{This chapter takes place the day after the previous chapter, so no more episodes have happened since then.
We do not own Danny Phantom or Percy Jackson, only this story and our original characters.}
"Dude, with the way your life is playing out, you could be the main character in a TV show or something." Tucker said in-between handfuls of chips.
"Yeah, tell me about it." Danny groaned, facedown in his pillow. It was after school the following day and he, Tucker, and Sam currently occupied Danny's bedroom. Danny was sprawled out on his bed and Sam sat on his desk while Tucker sat in the desk chair.
"Well, I just cannot believe that you met Thanatos!" Sam gushed. "This is just, like, the awesomest thing to have ever happened in your entire half-life!"
"Hey!" Danny lifted his head to scowl at her. "I can be the judge of that for myself, thanks!"
"I mean, she's kinda right, though," Tucker remarked. "Not everyone gets to meet an immortal being who needs their help."
Danny didn't respond. Instead, he looked out the window at the sun, which had begun to set. Crap, Danny thought, sitting up. It's time to meet Thanatos. "Okay, guys, you gotta go," he said. "It's time."
"Have you decided what you're gonna do?" Sam asked. "Are you gonna help him?"
"I mean, I guess I can give it a try." Danny conceded. "Maybe I can learn a few things from him. It's been pretty hard having to learn everything on my own, and he probably knows a ton about ghosts and stuff."
And with that, Danny rolled off of the bed and gestured to the door. Tucker got up and fist bumped Danny. "Good luck, man." He smiled.
"Thanks," Danny sighed.
Sam gave him a quick hug. "Good luck! Tell me everything when you get back, okay?" She grinned eagerly.
"Yeah, I will. Thanks, Sam." Danny smiled, a light blush dusting his cheeks.
Tucker walked by them, coughing in a way that suspiciously sounded like "Lovebirds." Sam slugged him in the arm when she caught up with him. Danny sighed and shook his head; would his friends ever change? As Sam and Tucker left, Danny walked down to the living room, where his mom was working on another ghost hunting weapon.
"Hey, Mom. I've got a lot of homework due Monday, so I'll be busy for the rest of the night." Danny said; Maddie said that was fine and that she would check on him in a little bit.
Danny returned to his room, and moved things around on his desk to make it seem like he had done some homework. Then he arranged his bed to make it look like he was sleeping underneath the covers. With his room ready, Danny transformed and phased down to the lab. Thankfully, Jack was not in there, but Thanatos was. Instead of the long robe from the previous night, he now wore a knee length, one-shouldered, coal-colored chiton (that's what Sam said the robe was called) with a golden rope cinched around the waist, and bright red leather sandals.
"Umm, hey," Danny waved awkwardly. He felt the faint tugging at his ghost core again, but it was easier to ignore this time.
"How did your math test go?" Thanatos asked.
"Wow, uhh, I... I mean, as good as it could have, I guess...?" Danny rubbed the back of his neck. "I wasn't expecting you to ask that, thought you were gonna be all ominous and stuff."
Thanatos raised an eyebrow. "You said you had a math test today. Now, I am curious as to why a ghost would need to take a math test?"
"Well, I'm not completely a ghost-" Danny paused as he noticed the faint smirk on Thanatos' face. "Ohh, you're joking, aren't you?"
"Mayhaps." Thanatos' face was difficult to read, but Danny got the sense that he was amused. Thanatos gestured to the open portal doors. "Shall we go to the Underworld?"
"I mean, sure, I guess." Danny landed in front of the portal. "After you."
Danny followed Thanatos through the portal. Thanatos used his wings to fly through the Ghost Zone, which Danny found kind of weird since he was a Greek god; couldn't he just float around or even teleport them there? They were traveling for a while before Danny noticed that none of his enemies had even attempted to attack him. Danny asked Thanatos about this.
"Most beings, both living and deceased, will not approach me if they can help it." Thanatos flew around a door to a ghost's lair while Danny phased through it.
Danny stared at Thanatos' red sandals and couldn't stop himself. "Nice shoes, by the way. Why are they bright red? Don't they kinda clash with the whole gloomy thing you've got going on?"
Thanatos turned to Danny and raised an eyebrow. "Are you seriously giving me fashion advice?"
Danny looked down at his own admittedly garish outfit, and conceded the point. From there they continued to their destination in silence. Danny had just begun to wonder how far away the Underworld was when they came to what appeared to be a rough stone wall. Thanatos summoned a scythe and slashed through the ragged rock. Danny watched in amazement as a portal formed in the wall. Through the green haze of the portal, Danny saw what looked like an enormous underground cavern. The scythe melted into shadows as Thanatos turned back to Danny.
"Follow and stay close to me," Thanatos said before flying through.
Danny hesitated a moment before following. He was hit by the frigid drop in temperature as he flew through the portal and he shivered involuntarily; it was even colder than the Ghost Zone. The portal opened onto a dark, rocky ledge. To the right of them was a tunnel burrowed into the cavern wall. To the left lay an enormous chasm. A feeling of dread seemed to waft up from the unknown depths like a foul and pungent scent, and Danny felt fear crawl up his spine as he stared into the void; whatever was down there, he did not want to meet it. Danny lingered for only a moment before hurrying into the tunnel after Thanatos. The feeling of dread lessened its hold on Danny the further he got from the pit, and the tunnel widened until it eventually opened onto a spacious field of black grass. Poplar trees were scattered throughout the field, along with a few blue humanoid wisps that were wandering aimlessly. There was no sky, only dark stalactites and dense mist high above.
