"You mean you're actually going to go back?"

Professor Utonium was in his lab, fiddling with the Hyper Conduit Manifestation Device on the table. Blossom was nearby, watching over his shoulder with interest, albeit more of a distraction than a mere observer. Well, at least I should be happy she's taking an interest in science, he thought. He answered her question, "I'm not planning on going back to the same dimension. Simply by changing the frequency of the HCMD transmission, I can open gateways to any number of parallel worlds. This way, I can conduct extensive studies on probability and its effect on the universe."

Blossom looked concerned, "Are you sure it's safe? Last time, it sounded like you were in danger..."

"Yes, but I thought I handled the situation pretty well. I just wish I could do something about this power supply." He peered into the open panel on the back of the HCMD. "There's no way to increase the output or charging rate of the battery without interfering with the device's sensitive mechanisms."

Blossom thought for a moment, then remembered, "That means you're going to have to wait a whole day between each use, right?"

"That's right, Blossom."

"Well, then it's even more dangerous! You can't get away quickly if something goes wrong!"

The professor thought about this, then remarked, "You may be right. Listen...how would you like to accompany me on my next trip? I know the chance of anything bad happening would be a lot less if you came with me."

Blossom smiled. "I'd love to, Professor! It'll be fun...but, what about Bubbles and Buttercup?"

"They'll be all right by themselves." Blossom looked really excited about going. It's great that she's so fascinated with these things, he thought, and I just know that if she keeps it up, she could become a great scholar someday. The professor looked up the steps to the lab, and shouted, "Girls! Could you come here, please?"

Bubbles and Buttercup appeared at the top of the steps, saying together, "Yes, Professor?"

"Blossom and I will be going to a parallel universe for the next 24 hours," the professor told them. Blossom nodded enthusiastically.

"What?" Buttercup said, a little upset. "Why does she get to go? No way!"

"Yeah," Bubbles added, "What about us?"

"Don't worry, girls," the professor replied, "she's just coming to make sure nothing happens to me. Next time, I'll take you two along." He picked up another, smaller device from the table, and fixed it into his ear.

Blossom asked, "What's that?"

"I want to make sure I keep a record on the trip. An audio record, anyway. This tiny microphone will record everything that we do, so we can study it later." He finished fixing the device in place, and picked the HCMD from the table. "We're going to be traveling for a day, so Buttercup, you're in charge while we're gone."

Buttercup's face lit up, and she said, "Okay, have a nice trip!"

Bubbles, though, looked uneasy, "But Professor..."

"No 'buts', Bubbles," the professor said sternly, "Buttercup's in charge. Now, come on Blossom, let's go." He raised the HCMD and pressed the button. As usual, the vortex opened up, and the professor stepped through.

"Bye, girls!" Blossom exclaimed. "See you in a day!" She flew through the vortex, and it closed up behind her.

Bubbles watched the vortex close up, and cast a nervous look over to Buttercup, who was floating there with her arms crossed and a smug grin on her face. "Okay, Bubbles...time for you to clean up the house. And while you're at it, make me a sandwich, okay?" She dashed off upstairs to watch television. Bubbles hung her head and sighed, floating slowly up and out of the lab.

"Well, it's the lab, all right. At least nothing's changed, this time."

Professor Utonium gazed around the lab. As he said, everything was more or less untouched. His chemicals and books were still in the same places, as were the tables and other devices. Blossom floated in the air next to him. She said, "You're right, it all looks the same. Maybe this world's not any different than ours."

"That's always a possibility, "

"Won't it be boring?"

"Depends on how you look at it," the professor replied. If everything's the same, he thought, it would make for a fascinating study into randomization effects, or lack thereof. He walked up the steps from the lab and opened the door. "I'm sure if we keep looking, we'll..." He stopped. The kitchen he was walking into was occupied.

They looked up from the table with sudden surprise. It was the Professor and the PowerPuff Girls, all right. They looked like they were in the middle of dinner, but all of them were frozen in place, looking towards the door leading to the basement. The alternate professor, slice of pizza in hand, looked otherwise the same, but the girls looked a little different. Their outfits were similar, but the alternate Blossom had her hair in braids. Also, Buttercup's hair was curled, and Bubbles' hair had a single ponytail instead of pigtails.

The professor was a little embarrassed. I'd better learn to start these trips outside instead of inside..

The girls at the table weren't shocked for long. They dropped their food and shot up out of their seats, hovering above the table, "What the...?" the alternate Blossom exclaimed. "Professor?" The alternate Professor, in the meantime was too shocked to speak, he just gaped at his double.

A moment later, Blossom flew up from the steps behind him, "What's going on, Prof--...oh..."

