Hello, folks! This is a slight revision of the introduction, just a little bit neater than the first go. Hopefully it helps. For all you newcomers to my story, please tell me what you think. Your opinions and input helps me grow as a writer, so a review and your continual support on this and any other story I write is well appreciated! Enjoy the story, I'll do my best to keep it coming.

Introduction:

They had tracked him to an island found in the middle of the west ocean. It was a small piece of land, the only thing to note about it being the tall statue of a flying bird with a dead raccoon in its talons standing in the direct center of the island. It was just that, and nothing else. The man who was supposed to be here, wasn't.

It wasn't the first time such a thing had happened. They had chased this man all across Ooo, tracking him for days and sometimes weeks just to have him suddenly disappear behind a wall, or some mist, or even thin air. Sometimes there was no trace of him at all, but sometimes (rarely) he would leave something behind on purpose to taunt them. A picture of his latest victim, his ID card, a broken talon. The things he left varied, but as damning as they should have been, these clues always led them nowhere.

Finn and Jake approached the statue, examining it with curious eyes. "Ah, dang it! He can't've disappeared again." Finn the Human said, frustrated, "He's a dude with massive wings, how does he even do that? It's donkus!"

His friend, Jake the Dog, began to pat the statue with his yellow, furry paws. "Maybe he went through a portal or somethin'. This island ain't got no trees or bushes, it's really the only way he could run from us." Jake lifted himself up on the statue's pedestal and began to poke and prod at the stone bird's talons. "We should go lookin' for anomalies or whatever. Supernatural cuts in the space-time continuum. We'll find him, dude."

Finn agreed, and began to search. It didn't take long for him to realize that the search yielded nothing for them; he had walked around the island five times in the span of three minutes, with his arms outstretched and feeling around for any rips in reality. Needless to say, it was a fruitless effort. The only things on the island were Jake, himself, and the bird statue.

After ten more minutes of searching—Finn was nothing if not obnoxiously persistent—he went back to Jake, who had done nothing but lay curled up at the bird statue's sharp feet. The dog's eyes were closed, and his mouth wide open, drool seeping from his maw and snoring.

"Jake!" Finn threw up his arms in frustration, "There's nothing here but this statue and a bunch of sand!"

Jake snorted and slurped the drool back into his mouth, then struggled to roll back onto his stomach. "Huh? You mean there's nothing?" Finn rolled his eyes. He loved his doggie brother, he did, but sometimes Jake was so frustrating to work with.

"Nada, bro. He got away again!" He side in defeat. "Well, I guess we should call Bubblegum down. There's nothing here we can find."

Bubblegum, the beautiful heiress to the Candy Kingdom business, was flying circles over the two adventures on a magnificent falcon. She had been the reason they were able to track the man in the first place; her science was second to none in all the land. Finn waved her down, and in seconds she had swooped down and landed. The falcon rubbed its beak into his wing as she looked down at them and inquired, "What's up?'

"Sorry, Bubs, we can't find him," said Finn, disappointed. "He ain't here!"

The pink girl's brow furrowed in confusion, "That doesn't make any sense. This island barelyenough for the Morrow! Hey…" She slid off of her trusted falcon and went to examine the statue. "Have you guys taken a look at this thing? It looks…weird."

Sighing, Finn shook his head, "It's just a statue, Bubblegum. There's really nothing to this thing."

She continued as if she hadn't heard him and pressed on the stone bird's breast. A square, solid block pushed inward with a grainy, grinding sound, and the statue slid back. It revealed a staircase leading downward far beneath the island. Bubblegum's hand hung in the air for a moment before retreating and pressing it to her chest, her eyes wide in surprise.

Mouths agape, Finn and Jake stared down the hole. Then they both looked at her, and she shrugged, "Clearly, you boys hadn't looked hard enough. What, I was for ten seconds?" Without waiting for a response, Bubblegum began to walk down the stairs. "Come on, you two. There's not a lot of time; we have to stop this menace."

