Hello once again, phans!

Not much to say this time, other than, yes, BG224, he DOES talk a lot like Damian. I guess watching all those animated Batman movies have been rubbing off on me. And don't worry, there will be PLENTY of twists and liberties you'll never have seen coming.

Also, just a heads up, ya might want to reread your review. I know what you meant to say, but… *chuckle*

Ver. 1.0.0 (1/24/20)

Ver. 1.0.1 (2/1/20)

Update (1.0.1): Added a note at the end.

Standard Disclaimer, I do not own Danny Phantom, and I'm not gonna pay Nickelodeon a shit-ton of money. What? I'm not made of frickin' money. Okay, let's begin the episode.

"~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~"

Somewhere in the Ghost Zone, Team Phantom was flying around, looking for the Orbs of Power. Phantom, Specter, and Dust were leading Tucker and Sam, who were in the Specter Speeder.

"Any readings?" Danny asked into his Fenton Phone.

"Nothing," Tucker replied.

"We've been flying around for hours now," said Sam, "Maybe we should call it a day."

"No one said you guys had to stick around," said Specter, "but if you guys are too busy with school…"

"School can wait," said Danny, "Saving the world? Not so much."

*Beep beep beep*

"Hold on…" said Sam, "We're getting a weird energy reading."

"Where's it coming from?" Specter asked.

"It's coming from… there," Tucker replied as he pointed towards a large structure in the distance.

The team flew over and approached what turned out to be an old medieval looking fortress on a floating island.

"A castle?" Danny asked.

"Fortress," Specter corrected as he pulled out his cellphone, "Looks similar to the one depicted in the photo. Hmm… don't see any way inside."

"Shouldn't be a problem for us," said Sam, "Aren't we the ghosts in the Ghost Zone?"

Danny and Specter glanced at each other and floated down to the ground and reverted to their human form. They pressed their hands against the stone walls, but they didn't phase through.

"Hmm… that's strange," said Danny as he and Trevor went ghost, "We can't phase through it."

"Any reason why?" Tucker asked.

"Maybe some sort of magic?" Dust suggested.

"Regardless, we'll need to find a way inside," said Danny, "There must be a door or a window or… something."

Specter nodded in agreement and the team split up, flying around the fortress looking for a way inside. A couple of minutes passed when Danny found a small circular window in one of the towers up above.

"Guys," he said into the Fenton Phone, "I found a way inside."

A few seconds later, everyone had joined Danny. Tucker and Sam hopped out of the Speeder and Specter and Danny carried them inside, with Dust close behind. It was dark and the light that Phantom and Specter naturally gave off barely helped. Specter's eyes began to glow blue.

"Wow," he muttered, "even my enhanced vision can't see shit in this darkness."

A moment later, they reached the floor. As soon as Danny let Sam go, he held up his hands and created a ball of light in each, instantly illuminating the room they were in.

"Nothing in here," said Tucker as everyone glanced around the empty room.

"Thank you, Captain Obvious," said Specter, "Anything else you wanna add?"

"Ummm…" said Tucker as he noticed a stairwell that headed downstairs, "Maybe we should-"

He stopped talking when Specter raised an eyebrow at him as he created a ball of light in his right hand.

"Never mind," Tucker conceded.

Danny led everyone downstairs with Specter, and Dust on his shoulder, taking the rear. Halfway down the rotating stairs, more of the room they were descending into was illuminated.

"Wow," said Sam, "It's an enormous library!"

Although they haven't reached the floor yet, the bookshelves towered the team as the walls were encased with countless books.

"Stay focused, Manson," said Specter as he glanced over to her, "We're looking for the Orbs of Power, not-"

He stopped when he noticed Sam pulling a couple of books off the shelves as the continued descending down the stairs.

"Huh… it's all gothic literature and-" Sam began to say before she reached for another book and noticed her hand phasing through the shelf, "Huh? I guess that still works inside."

"Is now really the time?" Specter asked with a sigh.

"Oops, sorry," Sam nervously chuckled and she put the books behind her back.

"*Sniff-sniff* You guys smell that?" Tucker asked.

"Yeah," Danny replied, "It smells like something's burning."

"Look!" Sam exclaimed quietly, pointing towards the entryway below.

A mysterious purple light was emanating from the next room. The team quietly made their way over to the next room and poked their heads around the corner. Inside was another library, but it was smaller. There were strange runes on the ground with green candles burning a purple flame. And in the center of the room was an even brighter glowing purple sphere.

"The Orb of Knowledge," Specter breathed.

Everyone entered the room and slowly approached the Orb.

"Wait!" Danny hissed, blocking everyone with his arms, "Something's not right."

"What do you mean?" Tucker asked, "The Orb is just floating there for us to take. Although… it does seem suspicious."

A dark shadow darted behind the group.

"Is it just me? Or do these runes look familiar?" Dust asked.

Danny glanced down at one of the runes for a moment before his eyes widened.

"These runes… they're the same ones I've seen when we fought-"

"Me."

Everyone spun around and saw a familiar looking magic-wielding ghost.

"Magnus!?" Danny exclaimed.

"A pleasure to see you all again," the mask wearing magician replied as he flipped through his spell book, "but I'm afraid this is where your journey ends."

*Cue Intro*

"~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~"

Danny Phantom in: Power Hungry (Episode 62)

"~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~"

Phantom and Specter quickly got in front of the others and glared at Magnus.

"What are you doing here, Magnus?" Specter asked, "How'd you even find this place?"

"I see no reason to tell you anything, Specter," Magnus replied, "In any case, if you value your lives, I suggest you give me the Orb of Knowledge. We will then go our separate ways and continue with our lives. How does that sound?"

"I'm fine with that," Danny replied, "except we'll be taking the Orb, thank you."

"Oh, well," Magnus sighed, "I tried to make things easy for you."

He reached for his belt and grabbed a large vial of ectoplasm.

"Not happening, magician!" Specter exclaimed as he rocketed towards Magnus.

The magician chuckled before teleporting away, causing Specter to stop midair.

"Where'd he go?" Sam asked.

"Xaquin igira soth kalipar!" Magnus chanted from behind the group, getting their attention.

He was floating beside the Orb and had created an orange magical barrier around him.

"I'll be taking my prize and be on my way," said Magnus.

"I don't think so," said Dust as she morphed into her true form.

Her hands began to glow purple and she held them up towards Magnus.

"Kiranann ta sular sinur ast!" she chanted.

"Hm!?" Magnus grunted before he vanished from the center of the room and reappeared outside the barrier, "Hmph… I see you still remember a few tricks."

The barrier vanished and Specter blinked over towards the Orb. As soon as he reached for it, Magnus teleported next to him and kicked him aside.

"OOF!" Specter exclaimed as he slammed into the wall.

"Logan!" Danny exclaimed.

He turned back to Magnus and watch him grab the Orb.

"Finally," he sighed.

Danny glared at the magician and fired a ghost ray towards him. The blast connected with the Orb, knocking it out of Magnus' hand. Magnus turned back to Danny before teleporting towards him. Magnus tried to punch him, but Danny quickly turned intangible, causing Magnus' fist to phase through him. Tucker and Sam ran over towards the Orb while Dust rushed over to Logan's side.

"You okay?" Dust asked.

"I'm fine," Specter moaned as he got up to his feet, "Get inside the medallion. Don't want to replay what happened last time."

As Dust dispersed into green energy and took shelter in Specter's time medallion, he glanced over and saw Magnus reaching behind his back for a vial of ectoplasm. Specter blinked over and tried to ram his shoulder into him, but Magnus turned intangible just as he tossed the vial towards the Orb. Specter phased through Magnus and accidentally crashed into Danny.

"Ow…" Danny moaned.

"Sorry, Phantom," said Specter as he helped Danny up.

The glass vial flew over Tucker and Sam and shattered next to the Orb.

"Pveathr tasarak moipar ith!" Magnus chanted.

The puddle of ectoplasm began to bubble and morph, causing Tucker and Sam to stop in their tracks. Suddenly, three archer skeletons erupted from the ectoplasm, blocking the way to the Orb.

"Ha!" Sam exclaimed, "Just more skeletons? Shouldn't be a problem."

She reached behind her back and pulled out the Fenton Wrist Ray. Danny and Specter were busy trying to deal with Magnus when Specter noticed the archers and Sam aiming her weapon at the ghosts.

