CHAPTER 14 - GREEN AND RED

Danny's mind was reeling. He stared at the rubble in the distance, which was once his family home, as visions of his friends and Father possibly dead, mutilated and in pieces scattered through his mind. In that moment, he wanted to scream in anger and cry in desperation but he couldn't muster the energy to do anything.

All Danny could do was hope for a miracle, but none came. Clockwork didn't show up to help him, his friends were nowhere to be seen, he didn't even want to think about Vlad and his parents were…

He glued his eyes shut and let a single tear escape his eye.

His Dad was dead.

"How the mighty have fallen." Dan laughed maliciously.

Danny shifted his attention to the inappropriate sound behind him and the restraining arms around his waist. He stilled, unable to wipe the tear from his cheek, and narrowed his eyes despite his overwhelming grief.

"And look, there's even an audience come to see their little hero suffer."

Danny grunted as his head was forced downwards. Through the wind and rain, he realised how high up they were. The people below him were tiny, he could scarcely make out a face. As he squinted, he realised there were media companies, directing their attentions to himself and his dark counterpart behind him. Probably hoping to get an exclusive of the great Danny Phantom doing something…

But he did nothing.

The teen slumped in Dan's hold. He was no longer a hero. He was a normal, scared fourteen year old boy, who had just lost one of the people he loved most in the world.

Danny shivered, his breath a cool blue. His heart and body ached violently but it was unlike the pain he'd felt before. It wasn't a physical pain but an emotional one and it threatened to consume him. All he could do was think about how much he wanted to give into the pain. It wanted him to accept it and if he did, it might just all go away.

He opened his eyes once more, still looking at the onlookers below. He would fail them. Just like he'd failed his Dad.

Dan revelled in the chaos. Even though he could not see Danny's face, he knew the boy was defeated.

"Everything is how it should be." Dan gloated.

Danny gasped as he was shoved forcefully forwards and landed awkwardly on the edge of the roof. He couldn't even be bothered to get up. He didn't want to win anymore. The teen groaned as Dan kicked him over onto his front and picked him up by the collar before presenting him to the town.

"Behold Amity Park. Your hero!" He laughed.

The people below were confused and scared. Why was Danny Phantom just letting this new ghost toy with him like this? Why wasn't Phantom fighting back?! He always fought back. Something was seriously wrong.

Danny opened his eyes fractionally to see the fearful faces of the citizens below him. He was contemplating just changing then and there… letting them know he wasn't their hero… just a fourteen year old boy who was in way over his head and whose stupid heroics had managed to get his Dad killed.

Dan leant forward and cruelly whispered in Danny's ear, "No more parents."

Danny looked downwards and it was then that he saw a teal blur pushing through the crowd. His eyes widened further.

Dan was wrong. His Mum was still alive.

He took a breath and tensed. He'd promised he wouldn't become Dan, and as long as one of loved ones still lived, that promise was still valid. He was yet to know the fate of his friends and sister but he was pretty sure they too, would also be alive. They had to be.

He swallowed down his grief and sadness at the loss of his Father and transformed it into anger, anger directed at ghost behind him. The ghost which had just taken his Dad from him. A death, he would make sure, would not go unpunished.

Fuelled by his rage, he conjured every ounce of ectoplasm from every fibre of his body and expelled it all in a vicious and unrelenting attack.

The crowd below cheered as, caught off-guard, Dan was forced to let go of the teen as he was thrown violently backwards. He landed awkwardly on the concrete roof, his body now aching from the surprise assault. He looked upwards at his younger self, astounded as to how the child was still fighting, so soon after the explosion.

But it was no matter. Dan quickly flew to his feet and landed in front of Danny, who had turned to face him. The boy was still not strong enough to defeat him.

Even if the child's core hadn't yet shattered, the dagger which was hidden in his cloak meant Dan was certain of his victory.

"Hmm, I suppose I could entertain you for a few minutes."

