Dark Prince

CHAPTER 2 - Demonstration

Danny really couldn't help but stare al Pariah Dark; he'd almost forgotten how much power this being radiated... and from the stories he'd heard, Pariah Dark was worse than his own future self; it had taken his future self years to overrun the Ghost Zone. Pariah Dark did it in hours last time, and he was about to do it again.

...And it suddenly hit him that he was FUCKED.

An awkward silence resonated through the throne room for the longest time before Pariah Dark pointed to Danny. "Remove the manticle, my page." The man next to Danny looked up surprised.

"M... My Liege... ?" he quiried. Pariah Dark glared at him, and he flinched, reaching over to unlock the manticle.

"I wish to speak to the boy's ghost form, not his inferior human form," Pariah Dark said. He turned his glare to Danny. "You will not attempt to flee or attack, or I will strike you down before you make the first move. Am I clear?"

Thinking more or less along the same general line, Danny nodded, then transformed.

Over the past three years, Danny - mostly from secondhand observation from his friends - had noticed that his ghost from changed as he grew older. Not only did he gain more muscle from ghost fighting and personal training, but he had also changed his suit. He abandoned the HAZMAT style, and opted for something he and his friends had created that not only repelled minor ectoplasmic blasts, but allowed more flexibility for Danny. He had retained the base black color, but this time made it pure black, with no white collar, boots, or gloves. The only color was the trademark white DP in the center of his chest.

As for his own looks, he had been growing his hair out, and it now brushed his shoulders. When he transformed, an invisible wind seemed to brush it gently, creating a wispy flame-like effect. His eyes kept the same radioactive green irises, but now the whites of his eyes glowed a softer, lighter shade of green as well. It was so unlike his evil alternate future self's look; opposite really. Instead of looking overtly masculine, his overall appearance appeared almost effeminate, 'Like a Moon Elf from Midevel Magecraft', Tucker had said once. Danny had grudgingly accepted that fact as truth.

After transforming, he dared to look up at Pariah Dark and was surprised to see a contemplative expression on the Ghost King's face. Pariah Dark raised a hand and curled a finger in summon. "Step forward," he commanded. Danny swallowed hard and took a tentative but striding step forward. He felt the intense one-eyed gaze of the Ghost King over his form for a couple of moments before Pariah Dark stood up. "Follow me."

Becoming more and more confused by the moment, Danny obliged, sensing the King's page flanking him as a precaution. They took the back door out of the throne room and kept walking until they came to an enormous room that Danny figured was once a grand ball room, or perhaps a mead hall like he had read about in history class. Pariah Dark came to a stop in the middle of the room and turned to face Danny.

"How powerful are you, boy?" he asked. Danny blinked and looked at the Ghost King in confusion.

"I... I have no idea," he answered truthfully. He knew that he was powerful, and that he was discovering new powers all the time, but he hadn't really taken the time to test out the full extent of his powers. This answer didn't please Pariah Dark.

"What is your element?" he demanded. Danny was feeling a sense of foreboding.

"...Ice," he replied, holding up his hand and creating a large ice crystal, one that would never melt as though it were a jewel instead on unmeltable ice. Pariah Dark now looked intrigued.

"It is rare for a ghost - or a half-breed - outside of the Far Frozen to have the power of ice," he commented. "What can you do with it?"

Wondering where Pariah Dark was going with this, Danny fought down his nervousness to answer. "Ecto-ice blasts... I can create weapons of ice... create small flurries in enclosed spaces like buildings... " He swallowed hard again when Pariah Dark narrowed his eyes. " ...And when combined with my Ghostly Wail..."