As the first rays of dawn filtered through viridian curtains, soft morning light casted a warm glow over a small room. The image of a tall, handsome man in a red, white and blue patriotic uniform standing tall with his hands on his hips surrounded by bright stars stood out on white concrete walls. He smiled widely, his cape flowing in a particular direction almost representing the American flag. Around him in a bold font was 'Major Glory'' in white. Slightly covering his face was a signature written with a black marker as 'M. G.' with the phrase 'Here's to my number one fan, Butterdish!'
Pinned up on the wall beside him were several other images taped to the wall; ranging from hardcore to punk rock bands, a woman in a club with a big afro was caught being shot under a disco ball. Many of these were playfully dramatic, ranging from wide-screen shots of an entire band lined up like a firing squad to a single singer desperately holding onto the mic under his faint stage faint light.
A birch dresser lit up the room under the light, reflecting off of the mirror gazing on the room in front of it. A dozen different items ranging from black boxing gloves to a box of assorted lipstick had been spread out across the counter, bringing some life to this dull furniture. The pair of action figures standing near the edge were pointing at one another, one reaching for an obnoxiously designed space gun while the other held up a laser sword. A couple of small knick-knacks from previous vacations stood out on small shelves, a little sailboat fighting against a rather flat sparkly sea in a glass globe. Taped more specifically on the mirror itself was an old sticky-note written in a fine print, blue ink. 'Don't forget to love yourself! -Bubbles'
Beside it, a birch desk with a padded black office chair sat snugly next to a window. The desk lamp was off, hugging a computer monitor with a minimalist white keyboard and mouse underneath; down on the ground, specifically positioned on the top of a dark gray carpet over a little stand, a white computer brain slept comfortably. The wires were tucked in the back, wild and unkempt in the extended outlet bar.
The shining glory of this room was a large display case, housing its own tiny lights which had been shut off for now. Resting in neatly polished glass were dozens of small trophies, metals and awards all neatly spread out for many to enjoy. In the near center, an image of Professor Utonium and the three Powerpuff Girls shined the brightest. His eyes were squint shut, a wide smile on his face as he had his arms surrounded on all three. The girls seemed much younger, also happily bundled together front and center with their own unique poses to add to charm. A blue ribbon laid over part of the portrait titled over some awards show, indicating winning first prize of an old superhero contest.
Beep! Beep! Beep! Beep!
An insistent beeping noise pierced the air, stirring the girl laying comfortable in her big bed. Slouching on the birch bed stand was a digital alarm clock, displaying the hour '8:00' in bright red numbers. Slightly it stirred in its mission, rotating over toward her after each beep.
After some grimace in annoyance, she painfully reached a hand out and silenced the alarm. Despite her initial reluctance to leave the comfort of her bed, she knew that duty called. With a resigned sigh, she swung her legs over the edge and rubbed her eyes.
Buttercup's hair slightly strained over her face unbrushed. With the sheets pushed back toward the foot of the bed, all she had to wear was a loose charcoal black band t-shirt (which comfortably hugged her chest) and tight black panties.
She pushed herself upright, her bare feet padding softly against the plush carpeting as she made her way toward the window.
Drawing the curtains back, the sight of a fresh dawning over Pokey Oaks North brought some relief to her. The cool morning breeze, the crisp air seeping in and the faint sounds of hovercars passing by left a tired grin on her face. The tranquil scene had her feeling determined, underneath the lethargy and heavy head from waking up so quickly. It was another day, one hopeful and positive.
She made her way toward the dresser and switched out her clothes, hooping them into the laundry hamper hugged up against the corner of the room. What came out afterwards was an olive green t-shirt over a sports bra, gray sweatpants, and white socks. It was basic, though with everything she was looking forward to today, she wasn't expecting to have to dress up.
Taking a look at herself in the mirror, her eyes darted over toward the sticky note. She grinned, reaching for a comb and began to brush her hair into its natural, elegant style. Luckily she, out of the three of the girls, didn't need to take that much time on her hair. Also considering it, perhaps the makeup would be minimal today? She would need to wait after the morning workout, just so it wouldn't get ruined. Naturally she had her looks anyways, adding onto her charm.
As Buttercup moved through her little suburban home, she wasted no time getting down to business. With the efficiency of a well-oiled machine, she made her way into the kitchenette and started on cooking. The cloffee maker was put to work (as it deserved), boiling up a fresh mug just for her with a little bit of creamer waiting to be served on the side. For breakfast: a huge portion of scrambled eggs with melted shredded cheese on top, several strips of sizzling bacon and a piece of golden toast with a spoonful of avocado on it to start the day. She did this with a bit of bounce in her step, now wearing a pair of wireless headphones over her ears connected to her phone. She shimmed to an upbeat punk rock song, the music giving a sense of joy and happiness while the lyrics sung about suffering and death.
After breakfast, she quickly moved into the next room: the gym. Rolling her shoulders a little bit, her eyes wandered around the small bundle of equipment before finally deciding on some warm ups and decided to keep it light for today. Letting the blood flow through her veins, she quickly switched into something a bit more heavy metal and immediately got into her morning workout. She took off after some quick stretch exercises with the following:
one hundred jumping jacks,
seventy-five high knees,
seventy-five butt kickers,
one hundred twenty-five push ups,
one hundred squats
and lastly a total of eight minutes worth of planking just to finish it all out.
Afterwards, she came face to face with the same punching bag which hung in the corner of the room. She wasted no time in donning her workout gear, the familiar weight of her gloves comforting as she slipped them on. With a determined set to her jaw, she approached the bag, its heavy canvas surface taunting her with the promise of release.
With a primal yell, she unleashed a flurry of punches, each strike landing with precision and power. The rhythmic thud of her fists against the bag echoed through the room, the loud pummeling crying out as a measure to her raw grit. She didn't stop, perhaps a spurt or two to recollect herself but that was it. The tension and stress of any issues and anxiety she had began to melt away, replaced by the exhilarating rush of endorphins coursing through her. Each punch empowered her, the sweat slightly trickling down the sides of her face as she huffed in frustration.
After what felt like an eternity of exertion, finally she allowed herself to take a step back. Her muscles in her arms quivered, though her vigor soared. She had a satisfied grin, pulling off the gloves and wiped the sweat from her brow. She could feel her entire body flowing with energy, now turned into a font. Occasionally at some points, her fingertips would spark with a green flame, her eyes changing into a bright green. She reached a peak this morning, aware of the power that surged through her.
