@snops Hello! I'm your Truce gifter this year! I went after your 1st and 3rd prompts. Cryptid vibes and Corpse AU. Enjoy! >:)
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They’re waiting for him, this time.
They don’t, always. Usually, he’s faster than they are, and sometimes they can’t make it at all. A few, very harrowing times, he couldn’t make it.
But here, now, they’re waiting, each one leaning against a tree trunk. The hillside below then is dotted with charred and broken tree stumps that rise straight from the ground like monuments. The moon is high, white, and sharp, cut from the sky with a razor. Everything is cold, still, quiet.
Sam raises cupped hands to her mouth and blows through them, ignoring the dirt on her fingers and under her nails. It’s not any worse than digging in her garden. The shovels are a bit bigger, that’s all.
Tucker has taken out his PDA again. He shouldn’t. Not here. The screen is bright, and someone might see it. But he can’t help but check the time, again, squinting through the fog of his breath to see the numbers. It’s late. But that’s not going to change in a hurry.
Almost as one, they look down the hill, their attention drawn taught. Something is moving down there.
Surreptitiously, Sam puts a boot on the blade of her shovel, levering it up and into her hand. Tucker reaches out for his, fingers brushing the smooth wooden handle, not yet pulling it free of the ground.
They wait, still and cautious. No matter how many times they do this, they’re never entirely at ease.
Then two spots of green, bright and alien, flare up at them from the dark. If either of them had been carrying a flashlight, the green could have been mistaken for an animal’s eyeshine.
They weren’t. It wasn’t.
Slowly, the thing in the dark comes up the hill. It walks slowly, ponderously, its gait uneven. Every once in a while, that green flashes again.
The clear cold light of the moon provides a silhouette, eventually. A black hole in the night. A human-like figure, a body thrown over one of its shoulders, a shovel propped on the other. It is stooped, slightly, under the weight, but the way it moves could tell anyone it had done this before. Its eyes are flat, green coins.
Sam blinks once, twice, three times. Tucker just waits, still as stone. Reality shifts. No longer is the thing in front of them a shadow cut from nightmare, but their friend, Danny. Normal, human, puny, blue-eyed Danny, who, for some reason, thinks it’s acceptable to wear a t-shirt in this weather and at this time of night. He looks exhausted, and perhaps a little embarrassed. Nothing frightening here.
Other than the fact he’s carrying his own corpse over his shoulder.
“You didn’t need to bring your own shovel, man,” says Tucker, compulsively pulling his PDA out again. “We already got everything dug.” He sounds worried.
Danny cringes. “Sorry, I didn’t mean to make you wait that long.” He drums his fingers on the shaft of his shovel and adjusts his grip on the body.
“It’s fine. Let’s just get under cover.” Sam turns and walks back, into the less-burned part of the forest. She can hear Tucker following her. Danny is, as always, silent.
“Oof,” says Danny.
“Huh? Something wrong?” asks Tucker.
“Just walked over my own grave, that’s all.” Danny offers them a smile that could have been made from the same fabric as the moon – although with a far less steady hand.
The response is a groan, as loud as they dare.
“We’re going to have to change locations, soon.”
And isn’t that the truth? Accidentally digging up one grave was one grave too many, and it isn’t as if they could mark them. What they are doing is illegal, both in the ‘this is literally against state, federal, county, and municipal law’ sense, and the more metaphorical ‘this is an affront to the laws of nature’ sense.
They reach their handiwork of the night before much longer. The grave isn’t nice and rectangular, but they gave up on that early on. It’s deep, and big enough to take what Danny’s been carrying. That’s enough.
Danny promptly drops his corpse into the hole. The sound of a corpse hitting the ground like that—It isn’t exactly indescribable, and it isn’t exactly unique, but…
It sure is a sound.
They stare at it, for a long moment. It feels, even after all this time, that they should say something, do something, to commemorate the moment, to lay the body to rest.
But they don’t.
Danny hefts his shovel and starts the work of pushing the dirt back in. Shovelful by shovelful, the body is hidden from view. Covered up. Tucked in.
“Well,” says Danny. “That’s that for tonight.”
They go back, down through the trees. Sometimes, when he steps into the shadows of the trees, Danny goes dark again, his eyes green and glowing, but those moments become fewer and further between as they leave the fresh grave behind. As they leave Danny’s latest death behind. As Danny becomes more alive.
“Who was it tonight?” asks Tucker. “Or was it more of a what this time?”
“Ember,” says Danny.
“That was fast, for her.”
“She wasn’t here for a fight, this time.” Danny shrugs. “Convinced her to ride my death back across the line pretty easy. It’s almost as if—”
He stops, tilts his head to one side. Shadows strobe across him.
“Danny?” asks Sam.
“Something’s here,” says Danny, his voice flat and empty, and then he's gone.
If there is one thing that is impossible for Sam and Tucker to get used to, it is the sight of their friend dropping dead.
Sam hisses through her teeth and crouches down. “He couldn’t even tell us who it is first?”
“It can’t be anyone too strong,” says Tucker. “He wouldn’t risk wasting a death.” He thumbs open the timer on his PDA. Six minutes. On average, a human death held a viable door open for six minutes.
Sam shoots him a skeptical look and he winces. There is, on occasion, a wildness in Danny's eyes beyond the green.
But it’s too late to talk about that now. The moon-cast shadows undulate across the ground, twitching and fluttering like living things. It's ink and blackness and the trees bending away from the sky to reveal stars that were both too close and too green.
The dark isn’t the only thing there. There's something artificial, a presence the forest resists. An intruder. An outsider. A predator, stalking, hunting, not looking for them, but it doesn’t care about collateral damage.
Sam curses under her breath. “Skulker.”
The two ghosts clash and writhe, dead, unmade things in a place they should not exist. They give the body, the corpse, a wide berth, Skulker not willing to get close enough to the body and the door for Danny to push him through, and Danny clearly not wanting Skulker to get too close to Sam and Tucker.
The problem with Skulker is that he’s always been out for blood. Danny is his current prey, but that isn’t a good thing to count on.
“Do you think Vlad let him through again?” whispers Tucker, his words standing stark against the silence.
It’s probable. There aren’t enough human deaths in Amity Park to justify how often certain ghosts return. Any death can make a door, even a plant’s, even an animal’s, but those doors are usually too small and too brief for ghosts like Skulker to get through, if they aren’t called to them specifically. But someone like Vlad or Danny can die again and again, as many times as needed.
Tucker sees Danny’s body twitch and he yelps, putting a tree between him and it. Sam is more proactive. She brings the flat of her shovel down on its head. The ghosts that leak out are stripes of neon against dark grass. The light is swallowed by the empty places between the trees.
“How much time?” she asks Tucker breathlessly.
“Three minutes,” he says, holding up his PDA.
“We need to get out of here.”
“What? But—”
She grabs his wrist and hauls him into the dark.
It isn’t only black in there. Star-flashes and moonlight twinkle and strobe as they run. There are eyes, green and uncountable. There is sound – gunfire swallowed by snow, the twang of bowstrings, the last gasp of prey, devoured. The trees slide by them, studiously avoiding their path. Soft mounds of earth flicker with gentle stars, the ground beneath them a mirror of the sky above. It is like running between two mirrors.
This landscape, Sam realizes, a little late, does not favor Skulker very much at all. Not here, in Danny’s own personal graveyard.
And the shadows retreat, pulled away like ink being absorbed by a napkin.
Sam and Tucker look back, over their shoulders. Two green eyes stare at them from what isn’t, in retrospect, very far away at all. Danny’s body lies on the ground below, barely visible. The eyes do not leave them, even as the shadow they are in stoops to pluck the shovel from the limp hand of Danny’s body and start digging.
The shadows beneath the trees don’t seem very dark anymore. The moonlight is almost blinding.
The timer on Tucker’s PDA goes off, loudly. He hisses at it, annoyed that, somewhere along the way, he’d turned the volume on.
“Heck,” says Sam.
“Yeah,” agrees Tucker, vehemently. “Where’d my shovel go?”
They find it before too long. There aren’t too many places it could have gone. They join Danny in digging. Two graves in one night are really too much, but they’ve done more, and they’ve done worse. They aren’t like Vlad, can’t just let them build up until it’s efficient to dispose of them, or whatever he does. Something tells them that whatever is probably worse than they’re imagining.
Between blinks, Danny is himself again, and the grave is finished before the moon starts to set.
It is late. It is early. It is time to go home.
The thing about three teenagers with shovels walking the city streets at night is that they’re noticed. Amity Park isn’t New York, but any city worth its name stirs in its sleep. Midnight flights to the airport, inadvisably long bachelor parties, late movies, insomnia, homelessness.
Tucker’s been monitoring the ghost hunting and cryptid forums for a while, and he’s emailed Danny links to each one that mentions him. Sam has clippings from the paper about calls to animal control about something with green eyes, about something that couldn’t possibly be human. Then, of course, there are the calls to the police about something dragging or carrying bodies from all sorts of places.
There had been an investigation at one point. There had to be. But nothing had been found. There hadn’t been anything to find. No missing bodies, no mysterious disappearances, no deaths. Just a green-eyed shadow and its mysterious companions.
Sam knows her parents, at least, think the whole thing is a prank. Tucker’s think it is people seeing things when there was nothing there, like bigfoot. The less said about what Danny’s parents think about it, the better.
Sam’s house is furthest from the center of town, and they drop her off first, the shadows on the trellis giving her a boost when she climbed. Tucker and Danny then have the typical argument about whether it’s better to bring Tucker or Danny home first. Danny, Tucker argues, has just fought not one, but two ghosts. Tucker, Danny argues, cannot come back from the dead. Danny wins, as usual.
That leaves Danny, real and not, alive and not, to wander home. He waves cheerfully at a drunk who watches him pass with wide eyes and turns onto his street. He breathes in, deeply, tasting the ash that still flavors the air all these months later. He opens his eyes just in time for the winter sun to beam through the skeleton of one of the buildings that bracket the crater that was once Fentonworks.
No one lives here anymore.
No one is waiting for him.
Danny walks down into the darkness and disappears.
This is for your third prompt: 'Point out a glaringly obvious, insanely scary implication about some in-world mechanic.'
Keep an eye out for another one. ;)
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Tucker picked at a hangnail, frowning at the screen in front of him. The fan on his computer whirred, and the mouse wheel clicked softly as he turned it, but this late at night there were no other sounds coming from inside the house. Every so often, he’d hear a car or rustle from outside through his partially open window, but that was it. Otherwise it was silent and still. Like a scene from a horror movie, Tucker supposed.
It wouldn’t surprise him terribly if it was a scene from a horror movie. If his entire life was running on film in some alternate universe’s movie theater, clipped and cut, set to atmospheric music, touched up, airbrushed, filtered, tinted.
He raised his finger to his lips and absently bit down on his hangnail, knowing it wouldn’t help any but too absorbed by what he was reading to go dig the nail clippers out of their drawer in the bathroom.
In all honesty, though, Tucker was probably a side character in that hypothetical film, at best. The real horror here was, as always, what had happened to Danny and…
Tucker closed his eyes and rubbed them, not caring about knocking his glasses askew. He corrected them aggressively and went back to reading the screen.
It was full of data. So much data. Data about half ghosts, stolen from Vlad. Danny and Dani were the ones who had snagged it, grabbing one of Vlad’s backup harddrives, but they hadn’t been able to break his encryption. That was, as ever, Tucker’s role in the group.
Not that he minded. He wanted to help any way he could. He enjoyed things like this, for that matter. He enjoyed the hacking part, at least.
Finding out things like this in the middle of the night, not so much. He really wished he wasn’t so awesome sometimes.
This was messed up. Grade A crazy.
The harddrive was full of data. Data that, by all logic, by everything he knew, shouldn’t exist.
Up until a couple months ago, there had only been two half ghosts in the whole wide world. Now, there were three. According to Danny, Vlad, and Dani, there had never been any more than that.
The other clones - and that was something horrible in and of itself - hadn’t been half ghosts. Danny had, a few days after realizing they had truly been destroyed, not just banished, not just weakened to the point of being invisible, come to Tucker and Sam, distraught, and explained to the two of them how he knew they weren’t. Dani had only confirmed it.
But this, the data here, was more than that, more than what could be accounted for by three half ghosts, two of whom had been half ghosts for less than two years. So much more.
Maybe it shouldn’t have surprised Tucker so much. All those weapons and tools Vlad had, designed especially to work on half ghosts, or mimic their abilities, the Plasmius Maximus, the human-ghost shield, the nanites, the forced transformation booth… Vlad wouldn’t have been able to engineer those and be sure they’d work on Danny just from experimenting on himself.
