I'd had this idea in my head, very vaguely, for quite a while, but it was completely spur-of-the moment that it was actually written. For those who are waiting for the next chapter of The Beginning of the End, it's still trucking along. Don't worry, it isn't dead.

IMPORTANT- Before you read- This fic is AU. It takes place after Time After Time part 2, under the condition that the Xiaolin side lost the final showdown with the Heylin, and the parallel universes were not fixed. Instead, the Xiaolin warriors were once again captured by the Heylin, as they were earlier in the episode.

And for a warning- this is very violent, and there will be character death. Please don't say you weren't warned.

Enjoy the strangeness.

For the Greater Good

"Chase Young! Why are you here?"

"I could ask the same of you, young one."

Omi gazed questioningly at the newly-corrupted Heylin lord through the bars of an underground cell. "What do you mean by that?"

The rusted door creaked open, and Chase Young stepped inside, armor gleaming dimly in the flickering torchlight. He shook his head hopelessly at the five figures huddled together on the hard, stone floor. "You were not supposed to have lost that showdown. This timeline, this universe...they should have ceased to exist. Did you not understand that failure was not an option?"

The littlest one's voice was hardly more that a weak sigh. "You have often said that fate is predetermined, that it cannot be altered. Perhaps we were not meant to fix the world." He paused, then added, "But you still have not explained why you are here, now that we are permanently separated. What do you want with us?"

Voice completely devoid of emotion, he replied, "I have come to let go of what we failed to protect." At that, he lashed a clawed hand out at the nearest head, fisting it in thick, brown hair, and twisted it violently. A sickening crack, a choked gasp, and the Brazilian boy fell dead to the floor.

The slender, black-haired girl gave a horrified shriek, but it cut off abruptly as her spine was snapped by a swift kick from a sandaled foot. As the remaining three shrank backwards desperately to get away from the evil warrior, the redheaded boy yelled, "What the hell are you doing!"

Wide-eyed, Chase roared, "This is the only option!" Another well-aimed kick, and the cowboy fell, blood from his crushed skull soaking rapidly into his beloved hat. "Don't you get it? This is the only way for me to accept what I've done!" He shook his head back and forth wildly, eyes clenched shut. "You all have to be gone!"

Tentatively, the pale, effeminate boy reached up a trembling hand to touch the Heylin lord's leg. His voice shook uncontrollably as he asked, "What about the greater good, Chase? ...You did this for us, remember?" He gasped and went limp in terror as a powerful, clawed hand lifted him up by the neck, squeexing just hard enough to make breathing a chore. His feet scrambled to try to touch the rough stones of the floor.

The evil warrior shook his head slowly, a pained expression flashing across his face for a brief moment. However, when he spoke, it was cold and emotionless, sharper than the claws that had only recently replaced his human fingernails. "The greater good no longer exists, Jack." He squeezed tighter, and felt a disgusted satisfaction when he felt the boy's slender neck snap between his fingers. For a moment, he made as though to drop the limp body to the ground, but then crouched to his knees, gently laying the dead boy on the cold stones, arranging his limbs as if there was actually a chance that he would be buried. His attention turned to the final, smallest figure that huddled in the corner.

A bitter laugh escaped the tiny lips. "This is my fault, isn't it?" He tilted his head up as he was cast into the Heylin warrior's shadow. His eyes glistened as he said quietly, sadly, "I do not believe you will achieve your purpose here, Chase Young. Do you truly believe that doing this will save you?" He paused, hardly daring to feel satisfied at the evil overlord's hurt expression. "Do you feel any better now that you have done what you came to do?"

Chase chuckled, murmuring, "Always such a wise child, if only at rare moments." Even as he raised his hand to strike, a single tear rolled down his cheek and he whispered, voice breaking, "Of course I don't."

The hand came down, and suddenly, it was all over.

End

Ye gods, that was weird.

Reviews are very, very much appreciated. :3