Author's Note: It's been a long time, yes...sorry.
Buried
Cheeseburgers were definitely delicious, Danny was certain of that. And Cujo seemed to agree, chomping and slobbering over the morsels Danny dropped to the floor beside him.
"This is seriously your first time eating a burger?" asked Dash, his mouth full of food.
"My father never brings home anything like this," said Danny. "And I've had milk but never a milkshake. I didn't even know food could taste this good."
"Wow, you really do need to get out more," said Kwan.
The door to the tavern stormed open just then. Everyone turned to look, and Danny and Paulina gasped when they realized who it was.
Captain Gray and a group of guards scanned the area. Paulina grabbed Danny by the shirt collar and dragged him out of sight behind a counter. Cujo turned invisible and scampered to join them.
"I received a report that some wanted criminals were spotted here," said Captain Gray, holding up the wanted posters of Danny, Paulina, and Cujo. "Where are they?"
A woman sitting at one of the tables squinted at the posters. "Yeah, I think I saw them here."
Captain Gray marched up to her table. "Where? Tell me everything you know!"
Danny and Paulina stayed frozen behind the counter, hearts hammering. Cujo panted beside Danny, a glob of drool falling out of his mouth onto Danny's hand. Danny didn't even move to wipe it off.
Dash peered over the counter, making eye contact with both Paulina and Danny. As Captain Gray started walking around the tavern, he jumped in front of her.
"Oh, hey, we saw them!" said Dash. "They were sitting with us."
Danny and Paulina stopped breathing.
"Oh, yeah!" said Star. "They—uh—they just left, actually. Here, we'll show you which way they went, just come outside with us, this way…"
Danny and Paulina released sighs of relief.
"Pssst," Kwan whispered to them, leaning backward over the counter while trying to act casual. Danny and Paulina looked up and watched him tug on a lever disguised as a beer tap. A secret door dropped open into the floor in front of them, revealing an underground tunnel.
"Go," Kwan muttered under his breath. "Hurry."
Paulina was quick to slip through the door, followed by Danny and Cujo. Once they were gone, Kwan pulled up the lever, closing the door.
Unknown to both of them, Vlad had entered the tavern right behind the guards and had seen Danny vanish from sight through the secret door. A hooded cloak covered his face as he scowled.
"They went that way," said Star outside, pointing in the opposite direction from the secret Nasty Duckling tunnel.
"Definitely," said Dash. "Definitely that way."
"You two, see if you can pick up on their trail." Captain Gray pointed to two of the guards. "The rest of you, come back in with me and scour the tavern, see if those thieves left anything behind."
Captain Gray led the guards back inside, Star and Dash right behind them. Kwan flashed them a thumbs-up when the guards weren't looking. Star and Dash smiled and returned the covert gesture.
Vlad watched Captain Gray and the guards inspect the whole tavern, sniffing out any clues or evidence. He made his way over to the beer taps, and when Captain Gray was right in front of the counter, he discreetly pushed on the false tap, once again opening the secret door and revealing the underground tunnel.
Captain Gray froze, her jaw dropping. Then she straightened up and turned back to Dash and Star. "You're sure you saw them go out that way?" she asked, pointing out the main door.
"Yes!" cried Star. "Definitely."
"Hmm." Captain Gray stroked her chin and looked at the secret tunnel again. "Well, I want to check this passage just in case. Men, follow me."
Star, Dash, and Kwan tried desperately to change Captain Gray's mind, but it was no use, and soon all of the royal guards had disappeared through the secret door into the tunnel.
Vlad pulled his hood over his face and grinned to himself. The guards would never be able to capture Danny, not when he could use his ghost powers to easily get away. Vlad would otherwise never have sent for the guards in the first place if he didn't think Danny could escape them.
But perhaps the boy would be scared enough to realize his father had been right all along about the cruel humans outside of the lab.
…
In the tunnel, Paulina held up a lantern to light the way. Danny walked beside her, still clutching the broken telescope as he tried to calm his nerves. Cujo seemed to have already completely forgotten their brush with the guards as he padded behind them, sometimes darting ahead and weaving back between them.
"I can't believe I'm a wanted criminal now," moaned Paulina. She looked down at the belt around her waist and tried to unbuckle it, but it was shut tight. "I'd give this thing back if I could, but I can't figure out how to get it off."
