Disclaimer: I still don't own Danny Phantom. Butch Hartman does, and I somehow doubt that will be changing any time soon. Since I'm not making any money from this, there is nothing for the law-ninjas to sue out of me.
Author's Notes: I'M SORRY! I'M SORRY, DON'T SHOOT! Life just flat out conspired to stack priorities on me that ate up my writing time and killed my will to write for a couple of weeks. See, during MikomiCon, some stupid script kiddie hacked DPO's forum, taking the forum entirely offline. It took a few weeks to fix by upgrading the software, and as a result I overshot my update deadline by more than two weeks. Thank you for your patience, and finally, here's the new chapter!
Chapter Eight: Discord and Confusion
"You have taken away the trust,
You're the ghost haunting through her heart.
Past and present are one in her head,
You're the ghost haunting through her heart."
-"Restless" - Within Temptation
"He's awake!" Paulina yelped, her weapon trained on the ghost bound to the restraining table.
"Dan!" Tucker decided to brave the risk of being shot to push past Valerie into the restraining tank.
Contrary to Paulina's theory, "awake" wasn't really the proper term to describe Dan's state of attention. Sure, his eyes were open and he seemed to be conscious; however he didn't seem to be entirely aware of his surroundings. Or that he was currently Valerie's captive.
Tucker was pretty sure Dan wouldn't be so calm about the situation if he was really aware of that bit of information. If anything, the fire-headed ghost seemed oblivious to his surroundings; perhaps even delirious. It seemed a likely explanation; Dan's complexion was nearly as white as his hair, and his injuries were steadily making the ghost's condition worse. If Dan was aware of anything, it would have to be pain.
And perhaps whatever had caused the fire-headed ghost so much of it.
"Hey, c'mon, say something!" Tucker would have prodded the semi-aware ghost if he thought it would have helped.
"Nng..." Dan groaned, struggling weakly against his bonds, his face contorted in pain.
"Stay with it!" Tucker urged the ghost, hoping to get some information out of the spook. "What the heck happened?"
"Tuck-?" Apparently the sound of the royal geek's voice relaxed the fire-headed ghost, for his struggling relaxed.
"Yup, you're-" Tucker paused before he could glibly tell Dan that he was safe, glancing at the twitchy women behind him. "... Not in immediate danger."
"Ghost... Mag-" Dan's voice slurred badly, the words barely decipherable. "That... weird power-"
"Weird power?" Tucker quirked an eyebrow. "Who was it? Who?"
Leaden silence lay heavily over the room; Dan had slipped back into unconsciousness. Tucker cringed, he could practically feel the heat of Valerie's glare boring twin holes in his back.
"Fat lot of help that was." She spat. "Just a whole lot of cryptic nonsense!"
"You heard him though!" Tucker was quick to counter, not trusting the huntress to stick to her extremely reluctant agreement about not putting the ghost out of his misery. "It was some ghost with a weird power!"
"So?" Valerie seemed unimpressed.
"So?" Tucker repeated, incredulous at the huntress and her sheer bullheadedness. "There's a ghost out there with some strange power that was able to beat this guy down. Some ghost that's got to be more powerful than the Ghost King was a decade ago! And I know you remember what a fiasco that was, Valerie!"
Her eyebrow twitched, indicating that Tucker's comment had managed to hit a nerve. "So what do you want me to do about it?"
"Pretty simple." Tucker checked to make sure he wasn't directly in anyone's line of fire. "Wait for Vlad to get here to patch this guy up-"
"So he can just bust on out and-" Valerie huffed angrily.
"Don't look at me like that! I didn't say Vlad was gonna make Dan good as new!" Tucker protested with no small degree of annoyance. "Just enough so we can get some coherent answers out of him!"
"Well, so nice of you to lay out such a heartwarming welcoming for your financial backer."
Tucker mouthed a silent thanks for Vlad's timing as all in the room glanced toward the ghost portal, where Vlad had just emerged; a slightly annoyed looking Sam and Danny helping carry some equipment behind him.
Ten years living as a hermit hadn't been kind to the once tall and sturdy billionaire. Since he'd come out of hiding, Vlad had cleaned up well enough; a new suit and careful grooming could make even the wizened old hermit exude an air of dignity and wisdom. Still, not even the fanciest of suits could hide the man's skinny, almost frail figure; nor could the green and gold decorated cane hide his limp.
"Took you long enough, Vlad." Tucker raised an eyebrow at the annoyed looks of his friends. Can't really blame them... at least they've got the sense to realize we need to get answers out of Dan!