—

The stairs led them down into a dark, narrow hallway, alight only by the dull, flickering flames of candles that were hung on the walls. As they proceeded onwards, the trio nearly had to sidestep the space was the space was so small. Bubblegum lead the way, Finn and Jake close behind her.

It seemed endless, the hallway. Finn tried to peer over Bubblegum's shoulder, up on his tiptoes, but it stretched on almost infinitely, as if the end had been swallowed by the shadows. Finn fell back onto the flat of his feet and started at the ground, pensively.

"So, hey," Jake began, his head stretching far past Finn and around Bubblegum's shoulder so he could speak to her face-to-face, "What do we do when we finally see this guy?"

Bubblegum's mouth pressed into a thin line. It took her a moment to think of an answer, "I'm not sure. His charges are heinous, but my parents don't want him dead just yet." She paused to release a deep sigh, "I suppose we try to round him up and take him back to my dad. It's all we can do." The answer, even to Bubblegum, was unsatisfying. The entire land of Ooo wanted this abysmal creature to die, even the kind-hearted Finn, who always believed in second-chances.

A low rustling sound, like feathers against stone, came from deep within the hall. Everyone stopped and listened; it sounded far off, miles away, but at the same time close by. Bubblegum reached back and placed a hand on Finn's chest, as if to push him backward, but didn't move and continued to stare forward. Silence followed for a few, achingly long moments.

"Maybe it's a—" Jake began, but was cut off when a powerful gust of wind ripped through the hall, extinguishing every candle and pushing Bubblegum backward into Finn and Jake. They stood their ground, holding Bubblegum up until the wind died. "Woaaah…" Jake awed, paws covering his head. A layer of dirt had kicked up and now hung in the air, further obscuring their sight. However... Jake squinted, looking deep into the halls, "Hey! There's a light up ahead!"

It was a golden light; it shone like a tiny beacon in the distance. As they all choked on the airborne dirt, Bubblegum began to push through it. "This way, boys."

They continued near-sidestepping down the narrow passage, eyes tearing from the airborne dirt, when it opened up into a large, hand-dug cavern. It was empty, but enormous, almost like a the lobby of a five-star hotel. The only other thing notable about it was the light bulb, swinging slightly from the ceiling, illuminating a surprisingly large section of the room.

Finn groaned loudly, "He's not here either! What the plop, man?"

"He has to be nearby," said Bubblegum. "That gust didn't come from nowhere. He obviously knows we're here." She kept her gaze forward, focused, "He's just trying to psyche us out, and it won't work."

Jake was shivering, hiding behind Finn's legs, "Oh, it's workin' alright…"

Suddenly, the light went out with a loud pop! and they were plunged into darkness. Bubblegum swore, sighing in frustration. Jake clung onto Finn's ankles. "Uhh…F-Finn? Somethin's here, man."

"C'mon, bro. It's just the dark," Finn soothed, "Whatever it is, it's probably just in your head."

Jake continued quaking, a small whimper escaping his jowl. Finn tried to keep from rolling his eyes, but reached for his sword anyway. It would be better to be prepared even if there was nothing than to be unprepared and have something jump out at you.

In the dark, Finn could hear Bubblegum shifting around, perhaps looking for a switch to turn the light on again. Keeping his sword pointed at the ground, Finn approached her and slammed right into her back, causing them both to stumble forward and nearly topple. "Finn!" she hissed, spinning around and grasping onto his shoulders, "Don't move! There's—someone in here with us."

The rustling noises continued, undeterred, and sounding very close to where he and his companions were standing. Finn stood completely still, lifting up his sword, ready to strike whoever was creeping around with them. He felt Jake begin to rise up, courage apparently growing fast within him, and his back pressed up against Finn's.

"You hear anything Jake?"

A growl rumbled out of Jake's maw, but he didn't say anything. Finn was about to ask again, but another gust of wind suddenly picked up. This one was particularly strong, nearly toppling Finn; he jammed his sword into the ground and held tight. Over the high pitch of the wind, Finn could hear the sound of heavily beating wings.

