Vlad sighed heavily, "I am really worried...I am having a bad feeling that Sally is in a situation where we couldn't even get her...", rubbing his eyes that is bloodshot...", and Luna rubbed his shoulder, "We'll find her, Dracula. Her and the kid...we all know her. She'd do anything to stay safe for the sake of the kid...Now you look horrible. Go upstairs and rest. Sunrise will be here in a couple of hours.".
Vlad looked ready to protest, and Dusk reassured him, "We will keep looking, Dracula. The campus will be awake after sunrise if not later, and we will ask everyone we could find...I will find Eric as well...He knows the campus far more than we do. He will be disappointed that we can't do the tour, but he will understand why, I just know it.".
"Thanks...", Vlad sighed as he took a deep breath and started to walk back upstairs into the back. "Maybe you should find Eric now, I know it's a bad hour but...", Luna suggested as Dusk sighed.
"Not a bad thought, but I have no idea where he could be right now... I didn't exactly get his room number.", Dusk said with a shake of her head.
Luna replied, "Didn't you say that he works in the laboratory for his game?", and Dusk exhaled, "Yeah, he does...Look, I will get to the laboratory at sunrise, not a moment earlier...I doubt he actually works all night as he's human.".
"Good point. I will talk to security again.", Luna said, and Dusk nodded, "Then it's a plan. It's better than nothing...I don't know about you, but I better catch some sleep while I can. We can't help finding Thorn if we're sleep deprived.".
"Yeah, we obviously can't keep going like him.", Luna pointed back up towards Vlad's direction as the girls yawned and headed to bed; but neither of them slept peacefully.
By the time sunrise came, Thorn succeeded in finding the Scooby Snax, which was apparently hidden in a pterodactyl nest, helping a trapped baby pterodactyl get free with magic, and successfully managed to survive underwater in the next level, and now she's stuck in one of the hardest levels she'd imagine, being miniature in a backyard world, discovering with worry that she is already 7 months along...
She left proof that she's alive in the past levels in case if someone, hopefully the girls and Vlad, is searching for her.
In the real world, Dusk found the building of the laboratory, and headed inside, having left a note for Vlad, informing him of the morning plan so far, with Luna to the head security office.
"Look, I don't care what's going on around here, we've got a missing person and I want to know if you have any sign of her on any of your cameras!", Luna argued with one of the guards at his desk.
The guard sighed deeply, "Look, I feel for you, ma'am...I suppose I'd have a minute to look, okay, if that makes you happy?".
"Yes, very much so! Jeez, what could be going on in here that you guys think a missing girl is less of a priority?", Luna asked in a huff. "You wouldn't believe me even if I told you.", the guard sighed as he went over to some of the monitors.
Luna raised an eyebrow, "Try me.", and the guard replied, "Alright. Laugh if you want to...Apparently, there is a phantom virus.".
"Phantom virus?", Luna asked as the guard nodded. "Yeah, something happened in the lab and now there is this whole electrical monster running around, caused some serious damage, hurt one of the students.", the guard explained.
Luna widened her eyes, "Oh, that's bad. I hope it wasn't Dusk's man.", unknowing that she's wrong. Elsewhere, approaching the doors of the lab, Dusk knocked on the right door, hearing a voice, "I'll get it, boys, keep working.".
A few moments later, the door opened to reveal Professor Kaufman, "Oh, hello, what can I do for you?", and Dusk smiles politely, "I'm Dusk of the Hex Girls. Eric invited me, but there's something else I have to tell him about as I couldn't do the tour.", with a deep sigh.
Kaufman gave one of his own, "I'm sorry, young lady, but I'm afraid that Eric himself is a bit indisposed at the moment, we... we've suffered an accident.".
Dusk gasps in concern, "Is Eric okay?!", and Eric's voice was heard, "Professor, let her in, please!".
Kaufman then realized that the spark he saw yesterday was the light of love in Eric's eyes, and moved to the side, "Come in, Miss Dusk.".
Dusk walked in where she saw that Eric's arm was fairly screwed up there. "Eric...", she whispered. "Relax, it's way worse than it looks, I promise you.", Eric gave a small chuckle.
Dusk came closer, looking at Eric's arm before looking up at Eric, "What happened?", and Eric exhaled, "You probably believe in a lot of stuff since you are a goth, Abby, but what happened last night, I am still a bit shocked about it...Apparently, somehow, here, out of nowhere with the laser beam, appeared a phantom virus, all sharp and glowing blue...It made the landline phone come alive...the wires caught my arm...".
"Oh, my god...A phantom virus...So, that's why security was being so secretive about...Are you okay? Is it broken?", Dusk asked in concern, and Eric shook his head, "No, not broken, but really bruised up...And painfully sore...", with a sigh.
Dusk replied, "Wait, you said it happened last night?", and Eric nodded, "Yeah. It disappeared into the darkness, running away after the professor stunned it with a magnet. Why do you ask?".
