Someone was knocking on Danny Fenton's bedroom door.

His eye flickered open and he glimpsed at the clock. At the sight of the red 7:00 Danny groaned, then he rolled over and burrowed deeper into his pillow. He was not waking up before at least 1 o'clock. No way.

"Danny! You have to get up! It's Saturday!" Danny mumbled a confused curse. It was Jazz. And somehow she had worked his reply into her annoying demand. It didn't make any sense.

"Go away, Jazz!" yelled Danny, half muffled by his sheets. "It's Saturday," he mumbled, tiredly. She knew that. What could he possibly have to do on Saturday? The C.A.T. was last week.

Danny shot out of bed, phasing right through his covers. His head bounced off the roof with a light bonk, and he dropped back down, pulled by sudden weight. Now wide awake, he managed to catch himself about an inch from the hardwood floor. He floated in place.

"The C.A.T.!" he cried. He hit the floor, and then scrambled to his feet to find clothes not stained with dirt or ectoplasm. It being the end of the week made that quite a challenge.

Danny normally found it pointless to put much effort into how he looked, especially since his clothes were often ruined by breakfast, but he needed to look like he was making an effort today. Lancer was doing him a big favour letting him retake the C.A.T., and Danny wanted to thank him somehow, even though he was definitely going to fail.

The Career Aptitude Test was the most important test Danny would ever take in his entire life. A week ago he had tried to cheat on it only to find out that cheating would lead to the deaths of his friends, his family, and even Mr. Lancer. And somehow, as if that wasn't horrifying enough, it would create a monster that would go on to kill the entire world.

Because of the C.A.T. Danny became that monster. He had managed to avoid that future with the help of the Ghost Clockwork, and get a second chance. But that didn't make the C.A.T. any less important. It still decided his future, one way or another. And Danny hadn't studied.

He'd just been so busy. Nobody had told the Ghosts how important the test was, for their future as well as his, and they worked to steal every free hour he had – not that he had many. He also had detention with Lancer. You'd think that would give him time to study, but it only made sure sneaking out to fight ghosts would take even longer.

Danny was just glad his parents hadn't grounded him – that would have been too much, even for him. They knew he was retaking the test, but Jazz had convinced them that she spoke to Lancer and got him more time to study – a favour he really hadn't thanked her enough for.

Of course, her favour will only make it worse when he fails. When all his "extra study-time" doesn't amount to anything. What will he say then?

"It doesn't matter," said Danny, with a regretful grin; "That's a problem for another day. And I don't need to pass. I just need to do the test, and not cheat. Who knows, it is multiple choice – maybe I'll get lucky."

Danny grabbed his study sheets off his desk before he swung open his door, slid past the still-waiting Jazz, and ran downstairs. He didn't need to pass to avoid the Dark future, but it would sure help in making a better one – preferably one that involved NASA. If he skipped breakfast he could fly a little slower and study on the way to school.

Jazz raced down behind him, offering the standard encouragements. "I believe in you," she said. "Just stay calm, and focus, and you'll do great!" Danny appreciated it, even if he sounded sarcastic in his thanks.

His parents were working on something in the Emergency Ops Center on the roof, so Danny had to run a little further before he transformed, just in case they were looking out the window. He was about to run out the door when Jazz grabbed his hand and pulled him back.

"What is it, Jazz?" said Danny. "I'm kind of in a rush. "

" I know," she said, "I just wanted to say: You don't have to worry. No matter what happens, you won't ever become him. This test is important, but it doesn't get to decide your future. You do. And I know you haven't studied as much as you should have, but I really do think you'll do well."

Danny smiled. "Thanks, Jazz."

And then the door exploded in, throwing Danny into Jazz. A block of splintered wood clipped the back of his head as he fell.

The last thing Danny saw as the world sunk into darkness was a toxic green glow.

When Danny came to he found himself alone in a dimly lit, compact room. He was stuffed between stacks of wooden boxes of various sizes.

Danny groaned. "That's not a good sign. I better not have been kidnapped by the Box-Ghost." He tried to stand, but found his arms and legs bound with zip-ties. Ghosts don't use zip-ties. "Ugh. I guess that explains why my ghost sense didn't go off."

The room shook with the sound of sliding metal, followed by a heavy thunk. The sole door to the cramped room swung open, revealing a bulky man, clad in a bright red jumpsuit that came over his face in a hood with dark, eye-shielding goggles, not unlike the kind his Danny's mom often wore.

Danny sighed. Why did his human enemies all dress so stupid?

"Good, you're awake," said the man. He held a thin metal rod, with two thin, curved points at the end. He pat it against his hand and it hummed threateningly.

