Oh my goodness, another daily update! I feel like I shouldn't be having this much time to write. I bet have notes to make or papers to write that I'm totally forgetting… whoops.
Shiikun: You'd be surprised how much the reviews an actually influence the story, and I loved the challenge that yours made
Princessbinas: Okay, thanks for telling me that. Luckily I hadn't actually been planning on him having fire, cryokinesis and all. I did read the speculation stuff, which I only mentioned the Reality Trip events. Him teleporting in that episode is still speculation, and in this fic, it is supposed to be a new power, but I thought I'd mention something about it in the past so it's not just suddenly there.
HEB807: Thank you so much for your offer!
Great: Yes he did, a little bit of ghost death irony. And they'll get what's coming to them
Randomphandom: Thanks, and I decided to do that (the lesser known powers) when looking over the wiki because there was so much stuff that we never actually think about or include in fics because it's not used as often
Reptil: Not when he bit him, that's when he injected his ectoplasm, but it was during that fight. I didn't make a big deal of the moment, but there's one point where Skulker grabs Danny's shoulder, and he feels a sharp pain. That's when the device was injected, for lack of a better word
Katpet: It is weird, isn't it? I just thought I'd give Danny his little moment of arrogance, boasting about everything he can do. After all, I did say before he was super proud of his fighting skills. And thanks for the applause :P
LooneyAces: Thanks
Mim1012: Hahah, thanks, and even though this is obviously late, have fun at school.
Potterheads2016: Okay, I just have to say, this made me smile so much and it absolutely made my day
Snoopykid: Thanks, and will do
Sophia the daughter of Nyx: Thanks!
Phantomfanforever: Okay, if you can read my mind, guess what number I'm thinking!
Nesy Girl: Or is she? ;)
ShinyMudkipGal: And now I'm laughing, and my family is staring at me like I'm super weird (even though I already totally am)
GirlFish: As you have wished it, so shall it be ;P
Op Kazuma: A very bad day indeed
InfiniteReader: It makes me so happy to see you say that!
Nikora: I hope I never do
EDIT - HEB807 I would just like to thank you for pointing out my continuity error, and it has now been fixed! A round of applause for you!
Enjoy!
Danny was sitting on the floor at the back of the Speeder. Tucker on his left, Sam on his right, and Danielle sleeping peacefully in his lap. Danny had been growing increasingly anxious about what was going on in Amity Park as the night stretched on, so he had decided to take the still sleeping Danielle from her bed and just carry her. The Ghostketeers had been surprised when Danny had led them to a room, and instead of seeing a girl with tan skin and white hair, they saw a girl with black hair, a red beanie, blue hoodie, and pale skin like Danny. Afterwards they felt ridiculous for being surprised. Danielle had started off as Danny's clone, of course she would have a human form. Maddie had remained outside the room, still adjusting to the fact that she was a grandmother, her baby boy had been experimented on, and the revelation that she had wanted to capture and experiment on her granddaughter in order to lure her son for his own experiments. She kept her eyes downcast in her shame.
Now, driving the Speeder while following Ember's directions, Maddie was still taking care to avoid Danielle. Not because she found her an abomination, which she didn't, but because of Danny's earlier threat. She meant no harm to Danielle now, but Maddie understood that Danny didn't trust her, not completely, so for now she was staying away. And Danny was grateful for that.
Yes, his mother had accepted him, and she seemed to accept Danielle, but Danny understood the mind of a scientist, since he had one. Sometimes, the desire to know something could overcome your own feelings, or your own sense of right and wrong. Until he was sure that Maddie could looked at Danielle without the objective mind of a scientist, he was going to be careful around her. Jack? Not so much. His dad did have the mind of a scientist, but he was also a family man. If Danny considered Danielle to be family, then so would Jack, no questions asked. He probably would never call Dora, or Ember, or Frostbite family like Danny did, but he understood how important those ghosts were to his son.
Sam lowered her head onto Danny's shoulder, and Danny in turn lowered his head onto her, which caused a teasing round of "aww's" to erupt from Tucker. He received a few sharp punches to the shoulder for it. They were almost at the Fenton Portal, so Danny took the time to watch everyone carefully. Lancer and Star had accepted his revelation easily, and Danny wondered if they possibly could have been close to, or could have already, figured out his secret before the events at Sable. It wouldn't have surprised him, given how much he had been giving away recently. Kwan had undoubtedly been shocked, and had apologized to Danny several times over for wailing on him in the past. Danny had waved them off as unnecessary. He always knew that Kwan had never liked to bully people, not that it was an excuse, but Danny knew that his remorse was real. Besides, Danny reassured Kwan that the beatings hardly felt like anything to him, after all he had been through, and it was better that someone like him, who could take it, did, instead of someone like Nathan or Mikey.
