What Unusual halflives we lead

Chapter 15: Birds of a Feather…

Danny and Vlad stared wide-eyed at the huge gathering swarm in front of them; billowing black flames leapt from the backs of the plumaged avian giants while small lifeless feathers fell into the swirling atmosphere below. Like envoys of the Grim Reaper himself the birds were skeletal and cadaverous as their endless black eyes remained fixed on the small Spectre Speeder that had come to an abrupt halt.

The older hybrid glanced over at Danny to see that the boy's gaze was still fixed on the swarm and that said eyes were glowing green. "Daniel," he said in a commanding tone. It was enough to shock the ghost boy out of his trance and the green eyes turned to face him.

Strangely enough he saw a hint of the determined child that Daniel usually was rather than the frightened child that he perhaps should be, and it was that which never failed to remind him of him-self.

With a calculative frown he drove the vehicle quickly through the Ghost Zone and away from the following swarm which was quickly closing in on them, and found a small cave that would hopefully help him. Vlad wedged the Speeder in-between the rocks and knowing that it would be impossible to outrun them he transformed ready to fight…so much for his tactical retreat!

Danny followed Vlad's lead and quickly became Danny Phantom; he was able to think clearly now with the black swarm temporarily out of sight and he sat bolt upright in anticipation. What were they supposed to do against so many ghostly birds? This did not look good for either of them, he supposed Vlad would do better than him; the older half ghost was stronger and took care of the last one easily enough. It had taken Danny a lot of effort just to get the thing to squawk at him, and now there were hundreds of the things…the result; a plucked and pecked ghost boy!

Vlad picked up the device for the ghost shield and strapped the sword onto his belt, he then teleported without a word to Danny and reappeared outside of the vehicle. He didn't even look at the boy as he switched on the shield and disappeared again. It would only take the boy a few seconds to figure out that he would need to exit the Speeder as a human and morph back again; but they were vital seconds that were necessary to the plan quickly forming in the mind of Vlad Plasmius.

He was well aware that even with Daniel's aid they had no chance of success against so many adversaries; so he was working under the plan of divide and conquer. As he alone emerged in front of the swarm it halted its rapid advance and suddenly a thousand eyes were turned on him he tried not to shiver.

Usually he didn't mind being the centre of attention, but in this case he'd made an exception…the cold uncertain shivers that made him want to turn tail and run were of course ignored by the half ghost. But he couldn't deny that these were not good odds to be up against and he knew better to fight a battle he had no hope of winning. Something he had yet to teach Daniel to understand. So he would need to manipulate his advantages and turn the situation into something more in his favour.

He drew the shining sword from his belt which was now pulsating with his overflowing purple electricity, as his red eyes dared the ghastly avians to challenge him. Fortunately for Vlad most beings do not take kindly to being challenged and will immediately retaliate…which was of course his plan.

The now furious flock of fuming fowls flew straight towards him and without further ado he effortlessly swung the blade in the air. It made a beautiful 'swooshing' sound in its wake and it was immediately followed by a small scar-shaped glow…it expanded into a huge purple tear in the very fabric of the Ghost Zone and as the birds advanced they flew stupidly into the portal.

Vlad had aimed for it to lead into a far flung part of the Zone and not into the human world…but he didn't have the time to be fastidious, or the energy.

The sword was like his new ghost/spirit shield, they both needed a power source to run off; he hadn't had the time to improve the shield and he'd never really bothered to alter the sword so he really only had bad luck and himself to blame.

Vlad could feel the portal tear at his energy reserves far more than a simple shield ever could as the tear continued to expand. This was why he had put off using the weapon…once he perfected it, it would give him an unparalleled advantage over any other ghost because, unlike Wulf, hehad the brains to maximise its full potential. Until that time it was dangerously unstable and draining because he was forced to act as a living battery for it.

