Part 14: Partnership
As the others rushed up to see what had happened, Shadowcobra stood in the room alone. Something felt different about himself.
Shadowcobra looked down and saw that his belt buckle and deck were glowing. The belt and deck soon morphed, fusing together. The card deck and belt buckle became one as the cards resided within the buckle with a slot to draw the cards out. The Zodiac Crystal glowed with the symbol of the Snake.
"That's new," Shadow said as he stared down at his belt.
The same change had probably happened to all the Zodiac Knights. This was a whole new level and it could only mean one thing…The Tournament was drawing near.
Jack and Maddie were in their pyjamas and standing in front of Danni's door. Jack tried to ram it in, but the door wouldn't even budge, Our heroes…and Devlin, arrived and the halfa and dhampir wore worried faces.
Maddie told them worriedly, "We heard Danni scream and when we tried to get in, the door was locked."
"I tried breaking it in, but the darn thing won't even budge!" Jack exclaimed, messaging a sore shoulder.
"Let me try," Danny said as he went intangible and tried phasing through, but a sudden shock of energy pushed him back and sent him flying into a wall.
"Danny!" Sam rushed over to him. Danny groaned.
"I'm okay…Man, what was that?" Danny questioned.
Devlin narrowed his eyes, "It's an invisible Anti-Ghost Shield." Everyone stared at him. "I just know." He went over to the door, his concern for Danni growing, but was able to keep himself from becoming hysterical. He took a capsule out of his pocket and threw it at the door. The capsule shattered and the door crumbled to dust. He smirked. What they saw inside made them gasp.
A blue skinned ghost with red eyes and black hair styled to look like horns was holding Danni by her wrist. She looked unconscious and pretty beaten with bruises on her face. Seeing her like this made Devlin's blood boil. The ghost was dressed in white with a cape. He had black gloves and boots.
"Oh good, the gang's all here!" the ghost said in mock pleasantness, hiding his maliciousness, but not very well.
"Plasmius…" Danny growled, quickly changing to ghost form.
"YOU!" Jack reached behind him and pulled out a Fenton Bazooka. Maddie pulled out her bazooka too.
"Let our daughter go or I swear I'll rip you apart molecule by molecule, Vlad!" Maddie threatened.
"Hurt me, Maddie? Will you even dare to pull he trigger since I have a hostage?" Vlad lifted Danni up by her wrist.
"You let her go you pasty faced cretin!" Devlin demanded, "Or so help me I'll…"
Danny saw the concern and anger in Devlin's eyes. Jazz had on the Fenton Peeler armor while Sam and Tucker were armed with miniature Fenton Blasters. Valerie had ALL her weapons aimed at Vlad, but did not dare to shoot since Vlad had Danni for a hostage and any of their attacks could hurt her instead of him since he would most likely use her as a shield.
The Titans were pretty much useless as anything they tried could hurt Danni. So, they didn't move. They couldn't risk it since Vlad had a hostage.
Vlad laughed at Devlin, "Or what? You'll makeup me to death?" he mocked.
"What do you want with Danni, Vlad?" Danny questioned this man…no, monster.
"Well, since I couldn't have you, I decided on the next best thing. I created Danielle so that makes me her rightful father."
"She'll never follow you!" Danny shouted.
"With a little mind alteration, she will…" Vlad smirked. "Now, I'll be off and I hope you all don't follow me, less you hurt precious Danielle." With a laugh, he placed Danni into his arms and flew up and phased through the rood.
"GET HIM!" Danny shouted as he flew after Vlad. Valerie flew out the window while Oni and Ember followed the same way Danny used to exit.
"Titans! Let's move it!" Robin commanded as he leapt out the window followed by Starfire, Raven and Shadwcobra, who flew out after him.
"Fentons! To the Fenton RV!" Jack announced, now in his orange jumpsuit. Maddie was in her blue jumpsuit while Jazz was still donned in her armor.
"We're coming too!" said Sam.
"That's right!" Tucker agreed.
Sam and Tucker were going to go with them. As they were leaving, Jazz turned to look at Devlin sympathetically.
"You coming?" his back was turn to her. She could, however, see his shoulders shaking. Without a word, she left him alone.
Devlin kneeled down and picked up a framed photograph of him and Danni that had been cracked. The room was a mess, meaning Danni put up a fight. However, Vlad was much more powerful than her, so he easily defeated her. He put the picture down, his single visible eye narrowed. He then ran out of the room, down the stairs leading towards the lab and went over to the table. He picked up the X-Belt.
"You're going to pay Vlad, with interest," Devlin hissed like his brother.
Vlad looked over his shoulder as the Fentons, the Titans and Team Phantom followed after him, giving chase.
