CHAPTER 13: THE WALKING DEAD, PART 1
Being President of the United States means that you will worry for most of your time on the job. Residing over choices pertaining to the country's economy, social equality and justice, foreign policy, and, most recently, handling the new frontier of the afterlife, there will never be a moment in time when you can just truly relax and never have your mind put elsewhere.
President Foley has found many vices which allow him a simple escape from his troubles through the use of drugs (most of which he uses he has not made legal) and prostitution (a profession he has also not made legal), seeking to satisfy his most basic needs as a human being.
Never before had he indulged in such debauchery, but the many years he has spent inside the White House has drastically altered the course of his life, and made him into a much different person than he is today. Very rarely does he look back and contemplate on the days of his past, but recent events have led him to take his time to reflect on the past once again.
During his last conversation with Danny Fenton, their conversation had ended on a note that registered as less than pleasant for both parties. Once upon a time in their lives, each had considered the other their best friend, and, alongside the yet-unmarried Sam Manson, spent many years together as ghost hunters defending the world from the forces of the undead.
When that same man asked for help when he needed it most to defeat one of said oncoming threats, said to be one of the worst, he turned his back on the man he called his best friend. A threat to end all support for his political career was the first consequence for his actions, but further despair came with that shock.
Contemplating over his past with Danny Fenton, President Foley reached into his desk, taking out a small frame carrying the photograph of the trio as they once knew each other. Looking on the photograph, the emotions that began to brew in his mind began to boil to the surface, taking the forefront of his thoughts.
He remembers the days in which the three were the best of friends, and the sight gives him nostalgia for the years gone past.
However, just like any escapism from the real world and its problems, the escape is brought to an end by reality catching up at last. In the midst of his contemplation, a secretary had stepped into the Oval Office, coming to inform the president of a pressing matter regarding his attention.
"Mr. President, sir?" The secretary asked.
Initially distracted with his photograph, President Foley's attention was soon taken off the image and given to the secretary with her words.
"Hmm? Yes, what is it?" President Foley asked.
"The debate starts in 2 hours. We'll have to be leaving soon." The secretary said.
"Huh?"
"Your debate with Ellis Robertson, sir. You're going on TV to debate him today."
"Oh, right, right. I'm sorry. I was... caught up in something. Right, just... take me to the limo."
The look of seriousness and melancholy on President Foley's face brought a look of confusion and surprise on the secretary's own, never recalling an instance when she had seen him appear in such a state. Having little insight into the president's personal business and less sway in his decisions, the matter is one she can do nothing about; she is only able to escort him to his transport as requested.
Though pressed back on matters of business once again, President Foley's mind is still not off of his friends yet, nor will they be until he can finally resolve the matter.
Danny Phantom has been born again, delivered by the hands of Vlad Masters. Separating his soul from his body in a desperate attempt to give an emotionally lost young man hope once again, Vlad's efforts were repaid by having his own ghost half torn from his body, which Danny Phantom had fused himself with to become a new being.
Mad with power and unable to be stopped, the new being, known at this point as 'Dark Danny', had eliminated his human half, severing all ties to his former self and embracing his new, relentless persona. Reducing the mansion of Vlad Masters into a crater, Dark Danny has left behind a wake of destruction following his creation...
...and, free to continue without opposition, he plans to expand it as far as he possibly can.
As of now, the world is unaware of the new threat to the planet and the danger that could come from it, especially is the case of these unlucky few that become the targets of the newborn. Just as unaware of the new threat upon the world, they currently pass the time to celebrate their lives, making them among the few lucky enough to savor their last living moments on Earth.
The ones in question who take life so easily are a quartet of tightly-knit friends, answering to the names of Dash, Paulina, Kwan, and Star. Often considered the most popular kid in their high school, they believe themselves to be a pantheon of important people, and seek to take the most enjoyment of life without consequence.
Making the location of their party Paulina's house, whose parents were absent on a business trip, the house is kept all to themselves, leaving them able to indulge in all manners of indulgences unfit for growing bodies or minds. Raiding the liquor cabinet of the home, they have already taken to downing much of the contents and intoxicating themselves beyond rational thought.
