Demonstration
Vlad had set off earlier than intended for the demonstration of his new Overseer program. The stage was only halfway through being assembled when he told his PA he wanted to inspect it ahead of schedule. When his PA asked why he was in such a rush, he told her that recent security breaches in HQ have heightened his need to check every last detail. After all, a lot was riding on this project's success, and he couldn't have Danny Phantom or his new friends interfering again. A short distance away from the stage, he signalled for the driver to stop, and he did so. Vlad got out and told the driver that he would walk the rest of the way.
"Unusual, but you're the boss," the driver replied.
"Don't worry about me, I'll be fine. I'll be there in about fifteen to twenty minutes to check on the security details. Please make sure the stage staff are expecting me," Vlad assured.
"Yes, sir," the PA acknowledged. She rolled up the window and signalled for the driver to carry on to the stage. They had stopped at a rather unremarkable suburban street. Indeed, to the casual pedestrian, nothing would stand out. But for residents of Danville, they would recognise this area immediately as the house where magic happened daily, for this was the house that Phineas Flynn and Ferb Fletcher lived in. When Vlad decided to set up Overseer in Danville, he did some research on the place. It did not take him long to catch wind of Phineas and Ferb's activities and he held a certain admiration for them. But with that came a small fear, for if those two ever found out what he really was, well, it was best not to think about it.
Thankfully, the boys and their family were out for the day. This was evident by the lack of a vehicle in the driveway. Knowing they would probably be back at any moment, Vlad became invisible and crept into Phineas and Ferb's shared bedroom. He became visible again, took out the disc labelled 'Project E.G.' from his inside blazer pocket, and slipped it among Phineas' other possessions.
"Should anything go wrong, I'm relying on you to finish what I started," Vlad mused to himself and left the house the same way he came in.
In a car driving towards the demonstration site, Albert and Danny were going over the plan to capture Vlad one more time. They could not afford to fail here. Even if Overseer was stopped, Vlad's escape would ensure he would come back with an even crazier plan. Fortunately, they were not alone. Albert's staff, namely Kilstone and Farran, went ahead in their disguises as security and IT staff respectively, while Henry's colleagues at Free Web, a free-spirited musician called Martha and a quiet, mousy man called Paul, who was a wizard at coding, managed to get on stage as the sound crew.
"One more time, we each take our positions, me in the crowd, you in the air invisible. Whoever spots Vlad first calls the others. The signal gets jammed, we pounce on Vlad, separate his two halves, and bind them. If we're lucky, this will be quick," Albert ran through the plan.
"If I've learned anything, it's that plans rarely survive contact with the enemy," Danny replied.
"Don't I know it. We'll have to adapt. Did you bring a Fenton Thermos with you?" Albert asked. Danny then produced a capsule-like device which could be mistaken for an ordinary thermos, only it reeled in ghosts and trapped them inside.
"Never leave home without it," Danny commented.
"Excellent. We're getting close to the demo now, you should cloak and join the other ghosts," Albert advised. Danny nodded in acknowledgement and flew through the roof of the car, joining Walker and Skulker in surveying the scene under cloak. It was quite a turnout. A large crowd was eagerly anticipating the announcement of a Bill-proof defence network. Danny also noticed that in the front row were several important-looking people in expensive suits, and some bore military uniforms as well. Danny surmised that these must be interested parties that Vlad wanted to impress to further fund the project and strengthen his bid for the White House.
"Don't do anything half-way, do you, Vlad?" Danny commented to himself. Albert soon arrived at the demonstration and was shown to his parking space by event staff. He approached the entryway, which was being manned by Kilstone. As soon as it was his turn to go through security, Kilstone updated him.
"He's been having me take down contact details of everyone in attendance. Cell phone numbers, email addresses, even social media accounts. Surely this must be raising a red flag somewhere," Kilstone stated.
"People are scared. The Cipher War is still fresh in people's minds. Vlad is using that fear to further his goals," Albert replied. Kilstone then changed the subject.
"When I went to wave you past despite the watch list, I found out that someone else had already taken you off it," Kilstone reported.
"What? Who?" Albert queried.
"I don't know, but something else is at play here. Orders?" Kilstone answered.
"Keep at this post for now. I'll check in with the others once I've blended in with the crowd," Albert instructed.
"Aye, Captain," Kilstone acknowledged and let Albert in, resuming his cover as event security. Once Albert found a suitable spot where he was sure no-one would notice him, he spoke into his earpiece.
"Did Free Web take my face off the watch list?" Albert inquired.
