Chapter 35
thirty-five
-Set-
I feel like I’m going to break into pieces just trying to keep myself from killing her. I know I could never harm her, no matter what shape or darkness clogs my mind. But she keeps pushing me, and that fragile line I hold back begins to fray.
I can’t risk it. I need to get out of here, so I try to move past her, but her fragile body blocks my way, pressing against my chest, as if she could have a real chance of stopping me.
“You don’t understand,” I rasp, struggling to explain, struggling to even think straight.
“Every time I take a life, I lose part of my soul,” I say, hoping she gets the message.
She needs to stay far away from me. But her body doesn’t budge, her arms still locked around me.
I could almost laugh at the effort, but laughing doesn’t come to me.
It’s a pain that’s slashing through my soul.
I’ve feared this moment so much for so long.
Now it’s here. And I have no fucking clue what I’m doing anymore, but the closer she gets, the more the evil within is starting to subside.
“I’m not afraid of your darkness. I’m not afraid of you. Whatever you are, and whatever this means,” she says, her body pressing harder into mine.
In some twisted way, this is all I’ve ever wanted—for her to want me as I am. But it’s not that simple. For that to happen, she has to know everything about me. And I can’t do that—not with her being wrapped all around me.
I gently peel her hands from my waist and take a step backward, the absence of her warmth instantly leaving me cold like I’m out in a blizzard storm.
I have no idea how I’m supposed to do this and keep control. She may still the darkness inside, but the memories I need to invoke will sink me into a total abyss.
The confusion on her face is obvious, as she’s trying to get near me again, but I raise a hand to keep her in place.
“I’ve thought for a long time about how to start this. You weren’t supposed to find out this way. Not before I told you. But I guess that’s changed now.” I can’t look at her as I talk. Not because I don’t want to. It’s because she unsettles me too deeply, and I’d be too close to losing control.
I turn to look down at the city, the real hell beneath us.
“My name is Set. But mortals have called me different things throughout history—from God to Demon to Destroyer of Worlds. Truth is, I’m the offspring of what you’d currently call the devil.
Contrary to what people believe, he’s not a red-skin monster with a pitchfork, but a force beyond human comprehension.
We’re gods. Ruled by desires and ambitions, just like mortals.
Only ours are... far stronger. That’s what nearly drove humanity to extinction.
” I glance down at the streets, despite the noise, they’re quiet now, too quiet because I remember a time when they roared with pleadings and screams. “We used to see people as insignificant beings made for our pleasure, for our fun. Made to be tortured by us. Made to be broken. But we got greedy and we wanted more and more of their suffering. Until we pushed so hard that there was almost nothing left.” I let out a breath, like it could somehow ease telling this to her.
“We brought on the apocalypse, driven by our thirst for power, foolish enough to believe we could end the world just for fun. What we didn’t realize.
.. was that humans were the ones who gave us purpose.
What is the point of being a god if no one worships you?
As punishment, our creator stripped us of most of our power, but also of our dark selves.
He wiped our memories, leaving only fragments of the lives we used to know—of what we were.
” I turn my head slightly, just to catch a glimpse of her.
“I used to be Set, the god you saw in my office.”
“Set, as in the Egyptian God, Set?” Serena asks, and I can hear the distress in her voice.
“Yes. The dark God of Egypt. That was the place our creator assigned to me. People saw me as their dark leader, a deity of chaos.”
“There are stories about you. About your brother Osiris, and how you…”
“...killed him. I know. But Osiris is very much alive. I assure you. You’ll probably meet him someday.
Truth is, most ancient history is just stories made up by scared men.
Humanity always made up things to explain the unexplainable, came up with stories about our lives and deeds that never actually happened.
Back then, information was so scarce that any written story turned into a myth.
Imagine someone writing a fantasy book today, and it’s only discovered centuries later, with no other written records to explain the world at that time.
You wouldn’t be able to tell fact from fiction.
Most the myths are just the imagination of ancient authors, poets, or musicians.
” I pause, letting the weight of it sink in.
I need her to process all of this before I go on.
To be honest, I have no idea what her reaction would be to what I’m telling her.
“So now what? You’ve gone from demon to humanity’s protector?” she asks, trying to make sense of things.
“I’m not good, Serena. None of us are. We’re just here to keep the balance so we don’t lose our favorite toys.”
“You say we, meaning your brothers that I met?”
“I have several more brothers, but yes, Whiro, Ares, and Phro are like me.”
“So Phro’s your sister, huh?” she asks, and I feel a trace of reproach in her voice. “At first I thought she was an ex or something. And you didn’t exactly rush to correct me on that.”
“I’ve told you—I’m not that piece of shit Nick. I’d never flaunt an ex in front of you. Phro is blood. She just loves stirring shit up, making everyone jealous of her beauty. But watching that tension in your eyes? Now, that was hilarious. I love your jealousy. Makes you more passionate.”
