Maddie sighed softly in defeat. Her son had been treated. He also needed to know what they were dealing with. She glanced at her husband and gave a slight nod.

"It can only be passed through saliva into the bloodstream," Jack reported.

"Meaning?" Danny pressed. He already suspected what they were saying but he wanted confirmation.

"It means that it's transmitted by biting. An infected ghost must bite an uninfected ghost for the disease to spread," Maddie clarified. Danny blinked. This was serious. If any infected ghosts engaged another ghost in a fight, avoiding its mouth wasn't always easy. But at least Danny knew that Ethan wasn't in danger of contracting this disease. It also meant that the doctors could move ghosts before they contracted the disease to a safe place.

Danny nodded. He would go home and inform Sam and she could spread the word through his personal circle and they could inform others, such as Tucker's ghost hunter community online, the Ghostkateers and the I.G.A.

"Great work mom, dad. How's progress on a cure?" Danny asked.

"Slow. It's impossible to isolate the disease from an infected ghost's ectoplasm. The disease is corrupting their ectoplasm somehow. We think that's why they're turning rabid. But now we know which ghosts are infected before symptoms arise, we might be able to isolate uncorrupted diseased ectoplasm," Maddie explained. Danny nodded in understanding.

"Any idea where this disease came from?" Danny inquired hopefully. If they could get rid of the source of the disease then they could stop other ghosts from getting infected. Remove the rogue infected ghosts, then this crisis would instantly become easier to manage. Right now, the ghosts were scared. The I.G.A were too. And Danny didn't blame them one bit. But all that fear could turn into panic if something bad happened. And if that panic was aimed at the Hospital and him, then they wouldn't be able to continue fighting this disease. Maddie and Jack shook their heads sadly.

"Like we said, we can't isolate the disease so all we know is how it corrupts the ectoplasm and how it's transmitted. But don't worry son, we're not giving up," Jack answered.

Frostbite stepped back in the room with a smile, holding a small glowing bottle filled with light purple pills inside and a small tub with dimly glowing white cream.

"These are a combination of Death Rose and strong painkiller. They will unfortunately cause drowsiness but they are the strongest medication we have that you can take. I know it mightn't be possible my king, but try to rest regularly. You are injured and those injuries will take time to heal. I would advise that you avoid any potential fighting while you heal, but I know that that isn't easy in this situation. Also, one tablet per every three hours. No more. There is Death Rose in them and if you over-medicate, you could cause yourself to fall into a coma," Frostbite explained before he handed the bottle to Danny. Danny twisted off the cap and looked into the bottle. There were enough tablets inside to last him at least two weeks.

"You've already given me medication. When will that wear off?" Danny wondered, looking up at the snow ghost. Frostbite nodded.

"It is longer lasting than those tablets. It should last six hours but if you need to, you can take a tablet in four hours. You won't over medicate yourself," Frostbite replied. Danny smiled and returned the bottle cap before pulling on his jumpsuit.

"My king, I would like to strap a splint to your broken arm before you leave," Frostbite added, noticing Danny's pain as he pulled the arm of his jumpsuit onto his injured limb. Danny nodded stiffly in agreement. He didn't like showing weakness when he worked. Wearing bandages or a cast was like wearing a target sign on his body. An enemy would focus on such glaringly obvious weaknesses. Although, these rabid ghosts didn't have the clarity of mind in order to fight strategically like that. So in this rare situation, wearing bandages and a splint to protect the injury would be better. Frostbite worked quickly but carefully to attach the dimly glowing splint to Danny's left arm. Once the ghost was finished, Danny stood up and experimentally clenched his hand with a grimace and threw a punch at the air.

"Thanks Frostbite. I'll try to avoid using this arm if I get in a fight," Danny muttered as he slipped the bottle of pills into his jumpsuit pocket with the tub of cream. Frostbite nodded before bowing and taking his leave to return to other patients.

Danny left the room and headed back towards the lifts. Maddie and Jack followed him worriedly. Danny ignored the ghosts bustling past them in the corridors, many glancing at him with curiosity and concern. The crown was still fluttering worriedly at the back of his mind but much less so now that his injuries had been treated. Danny reached his energy to the crown and gently sent reassurance to it. He couldn't afford to be worried about his own injuries. Not now. His people needed him. This disease was still spreading throughout his subjects and it was dangerous for everyone. Maybe he should find another ghost to help Skulker and for now Danny could focus on going between the I.G.A. and the Hospital delivering infected ghosts. It would be safer from him. Injured the way he was, he couldn't rely on himself in a fight like he could before his fight with Ulfric. He punched the lift button with his right hand and waited for the doors to open.

