Chapter 10- If You Can't Take the Heat
"If you want something you've never had, you have to do something you've never done"
Maddie sighed in frustration as she set down her mini phillips-head screwdriver. Two weeks. She'd spent two weeks tinkering with the ecto-skin and yet she didn't feel like she had much to show for her efforts. The circuitry was finished and the internal structure seemed to be functioning fine with no leaks or sparks. Maddie was almost positive she had all the electronic components working properly but the darn thing refused to do anything. The most Maddie had been able to accomplish was getting the hand to give off a faint glow. If that was a precursor to one of Danny's powers or if that was it she hadn't the slightest clue. She needed to try something else.
Or maybe she needed someone else to try and Maddie knew just the person.
She didn't have to go very far. Danny was glued to the living room couch watching TV with Jazz. Maddie paused for a minute observing the two of them.
It was nice to see them getting along these days. The bickering was still there and so were the verbal jabs but everything was softer and more playful. Danny and Jazz had never had a special connection like some siblings, particularly twins, and as time went on the mutual tolerance they had for each other slowly lessened. It really seemed for a while that Jazz was only interested in Danny as a subject that she could practice psychological analysis and giving 'professional' advice to. Understandably Danny didn't appreciate being told what Jazz thought was wrong with him and his patience evaporated into nothing.
That relationship changed after the accident. Ever since Danny's hospitalization Jazz had become more protective and made an effort on her part to help Danny (even if it was unwanted). Those efforts had redoubled again a few months ago. She couldn't be sure but Maddie had a feeling Jazz had discovered her brother's secret around that time as well.
"Danny, do you think I could borrow you for a second?"
He glanced at Jazz and she shrugged. "Sure Mom."
Danny quietly followed his mom down to the lab and frowned when she handed him the project she'd been working on nonstop for half a month. "Uh Mom? What exactly do you want me to do?"
"I want you to give it a shot." Maddie stated point blank.
"What makes you think I'll have any better luck than you? It's your invention I don't know how to work it."
Maddie reached for an acceptable lie because how was she supposed to explain that she expected Danny to be able to use Phantom's powers? And perhaps he was right. For all she knew Danny wouldn't be very apt at using his powers like this. He had never used or needed a medium to access them before. "You've been around Phantom a lot I thought maybe you might be more familiar with how he uses his abilities. You've talked with him about them I'm sure. He's the closest thing to a superhero any of us are going to see and what person wouldn't be curious?"
"Oh. I uh- I guess I've talked with him. I don't think I understand how they work any better than you but um... maybe I could give it a go?" Danny said unsure. "What am I supposed to do?"
Maddie shrugged as she handed Danny a Fenton Phone. "If I knew what to do I wouldn't be looking for new sources of inspiration. Put it on and try thinking about something you've seen Phantom do. There's a microchip in that Fenton Phone which should transmit your thoughts to the glove. It's simple enough but I haven't had much luck."
Danny put the phone in and the glove on. 'Knowing my luck I'm gonna blow up Mom's invention. Maybe intangibility is a good starting point. I can't accidently damage anything and Mom already has an idea of what that feels like so it should be easier to copy than anything else.'
"So I just have to think about it and it should work?"
"That's the idea."
Danny nodded. 'Simple enough. Though I'm not sure how I'm supposed to explain this to her. I gave her the best technical explanation I could before. Creating the energy is something you just have to feel for yourself.'
Maddie watched Danny stare at the ecto-skin clearly mulling something over. "Here goes nothing."
Nothing seemed to happen. "Is it working?" If the glove didn't respond to Danny who was naturally attuned to the ectoplasm inside it then Maddie knew she had a problem. In a sense this was the best way to test that everything mechanical was working. 'I should have had Danny test it last week. At least then I'd have known for sure if it was me or the circuitry coming up short.'
"I think it's working."
Maddie stared at the glove expecting to see something but nothing appeared different. "What are you trying to do?"
"Well we've both experienced intangibility so I figured that'd be the easiest thing to try."
'That actually makes sense. Maybe trying to fire ecto energy was a bit too advanced for me.'
Danny brought his hands together and his right slipped through his left. "Yep, it's working."
