It hadn't taken Restavel long to wake, but as she did her disoriented state of mind caused her a brief moment of panic before realizing where she now found herself. She was in one of the guest quarters with Ephram, who had seemingly fallen asleep at the edge of the bed she laid within. For a moment, she thought it best to wake him, but as the memories of events prior flooded her brain, she decided to let him get a bit of rest. This was the first time she noticed him sleeping since waking in the Garden, she knew it must've been stressful on him ever since coming to Hell.

  Quietly slipping out of the bed and standing up, she headed for the door in an attempt to leave the room, yet something stopped her. It was just a feeling, but for some reason she found it incredibly hard to leave all of sudden after what Ephram had done for her. She couldn't remember the last time she had felt anything for anyone, the emotions welling up inside of her was quite a nuisance in her opinion.

  Sitting back down on the opposite side of the bed, she carefully watched his chest rise and fall between every breath. He seemed to be dreaming of something, but she hadn't the faintest clue as to what. Whatever it was seemed peaceful, and it brought her some comfort to know he was having a moment of bliss within his own mind. With everything he and the others had been through so far, peace seemed like an unattainable notion.

  "Sleep well... when you wake, I have a favor to ask." She said, the monotonous tone of her voice replaced by a seemingly kind and gentle woman.

  The facade of her unsympathetic mind had fallen, revealing a truly grateful demon who was overjoyed at being saved. For as long as she could remember, she had always been the one saving others of her kind. It was nice to be on the receiving end for once, it made her feel as if she was truly cared for.

  "And... what might that be?" Ephram's voice caught her off guard as he groggily sat upright, leaning against the footboard of the bed.

  His hat had fallen from his head, landing someplace on the ground below. As soon as he began looking for it, Restavel took it upon herself to search for the missing hat. Getting up to her feet and looking under the bed, she found it lying there in wait for her.

  "I believe this is yours." She said, trying but failing to put back her robotic facade while hesitantly placing the hat back upon his head.

  "Thank you... how are you feeling?" Ephram asked, worried that the maid might still be a little banged up from their encounter with Pestarrem.

  "I'm... I am alright, thank you. Did you happen to... see? What I became, I mean?"

  "Only for a moment, it looked to me like Pestarrem had hurt you somehow, but your face looked... different?"

  "I see..." She said, unsure whether or not she should reveal the truth to him. He was strong, there was no doubt about that in her mind, but was he strong enough? There was only one way to find out.

  "Listen... Ephram. What you saw was not me. It was Aberlain. I'm sure you've had your suspicions, but... I'd like to help you. If you'll help me, that is."

  Ephram slowly clasped his hands together, not entirely sure how to make sense of what he'd been told. How could Aberlain possibly have taken control of Restavel? He had previously believed his ability only allowed him to share a demons sight with others, but perhaps there was more to it.

  "Restavel, I'll help you in whatever way I can. Just tell me what I need to do."

  "Okay then... I need you to take out my eyes." She said, silence quickly following her. The two demons stared at each other for a few awkward seconds until Ephram voiced his immediate concerns.

  "Excuse me?" He asked, caught completely off guard by the strange and disturbing request from the maid.

  "You have to trust me. I can't say much more than what I already have, or he'll hear. You need to take my eyes out, and it will be excruciatingly painful. But whatever you do, whatever you hear from me, do not stop."

  Ephram stared dumbfoundedly at the maid, unable to comprehend what she was saying until she lifted her long gray bangs from her face. At first it was just as dark and featureless as his own, but a pair of glowing yellow eyes slowly revealed themselves as her skin tore apart where her eyelids hid. Blood ran from them like tears, falling down her face and dripping into her lap as she moved in closer to Ephram on the bed.

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  Staring deep into the yellow eyes of Restavel, he finally began to realize why she had asked such a strange request of him. If Aberlain could share his sight with others by giving them his eyes, it would only make sense he could see from the eyes of others. She had mentioned him hearing them as well, and Ephram assumed that the Rootlords power went far beyond the limitations of just sharing sight.

  "Okay... I'll do my best. If it's any consolation, I truly do not wish to hurt you. Remember that."

