Chapter 13: Kidnapped

Disclaimer: I own nothing

"You cannot escape the responsibility of tomorrow by evading it today."

Abraham Lincoln

Chapter 13: "Kidnapped"

Hello, Daniel.

Danny's attention was instantly captured by the beauty in front of him. No other woman could possible compare to her. She was perfection in flesh.

I'm sorry that we had to invite you over using such uncouth methods.

The halfa instantly forgave the woman. There was no way that what she did was wrong. Whatever it was, it allowed him to be in her presence, and that was reward enough.

It's just that we need your help.

With what did she need help? Did she need him to be her personal servant? Did she want him to cut off his hands in her glory? Danny would gladly do so.

You see, a friend of mine has had a hard time with some of his inventions. In fact, a couple of thoughtless children destroyed his lab.

What!? How dare anyone do something so horrible! This woman should never be forced to deal with troubles like that!

Will you help my friend?

Of course!

Good, boy…

Danny beamed at the praise. Absolute joy pulsed through his body. He would do anything for that feeling again.

So what I need you to do, is to take all the materials my people bring and to make them into ectoplasmic weaponry.

Oh, that's it? That sounds really easy…Wait…What? Danny's eyebrow twitched. A small sliver of coldness ran threw Danny's body.

It should be easy for you. The woman leaned forward to get at Danny's eye level. Danny blushed as his eyes instantly went down to the woman's generous bust. Her strapless top did nothing to hide them. From what I heard, you are quite the little inventor.

He was? Danny couldn't really remember a lot at the moment. All that mattered was the beauty in front of him. Another wave of cold cleared Danny's mind somewhat.

And if you do this for me, I might give you a small reward.

A shiver ran up the halfa's spine, and it wasn't because of the coldness. There was something in the woman's voice that made Danny excited. He really liked the idea of a reward.

So tell me, can you do this for me?

He could do that…by why was it that part of him didn't want to…The cold part was telling him that this woman was no good…

Daniel?

Danny was confused now. He wanted to help the woman, but at the same time he knew that he shouldn't. It would end badly.

Are you…resisting me?

He…didn't know. Danny looked into her eyes. Dear God, he wanted to do everything in his power to help her, but…the coldness whispered at him to stay strong.

That shouldn't be possible, especially from a teenage boy.

She was upset! Danny didn't want her to be upset! Don't be mad, please!

No, it's working…but only half-way.

The woman seemed to calm down a little. Danny sighed in relief.

No wonder the perfume I gave her didn't work. It's not nearly strong enough for it to work on you. I owe Savage an apology.

Danny didn't understand what the woman was saying. His clouded mind could not interpret what the woman's words meant. Were they important?

Sigh, well I tried. The only way for this to work is for me to be in the same room as you at all times, and no one has time for that. We'll just have to do this Ra's way, after all.

For some reason, the tone of the woman's voice made Danny uneasy. Like he had suddenly just missed the easy way out and was about to walk straight into trouble. Maybe he should just listen to…coldness…

You have impressed me, Daniel. I'll make sure to keep an eye on you.

Yes! Please do! Your attention is the greatest gift anyone could receive.

When I leave, I want you to forget everything about this conversation, even me.

Danny didn't know if it was possible to forget this woman, but he would sure try. As long as it made her happy.

Before that…I have one small question for you about a certain weapon that was used to defeat the Ghost King…Where is it?

"Vlad has it…"

Oh, do tell me more…

(Saturday-March 13, 2010)

Danny woke up with a his ears ringing. His head ached. He could only see blurs. In fact, the halfa was so out of it, he didn't realize that he was sleeping in a chair.

…Or that he was tied down to said chair…

"Well…" Danny mumbled as he struggled against his bonds. "This isn't good."

"That's merely a matter of perspective, Mr. Fenton." A commanding voice gained Danny's attention. "From my perspective, things are progressing quite well."

Danny groaned as he tried to clear his vision. Focusing on the voice in front of him, Danny made out what looked like a middle age man. The single light over him revealed that the man was sitting across a table from him. He had black hair with streaks of grey, long black mustache, and long black eyebrows. The man wore a regal green cloak with black clothing underneath.

What really grabbed the halfa's attention, though, was the man's demeanor. He held himself like he ruled the world, yet there was no arrogance in him. It was all confidence, and Danny found himself being a little intimidated by this man. He was dangerous, and Danny couldn't use his powers without revealing his identity.

"And from my perspective, they suck." Danny noted.

The man chuckled. "Youth these days, so blunt. Tell me, child. How is this situation so bad."

"I'm tied to a chair, drugged, and sitting across a coffee table from a strange man." Danny explained. "It seems like sucking to me…"

"Ah, but you are alive." The man smiled. "You should be thankful for that…Although that nasty welt on your face was not supposed to happen. I will have to have a word with Sportsmaster."

"So you're the one he works for…" Danny realized.

"Very astute." The man acknowledged. "Yes, I ordered your capture. You already know why…"

"I do." Danny nodded. "And there's a better chance of me making a solid gold turd than actually helping you, old man."

"Do not insult the master!" Danny felt a hand grab the back of his neck. Breathing was suddenly more difficult.

"Ubu, please stand down." The 'master' instructed. "We don't need to result to such methods…yet."

The man behind Danny grunted and let go. Walking to his master's side and into the light, Ubu gave Danny a good look at him. Ubu was bald and was wearing a sleeveless shirt, cargo pants, and combat boots. Oh, and did he mention that Ubu was built like a tank? Well, he was…

"So strangling me is off the table…" Danny panted out. "What isn't?"

"That is a good question, child." The master noted. "We can't very well hurt you. That would cripple you and make your progress less sufficient. No, we can use your heroic tendencies to our advantage…"

"What are you…" Several pictures were placed in front of Danny. Each one had a picture of a person, men, women, and children. Danny's eyes were instantly drawn to the middle one, though. A black haired boy around Dani's age was on it. He had a scar on his right eyebrow.