Maddie crossed her arms and rested her right hand on her chin. "What's it like?" She asked trying to get a sense of what she was doing wrong. "Is there a trick to it?"
"No tricks mom. It's something that you just need time to figure out. Time and lots of patience and practice."
xXxXxXxXxXx
The sound of shattering glass and food splatting on the floor echoed in the kitchen for a second. "Really Mom another one? Maybe you should take it off until you can control it properly." Jazz suggested.
"I'm not taking the glove off until I have this down pat Jasmine. That's the point of me wearing it none stop. I need it to feel natural." She said walking into the living room to get a broom and dust pan.
Jazz took the time to shoot Danny, who was shaking with restrained laugher, a dirty look. Some giggles started escaping him and she elbowed him in the side before getting up to grab the roll of paper towels on the counter. "This isn't helping!" She hissed. "What's so funny about Mom wasting some of the only edible food she's ever made and breaking all the ceramics in the house?! I'll have you know that was the plate I made her in pottery class when I was five!" Mindful of the glass Jazz got to work cleaning up the food.
Unable to hold it back any longer Danny started laughing in earnest. "Sorry, sorry. It's just- I think it's funny seeing someone go through what I went through for several months. You don't understand the hell my ghost half put me through while I was trying to get things under control. Intangibility was especially rough; I'd phase through seats, tables, walls I was leaning on, my bed, even the floor. Not to mention the fact that I was banned from handling any sort of delicate lab equipment after breaking 34 beakers. I think I'm getting some trust back in that area but believe me I went through my fair share of mishaps so I think it's beyond funny watching someone else put up with it."
"Yeah? Well as someone who hasn't had that experience I can tell you it's not funny for the rest of us, so can it."
"Thanks for the help Sweetie." Maddie said entering the kitchen. She knelt beside Jazz and started picking up the bigger shards of plate. "I think I know what caused it this time. The plate got too hot in the microwave so when I grabbed it my immediate thought was 'I need to get this out of my hands' and it just phased through."
Jazz nodded. "Sounds like you reacted on instinct."
Danny looked at Jazz and frowned. "It would take a lot longer for it to be ingrained as instinct. Mom's not used to having that as an option so her head isn't gonna reach for the idea like it's second nature. I think the discomfort and urgency is what triggered it."
"Fascinating speculation both of you but I'm not sure it makes a huge difference. I think this just proves that I'm not gonna be getting any usable results with civilian use which means I should be trying combat situations instead."
"That's too dangerous and besides it's the stress in those situations that kick start the powers. Just replicate that."
"Danny I'm not sure stress is the right answer but even if it is it's focused in those cases. Do you know what would happen if there wasn't an outlet to direct the energy?"
"I think I have a pretty good idea."
xXxXxXxXxXx
The four Fenton's sat in the living room as Maddie explained that she wanted to try testing the ecto-skin in a real life situation. Her argument was well thought and reasonable enough. The experience could come in handy for everyone and going together as a family would mean more protection for everyone, herself included if the glove still didn't want to cooperate. The icing on the cake as she presented it was that this could be a wholesome family activity.
"Maddie that sounds like a fantastic idea! We haven't done family ghost hunting in… actually we've never done it so this is the perfect opportunity! Think of all the fun we could have blasting those spooks apart. I'll get the weapons from the vault and then we can leave!" Jack shouted sprinting out of the living room.
Despite the fact Danny agreed with his mom on all points he still didn't feel like it was a good idea. It would be harder to transform with his parents around and what if something happened? "Am I the only one who thinks this is a bad idea?" He asked rhetorically to himself.
"Honey I think this family can handle a ghost or two and it would mean a lot to your father if you two went. I know he embarrasses you guys from time to time but he means well and this is his passion. It's mine to and I would appreciate it if you came with us. Who knows, you might like it."
"Yeah Danny. Besides there can't possibly be any dangerous ghosts to run into. I bet Phantom's already been on patrol and taken care of them." Jazz said winking discretely.
OK maybe that was his main problem with going tonight. He didn't know who was around and that could potentially be an issue. "Or maybe he was busy today and didn't get a chance to do it yet. He has hectic days like everybody else and believe me today has been one hell of a day."
