Firefly in Honkai Star Rail: What secret is she hiding from the Trailblazer and what is her connection to the Stellaron Hunter Sam?

WARNING! This article contains spoilers for Honkai: Star Rail's Trailblaze and Adventure Missions in Penacony released in version 2.0. If you haven't finished those missions yet, finish those first before reading this article to avoid spoilers. You have been warned.

Honkai: Star Rail version 2.0's Penacony Trailblaze Missions took players on a rollercoaster of emotions with its mystery and tragedy standing in stark contrast to the delightful dreamscapes of the Planet of Festivities.

One character that really stood out in those missions was Firefly, who quickly became a fan-favourite after she took the Trailblazer on a delightful romp through the Golden Hour and Dream's Edge dreamscapes (basically they went on a date).

However, those who fell in love with Firefly had their hearts broken not long after when she fell victim to the monstrous Memory Zone Meme "Something Unto Death", dissolving into a puddle of blue fluid in the Trailblazer's arms.

But, of course, Firefly's story does not end there. In fact, we have good reason to believe that she is actually still alive. With that said, there are still a couple of mysteries concerning Firefly that have yet to be uncovered, the most pressing being...

What is Firefly's true identity?

The Trailblazer first meets Firefly in the Golden Hour dreamscape, saving her from being apprehended by members of the Bloodhound Family who were looking for a silver-haired stowaway. After their date in Golden Hour, Firefly took them to her "secret stronghold" in a scenic rooftop at the Dream's Edge dreamscape.

There, Firefly confessed that she was indeed a stowaway and is actually afflicted by the Entropy Loss Syndrome, a mysterious disease that is slowly but surely erasing her from existence. And because of her Entropy Loss Syndrome, Firefly in real life is forced to stay confined in a medical apparatus that is delaying her disease's effects, only being able to really move and experience real life in Penacony's dreamscapes.

But we know that there is still much about herself that Firefly did not tell the Trailblazer. Perhaps this was the reason why she let out a tearful apology upon being skewered by the "Something Unto Death".

And we think what Firefly could not tell the Trailblazer was her deep connection with the fearsome Stellaron Hunter Sam.

There's evidence of this connection before the Trailblazer has even arrived in Penacony. In their first dream encounter with Acheron, the Trailblazer happens across a large room where the major players in Penacony's story can be seen talking with one another.

These characters included Black Swan and Sparkle, Sunday and Robin, Aventurine and Dr. Ratio, the Stellaron Hunters Silver Wolf and Sam, and of course the Trailblazer and Acheron. Curiously, Firefly is not seen in this room despite playing a prominent role in the Penacony Trailblaze Missions.

Perhaps the reason why is because Firefly is indeed there, we just don't know that she and Sam are somehow one and the same? Hear me out: Sam is often described as a tall man in a suit of silver armor, but maybe he isn't a man at all? What if, instead, the entity known as Sam is actually a mechanical suit of armor being piloted by Firefly?

The last knight of the Iron Cavalry

The lore of the relic set Firmament Frontline: Glamoth describes an interstellar empire known as the Republic of Glamoth that fell victim to the Swarm Disaster caused by the Aeon of Propagation Tayzzyronth. In an effort to fight off the Swarm, Glamoth created an army of genetically-engineered warriors known as the Iron Cavalry.

Described as "knights clad in mechanical armor", the Iron Cavalry was commanded and controlled telephatically by the Empress Titania of Glamoth. While the Iron Cavalry was successful in fighting off the Swarm for a time, they could not stop Glamoth from ultimately falling to the Swarm Disaster.

Only one member of the Iron Cavalry remains: the Stellaron Hunter Sam. Based on what we know from the Glamoth relic set, Sam may either have gained some level of sentience or is being controlled telephatically, or maybe even a mix of both.

The possibility that Firefly is the one controlling Sam is further evidenced by the fact that she told the Trailblazer the reason she was a stowaway is because her home planet was destroyed by the Swarm. Perhaps Firefly is a descendant of survivors from Glamoth and that her Entropy Loss Syndrome may also be caused by her being a genetically-engineered human designed to control a knight of the Iron Cavalry.

Possible evidence of Firefly being a genetically-engineered human can also be found during her date with the Trailblazer in Golden Hour.

There, Firefly was able to sense the faint presence of Sampo (who is actually Sparkle in disguise) and even ascertained his height and the fact that he's well-trained and doesn't leave any footprints whenever he walks. Even the Trailblazer did not realize that they were being followed until Firefly spoke up.

Now, why would a stowaway girl with a debilitating disease have abilities only well-trained fighters would conceivably have?

Firefly is also strangely familiar with Sam's nature despite being a stowaway who should know very little about a Stellaron Hunter's origins. Following Firefly's apparent death, the Trailblazer investigated why she was in the dreamscape in the first place alongside Black Swan and Acheron. Black Swan's Memokeeper powers then allowed her to create projections of Firefly as she made her way through the dreamscape.

Curiously, one of Firefly's projections showed her calling an unknown person with her a "mecha". Not long after this, the Trailblazer finally encounters the fearsome Stellaron Hunter Sam himself, leading us to believe that Firefly was talking to Sam.

Firefly is the only character so far to call Sam a mecha. Everyone else describes the Stellaron Hunter as a tall man wearing silver armor, and even the other Stellaron Hunters may not be fully aware of what he actually is. Blade notably calls Sam a person wearing "a giant armor" while Silver Wolf thinks he is "a metal humanoid".

The only other time that the term 'mecha' had been used was in the lore of the Glamoth relic set, which described the Iron Cavalry as an army of "countless silver mechas".

Sam even displays curious behavior in his fight with the Trailblazer. Before engaging them in battle, the only ones he scans and perceives as threats are Acheron and Black Swan, notably ignoring the Trailblazer. Later on, he even tries to reach for the Trailblazer before being Acheron repels him while Black Swan whisks the Trailblazer away.

Now this could be because the other Stellaron Hunters have already described the Trailblazer to Sam already. However, I'm leaning more towards Firefly controlling Sam in this situation and seeing Acheron and Black Swan as threats she should save the Trailblazer from.

Finally, the White Night trailer also shows Sam engaged in battle with Acheron. In his boss fight in version 2.0, Sam is only seen wielding bright red flames being emitted out of his body. However, in his battle with Acheron in White Night, Sam is seen fighting with wings sprouting out of his back that have a very similar color scheme to that of Firefly.

Given that the Sam we fought shortly after Firefly's apparent death did not use those bright green wings, this leads us to speculate that this winged state for Sam may be when he is being fully controlled by Firefly.

Despite all the evidence we found linking Firefly and Sam, we can only speculate until the next installments of the Penacony Trailblaze Missions can confirm our theories. Let's hope that Honkai: Star Rail version 2.1 in late March will provide us with some long-awaited answers.

Honkai: Star Rail version 2.0 was released on 6 February and features a new planet in Penacony, three new characters in Black Swan, Sparkle, and Misha, as well as tons of other new content. To find out more about what's in version 2.0, check here.

After version 2.0 comes version 2.1 in late March, which features three new playable characters in Acheron, Aventurine, and Gallagher.

Yan Ku is a full-time dog parent, part-time (gacha) gamer, and part-time writer.

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