Fact-finding
In preparation for their mission into the Overseer Project's HQ, Danny and Albert paid a visit to Cyber Division, where the chief computer engineer, Malcolm, had their tools ready and waiting for them. Also, Covert Operations had just finished creating a fake identity for Albert to use so he could get in through the front door. Albert would be posing as a wealthy investor for a major technology firm. After sending some convincing emails to the project asking for a meeting, they eventually took the bait. The trap was sprung, now it was a simple matter of getting the information they needed so Excalibur could stop whatever Vlad had in mind.
"I took the liberty of preparing these for you, Captain. Chief Engineer Farran was very helpful in this design," Malcolm showed Albert a glasses case with a pair of spectacles in them.
"I don't need glasses," Albert replied.
"You'll need this pair. They've been outfitted with hidden cameras in the lenses so we can see what you see," Malcolm explained.
"Anything else?" Albert inquired.
"We've also installed the latest lip-reading software. Just look at the subject's face and we'll be able to tell what they're saying as if we were right next to you. The glasses are also connected to a database of known individuals, so if you look at someone, they will generate an instant profile for us using data from their social media profiles, internet searches, everything that leaves a digital imprint of their lives. It helps to know who the help is," Malcolm added.
"Isn't that an invasion of privacy?" Danny asked.
"We're a government agency, kid. We do that all the time," Malcolm responded. He then presented a phone for Danny to use. "This has been outfitted with a rootkit designed to crack any password in 45 seconds. Try as they might, our Cyber Division cannot remotely hack a closed system, so the onus is on you to find the main server and copy the schematics onto this flash drive so we can analyse them for a weakness later," Malcolm briefed and handed Danny a USB stick.
"Should I look for anything else while I'm in there?" Danny probed.
"See if you can obtain a copy of Vlad's personal files. If nothing else, they could help strengthen our case if we had them," Malcolm suggested. He then presented a watch for Albert to wear. "This is one of Farran's pet projects. This watch has been loaded with tiny machines she calls 'mosquito-bots'," Malcolm added. He turned the dial and several tiny insect-like machines came out of the central clock.
"I can barely see them," Albert noticed.
"And they can see you very clearly," Malcolm responded, showing Albert an image on the monitor of what the bots were seeing. "They can also see and track network connections, allowing us to form a complete map directing us to their mainframe. Once they've finished, the map will be sent to Danny's phone for him to use so he can find the mainframe and plug in," Malcolm briefed.
"I can evade detection from people just fine if I go into my spectral form, but cameras might see me the second I have to de-cloak," Danny observed.
"Your phone is also equipped with numerous hacks that you can deploy at the touch of a button. One shuts down security camera feeds for 30 seconds, another steals access keys from a remote location," Malcolm demonstrated how the various hacks worked, from viewing camera feeds to forcing open electronic locks.
"Good thing Tucker's not here, he'd have a field day with all this stuff," Danny commented.
If there is nothing else, we will proceed with the mission," Albert urged. With the briefing finished, Albert and Danny left for the Overseer Project HQ.
Meanwhile, at Overseer, Vlad was going over his latest appointment with his PA in his office. He had been contacted by a very wealthy investor expressing interest in funding the project, and a meeting had been arranged for today. While he was skeptical about seeing this man, more money for the project wouldn't hurt. To be safe, he had his PA do a background check on the investor he was slated to see.
"I've just finished the check you requested, sir. It appears this 'Albert Stevens' is an investor tied to a 'Flynn-Fletcher' corporation specialising in cyber-defence research," the PA briefed Vlad.
"What could you get me on the man himself?" Vlad inquired.
"Not much. He doesn't have a social media presence, but according to his resume, he has a proven track record of successful investments in various projects around Danville that have made both him and his clients very rich," the PA explained.
"What about his other investments? What were they in?" Vlad probed.
"It's strange, but they all consist of various attractions, from giant mini-golf courses to platypus-themed restaurants. They all seem to be based in the hospitality and/or entertainment sector," the PA responded.
"Yes, strange indeed. Why would he swap his specialty from hospitality to cyber-security?" Vlad wondered.
