Chapter 45

"You are a total life saver, Danny!" Elle saved her work at the computer, hitting the button several times in a row like she feared losing the report she had to turn in before the winter break. Danny almost laughed as he watched her, because he had a habit of doing the same when he wrote reports for classes. "I was struggling with a few concepts for this paper. I totally wouldn't have been able to finish it without your help."

The remodel of her room looked great after the attack by Mr. Technus. If he hadn't known it happened, Danny would never know it was destroyed recently. The construction was finished up quickly, and Danny guessed having lots of money to offer for a fast job came in handy.

Danny packed his things back into his bag. "Some of that was a bit tricky. Even for me." He stood up from his seat on the foot of her bed then tossed his bag over one shoulder. "I'm just glad I was able to help you get it all finished before it was due."

"You and me both." Elle sighed tiredly as she leaned back in her computer chair. "I don't even want to think of what would happen if I came home with another bad score."

Danny frowned as he stared at her. "Well, I would feel disappointed in myself for doing a poor job of helping you understand the material."

"You are way better at explaining things than any of my teachers," Elle assured him with a bright smile. "Ever consider being a teacher? I think you'd be really good at it."

Danny chuckled with a small shake of his head. "Maybe I'll consider that as a backup plan." He checked the time on his watch and sighed. "I should really head off now."

While his foot wasn't completely healed, he could at least walk on it without wincing too much. A dull throb remained, but it was no longer so intense he wanted to cry with every step. He had skipped his patrol last night, but he didn't want to miss another night. What if tonight was the night he finally got a clue about his sister's murderer? He couldn't pass up that chance, even if there was a madman after him. He would just have to be smarter this time.

His injury wasn't his only reason for the night off. He needed to get his suit fixed after the side of it was slashed open. As he remembered asking Tucker to fix the suit, Danny frowned. He thought it was a simple favor to ask, and Tucker was excited when he first showed off the sketch, finishing the costume in record time. But when Danny asked for the suit to be patched up, Tucker grew unreasonably angry. His shout of "am I just a maid service to you?" still echoed in Danny's ears. He didn't understand what was going on with his friend.

"Say, um," Danny said, rubbing at the back his neck. Thinking about Tucker had brought something else to his mind. "You haven't heard anything from Ember recently, have you?"

"Hm?" Elle tilted her head, thinking about the question. "Last thing she told me was that she was going into the studio to work on her album."

Danny nodded, though he wasn't sure the answered helped him. Was she really in a studio working on a new album full of hypnotic music? Or did she only tell Elle that so her friend wouldn't worry about her disappearing again? "That's good then," he said, smiling at Elle. "Maybe she'll be famous all over the country soon."

"I hope so!" Elle's face lit up with excitement at the idea of her friend becoming famous.

Danny's mouth twitched in a small smile. "Okay. Well, I should be off now." He walked toward the door of Elle's bedroom, and she jumped up from her seat to follow him.

"I guess goodbye until our next tutoring session," Elle said when they neared the front door of her home.

"Though with the break coming up, that might not be until next year," Danny replied with half a grin as his phone vibrated against his hip. "Maybe sometime during the break we can meet up to celebrate not having tons of homework to do for a while."

Elle bobbed her head. "Sounds like a plan! If you're not too busy doing family stuff and hanging out with your friends."

Danny ruffled her hair with a laugh. "Do you think I don't consider you a friend?"

"I wasn't entirely sure." Elle swatted at his hand then tried to smooth out her messy locks. "I mean, are we friends? Or am I just the person you tutor?"

"I think of you as a friend." Danny shrugged, stuffing his hands into the pockets of his jeans. When the door opened suddenly behind him, he jumped, scooting off to the side. He shifted awkwardly as Mr. Masters stepped into his home. A part of him wanted to yell at the man for what happened at Axion Labs, but he had to bite his tongue on those feelings. He couldn't say or do anything which might hint at his identity as Phantom. His hand squeezed into a tight fist, hidden inside his jeans pocket. For Tucker, he wanted to inquire about Mr. Technus. But how could he do it without giving himself away?

"Heading home already, Daniel?" Mr. Master shrugged out of his overcoat. "We'd be happy to have you stay for dinner."

"Ah," Danny glanced hesitantly at Elle, who held a hopeful gleam in her eyes, "well, that's a nice offer, sir. But my parents will be expecting me to be home for dinner. And I wanted to meet up with my friends to discuss something about our homework assignment before that."

"That's too bad." Elle frowned in disappointment.

