Phantom: Hey everybody. Guess whose baaaaaaack. That's right; it's your friends Phantom and Trainer. To those of you that didn't know, we were at camp for just under two months. We got back over the weekend but I didn't get to read anything from the time I had left, so my first priority was to catch up on the fanfictions I was reading. So, sorry for the long wait, but I can guarantee that the wait was well worth it. Not only have I thought of some more ideas for these upcoming chapters, but also for my sequel.
Trainer: hey, don't forget that I'm here too. Being at our camp is awesome. There's not a single person that doesn't know at least one of the seasons of pokemon.
Phantom: *giving a sideways glance* yeah, too bad not very many remember who Danny Phantom is. Sure, most people who do know are just a little older or younger than us, but other than that…*sniff* you have to explain it to them before they recognize the name!
Danny: how can someone not know who I am? I was very successful for several years. I even came back on Netflix. Plus, I saved the world on several occasions.
Trainer: Focus Danny! Go do your hero thing, I need to talk to Phantom for a minute. Hey, pull it together; you have a responsibility to your readers. You need to continue writing your story! *starts shaking Phantom back and forth*
Phantom: ( _ ) *spinning out of dizziness* oaoaoah kayayayayayay. *falls to the floor*
Trainer: um, Phantom? Are you ok?
Phantom: zzzzzzzzzz.
Trainer: (-_-) ok… while I try and get Phantom back to normal, please enjoy the next exciting chapter of Ghostly Reunions! *turning to Phantom* ok buddy, time to get up. If you don't get up, then I'll have to–
*Phantom shoots an ecto-beam at Trainer, singeing the edge of Trainer's hat*
Trainer: oh now you're asking for it! Charizard, use flamethrower!
Phantom: OWOWOWOWOWOWOWOWOW! HOTHOTHOTHOTHOTHOTHOTHOT! *looks around and spots trainer* You. Are. So. DEAD! *turning to the audience* please enjoy this next chapter!
Disclaimer: I don't own Danny Phantom and some ideas are owned by Pearl84 and Truephan, but the plot is mine!
*Since I forgot to do this for the last chapter, this is for both chapter 4 and 5.*
Chapter 5: Horrible Clues, Part 1
*Bam*
A green energy beam shot out of the endless black, green and purple space that made up the area known as the Ghost Zone. The seemingly random beam shot forward and hit a stray rock formation on one of the many purple islands. Within a few seconds, the rock formation was nothing more than a pile of rubble, a thin line of smoke emitting from the destruction.
*Bam Bam*
Two more beams shot out of the eerie atmosphere; and while one went astray like the first and hit another rock formation, the second hit its target. Unfortunately for the attacker, the ecto-beam was still off by a large amount. Instead of hitting the target's chest, it hit the being's wing. The sound that resonated throughout the area sounded like a sheet of metal being hit by another object.
The being looked back at his wing and saw that it too was emitting smoke, just like any object does after taking damage from a ghost's energy ray. His metallic appendage began to create a sort of sputtering noise, and as the smoke began to increase in size the noise soon died down and eventually stopped all together.
Almost immediately, the ghost frowned at the predicament he had somehow gotten himself into. If the smoke and shut down engine weren't enough of a clue for the poor ghost, then the fact that he was quickly losing altitude should have been.
Suddenly, a small ringtone sounded from the specter's wrist. To anybody else, it would have come as a surprise, but to the ghost, it was just another annoyance that would tell him something that he already knew. A second later, the ghost looked at his beeping wrist just as a message appeared.
The specter's eyebrows creased with annoyance as he read, "right engine damaged. Immediate repair required." His frown deepening, he muttered, "of course". There was only one problem with the message; he wouldn't be able to follow it, not while in his currently compromised position. He wouldn't even be able to make any make-shift repairs!
Turning around, Skulker willed forth one of the many weapons hidden within his armour to his metallic hand and shot an energy ray of his own at his attackers. His blast hit one of his attackers squarely in the chest, vaporizing it. Unfortunately for the hunter, another ghost that looked just like it appeared in its place.
Grunting with even more annoyance, if that was even possible, Skulker fired several more rounds of ecto-beams at the pursuing ghosts. But with each ghost that fell, another just took its place. "What does it take to keep these things down?" the hunter grumbled.
The hunter didn't even know what kind of ghost the specters were. He had never seen anything like them before. Not in any of his many years of hunting had he seen these creatures, and that seemed almost impossible seeing as there was something close to a small army chasing after him.
Currently, there were two types of creatures following him:
The first ones were nothing really. They were very short, around the size of that ghost dog; Cujo. They ran around on all fours but stood on two legs when they wanted to attack. They had no hands or feet, but rather all four appendages ended as nubs. They had a set of antennae in the shape of lightning bolts and they fell back towards their hind legs. They were light blue at the top and became darker the farther down the body it travelled. But their most distinguishing feature was their eyes; blood red, pupil less, and filled with nothing but hate, or at least that's what Skulker thought he saw in their eyes.
