I have a feeling he'll be both before we leave here, he thought.
Despite knowing Darkyn wasn't one to miss out on an opportunity to try to usurp the authority of a fellow deity, Gabriel almost felt a connection with the creature from the time-before-time, a demon hatched before any of the current realms existed. He wanted to think it was their mutual connection to the women trapped in the underworld, and ignore the fact that he'd begun to regard Darkyn in a different light since becoming a deity himself.
"Is this what the time-before-time was like?" he asked, unable to help his curiosity about the mysterious era.
Without answering, Darkyn started forward, towards the living forest of the underworld.
"How did it end?" Gabriel pressed.
The demon lord paused and faced him. The slow, evil smile on his face told Gabriel he didn't really want to know.
"The Dark One won," Darkyn replied.
You'll have to get through me first, Gabriel vowed silently. It wasn't the right time to let Darkyn provoke him, not when Gabriel wasn't able to access the power of the dead.
The stakes were higher than ever before. He pointed in the direction they needed to go and breezed by the bristling demon, determined to take back what was rightfully his before anyone else lost their souls.