Written for Gray Ghost Week (May 3 - May 9 2017)
Day 2: Fantasy/Lore AU
I wrote this for a phandom event and used it as an excuse to take some of my personal headcanons out for a spin. Since it was a prompt-a-day week I could only do so much with the material though, so this is a complete product despite the... ending.
If I ever have more free time, and it strikes my fancy, maybe I'll take these all out for a longer, more epic fic. For now though, I'm happy how this turned out, despite it being very light on the Gray Ghost aspect, and the way Tumblr's deleting things willy nilly I figure reposting things on ff can't hurt.
Enjoy!
The Cycle Restarts.
Phantom, I must tell you - warn you. There's something you should know.
You fought the Ghost King, Pariah. Even at his strongest - wearing the Crown of Fire, and the Ring of Rage - you didn't hesitate. You saved us all. For that, we thank you - but I'm afraid you went into that fight blind.
Pariah Dark was not always evil. Nor was he always King. The Ghost Zone's royalty is chosen not by birthright, but by the artifacts they wield.
That's right. The Crown of Fire chooses the King, not the other way around.
And the ring, you ask? Very perceptive of you. They were never meant to be worn together, the ring and the crown. Each has a mind of its own; Each chose a different person to bear them.
You see, The Crown of Fire was meant for Pariah.
The Ring was for his wife.
—
Danny watched Pandora pace the floor. She was silent for a long time, and that made him nervous. He glanced over to Frostbite, in the corner; the yeti merely shook his head.
Despite the discouragement, Danny couldn't hold his tongue any longer, so he straightened and cleared his throat. "Ah, um, well that's a very nice history lesson," he said slowly, glancing about. "But what does that have to do with me?"
Pandora halted. Her head swiveled his direction, her piercing eyes meeting his gaze. He shivered.
"I mean, Pariah's still in the sarcophagus of Forever Sleep, and I doubt he's waking up any time soon, so–"
"Daniel, where is the Crown of Fire?"
Danny blinked at Frostbite's interruption. The Yeti had been silent since they got here.
"And where is the Ring of Rage?" Pandora asked, voice urgent.
"Vlad has it. Them." Danny said. "Last I checked, anyway. He took the Crown from me just before I passed out, I haven't seen it–them, since."
Frostbite and Pandora traded a look.
"So you've come in contact with the Crown, then." she murmured.
"As I expected," Frostbite said back.
Danny looked between the two of them, wavering. Frustrated. "I tried to stop him," he insisted, and was surprised to hear a desperate note in his own voice. He hadn't stopped to consider the consequences of Vlad's "bounty". Used together, according to Skulker, the Crown and Ring would grant the wearer infinite power…
"Did Vlad take it from you? Physically?" Frostbite pressed. "Did he pry it from your fingers, off your head?"
"…No?" Danny answered slowly, frowning at Frostbite's odd question, because the mere idea of putting on a crown during a life and death battle took some rather twisted thinking. "Why would I have put it on my head?"
"Did you want to?" Pandora asked softly.
"No." Danny said, offended. "…I tossed it aside. The fight was still going, I needed to free up my hands and - look, I get it, it's my fault that Vlad has the crown, but it's not like I planned that–"
Pandora laughed softly. "Phantom, do not worry. I believe, right now, the crown may be safest in Vlad's greedy, scheming hands."
"Uh." Danny said. "What."
"We told you, Danny," Frostbite said. "The crown chooses its wearer, not the other way around. Vlad has to prove himself worthy, and clearly, since he hasn't come forward as Ghost Zone's newest King yet, the Crown is not impressed."
Danny suppressed a smirk. "Okay," he said.
"That poses another problem, though," Pandora said, beginning to pace again. "The Crown is now free of Pariah's control, as is the Ring of Rage. The Ancient Ghosts may start to come forward to prove themselves to the Crown - to try and lay claim to the throne."
"Ancient Ghosts?" Danny repeated.
"The old ones," Frostbite clarified. "Gods among the dead. Pandora is one of them, you see. There are others - gods of fire, of sleep, of the earth and sky…"
Danny looked at him. Blinked. Sleep, earth, sky–"Nocturne?" he asked, surprising them both. "Undergrowth? Vortex?"
"You've met?"
"They attacked Amity. I thought the ghosts were getting stronger lately, but… Gods?"
Frostbite frowned. "This is very bad. If they are already voicing challenge…"
Danny hesitated. "You're worried the Crown will choose one of them? That… WOULD be bad," he said. "I could talk to Vlad, but–"
"No, Phantom." Pandora interrupted. "I'm afraid the Crown may have already chosen you."
"WHAT?" Danny balked. "No. That's ridiculous. Wouldn't that make me–"
"The new Ghost King? Yes." Pandora crossed all four of her arms.
"We don't know for sure," Frostbite warned. "We won't until we have the Crown. We can only speculate. But the evidence is there. See, the crown is pure power, divine right to rule. It calls to those who want or need that power. It tempts them. Tests them. And you, fighting for your life, losing power rapidly - you should have been the most tempted of all. You tossed it aside."
"So? I couldn't hold it and beat up Pariah at the same time!" Danny argued, ignoring the fact that wearing the crown would've freed up his hands just as easily.
"And the crown has a tendency to gravitate towards selfless people," Pandora went on. "Responsible people. Those who would use the Crown's power right."
"Well the previous owner obviously didn't!" Danny snapped.
"That," Frostbite said, "Is where you're wrong."
"Pariah was not always evil," Pandora repeated from her earlier lecture. "He was much like you, once. Before the burden of power weighed him down… and before his wife's death shattered him."