Back over in the living room, she took off her headset and let the silence speak for herself. On the table was a small black earpiece being charged, the cord slightly stretching into the wall behind a television which hadn't been turned on in a couple of days. It was snatched, placed snug partially in and behind her ear.
Casually over toward the sofa she pushed the window up, letting a cool breeze fall into the room. She took a seat, slouching out all over the pillows and kicked a leg up over the top. She had her phone up and kept a poker face, checking her messages and seeing what she had missed while she was asleep.
She hadn't missed much.
For the past thirty minutes, she had spent it scrolling through her phone. A handful of new posts were made across social media regarding the current state of the invasion, including the number of participants either lost in the war or have deceased. The number was small, though it was climbing day by day very slowly. Apparently the beach edge of Monkey Mountain had been overtaken by another invading force of Lord Fuse, though was quickly subsided by the efforts of Mojo Jojo and his legion. It left a sour taste in her mouth, just the image of him and his smug smile in the briefing room fueling her anger slightly.
She disregarded it for now and decided to take her mind off of the war effort for a while; after all, the media did its best to cover the best and worst aspects of the invasion, though weren't great at talking about good news. Something in her wondered how the people felt about the news channels by this point, especially with one of them ushering in an anti-alien front. Day by day the politics seemed to get more convoluted, some parties putting in an effort for more radical ideas on behalf of the fusion invasion. Didn't they know it was Lord Fuse, not the aliens hiding out on earth?
It was best to just leave it alone for now; getting on almost every time was a mistake, seeing all sorts of interesting and terrible things. She switched over to a group chat and started on reading up some messages from her sisters yesterday, both nicknamed as 'Ice Princess' and 'Bubs'.
'so what are you guys gonna do now that the terrafusers are gone?'
'We're gonna check just to make sure there aren't any fusion monsters left, then afterwards.. a break?'
'Wym a break'
'I don't know, I guess downtime? ^o^'
'You should come home, dad misses you'
What followed up was a gif of a cute white cat giving a thumbs up; if the cat could smile, it would.
Buttercup finally decided to add into the conversation, 'honestly a longer break sounds great i'm ngl, we should all go see dad this weekend!'
It was quiet for a minute, until Blossom quickly replied, 'that sounds like a great idea! I'll try and see if I can get off.'
The girl made a face, her thumbs dancing away, 'girl tf are you doing that you gotta ask off? just come home lol'
'i've had a lot of projects to help with, plus a couple of squads needed mission briefings'
She couldn't argue with that, though still felt like pestering her and had a slight smirk on her face. 'what kinda projects are you even doing, also I thought Hoagie did that stuff '
It was silent on the other end for a moment, until another message popped up. 'Last week and this week I've had to make some design changes, meet w/ squad leaders, meetings w/ sector leaders and also dexlabs work. engineering is hard :('
She immediately jumped on the gun, 'dexypoo not smart enough for you huh'
'im gonna kill you.'
Finally, Bubbles pitched into the conversation from almost out of nowhere as a message popped up. 'What's Hoagie been up to?'
Blossom replied, 'he's got a date with Abby!'
'dude is making moves, finally. about time, she told me she's been waiting ' Buttercup texted back and huffed. She got up and stretched a little bit until her phone went off.
'speaking of, you gonna have your playdate today with the fanboy?' Blossom texted.
The girl let out a groan like she had just been shot, quickly replying, 'yea do u know where he lives'
'one sec-'
There was a bit of silence on the other end. During this time, Buttercup reached for her light gray coat and wrapped it around her shoulders. Today was slightly chillier than usual but all the more perfect for a fight. She let out a sigh, checking the house for anything she might have missed and reached for her white forces.
When her phone went off, a little pop up with the address to a random home in Sector V came up. Beside it she texted, ' you guys have fun and try not to get too rowdy! knowing you, i doubt it lmao '
'imma put him in his place :) his little suit won't do him any good'
Bubbles sent another gif, this time of two famous tv show characters fighting. They were constantly throwing punches at each other in an endless loop, trapped within a square against their will.
'how'd you get his address anyways?'
Blossom replied, ' were you not paying attention when we met up to leave for that meeting ab the book? '
'no lol'
There was another long interval of silence until Bubbles chimed in, 'Well I hope you guys have fun! Keep yourselves safe and tell him I said hi! ^u^'
'will do!'
With that being said, Buttercup stretched her arms a little bit and shut the front door behind her. She locked it with her keys, throwing her purse over her shoulder and quickly punched in the address. Fifteen minute walk, she was about to make it a minute flight.
Quickly she darted up into the air with her green trail of light, soaring with a fist facing forward. She had a wide smile on her face, feeling the chilly breeze blow across her entire body. This was possibly one of the best parts about having powers: the flights. Especially the long flights, she had time to think and enjoy the gorgeous views of the clouds. At times, she looked up and pondered about soaring through the clouds way high up alone. Maybe she would do that at some point, just not today.
The familiar sight of the suburbs stretched out across the horizon as she was up in the air; briefly, a S.C.A.M.P.E.R. flew by. An agent hooked up to a minigun through an open door waved over to her with a smile on her face.
All she gave them was a cocky smirk and a two finger salute, following her iconic look.
Rows of neatly lined houses, each with their own unique charm, lined the quiet morning streets, their rooftops painted in an array of colors under the midday sun. Occasionally she would dart her eyes from the streets to the phone, sort of lining herself in the air as if she were driving on the street. It was partially complicated with a couple of turns, though in actuality he didn't live that far away from her at all. Maybe this whole training gig was going to be a little bit easier than she thought.
From a distance, Niles' garage was just another feature of the picturesque neighborhood, its nondescript exterior giving little indication of individuality about it.
Slowly she descended, holding her arms out just to show off in a ghibli fashion and landed in the middle of the street.
Nestled among the other homes in the quiet suburban neighborhood of Pokey Oaks North stood a quaint house with a bright blue roof, its cheerful look basking in the warm glow of the morning sun. The house had an aura of coziness, inviting anyone to step inside and make themselves at home. Though given Niles' current financial situation, the house was still up for sale but the garage had been bought. Perhaps it was an extended payment, meant to be paid later when he had the proper taros. Even under a soldier's payroll in a new universe, there was some financial struggle.
