Uh… Hi there… heh, heh. I'm really sorry for not writing this for a while. I'm just been so busy and having writer's block and focusing on one of my other fics. So… yeah, I'm really, really sorry! But I kind of have inspiration for this again so hopefully I'll write more often.
Chapter 9: It Begins
Come Saturday, the entire atmosphere of Amity Park had practically skyrocketed with excitement in anticipation of the upcoming contest between Freakshow, Danny Phantom, and Phantom Thief Kid. It was bizarre, strange, and in all other areas, illogical. If it had just been a fight between the madman and their hero, than the townspeople would have been interested, but in no ways actually looking forward to it. Actually, the people would have been pleading to Danny to rid the town of the Freakshow menace as fast he could.
The reason for the eagerness and excitement for the upcoming night was obvious: Kid. To everyone in town, they saw the competition more as a show that they had bought tickets to instead of the full-out battle that it was to be. People debated amongst themselves, trying to figure out what the outcome would be. Though there were many theories as to what would happen to Freakshow and Phantom, they agreed to one thing: Kid would succeed in stealing the Spirit Soul and easily escape the clutches of either party.
It was these ideas and theories that Danny heard nonstop every day until the morning of the competition. He had given word that he'd be at the contest, figuring at this point it was best just go with whatever the arrogant thief was thinking. He was uneasy, very uneasy. He, for the first time, truly had absolutely no idea what the fight was going to be like. He could count on Freakshow being manipulative and finding some underhanded way to deter him. Kid, however, was another story. The only thing that he could predict was that Kid would do something unpredictable, which gave him no help.
He simply did not know how to come at the thief. He and the others had dedicatedly studied Kid's methods ever since Jazz told them about his abilities. They found that every time people thought they had the perfect strategy against him, he would merely turn it on its head and use it against them. It was ridiculous! Even people who managed to keep him from completely stealing his target could not stop him from exiting one way or another. So even if they managed to keep him from taking the gem, stopping him completely was an unrealistic fantasy.
Danny and the others came to the museum early to help his parents set-up for the most likely chaotic event that was going to take place. His parents had pulled out all the stops in their attempt to catch the three competitors. The security in the museum was insane. There were checkpoints, searches, and even a police force ready for anything. Yet at the same time, the gala was intended for the enjoyment of the people, so the security had to be well hidden.
As Danny's parents were setting up the precautions, the trio of friends watched as a group of men delicately entered the main hall with a large box. Setting it down gently, the men opened the box with the care of defusing a bomb. Once opened, they took out what was the largest emerald that any of them had ever seen. It was larger than Jack's fist and had an eerie green glow around it, similar to a ghostly glow.
"Breathtaking, isn't it?"
All of them turned around to see Mr. Dankman, Mr. Collers, and Jesse walk in. Mr. Dankman was pale as usual, but Mr. Collers seemed stiffer than usual. Jesse's face was plastered with a smile.
"Of course it is, Jesse," Mr. Collers said sharply, "It's one of the largest emeralds in the world."
"Which is why Kid is so eager to get his hands on it," Jesse remarked casually.
"We figured as much," the rest of them commented. Danny turned back to the emerald. Something about it gave him a strange feeling. Seeing as it was a ghostly artifact, that shouldn't have surprised him. But the fact that none of the others gave him weird vibes was cause for concern. He'd keep a close eye on the gem.
As the men set-up the display for the gem, Mr. Dankman gave them a history of it. The emerald was found in an Egyptian tomb at the beginnings of the twentieth century. The tomb was strange in itself as it did not belong to any royalty or otherwise important figure. From the ruins, it was discovered that the tomb was the property of a type of wizard or such that was an outcast from the society. He was hunted down and killed for his actions against the gods. However, a wealthy follower of his prepared a tomb for him and laid all of his possessions with him. In the writings, it was said that the gem was a means to his enormous power.
The story made Danny wary. If Freakshow got his hands on that, they all were screwed.
-00000-
The museum had begun to let in people around six and soon the museum was full of people. Even with the anticipated battle, everyone was dressed elegantly (after all, it was a gala). In the center of the main hall was the Spirit Soul. Several people huddled around it, not only for its massive beauty and magnificence, but that it was going to be the source of attention in a few hours.
