The flight had been mostly silent since they had left the Avenger a few hours prior. Twilight had stopped briefly to wish them all good luck, which had made Sunset feel happier. She had wanted to pull Twilight aside and just… talk. Tell her how she felt, what Twilight meant to her and how she had dreaded the growing distance between them destroying that… especially in light of Celestia's confession and adoption.

Something that she still… was unsure about, if she was honest. More often than not, she found herself second guessing her agreeing to that foalhood dream. In the end… she had made Celestia happy, and there was no cost to herself… if anything, it was a clear line of succession to the throne were anything to happen.

Not that she expected or wanted anything to happen… it was just… well, things had changed. And the way of her intended glorious return wasn't supposed to be through hereditary merits of questionable substance.

Those thoughts had crossed her mind early on in the flight, but for now, they had strayed to the prizes she had received with the full blessing of the Commander, and the blatant envy of other Rangers in the Avenger.

Sunset stared at the sword that had almost killed her twice. The memories of being stabbed in the stomach, and then feeling the blade twist, ripping her internal organs in the process was… while not fresh, not something she had forgotten.

At times, the prospect of facing the Assassin again had been terrifying to the point of almost full paralysis. But she had endured. The mental training for her use of Blood Magic had embraced fear and visceral energy as optimal sources of power. Sunset's emotional-fueled-magic was also something Celestia had trained her in, thankfully, although the intention was to control it and subdue it. To let a cool mind decide the path of the magic, not a possibly hasty emotional response.

Oddly enough, the conflicting nature of both philosophies had allowed her to dominate her fear and proceed into combat… but it didn't make things less scary. And she had good reason. The second time she had felt the edge of that blade had also almost cost her her life… and she had been pinned by it to the floor like some sort of bug.

Aria's Katana had been nothing but a source of pain and death and personal trauma… and it belonged to Sunset now. Along with Arashi... and Aria's gem. She couldn't deny it… it was alluring. There was so much potential power in all three items—Tygan couldn't even figure out how to make something like either of them, and their destructive capabilities had been witnessed in battle and in the testing grounds.

It made her feel… powerful.

"It's weird, you know?" she said to Jane, "I feel like somehow I'm taking on her mantle."

Jane, who had up to then been reading something that looked suspiciously like one of Galahad's rescued magazines hidden inside another book, turned to look at her and raised an eyebrow. "How so?"

"It's just…" she trailed off. 'The forbidden magic, the rush of the kill… knowing that I am inevitably turning into a monster' "This sword and this gun have killed so many… they almost did me in. And now I have them."

"To the victor go the spoils," Elena stated, shrugging.Next to her, Angel hissed in agreement, then hissed again, looking straight at Sunset. She held her hand out and Sunset passed Arashi to her.

"Well, yeah," Sunset muttered. "I still don't have to like it."

"Translation?" Elena drawled, her eyes and hands focused on the shotgun. After a moment of admiring the piece, she passed it back to Sunset.

"Angel said that out of everyone here, the two people Aria respected the most were Sunset and Annette, and that since Annette already refused the items as she didn't use such devices herself, it made sense for Sunset to have them," Jane interpreted for her.

"And to think," Elena replied, leaning back into her seat, "that she said all that with a single hiss."

"It's not—" Jane stammered, looking at Elena in annoyance. "It's not a word-for-hiss ratio! That's just the meaning of what she said!"

"She's just teasing you, Jane," Annette spoke up.

"Reapers do not tease."

"If you say so."

Jane looked back and forth between them, then shook her head. "I need whiskey. I swear I'm better at understanding others when I'm drunk."

"Speaking of which," Elena spoke up again, tilting her head curiously as she looked from Jane to Sunset. "Did you figure out why Jane is now a Parseltongue? The lack of Horcrux is a bit confusing."

"Horcrux?" Sunset asked, then her eyes went wide and she smacked her forehead. "Shit! I completely forgot to ask Twilight!"

Elena turned to look at Jane.

"I um—" Jane looked away and pretended to study her gear.

"You forgot too, didn't you?"

"Fine! I forgot too, alright!?" Jane groaned. "I had other things on me mind, okay? Like me broken ribs, ye goddamned banshee! Besides, what does it matter if I can talk to Angel? You keep this up, and I'm after kicking your arse out the plane!"

Elena shrugged.

"You actually made her go Irish," Sunset noted, "And she isn't even drunk. Color me impressed."

"I'm more impressed that Laetitia has been asleep the whole trip," Jane said, giving the Templar a slightly worried look. "Is she okay? She seems more subdued as of late."

Sunset glanced at her friend, who was leaning back on her seat, her breath steady and her body relaxed. It did seem Laetitia was lacking the usual energy lately, but her injuries hadn't been too bad and she had healed nicely, according to the nurses aboard the Avenger.

"I'm okay," Laetitia spoke up, her body shifting a little. She then took a deep breath and stretched. "Just tired. I stayed up late last night, studying and meditating as befits a Templar." She chuckled. "Well. Ideally without overdoing it."

"Approaching destination," Rainbow Dash called from the cockpit. "Satellite surveillance from the Avenger shows it's very heavily guarded… I'll land behind the small hill, sorry I can't bring you in closer."

"That should be fine, Dash," Sunset said, "Thanks."

"I'll be ready to pick you all up, just set the flares up when you're ready… and be careful alright? I don't want a repeat of the last mission."

"Trust me," Annette spoke up. "None of us do."

"Connecting with Avenger," Rainbow Dash announced.

Bradford's face appeared on the monitor, along with a satellite-scan of the area they were headed to.

Our contacts with the local resistance have shown us how to access the ADVENT Blacksite. The aliens worked hard to keep this place under the radar, and we don't know what we're going to find in there. Keep your heads up, and expect heavy opposition. Break a leg, Menace."