The greens and blacks of the Ghost Zone swirled around like a kaleidoscope mixing with a whirlpool. Ember, Skulker, and Young Blood were floating around trying to find the door that led to Desiree’s pocket dimension. It resembled a dessert and held a beautiful Arabian palace with a small town and lavish courtyard. The door that served as the entrance to this place was a golden archway with a wooden door painted blue, and an emerald that sat on the upper middle. Ember was the one to spot it, and now all they needed to do was find the wish granting ghost inside. Ember opened the door and sudden blast of hot air rushed through; harsh dessert sunlight blinding them from the other side. “Woo! Now that’s a place fit for an adventure! Ain’t that right Skelly?” The skeleton bird turned to Young Blood nonchalantly and nodded. In a twirling flash of light, the kid swapped outfits, Changing from a pirate to some type of Aladdin RIP off. The parrot accepted the situation and turned into a skeletal monkey to match. “Ha ha! Onward!” The kid jumped through the door, darting off to the palace in the distance. Skulker shook his head and followed after, cracking a smile after seeing how amber followed the kid like an intrigued aunt. It was like she was babysitting him but wasn’t caring to be fully responsible because it wasn’t her kid. They hung out sometimes, and Ember’s mentality has always just to let him have fun. He’s been dead for long enough, he could take care of himself well enough. The kid immediately lit up when they got to the palace, running over to the throne and sitting on it. “Look at me! I’m the KING!”

“Sultan.” The skeleton corrected. “Based on architecture, we’re likely in ancient Saudi Arabia. Their leaders were called sultans.”

The kid stood confused for a moment before snapping back and happily cheering- “Then I’m a Sultan!”

Skulker picked him up by the back of his shirt and held him there, telling him that no, he wasn’t. But that WAS who was meant to sit there. There were two thrones of equal size that sat on an elevated platform at the back middle of the main room. The ghosts looked down at them, almost as if feeling bad for someone. “Desiree’s love. She still waits for him to show up and fulfill his promises.”

Young Blood tilted his head; still in the cyborgs grip. “But didn’t skelly call this place ancient? If he hasn’t showed up by now, that means the sultan never entered the Ghost Zone. He just passed on.”

Ember sighed and folded her arms. “Yeah, well there’s no point in explaining that to Desiree. That’s her ghostly drive. She can’t help it.” The rockstar cleared her throat after a moment. “Anyway- let’s go. Time's running out!”

In the world of the living, the Men in White found Phantom and were back to attacking them. With two layers of government officials on its tail, the ‘Guys in White’ AND the ‘Men in White’, they had their hands full. It already took out several more people, including a few random citizens from the other side of the city who never made it to Fenton Works. Along with one of the armored vehicles. Throughout the entire thing, it never once even felt bad. Phantom knew its fate was sealed the moment it realized it truly felt no remorse. These pathetic humans- these “agents of order,” had come to eradicate it. They had come to destroy what they didn’t understand and torture and experiment on the parts that they could steal. It was only fair, Phantom reasoned, that they be shown what it truly  was. What horrible monster it had become. The spirit moved like a rocket, a blur of black and white against the dying, stormy light. The boy snarled. The Guys in White were a persistent, and ultimately futile, annoyance. Their energy beams sliced through the air, leaving trails of sizzling smoke, but Phantom was always just a fraction of a second ahead; practically untouchable. It learned from its past mistakes, and made sure to dodge extra well, since it was still regenerating from the previous missile strike. A bomb was fired at it, the kind that attached to the target and counted down, but Phantom caught it before it could latch on. “Really? For me? Why how thoughtful! It’s not even Christmas yet!” The specter launched it back, and it disappeared into the chaos. Who knows where that thing landed in the madness. The teen swooped down, invisible, snatching a vehicle off the ground and hurling it into a neighboring building. The crunch of metal and shattering glass was music to Phantom’s ears. A group of agents scrambled from the wreckage, firing their blasters blindly. Phantom’s lips curled, a cruel suggestion of a smile. It shifted its body, becoming intangible, allowing the energy blasts to pass straight through. Then, with a wicked grin, Phantom solidified. It held out it's hand and focused as hard as it could, slowly creating ectoplasmic tendrils that lashed out from the pavement and towards the agents. They ensnared two of them, lifting the men into the air and then, like a child with a discarded toy, slammed them into the ground. A sickening crunch followed. They didn’t get up… Phantom should have been at the very least disturbed, but no. This was still a game.…still…FUN.

