Chapter 3: Dexter's Laboratory

September 12th - 12:27pm – St Bellum Cruise, Deck.

Today was the day Dib and Gaz got off this cruise and left for Tech Square, their first destination was Orchid Bay, but then it was a train journey to Tech Square. Then they can finally meet Dexter and ask for their help against the assassin who killed their mother, a member of Diavoli Di Sangue. Dib was clearly more invested in this endeavour, while Gaz seemingly couldn't care less.

One thing Dib didn't expect however was they would end up recruiting a beautiful tomboy named Trixie Tang, who was being hunted by the same killer cult, but she wasn't just beautiful, she was extremely rich, being able to pay for everything they needed, including helping them pay for their ticket when they stowed away. Dib struggled to understand if she saw him as a means of assistance, or if she actually liked him and wanted him to stick around. Regardless, he tried desperately to keep his cool, and focus on the mission first.

During their few days stay on the cruise, Dib finally read the documents his father gave him, and shared the info to Trixie and Gaz. Apparently, the cult was formed fifty years ago, and had members in the potential thousands, masters of disguise, and would kill indiscriminately. But their main form of murdering was a stab to the heart and neck with a strangely designed blade, though they carried weapons like explosives, guns, and all sorts, they would always have at least one killed in this method. And while no one has determined the pattern or motive, they know that everyone that was killed via stab to the heart and neck was over the age of seventeen.

Dib was also grateful in a way, since they couldn't do anything besides wait until the ship docked, he could spend time with Trixie, hoping to get to know her more. Talking, having breakfast, lunch and dinner, spending time in the lounge, Trixie didn't want to do too much as it could attract Diavoli Di Sangue's attention, wherever they were, whoever they were. But Dib didn't mind, he was great at keeping a low profile, and she was right.

But what surprised Dib the most was how interested Trixie seemed about him sharing his stories about his paranormal investigations back home, including trying to expose Zim as an alien but failing every turn, then mentioning how he just disappeared one day. He would've mentioned the Florpus incident and Zim clinging onto the helicopter, but he felt it was too farfetched and left it at that.

Trixie however hardly shared much of herself, being vague on the details, sharing how she's a typical student back home, with an average life, while filthy rich, she didn't do much outside of what regular students do.

Unsurprisingly, while Dib talked a lot about himself, Gaz never chimed in on any conversation, Dib didn't mind this time as they not only need to keep a low profile, but it also meant he had Trixie all to himself. While he didn't try to make any moves on her, he hoped she would like him enough to accept any invites after this ordeal was over.

We find Dib in the bathroom, after having finished washing up, he splashed his face with water before proceeding to look at himself in the mirror, drying his face off with a few paper towels, then using his fingers to comb his hair and straighten his antenna-like hair, so far he's been playing it cool, but now he's trying to make himself more presentable, he hasn't really fallen in love with anyone before so he doesn't know how to act, there was that girl Tak, but he wasn't sure if he did love her, especially after finding out he was an alien like Zim too.

He soon studied himself in the mirror one last time, seeing if there are any oddities, but couldn't find anything, so he took a deep breath, and left the bathroom. "Ok, be cool, don't do anything yet, just treat her like a partner and friend."

He made it back to the deck where he saw Trixie by the rails, holding her suitcase, and Gaz who was on the bench playing her game again.

Trixie just let out a sigh as she just clutched onto her suitcase tightly as she turned to see Dib returning to her and Gaz, adjusting his backpack and looking directly at her with a smile, trying to be cool. "Alright, got two minutes left before we stop."

Trixie nods, with a small, beautiful smile. "Yeah, let's go."

Dib soon turned to Gaz and nudged her slightly, she soon hopped off the bench and began to follow, all while her eyes were glued to her screen. Trixie soon followed while dragging her suitcase, Dib thought about offering to carry it for her, but felt it was best not to.

September 12th - 13:06pm – Orchid Bay

The trio had left the boat and were in Orchid Bay, a beautiful dock town that was filled with palm trees and other exotic plant life you would expect from Hawaii or some places similar, it was also quite bright and sunny. Dib felt the warm sun and gentle breeze while on the boat, but feeling it outside it, where the sea also had a salty smell to it, it felt genuinely relaxing. The further he got away from Darc City, the more he was glad he left.

He opened up the map app on his phone and set the directions for the train station but noticed that it would take an hour to get there on foot, but as they walked, he noticed a taxi coming, it would guarantee their trip to be shorter, while he felt a little bad for making Trixie pay again, she's paid for everything else so far, so what's the harm in doing it again he thought. So he immediately flagged it down. The taxi stopped and Dib opened the door, climbing inside with Gaz and Trixie following.

"Train Station, please."

About ten minutes passed and the trio sat in silence, Dib noticed that Trixie had the window open slightly and Gaz still played on her game, so Dib followed suit, and flipped from his map app to a match three game.

As he played, he began to think about Diavoli Di Sangue and what their plan could possibly be, why would they assassinate his mother, and Simon Mervaradi? And why would they target Trixie as well? Just what is their goal aside from senseless killings? Dib tried to take his mind off of it as he just tried to focus on the now than the future.

About twenty minutes passed and the taxi eventually made it to the train station. "Sorry for the delays there, kids." Said the driver. "Traffic was a mess."

"That's alright." Said Trixie as she took out her wallet to get her cards.