But this… This data represented dozens of individuals, all with different backgrounds. At least, the categories of sex, height, weight, and age all had different values. Danny, Dani, and Vlad himself all had entries, but theirs were clearly labeled with their names, unlike the others.
What happened here? What had Vlad done to get this? Where had he gotten this?
And some of the data… It made him sick that it even existed. Tucker wasn’t the best at medical things, but some of these couldn’t have been acquired ethically. These were… these were stress tests, reaching for limitations, for pain, for injury, for susceptibility to disease, and Tucker had known Vlad was an evil mad scientist type from the beginning, and that had only been confirmed when he infected him and Sam with a potentially fatal disease - and he had to have done things to develop that as well - but this was surprising even in that context.
He pressed a hand to his mouth, feeling suddenly nauseous. The ecto-acne. A biological weapon. Vlad had to have tested it. How had they missed that?
Had Danny realized yet? Realized how far Vlad would go? Tucker knew that Danny thought Vlad was sort of ineffectual in terms of evil, that he thought, deep down, there was something in Vlad worth saving. Like some kind of messed up Darth Vader thing, but without the familial relationship.
And Tucker had thought that maybe Danny had a point. Vlad had plenty of opportunity to kill Mr. Fenton, after all, and yet Mr. Fenton was still alive. But with all this staring him in the face… Right on the heels of Vlad outright torturing Danny, of Vlad all but saying he planned to pull a kill and a replace on Danny, of making and throwing away all those clones…
No, Tucker couldn’t believe that anymore.
Where had Vlad gotten this data? Where had he found dozens of half ghosts, and where had they gone?
From some of this… Tucker ran a finger down the screen, tracing numbers. There were no deaths listed, but that didn’t necessarily mean anything, as much as he wanted it to.
Tucker was… Tucker was afraid. He fought ghosts on a weekly, if not daily, basis, and he was afraid.
His fingers hovered over the phone. It was the middle of the night. If Danny hadn’t been woken up by a ghost, he’d be asleep, and a school night. He needed to sleep.
But Tucker needed to not be alone with this… data. This information, this revelation.
He picked up the phone and called.
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“Where did he even get this?” asked Danny, his hands shaking as he scrolled down the spreadsheet. Numbers flew past, numbers that either were a terrible lie, or revealed one. “He said it himself, we’re the only half ghosts around. That’s why he wants me to be his evil apprentice or whatever.”
“I don’t know,” said Tucker. “If it says on here, I haven’t found it yet.”
Danny nodded, distracted, and rubbed his finger across his lips, feeling the slight, tugging friction of not-exactly-rubber gloves against not-quite-human skin.
There were three options here, three possibilities that Danny could see.
One, Vlad had made this up. It was a taunt, a prank, a joke, a decoy, a distraction, a plant, a fiction. Something to get Danny all riled up.
Two, Vlad had lied to him from the beginning. Lied, and said that there weren’t any other half ghosts when there were. When they existed, and in such variety. Horrible and heartbreaking, a betrayal even from an enemy, and confusing besides.
Three, Vlad had done something even more unspeakable than usual and created these half ghosts. Created them not from scratch, as he had with Dani and the other clones, but from regular people, people with separate, ordinary lives that he used just for… For whatever this was. For some twisted, sickly shadow of science.
The thought made Danny almost dizzy. Was it really that easy to make a half ghost? Did other half ghosts exist, beyond Danny, Dani, and Vlad? And if either was so, why didn’t Vlad just get someone to agree to it? Agree to be his evil apprentice or something? He was sure there were plenty of people who’d do it, plenty of people who’d trade pain and obedience for power. Why was he so fixated on Danny?
He stopped scrolling, the titles of a few columns catching his eye. He knew those readings.
“What is it?” asked Tucker. “Did you find something?”
“Maybe,” said Danny, feeling hollow. “Do you remember what these mean? These abbreviations?”
“Um. No. Should I?”
“These’re the inputs of the portal. The settings you can change to make it… To make it work. Remember the thing with Desiree?”
“When Sam played protagonist in ‘It’s a Wonderful Life?’ Yeah. I remember that.”
“That’s what we changed on the portal, to make it so I’d definitely become a half ghost.”
“Oh,” said Tucker. “I hadn’t- But then he shouldn’t have readings for you.”
“He does, and they’re the right ones,” said Danny. Having gone through all that twice, he’d never be able to forget. “He…” He trailed off and swallowed. “He does,” he repeated, more quietly. “And look at this.” He pointed at a separate line, broken off from the others by a space. It’s boxes were highlighted with an indication the numbers in them were a result of some computation.
“Huh. That line is the same as yours. What’s this abbreviation mean?”
“I think,” said Danny, “it’s shorthand for optimal.”
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Sam and Tucker hadn’t wanted them to confront Vlad, didn’t think it was safe, but Danny and Dani needed to know. Dani had always known she was a clone, a science experiment, but Danny hadn’t had even a hint of this. There had been no sign, no indication.
They needed to know how far back this went, and, more importantly, they needed to know if there were other half ghosts, other people who understood.
“Are you ready?” asked Danny. The gates of Vlad’s estate loomed over them, wrought iron casting odd, twisting shadows in the moonlight.
“Yeah,” said Dani, nervously pulling at the fabric of her top. “I’m ready.”
“You don’t have to come,” said Danny. “I’ll tell you everything I find out.”
“No, I want to do this,” said Dani.
Vlad’s mansion felt emptier than usual. Danny couldn’t put his finger on why at first, but then it struck him. “All his Packers stuff is gone.”
“Yeah,” said Dani. “You’re right. There’s something else…”
“What?”
Dani turned to him, her eyes flat green disks in the mostly dark. “I don’t know,” she said, “but can’t you feel it?”
Danny stilled, listening, feeling. There was an electric prickle along the surface of his skin, an unfamiliar sensation that he nonetheless felt like he knew, like he should recognize. He rubbed his left palm with his opposite thumb.
“Maybe,” he said. There was a memory there, an unconscious one. A memory of the body, not the mind. It prickled. Burned. Ran up in lightning lines to his heart. “Yeah, there’s something off, here.”
“It’s Vlad. There’s always something off,” said Dani, bitterly. “Do you think he’s not here? Maybe he went back to Wisconsin.”
“I hadn’t noticed him leaving.”
“It isn’t like you’re watching him all the time, is it?”
It wasn’t, but Danny usually had a… a feeling for who was in Amity Park and who wasn’t. He’d never examined it very closely, but it was there.
“No, he’s here.”
“I don’t know… doesn’t it feel… empty in here?”
It did but… Danny was realizing that it didn’t, not completely. It didn’t feel empty, as in uninhabited. It felt dead.
“Ah, Daniel, Danielle. To what do I owe the pleasure?”
Danny and Dani jerked up, spotting Vlad on the stairs above them, leaning over the banister. Rarely had Danny felt so threatened by Vlad, and Vlad wasn’t even doing anything.
Danny floated up to Vlad’s eye level. “We’re not the only half ghosts, are we?”
Vlad raised an eyebrow and straightened, pink-red light flickering behind his pupils. “Whyever would you think that?”
“We saw your data backups,” said Danny. He pressed his lips together, not sure if he should ask this, not sure if he wanted to know the answers. “How do you even know what the readings were on the portal when I… When it turned on?”
Vlad tilted his head to one side. “I see,” he said, crisply. “It’s very simple, really. I arranged for your accident.”
“Why?” demanded Danny.
“Many reasons,” said Vlad, unconcerned with the green fire billowing around Danny’s clenched fists. “Although I had thought to catch one of your parents, rather than you. Although I suppose Maddie would never have fallen for it. She was always much better about lab safety. Ah, well.”
“But why?” asked Dani. “Why do any of this, when there were other half ghosts? You had to get that data from somewhere.”
“Oh, I did,” said Vlad. “I wasn’t the first half ghost, you see. My origin shares many similarities to yours, Daniel. Much like vampires and werewolves, all half ghosts are made by another. My creator was rather smug about the whole thing.”
“Then why don’t you go after them, instead of my dad?”
“What do you think I spent twenty years doing, dear boy? I didn’t lie to you when we met. We were the only two half ghosts in existence. I was only working down the list.” Vlad gave them a razor smile, his teeth sharp white in the dark. “Of course, I needed to test out a few things before rigging the portal. But the lifespans of my test subjects were… seriously compromised. I am glad you seem to have avoided that particular side effect. Thus far.”
“You’re sick,” said Danny.
“Oh, come now, isn’t this a much better state of affairs? Would you prefer to be ordinary, or to not exist at all? Don’t you think it would be lonely, all by yourself, with no one who understood? With no… backups. Don’t you think it’s better with more of us, severed from that old history of abuse and exploitation? After all, you chose to walk into the portal. I only provided the proper circumstances for you to survive such a mistake.”
“No,” snapped Dani, sparks trailing from her fingers. “No. You don’t get to justify any of this. You need to be stopped.”
“Oh, dear Danielle, you are certainly welcome to try.”
A holiday truce fic for @wastefulreverie ! I was your replacement gifter. I’m sorry it took so long to get this done. Your prompts kind of ran away with me. Or I ran away with them? I hope you enjoy!
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Recipe (For Disaster?)
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Before he opened his eyes, Danny knew he had died.
It had hurt. It had hurt a lot.
It still hurt.
His muscles (or whatever had replaced them) spasmed, grinding his skin into the harsh tile floor. Something else moved inside him, something cold, powerful, and lighter than air. It bubbled and roiled, twisted and turned, settling into his burnt and burning bones.
(Still, he was behind himself, in the portal, pressing that button, and screaming screaming screaming forever and ever two worlds straining through his brain and it hurt.)
He twitched, pressing his face into the floor, the rough edge of the tile and the grout abrading his cheek. A gust of air, a wheeze, just shy of being a whistle, escaped his throat.
(Why was he breathing if he was dead?)
He forced himself up onto his hands and knees. The tiles seemed to sting, biting into his flesh, his skin sticking to the inside of his gloves.
(Burning and tingling, outlines of lightning creeping along his skin. No.)
Slowly, he opened his eyes. The light against them made them feel like they were cooking.
(Like in the portal. Stop. Stop.)
His hands wavered into view, rippling beyond his tears, which dripped to the ground from the tip of his nose. They looked wrong. Why did they look wrong?
The gloves- They were white. A weird, silvery white that glistened and shone. His knees and elbows were gray-black, but somehow still glowed. His tears were glowing.
He knew he had died, knew he was dead, but seeing it was something different. He shuddered, and climbed to his feet. To his feet, and then farther. He floated, an inch above the floor. A squeak escaped his lips, and he dropped. More than an inch. He had fallen more than halfway through the floor before he managed to curl up on the floor again. His limbs flickered. Was that his eyes playing tricks, or..?
Once more, he stood up, this time successfully, and stumbled to the deep lab sink in the corner of the basement. There was a mirror hung above it. A dirty, tarnished mirror, but still. He needed to know what he looked like.
He gripped the edge of the sink and looked into the mirror. An alien face looked back. Instead of blue eyes, he looked into great green disks, the same color as the portal swirling behind him. Instead of black, his hair was the same moonlight white as his gloves. His skin was burnt tan, rather than milky. His freckles, usually almost unnoticeable, were a dim green. Shaking, he reached for the reflection.
That was really h-
Light.
Bright and blinding.
Almost as bright as the inside of the portal as it turned on.
(Almost as bright as the light that had killed him.)
He doubled over and vomited into the sink. Huh. He hadn't known ghosts could do that. Shouldn't his stomach be back with his body, if it hadn't been entirely vaporized by the portal?
Was- Was he dying again? He remembered his parents talking about how ghosts needed ectoplasm to survive. Should he have gone to the portal instead of the mirror?
Dazed, he looked up into the mirror. Blue eyes looked back at him through a fringe of dark hair, his skin was almost paper white and slick with sweat. His pulse throbbed visibly in the arteries of his throat.
... what.
He was-? Was that-? He didn't understand.
(Was he alive?)
Part of him wanted to drop to the ground, but he was afraid that if he did that, he wouldn't get back up. He shuffled around the sink, and slid against the wall until he reached a counter, and used that to prop himself up the rest of the way to the stairs. He crawled up them on his hands and knees, ignoring how burnt and melted his left glove was.
