Since I'm suffering from severe writer's block with Hope and Responsibility, I knew I had to give you guys something. I pretty much had this chapter done so I figured, why not? You guys have been waiting for this to get updated anyway. So, while I'll try my best to update my other fic, I hope you enjoy this one for the time being.
The Ghost King Cometh: Part 2
Valerie, now dressed in her ghost hunting gear, flies through the skies of Amity Park on a hoverboard that Vlad made. The hafa himself is also riding alongside the young girl, sitting leisurely on the board.
"So my dear, how do you like the new tech?" he asks.
"This is amazing," Valerie answers. "It's like this is made for me."
As the two land on a random rooftop, the hoverboard begins to retract into Valerie's boots.
The ghost hunter removes her mask and turns to Vlad, "But I gotta ask, why give me all of this? I'm only 15."
"Because you're the most capable ghost hunter I've ever seen," Vlad answers. "You're smart, strong, efficient and most of all, you're motivated."
"…Really?"
"Of course, why else would I say such a thing? I would have to be some evil diabolical mastermind if I didn't mean it."
The two look at each other for a moment and start laughing.
As the laughter dies down, Vlad continues, "Besides, I have to rely one someone to keep THIS safe."
The halfa reaches into his pocket and pulls out the Ring of Rage.
"A ring?" Valarie questions.
"Not just any ring? This ring has been passed down from ghost hunter to ghost hunter for generations." Vlad gives the young ghost hunter the ring and she puts it on.
"I…I don't know what to say," Valarie says with a smile.
"You don't have to say anything. In fact let's keep this a secret shall we?"
Suddenly a ghostly wail can be heard from a distance.
"What was that?" asks Valarie.
"I believe that is your duty calling to you," answers Vlad.
Valarie puts on her mask and activates her hoverboard, "I won't let you down Mr. Masters." She then takes off.
As Vlad watches her fly off into the distance he smiles deviously and changes into his ghost form, "Oh, I can be sure of that. And since Daniel and Sabrina will be having their hands full protecting you, stealing that battlesuit will be a piece of cake."
Meanwhile, Danny and Sabrina contacted Sam and Tucker and the four teens regroup at the Spellman residence where Zelda and Hilda give them information on what they're dealing with and why all the ghosts decided to retreat in the mortal world. Everyone was gathered in the basement filled with spellbooks, potions, ingredients to potions and ancient relics. Since this was her first time visiting Sabrina's house, Sam was in absolute awe at everything she sees. There were objects such as a demon mask, a staff, some medieval armor and a lavender colored stone. The goth reaches for the stone until…
"Uh, I wouldn't touch that if I were you."
Sam looks down and sees Salem looking up at her.
The cat continues, "That stone used to belong to Circe."
"Circe?" Sam asks with wide eyes. "The Greek goddess of magic? Far out."
"Yeah, which means it's a stone that holds immense power. Power that an inexperienced child like you have no business of wielding. So unless you want to unleash some bad juju, and cause even more problems than what we're already dealing with, I suggest you look with your eyes, not your hands."
Sam immediately puts her hands in her pockets and mutters, "I was gonna be careful."
Danny, Sabrina and Tucker are sitting on a couch on the other side of the room, while Zelda sits on a wooden chair across from them.
As the three teens listen carefully, the older witch begins to speak, "Long ago, there was a powerful ghost who used to rule the ghost zone. His name was Pariah Dark. He was a ruthless king who was so powerful, the only way he could control and contain his omnipotence was with the Ring of Rage and the Crown of Fire, two artifacts that, when combined, can amplify the power of the wielder and make him or her immune to any form of magic. In his hands, he was nearly godlike. Pariah spent many years ruling the ghost zone that he eventually got bored, and decided to extend his reign in other realms, more specifically the netherworld and the mortal world. However, thanks to the combined efforts of the witch council and a small group of ancient ghosts, they fought the evil ghost king, defeated him and managed to seal him away in the Sarcophagus of Forever Sleep, where he would no longer cause any harm to our worlds. Or, at least that's what we thought."
After taking in all that information, Danny turns to Sabrina, "Not too long ago, you told me that there was once a ghost who gave the witches a lot of trouble. I take it that was him."
Sabrina doesn't make eye contact with her friend. She only nods in response.
