A very merry Friday to you, my wonderful readers! If anyone had told me that one of my stories would surpass 51,000 views in the first 12 chapters alone, I would have told them they're crazy. Seriously, I am blown away, you guys. Thank you for coming back again and again, and I am so glad you are enjoying this tail I've woven :)
I'm posting a few hours early today because I can't stand the anticipation anymore. I'm sorry for the two-week delay in publishing this chapter. Unfortunately, I have been sleeping 1-4 hours per night because of massive amounts of schoolwork for my masters degree, and I simply did not have the time until this past weekend to draft and re-draft the chapter to my desired level of quality.
So, let's answer the big question: What's been happening off-screen?
Recommended soundtrack: this YouTube mix based off of Pen Perry's remix of Hanz Zimmer's Time.: www . youtube com/ watch?v=Gdg5HqX_vZE&list=RDGdg5HqX_vZE&start_radio=1&t=11
General Notes:
"This is dialogue."
"This is alternative dialogue, meaning whispered or spoken from a distance such as on the phone."
'This is thought.'
This and THIS and *this* are emphasis. The *this* emphasis is more along the lines of the snarky or sarcastic.
[This is digital text, such as notifications on a computer or smartphone.]
I do not own Danny Phantom nor Young Justice.
Ch. 13 originally published: Friday, July 5, 2019
RECOGNIZED
Chapter 13
Shell Game — Part II
"Think, boy," Vlad prodded. "Consider everything."
One Hour Prior to Present — 23:07, Tuesday, March 20 — LexCorp Farms Central Processing Facility, Lebanon, Kansas
The room was eerily dark and silent in contrast to Devastation's incessant yet unsuccessful attacks on the door. The only illumination came from a glass cylinder standing on display at the far end of the room. Robin crept forward, senses on high alert and breath misting in the chilled air. And when he was close enough to see what was contained…
It felt as if his stomach had filled with concrete.
Inside the cylinder, dressed in Cadmus' signature white unitard, was a frozen black-haired teen identical to himself. Every physical feature—even the musculature—was perfect. Its effect recalled that of watching a tragic car accident; it was horrible, it was terrifying, yet he could not look away. For a brief moment, Robin stood alone in the world, ignorant of the beastly woman trying to break in and the chaos ensuing outside.
He couldn't believe it. Cadmus had done it; they had actually replaced Danny Fenton with a clone. Robin had been so certain Danny was his lost brother; the half-ghost hybrid had even claimed to have witnessed the switch himself. Though, Robin now supposed, the alleged memory could very well have been part of 'Danny's' programming whenever he had been switched.
And then…
Robin furrowed his brow at the glint of something red on the forehead. He drew so close to the pod that his breath fogged the exterior of the glass. There, unmistakably, was a blemish on his doppelgänger's forehead: an unhealed cut above the right eye which appeared so fresh it could have only happened minutes ago. Yet, this duplicate had clearly been in stasis for days, if not longer. So when could he have-
The penny dropped.
It was the sudden opening of the drapes which illuminated reality in harsh detail: The Axion archives. Falling. Drawer pull. Forehead. Trickle of blood. Inexplicably prolonged unconsciousness in an 'enemy' facility. Confusion upon waking up.
Beneath the domino mask, Robin's eyes widened. His breathing began to accelerate; his mind, to decelerate. He took one hesitant step back and lifted his palms, staring at them through the gloves as if they had facilitated a nuclear apocalypse; another step back, staring at his own body through the Robin uniform as if it had committed egregious crimes; a third step back, staring at his face inside the glass as if it would awaken and confirm he was not supposed to exist.
Robin was the clone, not Danny, not the—him trapped inside.
"CLIPPED WING."
Frozen.
Devastation finally broke through the door and charged the catatonic clone. The bedlam spilled into the cold storage bay behind her, swallowing them into its ebb and flow.
Kid Flash's eyes widened in horror as he looked on from outside. "Robin?" he shouted. When the Boy Wonder didn't even flinch, he repeated, "Robin?!"
But it was to no avail. 'Robin' was completely unresponsive due to the trigger-word-induced catatonia, unbeknownst to Kid Flash. The force of Devastation tackling Robin seemed to snap the boy out of his hypnosis. It was unfortunately too late for Robin's famously keen fight-or-flight mode to engage; the disheartened hero was instantly disarmed and subdued.