Dan advanced and blasted Danny with a powerful ecto-blast to the stomach.

Danny grunted and doubled over from the strong attack. Through his gritted teeth and watery eyes, he looked defiantly up at his evil self. In spite of his pain, he retaliated with an equally strong blast.

Surprised, the attack hit Dan right in the gut. It was a heck of a shot. The pain that came with the blow was something that Dan hadn't expected and was not used to. Angry, he looked upwards and dodged the young halfa who flew towards him. Grabbing Danny by his ghostly tail, he launched the boy around and backwards, sending him crashing to the ground.

"You cannot defeat yourself Danny."

Danny let out a battle cry and pelted the ghost with various ecto-blasts, all of which Dan managed to block with a hastily made ecto-shield.

When Danny relented, Dan retaliated. Creating a whip from crackling energy, he lassoed it around his younger self. He freely let an electrical current run through the whip. Danny screamed in agonizing pain. The attack was stronger than the electricity Vlad used… or maybe Vlad just never used it to full power? If Danny hadn't been crippled and sweating from the attack he would have found that more interesting than he currently did.

Danny looked upwards and was met with piercing red eyes. His hand lit up again in a feeble attempt to fight his adversary but Dan simply dodged the shot by stepping lazily to the side.

Dan laughed at the helpless hero before grabbing his young rival by the neck and slamming him down onto the roof with a crash. He kept Danny pinned as the boy struggled. "So persistent." He sneered, cocking his head as he got an idea. "And why is that? Could it be that you want nothing more than to kill me?"

Danny glared at his evil self.

Dan laughed. "There is darkness in you Danny. It is no surprise I am your future."

"You- are not… my future!" Danny choked out.

"Of course I am. Yourself and the other hybrid harbour so much deep-seated revenge for those who did you wrong. It wouldn't take much for you to let it out… perhaps losing your parents did the trick?"

Dan was answered with a swift punch to the jaw. The ghost reeled back, cursing the pain.

Danny took his chance and scurried out from underneath the older ghost. He needed to get away from Dan for he knew he wouldn't be able to take much more.

However, just when he was about to fly, Dan grabbed his leg and catapulted him back onto the building.

Danny collapsed with the impact but didn't have the chance to gasp for breath when another powerful blast collided with his back, ricocheting him into the air. He landed with a thump on the edge of the building. He swallowed stiffly and rolled over to face his rival. He had to beat Dan somehow, everyone was relying on him.

"I've had enough of you Danny Phantom." Dan growled as he rubbed the ectoplasm which now oozed from his jaw.

He paused when he saw Danny look over his shoulder at the townspeople below him, getting another idea. Of course. Danny would always be concerned for others before himself.

"I've also had enough of them."

Danny screamed when Dan swooped forwards in front of him, flying towards the innocent crowd below. The ghost conjured a powerful blast in his palm before throwing it downwards into the group of townspeople.

Danny looked desperately downwards at the chaos. People were screaming and running in opposite directions. The teen reached out a palm, desperately attempting to create a shield under Dan's attack to stop it from colliding with the innocent people. But his powers wouldn't come. He had used most of his energy battling his evil self and he was scarcely holding onto his ghost half.

He closed his eyes, not being able to bring himself to look at the mass murder below him. He'd failed them, they were dying… and yet, there were no screams. No cries.

Danny risked a peek and widened his eyes when he saw a red shield covering the crowd. But where…?

The teen turned when he felt a gust of wind brush his side. Two black boots landed beside him.

"Get up."

Vlad.

Vlad hadn't stopped since he'd left Danny's friends and sister back at his house. He flew with a grisly determination towards Amity Park, concerned not just for Danny's safety, but for Maddie's. The woman might never accept him but Vlad was still half-human and despite all the anger, grief and betrayal he felt, underneath he still cared about Danny's mother. That was why he couldn't just trust that Danny would get there in time. He needed to make sure she was okay.

