like this, with no hope of ever seeing the sun again. Or talking to any of her friends.
Or eloping with the boy of her dreams.
And then one day…
Isabella, who was outside for once thanks to her mom getting permission for her to come along on the weekly trip to City Hall, seemed timid and out of place after being out there for the first time in more than a month. Having gotten unused to the normal sounds of everyday life - well, what passed for it now in such a dark and dank city - she at first did not think anything strange of hearing a girl her age screaming nearby.
"Help!"
Nor did she the second time.
"HELP!"
But the third time?
"HELLLLLLLLLP!"
Springing into action, Isabella left her mother's side and ran towards the cries for help.
"ISA!" her mom shouted, more frightened than angry.
A few seconds later, Isabella found who the source was.
"Gretchen. I've… I've got to save her!"
Her glasses-wearing friend was being carried into the back of a black van, which was hovering just inches off of the ground. Jumping in after them, she quickly climbed up the back of the closest Norm Bot. Before he could react, Isabella grabbed the mechanical being by the head and slammed it into the side of the vehicle as hard as she could.
"That wasn't very nice," he said, before slumping down to the ground, his program freezing up after the hard hit.
Isabella quickly turned to the second, who had pulled Gretchen's glasses off of her face, and snatched them back in an instant. She then kicked the bot into a third one, who was standing above Gretchen with an eye laser surgery machine already positioned over her face.
"COME ON!" Isabella yelled.
Gretchen had been frozen in fear over what was going to happen to her, but hearing Isabella's voice snapped her back to reality. She hopped off of the table she had been dropped on and let Isabella lead her out of the van.
"I never thought I'd see or hear from you again, Chief!"
"Never say never, Gretchen!"
Isabella then handed Gretchen her glasses back, which she took and put them on. They joined back up with Mrs. Garcia-Shapiro, and the trio hurried home.
Once back home, the three of them breathed a sigh of relief.
"Isa!" her mother scolded her daughter after they were in. "What were you thinking? You could've gotten all of us sent to the Chupacabra!"
"Pretty sure it's called a Goozim, Mom."
"Aye aye aye. Now we have to figure out how to get your friend home."
"No worries! I got it!"
Mrs. Garcia-Shapiro sighed in relief. "Good. I'm gonna go back downstairs, si?"
With that, she headed back to the basement.
"Thanks again, Chief," Gretchen repeated herself. "Eye surgery from untrained professionals even though you-know-who is outlawing glasses? Not the safest thing in the world."
"I can't believe this!" Isabella exclaimed in exasperation. "Doofenshmirtz has gone too far! I've got to do something about this!"
"But what?"
Isabella thought for a second. Then, an idea came to her.
"Remember when I convinced Mom to get a permit to build an underground shelter underneath the house?"
Gretchen nodded. Isabella smirked in determination.
"I know what we're doing today. And tomorrow. And for the foreseeable future… you get where I'm going with this, just roll the montage!"
And just like that, Isabella went to work…
Isabella started training. She self-taught herself how to make smoke bombs, use rhythmic gymnastics equipment as weapons, and survive being stuck in a freezer for 24 hours. Because training in adverse weather conditions made one stronger, apparently.
She also ended up building her own Norm Bot, or rather, a facsimile of one. With Gretchen's help, they learned the intricacies of Doofenshmirtz's automatons and how to render them inoperable in mere seconds. Once she felt she had trained herself enough to stand up to the dictator's army on her own, she then sought out help. Because as strong as she was, the enemy was too large for one to take out on her own.
Isabella started with Gretchen, and then moved on to the other members of her troop, each of whom she had to locate and convince to join the cause. One by one they signed on; each of them showing their loyalty to Isabella, as well as their want to one day return things to the way they were. Even if by force.
And three weeks later…
The lights came on inside the underground chamber underneath Isabella's house. Isabella walked up to her newly reunited troop, all lined up in one single row. They were all dressed in their new uniforms, which consisted of dark green berets, silver shirts, and dark brown pants. They also had on utility sashes, which were filled with small paper- and fabric-based weapons to use on the forces of the evil Doofenshmirtz.
"Well, ladies," Isabella said to them, "today's the day we show Doofenshmirtz that he just can't have his way with us, making us follow every law he makes up on a whim at the threat of becoming a furry creature's dinner! Today, we are no longer Fireside Girls. From this day forward, we are Firestorm Girls!"
The troop responded to their leader's declaration by snapping to attention and saluting her, all in one swift motion.
"Uh, hello? Not a girl here!"
All eyes shifted to the end of the line, and were shocked to see Buford standing there, next to Katie. All except for Isabella, that is.
"Buford! What are you doing here? And how did you get in here?"
"What? It's a free country!"
"Um, no it's not! That's why we're resisting."
Buford hopped up excitedly. "Ooh, ooh! I love resisting! Can I join?"
"One, you're not a girl. Two, you don't have a uniform."
"I'm not being no girl! And I don't need no stinkin' uniform! See? I resist EVERYTHING!"
Isabella rolled her eyes. "Fine."
"Oh…"
Buford then pulled in Baljeet out of nowhere.
"You gotta let Baljeet in too."