"So where might you be heading?"

"Huh? Oh, we're going to Tech Square. Just for a few days." Trixie then got her bank card out and tapped it against the card reader giving a loud beep.

"I've been there once or twice, you should try the Zoo if you get the chance, the dinosaur exhibit is something else."

"Oh, sure." Trixie then pulled the handle down on the taxi door and opened it, she climbed out with Gaz and Dib following. She turned back to the driver as she closed the door. "Thanks."

"You're welcome. Stay safe." The driver then drove off. Leaving the three just outside the train station.

"Huh. Don't often see nice taxi drivers." Said Dib with his hands in his pocket. "Orchid Bay must have a lot more positivity than Darc City." He then dug into his pocket and took out his phone. "Well, delays or not, we still have five minutes before our train arrives. We better get going now."

"Agreed." Said Trixie, as she began to walk with them.

September 12th - 13:25pm – Train

The train sped across the tracks in a fast and smooth ride, Dib sat at a table seat with his backpack sitting on the chair next to him, on the opposite side was Trixie, who had her suitcase in the compartment on top, and her backpack between her feet under the table. Gaz sat next to Trixie, with her backpack under the table too, and still playing on her Game Slave.

Dib saw just how much more beautiful Trixie looked with the sunlight from the window beaming on her face, the way the light reflected off her beautiful eyes, and shone her smooth skin, even reflecting off her raven black hair. Dib felt a blush coming in, so he quickly took out his phone and opened up his text messages, he figured now was a good time to report to his father, and to give him enough of a distraction.

Dib- We're on the train to Tech Square now, should be there in an hour or so.

In a minute, his dad texted back.

Dad- That's good. Seems you're managing by yourself, correct?

Dib gave a quiet sigh, as much as he didn't want to, he should be honest about this.

Dib- Not quite, we met a girl who's being chased by that cult, she's trying to meet with Dexter too. So, we tagged along. We're both heading the same direction, so we agreed to stick together.

There were two more minutes of waiting.

Dad- I understand, just be careful, very careful. If she ever becomes a liability, then you should separate from her.

Dib- Got it.

Dib felt hesitant at first, but he knew he had to strike up some sort of conversation, to keep his eyes away from Trixie's god-like beauty. So, he decided to text a question he knew he was going to regret.

Dib- Say dad. How did you and mom hook up?

There was a bit of silence, before his father responded.

Dad- Where did that some from?

Dib- I dunno, just curious I guess.

Dad- Well. To be honest, as much as I would deny such a silly thing, I would argue dumb luck. I wasn't as charismatic as I am now, and while I could square up in a fight, I wasn't exactly a powerhouse either. I guess your mother just found me appealing in some other way. Not that I'm ungrateful of course.

Dib- I see. Thanks dad.

Dad- You're welcome. Report to me when Dexter gives you his answer.

Dib- Will do.

Dib put his phone down, and came to witness Trixie shaking her thoughts away, looking a bit distressed. "You ok?" he asked with zero hesitancy.

Trixie jumped a bit, looking at her. "H-Huh?"

"Is… is something bugging you."

Trixie just sighed. "Yeah… the usual."

Dib nods, knowing how much stress she must be put under from Diavoli Di Sangue. "Well… don't worry, Diavoli Di Sangue won't have its way with you."

"Yeah, thanks." Trixie nodded with her usual beautiful smile; she then spoke up again. "So… who were you texting earlier?"

"Huh? Oh, it was my dad. Just letting him know of our progress."

Trixie nods. "Right, you did mention he was letting you do this."

"Yeah. But he said that if Dexter can't help me, then to return home." There was a second of silence before Dib spoke up again. "You know, now that I mention it, has your dad approved of this?"

Trixie shook her head. "No, my butler, Gerald, helped me run away, he even said he was going to make sure no one knew I was gone."

"How?"

"I'm not sure, but he's smart, he'll find a way."

"Right…" Dib looks behind him, realising he needs to answer a call of nature, then stands up. "Bathroom, be right back."

Trixie nods as she watches Dib walk away from the seat and made his way through the door to another carriage.

Dib enters the bathroom, closes and locks the door, and does his business. When he finishes, he looks at himself through the mirror as he washed his hands.

'Dumb luck, huh?' Dib thought to himself. If something like finding love would make his father admit to something he would claim never existed, then it must be a huge deal. He dried his hands and proceeded to check his appearance again, everything seemed fine.

But soon, Dib shook his head. 'You're here on a mission to defeat Diavoli Di Sangue, this isn't some kind of date or romance mission! Just focus on what needs to be done, besides, there's no way a beautiful girl like her is single anyway.'

He soon adjusts his glasses properly and proceeds to leave the bathroom, and return to his seat, there he noticed Trixie seemed a bit cheerier as she gazed out the window, her stunning appearance getting his attention once again.

September 12th - 15:14pm – Tech Square Business District

The train had finally arrived in Tech Square, Dib, Gaz and Trixie, got off the train and made their way through a stunning metropolis that had more advanced technology than the last few cities they were in. Dib once again took the lead, using his phone to navigate them through, he also decided that no more taxis would be done, he's had Trixie pay enough, but luckily, he took notice of a massive tower labelled Dex-Labs.

"Alright, this is it. Dexter is inside that building."

"Finally." Said Gaz.

