The stench of rot overwhelmed him, but he didn't dare move. Creaking and cracking branch sounds echoed as the ancient tilted its head to the side, staring Danny down. Another snapping sound cracked as the ancient looked at the drawing stone and pointed, scratching it's boney, branch like fingers across the smoothed surface.
Crack! The ancient looked back into Danny's face and pointed, almost touching Danny's eye. It's hands and arms creaked back down into its cloak and it straightened it's neck with two cracks, jerking with each sound. It crept closer and placed it's forehead against Danny's, it's lights pulsing, staring, and then.
Blink.
The fog was gently blown away by a small, cool breeze. Leaves danced around the ground; the trees creaking and groaning as they swayed to and fro against the wind. The sun shone down, warming the earth and melting some of the snow away. A small creek bubbled and sang in the distance. Tucker shielded his eyes from the sun's rays, looking for any sign of the scarecrow ancient, and was relieved to find nothing. It was short lived however as he saw Danny, stiff as a statue, in front of the drawing stone.
"Danny!" He shot up gripping his friend. He blinked and looked at Tucker.
"This place isn't good." Danny whispered horrified.
"What happened?" Tucker shook Danny a bit to get him out of this daze. Danny grabbed Tucker's wrists, face twisted with fear.
"They aren't protecting the island. They aren't here to keep this place safe." He looked to the town below "They're here to keep something from leaving." Tucker shuddered.
"Getting the heck out of here now is a good plan, yeah? Let's go." They bolted down the hill, sped through the town as silently as possible and burst through the main doors. Gasping desperately for breath.
"What on earth!?" Vlad rushed out of the library to see both boys clutching their knees.
"It's a prison!" Danny coughed "This place is a prison!" Vlad blinked. "There's something here, something big and angry and hungry!" He coughed up a bit and gasped, trying to control himself. "The-the stone. Was made… It was made here." He wiped his mouth not even caring if Vlad was taking him seriously. "We… we were wrong." He started breathing normally "The stone wasn't meant to be a reservoir. It was a punishment. We… we have this things energy." He stood up straight. The anger Clockwork mentioned wasn't just the chaos caused by the keeper of space, it was something acting on its own. Something that worked with the Keeper, or maybe even was the Keeper, and went rogue. That's what Danny could decipher from the images poured into his skull anyways.
"We have to get to Clockwork." Danny decided.
"What the heck happened?" Danny stared at Clockwork, who was half frozen by Danny's efforts. "You really gotta stop giving me riddles here, also my bad." He shrugged, meaning only to zap the ghost with a cold spell.
"Yes, your bad." Clockwork deadpanned "Care to let me go?" Danny crossed his arms
"Not really… but," He had some semblance of control over the ice and it faded away. "Please narrate, and for the love of all things holy, don't leave anything out." Clockwork adjusted one of his many watches and gave Danny an unimpressed scowl.
"I have nothing else to really narrate, Daniel. I've told you all I know." He wasn't as, there was a word for it, he was usually so strong held, all knowing, wise, calm, but right now? He seemed defeated. Hurt almost. Danny didn't like seeing that expression on anybody and now he's seen it on two of the strongest people he knew within a week. He dropped his shoulders and approached Clockwork.
"Who was the Keeper of Space?" Danny asked gently. Clockwork looked like he flinched at the question like he was expecting a punch to the gut.
"I knew them only for a moment or so." Clockwork started "time and space are their own beings." He smiled "Parallel beings to be exact, hardly meeting, but aware of the other." He looked at Daniel and then to Vlad "The moment time and space met was when the crystal was formed."
With a wave of his staff, Clockwork made one of his many screens flicker with light and a scene showed itself to Danny and Vlad.
Everything was swirling, ripping, scattering and forming at such a rate all of it was collapsing. There was an animosity in the air, a lust for power, anger and hunger. One being was fighting another version of themselves and it seemed like they were losing. The powerful destruction was being taken into the stone formed by the Keeper of space, but the anger, it was still there. Not until a large portal formed by the ancients and Clockwork, did the animosity cease. The Keeper of Space was lost within the stone. Their energy and power sucked out as well. It seemed accurate. It was, indeed the same power. The ancients sealed the stone with their own powers. Unable to contain it's power, and it was lost. Lost in time and space. And it was growing weaker.
"So…" Danny stood, staring at the now empty screen in Clockwork's tower. "It just, died? The seal, I mean." Clockwork nodded.