"I couldn't get any specifics," the PA answered. Vlad stared out his office window, thinking silently for a moment. "Should I cancel the appointment, sir?" the PA offered. Vlad thought some more and came to a decision.
"No. Let him see what we are. I will ascertain the answers I need myself when I see him. Make sure he is given a proper welcome when he arrives," Vlad ordered.
"Yes, sir," the PA acknowledged and left to carry out her instructions.
On the car ride over, Danny was filling Albert in about Vlad, his activities, and his power set. By the time he was done, Albert had more questions than answers. He had learned about how Vlad got his powers, the back-and-forth rivalry he and Danny shared, although he had to switch his brain off when he mentioned making walls invisible so others could see them showering (Albert shuddered at that part and wondered what Danny was thinking when he did that), and another thing about Vlad that Albert wished Danny did not mention was the obsession with Danny's mother.
"And this guy was mayor of your home town? That must've been a nightmare," Albert remarked.
"It wasn't too bad. Once me and my friends learned how to deal with him, he just became a nuisance. I would say he defeated himself more times than we did," Danny responded.
"Just one more thing, how could your dad not catch on that Vlad hated him for so long?" Albert inquired.
"The same reason he never caught on to my ghost secret. He's an idiot," Danny replied.
"He's still your father," Albert said disapprovingly.
"I once put a robot duplicate right next to him and he still thought it was me. Trust me, he hasn't got much upstairs," Danny countered.
"Was this back when your identity was hidden?" Albert asked.
"Yep. I even flew overhead once the day was saved and my secret was out, he still thought I was the robot duplicate," Danny confirmed. Kilstone then spoke over the comms in the car radio.
"If you two are done reminiscing, check the glovebox. I've put in a pair of earpieces so we can stay in touch," Kilstone notified. Danny then got out the earpieces and put one in his ear. Albert reached for the second with one hand and put it on as well. The on-board GPS notified them that they were near their destination. Danny went into his ghost form and flew off somewhere close. Albert drove up to the entrance and pressed the intercom at the door.
"Hello? Albert Stevens, here to see Mr. Edwards," Albert introduced.
"One second," the voice on the intercom replied, and the gate opened up. Albert took that as his cue to find a parking space. Once he did, he got out of the vehicle and entered the main building.
"Greetings, Mr. Stevens. We have a record of your appointment right here. Please take a seat while I notify Mr. Edwards of your arrival," the receptionist greeted.
"Thank you," Albert politely responded and took a seat close enough to not arouse suspicion, but not too close so that she could see what he was doing. Discreetly, Albert deployed the mosquito-bots, and they took positions around the complex, unseen by the staff.
"The mosquito-bots are transmitting now. We should have a clear map to the mainframe now," Kilstone updated via Albert's earpiece. Danny was listening in as well. He checked his phone and saw a complete network map, literally pointing him the way to where he was supposed to go.
"Looks like I'm up," Danny remarked and followed the map while still invisible in his ghost form. All seemed well so far, no alarms were sounded, no-one seemed alerted to his presence. So far, so good. "Well, that was surprisingly easy. When will it all go horribly wrong?" Danny asked himself.
"Don't jinx us, kid. The mainframe is in a basement not listed on the official schematics, so you're going in blind. The central computer should be the terminal all the networks are connected to. Follow the map until you find something that stands out," Kilstone guided. Back at reception, Albert turned on the profiler in his glasses. All it took was a fleeting glance to generate profiles of every employee Albert saw.
"Nothing remarkable so far. Everyone here seems squeaky clean," Kilstone commented until he saw something that caught his eye. "Hang on, the janitor, get a glimpse of him one more time," Kilstone requested. Albert did so as discreetly as he could and a more detailed profile showed up.
"Interesting, this man has led a fascinating career as a custodial engineer. Too bad it's all made up," Kilstone summarised.
"Care to elaborate?" Albert whispered, so as not to draw attention.
"This sprightly young man is named Henry Jackson. He's actually a member of Free Web, they're a hacktivist group. It seems we're not the only ones sniffing around Vlad's operation here," Kilstone explained. This piqued Danny's interest.
