Phantom: Hey everyone. Been a while huh? The last time I had updated was back in December! Ok, not that long actually. I did say that I would try and update once a month.
Trainer: Yep, it's been busy for us here. God I'm tired!
*Trainer crashes and falls asleep next to Snorlax. Snorlax grabs Trainer and uses here as a teady-bear.*
Phantom: Aww! That's so… do I say cute or awkward? Hmm, I'll go with both!
Trainer: zzzzzZZZZ I'm the CHAMPION! ZZZZZzzzzz.
Phantom: So, I don't know who they are, but I want to give a special shout-out to a Guest under the name Coolie cupcake. I loved your review and hope to hear from you more often. That means I want to hear from all you readers! But back to Coolie cupcake, your review was sweet (cavity inducing sweet!) and I just wanted to thank you. It's hard to believe that you're only 12. I love it!
Vlad: What about me?! Daniel has been kidnapped right in front of me and here you are with sleeping beauty just talking away!
Phantom: Ok, ok, cool your jets, Vlad. I needed to say some things to the many people who read this. Can I do that at the least?
Vlad: NO! I'll do it. It will go quicker that way. *clears throat* Hello to all of you readers out there. I'm sure Phantom would have plenty of useless things to mention to you-
Phantom HEY!
Vlad: -but I'm far too busy to bother so please ignore the rest and scroll the page down.
*Phantom gives a hurt glare at the older hybrid*
Vlad: Oh, come now, my dear.
Phantom: NO! Leave me alone! *Phantom disappears in a puff of green smoke*
Vlad: Oh, butter biscuits! *sigh* everyone, please enjoy chapter 15. PHANTOM! COME BACK! I DIDN'T MEAN IT. PLEASE COME OUT SO WE CAN TALK ABOUT THIS! *disappears in a puff of pink smoke*
Trainer: zzzzzzzzzzzZZZZZZZZZZZ Nhg! *Trainer looks around to see pink smoke. Trainer's eyes widen* Phantom!? Vlad!? Where are you? *looks at Snorlax* I. AM. NOT. A. TEADY-BEAR!
Snorlax: SNOR!
Disclaimer: I don't own Danny Phantom and some ideas are owned by Pearl84 and Truephan, but the plot is mine!
Chapter 15: Why me? Part 2
"WHAT!?"
Skulker cringed and ducked as a one of the many beakers in the lab was thrown towards him. To say that the hunter was scared was an understatement. He was downright terrified, and he was a ghost! Ghosts were meant to spread fear, not become a victim to it!
Skulker had arrived at Vlad's portal minutes after the older hybrid had called him. Sure, he had to give up his chase of a rare blue phoenix ghost, but he figured that this was more important. First off, if the whelp was going to be captured by anyone, it was either going to be him - the Ghost Zone's greatest hunter - or Plasmius. Second, Vlad had sounded too panicked to be thinking straight, but now that the hunter truly saw his employer, he knew that Plasmius was not a ghost anyone should mess with right now.
Plasmius was in full blown angry-over-protective-half-ghost-father mode. And anyone - human and ghost alike - who messed with him while he was like this was more than likely to be a puddle of goo by the end of their encounter.
Vlad was currently pacing about his lab in his ghost form, scowling and mumbling under his breath. Skulker watched the older hybrid carefully. He could end up a puddle of goo if he wasn't careful in how he approached this.
Taking a deep breath, the mecha-ghost said calmly, "I'm sorry, Plasmius, but it is as I said; I can't track the whelp."
Plasmius spun to face the hunter so fast that said hunter was worried that the older man had gotten whiplash. The billionaire's glowing red eyes fixed their stare on Skulker. Violent red met calm, but irritated green. Not changing his posture, Vlad growled, "But how, Skulker? You've been able to track him before, whether he was human or ghost, in the Ghost Zone or the Human Realm, anytime anywhere! How, in ghost's name, can you not simply track him NOW?!"
Skulker made a sideways glance to his right as he nervously rubbed a hand over his green flame-like Mohawk hair. Trying to explain himself, Skulker explained, "As much as I hate to say this, Plasmius, there are certain limits to even my current abilities. My gear can find the pup anywhere, but only within a certain distance. Like most scanners, they have a fixed range. Plus, since he's still recovering, his ecto-signature is most-likely low, maybe even too low to detect at all."
Plasmius growled and then punched the nearest wall leaving a huge dent in it. Skulker jumped in surprise, but not in as much surprise as the three other beings in the room. Skulker turned towards one of the lab benches and found a boy who looked no bigger than a twelve or thirteen year-old. He was dressed like a ninja and had black/white hair. He had glowing green eyes that were red and puffy from possible crying and a white/silvery tail circling his fettle-positioned body.
The boy cringed and looked through his black bangs at the fuming hybrid. Next to the boy were Vlad's cat and a fairly large dog. All three of them looked nervous and ready to flee for the door at any given moment.
Skulker raised a brow and was debating whether or not to ask Vlad who this boy was and… where did the dog come from. Wait… dog?
"Plasmius?" Skulker said getting the man's attention. "Where did the dog come from?"
Vlad glared and said, "That dog, as you so kindly put it, is Daniel's. If you recall, your 'prey' got him as a birthday gift. But more importantly, Skulker," Vlad paused and pinched the bridge of his nose. "WHAT IN GHOST'S NAME DOES THAT HAVE TO DO WITH FINDING DANIEL?!"