"Wait, Manson, don't!" Specter warned.

"Miopiar akula vinaquirem!" Magnus chanted as he kicked Specter from behind and grabbed Danny by the chest and slammed him into the wall.

Sam fired her weapon just as a yellow rune appeared on each of the skeleton's foreheads and their eye sockets began glowing the same yellow color. As soon as the energy beam hit one of the skeletons, the attack just vanished.

"Huh? What gives?" Sam asked as she fired more ghost rays at the skeletons.

The same result happened.

"Manson, stop!" Specter ordered as he blinked over to Magnus and blasted him with a ghost ray, "You're just making them stronger!"

Danny feel to one knee as he recovered from hitting the wall.

"Huh?" Sam exclaimed as she glanced over to him.

She then looked back at the skeletons and saw them taking aim at her and Tucker with glowing yellow arrows.

"Sam! Tucker!" Danny exclaimed as he shot forward towards his friends.

The archers began firing a barrage of arrows at the teens, but Phantom was fast enough to get in front of Tucker and Sam and create a ghost shield around them. Meanwhile Magnus teleported over to the Orb and reached for it.

"Finally," he muttered.

*POW*

Specter blinked over and tackled Magnus away from the Orb. The two began blinking and teleporting around the room, constantly trying to get the upper hand over the other. Meanwhile, Danny was still shielding his friends from the never-ending barrage of arrows.

"I can't keep this up much longer," he said as sweat began to appear on his forehead.

"Nice going, Sam," Tucker remarked.

"What!? What did I do!?" Sam exclaimed.

"You were the one who had to whip out your Wrist Ray and try and blast the skeletons away," Tucker remarked.

"Hey, it's not my fault that Magnus put a spell on the archers!" Sam replied, "Besides, I didn't see you doing anything to stop the skeletons!"

"Um, guys?" Danny asked in a strained voice, "Can we bicker another time?"

The archer skeletons began to approach the heroes.

"We're trapped! There's no place for us to go!" Tucker exclaimed, "We're doomed!"

"Get ahold of yourself, Tucker," Sam said, slightly annoyed.

She looked over and noticed a large bookcase against the wall just outside the shield.

"I've got it!" she exclaimed before turning to Danny, "Danny, when I say 'go', bring the shield down1"

"What!?" Phantom exclaimed, "Why!?"

"I've got a plan," Sam explained, "Trust me, okay?"

Danny turned his attention back to the skeletons, which we almost at the edge of the ghost shield.

"Alright, Sam," Danny sighed, "Just tell me when."

Sam waited until the skeletons were in the right position.

"Uh… Sam?" Tucker asked.

"Not yet," she hissed.

The archers were a couple of feet away, still attacking when Sam gave the signal.

"NOW!"

Grabbing Tucker by the wrist, Sam dragged him towards the large bookcase as Danny went intangible and brought the shield down. The arrows passed through him harmlessly just as Sam phased into the bookcase, pulling Tucker in with her.

"Okay, Tucker and Sam are safe," Danny said to himself, "Now to deal with these bags of bones."

Phantom turned tangible again and darted towards his attackers.

"Since I can't use my ghost powers, I'll have to take a more direct approach," he smirked.

The skeletons stopped firing arrows and their eyes grew wide as Danny closed in on them.

*POW*

Danny punched one in the skull.

*BAM*

And kicked another in the chest.

*KA-POW*

And elbowed the last one in the back. Sam poked her head out of the bookcase and noticed that Magnus and the skeletons were all distracted. Tucker poked his head out next to hers.

"How'd you know that would work?" he asked.

"Figured that if my hand would go through one bookcase, why not all of them in here?" she smirked.

Sam glanced over back around the room and noticed the Orb of Power lying on the ground. Double checking that no one was looking, she hopped out of the bookcase and ran for the Orb.

"Sam! What are you doing!?" Tucker exclaimed quietly.

Nearby, two of the skeletons were sitting on the ground as the third one was thrown into them, causing their bones to fly everywhere. As Danny wiped his hands, the bones began to melt back into ectoplasm.

"Done and done," Danny smirked.

"That's great, Phantom, now will you freakin' help me!?" Specter shouted as he and Magnus continued to battle.

Magnus teleported in front of Specter but then instantly teleported behind him and kicked him in the back.

"OOF!" Specter exclaimed as he hit the ground.

"Specter!" Phantom exclaimed.

Magnus teleported in front of him and headbutted him back.

"Boli kali ithikitalkus!"

Two purple runes appeared on the ground, one under each half-ghost, and magical chains erupted from the ground holding them down.

"Rggh, not this again!" Danny exclaimed as he resisted in the chains.

"I've had enough of your interruptions," Magnus said calmly, "Now, if you don't mind, I will collect the Orb and be on my merry way."

Magnus turned back to where he last saw the Orb, but it was no longer there.

"Looking for something?" Sam asked.

Everyone turned and glanced over to where she was standing and saw her holding the Orb of Power in her hand. She held it up and had her opposite hand aimed at Magnus.

"Kalipar du xaquin idish!" she chanted, causing the Orb to glow brighter.

A moment later, her eyes and hand were glowing the same purple color and a magical projectile shot towards Magnus.

"What!?" the magician exclaimed.

*BOOM*

The attack hit Magnus in the chest, causing a powerful magical force to send him flying through the stone brick walls and far off into the distance. Phantom, Tucker, and Specter all stared in disbelief in the direction Magnus had disappeared for a few seconds before simultaneously turning their heads slowly back to Sam. Sam shook her head and glanced down at her no longer glowing hand and the Orb.

"Hey!" Dust yelled from the medallion, "What's going on!?"

"Sam just… used magic," Tucker said slowly.

"~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~"

"That was AWESOME!" Sam exclaimed.

The team had returned to the Fenton Works and were sitting around the kitchen table and Dust perched on Trevor's shoulder. There were textbooks, notebooks, and lined paper in front of the teens.

"How did you even do that, Sam?" Danny asked, "I never knew you could use magic."

"Neither did I," Sam replied, "But when I touched this Orb, I just somehow… knew how to do that."

"Manson, what you hold in your hands is the Orb of Knowledge," Trevor explained, "It gives the holder a plethora of information about almost anything."

"Including magic," Dust added.

"Forbidden knowledge," said Trevor as he walked over and grabbed the Orb from Sam.

"Hey!" she exclaimed, "We can use that against Reaper, you know."

"Yeah, that's a great idea," Trevor replied as he rolled his eyes, "The Orbs of Power are not toys or tools for us to use. They are dangerous."

"Oh, come on," Sam insisted, "Just think of what I- uh, we can do with it!"

Trevor put the Orb in his pocket and gave Sam side-eye.

"No," he said sternly, "End of discussion. Now if you need me, I'll be back at Manson's place."

Trevor turned and left the kitchen, with Dust still on his shoulder. Danny noticed Sam was still not too happy with Trevor deciding for her.

"Maybe he's right, Sam," he told her, "We've seen how powerful the Orbs can be."

"Yeah, don't remind me," said Tucker, "It was weird having my mind controlled like that."

"Yeah, that's because the bad guys had the Orbs," said Sam, "What if we used them instead."

"That's not really a risk I'd like to take," said Danny as he reached over and grabbed his notebook, "Any of us for that matter."

"I… suppose you're right," Sam sighed, "Still… it wouldn't hurt to try."

"Eh, who knows? Let's forget about the Orb," said Tucker, "Let's go over our assignments one last time before we turn them in tomorrow."

"Speaking of tomorrow," said Sam as she turned to Danny, "I hope you haven't forgotten."

"About our date tomorrow after school? Never," Danny smirked.

As Danny, Tucker, and Sam began going over their homework, Trevor was leaning against the wall just around the corner, listening in to their conversation.

"Hmm…" he groaned, rubbing his chin.

"~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~"

A couple of hours later, dusk arrived as Sam walked through the front door of her home. Her parents were seated at the table doing work-related stuff before glancing over to their daughter.

"Uh, hi?" Sam said to them, uncertain why they were looking at her that way.

"Hello, Sammy-kins," Pamela replied as Sam walked past them, "Were you out with your… mmm… boyfriend?"

Sam quickly noticed the discomfort her mother felt saying that word.

