PHANTOM FORCE, Goin' Ghost Retold

by DarkShadowGames451

DP AU! Mass X-over! It's been a year since the accident, and Daniel Fenton has found a balance between his teenage life and secret life as a superpowered ghost hunter with the help of his older sister. But he will face new challenges and greater threats with new friends and allies while discovering his destiny as a liminal halfa. But will it all be enough to save the world?

9. Vol 3, Issue 3

Basement, North Mercy Hospital, Amity Park

A floored Charmcaster was struck with conflicting emotions. On the one hand, she was irate that her job was compromised by the same brat who interrupted her goal of exercising Phantom from Danny Fenton. Although, there was a sense of irony and intrigue that surged within the Legerdomain native.

Before, Charmcaster believed that her meddling acquaintance was a bookworm who crushed on the boy her adversary was possessing. As it turned out, the ginger-haired girl in the colorful HAZMAT suit who blasted her with a bazooka happened to be the older sister of the boy that she was trying to save.

'...Damn it, this just got complicated!' Charmcaster groaned as she stood up.

Phantom remains in the chair, chained up, taking breaths to remain conscious after being subjected to a spell involving Blood Blossoms. He wasn't out of danger yet, but kept his eyes glued to his sister.

Little did anybody know, a small machine looking like a mixture of a ladybug and the face of Plasmius had been present, recording the interaction.

"How did you get this location so fast?" Charmcaster questioned.

"GPS tracking." Jazz said, never losing her calm yet cool tone. "It's a useful tool, and the bane for creeps like you."

The witch snorted at the jab as she retorted, "Just what I needed, another teenager with attitude. You even came with spandex."

"Look who's talking, Rita Repulsa." Jazz chided with wit that rivaled her brother.

'...Oh yeah, she's definitely the boy's sister.' Charmcaster inferred. 'Perhaps I can use this to my favor.'

"I know this looks bad, but you know not of what danger that lives among your academia and your household," Charmcaster said, trying to appeal to the girl's logical side. "One that threatens your brother's life."

"...I know who's threatening my brother," Jazz said before pointing her Fenton Bazooka at the witch. "And I'm looking at her!"

"...Fool! You dare raise your weapon at me? Can't you see that I'm trying to you!?" Charmcaster shouted. "To save your kin!?"

"Last chance, witch. Crawl back to your cauldron away from here and never show your face around here again. If you come near Danny again, I'll toss you in the nearest dumpster." Jazz spat.

Charmcaster realized that talking was getting her nowhere. She took a deep breath, then stretched one side of her neck. Soon enough, she began pulling mana into her hands.

"...I see. If you insist on making things difficult, then words are meaningless." Charmcaster declared with pink energy surging through her eyes.

Being responsible, Charmcaster created a barrier that protected Danny from the upcoming chaos.

Once again, Jazz fired at Charmcaster with her bazooka.

Charmcaster erected a mana-empowered barrier while chanting, "Forcis Nebuli!"

Charmcaster easily dodged the blasts of ecto-energy from Jazz's large ghost-hunting weapon, given her ability to levitate with ease. The witch didn't take too kindly that she was being shot at, so Charmcaster decided to try and disarm the girl.

The stark white-haired girl held out her hand in the direction of the Fenton Bazooka and shouted, "Reanima Dynamica!"

Suddenly, Jazz found her weapon sparking dangerously. She quickly discarded the firearm up in the air before it exploded.

"Shit!" Jazz hissed while watching Charmcaster float above her condescendingly with a pompous expression

"Oops~! It's broken," The witch taunted. "Did you honestly expect your dinky second-rate machine to best my magic?"

What Charmcaster didn't account for was her foot getting caught by the Fenton Wrangler, a new device created by Maddie Fenton. Jazz grabbed and tossed her opponent into a group of warehouse boxes with her strength, violently crashing into them.

Jazz lets the lariat's rope reel back inside the compact space of the device. With her irritation rising, Charmcaster sent the wooden box back at Jazz while lighting them ablaze with the intent to hurt the ginger.

As a response, Jazz took out her mother's ecto-powered dual-bladed beam swords to skillfully cut through the projectiles. Jazz then charged at the stark white-haired witch, aiming to maim Charmcaster. While still nimble, Charmcaster mentally noted that Jazz's movements were becoming quicker due to a surge in her mana. Right when that thought passed, the witch's hair was grazed slightly while shifting her head to the right.

This not only angered Charmcaster, but the damage to her rattled ego was drowned out by a wave of dread coming over her. She needed to put some distance between herself and Jazz Fenton.

Converting her mana into a beam of flames, Charmcaster aimed it at Jazz while chanting, "Meena Goh!"

Jazz reacted by spinning her double bladed beam sword clockwise vertically with her hands, creating a barrier that protected her. However, this produced a force that pushed Jazz ten feet away from Charmcaster.

"...My mercy is wearing thin, girl!" Charmcaster spoke. "See reason, or be subdued painfully!"

"You think I'm afraid of you, witch? My brother needs me right now. And nothing on this planet will stop me from getting to him. Move, or I'll make you!" Threatened the ginger girl, holding her melee weapon in her opponent's direction.

Charmcaster's face scrunched up before her magic bag was unzipped. The witch took out several Rock Monster totems and threw them to the ground. From there, Jazz found herself surrounded by a horde of Golems that appeared to be large burly humanoids.

The older Fenton sibling saw this, then sighed.

'Oh wow, she does have her own off-brand Puddies.' Jazz mentally snorted before pulling out a new version of the Fenton Peeler from her utility belt.

Charmcaster raised an eyebrow, then heckled, "What's that, another weapon?"

With the press of a button, the device began encasing Jazz in a protective armor that covered her entire body. However, there were segments of thin black nanotech fibers woven on the arms and upper thighs for easier maneuverability. There were small blue accents on the shoulder pads, belt, and soles of the boots. She still retained the helmet with a large blue visor that made her face visible.

This was the Portable Fenton Ghost Peeler MK II.

Charmcaster crossed her arms, not impressed with the visual appearance of an armored Jazz Fenton.

"Wow… That does not suit you at all. And no morphing call? How disappointing..." Charmcaster quipped before snapping her fingers. "Attack!"

Jazz braced herself, watching the mana-empowered Golems charge at her. The first one that attacked immediately lost its head with a high kick from Jazz. She swept the next one, and turned around to blast one with an anti-ecto-ray from behind. She looked down to the one that she low swept and crushed the Golem's head with one of her metallic boots.

The hand-to-hand combat continued with whole Golems and chucks of their bodies flying across the room for both Charmcaster and Danny to witness. Danny watched in awe as the impressive display increased his respect for her. Charmcaster did so as well, but it only set to further her agitation levels.

But at the same time, Charmcaster subconsciously compared Jazz's combat prowess to that of a seasoned rookie Plumber.

Jazz ended the battle by concentrating green anti-ecto energy into her palms and created a large fiery ball to reduce her opponents to smoldering rubble.

The armored woman stands against the witch, ready to continue her battle with Charmcaster properly. Speaking of the witch, she looked over to the remains of her monster with an expression of disgust.

"For Father's sake!" Charmcaster complained. "...Fine! If you want something done, do it yourself!"

Jazz watched as Charmcaster prepared a new wordless incantation. She used mana to raise the burnt remains of the Golems and reconstructed them into three large variants. Once she did this, the witch had the three Golems in a flash of magenta.

Now, Charmcaster wore mystical armor made of reinforced mana stone.

Phantom's jaw dropped, recognizing that Charmcaster, like with his fight, had been toying around with his sister.

"...You've got to be kidding me." Jazz muttered in her Fenton Peeler MKII armor.

Charmcaster smirked and shot a blast of mana at Jazz, who was sent to a wall while the collision shook the room.

"Jazz!" The ghost boy shouted.

The armored Fenton got up and sent a torrent of anti-ecto energy that collided with a dome-shaped mana barrier Charmcaster erected.

'What an amateur-'

Charmcaster's condescending thoughts were broken, much like her mana barrier, by Jazz's flying kick laced in anti-ecto energy. The white-haired woman stumbled onto the ground, dazed at its force. Jazz backflipped, stuck the landing, then charged forward to continue her assault.

The armored Charmcaster quickly got back on her feet to defend herself with the resolve to battle Jazz. Both Jazz and Charmcaster exchanged blows, taking and giving punches and kicks laced with mana and anti-ecto energy respectively.

It was evident that Charmcaster, despite primarily being a long-ranged fighter who preferred executing spellcasting and incantations, had more experience and was more ruthless, giving her an edge in combat. Though Jazz was not much of a person for the frontline, she was just as smart as her mother and was as clever as her father.

With her analytical mind ever so sharp, Jazz sniffed out Charmcaster's superiority complex from the moment they just started fighting. When learning her attack pattern, the ginger began to concoct a plan of action.

During the exchange, Phantom noticed that his sister's movements were becoming more…

...Sloppy? No, this wasn't out of fatigue. Danny knew his sister and was a perfectionist. She was holding her own brilliantly just a moment ago.

Just then, the Alpha Human caught a glimpse of his sister's face and noticed an unwavering expression of confidence that she had.

'...Wait a minute.' Phantom thought. 'She's up to something.'

From there, Jazz allowed herself to be smacked around by Charmcaster, only landing one kick and a few punches to make her act look convincing.

Now, the armored Fenton downed, with her back on the floor while Charmcaster held her down with one foot. Jazz's head was turned to the right, obscuring her face through the visor. Satisfaction and victory were etched on her face.

"...For a bookworm, you're not bad. Pretty good, even." Charmcaster said, semi-genuinely impressed while still being patronizing. "Too bad, I'm just better in every way."

She looked over to a stiff Danny Phantom, elated to finish her job.

Charmcaster told Jazz, "Though I enjoyed the detour, I should get back to my job. We can sort things out once I exorcize your brother. And don't worry, you can thank me lat-"

Jazz immediately reacted by pointing both of her palms toward her chest. As a result, Jazz fired a concentration of anti-ecto rays into Charmcaster, slamming her into the ceiling. Once the beams subsided and Jazz rolled away, Charmcaster fell back down while making a crater. Most of the top half of her armor was blasted off during Jazz's sneak attack.

Jazz got up from the ground with her armor dented and heavily scratched up. She glanced at her fallen opponent and muttered, "...You talk too much."

Jazz then turned in her brother's direction and saw that both the dome and the chains vanished, freeing Danny Phantom. Jazz dashed forward to catch her weakened brother.

When she caught him, Jazz asked, "Danny, are you okay?"

"...I-I think I'll live," Said the ghost boy with a strained voice. "T-Those flowers…I hate those flowers…"

Jazz scowled, turning to Charmcaster's direction, hissing, "That slimy skank! She was poisoning you with fumes from Blood Blossoms!"

"What…?" Danny muttered, still in a daze in his Ghost form.

"Blood Blossoms are a rare kind of flora with special properties that ward off supernatural creatures." Jazz explained. "They were primarily used by seventh century paranormal hunters. Namely to trap ghosts and poison witches."

Phantom groaned, muttering, "...Great, I have my own Kryptonite. This just isn't my day."

Jazz then wrapped one of Phantom's arms around her neck and said, "Come on, let's get you hom-"

From the corner of her eye, Jazz spotted a bright light heading her way. With the power of her Ghost Peeler MK II armor, she jumped away, narrowly avoiding a blast of mana.

The siblings turned around to find a haggard, yet noticeably livid armored Charmcaster.

"You're not going anywhere!" Charmcaster said with her eyes glowing pink.

"Oh, give it a rest, lady!" Danny complained. "I can't overshadow my own body!"

"This is NOT over!" The vexed sorceress hissed, letting mana leak from her body. "No… It's time I stop holding back!"

The Fenton brace themselves for another attack when a flash of orange light fills the room, bleeding both sides of the battle.

When the light died, three people appeared between the Fenton siblings and Charmcaster.

One was Agent Legion in his full body Plumber suit, including his helmet with his HUD active. Next, was Lord Hex, the college professor and Master Magician.

Lastly was Stanford Pines, under the guise of Professor Paradox. Paradox wore a large black coat with multiple pockets on the inside, a hood over his head, and a manmade firearm that rested on his back. Underneath his coat, he wore a black shirt and pants. He also donned bulky black boots, a brown belt that slings from his shoulder, a tattered cape, and a gray scarf. Over his face was a black ballistic face mask with mirrored layered tactical goggles over it.

Danny Phantom and Jazz stood there, surprised and apprehensive of the new arrivals that appeared before them. Meanwhile, all of the rage that Charmcaster held had evaporated at the sight of her uncle and one of his companions.

"A-Agent Legion!?" Charmcaster stuttered. "U-Uncle Hex!"

"Uncle!?" Both Fenton siblings shouted.

"Stand down, niece!" The older sorcerer ordered, much to the youngest people's shock. "This battle is over!"

"What!? But why?" Asked Charmcaster. "And what are you doing here?"

"You're fighting the wrong people, Charmcaster. They are not your enemies." Agent Legion revealed, using his voice modulator to mask his voice.

Charmcaster shouted, "Uncle, what is the meaning of this!?"

"My child," Hex said, placing a hand on Charmcaster's shoulder. "You have been deceived."

"Me, deceived?!" Charmcaster scowled.

Paradox watched attentively when he detected a buzzing sound. This came from the Vladbot that was trying to capture the video feed a closer distance. Unfortunately for Vlad, this was cut short by Paradox, who grabbed the device, glanced at it, and fried it with a small shock from his technologically advanced gloves.

"We should take this outside," The wielder of the Omnitrix advised.

Hex nodded, then manipulated mana from around everybody to teleport them from the basement to the roof of the hospital.

-On top of the Hospital-

The group appeared on the rooftop in a flash of red, courtesy of Lord Hex. Jazz and Phantom gasped, not prepared for the spell that whisked them away.

Danny felt so exhausted, his knees as he transformed back to his human form. Agent Legion and Hex saw that the damage the ghost boy sustained carried over in forms. Danny was approached by the university professor, who floated nonchalantly.

Jazz stood between the sorcerer and her little brother, protective of him.

"Back off!" The ginger barked.

Hex glanced at the girl, pointed his right index finger and whispered, "Appendage-a regoria."

Jazz floated ten feet from while covered in a red aura, She was suspended in the air, unable to move.

"Jazz!" Danny shouted.

"Danny!" Jazz responded, worried about what was to come.

"Finally!" Charmcaster said, thinking that her uncle was going to exorcize Phantom from Danny's body.

Lord Hex rolled his eyes at his niece's rather vicious attitude. The older man then placed a hand over the superhero. He cast a wordless spell that used mana to soothe the damage he took from Charmcaster's deadly incantation.

Agent Legion, Professor Paradox, and Charmcaster immediately recognized the spell that he was performing.

"Uncle, what are you doing!?" The younger magician demanded.

But Charmcaster's shouts fell on deaf ears.

The spell lasted five seconds. Once it was complete, Lord Hex lowered Jazz's suspended form, then touched her shoulder, dispelling the incantation.

"Danny, are you…?" Jazz trailed.

The hoodie-wearing raven-haired boy inspected himself.

He said, "Hey! I'm back to normal!" Danny grinned before glancing at Lord Hex. "...Why'd you help me, though?"

"As previously stated, you are not the enemy." Professor Paradox reiterated, speaking with a voice modulator just as Agent Legion was.

Jazz, still staying in front of her little brother, questioned, "Not to sound ungrateful, but who are you guys?"

"I suppose introductions are in order," The Omnitrix wielder stated. "I am Agent Legion. Believe it or not, I am a super soldier and one of many intergalactic officers."

"You're an intergalactic super soldier?" Danny gasped in a whisper, shocked while his inner child wanted to burst out and gush due to the man's supposed association with space.