"Yeah, let's hope he can help." Said Trixie.

The three walked through the doors and were immediately greeted with a clean pure white room with, blue lights everywhere, several stairs going up, holographic monitors, and a desk with two staff members behind it. The entire place felt as if it was a step into the future, they all had a look around in amazement as they made their way to the desk.

"Wow, just when I thought it couldn't get any more futuristic." Trixie mumbled as they made their way to the desk.

"Uh, hi. We need to speak with Dexter. It's really important." Said Dib as he approached the staff member.

The member of staff quickly responded. "I'm sorry, but Dexter is on a business trip, we won't be back until the fourteenth."

Dib felt stunned. "The fourteenth? We're two days early?"

"I'm afraid so. But if you come by at nine on the fourteenth, he'll be there and willing to speak with you."

Dib nods. "Uh, ok, thanks."

Dib walks back to the two as they began to leave. "So now what?" asked Gaz.

Dib was internally kicking himself again, over having more scheduling issues, just like with the Cruise, but he cleared his head, this time where wasn't anything to really do besides wait, and they didn't have to pay for any more transport. "Well, we got two days, might as well book a hotel and hang out until then."

"Agreed." Said Trixie. "I'll book us a room."

September 12th - 16:41pm – Tech Square Hotel

It took about an hour to final a hotel, but find one they did, and Trixie had already booked them in, but there were no rooms available that could house all three, so Trixie booked a single room for herself, and a double room for Dib and Gaz, which was fair to Dib, they didn't know her enough and could use the privacy.

Dib made the plans for them to explore the city before dinner, Trixie wasn't against it, but she did make it clear that Diavoli Di Sangue could be anywhere, and that they may not be safe. Dib reassured her that he and Gaz would protect her, so Trixie accepted. Dib felt a bit more excited; he knew he had to focus on the mission, but spending harmless time with Trixie would be great.

He informed his father via text of the situation before going into the bathroom once again to fix his hair, adjust his glasses and even make sure his coat had no scratches or marks. He saw himself looking proper, and soon exited the bathroom of his hotel room and saw Gaz on the bed, not playing her game, but sitting in a huff.

"Batteries dead?"

"Yup." Said Gaz bluntly.

"Ok, we'll get you some more while we're out. Come on, Trixie must be waiting for us."

He and Gaz left their hotel room, and made their way to Trixie's room, which was thankfully, next door. He quickly knocked on the door.

"Trixie. You ok?"

"U-Uh… yeah. Why?" said Trixie, her voice was slightly muffled.

"Just wanted to make sure, we'll be leaving in a bit."

"Ok, I'm coming."

After a minute, Trixie opened the door, once again revealing her beauty. "Welp, ready to go?" she asked.

"Yep. Let's go."

September 14th - 9:06am - Tech Square Business District

The three had spent their two days doing not as much as they probably could've, while they were more than likely safe, Trixie still hammered in the idea that Diavoli Di Sangue could be anywhere, so they tried to do what they could to enjoy themselves, while keeping a low profile, something Gaz was a professional at, since as usual, she's glued to her game. Dib however knew he was great at being subtle, so he had nothing to worry about. He wasn't sure how good Trixie was at being subtle, given her beauty was very distracting, but he didn't pry and just tried his best to act casual.

Soon, however. Today was the day Dexter had arrived, and Dib made his way into the building with Gaz and Trixie. Dib made his way to the front desk, hoping finally, he'll get to see Dexter.

"Uh hi. Is Dexter in?"

"Yes." Said the staff member. "You're free to visit him this time. Just take the elevator."

"Thanks."

The three then made their way to the elevator, but discovered it was closing, so Dib began to run towards the door and shoved his arm in between the doors so it would open back up. And the three made their way inside.

But to Dib's surprise, seven more kids roughly their age were in the elevator too.

The first was a boy much taller than the rest, having dirty yellow skin, short orange hair, and a big black unibrow, he wore a big green jacket with a flame pattern on the sleeves, over a red and pink stripped shirt. He also wore dark blue baggy trousers and big black shoes with the laces undone. He had a big blue backpack on.

The second was another boy who was slightly shorter than the big boy, he had a wide head and a black floppy hat that looked like a cartoon sock. He wore an orange t-shirt with a red biker-like vest over it, red wristbands and purple shorts accompanied with long red socks and blue shoes. He had a big red backpack on.

The third was roughly Dib's height but a bit shorter, he had a square-shaped head with four long strands of black hair, he wore a yellow short sleeved jacket with purple rims on the sleeves, over a red shirt underneath, bright blue trousers that have been slightly ripped at the bottom, and red shoes. He had a big green backpack on.

The fourth was a girl roughly Dib's height with a somewhat twig-like body, she had long black hair in the form of a braided ponytail with a big purple bow, and she wore large golden ring-shaped earrings, she wore a pink vest and skirt combo with a purple belt, a blue wristwatch, and wore long white socks with purple shoes. She had a blue backpack on.

The fifth was a boy that was slightly shorter than the girl, he had a triangular-shaped head, with a tuft of red hair at the top, he wore a slightly darker yellow t-shirt, along with denim shorts, short white socks, and black shoes. He had a dark blue backpack on.