"Yes, well as soon as I learned that I was needed to play nursemaid to a ghost, I had to gather the equipment necessary." Vlad responded dryly, shrugging off the irate glares of Valerie and Paulina. "Now then, perhaps we can dispense with the usual pleasantries so I can deal with the issue at hand?"
A decade living as a hermit sure hasn't dulled his sarcasm any. Valerie noted sourly to herself. "Yeah, he's in the tank."
"Of course." Vlad glanced back at the two ghosts that had ensured his safe passage through the Ghost Zone from his Wisconsin home. "If you would be so kind as to set that equipment down near the tank, Daniel, Samantha; it would be much appreciated."
If the seething looks from the aforementioned ghosts had any impact, Vlad didn't show it as he slid between Patrol members to get to the restraining tank's door. Paulina made room for the billionaire while Valerie bombarded the man with withering looks that had all of no visible effect. Vlad flashed his former pawn a winning smile before he looked at Dan.
That at least had an effect.
"Ginger snaps!" Vlad yelped, taking in the sight of Dan's mangled form. "And he was in this condition when you found him, Valerie?"
"Pretty much." The huntress retorted.
"He's gotten worse since we found him." Tucker filled in, more willing to make himself useful.
"Wow, he is messed up." Sam observed from above the tank, peering through the tinted glass.
She doesn't have to sound so cheerful about it. Tucker complained to himself.
"I see..." Vlad trailed off in thought, moving alongside the table Dan was strapped to while taking stock of the damage. "I'm glad I brought as much equipment as I did. It's a wonder he's held himself together as much as he has."
"In English, Mr. Masters?" Paulina's tone was just barely civil.
"Spit it out, Vlad." Valerie's wasn't.
"What I mean-" The billionaire sounded distinctly condescending. "Is that with how badly he's been maimed, it's astounding he hasn't turned into an unrecognizable puddle of green goo. It's similar to problems I had years ago with my cloning experiments."
"Ew." Paulina commented, making a face at the thought.
"'Ew' indeed." Vlad continued dryly. "With the clones, they would devolve into ectoplasmic goo after relatively little damage or exertion of their powers. My research would indicate that the same holds true for all ghosts. If you beat them up enough, they destabilize and cannot maintain their form. Essentially, they die."
"Okay, that's creepy to know." Sam raised an eyebrow from her aerial vantage.
Vlad nodded absently as he sorted through the equipment he'd brought along, continuing his explanation. "The amount of damage required varies widely. A stronger ghost is both more difficult to damage in the first place; and is generally possessed of such a great level of obsession that it can maintain itself with very little power once it is damaged."
"So how's that apply to this-" Valerie gestured at the ghost on the restraining table with her gun. "-monster?"
"The very short version, my dear-" Vlad grinned at the huntress' irate scowl. "-is that the reason Dan appears unconscious is that he has been very nearly torn apart, molecule by molecule. It's likely taking everything he has just to keep himself barely stable. And he won't be sharing anything with us until he's stabilized and has recovered enough strength to remain stable without having to focus entirely on not going to gooey green pieces."
"And how long's that going to take?" Tucker asked before Valerie could cut in with another harsh invective.
"Without any help, it's not going to happen." The former arch-villain declared flatly. "If his condition has, as you claimed, deteriorated since he was found, it's apparent that he's fighting a losing battle. With my assistance, however..."
Vlad left the statement unfinished as he found the device he was looking for; a wide wand-like device vaguely reminiscent of a hand-held metal detector. He frowned as he waved the device across Dan's prone form, the gadget beeping loudly as it passed over the giant gash in the ghost's shoulder and other injuries.
"It seems I arrived without much time to spare." Vlad noted quietly, an unreadable expression on his face. "Am I correct to assume, Daniel, Samantha, Valerie; that none of you have any desire to assist?"
"I think you already know that answer, Vlad." Valerie snapped.
"Hey, we helped you get here, I think that's plenty of help." Sam noted icily.
"I'm not really keen on helping save the guy that killed me, y'know." Danny agreed softly.
"Well then, I'm sure you all have better things to do than hang around here." Vlad retorted. "It's the middle of the night and I don't need you hanging around peeking over my shoulder while I work."
The cantankerous declaration seemed to break the spell over the room. Patrol members scurried back to their duties, the lab emptying quickly of all but a few people and the posted guard at the portal.
"I have a meeting with the planning commission and Undergrowth in a few hours anyway. I need some sleep before then." Paulina spared the restraining tank one last long look before she excused herself.
"Just make him well enough to spit out some answers, Vlad." Valerie ordered, also turning to leave. "I've got my own business to get to."
---
This can't be good. Dora swallowed nervously, realizing at a glance that even in dragon form she wouldn't stand a chance against the wild looking ghost that had come after her.