"Uh, yeeeaaahhh…" she replied, "We were just hanging out and reviewing our homework assignments."

Jeremy and Pam gave each other a look.

"WHAT!?" Sam asked, slightly annoyed.

"We're just making sure that Fenton boy isn't doing anything… undesirable," Jeremy said cryptically.

"What? Eww… no!" Sam exclaimed, "Jeez, can't you two ever saying anything nice about him!?"

"We're just worried about you, that's all," said Pam.

"Well, stop, then," said Sam, "Danny's a great guy- no, the best guy I could possibly have in my life! And he would never hurt me. Besides, I can take care of myself."

Jeremy and Pam sighed in defeat, knowing there was no way that they would convince their rebellious daughter.

"Alright, Samantha, we'll drop the topic for now," Jeremy conceited.

"You might want to also check in on our young visitor," Pam added, "He's up in his guest room. He said something about wanting to talk to you?"

"You mean Trevor?" Sam asked, "Uh, thanks. I'll go speak to him now."

Sam made her way upstairs, with her parents watching her until she was out of sight.

"Remind me again, why did we allow that child to stay with us?" Jeremy asked Pam.

She just shrugged in response. Meanwhile, Sam made her way down the hall and approached the guest room door. She didn't notice that it wasn't closed all the way so when she knocked on the door, it creaked open and revealed Trevor sitting on the bed with an open box next to him and a data pad in his hand.

"Trevor?" Sam asked, startling the young half-ghost.

"Jeez, Manson," Trevor sighed, "What are you trying to do, kill me completely?"

"Well, you are halfway there," Sam smirked.

"Yeah, thanks for stealing my joke," Trevor replied, rolling his eyes as he put the data pad in the box and closed it.

"What's that?" Sam asked as she entered the room and glanced over to the box.

"None of your business," Trevor muttered as he picked it up and pushed it under the bed, "*Sigh* Sorry, I'm just… irritated."

"Are you ever not irritated?"

"Good point."

"My parents said you wanted to see me."

"Yeah…" Trevor replied as he got back up and turned towards Sam, "I also wanted to… apologize about earlier."

"About the Orb?" she smirked and crossed her arms, "I sure showed Magnus who's boss."

"Nnnnooo…" said Trevor as he gave her side-eye, "Clearly Dust and I didn't explain it well enough earlier."

"Explain what enough?" Sam asked.

A swirl of green energy flowed from under Trevor's shirt and morphed into a raven on his shoulder.

"About the Orb of Knowledge," Dust clarified.

"What about it?" Sam asked, uncrossing her arms.

"This applies to most of the Orbs, but they're corrupted," Trevor explained.

"Corrupted?" Sam asked, "By what?"

"Something… evil," Dust replied with discomfort.

Sam raised an eyebrow and Trevor turned his head to face Dust.

"You okay?" he asked.

"Mmm…" Dust moaned in discomfort.

"Evil?" Sam asked, deadpanning, "Come on, seriously?"

"Yeah, I know it sounds cliché, but it's true," said Trevor, "Remember when-"

*Vrrr-Vrrr*

"Hold that thought," Trevor sighed as he pulled out his cellphone and read the text, "Looks like were going on patrol alone tonight, Dust."

A blue ring appeared around Trevor's waist and he changed into Logan Specter. He turned to leave when Sam grabbed his shoulder.

"Wait, what were you going to say?" she asked.

"We'll discuss it another time," Specter replied, "It's probably best you all heard it from us together."

Before Sam could reply, Specter and Dust went intangible and flew through the wall.

"What was that all about?" she wondered, raising an eyebrow.

She turned and left the room and went into her own. She plopped down onto her bed and pulled out one of the books she had taken from the Ghost Zone.

"By the way…"

Sam slightly jumped as she glanced over and saw Specter's head poking through the wall.

"You can keep the souvenirs you brought back from the Ghost Zone," Specter told her before vanishing.

Sam blinked a couple of times before smirking and cracking open the book.

"~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~"

The next day, Sam was in her history class, writing notes from the teacher's lecture on the board.

"It wasn't until the Japanese bombed Pearl Harbor on December 7th, 1941 that the United States had joined the Allies and fought in World War II," the teacher explained.

Sam began to lose interest and glanced out the window. Her hand began to glow a faint purple as her hand continued writing without her knowing.

"…"

"I wonder if I can convince Trevor that I can use the Orb," Sam sighed.

"…?"

Sam didn't notice a shadow looming over her.

"MANSON!"

"WHAT!?" Sam shouted back as she turned and realized that Mrs. Thorne, the history teacher, was standing over her and glaring at her, "Uh… oops."

"Manson," Mrs. Thorne said sternly, "I've asked you a question and you've been in la-la land, doodling in your notebook!"

"What?" Sam asked, confused, "Uh, I'm just... writing notes!"

"Is that so?" Mrs. Thorne asked, "Then tell me how many battleships were damaged during the attack on Pearl Harbor?"

Sam's eyes widened and glanced around as her classmates focused on her. A few were silently chuckling at her predicament. Suddenly, her eyes began to glow a faint purple and she expressed determination.

"Of the 21 ships attacked, 8 were battleships," Sam answered, "The Arizona, Oklahoma, West Virginia, California, Nevada, Pennsylvania, Tennessee, and Maryland. The Arizona and Oklahoma were destroyed, and the others were repaired and returned to service."

Mrs. Thorne's face softened, and her eyes widened.

"That's… correct," she said in disbelief, "I haven't even talked about the loss of the Arizona and the Oklahoma. Very good, Manson."

Sam's eyes returned to normal and she shook her head.

"It… was?" Sam asked, not sure what had happened.

"I apologize, Manson," Mrs. Thorne told her as she went back to the front of the class, "I wasn't aware you had read ahead."

Everyone focused back on Thorne's lecture as Sam glanced around, wondering what had just happened. She looked down at her notes and saw what she had written absent-mindedly.

"How… did I know all that?"

"~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~"

Not far from Amity High, Specter was flying around the city, searching for Reaper.

"I went through every file I downloaded from Vlad's computer and not even that was helpful," the half-ghost grumbled.

"There must be some way we can find Reaper," Dust replied telepathically from the medallion.

Specter landed on a rooftop and looked around.

"I dunno, Dust," he sighed, "It's been a couple of weeks and not a single peep from him."

Dust emerged from the medallion and perched herself on his shoulder.

"Sam does bring up a good point…" she began.

Specter's eyes immediately locked on to Dust; their green glow making her nervous.

"Dust, you of all people know damn well what that Orb can do," he warned.

"Just a suggestion," she remarked.

Specter sighed as he sat down on the edge and began to think.

"You know… it just occurred to me that Magnus knew the location of the Orb," he said after few moments, "How the hell did he even know where it was?"

*WUMP*

A ghost wolf with blue flames pounced from behind and tackled Specter off the roof. They landed on the ground and tumbled a couple of times before Specter kicked the ghost off him. The wolf crashed into a parked car and remained still. Dust glided down to Specter as he got back to his feet. People were staring and whispering to one another.

"Are you okay?" Dust asked as she landed on his shoulder.

"Yeah," Specter replied as he pulled out his medallion and forced Dust back inside, "no thanks to him."

As Specter glanced over her shoulder, Magnus made his presence official when he floated down from the air.

"Miss me?" the magician asked.

"If you mean I miss you like I miss you foot up my ass, then yes," Specter replied, "What are you doing here, Magnus?"

"Isn't it obvious? I want my Orb back."

"Yeah, that'll happen when hell freezes over," Specter growled.

"My, my… someone's in a bad mood," Magnus chuckled.

"Well, considering that Reaper still has the map to the Orbs of Power…"

"And you as well," Magnus added, "Oh, I know about the photo."

Specter glared at Magnus.

"… And Reaper doesn't?" he asked.

"Nope," Magnus replied, "I suppose I should thank you for showing how naïve I was for trusting Reaper."

"Not the word I'd use," Specter muttered as the two circled one another, "So if you don't work with Reaper anymore, why bother with the Orbs?"

"I don't want the Orbs," Magnus replied, "I just want the Orb of Knowledge."

"And let you continue your alchemy? Not happenin'," said Specter.

"I don't think you understand," Magnus said more seriously, "I wasn't asking for it. I'm warning you to give it to me."