"Now, Elle." Mr. Masters stared sternly at his daughter. "I'm sure Daniel has his own busy schedule to keep to." He turned to Danny and smiled, though the expression didn't seem quite as genuine on him anymore. "Perhaps another time then."

Danny nodded, a slow bob of his head. Sharing a meal with Mr. Masters didn't appeal to him, but he would consider agreeing for Elle's sake. "Another time," he replied. He took a step toward the door then paused. "Um, Mr. Masters, I know my school's teacher Mr. Technus occasionally worked for your company on projects."

"Ah, yes," Mr. Masters said after a beat of silence, like he only just remembered who the teacher was. "He was hurt in that explosion at your school, wasn't he?"

"Yeah, he's been in a coma since then. But my friend tired to visit recently. He's always been close to Mr. Technus. He's a member of the robotics club at our school. So when we found out Mr. Technus was hurt in the explosion, it hit my friend pretty hard. The fact that he actually went to the hospital to visit Mr. Technus says a lot about how much the man means to him. My friend is pretty much terrified of hospitals. We have to blindfold him whenever we have to pass the door to the nurse's office at school." Danny swallowed, realizing he was rambling. "When my friend went to the hospital, the doctor told him that Mr. Technus had been moved. To being under your care."

"Yes, that's right. My medical team is keeping watch over him."

"Is it possible for my friend to visit Mr. Technus?" Hope swelled inside him, even though Danny knew it was impossible after what happened at Axion Labs. "It would mean a lot to my friend."

Mr. Masters' mouth thinned slightly, almost unnoticeably, except Danny was paying extra close attention for any signs that might give away the man's thoughts. "I'll have to speak with my medical staff. It might be that they don't want visitors interfering with their care."

Danny nodded, managing to look disappointed, but he figured he might receive an answer similar to the one Mr. Masters gave him. "Well, if it's possible, just let me know." He smiled to Elle. "See you later." After their goodbyes, Danny was able to step outside, and he released a sigh as he walked away from the house and headed for the first stop on his list of potential targets for the criminals linked to his sister's murder. When he was a block away, he fished out his phone to check the message left on it.

[it might just be a lunar eclipse ur looking for~~~]

Danny almost choked when he tried to stifle a snort of a laugh at D's text. With a roll of his eyes, he typed out his own reply.

[don't u mean lunatic?]

He crossed the street, almost with a skip in his step. More people were out tonight, enjoying the start of their weekend, but it forced him to weave around the crowd. Danny kept close to the buildings so he could duck down a dark alley when needed. Would that madman from a few nights ago be setting up traps for Phantom again? He hoped not, but he also knew eventually he would have deal with this man before he caused any more trouble for the town.

His phone buzzed with a new message just as Danny was checking out the first of the many facilities. He pulled out his phone, a smile already spreading onto his face.

[i could b your lunatic. ;)]

Danny bit down on his lower lip, his cheeks burning as he typed a reply. A small white flake drifted into his line of vision, falling upon his phone's screen. He glanced up at the sky, seeing more snowflakes lazily making their way to the ground. If the snowing got too bad, he would have to cut his patrol short.

[idk. i might have enough crazy in my life right now.]

D's response came back quickly.

[Ah! You wound me1]

Danny grinned as he walked down the street and passed a couple of women, who gave him weird looks. He quickly bit back his smile, wiping away the dopey expression he had probably wore, but he couldn't help teasing D a little. After all, the man liked to tease him a lot too.

When he was approaching the third facility, a chill passed over him, but like a whisper, it was only a faint feeling. It provided hope for him, though. Danny found a safe spot to change into his costume where he wouldn't be seen by anyone passing by or out any windows. After stowing his bag away, he headed for building, which was making his ghost sense go off. Then he remembered the advice given to him by both Dan and Tucker: he had invisibility. He needed to act smarter, be more cautious, or he would end up in another situation like the other night and have to be saved by a mercenary. It was possible, he realized, that he might actually learn more from the criminals if he laid in wait while invisible. The criminals would be more likely to talk openly among themselves if they didn't know he was there.

His body faded away as he shifted to invisible. Then Danny continued toward the building and phased his way inside through the wall. Before he could take a good look around the lobby area, he heard a shuffling noise. He scanned the room as he walked forward, his steps slow and quiet so he wouldn't alert anyone who might be in the dark lobby. A shadow moved, and Danny jerked his gaze toward it. His eyes were still adjusting to the darkness, but the shadowy figure looked like it belonged to larger person.

