Danny tried to hold the shield, but D'Ken's power was too much, and it broke. Rogue charged at the emperor, only to be blasted by his lasers and knocked into the arms of Beast.

Wolverine and Gambit tried to give it a shot, but they were also blasted back.

D'Ken laughed. "You fools! Your foolishness amuses me."

"I do not understand." Gladiator observed D'Ken. "What is happening?"

D'Ken then turned into the M'Kraan Crystal.

"D'Ken has been granted his wish." Danny said as he approached the crystal. "He is one with the crystal. He is creating his own universe inside the crystal, where we all will be soon."

Corsair activated his communicator. "Ch'od, get the Starjammer out of here. Now!"

"What is wrong, Captain?" Ch'od asked. "We are ready to board the Imperial Cruiser and retrieve you."

"No!" Corsair said. "Full escape velocity immediately. That's an order."

They obeyed as they flew the ship away.

"You must join them." Danny told his friends. "I need time to see if the power of the Phoenix can contain the crystal. But if it cannot, then nothing in the galaxy can protect any of us."

"What can we do?" Cyclops asked.

"Nothing." Danny said. "It is what I must do."

The fiery bird soon appeared, taking them all out of there.

The X-Men, Lilandra, Gladiator, and Corsair then found themselves back on the Starjammer.

Ch'od noticed their arrival. "Corsair! What is happening?"

Corsair went to the ship's computer to watch the fiery bird fly back to D'Ken's ship. "We are being given a short time to consider our fate while someone attempts to change it."

The Imperial Guards saw how dire the situation was getting, so they too retreated in their own ship.

Danny appeared back in front of the crystal. "Who thought this little thing would cause so much trouble?" He said to himself. He had to find a way to fix all of this before they were all doomed. "I must learn. The crystal must be healed."

"Can you show us what's happening?" Cyclops asked Corsair.

"Ch'od, full magnification." At Corsair's order, a visual of D'Ken's ship appeared. "That is all we can do. Soon, we will be out of range."

Danny was trying to plead with the crystal to tell him how to heal it. "I am the guardian; teach me to..." He felt himself being pulled into the crystal. "No!" He tried to resist, but it was futile.

The crystal then sent out an energy wave that hit the Starjammer and the Imperial Guards' ship. It stopped the ships, causing everyone to be thrown around before the two spacecrafts started being pulled back.

"Who slam on the breaks?" Gambit said as he rubbed his head.

"Phoenix has failed." Lilandra said. "We shall join my brother inside the crystal."

"How are you so blamed sure?" Rogue asked her, not willing to give up on her boyfriend. "If I know anything about my boyfriend, it's that he never lets any obstacle stop him. He might still..."

Gladiator pointed at the ship's computer. "Look!"

D'Ken's ship was compacting in on itself as the crystal was sucking it up.

Rogue felt worried for her man. "Danny!"

Soon, D'Ken's ship was no more.

Wolverine stared at where the spacecraft used to be. "I got a real bad feeling we're next."

"Ch'od, open fire!" Corsair ordered.

The Starjammer fired on the crystal as Corsair sat back in his chair.

"What are you doing?" Cyclops demanded.

"Trying to live." Corsair shot back.

The crystal remained standing despite the blasts hitting it.

"It has no effect." Gladiator said bluntly.

"Anybody else got any bright ideas?" Wolverine asked.

No one responded as the Starjammer was being pulled closer to the crystal. Nearby, a sun was being sucked in as its flames were slowly being engulfed, sending a surge throughout the entire solar system.

Jubilee was at Cassidy Keep watching the sunrise while chewing some bubblegum. She wished she knew how the others were doing right now. She then noticed something about the sun.

"What's that?"

A black spot appeared over the sun as it covered it, making it look like a solar eclipse.

Xavier was listening to a message from Storm, who was in the War Room, showing what has been going on in the world. "And Cerebro reports environmental disturbances everywhere around the world." Storm said as she showed various scenes of environmental destruction, such as forest fires and earthquakes. "I will do what I can."

"As we all shall." Xavier said as he ended communication.

"Professor Xavier!" He heard Jubilee's voice call out.

Jubilee entered the room and spoke frantically. "Professor! The sun, it's, well, kind of fading away!"

"I know, Jubilee." Xavier replied. He was observing the sun on his monitor. "We have discovered a phenomenon much like a black hole: an enormous gravitational force near the sun. We must assume it is the M'Kraan Crystal. It is slowly drawing everything into it, even the sun's light."

Sean and Cassidy shared a worried look as Xavier continued with his observations.

"Soon, it will absorb the sun itself, the entire solar system, including the Earth. The rest of the galaxy may well follow, though, by that time, we shall have long since ceased to care."

