"No, not....all of that. Just the first part. I didn't dare tell him to his face I could not be his friend. I did express that we were not equals. But he insisted we were because he thought us to be." Everything after that sort of spiraled when she started comparing her own situation to the one she was trying to scold Lucifer for.

This time when Blaze's hands squeeze tighter Nike lifts her face once more. She's trying to regain her composure. Kill the emotions once more.

"I will never be a Guardian, Blaze." Her words are feather-soft. "Your Traveler will never find me worthy. I have to accept that." She wears their armor, uses their weapons. She can in fact do some of the things the Traveler's chosen can do in a slightly different way. Like them she can die over and over without long term damage so long as Blaze is unharmed. "I had...allowed myself to forget this. Until Steven was reborn. Until I saw for myself what it means to become a Guardian."