Danny Phantom Fan Fiction ❯ Danny Phantom: Facing the Future ❯ Danny Phantom: Facing the Future - Part 3 ( Chapter 3 )

Danny Phantom: Facing the Future

Part 3

By Aaron

 

“Wait a minute,” Valerie interrupted the feeling of dread that Danny and the others were feeling, “So you're saying THAT'S Danny? How is THAT Danny?”

 

“Okay, short version?” Tucker answered, “Evil version of Danny from an alternate future. Came to the past to make all of Danny's friends and family die in a horrible fast food explosion to make sure his future happened. Got beat, got caught, Clockwork took him. End of story.”

 

“He's everything that could possibly go wrong in my life,” Danny said as he turned away, hanging his head solemnly. Just then, he felt Sam behind him, holding him tightly and snuggling her head at the base of his neck. At that moment, he would have given anything for that to be enough to make him feel better.

 

“Whenever I have a bad night, he's always the one who comes back to haunt me.”

 

“Oh, looks like someone rolled out the red carpet,” Dark Danny announced in regards to the two mystery ghosts, immediately getting everyone crowded back around Tucker's PDA, “Well, I guess I'm feeling a little magnanimous today, so what's it going to be? Kneel and live? Or fight and die?”

 

“Well, I can't say I'm too big on the kneeling OR the dying,” the male ghost replied as he and his female partner stood their ground, their hands already bursting with green ecto-energy, “Think we can mix and match?”

 

“Wait…so they're going to fight him?!” Tucker exclaimed as the others looked on, “Is that why they came here?”

 

“That might explain why they sabotaged everyone who could track them. And why they trapped us all here…,” Valerie deduced, starting to put everything into place as she and Jazz looked at each other.

 

“They were trying to protect us!” Jazz chimed in.

 

“Maybe, but why? We still don't know who these guys are,” Sam noted. She still hadn't been able to shake the uncomfortable feeling she'd been getting ever since she had seen them. She could feel it, deep down in her soul. Whether they were villains or saviors, there was something about those two ghosts that just wasn't right.

 

“You can't be serious,” Dark Danny could only laugh as the two strange ghosts prepared to face him, “Do you really think you're a match for me?”

 

“Hmmm, good question. Here's a better one…” the male ghost stated before throwing his fists forward, unleashing two enormous Ghost Rays which sent Dark Danny careening into the woods on the other side of the clearing with all the force of a cannonball!

 

“Nice shot,” Valerie commented, more than just a little amazed.

 

“…What do YOU think?!” the male ghost finished his thought, his fists smoldering with green smoke. But his answer came in the form of an angry Dark Danny bursting from the woods, sending an enormous ball of ecto-energy towards the pair!

 

“Ooooo, a little on the spicy side!” the female ghost noted, her right hand shooting a wave of her Ghost Ray strands to ensnare the ball, “We're gonna have to send it back!”

 

No sooner said than done as she whipped around, sending the ball of energy back at Dark Danny! However, he was able to turn intangible just fast enough for the ball to pass harmlessly through him and explode on the other side of the clearing! Turning solid once more, Dark Danny's face was beginning to change from a sinister confidence to clear annoyance!

 

“Wow…these guys are good,” Tucker noted as the battled unfolded onscreen.

 

“Yeah, but for how long?” Danny added, feeling far less optimistic, “Those two have no idea what they're up against. We've got to get out of here NOW!!!”

 

Transforming back into his ghost form, Danny let loose with searing Ghost Ray blast, desperately trying to break the shield! He had never put this kind of power into his Ghost Rays before, but the desperation on his face more than told the story. And he wasn't letting up for even a second! Still, desperation wasn't going to change the fact that his efforts weren't getting them anywhere.

 

“DANNY!!” Sam cried out, grabbing his arms and holding them to his sides as she looked into his eyes, “Listen to me! You've got to calm down!”

 

“How can I calm down?!” Danny shouted, his voice giving away his panic, “Sam, you don't understand!! You can't know!!”

