Chapter 7: "Distaste"

Disclaimer: I own nothing

"Men often oppose a thing merely because they have had no agency in planning it, or because it may have been planned by those whom they dislike." Alexander Hamilton

Chapter 7: "Distaste"

(Thursday-August 19, 2010)

"You wanted to see me, Vision?" Phantom approached the ancient ghost.

He had traveled to her domain in the Ghost Zone. Unlike the rest of the Ghost Zone, Visions' domain was full of life. The yard was full of flowers and blooming sakura trees. The nearby building were three-story circular buildings connected to each other by corridors. The roofs looked like huge spiral cones. Each building had black rune designs written across the white paint.

"Yes." Vision was seated below the largest sakura tree on a small hill. As far as he knew, this was Vision's spot for meditation and contemplation. "There are some things we need to discuss."

All around Vision were her green visual birds. They were the strategist's spies and informants. Created from Vison's special Avian Necklace, these birds were both intelligent and loyal to Vision. They're greatest ability, however, were their ability to project holograms.

"What is it?" Phantom sat down on the ground across from Vision.

"Many things have begun to trouble me." Vision stated. "It seems that more and more problems have resulted from the war.

"I know what you mean…" Phantom nodded solemnly. "Every time I turn around, there seems to be a new threat…"

"Yes." Vision closed her eyes in concentration. "But I don't believe you truly understand the threats."

"What do you mean?" Phantom frowned.

"I have had my birds keep an eye on the human world…and I am not pleased." Vision noted.

"Oh? And here I thought you would be in a good mood." Phantom remarked. "Vlad sure has been in recent months."

"Be silent, child."

"Yes, ma'am."

Vision gestured to her birds. They opened their beaks and sent out holograms. "As you know, all the ghosts that are in hiding consider you their enemy."

Phantom looked at the various pictures and sighed. "Yeah, I already met up with Walker."

"Yes, he has allied himself with the League of Shadows…" Vision stared at the ex-warden ghost. "He will be difficult to track, but I believe that he will make a mistake soon."

"He's going to want to come after me, but I don't think he's willing to break some of the unspoken rules of the Ghost Zone." Phantom explained. "The Shadows don't my secret…mostly."

"Yes…" Vision looked at another hologram. "Jinx…or as you know her Jenifer."

"Yeah…"

"Do you believe that she will compromise you and your family by revealing your secret?" Vision questioned.

"Compromise?" Phantom thought about it. "Probably not. She's kept a hell of a lot of my secrets. If she reveals my ghost secret, then there's a chance that she'll reveal her helping me before the war. Though, she may try to kill me personally…or kiss me. I'm not entirely sure with her."

"Oh, I believe the Ember ghost will love that."

"…Was that a joke?" Phantom questioned. "I didn't know you knew how to tell jokes."

"Moving on." Vision left no room for argument. "Nocturne and Aragon have been moving as of late. They appear and disappear randomly. It's as if they are being teleported."

"Great…" Phantom nodded. "But hopefully the Green Lanterns will find them for us."

"I doubt it." Vision almost grumbled. "They've already asked to search the Ghost Zone. It's as if they believe we don't have a handle on our own dimension."

"I think they're just concerned." Phantom offered. "They've had to deal with threats of different colored power rings from what I've heard. And apparently, these black power rings are terrifyingly powerful."

"They are." Vision nodded. "That is why they are now a larger threat. But…I don't understand their motives. They just seem to be destroying old art and artifacts…"

"I know." Phantom shrugged. "I have no idea why. According to the Justice League database those items were rumored to have magical properties, but…"

"It is hard to say what they are thinking. Perhaps they are removing threats." Visions noted. "But that is unlikely. Those items were not anything too special. Nothing like the Mirror of Memories or some of the other ghostly artifacts."

"Nothing we can do about them right now…" Phantom remarked. "What about Undergrowth, Spectra, and Bertrand?"

"Undergrowth is nowhere to be seen and is suppressing his presence." Vision explained. "Mostly likely, we will have to wait for him to act."

"Oh, joy."

"Don't worry. He is not a patient being. He will act soon, or he will go crazy." Vision mentioned.

"Neither option sounds good, but if he ever attacks Amity Park, he'll be in for a surprise." Phantom noted. "He won't have a chance to make some grass before he's jumped by three S-rank ghosts."

"Indeed." Vision nodded. "As for Spectra and Bertrand…I have detected movement. Some cities have been hit by waves of despair."

"Oh?" Phantom frowned. "How come I haven't heard about it?"

"It only lasts about a day." Vision remarked. "The humans probably consider it a bad day, and there have been no specific pattern, but I believe it is Spectra."

"I see…" Phantom nodded. "Again, we will have to wait to act."

"Yes…" Vision sighed. "There's no helping it right now. I could most likely find them relatively quickly if I were allowed to personally search the Earth, but that's against the agreement we have with the humans."

"So…is this just an update?"

"No." Vision pointed to two holograms. "I have found Freakshow and Lydia."

"You have?!"

"Yes." Vision then commanded a bird to bring up a marked map. "He has constantly been moving, but he has stopped for now. He's in Salem, Massachusetts."

"That's great!" Phantom rocketed to his feet. "Now we can stop the Freak and the Reality Gauntlet."

"Yes, but unfortunately, it will be up to you to stop him…or at least you will have to be responsible for other ghosts that you bring. Just be careful about who you bring, and what they do." Visions stated. "If the humans get the feeling that we are invading…"

"Yeah." Phantom frowned. "You can't just go around the world unsupervised anymore. It was okay when the League was with you guys, but… I'll have to handle it."

"I'm sure you will…" Vision nodded. As the halfa began to leave, she added. "Danny."

"Yes?" Phantom stopped.

"About that team of yours…" Vision stated. "I was fine with you joining them. It allowed you to gain access to the Justice League database, but I must warn you not to get too attached."

"What?"

"Remember, you are a ghost. That makes you different from them. Even the aliens." Vision explained. "You have been putting yourself in very dangerous situations for them. I assumed it was part of your plan, but recently…"

"What are you trying to say?"

"The living will always value themselves more than the dead." Vision remarked. "It's not their fault, but it's a fact. If it comes down to it, they will betray you if necessary."

"I…"

"If their lives, the lives of their loved ones, or any living creature are in danger, they will expect you to make the sacrifices. They will look at you and think, 'He's already had his chance and wasted it. Why should a real life be wasted for him'?" Vision noted.

"Not all humans are like that." Phantom remarked.

"Oh? You had a human ally before the war, correct? What happened to her?"

Phantom was silent.

"I thought so." Vision sighed. "I am not trying to be cruel. I am merely telling you the facts. In the end, you will not be able to trust this Young Justice with your life, and I…I do not wish for you to be hurt."

"…I know…" Phantom looked down. "But I want…I want to have some connection to life, you know? And those guys…They're good people."

"I have no doubt they are. They are your friends after all." Vision mentioned. "But it changes nothing. You are expendable to them. They may not show it, but they think it."

"Yeah…they probably do. I just wish they didn't."

"I do too, child. I do too."

"Hi, there!" Dani smiled as she spotted a new boy not that far away from her. "I'm Dani."

"Hey, name's Victor." The African-American boy smiled back. He was about Dani's age and was rather tall for his age. His hair was trimmed short, and he had dark brown eyes.

Currently, Dani was at the park with her friends. With summer ending soon, Dani wanted to spend as much time as possible having fun. Thus, she dragged her friends to the park to play…

"You play football?" Victor's face lit up.

"We were going to, yes." Dani nodded.

"Just because you wanted too…" Rachel mumbled. Despite the summer heat, she still wore her purple hoody with the hood up.

"Oh, come on Birdie." Nyx had switched Rachel's nickname when she realized that Rachel actually like it. "The tackling, the broken bones, the chaos…Who can resist that?!"

A disguised Youngblood looked over to the equally disguised Nyx. With the disguise rings, neither of them drew any special attention. "I thought we were playing touch football?"

"Then why are you dressed in a full uniform?" Nyx questioned.

Youngblood was wearing a full football uniform including a helmet, jersey, and shoulder pads. "I'm dedicated to my roles! Now let's get a touchup!"

