Sorry for the lack of comments, but things have been getting busy lately. Here's a new quick chappie, but I promise that the chapters will be much longer soon! Enjoy!
The Dark Prince II
Chapter 7: Plot and Return
Vasilisa huffs as soon as she walks out of the elevator. She has waited for two days for someone to finally tell her that she was going into the Ghost World to do her job with Plasmius, but she still has no idea as to what the holdback was. She has been staying in a residence room specifically made for her and was ordered- er, convinced- to enjoy herself during the wait. Since then, she took the time to explore most of Los Angeles and relax in her room to talk with her family through phone. She became angry when Doctor Johnson called her literally at six in the morning to come see him and Plasmius in the main laboratory.
The stall had better be good, she muses.
As soon as she enters the laboratory, she shivers a bit at the cold temperature change before walking towards the cylindrical glass, right where Plasmius and the scientist were murmuring amongst themselves. Vasilisa clears her throat loudly, causing them to turn to her with surprised looks before they smile. Vasilisa gives Vlad a poisonous look before nodding to the doctor.
"About damn time," Vasilisa grumbles and crosses her arms. "What the hell took so long? Why haven't we made a move sooner?"
"Language, Agent Gray." Doctor Johnson warns with a firm stare before he taps the clipboard in his hands. "And as for your rude questions, we had a bit of a holdback. We called you in early to ensure that you would do your task at any time without questions. We had to carefully plan out all flaws for this course, but Mr. Plasmius' condition was very concerning."
"Condition?" Vasilisa frowns before she glances at Vlad. Upon closer inspection, she noticed that he had quite a few bruises around his entire body. His attire was singed and his hair was slightly disheveled. She raises a brow. "Not that I care, but what happened to you?"
Vlad gives her a nasty smile before he points at the scar glowing on his forehead. Vasilisa barely held back a grimace as it pulsed with raw energy. "You know where I got this scar?" Vasilisa slowly shakes her head and listens with genuine curiosity. "Well, do you remember what I told you about how I last saw Pariah Dark and Danny Phantom?"
Vasilisa raises a brow. "You tried to steal the throne, I believe. But it backfired horribly and therefore caused Pariah Dark to banish you from the Ghost World permanently."
"Right," Vlad's smile almost turned maniac. "And to prove that for all to see, he brandished the Mark of Exile upon me. As long as I have this mark, I can never set foot upon the Ghost World without withering in pain. The banishment was literally set to keep me away forever."
Vasilisa's eyes widen in surprise before they narrow. "... So then how do we expect for YOU to lead us into the Dark Castle when you can't even handle going through a ghost portal?"
"We figured that out," Doctor Johnson says calmly. He reaches into his pocket and pulls out what appears to be an ancient talisman. It held an eerie aura as Vasilisa slowly takes it into her hands. She blinks in surprise while the doctor chuckles. "Recognize it? I had you sneak it away from that outdated museum a while ago, remember?"
Vasilisa did remember; she had read a bit of history about this particular item. It was known to the world as the "Amulet of Ra." It was a lost artifact from Egypt used thousands of years ago by the Pharaohs. It symbolized protection from all evil spirits and curses that were placed upon them. It is a small gold pendant that has a blaring design of the sun with the Eye of Horus just at the center of the star. It weren't such an old antique Vasilisa would give it to her sister as she loves that sort of stuff.
Vasilisa frowns as she inspects the talisman. "I'm not following."
The doctor smirks again as he takes the pendant and hands it over to Vlad, who glances at it with hungry eyes. "... Did you know that the Egyptians were the first ghost hunters known in history?"
Vasilisa blinks, still confused.
"Well, they had all sorts of contraptions when dealing with ghosts at their time. This pendant was made by a magician to ensure that any curse thrown at the Pharaohs would be weakened, if not completely countered. They are very strict when it concerns protecting their kings from all evil entities, even from the afterlife."
Vasilisa had no idea about any of this. As intriguing as it sounded, she frowns and crosses her arms. "Still not following."
The doctor sighs before he point at the pendant now around Vlad's neck, hovering just above where his heart would be. "I'll make it simple. This pendant can repel any sort of ghost magic or curse, even the Mark of Exile, from whoever uses it. With Plasmius wearing this, it can protect him from that curse indefinitely."
"Not indefinitely," Vlad corrects as he points at the bruises and singes on his clothing. "The Mark of Exile is no joke to reckon with; it's a very powerful and lethal curse for anyone to behold. Even this pendant cannot repel the curse; at most I can feel uncomfortable bruising and burning from within my core."
Vasilisa's eyes widen in surprise. For a brief moment, a flash of concern for the evil ghost washes through her. Plasmius was not only going through with risking his core for their cooperation, but it was straining his soul even more if they decide to use the pendant. Was he really that determined to destroy Danny Phantom and Pariah Dark? Thinking about the pendant makes Vasilisa frown even more. "But you said it repels evil ghosts; why didn't it reject YOU?"
"I said it rejects all ghost activity from whoever WEARS the pendant," The doctor smiles darkly. "Never said it'll reject its wearer."
