As the room behind her crashed and crumbled, Chihiro winced while her eyes drifted over the holographic Eon as it clung to the ledge it hung from for dear life. Next, her eyes drifted down to the amulet that rested below her. On one hand, she had a win right before her eyes, so easy she could just snatch it up. On the other hand, even if it was just a holograph, could she really live with herself if she let someone get seriously hurt, or even worse, right before her eyes?

Chihiro frowned as she clasped her hands, and her eyes fell on the holographic Eon, who paid no mind to her as it looked down at the massive fall below and winced. The ledge it hung from started to crumble, and it let out a terrified cry as it tried to scramble higher, but it just slipped further down and just barely gripped on! It would fall any second now!

Just the sight of it made Chihiro shake her head and stand tall. "What am I thinking?" Chihiro asked herself as she walked down the ledge and whipped out her cards. "Protecting others always come first!"

Chihiro looked down the ledge, winced as a couple pebbles broke off from it and fell to the ground below, but shook her head and kept her grasp on her cards tight. Hopefully she could pull this off in time.

"Alright, Chihiro," Chihiro whispered as she stepped off the ledge and nodded. "Let's go!"

The entire ledge crumbled off and sent Chihiro free-falling with her last step, but despite the alarming velocity at which the ground drew her in, Chihiro just whipped out a card with a cloud on it. She rubbed the card a few times, and grinned as a gigantic, puffy cloud formed right underneath her feet! Chihiro sat down and rubbed her hands against the soft, comforting texture of the cloud's puffy surface as a grin broke out on her face. Oh, it just felt so good!

"Help!" the holographic Eon cried as it tried to pull itself up from the crumbling ledge it hung from.

That's right, she had a mission at hand! Chihiro gently patted the side of her cloud, and with a car's beep, it zoomed over to the holographic Eon and caught it right as the ledge fractured and collapsed behind them!

"You alright?" Chihiro asked, and clenched her teeth as the sound of splitting rocks sounded off dangerously close by. "Actually, save the questions for later! We need to get out of here!"

The holographic Eon said no words; it just looked at Chihiro with a slightly gaped jaw as she revved her cloud up like a car and zoomed out of the commencing rockslide! All around them, the castle's remains crumbled to bits and became dusty waterfalls that tossed huge chunks of stone and broken pieces of furniture at her, but compared to what she faced before, this was nothing!

Chihiro swerved out the way of a large slab of rock, and soared straight through a hole within another particularly large slab of granite! But, that wouldn't be the biggest obstacle they faced! Just above them, the castle itself started to crumble and topple in on itself! If they didn't get out of here soon, they were toast!

"HANG ON!" Chihiro shouted as she slapped the side of her cloud car!

The cloud car reeled back and whinnied like a horse before it zoomed off at the speed of light, and darted to safety under the shade of a tall willow tree right as the castle completely collapsed! The screams and crashing sounds of destruction sounded off behind Chihiro, but it was white noise at most. If anything, she was just glad that she managed to pull that off!

"Phew, that was close," Chihiro remarked as she wiped her forehead and helped the holographic Eon down from the cloud. "Now, are you alright?"

"I, I suppose I am," the holographic Eon replied as it let go of Chihiro's hand and took a few shaky steps forward.

Right before them, the castle they scrounged through was in an amorphous pile of dust with a few rocks poked through. Surely that amulet was gone now, but if it was, then why hadn't the simulation ended yet? Perhaps... The two of them rushed down the hill Chihiro parked on, and skidded to a stop as they drew closer to the castle's ruins. The garbage left from the castle's remains was still nothing more than a ruined pile of dust and rocks, but Chihiro could've sworn she spied a shimmer of gold among the wreckage. So, she rushed over to the wreckage, parted the dust and rocks around to find...

"The amulet!" Chihiro cried. "It's still here!"

Chihiro beamed as her reflection shone in the amulet's jewel—talk about lucky! The amulet not only survived that intensive crash, but it seemed to be in one piece too, to boot! Chihiro grinned as she reached for the amulet once more, but right as she did, the whole area shook and rumbled with such intensity that it flung Chihiro on her back!