Thanatos landed in the grass a few yards from the tunnel entrance, and when Danny landed next to him he was surprised to see that the color seemed to have drained from Thanatos' entire being. His wings were grayscale, his golden belt was now silver, and his once dazzling red sandals were the color of slate rock. Danny quickly looked down at his own hands, before internally facepalming as he remembered that his own outfit was already black and white. He looked back up at Thanatos, who was now watching him with his still golden eyes.
"What..." Danny's voice came out in a dry rasp, and he cleared his throat. "What was that? What was in that hole?"
Thanatos was silent for a moment before he answered. "That pit was Tartarus. It is the deepest part of the Underworld, and only the most evil of creatures exist there." He placed a hand on Danny's shoulder. "Are you alright, Daniel?"
"Yeah, I'm..." Danny shivered again. "I'm good."
Thanatos nodded before stepping away and looking out across the vast field at the indistinct blue shapes in the distance. "Alright, we have much to cover tonight. First and foremost," He turned back to Danny. "We must go and speak with my master, Lord Hades. He has undoubtedly sensed your presence, and I would prefer to explain this to him before he takes a more... drastic action."
"Drastic action?" Danny grimaced. "I... really don't like the sound of that."
"I would imagine not." Thanatos agreed. He spread his wings and pushed off from the ground, launching high into the air as he set off across the plain.
Danny was quick to follow, and he frowned as he flew alongside Thanatos. "So, if you're the god of death, then what's Hades the god of?" He questioned.
"Hades is the god of the Underworld." Thanatos replied. The color slowly returned to his outfit as they distanced themselves from the tunnel. "He rules over the realm and keeps order, while I watch over the souls and spirits and make sure that they go where they are supposed to, when they are supposed to." He glanced over at Danny meaningfully. "You caused quite a stir down here last year."
"Last year...?" Danny trailed off as he realized what Thanatos was hinting at; the portal accident. He felt his gut twist. Had he just walked into a trap? He wasn't meant to exist, was Hades going to fix that and kill him the rest of the way? Maybe he planned to experiment on Danny, or keep him in a cage where all the other gods could see what a freak he was. Danny was quiet as the field sloped up as it passed far below them, and he watched as the few straggling blue wisps grew into a large, rippling crowd. In the distance, he could now see a dark castle rising out of the gloom. "So, did he send you to come get me?" Danny asked quietly. "Cause I'm a freak of nature that shouldn't exist?"
"No," Thanatos assured him. "I came to you of my own accord. Daniel, I swear to you, on the River Styx, that no harm shall come to you in this realm, so long as you stay close to me and do not act foolishly."
A foreboding rumble shook the cavern ceiling above them, and Danny was almost worried that it might cave in. He looked over at Thanatos to ask him what had caused it, but Thanatos was gliding down towards the ground; Danny hurried to follow him. As Danny clued into his surroundings, he noticed what looked like a large turnstile of sorts maybe a mile away from him. On the far side of the large barrier was a black sand beach that ran along a dark, polluted river; on the other side of the river was a dark shroud of mist that covered the land like a blanket. Danny also saw what looked like thousands of people milling about in a large crowd on the beach.
As the crowd approached the turnstile, it funneled into several lines that slowly weaved through the entry stalls until they came through on the other side, where the people either went to a large black-tented pavilion or into the field where they faded into the blue wisps that Danny had seen since they entered the Underworld. The dark palace that Danny had seen earlier loomed ahead to their right. He and Thanatos were only a few yards above the crowd in the field when Danny's ghost sense began to go off like crazy.
"No way," Danny said as bluish-white vapor poured out of his mouth. "These are all ghosts?"
"Spirits, yes," Thanatos watched Danny with a sort of puzzled expression. "Are you alright?"
"Yeah, it's just my ghost sense," Danny hiccuped as another cloud of fog wafted out of his mouth. "I've never been around this many ghosts before, though."
Thanatos and Danny landed in front of a two-story tall set of bronze gates that were nestled in a thick obsidian wall which wrapped around the palace. The gates were open wide, and they led into a large courtyard. Danny shuddered when he realized what was pressed into the bronze; the gates were adorned with scenes of death; wars, bombings, natural disasters... Danny decided to turn his attention to what was inside the gates instead.
The inner courtyard was stunning; it was a garden of luminescent flora. Nestled in-between the rare and likely lethal plants were mounds of precious jewels; rubies, sapphires, and diamonds twinkled like stars in the dark soil. In the center of the garden was a small orchard of pomegranate trees. Crystal walkways separated the trees, and multi-colored mushrooms sprouted up amongst the trees' roots. A bronze fountain stood in the center of the orchard, and a short, dark-haired figure stood in front of the fountain, his back facing the newcomers.
Thanatos knelt when he reached the individual. Danny quickly knelt next to him, not wanting to potentially disrespect someone that he shouldn't. "Master Nico," Thanatos said. "It is good to see you."
When the figure turned, Danny couldn't stop the gasp that escaped him. He knew this person. The person seemed to recognize Danny as well.
"Phantom? What are you doing here?" Said Nico, someone Danny had not expected to see again.
"Nico?" Danny stood up, shocked. "What are you doing here?"