The parrot on Youngblood's shoulder, who was disguised as a regular parrot, screeched. "Rack! Touchdown!"

"That too!"

"Okaaaaay…" Victor gave them a strange look.

"Ignore them." Dani waved off his confusion. "They always act strange."

"Hey! You picking a fight!?" Nyx glared.

"Bring it on!" Dani glared back.

"There they go again…" Youngblood noted.

"So Victor, did you just move to town?" Rachel questioned.

"I moved a few weeks ago." Victor noted. "My Mom and Dad got a job here at Axion Labs so…"

"Wait…" Dani stopped pulling Nyx's hair as the shadow ghost clawed at her face. "Does that mean you're Silas and Elinore Stone's son?"

"Yeah, how did you know that?"

"They work for my Dad." Dani noted.

"Wait…" Victor's eyes widened. "That means…You're Dannille Masters."

"No, she's just a Girl Scout." Nyx glared as she let go of Dani.

"Yep, but call me Dani." Dani extended her hand.

"Um…" Victor shook her hands. He looked at her clothes. She was wearing an old t-shirt, faded jeans, and an old hat. "I expected…something different."

"What? Did you expect the daughter of Vladimir Masters to be a frail little princess that wears dresses and speaks politely?!" Dani glared.

"Um…."

"I'm just kidding!" Dani smiled. "I get that a lot."

"Oh…" Victor smirked. "Alright, you got me. But I'll get revenge."

"Fair enough." Dani nodded. "You want to play football?"

"But that would make an odd number." Victor pointed out."

"That's okay. Cujo can play on my team. Right, boy?" Dani knelt down at the disguised dog.

"Bark!"

"He's like Air Bud."

"Okay." Victor shrugged. "As long as I'm not on the team with the mutt."

"Fair enough." Rachel nodded. "You hear that, Nyx, you can't be on his team."

"I will kill you." Nyx glared.

"You can try."

Recognized: Danny Phantom B04

Phantom entered the Cave in a flash of light to see familiar sights. Kaldur and Superboy were sparing. Wally was eating…as usual. Also, M'gann and Artemis were talking…or gossiping…or whatever it is girls talk about alone.

The halfa was glad that Artemis quickly integrated into Young Justice. Of course, M'gann, ever the optimist and people pleaser, was the first to befriend the archer. She was quickly followed by Kaldur and Robin. Phantom believed that Superboy liked Artemis, but it was hard to read the clone at times. He never glared or got angry at her, so that was something.

Even Wally grew fond of the blond girl. In fact, they almost seemed to gravitate to each other. They seemed very similar in some aspects such as free thinking and rationality, but exact opposites in other aspects. This led to in depth discussions (arguments) about subjects varying from science and morality to what was the best pizza topping. Yet at the same time, they never remained upset for longer than a few minutes.

In fact, if Phantom was being honest, he would compare them to an old married couple.

"Dude!" Wally waved at the ghost and spoke with a full mouth. "What's up!? You were supposed to be here an hour ago."

"Something came up." Phantom explained.

"Is it that girlfriend that you've been trying to hide from us?" Wally grinned and elbowed the halfa in the ribs.

"No, she's mad at me right now." Phantom muttered. "Had to cancel our date."

"Trouble in paradise?" Artemis smirked at the ghost.

"You have no idea…" Phantom walked to the front of the Cave's training hall. As he did this, Superboy grappled Aqualad and threw him to the ground.

Fail: Aqualad

"Nice move." Phantom stated as he synced his phone to the Cave's computer.

"Thanks, Black Canary taught me that." Superboy smirked.

"Gah…yes, it was quite impressive." Aqualad grunted.

"Yeah…That's super impressive." Artemis eyed the shirtless Superboy and the sweating Aqualad.

"Completely." M'gann giggled.

As the girls continued to oogle…er, admire the guys, Wally walked up to Phantom "What're you doing?"

Phantom paused for a moment. "I…think I have a mission for us."

"A mission?" M'gann turned her head.

"Er…Isn't that Batman's job?" Artemis questioned.

"Hey, don't look a gift horse in the mouth." Wally looked back at the archer. "Rob and Batman are doing that Dynamic Duo stuff, so this is the best we're gonna get."

"Very true." Kaldur nodded and looked at the leader. "What is the mission?"

"Well…It's going to be a bit different from what we usually do." Phantom mentioned.

"Different good, or different bad?" Superboy questioned.

"It depends on how you feel about hunting down wanted criminals." Phantom shrugged.

"Oh, I feel really good about that."

"Good." Phantom then began to bring up images involving the mission. As he did this, Red Tornado flew into the Cave. The members of Young Justice greeted their supervisor as Phantom began to explain the mission.

"This is Frederich Isak Showenhower." Phantom pointed to the first hologram. "Aka Freakshow. He was once the ringmaster of Circus Gothica until he was discovered to be stealing large amounts of jewels, gold, and money from the cities he was visiting."

"I remember seeing commercials for that circus from the vids that Uncle J'onn brought to Mars a year ago…" M'gann frowned. "I didn't like it. Too creepy."

"Yeah, 'Unleash your dark side at Circus Gothica.' I remember that…" Phantom nodded. "That was part of the reason we're going after him though."

"What do you mean?" Kaldur questioned.

"You see, Freakshow is perhaps the greatest expert on ghosts in the world." Phantom stated.

"I thought that was Fenton." Artemis noted.

"Dealing with technology, yes, but Freakshow…He knows more about the secrets of ghosts than any other living person. For example, he once had a staff that was able to control ghosts against their will." Phantom frowned. "I know this from experience…"

"Oh…" Wally mumbled to himself.

"Yeah, but the staff was destroyed, and he was captured." Phantom explained. "But because of his knowledge on ghosts, he was taken to Guys in White custody. He was held at one of their bases until…"

"The war." Superboy's eyes narrowed.

"Yeah." Phantom nodded. He then pointed to the next two holograms. "He escaped with the help of his partner Lydia-"

"A ghost?" Artemis raised an eyebrow. "I didn't think ghosts and humans normally worked together…Well, besides here, I mean."

"Well…Truth be told. I don't know why she works with him." Phantom noted. "But she is, and with her help, Freakshow managed to get his hands on the Reality Gauntlet."

"Reality Gauntlet?" M'gann questioned.

Phantom nodded. "Its name explained most of it. It's a gauntlet that uses the power of three powerful gems to alter reality."

"That…sounds very dangerous." Kaldur noted.

"It is. In more ways than you know." Phantom stated. "Unfortunately, the Gauntlet can easily hide Freakshow and Lydia as long as they don't make a big show."

"Then how do we find them?" Artemis questioned.

"They just made a big show." Phantom answered. "The signal they created was tracked to Salem, Massachusetts."

"Salem, Massachusetts?" Red Tornado finally spoke up. "Are you certain that was the area Freakshow has appeared?"

"Yeah." Phantom nodded. "I mean, it was Vision who found him, and I've never known her to give me bad information."

"Vision? Who's that?" Superboy questioned.

"I believe that is the ghost that defeated both Green Arrow and Black Canary in combat." Aqualad noted.

"For real?" Artemis frowned. "I never heard about that."

"The League likes to keep a lot of the details from the war hush hush, if you know what I mean. Granted, a lot of people know that the League didn't exactly do well against the ghosts…no offense, Red." Wally grinned.

"None taken."

"Yeah." Phantom nodded. "That happened, but right now she's more of the ambassador for the Ghost Zone. Thus, she needs to keep an eye out for people that could threatened the peace. And one of the biggest threats is Freakshow. Right now, he can't use the full power of the Reality Gauntlet, because he doesn't know the secret access code to unleash its full power."

"So finding this code is probably on the top of his to do list." M'gann observed.

"Yeah, but usually he stays hidden better than this…" Phantom noted. "I don't know what's so important there that he would be willing to be found."

"I think I may know why." Red Tornado interjected.

"Ah?" They all turned to the android.

Red Tornado stepped up and began to work on the holographic computer. A picture appeared. "This is Kent Nelson, a friend. He is 106 years old."

Phantom whistled as Wally whispered something in Artemis' ear.

