"What are you doing here!" demanded Danny; obviously not liking the new company which entailed his parents' old college acquaintance.
"Oh Daniel," Vlad chuckled as if he had heard an amusing joke. "You act as though I am obligated to disseminate an elucidation. But to satiate your curiosity, we have business with that unconscious ghost over there."
The hero glanced down at Ember for just a moment, then to the humanoid being partnered with Vlad and was hesitant to ask the follow up question. He swallowed and kept focus on both.
"What do you want with her?"
The former billionaire twirled his cane around and stamped it into the ground before responding, "That is for me to know and you to figure out soon. Authorization to proceed granted ECTA."
"Acknowledged," said the being known as ECTA levitating off the ground and moving in Ember's direction.
Danny, not sure what Vlad planned on doing with the rocker decided to intervene and jumped in between both parties.
"I don't know what's going on but I wont let you get to Ember."
ECTA halted and the being's cold eyes were now locked on Danny.
"Obstacle detected."
"Always the intrusive do-gooder even when matters does not concern you in the slightest," Vlad stated shaking his head though with a smile. "ECTA, do not let the obstacle deter you."
"Acknowledged."
ECTA's body radiated a brilliant green with 1's and 0's in white shifting about the surface of the skin.
Danny became confused as to what was going on.
"Huh?"
ECTA silently raised both arms slowly and extended both hands outward as green energy wrapped them around. Then without warning a big green projectile in the likeness of a circuit board appeared from out of nowhere and flew fast in Danny's direction. The ghost boy's eyes widened before he leapt off the ground into the air dodging the hazard.
Taking flight, he had the opportunity to think about what just transpired.
"(Am I seeing things or did that attack look like one Technus used on me?)"
Before he could think any longer on it, a bandaged hand managed to seize hold of his ankle stopping his ascent. Then it yanked hard pulling him down.
"WHOA...!" exclaimed Danny being overpowered by the sheer strength of the hand. It wasn't long before he was pulled all the way back to ECTA, whose whole body seemed to be covered in bandages. The being had him hoisted upside down by the ankle. The ghost boy could only blink in confusion at the change in appearance of ECTA. "(Bandages? This is just like that mummy ghost who tried to take advantage of Tucker a couple of years ago.)" ECTA's hand somehow shifted from a bandaged one to a normal green hand. And that was when Danny felt an electric charge channel through his leg throughout the rest of his body. "AAAAAAAAGH!"
Vlad smirked as he approached the two at a casual pace. Once he closed the distance, Danny's morph ring appeared thus turning him back into his human self.
"That should do ECTA."
The hero's suffering came to an end with ECTA releasing the dark haired teen's ankle causing him drop to the ground onto his stomach.
"My, that was shorter than I had expected Daniel. Have you've been getting rusty while dear old uncle Vlad was away; not pulling the strings as it were?"
The halfa teen could do nothing but groan in his current state, "I hate you..."
"Fair enough," Vlad said turning to face Ember's direction, who was still out like a light. "Carry on with the main objective ECTA. Daniel shouldn't present much or should I say any semblance of a hindrance now."
"Acknowledged," the cold eyed being responded before levitating over to Ember's position.
Danny picked his head up and watched ECTA advance closer and closer. His fingers dug into the grass as he started to crawl his way over in the same direction. Filled with determination he said, "I won't let you get to Ember."
Vlad glanced at the boy and let out a sigh. Then he raised a foot and pressed it firmly down on the teen's backside.
"Ugh!"
"Now now Daniel. I cannot allow you to interfere any longer. You've had your shot at being the hero. Stay still and observe."
ECTA reached the target. The pop princess was still out cold. ECTA reached down and lifted Ember up by the wrist until she was upright. Once in that position, ECTA's free hand had begun to glow. Danny watched in trepidation. ECTA wasted no time thrusting that hand forward into the musician's abdomen without restraint. As soon it happened, Ember's eyes popped opened accompanied by a shrieking cry.
"AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAGH...!"
Both Danny and the birds in the surrounding area were disturbed by the gutwrenching sound. The latter had fled at the utterance while the former felt as if he had been sucked into a nightmare.
"Ember...!? Grr...!" the teen exclaimed from his position and tried to crawl but the weight of the former billionaire's foot bearing down on him kept him in place. "Get... off... of... me...!"
"Sorry little badger. You'll just have to accept it. Especially with ECTA almost finished with the process."
