Closed eyes. Open Eyes. The Light is there I.

(目を開いた. 目を開いた. 光は—、常にそこにある I.)

When the shadows took over him, Yali Tabaqui already lost himself. Perhaps his soul could pass into the abyss without the sensation of regret and pain. Somehow, after reaching for his little brother's body again, he swooshed by and then exploded. Sometimes, The Gold Saints had unreasonable strength. Many of the Leos were illogical and prone to smashing their opponents to bits because they felt to have the predominant power to destroy threats in an instant.

Before Kouga and the others went to Palestra to train as Saints, Shir was in training. Even Seiya, Kiki, and Capricorn at that time, the Headmaster Ionia, questioned Athena about her choice and how to go along in the training. The Gold Saints were lacking in this era before the Mars war.

"One thing I've gathered, Lady Athena," said Ionia, "the boy has an enormous Cosmos. Allow me to help him hone it, but outside Palestra." Little Leo—with Ionia being the supervisor— went through a lot of strict, rigorous training. He stated that he was the perfect specimen to train a Gold Saint. That was when he understood a part of touching a power close to God; Shir, or any young Saint for that matter, could've died during the training, but something made him keep going. The two would have unusual talks. Even for a little boy, the Leo seemed to have affirmed a lofty duty, which made Ionia wonder if it were true. Shir said he had to make sure rivers run down the mountain, the air had no dust, the sun shone, the crops grew, and all animals eat. Ionia saw him as a preservative hero and was inspired by his perseverance.

Then, there was a point when the Leo Cloth was stolen when Mars descended to Earth. Ionia somehow diverted from Saori and failed to turn little Shir Khan to his side, but departed by saying to "continue with his training to face the new world." That so-called new world, the desolate world under Mars and Medea, didn't come; Ionia passed away in battle after turning to evil.

There's a hole in my body?! Despite what he's gone through, this may be the second time Leo Shir Khan felt like he faced death...maybe. The first time was with Ionia's Domination Language where the Capricorn nearly stretched Shir's limbs and neck to the point of breaking ligaments, then slamming him wall to wall, damaging his meninges.

Ionia told him that he needed to face a tribulation that would challenge his stature as a Saint and cause his Cosmos to grow. As a child, he imagined that death meant being near beaten to death or eaten by a tiger, but the Cloth he had so much pride in—some hole was in his chest and out his back, and it left him in shock. He wasn't sure if he was breathing even after he screamed and his knees bucked down, or if his heart had disintegrated. To already receive this kind of body damage, it was a first.

Somehow, Shir heard Virgo Fudoh's voice again and he managed to move right when Tabaqui lunged a second time.

"Shir, do you not remember why you're here? You are a protector."

"It is because you…"

An ethereal glow of Cosmos appeared inside the gap of Shir's Cloth and an electric current lashed out from his swinging arm. Fudoh's words ended when there was the explosion that took Tabaqui:

"You have the fires of Indra, who returned the Sun and uses his flame to destroy evil; you are the same as the Fudou Myou that must protect Buddha."

Perhaps in the end, Tabaqui lost against the more focused, fastest, and seasoned. He truly couldn't be evil and fall to Hades and Persephone's charms. He was not a good match for his first Gold Saint. Leo fell over seemingly in defeat. The gaping hole remained, losing that flare that filled it before.

Somewhere in the long past, Indra—a highly celebrated deva–challenged Athena's justice just like many gods to punish humanity. He had retreated, but regained the understanding of love; the many sun rays and storms he's known by was imbued in his vessels. But that sounded like luck? Shir was a little human who wielded a power that brought light during the world's "pre-light darkness"; however, he was not Indra's vessel, but only his spokesperson from time to time. Even though it was too much, Indra's power was manifesting at this certain time, and everything was mandated to have a reason. It had to be remembered that this wasn't possible without Shir's diligence to train even a fraction of Indra's Cosmos. Only the Holy Wars can bring out the hidden potential of the Saints and the Specters; to protect and serve Athena, he needed these moments. But for now, little Leo was out of it.

Ikki screamed out to Leo, rebuking him as an idiot. What kind of Gold Saint was he, he carped. Then, Ikki was trapped in a large funnel of flame that propelled him off his feet. Naga Shiva could have Ikki to herself now, but was she possibly incensed to lose one of her prey? To push Ikki away, what was her power and at what level?

While this was impressive, a point was given to Hades's side. One Gold Saint was out while the evil forces awaited Hades's return.

