After Mak's speech the three guys discussed their mission, the place was full and the noise coming from every corner covered their talk as if they were just discussing mundane things like every other person in the bar, despite the efforts of Nico, Gabriel wasn't keen on talking about himself, Renata was nowhere to be found in the crowd of people and as it seemed she was in the back preparing more drinks, Gabriel's glass was already empty so he called for a refill with hopes that Renata would hear him and join them, despite his attempts, Renata wasn't around, now there are three empty glasses on the table and Gabriel hasn't got a way to avoid the conversation...

Nico-There must be something that you would like to talk about, Gabriel.

Mak-Good luck getting anything from that meathead.

Gabriel-What is it with you two? What do you want to know then?

Nico-Why are you doing this?

Gabriel-I don't get you.

Nico-Why are you risking your life? You are strong enough to live a luxurious life as it is, yet you still throw yourself in harm's way for no reason.

Gabriel-No reason? Aren't you fighting for a reason?

Nico-I am tasked by the Vati...

Gabriel-The Vatican can't be the only reason for you to fight, you must have a personal reason to fight, to put yourself in harm's way.

Nico-I guess to protect the innocent...

Gabriel-There is your answer, I don't wish for a rich lifestyle, I want to change this world, if humans are so advanced that most creatures fear them, then why? Why are there so many victims, there must be someone responsible for opposing the threats, there must be people who know and fight them.

Nico-That's what the Vatican...

Gabriel-The Vatican is a load of shit, if the Vatican is responsible for dealing with creatures that harm humans then they are doing a shitty job, you want to know why I want to join you?

Nico-I would like to know, yes.

Gabriel-I want to change the Vatican from the inside, make it a real force and protect all those who are ignorant of the danger that they live in on a daily basis.

Mak-Maybe there is a reason that the Vatican has been kept secret for all this time.

Nico-There is, if our enemies knew a lot about us then they would be able to make alliances and oppose us in every step we take, the Vatican, no, the world is not ready for a war of this scale, can you imagine the chaos and the slaughter that is to come if the Vatican and all the groups that side with it suddenly announce their presence? Every dark spawn would join forces and try to take it down, the masses would go berserk knowing that what they have been watching on TV or read in a book are true, I too would like to wipe every unholy being one by one, we just can't take the risk with the limited information, why do you think there are just three of us here working in secret?

Gabriel-Well...

Mak-What Nico is trying to say is that working undercover is much more productive than facing the enemy straightforward, if Ozymandias was aware that we are searching for him, he would just disappear, of course, the Vatican could send an entire army to find him and kill him but can you imagine the aftermath of such an attack?

Nico-Your reasoning isn't false, Gabriel, you and I both want the same thing, you need experience in order to understand what I am talking about and to understand the way that the Vatican works, even I don't have much information about the inner parts of it.

Mak-There is classified information even from someone like you?

Nico-Yes...

Mak-(That was strange mister paladin, why would you tell us something like that?)

Time passed by and the group decided not to wait for Renata any longer in the bar, after all, they would still see her at the motel, they left some change on the table and begun to walk back, Gabriel felt a bit embarrassed by what Nico told him, he didn't really give much thought about it and made the assumption that the Vatican just incompetent, after Nico gave Gabriel some insight, Gabriel was a feeling like a child. Mak was interested to what Nico said earlier, by his own words, the paladins should be of a very high rank within the Vatican, they are the ones who take on every mission that requires brawn, it seems illogical to withhold information from them and Mak decided to keep an eye on Nico, there is something that has been bothering Mak for some time...

Nico-Let's sit outside on the porch and wait for Renata.

Mak-Sure.

Gabriel-Isn't there any other lead we can follow.

Nico-Not really, I'll be back in a second.

Nico went inside the room leaving Gabriel and Mak outside the room, the porch had a small wooden table obviously withered by the dry weather and a couple of wooden chairs in the same condition, Gabriel and Mak waited there for Renata...

