Chapter 15 #2
He looked at her. By his movement, it seemed it was meant to be a quick glance, but once their eyes caught, they locked. And like before, that connection sparked instantly to life. Her blood heated and shivers raced across her skin.
He shook himself and turned back to the book. “As you surely know, demons and angels are created, not born. Angels have souls. Demons do not. Only beings with souls, like humans and angels, can procreate. Which is how the Nephilim, the forbidden human-angel hybrids, came into being.”
“Fallen angels mated with humans.”
“Correct.” He flipped to the first section of the book, trailing a black claw over a diagram of some kind of aura surrounding a sketch of a person.
She leaned over his shoulder to see more clearly.
“These pages detail a soul’s activating qualities and ability to conceive new life.
” He flipped a few pages ahead to another section.
“And these show how the lack of a soul prevents conception.”
“Oh my god …” He’d barely explained anything, and already her mind was blown. She’d stared at those diagrams for years wondering what the hell they were for.
“This model has been accepted as fact for all of recorded history,” he went on. “Gamigin, however, was one of the first to question our established understanding of souls and study them. And according to his research, a demon can evolve a soul, in a way.”
He flipped to another page of diagrams. They looked a bit like drawings of electrons mixed with mandalas. She’d always thought they were sigils, but clearly, she was wrong. “Here, Gamigin theorized how the soul is developed.”
“Wait …” She blinked at the nonsensical drawings. “Demons can develop a soul? From nothing?”
He nodded. “After a very long time, a demon may acquire somewhat of a conscience—a sense of morality and a desire to improve themself. A soul evolves with it, though it’s a bit of a chicken-and-egg scenario, since it’s unclear whether a conscience births the soul or vice versa.”
“But that would mean …” She trailed off. What would it mean?
“It means a lot of things.” Murmur met her gaze. “Firstly, if an angel with a soul can procreate, shouldn’t a demon with a soul be able to do the same?”
Her eyes widened.
“And secondly, any being with a soul must have a place for that soul to go after their death. Angel souls go to Heaven by default. Human souls are judged based on their deeds in life. But what about demon souls?”
“They go to Hell …?”
He nodded. “Theoretically, a demon’s soul could be weighed on the scales of good and evil, just like humans’. But none have ever had the chance. They are all trapped in Hell, and unlike humans, they have no hope of rebirth and redemption in another life.”
“That doesn’t seem fair.”
“No, it does not.”
“But how do you know all this? If most people don’t even know demon souls exist, how can you be sure they’re trapped in Hell for eternity?”
He smiled thinly, like he approved of her line of questioning. “Because I know who’s trapping them.”
“What?”
“Gamigin may have been the first to study the evolution of a demon’s soul, but he was not the first to have this knowledge. In fact, it has been known by one demon in particular for a very long time.”
“Who?”
“Lucifer.”
“Luci—” She coughed. “You’re kidding.”
“The High King not only knows of the existence of demon souls but has been making use of them.”
“Making use …? What does that mean?”
“A soul is eternal, indestructible—immortal in the only true sense of the word. A soul is also pure, inexhaustible energy. An angel’s soul is even more powerful than a human’s, so it stands to reason that a demon’s would be as well.
Imagine the strength one could wield if they could find a way to harness that force. ”
“Like you did.”
“I trap human souls and force them to work for me using their own strength. I’m talking about actually draining power from demon souls and funneling it into one’s own essence.”
“You’re saying Lucifer …”
Murmur nodded. “The High King has a deep understanding of the physics of the underworld. He also has a vested interest in ensuring that he remains the most powerful being here. There are many who support an uprising in Hell. Wars are a constant, but many no longer wish to fight them. They’re tired of Lucifer’s tyranny and want stability.
Lucifer represents the old ways, and many believe it’s time for change. ”
“And you?” She was barely able to keep up with this conversation, but she was clinging to Murmur’s every word all the same. “What’s your stance on this?”
He lifted a shoulder. “Long ago, I had a vision that the High King of Hell would fall, so I’ve been arranging things to bring it about ever since.
It is my calling, but also a matter of self-preservation.
I want to ensure my own survival and that my immortal soul is not trapped in service to Lucifer for the rest of eternity. ”
There was an extended silence as that sank in.
“Your … soul.”
He nodded, mouth twisting into a sour expression.
“You have a soul. You evolved and developed a soul.”
He nodded again. He didn’t look happy about it.
“How do you know for sure?”
“Because, again, I’ve seen it in visions.
That’s how I know all of this—how I learned about Gamigin’s book and Lucifer’s secret.
I have the same vision every time I sleep, and it has made it very clear that my consciousness doesn’t end after my death.
I have a soul, whether I like it or not.
” His face made it obvious how he felt on the matter.
She searched his gaze. Standing at his side while he sat in the chair, they were at eye level.
While the things that had originally disturbed her about his appearance were still there, now, she saw more.
The ice-blue irises in his shadowed, bloodshot eyes were striking.
His cruel mouth often quirked with humor.
“What happens in your vision?” she dared to ask.
