An Uneasy Truce

(A PPG fanfic)

By Amber Wolf of Flames

It was a cold, starless night in the City of Townsville. A chilling wind blew fiercely from the East while the clouds overhead threatened to dump their soggy load on the city. Below, the citizens slept on peacefully under their warm blankets recharging for the coming day. Even the three young heroines, known fondly of as the Powerpuff Girls, were sleeping soundly, thankful of a night free of crime. Never did they know that a force more evil, more blood-thirsty, and more diabolical than anything they had currently faced was planning and plotting, biding its time to strike.

Downtown Townsville, a place notorious for crime and villainy, this was the dark side of town. Average citizens rarely dared to enter its foreboding alleyways and whoever did was considered either very brave or very foolish. It was a place where one could not trust their own shadow. Only the worst of the worst could survive, and only the worst of the worst tried. This night was no different than any other; gunshots, screams, and the sounds breaking glass and alarms filled the night air like a demented melody. This part of town was very much alive.

Inside of a rickety warehouse, a shadowy figure cracked a smirk. This was his song, his melody. He survived on these twisted lyrics. He danced and twirled with the beat and soon the whole world would join him. A lifetime of existing as a shadow, an unnoticeable figure in the crowd, was about to be shattered. Soon they would all know his name, loath it, and dread its very existence.

For countless years he had simply observed. He observed everything; everyday people, crimes and how they failed, and most of all the Powerpuff Girls. How the figure despised them. They disturbed his everlasting song with their heroics and good deeds. They created a song of their own, and he hated it. The lyrics crashed mightily against each other and created a horrendous cacophony of sound. Soon, he thought gleefully, he would silence that song forevermore.

A plan unlike any other, a plan that even the greatest strategist would not be able to combat. It would come too hard, and too fast. Like a giant tsunami, the plan would relentlessly knock down all that stood in its way. It would wash away the foolish heroes and small-minded villains. After its wake only signs of destruction would remain. Striking silently like a snake with the most deadly poison. Yes, the plan was perfect. It was beautiful, poetry in motion, at least to him. He let out a soft but unsettling chuckle that could easily send shivers down ones spine. With one last glance at the bustling crime center of downtown, he shut the window he had been gazing out of gently, but not before making one last ominous statement to an unmoved city, "Goodnight, Townsville. Enjoy this night. After all, it is your final dance." With this the window shut with a sound thud, while soft, warped laughter drifted gently behind.

The next morning…

Ring, ring, ring….

Blossom grunted in annoyance at the new, obnoxious disturbance to her dreams. Why did the alarm always have to go off at the best part? Deciding to be defiant this morning, she buried her head deeper into her pillow to block out the sound.

Ring, ring, RING…

Blossom's efforts were quickly proving to be in vain. The alarm seemed just as determined as her this morning. Still, she was going to win this battle of wills. After all, every hero deserved their rest!

Ring, RING, RIIIIIIIING….

Blossom sighed. Apparently not, according to her clock's opinion. Reluctantly, Blossom slowly sat up and climbed over Buttercup to reach the agitated alarm clock. Buttercup grunted in response, but still remained soundly asleep. Bubbles was curled up in a cozy ball under the covers, also in a solid sleep. Blossom never ceased being amazed at her two sisters' ability to sleep through almost anything. She had always been one of the lightest sleepers; probably due to her need to always be ready for action (Her sisters would call it paranoia). After all, crime never slept. That is why the girls always treasured the nights where even criminals seemed to rest. Last night had been such a rare night. Still, Blossom found herself unwilling to greet the day.

It was an hour until school started, so Blossom went leisurely about her morning schedule. Her sisters didn't wake up for another 25 minutes at least and the professor had probably fallen asleep in the lab again, so she had the whole house to herself. In complete solitude, Blossom ate her breakfast (Waffles, made by hers truly), took a shower (Buttercup had left the heat on scalding), got dressed (Typical pink uniform. Why change a classic?), and began brushing her hair. She still put great pride in her long, soft red hair. She loved to brush her hair and found it to be the most relaxing part of her schedule. Not this morning, however. As Blossom let herself go into a trance, she heard a slight noise. It seemed to hum in her ear, ever so quietly. She easily brushed it off at first, dismissing it as pure imagination. Then it came back slightly stronger, persistent. She ignored it more, now suspicious. Then it came in stronger than ever, clear and crisp. A song, she realized. The words put her into a shock,

"Are you ready for this?

Fire, strife, and fear,

Are you ready for this?

As I whisper in your ear,

Are you ready for this?

Tell me can you hear,

Are you ready for this?

