"Hey!"

Travis and Pinkie turned to face the source of the unknown voice. What they saw was a creature that looked like a mix of a lion and some kind of bird. A griffin, Travis guessed.

She was astoundingly large, about the same height and bulk as Big Macintosh. Her clothes consisted of a white t-shirt and a leather jacket. The jacket had one of its sleeves torn off, leaving one of her front legs bare. Her one bare shoulder was covered by a single pauldron made of chain mail. On her clawed front feet, she wore a pair of black gloves with chain mail covering the tops. Her lower body was covered by black leather pants which had chains pinned to the legs so that they snaked up her ankle to her hips. On her back, she carried a claymore.

"I'm looking for Travis Touchdown. You know him?"

Travis knew exactly who she was when he saw her. The stand-out attire and impressive weapon were all he needed to see to know why she was talking to him. But he wasn't about to leave his girlfriend to go kill this asshole.

He gave his answer, "Nope," then turned his back to her and returned to going home with Pinkie.

His answer got a complacent smile from the griffin.

"So there's no Travis Touchdown around here? Cool. I'll just go kill the Bearer of Honesty," she said provocatively.

"The hell you will," Travis snapped at the griffin as he turned to face her.

That was the desired reaction for the stranger.

"That's better. Listen up: I know it's you who's been killing the other assassins. I figure by now you feel like a fucking badass, like you're fucking invincible. Here's the truth of it though: you were never meant to win this. It was all set up so that you'd be six feet deep, along with all these harmony whores," she explained, indicating Pinkie as she made the last statement.

Travis wanted to kill her right then and there. The only thing that stopped him was knowing that she'd be expecting that as an assassin. That, and what she said resonated with him.

"That doesn't make any sense. Is this how I sound to other ponies?" Pinkie asked.

"What do you know about all of this," Travis asked her as he stood protectively in front of Pinkie, knowing full well the danger she was in right now. Even though the griffin's target was Applejack, he knew that the assassins weren't picky about who they killed.

When he asked his question, the griffin smiled once more, as if Travis just asked the question that she was waiting for.

"Tell you what, Touchdown," she said, "You've done this bullshit before, so why change anything. If you can beat me, I'll tell you everything I know about this. Trust me: you'll want to know."

This made Travis suspicious. He knew he couldn't trust the word of an assassin, so she had to have some ulterior motive to this deal, "What happened to honor among killers? That's just giving away your allies if you lose. Why would you do something that incredibly stupid?"

The griffin responded with a shrug.

"Shit, I don't know. Why does an old guy admit to cheating on his wife for fifty years on his deathbed? It's because when death comes, nothing else actually matters. You die, and nothing can get you. It's the safest bet for when you have something to say," she said, confusing Travis and Pinkie. "A few miles from here, there's a landmark called Tabletop Mesa. Be there, or I'll kill every pony in this town, starting with your marefriend there," she finished threateningly.

Travis narrowed his eyes contemptuously to the griffin.

"You wouldn't," he said as he tried to stare down this assassin, hoping to call a bluff.

"I'm a hen of my word, Touchdown. And I promise you that I'll make it hurt," she responded, dead serious.

"He'll be there alright," Applejack said as she stepped in next to Travis, "An' count me in too."

Her assertion shocked her two friends into a wide-eyed stupor.

"Applejack, are you insane!? You've seen what these assassins do! Rarity was just lucky to get away from her's," Pinkie desperately tried to reason with her friend. The response was Applejack's hoof in her face.

"Can it, Pinkie! This horseplay's gone on too long fer my likin'," the farmpony rebutted, before turning her attention back to the griffin, "I'll take you on. An' all the other assassin's if I have to! I'm sick an' tired o' seein' folks die around here, so I'm gonna have my hoof in makin' sure y'all are eatin' dirt!"

"If you really want to come, I'm not gonna stop you," Travis told Applejack. He knew for a fact that she would not put herself in such grave danger without any sensible cause. Not that he could stop her if he wanted too.

Pinkie came to realize the same thing, and quit protesting her friend's decision.

The assassin herself seemed delighted with Applejack's decision to accompany Travis.

"Aw, this is too fuckin' good," she said as her grin became a full blown smile, "I love a misplaced sense of honor."

Applejack prided herself on her honor, so this statement did not sit well with her. Before she could say anything, the assassin took to the air.

"I'll see you at sundown." And she flew to their battleground.

The three ponies watched the assassin fly out of sight, but they couldn't linger. The sun was just about to disappear behind the horizon, and they had to prepare for their fight.

