A Girl Named Roxie

by Buttercrush

Planet Fusion had always been shrouded by mystery, and terror. When the planet begins an intergalactic rampage for universal domination and sets its sights on Earth, human-alien hybrid Roxie Leeblossom must worry about saving her friends, family, and even herself from an alien apocalypse. ( AU. Based on OC. Cover by KidZeusvado on Ao3)

9. Dog Days Are Over

Three years later I'm finally back with an update. Thank you for staying tuned!

---

11 June 2044

"Baa."

A small sheep stood to Mitch's side, overseeing and bandaging his bloodied shoulder as he laid on a stretcher next to the ambulance now parked outside his house. Around the sheep's neck hung a medical I.D. card, a picture of himself imprinted on it. Mitch winced at the pain, and continued to do so every time the farm animal pressed his hooves against the wound. The boy's black 'MITCH ROCKS!' t-shirt was pulled off his person, crumbled up in his left fist. His right hand still laid limp at his side.

Outside the front door of the run-down Mitchelson home stood Roxie Leeblossom, shaken after just accidentally stabbing her ex-boyfriend. What a strange statement, she thought. She stabbed him. With one of her own limbs. All her life, Roxie never found her alien lineage to be scary nor threatening. Sure, she was made fun of, but she made the most of it. She even knew how to use her freaky alien arms to her advantage to wig people out. Today? She was terrified of herself.

Could it be true? That Mitch was somewhat right? Not that Roxie is just like the Fusions, but are all aliens truly only capable of danger? She wouldn't have time to think about it, as her friend Blossom placed her hand on Roxie's shoulder.

"It's ok, Roxie." Blossom assured the girl with a nod. "Officer Nina Valerosa and Sergeant Hoagie are good police officers, I trust them."

A slim middle-aged woman stood before Roxie and Blossom, outfitted in a tailored made, navy blue police uniform. She held a notepad in her hands, jotting down as she looked at the two girls. Nearby, a humanoid, stocky magenta dog in a matching uniform stood next to the EMT sheep and the bandaged Mitch.

"Officer," Blossom looked at the woman before them. "Everything will be alright, yeah?"

"Can't say for certain yet," Officer Valerosa replied, closing her notepad and tucking it away. "But your story sounds more credible than the boy's."

"Am…" Roxie blinked, looking at her feet. "Am I in trouble?"

"Hey, sweetheart." Officer Valerosa kneeled down, getting to Roxie's eye level. "You protected yourself. You're not in trouble."

"She should be!" Mitch yelled out, but ended up crying out in pain as he jolted in his reaction.

"Sergeant!" the cop barked out, causing the magenta police dog to growl at Mitch.

"She'll talk to you when it's your turn." Sergeant Hoagie grunted, glaring down at the boy.

Mitch glared back at the cop, shifting his stare to Roxie and Blossom as the medical Sheep began to load his stretcher into the ambulance. The sheep and magenta dog exchanged nods before the sheep skipped to the driver's seat of the ambulance. The sheep buckled his seat belt, then sounded the sirens as he pulled off. Roxie looked on with a blank expression as Sergeant Hoagie marched up to the group, extending his nod to Officier Valerosa.

"Is he ok?" Roxie asked the police officer.

"Pretty nasty gash," Sergeant Hoagie shrugged. "But he'll be fine. He's in good hands… er, hooves."

"And me?" Roxie blinked. "What happens to me now?"

"Well, we're gonna have to contact your parents," the dog nodded. "And the Mitchelson's. They seem to have security cameras inside the house."

"They do…?" Roxie looked to the front door.

"They must not trust Mitch." Blossom said. "Since his parents are always working, and he ran the house down like this."

"Sergeant, go ahead and contact the boy's parents." Officer Valerosa ordered. Sergeant Hoagie nodded into the affirmative, scrambling for his own NanoCom as he entered the house. Nina looked at the girls. "And your parents?"

"My dad is, uhm, dead, it's just my mother." Roxie said after a moment. "She lives here in Pokey Oaks."

"We're neighbors, actually." Blossom smiled.

"We'll have to stop by and notify her before we head down to the station." Officer Valerosa took a step away, but Roxie stood frozen.

"The station!?" she blurted out. "Going downtown? I am getting arrested!" Officer Valerosa chuckled.

"No, no." she assured her. "It's more of a formality. This seems like a cut and dry case."

"It's just, like, paperwork." Blossom agreed.

"O-Ok…" Roxie shifted in place, uncomfortably looking around.

"Hey, Officer Valerosa?" Blossom perked up. "How about you go ahead and get Roxie's mom. I can take her to the station."

"Sounds good to me, Blossom." Nina smiled at the Powerpuff. "But don't take too long. It's better to get this out of the way for her."

Roxie didn't make a sound as she watched Blossom and Officer Valerosa exchange goodbyes, the latter soon getting into her squad car and driving off. Blossom floated down to the sidewalk to wave her off, but Roxie continued to stay bricked on Mitch's front porch. Soon after Valerosa's car was out of sight, Roxie threw her head into a whimper.

"Wh- Why?"

"Oh, hush." Blossom waved her hands at Roxie as she floated to her, Roxie meeting her halfway between the road and house. "I figured you could use some girl talk before you got mom talk on this. And I know the police trust me enough to ask for this."

"Oh, uhm…" Roxie stared at her shoes. "Thank you."

"Roxie, c'mon, it's ok." Blossom tried to grab onto Roxie's hand. "You're ok."

"Glob!' Roxie pulled her hand back. "Blossom, I'm not ok!"

"Well, you're not in troubl-"

"I don't care if I'm not in trouble!" Roxie started to yell. "I hurt someone!"

The girls both shared a sigh as the next few moments were filled with silence. An awkward haze fell among them, and Blossom's small hover grounded. Roxie pressed her hand to her face, sighing again before finally looking at Blossom.

"I know I'm fine," Roxie said. "Protecting myself, and all that jazz. But I still have feelings about it. I'm allowed to have feelings about this. I don't hurt people."

"Roxie-"

"I've hurt people's feelings," Roxie continued through Blossom's interjection. "I've given my brother some bruises over the years. Vise-versa. I hurt Fusions. They're monsters. I don't hurt people."

"I didn't-" Blossom sighed.

"I'm sorry," Roxie kept going. "I'm not, like, mad at you. Sorry."

"No, I get it." Blossom hung her head. "Everyone keeps telling you that you're ok, but you can't keep pretending to keep that appearance up."

"Yeah." Roxie's volume diminished, and the girls took somber, understanding looks to each other.

"People keep telling me that it'll be fine without Buttercup," Blossom shook her head. "That people lose their loved ones all the time, for a variety of reasons. But nothing has been fine since she disappeared. Nothing. The Professor is a completely different person now, and it's not just him. Bubbles, the Mayor, Holden, you… Myself even. We're all different without her."

"I would have never gotten involved with Mitch if she was here." Roxie nodded. "Buttercup always got him off my back when we were younger and he'd make fun of my spiderlegs."

"But she would've done a lot worse than you did to him."

"This war sucks enough," Roxie groaned. "Let alone missing sisters…"

"Or evil ex-boyfriends." Blossom shrugged. A short pause would be filled with the stifled laughter of the two girls as they leaned into a hug.

"It's ok to not be ok." Roxie sobbed into the hug. "At least for now. You know we're gonna find Buttercup."

"And you know Mitch won't ever mess with you again." Blossom assured, pulling away from the hug. "Not because he's scared of you, but because he knows how strong you are now."

"I guess."

"He wouldn't have physically picked on you if he knew you're capable yourself." Blossom nodded. "He picks on me and Bubbles, but he's all talk with us. He knows he can't win the battle. Him and all his bully friends like Terrence and that Sperg kid act exactly the same."

"Didn't think literally stabbing him would have to be the trigger for him to realize, though."

"He's an idiot, but he's not dumb enough to walk back into a fight like this." Blossom held onto Roxie's hand. "And don't forget, I'm always on your side of the ring, just like I know you would be for me."

"Gah, Blossom-!" Tears welled up in Roxie's eyes again. "I appreciate you so much."

"You don't even have to mention it." Blossom smiled. "C'mon, we should head downtown."

"Yeah." Roxie nodded. "Thank you, Bloss, really."

The Powerpuff skipped into a hover again, then floated behind Roxie to scoop her up. Once situated, the two took off into the sky, towards the heart of Townsville.

---

12 June 2044

Planet Fusion was strange. A drifting mass of that size in space should've been detected from miles, galaxies away. How did it take Earth by surprise? Well, honestly, humans are pretty stupid. An alien conqueror sneaking up on those lower life forms is no shock. But that nasty green glob of gunk somehow managed to take the Underworld by surprise too!

There should be no way for the Fusions to get into the Earth's Underworld; few demons and supernatural entities have the ability to travel to the Overworld at will, and even less who know how to return. No mortal being is smart enough to even find a way down there without supernatural help. The Fusion defied all logic, and had been squeezing their way into the Underworld to ravish it like they do the Earth's surface.

At first, there were only a few Fusion Spawns leaking into the Underworld, with the brute of the planet's attacks on the surface. But as the war up there came to a standstill, more powerful Fusions began their onslaught on the fiery below. Sure, the residents of the Underworld were powerful beings, able to withstand the might of the Fusions, but for how long?

King Javerick Von Abyssal was a well respected monarch, having ruled over the Underworld for over two thousand years. Attacks from rebel creatures and unruly citizens were always met with an iron fist. The Fusions were no different, but proved to be a contender. Their destruction was great, and they seemed to just keep coming and coming, leaving no time for rebuilding. In a strange twist of fate, the Underworld was perplexed with the same issues the Overworld had.

Javerick's brother, Kilroy Green, usually lived in the Overworld, but has since been turned into a makeshift war general with the Fusion infection growing in the Underworld. In fact, King Abyssal had called in a whole slew of his loyal demonic friends to aid in protecting the Underworld. With the fighting coming to a standstill, Kilroy proposed to hold another meeting among Javerick's court.

