Disclaimer: I do not own anything that I reference
Chapter Six: Fangs and Claws (Edited)
At the end of the week Danny found himself sitting on the couch and saying goodbye to Vlad who was about to leave for Meteor Majeure. It is a space station disguised as a regular asteroid. It used to belong to the current Sovreign's former mentor Force Majeure as a secret hideaway but now it serves as the base of operations for the Sovereign and his council of twelve. Basically, he used it as a gigantic trophy room that all the villains would be forced to acknowledge and gawk at as they walked through its halls.
He wished that they would just leave for their already.
"I don't want you to throw any parties that might wreck the house." Vlad said as he stood in front of him alongside his girlfriend.
Zelda Nomura is a woman that looks to be of Asian descent.
She wore a dark blue shirt and a long purple skirt that went all the way down to her black boots. She was about the same height as him. She worked as Curator for the Arcadia Oaks Museum of History. The most important thing about her is that like Principal Strickler she is a changeling. When she transforms, she turns into a dark pink troll over six feet tall that wields two flaming scythes.
"I will try my hardest." Danny said with a smile.
"You will try your hardest not to destroy the house? or you will try your hardest to bring this place to the ground?" Vlad asked.
"Yes." Danny said not trying to answer the question at all.
"This a mistake. I really should leave a duplicate behind." Vlad said as he rubbed the bridge of his nose.
"Relax sweetie. He is just trying to mees with you." Nomura said moving to hold on to his arm.
Even with all of her problems Danny knew that she was too sweet for such a man.
"Make sure that you do not get into any trouble." Vlad said.
"I make no promises." Danny said.
Not to mention that a lot of the trouble that he did get in to was for Vlad to gain an advantage.
"I mean any kind of trouble that might get this city on the news." Vlad said. "Or bring superheroes to investigate."
"Very well." Danny said.
"Your father will be back soon. Do not worry." Nomura said.
'Who is worried?' Danny thought to himself.
He felt that the longer Vlad was away the happier he would be. If he was lucky maybe the villains would be shunted off to a parallel universe. Or teleported several galaxies over which would require several lifetimes to make it back to Earth.
Either outcome would serve him well.
Vlad's communicator activated.
"This is Plasmius." Vlad said.
"Are you clear for transportation?" Watch and or Ward asked.
Watch and Ward are the two assistants to the Sovereign. They kept records of the villains in the guild and made sure the Sovereign was aware of all the meetings they had. They were also the team that answered questions about the guild for both sides. They dealt with guild dues, meeting transportation, locating secret bases, and providing missions for those that needed it.
"We're ready for transport." Vlad said as he held on to Nomura and started levitating their bags.
Vlad turned himself and Nomura intangible and rose through the roof.
'I am going to get something to eat.' Danny thought as he jumped up from the couch and started walking to the kitchen.
Before he made it there his phone started ringing.
"What's up Brad?" Danny asked as he answered.
"Me and the gang could use some help." Brad said.
"What do you mean?" Danny asked worried what they got themselves into.
"We are stuck in Gatorsburg and are hoping that you could come and pick us up." Brad said.
"Gatorsburg?" Danny asked as he walked to the kitchen wall and wrote down the name of the place on a notepad hanging on top of the refrigerator.
He was going to have Sam look the place up while he started driving there.
"We got a lead on a mystery and so we went to try and see if there was something deeper. When we arrived the Enigma Machine died." Brad said.
"Enigma Machine?" Danny asked fighting a laugh as he wrote that down as well.
"It's the name of my van." Brad said. "Don't laugh. We think it sounds cool."
"Alright. How bad are things over there?" Danny asked.
"Not bad. Right now, the Enigma machine is at the mechanic. We would have called our parents, but they would have freaked out." Brad asked. "So can you come and pick us up?"
"I am on my way." Danny said.
He had many questions to ask but he knew that could wait until he found Brad and the others.
"Sebas. I am going to need a lift." Danny said when he found the head butler. "I am thinking of taking one of Vlad's bigger cars."
He was going to need the room.
"Very well Master Daniel." Sebas said.
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"What have you learned about Gatorsburg?" Danny asked Sam as watched the tress pass by.
"It's a horrible place Danny." Sam said.
He could hear the anger in her voice and knew that if he could see her eyes that she would be glaring at something.
"What's the matter?" Danny asked wondering what is bothering her about the place.
"Gatorsburg is a town that was founded in the mid-eighteen-hundreds during the gold rush. When the miners found this land and started digging, they discovered that while the land lacked gold it was filled with alligators." Sam said.
"That must have been a surprise." Danny said just imagining the situation.
Little Sally and young John deciding to go and skip some rocks across the ocean only for a gator to come roaring out.
"The people of the town decided to exploit the alligators. To hunt them down for their skin to make suits and handbags. " Sam answered.
"People wore suits made of alligator flesh?" Danny asked surprised.
