Vwoorp! Vwoorp!

The normally still air stirred uneasily at the new arrival, as if in retaliation. The TARDIS materialized in a barren landscape of sand and rock. It wasn't just night, the sky itself was permanently black to remind its inhabitants of where they stood. There was a river flowing but nothing of any kind was growing along its banks. How could it? This was the land of the dead.

"No more."

"Doc, what do you mean?" Jake asked, tears freely flowing now.

"It means no more. I've already committed one genocide today…I won't be the cause of another. There's been too much of death today and I promised to get you safely out of here, and I failed. But no more. Not this time, not him, not Finn. I swear I will do everything in my power to get him back and that isn't a promise. It's a guarantee."

"Doctor, what do you propose? He just took a direct cyber blast to the chest and no one can survive that…not even Finn." Bubblegum was used to keeping a stoic face for her people but she still couldn't hold back the tears at his sacrifice.

"Just trust me…just get him into the TARDIS quickly! It's his only chance!" The Doctor repeated, clearing the way past the remains of the cybermen as they ran through the tunnel.

"But he's gone Doctor! We can't bring him back from the dead! Death wouldn't allow it," Marceline said quietly.

"Oh Finn…Finn why did you have to do that for me?" Flame princess had seen everything. She'd closed her eyes and expected to be hit with the energy pulse that the cyber leader had fired in a last ditch effort for victory.

What she hadn't expected, however, had been Finn throwing himself in the way of the blast at the last second and taking the full force of the impact for her, saving her life but ending his own. "I treated you worse than my own father for years and now this…and I will never be able to repay you."

"Just help me get him inside and I'll tell you how I going to do it." The Doctor called back, urgently, as they exited the tunnel and found themselves once again in the throne room. The cybermen had cleared a path through the rubble of the collapse and it was that which had allowed them to escape. Fumbling with the key in the lock of the door, the Doctor pushed the TARDIS doors open to allow Marceline and Jake to come through with Finn's lifeless body, none of them daring to look down at the scorch marks that blackened his normally blue shirt. They laid him down on the clear glass floor where Flame princess promptly threw herself down beside, years of pent up emotions finally surfacing.

"Come on, Finn, wake up!" She sobbed, tears of lava warping the floor. "Please wake up! I'm sorry! Sorry for everything I did. Wake up!"

"Flame princess, leave him be," the Doctor said, gently touching her shoulder. "Crying over his dead body won't do anything for you. His alive one, though, might offer you more support."

"Huh?" She sniffled, standing back up. "What are you saying?"

"Exactly what I promised. I'm going to get him back…by any means necessary." He turned to Marceline. "You mentioned Death, the person Death not the event. I'm willing to bet he can bring Finn back from the dead, having power over that kind of thing is in his job description." She just sighed.

"You don't just go to the land of the dead, or more specifically the 37th dead world let alone the others." He raised an eyebrow at this but stayed quiet.

"Death doesn't just let you take souls back to the real world," Bubblegum expanded. "You have to give him something of equal value in return.

"He puts a price on life? That's utterly disgusting but I'm willing to let it slide if he helps us."

"He won't," Marceline said dejectedly.

"Well I'm going to motivate him!" The Doctor proclaimed, leaping over Finn's body and up to the control panel. "Finn's death was a heroic one, just like the hero he is and will be. His death was also a sacrifice, a life for a life to be precise. So I'm going to offer him one."

"What does that mean, Doc?" Jake asked, calming himself.

"Exactly what I said. A life for a life. His life for my life."

"Doctor you can't be serious! It doesn't work like that!" Bubblegum said, shocked at his readiness to give up his own life for that of another.

"Why ever not?" Finn performed a sacrifice so I think this Death person would allow a substitute sacrifice in place of his."

"But, Doctor…"

"What are you going to say, Bonnie?" That my life is more valuable than his? To keep mine while Finn dies long before his time?" The Doctor said, refusing to look at her. "I've seen so much of death over the years…taken so many lives myself…this once, just this once let me give one back." Now he turned to face her. "It would be my honour to give up my life in place of Finn. A hero…the hero that I could never be."

