The Birth of Phantom. 2/2.
Part 2: Solutions.
The one question on Vlad's mind was, 'how do I go about stopping the portal's completion?' for he realized the key was not in destroying the portal, but the Fenton's drive to build it. If he broke it, if he tampered with it in some obvious way, they would only come back for another try…No, he had to make it their failure and their fault. He scavenged their blueprints, racking his brain for some subtle way he could guarantee the portal would fail. The answer came in what Vlad first considered to be the most idiotic feature ever present in the history of man's technological advances (cave-men wielding club's for the very first time included.)
Jack had placed an on-and-off switch…on the inside of the portal.
How stupid was that? Stupid with an,'oo' and not a 'u'? Likely. (If that is not the worst literary pun…) Really though, it was laughable. That is, until he delved into the actual purpose of the switch. It did not actually turn the portal on and off, you see. Rather, it worked to slide in and out of place a lens. This lens, at three inches in circumference, was set in the innards of the portal to magnify the energy triggering the portal's start up. It was like the safety on a gun, when the switch was turned 'off,' the lens was out of place and the portal would not activate under any circumstance. When the switch was set to the 'on' position, the lens was slid into place and the portal could be plugged in and activated. Plugging it in was the actual method of turning the it on and off.
It prevented unwanted activation of the portal and was just outrageous enough to discourage anyone from tampering with it. It was simplistic, outwardly stupid, and poorly labeled, but it did make sense.
So, Vlad had found his sabotage. Jack would flip the switch to the 'on' position and position himself to plug the portal in. Just before he would have the chance, Vlad would slip in invisibly, flip the switch 'off' and the portal would fail. It was fool proof, and it was done.
The one thing Vlad failed to prepare for was the look of pure devastation on dear Madeline's beautiful face when the portal sparked and died before her very eyes. She was crushed…they both were. It was expressed even as they walked out of the basement, looking exhausted and broken. But whatever. The portal failed and that's what Vlad had set out to do. They wouldn't be trying that again any time soon. Still, it wasn't long before Vlad made up excuses for himself. He figured, 'Maybe they'll drop out of the paranormal sciences entirely. Yes, then Maddie can move on. With her brilliant mind, who knows what she could accomplish? That is, if she didn't have the fat-man dragging her down…' That was when a small thought manifested a scar on Vlad's heart, 'Madeline would be better off without him…and even more so if she were with me.'
With that thought, Vlad's anger towards Jack intensified. The injustices against him felt fresh and of greater proportion. He hated Jack. He loved Maddie. He had gotten between them and their work, what was the difference if he got between them? And the children; it would be no different to come between Jack and his children either. Vlad was destroying their professional dreams, why not their marriage? It was the same, he could do it, he had done it already…
Imagine his shock…
"Paranormal scientists Jack and Maddie Fenton, located in Amity Park, made a major advance in paranormal research yesterday with the activation of a device they claim serves as an inter-dimensional ghost-portal."
Fool proof, huh?
A/N
Looks like someone forgot to unplug the portal…and Danny happened to stumble inside. :) I also like digging into why Vlad waited twenty some-odd years before coming after Jack. I'd say the portal pushed him over the edge and opened a lot of old wounds...
I think I've come to embrace Vlad's gradual mental breakdown…or maybe it's my own...*Dun Dun DUH!* R&R!
-wbBg