Weightless. I don’t feel anything, not even my own body, as I float in this void. Darkness encasing all that is, stretching on for eternity, as my eyes struggle to focus on some sort of non-existent light; there is none to be found. How did I get here? Why was I here in the first place? I had a war to wage, loved ones to avenge, and...Trixie. Wait, Trixie! Was she alright?

I writhed in pain; it ran through every inch of my being, as images ran wildly through my head. They blurred past, projecting themselves into the dark expanse that surrounded me. Like a movie playing out the very recent details of my life. I saw Trixie, Bane Tooth...myself. The fear coated the excitement I felt as I stared Bane Tooth down. The sheer rage I felt at Trixie’s believed betrayal, and the overwhelming feel of horror when I thought she’d been killed. I watched it all, my only emotions coming from those resonating within the memories I watched in silence.

Am I dead? Is this the end of my journey, and if so, was this my punishment for failing to avenge the fallen? Was my fate to forever exist in this darkness, to watch the trials of my life...my failures? I’m so sorry guys, I’m so very, very sorry. I guess the truth is I’ll never see you guys again. I’ll never get to hear Pinkie laugh, Rarity talk about how she could style my mane for me, or Fluttershy apologize for no apparent reason. I’ll never hear Twilight lecture me on the joys of reading, or have her show me the newest edition of Daring Do...then there’s AJ.

Oh dear Celestia, how I miss AJ. She was...well, she was everything to me. I have to thank Twilight. I mean, if she had never come to Ponyville, then I wouldn’t have become such close friends with the pony I’d one day love. I won’t act like it was easy; no, not by a long shot. But one adventure after another brings ponies together. The distant summer days spent at Sweet Apple Acres, cold winters spent in a blanket by the fire. I miss you so much AJ. I miss the faith you instilled in me, and the love that we shared. I still laugh about the day we confessed our feelings for each other. That awkward silence, as we just stared...I mean neither of us were very good with talking about our feelings.

“Hey Dash. Can Ah have a word with ya?”

Yeah that’s how you said it, just like that, while I was helping you with the apple harvest.

“Sure AJ, what’s up?”

“Well, Dash, there’s something Ah’ve been meaning to tell ya.”

The look on your face, that little hint of nervousness in your usually calm voice...

“Uh, AJ, is something wrong?”

“Oh no! Everythin’ is just fine, Ah just...Ah just...”

I was starting to get nervous, and it didn’t help seeing the blush on your face, or watching you shuffle your hooves in the dirt.

“Aw, horse apples, this isn’t getting me anywhere!”

That’s when it happened. That’s when you rushed me, I didn’t even see it coming, and we had our first kiss. If I think about it hard enough, I can still remember the softness of your lips.

“Rainbow Dash! Rainbow Dash, wake up! Please!”

No! No, I don’t want to wake up! Maybe this place isn’t so bad after all...not if I can stay in these dreams, these memories.

“This isn’t looking good. She’s lost a lot of blood.”

“I promised her I wouldn’t let her die!”

Trixie...Trixie is that you? What do you mean you promised me? I never heard you make a promise. Fire. Fire burned through my body once more, as the memories of those last few fleeting moments surged back to me. Bane Tooth, I thought he’d killed her. I was blinded by anger, and charged in, giving Bane Tooth the perfect chance to finish me. My memory is so blurred, so full of pain...what in the name of Celestia happened? I can see Trixie, she’s standing over me, protecting me...the pain...it’s unbearable.

“Dammit, Rainbow Dash! Don’t you dare leave me!”

Leave you? Trixie, what are you saying? It’s not like we’re friends...wait, are we? What is this, this sudden pounding at my chest? Why am I filled with this sadness? Wait, this isn’t my own emotion...is this Trixie’s? There it is again. The pounding, like a dull thud echoing out into the nothingness I’ve become. No, I won’t allow this. I won’t allow Trixie to suffer as I have, to lose the only friend she has in this world, to know the sadness of my death.

“You’re not going to believe this, but her vitals are rising. She’s started fighting!”

“You’re damn right I’m gonna fight.” I said, my dried throat scratching my words.

I was weak, my body heavy, and I could feel the cold chill of metal under me. I strained to lift a hoof, searching through the darkness, as my eyes refused to open. That’s when I felt hooves gently wrap around my own, their touch tender, full of concern.

“You scared me Rainbow. I thought...I thought.”