Jubilee was feeling dreadful about the state of the universe. "There's gotta be some way to stop it!"

Xavier believed that only one thing could save them all. "There is one hope: the X-Men."

"Maintain full power!" Corsair cried as the Starjammer fought the crystal's gravitational pull. "Don't give up!"

Gladiator turned to Lilandra. "I regret, my Empress, that my service to you must begin under such circumstances."

A nearby monitor exploded as Gladiator held Lilandra in an attempt to protect her as the Starjammer was being pulled in closer.

"All is lost, Empress!" Gladiator bemoaned to his ruler.

"Danny!" Rogue cried. Was Danny gone? Well, it wouldn't matter, as they would all share the same fate. 'At least, I can be with him in death.' Rogue thought depressively.

"Hang on, everyone." Gambit said to the X-Men. "If this be our last ride, we X-Men take it together..."

His speech was interrupted as the Starjammer spun around as it entered the crystal and ended up crashing on some rocky surface.

Gambit looked around the ship. "If this is death, it's not so bad, huh? Though Remy would like ghost powers like Danny has."

"Speak for yourself, cajun." Rogue said. Despite her snarky tone, she felt hope in her heart that if they were alive, then Danny was too.

They all got out of the ship to explore the new world they were in.

"Fascinating." Beast said as he took in his surroundings. On the ground were some red blob-like things. Above them was a red sky with floating mountains that shot out lighting from the bottom.

"The legends of the crystal are true." Lilandra said as he was held up by Gladiator. "But what of D'Ken?"

"What of D'Ken?" D'Ken's voice echoed. "He lives!"

A red vortex started forming as they all heard D'Ken's laugh.

"Show yourself!" Gladiator demanded.

"You wish to see me?" D'Ken said in a disbelieving tone. "Behold the power of a living galaxy!" The red vortex formed into D'Ken. "Soon, the universe will tremble!"

Wolverine realized that they were doomed, but he was willing to put up one more fight. "If we're not gonna make it out of here, let's at least shut this guy up."

The X-Men charged at D'Ken while Scott stayed back.

"Logan, stop it!" Scott scolded.

D'Ken blasted Wolverine, Gambit, and Rogue with a blast of red lightning.

"Perhaps another approach." Beast suggested.

Rogue got up. "Maybe he likes to play catch." She grabbed a boulder to crush him. "This is for Danny!" She threw it at D'Ken, who made it stop in midair and melt.

"You fools!" D'Ken insulted. "None of you understand." He then disappeared.

They felt the ground shake.

"Look out!" Cyclops warned them.

The ground then formed into D'Ken's head as he cackled. Scott fired his optic blast, but the rock construction grew until it recreated D'Ken's whole body.

"It has no effect, Empress." Gladiator stated.

"Your pathetic efforts gain you nothing." D'Ken told them. "Your weapons feed me."

Lilandra tried to reason with her brother's insanity. "The crystal will gain you nothing. You are trapped within it, as we are. Its power will destroy you!"

"Destroy me?" D'Ken repeated. "The crystal is life. I am reborn! I need only think of your destruction, and it shall be!"

He stretched out his hands into the ground as they came out near the Starjammer. They gripped it and squeezed as the spaceship exploded into nothingness.

"D'Ken, brother, unless the crystal is sealed, it will destroy the galaxy, including the entire Shi'ar empire." Lilandra pointed out. "We must join forces to stop it."

"Stop it?" D'Ken replied. "I hunger for it."

"He hears nothing, Empress." Gladiator hissed in disgust. "We are on our own." He then glared at his former master. "Prepare to be destroyed, creature!"

Gladiator flew up towards D'Ken and punched him in the chest.

"You? Fight me?" D'Ken looked down at Gladiator as he tried to remove his fist, but it was stuck. "You insect!"

Gladiator felt himself get electrocuted and was blasted into the air.

Rogue managed to catch him. "Gotcha, big guy."

"You see how easily I defeat your protectors." D'Ken said to Lilandra. "I tire of you, sister."

The giant, rocky emperor then crumbled to dust before he appeared as a giant head and shot a beam at Lilandra, trapping her in a red bubble as she was brought closer to her evil brother.

"Empress!" Gladiator called out to his ruler.

Cyclops felt hopeless about their situation. "I never thought I'd say it, Logan, but there's nothing we can do."

Back on Earth, the world was in chaos.

Mt. Fuji was erupting as Sunfire was trying to destroy the flying chucks of flaming rocks. So occupied was he with his task that he almost got run over by a train.

In West Africa, everyone was dealing with a blizzard as the citizens were being escorted to safety by Mjnari.

In New York City, everything was being blown away by the strong winds. Spider-Man had to use his webs to prevent a bench from hitting a woman. The woman was then carried off by War Machine.

