Chapter 2: After Dark

The City of Townsville. Sky. On the way to The House.

2 FEB 1989 (Thursday). 2033.

The Girls flew through the air, like birds, free and soaring beautifully across the sky. They even had deployable gliders that made flying even easier, though the Girls had likened them more to training wheels. Unlike birds, however, they were faster than any car at their top speed, and they drew a tri-colored line of light behind them in their formation. Having been steadily and progressively training themselves to fly faster and faster, they were now able to fly at half the speed of sound. Their speed meant lots of things. It meant that they no longer needed to be carried around in Lamborghini speed transports, and it was a change that the Girls actually disliked as it meant less time spent with Mister Blake, the commander of their convoy and also one of their closest friends.

Blake, who had been reinstated as an officer of the USDO with the rank of lieutenant after his heroic actions in the terrorist attack of Morbucks Industries Research Labs, combined with his flawless job performance as a convoy commander, had been redeployed elsewhere instead. The Project Powerpuff speed convoy had been repurposed as a speed strike force. No longer in charge of transporting the Project Powerpuff subject, General Blake had machineguns bolted to the top of the Lamborghinis and sending them out on patrols and missions.

The Girls hadn't seen Mister Blake and his crew, who were friends to them too, for a week now, and they had met only a few times in the past month. Instead, all they got was…

"This is Flight Control Five to Bravo-Four-Seven, over," a female voice said on the Girls' radio channel. "Come in, over." Blossom reached for the 'speak' button on her radio.

"Hi, Blossom here," Blossom reported in. Being the leader, she doubled as the team's communicator as well, and to this end, she had also been taught radio language by both Selicia and Miss Keane. Not that she ever used them.

"Bravo-Four-Seven, what is your flight path? Please confirm, over," the flight control woman asked.

"We're flying School-Bus-Two," Blossom said, the code meaning that they were going home. It was the extent of her willingness to use code language.

"School-Bus-Two confirmed. Please adjust your heading ten degrees, left. Stop rotation. Good," the flight control woman instructed before wishing her well artificially then cutting communications: "Have a good night, Bravo-Four-Seven. Over and out,"

The infrastructure replacing the Lamborghini speed transports were more ambitious than just a few sports cars. While the Girls would fly to patrol or respond to calls, they would also be directed by a series of flight control towers placed all around the cities. They were normally found in the highest places, such as on top of a skyscraper, or the tallest apartment building. They were little more than high altitude encampments equipped with communications and surveillance devices, though there were plans to build actual control towers on top of the buildings.

Within less than half an hour, Blossom, Bubbles, and Buttercup had reached home. Lonely though it was, it was faster to fly around the city. Swooping down and putting the end of their rainbow at the doorstep of their home, Blossom opened the door and went in with her sisters.

The professor had been sitting in the living room, with Selicia at his side. They were cuddling, with the professor putting an arm around her shoulders while they were watching the television. TNN was on the tube, and it was no surprise, as it was very often that the news channel would feature the Girls, one way or another. The TNN's viewership had soared over the past month when the Girls were actively fighting crime in Townsville, and viewers were known to treat it as a source of entertainment as much as news. The Girls had gained quite a few fans in their special delivery of justice.

On the professor's television, a special program was on, showing the Angels of Justice in action over the past month. Though they were thus far restricted mostly to suppressing small-time crime by the retreat of organized crime, the TNN's new side program had blown it up to bigger proportions with aptly-placed words, thrilling speculations and well-chosen factoids taken from both dubious and reputable sources alike. Thomas and Selicia were just happy to see the Girls on television and portrayed in a positive light at that.

The professor turned around just in time to see the Girls coming in, and Selicia was able to avoid letting the Girls see her running her lips up his neck.

"Hey Girls, how's crime-fighting today?" he greeted them as they were coming up to the couch.

"It was great," Blossom said as she was removing her flight pack and leaning it against the couch, before letting herself float so she could look over the couch to see herself on TV. "We did good today."

"Way too easy," Buttercup boasted, then jumped and plopped herself down beside Mommy. She forcefully gave her a hug. Selicia returned it, though she could feel a bruise coming up in her ribcage.

"Gentle, Buttercup," she groaned. Meanwhile, Bubbles went around the couch and sat on the professor's lap - the man was thankful that she didn't have her full gear on, or she would be too heavy for comfort on his lap.

"Mister Blackwater was being mean," Bubbles said, still a little sad, but she brightened up quickly. "But Mister Mullens offered to take us out for milkshakes. Can we go, Dad?" It had the professor worried, the way Bubbles' mood tended to swing from left to right like a pendulum. Life as a (very) special law enforcement officer wasn't exactly the right one for her, no matter how long she had been filling those shoes. The sweetest of the three would have been happiest in a world where she was normal, but it would have to be some unreachable parallel world.

"Of course you can, honey," the professor gave his permission, gladly. In reality, the Girls didn't really need his consent, considering that they were operating out there without his supervision, but the fact that they look to him for it made him happy. They loved and respected him, truly, and he loved them in return.