"Uh, guys? Guys?!" Kid Flash called. "We need backup in storage! They got Robin!"
"You useless trash!" "What went wrong with your programming?!" "The hell is wrong with this one! Tell Dr. Spence we need to restart."
'Robin' tried less-than-half-heartedly to fight against his restraints, but each attempt only brought him more pain and torture from the guards. Within seconds, Project Evanesce's cape was destroyed; his mask, a mere shell of what it should be. Though at this point, 'Robin' hardly thought it would matter since they had his face under their mastery anyway.
The employees finally appeared to show mercy and ceased their beating. They dragged him through the mass of Cadmus goons into LexCorp Farms' main storage area. An armed guard flanked 'Robin's' sides while a third trailing behind, each equipped with an automatic assault rifle.
Robin found himself unable to respond to the stimuli around him. It was as if reality progressed without him. Everyone surrounding Robin and his captors barreled past in absolute frenzy as they fought to subdue the invading protégé team. He could not remember being so catatonic outside of hypnosis, not since the night-
The night...
—
"And now the Flying Graysons will perform their most spectacular, death-defying stunt *without* a safety net below!"
"*Gasps* Oh, my god the rope-"
"Look away now! Shield your children's eyes! They're going to-!"
Plummetplummetplummet-
—
Crash. A packaging machine exploded apart as a Cadmus employee went sailing through it. He landed in an unconscious heap not far from 'Robin.' The subdued teen could only look on in macabre fascination.
Well...they hadn't even been his parents anyway.
"Rob!"
The desperate wail of his—of his original's best friend captured his attention. 'Robin' wordlessly watched the speedster practically plow through the crowds to get to him. Robin's empty, haunting gaze made Kid Flash falter and be momentarily overpowered.
"KF-?"
"Silence, trash," a guard growled.
And then his weapon's safety disengaged.
'Robin' twisted as much as he could to see the man emotionlessly inspect his rifle.
'Robin's' thoughts turned introspective. He could feel what was coming; a rogue clone who found out the truth prematurely? He was bound to have a short life span, his elimination almost routine. None of this would serve to comfort him in the knowledge that in a few short moments, 'Robin' would no longer be here; he would no longer exist. He shouldn't have existed in the first place.
Yet…
"Wait…" one of the other guards barked, "there's another one?"
'Robin' could barely breathe, but he fought to raise his gaze to see what the guard was talking about. There, rocketing through the crowd with more than a minimal amount of intangibility, was the other other him. Danny was headed straight for him, now bound to have a front-row seat of what would seem to be—to him—the execution of his only living blood family.
It was this realization that finally snapped 'Robin' out of his stupor and sent him spiraling into dread and panic. Danny—he didn't know; he wasn't there in the room when 'Robin' found his original. And the other protégés…
Kid Flash struggled to break free from his attackers. Artemis crouched on top of a piece of heavy machinery, using the high ground to subdue handfuls of Cadmus and LexCorp employees. The brawniest of security guards grappled with Superboy in another corner. Aqualad, meanwhile, had broken open a water main and used tsunami waves as a broom to the Light goons' filth. All of them, apart from Kid Flash, were drowning in the chaos and completely unaware of what was about to pass.
None of them would know any better and think the real him was about to be murdered. He knew that it would shatter Danny in his currently fragmented state and emotionally destroy him. Regardless of the guards' orders, he tried to warn the boy but only induced a coughing fit. In the end, all he managed to croak was:
"I'm—I'm not-"
Blank.
Present — 00:14, Wednesday, March 21 — Bio-ship, Indiana Airspace
'Clipped Wing.' 'Red Sun.' 'Broken Arrow.'
CLIPPED WING.
Kid Flash loosened his grip on Masters' clothes. "Danny wasn't the clone…"
"Indeed not," Masters said. With a small measure of disgust, he removed the speedster's gloved hand from his person and straightened his clothes.
"I think you'd better start explaining, old man," was Artemis' growled threat.
Vlad sighed. "Saturday evening, when Robin broke into Axion, Luthor happened to be there. Last Thursday, I arranged a meeting following the arrival of what I thought to be a second Daniel Fenton. Through our combined teams and resources, Robin was subdued. Luthor had a duplicate on hand, a leftover of sorts from Project Sidekick which began during your team's first infiltration of Cadmus. A DNA sample was collected from the three sidekicks-"
"We're protégés, damn it!" Superboy snapped. "Do not underestimate us, Masters. That would be a big mistake."