Danny drew up short. "His wife?" Pandora had mentioned her before, like she was important.
"The Queen." Pandora explained. "They ruled together. He was a protector, overseeing his kingdom, shielding his subjects and his boarders from harm. She was a warrior, enforcing his laws, exacting justice, in charge of the army. They worked perfectly together and… it was beautiful," she said, wistfully. "…And then the Queen fell. And Pariah, in his grief, seized her ring and wore it. He became angry. Violent. A tyrant, for both inside his kingdom and out, conquering the Zone before turning his eyes on other dimensions."
"You see," Frostbite said. "The crown is a symbol of power. It grants you the means to do any task, but places a heavy burden on the bearer's shoulders. Those seeking the Crown for selfish reasons are often driven away once they realize that power comes at the price of pain. Pariah could use his, at first, because his motivation was selfless - he was protecting his kingdom. He was much like you."
"I don't have a kingdom," Danny said.
"You have Amity."
Danny halted.
"…I have Amity," he conceded, with a slow nod. He frowned.
"You have Amity," Frostbite repeated, "And despite ridicule and injuries and sacrificing your future, you've never stopped protecting it. You know the burden of power on your shoulders - you're far more familiar with it than any ghost I've known."
Danny was silent.
"The ring," Pandora picked up the conversation, and continued. "Is slightly different. It doesn't grant power, but it does grant conviction. The will, the drive to get things done at any cost. The wearer is also often instilled with a strong sense of justice. Righteous fury. Rage," she clarified.
Sounds like Valerie, Danny thought instantly, and bit his lip.
"Alone, they are formidable, but limited. The Crown provides infinite physical strength, but is limited by the wearer's desire to take it, use it. The Ring provides infinite willpower, but is limited by the power and strength needed to carry out their convictions. Worn together, they increase eachother's potential exponentially… and prompt a vicious downward spiral, one that always ends in madness. As it did with Pariah." Said Pandora. "They are best kept separate, in the hands of another ghost."
Rage. Willpower. Justice… Did he know any ghosts that fit the bill? Danny racked his brains - Walker was the only one who really sprang to mind.
As if reading his thoughts, Pandora's eyes found Danny's. "Do you know anyone who fits that description?" she asked. "Anyone at all?"
He stayed silent.
"I only ask because the ring has no bearer now, too. Unless it has chosen Vlad." Pandora said. Her nose crinkled. "Which I doubt."
"And often," Frostbite chipped in, "The Crown's bearer is the one who helps choose the Ring bearer. Have you ever had an impulse to give a ring to anyone in your life? Sam, perhaps?" Frostbite suggested, eyebrows raised.
Danny looked at him for a long minute.
Then he swore.
"Valerie," he muttered. "Shit. Shit."
"So you do know someone–?"
"No, you don't understand," Danny said, suddenly remembering. "She had the ring. During Pariah's invasion. And she–" He faltered.
The two other ghosts traded looks, then glanced at him in pity. "She did the same as you?" Frostbite guessed.
"She threw it away," Danny murmured. "She figured if Pariah was after it, the best way to get him out of town was to get the ring out of town. She attached it to a missile and…"
"The rest is history." Frostbite finished when Danny couldn't.
Pandora turned. "We need to summon Dora," she said at last. "The Princess has been the acting ruler of the Zone in Pariah's absence. And before her, her brother did the same. She needs to know about this development."
"You, meanwhile, need to stay safe," Frostbite told Danny. "The Old Ghosts - Nocturne, Undergrowth, and the like - if you are the Crown's chosen, and they defeat you, the Crown's power might automatically pass to them for a short time."
"And Valerie?" Danny asked, stepping forward to stop Pandora before she could fly off. He felt anxious. He had, over the past few months, unknowingly had Ghost Gods after his head because of this stupid Crown. And Valerie was only human…
He needed to go to her. Now.
"Most ghosts have forgotten that the Crown and the Ring are two separate objects. She might not be in immediate danger." Pandora said, which Danny didn't believe for a second. "She is… less of a priority."
No, Danny thought. No she is not.
Frostbite saw the defiant glint in Danny's eyes. "But," he said softly, "It wouldn't hurt if you warned her, I think."
Danny nodded, and without a second's hesitation, he floated up and shot off towards the Fenton Portal. The two ghosts watched him go.
"This 'Valerie' he mentioned," Pandora said, "She's human, isn't she?"
"According to what I've learned from his friends, Sam and Tucker," Frostbite said, "Yes."
Pandora crossed one set of arms, and pressed her other two palms together before her face.
"Why does this always happen?" she asked herself.
Frostbite looked at her curiously.
"I've been around before Pariah's rule. Before his predecessor's, and the predecessor before that." Pandora murmured. "It's a Cycle. And endless loop. The Crown chooses a ruler; the ring somehow always goes to their lover."
Frostbite did not like where this was heading.
"The lover dies. The ruler grieves. Takes the ring. Goes Mad." She turned to look at Frostbite. "Before, once the ruler went mad, they were always challenged by a new warrior. Who, if they won, became the next ruler. And the cycle would restart." She shook her head. "But Pariah was too powerful to be defeated by only one ghost."
"Is that why the seven didn't take the crown?" Frostbite asked. "Is that why they only put him to sleep? To end the cycle?"
"We–They tried." she corrected herself. "But Masters had to wake him up. And Phantom had to fight him. That is how destiny works."
Frostbite hesitated. "And now?"
"And now," She said, "Now we have this mess. Now the bearers have been chosen. Now, we have a Ghost King…"
Pandora looked away.
"And the cycle restarts."