Danny immediately recognizes that look of fear on the young witch's face. She had that look when Spectra held her captive a few weeks ago. Ever since that night, the halfa promised himself to never again put Sabrina in such a dangerous situation. But if this Pariah Dark is as powerful as Zelda says he is, he's going to need all the help he can get. He refuses to put Sabrina's life at risk again, so he may have to look elsewhere.
"So…I guess punching him in the face and sucking him up in the Fenton Thermos just isn't gonna cut it this time huh?" says Tucker.
Danny gives a deadpanned look to his friend, "Gee, ya think?"
The tech geek then asks, "But what I want to know is who woke him up in the first place?"
"We have yet to figure that part out," Zelda answers. "But it had to be someone who was desperate for power."
After some silence, Danny looks up at the two older witches, "Does the witch council know that he's free?"
"Not yet," Hilda answers. "But no doubt the word on Pariah's awakening will spread like wildfire. Until then, all we can really do is wait."
"In the meantime," Zelda responds. "I'll see if I can look up the spell used to seal him away last time…and then I'm going to find the idiot who woke Pariah up in the first place, and make sure he never does something so foolish ever again."
Seeing the murderous look on Zelda's face made Danny and Tucker gulp.
Back in the Ghost Zone, three ghost skeletons in medieval/military wear are standing in the throne room of Pariah's castle.
The Fright Knight approaches them and asks, "Is the army amassed?"
The guards respond by saluting.
"Then on my orders…"
But before the Fright Knight could finish, Pariah appears in the room and interrupts him, "On MY orders. Go to that world, bring the ring to me, and to anyone who stands in your way, show…no…mercy."
The Fright Knight and the ghost guards all bow to the ghost king's whim.
The next day in school, it was lunch time. As Danny, Sabrina, Sam and Tucker take their trays to their usual table, the Goth notices something different about the half ghost and witch.
"Wow, you two look exhausted," she comments.
"Yeah, that's what happens when a bunch of ghosts are running rampant all throughout town," says Danny. "I've been up almost all night simply rounding them up."
"And while he was doing that, I've been up all night helping Aunt Zelda look for the perfect spell to seal Pariah Dark for good this time around."
Danny looks over at the platinum blonde, "Whoa, seriously? Sabrina, it's okay to sit this one out. I don't mind."
Sabrina looks at her friend in confusion, "What do you mean?"
"I saw how terrified you were about Pariah Dark's release. If he's as powerful as your aunts say he is, then I don't want to force you into a situation that is too much for you to handle."
"I appreciate your concern Danny, but the mortal world is my home too. I'm not gonna sit around while some tyrant comes along and tries to rule it with an iron fist. You're sure as hell not going to, so why should I?"
"Yeah but…*sigh* forget it."
Sam looks at Danny with a raised eyebrow. She wonders why the halfa didn't want Sabrina to help him with their current predicament. Danny needs to realize that if he is ever going to stand a chance against the king of all ghosts, he needs some witch magic on his side. Zelda and Hilda may be powerful witches in their own right, but even those two won't be enough, and waiting for the witch council to get off their lazy asses and actually do something isn't going to cut it either. Therefore, he needs Sabrina. Sure, the half-witch may not be as experienced, but from what Sam has seen, she's still no slouch.
"Just what exactly are you afraid of Danny?"
At the Fenton household, Jack, Maddie and Vlad are hard at work in finishing the Ecto-Skeleton.
"Vladdie my man," says Jack. "Pass me the whatchamagig."
"Gladly, old pal of mine," Vlad says as he hands Jack a small device. "How long will it take for the suit to be complete?"
"I'm working as fast as I can V-man, it just takes time."
Suddenly, there was a sound of horses coming from the other side of the ghost portal.
Vlad begins to look nervous and asks, "Um, is it possible to work faster?"
Maddie arrives in the lab soon after, "What was that sound?"
"It could be me," Jack answers with a smile. "Those burritos I had for breakfast must be coming back with a vengeance."
The ghost portal opens up, and the Fright Knight, along with the rest of Pariah's army emerge from it.
"Go, and find the king's ring," the knight orders.
The ghostly guards begin phasing through the ceiling and out of the house.
"We have to shut down the portal," says Maddie. She reaches for the switch only to be grabbed by the Fright Knight.
"Hey, hands off the woman I love," Jack and Vlad both say.
The pudgy ghost hunter looks at his friend in confusion, and Vlad adds, "As a dear friend."