Skulker, Frostigi and the two other animals cringed and the later three tried to make themselves shrink into them and disappear. Frostigi could have done that, but was too scared to try. Vlad glance at Fostigi and said, "I apologize for the outburst, Frostigi, but this is as important to me as it is to you."
Frostigi absentmindedly nodded and returned to his silent staring. Skulker looked between the two before continuing with what he had intended to tell the man. "Plasmius, you should really listen before yelling like that. What I was going to say was that we can use the pup's pup. Animals tend to have a sixth sense about the abnormal and timing of natural disasters."
Plasmius thought about it for a moment. He may be onto something. When Daniel had first brought Maddie in as a kitten, she somehow always managed to find him; even when he was invisible and in such a big and complex house no less. The boy's dog – TJ was it? – also seemed to have this ability. When he let the boy leave to visit his home once during his stay with the billionaire - even while Daniel had been invisible and in ghost form the pet had found him and almost exposed him to his sister. Perhaps the hunter was right.
Dogs could track people, even for great distances. They could sense if a ghost was nearby. Plus, TJ already knew Daniel's scent like the back of his paw! This could work, but there could still be a problem.
Vlad turned to face all the beings in the room and said, "Skulker that is a wonderful idea except for one slight detail."
Skulker frowned more deeply and tilted his head as if to ask 'and what would that be?'. "Daniel's pet can track him, but I'm afraid that we'd be putting a lot of hope in someone who most likely can't track him without a proper trail. Daniel was grabbed and pulled into the ground like a shadow. That means there was no physical trail to follow."
Skulker sighed. They were running low on options and every second they spent here trying to figure this out, the longer the whelp could be in danger. Skulker didn't care for the boy that much other than to have his pelt, but he made a deal and had to keep it. He was a ghost of honour and would uphold his end of the bargain. Not to mention that Plasmius would use him as target practice should he refuse to help – and Plasmius NEVER misses his target.
"Perhaps I should just call Jasmine back to the castle to help," said the older hybrid.
Skulker jumped at the sound of his employer's voice. He had gotten lost in his own thoughts again. The hunter looked up to find that Vlad seemed to be talking mostly to himself. "She may have a device that can track her brother. It's happened before," the man continued.
At the mention of retrieving the red-headed girl, Frostigi jumped up in a panic and yelled, "NO!" Vlad and Skulker stared wide eyed at the boy while TJ and Maddie fled the room from the loud outburst.
Vlad took a step towards the Familiar and asked, "No? What do you mean 'no'? Do you not realise that she may be the only person who can help find Daniel?!"
Frostigi got very nervous all of a sudden; Skulker could smell it. It wasn't entirely nervousness, it was partly feared. Like the way a child acted when they had said something they hadn't meant to say and was demanded an explanation from.
Frostigi looked to his left and found a spot on the floor that was suddenly very interesting. His tail wrapped around his legs and he started to mumble something. Vlad raised an eyebrow and said, "Hmm? Sorry could you maybe repeat that? I didn't quite catch that."
Frostigi gave a half-hearted glare and said louder, "I said that I… that I…" Frostigi sighed and got a sad look in his eyes as he turned away. "I can't… tell you." before anyone could stop him, the boy fled.
Plasmius and Skulker watched in shocked as the boy fled with tears streaming down his face. Vlad growled and punched the wall again, leaving an identical dent next to the first. The older hybrid turned to the hunter and said, "We'd better go after him. He knows something that he's not telling us."
Skulker nodded and asked, "What was your first clue? Any ideas on where this mini-whelp might be?"
Vlad inwardly chuckled at the hunter's name for the boy even though he had no idea who he was. Vlad turned human and said, "Actually, I have a pretty good idea as to where the badger has gone to."
Skulker followed the now-human Vlad up to the second floor. Skulker was getting a serious case of déjà vu when they came to a door that belonged to the whelp's room. Vlad calmly walked in and over to the closet. He walked in and moved up to the hidden mini-lounge where Frostigi was curled into a ball – the only parts showing being his body, hair and tail.
Vlad shook his head. From the way that the boy was acting as he and the hunter entered, it was obvious that he hadn't noticed them yet. Vlad motioned Skulker towards the boy and Skulker gave a mischievous smirk. He floated over so as to not make a sound and then… he pulled the boy's tail receiving a squeak of protest and a shocked response of "Clockwork!" as the boy was lifted off the ground by his tail.
Vlad watched as the boy was dangled in the air like a prize. When Frostigi said the time master's name, Vlad had to wonder why he said it. Was it like Vlad, where he said snack foods instead of swears? If so, why Clockwork's name? Was it a joke that played off the fact that this was poor timing on his part? But what if it wasn't and the boy was simply calling for the spirit? All these questions ran through the billionaire's head when a puff of green smoke grabbed his attention.
Where Frostigi once dangled was now a Little Badger – still being held up by his tail no less. Skulker and Vlad were surprised. This was the first time that either of them had seen the Familiar transform, and neither could believe the irony of it all. Both had made reference to Daniel when they spoke about the Familiar, including when Vlad called Frostigi a badger, but he wasn't expecting this.
Skulker chuckled and got a better grip on the badger by hold him by the scruff of his neck. A moment later, the badger turned back into a boy – arms crossed, tail swishing back and forth and being held by the back of his shirt.