"And he has been missing for 23 days. Kent was a charter member of the Justice Society, the precursor to your mentors' Justice League." Red Tornado changed the image to one of Kent wearing a black body suit, a gold cape, and a golden helmet.

"Of course." Aqualad stated. "Nelson was Earth's sorcerer supreme. He was Doctor Fate."

"Ack…magic…" Phantom mumbled.

"Not a fan?" Superboy questioned.

Phantom shook his head.

"Kent may simply be on one of his…walkabouts." Red Tornado mentioned. "But he is caretaker to the Helmet of Fate, the source of the Doctor's mystic might."

"Well, crap…" Phantom sighed. "I'm guessing the reason that you're telling us this is because the Helmet is in Salem."

"That is correct."

"Then that's probably Freakshow's goal…" Phantom frowned. "Damnit, it just had to involve magic…dumbass magic."

"Why are you so opposed to magic?" M'gann questioned. "Dr. Fate is like the priests and priestesses of Mars. He should revered."

"Yeah, dude." Wally interjected with a glance at M'gann. "Disrespecting the Doctor's not cool, man."

"I'm not disrespecting him." Phantom stated. "It's just that magic and ectoplasm usually don't go well together. In fact, they're pretty much enemy forces to each other. So I usually tend to avoid magic…No offense, Kaldur."

"None taken." Kaldur nodded. He understood avoiding natural enemies. "It's the same reason I or M'gann would avoid fire."

"Oh…" M'gann nodded. "That makes sense."

"We're going to check this out, right?" Artemis interjected. "Freakshow could be getting the helmet now."

"Yeah, he might even have kidnapped Nelson to get to the helmet." Superboy suggested.

"Let's not jump to conclusions. That's definitely possible, but we don't have any facts right now." Phantom stated. "These could be two completely different issues for all we know. Either way, though, it's two birds with one stone if we go to Salem."

"Then let's go." Wally smiled at M'gann. "Let's go see the great sorcerer."

"Okay." Phantom looked at Red Tornado. "We're going then."

"Of course." RT handed Phantom a key. "Take this. It is the key to the Tower of Fate.

As they went to the hanger, Phantom spoke to his team once more. "Er…I forgot to mention something."

"What is it?" Kaldur questioned.

"I didn't know if you would agree to come or not, so I came up with a backup plan just in case." Phantom explained. "So I asked a few friends to meet me in Salem."

"Who?" Superboy questioned. "Is it some of the S-rank ghosts?"

"One is. The other is still pretty strong, though." Phantom stated.

"Okay, but what's the problem?" M'gann questioned.

"These two…have communication problems. Especially with humans." Phantom stated. "You guys are my friends, so they'll most likely be cool with you."

"I'm guessing there's a 'but' coming up here." Artemis noted.

"Yeah." Phantom frowned. "Let's just say that you don't want to piss them off."

"What happens if we do?" Wally questioned.

"Well…do you like being torn and cut into tiny little pieces?"

"No."

"Then that's the problem."

After the football game was over, Victor had to leave and go home. Similarly, the others had to leave as well. It was getting dark, and some of them weren't allowed to stay out very late. Not all of them were happy to go, though…

"AHG!" Nyx yelled as the group of four began their trip back to Master's Mansion. "Another day gone, and another one closer to starting school."

"Well, that's obvious." Rachel noted. "You seemed rather mad about the facts, though."

"Of course I am! I'm going to be stuck in the classroom for eight hours doing nothing! I'm going to be so bored!" Nyx complained.

Youngblood groaned. "I know how you feel."

"If you didn't want to go to human school, then why did you guys agree to go in the first place?" Dani questioned.

"I didn't." Youngblood stated. "But it was the only way to get to come to the human world without trouble."

"Ditto…" Nyx grumbled.

"You did know that you would eventually have to go to school, though." Rachel reasoned. "Is coming to the human world worth sitting through school? You two aren't the types to sit still more than two minutes."

"Actually…" Youngblood frowned. "I didn't think that the peace would last long enough to get to school in the fall…"

"Eh?" Dani raised an eyebrow.

"Oh, come on, Girl Scout." Nyx rolled her eyes. "You really believe that everything will be fine forever, do you? Eventually a ghost will mess up. Then we won't be allowed to come to the human world at all. I just wanted some time away from home before that happened."

"Mess up?" Rachel questioned.

"You know…" Youngblood shrugged. "Destruction, chaos, rampaging, maiming, pillaging, soliciting, jaywalking, littering…"

"I don't think those last ones are that serious…" Youngblood's parrot mentioned.

"Really?" Youngblood questioned. "Good thing that I'm not dressed up as a lawyer or cop."

"Well…I figured that one of the wanted ghosts would attack eventually." Dani admitted. "But I don't see how that will ruin it for everyone. The League, UN, and US government know that they're outlaws."

"You think I was talking about them?" Nyx snorted.

"Um…yeah?"

"Not!" Nyx rolled her eyes. "I'm talking about the regular ghosts."

"What do you mean?" Rachel questioned.

"Ghosts aren't the type of people to just sit back, relax, and follow the rules." Youngblood noted. "We have obsessions for a reason. We constantly think about them. It consumes us. Some ghost might be able to follow the rules as long as they don't interfere with their obsession, but if they do…"

"They'll go freaking nuts." Nyx finished.

"What about you two?" Rachel questioned.

"My obsession revolves around entertainment." Nyx shrugged. "As long as I'm amused, I'm happy."

"And I want to stay young forever." Youngblood explained. "In fact, I'm pretty sure that I'm created from the idea of eternal youth, and the human desire to return to childhood. Being a kid is all that matters to me."

"But the others aren't so simple…" Dani realized. "Their obsessions could be anything, and if they're bottled up too long…"

"Boom." Nyx finished.

"But that's what your mom and the other S-rank ghosts are trying to prevent, though, right?" Rachel reasoned. "That's why the police force and prison you told me about was created."

"Yeah, but does the human police and justice system always work?" Youngblood questioned.

"Obvioiusly not." Rachel stated.

"Then what makes ghosts any different?"

"Not much, I guess."

"Did anyone find anything?" Phantom questioned.

"Nothing." Wally stated as he came to a halt. "This isn't simple camouflage."

"I can see nothing from the sky, my liege." Fright Knight descended.

"Wulf?" Phantom turned to the wolf ghost.

Wulf sniffed the air again. "(Yes, there's something. I can't tell what it is, but there's some kind of disturbance here. What it is, however, I have no clue.)"

"…What did he say?" Kaldur asked.

"He smells something." Phantom told the rest of the team.

As a whole, Young Justice was shocked by the appearance of Wulf and Fright Knight. Both ghosts had very intimidating appearances. Seeing Phantom interact with the ghosts gave the others a push to interact with the ghosts somewhat. Despite this, Wulf's mangled English and Fright Knight's terrifying stare gave them pause.

Not to mention the way Fright Knight called Phantom as lord and liege. That took a lot of explaining….

"What do you think, then? Adaptive micro active electronics combined with phase shifting?" Artemis questioned.

"That is absolutely…" Wally glanced at M'gann. "Wrong! This has to be some kind of mystic force working here."

"The young hypocrite is right." Fright Knight nodded. "If this involves Dr. Fate, then the tower is hidden by magic."

"You know Doctor Fate?" Superboy questioned.

"Unfortunately…" Fright Knight grumbled.

The rest of the team didn't seem all that comforted by that answer.

"I don't even want to know…" Phantom reached into his trench coat and pulled out the key Red Tornado gave him. "But if this has to do with magic…" Phantom stepped forward and extended the key.

With a click, a tower appeared in front of Phantom. It was a simple brick tower. Phantom was surprised. He expected something different.

"Huh…" Phantom shrugged. "I was expecting something more like Hogwarts."

"(Just wait until you get inside.)" Wulf commented.

"Yeah…" Phantom pushed the door open, and… "AH!" He was shocked when he tried to enter the tower.

"What's wrong?!" M'gann questioned worriedly.

"Ag…" Phantom pulled his hand away. "Dumbass magic."

"Wow, magic really doesn't like you." Superboy commented.

"No, it doesn't…" Phantom stepped back.

