A/N: Happy Friday, everyone and THIS time FF let me load! (Be thankful for small successes!). Anyhow this chapter definitely ties with another chappie as my ultimate personal fav chappie. But it is VERY intense, so be ready. I need to warn ya, but all of it has a purpose, of course. And, uhm, it is also VERY long, so hope you don't mind that, either! In either case, here is Chapter 52. Enjoy!
TrueHeart—Chapter 52—Ultimate Test
"Alright, Bertrand, I'm ready," Spectra said with glee. "And, remember, wait a few seconds before reviving the boy."
Bertrand nodded as he uncorked the vial of whitish ammonia-like substance that he had brought from his lab along with all those empty vials. He placed it under Sam's nose. The human girl immediately reacted, recoiling from it while coughing on its vapors. Spectra took that as her cue. The shadow ghost quickly entered Sam and overshadowed her. Spectra, of course, didn't think about the fact that she could do that easier this time than she had in the recent past. If Sam had not been so weakened by the shadow's ghost's latest attack on her, or hadn't been driven further into a stupor by Spectra's overshadowing right now, Spectra would have failed. But as it were, Spectra entered the girl as easily as she had any other human.
Bertrand watched as Sam's eyes popped opened. They were a solid red at first, but they quickly melded back to their amethyst shade right afterward. Once he saw Sam's evil grin, he floated over to the unconscious Danny, who was still in his ghost form.
He also placed the same vial under the boy's nose and smiled when he got an immediate and similar reaction as well. Satisfied that the boy would recover, the shape- shifter quickly darted over to a dark corner behind some boxes. He turned on the machine and waited.
Still coughing from the vapors from the small vial, Danny slowly opened his eyes, wondering what that foul smell was and why he couldn't get his hand to his mouth. One pull on his hand was all he needed for him to remember that he was still Spectra's prisoner.
Just as he lifted his head, he felt a slight chill rush through him just as he heard Sam's voice. And she definitely sounded very angry.
"So, now what kind of trouble have you gotten me into this time? Wasn't it bad enough that you broke up with me? I don't want to be sucked into anymore of your silly little ghost problems! Why couldn't you just leave me out of this?"
Even though his first response was to cringe at her barrage, he was still more relieved to see that she was all right than be upset that she was angry. Though his head was still swimming, he hurriedly replied, "Sam! I'm glad you're alright! But calm down, will ya? We don't know where those two idiot ghosts are...
She was quick to interrupt him, "But I know! Spectra and Bertrand said they had a quick errand to run in the Real World. I heard them talking about it when they thought I was unconscious!"
He then replied, "Oh, okay, then. But we still have to get out of here! And I can explain everything. So, can you please just chill a minute while I try to break free?!"
Turning her nose up, she whined, "And why should I calm down? I don't ever want to see you anymore, much less be in the same room with you! You don't deserve having anyone get close to you! And after you trick them into getting close, all you do is betray them! And I should know! You didn't trust me or believe me when you should have. Fine! I may have been a fool once, but not anymore!"
Still struggling with his bonds, Danny grunted, "But it's not your fault, Sam! You didn't know and I didn't know at the time that Spectra overshadowed you all that time! Sarah told me!"
Spectra-within-Sam gasped. He knew! And that little ghost told him! How did that happen? But it didn't matter! Just wait until she could get her hands on that puny bird's throat! But, this did change things. She would have to take a different track…She growled her answer, "Now who's the one lying? And what's that silly little ghost bird have to do with it? That still doesn't change things! We can't understand each other ever again! So, breaking up is the only option. I was going to roll with that. And then this happened! It just had to get worse, didn't it?! If I had to be trapped—no thanks to you—I certainly didn't want to be trapped in the same room with you! "
Even as he once more struggled against his bonds without success, Danny didn't miss a single word she had said. He grunted, "I can't break free! I still feel so drained! And I'm so sorry about everything, Sam! But you're just angry. You have a right to be, but I can explain everything and help you understand if you just let me!"
But, then, he stopped cold. Hold on. The boy's mind quickly backtracked to Sam's last response. She had answered him like she knew who 'Sarah' was. But how was that possible? Sam hadn't seen the dove for days and Danny had been the first—and only—one of the two of them to learn what the ghost bird's name was!
And furthermore, since when did Sam get angry at innocent animals? That was not like her… And how the heck did she know about Sarah? Wait. How did she know the bird was a ghost?! Yes, Sam was smart; but it still did not make any sense! And there was no way she could have guessed it, either.
Another thought then suddenly struck Danny. But he quickly put it on hold. He had to know the answer to his current question.
He finally said, "I don't get it, Sam! How did you know all that about Sarah?"
Spectra silently tensed at the question. She, of course knew the ghost animal couple's names…But then, she quickly probed her host's mind and knew what to say. She growled back, "Duh! Her husband, Derek, was with me, remember? He told me!"
"Oh, yeah," Danny said, biting the inside of his lower lip. He must have been reading too much into her reactions. And now, he was becoming more worried on how very upset she was. Pulling on his bonds again and with his voice heavy with the effort, he finally said, "But try to calm down, will ya, Sam? I'll explain everything once we get out of here, okay?"
Spectra silently grinned in triumph within Sam. She thought she only had a very small window to carry out this quick plan. Still, she was pleased. The half-ghost was bluffing earlier about his break-up with the human! He still cared for her. Then another thought struck her. But why didn't he know that she was here inside his little girlfriend? His silly little 'ghost sense' should have alerted him! She didn't have any ghost-masking stuff on her, so why hadn't he known?
She couldn't know that answer, however. But in fact, it had alerted him, when he got that little chill right before the overshadowed Sam spoke to him the first time. But he didn't know that! And the reason for that was that his ghost sense had been severely dampened now, not only because his ghostly aura had been extinguished by the de-ghost-a-fying potion, but also because he was still very weakened by everything that had happened to him so far.
Spectra-as-Sam tossed that worry away for the moment, pleased that she had gotten this far in her plan. This would be perfect, then. She was about to throw more destructive barbs at him when, suddenly, she felt an intense and inexplainable pain riveting her mind.
