Two days had passed before Dan finally slunk back home to Amity just in time to collect his things for the last day of school, and he slipped away before the Tarrons arose to greet their last day on Earth. All the while, Mother bothered him with her watchful eyes. Graduation that hot summer's day, had come at last for the halfa and as he tugged off his gown and shoved it into his backpack, he couldn't help but marvel at all that had happened throughout his (extended) high school career. In the beginning there had been ghosts and ghouls to contend with, otherworldly beings that accosted him whenever they pleased. And then almost a decade later, the ghosts had been exchanged for trolls, wizards and aliens with all the same level of danger, but a bit more variety. The world sure had changed and for once, Dan was happy to go along with it.

Although unable to get drunk like the rest of his classmates, Dan still sipped at the sickly sweet RTD that one of the others had somehow manage to obtain through dubious means and let his legs dangle over the cliff ledge he sat on which overlooked the water. The graduation party rocked the woods even as the summer sun beat down on the drunk students hidden beneath the canopies and cool waters of the swimming hole. Dan had heard somewhere that the traditional graduation party used to be held in the canals long ago, but that was before the reservoir was put in and the canals dried up; although he suspected that it had more to do with the trolls living beneath it.

The tank top that hung loosely from his shoulders was some old thing that he'd fashioned out of one of his Danny Phantom t-shirts, and reminded him of the ripped punk shirts that Sam had in abundance. But it was light & airy, a good thing to have on a hot day like today and so unlike the usual million layers he usually hid himself in. The halfa shifted slightly making his board shorts rustle against the hot rock as he watched George backflip into the cold water below, splashing a gaggle of uptight girls sunbathing nearby.

Down below his classmates were scattered about in bikinis, graduation caps and board shorts as they celebrated their last day of high school. Empty bottles and a beer keg or two sat littered about the place as they partied. Usually day-drinking like this would be heavily frowned upon—seen as something that only the divorcees and alcoholics partook in—but for a lot of the students this was their final farewell before they disappeared to other ends of the country for college when school began again in the new year.

"…Good afternoon, Arcadia Oaks! Lots going on today—" The handheld radio sang from where it sat nestled on a bed of beer cans swimming in the upturned chilly bin behind him. Dan's feet absently swung back and forth over the cliff's ledge as the radio announcer's words barely pierced through the bellowing rave music below him. Another small earthquaked rocked the city, making Dan dig in his fingernails in an attempt not to be tossed out into the air. Those down below barely even twitched, likely attributing it to their drunken hazes. "—Seems like tonight's Battle of the Bands won't be the only thing rocking and rolling in this town! School is out, so there's no excuse for missing it because everyone should be in the town square this afternoon for what should be an EPIC showdown! The finale doesn't get any bigger than this! In fact, I'm willing to bet this town's never gonna be the same after tonight's Battle of the Bands!"

Now normally, Dan would've been excited for such things—parties and concerts—but the increase in Reapers around the city's limits had put him on edge. They really only convened like this—like vultures—when something big was about to go down. Something that resulted in numerous deaths, something that granted an army of ghosts waiting in the wings for new souls. Not that Dan could fault them in such suspicions because most of the day & the day before had been filled with numerous earthquakes—some large & some small—that had the whole town on edge.

So much so, that there had been whisperings about cancelling the Battle of the Bands that was scheduled for that afternoon. But people—students—had protested strongly against this and said that they would go through with it even if they were told otherwise; so the town agreed to let it go ahead. It was like when parents said you could drink/smoke, as long as you did it at home & in company so they knew you would be safe. At least that was the idea, until a funnel of smoke and fire erupted into the sky, serenaded by terrified screams of the townspeople.


Toby felt justified in saying that today had gone to Hell in a hand basket. Adorned in his newest Merlin-made armour, the stocky boy once more cursed the aged wizard who they'd awakened some days prior only to find out what a complete and utter buttsnack he was. Then there had been Jim's transformation into something not quite troll & not quite human which had sent everyone all a-flutter. Honestly, Toby felt himself slightly at war with himself over Jim's new powers; on the one hand, he felt slightly jealous that the Trollhunter was granted yet another golden opportunity via these powers. Why did Jim get all the cool stuff? Why did Claire get the magic staff before he did? When did he get a go? But on the other hand, Toby wasn't quite sure if the best friend he'd grown up with, was still all there. The transformation was cool—no doubt—but now he was worried that his friend had changed far too much too soon.

