The cold beeping of the machines was the only sound present in the infirmary. Connected to Danny and Rogue, who were both unconscious on their respective beds, they were surveying any changes in their conditions.
The only person in the room was Wanda, gazing at the sad state her friends were in. After the exorcism with Rogue was completed, she had been brought here, where she hadn't stirred since. Same thing with Danny, as Beast was still working on trying to find a cure for him.
Rogue, though nothing seemed wrong with her physically, according to her brain scans, was apparently brain dead. Xavier had tried to reach out to her with his telepathy but was unable to, as it seemed that whatever mental block Vampira put on her was beyond Xavier's expertise.
And so both hybrids, or hybrid and mutant, as it was discovered that Rogue had no traces of ectoplasm within her anymore, therefore making her fully human (or mutant if you wanted to get specific), were now confined here with everyone hoping that they would be able to return to the world of the living with Wanda being the one with the most desire to see that come to fruition.
These two were the best things to ever happen to her. They were the ones she was the closest with here, and their presence was a constant warmth to her very soul. So to see them like this only brought back the lonely memories she had back at the asylum.
She took Danny's hand in her own.
"I hope you wake up sometime soon." Wanda said. "This place feels empty without you."
Her secret love still remained silent, causing Wanda to brace herself for the worst, for unless a miracle were to happen, it would seem that the conversation she had with him at breakfast would be the last time she ever spoke to him.
Sighing, she brushed some of Danny's hair aside and placed a kiss on his forehead. "Since this might be the only time I get to tell you this, I might as well say it. I love you." She confessed. "I love you so much. You're kind, sweet, and generous. You make me feel safe and secure. And you're always there when I need you and always know what to say to make me smile."
"I know you're with Rogue." Wanda continued. "I'm okay with that. You make me happy, so I'll let you be happy. But I just wanted this one chance to confess."
With her confession finished, she turned to the other occupant in the room. Glancing at Rogue, Wanda could only wonder what had happened to her friend. According to the professor, Rogue's ghost half had been sentient all this time, and apparently it tried to take control of her. She recalled how the ghost half, or Vampira as she called herself, revealed all the ways she tried to dispose of her. It only made her wonder: Did Rogue secretly want her gone? Or was she a victim in all of this? The unknown answer was like a constant anxiety to the sorceress, constantly badgering against her nerves.
"She cared for you, Wanda. She always did."
Wanda jumped back as she got into a defensive position at the new person in the room, or ghost, as it was clear by their aura.
But this ghost felt ancient. He was clad in a purple cloak with black gloves that had clocks on them. On his chest was a glass door that was in front of a clock. In his hand was a staff that on the top had what appeared to be a stopwatch. His eyes were red, but unlike Vampira's, they held no malice.
The most remarkable thing about him was that he shifted between three forms. One was small and made him appear to be a baby, the other made him seem middle-aged, while the final made him appear older, giving him a grey beard.
"It is nice to finally meet you." He greeted cordially.
"Who are you?" Wanda demanded suspiciously. "And how do you know my name?"
"I am Clockwork, the ghost of time." He answered softly. "And I know lots of things about you, pretty much everything about you. Your past, present, and future." He then chuckled a bit. "It comes in the job description."
Amazed and anxious weren't accurate enough to describe Wanda's feelings about this newcomer. Master of Time? She had thought something like that was impossible, but it seems in the world of the supernatural the bigger question is what isn't real.
"What do you want?" Wanda asked, still on guard, wondering if this new arrival was friend or foe.
"To offer you my assistance." He replied as he drifted closer to Danny and Rogue.
"Stay away from them!" The daughter of Magneto ordered, not taking a chance that this ghost might be a danger to her friends.
"I mean you no harm." Clockwork stated. "I am only here to help."
"And why should I trust you?" Wanda retorted, barely an inch away from sending a hex bolt at him. Although she knew that her attacks probably couldn't even put a scratch on this entity, she still had to do something.
Before Wanda could say anything, Clockwork pressed a button on his staff, and above them a blue orb of energy appeared before disappearing, leaving a flower that fell into the ghost's palm. Looking at it, the sorceress saw that it was colored white with a blue aura surrounding it.
"Asphodel Tear." The spirit explained. "Powerful plants of healing that were once native to the Ghost Zone. Though sadly they were all destroyed during Pariah Dark's reign."
He then made the herb float above Danny as spores soon drifted down on him and seeped into his body as the hybrid glowed blue for a second before letting out a content groan as the healing plant (now that it had given up its energy) soon faded away.
"You saved him." Wanda muttered in disbelief as she gave an uncertain look to the ghost. "Why?"
"Time is like a river. It can flow in so many directions. And my job is to make sure that it flows the right way."
"So that means he'll be okay, right?" The mutant clad in red tried to confirm ignoring his way of speaking. "And Rogue too?"
Clockwork's neutral expression soon frowned as it became one of uncertainty. "Unfortunately, things have become worse."
"Worse?" Wanda cried indignantly as she held a grip on her powers in an attempt to keep them under control. "How?"
"While one door has been closed, another has been opened." The ghost said mysteriously. "Although Danny is cured of his affliction, he is now in danger from something else."
He placed a hand on Wanda's shoulder, and suddenly the girl could see a bright light illuminate from Danny's chest. "Is that?"
"Yes. His soul." Clockwork replied. "And as you can see now that there is nothing in the way of jeopardizing Danny's health, a great darkness is now using this opportunity to try to take over and corrupt his very core." He pointed to the soul. It was surrounded by a blue swirl that was dazzling to her eyes, but within that vacuum of color, she could see it start to grow darker as a shadowy mass was slowly infecting it.
Just seeing this was already making the mutant sorceress's nerves skyrocket as she clutched onto Clockwork's robes.
"Make it stop!" She ordered. "Get rid of it! You did this; that means you can undo it, so stop it!"
The time master shook his head forlornly. "I've done all that I'm allowed to. The rest is up to you."
"Me? What can I do?"
"You are the only one who can purge the darkness from him. Your bond makes you the only one who can do it."
Wanda gave him a confused look, wondering what he meant by bond.
"Some ghosts can bond to objects, to each other, or even to people. Danny has slowly been bonding with Rogue ever since they met. That is what allowed their psychic link to form, and it has been growing stronger ever since." Clockwork drifted over to Rogue's side, examining the unconscious girl. "And it's not just Rogue but you as well."
"Wait, how does he have a bond with me as well? I thought he loved Rogue."