As Legion confirmed with a small nod, Hex joined in, "I am Lord Hex, Grandmaster of the Order of Bezel, faculty of Friedkin University, Senior Exorcist and Master Magician of the eldritch arts."

Jazz's eyes narrowed toward Charmcaster as she asked, "You're her uncle?"

Charmcaster scoffed at the ginger's attitude.

"Yes," Hex confirmed. "She is my younger brother's daughter."

Paradox was last to introduce himself.

"Professor Paradox." The dark cloaked man stated in an neutral tone. "Interdimensional traveler, independent paranormal investigator, and researcher of otherworldly anomalies."

"The three of us, and another, have been surveilling your activities for over a year. Your decision-making of situations has not only impressed us, the nature of your operation and its progress of containing the mass hauntings has left us with profound intrigue." Said Lord Hex, displaying praise on Fenton's sibling's work.

"Agreed." Agent Legion added. "I thought I'd seen it all when I roamed the stars, but never would I have imagined that I live long enough to see the rise of the first superhero. It seems that fate works in mysterious ways."

"Wait a minute, so you knew about Danny and what we were up to?" Jazz said, ever the skeptic. "Why didn't you-"

"-Expose him?" Paradox finished, gesturing to Danny. "That would be counterproductive. In spite of the ridiculously reckless nature of your parents' antics, they are the world's leading experts on spirits. Their research is invaluable. As for your brother, his role in keeping the current supernatural ecosystem balanced is crucial. Right now, whether we like it or not, the world needs Phantom."

Hearing this sent a wave of validation that was indescribable to Danny as it washed over him. It felt like all of the personal sacrifice and pain meant something. He couldn't suppress a smile at this point.

He was needed, and that's all he wanted to hear.

"You cannot be-" Charmcaster tried interjecting, only for Paradox to hold up a hand.

"-What's your motive for attempting to kill Phantom?" Paradox interrogated, not beating around the bush.

Jazz responded before Chrmcaster could defend herself.

"She thinks my brother is possessing himself."

Charmcaster glared at Jazz, claiming, "That thing wearing Daniel's body is not your brother! He's a despicable specter that deserves to be banished to the deepest parts of the Spirit World!"

"What brought you to this preposterous conclusion, Niece?" Questioned Lord Hex.

"My client possessed both confidential and personal information regarding Showenhower's power trip," Charmcaster explained. "Phantom was his accomplice and he betrayed his master and fabricated memories to make him look like the hero!"

Jazz and Danny had incredulous expressions at Charmcaster's explanation.

Danny was about to deny her claims when Paradox stared at the witch. If his face was exposed, they could have spotted the man raising an eyebrow.

"Oh? This client wouldn't happen to be a Vladimir Masters of Madison, Wisconsin, would it?" The paranormal researcher inquired.

Charmcaster's eyes widened while the Fenton siblings' bodies stiffened with their minds freezing in the process.

'...PLASMIUS!' The two mentally hissed as they found themselves scowling.

"...How did you-?" Queried Charmcaster.

Professor Paradox pulled out a small thin metallic device of his creation from his coat. Paradox pressed, showing a projection of Vlad Master himself.

"Woah…" Both Jazz and Danny whispered.

Paradox glanced at Charmcaster, then ordered, "Observe."

The clip that everyone ended up watching was a recording of the result of Phantom's defeat at the hands of Plasmius, the Wisconsin Ghost. This left a bitter taste in Danny's mouth. Jazz and Legion felt their blood boil at the state the vampiric-looking Spirit left Phantom in. As they saw Danny transforming back into his human form, Plasmius did the same using his black mid-morphing rings.

Plasmius' secret identity left Charmcaster speechless.

'W-What am I witnessing?' She thought in utter denial.

"Judging by the flabbergasted expression on your face, it seems that Masters has failed to disclose everything," Paradox concluded.

With anger and confusion evident, Charmcaster glared at the masked scientist and shouted, "What is this farce!?"

"Farce? No... It's quite the contrary, witch. Vlad Masters and Daniel Fenton are not possessed. Instead, they are a new type of Alpha Humans created through genetic mutations." Paradox disclosed.

"...They're Alphas?" Charmcaster murmured, comprehending the weight of the truth. "S-So that means that-"

After glancing at the recording, she turned to Danny who turned away out of discomfort. Jazz glared daggers at the witch as a response.

"...But what of the incidents with Showenhower?" Asked the stark white-haired young lady.

"You think I'd willingly work for that whack job?" Danny scoffed. "He enslaved Ghosts with a magical item. Since I have a Ghost-like form, I was susceptible to his control."

"My brother was always a hero! And you were just another pawn that Cheesehead brought along to be used for one of his numerous ploys!" Jazz spat, causing a lump to form in Charmcaster's throat.

"...I see." The witch muttered, feeling a new sense of anger awakening for the man that feigned good intentions.

'...You will rue the day for tricking me, Masters.' Charmcaster plotted.

"Did you happen to use the Blood Blossom Expulsion Ritual on this boy?" Lord Hex calmly questioned.

Danny and Charmcaster froze upon hearing the question. The young lady felt her face turning pale while guilt quickly washed over her.

Charmcaster bowed her head in shame, lamenting, "...I am sorry. This could have been avoided entirely, but my failures led to it. I have no excuse, but I never intended to harm any children."

Jazz refused to buy the apology. However, when Danny heard this, he did not detect a trace of her condescending attitude from before.

So, much to the adult's shock and Jazz's astonishment, Danny decided to forgive her.

"...Okay." Danny simply said. "Apology accepted."

"What?" Charmcaster uttered, confused.

"Danny!" Jazz shouted, outraged at his response. "She tried to kill you!"

The other three men were surprised, yet admired the boy's maturity.

"She's not evil, Jazz. Sure, she may rub people the wrong way when doing her job, but I can tell that she meant well." Danny explained. "Besides, it wasn't her fault that the Fruitloop had ulterior motives, nor was it her fault not believing what we are. I know Val sure didn't."

Charmcaster gave the boy a grateful yet remorseful smile while Jazz sighed.

"...Fine, you can forgive her," Jazz relented before sending another glare at the witch. "It doesn't mean that I have to."

Jazz got into Charmcaster's face, damaged armor and all, saying, "You better stay away from him if you know what's good for you."

'...I pity how ignorant technologists can be.' Charmcaster thought, thinking how easy she could destroy the older Fenton sibling with one spell. 'Though, there is no denying her tenacity.'

"Understood," Charmcaster accepted, not intimidated in the slightest but willing to atone for her mistake.

Jazz walked back to Danny, still giving the witch a death stare.

Lord Hex chuckled at this, then announced, "Since this matter has now been settled, we shall return home."

Charmcaster agreed with a nod and approached her uncle. She turned to Danny, who gave her a reassuring smile, non-verbally telling her to let bygones be bygones. She returned the smile back.

The two magicians vanished in a bright red and black light, leaving Professor Paradox and Agent Legion with the Fenton siblings.

"If you know about Vlad, what happens now?" Asked Danny.

Paradox placed the projection device in his cloak after turning it off, stating, "Neither you, nor your family will have to worry about Masters for a long time. You should focus on staying alive and keeping the Spirits at bay."

The masked research took out another metallic device that resembled a ball point pen minus the pointed lower end.

"Carry on the good work with caution, kids. I'll be watching," Paradox stated before pressing the red button on his device.

In a flash of white light, Paradox disappeared. Now, Agent Legion remained with the Fenton siblings.

"Looks like it's a safe time," Agent Legion said before the green HUD construct dispelled, revealing his face.

Danny and Jazz gasped, having discovered Legion's identity.

"Max Tennyson?" Jazz uttered in shock.

"Apologies. Much like yourselves, I have my reasons to maintain secrecy." Max reasoned. "As you know, I am retired from NASA. Though, I am not only a mere mechanic."

"So it's true. You are a super soldier." Danny fathomed.

"An intergalactic super soldier." Max corrected.

"What makes you super? Your suit?" Jazz questioned, crossing her arms under her chest.

Max shook his head, then held out his wrist which held the Omnitrix.

It was here where Danny glanced at the logo on the watch.

'...Hold on, didn't Mason show me that emblem before?' Danny pondered.

"I was being truthful when I said it was custom made." Max mentioned, recalling the dinner he shared with the Fenton family. "This watch is actually an advanced technology that allows me to access the genetic code of extraterrestrials by transforming into their species for a period of time. It's called the Trans-mutagenic Omnimatrix, or the Omnitrix for short."

"Aliens are real!?" Danny blurted out. "...Holy crap, Mason was right!"

"...Alright, hold on." Jazz said, holding up both of her hands. "This is a bit much. I believe you, but what business does an agent associated with the US government have in disclosing private information to minors?"

"I've known about your ghost-hunting exploits before you knew about me, so it would only be fair." Max stated. "That, and my family and myself have deemed Daniel trustworthy after saving my son and younger grandchildren from Showenhower."

From there, Jazz and Danny instantly put two and two together.

Max Tennyson was the father of Carl Tennyson, and grandfather to Gwen and Ben.

"...So the dinner with our folks wasn't a coincidence, was it?" Danny assumed.

Max smiled, then clarified, "Oh, it was coincidental. One of the reasons why I am active around Amity Park was to give my thanks. Phantom was there for my granddaughter and youngest grandson on their field trip while I couldn't."

"Glad to help out," Danny simply said, offering the older man a kind smile. "Honestly, your family's pretty awesome in their own right. I can see where they get it from."

"I concur," Jazz agreed.

Max nodded, then said, "It's time I take my leave. But don't worry, I'm sure we'll meet again soon."

Speaking into the Omnitrix, Max said, "Omnitrix, return to Primus!"

Max was enveloped in a green light before he warped away, leaving the Fenton siblings to themselves. They remained silent for a moment, unable to voice how baffling their day was.

Jazz broke the silence by saying, "...That was weird and complicated."

"Tell me about it. We just found out that other people know everything, Spirits are weak to a plant, and aliens are real all in the same week." Danny verbally thought.

"Many, that sounds exhausting… But hey, at least we don't have to worry about that Cheesehead archenemy of yours." Jazz said, adding a light joke.

"That's true," Danny said with a small chuckle before frowning. "...Jazz, I'm sorry. I tried to stay away from Charmcaster, but I ended up being lured and taken anyway."

"Danny, it's okay. I know you tried your best because Mr. Gray helped me pinpoint your location with the tracking chip he put in your new belt. I figured the witch would take advantage of you." Jazz explained. "Besides, all that mattered was that I was there for you when it counted."

"Thanks, Sis," Danny said before transforming into Phantom. "You were pretty cool out down there, too."

Jazz smiled, swelling with pride that her younger brother admired her as a fighter.

He wrapped one of her arms around his neck, then asked, "Ready to go home?"

"Please. I reek in this tin can." Jazz said with a wry smile. "Just don't push yourself."

"Alright, we can take the scenic route," Phantom suggested.

After getting a nod of permission from his sister, the Fenton siblings flew back home, awaiting a time to rest after a long weekday.

---

Vlad's Laboratory, Masters Mansion, Madison, WI

Inside the eccentric and regal Masters Mansion, underneath the property grounds, was Vlad's laboratory and there the Wisconsin Ghost's anger and frustration exploded.

"Damned grain crackers! Blasted interlopers!" Vlad shouted as he slammed his fists down onto his desk. "If that know-it-all Jasmine wasn't bad enough, now Tennyson and his band of freaks and righteous men have sabotaged my plans to pit that gullible witch against Daniel! Just as I was about to swoop in and take matters into my own hands! Buttered fucking biscuits!"

Vlad was panting and flickering magenta as he struggled to maintain his emotions. He took a few seconds to take in a few deep breaths while reigning in his body's ecto-levels.

"Calm yourself, Vlad, this is merely a setback," Vlad assured himself. "I now have a lead on that gauntlet and its gems."

Vlad then formed a confident grin as he reached into his pockets and pulled out the Skeleton Key.

"Not to mention, I have the Skeleton Key which can grant me access to even more power. Once I've gathered all of the Earth and Ghost Zone's most powerful artifacts and weapons, no one will be able to stop me." Vlad said as he began to laugh maniacally. "Soon, I will surpass all sorcerers and that abominable Omnitrix, once I become King of All Spirits!"

However Vlad's train of thought and delight was interrupted as his computer started loudly blaring a security alert on the screen.

"ALERT: COMPUTER HAS BEEN COMPROMISED." The computer said in the voice of Maddie Fenton.

"Compromised?! Someone is hacking MY computer systems?!" Vlad roared in disbelief and anger.

Suddenly, a holographic version of Maddie Fenton appeared on the screen with an apologetic expression on her digital face.

"Forgive me, dear. The intruder has breached our firewalls. I am lo…sing…con-"

The Maddie hologram was lost as static filled the screen for five seconds, only for a masked Professor Paradox behind a violet screen to replace her.

"YOU!" Vlad shouted.

"Greetings. I am Paradox. It's time we talk, Vladimir Silver Masters…or do you prefer the alias Vlad Plasmius?" Professor Paradox inquired with his voice modulator on.

"Plasmius? Isn't that what the locals refer to the devilishly handsome Wisconsin Ghost by?" Vlad asked, feigning ignorance. "Surely you wouldn't believe that a living and breathing man would be masquerading as a deceased-"

Vlad was cut off when Paradox showed three different instances of him transforming into and out of his Ghost-like forms through discreet camera footage from videos from this year and 2004, rendering him both shocked and enraged. The last one specifically showed his morph from the Saturday night fight against Phantom.

When they were paused, Professor Paradox said, "-I know more than I let on, Masters. Much more."

Vlad's demeanor changed from a facade of ignorance to a sharp and threatening glare as his anger bubbled up to the surface.

"If you truly know who I am and what I am, then I suggest you explain your reasons for hacking into my personal computer before I find whatever hole you're hiding in and tear your still beating heart out of your chest!" Vlad threatened the masked figure as magenta energy flickered around his body.

Paradox remained unfazed at the anomaly that was on the other side of the screen.

"We both know that you're in no position to make demands or empty threats, Masters. There are multiple sets of eyes on you, Vladmir. Eyes belonging to people in positions far greater than yours. Unless you wish to be ousted from your lofty palace and arrested, you will tread very lightly and listen carefully." Said the dimensional traveler.

The height of Vlad's anger finally reached its peak as his body was enveloped in a red aura of Madness. He wanted to hunt down this masked man who dared to threaten his livelihood and make him and his cohorts suffer. Vlad however knew who said cohorts were, and even if he was more powerful than Danny, he could not risk fighting Agent Legion or Hex without more power. Vlad took a few deep breaths as his aura disappeared, then looked into the computer and glared at Paradox.

"I'm listening, Paradox." Vlad said venomously before remaining silent.

Professor Paradox firmly declared, "As of today, the anomaly known as Danny Phantom, and the family of Daniel James Fenton are both off limits. If you are caught attacking the ghost child, your dual identity will be forfeit. If Phantom's dual identity is to be exposed, yours will as well. If his family or associates are exploited by you, evidence of VladCo's fraudulent activities and illegal business practices will surface for the world to see alongside the exposure of your secret."

"You wouldn't dare…" Vlad growled as his gaze intensified.

"Cross me, and you'll be on the run within the next twelve hours with nothing but your tainted name," Paradox promised. "The choice is yours, Masters. Make it."

Vlad let out a huff as his magenta aura flickered again briefly before the rich Fruitloop folded his arms behind his back.

"Very well, it appears you've backed me into a corner. I will comply for now." Vlad said before continuing to speak. "But why choose to get involved in mine and young Daniel's affairs? It has nothing to do with the Plumbers, Exorcists or any government organizations. Hell, you're not even a fed, so why should the responsibility fall to you?"

