Disclaimer: not mine

Chapter 11

Danny landed on the balcony and took a deep breath before dropping his invisibility, knocking politely on the glass. He was surprised and a bit wary when Superboy opened the door, but he'd been on a team with Tim before, so Tim trusted him.

"Phantom?" the super asked, and he nodded. To his surprise a hand was held out. "Superboy, I'm here as security for Ms Lane and you during the interview. Since the article she's noticed some attention so we thought it'd be safer," he explained, letting Danny inside.

"I'm sorry, I honestly didn't know Red was going to get the information to the press." He hadn't been mad at Tim for it, they didn't deserve to be hunted or anything. "I never wanted anyone to be in danger."

Superboy smirked. "She's always in danger over something."

"Superboy!"

They turned to see Lois Lane, hands on her hips, glaring at the young hero, though her eyes were twinkling with amusement. Then she focused on Danny and smiled professionally at him, walking over to offer her hand. "Thank you for agreeing to meet with me Phantom."

"Shouldn't I be thanking you?" he asked as he shook her hand. "You're taking a risk writing about this."

"Please, I've reported from war zones before."

Superboy met his eyes over her head, looking a bit exasperated, and Danny bit back a laugh.

"Come through here, would you like any refreshments?" Ms Lane asked him, leading him to a comfortable couch.

"No, thank you."

,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,

Kon leant against the wall as Lois began talking with Phantom. He'd been surprised by the knock on the balcony door…because he hadn't heard anyone arrive. And he still didn't hear anything from Phantom except his voice. No heartbeat, no sounds of a body working…nothing. It was…unnerving to say the least. He'd looked over Lois' information and felt sick that a government agency was legally allowed to take Phantom in and dissect him. It seemed very obvious to Conner that despite the lack of vital signs, Phantom was 'alive'. He was holding a detailed conversation with Lois, an 'echo' or 'imprint' or whatever those so-called scientists said ecto-beings were, wouldn't be able to do that.

He'd been surprised when Tim had called and asked him to hang around as security for the interview. But after hearing about what this GIW was capable of…well, he hadn't had to ask twice. Phantom was vulnerable to their weapons, Kon wouldn't be. He'd love to know how Tim had met a ghost, then again, Tim seemed to know everyone. He loved his best friend; he'd just given up trying to even guess what he'd come up with next.

The anit-ecto laws had been passed when Lex was President but for once, he wasn't actually behind them. That had been a nice surprise. Their relationship had improved over the last few years – he wasn't going to call the man dad any time soon, but Lex seemed to see him as his own person now, not just a clone or a weapon. He'd pulled back on the supervillain stuff too, had even given Kon money for college which he hadn't been sure what to do about. Clark was wary about it, but never told him not to talk to Lex or anything. Lex wasn't impressed such a law had been slipped passed him so was actually looking into who did it and how. Kon almost felt sorry for them with both Lois and Lex after them.

,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,

Tim kept his head down, playing docile hostage along with the others, but he tensed as Scarecrow strolled in, hearing the gasps of fear from others. This was not good at all. No one had gas masks or anything, any type of gas attack during the day was so rare… and he didn't have a rebreather either. He subtle checked what he had on him, nothing that would be very useful unfortunately.

He glanced around, spotting Dick and Damian together, Dick covering Damian with his body to keep him out of sight. The kid was growing though and it wasn't as helpful as it would have been even a year ago. Bruce was…there, slipping his phone back in his pocket so hopefully Signal and Hood had been alerted to the issue. Steph had exams but Scarecrow might be enough to pull her away from them. The three of them together could handle him and his goons, but would they be in time to keep him from gassing everyone present? He really hated fear gas.

And then he was being hauled to his feet, a gun pressed to his spine.

,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,

Bruce could only watch as Tim was yanked to his feet, seeing his son stiffen, eyes widening slightly. He was pushed forward and Bruce saw the gun, fighting down a surge of terror. In the Red Robin armour, he could take a bullet from that calibre, he'd be in pain for a while but it wouldn't kill him. Without any body armour…that bullet would sever his spinal cord and likely destroy his small intestine, he'd already lost his spleen. Would he survive such a severe injury with his immune system? He met Tim's eyes across the room, seeing the flash of fear.

Scarecrow wasn't into indiscriminate violence, so as long as Tim didn't fight back, he shouldn't be hurt. Just dosed with whatever latest concoction Crane had come up with. And given his recent mental health issues due to the Joker…that could end up going very badly.

And then he heard Dick yell, looking over to see Damian being dragged up as well, a gun in Dick's face to keep him in place. Damian did not look at all pleased and Bruce hoped his youngest didn't make things worse by saying something to Crane.

