Well hot damn.
To those who still read this story, I just wanna let you know that I am back in business. To those who care to know why it took 400 years for me to update: I met the love of my life and got married, organized and led a protest march/rally in Lexington against Monsanto (cause they suck), and my computer completely DIED for about 2 months. The end. :)
On an unrelated note, my husband thinks it's weird that I write cartoon porn, but he eats bugs and uses vinegar for deodorant so WHATEVER. I love him so much. C:
Please enjoy.
Madness with its wings
Has covered half my soul
It feeds me fiery wine
And lures me into the abyss.
Requiem by Anna Akhmatova
-XxX
Time seems to be haunting me. Mocking me, almost. I hear its tick in every corridor. It exists in every sunken hallway. With its tick comes the looming shadow of the unknowable; a vast, expansive cloud filled with varying possibilities that I will never be able to fully control. Each one sets me on edge with a nauseous mixture of excitement and terror. How does one handle himself in the calm, ticking approach of the singular moment that everything hinges on? It's the cumulation of all my planning, of years spent brooding and raging and fighting with not just the world but myself. Everything hinges on what's to come, and all I can do is wait and prepare as best I can. One can only hope that I am ready...that we are ready.
With calculating eyes, I watched Daniel unleash a wave of raw power inside the obstacle course. He dodged and evaded everything from bullets to blades, moving with a practiced fluidity that reminded me of myself. He didn't hesitate to remove the things that impeded his path, reacting on instinct just as I had taught him. In two swift clicks I rewinded the video and watched him do it again, mouth curling into a satisfied smile.
Behind me, the cold, sterile lab echoed with the impassioned symphonies of Antonin Dvorak, almost drowning the quiet beeps of the many active computers. With a disposition balanced precariously between the constant twitch of anxiety and equanimity, I sipped at a glass of red wine and reclined into the seat, evaluating the performance of my dear apprentice for the week. He's already come such a long way in a short period of time. I knew a focused environment was all he needed to reach his potential. Daniel enjoys training too, I can tell. He may think he can hide his smiles from me, but I see how animated he becomes in the throws of battle. He's energized by the fight, and even better, addicted to the rush it brings.
Though I admit, that's not entirely his doing.
I can still remember the look he gave me after I removed that gaudy collar and implanted a more subtle leash under his skin. The boy is correct in only a few of his suspicions, though. I'm sure he's guessed its role as a tracking device, and probably some pain inducing function designed to keep him in line. But he'd be wrong about the latter idea. The spider-like genius latched onto his spinal cord is much too delicate for such rough activity, although if the boy ever tries to remove the device himself, he could potentially induce a lifetime of chronic nerve pain or even paralyze himself.
The entire micro-apparatus is firmly attached to his central nervous system, each painstakingly designed leg equipped with ground-breaking technology the world will never have access to. It's an action-reaction stimulated device, activating only in response to natural functions that occur within the human body. When Daniel trains or fights, his body releases adrenaline and to some degree, endorphins. Once the micro-apparatus detects the normal synapses that pass to induce the body's chemical production of each natural drug, it enhances the flow of neurotransmitters and effectively triples its production. Daniel, without realizing it, experiences three times the normal amount of adrenaline in a fight, increasing his endorphins, sense of euphoria, and most of all, motivation.
When creating such brilliance, I remained well aware that I needed to find a way of keeping the device from activating in response to every synapse that passes through his nervous system. Otherwise, such an overload of chemical responses throughout the body could kill the boy. At the very least, his experience of pain would be three times greater than necessary. It took numerous tests on cloned replicas of his nervous system, but I finally engineered a way for my device to be selective in its response to the flow of synapses, fine-tuning the reaction sensors to specific neurotransmissions. Now, as it gradually assimilates with Daniel's body, the only body it can work on, it will progressively come to operate at its designed levels, levels which only I can adjust via computer.
Eventually there will come a point in time when the device will be unnecessary. When Daniel finally accepts his new life with me, I can easily deactivate all but the tracking device. Of course, by then his body will likely have become so accustomed to the induced triplication that it will continue producing increased amounts of the specified chemicals without my help. A rather convenient after-effect, I think. It virtually guarantees that the boy will forever be touched by my influence, even at the smallest biological and involuntary level.
I filed the video log of his obstacle performance away, satisfied with the progress. In moments, the recording of his sessions against my mutated soldiers played before me, the computer analyzing everything from the angle of his attacks to his adrenaline gradations. The micro-apparatus has yet to reach its designed levels, but already a detectable increase in Daniel's endorphin and adrenaline productions could be observed. Coupled with his already present passion for ghost fighting, it will be a matter of days before he becomes consumed with training and improving, undoubtedly further using the exercise as a coping mechanism as well.
Oh, but I wasn't about to limit my little device to the training halls. Not when it had applications that extended all the way to the bedroom. Daniel has always fought with me when I try to help him, when I just want the boy to yield in the face of his unmanageable burdens. I know how stressed he is on a daily basis, and while such stress keeps him well preoccupied, his stubbornness will eventually cause an unintentional breakdown. Once he acknowledges our intimacy as a source of nothing but pleasure, as his fundamentalsource of satisfaction, he'll subconsciously accept it without a nagging thought. Daniel has been suffering and fighting for so long that I know he's craving a source of comfort just to keep his sanity, a grounding point he'll know he can always turn to. Inevitably I will wear him down, and the device under his skin will assure my place as his grounding point by increasing his production of dopamine, serotonin, oxytocin and vasopressin during intimacy; all the hormones, in short, that create love.
I suppose playing with the hormones in his body to effectuate such strong feelings of attachment could be construed as creating a fabrication of the "real thing", but that's hardly true at all. There is nothing mysterious about emotions. They are nothing more than the result of chemical responses in our body, and once they are created, they are by our own definition, real. Daniel is already on his way to seeing me as a source of comfort. How could he not when I'm the only constant he has left in such an unpredictable and bitter world? My device, by giving him elevated levels of all the hormones that increase pleasure and foster attachment, is doing nothing but speeding up the inevitable. I will become Daniel's ultimate source of happiness, whether he wants me to be or not.
I watched my little badger zip around the melee room, looking tired, but still very much focused on the fight. The creatures of my own design charged after him, oblivious to the way he herded them all into a solid pack with his flight pattern. Daniel flew to the head of the horde and released a mildly powerful wail as I had instructed that day, stretching and strengthening his endurance. The attack clearly took a chuck of energy from the young hybrid, but not so much that he couldn't remain in ghost form and continue flying. As for the unfortunate horde, a majority had fallen to the unforgiving floor far below and ceased to exist. There was no pool producing more minions this time, and Daniel had nothing more to do but pick off the remaining monsters with the last of his strength.
He succeeded, triumphing over the exercise as I knew he would. The only significant mistake he made was at the very end, when a creature very nearly took advantage of his fatigue and almost impaled him with outstretched claws. I had chided him for such carelessness, not to mention making me fret with anxiety. I don't enjoy putting Daniel in life-threatening training sessions such as these, but it's the best way for him to learn. Otherwise, he won't be prepared to face the unforgiving reality outside these walls.
It didn't take much longer to review the last of the video logs. Once they were organized and filed away, I stretched from my chair and glanced at the clock. Daniel would be finishing up his tutoring session within the hour, leaving me just enough time to enjoy Dvorak's seventh symphony. Without much care, I brought up the video feed for all of my current spy-bugs flying around Amity Park. Their main operation has been to locate any signs of the resistance the Fenton's have undoubtedly been heading, but truthfully, such efforts have been trivial at best. If I really wanted to find the resistance I'd have it done in a matter of days. After all, there aren't very many places for them to hide at this point. Thanks to the wall I've erected around Amity Park, I know they're here, trapped like rats waiting for extermination. And why waste the effort to find them when I know they'll come to me?
I mustn't be too incautious, of course, or hasty, for that matter. But I can feel the burning desire for retribution grow with each passing day, itching to take swift action against my enemies. Each day they live sets me on edge, not allowing me to enjoy the full satisfaction of my triumph. I know they're out there, desperate to take everything away from me again, especially Daniel. But as long as I live I won't let that happen. Not ever again. They will be dealt with in due time, and once they are gone Daniel and I can finally relax, free from the skeletons of our past.
The numerous spy-cam videos flitted past my narrowed eyes, cycling throughout the city. Much of the images revealed the same, repeating scene: crumbled, burned, and ruined buildings, the occasional battalion of marching soldiers, and vultures picking at their latest meal. The only time I paused the swift chain of video feeds was when one contained a more interesting scrap of evidence, such as a dirt covered urchin scrabbling over a set of rubble. Nearly every time I stopped on such a scene, however, it was just another ambling, confused citizen with no sense of direction except the next source of food. Such disappointment was all I was granted today, but it was no matter. As I said, in the end they will come to me, and I am more than ready for them.
Sighing, I closed down the spy-cam videos and quickly checked up on my busy scientists. I didn't talk to them for long. I just wanted to make sure they were on schedule. The super portals needed to be operational as soon as possible. Before long there was nothing left to do but collect Daniel, and a true, genuine smile spread across my face at last.
