Lyria's POV
I couldn't breathe. Couldn't move. Couldn't scream.
Selene stood in the doorway, casually holding the crystal that contained my voice. Inside it, I could see myself—trapped, screaming, clawing at invisible walls. My own face twisted in endless agony.
"Surprised to see me?" Selene tilted her head, smiling like we were old friends meeting for tea. "You shouldn't be. I've always known where you were, little sister. I let you live this long because you were useful—a cautionary tale about what happens to goddesses who don't know their place."
Silver blood—Kael's blood—dripped from her hands onto the floor. Each drop sizzled when it hit the stone.
My chest felt like it was caving in. Kael. She'd killed him. The only person who'd tried to help me was gone.
"Don't look so heartbroken," Selene said, walking closer. "He was already dying the moment he broke his curse. Did he not tell you? When a cursed god regains emotion, the curse consumes them from the inside. He had maybe a week left. I just... sped things along."
Lies. She was lying. She had to be.
But doubt crept in. Had Kael known he was dying? Was that why he'd been so desperate to protect me?
"Now then." Selene held up the crystal, and the light inside pulsed. "Let's talk about what you stole from me."
I shook my head, backing away. I didn't steal anything!
"Don't play innocent." Her voice turned sharp. "I know you found your journal. I know you read about the soul harvesting. And I know you're wondering where you hid the evidence." She smiled coldly. "Want to know the fun part? You didn't hide it in the mortal realm. You didn't hide it in the Celestial Court. You hid it inside yourself."
My eyes went wide. Inside myself? What did that mean?
"Your voice, dear sister, isn't just your voice. It's the Voice of Truth—anything you sing becomes undeniable reality. When you discovered our secret, you sang it into your own vocal cords. Every crime, every stolen soul, every name of everyone involved. All sealed inside here." She shook the crystal, and I heard my trapped self scream. "As long as I keep your voice locked away, the truth stays buried. Forever."
Horror washed over me. That's why she'd stolen my voice. Not just to silence me—but to hide the evidence. The proof of genocide was literally part of me.
"So here's what's going to happen," Selene continued. "You're going to come back to the Celestial Court with me. Quietly. No fuss. I'll tell everyone I found you and 'rescued' you from the evil God of Silence who kidnapped you. You'll smile and nod and never try to communicate the truth again. And in return, I won't destroy this crystal—and your voice—permanently."
She was giving me a choice. Live as her prisoner, forever voiceless, while millions of mortals died for her immortality. Or refuse, and lose any chance of ever getting my voice back.
Some choice.
I looked at Nyx, who stood frozen in the shadows. The servant's white eyes were wide with terror. She couldn't fight Selene. Nobody could.
I looked at the journal still clutched in my hands. All those blank pages. All those lost memories.
Then I looked at the mirror.
And I remembered what my reflection had said: "Don't trust the silence. Don't trust the song. Trust only what burns."
What burns.
My hand holding the journal felt warm. No—hot. The journal was heating up, the pages glowing faintly.
An idea sparked in my mind. Crazy. Impossible. But maybe...
I met Selene's ice-cold eyes and did something I never thought I'd do.
I smiled.
Her expression flickered with confusion. "What are you—"
I threw the journal at her face.
She caught it easily, laughing. "Really? That's your grand—"
The journal exploded.
Golden flames erupted from the pages, engulfing Selene's hand. She screamed and dropped both the journal and the crystal. The crystal hit the floor and rolled toward me.
I dove for it, my fingers closing around the warm glass just as Selene's magic blasted toward me. Nyx materialized in front of me, taking the hit. The shadow servant shrieked and dissolved into smoke.
"NYX!" I wanted to scream, but no sound came.
"You DARE!" Selene's beautiful face twisted with rage. Her hand was burned black, smoking. "Do you have any idea what you've done? That journal was your only link to your sealed memories!"
I clutched the crystal to my chest. I didn't care about the journal. I had my voice now. I just needed to figure out how to free it.
"Fine." Selene's eyes glowed with moonlight. "If you won't come quietly, I'll drag you back in pieces."
She raised her good hand, and the entire palace began to shake. Windows shattered. The floor cracked beneath my feet. Power unlike anything I'd ever felt pressed down on me, trying to crush me flat.