Danny crept up behind the person, who was a good head taller than he. If his mother and aunt had taught him anything, it was that size didn't necessarily matter in a fight. His mother could take down men twice her size. But Danny wasn't his mother. He had picked up some fighting moves from his mother and aunt, but he didn't share their level of training. Straightening his posture a little, he cast away his doubts. He might not have as much experience, but he couldn't let that distract him when it came to a fight. If he doubted himself, he could guarantee himself a loss.

Danny struck, landing a well placed kick to the back of the person's knee. The man, from the sound of his grunt, dropped to a knee, but the blow didn't keep him down for long. Danny dodged the punch the man threw as he twisted around, aiming blindly at his attacker. When he countered with his own punch, Danny's fist glanced the man's side. Then his arm was trapped, the man pinning Danny's arm to his side with his own arm. The man chuckled, something about this whole situation amusing him. Even with his opponent invisible, he managed to grab hold of Danny. Then after a bit of a struggle between them, he slammed Danny to the ground with his head smacking the hard tiled flooring as he lost hold on his invisibility. Danny gasped, too dazed to move at first.

"Nice try, Phantom," the man whispered, leaning in close enough to speak into Danny's ear.

Danny blinked his vision clear. "Dan!" he gasped in surprise. Despite the dark, he still had a sense telling him the mercenary was grinning behind his mask.

"I guess I should have expected you to turn up." Dan placed one hand next to Danny's head and shifted his weight slightly, drawing Danny's attention to the awkward position they were in with Dan practically laying on top of him.

Danny gritted his teeth as he narrowed his eyes. "Are you here to kill someone?" Though it didn't look like anyone was still working in the building.

"Not everything I do involves killing." Dan tilted his head. "Mostly though. Explosions sometimes. Those are always fun."

The mercenary had dropped his guard. Danny used that opportunity to his advantage. In one quick movement, he turned the tables, rolling them over so he was on top instead. "So you are here to kill someone." He glared at the mercenary as he pressed his forearm hard against the man's throat.

"You," Dan wheezed, "are surprisingly strong."

"Who are you here to kill?" Danny demanded in a low growl.

"I have an idea." Dan wrestled him, and though he fought back, Danny ended up with his face pressed against the floor while his arms were twisted behind his back. "We should team up. You're here. I'm here. There's a criminal sneaking around in the labs. We should totally stop him together."

"There's a flaw in your idea." Danny tugged at the man's grip on his arms, but the mercenary had effectively trapped him.

"Oh? Really?" Dan questioned, baffled by the hero's comment. "It sounded like a perfect idea to me."

"Except you're ignoring that you're a criminal here too. I won't work with a criminal, especially a cold hearted killer." Danny phased his hands free from Dan's hold then slammed a foot into the man's chest before he scrambled away to put some distance between them. "Once I'm finished dealing with you, I'll take care of whomever broke in here without your help."

"Ouch." Dan rubbed at his chest. Then he leaned forward, resting an arm on his drawn up knee. "But have you considered that I might not be here to kill someone?"

Danny eyed the man, skeptical of everything he had to say. "Why would I ever consider that?"

"Hm!" Dan tapped a finger to his chin like he was deep in thought about the question. "Maybe because I did save your life last time." Even though a mask hid his face, Danny knew the man was grinning. "So I think you owe me a little consideration."

"I'm not helping you kill someone."

With a sigh, the mercenary stood. "The longer we stand here arguing with each other, the more time we give this guy to get what he wants and make a clean get away. So the question is: do you want to fight me or stop the burglar?"

Danny ground his teeth, frustration washing over him like an irritating itch he couldn't reach. He didn't want to work with a mercenary, but he also didn't want to allow the burglar to escape because he wasted time arguing. "Fine," he muttered with great reluctance. "But I have a condition. You can't kill anyone."

"Well, that just takes the fun out of it." Dan folded his arms, and Danny almost believed he was pouting. "I can still cut off a few limbs, though, right?"

"No!" Danny shook his head. "There will be no killing and no cutting off of any body parts. In fact, you can't use any weapons you might have on you. No arguments," he said firmly before the mercenary could say anything. "That's the deal, or I won't team up with you."

Dan's shoulders sagged in disappointment. "Fine," he agreed, though he clearly didn't like the restrictions Danny placed on their team up. "We should try the labs on the upper floors. That's probably where we'll find them." He took the lead, heading for the emergency stairwell so they wouldn't alert the burglar by using the elevator.

Danny followed, though he had some reservations about trusting a mercenary. Why did Dan come to his rescue before? Did he hope to gain something by it? Why did he turn up here tonight? If someone broke in to steal something, why would Dan care? Did someone who worked in the laboratories here hire Dan to stop anyone who tried to steal from it? Danny had too many questions about the whole situation.

