Vlad's eyes travelled around the destroyed room, heart still beating like a panicked rabbit's.
What on.....?!
The room had been completely obliterated, in a blackened, twisted, metal wreck. Jack twisted about-
And jumped as a cry tore from his lips, already shell-shocked skin turning a shade paler.
"Vladdie-!"
The billionaire whipped about, mouth dropping as he hurried past a heap of what may have been a table, but now looked like a grotesque model of one-
There, on the floor, in a bloody, ashen, almost complete hunk of scarred human tissue...
Vlad stared.
And stared.
Kanone Hilbert was lying there, a melted hunk of white and pink in his hands. The older hybrid hesitated.
Ever since he had snatched Danny, Vlad had envisioned doing this...and so much more.....to the SCUMBAG who....
Who....
Vlad shook his head violently.
That was not the point. He had to find Danny, regardless of-
A shuddering moan. Vlad's heightened senses twitched.
Somewhere....against the wall....
The sound of plaster crumbling against the ground-
"DANNY!"
"DANIEL!"
Two figures began to frantically scour past the rubble on the ground, frantic panting becoming labored.
Vlad angrily ripped through ashy wood before-
His now positively filthy hand brushed against trembling-
"Jack....I-I've got him. He's alive!"
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Jack let out a gasp.
"Please....Danny.....Da-AAAAAAAAAAARRRRRRRRGGGGGGGGGGGGGGHHHHHHHHH!"
Vlad just stared.
And stared as he feebly brought a trembling hand to Danny's ribcage.
___
The bleeding cavern was bad enough.
But as Vlad put a shaking hand in an attempt to stop the dark, glistening wound from growing any bigger....
It was futile.
A diagonal slash across his chest....Vlad twisted him about.
A horrified scream echoed from Jack, as he attempted to seize the boy from Vlad. The billionaire's eyes closed, pulli
"Daniel....please.....don't....don't..."
But Vlad's cry was lost.
One of Danny's ribs had been completely decimated.
Danny was burning.
He was blazing. He could feel the heat searing his skin as it raced past....he fidgeted.
It was too hot! Everything was burning! Something was itching like a thousand red ant bites He was dimly aware of someone speaking, but he couldn't make out what they were
saying. It just sounded like a vague murmuring.....
Danny let out a groan as something icy splashed on his face.....
Someone was saying something to him-or maybe someone else.
The fire racing through his body was roaring in his ears, blocking out the weak, low pitched voices.....that were jabbering on and on....Danny wished for a pair of earmuffs, if only
to make them STOP....
Drown their voices out, stop the sound, to have silencesilencesilence.....
Something cold trickled from his eyes. A cool hand brushed at it, the temperature reassuring against his blazing forehead-Danny was sorry when it slowly withdrew.
But the ghost boy's disappointment turned to surprise as someone lifted him higher....moving his body into larger, and, from what he could tell, gloved hands....
Why wouldn't they give him any peace?
"Jack, give Daniel back! WE DON'T HAVE TIME FOR THIS!"
Danny shifted slightly.
The other voices had stopped, but only for a moment. They started up again, louder than before but no clearer then a rumbled mumbling. Danny whimpered as they echoed in his
frayed mind....
Shut up, begged Danny silently. Please, please, shut up......
They made his head ache. He wished they'd stop again.
Jack turned to glare at Vlad, Danny's hand swinging rather lifelessly as Jack turned.
"YOU? As if! The first thing I'm going to do when I get Danny back from the hospital is TAKE. HIM. Away. Away from this godforsaken country, away from all these....these THINGS
......and from you. I'll give up ghost hunting-Heck, I'll stop eating fudge.....but you will never, ever, see or lay a FINGER on my boy ever again."
Vlad's eyes flashed red.
"That is no decision of YOURS, Fenton. Danny is MY child, and unless he decides otherwise-"
Jack's anger exploded.
"HELLO, genius! You overgrown, pompous, greedy little-if it weren't for you, Danny wouldn't be in this mess!"
"And if it weren't for you, NONE of this would've happened in the first place, YOU MORON! Give Danny back to me. NOW, before I MAKE you.
HAND HIM-"
A dull echo. Someone was very lightly putting their hands together. Vlad froze, a bead of sweat racing down his mopped forehead as Jack whipped around.
No...
He was not still alive.
He just....
But it was true enough. Kanone Hilbert was standing, smiling in a slightly odd way, hand at a dark, crimson side very lightly.
Jack stared at the boy, an eyebrow raising slightly.