"Doctor…" Bubblegum opened her mouth to protest but closed it again as no words came out.

"Thank you," he smiled. "We're here." He bounded down the stairs and made for the door. The other's made to follow him but he turned around and stopped them. "Where do you think you're going?"

"With you?" Marceline shrugged.

"This is something I have to do alone, please understand that. Plus you all need to look after Finn for me. He never deserves to be alone, even in death." He turned around and smoothed his jacket out. "I'll be back in no more than an hour. Keep Finn company for me until then." Then without further conversation he turned back and exited the time capsule in one swift motion.

The Doctor stepped outside and took in the view of the surrounding landscape. It was desolate, even for desert standards. The earth and the sky were one and the same, merging together on the horizon. The only thing that adorned the vast wasteland was the enormous quantity of skeletons. Some were animated and milling around aimlessly and some were just lying still, not even moving in the slightest.

"How do they decide which ones get to be animated?" He scuffed the ground with his shoe, sending up a cloud of dust and ash. "Is there some sort of rotor for days of the week? Does time even pass normally down here? Lucky for me if it doesn't. An hour would be pretty meaningless and give me more time to convince this Death guy to hand over Finn's…soul. Never did believe in souls but their world, their rules." The Doctor took one last look back over at the TARDIS then started walking towards the only source of light in the area, a building that appeared to be made entirely out of light. He'd only take about a hundred steps when he realised he wasn't alone. Stiffening, he announced to no one in particular:

"You know…not many people can sneak up on me so I've got to hand it to you for getting this far… but didn't I tell you to wait in the TARDIS?" Not a thing nor a person stirred. "Come on or do I have to use the sonic on you again? I know it's you, Marceline." The vampire queen materialised about twenty paces behind him.

"How did you know I was here?" She muttered, annoyed at having been caught.

"The oscillations in the air current didn't match up with…" He stopped himself at her blank expression. "…I'm just very good at guessing. Always have been, always will be…at least for the short remainder of my life anyway."

"Yeah that's actually what I wanted to talk to you about…" She said, looking behind to check if she herself was followed. "Plus you'll need a guide through this place if you want to reach Death's palace within the hour."

"Won't the others notice your absence?"

"Nah, I told them I needed some time alone so I just went round the corner and went invisible to sneak back out. They think I'm distraught over Finn."

"Are you?"

"…Let's just go."

"Well then," the Doctor twirled his sonic screwdriver around expertly before landing it in his pocket. "Take me to Death." Marceline floated silently past him, not replying to his attempt at humour. Several tense minutes passed as they climbed over several mounds of the white earth, not having the energy to talk during the climbs. When they reached the summit of the tallest one Marceline rounded on him.

"Why're you doing this?" She bared her fangs at him.

"I'm not sure I…"

"Cut it out, Doctor, we both know you could just pack up and leave right now and no one would blame you. Finn's death isn't on you, it wasn't your fault, and I don't care what you say! Those things, the cybermen murdered him and you murdered them. You avenged him so why're you still helping us?"

"You're my friends," He said carefully, taking in the view that the mound provided.

"You've only known us for, like, a few days tops!" She said, angrily. "Friendships take time to form."

"And you, of all people, know better than most."

"What's that supposed to mean?!" The vampire looked as if she was going to hurl the Timelord right off the face of the hill and into the stream below. "This isn't about me!"

"You're so old now, Marcy, you must be so tired." She flinched when he said 'Marcy'; it felt like an invasion of privacy. "You said friendships take time to form but you're over 1000 years old now. By that argument you should have a lot more friends than Jake and Bonnie, but you don't. Why?"

"That's none of your…"

"I'm sorry, that was uncalled for but I just wanted you to see the flaw in your argument." He said apologetically. "A friendship isn't defined by how long it takes but by what you do to form it. Bonnie was so good to me, helping me in my darkest hour, encouraging me to never give up despite everything that I did. She did the same for you, too." Marceline went wide eyed, and turned away quickly.