,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,

Lois sipped at some water and glanced at her notes. She thought the interview was going well. Phantom had been very wary at first but he seemed to have warmed up to her which helped the interview flow better. She didn't blame him for being wary, she'd seen some of the old articles written about him. She also noticed he had changed from those photos, he looked older. Did ghosts age or could they just appear whatever age they wanted? A question for the future.

"Can you tell me what made you decide to become a vigilante? Is that something normal for ghosts?" she asked gently.

Phantom shifted slightly on the chair. "Someone had to try and keep the peace. Humans just didn't understand our culture and vice versa. It's easy to…forget how squishy the living are, and accidentally hurt them. For us, fighting is part of our cultural, to say hi, make friends… the Dr's Fenton were so bigoted and every accepted their biased papers as true so getting help from the living, adults at least, was basically impossible. There were some kids willing to help out, their own included. But I never let them fight!" he quickly assured her. "They were tech support, medical, things like that. The Fenton kids would even grab their parents ghost hunting gear and alter it to make it less deadly, would pass things on to me like the Thermos."

He took a breath, though it seemed he didn't really need to breath. "No one realised the impact their actions would have. The idea of classifying us the way the American government has is so ridiculous no one could have imagined it happening. And then the GIW showed up and they were pretty much a joke at first, but they learn fast and became a threat to everyone. They didn't care about collateral damage or the fact that living in a place with such high ectoplasm levels affected everyone. Even their agents were infected, but they didn't care. All they care about is destroying anything they don't see as human."

"So, you don't consider yourself human?"

"It's complicated. What the Fenton's called the Ghost Zone is actually the Infinite Realms; they're called that because they are literally infinite. Some of those who live there were literally born there, some are the spirits of the deceased, some are concepts given form through the strength of belief. All the matter and energy in the Ghost Zone is composed entirely of ectoplasm. The Ghost Zone coexists with Earth; they are the proverbial "two sides of the same coin" to each other. Anything that happens to one world also affects the other world in some way. But it goes even further than that, the Infinite Realms are kind of like…the glue holding everything together. Every dimension, reality, multiverse, it's all connected to the Infinite Realms."

That…that was a lot to try and get her head around. "So, if something damages the Infinite Realms?"

"Then it would damage the living realms too. Which makes the GIW responsible for nearly ending everything."

"What?" her eyes went wide.

"A few years ago, they attempted to launch a missile into the Infinite Reals, with the intention to destroy them. If they had succeeded, we wouldn't be having this conversation. They would have ended all of reality. As it is, there have been more and more calls for war to end the GIW since all attempts at peace have failed. Yes, the agency isn't as powerful as they led Amity Park to believe, but they are still considered the greatest threat from this dimension."

Okay, time to change topics for a little while so she could mentally digest that. So, she went for something a little more personal, the fact he was number one on their list.

And then she saw Conner stiffen across the room, eyes widening.

,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,

Damian kept his expression blank, mentally marking where the gunmen were. He did not like the feeling of anticipation coming from Crane but he would deal with it. Being singled out with Drake was confusing. Because they were the youngest Wayne's (not that Drake counted)? Was this an attack on Father? They were made to stand before Crane, facing each other and Damian listened carefully to the mans' ranting, looking for a way out.

,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,

Tim kept his breathing steady, whishing Danny was there, having someone who didn't need to breath around would really come in handy at the moment. He should have called for Kon immediately, like Danny he could stop breathing, if necessary, plus he was bullet proof. Sometimes, B's reluctance to allow powered heroes into Gotham hurt more than it helped. Yes, a Kryptonian on fear gas would be their worst nightmare, but that was if it would work on their biology and they would have to be surprised to breath it in. If he tried to call now, someone might notice.

Tim ignored the gloating to try and figure out how to get them out of the situation alive and un-gassed. He caught a flash of red up high and then another, good, Hood had arrived which meant they had some backup. But Jason wouldn't want to risk him and Damian when they still had guns in their backs.

"Now then, time to see if it's true!" Crane suddenly announced almost cheerfully and Tim suddenly wished he'd been at least half whispering.

Two syringes were produced and Tim glanced at Damian, seeing his usual sneering expression.

"Shall we?" Crane asked and then drove the syringe into Damian's neck, even as Dick and Bruce yelled something.

Tim watched for the signs of fear toxin exposure…but they weren't there. His pupils dilated, but that was about the only normal reaction. And then Tim yelped as he was shoved to the floor, Damian on top of him, snarling in rage. He got his arms up, trying to get Damian off him even as one hand latched onto his throat. "Kon!" he gasped. "Scarec…" he choked, grabbing Damian's hand to try and loosen his grip.