It was Paulina and Dash that worried him. They had yet to speak to him, which was definitely not what Danny had been expecting. He thought Dash would scramble to apologize, even if wouldn't totally mean it, for wailing on his hero. Although it was a little vain, he had almost expected Paulina to jump at the opportunity to ask him out. After all, she had been chasing Phantom for a long time, and Paulina still believed that every boy was in love with her, including Danny. Girlfriend or no girlfriend. Although he didn't really want to, Danny decided that he would have to speak to them once they were back in Amity Park, to sort things out.
When the portal was in sight, Danny rose to his feet, Danielle still curled in his arms, and addressed the Ghostketeers.
"For obvious reasons, I would like for my secret to remain a secret. I know that may be hard for some of you," Danny shot a glare at Dash and Paulina, but neither of them reacted. "But my life kind of depends on it. The GIW have been chasing after Vlad ever since he revealed himself, but they haven't been able to find him. Obviously, if they somehow caught wind of my halfa status, they would chase after me, too. And I'm pretty sure I'd be a lot easier to catch."
"What would they want you for?" Kwan asked, confused.
"Kwan, I'm half ghost. Half dead. It's kind of a scientific miracle. Any scientist would want a subject like that to, uh, study," Danny carefully chose his words, not wanted to say 'experiment on,' but he was understood by all, and there were several hasty nods. Minus Dash and Paulina, who were now whispering furiously to each other.
Maddie positioned the Speeder in front of the portal, and jammed her thumb down on the yellow and black button that opened the doors.
Jazz was sitting in front of the generator for the ghost shield, blueprints lying open in her lap. It had to be well past midnight now, and mostly everyone that had taken refuge in Fenton Works was asleep. Children and older folks occupying the beds, couches, and mattresses while everyone else huddled on the floor. There was barely an inch of walking space, and some of the more confident people had even taken to lying down on the stairs. The Ops Centre was off limits, mostly because Jazz didn't want to make that decision without her parents around. But if the Red Huntress sent more people tomorrow, she just might have to.
One of the people that had come to Fenton Works was Officer Jackson, and he had informed Jazz that, before the wraiths invaded, he had sent off a request for GIW presence for a ghost related emergency. A couple hours ago, Jazz had suggested making a second, more urgent call with details of their situation. Shortly after the call was made, the power went out. Fenton Works, luckily, ran on its own, separate power grid, uncreatively dubbed Fenton Electrical, but it kept the ghost shield running, which was all that Jazz could ask for.
She just hoped that the shield at the school had its own power source as well.
Jazz groaned as she tried to make sense of her parent's blueprints. She may have been smart, but science and engineering weren't really her thing. She was trying to expand the shield like her parents had during the Pariah Dark incident, hoping to make it large enough to cover the whole town. So far she having little luck, and she didn't want to start randomly pressing buttons, just in case it should make the shield go away. Giving up, Jazz balled up the blueprints and tossed them over her shoulder. It was eerie being in the wide, empty space of the Ops Centre, while she knew that just below her would be rooms full of snoring and sniffling people, and just outside the shield was a massive skeleton army.
She was thankful that no one appeared to be hurt, but believed it would only be a matter of time before they decided to attack. She wished that Danny Phantom were here, and then remembered with a jolt that Phantom was actually her brother. Jazz had a lot to get used to, and she hadn't even confronted him about it yet. Not that she was able to. She had heard a couple people wondering why Phantom hadn't appeared yet, how typically he would be out fighting before anyone even noticed the ghosts were there. A few pointed out how even Phantom couldn't take on this many ghosts, and most people had ignored the words of those that believed this whole ordeal was his fault.
Jazz shook her head. Of course it wasn't Danny's fault, those people were idiots. Even if she didn't know Phantom was her brother, anyone could see that he always saved people. But what if these ghosts were too powerful for him? No, Danny was a hero. He would never let anything happen to Amity Park, he would do everything in his power to fight back.
Satisfied with her thoughts, Jazz stood and stretched, sliding a panel in the wall back over the ghost shield generator, then made her way back downstairs. She had to move carefully around the halls, stepping over and around the sleeping bodies. She paused in front of Danny's room. His door was open, and a group small children were piled on his bed, clinging to each other, while a few older siblings lay scattered around the bed. She smiled at the scene, then found her eyes drawn to where the portal door would be two floors below.
She was worried for the Ghostketeers. They had been in there for well over a day now, and had so little experience in the Ghost Zone. In fact, they had only actually gone there once before. Jazz started wondering if they had rescued Sam yet, if Danny was okay after his injuries. If he had died.
"No way, not Danny," Jazz huffed, shaking her head. She and her brother may have grown apart in recent years, even more so after his accident, but she knew that he was strong. Not only physically, as she had so recently found out, but he had a strong will as well. If Danny wanted to do something, he would do it. If he believed in something, nothing could sway his mind, and he would stop at nothing to protect his friends.
Jazz remembered when they had been younger, in elementary school. It was the one time that she had ever been bullied, by a middle schooler that, at the time, had seemed to be a lot bigger than her. Definitely a lot bigger than Danny. But when her little brother had seen the older boy pushing Jazz, he had immediately ran forwards, yelling, and tackling him. The kid had been sent home with a bloody nose and a black eye, an impressive feat from a fist so small. Danny, of course, had gotten in trouble, but Jazz had been proud of him. Jack had been too, considering Danny had only been protecting his older sister. While Maddie hadn't necessarily been proud, her punishment for it had been lenient, and Danny had found a chocolate bar in his lunch the next day. Jazz smiled at the memory, and started to quietly reassure herself.