"He does, Wanda, but deep down he also loves you. He just doesn't know it yet. And you love him too; don't deny it. Together, your magic, along with his ectoplasmic energy and the feelings you both possess for each other, have, in a way, mixed together, creating your connection."
"He... he—"
"And not only that, but the same applies to Rogue as well. Even with her ghost powers gone, the connection you two have made still exists. Rogue loves you. Despite your fears, she was not in cahoots with Vampira." Clockwork revealed as he gave the entire backstory on Vampira's origin while highlighting Rogue's own role as a victim and her disgust and horror at her discovery of her ghost half's true nature.
"Oh, god, poor Rogue." Wanda said, feeling bad for her friend.
"Yes, betrayal is a hard pill to swallow, but I feel like you and Danny can help her through it." Still seeing that Wanda was skeptical, he added, "Focus on the love you feel for them, and you will see that I'm speaking the truth."
Shaking her head, she complied as she focused on the good times she had with them before letting out a small jolt as she felt something. It was like a spark of electricity had entered her body before it soon relaxed, and she felt a great warmth within her. The only way she could describe it was like being hugged by a loved one. The feeling of comfort and homeliness surged through her.
Opening her eyes, she gasped as there were now three beams of light in the room. Two of them were coming from her chest. One was connected to Danny, the other to Rogue. The third beam was connected between the two unconscious lovers.
Comparing the brightness between the beams, she found that the one connected between Danny and Rogue was the brightest, while the ones she had were a bit more dim, as if they had just formed recently.
"Now you see that the three of you belong together. Fate has led your paths to meet up. And now you and only you can save them."
Wanda contemplated the information as she thought it over. The three of them. As much of a bombshell this would be for anyone, she was taking it better than she should. But to her it made sense, and in a way it felt right. The three of them together. Maybe it was fate (she is currently standing right next to him); maybe they were always meant to be together. She couldn't imagine life without either of them. And after all they did for her, how can she not do everything in her power to save them?
But how would they take the news once this was over? She knew that Rogue truly loved Danny with all her heart, so she doubted that the power-taking mutant would really be keen on the idea of her boyfriend having feelings for another girl. Then again, that can be dealt with later. What mattered right now was waking them up.
"What do I have to do?" The mutant sorceress asked.
"Clear your mind and focus on them. Focus on the memories you shared with them, the moments that have brought you together, and, most importantly, the love that you have for them."
And Wanda did just that. She remembered the first time she met them, her arrival at the institute, her heart-to-heart with Rogue at the mall, the laughs and fun they shared, the support they gave her along with the forgiveness for every time she let vengeance cloud her mind, and most importantly the looks of relief on their faces after she almost had her mind tampered with. They protected her and helped her when she was at her weakest. And now she would return the favor.
A great air of power soon permeated through her mind, and all she knew was darkness.
But through the darkness, she caught a flicker of white and a glint of red followed by a faint whisper.
"It's time to scream."
...
...
...
...
...
...
...Mom?...
Mom?
"MOM!"
Opening her eyes, the daughter of Magneto let out a small gasp at being startled awake. Feeling something in her right hand, she looked to see it was one of her books. Apparently she dozed off again while reading.
"You okay, Mom?"
Her mind coming back to join the waking world, Wanda looked over at her daughter, who was giving her a quizzical look.
"I'm fine, Maddie." She answered as she leaned her head back down into her soft pillow. "I was just resting for a bit. Is there something you needed?"
"Just wanted to make sure you weren't sick or something?"
"What made you think that?"
Maddie gave a shy smile. "I was playing Xbox when this happened." She held up the controller, but instead of being an Xbox controller, it was one for the Nintendo 64, then it changed to an Atari 2600 controller, before finally becoming a couple of UNO cards. "Honestly, I didn't even know you liked UNO." She joked.
"Sorry." Her mother apologized. Even as a grown adult, she still had moments where her powers would still act up. With a wave of her hand, she reversed the transformation. "There you go."
"Thanks, Mom." She kissed her mother on the cheek before heading back downstairs, leaving the older woman in her bedroom.
With a yawn, she stretched her arms before getting up. Looking over at her clock, she found that it was 6 pm, so she had only slept for an hour. Heading to the windows, she looked out and took in the view of the beautiful neighborhood, finding comfort in the sights of the stereotypical picket line fences. A place that, to her, symbolized stability and order, a constant reminder that everything in her life is perfect and always will be.
Glancing around her bedroom, she let all the memories replay themselves in her head as she reminisced on the events that led them here. She could still remember the nervous look he had on his face as he got down on one knee and proposed to her. After pulling him out of that coma, she had confessed her love, and they had gotten together as they went on many dates with each other as their feelings continued to grow day by day before they finally moved on to marriage, and what a happy time it had been for her.
After Danny's graduation and her getting her G.E.D., Danny had gotten an engineering job at an observatory. They had enough to afford this modest house that they had made their home and were soon joined by the arrival of their beautiful daughter. Family, home, and financial stability—yes, Wanda Fenton had it all.
Passing by the mirror on her vanity table, the sorceress took a quick look and marveled at how much time had changed her. What was once a pretty girl was now a beautiful mature woman. She had even grown out her hair so it was shoulder length. She was but a far cry from that person who was always in a straightjacket, that's for sure.
Seeing her husband's car pull up in the driveway, she headed downstairs, and as the door opened, she gave a beautiful smile at seeing him home.
"Honey." She said in delight as she wrapped her arms around him, taking in his scent that still sent shivers down her spine. "How was your day?"
"Oh, it was amazing, Wanda." Danny said excitedly. "The new observatory just acquired a new telescope. I can't wait to work on it. This one is a game changer." He boasted as he started to geek out. "It has micro-programmable shutters that allow it to view up to a hundred items at once. Not only that, but it has a sunshield that attenuates heat from the sun."
Wanda shook her head as she gave a "I don't know what that means, but I'm happy that you're happy" smile. "Oh, how exciting." She placed her finger over his mouth before he could go on another tangent. "How about you tell us all about it over dinner?" She headed over to the kitchen when Danny stopped her halfway.
"Actually, I'll cook." He offered.
"But it's my turn to make dinner today." Wanda countered, but her husband just grinned.
"Well, now you got a break thanks to your wonderful husband." He replied. "Go work on your art. I got everything handled."
The sorceress gave him a kiss in thanks and was about to head upstairs only to notice the wall that held all the various moments of her life captured in time. For a brief moment she got lost in the sea of memories that the portraits brought. Their wedding, bringing their newborn daughter home, birthday parties, and family trips. It was all here.
