I know I owe a lot of you a serious apology for not updating in a long while and I will explain at the end of this chapter. But for now, enjoy the long awaited update to Earthbound Spirits.

I do not own either Danny Phantom or Teen Titans.

The two ecto-beams tore through the darkness, illuminating the room enough for the four agents to see the ghost teen soar above the blasts. The other two agents had just started pulling out their own ecto-blasters when he shot forward, easily avoiding the two beams streaking towards him and towards the metal doors. Engulfing his hands with his own power, Danny shot his fists forward, feeling the sting of the inlaid ectoranium as the metal crumpled under the blow. A lucky shot grazed across his back as he ducked through the hole. The halfa shot the hole a glare before, sending a wave of cryo-energy out towards the door.

He couldn't help but feel a sick mixture of sadness and... satisfaction at the outraged cries coming from Sam and Tucker before the ice sealed them in. For a brief moment, all he could do was stare sadly at the frozen door as flashes of green splattered across the icy surface, drowning in sickening concoction of emotions the situation was inducing.

He was stirred out of his thoughts as an ecto-beam flew over his shoulder and into the frozen door. Whipping around, the halfa saw several armored agents with blasters firing at him from the end of the hallway. Danny narrowed his eyes as he shot forward, slipping in between the oncoming beams with practiced precision before launching an energy ball the size of a basketball at his attackers. The agents dove out of the way of the blast, only to get caught in the explosion as the ecto-ball struck the wall. The teen stopped at the end and looked on either side of entryway for any kind of attack, before taking off down the hall on his right.

Footsteps and yelling echoed out of the darkness as he continued to dart down hallways. He ignored them as he soared near the ceiling, zipping over agent's heads in his attempt to escape. He had made three more turns when the lights came back on, forcing the teen to stop and shield his eyes from the sudden burst of light.

'The Extra-Large Ecto Converter is finally up and running," announced a muffled voice from behind a set of doors to the teen's left. "Now we can head out and tear that punk apart molecule by molecule." Danny's eyes narrowed as the doors opened, the burly man in orange stepping out with Fenton Bazooka in hand. He didn't even have time to turn before being blasted down the hall by a ghost ray, allowing the half-ghost time to zip into the room before the doors closed. His anger was quickly forgotten when he saw the massive ghost portal swirling before him, giving a menacing gleam to what lay before it.

A massive burst of ecto-energy into his left side snapped him out of his stupor, sending the teen flying into the wall and into a slump on the wall. Danny groaned as he started to pick himself up, barely opening his eyes to see a bright light shining down at him.

"Danny?" a concerned voice called as a hand gently shook the teen, stirring him from his slumber. The halfa let out a grunt as he started to move, opening his eyes and instantly regretting it when a bright light swallowed his vision. Using his hand to shield his eyes, Danny opened his eyes and allowed them to adjust to the blaring light.

"You okay man?" asked the silhouette, the shadows fading away from his face to reveal Cyborg kneeling next to him. Danny's eyes widened in surprise, transforming into his ghostly alter ego as he quickly pushed himself back onto his feet. Cyborg had barely gotten back to his own feet when the halfa backed away from him, aiming a glowing hand at him.

"Easy Danny," he began, holding his hands up in surrender. "I'm not here to hurt you."

"You can drop the act Cyborg," replied the teen, eyes locked on the cybernetic Titan for any sudden movements. "I know you're one of Ember's groupies, just like the others."

"Look, I am not a..." was all the mechanical teen could get out before a ghost ray struck the ground in front of him, forcing him to jump back in surprise.

"Don't even try it Tin Man," the halfa growled, his eyes narrowing dangerously as he raised his hand back onto the Titan. "Her music was playing in the Tower when I woke up and all of you got a full blast of her spell at the park.

"I'm NOT..."

The cheerful ringtone of the Titan Communicator echoed out through the room, the halfa tensing as Cyborg raised his right forearm to his face.

"Have you found Danny?"

"Just his communicator," replied the half-metal teen, earning a confused look from the ghost boy. "Looks like he left it here to throw us off his trail."

"Well keep looking. Ember said she'd give us personalized autographs on the pictures she'd take with us if we take him out."

"You serious?!" shouted Cyborg in complete disbelief and excitement. "Autographed pictures with us?!"

"I know!" replied the boy wonder with equal enthusiasm before quickly clearing his throat and regaining his composure. "And that's why we need to find Danny."

"Right," agreed Cyborg, nodding at the Titan leader before ending the call and looking back up at the ghost. Danny had lowered his hand a little and wasn't glaring at him anymore, but his confusion wasn't enough to completely remove his defensive stance.

"How..." he began, shaking his head. "You're under Ember's spell. There's no way you should be lying about finding me, especially with that kind of incentive."

"I've been trying to tell you, I'm not under Ember's spell."

"You have to be," the halfa stated, eyes narrowing on the cybernetic crime-fighter again. "You don't have the Fenton Phones to protect you from her song."

"Maybe not," Cyborg replied. "But when I made my sonic cannon, I had to install an audio filter to my ears to keep the sonic backlash from messing with my systems." The teen then pointed to his one human ear with a smirk.

