The Land of Makers. Resolution to internal conflicts?

Crowfather:

The uncountable worlds in our universe and beyond swirl in an endless Abyss. Those that were ravaged by time or conflict are swallowed by the Abyss. Returned to the Nothingness from where they were born.

But others linger for eternity. On the brink of annihilation. That creation would one day be balanced by destruction.

And in the final moment of battle Death and the outworlders were sent to one such world. In the autumn of its life. Yet not far from the edge of Darkness.

Had Death and the outworlders been sent to their doom? That answer would lie in the Horseman's future…and his past.

XXX

Darkness. That was the only thing Rex was able to see. He didn't know if this was Hell or if he was kidnapped by Van Kliess and he was now in some secret laboratory or something. But there was one thing he was one hundred percent sure about…whatever was nudging him by his side, was really frickin' annoying.

Having enough of this annoyance, Rex opened his eyes to be greeted by clear blue skies, fresh air and…a gigantic bearded man starring down at him?

Startled by this Rex quickly scrambled to his feet and summoned his sword, which he pointed at the old man, whom he noticed was really tall.

"Calm yourself outworlder. You are in no danger. Yet…"-the man said in a wise and booming voice.

This was when Rex took a moment to examine the man's appearance further. Remember when I said the guy's tall? Scratch that! The guy is a frickin' giant, about the size of a small house for that matter. His large and wide body was covered in silver armor, with golden edges. His hands were like large balls with fingers. Most of his face was obscured by a large, white beard that was carefully braded, although the teen evo could still see the giant's glowing blue eyes, which weren't terrifying at all but rather calm and peaceful, unlike the frozen undead from before. From his helmet, two golden horns sprung up, forming a sort of semicircle. In his left hand he held a long metal staff with an impressive ornament at the end of it, which resembled his helmet.

This elderly giant seemed sincere in his words and Rex could clearly tell, but something he said at the end reignited the teen evo's sense of edge.

"Hold on gramps. You said I wasn't in any danger yet. What's that supposed to mean?"

"I will tell you, young one."-the giant spoke softly again-"But perhaps it would be wise if your friends could hear what I have to say as well."

Hearing this reminded Rex that his friends were still with him. He retracted his sword and turned to see that everyone was just getting back to their feet. Noticing that a certain bot was having some difficulty, Rex ran up to her and helped her up.

"Jen are you okay?"-Rex asked, with a modicum of concern in his voice.

Jenny's eye screens flickered through some random images for a few seconds, before returning back to normal.

"Y-yeah, I'm fine. Th-thanks Rex."-Jenny said as she shakily got up to her feet

"Ugh, did anyone get the number of the truck that just ran me over?"-Eddy groaned as he dizzily got up to his feet as well.

"I do not believe it was a truck that knocked us out Eddy."-Jack said as he steadied himself

"Sensei's right, you little dumbass."-Buttercup added as she started floating again-"We were sucked into a portal, remember?"

"What did you just call me, ya little shit?"-Eddy shot back as he glared at the glaring green powerpuff girl.

"Young Edward and Buttercup, please mind your language! You two are still too young for such words, and anyway you shouldn't be swearing at all."-Pearl chided the two bickering children, like a mother would her own kids.

"PEARL!"-said white gem was suddenly assaulted by a very happy Steven that latched onto her midsection-"You didn't poof like before! YAY!"

"Hey don't forget about us Steve-man!"-Amethyst interjected as she and Garnet stood on the side being themselves, just like Pearl.

Not wanting for his friends to be left out, Steven let go of Pearl and hugged the remaining gems as well.

Once everyone was up on their feet, Ben was the first to ask the question-"Okay so, where the heck are we right now? 'Cause last I remember we were in some weird and creepy snowland."

"Why don't we ask him?"-Rex suggested as he looked towards the giant elder, as did everyone else, with some mixed reactions.

"Whoa, you're huge!"-Steven said with wonder in his voice and stars in his eyes-"You're even bigger than Alexandrite!"

"Ahem, I do believe it is impolite to say somebody is 'huge' Steven."-Dexter said-"Some people could interpret it in a negative way."

Knowing the redhead genius was right Steven looked sheepishly at the old giant and said-"Oh, I'm sorry sir. I didn't mean to insult you or anything."

But instead of being angry or offended or both, the giant simply chuckled good heartedly and said-"It is quite alright young one. I know you meant nothing by what you have said."

Steven smiled and felt relieved that he didn't insult anyone by accident, and Rex took this as his que to step forward and speak-"Alright everyone's awake. Now are you gonna start telling us what we need to know?"

'Hopefully this guy won't be like the last guy we met.'-Prohyas thought-'Hey where is that scythe guy anyway?'

The giant elder began speaking as he turned to look at a certain spot on the ground:

"I will, but I believe I said I will give you answers when everyone is awake. And this one is just about to rise again."

Looking towards where the giant was pointing towards, the heroes saw the body of the pale stranger, who killed the Crowfather, their only means of getting back to Earth. Remembering that little nugget of detail everyone bore an angry, or at the very least upset look, but refrained from saying anything. At least until they find out where are they now and how will they get out of this mess.

The stranger was stirring as the giant reached with his left index finger towards the right side of the warrior's chest, where the broken fragments of the green amulet lay imbedded.

The scythe wielder's eyes finally opened and after getting his focus back together again, he was treated to the sight of the elder giant's bearded face.

"Be still horseman, for you are wounded."-as he said that the giant's finger touched the fragments, causing a small burst of green miasma to puff out and onto his finger.

The warrior then scrambled onto his feet and glared at the elder-"Don't touch me."-he warned, as the giant finished examining the miasma, then began making his way to a nearby statue and spoke.

"Your arrival here is a bad omen. Yes…troubles me greatly…"-the elder said ominously, which didn't bode well for the heroes.

"Old one!"-the horseman addressed the giant, who still had his back to him-"There will be more trouble ahead if you don't start making some sense. Where is the Tree of Life?"

"Life?"-the giant asked then chuckled bitterly as he began explaining-"This world is dying lad. Chocking on chaos and corruption. We can do little to stop it. Soon the great tree too shall fall and with it the last of my people. Is this not what brought you here pale rider?"

This took the heroes by surprise, for it would appear even other worlds had certain issues. Go figure.

"Well…"-Blossom began-"If it's that bad than shouldn't we help?"

"Off course we should."-Rex spoke up with determination-"We're heroes. Helping people is kinda our thing."

"I am only here for the Tree."-the rider interjected, getting everyone's attention-"This chaos and corruption is of no concern to me."

"Uhhh…m-mister…"-Steven said as he shakily pointed to something behind the warrior.

"What in Heaven's name is THAT?!"-Double D asked as he also pointed behind the warrior.

The horseman turned around and saw what could only be described as a mass of writhing black tentacles coming out of the ground, surrounded by a sickly yellow aura. The tentacles, which looked shiny and oily like some kind of living liquid, began pulling large rocks together and formed a literal stone body, with a few additional stones forming a club in its right hand.

All the warrior did was sigh in annoyance before unsheathing his twin scythes and zoomed forward, appearing behind the corrupted construct. A few seconds later the stone body of the construct exploded and the dark corruption sunk back into the ground.

The warrior turned towards the heroes and was about to say something before multiple tentacled black puddles emerged all around them, each turning into a stone construct. Shortly after a blue transparent dome of energy surrounded them and the elder spoke once again:

"It will be your concern soon enough rider."

The heroes looked around and prepared themselves for a new battle.

"Alright guys."-Ben said as he activated the Omnitrix-"I guess we're doing this. Now let's play fair here, there's plenty of these guys for everyone."

"Okay, but just make sure none of that black liquid gets on you."-Blossom ordered.

"Blossom is right."-Jack added as he drew his katana-"Until we know for sure what we are dealing with stay away from the black liquid."

"Pfft, don't have to tell me twice mister Jack."-Juniper said getting ready to attack-"My clothes are already ruined by that wolf monster. No way I'm gonna stain them with that stuff."

"Then I guess-"-Ben began as he was ready to slam down the Omnitrix's faceplate-"IT'S HERO TIME!"

And with that there was a green flash of light and Ben turned into a large, robust white creature, with small stocky legs and huge thick hands—similar to the elder giant's. It also had a series of yellow plates on its hands, legs and running down its black back. The creature also had a pair of yellow eyes and a wide mouth on its chest. After the transformation was done, Ben's new form shouted:

"Cannonbolt! Alright let's rock and roll!"-and with that this new alien, Cannonbolt, rolled into a literal yellow ball and shot forward, destroying the first construct.

"Pfft, show off."-Rex said as he brought a pair of dark blue appendages, which had glowing, ball like ends, which he swung at the other constructs, like a pair of mechanical maces.

"Really Ben?!"-Jenny asked as she uppercut a corrupted construct-"'Rock and roll' while using Cannonbolt?! *blast another* That's the lamest pun I've heard so far!"

"Oh good, 'cause I thought I was the only one to think that."-Vamber added as she used her Frogmissile Magisword against a group of approaching constructs.

Cannonbolt stopped rolling after another minute and after uncurling himself he said-"Aw c'mon guys, that was one of my best ones!"-he said then backhanded one of the constructs without even looking.

The stranger was hard at work as well, slicing one construct after another with his scythes.-"Is this really something to be discussed at a time like this?!"

One of the corrupted golems was trying to sneak up behind him, but Bubbles blasted it to bits using her laser eye beams.-"Oh don't worry mister, that's just how Ben usually is."

"Indeed."-Jack said as he was using his sword to defend himself against one of the golems-"Although I must agree with you warrior, now is not the time for such-"

The samurai's momentary distraction allowed the opposing construct to slam its club into him and launching him several feet away, before landing on the ground. Jack only had a moment to recover, before the construct ran over to him and was about to bring its club down on him. But the samurai had the better experience, and he swung his sword in an ark to deflect the stone weapon, and then he quickly got back up to his feet. Afterwards he stabbed his sword into the stone golem, through an opening at its chest area.

For a moment the construct just froze in place, then its stone shell fell apart and instead of sinking back into the ground, the black blob of corruption simply solidified, before shriveling into dust. This caught Jack by surprise, as he had no idea if this was something common with this substance when it's defeated, or if it was because of his sword.

His victory was also noticed by the giant as well, who stroke his beard in thought.-"Hmm, interesting…"

After that the last construct was destroyed by Buttercup's eyebeams and the battle was over.

"YEAH! You guys did it again!"-Steven was the first to proclaim their victory, not noticing that the barrier disappeared.

"I could have handled it myself."-the stranger said as he replaced his scythes onto his belt.

"Sure you could have buddy."-Rex said sarcastically, as he retracted his weapons.

"You fight well, all of you."-the giant spoke once again, getting everyone's attention-"But this Corruption cannot be defeated by a blade, brute force or whatever abilities you all may yield."

"Oh yeah? Well then check again grandpa, 'cause we just beat those chumps with our 'abilities'."-Buttercup said with a little too much arrogance for my taste.

"Buttercup!"-Blossom chided her sister, but the elder spoke up again, before she could say anything else.

"All you have done is defeat the constructs it made child, but not the corruption itself."-if the giant was offended by what the green powerpuff said earlier he didn't show it-"Now go and seek out the Forge Sister, ask her about the Fire in the Mountain. Help her and she will help you reach the tree. As for me, I must return to my work."

Well this wasn't what the heroes wanted to hear at all. They wanted to know where they were and how to get back to their world. Instead this old giant told them to find some girl and ask her about some volcano or something. This clearly wasn't what they wanted.

"And who are you to command a rider?"-the stranger suddenly demanded, obviously referring to himself, and while the heroes didn't really like his attitude, this might be a good chance to know more about the giant.