"Not as far as I know. All we did was make fake identities for ourselves," Henry responded.
"Well, I didn't do it. Neither did Walker and Skulker. None of us knows how," Danny added.
"I haven't had time, or I would've done it myself. Cyber division couldn't do it because it was a closed system," Farran said. Albert thought about this for a moment. While he usually treated unexpected windfalls with a certain degree of suspicion, after all, it was his job, he could not afford to become distracted.
"Focus on the mission at hand. The plan doesn't change," Albert guided. Everyone acknowledged the orders and went about their assigned posts. After what seemed like an hour of waiting, the stage came to life.
"Ladies and gentlemen, boys and girls, we thank you for attending the demonstration of the latest in cyber-security. Please remain seated as we bring you the innovator behind this marvel, the keeper of your digital keys, and with any luck, your next President, Simon Edwards!" the loudspeaker announced before Vlad came on stage, waving to a cheering crowd backed by fanfare.
"He does like to put on a show," Albert noticed.
"You should've seen him when he was mayor," Danny replied.
"Enough, wait for the cue," Kilstone interjected. Once the crowd fell silent, Vlad spoke.
"My friends, I stand before you not as a presidential hopeful or as an innovator of the latest technology, but as a fellow victim of the Cipher War. Like many of you, I watched on in horror as Bill trampled on everything we hold dear. Our families, our homes, our businesses. Like all of you, I grieved when Bill assassinated our beloved President. Like all of you, I counted my blessings when he was vanquished and the world was restored to normal. But it was after that victory, that I vowed never to let such tragedy happen again. That is why I am proud to unveil, to all of you, the Overseer Project!" Vlad gave a very convincing speech. The curtain lifted and the audience could see a phone on a visualiser, its screen magnified to such a size that even those in the back could see.
"Before the war, I came into the knowledge that Bill could hack into people's phones and possess them that way. It happened once, but thankfully, no major damage was done," Vlad continued.
"That bit's true, but how could he have known about Candace?" Albert wondered.
"This handy piece of software uses the latest in cryptographic technology to screen incoming calls for any abnormalities, protects your data from hackers local or international, and alerts you whenever you are near any Bill-possessed individual. Because like most of you, I do not believe he is gone for good. We need to be prepared. We need to be strong. We need to show this enemy that we have no fear," Vlad projected and the crowd cheered again. He then approached the visualiser. This, Albert surmised, was when Vlad would activate his signal.
"Be ready, everyone," Albert instructed.
"And now, the moment you've been waiting for. As you came in, we asked for your details. Fret not, we have no plans to spy on you or reveal your secrets. No, you will all be the first to receive this marvelous innovation as a gift to thank you for hearing me out today. Let a new age of security and safety begin," Vlad concluded his presentation and proceeded to send his hidden message.
"Now, Farran," Albert ordered. As if on cue, Albert's Free Web allies jammed the signal as it was being sent and Farran was engaged in what could only be described as hacker warfare against Overseer's systems. It was very adaptable. Farran was struggling to keep up. As soon as she wrote line after line of code preventing the broadcast, Overseer thought up new lines of code to replace the old ones. Meanwhile, the crowd was wondering in hushed tones what the hold-up was. Vlad was looking very nervous.
"Errrrrrrr, I'm sure it's nothing to worry about. This is just a prototype. Day one issues, nothing to be concerned about," Vlad tried to assure the crowd. He then disappeared backstage and found Farran, but before Vlad could interfere with her work, Danny, who saw everything from up above, chose this moment to swoop down from on high and intercept Vlad. Kilstone, too, rushed towards their position.
"Sorry, Vlad. Show's over," Danny remarked.
"I should've known you'd interfere with this, boy!" Vlad responded and transformed into his ghost self. He then lunged at Danny, which is what Danny wanted. He dodged Vlad's attack, grabbed him by the wrist, and activated the Ghostcatcher. Vlad felt a rush of energy coursing through his body, and a strange, tingling sensation, as if his very cells were splitting in two, occurred next.
"What are you doing? What is this?!" Vlad demanded to know. Next second, Kilstone got behind Vlad and pulled on the other arm with his Ghostcatcher. After an initial struggle, Danny pulled out the ghost half, leaving the human half in Kilstone's grip. Before any of them realised what had happened, Vlad's PA came rushing in to see what was happening, and could not believe the sight that greeted her.
"Nothing to see here, ma'am. Just another day in the office," Danny tried to calm her and took off into the air, Vlad's ghost half in hand as he, Skulker, and Walker all fought Vlad three-on-one in an attempt to subdue him. The crowd, who saw to unexpected display, started screaming and running for the exits. Back on the ground, Kilstone had Vlad's human half face down, in cuffs. The PA chose this moment to speak.
