"... It was glorious. The feeling of divine power, the righteousness of your every action, every word and motion a direct manifestation of The Father's will upon the world. To walk in the light of God was to remove all doubt of the virtue of your actions, for your reason of existence was to carry out His word." ... But it was... so stifling. Again his mind drifted to Heresy, to his battle with The Machine. For the first time in his entire life he'd finally tasted something so intoxicating, that even the will of the Lord could not hope to challenge it...

There's no place for me anywhere. The sentence struck something in him, sitting in his gut like a lead weight. The words resonated in a way that sounded too familiar, fit in a way that made his heart twist.

"I suppose I could bring you along for a little while. If you improve your combat abilities, anyway. I will accept no dead weight with me, Vivi, the road ahead is long and arduous and I cannot guarantee your safety." Some part of Gabriel hoped perhaps this would scare him, he was a child after all. Granted, one that had shown a commendable amount of stoicism thus far but a child nevertheless.

Something told him however, that this meager little warning wouldn't be nearly enough to dampen the curiosity.

"But that doesn't frighten you at all, does it?"