Alt-Blossom saw "herself" by the steps, and was momentarily speechless, but she still managed to stammer, "Wh-what in the world?"

"Listen," the professor said, "I can explain..."

Alt-Professor finally came out of his trance, and chuckled slightly. "There's no need...let me guess, 'Professor'...you managed to finish the Hyper Conduit Manifestation Device, correct?" The girls all looked at him quizzically.

Holding the HCMD up, the professor nodded, "That's right. You're pretty sharp, Utonium!"

"Right back at you, Prof!" alt-Professor said. Both of them laughed.

The girls continued to look confused. After a moment, Buttercup asked, "Uh, Professor? What is going on?"

"Calm down, girls, I'm sure our guest can explain...have a seat, and let's hear what he has to say..."

Elsewhere in the city, in a shadowed room, the door opened, and a short figure walked in. He crossed the room over to a desk on the opposite end and spoke, "You wanted to speak to me, Boss?"

The chair on the opposite end of the desk swiveled around. The dark figure seated at the desk glared at the visitor, while two others figures stood silently at his side. "Yeah, I got something ta say to ya. I just got word that those meddling PowerPuff Girls managed ta foil the bank robbery the other day."

The visitor stepped forward and leaned on the desk, "They have always been a thorn in my side as well as yours. I want them destroyed as much as you. So when you summon me saying you want to destroy the girls, I shall arrive."

"Of course...now, on ta business," The figure in the chair narrowed its eyes as he slid a file across the desk, "It's time for Operation: Long Division. I need you to make us a number of things for it."

The visitor thumbed through the file, examining its contents, and a slow smile spread across his face, "Brilliant..."

"Enough with the kissing-up. Do this, and I promise ya'll be handsomely rewarded. As usual."

The visitor stepped back and bowed, "Of course, boss. Destroying the girls is reward enough. I shall get right on it." With a flourish, he turned and strode out of the room, closing the door behind him.

The figure in the chair leaned back and said, "Excellent...boys, before the day is done, this city will be ours at last!" He began laughing, and his cohorts at his side joined in.

"...and that's the whole story."

The girls were around the table, sharing the pizza and listening to the professor telling them about the Hyper Conduit Manifestation Device. Alt-Professor seemed to be the most interested, "That's great! How did you solve the problem of phase shifts that occur during transit?"

"It was easy, I just redirected the multiphasic..."

He continued to drone on, but in the meantime, both of the Blossoms were talking to each other. "It's so weird," alt-Blossom said. "It's like looking into a mirror, almost."

Blossom said, "I like your hair! I never thought of braiding it like that...it looks good on you."

"Well, it can be a hassle sometimes. Yours is cute! The bow is a nice touch."

"Thanks!"

The professor finished talking, and finally sat back. "So now, I'd like to find out what this world is like," he said. "Townsville is still standing, I take it?"

"That's right," Buttercup replied.

"And you girls still fight crime?"

Bubbles scratched her head modestly, "Well, we try..."

"Try? You're the PowerPuff Girls...you never have any problems battling evil."

Alt-Blossom said, "Not usually. I mean, you're right, in a straight fight we're pretty good, but since the Amoeba Boys came to town, we..."

Blossom nearly choked on the pizza she was eating. She coughed, "The Amoeba Boys?"

"Yes," alt-Blossom continued. "Bossman, Slim, and Tiny Jr. We've been on their tail for a long time, but we haven't been able to nail them yet. I mean, fighting crime is one thing, but fighting an entire criminal network...is..." She paused, because Blossom was trying to suppress a snicker. "What's so funny?"

"Hehehe...well, in our world, the Amoeba Boys are spineless, pitiable excuses for criminals...they wouldn't know a crime if it hit them in the face."

The other girls cringed instead of laughing. Buttercup said, "Whatever you do, don't say that around here to anyone. They might be listening."

"You're really serious, aren't you?" Blossom said, a little surprised.

"Maybe I should explain," alt-Professor said. "A year ago, a crime wave suddenly began in Townsville. Each of the heists and other jobs the criminals pulled were executed flawlessly, and not even the girls could catch a single one of them. After a little bit of investigation, we discovered that they were under orders by a new group of crime bosses that had just came into town, the Amoeba Boys. The girls naturally rushed out and captured them, taking them to the law. Unfortunately, none of the evidence held up in court, and the Amoeba Boys were released."

"There wasn't anything you could do?" Blossom asked.

"Afraid not. They had covered their tracks far too well. Most importantly, they never committed a single crime themselves. Not directly, anyway. Their crime network, along with any other allies they acquired, did all the dirty work for them. Nobody couldn't pin a thing on them."

