AN: Hi
AN: Hi. I'm new to posting here, though technically I've been reading off of ff.n for about 7 years now (geeze I feel old). This is the first time I am sharing publicly anything I have written. I do have a beta reader, but any mistakes are entirely my own. Please tell me so I can fix them.
If any character is too OOC, please tell me how I can fix them. In other words I'd appreciate constructive criticism, maybe some reviews to tell me where my weak points are hopeful grin.
AN2: This particular chapter begins during The Ultimate Enemy. It will more or less follow cannon events (even if not mentioned) up to and including Reality Trip.
Disclaimer: I own nothing from Danny Phantom or Sky High. I am making no profit off of this. I own nothing you recognize.
Title: Danny's Redemption
Author: Dream's Abyss
Rated M for future content (see summary)
Summary: Some things just shouldn't be changed, and some things can't be changed. If they are it must be set to rights. This is a crossover with Sky High. Eventual slash… but not anytime soon.
Prologue: Setting the stage
In his tower, Clockwork humored his guests, the Observants. While they claimed to have news of a powerful and dangerous ghost, they refused to explain more until he watched what they wanted him to see.
From his Time Viewer, Clockwork focused on a scene set ten years into the future. He identified the location as Amity Park and catalogued the differences between the present one and this future version.
Amity Park, a seemingly peaceful metropolis surrounded by a shield, outside of which can be found the grimness of a destroyed world—presumably destroyed by this powerful and dangerous ghost. Valerie Gray, the sole active protector of Amity Park from ghosts, patrolled the city and examined the ghost shield towers to make sure they were fully operational. She visited tower after tower, she scrupulously checked the state and condition of each tower and purposefully reported back to the headquarters with a dual purpose before moving on to the next one: to give a verbal report as to the status of each tower, and to allow her father Damon Gray to know she was alive and relatively unhurt with the simple act of reporting in.
Clockwork watched as Dan Phantom taunted Valerie before destroying the world's strongest ghost shield with his Ghostly wail. Soon after the shield was destroyed the Fright Knight ambushed the future Valerie. Largely unnoticed by the major combatants mass chaos broke out among the citizens of Amity Park as they each fought each other, yet still there was no chance on the large group of people becoming a mob to get to the underground ghost-proof safe houses. That last observation proved to Clockwork more than any other the seriousness of the situation.
Clockwork continued to observe as Dan invaded and began to methodologically destroy each of the city's defenses one by one. For some he used his ectoblasts, and others he used his newfound Ghostly Wail, and for still others he preferred simple intimidation tactics. What he did not have time to destroy himself he allowed his minions to maintain until he could get to it.
"Now do you understand?" questioned one of the Observants haughtily.
"Yes. Danny Phantom grows up to be the most evil ghost on the planet," stated Clockwork with his back to the trespassers in his lair. Turning around suddenly he snarled, "What do you want me to do about it?"
"You are the master of time, Clockwork. Isn't it obvious?" the first Observant asked.
"To save the future, Danny Phantom must perish!" the second Observant interrupted.
"He is too dangerous to be allowed," stated the first Observant. "He must be destroyed. We charge you with this task, so that he may not grow up to being one of the world's most evil ghosts."
A battle raged above an establishment called the Nasty Burger, where six people were bound to a vat of Nasty Sauce that was quickly approaching the critical temperature where it would become explosive.
Clockwork watched as Danny defeated his not-so-future self, but at the expense of the last of his ghostly energy. He realized Danny could not go ghost, and froze time at just the moment before the explosive vat of sauce combusted in a near atomic reaction.
"The Observants look at time like they are watching a parade. One thing after another, passing by in sequence right in front of them," stated Clockwork smugly in response to Danny's astonished and questioning look, "I see the parade from above: all the twists and turns they might—or might not take." Clockwork winked at Danny.
"You knew this was going to happen. All of it," stated Danny in wonder, looking at his living family.
"Everything's the way it's supposed to be. And here we are with you, a fourteen-year-old child, risking everything to save the people you care about."
"Time in!" And with those two words, Clockwork reset time to hours earlier, before Danny had a chance to take the test he originally cheated on that put him on the first steps down the slippery slope to evil.
"You've given everyone else a second chance, why not you?" With those words clockwork left Danny to make his own choices that would determine his future.