In the world above, a quiet stillness reigned. No lingering servants could be heard or seen, giving the air an abandoned effect, though it was easy enough to disregard. I walked silently through the halls, ignoring the irrational yet ever constant itch to have Daniel beside me. My pace seemed to quicken the closer I got to the tutoring room.
When I rapped on the study door, both occupants turned to face me with differing expressions. The catty smirk on Ghostwriters visage taunted Daniel all the way out the door, and the boy's burning resentment smoldered under a determinedly stone face. I placed a hand on his shoulders as we exited down the hall, the tension in his posture hardly unraveling. Absentmindedly, my fingertips caressed the fine scar hiding the symbiotic chip, anticipating the day its full influence took hold on my youth's disposition.
"You look particularly jaded today, little badger." I commented, hoping only to hear his voice respond. He replied, but the words were biting.
"I'm always particularly jaded."
Sarcasm. Yes, nothing out of the ordinary today, that was for sure. I watch him from the corner of my eye, taking in his more squared stance and brighter eyes. I wasn't quite sure if his stronger posture was from the usual concoction of tension and anger, or if something else had infected his countenance. Something that suggested his rebellious and stubborn nature that I'd worked hard to repress.
My eyes crinkled in a barely detectable trace of amusement at this fragile bravado. It was almost fun, watching my little badger react to the whirlpool of emotions being cooked up inside him. He's been particularly resistant lately, but how could he not? I'd had him near the end of his rope, extinguished and abused into a resigned despair (particularly after putting him on his knees like that in the den) and now he's having to confront a shifting state of mind that goes against everything he's ever felt about me. Though the growing petulant gleam of resilience infuriates me every time I look into his ice blue eyes, it's a perfectly understandable reaction that will crumble in due time. This ghostly husk of fortitude is nothing more than denial strutting along the edge of a poorly constructed stage, from which the boy will inevitably fall. Daniel won't be able to pretend forever.
Lunch was quiet. The boy didn't eat as much as I would have liked, but at least his appetite was improving. A tired, brooding expression hung from his shoulders as he picked at the steamed broccoli, looking very much like he was trapped in his own head. I wanted to let the boy pick the training regiment today, but his human half had been neglected long enough and Daniel wasn't about to run laps willingly. Perhaps we'd work on something combat related afterwards, something that he could use to lose himself in. I think I was feeling unusually sympathetic today.
After our meal, we headed for the locker rooms. He lamented running laps only briefly before disappearing inside, stalling and taking longer than necessary to change clothes.
Daniel came out in full running gear, loosening his muscles with a casual stretch and ignoring my roving eye. I followed the boy into the gym with an unconcealed smirk, admiring the definition along his body. He preformed his pre-cardio stretches, tolerating my groping hands as I assisted him. By the time he was throughly loosened up, a healthy blush graced his cheeks. He didn't look at me or say a word before taking off down the track, his graceful stride quickly putting some distance between us. Still, I watched as he ran with the exertion of someone attempting to outrun reality itself, going around and around the track without pause. As expected, he wouldn't be needing my supervision today. Running laps hardly requires a coach, and I had a few other matters to attend to.
I let him keep going for a good while just to be sure, practically mesmerized by the exertion he put into his workout. Perspiration was beginning to soak into his shirt and slide down the flushed skin of his face, yet he wasn't pausing for a break. Admirable. Daniel closed in on his second sprinted mile, nearly barreling into me when I stepped onto the track and called for him to stop.
"Aah!"
Not aware of my sudden intrusion until it was too late, the boy yelped and hastily slowed his pace, my solid chest bringing him to a complete halt.
"Jesus, Vlad!" he gasped, panting heavily and taking a few hasty steps back.
Daniel leaned his hands on trembling knees, dry heaving as his body caught up with him. His head hung like dead weight between his arms as he tried to catch his breath, swaying unsteadily. I closed the space between us and shoved a bottle of water into his hands, only slightly concerned.
"You looked like you could use a break, little badger."
He scowled, failing to share in my amusement.
"Well you could have given me a little more warning."
Grumbling, Daniel twisted off the bottle cap and gulped down half of it. I watched his throat expand and contract, diamonds of sweat trickling down taunt skin and making his body gleam with a suggestive allure. He coughed on his water when I moved even closer, a touch of wariness entering his scowl. I took no heed of this, placing my hands on his warm hips with a smile.
"There are matters I must attend to in the Ghost Zone." I told him, rubbing smooth circles into his skin. "I trust you will continue training as required."
It wasn't a question. Daniel gave me a long look through furrowed brows and took another swig of the water.
"Well it's not like I have anything else to do around here." he finally replied, shifting his body under my hands.
"Oh, now I wouldn't say that..."
Daniel stopped fidgeting when I caressed my hand over the front of his shorts, looking straight at my chest rather than my eyes. The licentious smile on my face never budged, visions of the way he keened for me last night, writhing like a cat in heat, visibly playing across both of our mind's eye. A slight blush could be detected under his resolute scowl, reminiscent of the vivid flush he wore last night. The glistening beads of exertion dripping down his face could be mistaken for last night's passion, when his eyes were squeezed shut while puffy, abused lips formed a long moan. Such a beautiful creature.
Sadly, such fond remembrances would have to wait. Daniel had his training to complete and I had a dream specter to speak with. The boy still didn't stir when I moved my wandering hand to his face, brushing a thumb under the dark circles of his eyes. He was unresponsive to my kiss, until a silent warning squeeze on his hip urged him to reciprocate.
"I will return later."
He nodded, understanding my unspoken command. I placed one last kiss on his cold lips and left him alone, pushing away the momentary twinge in my chest. Daniel was off and running before I even closed the door, pouring himself into his training as he was being programed to do. I left him, and walked down the expansive hallway alone. A lurking plague of impatience tugged at my heart, inappropriate and constant in its want, tarnishing my pleasant thoughts. I touched a finger to the spot where Daniel's cold, unresponsive lips last rested.
I wanted the chip to work faster.
The boy was showing the blossoms of increased adrenaline levels, but if I was truly honest with myself, that's not what I really cared about. Even before I took over the world, Daniel loved using his powers and bettering himself with them. He probably doesn't even notice how addicted he's becoming to using his ghost powers. I, on the other hand, have never exactly been his favorite person. The progressive influence of the hormone increase will be much less fluid in comparison. While the fluctuating mood swings and aggressive behavior prove that he is indeed feeling its effects, I tire of this waiting game. From that first moan I procured all those weeks ago, he's bottled up what he doesn't want to confront, what he's absolutely terrified of. I can already see how much he resents himself for what he feels when we are alone. He can't see it yet, but really, what I'm doing is liberating him from his more his denial mounts, to sooner the bottle will break. Eventually, Daniel won't be able to ignore the fact that he enjoys it when I touch him, that he wants me to. But coming to terms with his emotions and how he sees me will take much longer than a mere week. He's spent years giving his love to everyone else in the world: his town, his family, his friends, Samantha.
I felt my jaw twitch involuntarily.
Freeing Daniel from his shame is just the first step. The boy has been entirely too careless with his emotions, giving himself to the world without once thinking of himself. Some would mistake his actions admirable, but such foolish and ignorant thought fails to see the inner damage an altruistic lifestyle like that causes. How can no one else see his burden? The heroism of Danny Phantom has reduced the boy to an animal whose behavior serves to benefit all others at his own expense, and no one, not even Daniel, cares to see this cold truth. He's so wrapped up in saving everyone else that he dismisses his own pain and suffering, downplaying his burden like it's a small price to pay. Only I can remedy this mental failing of his, and taking that awful, damaging, superhero crutch away will help him in the long run. Saturating him with human misery and showing how no one comes to his aid as readily as he came to theirs is the only way to make him see the truth, to make him stop degrading himself for the sake of lesser beings. Admittedly, I can't deny the spirit of personal vengeance has colored my intentions slightly. Occasionally I might be too rough with the boy, sometimes because of lingering, personal resentment or other times because of the burning indignation that he'd allow a being as strong as himself to be so carelessly used by others. But it is no matter.
Danny Phantom, the manifestation of all his insecurities and the embodiment of all his abuse, is a thing of the past. His very identity has been stripped of him, along with the support and approval of those he thinks he needs. The cold abandonment of his family and friends is but a single step in making the boy my own. Making sure he continues holding onto that bitterness and despair is key to keeping him under my control. He needs to be run ragged and stretched to his very limits, left hanging right on the precipice of collapse, and then unconditionally brought back-saved-by none other than myself. This is how I will solidify my place in Daniel's heart. The love of his family and friends will count for nothing against the suffering he's endured, the dignity he's been stripped of, and the redemption I alone can offer him.