Baljeet coughed. "Ahem. That's Doctor Baljeet to you. And pretty much everyone else… I have a PhD."
"That could be useful," Isabella thought out loud. "Okay, he's in too."
"What about me?"
Someone else walked into the underground lair, and they all turn towards her…
As great as Isabella is, her group's chances of taking down Doofenshmirtz by themselves were slim to none. That's why they needed…
Me.
Candace stepped into the light, dressed in a midriff-baring turtleneck, skirt, and knee-high boots, all black. She had sunglasses on, as well as a bandana to cover the top of her head, and had a utility belt tied around her waist.
"Aren't you Candace Flynn?" Isabella queried. "Phineas and Ferb's sister, right?"
"No time for simple questions," Candace replied, in a business-like tone. "I've seen what you and your melancholy band of girls have been doing…"
"Hello?" interrupted Buford. "What do I look like, chopped liver? I was there too!"
Ignoring Buford, Candace continued on. "...and you all are in so much trouble."
Everyone gasped in shock.
"Trouble? Are… are you working for Doofenshmirtz?"
"Pfft. Of course not. I'm the leader of the Resistance. We're a small group of concerned citizens who oppose Doofenshmirtz and are working to take him down, down, DOWN."
"Whatcha want with us?" asked Isabella, her tone of voice now one of apprehension.
"For you and your team to join us. We've been looking for a field unit to complement our underground saboteurs, who've pretty much done nothing but disable a random Norm Bot here and there or spike Doofenshmirtz's morning coffee delivery."
Candace pulled out a photo showing a snail, who happened to be named Spike, swimming in a styrofoam cup full of coffee meant for delivery for the evil dictator.
"Are you IN?"
Isabella did not need a second to debate the offer in her head. The two shook hands firmly, sealing their new partnership.
The Fireside, or rather, Firestorm Girls were pretty strong in their own right. But under Candace's tutelage, they took it to another level.
Back in the opening scene, the team was seen finishing up their rush through what was no less than a half-dozen Norm Bot squadrons. As the last robot head fell to the ground, the girls started doing they had not done in months.
Show emotion, as they started high-fiving each other with glee after having taken down their largest enemy group by far.
"Belay that celebration," Candace ordered, as she stood firmly on a hill of robot parts. "We've got company."
Doofenshmirtz walked into the junkyard, backed up by at least another half-dozen squadrons of Norm Bots.
"You've worked my very last nerve, rebels!" he exclaimed, in anger. "Forget the dungeon or dooming you to the Goozim… tonight, it ends!"
Candace slid down the hill upright, and started walking towards Doofenshmirtz. Isabella came up alongside her, and the two approached the evil dictator together.
"Orders, sir?" Isabella asked.
Candace stopped just long enough to pull out a staff and assume a battle position.
"Handle the Norms. Doof… is mine."
Upon hearing that, Doofenshmirtz ordered his Norm Bots to attack. The two girls ran towards the evil dictator, with Isabella taking point and clearing a path, destroying any bot trying to get them. When they were close enough, Isabella stopped to give Candace a boost, allowing her superior to hurdle over the last line of bots and go directly for Doofenshmirtz himself.
"Oh, no you don't!"
Doofenshmirtz picked up a lead pipe sticking out of a nearby junkpile, and used it to defend himself against Candace. The two engaged in what was basically a swordfight, trading blocks, parries, and swift dodges.
"Ah! We are evenly matched!" Doofenshmirtz stated aloud. "Except for one thing…"
He attempted to play dirty, signaling for two nearby Norm Bots to ambush Candace. But she had no reason to be concerned. Not with Isabella watching her back with well-constructed traps.
"Heh," snickered Candace as she heard Isabella easily dispose of the two Norms. "You're so busted, Doofenshmirtz!"
Stunned by the failure of his tactic, Candace took advantage and started landing hits on the evil man, hitting him in the stomach, the side, the leg, and the head. She continued to attack relentlessly, wanting him to physically feel all the pain he had inflicted on all of Danville…
Candace kept swinging away, wanting to show Doofenshmirtz who's the boss. A left, a right, one to the midsection, a couple to the back of the legs, and, and, and…
"CANDACE!"
Isabella was sitting at her desk, looking over at the teenager. She had in hand the hard copy of Candace's entry, which she had been reading.
"What?" Candace said in response to the displeased look on Isabella's face. "It's fantasy! You said you were open to anything! ANYTHING!"
Isabella was not happy, but Candace was right. While flashing a frown, she handed off the pages to Gretchen, who went to enter it in the diary.
"You mean… you'll allow it?"
"Meh. I've seen worse."
"So, I'll get to finish it?"
"As long as I'm troop leader? Ha… no."
End Entry
Author's Notes:
So, if you hadn't guessed, this is a story involving Second Dimension characters. But if all of the cast members' memories were wiped, where did Candace get the idea for this from? Hmmmm…
Also, kudos to my good friend Spongey444 for suggesting a Second Dimension story. This qualifies, right?
Next Week: Good day to you all. If you think Isabella's troop is the only one allowed to make a blog, then you are sadly misguided. I, Elizabeth, will regale you with a tale revolving around the adventures of Troop 28933, the best Fireside Girls troop in the world! All on the next "Fireside Diaries!"