A/N: truephan here! Hello, everyone and thanks for tuning in! And thanks for all your wonderful support and reviews. We just eat them up, and believe me, coming from a gal who loves chocolate, that says a lot! But let's get right to it, OK? Hope you enjoy!
Pearl: Alright! Time for some more Danny and Vlad interaction and banter! I hope you guys like it! And thanks for all your reviews from last chapter! They rocked! Also, remember to sign in and enable you PM, so we can reply to you. Still, we want to thank you all, so a public thanks to Lostcause331, Amazing, and Desiree Phantom!
Well! See ya at the bottom!
Disclaimer: We do not own Danny Phantom
Chapter 30: Coming to Terms, Part Two
Danny frowned in apprehension and reflexively slowed his flying speed as soon as he saw Vlad's mansion finally come into view. It had been two days since they had been able to escape from the Observant's realm, and he hadn't seen or heard from the man since.
Danny was uncertain on how to feel. Part of him vividly remembered how well Vlad and him had managed to pull together and make it through that ordeal. But another part of him reminded him that that hadn't really changed a lot of things between them. They had come together out of necessity—out of survival. It had been nothing more… right?
And yet, Danny now was unsure of how to act towards Vlad after that—or how the guy was going to act towards him. Should he just pretend like those past days at the Realm Beyond Time never happened?
Danny sighed and muttered to himself, "I guess I'll find out soon enough…"
Still, as he soared onward, Danny rattled his brain for some kind of idea on just what he was going to say to the man. Scene after scene and conversation after conversation possibilities whirled in his head. But he couldn't decide on just how to begin.
Of course, when Danny last saw Plasmius, the man's condition wasn't exactly the most flattering for anyone, much less for so arrogant a man as Vlad. Still, it might be helpful if the older hybrid would be at least coherent if the boy had already come this far to talk to him.
The teen then muttered to himself, "He has to have recovered by now. He has all those crazy ghost plants, some of which I don't even want to imagine what they do; and Skulker must have been able to get him patched up. And, of course, that creepy curse has been lifted, so he shouldn't feel or look like he just got off a barbeque spit…I'm sure I'll find him a receptive mood…" But then thinking about how their 'typical' conversations usually went when the man was well, he added with a groan, "…or not."
Finally, seeing that no reporters were snooping around, Danny landed at the front door of Vlad's mansion. But then suddenly, he hesitated. He now really wasn't sure about this. Not only that, he didn't feel…right…He noticed that when he turned ghost this last time, his central core throbbed in pain even more. And as he continued to remain in his ghost form, it was hurting a bit more. What was wrong with him? But then, his mind shifted gears back to why he was here. He sighed in resignation mixed with determination. Too much was at stake; so he had to gather the guts to ring the doorbell all the same.
However, before he could even touch the doorbell, a red robotic eyeball stuck on the end of a long slender metal cable jutted out from nowhere and shoved itself right to his eye level, just stopping short of hitting him.
Danny stifled a gasp even as he recoiled a bit from the mechanical one-eyed snake's near collision. That thing had certainly not been here the last time he had been here! Nevertheless, he nervously waited.
The robotic orb's red, almost flaming, glare looked the boy up and down, snaking all around him as if it were inspecting him, which, really, it was. Without moving a muscle, Danny's eyes glanced anxiously downward as the probe continued in its task, making sure that it wasn't going to do something like….
But all of the sudden, the mechanical eye flared once more and yanked itself violently away from the young hybrid before returning to who-knows-where. This time, Danny jolted and gasped at the probe's actions and because he was still apprehensive about even being here, his mind went blank. He groaned as he desperately tried to retrieve that opening line upon which he had decided before he would go into full-blown panic as his mind suddenly reminded him he was willingly at his arch-enemy's house!
Just then, the door lock clicked and the door silently swung ajar on its hinges.
Now he was doomed!
The young hybrid gulped as he stared at the open door. But then, he growled, irritated with himself for being so worried. "C'mon, Fenton!" he mentally chided himself. "I mean, this is Vlad, not Iluzisto! This can't be that hard! The fruit loop isn't going to just start blasting me right now, especially when it's only two days after all that stuff we went through. I'm sure he would at least wait awhile before going back the way he was…"
"Uh, at least I hope so..." he then mumbled out loud.
He pushed open the door with more grit and entered the foyer. He quickly scanned the area before transforming back into his human form. He suddenly noticed that his central core felt better when he did that. Still, he continued walking forward a little ways, before he called out, "Vlad?"
There was no answer and now a little annoyed about that, he walked further into the mansion and yelled, "Hey! I know you know it's me! Your lame new bug-eyed snake of a probe has probably given you way too much information about me that I especially don't want to know!"
Still, there was no answer.
"Darn it, Vlad, this is not funny!" he thought as he continued to scan up and down and all around while continuing to walk even further into the mansion. Then he stopped, and frowned. Of course, he didn't know where the heck he was going!
Now he was getting steamed. The man must know he was here; otherwise, why did he open the door? He yelled out to the empty space once more, "Okay, cheesehead, forget it! I can take the hint that you don't want to talk, even though I don't know why you even let me in, then! And really, I don't have time to play any of your stupid games!"
He turned around and started to walk back to the entrance before yelling out to the ceiling again, "Okay, I'm going now!"
Danny marched his way back to the entrance, now deeply irritated. Seriously? After everything the guy couldn't even take a moment to talk to him, especially after he had let him in? What a jerk! He didn't get it…What had he been thinking? It was definitely way too soon since they were last in each other's company. And now he was beginning to wish that he had gone to help the others free the Observants first. Heck, even facing Iluzisto now somehow felt more appealing than facing the fruitloop again… Danny growled. Then again, one hybrid fruitloop here or one illusionist fruitloop there was just the same as the other…except that he had thought the older hybrid might have been marginally better to deal with since Vlad hadn't mastered all the visual tricks yet. Well, now that he thought about it, apparently not, since the fruit loop had mastered the art of being a heartless jerk!
But just as soon as he thought that, an icy puff of blue mist escaped from his mouth. Instantly knowing that it wasn't Plasmius who triggered his ghost sense, he reflexively morphed into Phantom. A sudden streak of pain jolted his central core when he did, but he had no time to deal with it. Concentrating even harder, he charged up two energy orbs from his hands in the same instant.
But not even a moment later, Danny was encased in a red ectoplasmic net that had shot out of nowhere. A red energy beam instantly pulsed through it, sending jolts of ectoplasmic energy into the young hybrid. He screamed in pain as his entire body quivered under the force. His head spinning and his body smoking from the assault, the boy sat momentarily helpless in his makeshift cage.
And just then, he heard a smug—and familiar—laugh as Skulker rematerialized in front of him. "My employer did not invite you in, whelp. I did!"
