He stared down at the broken pavement and scattered pieces of rubble from the surrounding infrastructure of what used to be his home town with a defeated and broken expression on his face. Black hair that had grown long over the extensive year of conflict blocked his blue eyes from view which watered with unshed tears regarding what he saw, but he would not cry. If he cried, he knew he would never stop.
There was nothing left of this place. Nothing left that was worth sticking around for anyway. But there was nowhere he could go.
His family was dead. His best friends were dead. His classmates and teachers were dead. Everyone in Amity Park, Illinois was six feet under, pushing up daisies, passed away, or however you want to express it, but most certainly they were dead. It was clear that Daniel James Fenton was not only the lone survivor of 24,536 people who lived in Amity Park, but Danny was certain that he was the last human of 7 billion people left alive on Earth.
How did this happen you might ask? Dan. Danny's evil alternate future counterpart escaped from his imprisonment. Still bent on revenge towards Danny for defeating him before and Danny refusing to become him, Dan decided to fulfill his grand design and his ultimate obsession, the destruction of all things.
Dan proceeded to destroy the Ghost Zone by absorbing its wells of ectoplasm,the sources of energy that sustained the Ghost Zone as well as the ghosts who lived there and allowing them to exist. In doing so, he essentially committed suicide in the process of absorbing all of the ghostly energy, and then in one massive wave of unleashed ectoplasm, Dan murdered every living thing.
Danny was the only one who could protect himself from Dan's power was then left alive and alone. Without their source of sustenance, the ghosts of the Ghost Zone quickly faded from existence one after another. It was a small comfort, however, that Cujo, Danny's ghost dog companion latched on to Danny's self generating ectoplasm caused by his halfa status, and of course Clockwork, the Ghost Master of Time.
Speaking of which, "Daniel..." the familiar voice spoke up from behind him, that could only be described as timeless, filled with wisdom and knowledge that transcended all things. Danny knew immediately who it was without turning around.
The lone teenager spoke in broken exhaustion, not hiding the hint of contempt that was layered within his voice, "Clockwork, why?"
The Ghost Master of Time replied, his soft tone showing regret and remorse, "Danny, I may have the ability to see time from above, but even I cannot see beyond the horizon line if the parade goes beyond it. I was blind. I did not know that this would happen. It is my fault, in that I should have destroyed Dan as soon as I removed him from the time stream after you defeated him. I forgot that I lost the ability to contain him since he then existed outside of time. This is my sin to bear alone, and I know there is nothing I can do to ever make up for all the things the world has suffered through my arrogance."
Clockwork's apologizing infuriated the black haired teen, "You can't undo all of this?! All of this destruction?! All the lives who have been lost as a result of Dan's madness!"
Shamefaced, the Time Master replied,"You know I can't now, not because I am not only without my staff and thus now limited in my powers of time manipulation...but I have a more serious confession to make. Dan damaged my core..."
"What?! Wait! You're saying...!" the black haired teen's eyes widened in horror at what the Ghost of Time admitted. A ghost's core was essentially their heart. If it were damaged in anyway it could mean a severe limiting on the ghost's powers or even causing the ghost to cease to exist depending on the damage. Knowing Dan, the damage was probably fatal.
Clockwork smiled, and for the first time ever, Danny saw him cringe with actual pain, confirming that what the Time Master claimed was true, "Danny...there is nothing left for you in this world, and... if you stay here, you will die eventually as I will finally cease...I don't want that for you...You deserve to live. There are things that you still need do, lives you can help, people that you can love. What... Dan did, never think it was your fault. It was all mine...I want you to promise me that you will live on..."
Breaking down in tears, Danny aked in an even more broken voice, "But how? How can I? If this universe is doomed, there's nowhere I can go...Maybe we should just stay here..."
Rasping out, the Time Master shifted to his aged persona, emmulating the twilight of his existence that had come upon him so suddenly, "NO! NO! Live on Danny! Live on!" and he took a shuddering breath his condition clearly deteroriating before Danny's eyes, "My...boy...with the last of my power...I can send you...and Cujo...to a different reality...a different world with a new start...I will remain here...as my punishment for allowing this to happen..." The Time Master lifted his hand and it glowed with a bright light and a swirling blue portal opened up, "It's too late for me, so I cannot come with you. Danny, I don't ask for your forgiveness, but just know that you will see your friends and family once again. Not in this life, but I can promise that you will in the next one. It's not your time to go yet, that much I am sure."
Danny looked down at Cujo who sat patiently beside him looking back at him expectantly. He looked back at the Time Master who nodded at him encouragingly. Then without any fanfare, without any applause, the teen made his decision, and slowly walked towards he portal, the ghost dog following right behind him.
"Clockwork..." the halfa murmmered turning around, but his eyes widening as he saw Clockwork beginning to fade away. Danny took one last look at the runined world that he was leaving behind. His eyes narrowed in determination and he stepped into the light, into his new world, the portal closing behind the black haired teen.
"Goodbye Danny and good luck...you'll need it where you're going..." and with that the Ghost Master of Time ceased to exist.
Author's Note: I have failed. I have tried everything I can think of. I will admit that I need help. I want to work on my other stories, and have great ideas, but when it comes to writing them, I have nothing. I have several of them in the works in fact, but the details refuse to take shape. Please help me, so I don't leave my stories in limbo. Especially this one because this one is going to be hard, and I know it is good because I have seen a lot of Danny Phantom/Young Justice stories that are really well written, but then most of them end up in fanfiction limbo and I would really like to see it completed.
Notes regarding this story, like what about Vlad and Danielle? Where are they? Let's just assume that they are dead for the time being. Although you never know, that's the wonder of fanfiction.
Again, so sorry about my other stories, because I have had a lot of trouble with my Thunderbird stories and nothing will come to me. I don't intend to abandon them, but every single time I try writing something, it doesn't fit well and it become a big mess...