It was customary to hold strategy meetings in times of dire need, though, it was typical of the King to call them. With Kilroy calling the gathering held the day before the Fusion Invasion, many members of the court decided it to be a waste of their time, and failed to attend. It seemed this meeting, however, was mandatory.

Javerick and Kilroy sat at the head of a long, sleek red table, encased in a large marble room with arched ceilings, a design-staple in the Demonic Royal Castle. Lit candles mounted to the walls ignited the room in dim light. All of the members in attendance of the previous meeting were present. HIM and Them sat next to each other. Both were old frienemies of the King, but Them was also the Demonic Royal Family's personal tailor. Grim sat nearby, though he didn't look particularly happy to be there. Next to him was the small, green elephant demon, Fred Fredburger. Nobody was really sure why he was invited to these things, and none of them ever had the guts to ask the King why. Guess he just liked the little guy.

Demongo was seated across from Fred and Grim, and the demon had a whole slew of files and stone tablets spread on the table's surface in front of him. Even as the other guests arrived, Demongo kept his slender skull buried in his research.

The first new face to arrive was a short and stout demon with bright red skin, I. B. Red Guy. He was a mischievous creature, only causing lowly trouble in the Overworld at his own leisure. His relationship with the King was pondered on often as well. He hobbled his way into the meeting room, sitting next to Fred.

The demon of death from the Center of the Earth, Nergal, walked in next. Well, it was more appropriate to say Nergal slid in, as a flurry of pitch black tentacles emerged from his equally slender and dark body, guiding him to the table where he sat across from Red Guy, next to Demongo.

"Hey, how the Here are ya'?" Nergal snickered to the group as he sat down, triggering a huff from Grim and a wave from Kilroy.

A teal skinned creature creeped into the room next, wearing a red fez atop his wart-covered face. This was the Boogeyman, known to his friends as;

"Boogey!" Nergal cried out at the sight. "Come on in, buddy!"

"Welcome, Boogey." King Javerick greeted with a nod. Boogey grinned as he sat next to Red Guy.

Drifting in behind the Boogeyman was a tall and flowing being. It's shredded cloth garments flew every which way as if there was a constant breeze, and its face was abnormally unsettling, even for demon standards. It seemed like only Javerick and Him, (and maybe Fred? You never know what he's thinking,) were unphased by the entity's entrance.

"King Ramses." Javerick nodded his head again. "Happy you could join us."

"Yeeeeessss." a deep and drawn out voice groaned from the being.

Grim shuttered at the entity's voice. Even supernatural beings weren't immune to fear in the presence of the great King Ramses, an ancient monarch with a terrible curse. Ramses and Javerick go way back, being classmates at Doomsday Junior High many thousands of years ago.

A being with skin similar in color to Boogey swung the door open, revealing a troll-like head sitting atop a navy frail body. He blinked at the sight of King Ramses, but creeped towards the table regardless. Grim's eye sockets furrowed at him, plus the flurry of other known faces.

"So da' 'ole rouge's gallery be here?" he grumbled.

"Welcome, Lord Moldy Butt." Mr. Green greeted the newest appearance. A candle mounted to one of the marble arches suddenly completely melted, and the fixture holding it up crumbled.

"Whatever." Lord Moldy Butt waved his hand as he sat. "Is this everyone?"

"We're waiting on one other attendee." Javerick said, leaning back in his chair and reviewing his clawed nails. "Trigon disappointed me, once again, and is still trapped by his whelp of a child, so he won't make it. And obviously, dear Aku still hasn't shown his face."

"Then who else are we waiting for?" Nergal asked, playfully shoving his arm against Demongo. "It looks like a party already."

Before either the King or his brother could answer, the door swung open again, a smoky haze flooding the floor. A thin, scantily clad woman stepped into the room, her arms both up in the air. The attendees of the meeting all turned their heads as triumphant music played from… somewhere? And the woman giggled as it played.

"Chaos has arrived!" she snickered, looking at the faces of the room. Javerick stood from his seat, growling at the woman as his clawed fist slammed into the table.

"You were not invited, Eris." the Demon King snarled.

"Sounds 'bout right." Grim scoffed.

"Hey, sis~!" Him cheered at the arrival of Eris, Goddess of Discord and Chaos.

"Do you think I would've come if I was invited?" Eris snickered. "You know, chaos is my game."

"So shouldn't you be preoccupied with the chaos in the Overworld?" the King growled. Kilroy held up his hand.

"No, no." he shook his head. "Let her sit."

"Yesssss!" Him grinned. "She's more qualified to be here than most of you dolts."

"I like frozen yogurt." Fred Fredburger nodded.

"Oh, Fred, you make it too easy, dear." Him laughed.

"It would be nice to hear about her whereabouts." Kilroy whispered to his brother.

"Bad idea... " Javerick muttered, blinking as he noticed the true final guest had walked in during the commotion.

A black top hat sat on the head of the demonic entity of evil, the leader of the Black Hat Organization, bigger bad behind the majority of villains of the world; Black Hat. Mojo Jojo of Townsville, the Delightful Children from Down the Lane, Nohyas of Rhyboflaven, Vilgax of Vilgaxia; all these villains have worked for or purchased an evil contraption from Black Hat and his league of evil-brewing technology.

"What in the Here is going on?" Black Hat grunted as he entered.

"Hello, dolly!" Eris wiggled her fingers at Black Hat. She poofed away from her spot, poofing back into a seat next to Moldy Butt. "I'm just sitting in on your little big dog's buff-sniffing."

"My apologies, Black Hat." King Javerick sighed. "My guards should've kept intruders out."

"Pssh." Black Hat shrugged. "Like I really care. Eris is a Black Platinum Card carrying member of the Black Hat Organization." Eris summoned the aforementioned card in her hands, showcasing it to the group of demons.

"Don't forget my accumulated thousands of member points!" Eris grinned.

"Dis is gonna be a disaster, ain't it?" Grim groaned.

"Come along." Black Hat clapped his hands as he walked to the table, sitting at the other end of the table.

Following Black Hat into the room at his request was the young blonde girl, Mandy. Grim's jaw dropped, but Mandy didn't react as she walked inside, holding her pudgy, adorable dog, Saliva, in her arms. She took a seat next to Black Hat before anyone spoke.

"Mandy!?" Grim cried out. "Wot' are ya' doin' here?"

"None of your business, you old bag of bones." the little blonde girl grumbled, petting her dog. "I'm not always here to order you around. I have a life outside of you."

"Tee-hee!" Him giggled, elbowing Them's side. "That's the girl he was forcibly bound to. This is why we don't make deals with mortals."

"Yeah." Them's normal voice agreed. "Prime example there." Them, of course, had withheld the information from Him that they made a deal with Gwen and Juniper to activate the Totems.

"She is my protégé." Black Hat announced, grinning with his fingers tapping together. "I pray you don't mind her shadowing me here today, King Abyssal."

"Are ya' kiddin' me?!" Grim blinked his eye sockets. "Javerick. Ya' can't possibly 'ave Mandy in dis-"

"I'll allow it." King Javerick calmly said, holding his clawed hand up to pause the Reaper.

"She's shown great promise." Black Hat smirked. "A real villain-in-the-works, here."

"Brother," Mr. Green whispered. "Is it wise to allow this young girl to sit in on world-shattering matters?"

"The Black Hat would not lead the girl into my domain without reason." Javerick whispered back. "Besides, the entire damned chicken coop has clattered in here."

"Not everything is a game, brother." Kilroy sighed.

Kilroy and Javerick truly were two sides of the same coin. The two appear to have a sturdy relationship with each other, but appearances can be deceiving. Most demons are led to believe they are inherently evil, or capable of violence only. Some realize that's not the case, including Kilroy, and directly contributing to his decision to live in the Overworld and substitute teach for kids. All the while, his elder brother Javerick carried out one torturous deed after another in the name of his kingdom.

Neither of them particularly cared for the terms good and evil, but both would be applicable to Kilroy and Javerick respectively, to simplify it. But regardless, the two never opposed each other. They bicker and disagree, sure, but never as far as to denounce the other as an enemy. While tensions were growing between them, they knew their common enemy, precisely why this meeting was being held.

"Let's waste time no more." Javerick nodded, raising his voice to the group. "Him, Them, Demongo, Nergal, Fred, Boogey, Red Guy, Lord Moldy Butt-" The sound of something crashing could be heard from the hallway. "Ramses. Grim. Black Hat."

"And meeee~!" Eris sang, wiggling her fingers into a wave. Javerick's eyes rolled as he blinked.

"And Eris." he grunted with a twitching eye. "I've invited you all here today for an important reason, one of which I'm sure you're all aware of. The alien threat conquering the surface is beginning to have an impact on us as well, infecting the very Underworld itself."

"No- Not that protecting the Overworld from them isn't important-" Kilroy interjected.

"Just not a priority over this kingdom." Javerick continued. "While I enjoy the suffering of the mortals," The King's brother shuddered at the comment. "It's becoming clear that allowing their destruction will be at the cost of our domain."

"Ain't dat wha' I was tryna' say months ago?" Grim asked. "Wit' da' scroll?"

"I remember dear Kilroy being the one so concerned about the Overworld." Him snickered.

"You live there too." Negal shrugged. "No Fusions on daddy's doorstep, I tell ya'."

"I quite enjoy the chaos!" Eris laughed, leaning back in her chair.

"I'm shocked." Mandy muttered.

"Oh, demon-King-y, don't you think it's fun?" Eris grinned. "Watching all those mortals squirm at the sight of those monsters? It's amazing what you can coerce them into doing under these wondrous circumstances!"

"The mortals are pitiful." Ramses drew out his breaths. "They heed no warningssss. They suffer the consequences."

"Didn't you hear the big guy?" Red Guy asked. "He's concerned about the Underworld!"

"It's a wonder how those alien creatures are even finding their way in here." Boogey growled.

"Indeed." Javerick frowned. "Even if they managed to get here, the sheer power of our residents should've sent them off. But they grow a larger foothold on both the Overworld and in the Underworld daily."

