Chapter Text
Wraith used to love flying. When he first got his powers he would spend hours flying around town in large, lazy circuits just enjoying the feeling of freedom, coming down only when exhaustion or hunger forced him to.
Now, he flew only when his Master told him to fly. He went only where his Master told him to go. Flying held no freedom, and so it held no joy.
"You'll enter the building on the fiftieth floor in three seconds. Then you'll have five seconds to complete the mission before the system reboots itself." His Master said in his ear.
He angled his body toward the building, not slowing his speed. There were infrared motion detectors on every floor, except for the floors left empty to act as fire breaks. He flew, intangible and invisible into the building and started the countdown in his head.
10…
He flew straight down.
9…
floor after floor flashing by
8...
faster than the motion detectors could pick up
7…
until he reached the sub basement,
6…
plucked the case he had been sent after off the shelf
5…
and flew straight back up to the fire floor
4...
Past empty cubicles and offices
3...
and out the building.
He made it with two seconds to spare.
"Cutting it close, Phantom." Wraith's lip twitched at the name. He hated it. Hated how it reminded him of who he once was, and never would be again. Phantom was a hero, a protector.
Wraith was a monster, and looked monstrous to match. Where Phantom had pale white skin that looked mostly human, Wraith's skin was the splotchy blue of a corpse left out in the snow. His fangs were sharp enough to pierce flesh. His fingers ended in sharpened claws. The only things that were the same between Phantom and Wraith was the snow white hair that moved on its own as if underwater, and the glowing green of his eyes.
"I'll be under your location in five seconds." the voice in his ear said. He could see the limo approaching, and he flew down to meet it, settling in the seat opposite his Master. He held out the case to the man, who took it and opened it. Wraith sat in silence.
He didn't have much other choice. His Master had ensured that. Within an hour of meeting the man he had severed his vocal cords, rendering him mute. He could make raspy noises that could be mistaken for words, like the staticky white noise of a radio station that no longer exists, but he couldn't form any coherent words. And even if he could, the shock collar around his neck would be very effective in silencing him.
"Shift." A single worded order. He allowed his transformation to wash over him. In a flash of bright white light Wraith was replaced by Danny Fenton, a bone thin seventeen year old. "Do you know what this is?" He asked, holding up a green stone.
He did. He was very familiar with that stone. Ectoranium was a very rare element, used in a lot of anti-ghost technology and weaponry. It's just like his Master to send him to steal something that would be used to control him.
His Master watched how his eyes locked onto the stone and he smirked. "Kryptonite is supposed to be very painful for those susceptible to its effects. I wonder if Ectoranium is the same?" He asked, pressing the stone to Danny's neck. It didn't hurt, but where it was pressed felt unusually warm, like the stone had been baking in the sun. Danny didn't show any outward reaction besides a slow blink. "Hmm.. I suppose not." He said, putting the stone back into the case. "But we will do more tests, just to make sure."
Joy.
Tam loved her job. She really did, it was challenging and exciting, and every day was something new. But sometimes she had to do things that she really really didn't want to do. Like today. She took a deep breath, adjusted her blouse, and knocked on the door.
"Come in." A voice said from inside. Tam opened the door and approached the desk. Tim Drake was sitting at the desk, she could hear a video call from the laptop that Tim was only half listening to, since he was also reading a report on his tablet.
"Is this a bad time?" She asked.
"This is the least busy I'll be all day, Tam." He said, typing something into his tablet. "What did you need?"
"There was a security breach last night." She said, "The intruder infiltrated the building on the fiftieth floor, went down to the sub basement, stole something, and left the way they came."
Tim looked up at Tam, his face blank in that terrifying way that hides every thought in his head. He typed something on his laptop before closing it. "Why is this the first I'm hearing of this?"
Tam took a breath, having Tim's full attention was unnerving. "The theft was only discovered a half hour ago. The intruder didn't trip any alarms, and was in and out in under ten seconds."
Tim was quiet for a few seconds while he digested that information. "Metahuman?"
"That's what we're thinking. Whoever it is didn't even show up on video." She said, shifting on her feet.
"What did they steal?" He asked. Steepling his fingers on the desk.
"It's an asteroid." She said, checking her tablet. "It gives off a low level of harmless radiation, but otherwise has no interesting properties."
"Camera footage?"
"There was a blip at four fifteen in the morning. All the cameras shut down for ten seconds."
"So." He said, leaning back in his chair, "someone broke in and stole something with unknown properties, and we don't know who it was, or why they took it. All we know is the time the theft took place."
"That's, yes, that's correct." She said.
"Okay." He said. "I've worked with less." He said, opening his laptop and starting to work.