Chapter 62.5: Hikaru (April Fools' Special)
*(The contents of this chapter are purely fictional and do not count toward the main plot)*
Suddenly, a thunderous boom erupted from outside. The sound was colossal, as if the entire mountain were collapsing. Simultaneously, the streets descended into chaos. People were running everywhere, their voices jumbled together in an indecipherable chatter.
"What's happening?"
The group inside the shop was bewildered until a young man sitting by the window shouted in a panic:
"The mountain... the mountain is collapsing!"
Hikaru Hoshino's heart skipped a beat.
*What did he just say? The mountain is collapsing? Is this a joke?*
But everything was too real. The ground was vibrating, and the air turned murky. Despite the torrential rain, the pungent scent of dust and soil was unmistakable.
There was no time.
Hikaru thought for only three seconds before making a decision: they had to evacuate immediately. He grabbed Ai, signaled for Aqua to lead Ruby and Akane closely behind, and shoved open the glass door, stepping into the relentless wall of rain.
As they passed the nurse, Aqua tugged at her sleeve.
"Run," he said softly, then followed Hikaru into the storm.
Rain cascaded from the clouds, washing over the pavement. The droplets should have stung their skin, but Hikaru felt nothing. His once-stylish bangs were now a burden, long golden strands plastered to his forehead and obscuring half his vision. He brushed them aside, squinting against the downpour.
Among the peaks surrounding the town, one showed a visible abnormality. A dark torrent of mud and rock was surging downward. A gray mist swirled around the mountain like a giant beast ready to swallow everything whole.
"Get in the car!" Hikaru ushered Ai and the others, then immediately barked at Teppei Nishikawa in the driver's seat. "Drive! Get us out of town!"
Teppei hadn't fully grasped the situation until he heard the calm yet commanding voice from outside. He acted on instinct, and the car roared to life after a violent shudder.
Aqua looked back at the breakfast shop, then at the crowds of people running behind them, and clenched his fists.
Streetlights flickered on one by one, but some died out after a few sparks. A piercing siren wailed from the speakers atop the poles.
*"Disaster/Evacuation Information: A mudslide has occurred in the Miyazaki area. Residents, please evacuate in an orderly fashion."*
*"Warning! Warning! A mudslide has been detected. Please head to open ground immediately. Protect the elderly and children. Avoid secondary injuries."*
"Damn it, why a mudslide?" Hikaru gripped his hair, veins bulging on his arm. Miyazaki's mountains had been there for ages; he'd never heard of this happening.
Wait... Hikaru froze.
The saw. The shovel. The missing Ishigami. The mudslide.
The image of Ishigami's silent back as he walked away from the arson resurfaced. Through that silhouette, Hikaru saw something else. Something twisted.
"Psychopath," Hikaru muttered. "How did Kamiki ever get linked with a lunatic like this?"
"Rin Futamichi is still back there, and the Director..." Ai held Hikaru's hand, a flicker of hope in her eyes. "Hikaru, what do we do?"
But she was destined for a disappointing answer.
"There's nothing we can do," Hikaru's gaze was flat. "We can barely save ourselves."
The torrent of mud, debris, and giant logs roared down from the mountain, burying houses at the foot instantly. It surged toward the town without slowing down.
Hikaru saw the shop assistant from yesterday rushing out of her home with her daughter, only to be swallowed by the flood. He saw the izakaya waiter, the girl in the yukata... the entire izakaya was wiped clean, leaving no trace. The elderly men and the youth from the breakfast shop stepped out only to see the massive wave of earth; their eyes were frozen in terror in their final moments.
Aqua's warning to the nurse had only allowed her a few extra steps. The mudslide was too fast. Before she could run far, she tripped, her knees scraping the ground until they bled. She knelt there powerlessly, waiting for fate's verdict.
Aqua felt as if a knife were twisting in his heart. These were people he knew, faces he'd seen a dozen times. Even as a gynecologist who didn't treat minor illnesses, he'd always shared a word with them in passing.
He wanted to save them! But it was impossible. Like Hikaru said, they were struggling to survive themselves.
Soon, the dark brown deluge caught up to them. A massive log was tossed into the air and slammed into the car roof, nearly splitting the vehicle in half. Ai pulled the two children into her embrace, a gentle smile on her face. She looked at Hikaru, two purple six-pointed stars shining brilliantly in her eyes.
She signaled for Hikaru to lean in. When he did, she buried her head in his chest.
"I'm happy that I can spend my final moments with you all. This next sentence is absolutely, absolutely, absolutely not a lie."
"I love you."
Hikaru's eyes felt wet. The two children began to sob, covering their mouths. Everything had just started to get on the right track. How could he accept it ending like this?
The next second, the car was completely engulfed by the torrent.
*"Are you willing to let it end like this?"*
Hikaru opened his eyes and realized he was still conscious. He tried to open his hand but failed; he had no physical form, only a tiny glimmer of light.
*"Are you willing to let it end like this?"* The massive presence before him repeated the question.
Hikaru understood the giant's meaning and his request. He just didn't understand why the giant had chosen him.
