Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

It was a miracle whenever Lucius had a block of time to himself, away from his studies at Mordhaus.

Offdensen had insisted that they would waste no time when it came to his education. Whether it would be in the form of combat, logistics training, delegation, civics, ‘religious’ studies, music theory, or childhood developmental milestones, Lucius would absorb it all.

If it wasn’t for his big sister who would go to bat for him now and again, his new friend Jules, who had visited once in a while, or Sköll who made a very decent alarm clock for when they both needed feeding, he was pretty sure that he would have burned out a long time ago. 

He took off his socks and shoes to dip his toes in the pond. He loved the public park here. It wasn’t the beach, or the swimming pool he used to visit when he was little, but there was something about the water…

He closed his eyes to listen to his surroundings and smiled when he heard it. 

Children giggling.

That was a sound that was better than any music he would ever hear. A sound that made all this hard work worth it.

It was funny. He recalled something from one of the few times his mother brought him to church to make sure he was on his best behavior when he got into a fight at the playground at school. “Suffer the little children to come unto me…” Or something like that. 

He was pretty sure people running around calling him the equivalent of Metal Jesus by a bunch of religious kooks was considered blasphemy to a lot of people who weren't metalheads, but he wasn’t really the type to believe in all that stuff anyway. He still wouldn’t have believed Offdensen if it weren’t for the dreams…and his episode .

He didn’t fully remember what happened. One minute he heard his sister screaming from the ‘basement’ and the next thing he knew, he woke up in a hospital bed. But it was enough to terrify the Klokateers who had seen it. Some of them even went out of their way to call him “Messiah” despite his discomfort with the title. Oh well. There was no turning back. He made the choice, and would do the work for them. His half siblings all needed someone to look out for them, end of the world or not. And if they won’t have their father, the least he could do was pick up the slack with the resources he fought his way into getting.

“Aw…such a cute puppy!”

Lucius opened his eyes to see a girl around his age petting Skoll, who let out a playful yip. 

She looked conventionally attractive, and was dressed for the summer weather. Long brown hair with a tan. He had seen many girls like her in highschool, back in Los Angeles. Perfectly normal.

He kindly asked, “He’s still in training, can you ask next time?”

The girl’s bubblegum pink nails quickly pulled away from the pup’s head. “Sorry about that. He was just so cute I couldn’t help myself!” 

Lucius shook his head and explained, “It’s okay, he’s a wolf hybrid, and he is going to be really big. So, I have to be really careful how I train him now, so jumping on top of people won’t become an issue later.” 

He was not going to go into detail that it was a dire wolf hybrid. 

The girl nodded in understanding before taking off her sandals and dipping her feet into the water. 

“What’s his name?”

He got the pup to heel before he gave her a nod, indicating that she was now allowed to pet him.

“Sköll.”

The girl smiled, still idly petting the wolf pup, “Interesting name.”

He nodded, too dumbstruck to know what to say next as he stared at her lips. Huh. Braces. 

“Do you have a name just as interesting?”

“Lucius.”

He took a deep breath before he looked at her gray eyes. He didn’t want to be rude, but he also knew if he stared too long into them, she would start spilling her guts to him.

At least, that was how he thought it worked.  It was partly the reason he avoided people. If he stuck around them too long…he would hear secrets that no one would normally share. Deep personal details about their lives, their hopes, their fears…Sometimes, it was a good thing, and that deep level of conversation would be some sort of catharsis for both parties involved. But other times…he heard things that no one should ever hear. Horrifying things. Brutal things that made him think that the world should burn.

“I’m Chastity.”

The sound of her name snapped him back to reality. 

“I guess we both have just as interesting names, too.”

 She giggled, leaning closer to him. Like she was magnetically drawn to his presence. “You know, Lucius, you’re different from the guys I've met before.”

He looked up at her “What do you mean?”

“Well, usually by now you would ask me for my number, try to take a pic…” She playfully kicked the water to make it splash.

He shook his head in an awkward laugh. “No. It’s not like that, I just…don’t really think about that sort of thing.”

And he wasn’t lying. He had been too busy throughout his life to even make friends, let alone think about romance. And even if he did, who would stay by his side through all this supernatural bullshit? Certainly not a normal girl. He wasn’t about to be selfish enough to put any girl like Chastity through that. “You’re very pretty but…”

She giggled again. “Relax…I’m not asking you out on a date. It’s just an observation.”

Curiosity got the better of him. He had to ask, “It’s a problem for you? Being pretty?”

He knew his own answer. It was a problem he understood well. The minute he started looking more like his dad, he often got unwanted attention because of his looks from the wrong kind of people. People who would either feel too comfortable to give him things unprompted but also just as comfortable to take things that they wanted too.  He was pretty sure it was an issue for his sister and the Deadbeat too. 

Chastity sighed to herself and tried to answer before they both heard it.  The sound of rustling in the bushes along with the sound of a phantom...

“K-k-k-k-”

The hell?

Both teens saw the wolf pup dart immediately to the bushes and take a bite out of something. 

“K-k-k-k-Ow!” A man in a garish neon outfit and clown makeup, that left little to the imagination, tumbled out of the bushes. “C-c-c-can someone get this d-d-d-dog off me!” the man yelped, trying and failing to shake the pup off his ankle. Sköll's jaw, however, had much too firm of a lock on him.

Lucius heard about this guy. He had listened to Zazz Blammymatazz on CD a few times. But he wasn’t a fan of glam rock or the clown theme. That was Dr Rockso. The first out of the entire band to fall hard to cocaine addiction over the years. His mom had warned him often when he was a kid that addicts were never to be trusted. They would do anything to get their fix, whether that was steal, beg, or get violent.

He really didn’t want to call Sköll off of him, but the clown hadn’t presented himself as a threat. Yet. 

He whistled, and the pup let go of the walking talking example of an anti drug PSA in a clown suit. “K-k-k-k- Thank you, Baby!”

 Rockso brushed the dirt and the leaves off his clown suit, not even bothering to wipe off the white powder from his nose. “I’m Doctor Rockso, the Rock N’ Roll Clown! I do Co-”

“- I know who you are,” Lucius interrupted. He was not in the mood to entertain the notion of making this guy feel welcome. 

That didn’t stop the clown from talking. “But I don’t know you. Say…you look like Skwis #2! Bet you’re just as popular with the l-l-l-ladies, b-b-b-baby!”

It took every ounce of restraint Lucius had not to sic Sköll on him again.

Chastity shrank behind the boy she just met, not making eye contact with Rockso.

“K-k-k-k-helloooo again, Chastity!” he sang songed, as she made herself even smaller behind Lucius. 

This wasn’t good.

Lucius stood up to physically get between the addict and the teenage girl. She was going to feel safe around him. He would make sure of it. “You two know each other?”

“Just a mutual acquaintance, b-b-b-baby…” Rockso answered, wiggling his eyebrows comedically. No one was amused.

Sköll growled at the clown as he started to get…too close to Lucius’s personal space. The old man’s disgustingly chapped lips hovered over his ear with menace. 

“How 'bout you back off my lady, man and we can forget about aaaalll this ever happening.”

That was when Lucius remembered one of the songs he heard on the album. The one that Rockso was famous for writing. The one that ended his career.

Dory McClean… only 14! 

This guy was a hebephile .

And he had his sights on Chastity!

“K-k-k-k-hurgh!” Lucius balled a fist with no hesitation and smashed it against the clown’s solar plexus, making him collapse on the ground. The teenage boy had never been more thankful for combat training in his life. 

“What the-”

Lucius took advantage of the opening he created to kick the clown’s face in. 

Chastity stood in alarm, but she made no move to interrupt. That old clown had been stalking her for two weeks, despite a restraining order. If anyone deserved a beating for what he did to her mom, and her, it was him.

Sköll continued to growl at the clown, waiting for the order to attack.

Rockso felt the sickening crunch of his nose underneath the kid’s foot. How in the hell was a twiggy kid that size this strong? He clearly picked the wrong fight with the wrong person. Shit. “W-w-w-wait!”

He was interrupted again, this time by a hard kick in the nuts.

Screw cheating if it meant he would never be able to use his equipment to touch another underage girl again.

Rockso let out a comical yelp at the kick to his balls before Lucius leaned down to pull the clown by the choker. 

Then it happened. 

The ground cracked underneath the boy’s feet and the clown’s body. Enough to make Chastity run to the nearest tree in alarm. There have never been earthquakes here before!

Lucius slammed the back of Rockso’s head against the hard ground, knocking his vision out of focus. Then he pulled the clown’s collar to make the man look him in the eye. 

Rockso had his fair share of violent beatings in his life. Whether it was in the prison showers, or during his visits to Mordhaus, he was no stranger to being roughed up enough to the point he was hospitalized. Hell, his dick had long since stopped functioning normally because he was beaten so badly.

So, it wasn’t the violence that made the clown fear for his life. 

It was the yellow glow in the kid's eyes. It burned brighter than any time he had stared into the sun during a drug fueled bender. 

A symphony of voices, from either heaven or hell, joined with the howling of wolves, fell out of the boy’s mouth. 

“ You lowlife, rotten piece of shit addict…”

Wetting himself, Rockso started begging for his life. “P-p-p-please! I’m s-s-s-”

Another slam. This time it was harder. 

The voices and wolfsong grew louder.

“You touch little girls with no guilt for your sins!” 

Lucius slammed his head into the dirt again, leaving bloodstains from the back of the man’s head.

“You deserve to DIE!”

Rockso violently coughed but his eyes still couldn’t tear away from the horror. That light that made him feel both alive and dead all at once.  

“YOU DESERVE TO GO TO HELL!”

Chastity screamed in her own terror, huddled against the tree. All the children playing in the park with their parents wailed inconsolably. But it wasn’t enough to snap him the avenging angel from his divine wrath. 

Knowing full well that this kid was going to murder him on the spot, Rockso shouted in the air, “S-S-S-S-SAVE ME!”

A pair of strong arms pulled Lucius in a tight embrace, causing the brightness in the boy’s eyes to snap back to their normal blue hue.

“It’s okay. You got him. You did good.”

Magnus made sure his grip on the teenage boy was tight enough so he wouldn’t flail around. It was one thing to watch a junkie like Rockso get his ass kicked. It was another to watch an innocent kid get thrown in jail for murder. “Breathe, kid.”

Lucius does, slowly. The earthquake, along with the quaking in his own body, subsided. 

Still trying to regulate his breathing, he scanned his brain trying to remember the last time any guy held him like this. Paternally. 

His grandfather died before he was born. His dad was a deadbeat. Even his guitar teacher never held him like this.

This felt nice.

“You’re ok” Magnus reassured before inspecting the blonde kid in front of him. Huh. He looked alot like…He shook his head. Now wasn’t the time. “You hurt?”

Lucius shook his head, but his expression fell when he saw Chastity huddled behind the tree with Skoll rubbing against her ankle for her own comfort. 

His ears finally registered the sound of wailing children.

He made them cry. 

It was his fault. They felt unsafe because of him. 

He had to get out of here. 

Magnus caught his wrist before he could completely run away, and handed him a flier. 

“I have anger issues too, kid. If you ever want to talk, I own this place.”

Lucius didn’t look him in the eye as he snatched the flier out of his hand and shoved it in his pocket. 

Skoll bounded after him when Chastity shouted. “Wait!”

But it was too late. He was already gone, leaving his shoes beside her sandals at the edge of the pond. 

Magnus hovered over the trembling Rockso, who acted like he was on another one of his bad trips again. He looked at Chastity, then he looked at Rockso, piecing a few things together. Then he gave the clown his own kick in the groin. “You’re lucky I was here or he would have killed you on the spot.”

“K-k-k-k”

Magnus spat on him. “And if he wasn’t just a kid with a clean record? I would have let him .”