"What was that?" the shadow ghost moaned mentally to herself, trying to concentrate more. Then, a moment later, she felt a little better and replied with Sam's irked voice, "No amount of explaining will help! You will never understand me, you jerk! How could you ever understand anything? And I'll never forgive you for all that stuff you've done to me, especially for shafting me!"
This time, Danny felt a tight pull on his heart. He had never seen her this angry at him—ever! Then he jolted when he grasped that thought. That was it! He just knew that this didn't feel right. This was like before, when she had told him they were through! This couldn't be right, then!
He looked around with his hunch, but he could not sense any ghost. He focused back to Sam. She was still so angry. But this wasn't like her. She would spell it all out before getting this upset! He knew her and she knew him. He couldn't explain it, but he wasn't going to question—or doubt— it anymore.
Then he was suddenly shaken by his next thought when he couldn't figure out why she was behaving like this. It was the same one that he had immediately after wondering how Sam had known the dove's name. That was it! Why did she say that he had broken up with her? He never said it! And, she was the one now acting as if he was to blame for everything that had happened to them the last time they saw each other. But she had been the one who had wanted to break up with him—that is, when she had been overshadowed by Spectra!
So, what did that mean? Then another wild thought surfaced. Was she being overshadowed again, and Spectra had some of that masking stuff on? He had to find out. And he knew just how to make sure he would get through to her.
He finally said, "Sam…I can see that you're way overheated about this. I understand that and I'm not angry with you. But we have to stick together if we want to get out of here. So, could we please talk about it...our way, okay?"
Spectra, of course, had no idea what he meant by that. And she quickly found herself cornered. Whatever she said next was either going break this little freak or break her plans!
Quickly thinking up a new strategy, she finally replied, though her harsh voice had now turned into an almost sad whisper. "Our way? You care about that now, Danny? Now, after all the times I asked you to trust me, after I asked you that same thing and you refused?"
Danny cringed at her comment, and his doubt about Sam's wanting to break up with him resurfaced. Maybe this was for real! Maybe Sam wanted them to be through. And then, he was at a loss on what to say next.
But just then, the shadow-ghost-as-Sam suddenly felt that same painful pressure attack her mind. She tried to resist it; but then, just as sudden, she was aware of another…presence…in her mind. And the shadow ghost was sure that she heard a mental groan—Sam's mental groan. But, again, it was all in her mind.
"What is this?" Spectra silently muttered to herself, this time in disbelief. "Is the girl stirring? How?"
Once more, the female ghost heard another mental moan, followed immediately by a groggy 'W-What?' But it wasn't the shadow ghost's mental voice who had uttered that…it was Sam's! And the human girl was finally—inexplicably—coming fully out of the stupor into which Spectra had first put her just after she was initially revived by Bertrand and then overshadowed by the female shadow ghost right afterward.
Confused at first, Spectra mentally frowned at this development; but then, she finally recalled all those strange things that had happened to her the last couple of times she was within this girl. She had wanted to find out how Sam was able to throw her out of her body the last time. And now that Spectra had the weakened girl within her power, that should be easy enough to do. But she had to keep Danny off balance to give her that little time she would need.
"Sam, come on, don't ignore me," Danny suddenly said, pulling Spectra out of her thoughts. She focused back on him, and realized he had been trying to get her—or rather, Sam's—attention.
"Look, a lot has happened," the boy continued, "And I know I should have trusted you more. But, please, let's just figure out how to get out of here first, and then we'll work things out. We always have."
"No thanks to you!" Spectra-as-Sam finally uttered, still feigning betrayal in her victim's voice. "All this time, I have given you my all when you've give nothing! You were even incapable of giving me at least the benefit of the doubt! So just save your breath, Danny! No matter what you say, it doesn't matter! It's over between us! So, I hope you're happy, because, in the end, that's exactly what you wanted!"
"That's not true!" Danny yelled back, so upset with his girlfriend's words that he briefly forgot everything around them. The sound of betrayal in Sam's voice was a sure as her words. Now, he was sure, she really did want to break up with him! He felt his heart burn with dread at that thought.
Spectra almost laughed right there when she saw worry cover the boy's face, but she continued with her act; but this time, instead of adding just hurt into her voice, she added anger again, anger that bordered on hate. "Look, I don't want to talk about any of this anymore! I just want to get out of here and as far away from you as I can! I'm done with you thinking that you can make everything alright with your shallow words! I see now that you do that to manipulate me! Because you think you own me! Well, listen to this, mister: you don't own me—ever! So, you can just shut it unless you can eke out of your jerky head how to get me out of here!"
Danny just stared at her with wide, troubled eyes. How could she even think that? He had never seen her as an object or some possession! When had he ever given her a reason to believe that? No, this wasn't right!
Suddenly feeling angry and hurt himself, his voice lowered into a serious tone as he replied, "That's not fair, Sam. You know I have never thought of you like that!"
"Oh, haven't you?" the overshadowed Sam replied coldly. And quickly searching her victim's mind, Spectra added, "Then, why is it that I was the one who had to go out of my way to get you to notice me? Why is it always me who has to change my personality for you? You've always taken me for granted, so you've always made me feel like one of your things."
"What?" he asked, now torn with confusion and outrage. "Change? I've never told you to change anything. And what do you mean I never noticed you and took you for granted? Wait. Do you mean before we started going out? Sam, come on, I thought you forgave me for that! Besides, I already admitted I was a total jerk and—"
"Yeah, well, maybe I did forgive you! But not anymore! Not after this! And, yeah, Danny, you are a total jerk!"
The teen was floored with her remarks. He knew Sam could say some mean things when she was angry. But, bringing up the past? Since when was she the grudge-holding type? No, something wasn't right here! When they were just friends, they were always there for each other! And even if they were angry, they would push that aside to focus on what was important! But now…
Was she that hurt by him?
Danny suddenly felt shame grip at his heart. He never meant to hurt her like this. But, Sam was right. He should have never distrusted her! He should have known that she wasn't that kind of girl. That all that had happened in that blasted 'Armen' thing was not her doing. But he didn't. He let his emotions and his own feelings of betrayal deny what he knew in his heart to be true: Sam had been innocent the whole time. She would never sink so low as to cheat on him. She was a good person, but also a good friend, and loyal girlfriend.
