Prologue: Begin

Disclaimer: I do not own Danny Phantom.

Dedication: To smiles and laughter!

The lab that resided in the basement of Fenton Works was mostly silent that evening. The only sounds permeating the space were the occasional chatter of some rodent and the slight clatter that the glass beakers made when they hit together. All was dark and everything was still. A slight gust blew through the room, causing some of the diagrams on the walls to flutter.

The only source of light came from the Ecto-Filtrator, located in the very far left corner of the room. It cast an eerie glow on the objects closest to it and shrouded everything else in a black mystery. The dial moved slowly from green to yellow. Next it would move into the red region and it would then be time to change the battery, lest the whole home explode.

The wind gave nothing away. It moved with very little force, hardly noticeable at all unless you looked for it. It licked at the diagrams and beakers and rattled the high-tech ghost equipment. It did nothing to penetrate the hard steel door of the Ghost Portal, though, and made no effort to slip through the cracks and enter the Ghost Zone.

It was then that the noise came; softly at first, like a dull hum. Slowly it rose on volume and pitch, growing so loud that the glass beakers shattered and fell to the floor in little glass shards. The calm was shattered as the wind, at first so docile, picked up speed. It reached a velocity to violent that the tables and chairs began to shake. A few swivel chairs began skating across the room on their own accord and others toppled over, creating a loud crash that reverberated around the room.

Tabled fell and all of the precious lab equipment went with them. Hundreds of dollars in equipment caved in with the tables and crashed to the floor. Valuable pieces of plastic and computer technology skirted across the ground, showering the already glassy floor with more sharp materials.

Still the pitch grew. Soon, it was so loud that the walls began to shake and rumble. A large crack traveled through the floor, opening up a crevice so deep that you couldn't see the bottom. What hadn't fallen yet soon began to and the ceiling came with it. Large shards of rock and plaster hit the ground with so much force that the very foundation of the house began to falter. The large dome on top of the home fell with a mighty roar, crushing anything that hadn't been already.

From not so far away, then Fentons, along with a Foley and a Manson, watched with horror-stricken faces as the place that they'd all held dear for so long crumbled to the ground. One of them raced forward, no one could tell who in all the commotion, and dived into the rubble, searching for something that remained unknown.

The last image anyone saw of that person was his terrified eyes and the whole house came down on him. His blood spilled and lined the sidewalk, flowing to the road and pooling at their feet. No one screamed and no one cried.

They'd already seen it coming.

Clockwork, Master of All Time, watched as this image flittered across his screens and then vanished just as quickly as it had appeared. His ever-changing face remained stoic and calculating. Such a vision was no surprise, as he knew what the future held and had expected it for some time.

The silence that followed afterwards was cold and hollow. None of the Observers said a thing, and neither did Clockwork. The room was full with the dread and despair that held the hearts of the people in it. While they were typically impassionate creatures, the Observers looked on with something akin to sorrow.

It was minutes, maybe hours before anyone spoke.

"So, this is it." One Observer stated. There was no need for question. If it had shown up in Clockwork's mirror, than it would most surely come to be true.

The spirit, now in the form of a baby, nodded his head. "Yes, I'm afraid so."

There was more silence, until…

"Can this future not be changed?" One of the other Observers asked. "Is there no other option?"

Clockwork flickered into a man. His unlined face was grim. "Yes, but only one way."

The lead Observer seemed to think this over. He was quiet for several minutes, his hands wringing at his sides. As an Observer he knew. He knew the laws that he was meant to live by, and, strict as they may be, they had to be followed. But there was clearly not much harm in asking. It wasn't as if the child would ever find out.

"How?"

His two counterparts turned to face him, but the lead Observer gave away no emotion. His one eye trained on the baby Clockwork as he waved his staff through the air.

There was absolute reverent silence as the Master of All Time spoke. "He must first lose what he cares about the most." The image in the mirror changed to that of a girl. She was beautiful with large amethyst eyes and porcelin skin. Then she smiled and her whole face brightened.

Clockwork continued on as if nothing had changed. "He must first lose…Sam Manson."

I know that this is short for a chapter, but it's only a prolgue. It may not make very much sense now, but that's kinda the point. All will be revealed eventually.

Please review.

The first chapter should be up tomorrow.

Next Chapter: Sturdy