It was something that would present far more difficulty for Daniel than it did for Vlad; not only were the boy's powers ice-based rather than electrical, but he didn't have nearly enough power to fuel the sword like this. And the more birds that were dealt with now meant less for him and Daniel to fight, and they didn't have the time to play soldiers.

The whole thing had happened within seconds but he already felt lethargic and sluggish, he saw the portal begin to condense as it gradually closed in on itself and his ghost sense now informed him that Daniel was fast approaching. He had no concentration left to prevent the red mist escape his mouth and seeing it slightly surprised him…over the years he had begun to forget that it actually did that.

Vlad silently hoped that Daniel would not barge in all 'fists-blazing' and ruin his efforts, he debated sending out a clone to meet the boy but it would take valuable energy that he couldn't waste…so he would need to rely on Daniel's intelligence. He prayed that the boy would have the wit to realise what he was doing; the ghost boy was not stupid, but sometimes he forgot to use his head.

As the portal continued to close Vlad was left increasingly vulnerable as now the birds could fly around what was left of the floating portal and get to him. It was no longer worth keeping it up so he severed all ties with the blade and quickly slid it back into the scabbard. And he was proud to notice that almost half of the swarm had vanished…but that still left an awful lot of swarm to go.

With a look of surprise he felt something watching his back, call it ghost sense or intuition Vlad just knew; he expected it was just Daniel. But he spun around and saw a lone bird glaring at him as it flew at him…how had he allowed that to happen?

His hands ignited instantly but before he had the chance to fire at his adversary it was shot down with glowing green ectoplasm and thrown violently down onto a nearby rock. He followed the trajectory of the blast and was unsurprised to see Daniel 'holding the smoking gun,' so to speak.

The boy looked furious, no doubt at him again, as his green eyes locked with Vlad's and the older hybrid wondered when he had gotten so weak that he needed to rely on a child for help. He was allowed to help Daniel because they were both aware that Vlad was the superior but for Daniel to reciprocate was still unacceptable in his mind. Vlad knew he didn't need to rely on anyone…even Daniel. It was Daniel who needed to rely on him.

With a remorseful frown Vlad threw himself into the ensuing fight as the remaining birds fired black energy from their sharp beaks at both him and the boy. Vlad turned him-self intangible to avoid the attack and flew straight at his attackers, he began to retaliate and he soared invisibly over the monstrous birds.

In-between his own attacks he absorbed and redirected some of the black flames back onto the birds themselves for quickness, but it left a strange feeling in his hands so he used it only briefly. It felt like his limbs were not quite his own anymore, like something was trying to overshadow him and control his mind as well as his hands. It was not a pleasant feeling and not one he wanted to willingly repeat.

When he had an opening he looked round for Daniel and saw the boy continuing his attacks from the far end of the swarm and saw that he had been justified in telling him that they worked well together. Despite the considerable difference in the strength of their powers he knew that Daniel was an excellent fighter…more so than anyone he knew, except himself of course, but he could trust that the boy would not go down easily or quietly. He knew from experience about the quiet part.

For a while it seemed that the two were experiencing a U-turn in their so far unlucky streak, Vlad continually fired his electricity at the birds, which he now knew were not as smart as he'd originally believed but were still a force to be reckoned with when it was two against two hundred or more.

He watched as Daniel seemed to be doing fine by himself and was actually smiling as he froze another bird and blew it into a thousand pieces before it could attack him. The ghost boy soon noticed Vlad's distraction, "Hey old man, feathered fiend at 6 o'clock," the boy shouted at him and Vlad fired an attack behind him without turning around.

He was rewarded with a loud 'squawk' and smiled back at Daniel, "Feathered fiend?" Vlad repeated curiously with a raised eyebrow and ignored the jab at his age.

"I don't expect you to understand, Vlad, it's called alliteration but I guess you didn't have it in the dark-ages," Danny smirked and continued to fire ectoplasm from his hands.

"Hilarious, Daniel," Vlad shouted back, and his pointed fangs showing as he continued to fight.