“K-k-k-k”

Magnus leaned down and growled, “Do all the drugs you want, I don’t give a rat’s ass. But if you so much as go looking for another sequel to “Dory McClean”, I will finish the job."

Rockso could only continue to stutter, staring at the sky. He was sure he saw Judgement Day. He decided he was going to actually listen to the sermon at the Church before his free meal on Sunday.

Chapter Text

The fluorescent lighting cast a dim glow on the green walls of the underground facility that held one of the world's most deadly and terrifying secrets.

Salacia basked in the silence, knowing that everything was going according to plan. Operation Falconback was well underway, and his strength had been steadily growing. But he needed to be careful. Watch at every angle before he would find the right time to strike. There was much at stake.

Senator Stampingston, ever so loyal, spoke up. “Gentlemen, we have an updated status report regarding the offspring of the members of the band.” He pressed a button on the console in front of him. Several paternity suits, documents, and pictures of children who strongly resemble Skwisgaar Skwigelf, Nathan Explosion, and other members of the band were on immediate display. 

Salacia did not react. It did not matter to him if the Sisters decided to breed Incomplete children of their own. Just like the rest of humanity, he would slate them for destruction. His destruction.

Senator Stampingston continued, “One of them has made their way past the gates of Mordhaus and has since become an unofficial protégé of the Band’s Manager, Mister Charles Foster Offdensen.”

He pressed the button and displayed a few grainy security photos of a teenager in ratty clothing, equipped with a ratty backpack, and a guitar strapped to his back. The profile of a standard runaway. 

“Lucifer Ivar Valley, born to Lillith Ishtar Valley, now deceased. Age 16. Former resident of Los Angeles, California. High school dropout, former part-time fry cook at Dimmuburger and the bastard son of Skwisgaar Skwigelf.”

Vater Orlaag couldn’t help but comment. “Named for the Prince of Darkness himself.”

Stampingston cleared his throat and said, “Reintroducing our child control expert and our fatherhood expert, Dr Imptnin Pmiltson, and Professor Jerry Gustav Mangledink.”

Both men glared daggers at each other, almost daring the other to speak first, before Stampingston, who was in no mood for conflict, interrupted them. 

“Gentlemen…”

Mangledink went first, “I have said before, we must fear children. In the case of celebrity children, we should fear them even more. They have the resources and the privilege inherited by their parents. With that privilege, however, comes a lack of proper parental attention thanks to the celebrity parent’s greater dedication to fame and status.”

“What makes this one more special than the others? Aren’t there a thousand of these little bastards running around?” Crozier looked unconvinced that this could be any real threat.

Pmiltson cleared his throat and began to speak, much to the annoyance of Mangledink. “Just like demigods, and heroes of ancient lore, any child born to humble beginnings has the potential to become a favored heir to the kingdom of the heavens. And in the case of this child, this hero was born to humble beginnings, and carries the same gifts as his father.”

There was footage of the child performing on the street. He played an electric guitar faster than any normal sixteen-year-old rightfully should. The kid was a musical prodigy.

Mangledink added, “If these favored children worship their parents, they will spread the message of their parents to create the metal revolution we previously discussed. If they resent their parents, they will abandon all values entirely to create an entirely different world no adult can predict or control. Either way, it could spell doom for us all!”

“Dear God…” Crozier could only comment. 

Salacia frowned slightly. 

God. There were more than one. All of whom came from a place beyond the known universe. 

The Ether.

An infinite void beyond life, death, the concept of time, and space. It was creation and destruction. Everything and Nothing.

Their more indirect offspring, animals, plants, fungi and humanity, had a bloodline so diluted that they could only see small glimpses of the Ether. Usually through dreams, prophecy, near-death experiences, and other phenomena.

And from those small glimpses, spirituality, language, music, art, and emotion sprung forth. It was why everything was right and wrong at the same time.

Direct gateways to the Ether were rare, but were not impossible to find among the Cosmos. And that gateway was coming. The Doomstar. All he needed was enough divine power. The power that he was already growing, amplified by the power of other demigods along with the right tools, and he would become Whole. 

He stared at the latest footage of Lucifer in the park. The earth quaking combined with the glow in his eyes. A glow that did not belong to Salacia. This  half child should not be able to summon the lights. He did not look spiritually practiced, had no resources or raw materials. He didn’t even have the Doomstar.

Unless…

Mangledink continued, “Both with celebrity children…” 

The Gods were mocking his efforts!

Pmiltson interrupted Mangledink, shoving him aside for more attention “-and with divine heroes-”

One of them had chosen a favored child!

“They can either ascend to greatness-” Mangledink shoved Pmiltson even harder.

A favored child that wasn’t him !

Pmiltson smacked Mangledink out of the way “-or fall to tragedy”

IT WASN’T FAIR!

A crunch interrupted the two experts, who were about to trade blows. 

Everyone in the room looked at the large hand that lightly crushed the damaged armrest in awe and horror, wondering what they had done to incur his wrath. 

Salacia loosened his grip, acting like it had never happened.

If there was a strong possibility the half child had resentment towards his own Earthly father, who had forsaken him, then the Gods gambit would not pay off. 

After all, he had the same resentment towards his own Divine and Earthly parents for forsaking him. For leaving him Incomplete. 

If he was patient, the problem would take care of itself. He was still only a child. A seed that had barely begun to sprout. He would crush him. Just like the rest.

He gave the order. “We will let the resentment in his heart fester…”

Crozier didn’t like the idea of waiting for this to be an utter disaster. He looked at the state of the boy in one photo. He might have a few strings he could pull to get the kid away from Offdensen and the dangers of Dethklok. A boy that age should be with a proper family.

Until then.

They both would wait.

—

Lucius knocked on his mentor’s door at 5 am with coffee in one hand and a yawn covering the other. Skoll, who was off-leash, dutifully sat beside him with a yawn of his own.

After the disaster that had been his confrontation with the Deadbeat, who still didn’t want anything to do with him, Offdensen worked out a schedule where the two would never physically cross paths. 

Truth be told, Lucius was perfectly fine with the arrangement. He didn’t get much sleep, anyway.

He may have understood that there was no reasonable way that the Deadbeat could be there for all his children. But that didn’t mean he wasn’t still annoyed and offended that the man didn’t give a shit. 

He could easily imagine his other half brothers and sisters lying awake at night, wondering what they did wrong. What they did to deserve to be forgotten by their father. He knew he felt that way. He still did.

“Right on time. Please, come in.”

The teenager made a point not to drag his feet on any carpeted areas and sat down one seat away from his mentor, crossing his arms. 

His relationship with his tutor was just as complicated.  

Apparently, Offdensen had taken a vested interest in his future specifically after his mother confronted him about his awful behavior and only after he could connect the dots that he was part of some sort of vague minor prophecy.

If he hadn’t passed his stupid test and made the choice to take on the responsibility for his half siblings, he was sure he would still be in the California foster system with dirty money and a music catalog holding the legal version of a “fuck you very much” on paper.

Again, he could understand why he did the things he did, but he couldn’t bring himself to completely forgive Offdensen, either. 

But he knew he had to work with him, so he made a point to keep his mouth shut.

Most of the time.

Especially if he didn’t want to be assigned extra homework.

Offdensen could already feel the beginnings of a headache coming on and he had already prepared with Tylenol ahead of time. 

In some ways, dealing with Lucifer was better than dealing with the band themselves.

He was a studious and intelligent teenager who usually knew how to be polite in public. He also kept himself clean, avoided sex like the plague, and didn’t make a habit of causing excessive amounts of trouble, except for his attempt to break into Mordhaus. Even then, it was easily explained away by an understandable fit of grief that any recently orphaned child would go through. 

But in other ways, dealing with Lucifer was also worse than the band.

The teenager was reluctant to ask for help from others on a good day and often led a self-imposed, self-isolating lifestyle. He was also more stubborn. When he believed he had the moral high ground, he was quick to dole out harsh judgment towards others in the form of sarcasm that was as sharp as it was ruthless. But as hard as he was on others, he was doubly hard on himself, which led to some issues of rage induced outbursts.

He was certain that if it wasn’t for the boy’s older sister, Nathan’s boy, and the ‘therapy wolf’, that these emotional outbursts would have been much worse. 

Which brought him to the topic of this meeting. 

“I heard you had a brief incident at the public park yesterday.”

Lucius avoided eye contact. 

Charles wondered for a moment if he was this moody as a teenager. He should give his own father a call and apologize. Again. 

Still, he had a job to do. So, he tried to appeal to his sense of humor. Lighten the mood.

“Off record, no one would have blamed you if you finished the job. Dethklok Inc. could afford the bail money. You-ah might have gotten an award for it.”

Lucius knew it was his way of trying to reach out. And he was too tired to deal with a grudge this early in the morning. The coffee hadn’t kicked in yet. So, he gave him a polite chuckle.

The manager offered a hint of a smile. “That wasn’t so hard, was it?”

Lucius raised a brow. “What do you mean?”

“Forgiveness.”

Lucius clammed up again, not comfortable with the topic. He distracted himself by sipping his coffee. 

“You know-it wouldn’t hurt for you to extend the occasional olive branch. Even for the people who hurt you. Especially your father.”

Loving someone despite disappointment was one thing. Deep down, he couldn’t help but still love him. How could he not? He was his-

But forgiveness? How could he forget the damage that he had done? That he was continuing to do with his behavior?

“Are we all still bastards?” He asked. 

Charles sighed at the question. They both knew the answer to that one. 

“It’s still part of the job description of Messiah.” He answered calmly. 

“My forgiveness only depends on those who actually seek to earn it, not selfish assholes.”

Charles didn’t have the energy to chide him for language. 

Skoll, sensing his distress, hopped on his lap. 

“Then you will lead a very lonely life, young man. I hope you are prepared for that isolation.” Charles knew that isolation all too well. His own lack of forgiveness had hampered any prospect of a relationship outside of professional ones. 

“You’re one to talk.”

The coffee had kicked in.

Charles furrowed his brow, not liking the direction the conversation was going. “Elaborate.”

“The Basement, Often Sin .” 

Charles didn’t know what pissed him off more. The fact that the teenager was being a smartass, or that he was technically right. 

“Don’t push it.” he scolded. 

He may have made many mistakes by putting up with belligerent behavior from the band, but he was not going to repeat those mistakes by putting up with it from him . 

He was the world’s promise. An insurance policy that required the utmost care and investment. Whether the band would succeed in preventing the Metalocalypse, he did not know, but he would be damned if he failed the children a second time. 

It was one of the biggest regrets of the multitude of sins that he carried with him. And if there was still life in his slowly beating heart, then he would atone for them by giving the children the tools they needed to build a better world. After all, wasn’t that the duty of a foster parent?

“The world is more than just sinners and saints. You would do well to remember that. Humanity is complex, and there is no such thing as a perfect world without sacrifice. Even when you try to create a new one, you will make mistakes. You will hurt people unintentionally. It's the choices that you make afterward that matter. And one day, you will need forgiveness from others too.”

Lucius idly pet Skoll, chewing on what he had to say. 

Figuring the lecture was enough, Offdensen cleared his throat to change the subject as he opened a briefcase.  

“Nonetheless, you are at the stage now where you are finished with the theory portion of your curriculum. The shelter is well underway. You helped create a solid governing structure, based on the reviewed material, and I made sure the appropriate funding is behind it.” 

“All we have left is the above ground entry point, but we will cross that bridge when we get to it.”

He pulled a folder out and tossed it in front of him. “Given we don’t have much time between now and the Metalocalypse, we need to develop your leadership skills while spreading the message to your half brothers and sisters regarding the place we are building for them. And the best way to do that is…”

“Start a band and write The Hymn of Peace Eternal.” Lucius answered for him, not needing to open the dossier in front of him. 