"These are all people that my organization has…acquired. They don't have any actual use to them. The younger ones have retrieved training, but can be replaced. You know what would be sad, though? If their lives were cut short because a boy refused to cooperate." The master gently explained.

Danny glared at the man. "You would threaten those people just to get me to cooperate."

"It's all for the greater good." The master insisted.

"Greater good for who?" Danny glared.

"The world." The master smiled.

Danny was silent.

"I'll take that as a yes." The master assumed.

"Fine…" Danny agreed. He would cooperate for now...

"Excellent!" Suddenly, the lights were turned on. They were in what seemed to be a workshop. Scrap metal and work benches were scattered across the room. There were no windows, but there was a large mirror and a single door.

"Enter!" The master called.

The door opened and revealed a woman. She was incredibly beautiful. Her dark black hair flowed down her back. The woman's dark eyes stared at Danny evaluating him. Even through the black trench coat over her red shirt and black pants, Danny could tell that she possessed an hour-glass figure.

Once again, Danny noticed the air of confidence around one of his capturers. She walked just like Valerie does. Complete self-confidence and danger rolled off her in waves. She was similar to the master, but unlike him, she didn't dim it down. She would kill him in an instant if she wanted to kill him.

"Lady Shiva, you will guard Mr. Fenton for now." The master's words struck a cord in Danny. The woman was the lady that helped kidnap him. Oh, joy…

"Yes, Great One." The woman glared at Danny.

Danny could only gulp in fear.

(Monday-March 15, 2010)

The first few days were wide spread panic. Everyone in contact with Danny regularly all received that the same message for help. That was alarm enough, but when Danny's Tucker phone was found under a dumpster with a bit of Danny's blood not far away…well it wasn't good.

Wulf was the first to act. He tried to sniff his friend out, but lost the trail. Whoever kidnapped Danny obviously knew what he was doing.

That was when Batman and the Justice League took notice. Several members began to look for the halfa, but none could find him. It was like Danny disappeared off the face of the earth. Batman kept the case open and active, though. He knew that whoever took Danny wanted the ecto-weaponry.

Vlad then took his turn. He offered a three million dollar reward for anyone that could save his ward. The older halfa would have went to look on his own, but he was still incredibly weak. His illness really did a number on him.

Dani also knew that Danny's other allies were constantly on the look out.

Harriet Chin kept the people aware of the missing boy. Her reports on the kidnapping kept the pressure on the police and government to keep vigilant. Dani was suddenly glad that they had a reporter on their side.

Frostbite was keeping a constant watch on the Infimap to find Danny, but couldn't use it to go to Danny. It wouldn't locate him for some reason. Frostbite had a theory that Danny being stuck in-between the planes of existence of life and death hindered the map. Either that, or someone was purposely blocking the map, but only someone of incredible power could do that.

Pandora had her servants looking for the halfa daily. She was angered that anyone would dare harm her ally. Her pride wouldn't allow for this to stand, but unfortunately there were no clues in the Ghost Zone.

Klemper, Valerie, and Dani wanted to look too, but couldn't. They had responsibilities in Amity Park. Klemper was using a disguise belt to give the illusion that Danny Phantom was still in Amity Park, and the Red Huntress couldn't scour the globe for Danny. She needed to stay and help Klemper and Dani keep the ruse.

Even Colossus and Torch were looking. Colossus wouldn't leave his rival behind apparently. His honor wouldn't allow it. Torch only wanted a rematch…or so he said. Dani could tell that he actually cared about Danny. They were friends…weird friends, but still friends, even if they wouldn't admit it.

Surprisingly, a lot of enemy ghosts were searching for the halfa as well. Most were after the reward. Some, however were more sincere. Ember seemed worried, and Skulker seemed insulted that someone got his prey before him.

Throughout this massive search, Dani felt constantly worried. Her brother was gone and most likely in trouble. She couldn't do a thing to help either. Once again, she was in a position that she couldn't help solve. All she could do was have faith that things would turn out all right.

…And she hated every minute of it…

(Tuesday-March 16, 2010)

"Okay, Lady Shiva." Danny looked up from the gauntlet gun on which he was working. "What's your deal?"

"Excuse me?" Shiva asked.

"You've been guarding me for days." Danny explained. "The whole time, you've been giving me this weird glad. Now, I know I can piss people off pretty easily, but I don't remember doing anything to you."

"You are planning something." Shiva simply stated. "Your body language and mind may not say that you are, but I know it."

'My mind? She can't possibly read my mind.' "How could I be planning anything other than making weapons…" Danny was interrupted as his gun sparked and let off smoke. "Crap! It happened again!"

"Like that." Shiva glared. "You've been working on that thing for days now, and yet there is not progress."

"Well, if you hadn't noticed, I'm not even fifteen yet. Plus I had my parent's schematics in front of me as I worked all my other inventions. You can't exactly ask me to be a miracle inventor. Your master seems satisfied with how my work is going." Danny pointed out as he sprayed down the gauntlet gun.

"If we go by merely your age, then you would be correct. Your progress is above satisfactory, but you are not the average fourteen year old. You're stalling for time." Shiva declared.

"Do I look like I'm smart enough to stall for time like this." Danny grunted. The smoke was still coming out of the weapon, so Danny hit it with a hammer. Miraculously, it worked, and the smoke stopped. "Ha! Violence solves nothing my ass!"

"To the untrained eye, no…" Shiva deadpanned. "But I believe this is a ruse."

"Obviously, your master believes that you are wrong." Danny looked over to the woman. "Otherwise, I would have been threatened."

"Yes, he assures me that I am merely being paranoid." Shiva did not seemed pleased by this.

"Well… I'll give you one point." Danny admitted. "I could be stalling to be rescued by the many people who are probably out there looking for me. I'm not though. This is just the best I got. Pretty bad, huh?"

"Those searching for you won't be able to find you here, and you know it." Shiva responded. "Yet you still hold yourself like that…"

"Like what?" Danny questioned.