Vlad cleared his throat. "After Luthor *publicly* took over Cadmus, clones of Aqualad, Kid Flash and Robin were cultivated, though the genomorphs had yet to download their originals' consciousnesses. Unfortunately, Kid Flash and Aqualad's duplicates were brutally torn limb from limb the day Project Match was liberated."
Superboy tried to ignore the strange mixture of guilt and relief at that revelation. "And how can we trust what you're saying?"
"I overheard some scientists talking about it," Kid Flash growled with spite. "He's on the level."
"The Robin duplicate had already been moved to another facility for the sake of insurance; if Cadmus went down again, the Light therefore had one remaining option: an experiment re-designated as 'Project Nightwing' as a reference to Robin's call sign and typical hours of operation."
Zatanna looked uncomfortably at the corpse on the floor. "So this is not a dead Robin, but a dead fake Robin," she said.
Vlad slowly spun on his heel to overlook the passing scenery. "If only it were that simple."
One Week Prior to Present — Wednesday, March 14 — Amity Park City Hall, Amity Park, Ohio
"How many variants of the simple word 'no' must I use to get this through to you? I told you, I'm out." Vlad, infuriated, sighed deeply as he listened to the other person speak.
"Vladimir, please," Luthor kindly consoled.
Vlad shifted the receiver against his face while hunching over the desk and pinching the bridge of his nose. "The scandal, the mere continued association would threaten the stability of DALV Co."
"Ah, you do so love to exaggerate, my friend," Luthor assured. "Our Cadmus program did see measurable success with the Red Arrow initiative."
The mayor of Amity Park whirled around in his chair to stare out the window. The electrochromic glass had darkened when his office's soundproofing systems engaged. "You are fully aware of the success in my own efforts, just as I am aware of yours. Or should I say 'lack thereof' on both accounts? I'm struggling to understand, then, why you cannot grasp the concept of permanently terminating my participation in your think tank's endeavors. The test subjects and subsequent attempts at replication were all catastrophic failures."
"We have encountered some…*difficulties,* I will admit," Luthor replied. "Just as I know you have, old friend, though you have failed to mention any particular reasons why our test-proven duplication procedure does not work for your own pet project."
Vlad scowled, avoiding explaining just why the subject of his own cloning experimentation did not have predictable, fully-human DNA. "An ongoing partnership has proved disastrous for us. Both of our projects have yet to succeed despite both of us doing legwork personally. It has been two years, my old *friend.* Clones simply aren't viable weapons, each with a mind of their own." His mind swam in a sea of black-haired, blue-eyed teens. "Our time working together has come to an end."
"I needn't remind you of the consequences of severing associations with our organization." Luthor's voice turned threatening as he added, "And your days will not be spent in the Light, but in darkness."
Vlad listened then stood from his chair, stretching the phone's cord to its limits. "Then I shall happily spend the rest of my days in the 'darkness,' as you say. I already own the shadows. Good day." The mayoral office automatically reset itself to normal as soon as the receiver slammed down.
Three Days Prior to Present — 18:15 Precisely, Saturday, March 17 — Axion Labs, Amity Park, Ohio
"Your guest has arrived, Mr. Masters," Walter announced.
"How very prompt," Vlad retorted without looking up from his computer.
Walt stepped aside to allow a man in a perfectly tailored suit to pass. Vlad pulled his gaze away from the screen. His frosty demeanor turned instantly hostile.
"Hello, Vladimir," the visitor greeted.
"Alexander Luthor. What a treat that you could drag yourself all the way out to this godforsaken backwater," Vlad growled. "Thank you, Walt, that will be all."
The assistant disappeared, shutting the door behind him. The room went into auditory and visual isolation mode.
"You have been dabbling, Luthor," Vlad reprimanded. "I don't like dabbling."
"You haven't exactly been idle either, have you, Vladimir?" Luthor retorted.
Vlad turned up his nose. "I don't know what you mean."