 

“You're right,” Sam spoke in a hushed tone as she reached up and held Danny's face in her hands, “I don't. But I DO know that you're not going to be able to stop ANYONE if you wipe yourself out here.”

 

For the moment, Sam's words had the desired effect as Danny looked at least a little more at ease. Pressing her forehead against his for a brief moment, Sam then turned her attention to the Tucker, Valerie and Jazz.

 

“We've got to think. There's got to be some way to shut this thing down.”

 

For a moment, there was silence as the five of them tried to imagine how they could possibly escape from their prison. After all, it seemed the perfect shield. Ecto-energy didn't affect it and it had been modified so organic matter couldn't penetrate it either. The only weakness it seemed to possess was that artificial material like Vlad's spy camera could pass through it.

 

“Wait a minute,” Jazz suddenly piped up, “Valerie, your armor. Why don't we use that?”

 

“I already tried that,” Valerie replied, remembering how even her armor couldn't break the shield.

 

“No, that was when you were wearing it,” Jazz explained, “What if you weren't?”

 

“Hey, that's not a bad idea,” Tucker chimed in, “Remember that time Technus took it over? We should be able to do the same thing. If I could route the system through my PDA, it should just pass right through the shield like Vlad's spy camera did. Then we could get it to turn off that box and deactivate the shield.”

 

It took only a few minutes for Tucker to set the plan in motion. At first, the control seemed rickety, with the armor making only the most basic rigid movements. But after a few moments, it became smoother as Tucker sent it walking slowly towards the shield. With a simple command, Tucker sent it to reach forward as Danny and the girls all held their breath in anticipation. If this didn't work, there wasn't much more they could do. But true to theory, Valerie's armor reached towards the shield and easily passed through it.

 

“Yeah! Now that's what I'm talking about! Who's the man?! Who's the man?!” Tucker gloated triumphantly as he had the armor strutting around the lab, dancing “The Robot”.

 

“TUCKER!!!” Danny and the girls shouted.

 

“Alright!” Tucker surrendered, “Jeez, that's gratitude for you.”

 

“Pat yourself on the back AFTER you actually get us OUT of here!” Sam scolded. With that, Tucker programmed the armor to walk over to the cube placed on the table and with a simple button press, the shield dropped away.

 

“I'M OUTTA HERE!!” Danny shouted, not wasting another second as he phased through the lab ceiling and was gone.

 

“Danny!” Sam yelled as she ran towards the stairs.

 

“Sam, wait! Where are you going?!” Jazz called after her.

 

“Wher do YOU think? I've gotta go after him!” Sam replied, the worry in her voice clearly apparent.

 

“What can YOU do?” Tucker asked simply, “We don't have anything to fight with.”

 

“I don't know,” Sam sighed, “But someone's got to keep Danny from doing something stupid. He's not thinking straight right now. And if he goes into a fight like that, he doesn't stand a chance.”

 

Tucker, Valerie and Jazz didn't reply right away. After all, they knew Sam was right. And even if her wanting to go after Danny was a futile effort, they knew they wouldn't be able to stop her if she had her heart so dead set on going. In the end, it was Valerie who responded first as she tossed Sam her backpack containing her armor.

 

“Here. You won't be able to fight with it, but at least you'll be able to keep up with him.” She said straightforwardly. Sam merely nodded in thanks.

 

“Okay, you guys see if you can get anything up and running around here!” she called as she slung the backpack over her shoulders and ran up the stairs, “If you do, you know where we'll be!”

 

With that, Sam was gone as well, leaving Tucker, Valerie and Jazz inside a still-destroyed lab. All they could do was look around and wonder what, if anything, they could possibly salvage.

 

“You'd think the least they could have done is help us get the Specter Speeder upright,” Jazz was the first to comment, “At least THEN, we could have GONE somewhere.”

 

“So…now what?” Valerie said as all three of them looked at the overturned vehicle and then at each other. Tucker merely shrugged.

 

“You push, I'll pull?”

