ANGEL'S LANDING | BL ✔

CHAPTER 42 | ILIOS

Rae ordered Zetha and Minhyuk to rest once they had healed Orion. Orion thanked the two healers for their aid as he rose to his feet and approached Axel. Taking his thumb, Orion pressed it against the hangel's forehead and closed his eyes. Although Orion was not an ambassador angel, he performed a spell that simulated the stars' ability of 'soul seeing'. This allowed him to gaze into Axel's soul and determine whether or not the hangel was able to access Angel's Landing.

How is he doing that? Axel recognized the pressure in his mind as Orion's presence. It was a similar feeling to when Eryx had helped him escape from the brim of his unconsciousness except Orion's presence was much, much stronger. He's not an ambassador, so how?

I am from a time when stars roamed freely. They did not live their lives cooped up in their residences working tirelessly to fuel Stardom. Orion's voice echoed in Axel's mind as the actaeon responded to the hangel's in-mind inquiry. My mother was a star.

Axel's eyes widened when he realized that Orion was half-angel, half-star. So, you have the gift of soul-seeing.

Indeed. While my 'soul sight' is not as powerful as Ellessi's nor will it be nearly as strong as Castyr's once he is fully developed, it is strong enough to read souls to a certain extent.

Axel was intrigued by Orion. He was from a time that was no longer remembered. Only a small few could recall the years from all those centuries ago. So, he thought he would take the opportunity to inquire about what the universe was like centuries ago. Why do the stars no longer roam freely?

The Heavens grew greedy for their light. Upon the invention of Stardom, all the stars that came in the star showers were placed in warm residences and kept from the rest of the universe. As they did not know any different, they remained content with their warm, easy lives. That is, until Castyr came along. When he escaped his residence and started his own adventure, he realized the sweetness of freedom.

However, his adventure led to his fall. When he saved the universe from the tyranny of Demon King Vitrius, Castyr sucked in all of Vitrius' darkness and used his purity and light to cancel it out. However, Vitrius' darkness is still battling what remains of Castyr's light.

When Castyr fell, the Heavens stole him from Kilo to harness his immense power. Luckily, Kilo was able to save Castyr and hide him from the Heavens until Aklys and I began the Age of Concord, and I restructured the Heavenly realm. Now, stars are free to leave their residences whenever they like. Castyr could return to his residence Ithyos. However, I believe he has found his home with Kilo.

Orion withdrew his thumb from Axel's forehead and stepped away from the hangel as he completed reading Axel's soul. The seraph gazed at Axel kindly as he proclaimed, "You are ready."

"What do I need to do?" Axel followed Orion in moving their conversation from inside his mind to being shared with the rest of the unit.

"Find yourself," was Orion's reply.

"Eh?!" Axel could not believe his ears. He was too stunned to speak. After all he had been through, training, fighting, protecting Dexys, what he needed to do was 'find himself'? "What kind of bull-"

"Find your past selves, to be exact," Orion added, stopping Axel from cussing out his frustration. "Your soul is the original key to Angel's Landing, and you have lived numerous incarnations. Two other incarnations before you have unlocked Angel's Landing. You must reach deep within yourself to discover how they did it."

"How do I reach them?" Axel inquired, frantic to understand how he was supposed to reconnect with his past incarnations. "I don't even know their names."