At the door, he rested. He put his forehead against the cool metal door, and breathed. In, out, in, out. With his right hand, he felt up the door, searching for the doorknob. As soon as he found it, he twisted it, not thinking about the consequences, and the door swung out under his weight, dumping him onto the kitchen floor.
He curled and wheezed.
"Danny?!"
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Danny fiddled with the IV in his arm. Maddie took his hand with both of hers, and pulled it away.
"Alright, Danny," said Maddie, "tell us exactly what happened."
They were in Danny's room, which had been stuffed full of various ectoplasm-run and ghost-related medical machinery. His parents had stripped him of his hazmat and clothes, and gone over him with every scanner they had available, before finally putting him to bed in his pajamas.
There hadn't, as much as they searched, as ragged and burned as his clothing had been, been a single mark on him, inside or out. His temperature had been weirdly low, he was dehydrated, and he couldn't stop shaking, couldn't stop the pictures that flashed through his mind every time he blinked, afterimages of his death using his eyelids as a projector screen, but there wasn't a scratch, or burn, or bruise anywhere to be found.
Danny's eyes flicked from his mother to his father, one sitting by his bed, the other looming awkwardly in a corner, unable to find a safe place to sit.
"You're not in trouble," said Maddie, reassuringly. She had done so several times. "We just want to know what happened, so we can help you, and figure out what's going on."
Danny bit his lip. "I- Um. You and Dad, you were upset. You were really, really upset. When the portal didn't work, I mean, and I- Sometimes, sometimes when you're working on things, you miss things." He tilted his head to the side, finding the wall near his bed suddenly very fascinating. "Like, obvious things. Like- Like not plugging things in, or missing some wiring, or, you know... Forgetting about, you know, a button... on the inside of the portal... I thought I'd check." He trailed off.
"Oh, honey," said Maddie. "You hit it?"
"Not on purpose!" protested Danny. "I put on my suit, and looked around- I wasn't going to touch anything!- but I tripped over something on the ground. And it- It turned on. It turned on and it-" Tears started to prick at his eyes. "It turned on, and it... hurt. It hurt a lot and I-" How to describe what he had felt? What he had seen? The way he had been sure, absolutely sure, he had died? How, for a split second, he thought he had heard someone else screaming with him? "Then I was on the floor in front of the portal. And I got up, and I went to the mirror, and I realize I had- I had snow-white hair and glowing green eyes, and my skin was all weird, and I- Before I got to the mirror there were weird things happening." He bunched up his sheets in his free hand and rubbed them between his fingers.
"Weird things like what?" prompted Maddie, after he fell silent.
"Like... For a second I couldn't see my hands, even though I was looking at them. Then I kind of... I floated? Like, I flew. When I got back to the ground, I almost fell through the floor like- like I was in a video game with the collision turned off!" He bit his lip. "I thought I was dead," he admitted, quietly. "I thought I was a ghost."
"No way, Danny-boy!" boomed Jack. "You're a Fenton! Fenton's don't become ghosts! Besides, you're definitely alive now!"
"Jack's right," said Maddie, patting Danny's hand. "After all, you can't be alive and a ghost at the same time. I'm sure it was just a side effect of being exposed to so much ectoplasm all at once. A temporary thing." She sighed. "We'll look into it. Just focus on feeling better, alright, Danny? And then, maybe, we'll do a refresher on lab safety." She made a face. "You'll probably have to be decontaminated, too, but that can wait. It's a good thing school doesn't start for another month."
"Okay," said Danny, already dreading whatever decontamination entailed.
"Okay," repeated Maddie. "Jack, will you stay here? I want to go down and check on the portal, make sure it doesn't-"
Something inside Danny went deeply, impossibly cold. He arched back, grasping at his chest as whatever had come to life inside it pulsed and grew, rippling and buzzing as it intersected his skin, light throwing his room into stark contrast.
It stopped. Danny was wearing gloves. White gloves, over black sleeves. He looked up at his parents, flinched back at their shocked expressions, and kept going, floating into the corner of the ceiling above his bed.
"Mom?" he said, hugging himself, confused and alarmed. "Dad?" His voice broke. Where was the IV? Had he pulled it out of his arm as he levitated?
"Danny?" said Jack, oddly hushed.
Danny nodded convulsively. "What's happening to me?" he asked, desperate. The portal had done this, so they had to know, didn't they? They had built the thing, pouring their lives into it.
(Danny was honestly surprised his mother and father hadn't left to check on the portal earlier.)
Jack stepped up to the bed, and reached for Danny, gently taking him by the elbow and pulling him down to the bed. "It'll be alright, Danny. We're Fentons! We'll figure this out!"
.
Jack and Maddie frowned at the latest machine readout as Danny perched on his stool and fiddled with one of the wires attached to him. Jazz was sitting angrily in the corner of the room, her arms crossed. She'd been in denial about this whole thing, thinking Danny had finally succumbed to their parents' particular brand of insanity, until Danny had accidentally... transformed in front of her. Now she was just permanently angry at Jack and Maddie.
"Well?" said Danny. He'd been living with this thing for almost a month and he'd gotten better at preventing himself from changing, but he didn't want to be like this forever. He especially didn't want to be like this at school. Middle school was hard enough without a condition that turned him into a ghost once a day. "What is it? Can you fix me?"
Maddie pursed her lips, and shook her head. She looked at Danny, then walked to him, pulling out a (significantly shorter) stool to sit on so she would be at eye-level with him.
"Danny," she said, then paused for much longer than was comfortable. "Danny, I'm sorry. We can't do anything. Not yet."
"Why not?" asked Danny, trying not to hyperventilate.
"Simply speaking," said Maddie, "we don't have the tools to separate you from... whatever this is." She briefly touched Danny's glowing knee. "We're still not sure what's causing this and..." she trailed off.
"And what?" asked Danny, rather more harshly than he had planned.
"We aren't sure," she said, looking back at Jack, who shrugged, "but we think it might be keeping you alive. Some of the blood tests we did, when we filtered out the ectoplasm in the samples..." She looked pale. "There were a few promising trials, but after a while..."
"They disintegrated!" said Jack.
"Oh," said Danny, sagging. "So I would-?"
"We don't know that," said Maddie, quickly, "but we'd rather be safe than sorry, and it doesn't seem to be doing you any harm, now. In fact, your body seems to have adapted to it quite well, all things considered. It's just inconvenient."
"But we can help! We've got all sorts of things we can invent! Just you wait, Danny-boy!"
Maddie sighed. "If only we had more data on ghosts, then maybe-"
Jazz snorted. "Typical! Even after this, all you care about are your inventions and ghosts!" She stormed up the stair, slamming the door hard behind her.
"Oh, dear," said Maddie.
"Why don't- Why don't you go talk to her?" suggested Danny. He would be lying if he said he wasn't enjoying the extra attention he was getting from his parents, lately, even if he hated the reason for it. He understood how Jazz felt right now.
Maddie went upstairs.
"Well, Dan-o, don't you worry," said Jack, jauntily. "We Fenton men eat inconvenience for breakfast! Why, when I was a boy..." Jack rambled on, barely pausing for breath.
Feeling somewhat guilty, Danny tuned him out. He had heard all the stories before, and they rarely made sense. Instead, he turned inwards.
He was stuck like this, stuck as a freak. Could he even be called human anymore? Maybe when he looked normal, when he looked like himself, but in this ghost form? Not a chance. He had tried to distract himself with the idea that he had cool 'powers,' but he barely had any control over them.
What if his parents never figured out how to fix him? What if he was like this forever?
He would never be able to be an astronaut. Not with all the weird physical things that had shown up in his body over the last couple of weeks. Not with his low temperature, weird heartbeat, and contaminated blood.
A chill went through Danny's body, and he shivered, exhaling vapor. He tensed. Before, he'd been feeling sorry for himself, but he'd also felt... secure? Safe? Whatever. Now he felt on-edge. Something was wrong. Or about to be wrong.
He slipped off the stool, feet hitting the ground without a sound. Barely thinking about it, he phased off the wires and his hazmat suit reformed around his body. Something was wrong. Something was dangerous, a danger, a threat. His eyes roved over the inventions piled against the walls, the beakers of ectoplasmic sludge, whatever Jack was fiddling with, and finally landed on the portal.
Danny narrowed his eyes, and stepped forward, only to leap back as an over-sized, sucker-covered tentacle burst through the portal, and latched, perfectly silent, onto the wall and ceiling above. It flexed as Danny watched it, pulling from the portal a translucent, glowing, green octopus. A second one dragged itself out a moment later, and they floated in front of the portal, as if in water, malevolent red eyes scanning the lab.
Danny stayed still, holding his breath, hoping they'd go back to the Ghost Zone. Each octopus was bigger than him!
Jack kept talking.
The octopuses glare fell on him. Their tentacles reached out.
No.
.
"Tell me what happened again," said Maddie, as she cleaned a tiny cut over Danny's eyebrow.
"A couple of ghost octopuses came through the portal and tried to attack Dad, so I fought them and threw them back into the Ghost Zone."
"And you didn't notice this at all, Jack?" The question was delivered in a tone halfway between exasperation and real anger.
"Not until I looked up and saw Danny standing by the portal."
Standing was a far too generous term for what he'd been doing at the end of the fight, but Danny didn't dispute it.
"We'll have to pull the lab camera footage," said Maddie "But, you're alright, Danny?"
He nodded. Surprisingly, he felt better than he had in a long while, as if using his powers had taken a weight off his shoulders.
"Okay," said Maddie. "We'll need to make some doors for that." She frowned at the portal. "It isn't actually supposed to let anything in."
"It isn't?" asked Danny, surprised.
Maddie shook her head. "It was supposed to be a window, not a door." She put the swab aside, and stuck a band-aid over the cut. "Now, if you get any odd bruising, or start to feel odd, tell us right away."
.
After all the scrutiny at home, going to school was a relief. Sort of. At least it was a change. Every day, Jack and Maddie loaded Danny down with all sorts of things that were supposed to prevent his powers from surfacing and a cellphone with strict instructions to call and come home if anything unexpected happened.
For the first week, nothing did. It was school as usual. Banal, boring, and a little harder than middle school, but still. On the upside, he finally got to hang out with his friends again. Danny had been isolated from Sam and Tucker throughout his recovery from his 'illness.'
(Actually, if he thought about it, it kind of was an illness, wasn't it?)
But the second week, when Sam proudly revealed that she had convinced the school board to do a 'vegetarian' week? When she was, consequently, attacked by a ghostly lunch lady? One that interrupted their onslaught to ask if they wanted cookies?
Yeah, that was unexpected.
Sadly, Danny was too busy trying to keep her from killing Sam to call his parents, who would probably have done a much better job at containing the ghost. Well, at least his mom would have. Danny wasn't so sure about his dad. He had seen Jack practice with the ectoweapons before, after all.
So, he fought the ghost. He punched, he kicked, he threw random objects, and, finding all of that generally ineffective, he grabbed his friends and ran. Well. Flew.
Then he passed out.
.
"You understand that you can't tell anyone," said Maddie to Sam and Tucker, some time later. They and the Fentons, including Jazz and Danny, were seated around the kitchen table, three boxes of pizza stacked between them.
"Well, yeah," said Tucker. From his slightly glazed look, Danny guessed that he was still processing the situation. "It'd be, like, in a comic book or something, right? There'd be people wanting to study you. And, you know, cut you u-"
"Tucker! What is wrong with you?" demanded Sam, giving him a shove. "You can't just say that!"
Danny made a face. "Well, I don't think anyone is going to, like, dissect me or anything, but, yeah, basically." He shrugged. His parents had talked a lot about hunting ghosts before, but now they rarely brought the subject up. At least in those terms.
"Don't worry, Danny, we can keep secrets," promised Sam. "You know that."
Tucker nodded in agreement. "But, like, how does this all work? How did this happen? And those powers? Those were wicked man."
"It's a bit of a long story," said Danny. It wasn't. He just didn't want to talk about his maybe-maybe-not-death. "But what are we going to do about the lunch lady ghost? What if she comes back?"
"We talked to your school and asked them if we could do a sweep!" said Jack. "But they didn't believe us about the ghost!"
Maddie picked at her lip. "I think the best thing to do right would be to return the menu to the way it was. That would probably appease the ghost, at least temporarily-"
"What!" exclaimed Sam. "No way! I campaigned for vegetarian week all summer! We can't adopt a policy of appeasement! When will it end?"
"Well, I think that's a great idea, Mrs F," said Tucker. "The old menu is much better than this one, anyway."
Sam whirled on him. "Say that to my face, meat-eater!"
"Alright. I will. Your food sucks and tastes like dirt! Also, it made a ghost try to kill us!"
