I stopped with the tears eventually and sat down, resting my head on the dirty walls. I still had her in my arms, hugging her. I had failed again. I don't even know if I can even call for help. I pull out the hand radio, staring at it for a bit. How can I complete this mission? How can I get this job done? How can I do anything anymore? I'm so lost.

In my haze of emotions I see...

Me?

I see a phantom-like version of me. He looked younger, less stressed. He didn't have the messy stubble. He still had the twinkle in his eye. He sat with me. He seemed content. In thought. "Hey." He simply said to me.

I was confused, so I shake my head. "What? Have I gone fully insane?"

The phantom laughs a bit. "No, no. Well, sort of. I'd say this is your brain defending itself. We seem to be in a bad way."

I smile at myself. "Ah. You're talking about this, aren't you?"

"Yeah. You're gonna give up on the mission, just rot here."

"Well, I'm just tired of failure. I'm tired of losing. I'm tired of failure."

Phantom adjusts himself, thinking about what to say next. "Remember when Kyle lost his arm?"

"How could I forget?"

"In my eyes, we get hurt to learn something or get stronger. I can't say to the pain you're feeling, but I can say you're not alone, Kyle. You have people here for you."

The phantom stands. "Follow your own advice."

"But how can I get this done? With just an army? Come on, don't leave me hanging."

"We just do it our own way. You know what to do." He disappears.

Yeah. I think I do know what to do. I give Sera one last kiss and set her down, planning on retrieving the body later. I walk outside to see my prison army, even bigger and waiting for me. They chant and cheer for me. I grab my ax and put my hands up, angry and determined. "People! The time for revenge is almost upon us. I want us in that northern trail! I want Demon heads on the ground! I WANT BLOOD! DO YOU WANT BLOOD?!"

The crowd chants. "HELL YES!"

"WHO'S BLOOD YOU WANT?"

"DEMONS! DEMONS! DEMONS!"

I smiled, putting my ax in the air. "Then let's claim some heads!"

We run into the walls of the north. It was heavily fortified, with a massive wooden gate stopping us from advancing. There were monsters in front of us, threatening us. The Demons were also on top of the walls shooting some sharp arrows down at us. They were getting good shots off as well, killing or injuring a few of us. First, I had to cut the men in front of us. I start using the quick blade to cut and kill the monstrosities in front of me. Once I got them out the way, I order some men to start climbing. I needed to let off the steam, so I join the climbing team. We headed up the walls.

We climb over and started fighting the Demons shooting at us. I tried to shake my plasma, but it didn't come out. it sparked and sputtered when I tried. It must've broken. I had to do it the hard way. It was fine, I wanted to get all my anger out anyways. I hit the first monster I saw right at the head with my ax. Once I pulled out the ax I started wildly swinging at the green freaks. I was yelling like a mad man. I felt l was in the World Series. The other Demons tried to stop me, but I was in the zone. I broke the spears with my ax and finished some off with my arm sword. I brutally stabbed them in the heart or neck. covering myself in the filth as I fought in the strong wooden wall I then use the spear end, opening stomachs and throats of the beasts I had displeasure in. The men soon rallied around me and fought with me. they also got dirty, making sure the demons didn't get back up. I yelled in celebration after we took them out. They yelled back in the adrenaline rush. We got down as we use our numbers again to bring the wooden gates down. I step in front, keeping the bloodied, angry prisoners at bay.

"Now. You want blood. I want blood. They killed your friends, your family. They ripped their hearts out for this!" I point to the markings, the tribal signs. The prisons yell and chant. "I WANT DEAD DEMONS ON THE GROUND. YOU WANT THAT TOO?!"

The men overwhelmingly yell. "YEAH!!"

"Great. CHARGE!"

We all run into the northern trail.

The heart of the Desert Demons.