A/N: I went over a few ideas for the chapter, and this one came out at the last minute. I'm not great with writing out firm plot lines for my fics; so many times I make things up as I type and then see where my characters take the plot line. Sometimes my characters can surprise me. For these next two chapters, that's exactly what they did. I wanted a chapter more focused on Danny before I gave you readers a Theo spot light chapter, so you'll see more phantom in this chapter. Enjoy!

Disclaimer: Don't sue because I don't own.

Chapter 13 Playing Nurse

It took a while for the boys to calm themselves down. Both their hearts were beating so fast they thought the other could clearly hear the pounding echo off the rocky walls of the tomb. But after the first initial scare, the two righted themselves somewhat. They were still pretty freaked at the sight below them, but they were calm enough to yell at each other.

"I thought you said this place was freaking safe!" Danny shouted at Theo.

Theo was still dangling above the mass of scorpions. His arms were burning from having Danny hang onto them, but he was just thankful he wasn't stomping around on poisonous scorpions. Their slight hissing from disturbance is what had alerted him to their presence. Now the little animals were hissing up a storm, warning the pair to back off or they would strike.

"I lied, okay!" Theo yelled back. At this point it didn't really matter if Danny knew he lied or not. As long as the boy didn't do something stupid like drop Theo, the demigod was fine with admitting his wrong.

"Why?" Danny demanded.

"We needed to be here," Theo defended himself.

"Because frolicking around a tomb packed with deadly scorpions is such an improvement!" Danny came back sarcastically. Theo knew by the sound of the boy's voice that Danny was angry with him. Actually, Theo could feel Danny's fury from him keeping a hold on his wrist. A deeper power beneath the ghost boy's surface was boiling inside of him, which sent tendrils of sparks down Theo's arm.

"I'm sorry," Theo said, trying to avoid another unnecessary fight between them. They didn't need to go all demigod on each other again. The last time they did that they had ended up wasting time and badly bruised. Theo just wanted to keep from going into physical combat with this kid for more than 24 hours. Was that too much to ask?

"Trust me, this place is safer than being with Ra or spending the rest of your life being a slave," Theo explained to Danny, keeping his voice even and calm. "We are just in a higher tomb where the scorpions can burry into from the sand. It is cool and damp in here, just how scorpions like it. They also feed on the bugs that dig into this cool area too. We just need to go down deeper, and we'll be fine."

"Okay," Danny said after letting out a long, pent up sigh. He turned intangible and floated through the scorpions and the floor, much to Theo's dislike. Danny saw the look of unease on Theo's face as they phased right through the scorpions and smirked. It wasn't every day he saw Theo like this.

They ended up coming through the ceiling of a dark hallway. Danny made sure there were no scorpions before letting go of Theo. Danny, glad to be able to be ghost after so many days of hiding strictly behind his human form, hovered tensely at Theo's side. As Theo found a torch and lit it with the snap of his fingers, Danny was constantly looking up and down the foreboding hallway.

"How'd you light that?" Danny asked Theo as soon as fire sparked to life on the torch. It instantly created a circle of bright light around them, as if keeping the shadows and darkness at bay.

"Some really powerful sphinxes have fire abilities," Theo explained. "I just so happen to create a simple spark whenever I snap my fingers. I don't have enough training to know how to use that power, though."

"What do you mean by training?" Danny asked. He was both curious about the subject and relieved to get his mind off the creepy, unsettling feeling he was having.

Theo gave Danny a sideways look before bravely plunging into the darkness of the stone carved hallway. Danny flew closely behind. The torch light seemed to be a stronghold in this miserably terrifying place. For a moment Danny didn't think Theo would respond to his question. The demigod was sniffing the air and flexing his ears around to catch every sensation. It looked like Theo was back to his difficult and moody self again.

"Every demigod here in Egypt gets trained," Theo finally said emotionlessly. "So do the ones in Greece and in other places around the world. You know, there are other kinds of demigods. There are some that are Hindu, Celtic, and African. Anywhere there is a god; there is a demigod close around. I guess gods can't resist the interaction between humans."

"Now, a trainer would have come real handy when I first started out in this whole ghost fighting business," Danny said with a chuckle, remembering all his mistakes of being half ghost for the first few months. The boy was amazed how much he had improved over the past year. He had to be ten times stronger than what he was in the beginning.