These creatures weren't so good at fighting however. They just darted around to confuse the enemy while one of the other creatures attacked; making them nothing more than moving targets for the hunter. However, a special feature to them was that they could dive into the ground like a shadow, making it harder still to shoot them.
It was these creatures' friends that the ghost hunter had to look out for. They were slightly taller, about the size of Danielle when standing at full height. Unlike their lesser counterparts, these ghosts, at least Skulker presumed that they were ghosts, seemed to be able to think. They would weave in and out of the swarm of ghosts and attack with precision. They shared some similarities with the smaller ghosts; blue bodies, blood red eyes, and short lightning bolt shaped antennae.
But there were also many differences. Their heads were like helmets. Their bodies were more humanoid than the smaller, mouse-like beings. Their eyes were shaped like a 'U'. They had hands and feet. Their mid-section, legs, hands, and neck were black. They looked like they were wearing armoured shirts and pants; which were also blue. Finally, they had claws that glowed green when they were about to attack with a powerful swipe or ecto-beam. They may be smaller than the hunter, but Skulker had learned to never judge a book by its cover, thanks to the whelp. And it was a good thing too, because their attacks were more powerful than he had ever expected.
He suspected that if he was fighting only one or two of these ghosts, he could have finished this up about an hour ago instead of running away for who-knows-how-long. Sure, alone they were nothing, but together… it was like a flood waiting to devour everything in its path.
One shot from those creatures had practically destroyed his flying equipment. Not to mention that every time one was destroyed, another took its place like nothing had happened! There was no way that he could fight his way through them. Heck, he didn't even know how many there were. Like any good hunter and warrior, he knew when to flee. He just needed to lose them, but how?
Looking around frantically, Skulker attempted to find a hiding place or at least someone else that he could dump these freaks on who could distract them while he made an attempt to make the necessary repairs to his suit.
Having been chased all over the Ghost Zone, Skulker had no time to pay much attention to his surroundings other than to make sure he didn't collide with anything. Finally taking a moment to actually see his surroundings, the hunter nearly slapped himself for not recognizing the area sooner. He was near Pariah Dark's castle! Sure, the evil ghost king was still locked up within its walls, thanks to the whelp and his employer, but that doesn't mean that Pariah was the only resident of the castle.
The castle could provide him with the cover he so desperately needed. Not to mention, Fright Knight could easily fend off or even defeat these pests with his sword; soul shredder. Without a second thought, the hunter turned himself invisible; hoping that his followers would lose his trail. He altered his course and turned towards the foreboding castle. He flew, if that's what you want to call it, the remaining distance to the perfectly creepy abode.
"How he can even continue living there is beyond me," Skulker thought as he made his descend.
Landing at the entrance, Skulker looked back to see if any of the ghosts had followed him, but to his surprise, all of them were gone! There wasn't a single shadow on the ground to indicate the presence of one of the smaller ghosts and he would have seen any that may have been invisible. Not even his scanners could show them. If they were there, they could easily ambush him.
Raising his eyebrow as if confused, the metallic ghost said, "How… odd".
Ever since he unwillingly accepted this job, everything began to get weirder than usual; both in the human world and the Ghost Zone. And that was never a good sign.
With one final look around, Skulker walked into the medieval ghost's abode. Finally sure that the coast was clear, Skulker regained visibility and began his search for his co-worker. Sure, Skulker and Fright Knight could easily now call each other friends, but that was almost always put aside when accomplishing a job; and this was a very important job, or at least as far as Skulker could tell it was.
The hunter continued to search for his companion throughout the creepy halls of the castle. Normally, Skulker wouldn't dare intrude on another ghost's home unless it was urgent; hey, he may be a ruthless hunter, but he had morals and standard. Plus, this was, and still is, the home to Pariah Dark; the tyrant ghost king of the entire Ghost Zone! Skulker only came here on rare occasions now to speak with the ghost knight and the only time before that was to aid the Ghost Boy in defeating the evil king! Otherwise, you would have never seen the hunter anywhere near this castle. Heck! You wouldn't have seen anybody, ghost, spirit or human near this place.
But he did have to give Fright Knight some credit. He was willing to continue living here even after everything that had happened. Then something occurred to Skulker that he had never thought about: why doesn't Fright Knight live in the medieval section of the Ghost Zone like Dora and her brother?
As quickly as that thought came, an answer presented itself. Skulker scoffed as he muttered, "because, Fright Knight does the bidding of the most powerful being he knows. He must believe that it's the same when dealing with homes within the Ghost Zone. If that' true, then Pariah's castle is definitely a more powerful place than the dragon siblings' castle."
Skulker continued down the hallways, hoping to run into the ghost he was looking for. Getting annoyed by how his search was going and how there was no progress, Skulker began opening doors left and right. When he came to his thirteenth door, he was more than just annoyed; he was furious! You would be too if you were caught up in the same mess; getting a job he didn't want, being chased by some mysterious group of ghosts that just… disappeared, having broken armour, and to top it all off, he couldn't find Fright Knight in his own abode.