"Relax you two. I'm sure it will be a fun, uneventful night. What's the worst that could happen?"
xXxXxXxXxXx
True to Maddie's prediction the patrol was turning out to be uneventful. Systematically the Fenton's drove up and down Amity's quiet streets one by one and much to Danny's surprise, and great relief, the town for the most part was empty of ghosts. So far his Dad had taken down some janitor looking ghost who was trashing an appliance store and Danny ran into Dora at the mall. Fortunately for her, Danny was able to sneak away and talk to her without Jack and Maddie, or their weapons, getting involved.
As they were heading home a huge plume of ashy smoke caught Jazz's eye. "What is that?" She asked sticking her head out the window.
Jack came to a stop so he could get a better look. "It's smoke. Looks like it's by the shopping district." He said after a moment.
"But what could be burning? We were just over there 20 minutes ago and nothing was wrong."
"I don't know Jazzy pants but we're gonna find out."
The RV sped off towards the smoke stack. Within minutes they arrived in front of a building doused in flames that licked the night sky.
The Fenton's got out and examined the old half finished building. Whatever company had started building the thing had originally intended for it to be an apartment building. Unfortunately the company went bankrupt halfway through construction. After many years it was in bad shape from lack of use and maintenance. Wooden boards were bolted across more than half the windows and stray pieces of graffiti littered the brick exterior. Maddie instantly recognized the place and marginally relaxed. "I think this is the condemned building the mayor was planning on renovating at some point next year. There shouldn't be anyone inside. Boy it's a good thing it was this building and not one of the others that caught fire. Why don't we phone this in and then go home? This looks more like a job for the fire department then us."
As reassuring as the statement was meant to be Jazz suddenly paled. "This is the building they're planning on remaking into the ghost museum? Mom you don't understand a lot of teens hang out here when they don't feel like they can go home. I know half a dozen people who spend at least one night a week here. They could be trapped inside. We need to get in there and help."
Maddie frowned. "Jazz sweetie even if there're people inside there's not much we can do. We're ghost hunters not firemen, our equipment isn't going to do us any good." She didn't like standing on the side lines when people could be in danger but she didn't want to put her family at risk.
A chill ran up Danny's spine despite the heat from the fire and a blue mist escaped his mouth. 'I think this might fall under our area of expertise after all.'
A sudden scream split the air, one that Jazz recognized. "Mom that was Spike. He's inside."
"Who?"
"That troubled teenager I was counseling. You know, the one you guys kidnapped me in front of?" At her parents blank look Jazz threw her arms up. "I don't have time for this I have to do something." She made a run for the building but Jack grabbed her arm. She struggled but Jack kept a firm grip on her.
"Jazz I know you want to help but you're not going to be able to do anything. If anything you're just going to trap yourself inside and then need rescuing as well. Maddie call 911. We'll wait here for them."
Suspecting that firefighters weren't going to be enough Danny approached his Dad. "Dad? Could you check your radar and see if they're any ghosts inside? It seems weird for a building to randomly catch fire, I think a ghost started this."
"Alright Danno." Jack pulled a ghost detector out of his orange jump suit. He stared intently at the screen for a moment before calling his wife over. "Mads I think you need to see this."
Maddie walked over as she finished explaining the situation to the operator. "It's out of control but hasn't spread to any of the other buildings however that might not be the case for very long…The building is on 228 Spooky Street… yes there is at least one person inside… no we haven't tried going inside the building… yes of course we'll let the firemen handle it… yes thank you bye. What's wrong Jack?" She asked hanging up.
Instead of answering Jack handed her the ghost radar. The light on the screen indicating the ghost's strength was big and bright. Maddie mentally compared it to all the ghosts she'd picked up on the device before and shook her head. "That can't be right."
"It would explain how the fire happened so quickly and why it's so big."
Danny looked between his parents. "What's going on?"
"You were right about there being a ghost Danny. Pretty powerful one at that. It's not as strong as Phantom or the Wisconsin Ghost or even the Fright Night but compared to the majority of ghost that Amity sees…"
"I told you we need to help. This isn't a job normal firefighters can handle, they aren't expecting this kind of fire fight."
Maddie stared at the inferno for a long moment. "Jazz is right. We need to get inside that building. 'We' means me and Jack. You two are staying here."
