Heaven – Zaphikel and his staff dye Setsuna’s blonde hair black, put him in a cadet uniform, and give him glasses. He wants to immediately rescue Sara but Zaphikel is taking him to the rebels first, via a merkabah. Rosiel lectures Sevy on Alexiel/Setsuna’s escape and Jibril/Sara’s interference and shows him how he’s enslaved Dobiel. Sevy tells Sara how disgusting she is for her incestuous behavior and says when Setsuna arrives he will kill them both. Sara convinces Lil to trade places with her so she can leave the room to find Setsuna. She does so because “Lady Jibril could sense [grigori] energy and communicate with us. She would cry for the sad fate of the grigori.” Two angels of the merchant class have entered the mansion to help Jibril escape because she was the only archangel who was side-by-side with the inhabitants of Raqia and Shamayim, trying to improve living conditions.
The merkabah has reached Machonon, Fourth Heaven. The rebels’ base is a mausoleum – “built to house souls of angels…lost…in the war. It is the Grave of Angel Souls, the Hill of Megiddo.” Upon a field of moonlils. Setsuna asks Zaphikel about Lailah (for Nedhig) and he says the angel Setsuna asks of may be the Lailah he and Anael used to know but they both disappeared. The only person who would know their whereabouts would be Sevy! Setsuna gives a speech (his own, after throwing Zaphikel’s away) to the rebels to boost their morale, then steals an air bike from Zaphikel to get to the gate leading into Machonon proper. Zaphikel is impressed by his moxie and moved by his light and charisma…”But it’s still not enough. This savior still hasn’t realized an important thing.” Setsuna gets on an up-going freight lift – as Sara and the merchants are entering the lobby. Sara calls for him but he can’t hear. The guards turn around and the “merchants” shoot their way out. The lady “merchant” tells Sara her male companion is “Af, a rare Aion, an I-child born from 2 angels. It’s only been 3 years since he was born. His body has grown very quickly, his eyesight is very poor. He was born with…white skin, no hair and no feathers on his wings. But…some have amazing powers, like Af, which means angel of anger.” They are taking Sara to someone who will help. “Plus he [Setsuna] should be okay if he’s heading to the mansion. We left a little present there.”
Setsuna pops out of one of the freight boxes, startling a Sister. She screams; he covers he mouth; she bites him, then passes out. Since the area is full of Sisters, to blend in he has to switch clothes with her. He puts the Nedhig seed/Alexiel locket earring in his ear (FINALLY) for safekeeping. Another Sister runs in and grabs him to get to work, for Sevy has arrived. Setsuna: “What a powerful presence. He looks down on people with ice cold eyes, plus he has hair and skin as white as snow.” He commands the “Sister” to carry his hair so it won’t drag on the floor; he is going to Jibril’s room, since he had heard of an attack on the front gate. He demands Lil tell him where Sara has gone. He kills a guard to scare her. She refuses to speak. He is going to “read” her mind (which he can do because she’s a Staker) but Setsuna/Alexiel stops him, but notes on the impact of the Sword, “What was that creepy monster? The Nanatsusaya was blasted backwards!” Cut to Kira: “…” So he felt something…The lights go out. Setsuna tries to get Lil to come with him but she won’t go because she promised Sara she’d stay. He grabs a gun and loses the Alexiel earring in the process. Still thinking: “What was that shadow behind [Sevy]? All those eyes…what could it be?” He runs…and ends up in a transporter room. Sevy orders Lil killed.
Outside the Gate – The “present” is a bunch of bombs set to explode. As the rebels’ chariot moves a pod of cloud whales (who breathe cloud vapor) come by…sensing Jibril. They drop her off with Zaphikel. She remembers Raziel; he tells her: “I adopted him…[his] powers…will be of great use to the Savior one day. The situation is fine even if I’ll never be with him again.” He lectures her about love – that it is natural to want to be with your love but if “that love will hurt others then the two of you should be made aware of those wounds. Will you be able to forgive yourself?”
Machonon – The transporter takes Setsuna to the Lab; Sevy figures that out and commands “Capture him before he sees anything.” Setsuna takes a scientist hostage and ends up at the Cradle – it is full of living angels, but they are just brains and spines and parts. The Cradle itself is a giant brain/metal container shaped like a brain, with the design in the center of a star of David. Setsuna: “Inside this is a baby…” Men in white rush in and tell Setsuna to drop his weapon. He jumps down an air shaft which leads to an outside ledge, but Sevy is there, holding his earring: “You dropped this…Savior.” “I’m supposed to give it to Lailah! You should know her! I heard about it from Zaphikel!” He laughs and impales Setsuna’s hand with his sword thingy. “Lailah…I wonder which of the pods [in the lab] she was put into?” Setsuna swears vengeance; Sevy demands allegiance or a fall to his death. Setsuna says screw you and falls…onto a cloud whale. “You’re diseased. The one who needs his brain pulled out and examined is you.”
Zaphikel’s room, The Hill of Megiddo – The pod of cloud whales go by and Sara sees Setsuna! She runs outside. The whale lets Setsuna off on the field on the hill. They are hugging and crying but then Sevy’s merkabah crash-lands by them. Zaphikel’s rises nearby and Sara and Setsuna run. The cloud whales try to protect Sara and one is injured. Sara is wounded too. Setsuna gets on Zaphikel’s merkabah and yells for Sara. She sees a moonlil and refuses to go. Too many have been hurt for the sake of her love. “I bet it’s the same for you. Care for those around you. Notice all who care for you and cry for you. I love you. Come for me when you are the true Savior.” She is willing to surrender to Sevy, pending Lil is spared. Setsuna is still trying to grab her as Sevy’s guards are shooting. Zaphikel gets in the way of the bullets, yelling, “Now GO! Isn’t there something you need to do? Go!!!”
Characters
Locales
Important Terms and Other Notes
Aion
Hill of Megiddo
Merkabah
Parasang
Other Notes
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