Chapter 4: Stopwatch

*In honor and memory of "The American Dream" Dusty Rhodes. October 11, 1945-June 11, 2015. Thanks for getting us through those hard times, Dream.

Disclaimer: I own nothing

"Better three hours too soon than a minute too late."

William Shakespeare

Chapter 4: "Stopwatch"

(Wednesday-October 30, 2013)

"I got nothing, kid," A gruff looking man with graying hair and facial stubble grunted. A lit cigarette stuck lazily out of his mouth, "No one knows anything about what Morgaine is doing. And there's been no sighting of that Dark Dan guy or the Black Lanterns."

"I see…thanks anyway, David." Phantom sighed at the monitor. He then turned to face a different monitor. "What about on your end?"

"I found nozing." A woman called Madame Rogue shook her head. She had short black hair that was completely pushed away from her face. Her lips were colored ruby, and there was a cold calculating look in her dark eyes. "Even wiz me disguising myzelf az one of zhe Light's minions…No one knows what zhe bosses want with zhe stolen tech or where zhe one called Nyx is."

"Damn…" Phantom frowned. "I'm not too worried about the tech. I've been tracking the parts I provide for the Light, so I know where the Brain moves it all, but as for Nyx…Spirit isn't going to be happy."

"Then we'll just have to keep looking into it, eh?" David Cain shrugged.

"Yeah." Phantom looked to be deep in thought. "Keep investigating. I already transferred some funds to your accounts, but you'll only get your full payments when I get something I can use."

"Right."

"Understood."

"Contact me again if you find something worthwhile. Until then…" Phantom ended the conversations on his computer. He then leaned back in his chair and sighed. He had been in Fenton Works all day trying to get everything he knew about the threats organized. Unfortunately, he really had nothing even after a month of searching.

"Are you sure you can trust them?" Another voice sounded another monitor nearby. On the screen was a tall young man with short red hair and a domino mask. "They are mercenaries for hire. What if someone offers them a bigger prize?"

"You're questioning our methods now?" Red Huntress pushed off the wall she was leaning on and walked into view of the monitor with the webcam. "I didn't see you complaining when their info helped your personal cause, Roy."

Red Arrow as silent.

"Please don't antagonize him, Val," Phantom groaned. "He has legit concerns. After all, those two did try to kill me once upon a time."

"So did every other friend you have, though," Red Huntress retorted.

"That's…not really wrong," Phantom chuckled.

"You're right, Valerie. I shouldn't have double standards on using their intel." Red Arrow gained a saddened look. "After all, without their info, I wouldn't even have a hope of finding the real Roy Harper."

"You are the real Roy Harper." Phantom glared at the screen. "You're just as real as Conner or Dani. Being a clone doesn't mean that you're not real. Just call him the original Roy, how about that?"

"Fine." Red Arrow looked away. No matter what anyone said, though, the clone wouldn't let of the guilt he felt because the Light replaced the original Roy with him in order to have a sleeper agent. That was why he was so dedicated to finding the original Roy. It was the least he could do.

"Have you heard anything in your travels, Roy?" Red Huntress changed the subject.

"No. People have no idea what's going to happen." Red Arrow shrugged. "Sorry."

"Don't worry about it, man." Phantom waved him off. "It seems like no one has a clue about what's going on. We'll just have to prepare for the worst…like always."

"Right. I'll be ready in case you need my help." Red Arrow nodded. "Not like I can do anything to find the real…original Roy until you get me more intel."

"Okay." Phantom agreed. "Talk to you later."

Red Huntress leaned against the desk when the video call was ended. "Well, that was a bust."

"Yeah…" Phantom groaned and placed his head on the table. "A whole month of nothing. I'm sick of it. I might have to go with my last resort and ask Jinx for help."

"Oh…The frenemy, huh." Red Huntress did not look happy.

"No, she's an old friend." Phantom gave her a knowing look. "That's all."

"Uh huh…" Red Huntress rolled her eyes. It was obvious that Jinx still held feeling for Danny, and Valerie didn't like that.

"Look, I haven't talked to her as much because I know how you feel." Phantom noted. "But asking me to stop being friends with her would be like me asking not to have any guy friends who have ever thought about asking you out, which I know some of your college classmates have…"

"I know." Red Huntress sighed. "Sorry."

"I'm not mad at you." Phantom smiled. "Besides…It would probably be pointless to call Jinx about any of this anyway. She won't know about anything besides what the Light is up to, and I know that she won't talk about that."

"Yeah." Red Huntress's visor slid down and leaned over to kiss Phantom. "Hmm…What about that Endless group you told me about?"

"You act like I can contact Death whenever I want." Phantom shook his head. "I only see her when people are about to die."

"Oh…" Red Huntress sat back up and rubbed her temples. "Then I'm out of ideas."

"Yeah…" Phantom frowned. "Well, there's one more thing I can think to do…"

"What is it?"

"I need to go to the Ghost Zone. Do you want to come?"

"Sure. Let's go."

"Spirit! You aren't supposed to be here!" Superboy snapped at the halfa girl. It was that distraction that put him off guard enough for the enemy to blind side him. The Kryptonian clone was blasted away in a blaze of green.

"I got bored, and you did request backup." Spirit chuckled as she caught her fellow clone and gently put him back on his feet.

"Fine. Just watch out." The man also known as Conner Kent grunted.

"Why? We face the Royal Flush Gang all the time."

"It's not them I'm worried about." Suberboy sighed.

Once a faction that worked under the Light, the Royal Flush Gang had long since broke away from the controllers of the underground. No one knew why this happened, but everyone thought that it had to deal with the leader of the gang. Ace was a very small girl that was at the beginning of her prepubescent years. Her dark hair fell just above her shoulder. Tired bags hug under cold eyes. A white and black leotard covered with a large A on the front hung over her frame.

Most would never think that Ace could lead a gang, but very few could face up against Ace's mental powers. Just being around Ace made it hard to concentrate, and when she made eye contact with people, the fight was basically over. As of right now, the small girl was fighting off the only member of Young Justice that had a chance of fighting her mentally. Miss Martian was having a mental battle with the girl as they used their telepathy to try to invade each other's mind. The mental backlash from the fight was causing the air around them to waver.

