AN: I am so, so, so sorry for the delay. College started and I got a bit swapped, so I was delayed with this chapter. Not quite happy with this one, but I wasn't quite sure how to get it better. The next one should be good. At least a bit more of what's going on gets revealed.

And thank yous to stick_fight3, SpartanCommander, LM, and zeo_knight for reviewing.

Chapter Seven: Like Clockwork

"Come on, Clockwork! I saw that wolf guy with Dani in one of those screens when I was here last time," Danny said, pointing to one of the view screens. "They're good guys, aren't they? Can't you send them home?"

"No, I cannot," Clockwork said, watching a screen that was flashing images at a rate too fast for Danny.

"What, they got some purpose in this time?" Danny paused. "...wasn't that screen I was looking into one of the past."

"That is none of your concern," Clockwork said.

Danny frowned. "Dani's been gone a long time. I thought she was with these heroes for whatever they did back here. It was kind of relief to see them. I thought it meant she was coming home soon," he said, looking down.

"I am not going to tell you what Danielle was doing or when she is coming back," Clockwork said with a sigh, looking at Danny.

Danny looked up. ".....can you at least tell me....?"

Clockwork was silent for a moment. "There is no need for you to worry about her," he said. Of course, Clockwork knew not giving Daniel a small bone was just going to give him a headache he didn't want. "Those two will find their way to their own time in their own way. Leave it alone and let things run their course. You need to learn patience," Clockwork said, floating up to check a jerky cog.

"So, nothing I can say to change your mind?" Danny asked.

"No," Clockwork said.

Danny paused and nodded. "Fine, I understand," he said. "Thanks anyway, Clockwork. Bye," he said and left.

"Well, it looks like he's learning," Clockwork said, smiling a bit in amusement. It was amazing what had been said between them. Daniel understood that Clockwork did occasionally give him a hand, but he also understood he'd only do it to in the way that was best.

He understood that he didn't need to worry about Danielle, that she was doing something she needed to do, and that those two would be get home just fine. Especially since Clockwork wasn't leaving him any little 'hints' in the screens as he might do.

Now Clockwork knew the boy wouldn't come back anytime soon. He had other, more important matters to tend to.

He moved further back into the castle, to a room that was torn apart with a broken thermos in the middle of the floor.

~ ~ ~ Page Break ~ ~ ~

"Was....was there something....weird in those brownies?" Phantom Girl asked, a hand over her mouth, looking more pale than normal.

"It tasted fine to me. Are you okay?" Timber Wolf asked, putting a hand on her shoulder.

"Well, there were peanuts. Are you allergic to peanuts?" Jack asked, standing up to get a closer look at his ill guest. Even if they were just 'associates' with the Ghost Boy as far as these two knew, he was pretty sure his son didn't want his guests sick.

Phantom Girl shook her head, however. "Not...not peanuts...or anything usually in fudge...." she muttered.

"Maddie! Did you do anything special with the brownies? Tinya here is sick," Jack called, pulling out a Fenton barf bag and holding it out to Tinya who gratefully took it.

"Hmm...is she allergic to peanuts?" Maddie called from the kitchen.

"Nope, already asked," Jack said.

"Well, I can't imagine what it could be," Maddie said, walking over to the kitchen doorway. "I mixed the ingredients like always, prepared the pan likes, popped them in the ecto cooker 5.0 for the usual time, and let them cool like always," Maddie said, rubbing her chin thoughtfully.

"Ecto cooker? What's an ecto coo-" Timber Wolf started before Phantom Girl suddenly screamed. "Tinya?!"

Phantom Girl had dropped the barf bag, clutching at her sides as she screamed in pain. "It hurts! It hurts! It....it feels like something's tearing apart inside!" Phantom Girl screamed, starting to shake and tremble.

And then something else added to the confusion as alarms started to go off. "What's that?!" Timber Wolf demanded, standing protectively in front of Phantom Girl, looking for a threat. "Now isn't the time for an attack!"

"It's an unknown ghost ecto signature!" Maddie said, hurrying over to a panel in the wall, opening it to reveal a control panel. "There's a ghost in the house! It's...it's....on the couch...?" Maddie looked over at Phantom Girl. "Right where she is..."