"It's certainly bad for business." Black Hat huffed. "All these lovey-dovey hero and villain team-ups are not what the Black Hat Organization stands for, regardless of all powerful threats."

"You don't employ the alien overlord?" Moldy Butt asked.

"I wish a client like that would waltz into my lobby." Black Hat laughed. "No, I don't believe whatever's up there has the cash to shell out anyways."

"That only begs the question, Hat." Javerick spoke up again. "You employ villains and evil-doers across the globe. Including Aku."

"Uhm." Black Hat blinked. "Yes, of course. The Dark Wizard is a Diamond Premium Card carrying member of the Black Hat Organization."

"So, as an employee," Javerick's gaze narrowed. "Would you have the means to contact him?"

"They come to me for the evil-doing deeds." Black Hat shook his head. "Aku hasn't contacted me in over a year. Why don't you ask his bookworm lackey over there?"

"Eep!" Demongo shrieked, placing his hands on the table with his slab and scroll research in front of him as if to cover it when all the attention in the room was brought to him.

"My name is Fred Fredburger" Fred said.

"Demongo." Javerick called. "Speak."

"Uhum!" the blue-flamed demon clattered amongst his research. "De- Demongo is afraid he has unfortunate news. Master Aku has made no contact, nor answered Demongo's pleas. We know my Master's power is unmatched."

"Admittedly." King Javerick scoffed. "Even to mine."

"It's unnatural!" Demongo cried. "The Master is all seeing! The Master is all powerful! There is no explanation for his sudden disappearance!"

"Almost like the invader knew about him." Nergal thought out loud.

"It's possible." Demongo groaned. "Master has many connections throughout the mortal and immortal planes of the universe. Great, strong allies… Surely an equal amount of enemies. Demongo was beginning to think the appearance of the Samurai in this time was the cause of Aku's disappearance, but it just can't be the case."

"Your precious Dark Wizard conveniently goes missing right before Fuse shows up." Mandy scoffed, drawing attention.

"She's just supposed da' observe!" Grim complained.

"Mandy, pleas-" Black Hat attempted to quiet her, only to be interrupted by the demon monarch.

"Let the child speak." Javerick commanded. A cruel smirk spread across Mandy's face, (as well as grins for Him and Eris.)

"This guy could put a stop to the Fusions with the snap of his fingers, and he just up and vanishes right before you need him." Mandy continued, petting Saliva stretched across her lap. "A real villain would know to never consider any instance a coincidence."

"What exactly is your implication?" Them's grim voice asked.

"Well, I think it's obvious, in'it?" Eris cackled. "How embarrassing you all let a little girl figure it out before you!"

"Mandy," Black Hat snapped at her. "Spit it out, you're embarrassing me!"

"Is she saying the Fusion… took care of Aku before coming here?" Lord Moldy Butt questioned.

"Impossible!" Demongo yelled. "My Master's demise is impossible! He lives, or I would cease to exist as well!"

"Oh, is it that easy to get rid of you?" Them's high-pitched voice giggled.

"Demongo is an extension of his Master." the blue-flamed demon sighed.

"Then use your common sense, coward." Mandy grunted. "If Aku can't die, then he was disposed of in some other way. Jeez, an evil mastermind created you?"

"Silence yourself, human." Demongo growled.

"Demencia would've caused less of an outburst than this…" Black Hat grumbled to himself.

"Time to rethink your apprentice." Red Guy laughed.

"No." King Javerick held a single clawed finger up. "The girl is correct."

"It has happened before." Kilroy nodded in agreement.

"Master was once sealed away by the Samurai's father…" Demongo shook his head. "But Demongo doesn't want to believe Aku could be fooled again, gone without breadcrumbs."

"Poor Demo~!" Him snickered. "Blinded by his Master's ego. Even the Dark Wizard can fall prone if they're caught off guard."

"If it's happened once, it can happen again." Mandy nodded.

"Why do ya' let her keep speakin'?" Grim grumbled to himself.

"Grim." Mandy called out. "Give Saliva your arm." She ordered, her dog hopping from her lap and excitedly jumping next to Grim's seat. The skeleton grimaced, using his right arm to pull off his left forearm, and tossing it to Saliva. The dog excitedly slobbered and gnawed on the bone while carrying it off to the corner.

"Pitiful." Him and Them's dark voice snickered.

"Order!" King Javerick yelled, slamming his hands down.

"Actually-" the three voices of Them called out in unison. The deepest voice dropped from the collective as they continued. "We must bring some vital information to the table."

"Proceed." Javerick ordered with a tilt of his head. The rest of the attendees set their sets on the demon as well, Him particularly confused by the announcement.

"We believe there is another way to defeat the Fusions." Them said solemnly. "Potentially without Aku."

"What are you talking about?" Him's guttural and cutting voice whispered into Them's direction.

"The ancient Keltic power of the Hani-Baba Temple still lingers within our world." their voices continued. "Four thousand years ago, the people of the planet Kelt sought to branch out their empire, including the colonization of Earth."

"We kept a journal of their teachings," another one of Them's voices said. "Detailing how to harness and control their power, albeit in cryptic verses."

"The Kelt...? Those aliens have the ability to destroy that planet?" Mr. Green asked, to which Them replied with a shrug of their shoulders.

"Maybe." The darkest voice huffed. "The Keltics ditched this pitiful rock after your mother, the late Queen Lilithe, got involved. Their sacred land has become what the mortals call the Hani-Baba Temple."

Javerick and Kilroy gave quick glances to each other at the sudden mention of their mother.

"They actually set up several waypoints, Totems, throughout the country as defenses for the planet." Them's chipper voice broke in. "Once all six are activated, it should trigger a beacon of power from the Temple grounds. It is what their prophecy foretold."

"Yet not immune to the passage to time." The third voice sighed. "The Book of Prophecy has experienced great wear after decades of being passed amongst power-hungry mortals trying to decipher its secrets. We had to discover the difficult way that we won't be able to activate the prophecy without aide."

"Interesting…" the King muttered to himself, stroking his chin in thought.

"This is, of course, all information I was aware of, of course." Him spoke to the crowd with a very matter-of-fact nod.

"Wait." Grim huffed with his boney hand pointing a finger to the air. "Da' people of that planet are extinct. Da' 'ole planet was destroyed 13 years ago. Why wouldn't their prophecy have activated to save them then?"

"Answers we still have to wonder about." Them's stoic voice said. "But we know that their power still remains on our planet. Though, we alone are unable to activate the prophecy."

"Someone in tune with their magic has to," the shrill voice grinned. "Turns out the biology of the Anodite species closely resembles that of the Kelt."

A silent pause grew among the villainous and chaotic heads of the attendees, every eye, including Saliva's, rest on the bodily prison of Them.

"We have decided, on our own, it would be in our best interest to align ourselves with two mortal girls-"

"You what?!" Him growled at the revelation.

"Happens to da' best of us." Grim shrugged with an eye socket glancing at Mandy.

"Two mortal girls who can handle their magical prowess better than a whole slew of the whelps down here." Them's deep voice groaned.

"Yes, a half-Anodite girl who's powers react greatly to the Totems, and the current Te Xuan Ze both have sought out the power of the Prophecy to stop the invaders, and helped prevent one of their magical nuisances from seizing these abilities for her own." Them sighed, looking at their old friend and King. "We wouldn't involve the likes of them in our escapades unless necessary."

"And?" Mandy called out, her face still the same sinister scowl she walked in with. "What happens when your magic beacon fails?"

"It's not like we have loads of other options to discuss the pros and cons of." Then replied directly to Mandy. "A failed beacon would still act as a beacon, and if Aku is out there, he would surely see it."

"Master feels all energy." Demongo nodded. "Enslaved or enslaving, Demongo is certain his Master would feel a message like that."

"You're sure about this, Demongo?" The King asked. Demongo gave an affirmative nod.

"If the power is as Them describes, it would be worth a try."

"And when it backfires?" Mandy continued. "When the beacon destroys our own forces in the collateral?"

"Mandy, please." Black Hat held his hand to his apprentice's face.

"Is it not worth asking?" Mandy's brow rose. "Should we not be prepared for contingencies?"

"Unfortunately," Javerick sighed. "With the Underworld in peril, we have to take drastic measures. Unless you have a better idea."

"Perhaps I do." Mandy glared at the demon king, unmoved by his stare shooting back at her.

"Go on then."

Mandy shrugged. "Maybe once you earn my respect." Black Hat audibly gasped, along with Eris failing to stifle back her laughter.

"Them," Javerick spoke, without removing his gaze from Mandy, "Proceed with these mortals."

"Of course, only one Totem is left." Then nodded his head to his king, with Him giving them an annoyed look.

"Yeeessss, work with the mortals." Him grumbled. "Not your all-powerful consort."

"Him…"

"Black Hat," Javerick's gaze finally shifted, setting on the top hatted villain. "Remove your apprentice from my chambers."

"Turmoil all around!" Eris cheered.

"Silence." the King growled.

"Certainly." Black Hat nodded, quickly turning to scowl at Mandy. The girl stood from her seat, unmoved.

"We'll see how this turns out." she said, snapping to Saliva to follow her before exiting the room.

"These things never go as planned." Mr. Green sighed, moments before Grim bounced from his seat.

"MANDY! MY ARM!"

---

19 June 2044

Sleep wasn't something Roxie saw much of the following week. There weren't any nightmares, or lingering visions of Mitch hovering over her, but the effects of the spontaneous event hung over the girl like the looming Magic Tree of the Wilds. She was physically unharmed, no legal charges against her. It wasn't enough.

Of course, even without Blossom's lean on the investigation of Roxie and Mitch's incident, the odds were overwhelmingly in Roxie's favor. According to the law, and all of her loved ones, she truly was just a girl defending herself. The only people who didn't have this assumption were Mitch, still persistent on not being antagonistic, and Roxie herself.

