Work Text:
Jameson pushes through the small tunnel, floating as fast as he can back to the control panels.
Red lights glare with a screaming alarm as the air pressure slowly drops with the dying power.
He meets up with Garcia who beats him to the cockpit.
“How much damage?” he asks, pushing himself into a seat and bracing his knees under the panel.
“Blasted debris field caused damage to the main engine and damaged quite a lot of the hull,” she answers.
“Is the engine-”
“Nonfunctional, we’re running on reserves now but engines three and six also got some damage so the oxygen reserves are offline as well as the scrubbers.”
“How much time do we have before it’s no longer sustainable?”
“An hour at most,” she taps away at the panel. “But the hull on the starboard side might collapse before we get to that point.”
“Fuck.”
“Indeed,” she says, turning to look at him. Eyes big and sorrowful.
“Can we get a message out?” Jameson asks.
She shakes her head, “I think the antenna is lost, there’s no signal.”
“Double fuck.”
“What’s the verdict?” Klaus asks, entering the space with Hennesey behind him.
“Main engine is shot, and the communication lines are down,” Jameson says. “We have an hour of oxygen left if the hull doesn’t collapse entirely.”
“I could maybe go out there and get the antenna working again-” Hennesey starts. “It would at least give us the chance to get a message home.”
“The entire air circulation system is offline so we wouldn’t even be able to send you,” Garcia shakes her head. “And even then, there’s too much debris out there, I would hate to lose you to the void.”
Hennesey’s mouth thins into a thin line.
“So what, we just sit here doing nothing?” Klaus asks. “I’d rather try something than just sit on my ass waiting.”
“I’m with Klaus,” Hennesey says. “We have to try something.”
“Try what? It takes at least 20 minutes to suit up and another 10 to get the airlocks in order to just get you outside. The air system is fucking down, and that’s not even taking into consideration how much damage and debris is floating out there. One nick in your suit and you're done for,” Garcia lists off on her fingers.
“Then what do you suggest?” Klaus snaps, pushing off the door frame to get into Garcia’s face.
“I suggest we all take a deep breath and calm down before we lose more oxygen,” Jameson says, pushing between the two and forcing them apart. “Look, between the four of us, I’m sure we can get a message out or something.”
“Maybe I could help?” a young voice says from behind Garcia.
The four astronauts pivot to see a young boy with floating white hair and green eyes.
“It looks like your ship is in trouble?” he offers with a wave.
“Is anyone else seeing the hallucination or am I passed out already?” Klaus asks.
“No, I see him too,” Hennesey says.
“Oh, sorry,” Danny floats back against the wall, giving the crew a modicum of space. “I’m Phantom and technically human, not an alien, although that would be cool.”
“Define ‘technically human’,” Garcia says, pushing her way closer to Jameson and away from Danny.
“Oh, I’m dead.”
“Great there's a ghost here in the middle of space-” Klaus starts.
“How is there a ghost of a kid this deep in space?” Garcia cuts him off.
“I was visiting LHS 1140 b-”
“That’s 49 light years away,” Jameson cuts Danny off.
“Yeah, but it's not actually that far through the Realms, I could take you if you want? After we fix your ship?” Danny glances at the control panels. “Also maybe we can shelve this topic until after we sort out your air problems.”
“How do you know-”
“I can read, but also the air is starting to smell funny. So fixing your ship’s air system seems the priority,” Danny claps his hands together.
The crew exchange a look.
“I’m for listening to the dead kid, what’s the worst that could happen?” Hennesey shrugs.
“We die sooner but at least we’ll have tried something,” Klaus answers,
“Trying to prevent that,” Danny says.
Garcia hums, “we don’t have much way as far as other options, why not.”
The trio turn to Jameson.
He meets each of their gazes before squaring his shoulders. He turns to Danny, “Okay, ghost kid, what do you suggest?”
“Call me Phantom, seriously, I’ve been dead long enough to drink,” Danny smiles, floating closer to the crew. “If you have a radio system, you could direct me outside to fixing whatever you need, it’s not like I need to breathe. Or I can pull you, ship and all, into the Realms and we can all work on fixing your ship. I have a couple of friends that could get replacement parts for anything missing.”
“The realms is…where you live?” Jameson asks.
“Oh no,” Danny shakes his head, “the Infinite Realms, its where all the dead and neverborn hang out. It’s the flip side of reality.”
“What’s the atmosphere like there? We can’t possibly agree to that if we’re still stuck without air.” Garcia asks.
“There’s a bunch of humans living there so you’ll be fine. It’s a bit like being at the top of a mountain, air is thin but livable.”
“I’m down for exploring more of the unknown.” Hennesy says, “I mean, that’s why we’re out here to begin with.”
“I did always want to be an astronaut, exploring the cosmos was my dream,” Danny comments.
There's a moment of heavy silence following that comment.
Danny laughs awkwardly, “I mean that’s what I do now, it’s how I found you, so lucky you, right?”
Jameson catches Garcia’s eye.
“How would we get to this Infinite Realm you spoke of?” She asks.
“Oh that’s easy, I’ll just open a portal and pull you through.”
The crew stares at him.
“You can what,” Klaus says.
“Open a portal?” Danny tilts his head, a little lost. “It’s not hard for me.”
An alarm blares as the oxygen level drops past the sustainable threshold. The crew are visibly breathing heavier, noisy gasping breaths.
“Go for it,” Jameson says. “We’re basically out of time here.”
“You got it!” Danny salutes and darts through the glass window of the cockpit.
The crew watch amazed as Danny effectively grabs nothing and then tears reality apart. Rippling green pulses out in long smoking tendrils. He keeps pulling until the tear is larger than the ship, the force blowing out strong enough to push the debris and the ship backwards.
Letting it go, Danny darts back to the space ship. Grabbing the nose, a bluish glow washes over the ship and the occupants with a cool tingling sensation.
He pulls.
The ship moves into the tear, green washing over and through the ship.
The crew gasps at the sudden relief of oxygenated air, dropping heavily onto the floor of the ship.
Once the ship is fully through, Danny let’s go, flying up and over the ship to the engines.
Inside, the crew stare out with wide eyes at the Infinite Realms. Green shines fully into the cockpit as the power cuts out fully.
A floating purple door drifts past.
Danny pokes his head through the top of the cockpit.
“Feeling better?” he asks, drifting down to them.
“There’s gravity? But the ship isn’t falling?” Hennesy asks, dumbfounded, rubbing his back.
“Sorta,” Danny flips to be in the same orientation as the crew, “It’s more of an implied concept here.”
“Garcia, can you see why the last of the engines cut out?” Jameson asks.
“Probably due to the ectoplasm here, hold on, I can get you running again.” Danny says and then darts off to the back of the ship.
“This, I have to see,” Klaus says, getting to his feet unsteadily to stumble after him.
Klaus flops on the floor, staring out of the window as a small island drifts past.
“I’ll follow him,” Garcia says, picking her way over Klaus and Jameson to head to the back of the ship.
A few minutes pass and the engines kick back online, the cockpit lighting up without the red warning lights.
Garcia’s voice comes over the intercoms.
“You two should join us at the air locks, Hennesey and I are going to help Phantom with getting the antenna reattached.”
Jameson pushes to his feet. Pressing the intercom button on the wall, he says, “Got it, we’re on our way.”
“Time for an adventure of a lifetime?” He offers a hand out.
“No one is going to believe us.” Klaus says.
“I’m not sure I believe us.”
“Fair,” he takes the outstretched hand.