"I wonder what's so special about it," said Danny, peering at the belt in the dim light of the lantern.
"Who knows?" said Paulina. "But I found it in the castle lab, so it must be one of the king's weird ghost inventions. Everyone knows the king and queen are kind of obsessed with hunting ghosts."
"Really?" Danny's stomach twisted. "Why?"
"They're convinced a ghost kidnapped and killed their son when he was a baby," Paulina explained. "And so now they've made it their mission to hunt down and capture all ghosts, interrogating and torturing each one, hoping to learn something about what happened to the dead prince."
"They…torture ghosts?" asked Danny, feeling very uneasy now.
"Yes," said Paulina. "Captain Gray and all the royal guards are also trained ghost hunters. If they caught Cujo, I don't even want to know what they'd do to him."
Cujo started yipping excitedly at the mention of his name. Paulina smiled down at him, looking sad. Danny shivered and tried to breathe, looking over his shoulder, scared that he might see the guards running after them at any moment.
"Relax, Danny," said Paulina. "We'll see where this tunnel leads, and then I'm sure I can figure out how to get to town from there. We'll just have to lie low and hope no one else recognizes us. We'll buy a new telescope, then we'll go find my papa. He'll be able to help us out, clear our names. He's a very rich man, you know. And then we can go and stake out the best spot to watch the meteor shower."
Danny nodded, knowing that Paulina was trying her best to comfort him. And he so wanted to believe everything she was saying right now.
The tunnel walls around them suddenly started shaking, a few rocks crumbling from the ceiling. Cujo's fur bristled as he growled at something behind them. Danny and Paulina turned to find light bouncing off a bend in the tunnel, and then Captain Gray and the guards appeared, holding torches and running at top speed straight toward them.
Danny's heart nearly stopped as he imagined what they might do to him if they captured him and discovered he was a ghost.
"Thieves!" yelled Captain Gray. "Stay where you are."
"Run," said Paulina. She grabbed Danny's arm, snapping him out of his frozen trance. "Run!" she screamed.
They sprinted away from the guards, Cujo darting ahead of them and leading the way. The tunnel led out onto a cliff in a canyon, forcing them to stop. Paulina squinted and shielded her eyes from the sun as she looked around for some other way to go.
"There's a ladder here," said Danny, pointing to a rope ladder at their feet that extended all the way to the floor of the canyon.
Captain Gray and the rest of the guards emerged out of the tunnel. Paulina stepped as close as she dared to the cliff's edge.
"There's no time," she said, sounding panicked. "I think they've got us, Danny."
Cujo ran out in front of them and barked at the guards, baring his teeth.
"Men, capture that ghost dog," ordered Captain Gray. "Use the ghost net."
One of the guards fired a small cannon, which launched a net sparking with electric energy. The net closed around Cujo, trapping him.
"Cujo, no!" cried Paulina.
Cujo growled, his fur standing on end as he unleashed a mighty roar and transformed into his beastly form, breaking the net into several pieces that fell all around him. He snarled, slobber dripping off his fangs as his eyes glowed bright red.
The guards gasped and fell back. Captain Gray pulled out an ecto-gun and began charging it up.
"Don't cower, men! You've all been trained for this!" cried Captain Gray.
Cujo turned and ducked his head under Danny and Paulina, flipping them onto his huge back. He then jumped, soaring high through the air across the canyon to another cliff. Captain Gray ran to the edge of the cliff she was still on and gritted her teeth.
"Cujo, let's disappear," said Danny.
Cujo obediently turned invisible, vanishing Danny and Paulina as well. Paulina yelped and grabbed whatever she could in her disorientation, which happened to be Danny's waist. She hugged him tight, burying her face in his shoulder. Danny could feel himself blushing and becoming very warm as Paulina held him.
"You won't get away that easily!" Captain Gray called to them from across the canyon.
"Cujo, go," said Danny, clutching Cujo's fur. "Take us far away from here."
Cujo jumped into the air, soaring high above the canyon. Paulina yelped and clung to Danny's waist, shaking and trying her best not to look down. She tried shutting her eyes, but with her invisible eyelids, she could still see everything far below them. So she threw her head back instead, staring up at the deep blue sky.