“Hey, don’t count me out yet. I mean, I am Rainbow Dash after all.” I said with a laugh, before another intense wave of pain shot through me.

“Rainbow Dash, can you open your eyes?” Called a voice that seemed strangely familiar, and yet so far removed from my memories that I couldn’t place a face.

Maybe it was my curiosity, or more likely my stubbornness. Whichever it may be, I forced my eyes open. I was blinded by an intense light, my pupils struggling to adjust, as I could barely make out the silhouette of a pony standing at my side. After a few moments I could see her, Trixie, trails of tears running down her face. She smiled weakly, as my attention turned to the bandages around her chest, and then the sterile room I found myself in.

“Trixie, where are we?”

“You’re at my clinic.”

My eyes shifted quickly to the voice that spoke. I found them resting on a white earth pony mare. Her mane was fixed into a bun, and shined with a pink hue, as she stared at me with her blue eyes.

“Nurse Redheart...is that really you?”

She only smiled, before moving to Trixie’s side, and placing a hoof on her shoulder.

“This one, well, she’s been worried sick about you.” Redheart began before taking a short pause, a sigh escaping her. “But her worries were not without cause. You were on the very brink of death when she brought you in, and with that wound she had...she wasn’t far behind.”

“I told you, I promised Rainbow I wouldn’t let her die. I intended to keep that promise, even if it meant my own demise.”

Nurse Redheart began to speak, but I cut her off, as I squeezed Trixie’s hoof in my own.

“Thank you Trixie, but don’t ever let me hear you say something like that again. My life is not worth your own, but still...I owe you.”

I could see tears building in her eyes, as she smiled at me. The look hidden in her violet eyes, it said everything. I could see the happiness, the relief, and yet there was still pain.

“Trixie, go and rest, I’ll take care of Rainbow.”

I watched Trixie nod in reply, before looking back to me. She just stared for at me, her gaze simply taking me in, and it warmed me. Trixie finally broke her stare, before turning, and slipping through the curtain that encircled me. That’s when my gaze shifted back to Nurse Redheart, who sat patiently by the bed, until Trixie had left.

“That pony. She really cares for you, do you know that Rainbow?”

“What makes you say say that? I mean, not too long ago we were enemies.”

My eyes followed Nurse Redheart as she stood, and walked behind me. I could feel her touch, even though it was soft, as it brought a searing pain through my body once more. I flinched, bringing out an apologetic ‘sorry’ from Redheart, before hearing her sigh once more.

“I can see it, in the way she looks at you. I could see the desperation in her eyes, and hear it in her voice when she brought you to me. She was afraid, and it wasn’t for her own life...she feared you’d leave her.”

“She was afraid that I’d leave her?”

“Yes. You see Rainbow, she finds peace in you, you’re the only surviving thing of her past. Even though it may have been a past filled with arrogance, and selfishness. She’s lost everything else that ties her to it. Though I suspect her reasons aren’t for that part of her past. No, I believe you remind her of a time when she had family, and a home to call her own. You remind her of a time when Celestia and Luna ruled this once great kingdom. You remind her of a time when freedom wasn’t fought over, but was given to all those who lived.”

I layed there in silence, stunned by Redheart’s words. She was filled with an almost all-knowing wisdom, a wisdom that far overshadowed her age. I couldn’t completely grasp what she had said, but were her words true? Did Trixie see me in that way, did I hold that big of a role in her life? I must have. I mean, she wouldn’t have brought me here if she didn’t, right?

“Nurse-”

“Please Dash, there is no reason for formalities. The way I see it, well, oh how do I say this? The way I see it, I’m in the same situation as Trixie, when it comes to you at least.”

“What do you mean?”

“You’re a breathe of fresh air, a wind that blows in from the south, warming those you touch. You remind me of Ponyville. I can remember all the times I’d patch you up after one of your ‘little stunts’. Just seeing you has caused me to find hope, and the thing is that many ponies in this cold world could benefit from that hope.”

“If you’re trying to say I’m some kind of hero, well, I’m sorry to disappoint you...but I’m no hero.”

“Dash, you are a hero. The fact that you refuse to see it, the fact that you see yourself as just another pony, that’s what makes it so. Heros do not seek out fame. They do not seek to make a name for themselves. No, they simply wish to help others.”

“I’m not here to help anypony, I simply seek revenge. I may not be a genius like Twi was, but even I know heroes don’t spend their lives seeking vengeance.”

