CHAPTER 1: DAYS OF FUTURE PRESENT
Amity Park, 2027.
With ghost awareness at its peak, Fenton Works is a worldwide corporation renowned for its acclaimed anti-ghost inventions and interventions, becoming more successful and influential than Macrosoft, MacDoogal's, and WallMore combined.
With the United States employing their services for official government use, ghost activity has fallen to non-existence, the country safer than ever before. The future appears brighter with each new day, and utopia has never seemed so reachable.
Amity Park is a prime example of this new world order. Where once seen as the ghost capital of the world, it is now one of the safest cities in the country, topping New York City as the nation's largest city and unofficial capital. The city is a paradise, and people that live within it are happy.
Despite the glorious state of the city, however, there are still the occasional threats.
Within the streets of the city, a group of ghosts swarmed up and down the crowded roadways, harassing the people of the city and causing ruckus and mayhem in their path. They are restless spirits, never having found peace in the afterlife, and now they are here to ensure that no one else finds peace either.
These raging specters destroy the streets, tearing the concrete from the ground, tossing lampposts like toys, and tossing over cars on their backs. They make their destruction well-known, and they find a twisted sense of bliss in the terror of others.
In the middle of their rampage, however, they are quickly brought to a stop with the surprise of an ectoplasmic blast, temporarily separating the group from each other. As the ghosts turned to see where the blast originated from, their eyes were met with the one figure that all ghosts across the Ghost Zone fear: Danny Phantom.
"Alright, Casper, why don't you make like a friendly ghost and put the street back where you found it?" Danny joked.
Acting fast to avoid prosecution from their extradimensional crimes, the ghosts quickly fled from the phantom of Amity Park, not wanting to fight the most feared ghost hunter in the world of the living. Danny, acting fast to catch his targets, immediately followed them in pursuit.
Behind him, a Specter Speeder began following his trail as well, seeking to assist him in his chase. Inside the Specter Speeder sat the two most important women in his life: Sam Manson, his wife; and Jazz Fenton, his older sister.
With Danny's bothersome ghost hunt turned into a strange form of a family activity, the three began their pursuit of the ghosts, ready to capture them and put them back into the Ghost Zone.
Danny and the Speeder fired their weapons at the ghosts, but they seem too fast to be caught, avoiding their energy blasts with ease and determination, moving swiftly and quickly in their flight patterns.
The two pilots of the Speeder do not make as precise shots as Danny, however, as they accidentally caused damage to a nearby building in their pursuit, causing rubble to fall near unsuspecting citizens below. They escape unharmed, but not too happy about the incident.
"Guys, we're trying to capture the ghosts, not trash the city!" Danny said.
Danny expressed his displeasure via his Fenton Phones, having a direct link with the Speeder, where Jazz, the main pilot, expressed her own frustrations with Danny's remark.
"Danny, I've been doing this for 10 years, I know what I'm doing. Relax a little." Jazz said.
"And I've been doing this for longer than that. Maybe I know how to do things a little better than you." Danny replied.
"So what?! I'm still your big sister, stop treating me like the new team member-"
Among the bickering of the two siblings, neither of them were quick to notice a rather large building within their flight path, posing an impending doom to them should they remain careless. Sam, not involved in the fight, took notice of the buildings, pointing out the obvious threat to the two oblivious siblings.
"Uh, guys, hate to split up the sibling rivalry, but we've got a huge building ahead of us! You mind doing something about it?" Sam asked.
The two fighting siblings quickly put an end to their petty fight to see the huge building ahead of them, realizing the immediate problem and shifting their priorities to more important issues.
The group of ghosts that the three pursued passed through it harmlessly, turning intangible to move through it. Danny could have easily done the same, but he also had a large ship behind him that lacked the ability to follow. Needing to come up with a solution, he had to think and act fast.
Using his wits, Danny, gripping the Speeder, tightly, focused all his ability to turn intangible through the Speeder itself, something he had never done before. Sure enough, his gambit worked, as the Speeder turned intangible and phased through the wall, allowing the pilots to begin passing through unharmed, with Danny only nearly missing his mark.
After a few seconds of strenuous effort turning the Speeder intangible, Danny and the Speeder passed through safely, with the effort being heavily taxing on Danny. No longer able to continue his hold, Danny released the Speeder, putting his focus back on the chase.
