The higher they climbed, the easier it got. The next few stairs weren't nearly as steep. They were about waist height, which was still tall, but easily managed in comparison to the titanic cliffs below them. These steps in turn gave way to shorter ones, until Edward was able to simply run up the stairs. Desperation took hold of him, and he accidentally left the others behind without realizing it.

[I]FIVE MINUTES UNTIL IRREVERSIBILITYLY OF GRAVILYFT, PHASE ONE. BAY DOORS CLOSING IN THIRTY SECONDS. IF YOU HAVE NOT YET ENTERED A SAFE ZONE, PLEASE MOVE WITH HASTE.[/I] A great shuddering vibration echoed down the stairs. Edward felt it in his feet more than he heard it. He looked up, and to his horror, saw plates of metal sliding out of the walls. The walls did not seem nearly thick enough to conceal such plates, but none of this made any sense to begin with. All that mattered was that their way up was sealing shut, and he was still too far down to do anything about it.

He ran faster, but it was no use. The upper part of the tower was sealed shut long before he reached it. "Damn it!" he roared, punching the metal. It stung, but he didn't care. [i]ERROR: SAFETY LOCK ENGAGED. PLEASE INSERT MANUAL OVERRIDE TO CONTINUE.[/I]

Had they failed? Had it all been for nothing?