"You said we weren't going to any museums, Danny."
That was the accusation that came out of the ghostling's mouth as she gave the older Halfa a narrowed look, but Danny just rolled his eyes at her attempt to look intimidating.
"I never said we wouldn't go to any museums here, Danielle," started Danny. "Besides, the Capitoline Museums have a certain sculpture that's pretty important to Rome's history."
The trio had arrived at Piazza del Campidoglio where the Capitoline Museums stood. Heading inside the building known as Palazzo dei Conservatori, they took in the various collections as they made their way up to the second floor where the main attraction they were looking for was displayed.
"…I'm guessing this is part of a myth, right?" questioned Ember, looking at Danny with a deadpan look while Danielle stared at the sculpture with a blank look.
Danny nodded. "This is the Capitoline Wolf and the two children under her are the twin brothers Romulus and Remus. According to the myth, the twins were cast into the Tiber River after their grandfather, King Numitor was overthrown from his throne. Luckily for the twins, they were rescued by a she-wolf who then cared for them until they were found and raised by a herdsman named Faustulus."
"So how is this important to Rome's history?" asked Danielle, turning to look at Danny.
"Part of the myth says that Romulus and Remus are the founders of Rome. Unfortunately they didn't see eye to eye on where to build the city and Romulus killed Remus as a result," explained Danny with a slight scowl.
"B-But they were family," stuttered out Danielle, fidgeting. The idea of someone hurting their family reminded her too much of Vlad and what he tried to do to her. She quickly latched onto Danny with a hug, to which he hugged her back and it immediately calmed her.
"That was just how things were in ancient times, Danielle," replied Danny, rubbing her back to keep her calm. "If it makes you feel better, it's just a myth, so it's most likely not real and never happened."
"That Ares guy was supposed to be just a myth and he was real," stated the ghostling with a frown.
"True, but the Romans just took the Greek myths as their own and just changed the names and there was no Greek counterpart to Romulus and Remus."
"Really?"
"Really. Greek myths have always been more trustworthy than the Roman ones," said Danny with a reassuring smile.
That seemed to do the trick as Danielle felt a bit better now. They continued to look at a few more exhibits before stopping by the gift shop where Danielle got a plushy wolf dressed like a gladiator and then heading out to the next landmark. As they stepped back out into the Piazza, though, Danny's ghost sense went off.
"Why can't we catch a break?!" demanded Ember, ready to throttle whoever was trying to take her Baby-Pop away this time.
"Welcome to me half-life," replied Danny in a deadpan tone as he transformed.
He then flew towards where he could hear screams for help. Arriving on the scene, he saw two gladiator ghosts terrorizing the citizens.
"Look at all of these weaklings!" declared Gladiator Goon 1 with a sneer. "None of them are worthy for our chariot race!"
"I know. Maximus will be very displeased if we can't find him a suitable warrior for the race," replied Gladiator Goon 2 with a frown.
Just as the two were about to cause more terror, they got blasted away by the visiting Phantom.
"I don't know about this chariot race you guys are planning, but if it involves hurting innocent people, I'm going to have to stop you right there," stated Danny, not in the mood right now for any quips. He just wanted to get rid of these guys and get back to Ember and Danielle.
The gladiators got up and stared at Danny, shocked that someone was actually fighting back.
"Is this boy serious?" demanded Gladiator Goon 2.
"It looks that way," said Gladiator Goon 1. He then grinned. "Looks like we found someone worthy for the chariot race!"
Wasting no time, the gladiators flew towards Danny, ready to take him to their boss. Too bad for them that Danny had no plans of going with them. The boy flew over their heads and blasted them into the ground with a couple of ecto blasts.
"Somehow I'm not surprised that, that worked," said Danny as he watched the gladiators struggle.
Growls came from the gladiators as they glared at Danny. At this point, they didn't care if this boy was worthy for the races. They wanted him to suffer. Once more they tried to charge after Danny, but this would be their downfall as they were immediately frozen in a chunk of ice. With his opponents now incapacitated, Danny used his ice powers to create a large golf club to which he then took aim.