"They'll all be fine. Every bit of evidence in the memoir points to them being fine. Mom and Dad can fight, the Ghostketeers have been trained, and Danny is Danny." Jazz yawned and headed to the living room, moving with extra care while going down the stairs so she didn't jostle any of the sleeping people. It would be a little more than problematic if she scared one of them awake, and they tumbled down the stairs. She picked her way through the room, and found a small space on the floor where she could sleep. Her eyes were just starting to droop when there was a loud thunk and several screams rose up from the lab.
Valerie had been right in assuming that not everyone would fit in the auditorium. But she had also been right that the wraiths weren't stepping onto school grounds. Still, the people scattered in the hallways were volunteers only. At the end of each occupied hall was one of the Ghostketeers, Fenton Foamer in hand with a back-up Anti-creep Stick. They were standing (or sitting) watch throughout the night, occasionally pairing up to patrol outside the school, though never straying too far from any potential entrance should it become necessary to flee. Valerie was the only one who patrolled alone.
She yawned as she circled the school one more time on her board, and quickly snapped her mouth shut. She could sleep she the sun rose and there would be more people to keep watch. The Ghostketeers had discussed what they would do. Most of Amity Park knew of the group of ghost hunters in training, which means they knew that, until the Fentons were found or returned, they were also currently the most knowledgeable people on ghosts. Even if they were kids.
Once everyone was awake, they would ask for volunteers that would be willing to take a crash course in the handling of Fenton Foamers to stand watch at vital points in the school. They honestly hadn't thought beyond that. As long as the wraiths were out there, they couldn't just go marching into the streets with their limited weapons. Then, there were all the people still hiding in their homes.
Valerie scanned the mass of ghosts filling the streets, looking for a very specific one. Although she knew she wouldn't find him among the wraiths.
It upset Valerie greatly that it had taken him saving the whole world for her to see that Danny Phantom wasn't a bad ghost. She hadn't apologized to Phantom, because at the time she had wholeheartedly believed he was the cause of her woes, so her attacks were, technically, justified. No apology was needed, and it didn't look like Phantom wanted one. They had made a shaky truce, and had even occasionally hunted ghosts together. Although now, if one came during school, Valerie no longer ran out to fight, knowing that Phantom could take care of it while she could focus on school.
She had been hoping that he would try and get in contact with her with everything that's happened. Phantom had made it very obvious that he knew the Red Huntress was Valerie Grey, and if the need arose he would not be afraid to approach her in broad daylight. Although that hadn't actually happened yet. Now she found her anger towards the hero rising, not that she was actually mad at him, it was mostly just the situation, and his absence made him a good target.
Valerie looked over the rooftops to the green dome a couple blocks away. She had never actually realized how close Fenton Works was to the school before. If you went slowly, probably around a half hour walk. So how was Danny late to class all the time? She scowled at the thought of the other Ghostketeers, and started debating whether she should visit Fenton Works once the sun rose so that she could speak to Jazz.
Pulling her eyes away from the ghost hunters' home, Valerie swivelled on her board and turned back to the school. It was Jason and Erin's turn to patrol. As Valerie informed the jock of this, she laughed at his expression. Erin had made it very clear she didn't like the jock, despite his insistence that he wasn't like the A-listers. But Hayden hadn't been put on patrols, not that they would have sent the two freshman out alone anyways, because of his fear. So, Erin had been placed with Jason, and Morgan with Nathan. Valerie had decided this would be best to even out abilities. If Hayden were to patrol, it would be with her. But Valerie had respected his fears and didn't force him to do it.
Valerie settled in the spot Jason had previously occupied, retracting her suit and resting her gun (she had opted to use her own weapons instead of the Foamers) in her lap. The wraiths were still moaning, and collective noise echoed eerily throughout the halls despite the lack of open doorways. Valerie grimaced and glanced at her watch.
It was going to be a long night.
"Sir, we've received a call from Amity Park," Operative K stood firm, shoulders straight, head up, heels together, as he addressed his Alpha operative.
"Play it," Operative O commanded. K nodded and whipped out a small device from his pocket, pressing a flashing button. They listened silently as Mayor Montez reiterated what had been told to him by Officer Jackson, who had been repeating Jazz's words. As a result, the mayor ended up being very vague. But his panicked tone suggested the need for several operatives to help fix the situation.
"When did this come in?"
"Just before noon, sir."
"Gather operatives L and M and request a tank. We will be leaving in ten minutes."
Operative K nodded and left to make the necessary calls.
They would be in Amity Park by sunrise.
So… kind of a cliffhanger? I mean, you didn't get to see Danny and co return, and now you know the GIW are most definitely coming to Amity Park.
'See' you next time!