Still frustrated, he opened the door only to find that it was a training room of some sort. It had all the necessary sword combat training devices imaginable, or at least the ones for the medieval time period. There were dummies made of stray and wood, practice logs, the works!
Thinking it was just another empty room, Skulker moved to leave and check the next room when he heard someone yell 'Ha' and the following sound of metal hitting wood. Skulker turned back around only to spot Fright Knight in the middle of the room. He was in the midst of attacking a combat dummy that had a certain resemblance to that of the Ghost Boy. Clearly, the ghost knight hated being beaten in battle by the whelp time and time again.
Skulker smirked at the scene before him. If he had a camera, he would capture this moment. Sure, his suit had a built in surveillance system, but it was for hunting new creatures like the ones that had attacked him before. The hunter then made a note to look into those ghosts.
Returning to the actions of the ghost knight, Skulker just marvelled at what their relationship had turned into. If there was one thing that he and many other ghosts had in common, it was they're mutual hate towards the ghost child. Only he and Plasmius actually desired the whelp; of course for different reasons, but it was still a trait that only the two of them shared. Everybody else hated him, wanted him dead, or was his friend. How any ghost was friends with the whelp he honestly didn't know. Either way, everyone else wanted the pest gone.
Just then, Fright Knight drew his soul shredder and made a clean, diagonal cut across the dummy's body from its shoulder down to its waist. The top half of the dummy then fell to the ground in a heap of debris with the picture of Danny Phantom's face ripped to shreds.
When the ghost knight sheathed his sword again, Skulker cleared his throat, effectively getting the other ghost's attention. Skulker moved away from the door way, clapping his hands in praise of the other ghost's accomplishment; even if it wasn't the real thing.
Fright Knight walked over to Skulker, very surprised to see the hunter in his home. What was he doing here? If it had been anyone else, he would have drawn his sword again and attacked!
Fright Knight then began to greet his visitor before he asked, "what brings you here of all places, Skulker? Did my liege send for you to give me a task?"
Skulker resisted the urge to roll his eyes, but didn't stop the immediate frown that fell on his face due to the questions. What was he supposed to tell the medieval ghost? If he told him that he was being chased through the Ghost Zone and attacked by unusual ghosts, not only would it raise the question as to why he was being chased and the reason for his activities, it would ruin his hunter reputation! And he couldn't have that. And really, he didn't need, let alone want anybody else knowing about his mission. If Fright Knight found out that Plasmius knew and was "helping" Skulker find the books, then the ghost knight would want to assist "his liege" find the books like the loyal dog he was.
Skulker knew he had to tell the other ghost something, so he… stretched the truth just a bit.
"I was hunting down some very rare and elusive prey," the hunter started. "My travels brought me to a region in the Ghost Zone that's not all that well known and these odd ghosts began attacking me. Seeing that I was out numbered, a fled but they followed me through the Ghost Zone up until I reached your abode. Unfortunately, they damaged my wing, so I was hoping…"
"You were hoping to repair the damage while inside this castle," Fright Knight finished, finally understanding where his hunter friend/co-worker was going with his statement.
Skulker nodded and smirked mostly to himself at the effectiveness of his half-lie. Hey, it technically was the truth; just not the whole truth. But, it was enough information that no one would what he was actually doing; especially considering that he was the Ghost Zone's greatest and most feared hunter (as if there were any other ghost hunters).
Fright Knight, mistaking that the smirk was the hunter's way of thanking him for letting him stay, said, "Well then, Skulker, I will take my leave for now. You may choose a room to work in, but you do not need to inform me of your departure." And with that said, the ghost knight walked around the hunter and through the hall to another part of the castle.
Skulker looked around the training room and then out into the hallway. Deciding that the training room was as good as any of the other rooms, Skulker shut the door and locked it for maximum security.
He took in his surroundings again and then sat on one of the benches littering the walls. Skulker looked around for the umpteenth time before finally relaxing. Normally, for a hunter of Skulker's level, he wouldn't be afraid of anything. However, Skulker wasn't everything he appeared to be.
Very few people knew about Skulker's secret. Those that knew were either very close to him or had found out by accident. Plasmius had known for years, probably since a little after they had met; just like he had known that Plasmius was half-ghost half-human. Ember obviously knew. She was his girlfriend after all. Not telling her would make their relationship more awkward than when they had last fought. Then there was the whelp and his little helpers. Ever since their first run-in with each other and that purple-back gorilla, well… let's just say that was not something he had wanted them to know.
Skulker had no choice right now though. His wing was broken and it was on his back. He needed to first get it off before he could repair it with his suit.
Suddenly, a small hissing sound could be heard from the metallic ghost. Then there was a small click. As the green flames that made up the ghost's hair and goatee extinguished and the green eyes on Skulker's metallic head went out, the hunter's head split open to reveal a small, green, blob-like ghost with red eyes.
