1/7/25: And the continuation. It starts basically where the last one ended.

TRIGGER WARNING: Danny is in a dark place. He's definitely having some mental health issues.

Disclaimer: I do not own Danny Phantom.

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Chapter 42: Murphy's Law

–

Shade teleported the Marines out before going back for Tucker. She carefully took him from Vlad before taking him out as well. They reappeared on the island above, next to the Raiders.

Shade was not happy when she spotted the news chopper had discovered them.

Moments later, Vlad appeared with Danny draped over his back. Carrying the man bridal style wasn't really an option with his back torn up. "We need to get them both to the hospital," he said, warily watching the news chopper.

The goth made a face. "I'm not sure a hospital is the best place for a full ghost," she said.

The billionaire thought for a moment, eyes roaming the area. She wasn't wrong–a human hospital was unlikely to know how to treat Danny. "Alright," he said finally, gaze landing on her. "I'll take him back to the house. Bruce and I can take care of him, and I will finish the shield."

"Good," she nodded. "We'll head to the hospital. If they're all watching, they likely can see us right now, but please tell Jazz where we're going."

Vlad nodded and Tucker sighed. "I really don't like hospitals, but I think this is the one time I might make the exception," the dark-skinned man said tiredly.

Shade rolled her eyes. "Your opinion on this doesn't matter; you're going regardless."

Sheppard walked up to them then with a somber smile. "We'll hold off the news and then brief the mayor. Take care of them."

"Thank you," Shade said sincerely before nodding to Vlad. Both teleported away, leaving a disappointed news crew behind.

–

Shade and Tucker scared the daylights out of everyone in the hospital emergency room when they suddenly appeared in a cloud of smoke. The half ghost paid no attention. "I need help, please! Quickly!" she shouted.

A nurse opened one of the double doors and peered out curiously before she saw the state of Tucker. Her eyes went wide before she yelled for help as well and ran out to help Shade hold him up.

The techno geek had done pretty well so far, but he was running on adrenaline, and now that they were out and free, the adrenaline had stopped and he was going downhill fast. He suddenly felt weak, shaky and in incredible pain. He started to collapse in Shade's hold but the nurse got to his other side and helped hold him up while her colleagues brought a gurney.

Shade helped a male nurse get her best friend up and on the gurney. The poor young man yelped several times as his broken leg and burnt areas were jostled too much. As he was taken away through the doors, the goth tried to follow but the original nurse stopped her.

"I am sorry, ma'am, but we need his information. Can you get him registered and then we'll let you back?"

The goth glanced at the closing doors before looking back at the nurse. She was annoyed, but nodded. Shade relinquished control then and let Sam take over. She wasn't quite ready for the onslaught of emotions that hit her, but she forced them to the background so she could focus.

Sam followed the nurse to the reception desk and gave her Tucker's information. Once done, the nurse went to allow Sam back, but was stopped by a supervisor.

"She's not allowed back at this time," the woman said, barely even looking at Sam.

The goth furrowed her brow. "Is he okay? Is he getting tests done? I can wait."

"Does he have family coming?" the supervisor asked in a clipped voice.

"His wife should be on the way," Sam answered slowly, brow raised.

The woman looked down her nose at the half ghost. "Then you can go home. We'll let her back when she gets here."

That sent a spark of anger through Sam and she clenched a fist. "I want to see my best friend," she retorted, doing a valiant job of keeping her tone level.

"That's not possible at the moment."

"You haven't even asked me what happened to him," Sam said.

"We will get that information from Mr. Foley."

The goth took a deep breath. "I still want to see him."

Finally, the supervisor lost her cool and a sneer marred her face. "Your kind isn't allowed," she snapped before walking away.

Sam stared, first in shock, and then in anger. "My kind?" she growled under her breath.

The original nurse gave her an apologetic look. "I'm sorry, I can't go against my supervisor."

Sam's look softened a little when her gaze met the nurse's. "It's fine, don't jeopardize your job for me."