Please don't shed a tear,

Are you ready for this?

As I make it all disappear,

Are you ready for this?

Can you feel me cheer,

Are you ready for this?

As I wipe your world clear,

Are you ready for this?

In this I am sincere,

Are you ready for this?

I'LL DESTROY YOU DEAR!"

Blossom literally jumped at the loud, sudden ending. Shivers ran down her spine and her heart was racing a thousand miles an hour. The voice singing the song had been truly frightening. It sang with a light, mocking but most of all hate filled tone which had changed completely on the last line to evil and demonic. Blossom had never heard anything so terrifying. For a few seconds, the ice queen was literally frozen in place from pure shock and fear. Then, her natural reactions started to kick back in. She sprinted at her top speed back to their room, leaving a trail of pink light behind.

The door swung upon with a slam, quickly followed by the frantic shout of "GIRLS, WAKE UP!" from the panicked leader. Buttercup and Bubbles were both out of bed in a flash, hovering over their beds in battle-ready stances. A few seconds passed until the awoken girls realized the lack of immediate threat. Then annoyance took full hold.

"You better spit out a good reason why you woke us up in the next ten seconds, Leader Girl! I was having an awesome dream that I was kicking Butch's butt. I was about ready to win!" Buttercup threatened as she put on the best glare she could muster at 6:30 a.m.

"Yeah, and I was getting to the part with the bunnies!" Bubbles joined in equally annoyed, but with a much lighter glare.

"I know it's early, girls, but something strange is going on here…" Blossom explained, as she attempted to keep a calm front. She was failing…horribly. Now fully awake, both sisters' were seeing straight through her bluff. They had never seen their leader so completely shaken, and that made them uneasy. While paranoid, Blossom wasn't one to get scared by little things.

Bubbles was the first to speak, "Strange?" It was a simple question, but one both sisters' were almost afraid to hear the answer to. Blossom stayed silent for a few moments letting the question hang in the air. She seemed to be reviewing, analyzing, and putting things together. Bubbles let out an inward sigh of relief. That was a very Blossom-like thing to do.

Finally, Blossom spoke up, "It all started when I went to brush my hair…" From there she explained everything; the song, the voice, and the possible message. She could see both Buttercup and Bubbles eyes widening as she told more and more of her story. Bubbles was clearly getting scared, while Buttercup seemed to be focusing intently on every word.

"So, you heard a voice in your head? Isn't that the first sign of crazy?" Buttercup joked, raising one eyebrow in mock disbelief. To the average person, it would have sounded as if Blossom had finally lost her mind from all the stress of crime fighting, but the Powerpuff Girls had come to accept anything as possible. It saved a lot of trouble down the road.

Blossom simply shot her raven-haired sister a half-hearted glare. Buttercup shrugged casually and settled down on her green bean bag with a small smirk. She loved when she got her riled. Buttercup was jerked out of her self-congratulatory revelry by Bubbles soft statement of what had been on everyone's mind, "Do you think…it was Him?"

Blossom seemed to mull this over. It made sense, after all. Him was the only known villain to be able to play mind games, and he was very good at it too. But something just didn't match up. Compared to Him's pitchy, high voice, this voice was consistently low and menacing. She couldn't rule out the possibility of an entirely new evil entity. For once in her life, Blossom hoped beyond hope that it was Him. At least then she might know how to deal with this. It would be familiar, and that was comforting.

"No…I don't think so…not this time." She could feel the questioning stares burning into her skull until the time caught her eye. 7:25 a.m., the school bell would ring in less than 10 minutes! "No time for this now! We're going to be late for school!" Both girls let out a small gasp, and soon there was a fury of motion. Pink, blue and green flashes flitted randomly around the house as the girls scrambled to get ready. Within seconds, the girls were done and flying at top speed through the brisk morning air toward their school. Underneath them the city of Townsville seemed tranquil and calm as the first golden rays of the sun kissed the pavement. A small smile flitted across Blossom's face. This was the Townsville they fought for; a calm, peaceful city of neighborly people and endless opportunity. For this city, she would fight against any villain that came their way.

A single thought floated in her head,

"Bring it on."

And he did, oh, how he did.