"That is all I know. I don't know what happened to the ancients to make them as they are now. They aren't within my power to see." Danny put his hand to his chin and hummed, trying to register everything. He reviewed all that he knew. One: the stone was a temporary solution to the destructive power released by the Space Keeper. Two: Danny and Vlad's powers were two forms of destruction that were amplified by the stone. Three: The stone broke. Four: Vlad and Danny now possess the destructive power in it's purest forms. Five: something is sealed away on the island Vlad owns by the ancients. Six: The ancients are guarding the island. Seven: The thing sealed away knows about Vlad and Danny. Eight: the thing on the island is hungry.
"I have a feeling Daniel is plotting something." Vlad had his arms crossed as he watched Danny, amused by the looks of it. Danny gave him a quick glance but went back to thinking. The thing on the island is now the only thing left of what used to be the Time Keeper, and the ancients know it. Also, what's with the ancients? Danny only met the scarecrow, but even in ghost standards that was weird. Why did it show him that vision? Did it somehow trust him? Danny looked up at Clockwork, waiting patiently in his child form. Clockwork already said he has no way of knowing what the ancients are doing, nor why they would act so weird, so asking him for more information would be fruitless. He looked at Vlad. Wasn't he doing research on the lore of the island?
"Vlad, did you find any legends of the ancients that told you how they usually are?" Vlad blinked at the inquiry.
"I believe so. We'd have to return to the island, however." Vlad responded coolly. He tilted his head, looking Danny over, probably trying to figure out what he was thinking. Danny looked back to Clockwork.
"Thank you for all your help, Clockwork." He bowed his head a little, and Clockwork grinned, returning the gesture.
"Good luck, Daniel." He gave a small wave as Danny flew off.
"Have any idea what he's up to?" Vlad asked with a deadpan expression. Clockwork shrugged with a grin making Vlad roll his eyes.
"Worth a try." He took off after Danny. They flew through the portal and were greeted by a startled looking Sam and Tucker.
"What's wrong?" Danny rushed up to his two best friends, gripping their hands. Sam smiled, a little shaken up, but she looked okay.
"Those… uh, ancients." She pointed up "One of them is looking for you I think." Danny blinked and looked up.
"What'd it look like?"
"It's scarecrow." Tucker answered quietly. Danny looked at Tucker, seeing the somewhat worried expression.
"Wait here." He looked at Vlad. "You too. I don't know if it'll like you." Vlad scowled but waited. Danny flew up and shuttered slightly. That animosity, the hunger from before was back. He heard a whining sob from outside and followed. The thick swirling fog was back, and with it, scarecrow. Danny came up to the scarecrow ancient; it's form relaxed, tall and gaunt.
"You, the guardians of the island and ancients of both worlds, let me help you." Danny was a little shocked at the sound of his voice. Calm, collected and deep. The scarecrow simply nodded and vanished, leaving Danny in a state of lone confusion. "I have no idea what just happened." He scratched the back of his neck before returning to the group in Vlad's lab.
"Danny! What-?" The question from Sam was cut short. "What the heck?" Danny blinked and shot her a confused frown.
"What?" He shrugged
"You. You're um…" She pointed at him. Danny looked at himself, saw nothing weird, turned his head, but didn't see anything behind him.
"What?" He demanded a little more impatiently.
"Your teeth are sharp!" Beamed Tabit, flying to his face "You look like me!" It grinned flashing its own pearly points. "Phantom stronger now! Phantom ready to fight! Did gangly ancient talk to you?" Danny tilted his head curiously.
"If you count nodding in response to me asking it to let me help, then sure. It talked…" Danny shrugged. Tabit flew about in little circles again and perched on Danny's shoulder.
"Phantom accepted ancient powers! Phantom one of them now!" It hooted happily. "Partner strong! Partner beat the angry hunger!" Danny looked at the group and saw Vlad had changed in appearance. His cloak was back, flowing and dark, like a shadow. His hair was a bit mussed but slicked back into a pony tail like he has in his human form, and his grin was wide and proud.
"What happened to you?" Danny asked, Tabit flying to its perch around his neck, nuzzling his right cheek.
"The connection it would seem." Vlad answered simply. "Since you gained acceptance from the ancients, it seems I did as well." Danny huffed in little humor remembering the connection formed between them both sort of taming the stone.
"Great, so about that research of yours…" Danny started
"Glad you brought that up." Vlad beamed making Danny rethink actually asking the man to teach him something. "I've found plenty of lore about them." Vlad practically dragged Danny, effectively dragging the other two with him, up to his private study. Luckily by now Sam and Tucker were used to random intangible flying to save, or cheat, time as Danny called it.
Well, this is just a weird story and I have no idea what it's about. Hope you're enjoying it though! Thanks for reading!