Chapter: 10 Where do your loyalties lie?

I stayed up the whole night searching.

Nobody was out; there weren't even ghost animals running about. I didn't see any humans either, not even Maddie and Jack, Val, or even the GIW. It's almost as if no ghost ever came out, but I know that's not the case. Because if it were, my ghost sense never would have gone off. I know something, or someone, was there, but there is no trace except for the remains of my ghost sense. No weird sights or sounds were going bump in the night, no ecto-guns going off, and property damage stayed the same as the day before. It was just me running around like a lunatic, trying not to be seen by any potential passer-byers or cameras. However, the worst part of the night would have to be my entrance into the house. Don't let those movies fool you. Trying to be silent while climbing up the house is a nightmare.

I tried to make my way up by gripping the bricks, but that was a no-go. Every brick leaves an indentation on my skin, and by the time I've made any progress, my hands are practically raw. In the end, I had to fly back up, but it left me wondering who thought the Ops center passed building codes. While climbing, I had to second-guess every squeak of the building and shifting brick. The whole ordeal has me wondering who exactly they paid off. There is no other way that thing got approved. Once I got back inside, I climbed into bed, hoping to get some sleep, but I don't know if I ever actually got any.

One moment I was all tucked up in my bed, and the next, I was in an endless void. There was no color, no sound, just endless nothing. At first, I tried to move, but my feet didn't touch the ground. Like the crystals from the day before, I am unmoving and suspended in the air. I try to feel for ectoplasm in the air, and the response I get is just wrong. It Is thick and deep, filled with dark emotions, almost as if it has soaked up every bad thing that has ever happened. It reaches back for me, ready to attack, causing my next movements to be fueled only by instinct. I didn't even realize what I was doing when I reached into my core. I created a shield around me just as its attacks were an arm's length away, causing them to ricochet. The shield did more than just that; it freed me from my position. I fall and am caught by the bottom of the shield as my momentum causes both of us to fall into the deep dark nothingness. I can feel myself falling, but I can see nothing to show for it. This seems to go on forever before I'm hit with the sickening smell of sulfur and the distant sound of screams.

As the smell gets stronger and the screams louder, I brace for impact. Still, before I ever make it, I can feel a pulling sensation from inside, and suddenly, I'm surrounded by white. Its contrast makes it self-blinding. It didn't last long, and I was falling through my bed and onto the carpet below before I knew it. When I phase back through my bed, I'm tangled in my sheets, exhausted, and covered in a sheen of sweat. The whole ordeal has me discombobulated. I know what anyone else would say, that it was just a dream, but that's the last thing I think it was.

It was just too real.

I get ready for the day as if on autopilot, but I just can't help but think this is all connected. First, the changing of my core, the ghost I know was there, and now these crazy dreams. If anything, they just solidified my need to talk with Clockwork. If anybody knew what was going on, it would be them. I hesitate before going out the door, looking over at my desk with the crystals. They don't really look like anything special, but with that said, I don't want anything to happen to them. Unfortunately, there are only a few options, and I only have a little time. It must have been later than I thought because, unexpectedly, Jazz rushed into the room screaming, " we are going to be late!" before stomping down the stairs. Unfortunately, she doesn't wait for me as I hear her open the front door and make her way out to the car. With no time to do anything about the crystals, I shove them into my pocket, rush to grab my things, and make my way to the car. If I had taken any longer, it wouldn't have surprised me if she had decided to leave me.

The past few days' events have kept me distracted to the point that I couldn't focus on anything the teachers were saying. I'm sure Mr. Lancer was about to strangle me after I correctly answered the question, "what is an onomatopoeia." It's not like I was doing it on purpose yet; my mind keeps going back to the crystals in my pocket. They still held a chill about them and are ridiculously smooth. Even with them moving around all day in my pocket, I couldn't feel a blemish on them. They're just too important to leave about, and there's no way I'll just throw them away. None of the other teachers called me out Besides Mr. Lancer, so I thought I was in the clear, but apparently, I wasn't being subtle enough as Sam and Tucker cornered me at lunch.

" So dude," Tucker starts while inhaling a barbecue sandwich, " Did you ever find out what was wrong." My eyes flicker between them, and I realize I never told them. " Ah, well, about that," My hand makes its way to the back of my neck as I tell them sheepishly, " Apparently, my core has been changing. It's still an ice core, but it's also changing to be a plasma one. Frostbite says it better than me, but that's pretty much the gist. It will take a few weeks for it to stabilize and things to go back to normal, but it should be okay in the end." The two of them let out a sigh of relief as Sam says, "That's good at least you can get back to Superheroing soon." I scoff at her wording, " I'm not a superhero." Sam rolls her eyes, "Then what do you call beating up ghosts then? After all, you're fighting the "bad guys"; that's what superheroes do."

