Third Person POV

"This is bad, this is bad, this is really really bad!" Tucker panicked as he paced back and forth behind the school, tugging at the remains of his torn sleeves.

"Can you stop freaking out for five seconds and help me!?" Sam shouted at her friend as she struggled to pull Fright Knight's limp body to the wall of the school. Tucker quickly collected himself and assisted Sam in lugging the large ghost closer to the school so they could sit him upright. Once the ghost was stable, Sam continued to look over his injuries.

"I've only ever treated Danny's injuries and he's half ghost. I'm not exactly sure how to help you Fright, you gotta talk to me," Sam coaxed, a weird gentleness in her voice.

Fright Knight weakly pushed her away. "I will heal in time. But we must go at once. The Prince is in danger!" the ghostly knight cried out as he tried to stand up, only for his knees to buckle and he collapsed once more.

"Yeah, you're not going to be much help to Danny in this state. Whatever Vizier did to you really messed you up," Sam commented. She had only seen Danny fight him a few times but she knew that for as dumb as Fright Knight was (in her opinion), it took a lot to take him down.

Tucker hid behind Sam and peeked out over her shoulder to glance at Fright Knight. "What exactly happened to you guys?" he asked.

The bodyguard sighed, shame in his solid green eyes. "The Prince and I were headed here, to collect you two and go see the Time Master. The Prince's powers and Vizier are connected. Vizier was the reason behind the odd behavior the Prince has been showing," Fright Knight explained. He paused to cough, clutching his armored chest and trembling slightly. He was able to get his bearings and continued speaking, though his voice was much quieter, "I wanted to go see the Time Master immediately, but I listened to my liege's request. On our way here, I was struck from behind. When I came to, there was a silver dagger in my chest and I barely caught a glimpse of Vizier carrying my unconscious liege into a portal and disappearing."

Sam and Tucker stood in stunned silence. "We have to go see Clockwork. Now," Sam said, squaring her jaw.

"Agreed," Fright Knight added without hesitation. He tried to stand up once more using the wall for support and grabbing a board that was propped up against the dumpster next to him as a walking stick. Sam attempted to stop him but Fright Knight shook his head. "I have already begun to recover, Lady Sam," he insisted.

Sam's eyes narrowed, "Who're you calling Lady-" she began, only for Fright Knight to interrupt her.

"I will create a portal to take us to Clockwork's realm, but I fear that it will use up the remaining strength I have," he commented, walking away from the two teens. "I understand if you are still wary of me, but trust me when I say that my life is dedicated to protecting the Prin-... I mean, Danny's life."

Sam and Tucker shared a glance. It wasn't totally wrong that they didn't fully trust Fright Knight, but if Danny trusted his own enemy enough to let him be his bodyguard, they could try too. The two teens stood next to Fright Knight, helping support him. The ghost's green eyes showed relief and he quickly regained focus on summoning a portal. A circle of green flashed in front of them and soon they were staring into the swirling mass of green that was the Ghost Zone. 

"You may want to stand back," Fright Knight said, taking a step away from the portal and weakly trying to drag the teens with him. Sam and Tucker put one of Fright Knight's arms over each of their shoulders and tried to lug the heavy ghost away from the portal per his request. They were certainly glad they had listened for mere seconds after the backed away from the portal, Fright Knight's winged steed, Nightmare, emerged from the portal. He neighed happily at the sight of his rider but soon his happy neighs turning to warning grunts and stomps when he noticed the two humans holding his rider.

"It's alright, old friend. They are friends of the Prince," Fright Knight assured the horse, walking up to him and patting him on the snout. Nightmare quickly calmed and nuzzled his master. Fright Knight mounted his steed and motioned for Sam and Tucker to do the same.

"Of course we have to ride the scary flaming horse," Tucker sighed, following behind Sam as Fright Knight pulled her up on the horse. Nightmare turned his head to glare and huff at Tucker who yelped in fear before quickly scrambling up on the horse behind Sam.

Fright Knight lifted the reins, adjusting his seating on Nightmare. "You may want to hold on," he warned over his shoulder, before snapping the reins. Nightmare spread is magnificent wings and took off into the portal like a speeding bullet. Sam gripped the back of the saddle with white knuckles while Tucker wrapped his arms around Sam for dear life, screaming in terror.

The trio rode through the Ghost Zone at lightening speed and arrived at Clockwork's Tower in  no time. They soared right into his main hall before Nightmare landed, Tucker still screaming long after they had stopped. Sam had to slap him upside the head before he had realized that they were no longer moving.

