the auction

chapter 1

The day had started normal enough. Danny had woken up early, gotten his senior presentation packed and ready to go for school and he went about his normal morning routine. School had been fine, he got by the presentation without much trouble, hung out with his friends during lunch and got through his classes surprisingly smoothly. It was just like any other regular, normal day. There hadn't been any ghost attacks that morning or afternoon, but even that was a normal occurrence every now and again. After school, his friends and him went to the Nasty Burger to get some food, and then went to the bowling alley for a couple of hours. The night was young enough afterwards to catch a movie, so they did.

That's when things went sour. After the movie, Danny decided to walk home instead of fly. Why you ask? He didn't know. It just felt like the kind of night to walk. He didn't think much of it; how often did one walk home alone at the dead of night? It wasn't as if Amity Park was necessarily dangerous, and even so, Danny was more than capable of defending himself. After all, Danny Phantom was a well-known hero. So, he felt relatively safe. That's why he was pretty ashamed of himself when a bag was suddenly placed over his face, preventing him from breathing properly, before he was knocked out by a blow to the back of his head.

It was pitch black when he gained consciousness. He could hear people cheering somewhere close by, but he didn't know why he would be hearing something like that. The back of his head was throbbing and the bag was still over his head. With a cough, he realized he was lying down on a cold, damp ground. Grunting, he tried to pull himself up, only to feel something wrapped tightly around his wrists and ankles. Panic threatened to well up inside him but he forced himself to calm down as he tried to think rationally. White rings appeared in the center of his body and spread through him. He almost sighed in relief; at least he could still go ghost.

Struggling with the binds, Danny was disappointed to know he couldn't phase through them. Apparently the person who attacked him knew of his ghost half, so it had to be a ghost. He forced himself to stop moving in order to focus on the sounds around him. He could hear moans, unpleasant ones at that, near him. Rolling over, he reached out his bound hands to feel for something. After grabbing nothing but air, his hands finally touched something solid. Tracing his fingers over it, he realized it was a bar, several in fact. A cell. Swallowing past the sudden lump in his throat, he tried to get onto his feet.

It was pointless. He managed to get partially up before wobbling and falling onto the floor with a hard thud. Sighing, he was left to roll onto his back and just wait. Hopefully someone would come get him. He could break out of his binds, fight them off, and get home before anyone could worry. How long had he been out? It must have been at least an hour. He got hit pretty hard. Anger swelled up within him for letting himself get kidnapped, but what could he do? It was best to just wait for the opportunity to escape.

Minutes passed, but it felt like hours. Danny could hear more cheering. After a few more minutes, heavy footsteps could be heard heading towards him. Instantly, Danny's guard was up. The footsteps stopped right in front of him. Preparing to defend himself, Danny rolled onto his side in a weak attempt to get up, but his shirt was grabbed by the collar and he was hauled up. Kicking with tied up feet wasn't the ideal method to try to fight, but it was the best he could do. The person carried him to wherever they were heading. The cheering grew louder with each step the person carrying him took. When the cheering was loud and seemingly close by, Danny knew they were right where they wanted him to be.

He was tossed onto the ground. Landing face first, he grunted in pain at the impact of the cold hard floor against his face. A hand cupped his shoulders and he was shoved up until he was on his knees. Another set of footsteps beside him and Danny could feel two someone's hovering behind and beside him.

"Up next for sale, is a famous Half Ghost who I am sure many of you are familiar with." A booming voice announced beside him. Ice, cold panic welled up in Danny's chest as he could hear the jeers from the crowd in front of him. Swallowing, he nervously fidgeted as the voice continued. "I give to you, Danny Phantom!"

The bag was ripped off his head and Danny gasped as he stared at the sea of ghosts in front of him. The room was dark, but there was enough dim lightening for Danny to see the crowd. There were plenty of ghosts he instantly recognized. They were all standing, smirking cruelly at him, some jeering, some cheering at the top of their lungs. Glancing down, Danny noticed he was on some sort of stage with a light centered on him, making him stand out. Glancing to his right, he noticed a strange looking ghost standing beside him with a microphone in his hands, a malicious grin on his face.

"We'll start the bid at 50!"

There were calls immediately. "55! 70! 100! 105! 150! 200! 225! 300!" the numbers kept going up.

Danny's stomach twisted and churned. He began to break into nervous sweats as he eyed the crowd in front of him, ghosts shouting their bids. What the hell was he doing here? Up for sale? Why were they making him feel like he was at some sort of auction? And worst of all…what will happen once he's 'sold' to someone? Danny dismissed the thought. The second he got a chance to escape, he would fight and fly to safety.

"20,000!"

"50,000!"

"65,000!"

Danny was sort of flattered. He didn't think he was worth this much, but at the same time, he knew most of the ghosts betting on him wanted revenge. He spotted Technus, Ember, and Walker immediately. Another glance around and his eyes made contact with Young Blood, Ghost Writer, Lydia and even Vortex. This was such a strange experience. Danny just wanted to get out of it and go home. He wondered if his friends and family have noted his absence yet. Once Sam and Tucker became suspicious of Danny whereabouts, the young halfa was sure they would come out and look for him.

"200,000!"

"250,000!"

"400,000!"

Now they were just throwing random numbers, in Danny's opinion. His anxiousness was rising as no one had won him yet. Ghosts everywhere were shouting numbers to win him, but Danny couldn't pinpoint whom. They all looked immensely determined to win him.

"500,000!"

"One Million."

The crowd was suddenly quiet. Each ghost looked in the direction of the ghost who made such an outrageous bid. Danny followed their gaze and he saw just who had won him. His stomach dropped to his feet and hairs in the back of his neck rose. Disgust, fear, and anger boiled within his chest as he glanced at his 'winner'.

Vlad Plasmius.

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THIS THE FIRST CHAPTER OF MY NEW STORY HOPE YOU'LL ENJOYED IT LEAVE A COMMENT ON WHAT YOU THINK OF THIS STORY.