"Skulker! Are you for real?" Danny hissed, now that his anger at seeing the Ghost Hunter had cleared his head; and yet, the teen felt another throb of pain in his core and his body weaken a bit afterwards. Still, the teen was now fuming. Of course the hunter couldn't give him a break even after he helped his friends and sister rescue him! It seemed that, like Vlad, Skulker didn't care in the least what happened and was just going to pretend like it never did. Well, fine! He could do that, too!
"Do not tell me you thought anything changed because of your little adventure with my employer and my own with your helpers?" Skulker asked before chuckling.
Danny's eyes narrowed to hide the hurt he felt inside and instead demanded, "What are you doing here?"
"Did Iluzisto beat you so hard that you do not remember anything anymore, whelp? Well, let me remind you I am here for several reasons, Ghost Child," he smugly quipped back. "For one, if you care to remember, I brought my employer back here to recover. Secondly, he needed me to secure his home here while he was recovering and to keep the pesky humans from harassing him as 'mayor' while at the same time guarding him from unwanted ghosts, such as you!"
Danny glared at the ghost but said nothing.
Skulker smirked in triumph as he added, "Thirdly, because of my role in rescuing him, he has given me temporary—and nearly full—rein of his mansion. And that included being able to add some features to it, such as that probe you first encountered. Do you like it?"
"It's as lame as you are, jerk!" Danny growled as he charged up his green energy, which quickly encased his entire body before he violently willed it outward. The huge sphere instantly evaporated the net. He soared upward, his fisted hands now afire with green energy and ready to fire upon the hunter ghost.
But all of a sudden, several snake-like wires pulled themselves out of the ceiling just above the Ghost Boy and immediately wrapped themselves around him, forcefully pinning his arms and legs against him.
"You did not let me finish, whelp!" Skulker said, feeling slightly insulted that the boy didn't want to hear all of his reasons why he was here. "This is the best reason of all as to why I am here..."
He pushed a button on his suit and the snake-like cables, still holding the young hybrid tight, slowly stretched downward until they presented Danny right in front of Skulker.
Skulker then brazenly pushed his face closer to Danny's and gleefully sneered, "Now that I am no longer on neutral territory, nor need to restrain myself, I get to test this new suit on the one creature that has managed to evade my efforts to mount his head on my mantle for far too long!"
"You don't mean me, do you?" Danny innocently asked before shooting a double dose of his ice rays from his eyes right into Skulker's annoyingly-too-close-for-comfort eyes.
The Ghost Hunter immediately screamed in pain and anger at being blinded by the boy's attack. He grabbed his face, trying to break the thick layer of ice which now surrounded it.
But that distraction was enough for Danny to charge up a powerful blue ice field around his body, which completely froze his bonds. He then forced more of his green ectoplasmic energy outward from his body and the metal wires instantly shattered and spewed their remnants on the Ghost Hunter, who yelled as the sharp mini-missiles dug several mini-trenches into his suit as if they were sharp fingernails raking down a chalkboard.
But that didn't come without consequence. Danny hissed when another round of stabbing pain came from his central core, followed by another draining bout of energy right after that.
Trying to ignore the sting within, Danny quickly followed that up with a resounding roundabout kick into the ghost's robotic abdomen, spraying loose metal parts and renting electrical wires under the blow. Then right away, and using the continued momentum of his kick, Danny anchored his other leg against the ground, and forcibly propelled himself upward. Not a moment later and he was upper cutting the part of hunter's jaw that was showing between Skulker's still raised and busy arms, twisting the jaw askew with the impact; then counter-pounding him with a fast hook of his other fist, twisting the jaw even more.
Panting a bit when that drained him more, the teen still didn't stop at that. He pummeled the blinded ghost with several blows and counter-blows, leaving deep dents into the armor as he did. Electrical sparks fizzled from more severed wires.
Danny easily avoided Skulker's weak offense, as the still blinded Ghost Hunter's aimlessly flailing arms did little to impede Danny's strong strikes.
Skulker continued to grunt under the force of the Ghost Boy's ire before he was finally able to break the ice around his mechanical eyes. Once he did, he righted his jaw and quickly retaliated. He pushed a button on his arm band and several missiles popped out of his suit. They fired almost instantaneously.
Danny gasped, upset that he hadn't been able to move fast enough now that he was more aware that he was rapidly losing strength. Nevertheless, he managed to avoid being hit that time. Ignoring the loud crash the impact of the missiles made as they slammed into the wall that had been behind him just a heartbeat ago, Danny then turned intangible and phased through the adjourning wall. He reappeared from the floor right beneath the Ghost Hunter, using the momentum of his body to slam his fist right into Skulker's jaw again.
This time the lower metallic jaw fell off the Ghost Hunter.
Now incensed that his brand new suit was severely damaged by—of all ghosts—the Ghost Boy, Skulker charged at his foe while pushing another button. This time, four green, glowing bolas shot out, swirling as madly at Danny as rapidly revolving propellers.
The young hybrid didn't expect that, since Skulker was usually only able to propel one of those at a time with his old suit. In the next instant, then, two of the bolas had firmly wrapped around the boy's ankles and knees, thrusting him into the nearby wall; the third around his mid-torso, effectively pinning his arms to his sides just before he hit the wall; and the last around his upper torso, with the hard rock-like ends finally hitting both sides of his head just as the rest of his body slammed into the hard surface behind him. He slid down the wall to the ground, knocked senseless by the blows from the wall and to his head. He immediately reverted back into his human side once he hit the ground.
Pulling away from the microphone to his mechanical voice now that his lower jaw was gone, Skulker's squeaky small real voice loudly shouted out in gloat, "And now, Ghost Child, it is time for you to give up the ghost, er, your pelt! My mantle awaits you!"
No sooner had he squeakily said that when his armor produced a very wicked-looking gun. In fact, it was the same gun he had used in his fight with Iluzisto on his island. He activated the gun and it began to purr as it charged in as much triumph as Skulker felt now that he finally had the whelp.
He brought the gun up to his eye; set his sites; put his finger on the trigger; started to squeeze the trigger….
"Skulker!" a very irritated voice rang out, startling the Ghost Hunter.
Instantly recognizing it, Skulker lowered his weapon and turned toward the voice. "Plzmayeos!" he barely said when he reflexively spoke into the microphone that activated his mechanical voice.
"Just what do you think you're doing?"
Skulker helplessly pointed to his missing jaw and then frowning, pressed another button. Half of his robotic face suddenly lifted away and upward from the rest of the head and the real Skulker, sitting at a tiny control panel, continued in his very non-threatening voice, "I did not know you had finally recovered, Plasmius!"
