[Third Person's PoV]
As Danny and the dragon phased through the towering skyscraper, the battle between spectral power and primal fury intensified. With a swift motion, Dinah coiled her serpentine tail around Danny's leg, yanked him upside down, and dangled him in front of her blazing maw. Her eyes burned with feral fury as her jaw unhinged, releasing a colossal torrent of emerald flames into the sky—aimed directly at him.
Acting fast, Danny enveloped himself in an ectoplasmic shield, forcing her tail away and bracing for the incoming inferno. The blazing heat slammed against his barrier like a wave of molten lava.
'Hot!!' Danny internally screamed, even as sweat beaded his forehead despite the protective shield. His barrier shimmered, warping under the intense heat before Dinah's tail whipped around and struck like a battering ram. The shield splintered like glass, its fragments scattering in the wind as Danny was sent careening downwards at breakneck speed.
He slammed into the roof of a parked car with bone-rattling force.
"ARGGHH!!" he cried out in agony as the vehicle crumpled beneath him like tin foil. The impact reverberated across the street, and civilians screamed, both from the shock and fear. Some ducked behind cover, others ran in a panic—but none were prepared for what came next.
Dinah didn't hesitate. She swooped down with terrifying speed, her wings folding back like a missile. Another fiery storm exploded from her throat, directed straight at the downed Danny.
Groaning and dazed, Danny pulled himself from the mangled vehicle and reacted just in time. He opened his mouth, and from deep within his core, he unleashed a tremendous Ghostly Wail—a supernatural roar of pure force. The powerful sonic attack collided with the wave of dragon fire, creating a turbulent clash in the sky. The street lit up in chaotic hues of green and white, the energy battle rumbling like a storm.
Danny pushed forward, determined, his wail echoing through the streets as he staggered to his feet and charged toward Dinah. At the same time, she roared and flew straight at him, neither willing to yield. They cut off their respective attacks at the last second and hurled themselves at one another.
Danny's glowing fist collided with Dinah's clawed hand, and the impact produced a shockwave that tore through the city block. Windows shattered in every direction, glass raining down like a deadly glitter storm. Screams erupted as shards sliced into the skin of nearby civilians, leaving trails of red in their wake.
"Damn it!" Danny cursed, watching the chaos erupting around them. His expression darkened. 'She's not giving me a single opening—I can't get close enough to rip the necklace away!'
The sky above Star City became their battlefield. They were a blur of movement, darting and weaving between buildings. Danny unleashed a relentless stream of ghost rays from both palms, each one flaring with vibrant spectral energy. But Dinah burned them away effortlessly, her flames scorching them from existence as if they were mere sparks.
Undeterred, Danny summoned spectral fire to his hands and hurled searing pillars of flame at her, attempting to challenge her directly in a contest of heat. The green fire roared forth—but it was all in vain. Dinah didn't even flinch. She let the flames strike her armored body, demonstrating that her scales rendered his attempts meaningless.
"Tch! Show-off," Danny growled, backing off as he continued launching attacks, hoping to find a weakness.
Dinah surged forward again, wings beating like thunder. Danny steadied himself mid-air and inhaled deeply, his chest swelling until it nearly reached his chin. His cheeks puffed out like a balloon.
"AAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!!"
Another Ghostly Wail tore from his throat, more powerful than the last. The sound distorted the air itself, rippling through the sky. Windows across several blocks shattered under the sheer force. The sonic energy hit Dinah full force.
She shrieked in pain, roaring as the attack overwhelmed her. Though she tried to push against it, the blast hurled her through the sky like a comet. She crashed hard into the streets below, her massive body tearing through concrete, flipping cars, and gouging out a long crater through the asphalt.
Danny hovered above, panting. His head drooped backward from the exertion, a dazed look on his face. His black hair briefly flickered into view, his domino mask unable to hide his tired blue eyes. Cartoonish sparkles danced around his face, spinning comically before he shook himself back into focus.
Placing a hand over his face, a familiar white transformation ring passed through his body. In a flash, his hair turned back to snowy white, and his eyes, peeking between his fingers, glowed an eerie neon green.
On the ground, the aftermath of Dinah's crash was catastrophic. Cars were overturned and smoldering, thick plumes of smoke rising into the air. Shops had their windows blown out, merchandise scattered across the streets. The very earth had been torn apart where Dinah had skidded.
One by one, car doors creaked open. Injured pedestrians crawled out, battered and bleeding. Their eyes were wide with terror as they took in the destruction—and the massive dragon groaning at the center of it all.