"I gotta go get some things from home. Meet me there when yer ready," Applejack said with a determination that spread to Travis.

"Count on it. While you're gearing up: don't forget the ranch dressing. We'll make hot wings out of this bird," he said without regard to the ponies' vegetarian nature.

Applejack ran off to get her supplies, leaving Travis with Pinkie. It tore Travis apart that he had to leave Pinkie for work, but when Applejack was at stake, let alone all of Ponyville, he knew he was needed in action.

He turned to Pinkie, hoping she would understand this scenario. "Pinkie--"

His words were cut off by a surprise kiss. Breaking from the kiss, Pinkie smiled as she looked Travis in the eye.

"Just be back in time for the sundaes," she said sweetly.

The time had come.

Travis alerted Rainbow Dash, and the three made their way to the mesa as fast as they could.

Applejack took the old fashioned approach and simply galloped there as quickly as her hooves could carry her.

Meanwhile, up in the air, Dash held Travis in her hooves as they flew to their destination. She flew slower than she normally did, both because she had to accommodate for Applejack's slower speed, and because she didn't want to let go of Travis when she was able to hold him so closely to herself.

The mesa came into view, and they all readied themselves for what was coming.

Applejack deftly made her way up the sheer side of the monumental landmark as Dash dropped Travis to his hooves and then landed beside him.

Applejack was the last to arrive, and when her hooves found the edge of the mesa, she launched herself high over the edge and landed between the other two. What she had gotten from her home was a length of rope, a pair of saddlebags and gloves for each one of her hooves.

The griffin was nowhere to be seen, and only the view of the vast expanse of the mesa, with the setting sun visible in the background.

The sun was just about to go behind the horizon, creating a glare that seemed as if it were saying its final goodbyes for the day.

This warm farewell was interrupted as something else could be seen in the sun's final rays.

Deep within that glare of sunlight, something could be seen moving rapidly towards the three ponies.

As it came closer, a second glare appeared from the object, as well as the sound of metal scraping metal.

From the sun's last shining came the assassin, Gina Talon, her sword drawn and ready to cut off three heads in a single swing.

The three ponies barely managed to avoid the swooping attack of the griffin before she hovered in the air, silently beckoning her opponents to come and get her.

It was Rainbow Dash who took the initiative to attack first.

She charged the griffin at full speed, hoping to overwhelm her with a blur of attacks, but Gina proved to be a more difficult opponent than she anticipated.

Just as Dash made the first swing with her Nimbus, Gina successfully parried the attack and pushed her with a force that sent her back down to the ground.

Dash shook the dust from her body and made another attempt at her blitzkrieg.

Applejack had other plans, however.

Before Dash even reached Gina, Applejack jumped high onto her pegasus friend's back, where she jumped further into the air as she readied her rope for action.

Gina took her swing with her claymore, but Applejack easily dodged it by twisting her body to the side and delivered a powerful kick to the griffin. After the kick, she threw her rope, already tied into a lasso, around her assassin's sword arm.

This did no good, for with a quick swing of the mighty blade, the rope was cut before it went taut.

It was only because of Rainbow Dash that the assassin was brought to the ground. She had sneaked behind Gina while Applejack diverted her attention and tackled her to the ground just as she was shaking the loose rope from her arm.

Once on the ground, Travis began his attack on her after Dash backed off.

He started with a combination of the Tsubaki and Rose Nasty, feverishly assaulting her with the three blades.

Gina was skilled enough to block all three at once, and it looked like she was starting to give.

When Travis was sure he'd land a hit, Gina shouted and delivered a jab to Travis's face.

Once he was stunned, she swung her sword with the intent to decapitate him.

Travis's unsuccessful attempt to dodge ended up with him getting his shoulder cut deep.

The pain of the cut stung him, though he didn't recoil from the blow, tempering his focus to not repeat just happened when he was punched.

As he and Gina parried each other's blows, a new hazard arrived for the griffin. It came in the form of a horseshoe that nearly hit her squarely in her face.

Applejack had opened her saddlebags and inside were more horseshoes than a pony could shake a hoof at.

The farmpony continued to bombard her assassin with these projectiles every time that Travis was clear of her.

Neither of their attacks hit their mark, though Dash took it upon herself to catch all of the horseshoes that flew wild of their target and toss them back to Applejack.

Applejack needed a new plan. Luckily, she had two lengths of rope at her disposal, one of them kindly provided by the very creature who was supposed to kill her.

