Hand of Fate
Chapter 1:
"No," Danny proclaimed. Continuing with his attempt to read from the history book. Without much success.
"Oh come on," Sam said from the other end of his bed. "One picture?" She added with a set of those pretty little eyes which had once upon a time worked on her friends. But, they seemed to have become immune since preschool.
"No," Danny answered again and sighed. Finally closing his book when the words forbid him to make sense of the nonsense. "My parents would kill me if I brought unauthorized people into their lab."
"But we're not unauthorized, we're like family," Sam said, earning a glare from her best friend.
"Are you trying to get me grounded?" She smiled
"Is it working?" She countered with a sarcastic grin and he sighed. Leveling his face into his bed. "Oh come on Danny. Live a little. Take some risks. Do something you've never done before."
"And you want me to start with my parent's lab? Where, I shouldn't have to remind you, they keep things that could level the house."
"Tell me again – why do we always study here?" Tucker asked with nervousness in his voice. Finally looking up from where he'd been sitting backwards in the computer chair, messing with his PDA.
"Because your parents would actually make us study," Sam informed him of the blunt truth. Which caused the boy to think it over a moment, then returned to his gadget.
"Then how come we never study at your house?" He added and she glared at him, before turning back to Danny and dropped the topic.
"Come on, what do you say?"
"You're not gonna let this go are you?" He muttered. Making the mistake of looking at her. Which was when he discovered a smile on her face that had made him agree to things without context.
He still couldn't understand why he'd once fought to save an endangered species of orange. Or helped to organize a petition for the rights of earthworms. But what he could recall was that that smile had always been present.
"Alright," He finally relented. Throwing his book into the corner and swung off the bed. "Not like we were actually studying anyway." This earned him a whoop of joy, as she followed him into the hall, Tucker shortly behind.
"You act like we're breaking into a bank," The techno geek said. Raising an eyebrow at his friend. Who proceeded to check around every single corner between them and the basement.
"You don't know my parents. They have a crazy sixth sense about their lab," Danny whispered back. And finally entered the kitchen.
"They're 300 miles away and won't be back until Tuesday," Sam spoke in a normal volume.
"That's what they want you to think."
With this implied, Danny at last lead the way to the stairs. And down into the metal-lined room, full of strange gizmos, whatchamacallits. And things that more than likely didn't do what they were meant to do.
"Wow," Tucker and Sam exclaimed in amazement.
Though they'd known Danny long enough to have seen the lab at least a dozen times. But this time was different. As there was a new, very large addition to the room. Which came in the form of a rather high-tech hole (of all things) in the far wall.
"So that's the 'portal'?" Sam asked with air quotes. Strolling over to take a look inside. Making sure to stay out of range. Very aware that things in that lab tended to be on the dangerous side of the spectrum. Despite being designing to hunt ghosts.
"Yeah," Danny answered. Leaning against a table and folded his arms in a nervous manner. Still jumping at every little noise. "They've been working on it since before I was born. It's supposed to tear a hole in the fabric of space. Reaching the 'ghost dimension'. They say it's the flip side to our world."
"That is so cool," Sam said with a smile.
"If you say so," Danny mused. As Tucker pulled out his PDA once more, already bored. "Now, can we please get out of here? I'm one incident away from my parents putting a ghost camera in my room."
"Fine," Sam relented, taking one last picture. Only then did she notice something slung over a nearby chair and grinned. "Danny, come stand by the patrol.
"Why?" He complained in a childish manner. Only to have a white and black jumpsuit thrown at his face. Allowing her to use the distraction and position him in front of a portal's control panel. "If I had known I'd have to pose for you every three seconds, when you said you wanted to make a scrapbook. I would have suggested you collect stamps."
Sam's only response to this, was to lift her camera again. Which he proceeded to glare at, even as the flash blinded him.
"Okay, I showed you the portal. Now can we please get out of here?" He begged, laying the suit back on the chair. Taking a moment to ensure it was exactly how it had been before. "Besides – they say it doesn't work anyway."
His friends didn't fail to recognize the familiar slouch in his shoulders. Danny had been there when his parents attempted to start the patrol. And he'd watched as 20 years of passionate work and hope died with the failed activation.
He'd mentioned a few times how bad he felt when watching his parents mope about the house. And wanted to do something to cheer them up. But he didn't know what.
But, as Sam looked back at the device in question. An idea for how he could do that came to fruition. "Why don't you check it out?" She said, causing her friends to look at her in shock.
"Ex-squeeze me?" Danny exclaimed, but she waved him off.
"Danny, you know your parents. They may be geniuses, but they have a knack for not noticing the obvious. You can give them a critical eye, someone to see what they missed."
"She's got a point, dude," Tucker put in.
"And besides. A Ghost Portal – you gotta check that out," Sam stated with a smile. Causing her friends to grin back.
"You might be right," Danny whispered more to himself than them. As he looked back at the empty hole and his smile growing a little wider. Before he picked up the jumpsuit again and pulled it on over his clothes in a practiced manner.
"Hold on." Sam's annoyance was clear, as she walked over to pry the image of his father's face from the front of the suit. "I know you love your dad. But that's a little much."
Danny offered her a smile, then looked to Tucker as he gave a thumbs up. Before finally turning back to the portal and stepped inside. Making sure to avoid the cords and technology protruding from the floor and walls.
"What do you see?" Sam voice echoed as he checked the plugs and connections. Things that his parents might have missed by accident. When more concerned with the actual building of the thing.
"Not much," He admitted. "I never realized how dark it was in –" He started again. But cut himself off when something that sounded akin to whispering floated up behind him. He spun toward the noise, but found only a wall. "Did you guys say something" Not sure who he was talking to. He moved in a little closer to examine the surface, noticing the noise had got louder as he did so.
"No," Tucker answered, "Why, what do you hear?"
"I don't know, but it might have been - a ghost," He said. Leaning his hand against the wall. Only to jump back again, when a strange feeling of coldness crawled up his arm. A sensation he recognized. From another device his parents had made, several years earlier. One designed to introduce and prepare him to recognize the creatures they hunted.
"My parents were definitely on to something with this thing," Danny said. Turning again in response to another rather loud whisper.
Spending his whole life with a ghost-obsessed family, he'd never had the same fear of them that others did. But, to say the sound wasn't creepy would have been a pretty vagrant lie.
"They might have –" He started again only for something to give way under his hand. When he reached out to use the wall as a means to straighten himself. Though his instincts were quick to pull him away, but it was already too late. As he was quick to discover it was the 'On' button he'd activated.
"Oh no."
Those were the only words he got out. Before the portal flared to life. The blinding light of electricity jolting through his body as everything went black.
…