The little ghost looked around again and sighed with his squeaky, high-pitched voice. If everyone in the Ghost Zone knew that this small, defenceless ghost was really the most feared and well known ghost hunter in the Ghost Zone, then his reputation would be ruined. And Skulker was not one to mess with when it came to his pride and honour. The only person to shame him in that sense was the ghost child, and he would have his pelt for it. He was going to hunt the whelp and keep him in a cage for the rest of his life, but after that stunt, well… now he gets the privilege of being skinned by Skulker. Instantly, Skulker smiled at the thought of finally having his prize.
Satisfied that the area was secure, and that no one would be able to come inside the room without his permission, Skulker turned his attention back to his exoskeleton to tend to the damaged wing; no thanks to those mysterious ghosts.
Skulker moved to the back of his suit and removed the jets and wings, then placed them on the bench next to him. Finally seeing the full extent of the damage on his wing, Skulker swore under his breath in his squeaky voice.
The damage was worse than he thought it was. The engine for the wing had been shattered on the inside, but otherwise, the exterior was in perfect shape. The rotor however was cracked down the middle. Finally, to add insult to injury, the whole main area of the wing was bent and distorted in every direction from the many hits it took.
The damages could take weeks to fix. That is unless someone like Plasmius helped him, but otherwise, he was a sitting duck! Not to mention that his other suit would still need a few adjustments and calibrations before he would be able to use it.
Looking closer at the broken wing, he found that the damage could be fixed with time. The small blob-like ghost sighed then gave a slight smile. Well, he wouldn't be getting anywhere as fast as he would like, but at least the wing would serve the purpose of keeping him balanced while travelling. Maybe if he could fix some of the damage now, he could get to his own home or to Plasmius' to fix the rest of it.
Still, that didn't change the fact that he was annoyed by the damage and destruction of his beloved armour. If he ever got his hands on one of those ghosts, he was going to be ruthless and mount their pelt on his wall!
"I might even go as far as the whelp's parents and rip it apart molecule by molecule," Skulker muttered in his tiny voice.
He was definitely going to make sure that when he got paid for this job, it would be double the original price. Going back to the head of his suit, he grabbed some tools and started working on the wing.
It was about ten O-clock now and Skulker just finished fixing about half of the dents in his wing. He had been working for three hours now, but it was worth it if his suit could work at full capacity again. The engine would definitely need to be replaced. Skulker smirked at his next thought, "the parts for my armour can be Plasmius' down payment. He owes me for all this anyways."
Just then, Skulker's PDA began to ring. Curious as to who would be trying to contact him, Skulker stopped working on the half-finished wing and moved over to his suit. Seeing that the message was from his employer, Skulker connected the communication, but went back to the wing he had been fixing. There were only a few more dents in the wing and the hunter was determined to get rid of them.
No more than five seconds later, static could be heard on the other end, followed by Vlad's voice. "Skulker, are you there? Skulker," the billionaire called.
Getting annoyed, Skulker floated over to the PDA strapped to his metal arm and said, "Skulker here. What do you want Plasmius? I'm busy and I've had a very bad day."
There was a brief silence on the other end before Vlad responded, "well I believe I have found something of interest for your little 'treasure hunt'. Come by my mansion in Wisconsin as soon as you can."
Skulker was surprised. How had Plasmius found anything involving the books when he couldn't? well that didn't matter. As long as he could find a new lead. Skulker, being excited now, replied, "I'll be over within the hour. I have some news for you as well, if you're interested."
Another silence enveloped the room when Plasmius' voice came over the communicator, "good to hear, Skulker. By the way, why aren't you inside your armour? What happened?
Skulker then realized that he was still outside his armour and face-palmed. He had forgotten all about it until now. Plasmius could easily tell when the hunter was in his suit or not while over their communicators. Even though he tried to push down his anger, some of it still leaked out as he said, "Look Plasmius, I'll explain when I get there. And I may need a favour once I get there."
He heard the hybrid sigh on the other side, clearly leaving it for later. Then Vlad said, "I'll be waiting for you to arrive, ta." And with that, the older hybrid disconnected their communication with slight static followed by dead silence.
Skulker looked at the communicator for a little while longer before sighing and running his little green hand down the length of his face. Even though he had been incredibly rude to the man, something in the hybrid's voice had sounded excited, like a kid in the candy store. The hunter looked back at his wing and gave another aggravated sigh. Before he could even think about going anywhere, he had to get the rest of the dents out of wing.
"You really have the worst timing, Plasmius," the ghost hunter mumbled as he went back to work.
No more than twenty minutes later, Skulker was travelling towards his employer's ghost portal. He was travelling slower than he would have liked, but thanks to his quick repairs to his wing he was travelling faster than he would have if it was still bent and out of shape.
Another twenty minutes later and Skulker was at the portal. He knocked once. Twice. Three times. Skulker was already testing his own patients today, and it was coming quickly to its end. He was considering just blasting through the metal doors, but then his employer would have a fit and start swearing snack names.
Next thing Skulker knew, the portal doors opened, revealing the swirling mass of green that was the ghost portal. Relieved that he didn't have to resort to anything that would get his employer mad at him, the hunter quickly flew through the portal and into one of the labs within the billionaire's Wisconsin home. Taking a quick look around, Skulker saw that it was Vlad's private lab. He knew that Vlad would use this lab for all his more top secret work and that no one would suspect a thing since it was located behind the fireplace in his private study.