"What are you going to do?" Kaldur questioned.

"Hmm…" Phantom frowned. He couldn't just turn human, even if the Diguise Belt hid his appearance. Explaining how he could just turn his powers off would be…difficult. So, he reached into his coat and pulled out a Fenton Thermos. "Something I hate doing."

"Isn't that used to capture ghosts?" Artemis questioned.

"Yeah…" Phantom handed the thermos to her. "It will allow me to get in if you press that button…don't do it yet!"

"Okay, okay."

"You guys probably don't want to get crammed in there, I guess…" Phantom turned to his ghost allies.

"Er…duh." Wulf grunted.

"My appoligies, my liege." Fright Knight bowed his head.

"Fine, stay out here and guard the place. If Freakshow isn't inside, he will be soon. Try to take him down." Phantom ordered. "Or at least give us time to get the Helmet."

"Understood."

"Okay." Phantom turned to Artemis. "When we get inside, you're going to let me out immediately. To do that you press- AHHH!"

"Woops. Did you not want me to do that yet?"

"No!"

"My bad." Artemis obviously wasn't sorry about it.

"Hey, Miss Roth." Dani greeted her friend's mother as she and Rachel waked into the simple apartment. Nyx and Youngblood had already returned to the Ghost Zone, but neither Dani or Rachel were ready to rest yet.

"Ah…" The taller older looking version of Rachel smiled down at her child's friend. The only real difference between Angela Roth and her daughter was Angela's curlier hair. "How are you, Dani?"

"Just fine." Dani smiled.

"That's not the way you put it before we got here." Rachel sat down at her couch. "You kept going on and on about how no one was around."

"It's not my fault everyone's gone…" Dani sighed. Fright Knight and Wulf left with Danny. Vlad had a date tonight. Even Ember was busy…although, she might just be sulking that Danny was gone again.

"Bark!" A now undisguised Cujo gave his owner puppy dog eyes. Both Rachel and Angela were aware of the Phantom Family's secret, so remaining disguised was no longer an issue.

"Except for you Cujo." Dani picked up the puppy. "You're always there for me…"

"Bark!"

"Yeah…" Rachel looked over at her mom. "Can Dani spend the night? If she doesn't I will never hear the end of it."

"Sure." Angela seemed happy that her daughter actually wanted a friend to stay over…kind of, anyway… "As long as it's okay with her dad."

"I'll text him." Dani pulled her phone. "Although, I don't know if he'll answer that quickly."

"Oh…" Angela nodded slowly.

"Wouldn't he be ready in case of an emergency?" Rachel questioned.

"He'll know if there's an emergency." Dani stated as she petted Cujo. "In fact, he'll get this text, but he probably won't answer quickly. His girlfriend can be rather…demanding…"

"Demanding…" Rachel frowned. "Do you mean-"

"Rachel!" Angela admonished.

"What?"

"It's not proper to speak about that!"

"Oh…you sure? Because I'm pretty sure it is. I mean, it's on TV, the web, and almost everywhere else." Rachel noted.

"Rachel!"

"Not to mention those high schoolers making out earlier in the park." Dani put in her two cents.

"Exactly."

Angela sighed. "Society is corrupting my child…"

Dani just laughed. It was unusual to see emotion from this family. They were always either eerily calm or exceedingly worried. What they were so worried about, Dani didn't know, but she was glad they were lightening up a little.

"Hahahaha! I'm sure that-"

Rumble! Tremble! Crack!

Everyone steadied themselves as the ground below them trembled. The entire apartment shook.

"What was that?" Angela asked after the rumbling ended.

"An earthquake?" Rachel questioned.

"Amity Park doesn't just get earthquakes…" Dani stood and put down Cujo. Looking to her friend, she added. "Something is up, and I need to go see what it is. Are you coming?"

Rachel looked at her mom.

"Rachel, you know that you can't…" Angela began, but paused. "I-I mean, I don't want you to get hurt."

"Mom…" Rachel looked at her mother. "Please, we talked about this…"

"I…O-okay…" Angela looked to Dani. "Keep her safe, young ghost."

"I will." Dani nodded and looked at Rachel. "You ready?"

"Of course."

"Alright, I'm going ghost!"

"Dumbass magic." Phantom stated as he stared at the arctic weather all around him. "But…at least this is better than the lava…"

Their entrance into the Tower of Fate had not gone well. Wally continued to try and impress M'gann by lying about his belief in magic. This led to Young Justice almost falling into a pit of lava. Granted, Phantom didn't have a lot of risk of falling, but Martian and Atlantian physiology was very weak to extreme heat.

Luckily, a quick explanation of their purpose being at the tower allowed them to avoid a fiery death. Of course, their exit from the pit led them to the polar opposite.

"Ever hear of string theory? This is a pocket dimension." Wally tried to explain.

"Wally, shut up." Phantom glared as he approached the cane floating in the air. "This is magic. No other way around it."

"Don't tell me you actually believe in this stuff." Wally scoffed.

"Yeah, I do." Phantom frowned as he examined the cane. He didn't want to touch it, though. He had no idea what it would do. "There are plenty of things that I've seen that can't be explained by science."

"Name one." Wally challenged.

Phantom could name one hundred. "Well, what about me? In case any of you forget, I'm dead."

"Science can explain that too." Wally stated. "The electric pulses from the brain causes the ectoplasm to shift into a replica of a body."

"Yeah, that's what people try to do to explain it, but it's a lot different when you experience it firsthand." Phantom turned and explained. "The human will pushes the soul to live on when the body can't. Trying to explain the human will, souls, or even the force of death with science is impossible."

"But you're the one constantly criticizing this stuff!" Wally yelled in outrage.

"Because I don't like magic." Phantom stated. "Every time I come in contact with it, it blows up in my face. There are magic users that I get along with, but magic and ectoplasm don't mix."

"You speak from experience?" Superboy questioned.

"Yeah, one of my strongest enemies is a magic user." Phantom frowned. "No, that's not the word for it…He's the magic user. You'd be hard pressed to find someone that could rival him in raw magic power."

"What's his name?" Kaldur questioned.

"Kla-Ah!" Phantom felt something grab him and pull him.

"Danny!"

In an instant, Phantom was pulled through a portal into an area filled with staircases leading in all different directions. He suddenly felt the force pulling him stop. In a thud, Phantom hit the ground, but he also noted that the cane from before had landed beside him.

"Well…look at we have here." Freakshow's voice sounded behind Phantom. "I was trying to catch fetch a stick, but instead got a ghost. What a lucky day for me."

"Freakshow!" Phantom jumped to his feet. "…and Klarion?"

"Phantom…" Klarion muttured unhappily.

The scene before Phantom was a strange one. Freakshow was holding was standing next to Klarion while holding Klarion's cat Teekl. As always, Lydia was at Freakshow's side. Most of her tattoos were already animated and wrapped around an older man. Many of the tattoos looked ready to cut and bite at the old man if necessary.

"Kent Nelson…" Phantom breathed.

"Danny Phantom." Nelson smiled. "Nice to meet you. Just wish the circumstances were better…"

"I bet."

"Phantom!" The rest of Young Justice ran through the portal and landed behind the ghost.

"Oh! The ghost boy has some new friends!" Freakshow chuckled. "I must say, this explains why you weren't in Amity Park last time I was there."

"I guess Red Tornado was right, then." Artemis noted as she pulled out her crossbow.

"Indeed." Kaldur pulled out his Water Bearers.

"Wait!" Phantom stopped them. "Lydia will kill Nelson if we move."

"Very astute observation." Freakshow noted. "It seems I have all the power here."

"At least until Teekl is freed." Klarion snarled at Freakshow.

"Careful…" Freakshow slowly petted the cat. "We couldn't want the pussy cat to lose its claws."

"Grr…"

"Then what do we do?" M'gann questioned.

"Wait." Phantom instructed.

"Wait? Why wait, when I'll tell you what I want." Freakshow pointed to the cane. "Hand that to Lydia."

"What? The magic wand?" Wally rolled his eyes.

"Not the time!" Artemis glared.