But breaking Daniel doesn't mean destroying his spirit. His unique fire is what makes him who he is. Molding and harnessing that inner spirit is how I will truly make him my own. He won't be bogged down or restrained by the mental obstacles standing in his way anymore. He'll be an entirely different person if his family and friends ever see him again; even the boy knows he's not the same person anymore. No, he's on his way to becoming something better. Something much better. Daniel will finally be free from the stigma of his born surname, and I will at last have what I've always deserved.
With a grin stretched wide across my face for no one but myself, I shifted into Plasmius, hovering in the air for a moment before diving into the Ghost Zone. I hardly noticed the encompassing landscape, lost in thoughts as vast as the world around me. Aside from my young protegee, I had measures to take in order to keep my territory under control. Measures only Nocturne, a ghost as old as dreams, could help with.
He lived in one of the more isolated, deeper parts of the Zone, in the background like the subconscious mind he so enjoyed toying with. Even with my speed, it took a fair amount of time to reach his layer. I knew I was getting close when I saw his Sleepwalkers drifting around like forgotten after-thoughts, letting me pass with silent consent. Nocturne, unlike Walker, understood the basic laws of a Ghost's territory and power. He respected these long standing morés, and for this, I trusted him despite the power-hungry streak he had. I could hardly fault him for that, now could I?
The green wash of color in the zone turned darker the farther I ventured, speckled with the imitation of stars. Really they were but motes of concentrated ectoplasm floating around listlessly, created over time by the obsession of the ghost who resided in this area. It evidenced Nocturne's age, as only ghosts who have been around for a long time leave a strong enough imprint on their territory to shift its physical make up. There were no floating purple doors anymore. I was surrounded by nothing but evanescent glimmers and wandering ghouls, exposed and dwarfed by the arrant emptiness, forcibly and curiously reminded of a lucid dream.
I was not surprised when Nocturne rose out of the darkness, seeming to peel away from the atmosphere. His size was enormous, his horned head alone larger than I was tall. Again, I was not surprised. Ghosts tended to enjoy making themselves larger than life in a display of ego. Unimpressed but amused, I met his even gaze, floating to his level so I wouldn't have to look up. Nocturne was stoney for only a moment, and then a smirk cracked his front.
"Plasmius. To what do I owe this great pleasure?"
"Hello Nocturne." I replied, not missing the touch of cheek in his greeting. "I'm assuming you've taken well to your island in the human world."
"Yes, they have been quite...satisfying." he purred, the smirk stretching into a thin smile. "Australians have such vivid imaginations, and the most wonderful dreams."
"Glad to hear it. Sadly, however, I must admit that I'm not here on a social call."
"Of course you're not, halfa. I never dreamed that you were." Nocturne smirked.
Ignoring the bad pun, I sized up his disposition before making my request. With a ghost like Nocturne, dealing in information wouldn't be free. He was too smart for that, but of course, I wasn't so stupid as to come unprepared. Even if Nocturne favored my plans with the human world, he would undoubtedly want something in return for his help.
"I am constructing a series of super portals in the human world. These portals are unlike anything created before, utilizing more energy than all the existing natural portals put together. As you know, such a strain on the Ghost Zone will tear the veil separating this world from the human one. It won't be anything like the time Pariah Dark absorbed Amity Park into the Ghost realm. The scale is much larger and much more permanent, encompassing all of humanity and the ghosts alike."
His expression quirked with interest, but remained silent, waiting.
"As I'm sure you also know, this world and the Ghost Zone are mirrors to each other. One cannot exist without the other. I come to you curious about how well one can exist within the other."
"Hmm." he hummed, stroking his oval face with starry claws. "Testing the limits as always, Plasmius? At least you are thinking this plan out throughly and seeking advice."
"Please Nocturne, don't insult me. When do I not think things out throughly?"
"Typically in any area concerning the Ghost boy, I'd say." He flashed me a wicked grin.
I glared, suddenly unamused with his entire presence.
"I'm not here to discuss Daniel. All I want is your information. I know you have the answers I want. Merging realities is a concept as abstract and dangerous as dreams."
"Indeed. And what do you intend to give me in exchange?"
"New territory. More dreams for you to leech."
"Leech, hm? At least the Ghost child wasn't so unsavory in his admonishment of my dream energy absorption. How big is this territory you speak of? Another little island?"
There was an irritable tick that bothered me whenever he mentioned my little badger. I didn't like him talking about Daniel.
"No. In exchange for your cooperation, I will relinquish the entire South American continent to you. And I don't mean ownership as a placeholder like in Australia, or like the other ghosts assisting in my takeover. When the human world is completely subsumed within this realm, what was once South America will be completely yours. You can peel the continent away and drag it back to your lair for all I care. That's nearly four hundred million dreams to harvest."
"You jest."
"I do not jest. And let me be forthright, Nocturne. I'm well aware that four hundred million dreams can equate to a lot of personal power, and yet my offer remains. If I ever catch so much as a whisper of a challenge from you, I'll make sure you regret dreaming ofthe possibility that you could take what is mine. You're not the only one with a personal army, and what's more, I have the one being who bested you at the height of your power under my control. Do not underestimate me."
Nocturne regarded me with an impressed glare, silently muling over my words. Taking advantage of his doused ego, I made my demands.
"I exchange for your cooperation, I want access to all of your information, and and in the future. I know you were one of the first ghosts to manifest in this world, and I know how closely you worked with the Observants before they decided to create their own self-worshipping society. You know more than you let on, and I want unrestricted access to that knowledge."
He remained quiet. Crimson eyes mirrored my steady gaze, seeming to size up my resolve. Our tense stare off was nothing more than ego clashing, and I waited impatiently for him to cease the ridiculous charade. We both knew he'd accept my proposal. It was too tempting for a ghost to resist.
"Out of whimsical curiosity, what did you do to the Observants? Surely they won't let you go through with such an...ambitious plan." He asked, stalling.
"Of course they wouldn't, but the Observants and I have been at odds for years. You know as well as I do they are nothing more than pomp and vanity, completely ineffectual and useless. A lot like the human world's United Nations, in fact, and like the U.N., they no longer exist. It took nothing more than a small siege to remove their annoying interference."
"Yes, they always did think much too highly of themselves, and all because of their connection with the Ancients. Speaking of their mysterious patrons, did you consider their opinion when destroying their lackeys?"
Nocturne took on a dangerous tone, subtle, but clearly present.
"The Ancients haven't been seen in eons." I replied coldly. "And if they took issue with what I was doing, they would have stopped me long ago, assuming they even exist. The fact that word of the Ancients only exists in ghost legend, coincidentally originating from the Observants themselves, leads me to believe that they are about as real as God."
"I see. Then perhaps the true test to their existence will be in the moment you activate those ghost portals, now won't it?" Nocturne cast me an unreadable smirk, trying to shake my resolve with fright. I scoffed at the attempt.
"Perhaps. But I don't deal in myths or ghost tales. I have a more established reality that I play in."
"And if you are wrong? If the Ancients kill you in punishment and all of your 'established reality' is rendered obsolete?"
"Then I'll come back as a ghost and wreck enough havoc to rival Pariah Dark." I glared, quickly tiring of the conversation that could go nowhere. His smirk was grating on my last nerve. "Nocturne, do you accept my exchange or not?"
He gave an oily smile.
"Of course I accept. What would you like to know, my insatiably curious halfa?"
When finally I returned home, satisfied but still a touch irritable, the first thing I wanted to do was check up on Daniel. Sadly, this desire had to be placed on hold. Skulker was awaiting my return, leaning against a spotless counter and sharpening one of his hunting blades needlessly. After dealing with the arrogance of a stuffed up fantasist like Nocturne, I can't say his presence was very welcome.
"Skulker." I greeted stiffly, stepping into the familiar setting of my lab.
"Plasmius." He grinned, retracting his blade with a sharp hiss. "I was wondering when you'd finally get back."
"Mm. I'm assuming you have something to report?"
"You're not going to like it." he was still grinning. Evidently he figured his news was worthy of a new toy. This did not bode well. I frowned, waiting.
"There's whispers in the ghost zone of a rising resistance. Despite his unpopularity, Danny Phantom used to have a few allies himself, and they're not happy with your new regime."
"You don't say?" I commented dryly, not nearly as impressed with this information as he seemed to be. I hardly saw a resistance of ghosts like Klemper as a problem.
"That's not the interesting part. Word is the humans are behind it. The whelp's little helpers are using Wulf to traverse the ghost zone, recruiting an army to bring you down."
That was much more concerning. I remained quiet, taking a moment to process this invaluable bit of information. It wasn't a surprise that those brats had survived my take over, as I have no doubt the rest of his family did too. But joining and accepting the help of ghosts? ...Maddie and Jack must want their son back very badly.
"How many have pledged their allegiance against me?"
"As far as I know, not a lot. Most don't want to get on your bad side, especially not for Phantom. But the few allies he does have could be formidable. Princess Dora and the Far Frozen have already agreed to help, and I hear Pandora is considering it too. With her help, that could be enough to lay siege to a small base like this."