Moving quickly, she tied a horseshoe to the ends of the shorter rope that Gina cut, and one to the end of the rope on her side.

Clenching the longer rope in her teeth, Applejack swung it at Gina and managed to wrap it around her, clinching the griffin's sword arm to her body. With a strong pull, Gina was pulled through the air towards Applejack.

The look on Gina's face let Applejack know that this was exactly what the griffin wanted.

Realizing that it was a mistake to bring the assassin to herself when her friends were as far away as they were, Applejack raised her hooves to block any attacks that came her way.

This did not work, as she felt the griffin's claws rake across her face.

With a fluid toss, Gina caught her sword in her free hand and swung at Applejack.

Rainbow Dash would not stand for even seeing her friends in such danger.

Furiously flapping her wings, she cleared the distance between herself and the assassin before anypony could blink, and parried the attack for her friend.

This ended with Dash on the ground, holding the Nimbus between herself and Gina's claymore, struggling to keep the enormous sword at bay.

Applejack tried to save her, but was stopped by Gina grabbing her neck and squeezing hard.

This only left Travis able to attack her.

He started by swinging the Peony at her exposed back, but it seemed he should have used a quicker weapon.

Gina blocked the giant blade with her own before she threw Applejack at Travis and took to the air once more to avoid Rainbow Dash's beam katana.

Travis sent all of his beam katanas into the air after her, each one swinging after the other.

As the swords did their mad dance against Gina's blade, Dash swooped in to add some attacks of her own.

Applejack focused her mind as she held a horseshoe in her teeth, waiting for the precise moment to make her move. Carefully she watched as Dash and Travis made their assault on the griffin, and then she saw it.

Gina was staving off all of Travis's swords with the length of her own blade, keeping them from coming down on her head.

With a yell, Applejack threw her projectile towards her target.

The horseshoe sailed through the air, and connected with Gina's abdomen, knocking the wind out of her and clouding her focus.

It was this that allowed Rainbow Dash to swoop in with a cut to her midsection and with a loop, she grabbed her opponent and spiraled downward for a powerful piledriver.

Then something happened that the pegasus did not anticipate.

She suddenly felt a sharp pain in each of her sides as the assassin dug her talons deep into her body. Then she felt Gina shift her body slightly so that she was the dominant one in this technique.

The reversal had been completed, and Dash's head hit the ground hard enough to take her out of the fight.

Gina raised her sword to put an end to the pegasus, but was interrupted by Travis's interjection.

Learning from last time, he attacked her with the Blood Berry, which she was barely able to block due to the blade's blinding speed.

Another swing, and the Blood Berry managed to hit her once. This one hit seemed to trigger something in the assassin.

She charged Travis, completely ignoring any attacks that hit her, even a heavy slam from the Peony.

As soon as she reached Travis, she let loose her fury and her blade tore into Travis over and over. With one final swing, she sent Travis flying away, leaving him motionless on the ground in a puddle of his own blood.

This left only Applejack in fighting condition.

Gina charged the farmpony, who threw her short length of rope at her like a two-pronged bolas.

The rope wrapped itself around the legs of the charging griffin, sending her sliding towards her target.

Gina tried to swing her sword at Applejack, who dodged it by jumping over her assailant.

In the air, Applejack brandished her weighted rope and upon landing began to masterfully swing it like she had been using weapons like this her whole life.

Blow after blow struck Gina, who soon shook her legs loose of the rope that bound her and started to dodge her opponent's blows.

Each time the weapon missed created a deep indent in the rocky ground, a testament to the power behind the swings of the wielder.

A swift cut from Gina's claymore, and the weapon was rendered useless.

With a dash, Gina closed the distance to Applejack and unleashed a powerful downward cut.

Applejack dodged the cut and only her saddlebags were cut loose from her body.

The farmpony retaliated with a jab to her assassin's sword arm, making her drop the giant blade. Afterward, she delivered a buck that she normally used on the sturdiest of trees back in the orchard, sending Gina sprawling to the ground.

Gina clambered to her feet and locked eyes with Applejack.

The farmpony tried to stare down her opponent, hoping that she would be intimidated into quitting. Then she could be sent away, and Applejack and her friends would never have to see her again.

She sent her sternest look to Gina, letting her know that she would never let up in this battle, and if anypony would end it, it would be her, on her terms where nopony died.

This didn't work on the griffin, however.

Gina just sent back her own stalwart stare.

This was that 'misplaced sense of honor' she mentioned earlier. She wasn't going to let up either, and she was letting Applejack know.