Looking between the two adults, Forstigi exclaimed, "What do you want from me? I haven't done anything wrong!"
Vlad moved across the room to the couches and sat down. Looking back at the trapped boy he said, "I want answers. Skulker will most likely want your pelt later after all of this, but that's a discussion for a later time."
Frostigi gave a nervous glance at the hunter to see that Vlad was right – the mecha looked like a kid in a candy store the way he was looking Frostigi over. It was the same look he gave only his most intriguing and elusive prey – i.e. Danny.
Vlad cleared his throat returning the boy's attention to him. "As I said, I want answers. First off, why won't you tell us why I shouldn't call Jasmine?"
Frostigi glared. "I never said I wouldn't tell you. I said that I couldn't! There's a difference."
"Alright, then why couldn't you tell us?" Vlad rephrased his demand back to the Familiar in the same tone.
Frostigi's eyes widened to the size of dishes before he sighed and looked away. "Nice going, Frostigi. You just walked right into that one," the little Familiar muttered. Making a huge sigh, Frostigi turned slightly to glance at the billionaire and said very childishly, "because."
Both Vlad and Skulker's eyes twitched. Skulker was this close to shaking the answer out of the boy and Frostigi was getting on Vlad's last good nerve for today.
Vlad took a deep breath and let it out slowly as he pinched the bridge of his nose trying to reign in his anger. Now wasn't the time to blow his top, now was the time for action. Vlad reached into his suit jacket to retrieve his phone. Frostigi seemed to understand what the man was doing and began to thrash in the mecha's hold shouting, "No! Don't do it!" and "Damn it! Stop!"
Vlad was going to ignore the boy's please and demands when suddenly a voice echoed throughout the room saying, "That isn't a very good use of your time, Frostigi," which was followed by a pair of clock hands appearing out of thin air.
Danny stirred slightly. He was warm and felt overall pretty good. "Wait, that can't be right," the blue eyed boy thought. There was something sitting on his lap and he felt something covering his body. "Did I fall asleep sitting up? The weight on my lap is too small to be TJ. Maybe it's Maddie."
Danny opened his eyes drowsily and froze in a mixture of fear and surprise. What he thought was the covers of his bed or a blanket ended up being the dark cloak of the being nearby: Koŝmaro Magiisto.
Danny realised that he must have passed out at some point after he was captured and that the ghost magician used his cloak as a blanket. The small weight in his lap was the purplish-blue mouse-like creature from earlier.
Now, Danny wasn't exactly afraid of Koŝmaro, as many would probably think from the way the boy reacted earlier to him. No, it was more like who Koŝmaro reminded the teenager of that he was afraid of… Dan.
Danny had thought it earlier; Dan and Koŝmaro looked like they could have been from the same family. Glowing red eyes, pale blue skin and flaming hair; the similarities where so obvious! Heck! Even their fashion sense was similar in style, just not in time period. And their voices – god, their voices sounded so similar if you listened closely. If Koŝmaro had a snake tongue, Danny was going to scream!
If it wasn't for how much the man reminded the younger hybrid of the ghost trapped in the thermos in Clockwork's tower, he could have easily beaten him. Ok, maybe not, since their first encounter ended with Danny being defeated, but you get the idea.
Unfortunately, that wasn't the case right now. The fact was, Koŝmaro did remind Danny of Dan. The man before him did scare him. And there was no telling what he would do to him.
"Maybe if I don't move a muscle, he won't notice that I'm awake!" Danny thought. He kept his eyes half lidded so it appeared that he was still asleep. He saw that Koŝmaro was kneeling by the river (cloak obviously off) running his hand through the cool streaming water. Danny couldn't believe how… normal he looked.
For a second, Danny forgot his fear of the ghost magician. The man looked like the prince he was supposed to be. Actually, if you gave him a clock in his chest and a cloak of a different colour than the younger hybrid would have thought that he was related to the master of time instead of his psychotic evil future self.
Suddenly, Koŝmaro froze and turned towards the awake-but-pretending-to-be-asleep teen. He blinked for a moment before smiling. It wasn't a cruel smile, nor was it one that held maliciousness. It was a proper, kind smile! Who knew he was even capable of something like that after the way he acted the first few times they met.
"Well! Looks like someone is feeling better," Koŝmaro said.
Danny blinked in surprise. How did he know he was awake? Wait, when did he even fully open his eyes?! Danny was shocked beyond belief. Ok, screw the 'Koŝmaro's-a-nice-guy' idea, everything just got freaky again.
Danny opened his mouth and tried to speak, but couldn't get a word out before Koŝmaro said, "You gave me quite a surprise when you passed out. Tell me, did you recently get badly cut or injured?"
Danny gave a blank stare, that is, until the small creature jumped off his lap and into Koŝmaro's arms (or at least his good arm). "Well hello there, Purpura (1)," Koŝmaro laughed as the small creature squirmed up onto his shoulder. "Thank you for watching our little friend here," he continued.
Danny made a strange look that was partly out of being curious and partly out of being confused. "Why does everything have to be so confusing?! I would give half my life to just have something make sense…heh heh, I made a pun. Ok, no – that was even worse than Tucker," Danny thought.
Danny opened his mouth again and asked, "What happened?" Then he paused, realising that the ecto-gag was no longer covering his mouth. He decided to worry about that later.
Koŝmaro glanced up at the boy and replied, "Like I said, you passed out shortly after we arrived here." He gestured to the area around them for emphasis. "Now," he continued, "I believe an answer for an answer is required here."