The professor thought about this. Well, at least one thing's the same; they still don't commit any crimes themselves. Still, the Amoeba Boys...criminal masterminds! It's unthinkable... "So, what have you be doing about it?"

Alt-Blossoms spoke up, "We just take care of the day-to-day cleanup of whatever crimes we can." The other girls nodded. "Since we found out what we're dealing with, we were able to stop them once and a while. But no one we ever capture will talk."

"We're going to be here for the next day; is there any way we can help?"

"Sure!" Buttercup said. "We'll take any help we can get, even if it is another Blossom." Alt-Blossom frowned, folding her arms, but didn't say anything.

"Is it all right with you, Professor?" Blossom asked.

"Well, we are going to be here for 24 hours," he said, "so I don't see why not. Just be careful out there, okay?"

"Yay!" Bubbles exclaimed. They all gathered around and started talking about their plans for the rest of the evening. Maybe I should have brought Bubbles and Buttercup with us, the professor thought. This place could sure use their help, too. I wonder what they're up to...

Meanwhile, in the other dimension, Buttercup was parked in front of the television, eating a bowl of cereal. Bubbles was behind her, dusting the couch she was sitting on. Buttercup coughed once, and scolded, "Hey, Bubbles, watch it! You're kicking up too much dust!"

"Sorry..." Bubbles apologized. She moved to dust some of the pictures hanging on the wall.

Buttercup turned her attention back to the show she was watching. The television continued, "Hey, Puppet Pal Clem! I just got my new website, www-dot-*BONK*-dot-com!" -- "Is it popular?" -- "Well, it gets twenty-thousand *BONK*s a day!"

Bubbles chuckled, and Buttercup shouted, "Hey! Back to work!" She settled back in her seat and smiled, "Ahh, this is the life..."

All four of the girls were flying over Townsville. It seemed quiet, but they knew better. "There are probably several dozen major crimes being committed at this very moment," alt-Blossom said. "We don't find out about most of them until it's too late."

Blossom asked, "Doesn't the mayor ever call you to let you know?"

"The mayor? He won't do anything. They're blackmailing him into keeping their activities quiet from us."

Bubbles added, "I miss his calls."

Buttercup suddenly shouted, "Heads up! I see something!" She pointed below towards the park. Groups of people wearing trenchcoats were making some kind of exchange behind a stand of trees. The girls quietly descended and stayed out of sight at a safe distance. "I know those guys." she whispered. "That tall one is Freddie the Fence; he buys stolen merchandise from the thieves in town."

"Well, what are we waiting for? Let's stop them..." Blossom whispered back.

"Not yet. Wait until they make the exchange, otherwise we won't have anything to book them on." They waited and watched as Freddie's boys received a box from the other group, and passed them back an envelope. Their leader opened the envelope and pulled out a large wad of bills. He counted it, put it back, and shook hands with Freddie.

"Now!" shouted alt-Blossom. All four of them dashed out from their hiding place and circled the two groups. "We've got you surrounded! Give yourselves up!"

Freddie and his boys pulled out their guns, "I don't think so...let 'em have it, boys!" They opened fire on the girls, who quickly dove for cover, except for Blossom. Since they missed all the other girls, they swung their weapons around and aimed them at Blossom.

Bubbles called out from her covered spot, "Blossom! Look out!"

"Why?" Blossom asked, "I thought bullets can't hurt--" Then she broke off, as she noticed that the guns weren't normal guns. On the side of each of them, a small vial was attached. I don't know what that is, but it can't be good! She quickly flew to one side with a shout as a hail of bullets shot past her, cutting through the treetops. She took cover with the other girls. "What are they using?"

Alt-Blossom quickly explained, "Mojo Jojo built those weapons for them...each bullet is injected with a very small amount of Antidote X. It's not much...it won't make us lose our powers or anything, but the bullets can actually hurt us."

"Whew!" Blossom wiped her forehead. "It's a good thing you warned me! I would have been Swiss cheese if I had stayed out there." A bullet ricocheted off the tree they were hiding behind, and Blossom flinched, "What do we do now?"

"I don't know," alt-Blossom said, "I'm thinking..."

Bubbles pointed, "Look, they're running away!" Sure enough, Freddie and his boys jumped into a nearby parked car and started driving away. The other group got in their own car and drove off in the other direction. At that moment, sirens sounded, and the police poured into the area, blocking off their escape routes.

Buttercup grinned. "Well, at least the police can take care of it from here. Let's go..."

Alt-Blossom stopped her, "No wait...I'd like to find out what was in that box, come on." They flew over to the nearest police car. The officers were just placing the handcuffs on Freddie and his boys. "Good job, officers! Now then, Freddie, let's see what it was you were fencing this time..."