Looking over to the still-senseless teen, Vlad dryly said, "Obviously not! But even if I hadn't, all this ruckus would have waken the dead! What is Daniel doing here? And how did he get in, anyway? You were supposed to keep all ghosts out!"
"I, uh, invited him in," the diminutive ghost replied with chagrin. But then he offered with a sheepish smile, "But I do not know why he came in the first place!"
"You invited him in? For what, for heaven's sake?" Plasmius said, before adding with more irritation, "Never mind! I think I can guess. But when I gave you free reign here while I recovered, Skulker, that did not include being able to use your suit for any games. That suit was designed to be used for specific assignments, and not for childish target practice on ghosts that unceasingly get your goat."
The man then walked up to the ghost and inspected the damage to the suit. He chuckled slightly, "Though it seems that Daniel made that exact point just now."
Skulker's half-face frowned as best as his mechanical half-face could show.
Just then, however, Vlad gasped when he saw the intensity level on Skulker's gun. "And did you know that this was set for a level nine ghost?"
"Uh, no," the Ghost Hunter mumbled, clearly embarrassed that he had not remembered to reset the gun. He then offered his excuse, "I was just too excited to finally get the Ghost Child's pelt, and…"
But Vlad firmly interrupted him, "What would have been left of it, if anything was left of it! You could've vaporized him, Skulker!"
Suddenly, Danny groaned and began to stir.
Vlad then scrunched his brow, annoyed once more. He then grabbed his face and pulled downward on it before pulling his hand away and saying, "Release the boy, Skulker. And I think you should go fix your suit now and await further word from me before I let him completely decimate the suit—with you in it!"
The tiny green ghost's eyes widened a bit, before he narrowed them in indignation. He huffed in that tiny voice, "Very well, Plasmius. Though I will tell you that I immensely enjoyed and did not regret the target practice I did manage to get in!"
Without any further word from either the man or himself, Skulker activated the button on his arm band and the bolas disappeared, along with the Ghost Hunter.
Danny's body shifted at the sudden release; and groaning once more, he began to pull himself up to a sitting position. He immediately brought up his left hand to his still-pounding head as he tried to open his eyes. Even that was painful, but just as he managed to open them, he gasped when they first saw Vlad towering over him.
Danny immediately transformed back to his ghost form, only to stifle a groan at the huge stabbing pain that shot through his core when he had changed. Nevertheless, he shot upward and away from the man, his eyes narrowing in anger. Vlad must have put Skulker up to that 'welcome' after all!
The teen quickly hissed, "I thought you said you were more hospitable to those who were invited into your home—like I was just now!"
Coming right to the point, Vlad said, "That was Skulker's idea, not mine, Daniel!"
"He just beat you to it, that's all!" Danny spat back, still suspicious and hovering above the man, not at all aware that he was clutching at his painful chest.
"Oh, yes, Daniel, you're right!" Vlad sarcastically replied even as he noticed what the boy was doing. "That's me all over! Beating you is one of my favorite sports. Though I must say that now that you brought it up, beating some sense into you again doesn't sound like a bad idea after all!"
Danny growled and charged up his energy orbs, ready to throw a real, rather than verbal, barb back at the man. But then, his face inadvertently scrunched up in pain when he continued to maintain his energy, and he felt a little dizzy. He shook his head and grunted a bit when that helped. Once he refocused on the man, however, Danny noticed that for all of the man's threatening words, the man hadn't changed into Plasmius yet. And he noticed something else. The older hybrid's complexion…He was very pale. He hadn't recovered yet! But the curse should be gone….It had to be, or else the man would have been fried—literally. But then, that might mean that he hadn't recovered from his last encounter with Iluzisto. And now that he was thinking about it, he could feel his own core protesting at all the energy he had used in that fight with Skulker—and at all that he was expending right now…
Danny extinguished his energy orbs and floated down until he was right next to the man. Though that lessened the agony, his face was still etched in pain.
"What is wrong, Daniel?" Vlad still jeered, though he had noticed that the boy did look like he was in pain…plus, he was now aware of something…else. "Afraid to admit that it wasn't my idea to attack you when you first came in?"
"Get off it!" Danny sneered back. "I'm still tempted to think that you sicked Skulker on me after all; but then again, I know you'd rather take all the pleasure of kicking my butt yourself if you could right now."
The man didn't want to give the boy the satisfaction of letting him know that he was right that he hadn't recovered fully. Nor was he going to let on yet that he noticed that Daniel also seemed to be in a bit of central core health trouble himself. Instead, the man tersely replied, "And what makes you think that I didn't just send Skulker after you just to 'butter you up' so that I could really have all the fun of beating you to a pulp without breaking out in a sweat this time? After all, I just got this suit I'm wearing pressed, you know." The man then narrowed his eyes and added more darkly, "Then again, like you said, I would rather have the pleasure of doing that without Skulker—and, of course, without having to sweat either way!"
Danny, though very annoyed, saw through the man's ruse. Folding his arms to his chest, and reflexively wincing when he did, he finally sighed, "Okay, Plasmius, I get it. But I also get the fact that you haven't recovered from Iluzisto's last attack on you yet."
Vlad frowned and sarcastically said, "Oh, so is that it? You came all the way over here just to tell me what I already know? Couldn't you have just skipped messing up my house and sent a "Get Well" card instead?"
"That's not what I meant. I didn't come here to cause any trouble…"
But Vlad interrupted him, "You really can't help it, Daniel. 'Trouble' is your middle name!"
Now Danny had enough. It was obvious that the man was up to his usual standards of being unbearably obnoxious in spite of still not having fully recuperated. There was nothing more he could do about it. He then growled, "You're right, Plasmius! 'Trouble' is all I've gotten since I stood at your front door. And I could even let you have the pleasure of seeing me kick myself for even coming here in the first place! It certainly was a big waste of time that I don't have! So, I'm just going to go now!"
But just then, Vlad lost his balance, but broke his fall by grabbing onto the large statue he had been standing next to.
Danny reflexively shot forward to help, but then jolted back when Vlad waved him off.
The man righted himself again. But then, he leaned on the statue before rubbing his temples and saying, "All right, Daniel. So I'm not at full strength yet and that has made me…inhospitable. But clearly, your temper is on a shorter fuse than usual. And I know you are not fully recovered, either. So, drop the act, alright?"
Danny frowned this time. His core hurt, but… he could handle it. Still, maybe the man was right. It was getting harder and harder to hold his ghost form… Maybe he should change back...just in case.
But still angry, the teen quickly forced down the urge to turn human and defiantly said, "I'm fine! And how do you expect me to act when I get attacked the second I step into your house?"
Vlad sighed tiredly and replied, "Well, since you don't make it a habit to visit unless you're forced to, I wasn't expecting you any time soon; otherwise, I would have told Skulker not to attack you. In any case, you obviously had something in mind when you came here. And Skulker certainly soured any attempt at a calmer approach at bringing that something to my attention. So, can we just go sit down a moment and get on with it?"