Phantom picked up the cane. "How did you get in the tower? What about…"

"Ah, the ghosts guarding the front of the tower." Freakshow smiled. "I had a fake magician handle them. Kadabra's most likely defeated by now, but it gave me time to get us into the tower."

"But Lydia…"

"Reality Gauntlet." Freakshow rolled his eyes.

"Great…" Phantom frowned as he extended his cane to Lydia. Glancing at Nelson, he noticed the subtle nod. 'This is gonna suck…'

As soon as Lydia grasped the cane, Phantom surged energy into the cane. The effect was instantaneous. Painful electricity surged through the two ghosts as the magic lashed out at the ghosts. The tattoos holding Nelson immediately let go of the old magic user.

Young Justice took this as their cue. The young heroes sprang into action. Unfortunately, Freakshow reacted immediately. With a wave of his gauntlet covered hand, Freakshow made the stair cases come to life and attack the young heroes.

Klarion took advantage of Freakshow's distraction. He tried to grab Teekl, but was blasted away by a shield protecting Freakshow.

Acting quickly, the now freed Nelson grabbed his cane and pulled it away from the ghosts. Both weakened ghosts fell to their knees in pain and exhaustion.

"Drat!" Freakshow exclaimed when he saw the situation. In an instant, he lost his advantage.

"You okay, kid?" Nelson dragged Phantom to his feet.

"Yeah…" Phantom looked at his team. "But the others are in trouble."

"Yes, I think it's time for all of us to leave." Nelson held his cane up. "Evom su ot ytefas!"

In a surge of white light, Nelson and the members of Young Justice disappeared away from the fight. Soon, the group was now located in a simple sitting room with a fireplace.

"Erg…" Phantom collapsed on the nearby couch. "Thanks."

"It should be me thanking you." Nelson nodded. "I'm Kent Nelson but you already seem to know that."

"Obviously…Ow!" Wally was elbowed by Artemis.

"I'm Artemis. That's Kaldur, Superboy, and M'gann. Captain Manners here is Wally." Artemis introduced. "And you probably know Danny."

"That I do…" Kent smiled as he walked over to the nearby wall. "I'm glad for your help, but we're not out of danger yet. We've got some dangerous opponents on our hands."

"Yeah, Freakshow and Klarion. Never thought I'd have to deal with the two of them at once." Phantom groaned.

"You know them both?" Nelson questioned.

"Yeah, they're both old enemies of mine." Phantom nodded.

"So you have an idea of their danger?" Nelson commented.

"Yeah." Phantom nodded. "We all know about the Reality Gauntlet, but Klarion is a Lord of Chaos. The opposite of Order. And if either of them gets their hands on the Helmet of Fate, then the world will be in serious trouble."

"Right you are." Nelson nodded.

"Was he the guy you were talking about before?" Superboy questioned.

"Yeah…" Phantom nodded. "He's hard to fight because his only weakness is the cat. That's why he's following Freakshow's orders. If Teekl goes, so does Klarion."

"Really? A cat?" Wally snorted. "That is so cliché."

Nelson laughed. "Klarion invented cliché."

"What are we going to do?" M'gann questioned.

"I'll take us to the helmet." Nelson pointed his cane at the door. The door glowed and oponed to reveal a bell. "That's what their after. And I sure don't want them getting their hands on the Doctor's powers."

Helping Phantom to his feet, Kaldur moved Phantom to the door. After exiting, the door behind the Team disappeared. Kent then stepped forward and rang the bell with his cane. The bell began to glow.

"So that's where it is…" Freakshow's voice rang through the room.

A large wave of energy and tattoo creatures blasted around them. All members of the group were sent sprawling. In his weakened state, Phantom was knocked to the edge and forced to hang off the edge to avoid falling. His body was still weakened by the magic. He couldn't focus his powers enough to float. The only probable reason Lydia was ready was because of the Reality Gauntlet.

"Gah!" Phantom felt a foot land on his hand.

"Hey there." Freakshow smiled. "So good to see you before your trip."

"Bad puns…are my thing…" Phantom looked desperately at his team. They were all busy with fighting off Lydia's tattoo creatures. At one point, they all looked at Phantom, but didn't move to help. What were they doing? Didn't they see he was in trouble?

"Watch out!" Wally pulled Artemis to the ground to avoid Lydia's attack.

"Superboy!" M'gann used her telepathy to pull the tattoo creatures off the clone.

…Why weren't they…helping him…

"Raw!" Nelson swung his cane at Freakshow, but was stopped by Freakshow effortlessly. "Really?" With a flick of the wrist, Freakshow sent Nelson sprawling.

"Freakshow!" Klarion screamed. "We had a deal. Let Teekl go now!"

"As you wish…" Freakshow flung the cat over the edge of the staircase.

"Teekl!" Klarion lunged over the edge to save the cat.

"Come." Freakshow dragged Phantom up. "I need a witness for my greatest victory."

"Gah!" Phantom felt the Reality Gauntlet begin to absorb his strength.

"Phantom!" Wally and Superboy now began to run towards Phantom and Freakshow.

"Come to help your friend, eh? The how about a choice? A dead boy, or a man with a foot in the grave." Freakshow waved his hand at Nelson. The wizard was electrocuted and blasted off the edge of the staircase.

"No!" Wally lunged off the edge to save Nelson.

Superboy tried to stop Freakshow, he really did, but he wasn't fast enough to get there in time. Freakshow had already dragged Phantom through the bell. With a bang, Superboy slammed into the now solid bell.

They were gone.

Phantom groaned in pain as Freakshow threw him to the ground. They now appeared to be at the top of the Tower of Fate. In front of them was the floating Helmet of Fate.

"Ah, my ticket to the secret of the Reality Gauntlet…" Freakshow smiled.

"Do you really think that Dr. Fate will give you the answer?" Phantom groaned.

"Not willingly, but the Gauntlet will get the information straight from the helmet…" Freakshow admitted the helmet as he grabbed it.

"Gah…" Phantom pushed himself to his knees. "Then what?"

"Then I'll be master of all reality." Freakshow stated.

"And what will that give you?" Phantom frowned. "Control? Power? Happiness?"

"It will give me all that I have lost." Freakshow whispered. "It was fate that did this to me, and now I will take it all back-Ack!

Phantom blasted Freakshow in the back, caused him to drop the Helmet, and sent him sprawling. "Sorry, but I can't let that happen."

Picking up the dropped Helmet, Phantom debated on what to do. He doubted his ability to fight off Freakshow right now. But if he put on the Helmet…

"You wouldn't dare!" Freakshow called as he stood up again. "I've listened to you the entire time you were here. You hate magic!"

"Maybe…" Phantom acknowledged. "But…sometimes you have to deal with the things you hate for the greater good."

He place the helmet on his head.

"Dumbass magic…"

"What are those?" Raven questioned. She was once again in her purple hooded cloak and leotard.

"My guess…giant super robots." Spirit noted as they watched the blocky mechanical being fly through the sky.

"Did they cause the rumble?" Raven asked.

"Nope." Spirit pointed to the side. "I think that's the even more giant, more super robot."

"What…" Raven stared up at the giant monster. It was as tall as a skyscraper. The robot was covered in black and green armor. Most of its body appeared to be made out of weapons.

"I have no idea." Spirit commented. "Where do you think we even start?"

"The big one's probably controlling the small ones." Raven stated. "If we take that out, then we take out the others."

"But if we ignore the small ones, a lot of people will be hurt." Spirit argued.

"That's true…" Raven sighed. "It's not a good day for the other ghost to be gone."

"No, it's not…" Spirit frowned. "Dad and Vision will be here soon to help, though."

"Until then, what do we do…" Rachel stated. "I don't have a lot of experience with combat."

"Yeah…" Spirit nodded. "Okay. You and Cujo go help evacuate the civilians. I'll deal with the big guy."

"You sure?"

"I can definitely handle it!" Spirit snapped.

"…Fine."

Flying in the opposite direction, Spirit approached the giant robot. She had inadvertently gained its attention. The massive squared head of the robot turned to her. The hundreds of guns on its body was pointed at her and ready to shoot.

"Greetings, ghost girl!" Technus' voice sounded from the robot.

"…Technus?" Spirit paused. "W-what are you doing!?"

