I do not own Danny Phantom.

The Ghost Army and Valerie Awakes

Dan raised his white-gloved hand palm-side up and summoned up the Ghost Portal. The last person to have the ring and crown was Vlad Masters, if he remembered the events correctly. Transporting himself to Wisconsin, he blinked for a moment as he stared at the construction equipment and half-finished mansion. "Geez. I wonder what else went on in my absence."

If I want answers, where better to get them than from the source.

"Oh, Plasmius! Come out, come out wherever you are!"

…

Valerie moaned, slowly stirring as she started to wake. Her head was killing her. What happened? Blinking the blur from her eyes, she stared at the nurse examining her. "Well, hello there sleepy head."

"What's going on?"

"Some young man with a silly red hat carried you in. But he left the second he handed you to me. You lost a lot of blood, but after some rest you should be fine." She placed a glass of water on the nightstand beside Valerie and smiled. "You're father has been in and out since your accident. He's currently finishing up some paperwork, but he should be back soon."

"Thanks."

"Do you remember what happened to you?"

"No," she answered. There was no way she was telling anyone what had happened in that warehouse.

The nurse nodded. "Don't worry, hon. I'm sure it'll come back. I'll be back to check on you soon. Just push the red button if you need me."

Valerie bit her lip as she went through the recent events. Danny was the Phantom? How was that possible? How come he didn't trust her enough to tell her? Sure, she wanted to kill him, but she never would've if she found out-

Suddenly realization hit her. Phantom had destroyed her life and Danny was the Phantom. Of course he never would have told her about his alter-ego, as Sam and Tucker knew. To him, Valerie would be just as mad at him as she was at Phantom. But now Danny, Sam and Tucker seemed to be scared of the ghost she had let out of the Fenton Thermos. He looked a lot like Danny, now that she thought about it. Just a bit older and much more evil. There was no doubt in her mind that the infamous Amity Trio went after the threatening ghost themselves. It was just like them. Too proud to accept help, and determined to do what they thought was right.

Well, not this time. It was her fault there was a dangerous ghost out there. It was her fault two teens and a halfa was going to get killed protecting people like her. Grunting, she hauled herself out of the cot and grabbed her backpack that held her gear.

This time, she would be on their side. She would prove she was trustworthy, and she would make up for the pain she had caused.

Whether they liked it or not.

…

Vlad could not believe his awful luck. He basically just got out of the hospital, and now this weird ghost who looked so much like Daniel it was scary had shown up. But not as scary as being pinned against the wall with ecto-energy aimed at his face. The worst part was that he couldn't even go ghost. He was so weak from the battle with the Gray girl.

Irony, you are indeed a cruel mistress.

"I'm going to ask you one more time. Pariah's crown and ring. Where is it?" Dan growled, his red eyes flashing.

Vlad scowled. But he valued his life more than the Fright Knight's. "I made a pact with the Fright Night a while ago. In exchange, I had to hand over the ring and crown."

Dan grinned menacingly. "Ah, yes. The Fright Knight. This is indeed interesting. But to ensure you don't go anywhere..."

Pointing his finger at the billionaire, he trapped Vlad within a soundless and escape-proof shield of ecto-plasma. Laughing, he phased through the finished ceiling and summoned another Ghost Portal.

"You're about to meet your new master, Fright Knight."

…

Danny frowned thoughtfully. Panicking, although appropriate, was not acceptable in a crisis like this. They needed to be calm, and think things through. His parents and teacher were safe, and he had called and given Jazz a heads up.

"Okay. We need to think. What is he going to do next?"

"Let's start with what he can't do. He can't kill you, he can't kill your parents or Lancer, he doesn't know where Jazz is so he can't kill her. He seems to be waiting to kill us."

"So what's left?" wondered Tucker.

Danny thought intently. "In the future, Dan destroyed Amity Park and the Ghost Zone. He did it all by himself. But since we stopped him, that future doesn't exist. He's going to want to recreate that future, or something that resembles it."

"Just to prove the point that you will turn into him eventually," Tucker chimed in.

"Alright. In order to destroy Amity Park and the Ghost Zone now, he would need help. He can't do it alone, as he would need to face you, and he can't risk you getting killed. He would need an army to pull it off, one that's virtually unstoppable," said Sam.

"But there's no way he'll get anyone from the Ghost Zone. He practically destroyed them in the future," pointed out Danny. "And I know them. They would never team up with him, no matter what he threatened or promised."

"Then where would he get the army from?"

"From the greatest power that exists!" Sam exclaimed. "Dan is controlling, and would want the army to be himself. He would never let others share in his glory. So in order to have enough power to make an army of himself-"

Danny narrowed his eyes. "Pariah's crown and ring!" he finished grimly. "The pact Vlad and the Fright Knight made all that time ago…it must have been where the crown and ring would end up. That's the only logical explanation. It hasn't reappeared since Pariah Dark's defeat."

