* * *

Tripwire had never seen anything like it. He watched the Matrix code roll across the screen, now including the presence of…whatever it was. It definitely looked like an agent, but it wasn't behaving like one. The code was changing, shifting…it was doing things that it shouldn't be able to. He had only seen this pattern one other place before, and he was terrified to think of its implications…

His headset was still active, transmitting his voice to the cellphone that Blossom was using, but he was speechless. He literally could not describe what he was seeing. All he knew was that they were all in trouble…deep trouble…

* * *

"What?" Blossom said into her cellphone. "What is it?"

She didn't know what was going on, but by the tone of Tripwire's voice, it sounded bad. He replied, "Girls, we need to get you out of there right away. There's an exit two blocks down the street…the five-story brick building on the corner. Hurry!"

"What's this about?" she asked.

With some urgency, Tripwire said, "I can't explain it myself…but it's dangerous! Just get out, while you still can, please!"

"We're on our way!" Blossom promised. She closed up the cellphone and said, "C'mon, girls! We have to get moving…"

"What's going on?" Bubbles asked.

Blossom started flying in the direction of the exit, and said, "I don't know exactly, but we can find out later. Right now, let's just get out of here!"

Buttercup nodded, "Right behind ya," and followed, along with Bubbles. They covered the distance to the building in almost no time and started descending towards the roof. However, they spotted something that made them freeze in their tracks. Someone was waiting for them on the rooftop…it was the man in the black suit they saw before.

He must have transferred over here, Blossom thought. They came to a stop, and the man in the suit called out to them, "Powerpuff Girls, greetings."

"Who are you?" Bubbles asked, though she kept her distance just the same.

After a moment's hesitation, the man said, "O'Brian…Agent O'Brian."

"Really…well, Agent, you'd better get outta our way," Buttercup said with a frown, "if you know what's good for ya."

"Not so long as I have a mission," the agent said. "We need you back, girls. But if you continue to resist, and we cannot have you back, then you are a liability. One that must be terminated."

"Save your 'breath', agent, we're not going peacefully," Blossom told him.

"Very well," the agent said calmly, and suddenly he was next to them. He had crossed the rooftop so fast that they didn't even see him move. They certainly didn't have time to react. The agent grabbed Buttercup by one of her arms and swung her in a semicircle, slamming her into the other two and driving them into the rooftop. He threw Buttercup away in the opposite direction…she bounced across the roof a couple of times before skidding to a halt.

All of this happened in less than two seconds. Bubbles lifted her head from the gravel on the rooftop, staring at the agent in disbelief. She clenched her teeth and flew towards him, drawing her fist back into a punch. He didn't budge an inch until she was almost right on top of him, but then as she swung, he leaned back slightly, the punch missing him entirely.

Bubbles used the momentum from the missed punch to swing a leg around into a good strong kick. The agent's arm came up and stopped it, and even with all the strength she had put into it, he wasn't fazed at all. For a moment, all she could do was gape…an instant later, he had reversed the arm that he had blocked with and grabbed hold of her leg. He held her up, dangling upside-down from his grasp, and started to pummel her with his other hand.

Blossom and Buttercup had both come to by this time, and saw what was happening. They were still on opposite sides of the roof from each other, with the agent in the middle. Blossom gave a quick signal to Buttercup for a charge, and both of them shot towards the agent simultaneously, from opposite sides.

The agent saw them coming and stopped his punches…with a quick flick of the wrist, he threw Bubbles straight upwards, and then reached out sideways just as Blossom and Buttercup approached. He grabbed both of them by the neck right out of the air from their charge. Swinging his arms in front of himself, he smashed the two of them together head-first, then dropped both of them and punted them together, his kick sending them both to the far corner of the rooftop.

Casually, he held his hand up and caught Bubbles as she fell back down again. He hurled her like a missile towards the others, slamming her into them. The three of them tumbled back a few more feet, stopping by the edge of the roof. He straightened his tie and started to walk towards them.