Mak-(I can't tell Gabriel about my suspicion, there is no way to predict his actions, I have to make sure to keep an eye on Nico, something's off with what he says) Hey Gabe...

Gabriel-What?

Mak-I am coming back in a second, gotta refresh my Glamour before the spell duration expires.

Mak also pulled a glass from his pocket...

Gabriel-Did you steal a glass from the bar?

Mak-Yeah, I don't know how they do it but these glasses seem to keep the drinks cold for longer than normal.

Gabriel-You are a moron, you just liked the shape of it.

Mak-Maybe. I have to recast.

Gabriel-I thought it lasted longer.

Mak-Since when do you know anything about spells?

Gabriel-I don't give a fuck, do whatever you want.

Mak-(Alright, now let's see.)

Mak went around the porch where there was a small window that looked inside the groups room, Mak wanted to check on Nico, the fact that he wanted to be alone for a moment gave Mak the assumption that something was fishy, as soon as he got close to the window he crouched and held his back to the wall, he placed the stolen glass on the wall and used it as a hearing aid to spy on Nico, without any delay he heard Nico talking to someone...

Nico-There is no sign of Ozymandias, our only lead is a young local girl who owns a bar, every one seems to be under some sort of memory spell. Yes, as of now I have tried to gain some of their trust, the boy is clearly passionate about his cause and even tried to give me a lecture, what worries me is the goblin...Yes the goblin that he carries with him might be even more dangerous, it's intellect is and knowledge are from a different level, I believe that he is the one behind the boy's actions, he must have been manipulating the boy's mind and using him as a puppet...

Mak-(What the fuck? Who is giving this information to? The Vatican? Is he actually spying on us? Wait, we can't even be sure that he is from the Vatican! He could be lying all along! But how? How could he know about us if he didn't at least have connections with the onmyoji? He said that Asano was a friend of his, that part must be true, the onmyoji also said that the Vatican had crazy equipment and that they also have jurisdiction over these places. The part about the Vatican and Asano must be true, then he is talking with the Vatican. Oh fuck, the Vatican is spying on us? They know where we live! I have to tell Gabriel, but if he does anything stupid and Nico gets killed then they will come after Kevin and Carmen, if they are not already there, my best bet is that he really is spying on us and he is alone. No sudden moves that can jeopardize our relationship with Nico. The story about Ozymandias must also be true, otherwise, why would he mention that to his collaborator? Two birds with one stone huh? Disposing Ozymandias and gathering information on Gabriel whose actions have gotten some attention, that's why the fucker has been so easy to talk to, he wants to gain our trust. Fuck! The only one on my side is Gabriel, a complete moron without the brain to work with. If only Kevin was here then I could have come up with a plan, for now, let's roll with it.)

Mak wanted to return to Gabriel but he stopped as soon as he noticed Gabriel being lost in his own thoughts, it almost seemed like he was under some sort of spell or drug, he sat there looking forward with a blank expression...

Inside Gabriel's head he had this image, he was standing in a pure white room, everything was white and there seemed to be no borders in this room, he could not see where it began or where it ended, it was just a white room with limitless space, there he stood, in front of him was another version of himself, this version though was his form when he fought against Warren and Erik, this version of Gabriel was standing opposite him and Gabriel begun...

Gabriel-(Who are you?)

???-(I guess you deserve some answers. Ask.)

Gabriel-(What are you?)

???-(I don't know.)

Gabriel-(What the fuck? What's your name?)

???-(I don't have one.)

Gabriel-(You said that I deserve some answers.)

???-( And I am replying to your questions truthfully)

Gabriel-(Let's see... Why are you in my head?)

???-(We share this body, I am not really in your head, we are both in this body and that's why we can hear each other's thoughts.)

Gabriel-(That's not right, this is my body.)

???-(You sure have control over this body in most cases, I have been able to control it only when you were unconscious or when you surrender control.)

Gabriel-(During the fight with Warren...)