While this was happening, the other members of the Royal Flush Gang and Young Justice were facing off against each other. The first member of the gang, King, was currently fighting off against Superboy. Previously known as Agent K of the Guys in White, King was an African American man wearing white armor with black lining. Dark shades covered his eyes and a K stood proud on his chest.

Jack was a man that was once referred to as Agent O. The Caucasian man wore the same armor and shades as King except he had a J on the front of his armor. Flying on a hover scooter, Jack was fighting against Troia. Knowing that he could never fight the Amazon with his natural strength, the ex-GIW agent kept his distance and used the ectoplasmic energy guns and cannons on his armor and scooter to try and hit Troia down. The Amazon was using her bracelets to black all the blows. She couldn't get close, so she tried to use her lasso to catch the man. A green energy shield stopped the rope from getting all the way around him, though.

Queen was a woman that used to be part of a ghost hunting group once called the Extreme Ghostbreakers. She wore armor that was more black than white in contrast to King and Jack. Her arburn colored hair was hidden by the black helmet on her head, and her eyes were covered by sports goggles. The woman was currently using her natural athletic skills and power suit to fight off against Robin. The Boy Wonder was barely holding on by using his agility to avoid her blows. Unfortunately, none of his attacks got close to making contact, though.

Ten was the last member of the Royal Flush Gang. He was dressed in an almost identical male version of Queen's clothes. Also, like Queen, he used to be a member of the Extreme Ghostbreakers. While riding on a skateboard with supersonic jets, Ten raced against Kid Flash and traded blows. While the speedster was faster than Ten, the ghost hunter's quick reactions, athletics, and equipment evened the battlefield. Neither fighter was gaining the upper hand.

"Ah crap…" King frowned at Spirit. "Ace isn't going to like your being here."

"She'll get over it!" Spirit rushed forward and attacked the man.

Sighing, King activated a shield around him to protect himself as prepared for a fight that he wasn't really allowed to fight. Years ago when the Light did an all-out assault on Amity Park, Ace was shown love and sympathy by Vision instead of a ruthless takedown when Ace was temporarily distracted. In that one moment of tearful selflessness, Ace decided that the Royal Flush Gang, which was made up of ex-ghost hunters, would never kill a ghost and would actively avoid having to harm the ectoplasmic beings. While not a popular decision, the other members of the group agreed out of fear of Ace's power, and eventually they all got used to the policy.

Of course, this did not mean that the Royal Flush Gang was a group of heroes. They often destroyed, stole, and hurt people for their own amusement. There seemed to be an underlying theme, though. Many of their targets, such as the one today, was an attack against the Light. The villainous group was attacking the Lex Corp Building in New York City. In fact, they already managed to destroy part of the facility by the time the current Alpha squad.

"Oh…" Ace turned her head lightly to see Spirit. "The girl Vision thinks of as a daughter…I guess play time is over."

"Damn." Jack grunted as he retreated away from Troia. "I was just having fun."

"It can't be helped." Queen shrugged as she suddenly grabbed Robin's kicking leg and tossed him away. "With us outnumbered, especially with Spirit here, we can't fight and win without going for the kill."

"Yes." Ace suddenly looked back at Miss Martian. The girl's face then changed from impassive to somewhat focused in intense.

"AH!" M'gann cried out in shock and pain as if felt like Ace sucker punched her brain.

"Do it." Ace looked over to King.

"Right." King nodded. He was still protected by his shield despite Spirit's constant attacks, so no one could stop him as he pulled out a trigger button and pressed it. The nearby Lex Corp building suddenly burst out in an explosion. Glass, concrete, and fire burst out everywhere. Alpha Squad and the Royal Flush Gang were far enough to avoid the damage, but they could still feel the heat of the blast.

'No!' Miss Martian gasped out mentally as she winced from the sight of the flames. 'Aquagirl! Are you alright!?'

'Yes, I am. I was outside when the explosion went off.' Tula's voice sounded out. 'Unfortunately, I could not evacuate the entire building. Some…some people just lost their lives.'

'Damn.' Superboy growled. "Damn it! Why would you do that!?"

"The Light must be destroyed." Queen noted. "I'm no moralist, but the things they've done…It's sickening."

"That doesn't mean you can kill innocent people!" Spirit shouted out angrily.

"Dude! You don't even know anything, man!" Ten scoffed. "They, like, knew what they were getting into when they decided to work for Lex Luthor."

"Many of them had families, though!" Kid Flash glared at the man.

"Sacrifices must be made." Jack sighed. "This facility was important to the Light. With this, we've postponed the Sorcerer Initiative. It will buy us all more time to prepare."

"What does that mean?" Troia was confused.

"It doesn't matter." Ace raised her arms. "All that matters is the destruction of the Light. It doesn't matter how big the wound is. As long as they suffer even a little, it's a victory to me."

Using her telekinesis, Ace caused the ground below them to crack and blast up. The wave of concrete and dust covered the area and blinded all of the members of Alpha Squad. It took a few seconds, but M'gann managed to recover enough to use her telekinesis to scatter the dust and allow them to see again. By the time she did this, though, the Royal Flush Gang was already gone.

"I am really sick of the bad guys getting away." Robin suddenly noted. "It leaves a bad taste in my mouth."

"I know what thou means…" Troia nodded.

"I hate when you ask me to do this." Greta frowned as she tried to steady the needle in her hand.

"Sorry." Joel muttered. He felt the shaky needle poke into his neck. "But I have trouble doing it to myself."

"Hmm…" Greta gently pushed the needle into his neck and injected the green liquid. "So how does that work with the emergency ecto boosts? Do you need others to do it for you?"

Joel smiled as the needle was pulled out. "Pretty much. When I'm at the point that I need the boost, I can't really move."

"I see…" Greta sighed and gave the needle to her companion. "There you go. Nice and stable."

"Thanks." Joel turned and put the needle on his nightstand.

