Danny's Demons Chapter 32 (Early Preview) (Patreon)

Chapter 32: Alpha Testing

Fenton Lab

Maddie had gone out to pick up a shipment of calibrated sensors, leaving Jack Fenton alone with the Ghost Portal.

Jack crouched by the console. He muttered to himself while untangling a trio of mismatched wires. “Okay… red goes to relay… blue to capacitor… yellow… Wait, why is there a yellow?”

He paused, then shrugged and twisted the wire into place anyway. He hadn’t installed the activation switch yet, so it wasn’t like anything could-.

The power surged. A deep thrumming shook the floor as the ring of the portal flickered to life, its interior blazing with energy. But instead of the eerie green glow of ectoplasm, the portal lit up with white and gold.

Jack blinked behind his goggles. “That’s not right.” The light had a warmth to it. “Definitely not ecto energy. Hm… Seems close though,” he muttered, reaching for a tool on the workbench. He grabbed the prototype Fenton Ghost Fisher, a cross between a grappling line and a deep-sea reel, and aimed it at the portal. “Let’s see what’s on the other side…”

The line zipped forward and vanished into the glow.

For a second, nothing. Then the line jerked.

Jack grinned. “Gotcha!”

He reeled it in and something thunked against the floor as the line retracted. Jack bent over and picked it up. It was a book. Thick, gold-edged, leather-bound. The cover read: The Unabridged History of the Universe by Metatron.

Jack’s brow furrowed. “This isn’t ghostly at all.” He set the book down and shuffled over to the chalkboard. “This doesn’t make sense. Wrong energy signature, wrong dimensional frequency…” He scribbled out the readings he'd logged earlier.

He paused, glanced back at the portal, when he thought he heard something.

“Maybe it’s just another hotspot on earth,” he muttered. Still curious, he leaned toward the light, then stuck his head through. What he saw was not a ghost zone.

It was a room. Massive, marble, pristine. Shelves stretched higher than he could see. Gold-trimmed ladders rolled along ornate rails. Soft beams of light streamed through a domed ceiling far overhead. The air smelled clean. Like lemon, ink, and polished wood.

Jack pulled back. “Dang. Just some library in Europe or somethin’,” he grumbled. “Another failure.”

He turned back to the control panel and began fiddling with the dials again, muttering about resonance drift and misaligned flux seals.

Jack returns to the console and tries to recalibrate the coordinates again.

Heaven, Master Archive

Emily floated a few inches above the floor, arms full of books she was sorting by divine category. Her periwinkle hair was messier than usual, a stray page stuck in one of her curls. She was humming a tune to herself.

Across the chamber, a vividly colored sinner with spider-like limbs snored gently at a table, one of her lower arms twitching in her sleep.

Emily happily patted the girl on the head before moving to the next stack of books. She hummed, grabbing another book from the stack beside her, only to feel resistance. “Huh?” Emily tugged again. The book pulled back. Her brow creased. She looked down and saw a fishing hook embedded in the spine. “What in-?”

She followed the line upward, eyes widening as she spotted a glowing portal suspended mid-air, humming softly.

Then the tug came again, and the book zipped upward and vanished through the light.

Emily gasped, her six wings flaring instinctively. She shot up after it and hesitated just inches from the rift. Slowly, she peeked her head through.

Ahead was a human. Large, broad-shouldered, wearing an orange suit smeared with grime. He held the book in one hand and was muttering to himself while scribbling equations on a chalkboard.

Emily’s eyes widened. She yanked her head back into Heaven, her breath catching in her throat. She turned and flew from the room in a blur of feathers and fluttering skirts. ‘Sera! I need Sera!’

Unfortunately, she would miss the same man sticking his head through the portal and being disappointed.

Seraphim Tower

Sera sat behind a desk, halfway through a tall stack of divine memos, chain bracelets dangling as she worked. She didn’t look up when the door slammed open.

“Emily?”

Emily skidded to a stop, breathless. “Sera, you gotta come to the Master Library right now.”

Sera sighed. “Did someone return a book late again?”

“No, no, no! You have to see what’s in there!”