Danny furrowed his eye brows and asked, "What are you talking about?"
Koŝmaro smile. "Well, I originally asked you a question – which you evaded answering by asking another question – and I answered you, so I believe a trade-off is in order. In other words, you still need to answer my question."
Danny blinked. That was a pretty good explanation and the younger hybrid couldn't find a way out of it without being tortured somehow. Sighing, Danny shifted his position under the cloak and said, "If you must know, I was captured by an organization that hates my ghost half – not to mention, can't stand my family – and they hurt me pretty badly. Happy now?" the last part coming out very snidely.
The ghostly magician thought for a moment. His scouts had told him about the predicament that the boy had been put in, but he didn't believe it was this bad. Koŝmaro had checked the boy's injuries while he was passed out and, while they looked to be healing well, some of them either reopened or were still healing, but at a slower rate than they should have been.
Koŝmaro nodded his head in understanding and said, "I didn't mean to pry, Danny-boy. I'm just curious." Having another thought come to mind, Koŝmaro lifted his gloved hand and brought it towards the boy's face.
"Oh joy, we're going play the 'how-much-can-we-make-Danny-squirm?' game. Why does life hate me so much?" Danny wondered as the hand came closer. The younger hybrid closed his eyes, waiting for the evil limb to start caressing his face again. Danny suddenly shivered; not from the ghost's presence and not from his ice core – at least not entirely.
Koŝmaro paused in what he was about to do – unsure if the boy would even let him. When Danny started to shiver uncontrollably, the magician made up his mind. He placed his hand on the boy's forehead and waited.
Danny was still shivering, but was shocked when the hand just stopped on his forehead. Danny opened his eyes to see a very serious look on the other man's face. By now, Danny had lost all feeling of warmth that had been coming from the cloak and was sure that he could see his breath. Not his ghost sense, his actual breath.
"What-," Danny was about to ask when Koŝmaro interrupted him.
"I'm checking your temperature. I asked if you had been seriously injured because I think you may have a fever. People don't just pass out for no reason."
Danny scoffed, "Yeah, it's not like I haven't been to hell and back and then kidnapped or anything."
Koŝmaro gave him a dry look. "I said that I only wanted my scouts to watch you, not capture you. Unfortunately, this is the case and now I will have to deal with it." The magician removed his hand from the teen's head and said, "You definitely have a fever. If you'd like, I could give you something that could possibly break it for you."
Danny gave him a suspicious look and asked woozily since the fever was really starting to sink in, "Depends, what it is?"
"All you have to do is hold one of my creatures until your fever breaks. If need be, more will surround the area," Koŝmaro said. He held out a hand while it glowed a deep purple. Suddenly, a creature that was the same blue as the others with glowing red eyes that looked like 'U-s' appeared. It was no bigger than a cookie jar with tiny bat-like wings and peg feet. Finally, the part that looked like the lid to the jar would pop up at different intervals and each time it did, Danny would see the icy glow that only came from ice related powers.
The younger hybrid watched it curiously and – before he could stop himself – he poked it. The small being jumped up and floated in the air before diving and snuggling into the stunned hybrid's lap. Danny could only stare. It was unusual to say the least, but it was more the fact that he didn't mind. In fact, he was feeling slightly better.
Koŝmaro chuckled and said, "I see that this type of my creatures fancies you quite a bit. Probably because they can sense your icy core. They're called Profunda Freeze (2)."
Danny snorted in amusement. "How fitting," he said. Koŝmaro chuckled a bit, agreeing with the boy. Then he noticed how Danny appeared to be nodding off again, but was resisting the urge. It appeared to become increasingly difficult the more the Profunda Freeze released its energy and lay in the hybrid's lap. Koŝmaro smirked and allowed more purple energy to flow into his hand. Danny vaguely noticed and asked, "w-w-what are y-y-you doing?!"
Clearly, the cold was finally getting to Danny's human half and the fact that he wasn't showing much fear meant he was becoming comfortable around the magician. Koŝmaro looked the teen in the eye, but said nothing. Danny watched for a moment as several more Profunda Freeze appeared and just started to circle the area about the two other beings. He continued to watch as his eyes started to betray him and began to fall shut.
"Have a good rest, Danny-boy," Danny heard the magician say as everything went blurry. "By the time you wake up, your fever will most-likely have broken." Koŝmaro ruffled Danny's raven black hair.
Danny tiredly asked, "w-why are y-you helping m-me?"
Tired sapphire eyes met gentle ruby that also looked slightly sad. "Maybe, I had never wanted to be the enemy. You may find that we have more in common than… you… think. Sleep tight, Danny…" Koŝmaro said, his voice becoming distant in the sleepy boy's ears.
Koŝmaro was still next to the teen as said teen gave in to sleep. Letting out a huge sigh, the ghostly magician leaned against the same tree that Danny had been tied to. Koŝmaro closed his eyes and listened to the river as the water moved by. Then he felt a weight on his shoulder. Opening his right eye just a bit, he found that the teen's head had started to fall towards him but was stopped by the position the ecto-ropes put him in.
Chuckling, Koŝmaro snapped his fingers and the ropes disappeared. Without the restraints, Danny's body fell limp and was only stopped when his full weight landed on the magician. Koŝmaro smiled and relaxed again, but this time pulled out a book and read while he waited for the teen to awaken.
