#EH: Magic

[lilianade-comics]

Ectober Haunt day 22! When Dani Fenton was very young, her twin brother accidentally fell through a spirit ring into the realm of ghosts. Now a young teen, she gathers up supplies "borrowed" from her occult obsessed parents and enters the ghost realm with only one goal, to bring her brother home. But first she needs a guide! And who better than the first big and scary and definitely not evil ghost she encounters?

[fandonnavyce]

Ectoberhaunt 2023 Day 4: Zombies

“Sorry but I’m pretty sure this is a medical emergency”. Seething under a Pit Rage green, that was Jason's only warning before some giant just shoved his bare hand through his chest to pin him up against the nearest building wall.

Or

Another Danny fixes Jason's Pit Madness/Sick Ghost Core Fic

And the inherent homoeroticism of impromptu soul surgery

Read more (long post)

Part 1

Bloodthirst pounded in his head and crooned like a siren, as rage frothed and boiled through his mind. Jason had deliberately left his guns behind. In this state he'd be liable to start a massacre. In this state he'd be liable to go off half-cocked to try to hunt the Joker to disastrous consequences. It was a relentless impulse. An obsession. Only white-knuckled discipline had him wrest control from the Pit Madness. But anything could trigger him at this point. He felt like a bomb liable detonate just from being looked at funny.

“Sorry but I’m pretty sure this is a medical emergency”. Seething under a Pit Mad green, that was Jason's only warning before some giant just shoved his bare hand through his chest to pin him up against the nearest building wall.

He couldn’t breathe. Wide-eyed but unseeing, it wasn’t the pain of being stabbed but the shock of a sudden ice bath. Jason felt like his open, gaping heart was being soaked in searing frost.

“Easy, easy”, the giant soothed as if Jason was a spooked horse, and not his victim of a drive-by ice magic bullshit hand through chest impalement. Jason’s scrabbling flails to move the giant’s arm achieved nothing. The limb was tougher than steel, and utterly indifferent to his struggles.

Jason furiously kicked out. His legs somehow hit nothing but air despite the giant’s intimate proximity. Then the giant, with his free non-skewering hand, grabbed hold of one of Jason’s thighs and trapped it around his own waist. Jason’s other free leg could only just dangle helplessly, his toes skittering against pavement for balance. Jason’s fingers scratched at the giant's steel rebar of an arm. His slipping hands wildly swinging between frantic tugs to remove and desperate clutches for support from said offending limb.

Squirming, thrashing, and lashing out, Jason growled, snarled, and bucked in impotent wrath. The Pit Rage writhed. It fuelled his own rage and wild panic at being caught and rendered helpless like this. He yelled, howled, and cursed out the giant but the giant remained imperturbed, utterly focused on further skewering Jason’s chest with his icy bullshit magic hands.

After one particularly strong flail, the giant suddenly tightened his grip on Jason’s everything and pressed in closer. He slowly pulled his hand free from his chest, and Jason was suddenly gasping, bent over. With an easy, gentle but unyielding hand, the giant lifted Jason’s chin and looked deeply into Jason’s wild eyes, with steady, piercing blue ones of his own.

“C̖͋̓̏̊̈́̌ͮa̴ͬ̇ͦ̊͒̆ḻ̯͎͞m͕͕͕̙̀ͤ̾ͭ̓̈ ̫̙͎͍̞ͥ̃̍͛̔dͪ̿̓́҉͕̖̺̹o̪̜̬̝̞̬̒wń̻͚̤̙̞͛,” he commanded. “D̨̺̼̳͢͡o̥͉̭ͅ ̛͎̣̭͚̫n̸͖͎̹͈̦͙͉ơ͖̙̟̣t̬̙̪ b̷e̡͜ ̴̴af̷ra̷id͠”.

Jason’s frantic movements slowed to a stop as a wave of calm resonated from within Jason. Suspicious. Instantly Jason’s hackles raised. But the Pit Rage didn’t increase in vitriol. As if it had been sedated, the Pit Rage instead went quiet.

“I’m h̤̰͇e̬͇̺̹̥ͅre t̹̜̪͉̙o͎̙ ͍̼h̤̰͇e̬͇̺̹̥ͅḷ̹̻͓̱̺̗p̶̱̠͉̜ ̟̳̙̼̯̟̥y͙̙͇̣͡o̤͖͖͙̯��ͅu͍”.