She halted her flight as had been demanded, not speaking. Maybe the giant specter would mistake her for an unintelligent animal ghost and leave in search of a sentient target. The spook approached swiftly, the giant standing just about level with the dragon. The red-haired ghost bore an uncomfortable resemblance to the Ghost King from years ago; a thought that did nothing to soothe Dora's nerves.
"Speak, beast!" He demanded, gesturing with his armored hand at Dora. "For it is apparent that you are capable of such! No lack-wit wyrm adorns itself with pretty gold baubles that are clearly the works of human craft!"
Dora's thoughts raced as the princess considered her options. Staying silent wasn't working. She doubted she could prevail in a fight; nor was she fast enough to flee. She had a hunch that this ghost was the reason for that explosion earlier, and for Dan's mysterious disappearance.
With a silent thanks for over a millenia of practice at coming across as harmlessly subservient, Dora shifted down to her normal form. If she could fool the ghost into thinking she was harmless and not worth violence, perhaps she could find out some useful information.
"My apologies-" Dora forced herself not to glare up at the ghost. "m'lord."
"Ahah!" The red-haired spook guffawed, apparently pleased with the change. "That is the proper way for the denizens of the astral plane to address their rightful eternal lord!"
Who is this egomaniac? Dora thought to herself, choosing her next words carefully lest she anger the spook. "I am terribly ashamed, m'lord; but I fear I haven't a name to put to Your Majesty."
So it was a formal and teeth-grindingly humble way of asking, "Who the heck are you, anyway?"
"So the spirits of this day have forgotten over the long ages of my imprisonment?" The ghost boomed, scowling. "And the Watchers have not taken it upon their inept selves to ensure that knowledge was kept?"
"I'm terribly sorry, m'lord." Dora forced a helpless sounding tremble into her voice. "It must have been a very long time... I do not know anything of these Watchers you speak of, nor this knowledge they were supposed to share."
"Well, none of this realm need worry about their incompetent isolation a moment longer!" The ghost declared. "Have you not heard the name Maghnus, hailed as Lord of the Dark, as a GOD to all of this flawed world's existence?"
I hadn't thought it possible. There's a ghost in the Ghost Zone who is a bigger blowhard than my brother was! Dora wisely kept her observation to herself. "This is the first I've heard of your name, Lord Maghnus. Though some books in the castle have mentioned a ki-"
"Castle?" Maghnus cut her off. "Lead me to this castle, dracolich! For my traitorous brother has seen to the destruction of my citadel, and I have need of a new stronghold from which to decree my reign!"
Who's he calling a zombie dragon? Dora huffed to herself. ...Oh dear. I probably shouldn't have mentioned the castle. This is bad.
---
"I don't suppose you've found out anything as to what caused this, have you?" Vlad inquired of the only one in the room who would so much as look in his direction.
"He woke up for a few seconds before you got here, Vlad." Tucker shrugged, handing off equipment to the billionaire. "Dude said something about a ghost with a weird power, and he conked out again before anybody could ask about it."
"A weird power?" Vlad raised an eyebrow, a thoughtful frown hidden under his surgical mask while he worked on Dan. "If I recall trivia regarding ghostly artifacts of power correctly..."
"Somehow Dan got more powerful than Pariah, even when the Ghost King had the Crown of Fire and Ring of Rage." Tucker filled in, recalling that ultimately failed gamble from years ago. "I think somehow Dan got his hands on them."
"So it's not that, then." Vlad mused, making a face as he took a surgical needle threaded with some sort of glowing green thread to the ghost's torn shoulder. "Whoever controlled both was supposed to obtain limitless power."
Tucker decided he didn't like the distant look of greed on the billionaire's face. "Not that limitless, was it?"
"No, I suppose not." Vlad sighed, moving on from the stitches and changing the green cylinder connected to what the man had half-jokingly called life-support equipment. "That's the fifth canister already. It's a good thing I saved so many years' worth of them."
"What the heck are those, anyway?" Tucker quirked an eyebrow, thinking the things looked familiar.
"Filtrators from my ghost portal." Vlad chuckled quietly at some old memory. "Just one filters a great deal of ectoplasmic matter from the portal over the span of several months. For lack of a better option, I thought to use them as a ghostly IV supplement. Fortunately it appears to be working."
"You've got no idea what the heck you're doing, do you?" Tucker asked flatly.
"Barely a clue." Vlad admitted. "I've never had to mend a wounded ghost before."
Tucker shrugged, in no place to criticize the older man. The royal geek had been surprised when he realized that he was fairly comfortable in the presence of his best friend's arch-nemesis. He would never say so aloud for fear of Sam's wrath, but Tucker suspected it was a case of plain maturity. Sam and Danny seemed almost mentally locked in as teenagers, while responsibility had forced the techno-geek to grow up and look at things from a more objective angle. Whereas Vlad was already a mature, if irrational adult when he was Danny's nemesis; and the past decade had forced him to grow past his almost childish greed and irrational mentality.