This fact itself almost broke Applejack as she realized why Travis had allowed her to come along. It was the only way that she would be able to understand the ways of an assassin, and how when they battle it was either victory or death.

Steeling herself from these horrible revelations, Applejack charged her much larger enemy.

At the same time, Gina sprang forward with her talons bared.

The battle had been reduced to an old-fashioned hoof-to-talon, the way Applejack preferred it. Little known to her, this was Gina's preferred battle method as well.

The two carried on their battle across the surface of the mesa, their blows tearing into one another, slowly wearing each other down.

With an ear-shattering screech, Gina unleashed a debilitating blow that finally staggered Applejack.

This was followed by several more attacks which one by one brought Applejack closer to defeat.

A final haymaker, and the farmpony was down.

With an exhausted huff, Gina left to go recover her weapon.

Applejack lay on the ground, and realized that she had been defeated.

Through her mind passed the horrors of what would come next. Without herself around, or Rainbow Dash, or Travis, who would stop the remaining assassins and keep their friends safe? Who would look after Equestria if danger came to pass? What would happen to the balance of harmony when the Element Bearers were all dead? And most of all: what was going to stop this griffin from keeping her promise to kill everypony in Ponyville once she was finished here? Applejack knew an idle threat when she heard it. It was just another way to lie. This griffin spoke nothing but the truth.

It chilled her as she realized how much she and the assassin had in common, almost like they should have been friends under different circumstances. Horrible visions ran through her mind of the ponies back home running futilely from the wrath of the assassin as they were cut down one after the other. Her mind went to home, where she could practically hear the screams of her family as they were cornered by the griffin, and then...

The sight of Gina standing over her interrupted her thoughts.

She saw the look the griffin was giving her, and it confirmed all of her worst fears.

Applejack would not have this. She promised herself that nopony was going to die on her watch, but she would have to make an exception for the assassin.

Swallowing hard as Gina raised her sword to deal the killing blow, Applejack mustered any stamina she had left and unleashed one more buck to Gina from her prone position.

This blow was hard enough to make Gina once again release her blade, this time getting caught in Applejack's ready mouth.

With a mighty swing, she delivered a cut to Gina's neck, though it was not enough to kill her. It only cut her neck, though was deep enough to make her stop fighting.

Gina's whole body went stiff as a board as she comprehended what just happened to her.

Applejack went equally rigid as she held the claymore in her teeth, eagerly awaiting to deliver the killing blow, though something within her mind stopped her.

That did not sit well with Gina, who goaded her on.

"You got me. So do it," Gina said plainly, no emotion to be heard in her voice, which was noticeably more ragged, likely due to the cut in her neck.

Applejack trembled as she held the sword to her assassin's throat, wanting to end this, but knowing she would never be able to live with herself if she did.

"There's no other way for this to end. You know damn well that one of us has to die. So, kill me already."

Applejack still hesitated, and the griffin grew impatient.

"DO IT YOU STUPID BITCH!!! FUCKING KILL ME!!!"

With a yell, Applejack raised the sword up to deliver the final blow, and dropped it clattering to the ground. Her breath shuddered as she looked into the stone face of her assassin.

"Shame," Gina said before she made a lighting quick motion to grab her sword and decapitate Applejack.

What happened though, was a very different outcome.

Before she could even bring her sword down, Travis intervened and swung the Blood Berry right through Gina's neck, severing her head from her body, though it remained steady atop her shoulders.

At the exact same time, Rainbow Dash, who had also recovered, took Applejack out of the danger zone and turned both of their backs to the scene, knowing from experience that it was much easier when somepony died if she didn't watch it.

Once they were safely away, Applejack let out a few more deep, shuddering breaths as she tried to collect her nerves. She and Dash then tightly embraced, taking solace in each other's presence.

Meanwhile, Travis approached Gina.

"Now you have to tell us everything, so start singing, bird," Travis said to the dying assassin.

Gina closed her eyes pensively, irritating Travis as his answers were delayed.

"You said you're a hen of your word!"

To the horror of the Element Bearers, the griffin, who should very well have been dead, began to speak, daring them both too look and see what was happening.

"Yeah...I really hate that sometimes...Ask away," Gina said with a ragged breath between each sentence.

Travis started with the obvious first question.

"Why are you assassin fucks after the Element Bearers?"

Gina coughed before her answer.

"You really are fuckin' clueless about this, aren't you...Can't see the bigger picture here..."

Her answer only irritated Travis further, to the point where he threateningly levitated all of his weapons to Gina's face.