"Oh, butter biscuits! They're coming after me!" Vlad cursed as he looked over his shoulder. "Maybe I should give them some playmates to waste their time." He blew a strange whistle, which let out no sound. It was actually a gift he received while he was controlling the Hollows awhile back.
The heroes soon fund themselves overwhelmed as vulture-like Hollows swooped down upon them. A few more Hollows, looking like the ghost animals Vlad once controlled, which could be assumed to be the same ghost animals, surrounded the grounded heroes and the Fenton RV. They looked the same as before, but with holes in their chests and skull masks. The Hollows that looked like Vultures could be the Ghost Vultures and the Hollows that looked like octopi…the ectopuses.
It was a known fact that EVERYONE and ANYONE in Amity Park could see Hollows since the people living there had been exposed to small traces of ectoplasmic energy. Magic users could also see Hollows. However, newcomers who didn't have magic could not see Hollows…Meaning Starfire and Robin were at a great disadvantage.
Robin and Starfire could only see everyone else attacking absolutely nothing. Robin shouted at Sam and Tucker, who were blasting at Hollows for all they were worth, "What's going on? That ghost is getting away with Danielle and you're all shooting at nothing!"
"Please, what are you shooting at, new friends Tucker and Samantha?" asked a puzzled Starfire, "Just what are you attacking?"
"Hollows!" The Goth and Techno Geek replied in unison.
"Hollows?" Robin and Starfire questioned.
"Robin! Starfire! Watch out!" shouted an armoured Shadowcobra as he slashed a Hollow down in half. Robin and Starfire only saw him slashing at air.
"What's going on?" Robin demanded.
"Vlad sent Hollows after us…and you can't see them, can you?" he backhanded a Hollow in the face and sent it crashing into a building. Robin and Starfire saw the crash, but not what had caused it.
"What are Hollows?" Starfire questioned, watching as Raven used her magic to smash cars into, in her viewpoint, nothing.
"Hollows are evil spirits that prey on ghosts and people with a lot of spiritual energy," Shadowcoba explained as he slammed a Hollow away with his staff. "To normal people they are invisible, but they still have dense physical bodies. So, even though you can't see them-ROBIN! LOOK OUT!" Robin was smashed into a tree. "You can still feel them." Shadow winced.
Robin groaned, "Now you tell me…"
"I suggest you two go after Vlad while we handle these things!" Shadowcobra punched a Hollow through its skull mask, killing it. "Go! And take Danny with you!" Starfire nodded as he and Robin gave chase, her in the air and him riding the R-Cycle. However, a few flying Hollows were blocking their path, but were taken care of by Oni and Ember.
Danny tried to fight the Hollows off, but they kept pecking and slashing at him. He needed help and the others were too busy to lend a hand.
A black clad figure wearing a skull mask stood upon the roof of a building, looking down at our heroes. His gaze fell first on Robin and Starfire who were going after Vlad and then to Danny. Devlin, or should I say Red-X, decided to lend an extra hand.
Danny was being overwhelmed by the Hollows. He couldn't use his Ghostly Wail since he would be too weak to help Danni and take down Vlad. A large winged Hollow came swooping down at Danny and the Ghost Boy was unable to power an ecto-blast in time…Then a giant red blade in the shape of an 'X' cut through the thing, slicing it in half before it vaporized. Danny looked up and saw Devlin in the Red-X suit. The makeup artist pulled off the mask and shouted at Danny, "Cease your dawdling! There's an arse we need to kick and damsel we need to save!" he swooped down, did a nose dive, and slashed at a pair of vulture Hollows with his X-Bades. He then landed, conveniently, on a black motorcycle that had the symbol of Red-X, a skull with an 'X' in it, the X-Bike, designed nearly identical to the R-Cycle. Shadow watched as his brother pulled the mask back on and rammed through a few Hollows, killing them with his X-Blasts. He smacked them away and shot them with the lasers in the headlights.
Shadow sent a telepathic message to Danny ((Help him.))
((Got it!)) Was Danny's reply.
Devlin…Red-X was thinking, 'Hold on Danielle darling…I'm coming for you and Vlad will be begging to be locked in a thermos once I'm through with him!'
Robin and Starfire were still chasing after Vlad. The adult halfa shot at them with his ecto-blasts, nearly hitting them. Danni was still unconscious and didn't look like she was going to wake up anytime soon.
"FREEZE!" Robin shouted. He couldn't risk using any of his weapons.
"Please! Surrender and come quietly!" Starfire pleaded, eyes glowing green with fury. She was controlling the urge to shoot a starbolt, but a stray shot could easily hurt Danni.
"I don't think so, kids," Vlad laughed at them as he turned to fire an ecto-blast from his eyes at Starfire. Unable to react, Starfire got hit in the shoulder. She screamed with pain.
"STAR!" Robin screamed as Starfire was about to fall…when she was caught by a pair of white gloved arms.
