Ethereal

26

Danny instinctively covered the group in a green dome of energy, peering out from behind the wavering surface with a certain amount of wariness. He was not prepared to fight anyone, not until they reached the lake anyway, and the sudden blast in front of him made him much more jumpy than before.

"What was that?" Dipper quietly inquired behind him, journal held close.

"I don't know." He scanned his surroundings through the transparent ectoplasm, cocking his head as he looked out at the decent-sized hole in the ground just two feet from him. He noted the pink ectoplasm splattered on some of the dirt and debris, and realization hit him like a knife.

"Vlad," he muttered, almost angrily. "What the hell is he doing here?"

A laugh, cold and venomous, came from above them. It could only be classified as Plasmius' evil laugh, but there was a quality to it that made it seem ... less humane. Danny walked out of the dome and covered his friends up once more, not wanting them to get involved in this fight. Jazz shouted angrily behind him.

"It's just Vlad, it'll be fine," he assured her, but even he was having second thoughts. Something wasn't right.

He flew up to meet the middle-aged man.

"Heya, Phantom, it's been a while."

Danny scoffed, studying Vlad inquiringly. Something seemed off about his voice, and now that he looked at it, so did his eyes. "Since when did you start calling me Phantom?"

A sly grin, creeping up his cheeks and reaching a little too close to his eyes for comfort. Something was definitely off here. "Just wanted to test out the name."

"You sick or something? Ecto-acne at it again? Sorry, I can't really tell anymore, your face is just too disgusting to look at."

Another laugh. Vlad was much too cheerful. "Nice one, but let's skip the pleasantries. I'm after one thing right now, and it's definitely not you."

Danny quirked an eyebrow. "Weird, seems the only thing you're after these days are me and my mom. You're not planning anything on her, are you? We talked about this, Vlad, you gotta set more realistic goals."

"Hah, no. I tried to have my fun with you and it, well, it didn't go according to plan." Danny was slightly taken aback, the gears turning in his mind. "I want that journal that Pine Tree down there is holding."

Pine Tree? Danny looked down at the dome of ectoplasmic energy in dismay. "You mean Dipper? Wait, how do you know him?"

"I know everything."

"Yeah, nice one Clockwork, but I'm pretty sure you don't--"

Danny froze.

"Heya, Phantom." The words echoed through his mind.

"Bill?" Danny's face was twisted in pure disbelief.

Vlad slowly clapped, winking. "That's the name, destroying is the game."

"You're--you--but--"

"Please, I want to get rid of Sera as much as you do," he growled. "But I need that journal to get to her."

Danny crossed his arms, contemplating. "I thought you were all-knowing. Besides, the journal doesn't have any info on Sera."

Vlad squinted. "Come on, kid. It's a win-win. I get the journal, you get rid of Sera and save your mermaid friends. Do we have a deal?" He stuck out his hand and it lit up in blue flame, a very strange color on Vlad.

Danny hesitated.

"I said, do we have a deal?"

"I gotta talk with my friends first."