"You're just narrow minded!"
"Oh yeah?"
"Yeah!"
.
When Danny arrived at school the next day, he didn't know what was worse, that his friends had both somehow whipped up utterly insane protests in front of the school overnight, or that his parents had decided to camp out in front of the school in the 'Ghost Assault Vehicle' (actually a heavily modified and armored RV, and a hazard to all other road traffic) all day, in case the ghost was still there and still angry.
A few minutes later he decided that, no, the worst part was how each of his friends were pressuring him to choose their side or face an unspecified doom.
Actually, no. The worst part was that Tucker's protesters had brought a lot of real meat that the lunch lady ghost could use to make a giant meat monster.
This sucked. A lot. But what could Danny do but fight?
.
Danny put the cap on the thermos, breathing hard, and stared at the invention. That had been... bizarre, at best. But what was his life except bizarre, at this point?
His friends came running up to him, followed shortly by his parents.
"Danny!" said Sam. "Are you okay?"
"Yeah!" said Danny, meaning it. "I'm fine. Better than fine! I-" he looked down at the thermos, turning it over in his hands. It gave him an odd satisfaction, knowing he had stopped the ghost from causing any more damage, stopped her from hurting anyone, stopped her from hurting his friends. He looked back up at his friends and family, at the other people still running around behind them. He had protected them. "I feel pretty good, actually. Exhausted, but good."
"Really?" said Maddie. "You've just used your... abilities more than you ever have before. We don't know how that will affect you."
Danny felt his good mood wilt somewhat. "It's just," he said, trying to rally, "I feel like I finally know why this happened to me. Why I got these powers. I mean, imagine if you got the portal opened without," he gestured to himself, hoping to get the point across, even though he was in human form, "this. How would this have worked out?"
Jack and Maddie exchanged a glance, and Danny could practically see what they were thinking. None of their weapons or techniques, bar the thermos after Danny had done... Well, Danny wasn't quite sure what he had done with it to make it work, but it had, and it was the only thing that had been really effective against the lunch lady. If Danny hadn't been here, hadn't had his powers, this could have been bad.
Danny glanced at the red smears of raw meat scattered across the school's front lawn. Really bad.
"We probably would have worked something out," said Maddie, but Danny could tell she was dubious. "I think we ought to go back home and give you a checkup."
"Mom," groaned Danny, "I'm fine."
"I still want to check. Would you two like a ride home, or..?"
Sam snorted. "Honestly, they're probably not even going to cancel school."
"Yeah," said Tucker. "I mean, what are they going to say, that they were attacked by a giant meat monster? Please."
.
"Hey, Mom?" asked Danny, as he ate breakfast the next morning. "Do you think ghost cookies are, like, a thing? I mean, what would they even be like?"
"Ghost cookies?" repeated Maddie. "Where did you even get that idea?"
Danny shrugged. "I don't know. Something that ghost said the other day. Never mind, it's not important."
"If you say so, sweetie."
.
"Jack," said Maddie, after Danny had left. "Have you noticed that Danny seems a bit depressed, ever since the accident?"
"Depressed? No! Quieter that usual, but not depressed!" Jack looked down. "But I'm not really the most observant person, I guess! Why would he be depressed?"
"Jack, really. Wouldn't you be depressed?"
The length of time it took Jack to respond was unusual, and showed that he was really thinking about the question. "I guess I would be. I'd be scared, too, not knowing what's going on." He paused. "I'm really glad he didn't get ecto-acne, though, like Vladdie! That would have been really hard."
"I think it's because of how well his body adapted to the ectoplasm," she said, then shook her head, pulling herself out of scientist mode. She sat down on the couch next to Jack. "I don't think we've been very helpful, either."
"What do you mean?" asked Jack. "We've been doing our best to help!"
"Emotionally, I mean," said Maddie. "You remember all the things we've said about ghosts. About how ghosts are evil. About what we wanted to do to ghosts."
"But Danny knows we'd never do that to him! And he's not a ghost!"
"Yes, but he's still... Some of our tests... I guess the best way to put it is that he's a sort of hybrid, and remembering what we've said, it must be disheartening." She paused. "Jazz gave me some papers on internalized racism, and some of it made me wonder. We haven't really taken any of it back, and it isn't like we ever had any empirical evidence for it! Just anecdotes, from your ancestors."
"All the ghosts we've seen so far have been bad!" protested Jack.
"Not Danny," said Maddie, "and based on our original theories, what happened to him shouldn't be possible. Based on Danny's description, the lunch lady ghost was more complex than we thought a ghost could be, too. We need to get rid of our assumptions, Jack, and we need to make sure Danny knows we aren't making those assumptions anymore."
Jack picked up one of the pillows on the couch, and began to fiddle with the embroidery. "I guess," said Jack. "But if he's really depressed, do you think it's going to be enough?"
"No," said Maddie. She slouched into the couch, almost sinking into the gap between the cushions. "I was thinking about something he said yesterday, and it occurred to me, maybe we're being too negative about this."
"It is a negative thing!"
"Yes, but it could be something he's stuck with for the rest of his life! We don't know if we can ever fix this, if we can ever remove this, and if we can't... Maybe we should focus on some of the positive aspects of this." She put her hand to her head. "I just- I don't know how to do that. I don't know how to make him feel better about this, after I shot him down, yesterday."
"You didn't shoot him down," said Jack, confused. "Neither of us hit him at all!"
"Metaphorically speaking," said Maddie. "I brushed off what he said about getting his powers for a reason. I ignored him."
"Well," said Jack, "when I was first diagnosed with autism, my mom made me my favorite fudge, and that made me feel better about it! Fudge always makes things better!" He frowned, and scratched his cheek. "I don't know if it will help Danny, though. This isn't really the same thing."
Maybe... Or maybe the two situations were more alike than they seemed at first glance. Maddie struggled up out of the gap between the couch cushions. "There was something he said, earlier, before he left."
"About his powers?"
"No," said Maddie. "Jack, do you think it would be possible for us to make cookies with ectoplasm?"
.
Maddie would admit that she was not the best cook in the world. In fact, cookies were the only food item she had consistent success with. Everything else had a slight tendency to come to life, explode, catch on fire, disintegrate, turn to mush, or somehow become so ectocontaminated as to be inedible. Or just be bad.
But now she was purposefully trying to contaminate a batch of cookies with ectoplasm, in a way that would make them edible and nutritious to him. In a way that would show him that she and Jack weren't against him, his new situation, and his ghost powers. In a way that would let them reconnect. In a way that would show Danny that they accepted him, that they would always accept him.
It was a lot to put on a batch of cookies. Especially when she wasn't sure they were even possible.
She poured over Danny's latest test results, picking at her lower lip. She didn't want to introduce anything harmful into Danny's system. That was the first priority, above appearance, taste, or any other condition.
Purified ectoplasm would probably be a safe choice to start with.
.
It had taken more time than Maddie had expected to actually get a cookie that worked as a cookie. Two months, to be exact. Two months in which her poor baby had been repeatedly beaten up by ghosts. Her little cookie project was pushed back by more necessary tasks. Such as setting up protections for Amity Park that wouldn't affect Danny and battling violent ghosts.
On a more and honestly shocking positive note, Danny had befriended one of the ghosts. A little gray ghost that haunted the school. If Danny hadn't already scrapped Jack and Maddie's theories regarding the morality of ghosts, this ghost would have done it.
In any case, here, now, in this first week of November, Maddie had a batch of fragrant and faintly-glowing cookies. They were rather plain. Maddie had wanted to limit the number of variables in the cookies, the number of things the ectoplasm could react poorly to.
But they wouldn't be a success until Danny tasted them.
She sat down at the table, exhausted. She could only imagine how Danny felt. She knew he snuck out at night to fight ghosts that their scanners missed but his 'ghost sense' picked up, and that on top of all the fights he had during the day and all his schoolwork.
The cookies sat delectably on the counter. She dearly wished she could do more to help him than make cookies. Yes, she was doing other things, but they didn't seem like enough. Not nearly enough.
Especially after all the trouble she and Jack had given him during their anniversary, and the trouble he had gotten into in the Ghost Zone of all places. With the Ghost Law. Or at least a ghost that claimed to be the law and attempted to arrest Danny. Maddie was still wrapping her head around the idea that ghosts had a society complex enough to support such a thing or a lie about such a thing, as the case may be.
She rested her elbows on the table, and put her head in her hands. Here she was, making herself depressed, right after her big victory. Or before her hopeful victory, she corrected herself.
The front door swung open and Maddie looked up.
"Wow, that smells good!" said Danny. "What are you making, Mom?"
She heard a thump, probably his backpack, but not the two that usually followed it as Sam and Tucker came in.
"Cookies," said Maddie, standing. "Are Sam and Tucker not with you?"
"No, they had to go home today," he said. "Apparently their families are missing them." He walked into the kitchen, rubbing his shoulder.
"Are you alright?" asked Maddie. "Was there a fight?"
"Nah, I just banged into the corner of the lockers at school. It's been pretty quiet today." He quickly rapped on one of the cabinets. "Knock on wood, right." His brow furrowed. "Are those cookies glowing?"
"Yes, I put some ectoplasm in them. I'd been thinking about it since you mentioned them."
"Really? But that was months ago." He sat down at the counter, and poked at one of the cookies. There was an odd expression on his face. "Can I- Can I try one?"
"I made them for you, sweetie. Just- Only one for now. I don't know how they taste, and they should be safe, but..."
Danny's lips quirked up, but something wavered in his eyes. Maddie's heart dropped. Did he think that she was using him as a guinea pig?
"I get it, you don't know how I'll react. Better safe than sorry, and all that. I had wondered, though, seeing all that ghost food in Walker's prison..." He picked up a cookie, and nibbled at it. He took a larger bite. Another one. His chin trembled.
"Is it not good?" asked Maddie.
"No," said Danny, his voice cracking. "It's good. It's really good." A tear tickled down his cheek. He sniffed and took another bite of his cookie. He hiccuped.
"Danny..?"
"I'm okay!" he said around the cookie in his mouth. "I'm okay. I just- Just-" He shook his head. "I'm sorry."
Maddie rubbed Danny's back. "Are you sure you're okay?"
"It's just- You made this for me. And it's not- It's not a weapon. It's a ghost thing, but it's not a weapon, and-"
"Oh, sweetie," said Maddie. "I'm so sorry that you thought that we..." she trailed off, not knowing what to say, even if it was what she had been afraid of.
"It's just- Ghost cookies." He laughed a little, and shoved the rest of the cookie into his mouth. "It's good," he said, slightly muffled. "Are you sure I can't have another one?"
"Maybe in a couple of hours? You don't want to ruin your dinner."
@ghostpetrol Hello! This is your Winter Truce gift! :)
This is mainly from your ghost king prompt, with a little bit of Skulker and friendly banter thrown in for seasoning. This wound up being much, much longer than I first expected it to be, and I hope it's coherent and enjoyable. Happy holidays!
Read on FFN
.
Lethean
.
It was a town hall meeting about the ghost problem, so, of course, the ghosts had to show up. They didn't arrive in the usual way, however, which was swooping down on a crowd from the sky, or phasing through the ceiling. Oh, no. That was too pedestrian for these particular ghosts.
No. Instead, they tore the air open in dozens of great, green rents, and surrounded the assembled citizens of Amity Park in a matter of seconds.
But this was Amity Park. Ghosts were expected, not merely ironic.
There were ghost hunters in attendance. Many ghost hunters. The battle was pitched before the ghosts had fully entered the room.
The ghosts wore robes of black, gold, and white. Their skin was green, their claws long and sharp. Each one had a single, huge eye.
There was one exception, a ghost that looked slightly more human, though few present saw him. One ghost wore a purple robe, and held a long staff topped with a clock. A very few who he passed by later claimed he was crying, weeping, whispering, "I'm sorry," as he floated through the crowd.
As for the other ghosts, all anyone heard them say over the screams, ectoblasts, and ghost rays was "The King!" and "For the King!"
(Although there were a few that claimed the phrase wasn't "for the King," but "find the King.")
Then, as quickly as they had arrived, they were gone.
It took hours for Amity Park to realize that five teenagers had disappeared with them. After all, the five of them were always vanishing during ghost fights.
.
Danny awoke to the sound of running water. It was a pleasant sound, but not one he thought he should be sleeping near.
Nevertheless, he opened his eyes slowly. He felt languid and oddly heavy, though that might have been because he was wet.
Why was he wet?