"I don't give a shit about the bigger picture! Tell me what the fuck you're doing trying to kill my friends," Travis aggressively demanded.

Gina sighed, making a sputter of blood dribble out of her open neck wound.

"Impatient little bastard, aren't you...Must be a gamer...," Gina remarked before she finally divulged the information Travis desired, "It's not them who are the targets...It's you, Travis Touchdown..."

Though Travis's face remained aggressive and steadfast, she knew that something inside his head had broken the way he stayed silent.

Gina decided to answer the obvious next question, "It's nopony you know....Hell, I don't even know who wants you dead...Never saw his face...I just know that I hate the asshole..."

"If you hate him so much, why get involved," Travis asked.

"Didn't have a choice...He just indoctrinated me and all my friends...Said if we didn't do it, he'd make us kill each other...Sick fuck..."

Travis never would have expected that all of the assassins knew each other personally, let alone be friends. At least so far, it explained how Peaches knew his name, and how Glastits knew he was coming. Sure, Glastits said he read ahead in the story, but chances are that he was expecting him long before that.

"Why does he want me dead? And why is he targeting innocent people to get me," came Travis's next question.

"Got me..." Gina said with a shrug that nearly made her head wobble off her shoulders, "All he said was something about killing the No More Hero...Then he bitched about how you took away his shot at UAA glory..."

So, whoever wanted Travis dead knew about the UAA. That could only mean one thing.

"If they're back in Santa Destroy, why bother crossing worlds to lure me out," Travis said as this slowly started making less and less sense.

"Something about how Equestria is unrealistic...He sounded crazy to me...That, and he seriously needed to get laid..." was Gina's frank reply, "That's all I can tell you about this...I don't know anything else."

Applejack listened carefully to every word Gina said, trying to pick the truth from the lies in her confessions. But nothing but truth came from the griffin.

"There's one more thing you should know..." Gina continued, "I wasn't exaggerating when I said you weren't meant to win this...That psycho wants you dead...There's nothing for you in the end, but defeat..." she said trying to smile. Though it was very small, it sent a chill through the ponies.

Travis recovered from the momentary shock and bucked Gina hard into the air.

"Bullshit," he shouted as he sent her over the side of the mesa.

As Gina flew out of sight, her head and body separated midair, and each took a different action. Her middle claw stuck straight up, flipping off the ponies as the body fell, and the head's tongue waggled tauntingly out of its mouth.

The entirety of Gina's remains soon disappeared from sight, and all that remained to the survivors was her memory. One that they would rather soon forget. All that was left for Travis now was to check on the condition of his friends.

He saw Applejack trembling in Dash's hooves when he went to check on her.

"You alright," he asked quietly, getting a nod in response.

"I-I'm fine...Thanks fer askin'," Applejack said with a deep breath between her sentences. It wasn't the fact that a griffin had just died that got to her, so much as the fact that she was almost the one who killed her. "I couldn't do it, Travis. I tried, but..."

She stopped talking when she felt Travis's hoof on her shoulder.

"You did good, AJ. But from now on, leave the killing to me," he said reassuringly to his friend. He then turned his attention to the direction of Ponyville, "Come on, let's head home. I'm sure your family will be glad to see you safe and sound."

His words noticeably brightened Applejack's disposition. The thought of her family welcoming her back home always had that effect on her. With another silent nod, though this one was much more enthusiastic, they all made their way back to the safety of Ponyville.

The stars had just begun to come out when they returned to their town.

The first stop was Travis's house since it was nearest to where they entered from. His friends offered to stay with him for a little bit, but Travis declined the offer saying that Applejack should get home as quickly as possible.

As soon as Travis opened the front door, the lights in his living room turned on to reveal the rest of the Element Bearers in the room, along with Spike, Jeanne, and a long table filled with every flavor of ice cream imaginable, with all of the ingredients Travis and Pinkie had bought earlier that day.

The three ponies looked in awe at what lay before them.

"You didn't get back in time for dessert, Travis," Pinkie said with a little smile, "I figured that we'd skip that and invite our friends over for a super-dreamy ice-creamy sundae buffet party."

That's just what seemed like the next logical step to Pinkie.

The three fighters stepped into the room, and seemed to suck out all the merriment now that everypony could see their injuries.

Fluttershy was immediately on it with her first aid skills.

"Hey, don't let us ruin the good times. Let's have a buckin' party!" Dash said.

And the festivities commenced.

Due to the late hour, this party was much quieter than most of Pinkie's parties, though it was just as enjoyable.