The front yard was neatly manicured, with a lush green lawn bordered by vibrant flower beds bursting with colorful blooms. A stone pathway led from the sidewalk to the front porch, where a pair of potted plants flanked the entrance, adding a touch of natural beauty to the exterior. The house itself was a picture of suburban charm, boasting a classic design with clean lines and a welcoming vibe. Large windows adorned with crisp white shutters dotted the facade, allowing natural light to flood the interior and offering a look into the untouched living room just for advertisement.
At the heart of the home was the garage, an integral part of a suburban home. The garage door, painted a pristine white, stood open. Deep within it exposed the entirety of the den itself, allowing for anyone to freely just walk in and out.
Buttercup began making her way up the paved driveway and held a hand toward the edge of her hand, "Hey, dork! Are you still asleep in that hammock or do I need to come ruffle you outta there?!" She had an ambitious smile wide spread across her cheeks, a hand slightly brushing some of her hair to make it look better after the wild flight across the suburbs.
There was no response.
She continued to make her way in, taking a deep breath in slight frustration. The suit stood up prompt in the center of the room, the cape slightly billowing in the breeze that blew in with her. Everything was frozen in time, prepared to be replayed. "You ready for our fight today or..
what?"
Her sentence trailed off abruptly as her eyes fixated on the concrete floor in front of her. She placed her hands on her hips, tilting her head a little closer to get a good look at what was under her. A large puddle of red stained the floor, somewhat dried now by this point. It was a crimson trail leading over toward the desk, an office chair tucked in neatly underneath.
Calmly she squatted down and put her elbows on her knees, doing a pose and scratching her chin. She kept her shoes out of the blood, not wanting to stain the bright white in a terrible red. Her smile went away, now turned into a serious inquisition.
She turned over toward the pop gun lying on the ground beside her, slightly melted and flattened. The magazine had melted from an immense heat, no longer any icy bullets waiting to be fired off. Next to it, all sorts of tools and mechanical junk had been sent disarray on the floor in a mess.
Buttercup stood back up and analyzed the scene, keeping her hands on her hips and clicked her tongue. She turned over to the dynamo suit, eyeing it up and down out of curiosity. It looked fine, presentable under the morning beams. Her fingers traced across the forearm, checking every inch for anything unusual and decided to leave it there.
She followed around the room in silence; based on deduction, it was evident that there wasn't a lot to work with though there was a sign of struggle. She caught on that quickly, doing another squat toward the floor and quickly dialed up Blossom.
It rang a few times, until her familiar sweet voice picked up on the line. "Hello! Blossom speaking~"
"Hey sis, it's Buttercup. I'm at Niles' right now and something is wrong." she spoke softly.
Blossom replied in a slightly more concerned tone, "What do you mean something's wrong?"
Buttercup sighed, "I came by to see if he was awake and he's nowhere to be found. There's blood on the floor, everything's a mess and his suit's still here."
"What? Are you serious? Have you tried calling him?" Blossom's eyes widened.
The girl shook her head, standing up and huffed in frustration. "No, I haven't. When I do, and if he doesn't answer, what do I do?"
"Uhm.." sighed the girl on the other end. "I think I've got an idea. Look around for a small device, one that looks like a bracelet. It should have all sorts of buttons and dials on it."
Surveying the room a second time, there wasn't anything that matched the description anywhere. She shook her head and let out a sigh, "No, I don't see anything like that."
"Okay, go up to his suit and press the very center plate. It should open up; the reason I'm having you do this is because he might still have his NanoComm on him." Blossom explained.
Buttercup followed her instructions precisely, pressing on it. The suit folded out and open, detailing the fine leather padding inside for maximum comfort. "Alright, now what?"
"In the wrists, do you see a device like that anywhere? Not the padding, or wiring or anything like that." Blossom said.
Buttercup leaned in on both wrists, "No, I don't see nothing."
"Alright, so let me get this straight," she began on the other end. "You arrived at his garage, there's blood, stuff's everywhere and his suit is there?"
The girl nodded, looking down on the floor. "Yeah, his pop gun is also like.. melted."
"What the hell? Okay," the girl huffed from her earpiece. "Here's what I can think of off the top of my head: I'm gonna ask if Dexter can track him down over at the labs. I'll keep you updated on if he's moving or somewhere and if he's in one spot, I'll send you wherever he's at. I'm gonna give you a minute to call him before I do, though."
She nodded along, taking a step over and lifted up the gun with her hand. She looked at it, wincing at what happened to it. "Alright, sounds like a plan sis. Send me his number."
"I just don't understand what happened; none of this, like, makes sense," Blossom ranted on the other end.
Buttercup placed the gun back on the floor, jogged over toward the door and started a full sweep of the house outside. "Do you think it was because of yesterday?"
"What, at the meeting? No, that wouldn't make sense," Blossom deducted. "The only person who might consider doing that is Mojo Jojo but even then, he doesn't do something like that."
The girl turned the corner, seeing no clear signs of anything looking positive and huffed. "He's a weird boy with a bad past; you might have been right about him keeping a secret from us."
"Then you should know that I'm always right," Blossom stated with a hint of pride in her words. "Give him a call, give me an update."
Buttercup nodded, "Alright, see ya later."
When she hung up on her, shortly afterwards she received a message with a string of numbers. The girl put them into her phone and flatly put 'Niles' as the contact; she dialed it almost immediately, standing outside the door of the garage and tapped her foot on the ground. Tucking an arm in her side, her concerned face didn't leave as she blinked and steered off. He was a bigger guy, even with regular strength could probably hold himself well in a fight. Surely he wouldn't be dead, would he?
The phone immediately went to voicemail, causing her to sigh and run a hand through her hair. "Great.."
She quickly sent a text message to her sister, ' No response, call Dexter ' and walked up to the garage door. She couldn't do much and tucked her phone in her pocket. Her shoulder and side rested against the edge of the door, crossing her arms. It looks like today she was going to be playing hero..
again.
Meanwhile, down below underneath Sector V, a labyrinth of winding tunnels and cavernous chambers laid untouched. The air was heavy and oppressive, thick with a faint scent of decay and despair. It hung like a suffocating blanket, causing the average person to likely want a mask. There was a foreboding sense that permeated the atmosphere, more like a sense of dread which only got stronger with each passing moment.