The alcohol is but another factor to their ignorance to the incoming danger, even as it now looms over the house with a smile and red eyes glowing with intent.
Partying inside the house with loud music, the 4 teenagers continue to waste their youth away through intoxication and blissful ignorance of the rest of the world. They enjoy themselves well, but none in the group are enjoying themselves more than Dash Baxter, celebrating the removal of his enemy, Danny Fenton. He makes his own delight loud and clear to the others, declaring it for the others to hear, whether they want to or not.
And most of them do not.
"Whoo! Yeah! No more Fen-Turd, no more Fen-Turd, no more Fen-Turd! Sing it!" Dash sung.
Well aware of the circumstances regarding the removal of Danny Fenton, the the remaining 3 friends grew uncomfortable over their pack leader's overenthusiastic response to the loss. Effectively celebrating the death of an entire family and the life of its sole survivor led to ruin, no urge to celebrate could be found within the rest.
Trying to provide himself as the voice of reason against his friend's antics, Kwan picked himself up from the couch, trying to speak Dash down.
"Uh, hey, Dash? Don't you think you should take it easy? You've been hitting the bottle really hard, you know." Kwan said.
"I know. It's not every day that the most annoying little shit in your school gets sent away. I'd say that's worth celebrating, don't you think?" Dash asked.
"Yeah, but... Dude, his whole family's dead, and his friends, too. That's... kinda messed up to be happy about it, isn't it?"
"Whatever. Fen-Turd can slash his damn wrists and die for all I care. From here on out, the good times are gonna roll!"
Wishing to place his energy onto other means of recreation, Dash stepped towards Paulina and grabbed her by the arm, preparing to escort her to the nearest bedroom. Not interested in any such intimacy, even for a man loosely considered her boyfriend, Paulina struggled against his grip to be free.
"Hey, Paulina, how about we go into another room and continue the party in private? These losers are starting to drag me down." Dash said.
"No, Dash. I don't wanna." Paulina said.
"C'mon, babe. How often do we get a room to ourselves? We shouldn't waste it. C'mon and let's have some fun."
"Dash, stop, you're drunk."
"That just makes it twice as fun."
As the struggle continued, the affair was observed by the invisible spectator of Dark Danny, gaining an idea on how to take advantage over the situation for his own amusement. Flying into the body of Dash Baxter, he overtook all control of it, putting his own consciousness over Dash's.
Tightening Dash's grip over Paulina's arm, Dark Danny began crushing it his newly-acquired hand, bringing pain to the young woman.
"Ow...! Dash, you're hurting me! Let go!" Paulina shouted.
Rather than comply with her demand, Dark Danny slapped Paulina in the face, sending her falling to the floor. Already growing uncomfortable with the events unfolding before them, Kwan and Star both stood up from their respective seats, opening their eyes widely in shock.
The slap Paulina received left her with a large mark across her face, as well as a small flow of blood coming out of her nose, making her hold up a hand to her face to stop the flow of both the blood and her tears. Her own efforts did little to stop the greater threat at hand, however; still did Dark Danny continue to approach her in the body of Dash Baxter, carrying terrible intent for the girl he once held a crush on.
No longer able to stand by as his friend carried out such violence in a drunken rampage, or so he perceived the event as, Kwan rushed in to put a stop the the madness personally. Wrapping his arms around Dash's body in a bear hug, he began pulling it back to prevent him from continuing his assault on Paulina.
"Stop it, Dash! You're going to far! You're out of control!" Kwan shouted.
Retaliating against Kwan's heroics attempts, Dark Danny reached Dash's hand to his throat and gripped it tightly, holding his would-be captor in the air with a single arm. Watching his best friend respond with not only a show of unforgiving violence, but also inhuman strength, Kwan's choking groans were accompanied by struggles of fear.
The fear came not only from the impossible strength displayed from Dash's body, but also from the unfamiliar voice that it spoke in.
