"Down the blue lined, quite road of mystery, that is sheltered in white light, all I can see is eternal darkness. Darkness that stretches out to envelope everything good in my life. Darkness that shallows my soul."

    Illyana Rasputin sighed and laid the diary down on the nightstand. She brushed her blond hair out of her face and pushed herself off the bed.

    It's a normal room, Illyana thought. So very normal. Too normal for a demon like me!

    She paused at the mirror that was set in the dresser of white wood covered in violet and pink flowers. Long blond hair, starry blue eyes, like a pastel present waiting to be opened. What was inside the present was the worst surprise. Because inside was a rotten heart held together with string, a corrupted soul, a demon.

    Illyana stuck her tongue out at the image and then strode out of the room. Closing the door, she walked briskly down the hall. After a few paces she broke into a run as if hoping to escape from the room and having escaped that, escape her life.

    The door stood in silent protest to her attempts at escape. "Beware of the demon," "Abandon all hope ye who enter here," and "The demon is in...side." Yes the signs on the door were a silent protest to Illyana's attempts to escape from what she was.

    Illyana kept running. She liked the feel of the hard ground under her feet. It made her forget about the tears that were stinging her eyes. The tears were salty and rolled like gossamer dew down her flushed cheeks. She didn't bother to wipe them away. Let the tears come, she thought, show the world that I am human. The need to escape pushed her aching legs forward. It kept her running. She didn't even notice that she had ran into the wing of the mansion that was home to the New Mutants.

    The New Mutants. They said she was their teammate but they didn't mean it. Some of them did but most just resented her. They saw her as she was.

    Illyana, the little girl in the pictures. Magik, the teleporting mutant. Darkchilde, the demon sorceress. But she was more than parts. She was a whole, a whole comprised of those three key elements.

    She began to gasp. I don't care, she thought. I'll keep running. I'll keep running `til I die. I'm never going back to being what I was.

    Roberto DaCosta stepped out of his room into the hall. He paused for a second to brush a hand through his curly black hair. Then he gave a startled cry as something ran into him.

    "Ow!" Illyana cried as she hit the ground.

    Roberto looked up to find himself in a heap of limbs...with Illyana Rasputin. With a look of disgust he pulled away. "What were you doing?" he snapped as he stood up.

    Illyana remained huddled on the floor. Silent.

    "Why weren't you watching where you were going?" he demanded.

    Still she was silent. There was only the tiny sound of what seemed to be muffled sobbing.

    "Hey, what's wrong?" Roberto gently, kneeling in front of her.

    "Nothing!" she cried lifting her head. "Why can't you just leave me the hell alone?!"

    Roberto took a step backwards and stared at her. Illyana's usually pale face was flashed, her eyes were red and tears ran down her cheeks. What could have affected Illyana this way, he though. In all the horrible situations the New Mutants had been through he had never seen her shed a tear, never seen her flinch.

    Her sudden rush of emotion unnerved him. Because if a demon could act human, and he was convinced that Illyana was a demon, then what could be said about the rest of the human race.

    "What's wrong, Illyana? What kind of trouble did your stupid demons get you into this time?" he demanded.

    Her head snapped up. The blue eyes were rimmed in red and they caught his brown ones. They held him in still captivation for an instant while he pondered how someone so beautiful could be so evil.

    "Demon," he muttered as he broke the gaze. "You don't get it, do you, Rasputin? You don't understand why everyone cringes at your gaze, do you?"

    Illyana's eyes widened in surprise. "Who do you think you are, `Berto?" she snarled, standing up and backing the boy into the wall. "Asking me stupid questions. Accusing me of hateful things. What do you know about me besides what you have condemned me with? I don't need that, `Berto. I don't need to be condemned any more than I already am!" she proclaimed, her voice shaking with wither fury or fear. "Any more than I already am," she sobbed dropping to the floor, tears forming in her eyes anew.

    "Sorry, `Yana. I didn't mean to. `Yana?" `Berto said gently leaning down next to her. "What's wrong?"

    "I'm a demon," she sobbed. "A cold hearted, corrupted demon and I hate it. I hate it! All I want is to be normal again."

    "Never bothered you before. Why should it now?"

    "Well it bothers me now. It damn well bothers me now!"

    "Can I help?" he asked, placing his hand on her shoulder.

    "No!" she cried leaping up. "No one can help! No one. If I can't do anything about it what can anyone else do!"

    "`Yana..." `Berto started but she teleported away in a brilliant flash of light. He stared at the spot where she had knelt until the spots finished flashing in front of his eyes. Then he knelt where her tears had fallen. "Not just a demon, then," he said to himself, "but something more. Something more human."

    Danielle Moonstar sat in her room listening to a cassette of traditional tribal chants. She closed her deep brown eyes and silently repeated the words.

    "Dani, I think we have a problem," `Berto exclaimed as he barged in.

    The girl sighed and slipped the headphones off. She pushed a hand through her long, black hair and stared at him. "What now, `Berto? They cancel `Magnum P.I.'?" she asked coyly.

    "I'm serious, Dani," he said defensively as he sat down in her desk chair.

    "Since when is Roberto DaCosta, the almighty Sunspot, serious about anything?" and with that Dani laughed and flopped down on the bed.

    "Fine! If that's the way you feel I'll just go and get someone else. I figured you'd be able to help since you're closest to Illyana but..." he replied as he headed out the door.

    "What's wrong with Illyana, `Berto?" Dani asked suddenly interested. Leaping off the bed, she slammed the door shut, nearly catching his hand in it.

    "Let's just say she finally confronted what she is."

    "And what exactly is that, `Berto?" Dani asked, her voice had a hard overtone.

    "The fact that she's turning into a demon, little by little."

    "She already knew that. So...what's wrong with her?"

    "It's just started to bother her," she said with mock cheerfulness.

    "It always bothered her. She just didn't want us to know that it did," she snapped at him.

    "Well, she sure did a good job of it," he replied somewhat crossly. Dani raised an eyebrow because she thought she heard a tinge of hurt in his voice.

    "Yeah, well, it's Illyana. She's pretty fond of her secrets. So...what happened?" she asked, relaxing her grip on the door.

    `Berto sighed and plopped down into the desk chair. Dani sat on the bed, facing him. "Well," she prodded.

    He sighed. "I was walking out of my room. I paused in the hallway for a minute and she ran into me. She was crying, Dani. At first I was all mad at her for running in the halls, for running into me, you know how I can get. Well, she was crying and that worried me `cause it's Illyana, y'know, the Ice Goddess. She got hysterical after a while proclaiming that no one could help and she just wanted to be normal Then she teleported away."

    Dani scowled slightly and bit her lip. "First off," she reminded him, " she's not an "Ice Goddess." Second, you did well to come directly to me. But, `Berto, is she `ported, what can I do about that?"

    "I don't know. Call a New Mutants meeting. See what's in her room..." he trailed off.

    "Maybe just let her cool off. It's Illyana, she'll be back before you know it." Both Dani and Roberto turned to see Douglas Ramsey in the doorway.

    "Doug, how long have you been there?" Dani asked somewhat irritated.

    "Not long, Chief. Just had some things to run over with you..." he studied her blank face. "The stats of the team's last training session," he explained.

    "Oh, yeah. That stuff," she said getting off her bed and walking over to where the blond haired boy stood.

    Doug ran a hand through his hair and studied `Berto's face. He was angry with Doug for saying what he had. Doug didn't see why that should be. After all, `Berto had always some across as if he hated Illyana. So why should he now be so concerned with her welfare.

    "Out," Dani ordered to `Berto as she reached Doug's side.

    "So, Dani, are we gonna do anything about Illyana?" `Berto asked.

    "I don't see what we can do." With that Dani turned around and walked quickly down the hall with Doug discussing stats and averages. `Berto walked the other direction. Toward the X-Men's wing of the mansion. Towards the room occupied by Illyana Rasputin.