  Restavel nodded slowly, falling onto her back as Ephram crawled over her. He stared down at the maid below him, her face never indicating she was afraid of what came next. It was only when he moved his hand toward her right eye that he noticed a small flinch from her, but it was quickly covered up.

  Fear was an understatement for what flowed through the veins of Restavel. Willingly allowing her eyes to be plucked from her head was enough to send a cold shiver running down her spine, but it had to be done if she wanted to be free from the Rootlord. She could never do it herself, even if she wanted to. Aberlain's mind control had destroyed her ability to even touch her own eyes in case she tried to escape him, and even if that firewall wasn't in place, she knew in her heart she would never have the courage to do it herself. It had to be Ephram, nobody else could ever do such a thing and still feel remorseful, not to her anyway.

  As his hand reached her face, she began to tremble under the immense pressure of what she'd allowed him to do to her. She felt as if she had allowed herself to play dead amongst a flock of hungry vultures.

  "I promise... I'll save you." Ephram said, trying to calm down the maid as much as he could.

  At the mention of being saved once again, Restavel took a much needed deep breath. She couldn't allow herself to forget why they were doing this, it was all for the sake of her freedom. The kindest demon she'd ever met was going to save her, and this thought brought her comfort as she felt his fingers wrap around the first eye.

  With one swift ripping motion, Ephram pulled his arm back with all his might, tearing out her right eye with a horrifying slurp. Blood pooled within her eye socket as she began to shake like someone caught in an earthquake. Restavel tried her best to hold back the screams, but the pain of the first eye had blinded her with agony. Her tortured howls filled the air as she convulsed violently, all while Ephram tried desperately to stop her from moving. Throwing the first eye towards the floor, he grabbed the maids shoulders with both hands as she tried ripping him off of her.

  "Stop! Please! I'm begging you! This was a mistake! Please!" She cried, but to no avail. Ephram held her firmly within his grasp, subduing her completely as blood flew in every direction. He could hear wails and screams throughout the halls of Palace Estella, the shared pain of the hivemind echoing throughout the estate.

  "Everything will be alright... I promise you." He said, quickly grabbing the remaining eye and plucking it out with all his might.

  As the last eye came loose, it came popping out with the same disgusting slurp as before. Restavel screamed once again before losing consciousness, her violent shaking slowing to a halt. As soon as she stopped moving, the screams coursing through the halls followed suit. Now that Restavel had gone unconscious, Ephram decided to roll her onto her side so the pooling of blood within her eye sockets dripped out. If she would rather be blinded than be under the control of Aberlain, then the Rootlord must be someone with an enormous amount of power on his side.

  "Restavel... you're a brave demon. Just know that with the march of time, all wounds will one day heal." Ephram said, crawling off the bed and collecting the two eyes.

  He wasn't entirely sure if Aberlain could see or hear from just the eyes alone, but nevertheless, it was important to fully dispose of them. Holding both eyes in one hand and squeezing his fist tightly, the slow stream of blood flowed from his hand like the steady drip of water from a stalactite. The crushed eyes seeped through his fingers like yellow playdough until there was nothing left of them, finally freeing Restavel from her forced servitude.

  As Ephram sat back down upon the bed and watched as the blood seeped from her sockets, he laid a comforting hand upon her head as he thought of what to do next. The maid was obviously quite powerful if Aberlain had control of her, so perhaps once she awakened she would lead him to where the Rootlord was hiding out. If he could find Aberlain and throw him into the Abyss as well, or more hopefully learn his true name, he would be one more step toward his ultimate goal.

  The ticking of his pocketwatch grew louder by the second, and Ephram decided to reach down for the device. Opening it to look at the photo within, he reminded himself exactly why he had such lofty ambitions. His life with Silvia was absolute perfection, the only thing getting in the way was reality itself. The faulty notions of good and evil were what captured both him and his wife, reality itself had bent their will to its own. For the simple sake of boredom, reality had condemned two lovers to suffer. As Ephram swore to himself that he would have his revenge on the evil of this world, he closed the watch once more and pocketed it away. As he stared back down at Restavel, a sudden knock on the door caused him to jump to his feet, reality had quite literally come knocking on his door, calling for him to return once more to the path he started.