"This is the third haunt this month. What the hell's causing these sudden increases in ghost activity?" Danny asked.
"You tell me, you've been doing this longer than me." Jazz said.
"C'mon, Jazz. I could use a little cooperation here." Danny retorted.
"Yeah. Besides, sarcasm is my area of expertise." Sam added.
"Fine. But seriously, I don't know. They've been quiet these past few years. I don't get the sudden rise all of a sudden." Jazz guessed.
Suddenly, the ghosts stopped their flee from the three ghost hunters, instead deciding to take a stand and fight instead. The first of the group, the leader of the pack, threw an ectoplasmic blast towards the Speeder. Danny, rushing to protect his family, jumped in front of the blast, absorbing the impact.
Predictably, his reaction to taking a painful blast to the chest, one meant for those he cares for, is not a pleasant one. Now eager to deliver due retaliation to the rogue ghosts, Danny rushed the group and prepared to fight.
[Soundtrack Cue: Static-X - Control It]
Two ghosts began their attack with simple lunges towards their target, but Danny effortlessly kicked them aside, knocking one into a mailbox, and the other into a car. With the two ghosts temporarily stunned, Danny delivered two ectoplasmic blasts from his hands, each one obliterating the ghosts.
One ghost tried a different approach, instead wishing to keep his distance. Using his levitational abilities, the ghost lifted several objects off the ground, ranging from small objects like bricks and rocks to larger ones like dumpsters and trucks, and launched them all straight at Danny.
Acting quickly to save himself and any bystanders nearby, Danny summoned an ectoplasmic sheild, catching all the debris within a bubble of ectoplasmic energy. With the citizens below safely out of harm's way, Danny lifted the debris over the ghost and released his hold of the clutter, causing it all to drop directly on top of the ghost, burying him.
The final three ghosts attempted to make a team effort of their last stand. The three ghosts surrounded him, catching him by surprise, with two of them grabbing him and holding him down. The third ghost summoned an ectoplasmic sword, one that resembled a cutlass, indicating this ghost was perhaps at one point a pirate, and tried to slice Danny with it. Danny, acting quickly, moved out of harm's way, causing the sworded ghost to slice the arm of one of the other ghosts, releasing his grip and freeing Danny.
Danny, now free, attacked all three of the ghosts with punches and kicks energized with ectoplasmic energy, severely damaging their spectral forms. With Danny's onslaught completely obliterating the ghosts, all three of the invading undead fell to the ground, defeated and exhausted.
[Soundtrack Cue End]
In a last-ditch effort to win, one ghost reappeared behind Danny's back, invisible to the human eye, but Danny took immediate notice of him, backhanding him with a single punch and putting him out of commission.
With the area secured, The Specter Speeder flew to the ground, with its pilots, Sam and Jazz, exiting the Speeder to help apprehending the ghosts. Danny floated down to the ground, joining them.
Sam handed Danny a Fenton Thermos, Danny having forgotten to bring one.
"You forgot to leave base without it again." Sam said.
Danny took the Fenton Thermos and opened it, capturing all the ghosts inside, and subsequently placing the thermos on his belt.
"Thanks, Sam." Danny said.
"Anytime." Sam said.
With the ghosts apprehended and the day saved, several bystanders came out to cheer his victory, happy that once again they were protected from otherworldly threats. Danny, enjoying the praise, waved at the crowd and accepted their thanks, even stopping to pose for a few pictures. Jazz and Sam, having assissted, also joined in the festivities.
"Well, now that the job's done, we'd better get out of here. We have to get these ghosts back into the Ghost Zone." Jazz said.
Taking Jazz's advice, the three entered the Specter Speeder, preparing to head back to Fenton Tower. Before they could do so, a small child approached Danny, grabbing his hand and pulling on it. Danny taking notice of the small child's enthusiasm, turned to the child and kneeled down to face him.
"Hey, kid, what's up?" Danny asked.
"Mr. Phantom, Mr. Phantom! Will you sign my hat?" The child asked.
The child held up a baseball cap with Danny Phantom on the front, posing and giving a thumbs up on the front. Danny, taking pride in the child's adoration of him, happily took the hat to sign it.