Vlad had managed to get to the outskirts of Amity when he saw the explosion. He'd immediately stopped in his flight, shaken by the impact. The rain pelted his face as he looked into the distance at where Fentonworks once stood proud.

He mouthed a single word, "Maddie."

Now more determined than ever, he shot forward into the town, phasing through any and all obstacles. Daniel couldn't have failed. He must have got them out. He must have.

It was then he heard a scream… One he immediately recognised.

Now torn as to whether to go to Daniel's aid or Maddie's, he stopped mid-flight. He had to save Maddie… he had to get to Maddie! And yet… Daniel.

"AHRGG!" He yelled and expelled a ghost ray aimlessly ahead. What had he done to make this world hate him?! Why did he now have to choose between the two people he valued most in the world?! Then again, he made no move to continue towards Fentonworks. The intensity of the scream in the opposite direction wouldn't let him. He swallowed stiffly, for deep down, he knew his choice. He'd known his choice from the very moment he'd realised Daniel was a half-ghost, just like him.

It didn't take him long to reach a ten story office building in the middle of town. It stood out like a sore thumb.

Vlad's heart stopped. He remembered everything too clearly. The spectators, the rain, the office building. He looked upwards and what he feared was true. Dan was there, towering over a battered and bloodied Daniel. He wanted desperately for this to be another vision, but it wasn't. This was the real thing and if he didn't stop it, Daniel was going to die.

The next thing he saw was Dan swooping down off the building and releasing a deadly blast into the crowd below. Acting on instinct, he turned invisible and created a shield around the innocent people before flying upwards and landing next to Danny, planting his feet solidly.

"Get up."

Danny looked upwards and wobbled to his feet.

"Where's Maddie?"

Danny looked away. "She's fine."

Vlad nodded.

Danny debated whether to tell Vlad about his Dad. He wasn't sure whether the billionaire would care or not, but Danny had seen a change in Vlad these last few days and something told him the man would. Just a little bit. He would care a little bit for the school boy he used to call his best friend.

"What a quaint reunion." Dan landed behind the two hybrids. "I have to say I'm surprised. I thought you would have left the boy and ran when you had the chance Masters."

"I'm full of surprises."

Dan narrowed his eyes and studied the older hybrid. "You had no problem running before… when I murdered the boy in front of you and destroyed your house."

"I do not care to know what happened in that alternate timeline."

Dan scoffed. "You should."

Vlad narrowed his eyes as an evil grin brandished Dan's face.

Danny looked between them. They were making him edgy. He sweated under their intense stares, wondering who would make the first move.

Without warning, Dan released a powerful blast at the two hybrids.

The wind rushed around Danny as Vlad acted quickly and protected them with a strong ecto-shield. He looked towards at Vlad who had now retaliated with a blast of his own. It collided with one of Dan's in the middle of the precarious rooftop. The blasts sizzled and crackled before exploding on impact. It was a spectacle. The roof lit up in a mirage of red and pink. Sparks flew everywhere.

Danny let out a cry as he lost his footing on the roof after being uncontrollably blown backwards. He closed his eyes, not having enough energy left to fly. He should be falling… only he wasn't. He opened his eyes to see Vlad had grasped his hand. The billionaire threw him unglamorously back onto the roof.

Danny looked through unbelieving eyes at his… saviour? Whoa, that was weird. And did he really see genuine relief looking back at him?

Meanwhile, Dan couldn't believe his luck. The older hybrid had actually just turned his back to him. Vlad Masters really did have a weakness… and he'd just demonstrated it in the bluntest way possible. Dan smirked knowingly. Humanity was so predictable, even Plasmius wasn't exempt to its debilitating nature. Taking advantage of the situation, Dan took aim…. And fired.

Vlad let out a pained scream as fire ripped through his back. He gasped for air, never having experienced such a sensation. He felt like his skin was melting… but how?! He had an affinity for fire! He went to get up but found he couldn't. An incredible force was keeping him pinned down.