"You are right, I am not associated with the government, nor the United Nations. But the horrors that I've witnessed pale in comparison to anything in that green void you've desperately tried to prove existed. Hells of man's creation." Paradox stated before leaving Vlad with an ominous answer. "If a man like you got what you wished for, the world would go to hell. But as long as I'm around, I will not let that happen."

"Comparing me to the Devil? You flatter me, but we both know another who fits that description more than I." Vlad said sarcastically.

If Vlad could peer through Paradox's mask, he would have seen Ford scowl, knowing who he was referring to.

"I AM closer than you think, Masters. Heed my warning and behave yourself." Paradox warned before cutting the feed, allowing the Maddie program to return.

"Dear? Can you hear me? All systems are returning to norm-" The hologram spoke, only to be cut short by a seething Vlad Masters.

Immediately, Vlad reduced the computer into smithereens with a magenta ecto-blast. He had contained his rage to not look vulnerable to Paradox, but now that the masked figure had left, his rage could be unleashed as Madness enveloped his body.

"DAMN YOOOOOOOOOOOOOOU! YOU'LL PAY FOR THIS, YOU HEAR ME! WHEN I OBTAIN ULTIMATE POWER, I WILL SLAUGHTER EVERY LAST ONE OF YOU INTERLOPERS! THIS I PROMISE! UUUUUUUUUUUGGGGAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHH!"

Madness enveloped and consumed the laboratory as the ground and walls shook violently and cracks began to appear on the ground and ceiling. Haunting and demonic shrieks of anger flooded the Masters Mansion, who needed to vent his frustrations.

On the floor of the broken-up lab, was a red playing card with a gold frame and a single yellow eye. The eye in question was watching Vlad as he tore apart his laboratory, to which a sinister cackle was heard faintly in the distance.

"Attaboy…"

---

Hallways, Casper High, Amity Park, IL

It was Wednesday, twelve twenty in the afternoon. Casper High students were permitted to socialize amongst themselves and eat their lunches within school grounds.

Tucker and Sam were walking over to her locker after quickly finishing their lunches. Unfortunately for Sam, it was sloppy joe day and Tucker had to go through three toothpicks, having eaten both his and Sam's lunches.

While Tucker hummed happily, patting his belly, Sam scoffed and said, "Over ten years of knowing you and I still can't figure how you could eat that slop."

Tucker smirked and stated, "By slop, you mean grade-A and pristine protein? How can I not dine on such fine cuisine."

"It's murder." Sam bluntly stated.

"And farmers aren't?" Tucker shot back. "Plants are alive too, but I don't give you a hard time about supporting eating plant-based dairy products."

"All that I'm saying is that there are alternative ways of obtaining the proper amount of protein without being a patron to slaughter houses." Sam clarified as the two approached her locker.

"I hear you, and I respect your choices in food, but I'm saying that I prefer to eat meat." Tucker reiterated. "Look Sam, we've been going around in circles about this topic for nearly all of our lives and it's getting old. Yes, we kill animals and feed on their meat. It's horrible, but a fact of life. But you know what, animals eat each other and plants too. Circle of life, and whatnot."

Sam paused, raising an eyebrow as she gave the African American a sideways glance.

"...Really? A Lion King joke?" Sam said, with her hand on her lock.

"Would you rather we fight and form counter rallies again?" Tucker mused.

The self proclaimed goth snorted, finding the ridiculous memories of Freshman year prior to the fall formal amusing. Minus the Lunch Lady scarring her for life.

"...Nah, I'm good. I'll just have the head chef start preparing my lunches," Sam nonchalantly pondered aloud.

Tucker blinked, then facepalmed.

"Oh yeah, I forgot you were loaded." Tucker said. "That reminds me, how come you never said anything about this?"

As Sam put her combination code correctly and opened up her locker, she rolled her eyes.

"Oh, I don't know? Maybe I wanted decent friends who bothered to look at me and not only see a walking piggy bank." Sam sarcastically replied.

Tucker flinched, feeling guilty due to his tendencies to let greed overtake his sense of morality and reasoning. This didn't go unnoticed by Sam, who immediately felt bad from the deafening silence behind her.

When she placed her books back in her locker for the day, Sam closed and locked it, then sighed.

"...I'm sorry, Tucker," Sam apologized before turning to Tucker. "I just… Look, being rich isn't what it's cracked up to be. Believe it or not, my family is a part of that one percent margin. They have ancestral ties to this town, and while Bubeleh has always supported whatever I wanted to make of myself, my parents, well, they aren't with the times."

"'Aren't with the times'? You mean, they're traditional or something?" Asked Tucker.

Sam scowled and hissed, "Understatement of the new fucking century!"

"Yikes!" Tucker winced. "Vulgar much?"

Sam sighed, massaging the bridge of her nose while breathing in and out.

The goth vegan then stated, "...Tucker, my mother has never worn pants in public a day in her life."

Tucker gasped, "Shut up!"

"I'm dead serious!" Sam said, throwing her hairs in the air. "She acts as if it's unladylike to wear them! Women have been able to wear pants since the early nineteen twenties!"

"Okay, okay! Let's calm down!" Tucker said, holding up his hands in a defensive manner. "So your mother never wore pants. Odd, but fine. It's not like they were abusing you outright, right?"

Sam chuckled bitterly, then said, "...Do you want to know why I hate frilly things?"

"...Because you're a goth?" Tucker answered, choosing his words carefully.

"No." Sam said. "Stay quiet until I'm done talking. And I swear to God if you repeat what I tell you here, I will crush your nuts with my steel toe boots."

Tucker's dark skinned paled before he nodded while instinctively protecting his crotch area with his hands.

"...When I was nine-years-old, my mother signed me up for a beauty pageant; Little Miss Amity-"

The dark skinned boy gasped at this revelation.

"-Yeah, I know. I couldn't really fight her over it." Sam said, still bitter over the situation. "While nothing…disgusting happened to me, I was forced into torturous lessons by the staff while they shoved me in clothes that hurt my body. I can remember asking my mom why I was there. You know what she told me?"

Tucker remained quiet, knowing good and well that Sam followed through with her threats. He shook his head.

"I was there to learn how to become "beautiful". Whatever the fuck that means…" Sam explained. "All the flashing cameras, the sweat agitating the shitty makeup, the shouting from the staff. Hell, I had blisters on my feet from all of the standing and posing I did in high heels. I couldn't handle the pressure of it all. I wanted to break down…I did break down. I don't remember how many times I told Mom that I wanted to go home… She wouldn't have any of it."

'...What the fuck…' Was what Tucker could think to himself.

"I ended up winning the damn thing two years in a row. And after the contest, my parents would go across the country to a private club in Oregon to brag about shit with their peers and drag me with them. …That's where I met them. The Northwests."

Tucker's lips parted to make an inaudible gasp.

"As it turned out, I was used as a pissing contest by my mother. Why? Priscilla Northwest happened to be a college rival that she never bested, so she thought of causing a new one through her kid and myself, reliving the feud through us. And it worked. When I got second place in the third year, the Northwests ragged on me and humiliated my parents." Sam bitterly growled, trying not to shed any tears. "When I got home, my mother didn't bother to look at me. She asked me why I couldn't be like her."

"...Pacifica?" Tucker finally questioned.

Sam nodded, spitting, "Yeah, little miss perfect. And you wonder why I became what I am now."

"Holy shit…How did we miss this?" Tucker said, completely taken aback. "How did we miss any of this?"

"My parents have connections. If there was any trace of my entries in the pageants, it would be scrubbed clean." Sam said in a bittersweet tone. "They wouldn't want that trainwreck to rise to the surface again. …If it wasn't for my grandma, I'd probably go insane or worse…"

"Oh! Ooh! That's why you hate Paulina and the A-Listers!" Tucker stated, realizing the big picture. "It explains why you got so pissed at…you know."

Sam nodded, saying, "Now you get it. My parents have no confidence in me being…me, so they want me to be like them. They want me to be a perfect, well dressed, and subservient doll nicely wrapped up for some richest douchebag they'll pick to pawn me off to. Once I got out of those sleazy functions for good, I swore never to tell anybody about my wealth. Then I met you and he-who-is-dead-to me, and we quickly learned how shit our school politics are. Through our shared experiences, I solidified the idea."

"...Damn," Tucker whispered. "I'm so sorry you had to go through that."

"It's…well, it's not fine but I appreciate the sentiment at least," Sam whispered. "I just want to be myself and have a couple of real friends to hang out with, but I guess even that's too much to ask these days."

Tucker frowned at this, knowing that it was a jab toward Danny, but he let that slide for the sake of maintaining a civil stance.

He may agree that Danny had changed to a certain degree, but he wasn't blinded by anger like Sam. Sure, Tucker also agreed that Danny made a shallow decision in rejecting Sam at the worst time imaginable. However, he knows that Danny is still the same caring, laid-back, and fun-loving guy that both he and Sam had grown up with.

'One shallow decision doesn't make him a shallow person, Sam.' Tucker wanted to say but held it in.

"Well, your secret is safe with me," Tucker said, holding out his left hand. "Scout's honor."

Sam lightly mused and said, "You've never been a boy scout, Geek Boy."

"Hey, I'm trying here!" Tucker said, faking a whine before the two shared a genuine laugh.

Just as the two began walking away from Sam's locker, they were intercepted by Kwan, who shoved the African American aside to meet Sam's gaze with a suggested stare.

"Hey, good looking~, you free?" Kwan flirted. "There's a party going on at Dash's this Friday, and I'm looking for a date. Know what I'm sayin'?"

Sam felt the urge to vomit. She couldn't believe what she was hearing.

'...Is this jerk hitting on me?' Sam thought in complete denial.

"Excuse me?" Sam uttered, derailed at the question. "This has to be a joke."

"Yeah!" Tucker said, coming to Sam's defense. "We have plans to hit the arcade on Friday! Buzz off, will ya?"

Kwan rolled his eyes, then shoved Tucker towards a locker away, saying, "I'm not talking to you, geekazoid!"

This caused the boy to stumble onto the floor while his glasses' lenses cracked.

"Ah! No, my glasses!" Tucker shouted.

"Tucker!" Sam blurted out, shocked at what Kwan ended up doing.

She couldn't react as Kwan placed a hand on the door of Sam's locker, leaning near the goth's face. It was here where Sam began to realize that Dash and the football team's influence began to affect Kwan's personality, which was taking its turn for the worst.

Little did Kwan, Sam, or Tucker know, a small crowd had begun to start gathering. A certain blonde-haired valley girl and a raven-haired boy had been among the crowd. The former gasped at the situation, feeling her heart gradually sink in pain.

"Why settle for Bad Luck Tuck anyway, anyway?" Kwan questioned. "You're like, two-thirds A-Lister material."

"I am?" Sam said, utterly shocked and dumbfounded at Kwan's insinuation.

"Think about it. I saw how you were looking in the corset dress at the formal last year. Goth freak or not, you were hotter than Star and Paulina, that's one. Two, you are loaded and I know it's true because you made us eat mud pies when you changed the menu. Not even Paulina could do that."

From there, a certain blonde felt her sinking heart shattered while she thought, '...How could he!?'

While some twisted side of Sam liked being validated for how she looked, the entire situation felt wrong in every way. This wasn't what Sam wanted, and the person who desired her wasn't the guy she envisioned to want her.

Sam's eyes narrowed as she asked in a low tone, "What the hell are you getting at, Kwan?"

"You did yourself a favor by ditching Fenton — nice job by the way. All you gotta do is get rid of Foley over there and you're golden. Heck, it'll earn you brownie points if you hook up with me. Just ask me nicely and I'll put in a good word. What do you say, Sammy-ARGH!"

Kwan's face contorted in pain as he held his right shin, courtesy of Sam's steel toe points.

"Get the fuck out of my face, you sleazy scumbag!" Sam hissed before pushing him away.

This caused Kwan to stumble back, bumping into Dale, who laughed at him with a few of his buddies. His fellow football teammates stopped laughing when they received a death glare from the second-in-command of the A-Listers before turning to see Sam helping Tucker up.

"Aw man! You know how expensive the prescriptions on these are?" Tucker complained. "Mom and Dad are gonna grill my ass for this…"

"Don't worry, Tucker. I'll cover the expenses." Sam offered, earning her a grateful smile from Tucker.

"You bitch!" Kwan growled before lunging at Sam with the intent to manhandle her.

Unfortunately for the Korean American, he did not get far as a hand caught his wrist. Everyone involved in the attempted altercation and the bystanders watched as Danny Fenton swooped in and stopped Kwan in his tracks with a single hand.

"W-What the-!? Fenton, where the fuck did you come fro-AHHH!?" Kwan stuttered before wincing in pain at Danny's iron grip.

"-Seriously, Kwan? Didn't your mom teach you not to hit girls?" Danny questioned, lacking any humor in his tone and on his face to quip.

The taller Asian American boy's face winced in pain while he tried and failed to pry Danny's hand off of his wrist. Danny, meanwhile, remained calm but cold expression.

The other football players were about to intervene when Kwan ended up blurting out, "UGH! Let go! I said let go, Freak!"

Danny let go, allowing near-instant relief to wash over Kwan's wrist as he cradled his right hand.

"Hey. You good, Kwan?" Dale questioned with genuine concern.

Kwan didn't say anything as he inspected his wrist. He paled, finding that Danny had left a red mark.

Kwan hissed, then growled, "Fuck…! Why are you even here!? This has nothing to do with you!"

"When it comes to them," Danny said, gesturing to Tucker and Sam. "It is my business."

Tucker smiled at this, appreciating Danny's support. Sam, on the other hand, did not share the same sentiment.

"Mind your own business, Fenton! I'm not some damsel in distress!" Sam shouted, only to be ignored by Danny, furthering her anger.

"I didn't expect you to stoop this low, Kwan. Why lead by Dash's example now of all times?" Danny questioned.

Seeing a fist heading his way, Danny weaved Kwan's incoming attack with ease. Everyone's eyes were glued to Danny, who continued to either dodge, duck or slap away Kwan's punches. The football members stood rooted, watching the spectacle in shock like the rest of the bystanders.

'...Holy shit!' Most kids thought, watching how Fenton moved.

Sam watched this, flabbergasted at Danny's attitude while clenching her fists.

'...Who even is this guy!? Danny never acted like this last year?' Thought Sam.

"Dude, come on!" Danny spoke out loud, trying to reason with the Asian American. "You know that this is just stupid!"

"Shut up!" Kwan shouted, only for Danny to catch his last fist, and then push Kwan back.

"No!" Danny fired back, letting a bit of his Fenton personality bleed into his civilian form. "Kwan, we have known each other since first grade! This isn't like you! You're not only the smartest guy on the football team, but you're a standup guy. You love Star, and she loves you back. I don't think she'd appreciate you trying to exchange her for a so-called upgrade. Do you?"

Kwan's face froze when he heard Star's name being mentioned. Fenton had got him there, feeling his shallow mindset receding in exchange for his guilt-ridden conscious to return.

'...Shit! If Star saw this, she'd rip me a new one!' Kwan shivered.

Unfortunately, his worst fears would come to light as her shrill voice pierced through the eardrums of all who could hear it.

"KWAN!"

Everybody watched and parted out of the way of a fuming and overly emotional Star. The first thing she did was smack her two-timing boyfriend across the face while trembling in anger.

Tucker and Sam winced. The slap echoed throughout the halls, with the effect leaving Kwan with a glowing red handprint on his left cheek.

"YOU CHEATING PIECE OF SHIT!" Star roared. "You chose MANSON over ME!? FUCKING MANSON!? I thought you loved me!"