Then he suddenly remembered what he had inadvertently blurted out to Sarah when he had been so upset a few days ago. And that was the thought that he no longer wanted to do anything right any more if he had to give up his girl. But the thing was, Sam had always helped him see all what was the right thing to do whenever he was unsure. She had always seen through all of that confusing stuff. Even when he was off track, focused only on himself, she never gave up on that, and that was because she, like him, wanted more than just want to do what was right. They wanted to make sure they did the right thing. And underneath, both of their energies were always focused on that.
But now, she sounded like she was giving up. And it was all his fault! And, yet, something pang on Danny's heart. He still felt that something was not right about Sam. He wanted to believe so much that maybe she was being forced to act like this. But the hurt in her voice just sounded so real. And her words were so intense that Danny could understand why she would say all that. And in a way, he suddenly felt like he deserved every bit of it… And, maybe…. Maybe he did not deserve her at all. Maybe breaking up was the best thing he could do for her…
Danny suddenly felt like just giving up himself. The thought of losing Sam filled him with hopelessness. But that only emptied his mind enough for another thought to seep back in. They were still in danger. He had to get them out of here! But he wasn't strong enough to break free, and hadn't thought of any way to get them out of this—yet. He didn't want to answer her back right away until he could think of some way to get out of this mess.
As he searched his mind for a plan, he frowned when another unwanted thought surfaced. She hadn't thought of anyway to get out of this mess, either! And if she was going to be this unreasonable, maybe all he wanted right now, then, was to get away from her as well. But then, that same, nagging feeling erased those last thoughts. This didn't feel right! It was all wrong! But then again, he also had no right to be angry with her! He wanted to work this out so badly! But she didn't want him to use their way to get through this, and she was still so angry and hurt. He bit his lip, trying to calm himself and come up with some kind of plan….
Satisfied that she seemed to have nipped the conversation in the bud for the moment between the Ghost Kid and the overshadowed Sam, Spectra turned her thoughts back to the matter at hand: just how did this girl manage to have any power over her? She needed to know…now!
She concentrated and, finally, her mind touched Sam's. She confidently hissed to the human, "So, you're finally awake, little girl? Interesting little trick, there. Being able to be aware at all that I'm here, that is. I need an explanation of that, which, I'm sure, you'd be more than happy to share with me!"
"W-what….w-who?" Sam moaned again, still feeling her mind numb from the effects of Spectra's last assault on her in the Ghost Zone and the overshadowing. She was uncertain if this were real or if she was dreaming. She tried to clear her mind, but when she did, she met a painful resistance.
Then Sam jolted a little. That resistance, it was...was...And then she knew! She could actually feel a ghost—a shadow ghost! —trying to increase her hold on her mind. She mentally gasped. Was it Jiva? But that then just made Sam angry—and more determined.
The girl mentally pushed back harder against the ghostly force, but this kind of resistance felt…different. It wasn't Jiva! She just somehow knew that! But if it wasn't Jiva, then who?...She jolted at her next thought. This time she concentrated more at resisting, trying to rid herself of whom she was now certain was…Spectra!...overshadowing her. But she found it very hard to do.
"Get out of me!" Sam defiantly demanded, her mind now almost fully cleared.
"That's not in my plans right now, little girl," Spectra hissed back. "Though I must say I'm quite impressed about your puny little new 'talent' there! And just how is it that you now have this ability to resist me?"
She tried to probe the girl's mind right after she said that, but was surprised that this time she met a solid mental block. Not certain of what that could possibly mean, Spectra nevertheless kept cool and flippantly said, "Not that I'm really all that impressed. It's just a mere nuisance, but it certainly won't interfere with my plans to use you to completely break your little boyfriend over there!"
Even though Sam couldn't see Danny right now, she had the certain feeling that he was very near…She mentally gasped. Was he hurt? Her memory came into sharp focus at that thought. They were still prisoners! She gritted her mental teeth and growled, "Leave him alone!"
Sam heard Spectra's mental laugh before the ghost answered her, "Looks like I've been having to deal with all sorts of uppity girls lately! Oh, well, a therapist's job is never done, is it? Still, it doesn't matter. But what does matter is that I can tell that you both still care for each other. Too bad, but too good. Because, now it's time for me to get complete control over your little beau so that he won't be able to keep me from bleeding all of his powerful pheromones out of him. And I'm going to use you to do that!"
Sam concentrated just as she heard that. She had to prevent the shadow ghost from hearing her next thoughts. Feeling a sharp pain after she had exerted her will to block the shadow ghost, Sam hoped she had accomplished what she wanted.
She then pondered to herself, "Pheromones? What do phero….That's why she wanted to break us up! That's must be what makes up the kind of misery she wants! That's got to be it! I just know it!"
Now that she was somehow certain that this was true, she had to think of a bluff to throw Spectra off. Her quick mind came up with her own plan. She then willed the mental block away and listened. Nothing! Spectra hadn't heard her thoughts after all! Relieved, but still determined to carry out her plan, she tersely and defiantly said, "You're definitely the lamest therapist I've ever seen. And I really don't care about what you're talking about… But make no mistake. I'm not going to let that happen if I can help it!"
Again, Sam heard Spectra's mental laugh. But this time it was a menacing one. "And just who do you think you are, little girl? You won't be able to help it! Your silly little boyfriend is already too weak to break free and it'll be any time now that he'll be completely helpless. And just what are you but a mere, insignificant human?! You've always been totally powerless to even have dreamt of helping him!"
Sam mentally grasped, but then gritted her mental teeth. She didn't care how Spectra had found out about one of her insecurities. She wasn't about to let the wicked ghost use it against her.
"I am so tired of you invading my personal space, witch!" Sam defiantly and mentally yelled.
Then the shadow ghost sarcastically growled, "Ha-ha, brave words. But enough of this! I still don't know why you're even able to argue about this with me and I won't have any more of it! But it doesn't matter anymore, either! It's time to snuff you out and get on with my final plans. And, while I'm easily doing that, I'll dissect your silly little lame mind and get to the bottom of why you resisted my overshadowing you!"