"Like this is merely an inconvenience for you. Most would consider it the arrogance of youth, but I can see through it. You believe that you have hope." Shiva explained.

Danny laughed. "I believe I have hope, huh? This place has to be filled with ninja and assassins, right? How come you are the only one who thinks this? Is it your skills at reading people?"

"No, logically you have been trapped completely. There is no way for you to escape." Shiva noted. "That's why the master is comfortable with this situation. But I have something that he doesn't."

"And that is?" Danny inquired.

"Woman's intuition." Shiva answered coldly.

Danny laughed again. "Now that is very true." And with that, he went back to work.

'She's right, of course…' Danny thought. Danny had been planning an escape. He knew as long as he cooperated, the hostages would be safe, but there was the problem about what would happen to them if he escaped? The halfa was sure that they wouldn't be harmed if he escaped though. There would have been no point in hurting them if it didn't lead to some gain.

So, Danny had secretly made invisible duplicates to search through the hallways. He would have sent the duplicates out for help, but they could only go so far away from the original. So, The halfa settled for slowly memorizing the layout of the base. That would help when he finally escaped, but there was another problem…How would he escape without revealing his identity?

Well… he had a few ideas.

(Friday-March 19, 2010)

"It's been a week, Dad." Dani told her father as she hugged Cujo close to her.

"I know…" Vlad nodded as he watched the news from the living room television.

"He could be hurt…" Dani mentioned.

"I know…" Vlad mumbled.

"He could be…dead… fully dead…" Dani whispered.

"I know…" Vlad sounded very tired.

"Can't I go and look?" Dani asked. She had already asked dozens of times before, but the answer was always the same.

"No." Was Vlad's blunt answer.

"Why!?" Dani roared. Cujo jumped out of her arms in fright. "I need to help him!"

"I know, Little Badger." Vlad gave her a sympathetic look. "I feel the same way, but I wouldn't be a help to anyone as it is, and you have to stay in Amity Park. You must keep up the allusion that Fenton and Phantom have no connection other than business. Business partners would not search all over the globe alone just to find a single boy. When we get a clue, then you can go."

"I-I know…" Dani murmured. "But you know that waiting around like this isn't in my nature. I need to do something!"

"I realize this, but tell me, Danielle, what can you do?" Vlad questioned.

Dani was silent.

"That's what I thought…" Vlad sighed. "Stay patient, Danielle, and have hope. Daniel will be found and saved."

And the wait continued…

"Well this a change of pace…" Danny looked over his new guard. The woman's wild black hair went down to the middle of her back. The green kimono she was wearing was shredded in some places and ended mid thigh. Unfortunately, Danny couldn't get a good look at her face because it was hidden by the mask of a smiling cat. "Where's Lady Shiva?"

"She's been assigned to another mission." The woman stated. For some reason, Danny got the feeling that she was smirking at him. "I'm her replacement."

"Huh…" Danny gave her a once over. "Never said it was a bad change."

The woman chuckled. "That's the spirit."

"So…" Danny turned back to his work. To fix the problem of a power overload, he made a power source vest. Continuing to connect the vest and gauntlet gun, Danny continued what he said, "What do I call you?"

"Cheshire." The woman walked over to examine his work.

"Like in Alice in Wonderland…" Danny noted.

"Exactly." Cheshire chuckled.

"You keep laughing at me…" Danny frowned. "Why? Am I that pathetic?"

"No, no…" Cheshire cheerily stated as she leaned against the edge of the table. "We just have something in common, and I'm just laughing at the coincidence of it all."

"What do we have in common?" Danny questioned.

"An extreme dislike of Sportsmaster." Cheshire explained.

"Ah, that." Danny paused. "It's no secret as to why I hate him, and I know better than to ask you. You won't tell me…"

"Smart boy." Cheshire patted him on the head.

"Stop that!" Danny groaned. Why did everyone like to mess with his hair?

Cheshire just laughed at him.

Huffing, Danny said. "There is a saying for this, right? The enemy of my enemy is my friend."

"Then friends we shall be." Cheshire noted.

"To an extent, right?" Danny noted. "I am still trapped like an animal."

"Well, if you ever get out, we should grab a cup of coffee." Cheshire teased.

"We both know, that you're master won't let be go in one piece." Danny mumbled.

"You've been completely cooperative." Cheshire suggested. "That gains some points from the Great One. When you're done, he'll probably let you leave."

"You're a lot different from Shiva." Danny noted. "She told me that I was going to die."

"Shiva is a cold woman." Cheshire explained. "But not a bad one. She just always looks at the worse possible scenario. I would like to at the best scenario."

"Best scenario…huh? That hasn't happened to me in a while." Danny mumbled.

"There's always a chance." Cheshire suggested.

Nodding, Danny turned back to work. In appearance, he was making great progress, but the truth was that he was stalling. He could have finished this weapon already if he wanted to. The problem was that once he finished with this weapon, it would disappear. It would be shipped off, studied, and reproduced hundreds of times.

He couldn't let that happen. So he was not only going purposely slow, but adding as much complicated features to the weapon as possible. These…shadow guys seemed pleased by all that was going into the weapon, so they let him work. This did give him more time, but the problem was that if he couldn't escape before the time he finished the weapon…These kidnappers would have a incredibly dangerous weapon on their hands.

Luckily, his duplicates helped him memorize the entire layout of the base in which he was trapped. When he decided to make a break for it, he would be able to take the quickest pat to the outside. There was still a problem, though. The base was in the middle of the ocean.

Luckily, they weren't underwater, but they were still in the middle of nowhere. No matter how hard he tried, Danny couldn't figure out the coordinates. Getting close enough to a map or computer would give away Danny's duplicates. When he got out, Danny would have to not only have to figure out where he was, but he would also have to get a boat or helicopter to get to land. That…would difficult.

It was looking more and more like he would need to be rescued. Unfortunately, no one knew where he was. They were looking, for sure, but how were they supposed to find him in the middle of an ocean?

'I'm going to have to send a signal.' Danny thought with a grimace.

