"What?" Danny said, starting to really get interested. Anything not concerning his ghost powers immediately left his mind. Danny went into full concentration mode when Raschenda mentioned she thought she knew what happened to his powers.
"According to our spy's information," Raschenda said in her feminine, seductive voice, "the Maldums have taken your power and are attempting to use it to win this war and take over the ghost zone."
Danny's expression dropped. Finding out what happened to his powers only brought another problem to be dealt with now, not to mention a bunch of questions he had to ask.
"Wait a minute," Danny said. "Who are the Maldums? And what did you mean by 'your spies'? And who wants to take over the Ghost Zone, because they apparently have not read an original book in months."
"The Maldums are…guh, I hate it when I have to explain this to the trainees. Vundeter, you tell Danny the whole story."
"The trainees?" Danny said with an obvious tone of confusion in his voice.
"Never mind that," Vundeter said. "Now, as Lady Raschenda wanted me to explain: the Maldums are an organization of ghosts that are becoming power hungry and want to take over the entire Ghost Zone. Our spy came back with information that to make this war easier, they stole your powers so they could use your spectacular ghost strength to help win this war."
"But my powers aren't any greater…well, not too much greater than any of the ghosts I have to fight on a daily basis. Mine alone couldn't give them enough power to win a war!" Danny insisted.
"Do you suppose they stole the powers of other ghosts, Lady Raschenda?" Vundeter asked, turning his head toward his boss.
"Our spy says he found out they only got Danny's power," Raschenda responded in her calm, cool tone.
"Who's your spy?" Danny asked.
"It's not important," Vundeter responded. "What is important is that we're in a war with those Maldums and we have to prevent them from taking over the Ghost Zone and ultimately the world at all costs."
"Uh…yeah," Danny said, getting very confused and not caring about this part. "Well, good luck with that."
"Whatever do you mean by that?" Raschenda asked. "You're fighting, too."
"I'm what!" Danny raged. "I don't think so! I've got enough stuff to worry about as it is! I don't need to go to school knowing I have to help some ghosts I don't even know by fighting in a war against other ghosts I don't even know."
"Do you want your powers back?" Vundeter stepped in, crossing his arms and giving Danny a cold and serious look.
"Of course!" Danny insisted. "But…"
"Then is it settled," Vundeter said. "Lady Raschenda, shall we tell the boy what he must do to get his powers back?"
"This is getting way too complicated," Danny said. "Are you telling me getting my powers back won't be something easy?"
"Easy?" Vundeter said. "Far from it. And getting your powers back is only the beginning of it all. Now, I'm going to ask you one last time, and I only want a 'yes' or 'no' answer. Do you want your powers back?"
Danny sighed in an annoyed and frustrated way. "Yes."
"Then it is agreed," Vundeter said. "Then we shall attack the Maldum base and retrieve your powers back."
"Uh, great," Danny said. "So, how long until we go? Later tonight? Tomorrow?"
"Right now," Raschenda said.
Danny's face dropped at that response. However, he figured the sooner he got his powers back, the better off he would be.
"Since you are unable to fly or use your ghost powers, your only means to get through the Ghost Zone would be to use that weird ship your friends saved you in?" Raschenda asked, making her way down the stairs into the Fenton's basement and towards the portal.
"I guess so," Danny said. "But how come I have to come with you? I have go in unarmed and unable to defend myself, those Maldums will smash me to bits if what you say is true about them."
"That is why we are going to properly equip you," Raschenda said, turning her attention towards the ghost portal and started to try to figure out how to open it. "Vundeter will show you all your weapons and how to use them when we go into the Maldum base to get your powers back."
Danny turned towards Vundeter almost out of instinct. Vundeter continued to give Danny that cold stare, except nodded his head softly as a nonverbal way of saying that he would show Danny the weapons and how to use them.
Raschenda finally figured out how to open the ghost portal. Instantly, the metal door twisted open, revealing a murky, green abyss that was inhabited by the ghosts of the Ghost Zone. The vehicle Danny would drive through the Ghost Zone was sitting right at the entrance to it.
"This is your last chance," Raschenda said, staring into the Ghost Zone. "If you do not wish to follow us into our enemy's lair, then now would be the time to say so."
Danny stammered. He suddenly felt a lot more pressured, just by those words. After a silence of what seemed like forever, he finally said, "I need my powers back, and you guys are my only lead in getting them back. I hope I can trust you guys."
"Splendid," Raschenda said with a smile. "Vundeter, accompany him in the ghost car. I will fly towards the Maldum base. Danny, all you need to do is follow me."
"I'm really trusting you guys," Danny muttered.
Vundeter opened the door on the vehicle for Danny, and Danny quietly went in, nervously glancing at Vundeter as he strolled in. After Danny walked in with fear and suspense wreaking his nerves, Vundeter walked in and shut the door behind him. It was at that moment that Danny knew there was no turning back.
Danny hopped to the controls and tried to turn on the vehicle on. It started, and Raschenda hopped in front of the vehicle and signaled for Danny to start following her. Danny gulped as he slowly started making the vehicle follow Raschenda as she flew through the Ghost Zone.
There were so many twists and turns and Danny had gone deeper into the Ghost Zone than he could ever remember going. He was starting to doubt whether or not Raschenda knew where she was going, or if she was leading him anywhere other than his death.
They finally arrived, but Raschenda instructed Danny to stop a few hundred yards short of the fortress. Vundeter spent a bit of time explaining all the weapons and things Danny was supposed to do and to use them only if he had to.
"All right, listen here, kid," Vundeter said. "These are ghost grenades." Vundeter pulled out what looked like regular live grenades, except they had a greenish glow to it and they obviously didn't let chemical explosions out, but green blasts of energy.
"Now these," Vundeter continued, "are proton lasers. They are very dangerous but can melt the strongest steel and through the thickest concrete." The proton lasers looked like a laser pointer, but when fired, it made a loud sound similar to lasers heard in sci-fi movies.
"And here is what you will have to defend yourself," Vundeter said, pulling out a small looking remote control. "Hit the red button in the middle, and a giant bubble type thing will appear around you. This is a force field that will protect you from any ghost attack that we know of. And trust me, there aren't any new ghost attacks to just be discovered in less than two weeks."
"Got it!" Danny said, taking all the weapons and stuffing them in his pockets. "Now, can we please get this over with?"
Raschenda went invisible and went inside the car. "Take my hand!" she commanded, pushing her hand out towards Danny.
"What? Why?" Danny stammered.
"You want to get through the Ghost Zone, don't you?" Raschenda said. "If you go out like are now, you'll just fall into that infinite abyss. If you take my hand, I can fly you to the Maldum base."
The Maldum base looked like a giant castle floating in the Ghost Zone. It seemed to be easily taller than any of the buildings that Danny had ever seen in his life.
"I have to go into that thing and find my powers?" Danny asked loudly. "You're asking me to find a needle in a haystack! I don't even know what I'm supposed to be looking for! Are my powers in a container or a vial or a giant vat or what?"
"We have no idea," Raschenda said. "Our only knowledge is that they are in here someplace. Shall we go look for them?"
"Do I have a choice?" Danny said, crossing his arms.
Raschenda and Vundeter said nothing. Raschenda grabbed Danny's arm and made them both invisible. They went right through the walls of the vehicle and into the Maldum base, with Vundeter following right behind them.
Danny hoped that to get his powers back he would have had just to do some easy task, at most. Instead, he has to go into the castle of some type of ghost that he heard to be hostile, and he had to find his powers in that giant place and take them back without getting himself killed.
"I don't think I'm going to have any time to finish my homework," Danny sighed as was being flown into the castle.