"No. I'm taking control." Dark Danny said.
Then, those same struggles of fear began to increase under the look of his eyes as they began to glow red. Out from the glowing red eyes came forth a pair of blasts of green ectoplasmic energy, landing straight into Kwan's face. Taking in the pure focus of ectoplasmic energy, Kwan screamed as the blasts began to burn through his eyeballs and skin as it moved through to his skull.
Witnessing the violence as a mere showing of adolescent show of power, the supernatural act of the hellfire coming directly from Dash's eyes soon let the two spectators that the man they were under attack from was no longer any mere mortal threat, nor even a human one.
Had Kwan any of his brains left, he, too, would have realized this, but his organ of thought and reason was burned away under the stream of ectoplasm coming from his captor, piercing a hole straight through the other end of his head, and leaving nothing behind of his face but an empty hole.
Kwan is dead.
Ending the immediate but empty threat of Kwan, Dark Danny tossed his body aside, putting his attention back toward Paulina. Still suffering shock from the strike she had received, and now unable to process the inhuman actions that have unfolded before her, she can do nothing against her approaching threat but beg for her life.
"No... Dash... Please... Don't hurt me... Please... I'll do whatever you want, just don't hurt me..." Paulina begged.
Looking up at the present threat of Dash as it now loomed over her, Paulina looked back to it with a forced smile, reaching her hands for the fly of his pants. Gently laying a hand on his thigh, she began to reach for the zipper, hoping that feeding his sexual appetites would ease his anger at last.
"Here... Don't worry... I'll make you feel good... Just don't hurt me... Please... I'll make you feel good..." Paulina begged.
The stimulation of touch against the sensitive anatomy of Dash Baxter began to produce the obvious results of such actions, awakening the necessary organs to consummate the need that was now summoned. Overtaking the body of Dash, Dark Danny is able to feel the emotions and sensations for himself, and, for a moment, he is tempted to allow her to continue.
But having gone through enough trouble to free himself of a human body, he is not interested in experiencing any of the feelings that come from being in one any longer.
Grabbing Paulina by the head, his action leads her to assume that he is simply taking control over what she has begun, but a small passing of time confirms this not to be the case. Gripping his hands tighter over his victim's head, Dark Danny reached his thumbs over her eyes, bringing her panic once again.
Then, he drove his thumbs into her eyes.
Piercing through organ and blood, Dark Danny began pushing through to her brain, eliciting many screams from his victim in the process. Unable to fight back against the terrible abuse she was taking from the person she believed to be Dash, Paulina has no last words to give, and can do nothing but give out screams as she dies.
Soon, she has no more screams left to give, and her body falls limp with no more intent to move.
Paulina is dead.
Concluding his business with his two victims, Dark Danny exited the body of Dash Baxter, allowing him to see the carnage that has come to the place where he had planned only to find joy. Coming to his senses once again, he stood before the dead bodies of Kwan and Paulina, and the surviving Star, cowering back from him with pure terror spread across her face.
She believes that Dash was the one who has perpetrated such heinous acts, but Dash himself cannot do the same, not even when looking down at his own hands, coated in the blood and brain matter of Paulina. Trying to reach out to Star for a plea of help, Star only further cowered away from the apparent murderer.
"NO! GET AWAY FROM ME! YOU KILLED THEM! YOU KILLED THEM!" Star shouted.
"No! It wasn't me! I didn't do it! I- I blacked out, I wasn't there, I-!" Dash stammered.
Interrupting the small argument between the two was Dark Danny, now making himself visible in the room. Floating over the two, his very presence put their argument to a stop, putting all other issues on their minds to the side. They know by the simple logo on his chest that he was Danny Phantom...
...but seeing the drastic change in his appearance, watching him gracefully step to the ground, they know something about him is very different, and very wrong.
"D-Danny Phantom? Oh, thank god you're here, man! Something happened! I think a ghost took over my body and made me... Oh, god... made me kill Paulina and Kwan! You gotta believe me!" Dash said.