"But Mom-"
"No. Your father and I will handle this. It's too dangerous for you and Danny. Wait in the RV. Your job is to explain the situation to the firemen when they get here."
Maddie and Jack ran into the building leaving the two younger Fenton's behind.
Jazz turned to Danny. "This is nuts! They can't handle this either. Have you seen them in action? Dad can't aim to save his life and as good as Mom is she's never gone up against ghosts with any kind of strength. Not to mention the fact that they're fighting inside a dilapidated building that's on fire! They're gonna get themselves killed we have to go after them."
"We? Jazz I really don't think you should be going in there. Heck Mom and Dad shouldn't have gone in there but I didn't have a good excuse to keep them out. I'm the one who needs to be charging in; not you or them."
"I'm willing to sit back most fights Danny but not this one. I know this kid. I've been helping him for over a year and as confident as I am in your abilities I won't just wait on the side lines this time."
"I'm sorry you won't take no for an answer." Danny said flying into Jazz's body. "This is for your own protection." He flew Jazz into the RV and pressed the emergency safety lock button. Satisfied that she couldn't get out Danny phased out of his sister and the RV.
"I promise I'll get everyone out safely but it's gonna be harder with more people to protect Jazz. You know my ice powers have a very finite limit."
Jazz watched as Danny transformed in a brilliant flash of light and raced towards the fire. "You better." She whispered to the empty air.
…..
Jack sprinted a few feet behind Maddie as he tried his best to keep pace with her. His legs might have been longer but his wife was clearly in better shape and capable of moving at a faster speed. She was also smaller and thus had an advantage in maneuvering around obstacles such as the falling pieces of burning debris.
After what seemed like an eternity in hell the two Fenton's made it to the fifth floor where the goth boy was. It was mostly empty space with a few support pillars and ratty furniture sparsely spaced.
Spike saw the two people in spandex and his eyes widened in alarm. "Stay back! He'll come out if you get to close."
"Who?" Maddie asked stepping forward.
"Me."
A very tall figure dressed in a black and yellow fireman's outfit materialized out of the flames. His eyes were a poisonous green and his hair was badly streaked with black and grey that resembled ash but Maddie could see some blonde underneath. The ghost had freckles that glowed like his eyes across the bridge of his nose and spilled onto his cheeks.
"The names Blazek and I'm bringing this stinkin' building down to the ground."
xXxXxXxXxXx
If asked to realistically find a worse battlefield for fighting a ghost Maddie would have been hard pressed to come up with a good answer. As far as she was concerned this was pretty high on the list of craptastic conditions.
There was a civilian kid they had to worry about. Said kid was on the opposite side of the room with one of the strongest ghosts on record standing in their way. The heat from the fire was sapping their strength at an alarming rate and breathing was getting to be a real issue with the temperature of the air and all the smoke in it. But as bad as those factors were Maddie had one bigger grievance- the rapidly deteriorating structure of the building.
Parts of the floor were missing and Maddie could see more sections getting ready to give way. The large cracks in the ceiling were doing nothing to help alleviate her anxiety about the building. The fight needed to end quickly but they couldn't afford to fire off shots recklessly, miss the ghost, and hit the building. They also couldn't afford to hit the ghost and send him crashing through any walls or support beams.
"Talk about damned if you do damned if you don't."
Grabbing the kid, Spike her mind reminded her, and running was also going to be an issue with Blazek in the way.
Jack noticed Maddie looking around the room and caught on to her train of thought. "Maybe we can make it mad and get it to chase us. Then that goth guy can make an escape."
"I don't think he's got any intention of leaving this area Jack. He has the advantage and he knows it."
The ghost smiled at them. "Planning a way out are we? Should have thought about that before stepping foot on my turf." Blazek made a sweeping motion with his right arm and the flames behind the Fentons barreled into them.
The two were thrown forward towards the ghost and landed at his floating feet. "Madeline and Jack Fenton if I'm not mistaken. You've garnered some attention for yourselves in the ghost community. You're not the best hunters but your inventions can be quite a thorn in the side and what ghost hasn't heard about your lovely portal?"