Being reminded day after day by her mother and grandparents that she is ok and a force not to be reckoned with was unnecessary, growing more annoying to the girl as the week progressed. She obviously knew she did the right thing, the problem was realizing her strength. What is she supposed to do; tell her mom all about the spears on four of her limbs cut deeper than she thought? Recount the fear she felt in that moment and relive it again?

Absolutely not!

If T.V. has taught the kids of the modern age anything, it's that it's easy to distract yourself from your problems and bury them away! The ambiguously delayed apocalypse offered plenty of mission and request opportunities for Roxie to fill her time with, leading to a week full of fetch quests and scut work whenever she wasn't being coddled by her mother.

Repairing communication dishes, containing Gooby Traps, culling small mobs of Fusions, and waking up sleeping recruits, Roxie did any mundane task she could accept to occupy herself. She'd get Taros and new weapons as rewards for helping out the war effort, but she didn't care too much about that. The only things she worried about carrying were the strange assortment of items requested of her to retrieve, including the bundle of jawbreakers she cradled in her arms and spiderlegs as she entered the Peach Creek Cul-de-Sac's wooden doors.

"Oh, Roxie!" A friendly voice welcomed the girl into the cardboard fortress. It belonged to an impressively tall imaginary friend who rushed over to Roxie. "Oh my, thank you!"

"No problem, Wilt." the girl nodded with a slight smirk.

"I'm sorry I asked you to go into Candy Pirate territory." the friend, Wilt, said while taking the comically large jawbreakers from the girl.

"Wasn't like mister King Eddy was going to get them himself." Roxie shrugged. "Really, it's no big deal."

"Oh, I'm sorry, but it is kind of a big deal." Wilt smiled. "You've been a ton of help protecting the fortress the last few days. We've been really lucky to have you around."

"Yeah." Roxie whistled with a thumbs up, truly only half-listening to the red imaginary friend helping out at the Cul-de-Sac. "What's up next, Wilt?"

The friend blinked his stocky eye, tilting his head as he looked down to Roxie. "What do you mean?"

"Ya' know," Roxie rolled her hands out in front of her. "The next quest, mission, whatever you want to call it. How can I help out next?"

"Oh, um." Wilt bent his knees outwards to bring himself down to Roxie's eye level. "I'm sorry, but don't you think you should take a breather?"

"Pssht." Roxie's eyes rolled. "No."

"You've been doing a lot of work lately, Roxie." Wilt frowned. "I wouldn't want you to overexert yourself-"

"Dude, it's fine." Roxie said. "That's, like, what I signed up for when I went to the Academy. I'm here to help."

"A-And I appreciate that!" Wilt stuttered, standing back up. "B-But-!"

"If you don't have anything else, that's fine." Roxie sighed, pulling out her NanoCom. "Just say so."

Wilt blinked again, standing with Roxie in silence as she scrolled through mission listings on her NanoCom. The imaginary friend looked down the Cul-de-Sac street. He uncomfortably shifted all the jawbreakers within his single useful arm, his eye finding Roxie once again.

"Let me take these jawbreakers to the Rangers," Wilt nodded, "I'll ask the Ed's for any requests they have."

"Ugh." Roxie's eyes seemed like they were about to pop out of her skull with how often her eyes rolled. "Whatever. A mission from those dolts is better than nothing."

Wilt took a giant stride forward, looking back to Roxie to give her an affirming nod, and apologizing, before continuing down the street. Word of mouth and the spread of news in the media meant most people were aware of Roxie and Mitch's spat, even though the news was minor. Now, more people knew of the girl with the spiderlegs, and knew of the strength she was capable of. The way Wilt was acting towards her wasn't abnormal this week.

All the people who knew Roxie hadn't changed their attitude towards her, but there was no telling what strangers were possibly thinking. How many people knew her because of this shocking news story of teenagers fighting? As Wilt walked off, a new face haunted past him, heading straight towards Roxie.

"Aye!" the man called out, a large flared cape billowing behind him as he approached Roxie. "You're that girl from the news."

"What…?" Roxie slowly pulled her sight from her NanoCom's screen, coming to see the short, dark-skinned man suited up in front of her.

"You, dummy!" the man pointed at her, revealing two sharp fangs as he spoke. "The spider-girl!"

"What about it?" Roxie scoffed, eyeing the weird man up and down.

"You ain't one of Velma's kin, huh?" the man continued, pacing around the girl and studying her spiderlegs.

"Who's Velma?"

"Spider-girl doesn't know the Spider Queen." the man rubbed his chin. "See, that explains your technique."

"Technique?" Roxie pocketed her NanoCom and took a step back from the stranger. "I don't know you, dude, back off."

"Oh, you kids ain't educated like ya' should be!" the man grunted. He stretched his arms upwards, wiggling his fingers. "I'm Dracula, fool!"

"Dracula?" Roxie blinked. "The vampire?"

"Wha'cha mean the vampire?" Dracula laughed. "Who else is named that!?"

"Okaaay…" Roxie stared at the man. "... Why are you here? In the daytime? In the middle of summer?"

Dracula perked his eyes up, noticing the bright sky and lack of Halloween decor present in the Cul-de-Sac. He rubbed his chin, peering away from Roxie.

"Yeah, how did I get here?" He quickly shook his head, turning back to Roxie. "Nah, nah, all that burning and glitterin' in sunlight crap is mumbo-jumbo."

"Right." the girl replied with a snap of her fingers. "I'm gonna leave."

"Wait!" the man waved his hand at her. "Dracula's got a job for you!"

"Oh?" Roxie didn't see Wilt heading back, (and he's tall enough to see coming from miles), so she looked to the old vampire. "What kind of job?"

"Figured you'd take more convincin'." Dracula chuckled. "You kids are so-"

"What's the job, dude?" Roxie interrupted, arms folded across her chest.

"Jeez, girl!" Dracula barked. "Calm yourself down! Dracula's gonna tell you when he tells you!"

"Go on then." Roxie grunted.

"These lame teenage recruits ain't cuttin' it." Dracula waved his hands. "The Fusions are getting stronger, and terrorizing my pad at the Home of the Ancients!"

"I'm also a teenage recruit."

"Yeah," Dracula natrowed his eyes on Roxie. "But Dracula watches the news. He heard the story! I need someone like that to take on this Fusion."

Her stomach sank. Is this exactly what she was afraid of? Being judged by the nature of her defense? If it was, the situation wasn't playing out with the unbridled fear and terror she assumed, but rather excitement? This turn of thought seemed to excite Roxie too.

"You want me to stop a Fusion, because you heard about me stabbing someone?" Roxie snickered, realizing the insanity of the situation.

"Well, duh." Dracula blinked. "But you gotta perform more of a scrape," The man hooked his fingers into points, scratching forward to mimic Roxie's spider appendages, "And STAB!" His arm jetted forward as he continued to perform, going on to repeat this process several times.

"Sc- Scrape?"

"And stab!" Dracula laughed. "More damage! You know, Dracula uses a similar technique himself."

"Uh-huh." Roxie stared at him. "Whatever, what's this monster look like?"

"The Home of the Ancients is on the way to Endsville." Dracula nodded. "You'll know it when you see it."

"Right…" Roxie snapped her fingers. Not the answer to the question she asked. "Is there a reward?"

Dracula grinned as he gripped his cape, pulling it open to reveal a flurry of pumpkin shaped capsules lining the inside. "Dracula thinks a Blitzwolfer mouth accessory would fit you perfectly."

"… I definitely feel like I should be insulted right now."

"These things sell like hotcakes, whatcha' talkin' about?" Dracula jingled another capsule, revealing a mask of another one of the Omnitrix aliens, Snare-Oh. "Spooky alien accessories are all the rave!"

"Yeah." Roxie grunted, wiggling her spiderlegs. "I need more of those."

"I'm glad you agree." Dracula grinned as he swished his cape back in place, standing with his hands on his hips. "Well, get on then!"

Yeah, yeah, get on then. Continued conversation with Dracula proved less and less comedical and leaned more towards annoying for Roxie. She took her exit soon, and before Wilt even returned. Mojo Jojo's Monkey Minions offered a flight service out of Peach Creek towards Genius Grove, close to the Home of the Ancients in Eternal Vistas, but Roxie preferred walking compared to the sometimes less-than-favorable rides they provide. Besides, these are the streets Roxie grew up on, she knew her way around.

It was a weird difference from the past few months on her walk. Fusions roamed the lawns of parks, and K.N.D. operatives patrolled the sidewalks with Plumbers and Providence alike, keeping the monsters contained enough for normal life to continue. It was almost morbid to think about the co-existence Earth has developed with Planet Fusion.

It wouldn't be long before the girl could see the (retirement) Home of the Ancients opposite the massive Eternal Meadows cemetery. The Fusions lurking around appropriately took on the forms of pumpkins, ghosts, and vampires, almost like whatever is determining what the monsters look like has a sense of humor. Though, Roxie failed to see anything out of the ordinary terrorizing the retirement home.

Eternal Vistas Lane only served as a point of travel these days. Some causalities of the war were laid to rest here, albeit before the Fusion forces grew in strength around the area. While they aren't necessarily impressive, most still deemed it too dangerous to visit loved ones in the cemetery.

Roxie made her way to the front lot of the Home of the Ancients, using her newest Nano MEGAS to carefully sneak past any of the Jack-o-Lantern Fusions who would otherwise attack. Yet, there was still no one Fusion that stuck around among the crowds.

"Tck…!" Roxie smacked her lips, pulling out her NanoCom to check her map. "Stupid goose chase…"

A notification displaying a message from Alan popped up on her screen. It was quickly replaced by another one, and then a third as the boy sent her a flurry of messages. In fact, Alan has sent her a lot of messages over the past week that she's ignored, as well as messages from other friends.

"… just call me if you get the chance, ok?" The last message from Alan read on the last notification, which Roxie promptly swept away. It was ok in her head to have her own pity party, but not to have all of her new friends throw one for her too.