He had been laying in the middle of a large, airy, atrium-like room, in a kind of depression with a drain on the bottom. The room itself was quite pleasant, and its numerous water features had provided the noise he was hearing.
He found what was in the room to be less so. There were people laying on the ground, scorch marks on the walls, and splatters of red and green on the floor.
He ran to the nearest person, a human girl with long, red hair. He checked her over. She didn't seem to be injured very much, except that she was unconscious.
On checking the other four, he found they were much the same.
They felt awfully familiar, but he couldn't recall where from. Actually, now that he thought about it, he couldn't remember any 'wheres' for them to be from.
This probably wasn't a good sign.
He looked around himself, trying to find a clue to who he was, or what he was doing here, other than his name. The only thing that really stood out to him was the complicated spigot set on the ceiling above the depression he had woken up in.
Then he saw the ghost.
His first impulse was to interpose himself in between the ghost and the humans, easily calling spectral power to his hands. But the ghost was crying, and he felt familiar in the same way the humans did.
He felt like family.
Danny let the ectoenergy he had gathered fade to nothing. He drifted hesitantly to the alcove the ghost was huddled in. It was on a balcony wrapping around the room, and Danny didn't see any stairs. He would have to fly up there.
"Hello?" he said, his voice echoing in the atrium. "Are you alright?" He floated up a little farther. "Can you help me? I think my- my friends are hurt, and I- I don't know what to do. Or why I'm here," he added more quietly, "or where I am." Or anything else, really, except his name.
"I'm sorry, Daniel," said the ghost, his voice ragged.
The ghost knew his name! That was a good sign, right? The apology... That was less good.
Danny flew the rest of the way up, and peered over the rail. He gasped. The ghost, who wore purple and definitely had a thing for clocks, was chained to the wall.
No longer cautious, Danny flew to the ghost's side. He tugged experimentally on the chains.
"Do you know if there's anything I can do? Is there a key?" He pulled a bit harder. The chain separated from the wall. "Oh. Huh." Abruptly, all the locks on the chains fell open. "Huh."
The ghost straightened, unfolding from the alcove. Danny flinched back at the sudden motion. The ghost was much taller than he had thought. But then, he suddenly wasn't. He was much smaller, younger, a baby. Then he was old.
Danny wilted back in confusion.
The ghost sighed, as if the weight of the world was on his shoulders. "My apologies, Daniel. I am Clockwork, the Ancient Master of Time." He returned to the appearance he'd had when Danny had first seen him. "I serve reality, the Infinite Realms, and the King of All Ghosts."
"Okay," said Danny. That sounded somewhat familiar. Not that he actually remember any of it, but he might have heard it before. But... King of All Ghosts? The term gave him a bad feeling.
The ghost put a hand on Danny's shoulder. "Daniel, what do you remember?"
"I- Nothing. I don't- My friends, I think they're hurt. They're unconscious. Can you help? I don't know what to do."
"There is nothing wrong. They are simply taking longer to recover from the purification ceremony than you."
"The what?"
"The purification ceremony," said Clockwork. "It is required for the King and his court to be purified with the waters of the five rivers, the Lethe, Acheron, Cocytus, Phlegethon and Styx, before the King ascends the throne."
Danny looked around, nervously, as if expecting a king to pop out of the floor.
"Daniel, you are the King."
Danny blinked. Oh. He hadn't expected that.
"Did something go wrong?" asked Danny. "You were chained up, and it looks like there's a fight. And I don't remember anything."
"Not remembering anything is part of the purification. It is to ensure that you are an impartial and fair ruler." Clockwork said the words almost as if they were physically hurting him. "As such, I cannot give you the details of what happened. Suffice it to say, there were some who did not agree with your nomination to the throne."
"Oh," said Danny again. "Are you sure?"
"Yes, I'm sure you are the King of All Ghosts."
"No. That my friends are alright. They are my friends, right?" It wasn't like he had any evidence to back that up, after all. He could be wrong.
"Yes. They will be awake in just a few minutes, and they are your friends. Your very best friends."
Danny nodded, relieved in more ways than one.
"Shall we go down, and greet them?" asked Clockwork.
"I- Yes," said Danny. "Yes, that's a good idea."
.
"I don't get it," said the girl who called herself Ellie. She adjusted her ponytail again. She had done so eight times since they had say down. "You're saying he's the King of All Ghosts, but he's definitely human. That doesn't make sense."
Danny frowned. "But I'm not human. Not entirely. I'm half-ghost. Shouldn't I be saying the same thing, anyway? All of you look human."
"None of you are human," said Clockwork. "You are liminal spirits. You may appear human, but you have ghost cores. That is enough for you to be called ghosts."
"Cool!" said the girl who had introduced herself as Sam. "Does that mean we have powers? Dark abilities?"
"Of a sort, yes."
"Nice."
"Hey, Danny," said Tucker, "you don't seem too happy. Are you alright?" His fingers twitched, as if they wanted to touch something that just wasn't there.
"Of course he isn't," said Jazz. "He's just been given a huge responsibility he knows nothing about." Jazz was the first person he had checked on, when he woke up. "So have the rest of us, actually. What does the King's court actually do?"
They had left the atrium, and were sitting outdoors on violet grass under a swirling green sky. A few meters away from them, the ground abruptly ended. Clockwork had told them that they were on one of many floating islands in the Infinite Realms.
"That depends largely on the King," said Clockwork, half-bowing to Danny.
Danny squirmed. "It can't all be up to me. Can it? I mean, why even have a king at all, then? I could just, you know, not do anything."
Clockwork nodded. "You could choose to do nothing. Your mere existence is enough for the Infinite Realms. You inform their shape, their nature, and, to some extent, the nature of their inhabitants. For example, the last King of All Ghosts was a violent man. When he took the thrones, the environment of the realms became more hostile, more dangerous, less hospitable. Many larger islands fractured. Wars became more frequent. People as a whole became more aggressive. But there are other traditional roles, that you may take up, or not, if you so desire."
Wow. That made Danny feel even more apprehensive, if anything. He turned to the last member of the group. "What do you think, Valerie?"
Valerie shrugged, crossing her arms. "I think this whole thing is ridiculous, and I'm going to wake up in bed any minute now. I mean, ghosts, really? And you're in charge of all of them? No offense."
"No, that's fair," said Danny. He didn't feel kingly, that was for sure.
"Perhaps," said Clockwork, "I can bring you to your residence."
Danny looked back at the large building they had come from. "So... We don't live here?"
"No. This building is only used for the purification ritual."
"Wait," said Tucker, "how are we going to get there? Do you have a plane, or something?"
Danny turned to look at him. "You don't remember that we can fly? I mean, you've seen me and Clockwork flying."
"I must've gotten a higher dose of purification, or whatever," said Tucker. "I don't remember that at all. I thought that was a you thing. What about you guys?" he asked, turning to the others.
Ellie levitated up from the grass in response. Valerie clicked her heels together, and what looked like a high-tech surfboard popped out from the soles of her feet. The surfboard (hoverboard?) began to float, with Valerie on top.
Sam and Jazz, meanwhile, looked on with confusion. Then Sam snorted, and shook her head.
"Okay, Tucker, pure of heart, let's see if we can't figure this out."
.
The Observants arrived at the black castle only a few days after Danny and his friends had settled in. Clockwork ushered Danny to the cavernous throne room, and his friends gathered close around him, ready to fight, if need be. They had seen the Observants enter the castle from an upper window, and they had disliked the one-eyed ghosts on sight. None of them had yet determined why, and Clockwork wouldn't say anything.
Danny especially didn't like how Clockwork seemed to be almost afraid of the Observants. He hoped the little practice they had done with their abilities and powers would be enough, if things got violent.
He settled into the overlarge throne, very aware that he was wearing a t-shirt and pajama bottoms. Valerie, with her armor-summoning abilities, was really the only one dressed for a confrontation.
"Open," he commanded the doors on the far side of the room. They obeyed, swinging inward.
The Observants filed in. Danny pulled his legs up onto the throne. He probably shouldn't have, he knew it made him look younger and less confident. Too late. Putting them down might make him look indecisive, on top of all that.
The Observants stopped before the steps leading up to the throne. One of them raised up an elaborate chest, and eased it open.
"We have brought you your crown, your majesty."
So they had. The Crown of Fire flickered softly in the confines of the chest.
A second Observant raised a smaller box. "We have brought your ring, your majesty."
The Ring of Rage laid, quiescent, on the crushed black velvet lining of the box, the carved skull on its front glaring up at Danny.
Danny pushed up, out of the throne, and hovered a few inches over the ground. He flew down the steps to the Observants, and examined the Crown for several minutes. The Observants seemed to be holding their breaths, waiting for something.
Of course, they were ghosts. They didn't have to breathe. Even Danny didn't have to breathe, when he was in ghost form.
He reached down and picked up the Crown. The fires it was wreathed in immediately changed from a sickly, rotten green to a pale, icy blue-white. The Crown itself expanded and thinned. Danny tilted his head. He hadn't expected that. He lifted the Crown up over his head, where it stayed, floating.
The Observant closed the chest and quickly withdrew. Danny turned his attention to the ring bearer. It occurred to him, then, that they were afraid of him.
Why?
He'd ask Clockwork, but Clockwork probably wouldn't say.
He picked up the ring. It turned a dark, silvery gray, and the skull disappeared. Odd. He put it on the middle finger of his right hand. It fit perfectly. That Observant pulled back as well, disappearing among the others.
"Your majesty," said a third Observant. "It is time for you take up your responsibilities as King of All Ghosts."
.
Danny retreated in confusion. The Observants wanted a lot of things, most of which didn't really make sense to Danny. Valerie pushed the door firmly closed behind them.
"Alright," said Tucker, pointing at Danny. "If this is going to happen a lot, we need to get you some better threads. Like, something cool."
Danny looked down at his pajamas. "Yeah, probably."
"Also, we should probably look into the laws and precedents of the Infinite Realms, if we're going to be called on for advice."
"And by we, we mean you, mostly," said Sam. "Since you're the King. We'll help you, though." She elbowed Danny, lightly. "As much as we can."
"We can run interference, if nothing else," said Ellie, leaning into Valerie's arm.
"Thanks," said Danny, smiling slightly.
On the inside, he was freaking out. He had felt directionless ever since he had woken up, and that feeling was worse than ever. He didn't know what he was doing, or what he should be doing.
It was awful.
"Hey," said Sam. "Look at me, Danny."
"What?"
"It's going to be fine. Don't worry. According to Clockwork, we don't technically have to do any of this."
"Right," said Danny. It wasn't as much of a relief as it should have been. He felt bad. All his friends were trying so hard to help him, and he was basically useless, no help at all.
There was a knock at the door. "Your majesty, you can't just ignore your responsibilities. We will help you, advise you!"
Clockwork sighed, heavily. "You do not have to do anything, Daniel, least of all whatever they want." His words dripped with venom.
The banging continued. "Clockwork! Open this door!"
Clockwork jerked towards the door.
"Stop!" said Danny.
Clockwork stopped, and seemed to sag in relief.
"Can they make you do things?" asked Danny. "Were they the ones who chained you up before?"
"I cannot tell you."
"Why? Because they told you not to say anything?" asked Danny, suspicious.
Clockwork was silent. He wouldn't look at Danny.
Danny bit his lip, incensed on Clockwork's behalf. He threw open the door. The Observants weren't going to take advantage of him, and they certainly weren't going to take advantage of any of his friends.
He threw open the door.
"Your majesty," started the Observants.
"No," said Danny. "Whatever you're doing to Clockwork, you're going to stop. You can't order him around anymore."
"Your majesty," said what he was taking as the head Observant, "I don't know what he's been telling you-"
"Nothing. Which is the problem," said Danny. "Did you tell him not to? Were you the ones who attacked the purification ceremony?"
"No one attacked the purification ceremony!" protested the Observant. "We were running the ceremony."
Alarm bells started to ring in Danny's head. Big, nasty ones.
"You were running the ceremony." Danny looked between the Observants and Clockwork. "The ceremony where we all lost our memories."
"It was necessary," said the Observant. "All the Kings go through it."
"He's lying," said Jazz, suddenly.
"How do you know," asked Valerie.
"I don't know, I just do. How did you know how to use your suit?"
Danny turned a glare to the Observants. "Stay away from me and my friends. Including Clockwork. Don't you dare order him around anymore. Or else."
"Your majesty-"
"Get out."
"But-"
"Get out of our home. I don't want to ever see you ever again. Ever." He slammed the door.
"So, uh, we didn't have to forget our lives?" asked Ellie. "Is that the takeaway here?"