"I'm more powerful than you, Masters. I control ice and fire, and I'm sure you'll agree the combined effect is positively excruciating."

Vlad looked towards Danny who was being kept in place by a duplicate. That must be what was holding him down. He cursed silently.

"You will always insist on saving the one who hates you most in the world, won't you?"

Dan studied the two hybrids who were now intensely looking at each other. He smirked knowingly.

"And I thought I inherited my stubbornness from Danny here." He kicked the teen slightly and smiled when he saw Vlad grit his teeth. "Seems like Danny isn't the only one destined to become me."

"I will never be you." Vlad growled.

"No? You're more like me than you think. It was your anger and bitterness that made me what I am. And believe me, whilst I'm sure I wouldn't be skipping through a daisy field right now, I assure you, without your twisted ghost half, I wouldn't be half as… evil."

Danny looked towards Vlad who had cast his eyes downwards.

Vlad couldn't bring himself to look back at Danny for he knew that what Dan said was true. Whilst Danny's grief fuelled Dan's creation, in a way, Dan wasn't Danny's evil self at all… Dan was his.

Dan threw his head backwards and laughed. "Maybe you should stop forever pretending you do not care."

"My actions towards Daniel are purely out of preservation for a species."

Dan shrugged. "You do not want to admit it? Fine. I suppose I should thank you Vladimir. Danny's denial of his humanity is how I was created and your denial will do exactly the same. I will always exist in every time line thanks to you two who keep denying what is right in front of you." Dan walked towards the older hybrid. "Your humanity will be your weakness Vladimir. Your insistence of protecting one who hates you will end up being the end of you. It's quite sad actually how-"

"I don't hate him." Danny bravely interrupted.

Dan narrowed his eyes and turned towards his younger self.

"I don't hate him." Danny repeated and stared straight at Vlad who was now staring incredulously at the younger hybrid.

Dan crouched in front of Danny and smiled.

Danny breathed heavily as Dan's breath licked his face. He sweated under his gaze, unable to stop it. Dan's breath started to get hotter and Danny started to lose concentration. He was burning up! He gasped for air, terrified of what was happening.

But Vlad could see everything. He saw how Dan's breath had turned a dark red and he saw how the smoke was encasing Daniel's fragile body. "Stop!" He impulsively yelled, instantly regretting it when Dan turned, leaving Daniel to suffer in the red smoke.

"Tell him then!"

Vlad sweated heavily and looked away from Daniel who he couldn't bear to watch. He breathed deeply. His pride just wouldn't let him tell Daniel how he felt. He couldn't! It would ruin everything. He couldn't bear to let someone in again. Not after what happened with Maddie.

Vlad's anger turned to hatred. Hatred of the ghost who was forcing his hand. Sugar cookies! No-one forced Vlad's hand. No-one!

"Ah!" Dan yelled as powerful electricity collided with him.

Vlad wasn't finished. He used a powerful expulsion of ecto-energy to disintegrate the Dan duplicate holding him down.

Dan turned and gritted his teeth at seeing one Vlad behind him and one in front him. "A duplicate?"

"I am not Daniel. You may be able to get to him with your mind games. You may be stronger than him-"

"Hey!" Danny protested.

"But you are not stronger than me."

Vlad teleported in front of Dan and concentrated his energy into his fist before punching the evil spectre in the face with all the strength he could muster.

As Dan ricocheted from the roof top, Vlad followed up with another powerful fiery ecto-blast.

Dan screamed out as the blast hit him square on. He turned quickly and snarled at the older hybrid before retaliating with an equally powerful disc of energy.

Vlad gasped as he deflected with a hastily made ecto shield. He scarcely had time to think when he was hit in the back with another blast. Vlad cursed inaudibly and dropped his shield.