"My name is Eideard and I am a Maker."-the giant proclaimed-"Older than even the Charred Council. These hands once laid the foundations of many worlds. Now they but hardly know the touch of stone."

"WAIT!"-Dexter suddenly shouted, getting everyone's attention, including Eideard's, to whom he spoke to-"Let me see if I understand this correctly: you, Mr. Eideard, are telling me that you are the one who literally creates planets, as well as create the right atmospheric conditions for them, the correct plant- and wildlife, and quite frankly the appropriate living conditions for each planet?"

The level of amusement dripping from Dexter's voice as he asked that long and worded question was enough to fill a bucket. While most of the heroes didn't really understand most of what the boy genius asked, some like Blossom, Jack and even Double D didn't really approve of the tone of voice he used. Surprisingly though Eideard wasn't insulted at all by Dexter's question, or if he was he hid it quite well.

"As a Maker it is my duty to simply lay the stone foundations of every world."-Eideard calmly explained-"We are not responsible for what grows on these worlds. Only time and Fate decide that. Although I can understand why you would doubt my words young one. For your world is one of many that are born on their own, without the aid of a Maker."

"Hey hold on a second."-Juniper interjected-"How do you know about our world?"

"As a Maker it is my duty to have knowledge of as many worlds as possible, even those that aren't made by us, young Te Xuan Ze."

Though the answer seemed a little too vague for her taste, it almost didn't surprise Juniper at all that some magical creature from another world would know what she is. She met people like this before.

Although after a few more seconds of silence, Dexter spoke up once again-"Well forgive me if I still do not believe what you are saying. As a man of science I would need some proof before I take your word at face value."

"Pfft, since when are you a man, shrimp?"-Eddy said, not being able to resist the opportunity to dis Dexter.

"Oh, oh, maybe Dexter's a man who's mind was put into the body of a kid."-Ed added-"Just like in the comic book 'My mind in the body of a kid'."

"Oh be quiet you two."-Dexter told the two dumb Eds.

Shaking his head with an annoyed sigh, the stranger spoke once again, changing the subject in order to move along-"Aren't you curious as to why I or a group of outworlders seek the Tree Old One?"

"I believe it to be obvious why the outworlders seek the Tree."-the old Maker responded-"And I would not dare to question one of the Four. But please tell me."

"I would use its power to restore humanity and redeem my brother War."-the stranger gave his answer, something which the heroes still didn't fully understand.

"Heaven and Hell clash upon the Shattered Earth."-Eideard told the rider-"All of Creation trembles. And in the center of this storm stands your brother."

"He is innocent."-the stranger said, with a clear edge on his voice.

"I never said he wasn't."-Eideard said, setting the heroes at ease, since they thought he'd end up like the Crowfather after he made a jab at the stranger's brother as well-"The Tree holds unimaginable power and if restoring humanity is what you seek rider, than you are headed in the right direction. Be warned though. A dark presence dwells within the Tree, so you and the outworlders best watch yourselves."

The stranger simply grunted and began walking in a chosen direction, but not before Eideard spoke up once more:

"One more thing horseman."-this prompted the stranger to sigh in annoyance and turn to look at the Maker-"Your fate and the fate of the outworlders' are now intertwined. Therefor you mustn't leave the outworlders behind and they must never leave you side either."

"I do not need their help in my journey Old One."-the stranger protested.

"And after the stunt he pulled earlier, we sure as hell don't need him on our team."-Rex added.

"Be that as it may, your goals are the same, your destinations are the same."-Eideard reasoned, first addressing the stranger-"The outworlders, despite their vast abilities, would not survive in this world or any other on their own, especially with this Corruption out and about. They need someone to guide and teach them of what lies beyond the borders of their realm."-then the old Maker turned to address the heroes-"And all of you must stand by the horseman's side as well. For soon he will face a great challenge, which he alone will not be able to surpass. He will need your aid, whether he admits it or not. And now, I must be on my way. Good luck to all of you."

And with that Eideard began walking away, using his scepter as a walking stick.

With that done the stranger simply shook his head in annoyance and kept walking in his intended direction. An act which didn't go unnoticed by the heroes.

"Hey dude! Didn't you hear that Eideard guy?"-Ben spoke up-"We're supposed to stick together and stuff."

"And as I have said shape shifter,"-the stranger shot back-"I do not require your aid in my quest."

"Hey, I have a name y'know, asshole!"-Ben retorted, starting to get fed up with the stranger's attitude.

The stranger stopped walking and slapped his sides with his hands in exasperation, then turned to address the alien hero-"Then praytell, what is your name shape shifter?"

From the tone of voice the stranger used, he was obviously being sarcastic, but Ben looked at Rex, Jenny, the Crystal Gems and some of the other heroes and by simply exchanging looks, they decided to humor the stranger with an answer anyway.

"Well, my name is Ben Tennyson, but you can call me Ben Ten if ya want."

"Name's Rex Salazar, but folks from back home call me Generator Rex."

"My name's XJ9, but I usually go by Jenny Wakeman, hero robot girl from Tremorton."

"I am Dexter, boy genius, and inventor of the device that brought us all here."

"I'm Blossom."

"Name's Buttercup."

"And I am Bubbles. And together we are-"

Together-"The Powerpuff Girls!"

"Hey duder, my name's Prohyas Warrior."

"And I am his older sister Vamber Warrior. And together we are the Warriors for Hire."

"I am known as Samurai Jack back home, warrior."

"Hey there, my name is Steven Universe and these are my friends, the Crystal Gems: Pearl, Amethyst and Garnet."

"Uhm, Steven? Thank you for introducing us, but I'm quite sure we could have done it ourselves."-Pearl told the young half gem.

"Yeah Steven."-Amethyst added-"I was gonna do an awesome shape shifting and some tricks with my whips and everything."

"Oh, sorry guys."-Steven said, realizing that he had gotten a little too excited with the introductions.

"It's alright Steven, we know you only meant well."-Garnet said reassuringly.

"Anyway, getting back on track here, my name's Marco Diaz, and I…uh…know…karate…yeah…"

"And I'm Star Butterfly, Marco's best friend ever, and a maaaagical princess from anooother dimension."-as she said this, Star made a mini rainbow behind herself…which then ignited into flames…somehow…I don't know guys, cartoon logic is just weird.

"Hey, my names Juniper Lee and I'm the Te Xuan Ze, meaning I'm the protector of magic back at home."

"Yo, name's Yumi."-the Asian rockstar said, acting cool

"And my name is Ami. The two of us form the Puffy AmiYumi rock band!"-the second Asian rockstar said with a more cheerful tone

"What's up pal? I'm Woody Woodpecker. I like looong naps on the beach, breakfast in bed and-"-Woody was suddenly interrupted by Eddy pushing him away.

"Name's Eddy, and with my two associates here, Ed and Double D we are-"-he did a backflip and landed on his two friends and stood on their heads-"-the Amaaaazing Eds!"

This was followed by an intense silence, to which Eddy asked-"What?"-and the stranger then spoke up again.

"I was speaking sarcastically. Or is your realm devoid of such a thing?"

"Nah, but we figured you oughta know our names, since we'll be stuck together for a while."-Rex answered-"Now it's your turn buddy. Give us your name."

"Ugh!"-the stranger sighed in exasperation and turned around and was about to walk away, but stopped and after a few seconds of silence, he spoke once again-"Death…my name is Death."

Well this definitely threw the heroes for a loop. They expected to hear an unusual name, perhaps a name that would be very difficult to pronounce, but they never expected the stranger to request to being called 'Death'.

"Uh, is that like a nickname, or a Facebook user name or-"-Woody's questioning was interrupted by the stranger.

"No. I go by many names and titles, but I am usually known by my own name. Death."

"Sooo, does that mean you're like the Grim Reaper or something?"-Star wondered

"But Star that can't be right."-Bubbles told her fellow blond-"My friend Mandy from school told me her best friend is the Grim Reaper. I even saw him myself, and he looks nothing like this man."

"Bubbles is right."-Jenny added-"I've seen this 'Grim' guy myself a couple of times when I went to visit Megaville, and he was a literal skeleton wearing a black cloak."

"A servant."-the stranger, Death said, gaining everyone's attention-"While I am responsible for reaping the souls of the living, I cannot be in every place, in all of Creation, at the same time. So I was given permission by the Council to create servants of my own for this task. They are simple, lesser Reapers, and the one you are speaking of must be one of them. There is only one Grim Reaper in all of Creation, and that is me."

Well, this certainly explained a few things; such as the man's negative attitude and tendency to kill. And with the way Grim behaves back on Earth, compared to what they've seen the stranger do, made his word more believable.

However, just because they were stuck with Death itself, didn't make the heroes thrilled in anyway. Death was the one thing they were against, because it went against all of their principles and morals as heroes. They believed that death should only be an absolute last resort to be used against an enemy.

Believing this answer was satisfying enough, Death turned and started walk-

"I KNEW IT!"-okay, so not everyone was uncomfortable with being with Death, as Ed was a living proof of this-"I knew he looked familiar guys! He is the character from my 'Darksiders' comic books."

While everyone was astonished about how excited Ed looked, the big lug simply took out the comic book he had with him earlier plus a pen—a very dirty and crusty pen—and ran up to the pale horseman, to which he presented the two items.

"Can I have your autograph please sir?"-Ed asked innocently

While everyone was expecting the reaper to decapitate the gullible Ed-boy, the horseman instead sighed, shook his head in annoyance and continued walking.

Everyone released a sigh of relief and started following the pale rider, although at a moderate distance. As they did, Eddy slapped Ed upside the head and began scolding the big lump:

"Ed you big idiot. Don't ever do that again."

"Eddy is right Ed."-Double D added-"That man just confessed that he is death itself. He could have ended your life right there if you weren't careful enough."

"But guuuuys, autograph."-Ed whined, which caused both smarter Eds to facepalm.

Ignoring the bickering and whining Eds Death kept going until he happened upon the mouth of a very large, hollow log. Seeing the faint outlines of structures on the other end of the log, Death decided to go through it, the heroes following behind.

Once the horseman and the heroes reached the other side, they were greeted by an interesting site.

They saw a very large stone settlement, comprised mostly of old, or rather ancient, stone buildings. Before them stood a stone path. On one end there was a massive mountain. At the foot of the mountain a large face was carved from stone, the mouth of which was a large wooden door. On both sides of the stone face were two stone structures. Above these two structures, carved into higher sections of the mountain were two symbols; on the left was a glowing orange symbol which might be representing fire, while on the right side there was a dark blue symbol which could be representing water.

On the other side of the stone path—the one where they were at—was a very large stone wall, which had a pair of stairs going down from each of its sides. The stairs led down to what appeared to be an arena with a bunch of thick wooden pillars dotting it. Striking these pillars was another Maker, although this one was remarkably different from Eideard.

For one this one's beard and hair weren't white, but reddish brown, meaning he must be, at least a little bit, younger than Eideard. The maker was covered head to toe in dark grey and black armor, which looked strong and sturdy, and he also had a long red cloth wrapped around his neck, like a scarf. In his right hand he wielded a massive battle axe, which looked like it could even cut a skyscraper in half. In fact Ben was sure that this maker might be capable of cutting Vilgax's own ship in half with that thing without even breaking a sweat.

Realizing that he has guests the maker stopped what he was doing and turned to address the new arrivals. At first he was surprised to see a bunch of humans, a robot and a bird standing before him, but upon laying his eyes on the sole horseman of the group, his surprise faded away and he addressed the rider before him:

"Ah the Reaper. It's about time you came."-he spoke in a deep voice which reminded the heroes of a scottish accent *that's what I think anyway, please feel free to correct me if you guys think I'm wrong*-"The Makers are dying, as well as our realm. We few are all that remain."

