You cannot run from your fears. They are faster than you will ever be.
The Nightmare
A Danny Phantom FanFiction by Cordria
Chapter 9 – Out of Time
He raced through the house, not even thinking about who was there. He needed to find the key. He needed to find it before that evil creature did. A thousand questions tore through his mind, not the least of which was the question of what the key was.
As he ransacked the lab, tossing equipment into the air, looking for some sort of hint, a thought passed through is mind. It made him stop, holding the Fenton Fisher in mid-toss. Where was everybody? He had only seen his mother and the creature. Where were his dad and sister? What about his friends? Why weren't they in this dream?
Finally, he tossed the modified fishing pole over his shoulder and grabbed another piece of equipment, dropping that line of thought. He stared at a Fenton Thermos, then dropped it with a crash onto a pile of junk. He wasn't going to find any answers in the lab. He knew it down deep inside of him.
He slowly moved up the steps, feeling more and more drained of energy as time progressed. He meandered through the house, trailing his fingers over railings and tables. The house was still empty. It was quiet – a sort of unreal quiet that only happened in movies or in bad dreams.
He paused for a few moments in his sister's room. It looked like it hadn't been lived in for months. Almost like Jazz didn't exist. Why hadn't his mother noticed? Was she just a piece of the dream or was she trapped here somehow too?
His mother's room was a different story. The bed was still rumpled from last night, and there were dirty clothes in the corner. None of his father's things were touched. Just his mothers'. He wondered if she realized that there were people missing from her life. What had the creature done to her?
In the living room, he flopped down on the couch and closed his eyes. He was so tired, and the search was hopeless. It would just be a matter of time before that evil creature came back and destroyed him. He opened his green eyes and sighed. He might as well spend it doing something interesting. He reached for the remote to the TV that was sitting on the bookshelf nearby, wondering if this dream world got more than just basic cable.
He stopped, staring at the pictures sitting beside the remote. He got up and stood next to the bookshelf and picked up a handful of photos. He dropped them, one-by-one, until he was left with only one in his hands. The picture of him and his mother. A small smile came unbidden to his face as he remembered the smiles and laughter of that day. He brushed off a small layer of dust, then he tilted the picture slightly so he could see his reflection in the glass.
He gazed at his reflection in horror. His insubstantial-ness was gone, and the glowing energy surrounding his body was rapidly vanishing. Then, it was gone as well. That was it. The last of his ghost powers were gone.
"Ghost," he heard the creature speak from behind him. "I figured it out. Time is up."
He didn't even pause long enough to take a breath before he took off running. He dropped the picture and sprinted for the door. He heard the sound of breaking glass as it hit the floor. Tears blurred his vision as he moved, for he knew very well that there was no place to run.
To be continued...
Disclaimer: The probability of me actually owning Danny Phantom is about the same as me writing a decent-sized chapter in this story (as in nil). Please enjoy and check out my other stories too.
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