“Correct.”

Charles couldn’t help but feel a small amount of pride.

“Once we get the structure of your band settled, get some songs recorded, and handle an initial press release, you will be well on your way, Lucifer.” 

Lucius groaned, “Don't call me tha-”

“-Your mother, may she-ah rest in peace, gave you that name, and it is much more useful for branding, don’t you think?” He answered. “Given your choice of band name.” 

Lucius smiled to himself. He was quite proud to have come up with “Mourning Star.”

“You better get used to thinking about your image and being in the spotlight, Lucifer. It’s integral to getting the message heard.” Offdensen answered, putting on his ‘manager hat’.

A female voice came from the intercom at the center of the table.

“-What the Robot forgot to say is that it’s also important that you make some friends, little bro.”

Offdensen held back an irritated sigh. The Tylenol wasn’t enough. 

“You raise a good point, 424-” He groaned in frustration. She was no longer a number anymore. Her position was just as secret to the band as Lucifer’s and his. Hence why he had to publicly discharge her for that little stunt with the tribute wig.

“Al-” That wasn’t right either.

She got prickly when he used her proper name, and the last thing he needed was his coffee to suddenly turn to decaf. Or any more subscriptions to the most questionable porn magazines known to man inside his dossier. Thank God he was able to throw the band under the bus for that one. That reminded him, he still owed Murderface an apology for shifting the blame. 

Lucius snickered. This would always cheer him up.

“-your sister is right.”

Charles rubbed his temples. Next time, he would have to use stronger stuff he would have on reserve for dealing with the band.

“You could stand to develop a group of people you can trust if you are going to lead a band, let alone an entire commune properly.”

Poppy interrupted him with a squeal and asked, “Did you tell him yet?!”

“I believe that is the next topic o-”

“Jules is in your band!”

Lucius shot up from his chair, grinning in a rare display of joy, “Really?!”

Charles cleared his throat, annoyed at the stolen thunder. “Yes. Julius Seefore volunteered to dru-ugh!”

The boy interrupted him with an unprecedented hug , despite being in a judgmental mood only a few minutes ago. 

“Thankyouthankyouthankyousomuchyouwontregre-”

Charles stiffened, wondering about the last time anyone hugged him. Or when the boys even gave him a proper thank you. Right. Syria. Things had gotten better since then with the boys but that didn't mean he didn't appreciate gratitude. Especially on this level.

Skoll’s playful bark was enough of a cue for Lucius to pull away from his mentor, who quickly fixed his tie and glasses. 

The words came out of Charles’s mouth before he could even form a cohesive thought. “Take the rest of the day off.”

“Really?” He beamed. 

“Would you rather I give you more homework?” Charles joked, now in a much better mood. 

Lucius quickly took that as his cue and bolted, with a playfully yipping Skoll dancing around his feet.

Charles watched him go, feeling that familiar ache in his chest. It was moments like this that made him…not so dead. 

With all that talk of forgiveness, maybe he should…

No.

That was far too complicated a situation.

He would settle for this, for now. 

Poppy’s teasing voice came from the speaker. “Did the Robot’s heart grow three sizes tod-”

Charles turned off the intercom for the sake of his sanity.

Chapter Text

Jules playfully pushed his friend out of the way to take a bite out of the ice cream cone he was holding. 

Lucius rolled his eyes and muttered, “You’re being gross, Jules.” 

Jules shot him a shit-eating grin and answered, “Like you was gonna finish it anyway, Lu.”

Lucius wrapped his lanky arm around his shorter friend’s neck and gave it a halfhearted chokehold. “I'm gonna kick your ass for that one.”

Jules laughed as he tugged his friend's ponytail. “No, you won’t. You need a drummer. And you’ll miss me too much.”

Lucius just surrendered what he had left of the ice cream cone. It wasn’t like he really wanted it, anyway. 

“So…you gonna tell me what happened with that clown or what?” He asked before adding, “I woulda paid to see that one.”

Lucius groaned, “It’s already viral.” 

“You still didn’t tell me the details. What kept ya from killin’ the bastard anyways?” 

“Some strange guy sorta…hugged me?”

Jules stopped walking before his features morphed into a nasty glare and asked, “Do I gotta kick a pervert’s ass?”

Lucius defensively raised his hands. “It wasn’t like that…it felt like…” 

It felt like how he wished his father hugged him.

“What he look like?” Jules asked, still feeling protective.

“Guy was as tall as me. Brown curly hair, one dead eye.” He answered before pulling out a piece of paper from his pocket. “Said he owns this place.”

Jules ran to catch up, jumped and grabbed the folded flier out of his friend’s reach before he opened it. “Depths of Humanity. Looks like a piece of shit dive. I don’ like it.”

Lucius rolled his eyes and used his height to his advantage, snatching the flier from his friend’s hands. 

“Anyway, that guy kept me from killing the clown.”

“What he’d do to you, anyway. You don’t lose your shit like that.”

“He didn’t do anything to me. He was being a creep to Chastity.”

Jules' interest was piqued. “Who’s Chastity?”

Lucius blushed. “Just some girl, okay?”

“So you were playin’ knight in shining armor, eh Lu?” He wiggled his brow. 

“Shut up…I don’t really do girls, remember?”

“You might one day. I know I plan on it.”

“Even though we’re…”

“Told ya, why we gotta put a label on it? We got our whole lives! We’re betta than those old guys who make all the rules.” He answered with a wink before pulling him into a quick squeeze.

Lucius figured his best friend knew more than he did about stuff like that, so he didn’t argue.

The short brunette opened the door to the unfamiliar apartment complex. It wasn’t quite the same level of a shithole where he and Poppy lived, but it wasn’t exactly a prize either.

“Uh, Jules? Where are we, exactly?”

“My friend Tuey lives here. Offdensen said you gotta get used to fame, right? What better way ta get practice than with a livestream?”

He pushed Lucius inside and practically dragged him down the hall to the very end, where the sound of video games could be heard on blast.

Lucius frowned. There was no way he could knock loud enough for him to hear. 

Jules pulled out his lock picking kit. “I got it.”

The door opened before either teen could make a move. 

A 21-year-old femme goth looking man with snake bites, baggy pants and piercing blue eyes stared down at the awkwardly crouched Jules. The lock picker looked up at his friend with a half apologetic grin. “Hey Tuey…”

“Don’t hey Tuey me.”

Lucius winced, this wasn’t gonna be good…

“It’s been ages! Think that you’re too good to hang with me?” He quickly grabbed his friend by the collar of his jacket before giving him a flick on the nose with his newly pressed nails.

Oh…that wasn’t as bad as he thought it would be.

Jules laughed and slipped from under his grip. “You know damn well that you just got inta town last week.”

Tuesday looked up at the other teenager and muttered, “Who’s the tall one?”

“That’s-”

Tuesday interrupted Jules and muttered, “Wait a minute, you look like… HOLY SHIT!” 

Tuesday practically shoved the Skwisgaar clone into the living room of his house. Jules followed in tow.

The living room had a typical couch and television set up, a desktop connected to the television, along with several other screens that surrounded the main monitor, each with their own dedicated section, including one for a chat space.

Lucius’s eyes flickered over the chat screen. Small consistent lines of text appeared every few seconds, mostly from bored commenters. 

Gmer_Gurl - Where’d you go?

FucknBlue4u - Don’t tell me you’re AFK dude.

H@mmertime - pog

Tuferyew_bot- use code “tufer” to get 10% off your order at Duncan Hills Coffee!

Jules chuckled as Tuesday fussed over his old friend's appearance.

"I still can't believe you’re both here! Jules, when you told me you were bringing over a friend to get him used to fame, I couldn't imagine you meant…"

“Think you can help my pal here?”

Tuesday smiled warmly, fixing Lucius’s hair for the camera, much to the teen's chagrin. “With my help, the three of us will have a greater shot at building connections.”

“Connections?” Lucius asked.

“Without knowing the right people nothing gets done! Even if our families are pieces of shit, they’re a big connection. We need to use it if we plan on making our mark on the world.” Tuesday replied before adjusting the camera on top of the coffee table.

Jules grinned. “I told you this would be a good idea, Lu.” He pushed his friend to the center of the couch. “But we gotta get rid of that stage fright first.”

“I’ve never even been on stage. How do you know if I have stage fright?”

“We don’t until you try it out.” Jules answered before addressing the stream. “Hey guys, long time no see!”

Tuesday shook his head with a grin. Jules would dive headfirst.

“Maybe you recognize us, maybe you don’t. I’m Jules, and this here is my buddy Lu!” He wrapped an arm casually around his friend before he added, “And we’re the sons of the most famous band members of Dethklok, Nathan Explosion and Skwisgaar Skwigelf.”

The minute that Jules uttered it out of his mouth, the chat activity grew faster.

Explode4me - Holy shit R U 4 real?

GivM3Sugar - I think I have a half sister who looks like you, Lu

H@mmertim3 - Wait, The Dethklok?

Fuk’en Die- You look so much like them!

Lucius practically froze at how fast the chat was responding. “Legally I’m not-”

“Let me guess, Offdensen had it on legal paper.” Tuesday muttered, spitting out the name like it was a disease. 

Lucius nodded.

“Well, Fuck that and fuck him. You gotta make the claim sometime. And I bet you have more than just the looks to back it up.”

Jules nodded and added, “You gotta learn to take center stage, Lu. You’re gonna be the frontman of your own band, right? Spread the message?”

Tuesday’s eyes widened. “Wait. You’re starting a band? Did you tell anyone?! Make a formal announcement in the press?”

Lucius shook his head. “Gotta find new members first before we get the first announcement out.”

Tuesday looked at the monitor in the chat and saw the activity go wild. This was more than he had seen on his busiest of nights. If this was as big as he thought it was going to be, he was going to capture that lightning in a bottle and hold on tight to it, no matter what.

“What’s the band name?” He asked.

“Mourning Star.” Lucius answered, directly not looking at the camera.

“And your name is Lu? Louis?” Tuesday asked, trying to get the teenager to expand more on what was going on.

“Lucius.” Jules said. “Lucifer.” Lucius answered at the same time.

Jules widened his eyes and smacked him on the shoulder. “Why didn’t you tell me?” 

“You never asked.” He answered.

“Why the hell would your Ma name you after the devil? And more importantly why didn’t you stick with it? That’s way more badass than the other one!”

2Cool4u - That’s gotta be fake

d1cknb@alls - If the devil’s taht hawt, hail satan!

l00k-at-th3-butter - Must be a nightmare in school.

H@mmerTim3 - What was she thinking?

“My mom was a metal groupie and a mythology nerd, alright? Said it meant ‘lightbringer’. I just went by Lucius not to give old ladies a heart attack in public.” He answered.

“So, you’re really playing up the hardcore shit, huh Lucifer. Playing death metal like Dethklok?” Tuesday probed, still trying to figure out the direction that band was going in, and trying to get the ball rolling in the chat.

“Yes.” Jules answered. “Fuck no,” Lucius answered at the same time.

Jules smacked him again. “Whaddaya mean fuck no?” he answered.

“Ow!”

“That’s stupid, Lu. You know death metal is more popular than ever.”

Lucius nursed his bruise.“What’s the point of competing with Dethklok if they already have that musical genre covered? Not to mention that’s not who we are. Do you really think I want people to go die in a ditch somewhere? Or leave them behind? That’s not me and that’s not my music.”

Jules immediately got a look of understanding. “It…makes sense when you put it that way but…” He didn’t know why but he got a bad feeling that this wasn’t the right direction. At least not fully. But he wasn’t going to object. Lu clearly had his own vision and it was his place to follow, not to lead.

Tuesday interrupted. “So, your audience is not the metalheads?”