Based on his speech Maddie figured this was one of the more level headed, intelligent ghosts. Fighting was looking like less and less of a good deal. Slim as the chance might be maybe they could bargain with it and leave.
"Do you have a vendetta with the kid?" Maddie asked calmly as she and Jack climbed to their feet.
"No. He just happened to be here and got trapped when I started lighting the place up. I have no grudge against humans, only the corporate scum bags that led to my death." Blazek remarked bitterly.
"This building is supposed to be destroyed anyway. We don't care if you move up the schedule, all we want is to get the kid to safety. There's no need for a fight."
Jack stared at his wife incredulously as she proposed just letting the evil thing go. Who knew what other atrocities it was going to commit if left to roam free? Even if Jack believed Phantom about not all ghosts being malicious this one didn't seem to fall in that category. What kind of good ghost made a habit of starting fires? And there was no way in hell Blazek was going to let them walk away.
He understood why his wife was reluctant to start an all out battle with the ghost and Jack didn't blame her; he was starting to feel light headed and nauseous. Heat exhaustion or stroke was going to kill them if the ghost didn't beat the fire's extreme temperatures to it. As far as he was concerned they were dead either way unless they took Blazek out fast and somehow managed to escape. Maybe Phantom would show up and make enough of a distraction for him and Maddie to get the kid and get out.
"Smart, very smart. You know you can't win so you're trying to avoid a fight altogether. Unfortunately no one leaves until my work is complete. I may not have wished you any harm but you came up here with the intention of stopping me and I feel some punishment is in order."
Blazek twirled his hand for a moment and a wall of fire surrounded Maddie and Jack.
Jack looked at Maddie and gave her a hard look. "I know we're not in good shape and neither is this place but I don't think we have a choice Maddie. We need to hurry and beat this ghost." He grabbed an ecto blaster from a pocket on his thigh and winced as the hot metal seeped through his gloved hand. "I hope our weapons hold up, they're not meant for use in these kind of conditions."
He fired a shot where he had last seen Blazek. To Jack's disbelief the wall of fire absorbed it and he fired a dozen more in frustration. They all absorbed into the flames tinging their prison green. "All right. Try this on for size." Jack grabbed an ecto grenade from his hip pocket, pulled the pin, and threw it at the fire. It exploded and the concussive shock knocked them back as the flames dissipated.
Maddie pulled out her own ecto blaster and fired twice. Blazek smirked and made no move to dodge the incoming attack much to Maddie's confusion. In an instant Blazek's body morphed into raging red flames and swallowed the energy blasts.
Phantom invisibly phased through the building's brick exterior and watched the mass of humanoid flames consume his parents ecto blasts and paled. 'They aren't going to last long.' He grabbed Spike while Blazek was focused on his parents and vice versa.
Once outside he saw three fire trucks and an ambulance pull up in front of the building. 'Perfect timing.'
"It's Phantom!" One of the paramedics cried spotting him and Spike floating down to the ground. "Get an oxygen tank and some burn ointment stat!"
"The Fentons are in the building, fifth floor." Phantom explained to the people gathering around him no doubt waiting for an explanation. "I've check the other floors and no one else is in the building."
"So why did they run in if you got that one?" A fireman asked pointing over his shoulder to the goth getting fussed over by medics.
"A ghost started that fire. They went in to try and stop it. The Fenton's got here before me so I couldn't keep them from going in."
The person Phantom assumed to be the fire chief nodded. "Do you think you can get Maddie and Jack out? That building wasn't in good shape to start with, and I don't know that it's safe for me to send my men in there especially since they're on an upper floor."
"I'll do my best to help them out. You guys worry about keeping the fire from spreading." Phantom ordered before taking off towards where his parents were.
xXxXxXxXxXx
The grenade Jack threw passed through Blazek and exploded upon impact with the wall. The building shook and a chunk of wall and ceiling fell. "I'm afraid that kind of attack has no effect on me." He remarked.
"How about this?" Phantom cried phasing through the smoking hole and shooting a blast of ice at the ghost. The beam of cold froze Blazek and Phantom flew over to his parents. "You guys need to get out of here now. There are paramedics outside and firefighters too but their chief won't let them inside. You-" the ice exploded. "You need to go, now!"