She sighed, tucking her NanoCom away before peering around the area. Still, nothing besides the normal Fusions, and a lone Coco Egg resting down the way. The girl exhaled a yawn before a sudden streak of blue light shot over her. It faded past, before circling back and heading straight towards her!

"Roxie!" the streak of light called to her, pausing in front of her to reveal not Bubbles, but her male counterpart Boomer hovering a few feet from the ground.

"Boomer?" the girl blinked, looking past him before settling on his face. "What are you doing…?"

The boy gestured a thumb behind him, his raspy voice feebly speaking. "One of my dads lives in Endsville, but," He looked to Roxie. "Are you ok?"

Roxie blinked, eyeing the Rowdyruff up and down. "Yeah, whatever." She grunted to him, crossing her arms. "Why do you care?"

"Well, I don't." Boomer grew flustered, but quickly corrected her.

"Figures." Roxie growled. "Buzz off, I'm working."

"But, you know, if I did," Boomer stuttered as he continued. "It would be because I told you to confront Mitch."

"I-" Roxie took a step back as the blue Rowdyruff briefly left her speechless. "Du- dude, it's not your fault."

"You didn't even know Mitch was still talking about you until I said something about it." Boomer slumped, his shoes coming to the ground and putting himself at Roxie's eye level. "You kicked his ass though."

"I know." Roxie said. "I was there."

A lull of silence hung between the teens, with only some distant Fusion groaning and the buzz of a hover car's motor humming as it passed by on the nearby street. Roxie's eyes searched for the monster Dracula described again, but found no results.

"If I didn't know any better, I'd think you're trying to be my friend." Roxie nodded to Boomer.

"I dunno…." Boomer shrugged.

"I'm not ok, but that's ok." Roxie sighed. "I will be fine, eventually. And it's not your fault I went there."

"I planted the seed."

"If you didn't tell me then, I would've just found out later, probably when what he had to say was much worse." Roxie shrugged as well. "At least it's out of the way now."

"Yeah." Boomer nodded. "I guess you owe me one this time."

"I guess I do." Roxie chuckled. "Thanks for letting me know what he was saying. Regardless of everything that happened, I needed to know that."

"If there's a next time, invite me!" Boomer sneered. "Me and my brothers always want to smack that loser."

The two shared a laugh, completely distracting Boomer from the large glob of Fusion Matter being flung at him from behind. Roxie's laugh abruptly paused as her eyes widened at the sight of the Fusion Matter. She lunged forward, grabbing onto Boomer with both arms and all four spiderlegs before shoving the two of them forward.

"Watch out!" She cried, crashing into Boomer and toppling them both over onto the pavement. The glob of Fusion Matter landed where they both stood, sizzling as the acidic make-up ate at the ground.

A low rumble shook the ground as the beast who hurled the attack screeched at the two, clomping its hooves on the blacktop and unleashing a menacing "Baaaaa!" at them. What looked like a giant mess of Fusion Matter with abnormally small legs, yet freakishly muscular arms, took a step forward, threatening them with another sheep's call.

"Is that a giant sheep…?" Boomer blinked, quickly being pulled off the ground by Roxie.

"We're even again." She huffed, a pistol now equipped in her hand. "It must be a copy of that Sheep that works at the hospital."

"Oh glob, they hire farm animals there?"

With the picture of Sheep in her mind, it was clear this beast was a demented and hulked out version of the one she knew. It didn't appear to have a mouth, aside from a strange opening on the side of its head, below two piercing red eyes stacked atop of each other. It brought its massive arms to the ground, generating another large mass of Fusion Matter.

"This must be what I'm here to deal with." Roxie nodded.

"Well, let's not sit still." Boomer kicked his feet, jumping into the air. "Go for it!"

Roxie skipped to her side, avoiding the second glob the Fusion Sheep rocked her way. She grabbed hold of her second pistol, pointing both at the monster and firing a few shots. It roared at her, the bullets seemingly just seeping into the Fusion Matter skin. Quickly, Roxie began to run the other way, triggering the beast to run after her.

It can only make a few bellowing steps before Boomer's dark blue lasers shot from his eyes, sizzling the ground in front of the Fusion before his gaze brought the lasers to burn the beast itself. A distinct cry of pain howled from the beast, yet it remained unmoved again.

"This thing's a tank!" Boomer huffed from the air.

Getting some distance between her and Fusion Sheep thanks to Boomer's lasers, Roxie reached a nearby pond next to the retirement home. The Coco Egg she noticed earlier sat just out of her reach on the other side. The Imaginary Friend left these all over the place, even before the war, but recruits have found benefits to using them in fights.

Behind her, Boomer rocketed down to punch the Fusion in its misshapen face. He successfully knocked Fusion Sheep off balance, falling to its back… Though it would end up kicking up at Boomer as it toppled over, causing the Rowdyruff's balance to falter as well. Roxie watched as he somersaulted in the air, coming to a thud on the pavement.

"Did you just ditch me?" Boomer yelled out as he came to his feet.

He glanced over to Roxie, who was already watching. The two stood staring at each other for just a moment. A moment swiftly broken by a harrowing howl from the Fusion, who rocked back and forth on its back, struggling to get up. It came to a halt, its limbs beginning to shift and contort around its body, and turn the bipedal monster into a backwards, four-legged mess. Despite its head facing away from Boomer, it roared at him and began to charge on all fours.

"Hey, wait!" Roxie cried out as Boomer instinctively shot his laser eyes at the Fusion, to little luck.

She turned back to the Coco Egg, aiming her spiderlegs and squinting one eye before firing a string of webs. The webs sailed over the pond, with one string smacking into the wet dirt and the rest attaching to the Coco Egg. Roxie used the sharp tips of her spidelegs to cut the stray web loose before retracting the others to pull the Coco Egg towards her.

"Please be something good!" she begged as she took the egg in her hands, cutting off the webs and snapping it over her knee. A blast echoed from behind her, but she doesn't find a second to look as the Coco Egg sprang open! The top rocketed off, sharply disappearing into the teal sky. Suddenly the weight of the bottom half the egg increased, pulling Roxie down as a large blue sword deployed from the egg.

Five feet in length, the shiny blade was nearly Roxie's height. The same light blue sheen covered the whole weapon, each end coming to a sharp and curved point. In fact, with the guards jetting out from the handle, this blade almost resembled the letter F. The bottom half ot the egg dropped leaving the blade upright in Roxie's hands.

"Sweet…" Roxie grinned, eying the blade.

A disgusting cough draws Roxie's attention back to the fight, with Boomer spitting a glob of mucus onto the misshapen Fusion Sheep. On contact, the glob exploded, but proved no resistance to the monster trampling in the Rowdyruff's way. Boomer quickly kicked higher into the air, out of reach.

"Boomer!" Roxie yelled. She stepped to rush back, upsetting the balance of the large sword in her hands. She wobbled with it for a moment, but it crashed down to her side, the blade digging into the dirt. She tugged on the handle to pull it up, only moving it slightly. Whatever material the egg spawned, it was heavy. "Help me with this thing!"

The Fusion roared, mimicked by a sonic blast from Boomer. It doesn't move the Fusion Sheep but does seem to daze it, and the pavement underneath it buckled at the pressure. Boomer jetted over to Roxie.

"What the heck is this?" he scoffed.

"Big freakin' sword." Roxie groaned, struggling to move the blade a few more inches. "Let's cut through that thing with this."

"I don't need a weapon." Boomer shrugged. "I have superpowers."

The Fusion Sheep in the distance groaned, sprouting two new limbs while the others crack and shift to new locations. It remained with all limbs on the ground, releasing another guttural roar as it charges back at the two.

"Your superpowers are working out real well, aren't they?" Roxie sneered. Boomer grabbed ahold of her hand, pulling her up into the air as the Fusion barreled to them, leaving it next to the blade.

"Fine, we'll do it your way." Boomer groaned, flying himself and Roxie back to the other side of the parking lot. He set her down before floating back up. "Keep him distracted over here."

"I'll tie him down." Roxie nodded.

She fired off one of her pistols at the Fusion, Boomer taking to the sky. The Fusion's head seeped through its body, convulsing as it positioned itself to glare at Roxie instead of just turning around. It's limbs begin moving in the opposite direction, taking another bull charge. Roxie fired two more shots, her spiderlegs aimed towards a nearby tree. Her webs shoot, attaching to the bark and letting her swing herself to the side before the Fusion can reach her,

"Yoohoo!" she taunted from the beast's side. She pointed her spiderlegs down, rapid firing blasts of webs at the three limbs on this side in an effort to lock him to the ground. As before, the head of the beast shifted, moving to the side and roaring viciously. It goes to move, but remained stuck by Roxie's webs. She smirked at the work, but quickly grows weary as the Fusion Sheep bubbled, spawning more hooved limbs.

"You're kidding me." Roxie spat, her webs beginning to be hacked off the Fusion's legs by it's newly growing hands. "Where's that friggin' sword, dude!?"

"It's friggin' heavy!" Boomer cried back, flying overhead with the F-shaped blade hanging in his hands.

"I thought you had superpowers? No super strength?"

"I do to- Argh! Whatever!" Boomer landed next to Roxie, holding the sword between them. "I am super strong, this thing is just crazy."

"I'm surprised." Roxie shrugged, joining Boomer's hands on the hilt. "Let's do it together, now!"

"Don't swing like a girl!" Boomer cried out, the two rushing forward with the sword in their hands. Fusion Sheep thrashed in place, freeing itself from the webbing and clamping its hooves on the concrete. Roxie could feel Boomer's strength overpowering her pull while they begin to swing the sword up. They both let out a grunt as they heave the sword down over the giant Fusion, slicing right through the Fusion Matter like a hot butter knife.

In fact, a distinct sizzling sound buzzed from the now two halves of the Fusion. Each half slumped in the opposite direction, the head split asymmetrically. Strangely, the Fusion remained as a solid, seemingly crying in agony as Roxie and Boomer pulled the sword from the wool. Some of its limbs even started twitching and retracting into the glob.