Jason sneered, squeezing the giant’s offending limb. “Fuck you,” he spat out. The giant gave a small teasing smile in response.

“But we’ve only just met,” the giant answered lightly. Then he punctuated his statement by stabbing his hand back into Jason’s chest. Jason stifled a scream. It was more shock than pain.

“E͝asy̛ doès ̸it,͡ I'͞m̛ ́a͡lm̧os̷t́ ̛th̴e͡ŕe̸”. What was this giant even doing, rummaging through his soul? It didn’t even hurt. The act was very unlike a stabbing or a gunshot wound. But it was visceral and oversensitizing and intensifying.  From chilly ice baths, Jason's very soul was now burning alight with glacial fire. Tear tracks crystallised on Jason’s face as stared down the giant. But the giant wasn’t even looking back at him. Jason could only helplessly look at where their hand disappeared into his chest cavity. Currently, being burnt and staked to the wall by icy magic hands was Jason's status-quo. He could no longer speak, only choke back gasping moans as ardent ice swallowed his heart.

Finally, the giant pried his hand out from Jason’s chest. He took with him something heavy and viscous that had been sloughed off forcefully from Jason's heart. There was pure relief. All of sudden Jason felt like a great burden had been taken from him. Or that his heart had been constricted. His lungs had been suffocating. His throat strangled. But now he was free. 

Jason saw that in the giant's grip there was a fistful of thick, goopy, green-blue sludge. Still in shock, Jason had half expected it to be his still beating heart. As ever focused more on his actions rather than on Jason, the giant gave the goop a curious frown.

Abruptly, Jason realised that the Pit Rage was gone. Was that his Pit Madness?! The giant tilted his hands to prevent the goop from slowly dripping to the ground.

Slowly, the giant squished it between his fingers. Then he shrugged and sucking the damned thing into his waiting mouth. He simply slurped it down and licked his fingers like it was nothing more than some spilt hot sauce or a melting ice sundae.

The giant's eyes flashed from bright blue to neon Lazarus green. As he exhaled, blue mist shimmered from his lips. Reflexively, Jason gasped and the blue mist travelled from the giant’s lips to his as Jason inhaled. Desperately.

“Ahh you’re H̿̉͑̽́̉̉̚ŭn̍͋͐̇͏g͆̈̎ŕ́y̸̡̛̓ͨ̒. Of course you are. Here, l̲̏è͚͚ͥt m̲͉̾̆e ̐h̳͍̹e̻̮l̶͜p͏͖̦̜̦ ̡͚̟̩y̖͔̠̜͚͈̖͢͞ọ̷̦̗͖̥̠ͅu̼̱̞̟͍͓̝”.

The giant's eyes flared to Lazarus green. His black hair bleached to a shocking white. Jason could feel it deep inside that the giant was building up to something. Then the giant plunged his free hand back into Jason’s chest. Jason couldn’t even be shocked.

It was still for a moment. Then there was the relieving numbness of ice on strained muscles. The gentle cool breeze on feverish skin. A refreshing ice cold drink soothing a parched, burning, thirst deep inside.

Jason moaned. It was pure relief. It was satisfaction when filling a gaping need.

“There you go, t̴̢͢a̷̸͡k̷̢̀̕͢e̕ ̶̷̶͡͠a͢͜s̨҉ ̢͜m̸̧͝͝u̸̡͠͡c̵̸h͡ ̴̧a̛͞s͟͠ ̷͘͞͝ỳ̧̕͡ǫ̶̧͢ù́͘͢͝ ͘̕͢͠w̕͢͞à҉̀͝n̡̕͟t҉͟.”

Jason glutted. He felt a part of him greedily consume what the giant was endlessly offering him. Joyful tears pricked his eyes even as his heart(?) ravenously devoured the giant’s gift. Jason panted, large gulping breaths, desperate for, not air, but something just as vital for survival. His brain zinged as if Jason was tasting the sweetest of frozen delights, drinking from the purest of ice-cold springs, or breathing the crispest of frigid mountain air.

Eventually Jason slowed down. His frantic feeding mellowing out to a blissful savouring. When he finally stopped, when that greedy, needy, desperate part of him finally hummed in satiation, Jason felt the giant loosen his steady, unbreakable hold on him. The giant released him, pulling his hand out of his chest like a caressing hand.