"Or create a sizable distraction." I murmured to myself, eyes narrowing. I couldn't sit back and wait for the Fenton's anymore, not with such a substantial offensive mounting. It was imperative that Daniel remain unaware of any attempt to rescue him.
Skulker watched with badly concealed glee as I punched in the password to the weapon's vault, practically dancing on his toes when I pulled out a rather large gun and an upgrade chip.
"Do me a favor and try to change the mind's of Dora and the Far Frozen. I think that'll solve Pandora's indecision, as well."
"My pleasure." he grinned, immediately inserting the upgrade chip and charging up the new gun.
"Find the Fright Knight and have him help. I want those kingdoms leveled. Report back here as soon as you're done." I ordered coolly, dismissing him with a toss of the head.
Skulker was gone with a slightly mad laughter in his wake. I glared at the portal from which he left, the swirling green churning with the glow of a radioactive chemical. No doubt the efforts of my top trigger-happy minions would be missed on the stubbornness of Daniel's friends and family, but the ghosts will get the message. The Fenton's have no idea what game they're playing, as if morals or friendship alone will sway the minds of ghosts. Idiots.
With a quiet scoff I turned away from the portal, moving to a smaller cabinet and opening my stock of spy-bugs. It was going to require some very delicate maneuvering to make this play out how I wanted. The simplest way to find the base of the human resistance in Amity Park would be to chase them out, letting my horde of ghouls overrun the city until not a single crumbling building remained. But that would be a tad too obvious. I wanted the Fenton's to continue operating under the impression that they were hidden from me. Leaving them unharmed and just attacking the ghosts they've managed to scramble will give way to the idea that I only have eyes in the ghost zone, lulling them into a false sense of security while simultaneously limiting their options to whatever they have at their disposal in Amity Park. The last thing I wanted was for them to lay siege to the mansion. I could easily defeat them, of course, but that's not the issue. The problem would be hiding an entire battle from Daniel when it's happening in the front yard. If the boy witnessed an entire army fighting against me, it would undermine all of my hard work. He'd never give up his silly ideas of heroes and happy endings.
No, I needed to keep the Fenton's resistance small and focused. Without the help of an army, they can't make a frontal attack. There aren't enough humans willing or stupid enough to try storming my mansion, so that means the only way in is guerrilla warfare. I can so easily imagine the Fenton's believing themselves bold enough to infiltrate my defenses right where I'd least expect it, my own portal. After all, the over-the-top perimeter surrounding my mansion, the erected wall, and the leveled city all suggest that I'm expecting and prepared for a frontal attack. I'd never expect them to try sneaking in from the ghost zone, especially not after demonstrating how pervasive my influence is in that world by destroying their pathetically scrambled allies. I imagine they'd think themselves daring, maybe even courageous, rationalizing their stupidity by lowering their goals from over-throwing me to just getting Daniel back.
A very dark, very black look settled heavily on my face. I could feel it seep into the tiniest lines of my skin. They would pay dearly for their bleeding-hearts. Long have I been underestimated by those fools, and even now they think I've bitten off more than I can chew. One person can't rule the entire world, they whisper, a single human can't possibly hold on to that much power. But they forget that I am not a human, and it is to their own destruction that they do.
I quickly set to work fortifying my physical defenses, ordering more ghouls to stand guard around the perimeter of the mansion and to throw up another fence for good measure. The resistance would hear of the fall of their allies and then they'd see more monsters in the streets, completely eliminating any hope for a frontal attack. They'd be pushed back, cornered and forced to take desperate action that I was all too ready for. Three more spy bugs were activated and sent out, concentrating on areas with the most human activity. It wasn't essential to know the exact moment the Fenton's intended on coming through my portal, but it would be convenient.
Either way, I was more than ready for them.
Once all necessary precautions were taken, I let myself relax. My plans seemed foolproof, the only real variable being the boy that all this planning was being done for. Speaking of, it was high time I checked up on Daniel.
Cooling my head and returning to my human form, I exited through the secret entrance and came out in my study. The halls were very quiet, nothing seeming to be amiss. I made my way to the gym and upon opening the door, realized that perhaps I should have made Daniel my top priority. After all, when do I not?
The boy wasn't in the training room.
After entering the vacant track, I looked down at my watch, taking note of the hour. It wasn't time for dinner, but perhaps the boy had been feeling peckish? Where else could he have gone, really? A stir of displeasure returned my disposition to its blackened state as I spun on the spot and went to find my missing charge. He should know better than to wander off like this.
An instinctual twinge of suspicion nagged at the back of my mind, though the boy hardly has any avenues left to conspire against me. I couldn't find any justification for the uneasy feeling other than our history of antagonism. I suppose that could still serve as a viable reason for not trusting Daniel, but I like to think such a sordid past no longer holds relevance for us. But then, Daniel does have a dark side that holds grudges as badly as I do, and a natural resourcefulness that's infuriated and impressed me since the day we met.
My frown deepened, the nagging twinge taking root. I should know not to underestimate my little badger by now.
Nothing could be heard from the dining room as I approached, though the doors were wide open. My steps became purposeful in their pace, smacking against the carpet in a way that betrayed my darkening mood. Perhaps I've been giving the boy too much freedom. If he wasn't in the dining room, there are only a handful of places he has any business being in, and I hardly think I'm about to find him in any of them unless forced.
I turned the corner to the dining room, practically storming in and finding an empty room. But just as my anger was transitioning into fury, Daniel walked out of the swinging kitchen doors on the other end of the room, a half-eaten protein bar in his hand and a lingering laugh with the kitchen staff dying on his lips.
Our eyes locked immediately and he froze, food midway to mouth, a petrifying fear stoping him in his tracks. I stopped too, staring with a cold, calculative look I couldn't help. He still had his work-out clothes on. They were damp with sweat, even. Not a sound could be heard from the kitchens either, other than the usual bustle of dinner preparations. It took me a solid moment to realize there was nothing overtly suspicious going on, even if he was giving me a classic caught-red-handed look. He was only taking a snack break and perhaps exchanging pleasantries with the staff.
"Daniel?" I asked slowly, raising an eyebrow and feeling my shoulders relax slightly, the rage start to ebb away.
"I-I was just grabbing an energy bar." He forced out, the petrified look melting away in time with my rage. His brows furrowed indignantly. "Am I not allowed to take a break and grab a quick snack without you watching my every move?"
I glared dully, but the boy had a point.
"Who were you talking to in there?" I pressed.
For a second I thought a stricken look flashed across his eyes, but it was gone so fast I might have imagined it. Daniel continued to glower at me in a way that almost wilted my suspicions completely. Impressive.
"What, I can't laugh either now? I was just talking to the cook, looking for something quick to eat. I don't know if you're aware of this, but your kitchen is the size of a small library."
He held strong to this response, no more flashes of hesitation marring his conviction. It seemed...I was guilty of jumping to paranoid conclusions, which was a pleasant surprise.
"You can hardly blame me." I replied shortly, motioning him to come closer.
Daniel rolled his eyes, taking a great bite out of his protein bar and responding with something unintelligible and undoubtedly sarcastic. I smacked him lightly in the back of the head, a grudging smirk worming its way onto my face. What could have been an explosive fight was carried off by the pleasing idea of real trust potentially budding between us, something I'd coveted for a long time. This turned my smirk into an easy smile as I rested a hand on his shoulder, watching him finish his food with a sour pout still darkening his visage.
"Oh come now, little badger, would it help if I apologized?"
"You? Apologize?" He looked at me like I'd just told him I wanted to dye my hair pink. I think I was mildly offended. Well, maybe only slightly.
"I am capable of such things, you know." I drawled, looking down at him with a sideways glance. "But only to the select few who deserve it."
"Oh yeah?" he snorted, casting me a smirk that was a combination of mean, taunting, and a touch arrogant. It looked quite good on him. "By 'select few' do you actually mean people other than me?"
"My, my, aren't we the egotistical one today."
"No, I just happen to be the one you unfortunately spend ninety-eight percent of your time stalking, so all the evidence suggests 'select few' means no one." he snapped dismissively.
"If you're insinuating that this is somehow a bad thing, I'm not sure I understand. As you well know, the people you depend on only ever stab you in the back and abandon you." I responded in what some might say was an inappropriately light voice, pointedly patting his shoulder. Daniel didn't miss the jab laced between my words.
"My friends and family have never stabbed me in the back and they haven't abandoned me."
Daniel's strong reply held a barely detectable amount of doubt, which surprised me. I was sure I'd done a better job eradicating that ridiculous hope he kept clinging to.
"But you know they will, little badger." I replied ominously, my tone darkening. "I don't think I have to remind you of why."
I watched as his once fortified frown slowly deepened with thoughts that brought on the thick slough of misery, like a fabric absorbing too much water. He silently spiraled downward and transformed into something small and weary with pain, attempting to hold the thin shell of bravado, but suffocated by the burden of internalized depression. I knew Daniel's friends weren't they types of characters to cast him away like most, and deep down, Daniel probably knew it too. But I don't think he could see that far down anymore, even if he did still believe in his loved ones. There are some stains that never go away, stains that make a person recoil from things like happier pasts and cleaner embraces.