,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,

Lois watched Phantom dash off, he definitely knew Tim then. She looked at her notes, she had enough for an article, she could finish interviewing him later. Hopefully, they'd make it to Gotham in time to help.

,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,

Dick watched in horror as Damian attacked Tim. Crane had to be lying about that serum, he had to be… Tim was struggling beneath him but Damian had a lot more physical strength then Tim did. Finally, Tim got a leg between them and kicked Damian back, scrambling to his feet.

And then there was a sonic boom, the goons scattering as Superboy slammed Crane into a wall, knocking him out in one hit. Red Hood dropped down, opening fire on the nearest goons, dropping them…thankfully with non-lethal bullets. Signal appeared a second later and Dick shoved to his feet, rushing for his brothers.

Tim spun around, kneeing one of the men who'd been on him, disarming him. And then Tim cried out in shock, stumbling. Sticking out of his neck was the second syringe.

,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,

Tim felt the prick in his neck and then something almost burning, crying out in shock as he stumbled. He lifted his hand to yank it out, hopefully before the whole dose was delivered.

"Tim!" Dick yelled, running towards him, and Tim's vision blurred.

He staggered, shaking his head, Dick's suit replaced by Batman's…no…it wasn't real…fear serum…he had to get an antidote…

"Tim?" Batman called to him.

"Please," he whispered, the serum taking full effect. His heart was racing with terror as he stared at his big brother…the brother who didn't want him.

"You're insane Tim, Bruce is dead. This is for the best." BatmanDick had heavy cuffs in his hand, ready to restrain Tim.

Tim fell back on the floor, scrambling away.

,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,

Kon heard Tim cry out and then his heart rate began to skyrocket. He dropped the unconscious villain and turned to see Bruce working to restrain the Brat and Dick approaching Tim. Tim was on the floor, scrambling away from his eldest brother.

"Back off," Kon called to Dick. He'd never seen Tim under the effect of any of the gasses or pollens that tended to be released on Gotham and he didn't like it. "Tim? It's Kon, can you hear me?" hopefully his presence would help Tim work out what he was seeing or hearing wasn't real.

Tim turned his head to him and Kon noticed his pupils were fully dilated, his skin paler than normal, even as sweat beaded along his hairline, his breathing erratic.

"Tim?" he kept his voice gentle, even as Tim flinched from a nearby gunshot.

"S…superboy…please…no…ffight it…" Tim was staring at him but didn't seem to be seeing him…and Kon realised what he was seeing.

He hated that Tim was seeing him under Lex's control, knew how lucky the team had been. He could have killed them, especially Tim since unlike the others he was fully human. It was one of Kon's worst memories and he hated Tim was reliving it.

,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,

Danny had raced back to Gotham when Superboy said there was a Scarecrow attack, assuming Tim had called to him. He became visible in the Nest medical bay, searching for the fear gas antidote. He grabbed it and threw on his Banshee outfit, fixing the domino in place. Then he was racing to where the fundraiser was being held, seeing the chaos.

The cops didn't try to stop him, not once they spotted the domino and bag marked with the bat symbol. He found Tim on the ground, looking utterly terrified, could hear his heart racing.

He grabbed a vial from the bag. "Superboy!" he called and the hero looked up so Danny tossed the bag to him. "Antidotes from Red Robin," he explained even as he dropped to his knees. "Easy Tim, it's me. I've got the antidote."

Tim stared at him with big, terrified eyes, wet with tears. He blinked, seeming confused. "D…Ban…shee?"

"Yeah, I'm here." He held the vial out. "Antidote, see? Can I give it to you?"

"Rrreal?"

"I'm real Tim, I'm here." He moved closer, slowly, and Tim stared at him, gasping for breath, trembling.

Tim slammed his hands over his ears, whimpering. "He…he's coming. NO!" Tim screamed, and Danny moved, injecting the antidote even as Tim lashed out at him.

He wrapped his arms around Tim and pulled him against his chest, trapping his arms and legs even as Tim writhed, trying to break free. It hurt but they couldn't risk him running off in his state or hurting someone. "It's okay Tim, you're safe now. Just let the antidote work."

He looked up as someone knelt nearby, seeing Superboy watching with wide eyes.

"You got him?"

"Yeah," Danny didn't even flinch when an elbow jammed into his ribs.

Tim suddenly stiffened and then went limp, panting, his heart rate beginning to slow.

,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,

Bruce was relieved to see Danny holding Tim as he thrashed, an empty antidote beside them, and then Tim went limp, the fight draining out of him as it began to work. Dick finally moved to help him contain the enraged Damian. It would be a lot easier if Damian was still as small as he had been at ten, but puberty was in full swing and Damian had shot up in height and weight thanks to their night work. And the antidote wouldn't help, he hadn't been given fear serum.