Phantom wasn’t just evading anymore; it was actively hunting. IT was the predators now. And oh how the tables turned… It darted between buildings, speed blurring the lines of reality. When a jet fighter, a new addition to the party, managed to lock on, Phantom slipped under it. Phasing through the metal, it unleashed a concentrated burst of energy; blowing the engine out of its housing. The jet plummeted to the ground in a fiery, twisted mess, exploding with a satisfying roar. Bonus points for the fact that it took out an entire city block with it. The remaining agents grew increasingly more desperate, shooting almost aimlessly towards the boy. Phantom simply laughed, dodging every single blast. “Wow. How did any of you get hired?! Your aim is terrible… Here, let me give you some LESSONS!” Phantom fired a massive beam that obliterated the street below. It chuckled as it slowly turned to an approaching group of agents. “It’s been fun hanging with you, but I’ve just recently learned I’ve got another play date to attend, so unfortunately, I’m gonna have to cut this one a little short.” With a swift motion, Phantom sent a shockwave of pure ectoplasmic energy rippling through the ground. The earth bucked, throwing the remaining vehicles into the air like toys. Agents were sent flying, their screams swallowed by the echoes of destruction. One final, battered vehicle, its turret gun still blazing, remained. Phantom landed softly in front of it, their vibrant red eyes fixated on the terrified agent behind the wheel. The once white truck was now splattered with blood and dirt, and the man inside shook like a cold chihuahua; moments from tears. Like a dart, it bolted up, ripped the gun free from the vehicle, and with a casual spin, tossed it into the sky. It spun like a deadly pinwheel before crashing into the ground, embedding itself deep into the asphalt. Phantom landed on top of the vehicle and looked upside down through the windshield with a smirk. The agent inside looked up, his face pale with terror. Phantom leaned in, their face a remorseless, terrifying canvas. “Bye, bye.”
A beeping sound grew louder as the boy floated backwards, going intangible. The entire street exploded with the bomb phantom caught earlier. Silence descended, heavy and complete. The dust settled. The last of the Men and Guys in White were no more. Phantom stood amidst the carnage, their body radiating an eerie, chilling aura. The city was a wasteland, the battlefield a graveyard. It stretched and smiled like it was nothing. “Won’t ya look at that? A Christmas present I actually used.” It was official. This was their domain now. They had shown the world the true meaning of fear. And in the empty, ruined heart of Amity Park, Phantom smiled. But the hunt wasn’t over… not yet.

Vlad hid in the control room, arms over his head like he was trying desperately to protect himself from the battle outside. He hyperventilated, just praying the silence meant it was over. “Hey there bud. Some fight, huh?”

Vlad snapped up, eyes widened with shock. The Box Ghost. “Wh-? You!? Daniel didn’t destroy you?!!”

Box laughed. “Oh, of course not! I think we’re friends now, because he’s so totally let me go!”

Vlad’s jaw dropped. “DANIEL WHAT!? You imbecile, he wouldn’t just let you leave!”

“Well he didn’t. He made me tell him what Skulker and Ember were up to first. But still- progress! And don’t worry about Danny interfering with them, they’re in the Ghost Zone. And the only portal around is safe in this dome!”

Vlad looked like he was going to be sick. Genuinely disturbed. Jack’s portal was NOT the only one… Phantom wasn’t silent right now because he was done with the fight… he was silent because he’d LEFT. HE WAS AFTER THE PORTAL IN VLAD’S LABORATORY.

Meanwhile, Young Blood, Ember and Skulker were walking around the palace, still on the search for Desiree. “Come on puny child, I thought you said you’d easily be able to find her since you’re acquainted.” Skulker growled. “That’s why you’re here.”