"Oh, don't worry, I believe you. I'm the one who made you do it." Dark Danny said.
Not expecting that answer to come from the mouth of a man supposed to be a superhero, much less his own personal favorite, Dash looked upon Dark Danny with complete and utter horror and disbelief, as did Star. Needing to have his sense of reality confirmed once again, he pleaded for his hero to confirm that his words were not the actual truth.
"No... That's not true... You wouldn't do that! You wouldn't!" Dash said.
"Would I?" Dark Danny asked.
"No! You would't! You're Danny Phantom! You're the best hero of them all! You're my hero!"
"And do you know who else I am?"
Changing the particles of his body, Dark Danny allowed his form to resemble that of his old self one time more, showing himself as the recently deceased Danny Fenton. Seeing the change come so easily and the appearance between each Danny back and forth, the truth at last became obvious to him.
"Fenton? You?! You're Danny Phantom?!" Dash asked.
"You call yourself my biggest fan, and you've never figured it out? Danny Phantom? Danny Fenton? The boy you see every day at school, pick on relentlessly and torture without a care in the world, also your own hero. How's it feel to know they're both one and the same?" Dark Danny asked.
Recalling the many times he had bullied the poor Danny Fenton, even celebrating the death of his family, regret, shame, and humiliation began to wash over Dash.
"But... I had no idea. I didn't know it was you." Dash said.
"Of course not. You never gave any thoughts with the head on your shoulders. You did all your thinking with this one." Dark Danny said.
Reaching for Dash's crotch, Dark Danny gripped the still-hard organ in it tight, squeezing it with enough force to bring a painful yell from Dash's mouth.
Moving his hand back with supernatural speed and force, he ripped the entire organ off his body, taking his undergarments with it. Agonizingly deprived of his most sensitive and personal organ with a single rip, Dash's yells turned to screams and screeches, barely able to hold his composure under the pain.
Collecting himself for one moment, Dash looked up to Dark Danny to see his bloody underwear held up, containing the severed body part inside. He looked back to Dash with a smile of anticipation, as if eager to fulfill an act of revenge that he had been waiting an eternity for.
"Remember what you did last Halloween? How you made me eat your underwear in front of the entire school? How I was forced to suffer that humiliation and let it fester in my stomach for days?" Dark Danny asked.
"N-No... Please... I'm sorry... I'm so sorry..." Dash begged.
Ignoring the desperate pleas from his victim, Dark Danny grabbed Dash by the head and shoved the entirety of his undergarments inside, forcing him to endure the same punishment he had once endured, made worse by being forced to swallow his own sexual organ.
Clamping his mouth shut and tilting his head back, Dark Danny began pushing against it, forcing Dash to consume the underwear.
"Now swallow. Like a good little boy." Dark Danny said.
Strong and well-built as Dash's body was, being a high school football quarterback, it was not able to stand up against the might of a undead spirit nor its unrelenting vengeance. Pushing down on his head and neck, Dark Danny began to feel bones crack under the force he exerted on it, louder than the muffled screams that Dash gave out during his last moments.
Succumbing to the force it was taking, Dash's head had retreated back into his body, pushing through his shoulders and caving into its own neck. Breaking his own spinal cord in the process was enough to kill him, but to rearrange his organs with his own head shoved in it was what ensured it.
Dash is dead.
Finishing off the majority of his tormentors during his days of life, Dark Danny turned to the cowering and fearful Star; the terrified girl having made no attempts to move from her current location, and any attempts to do so having no effect. Preparing to finish off the last of Dash's clique, Dark Danny stepped over to her to complete his mission.
Unlike the past 3 victims he chose to approach with vigilance and made no attempt at subtlety, he walked to Star with a gentle step, and made no immediate attempts to harm her. Instead, he laid a gentle hand upon her face, lightly stroking her cheek as he brushed at her hair.
Star further turned away out of fear of what would follow, but Dark Danny calmed her with shushes and gentle whispers, attempting to calm her nerves. With no choice but to surrender to the new and unexpected display of kindness, Star began to look back to him, starting to crack a nervous smile under the pressure to do so.