Of course, when Jim had gone walk-about soon after the transformation and they'd wound up finding him tear-stained at the school, Toby had felt bad for even thinking those things and so, had kept his mouth shut. Instead he'd told his best friend that nothing would change, that they would still be friends no matter what, that the blue fur & the horns didn't mean anything. But apparently Toby wasn't as good at lying as he thought; or perhaps Jim could now detect their emotions because he'd reacted to their pleas like a corned animal, and it hurt. It wasn't until Blinky had hauled himself up onto the school roof and actually gotten Jim to talk (whilst entrapped in a four-armed hug) that things had more or less sorted themselves out.

And then of course, Morgana had to go & throw a temper tantrum, and Merlin wanted to be the beloved saviour of men. Those who had been in attendance at the Battle of the Bands that evening when fire & smoke had erupted into the sky, had all but raced for the protection of the school with the same level of enthusiasm as they had left earlier that day. Trolls, goblins and changelings of all sizes & colours ran rampant throughout Arcadia and Toby couldn't help but think that if he had powers like Jim or Claire or Danny then maybe he'd be able to get rid of all these things. But he was just a boy with a cursed hammer in bronze armour with a moped light glued to his forehead. He did well enough (even without Aaarrrggh's help).

Dusk painted the town in a permanent state of semi-darkness with the birth of the Eternal Night when Toby finally regrouped with the others in front of the town hall only to find Jim atop the roof where he cut an imposing figure over Gunmar's broken remains. With the death of the troll tyrant, all the Gumm-Gumms around town fell into broken pieces at their feet and only added to the mess they would have to clean up later.

"Jim!" Claire breathed a sigh of relief at seeing her beau alive and (mostly) well. Jim seemed to visibly relax at the sight of them and jumped down to greet, only to stumble back a pace or two when the witch launched herself at him.

"Ow! Careful!" Jim winced as his hands came to rest on her waist. "Sunburn"

"YOU DID IT, JIMBO!" Toby cheered, "DAYLIGHT WENT SUPERNOVA!"

"At long last!" Blinky's smile was both wet with tears and happy from relief as he stood over Gunmar's corpse. "After centuries, Gunmar's war is finally at an end…And you, my dear boy! Have ended it"

"…Um, not to be a total buzzkill. But why is the night still all eclipsey?" Toby interjected through the sweet moment just as Aaarrrggh tiredly lumbered up to them from where he had been trying to help Merlin down in Trollmarket. "Bruh! Wingman!"

"Where's Merlin?" Jim demanded as the large troll skid to a stop.

"In trouble" Aaarrrggh replied before turning to point at the witch hovering behind him. "Morgana!"

"But Merlin's plan—!" Blinky gasped upon locking eyes with the figure in gold.

"—Not work"

"Indeed"

"Don't despair, weak ones" Morgana cackled joyously as she descended with magic crackling in her palms."Your lives will soon be over"

"She's beautiful…" Toby gripped tighter to the handle of War Hammer as the witch descended menancingly towards them. He knew he should've been scared out of his wits, but of course teenage hormones said otherwise.

"Ugh!" Claire rolled her eyes exasperatedly at him and he quickly moved to correct himself.

"—But totally evil! Yeah! Yeah! We have to stop her!"

"But without Merlin, how can we?!" Blinky despaired.

"Merlin's champion! I have so looked forward to meeting you!" Morgana waved her hands and brushed away Gunmar's remains. Out of the corner of his eye Toby noticed Claire puff up indignantly at the thought that this elder woman was interested in her partner. "And then killing you"

Another wave of her hands and this time it was Toby and the others who were brushed aside, leaving Morgana to easily snatch up Jim as if it was nothing more than child's play. Even encased in armour, Toby still wheezed as he impacted with the bonnet of the car across the street before falling face first into the concrete. Hurriedly pushing himself upright with a time that Coach would've been proud of, Toby could only stare as his best friend was tossed across the town, towards the bridge with a single flick of the finger. Morgana paid them no mind as she turned to stalk after her prey.