Chihiro grunted as she tried to pushed herself back to her feet, but everything around her quaked and shuddered so badly that just sitting up was enough of a struggle! So, she gritted her teeth and crawled away as the rumbling grew more intense, yet screamed as a massive wind whipped up behind her and tossed her across the ground! Chihiro's whole body burned as she pushed herself up, rolled on her back, and gasped as another burst of powerful wind lashed back at her!

Chihiro flung her arms in front of her face as she tried to shield herself from the wind, but even that was fruitless, for the winds were so mighty that they stung her eyes and dragged her across the floor! Chihiro dug her hands and heels into the earth, but even that only dug a trail into the earth before the wind's grip snatched her up!

Before she knew it, Chihiro's whole body went weightless as she pulled closer and closer towards the castle's ruins, except it was a castle no longer! Rather, a massive tornado manifested over the ruins' site and swept up everything, from dust and gravel and rock, to stray wooden boards and treasures, and with how strong these winds were, Chihiro herself would be soon to follow at this rate!

Chihiro screamed as she flailed her arms and kicked her legs in some attempt to escape, but all that did was exhaust her further as the winds dragged her in. Her vision started to fade, but before Chihiro could fall unconscious, a large lasso shot out of nowhere and grabbed her by the hand! It yanked her out of the tornado's grip! Chihiro shook her head and blinked away her blurriness, but grinned as her eyes fell towards the earth!

There below her, the holographic Eon stood over a massive stone shield and held the rope tight as it pulled her back in! It saved her, right when she least expected it! Chihiro held out her arms as it pulled her behind the shield with one last yank, and fell right into its grip while it took cover behind the shield. For a holograph, its body was surprisingly solid, and it felt warm and fuzzy like she was hugging a ball of light; just like when she was with Master Eon.

"Are you alright, child?" the holographic Eon asked as it looked down at Chihiro.

"Thanks to you," Chihiro replied as she nodded her head, but poked her head over the shield and frowned as the tornado raged on and expanded. "Just what is that thing?"

The holographic Eon frowned as it joined Chihiro in eyeing the storm, winced and ducked back down as a large gust of wind burst forward and rattled the shield. "I'm not sure!" the holographic Eon cried over the raging sounds of fierce, howling wind. "I believed this was just an ordinary treasure hunt simulation!"

Chihiro winced, and clenched her teeth as her eyes fell back on the raging tornado, which only grew bigger by the second as it absorbed more and more of the castle's ruins. Wait a second. Chihiro narrowed her eyes as she glazed over the tornado, which, now that she got a closer look at it, almost appeared to take some kind of vague form?

Yes, it seemed almost like a bulky, humanoid form was born from the tornado's raging winds and masses of junk and destruction! But, why? Why would it take a form like that? A monstrous cry rang through the area with such force that the tree leaves around shook, and with one last blast, the winds ceded and the tornado completely dispersed to reveal the answer! That tornado was no ordinary tornado, but rather the veil for some kind of transformation!

In the place where the castle's ruins once stood laid a massive monster the height of a skyscraper and the size of an island. Its head was made of brick, with a pointed roof for a hat and two windows for eyes. Its jaw was fanged and gaped out a tongue made of solid rock, and its whole body was bulky and made of solid brick and wood with all sorts of manor-like décor: strings of flags wrapped around its neck like a scarf, bright, shiny steel bands clasped around its ankles and knees, and a massive drawbridge sat in its beefy chest!

Well, that solved that question, but it brought up a new one.

"What is that thing?" the holographic Eon cried as its eyes went wide from the mere sight of the monster!

Chihiro, however, just kept quiet as she studied the monster, which just listlessly swung from side to side as its head careened around the forest, almost as if it looked for something. Now that she thought about it, didn't she see a sign warning about a moving manor when she entered the castle? Chihiro bit her lip as she racked her brain, and her eyes lit up as the memory struck her!

