Chapter 16
Quickly both Dani and Danny returned to the real world through a different route. They noticed a bright green flash off to the distance which they feared was their enemy on another rampage. Quickly rushing toward the area confirmed their fears and suspicions. However Dark Danny's ghost sense went off and he strongly suspected the both of them but it could've easily been another ghost. Thank goodness for the power of invisibility however their enemy had it himself. No doubt he was going on a rampage but at least the vast majority of the community had evacuated. He didn't stay long and Dani knew that he couldn't or would resist the urge to start a skirmish at a border to start two countries warring with another.
However the compasses they had allowed them to track ghosts even while they were invisible. Quickly she and Danny formed a plan to ambush him with as little risk as possible. Still Danny wondered why the Gryphon Queen suggested/warned him to look out for his clone. She was clearly more experienced and powerful them him at this time. Shouldn't she be the one watching out for him? Danny could definitely see her taking deep breaths and prepping herself mentally for the obvious fight/battle they were going to have.
"Ready Danny?" She asked in a cool but confidant tone.
"I'm more than ready." He answered in the most confidant tone he could muster without sounding cocky.
Without another word they flew toward the evil entity to trap and subdue him. It only took a matter of seconds for them to spoil his 'fun' and 'excitement' of seeking for targets to destroy. Even more the Guys in White were moving in on him but they weren't prepared to face his Ghostly Wail. But before he could finally neutralize the ghost hunting/fighting government agents a cold ray froze him inside a chunk of ice. However he was able to blast himself out. Quickly he created multiple duplicates in full attack mode of himself to do battle with the both of them. However they had a plan on how to bypass his attacks thanks to the new and improved Jack o' Nine Tails Dani had taken with her, but he still was plenty dangerous and had a plan for them. He managed to capture Danny with one of his ecto constructs and a couple of duplicates captured Danielle but she was able to break free.
Danny felt a surge of a pseudo shock rage through his body forcing him to turn human again. And once again he was facing those same blood red eyes staring at him face to face. Also his equipment was torn from him so that he couldn't use it.
"Give up Danny. You have no future and you know it. You're going to lose anyway." He smirked.
Suddenly a bright purple ray hit the evil ghost forcing him to release Danny who ran a distance but looked back to see Valerie Gray aiming her ecto weapons at the evil ghost.
"STAY BACK YOU SPECTRAL SCUM OR DEAL WITH ME!" She shouted. However it proved to be a poor choice of words because the Dark Phantom took it as a challenge. Even more he was super eager to do away with Valerie Gray whether this was a past, present, future, or alternate version of her. Forgetting Danny he launched at her using special power to avoid being affected by her anti ghost weapons.
Fortunately for Valerie, Danny used the distraction as an opportunity to change back to his Phantom form and both freeze the attacking ghost and move Valerie out of the way. He tried to use his thermos to trap the enemy but strange new version of intangibility allowed for him to slip out and away. Danny grunted in frustration and quickly went to aid his clone who was about to be overwhelmed. Suddenly Queen Syracuse's words rand in his mind about watching out for Danielle. He jumped in front of a Dark Danny duplicate and used his ecto shield as a buffer to knock the ghost back. It also helped out a ton with Valerie shooting ecto blasts at the enemy Phantoms. However Danny took another hit that once again forced him to turn human but fortunately Danielle was able to save and move him and Valerie was too busy shooting and never saw the transformation.
Finally Valerie was able to use a weapon in her arsenal to drive the enemy specters away but found herself alone with both the original Danny Phantom and the older female one gone as well. Did her weapon drive them out as well?
Danielle flew into a building that didn't seem to be occupied at the time to check on Danny. She greatly feared that he may have serious injuries and his life may even be in danger. Danny was responsive but couldn't transform back so she figured to take him back to the secret lab with the rest of the family and his friends. She left a pair of duplicates to do patrolling and to make sure that other citizens were given at least some protection while she took Danny in to be treated and checked. She also hoped that Valerie wouldn't attack or fight with her duplicates.
The rest of the Fentons as well as Sam and Tucker were at first happy to see them but they quickly turned concerned when they saw what happened to Danny. He was then given a good check over and fortunately nothing serious was found. He just need a little time to recover but time was of the essence.
"This is too close Danny, we probably need another plan or maybe some weapons. Not only did you get overpowered, but Valerie could've seen you change back. Mom—um, Maddie, what other functional equipment to we have that we can easily use besides thermoses, ecto guns, or the Jack o' Nine Tails?" She was certain that Mrs. Fenton wouldn't like being called 'Mom' by her yet because she had yet to be adopted.
"Well, we have a few, ghost nets, the ghost catcher, the Fenton X-tractor, some of this old ecto dejecto serum, and a few tracking devices." Maddie answered and showed.
"Don't forget the Fenton Anti Creep stick." Jack added.
"Dad, this is an evil, powerful ghost from an alternate future, not a ball or a piñata." Jazz reminded.
"Ah, Jazzypants, that's where you're wrong because this is a new and improved Fenton Anti Creep Stick." Jack proudly announced as he pressed a button that activated all sorts of ghost fighting weapons that came out of the wooden frame.
"Nice one Mr. Fenton, it's like a super swiss army knife." Tucker complimented.
"Um, thanks but we'll think about it Dad." Danny stated unsure if it was practical. He wasn't going to use it unless he knew it was practical for what he was up against.
"Danielle, dear, you don't look too well." Maddie noted as she saw that her son's clone was apparently suffering from a headache and possible nausea.
"I don't feel well. I think it's due to the stress and lack of sleep. I haven't been feeling my best either to begin with." Dani answered in a groan.
