Jason in the Ghost Zone

Coffins are no fun

"What!? Hey Box Ghost!" Danny sped after the laughing blue ghost that had taken off with the kid. "Get back here!"
"YOU WILL NOT DEFEAT ME HALFA. IN THIS THE BOX GHOST WILL BE VICTORIOUS!"
The hero fired off some ecto-blast as he gave chase, needing to dodge slowed the ghost down, and Danny gained some ground, or air, well whatever the ghost zone was.
"I've almost gotcha Kid!" He reached out a hand to grab hold of the ghost who was again pulled just out of hid reach.
"NEVER!" The Box Ghost screamed and a few glowing boxes pummeled into the hero, who retaliated with some blasts of his own.
The Box Ghost made a sharp turn and one of the blasts hit the kids arm.
"Erg hey, careful with those!" The kid yelled along with more words Danny wouldn't repeat. "Let me go Box Ghost! What the heck!"
More boxes flew by, almost knocking Danny out of the sky, avoiding them slowed the hero down again, he really didn't have the time for the box ghosts games. If the kid hadn't been in the way Box Ghost would have been a pile of ectoplasmic goo in minutes. The hero sped up to his max.
Soon they were in an area of the Ghost-Zone that Danny wasn't sure he'd ever visited, a maze of densly packed doors and no sign of the ghosts. If the Box Ghost went into any of the doors it would take way past curfew to find them. By now his parents were already home.
"Put me the @#$% down!"
Or he could just follow the yelling.
"I'm coming!" Danny yelled and sped in that direction. The Box Ghost would really be in trouble if the kid wasn't okay.
***
"FEAR NOT YOUNG FRIEND. I THE BOX GHOST HAVE SAVED YOU!" The Box Ghost screamed right in the boys ear.
"Yeah that's great Boxy. Now put me the @#$% down! What are you doing?" He would have struggled, but there wasn't a ground for him to fall on. He was sure he was developing a fear of heights in this place.
"IF I HAD KNOWN YOU WERE A NEWGHOST I WOULD HAVE WARNED YOU EARLIER, THINGS LIKE THIS SHOULD NOT BE HIDDEN." The Box Ghost seemed to sense the boys discomfort and move him so he was piggybacking on the man.
"Known I was a what?" The boys fists dug into the glowing blue back. The boy caught sight of Danny weaving around the doors, he was still coming. How was he finding them in the maze?
"YOU SHOULD HAVE BEEN ABLE TO FLY ON YOUR OWN BY NOW, BUT YOU FRIEND EXPLAINED YOUR PROBLEM! I THE BOX GHOST WILL NOT JUDGE YOU!"
Well the Box Ghosts voice was pretty hard to miss. "Wait? What friend?" He asked.
"YOU WERE LUCKY TO HAVE THE BOX GHOST SO NEAR, I ALMOST DIDN'T TAKE THEM SERIOUSLY." He turned and launched some boxes at Danny who dodged pretty well.
Better than he dodges punches at least. A box came from behind and knocked Danny behind his head, then two more hit his back and chest. Spoke too soon.
The idea that someone claiming to be a friend of his had set this up was troubling, he had no friends that he knew of. The question of friends wasn't even one that brought on a headache. If they were trying to keep him and the kid separate, then he had no doubt's that the opposite was what he was going to make sure happened. First he had to find some information about this 'friend'.
"Listen, that's great and all, but need you tell me which one it was, so that I can say thanks."
"I DON'T KNOW. HE WAS BEEPING, WE'LL FIND HIM TOGETHER ONCE WE HAVE EVADED THE HALFA."
"Sounds good." The boy said, not having really heard much after 'beeping'. Box Ghost was still talking, but the boy found it hard to concentrate. His skin felt hot and breathing was hard. Why was there smoke everywhere, was that a motor bike he heard? He just wanted to give up, it hurt, but Someone was right there, just a little longer and he'd be there. Just had to hold on a little longer.
"Ba, B. Someone." He said. What if someone couldn't hear him, what if he didn't want to? He had the other one didn't he? But the other one was such a, such a... He wouldn't want a screw up, refused to even talk to him most times. It was getting dark, a sliver if light above his head closed off. So dark.
***
"Box Ghost! Give him back!" They were almost out of the door-maze. He could see both ghosts clearly now, and the kid didn't look good at all. His shoulders were shaking and he was holding on to the box ghost tightly, even with his hurt arm.
He was close enough to see the kids terrified face when a wall of boxes popped up to block Dannys way. Instead of flying around he blasted a hole in the wall, using all the pent up energy that he hadn't been able to send at the Box Ghost. His vision cleared and he saw the box ghost standing in front of another glowing blue box, this one with flecks of red shooting off it.