Buttercup groaned as she tried to sit up again, "What the…what the heck is this guy…?"

The agent said, almost proudly, "I think you will find that I am the superior force here. You have no chance to survive against my abilities."

"Yeah," Blossom said, getting back up, "but yours is still a world based on rules." She flew up from the rooftop, and the other girls followed suit…she continued, "So you're faster and stronger…you can't break the rules, though. It'll just be a matter of wearing you down from a safe distance…"

"Girls," the agent said, "with me, there is no 'safe distance'…" As the girls watched, he stretched his arms out and hovered up from the roof slowly, heading for them. Impossibly, he was flying, ignoring gravity, like them…

"Wh-what?" Bubbles said, surprised.

Buttercup blinked a few times and said, "No…it can't be…"

"Yes," the agent said, showing no signs of slowing down, "I am the product of Project 978. I am the ACA prototype…the Advanced Combat Agent. Superior to any human in strength and speed, and in possession of your…unique abilities as well."

Blossom's confidence was shaken. We've had the advantage over the agents, she thought, but only because they were limited by the rules of the Matrix. This guy…if what he says is true, he probably has all the powers and abilities we had. Plus, he's faster and stronger than us. I think Tripwire was right…we've got to get out of here, or we're doomed!

As the agent got closer, Blossom ordered, "Stay clear of him, girls! We need to find that exit, now!" The three of them split off in different directions, heading for the sides of the roof. The agent's head snapped from side to side, watching two of them leave, but then he narrowed his eyes and suddenly fired a set of bright, crimson eyebeams. The beams struck Bubbles before she could get over the side…they pushed her down into the rooftop once again, but this time, she was knocked cold.

As Blossom and Buttercup flew down the sides of the building, they noticed that Bubbles wasn't with them…Buttercup stopped her descent and looked back up towards the roof. The agent flew out over the edge, the unconscious Bubbles tucked under his arm. Buttercup gasped and tried to fly up after them, but Blossom grabbed hold of her arm to stop her.

"No!" Buttercup shouted. "We gotta save her!"

"We can't fight him!" Blossom shouted back. "He'll get all three of us…we have to get to the exit now!!"

With that, Blossom pulled Buttercup along with her as they flew in through a window on the side of the building. Buttercup protested, "We can't just leave her!"

"We'll return for her," Blossom said with assurance, "but right now we have to go!" As they flew into the building, into an empty, abandoned apartment, they spotted an old telephone on the table. It was ringing. There's our exit, Blossom thought. "You first, Buttercup…"

Buttercup reluctantly picked up the receiver, lifting it to her ear. In the next moment, she vanished, free from the Matrix once again. Blossom hung up the receiver again, and it immediately rang again. As she answered it, she cast one last glance out of the window. Hold on, Bubbles, she thought…we'll be back for you…I promise…

* * *

Blossom sat up immediately from the bed. The first thing she heard was Buttercup, off to the side by the control station, yelling, "What on Earth happened in there?!" All the rest of the crew were standing near her.

Daedalus was studying the screen over Tripwire's shoulder and shook his head, "I don't know how, but they actually did it. They created an agent based on all the data they collected from you over the years."

Hopping down from the table, Blossom said, "Bubbles, is she oka--…" She trailed off as she spotted the bed with Bubbles on it. She was still lying there, hooked into the system. "She's still in the Matrix?"

"That's right," Query told her. "They're probably taking her someplace where it will be hard to reach her. And this 'Advanced Combat Agent' will no doubt be personally guarding her."

Buttercup glared at Blossom and snapped, "You shoulda let me try to rescue her! What's wrong with you?!"

"What's wrong with me?!" Blossom exclaimed. "If you had charged after him, you would have gotten yourself killed, Buttercup!"

"That was a risk I was willing to take!" Buttercup growled.

"Brute force isn't going to work this time," Blossom said. "We're going to need to plan this out carefully. We have to outsmart them."

"I'm not denying that," Buttercup said, "but I think it woulda been easier to stop him now, before he was able to take her who-knows-where and get extra help from the other agents!"