But before Spectra could concentrate and try to exert more power over Sam, both of the females heard Danny's call, "Sam?"
He had finally calmed down and had decided that Sam was so spazzed out about all the craziness that had happened so far and about being here. Of course, he really hadn't had a chance to talk to her about his misunderstanding everything that had happened because of Spectra. She was probably just blowing off steam—lots of it, of course. That's what he hoped, at least. It didn't matter at this point if he didn't understand just how angry she was. He wanted to get through this. He had to… Plus, he really had to tell her everything that Sarah had told him so that she would understand and calm down. After all, they still had to stick together in order to get out of this.
But the overshadowed Sam didn't answer him and he grew nervous. He struggled with his bonds and they still refused to budge. He then called to his girlfriend once more, now getting more anxious. "Sam? Why don't you answer me? I need to talk to you!" Suddenly, he felt weak again and groaned with the sudden vertigo—and out-of-the-blue pain. But just as quickly, the pain disappeared.
But what he didn't know was that Bertrand, who was still hidden, had been monitoring him with his machine. And when the shape-shifter noticed an earlier spike and then this recent one in his readings, he couldn't resist his hunger and activated the machine. And, of course, it leeched out more of Danny's pheromones into the waiting famished vial. But then a moment later, the shape-shifter thought better of it and turned the machine off. After all, he didn't want to break Spectra's concentration—or blow her plans just yet. There was still plenty of time—and he could still use the machine to monitor the kid.
Still determined to get through to his girl, and ignoring his sudden blurry vision, Danny added, "Sam, I know about everything! And I want you to totally understand me. But we don't have much time. We don't know when Spectra and Bertrand will be coming back. So, for both our sakes, we have to stick together about this for now, okay, Sam?!"
But when his girlfriend once again did not reply to him, he got even more desperate. "Sam, please! I need your help! I can't break these bonds! And I can't think of a way out of this on my own! If you are so upset with me that you don't want to speak to me, then, can we just please talk this over our way?"
"What does he mean by that?" Spectra mentally demanded, speaking to Sam.
But even though the girl was able to hear what Danny said this time and knew what Spectra was asking, she wasn't about to answer the shadow ghost. Now that Sam felt totally recovered, she was concentrating. She knew she had been able to get Spectra out of her before. She wasn't sure how, but she had to do it again. She concentrated even harder. And as she did, neither she nor Spectra were aware of something happening to Sam's body.
Danny clenched his eyes shut in his anxiety just as a deep reddish-purple aura began to envelope his girlfriend's body. He was unaware of her internal struggle, especially now that he was suddenly caught up in his own. Sam really wanted nothing to do with him. She wasn't even insulting him anymore!
Danny then opened his eyes but kept his gaze downward, overwhelmed by his emotions. He could feel his eyes growing watery, which only made his blurry vision even worse. "Sam, please, I'm so sorry…," he whispered at her, unaware that the pain in his voice gave his girlfriend more strength to fight against Spectra's hold. And that only made the glow around her body intensify—something Danny still did not see because he had not looked to her for her answer to his plea yet.
The ghost boy was just about to give up, when he felt a sense of determination swell inside him. No! He refused to let this be the end of them! He refused to let some sick trick by Spectra destroy everything they had built all these years. The boy suddenly closed his eyes shut and concentrated. He was done asking her for permission. He was going to get through to her their way, even if it was just long enough for them to figure a way out of here!
But just as he attempted to barge into his girlfriend's mind, he mentally slammed right into a cold barrier. Why was she completely blocking him? Still determined, he quickly tried to get past it to reach Sam's mind; only to be thrust away from her thoughts this time!
He gasped in chagrined at her reaction; and then thinking once more about how angry she had been since he woke, a very unsettling thought hit squarely his muddled mind: he had done what she had at least hinted at was one of her fears. She had finally let her guard down all this time and had opened herself to hurt. And he had hurt her from everything that had happened. But it was worse. He had not only hurt her, he hadn't believed in her when he should have, and had, in effect, rejected her. That would explain her hostility now, and why she threw him out of her mind.
Maybe she had definitely decided that this was the end of their relationship! He sighed and his shoulders deflated in defeat. He felt crushed with misery once again—and felt weaker because of it. Obviously his girl felt that what he done was unforgivable in her mind. But how could that be? She had been the one who had blown him off. Or had she? Now he wasn't certain. She had been overshadowed during the 'Armen' thing, but maybe when she finally realized it all, and saw how he reacted—how unfairly he had treated her—that was too much for her. After all, she had been making it clear all throughout their arguing just now that she didn't want anything more to do with him…
He was sorry about the way he had treated her and he could totally understand her hurt, but not her unforgiving rage over it. That was not the Sam he knew…She didn't hold grudges… He jolted at the thought. And he suddenly felt a little hope. That was right! It wasn't the Sam he knew—and she should know him better than that! She should know that he would finally come to his senses, that they both were always so willing to work things out, like Sarah had said…because…because they loved each other!
But he had misunderstood his girlfriend's intention just now, which was, of course, to get Spectra out of her. And in her determination to do just that, Sam had inadvertently thrown Danny out, too.
In the next instant, however, the young hybrid was surprised at feeling another unexpected wave of pain grab a hold of him. Once more, Bertrand had been quick to take advantage of the spike in the level of misery he had detected the moment the boy seemed to be crushed with it, and had activated the machine.
Danny groaned under the pain and his head began to spin again. And he was so dizzy he could barely hear the loud—and defiant—grunt that was coming from his girlfriend a few moments later. But he struggled to look at her nevertheless and gasped when he finally saw that her body was glowing! Wait. That wasn't right! Either he was so out of it that he was now imagining things or there was something very wrong with Sam! But before he could even try to get his muddled mind to figure this out, he jolted when he saw a black entity suddenly thrown outward from Sam.
His blurry vision tracked the black thing as it slammed so hard into the wall that the wall buckled from the blow. And when the black entity finally slid down the wall, momentarily stunned, Danny gasped when he recognized who it was: Spectra! So, she had been overshadowing Sam this whole time?! But how was that possibly when his ghost sense had not once alerted him that she was even here?!