"Is it dead…?" Roxie muttered. Boomer immediately blasted the husk with his laser eyes, holding for a moment. Eventually the Fusion caved in on itself, starting to melt.

"Now it's dead." Boomer grinned.

It takes a few moments, but the Fusion Sheep fully melted into a puddle of Fusion Matter. In the center of the puddle sat a ray-gun with the image of a real sheep printed onto the sides. The Fusion Matter bubbled and pooled itself together into balls of light, all retreating to Roxie's NanoCom in her pocket.

"Sheep-Powered Ray-Gun?" Boomer read from the weapon as he picked it up. "That's not a bad idea, actually."

"Give me that." Roxie rolled her eyes, snatching the ray gun from his hands. "Only a total freakazoid would make a gun powered by a sheep. What does that even mean? How does that work?"

Once in Roxie's hands, the ray gun began to blow, along with her NanoCom. Once unveiled from her pocket, the NanoCom absorbed the weapon. A flash of blue light paired with a joyous ringtone reveal the creation of Roxie's third Nano, a miniature version of the Sheep.

"Baaa!" it cried out in a higher-pitched call.

"Ohmiglob…!" Roxie's eyes transformed into hearts. "He's sooo cute!"

"The gun makes sheep!" Boomer laughed. "Now that's a waste."

"Hush!" Roxie held her finger out to his lips, then grabbing to cuddle her new Nano. "I wonder what this guy can do!"

"Well, you definitely seem to be fine." Boomer whistled. "Though that thing would've totally killed you if I wasn't here."

"Glob…" Roxie rolled her eyes again, releasing Nano Sheep to hover around her. "Yeah, sure, whatever makes you feel better." In a clearly mocking tone, she followed with; "My hero."

"Yeah." Boomer smirked. His face dropped quickly. "Wait, shuddup, I'm not a hero!"

"Uhhuh." Roxie giggled at him. "You're not all bad."

"I'm all snips, Rocks." Boomer flexed his arms. "You're too preppy to get it."

"Ok," Roxie sighed, crossing her arms. "You're starting to ruin this sweet moment and awesome fight we had."

"Awh, I'm just joshing you." The boy ruffled his own hair. "Sooo… What about that thing?" He poked his thumb towards the F-shaped blade on the ground.

"I think that," Roxie placed her hand on the hilt. "Is my mission reward!"

"So you get an imaginary friend and a giant sword?" the blue Rowdyruff pouted. "What do I get out of this?"

"Uh, you get the satisfaction of knowing I'm ok after you checked up on me?"

"Erhm…" Boomer's face flushed red, immediately averting his gaze. "No. Whatever." He kicked up into the air, wasting little time as he rockets up and away. "Good luck taking that home by yourself!"

---

? ? ?

Unbeknownst to most of Townsville and the surrounding Technology Square businesses, Exervent was hiding secrets. With DexLabs and Mandark Industries keeping in the spotlight, Tessa Wren's business was allowed to sit and do its work without a bother. Most people didn't even know the young Tessa was in charge of the place anyways.

Back in the day, before Dexter and his rival moved in, Exervent was just another office and research building, with many scientists spending formative teaching years. Two scientists with a specialization in DNA eventually took ownership. Their only true contribution was constructing an interesting basement lab, and being the parents of Holden and Tessa Wren.

As to why Holden went off to foster care, or to why Tessa became the owner of the company at such a young age, no one knows, nor is it really clear on the fate of their parents. Nevertheless, Tessa maintained the commitment to researching DNA. Even now as the girl stood in her subterranean laboratory, outfitted in large, protective goggles and a fitted lab coat. She scribbled away at a clipboard, peering into a microscope, and typed information into a computer, all while examining a collection of blue hair strands suspended in a vial in front of her.

But we're not here for her just yet.

No, in fact, elsewhere in the very same basement slums of Exervent, a sudden bright, swirling portal flashed open, kicking up the dust sitting in the abandoned closet it tore into. A single boot stretched from the portal, followed by the tip of a cane poking out and touching the ground. Adorned in an extremely decorated lab coat and equally flashy shoulder pads, an older gentleman stepped out from the portal. He tapped a sensor on his large, metallic looking left hand, triggering the portal to shut behind him.

"Alright!" the man said to himself with a nod. "Let's get you out of here, yeah?"

Stacks of boxes, files, and discarded lab equipment cluttered the small storage room he appeared in, but it seemed this man knew exactly where he was looking. Strangely, he casually strolled his way to the corner of the room, moving one box to reveal more stacked beneath it. It actually didn't seem like he was in much of a rush, removing all the excess before finally discovering a lone, wooden box at the bottom of everything.

A soft smile sat on his face as he simply looked on at the container for a moment. He knelt down, placing his gloved hand on the brim and beginning to tilt it open… Only to suddenly throw it open. His brow rose, head jerking to and fro for a moment. He peeked inside a few times, making quite sure the crate was as empty as it seemed.

"Well…" the man grumbled to himself. "That's certainly not right."

In an unusual twist of fate for this man in particular, he wasn't aware he had company in the room, as the rusted door opened inward. Who else, but Tessa Wren peeked her head inside, an odd glow in her eyes. The man turned to view the girl as a small spherical robot with a glowing blue light on its front floated into the room next to Tessa.

"No trespassing." the girl growled with clenched fists.

"Ah!" the man cried out, completely unthreatened. "You already found her! Unexpected, but entirely plausible!"

Tessa didn't give the courtesy of a reply, instead sending a lougee of her electrical spit to the ground before the man's feet. It sparked and crackled on the floor before sizzling out, but the man still remained unbothered. In fact, even after this warning shot, he would take a step closer to examine the hovering robot that joined them.

"Miss Wren, no need to be alarmed." he assured, only causing her to grit her teeth. "So you're The Answer?" His gaze never left the robot.

"Property of Exervent Industries." Tessa barked. "Who do you think you are? How did you get here? Who sent you?"

"It would make sense if this is our first meeting." the man pondered to himself.

"Hello." a soft, buzzing voice came from the robot. Tessa's pure anger came to a screeching halt, her own head turning in confusion to the robot's voice.

"Hello there!" the man smiled.

"You better tell me who you are and how you made this thing talk before I kill you." Tessa threatened, her confused expression already devolved back into spite.

"He is the Professor Paradox." the robot hummed. The man nodded in approval.

"She's a smart one."

"I am the Intelligence Unit: Version 3005: Edition Six." the robot buzzed, the glow emitting from the lights on its front moving between the two, almost as if a single eye was searching them back and forth. "Professor Paradox. Tessa Wren. Target: Not detected."

"Hey!" Tessa shoved the man, now known to be Professor Paradox, out of the way, grabbing hold of the robot. "I activated you, now you obey me. That man is the target now."

"No thank you." The light on the device briefly dimmed, before igniting just as before, igniting the spherical body itself in a spontaneous ball of fire! Tessa winced, immediately releasing the robot, who continued to float while inflamed. Tessa held her hands to her chest, instinctively shooting some electrical spit at her newfound attacker. It, however, simply sizzled on the flame, which also didn't appear to do any damage or harm to the device.

"Now, I don't think this fighting is necessary, is it?" Paradox pouted, arms folded in front of him. "Come along, I'm sure we'll find your target."

"Searching…" the robot buzzed. After a moment, the flame instantly disappeared. "Not found. Searching…"

"Tell me, Tessa," Paradox turned to the girl nursing her singed hands. "How did you activate her?" With a furrowed brow, the girl spit again in demonstration. "Ah-ha! Of course!"

"I found it down here, in my basement," the girl growled. "You're never going to be able to get out of here anyways, dead meat."

"Not found." the robot buzzed. The light on it seemed to blink at them again. "Recalculating search parameters."

A very loud and abrupt popping sound echoed through the rooms and battered at their eardrums. The robot, presumably as a result of this shocking sound, blinked away completely, leaving the young scientist and paradoxical one all alone. Paradox would shake his head, reaching up to rub his chin.

"That puts a wrench in things." he shrugged. "Shame. 'Suppose they can't ever be easy."

"Yo!" Tessa barked. "No one's off the hook!"

"Oh, don't fret." Paradox laughed to the girl, using his right hand to tap on the surface of his other hand's glove. "I'll be back to see you soon. Well, soon for me at least!"

Tessa wound her arm back, balling up her fist and beginning to unleash a hearty cry as she brought her fist swinging forward, with loose spats of her electrical saliva flying from her screaming mouth. Though, Professor Paradox's glove glowed with the same light as the portal he exited from, enveloping him completely in the light before making him disappear just as quickly as the robot, and causing Tessa to swing aimlessly.

The teal haired scientist blinked her eyes, looking from side to side. Her face scrunched up as she wound up her arm and unleashed another angry howl as her fist barreled into the wall.

---

24 June 2044

The day had finally come. This could be the day that everything changed for her, but with all these recent events, she couldn't live in the dark any longer. Besides, her mother would want her to know.

Of course, we're talking about Alice Spacebyte, Roxie's cousin who's only recently discovered she's an adopted, alien baby found thirteen years ago. After Gale's, her mother disappeared at the beginning of the war, Professor Utonium explained to her that Gale wanted to wait until she was 16 to tell her, but given the circumstances, the time is now.

Even more so after Alice displayed a strange show of powers at the mall months back, psychically shoving Tessa Wren, and accidentally Roxie as well, away from her when the three of them squabbled at the Gangreen Gang concert. It was the first time her alien powers showed, but it wouldn't be the last as Alice took up the fight against the Fusions in the following months. With her seemingly psychic powers, paired with mana-like shields and manifesting temporary projectiles, Alice almost seemed like Lucky Girl on the battlefield.

While our story has kept an eye on Roxie's escapades, Alice has endured her own and found the friendship of a pair quite unlikely to be friends if Alice wasn't around. These friends would be invited to tag along with Alice as she finally came to find out what she is. She marched along the Townsville sidewalks, Courage bundled in her arms.