"Danny, maybe you should stop tracking down infected ghosts," Maddie suggested, her tone telling him that she wanted to insist on that but knew it wasn't her place.

"Actually I was just thinking about that. I was wondering who I could send with Skulker in case he needed back up against these infected ghosts. Unfortunately there are few ghosts so well suited to that job. Literally. Skulker can hunt down almost anything and he's well protected in his suit. Most ghosts would be in constant danger of infection, but Skulker isn't really. Unless the ghost bites through his head," Danny remarked softly. Maddie blinked in surprise before nodding in understanding.

"Maybe you could send a human," Jack offered. Danny frowned.

"I'm not sure that's a good idea either dad. Humans can't turn intangible. They might get mauled. It's not an easy position to fill," Danny pointed out. Jack and Maddie frowned in thought as the lift doors opened and the three stepped inside. Danny pressed the button for the ground floor. The hospital labs were on the ground floor past the reception. And Danny had no more need to be at the hospital. He knew that there were over fifty ghosts in quarantine now.

They paused at the front doors. The waiting room had been cleared of most of the challengers by now. The only ghosts still there seemed to be waiting on Dante and Jemima.

"Will you be alright on your own?" Maddie asked worriedly. Danny smirked and nodded.

"I'll be fine mom. I'm going to make a portal to get home so I can tell Sam what you learned. Then I'll probably head to Steven to get a progress report from him and the rest of the I.G.A. Don't worry, I'm not going to start something I can't be sure that I can end," Danny reassured his mother easily. He then turned and pushed the door open.

"Try to find a cure though. If we can start fighting this disease then it will be a lot easier. They're running out of room here," Danny added with concern. Maddie and Jack nodded with serious expressions. Then the halfa was gone. Danny walked away from the front doors and made sure he was a good distance away from the building before holding up a glowing green hand to make a portal.

He paused though when he felt a surge of worry from the crown. He dropped his hand and stopped the flow of energy. He sighed softly and mentally touched the crown's energy.

"Alright, what's wrong? I've been treated and I'm going to be careful. You're still worried. Why?" Danny muttered. The crown sent a pulse of unease through him. He raised an eyebrow.

"What's upsetting you? Ulfric? He's always like that," Danny retorted, trying to decipher what the crown was trying to tell him. The crown agreed with him but he also felt that he was wrong at the same time. Suddenly Danny understood.

"It's what he said isn't it? The whole thing about me being the cause of this disease," Danny realised. The crown sadly agreed with him. Danny sighed.

"I told Ulfric and I'm telling you. If I was the cause then this disease would have happened years ago. I can't be the reason this disease exists. But… saying that, he does have a point. This disease has been caused by something new in the Ghost Zone," Danny remarked. The crown fluttered worriedly. Danny frowned.

"What?" he prompted. He got the impulse to think of his people.

"Oh! You're worried about what the ghosts will think if Ulfric starts spreading that idea," Danny gasped in understanding. The crown sent a powerful pulse of agreement through him. Danny sighed.

"Look, there's nothing I can do about that right now. I have to deal with this disease. Once the crisis is over, everyone will settle down. They're just scared. That's all," Danny reassured the crown. The crown fluttered with uncertain agreement but its worry decreased. Danny smiled.

"Alright, now I'm gonna make that portal. I'm not looking forward to Sam seeing me. She's gonna have a fit," Danny mumbled, smirking as he felt the crown tremble with amusement.

Ethan sat beside his sister in her bedroom. His mother sent him there to keep Lilith company for a little while. Both children were scared though. Especially Ethan. He knew his father could fight and he was strong. But it sounded like there were a lot of challengers at the Hospital wanting to fight Danny. And Ethan knew that his father was already tired. It was rare for his father to fall asleep on the couch. Lilith had been devastated to learn that she missed a visit from their father. She cried for twenty minutes. But then again, the six year old was really tired from not sleeping well. Lilith was likely to overreact to minor upsets. Currently, Ethan and Lilith were playing a game of tea party, surrounded by plush toys. But neither child was invested in the game. Their thoughts kept drifting to their father and the fear of losing him.

"I don't want daddy to leave," Lilith mumbled sadly, her purple eyes filling with tears again. Ethan sighed softly.

"Well he probably won't have to. I mean, he did say it was a last resort right?" Ethan reasoned unconvincingly. He felt the same, but he was the oldest, he had to comfort Lilith as best he could. Lilith sniffled and nodded, sloppily wiping away her tears as they began to fall. Ethan frowned sympathetically. He knew his mother was barely holding it together with the worry and honestly he was just as frightened as his sister. But they had to stay strong. He put down the plastic pink cup on the lilac carpet. Sam refused to have pink floors or walls in her house, so lilac was the closest she'd allow. Ethan stood up and stepped around the toys and plastic cups and teapot to kneel beside his younger sister. He pulled her into a hug gently and rocked her slowly. Lilith began wailing as she let her sorrow and fear out.