"Isn't this like walking into the lion's den?" Danny probed.
"What you need to understand is that no-one looks twice at the help. The lower you go, the more likely it is you'll be seen as part of the furniture rather than an actual person, so in fact, disguising yourself as the custodian is a very smart move for getting around un-noticed," Kilstone clarified. Before Albert could respond, Vlad arrived to greet him.
"Ah, you must be the investor from Flynn-Fletcher, was it? Come, let me show you around," Vlad offered. Albert had no choice but to go along.
"Looks like the captain's indisposed. Just you and me now, Danny," Kilstone said. After some searching, while invisible, Danny found the central terminal.
"This looks promising," Danny observed.
"All you need to do is plug the USB in and we're good to go," Kilstone instructed. After deploying a hack from his phone that shut off all camera feeds in the immediate vicinity, Danny de-cloaked and plugged the flash-drive in. "Nice work. The password should be cracked any moment now," Kilstone praised. As soon as he said this, the password was cracked and Danny had complete access. There were two folders that Danny had his eye on. One was Vlad's files, the other was the schematics for the Overseer Project. Danny copied the schematics onto the USB drive but also decided to peek into Vlad's personal files, after making a copy of those as well.
"Don't take too long, the video feeds could come back at any moment," Kilstone cautioned.
"What's this, a video file called 'Weirdmageddon'?" Danny queried.
"You do not want to see that, trust me," Kilstone said in a panicked tone. Now even more curious, Danny opened the video file.
After being given a tour of the Overseer Project, Albert and Vlad convened in Vlad's office, eager to begin the negotiations for the investment. Vlad, being the gracious host, decided to open the proceedings.
"I took a look at your background, Mr. Stevens, and I must say I'm curious. Why swap your priorities from hospitality to defence?" Vlad wondered.
"Let's just say that, with recent events, defence has become a priority. Against an enemy like Bill, we need every advantage we can get," Albert answered.
"Forgive me if I'm not surprised by that answer. I've been hearing it a lot lately. I doubt we will ever be fully prepared for a second attack from such an enemy, but as you said, every little helps," Vlad replied.
"I hear you're using that as a benchmark in your campaign. Your key argument, if you will, promising better security," Albert mentioned.
"A leader should protect the people they rule. While I concede that my opponent has good intentions and international co-operation has its merits, that alone is insufficient," Vlad argued.
"Forgive me for bringing politics into this discussion. I am merely observing what I've seen and did not intend to sully this negotiation," Albert retracted.
"No harm, no foul, my friend. You were merely commenting on current events. Nothing wrong there. If I may get personal with you, I'd like to go over the reasons why I started this project," Vlad steered the topic of conversation.
"I was wondering about that. The official website only said so much," Albert said with great curiosity. Vlad then put on a façade of pained reminiscing.
"Truth is, I was at Gravity Falls when he first invaded. The things I saw, I dare not repeat," Vlad replied. At the same time, Danny was watching Vlad's video file of Weirdmageddon. Vlad was in his ghost form, remaining invisible for fear of being seen.
"Day 1. I've just fallen through this rift into this strange new world. I have no idea where it came from, but I know who made it. It's him, that floating, one-eyed triangle monster," Vlad spoke on the video that Danny was watching. He positioned the camera to film Bill and his minions descending on Gravity Falls. "I don't know who he is, but I can tell you he's insane. His eye-bat things are turning people to stone and flying them up to that giant pyramid in the sky. I don't know what he has planned for them, but it can't be good. I'm going to stay out of sight as much as possible until I escape or, by some miracle, he is defeated," Vlad concluded this segment of the video.
"Is this real?" Danny wondered.
"Unfortunately, yes, it is. The details were never made public until after the Cipher War. It is from this event that the need for our creation was warranted," Kilstone responded. In Vlad's office, Vlad continued to tell his story to Albert.
"Of all the things I saw when he came, the one thing that I will never forget, no matter how much I want to, is his throne of agony," Vlad recalled. The video file Danny was watching in the mainframe also continued.