Back on the first cliff, Captain Gray unclipped her ghost-tracking device from her belt and switched it on, its screen glowing green. She pointed it at the sky and began waving it around until the device started beeping. She studied the now red screen that pinpointed the location of the ghost dog.
"There you are," she said triumphantly. She aimed her gun in the direction the device indicated and began firing.
An ecto-blast soared right over Cujo's head. Danny could feel the anti-ghost energy tickling his back and making his hair stand on end. He looked up and watched the purple ray of light disappear far into the sky ahead of them.
Danny held tight to Cujo's fur and turned around to find Captain Gray on the cliff aiming an ecto-gun right at them.
"She's shooting at us," he gasped.
"Shooting at us with what?" asked Paulina.
Captain Gray fired another purple ecto-blast that came toward them fast.
"That!" yelled Danny, burying his face in Cujo's fur as the blast barely missed them on the left side. Paulina screamed and grabbed him even tighter.
"What do we do?" she shrieked.
Before Danny could answer, another blast was fired, this one hitting Cujo right in his hindquarters. He didn't even cry out in pain, simply passed out immediately, turning visible and shrinking into his tiny dog size as he started falling out of the sky.
Danny and Paulina, now also visible, started falling as well. Paulina screamed and let go of Danny, her arms flailing as she flipped through the air and picked up speed in a hurtle toward the canyon floor below.
She was going to die. Danny realized that in one instant and in the next understood exactly what he had to do.
He grabbed Cujo and then reached for Paulina's hand, but she was too far from him now. He wasted no more time and sent the command to his molecules to transform into their ectoplasmic counterparts. His body iced over and throughout with spectral energy that whitened his hair and dressed him in a black and white jumpsuit.
Paulina's mouth was still open in a scream, but no sound came out as she stared at Danny, her eyes bulging.
Danny engaged his center and conjured a speed boost that allowed him to close the gap between him and Paulina. He grabbed her around the waist with one arm while still holding the unconscious Cujo in the other. He locked into his anti-gravity core and brought all three of them out of the free fall, channeling the energy into flight as he soared through the sky over the canyon.
"Danny—what—" Paulina spluttered. "What are you—are you a—a ghost?"
Dread pooled in Danny's stomach. "I'm not dangerous, I promise."
Back on the canyon cliff, Captain Gray stared in awe at what she just saw, a boy transforming into a ghost—a ghost boy.
"But—but how?" blurted Paulina. "How is that even possible?"
Captain Gray aimed her gun right at the ghost boy, because she definitely couldn't let this one get away. This had to be the ghost that the king and queen were looking for, the one that killed their son, the prince.
She pulled the trigger, launching an ecto-ray straight at him.
"It's kind of a long story," said Danny as he continued flying. "I don't really understand it fully myself, but I can explain, really—"
Captain Gray's ecto-blast hit Danny's leg. The pain burned and radiated through his whole body, shocking his system and focus.
"Danny?" Paulina looked at Danny's grimacing face in alarm. "Danny, are you okay?"
Danny concentrated all of his effort into staying in the air for as long as possible, but he could feel himself going down.
His head was clouding as the pain started throbbing.
Then he became aware again of the two weights in his arms, Cujo and Paulina.
He had to save them. They were counting on him. He couldn't pass out now or allow the guards to capture them.
His adrenaline kicked in as he boosted his flight speed and soared forward, away from the guards and the canyon. A couple more ecto-blasts sailed past him, but then they stopped.
The canyon below changed into a forest. Danny's altitude started dropping quickly.
"Danny?" screamed Paulina. "Danny, watch out—"
The pain in Danny's leg burned sharp, causing him to crash with Cujo and Paulina into a thicket of trees. They fell through the leaves and branches, which broke and softened their fall before they landed on the forest floor.
Paulina landed on her stomach, her stolen metal belt smashing against a tree root and clicking as if a button were being pressed. Paulina moaned and flipped over on her back as the belt started humming and buzzing with some kind of energy.
She sat up and looked around. Cujo was lying unconscious nearby while Danny was also sitting up, rubbing his leg. His green eyes glowed bright under a sweep of white hair.