Redheart smiled down at me, as she stepped back around to my front. Her eyes, those blue eyes, colored by the hue of kindness itself. Those eyes stared at me, almost as if they searched my very soul.

“Dash...you cover your true intentions. You hide the fact that you only wish to help others, fooling yourself into believing it’s impossible, by hiding behind your search for vengeance. I know how you feel, how you wish to make Chrysalis pay, because we all feel the same way. Your quest for revenge isn’t some abomination to be questioned and tried at every convenient moment. Your goal is just, and your will to save everypony you can along the way proves it. You are a hero, the only hero Equestria has left. So please, don’t let doubt hold you back, because the day you give up is the day Equestria, our Equestria is lost forever.”

I couldn’t speak. I couldn’t even begin to form the thoughts of a sentence in my mind, as I absorbed everyone of Redheart’s words. Thoughts of Appleloosa flooded back to me. I could see Breaburn, hear his words, the words he called to me as I was dragged away. He had said I was the only hope left in this world, the very same words Redheart told me. Were their words true? Was I that important? Could I do this all on my own? Had all this started as a journey of vengeance, or had it all been to help others, and I only hid that behind my revenge?

“I know that’s a lot to take in, and I’m sorry if it’s a bit much, but you must come to accept the simple fact Rainbow; you are our only hope.”

I wanted nothing more than to cry, to simply burst into tears, and wash away all that was wrong. No, Rainbow. There would be time for tears later, right now was the time for action. I struggled to lift my body, shouting out, as I felt a severe pain in my left shoulder.

“Rainbow, don’t, you’re not ready to move! You’re not going to accomplish anything but ripping open your wound.”

Redheart was quick to my side, and I could feel her touch just below my left wing...wait...my wing. Another shout rang out as I remembered what had eluded my thoughts earlier. Bane Tooth, he took it from me. He cut off my wing. Tears streamed down my face, the pain numbing slowly, as my emotions blocked it out.

How could he!? How could he take my wing? Because of him, because of that monster, I’d never soar through the air again. I’d never know the crisp feel of the early morning dew that gathered on the clouds, as I flew through them. Never again would I chase the setting sun westward, through golden skies, as I saw the moon kiss the land beneath with its silver rays in the east.

“He took it!” I shouted, my voice cracking, as my tears fell.

Redheart wrapped her forelegs around me, cradling me as a mother does her child. She comforted me, as I felt her practiced touch stroking my mane, and her soft voice cooing softly. “Shh, Rainbow it’s okay.”

“Okay!? This is not okay! He took my wing, stripped me of the only thing I had left to love. I mean if I can’t fly, who am I? I’m not Rainbow Dash. She was the fastest flyer in all of Equestria, the greatest flyer period. I’m not her, not anymore at least. Now I’m just some one winged pegasus who’s lost everything.”

The hope that had slowly started to build within me, the happiness brought on by Redheart’s words, now seemed to melt away, as I seemed to fade back into the darkness I thought I’d escaped. I wanted to return to that darkness, to bask in the bittersweet glory of my memories, and forget that I was now a shell of who I was.

“Rainbow, I promise things will be alright, just please have faith in my words.”

“I don’t want to live, not without my wings, not without being able to fly. What kind of life is that for a pegasus?”

“It is the life you have been given. The life that you cannot just throw away because you are facing adversity. Rainbow, you must rise from these ashes you find yourself in, and burn bright as Celestia herself. If not for yourself, then for Trixie, for the ponies who need you...for me.”

I hadn’t noticed until just then, but Redheart’s white coat was stained with tears. Her tears. Why was she crying?

“Please, Rainbow, be strong, and if you can’t, then let me help you be strong. If I’m not able to help you, then let Trixie help you, but please, don’t let this be the end. You can’t give up, you just can’t.”

I just sat there, and stared up at Redheart. The way she looked at me, the mix of emotions in her soft blue eyes, they spoke to me in a way that words could never compare to. I saw within those eyes a mare who’d lost everything, a mare who was just as hurt as I was. I saw within her moment of weakness the strength that I would need. She believed in me, she believed with such conviction; I couldn’t even begin to imagine why though.

“I’m sorry.”

“Don’t be, just please trust me when I say that I will make this right.”

“You’ll make what right?”

“Your wing, Rainbow. You’ve been unconscious for nearly two days. During that time Trixie and I have been very busy. We’ve managed to locate somepony who can help us, who can return you to how you once were.”

“You mean they can get my wing back...but how?”

Redheart smiled, and just as she was about to speak, I saw Trixie appear.