The halfa decides to change the subject. "How much of that suit is operational?"
"Just the pants part. But it's not fully calibrated, so wearing it could kill you."
"Oh…well I'll just let you test it out first. It's YOUR invention after all."
The Fright Knight fires an ecto blast from his sword, and Jack tackles Vlad out of the way.
"Right you are V-man," he then says. The ghost hunter runs towards the pants part of the battle suit and puts it on. "Neural receptors engaged." He pushes a button on the belt. Metal harnesses begin to emerge from the pants and cover Jack's back and arms.
With the pants fully activated, he narrowly escapes another blast from the Fright Knight's sword. Jack begins to circle around the room at high speed, avoiding every ecto-blast from the ghost. He then runs towards the Fright Knight and delivers a massive drop kick, forcing the ghost to release Maddie. Maddie looks on at her husband in admiration while Vlad looks on in envy. Jack runs towards the Fright Knight one last time and punts him. The ghost makes him and his horse intangible just in time to phase out of the house and fly off into the distance.
"AHA!" Jack exclaims. "No ghost stands a chance against the…ecto…" The ghost hunter collapses.
"JACK," Maddie calls out as she rushes towards her husband. She takes a good look at the suit and sees that it's rapidly losing power. "The suit is draining you like a battery. Vlad, help me get this thing off of him."
The billionaire casually looks away, "I'm sure you can figure it out on your own. You two know that contraption more than I do."
Maddie glares at Vlad in disgust.
The ghost army begins to march through town, making the civilians run in panic. All of them scour through Amity Park in search of the ring, and it ultimately leads the to one location…Casper High. Back in the school, Danny and Sabrina are walking down the halls to their next class when the halfa's ghost sense activates.
The half witch notices this, "I take it something big is coming."
Danny nods, "Something VERY big."
"Sweet, I guess now's the perfect time to tell you about something ELSE I've been working on last night…"
"Uh, maybe you can show me later. Right now, get somewhere safe. I'll take care of it."
"But what if it's Pariah Dark? You might need my help."
"Maybe, but I'm sure it's probably some random ghost causing trouble like always. I'll just…uh…scout ahead and see what's going on, and I'll let you know."
With that, Danny rushes down the school corridor and makes his way around the corner.
Sabrina looks on in confusion, "What's gotten into him?"
As Danny continues to run to a safe spot to transform, he starts having feelings of guilt, "I know Sabrina wants to help, but I just can't risk putting her in danger again."
"Overprotective as always, huh Daniel," says an adult male voice.
The halfa stops in his tracks and sees Vlad Plasmius standing before him.
"Is that what this is all about? You're afraid your little witch girlfriend could get hurt? You should realize by now that you just can't protect everyone, no matter what you do."
Danny, with an angry look in his eyes, transform into his ghost form and knocks Vlad out of the school with a massive ecto-blast.
"That may be true, but that doesn't stop me from trying," he says as he flies after his archenemy.
News quickly begins to spread on Pariah's ghost army invading the local high school, and parents are advised to take their kids and run.
Jack, with an ice pack over his head sees the live report on TV and says, "I've…got to…do something about that." He tries to get up only to collapse back in the chair.
"You're not in any condition to do anything," Maddie stresses. "You stay put. I'll get Danny and Jazz."
As Maddie exits the house, she was about to enter the Fenton assault vehicle when...
"Maddie!"
She looks behind her and sees Zelda and Hilda standing there.
"You got room for two more?" Zelda asks.
Maddie nods, "Hop in."
In Axion Labs, Damon Gray, Valerie's father, was on his usual security duty when he also sees the report on TV. He looks to his side and sees a photo of his daughter, knowing that she could be in danger. Damon now has a look of determination. He knows what he must do.
Back at the school, Danny finds Vlad in the football field. The younger halfa fly towards him, only to be grabbed by the throat.
"Calm down, I didn't come here to fight you. I have other things to worry about," Vlad explains.
As soon as he drops Danny, the two halfas see the Fright Knight and his army arriving. The two dodge a sword swipe from the knight and Danny proceeds to dispatch the ghost skeletons with his ecto-blasts. A skeleton was about hit him with a sneak attack, buy gets blasted away.
Danny sees that it was Vlad who saved him, "You're helping me? What, do you want my mom's cell phone number?"