Together it didn't take them long to make an increasing dent in the number of birds, but the more successful the half ghosts were the more angry the avians were and their dark attacks may not have increased in power but they were coming faster and faster.

And finally one hit the ghost boy directly as he was too busy to dodge it, Danny yelled in shock as he felt his left side burn in agony…being forced to defend on multiple sides had never been his strong point but until now he thought he had been doing okay. He felt himself hurtle through the Zone and groaned as he landed on a floating rock before he could stop his descent.

"Damn…" he muttered and lifted his right hand to clutch at his wounded side…the bird just had to have hit the sore wound didn't he? It was becoming increasingly hotter and hotter and he curled in on himself as he tried to push the heat aside. It was just his luck for something like that to happen….never mind Bad-Luck-Tuck; he may as well have been Bad-Luck-(Inviso)Bill.

He tried using his ice powers to cool himself down; the area surrounding him was becoming covered in ice and snow as the temperature dropped considerably, but it quickly melted as Danny began to emit a fait red glow instead of his usual white aura. He saw his gloved fingers glowing red and his eyes widened in panic…this couldn't be good.

He let out his powers more and more, and soon the whole rock was completely coated in crystallised ice and pointed stalactites hung dangerously from the bottom. His control over his ice powers were slipping with each passing second and as the heat continued to spread throughout his body so did the ice in the Ghost Zone.

Vlad watched as the ice from Daniel's body began to spread and he saw the red glow that had the boy so worried…it had him worried too. It was making the boy loose his control and that was dangerous for either of them in any situation.

But he couldn't get close enough to do anything about it because he would be frozen instantly and that wouldn't help either of them. So he chose to focus on completing the task at hand then he would think about Daniel. He already felt depleted of vital energy and he dare no use his sword again for fear that it would render him unconscious.

With the significant number of birds left for him to defeat alone he had little time to come up with anything major. But Vlad was used to thinking on the spot; he was a businessman, a politician, and a powerful ghost. He was left with little choice but to force himself to form a huge Ecto-Tornado (*1)which created stormy pink, purple and grey winds in a blustering twister shape. The smaller the tornado the more powerful it was because it was a more condensed form and made it easier to control.

Now with an added electrical charge it was not to be stopped as it swerved and spiralled its way towards the remaining swarm. Each one was literally blown away and like music to Vlad's ears each one let out a blood-curdling cry of agony and terror.

With an indistinguishable smirk he completed his task and soon there was no one but him and the ghost boy in sight. There were stray black feathers that still floated in the ethers as Vlad's tornado came to a halt; his cape billowed behind him and he held a hand to his aching head. He was hardly at full power and it was dizzying at the best of times so for a moment he waited as his vision readjusted itself; the grey blurs soon became stationary rocks and purple blotches became doors once more.

Then a white and silver spot cleared and became the frozen rock on which the young hybrid was laying. Vlad could see that the boy was curled up and hugging himself as he shivered against the faint red glow around his body so he flew down towards it. He came to hover over the frozen rock and watched as the ice grew thicker and thicker…there was even snow falling around the older hybrid. "Daniel," he tried, and failed to get the child's attention.

Danny was too preoccupied in keeping out the blistering heat than listening to strange voices as he continued to let out more and more of his ice powers. Frostbite would probably be angry with him for willingly letting his control slip like this but he had no choice; to him searing heat was worse than the freezing cold.

Soon the young hybrid felt a new, invading power surround him, it was different from the red glow that he was trying to ignore…it wasn't quite like the heat from his wound…it was warm but not blistering. He couldn't put his finger on it, but it definitely felt familiar to him. Then he tried to prevent a scream from escaping his lips…there were three strong powers fighting for dominance inside of him; his own cold ice powers, a red angry heat, and a new prickling kind of static that wouldn't go away. And it was not a pleasant combination.