Skulker landed and walked through the lab until he found the being he was searching for. Sitting at the computer monitor was Vlad in his human form, his black suit and white, pulled-back hair neat and tidy as always.
As Skulker got closer, the half-ghost hybrid finally turned around. He had a huge, ear-to-ear grin plastered on his face. It was almost like Vlad was some common person, who had won the lottery, and in a sense he had; just that it was more like a spectral lottery that consisted of rare and powerful objects instead of large amounts of cash.
Vlad stood up from his seat and said, "Ah, Skulker. Good to see you." But finally noticing the broken wing he added, "Dear god, Skulker, what happened to you? I'm surprised that you're even able to fly with that equipment."
Skulker instantly frowned. He wasn't able to retract his wings because of the damages, so now Vlad could see what had kept him. Seeing how quiet the hunter had gotten, Vlad knew that he had to say something in order to get his employee to tell him something, and he knew just the thing. Placing a hand on his beard as if in thought, he said, "I suppose this was the favour you were talking about. Well don't worry my good ghost; I think I have just the thing."
Moving away from the computer monitor, Vlad went over to one of the work benches. Skulker followed but when he got there, all he could see was a white cloth covering something underneath. Vlad looked back at the hunter with the same grin on his face as he said, "I was working on something I think you'll like, especially since the wings for your suit are damaged."
When Skulker raised an eyebrow, clearly not understanding what the hybrid was saying, Vlad motioned for the hunter to come closer. He Skulker complied, Vlad came closer and removed the jets and wings from the hunter's back, earning an annoyed, "What are you–"
Only to be cut off as Vlad said, "Oh, be quiet Skulker. I'm doing you a favour here."
Vlad placed the wings in a scrap bin, and then moved back to the table. Removing the cloth from the hidden object, Skulker gasped; earning a small chuckle from Vlad.
"Yes, it is breath taking isn't it?" Vlad commented. "I made it really for your other suit, but considering the circumstances and what you need to be doing, I think now is a perfect time to give you this."
Skulker couldn't believe it. It was a brand new set of wings. They were slick and the design was made for speed. It was black and green like his new, unfinished suit. Skulker would have cried if it hadn't meant short circuiting his current suit. He hadn't told Plasmius that his new suit wouldn't need wings since it had a spectral tail, but he didn't need to know that right now. Skulker really needed the wings right now.
"Thank you Plasmius. I… I don't know what to say except thank you," the hunter said as he picked up the new technology.
The older hybrid continued to smile as he replied, "no need to thank me Skulker. But there are some things you should know. First, these wings can travel faster and for a longer period of time than your last pair. Second, there are some special features such as…" and Vlad pushed a button on it that, when attached to the hunter's suit, could be accessed without pushing it. In the next instant, a set of laser guns emerged from a side compartment in each of the jets. "These guns have several settings to them, but I think the ones you'll enjoy are the stun and destroy settings," Vlad continued. "These wings are also more durable and won't break as easily as your last ones."
Coming full circle to his previous question, he asked, "What did happen that your suit took so much damage?"
Readjusting the new appendages on his back, Skulker finally looked up at the man before giving another sigh. If there was anything he really didn't want to do right now, it was discussing the creatures from earlier that day. But if he knew Plasmius, and he did, the older hybrid wouldn't be satisfied until he heard the whole story. If he didn't, then the half-ghost might withhold the information that could help him get this infernal job (or as Skulker now felt it was; chore) out of the way.
Finishing with attaching the new wings, Skulker began to tell the other being about his troubles.
"I thought it would be a good idea to travel to some of the lesser known areas of the Ghost Zone," the hunter started. "Since one of the books went missing in one of these areas, I figured I should have a look around. Unfortunately, these ghosts that I had never seen before came out of nowhere and ambushed me."
"Is that how your suit was damaged?" Vlad questioned.
Skulker shook his head, but replied, "no, not entirely. I flew through the Ghost Zone trying to lose them, but they just kept following. There were two different kinds." With that, Skulker took a connection cable from his wrist and plugged it into one of the computers. After he typed something into his PDA, two images appeared. They were of the ghosts that had been chasing him.
Vlad came closer to the screen just as the images came up on it. Skulker was right, not even he had seen these creatures before. But they were a marvel, none the less.
Skulker pointed to the smaller of the two creatures and said, "These pests aren't actually a problem, but they are exceedingly annoying. Somehow, they can 'melt' their bodies down to the ground and move about without being harmed and then regenerate back to their original structure. While in this 'melted' state, they can't be hit and they appear almost like shadows."
Skulker looked back at his friend and saw that he was definitely fascinated by these creatures. Continuing, the hunter growled, "It's these ones," pointing to the taller ghost "that you have to look out for. They're no taller than that clone of the whelp that you created, but their attacks are still incredibly powerful. With just a few swipes and ecto-rays from their glowing green claw and you get the shambles that was the wings to my armour."