"Danny?" Paulina approached him. "Are you okay?"
She knelt beside him and touched his shoulder. She felt a vibration in the belt around her waist, and then a transfer of energy that zapped Danny, causing him to cry out in pain. His entire body started jerking with electrical energy that shocked him out of ghost form and back to his human appearance as he fell to the ground on his back. He panted, clutching at his chest as he stared up at the sky through the foliage above.
"Danny!" Paulina reached out to touch his arm, feeling that same electrical pulse that once again zapped Danny. He writhed on the ground until Paulina let go of him, and then he was out cold like Cujo.
Paulina stared at Danny. She looked down at the belt around her waist and remembered the name that Captain Gray had called it: the Specter Deflector. A belt that warded off ghosts?
She tried to take the belt off, but it still wouldn't budge. She examined the buckle and noticed a round shape in the center. She pressed it, producing a clicking sound, and the energy she felt before vanished. She then tentatively reached toward Danny and tapped his shoulder.
No electric shock this time. Paulina shook his shoulder harder, but he would not wake.
She sighed and looked up at the sky. Her papa would be worried about her if she did not return by nightfall, but she couldn't just leave Danny and Cujo here alone.
Determined, she stood and started searching for a nearby spot to camp for the night.
…
Captain Gray could barely contain her anger as she stomped ahead of the other guards back through the tunnel to the Nasty Duckling tavern. She banged on the underside of the secret door into the tavern until someone at last pulled the lever and opened the door. She climbed out and searched all of the tables, fuming. But the young blond man and lady who had told her that the thieves had run out of the tavern were no longer here.
She grumbled and barked for the guards to follow her outside. They obeyed, marching behind her out onto the path that led back to town. The trees shaded the path as the afternoon sun sank closer to the horizon.
"I just can't believe this," she muttered. She threw her hands up in the air and raised her voice. "There were two ghosts right there and they both got away from me. All of that training to hunt ghosts for the royal family and I failed. The king and queen trusted me to find the ghost that killed their son nearly a decade ago, and I let it escape."
"But you don't know for sure that that was the ghost that killed the young prince," said one of the guards.
Captain Gray rounded on the guard, snarling. "Don't challenge me when I'm venting."
The guard held up his hands in surrender. Captain Gray turned and resumed her stomp through the woods back toward town.
"We'll return to the castle and retrieve our best ghost-hunting equipment," said Captain Gray. "Then we'll come back out and track down that ghost."
"Or…" called a man's voice. Captain Gray and the guards turned around to find Vlad standing behind them, wearing a cloak with the hood pushed back onto his shoulders.
"Perhaps you want to stop acting like wild dogs chasing their tails and think for a moment," said Vlad, holding up a metal Thermos in his hand.
Captain Gray stared at the Thermos for only a moment before drawing her sword. The other guards did the same.
"Oh, please, there's no need for that," said Vlad.
He tossed the Thermos to Captain Gray, who caught it in her free hand. She lowered her sword and studied the device closely.
"What is this?" she asked.
"It's a containment device for ghosts," said Vlad. "I call it a Thermos. It's the only thing strong enough to catch a ghost like Danny Phantom."
Captain Gray raised a brow. "Danny Phantom?"
"The ghost boy with the white hair. That's his name."
"How do you know that?"
"I know a lot of things, Captain Valerie Gray."
Captain Gray sheathed her sword and turned the Thermos over in both hands several times, looking at each light and button. She popped off the top and studied the inside.
"It will work," said Vlad. "Trust me. I made it myself."
Captain Gray looked at him curiously. "You're Vlad Masters, aren't you? The king and queen told me about you. They haven't seen you in twenty years."
"We were partners in ghost research," said Vlad. "Jack and Maddie—the king and queen—I still consider them dear friends of mine. And I want nothing more than to help them find the ghost that took their son away from them."
"Allow me to escort you to the castle," said Captain Gray. "The king and queen will be thrilled to see you again. And then you can tell all of us everything we need to know about this Danny Phantom."
"I must decline," said Vlad. "But do send the king and queen my regards if you wish."
With a flourish of his cloak, Vlad slipped between the trees, into the thick of the woods. Captain Gray and her guards searched but were unable to find him. It was as if he had simply vanished.