The boy floated backwards, so he could talk to Skulker and move ahead at the same time. “Well, yeah, I know her better than you, but that doesn’t mean I’ve ever been to the girl’s house.” He glanced out the open-air hallway they started heading down and lit up. “Found ‘er!”  she was sat on a marble bench in a garden within a courtyard. The green foliage and colorful flowers were a stark contrast to the desert that surrounded the palace. The three ghosts raced over to Desiree, spooking her in an unintentional surprise attack.

“Dessie!” The kid shouted. “We need your help! The Ghost Zone is in trouble!”

“We need you to use your wishing abilities to stop the ghost child from destroying everything!” Skulker chimed in.

“We’ve got a few humans you can grant it from back in Amity Park! We can still make it if we leave now!” Ember added.

The woman blinked. “Well, I have to admit, I wasn’t exactly expecting this today, but since you’ve seemed to have gone through all this trouble to find me, I shall accept.”

At Vlad’s destroyed castle, the smell of smoke still hung in the air as Phantom landed softly in front. Against its will, it got déjà vu. Standing in the front of the manor, unsure if going inside was a good idea or not. Back then, it was Danny. Back then it was in pain; feeling emotions he didn’t want to. He’d just lost everything, and in that moment of agony, he stood right where it stood now. Phantom let out a low growl as it shook off the feeling and continued into the rubble. The laboratory it was born in had completely caved in, leaving an even larger hole in the floor. Unless Vlad had the guts to move it, Danny’s corpse was still down there, albeit completely crushed now due to the collapse. That fact was rather satisfying to know to Phantom. It was as if it was a conformation that Daniel Fenton was dead; that nobody living or ghost needed to remember that name. The bloody mess Phantom left to rot was gone and buried, just as intended. But that wasn’t it’s reasoning for coming to this cursed place. It needed the ghost portal. Vlad had three labs from what it was aware of. The first one was the ghost portal room they were headed to now, the second was the room in which Phantom was born, and the little room that Skulker had captured him in when Vlad first revealed himself. The boy didn’t know about the fourth, newest one though. The cloning room. Even so, it had no use for it anyway. The spirit floated through the destruction, searching for the entrance. Usually, there was a specific way in, but because this place was falling apart, a small hole in the floor served as a perfect indicator for the location. All the ghost needed to do was phase through the floor and they were in. It was dark, only illuminated by the soft blue light that emanated from its body. But what it COULD see was promising. It approached the outline of the ghost portal with a fire in its eyes. Slowly, it pulled its arm back, and with the force of a bull charging a rickety fence, it punched through the crease in between the doors. Shoving it’s other fist in, the boy tore the metal doors apart, revealing the swirling vortex inside. Like cracking open a nut. Johnny’s shadow lingered around the entrance to the Ghost Zone, looking far more tired than usual, but on guard. Then, as if upon perfect timing, the portal ripped open, and Phantom stepped out. Shadow perked up, getting into a fighting position, full defense mode. The ghost boy raised its eyebrow in confusion. It looked bored of the situation, like it knew the ending, so it saw no point in getting excited for the fight. Shadow dripped with darkness; an inky manifestation of bad luck. The intriguing thing though, was that Johnny 13 was nowhere to be seen, which was unusual, but it wasn’t like Phantom was complaining. The fewer interruptions the better. It had places to be. “Let me pass you formless freak.”
Shadow wasn’t one for words, so it just glared, but with arms outstretched, its body language was enough to say ‘no you’re not getting any further.’ Phantom tilted its head. What was it doing?... It wasn’t fighting for Johnny- he wasn’t here- it was like he was… oh wow. It was fighting for the Ghost Zone. It was its guardian, its defender, likely placed there to keep Phantom out. How amusing. Phantom charged forward, ectoplasmic blasts exploding from its hands. Shadow met the assault head-on, its shadowy form rippling as the attacks passed through. It retaliated in kind, tendrils of darkness lashing out, trying to ensnare Phantom in its suffocating embrace. Phantom danced through the attacks, its movements fluid, almost predatory. It didn’t flinch, didn’t pause, didn’t feel the sting of adrenaline or the weight of fear. It simply reacted. The battle felt like a cold calculation, each move seemingly planned. The boy yawned as it dodged another attack. If every fight was a game to it, this was the most boring one it had ever played. And considering the agents it slaughtered earlier were mere moral humans, that’s saying a lot. Shadow threw a punch that would have shattered concrete, but Phantom simply warped around it, appearing behind the creature. “Move.” Like lightning, it landed a solid kick to its inky flank. Phantom phased into it like a rocket, ripping its very essence, causing his body to rip into a fine mist before reforming, angrier than before.