Danny hesitated before tersely replying, "All right." Suddenly realizing that he couldn't stand much more pain, he finally gave in and changed back to his human side. And when he did change, he frowned when he noticed that the pain had significantly lessoned when his core went dormant.
He waited for the man to lead the way, and pretended not to notice how off-balance the man's gait was. They finally entered the nearby parlor room and Danny sat down just after Vlad did.
They sat without a word between them for several moments before Vlad suddenly pushed a button on his chair.
"Yes, sir?" the voice asked.
"Two teas, George."
"Right away, sir," George confirmed.
Once again, silence blanketed the two ghost hybrids.
Finally, Vlad sighed and said, "All right, Daniel, why did you come here?"
After everything that happened, Danny's mind went blank again on how to bring up the subject. But then, he decided just to come out with it. "Iluzisto has defeated the Observants and sent them all somewhere here in the Real World so that they will be destroyed by time."
Vlad's eyes widened at the news. Did he hear it right? He suddenly chuckled, "You're joshing, aren't you, Daniel? That's the best news I've heard for a while!"
"Well, that's what I thought, too, at first. But there's more to it, Vlad. Iluzisto won't stop at that. He wants to conquer not only the Observants' Realm but our world and the Ghost Zone, too."
"My, I knew he was arrogant, but such aspirations! I just might want to strike up a deal with him!" the man quipped back.
"What?" Danny gasped, mortified and now tensing in his chair. "Now you're kidding, right?"
Vlad grew more serious. "Of course I am, Daniel. Do you truly think I want anything to do with that horrid creature? If I ever see him again, it will be too soon! My only regret is that thanks to those Observant fools, he's probably too powerful to defeat now. I doubt at this point he even has weaknesses."
"Of course he does! And you already know what they are! His illusions won't work on humans! And he needs to replenish his powers often!" Danny protested before adding, "But that's not the point! We can't let him take over everything!"
"We? Since when have you and I become a 'we' again, Daniel?" the man snapped back.
"Yeah, okay! Lame choice of words! But look, Vlad, you can't tell me that you don't think that Iluzisto is a real threat to even things you find important?"
"Maybe, but I don't see why I need to get all riled up about that right now. And I don't see why you came to tell me this. Besides, you're always so keen on showing off all that 'teen hero stuff'. Why don't you just go after him yourself?"
Danny gritted his teeth in irritation but didn't say anything at first. This conversation was going nowhere—as usual! But then, he thought about his mission. And he knew that it was more important than trying to keep blocking all the man's verbal barbs.
He bit his lower lip before quietly admitting, "Because…I can't do it alone, Vlad. I... I need your help. You know he's very powerful. He's an Observant and they're level nine ghosts—no, spirits, which you know have unique abilities which make them a bigger threat! But Iluzisto is probably at a higher level than that right now. And Justeco said…"
"Justeco? What does that idiot have to do with this?" Vlad interrupted him.
"He and his counselor—who turned out to be his brother, too—somehow escaped from the prison Iluzisto sent them and found me. They told me what happened and all about Iluzisto and some other stuff that I don't have time to explain about right now. But the important thing is what he told me about…us… Justeco told me that the reason why we were kept separated in their world was because…"
The boy suddenly paused again, wondering whether he really should be telling Plasmius this next part. But the urgency of the situation helped him to decide. "Because he said that if we combined our powers, we would be…almost…invincible, and so stood a good chance at taking Iluzisto down."
Vlad paused in thought. That had been the very reason why they had gotten into this whole mess with the Observants in the first place! Vlad had wanted Daniel to join him at his side way back then, but the boy had refused. And now, the boy was not only doing it willingly, but was insisting that they had to join forces for this cause?
He smiled, feeling a sense of triumph in this after all. He replied, "I see... So, have you finally come around to seeing things my way and decided to be at my side?"
Danny then growled in frustration before deadpanning, "You know I much rather show off all my 'teen hero stuff.'" But then leaning forward in his chair, he said with exasperation, "C'mon, Plasmius, you know I wouldn't do it for that reason. I'm doing it because it's right! And you should, too!"
Vlad frowned, irritated with the boy's lecture to him of all people! But he calmly said, "Again, I don't see how this concerns me, Daniel. I will not involve myself with those Observant baboons any longer—any of them."
Danny rolled his eyes before remarking, "You're just mad because they brought you to your knees more easily than you will ever admit and you're eating your insides out that they did!"
Vlad glared at him and hissed, "Have you ever been told that 'rubbing it in' isn't the best approach to convincing people to help you? And if I recall correctly, they were well on their way to breaking you, too."
"Ugh!" Danny growled. "Look, Plasmius, I know very well how it feels to have my nose rubbed in my own dirty past, but that doesn't mean I'm going to keep re-living it!"
Still not convinced, Vlad folded his arms and tersely replied, "And your point?"
Danny rolled his eyes again, even more irritated. "And you tell me to think! Haven't you thought that if we don't stop Iluzisto now, he'll probably become so powerful that no one will be able to stop him later? Don't you think, then, that since we stand the best chance of stopping him, we should do it for the sake of everyone?"
Vlad suddenly growled, "Now it's you who must be kidding this time, Daniel! Since when do I care about things that don't benefit me in the end? Just how tight is your head screwed on, boy?"
Danny sarcastically replied, "I don't know. But by the way you're acting, I must have a hole in it instead with this lame idea that you would even remotely show anyone that you had some kind of conscience."
"And you should know by now that I wouldn't even know what to do with one if I had one!"
"Fine!" Danny growled. But then he sighed in partial resign and said, "Why do you have to make things so difficult, Vlad? For once, why can't you do it just because it's important?"
Vlad jolted at the first part of what Daniel had said and didn't even hear the second half. He had asked the boy about making things so difficult, too! But that was when they had been imprisoned. Did the boy really hear him when he was trying to help the boy recover his strength that one time in the jail? He thought Daniel was totally incoherent then. But he didn't want to ask.
Instead he growled with suspicion, "So, you think you're really clever, don't you, Daniel? But not clever enough, I see. In fact, you are pathetically naïve! Haven't you figured out by now that all this appeal to 'higher ideals' won't work on me? I don't care one way or another about any of that. But let me see….oh, yes, here's the question you should have first proposed: 'Just what's in it for me?'"
Danny frowned in confusion at Vlad's first remark, but the last question pressed more upon him. His jaw tensed in disappointment, and he glanced down at his watch. Not much time! Darn it! And he still hated it when the cheesehead was right! He had the nagging feeling all along that he wouldn't have been able to convince the man to help because it was the right thing to do. Why had he even tried, especially when it was more than obvious now that it hadn't worked?