Specter slowly reached back for his Fenton Phone, unaware that the ghost wolf was sneaking up on him.

*WHAM*

The wolf leapt towards Specter, but he blinked towards it and punched it in the face. The wolf skidded across the ground for a moment before turning into a puddle of ectoplasm.

*BAM*

Unfortunately, Specter had turned his back to Magnus and the ghost teleported behind him and rammed his shoulder into Specter's back. The half-ghost recovered in the air and reached back for the Fenton Phone.

"Huh!?" he exclaimed.

He pulled out the Fenton Phone and saw the broken remains of the device in his hands.

"Perfect," he muttered.

"Aw, what's wrong?" Magnus taunted, "Can't call your friends for help?"

"Pfft. Like I need help dealing with you," Specter replied as he put the broken Fenton Phone away.

"Are you so certain?" Magnus asked as he held out a hand, "Jalaran moiparran moipar idish vinaquirem!"

The ground began to rumble as cracks began to form with purple light shining from within. Suddenly, a couple dozen skeletal hands burst from the ground and a horde of ghost skeletons rose.

"How the…?" Specter wondered.

"The Orb taught me a few new tricks," Magnus explained as the skeletons began to merge together.

Specter's head slowly tilted up as Magnus' latest creation grew bigger and bigger; its shadow looming over Specter.

"… ah, crap," Specter muttered.

"~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~"

Back at Casper High, Danny, Tucker, and Sam had just finished classes for the day and were walking down the halls.

"It was so weird," Sam told Danny and Tucker, "It was like… the stuff just popped into my head."

"Maybe you're just smarter than you thought you were," Danny suggested.

Sam glared at him, telling him that he made a mistake.

"Uh, not that you weren't smart before!" Danny clarified before chuckling nervously.

"That's what I thought," Sam told him as she playfully patted his cheek a couple of times.

"Maybe it has something to do with the Orb?" Tucker asked, "Trevor did say that the Orbs can influence people."

"Maybe," Sam replied, "We should talk to him about this later."

"Why not now?" Danny asked.

"Because we have something more important happening," Sam smirked.

"Sam, I think this is more important than our date," Danny said as they turned around a corner.

*WUMP*

Danny walked into something and fell onto his rear.

"What where you're going, Fen-turd!"

"Jeez, sorry, Dash," Danny remarked as he got back up, "It's not like I knew you were going around the corner at the same time."

"Whatever, loser," Dash replied, "And did I hear you right? Are you and Manson actually dating?"

"So? What if we are-" Sam began to say, but Danny quickly put a hand over her mouth.

"What!? No! We're not dating!" Danny exclaimed, "I said 'this is the most important thing to date'. I'm not dating Sam, why would you think such a thing? Heh-heh."

Dash raised an eyebrow at Danny as Sam pushed his hand off her mouth.

"Uh, what?" she asked in disbelief.

"Look, sorry I bumped into you, Dash, but we gotta go, bye!" Danny said quickly as he grabbed Tucker and Sam's hands and pulled them toward the exit.

Dash scratched his head in confusion as he watched the three leave. As soon as they were outside, Danny noticed Sam was glaring daggers at him.

"What?" he asked.

Sam crossed her arms and looked away as they began walking down the sidewalk.

"What!?" Danny exclaimed.

"Dude," Tucker said with a deadpan, "you just lied to Dash about you and Sam."

"I didn't lie," Danny explained, "I just don't see why our relationship is anyone's business."

"Who cares what everyone else thinks?" Sam asked, "If they don't like it then too bad."

"I… well…" Danny tried to explain but couldn't find the words.

Suddenly, he gasped as his ghost sense went off.

"Ghost sense?" he asked.

*SLAM*

Right at the team's feet, Specter had crashed into the pavement on his back.

"Owww…" he groaned as he opened his eyes, "Oh, hey, guys."

*RRRRRRRRAAAAAAAAAAAWWWWWWWWWWWWRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRR!*

The earth shook as something large approached the team. People were running down the street, screaming in fear.

"Um… that's… big," Tucker said nervously as he saw what the cause was.

"Holy shit… you're right," Specter dryly joked as he got back to his feet, "Any other obvious remarks, Foley?"

An enormous ghost the size of a large building and made of multiple skeletons was towering over the team. It was carrying two large bone clubs and had on shredded red clothes all around its body.

"Like my new creation?"

The team turned around and saw Magnus floating behind them.

"Magnus!" Danny exclaimed as a white ring appeared around his waist.

"A pleasure as always, Phantom," said Magnus, "I presume you want to intervene with my small squabble with Specter?"

Phantom shot forward towards Magnus and fired a couple of ghost rays at him. Magnus turned intangible, avoiding the attacks, and turned tangible again. He then followed up with a punch in Danny's face, sending him back a few feet.

"Oooff!" Danny grunted as he landed on the ground.

"Danny!" Sam exclaimed and rushed over to his side, "Of all the days to not bring the Wrist Rays."

Tucker was about to follow her when Specter reached over and grabbed the back of his shirt.

"No, you're with me," Specter told him, "I need your help dealing with that."

Specter pointed his thumb over his shoulder and Tucker followed it. His jaw dropped when he realized Specter was referring to the towering ghost approaching them.

"Are you crazy!?" Tucker exclaimed, "How can I help you with that thing!?"

Using intangibility, Specter took Tucker's PDA and took a few steps back.

"Whoa! Wait a minute now!" Tucker exclaimed.

"Dust?" Specter summoned, resulting in the ghost raven appearing on his shoulder, "Find the tallest building in Amity Park and drop this from the highest point."

Dust flapped into the air and took the PDA into her talons.

"Wait, WHAT!?" Tucker shouted and ran after Dust, "NO! NOT ANDREA!"

Specter watched as the monster looked down at Tucker and followed him.

"So damn easy," Specter smirked to himself before flying after the monster.

Meanwhile, Sam helped a dazed Danny up to his feet.

"You okay, Danny?" she asked.

"Yeah… I'm fine," he told her.

Suddenly, Magnus teleported behind the two and grabbed Sam by the arm.

"You'll make a fine damsel in distress," Magnus chuckled and teleported himself and Sam away.

"Sam!?" Phantom exclaimed, "Where are you!?"

"Danny! Behind you!" Sam shouted.

Danny quickly turned intangible before Magnus could tackle him to the ground. Phantom raised his hands and fired a pair of cryo-ghost rays at Magnus. The beams hit the magician and encased him in a block of ice. Phantom turned around and saw Sam held down to the ground by chains that were summoned by a mage skeleton.

"Let me go, bone-head!" Sam shouted to the skeleton, which just laughed in response.

A white gloved hand tapped the skeleton on the shoulder, and it turned its head to see what it was.

*WHAM*

Phantom punched the skeleton so hard that its body broke apart midair and scattered the bones across the ground. He walked up to Sam and fired a ghost ray at one of the chains. But nothing happened.

"Huh?" Danny exclaimed, raising an eyebrow.

He fired another ghost ray, but the chain remained.

"Danny!" Sam exclaimed, "Help me!"

Sam's body briefly distorted.

"What the heck?"

Danny reached out to touch Sam's face, but his hand went right through it.

"A useful trick, isn't it?" Magnus asked from behind.

Danny turned around and saw Sam wrapped in chains in front of Magnus.

"Funny how I can use illusions as well," Magnus chuckled.

Phantom glanced over and watched the fake Sam and chains vanish.

"Darn," he muttered as he turned back to Magnus, "it was just a distraction."

"Indeed, it was," Magnus confirmed, "Now, unless you want harm to come to the girl, I suggest you-"

*POW*

Magnus had dropped his guard and Danny took the opportunity to dash forward and give the magician an uppercut.

"Why must everyone have to use you against me?" Danny moaned as the chains vanished around Sam.

"You worry too much," Sam smirked.

Suddenly, Dust flew over to them and dropped Tucker's PDA in Danny's hands before landing on his shoulder.

"Wait! *Pant* Don't hurt her!" Tucker panted as he approached the group.

"Uh, what is this about?" Danny asked Dust.

"WWWHHOOOOAAAAAAAAAAAAAA!"

*WHAM*

Specter had shouted through the air and crashed into the ground next to the group.

