A/N: Alright, so I saw this fanart with characters from Layton parodying those from Tangled and…the idea stuck! So, this fic is rather loosely mirroring the plot of Tangled although there are definitely certain plot points that are very different.
Disclaimer: Professor Layton and all its characters are property of Level – 5.
- Prologue -
It started with knowledge.
Then technology naturally followed.
At first there was envy.
Then fear.
Suspicion.
Anxiety.
And what sort of good can come from all that?
Once upon a time, in a distant land, there was a kingdom, Mystere, with technology far superior to any of those near it. It was the scientific center of the region and geniuses poured into it to take advantage of the liberal funds Mystere gave for research.
New inventions entered into the lives of the kingdom's citizens almost daily.
A new box which could smoothly knead great amounts of dough for the baker.
A more efficient heating system for the families.
A new clock with clockwork much more whimsical than the model before it.
A small child of gears that could open and close its mouth and slowly move its limbs.
The citizens were, for the most part, not displeased. Sure, some machines worked out like a thing of nightmares, but with so many new inventions, some errors were to be expected before the inventions were perfected. Besides, the most dangerous of experiments were kept far from their homes. All that the citizens could see of the more catastrophic failures were a little poof of smoke in the distance, a few miles behind the castle.
The neighboring kingdoms eyed this kingdom with a green eye. It wasn't as though Mystere didn't share its knowledge…years and years after it had been perfected! They craved to be the first to discover something, not merely to be those who received handouts, and outdated ones (by Mystere's standards) at that!
And that eye was also wary.
Miles behind the castle, deep within the walls of the laboratory, there was a small faction of researchers dedicated to the machines of war.
Strange, long tubes that used black powder to project a tiny a ball of lead out of it at speeds that by far surpassed the crossbow.
A mechanical dragon that spouted fire from its snout.
A tower of clockwork that could batter the walls around any city.
And there were talks of an army made of clockwork as well, but the head researcher of that group soon quit the project and nothing came of the idea.
The king of Mystere came from a long line of kings of the Reinhold family. He was a kind enough ruler and quite content with the size of his kingdom, but he was also wise and wary. He thought (perhaps not incorrectly) that without the proper weapons to defend the admitted rather small kingdom, Mystere would surely be invaded quickly and destroyed overnight. Doubly so when the kingdom held such tantalizing amounts of knowledge.
After all, did both those within and out of Mystere not call the research centers the Golden Apple?
Yes, the king was wary, even as he sat in his throne, surrounded by thick, stone walls.
That is not to say, however, that he was miserable.
The queen of Mystere, Violet, was a lovely, intelligent woman, and the king could not be more in love with her.
From their happy marriage came a wonderful daughter who they named, Flora.
That is not to say, however, that they lived happily ever.
After Flora's birth, Violet became confined to her bed, barely able to sit up. Despite her protests, the queen was not even able to see her daughter, who the doctors claimed would cause too much stress for her.
The king was desperate. He saw that his wife would die if he didn't find a way to help her regain her strength.
For a cure, the king consulted the greatest genius in the land. The genius' name was Bruno, a man who combined the sciences with magic to perform miracles. The king hoped that Bruno would be able to perform one for him.
The two discussed the matter behind closed doors, away from even the closest of the king's advisors. Once, loud shouts were heard and advisors noted that the king seemed extremely anxious when he exited the room. Bruno followed, shaking his head sadly, muttering, "That's the most I can do, I'm afraid."
Days passed, and the queen grew sicker and sicker. All the while, the king grew drearier and drearier.
Then one day, upon entering the room with Bruno, the king gave a cry of despair and immediately closed the doors behind them.
For two days the doors were closed and no one was allowed inside. Only Bruno's occasional exit and reentering made the doors open, and only the quiet sounds of clinking could be heard from behind the heavy doors.
After two days, the doors were opened. Little Flora, who had slept by the door for two nights, ran into the room.
Miraculously, her mother seemed healthier than before! Her father smiled a bit uncertainly and told her that her mother would live. However, Violet would still be, for the most part, confined to her bed, still too sickly for strenuous activity. Flora didn't mind, because her mother was still healthy enough to see her every day.
Yet, not even the miracle could lift the king's spirits and he continued to sink into depression.
Secretly, unbeknownst to the advisors, the king had given Bruno a task that seemed almost impossible. But, Bruno was a miracle man, and the task was completed in three year's time.
The very year the task was completed, the king was killed.
The assassins sought to kill the queen and her young daughter as well, but they could not find them.
For the king had read the greed of those around him and foreseen his demise.
He had tasked Bruno to build a tower, well hidden from the eyes that would wish to do his wife and daughter harm. Inside the tower, the king also requested Bruno to build people of clockwork—robots—so realistic that his daughter would never feel alone in that tower. With them, Bruno took his great knowledge and disappeared.
The king's assailants were furious. Where was Bruno? They needed his knowledge and skills!
The king merely smiled and said, "Knowledge? That's hidden with the Golden Apple."
And nothing more.
In the months of chaos that followed, the most influential of the advisors eventually rose up to take the throne, saying that he would abdicate once the true heir returned. Until then, he would be king.
The new king expanded the weapons research group until the majority of the researchers were a part of the effort. "My citizens," the man said in a speech to the castle-town, "although I am saddened by the fact, it is obvious to me, after the assassination of our beloved king, that Mystere is still insufficiently defended. We must become stronger, so that this tragedy will never occur again."
The citizens were, for the most part, not displeased. It sounded reasonable enough.
And those who knew better were silenced immediately.
Meanwhile, Flora and Violet lived in the tower, hidden from all. Their only companions were each other, Bruno, and his robotic creations. Said robotic creations were so realistic that Flora honestly didn't mind much at all.
Seeing how much Flora loved his clockwork people, Bruno decided to pass his knowledge of machines onto Flora. And for years, the old man taught Flora the workings of his creations.
"This is the heart of the robot," Bruno said as they fixed Simon. Little Flora, crouched beside him, nodded. "Keep it in good shape, or nothing will run! Of course, the brains are up here." He gestured towards the head. "Just like for you and me. They've all been enchanted to run correctly with the seal there," another gesture towards an intricate symbol engraved inside the skull, "but if you ever find the need to change the functions, you can override the commands if you say the magic words."
"'Please'?"
"No, no, no," Bruno laughed, "sing that old song your mother taught you. The words are in there."
"I am a little mockingbird,
You think I'm weak and frail,
But Clockwork, that's absurd.
Your gears may outlast me,
But I am a mockingbird.
Your gears can't catch me."
But not even the miracle man could avoid old age, and after eight years of hiding, Bruno passed away, leaving Flora to care for her mother and the clockwork people.
However, before his death, Bruno had beseeched a trusted friend to look after Flora and had sent that friend instructions to the tower (coded, of course). The friend, being a gentleman as well as a world-renowned scholar, accepted, and two months after Bruno's death, he came to live at the tower.
With him, he brought much of the scientific knowledge of Mystere and the world.
"Of course," the gentleman said, "I will teach you everything I know, just as your father would've wanted. A true lady, especially one of Mystere, must be intelligent, after all."
"You knew papa?" Flora asked, eyes wide.
"But of course."
"What's your name, mister?"
The man said with a little bow, "Professor Hershel Layton, at your service."
And the years went by, pulled forward by the gears of a great clock.
A/N: Yeah, this is going to be slow, super slow. Haha, no magic hair, sorry.