DISCLAMER: Hey sorry bout the long wait. I was sorta in Hawaii and I couldn't get to a computer. But I got a nice sunburn!
Thanks to dPhantoMfreak, Sasia, L'ange des Miracles, enigmatic penguin, Jenna Dax, CharmedMilliE, purpledog100, purrbaby101, Ghostboy814, Harm Marie, Wingg-ed Wolf, jessicajason, Phantom Shade, phantomshadowdragon, katiesparks, Pterodactyl, emotigone crazy, blindyourears, ghostlover15, Althea Astera Renata, and horsegal. Thanks for reviewing. I can't say how much I love you guys.
Ok, this'll be long. But, sorry about the fillerness of it near the middle, I had to get info on Eclipse in there somewhere. It'll pick up near the end. And Filbert had fun with this cliffy too. Though I don't think it's his best, I still like it.
Althea Astera Renata - Ok, her tattoo. I sorta have a couple different designs in my head and I'm gunna upload them to my Deviant art account as soon as I can. But if you want to see a general sort of "style" for it you can go on to that account (my name is SquirrelGirl13 still) an look at my pic titled 'Nameless' and that's the sorta "look" I'm going for... on a smaller scale and more a definite design. Oh, and red. Must be red.
Ok, so the number of ghosts Danny's fought is brought up in this and Jeff says it's well over 70. (He's responsible for accurate data if you don't already know.) Think of Walkers goons and Pariah Dark's skeleton army. Also, Youngblood's crew and the random animal ghosts thrown into the show. Then add all the ghosts I'm sure have attacked him and not been shown and I think Jeff's number is fair, right? Good to hear.
Oh, and I realized Lancer left his car at the school too so he has to go back.
I swear, I've gotten so many random inspirations for ficks that it's sorta hard to focus on just one. I'll try to update sooner next time...I hope. I REALLY want to Start theat dark fic! For a summary on It you can go to my profile.
Enjoy!
Chapter 10
Suddenly, the teen disappeared and Lancer panicked for a quick moment before realizing that he wasn't plummeting to his death.
"Wah-"
"We're just invisible. I didn't want her to see us."
"Who-" But then he saw exactly who. A figure on a metal contraption was zooming around the skies above Amity.
Some of the residents of the town, including Mr. Lancer, had seen her around, hunting ghosts. She had become a sort of hero to some.
"She's a ghost hunter," Danny confirmed, like "ghost hunter" was one of the scariest things on the planet. As the boy dove lower over the tops of the buildings the teacher realized that a good, professional ghost hunter was probably one of the scariest things to a ghost. And because Danny was half ghost, who knew what kinds of painful experiments a ghost hunter would put him through to see what made him tick if any ever found out.
The man watched the hunter a bit more warily now.
"Please be out of range," he heard Danny mumble to himself.
"Out of range of what?" Lancer asked looking up at where he assumed the boy's head was. He felt weird, talking to nothing. The fact that he couldn't see his own body was unnerving him even more and he looked back at the huntress.
"Her-" he stopped. "Oh great!"
The girl had just looked at her watch. Mr. Lancer didn't see what was wrong. Then he heard it, a faint beeping noise. Suddenly, the girl pulled out a gun that resembled the ones Mr. and Mrs. Fenton carried sometimes.
"Where are you ghost?" she shouted, turning in the direction of the two, "I know you're here somewhere!"
Danny suddenly dived into an alleyway and set Mr. Lancer on the ground causing the teacher to become visible again.
"Get to the school," the teens disembodied voice said, "I'll ditch her and meet you there."
Lancer didn't like the idea of running off and leaving his student to fight some hunter on a hover-board who probably had no problems with rearranging the boy's internal organs. Who knew what trouble he could get himself into! The teacher turned to protest and saw the girl hovering above a building, her hand adjusting something on her mask.
"There you are!" she shouted, bolting for the alley.
Wait... her voice sounded somewhat familiar. Where had he heard her before?