What had made Crane target his family? The man had been a good psychologist once, so it wasn't all that surprising he had realised there was acting involved in their apparent close relationship, at least when it came to Tim and Damian. But why did he want to bring it to the publics attention? Just stirring up trouble? Or was there something else?

He was glad Superboy and Banshee had arrived as swiftly as they had. With that many guns involved plus the gas canisters Crane would have had on him, the situation could have turned deadly very quickly. As it was, they needed to get Damian back to the Cave to either wait it or create an antidote for him. Plus, they would need to handle the press since someone would talk about why Damian and Tim had been used for his 'experiment'.

"Sedative," Hood grunted, tossing him an injector.

Bruce nodded and injected it into his enraged son. Slowly, Damian stopped fighting them, eventually going limp, not quite fully unconscious but calm now.

Across the room, Banshee was slipping away with Tim in limp in his arms and Bruce would have to trust Danny to get Tim back home alone. Bruce stood, holding Damian up, even as Hood and Signal slipped away. Superboy remained to watch over the goons and Crane until they could all be taken into custody.

Bruce's mind was already on how Crane had escaped without them getting an alert.

,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,

Danny held Tim's hand in his, watching him sleep. His heart rate was back to normal and he seemed to be sleeping normally, thankfully. And then, Tim began to stir, slowly opening his eyes. His pupils were back to normal as well, all signs the serum was neutralised. "Tim?" he called gently.

"Danny," he murmured, going to sit up. "What?" he stared down at his suit pants and shirt, Danny had removed the jacket, tie, cufflinks and shoes already. "Scarecrow," he muttered.

"Yeah, you got a needle full of fear serum."

"Damian?" he asked, and Danny shrugged.

"Bruce had him last I saw. You feel okay?"

"Yeah, I'm fine." Tim swung his legs over the edge of the couch.

"Hey, there's no rush, take your time. You…there's a handprint on your throat Tim."

,,,,,,,,,,,

Tim touched it for a second before dropping his hand. Everything right before he'd been dosed was kind of fuzzy but that was normal. But he remembered the hand round his neck. Damian. Damian had tried to kill him again but this time in front of the whole of the Gotham elite. It was a PR nightmare depending on what he'd been given and why hadn't Tim listened to Crane's rambling?

"It's fine," he told Danny, "not deep enough to do damage." He stood up, wavering slightly thanks to the sedative that was in the antidote, and Danny steadied him. "Need to shower."

"Hey," Danny tugged him into a gentle hug. "What's going on in there," tender fingers tapped his skull lightly.

"It's nothing, just tired," he shook his head. He couldn't think about anything at the moment, left over adrenaline making him feel jumpy.

Danny stared at him, worry obvious, but Tim couldn't deal with it at the moment. He wanted a shower and then sleep. A do-over of the day would be nice too but that wouldn't happen.

"Okay," Danny agreed, letting go. He stayed close as Tim made his way upstairs, just in case, but Tim didn't feel like talking.

He stripped out of the rest of his suit and got into the shower, running the water as hot as he could stand it. He scrubbed down, dried off and then collapsed into bed, vaguely feeling Danny tug a pair of sleep pants onto him a while later, a hand then running through his hair as he drifted to sleep.

,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,

He stared at the news from Gotham, it seemed that city was even worse than he had thought. He could not hurry his work anymore than he already was but that boy was as much a trouble magnet as Daniel it seemed. It might upset his little badger for now, but perhaps it would be best to remove young Timothy from the city immediately. Besides, he would need to be examined and his ecto-contamination levels thoroughly checked. He had exposure, not just from Daniel but the city itself, but there was no way to know if it would enough without testing. Daniel would thank him when it was all over.

,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,

Bruce checked over the reports, wincing at the unfocused shot of Damian attacking Tim. They could play it off as a bad reaction to a new concoction, Leslie would back them up on that. But if the serum worked how Crane said, well then, it was very obvious proof that Damian did still harbour extreme emotions when it came to Tim. He sighed, but sent a message to Dinah, perhaps he should have put Damian in therapy years ago but it would only work if his son tried. And he doubted Damian would.

A few canisters of normal; fear gas had been triggered but Danny had brought enough antidotes thankfully. Superboy had explained his presence easily enough, he'd been heading across the country and heard the attack so stepped in. No one had really gotten a look at Danny, at Banshee, so there was nothing about him in the articles.

He would check in with Tim in the morning, the antidote always left him very sleepy. He'd been through enough lately, more than ever, Bruce was determined to get Danny to Venice with him where they could have a quiet holiday together around the meetings.

TBC…

So, both Damian and Tim got dosed, but with different ones.