"Fore!" called the boy as he swung the club and hit the ice ball prison. He watched the gladiator goons fly through the air and eventually land in the Colosseum. "Oh look, a hole in one. Looks like I just won a free game."
Ember could only roll her eyes at the smirk on Danny's face before she gave him a slight glare with her hands on her hips. "Okay, Baby-Pop. Why didn't you trap those dipsticks in the Thermos?"
"It wouldn't have solved the main problem," replied Danny, turning to his girl. "They mentioned something about a ghost by the name of Maximus and some chariot race he's holding. By sending his goons back to him, it shows that someone out there is opposing him and he is the way I think he is, he'll accept the challenge and come for me."
"…You do realize that this could more than likely blow up in your face, right?"
"That's a risk I'm willing to take. In all honesty, though, if those gladiators are anything to go by, their boss won't be any smarter."
This only made the fiery girl let out a sigh. "I hope you're right, Baby-Pop."
Danny hoped he was, too.
-:-
Back at the Colosseum, Maximus stared at the large chunk of ice that crash landed in front of him with wide eyes before he noticed that two of his men were trapped inside. Raising up his fist, he punched the ice and shattered it, freeing his men.
"What happened?!" demanded the gladiator boss, looking at his men with a narrowed look. "Why were you two trapped in ice?!"
"We're sorry, Maximus! We were looking for someone worthy of your chariot race," started Gladiator Goon 1.
"But we ran into a boy who gave a trouble," finished Gladiator Goon 2.
"A boy?" questioned the confused gladiator boss.
"We believe the boy might be the one you seek for the races, seeing as how he defeated us so easily," replied Gladiator Goon 2, he and his partner grimacing at having to admit that they were defeated by a child.
Maximus hummed in thought before he looked back at his men. "Go back out there and bring this boy back to me! I, Maximus, wish to see for myself how strong this boy is!"
Not wanting to let their boss down, the two goons flew off to find the boy.
-:-
The sound of rushing water mixed with the voices of various locals and tourists visiting the Trevi Fountain as the ghostly trio arrived.
"Wow, this fountain looks bigger than the one we saw in Paris!" squeaked out Danielle as she took in the sight.
"The Trevi Fountain is the biggest fountain in Rome, standing eighty-six feet tall and one hundred sixty-one feet wide," explained Danny.
"Does that mean it's the largest in the world?" asked the ghostling looking up Danny.
Danny went into thought. "I think so, at least in terms of actual structure. The tallest fountain, in terms of how high the water goes, would be the King Fahd's Fountain in Saudi Arabia."
"So who's the big guy standing in the middle there?" asked Ember, pointing at the main statue of the fountain.
"That would be the Titan Oceanus. Fitting for a fountain since he was the embodiment of the oceans and rivers," said Danny. "It's also fitting because the fountain is part of the Roman aqueducts, which provide the city with pure, clean drinking water."
As Danny and Ember continued talking about the fountain's history, Danielle took a closer look at the pool and her eyes widened by what she saw.
"There's a bunch of coins in here!" she exclaimed, gaining the teens' attention.
"Hm? Oh yeah, people are allowed to throw coins into the fountain," stated Danny. "It's supposed to bring good luck to those who do so and legend also says that doing so will ensure that they'll return to Rome one day."
The little one glanced at the coins again before she looked back at Danny. "Can you make wishes here?"
"…I suppose you can make a wish when you toss in a coin," replied Danny, having a feeling what Danielle wanted.
With a deadly serious look, the child held out her hand towards her current guardian. "Gimme a coin."
This only made Danny roll his eyes before he reached into his pocket and pulled out a coin that he then handed to Danielle.
"You're spoiling her, Baby-Pop~" said Ember with an amused smirk.
"Eh, there's no harm in her making a wish. Besides, the city actually uses the coins from the fountain to help out the poor, so why not make the wish into a good deed," replied Danny, returning the smirk.
Before Danielle could toss in the coin…
"We've found you, boy!"