"Because if this phantom virus is able to make things come alive and hurt people like this.", Dusk replied with a gesture to Eric's arm, "Then it could be behind Thorn's disappearance...", with a anxious expression.
"Wait, your pregnant sister?", Eric asked in concern as he saw the other girls at the bus, having not been introduced properly, but from the description of the girls she talked about, he remembered the girl with the dark red hair and the bat necklace.
"Yeah... she suddenly vanished last night... and if what you're saying... there's got to be a connection for sure.", Dusk said as Eric nodded.
"Perhaps... but I have no idea what that... thing... would even want with her.", Eric winced in pain once more as his arm hurt.
Dusk exhaled, "If security had been amped all night, the phantom virus is still in the building, or somewhere else...", with an anxious chewing bite to her lip as she looked up, racking her mind before noticing Professor Kaufman, and then a familiar face, but one she's not fond of...
She hissed angrily, "You!", glaring at Bill, hearing Eric's confused, concerned inquiry, "Abby, what is it?".
"This is the same asshole that wouldn't back off from Thorn a few days ago!", Dusk shouted as Bill got looks from the other two. "What did you do with her!?".
"Bill, care to explain?", Kaufman asked. "Yeah, I tried putting the moves that girl the other day and wasn't taking no for an answer... I backed off eventually.", Bill replied with a snort and nod.
"Yeah, when Thorn's love threatened to smash your teeth in.", Dusk scoffed. "Look, I was with them all night, so if you're gonna accuse me with something, you better have some proof!", Bill glared back at her.
Dusk glared at him as Eric tried to calm her down, "Abby, he's right...Bill was with us the whole night, here, in the professor's office, and the cafeteria for breakfast.", and Dusk exhaled, "Fine, but I still don't trust you, you jerk. If you did something to Thorn, especially when she's expecting, I won't stop Thorn's boyfriend from pummeling you...He had been searching for her all night! He's sleeping it off this morning as he looked horrible!".
The professor replied, "Either way, Miss Dusk, we can't certainly do anything until there's proof, and perhaps once we get the phantom virus back here to cyberspace, to threaten deleting it forever, it would have information about your sister...".
Dusk exhaled, "You have a point, professor. I'll call Luna, and tell her to get Mathias, Thorn's boyfriend...We need all the backup we can get, to stop this phantom virus and get my sister back.", thinking that if Luna drives the bus to the shadows of the science building here, it could be safe for Vlad to come in.
The two walked away, leaving Dusk and Eric alone for a minute. "I'm sorry about Bill, he's gotten a bit of a reputation as a lady-killer. I swear that he's not had the same girlfriend for more than a semester.".
Dusk nodded, "Oh, I got that vibe off him the moment I laid eyes on him, trying to charm and flirt with Thorn.", with a huff. Eric looked at her, "Bill is a hard worker, though. He has been dedicated to the lab, working on inventions with the professor, and is eager to show off his latest stuff for the science fair competition including his baseball game he had been working on for the whole year.".
"I trust you, Eric, but I don't trust him. I'm sorry to be brutally honest as he seems to be a good friend of yours.", Dusk replied, and Eric replied, "Look at this way, you don't have to see him again once we get this phantom virus and have your sister back...He's going to graduate anyway, having been here two years longer than me...I still got two years left after term ends...".
Dusk smiled softly, "You have a very good point there. And as for those future years, I'll be always calling you, and visiting you when a gig comes around here, Eric.", and Eric smiles warmly at her, "I hope so...Now, go call your other sister and all. You're right about having backup. This phantom virus could be anywhere in this building.".
Grateful for Eric's support, Dusk goes calling Luna, and after hearing the gist of the news, Luna went from the security office to the bus, waking Vlad up as she drove the bus to a spot where there's plenty of shadow by the science building.
"So, what exactly did you find out?", Vlad asked as he called out from the back. "Mostly some sort of electrical computer monster running around the building. Might have had something to do with Thorn.", Luna explained.
Vlad replied, "Dusk said that?", and Luna called back, "Yeah!", and Vlad exhaled, hoping that Dusk is right about this...He hadn't slept peacefully either, waking up every 30 minutes to listen for Thorn and the child's heartbeats, but nothing...
Luna arrived in the spot, with shadows covering the bus, "Okay, Drac, do your thing! Shadows are covering the bus, but not all!", and Vlad nodded, flickering his hand, and all the windows' blinds and shades are down, stopping any dim sunlight from coming through the shadows of the trees and building, and he walked down the bus hallway, exhaling as Luna turned off the engine, and got out of the driver's seat, "Okay, let me go first.".
Vlad nodded, and Luna exited the bus, and yep, the shadows of the building and the overlook ridge is touching her, and she replied, "Okay, all good! Come on, Mathias.", and Vlad walked out of the bus, humanely fast as he could, with Luna locking up the door, following Vlad as he smelled Dusk's scent subtly, walking into the building.
"Just be careful with some of the windows there, alright... don't exactly want to add to their problems with your condition after all.", Luna said as Vlad chuckled, "Yeah, they already have plenty to worry about...".