"Which means I don't have an ear for her music." The halfa stared down the cybernetic teen for a moment before finally relaxing and lowering his hand from the Titan.

"Not yet at least," he replied, rubbing one side of his face in an exhausted manner. "But you're filters will help you resist until her concert tonight, then you'll end up just like everyone else."

"All the more reason for us to pull the plug on her concert," Cyborg declared, taking a step towards the teen. "So what's the plan?"

"Keep moving and stay hidden," Danny replied, moving around the cybernetic teen and towards the exit. Cyborg looked absolutely flabbergasted at the ghost as he watched him walk away.

"You can't be serious."

"I am," answered the white-haired teen, stopping just short of the doorway. "Now that Ember knows I'm still alive, she'll have the entire planet looking for me the moment the concert ends. I need to disappear before then."

"You can't just leave," the mechanical Titan protested. "We're the only ones left who can stop her."

"I've already tried to stop her and all I succeeded in doing was serving Starfire and the others to Ember on a silver platter. There's nothing I can do to stop her."

"So you're just going to run, after everything Starfire did for you?" Danny tensed at the Titan's words, his hands balling up into fists.

"She's been standing up for you from the moment we found you and now when she needs you, you just turn tail and run? Maybe Robin was right all along and you were just using her." The mechanical teen let out a grunt as a white glove gripped his throat, slamming him into the wall and pinning him off the ground. Cyborg gripped the arm holding him in an attempt to free himself, but stopped at the sight of the eyes staring him down.

"Don't you ever say that again," growled the half-ghost, his eyes engulfed once again in that vicious storm of emerald light. "She's the only person in the world who actually cares about me. I would sooner turn myself into the Guys In White and endure their torture for the rest of my life than abuse her trust in me."

"Then prove it," challenged Cyborg, meeting the ghost's glare with his own. "Stop Ember. Break her spell over the city."

"I CAN'T!" Danny shouted, releasing the Titan and storming off.

"Yes, you can," argued the cybernetic crime-fighter, rubbing his throat as he got back to his feet. "You managed to repel and destroy a giant fire monster with little help and saved Terra from Slade all by yourself. If you could do all that, then there's nothing keeping you from stopping Ember."

"Except for the fact that I have none of my parent's ghost hunting gear, no friends to help me, and no idea how to stop her."

"You said you had their blueprints, right?" Cyborg asked, moving to stand in front of the teen. "If I can see them, then I can make whatever gear you need."

"There is no way you're getting those blueprints," Danny growled, crossing his arms over his chest. "Starfire doesn't even know where the blueprints are and she's the only person I trust. And even if I did let you see them and had all of that gear, I'd still have no way of breaking Ember's spell."

"Look, I get that you don't trust me, but right now, this isn't about trust. This is about saving Starfire and the rest of my friends from a flaming headed psycho. And if you are even half the hero Starfire says you are, then you'll stop making excuses and save her." Danny's glare swiftly vanished from the speech, replaced with a gentler, astonished expression.

"She talks about me?"

"Ever since you came to the Tower," replied the half-metal teen, a knowing smile coming to his face. "Telling us all those stories she's heard from you and how great a friend you are beneath your 'lobstery' attitude."

A soft chuckle escaped from the half ghost at the comment, a smile coming to his face at the idea of Starfire saying he was a great friend. She was always defending him. From her friends to the Guys In White, and even himself. She was doing everything she could to make sure he was safe and happy.

"Does that mean you will stay?"

A rush of determination seemed to overtake the teen, a fire erupting in his eyes as he straightened to his full height.

"I've already had to lose everything I've ever cared about once. I won't run and let it happen again."

Without any other warning, the teen lifted an intangible hand before his face and phased it through his left eye. Cyborg watched in astonishment as Danny removed his hand, grabbed the mechanical teen's hand with his free hand, and pushed something into it.

"We only have a few hours til Ember's concert," he said, removing his hand and revealing a small black flash drive atop Cyborg's palm. "So we better come up with a plan."

"Then let's get it started," the mechanical Titan replied, flashing the teen a smirk and following him towards the exit. The halfa was right at the doorway when a low growling sounded from him, causing the teen to let out a pained grunt as he leaned against the door frame, clutching his stomach.

"You alright, man?" asked Cyborg, rushing over to help the teen.

"I'm alright," grunted the half-ghost, pushing himself upright again. "Just some hunger pains. I haven't eaten any actual food since Terra was at the Tower and I'm basically running on fumes at the moment."

"Then let's get you something to eat. We'll come up with a plan then." Danny just nodded and continued on, Cyborg following right behind.

A lot of things have happened to me since my last update that have made me put this story on hold for a while. The first was that I was nearing graduation and had to really focus on school in order to finish. I only just graduated about a month ago, so that ate up a lot of my time. Writer's block coupled with a lack of inspiration also didn't help my cause at all, so that's why it's been so long since my last post.

I can't guarantee I'll be posting again anytime soon because now I'm looking for work in the field I got my degree in, but I will try to post again sometime in the future. Thank you everyone who still bother to give this story a look and hopefully it matches the quality of my previous chapters.

Don't forget to read and review!