"What I planned to do all along!" Technus cried. "I, Technus master of all technology, will use the weapons I gained from Axion Labs to conquer this city, then the world!"

"What?!" Spirit's eyes widened. "I thought you changed your ways!"

"I never changed my ways, foolish girl!" Technus exclaimed. "People don't change! Our nature dictates what we do, and it's in my nature to be a conqueror!"

"That means…" Spirit glared. "You faked everything!?"

"Of course!" Technus laughed. "Why would I, Technus, ever want to change?!"

"To make yourself better! To bring peace between the worlds! To fulfill your obsession!" Spirit argued.

"My obsession is to have the world acknowledge my greatness!" Technus roared angrily. "How can I do that if I'm in the shadows of ignorant humans?!"

"Danny wouldn't let that happen!? He would give you the credit you deserve!" Spirit exclaimed.

"Lies!" Technus shouted. "He would have used me just like everyone else! But I refuse to be used! I will fulfill my obsession my way!"

"Please!" Spirit pleaded. "It's still not too late!"

"Yes…" Technus readied his guns. "It is…"

A storm of ectoplasmic bullets rained down on the girl. Using her Premonition, Spirit manage to dodge and block a great number of the bullets. Unfortunately, the constant of barrage made getting closer impossible.

Circling around the massive robot, Spirit weighed her options. She was hoping to get in close in order to pull Technus away from the robot. That would be impossible right now, though. She was stuck at the same distance.

She would have to take out as many weapons as possible. If she did that, it might give her the chance to get close enough to attack Technus personally. That was the best possible plan.

Doing that, however, would leave her open to attacks. She was sure that a large number of the blasts would hit her. There was a good chance that she would become Swiss cheese if she tried this strategy.

It would be a lot safer to wait for her dad and Vision. They would show up soon, and Technus would be screwed. Even one of them would be able to take down the ghost while taking almost no damage. Together, they would win almost instantly.

But if she did that…Spirit would feel even weaker. She wouldn't have the guts to put herself on the line for victory. If she did this, then Spirit wouldn't be able to look at herself in the mirror.

'No!' Spirit mentally screamed. 'I refuse to be weak! I'm taking him down myself!'

Spirit's hands began to glow green as she prepared her next attack. It was time to go on the offense.

Danny could honestly say that wearing the Helmet of Fate was one of the weirdest feelings he had ever had. He was literally watching his body move without his consent. It was strange, yet…Somehow, he felt more powerful than he had in a long time.

The unusual thing about magic and ectoplasmic energy is that they both work with the user's will. Usually, when the two energies meet, the wills between the users always contradict each other and lead to backlash. Now, however, both Danny and Dr. Fate were willingly working together.

Dr. Fate was using ectoplasm to power magic. The result was explosive.

Even with the power of the Reality Gauntlet, Freakshow couldn't keep up. Dr. Fate was flying circles around the ringmaster. His golden energy seemed to tear through everything Freakshow did. Danny could see the desperation growing on Freakshow's face.

"Now that's impressive…" Kent Nelson appeared beside Danny in the darkness of the helmet.

"Mr. Nelson?" Danny looked on in shock.

"Hey, kid. It seems that we never meet in good circumstances." Nelson commented. "I'm dead and you put on the helmet."

"You…died?" Danny muttured in shock. If he died, why was he here? Shouldn't Death be coming to take him to the afterlife?

"Meh, don't worry about it." Nelson shrugged and pulled out his pocket watch. "I was near the end of my life anyway. Besides, now I get to see my dear Inza."

"Ah…" Danny nodded as he looked around. Maybe Death wouldn't come into the Helmet of Fate? It was a possibility.

"So, I got to ask about why you appear so different…" Nelson pointed to his appearance.

"…I guess I'm human mentally, or at least right now." Danny noted as he looked at his human appearance. "That, or its because Dr. Fate is using my powers as fuel."

"I can see that." Nelson agreed. "Never seen Namu act like such a beast…did I say that right?"

"Yeah." Danny nodded.

"But, of course, I never once thought that a ghost would put on the helmet and cooperate with Namu like this." Nelson noted.

"Not like I had a choice." Danny muttured.

"I suppose not." Nelson sighed. "Don't let Klarion's actions dictate your feelings on magic. Not many users are like that."

"I know that. I like most of the magic users I know, but that doesn't change my vulnerability to magic." Danny stated. "Ghosts hate magic. That's just how it is."

"Hmm…" Nelson looked up at the fight. "It appears that Freakshow doesn't enjoy magic all that much either…"

"Gah!" Freakshow stumbled back from Dr. Fate's last blow. "Curses!"

"You lose." Dr. Fate and Phantom's mixed voices spoke at once.

"Yes…I suppose that I should cut my losses while I can…" Freakshow growled. "But this isn't over. I will unlock the true power of the Reality Gauntlet, Phantom."

"Then I suppose I should stop you while I can." Dr. Fate spoke as he extended his hand.

"Unlikely!" Freakshow raised his hand and energy poured out of the Reality Gauntlet. It surged around them, and in an instant, Freakshow as gone.

"He probably took Lydia with him…" Danny mentioned.

You are correct, young Phantom. I sense no more enemies within the Tower. The one called Freakshow left with Lydia, and Klarion as soon as you put on the Helmet.

"What?" Danny looked around.

"Namu, it's nice to speak with you again." Namu stated.

Kent Nelson. It has been some time.

"Yes, it has." Nelson nodded.

"Er…sorry to interrupt, but I have to ask…what now?" Phantom stated. "I would prefer to have my body back."

That's not how this works child. The world needs Dr. Fate.

"But my city and family needs me." Danny argued.

The world is more important. And with our combined power, we can easily protect the world from all threats.

"Oh, come on, Namu." Nelson smiled. "You know that the kid's will won't always agree with yours. That's the problem with a ghost wearing the helmet. You may have power like never before, but you won't be able use it if he fights against you. In fact, you might be weakened."

That…is a valid argument.

Namu almost seemed depressed. Danny couldn't blame him. It must be depressing to be trapped in a helmet all the time. "What…what if I found a person to wear the helmet for you?"

"Yes…" Nelson nodded. "With me dead, someone will need to guard the helmet. And until he finds you a new user, I will stay here and keep you company."

"But…" Danny eyed the pocket watch.

"Oh, I've already waited a long time to see Inza. What's a few more years?"

This deal is acceptable. I will be waiting Danny Phantom.

"I understand…" And with that, the helmet was removed.

(Play: I Burn by Jeff Williams feat. Casey Lee Williams and Lamar Hall)

"Ah!" Spirit cried as she was blasted in the stomach once again. Like she predicted, her change to offence had opened her up to getting hit. Several blasts had already hit their mark, and Spirit was feeling the wear and tear now.

Nevertheless, the sacrifice was worth it. She now had a way to get closer to the head. It was a small, narrow way that would still be treacherous and fatal if she made a mistake, but it was better than nothing. Spirit just hoped that her Premonition would allow her to dodge the hundreds of blasts and missiles being sent her way.

Deciding that she had better act before Technus fixed his guns, Spirit began her rush to the robot's head. She twisted and dodged all the blasts coming her way.

Technus took note of this, though, and decided to act. He raised the robot's massive arm and tried to swat the ghost girl away. Instead of hitting the girl, though, it merely provided her with a safer route to her target.

Spirit quickly turned intangible. The massive arm arm passed right through the girl. Instead of exiting the robot arm, though, Spirit stayed intangible and began to fly through the arm to the shoulder.

As she flew through the metal, wire, and hardware, Spirit activate her Spectral Claws. She dragged the claws along as she flew up the arm. As she went, her claws cut through the metal like butter. In her wake, Spirit left sparking mechanical scrap metal.

Eventually, Spirit managed to get through the arm. She finally passed through the robot's shoulder and was directly by the head. If she looked back, Spirit would have seen the now useless, sparking arm that hung lifelessly from the gigantic robot.

"Got cha'!" Spirit cried as she tried to attack the head.

"I think not!" Technus retorted.

Metal arms sprouted from the robot's head. They grabbed Sprit's arms and legs to prevent her from moving. Then the arms began to surge with electricity. Spirit cried out in pain as she was electrocuted.