    Illyana sat in the dark depths of her arcane realm, Limbo. It's highly ironic, she thought to herself, that I flee to the place that represents that part of myself I'm running away from. With a sigh the blond girl wrapped her arms around her knees and rocked slowly back and forth.

    A large shadow fell over her. She heard the grunt of a large animal's breath. It was behind her. "Hello, S'ym," she greeted the demon. Her eyes flashed red for a second and then she turned to him.

    "Like follows like," the demon grunted. "Hi ya, mistress."

    "Why must you torment me so, demon?" she spat. Illyana pushed the blond hair out of her eyes, which were red from crying.

    "Limbo's yours to rule, babe. If you don't like me being here, zap me somewhere else. I hear the Caribbean's nice this time of year," he growled.

    She glared up at the great, purple demon. His face was like something etched in the rocks of hell. It was sharp with sunken eyes and a squashed in nose. His long tail trailed behind him and he held a cigar in one of his monstrous hands. "Demon," she cursed him and teleported away in a flash of white light.

    "I never denied it," he growled after her fleeing form.

    Illyana didn't have a destination in mind when she `ported. She just knew that she wanted to get as far away from Limbo as possible. Of course she had never tried anything as risky before.

    Now she was floating in a world of multi-colored lights, a world that was timeless and beautiful. She had read accounts of other teleporters who saw places like this each time they `ported. Illyana had never seen it before, she was different from all the other teleporters, she was trapped in darkness.

    The world of light, the so-called gateway of dimensions, slipped through her fingers. There were no words in a realm like this but she understood the meaning behind the actions. You're not wanted here, the world cried. Illyana had again been banished.

    The Lord of Peace walked through the world of the cosmos. He was allowed free reign of whatever he wanted because he was eternally feared. He was Death.

    The being paused for a second. "There's an intruder in my realm," he whispered into the empty space. He walked through the oblivion towards the cold body.

    Hanging in the vacuum, totally untouched by the ravages of space. was a girl. A girl with long blond hair in a peculiar outfit of yellow and black.

    "Hello, little one. What are you doing here? How can you be unaffected by space?" he asked the unconscious girl.

    He wasn't expecting an answer. The girl was hanging in the void of space where there is no sound. Somehow, she told him.

    This was an Earth girl whose life had been shattered when she was very young. Black magic ran through her veins and evil had corrupted her soul. Yet, through all this pain and disillusionment, she had remained strong, pushing herself to the limit.

    "Such a heavy weight for a child to bear," he muttered and then let her continue telling her story.

    Something had upset her, the fact she could never be normal. The fact that she never really had a chance to be a simple child. Everything she had held back had suddenly overwhelmed her. In a griefsticken panic, she had fled from the only place where she felt safe, fled from the arms of the only person she wanted to care for.

    Ironically, she had fled to the world that had taken so much away from her, the world that she now controlled. Unhappy with everything she had `ported blindly. Ending up in the gateway of dimensions, a world of beauty that had forever been denied to her. And apparently still was. The gateway of dimensions had abandoned her, leaving her in a forcefield designed to protect her until she could `port herself away.

    "Come, child, fate has just deemed to give you more," death said as he took her wrist and faded away into the blackness

    Roberto DaCosta stood before the closed door that led to Illyana's bedroom. Hie eyes wearily flickered over the warning signs posted on the door. "Beware of Demon", "Abandon all hope ye who enter here." The signs were a silent monument to what he had always thought of Illyana.

    I never even considered that there was a living soul under that demon exterior. The only thing I knew about her was that she was Illyana Rasputin the demon sorceress. I never though of Illyana Rasputin the human girl. How could I be so completely wrong, he thought.

    With a sigh, he laid his hand on the door knob and turned it. All he heard was a click.

    "Locked," he muttered and twisted it some more. He stepped back and gazed at the door trying to decide whether or not to force the lock. With a lopsided smile, `Berto grabbed the handle and twisted it quickly, using his strength as Sunspot to shatter the lock. Then he just pushed the door open.

    `Berto stared into the room, awed by what he saw. He had expected something more like Illyana, something demonic. Instead he saw a room that could've belonged to any teenager, a room any of the New Mutants would have been comfortable in. There was an achy feeling at the back of his mind, however, that Illyana could never have been happy with the room And if she was, it was all just a mask.

    "It's so normal," he whispered to himself as he walked into the room. The purple carpet beneath his feet was soft and matched the flower design on the dresser. "So very normal."

    What did you expect, hotshot, he demanded of himself. A room decorated in black and red, a pentegram on the floor and sketches of demons on the walls? Maybe, he admitted it himself. Maybe.

    A small, white diary drew his attention to the night stand. He walked over and picked it up. It was a simple diary, white with no fancy lettering or picture, it didn't even have a lock.

    She must have figured that no one would get past the door lock, he thought. Either that or she usually hides the thing better.

    `Berto brushed a hand through his black hair and stared long and hard at the diary. If he read it, he would automatically know what was wrong but at the same time if he read her diary and she found out, she would never forgive him.

    The results of either decision weighed heavily on his turbulent mind. If he looked inside the diary he would know what was wrong and would be able to figure out how best to help her. However, he would loose he respect and her trust. Which were two things he suddenly carved, yet wasn't too sure if he had ever had.

    Face the truth, he thought. The demon you always thought she was, her outer appearance as pure evil that image of her is now shattered. I can see beyond. I am trying my hardest to see beyond it. This can only help me trust her...but it could also ruin a friendship that is just about to blossom.

    With a raged sigh, he opened the diary and began to read.

    "Why me? Every night I lay in this bed, in this room, in this school, in this world that can never be mine and I wonder, why me? What did I ever do wrong? Why couldn't I have been stronger? Why didn't I resist Belasco more? But mostly I wonder, why me?

    "All I want is to be normal. Is that too much to ask for? A normal life. The chance to be a little girl. A chance to maybe gain back the innocence I never had the opportunity to be...

    "The New Mutants can't seem to accept me for who I am. I'm definitely the outcast of the group. Which hurts because I know that they want to just push me farther away. Especially Wolfsbane and Sunspot.

    "Wolfsbane acts all holier than thou but she turns into a werewolf. She was persecuted by the people in her village. How can she be so judgmental of me? How can she hurt me like they hurt her?

    "And Sunspot. He's just as bead if not worse. He's a poor, little rich boy who has a volatile temper. When he looks at me I feel like I'm a servant he wants to punish.

    "What can I do to convince them, all of them, that I'm as worthy of being a New Mutant as they are? I deserve the life I never had. My world's as harsh as any of theirs. I've suffered so much, is it any surprise that I can't let people past the "demon sorceress" image?

    "Why me?"

    `Berto laid the diary back down on the night stand. He brushed a few tears away with the back of his hand and sighed. "I'm sorry, Illyana. I'm sorry," he muttered as he left the room, closing the door behind him.

    Illyana Rasputin's blue eyes fluttered open. The first thing she noticed was the darkness. Wherever she was, it was pitch black. She ran a hand through her hair as she sat up.

    "Ow!" she cried out as she banged her head against something.

    "What's wrong, child?" a strange voice asked and suddenly the room became filled with light. Out of nowhere stepped a man with brown hair and eyes dressed in flannel with a toolbelt strapped around his waist. Illyana saw right through the illusion.

    "Back off, Death," she hissed.

    "Good girl. Despite your corrupt soul, your mind is still pure enough for you to see the truth."

    "Right. Ever think that it might be my corrupted soul breaking your lies and not my "pure mind"?" she snapped. Illyana looked around her. She was in a round tunnel, illuminated by large crystals that formed a circle around her.

    "Your mutant powers have no meaning here," Death commented.

    "In case you haven't noticed, my sorcery isn't connected to my mutant powers," she snapped as she stood up. It was cold in the tunnel and Illyana was glad that the black and yellow New Mutants uniform she wore was insulated.