Luna nodded, and with subtle gestures, and checking the guides of the signs, they made it up to the laboratory, and Vlad growled slightly under his breath as he can smell the scent of that jerk that attempted to steal Thorn by wooing her.
He took a deep breath as he saw Dusk, waving and letting them in, and he glanced around, seeing the professor, Eric, recognizing him by his scent that wafted on Dusk yesterday, and narrowed his eyes as he recognized Bill.
Bill obviously was a bit unnerved to see him, especially the stare he was given. Vlad had a decent bet mentally that Bill was somehow responsible in some way, but obviously didn't have any sort of proof. Right now, accusations wouldn't help Thorn in the slightest.
Dusk smiled to see Vlad, "Hey, Mathias. You're looking better.", and Vlad exhaled, "Thank you, Dusk, I managed to catch some sleep, but nothing will stop me from fighting my body to search for Thorn.".
Luna nodded, "Yeah, so, where is this phantom virus?", and Kaufman replied, "Our best guess is that it would be wandering in the basement as it's dark, and it's the last place anyone could think of.".
Eric nodded, "Yeah, it slinked into the darkness upon being stunned momentarily by a magnet.", and Vlad blinked in curiosity, "Why could a magnet stun it?".
Kaufman replied, "I believe since the phantom virus came from cyberspace, it's made of electrons which magnets defy as electrons are positive like magnets, and so, he can be defeated momentarily.".
Dusk replied, "Shall we?", giving magnets to Luna and Vlad, "If we cover the building including the basement, we could find the phantom virus.".
"If that thing doesn't tear right through us...", Bill said as the group suddenly felt a bit more apprehensive. Not Vlad, of course, some simple rogue virus running around wasn't going to stop him if it meant finding Thorn.
Vlad replied, "We'll just be smarter, that's all.", with a firm nod, and they can sense the determination in his voice, and the air became a bit more, not tense, but like full of anticipation, and the group headed out, splitting up.
After an hour or so, there was a chaotic chase, and out of all the confusion, the virus was found, and then not found, and before Vlad knew it, he and the girls saw a green-ish blue light coming at them, and then nothing but black.
It was a few moments before Vlad awoke once again, his eyes quickly trying to adjust to what was around before he quickly realized that he wasn't in the lab anymore.
Dusk blinked as she adjusted along with Luna, and then gasped as the stars look bigger than usual, and Luna spoke, "I think we're not in Columbus anymore.".
"No...We're in the game...Somebody beamed us in...", Dusk replied as she was the only one who got the full details from Eric about this game while Luna was driving the bus, bringing Vlad.
Vlad replied, "So, this is the moon...", looking down at his astronaut suit as he listened to the slight breeze before gasping when he heard the ever so faint sound of Thorn's heartbeat and their child's heartbeat, having the unconscious habit to do so.
Luna asked in concern, "Mathias?", having a feeling that if they're in the game, the rest of the group must be watching, and Vlad exhaled, "I'm more than positive that the virus or somebody got Thorn into the game...It's the only explanation why I couldn't find her anywhere.".
"Is she here? Right now?", Dusk asked with almost excitement as he shook his head. "No... not right now... but, I think she was here at one point...", Vlad explained.
Luna replied, "If we're actually in the game, and this is a copy of the moon, so, this must be the first level.", and Dusk nods, "That's right...With each level, we have to go get the Scooby Snax which gets us out of the levels as it's the goal.".
"Is that it over there?", Vlad pointed over there, and they saw the tent, flagpole, and the box of Scooby Snax in the near distance. Dusk grinned, "That's it! And we got a ride too.", gesturing to the moon rover before hearing the hissing and cackling sounds of somebody, along with a cackling laugh.
They looked back to see the same Martians Thorn faced, along with the phantom virus. The phantom virus grinned, "Now you're in my home territory! Let's play ball!", creating glowing balls and threw them at the group who shouted, dodging the balls, with Luna crying out, "Let's get out of here, go to the moon rover!".
"Don't need to tell me twice!", Dusk shouted as the group moved as fast as possible as the virus threw electrical balls that nearly just scrapped by them.
Vlad was unused to the strange feeling of being weightless, almost flying without doing it in his bat form, but he managed, and got into the moon rover as Luna grabbed the key and turned it on, and the moon rover sped off as they saw the Martians coming towards them in their misshaped moon rover, with the virus hoping into it, throwing lightning and balls continuously at them, increasing the danger.
They dodged as Luna drove, with Dusk shouting, "Faster!", and Luna shifted the gears, going even faster as Vlad searched in the moon rover, grabbing tools and such, throwing them back at the Martians to slow them down.
They made it to the flagpole, with Vlad jumping off the moon rover, and landing in a slide, scooping the Scooby Snax box up, "Got it!", before shouting in surprise as he saw the box vanish, and then his gloves, and he saw the transparent green cubes, seeing black as he saw the moon disappear before him, feeling things change around him, not seeing that the girls followed him as well.