Bubblegum cried out in something that sounded like near-terror, "It's him!" The room suddenly lit up, the source of the light seemingly nonexistent, revealing a terrifyingly huge creature. He was tall, needing to stoup over because the dirt ceiling was still too low for his stature, and he had a set of large, feathery wings that were as black as his jet hair. A toothy smirk split his grotesquely scarred, beaked face, and he lifted up a hand fitted with razor sharp talons.

"Hey guys," said the bird creature, curling his talons in a wave, "It's so nice of you to stop by. It gets lonely around here," He gazed around his underground home, the smirk never leaving his disgusting face, "My cousin never stops by to see me anymore. Isn't that messed up?"

"Mr. Albatross," Bubblegum began, taking a step back, "You need to come back to Candy Kingdom and face the consequences of your actions!"

The bird creature seemed mildly surprised, his wings gently flapping. He stooped down lower and stepped close to Bubblegum, his beak touching her nose, "What have I done? I can't think of anything I ever did wrong to your parents or their business."

"Seriously?" Jake deadpanned, his arms raised as if he were challenged to fisticuffs. Mr. Albatross chuckled almost modestly. "Dude, you literally left a blood trail to your crimes!"

Finn approached him, the tip of his blade mere inches from Mr. Albatross' face. The taller being seemed unfazed by his unsaid threat, and with a sharp talon, he pushed the golden-plated sword away. "That might be, dog, but I know you didn't come here to kill me. What I've done is cruel, and I'll continue on my path as sure as the Nightosphere is chaotic," He jabbed a razor sharp talon at Bubblegum, "But I'm too valuable to your parents to just up and die." His tone was so sure and smug that Finn was fighting so hard not to skewer him right there. "What kind of name is Candy Kingdom for your family business anyway? It doesn't exactly strike fear into the hearts of your clients."

A rumbling laugh squawked out of Mr. Albatross' chest; if laughing was ever considered a crime, then it would add another three miles to Albatross' rap sheet. In all of Finn's experiences with him, the birdman had laughed entirely too much. Bubblegum sneered at him, "I'm sure they'll understand if we say we were forced to neutralize you…"

Even more laughter; he was mocking them now, "Is that so? Well, I'm sure you would get away with that, if you could even manage to touch me." Mr. Albatross' wings began to spread out.

Jake, sensing danger, stretched out his arms and wrapped Mr. Albatross in a rope-like embrace, even managing to trap his wings. Surprised, Albatross immediately began to struggle to free himself, growling and squawking in frustration. "If you guys are gonna do somethin'," Jake began, already straining to keep a grip on the birdman, "you gotta do it fast! Yeeouch!" A talon dug into one of his arms.

"Finn," Bubblegum cried, "We can't let this guy go to my parents. He'll just escape them again!" He knew what she was getting at, and he was all too ready to follow her next command, "You need to end his life now. You'll be doing the world a service if you—"

It was too late—Albatross was too strong for Jake. With a single beat of his wings, he was freed, and Jake's limbs fell like wet spaghetti. Dark chortles erupted from deep within his throat, but it was clear he wasn't at all happy. "I would love to see you try to kill me, Finn Mertins." He took a step toward the boy, reaching his talons out toward him, "Make the first move."

Noodle arms wobbled wildly around Albatross' feet, then wound around his ankles and bound them together. Jake held tight as the birdman tried to move, only to trip over the arms and fall, banging his beak against the ground. "Finn, do it now!" he called, almost panicking, "I can't hold him forever!"

Finn lifted his sword and brought it down hard. He missed—Albatross rolled to the right and managed to dodge the stab. When the blade sunk into the dirt, he grabbed it by the hilt, his talons digging deep into Finn's delicate skin. Blood seeped from the puncture wounds, Finn shrieked and tried to pull his hands away.

