Chapter 4
Rosa arrived at Vlad's castle. She looked around, and finally found Vlad.
"Well, child, what is it you want here?" Vlad looked at the girl with a smile.
"I want you to explain why I suddenly have very bad acne!" Rosa exclaimed, her eyes burning with hatred.
"Puberty?" Vlad smirked.
"Oh, so you do know sarcasm." Rosa observed. "Now please explain why I have suddenly broken out or I will have to hurt you!"
Vlad raised an eyebrow. "Oh really? You think you can defeat me? You only got your powers, what? A week ago? A month? Silly girl, I've had my powers for over twenty years!" Vlad laughed.
"He's right Rosa, you can't beat him." A voice said behind her. Rosa turned and saw Star. Star Ghost.
"What are you doing here?" Rosa asked.
"Settling a score, why are you here? And covered with Acne?" Star asked.
"Vlad did this to me to get to Danny!" Rosa again glared at Vlad hatefully.
"What do you want with Danny?" Star asked suspiously.
"He will become my son in evil, soon enough." Vlad smirked.
"Your crazy! He wont ever chose sides with you!" Rosa exclaimed. Then she jumped at him with plasma blasts in her hands. She threw them at him, but he produced a force field and the blasts bounced off of the shield, completely missing Vlad.
Then he produced a powerful ray of his own and blasted it into Rosa. She cried out and fell to the ground.
"Hey! Back off bud! Remember me?! Don't you want a piece of me again?" Star challenged.
"Ah yes, How is that arm of yours Star?" Vlad smirked.
"You will pay for what you have done to me!" She announced, attacking Vlad with everything she had. Vlad was calm and managed to stop every blast she threw at him. She was still young and still no match against him. As they fought, Rosa managed to sit up. She knew that Star was losing, and badly too. Rosa had to stand and she had to help. Rosa forced herself to stand, even though it hurt to even breathe.
"Hey Vlad!" Rosa yelled breathlessly.
He turned toward her, then Star gave him a massive blast into his chest. He staggered and formed another blast in his hand, and threw it at Star. Star managed to create a force field. She stopped the blast, but she was still growing weaker. But she refused to give up. He would pay and he would pay now! Her yellow eyes refused to give into defeat. So she continued to fight.
"Star! We have to retreat!" Rosa cried.
"You're not going anywhere.." Vlad grinned. Then suddenly Rosa was trapped in a ectoplasmic bubble.
"What?" Rosa desperately tried to escape from the bubble with no success, she tried everything, nothing seemed to work.
"Now, as for you…" Vlad turned to Star and suddenly glowed bright pink, he duplicated himself and surrounded Star with them. All of the Vlad's formed plasma blasts and fired at Star. She tried to form a shield, but instead her powers went nuts and the blasts hit her at full force. She cried out and fell to the ground, and changed back into her human self.
"Star..no.." Rosa whispered.
"That's right, I have won my dear." Vlad smiled. "Now Daniel will have no choice but to be mine." He laughed.
Rosa closed her eyes. "This is all my fault.." She whispered. "Danny… I'm sorry.."
"Its alright Rosa." Danny appeared out of nowhere and smiled. He was in phantom form and quickly ran to check if Star was all right.
Vlad smirked. "Well there son, you ready to renounce your father and come with me?"
Danny's eyes narrowed. "You wish."
" I see. Maybe this isn't the right time to tell you that what is wrong with Rosa can be lethal." His eyes glittered. Danny's widened. He gazed at Rosa. "What?" Rosa looked shocked as well.
Vlad smiled evilly. " A week ago I planted a pill in Rosa's drink she was drinking. It instantly mixed with the drink and disappeared. Rosa drank it with no difficultly, then…" Rosa's eyes widened. She remembered that day.
"No…" She whispered.
"Yes, you got sick and had to use the restroom." Vlad smiled.
"You did that to her?" Danny was getting angry.
"That's not all the pill does son. As we speak, her blood is pumping past the normal rate any human's has the capacity to handle. Didn't you notice your dizzy spells yet Rosa?" Vlad laughed.
Rosa's one eye was still wide with fright. That answered his question.
"You…….You…" Danny's teeth were clenched.