“Embracing brutality isn’t the only way to respond to it. Some people mourn it. Some people want a change from it. Some people want hope . And that is what we are going to give them.”

He never once explained the Church business to Jules, and he was sure as shit not going to say it out loud on the livestream. Drawing attention to the possibility of doomsday would make most people panic. And if just a sliver of this thing that was growing inside of him was enough to make the children at the park upset the other day…he had to be careful. Keep the outside world shut out so he could act like a pillar of strength for these kids, and for everyone else he wanted to protect. 

“Well, you heard it here first, right here on stream… Look out for Mourning Star.” 

He looked over at the stream. There were people all over the world who were responding, in multiple languages. He wasn’t sure if the servers were going to last this long. He headed over to the computer and started to turn off any bots and games he was running to keep this thing going.

 Gmer_Gurl - So, Rock/Emo?

 Fukth3P0lic3- Different than Dethklok?

D0n3-W4t3r- lam3

Not2Chast3- I still have your shoes from the park.

Blu3bawlz - Sign me up.

Lucius’s eyes hovered over the chat, and he caught the one message. Not too chaste? Shoes from the park? Chastity. “Wait! Can you do a private chat room thing with some of these people?”

“Yeah, which handle?”

Lucius repeated the handle and Tuesday got to work.

—

Chastity heard the tell-tale ping of a chat message on her phone while she sat on her desk. While it was true she was supposed to be grounded for the incident at the park (it wasn’t her fault that someone else beat the shit out of her mom’s stalker friend), her mom was too busy tending to that freak at the hospital and her dad was too busy at his firm to even enforce anything. She couldn’t wait until tomorrow. The minute she turned 18, she would run and never look back. The question was, where would she go?

Her eyes flitted over the screen of her phone and she practically squealed in delight at the message. It worked! 

Tuferyew - Are you Chastity? From the park?

She had to make a reply right away. Not only was he cute, but he was still in one piece after meeting her the other day. Hell, it was the first time any boy she liked lived longer than a whole day after meeting her. In retrospect, maybe if she actually showed that creepy old clown affection, he would have died off too. Oh well.

She scrolled up the previous chat to see what they were talking about. The last thing she needed to do was make a fool of herself by going off topic and asking him some cliched version of “What’s up”. He was starting a band, huh?

"Her eyes flickered over to her dad’s old bass she 'borrowed' years ago and grinned. The one good thing about a bassist was that no one ever noticed them.

Not2Chast3 - Yeah! Need a bassist?"

—

Jules laughed as he wrapped an arm around his friend on the couch. “So you do like Chastity.”

Lucius was practically pink “Shut up!”

Tuesday grinned at the two idiots and said on stream “Play a sample for us Chas. Let’s see if you’re any good.”

After five minutes a video popped up with Chastity sitting with the bass guitar on her lap.

“Hey!” She waved to the camera before picking up the shoes in her hand.

Lucius could feel his breath catch in his throat. Jules poked his side before almost possessively wrapping an arm around his waist. “Take it easy, Romeo.”

Lucius’s pink face turned flaming red.

Chastity giggled at the exchange before following up with, “So here’s a basic piece alright?” 

She exhaled, getting her fingers into the correct position. Then, she started playing, like she had every time her dad wasn’t home.

From the first note she played, the chat went faster than Tuesday could possibly read. If this kept going, the whole damned thing might crash.

Lucius listened to her playing with a critical ear. So she wasn’t just cute. She could actually play too. He looked to Jules who gave him a nod. It was clear she was in.

“Just drop your contact here and we’ll call you. Sorry bout this Chas but if we keep this video up for too long it’s gonna crash the server.” Tuesday apologized.

Jules looked over in alarm. “Whaddaya mean crash the server?”

“There’s too many people replying at once!” Tuesday answered with a wild grin. “None of this has ever gone this viral!”

He looked over to Lucius and said, “I got an old guitar in the storage closet. Bring that shit out and play something for the stream! We gotta keep this momentum going!”

“Got it, Tuey!” Jules answered before bolting to the aforementioned closet.

Lucius shook his head with a chuckle. He was feeling more comfortable already.

“Gal’s got talent, huh?” Tuesday asked. 

“Yeah, it sounded like stuff that was on par with classic rock.” He answered as Jules handed him an acoustic guitar. Lucius, who wasn’t feeling picky about what he was playing with, started tuning.

“You into the classics?” Tuesday asked.

“Yeah, Especially, when I was little and  my grandpa’s old guitar. I think I remember even having a Zeppelin phase at one point.”

“Please don’t tell me you are one of those douchebags that play Stairway to impress girls.” Tuesday chuckled. 

“It was more like a lullaby for me…” he answered.

—

It was 3 AM in Sydney at the bowels of the Dethklok Australia headquarters. A sullen looking redheaded kid that couldn’t have been more than age 5 or 6 noticed woke up at the faint glow of the screen of his Eyepad. 

He looked at one of the running programs that pulled several keywords from the stream. "Zeppelin." "Stairway" "Lullaby." To him, they were more than just keywords. They were words that held the key to his first happy memory. The stranger with golden hair. The one who played his favorite song and gave him the first moment of childhood comfort.

The sight of the mysterious stranger on the livestream brought a large smile to Seth Jr’s face.

—

It only took a couple of notes from the acoustic guitar before all of Tuesday’s screens went black. 

“Shit…” Jules muttered. 

“Looks like the end of the stre-”

A series of words scrolled across the black screens in the official Dethfont. 

“ And the forests will echo with laughter. And the forests will echo with-”

Tuesday grumbled. “Fucking hacked.”

An image of a grinning skull with horns and a slouch hat graced the screen.

“Greetings from the land down under! It’s your mate!”

The mascot had a noticeable Australian accent.

“The fuck?!” Tuesday asked, “What’d you do to my stream?!”

The skull floated from one monitor to another, looking at the direction of a flabbergasted Lucius. 

“You played for me!” the Australian skull exclaimed in awe and delight.

“I don’t remember playing for a talking skull.” the blonde muttered in reply.

“I wasn’t a skull, silly. I’m talking about grandma’s house.”

A photo of a fancy residence appeared on another monitor. Lucius’s eyes widened in recognition. “That place?”

Jules caught the revelation on his friend’s features. “You know this guy, Lu?”

“That can’t be right. That was about 2 years ago and you couldn’t have been older than what, 4?” Lucius interrogated. 

“That’s right! I turn 7 in 3 months! You’re really smart!”

The Skull hovered to another monitor and introduced himself to the other two. “Seth Jr. Nice to meet ya, mates!”

Tuesday looked incredulously at the screen. “Wait. You’re hacking from Dethklok Australia? Didn’t that shit burn to the ground a few years back?”

“We have fires all the time. Nothing new. Totally not going to piss off everybody.” The Australian skull answered. Lucius couldn’t tell if the kid was smart enough to be sarcastic, was copying the people he was talking to, or if it was something in the programming. 

Tuesday made several connections based on the information he had, and grinned. He knew exactly what to do and how to do it. 

—

“Absolutely out of the question.” Charles answered over the phone. He should have known better than to simply think about making contact. Now his 25-year-old slacker son was practically begging him for a management position  on the phone, like he always did the few times they talked. He supposed it was long overdue karmic payback for how smug he was about the band members’ own illegitimate offspring. At least he only had one.

“I need to manage this band yesterday , Offdensen.”

Charles sighed, rubbing his temples. While it was true that he couldn’t possibly manage both Mourning Star and Dethklok simultaneously, there were a lot of reasonable objections (in his mind at least) why the project would flop under Tuesday’s management. For starters…

“You don’t have experience negotiating contracts and advertising. You aren’t even a college graduate of business or finances.”

“I have plenty of experience handling terms and conditions for streaming services and understand the finer points of ad revenue. Also, last I checked, a degree isn’t a requirement for management, Offdensen.”

That was… actually a good answer. Charles’s eye twitched.

“You’re not even familiar with the music industry. Tour planning, time management, finding venues…”

Tuesday already had an answer prepared. “Then find a supervisor from the industry who can oversee things. Besides, as good as you are, even you can’t handle splitting your attention between Dethklok and this new band.”

Charles’s eye twitched again. It was as if Tuesday read his mind earlier.

“You-ah don’t understand how important this project is to Dethklok and by extension to me. I can’t just hand it off to anyone…”

Tuesday scoffed. “So you’ll put your faith in a bunch of drunken idiots with musical talent, but you won’t put your faith in me ?”

Charles winced. There was that pain in his chest again. There were so many things that he should have said. Could still say, but…he had to keep his mouth shut. For Tuesday’s own protection.

“Why do you-ah want this so bad?” He asked, changing the subject.

“20 million.”

“Ah-excuse me?”

“I was only streaming in my living room and already there were 20 million viewers watching live before the server crashed. Offdensen, the highest number of viewers in streaming history was 3.4 million.”

Charles slipped into his chair, rendered speechless.

“The numbers don’t lie. I know there’s magic here and I’m not wasting it. Please, you have to-”

“Fine.”

“You’re serious?”

Charles stared at the wall, his mind still reeling from the possibility that something else was set into motion. Something, once again, far beyond his control. If only he could send Fate a strongly worded letter for constantly making a fool of his best laid plans. But until then…

“I’m-ah serious. You can manage the band. But you still need supervision from someone in the industry and you can’t slack off.”

Tuesday couldn’t help but cheer, despite his father’s usual lecture. 

“Thanks, Dad! You won’t be sorry!” 

Tuesday hung up before he could reply.

Charles sighed. He had several phone calls to make. At least he was able to get a 'dad' out of him this time.

Chapter Text

Dick sat behind the soundboard with one eye trained at the door, and the other at the soundboard in front of him. This was an interesting project, to say the least. It wasn’t a typical request from the band, and he bet every dime he had that the actual members were unaware of it. Hell, he didn’t even know they had children, let alone ones that were old enough to perform. 

After much internal debate once he got the phone call from Offdensen, he decided it was one of those cases where he shouldn’t bother to ask questions or try to get them involved with it. Hell, he had produced enough side projects with Murderface to know that if they had too much creative input outside of their own music, the only result would be a lawsuit and loss of profit.

The question was, what were those children of the band like ? As creatively talented as the members of Dethklok were, he also knew he had to manage short tempers, even shorter attention spans, and far too much procrastination. Getting them on time and under budget was a nightmare, and if that was Dethklok, a band of grown men, then their offspring must be worse.

But he did sign up for the job (with a generous amount of pay he couldn’t afford to turn down), so he would do what he had to do for this little project. Sit here for hours, as usual, and wait for them to show up later than the scheduled-

The studio door opened.

His bionic eye spied a twiggy blonde teenager that looked like the spitting image of Dethklok’s lead guitarist, save for a few braids and a lighter color palette in his wardrobe. Then, it spied a shorter, brunette teenager around the same age, dressed like a punk kid out of a 70’s Scorsese film, sipping on an energy drink. 

“You know it’s only 8:30, Lu.” Jules yawned, ignoring the producer who’s mouth gaped like a fish. They were a half hour early. This was already a good sign.

“I know, but it’s the first session, and we don’t have much time between now and the deadline.” Lucius answered back. 

“-Getting at it bright and early, huh? Gotta say, I’m loving the attitude.” Dick interrupted with a wide grin. 

Jules, still half asleep, groaned a “shuddup” to the producer, who did not stop smiling.

“Don’t be a dick, Jules.” Lucius muttered. 

“It’s too fuckin’ early to be polite. You shoulda’ scheduled this at noon.” Jules muttered before hearing the door open behind him.

A tanned teenage girl stepped through wearing shorts, tennis shoes, and a pink hoodie that matched her lipstick. She waved hello at the smiling producer as a juvenile white wolf circled around her legs.