"No, I think the takeaway is our memories," said Tucker.
"That's one way to put it," said Danny. He rubbed his eye, angrily. "Clockwork, is there any way to get our memories back?"
"I can't say," said Clockwork, miserably. "I'm sorry, Daniel."
"That's the first thing you said to me," said Danny.
"It is."
"Because the Observants made you lie?"
"I can't say."
Danny groaned.
.
The Observants weren't the last petitioners. Surprisingly, most of them wanted to work in the castle. Cooking, cleaning, guarding, tailoring, doing various... castle-things. They wanted to fulfill their Obsessions in service to the King. Which was Danny.
Honestly, he didn't get it. He wasn't nearly cool enough to deserve that. He especially wasn't cool enough to deserve the praise the big white yetis heaped on him. But they were nice.
Danny was finally becoming more relaxed, too. Somehow, having more people around was helping him. He liked seeing what people were doing. He liked seeing them happy, and they seemed to like him helping them, and explaining various things to him.
Which was very good. Because he didn't really know a lot. Hardly anything, actually. He was pretty ignorant, sadly.
Right now, he was with a pair of tailors who were putting him into a suit vest with long tails and short pants. The vest was probably very nice, but Danny didn't know much about suits. All he knew was that it sort of made him feel sort of elven, or fairy-like.
There was a knock on the door, and Jazz stuck her head in.
"Hey," she said, "we have company. I think you'd better come."
"Is it the Observants again?" asked Danny. The one-eyed ghosts hadn't given up. He, Sam, and Tucker were looking for ways to keep them out of the castle.
"No. They're from the Far Frozen."
"Okay," said Danny. "Sorry guys, but I need to go."
"That's fine, your majesty, we are almost finished." The tailor waved her hand, and the stitching finished itself off. "Do you like it?"
Danny looked in the mirror, and smiled at the star patterns in the embroidery. "Yes, it's very nice. Thank you."
"No, thank you. It has been far too long since my work was worn by someone deserving."
Danny blushed. He didn't know if he was deserving.
"Okay. Well, bye," he said, slipping out the door. He turned to Jazz. "Did they say what they wanted?"
"Just that it was important, and you could help. They were worried," she added.
They entered the room where Jazz had left the yetis to wait. They both bowed immediately. Danny still wasn't used to that.
"Jazz said that you needed my help?" he prompted.
"Yes, Great One," said one of the yetis, rising. "I am Snowfall of the Far Frozen, and I have been sent by Chief Frostbite."
Danny nodded. He'd only met Frostbite the one time, briefly, along with a bunch of other leaders, but he liked him. He was big, soft, and friendly.
"The Far Frozen is in danger. A recent battle has displaced one of the Fire Islands, sending it flying towards the Far Frozen. The temperatures are becoming unbearable, and collision is imminent."
"What can I do?" asked Danny. He wanted to help, but he felt that averting a natural disaster on this scale was beyond him. "Do you need help evacuating? New homes?"
Deep-seated worry passed over Snowfall's face before being hidden again. "One of the powers of the King is redirecting the movements of the floating islands."
"Oh!" said Danny, brightening. Maybe he could avert a natural disaster. "How do I do that?"
The two yetis looked at each other. "We were hoping you knew."
"Oh," said Danny, much less energetically. "I guess I'll... go see if Clockwork knows."
.
Danny stood barefoot on top of a snow drift in the Far Frozen. The Far Frozen was beautiful and peaceful. The snow felt good on his feet.
Less good was the giant, flaming, erupting volcano floating a few miles above the island. He could taste ash on the wind. The tips of the Far Frozen's great glaciers were melting. He could feel the heat on his face
He reached into himself, into his core. Cold flowed out from him, chilling his surrounding. Snowflakes condensed from the air around him, and fell gently to the ground.
He looked over his shoulder at his friends. "Do you think it's getting farther away yet?"
Sam and Tucker were almost unrecognizable under all their layers. Both of them had relatively warm cores. Valerie was wrapped up in her suit, which was impervious to temperature changes. Jazz was dressed warmly, but not like Sam and Tucker. Ellie, meanwhile, had had much the same reaction to the Far Frozen as Danny, which was to say, she loved it.
"It is not," said Clockwork.
"Has it at least stopped getting closer?"
"No."
"Has it... Slowed down?"
"Yes."
"Well, that's progress, right?" He looked back up at the volcano before he got an answer. "What if I went up there, and just, you know, froze it? It'd still hit, but it wouldn't melt anything any more, right?"
"Daniel, you can do this."
"I know, I just don't feel like I can." The sentence came out as a very un-kingly whine. "It's a giant mountain! It's ridiculous."
"Maybe that's the problem," said Jazz. "Not feeling like you can do it."
Danny groaned.
"We all have weird powers," said Sam, teeth chattering. "Tucker has that electricity thing, I have my plants, you have ice, Jazz has mind powers... Why is this so much weirder."
"I don't know!" Danny threw up his hands, and glared at the approaching island. "Why won't you just go away?" he demanded. "You're hurting people! Go somewhere you aren't. This place is huge! You have plenty of room!"
"Ah, there we go," said Clockwork.
"Wait, what, really?" asked Danny, flabbergasted. "That's what worked?" But even as he said it, he felt a sensation of rightness settle in his core. It was moving away. The Far Frozen was safe. He had done a good thing, today.
"Note," said Tucker. "Talking inanimate objects does work, I'm not crazy."
"You are crazy," said Valerie. "You named that PDF-"
"PDA," interjected Tucker.
"-Janet. Who does that?"
.
The Far Frozen might be a snowbound wasteland, but Frostbite really knew how to throw a party. There was food, music, dancing, lights, everything.
Danny was maybe just a little intimidated by all the cheering they were doing, but, hey, it was still pretty cool.
After a while, though, the yetis calmed down or were distracted, and he was able to slip away and find a quieter side room to hang out with his friends in. He collapsed gratefully onto an icy couch.
"Wow," said Tucker. "That was a party. Like, the best party ever. I don't think I've ever been to a better party."
"I don't think we've been to any parties, except this one," said Danny.
"Huh?"
"We haven't been to any parties. Not since we lost our memories."
Tucker blinked. "Yeah, I guess you're right. I hadn't really thought about that. Maybe we should throw one when we get back to the castle."
Danny sighed, and was surprised to hear a nearly identical one from Ellie.
"What's wrong?" he asked.
"I just-" Ellie sighed. "I don't want to go back to the castle."
"You want to stay here?" asked Sam, sounding shocked. "But, it's so cold."
"Well, it's really nice here, and it would be good to learn more about our ice powers, but, I mean..." she trailed off, uncertainly.
"What if we traveled around?" asked Danny. "I've been looking at some history things with Clockwork. Human kings used to do that, travel around and see where they were needed. I think we could help more people that way. The castle is kind of hard to get to."
Ellie sat up from where she had been laying. "That would be nice," she said. "I think I'd like that."
"We'd be able to learn more about the Realms, too," said Sam, thoughtfully. "But we should probably put a limit on how long we stay in any one place, except for the castle. So we don't put too much strain on anyone. Either our hosts, or ourselves." She gestured to herself and Tucker. "We don't all like the same things. Obviously."
Danny nodded. "We'll want to stay if we're in the middle of something, though."
"That's reasonable," said Sam. "Just-" She shivered. "Well, you get it. It's cold here. You two Phantoms probably wouldn't feel great about hanging out in a tropical jungle."
"That's true," said Danny. "What do you guys think? Val? Clockwork?"
"Sounds cool to me," said Valerie, shrugging.
"It will open many opportunities for you," said Clockwork. "It will, however, be wise to return to the black castle periodically."
"Okay, cool! I guess we're decided, then. Tomorrow, we'll have to ask if they have any maps here, and figure out where to go!"
.
"They don't look dangerous," said Valerie.
"They're really pretty," said Jazz. She sighed. "It's so cool that they're real."
"Are you kidding?" said Danny. "Do you see those horns? Those hooves? Feel that ectosignature? They're dangerous." He narrowed his eyes and peered over the large rock he was hiding behind. "And evil. Very evil. The most evil."
Grazing in the center of the floating island was a herd of unicorns. They were black and hot pink, with long, grey horns, and sharp teeth and hooves. Their manes were made of ghostly flame. On the other side of the island stood the flaming ruins of a once-thriving community.
Removing them was the latest task Danny and his friends had taken on. They'd been traveling and helping people for some time. Months, maybe. But it was hard to tell exactly, because the Infinite Realms didn't have strictly defined days and nights. Some of the individual Realms did, but not all of them together.
"Come on, Danny. They're animals. They don't have the awareness to be evil," said Sam. "They're just acting according to their nature."
"Either way, we still have to chase them off."
"No, no, that's not going to work," said Sam. "They'll either come back, or bother someone else. What we need to do is relocate them."
"What's the difference?" asked Ellie.
Clockwork wasn't with them today. As Master of Time, he did have other responsibilities. He had said something about a complex paradox he needed to untangle before he left.
"The difference is that one is humane, and actually fixes things, and the other just makes the problem repeat later."
"No, I mean, practically. What would we have to do differently?" asked Ellie.
"We'd need to find a place to relocate them to, first," said Sam. "Then we'd have to catch them, somehow, or guide them away."
"Oh yeah! Clockwork gave me a thing like that! Look." He showed them the shiny green and white cylinder.
"I've got something that looks like that, but square," said Valerie, "and redder. Actually, it doesn't look like that at all. Why did I think it did? Anyway, it catches ghosts. Yeah. I'm pretty sure, anyway. I haven't tested it."
"Okay. So, we can't just leave them here while we search for a place to put them. Sorry, Sam. They're just too dangerous. They might attack somewhere else. Once they're all caught, then we can find somewhere to relocate them to."
Sam sighed, but nodded. "You're right. So how should we approach this? Maybe Val and I could go around from behind, and we can kind of pinch them together?"
That was a good idea. "Yeah, I was sort of thinking-"
"Hey, guys?" said Tucker. "They're looking at us."
The unicorns were indeed looking at them, Danny saw. The closest stamped its hoof, and lowered its horn.
Danny swallowed. "Oh, jeez."
.
A few hours later, Danny and the others laid, out of breath and exhausted, on another, much smaller floating island.
"Okay," said Danny, weakly raising an arm. "That didn't go to plan."
"There was a plan?" asked an unfamiliar voice. "You could have fooled me."
Danny snapped upright, his first instinct being to defend his friends. Of course, their first instinct was to defend him, so all their various weapons and glowing fists wound up pointed at the hapless ghost.
The ghost in question was encased in silver armor modeled (very roughly) on human anatomy. He had rivets, a green, fiery mohawk, and sort of stubby legs. He also looked rather intimidated.
"Uh," said Danny, lowering his fists. "Sorry. Who are you?"
"I am Skulker! The Ghost Zone's greatest hunter!" He puffed out his chest.
"Hunter!?" screeched Sam. "You mean you hunt poor innocent animals?"
Skulker looked sideways at Danny. "What can I say that will make her not attack me?"
"Do you hunt animals?" asked Danny.
"It's not like I kill them! Make your girlfriend stop looking at me like that!"
"She's not my girlfriend!" objected Danny, quickly.
"I'm not his girlfriend!"
"You're back at that? Really?" asked Skulker. "I know your memories got erased, but really?"
"You knew us?" asked Jazz, with interest. "Is there anything you can tell us?" They had met several people who had knew them before, but their accounts of what they had been like were... confused. At best.
"You were the greatest prey I've ever had the pleasure of hunting!" said Skulker. "And also one of the best hunters. Except for me, of course. But that," he pointed back towards where the unicorn horn still was, "that was pathetic. What happened?"
"Well," drawled Danny, "it might have something to do with that whole memory erasing thing you were talking about. By the way, are you, like, really a tiny little ghost inside a robot suit?"
"Oh my gosh!" said Tucker, floating higher. "You're a mecha? That's so cool! How do you work?"
"I am cool," said Skulker, "and- Wait. How did you know that? How did you know about that?"
"I don't know. Your ectosignature is just kind of weird. But, back to you, you're a hunter? Have you hunted, you know, unicorns before?"
"They're actually why I'm here," said Skulker, proudly. "But then I saw what you were doing, and it was just so hilarious that I couldn't stop laughing long enough to properly pilot my suit."
"Cool. But have you ever caught one before?"
"No. Actually, you once saved me from being brutally dismembered by one. But, today, that will change! Today, I capture a unicorn for my collection!"