Barely a clue or not, Dan was looking a little better thanks to the treatment. His complexion had started to recover its normal blue shade, and the ecto-reader on the restraining tank had already climbed to nearly four.
"Oh! I should call Dora and let her know we found Dan." Tucker slapped a fist in his open palm, quickly digging his phone out of some hidden pocket in his clothes.
Vlad glanced over from where he was working, raising an eyebrow at the younger ghost's expression as it shifted from relaxed to a concerned frown. "Is something the matter?"
"She's not answering..." Tucker murmured.
---
Playing nursemaid to that... that monster Valerie kicked a stray rock out of her path, the fragment shattering the broken remains of a window that hadn't been totally smashed when the building toppled over years ago.
She was furious, and had taken off obstinately to resume her interrupted patrol. In reality, she couldn't stand being in the same building as that ghost. Any of the ghosts, really; she was furious with Tucker for having apparently taken the fire-headed ghost's side in matters. How could he, after what that monster had done to Danny years ago? To everyone, both in Amity Park and the Ghost Zone?
The shattering of glass was short lived and entirely unsatisfactory as an outlet for the huntress' anger. She was finally getting something of a normal life cobbled together from the shambles he had left it in, and he had to go and show up and plunge that tentative new reality into chaos again!
She paced the ruined street, yelling her frustration and pitching rocks into the few intact panes of glass she found. When there was no more glass left to smash, the rocks were flung into empty windows; eliciting hollow clatters of concrete against concrete and the occasional crystalline ring of struck metal.
"How could they-" She growled into the silent air. "He needs to be wiped off the face of the planet, that's what he needs!"
Dwelling on the situation wasn't helping her temper any. If anything the huntress was thinking herself in circles, only making her mood worse. He was back, the monster responsible for the wreckage around her; for the death of Danny, of her father, of so many people she had and hadn't known. Though she was loathe to admit it, there wasn't anything she could do about it, either. She hated the grating feel of the thought: My weapons can't hurt him.
My weapons can't hurt him. I can't hurt him.
Another shout of frustration and a few gun blasts into the side of one of the derelicts lining the street helped a little bit. It was a poor substitute for shooting the ghost, but at least the empty buildings could be damaged, and no harm done, right? Valerie occupied herself until a lucky beam blast lit a hollow building's interior, the blast apparently striking the building's unstable support.
The huntress ran as the unstable building creaked and groaned from the extra abuse, collapsing on itself in a cloud of choking dust. Suddenly shooting decrepit buildings didn't seem like such a good outlet for Valerie's frustration. Coughing from the dust in the air, she hopped onto her jet sled and took off for another section of the ruin.
What could she do about Phantom... no, Dan? So the jerk had a name. At least he hadn't simply elected to call himself Danny. Not all of Tucker's reasoning would have kept her from putting a blast between the ghost's closed eyes if he'd further sullied Danny's good name.
That was a pleasant thought, and Valerie let herself indulge in the mental image. The ghost helpless before her, unable to stop her.
"N-no! I'm sorry! I'll never do it again-!" He would plead, red eyes wide in panic, trembling at the business end of her ecto-cannon. "Please don't-!"
"I want you to know, Dan." She would lean over the gun, whispering the final taunt so low that only he would hear it. "I'm going to enjoy this."
"NooOOOOOO-!"
And it would be over. He would be dead by her hands, her vengeance complete.
"Valerie!"
She snapped out of her daydream at the sound cracking over her wristband. Annoyed by the interruption, she glanced at the tiny screen and activated the visual. It was Tucker on the other end, the royal geek looking almost pale beneath his ghostly green complexion.
"What is it?" She snapped.
"Valerie, it's-" Tucker's voice was strained. "It's Dora!"
Author's Notes: I swear, Valerie's scene at the end of this chapter is my favorite. Longtime readers might notice a few things that make the scene extra-disturbing Not a lot of Dan in this chapter, but he should be conscious sometime in the next chapter for real.
Now, lots of virtual Halloween candy to all my readers for not lynching me for taking so long to update! And candied apples to my super-awesome reviewers: Silver Shadowbreeze, Fulcon, BaronOBeefDip, Eleirah, Tie-dyed Trickster, Akino Ame, Anne Camp aka Obi-quiet, Selofain, zara2148, Sukoru, Moony's Metamorphmagus, khaosfire, Angelic Kittens, i AM the Random Idiot, and Proj. Cadmus!