Theo and Danny came into a small room that worked as a tomb for someone not so important, like a second or third wife to a pharaoh. Theo silently and wearily placed the torch in a holding spot for it by the door to the tomb. With a tired sigh, he leaned his back against a mud brick wall and slid down it so he was sitting.

"You don't look so hot," Danny pointed out to Theo obviously. "You okay?" Danny sat crossed legged in front of his friend, wearing a worried expression for him.

"Yeah, it's just the aftereffects of Ra's powers on me," Theo said. He rested his hands on his bent knees and rubbed his forehead with a sigh. He looked up at Danny and stated out from the blue, "You're not a demigod. You know that, right?"

"You are high or something, man," Danny said jokingly with a laugh. "I'm half human, half ghost slash god. That makes me a demigod in these times. The only catch is that I don't have a ghost mom or dad. I guess you could consider me lucky in that area."

"No," Theo shook his head lethargically. He could feel his energy dwindling. For some reason he felt like saying this to Danny. "Gods have a human and ghost form," Theo said slowly. "You do too. You have too many powers to be a demigod. I don't think you know how to embrace this, but, Danny, you're actually a god. You're an immortal."

Danny frowned back at Theo.

"Wait," Danny said, "So you're saying that I'm as powerful as someone like Poseidon or Dionysus? Dude, that's impossible! I'm nowhere near as powerful as a god. I think you're a bit dehydrated."

"Yesterday, when we were throwing each other around that giant checkerboard, you could have easily have killed me if you wanted to," Theo said. "You held back."

"Well, duh, so did you!" Danny said. "We didn't really want to kill each other!"

"I held back because I knew if I got too serious so would you," Theo explained. "And if you got anymore serious, you could have killed me. I'm not saying you would have, but any more intensity to that fight and I would have been doomed. You're powerful, Danny. Like…really powerful. If you really wanted to…you could defeat Zeus."

"What are you implying?" Danny demanded, angry now. "That I take over all of freaking Greece? Oh, Danny, if you play your cards right you can rule Greece. Sounds like a wonderful plan, Theo. And I'll let you be my second hand man. Thanks for the brilliant idea!"

Theo smiled and laughed lightly. He knew what would get under the boy's skin. For the demigod, it was nice to feel Danny's anger, his spirit return. When Ra had almost drowned him, Theo had feared that all the fight had been yanked out of his friend. Now he saw it return full throttle, and Theo liked it.

"Dude," Theo said with a faint grin to try and keep Danny calm, "I'm implying nothing of that sort. Who would want to baby sit a whole bunch of stupid ghosts anyways? What I'm saying is that, if things get rough, you should know that you can get through it."

And with that said, Theo passed out. Danny's eyes widened first in shock, then in slight fear. He was already spooked about hanging out in the catacombs under a pyramid. He didn't want to have to stay there for hours without having Theo as his company. The demigod was smart and quick. Danny didn't want to admit that the guy was the most reassuring person he knew. Now the dude was passed out.

"Great, just what I needed," Danny muttered to himself. Too scared to try and sleep himself, Danny stood and paced the tomb to keep watch. He didn't want to be dozing off when some risen-from-the-dead mummy popped in for a visit. So the boy paced.

A small, painful groan from Theo snapped Danny out of his worrisome thoughts an hour later. Danny quickly flew over to where Theo was sitting. He bit his lower lip as he saw sweat trickle down Theo's brow. The demigod looked pathetically weak and wasted of energy. If he didn't have that short cover of fur, Danny knew the guy would be pale and sickly looking.

"Jeez! You're burning up!" Danny said after pressing a hand to Theo's sweaty forehead. Theo's only response was an intense shivering. "A fever isn't good," Danny stated to the half conscious Theo. "You need to cool down somehow."

Theo shivered again and gave a hiss of pain. "Ice powers," he managed to mumble out. He then returned to his shuddering as cold sweat kept pouring down his forehead and the rest of his body. Danny had never seen Theo so vulnerable.

"Okay, lay down and I'll see what I can do with my ice powers," Danny said, helping Theo lay down on his back. Letting out a sigh, Danny cleared his mind like he always had to do before using this power. Producing ice was still a delicate ability Danny had. He had just gained it about a month ago, and it was still a slightly uncontrollable thing to the ghost boy.

Danny waved a hand over Theo's forehead, creating a makeshift icepack on his head. A few seconds later the ice melted completely and flowed to make a pool under Theo's head. "Any human would be dead by now with this fever," Danny mused to himself. "Fried brains anyone?"