"'Beware the traveling castle,'" Chihiro whispered as she clenched her hands tight around the shield's rim. "Could that be what that sign was talking about?"

Whatever it was, that monster seemed a lot less slow and tired the moment it looked at its stone feet! The monster let out a couple booming, kind of boorish-sounded laughs as it knelt down and lifted something gold and shiny off the ground. Wait a second!

"That thing's taking the amulet!" Chihiro cried as she leaped on top of the shield and vaulted off. "Hold it right there!"

Chihiro grunted as she sprinted across the floor and kicked up dust everywhere, but despite her enthusiasm, the monster didn't even seem to notice her! Rather, it just continued to laugh as it admired the way the amulet shone in the little sunlight the world around had to offer, dropped the amulet on top of its rooftop hat and let out a mighty roar!

Chihiro dug her heels in and tried to stand her ground as the roars shook the world around, but once again she blew backwards! As she flew through the skies, she just barely caught sight of the monster storming towards an open forest path and grappled out for it, but grunted as she crashed onto the floor. Chihiro huffed as she sat up and dusted off her sleeves, and squeaked as a gust of wind blew right beside her!

"Hop on!" the holographic Eon cried as a holographic hand appeared beside Chihiro. "We can't let that monster escape!"

Chihiro perked up, and beamed as she caught sight of the holographic Eon! It gave her a firm look as it sat on top of a gold and violet flying carpet woven with an intricate and very squiggly design, and yet, a smile stretched across its face, one gentle and earnest and completely unlike the cold and snide ones it held before. Chihiro nodded, grabbed onto the holographic Eon's hand, and leaped on the carpet without a second thought!

As she sat on her knees and got settled, the carpet zoomed off with such speed that Chihiro clutched the carpet as tight as she could to avoid falling off!

"After that monster!" Chihiro and the holographic Eon cried in unison as they pointed towards the forest path!

The carpet bunched its back up and revved like a car for a few minutes, and a trail of magical exhaust streamed beside it as it zipped off even faster than before! Chihiro winced and clutched on the carpet even tighter than before, but lifted her head as the holographic Eon just raised an eyebrow at her.

"You're not going to fall off, you know," the holographic Eon said as it gently pulled Chihiro's hands from clutching the carpet. "This carpet won't drop you off until you're ready to leave."

"Oh," Chihiro replied. She giggled and ruffled her hair for a few moments, but shook the embarrassment off as her eyes fixed on the castle monster.

For as big and heavy as it looked, that monster was ridiculously fast! With every leap and bound it took, it disappeared further and further from view until it was little more than a blob in distance. At this rate, they'd be left in the dust!

"Can't this thing go any faster?" the holographic Eon mumbled as he tugged on the carpet's corner.

The carpet bunched up again and zoomed off a little faster than before, but even with the added speed, it still wasn't enough to catch up with that monster's trail! But it was, however, fast enough to hurtle them towards a thick and very inconveniently placed tree branch!

"Duck!" Chihiro cried as she hit the carpet!

The holographic Eon immediately ducked underneath the branch just moments before it could get slapped in its holographic face, and it lifted its head and snarled back at the branch. It grimaced as it turned its head back to the path, narrowed its eyes and winced.

"That thing's too fast for its own good!" the holographic Eon cried as it pointed towards the monster, which by now was nearly out of their sights. "There's no way we'll be able to catch up at this rate! If only I had something that could make this carpet go faster!"

Go faster? Chihiro frowned as she dove into her pocket and pulled out her card deck. That reminded her, didn't she have something like that in her deck? Chihiro hummed and casually swung her head out the way of another tree branch as she shuffled through the cards in her hand.

"A-ha!" Chihiro cried as she pulled out a card that depicted a pair of thrusters. "You might not have anything—" Chihiro rubbed the card with her thumb, slapped it against the carpet's fabric and beamed as the card beamed with light "—but I do!"

Right as Chihiro said this, the card's magic seeped into the carpet's threads and shone with pastel rainbow light for moments. As the light faded, a pair of thrusters manifested at the very back of the carpet and clamped onto its tail! Though they looked ridiculously out of place with their shiny metal coat and spherical bodies, that was hardly a concern of Chihiro's! After all, the moment they flared up, the carpet's speed doubled!