Vlad watched as the boy's eyes widened in shock at the addition of his own electrical powers, but he had been left with no other options. The red glow was trying to overpower Daniel and he couldn't let that happen so he would need to help the boy subdue his internal intruder. He was unsure if his plan would work and he already felt his feet beginning to freeze over from the ice on the ground. He needed to convince the boy that he was not the enemy in this instance and that it was essential for Daniel to reign in his control.

Vlad increased his energy so that his purple aura spread around the boy and now the red and mauve energies were dancing a lethal fight around the struggling child. "Daniel, listen to me; I'm not the enemy here," he voiced once more in a commanding tone and now the boy opened his eyes slightly.

Danny had forced his eyes open and saw that Vlad was the owner of the strange voice he had heard earlier and that the man was in front of him. He also saw that everything near them was completely iced over…had they reached the Far Frozen without realising it? "What…" he muttered quietly. But he felt the red heat fade slightly and soon his ice powers felt more powerful, strong enough to rid his body of the invading energy that was trying to turn him into roasted hybrid on a platter.

Together with his cold, cerulean and silvery energy there was an adjoining purple that twisted around it forcing it forwards against the oncoming red storm that threatened to overpower him. Soon he felt the heat leave and all was comforting cold once more, he opened his eyes completely and saw a red mist leave his body and above him it dissipated like cold breath on winters day.

"What was that?" Danny asked, his voice now returning along with a sense of weakness as he felt the purple static bolts leave him too.

"That is what happens when you work with me, and not against me, Daniel," Vlad smirked and removed his gloved hand from the boy's shoulder as the remains of his energy left Danny's body. He didn't exactly have it to spare but it was necessary and he was not exactly going to collapse from exhaustion, as Vlad was well capable of pacing himself.

Danny was now able to focus on the damage his ice powers had caused and noticed that Vlad's feet and lower legs were frozen to the now floating chunk of icy rock. The whole thing was ice solid and there was still a little snow falling, "…Oops…" Danny muttered a little sheepishly, he hadn't realised that by letting his control slip that he'd frozen so much so quickly.

"Hmm," Vlad agreed and aimed two small ecto-blasts from his eyes at his feet. The ice shattered instantly and he was once more able to feel his toes again…hyperthermia was not a pleasant sensation. He watched as Danny pushed himself up onto his knees as his hands seemed to protect his stomach and his eyes lowered.

"Change back for a minute," Vlad ordered and was met with a curious look from the boy. But clearly Daniel understood him as he complied a second later.

Vlad knelt beside Danny and observed as the boy lifted his shirt to reveal the ugly black scab. To his dismay he saw it had grown and now resembled a spider's web with jagged spikes and tear-shaped points that stubbornly gripped at the boys pale flesh.

"How bad is it?" Danny asked, he really didn't want to see, he didn't want to know. He was sure he had felt it crawl over him and he was sure it had got bigger.

"Well…" Vlad began but he wasn't sure how to answer. Should he be blunt…Daniel wasn't stupid and Vlad didn't really want to sugar-coat anything for the boy…however he found that he didn't have to as Danny was able to see for himself.

"…Great…" the boy sighed and instantly transformed back into his ghost half, "Just great…" Danny shakily stood up and turned his gaze to see if the coast was clear. He was half expecting something else to come out of thin air and attack them…it wouldn't be the first time.

Vlad moved carefully on the rock, careful not to slip on the ice however he noticed that Daniel had no problem as, even on week legs the boy never slipped. He was about to suggest that Danny grab his arm so that he could teleport them quickly back to the Spectre Speeder and continue their search but something caught his attention.

The older hybrid could sense something of considerable power and magnitude heading towards them, and a glance at Daniel's confused and concerned expression told him that he was not the only one.

Vlad strained his eyes and with his enhanced ghostly senses this allowed him to see clearly for miles, but in this instance it did not help him. He could make out a blur…that was all, and it was not exactly helpful. It wasn't the same as the mass swarm they had just fought but he became frustrated when he could not distinguish whether it was friend or foe. Daniel was in no position to fight if every time he was hit it had the same effect and Vlad was not in the best condition either.