Two clock hands appeared out of thin air, stopping all conversation. Skulker got into a defensive position and waited for the intruder that thought it appropriate to interrupt them. Vlad didn't get into a visible position, but did transform back into Plasmius and waited calmly. But like his hunter friend, he waited for whoever would appear and teach them the meaning of pain if they chose to attack.
Frostigi stopped struggling all together and stayed in the hunter's grip; completely paralyzed at recognizing the voice. "Clockwork," he whispered.
Vlad and Skulker turned to him, both giving identical confused stares. Both had heard him speak, but the boy had been too soft and therefore, neither ghost actually made out what was said. "What was that, pup?" Skulker asked, but more likely demanded.
The clock hands made a full turn before landing at twelve o-clock to reveal a light blue portal of energy. "Skulker," the billionaire started, getting the hunter's attention but neither letting their eyes move from the portal. "Do you know any ghosts with that colour energy or what could create a portal like that?"
Skulker shook his head. "No idea, Plasmius. Whoever is about to come through there, I've never met them. The only energy that I know of that has a similar colour is weak, blue energy or ice energy, but I don't think either can make a portal."
"You are correct, Skulker," a wise voice said from the portal. Everyone's full attention was brought back to the portal just as the being on the other side emerged from it. His skin was the same pale blue as the portal, his eyes a deep ruby, but they held nothing but calmness and his hair was ivory white like Danny's. His attire was purple and clock-based. On his chest was the case of a grandfather clock; around his wrists were watches all set to different times; his cloak was held together by what looked like a gear with CW engraved on it. Finally, he held a sceptre with a stopwatch adorning the top. They were looking right at Clockwork; the master of time.
Skulker glared since he didn't know who the being was. Let's just say that Skulker got this information from Plasmius already from his trip with team phantom, but never got around to checking all of it. Skulker had gotten board of it when the group had gone to Pandora's realm. "Who are you and how do you know my name?" the mecha-ghost demanded.
Clockwork glanced at the hunter with a board expression. Ignoring the hunter for the moment, Clockwork simply said, "If any of you wish to save Danny, then I recommend that you release Frostigi." When no one made a move, Clockwork frowned slightly before saying, "Duck. Now."
Frostigi's eyes widened and ducked when Skulker suddenly grabbed his head to stop it from ringing. Frostigi ran and hid behind the time master as soon as he was free, which to Vlad seemed like it had happened instantaneously. Like one minute everyone was in one position and the next, everyone was in a new position. It was like comparing two pictures that followed a moment one after the other.
Skulker managed to stop his metal head from shaking and glared at the time spirit. "How dare you!" he yelled. "I – the Ghost Zone's greatest hunter – will make you pay for that. Even if I don't know how you did it!" Skulker then brought out a machete a dove towards the spirit.
Vlad's eyes widened and he was about to tell his employee to stop when he faintly heard Clockwork say, "Time Out!" and then everything slowed down. The older hybrid wondered why he was seeing everything in slow motion until he felt a weight around his neck that hadn't been there earlier. Looking down, he found the same medallion that he had seen Frostbite give Daniel before they'd left the Far Frozen. Looking back around, he saw that the hunter was frozen mid strike with anger burning in his green eyes. Clockwork moved away from his previous position – Frostigi following with a time medallion around his neck – and raised his staff. Pressing the stopwatch's button he said with a smirk, "Time In!"
Moments later, Skulker was trying and failing to pull his blade out of the wall. Turning to face Clockwork he growled, "WHO ARE YOU?!" Clearly, Skulker hated it when he lost, even if he was way out of his league.
Clockwork regained his stoic, emotionless face and calmly said, "I am known by many names; Father Time, Time Master, Meddler, Chronos, and occasionally by my employers, a Rule Breaker and a Cheater. But I preferably go by Clockwork; Master of Time and Space."
Skulker seemed to be taken aback and couldn't find any words to say. Ignoring the hunter again, Clockwork turned to the little Familiar and said, "Go. Find Daniel. You know how to. I'll be there in a few minutes."
Frostigi nodded and turned towards the balcony of the room. Within a few seconds the boy was gone, leaving the three adults in the room. Vlad cleared his throat to say something but Clockwork beat him to it, "No, I will not tell you anything about the books nor will I explain the entire reason as to why I am here."
Vlad scowled but asked, "Then tell me this, Time Master. Why wouldn't Frostigi explain why I shouldn't have called Daniel's sister? And why did those… those creatures kidnap Daniel?!"
Clockwork sighed, but obliged the man. "Frostigi has been given strict orders to not reveal anything that he either knows he's not supposed to or what he believes will cause more harm than good. In this case, it would have been the latter. If you had called Jasmine, then she would have inadvertently told his friends and they would all have come back. This would then put them in danger, further hurting Daniel in the one place that might never heal; his heart, his soul or spirit. If that goes, so does the rest of him, and I've seen what could happen."
"As for why the creatures abducted him," Clockwork continued. "That was purely a mistake on their part, but now they'll have to deal with me."
Clockwork floated over to the window and glanced out it. Not being able to stop himself, Skulker asked the question on both his and the billionaire's minds. "Why does the kidnapper need to deal with you? Why not me or Plasmius?" Skulker didn't want anyone to get revenge except for him since it was his prey, but he knew that Vlad would want a piece of the action too.