“We can go over the details later, but we have to get out of the city first, and that’s gonna be a challenge. After our little ‘distraction’ the whole city has become a war zone. We’ve caused a class war. Nearly everypony in the city is out there in the streets fighting. Rich against poor, Celestian Loyalists against Chrysilian forces. Everypony who can find a reason to fight is out there right now.”

I couldn’t believe what Trixie was saying. A war zone? We’d turned the entire city into a frenzied storm of violence? I wasn’t really sure what to say, but I could feel guilt creeping through me. But that was quickly dispelled by Redheart, as she tightened her forelegs around me, and offered much appreciated kind words.

“So, what’s the plan Trixie?” I was sure if anypony had a plan, it would be Trixie, as she seemed to have a firm grasp on our situation.

“We wait. As much as I hate to say it, we’ll wait until the fighting has died down some, then we’ll make a break for the Northern gate. From there we’ll be taking the tram to the Northern station. Then we’ll take the train to Van Hoover. Once we reach Van Hoover, we’ll meet with The Mechanic.”

“The Mechanic?”

“Yes, well, that’s what she likes to be called these days, but I’d rather not say much more about it right now. Rainbow, I want you to know that Redheart is right, about everything. We need you, probably more than you’ll ever know. So if you ever find yourself losing strength, then let us help you be strong.”

I smiled as Redheart released me and helped me into a comfortable resting position. Trixie’s words, and not just her words of encouragement, but her plan. They both put me at ease, and on top of it, I had a small glimmer of hope to cling to. I didn’t know who this Mechanic was, but if she could help me fly again, I just had to trust my friends.

“Thank you both, I mean it. Oh! Wait Trixie, I have a question. What is gonna happen to Redheart?”

“I believe I can answer that for you Dash.” Readheart spoke up, as she searched through the scattered contents of a nearby table. “I’ll be joining you and Ms. Lulamoon. Neither of you have proper medical training, and I can’t exactly let you both go out into this world knowing that. Plus, you two seem to throw caution to the wind when you fight, so you’ll need somepony to patch you up.”

I let out a soft laugh as I listened to Redheart, and as much as I hated to admit it, she was right. I mean, I’d still have both my wings, had I not been so reckless, and willing to charge into battle blinded by rage.

“So, we wait then?” I asked.

“Yes. We wait and we recover.” Trixie answered this time, her gaze resting on me once more. “We won’t be any good if we’re injured out in those streets. Who would protect Redheart?”

“Oh, now don’t worry about me. I may have been taught to heal ponies, but that doesn’t mean I don’t know how to injure them. I wouldn’t be here right now if I wasn’t able to hold my own in a fight, now would I?” Redheart asked with a smile.

We all basked in the silence that had fallen over us, after Redheart had spoken. The only thing breaking through was the occasional gasp I let out, as Redheart rubbed a healing balm over what was left of my left wing.

“Now rest, Rainbow. We’ll be sure to wake you if anything should come up.”

I nodded in reply to Redheart’s words, slowly feeling the pain in my body subside, as the balm took effect. I yawned, my eyes grew heavy, as I watched my two friends smile before me. I felt like I was at peace. Despite all that was wrong, all that had gone wrong, to simply know that they cared for me so much; it put me at ease. Another yawn, then my eyes began to close, and soon...I was well within sleeps comforting embrace.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

I stared out at the burning embers that was once Las Pegasus, as I sat within the safe confines of Redheart’s clinic. It had been another two days since I’d awakened here, and recalled my failure, my embarrassment at Bane Tooth’s hoof. Trixie, Redheart, and myself had spent the time preparing for our escape. The streets, still flooded by warring ponies and changelings alike, only grew more violent. How much longer would we sit here, hiding in the shadows as chaos ran rampant all around us? Would we even be able to make it out of this?

“Redheart! Rainbow! It’s time. We’re leaving!” Trixie shouted, as she busted in through the door of the clinic.

I stared at her shocked by her sudden and somewhat startling, appearance. That’s when I saw Redheart appear from behind the curtain, that divided the clinic. Her pink mane let down out of it's bun, now tied back, hanging neatly over her shoulder. While a vest, covered in pockets, was fitted tightly to her chest. The saddle bags that hung across her back, filled to the brim with medical supplies of all kinds.

“I’m ready to go.” She said with a smile, as her gaze shifted between Trixie and myself.