"You okay, Kori?" Danny asked her. She nodded.
"I only feel sore in my shoulder, friend Danny," she told him.
Robin then noticed a black motorcycle racing next to him. Riding on it was none other than Red-X/Devlin Amakusa. Devlin drew a gun from his belt, which was loaded with his potion capsules. He carefully took aim.
"Wait! You might miss and hurt Danni!" Robin said to him. Danny was thinking the same thing.
With eyes narrowed and pupils turned to sharp thin slits, Red-X replied, "I never miss." He pulled the trigger and fired on Vlad. Vlad got hit in the leg, but that was all it took for the dart to spread the potion.
"Oh, blast!" Vlad swore as his ghost powers failed on him, turning him back to his human alter ego, Vlad Masters. He was about to fall, until Danny and Starfire swooped down to grab them. Starfire and Danny grabbed Vlad, but Vlad dropped Danni.
"Danni!" Danny shouted, but his panic turned to relief as Red-X leapt off his bike, grabbed Danny in mid-air, and landed on the street, unharmed. Vlad grumbled as he was being restrained by Danny Phantom and Starfire. Without his ghost strength, he was unable to break himself free. Robin immediately recognized Vlad.
"You're Vlad Masters! Owner and CEO of the VladCo!" Robin identified him.
"Yes, I am," Vlad grumbled and turned to look at X. "You! The one in the skull mask! Boy, what did you do to me?"
Red-X was still holding Danni bridal style and then answered Vlad casually, "It was a special potion dart I was saving for Daniel. It's supposed to temporarily disable ghost powers, like your Plasmius Maximus. Of course, unlike your device, it lasts for a good 24 hours. So, for the next 24 hours, you're a normal human being." Danni was beginning to stir. Red-X willed the suit off and back into the belt, revealing the youthful face of Devlin Amakusa. Danni let out an adorable yawn before her blue eyes fluttered open. Looking back at her was the loving single eyed gaze of her boyfriend.
"Dev?" she looked confused. "Where am I?" she groaned, still in pain. When she turned to look at Vlad, it all came back to her. "Oh, now I remember." Her eyes narrowed with anger. "Put me down, Devlin." He did and Danni went over to Vlad.
"Hello, Danielle, my daughter," Vlad said softly, even though he was being restrained by Danny and Starfire.
"I'm not your daughter!" Danni snapped. "You may have created me, but you were never my father!" (Sound familiar?) she then changed into her ghost form and swung out her fist, punching him across the jaw, even knocking out a few teeth. Vlad looked at her angered face. "Consider that a warning. Stay away from me, my family and my friends and don't come near me ever again! Got it?" Vlad nodded fearfully. "Good." She smirked before punching him in the gut.
Devlin smirked, "Wow…that was hot."
"Well, let's go back to the others then," Robin said. "And maybe the cops would like to talk to you, Mr. Masters."
Vlad shouted, "You can't convict me! My lawyers will get me out! I'll be out in weeks! And I'll expose your identity Daniel and your friends' identities as well!" Vlad threatened. "Imagine this, not being able to go anymore with your true identities revealed to the whole world." He smirked, but that smirk turned into a frown when Devlin chuckled. "What's so damn funny?"
"You may have money, power, and influence, but so does Smart Brain Corporation," Devlin reminded him. "And we have Operatives ready to erase any memories or set it up so that no one will and ever learn that Danny Fenton and Danny Phantom are one and the same. You lost, Vlad, face it!"
Vlad yelled, "No I have not! Fright Knight!" At Vlad's command, the Fright Knight appeared, riding upon his horse the Night-mare. The Fright Knight was the Spirit of Halloween and a ghost with obsidian black armor, flaming purple hair and a cape. His steed was a demonic black stallion with large demonic bat wings.
"What are your orders, master?" The Fright Knight said, brandishing his Soul Shredder.
"Get me out of here!" Vlad shouted. The Fright Knight blasted at Starfire and Danny causing them to let go of Vlad. The Fright Knight then swooped down and grabbed Vlad, pulling him onto the back of his horse. Vlad waved at the glaring heroes, "Another time, Daniel and Danielle!" he let out a mocking laughter as the Fright Knight and Vlad escaped into the darkness, turning invisible to avoid detection. They were gone in a flash.
"Let's go after them!" Robin and Danny shouted.
"No, we should go help the others with the Hollows," Devlin said as he took out a pair of silver and green goggles, the Fenton Goggles, and threw them at Robin and Starfire. "Put those on, they'll help you see Hollows." He pressed the button on his belt buckle and the suit was summoned onto him. Danni watched him in fascination.
"Nice suit," she smiled. "I like the colors and the mask."
"Thank you," he mounted the X-Bike and turned it around. "Let's go." He zoomed ahead.
