ANGEL'S LANDING | BL ✔

CHAPTER 48 | FINALE: FADED

"Axel... Axel..." A voice called out to Axel until he opened his eyes. Upon experiencing Ilios' passing, Axel's mind had faded to white until he was awakened by a man's voice.

Axel blinked slowly as he sat up. He was in a bed of flowers that blanketed the side of the mountain on which he was sitting. Next to Axel was the man who had spoken his name upon his awakening.

"Where am I?" Axel inquired as he gazed down on the cloud-covered valley below.

"You are with me," was the man's response as he continued to kneel beside the hangel.

"With you...?" Turning to the man, Axel's eyes widened when he saw the stranger's face. It was a face he knew well; but it was also...not. Just like with Ilios, the man shared Axel's features. He had blonde hair and silver eyes and was a more mature version of Ilios. However, his expressions and the glint in his eye differed from those of Axel and Ilios.

"I am Dorahn, our soul's first incarnation," the man explained when he saw Axel's reaction. The power and strength that radiated from Dorahn were incredible. Axel was awed by the high angel's presence. The hangel could immediately tell Dorahn was the most powerful of the seven incarnations, with himself being the weakest.

"I pulled you to the section of our soul that holds my essence," Dorahn began as he shifted into a seated position and moved his gaze down to the cloudy valley.

Axel's brows furrowed when he heard Dorahn's words. "Why?" Although he knew something had to have gone wrong to cause Dorahn to suck Axel's consciousness into his essence, Axel still wanted to know what exactly was happening to his body. Was he still keeping Angel's Landing from shattering? Was his soul breaking from the strain?

Instead of immediately answering Axel's question, Dorahn continued explaining the function of their soul. "The essence of each incarnation is stored within our soul, so we have always been with you, Axel...although you did not know it. The essence of each incarnation remains with our soul through each life, so they are never lost."

"However...the essence of Ilios is fading."

That hit Axel like a ton of bricks. The hangel's head snapped to the high angel as he asked, "What do you mean Ilios is fading?"

"Why do you think you are here, Axel?" Dorahn answered the hangel's question with an inquiry. "Why are you here when our soul is in Angel's Landing?"

Axel's breath hitched in his throat when he heard Dorahn's words.

"Each time a past incarnation's essence is lost, their memories, emotions, and strengths leave the confinements of the soul. To preserve their essence, the living incarnation must absorb them before they are lost forever." Dorahn stood to his feet as he added, "So Axel, Why do you think you were experiencing Ilios' memories?"

Axel gritted his teeth as he sprung to his feet. Everything fit too perfectly as Axel began to realize what was happening. Since Axel's soul was in Angel's Landing, Ilios had the ability to temporarily emerge from the soul and be conscious. It was Ilios who was holding together Angel's Landing. He was enduring the pain and torment of being ripped apart over and over again to protect Axel.

While Ilios could not leave Angel's Landing, he could do what he could as long as their soul was still in the realm. As Ilios continued to keep Angel's Landing from shattering, his essence was slowly waning. Therefore, his memories were escaping into Axel while Ilios faded.

"I need to get back to Angel's Landing. How do I get out of here?"

Dorahn's gaze softened as he saw the determined expression on Axel's face. He wanted to save Ilios. "Are you certain you can keep Angel's Landing from tearing?" Dorahn looked at Axel seriously as he awaited the hangel's response.