"Sure, no problem." Danny replied.
Taking a pen that the child handed him, Danny signed the hat and placed it on the child's head, playfully patting him on his head. Happy to have met his idol, the child lit right up in happiness.
"Awesome! Thank you, Mr. Phantom!" The child said.
The child's mother approached him, picked him up, and held him tight. The child, still excited to have met his idol, jumped up and down in his mother's arms, barely able to be contained.
"Mommy, mommy, I met Danny Phantom!" The child said.
"I know, sweetie. My son thinks the world of you, Mr. Fenton. You're his hero. Keep up the good work." The mother said.
"Glad to be a good role model. Well, I've got to go for now. Be safe, little guy." Danny said.
Danny gave the child a small fist-bump before he boarded the Specter Speeder, making the child happy once again. Sam, taking notice of Danny's kind actions with the child, gave him a smile as he approached.
"You sure are good with kids." Sam said.
"Hey, I'm a superhero. What kid doesn't love a hero?" Danny asked.
"Mmm. I can't argue with that."
Sam wrapped her arms around Danny, kissing him passionately after the strenuous fight against the ghosts.
"Uh, guys, I was planning on eating later. Do you mind?" Jazz asked.
"Don't worry, Jazz, I think I'll take the scenic route back. That is, if it's alright with you, Danny." Sam said.
"You're my wife, how can I say no?" Danny replied.
Turning the two of them intangible, a feat easier than the entire Specter Speeder, Danny carried Sam with him as he began to fly out of the Speeder and away to the skies. The crowd, always impressed to see a man that can fly, cheered him on as he departed.
The two shared a peaceful flight over Amity Park on their way back to Fenton Tower, taking in the sights of the technological metropolis of Amity Park. Where once seen as an obscure city in Colorado, its infrastructure mediocre by the standards of its time, now stands as one of the most technologically advanced cities on the planet, a modern-day metropolis.
Danny's eyes, however, have no care for the sights that the sky provided him, as he instead looked to Sam, his wife of 5 years. To be married at such a young age would seem foolhardy to most, but, to him, it was the greatest blessing in his entire life.
"How did I ever get so lucky in life?" Danny asked.
"I should ask the same question. I just can't believe it took us until were 14 to get started, and until 19 since you put a ring on it." Sam replied.
"Still, I can't help wondering what those ghosts were doing. Why all these sudden resurgences?"
"You always put your mind too much at work. How about we relax for once?"
"Any suggestions?"
"How about the Nasty Burger? Veggie for me and a Barbeque Bacon for you?"
"I think I'll take a Veggie too. I should watch my calories."
As Sam gave a chuckle at Danny's joke, the two continued their flight to the Nasty Burger to enjoy dinner together.
Several feet below the city, however, things are not so peaceful. Where the land above holds the heavens, the land below the city holds the hell. As beautiful as the city of Amity Park appears to many, what is seen by most is merely a sugar-coated topping. Below its covers is a cesspool of poverty and crime.
As the more advanced and technologically progressed architecture took the place of the city of Amity Park, the old and the decayed has fallen below the city, creating an underground world that holds the ugliness the city tries to hide. As required of all foundations, any kind of building must be built on something. That something was the old city itself.
Now, its people, those who refused to abandon their lives in favor of progress, stayed behind, living in this hell below Earth.
One such person is Jebediah Stone, a simple man from a simple family. He never had much of an eye for anything technological or fancy, instead choosing a simple life as a convenience shopkeeper. The pay is small, but sufficient, and the work is meaningful.
An unwelcome guest, however, has come to take away that meaning. This man, despite his heavy covering with his plentiful clothing, emitted a light green glow, giving the Jebediah all the information he needed to know about this particular clientele.
"Hey, you! Get out of here! We don't allow spooks in here!" Jebediah said.
"'Spooks', huh? I guess prejudice doesn't like to waste its good slurs, huh? You should know that we prefer to be called 'mortally challenged'." The stranger said.
"Get out of here before I call the Ectos and have them put you in a soup can!"
Before the shopkeeper could make good on his threats, a shadow began to flow from the stranger onto the floor, slowly making its way to the shopkeeper. Arising from the floor, the shadow took a physical form for itself, surrounding the shopkeeper and gripping him tightly. Recognizing himself to be in severe danger, the shopkeeper's tone suddenly changed from angered to frightened.