Fluttershy had patched everypony up, and was finishing with Travis, who made her job difficult the way he insisted on making his sundae with Pinkie while she worked.

When Travis and Pinkie finished making their truly extravagant sundae, they both took the first bite at the same time.

It was heavenly to say the least. Travis closed his eyes, savoring the divine flavor of this frozen treat.

He swallowed and opened his eyes to see Pinkie staring worriedly at him. Before he could ask what was wrong, Pinkie threw her hooves around his neck and buried her face in his shoulder.

"I was so scared when you didn't come home," she quietly shuddered, "I thought that something happened. Something that wouldn't let me be able to share my sundaes with you."

Travis could hear Pinkie's voice choking as tears threatened to escape her.

"Pinkie, it's okay," Travis gently consoled her, "I promise that I'll always come back to share sundaes with you. Cross my heart."

"Hope to fly," Pinkie asked with her face still in her coltfriend's shoulder.

"Stick a cupcake in my eye," Travis finished the unbreakable promise. In that moment, he didn't have the heart to tell her that it was actually him who was being targeted by the assassins.

Pinkie lifted her head to kiss Travis, getting a quiet 'aw' from everypony in the room. All except for one pony.

Rainbow Dash only looked on with a small smile. She realized that as long as Travis had Pinkie, he didn't need her. He was happy with the way things were, and that was what mattered. There were other stallions out there other than him, but one thing was for sure: none of them could possibly be as great as he was.

Besides, who needed stallions when she had this masterfully crafted wonder of frozen delight in front of herself. She took a bite from her sundae, and nearly giggled with sheer glee. When she took her face away, Fluttershy began actually giggling.

"What's up, Flutters," Dash asked.

"Your face. It's all messy," Fluttershy answered.

What Dash didn't realize was that when she bit into her sundae, the toffee bits stuck to her cheeks, along with a few jelly beans, and the cherry she had put on it rested on the tip of her nose. Imagining how she must have looked, Dash began to giggle as well.

The sundaes had been eaten, and everypony had shuffled out of Travis's place to call it a night.

Travis himself crawled into his bed, and began to notice something moving under the sheets. Something that was much too large to be Jeanne.

Knowing exactly what it was, he pulled the covers back as the mass reached the pillow, and he found Pinkie Pie had crawled into bed with him.

"Decided to stay the night, huh," Travis asked as he put his hoof around her.

"Travis, I read the story again."

As soon as Pinkie said that, she felt Travis's body tense up a little bit.

"So, you know why the assassins are here?"

"Yes," Pinkie replied. She knew that reading the story was like a violation of privacy, but she had her reasons. "I'm sorry, but I wanted to know where you were that whole time. I was so scared that not even setting up your victory party made it better."

Travis could feel her shaking against his body, so kissed her forehead to stop her trembling.

"Don't worry, Pinkie. I'm okay. I'm not gonna get killed by some turkey with a sword," he consoled her.

"I know, but what if something did happen that even you or my friends couldn't handle? I don't want to lose you," Pinkie said as she pressed her body against Travis's.

This was the first time that Pinkie had doubted a Pinkie Promise. Despite Travis making the promise that he would always come back to her, she didn't know if it could be kept this time. "I want to protect you..."

Travis was slightly alarmed to hear this. She knew what kind of danger she was facing. It seemed insane, even for Pinkie. Of course, it was only natural to want to protect someone you love, but Travis couldn't allow it.

"Pinkie, listen," he began. When he saw her face, he saw that she would never be at ease if he declined her. He had no choice but to give in, "Just...please, only if I really need you. Don't do anything reckless."

"You mean like you," Pinkie asked with a hint of a smile.

That got a smile out of Travis as well. They shared a quick kiss before they laid down for the night. But Travis had one last request.

"And no more reading the story to find out what I'm up to. Okay?"

"'Kay," Pinkie said, before she and Travis both drifted off to sleep.

Author's Notes:

For anyone who didn't notice: that outfit that the assassin in this chapter wears is almost the same one that The Kurgan wears in Highlander.

This assassin was almost a male minotaur named Toro de la Honoro (Bull of Honor, if my Spanish serves me right (probably not, but I like to think I haven't completely forgotten how to speak it)). Anyway, it was after me and my niece and nephew watched Griffin the Brush Off that my niece suggested the assassin be like Gilda. The Kurgan outfit was my idea. Also thrown into the mix was a bit of personality of Jan Valentine from Hellsing. Why that weird mix? Because The Kurgan and the Valentine brothers are fucking awesome villains.

That's all. Rock on \m/