*"Because you are also Light. Though it is faint, one day, a glimmer will become a new source, passing on courage, justice, and love to more and more people."*
—*I am not just. On the contrary, I've done many wrong things. I am selfish, self-centered, and I look only for my own benefit.*
*"Because you are human. A mundane yet complex human. Nobility is admirable, but baseness is also part of being human. You are not a saint, nor a good man, nor a villain. You are... a small, ordinary person."*
—*I sent Ryosuke to his death, and soon I will personally send Ishigami to hell. Can a murderer like me truly become Light?*
*"No."*
To Hikaru's shock, the giant answered bluntly. Black mist erupted from the giant's body, and the blue shadows were shrouded in darkness. The mist condensed, transforming into a suit of deep-blue armor.
*"Therefore, I am not asking you to become Light. You must prove to me with all your strength that you are worthy of it."*
Hikaru found he was no longer a glimmer, but had a form. The familiar body of Hikaru Kamiki. Two dazzling black stars flickered in his pupils, exuding an evil aura identical to the giant's.
Outside this space, the massive, turbid flood was raging, tearing and devouring everything.
*"I love you."*
Hikaru suddenly remembered Ai's final words and the faces buried under the mud. He fell silent.
He had the order of things wrong. The giant wasn't asking him; the giant was granting him a mercy.
"I am willing to give everything. I offer my soul and my life. Let dry wood spark the remaining fire, and turn the ashes into a glimmer."
The black torrent was forcibly halted.
Teppei Nishikawa found the car suspended in mid-air by an unknown force. Trembling, he looked out the window and saw a pair of eyes glowing with intense golden light.
"It's okay now." A resonant voice echoed directly in their minds.
Ai slowly let go of the twins and realized Hikaru had vanished from his seat. In his place stood a blue giant towering over the earth.
The giant was streamlined, with silver stripes decorating deep-blue skin. He had long blue ears on the sides of his head and a silver-white Timer on his chest, flanked by Star Marks. The aura was magnificent.
"Hikaru?" Ai tried calling out. The giant nodded gently.
"So cool," Aqua muttered. Teppei Nishikawa nodded frantically in agreement.
*So this is what it feels like to be a giant,* Hikaru thought. It was a strange sensation; a single stomp could kick up a massive cloud of dust. If he had time, he'd love to experience this properly. But his Light was too small; he couldn't sustain this for long. He had to end this quickly.
**Hikari** gently set the car down, then used **Ultra Psychokinesis** to completely halt the mudslide and move it back to the foot of the mountain. Though the disaster had reached the town, many casualties had already occurred.
**"Life Solidification!"**
Hikari solidified the life energy within the deceased and reinjected it into their bodies, successfully resurrecting those who had lost their lives. People who should have died reappeared on the streets, looking at their unharmed bodies and cheering loudly for Hikari.
"Is this the power of Light? It's so warm." Aqua looked at the giant with eyes full of longing.
But the peace didn't last. Soon, the mountains in the distance began to shake again.
Shin'ichiro Ishigami's pained voice erupted from beneath the range: "Why must you obstruct me again and again?! You should have just let everyone die!"
"Your plot is destined to fail! Evil cannot defeat Justice!"
"Arrgh!" Ishigami's voice became even more distorted as it faded, and the mountain itself slowly stood up. It was a massive, bird-like monster! It was covered in brownish scales, with sharp claws for hands and a hideous giant mouth across its abdomen.
"It's the Space Monster, **Bemstar**!" Hikari said solemnly. "Did it come to Earth long ago to hide while searching for energy? I didn't expect it to be awakened by Ishigami's malice. I will not let you run rampant!"
**"Knight Shoot!"**
Hikari raised his right hand, equipped with the **Knight Brace**, and crossed his arms into a cross, firing a blue high-temperature beam from the edge of his right palm.
But Bemstar opened the giant mouth on its belly and absorbed the beam entirely, then fired yellow destructive energy bolts from its horn, striking Hikari squarely. Sparks flew everywhere.
"Hikaru!" Ai cried out from a distance.
"It's okay! Senior will definitely defeat the enemy!" Teppei Nishikawa raised his fist to cheer him on.
"Damn, it can absorb beam attacks?"
"Then how about this!" Hikari raised his right fist again. A dazzling blue light erupted from his palm and spread across his entire body. When he reappeared, his form had changed. A blue visor covered his eyes, silver-white armor appeared on his chest, and golden patterns adorned his entire body.
**"Hunter Knight Tsurugi - Brave Armor Form!"**
**"Knight Blade!"** Hikari stepped forward, focusing all his strength into his right arm. He hoisted the 60,000-ton Bemstar high into the air! Then, with a massive heave, he threw the monster into the sky!
While Bemstar was still suspended in the air, Hikari spread his hands, palms downward, and fired high-heat beams.
**"Hot Load Shoot!"**
The monster was blown to pieces.
Finally, the blue giant nodded to the crowd and took flight. Hikaru Hoshino vanished into the distant horizon.