Blossom hadn't considered that, but she said, "Bubbles will be safe. They're probably using her as bait to lure us in. So they won't do anything to her…and in the meantime, we can come up with some kind of plan to get her back."

"If I may," Daedalus said, interrupting their conversation, "I have a suggestion. We could come with you, to make sure that any minor threats such as military or law enforcement are dealt with. While we have them distracted, you can move in and rescue Bubbles. Perhaps we can even distract this Advanced Combat Agent."

Blossom shook her head, "It's too dangerous! He'd pulverize you…"

"We're not going to fight him," Query said. "We're just going to lure him away."

"I dunno," Buttercup frowned. "He's fast…I'm not sure you could get away from him so easily…"

They were distracted by a sudden change in Bubbles' readings. Everyone moved closer to look at her status display…her vitals had suddenly fluctuated. "What's happening?" Blossom asked urgently.

"I think they know we're watching," Photon said, biting her lip.

Reaper nodded, gritting his teeth. "Those monsters…"

"What?" Buttercup demanded. "What are they doing?"

"Those readings…" Reaper commented. "They're consistent with those experiencing electric shocks…"

Blossom cringed, and looked at Bubbles, "Why are they doing that?!"

"Because you're right," Daedalus answered. "They're trying to lure you back in. They know we'll see what they're doing, and that we'll come and try to save her. They'll probably have a trap waiting for you, too."

Anger showing, Buttercup ran back towards one of the other beds and shouted, "Send me back in, now!"

"No, wait!" Blossom called out to her, following. "We have to plan this out first!"

"Fine, plan it on the way!" Buttercup said, lying down quickly on the bed.

Blossom decided she didn't have a choice, and climbed up onto her own bed, saying, "Guys, send us in. I'll understand if you want to stay out of this one, okay?"

"Nonsense, we're all coming, too," Daedalus said, each of them heading for their own positions. "You'll need all the help you can get."

Tripwire waited until they were all set, and started keying the loading sequence. He watched them all as the process began, and shook his head, focusing back on the screens in front of him. He understood how risky this was going to be…he hoped they knew what they were doing…

* * *

Everyone appeared in the construct loading program. The endless white stretched around them infinitely. "All right," Blossom said. "How much can we take in with us?"

"That's a good question," Daedalus said. "Normally, with so many agents watching for any major additions to the Matrix, we've been limited to what we can carry, or possibly something minor that can go more or less unnoticed in a city, like a car. But now that a number of their agents have been terminated, we might be able to sneak something larger through."

"Hmm…" Blossom said, thinking. "Hey, if I bring data or whatever back to the construct program, can we build it? Like blueprints?"

"Theoretically, yes," Query said. "But the blueprints would have to be tremendously detailed."

"What's on your mind, Bloss?" Buttercup asked.

Blossom smiled slightly and said, "I have an idea…you guys start gathering weapons and equipment. I'll go in alone first…I need to go get something, but I'll be right back, okay?"

There were a few concerned glances, but Daedalus nodded and said, "All right. Do it."

Blossom nodded a thank you, and closed her eyes, as Tripwire loaded her into the Matrix. She vanished from the construct program. Buttercup immediately said, "Okay. Now…weapons. What have we got?"

"You name it," Reaper said with a smirk, "We've got it."

"Okay, how about vehicles?" she asked. "Tanks might be nice…or a helicopter."

Photon nodded, "I think if we pick a nice, isolated corner of Townsville, we could add one there."

"Good, good," Buttercup said, rubbing her hands together. "We're gonna give them quite a show."

The construct program started loaded everything they needed. Racks of weaponry appeared from out of nowhere…rows of tanks, planes, and other war machines next to them. They quickly but carefully gathered everything they thought they'd need.

As they were doing this, Blossom suddenly reappeared. She had a few rolled-up blueprints tucked under her arm. Buttercup looked over and said, "Hey, welcome back. Whatcha got for us?"