Without turning around, the time spirit said, "It is I who must deal with it because it is within my vows as the spirit of time to protect the timeline at all costs. As well, Danny is under my care as part of my responsibilities and I cannot allow someone to harm him in the ways I've seen." Just as Clockwork was about to leave, he turned his hooded head and said, "But that doesn't mean that you or Vlad aren't more than welcome to come and watch."
Skulker and Vlad shared a look before the latter of the two nodded. They followed the spirit out of the castle and made their way towards the forest that Vlad knew very well. They came to a stop at the outskirts of the forest where Frostigi was waiting and practicing with his sword.
He looked up and was surprised to see Plasmius and Skulker with the time master. "Um… Clockwork?"
Clockwork nodded and said, "They are here to watch. You and I, however, need to confront Koŝmaro." Frostigi nodded in understanding and turned towards the forest.
With a glare he said, "They're in there. About 30 degrees east of our current position."
Clockwork nodded while Skulker turned to look in that direction. Vlad started rubbing his chin and mumbled to himself, "I think that's the river Daniel liked to be at."
Clockwork started to move from the edge of the tree line and into the Forest following Frostigi. Vlad and Skulker started to follow when the hunter realised that he and Plasmius were wearing medallions with a CW crest on it. He held it up to examine it better when Clockwork's voice broke the silence startling him. "I wouldn't take that off if I were you. Unless, of course, you don't want to see what happens next."
Skulker frowned and withheld a shiver from going up his spine. They continued to float through the forest – except Frostigi, who jumped from tree branch to tree branch – until Frostigi froze as he landed on a low branch.
His eyes were wide with a mixture of fear and excitement, his fur stood on end and his muscles tense. Vlad noticed this first and asked, "What is it?"
Frostigi turned his head slightly and said, "We're close. Really close, but it just got a few degrees colder. This isn't right. Not unless someone was using ice right now."
"Maybe its Daniel," Vlad tried to reason. Maybe the little badger had gotten free and escaped.
"Doubt it, cheesehead," Frostigi said. Vlad scowled and Clockwork seemed to be amused since he changed forms for the first time since arriving. He went from adult to old man. "If it was Danny, all of us would have recognized the ecto-signature. It's not him."
Vlad thought about it and realised that this would be true if that were the case. "So then what is it?" Skulker asked. He pulled up a scanner, but all he got was snow, which wasn't normal. The mecha-ghost hit his arm a few times, but gave up when the screen remained the way it was.
"I believe we've found Koŝmaro. This means that you two have to start being sneaky. He expects both of you and most-likely Frostigi, but not me. Try to keep out of sight and range," Clockwork said as he and the Familiar made their way past more trees.
Skulker and Plasmius followed at a slower pace and invisibly. "This is so demeaning," Skulker mumbled.
Vlad chuckled and said, "Look at it this way, my friend. Now you'll get a chance to learn more about the person who created the creatures that attack you and damaged your suit." Skulker grunted in response, but it was clear as day that the hunter hated what they were currently doing. Vlad turned his gaze back to the direction they were heading in.
He saw that Frostigi was still jumping from tree to tree, not willing to touch the ground in case he accidentally stepped on a twig. Clockwork was not far behind him, but the old spirit seemed to tense for some reason. Vlad was about to go off on that thought when Clockwork motioned them to stop and move into another area.
Vlad nodded, not sure if the spirit could even tell if he did, and he and the hunter moved into the area Clockwork had pointed to. It was a grouping of trees with many branches that overlooked a clearing near the river. If one, were to say, hide in the branches, no one would see them and those hiding would see everything.
Plasmius and Skulker watched as Clockwork and Frostigi continued to the clearing. Finally, Skulker broke the silence. "What are we doing, Plasmius?"
"Be more specific, Skulker. Do you mean 'why are we listening to a spirit that neither one of us seems to know, but Daniel does?' or 'why are we hiding in this tree when we could be following those two to Daniel?' or perhaps the biggest question; why is Clockwork even here in the first place and what does it have to do with these creatures and the books?"
Skulker glared and brought out a pair of binoculars for him and then a second pair when Plasmius cleared his throat. "You know what I mean, Plasmius. All of the above… for the record, I count that last one as two questions."
Vlad sighed and brought the binoculars to his eyes to try and find his young rival. "I can only tell you what I know, Skulker. First off, I know for a fact that Clockwork doesn't lie. Heal manipulate the way you act or think by being discreet about it, but he'll never lie about it. Especially if it was to do with his vows as a spirit."
Skulker looked at the older hybrid before saying, "so, that really was Clockwork; master of time and space? A real spirit?"
Vlad nodded. "Daniel seems to know a fair amount about him. Apparently, Clockwork helped Daniel two times – as far as I know. Once for some incident where Daniel went into the future and saved it from some sort of destruction that I figured surrounded the boy. The second was when I gave ecto-acne to Daniel's friends. He went back in time to my college days to try and prevent me from getting my ghost powers. As far as I truly know, it didn't turn out the way he had wanted and eventually solved the problem in the present day."
"And how do you know all this? I didn't think that the whelp would tell you all this, even with the way you two where months ago," Skulker said.
"Right you are, my dear ghost," Plasmius said. "The little badger left in such a hurry the night I threatened his sister's life that he left his computer with his ghost files on it at the castle. But now that I think about it, I believe our little temporal friend had some hand in helping Daniel save Jasmine – not that I'm upset he did. From the way he spoke about Daniel back at the castle, I'm starting to wonder what would have happened should she have died."