Fudoh, Seiya, Lord Pope, Athena, I don't want to die yet..I want to be useful. I want to shine the brightest. I made that promise.

Elsewhere, the Saint known as Sextans Agatha felt a tremble in the stars. She occasionally checked on the Bronze Saints at the Graude-Kido hospital, and still had her psychic ability: Leo was trembling, so was Phoenix and Virgo, and now, light was returning in the minor constellations. As arcane as she was, she could not see or hear dreams. While agonizing over the future of both Earth and the Underworld, someone in the hospital was having a dream.

Kouga? Kouga?

Who is there?

Please don't give up. The light needs you more than ever.

Light? What is that? Is it Mrs. Saori?

Saori? Do you mean Athena?

Yeah…I failed her. Why reach for light?

To save the Earth once more.

The Earth...to live...

The light is warm, you must keep it.

Aria!

His voice did not come out; Agatha was nearly taken aback as he sensed Pegasus Kouga's arm suddenly thrust into the air as to reach out to the Heavens. However, Heaven was blocked by the ceiling of a white-walled intensive care room. His body was connected to intravenous lines and his limbs and abdomen were bandaged; he lay flat in a hospital bed with a ventilation mask, while Agatha continued listening to the soft beeps of the heart rate monitors, and the hissing of resuscitation ventilators. This establishment somehow made it so that all six Bronze Saints shared the same room with their own separate beds.

Pegasus Kouga, Lionet Souma, Aquila Yuna, Dragon Ryuho, Orion Eden, and Subaru. Agatha lowered Kouga's arm; after living for decades, passing centuries, it was easy for her to lose track of time. While she could sit and stand patiently, she was impatient over whether the Bronzes will revive. She could read and feel the stars, but she could not determine the fate as it changes all the time. She also could not determine when any of them could awaken. It was 24 hours after the attack on the Pope.

"Ah, you!" Agatha uttered and she turned to the far left. Staring right at her was the red eyes of Saturn, the god of time, who took the form of a boy named Subaru, a Bronze Saint.

"Equuleus. Your star is glowing bright. Should I be surprised?"

"Probably not," Subaru said as he looked over the other beds with a morose expression. Looking back at the Saint with the headband over her eyes, mystifying as it was, he couldn't help but ask, "Who are you?"

"Bronze Saint and Starseer of Athena, Sextans Agatha. Guardian of Dodona and Argo, the Jason's Galley. "

"That's quite a mouthful."

"The fact that you have awakened is because you are Saturn, right? But, you are also Equuleus. Why have you come?"

"I want to maintain the planet that is currently protected by my hot-blooded brothers and sister. It's only because of them that I return, to see them explode and protect the world once more with their justice. Their Omega. However, I sensed something that would threaten that Omega."

"What would that be? Demeter? Hades?"

"I sensed the Cosmic Ocean." Subaru clutched the sheet of his hospital bed as he looked down. Agatha silently contemplated Subaru's words; she had heard of the Ocean in the oldest tales and poems of the Beginnings. People say that the universe was made over 4 billion years ago, and there are various stories as to who or what made it and the Earth, such as Chaos and the children of Gaia; God, Vishnu, Abzu, the three Distinguished Heavenly Kami all that holds the Limitless power. They were the kind of deities before Athena and her family. But, any mention of the Ocean now seemed unheard of.

"No foolish goddess like Demeter could be such a threat, and Hades has fought Athena since immemorial time. But, the Ocean…we're talking about an essence before creation. It should never emerge on Earth by any means. Even Athena and the Gold Saints wouldn't stand a chance against it. When I suggested investigating, other Gods, in order to join this War even after my defeat, restricted me to a mortal level. I was only allowed to return as Subaru."

"You think the Ocean is some threat?" Agatha asked, but she left out a detail. For another God, especially Saturn, to get involved expressed the scale of danger this entire thing might be. For Kiki to appear the way he did, Agatha wondered what was behind Hades's resurrection.

Subaru spoke with dread, but he looked towards Agatha, and somehow a smile slipped across his mouth. "But I believe that what can stand a chance against it is, after all, Omega, the largest explosion of the universe. No matter what, without the Cosmos, there would still be no beginning."

"You are the only one who has awakened. All able-bodied Saints are ordered to go to the Underworld. It may be the safest for you, if you have a portion of your power as Saturn."

"Ordered?"

"By the Lord Pope and Pallas."

"Pallas?!"