Umi and Fuu looked at her anxiously. Fuu checked on her again. "Is there still anything hurting?"

"Yes, there is," Hikaru replied with a trembling voice. She touched her chest, where her heart continued to pump anxiety. "My heart... it hurts so much."

Fuu immediately hugged her. "What can I do to help you?" she lamented.

"Forgive me..."

"For what?" Umi asked, sitting beside her.

"Once again, I've made you two worried..." Hikaru lowered her head. Again, that wasn't truly what she wanted to say. She couldn't meet her two friends' eyes.

Fuu vigorously shook her head. "You're not wrong at all. You've done your best, just like we have tried our best. You couldn't convince Autozam, that's not your fault. This time, we'll prevent it together."

"Thank you..." Hikaru got off her bed. "I need to get dressed. I have to meet someone."

"Who?"

"Lantis."

"That person?!" Umi was very surprised.

"There's something I need to tell him."

"Even though he saved you the other day, you don't need to thank him," Umi protested. "He betrayed Cephiro. He went to Autozam and I think he told that annoying Autozam guy a lot about the Pillar system."

"You're not wrong, Umi. Of course, he told Eagle Vision a lot." Umi and Fuu didn't understand, they looked at each other. "They're friends. Just like us." Hikaru smiled, then disappeared out of the room.

Hikaru ran as fast as she could, searching throughout the castle, but found nothing. Gasping for breath, she endured the pain still lingering in her body, which had not fully healed. She ended up in the place where she and Lantis had met before. Lantis was nowhere to be found.

"They truly are friends..." She remembered when Lantis pointed his sword at Eagle Vision... The aura of hatred, mixed with boundless pain! How could I let them do something so insane, something no true friends would ever do? They would only destroy themselves!

"LANTIS!" Hikaru shouted, calling out to him. Her voice echoed through the empty corridors of the castle. The place had become eerily silent. People have taken shelter in underground bunkers...

Hikaru was about to search again when a tremendous tremor relentlessly shook Cephiro. She was thrown to the ground and found the earth beneath her feet cracking... From afar, from deep within the earth, she could hear people in uproar. She gasped as something dazzling appeared in the sky...

She staggered and fell again. Astonished, the massive NSX crashed into and successfully tore through the castle's defenses... and those defenses vanished! The castle began to collapse here and there. She couldn't stand; a massive earthquake shook Cephiro. Nature had allied itself quite effectively with Autozam in destroying Cephiro.

Hikaru saw Celece and Windam appear and soar into the sky. She summoned Rayearth. Dodging among the debris, she witnessed the destruction rapidly spreading everywhere... The sorcerers tried to repair the defenses, but it was futile.

The NSX slammed into the ground with a terrifying rumble. The aircraft exploded here and there, hurling thousands of fragments, tons of earth, and thick smoke and dust into the air. From within emerged tens, perhaps hundreds, Hikaru couldn't count them, of fully armed combat robots. Their number didn't matter much compared to the combined forces of Fahren and Chizeta who had united to protect Cephiro, but they were overwhelming everything.

Machines wielded a power unlike anything in this magical world. In mere seconds, they could obliterate any material in their path. The scale of destruction they caused far surpassed anything that magic alone could achieve. But magic knights' mashins must be even stronger because they possess both magic and machine powers.

"SAPPHIRE WHIRLWIND!"

"WATER DRAGON!"

Umi and Fuu intercepted each falling Autozam combat robot before them. They repelled the enemies as far as possible to keep them from approaching the heart of Cephiro, where hundreds of thousands of Cephirans sought refuge.

"Is this what you were telling me about their strength, Umi?"

"Forward, Fuu!"

"WIND PROTECTION!" Fuu deflected the lasers fired by Autozam soldiers.

Suddenly, something incredibly fast struck Windam, sending it crashing heavily to the ground. A combat robot, resembling Eagle Vision's FTO, but not quite. The robot was lightning fast.

"He's mine!" Umi asserted herself. Umi darted as agile and fast as water cascading from a height. They chased each other to bring the other down. Lasers were fired, and Umi had drawn her sword. Umi growled angrily at her attacker.

Hikaru was puzzled. This battle was so silent in her ears, despite the booms, thuds, and roars echoing everywhere. From below, Hikaru did her part by shooting arrows of fire at endless targets. Above her, Fuu flew around, acting defensively and desperately. She searched around, but Eagle Vision was nowhere to be seen on the battlefield. All the combat robots seemed to fight without a human pilot. As if, they were programmed! Programmed to endure until their last second. Programmed to die without feeling anything.

