My reaper… pain and regret stormed barely shored-up defenses, and once again tears were stinging my eyes. Damn it, no. I was stronger than this. I'd survived Jak's betrayal, and I'd get over this, too. I had to, because this time, there was more than just my heart and my mother's reputation at stake. This time, there were lives on the line. Many lives.
A world of them, in fact.
I fiercely thrust the pain aside. "Didn't you just say the gates are within grounds? Why, then, would the reapers be able to access the temples?" After all reapers, as soul guides, needed access to the former not the latter.
"At one time, they did not. But the priests have long gone, and the reapers have been forced to do what the priests once did."
And that was keeping the gates in working order, as well as stopping anything – and everything – that tried to escape hell. With the first hell gate now open, more and more demons were escaping into the fields and subsequently onto Earth, and the Mijai – who were the reaper soldiers – found themselves spread very thin indeed.
God, I hope Azriel is keeping himself safe…
I shoved the unbidden thought back into its box. "My reaper is no longer part of this mission, so it's not like I can get his help."
"It is not like one of the Mijai to abandon a mission before it is finished."
"He didn't abandon it. I banished him."
"But you could not do that unless he —" He stopped, and once again I felt his amusement. "That is an interesting development."
"And what, exactly, is so interesting about me banishing him?"
"The mere fact that you could."
Which in no way explained his amusement. Goddammit, could no one ever give me a straight answer? "Care to go into a bit more detail?"
"No." Again that glimmer of amusement trailed around me. "You are not unprotected, however. The Mijai still need you, just as the Raziq and I still need you."
"Meaning someone else is now guarding me?" Someone who was keeping their distance, and refusing to interact with me in any way? Because I certainly hadn't sensed their presence.