"You feeling alright?" Danny asked, noticing his wife's stare.
"Just feeling a bit nostalgic, that's all." She admitted. "It's crazy to think how far we've come. Hard to believe so long ago I was all alone, and now here I am."
Danny nodded as he also looked over the photos. "I know what you mean. It feels like yesterday, I was getting you out of there. Time really does fly by."
With one last kiss, Danny made his way to the kitchen while Wanda headed towards her art room. In the years since completing her education, she had grown a passion for painting and had sold some of her artwork to help pay some of the bills. She even had some museums interested in displaying her work.
Closing the door, she let out a wistful sigh as she was surrounded by all the brushes, canvases, and all that. Like all artists, Wanda's art was an outlet to express herself; her happiness, fears, sadness, and traumas were all on display in the many paintings she had made over the years.
Getting to work, she started painting on her latest creation. It was supposed to be a long, dark tunnel stretching for miles and miles with no end in sight. To her it was to represent the length of human experience, the struggle of life as one searches for meaning in this dark, cruel world. She worked on it for about an hour before deciding to call it a day. Wiping her hands, she looked at it with pride. It will go well with some of her other paintings when it's finished.
Looking at the other paintings she recently completed, she reminisced on the effort she put into these. There was one of a fair maiden in a red cloak being held in the arms of a dashing man in a black cloak with a scythe strapped to his back. They were riding on a steed that resembled the one owned by the Fright Knight.
Another painting showed a cat on a couch ready to pounce on the family's pet canary. Though a mundane image, what made it different was that the canary was made out of flames, and the cat, while its front half was all fluffy and cute, the bottom half was all skeletal.
And finally there was one that was made up of nothing but faces, all with different expressions. Some angry, others joyous or saddened. The variety in emotion made this a piece of art where every time you look at it, you always notice something new.
As she surveyed her previous works, she came across one that made her tilt her head in confusion. She didn't recall making this one, which was impossible, as this one was something that would be hard to forget.
It was a painting of a city, but one completely in ruin. The tall buildings looked like they were on the verge of collapsing and falling on the vehicles that lay abandoned in the streets and on fire. Skeletons were also littered across the road in many different positions. One was facing headfirst on the ground as if the person's last moments were ducking to the floor in an attempt to escape an explosion. Another looked like it had been broken as it leaned against the building, almost like they were blasted into the building and died upon impact. There was even one that was just sitting down and praying as if they had just accepted their fate.
In the foreground to the right was one particular corpse giving Wanda a creepy stare with its dark hollow eyes, its face twisted in an expression of agony. Their arms were outstretched, like in their last moments they were trying to push something away.
And in the very background, she could see a figure standing and observing the sick sight. The only colors they had were a shadowy black that made up their whole body, but on their instead of hair were white flames topped off with red eyes peering indifferently at the suffering around them.
She shivered for a moment as she felt the room get really cold for some reason. Goodness, she could even see her own breath. The air felt really still as the hairs on her arms stood up in alarm. She knew that something was here. Watching her.
"BOO!"
"AAAHHHH!" Wanda screamed as she fell. Luckily she fell into her chair, and even more lucky, the other presence in the room happened to be her mischievous daughter, who started to laugh at her prank.
"Dammit, Maddie! Are you trying to give me a heart attack?!"
"Sorry, Mom." Her daughter apologized, still laughing. "Dad wanted me to tell you that dinner's ready, and I couldn't resist having some fun." She turned invisible and back to show off. "Man, I'm really getting the hang of these powers."
"You sinking through the floor says otherwise." Wanda shot back, prompting Maddie to see that her legs were intangible and she was slowly phasing through. Panicking, she reached out to her mother, who pulled her up as her legs turned tangible.
"I see your intangibility still needs work." The mother said in amusement at seeing her daughter's embarrassed look. Looking over at her daughter in ghost form, which was composed of the typical white hair and green eyes along with a jumpsuit that was red with white gloves and boots. Though she spotted something new. On her chest was a white S, and on that was a red P.
"That's new." Wanda observed as Maddie perked up in pride.
"Yeah, it's my logo." She made a stereotypical superhero pose. "You can call me the Scarlet Phantom. Faster than a speeding specter, more powerful than a rampaging revenant, and able to walk between the line separating life and death." She raised her fist up in a battle-ready position only to accidentally call upon the rings to turn her back human. "Uh, I meant to do that."
"Seems like you still need work." Wanda observed, causing the young hybrid to scowl.
"Gimme a break, okay?" She said defensively. "Besides, Dad said he had these problems when his powers started acting up, so don't blame me."
"Maddie." Wanda scolded, not happy at all at how her daughter was talking to her, making her girl look away ashamed.
"I'm sorry." She apologized. "It's just been three weeks, and I still haven't figured anything out besides turning invisible."
Wanda gave her a reassuring pat on the back. She knew things had been hard for her daughter recently. It all started a month ago when she and Danny had been called in to her school. Turns out Maddie was speaking to a boy she liked, but, like her father before her, her nerves ended up activating her powers, causing her pants to go intangible and giving the poor boy a clear look at her underwear.
"Don't worry, honey, you'll get the hang of it." She promised. "Your father will help you get them under control in no time."
Maddie hummed in thought before she noticed something in the corner of her eye. Turning in that direction, the young hybrid spotted the same portrait, and unlike her mother, the girl was amazed and even intrigued by it. Her love of horror and all that other dark stuff made this latest creation of her mother's an instant win. "Whoa, when did you make this one?"
"I, uh, don't know." Her mother answered honestly. "Just seeing it for the first time. I don't even remember when I painted it or if I even did."
"Weird." Maddie commented before noticing the figure in the back. "Who's that? He's the one who did all that, right?"
Wanda narrowed her eyes at the image, wondering what kind of sick thoughts were going through her head when she made this one. "I guess."
"He looks pretty badass." The fourteen-year-old complimented, making Wanda shake her head. Badass would be the last word she would use to describe that thing. "I really like this one, Mom." Wanda considered how much this one would go far. Deciding to take a chance on it, she pulled out her phone to take a picture to show her dealer later.
"You should do more stuff like this. Anyway, we better head downstairs." She said before leaving Wanda alone with her thoughts.
Gazing back at the work, the painter felt uneasy looking at the gruesome scene, so she put a sheet over it so she wouldn't have to stare at it. She then joined her family downstairs, where they had a nice meal while chatting about the latest news in their personal lives as they enjoyed each other's company when Maddie shifted the conversation into an unexpected direction.
"I think our house may be haunted." She told them abruptly.