"Okay, kid, here's how it goes. You've been kidnapped. Now the doc is talking to your folks - it's them he wants, see? You're leverage – to threaten, you know? I don't expect it to be a problem. Now, you stay quiet and let me sleep, and when we land I'll move you from this here closet to a room with a t.v. You bother me, and I'll zap you with this here zapper. It is quite painful, I promise. Understood? Good."

Then the jumpsuit-wearing man slammed the door shut. Danny was wide-eyed with disbelief. He phased through his ties and stood up. Unsure, he turned invisible and stuck his head through the door. His guard was stretched out in a lawn-chair, resting quietly. It was a wider room, filled with three tables, a fridge in the corner, and sinks and cupboards against the wall. Danny pulled his head back.

"They really did just stick me in a closet, didn't they?" He shuck his head. "Going Ghost!" he said, and transformed. The door clanged and swung open with a yell.

"What did I say!" Danny gave the guard a fast tap on the head, which sunk him to the ground.

Danny stepped out of the closet, and floated over the henchman's body.

"I bet they have Jazz, too," he said. He looked down at the guard crumpled below him, then hefted his body onto the lawn-chair.

Danny rubbed the back of his neck as he thought. Should he find his parents first, or Jazz? The guard groaned and Danny frowned. If Jazz's guard is as stupid and violent as his was she might in trouble. But it might be best to find out who's behind all this first.

The man stirred and unconsciously reached for his weapon, which was jammed against his side. Danny hummed and flicked the button on the side of the rod. Then he set off to free Jazz as the man convulsed back to sleep.

Danny noticed a few cameras placed strategically throughout the halls, so he continued the rest of his search invisibly. The ship was much larger than Danny had expected, and the halls were filled with dozens of red-jumpsuit wearing henchmen, going to and fro, completing their evil tasks. This was a bigger operation than anything Danny had ever seen before. Even the Guys In White only sent out two agents at a time. Whoever was behind this must offer serious benefits.

Not far from where he had been held Danny came upon a large chrome door, guarded by two very men with very big guns. Danny waved at them as he phased through the door.

He found himself inside a large conference room with a single, round table in the center. The table had a logo on it that Danny didn't recognize.

Danny's parents where chained to the far wall, faced toward a thin man with light blue skin, wearing a dark blue suit. He held stretched out a large sheet in front of the Fentons, and while Danny couldn't see what was on it, he presumed it a blueprint.

"But what powers it?' asked the blue man, clearly frustrated.

"Ectoplasm!" Jack answered, loudly, in his excited, booming voice. "The shield is a form of filtered ectoplasm, pulled straight from the Ghost Zone! All it takes is a – "

"Jack, dear," interrupted Maddie, kindly. "This man kidnapped us, and our children," she reminded.

"Oh, don't be like that, Maddie," said the blue man. "We were having such a good talk. I'm a scientist, just like you! I just want to understand how your technology works, so that I can help improve it – and then use it to take over the world!" he coughed. "And I told you, your children are fine! They're watching a movie, or playing a board game or something. I'm sure they're having fun! Quite safe!"

"So you said." Maddie narrowed her goggle covered eyes. "And yet we're still chained up."

"Yeah!" said Jack. "And where did you get those blueprints, anyway? Those are Fenton-patented!"

The blue man rolled up the papers and handed them to a green-clad woman who sat in the corner. "My assistant, Shego, acquired these designs from a secret American agency known as the GiW. We realized they must have stolen them from you, and decided to return them. Isn't that right, Shego?"

"Oh, absolutely," said Shego, in a dry tone. "You're welcome."

"I just wanted to talk about them first. As to the chains. . . well, I suppose that is a problem." He hit a red button on the wall and Danny's parents fell to the floor. The blue man gave an exceptionally creepy, wide smile. "Now will you help me?" he asked.

Jack and Maddie stood up, and shared a look. When they turned back to the mad scientist, it was clear they weren't sold by his gesture.

"Oh, forget this," said Shego. She marched up to Jack and grabbed his collar with an acidic fist. "Tell us what we want. . . or else," she said, with an ironic smile.

Danny jumped into action. He revealed himself with a beam that knocked Shego into the wall.

"You need to work on your negotiation skills," said Danny. He moved between his parents and Shego, who quickly rose to her feet. "You're supposed to reveal your evil true nature after you get what you want."

Shego glared at Danny and her hands burned dangerously.

"And who are you?" asked the blue scientist, in an angry, pitched voice. Shego rolled her eyes.