"You're hurt."
It was all he could think to say. But Kanone just shrugged, a casual grin on his face.
"I've been hurt before. Well....still can't say I expected that little snag, did I?"
And he lifted his revolver.
_______
"What's the POINT?"
But Vlad tensed, taking two steps back.
Better to not take any risks with Danny at stake.
Kanone simply shrugged again.
"So.....Little Masters or Little Fenton or whatever you call this thing lives. Not a bad thing at all, actually...is he alright?"
Vlad blanched.
This killer.....this stalker...who had been trying to SHOOT Danny in cold blood....
Was now asking if the boy would be alright.
Kanone managed a quite pleasant, almost little school girl smile.
"And so the game ends. Terrible shame, quite....I have never been on the short end of the, so young people say, stick. Ah...." Kanone sighed dreamily, swaying as blood dripped
down his front.
"Tis an interesting thing, isn't it?"
Jack growled.
"You will never tou-"
"But, in a way, seeing as when Young Master whatever the heck he is now, wakes, he'll be doing nothing but wishing for a consummation devoutly to be wished-death. Therefore,
if this game must end as a gentleman's understanding rather then final checkmate......a truce can be declared between us, no?"
"If you think you can hurt my son AND GET AWAY WITH-"
Kanone swayed again.
"When I saw the ghost boy's accomplishments, I shivered in anticipation. One by one-Overgrowth, Pariah Dark.....it made me terribly happy. I could finally have the pleasure of
slaughtering such a....unique specimen....or I could finally die, as I've dreamed of for so long...."
Jack stared at him. Crimson was still dripping onto the floor. How was he even still-?
Kanone chuckled lightly.
"Call it selfish of me, if you would," he said thoughtfully, reaching for a twisted bit of molten metal to steady himself.
"Life dealt me a generous hand.....I however, was not in the mood for such an item, useful as it was. So here it ends-an honest truce. I expect to be seeing your, "Little Badger,"
shortly, Plasmius. Perhaps, perhaps not. Fate is an odd thing, aye, Vladdie?"
Vlad opened his mouth, but quite promptly froze as Kanone closed his eyes, a pleasant smile on his face-
And pulled the trigger.
BANG.
----
Only after the ringing echo and the thud had ceased, and silence overtook the shocked men, did the two realize what had happened.
Kanone had shot himself in the heart.
And, even as the two men rushed to his still smiling form, the damage had been done.
And Kanone Hilbert never moved again.
----
With a furious hiss and the sharp reek of sulfur, the match flared to life. Darkness was banished, sent scurrying away to huddle in pools of flickering black about dusty corners and
beneath the dilapidated frames of furniture. Weakened by a sudden breeze too slight to be felt, the light stuttered fitfully, dimmed, and nearly went out. The gloom pressed forward
in response, clawing eagerly for lost territory, only to slink sullenly away when the tiny flame reached matchwood and drew strength from the fuel, growing greedily.
Squinting night-adapted eyes against the glow, Vlad's nose wrinkled ashe touched the flame to the nearest candlewick. As it caught and began to burn sedately, he quickly moved
on to another, and then another.
After a furious argument, Jack reluctantly allowed Vlad to bring Danny to his own medical facility at their home. Alfred had fainted in a dead heap when Danny had been brought
safely home....
With a rib and a half blasted off in the gas explosion. After an intense three hour surgery-it was done. Vlad had been able to wearily put away all his medical supplies-disposing of
some-and sink next to Danny's side as he quietly injected morphine into his son's side, wincing.
Danny was going to feel THIS one....
Jack was sitting in a chair nearby Danny's bedside, face in his hands. Vlad swallowed.
He only loved Danny too well.....but Jack was definitely a threat. He had to go.
For right now, the ghost boy was tucked up in bed, sound asleep. His breathing was still a little strained due to the chill he'd sustained in the snow....and that would had just been
stitched up, so....at least Danny was no longer rambling feverishly about whatnot.
During his fevered ramblings, Danny had murmured all sorts of strange things about fruit loops and fathers. The poor boy was completely delirious.
Vlad was still sitting at the smaller boy's side, gently wiping the boy's face with a damp cloth. His other hand rested lightly on Danny's in silent comfort. Jack's eyes narrowed as
he took Danny's opposite hand. The billionaire said nothing, candlelight still burning as fresh wax began to fall.....
The clock continued its eternal pace, never ceasing it's constant rhythm, not even when Danny cried out, startling the two men at five o clock in the morning.