The duplicate which had been holding Danny had now appeared behind the billionaire. The two Dan's concentrated powerful ecto energy and aimed it at the man.

"Vlad!" Danny scurried to his feet but was too late.

The Dans released the blasts. Danny was thrown backwards with the explosion. He quickly shielded his eyes from the smoulder and ash, dreading the worse.

"Yes?"

Danny yelped in surprise.

Before Danny had the chance to react any further, Vlad whispered something in his ear. Danny nodded.

The smoke from the explosion cleared and a singular Dan was revealed in amongst the smoulder quickly advancing on the two hybrids, angry and vengeful.

"Now!"

Vlad released a powerful blast at the same time as Danny. The result was spectacular. The two currents melded into one, spitting and spluttering. It sizzled and smoked violently as the two battled for dominance until eventually the green and pink turned into a vibrant blue and red which then combined to make a beautiful purple colour.

Frozen in shock, the blast hit Dan in the powerfully in the chest. The ghost was thrown high into the air and hit the roof again with some force. He grunted as he looked up at the two hybrids, trying to disguise the amount of pain he was in.

Danny stood, confused by what had just happened. His energy… his green energy! It had just turned blue! And Vlad's pink energy had just turned Red! He knew Vlad had an affinity or something for fire but that wouldn't explain… "What the-?" He asked, dumbfounded.

"I agree." Vlad smirked. "The combined effect of ice and fire is excruciating."

Danny looked at Vlad, that explanation whirring in his mind. Ice and fire?

Despite his pain, Dan got to his feet. He couldn't believe it. Together, the two hybrids were actually starting to beat him! HIM! In that moment, he didn't care what the outcome. He wouldn't let them win! He drew a deep breath and released all of his remaining energy into wickedly powerful sonic waves.

The waves crashed into the hybrids with unrelenting force. They both dropped to their knees and covered their ears, fighting back so as not to be pushed from the roof.

Vlad looked over at Danny who was clearly struggling. The white rings kept appearing and disappearing. Vlad panted. Danny couldn't turn human! It would leave him vulnerable, just like it did in his vision, not to mention the whole town was probably watching. Despite his own struggle, he reached out to him. "Do not transform Daniel! You hear me!" He shouted above the waves. "Force back that urge!"

The rings once again appeared at Danny's waist and started to travel up and down him.

"Dammit Daniel! Force it back! If you're ever going to listen to me, listen now!" Vlad breathed a sigh of relief when he saw Danny force the rings back together and another when the waves stopped assaulting them.

They dropped onto the roof, defeated and stripped of energy.

Dan meanwhile, also dropped onto his knees, the attack having left him weak. He'd never used it when not at full power and it had disarmed him greatly. He looked upwards and managed to smile through his panting. The two hybrids lay almost motionless a few feet from him.

Dan heaved himself to his feet, knowing an opening when he saw one. He started to walk slowly towards Danny and produced the dagger from his cloak. "You will never beat me, Danny Phantom."

Vlad peeked upwards at those words, eyes widening when he saw the dagger. He recognised it as Pariah's, having done a great amount of research on ghostly artefacts when he first became a ghost, out of generally curiosity, of course. How had Dan managed to get his hands on it?! Last he knew, the dagger had been lost after Pariah's reign and yet there it was… and Dan was about to use it on a very defenceless Danny.

Impulsively, he shouted, "Danny!"

Danny looked upwards at hearing his preferred name and saw Dan advancing with the dagger. He tried to move, knowing whatever that dagger was, it was probably bad.

But he wasn't quick enough.

Dan drove the dagger down.

Danny froze… Vlad screamed.

Danny looked up when he felt nothing sharp pierce his skin. He regarded himself for a second. He was okay… so what…?

"No!" Dan yelled as he lost his grip on the dagger when he was pushed forcefully backwards by the older hybrid who had just thrown himself at him. He grasped desperately for it but the dagger had already fallen from the roof and had disappeared into the crowd below.