The sixth was a boy with an egg-shaped head, and shockingly, a big pink balloon-like nose. He wore a red cap covering messy orange hair, a light blue hoodie with a blue stripe across the middle and elbows, and the hood was also a dark blue. He also wore dark blue denim trousers, and big white shoes with a red stripe across them.

The last one was a girl with thick black eyebrows and a deathly glare to her, she had blonde hair that reached down to her shoulders, but at the top were curved to look like horns of sort. She wore a pink vest/skirt combo separated by a black belt. The vest had a dark purple wave pattern on the bottom and a picture of a blue flower with yellow petals. The skirt had a dark purple spike pattern at the bottom, she also wore a yellow necklace, and a pair of big black boots.

"Sorry, we're heading to the top floor." said Dib, as he, Gaz and Trixie entered the elevator. Dib was taken aback by how many there were.

"Well, that's a coincidence, so are we." said the skinny black-haired girl.

"Dexter's popular all of a sudden." The blonde girl mumbled in response.

"Maybe it's his birthday. Did we get gifts?" asked the big nosed boy.

The yellow skinned boy dug into his pockets and took out a potato. "Is this a gift?"

Dib presses the top floor button, and they all stand in silence as the elevator slowly made its way to the top floor. As they rode upwards, Dib took notice of how almost cramped the elevator was, it could take about eight or more to fit in before it was properly cramped, but it still felt a little claustrophobic, nevertheless, he kept his focus on the mission, but secretly hoped Trixie was ok.

"Um, what happened to your neck?"

"It's none of your business."

"Sorry."

Dib took notice, the black skinny girl had asked about the blonde girl's neck, she was standing on his left side, and looked, but couldn't see anything, but she was holding onto the right side of her neck.

The blonde girl suddenly snapped at her, along with everyone else staring. "This isn't a freak show, quit your staring!"

The girl had a demonic presence to her, Gaz had a bit of an intimidating aura to her, but this girl was a whole other beast, like she was possessed or something. Dib jumped and found himself standing straight, feeling a massive chill down his spine. He hadn't felt this scared in a long time, he wasn't even sure Gaz has ever intimidated him as much. He did notice that Gaz wasn't intimidated in the slightest, though he wasn't sure if Gaz even noticed.

The elevator stopped on the top floor and opened up to a waiting room, it was completely empty, made sense since it had just opened, they were the first to arrive, just a bunch of rowed seats like in a doctor's waiting room. There was a sign that said, "Please wait" By the door. They all left the elevator, and each took a seat.

Dib sat near the end of the benches nearest the elevator, with Gaz and Trixie sitting next to him. The big nosed boy and blonde girl sat next to each other in the middle of the second row. And the remaining five sat on the opposite side, of the big nosed boy and blonde girl.

There was a strong silence as the ten sat quietly, it was hard to tell what anyone was thinking. But Dib knew to keep focus on the situation and began to try and analyse the other kids to get an idea of what they could be like. Granted, it's probably none of his business, but it's also possible that like Trixie, these kids could also be involved with Diavoli Di Sangue in some way, shape or form.

But Dib soon noticed that the square-headed boy was looking at their direction, he looked to see that the boy was staring at Trixie, then the square-headed boy began speaking to the group of kids next to him.

Dib soon glared at the square-headed boy, realising he might wanna try and hit on Trixie, and he began to feel defensive. Who was he to hit on a beautiful girl like Trixie when she clearly wouldn't want to be with him.

"Red haired girl?" the big nosed boy asked out loud, getting everyone's attention. Dib jumped a bit and looked ahead at the boy who said it out loud, he looked at the five kids sitting opposite to them. He looked around quickly, to see there was no girl with red hair.

"Billy, shut it." Said the blonde girl scolding him.

The Square-headed boy leaned back crossing his leg, he had a pretty smug look to him. "Oh yeah, this red-haired girl in a purple dress stole something of ours, but I could tell she was totally into me."

Dib quickly noticed how the blonde girl reacted to this, she actually looked shocked, almost panicked. 'What the hell?' He also took notice that Gaz stopped playing her game to pay attention to her surroundings, which only meant that this must be a big deal, so Dib paid attention.

"Hold it! This girl. Give me the full details." Said the blonde girl.

"Huh? Well, she's pretty tall, long red hair, some weird purple outfit with long wide sleeves… now that I think about it, she did have long ears and red eyes."

Dib took notice of how the blonde girl flinched, rubbing her neck, before placing it on her hip bag. "Damnit." She muttered.

The skinny black-haired girl stood up and directed herself at the blonde girl, who looked over to her. "Wait, this girl, did she do that to your neck?"

The blonde girl huffed quietly. "Yes. She's a Vampire."

"VAMPIRE!?" The yellow skinned boy, the black hat boy and the square-headed boy shouted in shock.

"A real Vampire!?" asked Dib, his paranormal senses tingled with excitement. He felt even more invested in this conversation now.

"Yes." The blonde girl nodded.

The black-haired girl spoke up again. "Did this Vampire steal anything from you, like a jewel shaped like a butterfly or something?"

The blonde girl raised an eyebrow. "What? No nothing of the sort, but she stole something valuable from me."

Dib spoke up again, realising there may be some sort of connection, even if it was a stretch. "Do you know if this Vampire have anything to do with Diavoli Di Sangue?"

"Diavoli Di Sangue? That murderous cult?" the blonde girl asked. She looked around for a moment, as if trying to recollect her thoughts, before nodding. "I think she might be, shortly after she stole from me, the train we were on was attacked, and three of the guys on the train were stabbed in the heart and neck."