"Day 4. Curiosity got the better of me. I wanted to see what was in the Fearamid, as he calls it, and I sincerely wish I hadn't. This is what he did to the citizens of this town," Vlad said in a horrified tone. He turned the camera to face the throne of agony. "He's twisted the petrified forms of the townsfolk and turned them into a literal seat of power. I only hope that they cannot feel what he's done to them. I thought I was bad, but this is something else. Even I have limits. I am recording this in case anyone ever finds it so you can see what true evil looks like," Vlad finished his log and the video file ended.
"This…is who you were fighting?" Danny asked, equally horrified at what he'd just seen.
"We didn't want you to find out this way, but this is what Bill was capable of. It gets worse, I'm afraid," Kilstone braced Danny for even more bad news as he spotted a second video file titled 'The Cipher War'. In Vlad's office, Vlad was recalling more recent events.
"After that, I dedicated myself to preventing a second occurrence, as I never really believed that Bill was gone for good. I was relieved when Weirdmageddon was over, just like everyone else. I never expected it. I started this project, and it was nearing completion when my worst fears became reality," Vlad exposited. In the mainframe, Danny was viewing the Cipher War video file. Vlad came on the screen like last time.
"I always thought this day would come, but I'd hoped I'd have more time. He's arrived, with an army this time," Vlad started his second set of recordings. He turned the camera to face what looked like a combat zone. Military personnel and vehicles were fighting off hordes of nightmarish beings whilst evacuating screaming, panicked civilians. They weren't doing too well, as the beasts dispatched or petrified anyone in their path, and all the equipment suffered spontaneous failures, as if anything that could go wrong, was going wrong.
"I've picked up broadcasts from seven countries. This is happening everywhere. I don't know if anyone will ever see this, but if you see them, run. Just run," Vlad urged. He ran himself, as far as he could before going ghost when no-one was watching. In Vlad's office, Vlad was finishing his Cipher War story.
"Just when I thought it couldn't get any worse, I saw the worst sight anyone could possibly see," Vlad hinted. The video file then showed the last recording. "This will be my last recording. I don't know if I have the heart to make anymore are what I've just seen. The throne of agony was bad enough, but this, this should be a war crime," Vlad stated and turned the camera to face the petrified civilians stacked in the form of a statue of Bill. "There are others, just like it, in every town, every city, he's even carved himself into Mount Rushmore, turned Niagara Falls red with blood and replaced the Lincoln Memorial with him sitting on a second throne of agony instead. All we can do now is hope and pray for another miracle," Vlad concluded and shut off the recording for good, ending the video file.
"Now I'm not sure who the real enemy is," Danny commented.
"We have the schematics for the project, just get out of there before someone sees you," Kilstone urged. In Vlad's office, the negotiations were concluding, but not before someone entered the room. It was the janitor from reception.
"Don't mind me, just emptying the bins," Henry interjected. As he did so, Kilstone whispered into Albert's earpiece.
"He's just deployed a hack onto Vlad's laptop. It's siphoning information from the laptop and any database it's connected to, even the one we're probing right now. In a few seconds, he'll know we're here, and that you're not who you say you are," Kilstone updated. Albert took this cue to cease the conversation.
"OK, you've convinced me. I want to see where this project goes. I'll register my interest with my bosses and they'll be in touch about how much we'll put in. You should receive word by tomorrow, so I'll be taking my leave," Albert notified, eager to leave before Vlad caught on.
"Oh, by all means, stick around, Captain," Vlad responded. Even Henry was visibly shocked by this.
"I'm sorry, I don't hold that rank," Albert nervously replied.
"Don't play dumb now. I was there, at the Grand Fearamid. I know who you are, what you are. The only reason I let you in here was to get a good look at you, to see what kind of person you really are," Vlad said ominously.
"Not good," Kilstone commented.
"I was witness to your treatment at Bill's hands, and what he did to that poor boy in the red hoodie. I do hope he made a full recovery, though I suspect the mental scars will take longer to heal, if they ever do," Vlad reminisced.
"His name was Marco and he'll be fine, physically at least," Albert replied.