(Sunday-March 21, 2010)

"Hey, Dani," Red Huntress smiled at the girl as they flew over the town. "How you holding up?"

"You asked me that everyday for the past week…" Spirit mumbled. "Answer's still the same."

Valerie sighed. "I know. It's hard staying and doing nothing. At least the ghost attacks have popped up every now and then to keep us distracted."

"None of the big hitters, though." Spirit murmured.

"Yeah…" Red Huntress agreed.

"Are you two still complaining about that?" Klemper's voice came out of what appeared to be Danny Phantom. "You should be grateful that no big ghost attacks have happened while Danny isn't here."

"Are you saying that we couldn't handle it?" Red Huntress growled.

"What? No, I mean yes, err…" Klemper stuttered. "I just mean that it would be pretty obvious that I'm not Danny if anyone saw me fight. I can't use duplicates, his fighting style, or his Ghostly Wail…"

"Well…that's true." Spirit mumbled.

"Hey, girls!" A voice accompanied with the roar of a motorcycle called out to them.

All three of the heroes (Klemper mumbling something about being left out) turned to the voice to see Johnny 13. He looked aggravated. "Have you found Phantom, yet? I need to blow off some steam…"

"No…" Spirit growled.

"Great, just great." Johnny mumbled. "I don't suppose you want to fight one on one?"

"You mean one on two." Klemper corrected. "You have your shadow."

"He's pat of me…" Johnny frowned. "It's like when the kid uses Duplicates."

"This is not a good week for this, ghost." Red Huntress growled.

Johnny placed his hands up defensively. "Fine. Fine. Just wanted a distraction. Cool it, toots."

"Don't call me toots…" Red Huntress raised her gun dangerously.

"Whatever." Johnny groaned. "First Kitty gets all mad at my bike, now this. Woman are way to complicated…What do you and Phantom usually do when you have a lover's spat?"

"What?" Valerie gasped. "Were not…"

"Or maybe I should ask Ember?" Johnny grinned. "Or that human chick he hangs out with. Man…how come he gets away with it when he flirts with girls…"

"Danny doesn't really have a serious girlfriend." Klemper noted. "You do…and a possessive one at that. I wouldn't want to mess with her."

"Yeah…" Johnny rolled his eyes. "Definitely not…well, great. I'll just have to find someone else to help get the fight off my mind. Maybe some of the local girls can help…"

With that, he left. Both Spirit and Red Huntress glared at him. "Jerk."

Klemper sighed. "Why do I feel that this isn't the last we'll hear of this…"

(Wednesday-March 24, 2010)

"Looks like that welt finally healed all the way…" Cheshire noted as she looked at Danny's face.

Danny nodded. Luckily, his powers responded to the situation and didn't heal instantly. Danny was grateful for that. He didn't want to draw any more attention to himself. Good thing that ghost powers were powered by emotions.

The two were currently waiting for the so called master. Today was an inspection of all of Danny's progress. The halfa was actually glad for this. It was the chance to finally put his plan into action…

The door opened and revealed Ubu. The tank of a man held the door open as two woman entered the room. One was Lady Shiva, but Danny didn't recognize the other one. This woman appeared to have Arabian heritage. She had high cheekbones, green eyes, and long dark hair. Danny noticed that the woman's top was incredibly revealing…

'Why do all the stunningly beautiful woman in the world wear things like that? Are just trying to distract me…' Danny lamented the death of modesty.

Next, the master entered. Cheshire immediately bowed to the man. Ubu glared at Danny to do the same, but the halfa just glared back. He wasn't about to bow to his kidnapper.

"Good day, Mr. Fenton." The master grinned. "How have you been?"

"Still being held against my will, Mr. Kidnapper." Danny returned to his most basic weapon. Sarcasm.

Ubu, Cheshire, and Lady Shiva seemed to be insulted by Danny's rudeness. The other two people in the room seemed amused, however. The master smiled, and the other woman exhaled through her nose loudly as if she was stopping a laugh.

Looking between the two, Danny noticed that the woman and the master had a similar appearance. 'They might be related.'

"Apologize to the master!" Ubu demanded threateningly.

"It's alright, Ubu. I find his attitude endearing." The master explained. "After all, I have never given him a name to call me." Turning to Danny, he added. "You may call me Henri Ducard."

'Yeah, like that's really his name…' "Alright, Mr. Ducard." Danny gestured to his invention. "This is the Fenton Gatling Armor. The gatling arm gun goes on your left arm. This vest is both the power source and protective armor. To control the weapon, you need to wear the helmet. Plus, I've added a side arm slot on the side."

"Hmm…" Henri Ducard (Yeah, right…) examined the weapon.

"If you want, I could give you a small demonstration of how it will work…" Danny eyed the three assassins in the room. "As long as I don't get my neck snapped when I put it on…"

Cheshire and Ubu gave their master an affirmative nod. They would be ready to step in if Danny tried something. After looking around the room, Henri Duncard nodded. "That would be beneficial."

"Master, I don't believe this is a good idea." Shiva glared at Danny.

"Nonsense, Shiva, Mr. Fenton is aware of his situation." Henri Duncard shrugged off her concern. "Go ahead, Mr. Fenton."

Danny put on the vest first. The simple metal vest contained a double cylinder power source on its back and a rectangular red plate on the front. The gauntlet gatling gun connected to the vest from the shoulder. It contained protective plating all the way down to the forearm. The gatling gun ran from the forearm and cover his hand with the multiple holed gun.

Finally, the black helmet completely covered the head. There was a slot in the front to allow Danny to see. On the back, were tubes that connected to the power source.

Turning on the power source, Danny readied himself for the weapon to activate. Green energy pulsed from the power source in veins. The veins ran up the too to the helmet and down the arm to the gatling gun.

"The helmet allows you to monitor how much of the power by healing the power source through the tube. The light humming will become more erratic as the energy runs out. When everything is working well and you can hear a gentle hum, the gatling gun can do this." Danny turned the weapon to a large scrap of metal that Danny place along the wall for this demonstration.

