Phannie May 2014
Introduction: For those that don't know, beccadrawsstuff on tumblr created a theme-a-day calendar for the month of May, dubbing it Phanniemay. I've decided to do it again this year, and hopefully I can finish all the themes. General warnings for homosexual relationships, violence, foul language, self harm, abuse, suicide, death, angst, and other dark topics. I don't know if all of those will apply, but I'll warn for them just in case they come up in any theme responses.
Overall Disclaimer: Danny Phantom is a product of Nickelodeon. All characters in these stories are imaginary.
Summary: Danny always dreamed of space and now he finally had his chance to sail the stars.
Characters: Danny, Jack, Maddie, and Vlad
Prompt: Space
Day One
The sea of stars spread out before him in a vast blanket of darkness. His eyes darted all around, trying to take in as much of the space surrounding him as possible. He almost couldn't believe he was finally out here, piloting a space ship and sailing the cosmic sea. It was everything he could have imagined and more. The view from this place, looking at all the tiny stars shining before him, was more beautiful in person than simply seeing far off galaxies in pictures and films.
"You're doing quite well," his father said, drawing his attention away from the view before him.
"Of course!" Danny tossed a grin toward his father. "I've only clocked about a thousand hours piloting the simulation."
"A simulation doesn't prepare you for every accident that could occur out here." His father gave him a stern look before taking a sip from the mug he carried back onto the bridge after a quick trip to the break room. Then he checked the time on his watch. "You've been at this for about four hours. I think you should take a break. Go walk around for a while. It's not good to sit still for too long."
Danny frowned, turning his gaze back to the stars before him. He didn't really want to get up and leave this view. There was just so much to take in! And he was finally here to see it after years of training at the academy to get his license to be able to pilot a space ship alongside his father. With a sigh, he pushed his chair back from the control panel and stood, allowing his father to take over commanding the ship.
"Don't look so disappointed." His father patted him on the shoulder with a bright grin. "We're going to be out here for a while. You'll have so many chances to pilot the ship that you'll get sick of it."
Danny snorted. "I doubt that. It's all I've dreamed about."
His father laughed, a warm, booming sound as he ruffled his son's raven locks. "That's my son! Just like your old man." He grinned proudly then took a seat in the pilot's chair.
Danny stared out the giant glass windows at the front of the ship. "This quadrant doesn't seem to have much in the way of inhabitable planets." His brow pinched as he glanced back at his father. "Do we have enough fuel and food to survive until we reach a planet with life on it?" Their ship had a hyper drive, which would allow them to travel an immense distance in a short period of time, but they wouldn't be able to make the jump if they wasted too much of their fuel milling around in a dead zone of space.
"No worries." His father hit a few buttons on the console before him and a holographic map of space appeared. Shimmering green lights representing planets and stars filled the bridge. "We're right about here." His father pointed to a spot between them. "And right over here," his finger moved forward in the direction they were heading, and he had to lean over the console to point out a much larger, brightly glowing planet, "is Dembala. It's a great place. You're gonna love it. We have more than enough fuel to reach it and restock our supplies."
Danny nodded, trusting his father who had sailed the stars long before his son was even born. "I'll go grab some grub then." He walked toward the exit of the bridge, swiping his hand before the panel to open the door. Walking through the silvery tube passage, he stretched his arms over his head, hearing a few pops and groans from his joints. Maybe his father had a point about not sitting still for so long. But he couldn't help himself. He wanted to pilot the ship for as long as possible.
He passed by the break room and stopped at the next room, opening the door much like he had the one on the bridge. A smile crossed his face when he saw the woman at one of the stations. Her head was bowed as she examined samples with a microscope. She kept her brown hair cut short and tied back out of her face while she worked.
"How goes the experiments, Mom?" Danny asked as he walked over to lean on the station. He reached to pick up one of the slides, but his mother slapped his hand away without taking her eyes from the microscope.
"Do I have to give you a lecture about not playing with our work again?" His mother stood up straight and frowned at him sternly.
Danny wore a sheepish smile. "But I know a thing or two about this stuff. I have studied it too." It was more of an elective while he attended the academy, but he thought it would be good to get some base knowledge of his parents' work if he was going to be a part of their crew while they flew around the stars.
