The Devil & The Draxon

Interlude: A Different Path

He watches as hundreds of thoughts flash past Amenadiel's conflicted eyes before the elder angel finally nods. "Fine. Maze, will you at least go with him?"

"Of course." The demon twirls her blades. "Like I'd let that overgrown lizard anywhere near Lucifer again."

Lucifer almost laughs; he never thought he'd need protection from Nyxeus. What had gone wrong? Everything had been perfect. So beautiful and peaceful. And yet, everything had been destroyed. He'd been taking care of Hell when he'd been attacked by a dragon. Then a group of eight demons had appeared to help him fight the creature off, and they told him of a plot they'd discovered for the dragon king to have Lucifer killed. And they'd had proof.

But... Knowing what he knows now, years later and after working homicide cases... It doesn't make sense.

Something tightens in Lucifer's throat at that thought. He swallows, trying to dislodge the feeling, but it only gets tighter. Nausea fills his stomach and bitter taste floods his mouth.

It doesn't make sense.

A dragon could have fought nine opponents easily. The 'proof' that had been presented, a dragonrune letter written in Nyxeus' elegant scrawl and signed with his talon print, could have been faked. Not easily faked, but faked all the same. And Lucifer knows the king; if Nyxeus wanted him dead, Nyxeus would have done it himself.

So what had happened, all those eons ago?

"It's wrong," Lucifer murmurs. It was more than a small thought now. It was stronger, gathering speed as pieces fell into place and Lucifer's suspicions grew. "It's all wrong. But then I— Oh, Nyxeus..."

"What's wrong, Lucifer?" Chloe asks softly.

His lips purse and he swallows thickly. "Everything I thought I knew about— Crime barely existed back then, Detective, not to mention something like planned murder. The idea of it amongst divines was despicable, murder was a human concept after Cain— No one had understood it, so when Nyxeus seemingly plotted to kill me? There was no precedent. No clear way to handle it at all. We never even thought to investigate it further."

Chloe's eyes widen now. "You think you missed something?"

"Eight demons and myself against a dragon," Lucifer says softly. "We should have struggled much more than we did, but..."

He can't bring himself to say any more. If he speaks, then it's real. This deep feeling of wrongness to a case several millennia old now. And if these new suspicions are right, then what has Lucifer done? To Nyxeus, to the dragons, to himself. He's liking this idea less and less, but Charlie—

He doesn't have a choice.

Lucifer releases a shuddering breath and forces himself to stand. He can't back down now. He won't.

"One hour, Lucifer," Amenadiel says firmly.

The devil nods as Maze moves closer.

"Lucifer, hold on," Chloe says breathlessly, her eyes wide. "You never even hinted, and— You really loved him, didn't you? The king of dragons?"

The weakest of smiles crosses Lucifer's lips. "I still love him, Detective." Lucifer ducks his head, swallowing the lump in his throat. "He was my everything."

And with that, he and Maze disappear.

⚯

Hell is dreary, as always. Ash floats down from the sky, the sharp scent of brimstone and sulphur hanging heavy in the air. Lucifer lands outside the chained door, setting Maze down before the demon tries lightly stabbing him.