The ghostly trio looked up to see the two gladiator ghosts from before. With their arrival, everyone else started to scream and run away in fear.
"Now do you see why you should have just trapped them in the thermos?" questioned Ember, giving her boyfriend a narrowed look.
"Yes, dear," replied Danny with clear sarcasm, making Ember roll her eyes. He then glared at the gladiators. "You two really want to lose again, huh?"
The gladiators scowled. "That was a fluke!"
"You lost. Accept it, dipsticks," countered the rock diva.
Anger was rolling off of the gladiator ghosts. They would not allow this woman to insult them! They were about to divebomb their target when the little one spoke.
"I wish you two would go back to where you came from and leave us alone!" she exclaimed as she tossed her coin into the fountain.
"So you have wished it, so it shall be, little one."
Danielle blinked in confusion, but then her eyes widened in surprise when the two gladiators poofed out of existence.
"…What just happened?" questioned Danny, confused by what just happened.
"My wish worked!" squeaked out the little one, bouncing in excitement. "I wished those guys away and a lady's voice said it would happen! She sounded really pretty."
The teens looked at each other, both in shock and confusion.
"You don't think…?" started Danny.
"There's no way she's here," replied Ember. "She should still be in Amity Park. At least she better be."
They glanced around, wary of a possible unexpected guest. Not seeing anyone, they let out sighs of relief and could relax for a moment.
"Danny!" chirped Danielle, getting his attention. "Can I have another coin? I wanted to wish for a pet!"
"Sorry, Danielle, but it's one wish per visit around here," replied Danny, ruffling the now pouting ghostling's hair. Was it a lie? Definitely, but it was better than having to deal with a monkey or something worse.
"So what now, Baby-Pop?"
"Now? Now I think it's time we go visit the Colosseum and deal with our problem at its source," stated the Halfa with a look of determination on his face.
"About damn time! We should have dealt with these dipsticks the first time they made themselves known!" replied Ember, brandishing her guitar and ready to knock some heads.
With a destination in mind, the ghostly trio set out to the ancient arena to confront the ghost in charge.
-:-
Now Maximus was getting annoyed as he stood in front of his men, who suddenly appeared before him in a puff of smoke.
"What do you mean you were wished here?!" he demanded as he glared at them.
"I-It's as we said, Maximus. The child that was with the boy wished that we would leave them alone and the next thing we knew, we ended up back here," explained Gladiator Goon 2.
"We can't even go back to confront them because it feels like we can't leave this place now!" added Gladiator Goon 1.
Gritting his teeth in anger, Maximus planned on finding this boy and show him why you shouldn't mess with a gladiator.
"This transgression will not go unpunished, for I, Maximus, the greatest gladiator in all of Rome, will find this boy and make him wish he never crossed my path!"
Little did he know, Danny Phantom was just outside the Colosseum.
"You two ready?" asked Danny, looking at Ember and Danielle.
"You don't even have to ask, Baby-Pop. These dipsticks are going to regret messing with us," replied Ember with a feral grin.
"Let's go kick some butt!" exclaimed Danielle, pumping her fist in the air.
The three flew into the Colosseum, getting the attention of Maximus and his gladiators. Upon seeing the new arrivals, Maximus became furious.
"You!" exclaimed the gladiator boss, glaring specifically at Danny. He then turned to his men. "You didn't tell me it was HIM who was causing us problems!"
While the goons begged for mercy, Ember leaned over to whisper to Danny.
"You've dealt with this guy before, Baby-Pop?"
"Not that I know of. I don't recognize him whatsoever."
"You were the one who destroyed the Colosseum and most of the city when you defied Emperor Vlad!" yelled out Maximus, turning back to glare at Danny.
Ember had a blank look on her face as she turned to look at Danny, who was currently facepalming.
"Emperor Vlad?" she questioned.
With a sigh, Danny explained. "Back when I first met Frostbite, he gave me something called the Infi-map, which can show you the location of any natural Ghost Portal within the Ghost Zone. Apparently, some of these portal can take you to different time periods, too."