Wanda raised an eyebrow while Danny snickered. "Of course it's haunted. It's always been since your mother and I moved in. Got even more haunted when we had you."
"No, I'm not talking about us, Dad. I think there might be something else here."
"What makes you think that?" Wanda questioned.
"Last night I heard banging coming from the attic." Maddie revealed getting a concerned look from her mother and a skeptical one from her father.
"Did your ghost sense go off?" Danny asked.
"No."
"Then it's not a ghost." He said nonchalantly as he went back to his dinner. "Probably some animal. I'll check it out later."
"Yeah, well, I went up in the attic to investigate, and I found this." She handed Danny a photo that had all its edges burned. Wanda leaned over her husband's shoulder to take a look and was greeted by an old photo of her husband, with an arm around a goth girl, but it wasn't her. Nope. The green clothing she wore made it clear who it was as it triggered some old memories for Wanda.
Rogue, who, although she and her had a bit of a rocky start when she first came to the mansion, became a good friend of Wanda's and was the person she was the closest to at the institute, other than Danny, of course.
Sadly, that all came to an end once she had brought Danny and Rogue out of their comas. When they asked how Wanda was able to awaken them, the sorceress did not lie and came clean with everything Clockwork had told her about their bond. While Danny was surprised by this new turn of events, Rogue was well...
The sorceress held her hand to her cheek. She could still feel the phantom pain of when Rogue slapped it in outrage at finding out her boyfriend was connected with another girl. Wanda tried to explain and say that she would leave the two in peace, but Rogue wasn't having it as it soon spiraled into an argument that led to an exchange of hurtful words before the auburn-haired girl cried, "Fine! You want him; you can have him, you man-stealing whore!" She then stormed out of the room, and that was the last they saw of her.
They searched all over for Rogue but were never able to find her. Though that didn't stop Danny from spending every waking moment trying to locate her and make things right. But it soon got to a point where he realized he would never see her again. He soon broke down, withdrawing from everyone. Only she was there to comfort him, to work him through his pain. And little by little he soon began to move on from Rogue as the two of them grew closer. Then sometime after that, Danny asked her out, and the rest was history.
"So who is she?" Maddie pressed.
"An old girlfriend of mine. Her name was Rogue." Danny answered casually.
"Rogue?" Maddie raised an eyebrow at the uniqueness of the name.
"Her real name is Anna Marie, but she preferred Rogue." Her father continued. "She had the power to take a person's energy, memories, skills, and powers if they had any through skin contact."
"Cool." The young girl complimented as her parents shook their heads, knowing Rogue thought the exact opposite.
"What happened to her?" Maddie asked, still curious about this piece of her father's past.
"Eh, we just drifted apart." Danny replied nonchalantly, showing that he had finally moved on while Wanda was still in contemplation of her old friend. It saddened her that the friendship she shared with Rogue shattered and how she was never able to convince the power absorber to come back.
Maddie didn't ask any more questions as they ate the rest of the meal in silence while Wanda was deep in thought with her ponderings on the past continuing well past dinner to when she and Danny were doing the dishes.
"Something troubling you?" Danny noticed that she had become a bit reserved after their daughter brought up Rogue.
"Just thinking." Wanda answered as she was absentmindedly scrubbing a dish as she glanced back at the table where the photo still was. "Do you still miss Rogue?" She asked out of the blue.
Danny opened his mouth before immediately closing it, unsure of what to say in response as he thought back to those days. "No. I've moved past her a long time ago. She's ancient history."
"Oh." She said awkwardly. "It's just that I remember how much you used to love her. I was always jealous of the way you would look at her. And..." She paused a bit before saying, "Sometimes, I still feel guilty for getting between you two."
Danny frowned as he recalled those old memories. "I did love her once, but then you know things changed. Sometimes love doesn't last forever. It can fade and break. It's kinda scary in a way. I mean, can you just imagine waking up one day, and you look at the person sleeping next to you and realize that you just don't love them anymore?"
He then noticed the weird look his wife was giving him and realized what he said. "Not that that's going to happen to us." He said, trying to save face. "I love you, Wanda, and I always will, but Rogue and I? Life just happened. Regardless of whether you were involved or not. We both moved on. I married you, we had Maddie, and now we have a life together."
"I just wish we could've worked something out." Wanda wished.
Danny stayed quiet for a second, his face in a state of contemplation, before he said, "Well, to be honest, the last time I spoke to Logan, he told me that Rogue came back to the institute."
"She did? Why didn't you tell me?!" His wife demanded angrily.
"Because I doubt either of us are the last people she wants to see right now." He replied. "Anyway, she came looking for a job and is now the institute's linguistics teacher."
"Hmm. Did Logan tell you how she was doing? Is she happy?"
"I don't know. All Logan said was that she mostly kept to herself, although he mentioned that he caught her flirting with Gambit. Why do you care? Rogue leaving was a long time ago."
Wanda frowned as she let the dishes soak in the sink. "We were all close back then." She admitted as she thought back to all the good times they shared. "I miss those days. And I regret how we parted ways with her. Never thought it would end."
Her husband looked down. "You'd be surprised by how quickly things can change. I remember when it was just me, Tucker, and Sam. I thought it would be the three of us against the world forever, but..." He closed his eyes as an unpleasant memory came to him. "You know what happened."
The sorceress brought her partner into a hug. "I'm sorry, I didn't mean to—"
"It's okay." He assured her. "It's the past. And like all things in the past, it should just stay there. The only thing we should be focused on is the future."
"Yeah, the future." Wanda agreed as she focused back on her task.
They didn't speak for the rest of the evening and both went to bed quietly, too tired from their day to have any sex. Curled up next to her husband, Wanda was off in dreamland. The room was surrounded by a peaceful silence with the only sounds being their quiet breathing and the occasional groan as one of them turned on their side in their sleep.
The hours passed by, and it wasn't until 3 am that the silence was broken. It started with a few faint taps that came above them before it was replaced by a scratching noise that soon disturbed the Scarlet Witch's sleep. Figuring this must be the animal that Maddie heard, she nudged her husband awake.
"Wh-what?" He asked groggily.
"Do you hear that?" The Fenton matriarch said as they waited quietly for a few seconds before they heard the scratching again.
"I got it." Danny floated up a couple of inches to reach the ceiling and then banged on it a couple of times before the noise subsided. "There. Problem solved." He then went back to sleep with Wanda following.