"Shh, shh, that's it. That's a good girl." Dark Danny said.
"Danny... Please don't kill me... You know me... You know who I am..." Star said.
"Of course I know who you are. You're a bag of flesh and bones with no meaning behind it. You're a pathetic final draft of evolution that brought us nothing but more problems than you solve. Do you know who I am?"
Returning to fear with the unsettling speech given by Dark Danny, Star further descended into terror as he leaned in for one final whisper.
"I'm a superhero." Dark Danny whispered.
Grabbing hold of Star, Dark Danny threw her into the air, launching her straight through the roof of the house before she could react to the sudden motion.
Shooting straight through the roof of the house, the impact itself miraculously did not kill her, though it did leave her severely wounded with scraps of wood all over her face and body. The beginning of her troubles, however, were only beginning with the shrapnel embedded in her body.
Flying too fast for her body to withstand, the speed at which she flew led her to set on fire; the exit from the atmosphere of the Earth too much for human skin to withstand. Burning as she flew through the air, she could no longer hear her own screams, for they were drowned out by the roaring flames all over her body and the loud whooshing of air as she soared straight into the sky.
Soon, the wind and the flames both came to a stop; the former from her speed beginning to reduce, and the latter from oxygen in the air beginning to deplete with her altitude. Surviving the affair to reach the thermosphere of Earth, her troubles would be coming and end at last.
Reaching part of the atmosphere where oxygen is almost nonexistent, the lack of air is not the greatest threat she faces, but the temperature of the sky is what threatens her now. Set at temperatures that rival Siberia and grow even colder than that, her body, having most of its clothing burned off, stood no chance against the cold.
Freezing almost instantly in the thermosphere, she freezes even quicker as she begins to fly past that, reaching into space within no time. No longer present in any area that contained any livable conditions for a human being, Star froze completely solid, and all manner of air was gone from her lungs.
Being burned and subsequently cooled at polarizingly high temperatures within a short timespan, her body could no longer even hold itself together. Cracking under the pressure of rapid temperature changes, her frozen body cracked and split into pieces, flying about space without a parent to mourn over it.
Star is dead.
Glancing back at his first act of violence following his rebirth, Demon Phantom moved himself back to the present, seeing to the current matters left behind by his most recent of his many acts of violence. With all the Fentons dead and out of his way, Demon Phantom stepped back into the inside of Fenton City, seeing about the task of completing his master plan of ending all life on Earth.
Looking back on the finished battlefield, he watched all 4 of his horsemen lay in pathetic defeat on the floor, none having stood any chance against the combined might of the Fenton family. The outcome is not one that he had not expected, but the sight of his soldiers defeated gives him disappointment nonetheless.
Recovering from their defeat at last, the 4 ghosts finally managed to get themselves up from the floor, with all those defeated just barely beginning to comprehend what happened to each of them. Used to small encounters with Danny Phantom alone that led them trapped inside a Fenton Thermos and subsequently returned to the Ghost Zone, a defeat of this degree is a new experience for them all.
Standing patiently, Demon Phantom waited for them to recover once more, waiting to work out the next phase of his plan.
"Damn... Did I miss the good stuff?" Ember asked.
"Not at all. Their attempts to fight me were less effective against me than your own attempts were against them. Now that the Fentons are out of my way, we begin the primary mission. Without them to stop me, we may put an end to life on Earth at last." Demon Phantom said.
"You know, a simple 'thank you' would suffice for all that we've done so far, big guy."
The last of the ghosts to recover from their defeat is Vlad Plasmius, rising to his immaterial feet far slower than the rest, having endured the greatest beating compared to the rest. Unconscious for the remainder of the fight, he had expected to be caught in the hold of the Fentons, left at their mercy, but what he had recieved instead was far different, and far less what he had expected.