Turning to face the hybrid again, he added, "I wouldn't want to run into these creatures again and I advise you to do the same and keep your distance."
Vlad had momentarily frowned at the mention of his daughter. If there was one thing he was sure of, it was that he and Danielle may never resolve their differences. Even still, he motion for Skulker to continue.
The hunter nodded and continued to say, "Either way, there was a huge swarm of them and they chased me through the Ghost Zone until I reach Fright Knight's abode. I stayed there for several hours up until the point that you had called me."
Vlad froze for a moment at the mention of Fright Knight. If there was one thing he knew about the ghost knight, it was his obsession with serving powerful ghosts. Since he was currently the ghost's master, he would try and help Vlad in any way possible. Fearing for a slip-up that Skulker may have made he urged, "Does Fright Knight know what you and, in relationship, I are trying to do currently?
Skulker shook his head and replied, "I thought you might ask. I told him a vague description of what brought me to his door, and he accepted it without question. I didn't tell him anything about the book relics or of how you were helping."
Vlad nodded and then returned to the keyboard to his computer. He typed some things into it and Skulker instantly knew that he was copying the information from his suit about the two creatures. When that was done, he motion for Skulker to come closer and look at the screen.
Skulker complied and looked through the simple data as fast as he could. Then he asked, "What is this, Plasmius?"
Vlad's grin returned as he said, "I went on a little road trip with Daniel and his friends the other day." This earned a surprised look from the hunter to which the billionaire quickly said, "without them knowing of course. Anyways, on our travels we went to two places I think you'll want to see." Vlad typed in some more commands and several pictures and video streams popped up onto the screen. The last one being of a green blur crossing the screen.
Skulker looked on in confusion to which Vlad said, "Oh, you'll especially want to see this one. Did you know that young Daniel was a ghost dog by the name of Cujo?"
Skulker shook his head again. What did this have to do with the important information that Plasmius wanted to show him? As if in answer to his unsaid question, Vlad pressed play on the video feed. For the next few minutes the two of them stood there watching as the green blur took shape as the little green ghost dog and dragged Danny all over the place. When it finished, Skulker stood there completely stunned before he broke into a fit of laughter.
"Could I get a copy of that," he managed to wheeze out while he whipped away a stray tear.
Vlad couldn't help but chuckle at the hunter's response. "Oh, of course, but you'll also be receiving the other pictures and videos from our travels," the billionaire said.
Showing the hunter the rest of the information, the two discussed certain events like the mysterious shadow-like ghost, the places the books were kept, and the existence of the Realm Beyond Time. However, Vlad kept the part about the thermos secret. That was something that he felt needed to stay between him and Daniel.
Much of the things revealed to Skulker about the timeless realm really shocked him. He knew there was a place for the ancient to live; someplace away from the rest of the Ghost Zone's residents, but he never imagined that the whelp knew where it was located, let alone that he was friends with the master of time. But, none of that mattered right now. All he needed to know was that now it was a race to find the missing books and where to find the mystery ghost. Unfortunately, neither he nor Plasmius knew the whereabouts of the cloaked ghost.
"Skulker, how much of the Ghost Zone have you checked for these relics?" Vlad question, turning towards the large mechanical hunter.
Skulker rubbed his chin, deep in thought, as he tried to recall where he had searched. Looking back at the hybrid, Skulker said, "I estimate that I've searched about a quarter of the Ghost Zone. If you think about the entire area of the ghost realm, there are areas that are pretty empty. That was one of the places I tried to search and you know the outcome to that."
Vlad nodded in agreement. Then he turned and said, "You should finish searching the other three quadrants before looking anywhere in the human world. And that include the areas that appear barren. Things aren't always as they seem Skulker. On both of my travels yesterday and several months ago with Daniel, we went to places that I thought were only myth. Also, when you go to the human world, please inform me. You don't need to search here or at the Fenton's house since both of us don't seem to have them."
Skulker nodded in response. He was planning to search more of the Ghost Zone before moving on to the human world anyways, but it was best not to argue. The part about the emptier areas of the zone though, that had him worried. He didn't want to run into those creatures again. But he supposed that he could always ask Plasmius to join him. Vlad always enjoy a good "treasure hunt" as would put it.
Vlad gave the hunter the information that he would need and then the two said their farewells to each other. Skulker slipped back through the billionaire's ghost portal while Vlad went and sat back down at his computer.
He typed in a command to his computer and a hologram of Maddie Fenton appeared off to the side of a work bench. "What is it you would like, my little sugar lump?" the hologram asked.
"Bring up the video of the mysterious figure from Clockwork's time glass, and freeze the image exactly at the point where we see the writing on the wall," Vlad commanded.
"Right away," Maddie reported. She paused and then said, "Did you do something to your hair? It looks great!" And with that the hologram moved over to a different monitor and began typing in new commands. Seconds later, the video from inside Clockwork's abode appeared on the screen and at the point the older hybrid had specified.