They crowded around the box. Blossom was in the back, and couldn't see anything, so she flew up well above the box to get a better look. As she did, she noticed something strange. All of Freddie's boys took a deep breath and held it. Blossom shouted, "Wait, something's--" but it was too late.

Buttercup opened the box, and suddenly a cloud of green gas sprayed out at the girls, and the cops. They coughed a few times and tried to back away, but passed out instead. In that instant, Freddie's boys knocked over the nearest cop and took the keys to their cuffs from him. Freed once again, they ran off into the park. Freddie spoke into his watch as he ran, "Part one completed! Proceed with part two!" They disappeared into the trees.

As the gas cleared, Blossom was still hovering above the box. She was holding her breath, and her eyes were pinched shut. She opened them again, and looked around. Freddie was nowhere in sight. The police officers were unconscious, and worse, so were the other girls. She flew down by alt-Bubbles and shook her, "Blossom! Come on, wake up!" There was no response. They were out cold.

Blossom thought for a few moments, and said to herself, "They had this planned out from the beginning...what are they up to? They want to keep us busy, maybe to pull some big job, or..." She gasped, and flew off quickly, suddenly sure of their next target...

Alt-professor had gone down to the lab, leaving the professor to wander about the house. He had stopped to look at several photographs of the girls. They were different from the ones in his house, but not by very much. Fascinating, he thought. Despite outward physical changes, events still progress along similar paths...I'm sure there's a paper or theorem in this...

The doorbell interrupted his thoughts. He looked back towards the lab, thinking, Hmm, he must not have heard. Oh well, what's the harm if I answer the door? It's not like I don't live here... He walked over to the door and swung it open, saying, "Yes? Can I help you?"

He suddenly took a step back. Five figures stood before the door. He recognized them instantly as the Gangrene Gang, but they were dressed in pinstripe suits and fedoras. He started to close the door, but Ace stopped him, "Hey...Professor Utonium, right?"

"Uhh...wh-what do you want?" the professor stammered.

"Oh, nothin'...we was just in the neighborhood, and thought we'd stop by ta see how yous was doin', weren't we, boys?"

Little Arturo said, "Yah, Ace! We was just in the neighborhood!"

"That's what I thought." The gang pushed their way past the professor, walking into the room. "Hey, nice place ya got here." Big Billy managed to squeeze through the door, taking part of the door frame with him. "Oh, ya know, there is something we was supposed ta do...Professor, we come ta offer yous a deal."

The professor fidgeted, "Well...uh...what...what did you have in mind?"

Ace studied the picture on the wall that the professor was looking at before. "Well, ya see...our employer, Mr. Bossman, wants ya ta join his...'family', shall we say..." He rose an eyebrow, "Cute pic, by the way."

"There's no way I'm going to side with them!" The professor frowned, folding his arms, "And there's nothing you can say that will make me change my mind about it either. Now, if you don't mind, I want you to leave my house at once."

Ace grinned, and looked over at the others, "Hey, boys...did that sound like a threat to yous?"

There were nods all around. Little Arturo added, "Yah! It was a threat all right, boss!"

The professor waved his hands, "Now wait a minute...I didn't..." Big Billy's hand came down on his shoulder, lifting him off the ground. He struggled, but couldn't get free. As he struggled, the HCMD fell out of his pocket.

Little Arturo picked it up, "Hey, Ace! Look at this!"

Ace took it from him and examined it, "Well, well, well...what have we here?"

The professor exclaimed, "Nothing, it's just...uh, nothing, really..."

"Really. Well, we'll just take it back and find out for ourselves what it does, then. Okay, boys, let's go..." He stuck an envelope partly behind the picture hanging on the wall and walked out the door. The gang followed him, dragging the professor with them.

Blossom knew something was wrong when she showed up at the house. The front door looked like it had been smashed open. She flew down and called through the door, "Hello? Professor?" There was no answer.

As she came inside, she noticed things were scuffed up and beaten. "What happened in here?" She shouted again, "Professor! Are you here?"

There was a sound of a door opening in the kitchen, and alt-Professor came into view. "I'm sorry," he explained, "I was working in the lab and..." He stopped in his tracks, when he saw the mess. "What on Earth happened in here? And where are the girls? And your Professor?"

"The girls were knocked out in the park by sleeping gas..." Seeing the concerned look on alt-Professor's face, she added, "Don't worry, they'll be okay. But the Professor...I mean, the our professor...I thought you might know; didn't you hear anything?"

"Not a thing," he confessed. "I was working, and it gets pretty loud down there." He spotted the envelope sticking out from behind the picture on the wall, and rose an eyebrow quizzically. He pulled it free, opened it up, and read the letter inside.