But then he knew! The shadow ghost must have had some of that masking concoction on her that Sarah had told him about! That's why he hadn't known that Sam was being overshadowed during this entire time, too! But then, he frowned in confusion when he saw Spectra's aura…she hadn't had any masking formula on her. So, then, what was going on?
But, of course, Danny was not aware that the real reason he had not—and still could not—sense Spectra was because he was the one with the masking formula on him. He still did not realize it had been accidentally sprayed all over him. And that not only did it conceal his ghostly aura, but it also had affected his ghost sense.
Still, Danny quickly dismissed his confusion. That didn't matter right now. Even though he was already weakened and still was very dizzy, he was suddenly overwhelmed with guilt about doubting Sam again. But he wasn't going to do that to his love again.
Even as he was trying to think more clearly, Danny wasn't ready for what happened next.
Once Bertrand had seen Spectra crumpled on the floor, he had leapt from his hiding place and aimed the machine point blank at Danny. But Danny hadn't seen him when he did. Because, a moment later, the boy scrunched his eyes closed and yelled with the pain as the little machine began to siphon his pheromones from him. His body twisted in agony at the assault.
Now that Spectra was out of her, Sam was fully awake and alert. She could feel her breathing and heart rate increase in dread as she now saw how much pain her boyfriend was in. She instinctively lunged forward, only to find that she was bound as securely as Danny. She quickly looked at Bertrand and saw the little machine rattling within his hands as the vial within it filled and glowed with a blackish-purple substance. The human girl now understood what Spectra meant by breaking her boyfriend! And, somehow, that little machine was the key!
Just a few moments later, a small bell dinged and Bertrand put the machine down and rushed over to Spectra.
Danny was left panting hard, still in intense pain. He felt his head was too heavy to hold up and as he let it drop to his chest, he couldn't prevent the rest of his body from going limp as well.
Sam gasped when she saw that and instantly called to him.
But he was still in so much pain and his head was spinning so wildly, he had not heard her.
Desperate, this time she sent a firm telepathic message to him. "Danny, it's me! Sam!"
"Sam?" he was barely able to mutter back mentally. But thinking he had imagined hearing her voice, he said mentally to himself, "I must be imagining this! I just tried to talk to her a minute ago and she threw me out!"
Clearly hearing what he had said and confused by what he meant by it, Sam replied mentally to him, "I did?" Then thinking why she did that, she knew. She told his mind, "Oh, yeah, I did! Sorry, but I think I would have thrown my entire brain out if that meant getting Spectra out of me just now! She was overshadowing me—again! Ugh! But, don't worry. You're not imagining anything! I am here now and I won't leave you ever again!"
The sound of her firm mental voice made his heart leap and he knew then that Sam must be here after all. And, inexplicably, he felt relieved. Still, he could barely think what he wanted to say because he felt so dizzy. But he knew what he had to ask her right away. He sent his mental—yet hopeful—question to her, "T-Then, you're not mad at me? And…you don't want to break up with me?"
"Mad at you? Why would I be mad at you? I thought you were livid with me for everything that happened and I was so worried that you wanted to break up with me! But I can kinda explain…" she answered.
His mind eased more when he heard her say that. "Sam, you have nothing to explain! It's me who should do the explaining! I hurt you, didn't believe or trust you, even when I had somehow had this gut feeling that I should've! I knew you better than that and was so wrong to doubt you, and I lov-…"
"Please, honey, don't!" Sam gently pleaded. "I…understand! If everything happened to you like it happened to me, I would've felt the same doubt! And I hurt you and didn't trust you enough to come out with it all right away! But, like you said, that doubt is gone, and that's because we do know each other very well…and… love each other too much to let that keep us apart for too long. It's over now, okay? Now we just have to..."
But her message was interrupted by Danny's painful scream as he was suddenly jolted by Spectra's energy beam again. Bertrand had revived the shadow ghost by giving her the entire dosage of the pheromones he had just collected from Danny moments ago. The charge that Spectra got from Danny's pheromones was overwhelming yet extremely effective.
Full in strength and vexation, Spectra emptied more of her terrible power into Danny.
And just as the evil ghost attacked her boyfriend, Sam could just as sudden—and inexplicably—feel his pain as strongly as if Spectra had attacked her instead of him.
"NO!" she desperately and defiantly yelled to the shadow ghost, panting with her own pain. "Leave him alone!"
"As if you can stop me, little girl," Spectra countered with an evil laugh, just before she turned to Bertrand and commanded, "I want and need more of his pheromones, Bertrand! They are absolutely delicious! And invigorating, at that! I feel like I can continue to use my powers to their fullest without ever tiring or being drained of any energy! As a matter fact, I believe my level of power has just gone up a notch or two! And now the little ghost freak is certainly no match for me!"
Bertrand lifted the machine up and took aim.
Sam struggled against her bonds, wishing with all her might that she could grab that little machine and dash it firmly to the ground.
Danny screamed, panting in agony once more when the machine was activated. He gripped against his bonds, trying to find something to alleviate his suffering, but found nothing. He let out another cry of pain, as sweat began to drip down his face and his eyes began to water.
Sam's eyes widened in alarm as she watched the once empty vial quickly fill with even more blackish-purple glowing substance. That must be the pheromones that Spectra was talking about! And the girl now knew that when they were removed from her boyfriend, it had hurt him—terribly!
Then, Bertrand continued, filling one vial after another in quick succession until the nearby pouch was full.
And in all that while, Danny had continued to writhe and yell in immense pain as the little machine bled him of his strength—and now, life.
Seeing how terrible her boyfriend was now looking, Sam yanked against her bonds more violently and screamed more desperately this time, "LEAVE HIM ALONE!"
Spectra and Bertrand laughed at Sam's insignificant threat. Purposely ignoring the frantic girl, the shape-shifter quickly exchanged the now full vial for yet another empty one, before carefully placing the filled one on a nearby tray. He took aim once more just as Spectra evilly chuckled, "Start it up again, Bertrand!"
Danny screamed again and his body shuddered under the assault.
Bertrand quickly replaced the vial with another and started the machine again.