"We need to stop her!" Said Blinky. "Claire!"

"Aaah!" Claire bellowed a war cry as she flung a shadow portal up in front of them, one that was large enough to take all of them. It was barely a second later that Toby launched himself once more through one of Claire's smaller portals, trusting in the young witch to get him where he needed to go. This time being off the side of the bridge in order to catch Jim who had been thrown into the swirling vortex, courtesy of Morgana.

"Gotcha!" Toby grunted as he and a dazed Jim bounced and rolled along the bridge before coming to a stop next to one of the many cars that lined the structure.

"What the—?!" Morgana growled in shock at their sudden reappearance.

"He said 'Gotcha!" Blinky replied smartly, taking great pleasure in both back talking the witch and declaring their return. "It's a colloquialism and a contraction, you vile troglodyte!" He palmed several Dwärkstones as Aaarrrggh charged towards Morgana without abandon and yanked her down towards the bridge.

"Jim?" Pulling himself up once more, Toby turned to prop his best friend up against the car before he tried to wake up the Trollhunter. "C'me on, c'me on, wake up, Jim! Oh yeah, there we go, buddy! Don't worry, we got your back!"

Claire was next as she flitted back & forth between shadow portals and just generally being a nuisance to the witch. Toby jumped in to back her up, swinging War Hammer about flying this way & that. He didn't really have a plan, he just wanted to beat this wicked witch and bring an end to the Eternal Night. Soon enough, Jim returned to join the fight, swinging Daylight as Blinky palmed more Dwärkstones with some catching or grazing Morgana. It didn't take long for their combined efforts to piss off the Arthurian witch and she quickly retaliated with a blast of magic that engulfed them all. Only Jim was left unharmed because of Daylight's protection, leaving the others to be wrapped up in constricting golden chains. But that didn't last long; Jim was on his last legs and Morgana was more powerful than ever.

"I showed your friends mercy, Trollhunter" Morgana purred, raising Jim up in the air in a crucified pose. "So they can watch you die"

"JIM!" Claire wept as they helplessly watched the trollhunter be tossed about and burnt by the golden chains that strangled him. Toby's vision blurred with the tears that he wept for his friend's pain and struggled against the restraints holding him, but it was no use.

"PALE LADY!" Angor Rot suddenly appeared over Morgana's shoulder holding onto his stony ribs.

"My champion—on time for the grand finale" Morgana turned to the stone warrior, letting Jim have a reprieve from the torture if only for a moment. "Here, for your efforts, I give you the honour of finishing him"

Toby felt his stomach sink to his feet as he watched Angor Rot bare his teeth in a predatory grin

as he charged for the captive Trollhunter with a vengeance. HIs mouth ran dry and his heart rate picked up; all this time, all this effort and all he could do now was sit and watch as his best friend was slaughtered right before his eyes. And the impossible happened—Angor Rot's dagger skimmed Jim's eyelashes and the hilt of the dagger was used to throw Morgana across the bridge.

"Witch! I am no one's pawn!" Angor Rot decreed, standing tall much to everyone's shock.

"You! What did you tell him?!" Morgana snarled, losing all composure as she tossed Jim aside once more.

"The boy reminded me who I fight for!"

"You fight for me!"

"This is the end!".

"Death is all there is for you!" Morgana threw herself at her champion as she spewed anger, hate and revenge with every powerful spell fired and blow taken. Angor Rot responded in kind and in that brief millisecond of a window, Jim shot to his feet and stabbed Daylight through Morgana's stomach, impaling both her and her champion in one fell swoop.

"Well played, Hunter" Angor Rot rasped as he clung tight to Morgana, keeping her entrapped in his arms.

"You think that toy can kill me?" Morgana cackled, waving her hands about as they crackled with magic. The small dribble of hope that had been hiding in Toby's chest soon gave way as he watched in disbelief as Daylight vanished from Morgana's torso and reappeared floating in her hands, new as the day it was born. "I am no troll, I CAN'T BE KILLED!"

"Daylight!" Jim cried, his hands fruitlessly stretched out towards the majestic blade as it shattered into a million pieces at her touch.

"Die, Trollhunters!"

"No!"

"JIM!"