"What I'm doing is community service." I retort blandly, " after all; it's my fault that the portal opened in the first place. The least I can do is make sure everyone makes it home all right." The three of us sit In silence, the two of them digesting. Tucker gives me a sad look, " you know it's not your responsibility to make sure we're all okay I mean, your parents and Val can take care of some of the small fries." I nod slowly in agreement, "I know, but I worry. I wouldn't want anything to happen to them."They take my words as sincere, but I have to question what I've said. To try to convince myself what I said was true. Well, it's true I wouldn't want Maddie, Jack, or Val to get hurt, but they weren't exactly who I was talking about.

It was the other ghosts.

I know we have our fights, but only a few of them are truly enemies anymore. Most of them, like Johnny and Kitty, just come to blow off some steam. Skulker is just following his obsession. Ember comes for shopping or a quick spar these days, and it's not like Lunch Lady is hurting anybody by volunteering at soup kitchens. I would hate to see them tied up in the lab basement or captured by the GIW. I wouldn't be able to forgive myself if I ever let that happen, but I can't say that; after all, I'm still supposed to be like them.

" You guys wouldn't believe what happened yesterday," I start to break the silence, " It was so weird, one second, my ghost sense was going off, and the next," I shove my hands in my pocket and take out one of the crystals, " these were coming out of my mouth." Tucker looks in interest as Sam makes a small face of disgust, " that came out of you?" I nod excitedly and start to explain, " yeah, it was so cool–" but I never get the chance to finish as Sam cuts me off, " why would you keep those? That's just gross." My face must have shown something as Tucker cuts off Sam and tries to reassure me, " Well, I, " he says, giving a quick glare to Sam, " think that it's very cool. What do you plan to do with it? I hum in compilation, " I was thinking of making it into a necklace. It's not like I can just get rid of it after all."

" Ooh nice," says Sam, " do you have anyone in mind for who you're going to give it to?" she asks in an expecting voice. " I have a couple of them, so I was planning to give one to Jazz and the other to myself," I say, not taking the bait; Sam seems to accept the answer while Tucker looks confused. "You've never been one for jewelry, man." I take a bite of my food before answering, " well, it's not like I can't try new things, and it's just a necklace, dude; it's not like it's a big deal."

He choked down the rest of his food before leaning into my face looking oddly tired all of a sudden, " I'm just saying, it's like everything is changing with you these days. First, the superpowers," they're not superpowers, " and now it's like everything else about you is changing." I blink at him, baffled, " it's not like im going to stay the same person forever, Tuck," or at least I hope so, " I'm allowed to try new things." He throws his hands up in exasperation as his voice rises, " Im not saying you can't try new things, but it's almost as if your a whole other person these days!"

" I'm not the same person I used to be. I'll admit that" I say calmly, " but I'm still Danny. I'm still your friend; shouldn't that be enough?" He looks at me with conflicted eyes, " you say that but what happened to the guy who would go to the Nasty Burger with me, play Doomed with Sam and me, and watch Dead Teacher movies? Because I haven't seen him in a while." I sighed, " You know I've been busy, and it's not like I don't tell you everything," gesturing to both of them, " hell, half of the time, you're there with me when things go south." He bunches up his fists in frustration, " well then, why don't you make the time to do stuff with us instead of dragging us into your messes!"

" Me, drag you into my messes? When was the last time I did that?" Sam cuts in, " That day with the Ice spike and the other day with the octopuses." I glare at her, " and if you would remember correctly, you were the one who dragged us over there, and you both offered to take care of the octopuses. So it's not like I pushed a thermos into your hands and forced you into anything!"

It wasn't until now that I noticed how loud our conversation had gotten. The whole cafeteria is staring at our table in shock. Probably because the "freaky nerds" have drama, but either way, they're staring. With that realization, it's almost like the world has stopped. Tucker's words fall on deaf ears, and the world feels like it's spinning out of control. The cafeteria just heard me say, " it's not like I pushed a thermos into your hands and forced you into anything!" this could get me into so much trouble. I look between my friends and our audience and can't help myself.

I leave.