Dick looked over the notes on his soundboard. Ah, That was…Chastity. That sweet young thing was a bassist? He couldn’t see it personally. 

“Come in, have a seat.”

She immediately crashed on the couch behind the soundboard before Sköll rested his head on her lap.

“Careful, Lu, I think she’s gonna steal him.” Jules joked before sitting beside them.

“You give him more treats than I do. If he hasn’t left me for you yet, he’s not going anywhere.” Lucius sat on the other side of her.

“Is that thing gonna bite?” Dick asked, keeping one eye trained on the wolf, that was clearly soaking up the attention from Chastity. 

“He’s more trained than most pets, I promise.” Lucius answered with a yawn.

Dick wasn’t going to push it. “And your other two bandmates? Your keyboardist and rhythm guitarist?”

Jules shot up straight. “Wait, there’s a rhythm guitarist now? Where was I when you picked that one out?”

“It’s sort of a favor for us, and rhythm guitar is important.” Lucius answered. “Besides, with him on our roster, we get guaranteed opening performances for some big names in the music industry. His mom is well connected. That will give us a solid foundation for building an offline audience on our tour.  At least, that’s how Tuesday explained it to me.”

“And we ain’t opening for Dethklok ‘cause…?”

“...Get Thee Hence.”

“Huh?”

“They were the most recent opening band for Dethklok, the audience literally ripped them to shreds on stage.” Lucius answered grimly. “And that was when they had the support of Toki and Murderface. People who open for Dethklok usually die in weird accidents or get ripped apart. And we don’t want to risk it.”

“Youse gotta be shittin’ me. ” Jules mumbled before taking another sip of his drink. 

Dick whistled low. “You’ve been really doing your homework huh kid. But crowd aside, they’re busy coming up with a new album with a tight deadline. They can’t be touring right now.”

The door to the studio opened, revealing both Tuesday, and someone who could be described as a shorter, slightly younger version of Skwisgaar and by extension, Lucius. The boy in a graphic t-shirt and a short haircut gave everyone in the room a confident smile and a friendly wave.

Jules spat out his energy drink he just sipped. Sure, Lu told him that all the half siblings looked way too much like their dad and almost nothing like their mothers, but to see the similarities in person…It was freaky.

Lucius chuckled and stood up from the couch. “Meet my brother Casper!”

The older of the two half brothers scooped up the younger one in a giant hug.

Chastity couldn’t help but giggle at their visual similarities. They really were so cute together!

Casper stiffened but still accepted the surprise embrace. He honestly didn’t know what to expect from meeting this mysterious older half sibling in person for the first time.  Hell, he still couldn’t wrap his head around the fact he had half siblings up there in the hundreds .

But he found it annoying so far. Did he really have to hug him now? And in front of a cute girl? He didn’t like it when his own siblings did that. And they had the excuse of being younger than him. But he supposed he could put up with it just this once. After all, his half brother was the reason he was in his first band.  He could get along just this once.

“Aren’t you supposed to be the older one?” Casper teased lightly.

Lucius chuckled and let him go. “You’re right. Sorry about that. I’m just glad to meet you.”

“Just don’t be a crybaby about it and we’re square.”

Chastity could feel the hackles rise of Sköll’s fur under her fingertips and Dick could hear just the faintest hint of a growl.

Not wanting to have the poor wolf sent away, Chastity scratched him behind the ear in the hopes her touch would calm him down. Thankfully, it worked.

Dick asked Tuesday, “The keyboardist?”

Tuesday grinned and walked over to a pile of metal in the end of the room. Upon closer inspection of what he was walking towards, Dick’s eyes glowed a dangerous red. 

“Oh no…not after what happened with…”

Tuesday crossed his arms. “Relax, Dick. Offdensen and I cleared it with the boys in the lab. It’s controlled remotely by our band member in Sydney. No AI running the major thought processes here.”

The robot with a similar make and model to the X2P1158 sprung to life under his finely manicured fingertips.

A hologram of the Australian Facebones appeared.

Dick looked over his written notes again, his eyes turning back his neutral shade of green. “I see. Can ya turn that thing into your face, kiddo?” 

The skull flickered away, and the face of a sullen, half tired, redheaded boy appeared.

“Hey guys!” The robot waved his arms. 

Dick cleared his throat. “So, now that we’re all here, how about a little meet and greet. There’s plenty of new faces here in the studio, and I’m sure you're curious about me. My name is Dick Knubbler, and I’ve been Dethklok’s producer for years.”

“Been. Past tense?” Lucius asked.

Dick’s eyes flashed red then back to green in a split second. “I made a lateral move to sound engineering for the band, but for the purposes of Mourning Star I’m producing.”

The older kids of the group had a sneaking suspicion that it was a sore topic for Dick. 

Dick scanned across the room and looked to the girl who was still idly petting the wolf on her lap. “How about you, Sweetheart? Name, Instrument, any useful piece of background information.”

She rolled her eyes at the pet name but still obliged. “I’m Chastity McClellan .”  She added extra emphasis on the ‘lellan’ part of her last name. “I just had my 18th birthday a few days ago. I’ve been playing my dad’s bass for years, not that he ever had the time to use it… I like to think I am good at it. I mostly play classic rock stuff and try some writing here and there.”

Dicks eyes dilated in recognition, “Wait a minute, you aren’t Dory McClean’s dau-”

In a flash, Chastity’s face turned into a hateful grimace. “Mention my mom or that fucking song and you better pray that scientists can replace your balls too, Dick .” 

He could tell from that tone of voice that she wasn’t addressing him by his first name.

Sköll didn’t move an inch off her lap. The rest of the boys silently agreed among themselves to never mention that subject in front of her.

A sugary sweet smile replaced her grimace as quickly as the producer’s eyes could change color. “Also, I really hate clowns.”

Dick clapped his hands together to change the subject. “Okay! Onto the next band member.” He looked over to the robot, who he felt was a safer bet at this point. “Now, as I mentioned earlier, you played the keyboard but I never caught your name.”

“I’m Seth Jr. I’m almost 7. I know alot about computers and music.” 

“You seem awfully young to be that good at that stuff already…” Dick muttered aloud.

“You can learn anything with an Eyepad” Junior beamed, before demonstrating several pleasant sounding chords on the keytar that was attached to the robot. Dick was pleasantly surprised. This kid was a genius. But maybe he shouldn’t have been so surprised. This was Pickles’s nephew, after all. The same Pickles who could do vocals, played guitar, and drums. Maybe musical genius was genetic?

“My dad runs Dethklok Australia. Really it just means he drinks alcohol,and watches videos with naked ladies on his office computer all day with his hand down his pants.”

Lucius clamped a hand over his mouth, trying not to laugh. Tuesday, Casper, and Chastity, snickered. Jules, now fully awake, howled in laughter.

Dick chuckled, pulling at the collar of his shirt. “I mean a man has to have his hobbies.” He leaned over to Tuesday and asked, “I guess he won’t be making it to any of the band meetings as supervisor?”

Tuesday shook his head. “It doesn’t matter. We’ll record the sessions and send them to his email.” 

It wasn’t technically a lie. They were sending videos, just attached to emails that would be automatically sent to his spam folder. This way, Tuesday and the band would still have a ‘name’ in the industry who wouldn’t actually interfere with his operations. He was going to prove to Offdensen that he would be a better manager than he ever was. Make him sorry he ever doubted him. He had his foot in the door already, all he had to do was see it through. He just didn’t need to get caught.

Dick shrugged. Far be it for him to call out any level of fraud. Besides, he wasn’t a fan of Seth during the recording of the Dethfamily album. He turned his attention towards Jules, who was still wiping tears of laughter from his eyes. 

“What about you, Chuckles.” Dick asked.

“Yinz can call me Jules. I’m from Pittsburgh and know how to play drums. At least the basic shit. My dad is Nathan Explosion, and I’ve known Lu, what about a year?”

“Give or take.”

“Not a singer huh?” Dick asked, a little disappointed. 

Jules shrugged, not giving a rat’s ass while he stared at the can of energy drink in his hand. “Don’t mind doing backups but nah, I don’t sing. But I can make up some words if ya want.”

Lucius was the only one in the room with context on Jules’s ‘talent’ for lyric writing knew exactly what was going to happen next and cracked a dumb smile.

Jules shouted his quick jingle on the spot in spoken word rhythm, picking up his sticks to hit the nearest surface to stay on beat.

“ Coffee's brown, it's plain and drab,

Monster's green, it's a vibrant grab. 

Coffee's bitter, it can make you frown,

Monster's sweet, it turns your frown upside down.”

It was Lucius’s turn to burst out into the laughter he had been holding back since Seth Jr’s earlier comment. 

Before Dick could express any opinion on the little ditty Casper interrupted, tired of waiting around for his turn. 

“I’m Casper, like half bro said. Been playing guitar as a hobby for a few years and I have 3 famous parents, not just Dad from Dethklok. My moms are both in Banshee, one of the top all female bands rising the charts.”

Chastity looked visibly impressed, leaning forward. “You know Banshee?! They’re the best!”

Casper grinned wider and gave Chastity a wink. “Maybe I can score you an autograph later.”

He turned and pointed to his half brother with a cocky grin “I might be a rhythm guitarist for now, but one day, I’m gonna be the lead.”

Lucius took the statement in stride, snickering while he was still recovering from Jules’s ‘hit song’. He thought his little brother’s ambition and cocky attitude was adorable . He couldn’t fault him for it. After all, he was like that just a few years ago. Casper would grow out of it in time. Though, maybe he might forever be a flirt, judging how he was looking at their bandmate. 

“Maybe one day you’ll get there. I can show you a few things regarding improv later, if you’re interested in getting better than me, Bro.”

Casper just shook his head, not exactly thrilled he wasn’t being taken seriously. Whatever.

Dick took control of the meeting and looked to the lead guitarist and vocalist, who seemed to be dodging his eye contact the whole time. “Which brings me to you. Lucifer, right?” he asked, before staring at his notes again. 

“Yep, that’s me…” the teen muttered. 

“Tell us a little bit about yourself, musical background, your vision for the band. What the goal is, exactly.”

Lucius, no he had to be Lucifer, cleared his throat and put on a mask of confidence for the benefit of the rest of the room. He could do this. He had to do this. Because…

“This band isn’t just about me, and it’s not about measuring up to Dethklok either. Because we are building a family, both here as a band and with our fans. No creative ideas are off the table until we get a majority consensus, and with our different backgrounds we can come up with something just as good if not better. What we are doing is going to be bigger than them. ”

Dick didn’t know whether to be inspired or insulted by what he was saying. There was a reason Dethklok was profitable enough to be its own global economy. Why their sound was universal, despite the subversive nature of the death metal genre.

Dethklok was, in his mind and in the mind of billions, relatable.  Inspiring. They were constantly pushing the creative envelope. They provided an answer to the brutality of the world by telling audiences to harness its very nature. Their music provided something for humanity . It was why they had staying power for over a decade.

For their kids to make the claim that they could just write off their predecessors and make something better, was most likely a typical exercise in teenage hubris. But if anyone could top Dethklok, maybe it could be their offspring.

There was only one way for him to find out.

“Alright. Let’s start recording.”

—

As the weeks passed, Dick found himself both pleasantly surprised and slightly disappointed at the same time. The band did not lack creativity. If anything the diverse backgrounds, age ranges, and musical influences gave them all plenty to work with.

Even the kids got along well, for the most part. Casper, not quite willing to learn from his half brother, was more than willing to take instruction from Chastity, who had no problem being a team player, no matter what it looked like. 

Jules and Seth Jr would freely cut up whenever the mood in the studio got too tense. Any technical gaps that needed bridging often went to the band’s leader, Lucifer, who was always the first to arrive in the morning and the last to leave.

