(Ah, sorry! Didn't mean to confuse you.)


Eventually, the rain of bugs finally came to an end

(You're fine!)

She quickly scrambles out from underneath the beam, rushing over to Ash.

Ash stepped out from beneath the overhang and stood at the foot of the stairs, gazing up at them. His sword was sheathed, and in one hand, the Scepter of the Seasons pulsed with a clean blue light.

She smiles, before freezing and rushing over to the edge where Ironhorse fell. She wraps vines around the edge before sliding down to the ground. She runs over to Ironhorse, kneeling down next to him. "Ironhorse..."

Ironhorse lay on his side, heaving with great raspy breaths, the fires in his belly burning low. One of his legs was shattered, and huge chunks of his body had been ripped away. Pistons and gears were scattered around him like broken clockwork. His once burning red eyes were dim, flickering erratically. "Princess?" His voice was small and breathy.

She smiles down at him apologetically, "We got it... We got the scepter." She whispers, staring down at him as tears start to fall.

Puck and Ash pressed behind her, gazing over her shoulder.

"No." The red in his eyes dimmed to tiny pinpricks, and his voice dropped to a whisper. "It was...an honor..." He sighed one last time, as the tiny spots of light flickered once, twice. "...my queen." And he was gone. For Ironhorse, who had never wavered, never once compromised his beliefs or convictions. Who had been an enemy, but chose to become an ally, a guardian and, ultimately, a friend. Puck and Ash looked on gravely.

She stared at him silently, falling back as she pulls her knees to her chest. "Whatve I done?" She whispers.

The boys remained silent.

She stays like that for a little while longer, staring down at Ironhorse's body before she stands up.