There was another half-hour of peace before a bang of a cabinet door disrupted it. A few seconds later the action repeated. Then again. And again. Every ten seconds the cabinet kept acting up, driving Wanda mad. She was about to go wake up her husband and make him put a stop to this before deciding against it. With everything she has been through, she could deal with a mouse, or, in the worst-case scenario, a raccoon, by herself.
Getting up, she went out to the hall and opened the attic door. She climbed up and pulled the switch to the lights. Moving over to the cupboards, she carefully opened each one but couldn't find any trace of the intruder. Not willing to give up, she searched all around for the pest, moving aside boxes filled with Christmas and Halloween decorations, old photos, and all other assortments of items.
If looking through her attic late at night wasn't pissing her off yet, the attic light flickering every once in a while did. She never did like the attic. Something about it just unnerved her, so she mostly avoided coming up here.
It was also cluttered with junk, as evidenced by Wanda tripping over a box. She really should've sent her husband up here to deal with this. Moving over to the box, she found a piece of tape on it, and on the tape, written in marker, it said "Danny's Time Capsule." It must've been really old, as not only did it have buttloads of dust on it, but she could also see that the second N and the Y in Danny's name were starting to fade out. Wondering what was in it, she opened it, and the first piece she pulled out was an old newspaper. Curious, she read the headline.
NASTY ACCIDENTS FOR FENTONS AND FRIENDS
"What the hell?" Wanda was shocked that her husband apparently kept this. She had thought he would have thrown this out for all the bad memories it would bring. 'Or it's possible he keeps this as a reminder not to turn into him.' She guessed before putting it aside to see what other scraps he had kept. Looking through it, she found another shocking headline.
BILLIONAIRE'S MANSION FOUND IN RUINS
Reading through the article, she found that apparently Vlad's mansion had blown up. The exact cause hadn't been determined, but Vlad Masters was reported to reach full recovery. Continuing to read through, Wanda found that there was an unfortunate casualty. A... no, that can't be right. This had to be some joke. But her eyes weren't deceiving. The paper reported the casualty as one Daniel Fenton, age fourteen.
Tossing the paper aside, the witch examined all the contents of the box, finding more and more articles. One paper from Madison, Wisconsin, reported a group of hikers going missing. Another report was about small communities being found with all their citizens killed in gruesome ways. Digging through the pile, Wanda couldn't even find full articles, just scraps of papers that contained headlines that made her insides squirm.
LATVERIA DECIMATED IN ATTACK
MUTANT TERRORIST SLAIN
BAYVILLE INCINERATED IN EXPLOSION
EARTH'S MIGHTIEST HEROES SLAUGHTERED IN FINAL STAND
The Fenton Matron was becoming more and more engrossed in the box's contents as she was wondering just what the hell was going on. Was this Danny's sick idea of a joke? No, that couldn't be right. Her husband could be mischievous, but she knew he would draw the line at anything like this.
The sound of a loud bang startled her out of her investigation. Looking to the source, she found that in the corner, leaning up against the wall, was her painting. The same infamous one from earlier today.
"How did you get up here?" Wanda asked as she moved over to pick it up.
Only to find that the painting had been covering a hole. It was wide enough for her to crawl through, but the bigger question was how did this get here? She doubted any animal could cause this. Getting on her knees, she was about to use her magic to light up the inside to see the damage done to their house when a hand ripped through the darkness and grasped hold of her arm.
"AHH!" Immediately Wanda used her free hand to blast the appendage off but was met with no results as she felt it start to pull her back. "DANNY! HELP!" Another hand soon came out and covered her mouth as she was slowly pulled in. The only sounds that could be heard were her own muffled protests and her body being dragged through what she guessed was some kind of tunnel. And despite her putting up a good struggle, the grip on her was strong. Hell, she was certain she was gonna have bruises on her wrist with how hard it was being gripped.
Eventually whatever was pulling her came to a merciful stop as Wanda now found herself in total darkness. Just as she was about to utter a sound, there was a red light that illuminated the tunnel she was in, revealing a young girl in front of her.
"Maddie?" She asked as the girl looked like her, only to backtrack as she realized that this person, as unbelievable as it was, was her younger self. Same haircut and earrings she had at that age.
"Finally, you don't know what I had to do to get you here." The girl said, exhausted. "I've been kept here along with all the other stuff he wants hidden."
"Who are you?" Wanda demanded.
"I'm you!" The girl whispered harshly.
"Me? But—"
"I'm the only part of you that hasn't been fooled by this sham. I had to lure you up here. Just my luck that the only time I managed to break out was when you weren't home. He ended up dragging me back here, but he missed the clue that I left behind. This is the only place where he can't see or hear us." She said, though it didn't sound that confident, almost as if she didn't believe it herself.
"What are you talking about? What clue?"
"Listen, you imbecile!" The younger Wanda glared. "This isn't real. Your marriage, your kid, your life. None of this is real, Wanda."
"No." Wanda refused as she shook her head. She had to be lying; whatever this was, it was some trick. Some weird, extremely elaborate trick. There was no way that the life she lived, all the memories she shared and cherished with her family, was all unreal. "It can't be. It is real. I know it is!"
"It's an illusion. Every memory you have was made by him. This is all a lie. You didn't save Danny or Rogue. You never woke them up, Wanda. You just started it when he already got to you."
"But..." Wanda couldn't form any words as she was taking this all in, questioning everything she had ever known.
"You have to find Danny and Rogue." The younger Wanda said. "Find them, or it's over for all of us."
There was then a cold breeze that made the two shiver while Wanda was merely annoyed at the drop in temperature; the younger version of her was terrified.
"He's here." The girl gasped before she was pulled back at lightning speed from her end of the tunnel by some unseen force. Wanda crawled after her desperately in an attempt to rescue her only to find two red eyes staring right back at her. She screamed before she felt something grab her feet and pull her away.
"Wanda, are you alright?" Her husband asked as he held her in his arms.
Blinking, she looked around and realized she was in bed. She must've had a bad dream.
"Yeah." She answered as she turned around to go back to sleep. "Just a bad dream." Shaking her head, she added to her previous statement. "A really, really bad dream." As she turned her lamp on, she noticed the photograph of Danny and Rogue next to it. She reached her arm out to pick it up only to shriek in fright.
"What's wrong?" Danny asked but was ignored by his wife, who was staring at her wrist.
Her bruised wrist.
Wanda merely stared at the proof that her dream was anything but before she cried out, "Rogue!" and leaped out of bed, heading downstairs where she was putting on her coat and boots.
"What the hell are you doing?" Her husband inquired.
"We got to find Rogue." She muttered. "She could be in danger. We have to make sure she's okay."