Jason shivered, breaking out in goosebumps. He hid his face into the giant’s chest, taking huge gulping breaths, fully resting his weight against him. His thigh curling tight against the other’s waist still, with fistfuls of the man’s shirt in hand. Jason felt like he was experiencing a great high and coming down from a bad trip. All he could do was hold on as reality re-shifted around him. Jason’s breathing eventually evened out and his focus came to. Absentmindedly, he realised his breathing was in sync with the giant’s heart rate - slow, steady, and beguilingly calm.

“F̱̮̲͍͖e̡̩̪̮e̷͈̹͚l͇͘í̥͕͚̺n͓͎͕͚̮g͏͖̟̪͇͉ bͤ̚et͆̈́̂t͘e̔̄ͥr̍͂?" the giant rumbled.

“What?” Jason asked, still rather dazed. His tongue felt unusually heavy and cumbersome. “I mean yes, much better. Who, what, who are you, what did you just do?!” His words were half accusation, half wonder. The giant cocked his head, clearly looking over Jason who was still braced against him.

“I'm̨ͥ ̿̊̉̈́Da͌͌n͋̇ͥn̔y̢ͬ̇̂ ̎Ph̘̫͎͍̘͜a̞͜n͇̜̭̹͚͉͘t͕̤̭̬o̠̻̭̝̰͍̣m͈̰̪̥̖. Ȃs̎͐̃͒̕ ̢f̀͆̈̍o̷̎͒̏̓r͠ ẅ́͋͜h̵ȃͤ̊̚͏t ̀Iͮ d͋̈́i̷̐̅̋d̓͗,̾̐͗ ̡̋ͦÍ ẁas̷ ͟j̛ust. Hmm."

The giant paused for a moment and then started again. He spoke clearer. It was in more a more coherent voice. It sounded Midwestern.  

"With your core in that state, you'll probably understand human speech better. As I was saying I was just helping you out with that nasty ecto-situation you had going on. You were destabilising really badly so I just put an end to that. For now, at least. This is being more emergency first-aid treatment after all. Lucky that I’m the ghost equivalent of a universal donor. But yeah, any long-term treatments to get better I’m gonna have to send you to a medical professional for that. I can recommend my own doctor, he’s an expert on people like us. Although, you’re not an ice core but a fire core so I dunno how exactly that’ll play out for you. But he’ll definitely still be of help. He’ll at least be able to tell you what you need.”

Jason raised an eyebrow. That was far more information than he expected to be given. Especially from a guy who had just unceremoniously just shoved his hand into his chest cavity to do some kind of barehanded removal surgery and then ate the remnants. Now if only Jason had a single clue about what the giant was going on about, just a crumb of context.

“Ok there you meatball surgeon from Ankh-Morpork, I have no fucking idea what the fuck you’re on about. All I know is that one minute I’m Pit Mad, then the next I’m being skewered like a kebab by a fucking giant who’s hand is rummaging around in my chest cavity as if it’s a sofa cushion with loose change you’re after.”

Jason aggressively steamrolls over how good having the giant’s hand in his chest had felt. That he kinda wanted it back inside. That he’s mourning its absence. Those feelings, Jason refuses to even mentally glance at them before stomping them flat.

“And then after finding what you’re looking, which I’m guessing is my Pit Madness because I don’t even fucking feel it anymore! You then just fucking ate it. You fucking ate my Pit Rage! Like it was a goddamn slurpee!”

“I would've offered you some, but it clearly wasn’t good for you.”

Jason stared balefully. “Wasn’t good for me.”

“Yeah you core was clearly struggling, which is not a surprise. It's pretty fragile to be honest. Is,” the giant hesitates, “I know this is a little insensitive to ask, but are you ok? Are you safe?"

Jason’s previous relief was quickly swinging towards a burgeoning hysteria.

“Asking if I’m ok is insensitive?” But impromptu soul surgery by a wholeass stranger wasn’t. This giant’s sense of propriety was wild.

“I wouldn’t want to touch upon something taboo," the giant kindly asserts. Then he widens his eyes,  "Oh, I’m so stupid! Are you being hunted?”

“Hunted?! By what?!”

“Ghost hunters or something.”

“I’m a zombie! Besides ghosts aren’t,” Jason pauses and then forges on, “ghosts aren’t real.”

The giant rears his head back, clearly taken aback.

“You think ghosts aren’t real”.

“Rapidly less so with every second you look at me like that, I will admit.”