The gatling gun hummed and clicked as it activated. Spinning rapidly, the gun sent out dozens of ecto-shots out in mere seconds. After a few seconds of fire, Danny stopped the weapon with a click. The thick metal now looked like swish cheese.

"Most impressive." Henri Ducard noted. "Is this the final product?"

"No," Danny shook his head. "I'm still finishing the extra side arm. Plus, I need work on keeping the gun from jamming, and work on the energy transfer. It'll just be a few more days before I'm finished."

Everyone in the room seemed satisfied with both the demonstration and the news. Of course, none of them were actually smiling except the master…maybe Cheshire was, Danny couldn't tell….Even Lady Shiva had nothing to say about this development.

"Very good." Henri Duncard seemed pleased. "I will be back in a few days time."

Danny nodded and remained silent as his guests piled out of the room. Slowly, the assassins left until Ubu was the only one left. With a nod of satisfaction directed at Danny, Ubu closed the door behind them.

"Well done." Cheshire complemented him. "I've rarely seen the Great One looking so pleased. He must be very impressed with you."

Danny absentmindedly nodded. He didn't really care if this Henri Ducard was impressed. All Danny cared about was that the demonstration went off with out a hitch. His plan worked.

The only reason he wanted to do the demonstration was to activate the weapon without any consequences. If he started shooting randomly at any other time, he would have been stopped or had his weapon searched. It was the perfect time to activate the power source and use it to power the signal device long enough for it to send out powerful enough signal.

The signal device sent a distinct signal out to of the base. Unlike every other signal or wave sent around the world, this one contained distinct ectoplasmic properties. By now, both his family and the Batman was aware of the location of the signal and deduced that it was Danny who sent the distress signal.

Smiling Danny thought, 'All according to plan…'

Dani sighed as she worked on her homework. In her terrible mood, she was having a hard time focusing on anything lately. Danny's disappearance and the disaster from earlier in the week was constantly on her mind. Luckily, her teachers understood, but it didn't change how badly she was doing in school lately…

It didn't help that the girl ghosts decided to start the biggest ghost attack in weeks. Kitty and Spectra showed up and started to terrorize people and make men disappear literally. Dealing with them wasn't all that difficult. Kitty's powers didn't affect women, and both Red Huntress and Spirit were far too agitated to let Spectra's words get to them. Add in Klemper adding assistance from a safe distance while disguised as Danny and the element of surprise…well, it was more of the two ghost hunters letting out seem more than anything.

Luckily, Ember decided not to interfere. She was there as emotional support for Kitty, but she didn't have much desire to rampage. Dani was glad for that. If Ember was thrown into the equation, the outcome would have been completely different.

Then added in what happened yesterday…Dani bowed her head in shame. It was all her fault. She should have remembered to…

"Danielle!" Vlad's voice snapped Dani out of her trance.

"Yeah, Dad?" Dani looked up from her spot at the kitchen table.

"Great news!" Vlad shouted as he ran into the room. The illness and stress of Danny's kidnapping had its effect on the older halfa. He looked years older than before. "I think I finally have a lead on Daniel."

Dani jumped up from her sitting position. "Really!?"

"Yes!" Vlad nodded. "Come look at what I found."

Running after her dad, Dani could only think. 'Finally…something goes right…'

(Thursday-March 25, 2010)

Danny was on edge all morning, and it showed. He was waiting for something to happen, anything really. The distress signal he sent yesterday had to work. It just had to…

"You alright?" Cheshire asked. "You look tense."

"I, uh, I'm kind of worried that I won't get this done in time." Danny lied.

"Well, the Great One might show lenience. You have cooperated very-" Cheshire stopped mid-sentence.

A red light flashed constantly. The sound of a loud siren rang in their ears. There was an emergency going happening, and it was just what Danny was waiting.

The halfa felt a grin form on his face. Luckily, Cheshire had turned away from him. She was holding the area around her ear. "This is Cheshire! What's happening?"

Danny took this opportunity to silently put his armor on over his clothes. The armor fit him like a glove. Turning on the power source, Danny heard the comforting hum of his weapon.

"It's who?" Cheshire questioned over the loud siren. "Okay…I need to stay and guard the prison-Ah!"

Cheshire felt pain as a blast of ectoplasm hit the middle of her spine. Collapsing, the assassin turned to Danny. She saw that he was holding the ecto-gun he had been working on in his right hand. "You…"

"Yeah, I've had everything working perfectly for days now." Danny explained. "I was just stalling for time. Looks like it paid off."

Cheshire merely glared, although Danny couldn't see it. Shiva was right. The boy had been planning something. They had just underestimated him…

Holstering the ecto gun in its holster on the side of the vest, Danny walked around Cheshire. He then pulled of the red rectangle plate on the front of the vest to reveal the green Fenton symbol.

The last thing Cheshire heard before she passed out was, "Sorry, Cheshire. I'm not being a good friend, but there should be more to the saying. It should say, 'The enemy of my enemy is my friend…while it's convenient'."

Using his duplicates' memories, Danny quickly went down the corridor to the exit to the surface. This base was what appeared to be an old oil drill. Perfect place to hide out…

"There he is!" A man in a black ninja outfit yelled to his group of companions. They must have been alerted when Cheshire was suddenly cut off.

Normally, Danny wouldn't have been able to stand a chance in his human form. This time, though, Danny had a gatling gun attached to his arm. Plus the ninja were down a narrow corridor from him. It was really no contest.

Lifting up his gatling gun, Danny shot into the group. The power had been amped down so it wouldn't kill anyone. That didn't change the fact that the ninja would have a lot of injuries and broken bones after they were all mowed down by Danny's weapon.

It took merely a few seconds for the ninja to be stopped completely. Danny felt a wave of pride hit him. A weapon that he built completely on his own did this.

Thinking back, Danny realized how similar this situation was to others. Almost all of his greatest achievements happened during the heat of battle. Almost all of his powers were unlocked because of stress. It was a fact, Danny thrived under pressure.