"What?"
"Get dressed and meet me outside." Wanda ordered. "We're gonna fly over—"
"Are you serious?" The hybrid said in perplexment. "You want me to fly over to the institute at four thirty in the morning?"
"You don't understand!" The daughter of Magneto cried. "In my dream, my younger self, or part of my subconscious, I don't know, grabbed me right here." She pointed to her wrist as she continued to ramble. "She left bruises just like the ones here. She told me to find you and Rogue. She was in a hole that was behind one of my paintings."
"Your paintings?"
"Yes. Come, I'll show you." She dragged her husband up into the attic. Only to find that there was nothing there. No painting, no hole, not even that box with the newspaper clippings. "But it was right here?" Wanda pointed to where she got dragged. "I saw it."
"Yes, you did." Danny said comfortingly. "In a dream."
"No. Maybe it was moved back downstairs." She made her way to the art room, but it wasn't there either. "But if it's not here or up there, then where is it?"
"What kind of painting are we talking about anyway?" Danny asked as he caught up to his wife.
"It was of a destroyed city and a bunch of corpses and this thing in the background. Maddie saw it; she can tell you—Maddie!" She raced over to her daughter's room. "Maddie, do you know what happened to the painting?"
"What are you talking about?" Maddie asked sleepily.
"Earlier today you saw my painting, remember? The one you thought was pretty cool with the dead bodies and the skeletons. That one."
"What? I don't remember seeing that."
"No, you were there, Maddie. I—"
"Wanda." Danny cut her off. "It was just a dream."
"Then explain this." She shoved her wrist in his face.
"I don't know. Maybe you did that in your sleep." He guessed. "It's possible. Remember a couple of months ago when Maddie kept plucking out her eyebrows in her sleep? Could be the same thing."
"No, it couldn't have been a dream; it felt so real." Wanda continued as she avoided her husband's doubtful look.
"Mom, Dad? Are you guys okay?" Maddie peeked her head out to see her parents arguing.
"We're fine, Maddie. Go back to bed." Danny ordered his daughter before turning back to his wife. "That goes for you too." Sadly, his wife seemed to be determined to give him a headache as she started to walk out of the room.
"If you're not coming, then I'll go by myself."
"Alright, alright." Danny relented, knowing that he wouldn't be able to talk his wife out of going on this ridiculous quest. "I'll go with you. Got to make sure that Rogue doesn't end up killing you when you get there."
"Perfect. Now go ghost, and let's go." Wanda said, glad that her husband was on the same page.
"Yeah, we're not flying out at this hour. We'll take the car." He said as he walked out. "Maddie, we'll be back soon."
"She's coming too." Wanda stated with a tone of no argument, earning an exhausted glare from her partner.
"Are you kidding me?"
"I don't feel safe leaving her alone in this house."
"Fine." Danny said, done with whatever was going on in his wife's head. "But I'm driving." He took the keys and headed for the garage with Wanda and Maddie following him. But there was a problem, for as Wanda walked into the garage and saw the vehicle inside, she froze.
"What now?" The former X-Man replied irritably.
"The car." Staring at the automobile in the garage was triggering some painful memories. The family drove a 1973 Oldsmobile Delta 88, but that wasn't what was in their garage; instead it was a very familiar black sedan. The very same car her father drove. And the same car that drove away as she was carried into her new prison.
"What about it?" Danny asked, not knowing his wife's history with this vehicle.
"This isn't our car. What happened to it?"
"It's in the shop, remember?" The half-ghost reminded her. "They let me borrow this one while they fix ours."
Wanda still stared at the car like it was a hungry tiger ready to attack.
"Is something wrong?"
"Nothing." The magical mutant lied. "Nothing at all." Against her better instincts, she slowly moved over and sat down in the passenger seat.
"So where are we going?" Maddie wondered.
"To the institute." Was her father's response.
"Why?"
"Because your mother had a weird dream. Now buckle up." And with that said, the family was on the road. It was a quiet drive with Danny too tired to make small talk, Wanda too concerned over Rogue, and Maddie not wanting to end up accidentally upsetting her parents.
They were about ten minutes in when Danny said, "You know that this isn't gonna end well, right? I mean, what are you planning to do when we get there? They're all gonna be asleep."
"I just need to check on Rogue."
"Uh-huh." He snarked. "And what's your plan to stop her from trying to kill you? You know she's gonna do that, right? Because one, she doesn't want to see you? And two, she really doesn't want to see you at this hour."
Wanda remained silent as her husband continued to ramble on. Perhaps he was right. Who's to say that wasn't just a nightmare? Gazing at the photo of Danny and Rogue she held in her hand, it was likely that her guilt over driving Rogue away fueled that dream. What was there to be gained by heading to the Xavier Institute? The truth: nothing, nothing at all.
"You're right." She agreed. "What was I thinking? Alright, let's turn this thing back around and go back."
Danny grinned. "First sensible thing you said all night."
"I'm sorry, Danny. I don't know what got into me. I just—"
"It's fine, honey. At least I don't have to worry about dealing with a pissed-off, sleep-deprived Rogue." He spotted a gas station. "I'm gonna get a midnight snack. You want anything?"
"No thanks."
Danny parked the car and headed in, leaving Wanda alone with their sleeping daughter to ponder her thoughts. She really did it this time, dragging her family out just on the basis of a very weird dream. Perhaps she should look into therapy. Leaning back in her seat, she looked out the window and saw the beautiful full moon overlooking the beautiful forest. Wanting to get a picture of it, she pulled out her phone to snap one, and when she went to admire it in her photo library, she noticed something in there. Something that shouldn't belong.
The painting, the same one from the dream. It was in here in all of its glory. Then that meant...
The sound of a car door opened as Danny returned, and just as he sat down, Wanda said, "I change my mind. We're going to the institute. I want to see Rogue."
"Are you kidding me?" His good mood soon went back to outrage at this ridiculous demand. "After I managed to get through to you, you still want to go on this wild goose chase?"
"Look at this!" Wanda showed him the picture on her phone. "How do you explain this, huh? Huh? Still think it's a dream? Now shut up and drive us to the institute." She commanded, only for her husband to shake his head as if he were dealing with an unruly child.
"Wanda." Danny tried to reason. "You have the perfect life, honey. You have everything you could ever want. What's the point in trying to dig up old memories from the past? Trust me, there's nothing to be gained by going over there. It's over. Rogue left; she's gone. We have each other now."
"But is it real?" Wanda pressed as she was pondering the state of reality while trying to keep herself from breaking down into hysteria.
