The Mega Stone ore fell into an armored hand. He could not pluck it from her palm, lest scorching metal sear her flesh. Contact was the one thing he was not allowed to experience in this metal coffin. Even as it marred his own skin, he wouldn't let it hurt someone who had just survived a walking calamity.

Roze did not desert to be marked by calamity. She who called him 'friend'. Any friend that could not comfort another deserved to be turned to ash, but that was the path that the admin had walked.

Howard regarded the ore thoughtfully, weighing the piece in a gauntleted hand. It glimmered with a great internal light, not unlike a Tera Crystal.

Registeel had unearthed much, it seemed. Black metal littered the battlefield, and the admin made a note to get as much as possible as he kept marching forward.

"Cherish yesterday, because it will dictate tomorrow. You, who would call me friend." He swallowed again, heat scorching his throat. "You will see what comes after today, into eternity. Even if you have to mourn what it brings."

She wanted him to keep living. Maybe he would. Life was a precious thing, and Roze had dedicated her life to protecting that sheltered flower.

Growing attached to this woman was a mistake. Friendships were breaking beneath his feat. When she learned that he had razed Dewford, this illusion would shatter.

He was irredeemable.

"Save who you can, and return home." He turned from her and staggered forward towards the steel colossus, his cape flapping as he did so. Flowers did not grow in the wasteland, and neither did Roze. "Do not return. Be proud of your strength, and never fight on the battlefield again. It doesn't suit you."

He followed his Skeledirge, staggering as he did so. He disappeared into the sands.

"Everyone's sacrifices today were not in vain. My fate awaits."

---

Roze Falkner