"And this is where it all goes downhill, isn't it?" questioned the fiery girl, already not liking where this was going.
"Yup. Vlad just had to get involved and steal the map, so I'm chasing him through time, essentially to get it back. One of the places we ended up was Ancient Rome, where the Romans thought Vlad as a god."
"Yes, because the Fruit Loop needed another reason to inflate his ego," said Ember, rolling her eyes. "You kicked his ass, right?"
"Not at that point. Our fight kinda caused a lot of collateral damage," stated Danny, rubbing the back of his head in embarrassment.
"And you will pay for that, boy!" declared Maximus, ready to throttle something.
But Danny ignored him for the moment. "That reminds me. That little trip through time was also where I learned how to wield a katana."
"Why would you need a katana in Ancient Rome?" questioned Ember, raising an eyebrow.
"After Rome, Vlad and I ended up in Ancient China, so I decided to go all samurai ninja on Vlad, complete with a cool ninja outfit," replied Danny with a slight grin.
Ember just rolled her eyes again. "I'll believe it when I see it, Baby-Pop."
"I'm sure I can convince Clockwork to give me a copy of the image," said the boy. He then gave Ember a smirk. "You know, I bet you'd look really good in a kunoichi outfit."
This caused the rock star to blush slightly. She's seen ninja movies before and what the female ninja in them wear, so the thought of her wearing one for her Baby-Pop while they kicked ass ninja-style…it wasn't that bad of a deal.
"I-I'll th-think about it, B-Baby-Pop," replied the blushing girl, causing Danny's smirk to become a slight grin.
"Uh, guys? Can you do the kissy face thing later? We still got a ghost to fight!" said Danielle, getting their attention.
This only made Maximus laugh. "You intend to fight me? I, Maximus, the greatest gladiator in all of Rome, will not fall and I will make sure you pay for your crimes, boy!"
"I've got a better idea!" called out Danny. "Your men mentioned something about a chariot race. How about we race to settle the score?"
Another bellowing laugh came from Maximus. "You think you can beat me?! Bring it on, boy! Men! Prepare the chariots!"
As the gladiators prepared for the race, the ghostly trio were coming up with a plan.
"I'm not the only one here who thinks this guy won't fight fair, right?" asked Ember, casting a narrowed look over her shoulder towards where Maximus was.
"No, I think that, too," said Danny, but he didn't look worried. "This is where you and Danielle come in, Ember."
"How?"
A devious grin appeared on the boy's face. "If they cheat, we cheat back."
Upon hearing this, Ember matched his grin with her own. "What do you have planned, Baby-Pop?"
Soon everything was set into place, with Danny and Maximus each standing in their respective chariots. Ghostly horses were harnessed to the chariots, ready to pull the racers around the Colosseum.
"I hope you're ready to lose, boy, for I, Maximus, the greatest gladiator in all of Rome will crush you in this race!" exclaimed the gladiator boss with a cocky grin.
But Danny just stared at him with a blank look before turning to where Ember was in the stands. "Does this guy remind you of Technus or the Box Ghost?"
"Glad I'm not the only one seeing it, Baby-Pop. Pop that ego of his by kicking his ass in this race!"
Maximus let out a growl of annoyance while Danny smirked at him. He would not let these brats get away with this disrespect. "Just start the race!"
At the signal, the two racers took off. Their horses galloped at high speeds, circling the Colosseum, as everyone else watched on. The gladiators frowned, while Ember and Danielle cheered as they watched Danny take the lead in the race.
"For someone who's supposed to be the greatest, you're not very good at racing, Maximus!" exclaimed the Halfa with a laugh.
With a growl, Maximus turned to his me and started barking orders. "Don't just stand there, you idiots! Slow him down!"
"Aye!" called out the gladiators.
They were about to fly after Danny, planning on taking him out for their boss, but were stopped when Ember flew in front of them with her guitar drawn.
"Move another inch and you'll have to deal with me," stated the rock diva, giving them a narrowed look.
The gladiators were silent as they looked at her before they burst into laughter.