"I just don't want you contaminating any of the samples." His mother pulled the slide from the microscope. When her eyes turned to it, they lit up with the usual excitement his parents got when it came to their experiments. "I've never seen anything like this before though. We might have stumbled onto something new on that last planet. Once we refuel and resupply on Dembala, we're going to have to return to that planet and explore it some more."
Danny lifted his eyebrows as he leaned forward to see the sample better. "What's so special about it?" He frowned at the pink spot squished between the two slides. Then he was staring at an empty slide. He stood up straight, his eyes bulging widely. "What was that?"
"That would be what I've been studying for the past hour," his mother explained, sounding more excited about the prospect of what the mystery sample meant than disappointed about not being able to find an answer to her questions. "It's still there." And a second later, the pink spot reappeared. "I'll have to run some more tests on it."
Danny nodded. "I bet Dad will be excited when he hears about this." His parents always wanted to make some great new discovery, and Danny would be ecstatic for them if his parents came across something unknown. He reached up to cover his mouth as he yawned widely.
"You should get some sleep if you're tired," his mother said, concern in her violet eyes. "You won't be much good for piloting the ship if you're exhausted."
Danny hated to admit it, but his mother had a point. "I'll go catch a bit of sleep then." He left the laboratory and headed down the passage toward the sleeping quarters for their ship. Rubbing at his eyes, he hadn't realized just how tired he was, too caught up in his eagerness to sail among the stars. When he entered the sleeping quarters, he collapsed onto his bed, not even bothering to turn on the lights. He would sleep for a few minutes, just enough to regain his energy then return to the bridge to help his father. His eyes slipped halfway closed as he pressed his head into his pillow.
Red eyes glowed from across the room. Danny jolted off his bed with a yelp. His legs got all tangled, and he hit the ground, jarring his elbow on the solid metal flooring. A hand slapped over his mouth before he could form any words, and the red eyes glared dangerously down at him. His nose twitched at a smell he didn't recognize, but it was stronger with the person, or at least a humanoid alien, right on top of him. He glanced sideways, spying drops of pink splattered upon the floor from across the room to where he now lay. Danny turned his gaze back onto whomever was holding him down and raised his hands as a show of surrender. After a moment, the hand pulled away from his mouth, but the weight above him kept him from being able to get up.
"You're hurt," Danny said in a slow, quiet voice. "I can help you take care of that." He wasn't sure how this person or alien, more likely alien if it was dripping pink blood, got onto their ship, but he and his parents were never the type to ignore an injured being. "You're safe here."
Confusion showed in the red eyes, but slowly the weight moved off him. "Em pleh dluow ouy?"
Danny blinked. "Ah, we don't have a translator on the ship." He scratched at his head as he sat up. Their translator had malfunctioned a few nights ago, and they didn't have the parts to repair it. His parents knew alien languages far better than he did and could likely get away without the translator on most planets. "Let me take you to the medical facility on our ship." He climbed to his feet and offered a hand out to the alien. "I can help you there."
Hesitancy flickered in the alien's eyes before he, his voice sounded male at least, took the hand. Danny frowned when he saw the pink blood oozing from a wound on the alien's side, though the alien tried to cover it with one hand. Leading the alien out of the sleeping quarters, he hoped the alien had a biological makeup with which he was familiar. He had studied a bit about them at the academy, but the biology of some aliens still mystified him. They stepped out of the sleeping quarters and into the bright lights of the tube passage running through the ship, and Danny got his first real look at the alien. He was right about him being humanoid. The alien could have passed for human if it wasn't for the red eyes and bluish skin. He had more injuries than the bleeding side. His blue skin was bruised in spots and his white clothing was torn up and dirtied. His black hair hung down loosely about his shoulders but looked like he hadn't washed it in days, maybe even months.
"I think we might have some clothes that will fit you," Danny said as they walked toward the medical facility. His father was much larger than the alien, and his mother was much too petite. Danny doubted his own clothing would fit the alien, but maybe with a bit altering he could get something to fit him. The alien stayed silent, watching with wary eyes as Danny tended to his injuries. Danny kept flicking his gaze up to the alien, wondering how his parents would react to their stowaway. I'll cross that bridge when I get there, he thought and focused on the alien's injuries.