Because of the circumstances revolving around his transformation into a half-ghost, Joel wasn't exactly always stable. He couldn't just go of on his own and hope to survive. If he did, then he would dissolve. That was why he needed a stabilizing agent to help him. Luckily, Danny had developed something like that before Joel even arrived in Amity Park, and the ectoplasmic boosts had only improved since then. Now, there were no longer terrible side effects from using a boost. Thus, if Joel took his boosts consistently, he would be fine. Just in case of emergency, though, he always kept extra boosts to help stabilize him if anything happened while on missions.

"By the way, shouldn't you be at the Cave?" Joel looked over to Greta. She was sitting on a mat in the middle of his room. "I thought all the possible targets of Harm were staying there for safety."

"I managed to convince everyone that I would be safe enough here." Greta mentioned. "This is the safest city in the world, right?"

"Not as much anymore…" Joel grunted as he sat down across from Greta. "Wulf, Cujo, and Amorpho are gone. And they might be used against us…"

"Yeah…And it doesn't help that other ghosts have gone missing. Everyone seems so anxious and angry. I remember when Ember went missing too. Danny and Torch went nuts…" Greta fidgeted with her robes. "Everyone is worried about them. I hope they're okay."

"Morgaine and Harm wouldn't just kill them. They want to use them against us after all. It's going to be hard to fight against our friends, but at least if gives us a chance to save them." Joel mentioned.

"Right…" Greta looked down. "Right…save them."

Joel eyed Greta. "I have to ask…Why did you come into my room? Usually, you respect Vision's rules. I'm not complaining or anything cause it saved me a trip to find someone to help with my boost, but it's strange for you."

"I…There's something I wanted to talk to you about." Greta looked up into Joel's eyes.

"I'm listening."

"Harm…my brother…I need your help in trying to save him." Greta's eyes teared up. "I know that he's become a monster, but…he's still my brother, and I love him. With the way things are going, I can't help but think that he's going to die, and if that happens…I won't be able to go on."

"Greta…"

"He's part of my real obsession." Greta allowed her tears to flow. She gently lifted the silver amulet around her neck and peered down at it, "I want to help redeem him. I know it's kind of impossible, but I have to at least try and save him from his darkness. Or at least, I have to make sure he isn't killed in the coming fight."

Joel sighed and looked up to the ceiling tiredly. "Why do so many people ask me to do the impossible?"

"You mean like Dark Dan?"

"Yeah, like him."

Joel did tell everyone what happened with Dark Dan. They were all confused by the evil ghost's words After all, Dark Dan was a ghost of destruction. There was no reason that he would want to save lives. Most of the ghosts assumed that the alternate Phantom was trying to trick Joel or perhaps gain future allies in the form of the supervillains. The youngest halfa wasn't sure, though. For some reason, he thought that Dark Dan was making a real request to keep everyone alive to avoid something terrible. Joel had no idea what that could be, though.

"This is different from that." Greta leaned forward and got close up to Joel's face. "I saw him, Joel. I saw my brother up close and personal. Whenever he looked at me, I saw the guilt and shame in his eyes. Part of the real Billy is still in there, and if I can talk, or at least fight with him, maybe I can bring that out."

"I don't know, Greta."

"Please, Joel." Greta took his hands in her own. "I'm desperate. Help me try and save my brother. If I can't redeem him, then at least I can make sure he stays alive. Because if I lose him, I'll lose the reason I came back as a ghost in the first place."

"Can't…can't you get another reason?" Joel questioned. "Live for something else. I mean…You have another family now. You have all of us in Amity Park. You have…a future here."

"We can't change our obsessions Joel." Greta gave him a sad look. "Regular ghosts aren't half-ghosts. Our obsessions don't evolve. Completing the unfinished task from our past life is our whole reason for living. Nothing can change that, not even new friends, family, and…people that we want to get really close."

"So that's it…" Joel looked devastated. "That's you answer?"

"Yes…Tomorrow, the anniversary of when I first confronted my brother, will be the all or nothing moment."

"I see…" Joel gently squeezed her hands. "Then, if that's the case, I'll do whatever I can do to save your brother. I will make him regret what he's done and put him on the path to redemption. I promise you…You'll have your real brother back."

"Thank you."

"This…Is a first." A being with a head that was only one giant eye stated. His body was completely covered in white robes. "I don't believe that you have ever visited us before."

"I never needed to." Phantom noted as he stood in a large room. Dozens of other beings like the one in front of him were seated in different rows of seats above hem. They all peered down at Phantom and Red Huntress in a judging manner.

The Observerants were an odd group of ghosts. They were born from the human habit of watching but not taking action. Every one of the eyeball ghosts could see into the future to some extent. They very rarely acted on anything. Instead, they were mostly silent observers. There was a good reason for that, though. This group realized that if they acted on their knowledge of the future, things most likely would end up worse than what was supposed to happen.

"So these are the guys that tried to get Clockwork to kill you, right?" Red Huntress looked around the room. "Hmm…Were they there back when Vortex attacked? Cause I remember them."

"Yeah, that was them." Phantom paused and looked to the head Observant. "Thanks for the warnings by the way. They really helped me through the GIW War thing."

"We were concerned that more interference would only make things worse, but Clockwork trusted you, so we thought it would be wise to do the same." The Head Observant noted.

"If that's the way you feel, maybe you'd be willing to help again." Phantom noted. "Things aren't going well. Normally, I would ask Clockwork for some advice on the matter, but he's…"

"Yes. He predicted that this would happen." The Head Observant sighed.

"He told you about all that? Why didn't you put a stop to it?!" Red Huntress glared.

"Our interference would only have ended up in us dying." The Head Observant gained a saddened look. "Every time we directly interfere, some of us die. We've tried before…None of us are like Clockwork, you know. We lack his strength."

"You act like it's a bad thing." Phantom mentioned. "Power is a great burden that very few people can handle."

The Observants burst out laughing. "Ah, you have changed a lot, haven't you?"

"Yeah." Phantom nodded.

The Head Observant looked down. "I…I'm sorry. I can't help you. We are blind to everything that will happen after today."

"After today? Why after today?" Red Huntress questioned.

"Tomorrow. All Hallow's Eve." The Head Observant looked at his hands. "It is the day that the dead and the demons get to go out and play…"

"So Harm will be acting tomorrow." Phantom nodded. "That's what I assumed, but I wasn't completely sure."