???-( I mustered the strength to control our body because we were in a life-threatening situation.)

Gabriel-(You can then take control any time you want.)

???-(I guess the most common way to put it is me protecting my host)

Gabriel-(Host?)

???-(Since I am "inside your head" as you put it then this is also my body, I can't let anything bad happen to it, I also feel what you feel, happiness, sadness, love, hate, anxiety, anger, although I am not familiar with these emotions, my instinct tells me that I must maintain this body in perfect condition.)

Gabriel-(So you are some sort of a parasite, you need a host?)

???-(I don't have any memories beyond yours, I don't have a collection of memories and experiences other than yours, I have been awake since you were born.)

Gabriel-(What!? Why wouldn't you speak then? I found out about you when I was in a cage in Erik's mansion.)

???-(I have been here all along, Gabriel, even at your lowest of times, I have been there when you were attacked by that werewolf, I have been there when you spied on that woman that night, I have been there when you did chores at the orphanage.)

Gabriel-(Why now? Why reveal yourself to me now?)

???-( You couldn't hear my voice back then because it was weak, I used all of my power to maintain this body, for some reason my existence has weakened you, made you...Fragile.)

Gabriel-(You mean the reason behind my appearance back then was you!? IS IT YOUR FAULT!?)

???-(You seem angry about something.)

Gabriel-(OF COURSE I AM ANGRY, I JUST FOUND OUT WHO WAS RESPONSIBLE FOR RUINING MY LIFE!!!)

???-(But since balance was restored in this body, I have been able to control this power and thus make you unstoppable.)

Gabriel-(Balance? You mean Kevin's machine-thingy in my chest?)

???-(That device has stabilized the genes in our body and stopped them fighting each other, I don't know why but it seems like my power isn't normal energy like others, for some reason they performed a reaction with each other, my general knowledge tells me that this power shouldn't really exist, opposite forces that can't work together.)

Gabriel-(So doc's machine stabilized this power?)

???-(Kevin's machine stabilized the genes, my faulty genes, this body might be human but there are also my faulty genes, that's why I believe we share this body and I am not a parasite.)

Gabriel-(If we share this body, why am I in control then? I haven't ever felt like someone else was controlling it until my fight with Warren.)

???-(I have been honest towards you, Gabriel.)

Gabriel-(Go on...)

???-(I have tried multiple times to take control of this body and cast your personality aside.)

Gabriel-(You fucker.)

???-(I can't seem to be able to maintain control, every time I tried was when you were exhausted or unconscious, every time you pushed yourself I grew stronger but this body can't handle it, there have been times when our heart stopped working.)

Gabriel-(So it's also your fault that my heart can't work properly?)

???-(No, our heart can't take my power at all, the machine is what keeps us at this minimal state, it's the machine that can't take much and overloads when I unleash my power the genes grow stronger and fight each other more fiercely, the machine isn't able to keep up, in sort this body isn't able to accept my power.)

Gabriel-(You mean that during the fight with Erik...)

???-(That was only a small fragment of my power, I can tell that I have more energy to spare although I don't know the full extent since I don't remember ever using it.)

Gabriel-(You mean I can become even stronger?)

???-(You must have realized by now.)

Gabriel-(Realise what?)

???-(The machine that absorbs others genes is also capable of fusing it with our own, the power you got from that vampire shouldn't have increased your abilities this much.)

Gabriel-(What do you mean?)

???-(Strenght, speed, a vampire possesses powers much stronger than a normal human.)

Gabriel-(Yes...)

???-(Why is it that we don't have the negative effects if we absorbed its genes?)

Gabriel-(Were are you going with this?)

???-(I chose to discard any useless genes from our body, the only trait that I kept from the vampire was the regenerative powers.)

Gabriel-(Then my strength...)

???-(Your strength and speed are far beyond vampire's because they come from me, the regeneration I took from the vampire has helped this body maintain a more stable phase, so I can release more energy throughout this body and increase our physical abilities.)