I frown. “Makes everyone jealous with her beauty.” Serena repeats my words. “Phro,” she continues, but pauses shortly after. “Phro as in Aphrodite?”
“Yeah, she likes that name the most. The ancient Greeks used to call her that. Couldn’t stop worshiping her beauty.”
I see Serena panicking a little. Meeting all these gods all at once is probably a bit overwhelming for her. Still, that doesn’t stop her questioning. “So that’s why you can’t have children?”
Didn’t see that coming.
“Who told you I can’t have children?” I ask, my tone heavier than earlier.
“I thought that since you… you—”
“Came inside you?” I offer, sparing her the trouble. Though come to think about it, I should’ve let her say the words. I love watching her squirm.
“Yes… you told me not to worry.”
“And you shouldn’t. But when the time comes, I’ll ask my father to grant us this gift. He’ll agree.” I smirk, imagining the day her belly will be swollen with my children. “You see, needing his permission is part of keeping the balance. Imagine the Earth crawling with little devils.”
“Devils,” she repeats, her voice shaking now. The thought of a mortal carrying a demon child... that’s definitely nightmare fuel.
“I am a devil, Serena. And yet, you’re still standing.” I try to fake a smile, hoping to comfort her, but the darkness inside is still burning from within.
“You’re a devil, but... I can also feel the good in you.”
Her statement makes me turn to face her.
She couldn’t be more wrong. “This is what I feared most. I’m not here to defend humanity.
I’m only here to keep it from self-destructing.
I don’t need you to romanticize me. I’m not some tortured antihero from your favorite novel.
I’m the motherfucking son of the Devil. His direct descendant.
I’m no good, I assure you... But I’ll be good to you. ”
It’s then when I hear it—her deepest desires sank into confusion. So many thoughts, spinning through her head that she doesn’t know what to believe anymore.
“You need time to think things through,” I say, my voice softening. “We can do this another day. I can hear how confused you are about everything.”
“You can hear?” she asks, as if she’s having a revelation. “You mean, you can really hear what I’m thinking?” There’s a sudden flush on her face as shame swipes over her, and it almost makes me laugh.
I could mess with her and pretend I know every dark fantasy running through her mind, but I’m not in the mood for jokes.
Not now, when one word could change everything.
“I can hear a person’s strongest desires.
It’s the one power my father allowed me to keep.
” Her face flushes even deeper—if that’s even possible.
“But not yours. At least not all the time. The closer I am to someone, the harder it is to connect to their thoughts.”
By now, she looks like she might pass out. “I was certainly not prepared for this. I thought you were messing with me.”
“Well, I’m not. I could hear you that night. When I first fucked you. You wanted it so badly,” I smirk, unable to keep myself from toying with her head.
She shifts from one foot to the other, like she’s one second from bolting. But instead, she takes a sharp breath and tries to change the subject, “Is that how you found me at Chen’s?”
“No. You’d have to be close to me to hear your deepest wishes and desires.”
“Then how?” she asks, arching an eyebrow, feeling there’s more than what I’m saying.
“You have a tracker,” I snap, sharply, hoping that’ll be enough.
She fixes me with a sharp glare. “You think I’d run away again?”
“No. It’s for situations like this. I need to know you’re safe at all times. When my plane landed, I checked your location—saw you weren’t at the hotel. So I drove straight to the tracker ping.”
“How is that possible? I dropped my phone when they grabbed me.” She asks, her glare still pointed at me
“It’s not in your phone,” I reply, locking eyes with her.
“Where, then?” She presses, anger now replacing the embarrassment.
“Where do you think?”
“It’s in the piercing? Are you out of your fucking mind?”
She swears, and the urge to get her on her knees and fuck her mouth, until no vile word comes of it, spikes. “What did I tell you about swearing?”
Her attitude instantly changes, realizing I’m not bluffing, especially since I know my eyes are still fully black. I’m still having trouble reeling myself in. And she’s not helping.
“It’s not my fault you keep treating me like a piece of property, and not like a human being—your partner. You should be telling me things.”
“And when exactly should I tell you? When you’re running from me?
Ignoring me? Or maybe when I’m busy keeping you alive?
” I heave with exhaustion. I don’t like talking.
And I don’t like talking about my life or whatever the fuck is going on between us.
Besides, now’s really the time to stop, as my temper’s flaring again.
“It’s not my fault you had to keep me fucking alive,” she snaps, and I feel a warmth ripple down my spine.
“Serena,” I warn, though judging by the tone of her voice, I doubt that she’ll listen.
On the contrary, she’s trying to provoke me. “I’m not fucking afraid of you, Set.”
“Oh, you should be,” I groan, breaking the distance between us, my body morphing, muscles doubling their size.
Now she’d better run.
But right before I lose myself, I hear it. It’s so loud it almost deafens me.
She’s doing it on purpose.
She’s provoking me.
She wants me to fuck her.