The unknown ghost, now having the situation in his control, shed his hat and coat to reveal himself to the shopkeeper. The ghost was none other than Johnny 13, the leader of the notorious Unlucky 13s biker gang.
"You know, I don't discriminate myself. I've got the living and the dead in the Unlucky 13s, and they get along just fine. My problem is people like you thinking you own these streets. Thinking that these businesses are yours. They aren't. These are my streets, and this store is my property. I gave you several chances to pay your dues, but you refused. Now, you get to pay me in a different way. Shadow?" Johnny 13 requested.
The shadow complied with his master's request, slicing the shopkeeper's throat, spilling his blood across the floor. Gathering the blood on one of its tendrils, the shadow drew a large '13' on the window of the shop, marking their territory for themselves.
With its task completed, the shadow returned to Johnny 13, where it returned to its place behind his back.
"Good boy. Let's take the guys for a ride." Johnny 13 said.
Johnny 13, with his territory claimed, stepped on his bike, where his gang awaited his lead. Kicking the throttle, the bike powered itself up, its engine growling like a fierce animal from the harshest jungles. The Unlucky 13s followed his lead and revved their engines as well, creating a symphony of loud, hard-edged engines.
With the Unlucky 13s ready to go, Johnny 13 began leading them in their ride across town, ready to wreck the streets as they saw fit.
[Soundtrack Cue: KMFDM - Light]
The Unlucky 13s raced down the roads of the underbelly of Amity Park, their tire treads marking the ground like animals marking their prey. The citizens of the roads all take precaution to avoid their path. The undead members of the Unlucky 13s, having the ability of intangibility, harmlessly passed through the onlookers, while naughtily lifting up the skirts of any attractive women they encountered.
"Lady, if I had my dick again, I'd be putting it in you right now!" One undead biker remarked.
"I've got mine, and I'm gonna find something nice and warm to put it in tonight!" A living biker remarked.
Even though this dark dystopia has its moments of chaos, it still has its law enforcement. Two police vehicles, noticing the ruckus the bikers were causing, began their pursuit of the biker gang, seeking to end their reign of terror.
The Unlucky 13s, not easy to surrender to law enforcement, prepared themselves for a fight. The bikers pulled out chains, pipes, baseball bats, and other kinds of weapons fit for any road warriors.
Two bikers, taking spiked bats, swung their bats to the tires of one of the police cars, causing the car to swerve out of control and crash into a nearby building.
Another biker, taking his chain, dropped it underneath the other car, with the chain falling underneath the car and catching under its axles, causing it to swerve out of control as well. The cop car, unable to stop efficiently, turned to the side, then subsequently flipped over, tumbling down the street.
The bikers were soon joined by more law enforcement, this time on bikes of their own. The Unlucky 13s, believing this to be a more interesting fight, prepared themselves for more fun.
One biker took a steel pipe and hit the side of one cop bike, damaging the engine and causing the cop riding it to fall off and tumble onto the road. As he laid on the ground, several more Unlucky 13s ran him over, crushing his arm and foot, eliciting a scream from him.
Another cop bike found its way directly behind the bike of Johnny 13 himself, where the officer attempted to apprehend him directly. Johnny 13, however, had other ideas.
"Shadow, take the wheel!" Johnny 13 called.
The shadow, obeying his master, took over control of the bike, safely stabilizing it. Johnny 13, acing carefully, turned himself around and stood up on the seat of the bike, jumping off it with precise timing.
Johnny 13, making an aerial attack, stepped atop the front of the cop bike and delivered a sharp kick to the officer's face, knocking him off the bike and onto the hard pavement.
The shadow, driving the bike, slowed down and got behind the cop bike to catch his master, where Johnny 13 safely phased himself onto it, assuming control of the bike again. Taking the opportunity, Johnny 13 ran over the grounded biker cop, running over his head, crushing it like a watermelon.
While laughing in satisfaction of his dirty deeds, Johnny 13 was slow to notice a peculiar object standing before him on the road. The road was a person, standing completely still, doing nothing.
Johnny 13, believing this to be another moment of fun, increased his speed to run down the pedestrian, expecting to create a larger mess on the road.