Dan looked around and growled when he saw the older hybrid stumbling to his feet. "You!"

Dan kicked the older hybrid in the shins, forcing the man back onto his knees. "You will pay for that!"

He charged a powerful blast and aimed it at Vlad's heart…

But Danny, who'd been watching the whole thing, had managed to expel an ecto-blast before Dan got the chance to expel his. It was weak but enough to unbalance the evil ghost. The teen then grabbed the billionaire and threw them both from the roof and away from Dan. Using the last of his energy, he phased them both into one the offices in the building. He dropped the billionaire and they rolled across the floor before eventually coming to a stop.

The younger hybrid crawled over to his older counterpart.

"Danny…"

Danny studied Vlad, too overwhelmed by the events to think clearly.

"Grab hold of me…"

"No. You're not strong enough Vlad, you could…"

"I am… Danny. We have to leave here. Grab hold of me."

Danny shook his head. "You can't…"

"Stubborn child." Vlad grabbed Danny's arm and pulled him towards him. Though Danny fought back, Vlad managed to keep his grip as he concentrated. Truthfully, he didn't know if it would even work. The ghostly wail had drained any energy he might have had left after the fight with Dan.

So when he opened his eyes and saw they were somewhere on the outskirts of Amity Park he breathed a hearty sigh of relief. He inhaled deeply, thanking the rain that had purified the air. He needed to get the smell of ectoplasm and blood out of his nostrils.

"Vlad?"

The billionaire glanced over at the boy but couldn't understand the worry he heard in Daniel's voice. "I'm fine…" Vlad shook a half-hearted hand in Daniel's direction.

"You don't look it." Danny stared at the man in front of him. He was swaying slightly and didn't look like he was… well, with it. It wasn't surprising, he didn't feel with it either after the fight with his evil half. It had left him very shaken and he was far from fine himself. Truthfully, he just wanted to curl up and go to sleep. But the man in front of him needed help and he was supposed to be a hero; the good guy. So, he swallowed his pride and forced his way next to Vlad, against the man's protests. "Just let me help you."

"No. I don't need help… I'm fine." Vlad pushed him away.

Danny sighed. "Now who's being stubborn?"

Vlad glared back.

"Vlad… what's that?" Danny's eyebrows peeked at seeing something pink dripping from Vlad's stomach; worry tinged his voice.

Vlad frowned and looked downwards at where he was clutching his abdomen. He hadn't even realised he'd been holding it. He released his hand and stifled a worried gasp as he saw his palm. It was coated in pink ectoplasm – his ectoplasm.

"Vlad?"

Vlad studied his palm and swallowed deeply. Why hadn't it healed?

"Vlad!"

Vlad collapsed in front of him.

Dan stood on the rooftop, seething. They were gone. He couldn't sense them anywhere.

He roared so loud the building trembled under the force. The crowd below was silenced as they nervously looked upwards at the menacing and unpredictable spectre.

Dan regarded the town, the same one he'd once destroyed in his other timeline… the one where the hybrids didn't exist. He gritted his teeth. These people also shouldn't exist.

He stepped forwards, towards the edge of the building and inhaled. He smelt fear.

Without warning, Dan swooped forwards and started to hurl blast after blast indiscriminately into the crowd.

Screams echoed around the town as Dan glided through it, hell bent on causing maximum chaos. He was going to make sure those hybrids regretted today.

Author's Note

Thank you so much to everyone reading and reviewing this story. It means a lot, especially to see those who used to read this story a while ago still are! Wow. And it's always great to see new people reading as well! You awesome people!

Anyway, a note on this chapter. If you remember, this story takes place before season 3 so no ice powers for Danny yet… However, I do enjoy hinting at them (heavily, oops!)

Plus, I never pretend to be amazing at writing big, climatic fight scenes but I really did try my hardest J. Therefore, I'd really love to know what people thought about this chapter especially!

Until next time!