"Yes…He will act, and everything shall go to hell." The Head Observant looked around at his brothers. They all closed their eyes and bowed their heads.

"Is there anything more you're allowed to tell me?" Phantom questioned.

"The only thing I can say is…I hope you get the chance to give away the box you carry away." Observant gave him a knowing look.

"Box?" Red Huntress blinked.

Phantom burst out laughing. Despite the laughter, he seemed somewhat embarrassed. "What? You bring that up now? Why?"

"Clockwork always said that we needed to lighten up more." The Head Observant took a few steps back and sat in a small chair. "Better late than never."

"I think there are rarely times where things are too late." Phantom mentioned. "As long as we at least try to change, that's all that matters."

"Yes…Change…Second chances." The Observant's voice hitched for a second. "Phantom…I'm sorry."

"Huh?"

"We thought we knew it all. We thought that your death would bring peace, but we were wrong." The Observant began to cry. "We were always so wrong."

"Hey…It's alright. I don't hold a grudge or anything." Phantom rubbed the back of his head in embarrassment.

"Then you are a better person than us." The Observant cried into his hands. "We were always bitter to Clockwork. He always had all the answers. He got to act. We just had to sit and watch. Never acting…We never asked for this burden. To know about the future but not be able to do anything to change it. Can you imagine it?"

"It must have been hard." Despite her confusion, Red Huntress still gave the Observant a look of pity.

"No…The worst part is that it is so easy not to act. To not even try and change things…It's the easiest thing in the world." The Head Observant sobbed. "We're such fools! Pariah Dark should never have given us any power at all! We didn't deserve any of it!"

Phantom was now extremely concerned. "Something's going to happen isn't it?"

"Yes. It is about to begin. We are out of time." The Observant's massive eye looked up to Phantom. "Forgive us, Phantom. You are the solution, not the problem. We see that now...now that our stopwatch has stopped running. Goodbye, Danny Phantom. I hope that the next life is kinder than this one."

It was then that a massive red light flooded the room. Everything was covered in the crimson waves. The odd thing was that the light didn't originate from the room. No, it came from outside. In fact, the light was covering far more than just the Observants' domain. The red light touched everything in the Ghost Zone for a brief moment. Then, as quickly as it arrived, the light was gone. What replaced it was loud cries and screams of ghosts throughout the Ghost Zone.

"You shouldn't have been there in New York. You could have gotten hurt." Nightwing glared Spirit as she sat with the other members of Young Justice on lockdown. They were all at the kitchen table of the Cave. It was a rather small kitchen with only a refrigerator, a few cabinets, and a small stove, but it filled the needs of the Team.

"Yeah, yeah…" Spirit rolled her eyes and stuffed a handful of chips into her mouth.

"Dani, I'm actually on Nightwing's side." Zatanna sighed and leaned back in her chair. "Harm has Morgaine le Fey on his side. He's more dangerous than ever, and he'll likely come after us. It's best to stay around a lot of people to help us fight in case he uses the Infi-map to find us."

"I get that…" Spirit said through a mouthful of chips. "But why am I here and not Greta? She's probably the biggest target of all."

"You were the one that didn't want to stay cramped in Amity Park with the Fright Knight always looking over your shoulder." Artemis smirked and placed her chin in her hands. "Greta was fine with it, so she doesn't have to stay here."

"Yeah, yeah…" Spirit grumbled.

"Excuse me, but what art thou talking about?" Troia questioned as she leaned against the kitchen counter. "Why would the man called Harm be after thee?"

"It's a long story, but basically three years ago, these three showed up in New York, fought Harm, and defeated him with Greta's help." Nightwing explained to the Amazon.

"Don't forget about the Fright Knight. He helped to…" Spirit mentioned.

"Ah, I see." Troia nodded. "That would explain the tension."

"Yeah," A green bird flew from the living room to the kitchen and transformed back into Garfield. "Everyone's thinking that today or tomorrow's gonna be the day Harm acts out, so every friend we have is on high alert."

"So that is why there are so many League members in the Cave today." Troia crossed her arms. "Do they not trust us to guard our own comrades?"

"That's the way it's always been." Spirit shrugged. "There's a reason they get the special space station and we don't."

"Hmph…" Troia huffed and looked away. "And just when I thought that discrimination wasn't prevalent in this hero business of Man's World. Instead of men taking advantage of women, it is the adults that lack the ability to trust the young."

"It's…not always this bad." Zatanna gave a weak smile. "These are some dangerous circumstances."

"Yeah, they used to be a lot worse about not trusting us." Artemis groaned and cranked her neck back. "Remember those days?"

"You sound old." Garfield joked. He quickly shut up when Artemis glared at him.

"Never comment on a woman's age." Nightwing advised the green boy.

"Ah…noted."

"But Gar does have a point." Spirit looked around the kitchen to everyone. "I feel old just sitting here talking about this stuff. Almost all the members of the Team are out doing things. Even most of Alpha went to go help their mentors. Yet we're stuck here. I hate it."

"I believe that thou art thinking about this in the wrong way." Troia caught their attention. "This beith the time to prepare for the next battle. We all handle this time in different ways. Some prepare more. Some rest. Some fight. What matters is that we make sure that we are ready to put our lives on the line for each other when the time comes to fight."

"Well said." Nightwing smiled at the girl.

"I guess that's true…" Spirit looked down at the table. "But…I still got friends out there under Harm's control. One of which, I didn't give the benefit of the doubt. I need to save them…I need to…"

"Don't worry, Dani." Artemis patted her on the shoulder. "Everything is going to be fine. We'll save your friends and beat the bad guys like always."

"Yeah, this isn't anything we can't handle." Zatanna smiled.

"I hope so, but…I just got this bad feeling…"

It was then that all the alarms in the Cave blared to live. Red light flashed around the entire mountain. Sirens flared and echoed across the rocky walls. Every monitor and hologram lit up in an instant as they were assault with different images of demons and ghosts fighting each other a different locations across the planet.

"Damn, I hate when I'm right about this crap."