"Really?" Lex adjusted to a more comfortable position and lazily pulled up some CCTV footage on his phone's holographic display. "Did you really think I wouldn't notice the sudden appearance of a host of variants of your local hero? An entire miniature golf course, destroyed in minutes? A residential street, pulverized worse than post-revolutionary Cairo? The skeleton in a bedsheet was initially a bit of a stretch, but the appearance of one who looked like a failed Project Blockbuster experiment with Phantom's visage? And the girl…she could be a relation, but I somehow doubt that."
Vlad's skin crawled. He refrained from answering the question directly. "You keep such a close eye on our pokey little community? How touching."
"I like to make sure our…associates are well-looked-after. Especially when we have such similar goals in mind."
"That is still to be determined," Vlad growled. "Regardless, I initially called this meeting when I saw three black-haired, blue-eyed boys running around when there should only be two."
"Now it is I who doesn't know what you mean."
"It will be hard to forget that Cadmus fiasco two years ago when the League protégés intervened. You claimed all data collection was destroyed when Robin escaped containment, but now one could consider me to be 'skeptical.' "
Lex showed no signs of anxiety. "You are correct. Any memory collection completed was lost when Project Kr intervened. I will admit, however, to having already logged his DNA."
"And was this sample…applied?"
A small smile danced across the Metropolitan's lips.
"Oh, fantastic," Vlad commented over-dramatically. "Yet another teenaged pain to deal with. Where is it now?"
"Awaiting assignment in cryo-stasis. The original still parades around Gotham as oblivious as ever. We collected their DNA before inserting the sidekicks into pods, allowing us to put on a wonderful show of total defeat in case they were awakened mid-procedure, as was the case."
"And the process of identifying him?"
"Current duplication technology allows us to duplicate and influence the mind, but there is no way to access the source material without a telepath present. Furthermore, Project Kr unfortunately went rogue and intervened before we could remove the mask."
"So what do you want with a clone of the boy anyway, especially now that the League's suspicions of you and Cadmus are heightened?"
"Not a day has passed when the League hasn't wanted to investigate me," Lex answered. "But the advantages of having another agent in their ranks certainly outweighs the risks with the coming partnership."
Vlad narrowed his eyes, schooling his voice into a cold murmur. "What partnership?"
"Ours."
Vlad scoffed. "We have no partnership now. I made that perfectly clear on the phone."
"But we will, I assure you," Luthor purred and leaned forward to clasp his hands and rest his elbows on the desk. "An opportunity arose courtesy of Vandal Savage's…intervention two years ago, one which I am certain you cannot turn down. One which can offer you the world."
"Why? What would I gain?"
"The world," Luthor emphasized. "Or, at least your share, anyway."
Vlad merely stared.
"Our organization has received contact from an extraterrestrial group known as 'the Reach.' We have already begun to collaborate with their chief scientists to develop certain nutritional additives which would…aid the populace in accepting dominance from an outside force. The Light's cooperation guarantees our position at the top such that we may maintain control over the degree of complacency."
"And what do you want with me?"
"Axion Labs is quite the little think tank. Small, perhaps, but incredibly advanced and holder of a number of useful patents. Access to those and DALV Co's other resources is all we ask in return."
"While this would certainly not be my first cooperation with the Light, I have already had my last. I politely decline."
"I'm afraid that's not an option. You see, we…know things."
Masters' skin crawled. "Oh? Like what?"
RING RING
Vlad's line of vision fell on the desk phone announcing an incoming call from the security office. He answered the phone with a growl, "What is it, Damon? I'm busy." There was a pause, then- "Let me have a look."
Vlad opened the incoming security feed on his computer screen and watched the fleeting footage of Axion's unannounced visitor. While a furrowed brow gave away his initial confusion, a small smile danced across Vlad's face once he realized who it was. "No, no, quite alright, I'll take care of it. Wait for further instruction." He hung up the phone. "Well, Lex, it seems Cadmus' thorns are in everyone's sides now," he quipped and turned his screen to show just who was attempting to break into Axion.
Upon recognizing Robin, Lex grinned ruefully. "Fortunately, we came prepared." Both men began contacting assistants. Once his call connected, Luthor simply said, "Nightwing." He hung up and turned back to the host. "I trust your security team can capture him? You never cease to brag about its superiority to my own."
Vlad sent hurried instructions to Skulker. "Subduing the boy is not a problem. What exactly did you mean when you said you came prepared?"
"As I said, a duplicate is in cryostasis, and Project Nightwing is on-site and ready for installment. Do you have a *secret mad scientist lab* of which we might take advantage?"