"Will someone please tell me what is going on here?" she interrogated. Albert, who had just arrived to back up Kilstone, addressed her.
"Well, you see, this man is not who he says he is. Simon Edwards never existed. His real name is Vlad Masters. He is, or rather, was a human/ghost hybrid. We've been investigating him and his technology and found a plot to steal the White House, a subliminal message 'suggesting' to everyone connected to this network to vote for him in the upcoming election," Albert explained. To say the PA was stunned was an understatement.
"Well, I must say when I took this assignment, I never thought this would be its conclusion. How am I going to report this to my superiors?" she wondered. Albert, Kilstone, and Vlad were confused by this.
"I thought he was your superior," Kilstone replied, pointed at Vlad.
"Him? No way. Some introductions are in order. Agent Donna Stone, FBI," Donna introduced herself and she took out her credentials to prove who she was. This took everyone by surprise. Since no-one spoke, Donna continued. "Now, will one of you please tell me what's going on here?" Donna asked.
Up in the sky, far away from the civilian populace, Danny, Walker, and Skulker were engaging Vlad's ghost half. Their objective was two-fold; weaken Vlad enough to get him into the thermos while also keeping him from re-integrating with his human half. Walker, using his instincts as a prison warden, tried to lock Vlad into his grip, but Danny was quick to point out that Walker would get sucked into the thermos along with Vlad if he was too close. Skulker had somewhat of an advantage, as his mounted weaponry provided ranged support, while Danny was firing off energy blasts of his own. Between the three of them, they had Vlad on the ropes, as dodging incoming fire and a few hand-to-hand instances were tiring Vlad out. Gasping for breath, Vlad tried to talk his way out of trouble.
"You're on the wrong side, boy. Can't you see why I need to do this? You've seen my recordings, you know how evil Bill is," Vlad tried to convince Danny to join him, but he was having none of it.
"How is brainwashing an entire country into electing you president going to keep the world safe from Bill? If anything, this only proves you're just as bad as he is!" Danny rebutted. This deeply offended Vlad; angered him so much that he lunged at Danny. The two were caught in each other's grip, flying erratically as they struggled.
"You weren't there! You never saw what he did! The Throne of Agony, the Blood Falls, the Fearamids, those statues! However bad you think I am, he's a hundred times worse!" Vlad yelled, half angry, half traumatised. Danny, however, had a burning question he really wanted the answer to.
"If Bill was so bad, why didn't you fight him?!" Danny demanded as he broke free and launched a fresh barrage of energy blasts, with Vlad projecting a shield to protect himself.
"I was one! He had an army! I wouldn't have stood a chance against him! I needed to live to see this project through to the end!" Vlad reasoned. Danny still wasn't convinced.
"Then all that makes you is a coward!" Danny concluded. He lunged at Vlad's shield, smashing it into pieces and sending Vlad falling to the ground with a thud. At that moment, Walker and Skulker flew above him and launched their own ranged attacks at him. Vlad's limited shielding could not protect him for long and he was soon overwhelmed. Beaten and weakened, Danny took the opportunity to activate the thermos, aim it at Vlad, and imprison his ghost half within the device. Before being sucked in completely, Vlad had some parting words for Danny.
"Do you really think you and your allies can protect this world better than I can? Bill will return, and he will destroy everything all over again! Mark my words, the end will come, and then you'll wish you had never stopped me!" Vlad screamed out before he was sucked in. Danny, relieved that the fight was over, thought about what Vlad said just now. Walker and Skulker joined him.
"It's over, kid. We'll take him now," Walker said.
"But what if he's right?" Danny wondered.
"If Bill does return, what matters is not only if you fight, but how you choose to do so. Using innocents to further your goals is never an option," Skulker parted some wisdom onto Danny. Danny then looked towards the stage and came to a realisation. If, no, when, Bill came back, he would have allies ready to help him fight the right way.
Meanwhile, backstage, Albert had just finished filling in Donna on their activities, what they had found, and their plan for dealing with Vlad. Upon seeing Danny approach them, it was obvious that Vlad's ghost half had been successfully imprisoned. However, Farran was running out of weapons to deal with Overseer.
"I can't hold it anymore. The signal's going to broadcast," Farran updated.
"Hold on, let me try something," Donna piped up. She then entered a code of some sort and Overseer was shutting down. "I pulled that de-activation code out of the mainframe on my first day, in case it was ever needed," Donna added.
