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Introduction
Okay, listen. I’ve read The Things Gods Break so many times I could probably recite whole chapters in my sleep. And yet, every single time, it still wrecks me — in the best way. Abigail Owen didn’t just give us a story about gods and Titans, she gave us Lyra — this thief, this cursed girl who’s supposed to be “unlovable,” and still refuses to give in. And now, seeing it laid out like a movie script? Nineteen scenes of pure cinematic chaos and heartbreak? I’m shaking.
The opening shot alone — Olympus literally falling apart, Lyra and Boone clinging to each other as they’re sucked into Tartarus — like, how do you even recover from that? And then Hades (my dark, shadowy disaster king) showing up in a blaze of fire to save her? Don’t even get me started.
Disclaimer
This screenplay adaptation of The Things Gods Break by Abigail Owen is a fan-made project created for entertainment and discussion purposes only. All original characters, storylines, and worldbuilding belong to Abigail Owen. This adaptation is not affiliated with, endorsed by, or officially connected to the author, her publishers, or any production company.
ACT I — SCENE 1 — EXT. OLYMPUS — NIGHT
A sky of shattered constellations. Temple spires collapse beneath STORMS OF DIVINE LIGHTNING. The world groans.
LYRA (mid-20s, sharp-eyed, wiry strength) claws at a crumbling terrace. BOONE (early 20s, earnest, nervously brave) scrambles toward her.
BOONE
Lyra! Take my hand!
The floor gives way. Boone catches her wrist, dangling her over the abyss.
LYRA (V.O.)
They cursed me to be unlovable.
(beat)
Turns out, the gods don’t have much imagination.
The terrace SHEARS AWAY. Lyra and Boone are swallowed into the VORTEX—
ACT I — SCENE 2 — INT. TARTARUS VORTEX — CONTINUOUS
A cyclone of fire, shadow, and chains. Lyra and Boone tumble through howling darkness.
BOONE
(shouting)
We’re dead, right?! This is dead?!
LYRA
If this is dead, somebody needs a better decorator.
A titanic SHADOW brushes past them, gone in an instant. They plummet through a curtain of black flame—
ACT I — SCENE 3 — INT. TARTARUS — ABYSSAL PLAIN
Lyra and Boone slam into jagged rock. The plain stretches endlessly, broken by rivers of molten glass.
Boone groans, patting himself down.
BOONE
Okay. Not dead. Just… very, very inconvenienced.
Lyra rises, knife in hand, scanning. A METALLIC GROAN rolls through the cavern.
Chains thicker than towers coil out of the dark, glowing faintly with runes. An enormous EYE blinks open beyond them, staring at Lyra.
TITAN (O.S.)
Child. You are the key.
Boone freezes.
BOONE
Nope. Nope. Not listening.
Lyra steels herself, masking fear with sarcasm.
LYRA
Yeah? Well, this key isn’t opening anything today.
The chains rattle, like laughter. The ground shakes.
ACT I — SCENE 4 — INT. TARTARUS — CHAIN CAVERN
A roar. A BEAST, slag and bone, lumbers from the shadows. Boone stumbles back.
Lyra squares up, knife shaking but ready.
The beast lunges—then STOPS, frozen in mid-air, encased in shadow. It shatters into dust.
From the dark, HADES emerges. Tall, cloaked in living shadow, eyes burning like embers.
HADES
You fall into Tartarus, and you don’t even call.
Lyra exhales sharply, relief and anger at once.
LYRA
Didn’t have your number.
Boone whispers to himself, terrified.
BOONE
We’re saved… right? He’s saving us?
The Titan’s voice rumbles, mocking.
TITAN (O.S.)
The god of dead things. Come to collect what he loves.
Hades bristles, stepping protectively between Lyra and the eye.
HADES
Close your eye, prisoner.
TITAN (O.S.)
Remember your chains, god.
The cavern shakes. The eye closes, retreating. The runes dim, but still HUM faintly, tuned to Lyra’s pulse.
Hades turns to Lyra, low and urgent.
HADES
You will keep away from these locks.
LYRA
They hum when I breathe. Not exactly optional.
HADES
Then we leave. Now.
BOONE
Best plan I’ve heard all day.