Now livid with defiance, and pulling so hard on her bonds that they were now digging into her flesh, Sam insolently seethed through gritted teeth, "I SAID: LEAVE. HIM. ALONE!"
And as soon as she shrieked those words, a large glowing fuschia-colored shield instantly materialized and quickly blanketed her semi-conscious boyfriend.
Spectra and Bertrand gasped in disbelief when, all of the sudden, the vial would not fill! Somehow, the machine's power could not penetrate the shield!
Bertrand immediately rechecked the machine, turning if off and then on again as he did. But Danny remained with his head against his chest, panting heavily, but no longer in any agony, all because he was protected behind the reddish-purple shield. But he was too dizzy to notice that it was there.
Before either of the two wicked ghosts could react, another beam, which was the same in color as the shield, split into two and came at the machine, yanking it right out of Bertrand's hands. The two now shocked ghosts floated helplessly by as the little machine was then sent flying into the nearby wall with such angry force that it was smashed instantly to smithereens.
The ghost couple turned to look in the direction of where the beam had come. Their eyes widened in more disbelief when they now saw a dazed Sam, breathing heavily and perspiring, with wisps of deep purple smoke still bellowing from her right hand. Not a moment after that, the reddish-purple shield disappeared and Sam, dazed by the immense effort, dropped her head to her chest.
"Just how? What?" Spectra blurted out, but she was still too shocked and didn't really know what she was saying. But then, she suddenly regained her wits and grew angry for letting this girl somehow get the upper hand. Just as she floated closer to the girl, she growled, "Just where did you get those powers? And how?"
Sam pulled her head up in spite of still feeling dizzy and glared at the shadow ghost. She had felt differently lately each time she concentrated on trying to make something happen that could somehow help the situation. And even though she knew now that somehow—though she was totally clueless exactly how—she was able to make something happen, she wasn't about to satisfy the shadow ghost with any kind of answer. And she wasn't going to give up.
In the meantime, Danny had recuperated enough and began to lift his head. He saw Spectra too close to Sam than he liked and now Bertrand was here, too. He tried to concentrate on willing his healing powers, but he was just too weak.
Then his head jolted when he heard Spectra say, "You'd better spill it out, little girl. Because if you don't, I'll force it out of you!"
That was all Danny needed to hear. He dug within himself, searching for his inner strength. He began to glow a bright blue, and as he concentrated, that aura melded into bright green energy orbs from both of his hands. Feeling enough of his strength return, and with he own defiant yell, he then commanded his ectoplasmic beams forward and each of them forcefully met their targets.
Spectra and Bertrand were thrust away from Sam and splattered on the wall opposite of him. They oozed downward and were momentarily incapacitated by his attack.
"Danny!" Sam called to him, relieved that he had recovered.
But he quickly answered her in their minds, "No time! We have to get out of here!" And just as he said that, he concentrated and his hands glowed once more with his green energy.
However, before his energy beams could buckle the clamps around his wrists, they were cut short by a purple energy blast and a green energy ray from his two ghost foes. The young ghost hybrid screamed as the force of their combined impact dug into his chest. He reflexively closed his eyes at the pain.
But suddenly, he no longer felt any pain and didn't grow weaker. Instead, he felt oddly stronger! He didn't question how, but then he heard his girlfriend's mental voice call to him. And though it seemed to speak with effort, it was full of determination, confidence and love as it uttered, "Y-you said w-we're –i-in this together, honey! I'm going to try to help, too!"
He opened his eyes and saw that Sam's brow was furrowed, deep in concentration. And then, somehow—even though he didn't know or question how—he just knew that she was actually helping him resist the other ghosts' blows as easily as if she were steadying him while climbing a steep hill.
Encouraged, he charged two more energy bolts from his bound hands and threw them again at Spectra and Bertrand.
Spectra and Bertrand gasped in disbelief by the scene. But before they could even try to avoid the blasts, they were rebuffed by these even stronger blows, and were slammed into the floor.
"YES!" Sam's triumphant yell echoed in his mind, though he could tell that she had said that with some effort.
Now that the two ghosts were distracted, Danny tried to yank his right hand from the mental clamps, intent on succeeding as he struggled. He closed his eyes in concentration and didn't notice the reddish-purple orb that had suddenly surrounded the bonds at his wrists. But he felt some kind of force actually help him pull against his bonds. He didn't question it. All he cared was that it was succeeding. But his still somewhat muddled mind wasn't aware that Sam was helping him and that she had even anticipated his plan. He felt the ghostly metal give and recharged by it, pulled harder.
But Spectra and Bertrand had rebounded by inhaling a few of those vials of Danny's pheromones. And once again, Danny's efforts to break free were thwarted by a huge purple energy beam and a thick green energy ray, which angrily rammed him in his chest, effectively knocking the wind out of him this time. He immediately gasped in immense pain before succumbing to the blows. His head spinning as he struggled to get air back into his constricted lungs.
But then he heard another pained gasp in his mind. He didn't know why but somehow he instinctively knew that Sam had felt the blows as well! And that thought hurt him even more than his physical attack. Now anxious to break free, he struggled harder.
But his mind eased a little when he heard his girlfriend call to it, "Hang on, honey!" She had rebounded! But then he frowned. Could it be that she was somehow helping him more than he thought she could? He wasn't sure, but he did feel as if his breathing had become easier.
In spite of still feeling light-headed, he pressed himself to concentrate once again. The next instant, more of his green ectoplasmic energy charged out at the two ghosts.
Spectra and Bertrand tried to avoid the boy's attack again, but since the small room didn't allow them to move quickly, they bumped into each other. That was enough to put them in the line of fire and they were again thrust to the floor, but the Ghost Boy's weakened energy didn't stop them this time. Still on the floor, they immediately followed up with another round of their combined rays which hit Danny in his chest again. He screamed and then wheezed with the pain. His head spun more violently this time.
But just as he was able to fully gasp the air back into his lungs, he felt his heart constrict this time at what he heard next in quick order: Sam's painful scream reverberating throughout the room, followed by Spectra's angry yell.
"Just what are you doing? And how are you doing all this?" The shadow ghost angrily growled as she slowly pulled herself off the ground, her hand still smoking from the small bolt she had sent Sam's way.