In Athens, Greece, Alpha Flight was making sure the crumbling buildings didn't crush any innocent civilians.

Back in New York, a wave was approaching the city, but Storm used her powers to push it back.

Xavier was watching all this occur on his monitor.

"The immediate threat to New York City has been averted." Storm informed the professor over her communicator.

"Well done, Storm!" Xavier praised.

"It is terrible, professor." Storm told him. "It is as though the Earth has gone mad."

Xavier tried to calm his student down. "Calm yourself, Storm. You cannot be everywhere at once. Help where you can. The disturbances will cease if the X-Men are successful."

The X-Men, Imperial Guards, Starjammers, and Gladiator were watching as the giant form of D'Ken tortured his sibling.

Gladiator tried to reach for her but was knocked down by his former emperor. The Imperial Guards tried to take on their former master, but they proved to be no match.

Despite it all, they were all giving everything they had to stop the mad ruler. D'Ken then summoned rock golems that attacked the heroes, but they were all destroyed by his enemies.

The Imperial Guards, using teamwork, managed to knock D'Ken down as he shattered into several crystal shards. They all smiled at the victory before hearing D'Ken's laughter.

Visions of his face appeared all over the arena before the ground beneath them started crumbling. The heroes who could fly managed to get their comrades out of harm's way.

D'Ken then reappeared in his giant form as he took hold of Lilandra in his hand.

"Fear what I have become, sister?" He taunted her. "Let the others watch as I repay you for your treachery in opposing me."

When everything seemed lost, a burst of flames appeared behind D'Ken in the form of a giant Phoenix.

They could all hear Danny's voice.

"Do not despair. The Phoenix survives."

"No!" D'Ken threw his sister away as he turned his attention towards the cosmic entity. "Begone!"

Lilandra was caught by Gladiator. "Fear not, Empress. You are safe now."

The X-Men all smiled at their friend's return.

"Give him hell, spooky!" Rogue cheered.

In the center of the flaming bird was Danny, still in his flaming form.

D'Ken glared at the upstart. "Leave my world. I command it!" He fired red blasts from his hands at Danny, but they did not damage him.

"Lilandra's star cruiser approaches." Danny informed the group watching. "I will teleport you all to the ship, beyond the reach of D'Ken's power."

They were all teleported away, leaving only Danny and D'Ken.

D'Ken fired his attacks at the Phoenix, who kept avoiding them.

"No one is safe from my power!" D'Ken boasted. "I am one with the crystal. The galaxy is mine to destroy."

"The power has destroyed you, D'Ken." Danny stated. "The galaxy shall not share your fate."

He soon left the crystal and returned to Lilandra's ship, where all the others were teleported.

Danny fell into the arms of his girlfriend.

"Danny, you're alive!" Rogue started peppering his face with kisses.

"Sorry that I made you worry, honey." Danny said as he rubbed his neck shyly.

"What about the crystal?" Lilandra asked the ghostly hero. "Can you truly stop its power?"

"We have learned of one way." Danny said before he felt a headache. "If I can take it." Then the voice of the Phoenix spoke through Danny. "Danny was chosen because of his powers. Combined with mine, we can try to join with the matrix of the crystal's energy field. Our powers combined may be able to restore what D'Ken has broken."

"You could be locked in here forever!" Rogue cried out. She wasn't going to risk losing Danny again.

Danny was then given back control of his body as he addressed his girlfriend's concerns. "Don't worry, Rogue." He placed his hand on her cheek. "Everything will be okay, I promise."

"I'm going with you." Rogue proclaimed. "I'm not leaving you."

Danny shook his head. "You can't go with me."

"He knows, Danny." Wolverine said softly. "That don't make it easy to take."

"Danny." Rogue got his attention. "Please, make sure to come back."

"I'll come back to you, Rogue." Danny assured her. He turned to the rest of the X-Men. "I'll come back to all of you."

He gave Rogue one last smooch as the two lovers spun around in the air.

Danny then placed Rogue down as he left the ship. In the form of a fiery bird, he attached himself to the crystal as he cried out for help.

"Someone help! Help me find a way." He thought back to all of his friends as he remembered their qualities.

"Your wisdom." He thought of Xavier.

"Your compassion." He thought of Storm.

"Your gentleness." He thought of Beast.

"Your innocence." He thought of Jubilee.

"Your courage." He thought of Wolverine.

"Your leadership." He thought of Scott.

"Your empathy." He thought of Jean.

"Your confidence." He thought of Gambit.

He then thought about all the others.

Sam and her individuality, always willing to stand up for what she believed in.

Tucker for his funny quirks and his know-how with technology.

Jazz, the sister who always had his back.