"No…but if you're willing to give me that…"
More skeletons begin to approach him from behind when suddenly, they begin float in the air and are thrown into the bleachers. Once Danny realized what had happened he sees a mysterious figure flying towards them on a broomstick. This person is wearing a purple hood with a midnight blue domino mask. She has on a short sleeve dress that is the same color as her mask, and flows downwards just below her knees with the skirt looking to have been cut to have pointed edges, she has a black belt across her waist and purple gloves and boots. Danny looks at this new person hovering on a broom in confusion, wondering who this might be.
But then she spoke to him. "Looks like I arrived just in time."
The halfa's eyes go wide, "Sabrina?"
The half-witch shushes him, "Geez, it's my big hero debut and already you're giving away my secret identity."
"What are you doing here? And what's with the getup?"
"This is what I've been trying to tell you. I've been up all night designing a costume to help you fight ghosts with. That way I'm not always hiding in the shadows, waiting for an opportunity to use my magic." Sabrina then does a little twirl. "You like it?"
Danny begins to blush, "Well, I uh…"
"You can worry about your girlfriend later Daniel," says Vlad. "Just be thankful she's here to help us. We could use a little witch magic to rid ourselves of these cretins."
Sabrina glares at Vlad, "For the record, I'm only here to help Danny. I could care less about you."
Plasmius is then grabbed by the collar by the Fright Knight, "The king's prize, give it to me."
"I don't have it," says Vlad. "But if you're willing to join me…"
"Prize? What prize?" asks Sabrina. Then it dawns on her and she grins. "Wait, he's missing a relic isn't he?"
The knight looks over at the half-witch, "A witch? Here?"
"That's right, and you must be the Fright Knight. I've got a message for your king. This town is under my protection. Which means it's off limits. So if you know what's good for you, I suggest you leave now, and take your little spook brigade with you."
The Fright Knight laughs, "How unfortunate, the king despises witches as they were part of the reason why he was sealed away in the first place. He wants revenge for what your kind did to him all those years ago. As soon as he finds out about you, he's going to enjoy making you and the rest of the witches suffer."
Danny's neon green eyes start to glow, "Don't you dare lay a finger on her."
But before the Fright Knight could say anything else, pink ecto-blasts come raining down on the ghost skeletons. Danny, Sabrina and Vlad look up and see Valerie, in her ghost hunting attire, flying in their direction with a bazooka in hand. She proceeds to blast away the horde of skeletons.
Sabrina sees this and is amazed, "Whoa, what's with Buffy the Ghost Slayer here?"
"Believe it or not, that is someone we know very well," says Danny.
The half-witch looks at her friend, "Really? Who?"
"Guess what everybody," Valarie shouts. "The best ghost hunter in Amity Park is here, which means you're about to get your butts handed to you."
Sabrina instantly recognizes her voice, "Valerie?"
Danny says sarcastically, "Oh, she didn't tell you? Yeah, one of her extracurricular activities is ghost hunting. By the way, she hunts ALL ghosts…including me."
Valerie throws some grenades near the trio, and they all move out of the way before they detonated.
Meanwhile, Tucker, Sam Jazz and the rest of the Casper High students watch the action from afar. Jazz looks at the people fighting the ghosts below, and what got her attention was the girl in the flying broom holding a wand. She was someone the elder Fenton sibling hadn't seen before, but judging by the way she looks, one thing was certain, she was no ghost.
"Wait," Jazz thought. "Magic wand? Flying broomstick? Is she some kind of witch? Okay, ghosts I can handle, but…witches?"
Her train of thought was interrupted when the Fenton assault vehicle arrived. Maddie, Damon, Zelda and Hilda all exit the van and begin to question the teens.
"Where's Valerie," asks Damon.
"She's with Danny," Sam and Tucker answer.
"Where's Danny," asks Maddie.
"He's with Valerie," they answer again.
"I take it Sabrina's with them too," asks Zelda.
Sam and Tucker both nod.
The witch looks at what is happening in the football field and she sees her niece fighting off the ghost skeletons.
"Be careful little one," she whispers.
Having heard everything, Jazz realized something. Sabrina isn't present. She then looks at the mysterious hooded figure below and was able to connect the dots. "No way, it can't be…Just who exactly are you Sabrina Spellman?"
Back in the football field, Valerie begins to question Danny.
"Alright ghost, what's going on?"
"That," Danny says as he point to the Fright Knight and his soldiers running towards them.