"Ow… that hurt," he groaned as he slowly got up, "Oh, hey, guys. Long time, no see."

*RRRRRRRRAAAAAAAAAAAWWWWWWWWWWWWRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRR!*

Everyone turned their heads and saw the monster towering over them. Specter was out of breath and a blue ring appeared around his waist.

"I don't know what Magnus did to that thing," Trevor muttered as he reverted to human form, "but it hasn't even taken a scratch from any of my attacks. And now I'm drained. Just like Tucker was from being a distraction."

"Wait, you used me as bait!?" Tucker exclaimed.

"And you did a fine job at it as well," said Trevor.

"Any ideas of how to beat it?" Phantom asked as the team began to slowly back away from the approaching giant.

"Uh… well, you could try using your Ghostly Wail," Trevor suggested.

"Why didn't you do that?" Danny asked.

"Would you believe me if I told you I've been trying to use a Ghostly Wail during my personal training exercises, and I've haven't pulled one off since our last encounter with Reaper?"

"You're joking," said Phantom.

"No one's laughing; what do you think?" said Trevor.

Sam stopped moving when she felt her foot back into something. She glanced down and saw a strange looking purple sphere on the ground.

"Dude, we don't have time for this!" Tucker exclaimed, "Just scream at the thing and finish it!"

Phantom turned his attention back at the monster and flew up in the air towards it.

"Alright," he said as he stopped a dozen feet away from the ghost, "let's see you beat this."

*Whoo-oo-OO-OO-OO-oo-oo-oo-OO-OO~*

Phantom unleashed a Ghostly Wail against the towering skeleton-monster. The ecto-energy barraged the enemy relentlessly, but the monster didn't even flinch. Phantom stopped his attack.

"You've got to be kidding me!" he shouted, "How do we beat this thing!?"

Magnus teleported right in Phantom's face.

"You can't."

*SLAM*

Magnus headbutted the hero in the head and sent him back to the ground. Danny landed on his feet and skidded back a couple feet.

"Not even a Ghostly Wail made a dent in that thing!" Tucker exclaimed.

"Trevor? Any ideas?" Phantom asked.

"N… no…" he replied nervously, "I don't even know what can be done against that monstrosity."

"Hey, that's a great name for it," Tucker quipped, "Monstrosity."

"Not helping!" Danny and Trevor shouted.

"You might as well give up now," said Magnus, getting their attention, "Give me the Orb or I'll let my monstrosity destroy Amity Park."

"Not happening, buckethead!" Trevor remarked.

"Very well," Magnus shrugged, "I tried to help you."

The Monstrosity lurched forward toward the heroes and raised it large fists in the air. Suddenly, a pair of large purple chains shot from under the Monstrosity's feet and wrapped around its wrists.

"What!?" Magnus exclaimed as he spun around.

Danny, Tucker, and Trevor watched in confusion as the Monstrosity struggled against the restraints and was brought to its knees.

"What is this!? What's going on!?" Magnus exclaimed.

"Ya ithikitalkus a soth!"

Everyone turned around and saw Sam holding the Orb of Knowledge in one hand and holding her other hand as purple energy floated around it.

"Sam!?" Danny exclaimed.

"Manson! What are you doing!?" Trevor shouted.

Sam's eyes began to glow purple as purple magic misted from the chains and began to envelope the Monstrosity. Its body began to form purple cracks as the magic progressed.

"What are you doing!?" Magnus shouted, "Do you have any idea what you're doing!?"

"Yeah," Sam smirked, "Taking away your pet. Akular locitum nal kair vimi!"

A surge of electricity erupted through the Monstrosity, causing it to roar and writhe in pain. It lasted for only a few seconds, but it was enough to make it shatter into pieces before melting into a giant puddle of ectoplasm.

"What have you done!?" Magnus shouted, "Give me that Orb!"

"Boli kali ithikitalkus!"

Before Magnus could react, a purple rune appeared under his levitated body and more chains appeared.

"You dare use my magics against me!?" Magnus shouted in anger as his limbs were wrapped by the magical restraints.

"I didn't know you owned magic," Sam smirked, "Now, Danny!"

Phantom pulled out his Fenton Thermos and fired the beam at Magnus.

"Nnnoooo!" Magnus shouted as he was sucked into the Thermos.

Danny slapped the cap on and reverted back to human form. Sam lowered the Orb and her eyes stopped glowing.

"Phew," Danny sighed, "That was something."

"Yeah, no kidding," Trevor said, annoyed as he turned to Sam, "And where the hell did you get that from!?"

"Oh, this?" Sam smirked as she spun the Orb on her finger like a basketball, "Found on the ground where you crash-landed."

"Manson, it would be for the best if-" Trevor began.

"If what!?" Sam snapped, "I give you the Orb back? I just saved your hide, and this is how you thank me?"

"You're a real piece of work, aren't you?" Trevor asked, crossing his arms.

"Oh, really?" Sam challenged, "I just proved that I could use the Orb of Knowledge without any issues. Or are you just jealous that you and Danny couldn't defeat the Monstrosity without my help?"

"Told you it was a good name," Tucker smirked as he elbowed Danny and gave him a wink.

Trevor glared at Sam for a moment before letting out a long sigh.

"Fine," Trevor scoffed, "Do whatever you want with the Orb."

"There, was that so-" Sam began before Trevor interrupted, pointing a finger at her.

"Just don't complain to me when things go belly up," he warned.

"Like that'll happen," said Sam.

"Whatever," said Trevor.

"Okay, I think that's enough, you two," said Danny as he got between Sam and Trevor, "Sam, why don't you head home and I'll pick you up later for our date."

"Sounds like a plan to me," she replied before giving him a quick peck on the cheek, "See you tonight."

As Sam walked away, Danny turned to Trevor and gave him a questionable look.

"Why'd you let her keep the Orb?" Danny asked, "And why did you even have it on you?"

"Reasons," Trevor answered cryptically as he pulled out the broken Fenton Phone, "Think your parents can fix it?"

"I was wondering why he didn't call for help," said Tucker.

"Well, that and I left my cellphone back in the guest room," Trevor admitted.

"Come on," said Danny, "Let's get to the Fenton Works and send Magnus back into the Ghost Zone."

No one noticed Sam's eyes briefly turning into purple swirls as she walked home.

"~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~"

Sam walked up to the front door of her house and entered.

"You're home a bit later than usual," Pam noted as she glanced over from the table.

"Sorry, I forgot my notebook in my locker and had to run back for it," Sam lied, "Why are you home? Don't you have meetings to attend with dad or something?"

"I wanted to talk to you instead," said Pam.

"Oh, great, here we go!" Sam grumbled.

"Samantha, I know you like that Fenton-boy, but-"

"You know what!?" Sam exclaimed, her eyes beginning to glow, "I am sick and tired of hearing you and dad complain about every little thing you see 'wrong' with Danny! You complain that he's a Fenton; you complain that he gets me into trouble; you complain that he's not 'suitable' for a Manson."

"Samantha, listen, I-"

"No, YOU listen! All you guys do is complain, complain, complain! I'm tired of you trying to conform me into your 'perfect daughter'. I'm not like you and dad! I don't want to be like you or dad! I want to be me! And if you can't accept that, then shut up and leave me ALONE!"

Sam stormed upstairs and slammed her bedroom door behind her back. She never saw the shock and hurt on her mother's face.

"~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~"

"So, she has been having after-effects from the Orb?" Trevor asked Danny and Tucker as he followed them through the front door of the Fenton Works.

"Well, that's what we think," Danny replied.

"Is that a bad thing?" Tucker asked, "Will Sam be okay?"

"That remains to be seen," Trevor replied, "Anyways, since I'm heading downstairs, I'll take the Thermos off your hands and send Magnus back myself."

"Yeah, can you do that? I want to get ready for my date tonight," Danny said as he handed the Thermos to Trevor.

"What, you taking to a five-star restaurant?" Tucker teased.

"Please, Foley, he doesn't have the money to even afford a three-star restaurant," said Trevor.

"Hey!" Danny complained, "I can afford to take Sam out to a nice place."

"Yeah," Tucker smirked, "with her credit card."

"Tucker, I will overshadow you in your sleep and make you experience your worst nightmare," Danny threatened as he walked upstairs.

"What!? Why are you only threatening me!?" Tucker exclaimed.