Dinah let out a guttural growl that rattled in her throat, her massive body trembling slightly as she struggled to push herself upright. Her lips quivered with frustration and pain as she got back up on all fours, her claws scraping against the cracked asphalt. She slowly lifted her long neck, shaking her head to dispel the haze clouding her vision—only to find Danny Phantom hovering directly above her, his glowing eyes narrowed with fierce resolve. The only sound she heard was a sharp, deep inhale.
Danny unleashed another earth-shaking Ghostly Wail, roaring from deep within his core. The supernatural scream hit Dinah's skull with brutal force, slamming her head down into the shattered street with an explosive impact. The ground buckled beneath the weight and pressure, leaving a deep crater carved in the shape of her snout. Her face was forced into the pavement, and a stream of glowing green spectral blood seeped from her flaring nostrils and the corners of her eyes.
Danny's scream petered out into a strained wheeze as his energy began to falter. He was panting heavily, his chest rising and falling. Slowly, he floated down to the ground beside Dinah's massive, motionless form. Without hesitation, he reached for the golden pendant dangling from her neck, eyes locked on his prize.
But in a sudden flash of movement, Dinah's eyes snapped open—burning with primal fury—and she lashed out.
Her claw tore across Danny's chest with brutal force.
"AAAAAAHHHH!!" Danny cried out, his scream echoing through the street as his shirt was ripped open and his torso shredded. Jagged green wounds glowed green as ectoplasmic blood spurted from the gashes. The impact launched him backward through the air like a ragdoll, skipping across the cracked road like a stone on water. He smashed into the front of a corner café, phasing briefly through the glass door before slamming into the counter, shattering it into splinters.
He hit the ground hard, lying amid broken wood and steaming coffee machines. Sweat soaked his body, his once-neat hair now wild and plastered to his forehead. His face was painted with agony, every muscle trembling. He clutched his side tightly, feeling the sticky warmth of his own ectoplasm pooling between his fingers.
Groaning, he let out a bitter laugh laced with pain, tears welling up in his eyes. "You know what they never show in the movies?" he murmured weakly. "The crying. No one ever cries when they're hurt like this… How do they not cry…?" A grimace stretched across his face as he lifted his hand to see it coated in glowing green blood.
Grinding his teeth, he forced himself up, one fist pushing against the floor as he wobbled to his feet. "I'm not done…" he growled under his breath. "I will get that necklace… even if it's the last thing I do."
---
Meanwhile…
A series of loud cracks erupted as Robin smashed smoke pellets on the rooftop, veiling the area in a dense, swirling screen of gray mist. Shadows danced in the haze as assassins descended from all directions—but Robin was already moving.
With swift, practiced precision, he weaved between them, twirling his twin batons like extensions of his arms. One assassin lunged at him with a katana, but Dick parried with a quick upward block, twisted the blade away, then shattered the assailant's hand with a brutal strike. He followed up with a hard downward smash to the kneecap, sending the assassin collapsing to the ground in a shriek of pain.
Robin spun, delivering a final blow to the jaw that sent blood and teeth flying before the assassin dropped, unconscious.
Sliding low across the rooftop, Robin swept another enemy's legs out from under them. As they fell, he pressed an electrified baton to their back and discharged a burst of voltage. The assassin convulsed violently before being launched out of the smoke cloud.
Inside the swirling mist, more assassins charged—but all that could be heard was the rhythmic crack of batons meeting flesh, the occasional clang of metal deflected, and bodies being flung from the haze one after another.
Robin leapt onto the shoulders of a dazed opponent, flipping through the air in a somersault to escape the smoke. Midair, he flung his baton toward Black Spider, who was sprinting toward Batman. The baton struck Black Spider in the shoulder, throwing off his balance and sending him stumbling forward.
As he turned, the baton ricocheted back into Robin's hand just as he dropped down, swinging hard at Black Spider's head. The villain raised his arms defensively and grunted as the blow struck with brutal force, causing him to stagger back.
Elsewhere on the rooftop, Batman and Merlyn clashed in a deadly duel. Arrows whizzed through the air, but Batman moved with surgical grace, catching one mid-flight. He spun with calculated momentum and hurled it at Merlyn's feet.
BOOM—the arrow exploded in a cloud of light and smoke, launching Merlyn backward.
Before he could recover, a grappling hook snagged him around the waist and yanked him forward at blistering speed.
Right into Batman's waiting boot.
CRACK.
Merlyn hit the rooftop hard, groaning in pain as Batman stood over him, cape billowing.
"Start talking," Batman growled, eyes narrowed beneath the cowl. "What does Ra's al Ghul want with the amulet?"
Merlyn coughed, a smirk twisting his bloodied lip. "What makes you think I'd just tell you?"
Batman stared coldly, his voice like ice. "You will… It just might not be willingly."
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