"It's that Ghost-kid who was all over the news." She grinned at Danny. "I think his name is. . . Inviso-Bill."

Danny cringed. "I knew that would haunt me," he mumbled. "It's Phantom, Danny Phantom. And as you can see," Danny pointed his thumb back at his glaring parents, "I've already got some crayola coloured crazies to deal with, and I'm not looking to complete the set. So if you don't mind, we'll be on our way."

Danny reached back to turn his parents intangible when he was suddenly knocked over the head. He fell to the floor.

"You're not taking us anywhere, Ghost," said Maddie. She quickly pulled back from her high-kick and moved to a defensive position worthy of a ninth-level black-belt. "Do you think we'd believe you followed us all this way to save us? Your hero facade doesn't fool everyone – especially not us. We know how evil and twisted you really are."

"Good one, Mads," said Jack. "Quick, Dr. Drakken, help capture this menace once and for all! Get the Fenton Thermos!"

Drakken and Shego looked at each other and shrugged, equally confused. It seemed in the face of his town menace Jack forgot who had kidnapped and threatened who.

"Ah! Yes! I will do just that, Jack," said Drakken, "and then we can talk more about ectoplasm. Shego, go retrieve the. . . uh. . . Fenton Thermos from storage."

Danny groaned and rubbed his head. "Ugh. Fine. I'll save you guys last." Then he phased through the floor.

An alarm began to ring noisily once Danny fled, which added an unwanted shrill section to the chaotic orchestra being preformed throughout the halls of the airship. Heavy boots pounded on the steel floor, interspersed with a chorus of shouts and calls, along with the occasional discharge of both tasers and lasers.

The red-shirts scurried about, searching for any sign of Danny, completely unprepared to detect a being who could walk through walls, disappear, and fly.

For his part, Danny wasn't doing much better. He was lost. The airship was huge! A seemingly endless maze of corridors and compartments. Danny had flown outside it to get some perspective, and found a floating monstrosity the size of an aircraft carrier.

It was moving fast, too. Once outside, Danny was left behind. He immediately had to catch up with the ship, and didn't have time to figure out where they were, but a glimpse between clouds revealed a lot of water, and nothing else, so he could certainly guess.

They had shoved Danny inside a closet, so those were what he looked for first, but he was having no such luck.

And then, through the senseless noise, Danny heard something else, something unexpected: laughter. It was faint, but Danny had good ears, and when he focused, he could tell it wasn't the maniacal laughter of a super-villain, so he flew toward it.

Danny passed through two rooms before he found the source. Jazz was sitting stiffly on a couch, a red-suited henchman on either side, and she was laughing. The flat-screen up front was playing some kind of British Drama, but only the guard on the left was watching it. Jazz and the other guard were talking.

The henchmen moved closer to Jazz as he spoke, and stretched his arm over the back of the couch to better face her. ". . . out of here, we could have some fun," he said, with a lick of his lips. "I know this really sweet place. They won't check your id, sweetheart, don't worry. And if you don't like it, well, my place isn't half-bad either."

Jazz smiled. "Heh heh. Yeah. We should totally do that. But first, if you don't mind, I'm really worried about my brother. I would love it if you let me see him." She put her hand on his arm.

Danny was disgusted, although he appreciated the lengths Jazz would go to to save him. He crept up behind the couch and knocked out the creep, as well as his silent, smirking friend.

Jazz jumped up. "Danny!" she cried. He became visible and she hugged him. "Are you alright? Who are these guys? Where are Mom and Dad?"

"I'm fine. These guys aren't ghost hunters – they don't even know anything about ghosts. That's why they kidnapped us. This human blueberry wants Mom and Dad to teach him. He seems like the mad-scientist type, with a super-powered girlfriend."

"What are you going to do?"

Danny shrugged. "I have no idea. They're human, so I can't exactly stuff them in the thermos and call it a day. Right now I'm just focused on getting us out of here. I figure there must be an escape pod or something around here we can steal."

"Sounds like a plan, little brother," said Jazz. She took Danny's hand and he turned her intangible. They flew through the halls of the ship, passing through the still searching crew-members. Jazz spotted a map bolted to the wall, and Danny floated over to it.

There was a little arrow saying You are Here, and a little further away, a floor lower, Danny saw a diagram of what looked like escape pods.

"Now I just need to get Mom and Dad," said Danny. He couldn't very well take Jazz into more danger, but he had no time to lose. Suddenly he had an idea.

Dropping Jazz off inside a storage closet, Danny flew out and overshadowed the first henchman he saw. Then he walked over to the closet and pulled Jazz out, all the while repeating "I need to take the prisoner to the escape pod."