"Foolish girl!" Technus laughed. "You could never defeat me, Technus master of all things-"

"Shut up!" Spirit cried as she once again activated her Spectral Claws. The ectoplasmic nails tore through the arms holding her arms. The same thing soon happened to the mechanical arms holding her legs.

Now free, Spirit once again lunged at the head. Turning intangible, Spirit easily passed through the metal. As she passed through the metal head, Spirit grabbed Technus from the brain of the robot and began to push him out of the robot.

After he was pushed out of the head, Technus exclaimed. "You think this will hurt me?! I can still control the robot without being in it!"

The guns on the robot that would hit Spirit while not firing in the direction of Technus all fired at the halfa girl. Spirit dodged these blasts with ease. The rate the guns were firing was significantly less than when Technus was in the robot's head.

"Maybe, but you're a lot weaker!" Spirit exclaimed as she rocketed at the technology ghost.

In anger, Technus tried to fight Spirit with hand-to-hand combat. This, however, was not Technus' strong point. Spirit easily dodged the blow and pushed Technus off balance.

As Technus tried to right his balance, Spirit moved forward and spinned at the same time. Technus watched in horror as Spirit's now glowing green foot spun with the halfa girl. In a show of absolute grace and power, Spirit flowed to Techus and delivered an incredibly devastating spinning back kick at Technus' chin.

Bam!

Technus's head snapped back. Green blood and spit flied out of Techus' mouth. The technology ghost's eyes rolled into the back of his head for a moment as he began to fall to the ground.

Catching the tech ghost, Spirit began to lower him to the ground slowly. As she did so, the massive robot began to crumble into scrap metal. Soon, the street below them was filled with Fenton and Axion tech.

After she landed, her dad's voice sounded from Spirit's side. "Now that was impressive."

"Dad!" Spirit looked on in shock as her father approached her.

"I was coming to help you, but it looks like you didn't need it." Plasmius smiled.

"No…I guess not…" Spirit smiled lightly. "But…I don't think this is a victory that I actually wanted."

"I'm sure…" Plasmius sighed. "Daniel with be disappointed to say the least.

"I think everyone will be." Spirit frowned. "The first attempt for humans and ghosts to work together publicly…and it failed."

"Yes…" Plasmius eyed Technus. "We will have to call Pandora to arrest him."

"Will we send him to Belle Rev like Grundy?" Spirit looked sad at remembering that incident.

"No, hopefully not." Plasmius stated. "Technus is a ghost, and the damage was contained to Amity Park. We most likely will be able to keep him in Torch's prison."

"That's good…I guess."

"It's better than the alternative." Plasmius scratched his chin. "But I have to wonder what Technus was thinking."

"What do you mean?" Spirit asked.

"He had to know that his plan would never work." Plasmius explained. "Even if he attacked at a time of weakness like today, he was doomed to fail in taking over the world. There are too many obstacles for him to conquer on his own with brute force."

"So…he knew he was going to fail?"

"Yes. Technus is not stupid. He had to know that his chances were almost zero."

"Then…" Spirit frowned at the downed ghost. "Why did he do it?"

"Perhaps…He just couldn't help himself."

"Torch isn't surprised to see you." The warden of the Ghost Zone's prison commented as he met Phantom at the gates of the prison.

"Yeah…" Phantom nodded solemnly. "I had to come."

"Right. Torch will take you to his cell." Torch began to lead Phantom into the prison. "Torch guesses that this wasn't a good day to be DP."

"No, it wasn't." Phantom sighed.

"Torch won't ask then." Torch commented.

Phantom looked at Torch. Despite his appearance, Torch was an incredibly loyal person. He would walk through hell to save a friend. Perhaps he was the person to talk about this. "Actually, I have to ask you something.

"Ah…" Torch removed his sunglasses. "What is it?"

"Vision advised me earlier to keep an eye on my human allies." Phantom stated. "She says that humans won't value ghosts as much as the living."

"Torch sees…"

"And…I saw a glimpse of that." Phantom stated. "My allies had a chance to help me when I was in trouble, but they helped each other instead. It might because someone else was about to help me, but…"

"You have doubts." Torch summarized as they walked deeper in the prison.

"Yes…"

"Hmm…" Torch frowned. "Loyalty is such a difficult thing to obtain. It is a combination of respect, admiration, and integrity. All of Torch's minions are loyal to Torch. Torch knows this, because they have proved it."

"Okay…" Phantom nodded. "Then…what are you saying."

"Torch doesn't see much difference between the living and dead." Torch answered. "Loyalty doesn't depend on what you are. It depends on who you are."

"Who you are?"

"People are loyal, or they're not." Torch stated. "You just have to ask, do you trust them?"

"I…don't know."

"Then find that out, and you will have your answer." Torch nodded.

"…Thanks." Phantom nodded. "That was actually helpful."

"Torch is full of good advice!" Torch exclaimed.

"And the moment's lost…"

Torch just laughed. "The cell you want is the third one on the left."

"Thanks…" Phantom began to leave.

"…DP?" Torch called out.

Phantom stopped. "Yeah?"

"You and the ghost Ember are dating, right?" Torch questioned.

"Yeah, why?"

"Because so many ghosts have love!" Torch cried. "Plasmius and Vison. DP and Ember. Even Box Ghost and Lunch Lady! Torch needs to find some love!"

"Why don't you ask out Dora?"

"She said no!"

"Oh…Sorry?"

"I-It's fine…" Torch mumbled. "But just remember, treat your lover right. You don't want to lose her or make her unhappy."

"Okay…" Phantom didn't know where that came from.

"Anyway!" Torch turned. "Torch has a lot to do! When you're done, you can show yourself the exit."

"Why did you do it?" Phantom stood outside the jail cell. "I don't understand. You had a second chance and you wasted it."

"What's there to understand? I had an opportunity, and I took it." Technus questioned from his bed in the cell. "I did what I always did before the war."

After being defeated by Dani, Technus was taken here quickly by Pandora and her forces. There would be a trial for the technology ghost, but considering what Technus had done and the evidence against him, he would definitely be in this prison for a while.

"Yes! Before the war!" Phantom exclaimed. "Things have changed!"

"Yes, the rules have changed. My new home is evidence enough of that." Technus chuckled lifelessly. "But even if the rules and world changes around us, the ghosts and the humans have not changed."

"What do you mean?" Phantom eyed the white-haired ghost.

"People don't change, ghost boy." Technus noted. "They never do. The most that they will ever do is hide their true nature."

"I don't believe that." Phantom stated. "I was once destined to bring only destruction and death. But with I chance from Clockwork, I changed. Now-"

"You only bring destruction and death." Technus smiled. "Just like your future self."

Phantom's face paled.

"Do you believe that I could gather information?" Technus questioned. "Especially when a future version of myself comes to the present time."

"I see…" Phantom's eyes narrowed.

"What is the difference between you and your alternate future self?" Technus asked. "Not very much, actually."

"You're wrong. I am nothing like him!" Phantom shouted.

"Perhaps in goals and personality, but…" Technus sighed and leaned back. "Danny Phantom, no matter what version of him, always brings death and destruction with him. The only difference is that one Phantom made the destruction himself while the other brought it about by the enemies and the decisions he made."

"The war was necessary…" Phantom muttured.

"It was. Doesn't change the fact that you led hundreds…maybe thousands to their death. And those were the people you didn't care about." Technus noted. "If I remember correctly, it was your choice that lead to your family's death. It was because of you that the ice ghost Klemper died. Who else will die because of you?"

"Trying to get me angry won't work." Phantom stated.

"Oh, I know that. You're eyes only show dullness." Technus smirked. "Now you're like me."

"What are you even trying to prove?" Phantom questioned. "Are you just working on my guilt for your amusement?"

"No, I'm trying to make you see." Technus stated. "People can't change their nature. Inside they will always be the same. There's no use even trying to change."

"So you didn't even try…" Phantom closed his eyes and sighed. "Trying to be different proved too hard for you so you gave up and decided to go back to your old ways."

"Yes. It was pointless to try and be something I'm not."