"A warrior's life is never easy Old One."-Death told the warrior Maker.

"Aye, not easy, yet simple."-the Maker said, as he spat on the blade of his axe and began shinning it-"I always saw my end with blade in hand, with a field of enemies dead before me."

This surprised the heroes, because they have never met anyone who would even think about picturing their own deaths. Well that is, except for a certain samurai, who knew what this Maker was talking about.

"Uhm, excuse me sir?"-Ami spoke up, drawing the giant's attention to her-"But why would you want to die? Wouldn't it be better to live instead?"

"I would not expect ye to understand my words lass."-the Maker said-"Ye look like a barmaid than a warrior."

That comment left Ami with wide eyes and a hanging mouth, while Yumi and Buttercup started laughing like crazy. It was then that Jack decided to intervene.

"As warriors we are always ready to give our lives in battle for either the good of our people or the good of our loved ones. There is no shame in not being aware of such things Ami-san."

This put Ami somewhat at ease, though she is still rather miffed inside about the whole 'barmaid' comment.

"And what glorious end awaits you hiding behind these walls Maker?"-Death asked the giant warrior.

Realizing the horseman's sarcasm, the Maker sighed and began explaining:

"Ye cannot fight Corruption, nor can ye even harm it. You can only kill those it has already taken. So every strike I make against Corruption is a blow against my own people. Muse on that rider before ye mark me as a coward."

Realizing what the Maker was saying, Jack decided to add his own twenty cents-"It takes great strength to take a life. But it takes even more strength to spare one. You may not be able to fight this Corruption, but by fighting and destroying its vessels, you may bless your people with an honorable death. Is that not worth more than the existence they now have warrior?"

Jack's words seemed to have had quite an impact, because the axe wielding Maker was silent for a moment, before he spoke once again-"Aye, ye may be right human. No one deserves to live as a puppet of Corruption. You've got quite the heart for a human, ye know. I like that. Name's Thane by the way."

Knowing that he had gained the Maker's trust—or was in the process of doing so—Jack followed up by giving his own name-"My name is Samurai Jack."

"Huh, I think you and I will get along just fine Samurai Jack."-Thane said, then addressed the horseman-"Ye see Horseman? There is no shame in being polite. Ye could stand to learn a few things from this warrior *points to Jack with his axe*."

Death simply shook his head, then turned and began walking to the other side of the stone walkway. The rest of the heroes followed suit, leaving Thane to his training.

Once they have reached the other side of the walkway, Death turned to address the heroes-"Wait here. I will be back shortly."-the heroes were about to retort, but the executioner would have none of that-"No words, just stay here."

And with that the Horseman began walking towards the stone dome on left, where the sounds of metal being hammered could be heard.

Once he reached the top of the steps leading up to the dome, he was greeted by what could only be described as a forge, manned by two Makers; one was a male, with brown leather pants, a chest-plate armor and helmet, a very large gauntlet on his right hand while his left hand was uncovered, but was covered in black soot. The second Maker was surprisingly a female. She was very tall, like all other Makers, but she wasn't as bulky as the male Makers. She had flowing ginger hair, and was wearing a reddish brown corset-like outfit, with pieces of metal sewn here and there, she also wore a pair of gloves and metal greaves.

Upon realizing they have a guest, the female Maker turned to address Death, while the male Maker continued hammering something on an anvil, using his gauntlet as a hammer.

"Maker's beard, the rumors are true. A Horseman in the Forge Lands. The name's Alia and this is my brother Valus."-the female Maker said, once again in a thick Scottish accent-"We are the keepers of this forge. Though I reckon now it matters less than it did before."

"This is a Maker's Forge?"-Death asked in amusement, and with good reason. He heard stories of Maker's Forges being the places where the Makers would forge objects and weapons of great power, as well as the foundations of worlds. Seeing that a Maker's Forge is nothing more than a common forge, found at any blacksmith's shop, is greatly disappointing for the rider, but Alia was about to prove him wrong.

"Nay, the Maker's Forge is lost to us. Silenced by the hands of Corruption. But in its depths we crafted the Dark Towers of Hell and the Crystal Cities of Heaven."

"And now you make, what, trinkets?"-Death continued asking

"Hah, and you—one of the Four—now seeks the aid of the Makers?"-Alia countered, not appreciating the rider's mocking-"I guess we have all fallen from high places."

Realizing that mocking the Makers is getting him nowhere fast, Death decided to just get to the point-"I came here seeking the Tree and your elder speaks of some fire. What is it?"

"Ah yes, the Fire of the Mountain, the Stone Father's blood."-Alia answered, pride and vigor in her voice as she spoke-"It once flowed into our forge, as did the Tears. Both once imbued our crafts with incredible powers, the Heart and Soul of Stone. But Corruption has taken them both, and now our forge lies silent."

"And why should this concern me?"-Death asked, not understanding why forge resources would be any of his concern.

"The path to the Tree of Life is barred by Corruption."-Alia once again answered-"You can no more leave this place that we can Horseman. But if you restore our forge, then the Tree may yet be reached."

"I don't follow your reasoning Maker."-Death said, now understanding less than he did a second ago.

"We are makers, not warriors."-Alia said, deciding to elaborate a bit more-"But we are not without our weapons. Before Corruption took the Forge from us, we crafted a mighty creature of soul and stone. A colossus to fight Corruption. But to awaken it would require a Maker's Key, and without our Forge we cannot craft one. So will you help us rider?"

Now Death understood the situation. The Makers have a way to get to the Tree of Life, but it requires a special key, one which can only be made in the Maker's Forge. And since the Forge requires fire and now there isn't any, the key cannot be made.

"So if I were to bring this Fire of yours into the Forge, will you be able to make this key?"-Death asked, summarizing the whole situation.

"Yes we would Horseman, but only if you are willing to help us."-Alia answered.

Keeping silent for a moment, Death spoke once again-"Very well then. I will help you. Now tell me where can I find this fire?"

Death's answer caught Alia by surprise, as she did not expect one of the Four to help her and her people, but she wasn't going to squander this chance of salvation-"Really? You will help us? Oh thank the Stone Father. And to answer your question rider, you must go to the Cauldron to awaken the fire."

"And what is this…Cauldron?"-Death asked

"A temple, built in the shadow of Stone Father's Peek."-Alia answered-"From there the Fire of the Mountain was harnessed and passed into our forge. Ride east of town through the Charred Pass and towards the cindery peak of the Stone Father. There you will find the Cauldron."

Nodding in understanding, Death turned to leave, but Alia had one more question to ask.

"Wait a moment Horseman."-at this Death stopped but didn't turn to face the Maker-"The rumors in town say that you are being accompanied by a group of outworlders. A group of humans with incredible powers. So where are they rider?"

Death sighed in frustration, not wanting to start talking about his 'companions' and waste more time.

"That is none of your concern Maker."-and with that the Horseman left, leaving a confused and slightly miffed Alia behind, while Valus kept hammering away.

XXX

While Death was conversing with Alia…

The heroes stood at the foot of the steps, not quite appreciating Death's arrogant attitude towards them.

"Urgh, this sucks!"-Eddy yelled, kicking a pebble in frustration-"Why the hell does that bonehead get to order us around like he's the boss or something?"

"Uh perhaps 'cause he knows his way around and is the expert here? Don't tell me you're that stupid that you didn't figure that part out by now."-Yumi retorted, and when Eddy was about to counter Pearl spoke up.

"Even so, that still doesn't give him the right to be so…so…"

"Arrogant, high-and-mighty, hotheaded, all of the above?"-Ben added

"Yes. Thank you Ben."-Pearl said.

"Be that as it may, we are stranded in a world we know nothing about."-Jack said, trying to ease everyone's worry-"Right now our best chance of survival is to be by his side."

"And perhaps I should remind everyone of the fact that Mr. Eideard told us that this 'Tree of Life' thing is where we should be going too."-Dexter added.

"Y'know, you're handling this whole 'trapped in a world full of magical giants and monsters' thing pretty well Dexter."-Juniper remarked, to which the boy genius calmly responded.

"I still do not believe in 'magic' as you call it Juniper. I am a man of science and I know for certain there is a logical explanation for everything we have seen so far."

"Pfft, yeah, sure."-Buttercup said under her breath.

While everyone was talking about the situation they're in, Steven was a busy with his own worries.

The fact that the stranger had killed the Crowfather right before his eyes was worrying enough, but now that he and his friends knew he was the Grim Reaper itself was even more worrying. Out of all the heroes present, Steven was perhaps the one who resented killing most of all, mostly because he's a kid, but also because his mother believed that death is a fate undeserving to every creature, gem and organic alike.

His musings were cut short however, when he noticed a butterfly with glowing blue wings fly right up to his face. He thought it looked pretty, but he could hear a bizarre hum emanating from the butterfly and when it flew off, the young half gem couldn't stop himself from following it.

This action did not go unnoticed by a certain blue powerpuff.

"Hey Steven? Where are you going?"-Bubbles asked out loud, but seeing as Steven didn't respond, she decided to follow him.

Her question did garner the attention of Pearl however, and when she noticed Steven walking away, she immediately acted.

"Steven? Where are you going? Stop!"-the white gem quickly followed, and with that the rest of the heroes decided to follow them as well, to make sure they didn't run into any of those Corruption monsters again.

Steven wordlessly followed the glowing insect up a flight of stairs, which were sitting opposite of where Death went to and when he reached the top of the stairs he stopped. This gave the others plenty of time to catch up to the little half-gem.

"Hey Steven, why did you run off like that? And why did you even come up…here…?"-Ben's line of questioning stopped as he and everyone else saw what Steven was looking at.

Before them stood yet another Maker, but this one was a female. Her clothing consisted of dark or pale blue robes, along with some pieces of metal sewn in a few places, such as her shoulders and parts of her pants. She had a belt around her waist, which was filled with various pouches and a vile containing a glowing liquid. Her hair was silver-white and was braided—no surprise there. But what caught the heroes' attention the most was the blue cloth tied around her eyes, like a blindfold. She also had a very large and twisted piece of wood in her left hand, acting as both a staff of some sort and as a nest for some colorful little birds. Oh and the blue butterfly which Steven chased, was now resting on the right side of her head, looking like a hairclip.

As the heroes continued starring at this new Maker, they noticed—or more accurately speaking they began feeling a kind of calming aura coming from this one Maker alone. As if she was Mother Nature made flesh and simply being in her presence calmed them all down. This affected the gems as well, as they forgot themselves for a second and thought they saw their beloved leader standing before them, rather than the Maker. Even Dexter, the Eds and Woody were feeling a sense of peace, like they were newborns standing close their mothers.

"Greetings outworlders, and welcome to the Forge Lands."-the Maker spoke first, her voice as calming and as soothing as fresh morning dew and soft silk.

This off course snapped the heroes out of their stupor as they began collecting themselves.

"Oh uh…s-sorry ma'am…uh"-Ben started

"Yes, we're so sorry-"Blossom started, but was cut off by Double D.

"We didn't mean to barge into your-"

"It was my fault!"-Steven yelled, silencing everyone-"I was chasing after a butterfly and accidentally came here without knowing. I am so sorry Mrs. Maker, I didn't mean to disturb you. Hones-"

Steven abruptly stopped when the she-Maker simply raised her right hand in the universal sign of 'stop'. Then she spoke once again.

"You have done nothing wrong, young Halfling. For we have been expecting your arrival into our world for many moons."

Hearing this calmed Steven and the others down, but something that she said surprised both Steven and the gems, but Star spoke up before any of them could utter a word:

"Sooo, what's up with the blindfold old lady?"-this question earned her a glare and an elbow to the stomach by Marco, who said:

"Star don't call her that. And don't talk about her eyes either. She's obviously blind and it's not nice to-"

"Though my sight of what is physically standing before me is gone, I am able to see beyond what is material and physical."-knowing full well that the silence from the heroes meant they didn't understand shit, she decided to simplify her explanation-"Think of my sight as being able to see with a third eye from within my mind."