It wasn't entirely difficult to track the intruder. Skulker began his search of the Axion facilities in the subterranean labs and found Robin in a matter of moments. All it took was an invisible push to topple the file boxes onto the hero; it would adequately provide the boy with a logical explanation for his unconsciousness upon awakening hours later. Skulker then phased the boy from under the pile and tossed him over a shoulder to take him to Vlad's private lab.
Said scientist and the visiting Metropolitan entered soon after, pleased to find Robin already stripped of his mask and uniform and sporting a simple white suit favored by Cadmus for pod containment. A small, untreated cut donned the boy's forehead from where it had struck the file cabinet.
"Excellent work, Skulker. Was he carrying anything of interest?" Vlad inquired.
The ghostly assistant held up a small black object. "Just his wallet," Skulker replied with a measure of hidden meaning, something his boss did not miss. Skulker tossed the wallet to Vlad.
Masters hastily opened it and found a Casper High ID card—a very particular boy's Casper High ID card. Shocked, Vlad looked to the boy over his shoulder.
'Little Badger?'
Oblivious to Vlad's internal confusion, Luthor leaned over the operating table to inspect the unconscious protégé. "How very out of character for the Boy Wonder to carry anything associated with his civilian identity," Luthor commented with a frown. "Batman is usually more diligent."
Vlad knew beyond a shadow of a doubt that this was not Daniel Fenton. The resemblance was beyond uncanny and would most likely fool the boy's parents, if not his friends and sister. But, Vlad knew better, if only due to the fact that he was intimately familiar with how busy Danny and Phantom kept in Amity alone. The *superpowered* teen did not even possess the time with which he could moonlight as a *powerless* protégé in another city. This was not his self-proclaimed nemesis.
"Perhaps he thought he could pass as a cosplayer since he is so far from Gotham," Mercy suggested.
"Brilliant," Lex replied.
"Really?"
"Yes, brilliant impression of an idiot." Luthor leaned in to more closely scrutinize the unconscious boy.
Mercy bristled but kept silent.
In the interest of buying some time and sabotaging the Light's aspirations which no longer aligned with his own, Vlad made a snap decision to throw Luthor off the scent. He would protect both his desired heir and Richard Grayson, who he now knew to be the true Robin laying before them.
" 'Daniel James Fenton,' " Vlad read with feigned revelation. "My university lab partners' son. Robin was from Amity Park all along? What a surprise."
Luthor then took the card from him. "Indeed. I was most certain he was a particular, *prominent* Gotham resident. Though the existence of zeta beam technology would explain his ability to frequent that Gothic slum."
While Luthor read the student ID more closely, Vlad glanced to his lackey hovering in the corner, staring intently for a few moments. Skulker silently nodded his head once in understanding to remain quiet.
Luthor handed the card back to Masters and said, "Regardless of who the boy is, he is a protégé of the Justice League and perfectly positioned to manipulate the League's missions and positions to our benefit, particularly should the need arise after the Reach's arrival. Mercy," he instructed his assistant, "please have Mr. Fenton's consciousness downloaded to Project Nightwing immediately."
With a nod and gesture from his bodyguard, Luthor's staff produced the cryostasis tube containing Project Nightwing and began preparing genomorphs for the memory transfer.
"Upon 'downloading his consciousness,' " Masters inquired, "are you able to access them to find out more about the protégés and heroes?"
"Unfortunately, Cadmus' mobile genomorph team is only able to transfer and influence his mind," Luthor replied. The small beings' horns began glowing red as Robin's mind was copied over to the clone. "To limitlessly access it, we would need a fully-capable telepath on hand. They are all back at Cadmus or otherwise occupied."
Vlad released a silent breath of relief. This would guarantee him and the 'true' Daniel James Fenton a little additional time to stay one step ahead of the untrustworthy Light.
"Rest assured," Lex continued, "we will still be able to implant the failsafe word and influence his drive to be 'Daniel Fenton.' "
An hour later, the original Robin was in stasis while Cadmus' team prepared the scene for the clone's insertion. 'Robin,' dressed in his namesake's uniform, was returned to the archive room and replaced under the pile of boxes and papers. The July 2016 file was left in position with particularly incriminating files excluded (though most were left for authenticity as a measure to trick 'the Batman'). The stage was set for the clone to awaken as Robin.