"I knew this would happen." Lady Shiva walked down the corridor in front of Danny.

"Maybe there was something to your woman's intuition." Danny acknowledged as he raised his gatling gun.

Shiva stopped. "It's dangerous to point guns, little boy."

"It's more dangerous to have the gun pointed at you…" Danny drew his pistol and pointed down the other side of the hallway. "Isn't that right, Sportsmaster?"

Sportsmaster laughed. "I agree with you there, kid."

"Well…" Danny looked back and forth between the assassins. "This looks familiar. This time, though, I'm armed and ready to go."

"It's two on one." Shiva pointed out. "You can't win."

"I don't have to win." Danny smiled under his helmet. "I have to stall until my rescuers arrive."

"By the time they get here…" Sportsmaster cracked his knuckles. "You won't be alive anymore, brat."

"Bring it on."

Spirit stayed invisible as she flew over the oil drill base. Klemper had already flown inside and was looking for Danny invisibly. Her dad was busy destroying all the equipment by staging a fire.

After finding the distress signal from Danny, both her dad and Batman planned an assault to the base. Batman agreed to allow the ghosts to start the attack with the main assault force. If need be, more back up would be waiting after the initial strike.

Dani had asked why it was that Batman knew her father's secret as a half-ghost. Apparently, he already knew her identity because of Danny, and she had called Plasmius dad several times during the Nocturne Crisis. Dani had felt ashamed by her mistake, but Vlad assured her that it was only a matter of time before Batman learned about his secret.

Dani knew that he was lying, though…

Vlad had told her to remain hidden during the first part of the battle while Cujo helped on the ground. Right now, her job was to be a support to the main assault force. Said assault force was actually two people. The two people affiliated to the Justice League that were closest to this base.

"Ha!" Aqualad yelled as he struck down one of the ninja with his water-bearer hammer.

Yes, the main assault force was Aquaman and Aqualad.

Aquaman did a spinning kick on one of the ninja and yelled. "Kaldur, make sure to keep them distracted! More Leaguers are on their way!"

"Yes, my king!" Aqualad nodded as he blocked the katana attack from a ninja.

Spirit flew above them and added support. Luckily, they knew she was there. Otherwise, it would be very confusing for them.

"The air support is appreciated!" Aqualad yelled.

Spirit beamed. It was nice to appreciated.

In all, Spirit was extremely excited to finally be able to help Danny. She hadn't been able to sleep at all the night before as they prepared for the attack. Soon, she would have her brother back.

Soon, everything would be right again.

The sound of Danny's gatling gun being fired rang throughout the hall. Lady Shiva temporarily took refuge in a nearby room to avoid the ecto-blasts. This made the fight one on one for a few seconds…

"Raw!" Sportsmaster swung his javelin staff at the halfa's head.

Danny blocked the strike with his gatling gun. He then tried to use his pistol to shoot Sportsmaster in the leg. The assassin skillfully diverted the direction of the blast by striking the gun to the side.

Sliding back, Danny raised his gatling gun in order to blast the assassin back. Sportsmaster ducked under the blasts, though. He then brought his bow staff up to strike Danny's helmeted head.

"Gaw!" Danny stumbled back. He was about to retaliate when Lady Shiva came up behind him and tripped him by doing a low sweep.

Grunting as his back his the floor, Danny fired both his guns at the assassins and caused them to jump backwards.

After he got back up, Danny was forced to block projectiles with his gatling gun after the projectiles were thrown by Sportsmaster. This left an opening for Danny, though.

A powerful side kick landed on his unprotected back. Stumbling, Danny turned only to be punched in the head by Shiva. A second and third strike managed to deeply dent the metal helmet before Danny was able to use his pistol to blast Shiva back.

Knowing that Sportsmaster was right behind him, Danny turned and swung his gatling gun at the assassin. Sportsmaster managed to block the blow with his javelin staff, but was sent flying into the wall. His back hit the wall with a thud, and he slid down the wall into a kneeling position.

Danny groaned. Even with the helmet on, Danny felt pain from the blows. Not only that, the metal was twisted and felt uncomfortable on Danny's head now. Luckily, he could still see straight, but this seemed like a losing battle.

"Well, what do you know." Sportsmaster chuckled as he stood. "The kid actually knows how to fight. I thought he just knew how to shoot."

"The armor and narrow corridor are the only reasons he's holding his own." Shiva noted as she shook of the blast. "If not, he would already be unconscious."

It was true. Danny only really knew how to fight with his powers. He had some hand to hand experience, but these were master martial artists. He didn't stand much of a chance in this situation.

The halfa could make an invisible duplicate to help, but it would significantly weaken him in his human form. Danny could barely keep up as it was. If his reaction time was cut down by half, he would be unconscious in seconds.

"Gasp!" A blue wisp came out of Danny's mouth. Oh...that was either really good or really bad.

"Let's end this quick.." Sportsmaster popped his neck. "I'm getting bored…"

"That's my line!" A person that appeared to be Danny Phantom fazed through the wall and knocked Sportsmaster into the other wall. "A two on one fight is so boring. Let's make it even!"

'Really good, then.' Danny smirked.

Spirit smiled as she blasted away the opposition. The whole place was swarming with ninja. It was a dream come true!

…Spirit had very strange dreams…

"Spirit!" Plasmius yelled as he joined her daughter. "I cut off their communication and destroyed all their weapons!"

"That's good!" Spirit shouted as she sent an arc of energy at a group of ninja assassins.

"How long has Captain Marvel been here?" Plasmius questioned as he too started to attack the opposition.

"Only a few seconds!" Spirit sent a glance at the large hero. "Shouldn't you go help Danny?"

"Almost all the guards are out here!" Vlad exclaimed he fazed through some shuriken. "The rest can be handled by Danny and Klemper!"

"Noted!" Spirit drop kicked a ninja into the water, but was forced to turn intangible as two other ninja attacked her. "Cujo! Toss!"