Even the wolf, that had gotten bigger was useful for morale.

The music itself was…good. Great even. But in Dick’s opinion, there was still something missing from the music. That spark. Maybe it was a byproduct of them being green. It was, after all, their first album. And little editing could go a long way when push came to shove. It’s possible that when they matured, so would their sound.

At least they were better than their predecessors when it came to being on time and under budget. That would keep further from the chopping block in the music industry at the very least. Getting fired had been somewhat of a wakeup call for him. He needed to get his ass into shape, both as a producer, and as a lover of music.

When they wrapped up the last of their recording sessions at 9 pm, Dick couldn’t help but overhear Jules, Chastity, and Lucifer talking.

“We should totally celebrate! Go out somewhere nice!” the girl beamed as she watched the Klokateers put away their instruments.

Jules agreed, idly tapping on the nearest inanimate object with his drumsticks. “Yeah! How bout the three of us do somethin’ tonight then somethin’ later before tour with all 5 of us and Tuey!”

Lucius tapped his leg twice and Sköll came obediently to his side. “I can’t do tonight. Sis wants me to come home this time. Said something about spending time together.” 

Chastity was a little disappointed but let it slide. In the weeks of recording with him, and in previous discussions with Jules, she knew getting him to socialize outside of work was a nigh impossible task. But they still had the tour to get to know one another, and he had been loosening him up over the last few sessions.

“See ya guys later.” She pulled both of them into a quick hug before walking out of the studio.

Jules, however, knew damn well that his friend was lying. As much as he loved his buddy, he also knew that he was secretive. That there was a reason he kept his mouth shut about certain parts of his life. But it wasn’t his place to make him talk. Besides, he had his own weird shit going on. Freaky dreams. Stuff that he could see before it happened. He would be a hypocrite if he started getting pushy.

His face twisted in a serious expression. “If youse gonna go somewhere, take the dog.”

Lucius nodded in affirmation, grateful that his friend understood. He kissed his head and walked out of the studio with Sköll in tow. 

“Youse givin’ me a heart attack, ya know that?” he muttered to himself before slamming the studio door shut.

Now alone in the studio, Dick rubbed his temples and sighed to himself, “Ah- Kids.”

—

It took two bus stops and a few blocks on foot before boy and wolf made it outside a solitary building that had seen better days. The music playing inside seemed to be the only indicator that the bar was still active at all. He looked down at the poster in his hand then back up to the worn out neon sign at the building’s entrance. This was it. The Depths of Humanity.

Sköll whined as he touched the doorknob of the building. “It’s okay boy.” the teenager assured. He had done crazier shit than this before, and he had been in worse situations than this one. Besides, he knew he wasn’t going to die today .

When he opened the door the first thing he noticed was that there was a stage in the back of the room that wasn’t in use. The second was that the patrons of the bar were easily older than his dad’s age. 

He quietly walked his way through the crowd, all of whom gave him accusatory glares. A man with a graying mullet and a ripped wife beater stared at the teenager who was dodging his eye contact and muttered, “Ain’t ya a little young to be here, kid? ‘Side’s, No dogs allowed. ‘Snot sanitary.”

“Ah cut it out Jack, the food in this place is shit anyway,” An older woman with blonde wavy hair interrupted him, “He’s probably one of Mag’s charity cases, or somethin’ ‘aint that right, Cutie?” She put out her cigarette in a nearby ashtray.

“You mean the guy with one eye?” He asked, idly petting the wolf to both keep himself calm, and to reassure others that the creature was no threat to the rest of the patrons.

“Yeah, Magnus Hammersmith, ya just missed him.” She lit another cigarette. 

Another blonde woman with shorter hair walked up beside her. “He always did have a soft spot for strugglin’ musicians. Went to teach some rock fantasy camp or something.”

“Ah that’s right. Thanks for remindin’ me Val.”

Lucius could feel his head spinning. How in the hell could he remember something like “Get Thee Hence” but fail to recognize Magnus Hammersmith when he saw him?

Jack interrupted his train of thought with a scoff. “At least one of us can use the Dethklok name to get some cash.”

“Green isn’t your color, Jack.” The woman with wavy hair muttered, taking a long drag of her cigarette. 

“Shut it, Margo,” He answered before picking up a beer bottle. After taking a swig, he leans forward, getting a closer look at the teenager’s profile.

 “Come to think of it, you look like-”

“-Please don’t-” Lucius was already getting flashbacks from Florida.

“Skvisgaar Skvigelf!” A balding man with a ponytail on the back of his head and a mustache pushed aside one of the patrons to grab the teenager by the shoulder. Or he would have, if Sköll hadn’t got between the two of them, snarling.

The man backed away immediately with his arms in a defensive position. “The hell?”

He looked up at the young man who crossed his arms and furrowed his brow. “You really wanna try, old man?”

The Swede stepped back and put up his hands defensively. “I means no harms. Clearly you ament’s him. You ams-eh too young.”

Lucius tapped his leg twice and Sköll sat back down at his feet. 

After taking a drag from her cigarette, Margo took a better look at the teen’s features. “You ain’t him but you do look alot like him.”

The teenager sighed and sat down on an empty stool, rubbing his temples. “That’s because he’s my deadbeat dad.” 

Jack whistled low and Sven shook his head in pity. 

“I did hear somethin’ about that a few years back. Got hundreds of little bastards. It was all over the news.”

“He never did learns how to keeps it in his pants. Or puts on a condoms apparentlies.”

Lucius looked up at all of them. “Wait, you know him?”

“Honey, we don’t just know your dad. We were screwed by him and the rest of Dethklok.” Margo answered after exhaling before pointing to her two friends. “Val, Annie, and I were there for the early tours. Gave ‘em a warm meal and a bed most nights.”

Jack cleared his throat. “I was their old manager before Crystal Mountain snatched them up. Fucking Offdensen…”

The Swedish man in a ponytail chuckled. “And I vas your fathers guitar teacher. You can call me Sven.”

Lucius scoffed and shook his head in disgust. But it wasn’t at the people in the room. “Why am I not surprised? Let me guess, they did nothing to remember where they came from or gave you a helping hand when you needed it?”

“Not so much as a ‘fuck you very much before they went and got famous.” Jack answered, taking another swig of his bottle.”

The teenager shook his head. “Of course that’s what they would do.” He muttered the next thing as a promise to himself, as well as a promise to them. “When I get big, that’s not gonna happen. I’m not going to leave everyone behind. Not like them.” 

“You really are just like one of us.” Another man muttered in the distance. He looked slightly younger than the rest of the crowd at the bar, with long brown hair and a goatee. The stranger gave the teenager a wide smile.

Sköll, whined and hid behind the stool where his master sat.

The middle aged man offered a hand for the teenager to shake. A hand that had a thick spiked bracelet lying on his wrist. 

Lucius looked down at the offered hand, and took the opposite one instead. “Be careful, you could scratch someone with that thing.”

The two of them locked eyes and both of them felt something .

The friendly man looked confused for only a second before his grin grew wider.

“You’re more like us than I thought…”

Somehow, Lucius knew that the man meant nothing about the people in the bar. 

The strange man tested the waters, “You know…there’s a spare guitar and amp behind the stage. How about you get it out for us and play a little song. It ought to liven up the room. Lift people’s spirits.”

Jack drank more of his beer and burped. “Yeah. Let’s see what you can do, kid. See if you actually have a shot at making it in the big leagues.”

Margo dumped the ashes of her cigarette in the nearby tray, “If Mags picked you up, then you must be one of those wayward musicians. Probably a good one if Skwisgaar really is your father. C’mon play us a song.”

Lucius looked up at the decrepit stage and exhaled. Why not? This was a small enough place for him to practice. Besides, how could he get used to the idea of a bigger stage if he hadn’t stepped onto a smaller one first? He made his way backstage to find the equipment.

Sköll, still whining, slipped out of the bar and ran into the streets. 

The music playing in the bar stopped as Lucius walked out on stage, tuning the worn out Les Paul that he had found in the room. The bar’s patrons made their way to the stage in quiet anticipation. Then, Lucius played a rhythm he had practiced and demonstrated in the studio. It wasn’t metal, like the patrons expected. If anything it was reminiscent of a genre of rock that hadn’t been popular for decades. But it was still catchy enough for toes to start tapping.

Make room! Make room!

Down on the coffin, there's a coffin or two

Dead chic, so cool

The cannibals are starving when they're looking at you

As he was singing it aloud, Lucius started to feel more comfortable moving around on stage. A playful smile graced his features, and his body seemed to fully relax. 

The friendly man that he had shook hands with earlier sat down at an old drum kit that had already been set up but hadn’t seen use in years. He began to play a drum beat, adding perfect rhythm to the song that the boy was already playing.

Tank tops, jet stream

Karate lessons with a killing machine

White lines, nose bleeds

I know you get excited when the cameras go

Ra-ta-ta-ta-ta-ta-ta

He didn’t feel like himself anymore. Not completely his body worked automatically, and his mind was only half present as he performed. It felt good. Really good.

The crowd began to harmonize with their own voices despite not having heard the song once. 

Me and you, and all of this living dead

Burning up in the sun, where the bodies add

Sitting here with you, in misery

Anybody gonna come and rescue me?

La la la

He barely noticed when the crowd started to snap their fingers on beat. He was far too busy having fun. This was what performing for a crowd was like?

A group of addicts in a nearby alleyway started snapping their fingers rhythmically, their eyes glowing a sickly yellow green. 

Lucius-no-Lucifer was getting comfortable enough to reach towards the people who were holding their hands to him on stage, grinning wider than the strange man who continued to play the drums. 

The drummer’s eyes flared in yellow, cyan, and magenta adding an extra effect to the power that was already present. The eyes of the crowd also glowed the same yellow, cyan, and magenta as the drummer. This was perfect. If he could convince him to join his master, they would be unstoppable.

Lucifer started addressing the room with a sense of bravado and confidence. He had never felt more in his element than he did right now.

Well alright, well alright

Well alright, well alright

Well alright,

Sitting in a nearby bar, Poppy could see the light from her eyes cast a reflection on the beer glass. Between that, and the presence of a whining white wolf who made his way past the bouncers to grab the leg of her pants, she knew that something was wrong. 

Well alright, well alright,

She's alright

Everybody in the room is alright

The teenager sang the words to the chorus, still too lost in the joy of performing on stage to even notice the strange effects of what was happening. Was this what touring would be like with his bandmates? If performing always felt like this, then he was glad to take on the stage! 

Everybody wants to change the world

Everybody wants to change the world

But no one, no one wants to die!

Wayward musicians in the next several blocks of the city started singing in unison with the chorus. 

Everybody wants to change the world

Everybody wants to change the world

But no one, no one wants to die!

Magnus, who had been sitting alone at his counselor's bunk, staring at the ceiling couldn’t help but mouth the words, even if he didn’t quite know where they came from.

Everybody wants to change the world

Everybody wants to change the world

But no one, no one wants to die!

Poppy followed the wolf to one of the more trashed parts of town as fast as her feet could carry her. Her expression was stern, and her eyes shimmered against the darkness. She could hear a chorus of multiple people in the streets practically screaming at the the top of their lungs: 

We are never gonna change the world

We are never gonna change the world

'Cause we are never gonna die!

She kicked down the door of the bar, and stared at her brother who was performing on stage in front of an actual crowd of strangers who weren’t Mordhaus staff. Filled with both a mixture of pride and anger, she crossed her arms and stared, her eyes shifting from yellow to red.

Everybody wants to change the world

Everybody wants to change the world

But no one, no one wants to die!

She hoped he was actually enjoying himself this evening. Because he was so grounded when he was done!

