Shadowing Plasmius

In the rubble of his once-pristine lab, Vlad worked feverishly to resuscitate Danny. He talked to him, encouragements at first. "Come on, Daniel, you're strong. You can make it. Stay with me, badger. Fight this!"

When that failed, anger and desperation set in. "Don't you do this to me, Daniel Fenton," he growled. "I've already lost your mother and father. You're not leaving me, too."

Precious minutes passed. Vlad continued to perform chest compressions until his arms ached. Danny remained unresponsive. As the strength drained from his pitifully weak human hands, Vlad began to beg. "Please, Daniel. Don't go." His voice cracked. "Not like this. Wake up, badger. Come back. Please come back..."

After thirty-seven minutes, sore and stricken, he finally ceased.

He had done all he could. The boy was gone.

Gathering Danny's cold, lifeless body into his arms, Vlad softly recited a litany of heartbroken apologies.

"I'm so sorry, Daniel. It shouldn't have ended this way. I should never have told you about the gauntlets. I shouldn't have put the idea into your head. This is all my fault. I tried to protect you, and I failed. I failed you..."

When his last tear had fallen, Vlad gently laid Danny down and covered his corpse with a sheet. As he stared at the motionless shape on the table, a dark, powerful anger began to coalesce in his heart. He clenched his bloodstained fists.

He would rebuild his lab. Rebuild all of his broken equipment, sparing no expense. He would buy the most state-of-the-art technology and develop a new range of spectral-neutralizing weaponry. And then he was going to find it, the malevolent offspring of his and Danny's ghost halves. He was going to hunt it down, and he was going to kill it. Rip its evil ectoplasmic heart from its body. Peel its skin from its spectral form, all the while repeating the name of the boy it had murdered so that it would know the reason for its agony.

Vlad would have his revenge. He would see justice done.