The train sped through the darkness beneath New York.
Steel screamed against steel as it raced through forgotten tunnels.
Emily slowly rose to her feet, wiping blood from the corner of her mouth. Across the carriage, Victoria stood with her injured arm held close to her side, breathing hard.
Volkov remained calm.
"You've improved," he said.
"But you're still fighting with your emotions."
Emily smiled faintly.
"That's because we're fighting for people."
"And you're only fighting for yourself."
For the first time, a flicker of irritation crossed Volkov's face.
The train burst into a brightly lit underground station before disappearing into another tunnel.
Victoria noticed a row of computer monitors mounted inside the carriage.
Each displayed a different part of Eclipse.
Walker and Luca were leading civilians toward an emergency exit.
Gabriel was helping Father Michael climb a staircase.
Emily followed Victoria's gaze.
"They're making it out."
Volkov glanced at the screens.
"They've already won more than I expected."
Victoria frowned.
"You sound like a man who planned to lose."
Volkov laughed quietly.
"Every great strategist prepares for defeat."
"What matters..."
"...is what survives afterward."
Emily stepped closer.
"You weren't always like this."
Volkov looked at her curiously.
"You don't know anything about me."
"I know enough."
She nodded toward the photograph they had found.
"You and Alessandro were like brothers."
"What happened?"
For a long moment, Volkov said nothing.
Then he spoke.
"We grew up with nothing."
"He believed power should protect people."
"I believed power belonged to those willing to take it."
His eyes grew distant.
"When your father chose compassion over ambition..."
He looked directly at Victoria.
"...he chose against me."
Victoria shook her head.
"He chose what was right."
"No."
Volkov's voice hardened.
"He chose weakness."
The train suddenly lurched violently.
Warning lights flashed overhead.
Emily looked through the front window.
"The tracks..."
"They're damaged."
A mechanical alarm echoed through the train.
Track failure ahead. Reduce speed immediately.
Volkov didn't move.
"The brakes have been disabled."
Emily stared at him.
"You'll die too."
He smiled.
"If that's the price of finishing the game..."
"...I'll pay it."
Victoria rushed into the driver's compartment.
The control panel was covered in warning lights.
Emily joined her.
"Can you stop it?"
Victoria examined the controls.
"The emergency brake is offline."
Emily noticed a manual lever hidden beneath a metal cover.
"It says it has to be activated from outside the train."
Victoria looked toward the narrow maintenance walkway running along the side of the speeding train.
"If someone goes out there..."
"...they might not make it back."
Silence filled the compartment.
They both knew what the other was thinking.
Emily reached for the door.
Victoria caught her hand.
"No."
"I'm the one he wants."
Emily gently squeezed Victoria's fingers.
"And I'm the one who knows these systems."
Before Victoria could protest, Emily leaned forward and kissed her—briefly, but with all the promise of a future they both wanted.
"When this is over," Emily whispered, "you still owe me that little house."
Victoria smiled through tears.
"And Atlas."
Emily laughed.
"And Atlas."
She opened the maintenance hatch.
A blast of freezing air roared into the compartment as the train hurtled through the tunnel.
Emily stepped onto the narrow walkway, gripping the safety rail with one hand.
Behind her, Victoria watched with her heart pounding.
Farther down the carriage, Volkov quietly observed everything.
For the first time in years...
He wasn't sure who was going to win.
The train raced onward into the darkness, toward a curve that was approaching far too quickly.