"You don't know that." he replied a long time later, but his voice was as empty as the conviction behind the statement.
I squeezed his shoulder gently, the shadow of a pernicious smirk ghosting across my features. We returned to the training halls, where Daniel requested offensive training with his ghost powers before I could insist on it. I required that we train together this time, working on molding our fighting styles to work fluidly with one another and moving like one entity as opposed to two. Daniel wasn't very keen on this particular regiment. He never has been. But the more I force him into it, the more he flourishes. I push him to use his agility and strength to its greatest capacity when he works with me, serving as a direct tutor in the field of action. Simultaneously, Daniel becomes more accustomed to my fighting style, having a firsthand model to refine his own growing technique after.
It is intensely satisfying to watch him imitate my brand of action, particularly when he trains on his own. It will be no mystery to any future observer that Daniel is my protégé.
"So what are you putting us up against?" He grumbled, still not happy with the training arrangements.
I transformed into my ghost half before answering, watching him do the same once I deactivated the suppression over his powers. He breathed deeply, feeling the cool rush of energy flow through his arms. A detached quality akin to calmness washed over his features, seeming to muffle the bitter pain that had so throughly burdened his human heart.
"Is there anything in particular you'd like to fight, Daniel?"
"Besides you? Not really." He replied, casting me a smirk with returning cheek.
"Hm. There's actually a bit of a nostalgic allure to challenging you in a ghost fight, but we'll have to save such excitement for another day."
He shrugged carelessly, looking around the empty obstacle room that had yet to be set up for our use. I turned to address the training system directly, speaking in a loud, clear voice that echoed off the plated walls.
"Initiate offensive training regiment in fifteen seconds. Engage bio-nanobots at one to one ratio."
The walls hummed as my order was processed, the default setting of firearms activating along the walls and pointing their barrels at us. As this was happening, the stench of something rotting began to drift under our nostrils. Small pools of tar-like sludge began to spread from the distribution tubes set along the floors, bubbling and frothing as the nanobots within them became energized. Daniel was bouncing on the balls of his feet and flexing his fingers as he waited, preparing his body for the intensive exercise ahead as the count down drew nearer.
"Do you remember the maneuver we worked on last?" I asked him, slowly moving until we stood back to back in the center of the room. Ten seconds remained and the ghastly pools were starting to become more frenzied.
"That flippy sling-shot one with the clones? Yeah, I remember."
"I want to put that into practice today. It still lacks finesse."
"Fine, but you better catch me."
"I always do."
I looked back at him with a smirk and was pleased to see him meet my glance, a challenging glint in his eye that dared me to let him down. Daniel was ready for this fight, perhaps even excited. I couldn't help but grin as the countdown reached zero and the mutant creations got to their feet. Then the fireworks started.
Daniel and I dived in opposite directions as a barrage of firepower rained down, each of us going head first into a group of oozing, dripping monstrosities. I had seconds to reflect on how much I detested that aspect of my mindless creations before two attacked and I was in the fray.
They were comparatively slow against my speed and their numbers were hardly anything to balk at, but as I also had a multitude of guns firing at my head and a zealous teenager to contend with, my focus was well occupied. Through the shooting and roaring sounds of our adversaries, I could hear Daniel mowing down his own opposition. Snappy glances picked up his lithe form weaving in and out of the attacking mutants, lopping off legs, arms, and heads with twin blades formed of ecto-energy.
Confident that the boy was doing just fine on his own, I turned my own attentions back to the never-ending pools, swinging a super-powered punch and sending three of them into the wall. Already the number of ecto-mutants was pathetically low, the initial buildup of creatures having been nearly wasted by mine and Daniel's combined efforts. Slowly, we made our way back to each other, taking on each creature one by one as they formed and charged.
Consequentially, The guns began to hinder our progression even more now that the amount of ecto-energy to focus on was significantly diminished. At the default setting, all firearms are set to attack any moving ectoplasmic entity, unable to differentiate between hybrids, ghosts or anything in between. However, as the signatures Daniel and I emitted were naturally stronger than that of my synthetic creations, we were now the primary targets.
Speaking of my little badger, a small weight suddenly fell against my back, letting out a muffled grunt and shooting two adversaries away with a particularly powerful blast. Sharp ears caught the building whine of twin guns, and I yanked Daniel out of the way before we both sustained injury. He stumbled again, falling against my chest and shooting at the walled weapons in frustration.
"You know that won't work, little badger." I chided, the smoke from the blast clearing away to reveal only small scorch marks on the reinforced guns.
"I know, but it makes me feel better." he muttered, ducking with me as another shot flew over our heads.
"Breathe, Daniel. You're doing very well." I grasped his shoulders for only a second before I had to let go and defend myself against a charging mutant.
If Daniel replied, I didn't hear it. He was dealing with his own monster, cleverly using the creature as a shield against the guns until it finally collapsed. Now exposed, he quickly raised a shield to block the shots, stretching it high enough to cover my back as well. I quickly eliminated my own adversary and raised a shield to match his own, covering us both in a pink and green dome.
"Shall I increase the count of the guns or the mutants?"
"Increase the mutants and get rid of the damn guns!" he yelled, visibly irritated with the barrage from the weapons.
"As you wish." I smiled, raising my voice to address the training system once more. "Deactivate offensive training regiment. Increase bio-nanobots ratio four to one."
Daniel dropped the shield as soon as the guns stopped firing, releasing a long sigh of relief and putting a hand on his hip.
"Thank god." he muttered, stretching. "Those things are annoying as hell."
"Having trouble keeping up, little badger?" I teased. He sent me a dour glare.
It wasn't long before the increased rate of ecto-mutants made itself apparent. Daniel and I had little more time for banter before we were back to back once more and defending each other from the ceaseless onslaught of battle. It was clear why Daniel favored the hand to hand combat over simple dodging and evading. Hand to hand was much more engaging, having so many more opportunities to exercise different attacks and maneuvers. I couldn't deny that I favored it myself, especially when the boy was under my arms.
With me, Daniel became a precise bullet. His lithe form used mine as a grounding point to propel and power his attacks. We were in constant motion, twisting and vaulting around each other to cover all angles of the fight. Daniel became my weapon, and I became his shield. It was a hypnotic and unforgiving dance, all the more captivating as I watched my little badger grow more deadly with each attack. I anticipated the day his physical form would be developed enough to handle channeling combined ectoplasmic energies. But for that kind of technique, Daniel's psyche will also have to be more receptive to my own, trust being a key component.
Though perhaps, the wait would not be as long as I once thought.
A guttural growl came from my left. I shot an ecto blast in the direction of the sound without breaking my concentration on the two in front of me, distantly hearing a thud that confirmed my hit. Daniel released three consecutive blasts, the heat of his attacks warming the back of my neck.
"We need to decentralize the fight!" I yelled over the sounds of howls and explosions. "Be ready!"
As soon as I had an open window I spun around and locked my fingers together, lowering my stance to accommodate my bullet. Daniel quickly placed a foot on my created niche and charged his hands, vaulting into the air with my propelled strength and flipping like a saw blade as ectoshots flew in all directions. From behind my raised shield, I watched him land gracefully on the other side of the room and absorb into the fray, nodding at his excellent execution.
I almost lost sight of him as the number of mutants increased, dripping maws flecking my battered tunic with slime and rotted face after rotted face attempting to tear at my skin. None of them got close, of course, and as I shot one attack after the other I couldn't help but grow a touch bored. A glance at Daniel told me he was doing fairly well on his own too, meaning we could move one.
Still fighting off the horde with one hand, I accumulated a hefty amount of ecto-energy in the other. I waited until it had grown to the size of a beach ball before using both hands to blast it towards the dancing figure of my apprentice. The attack mowed down the wall of mutants dividing us, and that was all he needed, immediately understanding what I wanted him to do. As soon as a path was clear, Daniel ran towards me, a blazing look in his eyes. I held out my arm for him as he approached, simultaneously teleporting a clone to a location well above our grounded stance. Daniel had only his momentum to focus on, however, and could do little more than trust in my aim as I grabbed his outstretched arm.
The monsters were no match for his swiftness. The moment I felt his hand grasp my forearm I carried his velocity into a powerful spin, adding more speed as he knocked out a number of converging adversaries. Daniel was little more than a black and white blur when I volleyed him straight into the air, aiming for the waiting clone high above. I watched as he gathered more energy in his speeding form, more than he ever had before, absentmindedly encompassing myself in an energy shield as I focused all my attention on the boy. The slamming bodies of enraged mutants hardly registered.
Daniel transformed from a black and white bullet to a neon green comet as my poised clone caught his arm just as I had done, spinning him around and adding even more speed before launching him at the largest thicket of monsters below. Incidentally, this happened to be exactly where I was standing.