"S-Star, wait! It's not what you think! I swear!" Kwan said.

"Oh no, it's exactly what you think." Sam casually challenged with a smirk full of mirth.

"Fuck off!" Kwan shouted.

Tucker glared at Kwan with a distasteful expression and reminded Kwan, "Dude, you started this."

"W-Wait a second-" Kwan stuttered, only for Star to hold her right hand toward his face.

"Zip it! I didn't want to listen before, but Paulie was right about you." Star said. "You've been thinking about throwing me away, just like you did with Gray last year. Well, guess what, you and I are through!"

Many gasped at this declaration, including Kwan himself.

She was about to walk away when Kwan grabbed her right wrist with his left hand.

"Star, babe... Come on! Don't do this to us!" Kwan said, feeling his heart shatter. "Can't we work this out?"

Kwan looked at her with a soft pleading stare, holding on to her with a gentle but desperate grip.

Star felt tears run down her face while she yanked away from her ex-boyfriend.

"You did this to us, not me! And I hate your guts for that! Go to hell, Kwan Lee!" Star hissed before storming off to find Paulina.

While bystanders watched the confrontation concluding, everybody mumbled to themselves and each other, reacting to the drama that unfolded.

Kwan's shoulder slumped as he wiped his tears with one of the sleeves of his letterman jacket. His football pals tried to awkwardly comfort Kwan but failed. The Asian American clenched his fists, feeling his body tremble in anger.

Due to Dash's influence and because of circumstances, Kwan knew who to take his anger out on.

"Fenton…!" Kwan said, gritting his teeth. "This is all your fault!"

"...What?" Danny blurted out, stunned at Kwan's exclamation.

This was the wrong thing to say, as it set the taller boy off. Kwan charged at Danny with a fist reeled back, only for Dash to hold him back.

This perplexed the crowd, as they never would have imagined Dash saving the least popular boy in Casper High. The violent side of Kwan was so disturbing, it caught the old trio off guard, making people question his sanity.

"Let go! I SAID LET GO OF ME DASH!" Kwan said, thrashing about with a face burning bright red. "I'M GONNA KILL HIM!"

"Cool it, Kwan!" Dash shouted, flexing his rank above Kwan while two other football players held him back. "And watch who you're talking to!"

This caused Kwan to snap back to reality, letting him take breaths to calm down. Once the other jocks let Kwan go, Dash whispered something to his right ear.

From there, Dash gave Dale a nod. The African American football player understood the command.

Dale turned to the crowd and shouted, "Show's over! Now scram, or it's swirly time all week next week!"

This seemed to be enough to disperse the crowd as the crowd was mostly made up of Freshmen and Sophomores respectively. Once that was taken care of, Dash gathered Kwan, Dale, and the rest of his buddies.

"Let's get out of here…" Dash said before trudging away.

Kwan was the last to follow. Before he left, he leaned over to Danny's face and gave him the meanest glare that he could muster.

"...You're dead." Kwan calmly said with a venomous undertone.

With that, Danny was left with his two oldest friends as they watched the treating squad of jocks.

"Man, if looks can kill," Tucker lightly jested, trying to lighten the mood. "Am I right?"

Danny nodded to Tucker, saying, "You can say that again…"

"Man, you've been on fire with surprise after surprise." Tucker complimented. "Thanks for the save."

"What are friends for?" Danny said, happy to have helped out.

"Tucker what the fuck!? Don't thank him!" Sam said, hissing the boy before marching up to Danny.

"And you!" Sam said, pointing a finger at his chest. "What the hell were you thinking!? Because of that insane stunt, you not only painted a target on your back, but now Tucker's going to have a harder time!"

"Well, what did you expect me to do?" Danny said, narrowing his eyes while defending himself.

"Nothing!" Sam exclaimed, feeling her resentment boil over. "It was my business! My problem! What part of "you are dead to me" don't you understand!?"

"None of it!" Danny said. "I've been friends with you for years! We've had ups and downs, sure, but we've never let anything come between us! Especially one mistake! Haven't I been punished enough? Wasn't what I did proof that I care about you?"

Sam narrowed her eyes, crossing her arms while turning her head.

"...One act doesn't change anything," Sam bitterly huffed.

"I'M TRYING!" Danny shouted in hysteria, taking Tucker and Sam aback for a moment. "For God's sake, Sam, I'm trying! I want my friends back, I want my old life back! But I don't know how to FIX it, and it's killing me! What do you want from me!?"

Hearing the fear and desperation disturbed Tucker. Hell, even Sam could tell that the pain evident in his voice was genuine. They could both tell that Danny had been agonizing over what happened last year.

Tucker wholeheartedly wished they could just go back to how things were. And a third of Sam lamented the entire ordeal, sharing the desires as the rest of the old trio did.

Unfortunately, two-thirds of her not only was filled with seething rage for what felt like a major betrayal, but her insecurities of being "replaced" by Valerie, Mason, and Pacifica of all people reinforced Sam's determination to see through to her decision until she got what she truly wanted.

Sam kept her back turned to Danny, shaking her head while stomaching her inner guilt keeping her bitter and stern exterior.

"...There's no point. I'm done handing out hints." Sam coldly stated. "Go crawl back to your new friends and stay out of my way, Fenton."

Once again, Sam had left a heartbroken Danny by himself. But this time, he felt worse about himself than he did at the fall formal.

Tucker, sensing a case of deja vu, placed a hand on Danny's back.

"...You okay, Danny?" Tucker inquired.

"No," Danny answered truthfully, bowing his head down. "...I blew it, again."

"Honestly, dude, I don't think you're the problem anymore," Said Tucker, telling him how he felt.

"Yeah, well," Danny muttered, turning while beginning to walk off. "...Somehow, I doubt that."

"Dude, we'll figure something out! Hang in there and don't give up!" Tucker claimed before turning to Sam's direction and jogging after her.

Tucker's words reminded Danny of his father's words.

...A Fenton never quits.

The Alpha human clenched his fists with conviction, not ready to surrender his old friendships yet.

Not without a fight.

---

Fenton Works, Amity Park, IL

It was Friday in the afternoon. Danny and his friends were released from school early. But as planned, Mason and Pacifica went with Danny while Valerie split from them to prepare for her patrol later that day. It took them a good fifteen minutes to arrive on Danny's street, with Jazz's car parked in front of the Fenton Family Ghost Assault Vehicle.

Once they arrived on the front porch of Fenton Works, Danny knocked on the door.

Danny and Pacifica slowly turned to see Mason Pines with a large stupid smile on his face. Pacifica hadn't seen Mason this excited since their earlier dates before they moved to Illinois.

"Gee, Troll Boy, you look like my mother." Pacifica. "If you keep that creepy smile on all day, you'll get a frozen face."

"Jokes on you, Paz! Nothing you say will ruin my mood," Mason said, brimming with excitement. "Today is gonna be awesome!"

"Mase, I know you're excited and all, but they're just my parents." Danny reminded the brunette.

"I know, but it's more than just that!" Mason explained. "We're gonna see a real-life portal to the Spirit World! And cross through it! That's every paranormal researcher's dream! Meeting the people who made it is just icing on top! How can I not be stoked?"

"At least one of us is thrilled about it…" Pacifica murmured, still hesitant about going to the Infinite Realms.

"I wouldn't worry too much," Danny said reassuringly. "If I know my family, they always come prepared for things ghost-related."

Danny knocked on the door. Within a few seconds, Jack Fenton, holding a lightly packed suitcase, opened the door with a jolly smile.

"Hey, Dad," Danny greeted casually.

"Welcome home, Danno! Your sister arrived here a few minutes ago, so your mother and I were going over the ground rules." Jack informed before looking at the two kids beside him. "Oh, are these new friends of yours?"

Danny nodded, explaining, "Yeah, I wanted to introduce you and Mom to them before you guys left,"

"Really? Well, I don't see any problem with that!" Jack said with a grin. "Hey, Maddie! Danny's brought some new youngsters over!"

Soon enough, Maddie Fenton met her husband at the front door and said, "Hi, sweetie! I see you made some new friends."

"Yeah." Danny nodded. "Mom, Dad, these are my friends who moved from Oregon."

Danny gestured to the bleach blonde, "The blonde right next to me is Pacifica."

"Ah, right! The Northwest heiress! Isn't your father the new owner of Axion Labs?" Jack questioned.

"Yes sir," Pacifica answered politely. "It's a pleasure to meet you, Mr. and Mrs. Fenton."

"Likewise, Young Lady," Maddie said with a sincere smile.

"And beside her is Mason," Danny said, gesturing to the brunette.

"Uh, hi! I'm Mason Pines, and let me say it's an honor to meet the both of you," Mason said, expressing his excitement. "You guys are like my idols!"

This surprised Jack and Maddie, looking at each other while uttering, "Idols?"

"Don't mind my boyfriend. He didn't have a great childhood." Pacifica said, holding Mason's arm. "He likes to stick his nose into stuff like the occult, the supernatural, and all things weird."

"It can't be all bad if you don't seem to mind," Maddie said, offering an approving smile.

Pacifica blushed and said, "W-Well, yeah. Gravity Falls is like weird central."

"Ha! No wonder why she's tolerant! Good on you, Sport! You found yourself a real keeper!" Jack said, praising Mason.

"Thanks, Mr. Fenton," Mason said with a genuine smile. "I can't help but revere you guys. You proved what many considered crazy, and now you're living my dream job! It feels vindicating, inspiring even. And that gives me the confidence to pursue my dreams."

Hearing sent waves of validation within Jack and Maddie. While they love their kids and support their dreams, hearing a young man their youngest child's age share the same dream as they renewed the spark that kept them going in their career path.

Sharing a smile between husband and wife, Maddie said, "Well, I hope the two of you stick around our son. We tend to be busybodies, and Jazz is graduating this year."

"Sure thing, Mr. and Mrs. Fenton," The new students beamed.

The Fenton couple welcomed Danny's friend inside with the raven-haired boy following closely. The group made it to the living where they found Jazz sitting, looking at a catalog of possible colleges for her to enroll in.

Jazz looked up to find Danny, her parents, and then at the new "youngsters" that her father was referring to.

"Oh! Hey guys! I didn't think Danny would bring you guys over this early," Jazz said, feigning her surprise while closing the small catalog and placing it on her lap.

"Ah, so you've met them. That makes things easier!" Maddie said, clasping her hands in delight.

"As much as we like to make small talk on things ghostly, the Mrs. and I are gonna be spending this Friday on a romantic outing as promised last Tuesday," Jack said, holding Maddie's arm gently with his free hand. "Mason, Pacifica, you're welcome to stay here until five-thirty on the dot."

"Danny, Jazz will be in charge while we're gone. Well, let her know whether or not we'll be staying in the hotel. That means no girls in the house alone." Maddie said while turning to her daughter. "And no boys in the house alone, young lady. Understood?"

"Yes, ma'am." Both Jazz and Danny said, groaning at the thought.

The siblings had too much going on to be bothered pursuing romantic interests at this time.

"Good. We'll be off, kids! Be good and stay out of trouble!" Jack said before Maddie and he left the house.

"We will! Bye Mom, bye Dad!" The Fenton sibling waved off.

"Bye, Mr. and Mrs. Fenton!" Mason and Pacifica added before the door shut.

Danny and Jazz looked at each other before sighing in relief.

"Glad that's over," Jazz sighed. "They needed this break,"

"Yeah, so do we," Danny dryly nodded.

"Your parents don't seem as bad as the rumors claim," Said Pacifica. "They almost appear normal."

'...And decent compared to my parents.' The bleach blonde mentally added.

"You caught them toward the weekend," Danny and Jazz automatedly responded.

For a moment, Mason pictured himself doing the same when he lived with his twin sister in California.

He shook his head, trying not to think about his situation with his older twin sister. It was a dark subject that he pushed far to his subconscious as he paid attention to Jazz speaking.

"We better get to the lab just in case they return tonight. I have to get the portal ready" Jazz said as she gestured for Danny and the others to follow her.

From there, Mason squealed like a fangirl about the port. This earned him a good smack to the head by his girlfriend.

"Stop bleating like a lamb, geek," Pacifica scowled.

Danny and Jazz shared an amused look as the group descended to the basement. Once the eldest Fenton sibling entered the code, they entered Fenton Works Laboratory where the Specter Speeder lay idle near the Fenton Ghost Portal.

The machine in question was a small vehicle with only a small bench in the front for the pilot and passengers. Due to its compact size, it seemed to only fit three-four people maximum. The front of the Speeder was a clear dome, which acted as the windshield. There was a small area behind the front bench for at least two more people.

Pacifica and Mason inspected the place while Danny announced, "Guys, welcome to the lab."

The first thing that Pacifica looked at was the area itself rather than the inventions, stating, "It's no Axion Labs, but it's still impressive."

"Yeah, well, come back another time and I'll give you and Mason a tour of the Ops Center," Danny mentioned.

"Wait, you have an Emergency Ops Center?" Pacifica asked skeptically while placing her hands on her hips.

"Yes, that would be the UFO-looking structure on top of our apartment." Jazz mentioned from afar as she opened up the closet. "AND DON'T TOUCH ANYTHING!"

Mason winced, nearly pressing a hand toward the door to the weapon's vault before reeling it toward himself.

Pacifica blinked and said, "How could your parents afford half of the stuff they're making?"

"They take commissions from government agencies." Danny and Jazz said simultaneously.

"Jinx!" Jazz said before her little brother, causing him to wince.

"Argh! Crud…" Danny murmured, taking out a dollar bill. "Here. That should cover a can of sparkling water."

Jazz walked over to Danny and happily plucked the bill from her brother's hand. She then approached Mason and Pacifica with hangers carrying official Fenton Works HAZMAT suits; the orange one for Mason, and the blue one for Pacifica.

Mason gasped while his eyes lit up. Meanwhile, Pacifica's furrowed, not anticipating a change of clothes.

"...Um, why are you coming with those?"

"What? You were honestly expecting to travel to a dimension composed of ectoplasm in your school clothes, were you?" Jazz questioned with a bit of sass.

As The bleach blonde was handed her suit, she whined, "Ugh! …I mean, I guess not but it's not even my color,"

This earned her a deadpan expression from Jazz and Danny, remembering that Pacifica was a privileged popular rich girl back in her hometown.

"It's no use fighting it, Paz," Mason said with a giddy smirk, taking the orange HAZMAT suit. "Better get changing."

The former bully scoffed as she and Mason took turns in the changing room within the lab.

When Mason came out, Danny said, "Looking good, Mase!"

"Thanks, D. You, I kill for a red one instead of the orange, but that would step on Hunty's toes," Mason stated before turning to his girlfriend. "You're up next!"

"Yeah, yeah, I know!" Pacifica begrudgingly acknowledged.

Shortly after, Pacifica came out of the changing room with her form-fitting HAZMAT suit.

Danny, while not outwardly admitting it and with a bit of his teenage hormones kicking in, thought that Pacifica looked hot. Of course, he quickly remembered that she was Mason's girlfriend and dropped the thought process entirely.

Pacifica blushed lightly while glaring at Jazz.

"...Take a picture, it'll last longer," Pacifica said in a huff, embarrassed at what she wore.

"See, it's not so bad." Jazz said, crossing her arms over her chest.

Pacifica looked at a mirror nearby and said, "...It doesn't look appealing to me, and it's not my color, but it'll work."

Leering at his girlfriend flirtatiously, Mason stated, "What are you talking about? You're killing it in that jumpsuit."

As soon as Mason said that, Pacifica gasped and turned red as a tomato while Jazz brought a hand to her mouth.

