The Soul of a Bird Never Flies {boyxboy}

Prologue

"L-Love you..." Olha rasped, followed by a half-sob that cracked and wavered awfully, "always, L-Lu..."

One may say a broken heart can be fixed, that the loss of a loved one can be forgotten, dealt with, lessened with time. However, Lucifer didn't believe that. Earth-shattering, breathtaking, heart-breaking. Those words meant nothing, nothing, in comparison to the agony that spread through Lucifer's body as the life ebbed from his lover.

Those that hope for numbness, they will be sorely disappointed. There is no numbness, no parting in the torment. It is constant and it is torture. Lucifer knew that would be the case, he knew it as his fingertips grazed over Olha's eyelids, closing them for the final time. Every first with Olha, it was blissful, Lucifer hadn't been prepared for the sudden, crushing realisation that he had already experienced every last as well.

"Out," he whispered through gritted teeth, his eyes never straying from the final, pained expression that his lover wore, "out!" he repeated in a bellowing roar, sending the guests skittering from the room, leaving only one.

"Lu..." Syon stepped closer, speaking tentatively, aware of the temper, the beast, that resided within the now-broken man, "do you want me to-"

"Do something," Lucifer commanded firmly, his sorrow bleeding away to panic, to futile determination, "do something, Syon, bring him back, please. I'm begging you, please," the tears, once again, began to flow freely down Lucifer's cheeks. Syon bent down, a mournful darkness in his usually bright eyes, as he touched Olha's warm cheek.

"He's gone, Lu, I'm not sure I-"

"Syon, please," Lucifer's sobs became more erratic, deep broken breaths severed by echoing howls of misery. What was to be expected? His soul had quite literally lost it's other half, his life was no longer worth living, his previously coloured outlook had rotten away to simple monochrome. He felt dead on the inside, what difference would it make to complete the job and be with Olha in the afterlife? It would certainly be more preferable than existing in the purgatory he was now trapped in.

"There is something," Syon admitted finally, after a long moment of silence, "but it's unpredictable, Lu, I've only heard of the ritual performed in myths."

"Do it, please," Lucifer begged feebly, ignoring the ambivalence that contorted the man's expression. With a brief sigh, Syon rose to his feet, his apprehensive gaze flittering from Olha to Lucifer a few times before his demeanour altered.

"OK, I need you to move him," Lucifer scooped Olha up carefully into his arms, cradling the tepid corpse against his chest whilst he stepped back. With a pitiful expression, Syon gripped the arrow protruding from Olha and wrenched it free from the flesh, a sound that would forever haunt Lucifer. Syon used the arrow to manipulate the blood spilt over the ground, drawing symbols in the native language the villagers spoke and even some languages that were unknown to Lucifer himself.

"Undress him and lie him in the middle," Lucifer followed Syon's instructions, discarding Olha's clothing, leaving only the battered silver wedding band that the boy would have received at the end of the severed ceremony that evening. Pressing a gentle kiss to Olha's forehead, Lucifer returned to stand beside Syon.

"Do you trust me?" Syon asked, collecting a dagger from the altar at the end of the aisle.

"Implicitly," Lucifer replied without missing a beat, in a monotonous voice. Syon knelt beside Olha, glancing back at Lucifer for a second before carving an intricate symbol into the boy's hip. Lucifer merely observed, bemused for a moment as to why Olha wasn't bleeding, then remembering once again that the boy was no longer living, therefore his blood no longer flowed in his veins.

"Soul?" Lucifer questioned when Syon finished, allowing the man to manipulate his arm and drag the blade over it. Lucifer didn't feel a thing, just watched his blood drip down onto Olha's chest.

"Yes," Syon replied briefly, tearing a piece of cloth from his robe and wrapping it tightly around the wound on Lucifer's forearm, "Lu, are you sure you want to do this? We still have time to stop, to give Olha a nice burial-"

"I'll do anything, Sy," Lucifer interjected, "I can't live without him," Syon's lips lifted into a feeble smile before they dropped down once again into that sorrowful expression. Lucifer remained silent whilst Syon began the ritual, having been present for a thousand previous. The chanting was near discernable to Lucifer, with the witch speaking in languages he was unfamiliar with. Yet, the glowing gold of Syon's eyes was something Lucifer was familiar with, it must have meant the ritual was working, or so Lucifer prayed.

"You summoned," a hooded figure hissed in a hoarse voice, cloaked in black smoke, stood just behind Olha's head, just outside of the symbols, "and bound me?" the creature sounded puzzled, but not wrathful, Lucifer assumed that was a good thing.

"I request a favour," Syon's voice projected strength, not an ounce of fear managing to slip through. The creature made a raspy, breathy noise, almost as though it was laughing, although Lucifer wasn't even sure it could.

"And why do you believe I would perform any sort of favour for you?" Syon didn't respond for a moment, his brows knotted into a determined frown, "speak your wish, witch, I grow impatient."

"Return the human's soul, not to his body, but to a thousand after. Reincarnate him, through death and through strife, return him to this plane," the creature tilted it's head to the side, as if was actually considering the proposition.

"And what do you offer in return for my services?" Syon abruptly seemed thrown, he clearly hadn't expected the question, and most definitely didn't have an answer.

"Me," Lucifer chimed in, "the power that is contained within me, the power of a royal, pure bloodline," Lucifer felt the chill run over his body that preceded his true form. The colours bled from his eyes, leaving only a void of obsidian that matched the shade of the two horns that parted his hair. Last was the long tail that grew from the base of his back, over half of his extensive height, coiling around his hand as it often did.

"A Moloch? Pure of breed and-" the creature inhaled deeply, another of those distorted cackles leaving it's unseen lips, "teeming with... opportunities. I will grant your wish, Moloch, your human will be reincarnated in his body each time you fail. He will remain a mortal, but his soul will be tethered by your powers, he will be kept only on this earth as long as you remain alive. However, this is not eternal. If you manage to corrupt his soul, to make him immortal, our deal will be severed. He will no longer be brought back. Do that satisfy you?" Syon didn't speak, it was Lucifer's decision to agree or disagree with the creature. Lucifer took a moment to drink in the beauty of his lover, who looked so peaceful one would assume he was merely asleep. Any doubts before were snuffed out when Lucifer's eyes travelled to the ring encasing Olha's finger.

"Yes," Living without him just wouldn't be living. Existing simply wasn't enough.