The teen then took his powers to the next level, incasing all of Theo's chest and head in ice. The boy was careful in every move he made. The last thing he wanted was to freeze Theo to death. This time it took around 15 minutes for all of the ice to melt. Danny repeated the procedure, constantly checking Theo's temperature.

For another three hours it was like that. Danny was at the brink of giving up and losing hope at the height of Theo's fever, but he was determined to not lose his friend. He would never give up on Sam or Tucker. That meant he wouldn't give up on Theo.

After a few intense minutes of Theo rambling under his breath, moaning, shivering, and writhing in pain, the fever broke. The demigod slept peacefully for a few more minutes as his temperature slowly went down. Danny didn't know much about fevers to know for sure if Theo was okay or not. It wasn't till Theo awoke after the fifth hour of them being in the tomb that Danny let himself believe his friend was fine.

"How long have I been out?" Theo asked the second he opened his eyes to see Danny hovering over him.

"He lives!" Danny shouted with joy and relief. A big smile plastered itself onto the boy's face. Theo only stared up at him in confusion, patiently waiting for his answer. "We've been down here for five hours," Danny finally said. He tapped his chin in thought before adding, "But I can't be sure. It just feels like it's been that long. I'm not a specialist on tracking time."

"I feel dead," Theo muttered. Danny laughed. Theo only stared up at Danny with a frown.

"You should be dead," Danny said. "That fever was lethal. You're lucky to be living right now, dude."

"And nothing bad happened?" Theo asked in astonishment.

"What do you mean?" Danny questioned. A shiver slid down his spine. "Was something bad supposed to happen?"

Theo paused in thought then said grimly, "Yeah." With a groan, he sat up and rubbed his pounding head. But anything was better than the fever he had suffered under. Theo's demigod body wasn't designed to take so much power from Ra. Being exposed to all that raw power after so many years had shut down all of his systems. If Danny hadn't been there with his ice powers, Theo could have died. But now something felt different in his body. Something that had been indefinable before was now noticed.

As if being captured in a block of ice, Theo froze in place with his eyes narrowed. Danny silently watched his friend. Somehow Danny felt what Theo had detected. Something dark and evil was close…real close. The boys looked at each other, grim expressions plaguing their faces.

"Let's get out of here," Danny said as he yanked Theo to his unsteady feet. Fighting dizziness, Theo struggled to keep up. Danny frowned when seeing Theo wince and hold his head in pain. "Are you even going to be able to walk?" Danny asked incredulously.

Theo smirked back. "You scared you're going to have to carry me?" he asked.

"Quite frankly, yes," Danny said seriously. "You're pathetic, dude."

"Shove it," Theo said. He shook his head to clear it then steadily walked over to the torch and plucked it from its spot. "Two more hours till sundown," Theo said to Danny. "We can't leave till then. We'll just have to avoid whatever is coming after us."

"Should I know what this thing is that is coming after us?" Danny asked, hoping for an answer. The boys exited the small tomb and plunged into the darkness of the hallway. Once again, Danny made sure to fly close to the comforting light of the torch.

Theo chuckled nervously before answering with a question. "Do you know what sphinxes are used for?"

"Not really," Danny answered. "But please don't tell me they live in smelly old tombs."

"Hate to burst your bathtub bubbles," Theo said, "But that's exactly what they do. They protect the tombs from intruders like us. Tombs are sacred to the Egyptians. They were designed to successfully get the dead pharaoh to his afterlife. If one thing goes wrong, the Egyptians believe that the pharaoh will not be able to enjoy his afterlife. So they have a sphinx guard tombs and temples. One is hunting us down right now."

"Joy," Danny muttered sarcastically.

Silently, the boys aimlessly walked down different hallways. Danny was amazed that the Egyptians had managed to create all the secret passageways and hidden tombs so many feet underground along with a pyramid on top of it. They were building geniuses even though it was so primitive compared to Danny's own time.

After a few minutes of nothing but boring rock hallways, the boys felt a presence they didn't quite understand. A low rumble from the dark shadows ahead of them commanded both of them to stop in their tracks. Theo slowly bent down to retrieve his dagger since both Danny's sword and his staff were left behind before they phased to the pyramid. Danny was ready for anything, his hands made into tight fists with ectoplasm energy flowing smoothly from them.

The boys weren't ready for one minor detail, though.