“Oh we have so much to talk about.”

Part 2 - Danny POV

Gotham was so cursed, it was almost hysterical. The ectoplasm here was an emotional miasma of fear, hostility, and insanity. A veritable cocktail of violence, magic, and madness. It was steeped in the soil. It stewed in the waters. The foundation that the City was built on was the blood-stained, screaming deaths of the victims' demise from genocide. Gotham was their devastating scorched-earth vengeance.

The capricious and cruel magics entwining with the demented psyches of twisted lunatics. The generations of decadent, sadistic malice. The layers upon layers of maleficence all fermented together to create Gotham. A city where people lived, and where people died, with gritted-teeth and marrow-deep stubbornness and a jaded, crystallised resolve to keep going and never give up. 

It was very different from the pure, immense, but ultimately rather neutrally charged ectoplasm back in Amity.

Danny loved it.

Gotham's ambient ectoplasm was an smorgasbord of emotions that was fine dining if not as nutritionally enriching. Amity's ambient ectoplasm was equivalent to protein powder shakes and high energy bars made in bulk. There was a reason why ghosts were so physically present in Amity Park. The open portal may give ghosts easy and frequent access but it was the ambient ectoplasm that reached high levels rarely reached in Physical World that empowered their presence. In comparison, Gotham's was a tiny portioned delicacies made from rare, exquisite, and borderline toxic ingredients. As result their ghosts were rare and Revenant. Their undead existence was dependent on their corporeal physical body. Gotham's ambient ectoplasm was too scarce for them to form, be present, or be seen without a physical anchor.

(hailing- URGENT- respectful)(hailing-URGENT-respectful)(hailing-URGENT-respectful)

A Genus Loci was rarely the most loquacious of ghosts. It was an amalgamation, the embodiment of zeitgeist, a singularity formed from many deaths, many fears, many desires. It was one mind, it was every mind. Gotham was no one, it was every one. So when Many unified as One, communication was densely packed concepts and emotions. Gotham City was no exception. Danny responds to it's call.

"̠̼̝Ye͞s, I̴͟'̀͏m ̧Li͜͟s̷t͘͜e͞n͞i̕ń͜g̷͏"(acknowledgement-strong-reassurance)

H͘E̶͘L̡P̀͝(beseech-demand) H͘E̶͘L̡P̀͝(beseech-demand) H͘E̶͘L̡P̀͝(beseech-demand)

"C̨͡e͜r͢ta͘̕i͡͞n͜͞l͜͏y̕ / Hͬ̒̈́̋a̗̠̮̩p̝̜̗̟p͓y̝̝̹̩̮ͅ ̗͍̻̞̮͍͖Tọ̠̻̟͕̹ ̹̗͙̖͍̦ͅHel̏p ҉  "

(GRATITUDE) (GRATITUDE) (GRATITUDE)

"Y͘o̷u'̀r͡e͡ We̵ĺco̧me ҉  /W̷̢͏h̴̢̕͞͝a̡̢͠t͡'s͠ ̕wroņg̸?"

M̶̢Y̸ R̢͠͠͞E̴͘͠͠V͏̢̧Ę͘N̛͢͝A̴̛Ǹ̛T͟ S̿̂͊͌ON: M̶̢Y̸ R̠̩͇̭̤̮͈E̺̪͉̪ͅD̹͎̺ ̩͈̲̗̰̼̭̭̹Ḳ͕N̠̜̜̠̩̙I̺̭͈G͎͎̰̥̫͉͕ͅH̝̖̱̰̝͔T̺̻̩̼̹ Á̕͞V̵ENG̕E̢R: B̸͏u̸̵tc͏he̡̨rb͟i̛ŗd(mine-beloved-proud) = HURTING:UNWELL

(understanding-acknowledgement-determined)/ "W͘͜h̨͜e͢r͟͝ę̵ ̶̶̢í̶͘s҉̨ ́h͏͞e̡?" (urgent-query-ready-to-go)

THIS WAY (tugging-leading-quickly)

Gotham faithfully pulled him towards her beloved Butcherbird until Danny's own ghost sense was picking him up. Unfortunately, the revenant was destabilising, violently. Danny couldn't tell exactly what was wrong with him without getting inspecting their ghost core however. But Phantom could easily see that the revenant was in a middle of a massive meltdown. The kind of meltdown where their haywire feelings meant they weren't in their right mind. The kind of meltdown where a ghost could, under the strain of their own berserk emotions, break down and injure their ghost core. The kind of meltdown where the best thing to do was to neutralise the trigger and then hold them till they calmed down and came back to themselves.