Wordlessly, Blossom flew over and handed Buttercup the blueprints. She unfurled them and glanced them over, a slow smile spreading across her face, saying, "You got these from…" Blossom nodded, and Buttercup grinned, "Awesome! Hey, Tripwire, can you make these?"

Tripwire's voice came from the air around them. "I think so. You're right, the blueprints are really detailed. Incredibly so. Lots of redundant detail, even."

"Heh…yeah, I'm not surprised," Blossom said. "How long will it take?"

"Maybe a minute or two," Tripwire's voice replied. "I just have to analyze and key it up."

Buttercup nodded, "Perfect." She called out to the others, "Hey, we're moving out in a couple of minutes! Look sharp, everyone!" She smiled to herself and thought, Those agents are in for one heckuva surprise…

* * *

Bubbles' arms and legs were locked into place, held by the machine that surrounded her. She didn't know what it was made of, but she couldn't break free from it, even though she reminded herself over and over that it wasn't actually 'there', that it didn't actually exist. She couldn't focus, not with the occasional surges of electricity that it sent into her.

Another surge coursed through her, and she shrieked, tensing up and clenching her eyes shut. It lasted only a few seconds, and when it stopped, she fell limp again, taking deep breaths. She barely noticed the ACA prototype standing nearby and watching her, but she knew he was there. "Wh-why…" she sobbed.

"Because your friends will come for you," the ACA replied. "They don't have a hope of rescuing you, but we will give them that impression. That way, they will suspect nothing."

A door to the room opened up, and two other agents entered. The ACA looked over at them, and one of them said, "Everything is set. The military have been dispatched to this location, and are prepared for an offensive attack."

"They will not be much longer," the ACA said, nodding. He looked back at Bubbles, who was staring back out at him through teary eyes, and added, "The only thing remaining is to decide when would be best to terminate the prisoner…at the first sign of their entry into the Matrix, or after they arrive here."

"Too soon might cause them to turn back," the other agent pointed out. "We should wait until…" He stopped suddenly, and all three of the agents raised their hands to their ears, listening simultaneously to the new data that was just given to them. Bubbles watched this, and wondered what was going on. The agents exchanged quick glances with each other, and the two that had entered before quickly headed for the door.

The ACA walked over to the window instead, and looked out over the city, whispering to no one in particular, "They have arrived…"

* * *

The national guard that had been dispatched to protect the skyscraper and surrounding area watched off in the distance intently. They had gotten word from the 'agency' that trouble was coming, and they were prepared…or so they thought, until they caught sight of the aggressors.

Three small shapes flew high above the city skyline, and two helicopters accompanied them. A moment later, a tank appeared from around the distant buildings at ground level…but that wasn't all. Something far larger also came into view. It was gigantic…a huge robot, which stomped down the street with its large, metal legs. The arms had hatches across them, as though hinting at the presence of hidden weaponry. The body of the robot had many hatches as well, and a curved glass dome topped it.

As it began its approach, Daedalus worked its controls expertly. The giant Robo-Jojo did its work, the hatches on its arms and body sliding open to launch dozens of small missiles out, each of them seeking a different target. In a matter of seconds, most of the heavy artillery was destroyed…the tank and helicopters followed this up with attacks on the lighter vehicles.

The two agents emerged out onto the street from the building. Everything was in chaos…several smoldering craters, soldiers scattering…it looked like they realized they didn't stand a chance and began a retreat. Some of them opened fire on the Robo-Jojo as they backed out, but their bullets bounced harmlessly off of its heavily armored frame.

In the midst of this, the Powerpuff Girls flew well above the conflict, heading for the skyscraper where Bubbles was being held. They hoped that the conflict below would be enough of a distraction to keep them busy, while they began the rescue operation. And they hadn't caught site of the ACA prototype yet…which means their hunch was right; he was undoubtedly guarding Bubbles personally. All three of them braced themselves as they smashed through a window on the side of the building, preparing for the fierce conflict that lay ahead…

Prev -- Next