Before Theo could reach his dagger, a hand burst out from the darkness behind the boys and latched onto Theo's shoulder. There was a flash of bright light just as the hand made contact. Danny was too stunned to do anything but watch in pure shock as his friend vanished before his eyes, leaving the torch behind. The act only took two seconds to happen.

"Theo!" Danny screamed his friend's name as if shouting it could bring Theo back. Danny was about to go after him, but the sphinx got to him first. The ghost kid turned just in time to see a woman with a lion's body jump into the light of the torch. The sphinx gave a loud growl before pouncing right at Danny with her sharp lion teeth bared.

With a yell of alarm, Danny tried to avoid the attack. The sphinx's huge extended front paws slammed into Danny's shoulders and brought him to the ground. The sphinx now had Danny pinned to the floor, snarling into his face. The sphinx's face was one of a young beautiful Egyptian woman…only very angry. Her long jet-black hair wildly hung into Danny's face, and her black eyes with cat-like, yellow pupils were narrowed into perilous slits.

"Good kitty!" Danny said nervously up to the cat girl who had him pressed against the hard, rocky ground.

"No one disturbs the pharaohs' resting place!" the sphinx roared into Danny's wincing face. "Die!"

Danny didn't let the sphinx even bring up a clawed paw. He brought up both his legs, placing the soles of his feet on the sphinx's stomach. In one strong heave, Danny had the cat flipping over his head and back into shadow. Danny quickly got up and looked ahead just in time to see the sphinx pouncing back on him.

"I guess you can't teach a cat new tricks," Danny said as he deftly flew out of the way. Failing to remember his surroundings, he collided with the wall just as the sphinx sailed past him. One of her claws cleanly sliced through Danny's shoulder, producing a sharp yell from the ghost boy. Having to fight in a hallway was hard to do. He had absolutely no space to let loose. It was like being stuck in one, long box.

Spinning around to face his foe, Danny gasped when the torch was put out and the whole corridor plunged into complete darkness. Now the ghost boy couldn't see anything, especially the sphinx that was sure to be lurking about. He was sure he could take the guardian down naturally, but now things had changed drastically. How could he fight someone who he couldn't see?

A shiver went down Danny's spine when he heard a harsh laugh from out of the darkness that had engulfed him. "I can sense your fear, young one," the sphinx taunted him. "I do not even have to see you to know exactly where you are. I will enjoy this kill."

Whack!

Out of nowhere, a paw slammed into the back of Danny's head. Vision blurring, the teen was forced to the ground. Thinking fast, Danny rolled to his back and blasted an ectoplasm energy ball blindly upward. The move proved to be wise. The sphinx caught the energy in the chest and sent her sprawling backwards with a roar of pain and hatred. Then the hall seemed to suck the green light from the blast away and paint the world black again.

"I don't have time for this," Danny told the sphinx. He let one of his hands hold onto another energy ball to give him some light. The uncanny green light made the room look like he was staring out of night vision goggles, but it worked. Danny could see the sphinx get to its feet and lunge for him another time.

Danny put both his hands together and shot a bigger energy ball at the feline. She swiftly dodged it and flung herself back at Danny with a hiss. The sphinx tackled Danny to the ground, grinding more razor sharp claws into his shoulders. Danny pushed her off him as he rolled back to his feet. He flung an energy ball down the hallway, lighting the place up in green again.

It was all Danny needed. He got the sphinx's location just before the green faded away to black. Eyes glowing blue, Danny focused on the spot he had seen the sphinx and ice rays exploded from his eyes. His aim was true, and his ice powers instantly froze the sphinx in mid leap. Smiling at his handy work, Danny examined the ice encrusted sphinx with another energy ball in his hand.

The ghost boy sucked in a breath as his brain finally noticed his painful injuries. They weren't very serious, but they sure did sting and throb for attention. The teen kicked himself for not being careful enough. If he hadn't been quick to freezing the sphinx, he could have been cut to pieces.

"That will keep you busy for a few days," Danny told the sphinx with a smirk. "Have fun, kitty. Now…for Theo. It's that kitty that I'm worried about. But where did he go?" Danny blasted off deeper into the underground halls in search for his friend, leaving the sphinx to defrost by its self.

A/N: Okay, the next chapter will tell you where Theo went. I'm warning before hand, the next chapter will be a pretty intense and graphic one, but I've started it already, and it is coming out perfectly. I'll see all you readers next Friday!