A collective 'ooohhh' soon followed…as well as Star saying-"Well why didn't ya just say so?"-which earned her another elbow to the stomach by Marco.

Deciding to move things along, Jack stepped forward and spoke-"We still wish to apologies for intruding into your sanctum Maker."

"I understand samurai."-the Maker gently said-"But instead of offering pointless accusations upon all of you, I can instead grant you answers to a question you are all wondering about."

The heroes all looked at each other, wondering what was the one thing they were collectively thinking about. Until Star's hand shot up and asked out loud-"Like what is your name?"-at this everyone turned to look at her with raised eyebrows and Star said-"What? Like you guys weren't thinking about that too."

At this the Maker simply said-"Well…I suppose that would be two questions."-at this everyone turned to look at her as she continued-"My own name is of no importance to any of you. I am but a shaman who's task is to provide comfort and wisdom to both Maker…and outworlder alike. But this is not what all of you are wondering."

Everyone went silent again, going deep into thought. Honestly the only question that all of them have rattling inside their brains is how to get back to Earth. But they had a feeling this might not be the question the Shaman was talking about either.

"It is the question of what this Corruption is."-everyone turned to see none other than Death himself standing behind them, having solved their little 'riddle'.

"Ah, greetings to you as well Horseman."-the Shaman said calmly, not at all deterred by Death's appearance.

"Hey."-Rex greeted the Horseman too before saying-"Look I know what you're gonna say and-"

"She was speaking about the Corruption."-Death said, interrupting the young evo-"She can tell that you are all wondering what it is. And so do I."

The Shaman took this as her que to speak and so she did-"I only know what I fear it to be. That Corruption is hatred given life and form. And this hatred does not come from tree or stone…but from ourselves. This Corruption dug deep into our world, and destroyed in mere days what took us centuries to create. Though Eideard and myself do our best to calm our surviving brethren, we all yearn for only one comfort…the embrace of Death."

This really got to the heroes. They figured the situation for this world would be bad, after hearing what Eideard and Thane said, but to hear from a shaman that everything has gotten so f*** up that they are now waiting for death to take them. This piece of information was truly a disheartening thing to hear, especially when you're a superhero.

And while most of the heroes didn't quite understand the whole Corruption-being-hatred-given-form thing, those that were well versed in magic—or at least had a basic grasp of it—could only imagine what this could mean. It would take some reeeeeally powerful and nasty magic to pull off something like this, as well as someone with unimaginable amounts of hatred. It would be at this point that Dexter would step in and say that there is a scientific explanation for this, but he decided to keep his mouth shut for once, as he and the heroes could practically sense the despair coming from the Shaman.

"You despair Old One…and yet you raise life from the earth still."-Death remarked, with the Shaman replying

"As I have said Horseman, I am a shaman, and I am still bound to this task even as our days grow darker. We are as the trees; root into the ground then grow and eventually decay, dropping seeds to begin anew. It is an endless cycle, one which I cannot stop…or you."

"It is a noble task Ms. Shaman."-Garnet remarked this time-"Keeping to your duty of helping your kind even on the brink of extinction."

"Yes."-the Shaman spoke, knowing full well where Garnet was heading with this-"A sentiment which I am sure your former leader shared as well."

Her words made Steven unconsciously lift his shirt up a bit, revealing his mother's pink gemstone lodged into his bellybutton. He looked at it sadly, knowing the Maker was right, and Pearl noticed this as well and smiled sadly:

"Yes…indeed she did…"

Realizing that they should probably get back on track, Marco was the one who took over the conversation:

"Ahem, uh…speaking of trees. Can you tell us a little bit more about the 'Tree of Life' please ma'am?"

Hearing the young hispanic's words the Shaman spoke once again:

"I'm afraid I cannot tell you much…only that the forest around the Tree has been corrupted. It hungers for more life to enter its domain…only to snuff it out. None of you can reach the Tree through all of that Corruption…at least not with breath still in you."

"Yeah speaking of which…"-Ben said, as he turned to address the Horseman-"Did ya talk to this 'Forge Sister' and did she give ya some pointers to get us to the Tree?"

Not entirely sure what the word 'pointers' might mean in this case, Death simply decided to tell them what he knew-"I spoke with the Maker known as Alia and she spoke of a fire that is to be reignited at a place called the Cauldron."

This caused most of the heroes to go wide eyed as they now had a solid starting point.

"Well, did she tell you where to find this Cauldron place?"-Jenny asked, hoping the rider would say 'yes'.

"Yes."-ooohhh called it guys!-"She gave me the directions to follow and we are to make haste for the Cauldron at once."-having said his peace Death turned to walk away.

"I would advise against that Horseman."-the Shaman said, causing Death to stop in his tracks and look back at her-"The sun is about to set soon, and Corruption becomes more violent when it is dark. So I advise you and your companions to stay for the night Horseman."

That's when the heroes noticed that the sky was indeed turning orange, indicating that night will soon be upon them. And not just that, they also noticed that they are now very tired. I mean, you would be too if you were vomited out of a transdimensional wormhole, forced to fight an army of skeletons, walk and climb in a frozen fortress, vomited out of another wormhole and forced into another world.

"She's right."-Rex said as he stretched his arms above his head-"After all the shit that's happened to us, I for one am pretty pooped out."

"Yeah same here *yawn*"-Star added-"Being in an adventure is fun and all, but taking a break is also not a bad idea."

"I believe we could all do for some rest for tonight."-Jack said, turning to then address the Reaper-"It would be unwise to march into battle tired and giving the enemy an edge against us."

Though everyone took what the samurai said as reason enough to rest, Death on the other hand didn't as he turned to walk away.

"Stay and rest if you so wish, but I will keep going until my goal is complete."

This definitely threw the heroes off, and some of them were beginning to lose their patience with this man's attitude.

"Hey! Dude c'mon! Eideard said we're supposed to stick together and-"

"And I do not care!"-Death said, interrupting Juniper's reasoning-"I do not need your aid and I will complete this task by myself."

Hearing this Jack was about to add his own argument, only to look to his left and see Rex clenching his hands into fists and shaking a bit.

Death kept going down the stairs believing that he made his point very clear. He was on a journey to free his brother from the Council's judgment, not sit around and wait for a bunch of mortals to get some rest. Time is of the essence.

However he was freed from his musings when a black metallic tentacle wrapped around his torso. The metallic appendage then pulled the rider back and he was slammed into the far wall of the stone dome. After he shook the shock away he looked to see Rex turning his right arm back to normal and glaring at him.

"Uh maybe you didn't get the memo old man, but we have to stay together. It's not optional."-Rex told the horseman, but his look and tone indicated that he was reaching the end of his patience.

This shocked the heroes since they rarely saw the evo hero loose his cool like this. Although some like Ben and Jenny understood why Rex was being like this.

After shaking some debree off of himself Death got back up to his feet and directed a glare of his own to the teen hero:

"I think not boy. I am here to free my brother from Oblivion, not to watch over you as you walk the fields."

"Yeah? Well you're gonna have to 'watch over us' whether you like it or not old man."-Rex countered.

Starting to get tired of this pointless argument, Death took a few steps forward until he was at arm's length with Rex.

"I am warning you for the last time boy: step aside right now, or I will-"

"Or you will what?"-Jenny suddenly asked as she placed an electric laser chainsaw to the horseman's throat, and looking at her the rider saw a fire of determination in the robot girl's eye screens-"Go on, do something stupid. I dare ya."

Death narrowed his eyes at the challenge before striking Jenny's abdomen then grabbing her chainsaw arm and flinging her at Rex, causing them both to slide on the ground.

"You okay?"-Rex asked as they both got up

"Yeah I'm good."-Jenny replied.

"Alright buddy, you asked for it!"-Ben suddenly said as he slammed down the Omnitrix.

Death shielded his eyes from the blinding green light and after it dissipated, the rider saw a humanoid plant creature standing in Ben's place. But this one wasn't the same as the one he saw before. For one this one has actual human legs and its entire body coloration was of a darker shade of green. Its head was also made up of black, red and yellow leaves that form a sort of firey pattern.

"Swampfire!"-the creature shouted in a deep, nasally voice-"Mess with my friends you mess with me ya bastard."

Swampfire then created two fireballs, one in each hand, and flung them at the horseman.

However the executioner simply tilted his body left and right and avoided the fire balls easily. Seeing this Swampfire shot a large wave of fire at him and at this the horseman pulled out his twin scythes, connected them and started spinning the singular weapon in front of himself like a propeller. When the wave of fire struck the rotating weapon it dispersed rapidly and…steam began coming out of the point of impact?

Seeing that this has no effect at all Swampfire stopped his attack, and Death stopped spinning his scythe. That was when Swampfire noticed that the blades of the scythe where coated in ice and that the runes on both blades where shining light blue.

'Must be some kind of magic mambo-jumbo. Urgh, if Gwen were here she'd probably get it better than I could.'-Ben thought as the runes changed back to their regular orange color and the ice melted away.

Seeing that long range wasn't gonna cut it, Swampfire ignited his fists and ran towards Death to try close quarters. The plant alien began sending punch after punch at the pale rider, but none of them even connected with the Horseman himself, and those that did were simply blocked. After knocking away another punch, Death shot his left hand forward and grabbed Swampfire by the throat and lifted him until his feet were dangling off the ground.

"I would prefer not to kill you boy, but I will if you don't step aside."-Death warned, to which Swampfire simply replied:

"Yeah sure, good luck with that pal."-and with that the plant alien swung his left leg up, striking the rider's chin and freeing himself from the Horseman's grasp.

Once he landed Swampfire ignited his hands once again and said-"Alright now let's see wha-"

But suddenly Ben went silent as Death moved so quickly no one would've seen him if they blinked, and the rider plunged his right scythe into Swampfire's abdomen, spilling green slime all over the ground.

"I am sorry,"-Death said as Swampfire leaned his upper body forward-"I have given you a chance to live and you squandered it."

Death then proceeded to pull his scythe out of the 'dead' alien but found the he couldn't move his arm for some reason. Looking down he saw Swampfire holding his right arm with both of his arms in a vice grip. Before the rider could wonder why this was happening, he suddenly felt metal hitting his masked face hard. That was because Rex had transformed his hands into his robot gauntlets and jumped forward to get the Horseman away from his friend.

And it showed, because Rex's punch sent Death skidding back a few feet, and when the rider looked up he saw that Swampfire was surprisingly still standing, but with his scythe still lodged in his body.

"You okay Ben?"-Rex asked, not taking his eyes off Death, while Swampfire simply stood up straight and pulled the weapon out.

"Yep, just peachy."-Swampfire responded, while the hole in his abdomen sealed itself up, surprising the rider greatly.

'An impressive healing ability.'-Death thought-'But is it his own, or does it belong to this form?'

The Horseman then directed his gaze towards to the one who managed to punch him as Rex spoke up:

"So now you're gonna start killing us, is that it?"

"I have given you a chance to stand aside boy, but instead you foolishly chose to stand in my way."-Death clarified calmly, but never letting his guard drop-"I will not allow anyone to prevent me from reaching my goal."

At this Rex began to laugh, as if Death had just told a joke, which surprised both Ben and everyone else. Then the evo teen spoke again:

"Oh yeah, you wanna go and 'save your brother'."-Rex said in an almost mocking tone, using his robot fingers to make air quots-"Yeah right. You know what I think? I think you're actually just using this whole 'save my brother' thing as an excuse to kill everyone around you."

