DANNY PHANTOM: THIS TIME AROUND
DIAMOND GRYPHON
DATE: 3/13/07
Disclaimer: I don't own Danny Phantom.
Chapter 2
Danny had followed the ghost back to its lair obediently, not wanting to incur the wrath of the powerful being. He was now deep in the Ghost Zone, vulnerable to anything this strange ghost wanted to do to him. He felt scared and uneasy.
"You are probably wondering why I brought you here." The ghost said, finally addressing him after an hour of silence.
Danny merely nodded in response.
"This is . . . rather hard for me." The ghost admitted, looking down uncomfortably, as if ashamed. "I brought you here . . . to apologize."
In ghost mode, Danny nearly fell out of the air. Apologize? He had been expecting an ambush, or at least a speech and threats, but this ghost only wanted to apologize? The ghost apparently caught his look of confusion and chuckled.
"I should probably make myself clearer." He admitted. "I apologize for your condition. You see, I'm the reason that you disappeared fifteen years ago."
"Then you know why I don't have any memories." Danny breathed, glad that he would finally get some answers.
"No."
"But you said . . ." The hybrid's sentence trailed off in confusion.
"Let me start from the beginning." The ghost offered. "It might help clarify some things."
Danny signaled for him to continue.
"There is a group of ghosts called the Ancients. Their job is to judge and remove any ghosts that were considered truly evil and dangerous to society. They all wielded immense power, each nullifying the other to provide balance. They meet once every hundred years to judge the next batch of ghosts.
"A few years after their last meeting, I noticed a disturbance on earth. It seemed that humans had finally acknowledged the existence of ghosts and had gone so far as to try to create weaponry to fight them. One pair had even created a successful doorway into the Ghost Zone."
"The Fentons." Danny stated, showing his understanding.
"Their inventions were not what worried me, however. I was more concerned about the powerful being brought into existence by their first attempt; the first hybrid, Vlad Plasmius.
"His power grew faster than anything I had ever seen, and I was concerned. I called for a Council of the Ancients, to discuss the issue and then waited. After the first few years, I was not concerned. Most of the Ancients had been dead for thousands of years, a century meant little to them. It was only after twenty years had passed and the second hybrid appeared that I started to wonder."
"Me." Muttered Danny, looking at his hands.
"Yes, you." The ghost nodded in agreement. "As the power of the hybrids continued to grow, I sent out another message to the Ancients. They didn't respond. So I decided to call in a favor." The ghost paused.
Danny noticed his hesitation and signaled for him to continue.
"I had helped you before." The ghost didn't' seem to like this particular part. "So I had asked that you would repay me by calling the Ancients to the Council in person. I never heard from you again."
"Oh." It was all he could say.
"But I did not bring you here just to apologize." The ghost continued, looking ashamed and avoiding Danny's eyes.
"No." Danny knew where this was going.
"I don't think you understand." The ghost rose up to it's full height, showing just how much authority and power it truly held. "You must go and call the Council again."
"Why? I couldn't do it the first time?" Danny challenged, trying to keep a brave face in front of the immensely powerful ghost.
"This time you are forewarned of the danger."
The hybrid looked skeptical.
"Also, if you do not complete this attempt successfully, your memories will not be the only thing lost. The human world will be overrun with killer ghosts." Danny winced; the ghost evidently knew his soft spot. "The reason that the ghosts are there at all is a fault of the Council."
Danny turned this new information over in his head. It didn't take long for him to make his decision.
"Two questions; who are you, and what do I have to do?"
The ghost smiled warmly at his compliance.
"My name is Clockwork, and this is what you must do . . ."
Show of hands, who say that coming? The chapters will alternate between focussing on the Homefront and on the Ghost Zone. I'm sorry for the lengths of these chapters, I will try to make the next one longer. For once I don't have anything else to say.
Updates Tuesdays, Please send reviews!
-Gryph