Vlad's analysis; …no idea of the enemy…so no plan…not goods odds…time for another tactical retreat…

These retreats were not making the man any happier; he wanted to fight, but he didn't want to start a battle he couldn't win, the war was more important, so he would have to withdraw…for now. "Let's go, bird-boy," he muttered and seized Danny's forearm in a vice-like grip.

The two half ghosts vanished in a cloud of pink smoke as Vlad curled his cape around them and before the boy could even protest he found himself staring at the Spectre Speeder once more rather than a frozen rock.

Danny felt his head spin slightly and he wasn't sure whether it was from exhaustion or Vlad's teleport…He always hated it when the older man did that because he still had no idea how to go about learning it and it annoyed him all the time! "Any idea what it was?" he asked as the two of them momentarily transformed to bypass Vlad's still glowing shield.

"No," Vlad snapped, perhaps his tone was a little harsh but the whole state of affairs had him on edge and not knowing things like this was not good for his mental state. It would drive him crazy!

"…okay…" Danny mumbled and held up his palms in a defensive position, the dude really needed to chill! He was a little taken aback by the older hybrid's irritable, short-tempered reply…but since when had he had any other treatment from Vlad? Had he gotten used the man being 'nice' to him so quickly and forgotten what he was really like? It confused Danny that he and Vlad were supposed to be on the same side for once and he would be glad when it was all over…right?

With a sigh Danny watched as Vlad looked into the small mirror once more and then drove the vehicle out of the cave. Vlad was constantly alert, he really didn't want to run into whatever it was he had sensed earlier, with no sensible way of determining whether they were friend or foe it would be foolish to risk another fight. So he tried his best to avoid it.

He felt bad for snapping at Daniel but there were more important things to worry about right now, and the boy would get over it…so why did it nag at his mind so much? Whatever the reason he ignored it as best as he could and accelerated the vehicle, they would need speed on their side if they were to be successful.

But once more his ghostly senses would give him no peace as he felt that strong presence gaining at the precipice of his mind. It was fast…too fast, and whatever it was it was not giving up. It was not the same as the spirits they had just fought but it was strong and fast and not something he wanted to take his chances against in his present condition.

But as usual it seemed mistress fate had other idea for the hybrids as they both sensed the increasing presence. It was a shiver down the spine and the covert eyes watching your back, it was the thing from the corner of your eye that was dismissed in the dark or the nightmare from under your bed…It was not a pleasant feeling.

The Speeder had emerged from the cave and was well on its way to its shadowy destination when all of a sudden it came to a halt in mid-air. Danny and Vlad were jolted in their seats and felt their necks snap back from the whiplash of going from over 100 mph to zero in less than 5 seconds. The whole thing was shut down and even the lights went out as the vehicle waited motionlessly in shadow.

"Vlad…" Danny whispered; he was unsure of why he kept his voice so quiet. But it was like those times when you tell ghost stories in the dark…the atmosphere commanded silence, and Danny couldn't bring himself to break it completely.

The vehicle was suspended where it floated and with narrowed eyes both hybrids scanned the area for any moving thing.

They didn't have to wait long and the two hybrids watched as twelve impressively cloaked figures quickly descended on them and surrounded the Spectre Speeder. Ornate purple cloaks, skeletal green hands, and piercing red eyes were all the features of these creatures that could be seen. Their bodies were hidden beneath their cloaks and their faces covered by their cowls but each one held a glowing staff in their hands...it seemed somehow familiar, but neither hybrid had time to dwell on it.

Danny couldn't take his gaze from those red eyes; they were hypnotic in the major sense of the word and there was one that returned his stare. It was right in front of him and unfortunately, Danny didn't fancy his chances at success in even a glaring contest let alone a fight. He could see the beings aura and it did not look friendly, but he couldn't switch it off…somewhere along the line it had come on and now it wouldn't go away. It was like his power wasn't his own anymore and it was determined to drive him mad.