As people filled the museum, Danny and his family and friends watched the crowd for anything unusual. They were hoping to get Kid or Freakshow before the chaos started, but no luck. As they watched the crowd, Mr. Dankman and the others were greeting guests and thanking them for coming. At one point, Mr. Collers left to check the exhibit once more.
Danny watched him enter the hall when someone tapped his shoulder. Turning around he had to stop himself from gaping. In front of him was none other than the strict face assistant Mr. Collers. Before Danny could ask any questions, Mr. Collers asked, "You wouldn't be one of the Fentons' children, would you?"
Confused at the question, Danny replied, "Yeah, you know that."
"Excuse me?" Mr. Collers asked, confused himself.
Danny gave him an even more quizzical look, "Uh, you've only been at my house almost every day this week."
This raised Mr. Collers eyebrows, "What in the world do you mean? I haven't been here all week. I've been on leave for the last week on Mr. Dankman's orders."
"Wait, what!" Danny exclaimed.
Danny was thinking fast. Kid must have planned this heist from the beginning. He must have found out about the Spirit Soul and placed everything perfectly for this moment. He really was starting to hate this guy. He called over everyone and told them what was going on.
Mr. Dankman was horrified, "He had access to everything! The security codes, placements, and strategies from the start!"
Jesse was paled with concern, still gaping at the situation.
Maddie calmed everyone down. "We still have an advantage," she said, "He doesn't know that we know his identity. We can catch him easily, now that he's been exposed."
Everyone agreed and began working on a plan to catch the thief.
-00000-
It was shortly after nine, yet still nothing had happened. People were beginning to wonder if the contest was actually going to take place. While the rest of the crowd was impatiently waiting for the show to start, Danny and the others were fixed on the fake Mr. Collers. They were waiting for a chance to get him without causing too much commotion. They all surrounded the main hall except for the real Mr. Collers who was hiding as to keep Kid from finding out about his slip. Mr. Dankman asked his "assistant" to have a word in one of the abandoned rooms of the museum. As soon as the two entered the room, Mr. Collers was ambushed by Jack and Maddie and pinned to the floor.
"What it the world is the meaning of this!" Mr. Collers screamed in indignation.
"Give it up, Kid!" Jack said, proudly, "We know it's you!"
"What the devil do you people mean?" Mr. Collers gasped, flabbergasted.
Danny spoke up, "Come on, Kid. Even you should now when you're beat. The real Mr. Collers just walked in and told us everything."
"Are you people MAD?!" Mr. Collers asked stunned.
"We know everything," Jesse hissed, "You called the real Mr. Collers as Mr. Dankman and told him to take a vacation for the week. Then all you had to do was to pretend to be the real one and everything fell into your lap."
The look of confusion, however, did not leave Mr. Collers face, "That's true!" He looked to Mr. Dankman, "You called me and said to take the exhibit off for a few days to spend with my family. You said you'd have Jesse take care of everything."
"WHAT!?" they all cried, confused.
"My vacation was cut short when Mr. Dankman called after the Kid incident and said to come as soon as possible. That's why I was so hard on you today Jesse for the lax security to happen."
At this everyone was silent, shocked. Jesse went up to Mr. Collers and jerked his face hard. He yelped and gave Jesse a quick glare. Jesse and Mr. Dankman paled, "He's the real one."
Before Danny could even grasp at what was happening, a loud crash was heard coming from the main hall along with several screams. They all rushed out into the main hall were several people were running around in a panic and a familiar maniacal laughter was heard.
'So it starts,' Danny thought.
Again, really, really, super sorry for not writing for a while. I hope you enjoyed yourselves though. I know it was a short chapter, but that's all I got right now for the moment, so again sorry.
Anyway, I hope I surprised the lot of you. I know some of you were wondering who Kid was, but I hope I did a good job fooling you all. If not, oh well I guess. I tried.
Until next time!
Disclaimer – I don't own Danny Phantom, Magic Katio/Detective Conan