Danny could see from the lack of combatants that unless the trigger was the very city itself (unlikely otherwise they couldn't be Gotham's) that meant that whatever was triggering this meltdown was internal.

"B̸͏u̸̵tc͏he̡̨rb͟i̛ŗd, B̸͏u̸̵tc͏he̡̨rb͟i̛ŗd, I͞'m̸ ͘her̡e ̸to he̶lp"(comfort-reassurance)/"B̸͏u̸̵tc͏he̡̨rb͟i̛ŗd, can͞͠ ̀̕͡ý͜ou h́͜ea̶r̴͜ ̀͡m̡͏e͜?͢͢ ͢C͝͞à͢͝n ̶y҉o̕͜u͟͏͡ ̀lo̷o̢͠k a͝t̨ ̷͢m̶e̶?"(urgent-query)/ "You'rę t͢otally̶ ̛u̴nres̨ponsiv͝e͜"

The revenant was so deep in his meltdown that the man couldn't even register his presence even when Danny was speaking to him.

"Sorry, but I'm pretty sure this is a medical emergency".

The ghost, understandably panicked when Danny suddenly made immediate contact with his ghost core. His small and tender ghost core that was all but encased with ill-processed ectoplasmic detritus. It was clear to sense that major ecto-debridement (the active removal of ectoplasmic detritus) of their ghost core was in order. The ghost core was under so much strain and so polluted that no wonder he was experiencing a major meltdown. The poor guy was likely on the constant brink of destabilisation. Danny was just glad that the meltdown was a result of his ecto-biology. If it had been a mental issue, like a threat to his Obsession, that would have been far more difficult to neutralise. The man was a stranger. He wasn't even aware enough to monologue and rant about his problem to him so Danny could get context clues.

Carefully, Danny spread out his ectoplasm over the ghost core to get a better sense of its state. The ghost core full on shuddered and flailed.   

Danny soothed the agitated ghost core, "́Eąs͟y̡,͡ ́e͡as̀y," as he focused on feeling out the depth of severity of the ghost core's condition. The ghost himself was weakly lashing out at the unexpected contact. Danny absent-mindedly absorbed their light blows.

Carefully Danny began to saturate the ghost core with his own ectoplasm. It would soften the ectoplasmic detritus and loosen it from the encased ghost core. However as the saturation levels increased, irrespective of how gentle and well-meaning his ectoplasm emanates, the ghost core became overwhelmed from the significant increase in foreign ectoplasm.

Like a toddler refusing to open their mouth to feed, it's emphatic refusal to accept his ectoplasm started to disrupt Danny's steady flow of ectoplasm. After one particularly strong flail caused Danny to slip, he had to quickly re-steady himself. Gently letting go of their ghost core, he paused for moment. Then, looking the other straight in the eyes, Danny spoke with Authority.

“C̖͋̓̏̊̈́̌ͮa̴ͬ̇ͦ̊͒̆ḻ̯͎͞m͕͕͕̙̀ͤ̾ͭ̓̈ ̫̙͎͍̞ͥ̃̍͛̔dͪ̿̓́҉͕̖̺̹o̪̜̬̝̞̬̒wń̻͚̤̙̞͛,” he commanded. “D̨̺̼̳͢͡o̥͉̭ͅ ̛͎̣̭͚̫n̸͖͎̹͈̦͙͉ơ͖̙̟̣t̬̙̪ b̷e̡͜ ̴̴af̷ra̷id͠”.

Not mind-control but definitely resonant, the ghost core finally quieted down, and the ghost stopped lashing out. 

“I’m h̤̰͇e̬͇̺̹̥ͅre t̹̜̪͉̙o͎̙ ͍̼h̤̰͇e̬͇̺̹̥ͅḷ̹̻͓̱̺̗p̶̱̠͉̜ ̟̳̙̼̯̟̥y͙̙͇̣͡o̤͖͖͙̯̕ͅu͍”(gentle-reassurance-kind).

“Fuck you,”(͟͏̨́͟a̡͟͞c̢̨̕͘͟c͏̸̴̛͜è̸̷͢͠p̵̷͞͡t̨̡͡ą̸̀n̷̴c̡͘e̶̕͞-g̵͟͏̀r҉̡̀a͞͠t̷͟͝ì̸͝͠͡t̕҉͟ų͝d̵̶̕͟͠ę̶̡͠͡)̸̧̧͘.