Danny shook his head, "Who died and made him king?" he followed after Red-X. The others followed suit.
The Fentons, Shadow, Raven, Oni, Ember, Valerie, Sam and Tucker were doing fairly well, that is until the Hollows did something strange.
"What's happening?" Raven questioned. Shadow had only seen this in books, but came to a startling conclusion.
"The Hollows…they're coming together, fusing with each other," he gasped, realizing the truth. "Oh no!"
"What's going on?" Valerie asked, seeing Ember and Ryan (he took off his mask) looking freaked.
Ryan let the words out slowly, "Menos…Grande…"
Menos Grande.
The Hollow that now stood was over 80 feet tall and looked like a large black shroud covering over a thin body. There was hole in the centre of its chest. The mask was white and had a long nose. The thing stared down at the heroes and opened its mouth. Raven shouted, "EVERYONE! MOVE! MOVE NOW!"
The monster fired a black energy blast that sped towards them. Shadow and Raven fired back with their dark energy, but the enemy blast was blasting them back. Oni and Ember joined in and soon everyone else was trying to push the blast back, struggling with all their might. If that blast touched them…You don't want to know…
Suddenly, two green ecto-blasts and a starbolt slammed into the side of its head, causing the gigantic Hollow to fire its beam into the air. Danny, Danni, Red-X/Devlin, Starfire and Robin were back to lend a hand. Now wearing the Fenton Goggles, Robin and Starfire could see the monster clearly.
"By X-Hal, what is that?" Starfire gasped.
"Dead," Shadow drew out a card and slid it into his transformed staff. "SURVIVE!" Now clad in his Survivor Mode armor, he was ready to take this thing down. Shadow said to the others. "Alright, we have to target its head. That's the only way we can kill it."
"We gotta move fast, cause it's coming this way!" Tucker yelled out as the Hollow marched towards them.
Red-X narrowed his eyes. "The head?" he removed a telescope from his belt. He then reached for his belt buckle and slid out the X-Key. He slid the Key into the telescope and it sprung out. Danni saw this and said to him:
"I don't think now's a good time to be stargazing, Devlin." She then watched in curiosity as he attached it to his right boot. He pressed a button on his belt buckle.
"X-ceed Charge." His suit crackled with red energy as the X's on his suit glowed. The Xinothium was now focused on his right boot and in his telescope, the X-Pointer. He then, without warning, ran towards the monstrous Hollow.
"Devlin! No!" Danni scream. The others watched as Devlin seemed to be committing suicide. With a burst of power, Devlin jumped up till he was almost above the Hollow. He kicked out his right leg, which crackled with Xinothium and dropped down, executing a flying drop kick.
"X-KICK!!!" Red-X shouted as his kick smashed THROUGH the Hollow's mask. The Hollow howled as Red-X exited from the other end. He grabbed the ends of his cape to create a makeshift parachute and slowly floated down. He turned to look at the Hollow and then to the others. "What are you waiting for? An invitation? Now's your chance! Finish him off!"
Shadow nodded and so did the others. Robin commanded, "FIRE AT WIIL!" The Hollow was soon overwhelmed by powerful plasma blast, ecto-blasts, shadow blasts, dark blasts and finally a GHOSTLY WAIL from our resident ghost boy. The Hollow was overwhelmed and vaporized into nothingness.
"We are victorious!" Starfire squealed. Danny then walked over to Devlin, who had removed his mask. The others tensed, thinking this may turn into a shouting match. Instead, Danny extended his hand, "You did good."
Devlin, surprised, smiled back and took his hand, shaking it, "You too."
"And, from now on," Danny said, "I approve of you and Danni. You're the right guy for her and I see that now." Danni smiled and hugged her brother then Devlin. "I also apologize for all the grief I've been giving you." The others smile as Danny and Devlin were now at peace.
Oh, they were wrong.
Devlin shook his head, "No, I should apologize for beating you up."
"No, I should be the one apologizing," Danny said to him.
"No, I should be apologizing." Danni looked back and forth between the two and stepped back, sighing.
"I'm sorry!"
"No, I'm sorry!"
"Not as sorry as me!"
"You can't be as sorry as me!"
"Yes I am!"
"Am not!"
"Am too!"
"AM NOT!"
"AM TOO!"
"AM NOT!"
The others groaned. It would seem that Devlin and Danny just couldn't get along. Oh well.
"AM TOO TIMES 10!"
"AM NOT TO INFINITY!"
(Sigh…)
To Be Continued…
The Next chap will focus on the Sabreron known as Blackbird that Pluto, Cyborg and Beast Boy found. The title is well duh. Stay tune for Chapter 15: Blackbird.
And pls review and tell me what you think, kay? Bye!
So, does Devlin get to keep the Red-X suit and Gear or what? You decide.