“Wow. Someone doesn’t learn.”

Shadow screeched as it bolted forward, tackling the teen into a tumble. The inky manifestation began wrestling it back through the rift, much to Phantom hatred. Then suddenly, right as it was about to be shoved through, crackling energy erupted from Phantom, sending the shadow flying back. It darted up and unleashed a concentrated burst of red energy. The attack pierced the creature, and unlike before, the impact zone didn’t fill in. The dark energy was left with a smoldering hole in its lower mass. The ghost screeched, writhing in pain on the floating islands floor. Phantom felt exhausted after that assault, but a glimmer of curiosity burned in its eyes. That was new. Wait. THAT WAS A NEW POWER! Either that or an ability Plasmius possessed that the phantom obtained via fusing will him. Either way, it was new to them, and so, so awesome. The boy glanced up at the still agonized shadow. “This attack… ghosts can’t recover from it…” Its eyes grew narrow, the whites turning black. “This power can kill ghosts.”

Shadow let out another high pitched scream. From the other end of the Ghost Zone, a sharp pain shot through Johnny, making him fall to his hands and knees. “SHADOW!”

Technus turned around to face him; confused. Before the technology spirit could ask what was wrong, Johnny was up and running. “WOAH! Wait a second!” He called out. “Get back here! The weapon isn’t complete yet! You can’t go, or you’ll be…” The specter trailed off, realizing the young man was too far away to hear. “Well, there goes the universe. Ugh. Must I do everything myself?”

Phantom snarled as it held Shadow down. It held up its fist, ready to deliver the final strike, but then it’s ghost sense went off. The boy glanced up just in time to see two larger ghosts tackle them. It struggled in their grip, weakened by the draining effects of the new power, but its anger remained untouched. Less energy didn’t mean the pure rage would fade. If anything, it was even more mad now. And it got worse once it realized the situation. The two holding it down were guards… prison guards. With a sinister chuckle, Walker made his way into view, taking a slow stride as he watched the ghost boy intently. “Well, well, well, look what we’ve caught ourselves today. A violation of peace and the cause of an all out assault. I always knew you were a filthy criminal.”

Phantom snarled at the warden. It wanted so badly to use its new murder power on this guy, but the ability seemed to have a cool down time. It wasn’t charged up yet. Time to get creative perhaps? But what could it do in this situation? Walker bent down and pulled out handcuffs with a wicked grin. Oh, he was enjoying this, the teen could tell. There was always the law loophole option to get around this guy’s defenses, but the irritated spirit didn’t feel like being tactical right now. Its head was too clouded to think straight anyway. There were fleeting moments where it could clearly hold a train of thought, but most of the time it was just fogged over with the desire to destroy. And right now, its mind was so hazy that it might as well be a lost, feral animal. The boy stared blankly at the swirling void below, almost disassociating as Walker clicked the handcuffs onto its wrists. “Alright ya scumbag, you’re going away for a very long time…”
The phantom remained still, now with its eyes closed as it concentrated. It felt the fire inside of it, the very essence of its rage. The power that was so uncontainable that it bubbled out and up through its hair in a blaze. Walker crossed his arms and scowling, like he was disappointed with the lack of backlash from the kid. “What’s wrong? Feeling bad?”

The phantom took a deep breath. “Feel? No, I don’t FEEL anything anymore.” Its eyes opened slowly, looking up through its brow, head still hung. The gaze stung, like fiery spears being thrust through the warden’s soul. “That’s why I exist. Why I do what I do… I had to KILL the part of me that could feel! Because that’s what he wanted- To make the pain end! Now that I’ve been liberated from pathetic emotions, it’s my mission to make sure everyone else ‘FEELS BAD’.” The teen stared cracking, a manic smile spreading across its face as it chuckled to itself. Its hair flared up brighter as the handcuffs began burning red. “I want the world to know what it feels like to watch EVERYTHING YOU LOVE.. BURN!!!” A ring of fire erupted from the spirit, blowing up the area.