"You people have just doomed us all. This world needed me," Vlad's human half said ominously while still being restrained by Kilstone.
"What part of 'you have the right to remain silent' did you not understand? Well, you have his ghost half, we'll take the human half, as you promised, Captain. However, that still doesn't answer the question, what do I put in my report?" Donna summarised.
"Oh, that's easy. Just mention Excalibur to your director and he'll believe every word," Albert answered.
"Wait, so you're telling me the Director of the FBI knows you people exist and hasn't said a word to any of us?!" Donna inquired.
"We have an arrangement, we don't plant agents into his organisation, he doesn't reveal our existence. It's worked out well so far," Albert explained. Just then, a series of vehicles labelled 'FBI' came rolling in. Obviously, Donna put the call out as soon as the commotion started. Kilstone handed human Vlad over to the FBI and Albert, having had an idea, approached Donna and Farran.
"Can you turn Overseer back on, only insert a different command?" Albert probed.
"It's possible, why?" Farran replied.
"I'd like to contact everyone who came and implant an order wiping their memory of today's events. We could put out a cover story saying 'Simon Edwards' planned to use Overseer to sell people's data on the dark web. Free Web anonymously tipped off the FBI, and they swooped in to arrest him after a preliminary investigation," Albert suggested.
"That would mean Excalibur remains invisible," Donna countered.
"Trust me, it's better that way," Kilstone responded.
"Very well, then," Farran acknowledged. She turned Overseer back on, sent out the call with the command, and shut it back down again.
"We'll destroy all traces of Overseer, save for what we need as evidence in his trial. No offence, but I hope I never see you people again," Donna wished.
"You won't," Albert said bluntly, and they all left. Unbeknownst to all of them, back at the Flynn-Fletcher house, Phineas was going through his things when he noticed something that wasn't there before, a disc labelled 'Project E.G.'.
"Ferb, is this yours?" Phineas asked. Ferb shook his head in response. Phineas was curious as to how it got here, but even more curious to see what was on it. Against his better judgement, he put the disc into his computer, screened it for viruses, and a single video file was present. Phineas played it. An image of whom Phineas recognised as the presidential hopeful, Simon Edwards, appeared on screen.
"If you are watching this, then Project Overseer, my innovation to protect the world from Bill, has failed, whether it be from outside interference or from Bill himself, I do not know. Luckily, for the sake of the planet, I developed a back-up plan. I call it Earthguard. It is only a concept at this stage, but hidden in this disc are plans to create an A.I. more advanced than anything that has come before, a fully independent defence program capable of safeguarding our home with little to no human oversight. It would use any resource, take any action necessary to ensure the survival of our world, but it needs to be built first. I am trusting whoever is watching this recording to complete my work, but listen very carefully, the world could depend on this. Tell no-one, not even your family, of this project. Bill will trick or possess anyone to further his twisted goal of global dominion. It will be difficult keeping this secret, but I know you can do it. Good luck," the recording of Edwards monologued before the video stopped playing.
Then, a single image file containing the promised schematics for Earthguard opened up. Phineas examined them carefully. Theoretically, this could work, he thought. He then thought about Edwards' other words, to tell no-one, more carefully. Bill had tried to kill Phineas at least twice, one time using his own sister. As much as he hated to keep secrets, this was an opportunity too good to pass up. He ejected the disc and took it to a bunker in the city, telling others he was going to the park to meet up with Isabella, declining the ride his mother offered.
"A fully automated guardian defence program? I can build that," Phineas mused to himself before starting work on the project.
Meanwhile, back at Excalibur HQ, the ghosts were preparing to leave with their prisoner in the thermos. Once the portal was activated, Walker and Skulker went on ahead, leaving Danny alone with Albert.
"Well, this has been quite the ride," Danny mused.
"Yes, it has. I thought I'd show you something," Albert replied. He then took out his phone and showed Danny a news headline reporting recent events.
Presidential hopeful pinched
"Every news outlet is covering the 'scandal' of Edwards' greedy plan to sell data to foreign hackers for a hefty mark-up. His poll numbers took a beating. It looks like the presidency will go to that Essery woman after all," Albert added.
"You said something about the president getting to know about this place. Do you trust her?" Danny asked.
"Completely. I believe she'll govern with respect and courage," Albert complimented. Danny then got into the speeder, but before leaving, he gave Albert a small device.
"That is an interdimensional communicator, one of Tucker's inventions. When Bill comes back, just activate that and I'll come running, got it?" Danny advised.