The dog was currently smashing his way through troops. At his master's command, Cujo grabbed one of the troops by his shirt and tossed him into the air. Said troop was stopped mid-air by Dani's fist.

"Good boy!" Cujo beamed at the praise.

Chop! Swish! Chop! Swish! Chop! Swish!

"Helicopter!" Aqualad shouted.

"I got it!" Spirit exclaimed in glee as she flew up to the helicopter. She turned intangible just as the men in the air vehicle started to shoot at her. Fazing into the helicopter, Spirit overshadowed the pilot. The halfa girl did the first thing she could think of…crash the helicopter into the ocean.

After bailing at the last minute, Spirit watched as the helicopter sank and the three men from the vehicle floated helplessly.

"I love my job!" Spirit yelled.

(Play: Frontline by Plillar)

"A two on one fight is so boring. Let's make it even!" The Phantom imposter shouted as blue energy surrounded him.

Danny glanced down to the fake Phantom's waist. Around the ghost's waist was a disguise belt. Not only that, it was the disguise belt that Danny usually used to make sure no one learned his secret.

That meant that this ghost was Klemper.

"Bout time you arrived, Phantom." Danny stated. "I was beginning to think that you'd never come."

"Well., you know…" Klemper Phantom joked. "The hero always arrives fashionably late."

"I wish I knew that earlier!" Danny complained.

"Now you only have two wishes left!" Klemper Phantom said in a pirate voice.

"This is beginning to get annoying." Shiva noted.

"I agree." Sportsmaster nodded. "Fighting two brats is just obnoxious."

"That's my job!" Klemper Phantom grinned. "To annoy the villains."

"What about protecting the peace?" Danny asked.

"That too!"

Sportsmaster growled. "You're ignoring us…"

"Don't let them get to you, Sportsmaster." Shiva stated. "That's their plan."

"Do we really look like we have a plan?" Danny questioned.

"No, let's keep it that way!" Sportsmaster yelled as he rushed and aimed his javelin staff at Klemper Phantom's head.

The strike hit Klemper Phantom and caused him to stumble. Danny then used this opportunity to use his pistol to shoot Sportsmaster in the shoulder. The blast hit the assassin, but Danny didn't have time to revel in this small victory.

Pain ran down his leg as he felt Lady Shiva's roundhouse kick hit his right thigh. Falling to one knee, Danny looked up to Shiva about to axe kick him and most likely knock him out. Fortunately, Klemper Phantom blocked the kick.

Using his ice powers, Klemper Phantom pushed the female assassin back and froze the top of the floor. Even a master martial artist like Shiva couldn't stop herself from sliding down the hall. With her out of the way, both Danny and Klemper Phantom turned their attention to Sportsmaster.

They were too slow, however. Sportsmaster master had thrown his javelin. When the staff was right in front of them, the javelin exploded and caused the two boys to be sent flying into opposite walls. Sportsmaster then hit Danny in the head with his hammer ball and chain.

The force of the blow caused Danny's helmet to come off and shatter. In his daze, Danny let his pistol slip through his fingers and slide a few feet away. Trying to raise his gatling gun to protect himself, Danny groaned when Sportsmaster stomped down on Danny's arm viciously.

"Say goodnight, brat." Sportsmaster brought his hammer up to strike Danny in the head.

"Goodnight, brat." Danny smirked.

"Gah!" Sportsmaster yelled as Klemper Phantom blasted him into the wall. Klemper Phantom didn't stop there, though. The ice ghost continued to freeze the assassin until all that was unfrozen was his head.

This victory was short lived, though. Just as Danny was about to stand up, Lady Shiva attacked Klemper Phantom with several hard blows and kicks. Each strike hit with devastating force. It was then that that Shiva grappled Klemper Phantom and sent knee strikes to the ice ghost. All the while, Danny had been struggling to get up. Luckily, he could now use his healing powers to make his leg work again. When he was finally to his feat, Danny swung his gun at the two fighters as hard as he could.

Seeing this, Klemper quickly turned himself intangible. Shiva's knee strike passed right through the ice ghost. This missed blow and the ice on the ground caused Shiva to momentarily become off balanced. This was all the time Danny needed, though.

The gatling gun struck Shiva point blank in the head. The force of the blow caused Shiva to slide back. Instantly putting herself into a defensive stance, Shiva was surprised when she saw Danny aiming his gun at her.

"Who needs hope when I've got ammo." Danny smiled and activated the gatling gun. Unable to dodge because of her injuries and the ice, Shiva was hit by several blasts of ectoplasm. The assassin was knocked out in an instant.

Stopping, Danny looked over to his friend and at himself. They were both injured, tired, and bleeding…There was only one response to this situation.

"Hahahaha!" Danny and Klemper Phantom laughed.

Catching his breath, Danny added as hi picked up his pistol. "Ha…pant…thanks for the assist…"

"No prob…" Klemper Phantom grinned.

"Well done…" Henri Ducard's voice gained their attention. "You managed to take down two great assassins. Granted, you had ectoplasmic weapons, powers, great teamwork, the element of surprise, and their underestimating you, but still..."

Both guys instantly turned and prepared to defend themselves. Down the corridor from them was Danny's kidnapper along with his heavy Ubu. Danny knew that his weapon was almost out of energy, and that his friend was worn and tired from the fight. They had barely won before, but now...they had no chance. "Crap…"

"Do not worry," Henri Ducard smiled. "You are now allowed to leave."

"What?" Danny questioned in shock. "All this trouble and you're just letting me go?"

"Yes, I have already gotten what I wanted." Henri Ducard smiled.

"But I have the weapon on me…" Danny was still pointing the gun at the head assassin.

"What makes you think that the weapon was my goal?" Henri Ducard smiled. "Your weapon was just a bonus. One that has proved to be too much trouble for the small profit it would provide."

"Then…" Danny questioned. "What was your goal?"

