holy

xxiii

"luke," eddy replied bitterly, rolling his eyes as he sauntered towards the throne.

"it's king lucifer to you, edward," the devil sneered, "and don't get too close, you reek."

ignoring him, eddy walked up to the throne, finger tracing the intricate designs etched onto the metal.

"nice to see you again too," eddy snapped back, "and i suppose the messenger has already told you of my... earthly activities."

"hmm... more like your heavenly activities," lucifer quipped, spitting out the word as if it left a sour taste in his mouth. he stood up to meet eddy's stare, angry that the demon was still just a hair taller than him.

"why did you want to see me, then, brother?" eddy asked, ignoring the devil's insult of brett.

"can't we have a little family reunion? i've been worried about you, you know, and rightfully so."

eddy rolled his eyes at the insinuation.

"i should've never let you run off up to earth—not with all those angels around. we're both well aware of your sinful tendencies when it comes to your choices in...lovers."

before lucifer could even take a breath, eddy's large fist flew into the side of his face, skin colliding with skin so hard that the sound echoed in the spacious room.

"shut the fuck up," eddy growled, clenching his fists as he tried to hold himself back from killing his own brother.

the devil chuckled darkly, wiping the blood from his mouth, glaring back at eddy.

"don't be so mad, brother dearest, after all, you chose to be this way. it's no wonder father didn't pass the throne along to you."

every word that came out of lucifer's mouth simultaneously felt like a punch to the stomach and as if someone lit gasoline into his veins. it hurt like hell but it also made him very very angry.

"you know damn well i don't give a shit about the throne."

"ah, but you do care about, oh, what's his name, the an—"

his airways were cut off by a hand squeezing around his throat.

"keep his name out of your mouth, lucifer, or i'll kill you. for real this time." eddy's voice was low, that quiet type of anger that festered over hundreds of years of resent and hatred.

the devil gulped, trying to hide his fear.

eddy had tried to kill him once before, back when lucifer outed eddy to their father, the king at the time. his attempt was nearly successful, too. eddy was older, stronger, and much more powerful to tell the truth—yet nevertheless he was denied the throne and kicked out of the palace at once.

"now, if you called me down to hell just to torment me, then i'll gladly head back to earth." eddy released his grip on lucifer's neck, letting the devil's body slump to the floor as he turned to leave.

"eddy," lucifer called out, his voice weak and raspy. the demon grinned to see the devil on his knees before him, weakened and vulnerable. if only the people could see their ruler now.

"what?"

"father wants to see you. tomorrow."

the sound of eddy's shoes on the stone floor faded into the distance.

he walked home, numb and unfeeling even when he stepped a bit too close to the hellfire that sprung from the castle gates.

every step felt heavier and heavier, and by the time he reached his front door, he felt as if he might collapse.