"I don't know what you mean. I don't like her and she doesn't like me, end of."

"Well at least half of that's wrong," The Doctor replied casually, deciding to make his way down the nether side of the hill.

"Hey wait!" Marceline floated after him, trying to supress her desperation. "What do you mean?"

"I mean that Bonnie misses you, being around you. Everything about you."

"She would never admit that! Not in a million years."

"But you don't deny it?" He looked over to her.

"Yes…no…stop trying to distract me! We're talking about you and Finn, not me and her," Marceline said, a little too quickly to dissipate any suspicion.

"She wants you back, dare I say it…even more than Finn." He realised his mistake too late and Marceline rounded on him, changing into her demonic form.

"How dare you say that?! She loved him more then she'll ever love me and now he's gone and you think she cares…cares even the slightest about me. I can't compete with Finn, even if he is dead and now you're going to bring him back…"

"And you want me to stop?"

"No…I'm immortal, or as close to it as I can be." She sighed. "Let Death take my life instead. He can take mine and I might still have a chance but you can't possibly survive. No regeneration, just death."

"I can't let you do tha...how do you know about regeneration?" He asked, softly. "And on the subject you're a vampire. Our people haven't got on in the past but you still seem to trust me…and the TARDIS being bigger on the inside didn't faze as much as it should have."

"…"

"Marceline…what aren't you telling me?" He pressed, to which the vampire queen just sighed again. Clearly the memory was causing her a great deal of pain to bring to the surface after so many centuries.

"A long, long time ago, before the creation of the candy kingdom, another object fell from the sky, just like yours. Exactly like yours. The man that came out also identified himself as a Timelord. I didn't trust him at first because of what he was. The Timelords murdered my people and I hated him for it." She paused, drawing in a deep breath as if would somehow compensate for the resurfacing of such old thoughts. "But he fell in love with my friend…the best friend I've ever had. I learned to trust him and when I saw you…you with your police box and…I somehow knew I could trust you. When I first saw your TARDIS I instantly thought it was him but it wasn't. I feigned shock at the 'bigger on the inside so Finn wouldn't get suspicious."

"Why didn't you mention this before?"

"He left…and took my friend with him. Although I'm very happy for them both it left a hole in my heart. Bonnie was the only one I had left but when we fell out I had nothing. Thinking about them brings so many bad memories to the surface. It was painful." She paused to brush some of her midnight hued strands of hair out of her eyes. "But now finally I can do something good. I can save Finn's life." The Doctor was having none of it (assuming the mystery Timelord to be one from this dimension so he paid him no further thought).

"This is my battle and you have so much more to live for than I do."

"You think I have something left to live for?"

"You think you don't?" He turned to her as they crossed the stream, ignoring the shouts from a nearby skull to drink the water. Stopping suddenly, he turned and faced Marceline, locking eyes with her, at least until she pushed him away.

"Stop doing that!"

"You…you really don't believe it, do you?"

"What?"

"You still think even after all this time that you have nothing to live for. That they don't care about you…Marcy, I'm so sorry."

"They don't, though!" She floated upside down now. "They don't trust me at all. They just think I'm a freak who can't be depended on when it really matters. I'm…I'm just everyone's problem. Ooo doesn't need me, they need Finn."

"You really can't see it, can you?"

"There's nothing to see."

"They care about you, even if you are too scared to see it. Over 1000 years of time and space and I've never met anyone who wasn't important. Even Jake, who's terrified of you, could never imagine a world without you. You don't need to be the most reliable person 'cos no one's perfect. Bonnie didn't mean what she said all those years ago. She never did and she has kicked herself every day for the past few hundred years over what happened."

"She…" the vampire hesitated. "She told you about our break up."

"No, well, yes. She wanted to connect our minds so she could see inside my mind for one of her experiments but the door was open from both sides. I could see everything in hers the same way she could see into mine. Everything she's ever felt towards family, friends. You. She would give anything just to be with you again."

"I-I don't believe you. Why should I trust you?" She tried to wriggle out of the conversation.

