With all her strength, Hikaru cleared the debris that had fallen on top of her and buried her body. She managed to stand up, staggering as she looked around. She was shocked to find Fuu lying some distance away. Fear filled her heart as she ran towards her... Her legs felt so weak, almost unable to reach Fuu.
"Fuu!" The explosion had hit Fuu so severely. "Fuu!"
Hikaru shook Fuu's body vigorously. Fuu didn't move. She appeared injured in several places. Tears streamed down Hikaru's face. She called out desperately, hoping she had healing powers like Fuu's. Fuu had always saved her... Fuu had always been there to heal her wounds. How could she be unable to do anything when Fuu now needed her?
"Hikaru..." Fuu's whisper startled Hikaru.
"Are you okay?" she asked, panicked.
A warm light enveloped Fuu's body. Fuu struggled to recover on her own... "I'm okay... I'll be fine." She felt Hikaru embrace her tightly. "Stop him... Eagle Vision... The Tower... Selection..."
"What about you?"
"Leave me. I can't fight right now... Hurry, Hikaru."
Hikaru nodded firmly. She wiped her tears away and ran after Eagle Vision.
Elsewhere, Umi froze. She knew she would die when the blue robot finally cornered her. How funny, Fuu's words echoed in her ears. "Honestly, I don't know how to face it if death comes for me..." because she knew what she had to do. Like fairy tales... a princess would always have a prince to rescue her. She just needed to close her eyes... wait for it all to pass, and then magic would happen!
"Umi! UMI!"
A giant voice nearly deafened her. She felt like she was in a dinosaur world. When she opened her eyes, there was Ascot and his monsters. The blue robot floated down, crashing into the ground and exploding violently. Ascot had saved her!
"ASCOT!" Umi laughed heartily.
Meanwhile...
Eagle collapsed at the foot of the Tower of Selection. He struggled to rise. There were no more obstacles... except his weaknesses. "Not now, please..." He began to ascend the stairs, one by one. "Such a troublesome place..."
Isn't this how a candidate proves himself? The path to the top seemed to glow. He would reach it, soon... Eagle pushed his body to keep climbing. He gripped the stairs tightly as the ground shook repeatedly... From up here, he could see rubble everywhere.
Destruction... It's just temporary destruction... He assured himself.
"Eagle Vision!"
Eagle jolted as if forcibly awakened from sleep. He was nearing the summit when he heard someone call his name. He looked down and saw the red-haired girl chasing him. He was taken aback.
Impossible... Why won't she give up stopping me? As the girl approached, Eagle gathered his strength again. He was determined not to be caught... He climbed with all his might and reached the top, a vast room without walls but with beautiful ceiling and supporting pillars. There was a large door before him...
"You cannot enter!"
"I am the chosen one..." He opened the door with just a touch of his finger. Air rushed out from within, enveloping him. He heard the girl approaching closer... Suddenly, a bright light radiated strongly from inside. He lifted his foot, he would step into it... He entered it...
"I beg you... please..."
The girl's voice was so close to him, almost unreal. Eagle felt his body being pushed from behind. He stumbled and lost his balance. He should have fallen and hit the floor. But he didn't. There was no pain... He opened his eyes.
His heart raced as he realized the world around him had suddenly changed. The room he had entered had become something else, as if he had shifted dimensions. Everything was so white... and dazzling. He felt like he could go blind. It was overwhelming. He plunged into an abyss with no known bottom. It was no longer clear where was up, where was down. He just went further into the unknown. He wondered, could this be death? But no. There were real sensations he could feel...
His eyes could see. Glowing golden lines appeared, flickering and forming beautiful patterns, like blossoming flowers where there should have been sky, walls, and floor... As if welcoming his presence...
His ears heard that voice again, not a figment of his imagination. "I beg you... don't enter..." It became increasingly clear that the owner of the voice was there. His body sensed someone else's presence, close to his own. Two arms encircled his body, embracing him from behind, tightly, refusing to let go, as if protecting him from something...
"Don't enter..."
If he wanted to take back his words now, there was nothing he could do. He was already inside. He had ventured so deep. So, why was the girl there with him? How could it be? His mind grappled with his own struggle, torn between understanding but unable to accept.
No one who wasn't a candidate could enter this place... Ordinary people would perish, thrown out, unable to tread this perilous path... They were not capable... Their hearts weren't strong enough... Like being struck by lightning. Eagle knew why!
Both were thrown forcefully to the bottom they eventually found. The hands released him, and they tumbled down separately. They gathered their strength to stand upright and finally faced each other for the first time as humans, not in robots or mashins...
"Surprising. It seems I'm not alone..." Eagle Vision said as he tried to rise, "... in desiring the position of the Pillar."