She supposed, aside from the fact that she was half ghost, she did look scary in her outfit. Not to mention, with the press briefing, everyone likely knew who she was and that she used to be a danger to the city. There were probably a lot of people who didn't trust her.

Sam's attention was diverted when she heard her name called from behind her. She turned around to see a frantic Jazz running over to her. The redhead stopped in front of the goth and bent over, hands on her knees as she caught her breath.

Finally, she stood upright and yanked the goth in for a tight hug. "You found him! You found them all!" she exclaimed, cheeks wet from tears.

Sam hadn't been expecting the hug, but she returned it, albeit reluctantly. Yes, she found them, but not in time. Danny was broken, Tucker seriously hurt and Do-hee…she forced the thought away when she felt her eyes watering.

Jazz pulled away with a sniff, giving the goth a small smile, but her attention was pulled by the nurse.

"Excuse me, are you Mrs. Foley?"

The redhead nodded. "Can I see him now?"

The nurse smiled. "He's getting some tests done, but I can take you to his room to wait for him. Follow me, please," she said, indicating towards the doors.

Jazz went to follow her but realized Sam hadn't moved. "Aren't you coming?" she asked, confused.

Sam kept her face carefully neutral. "My kind are not welcome."

The shorter woman realized immediately what she meant and turned on the nurse with a glare. Said nurse held her hands up, but it was Sam who spoke. "It's not her. But it's fine. You take care of Tucker and call us with updates. I'll go home and…keep an eye on Danny."

Jazz felt her eyes watering again at the mention of her brother. "I wish I could be in two places at once. Danny didn't look so good. Will you keep me updated on him as well?"

"Of course," Sam gave her a soft smile and then watched as she followed the nurse through the double doors to the back.

The goth sighed, upset at herself for not wanting to go home. She wasn't ready to deal with Do-hee's body and Danny…it seemed pretty obvious that he didn't want her around. As she turned to leave, she was surprised to see a young woman standing in front of her.

"Excuse me but…is Danny Phantom hurt?" the young blonde woman asked.

Sam furrowed her brow. "Where did you hear that?"

The young lady pointed to the TV on the wall where the news was playing, showing the scene from when Sam and Vlad teleported up to the island. The camera zoomed in and it clearly displayed Danny's gruesome injuries–injuries that made Sam flinch once again.

She couldn't very well lie since it was being broadcast to the entire city. "Yes, but he's home and resting now," she answered.

"Sara!" a woman in the waiting room cried, going over to the young blonde. "Don't talk to her."

"But mom," Sara complained.

"She's probably the one who hurt him, anyway," the mother tried to say softly, but Sam's sensitive hearing picked it up.

"Excuse me?" she snapped, Shade coming to the forefront.

The woman scoffed and waved her hand in a dismissive gesture. "Everyone knows you've tried to kill him before; there are witnesses."

"Did you not just watch me save him?" Shade asked, her annoyance slipping through her tone as she swept her arm at the TV.

The woman rolled her eyes as she guided her daughter back to their seats. "Once evil, always evil," she spat.

Shade really wanted to slap the bitch, but Sam kept her in check. It wouldn't do to start beating up citizens and giving people a reason to believe the rumors.

Just then, two men in black business suits and badges walked into the waiting room. One was tall and slim, with short cropped dark brown hair and dark brown eyes to match. The other was shorter, stockier and had lighter brown hair and blue eyes. They made a beeline for Sam and stopped in front of her. "Samantha Manson?" the taller man asked.

She eyed him warily, head tilting slightly. "That's me."

"You're under arrest for the attempted murder of Danny Phantom, the attempted murder of Tucker Foley, and for the murder of Do-hee Yoon," he said seriously.

Sam's eyes widened and she could hear the whispers from those in the waiting room. "I told you!" the mother said to her daughter.

"But I saved Danny and Tucker. I was too late for Do-hee…but didn't you see the news?" she asked, mind barely comprehending what was happening.

He ignored her question. "You need to come with us."

Sam's eyes darted around as she tried to understand what the hell was happening. Finally, she lifted her head towards the ceiling and closed her eyes, sighing heavily. "F," she cursed.