Danny felt the urge to vomit, chastising his friend by saying, "Ah, gross! Get a room, you two!"

This reaction from Danny prompted everybody to chuckle at themselves and their antics.

"Anyway, let me head to the weapon vault. We got spare equipment there," Jazz suggested, but Pacifica held out a hand.

"There's no need, Girlfriend," Pacifica said before showing the group a bag filled with Axion Lab-branded anti-ghost weapons. "I got that covered."

"Woah. Sometimes, I forget that you're loaded." Danny said. "But this is another kind of loaded."

"After that fiasco with the Wraith of Lumberjane's ancestor, I'm not taking any chances," Pacifica said with a determined voice. "Now that we're diving to creep-central, I want to be ready just in case."

"That's the right call," Jazz supported. "Anything could happen in the Ghost Zone."

The older sister turned to her brother and said, "And you're gonna pilot the Speeder, right?"

"Of course! I gotta show them the ropes so I won't have to do it again." Danny cheekily stated.

Jazz rolled her eyes and then said, "Typical… Just get changed and get them on the bus while I prep the portal."

"Aye aye, captain." Danny lazily saluted with a smirk.

"Wait, don't you need a suit like us?" Pacifica questioned, raising an eyebrow.

"Any other human would need it, but I don't," Danny revealed. "...I'm goin' ghost!"

Channeling his ectoplasm outward, Danny summoned a white ring around his waist that split into two separate rings. Within a second, Danny Fenton became Danny Phantom.

Admittedly, Pacifica said, "...Okay, that did look cool, but really? Going ghost? Is that supposed to be a battle cry or something?"

"Well, uh…yeah?" Danny said, sheepishly rubbing the back of his neck.

"Hey, I think it's cool!" Mason defended. "It's like Johnny Storm's catchphrase!"

Phantom rolled his eyes as he escorted his friends into the Specter Speeder, saying, "We should get going. The sooner we get to Dora's, the sooner we can figure out how to stop me from turning into an ice sculpture."

Soon enough, Phantom started the Specter Speeder roughly around the same time Jazz went to the main computer to check for software issues. When things were in order from her end, Jazz opened the Ghost Portal and gave her brother a thumbs up with her right hand.

Phantom did the same, prompting him to pilot the Specter Speeder forward, successfully crossing dimensions until it disappeared.

'...Stay safe, Little Brother.' Jazz thought.

---

B.O.R.D HQ, Amity Park

It was a late night at the B.O.R.D.'s headquarters as their operatives and scientists worked as hard as they could to ensure that their funding would not be suspended. Two Guys in White were stationed outside, guarding the entrance to ensure no ghost or infiltrator could get into their headquarters. However, a certain Wisconsin Ghost had already arrived as he stood atop the headquarters looking down at the ignorant guards.

"Pathetic, and these are meant to be the government's top ghost hunters." Plasmius sneered as he turned intangible and sank through the headquarters' ceiling, entering its interior.

Plasmius combined his intangibility and invisibility together, ensuring he was both undetected and untouchable should he get too close to any Guys in White. The billionaire halfa however was no stranger to sneaking around enemy territory as he swiftly and nimbly evaded security and avoided the headquarters' several spectral detectors. Plasmius soon reached what looked like a large vault in the bottom floors, seeing a giant metal door with a keypad and the words "AUTHORIZED PERSONNEL ONLY" on the front of the door. Plasmius let out a quiet chuckle as he phased his body through the door.

When he made it to the other side, Plasmius nearly jumped as he was in front of a spectral detector.

"...It's fortunate that I can hide my body's ecto-signature when intangible, otherwise I would have been caught the moment I set foot in this vault." Plasimus thought to himself as he began looking around the vault for what he was looking for.

Plasmius flew around the vault until he arrived at a specific section that had the sign "Mystical Contraband" on it. Seeing this, he entered the section of the vault, seeing various mystical artifacts, weapons and scriptures locked up and stored away.

"I'm getting closer." Plasmius remarked as he flew further into the Mystical Contraband section of the vault.

Upon reaching the farest end of the vault, Plasmius finally laid eyes upon what he seeked: It was a platinum coloured medieval gauntlet with four rings wrapped around the bracer with slots in each one. There was a square slot, a diamond slot, a circular slot and a triangle slot. The gauntlet was on display and below it were three gemstones, one being a red square-shaped ruby, one a yellow diamond-shaped topaz and the other a blue circle-shaped sapphire.

Plasmius grinned while becoming tangible again as he laid his eyes upon arguably the most powerful artifact on the planet.

"The Reality Gauntlet…" Plasmius said as he examined the gauntlet and gems from a distance. "It is said that it originated from Ledgerdomain and is one of the only things in existence that could potentially rival the Alpha Rune in terms of mystical power."

Plasmius then looked at the square-shaped ruby.

"With the Gem of Animation, one can control life and death and even breathe life into non-living things…"

Plasimus then looked at the diamond-shaped topaz.

"...the Gem of Form can alter and change the form and nature of anything around it…"

Finally, Plasimus looked at the circle-shaped sapphire.

"...and the Gem of Fantasy turns dreams into reality, manifesting imagination and thoughts into the physical plain."

Plasmius looked at the gauntlet, noticing the fourth slot which was triangle shaped.

"Of course…the Trickster told me of the fourth gem, the unofficial Gem of Power which serves as an energy source for the gauntlet. Without it, the gauntlet's full power cannot be realized." Plasmius said before clenching his fists. "Regardless, finding it should not be too much hassle, especially now that I have the Reality Gauntlet and the first three gems, each one powerful in their own right."

Plasimus then proceeded to reach his arm out to grab the gems, however before he could someone had jumped down towards him and tried to strike him with an overhead slash from an energy sword. Plasmius noticed and reacted in time to avoid the strike, causing the assailant to cut into the floor instead.

Plasmius quickly fired off a magenta ecto-ray at the same time as he moved backwards, but the assailant blocked the ecto-ray by lifting and bracing their blade, sending the projectile to fly in another direction. Plasmius held his stance, looking at the assailant while channeling ecto-energy into his hands.

Upon getting a better look, Plasmius saw that his attacker was a woman in medieval knight armor colored in black and gold along with a red cape, while wielding an energy sword with a waved blade. The dreaded Lady Blackstone.

After the Forever Queen's appearance, twenty Forever Knights either descended the ceiling with cables or had come bursting through the door with their weapons activated. They then spread out behind Lady Blackstone, aiming their energy crossbows or were ready to charge Plasmius.

"Those don't belong to you." Lady Blackstone stated casually while standing up straight, then lightly stabbed her sword into the ground.

"If memory serves me well, they don't belong to the Organization either." Plasmius said, staring down Blackstone. "But I will say, you're bold to challenge the likes of me in direct combat, milady."

"A warrior is someone who does not let the idea of death stop them from doing what must be done." Lady Blackstone said. "And I cannot allow items such as the Gauntlet to be wielded by ectoplasmic filth."

"Do you truly believe that you Forever Knights pose a threat to Vlad Plasimius?" He asked.

"I believe that we're a threat to all spirits and invaders." Lady Blackstone answered. She then let out a small chuckle before pulling her sword out of the ground and pointed it towards Vlad. "Attack!"

The knights that were armed with energy crossbows then fired upon Vlad Plasmius, a barrage of dozens of red energy bolts was unleashed towards him. He effortlessly evaded or shielded against the incoming projectiles before he warped in front of two knights, punching one of them through a nearby wall, then blocking more projectiles with a magenta ecto-shield. The nearby knights then charged Vlad with their energy swords and tried to cut him down, but Vlad weaved through each sword strike before then creating several magenta spears composed of ecto-energy and launching them at multiple knights, skewering each one hit and killing them.

"Is that all you Forever Knights are capable of? Pathetic!" Vlad yelled before crossing his arms, then propelling himself into a knight and knocking them into the ground with a double-legged dive kick.

Lady Blackstone finally decided to take part in the fight, leaping forward and attacked Vlad with an overhead slash. Vlad then quickly manifested his Masters Sabre and locked it with Blackstone's blade. The both of them then swiftly exchanged sword strikes, expertly blocking and parrying each other every time, until Vlad blasted Blackstone away with a magenta shockwave. She was launched back about 20 feet, but she recovered by stabbing her sword downward and landed on her feet, stopping herself from sliding along the ground.

A few of the knights then ran in front of Lady Blackstone, raising their energy shields to cover her while the remaining marksmen aimed down the sights, ready to fire.

"Stand aside!" The Forever Queen commanded, to which her men complied and stepped back or lowered their crossbows. She then stood up and held her sword in her right hand in a reverse grip. "I must say, your skills with a blade aren't half bad. And you took down about half the men I arrived with. Well done."

"You fight much better than those fools Driscoll and Enoch, but your troops still have their lack of skill." Plasmius spoke as he held his Masters Sabre in his hand. "But you have talent and skill, for a woman of course."

"I think I need to give you a demonstration of what I am truly capable of." Lady Blackstone said, then briefly glanced back at the rest of the Forever Knights. "And I think you all need a reminder as to why I have become the Forever Queen."

A red glow then started to radiate from Lady Blackstone's chestplate, spreading outwards along the rest of her armor. She charged towards Vlad again, this time reeling back her left gauntlet, charging up energy within it. As soon as she was about halfway close to Vlad, she lashed her left arm forward, with four arcs of energy being shot from her fingertips. With the arcs large enough to slice into the ground and the adjacent wall at the same time.

He was surprised at this sudden surge in power coming from Lady Blackstone, but Plasmius narrowly dodged the energy arcs before thrusted both his hands forward, dematerialising the Masters Sabre and fired a barrage of fast-moving magenta ecto-blasts at the Forever Queen. However, this did not deter Lady Blackstone from running forward. In fact, he noticed that she was actually running faster, all the while slicing through all of the blasts with precise and fluid movements with her zweihander. Lady Blackstone then went for a slash across Plasmius' chest as soon as she was in striking distance, but the Winsconsin Ghost rematerialised his Masters Sabre to block her blade and parry.

With one hand holding her sword, Blackstone followed up with a swipe from her unarmed, clawed gauntlet, this time the energy arcs were shorter and stayed projected on the edge of her fingertips. She managed to graze Vlad on the shoulder, and from there she continued to apply pressure against him, forcing him to stay on the defensive by constantly changing her attack patterns. She delayed her attacks by milliseconds, which seemed unnoticeable to most of the other knights, but it was enough to throw Vlad off. She feinted her slashes by telegraphing the direction but switched it up at the last second into a stab, parry, or a claw swipe. And whenever Plasmius did get a chance to attack, Blackstone not only deflected it with her blade, but at times she withstood whatever he threw out and continued to attack him with no stop in her momentum.

Meanwhile, as the Forever Knights were watching in awe of the Forever Queen and her fight against Vlad Plasmius, Red Knight had snuck around the duel and grabbed the Reality Gauntlet.

Vlad and Blackstone's swords collided, creating a magenta and vermillion shockwave from the feedback of their respective energies. Vlad then quickly flew backwards to gain some distance from the Forever Queen before he started to gather up his inner ecto-energy before a large magenta aura with red electric sparks enveloped Plasimius' body. Vlad gritted his teeth as he thrusted his arm upwards, causing the aura and sparks around his body to then transfer into the arm. After a few intense shockwaves that radiated from his body, the energy around his arm became black surges of electricity with a red hue before he took a stance and reeled the negatively charged fist back in preparation.

"I will give you your dues, woman! You are stronger than any pure human fighter I've encountered, but make no mistake, you are still just a human! And I refuse to be brought down by those who are beneath me in the pecking order!" Vlad yelled before he began to laugh maniacally. "Let's see you survive this one, Forever Queen!"

"Bring it." Lady Blackstone simply said, smiling underneath her helmet while also channeling more energy into her gauntlet, also reeling back once again.

The Red Knight saw this as an opportunity. He quickly placed the Reality Gems into each space that they belong to on the Reality Gauntlet. Charging the gauntlet with energy, he tossed them in the middle of the battle just as the two opponents.

The collision of the two attacks ramming into the gem holding gauntlet led to a massive shockwave of combined energies, causing the entire building to shake with their lights flickering off and on.

When everybody stood up and when the lights came back on, Lady Blackstone looked at the display case of where the Reality Gauntlet was supposed to be.

"What happened to the gauntlet?" She asked out loud. "And where are the gems?"

"Lady Blackstone, it appears that the gemstones have been destroyed." The comedy-masked Twin Knight answered. "I presume it was from the clash you had against that vile spectre."

The Red Knight walked closer to Lady Blackstone, showing the Reality Gauntlet in a state of disrepair, it was burnt all over and two of the fingers were completely blown off while the rest were bent and cracked.

Suddenly, Vlad and the Forever Knights were bombarded by the arrival of the Amity Park branch members of the B.O.R.D.'s Hazmat agents. In front of them were two male bald agents wearing the standard field operatives; one Caucasian, and the other, an African American.

The Caucasian male was Operative O while his partner was Operative K.

"NOBODY MOVE!" Operative O said, holding a microphone.

"All unidentified persons are under arrest! Wisconsin Ghost is the priority! I repeat, Wisconsin Ghost is the priority!" Operative K exclaimed.

All agents had their anti-ecto weapons pointed at the intruders, ready to take in anybody and everybody they could get their hands on.

"Time to go home." The Forever Queen said, to which Red Knight threw down multiple smoke bombs right on cue, obscuring the vision of the Guys In White. The rapid movement of clanking armor could be heard before completely fading away.

Plasmius however remained, standing there in silence as the Guys in White scanned the area while giving their weapons on the Wisconsin Ghost.

"Where did the unknown intruders go?" Operative K asked.

"Forget them for now, our priority is capturing and studying the Wisconsin Ghost!" Operative O answered.

Plasimius then suddenly began to cackle hysterically as his body glowed a faint red.

"AhahahahahahaHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAAA! AHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAAA!" Vlad laughed with a mix of deranged mania and seething anger.

Many of the Hazmat agents recoiled from the amount of spectral energy exerted, with one of them shouting, "The subject is hostile! Brace yourselves!"

"I could have possessed near-omnipotence with the Reality Gauntlet in my grasp….and now…" Vlad said, letting out a dark chuckle. "...now it's destroyed…as if the universe itself conspires against me to ensure that I do not obtain the power that is rightfully mine!"

Operatives O and K decided to be the first ones to attack Vlad with their anti-ecto weapons by flying close and firing their firearms. Vlad however disappeared with a burst of magenta ecto-energy, evading the projectiles.

"We lost visual! I repeat, we lost visu-" K alerted the agents, only to be cut off as Plasmius appeared behind two hazmat operatives and incinerated the top halves of their bodies with two magenta ecto-rays, causing the lower halves to drop to the floor.

"HOLY SHIT!" One of the hazmat operatives screamed as they opened fire on Plasmitus.

"HOSTILE INCOMING!" Another Hazmat agent screamed.

The Winconsin Ghost flew past each anti-ghost ray fired at him before then landing on the ground and pointed at the hysterical hazmat agent that failed to land a hit, as he was caught in Vlad's telekinetic grasp. The agent screamed before his torso was turned 180 degrees backwards, setting off his anti-ghost gun which shot three of his fellow agents. One agent had a hole blasted in their chest, another had lost both his arms while the third agent was missing his legs, crawling with bloody stumps.

Vlad wasted no time as he coated his hand in magenta ecto-energy and finished off the crudely twisted agent by cleaving their head in two with a hand chop, then teleported over to the two heavily injured agents. Plasmius started with the legless agent, killing them by crushing their skull underneath his boot, then teleported in front of the armless agent and lifted him up by the neck. The agent tried to break free, but without arms he was trapped and soon felt an intense level of heat envelop his body.