"Process?"
"Would you like to know what's happening?" Vlad teased looking down at the helpless hero. "I can give you the details. But I doubt they would set your heart at ease."
"What is your minion doing to Ember!"
"Very well. Since you must know, ECTA is absorbing miss Mclain's core power."
Danny's eyes widened.
"W-what?!"
"I'm not sure how familiar you are with ghost cores but they are the rudimentary part of pure ecto beings. To compare, they are as vital as the human heart is to us."
"That means Ember will be...!" the teen began putting two and two together.
"Precisely."
The ghost boy started to remember the last time he experienced the rocker in an unresponsive state and felt his anxiety reach a new level.
"Not if I have anything to say about it!"
Danny transformed into his ghost self with newfound determination that exerted such power that Vlad was blown up off him with amazing force.
"WAAAAHH?!"
The halfa teen quickly rose to his feet and took off in the direction he needed to be.
"Let go of her!" shouted Danny flying fast like a bat out of you-know-where.
ECTA turned a head at the last second. By that time, the ghost boy had glowing green fists at the ready and swung hard connecting fist to face. Vlad's minion was sent flying with its hand retracting out of Ember's abdomen. The musician fell to the ground clutching at the area which was invaded.
"Erg...!" flinched Ember wincing with the touch on all fours.
Danny shifted his focus to her, went down on a knee, and asked full of worry, "Are you ok?"
She pulled that hand away and saw that it was stained with ectoplasm.
"When that ghost had me it felt like my insides were being frozen."
Then she remembered who she was talking with and added...
"Don't worry about me dipstick. I'll manage."
He nodded.
The fire haired girl rose slowly to her feet with Danny helping by holding her shoulders.
"I didn't ask for help."
"Sorry," the ghost boy letting go immediately but the concern on his face was still there as he gazed at the now healed spot on her abdomen.
Embarrassed and uncomfortable by the unwanted attention, Ember looked away and said as soft as she was willing to let out, "Seriously babypop, I'll pull through. I'm not gonna kick the bucket. Again."
Danny opened his mouth to say something but was interrupted by a clapping noise.
"Bravo Daniel."
The white haired teen and Ember shifted their heads and saw the former billionaire with a cain under his shoulder clapping with a smirk.
"You've surpassed my expectations."
"Plasmius..." Ember said with a loathing that could match anyone from the Fenton household. "So you're the one who shot me in the back."
From the bush Danny had sent the being into, ECTA flew over to where Vlad was and landed at his left side. The man in the Cordovan hat gestured with a point of the cane to his side.
"Credit for that would go to my newest creation ECTA."
Ember extended a hand out and her guitar appeared in it.
"When I'm done with your lackey, there won't be anything left but a pile of goop."
Vlad chuckled.
"I'm sure you're eager for payback. But playtime has come and gone. And besides, you're less of a challenge to it than Daniel."
"Wanna bet?" Ember said taking a step but falling to a knee with a grimace and clutching her abdomen. "Grr...!"
"Ember...!" Danny gasped moving closer to see if she was fine.
Between clenched teeth she said, "I told you I'm fine...!"
"Daniel, do give Maddie and Jack my best. ECTA, it is time for us to depart."
Danny watched as an assortment of tattoos manifested on ECTA's skin, followed by peeling off, then circling around master and minion in a vortex of sorts. Vlad waved goodbye at the surprised boy before the encircling tattoos carried them off into the air and out of the park for good.
With the pair gone, Danny's shifted his attention back to Ember who muttered after struggling to stand tall, "Great. They got away. Next time I see 'em I'll go upside their heads."
"As much as I want you to do that, we should go back to my house to check and see if you're really ok on the inside."
Ember groaned at the suggestion.
After her reaction, he said, "Please. I don't want to lose sleep if I don't know for sure if you're ok or not."
His frown, pleading tone, and concerned eyes somehow made her not want to fight against the recommendation anymore.
With a sigh she gave in by saying, "Fine... but your folks better not try to cut me open like a biology class frog or I'm bailing."
Danny's frown turned upside down. Then the two flew out of the area with the sun setting entirely over the horizon.
AN: Thank God for his mercy he has shown towards me.
Also, the title for this story is not the real one. I haven't decided on it yet.
To (deloreansareawesome69): Thank you for taking the time to read my story. I hope I can produce the same effect with this one.