"Heart and neck? That's Diavoli Di Sangue's mark. All of their victims have those marks." Said Trixie.

Dib nodded before turning back to the others. "Let's just say those guys are the reason why we came here too."

The Triangle-head boy soon spoke up. "So… lemme get this straight… this red-haired Vampire, stole a jewelled butterfly from the Eds." Presenting his hands towards the three boys next to him. "Stole something from you two." He said looking at the big nosed boy and blonde girl. "This Diavoli Di Sangue thing you said, might be connected to this Vampire, and why you three are here." He said looking to Dib, Gaz and Trixie. "And the butterfly my brother had; this birdman stole from him. Could he be connected too?"

The big nosed boy and blonde girl looked at each other and shrugged. Dib crossed his arms trying to process everything, Diavoli Di Sangue was somehow connected to this vampire, and a birdman of sorts. How could this one mission turn into something more convoluted.

"It… it would appear that all of us are connected to this conspiracy one way or another." Said the black-hat boy looking concerned.

"It would seem so." Said the blonde girl looking around.

Dib decided it was for the best to take control of this conversation, and speak up, if they're all connected, then context is absolutely necessary. "Alright, maybe we should explain our stories, as well as introductions. I'll go first." He sat up. "My name is Dib Membrane, I'm from Darc City, and this is my sister, Gaz."

"Sup." Gaz said bluntly.

"A guy from Diavoli Di Sangue shot and killed my mother twelve years ago, it destroyed my family for so long, and I only just found out about this, shortly after Simon Mervaradi died from the same sniper who shot my mother."

"Mervaradi?" the blonde girl muttered.

Trixie let out a sigh. "Um… I'm Trixie Tang, I'm from Dimmsdale… and I hate to say this but… this cult is after me too. I think I'm one of their targets."

The square-head boy leaned back with a smirk. "Well, we are Ed, Edd and Eddy." He said addressing them from left to right. "We're from Peach Creek, and just the most awesome kids you'll ever meet."

"Good morning everyone." Said the yellow skinned boy apparently named Ed.

"I go by Double D specifically. But yes, it's a pleasure to meet everyone." He soon took out a strange metal suitcase-looking box from his backpack. "I got this metal box delivered to me some time ago, it had a small blank book, and one of these jewelled butterflies, but then that… um… Vampire… snuck into our home and stole the jewel."

"What's this book?" Dib asked.

Double D took out the small book he mentioned and flicked the pages, showing nothing but blank pages. "I don't know who sent me this or the jewel, but here's the weird part, it was apparently shipped forty years before I was born."

Dib felt even more perplexed, an item delivered forty years before someone was born, did it have something to do with interdimensional travel, maybe time travel, he wasn't sure. But he soon remembered that Mandark did build a time machine, and that's how Simon died, is it possible that Mandark wasn't the first to build a time machine?

"My name is Phineas, and this is my friend, Isabella." The triangle-head boy said addressing the skinny girl next to him. "We're from Danville… and my brother was blackmailed by this tall man in black armour that made him look like a bird, he stole this box containing a butterfly but tried to run off without giving this birdman it, but he got injured because of it."

"Guess it's our turn, this big nosed idiot is my friend Billy." Said the blonde girl addressing the big nosed boy.

"Hiya." He said waving frantically.

"I'm Mandy, we're from Endsville. And I already said mine but… what this Vampire stole from me was a scythe, it's magic, he was also alongside this kid our age, after that Vampire bit me, I fell unconscious, when I woke up, the train was toppled, and those three guys were stabbed to death." Mandy looked around. "What the hell is going on?"

There was a strong silence in the room, Dib began to process all of this and just realising how absolutely wild this is, three different villains affecting the ten of them, just what was actually going on? Is this somehow all connected, or just a coincidence?

Trixie then just stood up, taking him by surprise. "Look… we all have something in common here, and… we're not going home until it's resolved, right?"

Every else agreed in some fashion. Phineas then stood up. "In that case, why don't we all go together? There's ten of us, we all have something we must do, and they're apparently connected in some way."

Dib smiles and nods, though he wasn't sure about Eddy given he stared at Trixie earlier, but he can learn to get along if he doesn't make any advances. "I'm ok with that, the more the merrier."

Gaz gives a short nod. "Whatever."

"Let's go fight evil and save the universe!" shouted Ed as he threw his fist into the air. Edd and Eddy also agreed.

"Yeah! Let's save the universe and the unicorns!" Shouted Billy as he pulled the annoyed Mandy closer, who just let out a sigh.

Mandy sighed. "Just don't slow me down."

Suddenly, a robot woman entered the room from the door with the Please Wait sign and addressed herself to the kids. "Dexter will see you now. Are all of you together?"

"Yep." Eddy responded.

"Alright, please come this way."

The ten got up and made their way to the room. "Here goes." Phineas mumbled.

'Agreed.' Dib felt the anticipation build up, he needed to know if Dexter was willing to help, he didn't want to return home. But now that he and Gaz were part of a team, if Dexter reused, would they have to separate themselves from them, including Trixie? He just took a deep breath, kept his eyes forward and walked in, he'd think of something when the time comes.