I teleported away just in time, appearing beside my clone and absorbing him back into my body as Daniel slammed into the ground with the force of anvil, making the room quake. The majority of the monsters crumbled under the wave of energy he released upon impact, leaving him in a large circle devoid of dripping, oozing monstrosities. The attack was executed almost perfectly. Daniel made just one mistake.
I heard his short scream of pain as the unleashed wave rippled away. The majority of monsters were decimated, but a few where struggling to their feet. Daniel, however, was still in the middle of the circle, clutching his ankle in a way that could only mean it was broken.
Disappointment flooded my mounted excitement, leaving me feeling as though I'd had a treat stolen away at the last second. I waited for him to get up, but Daniel remained down as every attempt to move resulted in a yelp of pain. With a sigh I lowered down to his level, blasting back a few mutants that had managed to stand again.
"Shut down all training regiments." I called out in a less than enthusiastic voice.
The pools drained and the remains of all the beaten creatures broke down like rapidly decomposing bodies, returning to their sludge-like state and draining away with the rest. Daniel was curled over his injured leg, gritting his teeth so hard his jawline had paled. I crouched down to inspect the ankle, concern knitting my brows together. He usually disregards even the most grievous injuries.
"Can you stand?"
"If I could, do you think I'd still be sitting here?" He forced out through his teeth.
I peeled back his shaking fingers to better look at the injury, eyebrows raising when I saw blood stains and a torn hole in his suit.
"Good lord, I do believe your fibula broke through the skin."
"Yeah, I know, so you wanna help me or you wanna stand there like an idiot pointing out the obvious!" He snapped, breathing heavily and moaning in pain.
"There's no need to get touchy, little badger. You know we can set this break and have you completely healed before dinner."
"That doesn't help me right now, fruitloop!"
Sighing complacently, I scooped the boy up from the floor without another word. When Daniel gets like this there's really no talking to him. His fingers dug into my shoulder with a vice-like grip, for once not complaining about the bridal style hold I carried him in. We left the combat room and exited the training halls altogether, neither of us dropping our ghost forms. I took him down below the earth, into the cold air of my underground lab. Daniel winced only once when I set him on a gleaming counter, watching with a wary eye as I pulled out a roll of strangely glowing bandages, an equally glowing ankle brace, and two bottles full of a mysterious substance. One of which was also glowing.
"What's that?" he asked immediately, pointing to the bottles and accompanying syringes.
"A spectral fortifier to aid the healing process and Novocain. Unless you'd rather me set the bone without anesthesia."
He shook his head quickly, losing the wary look in his eye. I rolled out the glowing bandages and filled each shot with the appropriate amount of medicine, distantly noting that my classical music was still playing in the background. I must have forgotten to turn it off. Daniel shifted on the table, easing his injured leg straight without letting a wince loose. He didn't ask about the glowing bandages or ankle brace, evidently not bothering to be concerned. They were only medical wrappings soaked in filtered ectoplasm, all designed to better hasten a full recovery.
"Why are you giving me anesthesia now? You didn't bother when you put this thing in my neck?" he asked, the ever-present bitterness detectable in his voice.
"Implanting that device took nothing more than a small incision. Re-setting a cleanly broken ankle is something else entirely, oftentimes more painful than the actual break itself. I'm not completely sadistic, little badger."
"I beg to differ." he muttered, watching with a note of anxiety as I snapped on latex gloves and gently rested my hands on his injury.
As carefully as I could, I felt around for the bone. Daniel remain admirably strong, bearing back any sound of pain with a set jaw and clenched hands. I couldn't help feeling a little sympathy for him, even if he did botch the attack in the training room. His only mistake was building up more energy than his body was ready to handle, and how could I fault him for that?
"You did very well today, Daniel. Once we get you patched up you'll need to rest until dinner."
"I broke my ankle. How does that constitute 'doing well'?" he grumbled, evidently as disappointed with the day's failure as I was, which was a gratifying turn of events. Such excellent motivation the boy is developing.
"The only mistake you made was channeling more energy than you are currently ready to handle. In other words," I looked up and smiled. "You were too powerful for your own body."
His scowl barely budged, not the slightest bit impressed with himself. The pain in his ankle was too great to see the accomplishment behind it, I suppose. Anxiety soon eclipsed his grim frown when I picked up the anesthesia.
"...Is this gonna hurt a lot?" he asked quietly, like he was ashamed to ask.
"No." I assured him. "There might be a little pain, but the most you will feel is some pressure and a slight crunching sensation. I'm going to administer a hematoma block, which means injecting the Novocain directly into the spot there the bones have fractured and bathing them with anesthesia. In conjunction with your ghost form naturally muting pain receptors, it might even be painless."
"...guess we'll see." He said, though looking comforted. His breath hitched when I injected the anesthesia. I waited for the medicine to set in before administering the spectral fortifier as well. From the corner of my eye, I caught my patient grip the edge of the counter with one hand.
"Close your eyes, Daniel. It'll be over in a second."
Sighing, he eased himself back until he was laying on the counter and pressed the heel of his hands into his eyes.
"Just get it over with." he said tiredly, resigning himself to whatever pain would come.
It was all over in less than a minute. I positioned my hands on the injury, feeling the unsecured bone under my fingertips. Daniel didn't move as I applied pressure, gripping the top of his leg and forcing the fibula back in place with a nasty crunch. The boy jumped slightly, but I think it was more from the disturbing sound than anything else. Silently, I made sure everything was back in order before securing the brace and wrapping it tightly with the glowing bandages. The end result was not as rigid as a cast, but secure enough to ensure a full recovery in a matter of hours provided he stayed in his ghost form.
"There." I concluded, dropping the medical supplies in a drawer with an air of finality. "That wasn't so bad, now was it?"
Daniel peeked out from under his eyes and sat up, inspecting his bandaged leg with detached curiosity.
"No," he finally replied, wiggling his toes. "I hardly felt a thing."
"You will remain in your ghost form until the wound fully heals, which shouldn't be too long. Don't walk on it and don't manifest a spectral tail when flying. I don't want to risk the bones re-breaking."
"I get to stay in ghost form?" his eyes lit up, a smile bursting on his features.
"Only so the injury heals quickly." I repeated sternly. "Don't get any funny ideas."
"Wouldn't dream of it. You can't take a joke anyway, V-man." Daniel grinned and immediately levitated off the counter, floating in the air like a feather riding on drafts. He was probably on the verge of looping around the laboratory before I grabbed his wrist and yanked him down to reality.
"Don't forget, you need rest. You can hover to move around but don't start racing all over the mansion. I want you in my sight so I can make sure your butt remains firmly in a seat while the fortifiers in your ankle do their job."
The light in his face deflated like a punctured balloon.
"So no flying?"
"No flying."
"Man, Vlad, you taking the fun out of everything. Even being half ghost." he grumbled, floating after me as I led the way out of the lab.
"Don't get pouty with me." I chided, closing the door to the lab and heading upstairs. "I'm only looking out for your best interests."
"Of course you are." he replied sarcastically, unable to resist letting his body float after me like loose water in a space craft.
We came upon the study door and Daniel couldn't quite keep the groan of boredom out of his voice. Dutifully, he floated in after me and lowered down to his usual spot on the couch, glancing at the pile of homework already waiting for him and dragging a hands down his face.
"I break my ankle only to land myself in an early homework session. I'd much rather get back to training. Can't I, like, hover in one spot and just work on my aim or something?"
"No. You need to rest. This is an excellent opportunity to get some work done and you're not about to squander it."
"Practicing my aim wouldn't be squandering my time! It's what I'm supposed to be doing anyways."
I turned a stern glare on him, silencing his petulance and the budding argument in one move.
"You are supposed to do whatever I tell you, and I'm telling you to shut-up and do your homework. End of discussion, Daniel."
Shooting me a look of deepest loathing, he turned to the little table before the couch and grabbed a textbook. I could hear him grumbling under his breath and rolled my eyes, taking a seat and pulling out a packet of papers that consisted of reports, blueprints, and desperate requests from various locations around the world. We both worked in silence for nearly an hour, the homework and paperwork piles gradually decreasing as the grandfather clock ticked on.
Enough time passed that Daniel's anesthesia had surely worn off, but he refused to make even the slightest sound of discomfort. I waited for his pride to cave, knowing it was a futile effort. The boy is as guilty as I am concerning that particular sin.
Charts, files full of fine details, and email updates from points of interest swam in my vision, bringing on an ugly headache. Everyone in the world wanted to know when I would devise a more stable infrastructure, conveniently forgetting that such practical details were a tad difficult when they persisted in removing or usurping me from my throne. Imbeciles. The sooner I hang the ghost zone above their heads the better. I withstood as much of this headache as I could before looking at the clock. Upon realizing there was still forty five minutes until dinner, it seemed appropriate to take a break. Daniel glanced briefly at me as I stood and made my way to the small bar set against the wall, pouring myself a glass of sixty year old bourbon to sooth my headache. It took only a moment of watching Daniel shift uncomfortably in his seat before a smirk quirked my lips and I poured a second glass, on the rocks.
"Here." I startled him, holding out a glass of bourbon worth more than what most people make in a year.