Present Day — 00:22, Wednesday, March 21, Bio-ship, Indiana Airspace
"Ow!" Vlad recoiled and grasped his nose. "What the hell was that for, you impertinent little insect?!"
Kid Flash shook out his hand while Superboy and Aqualad restrained him. "For my best friend and his brother, you morally constipated bastard!"
"I am new to heroism," Vlad spat, "but I don't believe it's customary to attack and insult the person you've just rescued!"
"You deserve a hell of a lot more than a punch!"
"Kid Flash, stand down," Aqualad ordered. "Your behavior is inappropriate."
The speedster yanked his arms out of his teammates' grips and skulked away to his chair. "We were all thinking it," he muttered.
"Please continue, Mr. Masters," Aqualad requested.
Vlad took a deep, slow breath to center himself. "I allowed Luthor to think he had flawlessly implemented the Robin duplicate in order to buy some time to facilitate a failsafe. Unfortunately, when Daniel ran away from home—something contradicting his alleged programming—Luthor deduced I had...sabotaged the operation to an extent."
"So why did they take Red Robin-er, Danny?" M'gann asked.
"Because he interfered? He knew too much?" Masters offered a falsely uncaring shrug. "They are probably desperate to capture the true Robin and capture any boy with his face. I wouldn't be surprised if Luthor's mindless goons couldn't keep track of who is who anymore. Plus, Daniel's use of his powers wasn't exactly subtle. The Light may have become suspicious of his capabilities."
"So the Light now has the original Robin and this kid Danny Fenton who they think is, what, a superpowered Robin?" Superboy said. In a menacing growl, he added, "I suggest you share any knowledge you might have regarding where Luthor might take them."
"There are no other adequately equipped Light facilities with which I am familiar, apart from one currently under construction in central London; I don't know where precisely. Though I highly doubt Luthor would take him somewhere so exposed and unfinished. They would most likely redirect Robin and Daniel to a location where a telepath is on hand to take better control of any future clones."
"It would not hurt to investigate," Aqualad said. "Keeping them exposed could be the Light's way of hiding in plain sight. After we return Masters to his residence, we will report this to the League at once."
The team didn't say a word upon returning to the mountain. M'gann went straight to the kitchen to prepare some snacks for everyone while Superboy and Kid Flash carried the Robin clone's corpse to the medical bay for cold storage until he could be embalmed. Artemis, Zatanna and Kaldur collapsed onto the sofas and stared blankly out over the hangar.
The TV crackled to life with Batman's visage. "Aqualad, report to the training area for mission debriefing." It went dark again.
Kaldur sighed and stood from the sofa. Artemis, visibly forlorn, couldn't be bothered to lift her legs from where they rested on the coffee table, so Kaldur merely stepped over them.
Batman was already waiting with holographic imagery when Aqualad reached the training bay. He remained silent.
After a few moments, Aqualad could no longer tolerate the silence. "It did not proceed as planned."
"Understatement," the elder man barked. "And a certainty with this team. Where are Robin and Danny Fenton?"
Aqualad tried to hide a wince and shifted uncomfortably. "They are both in Light custody," he confirmed.
"And Robin's duplicate?"
Aqualad did a double-take. "You knew of it already?" he asked in disbelief.
"Indeed." Batman pressed a button on the holographic control panel, starting a video's playback. "Security footage recovered from Cadmus' vault showed the removal of a person resembling my protégé. I was unsure whether it was the original Robin still being kept from the infamous July 4th raid on the facility, or whether it was a duplicate being cultivated for his replacement in the same manner as Red Arrow. My suspicions were apparently not unfounded."
"Masters informed us in transit that it was in fact a clone," Aqualad said. "The original Robin was replaced this past Saturday while investigating Axion labs."
Batman uncharacteristically hesitated. "And his identity is now compromised?"
Aqualad sobered momentarily, having realized what must be troubling the League member given the circumstances. In a soft voice, Aqualad said, "Do not worry, Bruce. We protégés are the only ones who know. Vlad purposefully misidentified Robin as Daniel Fenton when he was unmasked."
"It is likely that Masters knows, however," Batman grumbled. "We will have to keep a closer eye on him until he proves his knowledge and intentions. Did he provide any additional intel en route to Amity Park?"