At this everyone who wasn't fighting gasped at the blatant accusation Rex just made. Even Ben was starting to get worried as he saw the rider just standing there with a shadow cast over his eyes.

"Uh, Rex?"-the alien said-"I know we're not exactly on good terms with this guy, but do ya really think it's good idea to piss him off like this?"

"Look, I don't care if his feelings get hurt or something Ben!"-Rex suddenly said-"This guy is the Grim fucking Reaper! It's his JOB to kill people! And it's because of HIM that we are now-!"

Rex suddenly stopped as he felt the temperature suddenly drop to almost freezing levels. And it wasn't just him, everyone felt like they just stepped into a refrigerator. That was when Rex and Ben looked towards the Horseman and boy did they not like what they were seeing.

Death's gaze was fixated solely on Rex with so much fury in his eyes that Wrath the Furious himself would be shitting bricks. The rider then thrust his open hand forward and the scythe in Ben's hands flew right back to its rightful master. Once that was done Death wordlessly lunged towards the evo hero, completely ignoring both Jenny, who had been trying to sneak attack him this entire time, and Ben.

Seeing this Rex quickly put his gauntlets up to defend himself, but it was of no use, because Death's scythes cut right through the large metal hands, but fortunately their tips stopped just a few inches away from Rex's face. However the very force behind the attack made Rex drop to one knee and he was also struggling to keep the enraged Horseman at bay.

A green flash to the side later and Death was suddenly pulled back by Fourarms, giving Rex some breathing room.

"Rex! Are you okay?"-Jenny asked with concern as she helped Rex back up to his feet.

"Yeah, I'm good."-Rex replied as he looked through the whole on one of his hands and saw Ben still holding Death back, but just barely.

"Uhm, okay guys…"-Fourarms said as he struggled to maintain his hold on the executioner-"I think maybe we should stop now and-"

Ben stopped as Death thrust his head back, headbutting the alien in the nose, and forcing him to let go. Death then hooked his right scythe with Fourarms' ankle and pulled from right under him, making him fall. This was followed by a strong kick to the abdomen, which made the very strong and very sturdy alien hero fly into the stone wall, causing cracks to form and pieces to fall off.

Death the spun around and using his left scythe he sliced in half the electric laser chainsaw Jenny made on her left hand. The robot girl flinched as if she felt a slight bit of pain and looked at the damage done to her weapon.

"Oh man."-Jenny groaned-"My mom's gonna kill me if I ever get back home."

"Then you should have considered this before opposing me, construct."-Death harshly addressed Jenny.

Before Jenny could voice a rebuttal Death was on her once again, swinging his scythes at her, and Jenny only had enough time to bring up a holo-shield for protection, but even that was proving to be useless. After a few more swings Death kicked up the bottom part of Jenny's shield, forcing the robot girl to flail her arms and stumble back a few steps. That was when she saw Death swing his scythes down at her, ready to end her existence.

Jenny was ready to take the pain of death, but before she could a large robotic leg slammed into the rider's torso and masked face pushing him away from her.

Like before in the ice fortress, Death stuck his scythes into the ground to stop himself and once he did he looked up and glared at Generator Rex, whom the leg was attached to.

Shrinking down his mechanical legs Rex sent the rider his own glare:

"Y'know, I'm beginning to get really tired of your high-and-mighty attitude old man."

"And does it seem like I care about what you do or do not like boy?"-Death inquired as he straightened his posture-"My only concern is the salvation of my brother. Something I don't expect you or your companions to understand."

Having said his peace Death lunged forward and Rex brought up his sword to counter the Horseman.

Meanwhile, while the teen evo and Grim Reaper duked it out, Jenny was getting back to her feet and was about to get back into the fight, until she felt a hand grab her left arm. Looking back she saw that it was Jack who stopped her.

"Mr. Jack, what are you doing? I have to go and help Rex!"

"Jennifer if you get back in there you will only prolong this senseless conflict!"-said the samurai.

"But she and Rex have a good reason to fight sensei."-Buttercup interjected-"I mean that guy, Grim Reaper or not, is the reason we're in this mess. He killed that old guy, and he was supposed to send us back home. So don't you think it would be better to teach him a lesson?"

Before Jack could voice his opinion on this, Vambre addressed the green powerpuff-"Buttercup darling, listen. While I do enjoy a good tussle every now and again, this fight is pointless. We should be trying to get along with one another so that we could get back to our world more efficiently."

"I agree with Ms. Vambre on this one."-Blossom added

"Pfft, off course you would."-Buttercup said under her breath, although her pink sister did hear her.

"What is that supposed to mean Buttercup?"-see?

"Uh shouldn't we be fighting that Death guy instead of each other?"-Amethyst added her own two cents.

"Ugh, is violence the only solution you can ever think of?"-Dexter inquired

"So what, you've got a better idea shrimp?"-Eddy asked with a wicked grin on his face.

"WHAT DID YOU JUST CALL ME?!"-Dexter exploded in the short Ed boy's face.

And this is how some members of the group began arguing amongst themselves while the other half tried to quell the inner conflict and while Rex and Death continued their fight. While the shaman Maker stood silent and stoic on the sidelines, as if she was waiting for something, Steven looked nervously between the arguing group and the two fighters. The little half-gem was torn between trying to stop everybody from arguing amongst themselves and stopping the fight between the teen hero and the Horseman.

While it is true he didn't like how Death handled the situation with the Crowfather, that doesn't mean he wants to see his friends fight him. For one he could kill them – I mean he is the Grim Reaper – and the other reason is that Eideard told them that this Tree of Life thing could help them all. So really, there is no reason to fight.

With that in mind and a look of determination on his face, Steven made his move.

Meanwhile Death and Rex jumped back, putting some distance between themselves. Rex's clothes were a bit ruffed up and covered in some scratches but for the most part he was okay. Death was in a similar state, although he did have a few extra bruises on his body, but otherwise he still in good condition. Seeing the reaper still not backing down the teen evo pointed his sword at the second born Nephilim and said:

"Are you ready to throw in the towel yet?!"

Tightening the grip on his scythes Death directed a furious glare at Rex before standing up-"If you're asking whether or not I am giving up, than you should know the answer by now. I refuse to yield to anyone who stands in my way…especially to some filthy human!"

And with that Death lunged forward ready to end this fight, and Rex did the same, after turning the tip of his sword into a buzzsaw. Just as the two warriors were about to cut into each other a large pink dome appeared between them and stopped their respective weapons mid swing. After recovering from their initial shock, the two males – as well as everybody else – looked in surprise at seeing Steven standing inside the dome, which turned out to be his shield.

"Stop!"-Steven shouted to Rex and Death as he dissipated his shield-"Both of you just stop fighting!"

"Steven, what-"

"Stand aside if you wish to live boy!"-Death ordered the little half-gem, while also interrupting whatever Rex wanted to say.

"No! I won't!"-Steven declared, making his shield disappear and facing Death with a determined look-"I won't step aside because you're both acting like…like…like a pair of jerks!"

That statement caused most of the group to gasp in shock, especially the Crystal Gems, since they never heard Steven use the word 'jerk' before. Death looked only mildly shocked since he'd been called far worst in the past, but it was Rex who broke the silence:

"Hey Steven what the heck are you talking about?! And what are you calling me a jerk for? I was just-"

"You were just picking a fight with Mr. Death and that's not good Rex!"-Steven shouted back, than began addressing both of them-"This pointless fight has to stop! We shouldn't be fighting each other, we should be helping each other, like Mr. Eideard said. So why are you two fighting each other?!"

Shrinking his sword back to his hand Rex answered-"Because I'm sick and tired of this guy's attitude towards us!"-he pointed to the Horseman-"It's all his fault that we're in this mess, but he doesn't even want to admit it! He just keeps acting like he's better than the rest of us!"

"In case you weren't paying attention human,"-Death said in a calm, yet threatening tone-"I am the Grim Reaper, the one who reaps every soul in Creation, so that means I AM better than the rest of you. And I am simply trying to find a way to save my brother. I cannot afford to waste any time on all of you."

"Oh, is that so?!"-Rex countered-"Well you keep saying the whole 'save my brother' thing over and over again and I don't think you really mean that!"

"You will halt you tongue if you wish to still keep it human."-Death growled, starting to advance towards the teen hero, but Steven stopped him.

"No! Stop!"-Death stopped and then looked at Steven in the eye-"This is exactly what I'm talking about! You say you're the Grim Reaper and that you are better than the rest of us, but you're not acting like it! You're just so quick to start fighting, that you're not even trying to stop a fight from starting!"

"I have given him *points at Rex* a chance to step aside, yet he forced my hand still."

"Then you should try harder!"-Steven countered-"Fighting doesn't ever solve anything, it just makes things worse than they already are. And just because you're Death it doesn't mean you have to be violent with everyone around you."

"And what is the point you are trying to make boy?"-Death inquired, feeling his patience running out again.

With that Steven just said the one thing nearly everyone wanted to say-"THE POINT IS YOU SHOULDN'T KILL PEOPLE!"

Steven's voice echoed through the entire structure, and while the rider didn't even flinch at the volume the boy spoke in, the half gem continued speaking after taking a moment to compose himself:

"I know that being death it's your job to kill people…but my mom always believed that no one deserves to die. And that's something I believe in too. So you can't just go around killing people without a good reason."

After a moment of silence Death spoke once more, realizing what this whole thing was really about-"This is about the Crowfather, isn't it?"

Rex didn't say anything yet, but Steven did-"Well…yes. I know that he was an old man and everything, but everyone deserves a chance to live as long as they can. And if we start killing people without a good reason…than we're no better than the bad guys we fight every day."

"It's not just that Steven."-Rex spoke up once again-"That Crowfather guy was our only hope of getting back to our world, and now we're stranded in some other world that's probably even further away from Earth."-he then directed his heated gaze towards the pale rider and said-"And it's all his fault. So how 'bout you tell us old man, why? Why didn't you let him live?"

"He spoke clearly that I would not be going further so long as he still stood."-Death answered calmly.

"That's not a good enough reason, damn it!"-Rex shouted back, his frustration reaching a boiling point-"If that were the case you would've just defeated him and called it a day, but you didn't stop after he was done. Oh no, you just went and killed him without a second thought. So how about you try explaining yourself again."

"I will not."-Death replied-"And besides you wouldn't understand."

"Oh give me a break!"-Rex shot back-"You really think I'll just take what you just said and leave it alone?! Well than think again, you bastard! Because if I have to keep fighting you to get you to spill the truth than I will! So tell me *changes his arm back to sword form* WHY DID YOU KILL HIM!"

"BECAUSE HE ASKED ME TOO!"-Death replied, having grown tired of Rex's endless tirade, and before the evo teen could speak up again, the reaper continued-"He asked me, not just now but many times in the past to end his life and I refused every time. And the only reason I changed my mind now, was because I had to choose between him or my brother, and I chose my brother."

This statement made everyone pause for a moment, because if the Horseman was telling the truth and if he really did mean to save his brother, than he was truly forced to make a decision of choosing one life over another. Those of the group who are heroes know that such a thing is a tactic only the most heinous of villains would do. But they never even once suspected the Crowfather to be a villain, and therefor never even thought that he would resort to such a tactic. But if the Crowfather really did want to die, than the question was: why?

"Hold on a second!"-Ben spoke up, having reverted back to himself after getting out of the rubble and hearing everything that's been said-"Let's say for a second that what you're saying is true. If that's the case than, here's something I don't understand: why would the Crowfather want you to kill him in the first place?"