He imagined the skin to be rough and course like sand. Probably made it hard to move around or breathe.
"It is not funny Danny. They hunted them down to extinction then abandoned the town when they could not find a way to fix the damage that they caused." Sam said with anger in her voice.
That explains why she is so mad at the place. It was everything she hated and an example of why she needed to form her protests.
"How many people live there now?" Danny asked wondering what he is about to walk into.
"There should not be anybody there." Sam answered.
"There have to be some people. Brad said he left his van with a mechanic and that they are staying in a motel." Danny said.
"It is strange. The whole population left when the alligators died, and it was clear that no further profit could be made." Sam said.
"What do you think it was that drew Brad and friends here?" Danny asked as the car took a turn.
"I have no idea." Sam answered.
"Danny are you sure that you don't want backup?" Paulina asked.
"I should be alright. According to Clockwork Otto is not ready to make his move yet. So, if he did want them coming here, he probably would not send them somewhere too dangerous." Danny said as he felt the car stop
"Where did Brad say he is staying at while they are waiting for you?" Sam asked.
"He said it was some hotel called the Drowsy Gator." Danny said.
"I see that they are still finding ways to exploit the Alligators." Sam said with anger rising in her voice.
He pulled the phone away from his ear for a few minutes to let Sam rant and work out her anger.
"Sam?" Danny asked.
"Sam has gone on a walk to calm her head." Paulina said.
"Keep an eye on her please. Talk to you later." Danny said as he hung up the phone.
"Are you sure that you do not want me to come into the town with you?" Sebas asked.
"No. Something is going on here and I don't need whatever happened to Brad's van happening to our escape vehicle." Danny said walking out of the car and into the town.
Even the night seemed drearier here than in Arcadia oaks.
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As he walked down Gators Avenue, he could see that Sam's complaints were worth the merit. Gatorsburg according to Sam had been a rather big and prosperous town and now he could not see a single piece of evidence that anyone still lived in here.
'These buildings are barley holding together.' Danny thought as he walked closer to inspect the walls.
He was afraid that it would collapse entirely if he so much as poked it. He would not be surprised if the wood had rotted, or the homes had termites inside of it.
The windows were filthy and the ones that had been broken were covered with wood to prevent people from breaking in.
'Now this is strange.' Danny thought looking at the mechanic shop.
It gained his attention as it is one of the few places in this town that still had power. According to what Brad had told him the Enigma machine should be inside. He floated above the garage window and could see a van shape object hidden under a tarp.
'I have found their van.' Danny texted Paulina and Sam.
'Be careful.' Paulina texted back besides a heart emoji.
Now that he is certain that this is the place, he is going to ask the mechanic some questions before he goes to get the others. See if he had a possible explanation for what happened to the van and why it had stopped working.
"Hello." Danny said to the man reading a magazine and sitting on a barstool.
The man wore a mechanic shirt that was ripped off at the arms showing the muscles that came with lots of hard labor. He also had white hair growing down his head except for the top of his head where he is bald.
"What do you want?" Grady Gator asked in a gruff tone.
"I am looking for my friends. They called saying that they have had some trouble with their van." Danny said.
"I haven't seen anybody in weeks." Grady Gator said.
"Really because and I might just be seeing things but whatever you are covering with that cover seems to be van-sized." Danny said pointing at what lied beyond the very clear door.
"Oh yeah those kids. They left." Grady Gator said.
"Really? I find that hard to believe." Danny said walking up to the man.
"I don't care what you believe. They are gone. You should go too." Grady Gator said.
"Very well. Though I have to say that answer makes me really mad." Danny said.
"And why should I care?" Grady Gator asked standing up from his stool to look down on him.
"Because when I get angry, I tend to find some poor fool to take it out on." Danny said as he back handed the man and sent him crashing to the floor.
"Boy you are going to regret that boy." Grady Gator said standing up and walking towards him.
"I kind of doubt that." Danny said and moved around the man's lunge. " You are too big and slow to catch me. You might want to start off with something more your speed." He ducked the man's swing and punched him in the back. "Like a turtle. Word hard at it and maybe in a month you can reach it."
"Boy you are asking for a world of trouble." Grady said.
"Come on then." Danny said pulling his arm back.
When Grady tried to lunge at him that time Danny punched him straight in the face with enough strength to knock him to the floor unconscious.
"Now it's time to find out what you know." Danny said putting his hand atop the man's head and phasing through it to access the man's memories.
'Seriously?' Danny asked as he learned what the Gator family had been up to and what Brad and friends walked into.
He dialed Sebas's number.
"Yes Master Daniel?" Sebas asked.
"I am going to need you to inform the sheriff's office that criminal activity has been discovered in Gatorsburg and there are no police here to deal with it." Danny said.
He then called Brad.
"Are you close Danny?" Brad asked.
"I am at the mechanic's place right now. Are you guys okay?" Danny asked.