"Masters mentioned one of the Light's facilities which is currently under construction in London," Aqualad said. "Though he expressed doubt as to whether the captives would be held in a location so exposed and easily accessed."
"22 Bishopsgate," Batman said and manipulated a three-dimensional holographic construction of the Bank District in central London. "LexCorp has invested heavily in its construction and will occupy most of its office space."
"So let's go!"
Batman and Aqualad whirled to see Kid Flash bouncing eagerly in place.
"I do not appreciate eavesdropping, Kid Flash."
"Robin is my best friend in the whole world, and if you guys know he's at this Bishopsgate place, I'm there!"
"We do not know yet, Kid Flash," Aqualad said. "It is a likely location but unconfirmed. We will be monitoring Luthor's movements, as well as his employees and all corporate holdings. For now, we wait."
"Waiting sucks," Kid Flash groaned.
"As does your impertinence. Stand down, Kid Flash."
The speedster deflated and went in search of M'gann's snacks.
"How has the rest of the team been handling the situation?"
"Artemis reacted strongly," Aqualad said. "Her state of mind was similar to that after the failed simulation."
"I will speak with Black Canary about temporarily returning to her duties as therapist. In the meantime, rest and wait for my signal. The instruction is on hold until we know more."
"Understood."
9:22, Wednesday, March 21 — Fenton Works, Amity Park, Ohio
"And welcome back from the break! That new Dairy Queen blizzard just looks divine, doesn't it, Lance?"
"It sure does, Tiffany," Lance replied from outside the studio. "Fortunately, that's the only blizzard I forecast in *my* future. Sunny skies should take us here in Amity at least through Saturday afternoon when a cold front will start blowing through. With highs in the low 70's every day, it's shaping up to be a beautiful spring here in Amity Park. Lance Thunder, Action news. Back to you, Tiffany."
"Thank you, Lance. Well, that's certainly music to many people's ears as the hunt for missing teen Daniel 'Danny' Fenton continues."
At the mention of her son's name, Maddie looked up from the invention which she was aggressively modifying for combat.
"Amity Park Search and Rescue teams have been combing the entire county nonstop since the youngest Fenton was reported missing on Monday morning. Authorities have been in contact with our neighboring counties, but with no leads arising whatsoever. Questions have started circulating as to why the Fenton parents have not been involved in the search, and what this could mean for the family."
"It's because we know we won't find him anywhere near Amity," Maddie murmured bitterly at the living room TV and applied a little too much force with the screwdriver.
"APPD reiterates that if anyone has any information which might help locate Danny Fenton, please contact the non-emergency hotline you see on your screen.
"In related news, it has now been almost three days since the last reported sighting of local hero, Danny Phantom. Despite his growing celebrity status, many have started to speculate whether he was involved with Fenton's disappearance."
"More than you know, blondie," Maddie quipped.
Jack walked in with a fresh cup of coffee and an invention of his own with which to occupy himself. "Danny again?"
"Yeah, both of him," his wife replied. She rested the invention in her lap and dragged a hand down her cheek. "These people have no idea what's really going on. And neither do we. I don't like not knowing, Jack." She huffed and glared at the Fenton Finder sitting on the coffee table. A progress bar on its screen revealed a remaining five hours to sufficiently charge for another pulse.
"-chaos in Kansas," Tiffany Snow continued. "LexCorp Farms reports minimal property damage from the incident, but disruption to their production could set the company back millions of dollars with an estimated 60% of their machinery currently sitting in disrepair. CEO Lex Luthor has not revealed who the intruders were and what they might have been searching for in a simple agricultural processing facility. The Lebanon, Kansas campus hopes to be up and running again by early afternoon tomorrow."
"Wait...Kansas!" Maddie exclaimed. She grabbed the Fenton Finder and went through its search history. "Danny's signature was last registered in the middle of nowhere in Kansas! Our baby was there!"
"Great, what sort of trouble has he gotten himself into?" Jack grumbled.
"Don't you see, Jack? It's our first lead since he went missing! It has something to do with LexCorp, or maybe even Lex Luthor himself!"
"So, what, all we have to do is hunt down a billionaire to find the imposter posing as our son?"
17:30, Wednesday, March 21 — Amity Park, Ohio
"Oh, Mayor Masters!" Pamela greeted upon opening the front door. "This *is* a surprise!"