"If it's not real, then what is this?" He gestured to the world around them. "You think this is all made up? Our marriage, the fourteen years we spent raising Maddie, along with the nine months you spent carrying her, you think that was all imaginary?"
Wanda closed her eyes. This did seem like paradise, but... "I don't know. Maybe I am crazy. But until we figure this out. You're going to drive me there. If you don't, then I'll walk on foot by myself."
Danny gave her a long, cold stare before starting the car up. "If that's what you want." He said before continuing on the road towards the institute. The rest of the drive was silent and uncomfortable. Wanda spent the drive merely watching the scenery along with glancing at her husband every few minutes. Each time his expression did not change, he remained glaring at the road.
Putting her hand on his shoulder, she tried to make things right with him. "Danny?"
Her husband's eyes glanced at her for a brief second before returning to the road as he ignored his wife. It worried her. Sure, her husband and she had the occasional fight (what couple didn't), but the way he was acting was a bit off. It wasn't like anger, which is reasonable since he was being dragged out here in the early morning, but like he was done with his wife.
Just as she was about to try and speak with him again, the car came to a stop.
"We're here." Danny said softly as Maddie woke up.
"Are you joking? We're nowhere near..." Wanda stopped as she looked out her window. Right in front of her, just a small walk away, was a mental institution. The very asylum she spent her childhood in.
Just as she was about to turn to Danny, demanding an explanation on why they were here, a group of orderlies appeared right outside her car door. Opening it, they grabbed hold of her, pulling her out. Just as she was about to use her magic to defend herself, she felt a small ecto-blast in her back, making her cry out in pain as smoke poured from the small burn on her.
Looking towards her husband, she gave him a look of betrayal.
"Danny, why?"
The asylum workers soon placed her back into a straightjacket, something she never thought she would have to wear again. The orderlies then started to drag her into the mental institution as Wanda begged for help.
"Danny! Maddie! Help me!"
Sadly, history repeated itself; her husband and daughter merely just stood there in the rain. Danny with an indifferent look while Maddie had one of regret as she looked down, avoiding looking at her mother. Danny waved his hand and the doors opened. They slowly got in with Danny giving one more look at his wife before driving away, leaving her all alone.
"Don't leave me!" She pleaded as she was brought back into her own personal hell. She started breathing heavily as the memories were coming back at full force as tears were streaming down her face as she fought the guards with everything she had.
"Let me go!" Wanda roared as the magical mutant was dragged down the halls as she started to feel claustrophobic at seeing how they seemed to close in on her.
"Keep moving!" One of the guards ordered as she was being led somewhere, probably to a small cell, which was only making her fight twice as hard to get away.
"Help me! Someone help me! Cut me free!"
They soon came to a stop as Wanda tried to make a run for it, but one big guy caught her in a bear hug.
"Hurry up and get this psycho in her cell." One of the guards spoke.
"Just got to check your prisoner." A new voice said, making Wanda stop as she recognized it. She had only heard the voice twice in her life, but she had already learned to fear it and who it belonged to.
"No. Not you." She whispered as she frantically tried to break out of the guard's grip, but to no success. The guards soon turned around to face their superior as he walked out of the shadows, and Wanda was too frightened to even scream as he stood before her.
Looming over her was a ghost, but not just any ghost. What truly distinguished him were the white flames that acted as his hair. His skin pale blue. Ears shaped like that of an elf. A flaming goatee. Two red eyes that were the door to the truly insane soul that was this individual. And finally the sharp teeth that were displayed as he gave a cruel smile.
Wanda was left petrified as she was right in front of Dan Phantom himself, the alternate future self of the boy she loved. Despite her obvious massive fear of Dan, she couldn't help but be captivated in a twisted sense of awe, like any animal of prey would be as they were in the hands of a predator.
Despite the obvious differences between him and Danny, she could still see some similarities. The only one being that of the same facial structures they had. Though that was where it ended as the demon's eyes pierced her soul. They weren't like Danny's, which were full of compassion and empathy whenever he looked at her. No, this monster looked at her with nothing but indifference, as if she were an insect that would be crushed under his foot.
"Just be quick." One of the guards said to the monster in the room. "She's not looking too good."
"No, she's not." Dan agreed as he gave Wanda a fake sympathetic look. "We really should feel sorry for her. She never truly got over her father's abandonment. It left her quite insane." He peered closer at Wanda, making her lean back in fear. "You go on, boys. I got this one."
"Get away!" Wanda shouted as she felt Dan grab her by the back of her straightjacket and drag her deeper into the hallway. For a moment she thought he had grown taller only for her to realize she was now back at her right age. "No! No! NO!"
"It's a shame, Wanda." Dan said as he escorted her through the building. "I gave you everything you wanted. Family, freedom, love. All that happily ever after tripe was yours. But you let that pesky conscience of yours ruin it for you." He then grabbed her by the hair, eliciting a cry of pain from Wanda.
Screams soon reached Wanda's ears as she found cell doors on both sides of the wall. The patients were all rotting corpses with black hollow eyes banging on their cell doors, crying out for freedom.
Dan soon pushed her face up against the window of one of the doors. Inside she could see one corpse was writhing on the floor as it clawed at itself in an attempt to rid itself of some invisible attacker.
"Get them off! Get them off!" It cried. "They're all over me!"
She was then pushed up against a different door where another patient was shivering in the corner, rocking back and forth and sobbing.
"I'll be good. I'll be good, I promise!"
"Welcome to the madhouse." Dan led her to the door at the end of the hall.
"How are you here? I thought you were locked up?" Wanda questioned in spite of the terror she felt. How was this possible?
"I am." Dan answered. "When I was first encased in that infernal device, I thought I had won. I already killed everyone Danny loved, but it turns out that wasn't enough. And so I was going to give him a push in the right direction. You see, I have many wonderful powers, including telepathy. I was gonna use it to finally break him. It would've been easy enough after the tragedy he had been through, but Clockwork saw this coming and put up a psychic barrier between us. A barrier that I have not been able to break. Until now." He smirked at Wanda. "And it's all thanks to you."
"Me?"
"Your magic." The vicious ghoul elaborated as he pointed to his aura which was glowing a chaotic red. "Both times you called on me, you gave me a bit of your power. The first time I only managed to make a small crack, but by the second time I had enough to break through."
"No!" Guilt surged through Wanda as she realized her own part in this. How could she have let this happen? She was so stupid, so foolish. She had given the most horrific monster in history the chance to corrupt Danny's soul. "No!" Wanda refused as she tried to put up a fight as Dan pushed her into the small cell. "I won't let you! I'll stop you!"