"The automated defense system is online." Cyborg noted. A hologram appeared above his left arm, and he interacted with it like it was a touchscreen computer. The picture on the holographic screen showed the various connecting networks across Amity Park. Each signal was sent by a radio dish that the Phantom Family had spent years establishing. "Everything is completely operational, and by my calculation unhackable. Not even that annoying brat Gizmo could get into the J.A.Z.Z controlled system Axion Labs and I developed."

"I never knew you were so brilliant with technology." Fright Knight noted. They currently were on top of the Fenton Ops Center. The massive metal battle center towered in the Amity Park skyline. It was from here that they could control the entire system. "Of course, you did show some skill before, but now…"

"Well, technology is basically my life now." Cyborg's words were dunked in bitterness. "Might as well give it my goddam all…"

"Vic, please don't. You're getting depressing, and that means something coming from me." Raven mentioned to her friend.

"Right, sorry, Rae." Cyborg gave her a sheepish look. "Just…voicing my thoughts. I don't want to take it out on you guys."

"It is fine, tech knight." Fright Knight noted. "I cannot even begin to imagine the position you are in. Your feelings are beyond my comprehension, but if it helps you at all, please vent away."

"Haha…" Cyborg chuckled and shook his head. "Thanks, man. I appreciate it, but I'm not the kind of man to take my frustrations out on someone who doesn't deserve it."

"Then we must find someone who deserves it and take it out on him, correct?" Fright Knight questioned.

"I like the way you think." Cyborg couldn't help but smile. He had to admit that his situation wasn't nearly as bad as it could have been. The large teen was lucky enough to be surrounded by people would accept him and respect him despite his circumstances. It made life easier, but of course he was far from being cool with his new body just yet.

"Hey!" Dusk called over to them as he and Secret arrived. "Sorry we're late. I needed Greta to help me take my ecto-boost."

"No problem, dude." Cyborg waved them off. "I already programmed every ghost, magic, and demon ally into the data base, so we won't be alerted if they come by. But if Harm or the le Fey lady shows up with any of their minions, we'll get an alert."

"I still don't get how this works in Amity Park." Raven mentioned. "Amity Park is too heavy with ectoplasmic energy for any sensor to get a feel of who's in it."

"I'd like to take the credit, but Danny, Vlad, and…my father have been working on this system for years." Cyborg grunted. "I just modified the calibrations and tweaked the system to make it work the best way possible. By using all the satellite dishes, phone signals, and radios in Amity Park as a miniature sensor, we can divide the city into small grids. Then, we constantly scan the grids individually to see if there are any abnormalities."

"Fascinating…" Fright Knight nodded slowly. "But I don't understand a word you just said."

"Me neither." Dusk shrugged.

"Don't worry about it." Cyborg mentioned. "Just know that we will know if there is even a little disturbance."

"Amazing." Greta smiled. "So, if Harm or Morgaine opens up a portal, we can automatically react and stop them before things get too out of hand."

"Exactly." Cyborg nodded. "Plus, the defense system will kick in. Apparently, after what happened with the Light, Danny and Vlad have been outfitting the city with an Invasion Defense System. There are turrets, robots, and armored vehicles ready to defend the city in case of an all-out assault. Right, J.A.Z.Z.?"

Cyborg pulled out his personally made Fenton Works Tucker Phone. J.A.Z.Z.'s voice sounded from the device. "Yes, Danny and Vlad have placed me in complete control of the defense system. If I sense anything, I will alert you while activating the weaponry."

"What about the citizens?" Greta questioned.

"We already relocated them to the bunkers. Harm and le Fey are likely to attack today, so we wanted to make sure they didn't get in the way." Raven explained.

"And with the people of Amity Park safe, the defense system can be used without worry." J.A.Z.Z. stated.

"Good." Dusk nodded. "Just…be careful about the ghosts you attack. They're under Morgaine's control."

"I know. Don't worry. I won't be using deadly force on them." J.A.Z.Z. crushed their worries.

"Excellent." Fright Knight nodded. "And with the rest of the family ready, le Fey and Harm won't stand a chance once they attack this city."

"…Wait…" Raven paused. "How do we know they will attack the city?"

"This is the home of the only group of people that fight against their ghosts and demons properly. Not to mention Harm's grudge against Lady Spirit and Lady Secret." Fright Knight mentioned. "This is the most logical place that they would attack first. They would want to get us out of the way."

"But why attack our stronghold when they know that we're prepared?" Raven questioned.

"Vision thought about that." Cyborg shrugged. "If they spread out the attack across the globe, there's nothing we can really do to prepare. We wouldn't be able to set up a system like this anywhere else. The only thing we can really do is prep Amity Park and guard the Ghost Zone."

"And if they do attack anywhere else, we have the League and nonaffiliated vigilantes to help out." Fright Knight nodded.

"Then we have everything covered." Dusk nodded. "That's good. But…I still have to question what le Fey's motives are. Why do all this anyway? It's not like she has any sort of grudge against us."

"The only way to answer that is to ask her." Fright Knight shrugged. "And most likely we'll get the opportunity to do just that soon enough…"

"Oh no…." J.A.Z.Z.'s voice sounded through the Tucker Phone once more. "Fright Knight's right! Morgaine le Fey and Harm are on the move! They just attacked the Ghost Zone!"

"Did Colossus and Frostbite intercept them?" Cybrog questioned.

"No! They didn't get the chance! Morgaine did something to control all the ghosts in the Ghost Zone!"

"What?" Dusk went pale.

"From what I understand, the ghosts are flying through portals left and right."

"But…nothing's happening here." Greta mentioned.

"That's because they're not attacking Amity Park!"

"Damn, so they're attacking different cities." The Fright Knight sighed.

"No! That's not it! They're not attacking buildings or people!"

"Then…what are they doing?" Raven felt her stomach clench.

"The demons!"

"What?"

"The demons from Jason Blood's collection! The ghosts and the demons are fighting across each other across the globe! They're tearing each other apart and destroying everything in the process!"