“But we’ve only just met,”(happy-to-help)/(ready-to-restart-query)

(á̡g̨̛͜r̡̨͝è̷è̵̸m̷̶͠è͡ń̸͞t̕͜͡͡͞-̷͟͢r̸ȩ͜a̡̕d̴̡y̴͡͡-͏̧͏h̡̕͢ą̡̡͟p̶̷̧̢͞p̸̕͟͜ỳ̛)

(acknowledgement-starting)

(!̯̖̬͈̇͐̎̉)

“E͝asy̛ doès ̸it,͡ I'͞m̛ ́a͡lm̧os̷t́ ̛th̴e͡ŕe̸”. The ghost core was almost entirely drenched in Danny's ectoplasm. The ectoplasmic detritus would soon be soft enough to separate pulling it from the vulnerable ghost core.

Danny began to add some ice to his ectoplasm so that the  detritus would gel together separately from the ghost core. Once he got as much as he could, he slowly extricated the captured detritus. The overall ectoplasm was quite gelatinous, and exuded rich, powerful, delectable emotions.

As harmful as it may have been for the ghost, that was because their ghost core couldn't sufficiently process that high intensity of emotions. Danny Phantom, High King of the Infinite Realms, did not share that same problem. He figured it would be such a shame to discard such a delicious piece of ectoplasm.

Once he finished consuming the ectoplasm, realised that the ghost was H̿̉͑̽́̉̉̚ŭn̍͋͐̇͏g͆̈̎ŕ́y̸̡̛̓ͨ̒. The removal of a significant amount of ectoplasm - even when it was ill-processed - would trigger Ģ̂h͂ͬ̏o͒̇͗̏sͨ͛͗͋t̴ H̿̉͑̽́̉̉̚ŭn̍͋͐̇͏g͆̈̎ͪ̈́̀̚͏eŕ́. 

"Here, l̲̏è͚͚ͥt m̲͉̾̆e ̐h̳͍̹e̻̮l̶͜p͏͖̦̜̦ ̡͚̟̩y̖͔̠̜͚͈̖͢͞ọ̷̦̗͖̥̠ͅu̼̱̞̟͍͓̝”"(offering-feeding).

Danny felt his eyes and hair do their customary transformation as he pulled more on his ghost half, exciting his own ectoplasm to higher levels.

(H̿̉͑̽́̉̉̚ŭn̍͋͐̇͏g͆̈̎ŕ́y̸̡̛̓ͨ̒.)(H̿̉͑̽́̉̉̚ŭn̍͋͐̇͏g͆̈̎ŕ́y̸̡̛̓ͨ̒.)(H̿̉͑̽́̉̉̚ŭn̍͋͐̇͏g͆̈̎ŕ́y̸̡̛̓ͨ̒.)/(g̵͟͏̀r҉̡̀a͞͠t̷͟͝ì̸͝͠͡t̕҉͟ų͝d̵̶̕͟͠ę̶̡͠͡-h̡̕͢ą̡̡͟p̶̷̧̢͞p̸̕͟͜ỳ̛-g̵͟͏̀r҉̡̀a͞͠t̷͟͝ì̸͝͠͡t̕҉͟ų͝d̵̶̕͟͠ę̶̡͠͡).

Steadily pouring his ectoplasm, Danny watched as the ghost core gleefully replenished it's reserves, happily feasting on his ectoplasm, delighted to be given ectoplasm easy, safe, and healthy to process. In real time the fragile ghost core was healing and building itself stronger than it had been before.

“There you go, t̴̢͢a̷̸͡k̷̢̀̕͢e̕ ̶̷̶͡͠a͢͜s̨҉ ̢͜m̸̧͝͝u̸̡͠͡c̵̸h͡ ̴̧a̛͞s͟͠ ̷͘͞͝ỳ̧̕͡ǫ̶̧͢ù́͘͢͝ ͘̕͢͠w̕͢͞à҉̀͝n̡̕͟t҉͟.”(offering-feeding-pleased).