As the ten entered the room, they were greeted by a boy their age with bright orange hair, blue lens glasses and wore a white lab coat with purple gloves. As he fixed his glasses, he faced the five properly. "Welcome, I am Dexter, Head of Dex-Labs Inc. I believe you'd like to speak to me about something?"

"Why yes." Double D spoke up. "You see, I was recently given an item that was made by your company." Double D opened his bag and took out the metal briefcase and handed it to Dexter.

Dexter examined it a bit before speaking up. "Ah yes, this is one of our reinforced supply cases, made out of Mock-Adamantium, a metal I managed to make inspired by the fictional alloy in the Marvel Comics. Not as durable but it's close enough. And can I ask the relevance of this?"

"You see, it was delivered to me by a person completely covered up so I couldn't tell what kind of person it was. Inside was an old book with blank pages, and a black and purple jewelled butterfly."

Dexter's eyes widened a bit. "A butterfly?"

"Do you know what it is? You looked as if that sounded familiar to you." Asked Phineas as he stepped forward.

Dexter turned to Phineas for a moment, then turned to Double D. "So, I'm assuming you want to know who bought this particular briefcase?"

"Y-Yes please."

"Unfortunately, I cannot answer that one, you see, I examined the code on the inside of the briefcase, and I'm sad to say that this was stolen property, as hinted by the code still intact."

"Wait, so whoever sent me the items stole that briefcase?"

"Yes, by any chance do you still have this jewelled butterfly?"

"Um... no, I'm afraid. It was stolen by a… um, we think it's a Vampire."

"What!?"

Mandy lets out a huff and speaks up. "Alright, just listen, because we have one hell of a five-way story."

September 14th - 9:22am - Tech Square, Dex-Labs.

Dib had explained his side of the story how her mother was killed by the same man who murdered Simon Mervaradi, and how they bumped into Trixie on the way, whom she claimed was also being hunted by Diavoli Di Sangue, whom the man was a part of, but she gave little other details.

Mandy brought up how the Vampire snuck into their train and stole her scythe, though she left out the purpose of said scythe and just said it was of personal property. She also explained how Diavoli Di Sangue supposedly destroyed their train, she then brought up that she's spent five days with a man named Dr Mario trying to make a cure for Vampirism, which was successful.

Phineas and Isabella brought up how his brother was blackmailed by a metal birdman to steal a Jewelled Butterfly and was injured for it.

And finally, the Eds brought up how they were attacked by the same Vampire who attacked her, and stole a Jewelled Butterfly too, making two of the same type of items that seem to have some sort of connection. Double D however never mentioned the fact that the package was delivered to him supposedly forty years before he was born, Dib figured Dexter wouldn't believe him, which made sense.

Dexter listened carefully to all of it.

"I think that's everything." Phineas spoke up.

Dexter tilted his head back to them with a profoundly serious look. "I see." He then walked over to a desk where there was a remote and picked it up, pointed at the wall to the right of them and pressed a button.

Suddenly, the wall flashed a white light and revealed to be a giant monitor. Then three squares shown up on the screen with three photos. The left photo was of the Vampire, a girl who looked the same age as Trixie, was a little taller than her with a curved body, she had thick black markings over her red eyes, pale skin, long pointed ears, and wore a purple dress with black markings, long open sleeves, it was open at the top revealing her shoulders and the tip of her chest, she also had a black collar around her neck with a red jewel in the middle, the skirt part of her dress was short, revealing her black leggings and black boots. She was strutting the city streets under the moonlight, her look and posture screamed beautiful, but deadly.

'So, this is the Vampire?.' Thought Dib. 'She's very pretty, but super scary looking too.'

The middle was of the birdman flying in the night sky, a six-foot tall man with a lanky frame, but was decked from top to bottom in black metallic armour, the head of the armour resembled that of a crow's head with red glowing eyes, black metallic wings looking like a jetpack, and the arms had blades on the sides to resemble wings but were clearly used for slashing more than flying.

'And this is the metal bird man, the tech behind it must be extraordinary, alien perhaps?'

The right one was the Diavoli Di Sangue emblem, the one he recognised the most, he began to recall the memories of his mother in the box in the attic, gripping his hand tightly, feeling an anger build up, knowing this sick and twisted cult was behind destroying his family.

"You… have you been studying these yourself?" asked Isabella.

Dexter leaned against the desk with his arms crossed. "I practically run this city, my technology powers it, my will keeps it going, and my reputation allows me to gather more information inside and outside this city than you can imagine. And it's no coincidence that all three have been causing problems at the same time."

Dexter uses the remote again to highlight the photo of the Vampire, then the screen changed to multiple photos of the Vampire and several written documents about her.

"This Vampire you see is known as Kasumi Iwamoto. She came to this city about three and a half months ago, every night, or when there's a storm, she's been causing a lot of trouble, attacking people, breaking into places, stealing stuff, and so on."

Mandy interjected. "And Dr Mario and I have created a cure to prevent anyone from turning into Vampires."

Dexter nodded. "It was him who made me realise we were dealing with the Supernatural."

Mandy dug into her hip bag and pulled out the same container Dr Mario just gave her. "Since she bit me five days ago, we used it to our advantage to create this cure, but only I've tested it, the cells that would turn me are gone, but we don't know of any other potential side-effects."

Dib smirked, seeing they had the precautions for a Vampire, and he was also glad to meet someone else who was just as knowledgeable on the paranormal like him.