His fingers flexed, claws digging into the desk, and he turned to stare out the window. The red sky was finally starting to lighten.
“I am burning,” he said in a low voice. “The pain is excruciating.”
The scream. He was experiencing how it felt to burn alive while knowing it was going to happen to him.
“And then, I die. It’s a mercy, and at that point, I’m relieved.
” His jaw shifted, flexing a muscle at his temple.
“But my consciousness doesn’t end. My awareness remains.
I am still me. And then, my essence is drawn toward a lightless chasm.
I’m trapped there with thousands of other souls.
We can never escape. There is nothing but endless black and the never-ending draining of our energy.
The despair and hopelessness … It’s far worse than burning alive. ”
“That’s fucked up,” Suyin breathed, not knowing what else to say.
“I have this vision every time I sleep.” His voice was distant, his gaze still fixed out the window. “It used to come infrequently, but now I can’t escape it. It’s coming soon. Any day now, I believe.”
“What are you going to do?”
“Lucifer has trapped the soul of every evolved demon who has ever died. I believe he keeps a list of demons he suspects have souls, and he actively hunts them, hoping to kill and add them to his collection. He will come for me soon, and when I die, my soul will go to his prison with the others, and I’ll remain there for eternity. ”
He looked suddenly at her, and her heart skipped a beat.
“Unless I find a way to free those souls.”
It was the last thing she’d expected him to say. She’d thought he would try to stop Lucifer from coming after him. Unless …
“Would he be too weak to kill you, then? Without all those souls?”
Murmur scoffed. “Hardly. They may be his greatest source of strength, but one does not hold onto the title of High King of Hell without considerable power of their own.”
“So then how does freeing the souls prevent your death?” she asked. “Even if your soul is free, if Lucifer comes after you, you’ll still be dead.”
Murmur nodded approvingly. “You’re asking the right questions, Suyin.”
She wanted to kick the part of herself that warmed at his praise, but she was too riveted by what he was saying to care.
“The answer is simple: I plan to start a war. Lucifer will have more important things to worry about than me.”
“A war? Why?”
“I have foreseen it, as I said before. The High King is destined to fall. If I’m successful, he’ll lose his primary source of power.”
“I still don’t understand why he wouldn’t come after you as soon as he knows what you did.”
“Redirection. Lucifer keeps his prison hidden in the Nine Rings. The souls are entombed behind a door with a powerful seal. My spell will break that seal and create a portal so someone may enter the Rings and open the door. But that someone will not be me.”
“Who will?” She was holding her breath. She’d never been so invested.
“Belial.”
“As in Belial, the King of Hell? What’s he got to do with this?”
“Everything. And he owes me a favor. Two, in fact.” Murmur’s lips curved wickedly.
She scrambled to make sense of everything. “So you’re going to use Belial to open the prison and free the souls. Which will make Lucifer focus on him instead of you.”
“Precisely. If Belial went against Lucifer right now, he would fail. The High King is too powerful. But, if I eliminate Lucifer’s main power source, then things will really get interesting.”
“You’re really planning on starting an underworld war.” She shook her head. “You’re trying to overthrow fucking Lucifer. God, you really are mad.”
“I’m motivated,” he replied. “My life depends upon it, after all. And if my spell is successful, when I eventually die, my soul will be free to be judged and then go on to wherever it is I should go.” He smiled grimly.
“Make no mistake, I fully expect to rot in the lowest level of the Nine Rings, but I would rather suffer for thousands of years in the Rings than be trapped in limbo, in some lightless, inescapable prison, where my essence is used to feed the High King’s power. ”
“That’s …” She blew out a breath. “That’s insane, Murmur.”
His whole plan was. The scope was so grand, it was hard to wrap her head around it. Everyone knew Lucifer was the ruler of Hell. He had been since forever. To get rid of him … She had a hard time believing it was even possible.
And it was a hell of a burden for Murmur to bear.
Her feelings about him were complicated.
She still half hoped Lucifer would kill him.
Murmur was a bastard, but damn it, she sympathized with him too.
If he really did have a soul, she supposed that meant there was some goodness in him, and he deserved a chance to redeem himself.
Besides, he was the Necromancer. She couldn’t imagine him not existing. It seemed against the natural order somehow.
“What about me?” she asked suddenly. “Where do I come into this? Why do you need my blood?”
“You still haven’t figured it out?” A teasing glint came into his eyes.
“Obviously not, or I wouldn’t be asking,” she said through gritted teeth.
“Your mother gave you this.” He tapped the page The Book of Gamigin was open to. “Where do you think she got it?”
“My father, but—”
“And how did he get it?”
“I don’t know,” she said impatiently. “My mother said he wrote it, but after what you’ve told me, there’s no way that’s possible. I can only assume he got it from the demon who wrote it, but I don’t know—”
“Oh, my sweet, naive little witch.” His lips curved into that cheek-crinkling smile.
She scowled at him. “Quit beating around the bush, Murmur. Just tell me already.”
“Your father didn’t get this grimoire from the demon who wrote it, Suyin. Your father was the demon who wrote it.”