    "Is it? Try to work your sorcery, Miss Rasputin. Just try," Death suggested as he stepped closer to the circle. Images of every person he had ever taken the form of flickered across his face.

    Illyana scowled and then closed her eyes. With her mind she called for her Soulsword, the symbol of her arcane might, the weapon forged from a piece of her soul. However, when she opened her blue eyes, there was no sword and none of the silver armor that came with it. As Illyana raised her eyes to look at Death a single thought crossed her mind: Maybe there's hope for the Darkchilde too.

    Roberto walked down the quiet hall his mind in utter torment. To think that everything he'd ever said to Illyana Rasputin had only heightened the problem.

    Dani rounded the corner in front of him. She brushed a strand of black hair out of her eyes and said, "`Berto, I was just looking for you. We're having a New Mutants meeting. Hurry up." With a sharp tug on his New Mutants uniform, Dani took off back the way she had come.

    `Berto sighed and followed the Native American girl. Great, he thought, a New Mutants meeting. No everyone can find out exactly what I caused.

    "Oh, tis a veri wicked thing to say, Dani," he heard the young voice of Rahne Sinclair say. The noise was coming through the open doors of the den.

    "Hey Bobby, glad yah could join us," Sam Guthrie said as the Braizilan walked in.

    "H'lo Sam. So, Dani, what's up? Why the meeting?" he asked crossly as he sat down.

    "What's wrong, Bobby?" Sam asked and ran a hand through his dark blond hair.

    "I'm guessing you didn't tell them, Dani," `Berto said as he faced her.

    "Not really something worth telling, Bobby. It's not like we can go after her or anything," Dani replied casually.

    "What? Bobby, what's wrong. Dani, who's gone?" Rahne asked as she got off the couch. She ran a hand through her short, red hair and uneasily bit her lip.

    "Illyana went `porting away a while ago and she's still not back," Bobby told the group.

    "What do ya want us ta do about it, Bobby? We can't `port afta her or anythin' like that," Sam said.

    "Why do you care so much anyway, Roberto?" Amara Aquilla asked from her chair. "I was under the impression that you hated Illyana."

    "And she's not the easiest person in the world to be friendly with," Doug added.

    "Did you ever consider that maybe we make things harder for her than them have to be? Maybe we could be better friends toward her?" Bobby asked exasperated.

    "What do you mean by that, `Berto?" Dani questioned somewhat defensively. He winched, Dani had tried. She and Sam had both tried. If only there was some way to choose who got laden with guilt.

    "I'm saying that I know why she's acting so strange. All Illyana wants is to be normal, to be accepted, to be viewed as a person instead of a demon," he proclaimed as he ran a hand through his hair.

    "How do you know this, Bobby?" someone asked.

    "I broke into her room and read her diary," he admitted.

    "You did what, Roberto DaCosta?!" came Illyana's sharp voice.

    Bobby turned around to face a pair of angry blue eyes and said, "Oy va

    She stood in front of him, hands on her hips and a hard look in her eyes. After a moments pause, she spun on her heels and walked out.

    "Illyana, wait!" Dani cried as she jumped up and grabbed the blond girl's arm.

    "Why?" she snapped as she pushed her hair out of her eyes.

    "Bobby was just worried about you. There's really no reason for you to be so mad."

    A clear, bubbling laugh came from Illyana's throat. "Oh Dani, I'm not mad at him. Not anymore. I don't have time to be mad. Death is waiting," and with that she broke free from Dani's grip and walked down the hall, laughing the whole time.

    Dani stood in silent shock for a minute then turned to the gathered group of New Mutants. "Death?" she said, puzzled.

    Roberto sprang up from his seat on the couch and ran out the door, bumping into Dani as he went.

    "Death," Dani repeated silently as a chill washed over the room. Danielle Moonstar was a girl who knew death. She had been given the gift or curse of being able to see who was going to die when the New Mutants had taken their unexpected trip to Asgrad. Yet for all her powers, she had never seen death near Illyana. She thought maybe that entity was scared of her. Now it looked like they had joined forces.

    Illyana was walking down the halls of the big mansion. She was going to the X-Men's wing where her room was.

    "Illyana, stop!" Bobby called as he ran after her.

    The girl paused and turned around, her eyes and icy blue. "What, Bobby?" she asked and her voice wasn't hard or tinged with anger as he would have expected it to be.

    "I'm sorry I read you diary," he replied sheepishly. He ran a hand through his curly black hair.

    "S'okay. I'm not mad at you, Bobby. If you read my diary and understood it, you'd know that I'd expect it from you." Flipping her blond hair over her shoulder she turned around and started walking again.

    "What's that supposed to mean?" he demanded as he grabbed her arm.

    "If you want to keep that hand, you'll let go of me," Illyana hissed, her voice and eyes burning.

    "I don't believe this "heart of stone" crap anymore, Illyana. You forget that I read your diary. I know you now. I only wish I'd known you before," he paused and studied her eyes. "I know you. I know how scared you are of yourself. But you shouldn't be because there's nothing scary about you."

    "You did understand what I wrote," she whispered.

    "Well, it takes a lost soul to know a lost soul," he muttered.

    Illyana's eyes turned to ice again. "Your soul isn't lost," she hissed.

    "Not in the way yours is but..."

    "But what?"

    "Sometimes I wonder, Illyana, I just stop and wonder about my life. The family I come from, how their past sins are going to affect me. My father is such a jerk and sometimes I think he must have sold his soul to the devil, that he had to be a demon, to cause my mom and I all the pain he did. And then I start to ask myself, well if he's like this am I going to follow the same path? Am I going to live my life the way he has? Will I, too, be a damned man?!" Bobby ranted bitterly, tightening his hands into fists.

    Illyana stayed quiet and just studied him. The arrogant, self-absorbed boy she had always known as Roberto DaCosta was so much more than that. And all that other stuff was just a mask he wore to keep people like her out.

    "Damned men and lost souls have a lot in common, don't they?" he inquire a touch of laughter in his eyes.

    "Yeah. But demons are something all together different. Demons are evil. Thanks for the talk, Bobby. I wish we'd talked sooner because this is the last chance we'll have. I gotta pace. Death waits for no one, not even a demon," she replied smoothly and turned to walk back down the hall.

    Bobby stared after her retreating form and hoped against hope that his words had had an affect on her. He hoped they would change her mind but all he could do was hope. So the question was, how much hope is there in a damned man's heart? Bobby didn't know and was afraid to find out.

    Illyana stood in front of the school, suitcase in hand, waiting for Death. She put the bag on the ground then picked it back up. `Berto came outside. He looked at her for a minute then walked down the steps to stand next to her.

    "So, you're really going," he said just a hint of despair in his voice.

    "Of course," Illyana said shifting her weight from one foot to the other.

    "Where are ya goin', `Yana?" Sam asked as he and Dani leaned don the frame of the open door.

    "Wherever Death chooses to take me," she answered with a shrug.

    "Why are you leaving?" Dani questioned her voice tight with held back emotion.

    "Dani," Illyana started turning toward her. "Dani, I've seen what my future will become. I see it in my eyes, my soul, and in my heart. What I see scares me. Death says that with its help I can have more in life."

    "But you have friends here. I don't see why..."

    "Dinna argue wit' her, Dani. If the spallen wants ta go, let her go," Rahne said quietly as she poked her head out of the shadows.

    Illyana narrowed her eyes slightly and licked her lips. "Don't worry, Rahne. I'm going and there isn't anything anyone can say to stop me."

    "`Yana, calm down," `Berto said as he laid a reassuring hand on her arm.

    Illyana turned to look at him. He saw that same frightened panic in her eyes that had been there before, when he ran into her in the hall. Then a hint of a wayward smile passed over her lips and `Berto knew what to expect next.

    "Dani, Sam, get down here," he snapped and the two ran down the steps to join him.