Humans are not robots. Humans are not objects... You cannot force them beyond their limits, Eagle Vision. This is really unnecessary war… Hikaru remembered Eagle Vision as she saw him in her heart, his beautiful eyes, eyes radiating deep sadness... Hikaru remembered everyone. They had all reached their limits... They had nothing left but what they believed in and what kept them going. They would fight for it and prove who was the strongest and come out as the winner...

"Hikaru! Watch out!" Fuu startled Hikaru. Hikaru stumbled, while Fuu shielded her, protecting her from Autozam's lasers. "You're still not well! Don't push yourself! Umi! Take Hikaru and go-"

"I'm fine!" Hikaru quickly got up. Fire surged within her. "I'm fine!" She returned to the battle.

"These robots are so troublesome! They won't let us..." Umi blasted a few...

"They're deceiving-"

"I don't see that green robot! Where's Eagle Vision? They all look the same! Fuu! Stay with Hikaru! I'll check the Tower of Selection-" Umi gasped.

"You're not going anywhere, Miss." A robot with blue and white markings blocked her path. A man's voice, clearly fond of combat. He was a fighter. "Geo Metro here."

"Umi!" Hikaru and Fuu shouted in unison.

"I'm ordered to stop you."

"So, this is your plan, Autozam!" Umi snapped. She dueled with the blue robot. "Stop Eagle Vision! Hand this person over to me!"

In Selection Tower

"It's really messy. But this isn't a big deal, right? Cephiro can recover anytime. When the Pillar returns, everything will be as it used to be." Eagle smiled. "Sorry for making your home look ugly. Lantis..."

"Stay in your place."

Eagle didn't answer. His gaze passed beyond Lantis' shoulders. The Tower of Selection was right behind his back. So close already. He realized this wouldn't be easy. There would be many obstacles ahead. One by one, Fahren, Chizeta, the giant protectors of Cephiro, and the Magic Knights, he had successfully overcome. Eagle stared intently at Lantis on his monitor. He was the last obstacle!

Eagle immediately attacked. The FTO shot forward with its laser sword drawn. The giant robot exerted all its strength as it approached the tower, but Lantis kept attacking it with Cresta. Magical energy surged, causing electrical shocks inside the cockpit. Eagle aimed his cannon and fired a large flame directly at Lantis...

"You could die, you know? Why won't you let me through?!" Eagle exclaimed. "Cephiro accepts me! You know, I am the candidate!" Eagle attacked Lantis relentlessly. Lantis' figure was engulfed in explosion after explosion... "You know I have to save my country! I have to save my people! I need power! I have to become the Pillar... before my time runs out... and there's nothing more I can do..." Eagle fired for the last time before running out of ammunition. "Damn... You're no match for me!"

Lantis emerged through the explosions. Though injured, he managed to shield himself within his mental shield. He drew closer, facing each other... So close that they could feel death approaching.

"You're no match for me!" shouted Eagle.

"Yet, I will still stop you!"

Time seemed to stand still. Two forces unleashed their full strength as they collided... One shout drowned out by another. Their final duel could finally be concluded...

"FIRE ARROW!" Large flames shot towards Lantis and Eagle, pushing them back. Lantis was thrown backwards and crashed into the top of several towers. Luckily, his mental shield held up well.

"You two!" Hikaru appeared amidst them and intervened. "Must you fight as if there's nothing else important in this world?!" Hikaru gasped for breath. "Fuu, stop that green robot..."

"Got it!" Immediately, swirling air enveloped the FTO and halted its movements. Fuu subdued it.

"I'm not defeated yet..." Eagle hissed. He pulled out a device. A self-detonating device. "Die!"

Lantis, Hikaru, and Fuu widened their eyes... No time to dodge! The FTO exploded.

In various different places, fighters were shocked beyond belief. Those shaken unconsciously stopped fighting to understand what was happening...

Umi had never seen such a light... coming from the direction of the Tower of Selection. She lost her focus, a sense of foreboding enveloping her. She couldn't quite grasp what it was, but she could feel that something terribly wrong had just occurred.

"I believe in you, Eagle!" Geo cried out, tears streaming down his face. "You won't die so easily!" He took the opportunity to check on the frozen Celece. He attacked again.

"Yes, I will die..." Geo held the life support data sheet of Eagle's with trembling hands. Eagle simply smiled, his complexion paling. "I know you accessed that data. Direct transmissions to Autozam can always be detected. I apologize, but I won't lie. I just can't say it. I'm not ready to be defeated yet. There are many things I still want to do until the end. I won't stop what I've been striving for all this time..."

Eagle aimed his pistol, threateningly. "Don't think you can shake my resolve with your tears, Geo, my friend..."

Now, Geo could recall that difficult term. Degeneration of consciousness. Caused by the depletion of mental energy. Not death, but a sleep forever.

"You're not a sick man! You're a fighter, Eagle! You're a hero..."