Vlad smirked. "But dear Daniel, that isn't the best part. In four hours time, her heart will fail, and her body will shut down."
At that, Danny's whole face suddenly turned to shock and lost all color.
Rosa, meanwhile in the bubble was facing a strange fact in her head. Her life was in Danny's hands. He was the only one who could save her, but she knew the price it would cost. She understood Vlad's plan all too well now.
"But dear Daniel, I have the antidote, all you need to do is renounce your father and come with me." Vlad smiled wider.
Everything hit Danny at full force. He had all their lives in his hands, if he said no, than Rosa would die, and probably Star and him as well. If he said yes, than his father would probably die.
He looked at Rosa in the bubble, into her blue eye. He could see fear in her eyes. It hurt him so much inside. Even if he saved her, Vlad would never give him the antidote to save Rosa.
Star meanwhile had been conscious through the whole situation. She stared with half open eyes at the ground. She had been stronger, but still she couldn't beat Vlad. Now these two had to pay for her mistake. Old fears, old emotions started to flood her mind again. Her best friend, dying because she couldn't save her. Her other friends abandoning her because of what she was. All the foster families she went to. The harsh reality she had to learn early. Now this was it. Now she had to make a difficult choice. To be with them or to stick it out on her own. Only counting for number one. Some of what Vlad said came back to her. "You're a loser and sometimes losers stay alive." I need to stay alive to defeat Vlad. She thought to herself. These two must pay the price that comes with dealing with Vlad. It's no longer my concern. These thoughts finally made her open her eyes fully. She struggled to stand up. Everyone in the room was looking at her in awe. Here, was this badly battered and beaten girl, standing up. She glared hatefully at Vlad with her blinding yellow eyes. "You will pay for what you've done." She whispered. She looked at Danny and Rosa, with a straight face. "I'm sorry kids, I can't help you."
"No! Don't go!" Danny shouted. " We need your help!"
Star floated up and looked at Danny with a face as cold as stone. "I'm sorry. I cant. I wish you all the luck I can give." She glanced into his hurt face. "Goodbye." With that, she disappeared through the ceiling and out into the night sky.
Inside, her soul was in knots. She wasn't sure why she felt so bad about leaving those two to their destiny. At least they would be together in another world. She glanced at the beautiful stars. Her namesake. The stars, as spontaneous, as bright, as beautiful as her. But they had no soul. Star thought that this was the only difference between her and them. That she had a soul, no matter how much she hid it. They were just balls of gas and matter. Yet they had an attitude all their own. She wished that she was with them. She wanted to be one with them, that would teach Vlad. She would use some magic force behind the stars to destroy him for good. Then, she would feel nothing. She would become one with the stars. Flashes of Rosa and Danny suddenly disrupted her thoughts. She suddenly was overcome with emotion and hand to land near a tree and crumple to her knees and cry. Water fell from her eyes at a rapid rate. She hadn't cried this bad since she lost her best friend. How could she feel this bad? They were victims of war….nothing more. But still she cried. She would internally cry afterwards for the rest of her life..she knew…
Danny looked at Vlad, a strange expression on his face. " I can't decide between Rosa and my father….that's just wrong.."
"Still your in the position Daniel. Need time to think? Ill give you three hours until you come to a decision. Talk to her, see what she thinks. Maybe it will clear your mind." With that Vlad disappeared. Danny ran to the bubble and looked at Rosa inside.
"Rosa I.." He started. She looked into his eyes and smiled softly.
"Its alright Danny, you can tell him no. I'm not afraid to die. Heck I'm already half dead." She tried to joke, but Danny could see a tear glistening in her eye.
"Rosa I wont let you die." Danny promised.
Rosa looked at him. "But you can't give up on your father."
" I wont, I will find the antidote." Danny said.
"In three hours? Danny this place is huge and it's a maze!" Rosa looked sadly at him. "You wont find it in time! Besides, Vlad will know you will be looking for it."
" Still I wont give up, I will find that antidote or die trying." He smiled at her.
"If it doesn't work, don't give up your fathers life. Say no to Vlad." She looked into his eyes. "Promise me!"
"Rosa I…"
"Promise me!!"
After a silence Danny said,
"I Promise."