Vlad looked at the message on the screen. It was a good thing he had seen this part, otherwise he would have no lead right now. He looked over the message as it read;
La ŝlosiloj estas samaj sed ankaŭ diferencas,
Do el estonteco estinteco,
Kaj de donaco al estonteco,
Tiuj klavoj havas potencon kiu daŭros.
Sep ŝlosiloj en tuta ekzisti,
Kun sep solaj potencoj,
Sep vojoj,
Neniu spaco por kovardaj.
La lumo kondukos,
Kaj la ombro sekvos.
Kun la angulo kaj diablo,
Ili ne povas rulu.
La orakolo komencos la ludo,
Sed trovas la ombro inter la lumo.
La vojaĝanto trovos la lumo,
Sed estas konfuzita malbono ene de lukto.
La fina klavo,
Estos malkaŝita,
Je la ĝusta momento,
Ĝis tiam ĝi estas kaŝita.
…(1)
Unfortunately for Vlad, he had no idea what any of it meant. "I wonder if this was what it was like for Daniel when he was in Germany," Vlad mumbled to himself. This was complete gibberish for him. Was this even a real language?
It was like looking at that infernal scroll that lead him and Daniel to the Order's Crystal. Except this time it was worse! He couldn't read this made-up language. He was only able to read the third stanza, and that was because it appeared like English for him. "The light shall lead, and the shadow will follow. With the angel and devil, they cannot wallow," Vlad read. Well that's not much help. If this was anything like that stupid scroll, then he was the shadow and Daniel was the light, which meant he couldn't do this without his young adversary.
"Oh, fudge buckets," the hybrid said. It was unlikely to gain the boy's trust again so soon after the last horrible encounters they had. But even though he knew that he and Daniel were the light and shadow, who was these angel and devil figures? They had to play some part in all this. And considering that this message was under the image of the four books and the ghost portal, Vlad concluded that it had something to do with half-ghost half-human hybrids. But that only raised more questions.
There were only three ghost hybrids in the world, but there were four books. Not to mention, the phrase he just read talked about four beings: Light, Shadow, Angel and Devil.
All of this made no sense at all. Vlad gripped his head and said, "I think I'm getting a headache from this mess. Too many things don't add up. Maddie, be a dear and turn on the spy-cams in the Fenton household. Then turn off all other systems."
He vaguely heard his hologram respond and fill out his orders as he started towards the exit when she finally called to him, "where are you going, love muffin?"
Vlad looked back at the hologram of the love of his life and said, "I'm going to go get an aspirin for this headache and then I'll possibly go take a nap. This wild goose-chase is wearing me down." And with that he left and shut the doors behind him. If he had stayed for just a minute longer, he would have heard his hologram question what goose he had been chasing.
Vlad walked along the halls, trying to make sense of the message. He hadn't bothered to read through all of it because he couldn't understand it anyways. Whatever the language was, he would need time to decipher it.
Vlad walked into his living room and sat on the couch. If there was one thing he was going to do before he tried to fall asleep, it was check up on his young rival. Clockwork had told him to keep an eye on the boy, but Vlad had been planning to that anyways. Vlad was about to turn on the television when something small and white rubbed against his leg, followed by a soft meow. Vlad smiled slightly and picked up the small kitten and said, "What do you think Maddie? Should we check up on young Daniel?"
Receiving an excited meow from the kitten, Vlad chuckled and finally turned on the television. Instead of the usual programs from the TV stations, an image of the Fenton household appeared. Vlad began to stroke the animal's fur as it began to purr with delight. Vlad had to admit, he couldn't hate Daniel for convincing him to keep the cat. Nor could he blame the cat for finding a way back into his home every time he had tried to shoo it away.
So, Vlad and Maddie the kitten watched the exterior of the home for a few minutes. Vlad was about to change to the next spy-cam, but then he saw Daniel and his two friends run through the front door.
Maddie watched and meowed at the boy on the screen. Vlad smiled at her, realising that she recognized that he had been the one to rescue her from the streets.
The next thing to happen was a kid bigger than the Daniel ran past the building yelling "Fenton! When I get my hands on you, you are so dead!" Vlad chuckled as he saw his young rival phase his head out of the door and watched the other child run by.
Vlad pressed a button and the camera went to the inside of the house, showing the Goth girl standing near the hybrid with her arms crossed, but there was a smile plastered on her face. She then said, "Danny, I know Dash is a bully and has bullied you for year and totally deserves any punishment that you could dish out, but did you need to go that far?"
Danny phased his head back into the house and smiled back at her. He then replied, "Oh, come on Sam. You thought it was just as funny as I did. It was only a bonus that Paulina got caught up in any misfire." He finished with a shrug.
Sam giggled and said, "Yeah, I'll never forget the look on her face when that mud fell all over her face. But you do know that Dash is probably going to kill you for that."
Danny just shrugged again and responded, "Again, he had it coming. He claimed that he and the infamous ghost boy 'Danny Phantom' were as tight as they could be. Yeah right. Having a pile of dirt and manure fall all over him was the least he deserved for making up that lie. Plus, he has no proof that it was actually me. He just blames me for everything so he can justify why he's beating me up."