Vasilisa falls silent again before she sighs. "Whatever floats your boat..."
"Excellent, then you'll be ready for the trip by tonight?"
"TONIGHT?" She squeaks, staring up at the ghost in disbelief. "But look at yourself! You hardly look in any condition to take on a ghost monarchy, least of all-"
"I am perfectly fine, Miss Gray. You don't need to worry about little old me; ghosts recover quite fast." Vlad waves a dismissive hand before he smirks devilishly at her. "Though thank you for your concern." He ignores the growl she emits before he turns to the doctor. The doctor then gives Vasilisa a firm stare. "You agreed to do this task, Vasilisa. I hope you haven't changed your mind?"
"N-No, of course not!" The Dark Huntress shakes her head hastily and holds her head up high. "I'm just surprised by the quick change of plans is all! I'm ready for anything!"
"That's our girl," Vlad beams as he claps his hands together and rubs them together almost menacingly. "Then it's settled; everything has been prepared for takeoff, so I suggest that you clean up and finish any business that you want to take care of before we leave. I'm sure it may take a while before we come back."
Vasilisa shivers and wonders if Vlad was aware of how close she is to her mother and sister. She wisely says nothing but nods to the two men before turning to leave with hundreds of thoughts running through her mind all at once.
As soon as the door slides shut behind her, Vlad's smirk widens while the doctor clicks his tongue. "I dunno how to deal with that girl's attitude. She's fantastic at her job, but she is terrible at keeping her comments to herself."
"Let her be, Doctor. She's just a child, after all." Vlad says calmly as he floats out of the room with the doctor beside him. "She's so young to be doing this; I applaud her for her bravery. And sacrificing her childhood to settle her family debt and to protect this world..." Somehow thinking about the ghost hunter reminded him of a certain Halfa who has done the same exact thing when he was still alive...
Vlad suddenly frowns. He has the theory that if she was as noble as Danny Phantom was when he first got his ghost powers, then she would be a force to reckon with. In order for her to remain at good terms with her, he has to act cool and earn her trust. He barely held back a snarl when he remembered that he lost Danielle through unfortunate luck; such a waste of time.
The men casually move through the hallway towards their final destination. Several scientists who catch a look at Vlad barely held back their shudders before they force themselves back to work. The ghost smirks knowing how his powerful aura held such an effect on the humans. They stop at a secured door and Vlad waits as the doctor punches in a code before the door slides open. They enter an enormous room that held no purpose except for a peculiar object at the other side, surrounded by various machines and computers.
A huge man-made ghost portal.
While the doctor talks with the other scientists about the machine updates, Vlad hovers over the portal and simply stares at the hollow machinery inside. He smirks widely and holds his hands together behind him.
Soon he will be able to go back to the Ghost World and claim what is rightfully his.
He cannot wait for the moment to take Danny Phantom away and make him suffer painfully and slowly. The best part will be watching the King witnessing his mate suffer and be unable to do anything. Vlad cannot wait to watch the power and pure energy drain from the monarchs until they are nothing but ectoplasmic mush.
He chuckles darkly as he fingers his amulet absentmindedly. It will all end...
... By tonight.
:)(:
Danny and Pariah Dark are floating past Saturn as they enjoy a moment of tranquility on their final night of their anniversary trip. Danny's eyes were glowing in bliss and content as his husband gently leads them towards Earth while on a giddy Night Mare.
The trip was everything that Danny could have dreamed it would be. Although they only saw portions of the universe together, they saw so many things that he could never even hope to think of. So many different worlds, and there were very few that had life inside them! Danny had never imagined seeing such creatures in his entire afterlife, and although they haven't seen all of the universe, Danny felt complete.
Having such an exciting trip with his husband was so worth it.
He was so blissful at that moment that his husband could feel the joy radiating from him. He couldn't help but smile gently and give a soft kiss on his mate's forehead. Danny nuzzles against him fondly; no words needed to be said for them to know what they were feeling.
But that moment is cut short when Danny feels a sharp tug in his core. He inhales deeply and shudders. His husband takes notice of this and abruptly stops the horse to hold him by the shoulders and look at him cautiously. "Are you all right?" He asks, concerned.
Danny barely holds back the urge to grimace and forces himself to smile. "Yeah, I'm fine. Just... Tired is all..."
Pariah Dark did not look convinced. However, he didn't push onto the matter and held his mate closer before they resume their flight back home. During the suddenly tense silence, Danny's mind was buzzing in worry. He knew exactly what has just happened.
Primal instinct.
It was always a sense of foreboding that his body would radiate whenever trouble was about to brew. It always alerted him that something dangerous was coming; that something bad was about to happen. It was almost a sixth sense that he has whenever a ghost would pop up, but now as a prince it was a foreshadow that hints when something almost catastrophic would occur.
He almost growls; it HAD to happen right after their wonderful anniversary!
He decided that for now, he would have to worry about it later. He was not about to upset his mate right after he had given him the best gift he could ever hope to have. Instead, he'll deal with it as soon as they return home and when things get back to normal...
Hint, hint of new chapter! Review and comment, please!