Death didn't answer right away, but when he did, he spoke calmly once again-"You humans always insist that immortality is a blessing. That all of you would wish to live forever. But it is a lie. Immortality is a curse. One that forces you to live forever in solitude as those whom you care about perish and wither all around you."-Death than looked Rex dead in the eye before continuing-"So with that in mind, and having seen the realm the Keeper of Secrets resided in, tell me; would you really hold it against him for wishing to end his prolonged suffering?"

This new piece of information stunned the group of heroes, because they never knew that immortality would force someone to ask for the Grim Reaper himself to end their lives. Although, they haven't even seen another lifeform on that ice world – undead company not included – aside from the Crowfather, so maybe living forever really doesn't sound all that good if you're living alone.

There was an uncomfortable silence in the air now, as everyone – minus the shaman – was processing what Death just said, but after a moment Samurai Jack stepped forward and began approaching the pale rider and once he was close enough he spoke:

"While your intentions may have been noble in their own way, your actions have still left us stranded in a world that is not our own."-Death narrowed his eyes at the accusatory tone the samurai was using, but before he could speak Jack continued-"And as Eideard told you, your goal as well as our own lie on the same path. I know that us being here comes as an inconvenience to you, but if you could give us a chance, than we could and will prove to you that we can be helpful on your journey."

Jack then turned to address Rex-"And Rex, I know you are frustrated and angry at the situation we are currently in, as am I and everyone else. But what Steven said is true. You cannot start a fight with someone simply to vent out your frustration. Fighting between ourselves will not solve anything. And such behavior is unbecoming of a hero."

That last part got a shocked look out of the teen evo, as he realized that he wasn't acting like a hero should. While he still doesn't appreciate Death's attitude towards them, the Horseman never really gave the teen a reason to fight him. He did kill the Crowfather, but still…

Having said his peace, Jack turned to address the executioner one more time-"So please, Death-sama, allow us to travel with you, and prove to you our skills."

The Reaper didn't say a word at first and simply looked to the ground in thought. He was beginning to suspect that these humans were not gonna leave him alone, no matter what he would do to shake them off. And while killing them was a favorable option – for a more personal reason – he didn't want to risk alerting the Charred Council. If they sensed the extinction of the humans from the Third Kingdom, than who's to say they couldn't sense the deaths of these outworlder humans caused by a certain Horseman. Also, he noted, if the rest of these humans can fight the same way as this Rex and the ones he fought earlier, than even if he wanted to kill them, that would become more challenging.

So in the end, while he would much prefer for them to find their own way home, for now he would have to comply and let them tag along. So with this reluctant thought in mind, Death raised his head once more and looked at the samurai dead in the eye and said:

"Alright, if I were to allow you to follow me humans, than tell me this: would you be willing to set aside your notion of mercy, and take the lives of those who would wish you harm?"

While Jack seemed mildly shocked by this question, the others were shocked beyond belief that this man would even think of asking them to kill. While many of them had their own thoughts to say, Ben was the one who spoke up first:

"Are you out of your mind?! What kind of question is that?! There's no way, not even in a million years that we would stoop to-"

"Before you finish shape shifter,"-Death interrupted-"Allow me to remind you that you are no longer in your own little world, where you think showing mercy will make things better. You, all of you *he addresses everyone from the group* may be seen as heroes in your realm because you show mercy towards your enemies. But beyond your realm it matters not if you are heroes or not. What you wish to be viewed as is meaningless when it comes to surviving. You say you wish to return to your realm, but for that to happen you will have to dispatch those that would stand in your way. And believe me, there will be many who will stand in your way and will want to kill you. *he sheathes his scythes* So until you work up the resolve to set aside your mercy for the time in which you will be here, do not even bother answering me, because I will not allow you to come with me otherwise."

And with that having said his peace, Death began walking away, towards the stone steps and to God-knows where. Seeing this Rex made to stop him, but was instead stopped by the Shaman's staff.

"Leave him be for now."-she said, in her usual soft voice, which caused Rex to look at her in surprise.

"But he-"

"Will not leave."-the Shaman interrupted the teen evo-"He simply needs time to put his thoughts in order."-she then turned to address the rest of the group-"In the meantime you may all rest here and use the forest around us to suit whatever needs you may have."

And with that the Shaman left the group of outworlders, as she probably left to find the Horseman. The stranded residents of Megaville were now left alone, and after a moment of awkward silence Eddy broke the ice:

"Well…that was intense if you ask me."

"Well calling it 'intense' is just being friendly."-Woody added-"I honestly thought it would be much worse."

"Yeah, me too."-Buttercup added as well, but with a bit of a sour look-"Shoulda just knocked his lights out."

"Well…at least we're cool for now, right?"-Marco said, before another fight would start escalating-"So, how 'bout we all just sit down, relax and we'll see what happens in the morning."

"Marco Diaz is right."-Garnet spoke up, addressing everyone-"For now all we can do is settle down and wait to see what happens."

Everyone thought about what the Crystal Gem leader said, and they all had to agree. Now that the tension between them the Horseman has somewhat settled, they can now go back to what they were originally intending to do: sit down and rest. However there was one thought that still lingered.

"And what about what that Death guy said? About, ya know…killing?"-Juniper asked with some concern in her voice, which garnered the attention of the rest of the heroes as well.

This time it was Jack who spoke-"We will just have to come to a decision that would be good for both us, and Death-sama."

Everyone fell silent when those words were spoken, since they had a sneaking suspicion that the rider would only accept one decision. The one which the heroes didn't like.

"Yeah, well hate to tell ya this Jack."-Rex said with a somber look on his face-"But I don't think that guy will take our answer."

And with that the heroes began to disperse, some going off to gather wood for a fire they were putting together, some – save the Warrior siblings – went to gather food however they can, and some stayed to heal the injuries of Rex, Ben and Jenny.

All in all, they could now afford themselves a little rest, before the inevitable return of the Horseman.

XXX

Nighttime has now overtaken the land. Where the sounds of hammers ringing on anvils and axes smashing practice dummies were heard by daylight, now they are replaced by the sounds of crickets and howls of beasts further down the valley.

On the edge of the stone bridge sat Death, gazing out into the wilderness, occasionally looking up into the moon as well, but always with a distant and faraway look in his eyes. He still felt apprehensive about allowing a bunch of humans to travel with him. He is on a very serious mission to free his brother and he doesn't want anything to hinder him in his journey. The fact that he is stuck in the world of the Makers was already a big enough setback, not to mention this Corruption.

Death let out a sigh of frustration as there just seems to be one complication after another just piling up.

"So here's where you've been hiding."-a familiar female monotone voice alerted him, causing him to sigh again and look behind him to see Garnet standing with a smirk on her face-"Well, at least you're quite easy to find."

Death merely grunted in annoyance and turned away from the gem, but spoke up nonetheless-"What do you want fusion?"

At this Garnet raised a not-so-visible eyebrow, but not at the question itself.

"You even know that I'm a fusion now?"-the gem inquired curiously, to which the Grim Reaper replied.

"Your kind's gems are souls given physical form. And as far as I know everything in all of Creation has only one soul. Even the Creator himself. So it was not difficult to deduce what you are."

Garnet was silent for a moment before speaking up again-"Wow that's pretty impressive. I never would've thought that our gems were souls as well. I just thought those were concepts only organic lifeforms had."

"Then how do you and your comrades have your differing thoughts and personalities? If you had no soul you wouldn't have any of that. You would be nothing more than the constructs we have seen here."-Death explained in an annoyed tone, as if what he said earlier about gems being souls is the most obvious thing in the world.

If Garnet noted the annoyance in the Horseman's voice, she didn't show any reaction to it, instead she just said-"Hmm, good point."

"So allow me to repeat my previous question: what do you want?"-Death said, having the effect of getting Garnet's attention, to which she responded:

"I just came by to make sure you didn't ditch us. Although I guess the Shaman Maker made sure of that."

Death didn't respond to that statement as she was somewhat correct. The Shaman did follow after him when he left the outworlders, but she never uttered a word, not that she needed since the Horseman knew exactly what she wanted to say. Garnet took his silence as a confirmation of what she just said and continued speaking:

"In case you're wondering everyone has settled down a bit. Rex has finally cooled off, and so did Jenny and Ben. Steven is still a bit shaken, but otherwise fine and-"

"Why are you telling me all of this, when it should be clear to you that I do not care?"-Death interrupted Garnet's explaining and if she was offended by his rudeness, again she didn't show it.

"I am telling you this, because you will have to face everybody at some point."-Garnet spoke calmly, and the Horseman spoke again, but never turned around to look at the gem.

"Why? I already know what answer they will give to my question, so why bother confronting them about it?"

After a moment, Garnet spoke again-"Alright, than tell me what you think they will tell you."

Death sighed in annoyance again, but answered nonetheless-"They will tell me that they will stubbornly refuse my words, which means that I will have to do all of the work by finishing off our opponents."

Garnet didn't say anything right away, because in all honesty she didn't need her future vision to know that the Horseman was right. Nobody from their group, be they heroes or not, has ever even thought about taking someone else's life, heck they never even tried to do something like that. The reasons vary, from 'killing being wrong' and that if they start killing than they would be no better than villains. However when Death said that they will have to kill in order to survive and get home, Garnet couldn't come up with a good enough counter argument. The Horseman was right, they weren't in their world anymore, so the rules are bound to be different here than back home.

"I will take your silence as confirmation to what I already know to be true."-Death's voice suddenly snapped Garnet out of her internal debate. After a few seconds she regained her composure and spoke once again:

"Even so, you still made a promise that you will help us. And even that old Maker, Eideard said that we will have to stick together."

At this point Death had enough of this same excuse and so he turned to glare at the tall gem and spoke in a much more irritated voice-"WHY do you keep insisting for me to let you accompany me? I heard what the Maker said and I do not care, because I cannot afford anymore setbacks than I already have. So explain to me why do you want to follow me?!"

Garnet remained silent for a moment, before she spoke in a calm voice once again-"You know already that I'm a fusion, but do you know what gems make me me?"-her question surprised the Horseman, as evidenced by his not-so-visible shocked expression underneath his mask. Having gotten Death's attention, Garnet removed her visor, revealing a red and blue eye and an additional third red eye on her forehead, and then she spoke once again-"I am a fusion of a Ruby and a Sapphire. While Ruby provides most of the muscle and strength, Sapphire has an… additional ability I use quite frequently. That ability allows me to peer into the future and witness all possible outcomes and determine which one is the best one to happen now. I call it 'future vision'."

After a moment of silence Death spoke up, but this time much more calmly-"And what does you clairvoyance have to do with my previous question?"

At this Garnet cast her gaze down on the cobbled floor with a rather sad look in her three eyes before speaking again-"…Ever since we exited that portal and ended up in that ice world I…I couldn't use my future vision. Even now in this world, and from the moment we started talking I never stopped trying to get it to work and I failed each time."-Garnet then looked back up and into Death's eyes and continued-"Steven, the other Crystal Gems and even those from the group who know of my future vision have always relied on me in the past to tell them what is the right course of action or which way is the safest or even how to help those who are in big trouble. Now I can't even use the power that has helped me and the others so many times and it…it scares me. I am now walking forward blind like everybody else, not knowing ahead what will happen next and it scares me…both of me."-she said the last part glancing at the gems that are in her hands, before looking back up at the Horseman-"Don't you understand? We want to follow you and we want you to help us because whether the others admit it or not, we are all scared. We are lost in a completely new world with no plan or strategy and we don't know what's out there waiting for us and it scares all of us. That is our reason for wanting your help."-Garnet placed her visor back over her eyes and spoke one last time before turning around to walk away-"So I urge you to think this through Horseman Death, and at least give us a chance."

Death stood in place, looking at the spot the fusion previously occupied. On one hand he couldn't care less about how scared the outworlders are all because they are no longer in their world. To him, their fear is like that of a child who is too scared to walk more than five steps away from their house. However there was a part of him that felt something stir inside his mind the moment Garnet mentioned how scared everyone is.