Blossom asked, "What does it say?"

Alt-Professor "It says, 'Dear Girls...by the time you read this message, your professor will be with us! You'll never rescue him!' I think he took your Professor hostage!"

Blossom's hands flew to her mouth, "Oh no! I'll bet they thought he was you!"

"Well, technically, he..."

"We've got to rescue him! Listen, I think I figured it out; they planned this out carefully from the start." She quickly explained, "First, they set a trap for the PowerPuff Girls, knocking them out long enough to try and capture you! Whatever they're trying to do, their schemes rely on the girls being asleep for a while first."

"So you mean..."

"Yes! They don't know about me, so if I hurry, I can still stop their plans!" She started flying out of the door, "You stay here...as long as they think there's only one of you, they won't return. I'll be back as soon as I can!"

"Sounds fair. One more thing," he said, tossing a vial over to Blossom, who caught it. "They've used that sleeping gas on the girls before, so I developed this chemical that will reverse its effects."

"Thanks, Professor. Wish me luck!"

"All right...be careful, Blossom!" Alt-Professor waved as she left. Blossom took a last glance behind her as she sped off towards the city. I'm all alone on this one, she thought. I really wish the other girls were here...

Back in the other dimension, Bubbles flew quickly between three pots that were boiling on the stove, stirring and adding ingredients. She wiped her forehead, "Whew!"

"Hey!" Buttercup shouted from the other room, "When are you going to finish dinner? I don't want to wait all day, you know..."

"Almost ready!" Bubbles called back. Behind her, a pot started boiling over, spilling rice out over the stove and onto the floor. She turned around and gasped. "Oh, no..."

Buttercup floated in, "What's taking so long...hey, what the...?" She looked at the mess in the kitchen, and exclaimed angrily, "Bubbles, can't you do anything right? Look at the mess you made! Now you're going to have to clean all of this up..." As Buttercup continued to ramble on, Bubbles clenched her eyes shut, gritting her teeth and not hearing most of it. Buttercup finished, "...and now I'm not going to get any dinner, either!"

Bubbles said quietly, "You want dinner? Fine!" She picked one of the pots off the stove and flung its contents at Buttercup. The soup splashed on her, soaking and covering her with sliced vegetables. Buttercup hovered quietly for a moment, before saying, "That's it...c'mon!" The two began picking up whatever they could get their hands on and throwing it at each other...

Professor Utonium was led to a dark room. Only Ace accompanied him; the other Gangrene Gang members stayed outside. As he crossed the room towards the desk on the other side, a voice spoke up, "Professor Utonium...welcome! Come in and take a seat. We've got some talking to do, see?"

The professor sat in the only other chair in the room. His eyes darted around...besides the door he came in, and the window behind the desk with closed blinds, there was no other way out of the room. He spied someone else standing in the corner, in the shadows, watching quietly.

The chair behind the desk swiveled around. Bossman, leader of the Amoeba Boys, was seated there, a fedora on his head as usual. At his sides, Slim and Tiny Jr. stood silently. Bossman looked at them, and nodded. "My boys and I have been meaning ta discuss something with ya. I hope Ace and his boys didn't startle ya too much."

"What do you want?" the professor demanded.

"Patience, all in good time. Ace! I understand ya found something interesting on our friend here?" Ace nodded, and reached out, setting the HCMD on the table. Bossman leaned forward and examined the strange flashing device closely. "Not bad, not bad...so, Utonium, what does it do?"

"It's...nothing spectacular, just an unfinished experiment."

"Unfinished, eh?" His eyes narrowed dangerously, "I don't buy that. It's not like ya ta leave any experiment unfinished." Slim and Tiny Jr. produced small weapons as Bossman spoke. "Now speak up, or you'll be the one who's finished."

"If you do anything to me, you'll never find out." The professor folded his arms defiantly.

Bossman just laughed, "Yeah, I figured you wouldn't be cooperative, see? So I brought in my own expert..." He motioned over at the figure in the corner, who stepped forward into the light.

The professor gasped, "Mojo Jojo!"

It was indeed Mojo. He walked over calmly, taunting, "Hello again, Professor. It is so nice to see you as always. Now, let us have a look at this device, shall we?" He inspected the HCMD closely, and said, "Hmm...spatial tuning system...directional particle acceleration...if I didn't know better...yesss!"

"Well? What is it?" Bossman demanded.

"This device opens doorways to other dimensions! It creates portals into alternate realities!" The professor cringed; he had hoped that Mojo wouldn't be able to figure it out so quickly.