"Are you two alright?" Fright Knight asked, dismounting his horse and offering his hand to Sam.

Sam removed Tucker's arms from around her waist and hopped off Nightmare without Fright Knight's help. "Aside from Tucker permanently re-shaping my spine, just great," she scoffed.

Tucker silently climbed off Nightmare and quickly scurried as far away as he could get from the winged steed. Nightmare shook his head happily before trotting out the door of Clockwork's Tower.

"Now, let us find-" Fright Knight began before he was interrupted by a loud explosion coming from above them.

The trio looked upwards and immediately raced to the nearest stairwell, with Fright Knight leading the way and seeming to have forgotten the severity of his wounds. After reaching the top of a seemingly infinite staircase, they ran down a long hall and crashed through the doors of Clockwork's chamber to see the Time Master locked in combat with a eerily familiar ghost.

"You've lost your touch, Clockwork!" the unknown ghost cried out, as orbs of shimmering golden and purple formed in his hands. His body was made of a starry night sky that held splashes of blue, purple and gold with upturned horns and stood at a much larger height than Clockwork.

"I'm just going easy on you. After all, this is the first time you've had any real power in a few centuries," Clockwork taunted in his toddler form, brandishing his staff and manifesting glowing blue clock-hands, aiming at his opponent. 

The two charged at each other, exchanging blows and snide remarks. The tower shook with every clash and the trio found it difficult to keep their balance.

Sam pulled out a Fenton Wrist Ray from her pocket and attached it, taking aim at the starry ghost. She fired, making a direct hit and distracting the unknown attacker. All attention turned to the human goth girl standing in the doorway.

"What is the meaning of this!?" the starry ghost demanded, clearly upset their fight was interrupted.

Clockwork on the other hand, adjusted his robes and floated down to his visitors, morphing into his young adult form. "Fright Knight, Sam, Tucker. What brings you here?" he asked, looking around for something. When his eyes didn't find it, he sighed, turning away from the trio. "Come in, we don't have much time," he said monotonously without giving any of the three a chance to speak. His eyes cast quickly upwards at the ghost he had been fighting, and issued a quick command, "Nocturne, behave."

Sam and Tucker's eyes widened when they heard the familiar name. They stared up at the ghost, slack-jawed in awe. "Nocturne!?" they cried out in unison.

Nocturne glanced down at the two teens and grinned. "Oh fun, the ghost boy's little friends are here. I'm sure this is going to be interesting," he cooed, floating down to the ground and shrinking in size, becoming just slightly taller than Clockwork.

"I assume you already know why we're here," Fright Knight said, bowing his head in shame. "I have failed."

"You are not to blame, Fright Knight," Clockwork assured him, turning to his viewing screens. "Vizier's capture of Danny was inevitable. Especially after you had convinced Danny to come speak with me about Vizier's influence on him through the ring."

"Wait a second," Sam said menacingly, "You knew that no matter what happened, Vizier would get his hands on Danny?"

Clockwork nodded, waving his staff in front of the screens. The events of Danny's capture played out just as Fright Knight had described it. The ghostly knight turned his head away in shame, gripping his sword tightly.

"So what was the point of you telling me to never leave his side?!" Fright Knight questioned angrily, getting in Clockwork's face.

The Time Master shifted to his elderly form and gently pushed Fright Knight away while Nocturne stifled a giggle in the background. "The point, Fright Knight, was so that I could control what future we received. I needed to ensure that Vizier's attack was within a future where he could be defeated," Clockwork explained, adjusting the time on his staff.

"So, that means everything is going to be ok?" Tucker asked, hope in his eyes.

Nocturne scoffed in the behind them, "Of course not, fool." Tucker sent a glare Nocturne's way.

Clockwork sighed, "Though rude, Nocturne's statement is right. The future is ever-changing. One cannot control every outcome, not even myself." The Time Master waved his staff and an image of Phantom's Keep flickered onto the screens. He turned to the four others in the room, "What I have done is given us a fighting chance. We must strike before the end of tomorrow, before Danny is crowned or else we will be too late and Danny Phantom will become the next Pariah Dark."

"Wait, what is that supposed to mean?" Sam asked, "Pariah Dark was trapped in the coffin forever when Danny fought him. How is Danny supposed to become Pariah Dark?"

Clockwork sighed and the screens flickered to show the Ghost Zone, though none of the ghosts that they saw looked even slightly familiar. "You all may want to sit down. This is a long story," the purple clad ghost advised.