"…And here I thought we shared at least that in common." Phantom frowned. "Apparently you don't believe in human progress like I do, though."

"It seems so…"

"Then there is nothing left to say." Phantom turned and began to walk away.

Technus stood and gripped the bars to his cell. "You'll see! You can't change your nature! In the end, like my trying to take over the world, you'll end up hurting and killing those around you in some way!"

Phantom stopped.

"Your new family will meet the same ending as your old one! Your allies will die for you like Klemper." Technus called. "And even that new team of yours! Either they will die or you will."

"Quite trying to make excuses for yourself." Phantom answered. "You couldn't compromise and work with people…No, you can, but you refused too. It had nothing to do with your nature. It had to do with your bitterness. You hate humans because one woman stole everything from you. So, now you put the blame on everyone else."

Technus was silent.

Phantom looked back for a brief moment. "Everyone is responsible for their own actions. So, everyone must deal with the consequences of their actions. I'm dealing with mine, so you'll have to deal with yours..."

As Phantom's footsteps sounded through the silent prison, he added. "Unlike me, though, you will have to deal with your consequences in a depressing hole. I hope it was worth it."

There were many times where Joel just sat and pondered. He thought about life, love, death, violence, and many other topics. The boy just sat and thought. He had covered many topics in his short life, especially while locked in the Ghoul Project.

Recently, he had been thinking more and more about ghosts. It was hard not too with all the ghost experiments happening around him. That wasn't the only reason, though. Despite his distaste in the thought, Joel had to admit it. He could deny it no longer…

He was going to die.

Granted, before he knew that it was likely. In fact, the only way it could have been more obvious if there was a giant sign in front of his face. Yet, part of him always believed that he would come out fine. A small part of him believed that he would live. That's why he did what he always did and shrugged it off.

But he couldn't do that anymore. It would be his turn very soon.

With this in the front of his mind, Joel couldn't help but ponder what would happen after death. He didn't know how ghosts were exactly made, but there was a possibility of him becoming one. But…if he remembered correctly, ghosts had…obsessions. That was what they lived to do.

Joel didn't think he would have one of those. He didn't have anyone or anything he really liked. The boy didn't really know affection or hate. No, he was what an agent of the Shadows should be. No attachment. No concern.

…Well, that was not quite true. If he didn't have concern for lives, then he wouldn't be in this situation…

But that wouldn't be enough. So, he had to ask…what would happen when he died?

Being a ghost was off the table. Joel didn't know if he believed in a God. In fact, he didn't know if he even believed in life after death. Maybe things would just end. Then there would be nothing.

Joel didn't like that. He didn't like the uncertainty. And…

He didn't want to die.

But…that didn't seem to be a factor in this.

"Subject 34…" A scientist stood over Joel's cage.

"According to these reports, he's a failed agent for the Shadows." The other scientist noted. "Says that he refuses to kill."

The first scientist snorted. "No wonder he's here. What's the point of an assassin that won't kill?"

"At least I have principles." Joel looked up at the scientists stared up at the scientists with cold eyes. "You two have given up your humanity in these experiments."

"Have we now…" The second scientist knelt down and grinned. "Well, at least we have the appearance of a human. Soon, you'll be nothing more than a pile of goo…"

The first scientist opened the cage. "Get out. It's time."

Joel weighed his options. He could easily knock down the scientists and run away. There were a lot of soldiers with guns, though. If he ran or fought, he would be shot, then put through experiments that might be even worse than what the scientists were originally planning.

Option one: die painfully.

Option two: die more painfully.

Tough choice…

Deciding, Joel stood and was led away by the scientists. It was over. He had no time left.

'I don't want to die…'

Meet the Girlfriend

"So…you're Danny's friends, huh?" Ember questioned the group of teens in front of her.

"Yes!" A now Caucasian M'gann walked up to Ember. "It's so nice to meet you!"

"Er…Okay?"

Eventually, Phantom's temmates wore him down and demanded to meet his girlfriend. The halfa tried to argue, but they wouldn't take no for an answer. Eventually, Phantom took the team to Amity Park's recording studio where Ember was working on some new songs.

"So, you're the famous girlfriend." Artemis looked the siren up and down. "I was expecting someone…different."

"Is that a compliment or an insult?" Ember questioned.

"A compliment to you, and an insult to Phantom." Artemis smirked.

"I can live with that."

"Dude!" Wally whispered as he elbowed the ghost. "Nice! You're the man."

"Thanks…" Phantom smiled.

"No offense, but how did you get a rockstar as a girlfriend?" Robin in civilian clothes questioned.

"Oh, I'm sure she'll tell you in great detail." Phantom smiled evily.

"What do you mean?" Superboy questioned.

"Just wait."

"So, what's Danny like when he's not with us?" Kaldur questioned the ghost.

"You mean in public or private?" Ember questioned.

"Er…does that make a difference?" M'gann questioned.

"Of course." Ember nodded. "When he's in public, he's always his wisecracking, yet serious self. Always worrying too much about what will happen next."

"And in private?" Artemis questioned.

"He's an animal."

"Excuse me?" Superboy raised an eyebrow.

"I'm going to be over here." Phantom flopped on a nearby couch and pulled out some Fenton Phones to listen to music.

"What are you doing?" Robin questioned.

"I warned you about meeting her. Now suffer the consequences."

"What do you mean?"

"Oh, leave him be." Ember rolled his eyes. "He's too nice a guy sometimes. He doesn't like to talk about making out or sex while around others."

The rest of Young Justice's eyes widened.

"In my opinion, though, it's nothing to be ashamed of." Ember smirked. "He's getting some, so he should be proud. Especially because some is equal to me."

"Er…" Kaldur shifted uncomfortably.

"He's such a stiff at time." Ember smirked. "But the first time we kissed, he couldn't keep his tongue to himself."

"I don't think this is…" M'gann blushed deeply.

"After that, though he got all shy. Until I finally seduced him that is." Ember snorted. "Convinced him it was music lessons."

"I don't need to hear this…" Suberboy mumbled.

"You should have seen us! I'll tell you this, when the threat of death is in the air, things get wild."

"Please stop…" Robin mumbled weakly.

"The first thing we did-"

(*Please stand by. The following content has dubbed by the overlords as being too inappropriate. Take this time to reflect on yourself. Think about who you are and who you want to-*)

"And, good Lord, his tongue!"

(*Woops. Jumped back too early there. Instead, let's think nice things. Waterfalls. Rainbows. Love. Divine good. And all that jazz.*)

Ember finished her story.

Ever member of Young Justice now had their jaws on the floor.

"I don't…I can't…" Artemis mumbled.

"W-wow…" M'gann's entire body was glowing red.

Superboy remained silent.

"I will never look at him the same way again…" Kaldur muttured.

"…Can people actually do that?" Robin questioned.

"I am so jealous right now…" Wally was in a daze.

"I know." Ember nodded sagely. "I was surprised that Danny could be like that too, but, man am I glad he is."

Everyone was silent.

"But enough about that." Ember shrugged. "You probably want to hear about something else."

"Yes, please…" Kaldur nodded slowly.

"Okay. I'll tell you about the time we got in this big mosh pit at a rock concert." Ember stated.

"What?" Superboy questioned.

"You see, this guy grabbed my butt, and Danny got all mad. He got right up in his face and was cussing him off like no tomorrow."

"Wait? When was this?" Robin questioned.

"Three days ago. You should have seen the guys face when his sucker punch hurt him more than Danny. But that was when it got really good-"

(*Please stand by. Once again, the overlords have deemed this inappropriate for the rating of this story. This time, the story will be revealed in a G-rated way…It involved a lot of violence, then sexual content, then more violence. And finally a combination of the two.*)

"Long story short, I'm no longer allowed in Mexico City." Ember summarized.

Everyone else was pale and silent. They were too shocked to speak or move.

Phantom removed his Fenton Phones. "Yawn!...Did I miss anything good."

"Plenty." Ember commented.

"Oh…" Phantom looked over his friends. "And I see that they're now mentally scarred."

"Yep."

"I told them that they couldn't handle it." Phantom shook his head. "Let's hope next time they listen to good old Danny Phantom."