"Hmm..." Bossman's chair swiveled around, the back facing them once more. He pondered, "If I used that thing, I could travel ta other worlds...I could build an even bigger crime network! Bigger than the one we've got now! We'd have unlimited resources!" He spun the chair back around again, "In any case, Mojo can figure out how it works, so we don't need ya anymore! Ace, you know what ta do."

Ace nodded, and began taking the Professor out of the room, when suddenly, there was a loud crash, as one of the walls exploded inwards. Blossom hovered there in the hole that was left, "Not so fast, Amoeba Boys!" she exclaimed.

"What?" Bossman exclaimed, surprised to see one of the girls awake. He glared at Mojo, "You said that the sleeping gas would keep them out for hours!"

"But...but..." Mojo began.

"Never mind, you idiot! Just stop her!"

The door opened, and the rest of the Gangrene Gang entered, weapons at the ready. They all trained their weapons on Blossom, who froze, noticing the Antidote X vials attached to the sides. She slowly raised her hands, "Don't shoot...I give up..."

Bossman got out of his chair and slid across the room. "Smart move, sister." He grinned, and remarked, "Nice bow. Makes ya look real cute. Ain't that right, boys?"

Tiny Jr. spoke up, "Sure, boss! Just like a little bunny!"

Slim added, "Yeah...an' I do believe it's huntin' season."

Ace and Mojo chortled, while Bossman moved up almost face-to-face with Blossom and glared at her. "Ya must have realized by now that ya can't possibly stop us. We're going ta do away with you and the other girls, and the professor here. Then, Townsville will be all ours! No one can stop us now, see?"

Blossom stared him right back in the face...and slowly smiled, "No one, you say?"

All at once, the other four walls of the room crashed open, and the three PowerPuff Girls of this dimension dashed in. Without laying a single finger on anyone, they zipped through the room, and in an instant had collected all the weapons from everyone.

Ace looked down at his empty hands and said, "What the...!"

Mojo was surprised as well, "Four of them?!"

"Let's get outta here!" Little Arturo and Tiny Jr. shouted at the same time.

Everyone scattered, but the girls blocked off their escape. "Not so fast," said alt-Blossom, crushing the weapons she collected in her hands, "This time, you're going to prison, for good!"

Bossman looked between the two Blossoms for a moment, momentarily confused, but then his expression became smug once again. "Ha!" he shouted, "Ya can't pin a thing on us, and ya know it!"

"Maybe they can't, but I can." said the Professor. He reached into his ear and pulled out a tiny device. "I almost forgot that I had this microphone. I knew it would come in handy in one way or another." He clicked a button on it, and Bossman's voice played back, "...I could build an even bigger crime network! Bigger than the one we've got now!..." He sped the recording forward, "... We're going ta do away with you and the other girls, and the professor here. Then, Townsville will be all ours!..."

Tiny Jr. yelped, "He was wired, boss! What do we do now?"

Bossman frowned, sliding back slowly, and said, "You girls really think you've outsmarted us, haven't you? Well, we ain't licked yet..." He suddenly slammed a button on the desk, "There! I've just started the timer on eight mini nuclear bombs hidden across Townsville! In one hour, Townsville is history! Once me and my boys are safely out of the city, we'll tell ya where they're at...but only if ya let us go. And don't follow us either, or you can kiss Townsville goodbye!"

Blossom frowned. These Amoeba Boys are way more organized than ours, she thought. "Let them go, girls."

"But, we can't just..." Buttercup protested.

"We have to. We have no choice." She hung her head, "Let them go."

The girls moved aside, and everyone slowly moved out of the room. "So long, Girls!" Bossman taunted, "It's been nice knowing ya, but then again...no it hasn't." He laughed, and slammed the door shut behind him.

"Now what do we do?" Buttercup huffed. "Just sit around and wait until the city blows up?"

Alt-Blossom shook her fists in the air, "Oh man, I should have seen this coming; it's just like them to have a backup plan. Well, we'd better get back home and wait for..."

"Great Scott!" The professor's sudden outburst made them all turn their heads. "The HCMD! It's gone...they took it with them!" Sure enough, it was no longer sitting on the desk where it was before.

"Oh no..." Blossom exclaimed. "Without it, we can't get back! And the Amoeba Boys will use it to create an unstoppable network of crime! This is not good..."

Meanwhile, back in the other dimension, the dust was finally settling. The house was a complete mess; broken furniture everywhere, torn-up wallpaper, various types of food covering everything. Bubbles and Buttercup had finally calmed down, and were both hovering there silently, looking at it. Bubbles finally spoke up, "The professor's gonna kill us..."

"I know," Buttercup said. "What are we going to do?"

Bubbles thought for a moment, then shot out of the room, returning with two brooms, "Looks like we clean up!"

"Huh? No way, not me."