Blazek regarded Phantom before a sound caught his attention. "Water?" He looked out the hole in the side of the wall. "They're trying to put out my fire!" Flames exploded off Blazek's body and the heat spiked. Jack's knees gave out as Phantom screamed at them to run.
"Jack! Jack you need to get up! We have to leave!" Maddie put her right arm around him and started dragging her husband towards the stairway as he stumbled to his feet.
"Mads…" Jack broke into a coughing fit. "Where's that kid?"
"Phantom got him while we were shooting at the ghost, he's safe Jack."
The two made their way into the stair way as Jack noted something strange. "You seem to be holding up well." He noted taking in her appearance. She was pink and sweating and panting but she didn't seem ready to collapse even while supporting his weigh which seemed strange to him.
Maddie didn't stop to think but silently agreed that it was weird. She felt the tremendous heat but it seemed to be blanketed, as if some cold filter was on her and dampening the temperature before it reached her skin. She also realized she was having less trouble half carrying Jack than she reasonably should be. "Don't look a gift horse in the mouth. One of us needs to be functioning."
The stairs ended and Maddie remembered that they needed to cross the second floor in order to access the stairs that lead to the ground level.
"Who the hell designed these plans?" Jack muttered as they weaved around debris and various burning objects. A tremor passed through the building and Maddie dived with Jack into the nearest stair well just as a few stories worth of ceiling fell where they had been standing.
The falling rubble shook the floor they were standing on and in his poor condition Jack fell, dragging Maddie with him. "Jack we need to get up."
"Maddie, I don't think it's gonna matter. Look."
She turned her head in the direction Jack was staring at and her heart dropped. "No… I don't believe it." The rest of the stairs had collapsed in the last shock wave leaving them trapped.
"I don't feel so good." Jack breathed out fading out of consciousness.
"Jack? Jack!" Maddie started coughing violently and realized the air above them was filled with smoke and the cleaner air on the floor with them was mostly depleted of its oxygen thanks to the fire. "I need to do something." She told herself. "A hole. I need a hole in the wall like upstairs."
She went to grab her ecto blaster only to find it missing. A metal fragment caught her eye. "You have got to be kidding me." It had fallen off her when they made their dive to safety and concrete had fallen on it smashing it to smithereens. Maddie was regretting the decision to only bring one in favor of trying her ecto skin. Maybe Jack had one or two others. Maddie patted him down and found four other weapons including a lipstick blaster. Was that where hers had ended up? She tried it first and wasn't surprised to find that it had short circuited in the high heat. 'Well it's the smallest one we have so it heated up the fastest.' The ecto pistol was next. Then the ecto gun Jack used against Blazek. Finally she tried a spare ecto gun and found that it was semi functional. It's battery however hadn't been charged, how typical of Jack. Maddie got off two weak shots which fractured the wall before the gun died but it wasn't enough.
"I'm not dying like this. A helpless prisoner not even getting a final shot at the ghost causing this mess. Damn it the only thing I have is this useless glove!" Maddie cried ripping it off and throwing it to the ground. All of a sudden that thin veil she had briefly been made conscious of shattered and the heat hit Maddie like a ton of bricks. Something else hit her in that instant as well. 'It was working. I must have been subconsciously trying to access Danny's ice powers to keep cool. Maybe… no we're still two stories up and the firemen don't know to catch us, intangibility isn't an option. I guess that leaves one option.' Struggling to move against the onslaught of heat Maddie put the glove back on and immediately noticed the heat's bite lessen. 'I need to bust the wall open myself.'
She had no idea what would make it work but she was determined to give it her best shot. Maddie closed her eyes and concentrated. She pictured all the energy in the ectoplasm flowing to the center of her palm, collecting and charging, just waiting to be released. A different kind of heat and the feeling of tangible energy in the air forced Maddie to open her eyes. Her hand was glowing with bright green energy and her determination hardened into a sharp resolve. She willed the energy into the wall, smiling in satisfaction as she watched a green beam smash through the brick and kept going a short distance.