Hades offers his hand to Lyra. He hesitates, not touching, as if his touch could shatter her. Lyra eyes it, then looks past him—toward the glowing locks.
ACT I — SCENE 5 — INT. TARTARUS — THE NARROW WAY
A thin ledge winds over a chasm. Far below, the River Lethe glimmers, carrying drifting souls.
Boone hugs the wall.
BOONE
Okay. Don’t look down. Not a problem. Totally not a problem—
HADES
(quiet)
The Lethe. Drink, and memory dies.
LYRA
Yeah. Not thirsty.
The ledge quivers. Boone slips—Lyra grabs him, nearly going over. Hades snaps his fingers; shadows pull them both back to safety.
For a fleeting second, fear flashes raw in his eyes.
HADES (to Lyra, low)
If you fall, Tartarus keeps you. Forever.
LYRA
If I stand still, Olympus keeps me.
(passes him)
Pick your jail.
A whisper coils from the abyss, intimate.
TITAN (O.S.)
Little lock. Ask him why you bleed when he touches you.
Lyra stops cold.
LYRA
(to Hades)
Why?
Hades looks away.
HADES
Because the curse tethered you. To all of us.
Lyra studies him, suspicion growing. The ledge turns toward a gate of twisted bone. Beyond it, faint thunder.
BOONE
Yeah, that doesn’t look creepy at all.
Lyra pushes forward. Boone follows. Hades lingers, troubled.
ACT I — SCENE 6 — INT. TARTARUS — THE HINGE PLAIN
A vast plain of black sand. At its center: a BRIDGE OF BONE arching to a monolithic DOOR. A seven-pointed STAR LOCK glows on its surface.
BOONE
…Nope. Nope, nope, nope.
HADES
The Hinge. Between prison and world.
They cross the groaning bridge. A skeletal HOUND erupts from the chasm. Lyra fights it, knife flashing. It clamps on her arm.
HADES (furious)
ENOUGH!
The hound shatters in obsidian. Lyra staggers, bleeding.
Hades hovers close, not daring to touch.
HADES (low, raw)
You bleed because I cannot hold you without breaking the world.
Lyra wraps her arm with cloth, defiant.
LYRA
Then we find another way.
Her blood drips on the door’s runes. The STAR LOCK flares. A shockwave ripples.
TITANS (O.S., chorus)
The first. The first is open.
The door groans. A distant glow flickers on the horizon, then dies.
Hades’ mask cracks—fear, real and unguarded.
HADES
War begins if they all open.
BOONE (whispers)
And if they do?
Hades looks at Lyra.
HADES
Then the world forgets how to stop.
The lock continues to hum—synchronized with Lyra’s heartbeat.
FADE OUT.
END OF ACT I
ACT II — SCENE 7 — INT. TARTARUS — FLAME CHAMBER (TRIAL OF FIRE)
A labyrinth of shifting WALLS OF FIRE. Heat distorts the air. The floor plates SLIDE unpredictably.
HADES raises a hand; a veil of SHADOW cools a narrow path.
HADES
Stay within the shade. Do not touch the flames.
BOONE
Copy that. Zero flame-touching. A-plus in not dying.
They move. A wall of fire pivots—CUTTING BOONE off.
BOONE
Uh—guys?
LYRA spins. The path to Boone NARROWS as two fiery walls grind together.
HADES extends shadow—FLAMES LICK through, searing it away.
HADES (grim)
Tartarus remembers me.
LYRA
Boone—on my count. Three, two—now!
She LEAPS through heat, grabs Boone’s collar, yanks him into a pocket of shadow. Her arm sizzles—fresh burns.
BOONE (choking)
Ow—ow—okay, I’m good—mostly—sorry—
LYRA (deadpan through pain)
Stop apologizing. Start breathing.
A LOW RUMBLE. The floor tilts; fire lines race toward them like fuses.
HADES slams his palm down—SHADOWS BLOOM in a ring, snuffing the fuse-flames just long enough for them to sprint across a final corridor toward an archway.
They BURST out into—
ACT II — SCENE 8 — INT. TARTARUS — COOL PASSAGE / BREATHER
Cool stone. Dripping water. Their breaths fog in the sudden temperature drop.
BOONE
So, we didn’t die. I feel like that deserves… I don’t know, a sticker?