"You'll find out soon enough…" With that, smoke filled the entire corridor. Both Danny and Klemper Phantom readied themselves for a fight. Yet, no fight came. They were left completely untouched.

After a few moments of silence, the smoke began to dissipate. When the smoke was finally gone, so was everyone else in the room. Both Sportsmaster and Shiva had disappeared along with the master.

"Come one…" Danny addressed his friend. "Let's get out of here…"

Spirit sighed contently. The battle was over. Most of the ninja were unconscious, and the rest of the ninja had already fled. It was a complete victory.

"Wow…" Captain Marvel looked around the base. "That was a little too easy…"

"I agree." Aquaman nodded. "We did not face any of their elite

"Where is Fenton?" Aqualad asked. "If they already moved him, then that would explain why they left. Fighting us would be pointless."

"No!" Spirit shook her head. "Phantom went down to make sure that Da-Fenton was safe."

"Then why haven't they come to the surface?" Plasmius asked.

"We were a little busy…" Danny sad as Klemper Phantom fazed him to the surface.

"Danny!" Spirit cried. "You're okay!"

"Of course I'm okay, Spirit." Klemper Phantom acted as if Spirit was addressing him. "It would take more than this to keep me down…"

"Mr. Fenton," Aquaman addressed Danny. "Did they harm you?"

"No." Danny shrugged. "I was cooperative, these injuries are from the fight up here. They had no need to hurt me before that. I was making a weapon for them."

"We can see that…" Aqualad examined the gatling gun. "You used that against the ones below?"

"Yeah, don't worry, it was powered down so nothing was fatal." Danny explained.

All the heroes nodded. From what they heard about Luthor's holiday party, Danny didn't like to kill. If he did, they doubted that he would be on such…non-aggressive terms with Batman.

"Anyway, I'm glad that we got you out safely." Klemper Phantom added. "I bet you're family will be relieved."

"Yeah, I'm ready to go home." Danny smiled tiredly, then he added. "I didn't miss anything while I was gone did I?"

Silence was his answer.

"That's never a good sign." Danny observed.

(Friday-March 26, 2010)

It was gone.

It was completely gone.

All that was left was a bunch of rubble.

Danny felt numb as he stared at the broken Fenton Works sign. His family's old home was destroyed. The halfa now knew what Henri Ducard meant by his true goal. He wanted to rob Fenton Works.

"When?" Danny asked.

"The other day." Dani stated. "It was a shock. The entire place just…collapsed."

"We were so distracted by your disappearance, we didn't even notice as they robbed Fenton Works until…this happened." Vlad explained.

"How? The defense systems…" Danny mumbled hopelessly.

"I… turned them off during the Nocturne Crisis." Dani shamefully explained. "I forgot to turn them back on…I was just so stressed. I didn't think about it. I'm sorry, Danny."

"It's okay…" Danny murmured as he walked over the rubble. "They got everything?"

"I checked intangibly. Everything that could be moved was taken. They destroyed the rest." Vlad sadly noted.

"I see…" Danny knelt down and picked up half a brick.

They were all silent for a moment. This was the first time that they had ever felt like this. It felt like a complete and total loss…

"Danny, I know that…" Dani stopped when she felt her dad lay a hand on her shoulder. He shook his head. Now was not the time…

Drip…

Something fell down Danny's arm. It looked like a red liquid. Looking at his arm, Dani was shocked by what she saw. Danny was gripping the brick so hard that the jagged edges had cut into his skin. Blood was running down his trembling arm and down to the ground.

Dani lowered her eyes. Her throat felt dry. No words could be formed.

"They dare attack this place. This was a monument to their memory…" Danny growled. "Henri Ducard…I don't know who you are or who you had do this, but I promise you this…I will find him, and I will make him pay…"

Omake

(Sunday-March 21, 2010)

"Glad for your help." Red Huntress sarcastically remarked to the fire ghost.

"Hey!" Ember snapped. "Be glad that I didn't help Kitty and Spectra. They're more my friends than you are!"

"I could tell." RH rolled her eyes. "You didn't even try to stop them. You're lucky that we managed to stop them and make them return all the guys."

"In their defense, those guys were being a bunch of idiots." Ember remarked.

"That's what they do." RH stated. "They're guys. They're supposed to act like idiots."

"Some more than others." Ember mumbled.

"Hey!" A voice caught their attention. "You're the hero Red Huntress, and you're the pop star Ember McLain!"

The two girls turned and were instantly put into a worse mood. The one approaching them was Jenifer. The regular human girl Danny hung around was right in front of them.

"It's so great to meet you. I'm a big fan…what? Is there something on my face?" Jenifer was taken back by their glares.

"Yes," Both girls glared at Jenifer.

"What?" Jenifer raised an eyebrow.

"Oh no…" Spirit mumbled.

"What's happening." Klemper Phantom asked.

"A three way cat fight…" Spirit answered.

"Oh…I'll get the popcorn." Klemper Phantom noted.

"What is wrong with you two!?" Jenifer yelled. "I never met you before, and you're acting like I'm the devil!"

"Might as well be…" Ember mumbled.

"Like you're one to talk, hot head." RH remarked.

"Oh really, you fire hydrant…" Ember growled.

"You two are freaking nuts!" Jenifer exclaimed.

"Says the nobody!" Ember glared.

"Doesn't this seem a little cliché?" Spirit asked.

"You mean teenage girls fighting over a guy?" Klemper Phantom asked. "Oh completely, but to be fair, if it were three guys fighting over one girl, it would probably be even worse than this. There would be a lot more punching and kicking happening."

"Oops…" Spirit's eye's widened as the girls started to fight. There was a lot of hair pulling and clothes tearing. "Spoke too soon. Oh! That's going to hurt tomorrow!"

"Does Jenifer even know why she's fighting?" Klemper Phantom questioned.

"Probably not, but who needs to know why they're fighting?" Spirit grinned. "I sure don't."

With that, the halfa joined the fray. From his position, Klemper Phantom sat and watched as the girls fought.

"…I'm sure glad that I brought this video camera…"