 

… … … …

 

Miles away from the situation in Amity Park, deep in the woods, a small labyrinth of underground caves could be found. Hikers rarely ventured so far into the forest, leaving them for the most part, unexplored. But anyone who chanced to pass by would certainly have been curious to see a strange light coming from one of the entrances…as well as the yells of frustration coming from within.

 

“BLAST!!!” Vlad Plasmius shouted as he kicked over a lab table, “How am I supposed to keep an eye on Daniel and those two new ghosts if nothing around here works!!! It's bad enough I had to strip down my lab and move it into this hole, but this puny backup generator is barely enough to keep the lights on!”

 

Just then, Vlad heard the gentle mewling of his cat, Maddie, breaking him from his rant and causing him to turn back into Vlad Masters. Looking over at her curious gaze, all he seemed able to do is groan in despair.

 

“Oh, to think that this is fate's grand design for a man of my stature,” he sighed, “Ah, we had the good life, didn't we Maddie? Money, houses, money, cars, money, power, money…and to think we came so close to having the world as well. Even now I can still taste it. But now look at me. My money is gone, my power is gone. I don't even have Wisconsin to go back to anymore. Is this truly the destination of my life…where all my hard work and all my plans have led me to?”

 

“No! I won't accept that!” he shouted, instantly changing his mood, “This is just a minor setback! All men of greatness have had minor setbacks! It didn't stop them and it won't stop me! Mark my words, Vlad Masters WILL be on top of the world again! And THIS time, NOTHING will stand in his way!!”

 

Just then, a brief chime on a laptop computer broke Vlad from his reveling speech.

 

“What's this?” he thought out loud, “Someone's activated one of my old spy cameras. I wonder what they're looking at.”

 

Calling up a view screen, Vlad could only be astounded at what he was witnessing as Dark Danny was still engaged in battle with the two strange ghosts.

 

“Curiouser and curiouser,” he noted, “Now there's ANOTHER new ghost. And that third one…if I didn't know any better, I'd SWEAR that was Daniel. But it can't be…he's too big, too old. And his costume is different. But still…just what is going on here?”

 

… … … …

 

Miles away, Vlad was the last thing on Danny's mind as he tore through the sky at top speed towards the clearing where the battle was being held. Sam, meanwhile, was using Valerie's armor as best she could to keep up, but having never used it before, it was taking everything she had just to keep from falling off the rocket sled even at its slowest speed.

 

“Yee…whoa. Whoa, come on now,” Sam blurted out as she tried desperately to keep both feet on the sled, “Come on Sam, get it together. Danny needs you right now. Let's get a move on here.”

 

With that, she planted both her feet as firmly as she could as she tried to go faster without losing her balance. But unaware that either she or Danny were coming, the two mysterious ghosts continued their fight with Dark Danny. The clearing and even most of the surrounding woods had been completely ravaged by this time. But despite letting loose with some of their best moves, neither side was showing any signs of slowing down!

 

“You know, I really hate to say this, but you're a lot tougher than I thought you'd be,” the female ghost commented, “But that's okay. We are too.”

 

Dark Danny only snarled as he locked his hands together, firing an enormous Ghost Ray at the pair! Both ghosts were able to dodge the attack in time however, and they were lucky they did. The blast was of such power that it tore through the trees behind them and even carved a giant hole into the side of a nearby mountain before finally dissipating!

 

“Alright, that's enough of that!” the female ghost added, “This has gone on too long already!”

 

With that, she burst forward, charging at Dark Danny with all the speed she could muster! Dark Danny stood his ground, throwing a handful of ecto-energy spheres directly at her, but she was able to phase through the attack, allowing the spheres to explode harmlessly behind her! Remaining in her phased state, she charged right through Dark Danny before stopping in mid air and unleashing dozens of her Ghost Ray strands, wrapping him up tight! She then spiraled in mid air at top speed until the strands were twisted as tight as she could make them and with a yell, she planted her feet hard into the ground and heaved with everything she had, sending Dark Danny up over her shoulder in a high arc! As the Ghost Ray strands unwound, Dark Danny was caught in a disorienting spin before the throw planted him head first into the ground! An impressive attack, but one that seemed to do almost as much harm to the female ghost as she immediately became disoriented, trying hard to keep her balance.