"Really? I've got nothing left to hide so take the advice of a dead man. Or dead man walking. That's what I'll be if even if I survive this."

"Huh?"

"There are people who want me dead for something I did, or rather am going to do. If I survive it's only a matter of time before they get me. That's fact. Prophecy. No way out for me, but there is a way out for Finn and I'm not going to be the one to deny him that chance."

"But I can…" She started.

"No, Marceline, you can't. Not now not ever. You have so much to live for. Friends who're like family to you. People who care about you. I have none of those things." She made as if to speak again but he held up his hand. "Please, grant me this one freedom. The right to die. It's my honour to give my life to someone like Finn who'll go on to do great things, save lives, and more. He is much, much more deserving of the 80 years he'll live then hundreds more that I will if I don't save him."

"But Doctor…!"

"We're here." They'd been so engrossed in heated discussion that Marceline hadn't even noticed the distinct change in scenery around them. Things had started to sprout from the earth and grow where the light from the palace touched. It wasn't a harsh light either. From far away it was blinding and radiant but as they'd drawn closer the light had mellowed into a soft glow of white that gave life to the greenery around it.

"Come on, we don't have much time left." Marceline muttered, pushing past the Doctor who'd stopped to inspect the flowers.

"Why? It's not like Finn can re-die if we don't get his soul quick enough." He said, following her inside.

"No but if his soul is separated from his body for too long then it won't be able to enter back inside."

"Well done." A new voice said. The two turned around to face the owner of the deep, husky voice. Standing behind them was a skeletal figure dressed in farmers clothing, complete with fedora and hoe to till the soil. "Miss Abadeer, it's been far too long," he chuckled.

"Death, this is important!" She exclaimed. "Do you know why we're here?"

"I know why you're here," he pointed a bony finger at the floating vampire. "Him, I'm not so sure about…" He turned to the Doctor. "I'm Death. I know everyone who inhabits this world, but not you. Why?"

"I'm not of this world. I came through…"

"The rift, yes, I thought as much."

"Do you know who created it?" He asked.

"Dark forces. Powerful, ancient forces that surpass even my power. It is no accident you're here."

"What do you mean?"

"In which the truth of all things lie,

The most faithful friends will surely fly.

In making sure the battle's won,

At your own hand the end will come.

A puzzle scattered into things of eight,

And solving shall seal their only fate.

The answer lies behind closed doors

In knowing the choice was never yours."

"Please don't tell me that was a prophecy. I hate not being able decide my own actions."

"That's just a prophecy…I'm not even sure if it applies to you but you look like prophecy material."

"Can't you change…?"

"Sorry, but your role has already been decided…but hey…" Death remarked. "That's all in the future…or the past. Back to the point…I've worked out why you're both here, now."

"Finn." All three of them said at once. Marceline was the first to speak after the slight awkward pause.

"Can you give him to us?"

"Miss Abadeer, you of all people know how it works." Death said, inspecting the soil. "A trade of equal value must be made for the soul of the dead, and Finn the human is a one of a kind soul. His price is very high indeed."

"Couldn't we just have a music off to decide?" The vampire brought out her axe bass and showed him. Death shook his head, causing a slight rattling sound to be heard.

"Sorry but you know as well as I do that this ain't no princess plant we're dealing with. Finn, or any complex living thing requires more than just beating me on the stage. A life for a life."

"Then take mine," the Doctor spoke at last. "My life for his."

"But Doctor!"

"Stay out of this, Marceline!" He warned.

"Yes, miss Abadeer..." Death concurred. "You cannot interfere in a willing transaction between participants of a soul exchange." He turned back to the Doctor. "You know what this entails, don't you?"

"Yes." He nodded.

"If you go through with this then your own life essence will be forfeit for Finn's. The process will drain you of your life until the equivalent of a normal, human life span has been taken and used to restore Finn so that he may live his life to its full capacity. All 80 or so years. You cannot hope to survive the trauma. Will you still do this?"

"In a heartbeat."