    "It appears I'll have to meet Death somewhere else," Illyana said as she narrowed her blue eyes. The yellow light of one of her teleporting discs enveloped her.

    `Berto grabbed ahold of Dani and Sam and jumped into the circle. Unbeknownst to any of the other, Rahne jumped in just as the circle closed.

    In it immortal realm of darkness and light, Death stirred. As the realm around it changed so too did Death. It morphed and shifted into the forms of million trillion aspects of life, all of which it had ended. Finally the shifting stopped and Death was left in the form of which it's latest protege knew it.

    When the shades of darkness lifted there stood Death in the shape of a rugged, unshaven man in a flannel shirt and torn jeans. It walked into the harsh light that covered the worlds of the mortal realms.

    "It seems that that child has changed our meeting spot...and the number of people that I bring along. Ah well, it only changes things a little," it said and the movement of it's breath caused cities to crumble and worlds tremble. Then with a very mortal sigh, Death disappeared into the light.

    The world had become blurry. All the edges had run together and were out of synch, like turpentine spilled on a fresh painting. Illyana's blue eyes grew wide when she saw her arcane realm of Limbo.

    "Spit and bother!" she cried. "What has happened here?"

    The four New Mutants that had teleported with her stood stock still, awed by the site of Limbo's devastation. Sam's mouth was open and his eyes wide. Dani just took it all in with a contemplative look on her face and Rahne sat near her, glancing around in fear. `Berto averted his deep brown eyes from the horrid landscape to focus inside on the world's mistress

    With the eerie blowing wind that heralded the presence of a stepping disc, the purple demon, S'ym, appeared in front of the group. Rahne drew back with a sharp gasp, hiding behind Dani even more.

    "What are you doing here?" Illyana snapped as she stood in front of the demon, glaring up at him.

    "You called, I came."

    "Liar! I never called you."

    "In your mind you did, sweetheart," S'ym said and took a step towards her. `Berto glowered and took a step towards the both of them.

    "Fine, fine. Now, what happened to Limbo? What the hell is wrong with my realm?" Tiny flecks of red began to show in her eyes.

    "Your realm is in torment because you're in torment."

    "I..." Illyana started and then was interrupted by a flash of white light.

    "Illyana Rasputin, are you ready to take the next step into the fulfillment of your life?" Death asked as it held out it's hand. With a small, hesitant smile she took Death's hand and felt the light envelop her.

The light was warm. It covered Illyana like a thick comforter and dragged her under the waves of joy. Shivers of purity moved up and down her spine. Never before had she felt like this.

She realized that, as the light flickered to a dim, tears were streaming down her face. With one hand, she wiped the tears away and gazed at the world around her. It was a barren place. Dark and dismal much like her own realm. The land was arid and dry, no trees or flora of any kind could survive here. Yet somehow, even though all this was mildly frightening, Illyana felt strangely at peace.

Death stood apart from the others, a cool smile on its face. The girl had still not noticed that Death had brought along the others. These people were her friends, well some of them were and the others were trying to be.

"What is this place?" Illyana inquired as she took her eyes off the dull landscape and turned to Death.

When Death did not answer the girl, she let her blue eyes wander again. Slowly, they focused on the frozen figures of Dani, Sam, `Berto, and Rahne. Illyana's expression turned quickly from shock to horror and then she demanded, "What did you do to them?"

The stolen eyes of Death watched her but no words left the sealed lips. It was not Death's place to interfere in this.

A few slow, hesitant steps took her to where her friends were, frozen and glowing with a strange spectral light. Cautiously, Illyana reached her hand out to touch Dani and got quite a shock from it.

"Damn!" she exclaimed as she pulled her burnt fingers away. Then she turned to Death. "What did you do?"

Dani was staring out from a curtain of hazy light and fog. Outside she could barely make out Illyana's figure as she walked around and talked to Death. A quiet, low hum kept Dani from hearing the words that were exchanged between the two.

She didn't like this place. It seemed to be a sort of half-way place, a jumping off point for getting everywhere else. Somewhere in the darkness, she knew Sam, `Berto, and Rahne were right beside her but she couldn't move to see them and couldn't speak either. It was horrid.

Not that the place where Illyana was stuck seemed any better. The world outside the fog and haze looked a lot like Limbo minus the demons and the other wee beasties, as Rahne would say.

Speaking of Rahne.

She drew in a deep breath, letting her mind relax and search for the familiar, scared thoughts of the young Scot. But Rahne wasn't there. The link wasn't even there. How odd.

Dani scrunched up her eyes and peered harder through the mist of light. Illyana was really yelling at Death now. She could tell because the girl's normally pale face had grown red with anger and her blue eyes twinkled with revenge. There was a chuckle in Dani's mind as she watched her teammate and friend screaming Death's ear off. He'd learn better then to mess with a demon sorceress and her friends.

"I demand that you bring them out of there. It's dangerous!" Illyana commanded, her voice rising in pitch with fear and aggravation. Death just stood there, a stupid little smirk on its face, and said nothing.

With all her heart and soul, Illyana called for her Soulsword. But it didn't come. She couldn't even feel it's presence. She couldn't feel Limbo's presence or the reassuring tickle the stepping discs placed in the back of her mind. It was gone. It was all gone. Death had done as it promised but Illyana didn't like the price.

Roberto tried to change into Sunspot so he could bust through the hazy glass and help Illyana but he couldn't seem to use his mutant powers. For a moment he contributed this to the fact that there didn't seem to be any solar energy in this world to power him up. Then he remembered that he should still have some power left.

There was just a small burst of panic as he realized that his powers were gone and he couldn't move. The panic soon faded into frustration.

Well, this is just dandy, he thought as he strained to peer out at Illyana and Death. She doesn't seem to be making any progress with the Grim Reaper. We could be in here for a while.

Finally, Death looked at the girl. It's eyes were stone cold and blank. Again the eerie meld of faces flickered over its features. Each face some other poor sap whose life had been sucked away. Every face, that of a dead person.

"Your friends are in no danger," it said in a grating voice.

"Why are they stuck in that...thing?" Illyana demanded as she took a step towards Death.

It just shrugged. "They could not make the journey here, young one. Their hearts were not strong enough to survive the pull so the cosmos built them a protective barrier."

"Well, I want them here," she said with determination set in her jaw.

"Fine." Death snapped it's bone fingers slowly.

The girl watched with bright blue eyes as the light began to fade from around her friends. It slowly dissipated into the stark air in the world around her.

"Hey guys," she started as they stood before her.

One of Dani's hands clutched at her throat and Rahne was turning blue. Dani's strangled words reached her ears just as the group fell to the ground choking, "No air, Illyana. Can't breathe."

Illyana's eyes grew wide and then filled with tears as she locked eyes with Roberto. There was so much hurt in his eyes caused by what he saw as betrayal. "No! No! Death, help them!" her voice cracked as she screamed. But Death wasn't there anymore. Death wasn't there and Illyana's powers were gone.

The world was turning black before Rahne's eyes. And there, just watching them a strange, almost demonic, look on her face was Illyana. Rahne used what little air she had left to growl, deep in her throat. The witch. This was all the witch's fault.

"Spawn o' Satan," the young red haired girl breathed out as she sprang at Illyana.

"Rahne, don't!" Illyana cried as she pushed the girl away from her. Rahne didn't even seem to have noticed that her power was gone. She thought she had changed into her wolf form and had been more than ready to rip Illyana's throat out.

"`Yana, help us," Sam pleaded. His voice was so soft and hushed. He couldn't breathe. None of her friends could breathe. They were dying and she couldn't do a damn thing.

As Sam's light blue eyes focused on her, Illyana stifled a sob and groaned, "I can't. I...Death took my power. I can't help you. I'm sorry. I'm so sorry."