The ill-defined illumination came from the glow of bioluminescent fungi that clung to the walls, casting eerie shadows that jigged in the darkness. It was a feeble gleam that was barely enough to pierce the gloom down below.
In one section of this large place, an entire assortment of consoles lay loosely dormant up against the dirt walls. Bright blue-screen light brightened the room a couple notches, the keyboard underneath a terminal glowing with it too. Wires and cables snaked from the console like serpents, disappearing into the darkness of the room beyond. The air hummed with the steady thrum of machinery, a buzz coming from one old computer console in the late 1990s re-imagined into a genuine computer.
Rows of monitors lined the walls, their screens flickering with images of grotesque experiments and twisted fusion abominations waiting to be unleashed.
A tall tank filled with bubbling green liquid acted like a chunky lava lamp, bits of freshly extracted fusion flowing around in it like old milk.
On the opposite side of the chamber, shelves lined with vials and beakers overflowed with strange chemicals and foreign substances.
Bound up against the wall, Niles was sat down on the floor from earthly restraints. Across his exposed chest, arms and thighs. His shirt had been stolen, left to rot in only his shorts. His body had been pinned by a dozen curling vines and branches tucked from the dirt behind him, small thorns drawing blood on his already scarred chest. Just revealed between the vines was his stomach wound, sealed up by mysterious means. A large white gash was left where he had been assaulted, quickly sucked up like it had been regenerated within a short span of time. There was no care, no satisfaction, his tan skin had been stained by his own dried blood. He rested with his head slightly leaning forward, his body having been desperate enough for his rest to put him to sleep in this stressful moment.
The soft sound of a familiar voice echoed in the vast reaches of his mind, sharp but friendly. "Niles.. Niles! Are you alive?"
The man crept his eyes open and a wave of immense pain showered all across his body. He let out a groan in discomfort, moving a thigh only to have it be scraped by a thorn. The pain woke him up out of sheer reaction, causing him to not move and look around. At first he didn't answer, until his eyes locked on an object in the corner of the room.
"Oh h-hell.."
Resting snugly between two computer monitors was yet again another large, bulbous object in the shape of a seed. Its deep roots underneath its netted appearance dug into the ground, slightly pulsating in each second. The large pockets of exposed fusion were forming little embryos eager to eat up the world: a Terraformer.
Niles breathed in and out sharply and looked down at his chest, seeing the vine cut away at his clean abs and smacked the back of his head against the wall. Softly he spoke, "When I get my hands on that thing.."
"Sir!"
His eyes turned over toward the computer monitor sitting on the other side of the room. Sitting on the desk was his NanoComm, seemingly unharmed. The projector lit up as the voice spoke out, indicating like a recorder, "I'm glad you're alive; I have a moment to speak with you while the fusion is gone."
"X!" Niles stammered, hissing across the room. "Is that you? Talk to me."
The voice spoke out, "I don't know how long she'll be but you need to listen to me close; we're in a fusion lair."
"I can see that," Niles replied bluntly. "Put a couch over there, add a bathroom in the corner and you've got yourself a condo."
X sighed, "Sir, this is serious.."
"I get that," he replied and turned to the side. "lay it on me straight."
An even tinier version of Nano Alien X appeared on the projector, taking a couple of steps forward and gesturing with his white gloves. "I've done my best to keep you alive, though your body is in a serious condition. If you push yourself too hard, you will pass out or perhaps worse. You have lost a lot of blood and haven't consumed anything within the span of seventeen hours."
"Oh great," Niles huffed, his eyes looking around for anything to possibly relieve himself with. "I genuinely thought it was her."
X continued, "Signals are fuzzy while we're down here, so I am suggesting finding a way out. I received a call, though I couldn't answer it for you. Once we reach the surface, I'm going to call for help. First, you need to get out of your bindings and find a spot to hide. She could be here any minute."
"Alright, thanks X," Niles nodded. His hand quickly went to work on a vine and snapped it, easily pulling it off. He started on another one as he whispered, "did you see anything down here I could arm myself with?"
There was a moment of silence while he scratched his chin, coming up with a response. "Recording the passage Fusion Blossom took, there is in fact an old Needlenose Rifle down here. I can guide you once you're free."
His hands delicately pulled at the easy vines, snapping them in two until he was left to the bigger ones holding him in place. He breathed in and out, feeling his heavy head and sluggish movements hinder him slightly.
It took him another couple of minutes, though finally reached a breakthrough. Shakily he stood up, gritting his teeth, fighting his pain. He placed a hand on his stomach and winced, realizing that something was seriously wrong. Twisting his last foot out of the last vine, he limped over to the computer screen and picked up his NanoComm.
It snapped in place quite comfortably, causing a sigh in relief feeling his connection with Nano Alien X.
"Good to see you, sir. Your vitals are awful."
Niles tisked, "How comforting."
As his eyes peered up to the screen, he watched the data pass by. One by one, various creatures from the future were exposed with their own details. The machine appeared to be linked to the Terraformer, somehow binding both biology and technology together to form a sick hybrid between the two.
"X," his breathing sped up a little bit, his eyes widening as his heart began to race. "Oh what have I done?"
The nano appeared beside him, orbiting his shoulder and looked at the monitor. "What is it, sir? Your heart rate is rising."
"She's trying to bring them here," he breathed shakily, taking another step back and placed a hand on the counter. "She's going to make them here!"
The nano held his hands up, "Sir, remember the mission, focus. This is your least priority right now; it would be wise to listen to me."
He looked up at him, placing a hand on his scarred and bloodied chest. "Wh-Who's alive, who can we call? There's a group, uhm.. S.A.C.T. We should call them."
"We will, in due time," X hovered over the screen. "I could throw myself into the terminal and temporarily disable it, if that will help."
Niles nodded frantically, breathing deeper to get himself calmed down. "Go ahead, do it fast."
As he held his NanoComm out, the nano sent itself directly into the system itself. A slight zap came from his wrist, then a moment of silence later. The terminal was beginning to freeze over, several programs shutting down within the span of a minute. From the monitor, a little chibi image of X formed and pressed himself up against the screen. He pointed a finger toward a tunnel nearby and gestured for Niles to start moving.