To her right followed the sweetheart of the neighborhood, the angel on your shoulder, and an embodiment of good morals, Little Suzy. The ginger-bobbed girl frequented Pop's Diner before the invasion, being the voice of reason to her haughty neighbor, Johnny Bravo, but left that job to his Mama so she could fight back against the Fusions. Seeing this girl being friends with Alice was no shock, but the boy to her left?

Fitted black suit, green eyes covered with circular glasses, and the pulsating demonic tentacles emitting from his back, Nergal Junior walked alongside the girls with his hands in his pockets. Most would wonder how an actual demon spawn became friends with two nice mannered girls like Suzy and Alice, but as abrasive as he is, he got along with the two quite well. Alice wouldn't have invited either of them to come with her if she didn't trust them.

"Maybe this will let you unlock new powers!" Suzy smiled at her friend as they walked. "I hope you discover stretchy powers."

"Stretchy powers…?" Alice asked, sharing confused looks with both Nergal Jr. and Courage.

"What would she possibly need that for?" Junior questioned.

"I just think they'd be neat." Suzy said with a simple shrug.

"Her powers are obviously not going to give her the ability to stretch." Junior sighed.

"Well, I guess we'll never know unless she does it." Suzy laughed. "Unless the Plumbers say otherwise, I think it's on the table."

"I don't think I want powers like that." Alice giggled, leaning against Suzy briefly.

"Awh, but an elongated psychic would be so cool, right?" A giant, goofy grin spread across Suzy's face.

"You should spend less time at the Collector's Comic Shop." Junior chuckled. "Where's this Plumber Base at, anyways?"

"Up here near the Park." Alice answered with a nod down the sidewalk. The buildings grew smaller as the streets faded onto the Townsville Park paths, but some husks of structures destroyed in the invasion, and the Infected Zone barrier surrounding the Fissure made the family friendly park less than favorable. "They ran DNA tests on me at a base in the Spaceport, but we obviously can't get there anymore."

"Oh, maybe you're Ben's next Omnitrix alien!" Suzy excitedly cheered, seemingly stuck in her own thoughts.

"What?" Junior blinked. "S- Suzy, what would that even look like?"

"A clone of myself?" Alice shrugged. "But with the Omnitrix on my forehead."

"Don't you think it'd be cooler than that?" Suzy asked.

"Oh, so now you're saying Alice isn't cool." Junior jokingly sighed. "That's low."

"No, wait!" Suzy scrambled, Alice and Courage both snickering at the two. "Alice, you're awesome! I didn't mean it!"

"Suzy, it's fine." Alice assured, patting her friend on the shoulder. "My cousin is meeting us there, I wanted her to be there too."

"The one with the spiderlegs?" Suzy asked, which Alice gave a nod to.

"Her name's Roxie, she's part-alien." Alice explained, pausing in her stride for a moment to set Courage down to walk alongside them. "I told her before I told you guys."

"I'm excited to meet her, then." Suzy smiled. "She's got to be cool if she's related to you."

"She's a little abrasive…" Alice tilted her head, smirking as she looked to Nergal Jr. "So actually you two would get along well."

"What's that supposed to mean!?" Junior cried.

It wouldn't be long before the group found their destination; a seemingly normal building with a few cars and hover cars parked nearby. The only thing that made the place stand out was a duo of teenagers standing out front with their arms crossed, facing away from each other. One was Alice's cousin, Roxie, standing with a pout on her face and her spiderlegs drooped, while the other, Ben Tennyson, stuck his nose in the other direction, only relaxing once he saw Alice and her friends approach.

"Alice!" Ben called out with a wave. Roxie perked up, relaxing as well.

"I brought some support." Alice smiled as they joined them, gesturing to Suzy, Courage, and Nergal Jr.

"Yeah," Ben scratched the back of his head, glaring at Roxie at his side. "You didn't tell me your cousin was, uh…"

"I'm standing right here, dude." Roxie scoffed.

"Oh, uhm…" Alice sheepishly looked between the two. "I'm sorry?"

"Alice, you don't have to apologize for anything." Roxie sighed, giving her a hug. "Tennyson's just a hardhead."

"I'm a hardhead!?" Ben reacted, but Roxie continued on.

"Who are your friends?"

"Oh, this is Suzy," Alice collected herself and gestured to her friend. "And this is Nergal Jr."

"It's nice to meet you, Roxie!" Suzy waved happily.

"I like your backbling." Junior nodded, twirling one of his tentacles as if it was giving a thumbs up. Roxie used one of her spiderlegs to flip her ponytail.

"Likewise, kiddo." she laughed.

"Roxie!" Courage cheered, hopping up into her arms.

"Hello to you two, as well." Ben nodded, clapping his hands. "You ready?"

"You know them?"

"Ben's our guide!" Suzy smiled. "We're basically honorary Plumbers!"

"We've been helping secure some Plumber and alien technology so the Fusions don't get ahold of them." Alice added. "It's been scary sometimes, but," She cut herself off for a moment. "It feels good to help out."

Roxie gave a warm smile to her younger cousin, pulling her into a hug, (and sandwiching Courage between them, not that he minded.) Alice returned the hug, triggering an overreaction from Suzy.

"So cute!" she giggled as Ben opened the door behind them.

"The Professor is waiting downstairs for us." Ben said, holding the door open. Roxie and Alice pull away as Nergal Jr filed towards the entrance. Free of the hug, Courage waggled his way to the ground to follow on foot, the girls rounding out behind him.

"The Professor?" Roxie asked Ben as he led them to an elevator. "In a Plumber base?"

"Taking all the help we can get these days." Ben laughed.

"He's been more motivated in this past month." Roxie grinned. "Buttercup is out there."

"Oh, it;s so exciting!" Suzy cheered, the group boarding the elevator. "Fuse hasn't seen anything yet!"

They chat amongst themselves for a bit as the elevator descends deep into a basement, yet somehow far deeper than possible. They come to a halt, the doors sliding open to reveal a massive laboratory with high ceilings and wacky gadgets and gizmos everywhere the eye looked. Among them were many Plumber agents, human and beyond, as well as government personnel, assorted scientists, and even some K.N.D. operatives mulling about. Ben stepped out of the elevator, but Alice and Suzy followed with stars in their eyes.

"All of this is underground!?" Suzy exclaimed.

"There;s bigger caves in the Underworld." Nergal Jr. scoffed.

"Still!" Suzy wrapped her arms around both Alice and Nergal Jr. "Isn't this insane? We're a part of this!"

"It's a little crowded right now." Ben laughed. "Most of what was salvaged from the Spaceport is here for repairs before we can move them to the Bellwood Base."

"Ah, Ben!" a familiar voice called out. The group looked to see the tall, feline alien partner of Ben, Rook Blonko, approach them. "And Miss Roxanne Leeblossom, who goes by Roxie!"

"Yep." Roxie lazily waved to the Plumber who gave her assignment at the Academy. "Rook Blonko?"

"Precisely!" he replied with a smile. "Wonderful to see you again, Miss Roxie." He turned to the three younger kids. "And you all must be Alice Spacebyte and her friends? Welcome to the Townsville Plumber Base."

"Thank you for having us here." Alice smiled. "Especially for… something like this."

"It is my pleasure." Rook smiled, leading them forward. "Actually, Ben, your cousin is here as well. I think she would like to get your input after this."

"Gwen's here?" Ben blinked, looking around. Rook chuckled in response.

"Gwendolyn and her friend apprehended Charmcaster." Rook nodded. "I believe we are preparing to move her to a more secure facility."

"That's good to know…" Ben sulked a tad. "She could've asked me to help…"

"Ah! Alice!" the familiar voice of the Professor echoed towards the group. Despite appearing rather disheveled for the last few months, he looked particularly chipper today. He still sported some unkempt stubble, but the dark circles that had formed under his eyes seemed to be lightening up.

"Hi, Professor!" Roxie waved with a wink to her neighbor.

"Good to see you too, Roxie." he greeted with a smile.

"Professor," Alice gestured to her friends. "This is Suzy, and this is Junior, I hope it's alright I invited them."

"I said it was alright to invite some moral support." Ben nodded.

"That's perfectly fine." The Professor began to lead the group off to a station of the lab filled with various pieces of equipment both Roxie and Alice didn't recognize. "This is your decision, after all. Whatever makes you feel comfortable."

"Thank you…" Alice seemed to grow visibly more anxious as they reached a computer terminal.

The station of the lab was slightly sectioned off from the rest of the lab, yet remained open to the vast rooms. Several generic-looking scientists dressed in white coats filled the chairs in front of the computers and standing around the tables. Some begin to filter out to another section of the lab, just to be replaced by a new person walking in to check on something. Rook lagged at the opening to the station as the group entered.

"May Professor Utonium have the space?" he asked at a volume that echoed all around them. Most of the workers start gathering small materials and devices and make their way out, Rook also trailing behind them.

"Please, try to get comfortable if you can." the Professor instructed to the group as he approached one of the computers. The remaining workers make their exit as Ben takes a seat in a nearby chair, even kicking his feet up.

"Why did everyone leave…?" Alice's gaze was fixed towards the opening to the rest of the base. "Is it… bad?"

"Oh no, Alice." the Professor turned to look at her. "There's nothing bad about you. I just wanted to give you some privacy for this."

"Oh… T-Thank you…"

"Hey, deep breaths." Suzy said, calmly putting her arm around Alice. "This changes nothing about how awesome you are."

"We already know who you are." Junior added, also wrapping an arm around Alice's shoulder.

"Guys…" Alice sniffled leaning into her friends. "I appreciate you… I'm just a little nervous. This is… a lot…"

"I'd be worried if you weren't nervous." Junior shrugged with a slight snicker attached.

"Yeah, it's ok to feel like that!" Suzy seemed to tighten her side-hug. "And it's going to be ok to feel whatever it is you feel afterwards too. Either way Junior and I are still gonna be right here."

A second sniffle comes from behind them where Roxie stood, wiping a tear from her eyes. She stepped forward, joining the friend hug by holding Alice with her arms, and holding Junior and Suzy with her spiderlegs.