In the past he had toyed with the idea of naming it something like aura-wareness, and had often wondered if Vlad could do anything similar…but he couldn't exactly just ask him. It would be nuts to even try and he didn't want to give the impression that he wanted to learn from Vlad…did he or didn't he? He wasn't so sure, but he seriously wished that he was.

Danny wasn't sure whether he should look away from the thing outside but he kept its gaze, if he looked away it might attack them…

Vlad's mind was working a mile a minute as he tried to figure out who, or what these new creatures were. He remembered where he had seen their glowing golden staffs before…it had been in the hand of the Calidae but his had been black. It still didn't make the mystery of who these beings were any clearer. He had never seen such creatures before, he knew they were powerful Spirits from the way his ghost sense confused him but who were they? Surely they were not…but what else could they be?

He remembered reading a passage in his book…the only piece of written information the tome would give him about its creators…it hadn't described their appearance in any way but it had told legend of twelve different Ancients. And there were twelve cloaked beings surrounding them. Was it possible? It had to be. These were the Decuriones?

According to his readings these had been the ones responsible for moving the Ancients 'underground,' so to speak. They had kept hidden a mighty Spirit civilisation which rarely intervened or interfered in anything or anyone unless everything else had failed beforehand. But they seemed to take an active role now, they had followed him and Daniel, clearly they were not the passive, indifferent beings he had originally thought.

Now that he knew their identity he was fairly certain they would not attack him, after all he had done them no injury. So he decided to take his chances and switched off the shield…their only protection and Vlad had just removed it willingly.

Danny stared at him in disbelief as the man laid the now useless device on the dashboard and turned his red eyes back towards the creatures outside. "What're you doing?" he demanded in anger now officially breaking his staring contest as he watched the glowing shield vanish completely.

"I don't believe they're here for a fight, Daniel," Vlad replied calmly, a stark contrast to the rage and frustration in the child's voice.

"So what are they here for, a friendly chat?" Danny shouted once more, but Vlad only rolled his eyes as he intangibly exited the vehicle, able to remain in his ghost form Plasmius stood atop the roof of the Spectre Speeder amidst the twelve Spirits.

The young half ghost, still none-the-wiser about what was out there sighed but figured if there was going to be a 'friendly chat' he may as well add in his two-cents…and of course make sure people knew how pissed off he was about things. He followed Vlad's lead and came to stand beside him on top of the stationary vehicle.

"I believe you have been searching for us," one of the cloaked figures spoke, "I am Desponius, High Consul of the Decuriones; Senate to the Ancients, and you are Vladimir Masters and Daniel Fenton, correct?"

"Correct," Vlad replied before Danny could say anything and turned his gaze towards the speaker. Red eyes on red.

The cloaked figure seemed to nod once and the other Decuriones next to him parted to make way for the hybrids to pass. "Follow us," Desponius said simply and then they began to fly away.

Danny and Vlad exchanged a calculating glance and Vlad inclined for them to re-enter the Spectre Speeder, he lead the way and Danny followed.

Vlad figured that only by following them would he get his answers, it was probably best not to antagonise them before he discovered where they lived, so he was constantly memorising the landmarks they passed.

Danny blinked as the vehicle began to move and Vlad kept the flying purple figures in sight, "Hey, V-man, what's a Decuriones?" the ghost boy asked with a frown on his face.

Vlad sighed once more and rolled his eyes at the boy's confusion, didn't he ever listen? "Daniel, Decuriones is plural, meaning all twelve of them, a Decurio is one of them; they are the Senate of the Ancients…a kind of government of Spirits," Vlad answered and watched Danny's rapt expression turn from confusion to realisation as he made an 'o' shape with his mouth.

"So…why'd they come lookin' for us?" Danny asked as Vlad turned his attention back to watching the passing rocks and caves.

"I honestly couldn't say," the man replied as they suddenly made a sharp turn to the right.