The ghost core eventually slowed down, satisfied with it's improved state and replenished reserves. Danny took back his hand, letting go of the ghost core that trilled with gratitude for him once again (g̵͟͏̀r҉̡̀a͞͠t̷͟͝ì̸͝͠͡t̕҉͟ų͝d̵̶̕͟͠ę̶̡͠͡-h̡̕͢ą̡̡͟p̶̷̧̢͞p̸̕͟͜ỳ̛-s̵̢͝͞a҉͞t͘͟҉̡͢i̢s̢͡f̶̨̀i̷̧͘͟ę̨ḑ). Danny was glad to see it was doing much better. The sudden improvement was very pleasant to see.

(g̴l̵ad̀-͠pro͘u̡d-i͜mpr͜eşs̷éd̸)

(f̶̡̀͠l̛u̶s͏̴̧͠t̸͝͏̀e̶̢̡͡҉r̷̴͟͜ę͜͝d̛҉̢͢-̨̛͡͝ṕ̡l̢̀҉̴̛e̷͠a̴͢҉ş̴ȩ̵͜͝d-g̨͘͜͠ŕ̴̨͠͠a̵̵͢͠t̢̨̕͠e̴f̧̧́u͏l̡͘͝)

Although the ghost core was stronger than ever, Danny noticed that it was vey tired after everything that happened. No longer a medical emergency, Danny no longer needed to be in immediate direct contact with the ghost core. But the close tactile contact allowed the ghost to get his bearings. Meltdowns were exhausting, and of course the ghost core had to be an over-achiever. So it didn't only heal from the operation but it also immediately got to work to building itself up bigger and better than it had been before.

He was pleased when the ghost's breathing mirrored his sedate, ghostly heart rate.

“F̱̮̲͍͖e̡̩̪̮e̷͈̹͚l͇͘í̥͕͚̺n͓͎͕͚̮g͏͖̟̪͇͉ bͤ̚et͆̈́̂t͘e̔̄ͥr̍͂?"(fond-understanding-mild-exasperation).

Although significantly calmer and happier, the ghost was still dazed and didn't have the most coherent of responses. It was also becoming obvious that the ghost core was a rather out of sync with the rest of him and just straight up fatigued. Danny decided to just stick to human speech for simplicity's sake whilst explaining.

The ghost didn't seem to like his explanation.

"You then just fucking ate it. You fucking ate my Pit Rage! Like it was a goddamn slurpee!”

Danny couldn't see why the ghost was so angry. He agreed with the ghost, by that point the ectoplasm basically had been a slurpee for him.

But it was the ghost's disbelief in the existence of ghosts; whilst being a ghost that got helped by another ghost by undergoing a treatment that was very ghostly in nature to cure an ailment that was the pinnacle ghostliness; that really beggared him beyond belief.

@ectoberhaunt

[l0verseyes]

✨🌔 In the name of Selene, i shall punish you! 🌖✨

[jackklinemybeloved]

every episode of misfits and magic 2 that passes I’m just more and more aware of how Normal Guy jammer is, because everything around him is so fucking wild it emphasizes how much he’s just like. an american college kid. he literally just wants to play basketball and hang out, but instead he’s witnessing brutal magical murders on zero sleep. someone get my guy a protein drink, a nap, and a plane ticket back to chicago.

[qiinamii]

crown swap

[cursed-40k-thoughts]

Games Workshop when a product is revealed ahead of schedule because of an internal error: Whoopsie! Our bad! Really cool paintjob on that model, though!

Wizards of the Coast, same situation: Our only option is to send in the guys who are famous for lighting strikers on fire.

[heybiji]

[8dayrain]

emu and nene precure 🎀✨

[fansids]

Mlp swap au featuring the adventures of a reclusive draconequus and the pony she found in a forest somewhere.

.

Twilight Sparkle doesn't know what she is or where she comes from. No one does. All she knows is that she's been under the care of Night Light and Velvet Sparkle for as long as she remembers. But as she grows and shows great talent for magic, she wonders about herself more. She studies as best as she can on unicorn magic but it doesn't fill the gap.

Then one day, after an accidental magic catastrophe, Twilight packs her bags and travels to the nation of Equestria to become the student of the only pony who can answer all her questions: The sole ruler of Equestria and goddess of night herself, Queen Luna.

Also she ends up with a strange pegasus colt following her after she accidentally saves his life. Huh...

[sykloni]

4. Zombies

Ectober 2023

Danny might not taste very good for zombies.