“Buck yeah! Lets get out of this hell hole!” I shouted, as I slung a pair of saddle bags over my back, taking care not to hit what was left of my wing.

Trixie hadn’t thought to bring my sword with us when she brought me to Redheart, and so I found myself without a weapon, at least I thought I did. Redheart had given me a very odd sword, after I’d recovered enough strength to stand and walk. She called it a katana, and I had to admit, I liked it. She had told me that it was a relic, a memory of a time long passed in Equestria. It was from a time of war, and chaos, much like the time we found ourselves in today. Pony warriors of old would train night and day to master it. Learning to use it’s curved edge in rhythmic, almost beautiful displays of brutality.

The sheer length of the blade was a bit daunting at first, as it easily stretched out as long as my body. I had spent the past two days training with the blade, learning to balance it’s weight in my jaws, and had come to respect it not as a weapon of death, but a tool of elegance. The way in which I had to move, the simple, yet timed twists, and turns. They all had to fit, they all had to fall into an almost perfect rhythm, as each move seamlessly fed into the next. I was in no way a master of the weapon, but I felt as if it suited me, as if I was meant to use it. I carried this feeling with a sense of pride, and worth, as I secured it to my side; just under my right wing.

I smiled as I saw Redheart shoot me a sly grin, as if she’d known I’d fall in love with this ‘katana.’ I turned to Trixie who stood there, her eyes closed, as she channeled her thoughts...her every emotion in her being. She was calm, collected, frightening as she held such peace within herself. I had come to respect her, even in the short time we’d been allies, and envied her resilience towards the world around her. Though Redheart had told me several times that her resilience came from being at my side. I didn’t argue with Redheart’s statement, but I still didn’t know if it was true. I wasn’t anything special.

“Girls, let’s go.” Trixie finally said after a long silence, as her magenta aura enveloped her saddlebags, and they moved to her back.

“Come on, you ponies, do you want to live forever?” Redheart asked with a smile, as she moved to the door of the clinic, with a grace I’d yet to see in her.

That look in her eye. The subtle underlying tone in her voice; she was ready for war. I was both excited and scared as I watched her. She carried herself with an air of danger, that opposed her normally sweet nature. The kindness that occupied her eyes, now replaced by an unshaken resolve that showed only the determination she held within.

“Well then girls, we’ve only to cross this hellacious madness to reach our goal; sounds easy enough.” I said with a grin, as I moved to Redheart’s side.

“I couldn’t agree more, Dash.” Trixie added, as she stood to my other side.

We stood there, the three of us, wrapped in silence. We stared out the open door of the clinic, and watched for but a moment, as the flames of war burned the city; licking at the clouded night sky. Could we really do this? Could the three of us just simply head out into this, this horror, and hope to make it out alive? I didn’t know if it was possible, but damn it all, we were gonna try!

I quickly found my sense’s overrun by the smell of burning cinder, as the scent of death flooded every inch of the city. We moved quickly. Trixie took point, as she had spent the last two days studying the layout of the city, and had plotted out our path to the Northern Gate. Redheart, and I ran close at her heels. I found myself disgusted by the sights that surrounded me as we galloped through the city streets. Bodies were strewn everywhere, both changeling and pony alike.

The images around us quickly blurred, as the piles of bodies grew greater by the second. The streets seemingly ran red with blood as we crossed through a recent battle zone; it’s scars marking the land. Still, we couldn’t stop, we had to press on.

“Come on girls! We’re not that far away now!”

“Trixie, duck!” Redheart shouted suddenly.

I looked ahead, and saw what Redheart was shouting about, as a small group of changeling guards charged us. Redheart galloped past Trixie, grabbing a scalpel from the vest she wore, and clenched it tightly between her jaws. I pushed my legs to move faster, as I drew my katana, slightly throwing myself off balance as I did. Once I’d regained my balance I saw Redheart slash with a blinding speed, making several precision cuts across one of the guards body, guided by a mind steeped in knowledge of the body. Then, suddenly, a flash of light, a magic bolt fired by Trixie, that flew only mere inches beside Redheart; before sending another guard to death’s embrace.

“Rainbow, now!” I heard Redheart shout, as she spun, and sent the scalpel she’d held flying through the air; finding rest between the eyes of another guard.

“Gotcha! Hey Trixie, how about a hand!” I called out, just as I saw Trixie fire another magical bolt, ending the lives of a pair of guards.

“Coming right up!”