The agent's body glowed a sickly magenta as their hazmat suit melted clean off, followed by the agent's skin and muscles as he shriveled up and liquified, reducing the agent to a charred magenta puddle. Ten agents had soon surrounded Vlad and continued to fire their guns at him, but the Winsconsin Ghost created a magenta dome-shaped barrier around his body which blocked all of the projectiles before hundreds of long spikes protruded out of the barrier, killing ten agents in one move.

One agent had the not so brilliant idea of charging at Plasmius with an anti-ghost baton, but Vlad simply dodged each swing of the weapon before grasping their neck and snapping it effortlessly like a twig then dropping the agent's limp body. Multiple baton wearing agents tried attacking Vlad, but he dodged and weaved through every attack, then fired a magenta ecto-ray and spun it 360 degrees, slicing any agent within range and leaving a bisected bloody mess behind.

To say Operative O and K were terrified would have been an understatement. However despite this, the two Guys in White charged forward, guns blazing and batons swinging. Plasimus forever easily subdued both agents telekinetically as a sadistic grin formed on the Wisconsin Ghost's face. Holding both hands out, he snapped the fingers of his left hand, causing Operative O to implode into a cloud of blood and visceral then after snapping the fingers of his right hand, Operative K had his white suit and his skin flayed off, reducing the man to just his muscle, blood vessels and bone as the agent soon died of shock.

Plasmius continued his violent rampage, as his body flickered and glowed with blood red Madness-infused ecto-energy. His expression was unhinged, even for Vlad, as if a demon had taken control of his body and completely consumed by animalistic id.

An hour had passed, and the walls and floor of Amity Park's branch of B.O.R.D's headquarters were soaked in blood and entrails. In the center of the room was Plasmius, whose hands and face were covered in blood as he panted heavily from the violence he inflicted upon the Guys in White. Fifty had shown up, and now fifty were dead, ripped apart, chopped up and incinerated all around the place.

The Madness that had plagued Vlad's mind and body soon began to dissolve and clarity flooded his mind as the realization of what he had done surfaced. Plasmius was no stranger to killing, but this was different.

"Cursed shortbread…" He muttered to himself as he levitated his body. "I need to return home and wash this filth on my body…"

With that, Vlad then flew off at hypersonic speeds in order to reach Winsconsin as fast as possible. Though he did not want to admit it, Vlad felt as if how he dealt with the Guys in White was horrifying, even for his own cruel standards. He pushed the thought aside, as he could not wait to return to his mansion.

---

Dorathea's Kingdom, Ghost Zone

The best way to describe the Infinite Realms was eerie. The group was essentially flying through Purgatory for souls bound by unresolved emotions and motives. The void had a backdrop of swirling ectoplasm while many violet doors were scattered across the plane.

This place sent shivers down Mason and Pacifica's spines for different reasons.

Mason couldn't explain it, but he felt the overwhelming power of the parallel dimension. Being one of the first humans to cross over to the "other side" surely helped his ego, but the important thing for him was the possibility of discovering other territories of Spirits known and unknown for his research.

Pacifica, on the other hand, felt the heavy realization of being in Purgatory while alive. Her demons rose to the surface. The bleach blonde wondered if this would be where she ended here if she didn't live up to atoning for her bloodline's sins. Or worse, Pacifica could become the very thing that haunted her each night.

Regardless of their views, neither Pacifica nor Mason could deny the hint of wonder they felt being in another world foreign to them.

After the tutorial on how to fly the vehicle, the group decided to make small talk for the rest of the journey.

"I can't believe we're here!" Mason said, fascinated with the dimension he was traveling in. "It's more vast than I can even imagine."

The bleach-blonde valley girl winced at the sight of lesser Spirits by the window as she whispered, "This place gives me the creeps!"

"I hear you, Pacifica," Phantom calmly nodded while piloting the Specter Speeder. "But don't worry, we're taking a shortcut to Dorathea's place."

"Couldn't you use your creep breath thing to sense her out or something?" Pacifica whined.

"That's not how my Ghost Sense works," Phantom said, rolling his eyes. "Even if I could do it that way, the Ghost Sense doesn't work when I'm in the Ghost Zone-"

"You have gotta be kidding me…" Pacifica groaned.

"-Thankfully, Dad made a program that acts as a tracker to home in on a particular Spirit's ecto-signature. I'm certain we're heading in the right direction." Phantom finished.

"Oh thank God," Pacifica sighed.

"As long as we steer clear of the likes of Skulker and Walker, we should be okay," Mason added.

"Amen to that," The ghost boy agreed. "Hey, Mase, I've been meaning to ask you something."

"Hm? What's up?" Asked the California native.

"Any update back at home?" Phantom questioned. "In Piedmont, I mean."

Pacifica watched her boyfriend go silent as he ran one of his hands through his hair.

"I mean, things are alright with my parents since they reconciled last year." Mason awkwardly answered. "...But, uh, my sister and I still aren't on speaking terms."

Danny frowned while Pacifica rubbed Mason's back in comfort.

"...Oh. Sorry, I shouldn't have asked." Phantom muttered.

"No, it's fine. Nice to know when a person shows that they care." Mason reassured. "If only Mabel could see that I do…"

"Hey, Mase. We understand. I know this isn't much… If you need an ear or two sometime, we'll listen." Phantom offered. "But only if and when you're ready."

"Thanks," Mason said with a soft smile.

Within ten minutes, the Specter Speeder approached a completely renovated version of Aragon's Castle. Instead of a dreary purple stone keep castle with a polluted motte surrounded by dead trees, the new stronghold in Dora's Kingdom was a white and gold concentric castle with fresh water in the motte and lively trees resembling those from the Living World. The tapestry of a white dragon hung from poles and flowed elegantly along the breeze. Even the green mist that was in the background was nowhere to be seen.

This took Danny by surprise, as what once stood as Aragon's Kingdom was a completely different domain. Nonetheless, he flew the Specter Speeder toward the stronghold with confidence that its denizens would recognize him. He would be correct, for as soon as Dora's subjects spotted him, one of them spoke.

"Lay down the drawbridge! Our champion returns!" One ghost clad in armor commanded.

Soon enough, the group entered the concentric castle by crossing the outer wall. From there, two other guards guided the Specter Speeder through the kingdom while parading the return of their hero.

"HERE YE, HERE YE! MAKE WAY FOR SIR DANIEL OF THE PARK OF AMITY!" One of the armor-clad guides announced.

Many of the medieval spirits cheered, much to the embarrassment of Danny.

Pacifica raised an eyebrow at this, repeating, "Sir Daniel?"

"I knew you were popular amongst our age group at home, but didn't expect you to be this popular here," Mason added. "Did we miss something?"

"It's a long story. I'll explain it when we see Dora," Danny said, focusing on flying the vehicle.

Once they were permitted to park the Specter Speeder outside of the main building that housed the queen, the trio was escorted inside where they walked two flights of stairs and made it to Dora's royal chambers.

"The Queen has been informed of your arrival, Sir Daniel. Please, wait for Her Majesty." The guide instructed. "The royal handmaid will allow you to enter the chambers when given permission."

"Understood," Phantom nodded before watching the armored Spirit float away.

When he turned to his friends, he asked Pacifica, "So, the Ghost Zone. What are your thoughts about it so far?"

"Oh," Pacifica said, snapping out of her thoughts. "I guess it's not so bad. I'm still getting swirly green skies, creepy atmosphere, and weird physics."

"Even compared to the creatures and weirdness of Gravity Falls, this place is strange," Mason admitted. "And I cloned myself using a weird copy machine."

"Wait, you what?" Phantom questioned, only for the royal chamber to open.

"Sir Daniel, guests, the queen awaits." The handmaid ghost announced, gesturing for the trio to enter.

The trio nodded, then walked inside of the chamber. The room was more like a home within a home. In it was a kitchen made of marble, an entertainment room with a large flat-screen television and a couch, a table with a chess board on it, two guest rooms, and a bedroom with a wardrobe from Victorian-era furniture including a king-sized bed.

"...Wait, I don't understand. Didn't you say this place had been stuck in the Dark Ages?" Mason questioned.

Phantom absentmindedly answered, "Huh. The curse must have lifted."

"Curse? What curse?" Pacifica said.

Before Danny could answer, Mason pointed out someone coming inside the living room.

Stepping inside the living room from the balcony was a female green-skinned ghost with blond hair in a French braid. She wore purple lipstick, a blue headband, and her dragon amulet. Her outfit consisted of a two-toned light blue princess-style dress with long sleeves and a green band around the waist. She also wore light blue flats.

This was the Pale Dragon Queen, Dorathea.

She smiled and greeted the ghost boy, saying, "Welcome back, Sir Daniel. I'd thought you would visit one of these days,"

Phantom bowed his head and moved his right arm across his chest to show respect.

"Your Highness," He greeted back.

The queen placed a hand on one of Phantom's cheeks as she said, "Come now. You are a hero to this kingdom and my champion. There is no need to be so formal with me."

"Oh, my bad, Dora," Phantom chuckled with a sheepish expression.

"Wait, champion?" Pacifica repeated.

"Seriously, dude, what did we miss?" Mason added.

"Oh! Are these two friends of yours?" Asked Queen Dorathea.

"Yeah!" Phantom nodded. "They moved to my town a while ago. The guy is Mason and the girl is Pacifica."

Out of respect for the Pale Dragon Queen, the two kneeled to Dora. However, the woman told them to rise.

Dora then said, "Mason, Pacifica. Sir Daniel is a hero amongst Spirits and a man amongst men. I and my kingdom consider those who are allies of our champion to be allies."

"What did he do for you to have him knighted, Your Highness?" Mason questioned.

"Three moons ago, I had been enslaved by my brother, the Black Dragon King, to do his bidding. I was forced to find a bride for him to rule under, just as he had done to me for 1600 years while he made it so that time moved still. Unfortunately, it led me to capture Sir Daniel's sister, of which I was unaware." Dora explained.

Mason and Pacifica gasped and noticed Danny's scowl, indicating him recalling the memory vividly.

"While she was imprisoned, Lady Jasmine and I bonded. She made me realize the cruelty in which I suffered and the power that I possess was no greater than the power my brother coveted. Together, we planned to overthrow him. When Sir Daniel arrived to save his sister, he challenged my brother. The moment Lady Jasmine freed me, all three of us battled my tyrannical brother. Once he was distracted, Sir Daniel sealed him within the metal chalice he carried and freed the kingdom from my brother's reign, leaving time to resume here and the throne for me to claim. Shortly after, I bestowed both of them ranks befitting their chivalry." Dora concluded.

"That's awesome!" Mason gushed. "You're a superhero and a knight!"

"...Hold on, why would you cram her brother into the Fenton Thermos? Wouldn't you be putting him back into the Spirit World?" Pacifica said, trying to make sense of the decision.

"Oh, Aragon is still here. In the Ghost Zone, I mean." Phantom clarified. "I just paid a visit to Walker's Prison and gave the old warden some incentive to get off my back. We shouldn't see tall, dark, and scaly for another couple thousand years."

"Good thinking, Casper." Said Pacifica with a smirk.

Mason then nudged the ghost boy's ribs and joked, "Dude, why didn't you ask for the queen's hand? It could help you get over Sam."

Phantom playfully shoved the brunette, saying, "Shut up, man!"

The two girls giggled with Dora revealing, "Admittedly, I made such a proposal as a reward, but Sir Daniel declined. I passed long ago, and it is his time to be alive."

'I can always wait until he crosses over.' Queen Dorathea thought with hope, fantasizing a grand wedding with her knight.

Phantom blushed dark green before clearing his throat despite the stifled laughs of Mason and Pacifica.

"Anyway," Phantom said, rolling his eyes at his friends in annoyance before looking at Dora's red irises. "I came here for your help, Dora. I need-"

Suddenly, Phantom dropped to his knees as he hugged his profusely shivering body. This alarmed everybody in the room. Next, the ghost boy's tanned skin turned pale with a blue tinge. From there, he emitted a light blue freezing spectral aura before a mist formed and started to freeze the floor.

"O-Oh G-G-God…" Phantom managed to mutter in between his teeth chattering.

"Danny!" Mason and Pacifica cried.

Seeing what was happening, Dora scooped Phantom off the ground, wrapped her arms around his upper chest, and summoned a light coat of fiery blue spectral aura while hugging her champion. This lasted for a solid minute before the effect made the Ghostly Chills recede. The ghost boy had stopped shivering shortly after.

This allowed everybody present to breathe a sigh of relief.

When Dora let go of Danny. She softly asked, "Do you feel better?"

Phantom nodded slowly before asking, "...What was that?"

"I can control my dragon fire in other ways. I can also use my gift for cooking," Dora sagely stated. "But it seems that you too possess a gift. And a rare one at that."

"Can you help him control it, Queen Dora?" Mason inquired.

"I would be more than happy to assist my champion," Queen Dorathea said with a smile, only to frown. "Alas, I am a Spirit of Fire due to my family represented by the imagery of dragons-"

'...That confirms her being a Totem.' Mason mentally noted.

"-But, there may be a person who can help Sir Daniel." Queen Dorathea stated, earning the trio's immediate attention.

"There is? Who?" Danny questioned.

"In the Realm of the Far Frozen lives a race of Ice Spirits. They are led by an ancient spirit who is said to be the Master of Frost and Snow." Dora explained.

"An ancient spirit?" Mason repeated as he turned to Phantom. "Dude, we got to make a new category in the files!"

"Of course," Pacifica muttered.

"So you think this Master of Frost of Snow could help me?" Phantom asked for reassurance.

"The residents of the realm live in isolation and usually are hostile to foreigners, but their leader is a wise judge of character. There is no doubt in my mind that he will help you. Especially with a power and a heart as rich as yours." Dora confidently stated.

"As promising as that sounds, this brings us to another problem," Said Pacifica. "Reaching said destination."

"...She's got a point," Mason agreed.

Phantom facepalmed, thinking, 'Crud! She's right.'

"Do not fear, I have a friend who shall aid you in your quest." Queen Dora said.

"You do?" Phantom queried.

Dora whistled by blowing a whistle with her right index and thumb. From there, a large figure jumped from the balcony into the living room, startling Pacifica, and Mason.

Inside the royal chamber was a muscular Spirit resembling a werewolf with black fur, green eyes, retractable green claws on his hands, and large saber teeth. He wore a tattered green hoodie with torn-off sleeves, tattered green pants, and a shackle on his left wrist.

Phantom gasped before a full-blown smile formed on his face.

"Wulf!"

"Danny! Friend!" Wulf exclaimed before pulling him into a hug.

When the two let go, Phantom asked, "What are you doing here? I thought you ran off?"

"I was unaware that you knew each other," Dora said. "I found him outside of the castle walls in need of nourishment. When I got to know him through learning his language, I offered him a place in my kingdom. Now, he serves as my noble beast and personal guard."

"That's perfect!" Mason exclaimed. "Finding the place will be a cinch!"

Pacifica, still freaking out that a werewolf Ghost stood in front of them, whipped her head toward her boyfriend and said, "You. explain. Now."

Mason raised his hands defensively. He and Danny knew she was less than thrilled with the idea of a monster tagging along.

"Calm down, Paz. Listen, Wulf's claws can tear temporary rifts from our world to the Ghost Zone and vice versa. He could cut travel time short and bring us to the exact spot within the GZ we need to head to this Realm of the Far Frozen."

Pacifica bit her lip, still apprehensive of trusting Wulf. To alleviate the tension, Mason decided to gently grasp the former bully's right wrist and then gently placed her hand onto Wulf's lowered head.

As a response, Wulf gave Pacifica a nice sloppy lick across the face, causing her to yelp.

