Disclaimer: I don't own "Rick and Morty".

Author's Note: Things will get a bit dark here, broh.

Morty had never seen such destruction and chaos. The world that Rick's love serum had essentially destroyed was an apocalyptic nightmare, with humans who had been turned into deranged looking creatures that looked like someone's insides had been turned inside out roaming all about, fighting with each other all over the place. The once beautiful suburban streets were now fire and brimstone, worst than the most dangerous parts of town in their dimension. Storefront windows were smashed in; garbage was strewn about everywhere in the streets. The stench of death was everywhere, and the creatures screamed and groaned as though their mere existence was killing them. No place was safe here in this dystopian underworld, where the most vile looking of creatures now populated the Earth, their previous forms now but a distant memory.

Rick, Morty and Summer #2 had arrived at the sight of the Smith family fort, hoping to find Summer #1-but only to come upon a scene that threatened to break Morty's heart completely. It was enough of a shock to see his father-alive-slouched on his heels on what had once been their meticulously groomed lawn-but it was even more of a shock to see his sister, from their dimension, lying still on the ground in front of Jerry, her eyes closed as if she were sleeping, but her skin and clothes were stained crimson with blood. Coming from Jerry was a moan that sounded inhuman. His father looked almost unrecognizable, between the unruly hair that his father had once kept as well groomed as their lawn, to the various bruises on his face, to the terrifying scar that ran across his right eyebrow. He was completely unaware of the three individuals who had happened upon him, so encapsulated was he in his own world of grief.

Baring witness to this, Morty feared he might faint. An unrestricted moan escaped from his own lips, which felt almost numb; his head felt light and dizzy, and he knew he would fall if it hadn't been for Summer-the other Summer-holding him steady, supporting his back with her hands. Everything felt like it was in slow motion, time seeming to come to a complete and utter standstill-and then it suddenly dawned on him that-here was his father-and it was Rick's voice, shattering his unbidden thoughts, which finally broke the spell.

"Jerry." Rick was standing over the man, staring down at the motionless body of his granddaughter. "Look up," Rick demanded coldly. "Snap out of it Jerry."

Jerry finally stopped sobbing long enough to look up at him through glassy eyes filled with tears that threatened to continue streaming down his face. He looked up at Rick with alarm in his eyes. "R...Rick?" Jerry choked out. "What...is that...is that really-"

"Yeah. It's me, Jerry, but is that really the point? What the hell happened to her?"

Jerry blinked and shook his head, staring down at his daughter as though he'd just noticed she was there for the first time, then, looked back up at Rick again. "Is...am I...dreaming?" asked Jerry.

"DAD!" Morty broke free and broke into a run towards his father.

"OH my GOD! What the-MORTY!?" Jerry burst into sobs and wrapped his arms around his son, who cried hard into his father's chest. "Where-what-how...?" Jerry then saw Summer standing not far away. "SUMMER?!" Jerry exclaimed, running towards his daughter with Morty, gasping with relief as they all held one another. "But-you-you're there-how are you-"

"JERRY." Rick's unusually calm voice abruptly cut him off. Morty turned towards Rick, who was unusually quiet as he knelt down over his granddaughter's body. "Who did this?" Rick demanded, narrowing a glare at his son in law.

"Rick..." Morty was trembling as he released his father's hug, the relief at seeing his father suddenly diminishing, very quickly, as he watched Rick press his ear to Summer's chest. It began to occur what his grandfather was doing: he was searching for a pulse. "...Rick..." Morty swallowed hard as he approached his grandfather, "...she's..." Morty felt tears brimming in his eyes. "She's...gone..." Morty blurted out in spite of himself, "...isn't she?"

"Quiet Morty." Rick ordered sternly as he placed his forefinger and thumb against Summer's wrist. The girl did not stir as he did so, and Rick's heart began to sink as the seconds ticked by. "...Shit," Rick muttered under his breath, his heels sinking back in defeat to the ground.

"Rick..." Morty was shaking badly now, as he crept slowly closer and closer towards his grandfather, "...is she...dead? Is Summer...dead?"

"Shut up Morty," Rick snapped, more harshly than he'd intended. His heart was beating rapidly in his chest, and the world around him was a blur. Of course this would happen. "Jerry-who the hell did this?" Rick demanded, whirling about towards his son-in-law, whose eyes were filled with exhaustion, a mixture of grief and dread.

"...she was like this when I got here," Jerry confessed sadly. "I...imagine one of the monsters got her..."

"DAMMIT!" Rick exploded. With shaking fingers, he stood and retrieved his flask from his lab coat. Empty. "Dammit," he shouted, "dammit, dammit, dammit!"

"Summer..." Morty ran forward and collapsed in front of his sister's lifeless body. "Oh...Summer. No..."

Rick watched as his grandson's heart broke into a million pieces, as Morty sobbed helplessly as he leaned into his sister's body, curled up in a fetal position. He watched as Jerry rushed to Morty's side, and began trying desperately to comfort his son as best he could, though he was crying, too; even the other Summer was crying.

Rick backed away from the scene, feeling as though his heart might burst...perhaps he was having a heart attack...it didn't matter. Nothing did. Once again, another life was destroyed, and there wasn't a single thing he could do about it.

Before he could change his mind, Rick unearthed a portal in the ground and jumped through it, trying to ignore the sounds of his family's grief as he precariously tumbled through.