Dan soon broke out into a laugh that frightened Wanda all the way to her core. "You? Stop me? You already lost the second you came here. Face it, Danny is mine. And you want to know what the funny part is? He saved you. He rescued you from this hellhole, and in return you added to his suffering. I guess it's true what they say: no good deed goes unpunished."
Wanda was now in tears as she realized Dan was right.
"And now thanks to you, everything in existence will feel my wrath. Maybe your father was right in locking you up here. You're just a mentally unstable girl who's been given too much power."
Enraged and hurt by this, Wanda tried to charge at Dan but was pushed off.
"Well, I got to go. I have a lot of work to catch up on. Farewell, Wanda, and thanks again." He closed the cell door, locking her inside as his wicked laugh echoed throughout the building before fading away.
"No! I got to get out. I can't let him win." Wanda proclaimed as she charged at the door, desperately hoping that if she tried hard enough, she could break it down. But it was a useless gesture as she ended up falling on the floor, preventing her from getting up due to her arms being restrained.
Wanda was now in hysterics. She was back here, but this time there was no Danny to get her out. He would be assimilated by Dan, and she would be stuck here forever. She tried to use her magic, but if her hands couldn't move, then she was powerless. But she couldn't give up. No. Danny never gave up on her, and so she wouldn't on him. Just the thought of that monster laying his hands on her man made her grind her teeth.
'I can't let it end like this.' She thought. 'Have to find him and Rogue.'
And like a girl possessed, she struggled and fought against the confining garment that was on her body, looking like the rest of the inmates in this place. It went on for several minutes, but something happened. Like she had been shot up with lots of adrenaline, a tear began to form on the garment before she slowly began to rip her straightjacket off in an impressive show of strength.
Invigorated by this victory, and also completely surprised by that act of impossibility, she concentrated her magic as the door melted like ice cream, giving her a way out. Dashing down the halls, she tried to formulate a plan on how to locate Danny and Rogue when she heard all the doors open on their own, letting out the inmates, who all started to screech as they made their way towards her.
Focusing her powers, the lights all burst as the electricity soon surged out and struck all the assailants, making them scream painfully as they melted into green goo. Stomping through the puddles of their remains, Wanda soon reached the exit and, with a powerful hex bolt, made the doors burst open. Unfortunately for her, the horrors of the asylum were mild compared to the true terror that lay outside.
Dead bodies were aplenty on the streets, making her stop as she was trying to process this traumatizing sight. The smell of smoke reached her nose as she looked to her right to see a majority of the city was on fire and in ruin, just like it was in her painting.
"Oh my god." She said in horror as she placed a hand over her mouth in disbelief only to feel something on her head. Pulling it off, she found she was wearing some horned headpiece, and looking down, she was now older again, dressed up in pink tights, a red leotard with matching red boots, gloves, and a cape.
"What the hell?" She exclaimed at her new outfit; it looked like something straight from a comic book. Before she could ponder further, she could hear a voice in the distance.
"Wanda?"
Turning around, she could see someone flying down toward her, but she had no idea who it was. His face was a metallic red color, and he was decked out in a yellow and green outfit with a yellow cape.
"Who are you?" Wanda demanded as she held her hands up, glowing with magic, ready to defend herself if this was another one of Dan's tricks.
The newcomer looked at her in confusion. "It's me. Vision." He said, making Wanda raise an eyebrow.
"Vision?"
"Yes." He answered, and before he could say anything else, the two were approached by more people. One of them she did recognize, as she occasionally saw him on the news. It was Iron Man himself in his gold and red armor. The others she had no clue who they were. There was a man decked out in purple, carrying a bow and some arrows. Another man in a red coat with red sunglasses that reminded her of Scott, though she knew it wasn't him. The last man was decked out in what she would describe as a warrior's armor. He had long blonde hair and wore a helmet with wings on it. Strangely enough, he wielded a steel hammer.
"Alright, looks like we're all accounted for except Cap." Iron Man said. "According to his last coordinates, he was at Central Park. Let's hope that he's still alive and that monster hasn't got his hands on him yet."
"Tony, even if we do find Steve, do you think we stand a chance against him?" The man dressed up in purple asked.
"I don't know, but it's like what Cap said. We might not be able to save everyone, but we can sure as hell avenge them." Iron Man replied as they started heading toward Central Park.
Wanda, however, was not keen on going with these strangers who apparently knew her. "Wait! What is going on? Who are you people?"
"Are you feeling okay, Wanda?" Iron Man asked.
"Perhaps she hit her head?" Vision suggested.
"No! Look, I don't belong here! I need to find my friends; they're in grave danger." Wanda begged.
"Well, I don't think we'll find any survivors here, but tell you what: you help us find Cap, and we'll look for your friends." Iron Man offered, with Wanda realizing that she had no other option. It was stay with these people or keep looking in this destroyed city by herself.
"Fine. Lead the way." She said as she followed behind them on guard just in case one of them tried to attack her. They all marched in silence as Wanda was trying to think of what to do next when she found Danny and Rogue. She knew they had to get out of here. But where was the exit, if there was any?
Soon the group reached the park and found Captain America unconscious on the grass. They immediately surrounded the soldier while Wanda was in awe as she had learned about the famed soldier in her history lessons with Xavier and was surprised to find herself in the presence of a historical legend like him.
"Is he okay?" The man with the glasses asked.
"Don't know." Iron Man went to examine him. "He's not incinerated or ripped apart, which is strange as that's not usually his style."
"You believe it may be someone else?" Vision inquired curiously.
"Maybe. But we need to get Steve medical attention fast." Iron Man stated. "And find whoever did this; they may not be as dangerous as our not-so-friendly ghost, but it's clear they're a threat."
The warrior with the hammer frowned as he looked down at their fallen comrade. "Anthony Stark is not given to hyperbole. Captain America's condition must be grave indeed. The situation is no less so. I have fought beside the star-spangled avenger in innumerable battles against that wicked Dan Phantom. Any foe capable of causing such grievous harm is one to be reckoned with. But I feel that the power of Thor is not needed."
The warrior, now identified as Thor, brought his hammer down as a bright light blinded them. Once it was over, standing in Thor's place was a regular-looking man in a suit holding a cane.
"What's needed this evening are the medical skills of Dr. Donald Blake." He finished.
"Too true, Doc!" Came a new voice, as Dr. Blake was struck in the back. "And your first patient is going to be yourself."