"What do you mean?" Danny sincerely asked. He really couldn't think at the moment how else to convince the man, especially when he had been quite blunt about everything so far.
"You think that just because we worked together to get out of those imbecilic Observants' prison that everything is just fine between us? Do you really think that what boils down to two days as allies—since we certainly didn't get along during the first three—that that could erase all the other times when we couldn't see eye-to-eye?"
Danny frowned in irritation just as Vlad continued.
"Really, boy, you should realize that I only got along with you all that time just enough to get out of there. And believe me, if I could have done it without your help, I would have!"
Danny growled a bit at that remark before Vlad smirked and said in slight triumph. "So I ask you once again, Daniel, what's in it for me?"
The teen lowered his gaze, trying to hide his further disappointment; but getting to the matter at hand, he looked back at Vlad and told him seriously, "Vlad, you can't think after all that we went through that Iluzisto is going to leave us alone? We have to stop him or who's to say that he won't eventually come after us?"
Vlad hid that he was a little worried at what Daniel had said. It wouldn't surprise the man if that evil spirit came after them again, but he secretly still hoped that Iluzisto would leave them alone. Still, Vlad refused to go after the spirit when he was clearly too powerful to defeat. He would rather take his chances at hiding out and protecting himself by his own means.
Finally shrugging, he replied, "I can take care of myself, Daniel. Try again."
But Danny didn't respond this time. He knew that this had been a waste of time, but he had hoped….But now, he realized that he would have to go at Iluzisto on his own. He mentally shivered at the thought. Still, he was determined to do that…
He sighed in both resignation and fear at the thought.
But suddenly, an idea flashed in his mind as he glanced up and saw the 'brand' on Vlad's head and recalled his own... He bit the inside of his lower lip when he thought of what Justeco said about that pardon the Observant had given them. That might do it….no, it wouldn't! The pardon had already been given to the both of them…. But how about if he….
Vlad thought he had given Daniel enough time to respond, but since the boy hadn't, Vlad figured that the answer was obvious. The man finally said, "Well, Daniel, it looks like you've wasted your time after all."
Just then, there was a knock on the door.
"Come in, Derek," Vlad suddenly said.
His butler ghost came in with a tray with two cups of tea on it. He immediately placed it down on the small table in between where Danny and Vlad had been sitting.
"Thank you, Derek. You may go," he then replied.
"Yes, sir," the ghost butler said before leaving.
Just as Derek had left, Vlad picked up his cup and calmly said, "Still, it was a nice gesture on your part to see how I was doing, Daniel. And I need to thank you for helping me make up my mind on all of this. I think after I finally get strong enough from a few more doses of medicine, I'll be able to take precautions to insure Iluzisto cannot come anywhere near me."
"I doubt you'll have the time to try," Danny said, the tone of his voice suddenly sounding dark, cold and dangerous.
One of Vlad's eyebrows hitched in surprise. But he immediately placed his cup down a little too firmly before furrowing his brow in irritation. He then sneered, "Is that a threat, boy?"
"In a way, yes!" Danny said, a smug smile beginning to curl around his lips at his idea. In fact, it was a very good idea—for once, it would be he who would manipulate Plasmius to play into his hand…
"But it's not a threat by me," the teen continued causally. "But, you know, you're right, Plasmius. I have come around to your way of thinking. Why should I care one way or another about what's in it for you? You'll find out soon enough about exactly what you're going to be getting…"
He then stood up and started to walk out of the room. But just as he neared the door, he turned his head back to the man and keeping his tone dark and his eyes narrowed, he dryly added, "Can't say this has been a pleasant visit, but there's a certain pleasure of knowing that it probably is going to be our last one…"
However, just as Danny turned back toward the door, Vlad sneered, "Just what are you up to, you little rat?"
Still not facing the man, Danny grinned mischievously as he thought, "Hook, line and sinker, fruit loop…!"
"Nothing," Danny quipped innocently, turning back to the man, but still standing in front of the exit. "I told Justeco you wouldn't agree! So, I give up! And you were right, you know! I did have some screws loose to have tried to convince you to help just because it was the right thing to do." The teen shrugged and added in fake disappointment, "It's a shame. You should have come around to it. I did, of course. But I wanted to give you the same break. But, it might be too late now! Still, I'll tell Justeco that I tried anyhow!"
The teen paused a moment before flippantly uttering his next sudden idea, "And don't worry about us. We do have a decent back-up plan on how to defeat Iluzisto, so that really wasn't a problem. But you know me and that 'teen hero' thing. The least I could do was try to get you to help just because it was the right thing to do. But now, since my efforts didn't work and you refuse to agree to help…" Danny shook his head and with a shrug said instead, "Eh, it doesn't matter. You don't care anyways. Well, I have been wasting my time. I have to get going! Sorry it didn't work out. Still, it would've sorta been fun having you help us kick Iluzisto's butt…"
"All right, Daniel," Vlad interjected through gritted teeth. "Just come out with it, boy! I don't buy this little act of yours…"
Suddenly turning dead serious, Danny frowned and forcefully said, "I don't care one way or the other if you do! But you want me to come out with it? Fine! Here it is: You're going to be executed by some kind of condemning curse from the Observants' realm that was created by something called 'Timeless Magic'! Justeco told me that if you didn't agree to help, he would not be giving you that pardon you needed so you wouldn't be killed! It would've happened to me, too, because the Observants had already handed down our sentence just before we escaped from their stupid realm. You do remember that, right? Well, apparently that automatically sends out that weird execution thing to do, well, its thing. And that pulsing mark on your forehead is the proof of that and is the homing beacon for it!"
Vlad opened his mouth to literally point out the obvious, but Danny quickly cut him off. "And if you're wondering about my brand, it's going to eventually go away…" Danny paused before thinking to himself, "Once we destroy Okulo's orb that is," But he then added, "The point is that since I already agreed before Justeco told me about that danger, I'm scott free. But you? I don't know now! If you'd just listened to me…."
This time Vlad interrupted him and his voice was not as arrogant, "You should have thought of telling me that in the first place! You know I don't do all that worthless 'ideals' stuff!"
"But you know that I do," Danny fired back before quickly adding, "I've still wasted too much time, Vlad. I'm sorry. I gotta go!"
Danny then turned to leave again.
"Wait, Daniel!" Vlad said, forcing himself to a stand.
Danny turned right around and sighed in irritation, "What do you want, Plasmius?"
"I want to make a deal with…with Justeco. If you can help me convince him to give me that pardon—to undo the Observants' curse—then I will….help you try to defeat Iluzisto." Vlad smiled sweetly as he nicely added, "Will you do that, for that old 'teen hero's' sake, hmm?"
"What? You want me to lie?" Danny said, feigning being shocked—though inside he was laughing at the irony. After all, he had just twisted the truth and tricked the man!