Danny tilted his head. At this point, no one was threatening Skulker anymore.
"By collection," said Sam, slowly, "what do you mean, exactly?"
"My collection," repeated Skulker, "on my island. I let all my prizes roam free, of course, so I can have the pleasure of hunting them again!"
"Okay. Yeah. That's good enough for the demon horses," said Sam. "We're teaming up and giving them to you."
"I- What? No, that's a terrible idea," said Skulker.
"That's a great idea!" said Danny.
"No."
"Yes!"
"I'm the Ghost Zone's greatest hunter! I don't team up with anyone."
"But shouldn't the Ghost Zone's greatest hunter be able to teach people how to be great hunters?" asked Jazz.
"Ohhhhhhh," groaned Skulker.
Danny smiled.
.
"Ssooooo," said Danny, sliding in next to Tucker. "You were a pharaoh before. I wonder how that works, what with your tech Obsession?"
"Well," said Tucker, vaguely waving his hands at the tall, shiny pyramids in front of them. "I don't think tech is my only Obsession. Protection isn't your only Obsession. But, I probably fell in here through a portal from Egypt. That happens."
"Speaking of which, do we even know what time period it is out in the human world?" asked Danny. "I've seen people from all over. Like, the farthest back person I've seen is from, like, prehistory, and the farthest along had this raygun thing going on for them. But maybe they were just Obsessed with science fiction."
"Who knows," said Tucker, shrugging. "Hey, I think- I think I need to stay here for a bit longer. I just want to, I don't know. Find out who I am."
"That's cool, dude. Take all the time you need."
.
"... and he just... gave you a sword?"
"Yep," said Jazz, looking down at the object. "I think he was an Ancient, like Clockwork. Fright Knight."
"So that's... That's Soulshredder," said Danny, pointing. "The sword that will send you to a dimension that contains your worst fears if you get cut by it."
"Yeah," said Jazz.
Danny rubbed his eyes, and sat down on an overstuffed chair. They were staying in a rather nice house in Logres-Prydain, which was a rather nice, large archipelago ruled by certain deceased and imaginary British monarchs.
They hadn't done anything there, except for playing tourist, Logres-Prydain was a very stable realm, apart from its fits of melodrama. Not at all like Albion, the other realm ruled by former British leaders, which had far more than the occasional colonial impulse. Still, it had been a nice, relaxing vacation.
Until now.
"Did he say why?"
Jazz shrugged. "He said that it belonged to the first defender of the King, and he wasn't doing that anymore."
"Oh. Well. I guess that makes sense. You're going to have to get sword lessons, though. I told you that you should have joined the rest of us when Frostbite gave us lessons."
"But the library."
"Yeah," said Danny, remembering. "The library. It was pretty cool." He paused. "Do you think Fright Knight would give you lessons, or should we get, like, the Green Knight, or something?"
"Uh. Since he kind of left right after giving this to me, I'd say the second option."
"Good call."
.
They stood over the hulking, but defeated form of Undergrowth, former Ancient of Plant Life.
Danny had never seen Sam look so awesome.
"How did you take control of his plants?" he asked, tapping one of Undergrowth's vines with his foot and freezing it. Maybe Undergrowth was tied up by Sam's plants, but Danny didn't want him to root himself again.
Sam shrugged. "I don't know. I think I might have done it before? It felt sort of familiar. You know how it is."
"Yep," agreed Danny. He sighed. "So, what do we do with him?"
"Isn't he wanted?" asked Valerie. "I think I saw a poster or two, back in Logres."
"Mhm. By the Observants, though," said Danny.
"Okay," said Ellie. "So what? Make them work for their keep, or whatever."
"Not a bad idea," said Danny. "I kinda feel like we might regret it eventually, but I don't really care. What do you say, we wear Undergrowth down until he fits in the thermos, take him to the Observants, and then go back around, pick everyone up, and go home?"
Sam stretched. "Sounds good to me. This whole thing," she waved at the ghostly jungle around her, "has given me some ideas about how to Observant-proof the castle."
.
"This is actually really cool," said Sam. "I thought it would be like a zoo, with all the animals in cages, but it isn't."
"I told you it wasn't," said Skulker, sulkily.
They had stopped by Skulker's island while circling back to Logres-Prydain to pick up Jazz. It wasn't quite on the way, but Sam and Valerie had wanted to see it. Sam because she was still suspicious as to Skulker's treatment of animals, and Valerie because she wanted to learn more about hunting. She really liked hunting. Almost to a disturbing degree.
Danny hoped she wouldn't wind up after his skin like Skulker apparently had been.
His life had been weird before. He wished he knew more about it, wished one of the ghosts he met would tell him something more than, Oh, hey, I used to fight you a lot, but I want to be best friends now.
He wished he knew why none of the ghosts would say anything. It couldn't all be because of the Observants.
Could it?
"Skulker," said Danny, interrupting. "What were our lives like?"
The ghost went quiet. "Complicated," he said, finally. "More than I ever knew about, even if I did hunt you and observe your behavior meticulously!"
"Wow," drawled Ellie. "That's not creepy at all."
"You lived with your parents, and your sister," continued Skulker.
"Ellie?"
"No, the red-haired one. You went to one of those human schools with your girlfriend and her," he pointed at Valerie, "and that tech-y boy."
"You mean Tucker's not from ancient Egypt?" Oh, boy, he hoped that wasn't going to turn into a problem later on.
"No. Why would you think that?"
"Long story. What about me?" asked Ellie.
"Honestly, I don't know where you came from. You're related to him, somehow, though."
"Oh," said Ellie, clearly disappointed.
"But that's really all I know."
"That's it?" asked Danny. "Do you know what happened to our parents?"
"No. It isn't like we were best friends. Oh, yes, that's right. You and the huntress used to be enemies. Once I pitted you against one another on this very island! Good times."
"Okaaaaaaaaaay," said Danny. "This has been fun and all buuuuuuuuuuuut I think it's time to go." He started floating away, awkwardly.
"Sure, whatever," said Skulker, waving. "Visit soon! I have to introduce you to my girlfriend!"
.
"Clockwork?" asked Danny. "Are you okay?" Ever since they'd gotten back to the castle, Clockwork had been acting nervous and stressed.
"I'm fine, Daniel," said Clockwork, fidgeting with the hem of his robes. "I am simply... anticipating."
"Anticipating what?"
"Certain... Events. That will happen."
"Like, bad events, or good events?"
"Events," repeated Clockwork.
"Give me a hint?" asked Danny, half-playfully. He leaned back in his chair, and played with the toes of his bare feet. He actually quite liked the suits with short pants the tailors kept giving him. He was less certain about the pocket watch, anklets and other decorations they were adding lately, but he did like the ticking sound the pocket watch made, so it was all good.
Clockwork shook his head. "No, Daniel. I can't tell you about the future. I apologize for being distracted. Now, where were we?"
"I think you were talking about the Swan Princesses, and the settlement of White Mountain?"
"Indeed." He waved his hand, and an image appeared in the air, like a holographic projection. "Now, if you will turn your attention here..."
.
"How do you like it?" asked Sam. She and Tucker had been working on a new barrier for the castle for the past two weeks. The result was floating, interlocking, shifting hedges of black roses grown over a framework of shiny tech. It was a bizarre, but oddly appealing combination.
"It's great!" said Danny. "But it isn't going to keep people who need us out, is it? As in, people who need us who aren't the Observants?" He'd asked the question before, but he felt the need for confirmation.
"It'll let people who ask for help in," said Tucker, proudly. "People who say they need help. My stuff will also give me alerts whenever something unusual comes up."
"So will mine," said Sam, quickly. "Not as quickly, but it'll be good as backup, if Tucker isn't available."
"That's really amazing, you guys. I wish I could have helped."
"Pft. It's no problem," said Tucker, waving his hand. "You've been really busy."
"Still," said Danny.
"No, dude. You were stopping a war, weren't you?"
"And averting a natural disaster," said Sam. "The Lethe flooding could have been a real problem."
"Not to mention rescuing all those guys the ghost hunters caught, and figuring out what to do with the ghost hunters," continued Tucker. "What did you do with them, anyway?"
Danny shrugged. "I just kicked them back out into the human world. I hope they don't come back."
"Anyway," said Sam. "There is something you can do with this, if you want to. We left room for your ice, and-" she took out a papery packet. "Tada! Iceflower seeds. Between the two of us, we should be able to make them grow, and then you can have just as much warning when someone is knocking on our door as we do."
"Cool!" said Danny. Then he grinned. "Literally."
Sam and Tucker groaned in stereo. "Seriously?" said Tucker.
Danny shrugged. "The pun was just sitting there. You couldn't expect me not to take it. But, really, Sam. Where did you get these? I thought Frostbite said they were almost extinct."
"Eh, well, I got help from the Far Frozen, and we all asked around. I'm thinking about starting a seed bank, or a botanical garden. You know, to preserve ecological diversity."
"In her copious free time, you know."
"Shut up, Tucker."
.
This was Jack and Maddie's fifth trip into the Ghost Zone. Every time they got further in. Every time they improved the Specter Speeder. This time was different, though. Last time, they had seen the Ghost King.
It had only been from a distance, and he had looked very different from when he had dragged Amity Park into the Ghost Zone two years ago, but their instruments didn't lie. He was the only ghost who could possibly have that much power. No other came close.
Maddie wished the encounter had lasted longer, that the Ghost King had stayed still long enough for their instruments to analyze his ectosignature and determine what his powers and weaknesses were. If she and Jack were to defeat him, and get their children back, they needed every advantage possible.
At the same time, Maddie knew they had been lucky. If the portal hadn't opened up before the Ghost King attacked them, they could have been killed. They hadn't been prepared to face him, then. Now they were. The Specter Speeder had been fitted with all of their very best weapons. They were ready. Ready to get their children back, or die trying.
The universe seemed to agree with them. They had yet to have a single ghostly encounter. The Ghost Zone was quiet, quiescent. The sky spun slowly around them, islands passing by in the distance.
"According to the ghosts we questioned," Maddie said, "the Ghost King's castle should be this way, and he should be in residence."
Jack nodded grimly. "I wi-"
"Don't say that word. Don't you remember what happened last month?"
"Sorry, Mads."
Maddie bit her lip. "So am I. I didn't mean to snap at you." She sighed. "I'm stressed. What were you saying?"
"It would have better," said Jack, cautiously, "if any of the ghosts had known why the Ghost King woke up again."
"It would have been nice to know what had woken him up in the first place," said Maddie. "But it doesn't matter. We're not trying to put him to sleep." A flash of odd color caught Maddie's eye, and she leaned forward, looking up through the windshield, to try to see what it was and where it had gone. "Did you see-?"
A bolt of fuchsia energy hit the front of the Speeder and splashed against the shields. Alarms sounded in the cabin as the Speeder was forced down. Maddie cursed, and began activating weapons. Why hadn't the ghost detector gone off?
Oh. Now it activated.
"Big ectosignature, Mads!" shouted Jack over the noise.
"The King?" asked Maddie, as green, then pink, hit the shields.
"Not quite that big, but- What's that?" The Speeder shook under another barrage.
Maddie yanked on the controls. "Two colors! There must be two of them!"
"The engines!"
"What?"
A temperature warning suddenly went off. Were they overheating? No, the engine temperature had dropped. An ice user? Like Phantom had been?
Maddie revved the engine, but it was too late. It had gotten too cold, and they were dead in the water.
Yet another fruitless trip. Maddie hit the steering wheel. They could probably fight their way out of this, with all their weaponry, and rig up a way back, but they'd have to go back to the drawing board as far as their rescue attempt went.
It was probably a good thing. If they were brought so low by these ghosts, they would have been destroyed by the Ghost King. But, still, it was so frustrating.
"Maddie, I can't get a lock!"
Maddie snapped back to the present, and frantically started pressing buttons.
Then the barrage stopped, suddenly and completely.
"Still only one ectosignature?"
"No, I have two, but one is so small, I can't-"
A red figure on a board swooped into view in front of the Specter Speeder. Maddie froze completely. That was Valerie Gray.
Yes, she was wearing that red ghost hunting armor, but Phantom had revealed her, back when the Ghost King had dragged Amity Park into the Ghost Zone. Maddie wasn't likely to forget that, or anything that had happened then.
"Ghost hunters!" shouted Valerie Gray, loudly enough to be heard inside the Speeder. "Disable your weapons, and open the doors of your vehicle."
A ghost girl appeared out of thin air next to Valerie. The board tipped somewhat, and the girl seemed to laugh, gesturing at Valerie with a teasing gesture.