"Because he tried doing that to me," Trevor told him, "and it did not end well for him."

"Man, sometimes I wish-"

Trevor slapped his hand over Tucker's mouth.

"NEVER… use those two words together ever again," Trevor warned, "Let's not give Desiree a reason to mess with us."

Tucker nodded and Trevor pulled his hand away.

"So, what should we do now?" Tucker asked.

"I'll deal with Magnus while you try and think of where the last 2 Orbs are located."

"… Can we do something more productive?" Tucker deadpanned as Trevor headed downstairs.

"Sure! Find Reaper and capture him yourself!" Trevor shouted over his shoulder.

Tucker's eyes widened.

"I'll go look for places to search," he decided and walked away.

"~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~"

A couple hours later, Danny walked up to front door of Sam's place. He didn't get the chance to knock before the door flung open and Sam stormed out.

"Um, hi?" said Danny, "You okay- WHOA!"

Sam had grabbed his wrist and dragged him away from her house.

"Soooo… you really want to go on this date, huh?" Danny quipped.

Sam turned and glared at Danny.

"What?" he asked.

"Don't you 'what' me," she told him, "I'm still mad about you lying to Dash!"

"Oh, come on, Sam!" Danny whined as he sped up and walked by her side, "I'm just… not ready."

Sam raised an eyebrow.

"No, not like that!" Danny exclaimed, "I mean I'm not ready for everyone to know."

Sam's expression didn't change.

"And?" she asked.

"And what?"

Sam scoffed and glanced away.

"Sam, I don't see why it's such a big deal if I'm not ready for everyone to know we're dating," said Danny.

"And I don't see why it's such a big deal if they do!" she snapped.

"Jeez, sorry," Danny muttered.

"~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~"

Trevor came back upstairs with a new Fenton Phone in hand. He entered the kitchen and found Tucker tapping away on his PDA.

"Nothing?" Trevor asked.

"Nope. Sorry," said Tucker.

"Don't be," said Trevor, "It's not like you should know or anything."

Tucker glanced over suspiciously at Trevor.

"What was that all about?" he asked.

"What?" Trevor asked as he went to the fridge and pulled out a bottle of water.

"Sam… and the Orb," Tucker clarified, "Why did you let her keep it?"

"She insisted on playing with fire, so I'm letting do so," Trevor replied.

"And you're gonna do, what? Wait until she burns Amity Park to the ground?" Tucker asked with a raised eyebrow.

"Pretty much, yeah."

"… Things are about to get bad, aren't they?" Tucker asked.

"Probably… or they already are," Trevor replied, "I'm gonna head out for a bit."

"~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~"

Danny and Sam were walking through town, but Sam was still giving Danny the cold shoulder.

"Don't be like this, Sam," Danny whined.

"Why?" Sam asked, "You're clearly too scared to have a real relationship."

"What!?" Danny exclaimed, "That's not-"

"Fair!?" Sam snapped turning around and getting in Danny's face, "Look around, Fenton! Is anything fair!? Is it fair that you push me and Tucker aside so you can play hero! You think it's fair that I waste my time hunting ghosts with you!?"

"What are you talking about?" Danny asked in confusion, "I never asked you guys-"

"Is it fair that you had to hide your secret from your parents just because you were too scared that they would kill you!?" Sam continued as her eyes began to glow purple, "You think it's fair that my parents want me to be their 'ideal daughter' when I can make my own decisions!?"

"Sam… your eyes…"

"Is it fair that you're too nice a person to take out any of the ghosts we come across that threaten to kill us!? Like Vlad or Reaper!?"

Before Danny could reply, his ghost sense went off.

*WOOOOOOOOOOOooooooooooooooooohhhh*

Danny and Sam turned around and saw three large ghost wolfs slowly coming down the road. People turned around and fled in fear. One was a normal green wolf, another was covered in blue flames, and the third was giving off electrical sparks.

"Something tells me they're not Wulf," Danny quipped.

"Oh, really, ya think!?" Sam exclaimed.

Nearby, Magnus stood on a nearby rooftop, watching as his wolf pack approached the couple.

"Let's see what these two will do against this," Magnus chuckled as he pulled out his spell book, "Ya ithikitalkus a soth!"

A large red rune appeared under the wolves and they slowly began to merge together.

"Sam, get behind me," Danny told her as he stood in front of her and raised his fists in the air, "I'm going ghost!"

A white ring appeared around his waist and split up and down his body, turning into Danny Phantom. The wolves were almost completely melded together as the body grew and a large main grew around its neck. Its entire body engulfed in red flames and electricity as it howled once more.

*WOOOOOOOOOOOooooooooooooooooohhhh*

Phantom stood defiantly as the three wolf heads snarled at him.

"Oh, what's this?" Magnus asked as he descended next to the wolf, "It seems Cerberus* wants to play."

"You again!?" Phantom exclaimed, "Didn't Trevor send you back into the Ghost Zone?"

"Did he?" Magnus asked, "Well, it doesn't matter, since I'm right here before you."

"This is a waste of time," Sam grumbled as she reached back and pulled out the Orb of Knowledge, "We'll do this together."

"Are you crazy!?" Danny exclaimed.

"You deal with Magnus while I deal with the mutt," Sam ordered, "Why are you just standing there!? GO!"

Phantom gave her a brief glare before he took to the air and charged at Magnus.

"Fetch," Magnus told Cerberus.

The wolf growled and bolted down the street. Phantom and the Cerberus past each other and homed in on their targets. Phantom fired ghost rays at Magnus, but the magician teleported away. Danny stopped in the air and looked around for him.

"Over here, Phantom," Magnus teased from above.

"Urrgghh…" Danny groaned and flew after him.

Meanwhile, the Cerberus was closing in on Sam as she held up her hand. It began to glow purple as 6 blue magical orbs appeared above her. She waved her arm out and the orbs flew towards the Cerberus. The canine dodged each orb as they got close, causing them to crash into the ground and blowing up. It leapt over the last orb and opened its mouths wide to tear into Sam. She balled her glowing hand into a fist and instantly vanished as the heads rammed their heads into the ground where she had just stood. Sam reappeared a few feet away behind the Cerberus, unharmed.

"I don't get why Trevor was so worried about this," she smirked, "This power is incredible!"

Sam's eyes began to fade into purple swirls as she stared into the Orb.

"I know… I'll defeat all the ghosts in the Ghost Zone and keep the world safe for good!" she smiled evilly, "And then I'll make sure all evil is cleansed from this world. And if anyone does anything wrong, I'll take them out myself."

She glanced back at the Cerberus as it turned around to face her, crushing the pieces of asphalt in its mouths. Sam raised her hand as purple glowing veins began to appear on her arm. Nearby, Phantom was being toyed with by Magnus as the magician continued to teleport out of harms way. As soon as Magnus teleported away again, Phantom caught sight of him again in the street. He flew down and his hands began to glow with ecto-energy.

"Wait a minute…"

Danny stopped in his tracks and glared at Magnus for a moment. It was faint, but he saw some distortion around Magnus. Phantom glanced to the side and fired a ghost ray at an invisible Magnus. The attack tossed the magician through a glass window as the decoy vanished. Magnus groaned as he sat up when Danny suddenly grabbed him by the collar and pulled him up.

"Is it too much to ask for you to not cause trouble!?" Phantom shouted.

"Well, if you and your friends hadn't stopped me, none of this would have happened," Magnus remarked.

"Yeah, I'm sure if we let you go and have the Orb, you'd have solved all the world's problems," Danny said sarcastically as he reached for his Fenton Thermos, "Huh?"

"Missing something?" Magnus chuckled.

"I knew I'd forget to grab another Fenton Thermos," Danny deadpanned before turning back to Magnus, "Fine, I'll just drag your sorry hide back to the Ghost Portal if that's what it will take."

"Oh, really?" Magnus asked, "And let your girlfriend lose control?"

"Lose control?" Danny asked.

He glanced over his shoulder and saw Sam surrounded in purple magic. Her arm was covered in purple runes and glowing purple cracks and her hand was raised, magically holding the Cerberus up in the air.

"Time to end you," she hissed, clenching her fist.

As soon as she did that, the Cerberus instantly turned to dust and fell to the ground.

"Sam!" Phantom exclaimed, dropping Magnus and running over to her, "What are you doing!?"

