In a dingy, dark alley, a man slumped on the wall. His breath was labored and his eyes unseeing, as he attempted to gather his composure for what was to come. His black garment was tattered in many places. Blood continued to trickle down his skin, pooling under him at an alarming rate. As a soldier and a spy, he was familiar with danger; yet this was by far the worst situation Twilight had ever been through.
Four safehouses. Fifteen disguises. He had checked himself for trackers and had even abandoned his WISE communication device early on, and yet, the assassins continued to hunt him down like bloodhounds trailing after his scent. They were proven to be highly skilled, to be able to tail a disguise master such as himself. He had managed to kill one of them, but there were five more in total. They were clearly world-class hitmen. Perhaps, agents of Zoa. Or even the legendary Garden.
A dizzy spell hit him once more. Twilight gritted his teeth and pressed on his wound. The burst of pain that followed was excruciating, but it helped him stay awake. The last bullet must have been laced with tranquilizer. Which was bad, because that would mean his pursuers wished to catch him alive.
As a spy, it was better to die than to be caught alive at the hands of the enemies.
Something flickered in the periphery. Twilight grunted and readied his gun once more. When worse comes to worst, he was prepared to bite down the pill. But he wouldn't go down without a fight. He was ready to die—
"Papa!"
Her voice echoed in his ears. A pang of regret inevitably bloomed in his chest. He immediately crushed it and steeled himself, because they were fake, nothing but tools for the sake of the mission. He felt nothing leaving them behind. Nothing. He was only regretful for not being able to complete the mission, for failing his country. For failing to come back home tonight, to the bright smiles of his fake, lovely daughter and wife—
"Papa!"
Twilight snapped in attention. He hadn't been hallucinating; it was his daughter's voice, echoing in the alleyway. A flash of pink—and then, there she was, standing a few steps away from him, tears streaming down her face—
A click was heard from behind, and Twilight moved.
His chest jolted. Blood splattered on her face. He collapsed on her, numb all over, but he forced himself to move and shield her completely from the enemies. His daughter screamed in fright as his body jerked from the impact of the gun shots.
His vision began to darken, but he tightened his grip on her. No, not yet. The enemies were still here. It was not safe, he had to get her away from here, he couldn't collapse… just… yet…
A heavy thud. A howl of pain. Surprised exclamations rose as someone descended before them.
"You—It's the Thorn Princess!"
Twilight closed his eyes and he knew no more.