Blood was everywhere. She couldn't bear it anymore. She couldn't see her friends- her allies- lying on the ground, deep and fresh wounds showing the obvious. The book she had risked her life on lay at her feet, burnt beyond recognition. 

"You look so pale!~" a malicious chuckle sounded out from behind Tecna, making her turn to face Dark Bloom once more. 

Tecna could not speak. Her throat was too hoarse, too pained from the deaths of her allies like this, even if she knew that not all of them had died. The sounds of the battlefield echoed through the air, of magic fighting magic, shouts of encouragement, yet people were still slain. 

"Bloom...." Tecna's voice eventually came out soft, broken. "Please, stop this. This isn't right. This isn't you. All this deaths... It's not worth this...." 

"You sure about that?~" Dark Bloom giggled. "Why you thought that it was possible to beat me doesn't make sense to me." 

"I-It's because..." Tecna looked down. 

"Because of what?~" Dark Bloom smirked. "You may have destroyed Master, but you haven't destroyed me, his most loyal servant!~ As long as I'm around, you'll never end our fun-" 

"Because... Because I couldn't stand you doing this anymore...." the guardian fairy mumbled. 

"H-Huh?" Dark Bloom froze, not believing what she had said. "W-What?..." 

"I couldn't just watch you suffer even more, Bloom... I knew that attacking you guys just after we fought Darkar was reckless, but... But... but I couldn't stand watching you like this anymore..." Tecna confessed. 

"T-Tecna...." Dark Bloom mumbled, her eyes wide in disbelief. 

"Bloom, you're better than this... You're not weak... You're one of the strongest people I know..." Tecna looked at her, broken orbs staring back at Dark Bloom. The most broken she had ever seen. And she hadn't even tortured her! 

"That's why.... P-Please.... C-Come back... Come back to us... To me..." Tecna sobbed softly, her tomboyish attitude long gone. 

Dark Bloom's eyes stared back at the fairy- no, friend as she continued crying right in front of her. 

A part of her, the REAL Bloom, looked at Tecna, unable to believe that TECNA of all people was crying for HER. 

Dark Bloom herself felt... 

Dark Bloom didn't understand what she was feeling. 

Was this...

Was this what one called regret? 

It was then that a miracle happened. 

From Dark Bloom's left eye, a single tear fell. 

SPLASH!

A bright light slowly began to glow, flowing freely from its position as it engulfed Dark Bloom before spreading across the battlefield, healing the wounded and the land. Dispersing the red skies and darkness that once ruled the lands. 

Tecna could only watch, eyes wide, before the light in front of her slowly faded away, revealing someone Tecna had missed for so long. 

"B-Bloom?...." she whispered, wondering if this was a dream. 

Bloom's eyes conveyed shock as well, "T-Tecna?..." 

After a few minutes of staring at each other, Bloom suddenly surged forward and hugged Tecna, crying as she cried out apologies to everyone for not being strong enough. 

Tecna could only cry silently as she slowly hugged back, giving her comfort through the hug, "T-This isn't a dream right?..." 

"O-Of course it's not..." Bloom mumbled back. "T-Thank you so much Tec... For believing in me...." 

"N-No problem...." Tecna smiled tearily before the two looked to the skies, the blue sky finally shining in their eyes. 

In the skies, though....

They can see their friends grinning back at them. 

And that just made them happier, knowing that their friends had never truly left them.