I found myself encased in Trixie’s magic, as it seemed to propel me forward with a blinding speed, and directed me towards the last of the guards. I clenched the hilt of my katana, barrel rolling as I soared past them with Trixie’s aid. Just as I reached the first of the four guards, Trixie’s magic dissipated, and I felt my blade pass effortlessly through his flesh. I hit the ground, skidding on my hooves, as I used my momentum to turn. I arched my back as I shifted my weight forward, before kicking off with my hind legs and flipping into the air.

The feeling was incredible. This sword, this weapon, as some would call it. The way in which it was so perfectly balanced, allowed me to perform such spectacular feats with ease. I twisted to my right, then to my left before landing on the ground, closing the short distance between myself and the final guard. I shifted my weight once more, this time kicking off with my forehooves as I sent myself flipping back through the air. My sword carving a trail from the guard’s chest, all the way up his neck, and across his shocked face. I landed softly on the hard cobblestone streets, and quickly swung my sword down, throwing the blood from it’s blade. The guards still stood, each with a look more horrified than the one before, frozen on their face.

“Show-off.” Trixie said with a smile as she, and Redheart, walked by me, as the guards bodies finally collapsed to the ground.

“Really? You of all ponies are gonna call me a showoff?” I asked with a smile, and a light hearted laugh.

I sheathed my katana, and soon found our little group galloping through the streets once more. We passed through carnage, we passed through the very shadow of death itself, and despite it all, we somehow survived. Soon I could see the Northern Gate, as well as the tram sitting in the station, ready to free us from this hell.

“Come on! We’re nearly there!” I shouted, when I suddenly made out the silhouettes of several more guards surrounding the tram. “Dammit, looks like we got another fight on our hooves. You ready girls!?” I called out to the others.

“Let’s take care of them quickly.” Redheart shouted, as I watched her pull three more scalpels from her vest, and grip them between her teeth. “I’m ready to make my move.”

“”Don’t worry, Rainbow, I got your back.” Trixie called to me.

Redheart let her scalpels sore through the air, as Trixie guided them with her magic, and I ran in just behind them. I swung my katana, drawing it in one fluid motion and cutting down two of the guards with ease. I watched in an almost dumbfounded stupor as I saw Redheart quickly sink another scalpel into the neck of a guard, before turning, and tossing a second scalpel into the air, which she then kicked into the chest of the guard behind her.

“Redheart, get on the tram and start it up!” Trixie shouted before crushing a changeling in her magical grasp and throwing him into another guard.

Redheart nodded, and with one final twist, sunk another scalpel into a guard behind me. “Watch your back, Rainbow.” She said with her usual kind smile, as she vanished into the tram.

“Trixie, create a forcefield around the tram, and get on.”

“But what about you?”

“I’ll jump on just when it’s about to leave, but until then, protect Redheart!” Trixie nodded, and did as I asked, as soon I saw her magic encase the tram in it’s protection.

“Well...now the party can start.” I said with a smile, turning to stare at the remaining few guards. “So...make a move you bugs. Wait, don’t tell me, you want to live forever?”

They closed in, and I found myself overcome with not hate, or even the blood lust I’d come to know...no, this time it was different; I was calm. The sound of steel meeting steel, the shower of sparks that erupted into the sky. None of it mattered. I was at peace, and I could feel my body move on it’s own, simply following pure instinct. I couldn’t believe how free I felt; it was almost like flying.

I spun, stepped, and turned, easily avoiding my attackers, and effortlessly deflecting the attacks I couldn’t avoid. These changelings were different, they were common soldiers...not the elite guard, and none compared to Bane Tooth’s strength. With a few quick movements, I found myself standing amid chaos once more, as blood dripped from my katana. I inhaled deeply as I stood among the bodies of the guards who’d foolishly rushed me, and once more swung my katana. The blood from my blade pelted the ground beneath me, before I sheathed my sword. That’s when I saw Trixie standing at the door of the tram, as her shield slowly vanished, with a smile.

“We made it, Dash.” She said, her voice full of spirit, full of happiness.

“No. No, we haven’t made it yet.” I said as I stepped past her, and sat down aboard the tram. “We got a long ways to go before we see Van Hoover, and I’m pretty sure it won’t be a smooth ride.”

“What makes you say that?” Redheart called from the conductor's seat.

“Just call it a feeling...and remember one thing, the both of you. For every life we take, we are not guaranteed victory, nor are we denied defeat. In this war, this path you two have chosen to take with me, there is only one truth. For each life you take...You’re gonna carry that weight.”