"Shit!" Danny regained visibility and shot up into the open air above town.
"You can't get away from me!" The huntress threatened, taking aim at the ghost teen.
"Wanna bet!" Danny challenged, diving towards the road as the weapon spit out a series of dark pink blasts, each missing their target by almost nothing.
"Get back here!" the girl yelled at the ghost as he speed off, zigzagging through cars, people, and buildings, the huntress speeding after him.
The teacher watched, frozen to the spot in a sort of disbelieving sort of shock at the abrupt departure of the two teens. As they disappeared into the streets of Amity, the teacher was distinctly reminded of all the times Danny would dash out of his class with one excuse or another.
He wanted to go after them. Danny could be hurt... or worse. But, he had no idea where they were headed. So, he walked in the direction of the school, scanning the skies and hoping Danny would be all right.
That ghost hunter looked like she meant business. But who was she? She had sounded familiar to the man and he had a feeling he should know that voice.
Did Danny know?
It was a good question. Lancer figured Danny would want to learn her identity in order to better hide himself. But, had he?
Lancer shook his head. He'd ask Danny about it later.
If there was a later...
No! He couldn't think like that. Danny's in a better condition to take care of himself.
But his associates are in a better condition to kill him. Despite what was said about Phantom, Danny wasn't the type to purposely hurt anyone. But that ghost hunter looked like she would have no problem tearing the boy apart limb by limb.
'He's gone this long' a part of him argued.
'So had Chris' another part countered.
Chris...
He shook his head and scanned the sky again as the school came into view. Mr. Lancer looked for signs of his other students, but it seemed like no one was there.
Of course, that didn't mean much in this town.
He retrieved his keys form his pocket as he neared the door, locating the one he needed. As he opened the door he scanned the skies once more.
Where was Danny?
He walked towards the library, his footsteps echoing in the empty halls. When he reached the double doors to the haven of books, he heard a shushing noise and some indistinguishable whispers.
Probably, Miss. Fenton, Miss. Manson, and Mr. Foley.
He inserted a second key in the lock and opened the door. A thump came from somewhere to his right.
"Alright," he said, briskly walking over to the origin of the noise, "I know you're there."
"Mr. Lancer!" exclaimed Jasmine Fenton, standing quickly, a guilty smile on her face. "You startled me! I didn't think anyone else would be here," she said, picking a book up off the floor and hastily placing it on the shelf. She obviously wasn't the greatest liar.
"And what about those two?" he added with a slight smile, gesturing to where he supposed the three had been hiding.
Two freshmen, a Goth and a tech-geek, stood slowly.
"We... uhh..." Tucker stammered.
"We were-" Sam was cut off by a figure suddenly flying through the ceiling to land by her, his back to the teacher.
"Sorry it took me so long guys. I ran into a bit of trouble," Danny apologized as blue rings spread across his body, changing the black and white jumpsuit to jeans and a tee.
"Danny!" the three exclaimed in horror.
"What?"
Instead of answering, Miss. Manson seized the boy's shoulders and spun him around to face his teacher.
"Mr. Lancer, we can explain-" Jazz began.
"Guys, chill. He's already found out," Danny said, placing a hand on his sister's shoulder.
"What!" they all yelled.
"W-When? How?" his sister asked.
"Just a little while ago. That's what I wanted to tell you guys," Danny explained. Jazz just stared between the two. Tucker did mostly the same. Sam folded her arms across her chest and glared at nothing in particular.
"You won't tell anyone, right?" Tucker asked.
"No, Mr. Foley, I won't," answered Mr. Lancer.
"Can we talk for a minute?" Sam asked, and, without waiting for an answer, she seized the two boy by the collars and dragged them out of earshot, Jazz following. They sat at a table that someone had picked up during their absence. The teacher went to the librarian's desk and took his bag off the top (A janitor must have left it.) and observed his pupils.
Out of the four, Mr. Fenton appeared to be the most calm. His sister seemed a mite less frantic that the other two teens, but it was obvious that all three were worried about what this would mean for Danny's well being.