"You sure you want to be a part of this fight?" Albert asked cautiously.
"I saw those recordings. If that happened again somewhere and I did nothing, I'd never live it down. I may not be on the same level as Bill in terms of power, but I'd like to help if I can," Danny replied. Albert sighed heavily.
"It's your choice, but I warn you, Bill fights to kill," Albert warned.
"Duly noted," Danny responded. He then fired up the speeder, said goodbye to Albert, and took off into the Ghost Zone. Under escort from Walker's guards, he made it safely back home. At Walker's ghost prison, he and Skulker took the thermos to an empty cell and let Vlad out, only to slam the cell door shut when he fully emerged.
"Who'd have thought working with Danny Phantom would nab me my most valuable prize?" Walker teased.
"You won't be laughing when Bill tears everything down around you," Vlad rebuffed.
"Save your doom-mongering. I won't hear any of it," Walker replied and left.
"He's coming, and when he does, he'll vanquish us all!" Vlad yelled back.
Flash forward to the present day
"So, you mean to tell me we almost voted for a ghost?!" Monogram said in disbelief.
"I could think of worse candidates," Albert joked. Sam and Tucker had questions of their own.
"Do you still have those recordings Vlad made? You know, about Weirdmageddon and the Cipher War?" Sam inquired.
"We do, but I'm not sure you should see those. For all his scheming and raving, Vlad was right about Bill," Albert answered.
"Don't patronise us, good sir. We've seen our fair share of nasty ghouls and bad alternate futures, so please, show us those recordings," Tucker quipped. Albert conceded and showed Danny's friends the videos Vlad made. It was enough to turn the stomach of even Sam and Tucker, who understood why Danny wanted the weapons and gadgets he did.
"Are those….people?!" Sam probed, referring to the statues Bill made of himself, using petrified civilians as building blocks.
"I'm afraid so," Albert morbidly replied. Sam and Tucker, then looked at each other, then at Danny, then finally, at Albert.
"How can we help?" they both asked him at once.
Author's note: I know I am very late to this party, but I want to congratulate the American people on the outcome of the election. I try to avoid taking sides in political discussions, but I think it is safe to say 2020 just got a whole lot better, something we could all use after everything that has and still is happening. The usual disclaimers, I own nothing. Butch Hartman and Nickelodeon own Danny Phantom. Enjoy, and here's the post-credit scene.
As Vlad was floating into the prison cafeteria, he could not believe that no-one would take his warnings about Bill seriously. He cursed Danny internally for failing to see that he had to win to safeguard not only Danville but every other world from Bill's grasp. He knew it was only a matter of time before Bill made his move, and he did not want to be here when he did. Although, he did not want to be here in general, so that thought did not count for much. When lunchtime was over and Vlad was escorted back to his cell, Walker paid him another visit.
"You know, if you were thinking all this insanity about Bill would get you into a psych ward, you're woefully mistaken," Walker said abruptly.
"It's not insanity. He's coming. Can't you feel it?" Vlad asked desperately.
"Nope, not really," Walker dismissed.
"Then you'll be the first to….." Vlad was about to finish his response when an ominous sound came from outside the prison. Vlad then peered out of the cell window and saw a sight he had been dreading since ending up here. Walker, surprisingly, joined him and couldn't believe what he saw. What looked like a cloaked figure backed by an army was descending on the prison.
"What is that?!" Walker probed, with a hint of fear in his voice. Vlad was visibly shaking.
"He's here," Vlad responded. Walker then got onto the prison comms.
"Attention, this is the warden. The prison is under attack. This is not a drill. Everyone to battle positions!" Walker ordered.
Here's the second post-credit scene.
Korra had no idea what she was thinking. A million scenarios played out in her head over how to resolve the current dilemma, but none of them played out as she wanted in her head. Against the wishes of her peers, she sought her out. Asami was following along behind her, trying to get her to see sense.
"After everything she's done? Can you really trust her?" Asami asked.
"If this threat to the Spirit World is real, we'll need all the heavy hitters we can get, and she more than qualifies," Korra reasoned.
"We have Avatar Aang, we don't need anyone else," Asami argued.
"True, he can help stop Ozai and Azula, but against the All-Seer, we'll need more. My mind's made up, Asami, please trust me," Korra begged. Asami stepped aside and let Korra open the platinum cell door, where Kuvira sat on a sole chair behind a desk.
"The situation must be dire indeed for you to come to me for help," Kuvira noted.
"If she tries anything, I'll end her," Lin threatened.
"Well then, where do we start?" Kuvira probed.