Lyra quickly tears her sleeve, WRAPS Boone’s wrist where flame grazed him, then tends her own burns.
BOONE (softening)
You always do that. Patch me first.
LYRA
You’re worse at pretending you’re fine.
A quiet beat. HADES watches—severe, but something gentler in his eyes.
HADES
The next trial will not test your bodies. It will test your certainty.
LYRA
We were running low on that anyway.
She stands, jaw set.
ACT II — SCENE 9 — INT. MOUNT OLYMPUS — FEAST HALL (CUTAWAY)
GODS recline at a gleaming table. Pools of water show Tartarus like scrying screens.
ZEUS hurls a lightning bolt playfully into a brazier; it erupts into peacock-blue flame.
ZEUS
She stumbles prettily. Hades will break first.
HERA
Hades broke when he looked at her. Men are easiest when they think they’re strong.
ATHENA leans forward, studying Lyra’s image.
ATHENA
She reads locks like language. If she learns to read herself, it will not be us she breaks.
A hush. The gods glance at Athena.
ARES (amused)
Philosophy from the armchair again.
ATHENA
War is loudest right before it loses.
Their laughter is brittle.
ACT II — SCENE 10 — INT. TARTARUS — PUZZLE LOCK CHAMBER
A spherical chamber. FLOATING RUNES circle like planets, shifting too fast to track. A central LOCK CORE hums.
LYRA tries to grab a rune—it PHASES through her hand, flashing blistering light.
LYRA
Not brute force. Fine.
HADES
The sequence is older than Olympus. Written before pride learned its letters.
BOONE stares up, eyes darting, entranced.
BOONE
Wait—these aren’t letters. They’re… beats. Like a story drum.
Lyra and Hades look to him.
BOONE (pointing)
That one’s “river.” Then “forgetting.” Then “ascent,” “fall,” “gift,” “price.” It’s not reading— it’s… listening.
He moves his hands in the air, tapping a rhythm he remembers from some mortal story-night. As he taps, the runes SLOW, aligning to the beat. One by one they LOCK IN around the core.
HADES (quietly impressed)
Mortals hear what gods have forgotten.
LYRA (grinning)
Look at you.
BOONE (blushing)
I mean, I do read sometimes.
Final beat. The last rune clicks. The chamber EXHALES—pressure releasing. The lock core dims to safe.
BOONE (relieved)
So… sticker?
LYRA
Two.
She claps his shoulder. He beams.
ACT II — SCENE 11 — INT. TARTARUS — CROSSROADS CAVERN (CHARACTER BEAT)
A cavern with four tunnels yawning like mouths. Faint drafts carry different scents: brine, ash, cold iron, wildflowers.
BOONE (sniffing)
…Wildflowers?
HADES
Cruelty wears perfume here.
LYRA closes her eyes, listening. Each tunnel hums at a different pitch. One aligns with her heartbeat—unsettlingly intimate.
LYRA
Left. It’s singing my pulse.
HADES (low)
That is the Titans’ way of saying “welcome.”
LYRA
Then we won’t be polite.
They take the left-hand tunnel.
ACT II — SCENE 12 — INT. TARTARUS — CHAINED TITAN HALL (TEMPTATION)
A cathedral-sized hall. A TITAN sprawls in shadow, bound by seven colossal chains driven through its limbs. Its EYE opens: a storm caught in amber.
The chains THRUM when LYRA steps in.
TITAN (o.s., velvet thunder)
At last. The lock that breathes.
BOONE (small)
We can turn around. Totally allowed.
LYRA steps forward, chin high.
LYRA
Say what you’re going to say.
Images BLOOM in the air—visions from Lyra’s life:
— A child Lyra, hands outstretched, a foster-mother recoiling.
— A teenage Lyra, stealing bread, the baker snarling “cursed.”
— Lyra, grown, watching couples in a crowd, alone in a sea of warmth.
TITAN
They told you the curse was truth. But truth is what chains the weak. Curses are choices in finer clothes.
HADES (hard)
Enough.
TITAN (ignoring him)
You bleed when he nears because they bound you to pain—so he would fear his own touch. You began this a hundred and fifty years ago, little lock. Finish it with us. Free us, and free yourself.
LYRA (voice tight)
What happened— a hundred and fifty years ago?
A beat. HADES says nothing. The Titan smiles.