Skulker nodded in understanding before saying, "I can't see them very well anymore. Should we move?"
"No." was the older hybrid's simple reply. If Clockwork told them to stay in this tree, there had to be a reason for it. Perhaps there was a trap or ambush up ahead and the time master knew wouldn't help them. "Here, we'll send one of my spy bugs to watch them from up close. You can easily get into the wiring and allow us to see a full screen of the area."
The hunter smiled and started typing commands into his PDA while Vlad sent his metallic creation after the two other beings. In no time at all, they had a perfect view of Clockwork and Frostigi who were coming into another sections of the forest near the river.
Clockwork stopped and looked straight at the bug for a minute before nodding his head. He must have known that the two were going to do that. Vlad and Skulker had expected the spirit to continue forward after that, but he remained still. Taking the opportunity, Vlad set the bug to land on Frostigi's shoulder.
A second later, the little Familiar fell out of a tree and towards the ground cursing a faint 'Clockwork' under his breath.
Clockwork continued forward and said, "you have only spoken for the first time mere days ago and yet you've already become accustomed to using my name as a cover-up for swears when something untimely happens to you."
"Hey, I can't help it if a do that. It just works!" Frostigi pouted. The boy then stopped and said, "Something… doesn't feel right." His fur and hair stood on edge and he was looking around furiously. Eventually, he spotted something blue and pointed it out to Clockwork.
The time master looked in the direction Frostigi was pointing and for a moment Clockwork let his expression slip and he showed pure shock followed by anger. Clockwork proclaimed a 'Time Out' before he and Frostigi could continue onward. Frostigi – not noticing the time spirit's doing – was about to step forward when Clockwork brought down his staff and stopped him.
"Hey why did you-" Frostigi started only to be cut off.
"Don't go near it, Frostigi. I've only seen them a few times, but they'll alert Koŝmaro the moment the see us. Go around," Clockwork said composing himself back into the emotionless state he usually showed.
The boy nodded in understanding and took a different route to their destination. In a few minutes, they were moving into a clearing next to the river. There was a tree close by and leaning on it they found the magician reading a book and the younger ghost hybrid asleep by the looks of it. All around were the small Profunda Freeze, mouse-like creatures and even a few of the humanoids; all supposed to be frozen in time, but weren't. As soon as they entered the area, all the creatures looked at them. This brought Koŝmaro's attention tenfold.
Koŝmaro smiled and stood up leaving the hybrid leaning on the tree. "Ah, Frostigi, I was expecting you. But not you time master. What brings you here?" he asked coyly.
Frostigi and Clockwork glared daggers at the ghost for several common reasons as well as their own. Oh, if only looks could kill… again. Frostigi looked like he was ready to attack when he demanded, "what did you do to Danny?!"
Koŝmaro's smile faltered slightly before he smirked and replied in a language that Skulker and Vlad didn't recognize, "Trankviligi vin libro spirito. Mi faris nenion por viaj mastro krom helpi lin venki febro. Nenio pli, nenio malpli." (3)
Frostigi snarled, "Mi ne kredas vin! Vi mensogas! Diru al mi la veron vi secuestrador!" (4)
Clockwork placed a hand on the Familiar and told him to stop. Never taking his eyes off the magician, Clockwork said, "what are you doing, Koŝmaro?"
Koŝmaro glanced at the temporal spirit and said, "Hmm… I wonder why you would say that. Is it because… you can't see what the future might hold now?"
Clockwork glared and Frostigi looked up at him with shocked eyes. Clockwork couldn't see the future of the timeline? Vlad and Skulker wore similar expressions of shock.
"That is where you are wrong, Koŝmaro," Clockwork replied. "True, because of a second power, my powers concerning you and that other power are very limited, but I have seen glimpses and that's all I'll need to keep my ward and the timeline safe."
Koŝmaro's smile left all together and both his and Clockwork's expressions changed to one of sadness and understanding. "I'll leave as you wish time master. Just know that this isn't the last you'll see of me. Oh, and please give this to Danny." He walked forward and gave the time spirit a small stack of papers held together with leather. Holding out a separate stack of papers he said, "These, however, are for you only."
Clockwork accepted the stacks and said he would give the first to the younger hybrid and kept the second. Koŝmaro smiled his sad smile and then turned to Frostigi. "Don't get into too much trouble… Iom Antilopaj." (5)
Frostigi scowled but then started purring when the magician ruffled his hair. As soon as Koŝmaro's hand left his head, he scowled again and mumbled an 'I did not just purr.' Clockwork and Frostigi watched as Koŝmaro walked back over to the sleeping Danny. Grabbing his cloak and summoning a black portal, Koŝmaro sent all of his creatures through it except one. He turned and said, "I'll see all of you again soon. Come along, Purpura."
The purplish-blue creature scurried over to the ghost and into his good arm. Giving one final smile, the magician left. As soon as the portal closed, both Frostigi and Clockwork let out a huge sigh. Clockwork announced a 'Time In' and time returned to the world. The two made their way over to the slumbering boy making sure that Koŝmaro had been telling the truth. Not finding anything wrong, Clockwork opened another portal which Vlad and Skulker travelled through.
"How is he?" Vlad asked as he knelt down to see the boy for himself. Clockwork didn't say anything and just allowed the man to see the younger hybrid. Finding no faults, Vlad picked the boy up and nodded to Skulker. Getting the silent message, he grabbed Frostigi and followed the billionaire as they flew back to the castle.