Dusk's eyes widened. If the ghosts and demons were fighting, then that meant that they could do very little to save their allies being controlled by le Fey. All of their brainwashed allies would be killed right before their eyes. "No…"

"Morgaine le Fey!" Phantom roared. After the brainwashing red light had died down, he rushed to the source with Red Huntress hot on his heels. The halfa arrived to the source of the light located in the center of the Ghost Zone. There, he found Morgaine le Fey, Harm, and a machine with the mind controlling jewel at its center.

The halfa rushed towards the sorceress at neck break speeds. Green energy blazed around his right hand as he sent a powerful punch towards the woman. Normally, the power behind the attack could have caused concrete to shatter and buildings to shake. When le Fey created a yellow shield of magical energy, though, Phantom's attack was stopped completely. This didn't stop the halfa completely. For a few seconds, he tried to force his way through the barrier. Energy sparked around him as he tried to use his skills with magic to deconstruct the barrier, but that proved useless as Morgaine was far too skilled of a powerful for his meager understanding of magic to handle.

Realizing that it was futile, Phantom retreated a decent distance and glared at the woman. Red Huntress flew up to his side and examined him. "Danny, are you alright?"

"I'm fine." Phantom grunted.

"Me oh my…" Morgaine tilted her head to the side in fascination. "I have to say, I'm impressed. If that was any other magic user, you would have broken the shield. It is certainly easy to see why so many people are interested in you."

"Don't give me that crap! I won't be distracted!" Phantom glared. "You have to stop this, now!"

"Do not speak to Master le Fey in such a way." Harm snapped.

"It's alright, Harm. I like his attitude. Very few men have the backbone to talk back to me. I have to say…I like it."

All around the four individuals, ghosts were flying through portals. It seemed like every ghost in the Ghost Zone was now under le Fey's control. The two heroes thought that some of the ghosts would attack them, but that didn't happen. The ghosts continued to pile out of the Ghost Zone and acted as if Phantom and Red Huntress didn't even exist.

"That machine must have amplified the effects of the jewel." Red Huntress realized as she looked at the machine that stood at nearly ten feet tall. It was very thin about the size of lamppost pole. A large antenna stood at the top of the machine. "But…how did you two build it? An ancient sorceress and a psychopath. Neither of you have any knowledge of how to build something like that."

"You are correct. That is why I recruited a mind that does understand such things." Morgaine waved her hand and a teenager appeared in a blaze of yellow energy. The teen was rather short and had a shaved head. His body was covered in a green body suit completely covered in tech. A pair of green goggles stood on his head, but the glass was shattered.

"Gizmo!" Phantom's eyes widened.

"I…I'm sorry…" Gizmo coughed out as he was dropped to the ground. He was covered in bruises and cuts. "I didn't want to. They made me…"

"Yes, this new generation is very surprising." Morgaine le Fey glanced down at the teen. "I just wanted to find someone that no one would notice if he went missing. This recluse was perfect, but I thought it would be easier considering his perverted nature. Imagine my surprise when he actually resisted me when I explained to him what I wanted."

"Snot muncher…" Gizmo hissed. "I may be a crook, but there's no way in hell I was going to help you commit mass murder."

"Murder?" Harm laughed and picked the boy up with one hand. "How can you murder what is already dead?"

"Idiot…" Gizmo glared at the psychopath. "I'm a scientist, asswhipe. I know how ghosts work. Everything about them fits the description of a sentient being. That means, they're alive."

"Tsk…" Harm rolled his eyes. "Annoying bug. Can Harm kill the it now?"

"No. He might be of use later." Morgaine le Fey shook her head.

"Fine." Harm chucked Gizmo at the heroes. Red Huntress caught the teen carefully.

"Grr…" Gizmo shook in both pain and anger as he peered back to the sorceress. "I swear, witch, one day I'll make you pay for this. No one gets to use me and abuse me like this. One day, I'm gonna make sure you suffer five times more than I have."

"Big words from a little man." Morgaine le Fey chuckled.

"You mock the words of a fallen warrior? How disgraceful." The voice of Colossus called out. The giant and Frostbite arrived at the scene and helped surround the two villains.

"Witch! Release the ghosts now, or I'll tear you limb from limb!" Frostbite roared. His eyes were slitted, his teeth were bared, and his fur was standing on end. He looked positively monstrous.

"From one of the ancient ghosts that stood by the Ghost King, that is a decent threat." Morgaine nodded. "But it is already too late. You see, the ghosts have already been given commands. They are to go to the human world and fight the demons that I released. The only way to stop this command is for someone with my mind control jewel to order them to stop. If that doesn't happen, they will fight until they are unable to fight anymore, because I have ordered them to fight to the death."

"You did what?!" Phantom's eyes widened.

"I will have the ghosts and demons fight to the death." Morgaine le Fey shivered in pleasure as she reached up to her golden mask. She removed to reveal one of the most beautiful faces Phantom had ever seen. The halfa could now see how this woman could seduce someone like Jason Blood to the point of obsession. "It will be such a beautiful sight. Long ago, people feared demons and ghosts like no other. I always wondered which would be the most terrifying in a fight. Now, I will get to see that."

"Is that why you did this?" Red Huntress glared.

"Yes, and no." Morgaine le Fey's pouty lips dipped up into a smirk. "I do have another reason for all this, but mostly…I just thought that it would be an incredibly interesting sight. All the bloodshed and war…It will be glorious."

"You…" Colossus trembled in rage. "HOW DARE YOU!? Fighting is an honorable thing! It is to equals coming together to see who is the strongest! Yet, here you are forcing people to battle without their consent or honor! You dare pervert the integrity of battle in such a way?!"

"I do…" Morgaine seemed pleased. "Remember the plan, Harm. Go get the final piece."

"I will, Mistress." Harm removed the jewel from the machine and bowed to the woman.

"You will pay!" Colossus roared and flew to Morgaine at dizzying speeds.

"Colossus, wait!" Phantom yelled, but he was too late. Colossus was already at le Fey. The giant was about to strike, but le Fey was ready before that. She hand her hands raised and concentrated on her energy. In a blaze, le Fey, Harm, and Colossus were gone.

"No!" Frostbite rushed to where the three beings just were.