However, right before the flames could reach the injured shadow, Johnny raced by on his motorcycle, recalling it into his blur. “Shadow!!! RETURN!!!” The inky blob got sucked back up his leather jacket sleeve and just barely dodging the destructive wave, the motorcycle came to a screeching halt further away. Johnny let out a sigh of relief, clutching his hand to his chest before looking back up at the blaze in front of him. There, the boy stood, handcuffs melted off, and standing in the flames like it was immune. Walker lay injured not far away, barely conscious. The two prison guards were apparently blown off the island, because they were nowhere to be seen. Phantom slowly walked over to the warden, one step after another moving in slow motion to everyone who observed it. The staid spirit glanced down at Walker, scowling. “You know…” it started, “I could demolish you right now if I wanted, but using such power on the likes of you would be wasteful. I’ve got better things to deal with right now.” It nonchalantly blasted Walker off the floating island and began walking away, paying no mind to Johnny as it went. 13 called out for the boy to stop, but it simply glared back over its shoulder then rocketed off across the void. Johnny looked down at his quivering shadow in concern. It looked back in horror, fading under the motorcycle. “My buddy… what did that thing do to you…?”

Danny carefully placed one of the last bits of metal into a bucket. The Fenton’s laboratory was looking great! He’d been doing as Vlad had requested and was cleaning up the room all morning. Granted, most of what he'd done was just the mess on the floor, so now he was onto the counters. The clone smiled, looking at the different gadgets and placing them in their correct bins. “That goes there… this thing goes in that bin, and..” He trailed off, noticing the corner of a wood frame sticking out from underneath a stack of paper in a drawer. Curiously, he moved aside the papers and pulled out the object. It was a picture frame, and the photo inside was… was of… oh. The clone paused, taking in the sight of the picture. It was of the original Danny, granted younger and in a form that more resembled the clone than the monstrosity he’d fought. It wasn’t a ghost at all in the photo. It wasn’t upset or fiery, just a boy. A young boy with life and love enveloping his oceanic blue eyes. Besides him stood a girl with orange hair and a loving look, having her hand placed on his shoulder. Behind them was a man and woman, both wearing hazmat suits with the same bright expressions. A family… The boy didn’t know why, but his heart began hurting again while it stared into the picture. If he didn’t know them- why was he sad to see their faces? 

“Do you really them?” A voice spoke up. Danny swerved around to see a solemn Valerie walking into the lab. She could tell he was confused by the statement, so she elaborated; even though she obviously seemed a little uncomfortable with the situation. “The people in that photo. They’re the Fenton’s.”

The kid glanced down at the photo again. “They’re my- I mean- Danny’s family, right?” Valerie nodded, confirming but letting the kid continue. “They all look so happy. What happened?”

Valerie shuddered, clutching her shoulder and looking away. “They… they died. All except for Daniel.” The girl looked up at the boy with something akin to sympathy. “You know you’re a clone, right? Your not the real Danny.”

The kid was a little taken aback by the bluntness of the question, but knew she wasn’t wrong. He WASN’T Danny. And apparently defective enough to not even qualify as Danny Phantom. It continuously tries to go ghost any chance it gets just to prove that untrue, but each attempt so far did the opposite. He really was defective, just as Vlad said. “Yeah. I know. And I also know that’s why you’ve been avoiding talking to me. It's awkward for you, isn’t it?”

Well, unfortunately, he wasn’t wrong on that. That was the reason. Mostly. But now, seeing him place the photo down so gently on the counter, eyes sad and glistening with tears he didn’t understand, she felt awful. He might not have been Danny, but he was real. A living boy with emotions. It was wrong to treat him like a freak or science experiment, yet that’s what she’d been doing. “Look, um… Danny.” The kid looked over at her in solemn curiosity. “I’m sorry. I should have never treated you differently. Would you forgive me? I… I can tell you more about them if you want.” She gestured to the family photo.

Danny let out a little mix between a sigh and a laugh. “Sure. I think I’d like that.”