Dexter smirked before turning back to the monitor. "She's been leaving the city more often, thanks to a tip from Mandark, we discovered she's trying to find these Jewelled Butterflies, I don't know what they're about, but given this Supernatural stuff, I imagine it's not good."

"Ferb told me they can't get into the wrong hands." Said Phineas.

"Speaking of which." Dexter used the remote again to change to various photos of the armoured bird man, seen in various unknown locations or in the sky. "This fella has been popping up recently too, about two months after Kasumi. The locals have been calling it, the Iron Blackbird."

"Iron Blackbird?" Mumbled Eddy.

"That's the thing I saw in the library." Said Billy. "He fought that Monkey."

Dexter nods. "According to our sources, he's been flying around causing destruction, not just in Tech Square, he's been deliberately attacking various random locations, stealing all sorts of rare artefacts, and if what you said is correct, is also after these Jewelled Butterflies. The question is… why?"

"This… Iron Blackbird guy, he said something about a new utopia." Said Phineas.

"That's usually not a good thing." Said Dexter. "But now, onto the last one." Dexter used the remote one last time and changed the monitor to show the Diavoli Di Sangue emblem, and various photos of men in blood red suits, and one Dib recognises, the Sniper from his town.

"T-That's him! The one who killed my mother and Simon Mervaradi!" said Dib, losing control of his emotions. Gaz turned to him with a raised eyebrow, hiding the concern in her eyes.

Trixie gave a nod. "They're after me too."

"The ones who blew up the train we were in." said Mandy.

"This was the easiest to research, they make their presence known after all. They're a cult that seemed to have founded fifty years ago, and seem hellbent on killing random people, aiming for the neck and heart with an unknown blade. But whatever they are, they're organised like crazy, apparently, they have thousands of followers, all of them have been hiding as everyday people. They're extremely dangerous, but thankfully, they're easy to arrest as they have a habit of killing their targets regardless of the conditions. However, lately… they've been getting more reckless."

"What do you mean?" asked Double D.

"They usually attacked wherever, but there was planning and strategy to their movements, so their attackers had a chance of escaping with good results. But about a year ago from my research, they've been attacking more blindly, making more of a scene, not making any strategies, so the attackers end up arrested or dead after the job is done."

Mandy speaks up. "It sounds like they're getting desperate, it's as if they want to get the job done no matter what, maybe there's a deadline or something… but, has there been any connections between the victims?"

"From what I can tell, no. There's absolutely nothing I can find that any of them had in common… other than the fact that none of them are less than seventeen years of age."

Trixie spoke up again. "That's accurate to what I've been going through, have there been any cases of people sending off their children to this group?"

"Not that I'm aware of, but I will look into this. But this is what I also learned. Kasumi, Iron Blackbird, and Diavoli Di Sangue… I've seen reports that they've been fighting each other."

"So, this means they're not working together, if we happen to come across any of them, we can probably bait one to fight another." Said Mandy.

Dexter turned to them once again with a raised eyebrow. "So… were you just implying that you're going after these Jewelled Butterflies?"

Billy nodded. "Yep! We wanna save the universe and the unicorns!"

"That Vampire stole something of my property. I'll make sure she suffers a slow and painful death!" said Mandy.

"That mystery with the Butterfly, and the Book. I have to solve them." Said Double D. "If finding these Jewelled Butterflies will lead me to the truth, then I'll do it."

Eddy flexed a bit with a very smug look. "We have a bit of a score to settle with that red-haired chick for ruining our Monster Movie Marathon. So, we're game."

Ed nodded. "Eddy and Double D are my best friends! I want to help out!"

"This Iron Blackbird blackmailed and injured my brother; I can't let him do that to anyone else. I'm going to fight no matter what." Said Phineas.

Isabella looked over to Phineas. "And I'm going to help you, whether you want it or not."

Dib felt his anger boil again. "That sniper killed my mother and Simon Mervaradi, this Diavoli Di Sangue needs to be stopped, if collecting these Jewelled Butterflies will help, then so be it."

Trixie shrugs. "I literally can't go home until this whole thing blows over, and I want to stop them for good."

Dexter stands straight looking at all of them. "So, you're going after the Jewelled Butterflies, even if it crosses paths with Kasumi, Iron Blackbird and Diavoli Di Sangue?"

Dib nodded, without hesitation, feeling this, he knew he didn't want to back down anymore, and Dexter seemed willing to help them, he got his approval, he wasn't going home, he was going to stop them.

Dexter had a confident smile as he took a step forward to them. "In that case." He snaps his fingers, and a worker robot flew in with a metal briefcase, exactly the same as the one Double D had. Dexter takes it and places it in front of him, lower down so everyone can look, he pops it open to reveal the contents, which took Dib and Gaz by surprise.

It was a butterfly shaped gemstone, but the pattern and wing shape was different. It had longer antennas, rounder wings with two spiked parts on the end of each, and was an assortment of red, blue, white, and orange colours on the wings like a wave pattern.

"It's a Jewelled Butterfly!" exclaimed Double D.

"You had one this entire time!?" asked Phineas.

"It's beautiful." Said Trixie.

"I'm not a jewel expert, but even I can see this is good quality." Mandy muttered.

"Pretty." Muttered Billy.