Chihiro blinked, and next thing she knew, she zoomed halfway across the forest floor—but more importantly, they had caught up with the castle monster! The monster grunted as it sprinted ahead with such force that it shook the entire world with each step, but it didn't seem like it was going particularly faster than before. It must not have noticed them yet, which meant they had the perfect chance to snatch the amulet back!

The holographic Eon slammed his hands on the carpet's surface, and with that simple slap, the carpet immediately zoomed up to the castle monster's head and rushed in for the kill!

As the carpet drew closer and closer towards the monster, Chihiro grinned. Just across from her, she could spy that faint shimmer of gold that indicated the amulet and reached out to grab it, but fell face-first into the carpet as the monster ran faster! Chihiro grunted and rubbed her eyes as she sat back up, yet frowned as she looked back up at the holographic Eon.

"That stupid thing!" Chihiro exclaimed as she gestured back at the castle monster. "We almost had it!"

"Forget about the amulet, look!" the holographic Eon cried as it pointed a finger ahead. "Over there!"

Chihiro hummed as she leaned forward, just enough to peer over the castle monster's shoulder while it happily stomped along, and she let out a sharp gasp! There, over the hill they flew over now and right on the castle monster's path, was a village, a small and quaint one that could be seen perfectly from their position! It looked so small and quaint, in fact, that Chihiro highly doubted it could survive a giant monster attack.

"If that monster arrives at the village, it'll be finished!" The holographic Eon gritted its teeth and clenched the fabric of its carpet. "We have to think of something!"

Chihiro frowned as the holographic Eon muttered to itself, dug through her pocket and pulled out her collection of cards. A soft hum escaped her lips as she glazed back and forth over her card collection, and she lifted her head and grinned as her eyes fell on two identical pine trees that flanked both sides of the path ahead!

"I've got an idea, but I'm gonna need your help!" Chihiro exclaimed as she showed the cards to the holographic Eon. Chihiro leaned closer and whispered in its ear, drew back and clenched her brows. "Think you can keep it occupied?"

The holographic Eon stayed quiet as it glanced down at Chihiro, but finally, it withdrew a card with a plus sign and a two on it and nodded.

"I can try."

The holographic Eon rubbed its fingers against the card and dropped it against the carpet right as the card exploded into light. That light seeped into the carpet and split it into two identical copies—one ridden by Chihiro, and one ridden by the holographic Eon! The holographic Eon immediately flew off towards the castle monster, and a burst of light flared from its carpet as it summoned a brightly-lit orb and shot it right at the castle monster's roof hat!

"Halt, foul beast!" the holographic Eon cried as the sphere of light returned back to its hands. "Don't take a step further!"

With another flare of light, the holographic Eon summoned a sword, placed the light orb to his side, and charged at the castle monster with a mighty cry of battle! The castle monster, in response, turned around and screeched as it went to attack the holographic Eon. Yep, looks like they'd be busy for a while!

So, Chihiro zipped back over to those two pine trees, and withdrew her aces from up her sleeve—a rubber band card, a card with multiple plus signs printed onto its surface, and one of those wand cards. She rubbed her thumb across the cards' surface as they all exploded into bursts of light, and they manifested back in her hands as four rubber bands long enough to stretch across an entire yard and back!

Chihiro kept one in her hands, and dropped the other three on her carpet. The sound of screams and roars and wails flooded into her ears, but she just shook it off and dashed over to the first tree; time was of the essence here, and if she lingered too long, it could cost them everything! With a hup, Chihiro tossed the first rubber band around the top of the first tree, rushed forward and grabbed its other side as it slunk down across the tree trunk. The second side held tight in her her grip, Chihiro dashed over to the second tree, lifted the rubber band onto its trunk, flew back and examined her work.

The rubber band turned to a functional tripwire, one that stretched well across the entrance, but at the same time, only one wouldn't be enough.

