Twilight of the Gods ✔️

Chapter 20: The Soulmaker's Fall

"Where is it?"

Hubert's voice echoed through the interior of the dome. He was in the Glade, an area of Otherworld he hadn't touched in ages, at least not since the war. In his left hand, he was clutching a note that had been placed at his bedside. A prominent vein was bulging out of his neck. The Elysian wasn't too happy about leaving Sabine's body alone, even if it was under the protection of his glass coffin.

Daeva stepped out of the shadows, holding Sabine's glowing soul. "Looking for this?"

Hubert lunged at her, swinging his tree trunk arms to grab the soul out of her hands. She yanked the soul away just in time, catching him off balance.

"I will need something in return," she said. Seeing the disagreement in Hubert's face, she added, "or I will shatter her soul."

"What do you want?" He asked this begrudgingly, keeping an eye on the glowing orb in her hands.

"Break your link in the Binding Chains," she said, pointing to the invisible restraints in her neck. "I will give her soul back to you unharmed once you do your part."

"You're asking me to betray my brethren," he sneered. "I'll have you know that unlike the Gods, I'm loyal to my kind." He puffed out his chest, seemingly full of honor.

"It wasn't a problem for Sabine," she said, watching his expression crumble. She wondered if he knew about her plans to overthrow Ezra.

"Are you really putting the Council over her soul? I didn't know she meant so little to you," Daeva pressed.

He slammed his fist into a nearby wall, shaking the dome. "Don't talk about her like that. You don't know what she is to me. A murderer like you can't even fathom the concept of love."

"Just break the Binding Chain," she said, brushing off his remark. "If you love her so much, this shouldn't be so hard."

"No," he said, continuing to refuse. "How about you give her soul to me as repayment for a favor?"

Daeva's brows crinkled in confusion. She didn't remember owing any of the Elysians anything beyond the endless lives she had taken.

"I fixed you," he said. "Don't tell me you forgot that. You had two souls before I placed you in the river."

Ah. That. Her grip over Sabine's soul tightened. She was tempted to shatter the soul, to force Hubert to feel even a fraction of the loss she experienced. But she refused to be heartless like them.

"You ruined me," she said, deciding to put her anger into words. "You took away my past and my purpose. Let me make it clear that you didn't fix me. The only thing I have to thank you for is shaping me into the monster that I am today."

"I gave you a gift," he insisted. "If I didn't interfere, you wouldn't have gotten your Right of Existence. You lived in the Mortal Realm because I allowed you the grace to do so! If we left you alone, your body would have combusted. You would be dead by now if it weren't for my mercy."

Despite all that he did to her, Hubert remained stubbornly self-righteous. He would never admit to hurting her or entertain an insincere apology like Sabine did. Yet Daeva still tried to guilt him and appeal to his so-called sense of honor.

"It's no mercy to keep me imprisoned here," she said.

"It's mercy for the Mortal Realm," he countered. "We're protecting them from you."

"Then I will keep Sabine's soul," she said, tired of arguing with him. "You can leave the Glade."

He hesitated for a moment. "Did she really break her link in the Binding Chains?"