(I know my space science isn't super accurate but this is fiction guys :P)
"Daniel," a voice murmured from behind him, "While I'm glad I caught you red handed, I'm rather disappointed you didn't catch on."
Danny, still invisible and intangible, whipped around to find Plasmius's large figure floating about twenty feet away. The man shook his head at the boy and crossed his arms, ever so slowly floating closer.
"I call it the Phantom Highlighter, or Philighter for short," Vlad explained. "A useful little chemical I extracted from massive, carnivorous glow worms in the Ghost Zone. When these particular creatures bite someone, the chemical enters the bloodstream and latches onto their ghostly essence, creating its own independent light source that can't be hidden by the prey. This allows the worms to hunt down and kill them. All I had to do was find a way to insert it inside your bloodstream, and I had to look no further than the food you must miss so terribly."
The boy swore under his breath, giving the older halfa the angriest glare he could muster. He soon realized that it had no effect on his enemy- after all, he was still invisible. Plasmius could only see the soft green light, not his actual body.
Danny shot up into the sky.
"Leave me alone for one day, you creep," he mumbled under his breath, tripling his flight speed in only five seconds. "Clingy, unstable maniac."
"Daniel!" Vlad shouted from below, momentarily shocked that the boy would even attempt the flight, "Come down! Now!"
Danny had no intention of slowing down, of course, but he did intend for this night to be different. Up until a few minutes ago, he thought he could enjoy the luxury of a silent, free flight. Though his plans were shattered, however, a new idea bloomed in his mind- one that was even more drastic than before. If he was already constantly glowing, Vlad would always see him in his ghost form as long as he was in the man's visibility range.
One one hand, it was a drawback against his privacy. From here on until he got back to Earth, Plasmius would likely be following him the entire way. However, if he played his cards just right, Danny could turn the glow into a safety net, assuring that he would always be watched in case something happened to him. This would mean that if his powers somehow faltered, the older halfa would be forced to save him- something the boy considered a win. Another positive aspect to the glow was that if it kept a highly intelligent person with at least some knowledge of advanced astronomy on his ghostly tail, it would mean that Danny could fly just about anywhere he wanted without the fear of getting lost.
Including the moon.
"This is such a dream," the teen whispered to himself, realizing Vlad had unknowingly tricked himself into becoming his personal lifeguard. "I wonder what it's going to be like to land on there."
"DANIEL!" Vlad shouted, increasing his speed of flight, "WHERE ARE YOU GOING? I CAN SEE YOU ALL THE WAY! DO YOU REALIZE THAT?"
"I sure do!" the boy exclaimed, tripling his speed. By now, he could only see sparkling lights from below, unable to tell apart state borders in the darkness. The stars twinkled above him, seemingly calling out to him as if they were eager for his presence. Thought Danny knew flying to one of them was pretty much impossible, he imagined what it would be like to fly right into one. His other celestial guide, the moon, shone brightly with the reflected light of the sleeping sun, only a quarter of it remaining black.
"DON'T MAKE ME DO SOMETHING YOU'LL REGRET!" an increasingly worried Vlad yelled, already feeling the unwelcome cold around his fire core.
"Like what?" the younger halfa shouted back, watching as they approached a familiar layer of clouds. "Gonna call your dumb birds? Stay for the ride, old man!"
Danny shot through the fluffy clouds with glee, letting himself go tangible just to feel the fresh wetness on his suit. The moisture invigorated him and cooled his body down, comforting his Ice core. The moonlight was even more intense up above, and he doubled his speed, keeping his eye on his target. One way or another, he was going to be the first ghost on the ancient rock above.
"I SWEAR TO YOU, DANIEL, YOU WILL REGRET THIS!" his enemy threatened. "YOUR ACTIONS WILL HURT EVERYONE! YOU, ME, YOUR PARENTS-"
"My parents have nothing to do with this, you psycho!" the white haired ghost interrupted, again doubling his speed. By now, he could tell that they were slowly beginning to leave the Earth's lower atmosphere- he could feel the pressure on his body slowly thinning, and it became even easier to increase his speed. He did so with vigor, even more strengthened by the new cold around him.
"THEY HAVE EVERYTHING TO DO WITH THIS!"
Vlad retorted. "WHAT WOULD YOUR MOTHER THINK?"
"You're the one always obsessed with what my mom thinks!" the boy pointed out, soon seeing the horizon. "Why don't you tell me?"
"YOU'RE NOT TAKING ME SERIOUSLY, DANIEL!"
Danny laughed. "What was your first clue?"
The child' breath hitched as he saw the edge of his home planet come into view- only this time, there was no sunset behind it. Only pure darkness, save the stars that littered the universe. He thought he saw a planet or two, but from this high up, it was hard to tell where to even begin accurately tracking them. It was best to keep his eyes on the moon. It was growing ever nearer, and the cracks and craters shaping its surface became increasingly clearer. It was almost as if he had entered a different, dark dimension, where all astronauts dreamed they could-
Vlad was muttering something in the background.
"Did he lose his voice?" the younger halfa whispered to himself, carefully turning his head back to watch the mayor's actions. "What is he doing?"
Plasmius was holding what appeared to be a phone, pressing it against his ear and having a conversation with someone on the other end. At first, the randomness was enough to make Danny raise a brow and nothing more. He never even knew that Vlad had brought a phone with him at all. Soon, however, the absurdity of the situation made the boy giggle.
"Dude, that's pathetic!" the teen informed the older halfa, doubling his speed yet again. "There's no signal up here! You can't trick me into thinking you're having an actual conversation on a phone in space! How dumb do you think I am?"
Vlad said nothing, continuing to speak on the phone. What was even stranger, however, was how the man began to grin as he chatted.
"Yeah, he's definitely lost his mind... again," Danny sighed, staring up above. At this pace, it wouldn't be long before he reached the moon. Perhaps he would meet his goal in as little as ten minutes.
"I don't think you're dumb, Daniel," Plasmius suddenly answered, turning off the phone. His voice was eerily smooth- a sharp contrast from his panicked yelling earlier. "At least, not for a fourteen year old. You're simply unprepared."
The boy didn't dare turn around, feeling that something was very off about the situation. "What does that mean?"
"I have backup, unlike you. Since you clearly won't listen to me, perhaps you'll listen to your parents. I called them and told them that you went missing. They've just checked your bedroom and saw for themselves that I'm telling the truth."
Danny shook his head. "Ugh, we've been over this. I'm not stupid enough to think you actually have signal in space. We're at the edge of the atmosphere!"
"Ah, but I have a satellite phone. You know as well as I do that they work just fine in space."
The teen's blood froze.
"You... didn't," the child gasped, unknowingly slowing down from shock. "I can't believe-"
"I told you not to make me do something you'd regret, didn't I?" Vlad responded, smirking. "You've left yourself with only two choices. One, you can fly as far as you want- but the longer you take, the more you'll have to try to explain to your parents who are currently worried sick. Unlike last time, you can't fool them into thinking you were home. Two, you can settle back down to earth right now, and I'll explain everything away, as well as place a temporary lock on your powers."
Danny stared longingly at the giant white rock above. "You ruined everything."
"What does "everything" entail, Daniel? What were you actually planning to do tonight?"
"Be the first ghost on the moon."
Plasmius let out a laugh, startling Danny. "I had no idea you would be so bold today, my boy. I wonder if fear and desperation drove you to it. Nonetheless, you'd better make your choice fast. We've already left the Earth's atmosphere entirely."
The teen gasped.
For the first time, he was truly in outer space.