 

“Uuuuhhhhokay,” she murmured as she grabbed the sides of her helmet, trying to shake the cobwebs out of her head, “I won't be able to do THAT again for a while.”

 

But Dark Danny wasn't about to give her time to recuperate. Breaking free of the Ghost Ray strands, he tore his head out of the ground and roared as he unleashed a Ghost Ray in her direction! Just then, her partner jumped in and punched the ground hard, sending up an enormous wall of ice to slow the attack, giving him just enough time to pull her out of the way.

 

“Alright, let's see if THIS'LL hold you!” he shouted, firing a blue Ghost Ray which struck Dark Danny, encasing him in a small glacier, just as he had done with Danny earlier! Admittedly, it had been a harder go than he'd expected, but it was looking like between the two of them, they had this fight with Dark Danny just about all sewn up. Just then, an icy breath crossed his lips and he felt a chill down his spine.

 

“Oh no,” he thought out loud as he whirled around to see Danny bearing down on the battlefield in a rage, “Not now!”

 

“I've got him!” the female ghost replied as she took off to intercept Danny. But just then, Dark Danny's glacial prison erupted in an explosion of ecto-energy!

 

“You idiot!” he gloated, “Do you know how long I was trapped in that stupid Thermos?! And you thought a little ice tomb was going to hold me back?!”

 

“Well, I'd really kind of hoped,” the male ghost replied simply. Meanwhile, Danny's advance was cut off as the female ghost hovered in mid-air, blocking his way.

 

“What are you doing here!” she yelled at him, “This is our fight! You weren't even supposed to get involved!”

 

“Rrrrr! I don't have time for this!” Danny growled as he went into his phased state and passed right through her. But as soon as he became tangible again, he found himself wrapped up in dozens of her Ghost Ray strands as she pulled him back towards her and kept him tightly bound!

 

“No! Let me go!” Danny could only cry out as he struggled to free himself, “You've got to let me stop him! You don't know what he is…what he'll do!”

 

“Of course we know what he is, you idiot!” the female ghost shouted, “Why do you think we're here?! Honestly, you NEVER think these things through!”

 

“Stop…talking like you know me!” Danny shouted back, “Who…ARE YOU?!?!?!”

 

Danny's rage finally exploded as a burst of ecto-energy tore out of his body, breaking the Ghost Ray strands and knocking the female ghost back! Without a pause, Danny whirled around, firing a Ghost Ray of his own which blasted her right in the head, knocking her motorcycle helmet clean off! Danny still couldn't get a good look at her face as her hand was covering her head and her shoulders were still smoldering from the Ghost Ray he'd fired. But once she moved her hand and the smoke cleared, he took one look at her glaring face and his eyes widened in shock.

 

She had earrings all around her outer ears. She even had a tiny nose piercing on the left side and a beauty mark piercing on the right side of her lip, along with a belly ring and an eyebrow stud besides. And she was older too, by about at least 10 years. Her figure had definitely filled out considerably in that time. But even though her hair was white and a little longer, the style was still the same. And her face…her eyes were green, but there was no mistaking that face! Danny couldn't believe it at first and his jaw could only hang open as floated in the sky, frozen. It had to be some weird hallucination. But it wasn't. Deep down, on some level he couldn't explain, he knew it wasn't his imagination. It could only be one person…!

 

“S…S-Sam?”

 

“Nice, Fenton…!” a male voice called out behind him as Danny whirled back around to look down at the male ghost standing in the clearing, looking up at him. It was clearly obvious who it was at this point. But even as the stranger peeled back his hood, slid off his sunglasses, and unzipped his jacket just enough to reveal the instantly recognizable “DP” symbol on his uniform underneath, Danny was still unprepared for the sight of his own face scowling back at him!

 

“Real…nice!”