Clockwork followed them all the way back. Vlad had half expected the time master to return back to his tower, but when he didn't Vlad started to wonder if it had something to do with what just happened or if it had something to do with Daniel. Whatever it was, Daniel had a lot to explain when he woke up.
Vlad put Danny in his bedroom and then he and Skulker returned to his secret lab to discuss what had just happened. Vlad reviewed several videos he had on Daniel and his life from the past few days while Skulker shifted through his own information and reports.
So far, they knew that this wasn't the first encounter that Daniel had with Koŝmaro and his goons. Koŝmaro seemed to be their book thief since the beginning, but his motive was still unknown. Clockwork and Koŝmaro seem to have some sort of history by the looks of it; or perhaps it was from a future timeline that they knew each other. Vlad figured that it was more likely a past encounter since Koŝmaro was from a time of Kings and Queens.
Koŝmaro sounded like he was working for someone else. And finally, Clockwork, Daniel and Frostigi were hiding something from everyone, but what?
Vlad wanted to demand the answers from them. To find the final puzzle piece that would make sense of all this madness, but he knew that he wasn't going to get it that way. Vlad transformed back into his human form and told Skulker to head back to his abode and rest. Vlad left the lab just as the hunter entered the portal and headed to his living room. There he found Maddie and TJ lying down –Maddie on a chair while TJ on the floor.
Vlad walked in and took up his usual seat next to the chess board and picked up the emerald king. "Oh, Daniel. What am I going to do with you?" Vlad asked no one in particular. TJ got up and strolled over to the man. Sitting down in front of him, he started to whimper and whine.
Vlad looked up from the chess piece and smiled. He rubbed the animal's head receiving a happy panting from the dog before saying, "I'm actually happy that Daniel has someone like you to look after him the way you do." TJ barked in reply as the man continued to think about the boy upstairs.
Meanwhile, Danny slept in the room made especially for him, unaware of what had happened, what was happening and what would happen in the future. Clockwork, on the other hand, did know.
The master of time sat in the lounge hidden in the boy's closet seeing the future play out from that moment onward. There were so many paths that it could take, but they led to two possible outcomes, just like when Danny had the option to cheat on the CAT-s.
Looking out to the now-night sky, Clockwork sighed. He had never been known to worry or to not be able to see the future, but that was the case right now. He now understood why people hate saying the phrase 'I don't know'. It was maddening. For the first time in his after-life, he was worried about what would happen next. He could see certain periods in time, but as soon as certain figures showed up, he was blind to the time stream.
Remembering something very important, Clockwork held out his hand as it glowed their unique shade of blue energy. A second later, the time medallions that Vlad, Skulker and Frostigi had been wearing appeared in his hand. Clockwork hid them under his cloak before letting out a huge sigh. He was doing that a lot more lately.
Glancing down at the badger next to him, Clockwork smiled fondly and rubbed the animal's back receiving a delighted purr from Frostigi. Clockwork would solve this mystery, for the sake of everyone's future; Even his own.
Phantom: Time for some translations!
(1) Purple. *that's right! I named it a colour!*
(2) Deep Freeze.
(3) Calm yourself book spirit. I have done nothing to your owner except help him overcome a fever. Nothing more, nothing less.
(4) I don't believe you! You lie! Tell me the truth you kidnapper!
(5) Little badger.
*Phantom sits alone with her ecto-computer*
Phantom: hey everyone. I bet you guys hate me now. I gave you more questions than answers. Now, before you all start pouting, I have a good reason for it. If I reveal too much now, then I'll have nothing to do in the sequel. Ah, the life of a writer. Sorry, but you'll all have to wait for it. If you look closely at this story though, you'll see the hints I've put in and I will be revealing the answer to some of your questions as I continue this.
*A big white and black blur tackles Phantom to the ground*
Phantom: *Screams* what the hell?!
Vlad: Finally found you, you cleaver girl.
Phantom: Urgh, flattery will get you nowhere fast you fruitloop! *tries to hold back tears*
Vlad: Oh, don't say that my dear. I wish to apologize. I was wrong; the way I had acted was unacceptable.
Danny: whoa, wait. Vlad is actually apologizing? Is it an apocalypse?
Phantom: No, it's not. And…?
Vlad: I wish to make it up to you.
Phantom: And…?
Vlad: what? What else could you possibly want right now?
Phantom: *smiles* I don't know. I just wanted to see how far you would go to make me happy again.
*Danny and Phantom start to giggle*
Vlad: *smirks* Oh, really? Well, before I can please you first we need your sister here. *snaps his fingers and in a puff of pink smoke Trainer arrives with all her pokemon in their pokeballs*
Trainer: whoa, did everything just taste pink for a second? What did I miss?
Vlad: nothing at all. Now, for your surprise. *gestures to the writing room and all four enter*
Everyone from DP: SURPRISE! HAPPY BIRTHDAY PHANTOM AND TRAINER!
Phantom: *squeal* Thank you Vlad! *tackles the man in a hug that he returned*
Vlad: you're very welcome, Phantom.
Trainer: You had a part in this, didn't you Danny.
Danny: Yep!
Note: Trainer and my birthday aren't until January 29th and we'll be 18 by then. I would love to hear from you guys so please review to your heart's content!