Later that day…

School had passed by un-eventfully. Blossom had gotten an A on a math test, Buttercup had ruled dodge ball at recess, and Bubbles had drawn another colorful drawing in art. All in all, it was a very average day. And like any average day, the girls had started their trek from school to home on foot. It had become a sort of tradition that they didn't fly home. They all agreed it was nice to stay and enjoy the scenery from the ground every now and then. The day was sunny, and the sky was clear, truly a fine day that gave life to everyone and everything. The foreboding incident of the morning had been quickly shoved away and forgotten, pushed into a dark corner of their minds. That is, until a familiar voice chimed in Blossom's head…

"Are you ready for this?" This time it was a clear cut statement, with a hint of impatience and equal malice. Blossom stopped sharply in her tracks, her heart skipping a beat. The other two puffs quickly stopped also, looks of alarm on both their faces.

"Did you girls hear that?" Blossom asked in a hushed whisper.

Both nodded their heads slightly, uncertain.

"No? Oh well, ready or not, here I come!"

And with that, the whole world seemed instantly dyed red. The scenery turned from vibrant blues and greens to variations of red, the darkest being slightly deeper than Blossom's bow. It happened in the blink of an eye, leaving the girls confused and disoriented. Not only had the color of the atmosphere change, but the feel did also. Everything became sluggish and hazy, while a frightful energy seemed to electrify the air. The girls had just stepped into a living nightmare.

"Welcome to my world, girls. Make yourself at home, but don't get too comfy. Your train is coming soon." The voice was light and cold, lingering on every word, savoring its hidden meaning.

"Train?! What train you talking about, loony? And why don't you show you're ugly mug, you coward!" Buttercup was standing fists clenched at her sides, eyes staring daggers at an invisible target.

The voice seemed a bit taken aback but soon replied with barely contained hate, "My, my, such impatience! Ready to leave so soon, eh, Buttercup? And here I thought I'd be kind and let you girls say farewell. Alas, all in vain. Well, I'll be happy to oblige!" A loud unsettling cackling was followed by a sudden crack of noise, like the roar of thunder.

And with that the whole scenery began to blur, smudge, and twirl. Streets blended with trees, which blended with buildings and clouds. Up and down became unrecognizable. Blossoms head was swimming and her thoughts refused to come through the splitting pain. For once, Blossom could not think up a clever plan. Her mind felt empty and blank, a wasteland of static. Yet through the mist one question escaped,

"Who are you?"

It was small and strangled yet the spectral villain must have heard, because at that moment everything came to an abrupt stop. As Blossom came to, she realized nothing but white surrounded her. Then, to her horror, she realized her sisters were nowhere in sight. But before she could call out for them, a blurry shadow in the shape of a man formed in front of her. Something in her heart told her that this was the villain that had literally thrown her world upside down. A death glare settled permanently on her face as the figure began to speak,

"Well, I suppose I should tell you that much. After all, what fun would this little game be if I didn't give you some hints along the way? My name is Eterno Maldire, although King of the World, Future Dictator, and Undisputed Ruler would fit just as well. "

Blossom could feel rage start to well up uncontrollably inside her. Something about this guy infuriated her to the core. Perhaps it was the cocky and teasing tone present in every note of his voice or maybe it was the aura of superiority the figure emanated in excess. Whatever it was, Blossom had a deep desire to see a smoldering crater where he stood.

"You think this is all a game?!" Blossom finally yelled, to which the figure only laughed in reply; a warped little laugh of complete insanity. Anger slowly turned to confusion as this went on for almost 2 minutes. Then the figure finally seemed to compose itself enough to say,

"Why, my dear child, everything is a game! You'll learn this yourself someday soon, but for today I have said enough. A good villain never reveals too many secrets at one time, for where's the mystery in that? Trust me, we'll have plenty of time to get to know each other later, but for now it's time to send you and your sisters on your way."

And with those final words, Blossoms world started to slowly blur and fade away. This time however it was strangely tranquil and dream-like, totally different from the earlier swirling nightmare. Still Blossom fought to hold on. She still had so many questions for this mysterious entity, so many blanks to fill in. Yet the harder she struggled against the incoming haziness, the harder it became to resist and Blossom soon found herself lost in the black abyss of a deep slumber. In the back of her mind, a lullaby drifted softly through the darkness,

"Sleep little one,

May your dreams be sweet,

For when dreaming is done,

Only a nightmare you'll meet

Rest little hero,

Gather your strength,

For your chance is near zero,

At any length

Play little girl,

Upon a imaginary star,

For your fate will unfurl,

In a future far."

(A/N: Well, I hope you enjoyed the first chapter. This chapter is really a lead-in to the main plot, so expect a lot more action in the next one! Questions will be answered and new situations will arise. Also, the Rowdyruff Boys are planned to make an appearance next chapter. As far as romance, I'll mostly focus on Brick and Blossom, though I plan to add a little bit of something for all the RRB X PPG pairings.)