The man did, hobbling along and started on his way out. His mind went into a fight or flight mode, his sense temporarily aware for a moment. Deep within, the chemicals in his brain were chunking out the last good ones iit had, boosting his morale just a little longer until he was able to give out.
By now, he dove into the fray of the fusion lair. Beyond the laboratory, what awaited him was a winding path of sickly tunnels. The aroma and heavy mist in the air didn't help, leaving him a miserable heap fighting against a passage intended for his demise. Still, he kept going forward, well familiar with his current state. At this point, it was common for him to feel awful.
Several minutes of wandering later, the faint sound of X popped up from his NanoComm. "Left."
He nodded, turning and went down another tunnel.
The sounds of feet that weren't his echoed, causing him to go quiet. He hunched over, pressing a hand up against the walls and went through long intervals without huffing and puffing. His head spun, feeling the world get dark around him yet continued to press on.
The voice of X continued to guide him, "Right, pause."
Niles stopped, sitting up against the wall and pressed his back on it. His breathing grew quieter, his lungs desperately gasping for a good chunk of air without coughing. He could feel his insides fighting for another crisp air, paining him in his already damned body.
"Niles?"
His eyes widened, a hand grabbing onto his head and another on his mouth as he remained silent.
Footsteps echoing in the cavernous area grew closer, heightening his senses.
From the other side of the wall, in another tunnel, Fusion Blossom made her way toward the laboratory. Off in the distance she could even tell that the machine had been shut off, noticing a rather unhappy reaction from the Terraformer. She placed her hands on her hips and leaned her head off to the side, realizing that he had somehow gotten away.
Still, she could feel his presence within her dominion.
The girl made a one eighty and looked out toward the vast tunnel behind her, taking a step forward. "Why did you leave me?"
"Cause you're crazy, that's why," he mouthed to himself in obvious frustration, slowly slinking in the dark down the right path. "X, please tell me this thing is close."
As he lifted his NanoComm up to his ear, the tiniest voice of X reached out. "Keep going a little further, then make a left. Blossom is on my radar next to you, so we have to move around-"
Every step felt like a gamble, his mind trying to trick him. Shadows made out the outline of a slender woman, though in actuality it was just bad lighting. The air was thick with tension, his breathing a struggle as he fought to keep his anxiety at bay.
Guided by the soft glow of the device, he navigated his way with a painstaking care.
He entered a new section in this area, this time a storage unit filled with old boxes. Rather than dirt and mush, the walls made out an old and rusted steel. In the corner of this little break room, an elevator shaft had fallen out with rubble everywhere, indicating this was a secret vault.
"It's here, beside the door," X softly spoke. "Arm yourself."
Niles hobbled over to a couple of crates and peered in the back, then an ambitious feeling came over him. His eyes widened, a sickened smile creeping across his face as a hand reached out.
With some slight grime and dirt over it, a used Needlenose Rifle sat upright against one of the crates. The blue paint had slightly decayed a little bit into the gray iron underneath, the pump slightly stuck and needing a good push.
The cartridge slipped out, showing that there were at least four shots resting snug in it. Perhaps there was a fifth hidden underneath all five, though that was being hopeful. Who knew a man could feel euphoria seeing bullets?
He shoved it back in and loaded it up, gripping the gun with a veiny arm. His messy hair slightly waved over his eyes, giving him a much more primal look.
"Let's hope this works; I know this isn't gonna be enough to end her." he spoke with quiet confidence.
The nano reappeared as a tiny chibi again on his wrist, looking up at him and crossing his arms. "Don't try and fight her, sir. You need to defend yourself first so we can get out of here in one piece!"
The man breathed in shakily, throwing the gun's strap over his bare shoulder and turned to another crate. He reached for the black cloth over it and dabbed at some of his exposed thorn wounds. With this bloody cloth, he wrapped it over his forehead and made it into a headband.
Now he was ready, standing as a makeshift rambo.
Fusion Blossom had a hypnotic sway in her walk, tilting left and right. She was backtracking just a bit, heading over toward the only entrance and exit to this lair with malicious intent. Her hair swayed with her too, the red bow sitting perfectly on top.
Sitting in its own corner was a large entanglement of hot, bubbling tentacles underneath a wide puddle. It grew like an underwater algae, softly curling in a nonexistent wind. It had its own bright light, hueing the entire cavern in a bright green.
Fusion Blossom stood in front of it and rubbed her hands behind her back, letting out a sigh in frustration. She knew he would have slipped out, given a man of his talents, though decided to play in on this little game of his. She paced herself left and right, eagerly waiting for his arrival.
By the time he had arrived, he hugged himself up against the edge of one of the walls and pointed the gun up. His fingers twitched, gripping onto the cold steel while he analyzed the situation. She was there, constantly patrolling from left to right for him.
His breath stilled, slowly peering to the side and squinted at her. "..."
Quietly X spoke, "Well, it looks like this is a predicament. You think you can handle this?"
Niles nodded, feeling his anxiety spark him to move forward.
When he stepped out from the darkness and stood across from her, Fusion Blossom stopped and turned to look over at him.
"Why did you do that?" she softly asked, turning to look at him. Outside of her red eyes, she looked like a near perfect replica of his old Blossom.
Niles stood up straight and swung his rifle on his hip, holding it with a steady aim and took in a deep breath. He rolled his neck as he replied, "I don't particularly like being tied up and left for dead."
"I wasn't done with you yet," she replied softly, taking a step forward. "I've been meaning to talk to you about something.."
He raised an eyebrow and replied sarcastically, "I thought this whole thing between us was over?"
"I can't let you leave, Niles. This place isn't yours to live in."
Niles nodded, "You're right, it isn't," He took a step to the side, keeping his gun aimed firmly at her and had his finger scratching at the trigger. "Though you aren't going to change my mind. You can take your little science fair project and go on home, Blos. If the earth is yours now, then take it."
She let out a sigh, shaking her head as her eyes began to spark up. "This is going to hurt me more than it's going to hurt you."
"I severely douBT IT!"
ZAP!
His voice piqued as her eyes shot off a beam, narrowing avoiding his shoulder as he leaned off to the side. He took a step forward and pressed his finger down on the trigger of the gun, letting off a powerful blast. A sparking, electric bullet exploded into an array of a dozen tiny shards, penetrating her iconic red clothing and body and sending her reeling back.