The ghost looked like Phantom, almost like she could be his sister. His twin, even. That would be incredibly rare, among ghosts. But then, Phantom had always been an oddity, right up until he had disappeared entirely.
Maddie wasn't surprised he was involved in this, however tangentially.
She fumbled for the PA microphone. "Valerie Gray?"
The conversation outside stopped, as both girls turned their attention back to the Speeder. Valerie's mask receded from her face.
"How do you know my name?"
"You don't recognize us?"
"Kind of hard to, considering you're in that big thing. All I know is that you're the ones who've been harassing people and causing problems." Valerie crossed her arms. "Why don't you come out, then we can talk about whether or not we know each other."
Maddie lowered the microphone, and turned to Jack. "It's obviously a trap," she said.
"But she might know where Danny and Jazz are," said Jack, "and even if she doesn't, we have a duty to her, as well. She's a victim, too."
"She might be overshadowed," said Maddie, even as she nodded in agreement.
"She's definitely under some kind of control. Otherwise she'd never work with a ghost. But I think we have to risk it. For Jazz and Danny."
"For Jazz and Danny," agreed Maddie.
She pushed open her door and leaned out. The void of the Ghost Zone yawned dizzily beneath her, the ectoplasmic mists spiraling down forever. She waved at Valerie. "Alright, let's tal-"
The ghost girl was abruptly next to Maddie, and there were four of her.
"Gotcha," she (they?) said, grinning, as they grabbed onto her and Jack.
Maddie's vision blurred, and when it came back into focus, she found herself next to Valerie Gray, supported in the air by two copies of the ghost girl. Jack was similarly imprisoned.
"So," said one of the copies. "What should we do with these guys? Any thoughts, Val?"
Valerie Gray regarded them silently. There were streaks of red in her hair, and flecks of gold in her eyes. An affectation, or a side effect of living in the Ghost Zone for so long?
"You say you know me," said Valerie. "How?"
"You mean," gasped Maddie, trying not to think about the endless drop beneath her feet, "you don't know us?"
"No. I don't. What are you even doing in here? You're human."
"So are you!" said Jack.
Valerie shrugged. "Not entirely. I'm going to ask again, what are you doing in the Infinite Realms?"
"We're looking for our children," said Maddie.
"Oh, we can help with that," said the ghost girl. "When did they die?"
"They didn't," snapped Maddie. "They were kidnapped, by your king!"
Valerie snorted. "I highly doubt that. When was this?"
"Almost a year ago," said Maddie. "The same time you disappeared."
"Uh huh," said Valerie. "Well, it wasn't our king. He hasn't been reigning for that long, yet. I doubt it was the last guy, either. Last time I checked, he was still locked up."
"What were your kids' names?" asked the ghost girl.
"Their names are Daniel and Jasmine," said Maddie.
"Okay, cool. Hey, Val, what do you say we have our resident mind reader take a look at them?"
.
The floating island the ghost girl had set them down on was tiny. Barely large enough to pace on. If the ghost girl or Valerie had been on it with them, it would have been far too crowded. As it was, the two girls had chosen to float some distance above the island while one of the ghost girl's duplicates went to go get the 'mind reader.'
Maddie surreptitiously checked her suit's built-in weapons for the fifth time. Maybe it would be better to attack the ghost now, but then the absent duplicate would still be free to gather reinforcements. If the 'mind reader' was the ghost controlling Valerie, defeating it could free her, and get the Fentons an ally.
If not, then- then-
Maddie didn't know. She had come into the Ghost Zone with so many plans, but they had all depended on having the Specter Speeder, which was now a floating dot in the distance. More than that, she was distracted by Valerie's apparent amnesia.
Would Danny and Jazz remember them? Would they be under the control of ghosts as well? How would they get past that? They had expected them to be imprisoned, yes. They had even expected them to be hurt, or controlled. But amnesiac? That hadn't been something they had planned for.
"Here we come," said the ghost girl, above them.
Maddie looked up, and traced her gaze to two approaching dots. They grew larger and larger, until they resolved into humanoid figures. One was the ghost girl. The other...
The other was Jazz.
She had a blue streak in her hair, and her eyes flashed pale yellow-orange when she looked down at Jack and Maddie, but it was definitely Jazz. It was Jazz, despite her anachronistic clothing, despite the long, thin, and wicked sword strapped to her waist.
It was Jazz, and the blank look on her face when she met Maddie's eyes confirmed her worst fears. Jazz didn't remember them at all.
.
"They're telling the truth," said Jazz.
"They are? Really? You and Danny are their kids?" asked Ellie.
"That's what they think, anyway," said Jazz. She glanced back down at the couple. "They're also hiding enough weapons to equip an army."
"You should have seen their spaceship thing."
"And what Val said to them when they were in their spaceship thing. She sounded like Walker!"
"I did not."
"Did too!"
"Okay, okay," said Jazz. "But what should we do with them? Send them home? Get Danny? What?"
"Well," said Ellie, "what do you want to do?"
Jazz sighed. "I don't know. I'd just as soon not deal with this. I mean, we've all been curious about our pasts, but our responsibility is to the Realms, and they're, well. A menace."
"You don't feel anything for them?" asked Valerie, sounding surprised.
"I do, but..." Jazz shrugged, unable to explain just what she felt. "Anyway, they think we're being mind controlled or something. I don't think we can just get through to them. But if we just send them back to the human world, they'll come back. At least, that's the vibe I'm getting right now."
"It's like with the unicorns," said Ellie. She paused. "Does that mean we have to relocate them?"
"No, I don't think that would work. Or it might work," Jazz corrected herself, "insofar as getting them out of the way, but not in terms of having a satisfying conclusion. I mean, imagine if we left them on an island somewhere. We'd always be wondering and worrying about them, wouldn't we? And they'd always be trying to escape. But... I think you have a point, comparing them to the unicorns."
"Wow, thanks, Jazz. I was beginning to think that everything I said was wrong."
"Oh, come on. I'm just trying to talk myself through this."
"I get it, I get it. Go on. Tell me how I'm right."
"I think we need to give them what they want, at least partially, then they won't feel the need to come back. It might help us get some closure, too, as far as our former lives go."
"Meaning?" prompted Valerie.
"Meaning, we should take them to Danny."
.
"I'm getting a signal from the barrier," said Tucker. He was decked out in all his Egyptian gear, but also with a whole lot of tech. It left something of an odd impression.
Danny looked up from a pile of correspondence. "Oh, yeah? Is it the Observants?"
"No, it's Jazz, Val, and Ellie with a couple of humans." Tucker drummed on the table. "I'm going to go check it out."
"With the side effect of leaving us with all of this," said Sam. She gestured at the table full of letters.
"Hey, it's Danny's fan mail," said Tucker, pointing finger guns at the two of them. "Catch you later."
A few minutes later, he came back.
"Hey, guys. Problem. Big problem."
Jazz came in right after him. "I don't know if it's a problem, exactly, but Val and Ellie are outside the barrier with our parents."
.
"Is this what you were talking about?" Danny asked Clockwork. "That event you were talking about earlier."
Clockwork shrugged, misery evident in his motions.
"Is this the Observant's orders, still? I could smack their eyeballs right out of their heads..."
"What are we going to do?" asked Tucker. "Talk to them? Send them away? What?"
"How about we make them go through our maze?"
"Wh- Why would we do that?" asked Danny.
"I don't know. It sounds like fun. Oh! It might make them reveal their weapons. That would be good, right?" Sam shrugged.
"I guess, but I think that might be, you know, unnecessarily cruel," said Danny.
"Yeah, so?"
"So, that's bad."
"Is it?"
Danny shook his head. "Let's go to the throne room, and let them in. It sounds like a lot of their aggression to ghosts is them thinking that the 'Ghost King' is involved with our kidnapping. Which, I mean, yes, clearly I am involved in my own kidnapping, but, you get it."
"It would be good if they stopped attacking people," said Tucker.
Danny groaned. "Yeah. I can't believe I have to worry about my parents randomly attacking people."
"It isn't all that unbelievable. You're pretty violent."
"And you aren't?"
"Hey, I'm not denying it."
.
The ghost girl, who was apparently named Ellie, held Jack and Maddie as they and Valerie floated over a castle trapped within a ever-shifting framework of barbed-wire-like roses and ice.
It looked like a prison.
Slowly, the spinning layers came to a halt, revealing a path to the castle at their heart.
"Looks like they want to see you," said Ellie, flying down. She set the two humans down on the edge of the island, and then gestured at a huge pair of doors. "Go ahead," she said. "We're right behind you."
Maddie's lips twitched at the threat, but turned away. Let the ghost think Maddie was afraid of her. She and Jack walked forward, past the ghosts guarding the doors, and into a long, broad hallway.
At the end of the hall was a dais. On that dais was a throne. Jazz stood just beyond the last step of the dais, below the throne, her hand resting on the hilt of her sword. To the throne's left was Tucker Foley, Danny's best friend. He was dressed like something out of a documentary on Egypt. To the throne's right was Samantha Manson, decked out in poisonously bright flowers and a ragged green dress.
In the throne itself sat Danny, wearing a neat suit and a crown that burned with blue fire. The tips of his bare toes fell just short of reaching the floor in front of the throne.
"Jack and Maddie Fenton," he said, in a clear, carrying voice. "Please come forward."
Maddie looked over her shoulder at Valerie and Ellie. Their expressions suggested that Jack and Maddie had better start walking.
As they approached the throne, Danny pushed himself out of the throne and stood. Other than the odd clothing choice, Danny looked the same as he always had. Unlike the others, odd lights didn't shine from his eyes, and his hair wasn't streaked with strange colors.
"Hi," he said, in a more normal tone of voice. "I'm told you want to talk to me. To us." He smiled faintly. "I'm afraid none of us remember anything from more than, hm, call it eleven months ago, though."
Maddie's brain was still trying to process the situation.
"You really don't remember us?"
"I'm sorry," said Danny. "We don't. You seem somewhat familiar, though, if that helps."
It didn't.
"You're the Ghost King!" exclaimed Jack, suddenly.
"I am," said Danny.
"But," said Maddie, as the throne and the crown suddenly clicked into place for her, "how? You're human!"
"Only half," said Danny. He shrugged, and light rippled across his skin. His hair went white, his eyes green, and his skin darkened.
Phantom stood in his place.
Then, before Maddie could blink, he was Danny again.
"That's apparently enough," continued Danny.
"How..." Maddie couldn't get enough air to ask the question.
"I don't know exactly," said Danny. "But from what I've read, it can happen if a portal opens up on you." He tilted his head. "We would like to hear what we were like, though. Not many people will tell us. Are you alright?"
"Breathe, Mom," said Jazz. "Go ahead, breathe. Everything is going to be fine."
.
The room they were in now was much smaller. Almost cozy, despite all the death symbols and ghostly trappings. Maddie eyed a scythe hung above the fireplace suspiciously.
Jack had taken a ghost detector out of his suit, and was scanning the children. All of them had ectosignatures, but none of them showed up as so much as overshadowed.
"Why don't you remember anything?" asked Maddie as Jazz tucked a quilt around her.
Danny rolled his eyes, and the flames of his crown flickered higher. "A certain group of ghosts thought it appropriate to revive an archaic purification ritual which used the waters of each of the five great rivers, one of which is the Lethe, for my coronation. They have been punished appropriately." He shifted his weight. "But tell us, what were we like? What were our lives like?"
.
"Come home," said Maddie, her voice hoarse from all the stories she had told. "Come home, all of you. Whatever this is, we can fix this."
Danny shook his head. "We can't." His voice was rough as well. He had told his share of stories.
"You can. We can hide the changes to your appearance."
"No, we physically can't. We bathed in the waters of the Five Rivers of the Infinite Realms, including those of the River Styx. We're bound here. We can't set foot in the human world."
"You can visit, though," said Jazz. "Whenever you like."
"As long as you don't attack any of my subjects," added Danny.
"We can't leave you here," objected Maddie, "as slaves to ghosts."
"We aren't slaves," said Tucker, annoyance clear in his voice.
"But you don't actually have to leave," said Danny. "You could live here. The same prohibition against attacking people would apply, however."
Jack and Maddie exchanged a glance that conveyed thousands of words. "We would like that," said Maddie, returning her gaze to her son.
Danny smiled, and clapped his hands together. "Excellent! I'll see about having some rooms made up for you. Come on," he said, standing, "let me show you what we've got.
Maddie followed him out of the room, her eyes fixed on his crown. She wasn't giving up. This wasn't over yet.