"EWW! I got dog slobber on me!" Pacifica complained.

This got a laugh out of everybody present in the royal chamber.

Ten minutes later, Danny Phantom stood next to Wulf, who was in front of the Specter Speeder. This time, Mason was piloting the vehicle per Danny's request. Before leaving the building Dora gave Mason and Pacifica special winter coats for the journey as legends state that the Far Frozen was the coldest place in the Spirit World.

Phantom turned to Queen Dorathea and said, "Thanks again. Hopefully, I can get this power under control."

"Have faith, Sir Daniel. You are a strong ghost." Dora stated before pecking his left cheek. "And an even stronger human. Believe in your strength,"

Phantom blushed and nodded. He turned to Wulf and said, "You're up, Wulf."

"Mi komencos, amiko." Wulf said in Esperanto as he flew at least one hundred feet above the castle.

From there, Phantom flashed a thumbs up to Mason, waved the queen goodbye, and then took to the swirly green skies. The Specter Speeder followed soon after. Wulf then cut a rift large enough for the Specter Speeder to pass through and go through it. Danny followed him, and the Speeder followed Danny.

"Safe travels, my champion," Dora whispered, watching the rift mend and disappear.

---

Realm of the Far Frozen, Ghost Zone

Wulf, Danny, and the Specter Speeder passed through the rift, eventually arriving at the tunnel made of ice. While her boyfriend piloted the Specter Speeder, Pacifica made small talk with him.

"Like, what language does the furball speak?" The Oregon native questioned. "It kind of sounds like Spanish, but it's not. Hell, it's not even Portuguese."

"Well, you're kind of close," Mason said. "According to Jazz, Wulf speaks Esperanto."

"Esper-what?" Pacifica asked, stumped at the name of the language.

The paranormal investigator-in-training chuckled as he shook his head.

"You wouldn't know. It's a dead language." Said Mason. "Some guy from the Russian Empire in the 19th century based it off of Latin, with German, Polish, and Greek influences. There's nothing like it."

" Right. …You know, you never told me how your great uncle is doing." The bleach blonde commented.

Mason raised an eyebrow as he responded, "I didn't think you cared that much, all things considering."

"We may not have gotten along in the past, but I'm not that petty," Pacifica said.

"Fair." Mason nodded in acceptance. "Which one are you talking about?"

Pacifica blinked before saying, "Oh, right. I forgot Mr. Pines isn't Stanford Pines, but Stanley Pines. I'm still getting used to that…"

"Yeah, Grunkle Ford is still not happy about that. Then again, I'd be pissed off as well if I learned I was banned from half of the country because of my shady twin. Identity theft is a real bi-"

"-Wait, he did what!?" Pacifica shouted in shock.

"Long story." Mason dully answered. "To answer your question, Grunkle Ford and I get along famously. He can be very strict and blunt, and I have this strange feeling that there are things he's keeping me in the dark about. But unlike Stan, he addresses that certain subjects he knows about will be broached to me in time."

"So, you guys are more of a teacher-student dynamic than a familial thing going on?" Pacifica said, recognizing the differing relationships within the Pines family.

"Mentor-mentee," Mason corrected, "But accurate. That doesn't mean Grunkle Ford doesn't recognize or care about me as a member of our overall family. Ford…well…he's been through hell while being secluded for decades and all."

"...Right," Pacifica nodded. "What about you and Stan? I know he's been a hack and a con artist, but I know that he cares about you and Mabel, at least."

"I know, and I appreciate what he's done for our summers. Or, at least what he tried to do." Mason softly acknowledged before his eyes hardened. "...But that doesn't mean that I trust him anymore. I can overlook his shady past, the fact that he teased me to try and toughen me up, but it doesn't change the fact that he lied to me. He knew everything and still made me think I was crazy about the weird happenings surrounding Gravity Falls."

Pacifica watched as Mason's hands tightened.

"...If that wasn't irking enough, he convinced Mabel to open the portal, something that could have killed us all. Even if it was to bring back Ford, he risked everything with that portal and didn't apologize for putting us in harm's way. I knew there was no talking to him anymore."

Pacifica frowned, but silently accepted his answer.

"...If it makes you feel any better, he's staying close to my family on his boat on the coastline," Mason added. "They go fishing occasionally."

Pacifica nodded, saying, "That'll be good for her."

"Yeah," Mason nodded.

Speaking from the microphone of the Speeder for Danny to hear, Pacifica asked, "Hey, Casper. Are you sure that Toto knows where we're going?"

Phantom chuckled while flying, quipping, "Relax, Dorothy. Wulf's nose is even better than Cujo's in tracking other Ghosts. We'll be over there in no ti-"

Unfortunately, the Ghostly Chills returned with a vengeance as the ghost boy's temperature drastically dropped, causing his skin to pale. It also caused frost on his face and hair to rapidly form. This made Danny slam into the surface of a frozen icicle. Mason gasped, temporarily losing focus. He ended up crashing into the same surface, causing the Specter Speeder.

Wulf watched as Phantom and his friends fell into a large hole.

"NE!" Wulf exclaimed in fear and worry before taking the plunge right after them.

The werewolf Spirit found Phantom and the Specter Speeder lying within a moderately sized snow pit.

Wulf first helped Phantom get on his feet while asking him, "Ĉu vi estas vundita, mia amiko?"

Phantom could barely stand without shivering like crazy, but he gave Wulf a nod.

"I-I'm fine, Wulf. I just got t-t-the shivers, that's all." Phantom reassured while hugging himself.

Thanks to Jazz, he learned to understand the Esperanto language.

He turned to see that while the Specter Speeder was upside down, it was relatively unscathed.

'Thank God. The last thing I need is for Dad to tear me a new one.' Phantom thought as he knelt on the windshield where he could see his friends.

"A-A-Are you guys a-alright in there?" Asked Phantom, still shivering.

Mason and Pacifica appeared dazed at the fall but hadn't sustained a single injury thanks to wearing seatbelts.

"Yeah… We're good, D," Mason responded, looking at the ghost boy. "But you-"

"-You're growing paler," Pacifica finished.

"-I-I-I know," Phantom said, trying to warm himself with his ectoplasm, only to fail. "B-B-But I think we've made it. We just g-got to find this ancient g-g-guy…wherever he is."

Wulf took this time to get Pacifica and Mason out of the toppled Specter Speeder using his intangibility power. Thankfully, they quickly put on their coats, something that Phantom lacked.

"Thanks for the hand, Wulf!" Mason happily thanked.

"Ne estas problemo," Wulf said in Esperanto with a smirk.

Pacifica gasped, then let out a high-pitched screech.

Danny, Mason, and Wulf turned around after hearing a low growl that caught their ears. When they did, they were met with a monstrous Spirit nearly twice the size of Wulf towering over them while shadowing the group of four.

The Spirit took the form of a burly male yeti-like creature with white fur, gray claws on his right hand and feet, along with a grayish-blue face that resembled a polar bear, yellow eyes with purple pupils, and a pair of fangs protruding upwards from his bottom jaw. He had a pair of frozen horns lay atop his head, along with a pair of ice pikes on his tail and his entire left arm was purely skeletal while encased in ice.

The beast wore a gold band on his right bicep, a gold belt adorned with a blue gem that held up a blue loincloth, and a big blue cape around his shoulders held by a gold charm.

This was Frostbite, one of the Seven Ancient Spirits and the Master of Ice and Snow.

The snarling Frostbite began to release his uniquely light blue spectral energy that shot up like a pillar.

Phantom felt this, mentally comparing the insane power to Plasmius' Madness. As it turned out, Vlad's power didn't hold a candle to the snow beast. The Snow Spirit's spectral energy was so vast and powerful, it manifested a powerful blizzard that surrounded the group to prevent them from escaping.

"Oh no…" Phantom muttered while shivering.

The moment Frostbite took a threatening step and raised his arms with fists clenched, Wulf lunged at him. This caused the two Spirits to tumble, battling like wild animals.

Wulf tried clawing at the snow beast, but the white Spirit was more nimble than it looked and easily dodged it before backhanding him. Wulf got up, slightly dazed. He looked up to his white-furred opponent and snarled at him before firing ecto-rays from his eyes. As a response, Frostbite roared, then fired an ice beam that froze the ecto-ray into solid matter. The beast then caught the frozen ray and smashed it into Wulf's face. The dark gray Ghost retaliated by biting the snow beast's "organic" forearm. When Frostbite shook him off, Wulf howled dangerously, emitting his green spectral energy. The snow beast did the same with his unique spectral energy, staring Wulf down.

This face-off sent ripples of cool wind currents across the land, which violently shook the ground.

Pacifica was on the verge of a panic attack, feeling the pressure of two high-level Spirits causing her legs to shake. Mason also felt his feet rooted on the ground, feeling his body tremble in fear.

Mason mentally panicked, 'Shit! I can't move…!'

"O-Oh god…!" Pacifica repeated, finding it hard to breathe.

The two watched the battle continue with the two Spirits clash, wondering if they were going to survive the encounter.

Phantom then clasped their shoulders with both hands while shivering, taking them out of their thoughts.

"D-Don't freak out. I'm s-s-still here…" Phantom managed to croak while his body shook.

Before either Mason or Pacifica could respond, the ghost-themed superhero pushed them down while narrowly avoiding Wulf barreling in the air. The Spirit ended up crashing into the side of the Specter Speeder, damaging the vehicle in the process.

Mason and Pacifica snapped out of their stupor when they found Phantom on his knees, profusely shivering.

"We gotcha, buddy," Mason said with him and Pacifica picking the ghost boy up by the arms.

Phantom looked over to find the Specter Speeder damaged, feeling a wave of overwhelming dread.

Pacifica whispered, "...That could have been us."

"Now, we have no way to get home," Mason uttered, realizing the gravity of the situation.

"Oh, man! My d-d-dad's gonna k-k-kill me!" Phantom said while shivering, swallowing hard.

Just then, the snow beast set his sights on the trio with eyes dilated. Wulf was left in a weakened state, unable to fight off his white-furred opponent. Phantom stepped in front of his friends despite his waning condition. He concentrated enough ecto energy on his hands, ready to defend his friends with his life.

When the bipedal snow beast raised its claw, Pacifica noticed a slab of sharp ice from the back of his neck.

"Danny, look!" Pacifica quickly blurted out.

Phantom did so and pieced together what was going on. Sticking out his left index finger, Phantom fired an ecto ray which got the lodged slab out of his spectral body. This caused Frostbite's eyes to return to normal with a softened expression on his face.

"Huh? Dolor…Abiit!" Frostbite said, speaking fluent Latin.

"That's Latin!" Mason shouted, instantly recognizing the language.

Hearing Mason's voice, Frostbite spotted the trio and knelt to them.

"...I must thank you three for alleviating the pain that induced my enraged state," Frostbite said in English, revealing his good nature.

"U-Um, like, it's no problem!" Pacifica squeaked, feeling like she was having a case of whiplash from the sudden tone shift.

He then turned to Phantom and asked him, "And what is the name of the brave young Spirit whom I owe a debt of gratitude?"

However, Phantom had gone unconscious before he could answer, falling into Frostbite's arms.

"Danny!" Both teens shouted.

This prompted Wulf to get up and inspect what had happened. He sensed that Frostbite was no longer hostile and understood what he was, so he pleaded to the Ancient Spirit.

Wulf pled in Latin, "Frigora devorat. Non permanebit. Puer et amicis opus sunt. Salvum fac amicum, veterem Spiritum. Bonus est."

Frostbite stared at the fallen ghost child, then looked at the damaged Specter Speeder. He approached it and took it on his shoulder while cradling Phantom with his "organic" arm.

"Come! We shall return to my city at once!" Frostbite ordered.

Mason and Pacifica stared at each other, only for Wulf to stand on all fours in front of the two, gesturing for them to get on his back.

The two understood that there was no other option.

With that, the couple rode off Wulf as Frostbite guided them to civilization with Danny's life in balance.

---

Medical Bay, Far Frozen, Ghost Zone

Danny awoke in a medical facility with his friends standing in front of him. Except he felt as if he was floating in a vat of warm water with nothing but his boxers covering his private area, and an oxygen mask keeping him alive.

"Look, he's waking up!" Mason pointed out.

"Mason, Pacifica? Are you guys okay?" A nearly completely naked Phantom spoke.

"Never mind us. Welcome back, Casper." Pacifica weakly nodded. "How are you feeling?"

"Ugh… Numb." The white-haired hero groaned. "It feels like Johnny 13 and his bad luck shadow played hot potato hardcore… And I was the potato."

"...He's still quippy, so that's a good sign," Mason added.

The bleach blonde rolled her eyes as a response.

"Wulf returned to Dora's kingdom once he knew we were in good hands. And the Speeder's been taking to be fixed, though that'll take a couple of hours." Pacifica informed.

"That sounds great and all, but where are we?" Phantom questioned, unable to identify his current location.

"I believe I can answer your question, Brave One!" A voice spoke from afar.

Frostbite walked up to Phantom's chamber, carrying a friendly exterior, contrasting the beast he watched battling and besting Wulf from earlier.

"It's you!" Phantom recognized. "The Ghost from before!"

"I see that you recognize me. Allow me to introduce myself," Frostbite insisted. "I am Frostbite, chief of the Realm of the Frozen and Master of Ice and Snow! …Though, I've grown fond of the "Specter" term your brown-haired ally offered."

Phantom darted his green eyes to Mason, looking for answers.

The inner paranormal researcher in Mason compelled him to explain.

"He confirmed another species that Dora told us about," He elaborated. "There are at least seven ancient Spirits that personify concepts that are associated with death or are adjacent with themes associated with death. And he's one of them."

"...That checks out. He was freezing lasers and tossed Wulf around like a rag doll." Pacifica added.

Hearing this made something click in Phantom's mind.

'...This Spirit is Beta Class! No wonder why he's so strong!' Phantom mentally gaped.

"That's quite astute of you children," Said Frostbite, impressed with their knowledge before turning to Phantom. "You're in one of the several medical facilities in the Realm of the Far Frozen, where you were put in a De-icing Chamber. As for your uniform, they are in the wash for sanitary purposes."

Frostbite's face turned serious as he stated, "Your lycan friend pleaded for your survival, advocating for your good nature. May I ask for your reason in my territory, Brave One?"

Nodding, Phantom elaborated, "Ever since his battle with an old enemy, I've been getting these Ghost Chills that have been intensifying over time. A friend mentioned that there was a Spirit, you, that could explain how to deal with this cold sensation."

"Ah yes, the cold sensation!" Frostbite recognized as he walked over to display screens from an advanced computer.

This showed both his heartbeat and a chart of his body.

"While you were unconscious, I picked up readings of extreme cold from your central core. It was as if your body was generating it." Frostbite analyzed. "I sensed this as I carried you back to the city."

"Core?" Pacifica repeated. "Do Spirits have hearts like us?"

"Not, not at all." The ancient Spirit said while shaking his head. "Spirits typically focus their spectral energy from the center of their being and expel it outward. It's like breathing to living people. But this is a different case to the Brave One. The gift we share seems to be a result of him tapping into his latent potential, thus, undergoing a sort of mutation."

Mason gasped, "...I knew it! Danny's Ghost Sense must have been the sign!"

"Does that mean it's really a new ghost power?" Asked Phantom.

"Precisely," Frostbite nodded with a smile. "While new to you, the power of ice is familiar to me and my people."

With his "organic" hand, he formed a small rhombus crystal made of ice while saying, "We are trained in its use-"

Frostbite then morphed the crystal into an ice saber with his ecto-based ice powers, swinging it with skill and precision.

"-and it had practical uses for it as well," Frostbite stated.