Death watched the scene with a sad, twisted smile on it's face. This wasn't going the way it had planned. The girl, Illyana, had changed the path of destruction itself. It wasn't fair. It wasn't right. Death has spent eons planning this and waiting. Waiting for the right child, the one with power enough to still the universe's breathe. The child that could, finally, free Death of it's responsibilities. After all, Death had been around forever and was getting just a tad bit bored with life.

The landscape around her shuddered and Illyana found it hard to keep her balance. Her friends had stopped moving minutes ago leaving her alone in Death's wasteland. She wasn't sure if they were dead but she suspected it.

Dead. A tear fell from one of her bright blue eyes and struck the ground.

As the tear, the only moisture around, soaked into the arid ground a small hum started. A hum that resounded all over the world. One tear. One single tear that filled the land with sorrow and peace at the same time. Sorrow and peace. The very elements needed for life.

"What the...?" Illyana opened her eyes and brushed strands of blond hair off her face. The ground was humming. It was deep hum. A sound full of life and promises. Even through her sorrow, a wistful smile covered her face. The world wasn't dead.

On the ground, Dani stirred. She felt a slight breeze move past her cheek just as sweet air filled her aching lungs. For a moment there she had been so sure that she was dead.

"Illyana," she tried to cry out but found that she couldn't speak at the moment. Illyana was out there, though. She could see her. The younger, blond girl just stood, her eyes closed with a strange smile covering her face. It was odd.

Then Dani heard it. She heard the deep humming. It reminded her of the war drums her father used to play for her. Dum, dum, dum dum dum, dum, dum, dum dum dum. It was the sweetest sound she had heard in ages. She just lay there, on her stomach, on the dry ground, and listened to the hum of the world.

Something burned in Death's black heart and the smile fell from it's stolen face. Ripples of endless dead entities and their ways of anger flickered over the face of the one who knows no emotion. Instead of causing death the girl had brought about life. Life where once an Armageddon had sucked all that away.

"This is wrong," it said slowly, its face contorting in anger. "This is wrong!" it screamed.

Illyana's eyes opened and she looked towards Death, the solemn entity was leaning against a tree, arms folded across its chest, glaring at her. The words still looped in her head, Death's words, "This is wrong."

"It's not wrong," she told the being of eternity.

"Yes. It is. I had it all planned. You were powerful. You were evil. With you, I could have killed the entire universe. Now you have brought life back to one of the long dead. It's not fair!" Death screamed as its features changed from fierce to those of an upset child.

The girl pushed hair out of her eyes, cast a look at her friends who were watching intently, and sighed. "Life isn't fair."

"I'M NOT LIVING. I'M DEATH!" the scream shook the world.

"I'm starting to wish we brought Amara," Dani muttered under her breath as the shaking threw her to the ground.

Sam helped her up and said, "Ah doubt Amy could've done anythin' since this ain't even Earth."

The young Cheyenne laughed slightly under her breath as she told him that, "I was just joking."

"Oh."

Rahne had stopped watching the fight when the world shook. Now she was on her knees, hands clasped in front of her, praying. She didn't want to die here, away from her world, away from Moira who was the only family she had ever known.

Dani didn't even seem to care that she was upset. Dani was awed by the whole prospect of getting to fight Death again. But it scared Rahne, that idea of trying to win against something that can just take you at any moment. It was wrong to interfere in such matters.

Roberto watched as Illyana circled Death, talking the whole time. He could hear her as she talked about things she had faced in Limbo, about things that had happened before that. It wasn't fair, she said for a child to go through all that. And her heard her exclaim that she had wished for Death many times but it had never come for her, which was also unfair. Nothing was fair. Nothing.

For a moment it seemed like the taker of all, the Grim Reaper, was actually listening, was believing the things this child told it. Then its face turned ugly again, the faces swirling around rapidly like fog and its hand shot out to grip Illyana tightly around the throat and lift her into the air.

"No!" Roberto screamed and began to run toward the two.

She could feel her throat crushing under his strong hand and the breath stopping in her lungs. Even her heart had begun to slow its beat and she knew that this would be no ordinary fight. This would be the one fight she could not win, the fight against Death.

"How do you like me now, little sorceress? You asked for me long ago and I did not come, could not come for it was not your time. I played by the rules then," Death hissed in her ear.

"What...about...now?" she croaked, struggling in Death's grip.

The hand tightened and the world started to go black. "Now I don't care about the rules. I am Death and I will make the rules. You die. They die," he motioned to her friends, "This world will die. The universe will die. I am tired of my task. I want rest!"

"No!" Roberto yelled as he hit Death for all he was worth and then screamed as his hand was broken from the impact.

Death leaned over to gaze into the boy's eyes and gloat, "Foolish child, I cannot be hurt."

"Want to bet? I've beaten Death before," Dani proclaimed as she walked up to the dark beast, Sam right on her heels.

"I have no times for games now, little warrior. I must harness Illyana's vast power and use it to destroy the universe." Then Death waved its hand, trapping the New Mutants in another patch of crystal fog.

"Again," Sam groaned as the fog closed around them.

Death picked the blond mutant off the ground, where he'd dropped her when the young Brazilian had punched him, and walked off into the void. It had much preparation to do before the universe could be killed.

Illyana could feel herself moving but she knew that she wasn't walking. So, someone must be carrying her. Probably Death. Of all the insane schemers I could get kidnapped by, I have to be used by the one who can blink its eyes and still the beat of someone's heart, she thought.

A strange tickle started at the back of her head, heralding the return of her stepping discs. The light of her Soulsword began to burn the shadows out of her mind, returning her to consciousness. I knew you guys hadn't gone away, Illyana whispered to them. Just another of Death's tricks to lure me here. Well, he wants me powerful, he's got me powerful. I'm out for blood.

The child lay on a table made of stardust and moonbeams that had been forged by the hand of Death many eons ago. Back then it had been Death's most treasured possession and it used to look upon every day and polish it every week. Now it was just another piece of clutter in the castle of the ages. Just something else to fill the empty space and make the castle a home to the souls who lingered there, more content with the one who had taken them than the one who made them.

Joshua was one of those souls. He had been hanging around with Death for the longest time now, long enough to see the rise and fall of many cities, long enough to see his great-great-grandnieces and nephews. And in all that time, Death had been kind to him, willing to keep his soul there instead of turning it over to God or Lucifer.

But in the recent months, Death had become...unstable, strange. It walked around the castle, muttering to no one and chasing the souls away from where they liked to linger. The being with eternal patience seemed to be suffering a breakdown. Joshua had seen the plans Death was making to destroy the universe, the plans that centered around the girl on the table.

And if he didn't want to see his family name die out in a matter of seconds, Joshua was going to have to do something. He was going to have to stop Death.

After laying still for what seemed like hours, Illyana opened her eyes slightly to see if the coast was clear. It was. But as she moved her arm, she found that it was tied down to a large, black table. "Spit and bother," she muttered.

Across the room, something moved. Something that looked like sparkly fog with the shape of a man. It darted through the open area of the room and hid behind a column, peeking out every now and then to see what was going on.

"Hello?" Illyana called out, her eyes locking on the fog. "Who's there?" I demanded you come out!"

What stepped from behind the large, marble column was a man, a young man, maybe eighteen or nineteen. He was talerl than she and more sturdily build. Even though he was transparent, color still hung around him and she could see that his eyes were chestnut brown and his hair close to black and short.

"Who are you?" she asked, straining against her bonds. She had always hated to be tied down. S'ym had played such tricks on her many a time.

The young man dipped his head once and smiled slightly. "I am Joshua," he told her.

As his body seemed to dissipate and then reform, Illyana drew as far back as she could while being tied down and questioned, "What are you?"

"I am a soul who has entered neither heaven nor hell. When I died, I chose to stay in Death's castle rather than go on into the afterlife."

"But why?"

Joshua hung his ghostly head. "Because I was a bad Christian and I do not want to go to hell."

Smart man, she thought. "Look, Joshua, I don't know if you know this or not but your friend, Death, well its out to destroy the universe."