He stared at it in slight surprise, then frowned, saying exactly what I expected.
"Vlad, I'm fifteen."
"Yes," I leaned against the couch, a mocking sort of smile on my face. "But as the anesthesia has undoubtedly worn off by now, you're also in pain. In more ways than one, for that matter. Take it Daniel. Odds are you won't even like it, but that's not really the point, now is it?"
"Oh?" he raised an eye brow, but took the drink. "And what is the point?"
"Just drink it, Daniel. If its too much for you, I'll take it back."
Daniel scowled and immediately took a generous sip, screwing his face up in disgust as it went down. I couldn't help but laugh.
"It tastes like paint thinner."
"Liquor is an acquired taste, little badger." I smirked, taking a sip of my own glass.
Daniel scowled and went back to ignoring me, but he kept the drink. I ruffled his hair, returning to my desk and watching as he took another tentative sip. His nose wrinkled again and he placed the glass on the end-table. And yet, over the next forty-five minutes the oak-brown contents slowly decreased in volume. Coincidentally, the black look on his face faded in time with the dwindling contents. It probably wasn't the best idea to give the boy his first taste of alcohol on an aged liquor at well over 100 proof, but I'd been careful to give him just the right amount. He looked quite cozy cuddled up under a heavy blanket, reading Frederick Nietzsche's Beyond Good and Evilwith a warm blush in his cheeks. Daniel looked the picture of calm, attentive to his work without melancholy thoughts poisoning his focus. There might even have been a miniscule smile on his lips, but I was too far away to really tell.
I let him work, not wanting to disturb such a comfortable state for both of us. It was easy to phone down to the kitchens and have dinner brought upstairs. The boy looked at me curiously as I spoke with the head cook, quirking an eyebrow until I placed the phone back on the receiver.
"There's no need to stress that ankle unnecessarily." I answered his unasked question. "I'm sure it's fine by now, but it's always good to take precautionary measures."
"Jeez, Vlad, I'm not made of glass you know." He snorted, shaking his head in an almost amused way, like he couldn't be bothered by my overprotectiveness anymore. Or at least, not right now.
We continued working quietly. I was trying to focus on my own work, but with my thoughts whirring as they were, it was nearly impossible. I was thinking about the boy. I'm always thinking about the boy. He had the most placid expression on his face, mirrored by the relaxed droop in his shoulders. There wasn't the slightest hint of tension in his dulled disposition. Only the occasional crinkle in the face, brought on by something particularly difficult in the reading, perturbed this collected air. It took but a moment of concentration, often with his lips slowly mouthing the quizzical sentence in question, before the crinkle was gone and the mild countenance returned.
This quiet shift in attitude made all the difference in the world. I knew, just as Daniel probably knew, that the great weight of misery was still there, swirling patiently beneath the amber barrier. But the muted pain, suppressed more successfully than perhaps even his ghost half could accomplish, was completely ignorable. Daniel could pretend it didn't exist, if only until the effects of the alcohol wore off. His pain became bearable for him, and I knew, after tonight, sharing an evening drink together would become sine qua non.
The boy drained his glass just as a polite knock came at the door. He immediately snapped his attention to the sound, glancing at me briefly and then back to the door. Not wanting to keep his empty stomach waiting any longer than it apparently could, I stood up to retrieve our dinner. Donovan was there, as usual, standing behind the food-laden cart with an appropriately aloof expression. I bid my personal servant entrance, directing him to the coffee table in front of my young protegee.
"You may break from your homework, Daniel." I called to him, returning to my desk to clear away the finished paperwork. "I trust you completed a good chunk of it?"
I closed a drawer in the desk before glancing up at the boy, observing the curiously chary glare he was giving my butler.
"Yeah, I got most of it done." Daniel replied slowly, looking away from Donovan with the air of discarding a piece of rubbish. Interesting.
"Most of it?"
"I didn't finish my history paper."
"Mm. Well we'll have time for that later, I suppose."
Daniel shifted on the couch as I sat beside him and motioned the placement of his ankle in my lap. He complied, gaze drifting back to the silent butler who was pouring his wine. The neon glow of the bandages had diminished, the ecto-purities having soaked into his skin. There was no question that the wound was healed and painless by now. I simply phased the wrappings away from his leg and dropped them to the floor, supporting the new ankle with a hand braced at his Achilles tendon.
"The Romanée Conti, please. And take care of these bandages."
Donovan nodded shortly, carefully pouring the vintage wine. Daniel said nothing as I stretched the fresh muscle in his ankle, massaging the joints until I was satisfied. The butler finished placing our meal and collecting the litter on the floor, giving my little badger a haughty glance I didn't miss. He backed away and stood straight, waiting until I dismissed him.
I followed his exit with narrowed eyes until the door clicked shut behind him, leaving us to our privacy.
"I tire of these human servants." I muttered. "The day we leave this hovel can't come soon enough."
"What do you mean?" Daniel's brow furrowed, slowly setting his fork down.
"Our castle by the Aegean Sea will be staffed entirely by ghosts, of course." I raised an eye brow at him. "You didn't really think I was going to have all of these humans come with us, did you?"
"I didn't think about it." He answered, though he looked troubled.
"The servants here are more trouble than they're worth." I continued, sipping at the fine Burgundy. "Ghosts don't have the tendency to get caught up in gossip or current events. They are much simpler, satisfied with a basic contract of shelter in exchange for labor."
"That's exactly what the servants here are doing." Daniel argued. "I don't exactly see you giving out paychecks every week."
"Don't tell me you want to add 'Union Representative' to your hero resume." I scoffed. "Evidently you miss the way they look and talk about you."
"I-what?"
"Surely you aren't that clueless." I teased, the corners of my mouth twisting into a leer. "Do you really think the people in his house don't have an opinion on the fall of their great hero? How Danny Phantom now screams and moans his enemy's name every night?
"Shut up!" He flared, immediately ignited. "I...I don't-!"
"Oh yes you do. Don't you dare lie to yourself, Daniel, especially not in front of me."
"You lie to yourself all the time, hypocrite."
They boy fell against the armrest of the couch at the force of my back-handed slap. Not twenty minutes ago I was enjoying an atmosphere of rare calm and entertaining the idea of such ambience continuing, but in the span of a single conversation Daniel just couldn't resist shattering any trace of frivolity. How typical.
"Are you really going to ruin another evening with a temper tantrum, Daniel?" I asked, my voice as cold as ice.
"No, just with reality." he spat back, rubbing his bruised cheek.
"...Reality, hm?" I muttered quietly, turning away from the insolent, ungrateful brat and taking a long, slow sip of the Romanée Conti.
Next thing I knew, the crystal glass was smashing over Daniel's head and he was flying across the room. I heard his body slam into the dense, oak paneling of the study with a heaving gasp, the air forced from his lungs. I couldn't say what exactly was coursing through my veins at this point. It was like fury, but beyond that. I was strangely calm. I just wanted to hurt the boy as much as humanly possible, the audacious, impertinent wretch who dared to deny me on the basis of his own construed fantasy. No matter what I tried he just wouldn't let it go.
He hissed in pain when I grabbed hold of his hair and forced him to look at me, feeling glass and blood between the slick tresses.
"How many times do I have to put you on your knees before it gets through your thick skull?" I seethed. "What do you think this is, Daniel? A game? Do you honestly think I've spent the past two decades manipulating my way to the top, committing unspeakable acts of murder, changing the very fabric of human civilization for nothing more than a petty victory dance over a fifteen year old?"
"I thought you said you took over the world for me, you fruitloop!" he grunted, trying to peel my fingers away.
"Yes, Daniel, I did, but don't you even pretend to understand what's really going on here! All of my plans, the ones that started before you were even a thought in the mind of your worthless father, were about to become realized before you came along and screwed everything up! You changed everything that day, but you're so consumed with living in a black and white world of heroes versus villains that you don't even have the humanity to see it!"
I was screaming at the boy, saying things that I couldn't quite keep under control. Daniel could hear the manic desperation in every word, he could see the burning resentment filling every contour of my glower. He seemed to be somewhere between horrified and speechless, frozen under the strength of my ire.
"Vlad..." He shook his head slowly, his voice cracking. "You...You need help, this isn't-"
I could have killed him. Daniel screamed when I lit him up like a lightbulb, electric currents racing through his bones until I deemed it time to stop. I had him by the neck before he could gasp for breath, blood vessels bursting and bruising under my grip.
"That's your response?" I hissed, both hands cutting off his windpipe. "You cast me away, mock me daily, and yet I'm the one who needs help? Make no mistake, dear boy, this has nothing to do with me. This is about you."
Daniel gasped for oxygen the moment I let go, dropping to the ground. I fell to one knee beside him, keeping his head pinned to the floor with a single hand.
"I spent years planning and brooding to win your mother, but in a matter of hours, you snatched all of that away. You stole twenty years worth of effort and spat it back into my face, but I wasn't about to make the same mistake twice and spend another twenty years longing for something that was now even farther from my grasp. You and I have always dealt in extremes, little badger, so perhaps there is something to your insults against my mental health. But don't think for a second that I'm alone in my insanity."