"But you did it too!" Bubbles insisted, her voice raising in pitch as she spoke, "And besides, if you don't help me, I'm gonna tell the professor that it was all your fault, because it was, and you're going to get in the worst trouble because you were in charge and..."

"All right, all right!" Buttercup shouted. She took one of the brooms, "Let's just get started, already. We need to make this place look exactly like it did before..."

The six of them gathered back at the Utonium residence. Although their 24 hours of being in the dimension had already elapsed, Blossom and the Professor were unable to do anything about it. The girls sat by the phone, waiting for the Amoeba Boys to call. While this was going on, alt-Professor had returned to his lab, and the professor was at the table, frantically putting a device together. This is a disaster, he thought. We're going to end up stuck here, in a city that's about to explode, while Bubbles and Buttercup back home are going to be all alone. If only there was something we could do!

"If only there was something we could do..." Bubbles sobbed.

"What can we do?" alt-Blossom asked. "We'd never be able to find those bombs in time, even if we had ten hours to search." She looked at the clock; there were only 5 minutes left before the bombs went off. "Let's face it, the Amoeba Boys outsmarted us once again."

The professor said, "If I can just finish this scanner in time, we may be able to locate where the bombs are hidden by picking up the distinctive radiation fields they give off." He stopped tinkering with the device, and looked back at the lab, scratching his head, "You know, girls, with all that's going on, I wonder what h-...what I'm up to in there. Your professor has been working all day on someth--"

The professor never had time to complete that thought, because at that moment, the phone rang. Alt-Blossom quickly scooped up the phone, "Amoeba Boys?" She listened for a few moments, "All right, you got what you asked for, now deactivate those bombs." Another pause. "What?! We had a deal, Bossman!" She suddenly looked alarmed. "No wait, don't hang..." She hesitated, then slowly hung up the phone.

"What happened?" Buttercup asked.

"They...they're just going to let the bombs blow up..." She was still a little shocked, "And...there's 4 minutes left now...there's nothing...we can do...."

Everyone fell silent, contemplating the hopelessness of the situation. Then the professor called out, "It's done!" and switched on the device, "If it works, this will tell us exactly where the explosives are!"

A map of Townsville appeared on the device's screen, and was superimposed with several small flickering dots, eight of them total. The girls flew over quickly and examined the map. Alt-Blossom shouted, "All right, Professor!" then quickly ordered, "Okay...I think we have enough time for each of us to disarm two, but we've got to hurry! Thank goodness there's four of us. Now let's move!"

All four of them blasted out of the house as quickly as possible. The professor watched the device anxiously as the time ticked away.

Three minutes remaining...

Two minutes remaining...

Almost all at once, four of the dots disappeared from the scanner. The professor smiled. They're doing it! he thought. Hurry, girls, hurry! You still have four left...

As the next minute passed, three of the blips disappeared, but a fourth remained. The professor bit his lip as he watched the remaining seconds slowly tick away...

5...

4...

3...

2... Suddenly, the blip disappeared.

The professor breathed a sigh of relief. They did it, he thought. While he began to relax, his scanner blipped a few more times, as an extremely odd reading showed up. It was centered well outside of Townsville. Hmm, this can't be right...this pattern is familiar...it looks like...Great Scott! It can't be...

Back in the other dimension, well outside of Townsville, there was a spark of electricity, and a vortex opened up. The Amoeba Boys emerged, carrying the HCMD. Bossman took a look around and said, "Yeah! A fresh new world for us ta start from scratch!" He looked out at Townsville in the distance, and said, "Let's move, boys. Soon, Townsville will be ours once again! And I know just where ta start..."

The house was looking a lot better now. Bubbles and Buttercup went over the house several times to make sure everything was back in its original condition. Now, after all their work, they stepped back to take a look. "Not bad, if I do say so myself..." Buttercup remarked.

"I can't believe it's the same house." Bubbles wiped her forehead, "Whew, that was hard work!"

"Look, Bubbles..." Buttercup scratched her head, "I'm sorry about bossing you around. You, uh, you can spend the rest of the night watching TV if you want..."

"Yay!" Bubbles flew over and landed in front of the television. Buttercup was just about to join her, when she heard the doorbell ring.

"I'll get it!" she called out. She flew over and answered the door, and frowned at what she saw, "Oh...the Amoeba Boys... what are you doing here?"

Bossman, flanked by his cronies, grinned and said, "Listen up, Buttercup...me and my boys are gonna own this city, and we came ta offer ya a deal..."

Buttercup rolled her eyes, "Sure...whatever. Listen, it's late. How about if I just pretend you committed a crime so I can beat you up right now and get it over with?"