Sam turned around, revealing her purple swirling eyes.

"I'm doing things in a more efficient manner," she replied in a dark voice, "And now I will deal with him."

Sam held out her hand and magically grabbed Magnus.

"Sam, stop!" Danny exclaimed, "This isn't like you!"

"Back off, Danny!" Sam shouted, "I'm going to do what you won't, I'm taking him out!"

"No!" Danny shouted and grabbed her wrist.

"Let go of me!" Sam demanded.

"Sam, listen to me! The Orb, it's… it's affecting your mind! This isn't you!"

"You're right… it is affecting me," she replied, "Showing me what I am truly capable of! What I am meant for!"

Danny's eyes widened as Sam began to make a fist. He twisted her wrist and pushed her away, causing her to lose focus on Magnus and letting him go.

"You idiot!" Sam shrieked, "Why do you insist on making things more difficult for us!?"

"Sam, if you don't get rid of the Orb, I'll-"

"You'll do what!? Fight me!?" Sam spat out, "You really are a coward. You think you're better than me!?"

"I won't fight you, Sam," Danny said calmly.

"You won't have a choice," she hissed as she magically grabbed a nearby car and slammed it into Danny.

His back skid across the ground before he slammed into a parked car. He glanced up and watched Sam begin the levitate off the ground and approached Magnus. Phantom darted through the air and blocked her way.

"Sam, snap out of it!" he shouted, "The Orb is taking over your mind! You have to fight it!"

"Why fight it… when I can harness it!" Sam proclaimed as chains appeared out of the ground and pulled Danny and Magnus to the ground.

"Sam, stop!" Danny exclaimed as he and Magnus struggled.

Sam slowly glided past him, toward Magnus. Phantom managed to slip one of his arms free and grabbed the Orb.

"Release the Orb!" Sam demanded.

"No!" Phantom shouted as he pulled Sam closer, "I won't let it control you, Sam!"

"The Sam you knew isn't here!" she exclaimed, "And she's never coming back!"

She spun around and aim her hand at Danny as another magical orb appear next to her. Phantom gasped as the orb shot toward him.

*THOOM*

The blast hurt him, but Phantom kept a strong grip on the orb. Sam growled and released another orb. And another. And another. But Phantom refused to let go.

"If you wish to be obliterated, then so be it," Sam hissed as a giant magical orb formed next to her.

"Sam…" Danny pleaded as Sam prepared to launch the orb.

"MANSON!"

Sam looked over and saw Trevor standing nearby.

"You stay out of this!" Sam shouted, "This is all your fault!"

"Really?" Trevor asked, raising an eyebrow, "I'm not the one who attacking their boyfriend."

"Why are you even here!?" Sam asked.

"To stop you from doing something you'll regret the rest of your life," Trevor replied, calmly.

"What? Taking out Magnus and knocking some sense into Phantom!?" Sam shouted.

"Sam…" Trevor said calmly, "Do you know what will happen if you release that magic attack?"

Sam glanced over and looked at the orb. Her eyes slightly widened when she realized there were ghost skulls floating within the magical attack. She turned to Danny and realized that there were purple cracks appearing all over his face.

"If you attack him with that," Trevor explained, "you will never see him again."

Sam's eyes widened as tears began to form in them. She glanced over at the Orb and saw the ring on her finger.

"No… this isn't… me!" she exclaimed.

Danny lost grip of the Orb and reverted back to his human form.

"Danny!" Sam exclaimed.

She glanced back at the Orb and glared at it.

"Please work," she whispered as she threw it to the ground.

*K-Sssshhhh*

The Orb shattered into dozens of pieces as Sam's eyes and arm turned back to normal. Phantom slumped to the ground and Sam put her arms around.

"Danny! Danny!" she shouted, "Are you okay!?"

Danny looked up and smiled, revealing that he was fine.

"I'm fine, Sam," he sighed, "I'm fine."

Sam hugged him and smiled as tears fell down her face.

"I'm so sorry, Danny," she whispered.

"It's fine, Sam," Danny consoled her, "I'm just glad you're safe."

Nearby, Trevor telekinetically picked up the pieces of the Orb and put them in his pocket. Magnus floated over to him and the two glanced at each other.

"Don't even think about it," Trevor warned.

"… I wasn't," Magnus replied, "I must admit, even I wouldn't have been able to withstand the Orb's persuasive force."

The two watched in silence as Phantom and Sam continued hugging.

"Why did you agree to help me?" Trevor asked the magician.

"Knowledge is power," Magnus half-joked, "And having power can lead to craving more."

"You just didn't want Reaper to have it, didn't you?"

"Weeeellll… yes," Magnus admitted.

"Do you have any clue where he is?" Trevor asked.

"No. I don't," said Magnus, "I have no reason to now help that fiend with his goals. If I see him, I'll let you know."

Trevor gave him side-eye.

"We are not allies," Magnus clarified.

"I can work with that," said Trevor, "Now get out of here before I decide to throw your ass back in the Ghost Zone myself."

Magnus teleported away as Trevor approached Danny and Sam. The two stopped hugging by the time he was next to them.

"Trevor, I-"

"Later, Manson," Trevor interrupted, "Let's get back to the Fenton Works and talk."

Sam nodded and the three began walking down the street, with Danny's hand in Sam's.

"~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~"

Later that night, the gang was at the Fenton Works, sitting around the living room. Danny was holding an icepack against his cheek while Sam was sitting next to him on the couch. Tucker was researching on his PDA while Trevor was lying on the ground, staring at the ceiling. Everyone was silent and awkwardly glancing at each other. Dust appeared from the medallion and stood on the coffee table.

"Are you guys seriously going to avoid talking the rest of the night?" she asked.

Sam sighed.

"I guess I owe you and Trevor an apology, Danny," she said.

"Eh, don't sweat it," said Danny, "That was just the Orb messing with your head."

"But I shouldn't have yelled at you," said Sam, "I was so angry that you didn't want anyone at school knowing about us dating."

"Sam," Danny began as he put his arm around her, "I just… wanted to protect you."

"Protect me?" Sam asked.

"I know people will tease me about me dating you, but I didn't want people poking fun at you for dating a 'dork' or the 'loser'," Danny explained.

Sam chuckled and rested her head on his shoulder.

"I should have known that hero complex of yours would do this," she smiled, "Sorry I got mad and ruined our date tonight."

"And I'm sorry for being over-protective," Danny laughed, "And don't worry about the date, we have plenty of other nights ahead of us that we can plan dates for."

"Well… if it makes you feel any better, I can wait until you're ready before we tell everyone we're together," said Sam.

"I'd like that," Danny replied.

Sam glanced over and noticed that Trevor had something on his mind.

"Is there something you want to say, Trevor?" she asked.

"A couple of things, yeah," he replied, "You sure the Orb isn't affecting you anymore?"

"I think so."

Dust sighed and turned to Trevor.

"I think we should tell them, Trevor."

Trevor turned his head and stared at her.

"You sure?" he asked.

Dust nodded her head.

"Very well," said Trevor as he sat up and got to his feet.

"Tell us what?" Danny asked.

Trevor and Dust glanced at each other and she nodded.

"I have a confession to make," Dust admitted, "I knew that this was going to happen when you first grabbed the Orb back in the Ghost Zone, Sam."

"You knew!?" Sam exclaimed, "Why didn't you warn us!?"

"Because… I've been through the same thing," Dust sighed, "Only worse."

"How? Why?" Danny asked.

"I used to be…"

Dust couldn't bring herself to say it.

"She used to be Magnus' apprentice," said Trevor.

"WHAT!?" everyone exclaimed.

"It's true," said Dust, "I didn't want to say anything because… we figured you wouldn't trust us."

"Why wouldn't we?!" Danny asked.

"Because when I defected, Trevor and Clockwork were the only ones who would give me a chance at first," Dust explained.

Sam turned to Trevor.

"Why did you?" she asked.

"… Because I'm the one who saved her from the Orb's influence," he replied, "Magnus… well, the Magnus from my timeline, found the Orb of Knowledge and decided to let his apprentice try and control it."

"What happened?" Sam asked.

"Long story short, I saved the Ghost Zone, captured Magnus and Dust, and gave her and the Orb to Clockwork."