"I know," he answered simply. "And you, Illyana Rasputin, are the catalyst. You and only you, will give Death the power he needs to obliterate every living thing there is."

"You're okay with this?"

The spirit shrugged his shoulders and stood close to the table. "No, Ms. Rasputin, I am not. My family continues to live on. I do not wish to see them harmed. I have decided to overthrow Death. But I will need your help."

All Illyana could muster was a weak smile as she looked up into the ghost's chestnut eyes. "I was just about to ask for your help to overthrow him."

"Then we are of the same mindset?"

"That we are, Joshua. Look can you untie me?"

"Certainly," he smiled and set to work on the ropes.

Within minutes, Illyana was standing on her own two feet, Soulsword in hand and a scowl on her face. Joshua stood beside her, his face expressionless. "Now it begins," the sorceress exclaimed.

The lost soul sighed and murmured, "Or it ends."

Illyana glared at him and then they started off.

Joshua peeked around yet another corner, his eyes searching the hallway for any souls or Death itself. The girl was standing close behind him, her fingers tightly wrapped around the hilt of her sword, her eyes moving around nervously. He liked her company. She wasn't like the girls he had known in his time. This Illyana girl, this catalyst that could be used to destroy the world, was strong and not afraid to speak her mind.

"What is the world like now?" he dared to ask as he motioned that the coast was clear and they moved down the hallway.

She glanced at him, confused and caught off guard. "What do you mean, Josh?"

"Joshua," he corrected then continued. "I mean, Miss Rasputin--"

"Illyana or Magik," she added.

Joshua smiled slightly. "I mean, Illyana, what is the world like?"

The girl shrugged her shoulders, which caused the long, blond hair to fall forward. "Surly you've been watching it."

"It's not the same," he sighed, "as being there."

Illyana didn't answer that; she just gazed around the hall and walked down a ways. Death had furnished its house well. All sorts of rare and alien objects littered the rooms and the halls. Although, from the way Joshua talked, Illyana got the idea that all the decoration was there only for the lost souls because Death itself would have been happy with nothing.

"If you want to see it, why not go on and be reborn?" she inquired as they stopped.

Joshua took up point again. "I don't believe in reincarnation. Do you?"

An unnatural sort of uneasy crept around her eyes. "I don't know," she answered hurriedly, pushing ahead of him.

His eyes followed her, deep chestnut eyes filled with concern and curiosity. However, he did not press her for information. He had already learned that was a bad idea. So, instead, he changed the subject. "Are there many people down there who are like you? So powerful. Gifted."

"Some," she told him. "My friends are. I wonder where Death's keeping them?"

"They're not here."

She whirled on him suddenly, eyes burning with an emotion that Joshua couldn't classify. "How do you know?"

"We just know," he insisted and opened his arms wide to direct her attention to the pillars and the walls and the ghostly figures floating around.

Joshua looked at the souls, lost, scared to move on. The ones who were clinging to Death's door and the others who thought they were in some fanciful dream. They all knew each other. They were all friends and they could sense when the master brought outsiders in.

Illyana was staring around her in a semi-fright. It was disturbing to watch the souls of the dead walk around her, see them look at her and mutter to themselves or even to Joshua. This will be what happens to me when I die, she thought. I will become just another lost soul walking through the halls of Death's empty castle.

"If we don't hurry there will be no castle for you to walk in at all," Joshua muttered from behind her.

The girl lowered her sword an inch; her gaze now focused on him. This ghost, this soul with the short, dark hair and the chestnut eyes was odd. He reminded her of Roberto somehow but it wasn't the looks. It was the way he acted around her, the way he could be kind. Okay, so he reminded her of the Roberto she had seen on occasion. But Joshua was like that all the time.

"It's too bad you're so dead," she complained, turning around and walking farther down the hall. "We could use a telepath at Xavier's."

The young man laughed shortly, covering his mouth with his hand so as not to offend her. "Sorry," he proclaimed when she glared at him. "My curse would not be helpful to you."

"You find that funny?"

"I find it funny that you would consider it to be helpful."

She sighed, a long low sigh. "Geez, and men say we're hard to understand."

Some of the spirits drifted over to walk beside them. It was interesting to note the differences in them. There were rich men with powdered wigs and poor Indian women with dots on their foreheads. A couple olive skinned Arabs wandered around, muttering to themselves about how they had betrayed their country. Then there were the ones like Joshua, the ones who had all but disappeared and spent their days gazing down at the earth to see what their kin was up to.

"How much farther is it?" Illyana questioned as they turned another sharp corner. She nearly ran into a large, wooden desk as they went. A ghost was sitting at it, writing on a large pad of paper and he glared at her as they passed by.

Joshua hung his head, looking at the floor, as he answered, "Not much farther now, Illyana."

"Good."

They had been walking in silence for a while and she noticed that the halls and rooms were becoming strangely devoid of souls. Something was wrong, she could feel it in her bones. The soulsword was beginning to hum dangerously and it became louder with every step.

Finally, she turned around. "Joshua, what's going..."

The girl never got to finish her sentence because Death's hand clapped over her mouth. She fought its grip like a wild animal, a type of cat that prowls the late-night jungles, but it was no use. Death had caught her and it wasn't letting go. Her eyes, stark blue and filled with anger, locked on Joshua.

The young man watched her, phantom tears showing at the corners of his eyes. He didn't want to do this but there was no choice. This was the only way. "I'm sorry," he mouthed. "I had to."

Then the world became black and Illyana saw nothing.

"Good work, Joshua," Death commented as it walked away, carrying the girl, its face flipping through features like someone changes television channels.

"I did my duty, Master," Joshua replied. "I will always do my duty."

Death nodded only once as it stepped into a large room. "I know you will, Joshua. I know you will."

The dungeon halls were dark, the only light coming from small candles that had been placed every hundred yards or so. That didn't matter too much because Joshua didn't need to see where he was going. He just had to get there.

Besides him, he could feel the presence of one of the other souls. He thought her name was Ariana but he wasn't sure. All he could remember was that she was his age, had darkish brown/red hair, and black eyes that glowed like pools of fire on the surface of her pale skin. The girl had been burned alive for being a witch and, because she slightly believed the accusation, she had stayed on with Death. Nevertheless, even to this day the faint stench of fire and burning wood clung to her as a reminder of what had happened.

Joshua wished that she would go away. He didn't want his plan to become public. That would ruin everything he had worked so hard for. It would make the sacrifice of the catalyst for not.

"Don't worry, Joshua," Ariana spoke, her voice heavily accented and low. "I will not speak of this to anyone."

He turned to face her, chestnut eyes meeting two black voids. "Why have you followed me, Ariana?" he asked.

The young woman shrugged her shoulders and the smell of cooked meat hung in the air. "I want to help," she told him but her voice wavered so.

"Fine," he answered. "Stay behind me, don't make a noise, and if you're lying I'll cut your eyes out." With a quick movement, he pulled the knife out from his boot. It was a long knife that he had picked up from a dead warrior. The warrior had taken a liking to Joshua and had given him the knife as a parting gift.

Ariana laughed at the sight of the knife and reached her fingers out to touch it. Her hand closed around the metal and it did not cut her. In fact, it didn't even touch her. "Tickles," she commented and pulled her hand away. "You've been spending too much time with the living, Joshua. Knifes don't harm souls."

Joshua shook his head slightly and muttered, "This one can and will if I have need of it." However, Ariana didn't seem to have heard him because she was still peering into the darkness.

She turned to her, brushing hair off her face. "There's people in there."

"Miss Rasputin's friends." Joshua started to walk down the hall again, led by the waning light of the candles. Soft footsteps followed him, so close that, had she been alive, he could have felt her heat. He could smell the burned smell, though. It hung like a cloud over her, heavy, and thick.

"The catalyst, what is she like?"

He had to stop himself from laughing or smiling as he heard the question. "She is not anything like you, Ariana."