"Yay!" the Girls cheered in unison.

"You know, Girls, I may not have milkshakes, but how about some orange pudding?" the professor offered. The Girls beamed at him when he mentioned supper. "It's got chocolate syrup on it. We worked really hard together on it. Right, Selicia?" Thomas and Selicia pecked each other on the lips when he mentioned it.

Over the past month, the professor and the SWAT soldier had gotten really close, and it helped that the stress of having to raise children who were practically fighting a war against criminals had largely been lifted over a month ago. With nothing really threatening both the Girls and the parents (designated handlers, by USDO terms), they were able to live like a relatively normal family, and it hardly mattered when the Girls had flown off a few hours a day to patrol the skies of Townsville and get scrambled for the odd operation or so (that usually ended up anti-climactic). Selicia's abusive tendencies were kept to the minimum and the professor hadn't broken down since forever. To the Girls, who were only just over two months old, it was like a lifetime ago that things had gotten intolerably rough.

And so after supper, the Girls went for their bath, then for bedtime, but not before story time with Selicia, who kissed the Girls - Blossom, Bubbles, and Buttercup - goodnight. While Selicia had always favored Buttercup as the USDO-assigned mom of The Three, the tension between her and the other two had largely dissipated. There were simply no sparks over the past month to set things off between her and them.

"What happens after the princess lives happily ever after, Mommy?" Bubbles asked Selicia when she was done giving them their kisses.

"She… lives happily ever after?" Selicia said, trying to mask how unsure she was. It helped that she had just switched the table lamp off. "Just like the three of you. In fact, I'm willing to bet you three are going to be very happy tomorrow. You know why?"

"Because I get to beat up more criminals tomorrow?" Buttercup guessed. Her glowing green eyes shone in the dark, like spirit orbs of Asian myth in the night.

"We don't know that. Try again," Selicia said.

"Elodie Morbucks!" Blossom took a smarter guess. Selicia didn't like that she had taken away the right answer from Buttercup, but she was willing to let it slide. The darkness hid her change in expression well enough. Blossom's expression, as seen from her glowing pink eyes, however, was as clear as day. Pure anticipation, ignorance. Innocence. Selicia hated that about her - Blossom assuming the mantle of leadership was nothing short of a disaster waiting to happen - and it already did before. In her opinion, Buttercup would have been a perfect choice, as her innocence was half-dead right from the start.

"We're going to Princess' masquerade ball tomorrow!" Bubbles added. She could feel the excitement coursing through her body. It showed: her baby blue eyes shown brighter. "I can't wait!"

"Me neither!" Blossom added. "It'd be fun to wear a mask!"

"Boring! I'd rather spend the night flying around Townsville…" Buttercup said with a sigh. She wanted to comment further about the 'beating up criminals' part, but she yawned instead. It was bedtime, and little girls need their sleep.

"Okay, Girls, now go to sleep so tomorrow would come," Selicia suggested slyly, and the Girls went right to closing their eyes. Bubbles giggled one last time when she imagined how she'd look in the dress and mask Princess had selected for her, not that she knew what they were, but she'd like to imagine.

The professor had been listening by the door. It had been his turn the previous day to put the Girls to bed, and he was already missing it. He smiled when Selicia did such a good job. There was a time when he thought that she was totally unfit to mother the Girls, but that time was past.

As the Girls tried to sleep, Selicia hummed a lullaby to help them along. The professor walked away to give her a moment, and prepare for his with his assigned wife.

The City of Townsville. Business District. Morbucks Industries Research Labs?

25 DEC 1988 (Sunday)? 2157?

Bubbles had never been in so much pain in her life before. She had been holding up the sky for what felt like an eternity, except the sky was the ceiling, the ceiling over the panic room that all her friends were in. She could smell her own blood raining down on her friends. She had been sweating and crying blood when exhaustion had given way to something worse, beyond agony. Her wounds wept blood.

She held up the sky, and looked down at her friends, illuminated by the baby blue light emanating from her body as she flew against the dislodged ceiling threatening to crush them all.

And she saw her friends, except they were skeletons, some huddled together, some alone, some in pieces, all of them glaring up at her with their osteo-grin. She could easily tell who was who. Elodie 'Princess' Morbucks still had her cancer wig with its messy buns, dusty from age (how long had she been down here?), and beside her was her father, still in his business suit. The skeleton of the Catholic priest was still kneeling in prayer - how that was possible, she didn't know, and she didn't dare and care to know.

But there was something out of place. She saw herself among the bone pile - she could tell because the skeleton was wearing her favorite baby blue party dress. And there was something worse. Her sisters were there too, as skeletons. She could tell from the matching dresses. In fact, when she stared hard enough, she saw another skeleton with a lab coat and a black smoking pipe still in its bony hand and yet another in a USDO SWAT uniform and gear. Dad and Mom - how?

Bubbles screamed and cried even more - if that was possible. She thrashed against her impossible load. She closed her eyes in an attempt to will it all away, except she had gotten what she wished in the most twisted way possible, for when she next opened her eyes, she found herself in a tight little box, face down. She was still holding up the ceiling, but it was crushing her too. Terror beyond terror seized her heart - she couldn't even scream even if she wanted to. The ceiling was closing in on her, and so were the four walls close to her.