In his mind Death saw a cage hanging by a chain in a place of almost endless darkness. Inside the cage there was a little boy crying into his knees, being scared of the perpetual dark and silence, afraid that something will come and get him.

Death shook his head to rid himself of these thoughts and after a few more moments of thought he made up his mind about what to do.

XXX

Back with the group, everyone is now seated around a fire and roasting some rodent like creatures. Even though Steven tried to speak against eating live animals, in the end he was outvoted and Pearl made sure he didn't watch or listen when Jack, Ben and Juniper set up their foods for roasting.

Everyone sat mostly in silence, until Woody broke the ice with a sigh and said-"You'd find more cheer in a frickin' graveyard."

"Yeah? Well after what just happened I think everyone lost their good mood."-Yumi said

"Urgh, how many times do I have to say it? I'm sorry, okay?!"-Rex spoke up, knowing what the Japanese girl was reffering to.

"I think you know well who you should be apologizing to."-Garnet's soft, monotone voice brought everyone's attention to her as she walked towards the gathered heroes.

"Hey you're back and not dead, great."-Eddy said with clear sarcasm in his voice, which earned him a slap at the back of the head by Dexter, who was next to speak:

"So what results did your meeting with Death yield Ms. Garnet?"

After sitting herself between Steven and Marco, Garnet answered-"Too early to say. I gave him some food for thought, so hopefully he'll make the right decision."

"Yeeeahh, you probably shouldn't get your hopes up for that one Garnet."-Marco said, uncertain and nervous about what he just said.

"What do ya mean karate boy?"-Amethyst asked before eating her own skewered dinner…stick and all, as usual.

"Well just think about it for a sec guys."-Marco answered, while eating his own food, albeit cringing at the taste-"That dude is called 'Death' for a reason, ya know. Who's to say he'll just ditch us here and move on, or even kill us and then move on."

This silenced everybody gathered, and after a moment it was Woody who broke the ice yet again-"I think we're about to find out."

And as the woodpecker pointed his white gloved wing in a direction the others followed with their gazes and saw the one they dreaded to face.

After walking up the stone steps Death locked his eyes with everyone else's and after a moment he approached the circle of heroes. As he approached a random spot between Double D and Amy, the two humans parted away from each other allowing the Horseman to sit down.

There was a moment of awkward silence, before Ed spoke up, oblivious to the situation as ever:

"Want some dinner Mr. Death? I put some grave on it to make it more yummy."

As the lovable lump offered the Grim Reaper one of the skewered rodents with a thick layer of gravy on it, the nephilim in question simply stared at it and even at the smiling child offering it to him. After a full minute Death conceded, took the food and after slightly lifting his mask, took a bite out of it. After swallowing the food he looked at the smiling Ed-boy, who seemed to have been eagerly waiting for a response from him.

"Well?"-asked an excited Ed-"Was it good or what?"

Death simply tossed the skewer back at to the boy and said-"Remove that repulsive liquid off it and I will tell you my opinion then."

This got a confused look from Ed since he didn't really understand literally half of what the Horseman said, so Vamber decided to elaborate:

"It means he doesn't like your gravy dear."

This got a sad look from Ed as he turned to address the executioner-"Aww, but why?"

"Yeah dude."-Amethyst added as she took the sampled skewer from Ed, since she was sitting next to him-"This stuff is great. And since it goes well with everything, I don't see why anyone would hate gravy."-and as she finished her statement Amethyst gulped up the whole skewer again.

Death didn't answer at first and it was surprisingly Ben who answered the purple gem-"Uhhh, not to sound like that guy, but I'm pretty sure most people don't like gravy as much as you and Ed do Amethyst."

"Yeeaah, Ben's right."-Star added-"I mean, I like some gravy on my pancakes every morning, but not entire buckets of the stuff."

"Pfft, buckets? Try an entire bathtub worth of gravy."-Eddy added-"I should know, since me and Sockhead saw this lump's bathroom."

"…Somehow that just makes gravy sound even more disgusting."-Woody added as well with a deadpanned look on his face.

"It appears you have received your answer gem."-Death addressed Amethyst, who simply shrugged and said.

"Meh, your loss dude."

"Ahem, excuse me, but can we please steer this conversation back to its rightful course and address the obvious elephant in the room?"-Dexter interjected, impatience lacing his voice.

"Dexter's right."-Blossom added, then turned to address the Horseman-"I don't think you came back here just to taste our food, right Mr. Death?"

Death was silent for a moment, before speaking-"Though I wish I would not have returned at all, I felt...compelled by certain…elements to return here and consult all of you."

Even though Death answered the pink powerpuff's question, his elaborate response garnered a lot of confused looks, to which Garnet had the remedy for.

"In other words: I convinced him to come back."-the fusion said with pride in her voice and her visor shining in the moonlight, to which there was a unanimous 'ooooohhh'.

"Ya know, you could've just said so from the start duder."-Prohyas said, to which Death simply sighed in annoyance and shook his head.

"Well, since you're here, I'm guessing you're here to apologies for what you did earlier?"-Jenny said, glaring at the rider, to which he responded with:

"No I am not. And what have I got to apologies for, when I have done nothing wrong?"

The robot girl gave a bewildered look at the rider's response, and was about to retort, when Rex put his hand on her shoulder and said.

"Jenny calm down. I think we both know who really has to apologies here."

The eldest Wakeman daughter looked back at her crush and said with shock and surprise-"But…but Rex he tried to kill you, me and Ben too! He-"

"Only because I kept provoking him."-Rex interrupted the robot girl-"Look Jack and Steven were both right. I was angry and I took it out on Death and I know now that I shouldn't have, so…"

Rex fell silent as he turned to address the nephilim in question, but before he could say a word, Death spoke up first.

"Save your apologies for someone who cares about them, because I do not. Besides you have already said what was on your mind to the female construct. I would prefer not to hear your words again if it is possible."

Rex was about to retort, but then he realized that he had indeed said his apology towards Death to Jenny, which quickly got his mouth shut.

"Sooo, I'm guessing you're here for the…other reason, right?"-Ben asked, even though he dreaded to hear the answer.

"Yes."-Death answered immediately, knowing full well what the alien hero was reffering to-"And before any of you say anything, than perhaps I need to remind you that for whatever reason, you are not in your own realm anymore, which means that your codes of honor either mean less here than they did back in your world, or nothing at all."

This of course hardly surprised any of the gathered heroes, since most of them were already fully aware of this particular detail.

"Oh please, you're just saying that because the idea of a peaceful resolution with your enemies somehow offends you."-Pearl suddenly spoke up, getting a lot of shocked looks from everyone as well as her teammates and Steven looking at her with incredulity. Death however simply looked at her with what could almost be described as a deadpanned look.

"Is this hypocrisy I suddenly hear gem?"-Death asked in his usual sarcastic manner-"Because if you speak of peace, then it is strange that neither you, your rebels or your 'illustrious' leader have never tried it with your former masters."

Pearl gained a shocked and insulted look on her face and was about to retort, until Ben beat her to the punch.

"Unfortunately…he's got a point Pearl."-the white gem looked at the shape shifting hero with incredulity, but Ben continued before the lance wielding gem could speak-"I mean, you guys have been fighting the Diamonds ever since Rose Quartz started her rebellion, right?*Pearl nods* Well…when was the last time you guys thought about solving this whole civil gem war thing peacefully?"

Pearl tried to come up with a valid enough answer, but no matter how hard she tried, she just couldn't find one. And it is only now she realized that she truly did sound like a hypocrite just now. Realizing this, Pearl simply looked down to the ground, her cheeks blushing in shame and her voice silent.

"Anyway,"-Double D spoke up next, causing Death to look directly at him, making the smart Ed-boy very nervous-"I-I-I th-think what everybody i-is c-collectively thinking L-Lord D-Death, i-is that it will be difficult to a-aclimate their fighting skills to this new environment, s-sir."

There was an awkward silence for the moment, some even thinking about why Double D called the Horseman 'Lord Death'. Finally it was Jack who spoke up:

"What Eddward means to say is that if you ask us to take another being's life, sentient or not, it will be difficult for us to do so."

Another moment of silence later Death surprised everyone by slightly laughing in amusement. This forced an obvious question on to the gathered heroes, one which Buttercup voiced in the end-"And what did Sensei say that you find sooo funny, ya creep?"

After stopping his laughing Death elaborated, addressing Jack-"You say that it will be difficult for you to take another creature's life samurai…and yet I see that you had no such difficulty when you, not only killed these little rodents, but also cooked them in order to eat them."

Death's statement triggered a surprise look on Jack's face as well as on several others'. While it is true that Jack was the one who killed the creatures and Ben and Juniper helped him skewer them, it was because they had to eat.

"That's different and you know it!"-Ben interjected-"We needed to eat and…people eat…rodents all…the time…and-"

"What I know, Shapeshifter,"-Death interrupted Ben's pathetic excuse-"Is that if you are capable of killing something so small, than much larger beings that will try to kill you in every manner they can think of, should be no trouble at all for the likes of you."

This statement silenced everyone and with that Death continued as he stared at the fire in the middle of the circle with a faraway look in his eyes-"Never the less, for the moment there will probably only be constructs that will get in the way, so those should provide good practice for what is to come."-and before he could finish his little speech, Death raised his head and directed his gaze upon everyone gathered, an air of extreme seriousness blazing from his fiery eyes-"However, when we do encounter beings of flesh and blood, be they angel, demon or anything else, you will do whatever it takes to finish them off, because if not then you will pay for such hesitance with your very lives. And I will not be there to save your lives a second time, because my brother's fate is the only one that concerns me, yours does not."

After the reaper concluded his little speech everyone fell deathly silent (*the audience became silent except for a cricket* I'll go to the corner now *author goes to the corner*). After Death had said his peace he got up from his seat and spoke one last time:

"Think on that carefully if any of you wishes to see your precious realm ever again."-and with that Death walked away, presumably back to where he was sitting before, leaving everyone in even grimmer silence than ever before.

No one said a single word or even breathed too loudly for the better part of two minutes, until Prohyas decided to open the floodgates:

"Sooooooo…"

"Well I guess there goes whatever good mood was left, huh?"-Amethyst said

"Amethyst please, this is serious!"-Pearl chided her fellow gem, still feeling angry at how easily Death countered and destroyed her previous argument.

"Yeah, no kidding…."-Juniper spoke with a great deal of uncertainty in her voice

"So I guess the million dollar question is: what are we going to do now?"-Rex asked with just as much uncertainty as everyone else.

"What do you mean by that Rex?"-Pearl asked, as if the evo teen just asked the stupidest question in the universe-"We will simply look for another way to get to this 'Tree of Life' without that brute and find a way home."

Now everybody looked at Pearl as she just said something stupid *author: which she did*. After a moment of silence Amethyst spoke up:

"Uhhh, what the heck do ya mean P?"

"Yeah."-Bubbles added, though rather reluctantly-"I thought we were supposed to stick together with Mr. Death."

"Well he has clearly expressed his opinion of us and for this once I agree with him in not working together."-Pearl answered, sounding so sure of her answer-"After all, this wouldn't be the first time we all ended up in some risky situation. We've come out on top before, so why should we rely on some murdering savage like him for help?"

Another moment of silence before Woody answered with a deadpanned expression-"Uh, 'cause we're stuck in another world?"

"And he might know his way around?"-Juniper added.

"He could tell us what we will be up against?"-Blossom also added.

"He could give us more information about the Tree of Life?"-Dexter logically added as well.

"He's big and strong and hot and we should totally listen to him?"-Yumi also added, trying to sound like her uncarrying self, but the way she worded out her sentence drew a few odd looks from the heroes.