She let out a scream in pain, throwing her hands up as her entire body shook in reaction. The pieces holding her together turned into a tower of jello, shivering through each electric jolt as she stumbled back.
Niles' firm arm pulled back on the pump, pushing the grime out and cocked it for a second time as he stumbled forward.
Out of instinct, Nano Alien X popped up beside him and appeared in the air with his hands crossed. "Quickly sir, the portal!"
"One sec!" Niles said in frustration and took a confident step forward.
The gun fired off again, sending another shot even more aggressively into her body. She collapsed onto the ground, slightly melting into a puddle as her screeches pierced his ears. He placed a hand over one of them and grit his teeth, unable to handle the high frequency.
He quickly turned his feet and started dashing, pacing himself a little bit and leaped off into the air. His body tackled into the green tentacles, feeling them wrap around his arms and legs from all over in an ice cold slime.
From that state, he entered a slippery metamorphosis as his entire body tingled. He fell into the puddle underneath the ground and sank, slipping into a completely different place. As if the floor wasn't there, he fell in like a deep pool and disappeared with a messy green goop in his wake.
As Fusion Blossom pulled herself together and back up, she grit her teeth in frustration and started making her way over to the portal quickly. Despite her clothes being ripped, her bare fusion body being exposed, she continued onwards with a newfound malice.
The dawn of sunlight hit Niles violently, leaving him motionless for a second. A hand reached over his eyes as he blocked it out, breathing in that fresh crisp air. He stumbled on a flat surface, unaware of his surroundings and fell to one knee with a cough. From below, a slight bit of blood hit the ground underneath, the taste of iron touching his tongue while it smeared across his teeth.
He could feel himself getting weaker, yet pushed himself onward anyways and stood up. He appeared to be on the roof of a building, overlooking a good portion of Sector V. The treehouse stood tall off in the distance, giving him a sense of comfort.
"Sir! The call?" X asked.
He reached his NanoComm up and navigated the buttons and pressed a red one underneath a small cap titled 'help'.
As he turned to look back at the fusion portal and pumped his rifle again, a grave realization hit him as he peered over the edge.
From underneath where he stood, a playground with gravel was occupied by several classes worth of middle school children. The sounds of laughter and high-pitched screeching had him realized: she put her lair on the top of Pokey Oaks Junior High School.
"We're on top of a goddamn school?!" he hissed, turning to look over at the portal and making himself as distant as possible.
X rubbed the back of his head, "It wouldn't be my first choice, but interesting."
Emerging on the other side of the fusion portal came Fusion Blossom, slipping out with a reverse-gravity. Her right arm had formed into a sharp, narrow blade of fizzing green.
"I will END YOU!" she screamed and started dashing across the other side of the roof.
Niles looked over the edge behind him, gripping his gun and realized how far of a drop that would be. There wasn't anything to cover his fall, making him realize he was partially stuck up here.
He turned to look back at her and got into a defensive stance, bracing himself for her next move.
SWISH!
The sword arm soared through the air, missing him as he jumped to the side. Another cut faster than his own trigger-finger missed his arm as he collapsed on the ground, firing off another shot into her.
Her entire body shook and vibrated with the third shot as he climbed back up, pushing himself and tackled her lower body. She fell back with him, hitting the hard metal ground.
Several nails stabbed into his back, causing him to let out a shout as he lifted himself up. "ACK!"
He was thrown forward onto the ground, tumbling to the side and bruising himself even more. Her landing was ferocious and precise, pinning him onto the ground and decked him in the face.
Niles wrapped his arms around her back, feeling his hands and arms burn against her exposed bubbly skin. The pain was unbearable, causing him to scramble and headbutt her.
The world spun, causing his dizziness to take over as he stopped. He was immovable, gripping onto his head while X's eyes widened. He couldn't do much, knowing that he had to time his healing at the precise moment in order to prevent his death. He remained an observer, watching this fight go down no matter how painful it could have felt to him.
"Say goodbye to your precious hideaway," Blossom hissed as she reeled herself back up. She dragged her sword arm across the ground, sparks fizzing from the tip's edge as she prepared another set of lasers. "You insufferable creature!"
He weakly reached over for his gun and struggled to pump it, falling back down on the ground and looked up at her. A soft trail of more hot blood poured out of the corner of his lips, mixing in with some of his slobber.
BOOM!
The sound barrier had been broken. Fusion Blossom had disappeared from where she was standing; she had been sent flying, pummeled into another building with a distant blast. Parts of the building's roof and walls collapsed slightly as shouts of a couple concerned citizens popped up from underneath.
Standing in her place was none other than Buttercup, a fiery green fist thrusted forward while her eyes beamed green. The wind finally caught up with her, blowing her coat and hair in a slight gust as she turned to look down at him on the ground.
Her green eyes faded and quickly she ran across the roof, her eyes widened with worry on her face. "What the hell is going on, Niles?!"
She skid on the ground, though stopped. Gazing at his exposed chest her face burned a bright red. She widened her eyes as she blushed, "A-Are you okay? I came by to see if you were up and noticed you ditched me."
Niles pushed himself up, reaching out for a hand. "C-Clearly not," he huffed sarcastically. "I'm so happy you're here-"
Her eyes wandered down to all of the dried blood and instinctively her arms wrapped around him to help him up, "Was that Blossom?!"
"F-From the future," he coughed. "I don't know how she got here."
She nodded along, taking him over toward a vent beside the fusion lair and placed him down. "Call medical attention," she ordered, letting go of him and hid her blush. "If you die on me, I'm gonna be mad at you!"
Even while nearly dying, he started laughing a little bit and coughed up a small amount of blood. "I- ha- will try-"
She shot him a look, both of anger and sympathy before turning over toward the girl coming her way.
Red and green beams met each other as the two began a staring contest, lifting up into the air.
From the NanoComm, Niles quickly pulled up contacts and looked up at his nano. "X, I need you to make the calls. I can't.. think straight."
"Yessir, allow me to ease your wounds and I'll get straight to it."
X lifted himself up in front of him and held his hands out. The stars underneath his black skin twinkled and an immense, hot light flashed all over his body. "CELESTIAL LIGHT!"
The blood leaving him slowed down, the wounds closing themselves up just to give him a little bit longer to live.
