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Gabriel wouldn’t walk away from you, a little voice in my head said

He did He always does

No, he wouldn’t walk away if you needed hier He would never go to Amarantha

He wouldn’t leave me That’s what I told Beezle He wouldn’t leave me

"He wouldn’t leave me," I said aloud, and I flexed my wrists The handcuffs broke and fell away The sword returned to my hand

As I looked into Nathaniel’s surprised face, I swung the sword that the real Nathaniel had given me I can’t say that I didn’t feel a ton of satisfaction in watching his head roll way down the corridor, even if it was only a puppet of the Maze I felt azed into the eyes of the foe I had vanquished once before

I had defeated Nathaniel I had killed Ramuell I had survived I wasn’t powerless

The Maze-Ramuell looked surprised as I stalked forward The nephilim took a step backward away from me, and I knew then that the Maze would never beataway the pain "You will not break me, because I know that this is not real"

"Not real?" the Maze said "Are not your injuries real, your broken bones? Were you not defiled by Zerachiel’s son?"

"No," I said, and as I said it ht again, my cuts and burns and bruises healed All the shattered pieces inside me were made whole

"It didn’t happen," I said I stood before the Maze with my heart and my body in one piece If there was a trace of darkness, a trace of fear, left inside me, the Maze would never find it "Do your worst You will never, never, never defeat h Raht to be beaten by a creature as low as you"

"Yeah, well, I have a long history of not living up to people’s expectations of hter "Lucifer’s will beats strongly inside you I should have seen this"

"It’s not Lucifer’s will," I said "It’sto dance anymore, take me to Gabriel"

Ramuell bowed to me "As you wish, htened I realized the structure of the Maze was disappearing The walls and ceiling faded away until we stood on an open, rocky clearing surrounded by the enormous trees of Ae, and inside the cage was Gabriel, looking at me in astonish the game so much in many years," the Maze said behind me

I didn’t look back as I answered "Wish I could say the sah echoed behind me, and then slowly disappeared I didn’t care I only had eyes for Gabriel