With a single jerk, he ripped the sword out of Finn's grasp and threw it aside. Finn looked at his hands; the cuts were deep and ragged, blood practically pouring from them. It stung, and throbbed so painfully, but he squeezed his hands into fists, and roared at Albatross—but his voice quickly died when, over Albatross' manic laughter, he could hear pained whimpers.

Bubblegum gasped in shock and dismay, all the color draining from face "J-Jake!" Finn looked; his jaw dropped, and tears welled up in his eyes. A sword, Finn's sword, had stuck itself deep inside of Jake's chest. By the look of it, he hadn't anticipated Albatross' counter attack, and couldn't move out of the way in time. Now he lay crumpled on the floor, a pool of red forming beneath his writhing body.

A sick feeling, like a ball of tangled moss, nestled itself in Finn's gut. "Jake!" Albatross' laughter reached an insane crescendo as Finn went over to his fallen comrade. "Jake, Jake, it's all right, I'm right here buddy." He picked the whimpering dog up into his arms and hugged him close. His blue shirt was stained red too quickly, and tears began to spill down his cheeks. "Come on, buddy. Stay with me. We can get you help."

"Help," Mr. Albatross roared manically, "is far beyond the dog or any of you!" His wings extended, threatening to sweep them close to the insane man. Finn squeezed Jake and rolled out of his reach.

Bubblegum ran passed Finn, picking him up by the collar of his shirt, "Finn, we have to go!" She pulled him up and, numbly, he followed her.

They ran back into the narrow corridor, Finn still hugging Jake close. Bubblegum still grasped tightly on Finn's shirt, having to drag him through the closed passage, with Albatross close at their heels. She could hear the manic birdman seething with fury because he couldn't quite reach them. The passage was far too confined. His large wings kept him from moving swiftly, and though his reach was far, it still fell short and he could only manage to just miss Finn and instead grab a fistful of dirt.

Still, Bubblegum could only pick up the pace, wanting to put as much distance between them and the crazed mass of feathers as possible.

Finally, they reached the stairs. She dragged Finn up, knowing that for every step she took, Jake's blood marred their path. Bubblegum let out a caw, her voice echoing upward, and her falcon cried back. It landed right in front of the open passageway, its backside facing them. She hoisted Finn and Jake together onto its back, then climbed on herself.

"Hey! Where are you kids going?" As the falcon took flight, Mr. Albatross finally squeezed through to the outside. "Aww, going so soon? You're just like my cousin! One little fatality, and you're just gone!" Instead of chasing after them, however, Albatross let them flee, already satisfied with the damage he had done. A smirk curled his beak, sharp teeth poking out from his lips, "Just one tiny death, and you don't want to play anymore! Typical!"

The falcon screeched as it picked up speed. Finn held Jake, who was now too weak from blood loss to even kick his hind legs. Bubblegum looked back at the two, a look of sorrow showing on her face. "Finn…" she started, but Finn wasn't listening.

"C'mon buddy, just hang in there." He didn't dare try to remove the sword. Doing so, he feared, may doom his friend further. "We can get you help." Finn hiccupped, now only trying to convince himself that there was hope for his friend.

Jake opened his eyes just a crack, took a look at Finn, and mumbled quietly, "Eh…F-Finn…I…" He tried to reach up and touch Finn's face, but the paw only just barely reached him before suddenly falling limp against his bloodied chest again.

"What was that, buddy?" Finn tried, but Jake didn't answer. His eyes had shut again, and try as he might Finn couldn't get him to wake up. "Jake?" he blubbered, "Come on, man, don't do this to me. You can't go!"

Bubblegum tried to ignore Finn's desperate tries to wake his already gone friend. She stared straight forward, guiding her falcon back to the mainland. However, it soon became too much for her to bare, and tears began to sting her eyes. They spilled over quickly, and she was powerless to stop them. "I-I'm sorry, Finn, Jake." Her voice was quiet and broken, "I never should have brought you into this..."

The falcon continued to soar, undeterred by the emotions of its passengers. It released a mighty caw, and continued flying toward land.