Danny doubted he would get any straight answers from the mercenary, but he pushed forward, phasing right through the man. Then he turned around and blocked the path to the top of the stairs. "How did you know?"

"Know what?"

Danny ground his teeth in frustration at the man's confused tone. "How did you know about the man targeting me?"

Dan sighed as he moved up a step. "Forget about it." He brushed past Danny to reach the eighth floor of the building.

Danny grabbed the mercenary's arm before he could take another step. "I'm not going to forget about it. You know something. You knew someone was targeting me. You even planned a distraction to help me escape. I want to know what you know. Who was it? Are they working for someone? Who are they-"

Dan twisted around and shoved him into the wall. Danny gulped as he stared into the eyes of the mercenary's mask. Somehow, right now, it looked rather intimidating. "You can't go into a fight worrying about a million other things," Dan whispered heatedly. "That's how you get yourself hurt. Or worse. Those questions are a distraction. If you're not going to focus on the fight, then don't bother coming with me." He released his hold on Danny then turned to continue down the hall.

Seething anger burned through him as Danny glared at the back of Dan's head. He knew the mercenary had a point about not being distracted in a fight, but he hated being called on it by someone who killed people for a living. His fingers twitched at his sides with an odd burning freezing sensation. It was like when he was younger, he would go outside in the snow and play without wearing gloves. His fingers would get so cold they almost felt like they were burning. Danny breathed in deeply then exhaled slowly to release the anger. When the burning freezing sensation faded, he pushed away from the wall and followed after the mercenary.

Dan nudged open the door to one of the laboratories when Danny reached him. The faint chill from before now stabbed at the back of his head, and Danny stood frozen as the mercenary cautiously peeked into the room.

"This doesn't feel right," Danny whispered. "Something's wrong."

Dan pulled back, allowing the door to swing close behind him. "Yeah, you don't want to go in there."

His eyes widened a fraction in alarm. Danny rushed forward. Dan grabbed at him to stop him, but Danny passed right through his hands then shoved open the door. After only two steps into the laboratory, he saw why Dan wanted to stop him. His stomach tried to revolt at the sight. Two scientists, a man and a woman, lay on the floor with their throats slashed open. Blood pooled out from their bodies. Their lifeless eyes stared in his direction, like they were pointing the blame at him for their deaths. If he had gotten here sooner, he could have stopped this from happening. If he hadn't wasted time arguing with Dan, they would still be alive.

"They must have been working late," Dan commented in an oddly detached tone. "We shouldn't stick around. The police can deal with this." When Danny didn't move, Dan stepped up behind him and gently took hold of his arms.

"Dan."

"Yeah?"

"Do you hear ticking?" Danny hadn't noticed it at first, but the soft tick tick tick coming from somewhere in the laboratory steadily grew more noticeable to his ear.

"We gotta move!" Dan shoved him toward the other side of the laboratory where there were large windows that nearly made up the entire wall.

"That's not really-"

Bang! Bang! Bang!

The window before them cracked, spider webbing outward from where the bullets pierced the glass. Danny only had time to think "Holy cosmos!" before they jumped, crashing through the window.

"I didn't think this through," Dan shouted as they plummeted toward the ground. A second later, the laboratory exploded, sending up a column of dark smoke through the broken windows.


YumiStar: Something strange certainly seems to be in the works. 8)

jessiejr21: Always~ XD Haha, well, we did only get to see it once. He might not have been in full fanboy swing at that point.

Tetractys: Spectra's never up to something good, is she? XD Let's just hope Danny stops her soon!

HawkeyeLover: Haha! Let the fanboying commence? XD

Apoapsis: It's my new head canon for him! 8D Since Vlad curses in pastries and Lancer curses in book titles, I was like "Danny should have his own way of cursing!" And since he loves space, it felt fitting. 8D

Poohbearmorris: Hm. What could be up with Tucker? I totally have this head canon that Dash is a good artist. XD;;

ZoneRobotnik: A couple of days! Unfortunately. Too bad he doesn't have instant healing. XD His healing factor speeds things up, but some wounds, like being stabbed in the foot with a spike, takes longer. One of these days, Danny is definitely going to kiss Dan! I'm just not sure when. orz

IAMTHEGHOSTCOW: The creepiest counselor! I never had reason to see the counselors at my school. XD;;

jelloshots99: I can think of a few ways too. ;) Tucker certainly doesn't seem to be acting like himself. Yay! XD Because Spectra is definitely supposed to be creepy.

allietheepic7: Dash wouldn't be Dash if he wasn't be a total Phantom fanboy. XD