Lucifer’s playing got faster and more complex, bringing the song close to an end as he continued to repeat the words.

Everybody wants to change the world

Everybody wants to change the world

But no one, no one wants to die!

What none of them knew, not even Salacia’s disciple, was just how much the message had spread. Wayward musicians, homeless, loose pockets of Revengencers, and addicts alike from the other end of the country started to shuffle their feet in an involuntary rhythm. Their eyes glowed a sickly yellow and none of them spoke a word to one another. They didn’t need to. They all  knew where to go.

Everybody wants to change the world

Everybody wants to change the world

But no one, no one wants to die!

Lucifer finally finished with a shout of the title of the song and an accidental order to the hypnotized crowd, who made a pathway for a very unamused Guardian with a white wolf at her feet.

Make room!

Chapter Text

“ -Mourningstar’s meteoric rise in record sales is a testament to the growing power of an up and coming younger generation. If the band plays their cards right, they could shape themselves to become the heirs apparent to the Dethklok musical dynasty-”

*Click*

“- they call themselves "Halfies", more alleged illegitimate children of Skwisgaar Skwigelf have gathered on website forums, social media, and in support groups, to share their experiences and offer assist-”

*Click*

“ -this is just blatant nepotism in the music industry. The music is bland, aggrandizing, uninspired nonsense that is dead in the wat-”

*Click*

Jules turned off the tv as sighed in exaggerated boredom. Lu picked the worst possible time to get himself grounded. Thanks to his dad forgetting to tell his ma that he and the rest of the band were recording on the Dethsub, he was stuck in the guest wing of Mordhaus for the weekend. With even heavier restrictions than usual on who could come over, what he could do, or where he could go. 

Maybe it will be more fun when he'd get on the road with the rest of his bandmates. Tour was a couple of days away. But until then…

The screen on his phone lit up. Someone left him a FaceFriend’s message. 

Not2Chast3

I’m sooooo fucking bored. Any way I can come over?

It was the answer to his prayers. He didn't have to suffer boredom alone.

Chastity bounded up the stairs of the Guest Haus foyer with a wide grin and a new crop top with their band logo on it, a calligraphic image of their band name with a pentacle in the center between the text, Mourning Star. She enthusiastically waved before pulling Jules into a hug. “I can't believe we're going to leave for tour Monday!”

Jules lingered in the hug a little longer than he wanted to before he finally pulled away. “Yeah. Heard it was a good way to see the world, ya know?”

Chastity caught a flash of white fur in the corner of her eye. “Is Sköll here?”

Jules leaned over her and shrugged. “He's supposed to stay with Lu, but sometimes he wanders around. Let's see what he's up to.”

She shrugged too. “Nothing better to do.”

The two of them tiptoed quietly to themselves, following the white wolf in the halls and dodging any security that could have been roaming the area. It wasn't until the places that the wolf had been wandering were getting dank and smaller, that either of them started questioning where they were going.

Sköll moved faster, almost leaving them out of sight when Chastity covered her nose at a stench. “Where are we?”

Jules, who had broken into Mordhaus before grimaced and covered his own nose. “The sewers under the main Haus. But why Sköll led us here I dun’-”

Another flash of white fur caught his eye as the wolf turned into an exit that led to a mud, blood, and shit filled cavern. Chastity's foot bumped against a bone that was far larger than any animal remains she had seen.

The noise drew the attention of a whole pack of wolves with brown fur and glowing red eyes. The white wolf turned around to face the two teens that followed him into the den. That was when Jules realized something important. That wasn’t Sköll.

A couple of yard wolves nipped at the heels of the pair, ushering them away from the exit and into the center of the cave. They were trapped.

A dirty child hobbled out of the shadows with a few others that looked like him in tow, carrying sharpened sticks and heavy stones. The leader whistled four notes before the others got into a position, ready to attack.

The leader of this tribe of children walked forward with a spear pointed at Jules, their nose wiggling in the air.

Chastity looked down at the bone she tripped over. It was a human femur. She screamed. Jules pushed the wild child out of the way out of his personal space. The tribe of children descended on their newly provided meal.

*Click*

A dirty child hobbled out of the shadows with a few others that looked like him in tow, carrying sharpened sticks and heavy stones. The leader whistled four notes before the others got into a position, ready to attack.

Jules’s mind swam with an intense feeling of deja vu. This was familiar.

Jules stiffened, trying to steady his breathing, as he looked at the wild child that was coming towards him. Again. 

This time, Jules examined the features of the dirty child with blonde hair who was trying to capture his scent like a wild animal. They looked like…

“Lu?”

Chastity looked down at the bone she tripped over realizing it was a human femur. She screamed, which set off the wolves behind her this time. Jules suddenly whipped his head around as he widened his eyes in horror. 

He felt the sharp edge of the spear pierce his belly. He howled in pain as the other wild children started tearing at his flesh with their teeth.

*Click*

A dirty child hobbled out of the shadows with a few others that looked like him in tow, carrying sharpened sticks and heavy stones. The leader whistled four notes before the others got into a position, ready to attack.

Jules turned to Chastity slowly and whispered. “Don't look down and don't make a sound.” She nodded in obedience. The last thing she wanted to do was die here.

He watched the leader of this tribe, the Lu lookalike, lean over and sniff his cheek. The kid looked puzzled, as if he didn’t know what to make of the person standing in front of him. Their nose paused over Jules’s lips and his eyes widened before his mouth twisted in a dark expression. 

The leader whistled the same four notes, before the wolves leaned back, ready to lunge at the intruders.

It was then, Chastity realized something. She turned to Jules who took a step back from the tribe leader. “It's one of our songs! Babes in the Wood! ”

Jules remembered being in the room writing the beat to that one. It was a nod to an old fairytale that only a nerd like Lu would think to put in the title for a song about abandoned children. It was the one song that Lu fought Tuesday and Knubbler on to keep in the album.

Suddenly, it all made sense in his head. Those notes. That song. It was a message to the siblings! He could reach them and save their skin! The kids and the wolves pounced. But it didn’t matter. Jules knew what to do now.

*Click*

A Lu lookalike hobbled out of the shadows with their tribe of look alike siblings in tow, carrying sharpened sticks and heavy stones. He whistled four notes before the others got into a position, ready to attack.

Jules started tapping the drumbeat to the 4 notes of the song. The other kids stood down, humming in unison. The wolves behind them howled, including the white one that lead them here. Chastity joined in on the humming, adding in the melody of the rhythm guitar parts she helped co write with Casper.

Jules opened his mouth and sang the words that came to mind. He hoped to god they were the right ones. The minute he opened his mouth he felt something inside him shift. As if it was both himself and not himself singing it.

     Your tragedy's not lost to time,

     And even though you're left to die

     On robin’s wings your soul still flies

     From the shadows we all will rise

This was enough for the leader of the tribe to drop their makeshift spear and hold out a hand for Jules to take.

—

The children had led them to an even deeper part of the cavern, away from the bones and on top of old furs that must have come from deer, moose and other ungulates, along with various possessions of what most likely belonged to other intruders at one point.

“You said they are his half brothers and sisters, too?”

“Freaky right?”

“Just how many half siblings does he and Casper have?” 

“Lu mentioned he had a lot of 'em. But nothing about ‘em being like this…” 

“Do you think he knows they're down here?” Chastity idly played with the fur of the white shewolf that some of the other children dubbed “Hah-tee”. In retrospect, she should have picked up on it sooner. Sköll was more friendly than this one, and a lot younger.

“He'd throw a fit if he knew they were down here. Living like this .”

He eyed the filthy sleeping pile of kids who were no doubt starving and covered in fleas. He was going to throw a fit himself the minute he saw someone who he thought had answers. 

Jules looked at a kid and pup, gnawing at an arm with their teeth. He suspected that the cannibalism came less from an actual desire for human flesh and more that the kids were just eating what the wolves were giving them.

Still, even if the wolves were providing care, it wasn’t enough. They at least needed some adults to look out for them, or resources to keep them from starving or getting sick. 

But there was a small part of him that wondered if it was even right to disturb what was going on with them. What if it made the situation worse instead of better? After all, some of his ancestors from his father’s side lived the same way.

He would have to talk to Lu about it later. If he could get an answer from him about it edgewise. He was starting to suspect that either his friend, the staff, or both were keeping a lot more secrets than he initially thought.

As Chastity kept idly petting ‘Hah-tee’, she wondered something. “How did you know it was Babes in the Woods ?”

Jules looked at her puzzled. Then he remembered. She didn't tell him it was their song this time.

“Lucky guess.”

What he couldn’t figure out was why this future stuff was happening while he was awake .

Chastity frowned. She expected some oddities in working with some of the people who were close to Dethklok. The presence of a wolf in the studio, the aesthetic of the guest wing of Mordhaus. Those could be written off as weird rich people quirks or perks that came with the kind of money Dethklok made. 

But she wasn't born yesterday. The unusual earthquake in the park, the fact that their band suddenly went viral before they even played a note together. Hell, the way Jules knew how to reach those kids with their music.

This wasn’t normal.

She didn’t know what or how exactly, but she was going to figure out the mystery behind all this. One way or another.

 —

Lucius stared at his sister in uncomfortable silence as she sat down on the couch beside him. She hadn’t spoken to him over the last couple of days after the initial chewing out and grounding she gave him when they got home.

At first, he was a little impressed that she could keep her mouth shut for more than a few minutes at a time, she was usually so bubbly around him. But now? The silence was killing him. Fuck it. He was going to say something. He didn’t want there to be tension between them when he left for tour.

“Can you please say something?”

To his relief, she finally started talking. 

“Ya know, It’d be one thing if you were out with your friends in a place that was more lively. But those people aren’t your crowd, Lillebror.” 

“What’s that supposed to mean?”

She groaned, “That place was a dump. Everyone there was wallowing in their own resentment. Blaming the band for screwing their lives instead of actually making an effort to change them.”

“The band did screw them. They screw a lot of people every day. They screw the environment. They screw their children. They screw their employees. Hell, they screwed the global economy for years!” He pointed out in a tirade that seemed almost like a natural reaction.

“It doesn’t matter who they did or didn’t fuck over. That doesn’t change the fact that Dethklok is going to save the world.” She answered without hesitation.

He didn’t get it. “How can you just have faith that everything will magically work out and that they’ll do the right thing?”

“Because if we sit around in resentment wishing for a perfect world, then the imperfect one we do have is fucked because we failed to take action. ” 

He didn’t have anything to say to that.

She leaned over and pulled him closer into a side hug. “ They didn’t ask for it any more than you or I asked for our parts to play. You have to forgive them and put your hangups aside if we have any shot of evacuating our siblings and building a better world after the battle for the planet.”

He sighed. “You know I can’t put it all aside just like that.”

“No, but the least you can do is make it a habit to try and see the good in them. You’re going on tour soon. Use it as an opportunity to look at things from their perspective once in a while. It’s a tall order, saving the world. And just like you, they are human, too.”

He leaned against her shoulder.

Human, huh?

“Okay.”

She pulled him into a hug. “Just so you know, my faith isn’t just for them. I believe in you too, even when you fuck up or act like a killjoy.” She gently poked at his side.

He chuckled, not moving from his spot.

“You’re more like a grumpy old man in a teenage body.” She teased, poking his side further, drawing laughter out of him.

“Stahp!”

“Never! I’m making up for months of not being able to tease you!”

After the tickle session lasted long enough until neither of them could breathe, she exhaled. Something else that was nagging at her.

The little voice in her head had been practically screaming ever since she yanked her brother off the stage at that bar at the end of his little performance.  Especially when she looked into the eyes of that man. The one with the long black hair and the goatee.

There was something off about that guy. It was enough to make Skoll cower. That meant he was dangerous. Possibly one of the half man's agents.