Shortly afterwards the nano quickly disappeared back into the NanoComm, starting the first call for help.
Now with a second wind he pumped his rifle again and recollected himself. Turning off to the side, he got a pretty good view of Buttercup starting her ferocious fight. A slight grin formed on his face, newfound relief making him glad she was around.
From the sky, the battle between Blossom and Buttercup raged on.
With a fierce cry, Buttercup launched herself forward, fists blazing with green energy as she unleashed a barrage of punches at her fusion counterpart. Fusion Blossom met her blow for blow, her own attacks fueled by dark, twisted energy that crackled with malevolence. Their fists constantly swung, blocking or missing each other in an intense match of anger. Each time Fusion Blossom tried to slip away and go for Niles, she was met with the force of the Powerpuff Girl which kept her in her place.
The clash of their powers sent shockwaves rippling through the air, shaking the very ground beneath them as they danced through the sky. Each blow was like a thunderclap, echoing across the suburban landscape as the two warriors fought with all their might.
KTANG!
The fusion was launched through a street lamp sideways and now flat into the road underneath, a hover car slamming on the brakes right beside her. The section where she landed flattened into a crater, rendering her motionless for a moment while reconfiguring her jelly spine. "Ugh.."
Buttercup landed right on top of her with a loud boom, sending a wave of wind and force from her landing back toward the people. Her shoe was lodged in through her stomach, tearing her entire body apart. Her eyes fizzled and sparked as an immense and aggressive energy surged through her; a hand had its fingers curled around her exposed neck, ignoring the harmful, acidic nature of the fusion. Her other fist was raised into the air aimed right for her stupid face. The same green flame scorched from the edges of her knuckles as she grit her teeth, eager for this fight.
"Come on, scum! I'll take you on!"
From the inner depths of her stomach and chest, an entire acid rain spewed from Blossom's mouth as she coated the poor girl in fusion. It burned away, slightly eating at her fresh clothes and skin with an intense pain. Even so, she started pelting her burning fist into the girl, keeping her pinned on the ground and channeled it into more fuel for the fight.
In the distance, a handful of students and a couple of teachers who were watching the fight quickly formed a collected mob and started running back. The school was beginning to get emptied as they started making their way for safer streets, an alarm going off. It seemed like for now school was going to be released early today at the threat of a nearby fusion, luckily for the kids.
Sparks flew as their powers collided, lighting up with a dazzling display of light and energy. The sound of their battle echoed through the suburban streets, a symphony of chaos and destruction that reverberated almost far. Blossom managed to get an upperhand, throwing Buttercup off despite being in a melted state. She took a step back and shot off several lasers of intense energy at the girl, melting the ground behind her.
With a brazen flame, Buttercup shifted into her iconic pose and sent her flaming fist directly into Blossom, letting out a scream and knocking her backwards for a third time.
The fusion spun backwards into the air, hitting the window of a suburban building and crash-landing in the center of a street with a tumbling spin. It let out a cough, landing on its feet and started reassembling itself back into its original form. The skin, muscle and blood that portrayed her disguise was smoldered, parts of her face now revealing the bubbly skin from underneath. For a moment, her right eye still retained the image of her soft skin until it melted away under the extreme heat, floating within her body like a tall soda.
Buttercup casually walked forward in the center of the street with her hands clutched into her fists; she shimmied her shoulders and slipped off her jacket, tossing it off to the side and pulled out fingerless gloves from her pockets. "Didn't think I'd be fighting a worse version of my sister today.. but I'm honestly not complaining. Any excuse to beat up more fusion like you is a great time."
Fusion Blossom cracked her head back in place, glaring back at her and rolled up her ripped sleeves. Her voice was less soft, now insidious and sharp like scraping nails on a chalkboard. "I remember how you died."
"How so?" she asked, tightening the gloves around her knuckles and got into an offensive stance.
The fusion rolled its shoulders, taking a step forward and quickly deducted its next moves. "You bit off more than you could chew, like usual."
"Least I know I went down fighting-"
WHAAM!
Their lightspeed smacked into each other, spinning around in a cyclone of death. Punch for punch the two traded bruises, Buttercup's face slightly swelling and turning purple while chunks out of Blossom's body flung into the streets and onto the walls like smeared emerald paint.
Their barrage of blows continued onwards still, neither of them backing down for even a second.
Buttercup had an advantage, curling her fingers over her head and raising her up into the air with her speed. Straight out of a wrestling ring, she spun the fusion in the air over her head and smacked her back down onto the street again. She landed right on top of her, grabbing onto her ankle and ragdolled her on the ground wildly like a baby doll.
Each hit on the concrete had the sound of a splat as Fusion Blossom grew flatter and flatter, turning into a living puddle of fusion goop trying to keep itself together. The eyes dizzily spun around in her head like lemons in a glass of water, almost out of commission were it not for its desperation.
A loose laser shot out from one of the eyes, hitting the girl in her chest and sending her back. The puddle landed with another loud splat on the ground, quickly manifesting itself into a smaller and much weaker version of the girl as she tried to hold on. It darted its surviving eyes around for a chance to escape, realizing it was running out of time to get its job done.
With a desperate fling forward, the poor excuse of a creature soared up into the air and back toward the rooftop of the school to get back to Niles. A three-clawed hand reached forward as it let out another ear-piercing screech, feeling its body fall apart even while it launched.
Niles' eyes widened as he slightly moved himself up and proceeded to aim his gun, holding it up and waiting for the right moment to let off. His eye lined up in the scope, the barrel aimed right for it. Luckily for him, there was no need to shoot.
At the speed of light, the image of Buttercup formed right before the creature. Not even within a second did it ever get close to the man. Her entire body went up in a green flame, and at such intense velocity, the remnants of the creature burnt up in the air like a germ. The excess fusion landed at the feet of Niles, slightly burning into the roof and leaving a bad smell of burnt tar in the air.
Buttercup stood over him with her hands clenched in fists, her teeth gritting and her hair an oily mess from the exposure to fusion goop. Parts of her clothes had been eaten away, standing with raw strength and huffed through each living moment of pain. The gust of wind blew her hair as she towered over him like a force to be reckoned with, the aura of green flame boosting her immense power.
Fusion Blossom was no more, reduced to fusion acid between their feet.