"When I heard about these being hunted for by Kasumi and the Iron Blackbird, I had my surveillance bots search high and low for these. Took a while since it was in a stone box, but we located it in an abandoned truck on the outskirts of Genius Grove."

"Stone Box? Do you still have it?" asked Isabella.

"I do." Dexter places the briefcase on the desk, goes into a drawer and pulls out a small stone box, with nine golden tiles on every side of each, and each tile had a unique pattern. "This is an elaborate puzzle box, took me a while to figure it out, but I managed to open it and that's where I found this Butterfly."

"So, the Jewelled Butterflies are in puzzle boxes." Said Phineas. "The one the Iron Blackbird stole from Ferb was in a box."

"Wait, our one wasn't." said Eddy.

"It's likely whoever sent us that package opened it in advance." Edd responded.

Dexter takes out the Jewelled Butterfly from the briefcase and hands it out to them, with Dib taking it. He looks at the design of it, it was extremely light, almost weightless, which didn't make sense given it was solid. "To think something so small can be so sought after."

Double D looks at it carefully. "It would appear to be a Two-Tailed Pasha, the largest butterfly found in Europe. The males have a wingspan of 6.5 to 7.5cm, while the females are somewhat lager with a wingspan usually between 7.5 and 9cm but exceptionally 10cm. The Two-tailed Pasha is a very fast-flying butterfly." Dib, Gaz and the others looked at Double D in a weird way except Ed and Eddy. "What? I know a lot about Butterflies."

Eddy ignores this and turns to Dexter. "So, what's so special about these gem bugs?"

"I did very thorough tests on everything I could, but it looks to be an ordinary gemstone, so it questions why Kasumi, and the Iron Blackbird are after them. Regardless, I'll trust it to you."

Dib gently puts the Jewelled Butterfly in his inner coat pocket. "Hm, so Ferb said there were seventeen Jewelled Butterflies. We have one, Iron Blackbird has one, and Kasumi has one. Unless they have more than one each, that's fourteen still somewhere and we have no clue where they are." Said Isabella.

Dexter adjusts his glasses. "I have a theory." Everyone looks over to him. "You see, my surveillance bots discover something similar in Townsville, but while I do have permission to have my bots scan neighbouring cities, I'm not permitted to have them take anything, and I have my hands full trying to keep this city safe. But if you go there as a representative, you should be able to get it."

"Where is Townsville and how do we get to it?" asked Dib, with zero hesitancy.

"Two towns away, there's a train that'll take you there, the Gearshift Station to be exact."

Everyone else was silent as Dib looked at the monitor showing the three threats, then looked at the others as they looked at each other. This was even greater than he expected, but he wasn't about to back down, not in the slightest.

He soon notices Phineas stepping forward. "We'll do it. We have a lot to gain from this."

Dexter gives his own nod. "Thank you, return here any time you wish, I'll grant you special permission."

Eddy soon speaks up. "So, hang on, we're going to take a train, how are we gonna pay for that?"

Trixie responded with a smug look. "I can handle that." She then flashes her bank card. "I'm not exactly a poor girl."

"She's not joking." Said Dib. "She's flipping rich."

Eddy looks up to Trixie. "So, yer smoking hot and yer rich, you single?"

"Yes, but you're out of my league." She responds bluntly as she puts her card away. Making Eddy huff with annoyance. Dib felt a bit triumphant, not only was Eddy quickly rejected, but Trixie also admitted to being single, which means Dib may have a chance if he wants to win her over.

Isabella turns back to Dexter. "We should keep in contact with each other too, just in case."

"Yes agreed." He takes out his phone. "But conversations like what we're having now, keep it secret outside of phone calls unless it's an emergency."

Mandy huffs a little as she takes out her phone. "As much as I'm gonna regret it, we should all exchange numbers if we get separated."

"Good idea." Edd responded.

"I don't have a phone." Said Phineas sighing.

"Me neither, I lost mine." Said Trixie.

"Then you'll just have to stick with one of us." Said Dib looking at Trixie. Secretly feeling more excited.

"Same with me." said Phineas.

After everyone exchanged phone numbers with each other and Dexter, the gang all leave at the same time, go down the elevator and step outside Dex-Labs and look ahead.

"Well, this is it." Said Phineas.

"One hell of a quest we're suddenly in." said Dib.

"Going against a Vampire, a robot bird and a murderous cult." Said Double D.

"For Jewelled Butterflies that we know nothing about." Said Isabella.

"We may be gone for a really long time." Said Trixie.

"Lots of going around and treasure hunting." Said Eddy.

"With already a lot of mysteries to solve." Said Gaz.

"Probably lots of monsters to fight." Said Ed.

"And we ain't got any weapons or powers." Said Billy.

"But we're not gonna back down, we have to move on." Said Mandy.

Everyone looks at each other, nod at the same time and move towards the train station. With the sun in front of them, casting their shadows far on the paths they walked.

"Cool, didn't think we'd coordinate that as well as we did." Said Billy. "We already make a great team."

"Shut up." Mandy and Eddy respond.

To be continued

So, this is the point where the five stories finally connect. Whether you wanna read all five or focus on one, that's up to you.

I also wanna apologise for having two days in the story be skipped for nothing, trying to align the five stories so they'd connect here was a bit trickier than I expected, and I made some mistakes.

Either way, hope you like it.