Chapter 17
Danny naturally couldn't stay still for long though, especially since he knew that there were still things out there and he finally managed to drag Vlad out of bed as well.
Not that Vlad truly wanted to get up, but Danny knew that the situation was irritating him as well and he also knew that Vlad wasn't the type to simply ignore a threat.
Once he revealed the main base's location though, Danny couldn't help but frown, "It's no wonder they were able to build and rebuild so many bases, but how did we not see the base? I mean, it's right in town!"
Vlad nodded before he removed a strange device from one of his drawers, "It was using certain censors and emitters that would enable it to scramble a ghost's senses whenever they get too close, so the easiest way to find it was to look for what isn't there."
Vlad paused, "Maybe this isn't such a good idea…", but Danny actually growled, "Nope, I just got you out of that way of thinking, you are not falling back into it again."
A spark of fire almost visibly lit up behind Vlad's eyes, "I fall into it because I do not want to see you get hurt. You've seen what they do to ghosts, I'm certain your little tech friend showed you his research."
Danny nodded, "He did, but that doesn't mean that you suddenly get to leave me behind. I know you've been destroying the labs, but anything can happen, and despite what happened in the Ghost Zone and during the rocket launch, we are stronger when we work together."
Vlad opened his mouth to say something, but the fire died and he sighed as he moved closer to press his forehead against Danny's, "I CAN'T lose you, you understand?"
Danny nodded, but then rolled his eyes and grabbed Vlad's wrist, which currently held a syringe with who knows what in it, "Honestly, your tactics are really becoming a bit too cliché."
Vlad actually pouted and waved his hand to make it disappear again and Danny knew that if he'd really wanted to render him unconscious then he would have succeeded.
He shook his head at Vlad's antics and kissed him on the lips, "Come on. The sooner we finish this, the sooner we can return and get on with the rest of our lives."
Vlad smiled slightly even though it looked a little forced and nodded before they transformed and left the mansion.
Even though he knew they were on a mission, Danny couldn't help but revel at the millions of stars that could be seen without the city lights blocking it out, "It's amazing, isn't it?"
Plasmius nodded, but he didn't seem the feel the same sense of wonder that Danny did.
Instead, he could see that Plasmius was still very worried, and Danny knew that nothing he said or did would make it go away until everything was sorted out.
In fact, it sparked a worry in his own gut, but he knew that simply ignoring the threats wouldn't make them go away so he decided to distract the other halfa with something that he'd been wanting to ask for a while now, "Why did you hesitate that day? I know you say that you regretted it, but, what exactly happened?"
Plasmius seemed to pause for a moment before he sighed, "I already told you something snapped."
Danny nodded, "I know, but you've never been known to scrap your own plans, instead, I'm usually the one stopping them."
Plasmius nodded with a grimace, "Do you really want to know?"
Danny flew slightly closer and took Plasmius' hand in his, "I do."
Plasmius sighed, "Then I will tell you."
Flashback
Vlad expected to feel a sense of accomplishment as Danny lay passed out on the table before him.
He'd finally captured him and soon he would have his very own clone of Danny whom he would be able to turn into the perfect son and together they would be unstoppable!
His hand hovered over the machine's switch, but somehow he couldn't get himself to press it as his calculations ran through his mind once more.
The possibility of Danny getting out unscathed after the clone was made was about 60% at best, which was high enough considering that he was trying to clone Danny's ghost side as well.
If that didn't work he could always extract Phantom and place him in the clone, but the probability of the real Danny dying was…
He froze as he suddenly took a good look at who lay before him when his heart gave a sharp pain at the thought.
Danny was lying impossibly still on the table that Vlad had strapped him in on and for a moment it looked like he wasn't breathing anymore, which caused Vlad's heart to jump into his throat as an icy fear ran up his spine and he placed a worried hand on Danny's chest, only to remember that they didn't need to breathe in their ghost forms.
What if…Danny didn't make it out unscathed?
What if the Little Badger he saw before him disappeared…would he still be happy with just a clone?
Would a clone be able to replace the real Danny?
The one who defied him and always gave just as good as he got without realizing that Plasmius was pulling his punches and trying to teach…him.
The one who was so easily riled up and yet so genuine with the way he always expressed his thoughts and feelings…
The one who knew him better than anyone else in the world, but who would still put aside their differences if there was a bigger threat they needed to take down…
The one who often snuck into his mansion when he got lost in his own loneliness because he always expected him to be working on his next scheme…
The one who was the entire reason for most of his latest schemes since he always found it so fascinating to see how the teen would solve them…
The world seemed to shatter as he finally seemed to comprehend what he was trying to do and he stepped back from the table in horror as he realized how empty his life would be without Danny.
Nausea overcame him and he steadied himself on the table behind him where the serum he would use to try and clone Danny lay.
A sudden fury fueled by fear rushed through his veins and he knocked everything off the table in a cacophony of metal and shattering glass, not even paying attention to the glass that bit into his hands as he lay them on the table once more in an effort to calm down.
The fear did not subside and he finally turned to Danny, trying to think of a way to salvage the situation in a way that the teen might be able to forgive him, but he found none.
So he did the only thing he could, he greatly weakened the bonds that held the younger halfa and then he simply waited for Danny to wake up before playing his part as the villain, only to see such real fear in Danny's eyes before he escaped from him, that Vlad was sure that Danny had managed to stab him with something as a piercing pain shot through his heart once more, only to glance down and find nothing.
By the time he looked up, Danny was long gone and he was left with the crushing realization that he might have just succeeded in completely driving Danny away from him anyway.
The haunting memory kept driving him to figure out why he needed Phantom in his life until he stumbled upon Clockwork and the mere thought that something like that could happen to Danny...it drove him and Plasmius into a frenzy.
Flashback End
Danny didn't know what to say in response to hearing the full story.
A part of him wanted to grab the man by the collar and shake some sense into him, but another part of him already knew who Vlad and Plasmius were, even though it had taken him a while to figure out.
He noticed that Plasmius kept glancing at him and realized that he was still waiting for a response from him, to which he gave a sad smile, "Honestly? I wouldn't be able to live in a world without you either. There are many times when you aggravated me more than anything, but the day I realized that I wasn't the only one like this, well, as angry as I was at you for everything you were doing at that time, I also felt really relieved..."
His words cut off as they reached their destination and Plasmius gave his hand one last squeeze before he released it in preparation for the fight to come.
Plasmius activated the remote that would jam the sensors and emitters around the building, but what they found wasn't a fully armed base as the base revealed itself, but rather a scene of destruction and carnage as bodies lay strewn everywhere while the building burned.
Danny's first reaction was to rush in to look for survivors despite what they were trying to do, but Plasmius stopped him and Danny saw a frown on his face before he pointed toward the flames, prompting Danny to look as well, only for his eyes to widen in fear as he saw, what could only be, the Fright Knight surrounded by many ghosts and hanging from the tip of the Fright Knight's sword was one of the devices that they had come find.
The Knight slowly walked toward them, "Ah, see our guests have arrived. Normally I would offer a fair duel, but seeing as you keep running away, I had to find an alternative..."
He aimed the machine at them and sent a pulse of energy through it, causing it to fire a strange blue beam at them, which they both barely dodged.
Danny looked toward Plasmius, who gave him a nod before they dodged another blast, it seemed that they needed to come up with a new plan, and fast.