Clockwork watched in approval from his lair as Danny went to his teacher's desk and confessed to almost cheating on the Career Aptitude Test.
Back in Clockwork's ghostly lair, the Observants protested verbally but fiercely angry. The first exclaimed, "You manipulated the boy, you influenced his choice—"
The second interrupted anger obvious in every syllable, "That's a direct violation of the protocol of temporal displacement! In other words—"
Together, outraged, "You cheated!"
"True, I cheated. But I assure you his choice was his own."
"Because of your intervention, we and the council name you guardian of Phantom—both the younger and the elder who now exists outside of time because of your machinations. You are responsible for what they do, especially the younger since he has such potential," stated one of the Obervants. Both turned in unison to leave, somehow giving the simultaneous impression of imperiousness and two children stomping off to sulk that their was not followed. Before the last Observant left completely he stopped and said, "Clockwork, we still expect you to destroy the evil Phantom. The Ghost Council will be discussing your punishment for trying to defy us."
"Potential indeed," chuckled Clockwork to himself. "More than you know."
Time held many secrets. Within time's flow were many secrets yet to be discovered, some that were never to be discovered, and some that awaited the appropriate finder before revealing themselves. That is for everyone except Clockwork. He prided himself as the only being to whom time completely surrendered itself. Because of this unconditional surrender, he was capable of playing the ultimate "what if" game in any reality that existed in time, and many that do not.
One thing that he remained consistently unaware of was the domain of his brother-in-spirit—the only person, being or creature that Clockwork considered an equal. The same regard was held in reverse.
It was because they both held each other in high regard that his brother came to confront him, rather unexpectedly for Clockwork… though he should have expected it.
"Clockwork, you know you're not supposed to do anything with the time stream that would interfere with my domain," came a bodiless voice from a corner of Clockwork's castle.
"I can only offer my apologies, brother. It was necessary to avert a terrible future for both mortals and non-mortals alike," replied Clockwork. "There was no time to request your permission—"
"Time! You're made of time—"
"Be calm, brother. The Observants came to me with a request and wanted it begun right then. They would not have understood, nor tolerated a request to visit you," explained Clockwork. He continued with barely discernible amusement, "especially since I did not intend on following their instructions in the first place if I could help it."
"Clockwork, the balance must be maintained," whined the first speaker as he materialized from a shadowed corner. The figure wore a black cloak that hid any identifying features, suddenly his voice turned hard, "I understand that you have been given guardianship over the boy." It was not a question, but he waited for Clockwork's assent before continuing, "I give you eighteen months, no more, to fix things on your end. After that time—and I won't guarantee that I won't move sooner either—I will do what I need to."
The cloaked figure hesitated before turning to leave. His voiced turned soft, "Brother, I will do my best to hold off as long as I can… I'm not sure how long that will be exactly, but it probably won't be much longer than a year—it technically shouldn't be any longer than a year." And with a barely perceptible "good luck" he was gone, leaving no trace of his presence.
Heeding his brother's warning, Clockwork began searching for ways to save is newly appointed ward.
Hidden in the clouds, somewhere over the United States floated a technological marvel. Some might have thought it was a private facility where only the most secret of experiments were tested given that the technology was year ahead of anything publicly available. In fact it was a school called Sky High, where children of superheroes went to learn to use their powers wisely and appropriately to eventually be beloved heroes of their own standing.
This was where Clockwork's search took him. It was at this location that Daniel would have the best chance of not just surviving his fate, but of thriving.
The name of the head of the school was Angela Powers, or rather Principal Powers. Clockwork searched for her through his time viewer and found her in what would be a rather spartan office except for a few knickknacks scattered through the room.
"May I have a moment, Principal Powers?" questioned Clockwork interrupting her from her paperwork.
His deep voice interrupted her concentration on some paperwork. Startled, but recovering easily, Principal Powers looked over Clockwork's unusual appearance. "Yes? What is it that you have come for?"
"I have come to request a late enrollment to this establishment for a hero in the making. I would like to enroll him for the next school year. He would be beginning the Sophomore year."
That's it for the prologue. Tell me what you think. Please review.
Most of the dialogue is taken from the episode The Ultimate Enemy; like the title says, this is just setting the stage.