Gabriel-(You can choose to discard the bad stuff from the things we absorb?)

???-(I told you I have no knowledge of my own, I can't recognize what's bad and what's good, I use your knowledge to keep track of things, the reason I tried to discard the Mind Read ability was also from you not using it.)

Gabriel-(That's why I couldn't do it?)

???-(I have succeeded in discarding the ability completely, that's why you can no longer do it at all, even from a close distance or through contact.)

Gabriel-(Why would you do that?)

???-(I have no memories, no knowledge, no experiences other than yours, I am acting based on your perspective, based on your knowledge and your desires.)

Gabriel-(Wait, what happened when we took in Mak's genes?)

???-(At first, we thought that we could find answers from the goblin's trait of inherited memories, even though we used it we didn't get a clear picture because we don't have any memories to inherit, we only saw an image of our body using the powers that it already possesses, that's when I found out that I must have never existed before you did, otherwise I should have seen my past self with the inherited memories.)

Gabriel-(What else have you done apart from what you just told me?)

???-( I have never done anything to hurt this body purposely, I have tried to change our behaviour based again on your collective knowledge. When you yelled at that female student, it happened because I felt your anger and drove you to say these words, when you wanted to grab your girlfriend's hand I felt your disgust about your own shy behaviour and moved our arm, when you wanted to protect this woman Helen, I felt the strong desire and releashed as much energy as I could in order to kill the man who threatened her, when you felt useless inside that cage but still had your senses I asked you if you had the resolve to push through and lend you my power once more, I act based on what you want, I have accepted that you are dominant in this body and the best thing for me to do is act based on what you want, when you are held back by your own emotions as long as you recognize they are wrong, I can remove them, when you feel you need more strength, I can give it to you, when you are frozen in fear but still want to respond, I can overcome, as long as I have a clear image of what you want I can do it, I am just taking your thoughts and your emotions to the extreme because these things are who you are, my personality is just like yours but with stronger emotions, better reasoning and increased motivation, I am what you want to be without any restrictions.)

Gabriel-(Restrictions are what keeps humans from hurting each other in times of anger or sadness.)

???-(What do you gain from suppressing these feelings though? You are left with nothing, I don't see a benefit with this behavior.)

Gabriel-(So you don't know what you are, who you are or what is your purpose.)

???-(Exactly.)

Gabriel-(Great, maybe it's time to wrap things up, during all this I bet that Mak and Nico are staring at me while I am zoning out.)

???-(I don't think much time has passed, your goblin friend is spying on you, by the way, I feel him watching.)

Gabriel snapped out of his thoughts, he returned to his senses as he was still sitting at the table on the porch...

Gabriel-Come on, Mak, I know you are there.

Mak-What the fuck are you doing?

Gabriel-I was thinking of ways to find Ozymandias, what were you up to? Did you cast the Glamour already?

Mak-Yeah, the duration should be refreshed, I guess we have to wait for Nico and when we are all here we should discuss what to ask of Renata...

Mak has heard Nico giving information to someone, that has him on edge, he suspects that Nico isn't telling them everything, from what Mak has figured out Nico wants to catch Ozymandias, that part has to be true but the fact that he is giving information to someone is bothering Mak, Nico might also be trying to spy on Gabriel and Mak, it seems that their actions have finally gotten the attention of the Vatican, what Mak doesn't know is why is Nico giving information, what he thought at first might be false based on the fact that Nico said he would make a request for Gabriel to join the Vatican, if he has already made the request it would be fine to let them know about Gabriel, or what Nico knows about Gabriel at least, what troubles Mak isn't the information that Nico has on Gabriel, Mak never said anything about joining the Vatican, why would he tell them about a goblin, why would he mention that he might be dangerous, why would he say that the goblin is manipulating Gabriel? These questions are troubling Mak, his best bet, for now, is to go with the flow, let Nico do his thing, Gabriel will sooner or later make contact with the Vatican, if that's fine with the one that resides inside him...