"I'm glad to hear that. You know, your Institute, what you do, I don't see you as an enemy. Far from it, I could see us as unbeatable partners. Imagine it, me, ruling from the White House, giving people hope, and you, with your vast resources and determination to defend our home from the shadows, no matter what needs to be done. We could prevent a second Cipher War, offer the American people true security and peace of mind. Work with me, Captain, we could do such great things together," Vlad tempted. Albert thought Vlad's words over, then smirked in his direction.
"You don't know me as well as you think, Vlad. Yes, I do know who you are. If you knew me as well as you said, you would know that I wouldn't come here without help," Albert countered, and as if on cue, Danny came through the floor and delivered an upper-cut that knocked Vlad to the floor.
"What?! How did you get here?!" Vlad demanded.
"Oh, just passing through, thought I'd drop in on an old enemy, see how he was doing, maybe go a few rounds with him for old time's sake," Danny joked and lunged at Vlad, who transformed into his ghost form to retaliate. Seizing on the opportunity, Albert took Henry and fled.
"Come with me. You want answers, I'll tell you everything," Albert offered. Not wanting to be in the same room as the duelling ghost-things, Henry went with Albert. Henry even deployed a hack that cut power to the main building.
"To cover our escape," Henry explained.
"Good thinking," Albert praised. They managed to escape in all the confusion while Danny and Vlad fought in the sky.
"Why is it you feel the need to interfere with my every plan?! If only you knew!" Vlad ranted as he shot energy blasts at Danny.
"Trust me, I know enough," Danny retorted as he effortlessly dodged them all while flying. The two had closed in for some hand-to-hand. Both fighters were evenly matched. They were wearing each other out when Kilstone spoke into the earpieces.
"The Captain is clear, get out of there, we'll fight him another time," Kilstone ordered. While Danny hated leaving a fight half-fought, he acknowledged that stopping Vlad was more important. Besides, chances were he'd have a rematch when this all came to a head, so Danny retreated to the moving car containing Albert, Kilstone, and Henry.
"I see we've taken in a stray," Danny remarked.
"What was that? Who are you people? What is going on here?!" Henry half asked, half interrogated.
"First question, that was two human-ghost hybrids fighting. Oh, this is Danny, by the way, and as you may have surmised, Simon Edwards was a fake name, his real identity is Vlad Masters, and he's not from around here," Albert answered.
"And here I was thinking he was your typical corporate sleaze," Henry said with a tone of shock and awe.
"He's that and more," Danny stated.
"Second question, Vlad was right, I am a Captain. Albert Stevens, of the Excalibur Institute, and this here is my second-in-command, Kilstone," Albert introduced. Now Henry was doing a double-take.
"Holy cripes, you're real!" Henry exclaimed. Free Web had always suspected that there was more truth to the rumours behind Excalibur's existence, but they weren't in the business of chasing ghosts, until now.
"Third question, we, like you, were investigating Vlad's little project. We're on our way to our secret government facility right now with stolen plans to deduce just what it is he's up to," Albert concluded. At that point, Henry did what any person would do in his current position, he passed out on the car seat. "And here I thought bravery was a requirement for Free Web members," Albert said sarcastically and the party journeyed back to HQ, the information in hand.
Back at the Overseer Project HQ, Vlad had gone to the mainframe to see where Danny came from and found that Danny had accessed and seen the recordings that he made.
"So, you know what happened. Maybe you could be convinced to side with me after all. We could stop him together, Danny Phantom," Vlad pined.
Author's note: Sorry this took so long, but what little free time I have left has been spent marathoning Amphibia. Honestly, I consider it criminal that I have ignored it for so long. Brenda Song did play London on Suite Life, one of my favourite characters to watch when I was growing up, so hearing her as Anne Boonchuy has been quite entertaining. Also, for those readers who are reading my MML one-shots, I think I'm out of ideas for those. I don't know, time will tell if I have more, but I've been busy with work starting up again. The usual disclaimers, I own nothing, Nickelodeon and Butch Hartman own Danny Phantom. Enjoy.