Sera arched a brow. “What kind of emergency are we talking about?”

“Some human just built a portal from Earth to Heaven!”

Sera blinked. “Emily… humanity isn’t supposed to be capable of that.”

“I know!” Emily grabbed Sera’s sleeve and tugged. “Just trust me. Please!”

“…Very well.”

Back in the Archive

Emily burst back through the door with Sera close behind. She pointed toward the portal. “Look, look, look, see?”

Sadly, the portal disappeared just before Sera looked.

Sera crossed her arms. “Okay, I give up. What am I supposed to be looking at?

The only other thing in the room was the still-sleeping angel.

Emily turned, eyes scanning frantically. “No! It's not possible!”

Sera turned toward the exit. “I’m going back to work.”

“Wait, Sera!” Emily flapped after her. “I swear it was here!”

Sera didn’t slow down.

Emily hovered in the doorway, looking back once more at the spot where the portal had been. “It was right here, and it was huge! Sera, you gotta believe me!”

Elsewhere

Abel stepped out of the kitchen carrying a tray piled high with a full rack of ribs. He crossed the dining room and set it carefully on the table. “Here’s your ribs, Dad.” Without waiting for a reply, he turned and headed back into the kitchen.

Then, with a quiet shimmer, a glowing white-and-gold portal blinked open above the table. A thin silver fishing line shot down, hooked the ribs with practiced precision, and zipped them up into the light. The portal winked out.

A few seconds later, Adam entered the room and sat down. He reached for his fork, looked at the tray, and paused. “…Huh? Abel, where’s my dinner?”

From the kitchen: “Did you look under the tray?”

“Oh no, I didn't. Sorry.” Adam tilted the tray upward and looked beneath it. He saw nothing and thought for a moment why he believed that. He frowned, sighed, and set it down. “Abel, could you just get my ribs?”

Abel stepped halfway back into the doorway. “They vanished?” He started trembling, eyes darting upward. “Dad… do you think Heaven is haunted by demons?”

Adam blinked. “What?

Abel backed toward the door, chewing on a fingernail. “What if they come for me next?” He turned, bolting toward the exit. “I gotta get out of here!”

Adam stepped in front of him and gently placed a hand on his shoulder. “Abel. There are no demons here.”

Abel stopped, looked around slowly, then gave a shaky nod. “…Oh.”

“Now, get me my food like I asked!”

“Yes, Dad.” The angelic son marched back into the kitchen to cook again.

Fenton Lab 

Danny stepped carefully down the stairs into the lab, a dish towel still draped over his shoulder.

“Hey, Dad? Mom wants the kitchen cleared so she can start prep. Said something about ‘you better not be using the counter as a tool rack again.’”

He reached the bottom step and stopped.

The portal stood dark and inactive, humming faintly the way it always did when powered down. But something smelled… amazing.

Danny squinted toward the workbench and spotted his dad sitting on a stool with a plate piled high with ribs, sauce glistening under the lab lights.

“Whoa. Where’d you get that?”

Jack looked up mid-bite, his cheeks puffed out slightly. “Uh… takeout,” he said after swallowing. “Pretty good, huh?” He reached over and held out another rib like it was no big deal. “Try one.”

Danny hesitated exactly one second before taking it.

He bit in. His eyes widened.

“This is delicious!”

“I know, right?” Jack beamed.

Danny went in for another bite. “Think we can get these again later on?”

Jack paused, wiped his fingers on a nearby rag, and cleared his throat. “Uh… I don’t think so.”

Danny looked up, mid-chew. “Why not?”

Jack smiled in that sheepish, trying-not-to-explain-something way. “Let’s just say... international shipping might be complicated.”

Danny stared. “International?”

“Europeans can seemingly cook some good ribs.” Jack busied himself with another rib. “Anyway, you tell your mom I’ll be up in five.”

Later that Month 

It took Jack a few tries, but eventually, he managed to stop the portal from opening in “Europe.”

Unfortunately, that progress came at the direct expense of a certain Seraphim’s patience.

#

Emily yanked Sera by the arm across one of Heaven’s many parks and flowerbeds. The portal had shown up again. This time, while she was helping plant golden root near the community garden.