"Well, let's call it negotiating a truce, hmm? I wouldn't dream of asking you to lie," the man replied with a bit of wryness.
"If you only knew…" Danny immediately thought with another mental laugh, but still frowning in feigned seriousness, he replied, "I can't guarantee a thing, you know. Still, you drive a hard bargain, Plasmius…." He paused a moment for the effect. "I will tell Justeco that it was easy to convince you. After all, I really didn't want to break a sweat kicking Iluzisto's butt. And I think with your help, that definitely won't happen!"
"Well, even after I have that curse removed, I might need a day more to recover, which is why I had to resort to this kind of desperate measure," Vlad added, still not wanting to make the boy believe that he had given in so easily.
"Yeah, I know, Vlad. Just as well. After I tell Justeco that you've agreed and gotten your pardon, I still have to go help him free all the Observants. Then we can get on with the business of stopping Iluzisto. So, see you tomorrow?"
"Only if you get me that pardon, Daniel," the man quipped back.
Danny rolled his eyes but then nodded. "Bye," he tersely said, before turning to leave. But just as soon as Danny was facing totally away from the man, a triumphant smile suddenly erupted on his face. Vlad had actually fallen for his trick! Oh, this was just too good!
However, his feeling of triumph didn't last very long…
"Daniel, just a moment," Vlad suddenly called to the boy before he could leave. The man had just gotten an… idea.
The teen slowly turned back around and raised a questioning eyebrow.
"On second thought, I think I will go with you."
Danny frowned suspiciously. "You're going to help me free the Observants? But after I get your curse removed, I thought you said you needed another day of rest? "
Vlad smirked. "Well, true. But still, I have to show my willingness to Justeco, somehow, right?"
The teen studied the man for a moment, still wary of his sudden eagerness. And then he suddenly could tell that Vlad was somehow looking a little better since he had first come. He bit the inside of his lower lip when he focused back to Vlad's question; and saw that the man was still looking at him in anticipation. He knew that look. The older hybrid would do what he wanted, anyways. And that meant that the boy would have to get a message to Justeco somehow not to tell Vlad that the curse had been lifted already… He hesitated again…Maybe he could get to Justeco first. But he couldn't let Vlad know that he was worried about that.
He finally shrugged and said, "Fine. But we are heading back to my house."
"Of course," Vlad said pleasantly before suddenly morphing. However, he then unexpectedly moved forward and grabbed one of the teen's wrists.
"Hey! What are you—?" Danny began, only to gasp when a flash of pink momentarily blinded him and his lungs suddenly constricted. But before he could panic, the feeling vanished and he suddenly found himself in Vlad's lab.
Ignoring his feeling weaker for doing that, Plasmius let go of the disoriented teen and went over to Skulker who had just finished fixing his broken jaw.
"Skulker, I have one last thing to ask of you," the man said, capturing his ally's attention.
The hunter raised an expectant eyebrow.
But before Vlad could explain, Danny suddenly demanded, "What are you doing, Plasmius? I said we were heading to my house! And—And don't ever do that to me again!" he added, shuddering with the horrible feeling of teleportation.
Vlad rolled his eyes. "Yes, Daniel. I know you want to go home. But, first, we need to take certain precautions. Or, hasn't it occurred to you that, perhaps, we need a plan?"
"I have a plan!" Danny quickly defended himself.
"Oh, really?" Vlad said disbelievingly. "And, it is?"
Danny flushed in embarrassment, but then quickly glared. "Okay, fine. So, I don't have the plans written down! But since it involves everyone, I hadn't expected to discuss it without everyone being here! But I have a plan; so don't look at me like I'm stupid!"
Vlad sighed dramatically. He knew the boy all too well. He was almost certain Daniel didn't have a real plan—after all, the teen wasn't known for his foresight. But he was hardly going to argue over the point.
Instead, Vlad looked over at the hunter and seriously said, "Skulker, I need you to head to the Fenton Portal. When you get there, call me and I will give you further instructions."
The hunter briefly glanced at Danny for some reason, but then he looked back at his employer and nodded. "Very well."
Skulker quickly pressed a few buttons on his new suit and then his jets activated. Without further word, he flew through Vlad's portal and left.
"Okay, what was that about?" Danny quickly asked, suspicious. "I thought you were still not feeling all that good."
"I'm not; and I will tell you later," Vlad calmly answered as he went over to his lab's mainframe and typed something in. Although his ghost shield was already up around his house, he then commanded, "Lock down ghost lab and activate ghost security."
In an instant, the ghost portal sealed shut and a red barrier glowed around it. And then, suddenly…several weapons surrounded Danny.
The teen gasped in fear as the ghost guns began to hum with their power.
"Oh," Vlad muttered and quickly commanded the room, "Disregard 'Phantom Signature."
The weapons immediately retracted and Danny let out a breath he didn't know he had been holding. But then he quickly glared over at Vlad.
But the man just smirked and said, "My mistake. My house is use to regarding you as an enemy and intruder."
"Right," Danny said dryly before adding in annoyance, "Are you going to explain to me why you dragged me down here? Or, is that also for later?"
"I 'dragged you down here' because if we hope to defeat Iluzisto we need to be at full strength, Daniel," Vlad said seriously.
"I'm fine," Danny said stubbornly, crossing his arms.
"Dear boy, I know the feel of your ghost side as well as my own. You are far from fine. And you are far from being fully recovered," Vlad replied in a matter-of-factly voice.
The teen frowned, though he knew he couldn't contradict the man even if he tried. "I…It doesn't matter. The Observants don't have a lot of time left. And I still have to save Clockwork! I don't know what Iluzisto could be doing to him! He already took his time staff!"
Vlad tensed in surprise. And it was he who now quickly questioned the boy, "Iluzisto has the Time Master's staff? His power source?"
Danny nodded grimly. "And now that we're on this topic, Iluzisto also wasted Okulo and has his 'orb thing."
"And you were going to tell me these important details when?" Vlad asked, now annoyed.
"I'm telling you now…," Danny replied with a meek smile.
Vlad rolled his eyes, but readily frowned in worry. Iluzisto having the Time Staff and Okulo's Timeless Magic Orb certainly complicated things. But then remembering something else the boy just said, he raised an eyebrow and seriously asked, "And why are you so eager to 'save' our prosecutor, hmm?"
Danny looked away, feeling his guilt return at the thought of Clockwork. He shouldn't have doubted him…
"The Observants forced him to be our prosecutor…," Danny quietly replied. "He…was never against us."
"Hmm," Vlad merely said before turning from the teen and moving over to a metal drawer to search for a few things.
Danny frowned, noticing the man's lack of response. "You don't sound surprised by that."