"Damn…" Red Huntress frowned. "That was her plan. She was baited Colossus in so she could teleport him with her and take our biggest gun away."

"She's not stupid." Phantom clenched his fists. "She had everything planned from the start."

Frostbite's feral look disappeared and was replaced by a look of despair. "I…What can we do now? We can't order the ghosts to stop without the jewel, and Harm has that. And without Colossus, we're a lot weaker than we should be. How can we save our allies now?"

"…By beating them to the point that they can't move so they can't fight to the death." Phantom reached into his pocket and pulled out his phone. "J.A.Z.Z., where are all the ghosts going?"

"Luckily for you, I've been monitoring just that." J.A.Z.Z. spoke out. "Here's the map I created."

"Thank you." Phantom looked at the map. "I see…"

"Danny?" Red Huntress looked to the halfa.

"Frostbite, you go to Atlantis and give them some support. Your powers will be amplified by the water." Phantom noted. "Freeze the ghosts so that they won't be killed."

"…Yes. Yes, I'll do that. Thank you, Great One." Frostbite bowed his head and flew off.

"Hey…But muncher…" Gizmo gasped out from his spot in Red Huntress's arms. "Get me and the machine to Amity Park. If I…recalibrate it…I can reverse the effects…and stop the ghosts…That way, I can be happy knowing that I did something…"

"Red Huntress, do as he says." Phantom looked to his girlfriend. "While he's doing that, I'll have people look for the stone so we can stop this madness."

"Right." Red Huntress nodded and did as her boyfriend asked.

Now alone, Phantom looked to his phone. "J.A.Z.Z., get me in contact with everyone you can get a hold of. We need to be organized if we want to minimize the death count."

"Most of the League is already out in the field." Nightwing mentioned as he worked with the holographic computer in the center of the Cave. "A lot of them are working with members of Young Justice already."

"That's fine." Phantom's face showed in one of the images. "I'll have Vision organize the ghosts to give them backup. Who do you have with you right now?"

"Robin already left for Gotham, but Spirit, Artemis, Troia, and Zatanna are still here." Nightwing mentioned.

"And Batman probably wants you back in Gotham too." Phantom frowned. "Alright, it's probably best to keep up with the pattern. Zatanna, Artemis, and Troia, meet with your mentors and help them. I'll have Vision sent some backup to help Zatanna and Artemis in case Harm tries to target them."

"With my Dad?" Zatanna sighed. "That will suck. He still treats me like a baby."

Artemis patted her on the shoulder. "I think he'll get over it considering the circumstances. We'll all have to work as a team."

"Should we go ahead and head out?" Troia questioned. "I am sure Diana is waiting for my help."

"Yeah. Go." Phantom nodded as the women left.

"Hey!" Spirit glared at the screen. "What about me?"

"I'll have you meet with Raven and Vision. Vision will decide where you go." Phantom noted.

"Alright…" Spirit paused. "Is there any way you can know where some of the specific ghosts are. Like Cujo, Wulf, or Youngblood."

J.A.Z.Z.'s voice then sounded throughout the Cave. "Actually, I've managed to track our closest allies. Wulf and Youngblood seem to be in the same location."

"J.A.Z.Z.," Phantom sighed. "You know telling her that will only rile her up…"

"Where are they?" Spirit quickly questioned.

"Dani, I think it would be best if we let someone else handle those two. Your emotions in the situation might get in the way." Phantom explained from his holographic image.

"No, that's exactly why I should go and help them. I care enough to stop them without hurting them." Spirit frowned. "Please, I want to help my friends."

"…"

"Danny, what do you think?" Nightwing questioned.

"Alright, Dani. I'll trust you with this. Tell Vision that I suggested this, and she'll listen." Phantom sighed and rubbed his temples.

"Thanks! Don't worry! I'll get them back in one piece! It's a promise!" Spirit grinned and ran up to the Zeta Tubes.

Recognized: Spirit B12

With that, Spirit disappeared in a flash of golden light.

"Are you sure that was wise?" Nightwing inquired.

"No idea, but it's out of my hands now." Phantom looked worried, though. "I don't have time to worry…I'm going to head out. I'll talk to you when this is all over."

"Where are you heading anyway?"

"With Dani helping Wulf and Youngblood, the only family members unaccounted for are Amorpho and Cujo. I contacted some friends to track down Amorpho, so I'll head to help my dog." Phantom explained. "Cujo was located in Dakota City. I'm going to head there and make sure he doesn't die."

Dusk was silent as he pulled Secret into an alley way. Amity Park was completely silent. There were no ghosts or demons around. It appeared that all the preparation was for nothing. Nevertheless, it gave the youngest halfa peace of mind to know that his home would be safe without him around to protect it.

As soon as everyone was starting to be divided up into groups, Dusk quickly grabbed Secret and pulled her away from Fenton Works before anyone could notice. If they wanted to track Harm down, they couldn't be following orders to defend a certain spot. So, Dusk left a text message alerting everyone that he and Greta would be looking for Harm and the jewel. After all, someone had to find the jewel to reverse the orders of le Fey.

The only problem lay in the fact that everyone would probably object to Secret being involved in this. She was a possible target of Harm after all. Dusk didn't care, though. He promised Greta that he would help her save brother. The halfa teen was going to make sure he kept that promise, so he turned cut off J.A.Z.Z.'s connection to his Tucker Phone, which wasn't hard considering how talented he was at breaking tech.

"I feel bad about leaving our friends." Greta frowned as the settled into the alley way.

"I do too, but it will all be worth it if we succeed. No one will be able to say anything as long as we get le Fey's brainwashing jewel." Dusk explained.

"Right…you're right." Secret shuffled her feet a little bit though. "I guess…I wanted to have all my friends on this mission."

"I'm sorry, Greta, but you knew that wasn't going to happen." Dusk lowed his head. His hood hid most of his face. "That's why you came to me, right?"

"Yes…among other reasons…" Greta looked to where their hands were still connected. Her face flushed, but she did nothing to stop the contact.

"Okay," Dusk nodded. "Then we'll need a way to track him down. Tell me, do you think with him being so active right now, could you possibly track his movements?"

"How?"