Vlad shifted in his fresh suit and offered a small smile.
"We were so disappointed you were unable to make it to the council meeting yesterday. The Damage and Aftereffect Relief Endowment petitioned for official recognition as a local-government-endorsed nonprofit, and we could have used your sway on the board!"
"Yes, I was unfortunately *held hostage* at another business meeting," he explained with a knowing grin.
Mrs. Manson, none the wiser, merely chuckled. "So to what do we owe the pleasure this afternoon?"
"I was rather hoping to have a private word with your daughter, actually," he said, "if she is available?"
"Oh," Pamela replied, deflating slightly. "Does it have to do with that missing Fenton boy?"
"I'm afraid it does, albeit in a roundabout way."
"SAMMIEKINS!" she shouted, Vlad wincing under the eagle's shriek passing as her voice. "This town would be better off without him, or any of the Fentons, if I'm being honest."
"Mmm," Vlad hummed in somber agreement. "Yet I hate to see Maddie so distressed."
"I suppose I…empathize with her," Mrs. Manson conceded. After a beat, she turned around again and shouted once more, "SAM!"
A distant upstairs door slammed open. "What do you want?!" Sam screamed back.
"The mayor is here to talk to you about your little friend who's missing!"
"Tell him to acquaint his lips with my backside!"
Pamela grimaced and exchanged a silent yet fatigued 'Kids' look with the mayor. "Samantha Manson, you come downstairs right now or I'll have your room resprayed pink again!"
"UGH." Heavy footfalls stormed down the sweeping staircase until a glaring Sam was in view. "This better be good, Masters."
Pamela seemed about to scold her, but in an instant her demeanor changed. "I'll give you two some privacy. If you need me, I will be clipping flowers for a bouquet as a thank you to this fine gentleman for gracing our household with his presence." And with that, she somewhat robotically left the room.
With crossed arms, Sam skeptically repeated, " 'For gracing our household with his presence?'"
"Yes, not my finest work, but we needn't convince anyone else besides her. Shall we?" He gestured to the lounge adjoining the entry hall.
"Why should I?"
Not a moment later, Tucker came flying intangibly through the wall, screaming all the while. The Plasmius duplicate carrying the boy unceremoniously dropped him onto a sofa.
"I could have walked, you know!" Tucker huffed.
"What's going on?" Sam demanded.
"An exchange of information. We had a deal, after all."
Oooo, what *does* Vlad have to share? I guess we'll find out next month!
This month's references and general notes:
- Mercy and Luthor's interaction ("Brilliant." "Really?" "Yes, brilliant impression of an idiot.") is one of Sherlock and Anderson's best verbal jousts from BBC Sherlock.
- In case it isn't perfectly clear, Vlad overshadowed Pamela Manson with a duplicate.
- Another cameo by fanon character Walt Weston, Wes Weston's father who works as Vlad's personal assistant.
- John and Mary Grayson's death scene, as a PTSD-ish sort of trigger moment.
- The destruction of a miniature golf course in the 'Kindred Spirits' episode where we first meet Dani. Obviously, these events are what REALLY occurred back in chapters 3 (the other side of Vlad's mysterious phone call) and 6 (when Kid Flash and Robin infiltrate Axion Labs).
- Mentions of and preparation for the Reach, the primary villain of Young Justice season 2 (which hasn't happened yet in this story).
- For those of you who are wondering, this is a sister facility to the one visited in S2E12 'True Colors.' Mine is outside Lebanon, Kansas; the 'True Colors' location is in Smallville which is an indeterminate distance away.
- If you remember, pre-switch Robin found Danny's wallet in the alley when the A-Listers ambushed him leaving Tucker's that Saturday (chapter 6).
- 22 Bishopsgate is a real skyscraper in London which was under construction at the time this story takes place (March 2018).
See any other references I might have forgotten to mention? Let me know!
I'm thinking/hoping chapter 14 won't be delayed as well because the pressure at school has lessened. But, the publishing schedule will now be adjusted to account for this chapter's publish date. Meaning, chapter 14 is coming out one month from today rather than one month from when this chapter should have published.
Your feedback and reviews give me life! Thanks to everyone who provides reactions; you help me gauge whether I am on track with this story as far as impact, surprise and emotional destruction goes :)))
Stay classy!
-hiimian