"You think you can fight us?!" questioned one of the gladiators. "You're just a woman! What can you do?!"
The gladiators continued to laugh, missing the feral grin that made its way onto Ember's face. Girlish screams filled the air as Ember belted out beats and pain with the gladiators now desperately trying to escape her wrath.
"Now what were you dipsticks saying about what I can do?" asked Ember, her grin widening as she watched the gladiators cower.
Back with the racers, Danny was laughing his ass off as he witnessed his girlfriend kick ass. Maximus on the other hand was flabbergasted as to how his men failed so easily and to a woman of all people!
"This cannot be happening! I never lose!" yelled Maximus as he cracked the reins of his chariot to make his horses go faster. "I, Maximus, will not allow it!"
Danny and Maximus were now neck and neck as they were nearing the end of the final lap. Now that they were right next to each other, Maximus pulled out his whip and started using it on Danny.
Or he would have had a small black and white blur not swoop in to snatch it out his hand.
"You'd think that someone who claims to be the greatest wouldn't have to cheat to win," said Danielle with a narrowed look.
"Give that back!" demanded Maximus, glaring at the child and holding out his hand.
Instead, Danielle cracked the whip, aiming for one of the wheels on Maximus' chariot and snapping it off. With one less wheel, Maximus did everything he could to keep control of his chariot. Unfortunately for him, this allowed Danny to snatch victory away.
"You won, Danny!" chirped the ghostling as she gave Danny a hug.
"And I couldn't have done it without you and Ember, Danielle," replied Danny, patting the child on the head.
"You didn't win anything!" bellowed the irate gladiator boss, stomping his way towards the Phantoms. "You cheated!"
"In case you forgot, you were going to cheat first," replied Danny in a deadpan tone.
At this, Maximus looked smug. "That's because I make the rules around here!"
But Danny just rolled his eyes and brought out the Thermos. Maximus didn't stand a chance as Danny turned it on and trapped the surprised gladiator inside.
"I'm starting to think I should have just done that in the first place," stated the Halfa Hero as he capped the Thermos.
"Definitely would have saved us the trouble, Baby-Pop," replied Ember as she floated down to stand next to her man.
With the gladiators, they were in shock over witnessing their leader fall.
"H-How could they defeat Maximus so easily?" questioned Gladiator Goon 2, hoping he was just seeing things.
"We must avenge Maximus! Charge!" declared Gladiator Goon 1, now leading the gladiators.
The warriors let out a war cry, ready to attack the ones who took away their leader, but before they could make a move they were all electrocuted with ten thousand volts of spectral electricity. Danny and the girls were now on guard if a new enemy had appeared, but soon relaxed when it was revealed to be Walker's men with tasers.
"Secure the prisoners, men!" ordered Bullet.
"Aye, aye, sir!" exclaimed the Ghost Zone's police force as they spread out.
With the gladiators being arrested, Walker walked towards Danny and the girls.
"I wasn't expecting you to get me this many prisoners, punk. Keep this up and my prison will run out of room," stated Walker with a smirk.
But Danny just rolled his eyes. "Don't sound too disappointed, Walker. I've dealt with you long enough to know that the more prisoners you have, the more joy you feel."
"All the more reason to keep sending me prisoners," replied the warden, his smirk becoming an unsettling grin.
"Then here. The leader of this little group," said Danny as he released Maximus into Walker's custody.
The moment Maximus appeared, he was cuffed and hauled off with the rest of his men.
"Hey! I, Maximus, the greatest gladiator in all of Rome, does not deserve this kind of treatment! I challenge you to a chariot race to prove it!"
"Can it, punk, or else I'll put you in solitary confinement once we get to the prison," stated Walker, glaring at his captive.
'You'll do it anyway,' thought Danny and Ember as they watched the gladiators get taken away.
Once they were alone, Danny let out a sigh of relief. "I'm glad that's over."
"I'm just glad that it was easy for once," added Ember with a huff.
"So what do we do now?" asked Danielle.