"So that's why she knew how to use magic," said Tucker, "because she used to work for Magnus!"

Dust looked away in shame.

"But why would she work with Magnus?" Danny asked.

Trevor sighed and gave Dust gentle smile.

"Because he created me," she whispered, "using a soul that was a victim of Reaper."

Trevor could tell Dust was well outside her comfort zone.

"Why-"

"I think that's enough for now," Trevor interrupted Tucker, "What happened in the past is now in the past."

"Don't you mean the future?" Danny quipped.

"Shut up, Phantom," Trevor remarked, unamused.

"Fine, but it sounded like you also have something to say," said Danny.

Trevor took a deep breath and sighed, nodding.

"Well, first of all, I hope today has proven just how dangerous the Orbs of Power are," he said sternly.

"Yeah, heh-heh, lesson learned," Sam replied, slightly embarrassed.

"In any case, I've been thinking a lot lately about my… *Sigh* personal relation with Reaper," Trevor began.

Everyone was now focused on the young halfa.

"I'm not telling you everything," Trevor clarified.

Danny, Tucker, and Sam raised an eyebrow in confusion as Trevor reached into his pocket and pulled out a strand bar-looking device. He pressed a button and it turned into a holographic data pad.

"What's this?" Danny asked as he moved his arm from Sam and grabbed the data pad.

"A letter from my sister," Trevor replied.

Danny skimmed through the message for a moment before handing it to Sam.

"Didn't know you have a sister. How'd you even get that letter?" Tucker asked.

"Clockwork," Trevor replied, "He gave it to me shortly after our last encounter with Reaper."

"I don't see what's so important," said Danny, "All I got from it was that your sister is worried about you and that someone named Cole is missing. Are they someone important to you?"

"Cole is one of the best recons we have in the war," Trevor explained, "He's provided crucial intel that has allowed me and the Resistance to gain much ground over the months. Apparently, Reaper managed to find him around the same time he and I went into the past."

"How do you know it was Reaper?" Sam asked, handing the data pad to Tucker, "Maybe he's just, I dunno, radio silent?"

"As you read in the message, his weapons and commlink were found in a safehouse," Trevor replied, "Knowing Cole, he would never leave stuff lying around without destroying them."

"Do you think Cole is somewhere in this timeline?" Sam asked.

"I'd be shocked if he was," Trevor admitted, "No, I think Reaper's been somehow contacting someone in my timeline to keep an eye on him."

"Okay, let's say Reaper does have Cole somewhere, why does that matter?" Danny asked, "What does Reaper gain from one person?"

"You'd be surprised what Reaper has done to me," said Trevor.

"What do you mean?" Danny asked, "Is Cole a close friend of yours?"

Trevor rubbed the back of his neck in discomfort as took a couple steps forward.

"Because… *Sigh* Because Cole is my older brother."

*Thud*

Tucker dropped the data pad to the ground and turned to Trevor.

"And this… this isn't the first time Reaper has gone after my family."

Danny, Tucker, and Sam stared at Trevor in disbelief.

"~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~"

A couple hours later, Sam, Trevor, and Dust were heading back to Sam's place. Sam was looking at the two with concern.

"You two okay?" she asked.

"Nope," they replied at the same time.

"… Are you worried about your brother?" Sam asked.

"Very," Trevor replied, "Can we talk about something else? Or just stay quiet?"

"Okay," Sam muttered, "Why did you tell us now?"

Trevor couldn't help but chuckle a little.

"Manson," he sighed, "what did I just say?"

Sam just continued staring at him.

"Well, you caught me looking at the data pad the other day, so I figured I'd get it out of the way."

"Anything else we should know?" she asked.

"Should know, no," Trevor replied, "But there are some things under consideration."

"If you say so," said Sam.

A couple minutes later, they arrived at the Manson residence and entered. Sam noticed her mother was sitting at the table, reading a magazine and drinking coffee. Trevor and Dust headed upstairs while Sam stayed behind.

"Hey, mom," she said.

"Oh, Sam," said Pam, slightly surprised, "You're home."

Sam walked over and sat down next to her.

"Sam, I wanted to apologize to you," Pam began.

"No, mom, I'm the one who should be apologizing," said Sam, "I was having a bad day at school today and I took it out on you. I'm sorry."

"A bad day?" Pam asked, "Are you okay? Was it that Fenton- I mean Danny's fault?"

"No, it wasn't Danny," Sam sighed, "It's fine, don't worry about it, I'm okay now. But I wish you wouldn't be so negative about him."

"Sammy-kins, I don't hate Danny," said Pam, "I'm just worried about you. I know you really care about him, but are you sure this relationship will last?"

"We don't know," said Sam, "Maybe we stay together, maybe we break up. But no matter what, we will always be best friends."

"I suppose there's no way to keep you away from him, is there?" Pam smiled.

"Nope," Sam replied.

"I'll take your word that he's been treating you right," said Pam, "I want to like Danny, Sam. I really do. I guess I'm just too stubborn to accept that you should be together."

"Like mother like daughter," Sam quipped as she and Pam gave each other a hug.

"I'm home~!" Jeremy announced as he entered the house, "The meeting was a- oh."

He noticed that his wife and daughter were in the middle of something when he arrived.

"I interrupted the moment, didn't I?"

"No, you didn't," said Sam as she pulled away from her mother and headed upstairs, "Night, mom. Love you."

"I love you too, Sammy-kins."

Jeremy raised an eyebrow and turned to Pam.

"What was that all about?" he asked.

"Oh, nothing," Pam replied, "We were just talking."

"~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~"

An hour later, Phantom and Specter were flying around, patrolling the streets with their Fenton Phones equipped.

"So, Sam made peace with her mom, huh?" Danny asked.

"For now," Specter replied, "They don't like you."

"No surprise there," Phantom smirked.

"I know you have more questions," said Specter, "All of you."

"What if we do?" Tucker asked through the Fenton Phones, "You made it clear earlier that you'd rather tell us when you feel more comfortable?"

"Thank God you've been pay attention," Specter sighed.

Silence fell upon the group for a moment before Specter glanced over at Danny.

"Nothing?" he asked.

"What?" Danny asked.

"You're not gonna ask?" Specter asked.

"Nope," Danny replied.

"We've figured that at this point asking you anything personal is not gonna reward us with an answer," said Sam.

"Huh… good," said Specter.

"Alright," said Danny.

Seconds passed as no one broke silence.

"Anyone else feeling awkward right now?" Specter asked, causing everyone to laugh.

"You have a weird sense of humor, you know that?" Danny chuckled.

"It's a miracle I still have one," said Specter, "Can I ask you guys something?"

"Sure, what's up?" Danny asked.

"If… When I tell you guys, promise me you won't judge me, okay?" Specter asked.

"That bad, huh?" Tucker asked.

"No, it's actually much worse than that," said Specter.

"… You're serious, aren't you?" said Tucker.

"M-hm."

"Tre- Logan, you're making it sound so dramatic," said Danny, "Look, I won't judge you. Promise."

"Same," Tucker and Sam said at the same time.

"… Alright," Specter sighed, "I hope you can keep that promise."

His eyes turned blue and he glanced over to the side.

"Activity over to the north," he said, "Let's check it out."

Specter flew off before Danny could react.

"And just like that, straight back to work," said Danny.

"Move it, Phantom!" Specter shouted.

"Just another night of patrol," said Sam.

"You can say that again," Phantom chuckled as he flew over to help Specter.

"~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~"

* This is a similar, but not the same Cerberus as seen in the episode "Boxed Up Fury".

"~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~"

Fun fact: The Resistance is the opposing force fighting against the Overlords in Trevor's timeline. They will make an appearance in a short spinoff series I have planned in the future… Oh, crap, I just made a pun…

"~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~"

Uh oh… Looks like there's more history between Reaper and Trevor than the gang expected! I wonder what it is.

Well, I don't, since I'm writing the damn thing, XD.

This one took way longer than I expected to write. I kept scrapping ideas until I decided on this, but I'm glad about the way it turned out. Hopefully I can get 2 more episodes done next month. I'm also gonna start uploading another fanfic after episode 64 and alternate, two episodes here and one episode there, hopefully. No, it's not the spinoff I mentioned above, that's not until much later.

Like, follow, and please review! Until next time!

~ThePhantomHedgehog