Vlad shrugged and answered, "That's because I am not, Daniel. I had already suspected the Time Master's intentions were not what he let on. So, you merely confirmed my suspicions of him."
"Well, thanks for telling me sooner, Plasmius," Danny snapped, now ticked off with the man.
But Vlad just shrugged uncaringly. He had thought of telling him of the boy of his suspicions, but, honestly, the opportunity had never presented itself with all the terrible stuff that kept happening to the both of them during all that time in the Realm Beyond Time. Still, the older hybrid was not interested in explaining himself to his young rival. Then again… he didn't want to give Daniel any more reason to distrust him—at least, for as long as their 'temporary truce' lasted…
"Daniel," Vlad said calmly. "If we are going to combine forces to defeat Iluzisto, you are going to have to trust me for the time being. That means, you will have to drop your suspicions of me and your childish arrogance."
"Sure, as long as you drop your egotism and can stop being a jerk for the duration," Danny retorted with a smirk.
Vlad just sighed loudly. Honestly, did the Observants really believe he and the boy were going to save all existence? The billionaire honestly didn't see how they were going to do that when they clearly didn't trust each other, let alone, did they have the focus to combine their powers to defeat Iluzisto.
How could they, when they were so caught up with fighting each other?
But the moment he thought that, a wave of memories from their time together in Iluzisto's prison flooded Vlad's mind… They had worked together before… So, why were they being so hostile towards each other again? Especially when they needed more than ever to drop their differences and trust each other? If not for all existence, then, at least, for their own sakes. And that, really, was all Vlad mostly cared about…
"I… just want this nightmare to be over, Danny," Vlad suddenly said, pausing in what he was doing to face the boy.
Danny's eyebrows creased at the seriousness and… sincerity in the older hybrid's voice…
The teen sighed himself, remembering the horrors they had gone through together that had ended just two days ago. Maybe trusting Vlad enough for them to work together wasn't as bad as he was making it out to be… After all, he had come here to get Vlad's help. So, if he had done it before he could do it again… At least until they got out of this mess…
"That's all I want, too," Danny replied, now as serious.
Vlad nodded before turning away and continuing with what he was doing.
The boy didn't say anything at first, even when he noticed the long silence between them. But unable to keep his curiosity at bay, Danny approached Vlad and asked, "What are you doing?"
"Iluzisto completely depleted our energy supply and damaged our cores, Daniel. I'm sure of it," The older hybrid said with a mixture of worry and anger as he continued to prepare something the teen didn't see.
"And although at any other time our cores would regenerate that lost energy without trouble, this time, our cores are too weak to do so properly. That creature has seriously damaged our cores from his constantly jabbing that blasted weapon into us, especially the last time he did it. So, I worked mostly all of yesterday on a stronger healing serum in hopes of fixing said damage and getting mine, but now, your core as well, back to its usual strength, which, in turn, will allow us to recuperate our lost energy at a much faster rate."
Danny frowned and had reflexively grabbed at his chest when he remembered the last time Iluzisto had…stabbed him. Still, he needed to know more. "Okay… I suppose you would know if your core is damaged. But how do you know mine is, too?"
"I already told you, Daniel. I can feel your signature, your energy and power. You are not well," Vlad replied seriously before turning around with a needle filled with a glowing clear liquid in it.
Danny instantly tensed. "I know you are not planning on sticking me with that stuff, right?"
Vlad sighed tiredly. "We really do not have time for this, Daniel. If you want to help anyone, you have to regain all your power. Otherwise, you will not stand a chance."
Danny swallowed hard as he stared at the needle in Vlad's hand. He knew the man was right in that he wasn't well. Although he could morph, Danny felt it had been… difficult to do so. In fact, just his small brawl with Skulker had left him feeling… very weak. But…he didn't want to be injected with some weird serum, let alone, have Vlad do it. What if it wasn't what he was saying and the man was lying? But then… how would Vlad benefit from hurting him at the moment?
Still….
"Fine. But you take a shot, first," Danny finally answered, looking seriously at Vlad.
But much to his surprise, the older hybrid suddenly glared, "You listen to me, Daniel. I am not going anywhere near Iluzisto without a proper plan or without both of us being at full strength! You might get a kick out of your suicidal approaches to fights, but I do not! I am not risking my neck because of your stubborn pride. Now, you either take the shot or the deal is off and you can do this on your own!"
Danny quickly glared. "Hey! Don't forget that if you don't do this—"
"What?" Vlad cut him off. "I'm going to be killed by the Observants' wrath? Well, if you go out there in your weak condition, I'll be killed, anyways! We both will! So, stop wasting my time, Daniel, and make up your mind!"
Danny felt his heartbeat pick up; but knowing Vlad was right, the teen swallowed his fear and took a few steps closer to Vlad.
"Just make it quick," the teen muttered, looking away.
Vlad's anger melded into a frown. But then he sighed to himself and approached the teen. "The serum will only work on your ghost half, so you need to morph."
But the teen said nothing at first. He just tensed, but willed his transformation rings forward again all the same. He frowned when that hurt even more this time. He had to agree. His core was damaged. He stepped closer to the man and braced himself as Vlad grabbed his arm and prepped his upper arm.
"It's going to feel a bit cold," Vlad warned before quickly injecting the teen.
Danny gasped as his ghost hue suddenly turned bright green. It felt like his veins were freezing over as the serum quickly spread through his body. But then, the liquid finally reached his core. And he suddenly couldn't breathe.
"W-What?" Danny choked out as he unexpectedly stumbled back. But Vlad quickly grabbed his arm before he could fall. The teen's breaths suddenly turned into short pants and somewhere in the back of his mind he was mentally smacking himself for letting Vlad inject him with some weird stuff—especially when it glowed! But the thought vanished when he felt his head spin… Oh, no. Vlad was trying to kill him!
Seeing the panicked look on the boy's face, Vlad spoke up. "Calm yourself. It will be over soon."
But just as he said this, Danny suddenly lost his ghost form. And with another small gasp, the teen just as quickly… fainted.
Of course, Vlad grabbed the boy before he dropped to the ground. But then he muttered, "And 'by over', I meant you would lose consciousness."
He knew, however, that the boy would be fine. In fact, he would probably wake up in an hour or so. The serum was strong; so the teen's passing out was expected, since it was his first time with it. The next time, it would still be uncomfortable, but Vlad was sure the teen would handle it better.
Still, Daniel's strong and relatively immediate reaction only proved to the man how damaged the boy's core was. The serum's reaction, after all, was proportional to the damage in a ghost's body.
But, then, Vlad knew his core was even worse. But, luckily, since the older hybrid had used this type of healing concoction before, he did not react as the boy had now. That, however, didn't mean it hadn't been unpleasant.