"Now? Now we head back into the city and enjoy the rest of our stay until Ember's concert," replied Danny with a slight grin.
"Can we get something to eat? I'm hungry," said the ghostling, grimacing when her stomach growled.
"You're always hungry, Mini-Pop."
"I'm a growing girl," came the cheeky response.
"Don't get smart, Danielle," said Danny, giving the child a light bop to the head. "But I guess we could go and get some pizza, authentic Italian style."
The child's eye lit up at the thought of getting pizza. She was about to run on ahead, but was immediately scooped up and held under Danny's arm like a sack of potatoes once more.
"Sorry, Mini-Pop, but we don't need you getting lost," stated Ember with a giggle as she and Danny started making their way out of the Colosseum.
Danielle could only cross her arms and pout as she was being carried.
-:-
A few days later Ember held her concert in front of hundreds of Italian fans, getting a standing ovation and requests for encores by the end.
Once she was completely finished and thanked her fans for coming, she and the Phantoms decided it was time to board the bus and head to the next city on the tour.
"Wherever we end up, they won't be able to top this pizza!" exclaimed Danielle, ready to take a bite of one of the pizzas they got for the road.
Only for Ember to snatch it away from her and put it in the fridge, ignoring the distressed ghostling noises all the while.
"Sorry, Mini-Pop, but you already ate before we even left the city. You can have this for lunch tomorrow," said Ember with a firm tone.
This only made the pouting ghostling turn to Danny in the hopes that he would side with her and give her pizza.
"Sorry, Danielle, but Ember's right. You can't be eating all of the time. It's not healthy," explained Danny, just as firm.
Danielle let out a groan, unhappy that her cheesy saucy treat was taken from her. "That's not fair."
"You'll understand when you're older, Mini-Pop," replied Ember as she ran her hand through the child's hair to try and calm her down. "Now, it's time for bed, so go get changed and brush your teeth."
The little one muttered out objections, but did as she was told anyway. Once Danielle was gone, Ember took her seat next to Danny and leaned into him, with Danny placing his arms around her shoulders.
"I'm still amazed that she listens to you so easily," said Danny, glancing at his Dancing Flame.
"What can I say? I'm good with kids," replied Ember, jokingly. "But seriously though, I think it's mainly because of you, Baby-Pop."
But Danny just shook his head. "Nah. I don't think I have anything to do with it. I think it might be because she looks up to you that she listens to what you say."
Ember could feel her core get warmer. She never had someone look up to her before. Even when she teamed up with Youngblood it didn't feel like the brat took her seriously since he was too involved with his little pirate game.
As she snuggled up to her Baby-Pop, she silently renewed the vow she made so long ago to look out for and protect the child she's come to care for.
ROME END
-:-
With Maximus, I always planned on him being a breather villain since the previous villain, Ares, was a very strong and dangerous opponent. It's sort of like how in One Piece when Luffy fought Bellamy after Crocodile and Foxy after Enel.
Anyway, this story now has a TV Tropes page! Not only that, but this story apparently created a brand-new trope called "Musical Themed Naming", which at the time of writing this doesn't have a working page yet as the link is still red instead of blue.
I also got around to reading the new DP graphic novel and as I expected when I saw that Vlad and Dan would be part of it, it was disappointing. It was basically a fanfiction by someone who REALLY hated Phantom Planet and thought Vlad deserved redemption, even though in canon Vlad has had many opportunities for redemption but he was too arrogant, egotistical, and selfish to take it. It also erased Danny's secret identity reveal, so now Jack and Maddie once again no longer know that Danny is Danny Phantom and see him as an enemy instead of being the supportive parents they were shown to be when they did know. This also means that Danielle will never get her forever home like she would have gotten in a possible fourth season. And of course Sam remains as a writer's pet as by the end of the book she basically gets what she wants by becoming the main source of happiness in Danny's life now that the timeline was reset.
For all of the BS Butch Hartman has done over the years, his Ten Year Later concepts made a lot more sense and felt more like canon than this graphic novel does. So I highly recommend not reading the graphic novel.