Niles panted for his own life and lowered the gun, smiling weakly up at her and hitting the back of his head up against the vent. "My hero."
The heat radiating subsided as she calmed down, the green spark in her eyes fading away back to their normal hue and her fists easing back into hands. She looked down at the ground one more time just to make sure and scooted some of the goop aside with white force, stepping forward and knelt down. "You called for help?"
"I did," he replied. "They'll.. be here any minute."
She nodded, reaching out for a hand and took his. "You're gonna be okay, just hold on. No offense.. but you look awful."
"I know," he coughed, holding a fist up to his mouth. "She roughed me up."
The girl made a face, shaking her head and had him stay still to retain his strength. "That was the future Blossom?"
He nodded.
"She was nothing, probably one of the easiest fights of my life." Buttercup smiled.
The man breathed in heavily, his voice a little raspy. "That was so badass; you're gonna have to teach me some of those moves when I get outta the hospital."
"Next year, probably," she snorted.
Niles rubbed a thumb across her knuckle, looking in her eyes. "I owe you.. my life."
"Don't get sentimental on me just yet," she replied. "First we gotta get you somewhere safe-"
The sound of jet thrusters muted the sky as two S.C.A.M.P.E.R.s emerged. One of them quickly hovered over onto the roof and set down, while the other one landed in the front of the middle school.
Coming out from the door came a handful of agents dressed in their usual combat armor, pulling out a stretcher as well as a medical kit on the go. A couple of them had pistols drawn, ready to start going off at any minute.
Buttercup turned to look back and gestured over toward Niles, waving a hand. "Yo! Over here! It's serious!"
One of them arrived, slowly reaching over to scoop him up and set him down on the stretcher. "Hello, sir! How are you doing today? We're taking a trip to the hospital, as I heard you've been through quite a lot-"
Niles sighed, breathing in and out and put his hands on his lap. "Y-Yes, I have. What did X tell you-"
The other paramedics gestured toward the others, "I'm told he's lost a lot of blood; close up any wounds he might have and get him some water! Tell them we're gonna need a blood bag and ask what his blood type is."
From the depths of his NanoComm, X spoke up. "His blood type is A negative."
"Who said that?" asked a paramedic, turning to look over at Niles and eyed him up and down.
The man raised his arm and pointed at his wrist, "It's.. my companion, X. It's true, I'm.. A negative."
"Alright, get some rest sir. We're gonna get you somewhere safe." Another paramedic reassured and patted him on the chest, smacking the wall of the S.C.A.M.P.E.R. "Alright! Let's take off!"
Another member of the crew gave a two finger salute, "Good to see you, Miss Utonium!"
As the S.C.A.M.P.E.R. took off, she wiped a little bit of blood off from a scratch she had on her face and sighed. The other crew on the ground immediately got up and started moving toward the direction of where fusion matter was spilled on the ground. Men and women in white armor and black body suits quickly went to work with equipment strapped on their backs and blocky white rifles resting in their hands. One of them had a large tank propped up on their back, waiting to vacuum up the excess fusion with a gun in hand.
These were a mixture of two factions: the army of Providence and S.A.C.T. at work.
Buttercup took a deep breath and glided off the top of the roof, landing beside them and snapped her fingers. "Ay, guys! What's up?"
One of the soldiers approached with a rifle and waved, "Hey, Powerpuff Girl! What's going on?"
"A fusion went rogue here in the district; her lair is sitting directly up on that rooftop. Hard to miss it, really." she spoke professionally, gesturing with a hand up on the top.
Another one approached and listened in on their conversation, giving a friendly nod to the girl.
"Did you see what was inside or is it unexplored?" he asked.
Buttercup quickly took up into the air and grabbed both of them by the scruffs of their clothes, soaring back up where she was. "No, and the only guy who did just got hauled off to the hospital up there!"
The two soldiers landed safely thanks to her measures, standing in front of the lair.
"Agent Jackson, radio S.A.C.T. We're gonna need a full team on this." the other agent said.
Jackson nodded, reaching for a walkie talkie hoisted on the back of his belt. "Gotcha, thanks for the help Buttercup. We'll take it from here, set up a barrier and get this whole mess cleaned up. You alright?"
She nodded, "Yeah, a couple of bruises but I'm fine."
When the two Providence agents started their work on the fusion lair, Buttercup got off the roof again and landed in the middle of the street. She took a moment to recollect herself and watched the team start scooping up and wiping away the excess fusion lying around. It was oddly satisfying, seeing the little vacuum head suck it all up and get absorbed into the tank. She took a seat on the sidewalk and placed her elbows on her knees, letting out a sigh and ran a hand through her head.
Conveniently enough on the ground, sitting beside her was a red bow. Part of the tip of it had been burnt off during the fight, though for the most part remained intact. She reached out and took it, fidgeting with it with her hands. This was going to be a trophy, a sign of prowess.
The thoughts of what she possibly considered doing today were quickly cut off by what just happened here; the vivid fight with her fusion sister had her questioning some things, rocking her knees left and right while rubbing on her chin a bit. Were it not for her actions today, not only would Niles have died but a fusion would have gone rogue in the neighborhood again. A couple of things clicked, not necessarily good ones. Regardless, she sat back and let the agents do their work, fidgeting with her newly found ribbon.
Today was simply another day, another day in the life of Buttercup Utonium.
6/6/24
I wanted to focus on Buttercup for this bit. Moving away from the focus of the main story and moving to another main character was really eye-opening for me. Something to note (and this isn't really relevant but I think is relatable) is that as a writer I tend to focus a lot on the main characters and can forget about one here and there. I made this a challenge for myself to basically just grab the powerpuff girl and go from there. In turn, I'd like to think it turned out pretty okay.
Something I want to make clear: our boy Niles is not that strong at all without his suit. He's just about as good as a top tier military soldier, though is still pretty fragile in the field of battle. Having X be his life support was really important, as otherwise he'd die. I'm sure you might be thinking "but Nick, how come Fusion Blossom didn't shut it off?". If you really are confused about it, something to hint at: Nano Alien X has control of the NanoComm.
Another thing too: the reason Buttercup showed up so quickly is due to the fact that canonically the Powerpuff Girls can travel faster than the speed of light. The second Niles' device was picked up on the radar, it took her just sheer seconds to jump from one end of the sector to the other.