"Please put your hands behind your back," the shorter man requested.

She lowered her head and gave him an annoyed look. "Don't bother, your human handcuffs won't hold me. Just take me to the car."

"I am afraid I must insist," he said, tone serious.

The goth closed her eyes again and dropped her head in defeat. This was humiliating. Finally, she turned and let the man put the cuffs on her. He grabbed a hold of her arm and they escorted her out of the hospital to their car.

–

Dash was in the living room watching the news for damage control. Those at the house had seen the moment Sam and Vlad appeared with Danny and Tucker. They already knew about Do-hee…Skulker had brought her earlier.

Bruce was in Danny and Sam's bedroom with Danny, doing his best to clean and bandage his wounds. Jack was helping, but the man was barely holding it together as he saw more and more of what Danny had gone through. Maddie wanted to be in there as well, but Jazz was at the hospital with Tucker, Sam wasn't back yet and Do-hee…There was no one to watch the children, so she was doing it. Skulker, unsure of what to do to help, had oddly offered to help watch them and was keeping Chase entertained by making things disappear while Maddie took care of the infants, who, thankfully, were all sleeping.

Vlad was in the lab with Do-hee's body. They were waiting on the coroner to come collect her, but he was running his own preliminary exam to better determine exactly what had happened to her. The details he was uncovering were disturbing.

The news was replaying the video of the rescue, the news anchor's speculating on what had happened. The blonde man sighed, running a hand through his hair.

As a human, he felt completely useless. He had no powers, no special training that could make him useful. He felt like everyone around him was fighting for their lives and he was just…watching it happen.

He sighed again before the news suddenly changed, catching his attention.

"We bring you breaking news. It appears that Samantha Manson has been arrested while inside the Amity Park General Hospital."

"Guys!" Dash yelled, trying to get anyone who wasn't busy. Vlad appeared quickly, followed by Skulker, who was holding Chase, and Maddie. The former jock pointed to the TV as footage began to play of Sam being escorted from the hospital waiting room in handcuffs and placed in the back of an unmarked police car.

"Ms. Manson has been charged on several counts, including for the attempted murder of Tucker Foley and Danny Phantom, as well as for the murder of Do-hee Yoon. Now, this conflicts with the footage we showed earlier of what looked to be Ms. Manson rescuing Mr. Foley and Mr. Phantom. We are unsure of the details as to why Ms. Manson has been charged. We will keep you updated as more details come in."

"Damn it!" Maddie shouted, startling everyone. The emotional rollercoaster that was their lives was beginning to cause her to crack at the edges. She was feeling the pressure as the emotional turmoil threatened to break her. Vlad went to her and hugged her.

"What the hell is happening?" Dash asked.

"I don't know," Vlad responded. "But I know who to ask," he added darkly.

"The mayor?"

The ghost nodded. "He will answer for this, one way or another."

He pulled back from Maddie and gave her a sympathetic look. "Will you be okay?"

She sniffed and took a deep breath. "Just…get the mayor to fix it and then ask me that again."

"On it," he replied before teleporting away.

He reappeared at the mayor's house. It was the middle of the night, but the man had likely been following what was going on. He knocked on the door. Moments later, a haggard looking Mark answered. He let out a sigh of resignation before stepping aside to let the ghost in.

"I know why you are here," he said tiredly as Vlad entered and shut the door. "One of our wonderful state congressmen decided to act without evidence or context," he explained as he motioned for the billionaire to follow him to his study.

They entered the study where Sheppard and his team were seated in the sitting area. Vlad nodded to them and received nods in return. "It is good to see you again, Lt. Colonel Sheppard."

"You as well, though I wish it were under better circumstances," was the Lt. Colonel's reply.

"They briefed me on what happened, including the explosion that took out the body cams and the details of what transpired. From their account, and from my own testimony since the time Danny was taken, there is absolutely no evidence or reason why Ms. Manson was arrested," Mark said as he took his seat behind the desk.

Vlad took a seat as well across from the desk. "I can assure you, she is not the culprit."

Mark nodded. "Sam is brash, brazen, and impulsive, but she's not a killer of innocents, of that I am sure."