TITAN
He won’t tell you. He can’t.
HADES (to Lyra, urgent)
Tartarus lies by telling the part that hurts.
LYRA (to Hades)
Then tell me the part that heals.
Silence. Hades’ jaw locks. He cannot.
BOONE (stepping in)
Lyra, hey—look at me. You saved my life, like, twelve times today. If “unlovable” people do that, then the word doesn’t mean anything.
A crack runs through one of the CHAINS—a hairline fracture responding to Lyra’s roiling emotions.
HADES (alarmed)
Do not let it inside you.
TITAN
Let me inside you.
(beat, tender and ruthless)
Let me take the curse.
The chain’s crack widens, a low metallic WHINE.
Lyra’s fists clench. Tears threaten—she refuses them.
LYRA (to Titan, steady)
You don’t get to wear my pain like a crown.
The chain’s crack FREEZES, stops widening.
TITAN (soft)
Then wear it forever.
The eye CLOSES. The hall grows colder.
Hades moves closer—still not touching.
HADES (low)
You did not break. That matters.
LYRA
It keeps saying I started this. If that’s true… I get to end it my way.
She wipes her face, breathes. Nods to Boone.
LYRA (commanding herself)
Next trial.
They turn from the Titan as the chains VIBRATE behind them, like a hive of hornets awakening.
ACT II — SCENE 13 — INT. TARTARUS — SPIRAL OF ECHOES (TRANSITION TO CLIMAX)
A descending spiral tunnel where every footfall echoes as if a thousand versions of themselves walk beside them.
As they descend, faint ECHOES OF FUTURE VOICES flicker:
— ZEUS (echo): Seal them and live.
— TITANS (echo): Free us and be free.
— HADES (echo, fractured): To save you, I would burn the world.
— LYRA (echo, defiant): I choose neither.
Lyra pauses, listening to her own future. She squares her shoulders.
LYRA
Let’s go end a story.
They step into the dark.
SMASH TO BLACK.
ACT III — SCENE 14 — INT. TARTARUS — THRONE CHAMBER (THE FINAL LOCK)
A cathedral-sized cavern. The SEVEN-POINTED STAR LOCK looms, six points dim, one blazing. The air thrums like a heartbeat.
HADES, LYRA, and BOONE stand before it. Shadows crawl up the walls.
HADES
(tense)
This lock cannot open. If it does, Olympus falls.
BOONE
(whispers)
Then maybe we don’t… poke it? Just a thought?
The lock PULSES. Lyra’s cut arm prickles. Her blood calls to it.
LYRA
It wants me.
BOONE
(terrified)
Then don’t give it what it wants. Please.
Hades steps in her path, cloak of shadow unfurling.
HADES
He’s right. This is not your burden.
Lyra stares up at the glowing star. Her face hardens.
LYRA
It’s always been mine.
ACT III — SCENE 15 — INT. CHAMBER — SACRIFICE OFFER
The ground shakes. Dust falls. The lock vibrates, hungry. Boone shoves forward.
BOONE
Then take me instead. My blood, not hers.
Lyra spins, shocked.
LYRA
Boone, no—
BOONE
Why not? If it ends this—if it saves you—then that’s the deal I want.
His voice cracks, fear fighting courage.
BOONE (softer)
Better me than you.
Lyra grabs him by the shoulders, fierce.
LYRA
You think I fought through all this just to watch you die here? No.
A beat. They hold each other’s gaze. Boone blinks tears away, smiling weakly.
BOONE
Always gotta ruin my heroic moment, huh?
ACT III — SCENE 16 — INT. CHAMBER — HADES’ FURY
Hades’ mantle writhes like a storm. Shadows coil violently against the cavern walls.
HADES
Enough! Both of you!
The lock HUMS louder, feeding on his rage.
HADES (snarling)
Can’t you see? The Titans planned this. The gods planned this. Every drop of your blood is a chain they forged centuries ago.
He slams his fist into the floor. The cavern TREMBLES.
HADES (broken, to Lyra)
I would burn the world to keep you safe. Just say the word.
The shadows lash higher, nearly swallowing them.
LYRA (quiet but firm)
And then what’s left? A world on fire and me locked in the ashes with you?
Hades falters. His fury crumbles into desperation.