Sam slung the Fenton Blaster over her shoulder determinedly. "We need to go see Vlad."

The three shot off into the air and sped off towards Wisconsin.

Too bad Dan was one step ahead of them.

…

Danny, Sam and Tucker landed on the soft dirt, regarding the half-finished mansion before them. "You think Vlad's here?" Tucker asked.

"Well, it's the first place I can think of. I mean, he wasn't in the hospital. Come on."

They walked through the front door and picked their way over wood planks, metal screws, beams and torn-up carpet. Sam winced when they came upon the living room.

"Looks like Dan beat us to it." She walked over to the green bubble like dome and flicked it with her thumb and index finger. "How are we supposed to break this open?"

Vlad was slumped at the base of the bubble, eyes closed. Sam suddenly had a thought. "Er, guys? How much oxygen do you think is in there?"

Danny swore before trying to bust it open with ecto-blasts and kicks. He couldn't phase through it or turn it intangible. He took a deep breath and motioned for Sam and Tucker to stand back. They obeyed. Tucker turned to Sam with doubt in his eyes. "That thing is basically ghost proof, and human proof. Does Danny really think his Ghostly Wail will make an impression?"

Sam covered her ears. "Well, he gained that power ten years earlier than Dark Dan. It's worth a shot."

The mansion rocked on its foundation as Danny released the Ghostly Wail. Sam and Tucker watched in amazement as cracks began appearing in the bubble before shattering. Vlad gasped for breath as he hit the floor, as did Danny. Sam removed her hands from her ears and walked up to the gasping Vlad. "Well, that's twice we saved your life. Well, once by me and Tucker, and once by Danny. Anyway, I have the perfect way you can repay us. Where is Dan headed?"

Vlad held his pounding head in his hands. "Off to free the Fright Knight so he will hand over what he needs."

"And you told him where to find them?" Sam cried.

Vlad glared at her. "He was going to kill me!"

Sam pointed to the shattered pieces of the bubble-shield. "What do you call suffocating in ghost/human proof prison?"

Vlad stood up angrily. "I would have fought him off if I was strong enough to transform! He would've never been able to trap me if I was my ghost half."

If only you knew, Danny thought tiredly. Shaking his head, he floated up and Sam and Tucker followed his lead. "If I were you, I'd get out of here. Dan won't be too happy if he finds out you escaped. Later."

He phased himself and his friends through the finished ceiling and flew off, back towards Amity Park. Vlad watched them leave, and after a moment of thinking left his mansion and went to find a safe place, away from the incoming danger.

…

Dan stood before the Sarcophagus of Forever Sleep, but his red eyes were locked on the pumpkin and the sword lodged in it. He pulled the sword free, and waited in mild annoyance as a flash of green light exploded from the pumpkin and the Fright Knight himself appeared.

The Fright Knight glanced around in confusion, but before the first thought could cross his brain he was knocked to the ground, a glowing green hand held in front of him. A calm, but nerve-shaking, voice spoke to him.

"Give me the Crown of Rage and the key."

"I will never betray my master!"

Pressure fell on his chest, and the hand lowered. "Ah, yes. I have forgotten. In this world, you serve the Ghost King, but in my future, you serve me. And that servitude starts now."

The Fright Knight's power was to instil people's greatest fears in their hearts, send them to the darkest places they never knew existed. The only person the Fright Knight feared was Pariah Dark. But this ghost, the one about to blow his head off, was beyond evil. The Fright Knight feared him more than he ever feared Pariah Dark.

Because of this, he handed over the key and crown, and watched as his fate was sealed.

…

With Vlad's portal still out of commission, the trio had no choice but to return to Fenton Works.

"How are we going to do this?" asked Sam.

Tucker disarmed the shield long enough for them to get through. "Don't ask me."

Danny sighed heavily. "Alright. Wait here."

He disappeared into the house, and after a bout of screaming and cursing, he returned with a new bruise on his cheek.

"What'd you do?" asked Tucker.

"Locked them in the attack," said Danny. "Took away all their weapons so they couldn't blast their way out."

"…not sure if that was the best idea."

"Only one I had."

The trio went into the lab and the raven-haired boy opened the portal. They entered the Ghost Zone just in time to hear the cackle they dreaded, and after diving in further, their fears were confirmed. Watching the red and green blaze, Danny knew Pariah would hand his ring over without a fight. Not even the Ghost King stood a chance against his evil future self.

When Dan got the ring, it was all over for the Ghost Zone and the world as he knew it.

Danny, Sam and Tucker watched as the ghosts panicked and scattered about. They knew what the red symbolized, but not the green, and their confusion only increased their fear.

Danny stared at the open portal behind him. Then he stared at his friends. At the exact same time, they screamed the exact same thing,

"Get out of here!"

That warning was heard all over the Ghost Zone. The trio could only hope every ghost got out in time.