"Judy and I are together, but Ricky and Cassidy went on a walk." Brad answered.
'Just great.' Danny thought in annoyance. "Well, I am heading to you guys. meet me outside. I have something to tell you."
"Alright." Brad said before hanging up the phone.
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"What did you want to tell us?" Judy asked.
"Something strange is going on. When I questioned the mechanic about where you guys were staying, he told me you already left." Danny lied.
"Why would he do that?" Brad asked.
"I have no idea but if I have learned anything from watching horror movies is that it is not a good sign." Danny said. "All that is missing is if the motel was owner by a weird old lady and her creepy kid." His memories from the original could clearly recall a television series with such a premise.
"I told you that the motel owner's son was strange Brad." Judy said.
"You may be right Judy. Either way we need to figure out what's going on." Brad said determined.
'They really are driven by curiosity.' Danny thought.
In such a situation most people would try to leave. Not these guys though. They just wanted to look deeper.
"My butler is waiting on the edge of town to pick us up." Danny offered knowing that they would not take it.
"We still need to figure out why Mr. E sent us to this town." Brad said.
"Mr. E?" Danny asked wondering why Otto chose a pun for a secret name.
"Yes, he has been hinting that there is this huge mystery about Arcadia Okas. He sent a package to Brad's house. It was a bag made from Gatorsburg." Judy said.
Well, creepy enough to fit Otto's tastes and ominous enough to lead Brad and friends further down the rabbit hole.
"Do you guys hear that?" Brad asked.
"Seems like you friends are back." Danny said turning to see something he had not expected.
Ricky and Cassidy are running for their lives from Greta and Gunther Gator dressed in alligator costumes.
"What is that?" Judy asked.
"I don't know but we should probably save them." Danny said running towards the scared teens and growling alligators.
"RAARARAH." Greta Gator roared.
"I don't scare so easily creature. You should be aware that I am armed." Danny said pulling his hand from his satchel and tossing down a smoke bomb.
"Run." Danny yelled leading the way for the others to follow while the Gators were choking on smoke and trying to find their way out.
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"Like what is going on with this place?" Ricky asked while panting for air.
"I do not know but we are going to find out." Brad said.
"Paulina and Sam used my father's connection to access the sheriff's database." Danny lied putting his phone away. "It seems there have been claims of alligator monsters attacking visitors to this town."
"They can't be real alligator monsters. Such a thing is illogical." Cassidy said rubbing her glasses.
"They could be people in costumes. That still leaves the question of why though?" Brad asked.
"Where did those monsters start chasing you?" Judy asked Ricky and Cassidy.
"We were walking near the docks." Cassidy said.
"Then we are going to have to go back and lay a trap." Brad said slamming his fist into an open hand.
'These are the kinds of kids that meet horrible ends in horror movies.' Danny thought as he watched them all agree.
"We could just wait for the sheriff and his deputies to arrive and have them question them." Danny said.
"Not enough time. They could run off by then and we will never know what is going on." Brad said.
"Very well." Danny said as he gave in.
0-0-0-0-0-0
"I'm back." Danny said as he rejoined the group.
"Did you see what they are doing?" Cassidy asked.
"Yeah." Danny said bringing the belt he had taken out of the satchel.
"Look just like the purse. This label says it is one hundred percent pure gator made in gatorsburg." Brad read.
"The thing is none of this stuff is real. It is all fake." Danny said imagining that Paulina would feel the same amount of anger that Sam was currently dealing with.
She was allergic to imitation fur and held huge disdain for people that lied on designer clothes. He did not get it but just accepted that some people had different things that set them off.
"So now we know that they are dressing up in costumes to make sure that no one discovers their crimes." Judy said.
"Now all we need to do is set a trap." Brad said.
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"Brad is very impressive but I also feel he need to see a therapist." Danny said as he looked through binoculars watching Ricky perform his part of the plan.
He gave the thumbs up to Brad who was waiting seated in a forklift.
"Like dude, You gator freaks. you're like the ugliest crocodiles ever." Ricky taunted and then started running behind the dock-house.
"Who are you calling a crocodile?" Gunther Gator asked angrily as he stepped off of the boat holding his family's merchandise and gave chase.
"Get him!" Greta Gator shouted as she gave chase as well.
They ran right into the trap made of fake gator belts, bounced off of the trampoline, and ended up locked in a chest.
"Congratulations." Danny said as he climbed down from the tree and joined the others.
"Yeah, but I wish we knew what happened to their uncle. The one that said he would fix the enigma machine." Brad said depressed.
"I have him." Danny said.
"What?" Judy asked.
"Yeah, my butler Sebas already had Grady gator locked up in the trunk when I came to the motel." Danny said as he heard police sirens blaring.
He was ready to head back to Arcadia.
He now had the power as Mayor to truly look into Otto's actions and so that is what he is going to do.