[pricklenettle]

Haunting your own home, makin a sandwich

[lilianade-comics]

Ectober Haunt day 5 (Haunt)

[fischyplier]

Evan... WHAT ARE YOU DOING?!

[long-live-astronerd-ghost-king]

Ectoberhaunt 2023. Day 5. Hunt and Haunt.

~Well, here we go again, good old Ghost Hunger AU~

Description: The Ghost Zone is inherently a violent place. You can hunt or be hunted, there is no other options. However, for some reason the Halfa does not understand what is happening. And no one rushes to explain it. NB! ghost cannibalism is mentioned.

Prompt after memes

Suppose there’s a conventional division among ghosts. Some of them are potential predators capable of hunting their own kind, while others are only able to absorb the surrounding energy and therefore build up power more slowly than hunters.

So, predation is used as a method of survival in poor ectoplasm areas of the Ghost Zone, less often as a means of gaining power. Even less often hunters are created.

It is obvious that the appearance of a hunter who is the son of human ghost hunters in a haunting place without stable sources of ectolasm has caused panic in the society of the dead ones. For the newly formed ghost to have ectoblasts, fangs or ghost sense is a rarity and great luck. So the newcomer had everything and more to be a serious threat. An awful danger for the surrounding spirits…Right?

But Danny doesn’t know the specifics of his new biology ectology!

Even though he’s a hunter, he’s never had a ghost hunger. Probably because thanks to his parents he has an amazing ectoplasm concentrator in the basement. Soon everyone understands that the boy does not attack first. Those who return through the portal never report any losses at all. He does not bite or attempt to capture cores of other spirits. At first, the ghosts think it's a trap. Smart enough for a beginner. Not everyone has the tenacity to pretend to be an idiot to get close to them. But the Phantom never feeds on them. He’s…safe?

What’s more, Danny seems to think they’re a threat to the city. Which is fun and weird. Normally, there is no competition for feeding using human emotion. But the owner of the lair did not like the smell of fear in the air. Is this ghost broken?

When the ghosts who visit Amity realize that the halfa does not know that he can hunt them, rather than just guard his territory...Well, it explains a lot. Everyone agrees not to explain the situation to the boy so that the city behind the portal remains a relatively safe haven during the during a "hunting season" and other troubles in the Infinite Realms.

~~~~~

The problem arises when Phantom begins exploring the Ghost Zone. What if the other hunters make the boy stop being a freak?

In addition, more experienced ghosts may well attack the careless halfa. And Amity Park under the control of a more predatory spirit would be a terrible outcome. Most dead ones near the portal are used to the fact that the area before Wisconsin is open to travel and migration without the threat of being eaten.

All rational ghosts try to avoid the territory of hunters. If you can’t defend yourself, there’s too much risk of being a free meal. It’s much safer to settle down with spirits with similar energy levels at door clusters. If the hunter does not purposefully show up at your lair, you will have a much better chance of keeping the afterlife.

Those of the Ancients who have won their position and those of them who were created for it have become accustomed to isolation. Although all the Ancients have lost the need to eat 'cause they have absorbed enough energy, legends about their past are still be nightmares for all spirits. Just because they don’t need to eat other ones doesn’t mean they won’t. It is clear that a weaker hunter can also be hunted. No reason to risk.

Therefore, how freely and fearlessly Phantom communicates with Frostbite, Clockwork or Pandora is puzzling. Does he feel threatened at all? The Ancients find this experience refreshing. Lil communication without fear makes them feel sympathy for this youngling. Danny is always glad of their company. And the boy is not afraid to express his opinion. It is strange but...pleasant?

Their minions from time to time complain that they teach a potential enemy but it is very difficult to see a possible rival in Phantom. Danny is always in trouble. The youngster is silly and careless. Like a wet kitten that can’t even make a threatening hiss. So Ancients, to their own surprise, don't mind helping him. Why isn’t his naivety annoying?

For example, Frostbite’s trying to teach Danny hunting and tracking techniques because he thinks the little cub doesn’t know how to be what he supposed to be. Meanwhile Danny sees his attempts as a course of self-defense that he can use against ghosts who try to infiltrate his city.

~~~~~Bonus~~~~~

Some insufficiently powerful ghosts mimic predators to scare away dangerous spirits and protect themselves. Skulker is quite pleased that he managed to deceive halfa:

[takohebi]

unearthed this years-old sketch

[1driedpersimmon]

Lots of art and like 1 shit post