They spoke for a bit in relative calm, until Jazz said something that the teacher could tell upset her brother. Danny threw his hands down and stomped his foot as he replied, gesturing wildly as he went on, getting more frantic. Finally, he sat heavily in the nearest chair and held his head in his hands.
As Lancer wondered what the 16-year-old had said to upset Danny so much, Sam put a pale hand on the boy's shoulder and sat next to him. She told him something and Danny looked up at her. Jazz added something and Tucker commented as well. Danny smiled and nodded.
Tucker turned and grabbed a chair as the youngest Fenton made eye contact with the English instructor. Things were apparently settled.
For now at least.
Lancer walked over, noticing Sam gave him a distrusting look as he came to a stop by the opposite end of the table. The Goth, apparently, wasn't as trusting as Danny and wasn't going to take the teacher at his word. Jazz took a seat across from Tucker and set the bag she had been carrying on the table, unzipping it and taking out her laptop.
Sam was also, apparently, perfectly content with sitting on the table instead of a chair and situated herself next to Jazz and close to Danny. The aforementioned teen chose to sit on the back of his chair, using the normal seat as a foot rest, his elbows resting on his knees and his chin on his hands.
The teacher was perfectly happy standing nearby. He felt out of place among the group of teens and sitting would probably make him feel even more awkward.
"So," Danny said, lifting his head to look at his tech-geek friend, "Whata ya got?"
"Have," Jazz absentmindedly corrected, not taking her eyes off her computer. The teacher suppressed a chuckle.
"Whatever."
"Well," Tucker said, glancing at Mr. Lancer with a wary half-grin, "Haven't found anything on the ghost yet. But the scythe..." The boy messed with his PDA for a couple seconds before setting it on the table.
On the screen was an accurate drawing of the same scythe the ghost had wielded. Under the picture was the thing's name.
"Dusk," Danny read, as Lancer walked around the table to get a better look, "Ancient weapon of strange power. Said to have once been the weapon of a rogue who used it to her own discrepancy. Not much is known about what her intentions may have been, but it is rumored the weapon was hidden and protected before her death so no one could ever again wield it. Typical."
Now that he had a closer look at the weapon, Lancer saw that each ruby was cut in a perfect octagon.
"What about this former owner? Any pictures of her?" Danny asked.
"There's a drawing of what she could have looked like according to a description of her," The redheaded Fenton replied, bringing it up on her screen. She turned the computer so her brother and teacher could see it.
"Not her," Danny sighed in a defeated sort of way. "Eclipse was years younger."
"There's more on the scythe though," Sam said, getting up and messing around on the laptop. "Here."
The site had no pictures of the scythe like the other, but instead had a jet-black screen except for the white wording and little dancing grim reapers swinging their blades. The teacher raised an eyebrow.
"How official is this?" he asked the girl.
"It's linked to from that other page about the scythe," she answered, folding her arms across he chest. "Just because its looks are unique compared to all those other 'official' looking site doesn't mean it isn't-"
"It's ok Sam. Breathe!" Danny said with a grin, placing a hand on her shoulder. The girl gave her teacher a small scowl as she sat back down on the table, reluctantly listening to her classmate.
Lancer watched as Danny's eyes speed back and forth as he quickly read the information, frowning slightly. It felt odd to see him look this serious. Actually, he had found all four of them were showing a different side he had never seen before.
"Alright. Apparently, after a lot of energy is used, the thing has to recharge," the boy read on for a bit longer before speaking again. "If trapping us in that limbo place required as much energy as I hope it did, she'll probably need at least a day to recharge. Hopefully more," he stated, looking up at the group.
"That'll give us some time to figure out what to do when she comes back," Lancer added. Sam raised an eyebrow at him but didn't say anything.
"Too bad we don't really know what she wants," Tucker said as he picked up his PDA. "She didn't say anything about that did she?"
The teacher and student shook their heads.