He yelled an unintelligible swear word, struggling twice as hard before finally forming a furious sentence.
"Don't compare your sick obsessions to what I do, Plasmius! Just because you can't see the value of human life doesn't mean it's not there! It's your own fault you're so bitter and miserable!"
"Then by that logic, it's your fault you're bitter and miserable as well!" I snarled. "Or is that suddenly not fair? Don't you see what you're doing? Not only do you continually turn a blind eye to what's going on around you for the sake of childish fantasies, but you construe cliched pretexts to validate your delusions! In short, I'm tired of being called crazy by a fifteen year old who thinks he's destined to save humanity and being termed obsessed by a boy whose entire self-worth is placed in his ability to save the world when there isn't even a world left to save!"
I sunk a fist deep into his stomach, listening to him struggle for breath as he clutched my arm.
"You're pathetic, Daniel." I sneered, standing up and letting him drop to the floor. "I don't know what it's going to take to make you accept reality, but if you don't do it soon the only place you'll have here is a quick fuck when I'm in the mood. Do I make myself clear?"
He didn't answer, visible fury, humiliation, and fear choking his words and turning his breath into shallow heaves. I saw him clench his fists, a sanctimonious fire poisoning his eyes as he restrained himself from attacking me. The little rat wasn't listening to a damn word I was saying. He had that look that promised every intention of thwarting me. Somehow, he'd gotten it in his head that he still stood a chance against me. Somehow, he'd gotten around me, and that more than anything made me see red. I was so quickly subsumed in irrepressible rage that it burned with tangible fire.
Daniel yelped when I yanked him up from the floor and dragged him across the room. He couldn't stop scared whines from slipping out when I bent him over my desk, pressing my hips against his wriggling backside suggestively and holding him down by the neck. He stopped struggling when I leaned over and hissed directly into his ear, making sure to press my lips against the skin.
"I said, do I make myself clear?"
"Yes." He forced out with a grunt, squeezing his eyes shut and jumping when I started grinding my hips against him.
"I said okay, Vlad! I get it!" His voice cracked.
But a vicious, uncontrollable urge to humiliate the brat was growing inside me, strangling my heart with vines of tar. He didn't understand anything. He was just saying what I wanted to hear. Daniel was still trying to go behind my back, still lying and trying to trick me! Just like that time in the Rockies so long ago, he was mercilessly playing with my heart because I couldn't break his idiotic fantasy that he was a hero and somehow everything would end up okay.
"Don't lie to me, you little brat! I can see right through you!"
Daniel stumbled when I threw him back, but didn't fall to the floor. He was shaking, and nothing but terror bedaubed his visage now. I grabbed his shoulder before he could run away, delivering a punch with enough force to send him to the floor. Swift kicks made contact with his hip, his chest, his face. Daniel rolled away from the impact of a particularly malicious punt, moaning and clutching his genitals in pain. I hoisted him up with a vice-like grip on his upper arm, forcing him against a wall. Daniel's spine went rigid when I knocked his cradling hands away and grabbed the bruised genitals myself.
"How many times do I have to say this before you wake up?" I spat, my face inches from his own and grip tightening. "You are not a hero, Daniel! You fell from that pedestal the moment I bent you over and you begged for more. Hero's don't have sex with their enemies, Daniel, and they certainly don't enjoy it."
"I don't enjoy it! I hate it!" he screamed wildly, struggled against my grip with a renewed vigor.
But he was lying. That much was clear in the way his chest heaved, the way his wild eyes betrayed him. Daniel was lying to himself, denying himself, all for some deluded notion of propriety. The only thing Daniel hated was himself, and deep down, he knew it. It was the most pathetic thing I'd ever seen. It almost made me pity him.
"No you don't." I leered, jerking him roughly to quell his struggles. "We both know that's a lie."
"No it's not!"
I realized then that I could prove it to him again and again, make him moan and sing a hundred times more, but he'd still keep up this ridiculous charade of denial. He was so saturated in his own lies that he couldn't move on and accept the truth, wouldn't move on, even with the device in his neck helping him along. Daniel would reject his own feelings until it drove him to insanity, and I couldn't let him do that. Blaming me was his solution for all of his problems, all of his shame. For his own sake, Daniel needed to understand that the root of his grief, of all his insecurities and disgrace, was no one but himself.
He cried out when I ripped his clothes off, dragging him to a large, antique mirror set into the wall. Daniel took one glance and immediately avoided looking at his naked reflection, instead busying himself with removing my grip on his arm.
"No," I growled, twisting him forward and using both hands to make him face the mirror. "You take a good look, Daniel. Look at what you've become."
"Stop it." He whispered, squeezing his eyes shut.
"It's time to stop living in a comic book, Daniel! Look at yourself!"
The tenor of my order rang around the room, deafening the turbulence of our struggle. The dead silence left behind waited for Daniel to come out of his hunched cower, his body gone still in resignation. The boy lowered his shoulders and slowly looked up at his reflection, meeting the dejected stare of a stranger who shared the same anguished, exposed disfigurements. I watched his eyes drift over his own body, to each scar, bruise, and salacious mark. A permanently dilapidated look clung to his harried frame. He looked beaten, weak, and not at all like the boy he once was, vacant eyes contoured by dark lines of exhaustion. He was very pale against the black of my suit, standing out like the ghost he had become. It was hard to tell what Daniel was thinking as he stared at his unconcealed reflection, forced to acknowledge the degeneracy of his own identity.
"I want you to come to terms with that boy in the mirror, Daniel." I said quietly, moving my hands to rest on his shoulders. "You can't keep blaming the rest of the world for what's become of you, and you can't keep blaming me. I can't help you heal until you acknowledge the root of all your misery."
He didn't say anything in response, taking a single shaky breath and waiting. I pet his hair gently, picking out the glass that had wormed its way too deep.
"I want you to stare at yourself and admit it out loud, Daniel. Say it. I hate myself."
He took a deeper, more unstable breath, his chest expanding and eyes transfixed on his naked reflection.
"...I hate myself." he whispered, breathing it out like he was afraid the words would strangle him.
"Say it again."
"I hate myself."
"Say it again, Daniel."
"I...I hate myself."
He repeated it again and again, and every time something diseased yet deeply satisfying slithered down my spine. It was like an incessant itch finally scratched, but the more you satiated the urge the more it intensified. I felt my grip on his arms tighten as his whisper grew louder, his lungs beginning to respire deeply with the struggle to contain uneven sobs and continue the mantra. The agony in his voice was like a yawning laceration stretched open and raw, ripped a little wider each time he finished the sentence. I felt my own malignity spread, swallowing and suffocating every aspect of my being until I was entombed by its deprivation.
"Louder." I growled, my voice turned to gravel.
Daniel had tears streaming and dripping off his face. He felt every word that crossed his lips, each one charged with the torment being dealt to his heart. He was stripping himself layer by layer, until the gnawing hurt chewing at his sanity was exposed to the open air, made as naked and vulnerable as his physical body. There was something electrifying about it, something devastatingly beautiful, watching and listening as his exposed self-hatred rose to a scream that reverberated all around the room. Daniel became furious, screaming at himself and galvanizing the burning infection inside me. I let him get it all out, soaking up the wild, ungoverned fury he released and feeling it quench my own.
"I hate myself! I hate myself! I hate myself!"
The boy let out an animalistic scream that finally broke his raging temper, legs collapsing to the floor. I sunk to the ground with him, feeling the frenzied strength of his ghost powers just barely restrained as the fire died down. He was still repeating it, his tone shattered as the broken rage gave way to a gaping well of misery he could no longer ignore. Daniel was left weeping, raw, and cut open, crying into his hands and whispering each word as though it were being carved into his skin.
"I h-hate myself."
"...Daniel."
"I-I h-hate myself."
"Daniel, stop." I said quietly, surprised at how weak my own voice was. I felt exhausted.
The boy turned and immediately pressed himself against me, entrusting his frailty to my arms. I wasn't expecting his embrace, shock momentarily rendering me motionless. Yet, within seconds, I was clutching him back, savoring the pressure of his grip and acutely aware of how precious Daniel was to me. It suddenly occurred to me that the idea of someone taking him away was more terrifying than anything I've ever faced. I couldn't let him go. After two decades, I finally had what I needed, and I couldn't imagine going back to the miserable, isolated hell I'd lived before we met.
I needed Daniel to love me, or else I'd truly descend into madness.
I know, the ending paragraph is kinda sudden and crappy, and people wanted a sex scene, but I just couldn't force one in. Plus, I needed to update pronto. I think the first time we see a sex scene in Vlad's PoV will be at a very significant moment that I'm not going to spoil for you, so...sorry. Gotta wait a few more chapters.
Hope this chapter didn't suck. I'm sure the grammar was painful. Sorry about that. :|
Man I love you guys. Thanks for stick'in with me!