"Ahem, Yumi…"-Ami said as she slightly nudged her friend with her elbow.

"What?"-Yumi asked with confusion on her face.

"Right, uhm not counting what Yumi just said,"-Ben said, making said rockstar look annoyingly at him-"To summarize, why need his help, whether we like it or not."

Pearl was shocked upon hearing this, but then she recomposed herself and said-"Oh please, you all heard what he said. He clearly doesn't want to have anything to do with us and even if he does he still expects us to follow his modus operandum. And I for one will not allow such influence on-"

"Miss Pearl."-Jack cut off the white gems ranting-"I understand how you feel about this current situation, but I'm afraid Ben is right. We are in unknown territories right now and we need someone to help us in finding a way to the Tree of Life."

"Well then let's just ask one of the locals, those 'Makers', for help."-Pearl countered.

"W-well while that does sound like a viable option."-Double D spoke-"Y-you heard the ones whom we met said. Th-they refuse to leave the confines of th-their fortifications i-in fear of this Corruption."

"Double D's right."-Juniper added, drawing a surprised look from the smart Ed-boy-"And since that Death guy is the only one who is willing to go to the Tree, I'd say he's our best shot at getting there too."

"Yeah."-Prohyass also added-"Plus having him with us would be like having some extra muscle. And I don't think having some extra muscle would be such a bad thing, right?"

"Yes, quite so dear brother."-Vamber added

Pearl was now more shocked than ever. She couldn't believe that her own comrades were siding against her, even Amethyst, one of her own teammates wasn't siding with her. She directed her gaze towards her team's current leader, Garnet, who sat stoicly and didn't speak since this entire discussion started. Sensing her comrades gaze upon her, the fusion turned and addressed Pearl, giving her an answer she didn't want to hear, but had to hear in the end:

"I believe the outcome is clear. We need the Horseman Death's help if we want to have any chance of getting back home."

Now Pearl looked like she had just been betrayed. Garnet, her leader and only hope of turning this 'debate' around just up and sided against her like everyone else. This didn't sit well with the lance user, as she gritted her teeth in anger, and then sprang up to her feet, with a look of hurt, anger and betrayal on her face.

"NO! All of you are just being ridiculous! In case it has escaped you that…that…SAVAGE BRUTE killed the only person who could get us back to Earth and openly confessed to being death itself! And on top of that it tried to kill some of us – Rex, Ben and Jenny – and is now DEMANDING us to take others' lives just like he does! You all might be desperate enough to lose all sense of reason but I'm not! I won't allow him to-"

"SHUT UP! JUST SHUT THE HELL UP!"-Rex got up from his seat as well and glared so intensely at Pearl, everyone thought his gaze alone would dissolve her gemstone-"You think we like this Pearl?! Do you think we WANT to join up with that murdering psyco?! Yeah we are desperate, because we have no other choice right now! And Jun's right, Death is the only one with the balls to go out there and try and get to that stupid tree! And since, the last time I checked, we know NOTHING about this place he is our ONLY shot at getting home! And yeah you're right, he's gonna make us kill and I don't like it any more than you do! But we don't have the fucking luxury of arguing with someone like Death right now!"

Rex fell silent to catch his breath after that intense rant, and everyone was dead silent right now. They were all shocked at how ferociously he lashed out at the rebel gem's stubbornness. And Pearl herself was as silent as she was shocked up hearing the evo hero's words. Her face then contorted back to her previous angry one and was just about ready to lash out with her own words, but a slight tug at her right hand caused her to stop and look down…only to be met with the pleading eyes of Steven Universe.

"Pearl, please just stop."-the little half gem said, tears threatening to form in his eyes-"I don't want you to start fighting with everyone. Everybody's been on edge ever since this whole mess started but that doesn't give any of us the right to start fighting amongst ourselves. And…I know why you're really upset. You don't want me to see you or the others kill. *this caused Pearl's eyes to widen in shock* And yeah I still say that killing is wrong. But like Rex just said, we can't afford to be picky right now. I-if you guys agreeing to kill is the only way Mr. Death is gonna agree to help us…than you have to agree…if for nothing else, than at least to get him to help us get home…"

The reluctance behind his lest words didn't escape anybody's notice, especially Pearl's. And she had to agree that Steven was right, the only reason she's so worked up right now and was against working with the Horseman, was because she didn't want to allow Steven to witness them killing other living beings. She even explicitly told Jack to prepare their food as far away from Steven as possible. The boy may be the bearer of Rose Quartz's gem, but he was a child first and foremost, and children should not have to bear witness to the kind of violence that Death would no doubt bring to the table.

However, Steven was also right about one other thing: if they didn't agree to Death's demands, than he would leave them in the dust, and they would probably never be able to get to the Tree, despite her 'confidence' in their skills earlier. So basically she had to choose to either follow her emotions in refusing Death's offer for help and thus continue sheltering Steven's innocence. Or accept Death's offer and thus inevitably find a way to get back to Earth, but having to risk Steven witness them commit killing. In hindsight this was another case of the needs of the many vs the needs of the few, and looking at everyone at the campsite, Pearl knew which choice she would have to make. So with a long sigh of defeat the white gem looked at the floor dejectedly and said:

"Okay…alright…I…accept his offer as well…"

Everyone relaxed, relieved that Pearl was on board with this. Not that most of them like this idea, as Rex said, however…

"Hey Pearl."-Rex said, but more gently this time-"Look, I'm…sorry about what I said earlier. I didn't mean to yell like that it's just…*sigh* I guess I just want to get this whole thing over with as soon as possible and get back home."

"Y-yes, yes I know Rex."-Pearl replied, now calmer herself-"And I know you meant no harm by it. But I suppose in hindsight I needed that, since I can get a little too stubborn sometimes."

"Your worries are well justified."-Jack spoke, drawing everyone's attention-"But remember what Death-sama told us. Right now we will only have to face those stone beasts from earlier and hopefully those will be the only things we will have to face."

"Yes I know Jack, I know."-Pearl said as she sat back down-"But still…this doesn't feel right…"

And the other heroes agreed. As far as they were concerned, making a deal with Death was almost tantamount to making a deal with the devil. And based on Death's current mannerisms, they were inclined to believe it. However nobody voiced this thought, lest another argument would break out.

"Well…"-Eddy started saying as he stretched his arms above his head-"I don't know about you guys, but I feel like hittin' the sack."

And for once Eddy's words rang true. Everyone started to feel the weight of this day's (?) craziness wash over them as they felt as if they hadn't rested in a week.

"*yawn* For once I agree with ya kid."-Yumi said.

"Yeah I think we can all use some shut-eye."-Marco added-"After, I think starting tomorrow we won't have too much time for rest."

"Ugh, don't remind me kid."-Woody said as he flew to a low hanging branch and immediately went to sleep.

"Welp, I think that's our que to hit the hay."-Star added as she grabbed Marco by the arm and went to a spot close to the fire to get some sleep.

Everybody else went to look for a place to claim as their sleeping spots. Some chose to sleep near the fire for warmth, others decided to sleep near the walls. An idea which Rex had, as he sat up against it, but before he could close his eyes, he received a surprising visitor.

"Uhm, Rex?"-Jenny spoke up hesitantly, but still managed to get the teen hero's attention-"C-can I sleep n-next to you tonight?"-upon finishing and seeing Rex's clueless face the robot girl quickly continued-"N-not that I'm s-scared or anything, i-it's just that a-after all the craziness today I-I was hoping that…well…th-that is…what I mean is I…"

Jenny kept stuttering and tripping over her own words and her metallic face kept glowing bluer and bluer with each word. AT this point she wanted to just sink into the ground and turn to rust, until Rex spoke up.

"Sure, why not."-at those words, Jenny looked at Rex's smiling face as he continued-"I mean, it's not like we've got separate rooms or anything, so you can sleep wherever you want Jen, I guess."

Jenny was certain that her true intentions behind this arrangement probably flew over Rex's head, judging by the obliviousness of his response, but she wasn't about to squander this chance to ACTUALLY sleep next to her crush.

"Okay. Thanks Rex."-Jenny said as she sat down next to him and activated her sleep mode, while Rex closed his eyes to sleep as well. But before her systems completely shut down, Jenny's mouth curled into a tiny smile and had one final thought before drifting off to sleep:

'I hope my head will slip during the night and 'accidentally' fall on Rex's shoulder. Tehe.'

And so everyone went to their respective Dream realms as they all fell asleep, except for the gems, who merely remained in their seated areas. Something which didn't escape Steven's eyes.

"Hey aren't you guys gonna get some sleep too?"-as the gems looked at the boy and ready to answer his question, Steven quickly realized what he said and quickly added-"I-I mean…I know you guys don't need any sleep or anything, but after everything that's happened to us 'till now, shouldn't you guys get some rest too?"

Realizing the meaning behind his words the Crystal Gems simply gave the half gem a soft smile each and Pear was the one to say:

"Thank you for your concern Steven, but you don't have to worry about us. We're fine, given the circumstances. And really, it should be you who should be getting some sleep."

"Yeah little dude."-Amethyst continued-"You heard what Karate Kid said. We're gonna have a loooong day tomorrow so you're gonna have to save your strength."

"Amethyst!"

"What? It's true."-Amethyst looked back at Pearl.

Seeing that there's no point in arguing with them anymore, Steven decided to just leave the matter alone and go to sleep himself.

"Well…okay, if you guys say so. Goodnight then guys."

"Goodnight/'Night Steven."-the Gems all said and once she knew everyone was asleep Pearl turned to Garnet and asked her an important question:

"Garnet. Do you think this really is a good idea to team up with him? You know very well what he is and what he is capable of. Does your Future Vision tell you an outcome that is good in this situation?"

Garnet remained silent as her two remaining comrades looked at her for an answer, until she spoke up.

"I know you hate the Horseman Death for what he is Pearl, and I don't agree with this plan either. But desperate times always tend to lead to desperate measures. If and when he betrays us, we will deal with it then, but for now we'll have to cooperate."-Amethyst and Pearl looked uncertainly at the floor, not entirely satisfied with that answer, but it will have to do for now. And now came the part which Garnet dreaded the most: telling them about her Future Vision-"As for my Future Vision, well…there's something I have to tell you guys…"

And as the fusion explained the unusual situation with her power and everyone was blissfully asleep, none of them noticed the large black crow with the green aura spying on them from its high perch. Seeing that it had seen enough Dust worldlessly flew off, back to his waiting master.

XXX

A/N: *author falls on his knees and slams his hands and feet before the readers* I am sosososososososososososo very sorry for posting this only now. I know the whole 'better late than never' shtick but this really did become ridiculous, even for me.

I was planning for this to be a short chapter that would mark the end of the prologue and I would post this and the next chapter together, but somehow I ended up dragging this whole thing out to ridiculous lengths. And also there was my dissertation and so much fucking hype (Godzilla King of the Monster, Rising of the Shield Hero, Jump Force, Darksiders 3 and Genesis to name a few), that I lost interest all together for a while, until I managed to muscle my way through.

But anyway, the next chapter will be the start of the journey through the Forge Lands, some explanations from Death's part will also be included, and lots of fights, maybe even the heroes' first kill.

But anyway like I said, I am very sorry it took this long to post this thing, and I'm not gonna say when the next chapter will be out, but hopefully my mojo will get back long enough to make SOME measure of progress. Oh and also a quick FYI I'm going to release a new story in the near future, featuring my most favorite isekai anime and my most favorite mmorpg game (and it ain't WoW), so be on the lookout for that.

Personally I'm not satisfied with some the parts in this chapter but hopefully it won't hinder you guys from SOMEHOW enjoying it. Hope to see you guys in the future and have a good day/night. La revedere.