At this, the girl made a small noise in her throat before replying, "Most people aren't."

His eyes tried to cut through the sheath of darkness, they tried to pry away the heavy curtain of shadow and get a glimpse of what lay ahead. "Hallo," he called out. "I have come to fetch the friends of Illyana Rasputin. Are you down here?"

No answer.

Ariana pulled at his sleeve. "Let's go away, Joshua. Let's go. My soul doesn't like it here. My soul hates it."

Joshua shook her off like a dog might shake off water. "They're down here," he hissed. "I will not come away without them." Then he tried again. "Is anyone there."

"Fie. There is no one there. No living thing..."

"We're here." A voice rang out, cutting Ariana off in mid-sentence.

"See, Ariana," Joshua gloated as he walked forward and touched his hand to the wall.

The lights didn't come on.

"What foolery is this? Ariana?"

Brushing hair from her eyes, glancing around nervously, Ariana finally found her voice. "I did nothing to the light, Joshua. I haven't touched them."

"Are you still there? Hello?" the distant voice called from inside the dungeon. "We'd like some help here."

"We are coming," Joshua called but his mind was racing. Somehow, the lights had stopped functioning. Ariana was the mistress of this place, she spent the most time in the dungeon, growing, and picking her herbs, drawing stars on the ground. Yet, she claimed that she hadn't touched the walls. Maybe...

"Ariana, you touch the wall. You make the lights come on," he commanded, pushing the small figure forward.

Instinctively, she threw her hands out in front of her as she was pushed towards the walls. Ariana's palms struck the brick and there was a bright flash of light. The black eyes that whirled on him were fiery and angry. "Ask." One word was all it took to chastise him.

"Sorry," he mumbled and took the keys off the hook.

They were in a large room that had dozens of doors going off of it. Some of the doors led to cells while others led to nowhere at all. It was whispered through the castle that Ariana had been down every hall, opened every door, and learned the secrets of their master. If the rumors were true, then Joshua had a great advantage for he had Ariana.

He stepped forward slowly, trying to discern where the humans were. "Ariana," he started.

Pushing past him, the girl walked over to a plain door and wrapped her hand around the knob. "This one," she said and opened it.

There was the smell of life again, that mix of sweat and tears and blood that lingered around for centuries after life itself had fled. But this smell was fresh, real, not phantom, and phony like everything else in the palace. Unlike the burned smell that was Ariana's, this was not pretend but painfully real.

"It's about time someone came to get us," an angry voice drifted out, followed by its owner who was a short, young man with black curls, dark skin, and brown eyes.

Following him were two girls, one pale, small and red-haired, the other tall, with darker skin and flowing brown hair. Behind them came another a lanky, giant of a boy with light blond hair and eyes that color of the sky. The sight of him made Ariana gasp.

"Viking," Joshua heard her utter under his breath and he held her back so she didn't attack.

He bowed and smiled at the four living beings in front of him. They looked well enough. They would have to do. "I am sorry that it took me such a long time to rescue you but other parts of my plan had to be put into action."

"Excuse me," the tall girl began but Joshua shook his head.

"I'm sorry, but there is no time for questions. The world itself is in danger. Your friend, Illyana, is the catalyst that can send the entire universe into the hands of Death. We must stop Death and save the universe, save your world." Then Joshua turned around, pulling Ariana along behind him as he started out of the dungeon. He could hear the clap of the living feet walking after him and he smiled. Things just might work out, after all.

"What's goin' on around here?" the blond boy asked as they made their way through the silent halls of Death's castle.

Joshua whirled on them, still holding Ariana's wrist tightly for fear of what she would do if let free, and said, "Be quiet. I have a plan."

The dark skinned girl narrowed her eyes. "To attack Death? To defeat him and save the world, save Illyana?"

"Yes." Joshua nodded.

Ariana struggled slightly in his grip, her dark eyes focused on the blond boy. Viking. The Vikings had come through her village once. They had killed some of her family. It would only be fair to get back at them. "Let me go, Joshua," she hissed. His grip tightened.

"That's not much of a plan," the girl replied. "First of all, this is Death we're talking about. THE Death. It's not going to be easy to defeat it. I know. I've had my run-ins."

Sighing, Joshua rubbed his temples with his free hand and glanced at the assortment of people. The little red haired girl kept making the sign of the cross and looking at the spirits with fear in her eyes. The boy with the dark brown curls was staying quiet, as though he was either in deep thought or preparing for the upcoming battle. Ariana's "Viking" stood, a blank look on his face. Not a threat at all. The dark skinned girl was whom Joshua was worried about. At her say so, the others would pull out and then where would he be.

"There is not time for anything else," Joshua explained. "We do not have much time left. Soon Death will harness the energy of the catalyst and destroy the universe."

"Well, Dani, it does not sound like we have much of a choice," the boy with the dark curls said.

The dark skinned girl, Dani, sighed. "I guess not." Then she turned back to Joshua. "Okay, so we're just going to barge in there and defeat Death? Kill it? What?"

"I have my plan, Danielle. I have my plan. Now hurry." With that, Joshua started walking again.

"Sacrifice is noble, Joshua," Ariana said unexpectedly.

He looked at her. Strands of brown/red hair clung to her face and dark circles loomed under her eyes. The lingering smell of burnt meat had all but disappeared. "You know."

She nodded. "Of course I know. It is the only way. I have always known."

"Don't say a word to anyone, Ariana."

"I did not spread the word of my sacrifice. I will not spread the word of yours," she promised, keeping pace with his long strides.

As they fell silent, Joshua could hear the living ones talking amongst themselves. "Ariana?"

"Yes?"

"You are more like the catalyst than I thought."

All the girl did was nod. One small nod and then her wrist seemed to melt out of his grasp. "I can not help you," she said.

Joshua's eyes grew wide with shock when he saw her standing in front of him, floating along with him. "What do you mean?"

"I can not help you. It is impossible. This is not my fight. This is not where I should be," Ariana proclaimed, her hands smoothing the blue dress she wore.

"You are just going to leave me? I need you."

She shook her head. "You never needed me, Joshua." Then she faded away, leaving only the tart smell of woodsmoke behind her.

The hall seemed to get a bit smaller and darker, like it was closing in on him. The living ones had stopped walking and were staring at the space where Ariana had been.

"Where'd she go?" the blond inquired.

"Away," Joshua admitted painfully. "Hurry up. It is not too much farther now."

When they reached the door to Death's chamber, a strange blue glow was filtering through under the door. It pulsed with a strange energy that shot sparks up Joshua's spine.

"Is this it?" Dani whispered.

"Aye. We are here." Then he kicked in the door.

Light washed over them, transfixing them where they stood. The image seared into their brains, Death, the flickering, flitting entity of forever and nothing, standing over the table that had been forged from stardust and moonbeams. The prone figure of the catalyst was stretched across the table, her blond hair spilling over the edges like a waterfall.

"Illyana," the dark haired boy hissed under his breath and Joshua turned to see rage building in those black eyes.

Strange words poured from Death's mouth as it hefted a spear over its head and turned toward the blue ball that was radiating the light. Then he faced the table again and, slowly, began to lower the spear, aiming it at Illyana's heart.

Dani tugged on Joshua's shirt, her voice frantic. "Now?"

"Now," Joshua commanded with a slight nod. He watched the humans rush forward into the room then, with a sigh, he followed.

Everything seemed to happen in one big, blue stained blur. From the corner of its omnipresent eye, Death saw the humans rush into the room, commands on the tongue of Dani Moonstar. There was a long moment where, as the children struck at Death with their formidable powers, that it actually considered of putting the spear down and tussling with them. However, the thought fled from its mind almost before it had formed.

It had a mission, after all. Release the powers held within the catalyst and destroy the universe. That was what it had planned to do. That was what it was going to do.