After a few minutes Lilith started to calm down again. She kept having these breakdowns. Sam said it was just because the girl was exhausted and couldn't hold in those overwhelming emotions. Not that their mother wasn't concerned and wanted to be there for her children, but she knew that if Lilith could sleep, then the girl would be better able to cope with the situation. Lilith carefully pulled herself out of the hug and wiped the lingering tears away, wiping her wet hands dry on her jeans. Ethan smiled sadly at his sister.

"I know you're scared Lil, but so am I. So's mom and secretly I think dad is too. But we have to be strong. Dad told us it was only a last resort. Remember?" Ethan muttered reassuringly. Lilith nodded, humming in understanding.

Suddenly Ethan felt a sharp pulse in his mind. Danger! He jumped to his feet in alarm, pulling Lilith to her feet.

"What's wrong?" Lilith instantly questioned.

"I… I dunno. I just have this feeling that we're… in trouble," Ethan answered softly. He didn't want to scare Lilith but he had this unbelievably powerful urge to run and shout for help. It took all his willpower to stay where he was standing. He didn't understand this feeling. He didn't want to make a fuss and frighten his sister unnecessarily. But that impulse was getting harder to ignore. The danger was getting closer. He could feel it. Suddenly the window smashed open and two ghosts jumped into the room. One was a cross between a panther and a wolf with a dog-like head but feline tail. The other was a blob with a broad mouth and five pupil less red eyes. But the thing both children noticed was both ghosts had large mouths filled with sharp teeth.

Ethan was frozen with fear. He instantly remembered his encounter in the I.G.A. interrogation room. However Lilith had a different reaction. She screamed. The high-pitched yell attracted both ghosts' attention. Ethan gasped, snapping out of his fearful trance, pulling his sister towards the door. He should have listened to that feeling. Now it was blaring. They were in danger. They were powerless! The wolf-panther cross jumped across the room and blocked the door. Ethan and Lilith stopped. Ethan remembered what his father did in this situation. He pushed his son behind him and acted as a human shield. True, Danny had also formed a ghost shield, which neither child could do. But Ethan recalled his father's order. Look after his sister. Ethan pushed Lilith behind him and backed away from both ghosts stalking towards them. Both children were shaking with fear. They understood what had happened. These ghosts were rabid. They were infected and if help didn't come then they would be killed. Ethan silently willed his mother to run upstairs and into the room but then he realised something. His mother was even more vulnerable. At least he and his sister could turn intangible. Their mother was completely human and couldn't do that.

The blob lunged and Ethan scowled with determination. Instincts he never knew he had kicked in. He shifted his weight and as the ghost came closer he stepped forward, ramming the ghost back a few feet with his shoulder. He was never more grateful for his inhuman strength. But his move had left Lilith open for attack and the wolf-panther ghost charged forwards to take advantage of it. Ethan knew he wouldn't be able to run back to Lilith in time. However out of nowhere a flash of green energy blasted the ghost into the dresser, destroying it and sending clothes flying. Ethan's gaze flicked to the bedroom door. No one was there. The blob growled loudly and Ethan returned his attention to the fight. He lifted his hands, fisting them ready to punch the rabid ghosts. He gasped loudly though. Because his right hand was glowing bright green.

He quickly retreated back to his defenceless sister. She was crying and shaking with fear. Ethan swallowed worriedly. He must have blasted that ghost himself but he didn't know how he did it and the glow around his hand was steadily fading now. Ethan also knew that he didn't know how to fight. Sure he'd seen movies with fight scenes but he'd never been trained. He was working purely on instincts right now. And instincts only got you so far. Eventually, his luck would run out or the ghosts would overpower him. Ethan set his jaw though. He was not going to give up though. He was the son of Danny Phantom. This was in his blood. He just needed to figure out how to channel that natural ability. And quickly.

The blob seemed reluctant to lunge at Ethan again but the wolf-panther quickly recovered from the hit. It got back to its feet and snarled at Ethan angrily. Ethan gulped nervously but held his ground. He'd accidentally backed himself and Lilith against a wall that led outside. They couldn't phase out to safety. Not without falling two storeys. Also Lilith was terrified. Ethan doubted his sister would be able to focus her limited powers enough to phase through the wall and then catch herself fast enough to float to the road outside. And Ethan didn't know how to transfer his powers to others like his father could. Their only option was to stand and fight until help got to them. Hopefully Ethan could hold out long enough for that to happen.