For a moment, she could feel herself flattened.

The City of Townsville. Suburbs. The House?

3 FEB 1989 (Friday). 0511?

Bubbles jerked awake, her eyes opening wide. There was still darkness all around her, and for a moment, she thought that she was still in her ever-shrinking box. Sitting up quite suddenly, she checked herself to see if she had been flattened, if she was covered in blood, and she had to will her eyes to give out light like a pair of torchlights to do it.

Nothing.

But she spotted something about her sisters that were off. Casting her eye-lanterns on Blossom, she had caught her just in time to see her turning to face her.

And she was a skeleton, though her flowing, fiery orange hair was still intact. There was still pink light emanating from her eye sockets. The Blossom skeleton grinned at her.

The walls, floor and ceiling groaned. She could feel dust dropping from the ceiling. Looking around her, she could see the walls closing in on her.

The City of Townsville. Suburbs. The House.

3 FEB 1989 (Friday). 0511.

Bubbles jerked awake, though she didn't scream. She could feel tears both warm and cold on her cheeks and cried even more when her dreams were still fresh in her mind. The exhaustion and the pain felt too real, and it reminded her of how close she came to failing and letting everyone die.

Afraid to wake her sisters up, she whimpered and sobbed silently even as Buttercup snored and Blossom turned in her sleep. She felt alone, and so she floated above her bed and flew silently to the door, opening it. Outside in the corridor, she landed on her feet and padded towards her Daddy's room. Opening the doorknob as she sniffled and wiped her tears away, she found it surprising that the door was unlocked, and proceeded to enter.

She ran towards the queen-sized bed, still sobbing silently as hard. She pulled at Professor Utonium's blanket, and when that failed to wake him up, she floated higher and pulled desperately at his arm, shaking him awake.

"Dad…" Bubbles mewled. "Please wake up, I'm scared!"

"Ooof…" the professor groaned as he turned to the source of whatever had disturbed his sleep. He struggled to open his eyes - having only fallen asleep just past midnight, it was harder than usual to attain his wakefulness. "Wha- Who-"

The first thing he saw was Bubbles' glowing blue eyes, which shone brightly in the dark. The professor gasped at the sight, having been caught off-guard by the unexpected sight - that brief moment of nothingness in his head as he was still trying to get his mind going had made the glowing eyes terrifying, but he was able to collect himself quickly enough.

It helped that he could hear Bubbles' pained whimpering, which kicked his paternal instincts in the butt pretty good.

"Oh honey, what's wrong?" the professor asked sweetly as he reached out for his sweetest daughter, switching on the table lamp with the other. He sat up and Bubbles floated up to him for a hug. He took her into his arms without hesitation.

"I was back there, Dad… In that dark hole…" Bubbles cried. "And- and- everyone…" The professor gave her a squeeze.

"It was just a nightmare, Bubbles," he comforted the little girl. It wasn't the first time this had happened. She had been having nightmares almost every night since last Christmas, after she was forced to take on a burden too great for her little frame by Mojo Jojo, holding up a broken ceiling and rubble weighing in excess of over six tonnes when the sapient Chimpanzee had dropped it on her. The professor couldn't even imagine the pain she had felt - by the time Agent Blake's team and her sisters had dug her out, she had bled to within an inch of her life, nearly drained of Chemical X. "Everything is fine now. You're safe."

He'd said this despite knowing that there was something out there. He did not know for certain, but what he knew from the USDO council meetings he attended had convinced him that it wasn't over. All of the major players on the other side of the law were still at large. They might have gone into hiding, but it simply meant that the boogieman was going to jump out some night - it was only a matter of when.

"Go back to sleep, Bubbles," he said.

"Can I sleep next to you, Dad?" she asked. "Please?"

"Hop on, then," the professor squeezed himself closer to Selicia to make space for Bubbles at the edge of his bed. He patted the newly vacated space gently and yawned. Bubbles clambered into bed and let herself down beside him gladly, squeezing into him, enjoying the warmth from his body. He might not have her ability to lift heavy vehicles, fly and break every single window in a skyscraper with a scream, but when Bubbles slept beside him, she knew that she was safe, and loved. The professor covered her with his blanket and wrapped an arm around her. When she was all secured, he reached for the table lamp and clicked it off…

Only to hear Bubbles whimper in utter fear. He clicked it on again.

"Thanks, Dad," she said gratefully. "I'm sorry I'm not as brave as Buttercup… or Blossom."

"You were really brave that night, Bubbles. You've saved many lives and made many friends that day," he said. But Bubbles wasn't convinced. She knew the difference between her and her sisters, and it was like night and day. They were never the ones to break out in cold sweat or hesitate when it came time to help the weak and punish the wicked. They certainly weren't the ones whose heart would race like it was trying to jump ship from her chest or have breathing problems when things get hot. Every time she went out there, it was as if she had died once again.

If only that could change…