"Out of the way!" Jack shouted, pushing Timber Wolf to the side, not even the 'perfect predator' a match for the large man. He picked up Phantom Girl. "Is something trying to make you a meat puppet?!"

"N-no! No control...it...it just hurts!" Phantom Girl gasped.

"It must be trying to tear her apart inside!" Maddie declared.

"Nothing's there! Nothing phased into me! I-I know when....when something tries it and....and whatever it is....it didn't phase into me...." Phantom Girl panted. "It's....it's like....Phantom Zone....when....when I almost didn't....didn't come back...." She forced out before she finally fell limp, the pain too much.

"Phantom Zone?" Maddie said questioningly.

But Timber Wolf understood. "Something is altering her physical structure!" He said. "When we came back from the Phantom Zone, she almost became permanently phased out. Is there any scanning equipment in your lab?"

"I'll get the quarantine equipment!" Maddie declared, running for the lab. "Come on, Jack!"

"We're right on it!" Jack said to Timber Wolf, following Maddie, carrying Phantom Girl.

~ ~ ~ Page Break ~ ~ ~

"So she claims there's a ghost that controls time?" Brainiac Five asked as he readied the slide to take a look at the weird green substance that came from Danielle.

"That's right," Bouncing Boy said. "She says he's helped out the superhero they got there and that's probably what caused the distortion."

"And of course, one has to believe ghosts exist," Brainiac Five said in a disbelieving tone, placing the slide under the microscope.

"Ghosts do exist you know," Bouncing Boy said.

Brainiac Five scoffed. "Anything that is 'ghostly' can be logically explained," he said and looked at the slide. And after a moment, jumped back, staring at the microscope with wide eyes.

"Brainy? Something wrong?" Bouncing Boy asked.

"....I think her DNA just roared at me....(1)" Brainiac Five said, looking dumbfounded.

"What? Really?" Bouncing boy asked.

"Take a look for yourself," Brainiac Five said, pointing to the microscope. "I insist. I can't have really seen it roar," he said, starting to wonder about his own mental sanity. Really, roaring DNA.

Bouncing Boy moved over, taking a look through the microscope. Just as Brainiac Five said, the ecto did appear to be made of little organisms that appeared to actually be roaring or screaming or something of the like. "...now that's freaky. Nothing like this else where Brainy?"

Brainiac Five shook his head. "No. Nothing at all. Nothing in DNA should look like that. Nothing under that FOCUS should look like that except for perhaps nanobots."

"But none of the other scans show them?"

Brainiac Five shook his head. "I looked for technology like that. Nothing."

"Then what do you thi-?" Bouncing Boy started only to have the alarm start blaring. He immediately opened the communication channel. "What's going on?"

"We've lost powers in the holding cells," Triplicate Girl responded, voice sounding just a bit panicked.

"What caused it?" Brainiac Five demanded, already moving to go to the holding cells.

"That's the thing! We don't know!"

"Could it be Danielle?"

"Not likely. She was on screen when it went out. She was standing in front of the forcefield and was yawning, when everything went dead in the cell area, AND the cameras! There was some weird sound on the speakers, like some unearthly wail. I'm trying to get the cameras back, but other than that, it's only there that doesn't have power. She might be a target!"

It was too soon for her to be a target. She hadn't fought anyone they hadn't fought a multitude of times. Not to mention the only ones who should know she might be a prisoner outside the Legion were the people they rescued. Brainiac Five didn't believe for a moment she was being attacked.

But no one else was there.

Brainiac Five and Bouncing Boy didn't have to go far to reach the cells, seeing Cosmic Boy and two Triplicate Girls down the hall.

Not that they needed to wait. Before they could determine to open the door or not, it blew open.

And there stood Dani, a wide smirk on her face. But...things were different. Her face...it was blue. And her eyes were red.

Then she spoke, her voice deeper than it was before, cold, and sounding malevolent. "So...these are the heroes of the thirty-first century? Well, I suppose if you destroy one future, the second shouldn't be that difficult."

(1) This awesome line came from an RP and does not belong to me. It was just too awesome not to share.