On his ship ION, Albatross could hardly believe what he was seeing. Sphinx was dead?! The annihilating waves of power were closing in on them. "PULL THE SHIP AWAY! QUICK!" he ordered urgently. He stared at Hikaru on his screen with a look of fear. The situation was changing rapidly.
"I AM THE PILLAR OF CEPHIRO!" Hikaru proclaimed. A great fire enveloped her, transforming her into a figure that shone as brightly as the sun. When the light faded, Hikaru stood clad in her golden armor, beside her a giant red wolf, its body covered in brilliant white flames.
The mental shield stopped expanding at a certain point, forming a large dome that protected all of Cephiro. "We are safe," Albatross thought to himself with great relief. He saw some of his ships escaping the mental shield and hovering at a safe altitude.
However, the power of the Pillar kept threatening him. Now, he saw Hikaru, accompanied by her wolf, soaring into the sky, reaching them. Her determination and heart dictated everything in Cephiro. When she resolved to protect Cephiro, the defense she created was incredibly strong.
Umi tried to chase after Hikaru. Lantis shot ahead of her. Hikaru was already outside the protective shield, facing thousands of Autozam ships. Umi and Lantis were determined to follow, but as they tried to breach the mental shield, it repelled them. The mental shield was so firm that it prevented anything from entering or leaving.
"HIKARU!" Umi cried out again. Hikaru paid her no mind. She struck the mental shield with all her might using her sword, but nothing changed.
In front of Hikaru, thousands of ships were prepared with magenta blasts. Albatross ordered those most powerful laser canons to be fired from all ships, creating an immense wave of energy that would not cease to bombard its target for minutes.
"CORONA!" White fire arrows shot forth at incredible speed, countless in number! The arrows targeted all the robots, fighter jets, and missiles launched. One by one, they exploded in the sky.
BOOM! Massive explosions shook the heavens repeatedly. The mental shield appeared to weaken, but in an instant, it quickly repaired its structure.
"HIKARU!" Umi tried to breach the mental shield with all her might, as did Lantis. Nothing changed, and they were thrown back again. They couldn't let Hikaru face Autozam alone, even if she was a Pillar...
The explosions continued without end... BOOM! The deafening sound reverberated mightily. Suddenly, the mental shield developed a hole, allowing a massive fireball to streak into Cephiro.
"WATER DRAGON!" Umi called, preventing the fireball from crashing into Cephiro. She knew what had to be done. "Lantis, we must stop these fireballs from raining down on Cephiro! We must help Hikaru!"
Lantis understood and, using his strength, began to destroy the fireballs that increasingly breached the mental shield.
Seeing Umi, Eagle knew what his role was. He ordered his followers to do the same. Eagle, with his FTO, joined them. The sorcerers of Cephiro, who couldn't navigate the air, also rushed to the highest towers under the command of LaFarga, doing their utmost to prevent fireballs from approaching the castle and surrounding area. Ascot commanded all his monsters to do the same.
They won't be able to hold out! Fuu assessed that the sorcerers in the towers couldn't effectively prevent the attack. The mental shield continued to develop holes, and its repair speed decreased. "GUARDIAN WIND!" Fuu joined the fray. Nearby, Princess Tatra, with her djinn, was also present. Second lines of defense were now present.
Princess Tatra looked at Fuu, initially with disbelief, but then smiled. They worked together to prevent the fireballs from hitting the castle and the ground, wherein massive civilian bunkers were hidden from view. So far, the castle's defenses remained intact thanks to Umi's efforts on the first line and Fuu's on the second, and the main shield created by the Pillar, which blocked nearly all of Autozam's attacks.
Suddenly, another deafening explosion echoed through the skies, hurling everything aloft to the ground. The massive mental shield vanished in an instant. It wasn't the magenta blasts from Autozam, but something white, resembling arrows of light in thousands.
Hikaru was thrown back and nearly fainted, but she felt someone preventing her from falling. Lantis? No. The grip felt so different; it hurt her. Hikaru slowly opened her eyes and found the golden-haired man staring at her, the man who had appeared in her dream— Her eyes widened. He was real. The man, riding a glowing white magical deer with golden antlers, held her body tightly with one arm, refusing to let her go.
"Who are you?" Hikaru asked, but he remained silent, his gaze fixed on her with an enigmatic expression. Hikaru wasn't sure whether she should thank him. His power... Hikaru could feel it was immense, yet it also felt so cold.
Feeling weak, Hikaru remembered she needed to restore the mental shield. She concentrated. The mental shield once again enveloped Cephiro. It was smaller in size but flawless.
Before the structure was complete, Lantis had already shot out. He needed to find out what had happened to Hikaru. The sudden disappearance of the mental shield had made him fear that something terrible had befallen Hikaru.
ION
Albatross struggled to accept that he had lost nearly all of his forces in such a short time. After ordering the magenta blast attack to continue, he had to leave ION immediately. He searched desperately for one person of his generals who had vanished, Altair.
"Even if you search for him, he won't come..." A mischievous voice commented. Albatross looked up to see a woman with bat wings clinging to the ceiling of his ship. Her long red-brown hair was styled uniquely, partially obscuring her face. She wore a wry smile.
Albatross recognized her as a fairy. How could a fairy be here? "Who are you?" Albatross asked warily, aiming his pistol.
"Pleased to meet you. I'm Chiron, one of the Runes's Knights," she replied dramatically, emphasizing the last word. Instantly, Albatross knew that Altair had betrayed him. The fairy cast a spell, and the command room was wrecked without warning, causing the ship to lose control and plummet towards the earth.
At a time like this?! "Runes, you slave!" Albatross yelled as the ship's tilt threw him to the floor. Defeat, something he had never anticipated, spread before his eyes.
"You still have time to insult us? Tsk, tsk. Know this: your fate ends here."
"Altair... YOU TRAITOR!" Albatross roared in fury.
"We did intend to betray, for the sake of a hundred years of oppression… for each lake, river, forest, and mountain you destroy… for every Runesian life lost to your hand, Autozam."
ION exploded, breaking into countless pieces in the sky. The remnants of the ship scattered in massive fragments. Meanwhile, the remaining vessels experienced the same fate, falling one by one to the earth.
Albatross was falling from the sky and severely injured. The ground drew closer with each passing moment. Before closing his eyes, he saw his entire fleet destroyed. The explosions continued... Figures flitted across the sky... The faint sounds of magical beasts echoed... He resigned himself to his fate and the impact on the earth.
But then, he felt something strange. A warm, silvery layer slowly enveloped his body. A mental shield?! Before he hit the ground, something prevented his fall. A robotic arm caught him. FTO. And inside it was Eagle Vision.
Why is she saving me, too? Albatross wondered in confusion. he glanced towards the battle before his eyes closed. You deceived me; you destroyed me. But you also protected me, you saved me... Pillar of Cephiro, why?
Lantis watched as the shattered pieces of Autozam's ships fell one by one, raining down upon Cephiro. "Umi, Eagle! I entrust them to you!"
"Got it!"
Lantis spurred his magical steed into a faster pace. He searched for Hikaru and suddenly halted. He nearly was thrown off by the abrupt stop. Against the backdrop of the blue-gray sky and darkening clouds, high above, a man with long flaxen hair and a flowing black cloak appeared, with several shadowy figures far behind him. A long white sword was in one hand, while Hikaru was held in the other.
"Lord… Nair," Lantis whispered, frozen. He recalled the orders delivered by Mazda three years ago. The situation was so dire! Hikaru and Cephiro were in grave danger.