Chihiro cringed as another loud crash sounded from behind, but grabbed the second rubber band and fixed it to the trunks at just a few feet lower than the first. After she flicked both rubber bands to make sure they were on tight, Chihiro repeated the process with the third rubber band and fixed it another few feet down, but as she reached for the final rubber band, the sound of splintering trees and crashing ripped through the area and sent chills down Chihiro's spine!

She turned back around, and winced as the castle monster pushed itself up from a pile of crushed trees and roared with such force that it nearly blew the holographic Eon off its carpet!

"I hate to interrupt your work," the holographic Eon cried as it flew above the castle monster just before the castle monster could crash into it, "but, have you finished yet? I don't believe I can hold this beast off for much longer!"

"Almost done!" Chihiro cried as she peered down at the last massive rubber band in her hands. "Just hang in there!"

The castle monster froze as Chihiro's voice hit the air. It turned around, locked eyes with the village below, and it let out a mighty roar as it slapped the holographic Eon aside and bolted forward!

"Crap!" Chihiro exclaimed as her hands started to shudder. "I've gotta make this quick!"

Chihiro zipped over to the first tree, hastily tossed the rubber band around its trunk, and grabbed it as tight as she could before she rushed towards the other tree's trunk! The screams and thundering noises beside her shook her to her core, and for a moment, her hands started to fumble and let the rubber band slip. Chihiro shook her head and clasped its end tight; she couldn't get distracted now, she had to hurry!

So, Chihiro zipped over to the other tree's trunk, dropped the rubber band around it, and zipped back down the path right as the monster bolted towards the rubber band-laden entrance! Chihiro's eyes narrowed as the holographic Eon crashed down from the skies above with its flying carpet quick to follow! Right before the holographic Eon could hit the ground, though, Chihiro zipped underneath it and caught it right on her own carpet!

The holographic Eon's eyes fluttered open and shut for a moment, and finally it breathed a sigh of relief as it sat up. Now that Chihiro looked at it, it clutched something round and shiny in its arms, too? Whatever it was, Chihiro didn't exactly get a good look at it before the holographic Eon's carpet stopped right by her own carpet! Chihiro only tilted her head and frowned as the holographic Eon hopped back onto its carpet and zoomed off.

"Just what was that?" Chihiro asked.

She frowned and scratched her chin as she tried to figure out what it could be—an unused attack or something? A card that was accidentally activated? Chihiro wasn't sure, but she didn't exactly get much time to think about it. A massive crash and the mighty gust that followed nearly blew her out of the skies! Chihiro screamed as she grabbed on tight to her carpet, but thankfully, the gust receded quickly enough for her to regain her footing. Chihiro settled her carpet and sat back down as the mighty winds turned to gentle breezes, blinked and flew back ahead.

What was that crashing noise just then? Could it be? Chihiro zoomed back over to where she had set up her rubber band trap, except it was no longer visible, for it had been blocked off by a massive pile of soot, gravel and broken furniture and bricks! Yes, it worked—that castle monster was good as gone now! At least, she thought so.

Chihiro swept down towards the ruins of the castle and paused for a moment as she glared them down, just to make sure they wouldn't sweep themselves off the ground and turn into a gigantic monster again. She frowned, but sighed and wiped the sweat from her brow as it stayed perfectly still and stagnant. Phew, no more monsters here!

Now, all she had to worry about was getting that amulet! So, Chihiro hopped off of the carpet, dug her hands into the masses of gravel and dust, and pushed through it. There was no sight of the amulet there, but hey, this wreckage was pretty massive. Maybe it was further in? Chihiro sighed as she shook off her hands, dug them back in and pushed more and more gravel, and soot, and all other sorts of grime aside until a small patch of green grass cleared, but even that carried nothing!

"Where's that amulet, anyways?" Chihiro remarked as she stood up and shook off her hands. She winced as she looked over her hands, which were still covered in streaks of soot, then her eyes went wide. "Wait, don't tell me…"

"You're looking for the amulet, I presume?"