"What?" Bossman said, "No, you don't unde---" Buttercup interrupted him with a punch to the face, causing him to stumble backwards. With two swift kicks, she punted Slim and Tiny Jr. off into the distance. She finally picked Bossman up, twirled him around, and threw him off towards the others.

Dusting her hands off, she turned around and went back into the house. What she didn't notice was a small, crushed pile of electronics lying on the ground near where Bossman was first punched. The lights on the HCMD flickered a few times, then faded out.

"Are you sure, Professor?"

The girls had gathered back at the house, relieved to have stopped the mini nuclear bombs before they went off, but were disturbed to hear the professor's news. He answered Blossom's question, "I'm positive. The energy pattern I read on the scanner could only have been created by the HCMD. The Amoeba Boys must have used it already."

"But that means we're stuck here."

"I'm afraid so."

The other girls surrounded Blossom to console her. She wiped a tear from her eye, "We won't get to see our Bubbles or Buttercup again...or our Townsville..."

They all became silent, but only for a brief time, because then the silence was broken, as the door to the professor's lab slammed open. Alt-Professor stood there, and said, "It's finally completed!"

Alt-Blossom looked over, surprised, "What is?"

He walked across the room and grabbed the professor's hand, shaking it, "Thanks to your instructions, I was able to complete my work on this..." He held out his free hand, which was holding a device...

"The Hyper Conduit Manifestation Device!" The professor took it from his hand and examined it, "It's perfect! Identical to the original! Incredible, professor! How do you do it?"

"Well," he said modestly, "when you're a genius..."

"True, very true." Both of them laughed together.

Blossom, in the meantime, was overjoyed. The others congratulated her. Alt-Blossom said, "Well, it's been fun. You two had better get back, though."

Bubbles added, "We'll miss you!"

"So will I, girls..." the Professor responded. They got together for one last group hug. Raising the HCMD, the professor re-opened the vortex back to their dimension. "Bye!" all of them shouted. A moment later, the two of them disappeared into the vortex. It closed up behind them...

They emerged back in their own house. Blossom smiled, "Ahh, it's good to be back! That was interesting, Professor; we'll have to go again sometime!"

"Anytime you'd like to go is all right with me, Blossom." He paused and looked around. "Hmm..."

"What is it?"

"Something's not quite right here." He walked over to the wall and touched it, "It looks like this wallpaper's been freshly placed. And everything's moved around..."

"Maybe we're in the wrong dimension."

"No, the readings on the HCMD are correct..." He fiddled with it, and still got the same readouts, "There, you see? We're in the right place, all right. Something's just...different..."

A voice rang out, "They're back!" It came from Bubbles, who had just entered from one of the adjoining rooms. An instant later, Buttercup appeared next to her.

"Girls! It's great to see you again!" Blossom exclaimed. They all gathered together in a hug.

"Buttercup, well done!" the professor said. "You obviously handled the responsibility of being in charge.. I'm glad I could count on you!"

"Of course I did!" Buttercup replied confidently. "Bloss isn't the only one who can lead, you know."

"So I see...did anything unusual happen while I was gone?"

"No, not really. Oh, the Amoeba Boys dropped by, but I got rid of them."

"The Amoeba Boys?" Blossom glanced at the professor. Did they end up here? she thought. "What did they want?"

"Oh, the usual."

Bubbles added, "They might come back, 'cause they dropped something...I found it outside." She raised a handful of electronic components.

The professor instantly recognized it as the remains of the HCMD, and was relieved, along with Blossom. At least they won't be going anywhere, he thought. Returning to his previous thoughts, he gave Buttercup a stern look, "And that's all that happened while we were gone?"

"Yeah, that's it," she replied, a little nervously. "Right, Bubbles?"

"Right!" Bubbles agreed.

"Mmm hmm," said the professor, not convinced. "And the walls?"

"Uhh, well...heh..." Buttercup smiled a little guiltily.

"That's okay, Buttercup," the professor said. "You don't have to explain, as long as everything's back in it's original condition." Buttercup gave a sigh of relief, but the professor added, "Just don't let it happen again, okay?" She nodded.

As the girls flew out of the room, Blossom asked, "So what happened to the Amoeba Boys?"

"Hopefully," Buttercup answered, "they've left town by now."

Off a ways from the Utonium residence, the Amoeba Boys picked themselves back up. Tiny Jr. asked, "Well, now what, Boss?"

Bossman sighed, "I've had it with Townsville. Let's just forget about the whole thing. Those stinkin' PowerPuff Girls'll never get off our backs. Besides," he added, as they began walking off, "I know a better place, where we can lay low for a while..." They slowly made their way off into the horizon, towards the town of Citiesville...