Therefore, it turned back to the table of stardust and moonbeams, ignoring the onslaught from the teenagers and focusing all its attention on the glowing blue ball, the spear, and the catalyst. Death never even noticed when Joshua crossed the threshold into its chamber.

"This ends now," Joshua exclaimed as he strode over to the table.

Death glanced up, thousands of eyes dancing across its face. "Go away, Joshua. I am busy."

The ghost boy touched Illyana's forehead with a fingertip and felt her mind stir towards consciousness. "This can not go on."

"I'm busy," Death explained. "Come back later after I have destroyed the universe, when I can get a little peace and quiet."

Illyana's eyelids cracked open a fraction of an inch, but it was enough. Death's spell had been broken. She was awake. Nevertheless, if the spear connected, she would still die, would still release the powers to destroy the universe.

"Joshua?" she questioned when she caught sight of the chestnut haired boy. "What the hell are you doing here? Helping him?"

There was no time to waste. Joshua caught her arm and threw her off the table as the spear came down. There was a loud crack as the metal connected with the table and then silence fell.

Dazed, Illyana knelt on the floor. The room was spinning around her. Joshua was standing over her, holding tightly to her arm. He was standing between her and Death. And then other hands were pulling her away from the table, away from Joshua. She thought she caught a glimpse of Roberto.

"What have you done, Joshua?" Death asked, its voice rippling with anger.

"The right thing," Joshua explained as he threw a glance over his shoulder and saw the humans getting Illyana to safety. Good, they had listened to what he'd said, the secret plan he had whispered into their minds.

With a grunt, Death pulled the spear out of the table. There was a high, shrill shrieking as the metal came free of the stardust and moonbeams. "You understand that you have betrayed me? This is not permissible."

Ariana's pale face shot through Joshua's mind. "Sacrifice is noble."

Joshua, will renewed, shook his head. "No, this is not permissible. It is not right to destroy the world just because you want time to rest. That is not okay. I will not stand for it."

"What can you do, little ghost?"

"The only thing there is to do." And with that, Joshua touched the spear with one hand and plunged the other into the blue ball of light.

Death's scream sounded like a planet being devoured. The New Mutants had to clamp their hands over their ears to keep from being deafened. All but Illyana, who took the whole thing in with dry eyes and steady hands.

When the light died down, the body of Death fell apart, becoming nothing more than a pile of black rags. Where Joshua had stood there was now a tall man in a hooded, black robe. His face was stitched together with fragments of stars and his hair gleamed with moonbeams. In his right hand was the spear, in his left, the ball.

"What have you done, Joshua?" Illyana asked as she rose, unsteadily, and walked towards the broken table.

"I am not Joshua anymore, little sorceress."

She shook her head and strands of blond hair fell across her eyes. Angrily, she pushed them away. "What are you talking about?"

Dani set a hand on her friend's shoulder. "Joshua killed Death but in doing so..."

"I became Death."

"I'm sorry," Illyana said, looking up at the towering giant.

"Don't be," a voice said from across the room. Everyone turned to see the small figure of Ariana in the doorway.

"Welcome, Ariana," the new Death said and motioned her to join them.

She bowed and came forward, slowly. When she got to Illyana, she stopped walking and looked at her. "We're very much alike."

"What do you mean?"

Ariana pulled a medallion from beneath her dress. "Remember this?"

Illyana's hands began to shake when she recognized it. "But...but..."

"You were not the first of his attempts, Illyana. But you were the only one who escaped, who survived, who conquered. The rest of us killed ourselves to escape him. I...I burned myself." Ariana hung her head and tears formed in her black eyes. "You are not alone. Do not forget that." The girl stepped up next to Death.

"You knew all along, Ariana."

She looked up at face that was half hidden by the black hood. "Always have."

Death turned to face the gathered group of children. A smile tried to flutter across his face but it died stillborn on his lips. "It is time for you to go home."

"No. Not so soon. Not yet. I have questions!" Illyana demanded as she stepped forward.

"Ariana."

The girl waved her hand at them slowly and then they disappeared. "Done, Lord."

Death hung his head as he put the spear back into its chest and set the ball down in its perch. "Was it worth it?" he asked as he bent down to pick up the battered robes of his predecessor.

Ariana only nodded.

Then they were home.

Illyana took one look at her surroundings and stormed off in the direction of the house. The wind caught her low mutterings and threw them into the sky, ripping them to unrecognizable shreds of sound.

Dani sighed and sat down on the grass. "Geez," she murmured, "what an adventure that was."

"We saved the universe again," Sam said as he leaned against one of the trees in the yard.

Roberto gave his friend a look of utter disgust and amazement. "We did not do anything, Sam. Joshua saved the universe."

Sam shrugged and shifted his weight nervously on those bean pole legs of his. "We helped, Bobby."

Rahne was at Sam's side in a minute, her green eyes glowing slightly. "Aye. Sam's right, Bobby, we helped."

"Whatever," Roberto admitted before walking up the stairs and into the mansion.

Illyana closed the door to her room and laid down on the bed. Joshua was dead. Well, that wasn't the right word. He had been a ghost, dead for a long time. It was just...now he was really dead because it was like he wasn't there anymore. What had been him, just him, was now combined with a million different elements to form the entity of Death.

Someone knocked on her door.

"Come in," she called out, not really wanting to talk to anybody but, also, not wanting to be alone right now.

Roberto stuck his curly head in the door. "You okay, Illyana?"

She shrugged. "You coming in?"

"Am I allowed?"

"Well, the lock's already broken," she told him in a flat, dead voice. But there was a slight smile in her blue eyes.

Sheepishly, Roberto twisted the knob in his hand. "Sorry."

Illyana settled into a sitting position leaning against the headboard and motioned for Roberto to join her on the bed. "S'okay," she admitted when he had seated himself on the edge. "I mean, the warning posters are still there and all."

"Do you still want to be normal, Illyana?" he inquired after a moment of silence.

Again, she shrugged, the blond hair falling over her shoulders and tumbling down her back. "I don't know anymore. I mean, Ariana was normal, wasn't she?"

"Well, she was not a mutant if that is what you mean."

"And, apparently, the others were all normal, too, and Belasco broke them. He hurt them and used them just like what he did with me. But I survived. I fought. I beat him at his own damned game and they...they..." she trailed off and bit her lip.

Roberto put his hand over hers and met her teary eyes. "They killed themselves. Their normalness did not protect them, could not save them. While you won."

She pulled away from him, not in a bad I-don-t-want-you-to-touch-me way but in an I-don't-know-what-to-do way. Her hands pressed against her skull through the thick blond hair. "I don't think I won, `Berto. I think I lost the most."

"What does that mean?"

"True, they died and I lived but think about what I've become just to survive, a monster, a demon," Illyana confessed, hiding her eyes behind a tendril of hair.

The boy reached out and stroked the side of her face. "You are not a monster, Illyana, not a demon. We all have dark sides. Yours is just a little more prominent."

Shaken by his sudden outpouring of emotion, Illyana leaned away from him. "I don't understand."

"I was worried about you. I thought you were going to die. I did not want you to die. It confused me, too. It still does. I don't want you to shut me out."

"I won't, `Berto. I promise I won't but...can you just leave me alone for a little while. Please?" she begged, looking deep into his dark brown eyes.

In a huff, he jumped off her bed and crossed the room to stand next to the open door. "Fine!" he shouted at her. "I just came to see if I could make you feel better. You do not even appreciate that!"

Weary, she nodded. "You're right, Roberto. Now get the hell out of my room."

The door slammed shut behind him and Illyana buried her head in her pillow, trying to block out the voices that called to her from beyond the grave, the voices of all the other girls. Each one whispered a secret, shared a strength, or told of a horror she had gone through in Limbo. In the fog between life and death, in that in-between place that so few people can reach, the tortured and tormented fellow consorts to Belasco embraced her, pulled her into their web of support, and made her realize that she was not alone, that she would never be alone.