Jazz was confused: she knew it was Danny, but she didn't understand the point. In between his chant Danny quickly spat out, "these guys are pretty stupid," and then said once more, "I need to take the prisoner to the escape pod."

Danny jumped out of his person-suit, who shook his head in confusion.

"What am I doing?" he said. He looked at Jazz, unsure, and then it clicked. "Oh, right. I need to take the prisoner to the escape pod. Brain freeze." He grabbed Jazz by the arm and led her down the hall. She looked over her shoulder and wished Danny luck.

As soon as Jazz was on her way Danny shot through the air, back to where his parents were being held. They had seemed okay when he left them, and he hoped that hadn't changed. He would never be able to forgive himself.

When Danny found the room again his parents were instructing Drakken and Shego in the use of ghost-weapons. Jack explained the blueprints and diagrams he'd carefully spread across the table while Maddie demonstrated the physical weapons. Danny sighed.

"Okay, I'm back," he said, reluctantly. "Did you miss me?" It wasn't Danny's best entrance, but sometimes the perfect moment never comes, and he was tired.

A green ectoplasmic blast hit the wall to his side. "I guess so," he said. The blast was followed by three more. Drakken and Shego weren't used to their new bulky weapons and shot wide, while the Jack and Maddie tried to grab him with the Fenton Fishing-Rod, and the Fenton Net, respectively. Danny easily avoided both traps in the low-roofed room.

Shego threw her gun aside with a yell and leapt at Danny. She kicked him in the chest, which pushed him against the wall. Her acidic glow burned him, but he pushed through it, grabbed her leg, and lifted off the ground. Shego fell back and she dangled in the air. Danny laughed as Shego roared angrily, but then her glow intensified.

Danny yelled in shock as hands seemed to come apart at her touch, fading into the mist that often overtook his legs in flight.

Shego slipped from his grip. She did a flip as she fell, and landed in a crouch. Danny aimed a kick at her head, but she grabbed his leg and swung him across the room, where he slammed into Jack's massive bulk.

Jack stumbled and tripped on Shego's gun. He windmilled his arms, desperate to regain balance as he toppled backward. He swung the fishing-rod in wide arcs, and the string stretched and wrapped up around Maddie's legs.

Maddie was tangled, but she didn't fall – the string had far too much slack to do that – until Danny gave it a hard tug with his newly reformed hands.

Danny put two hands around the ectoplasm-coated string and focused. He went intangible, and used the string as a copper-wire to share it with his parents. With another tug on the string Danny pulled his parents through the floor.

"I'd love to stay and fight," said Danny, half sunk into the floor; "but this has all really got out of hand." He waved at Shego with a grin, to emphasize the pun. Then he turned that wave to a finger-gun, and shot blast of ectoplasm at the table. The table exploded, shattering splinters across the room, and igniting blueprints.

His work done for now, Danny sank through the floor, after his parents.

Fortunately they hadn't wandered, and were in fact closed in a circle of henchmen.

Danny swept down invisibly, grabbed the string and pulled his parents once more through the floor. Before they could do more than shout in anger they were stuffed into the escape pod with Jazz.

Danny quickly locked the door and smashed his fist on the big red button, disengaging the pod from the ship before his parents could stop him.

Once stabilized the pod hovered in place as the airship flew away. The main computer blinked, and beeped, demanding co-ordinates. Jazz typed in Amity Park, and after a second of calibration, they were on their way home.

It was only when Maddie shouted "Where's Danny?!" that Danny realized his tragic mistake: He had no way of getting Danny Fenton in the escape pod. There was no place he could say he was hiding in the cramped space. Even the bathroom, his usual go-to, had its door wide-open, obviously empty.

"Oh," said Jazz, wide-eyed and panicked. "Well, you see. . ." she was uncertain, but then it dawned on her – the perfect excuse. Perfect, except for that it would make Danny's life much, much harder.

"Danny. . ." she started. "Danny wasn't kidnapped. He left before they even showed up. Lucky."

"That is lucky," said Maddie, smiling. "He had his big test today. It was so nice of Mr. Lancer to give him a second chance."

"It sure was!" exclaimed Jack. "Not everyone gets a second chance. I was lucky myself to get one with Vladdy. I'm sure Danny made the most of it. like I did. We can ask him how it went when we get back."

The rest of the trip home Jazz looked apologetically at the empty air, waiting for some sign from Danny. But he sat silent, and invisible, and wondered what he was going to do now.

If he had been kidnapped he could explain, but now?

Danny wasn't going to get a third chance.