His expectations are soon subverted, however, as impact with the person did not create a splatter on the street, but, rather, his bike hitting a roadblock, launching him off the bike and onto the ground, landing on his face.
[Soundtrack Cue End]
Dragging himself off the ground after the brutal pavement kiss on his face, Johnny 13 managed to crawl his way back to his bike, where he found his shadow, also injured from the crash as well.
The two of them looked up to the crash site, where a figure emerged from the flames, revealing themselves to be the source of their accident. As the figure approached the two, the figure's hands began to glow green with ectoplasmic energy, frightening the two ghouls awaiting their punishment, as they recognized the source of the energy.
"Danny? But you've never been down here before!" Johnny 13 said.
"Who said I'm Danny Phantom?" The figure asked.
The voice of the figure was female, bringing confusion to the two ghosts. As the figure approached them, the figure revealed herself to be a female doppelganger of Danny Phantom, a 'sister' from years past.
"So you got a sex change. What's the big deal?" Johnny 13 joked.
"I said, I'm not Danny Phantom. The name's Danielle." She said.
Danielle finished her speech with an ectoplasmic blast straight to Johnny 13's face, completely obliterating him.
Author's note: All dialogue in brackets [like this] represents when the characters are speaking in the Irken language.
Light-years away, in a solar system belonging to the dominating alien force known as the Irken Empire, a planet known as Carcerem floated in orbit, slowly rotating across its two small suns.
Carcerem is a barren, desolate planet, known for being a complete frozen wasteland, its surface covered with only snow and ice. The one and only feature that makes it significant is that it houses a prison for the empire, hosting the worst scum of the universe.
With lunch hour arriving, the prisoners all met in the canteen, conversing with one another and playing meaningless games, having nothing else to do in this frozen wasteland of a planet, in this hell of a prison.
One prisoner, however, sat quietly alone, uninterested in the others or their lives. This man was once known as Vlad Masters, better known to the world as Vlad Plasmius, the archenemy of Danny Phantom and the most powerful supervillain to walk the Earth. Now, he is far from Earth, and further outside of his element.
In his time, Vlad was a rich and powerful man who got whatever he wanted, except the woman he wanted most; Maddie. His one and only interest was taken from him by his best friend, Jack Fenton.
For years, he had done whatever he could to win her over, to no luck. Having made an effort to obtain control of the entire Earth for himself as its dictator, revealing his true intentions after all his supposed friendship with Jack, his place on Earth had left him, with his goal further away than before. Now in self-exile from Earth, his time has passed him, leaving him to rot in this world.
Now, he resides in the galaxy's most secure and dangerous prison as its de facto ruler over the inmates through his power and viciousness, his wish for power half-granted. Having been here as its leader so long, he has lost so much time he no longer remembers his own name. Here, he is simply known as Vamp due to his ghost form's appearance, never having changed back to human form since his exile.
Once, he was a man of status and importance on Earth, before having lost it all with his entire planet rejecting him. Now, he simply sits to rot away in this planet he found himself trapped on. Despite his status as ruler of the inmates, deep down he cares nothing for it. All he wishes for now is freedom or death, whichever comes first.
As Vlad sat and brooded to himself, he was approached by an inmate, coming to bring him bad news.
"[Vamp, Zuul will try to fight you again. He will have your head if he has his way.]" He said.
"[I am aware of his plot, Speng. He will not succeed.]" Vlad replied.
Taking action, Vlad got up from his seat and approached Zuul at his table, confronting him and his gang.
"[Is there a problem, Vamp?]" Zuul asked.
"[Why, yes, there is. You.]" Vlad replied.
Unexpectedly to the onlookers, Vlad threw a punch to Zuul's face, knocking him out of his seat and onto the floor. Several of Zuul's gang members began to pile on Vlad, but Vlad effortlessly shook them all off, none of them strong enough to pose a threat. After a recovery period, Zuul rose from the floor to retaliate, landing several punches of his own.
As the fight continued to rage on, the inmates began to surround the two brawlers, with several groups cheering for one fighter or the other, altogether making a crowd with a mixed reaction on who would win, and what it would mean for the prison.