The two of them laughed at the memory of the popular kids being covered in muck. But then they both realised that their other friend wasn't even paying attention. Danny walked over to the Afro-American teen and said, "Tucker, what are you doing?"
The boy didn't seem to hear him as he started to say, "Ĉu vi ne kredas ke estas stranga ke Dash nur kuris estinteco vian domon?"(2)
Danny looked to Sam, but she just shrugged while the techno-geek continued, "Mi volas diri ... Ne evidentas ke vi provus kaj foriri de li de atingi ie sekura similan al via hejmo?(3)
Danny called to his friend, but was only responded with what Vlad thought was gibberish. Danny tried again and Tucker said, "serioze!"(4)
Danny finally got annoyed and shouted, "TUCKER!"
Surprising the boy, Tucker looked at his friends. The Goth girl asked, "Tucker, what are you doing?"
Tucker looked at her and responded with, "Kio?"(5)
Receiving and annoyed look from both his friends, he smiled sheepishly and then said, "What?"
The other two looked at each other and Danny said, "Were you talking in Esperanto? We couldn't understand you very well."
"Yeah, no kidding. The only word I caught was the last one," Sam muttered.
"Oh, sorry guys. I was practicing for the next time we run into Wulf. Or if we have to read something important. You never know. Those books we're looking for might be in Esperanto," the boy said.
Danny nodded and said, "Well, since I can only read it right now, thanks to all our work sessions, how about you tell us what you were saying… but in English please."
"No problem dude," Tucker said. "I said: Don't you think it's weird that Dash just ran past your house? I mean... isn't it obvious that you would try and get away from him by getting somewhere safe like your own home? Seriously!"
Danny laughed and replied, "Tucker, Dash might be bigger than me, but he definitely can't out smart me. Me hiding at home is the last place he'll look. And by the time he finally figures that out, he won't care anymore."
All three laughed as they headed out of the entryway and up the stairs to the young hybrid's room. Vlad had seen enough for now, but left the spy-cams on, just in case he missed something of importance later. Something about what Daniels male friend had been speaking seemed familiar, but he just couldn't place it. He decided to leave it for another time and just relax for a little while. He would be out of Amity Park for a while, but would return before Maddie and Jack did. The last thing he needed was to explain to either of them why he had been out of town at the same time they were.
He knew that Daniel was safe for now and that was good enough for Vlad at this point. Settling down for a short nap, Vlad placed his cat down on the ground, much to the animal's displeasure. Vlad's last thoughts were of what he would do to deal with his young adversary, what Skulker would do to find the mystical books, and of what he, himself, would do in order to acquire one himself. Perhaps Daniel knew something that he didn't. He would have to check. And then the tired billionaire fell into a light slumber.
Phantom: Alright, to those of you who can't understand Esperanto, here's a list of what was actually said during this chapter. Just note there are some spoilers for this story and the sequel, so only read if you want a hint as to what will happen next. Enjoy!
Esperanto Translations:
The keys are the same but also different, So from future to past, And from present to future, These keys have a power that will last.
Seven keys in total exist, With seven unique powers, Seven pathways, No room for cowards.
The light shall lead, And the shadow will follow. With the angel and devil, They cannot wallow.
The oracle will start the game, But finds the shadow amidst the light. The traveller will find the light, But is mistaken as evil within a fight.
The final key, Will be revealed, At the proper moment, Until then it is concealed.
…
Don't you think it's weird that Dash just ran past your house?
I mean... isn't it obvious that you would try and get away from him by getting somewhere safe like your own home?
seriously!
What?
Phantom: Hey everyone. Glad you got to the bottom! Wasn't that exciting? Well it's not over yet. This was only Skulker and Vlad's side of this day, or at least part of it. I'm sure you'll want to know what happened to Danny and his friends while this was happening and what happened after Vlad fell asleep. So look forward to part 2!
Trainer: wait! I think you should explain what those new ghosts were.
Phantom: oh yeah. Ok, so while at camp our friend let us play his game; "Kingdom Hearts: birth by sleep" and these two creatures were something called 'unversed'. We decided to incorporate them into our story because they were just so cute and because we are totally addicted to the KH series, so do be surprised if we you things from those.
Trainer: I still hate the fact that this is a two-parter chapter. I DON"T LIKE CLIFFERS!
Phantom: will you just deal with it?!
Trainer: whatever. Anyways, Phantom spent some time over the summer creating drawings of her characters for the sequel, as well as Butch Hartman's Danny Phantom character's since they'll be older in the sequel. They look pretty good, but we also want to see what you guys can create for this current story.
Phantom: Yeah! I drew a title page for this and everything. I just need to colour it. They aren't up anywhere yet, but I'm thinking about getting a Deviantart account for them. I'd love to see what you guys have got. Also–
Both: DON'T FORGET TO TELL US WHAT YOU THINK OF THE CHAPTER!
Trainer: we are always open to hear what you readers have to say.
Phantom: so press that button down there, and send us a message!
Second disclaimer: Kingdom Hearts and anything related is owned by Square Enix.