"Danielle, I don't think or want you to keep fighting this ghost. I'm afraid all the stress will cause you to have a nervous wreck." Maddie stated with concern.
"Do you want Danny to face this monster alone? We can't seem to get any other ghost to face him for us." Dani rebuttled.
Maddie then handed the clone a couple of aspirins from the first aid kit and a glass of water. Maddie was worried about her. Technically this young woman was her daughter or at least was going to be. Maddie couldn't help but be worried about her or her son.
A short while later live news reported on a team of government ghost fighters had be beaten by the mysterious ghost that the media and public had begun to figure out Dan Phantom being behind it since he knew of the plans. It became more evident with the compasses they giving them warnings that the enemy was heading their way. Quickly both of the hybrids each grabbed a sack of chosen equipment to face the foe.
Try as they might Mr. and Mrs. Fenton were unable to convince the ghost hybrids to stay put. Too much was at stake for a mild illness to stop. They rushed at full speed to confront him. There they saw him grinning at the wreckage clearly proud of himself and he started bragging to immobilize agents on the gruesome ways he planned on torturing and killing them.
Before Dan Phantom could act out is sick fantasy, his ghost sense went off and he lost interest in the defeated agents and to face whatever activated his ghost sense. Just as he suspected a pair of ghost hybrids. He came in full fury ready to pounce on them but then noticed that they were holding ghost weapons and he quickly called off his attack and retreated into the Ghost Zone.
Quickly Dani set the agents free by cancelling out Dark Phantom's immobilizing power and she and Danny used their compasses to find a natural temporary portal into the Ghost Zone. Once again it didn't take long for them to find the enemy. None of them were pleased to see the other.
Dan roared in disgust and showed his great displeasure by hurling numerous boulders that he gave explosive properties toward them but they were able to stop and counter his attacks. He was certain that Danielle was key to him not being able to fully succeed. However he planned for something for her specifically. He managed to get close enough to lasso both of them with a ghost cord which they managed to resist greatly he took great interest in Danielle as in forcing her to revealing her human form and stunning her for second.
"I always wanted to try this, separating a hybrid's ghost and human halves. Afterall ladies first."He cackled with a wicked grin as he dug into her bag pulling out handheld ghost weapons hoping to find something like ghost gauntlets.
"Hey Fang Face! If you want this go fetch it. We've been tracking you!" He called out as he removed and kicked his compass as hard as he could.
The Dark Phantom created a duplicate to chase after it and maneuvered himself to body slam the evil ghost over the stunned Danielle. Fortunately she managed to either snap out of her state or was faking it and gave Dark an ecto foot in the face however neither could get free. Even more the duplicate returned with the nonfunctioning compass. The enemy wasn't pleased with being tricked. It seemed as if they were done for. Danny tried to scream his ghostly wail but his mouth got covered and was given more ghostly restraints plus Danielle was restrained further too.
Just when it seemed like he was going to deliver a deadly blow another ghost pounced on him and cut the restraints with his sword. The ghost aiding them looked like a tiger wearing oriental robes and seemed to move like a human as if he was a weretiger or something.
"Go now and grab your stuff Phantoms, I'll distract him." The tiger ghost commanded. They didn't stick around to thank or question him. Danielle was unable to change back into her ghost form so Danny grabbed and carried his clone while she snatched the sacks and as fast as he could with her to safety.
Once he felt he was in a safe spot he stopped to check on her and had to ask a questions about their helper.
"Dani, who was that? Was he another ally?" Danny asked in amazement, awe, and gratitude.
"Yes." Danielle answered. "That was Master Holang-i, an expert in many martial arts, weapons, medicines, and languages. Holang-i is Korean for tiger. You can call him Master Tiger if that is easier for you to remember.
After a few unsuccessful tries they started to get worried because Danielle couldn't change back into her Phantom form. Fortunately the Far Frozen's realm was nearby. Still there wasn't a coat for her. They decided to try anyway and at least they knew where to go and how to get to the right spot quickly so that Danielle wouldn't get too cold.
Meanwhile the mysterious robed tiger ghost wielding a saber had vanished allowing for the other Phantoms to snatch the gear and take off to who knew where. Not only that he was injured too but it wouldn't be for long. He did however find a curious little object that looked like some sort of compass. Try as he might he couldn't find out how to make it work. It must have been damaged or altered in order to prevent him from using it. Angrily he chucked it as far and hard as he could. Now to head back into the real world. At least being called Dan Phantom was better than being called Danny Phantom. However he had another 'brilliant' idea.
Danny ended up bringing a warm skin for Danielle entering the Far Frozen's domain (because it was too cold for a human to handle) and then bringing her back to the medical facility where a medical staff was waiting for her. Fortunately it didn't take long for them to discover what was wrong and how to correct it quickly. Danny himself knew what it was like to have his powers shorted out and he recalled how the young/present Danielle used to have unstable powers that she couldn't use until she became stable. It was going to be a short time until she could use her powers fully again.
Meanwhile Dan Phantom created himself a portal but instead of entering the real world himself he chased hordes of weaker ghosts through the portal in order to distract and overwhelm the other Phantoms and any all the other ghost fighters a run for their money. He split himself into numerous duplicates and started herding the other frightened ghosts toward what they thought was a means of escape like a shepherd or a herding dog. However one of the ghosts in the crowd was Vlad himself who got overlooked in the chaos. It also helped a lot with other ghosts surrounding him so that his enemy or the duplicates couldn't see him. After Dark Danny felt he rounded up enough ghosts he closed the portal to search around for the other Phantoms in the Ghost Zone. With the older more experienced Phantom's powers shorted out, she would be powerless for a number of hours making the far easier to defeat.