What he saw when he first rose were indeed the Fentons, but no longer were they alive, seeing instead their dead bodies lying on the ground, with some even in pieces. Vlad found a bittersweet victory in the sight, his arch-rivals finally removed from his life, regretting only that he never had the pleasure to carry out the deed himself.
However, as he took this small comfort from the carnage, a new thought had quickly brought down the delight he felt, taken his joy away just as quickly as it came. Looking among the bodies, he searched for one particular body to confirm whether the thought was unfounded or not.
Finding the body among the rest, his disposition turned from one of complete satisfaction to completely devastation. The body that made him lose all happiness in that moment was, of course, the body of Maddie Fenton, the one and only woman that Vlad had ever had eyes for, and the only goal he sought for himself when his own quest for revenge was over.
Barely able to comprehend the loss, Vlad immediately rushed towards Maddie's body, holding it tightly and crying over it, begging in vain for her to wake up.
"No, come on... Wake up, Maddie... Please wake up! PLEASE WAKE UP!" Vlad shouted.
"You're wasting your time, Vlad. She's dead. I killed her." Demon Phantom said.
Upon hearing the bad news of Maddie's ultimate fate, Vlad immediately rushed to Demon Phantom and mercilessly threw his fists towards him, hoping to avenge his lost love. Demon Phantom, showing incredible tolerance towards Vlad and his outburst of anger, did nothing to fight back, instead letting him vent his frustrations.
"YOU LYING SON OF A BITCH! THIS WASN'T PART OF THE DEAL! THIS WAS NOT PART OF THE DEAL! YOU SAID NOTHING ABOUT KILLING MADDIE!" Vlad shouted.
Allowing Vlad to work through his enraged reaction, Demon Phantom soon found himself no longer having any patience, growing bored with the emotional response of anger unleashed on him. Putting a stop to the outburst, he grabbed Vlad's fists, instantly putting him to a stop as the feat of great strength prevented him from moving.
At the mercy of Demon Phantom and unable to fight back any longer, Vlad's expression of rage turned to fear, left with no option but to listen to his captor.
"I don't recall us making a deal stating that she had to live. However, if you truly wish for this one to be yours, I promise you, when my plan is complete and I live both living and dead, you may have Maddie Fenton as your wife, either living or dead, depending on your preference. For now, however, if you do not cooperate and continue our deal, you may never have a chance to see her again, or anything else. I might need you for my plans, but do not mistake my needs for my tolerance. If I do not find any tolerance for your antics any longer, I will send you to oblivion myself. Do we understand each other?" Demon Phantom asked.
After hearing Demon Phantom's ultimatum, Vlad put his emotions aside in favor of logic and survival tactics, stopping his attack on the apparation. Retaining his loyalty under the promise that he could have Maddie again, Vlad calmed himself down and made no more attempts to fight back.
"Okay. We'll play it your way for now, but when this is over, I expect Maddie to be living once again. If she isn't, you and I will settle things more personally." Vlad said.
Demon Phantom gave a chuckle and smile at Vlad's response, setting back down as he took amusement in the empty threat.
"Whatever you say, Vlad. Just remember that children who don't behave don't get any toys. Besides, I really don't understand why you're so mad. I only killed my own mother. It's not like I killed yours." Demon Phantom said.
Leaving Vlad to fester in anger at the final comment said to him, Demon Phantom moved on to another one of his subordinates, coming to the split duo of Skulker and Technus. Having previously combined the two into a fusion of a single being named SkulkTech, yet another sign of disappointment came with their separation, already looking at their defeated states with disdain.
"Not hours ago, I put you two together, and you already split into two again. Is this your idea of teamwork?" Demon Phantom asked.
"Hey, don't look at me, boss. This guy was way too nerdy for me to deal with." Skulker said.
"I was too much to deal with? You're a stupid brute, and you haven't gotten a logical bone in your body! No wonder you died when you did!"
"You little-!"
Before either of the two ghosts could attack, Demon Phantom grabbed at the two ghosts and held them separate from one another, keeping them at a distance to prevent the two from fighting once again. Hanging loose in the hands of their new master, Skulker and Technus laid limp and unwilling to fight, submitting to his will.