"How do we proceed?"

The mayor sighed once again, his hand coming up so his fingers could rub across his temple in a tired gesture. "I do not have the same power and authority as the congressman. However, I do have some friends in high places, including another congressman whom I have known for over a decade, and a senator who is a childhood friend of mine. I have reached out to both. As it is a late hour, the congressman has not responded, but I did hear from the senator, and she has vowed to help. She is hoping to have Sam released early this morning.

Aside from that, a charge like attempted murder against Danny Phantom can't stick anyway, so it must be dropped. The others, however, may prove more difficult."

"What do you mean?"

Mark gave the ghost a sorry look. "Danny Phantom is a ghost and is not afforded human rights. By the rule of law, he's not a person."

Vlad's brows creased. "So, even if he truly is murdered at any point, he could never have justice."

"Not with the way the laws are now. But I plan to change that."

"I appreciate it," Vlad said as he leaned forward, resting his elbows on his knees and bringing his hands up, placing one on top of the other in front of his face. "You must understand that the political posturing of this congressman is the last thing we need right now. There is a very real threat still at large, and she must be our focus."

"I couldn't agree more," the mayor said. "From what Sheppard and his team told me, you did not run into Mira."

"We did not," the billionaire responded with a shake of his head. "She either stayed away in a different section of the mine, or wasn't there at all."

Mark put his hand on his desk and absently drummed his fingers against the wood. "She likely left. I have teams combing through the mine now looking for evidence and stragglers. They've found no one, not even any half ghosts. At least, ones that aren't dead or knocked out cold."

He could see a look of anger come over the ghost's face. "She is becoming a major thorn in our sides."

The mayor raised a brow. "I feel like that's an understatement."

Vlad nodded and silence reigned for a moment as he gathered his thoughts. Finally, "What they did to Do-hee…" he choked up a little, before clearing his throat. "The coroner will be picking her up anytime now, but I took the liberty of a preliminary exam. The kind of torture she endured is not something anyone should have to go through. And she has an infant…a small child just months old."

"I'm sorry," Mark said softly. "How are Tucker and Danny?"

"Tucker is at the hospital. We've yet to have an update, but I am sure he'll survive, albeit scarred. Daniel…" he trailed off, gaze lowering to the floor. "He will survive as well but he endured more than just physical torture. His mind is…not quite there."

The mayor creased his brows in worry. "Will he be able to help us find and fight Mira?"

Vlad shook his head. "I do not know."

Mark sighed and rested his head on the back of his chair, gaze roaming over the wall. "I plan to hold a press conference in the morning on the matter, not only to assuage the citizens' fear, but also to set the record straight about Sam's arrest."

"I appreciate it."

The mayor nodded. "For now, return home and make sure Do-hee and Danny are taken care of. I'll make sure Sam is."

–

Very early morning, Danny started to come around. He'd been left alone for now so he could rest, but Bruce was sleeping on the couch in the living room just in case.

The ghost groaned, his good eye fluttering. The first thing he truly noticed was that he was warm. The next was that he was lying on something soft, not hard. Then, he realized he didn't feel much pain. He forced his left eye to open a slit, noting it was dark. The room he'd been kept in was always lit, so this felt wrong.

It had to be a hallucination. Though, at least it was a nice one for a change. Wait, a nice one? No…some may start out that way, but they always end in pain.

He moved his arms a little noting again the lack of pain. He was sore, and moving around did jar his back some, but it was far less than he was used to.

As he looked around he could see he was most definitely not in that room, though the ceiling did look familiar…

He suddenly realized where he was, but instead of feeling comfort in knowing he was home, he felt terror. Shade was here.

"No," he said, voice small and weak. "No, no, no…" He didn't want to be here. He wanted to be anywhere but here!

He began to panic, pushing the covers off. He winced when sudden movement pulled at the scabs on his back, but it didn't stop him. He tried to get out of bed, but he was incredibly weak and his legs got tangled in the sheets. He fell off the bed, hitting the ground hard and cried out.