And then when all hope seemed lost, like something from a comic book, their saviour came to them in the form of someone so unexpected that Toby couldn't help but gape like a fish gasping for air. A moth-eaten tank top hung loosely from wiry shoulders and a faint stylised 'DP' shone through the goblin goo that stained it. Equally stained floral board shorts rustled in the breeze and a medieval blade glistening in green strapped to his side. A pair of heterochromatic eyes swung back and forth as they took in the scene and snow white hair tousled in the wind. "Is this a bad time?"

"D-D-Danny?!" Claire exclaimed in surprise, eyes blown wide.

"Hullo~!" The albino waved nonchalantly from where he sat perched on the bridge's railing like a bird. His total nonchalance towards the whole situation startled a choked laugh out of Toby.

"Foolish boy!" Morgana cackled as she struggled against Angor Rot's grip. "You are too late! There is no hope! The Eternal Night is here!"

"Son of biscuit!" Dan smirked as he hopped off of the railing and made his way over to where the captured witch stood, feet never making a sound. "You are one crazed fruitloop, aren't 'cha?"

Morgana blinked dumbfoundedly at the boy who had leant in close with a shit-eating grin on his lips; appearing a little caught off-guard by the teen's chirpy nature and food-based curses, something for which Toby could agree. He'd only ever read the Danny Phantom comics and had assumed that such quips were just something that the publishers had used to skirt around the cursing ban. He had not expected them to be actual phrases that the ghostly hero used.

"…Danny what're you doing here?!" Toby finally found his voice. The last time they had seen the elder teen, he had been wrung out to dry all because of some flowers in Merlin's cave. And then, Jim had mentioned him in passing the day before, but that was all.

"Hm? Oh, y'know, just a bit of clean-up" Dan shrugged, but did not remove his gaze from the Arthurian witch of legend. "There's so much magic in the air that the souls'll corrupt quicker if we leave 'em"

"We?"

"Surely you've noticed the Reapers hanging around town today? That flicker in the corner of your eye? Those shivers down your back? Your hair standing on end? That restlessness that settled in your bones—?"

"—Creepy guy on the roundabout!"

"You saw one? Hm, most don't. Not until death, anyway"

"Wha—!"

"—Sire" And suddenly there was another presence on the bridge, this was just as green and cold as Dan. The Civil War soldier in army fatigues looked like something out of their history textbooks with the cap firmly planted on his head and bayonet slung over his shoulder; even as he stood to attention before the halfa who was half his age.

"General?" Dan stepped back a pace or two so that he was no longer in Morgana's face and Toby let out the breath of relieved air hiss out from between his teeth, one that he didn't know he was holding. "Report"

"The troops have secured the eastern and western flanks, Sire. More still incoming, but holding strong"

"Good, good. Have them return the souls to the Ghost Zone, and make sure the Mortals are out of the way when you do. We don't need any tag alongs"

"Foolish child! D'you really think a couple of children playing soldier can stop me—?" Morgana cackled rudely only to be cut off by a resounding smack that lifted her up into the air and tossed her aside.

Angor Rot, who had previously been just barely holding on to her, shattered into pieces at their feet but no one really paid him any mind. Instead, all eyes were focused on the incensed army general who stood over the crumpled witch as Jim, dazed & confused from throwing himself in front of the magic, finally pushed himself upright.

"KNOW YOUR PLACE, WOMAN!" General bellowed as he hefted his bayonet and tipped Morgana's chin up ever so slightly with the tip of his sword. "YOU STAND IN HIS MOST ESTEEMED PRESENCE! BOW BEFORE HIM! FOR HE IS THE EMPEROR OF THE INFINITE REALMS, VANQUISHER OF DARKNESS, KEEPER OF GATES AND THIRD-BORN SON OF THE ANCIENTS!"

Danny Phantom, the Emperor?! Ancients? Gate Keeper? Is that even a thing?! Again, Toby found himself gaping open-mouthed at what he had heard. Despite his belief, Toby could almost see the ghostly crown upon the albino's head.

"General, stand down" Dan intoned, his chilling voice cut through the night like a blade, even though it never rose in volume. Gone was the upbeat attitude from before, nor was there the quiet taco-builder extraordinaire, instead there stood a boy—no man—made of sharp edges and cold tones.