Bertrand was stirring as well, but Spectra ignored him as she studied Sam's face. She had noticed Sam's determined look during the entire time that Danny had attacked her and Bertrand—and just before she stunned the girl. The shadow ghost didn't understand it, but she now suspected that by some means the girl had somehow been involved in those same attacks. After all, she knew that Danny was way too weak at this point to fight back by himself, including making that reddish-purple force field. Spectra had to stop the girl from somehow helping the hybrid. And so, just as Bertrand had fully recovered, she turned her attack on the human.
"Sam!" Danny anxiously yelled to his girlfriend's mind as her own heaving, painful panting now filled the room and before she slumped against her bindings from Spectra's blow. He quickly concentrated. Maybe he could reciprocate what he felt she had been able to do for him. He guessed it had something to do with their telepathic connection. Maybe somehow that link made it possible for them to help each other in this way. He wasn't sure, of course. But he sure was gone to try...And a moment later, she lifted up her head to look at him. He just knew that she had just recuperated with his help. And seeing the determined smile intermixed with pain on her face, he was now certain that together they could stand a chance against their two ghost foes.
But just as he did this, Danny's eyes widened as he saw a purple and a green beam coming at them. And since Sam and he were very close to each other and he knew that both of them would be hit.
He reacted instinctively. With all his might, he threw up a large ice shield, which was large enough to shield them both.
Both Bertrand and Spectra gasped as their attacks struck the shield, keeping the couple safe.
Sam and Danny looked at each other, and smiled, more determined than ever.
But right then, Spectra and Bertrand doubled their efforts, their anger and energy slamming against the shield in an attempt to get to their victims.
Danny—and even Sam—could feel his strength rapidly draining again with the effort to counter the blows. And knowing they could not last long against the assault on the boy's barrier before it buckled, they quickly turned their focus back on escaping.
She then called to Danny, reassuring him through her mental pants, "Thanks…to…you… we're…okay, honey…Let's concentrate on getting out of here, okay?"
"Okay!" he quickly replied to only her mind. Both of them now totally focused on this unified effort, and because of what he felt was Sam's encouraging and effective telepathic help in spite of his still weakened state, Danny was able to shove his shield forward until it slammed against Spectra and her assistant. They were rammed into the other wall once more, slid to the ground, and lay stunned again.
Danny could see that the two ghosts were out of commission again for the moment. But his successful attack against his foes came with a price. He could feel his head spin again after sapping away most of his remaining strength with that effort. Still, he gritted his teeth and mentally told his girlfriend, "Okay, Sam, even though I feel like I've been hit with a sledge hammer, I'm going to try to break my bonds again!"
But he needn't have said that. Now that their minds were totally in sync with each other, Sam already knew! Still, even when they both were worried about the other, the two young teens focused on this sole task. But their concentration was interrupted with a start when they both heard Spectra's frustrated scream.
They both looked up at her, and could also see that Bertrand was still out cold.
The shadow ghost screamed again, her hands glowing with her angry power. What's with you two? I can't believe how you're able to do all this! It should be impossible!"
She flew right up to Danny and got right into his face. "You look ever the wreck and yet you're still able to fight back? How?"
But since he didn't have the strength right now to blast her again, he only answered her with a defiant glare.
She then floated over to Sam and every muscle in Danny's body tensed. The shadow ghost cupped Sam's chin with one of her hands and holding the girl's chin firmly, Spectra looked right into Sam's eyes and hissed, "And how can you resist at all? You're just an ordinary human! I don't get it and it's time I find out once and for all!"
But Sam was ready.
When Spectra tried to overshadow the girl again, she was met by a solid, unwavering mental wall. Spectra growled in frustration and tried again. But this time, she met even stronger resistance.
"I will get to the bottom of this!" The female ghost hissed as she began to power up a powerful purple energy orb.
"NOOO!" Danny anxiously yelled, pulling on his bonds again.
Spectra extinguished her energy and floated back over to Danny. She had unconsciously felt his intense apprehension just now, and was drawn to it. After all, misery was just a notch below that kind of anxiety.
As she drew closer to the boy, she sarcastically said, "I almost wish I had that blasted machine right now to suck up all the angst I'm feeling from you. But, you know, Danny, it's a good thing that you let yourself fall into that kind of apprehension. A good thing for me, that is. Because now, I won't need the machine! I'll just get to your pheromones—the 'trusty therapeutic' way!"
Just as she said that, she grabbed both of his shoulders and started to pull his energy out the 'old-fashioned' way, the same way she had used when she had been acting as the teen psychotherapist at their school back then.
The young ghost groaned under this new assault and felt his energy rapidly ebb, especially when, in her own anxious desire to get his energy quickly, she began to dig her sharp shadow nails into him. He felt the biting sting of her strong grip as her claws tore into his ghostly clothing and then into his ghostly flesh. He felt his strength ooze out as easily as his ectoplasm oozed down his costume when her claws unconsciously penetrated deeper, eager to lap up his power.
He resisted his urge to yell with all the pain he was feeling because he refused to give her the pleasure of knowing how much injury she was now inflicting upon him inside and out. Still, he felt his head spin uncontrollably and he could no longer keep his eyes open under her assault.
And just when he thought he was going to lose the test of wills and pass out, he heard Spectra gasp. He struggled to open his eyes and wondered whether they were playing tricks on him. But he could see only a few moments of what happened next before he finally lost consciousness.
Several small fuschia-colored discs suddenly appeared between the shadow ghost's rapiers and Danny's ghostly skin on both sides of his shoulders. Each of the little circles of energy then wrapped themselves firmly around each of her claws, trapping them within. Then before Spectra could react, all the little discs pulled her nails upward and away from Danny's now unconscious body at the same time.
Immediately after that, Spectra gasped and helplessly looked on as each of the discs on either of her hands melded with the ones next to them until they were now one large disc entirely encasing each of her hands. The two larger circles of energy then violently slammed her hands together and just as quickly melded into only one solid disc this time, which kept both of her hands securely within it. Not a moment later, that solid ball of energy encasing the female Spectre's ghostly hands jolted violently upward and rammed Spectra right between her eyes several hard times.