"...Cool!" Both Mason and Pacifica admitted.

"Teach me!" The ghost boy begged with his hands against the glass before covering his private area despite wearing boxers. "...After my clothes are ready."

"Woo! Training montage!" Mason cheered.

This earned the younger Pines twin a smack on the back of the head from Pacifica.

---

Arena, Far Frozen, Ghost Zone

Danny Phantom, now clothed in his suit, found himself standing outside an arena with Frostbite. Surrounding them were the denizens of the Far Frozen while Mason and Pacifica sitting in the front row.

The other Snow Spirits, which looked like Frostbite, cheered with some holding their buckets of grilled meat.

The shivering Phantom noticed this while commenting, "M-My friends being here, I get, but why are there so many of your p-p-people w-watching us?"

Frostbite claimed, "Ha! It is not every moon that my people get an opportunity to see their leader train one with great potential as you, young Brave One."

"You don't have to keep calling me that. I do have a na…" Phantom retorted before pausing in realization. "...They're hoping that I'll mess up, aren't they?"

Frostbite grinned, confirming, "Indeed. These people lived in a frozen wasteland for millennia. They take their comedy where they can get it."

"YOU GOT THIS! KNOCK 'EM DEAD FOR ME, BRO!" Mason shouted while Pacifica buried her hands in embarrassment.

'...Of course, this would be for my benefit and my expense.' Phantom thought dully.

Danny Phantom sighed despite his cold disposition. Frostbite decided to begin Danny's training.

"-Now then, we shall begin your training," Frostbite exclaimed. "Lesson one; stop shivering."

"W-What?" Phantom blurted out, still shivering from the moderate Ghostly Chills. "But I-I-I-I c-c-can't."

It was here where Frostbite pointed out, "You doubt yourself too much, Brave One. The fact that you haven't died from hypothermia while enduring your power is a testament to your resolve."

This caused Phantom to gasp in surprise.

"Y-You know?" Phantom asked quietly.

"I had my suspicions when your dark-furred friend disclosed your condition. But they were confirmed by your human allies." Frostbite said with a smirk. " No judgment on my part about your true self. Though, it would also explain your minor issue."

"What d-do you mean minor? I'm f-f-freezing to death here!" Phantom shouted, waving his arms in the air exasperatedly.

Frostbite chuckled and explained, "Your powers manifest and develop differently than most Spirits due to your unique and paradoxical makeup. From what I was told, you've only been letting it out in small amounts of your gift since you acquired your ghost abilities."

Danny paused and thought about what his new teacher told him.

"...R-Right, my G-G-Ghost Sense," Phantom understood. "It's a part of this freezing power."

"But now you must learn to let it out all at once. Now then, concentrate. Let the energy build until it has nowhere to go but out."

Phantom let Frostbite's words sink in. His wandering back to the night was bum-rushed by Plasmius. He recalled his intimidation tactic in vivid detail. The older half-Ghost had summoned most of his power into a large pillar of negatively charged spectral (Madness) aura.

As much as he loathed the Fruitloop who made his life difficult for over a year, Phantom knew he had to learn this skill to control his new power and even the playing field.

Danny looked down at his trembling hands, then clenched them tightly as he took a deep breath.

"...Okay. Here goes." Phantom announced as he began to manifest his ice-based spectral energy light blue aura.

When this happened, the ground began to ripple in a small draft as Phantom's icy blue aura intensified. However, due to his lack of control, Phantom forcibly expelled this energy halfway with a shout that echoed throughout the arena, engulfing a fourth of the area.

The audience briefly shielded their eyes, only for everybody to gasp in shock.

When Phantom opened his eyes, he inspected himself and noticed that the Ghostly Chills were gone.

"Hey. Wow! It worked. I feel normal again. No more cold feeling!" The ghost kid chuckled, happy that his immediate problem was solved. "Way to go Frostbi-"

Phantom's sentence fell short as he saw the result of his attempt to control his new power. There stood Frostbite, the Specter of Snow, encased in ice. The ice he generated.

Mason's jaw dropped, prompting Pacifica to slowly close her boyfriend's mouth to avoid any ghost flies from entering.

She then shouted, "...Maybe you dial it back just a tiny smidge, Casper!"

Phantom nodded dimly, then asked the crowd of Snow Spirits, "Um, can I get some hot chocolate over here?"

Sometime after receiving proper frozen energy control, Frostbite had several wooden targets brought to the arena for target practice. This was about conjuring constructs made of ice-based ecto energy. These targets were placed in a way to make a circle that surrounded the two.

"Lesson two: cryokinetic constructs." Said Frostbite. "Conjuring frozen constructs is not much different from normal spectral energy constructs. However, spectral ice is susceptible to Spirits with the gift of fire, extreme force, and flames of mystical origin. And given its denser nature, it takes a tad more effort to hone and utilize more efficiently."

Phantom watched as Frostbite masterfully conjured a barrage of small ice icicles.

"Observe, Brave One." The Specter instructed as he sent his projectiles away.

The icicles hit their targets without effort from the sender. This earned him a round of applause from Frostbite's people.

"That was kind of basic," Pacifica muttered, unimpressed.

Mason shushed her, preventing the other Snow Spirits from getting offended by her statement.

"Go on," Frostbite said, turning to Danny.

Phantom flexed his hands and summoned his frozen spectral energy into the palm of his hands.

"Concentrate…Concentrate!" Phantom whispered, creating thicker icicles with sharper tips.

Like his teacher, Phantom achieved his desired results. Unfortunately, his attempt proved more than what he required. Not only were the targets destroyed, but some of the icicles were sent toward the audience, including Mason and Pacifica.

The two yelped, but thankfully, a few of the audience formed a frozen barrier that protected everybody. Once the accident was prevented, Mason badgered Danny with a narrowed glare pointing his way.

"DUDE, CUT BACK ON THE POWER!" The brunette snapped. "WE'RE TRYING TO GET BACK HOME ALIVE!"

Danny gave his friend a sheepish apology while adding, "Heh… I guess we're not going to sell snacks now."

Pacifica sighed, saying, "...We've been cutting it close lately."

Suddenly, a foreign yet annoying voice spoke from her right side.

"...Will you be my frieeend?"

Mason and Pacifica turned to see a male Ghost that was large in stature. He had icy blue skin, pink lips, short blond hair and red eyes. All that he wore was striped pink pajamas.

This was Klemper, an Epsilon Class Spirit who was more insufferable than the Box Ghost himself.

Pacifica shrieked, then out of reflex and her need to survive, immediately pulled out her Axion Lab brand Fenton Thermos, trapping Klemper inside the thing until she closed and locked the lid.

"...Paz, you just caught your first Spirit like it was nothing!" Mason praised.

Pacifica blinked, then looked at her red and pink container. She smirked.

"I did, didn't I?" The bleach blonde said, feeling a swell of pride.

'...Maybe coming here wasn't so terrible after all.' The girl reflected.

After several exercises with different ways to use his ice powers, Frostbite decided to test Danny in single combat with nothing but an ice sword.

Thanks to his previous battle with Plasmius, Phantom's skill in weapons combat improved. Regardless, Frostbite proved to be a far greater challenge than Vlad could ever pose.

The Specter of Snow was faster, and stronger, and was thousands of years ahead of both Vlad and especially Phantom himself. Mason and Pacifica had watched Danny take a beating while Frostbite's people watched, getting their fill of entertainment that they hadn't had for hundreds of years.

At a certain point, Frostbite stopped, placing the tip of his ice blade onto the arena floor as he watched a cut-up Phantom with one knee bent, barely holding on to his ice sword that kept his balance steady. He panted, trying to catch his breath while masking his terrified expression with a youthful exterior of defiance.

However, Frostbite's countless years of experience allowed him to see right through the fifteen-year-old's facade.

"Do you yield?" Asked Frostbite.

Phantom's hands trembled, betraying his false bravado. Still, he pulled himself up with his two-handed sword pointed at his opponent.

"...No. Not when I can still breathe," Phantom hissed, regardless of how haggard he sounded.

Frostbite's face turned serious as he said, "I can smell it. You ooze of fear."

Danny grimaced but silently remained resolute in his decision. Seeing the inner turmoil, Frostbite placed his sword onto the ground, then turned to the ground.

"THE LESSONS ARE OVER! EVERYBODY DISPERSE!" Frostbite commanded, causing his citizens to moan in disappointment before leaving.

This left Pacifica, Mason, and Danny baffled.

"What's going on?" Pacifica whispered, still in the stands.

"Beats me." Shrugged the brunette.

"...Huh?" Phantom uttered in confusion, back in the arena. "Why'd you stop?"

"Because I sense great conflict within you," Frostbite stated, causing the hero to dispel his sword and fix his eyes on his boots. "There's a deep-seeded fear, one that's rooted in uncertainty."

Phantom said nothing, too ashamed to admit this fact. The Specter approached his student to reassure him.

Frostbite placed his "organic" hand on Danny's right shoulder. "One filled to the brim with valor such as yourself should not be hanging his head in shame. Fear is natural. What matters is having the resolve to overcome it. That's what makes a hero."

"But what if I'm not good enough?" Phantom queried, letting his dark thoughts bleed out. "Even with my power alone-"

"-Who's to say that you're fighting alone? Perhaps there are others?" Frostbite cryptically hinted at. "Regardless, they must always believe that they will win. I'm sure your new abilities just may help."

Frostbite took his hand off his student's shoulder as he warned him, "Beware, Brave One… Those who do not know the danger of wielding power will, before long, be ruled by it."

Phantom felt a little unnerved by the vague message. To break the awkward tension, Phantom extended his right hand for a handshake.

"Thanks, I'll keep that in mind." He said with sincerity.

When Frostbite happily accepted the handshake, Danny froze them in place.

He warily laughed, saying, "Heh heh! S-Sorry…!"

---

Entrance, Far Frozen, Ghost Zone

Danny Phantom and his friends were gathered at the front of the Far Frozen's entrance. The Specter Speeder was fully repaired by the engineers that Frostbite sent. Most of the citizens were present to bid the group farewell. Somehow, Frostbite had prepared a portal out of the Far Frozen without disclosing the method to the trio.

Not that they mind, anyway.

While Mason and Pacifica packed, Danny Phantom faced the Snow Spirits and their chief.

"Well, I guess this is goodbye. For now." Phantom said, looking at his teacher. "I don't know how I can ever thank you and your people enough."

Frostbite lifted his frozen hand and closed his eyes while smiling.

"You can thank us by using your new abilities to do good and protect your haunt." Said Frostbite.

"Right," Phantom nodded as he watched Mason and Pacifica turn on the Specter Speeder.

The Snow Spirits waved the two humans goodbye as they passed through the gateway to the Fenton Portal. Phantom turned and was about to leave when Frostbite called to him.

"Wait!" Frostbite shouted, prompting Danny to turn around. "The path you choose will grow more painful over time. But when stricken by fear, never waver amidst despair. Have courage, Brave One."

Phantom gave Frostbite a lop-sided smile while crossing his arms.

"Sure. I'll remember that. And by the way, it's Phantom." Said the ghost boy before flying to the portal. "Danny Phantom!"

With that, the hero crossed over, leaving behind the Realm of the Far Frozen.

The Snow Spirit stood there rooted, thinking about the Brave One's words.

'...Did he just invoke Mother's name?' Thought Frostbite. '...Is this a mere coincidence, or does it mean something more?'

Frostbite then began to walk back towards the coliseum, pondering this question. Upon arriving there, he spotted something that stuck out from the icy blue and white environment of the Far Frozen, a red figure. Upon focusing on the figure longer, Frostbite started to recognise who it was.

It was his fellow Ancient spirit and sworn brother, Avarice or commonly referred to as 'The Dealer'. He was wearing his usual attire, but had a large red fur winter coat on as he smoked a cigarette that was in his mouth.

Before anything could be said, two Snow Spirit guards appeared on each side of the Dealer and pointed ice spears at him.

"Who are you? And how did you get here?" One of the guards questioned.

"This how you greet all of your guests?" The Dealer snarked.

"Answer the questions, trespasser!" The other guard exclaimed.

"At ease, my brothers!" Frostbite called out to his fellow Snow Spirits, who both lowered their spears. "He is a longtime ally of mine, long before I came to the Far Frozen."

Frostbite got closer to the Dealer's location, to which he gave the red haired spirit a friendly grin.

"Welcome, Brother Avarice."

"That's not my name anymore, people call me 'The Dealer' these days." The Dealer said before exhaling some smoke and grabbing his cigarette.

"It was the name you bore when we first met, I could not imagine you having a different one." Frostbite commented.

"It wasn't my first, I doubt it will be my last." The Dealer said before changing the subject. "So, it looks like you got yourself an apprentice."

"You were here watching us?" Frostbite asked in surprise before looking at the Dealer suspiciously. "Why did you not make your presence known?"

"And interrupt your little lessons? I will say, seeing that kid freeze the Spirit of Ice and Snow himself was fucking hilarious! Like seriously, how the fuck can someone freeze you, you're the king of this shit!" The Dealer ranted as he descended into laughter, much to Frostbite's annoyance.

"Though we are sworn brothers, I still detest your vulgar and blunt mannerisms." Frostbite said, crossing his arms.

"Why can I say? It's part of the charm." The Dealer said as he took a puff of his cigarette. "But maybe we should talk about what really got your attention, and I don't mean the fact that the kid can freeze things."

"So you heard mine and the Brave One's conversation?" Frostbite asked.

"I don't need to hear your cliche monologues, I have my sources." The Dealer replied. "But since we both know what we're talking about…"

"Danny Phantom…" Frostbite said, to which the Dealer simply nodded. "What does it mean, Brother Avarice?"

"I think you and Clockwork would call it fate or destiny." The Dealer replied.

"What other answer is there? He is invoking the Mother's name!" Frostbite exclaimed.

"Many people invoke Mother's name, Frostbite, that doesn't mean they know what they're doing in the first place." The Dealer said, finishing his cigarette.

"Does his potential and rapid growth not show that his moniker of Phantom is more than coincidence?" Frostbite asked. "He is a liminal one, if anyone was fated to follow Mother's grand design, then surely it's this boy."

"Maybe you're right, but he is not aware of his name's significance, but then why should I be surprised? Mankind has forgotten his origins." The Dealer said before stretching.

"If what Brother Sojourn spoke of was true, and if the Skeleton Key is used to free….him…then could the boy have the power to defeat him?" Frostbite wondered out loud.

"Who cares? As long as my business survives, the winner is irrelevant." The Dealer snarled before lighting another cigarette.

"Are you truly so selfish that you would side with whoever won such a cataclysmic war?" Frostbite questioned with a concerned tone.

"Then maybe you should have faith in that kid you've taken under your wing and hope he does turn out to be the so-called hero you think he is." The Dealer remarked. "Then nothing would change, the Sarcophagus remains locked and my business continues to thrive."

"There is more to life than business and wealth, Avarice, but then perhaps that is a redundant statement, given your nature." Frostbite said honestly, earning a cackle from the Dealer.

"And you wonder why I don't go by that name anymore." The Dealer said before taking a puff of his cigarette again. "Not everyone can be a Spirit of Valour like you are, Frostbite."

"No, but there are many who carry great valor in their hearts, just like Phantom." Frostbite said back.

"You may have a point." The Dealer said with a shrug as he pulled out one of his special playing cards from his coat. "Anyway, I will take my leave. Good talk, Frostbite."

"Good luck to you, Brother Avarice." Frostbite said to his sworn brother. "Safe travels in the Infinite Realms."

The Dealer threw his card at the air in front of him, creating a tear in space-time that he stepped through before it closed, leaving Frostbite alone with his two guards.

To Be Continued...