"Impressive." Death said, trying to read the Doctor's face. "I've not encountered many who would do such a thing. It doesn't matter though. Are you ready?" The Doctor nodded.

"Always."

"Then I shall do as you request. A life for a life."

"Wait, Doctor, no!" Marceline screamed." But Death had already begun. Summoning his hoe, he tapped the centre of the Doctor's chest. Almost immediately he yelled out in pain as golden ripples began to surge through his body

"Stop!" Marceline yelled and tried to strike Death with her bass; he simply waved his free hand and materialised a wall of light that prevented the vampire interfering. "NO!" She cried, banging her fist against the barrier, watching helplessly as the Doctor fell to his knees.

The golden ripples became waves and started to flow out of his body, circling both Doctor and Death as the latter summoned as tiny sphere of energy and allowed the Doctor's power to amass around it. As the flow increased, The Doctor fell even further down, barely able to keep himself upright, causing Marceline to bang even harder on the wall. The sphere Death had summoned was now reacting to the energy, growing in size and now illuminating the area around it, pulsing gold with pure life force.

"We're done," Death said as a brilliant flash of light was emitted from all around them. When Marceline opened her eyes, she could see the sphere of energy had nearly tripled in size and was hovering steadily above the ground, casting a soft glow on the grey soil below it. "The soul of Finn the human is yours, Miss Abadeer." She ran over to it, (the barrier having dissipated when the light faded) and inspected it, not quite believing him.

"This is Finn?" She asked gesturing to the sphere.

"Only his life force. You need to return it to his physical body and combine them together to get the true Finn to return. You best hurry though…" Death pointed to the Doctor who had collapsed completely and lay silently on the dry earth. "Our man here gave the equivalent of 80 human years to re-energize the soul but it's unstable at best. You've only got a few minutes until it…"

"Wait!" The vampire crouched closely down to the Doctor's body. "Did you say 80 years?"

"That's what he gave up, yeah. Is it important?" Death enquired.

"Oh that's brilliant!" She half cried, half laughed.

"What?! What did I miss?!"

"He's already over 1000 years old. Another 80 years is nothing to him." She flipped his body over so his face was pointing up. "Isn't that right, Doctor?" His eyes snapped open, much to Death's dismay.

"Ah, you caught me!" He laughed, standing up with some difficulty. "I was wondering how long I could get away with that. Oh well." Death threw down his hoe in annoyance.

"What? How can you still be alive? You should be dead but you don't look any older or withered."

"Timelord," he smiled back.

"But I thought you were human!" Death said, sulking slightly. "The transfer shouldn't have worked otherwise."

"Humans and Timelords are very similar, at least superficially. I thought you could tell the difference, being Death and all?"

"It's been a long week…lots of paper work." Death sighed, suddenly becoming serious. "But you violated the contract. A life for a life."

"No you said my life essence. That doesn't mean I had to die to give Finn what he deserved."

"You…you cheated me!"

"In about a minute nearly 3 million life forces will become available to you, courtesy of myself. I think that more than covers it." The Doctor scooped up the sphere and took Marceline's hand.

"You don't get to decide the terms of the agreement!" Death argued.

"Take it or leave it," he said, still walking away. "It's the best you can do."

"Was that a threat?!"

"Only if you want it to be." Death watched the two walking back across the river and over the hill of greying soil. While he was tempted to remove them for disruption and loop-holing his terms he knew a good deal when he saw it. Though there would be a mountain of paperwork to fill out, 3 million new souls more than made up for the loss of one, even if it was Finn the human's. It didn't matter to him anyway, the soul was useless now. The hour had passed and the soul wouldn't be able to enter Finn's body, at least not without help.

A/N: The Doctor is refering to the silence and their plot to kill him (this is pre-time of the Doctor for him). The mystery Timelord may or may not be a mystery if you've also read "Be my beginning" by 'I am red bull' (also in the DW/AT crossover section).

The riddle is one of my own creation but what does it refer to? You'll find out (eventually).

Be sure to review if you want to. Next chapter up on Friday.