Groaning at the sudden headache of 'her own' blows to herself, the female ghost staggered in a daze backward and away from the unconscious Ghost Boy. She didn't have the strength at the moment to pull against the deep reddish-purple energy, and continued stumbling in the same backward direction until she bumped into the wall opposite of Danny. With another hard blow from 'herself', Spectra slid downward against the wall until she was sitting dazed next to Bertrand, who was just now stirring after being shoved into the wall by Danny's shield. A moment later, the purple orb around the shadow ghost's clasped hands disappeared.
And just as Bertrand regained consciousness, Spectra weakly commanded, "Stop her, Bertrand!"
Bertrand looked at her in confusion before quickly scanning the room. But the only other 'her' that he could see was Sam. Penelope couldn't possibly mean that human girl, could she? Why should he 'stop' her? She was still bound securely to the wall—even looking as if she might pass out any moment—and all his dazed mind could remember at this point was that he and Penelope had been attacked by the boy just moments before!
But his hesitation was all that Sam needed. She tried to ignore the fact that her exhaustion from the mental effort was mounting precipitously. Nevertheless, she concentrated and a fuschia-colored beam poured out of each of her hands. Then, with a defiant flick of her wrists, the beams were as baseball bats swatting Bertrand as if he were the baseball. After the second furious smack, Bertrand was slammed next to Spectra, KO'd once again.
This time, however, Sam couldn't help but succumb to her overwhelming fatigue. Her head was spinning wildly and she was sweating and panting heavily. Her head finally and unwittingly dropped as she tried to control her breathing. But then, she growled in frustration. She wouldn't give in now! Danny was still very hurt and they weren't yet free! Just the same, she knew her body wasn't cooperating. And her spinning head agreed. She really had no choice as she felt her knees give under her and her head drop.
In the meanwhile, Danny was stirring once more and he opened his eyes. He struggled to make his blurry vision come into focus and when it finally did, he gasped when he saw Sam's partially limp body. He then scanned the rest of the room and was confused to see Spectra and Bertrand across the room, temporarily incapacitated, and on the ground. How did that happen? But he didn't want to waste any more time wondering about that. He struggled against his bonds once more. He groaned at the effort.
He then growled in frustration. He was still too weak to break free! He needed another moment to concentrate and will his healing powers. But that moment wasn't long enough. He gasped when he heard Spectra pull herself up off the ground and soar over to them.
Sam, too, had heard the shadow ghost recover. She forced her head up and spied the shadow ghost nearing them.
As she closed in on them, Spectra hissed through her angry, deadly fangs, "All right! I've had enough! I've spent all my energy to get you two apart and I'm not going to have all that hard work go to waste! If I can't have your miserable pheromones, then I'll make sure that you two won't be able to produce anymore!"
She set her sites on Danny and charged up a furious purple energy beam. She smiled wickedly as she said, "I'll start with you, of course, Danny, since it'll be ridiculously easy to bump off your little girlfriend!" She no sooner addressed the boy when she discharged her power.
Danny screamed in pain as he absorbed the full brunt of it and Spectra laughed in hideous glee.
But then, the young hybrid thought he heard Sam mentally yelling to him. But he couldn't answer because of all the stinging pain and that he was struggling to control his panting.
The shadow ghost followed up with another powerful energy blow and cackled in laughter again when Danny screamed again, his body writhing in agony and his breathing becoming more ragged.
Sam was charged to full alert with what she was witnessing. She desperately tried to think on what to do….
Relishing in his physical misery and hoping to confound him, Spectra sneered, "You know, Danny, I have to thank you! I haven't had this much fun since I was in the Spectre Realm!" But she didn't know, of course, that he knew all about her past.
Though his mind whirled with dizziness, he wanted to say something biting to her, but he was struggling too much with the task of breathing. Still, he didn't want her to think she was getting an upper hand. And mustering his grit, he glared at her and defiantly pulled on his bonds once more, even though he knew at this point that his attempt was in vain.
She laughed at his audacity and as she shot another wicked blow upon the boy she jeered, "Well, they say it's pleasurable to reminisce, and I can't say that I disagree!" She instantly charged up an even more powerful blow.
The ghost hybrid again reeled as the large purple ray engulfed and electrocuted his body. This time, his body went partially limp at the shadow ghost's last assault, and he could barely hold his head up. He struggled to hold onto consciousness, fearful if he did lose it, Sam would be next.
When Sam could see that Danny was rapidly falling into unconsciousness, she called desperately to his mind, "Hold on, Danny! Hold on! I'm going to try something."
Danny lifted his head a little when he thought he heard Sam's mental cry. But his head was spinning so wildly, he couldn't understand what she was saying. Still, that effort was the last ounce of strength he had and he finally blacked out.
Sam gasped and struggled to stay focused so that she could carry out her plan.
Satisfied that Danny was outspent and she could finish him momentarily, Spectra turned her attention to Sam. "Now, it's your turn, little girl!" the shadow ghost growled with murderous, ghostly breath. She immediately followed her comment with thrusting a small but, biting, ray at the girl. Spectra had purposely made it weak enough to just torture the girl and she laughed when Sam screamed at the onslaught. The vile ghost wanted to see the girl suffer before she took her out.
Sam growled in defiance in spite of her pained panting and tried to stifle her next yell when Spectra sent another beam at her.
Spectra evil voice was mixed with sadistic laughing as she said, "Just love your brave front there, little girl! But it doesn't really matter. Just as well, then, that I may never know how you were able to do all that stuff, but it won't be even a passing thought for me after I'm finished with you!" She ended that with another shot at the girl.
The human girl's now pounding and spinning head could barely comprehend what Spectra had just said. But then, she was hit again; and before Sam knew it, she was limp and barely clinging to consciousness.
The shadow ghost wickedly licked her smiling fangs, anxious to finish the deed. But before Spectra could fully charge her deadly ray, she abruptly stopped. What were those loud crashing sounds above? It sounded like they were coming from the direction of the lab!
And even though Sam was confused by all the noise as well, she was certain that for some reason, its volume was quickly diminishing as surely as her vision was rapidly going.
And then finally, everything went totally black.