She pointed toward a tree, her head turned slightly away. “There, look, look, look, see? I told you I’m not crazy, I told you!”

Sera raised an eyebrow, deadpan. “And you’re not crazy because…?”

Emily turned toward the tree. The portal was gone, and she screamed.

Sera didn’t flinch. “I see your point, Emily. No crazy angel would scream at a post like that.” She started walking. “I’ll be getting lunch if you wanna come yell at some tables or anything.”

Seraphim Tower

Emily tugged Sera through another hallway. They stopped in front of an ornate door with a gold-inlaid frame.

Sera crossed her arms. “Okay, we’re here. Are you happy now, Emily?”

Emily practically bounced in place, laughing under her breath. She peeked inside and beamed at the portal. “Yes!” She spun toward Sera. “See, Sera? I told you it’s here!” She gestured toward the room without looking again.

Sera calmly poked her head into the office. She smiled. “Oh, hello, Abel.”

Emily blinked. Her eyes flew open. Inside, Abel had just stepped through a side door, arms full of books and rolled papers.The portal was gone… again!

He looked up. “Hi, Sera. I’ll have me and my dad’s invoices submitted later today.”

“Thank you, Abel.”

Emily stood frozen, her mouth slightly open.

Sera stepped back and turned smoothly. “Come on, Emily. You’ve delayed me long enough. You’ll be helping me with the next batch of paperwork in addition to your own”

She walked off.

Emily sputtered. “But, but, but, but, but, but, but-”

“Let’s go,” Sera said, grabbing her sleeve mid-sputter and pulling her down the hall.

“But, but-”

 “Let’s go.”

#

Adam screams at an empty takeout bag just as he left a restaurant in Heaven. “Who keeps stealing my food?!” This was the fourth time this month.

Later That Week

Upstairs

There were laptops and thick library books on Danny’s dining room table. Scattered papers were close to spilling onto the floor.

“Okay, so get this.” Tucker leaned back in his chair. He pointed a finger at his laptop screen. “The computer that got Apollo 11 to the moon had less power than one of those singing fish plaques.”

Danny grinned. He highlighted a paragraph about the Soyuz program. “So we could get to the moon with a PDA and a novelty bass?”

“Theoretically,” Tucker replied with complete seriousness. “But the singing might annoy you to death.”

A frustrated sigh came from the other side of the table. Sam slammed a heavy book shut. Its title was A People's History of the Post-War World. “It doesn’t matter. Capitalism, Communism. Both have the people in power keeping the little guy down.” She scowled at her own notes. “Nothing’s changed.”

A sharp knock came from the front door.

Danny’s eyes widened, and his hands froze over the keyboard. Tuesday. He had completely forgotten it was Tuesday.

“I’ll, uh, get it.” He pushed his chair back so quickly it scraped against the wood floor. He hurried out of the dining room.

He pulled the door open. Octavia stood on the porch. She was dressed in dark, fitted jeans and a t-shirt for a band he had never heard of. A small, knowing smile touched her lips.

"Hey." The word came out in a single, rushed breath. "Via. I am so sorry. I totally spaced that you were coming over today." He gestured vaguely back toward the dining room. "I've got Tucker and a classmate inside. We're stuck doing a history project."

Octavia's smile did not falter. "It's fine." She glanced past his shoulder. "It has been a while since I have seen Tucker." She looked back at Danny. Her expression was practical. "Let me help. The faster you finish, the sooner we can hang out."

A wave of relief washed over Danny. He nodded and stepped back to let her in, leading her toward the dining room.

From the table, Tucker’s face lit up. "Via! What’s up? Didn’t think we’d see you today."

"My schedule opened up." Her attention settled on the other person at the table. Her smile tightened.

Sam had turned in her seat. Her research was forgotten. She took in Danny’s flustered expression, then the new girl who carried herself with an unnerving amount of confidence. Sam’s brow furrowed. Her expression mirrored Octavia’s own sudden, analytical stare.

They looked at each other. Then, they both turned their heads to Danny.

"Who's she?"