"That's enough. I would've found it very inconvenient if you two had separated under different circumstances, but it just so happens that I only need one of you at the moment, and it happens to be the smarter one." Demon Phantom said.
Releasing the two ghosts, he turned his attention to Technus, regarding his current needs for the ghost.
"Now, I was under the impression that Fenton Works would be much the same as I last remember it, but it looks like things have changed quite drastically around here since I've been gone. This entire new Fenton Works looks to be almost fully computerized, so I need you to go in and give us a history lesson over what's happened over the last 10 years." Demon Phantom said.
"You mean, I get to play with some new technology for the first time in years? It'll be my absolute pleasure." Technus said.
Flying into the nearest computer in the room, Technus entered the neurological mainframe of Fenton City, seeking out the main controls for the entire complex. Delved into a manner of cyberspace completely new to him, seeing the entire system from the inside was nothing short of a visual treat to the genius mind of Technus, looking on the entire network as an artist would gaze upon a painting.
"Oh, wow... The system is running off something completely different... I had no idea that data could be used that way... It's like I just found a new language. These lines of code almost look like they're... alive." Technus said.
Stumbling across this brave new world in technology, Technus' discoveries came to a pause when he soon became surrounded by multiple firewalls, surrounding him in antiviral software, trapping and cornering him like prey. Hearing a voice speak to him out of the network of the computer, he soon learned that he was not the only intelligent being inside the system, and something was indeed alive inside.
"Attention. This is a private computer mainframe owned by Fenton Works. You are in violation of multiple hacking laws." M.I.S.T.E.R. said.
"Oh, artificial intelligence, huh? Very interesting. This shouldn't be a problem." Technus said.
Using his own mastery over all manner of technology, Techus broke down the firewalls surrounding him, flying past the small frame of memory that he was once trapped inside. Moving out into the vast space of the computer mainframe, he sought out the central nervous system of Fenton City, hoping to locate whatever had been the main controls of the entire fortress.
Coming into contact with firewalls and other antiviral programs that sought him out, Technus paid little mind to the threats coming his way, blasting them away with ectoplasmic shots fired from his hands. Flying past more defense mechanisms coming his way, he continued his search for the main controls of the computer system.
Soon enough, he found what he sought out, locating a motherboard containing the main brain of M.I.S.T.E.R. and all his thought processes. Diving into the motherboard, he began pulling up the code within, grabbing pieces and rearranging them to achieve the desired outcome he sought.
"A '1' here... a '0' there... an '.exe' over here... format that drive... rewrite that one... clear cookies... empty the recycle bucket..." Technus mumbled.
After finishing his rearranging of the code, all manners of defense came to a complete stop, no longer recognizing Technus as a threat. Standing down from all attempts to attack the invader, the defense programs came to a stop, allowing Technus to escape scott-free.
Returning into the main hangar, Technus rejoined the other ghosts, celebrating his success in overtaking the computer systems.
"Well? What did you find?" Demon Phantom asked.
"An extremely advanced A.I. system, but nothing that I couldn't turn to my advantage. This entire city is run by a program called M.I.S.T.E.R.: Mass Information Sentient Terminal and Ectomorphic Registry. It does everything from coffee to running maintenance and assistant robots, and anything else you can name off. Basically, though this thing, we now have complete access to all of Fenton Works." Technus said.
"That's very nice. Now, what did you find out about the rest of this world?"
"Well, why don't you just ask M.I.S.T.E.R.? I did say it does everything. I figured it could give you whatever you needed out of it."
Finding slight impression in the unorthodox resolution to the task set before him, Demon Phantom gave a slight nod of approval to the chosen method to the task. Stepping up to the nearest computer monitor, he looked up to it and spoke a command, repeating his request for information to the machine.
"M.I.S.T.E.R., give me all information on Danny Fenton, starting from after taking the Career Aptitude Test in high school." Demon Phantom said.
"As you wish, sir." M.I.S.T.E.R. said.