A rush of wind pulled the hot deoxygenated smoke filled air outside and after a minute cooler fresher air seeped into Maddie and Jack's little space. 'Ok so air isn't the main concern now. I bought us a few minutes but I need to get us out.' She was aware her options were a little better now that the ecto skin was usable but not by much. Phasing was an option but she wasn't sure she could phase herself and Jack. Even if she could, Maddie knew she wasn't strong enough to lift Jack and carry him out.
Blasting her way out was not gonna work either. There wasn't anywhere near enough time or energy to blast through the rubble. The wall was an option but that still left the problem of getting Jack out. And did the fire department even bother to send nets with their men for this call? She couldn't think of anyway she was gonna get them out.
Pushing her escape plans out of mind Maddie decided to focus on Jack. He hadn't woken up and was wheezing despite the change in air quality. Maddie was worried he was overheating. His face was red and she noted it wasn't just from the heat. The exposed skin had 1st degree burns that were only getting worse with prolonged exposure. His suit was shielding him from a portion of the heat but Maddie knew it wasn't enough. Something was going to give if she didn't get him into cooler conditions soon. She checked his pulse and found it, weak but steady.
'If I can't bring him to the cold then I guess I have to bring the cold to him.' She thought grimly. Maddie leaned Jack up against a wall to help him breath then wrapped her arms around his chest. 'Cold. Think cold.' She took a calming breath and tried imagining the icy shroud expanding to cover Jack. She focused on what it felt like to be cold. To have frost seeping through her jumpsuit and stiffening her numbed limbs. Late December days spent wading through snow to find the perfect tree, bitter January mornings shoveling the driveway, the one time she'd trudged through a blizzard to pick Danny up from elementary school when the roads had been declared off limits to any vehicles. Those memories flashed through her mind.
She sighed in relief a few minutes later when Jack's breathing became less labored. That relief disappeared when Maddie heard several explosions above her and the building started to shake in earnest. Her head whipped around taking in the ominous cracks starting to creep up and down the walls around her like vines. She knew it wasn't going to help but Maddie couldn't help the scream that escaped her as the brick and concrete surrounding her started to fall.
xXxXxXxXxXx
Phantom shot another round of ice spikes towards Blazek who dodged around them. The spikes lodged in the ceiling a moment before the concrete cracked and fell. A tremor passed through the structure as the pieces hit the ground by an emergency exit and continued through the floor and what sounded like the next floor and the one after that.
Blazek blew a fireball in retaliation and Phantom threw up a shield. The blast didn't hit him but the heat from the attack made Phantom drop like a fly. He landed on his back, knocking the wind out of him. Blazek watched Phantom gain his bearings before twirling his hand and locking Phantom in a fire prison similar to Maddie and Jack's. "You're never going to win young Phantom. You're new to your ice powers and they're weak to my fire. You're weak to my fire. Ghosts naturally destabilizes in extreme heat. Ice ghosts are even more susceptible to this due to the nature of their core." He felt his flames sputter as Phantom threw ice beam after ice beam at the wall of fire in the hopes of freezing it. "I'm afraid my fire is more resilient to your attack then regular flames."
Phantom stopped shooting ice when he felt a stabbing pain tear through his core. He hissed in pain and clutched the fabric. "Be careful not to let your ice run dry. You might not enjoy burning alive." Blazek shot several smaller fireballs towards the walls and floor. The building started shaking violently and the ghost looked around before nodding to himself.
"You might want to assist your parents." Blazek suggested as Phantom's cage faded away. "They are still on the second floor."
Phantom was going to ask why he was apparently being let go when a familiar scream rang out. "Mom!" He cried flying towards what felt like a part of himself calling for help.
It could have been the bond between mother and son. It could have been Blazek's flames somehow guiding him. It could have been the part of his core synced up with his mom. He didn't know and he didn't care. Phantom found his parents just as the ceiling and floor gave out. He grabbed his Mom and Dad as he projected a bubble shield around them.
The building collapse on and around them but the ecto shield held up. When everything settled Blazek appeared before the energy dome. "What do you want!?" Phantom snarled feed up the ghost who had nearly gotten him and most of his family killed.
"Nothing. As I told you before I have grudge with humanity and no desire to take lives. My job in life was to save and protect life."
"Then why did you start that fire?"