Nocturne quickly flew out of the room and returned with a couch he had assumedly taken from Clockwork's library. Fright Knight, Sam and Tucker all took a seat on the couch while Nocturne took to resting on a viewing screen, much to Clockwork's annoyance.

"A long time ago," Clockwork began, "the world was created and with it, the Ghost Zone. A realm for the dead to roam if they were left unsatisfied with something in their living days." Clockwork adjusted the time on his staff as he shifted to his toddler form. An image of four shadowed figure appeared on the screens. Nocturne's expression turned grim and his fangless smile turned into a fanged grimace. Clockwork took note of his fellow spirit's change in attitude and made a mental note to tread lightly on this topic. "With the Ghost Zone, came chaos. Ghosts going to and from the human world and Ghost Zone, humans falling into unpredictable portals and becoming trapped in the Ghost Zone for all eternity. Eventually, four ghosts, eventually known as the Ancients, created eight Elder Spirits to manage the balance between the Ghost Zone and the human world. Two created spirits of Harmony while the other two created spirits of Discord. Each Harmony spirit had a Discord partner and together would share a responsibility of balance." While Clockwork explained, the images began to move as the four Ancients separated into pairs and created four spirits each. 

Clockwork shifted to his young adult form and gently touched the scar on his left eye. "The Elder Spirits controlled by Harmony were given a scar on their left eyes, while the Elder Spirits controlled by Discord were given ones on their right," he explained. 

Nocturne gently touched the scar on his left eye, before curling his sparkling hand into a fist. He swooped down from his perch on the viewing screen and landed gracefully beside Clockwork. "Clockwork and I are two of the four Elder Spirits of Harmony," Nocturne announced, unceremoniously, "Where are the others you may be wondering? Well, after Clockwork's Discord pair, Vizier, decided he didn't want to listen to the Ancients' rules anymore, decided that teaming up with Pariah Dark, a fellow Elder Spirit of Discord, was the next best thing." When Nocturne finished he promptly walked to the back of the room and became interested in the books lying scattered about the floor.

Clockwork sighed and stared at the stunned faces of the two human teens sitting before him, their jaws dropped and their eyes looking just about ready to pop out of their skulls. "I understand this is a lot of information to take in at once, and I normally would not disclose it to humans, much less teenage humans, but the situation has left me no choice," Clockwork said hurriedly, turning back to the viewing screens. "We attempted to stop Vizier and Pariah, but during the final battle, all but 4 of the Elder Spirits were lost. Nocturne, Pariah, Vizier and myself," the Time Master continued, though his voice had grown soft. "Pariah had been imprisoned in the Sarcophagus of Forever Sleep, Vizier banished to an alternate prison realm by my hand, Nocturne relinquished his title and became a mere ghost, which left me. A sole Elder to watch over and keep the balance." Clockwork pressed his forehead against the cool glass of the viewing screens as he shifted to his elderly form.

A hand was placed on his shoulder and the Time Master turned to see Fright Knight. "Do not despair, great Time Master. We will not let history repeat itself!" he declared, "We will rescue the Prince and defeat Vizier once and for all!" Fright Knight turned to Tucker and Sam for support, who stood up, giving confident smiles. The bodyguard's gaze went to Nocturne who merely sighed in response before floating over to join the group.

"At least it will certainly be interesting," Nocturne chuckled, sending a knowing look to Clockwork.

Clockwork let a small smile grace his wrinkled features. "Then we must hurry and plan. Our time is short."

Tucker smiled, "At least we have an advantage. Danny told us that without the Crown of Fire the Ring of Rage is next to useless. We have the advantage!" he said, proudly.

Just then, two wounded Observants burst through the chamber doors, collapsing in front of Tucker. The technogeek shrieked and hid behind Sam while Fright Knight rushed to assist them.

"Clockwork," one Observant coughed weakly, "Vizier he-"

"I know," Clockwork interrupted, turning to his viewing screens. A simple tap on the main screen caused the images to ripple and an image of a ghost with a wrinkled grey face, oily black hair with eyes that burned red and a car running through his right eye. In his hands he held an ornate box and was quickly entering Phantom's Keep.

"Vizier has the Crown of Fire," Clockwork said in his monotonous voice.

A/N: Hey y'all. I'm just gonna stop promising that I'm back for good since that never seems to happen. I am dedicated on finishing this story, don't worry. And I have more planned for after it's finished. You all will just have to stay patient with me. I give all my love and thanks to those of you who have stayed with me and given me your support. I appreciate all of my readers. Thank you all and as always, I'll see you in the next one!