Part 33

/Lukas POV/

The walk from the centre along the east shore was pleasant, a soft breeze cooling his forehead, ground still hard and split beneath his feet. A sigh escaped his lips.

It's been a week since that incident. Since he lost the love of his life, he cradled her dead body in his arms while begging Death to let her go. Of course, the price wasn’t easy. The Sun Prince should have known when he agreed to follow through with his promise.

Not a Prince anymore. He darkly chuckled at the bitter reminder. When Lukas agreed along with Death’s promise, he didn’t realise that leaving his family was a necessity. Anyway, Death at least managed to get a pledge from Zeus that he won’t kill Lukas family or anyone else for that matter.

There were many nights where he lay awake, not because of the heat of the place– still not used to it, by the way, but because Lukas was mourning. The despair made a home in his chest, and he doubted that it’s ever going to go away.

His memories with Talia will haunt him for the rest of his life. But he had to live this new life now, without friends and people he loved. As hard as he found it to believe sometimes. Lukas was taken to this new place and this new life, perhaps because he didn’t have something (or someone) that kept part of his mind anchored anymore. Not after Talia.

In his study, there were dozens of notebooks filled with his hasty scrawl that are proof of their love story, evidence of the fact that he was so absolutely terrified of forgetting, of starting to want to forget. So he’s written everything down, every word and every impression and thought and motion and touch because he wanted to move on and he wanted to hold on, and he’s probably lying to himself in both cases. In hopes that someone would read, understand, and it may not be the biggest tragedy, but his life changed in a way he didn’t expect.

The truth was, Lukas barely managing, if he’s being honest with himself, going day by day, one after the other. And sometimes it felt like he hasn’t taken a single breath since that night, chest tightening and throat lodged with a lump. It felt as if a heavy object settled over him, the burden of it making him want to give it all up.

Frowning around the ache in his chest that never seemed to go entirely away, Lukas opened the front door. It screeched in its hinges, and he made a mental note to get some oil and a screwdriver, perhaps also something to seal the small gaps in the window to prepare for the colder seasons. He walked along the hallway and into the kitchen and sitting room, fireplace in the left-hand corner, wide window panels showing the porch that surrounded the entire house. There’s no garden, no walls or fences, just a few yards of reed and then a sheer endless stretch of sand, deep blue sea extending to the horizon.

The glass doors of the tiny cabin leading outside were wide open.

The Son of Helios rounded the table, soft rug muffling his steps but floorboards creaking nonetheless, hands shaking, arms stiff by his side. The breeze had picked up, and the salty air whirled around him immediately, blowing his hair away from his face.

It took Lukas a few moments for his eyes to get used to the harshness of the wind, but then his vision cleared, and he took a couple more steps to the edge of the porch. Almost on their own, his legs moved down the small set of stairs, his bare feet digging into the warm, smooth sand.

He kept going, for some reason, until halting while overlooking one of his favourite places, facing the sea.

Talia loved the sea. Especially the beach. That’s why he asked Death to grant him that single luxury. It was not much, so his request was quickly granted. For that fleeting bliss, Lukas wanted to sit down, his toes digging into the warm sand and relive those memories he had with her. Taking a deep breath, he thought back to the day it all ended.

***

As soon as Talia’s soul was taken, Zeus fell on his knees in one corner, quite shocked. Her both sisters were crying, sitting by her side while Hera tried to console them. Lukas heart shattered at the image in front of him. The Prince never thought he would see them so broken, crying for the moon princess.

“It’s all your fault!” Ajaxson screamed, eyes impossibly wide and erratic. His hair was sprawled all over; fingers accusingly pointed in the direction of Lukas. The Greek God was about to attack him but held back by his parents.

“Let me go!” He squirmed in their grip, falling to his knees.

Lukas was taken back by his anger, the sudden change of emotion. The Prince had no idea that he would be so affected by Talia going away. Then again, he tricked her into marrying him, using all the cunning means to make himself a good guy.

“I was supposed to talk to her at the party before you.” Ajaxson pulled his knees together, mumbling those words, but they echoed around. “You stole my chance. Every fucking where! She was supposed to fall in love with me. Not for someone like you!”

He frowned, trying to think back to his words, but then gave up. There was no use in remembering that time, thinking back to those memories and pointing out the wrongs.

“Son, please calm down….” His mother softly cooed, tears pooling in her eyes as well. “She’s gone now.”

“No! I refuse to accept that” Ajaxson stood up. “We were supposed to get married. Live a happy life, have a child.” He directed his attention towards the Sun Prince. “You couldn’t see that, huh? Ruined all our chances of happiness for your selfish reasons!”

Lukas gritted his teeth, trying not to react to his words. His fingers closed around, exhaling loudly, hoping that Ajaxson would stop. It was not the right place or time to argue when Talia's family was crushed, mourning for their loved one. How could he make Talia’s loss all about himself?

“She would have come to accept our bond, our relationship. Lived in luxury. I could have given her everything!”

“Everything but love!” Lukas growled, unable to control himself anymore. “We were in love. You only deceived her, used her for your one-sided obsession. She saw you as a friend, her well-wisher, but you stabbed in her back every single time.” His voice choked up, imagining those shiny eyes that brightened up. Those hopeful little doe eyes believed and soaked up Ajaxson’s lies. “She was confident that you would help us break your arrangement. Talia had so much confidence in you, trusted you over and over again to say something.”

Ajaxson appeared at loss of words, mouth opening and closing. He didn’t blink for a long time, staring at the lifeless form of his betrothed. “B-But I loved her. I wanted to give her everything she could imagine and beyond.”

“Do not call it love!” Lukas huffed. “You wanted to possess her. As if she’s an object. Ajaxson if you loved her even for a second, then you would have let her go. You would have sacrificed for her sake.” The Prince wiped at his tears, clearing his throat. “If you have truly known her, you would know she wanted only one thing. Love.”

After that, no one spoke a word. The guards alerted everyone about the sudden demise of their beloved princess. Mourning processions began while Lukas had to follow the Death out of Olympus. He didn’t even get a chance to see his father, his friends or anyone else.

The scene that played out dissolved into nothing but black. He realised his face was wet, tears dripping down his cheek and staining the chiton.

The Death reappeared in front of him. His cloak seemed extra grim today, eyes squinting due to the light. Leaning down, he softly whispered. “Lukas?”

He immediately sat up, blinking through the tears. “Yes?”

“Are you ready?”

The Prince was going to die. To see Talia in the next life, that was his ultimate sacrifice. However, it came with a promise. The one he gave to Death so that his lover could have another chance at life.

He promised to become a demon. Lukas had no idea why Death asked him of that, only told him that his next life would be cruel and exciting. Give him everything he was destined to while also reunite with Talia. How could he say no to such a promise?

At the thought of reuniting with Talia, a grin appeared on his face. “Yes, I am ready.”

The Death chuckled, the hollow sound causing shivers to run down his spine. “Never seen a man so happy about losing his life.”

“That’s because death is not an end to me. It's a new beginning with my Talia.”

***