I couldn't fight her. I had no powers, no training, no—
Wait.
I looked down at the crystal in my hands. My voice was in there. MY voice. The Voice of Truth that could make reality itself bend.
If I could just break the crystal, could I free my voice? Would it return to me?
But the crystal was divine-made. Selene had probably sealed it with magic I couldn't break. Unless...
Trust only what burns.
The journal had burned when I needed it to. Fire had always been associated with truth—burning away lies, purifying, revealing what was hidden.
What if I could make the crystal burn?
But I didn't have fire. I didn't have powers. I had nothing except—
The mirror. Still in my other hand.
I looked at my reflection and saw her again—the golden goddess with light pouring from her throat. She smiled at me and mouthed one word:
"Burn."
Heat exploded in my chest. The same warmth I'd felt when I healed Kael, but stronger. It rushed through my arms into my hands. The crystal began to glow brighter, hotter.
"NO!" Selene lunged for me.
Too late.
The crystal shattered in my hands.
Golden light exploded outward like a supernova. I heard singing—my voice, clear and beautiful and free. It wrapped around me, lifting me off the ground. The light poured into my throat, hot as molten gold, burning away the seal that had kept me silent.
I opened my mouth, and for the first time in what felt like forever—
I screamed.
The sound that came out wasn't just a scream. It was power given form. Reality itself rippled. The palace walls cracked. Selene flew backward, slamming into the far wall so hard the stone crumbled.
When my scream ended, I fell to my knees, gasping. My throat burned. My whole body shook. But I could feel it—my voice was back. Weak, damaged, but THERE.
I looked up at Selene, who was pulling herself from the rubble. Blood ran down her face, but she was smiling.
"Well, well," she said, spitting blood. "Look who found her voice. Too bad you don't remember how to use it properly. That little scream probably took everything you had left."
She was right. I felt drained, hollow. That one scream had nearly killed me.
Selene stood, brushing dust from her dress. "Last chance, sister. Come with me now, or I'll rip that voice right back out of your throat. And this time, I won't be gentle about it."
I tried to stand, but my legs wouldn't work. I was too weak. Too drained. Too—
A hand grabbed my shoulder.
I looked up, and my heart stopped.
Kael stood behind me.
He was covered in blood—silver and red mixed together. His shirt was torn, revealing massive wounds across his chest. He could barely stand. But his silver eyes blazed with determination.
"You're alive," I whispered, my new voice rough and broken. "I thought—"
"Hard to kill," he rasped. "Should've... warned you."
Selene's smile vanished. "Impossible. I destroyed your heart. You should be—"
"Dead?" Kael's laugh was harsh. "I'm the God of Silence. I exist in the space between life and death. You can't kill what's already neither." He raised his hand, and darkness poured from his palm. "But I can kill you."
"Bold words for a dying god." Selene gathered her own power, moonlight swirling around her fists. "Let's see how long you last."
They charged at each other. The impact of their powers colliding sent shockwaves through the palace. I covered my head as debris rained down.
But something was wrong. Kael was too slow, too weak. Selene's attacks kept landing. He was losing.
I tried to stand, to help, but my body wouldn't obey. All I could do was watch as my sister slowly destroyed the only person who'd ever tried to save me.
"KAEL!" I screamed with my broken voice.
He glanced back at me for just a second. And Selene struck.
Her hand punched straight through his chest.
Time seemed to stop.
Kael looked down at the hand protruding from his ribs, confusion on his face. Silver blood poured from the wound.
"Goodnight, God of Silence," Selene whispered, twisting her hand.
Kael's eyes met mine one last time. He mouthed two words: "I'm sorry."
Then he collapsed.
Selene pulled her hand free, letting his body crumple to the floor. She turned to me, blood dripping from her fingers.
"Now," she said calmly. "Where were we?"
I stared at Kael's motionless body. At the pool of silver blood spreading beneath him. At his empty, staring eyes.
Something inside me broke.
Not broke—shattered. Every wall, every seal, every lock that had kept my power contained exploded at once.
I opened my mouth and sang.
This time, it wasn't a scream. It was a song—the most beautiful, terrible song ever heard. A song of truth and rage and grief. A song that made reality itself weep.
And as I sang, the palace began to burn with golden fire.