"I'll be here too!" Roxie held back more tears. "But it's really good to know you have really good friends supporting you when I'm not around."

In fact, the short display of the strong bonds Alice shared with her friends gave Roxie pause. When her younger cousin gets emotional, so does Roxie, but an extra layer of emotion hung in Roxie's tears. This feeling of undying love and support almost made Roxie vomit, it was so strong. Watching Alice have her friends proclaim their ties in such a public and intimate way through Roxie over the edge.

Amp has never had any ill intentions with getting close to Roxie, he genuinely wants to be her friend. Jasper and her mother are always there for her, no matter any circumstance. Blowing up at Blossom for checking in on her, disregarding Wilt's concerns for her well-being while taking on mission after mission. Jeez, even Boomer, a boy who was literally born from a toilet, showed compassion by wanting to see if she was alright.

"I'll always be here for you." Roxie sniffled again before releasing her grasp and taking a step back. Her sudden realization made her want to sob uncontrollably, but she collected herself to minimal tears. This isn't about her right now.

"I love you guys." Alice started to sob instead, triggering Suzy and Junior to hold her tighter. Even the Professor reached out to calm her with a comforting hand on the shoulder.

"Alice, are you ready?"

She dipped her head softly into a nod. The Professor stepped back to the computer, beginning to type on the keyboard. Roxie, now sniffle-free, returned to standing behind Alice and rested her hand on her back. The large computer screens began to display several files opening in succession, causing Ben to sit up straight to better see. For a brief moment, an image of the Professor holding Alice as a baby flashed on screen with an older woman silhouetted in the foreground. A shiver rolled down Roxie and Alice's tears increased again. Even though it was just her back, they knew it was Alice's mother, Gale, in the picture. The screen swiftly replaced the image with a long document.

"When your mother and I found you, she refused to let the Plumbers do any tests." the Professor started explaining. "They weren't exactly a known or trusted entity back then, but we did keep some samples for you if you wanted to know. Along with the tests with ran on you a few months back, we know what kind of species you are."

Alice exhaled sharply, closing her eyes. A grainy image of a planet appearing similar to Earth appeared on the screen. The landmasses were wildly different, and a blue glow hung over the globe. Alice opened her eyes, blinking repeatedly at the image.

"Your DNA traces back to a planet called Kelt, on the outskirts of our quadrant of the solar system."

"Kelt." Alice murmured.

"Unfortunately, the Plumbers don't have a lot of knowledge on the Keltics… They seemed to be a secluded civilization. Tests of your DNA showed incredible similarities to us humans, as well as the Anodite species."

"Anodite?!" Ben stood up from his seat. "Gwen and I have Anodite blood. I supposed that would explain your powers."

"Wow…" Alice's friends backed off from their hug finally, letting her take this in. "I don't know what to say."

"A human, an alien, and a demon." Junior smirked. "We're like a team right out of a manga."

"How are you, Alice?" Suzy asked. The girl shrugged, exhaling loudly again.

"I guess I…" She turned, looking to her friends. "I was so nervous but now… I don't know what to do with this information."

"I know it might be a lot to take in-" the Professor started to reassure her, but Alice protested.

"No, Professor, it's not really that." Alice sighed. A beat passed before the blue haired girl begins to snicker. "Everyone was right about how I know who I am. I was so nervous to actually find out, but now that I know, it kind of means… nothing."

"I apologize we don't know more." the Professor frowned.

"No, no!" She continued to snicker a bit as she spoke. "It means nothing in, like, a good way! It's nice to know the facts of the matter, but I never needed to learn this to know I'm me."

"You're Alice, the superhero!" Suzy cheered,

"Alice, the voice of reason." Junior smirked.

"That might be where I was from, but I'm an Earthling." Alice smiled, bringing her friends into another group hug.

"Sheesh." Roxie's tears well up in her eyes again, choking them back. "I need to be a better friend." she whispered to herself. Ben sneakily stepped next to her, patting her on the back and offering her a tissue.

"You're handling this better than I expected." the Professor collected himself. "I am glad to hear you say that though. I know your mother would agree."

"So… Now what?" Suzy asked as their hug broke.

"Back to business as usual, I guess." Alice shrugged. "Thank you for this, Professor."

"Well, uhm-" Professor Utonium fixed his collar, looking to the group. "There is one more thing to share about this."

The vibe of the room grew tense yet again as all eyes flashed back to the computer screens, the Professor pulling up a new file. Roxie had taken the tissue from Ben, acknowledging that he touched her with a look but not scolding him. A sigh from the Professor breaks the newfound silence.

"Like I said, the Plumbers didn't have much information on Kelt. It seemed they once had colonies on other planets, and were capable of space travel. Considering their abilities are akin to an Anodite's, we can only assume they were very powerful… Unfortunately," The Professor pulled up a report labeled from a decade ago. "Kelt was destroyed sometime ago…"

"Oh…" Alice blinked.

"Plumbers found only debris in the area of the quadrant. And the tests estimate that the planet was destroyed roughly 12 to 13 years ago."

"I- I'm 13." Alice shuffled in place.

"What does this mean?" Suzy asked. The Professor shook his head.

"Out of everything, I wish we knew more about this to tell you."

"Now I feel kind of… sick." Alice muttered to herself. Ben would step next to her with a small waste bin.

"That could mean anything." Nergal Junior shrugged. "It still doesn't change anything about you."

"Yeah, well," Alice grabbed the waste bin from Ben, holding it to her chest. "It complicates things just a little, I think."

"Don't freak out!" the Professor scrambled to close the files. "We're still doing everything we can to find out more."

"Maybe she's the chosen one!" Suzy grinned. Alice would pat her on the back.

"I appreciate it… Not right now though."

"I'm sorry," a new voice called from the opening to the lab station. All the heads in the room swivel to see Gwen Tennyson, the Alpha Rune hooked onto her belt. "Did I hear you all say Kelt?"

"Gwen!" Ben cried out. "This is kind of private!"

Alice sniffled, wiping her face before straightening up. Roxie, now fully embracing Alice from behind to support her, waves to Gwen.

"I didn't mean to interrupt, I'm so sorry." Gwen stepped back.

"No, wait!" Both Alice and the Professor cried out to her in varying tones.

"Gwendolyn, how do you know about Kelt?" the Professor asked. Gwen entered the room, unhooking the Alpha Rune from her belt and holding it in her hands.

"I've been studying the Hani-Baba Totems the past few months to see if I could find something to help against the Fusions. Juniper and I found reason to believe the Keltic people were the ones to leave those totems."

"The temple in the wilds?" Alice set the waste bin down, fully fixated on Gwen.

"There's great power in that temple and the totems." Gwen nodded. "Juniper and I stopped Charmcaster from stealing that power for herself, and a demon named Them has been helping us activate their power."

"A demon?" Ben blinked. "Is that what you get up to without me around?"

"I've only been able to activate them since my powers are similar to the Keltic's." Gwen looked to the computer screen, a few files still open including the image of baby Alice. "Professor Hex knew about it too."

"Well…" Alice stepped forward. "I am Keltic." She paused, shaking her head. "Er, from Kelt? An Earthling from Kelt?"

"It's pretty fresh." Suzy added.

"I'm Alice Spacebyte." The blue hair girl reached her hand out, Gwen taking it to shake it.

"I'm Gwendolyn." she smiled. "Rook has told me about your training with Ben."

"Kelt isn't around anymore apparently, I'm sorry." Alice sighed, looking to the screen.

"Alice, I know this is fresh," Gwen held out her hands, offering the Alpha Rune to Alice. "Can I ask you and your friends to help me?"

Alice turned back, looking over the stone artifact presented to her. She could feel the innate magical energies oozing from it on a level hard for her to mentally understand, growing stronger as she reached out towards it. The rush of energy quieted instantly as she takes the Rune in her hands and holding it close to her chest.

"Me?"

"Rook and Ben say you have a handle on your abilities. If I had known the origins of your powers sooner, I would've asked you to join. I'm doing this for the sake of the planet, but I have a feeling this might mean a lot more to you." Gwen smiled warmly. "Only if you want to though, everyone in here is probably overloading onto you today."

Alice flashed her gaze from Gwen to Ben, then Roxie, her Super Stars duo, and finally resting on the screen, Gale's silhouette displayed on the glass. What would she want for her daughter? Surrounded by her friends, family, and mentors, Alice wondered how this would've gone if Gale hadn't vanished during the invasion.

"I don't know how much help I'll be." Alice started to smile with a more optimistic pip to her tone. She sucked back a few tears and looked back to the group. "I think I can help a little bit, though."

"I'll fill you in, promise." Gwen sighed with relief. "We only have one more totem to activate."

"Is it ok if my friends come along?" Alice asked. "We're stronger together."

"I'm so in!" Suzy practically touched the ceiling as she jumped in excitement.

"Yes, of course." Gwen nodded. "We caught Charmcaster, but there might be others out there who want the Totem's power. We could use all the help."

"Then we're all there." Alice smiled. "You too, Roxie?" She looked to her cousin, who perked up.

"I feel like I might be intruding on another story." Roxie chuckled a bit, scratching the back of her head with a spiderleg. "If you want me there."

"I do." Alice held out the Alpha Rune, looking at it. "I don't want to sit and spiral in bad thoughts about what could or could not have been Kelt. We can help the people we love here and now."

The group excited joined in overlapping chatter, and another round of hugs from Suzy, as Alice handed the Alpha Rune back to Gwen. In the midst of it all, she returns back to the Professor, giving him a hug.

"Thank you for watching out for me, for mom too."

---

As always critiques and reviews are appreciated. A list of all shows represented are in the footnotes of Ch 1.

Alice belongs to Kyra Xyrespace, and is the main character of It Calls For You! Think of it as a pseudo-canon story to this one, and definitely a must read.

If you're looking for other stories to read, join the FusionFall Fanfic Discord to connect with all us FF writers.

The next chapter will be the conclusion to this Book in Roxie's story, which will be followed by a second Book. Hope you'll all stay tuned. Thank you 3