"He's part of your obsession, right?" Dusk mentioned. "That means you'll automatically be drawn to him. No one asked you for help earlier because of le Fey's protection, but according to Red Huntress, she's most likely distracting Colossus while Harm was ordered somewhere else. He's no longer being shielded by her."

"Oh, right…" Secret closed her eyes. "I don't know if this will work, but I'll try."

For several minutes, they were both silent. Greta focused on targeting her brother. Dusk on the other hand was merely observing her. Out of everyone in Amity Park, Greta was closest to being Dusk's best friend. Only Cujo and Fright Knight compared, but considering their species and age, the halfa didn't think that it counted. As such, the teen cared for her strongly.

It was often suggested that Dusk had romantic feelings for her, but he wasn't sure. Before Amity Park, Joel never had time for such thoughts. Then, when he got to the city, the halfa was focused on integrating into a somewhat stable life while dealing with the threat of the Light. Now, though, with his body changing into that of an adult, Dusk thought about such things far more often. It was a natural part of life after all.

Still, the halfa was an incredibly guarded individual. With his background and observations from the Shadows, Dusk was pretty skeptical of romance. He had seen plenty of female assassins use their beauty and bodies to entice men into a false sense of security. Dusk would be lying if he said that wasn't paranoid about such things now.

With Greta, though, it was different. She was so similar to him in a way. Both of them disliked violence more than the other ghosts, both of them came into Amity Park long after the GIW War, and both of them were more soft-spoken. As such, Dusk felt drawn to Greta. Especially now that they were alone. Looking at her angelic face, Dusk felt the odd urge to kiss her…

"I got him." Secret's eyes snapped open.

"W-what?" Dusk flinched a little. He was so enamored that he was caught by surprise.

"I got a lock on my brother." Secret exited the hold between their hands. She placed on hand on her forehead to concentrate and one hand pointed out to the darkened western sky. "He's in the West. My gut says California…Los Angeles."

"You sure?" Dusk questioned.

"Yes, I'm positive." Secret nodded.

"Alright…" Dusk looked at his phone and began to dial a number.

"Who are you calling? I thought the reason we ran off was because our friends would try to stop us?" Greta tilted her head in confusion.

"They will definitely try to keep you here." Dusk nodded as he pulled the phone up to his ear. "But we'll need help, so I'm calling someone that will help us without trying to keep you out of the loop."

"Who?" Greta questioned.

Dusk signed as the phone began to ring. "Someone I promised myself I wouldn't call for help…"

"Hello, Joel. This is a surprise."

"Hello, Cassandra." Dusk frowned as he spoke into the phone. "I need a favor."

Jim Corrigan was a tall broad man with rust colored hair. He currently wore a dark green suit that fit his frame well. His appearance was a little unkempt at the moment, though, as his tie was loosened and his shirt was untucked.

"Damn." Jim grunted as he unlocked the door of his apartment and stumbled in. He held his head like he was in great pain. "Why can't…I let the other guy out…"

As soon as Jim caught wind of what was happening with the ghosts and demons across the planet, he tried to jump into action. For some reason, though, the other guy was not responding. It was like his inner demon was fighting to stay locked up. He kept trying to change, but it wouldn't work. All it got him was a terrible headache.

Usually, Jim just transformed in the bathroom of his detective office, but he couldn't just stay there. What if there was some kind of backlash that came from the condition he had? If there was an energy shockwave, people would die. That was why he went home immediately.

His home was a rather small messy place on the outskirts of Los Angeles. This was a necessity considering the company he keeps at times. It would be bad if a lot of people saw the leader of the Ghost Zone at his door.

"Damn…" Jim leaned against the door once it was closed and slid to the floor. "What's happening? Why won't you listen to me?"

Jim didn't expect an answer, but he got one.

"Because Harm has ordered the ghost it not to listen to the human it."

Jim's head snapped up to see Harm standing in the center of his apartment. "You…You're the guy that broke out of Belle Reve."

"Yes…" Harm held up the red jewel and smiled cruelly. "Harm escaped the prison and now, it's time for the Spectre to escape its prison."

"Damn…" Jim trembled as he tried to get up, but his body wasn't responding. "How do you know that I contain the Spectre?"

"This," Harm reached into his trench coat with his free hand and revealed the Infi-map. "You and the it called Gizmo were the only reasons we needed this dumb map. You especially were a hard it to find."

"I see…" Jim stopped fighting and just stared at Harm. "So…What do you want exactly?"

"The Spectre. He's the final piece. Harm's master needs him so she can cause the most damage." Harm explained. "But the thing is…The Spectre is contained inside the it. When it was about to die, the Spectre sealed itself inside human it so that the Spectre could be controlled from his murderous tendencies as the ghost of revenge."

"You know a lot, eh…" Jim reached into his coat with his shaky hands and pulled out a cigarette and lighter. He lit the cigarette and began to smoke.

"Harm know only what Mistress le Fey has told Harm."

"Morgaine le Fey, eh?" Jim chuckled. "I guess I should have listened to Vision when she tried to warn me. Damn Spectre and his pride."

"Pride is the deadliest of all sins." Harm noted.

"Indeed." Jim blew out a puff of smoke and gave Harm a calm look. "So, what now, kid?"

"Now…" Harm reached behind him to his sword and pulled it out. "Harm will kill the container it and release the Spectre."

"I see." Jim sighed. "That's too bad."

"The it does not seem scared. This confuses Harm."

"Confuses you? It's not that hard to understand, kid." Jim shrugged. "I've been living off of borrowed time ever since the Spectre sealed himself inside of me. I've had to come to accept my weird existence in this world, and I've long since accepted that my borrowed time would run out. If it's today, then so be it. I just wish that my death didn't mean that hundreds would die by the hands of the Spectre. Keeping him from going on the massacre is the only reason I didn't off myself earlier."

"Harm sees," The psycho eyed the man. "Tell Harm, what is the its' name?"

"Jim Corrigan."

"I see. Harm will remember that name and carve the words on the its' grave." Harm raised his blade and cut down on the defenseless man. Blood spattered across the walls as green light flooded from Jim. With that, the spirit of revenge was now completely unchained.

re