"I died in this building due to financial corners being cut. It was dangerous and I despised it. My only purpose was to destroy it. That was why I let you remove the child Phantom and why I let you all go."
"So why didn't you let us leave when we found the kid?" Maddie asked shifting out of Phantoms hold.
"I figured you would try and stop me if you had been let go originally. I merely kept you all inside until I was sure the building would fall. You may think what you will of me but my work here is done. Good-bye." Blazek faded from sight and Phantom wasn't sure whether he left or if he had ceased to be now that his revenge was fulfilled.
Adrenaline left his system and Phantom slumped as the shield sputtered and dyed. He winced when his back leaned against a pointy chunk of foundation. "I'm sorry." He said looking up to see Maddie watching him.
She frowned. Her son had saved Jazz's friend and their lives, why was he sorry? "What are you apologizing for?"
"I'm sorry you two almost died. I'm sorry that I left you trapped; I should have flown you out first. And I'm sorry your invention didn't work. I know you were all set to use it."
Maddie gave him a soft smile. "Getting injured and facing death comes with the job. I would think you of all people know that. And you saved us so don't go beating yourself up." She bent over trying to lift Jack and Phantom waved her off. He grabbed Jack by his arms and lifted him gently into the air so his feet were dangling just above the smoldering remains. He flew over to the ambulance and laid Jack on a stretcher for the paramedics.
Phantom returned to Maddie and lifted her next. "As for my invention," Maddie continued. "Well let's just say you saved our lives twice."
'What?"
"The only reason I didn't pass out from heat stroke is because your core was keeping me cool. I managed to cool Jack off as well after he passed out. In a sense you saved us twice, so please don't feel bad." He brought her next to the stretcher were Jack was getting an IV attached and burn cream applied. The medic who finished tapping the needle in place grabbed an oxygen tank from the ambulance and handed the mask to Maddie.
"Thank you." She told the guy.
Phantom watched his parents being attended to for a little then flew back to the RV, after all his mother was likely to want to check on him and Jazz and make sure they knew that she and Jack were fine.
A/N: For those who checked my profile where I periodically update my life & story status I told you I was working on the story and that it wasn't dead and I did not lie. I'm sorry it's been such a long time. Life is busy with college transferring, job hunting to pay for school, helping my boyfriend job hunt as well, cleaning up both our houses, and so much more. My grandma died this early this year, along with one of my high school friends due to complications following a surgery, and I had two of my cats die this year as well. I don't know how far I'm taking this story but I'm not gonna let it die even if updates are only yearly.
Side notes
Jazz and Danny don't seem to have the best relationship in the show until she finds out about the whole superhero thing and even then it doesn't initially get much better. Danny thinks Jazz is an annoying know it all and I figure she might have tried to help at some point and overstepped some boundaries
The Fentons finally get to go ghost hunting as a family! Yeah! An alternate name for the chapter is "Famous Last Words" because really that's what 'what could go wrong' are, the last words before something horrible happens.
Blazek. The antagonists name comes from my boyfriend who did something that hurt my feelings (I don't even remember what) when I was coming up with the 'bad' guy so I made his last name the ghosts name. It also fit. I needed something to put Maddie in a situation where she would use the glove and I figured since Danny is so much stronger than pretty much every ghost that the enemy needed to be fire based so he couldn't immediately come to the rescue and blazek is close to blaze. As for the ghost, I don't picture Blazek as a bad ghost. He died in the building and felt that it needed to be brought down and he personally wanted to do it so he did it. He let everyone go in the end so he isn't evil, more like self righteous.
The ecto-skin. The main point of this chapter was Maddie tapping into Danny's powers and getting the glove to work. Once that happens she can start on a prototype of a full body suit and can fight on more equal footing with Danny. The other thing I wanted to get done was Danny saving Jack. In the original idea Danny was supposed to rush in, in an attempt to save the Fenton's and in the process get critically injured at which point Maddie in 'protective mother' mode would proceed to beat the shit out of whoever they were fighting. I wanted Jack to see that Phantom really is doing this for good reasons because he has some doubt. It didn't quite end up that way but I'm satisfied and happy that the chapter is done.
Enjoy summer everyone and feel free to leave comments, constructive criticism, ideas, or anything else.
~May Rene