Lucian's Kryptonite

III-XIII

Lucian sat on his balcony accompanied by Yuhan, who he showed mild interest in tonight, as he stared into the abyss while fidgeting with some sort of marble.

"Yes I heard you," Lucian said to Yuhan. He picked up his glass of whiskey, finishing it in a swig before facing Yuhan. "I'm always listening."

Yuhan could see the despair on Lucian's face. "How are you feeling?"
"The same as always," Lucian said. He opened the whiskey and filled his glass right below the brim.

Yuhan threw him a concerned glance, but said nothing. "And how do you usually feel?"
Lucian was upset. "Ha! You wanna know how I feel? I could burn the world right now and I have nothing stopping me. I'm a king who does nothing. I'm the so called devil and I haven't done shit to live up to it. I can't describe how I feel. I'm so angry and sad and then I get angrier and sadder."

A knock at the door snatched both of their attention. Lucian sighed, "I really don't wanna move," he gave Yuhan a blank stare before downing his glass and pouring another.

"Sure, my lord," Yuhan bowed before walking to the door. On the other side was Lilith. "I thought you burned," Yuhan said in slight disgust at her presence there tonight.

"I was reborn, idiot. Let me in," she rolled her eyes before pushing Yuhan along with the door. Her heel clacked as she stalked toward the balcony.

There, she found Lucian. Doing the same thing he's been doing all week. Staring into the drunken nothingness, fidgeting and drinking to numb himself.

She sighed before she sat down and filled herself a shot of whiskey. "This is for me," she said before she swallowed. She reached below the stand and pulled the ice container out. She scooped out ice with the golden shovel and tossed it into her glass. "This is for you." She told Lucian. She filled their glasses halfway, gladly passing him the liquid. "You too, Yuhan," she beckoned.

With a raise of their glasses, they cheered. "Glory to the devil! Reign in hell!" The warm fluid coursed through their bodies, replacing their sorrow with excitement and nostalgia.

"Speaking of rain, do you remember when you couldn't control your powers and it would rain lava and fire?" Lilith reminisced. "The good old days."
Yuhan joined with a rejoicing sigh, "Made Lava Lake. That's how our favorite spot was born."

"How could I forget? All the weak ones would shout across the kingdom, begging me to stop the assault coming from the sky. I didn't even know how to fly," a somber smile played upon his lips, "didn't even know how to be." Lucian didn't bother for the glass anymore. He went for the bottle, frivolously discarding his manners in a drunken bout as each drop of the amber liquid permeated his veins. The breeze slipped through his hair.

Lilith questioned, "How about it? How about Lava Lake?"

Lucian let the wind carry him from his seat to the balcony edge. "Why the hell not?" He agreed.

The lake no longer had fire dancing above its bay. The water was steaming, molten orange but that didn't stop Yuhan from surfing. The orange cobble mostly disintegrated into bright orange sand that surrounded the lake. The lava hissed bubbles, shooting the spewing molt a few feet away every time it sizzled.

"Don't just stand there," Lilith invited him, "get in." She eased herself into the stream, starting with her toe, then passing her ankle until she was knee deep. She tucked a stray hair. "Come on," she plunged underneath & gracefully swam to Yuhan's side, scaring him as she emerged with a grab of his surfboard.
"Not cool," Yuhan frowned.
"It would have been if he joined us," Lilith stated.

Their eyes were focused on Lucian. Being fond of him made the waters mellow. Fire danced in their eyes; their sadness was gobbled up at once when they saw Lucian throwing his clothes onto the sublime orange tinge.

"Alright!" Yuhan clapped. "Deserves a beer," he said to Lilith before he whisked himself away to the shore. She smiled as he walked toward, inch by inch of him sinking into the water, leaving only his handsome face untouched.

"I can't remember the last time we've spent our days like this," he said.
"Don't you miss it?" Lilith asked. He could still see the light in Lilith's eyes. He paused. "I do. I miss everything from back then," his casual friendliness turned into sorrow. "All of it."

The plain expression in his face only exacerbated the mood. She groaned before taking his hand, making him face her. "You're the best king ever. Don't ever say you're not because you simply are."

"Doesn't feel like it right now," he donned in his gloom.
"What does being a king feel like?" Curiosity filled Lilith's mind and she didn't hesitate to ask.
He faltered trying to find the words. He dragged his finger through the water, sending ripples away from them.

"It's so glorious," he played with the water, sending a few splashes here and there before completely submerging himself in the bubbling hot spring. He rose through the surface, letting the cascading water flow down from his hair and face. "It's like having the world in the palm of your hand," he flexed his palm. " You can build it up, you can destroy it, or you can just watch. Watch everything— watch it crumble, watch it grow, watch it as it accommodates." He slammed his palm shut. "And just as glorious, it's sickening and maddening and quite frightening." He looked to the midnight moon hanging above them, grateful to be basking in its radiant shine.

Lilith swam closer, intrigued by his answer. "Do you ever wish to cease being a king? Be normal?"

"Ha," he laughed. "Be normal? Yes, me. Live normal. I want to go off with a million whores on a yacht and sail into paradise until I reach a sea of nothingness and drown in lustful riches. How does that sound for normal?"

"Sounds entirely plausible, especially coming from you," Lilith rolled her eyes. "Maybe you should do those things," she suggested. "Maybe you'll find happiness again and smile like you used to." She used her index fingers to pull his frown into a forced smile. "Demon whores and a yacht? Is that all?" Yuhan floated by on a gentle wave. "I highly doubt you're serious," he continued to float.

"I have something you should see," Lilith dragged him to the sky with her. "Look at this, Lucian. It's beautiful. You created this kingdom and it's not going anywhere. You can take a break," Lilith urged.

"You're not just saying this because you covet my kingdom?" Lucian's face scrunched in perplexity.

"I may want your position, but I want you to be at your best when I take it from you," she replied.

"Whatever," he scoffed.
"You know, if you do decide to cruise off, if the whores don't work and the girls die, I'll always be here," Lilith added.
"I know. I know," he said as she pat his shoulders.
"Race you to the river!" Lilith challenged Lucian in a frenzy.
"You're on," he accepted confidently.