Before the fight could continue any further, however, the guards surrounding the prison began to fire tear gas into the pit, dispersing the crowd. With the guards selecting Vlad and Zuul from the group, the two were brought away for a selective type of punishment as a way to settle the imbalance in the prison.
A few minutes later, inside an arena at the bottom level of the prison, Vlad and Zuul were thrown inside, placed on opposite ends, cheered on by inmates to slaughter each other.
"[Was the punch worth the trouble to foolishly surrender your rule to me, Vamp? To commit suicide in front of your kingdom?]" Zuul asked.
Zuul gave a smug smile as he asked his taunting question, seeking to provoke his opponent. Vlad, however, was unfazed by his taunt, giving an amused smile of his own.
"[You make it sound like I hadn't planned this. Did you really think me so foolhardy, Zuul?]" Vlad replied.
Realizing that Zuul may have made a serious mistake, his smile quickly disappeared, instead turning to a determined look, ready to fight.
"[Enough talking! Two men enter, one man leaves! Those are the rules! Now, fight!]" A guard shouted.
The several prisoners surrounding the observation deck, waiting for the bloodshed to happen, went frantic with excitement, hoping to see blood be shed, being the only kind of entertainment in such a harsh place.
"[Two men enter, one man leaves!]" The prisoners chanted.
"[Vamp vs. Zuul! Let the fight commence!]" A guard said over the loudspeaker.
Vlad and Zuul did not immediately fight, but rather simply stared at each other, studying each other closely. Each has their own plan of attack, but neither are too eager to waste their shot at once, waiting for just the right moment. The two slowly circled each other, watching another, waiting for the right time to strike. They each have only one shot here, and neither wish to lose it.
After a moment of staring each other down, Vlad and Zuul finally fight, with Vlad beginning the fight. Vlad put up a strong fight, attacking relentlessly with punches that match Muhammad Ali in speed and impact, but Zuul dodges many of his punches and lands several of his own, making Vlad start to lose consciousness and making him fall to the ground.
In a standard boxing match, Vlad would be out. But this is a fight to the death, and anything goes here, and Vlad was never one to surrender.
Kicking Zuul in his kneecaps, Vlad temporarily stunned his opponent, giving himself enough time to rise from the ground. Grabbing Zuul by his head, Vlad punched him several times more in his face, past his hardened skull and further into his alien brain. With another quick move, Vlad gouged out Zuul's left eye, making him scream in immense pain.
Zuul, taking a stand against his opponent, began to kick Vlad in his stomach numerous times, knocking the breath out of him completely. With no air left in his lungs for a good few minutes, Vlad's consciousness slowly began to fade from his oxygen deprivation. No longer able to stand on his feet, Vlad fell to the ground again, seemingly for good this time.
"[Any last words before I kill you in front of the entire prison, Vamp?]" Zuul asked.
"[I am a vampire, Zuul. I have no words for you. I HAVE ONLY DEATH!]" Vlad yelled.
With the last bit of strength in his body, Vlad lept and bit into Zuul's neck, sucking the blood out of his alien body to nourish his own. The prisoners, once cheering, went dead silent and watched in shock as Vlad began drinking all of Zuul's blood before them all, giving him the appearance of a wild animal.
Slowly but surely, Vlad drank all of Zuul's blood, leaving his body a lifeless shell and killing him. With no soul within his body anymore, Zuul's body fell to the ground, proving Vlad as the winner of this fight to the death.
The prisoners, now in support of Vlad, began chanting his name, establishing that he was once again the ruler of the inmates, the king of this nowhere land. The guards, dispersing tear gas into the observer rings, drove the crowd out, no longer having a show for the prisoners.
Needing to control the situation from getting any worse, the prison guards entered the ring with riot gear, surrounding Vlad, ready to take him away. Vlad, wanting to keep himself alive, held his hands up in compliance, allowing himself to be taken away.
Several guards approached Vlad and took him out of the ring, leading him past the normal prison cells and placing him in solitary confinement, where he would remain for some time to avoid causing any disturbances within the prison.
Now alone, Vlad sat in his cell, smiling over his victory, with his rule over his empire still established. Where Earth may no longer have a place for this old, bitter man, this place has become more of a home than he could have ever imagined. How ironic, it seems, that a prison becomes more of a home to a prisoner than his old home.
"I am the king." Vlad said.