"HAHA, ONCE AGAIN I THE BOX GHOST HAVE BESTED YOU, PUNY HALFA." The box ghost held his arms proudly in front of the box. "EVEN IF YOU SOME HOW MANAGE TO DEFEAT ME, YOU WILL NEVER BE ABLE TO REMOVE THE CHILD FROM THAT BOX WITHOUT MY HELP!"
Danny ignored the taunt and fired off blast after blast, pummeling the ghost with all he had. From experience he knew that the ghost terrorized human kids, but to do it those of his own kind as well. Even Skulker had been defending himself at first, probably hadn't noticed at first how young the kid was. The Box Ghost had nothing to gain by doing this, and Danny would make him pay.
He heard a thump from the box, taking his attention away from his target long enough for the Box Ghost to launch a counter attack. A barrage of smaller boxes smashed the hero into the box containing the kid.
"FEAR ME! FLEE AND BE GONE!" A semi circle of boxes hovered above and to the side of the ghost who stood with one hand in the air. "FOR I AM THE BOX GHOST!" he brought the hand down and boxes crashed into Danny much harder than anything the ghost had sent at him before.
The hero leaned against the big box for support. "Box Ghost." He said calmly. "That's enough. Open this and leave. I'm done with jokes, and you're the biggest one here."
The Box Ghost growled and attacked again, some of them hit, but that wasn't what the hero was focusing on. He gathered power in his hands as he approached. As he got nearer the box ghost got more and more anxious, backing away slowly. "Open it, now."
"NEVER!" The Box Ghost summoned up more boxes. "THEY'VE TOLD ME, THEY'VE TOLD ME WHAT YOU HAD PLANNED!"
"I don't care who told you what! I'm not letting you get away with this, now open it!" He held up one glowing green hand.
Thumping was heard from the big box again. The kid was probably terrified in there, but Danny did his best not to let the sound distract him. The box ghost looked between the hero's hand, and his box.
"I WILL NOT ALLOW YOU TO REMOVE HIM FROM THE GHOST ZONE!"
Danny was tempted to test whether the ghost had been telling the truth about being able to open the box without him. "I don't have time for this." He was about to send the energy at the ghost, but then they heard a ripping sound, both of them turned to the box and saw the kid parting the green stained flaps.
Kid stood to his feet and peered over the edge, a dazed look in his eyes. He took off his hat and looked it over before dropping it over the edge. After watching it fall for a while he turned slowly to look at the other two.
"Yeah, cut the tough guy shtick you two, it really doesn't suit either of you." He pointed past Danny at the Box Ghost. "And you. What the heck? Don't you ever put me in a freaking box again. I freaking thought it was damn coffin. What the heck! Really?" The kid laughed, startling Danny and the Box Ghost into backing up. "Hey hero kid? We still blowing this dump? I don't think I can handle anymore of this place. Next thing I know a Vampires gonna come from hell and try eatin' my soul or somethin'."
Danny and the Box Ghost exchanged a look, both of there attacks dissipating.
The hero was reminded of the first time he'd net the kid, when he'd kept asking about soup. There was something in his eyes that was just different. Danny couldn't place it, but he didn't want the Ghost-Zone breaking the kid anymore than he already was. At least he looked okay.
"Yeah sure." Danny flew towards the other boy. The box was sending off more of those red sparks, and Danny flinched when one of them touched him, it didn't hurt, but it felt weird.
When they flew past the Box Ghost the kid waved goodbye with a cheerful, "Seeya Boxy."
The flight back to the portal was very uncomfortable, at least for Danny.
"There aren't really any creepy old vampires around here though? Right?" The kid asked.
"I've never seen any." Was the only answer Danny could think of.
"Great, because I don't think I could handle that." The kid crossed his arms and looked around curiously.
He almost looked like a kid again.
***
"Skulker, you failure!" A red-eyed man with sharpened teeth made other sharp turn as he paced, his blood-red cape swirling behind him. It took a few minutes to calm down, and when he did he sat on a large chair lifting a glass of red wine from the stand next to him and taking a drink.
The hunter stood near him, with his arms folded, feigning nonchalance. "You're the one who gave me such restrictive rules, there was no way I could have done my job that way. What is it about this kid that got you so worked up in the first place?"
"That is not the topic up for discussion. You're fortunate your failure has no far reaching consequences ." Vlad sighed.
"So you want me to keep an eye on him in the human world then?" Skulker asked.
"No, I've lost interest in this project, there are other things my time would be better focused on." The halfa stood and began walking out. "I'll contact you when I have need of your skills again. For now you're dismissed."
It was late, and even Vlad Masters had need of sleep. There were things to be done in the morning.