"…Sire" The soldier eventually acquiesced as he stepped back to his side. Although, Toby noticed that the soldier seemed to linger in place for only a moment, almost as if he were tempted to run the witch through before he stepped away. He wasn't exactly opposed to that, but part of him was curious to see what Dan would do.

Dan crouched before Morgana, like he was talking to a scared child or cornered animal. Toby wasn't sure if he was brave or stupid, but he did know was that whatever superpower-thing Dan was currently doing, it was enough to have Morgana cowering before him. Part of him was reminded of a cartoon where the characters were able to weaponise killing intent in battle, y'know that same way they did with plot armour and the power of friendship.

"You—you can't kill me!" Morgana gasped beneath the weight of Dan's power as she scrambled back until her spine met the bridge's railing.

"Mm, that is true" Dan nodded, making the witch preen slightly at the admission. But that expression soon faded as he continued to talk. "Since, y'know, you're already dead"

"You—Liar! I cannot die! I was reborn eternal! I am magic incarnate! There is no death for I!"

"Oh, you little fruitloop. Y'know you're quite infamous in my neck of the woods; everyone knows the tale of the poor little poltergeist who didn't know she was dead"" Dan sighed pityingly, "Morgan Le Fay, first-born daughter of the Ancients. Which I guess—technically speaking, of course—that would make you my older sister, huh…Innit that trippy?

"If—if she's dead and—and your sister" Toby piped up from behind them. "Then—then doesn't that make her one of yours? I mean, especially since you two are technically related?" He hoped that meant the halfa would be able to wrangle the wayward witch better than they had.

"Mmhm"

"Wait a minute—!" Claire's eyes narrowed on the pair before them even as she continued to struggle against her bindings. "If she's one of yours—if she's dead—then why is she still here?! Why didn't you find her soul earlier?! Are you saying that we could've avoided all of this if you'd have found her earlier?!"

"Hey, in my defence, I didn't even know she was in Arcadia!" Dan replied as he turned to face Claire, hands raised in surrender.

"She possessed me!"

"Yeah, but the more powerful mages can do stuff like that long distance, with, like, mediums and stuff. Not that it really matters now. You will Fade as all else does. Your words will disappear, your magic will disappear, your name will disappear. All memory of you will disappear until you are nothing more than a footnote in a fairytale"

"Such pretty words for such—hurk!" Morgana purred in reply only to be cut off by a pained gurgle as Dan thrust his fist into her sternum.

Toby felt sick as he watched the senior dig around inside the powerful witch, burying his arm up to the elbow as a smattering of green ectoplasm coated the limb. Dan had already said that she was dead, but the sounds she was making made it sound like she was dying all over again and it turned the junior's stomach. What seemed like an age later (although it couldn't have been more than a few seconds) Dan extracted his arm from Morgana, pulling out something so shiny and bright that he had to look away. "Sire" General grunted as Toby blinked away the stars. "Will you spare this one too?"

Toby hoped the answer was 'No' because he didn't even want to imagine what would happen if Morgana got out again. His answer came, not in a word or a nod, but in the flashing of fangs and the piercing of ectoplasm as Dan began to devour Morgana's soul. This time he did audibly gag as juicy splashes of ectoplasm splattered themselves over the halfa's hands and chin, though he paid them no mind. General looked far too pleased with himself at the action as the vessel that was Morgana burst into a thousand little seeds of glistening gold which floated down upon them like rain. With Morgana gone, the magic holding them disappeared too, dropping them the foot or two to the ground and while not far, Toby hadn't been expecting it so everything hit at once. Feet, knees, chin, forehead. Thank God for armour!

"You—you're an emperor?!" Jim, who Claire had been none-so-gently slapping awake, stared wide-eyed at the senior who was currently licking ectoplasm off of his fingers like it was tomato sauce. "Wait—! You're—you're related to her?! You didn't mention that before!"

"Surprise!" Dan flashed the Trollhunters a guilty grin that made him look all the more terrifying covered in the blood of his subjects. Toby tried not to flinch at the stained fangs glaring back at him and hope to God that Dan couldn't tell what he was thinking. Behind them, the vortex of fire and smoke became illuminated in a violent green, reminiscent of ectoplasm as Merlin (batted & bruised) finally reappeared.

"Oh now he shows up!"