The sound alerted Bruce, who woke up, instantly grabbing his glasses so he could run to the room. He found a flailing and panicking ghost who was fighting with the sheets and his demons.

"Danny, it's okay," he said, trying to get to the ghost, but Danny looked at him with eyes wide as saucers and his reaction to waking up instantly got worse.

"Stay away!" he shouted, voice breaking from disuse. He scrambled towards the outer wall where the windows were, trying to use the windowsill to pull himself up. When Bruce tried again to approach, he screeched.

"No!"

The drugs in Danny's system were beginning to wear off now that he'd missed a dose. While his core was still mostly dormant, it was trying to kick in. Subconsciously, without any real thought on his part, Danny triggered his core, flaring it in a desperate bid to find help.

Vlad, who had been in the process of leaving the mayor's house, felt Danny's desperate call for help and instantly teleported into the room.

It only caused the young ghost to freak out even more. He was hysterical now, chest heaving as weak fingers tried to open a window. He needed to get out, he needed to get away, she couldn't find him!

"Daniel," Vlad called gently. "You're home, you're safe."

"No!" Danny yelled. "Shade is here. I'll never be safe, please, make it stop…don't let her in here."

The billionaire felt his core lurch at the sheer fear the young man was expressing, especially over Shade. He was still calling with his core.

When Danny couldn't get the locked window open, he attempted to stand so he could run, but again, his frail body was continuing to betray him. He stumbled, leaning heavily on the wall, his eye wide and wild as he frantically looked around for an exit.

Danny felt like the world was closing in on him, like he was drowning. His limbs were numb and his brow beaded in sweat. He didn't even realize he was wearing clothes, or that he was bandaged. His brain couldn't yet comprehend that this was all too real to be a hallucination.

He was breathing hard, panting rasping breaths that did nothing to calm his anxiety. Vlad stepped towards him and he yelled again. "Don't touch me!"

Bruce, meanwhile, went to draw up some sedatives as it was obvious they were not going to get the ghost to calm naturally.

"Daniel, we are not here to hurt you. In fact, you're calling me right now," Vlad tried to reason.

Danny paused, eye darting around as he concentrated. Now that he was paying attention, he realized he could feel his core flaring, albeit weakly. He shook his head. No, it wasn't real. His core was dormant and the hallucination was trying to make him think he'd escaped.

He wasn't going to be its pawn any longer!

The ghost roared and pushed off from the wall. He tried to tackle Vlad, but in his feeble state, he simply wasn't strong enough. Danny grabbed at the billionaire, losing his grip and sinking to the floor. Vlad was afraid he'd hurt himself, and so gently held him down while he waited for Bruce to come back.

"No! Please…don't hurt me…" Danny pleaded, sobs escaping. "Just kill me…don't hurt me anymore…" he repeated the phrase over and over before Bruce appeared at the door with the syringe.

Vlad nodded to the doctor and caught the syringe, pulling the needle off. "I am sorry, little badger," he said before putting the needle in his neck and injecting it.

Danny squealed. "Not again! Please, no more…" He panicked thinking it was more hallucinogen. Thankfully, he succumbed quickly in his fragile state and finally stopped thrashing and hurting himself. His core shut back down as well, no longer broadcasting his distress signal.

Vlad released him, sighing when he noticed the ecto-plasm leaking through the bandages on his back. "We need to clean him up before putting him back in bed."

Bruce nodded, coming in and grabbing the supplies they would need. He looked back when he heard a gasp and saw a tired and weary Maddie and Jack at the door. They'd heard his screams and panic.

"He's alright, just disorientated," Bruce told them in a calm voice while Vlad carefully picked the young man up and placed him back on the bed with his back facing up.

"Will he come out of it?" Jack asked softly, arm around his wife.

The doctor looked at the ghost on the bed as Vlad gingerly removed the old and now bloodied bandages. "I think he will. He's incredibly strong–too strong to be broken after all he's endured." He looked back at the pair. "But it may take some time."

–

1/9/25: I feel weird ending it here but I literally stalled on what to write next. Also, I need to get my chapter cushion back!