When Ben awoke, he found himself surrounded by a huge white landscape, he was lying flat on his back, arms outstretched and a soft, peaceful feeling had come over him. But then he remembered what happened and leapt to his feet, sweating and panicking, checking himself over for wounds, but they were no longer there. He sighed with relief and looked around him, there was nothing, nothing here, there or anywhere, not that he could see anyway.

"Gwen!" He cried, no answer "Kevin!" Still, no reply. He gave out a growl of frustration and wondered if he was dead, if this was Heaven, but he refused to believe it and began to walk, he had no idea where he was going. "Vilgax captured me," Ben tried to convince himself with his own words, words he knew weren't true "He took me away, he put my in this room, he'll come in a moment and torture me for sure." He kept babbling on like this for a few hours until he cried out a roar of pain and sadness and anger, collapsing to his knees, holding in his tears. Ben stayed like that for a while, sobbing and calling out to Gwen and Kevin, waiting for them to come and save him, but they wouldn't come, they will never come, he was alone. For good. So he lay down and closed his eyes, thinking that if he feel asleep, he'd wake up in his bedroom and everything would have just been a terrible dream...

He had a nightmare. So Ben woke up, screaming and panting, covered in sweat and scared out of his wits. In the dream, he'd been covered in blood, dying and trying to breathe, but he couldn't, but he wouldn't die either and Vilgax was there, but twisted and distorted and he was holding the limp bodies of Kevin and Gwen. He was laughing and jeering then he ripped two in half. That's when Ben had woke up. He couldn't get to dreadful images out of his head. He sighed heavily and curled his legs up to his chest, hugging them tightly, the only comfort he had.

"Hello Ben Tennyson," a voice said and Ben leapt to his feet, darting his head round to the voice. At first he saw nothing, then a head rose and a dark shadow of a face appeared from the whiteness of the blank world. It was a figure, a figure in a white robe that covered his entire body, his head was covered by a hood and Ben could not see the man's face, if he was a man.

"I am sorry if I scared you," the man said and nodded apologetically.

"Okay... Who are you?" Ben asked, his hand hovering over the omnitrix.

"Call me what you will, an angel, devil, god, death, reaper, Hades, Shiva, I am known by many names," The figure answered.

Ben blinked "What name you you like most?"

"Angel sounds more inviting," he answered.

"Then thats your name."

There was an awkward silence but Ben did not remove his hand away from the omnitrix. This just had to be a trick, Vilgax planned it all, the man cocked his head to one side and Ben shivered, as is something had flown right through him.

"The omnitrix will not work here Tennyson," Angel said "It was only Ben Tennyson that died today and none of the aliens contained in that watch."

"I am not dead!" Ben cried and slammed down on the dial, but nothing happened, he hit it and hit it and hit it but he did not transform "Stupid watch!"

"I said it would not work," Angel said "You are dead Ben Tennyson, you cannot go back unless you're friends manage to shock you back to life."

"But I can't feel anything and Gwen and Kevin will take at least an hour to get to me, I'm in the middle of the desert!"

"Then hope they have found faster transport," Angel said "This world only last for another hour or so and if your friends do not save you in that time, a portal will open and that will lead to the next world."

"What's that?"

"I am limited to where I can go, I am not aloud to go past the gates."

"I can't just sit here though!"

"There is nothing else you can do Tennyson, so you must be patient and wait."

But Ben could not wait, he sat for a while, then started pacing and muttering to himself, he couldn't believe he was dead, he couldn't be at all and a few times he felt tears prick at the corners of his eyes.

"Come on guys! Hurry!" He said through gritted teeth but he could not feel the shocks that were to save his life, he could not hear distant cries of his friends and loved ones, he felt tired and weak all of a sudden, he felt that he should give up. Angel watched him all the while, not saying a word to comfort him or even a word to tell him to give up, he stood and stared.

Then there came a whirling sound, like a helicopter coming closer and closer and then, when it was at its loudest, it turned into a loud ZIIIMMMPT and a doorway appeared, a swirling vortex of purple, black, blue and red. Ben staggered backwards as it grew bigger, a name was calling out to him, trying to drag him in.

"Your friends have failed," Angel sighed and held out a hand to Ben "The next world awaits Ben, I am sorry that you have truly died."

But Ben did not take the man's hand, he fell backwards and shook his head furiously "No... NO! I won't go! I can't go! I want to live, I didn't have chance to say goodbye to my parents, not even Gwen or Kevin or Grandpa Max! Please! I'll do anything!" But the vortex grew bigger and bigger and came towards Ben, a wind pushed him towards it but he didn't move, he didn't want to go, he wanted to hold his mum and dad, and put up with Kevin's taunts and jeers and Gwen's worried and cautious voice.

Angel again, cocked his head to one side and that strange feeling came through Ben's insides then it spoke to him "I see your heart is pure Ben, besides, according to the time line, you were not meant to die today." Ben looked up at Angel in confusion "But I cannot let you go back really either, unless you agree to one simple term!"

"Anything!" Ben cried as the whirling noise grew louder and the vortex came closer.

"A life for a life Ben Tennyson, if someone dies, someone lives, if someone comes back, another must die, for this I will let you go back, within a year someone, equally as devoted, as full of bravery and fear as you must die, by your very own hands, this task you must preform or else, you will die for good and never come back!"

Ben opened his mouth to speak, he could not do that! But he had no choice and before he cry out an objection, another vortex was opened and sucked him into it, Angel grabbed hold of Ben's wrist, squeezing it tight and Ben felt a burning sensation where he squeezed, he cried out and then Angel let go, letting him fall and be pulled down into the other portal.

"That is what will remind you of the deal Ben Tennyson! Good luck in life!" And Ben screamed as he fell back down into the world of the living...