The truth was that the best solution for his and the boy's damaged core was to take an even stronger dose of this ghostly healing serum and inject it directly into their cores. It would probably heal them instantly… That is, if it didn't kill them, first.
And not about to take such a risk on either of their behalf, Vlad had no other choice but to apply the serum in three small doses and intravenously. That meant, he and Daniel would be taking another shot tonight and then one again tomorrow morning...
All Vlad could hope was that it would be enough to heal their damaged cores. Otherwise… they really were doomed... They—and all existence.
Vlad sighed deeply as he looked down at the unconscious boy in his arms.
"I would say that you are more trouble than you're worth. But then… I would just be lying to myself," he told the teen. In spite of what he told the boy, the man knew the real reason why he had come together with the teen and why he done what he had while they were in prison. Iluzisto knew why, too. But Vlad had let his care for the boy emotionally weaken him too much already. And especially now, he couldn't afford to let that continue to happen now that they had escaped. He needed his head in the game—and his emotions very far away. Otherwise, Vlad was sure he wouldn't survive, especially with Iluzisto still on the loose.
Vlad studied Danny for another moment. But he then suddenly shook his head before walking out of the lab to put the boy down. With any luck, the teen would stay unconscious longer than an hour. Heaven knew Daniel was beyond exhausted, even if he was trying to pretend otherwise.
But even if it were just an hour, that would be more than fine with him. And that was because he was dying to get back into bed himself. In spite of the fact that in the end he was also trying to pretend otherwise, he was far from being well. He needed rest.
But, for now, Vlad would have to settle for relaxing on his favorite couch. His mind drifted and he smiled at his next thought. He must be feeling better than he had first guessed, then…Hopefully, he would be at full strength soon and he could think about all this more clearly…
Still, he was thinking right now. After all, he needed to get some sort of plan together. He knew Danny's sister and friends were going to come barging into his home when they realized the boy was not coming back as he had probably told them.
But that's what Vlad wanted.
In fact, although he had not let it on, he had another reason why he had stopped Daniel from leaving: that sudden idea he had gotten.
Sure, he knew it was necessary to heal both his and the boy's cores before going after Iluzisto; but more importantly, Vlad realized he needed to personally make sure that Danny kept his end of the bargain. After all, what good would it do him to heal his core and then end up being destroyed by some curse? Not only that, he was really annoyed that he would be on the hook like this over doing something that would never have been his idea in the first place. Still, he had to admit that Daniel was right about one thing: Iluzisto would probably be after them in the end. Not that he was really surprised since he knew that the blasted spirit would definitely detest that blow to his ego all due to their escaping from his clutches…and want their blood…
Nevertheless, there was still the issue of that just as blasted curse. No, he needed to deal with that himself. And since Danny had mentioned that Justeco had come to see him, then Vlad suspected the Observant was still with the boy's friends and sister… And now that he thought about it, just how much time did he have before that curse would come into effect after all? Daniel hadn't specified that…But then again, the boy didn't seem to act or imply that time was of the essence when it came to the curse, either… That would make sense, too; otherwise, Daniel wouldn't have even offered having the curse removed if it was going to happen to him right away… All the same, he wanted that curse removed. And that meant that he would have to make more than certain that Daniel kept his promise to have the curse dispelled…He would also have to get that arrogant Justeco here, at his home, to 'hand-deliver' that guaranteed… undoing
And what better way to get them to willingly come than to have the young hybrid in his hands? The boy's friends, sister, and most importantly, Justeco would certainly be here very soon…
Vlad chuckled smugly, but then his eyes further narrowed at his next thought…
He knew Danny's sister and friends were going to try to help. But the billionaire was sure all they would do was worry the boy over their safety; and, in turn, split Daniel's focus away from what needed to be done. So that made Jasmine and the boy's little friends an obstacle that Vlad needed to deal with. And he could also deal with them if they were at his house.
Not to mention, the billionaire had the suspicion that the Fenton house was not the safest place for them to be right now, anyways. Vlad knew the ghost shield was up around Amity Park—since he had ordered Skulker to put it up himself.
But that meant if Iluzisto was really after him and Daniel, he would either be coming through the Fenton portal or his portal. But since Vlad knew his portal was both hidden in the Ghost Zone and sealed from his side, the most likely place was the Fenton portal.
Yes… they needed to plan things out carefully… especially if he was going to gain something out of all this besides just getting rid of the Observants' curse over him.
Vlad smirked at the thought.
But right then, a beeping sound came from the watch-like device on his arm. The billionaire looked down; and with a bit of difficulty since he was still holding the senseless Danny, he pressed a button to activate the communicator.
"Plasmius," came Skulker's voice. "I'm standing in front of the closed Fenton portal on the Ghost Zone's side. Now, care to tell me why I am here?"
Vlad glanced at Danny; but then sure he was completely out, he began walking out of the lab as he replied, "Yes, you are there in regards to Iluzisto. I need you to listen closely to me, Skulker. And I need you to do exactly what I say…"
The hunter hesitated a bit, but then replied, "Very well. What do you have in mind?"
Vlad smirked as he told his ally his plan…
A/N: truephan here: Well, well, well, dearies. Did we surprise you again? Of course, we absolutely hope we did. After all, messing with your minds is our greatest ambition! And feeling all those emotions we get from you as you fall right into our trap just gives fuel to our madness! AWW! So yummy!...
Truephan really here: HOLD IT there, Ms. Hyde! Who told you that you could get on the computer?
*Oh, is that what you call this thing, dearie? I thought it was just a magical box that connected directly into your readers' minds!*
*Pause*
Uh, well, really, you're sorta right about that, Ms. Hyde. But that is STILL no reason to abuse it! The readers know that pearl and I would never resort to such trickery!
*Ms Hyde looks disbelievingly at truephan* You can't be serious, dearie? Just by the fact that you're speaking to me is quite the trick and, so you know, just messes with everyone's mind!
Truephan's face falls in shock: Uh, good…uh, point? Heh-heh….Well, dear readers, before I get into it too much deeper, I hope you enjoyed this chapter. And you know what to do…and that is no trick! Just push that little blue button! Until next time, then!
*Ms Hyde: Yes, dearies, until the next time when we can trick and mess with your minds! *cackles hysterically*
Vlad muse: Actually, I inserted a bomb on that 'review' button… so, there is a bit of a trick.
Pearl: What? Why would you do that?
Vlad muse: Oh, calm down. It only detonates if your readers do not add in their review a compliment on my behalf. Or, agree to 'join me'. Either one will do.
Pearl: Man, you are crazy. Anyways, don't listen to him. I'm sure he's, er, kidding… Yeah. But, you know, review just in case and then run a good distance from your computer. Heh-heh…
Seriously, though, thanks for your support! Until next time and hopefully it will be for CM! Yay! Ta!