His parents, who unknowingly gave him so much stress in his life. Despite this, he knew that they cared for him.

Clockwork, who had saved him from something worse than death.

Vlad, who put aside his rivalry with him to try and help him move on.

Dani, the daughter who wanted to live up to her father's legacy.

Steve and Martha, the people who took him in and gave him a home.

Jubilee again, who always managed to put a smile on his face.

He then thought about the most important person of all. The one who accepted him completely and didn't favor one half over the other. The one who was the light in his life.

His girlfriend, Rogue.

"Your love." Danny said to himself. "Your love will get me through this."

"No!" D'Ken cried in fear. "You cannot contain the power of the crystal." He felt his power leaving him. "You cannot! No!"

Jubilee saw that the sky was back to its usual blue. "What does it mean, professor?" She asked.

"The X-Men have succeeded." Xavier said. "The power of the crystal has been contained. Though I wonder, at what cost?"

Jean looked up into the sky as she hoped that everyone made it out okay. Especially, Danny.

Danny then appeared on the ship. In his hands was the crystal, and next to him was a depowered D'Ken, who was taken into custody by Gladiator.

"The crystal is sealed, but I must make sure that its power will never be released again." Danny said to everyone. He looked down at the crystal. "The crystal cannot be destroyed, even in the heart of the sun." His hands then glowed with ghostly energy mixed with that of the Phoenix's power.

"But with our powers combined." He pulled out a time medallion. The same one that Dani had when she traveled to the past. He kept it as a memento. "And the added help of an old friend, maybe we can." Together with his energy, Phoenix's energy, and Clockwork's energy, he touched the crystal as it faded away from existence. As if it had never been there to begin with.

Danny smiled at everyone. The crystal is gone, never to be abused again."

The Phoenix then took over as it spoke. "And now I give you your friend back."

The flames faded away as Danny returned to his usual ghost form. Black and white jumpsuit and all.

"Danny!" Rogue crushed him in a hug. "You're back to normal!"

"Oh, really?" He looked down to see that he was back to Danny Phantom. "That's good. I was starting to miss my old ghost form."

Rogue hugged him harder. "I'm just glad that you're back, sugar." Her eyes then became lustful. "Now give Momma some love." The two embraced in a kiss as everyone clapped and cheered.

Lilandra's ship was currently stationed at Cassidy Keep as Lilandra was saying her goodbyes to Xavier.

"Goodbye, Charles. I shall never forget you and the X-Men."

Xavier grasped her hand. "Stay with us, Lilandra."

"I am Shi'ar Empress now." Lilandra said sadly. "I must return to my world and try to set right all the wrong my brother did. Come with me, Charles."

Xavier frowned. "Until there is peace between mutants and ordinary humans, I cannot leave."

Lilandra gave Xavier a kiss. "We both have our work to do." She then went back to her ship.

"I'm sorry I tried to use you against the emperor, Cyclops." Corsair apologized. "Since I lost my wife, I've lived only for my revenge."

"None of us know how we'll react when we lose someone we love." Scott replied.

"I'll have to find a new reason for living now." Corsair placed a hand on his shoulder. "I'm proud to have known you and the X-Men. Farewell."

He walked away as Danny came up to Cyclops, remembering something important he had learned.

"Oh, by the way, that guy is your dad." Danny said to Scott as he pointed at Corsair.

"What?" Cyclops exclaimed in shock.

"There are some bonds that cannot be broken, Charles Xavier." Lilandra said as she boarded the ship with Corsair and Gladiator. "We shall meet again."

The doors closed as Scott ran towards them.

"Corsair! Wait!" He cried, but it was too late. The ship took off.

"Maybe I should've told him sooner." Danny said to himself as he watched Scott look at the retreating ship.

Danny and Rogue were in their room getting ready for bed when Rogue asked him a question.

"Do you know the legend of the Phoenix?"

Danny raised an eyebrow. "Rogue, where are you going with this? Don't go all Beast on me."

Rogue giggled. "I'm not sugar. I don't think I can pull off blue fur as well as he can."

Danny smirked. "I still think you'd look beautiful."

He was given a kiss on the cheek as Rogue continued. "The Phoenix was a bird that was consumed by fire but always rose again from the ashes. Maybe that's what the Phoenix represents, hope which never dies."

"You think so?" He pondered.

Rogue placed her hand on his shoulders as she looked him in the eye. "Ever since you arrived, you've given me nothing but hope." She kissed him. "And love."

"Well, I think I can give you the last one right now." Danny flirted as he threw Rogue onto the bed and crawled on top of her.

"Give it to me, Danny." Rogue encouraged. "Fuck me, you ghostly hunk of a man."

The two then began a long night of lovemaking, content that whatever obstacle came next in the future, they would face it together.