"No. Too bad she's not like Technus, " Danny answered with a slight grin.
"Who's Technus?" Lancer asked a little warily, his curiosity peaked along with his concern for the teens' safety. His students constantly being in danger wasn't something the middle-aged English teacher was ready and willing to accept.
The four made eye contact before Danny answered.
"The self-proclaimed ghost master of technology. Getting him to shout his plans to the sky is the easiest thing in the world.
"It's getting him to shut up that's the trick," Sam added.
"Kinda like Tucker," joked Danny.
"Hey!" protested the tech-geek. Sam just shook her head.
Lancer was taken aback by the sudden change in mood the group had undergone. The three made it seem as though they were discussing normal, everyday, teen problems.
"I think that's a little mean Danny," Sam said, and her bespectacled classmate nodded in agreement. "Technus isn't that loudmouthed," she finished, a sly, evil grin on her face.
"Yea, he... Hey!" Tucker wined, giving the Goth an indignant look. "Why do you two always gang up on me like that?"
"You just make it so easy Tuck!" Danny laughed, Sam giving the boy and even wider and more sadistic grin.
Mr. Lancer made eye contact with Jazz, who had crossed her arms across her chest while attempting not to laugh, and gave a small, awkward smile which she returned. The redhead didn't seem to distrust the teacher like Miss. Manson did. In fact, Lancer reasoned that the Fenton probably felt slightly out of place among the other three friends as well, though to a lesser extent.
"So, do you know all of the ghosts that attack Amity?" the teacher asked the young hybrid, "All of you do?"
"About half the time, yea," Danny answered with a shrug. "Most of the ghosts I've fought before don't just stay in the ghost zone."
Ghost zone... that sounded familiar. Oh yes, when the teachers had all been briefed on ghost safety by the Fentons. If he recalled correctly, it was the place ghosts...uhh... existed.
"They come back? How?"
"Well, a lot just come through the ghost portal in my basement," Danny explained, "But shutting that down would be sorta pointless. There are other ways out of the ghost zone and it would just make putting the ones I catch back harder."
"How many ghosts have you fought?" the teacher asked, knowing he was going to regret it but curiosity getting the better of him.
"Well..." Danny started, giving a quick glance at the other three, "I'd have to say, more than enough to loose count. Definitely somewhere over seventy different ghosts. And that's not counting when they attack twice. A lot of times it's like two or more ghosts a day."
Lancer stared wide-eyed. Over seventy ghosts! He knew he didn't want to hear that answer. How had his student done this for months and had the time to actually maintain a passing grade? Not to mention he probably had responsibilities at home as well. No wonder he was always tired in class.
The teacher thought back to Thursday afternoon, when he first noticed how jumpy and watchful Danny was behaving. Well, it was no mystery now. All these ghost attacks and him trying to take care of them all. Lancer was surprised Danny hadn't gone insane from the pressure.
His thoughts were interrupted by a loud blast of unrecognized music coming from an unknown location.
"Tuck Everlasting! What in the world?" exclaimed the teacher, his eyes darting around to find the source of the noise as Sam dashed behind a bookcase.
The ringing stopped and the Goth returned carrying a dark purple, spider-shaped backpack and holding a cell phone to her ear.
"Hello," she said, ignoring Jazz's mumbles of "In a library!"
The teacher distinctly heard a very mother-like voice beginning to scold the girl, who rolled her eyes and snapped the phone shut, cutting the woman on the other line off.
"You do realize that she's gunna rant about that later right?" Danny asked his friend with a badly suppressed half-grin. The Goth just gave the phone a glare and stuffed it back in her bag.
"Hey, don't hurt it! It isn't the phone's fault!"
Four pairs of eyes stared at the tech-geek, who looked down at the table.
"I'll just stop talking now."
"Speaking of parents, Danny, mom and dad will probably want us home for a late dinner soon," Jazz informed her brother, standing.
"Yea, ok," the boy answered, following suite, "You two wanna come?"