ACT III — SCENE 17 — INT. LOCK ARENA (VISION TRIAL)
The lock suddenly ENGULFS them in light. The cavern is gone. They stand in a surreal ARENA — sky split in two: Olympian thrones above, chained Titans below.
ZEUS (echoing):
Seal them! Save the world!
TITANS (chorus):
Free us! End your curse!
Boone runs toward her, shouting over the roar.
BOONE
Don’t listen! You’ve never needed them! You’ve always made your own way!
Hades appears beside her, eyes blazing.
HADES
Choose me. Let it all burn. I will keep you safe.
The arena shakes, pressing her on all sides.
Her curse echoes: Unlovable. Pawn. Cursed.
Lyra grips her blade.
LYRA
I’m done being anyone’s pawn.
She drives her blade into the ground.
ACT III — SCENE 18 — INT./EXT. COLLAPSE (THE BREAKING)
Light ERUPTS. The lock SHATTERS. Chains SNAP across Tartarus. The TITANS SCREAM, their colossal bodies disintegrating into ash and storm.
On Olympus, gods stagger. Zeus’ lightning bolt flickers and dies. Hera’s diadem splits. Athena gasps as her armor crumbles into dust.
The cavern crumbles. Power drains from every divine face.
Hades collapses to his knees, staring at Lyra in awe and devastation.
HADES (hoarse, reverent)
She broke the gods.
ACT III — SCENE 19 — EXT. RUINED WORLD — DAWN
Silence. The dust clears. A new DAWN creeps across a fractured Olympus skyline.
Lyra stands trembling, mortal again. Her glow gone, her curse lifted. She breathes freely for the first time.
Boone limps to her, laughing shakily, grabs her hand.
BOONE
So… what now?
Hades approaches, torn between devotion and loss. His shadows flicker, weaker than ever.
HADES (quiet, almost prayer):
You ended them. The Titans. The gods. Even me.
Lyra gazes at the horizon, eyes steady.
LYRA
Not ended. Freed.
(beat)
We start over. Not as gods. As us.
The three stand together, silhouetted against the rising sun.
FADE OUT.
Final Thoughts
Here’s the thing: The Things Gods Break isn’t just a romantasy, it’s a survival anthem. Lyra doesn’t choose the gods. She doesn’t choose the Titans. She doesn’t even let Hades decide for her. She chooses herself. She breaks the chains. She literally breaks the gods. And if that doesn’t make you scream, cry, and immediately start rereading the book, I don’t know what will.
If this ever got turned into a movie — with every lock, every trial, every heartbreaking stare between Lyra and Hades — I swear I’d camp out at the theater just to be the first inside. Because this story deserves to be shouted from rooftops. It’s not just fantasy. It’s defiance. It’s hope. It’s a middle finger to every curse we’ve ever been told about ourselves.
So yeah. The Things Gods Break is everything. And I’ll never stop being obsessed with it.
Short Bios:
Abigail Owen
An award-winning author of fantasy romance and romantasy, Abigail Owen is best known for weaving epic worlds of gods, curses, and forbidden love. Her Dominion series (The Liar’s Crown, The Stolen Throne, The Things Gods Break) combines mythic scale with emotional depth. She lives in Texas and has written multiple bestsellers, beloved for her strong heroines and darkly compelling heroes.
Lyra
A cursed young woman branded “unlovable,” Lyra is fierce, defiant, and determined to define her own destiny. Her blood holds the power to unlock the chains of Tartarus, placing her at the center of the gods’ and Titans’ struggle.
Hades
God of the Underworld, cloaked in shadows, both protector and danger. Bound by chains of his own making, he is torn between his desire for Lyra and the destructive power that surrounds them.
Boone
A mortal companion whose humor masks deep courage. Loyal to Lyra, he grows from comic relief into a pivotal ally, proving that mortals can matter even in a war of gods and Titans.
The Titans
Ancient, colossal beings imprisoned in Tartarus. Their voices whisper temptation, promising freedom and power to Lyra, but their true intentions remain dangerous and corrupting.
The Olympian Gods (Zeus, Hera, Athena, Ares, etc.)
The ruling powers of Olympus, arrogant and divided. They view Lyra as both a threat and a tool, mocking her trials even as they fear the prophecy of her breaking their power.
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