There was once a great captain, proud of the troops he led and confident in his ability to lead them. During a grand battle, the captain commanded legions of soldiers, some to their death and some to push forward. Then, as if from nowhere, a darkness fell over the captain and the same darkness took him. When he awoke, he was no longer on the battlefield where he once stood, but a chamber of dark stone with nothing more than a woman standing in the center. With a soft smile, she beckoned him closer and, out of curiosity, he obeyed.
"Where am I," asked the captain. The woman, still smiling, placed a hand on the captain's shoulder and said, "Why, you're dead, good captain. This is where you go when your time is up." Shocked, the captain reeled back, narrowing his eyes at the woman. "Dead?! Ha! Impossible! I was surrounded by soldiers of the highest caliber, whom I trusted, and standing within the strongest keep on the front lines! There's no conceivable way I could have died!" Without breaking the smile, the woman took a step forward and reassuringly said, "While you were protected, there is no outrunning time. It was your time and here you are, good captain." Pacing, trying to make sense of this situation, the captain stopped and turned slowly to the woman. "And who, exactly, are you, madam?" The woman reached up and pulled down her hood, revealing hair as dark as a midnight sky, replying, "I am Death. Pure and simple."
As the reply echoed around the chamber they stood in, a flash of blue light illuminated the room and before them stood a woman, slightly younger than the captain and hair as red as a bonfire. "Pioneer," shouted the captain, rushing over to her. "Finally, a familiar face! But, if you're here, then that means..." Death approached them both and nodded slightly. "Yes, she has met her fate as well. Welcome, to the both of you."
Pioneer looked at the captain, fighting back tears. "I'm sorry, sir. Unfortunately, things did not go according to plan. Permission to sit, sir?" The captain, smiling for the first time since he arrived, nodded. Pioneer instantly dropped to the ground, sobbing uncontrollably and slamming her fist into the ground. "I tried so damn hard and for what?! To die and end up here, with the person who's mantle I was supposed to take up! I'm a failure in every way!" The captain had never seen his Pioneer display emotion on this scale before and, out of respect, turned to Death, who was still smiling. "Is there nothing that can be done, Lady Death? Can my Pioneer and I go back, in any way?" Death's eyes widened slightly and her expression turned to surprise. "Go back? Well, no. If you were here before your time, yes, but both of your times came to an end." Unsatisfied with the answer, the captain went back to his Pioneer, who had calmed herself.
The captain knelt and looked Pioneer in the eye. "Listen, I have an idea. I need you to follow suit and I need you at your best. Understand me?" All she could do was nod, but the captain saw the confusion on her face. Whispering, the captain leaned in and said, "Look at your hip." Still confused, Pioneer looked down slowly and saw her sword, just where it always was. "My sword," she whispered back, still confused. "Yes, Pioneer. And I still have my hammer." As if lightning struck, Pioneer put the plan together and was about to say something when the captain put his hand over her mouth. Whispering once more, the captain leaned in and said, "Yes, my Pioneer. We're going to kill Death."