Chihiro whipped around right as the holographic Eon floated down on its carpet with that same sparkly round shiny thing still held tight in its grip. Chihiro tilted her head as she crept forward, and a twinkle shone in the holographic Eon's eye as it chuckled at her curiosity.

"Fret not, it is right here," the holographic Eon said as it pushed the balloon towards Chihiro.

Chihiro picked the object up, looked it over, and gasped as she peered into its center. It was actually a sparkly white balloon coated in a thin layer of glitter, and right within the balloon's sparkly rubber body was none other than the amulet! Better yet, it was still shiny and pristine!

"While I was in battle with that monster, I made sure to get the amulet and keep it safe for you." The holographic Eon hopped off the carpet and grinned back at Chihiro. "Go on, take it. It's all yours."

Chihiro gasped and gently ran her fingers against the balloon. "Is this really okay?"

"I wouldn't give it to you if it wasn't."

Chihiro gasped, popped the balloon and grinned as the amulet's cool metal landed in her palms. Out of nowhere, confetti dropped on Chihiro while a bright spotlight shone down from the heavens and right on her! She was the winner, and the game was certain it would make that known.

"Congratulations, Chihiro Hatsuki!" The mechanical announcer exclaimed yet again. "You have collected all three treasures! You truly are Skylands' greatest hero!"

"Congratulations, you've won," the holographic Eon chuckled as it held out its hand. "Now, let's shake on it."

Chihiro turned to the holographic Eon, gave it her best smile, and gripped the holographic Eon's hand tight. The two of them smiled and let out a few chuckles as they shook on their victory, but as the laughter died, the holographic Eon's smile turned to more of an inquisitive look.

"Tell me, child," the holographic Eon asked as it looked down at Chihiro and raised an eyebrow. "Why did you save me and not secure the treasure, back when that castle started to collapse? You had the perfect opportunity to win!"

"Well." Chihiro bit her lip and looked up at the holographic Eon with fire in her eyes. "It was only natural! You can get a new treasure or win a new game anytime, but if someone died, well—" Chihiro shook her head "—you can't just replace them, you know?"

Chihiro paused as the holographic Eon turned away from the amulet and looked back down at her, but not with the scornful or careful, calculating eyes it usually looked at her with. No, this time it gave her a warm, kind glance, like the ones the mentor she knew gave her.

"I wasn't sure about you at first, child. I thought you were loudmouthed, uncouth, reckless and completely unfitting of the gifts the universe gave you, of the very title of portal master, but, it seems as though I was wrong to doubt you."

The holographic Eon let go of Chihiro's hand and nodded.

"Time and again, you prioritized the lives of others over a simple treasure or a passing victory, while I got so caught up in winning that I overlooked everything else. You even saved me in spite of how harsh I had been to you!" The holographic Eon took the amulet from Chihiro's still-outstretched hand and gently laid it around her neck. "You've proven that you really do have the heart a portal master should. Therefore, this victory belongs to you."

Chihiro's eyes fluttered with a bit of surprise, but a quick look at the holographic Eon's face showed that it meant every word it said—that warm smile and the gentle look in its eyes couldn't have been anything but genuine.

"Now, go back home and prove me right," the holographic Eon said as it made a curt nod, "young Chihiro."

Chihiro gasped, yet smiled and nodded as the entire board game world around them exploded into a flurry of candy-colored lights! All that remained was Chihiro herself, the holographic Eon, and the white void that was once their battlefield, and now, the place where they reconciled.

"You bet I will!" Chihiro exclaimed as she gave the holographic Eon a smile!

The holographic Eon nodded, and smiled in return as it faded away in a gentle stream of blue light. All was peaceful for a few moments as a vortex formed right where the holographic Eon once stood! Surely, this would be the thing that would take them all back home! Well, guess there was no hesitating now.

So, Chihiro gulped and dived right in, but instead, she swept away and swirled up in its waters! Chihiro screamed as she flailed around in the vortex's grasp right as an entire brightly-colored amalgamate of board game accessories flew in with her, just before everything went black.