"Sure!" Tucker answered, hopping out of his chair eagerly.
"Do you have to ask? I'm not spending dinner with my parents if I can help it."
Lancer faintly wondered what the Goth had against her parents as he secured his bag on his shoulder and retrieved his keys from his pocket.
The four teens walked out the door, Mr. Lancer following and locking the library up behind him. As the group walked into the fading afternoon light, Danny paused and glanced around.
"Uh, guys. Do any of you think it's been a little... well... quiet for a while?"
Quiet? Since when is being attacked by a murderous, scythe-wielding ghost considered quiet?
"Yea, a bit," Sam agreed.
"Oh you two are just paranoied. Just because it's quiet doesn't mean-"
The tech geek was cut off by a loud explosion that seemed to come from further in town.
"Uhh... nevermind"
"What in the name of Charles Dickens was that?"
"Sounds like it was near the Nasty Burger," Danny said, his normal carefree demeanor changing instantly to an alert and more concerned one. Before another word was uttered, Danny had transformed and taken off into town.
Tucker and Sam took one quick glance at each other and hurtled off after their best friend. Jasmine, on the other hand, headed to her car that Lancer just realized was parked across from the school and slightly down the street.
"Mr. Lancer," she called to the English professor, stopping halfway across the empty street, "I know what you're thinking, but he'll be all right. He knows how to take care of himself and I believe in my brother."
She could obviously tell Lancer was still not convinced, because she went on.
"Sir, you might find this a hard concept to grasp, but Danny, Tucker, and Sam know exactly what they're getting themselves into. They know the risks." And with that she walked straight to her car, got in, and u-turned onto the street, the fact that she believed in Danny obviously not stopping he from speeding into town after him.
It didn't stop Mr. Lancer from following in his car either.
When the teacher arrived, he realized the source of most of the commotion was coming from a small jewelry store. There was shattered glass everywhere and occasional flashes of green and red illuminating the sidewalk from inside the building. Explosions and crashes coming from the store accompanied the rainbow of peoples' screams and other noises that are associated with mass panic. Miss. Fenton's car was parked not too far away.
Suddenly, the door was blown off its hinges and, for the second time that day, Lancer had to shield himself from the flying debris of a blown up wall. This time he had to dive behind a trashcan next to a lamppost, feeling the sting of bits of broken wood on his leg as he did.
He heard something slam against the post. Risking a glance over the bin, the teacher witnessed two rings of light change the unconscious form of Danny Phantom back into Danny Fenton.
An unforgettable laugh brought the man's attention to what used to be a doorway. His eyes were drawn to the glinting blade of a sickeningly familiar scythe and he gazed up into two blazing red eyes.
"Well well well. What a wonderful chance this would be to obliterate the both of you," Eclipse said tauntingly, "But, alas, I need to go and replace the ruby he broke before I run out of juice. See ya boys!" She gave a tiny wave and spun he scythe in a circle, disappearing with a 'pop.'
Lancer emerged from behind the trashcan and kneeled down to examine his student as Sam, Jazz, and Tucker came running out of the store.
"Danny!" Sam cried as she rushed to the boy's side, Jasmine and Tucker right behind her.
Lancer checked for a pulse. There was one, faint, but there. But, the 14-year-old was in bad shape. He had various bruises and cuts all over and shards of glass were tangled in his hair. His arm a one nasty, deep-looking cut on it that was gushing a river of blood all over and had already begun to further stain his already bloodstained shirt. He was completely unconscious, possibly a head injury.
If he wasn't helped soon, he would die.
And I'm done typing for today. I'll try to update as soon as I can but my computer is going psycho on me. I thing it's been possessed by an evil ghost. (Gasps) Eclipse! Get out of my computer! You evil FIEND! Ack! Clockwork help! (Throws clock at the computer. The computer totally stops running and starts to emit smoke.)
...On shit... Review please! Or, you can join my computer and flame. (Runs of to call 1-800-905-GEEK)
...and scene