"Oh," Danny muttered and noticing the failing attempt at conversation he copied Vlad and began staring out of the window. It was easier to focus now on the Ghost Zone without wanting to run a mile…but it still wasn't quite right.

After about 10 minutes the twelve beings had lead them to a stone gateway that looked brand new, as if it had been carved just seconds ago by Renaissance masters. Its stone pillars on either side which were covered with Latin letters in every angle were impressive and they glowed beautifully.

Sandwiched between the pillars were double wooden doors but they looked far stronger than ordinary wood. It was silver and white and like the pillars it emitted a dim glow of shimmering light.

The beings came to a halt before the doorway and each one held up their staff; their light intensified and with a quiet creaking sound the doors began to open revealing a circular purple portal like any other within the Zone. They then entered the portal and Vlad drove the vehicle forwards.

The first thing that Danny and Vlad saw was light; beautiful silver and white light overwhelmed their senses and they were forced to turn away to protect their sensitive eyes.

After gradually adjusting they saw that the cloaked beings had lead them through the portal and into a forest. Danny blinked in confusion…he'd never seen anything like this before!

There were thousands of trees which were silver and each one let off a small glow of light, so the whole forest was like a beacon…it was a wonder that he had never seen it. The deeper they went into the forest the brighter the trees became, like shining silver birch trees they were tall and narrow, but the leaves were striking. Some were burnt umber and orange, some were green or brown or grey, and they were shaped like tear drops and some flew in an invisible breeze onto the windscreen and past the Speeder.

Vlad was staring in awe; this was truly one of the most beautiful and unbelievable places he had ever seen, and he had seen a lot. He had travelled to the far flung corners of the earth and marvelled at their hidden beauty, he had been into outer space and seen the earth, moon and sun from above but never had he seen a forest like this.

Even the grass was a curious shade of dark silver and the trees seemed to hum quietly as they passed. Vlad decided that he had had enough of gazing at it through glass, and quickly he brought the vehicle to a stop. Thinking fast he pocketed the ghost shield device and the mirror, and made sure his sword was secured to his belt then he flew through it and continued to fly behind the Ancients.

Danny was forced to follow and was left to wonder what had made Vlad abandon his invention like that. But it didn't matter to him, he wanted to get out there and touch those weird trees and as he flew quickly to catch up he looked up into the air. It was still the same swirling green but here there were clouds, normal looking white and grey clouds…it was a really strange contrast.

The collection of hybrids and Spirits were flying at increasing speeds and were now coming to the edge of the forest and stopped as the ground ended…

The trees came to a stop and Danny saw that it was all on a floating rock like the others from the Zone…only bigger. Now that he could see without trees hampering his view his jaw dropped dumbly as he stared open-mouthed down at what they saw.

There were thousands of flying creatures, each one wore a plain purple cloak and unlike the twelve beside them did not carry a staff. They were circling the strangest, most unusual and beautiful civilisation Vlad had ever seen in all his years of travel.

Silver spires and steeples, weathered aged buildings and flawless new side by side, bridges of every shape and size made of stone, brick, metal, glass and numerous other extraordinary looking materials created a clustered image of grandeur and magnificence. An untraceable light was reflected from the shining buildings which towered over the lower city and made it look ostentatious and rich. (*2)

"Welcome to the Municium," Desponius said with humour in his deep voice and then the twelve Ancients began the descent into the city with the silent hybrids beside them.

(*1) If you don't remember what the Ecto-Tornado thingy is it's at the end of 'An Eye For An Eye,' and it's really cool! Expect to read more of it! And no, I didn't remember either till I read it on Wiki and re-watched the episode? I thought about calling it an Ecto-nado…or Ec-tornado…but then I thought I might confuse people…what d'ya think? Should I change it?

(*2) WOW! I had real fun with this one. I hope I gave a good description…the idea was that you go through the portal and into the silver forest, not sure about a name yet…then when the forest ends you look down and the city is floating on more rocks with the silver spires and floating Ancients all round. Fun, huh?