The wolf-panther charged unexpectedly. Ethan gasped and took two steps forward to get close enough to punch the ghost back. The ghost was thrown a few feet back again, this time landing on the plastic tea party and plush toys. But while Ethan dealt with the wolf-panther, the blob lunged at an unprotected Lilith. She screamed. Ethan spun around to see the blob ghost land on his sister. She shrieked in fear and struggled but she wasn't strong enough to throw the ghost off herself. Ethan took a step towards her to intervene but the wolf-panther recovered faster from the punch than the blast. It charged at Ethan once again. Ethan only turned in time because the ghost gave a roar before it attacked.

Danny stepped out of the portal into his backyard. He collapsed the portal and sighed as deeply as his injured ribs would allow. He crossed the lawn and knocked on the backdoor, spotting Sam in the kitchen making something for dinner. Sam paused and turned to the backdoor. She grinned broadly as she saw who knocked and eagerly opened the door before gasping at her husband's condition.

"What happened!?" she exclaimed, stepping outside and closing the door behind her. Danny chuckled weakly.

"I won a fight," he answered. Sam raised an eyebrow and folded her arms.

"Are you sure? Because you look terrible," Sam retorted.

"Yeah. It was against Ulfric. He convinced a bunch of ghosts to challenge me. Actually I'm furious about that. He didn't explain what challenging me meant. None of the ghosts knew how a challenge worked. But I've been treated and I'll be better in no time. But I have some news," Danny replied.

"What kind of news?" Sam prompted worriedly.

"It's about the disease. Mom and dad figured out how it's contagious. An infected ghost has to b-" Danny began to inform his wife but was interrupted by his ghost sense.

Danny and Sam blinked at the blue mist as it floated up into the air and dispersed.

"Is Dani here?" Danny wondered. Sam shook her head.

"Maybe a ghost nurse is here or Skulker came to give you an update," Sam suggested. Danny shook his head.

"I just came from the Hospital and Skulker was there taking a break. It's not either of them," Danny told her. Sam frowned and opened the back door to head inside and call Jazz. Maybe the Ghostkateers were chasing a ghost nearby. A high pitched scream cut through the house, turning both Sam and Danny's blood cold. Their daughter was in danger. Danny phased up through the ceiling into his and Sam's bedroom and then through the wall into Lilith's room. Lilith's room was at the front of the house.

Danny's eyes widened in alarm. Both of his children were being attacked by a ghost. Obviously rabid ghosts. Ethan was on his feet, punching and kicking a ghost that was a cross between a wolf and a panther. The ten year old was holding his own but Danny could tell that the ghost was leading that fight. But Lilith was on the ground, pinned down and trapped in a corner. Glass from a shattered window lay everywhere and a lot of furniture had been crushed. Danny heard Sam thundering upstairs behind him. He ignored his injures and jumped into action. He blasted the wolf-panther with his ghost ray. Ethan looked up at him and smiled gratefully before he turned to Lilith as she cried out in pain. Danny's heart skipped a beat. He couldn't risk blasting the blob ghost over his daughter. The shot could miss and gravely injure his daughter. He jumped into the air and lunged at the blob ghost. He wrestled the ghost off his daughter and threw it out of the window. Sam charged into the room holding a thermos and an ecto-gun. Her purple eyes were narrowed dangerously as she aimed both devices at the recovering wolf-panther. She shot the ghost with her gun and then sucked it into the ghost capturing device.

"Sam!" Danny shouted and Sam threw the thermos to her husband before sprinting to her whimpering daughter. Danny caught the thermos and rocketed through the window into the street below. The blob slowly peeled itself out of the crater it created and snarled at Danny. Danny growled savagely back and blasted the ghost aggressively again. He then sucked the ghost into the thermos and slammed the lid down firmly. He clipped the thermos to his belt and flew back into his daughter's room. Ethan ran back into the room holding the family first aid kit and handed it to his mother. Danny knelt beside his wife and looked to see a massive bite mark on his daughter's shoulder. Danny froze in horror.

"It means that it's transmitted by biting. An infected ghost must bite an uninfected ghost for the disease to spread," Maddie's voice echoed in his mind.

Did anyone see that coming?

What will Danny do now?

And has anyone seen the similarity of this disease to most renditions of a zombie apocalypse?

Yeah, I wanted to write my own version and it just clicked with this story. I wanted Danny to be the one dealing with it and I liked the idea of the disease coming from the ghosts. Then I thought of- well you'll have to wait for the rest of my thought processes.

Let me know what you guys think of the story so far.

Until the next chapter.