Vlad gets in front of the two and multiplies himself into three separate beings. He proceeds to blast away the ghost skeletons while Sabrina conjures up a giant fly swatter and swats the remaining soldiers away.
"Uh, thanks?" the young ghost hunter says to the two.
"You're welcome," says Sabrina.
"And who are you supposed to be? You're clearly not a ghost."
The half-witch begins to think about it, "…Actually, I spent so much time making this costume I haven't come up with a cool name yet. I'll get back to you on that one. Long story short, I'm a witch."
Valerie's eye grew wide under her mask, "A witch?! They actually exist?"
"Yeah, I was just as surprised as you were when she told me," says Danny. "But enough about that, see that guy in the black armor? He's a problem, and we need to take him down."
Valerie narrows her eyes, "I don't trust you…or your spooky friends."
"You don't have to trust me, just fight with me." Danny takes out his hand.
The ghost hunter thinks about it for a moment but eventually caves and shakes the halfa's hand.
Danny, Sabrina, Vlad and Valerie all continue their assault. Danny and Vlad hover back to back as they rotate around and blast oncoming skeletons. Meanwhile Sabrina casts an antigravity spell on five ghosts.
"Laws of physics they will defy/Send them high into the sky!"
The ghosts begin to hover in the air.
"Hey ghost slayer, you're up!" the half-witch shouts.
"Don't mind if I do witch girl," Valerie says as she fires her bazooka at the hovering ghosts.
The Fright Knight watches all of this and is starting to get irritated, "That's it, all I wanted was to seize the ring and return to Pariah's keep. But you four have left me no choice." The knight takes his sword and raises it in the air. "By the authority vested by my lord and liege…" He then embeds his sword into the ground. "I claim this town, now and forever, under the banner of King Pariah, THE KING OF ALL GHOSTS!"
A green aura forms around the sword and a green barrier begins to surround Amity Park. Danny flies into the air in an attempt to break the barrier, only to slam face first into it. Sabrina tries to remove the sword using her magic…but only a small spark was generated from her wand.
"As I thought," the half-witch thought. "There's some enchantment in the Fright Knight's sword, and my magic isn't strong enough to break the spell."
Valerie goes for a more direct approach. She flies towards the Fright Knight only to be back handed by him. She falls off her board and hits the ground hard. As she loses consciousness her suit begins to retract, leaving her in her civilian attire.
"VALERIE!" Danny and Sabrina both exclaim.
"MY PAWN!" Vlad also exclaim.
The two teens look at the billionaire. "I…I mean, that poor girl."
As the trio go to the young ghost hunter's aid, the Fright Knight continues, "The sword is sunk, your die now cast, the sword removed will signal fast. Make reappear the ring thou hast or your next day, shall be your last."
With that, the knight disappears in a flock of bats.
Once he was gone, Danny asks, "The ring thou hast?"
Vlad decides to play dumb and just shrugs.
"He's talking about the Ring of Rage," Sabrina explains. "Pariah must be looking for it. Which means that without it, he's nowhere near as powerful. We might actually have a chance at beating him."
"Well I guess that's the good news. The bad news is that now we have approximately 24 hours to figure out a way to put the king back to sleep."
Sabrina sighs, "Yeah you're right."
"I'm really sorry you're caught in the middle of all of this."
"Hey, I told you before, Amity is my home, so this is my fight too."
"Yeah, that's what I'm afraid of," Danny thought.
He then hears his mother's voice over a loud speaker. "Children of Amity, report to the safe bosom of the Fenton assault vehicle."
"Mom/Maddie/Mrs. Fenton," Danny, Vlad and Sabrina all say. "I can't let her see me like this."
They go to their individual safe spots to change back into their civilian attire. Once Sabrina was out of her costume she looks over at the unconscious Valerie in the distance. She takes out her wand and points it at her.
"Don't let those injuries stay/Make it all go away!"
In seconds, all the bruises Valerie received from her assault have disappeared. The half witch and the halfa return to the football field just in time for Maddie, Damon, Zelda and Hilda to show up. The adults see the unconscious Valerie and Damon and Maddie give a Danny and Sabrina a stern look that says, "What happened?"
Danny raises his hands in defense, "She was like that when we got here."
Looks like things have gotten from bad to worse. Be here next time when Danny and Sabrina finally confront the ghost king himself.
Be sure to leave a comment with your thoughts on the story so far. Until next time...