“Promise me you won’t go to that bar again. Or talk to that drummer.” She said in all seriousness. “Even if he goes to one of your concerts or tries to follow you on tour.”

“Why’s that?”

“There’s a lot more danger out there than you realize. Especially when you go public. I can’t be there to protect you on tour. You’ll need to be on your guard, more than ever.”

—

Somewhere, in the woods surrounding Mordhaus, the Metal Masked Assassin tore apart a decaying corpse to feed to his starving followers, who were becoming more obedient and mindless by the day. 

It was a shame there was no more natural game here. No men in hoods or newer recruits from the Depths. At least the competition had been driven out, though if he thought about it, the wolves and wildlings would have been suitable for fresh meat.

He had heard rumors of them.

Bastards dropped at the doorsteps of Mordhaus by fed up mothers who would rather leave them to die than to care for them.

A tribe of brutal children raised by the wolves they grew vicious, self-sufficient, and deadly. They were certainly cunning enough to escape his followers' grasp.

No matter.

All he had to do was continue to pull the wool over the idiot’s eyes. Make Hammersmith think that it was still his plan. He supposed the weaker ones of the Revengencers under his command would have to nourish the stronger ones. At least until Magnus captured their intended bait. Until then, they would wait.

—

A family court judge in LA rifled through the files that his old war buddy, Crozier, had sent to him. 

Valley, huh?

He would have most likely missed this one or just sit on the case for a few months until the kid turned 18, but his old friend did point out something unusual about the temporary guardianship status paperwork.

It wasn’t the paperwork itself that was screwy. It was, however, who was on the paperwork. 

Charles Foster Offdensen.

The same Charles Foster Offdensen that put all the foster systems and family courts in the United States through the absolute hell that was legally disowning the paternity rights to of hundreds of children. He'd bet the number easily made it to the thousands if they were talking globally. 

There was no doubt that this teenager was most likely in some sort of jeopardy. Even Offdensen himself used the argument in court. “Mordhaus is no safe place for most adults, let alone children.”

Since the child did illegally run from the foster system, it was in the judge’s power to declare this temporary guardianship paperwork null.

With the stroke of his pen, he revoked Offdensen’s guardianship status. Valley would become a ward of the state the minute he stepped foot back in the state of California.

While Dethklok could treat the other institutions like it was their playground, but as long as he was around, he would protect the institution of family.

Chapter Text

The Crystal Mountain Records Tower shone brightly against the night sky with the rest of the opulent buildings of Los Angeles’s Financial District. Its luminescence, a shining beacon to many hopeful musicians who wanted a shot at fame and glory, ever since Dethklok rose to the heights of fame. 

Inside its glowing splendor, at the very peak of that mountain, held an all black meeting room adorned in contemporary office furniture with a black logo of a mockingbird perched on a gramophone proudly displayed in the center of the conference table.

A sharp looking woman who looked no older than thirty, in a skirt suit and tight bun offered a smile to the rest of the members of the board that didn’t quite reach her eyes.

“Dear members of the board. I’m glad we are able to convene.” She announced, adjusting her black framed glasses. 

“I am sure you are all well aware of the latest issue with our number one source of profit, Dethklok.” 

She turned on the surrounding television screens, showcasing the band in their usual attire and logo. 

“Ever since the destruction of their latest album several years ago, Dethklok has procrastinated more than ever, delaying the creation of a product that will satisfy the fans, the music industry, but most importantly our profit margin.”

The photo on the screen changed to that of Roy Cornickleson. 

“Though we are glad our dear founder is in good health at the present moment…” She glared at the figure of a mollified looking Damien standing at the other end of the room “... he has been overly indulgent with our current cash cow. No doubt thanks to Offdensen’s renegotiation skills combined with our founder’s… personal sentiments .”

She spat the last word out like it was a curse, tightening the grip on her remote.

“While our founder currently has no direct control of our company, the label still gives them far too much resources to squander. If we keep giving them more money without a return of investment, we will lose everything.” 

Her left eye twitched and her heart raced as she slammed a fist at the round table. “They are still the world’s 5th largest economy, and we live off their scraps. It belongs to us, not to some fat, lazy, ill mannered, stupid assholes who can barely string together a fucking sentence! ”

The only one at the round table who visibly flinched at her outburst was Damien. The rest of the board member’s didn’t dare speak up. While Damien’s outbursts happened more often, Melinda’s were far more terrifying.

“Melinda, dearest, your uh…hair…,” he spoke, his limbs still trembling from her initial shriek.

She steadied her breathing, uncurling her fist to fix the one loose strand of hair that was out of place from her bun.

“Thank you, hubby.” She smiled, as if nothing had happened.

“Luckily, my fellow members of the board, I have prepared a solution. A little plan of succession if you will.”

She pressed another button on the remote, which thankfully didn’t shatter under her tight grip. The photo changed to that of the members of Mourningstar.

“The one thing that even Offdensen understands is that even Dethklok can’t live forever. Which was why I had Damien sign on Mourningstar last month. A band made almost entirely of their illegitimate children.”

That seemed to garner a reaction from the other members of the board. After they grumbled amongst themselves in discontent, one of them spoke up.

“With all due respect Mrs. Cornickleson, how does that make us money? I thought the point of all this was to put a stop to Dethklok, not dump all their money on their kids.”

Melinda offered a faux laugh before she put down the remote. “This isn’t 25 years ago. Under their current contract, they will pay for concerts, makeup, records, security, promotion, and staff out of their residuals. We also have final say on any sponsorship deals. In total this contract nets us 85% of all profits.”

“Why 85%?” Someone asked. ”Shouldn’t it be higher?”

“Unfortunately, the Coogan Law is on their side until they are considered adults in the eyes of the United States Government.” She grumbled. “But it is a four-quarter long setback for us at most. 4/5ths of them are on the precipice of or are already at legal adulthood.”

“Besides…my fellow members, their profits aren’t the only long term gains to be had,” She changed the slide again, shrinking down the image of Mourningstar into a graphic of a hole in the dirt. “These children are still green . Little saplings that are unaware of how the world works. Perfectly unspoiled with little contact from their predecessors, according to my sources.”

The graphic changed to an image of the band slowly getting bigger as it was getting both literally “watered” by a garden can with the Crystal Mountain Records Logo plastered on it. 

“With the right level of influence from our label, these seeds can be nurtured into the perfect industry plants. Shilling out the music for the general masses. We control what the population will listen to, and take our rightful place as the gods of the music world!”

Practically salivating over the idea, she began to chuckle to herself. Another loose hair fell out of her bun as her chuckle turned to laughter. The members of the board looked at one another, hesitantly joining in with uproarious laughter as her eyes widened. The only one who didn’t join in was Damien, who was far too passive to laugh.

—-

Ryan never considered himself a lucky man. 

Even if the doctors in Vegas had told him he was.

According to them, if he had spent another hour wandering around the desert, he would have been food for the vultures and coyotes. 

Then, they promptly billed him a million dollars for the IV fluid, room, and opioids before booting him out of the hospital before he was ready to walk again. He heard the laughter from the doctors and the nurses when they thought he crawled far enough away. Bastards. Of course they would add literal insult to injury.

It had been years since the incident, though he wasn’t stupid enough to speak out loud about it. 

It was speaking out loud that got him in trouble in the first place.

“We can’t afford to pay our mortgages and Dethklok is laughing at us! Fuck them! They’ve gotten too big! They used to be one of us!”

The ‘mental reprogramming’ must have been as shoddy as his facial reconstruction. It only took him a few months before he remembered everything . 

Men with black hoods and deep voices shoving papers and a pen in his face. The sound of his own screams from the excruciating pain from the scalpel that was taken to his face. The scorching heat of the sand on his back after being tossed out into the highway of the Nevada desert.

All because he criticized Dethklok’s greed on the news. 

They violated him. Rendered him homeless. Suppressed his voice and cursed him to wander as a laughing stock to the rest of the world.

Dethklok may have owned the economy. Possibly the world. But never his soul. He would be damned if he spent another dime on any Dethklok related merch, or listen to their music. 

Wandering in Pittsburgh with ratty clothes, newspapers tied to his feet and a botched face, he made his way to the nearest large gathering of people. Maybe if he was lucky, he could get enough money for some booze.

“Sins of the father”

Ryan never heard a sound like this one before.

 “Fault of a god who made it so ”

It clearly wasn’t metal. Hell, a few years back he would have called it pussy music. Something made for teenage girls or old ladies. But hearing something like this now, when he was at his lowest… it was enough to provide a soothing balm for his wayward soul.

“We are the children ”

“You let go”

The music, his silent desperation, his suffering, it was almost too much to bear. Pain filled tears sprang forth from damaged tear ducts as he fell to his knees in utter desperation at the edge of the crowd.

“Is there anyone who’s sick to death of crimes”

“Passed down lies after lies”

“Bowing down like slaves to be saved from on high.”

He didn’t want to die. But he was so tired.

Exhausted from the pain…the suffering that came from living this way.

“Why be sheep when we can rise”

“We are free, we are wild”

There had to be something better than this .

Something other than brutality… 

A reprieve from the seemingly endless grieving that came after when the dust settled from the violence.  

“This is the anthem”

“Of our hearts desire”

He opened his eyes as he stared into the puddle of beer into the nearby road. That was when he noticed it.

His face…they fixed his face!

The homeless man scrambled to his feet, scouring for the source of that beautiful sound. The song that came from the Heavens themselves.

It had been nothing short of a miracle. A panacea. 

He wanted to, no, needed to know.

More than anything else on this Earth.

Who had been playing?

He eventually found the answer on the poster plastered on the wall outside of the concert venue.   

—

Roy Cornickleson sighed as he sat back down in the swivel chair of his personal office. His recovery hadn’t been an easy one, but he had been able to slowly get back on his feet long enough to start working remotely.

When he started the company many decades ago, he learned that there was a delicate balance between artistic vision and public gratification and that there was a level of respect for the creative process to make it all work.

But it seemed, after many years of fame, excess procrastination, and high budget demands, he had come to the realization that Dethklok had taken his generosity for granted. 

Just like Damien.

He had to wake up to the fact that his hands off approach to the business had hurt Crystal Mountain more than it helped.

As much as he didn’t want to do it he had to play hardball. Fire Dick. Hire Miss Remendeltric. Threaten to cut off the band if they didn’t finish the album by the deadline.

He scanned his meeting itinerary, looking down the list for the next phone call, hoping to God above that it would be a better conversation than having to give a group of grown men an absurd lecture about excessive masturbating on the clock.

Roy nearly dropped the paper, his eyes wide with shock, when he looked at the finer details of the next call.

Dethklok…had children ? 

He didn’t recall signing them on. He had been frail in the past, and he was getting old,  but he was far from feeble minded. No matter how much Damien or his daughter in law wanted to make the other members of the board believe it. 

Now that he thought of it, he didn’t even remember seeing these kids at any of the industry parties, award ceremonies, or business meetings in the past twenty odd years…

They must have kept these kids under wraps. It was an uncommon yet well known parental tactic of celebrities, usually to prevent said children from getting into harm's way. The world of fame did come with a unique set of dangers and harassment that came with the territory of fame and fortune.

He scanned the call list again. Apparently they had just finished their first major concert. The beginning of a US Tour that would pivot into a global one come next year. All on schedule.

Maybe he had misjudged Dethklok in his temper. Especially if they had succeeded in raising their children in a way that he hadn’t.

He could make the time to offer Mourningstar his congratulations.

—

“I’m so proud of my little man!” Mallory crowed, unabashedly wrapping Jules in a big hug despite the height from his most recent growth spurt. 

It felt like it had only yesterday when she was watching her little one hitting the pots and pans in the kitchen while still wearing diapers. Now he was backstage with his friends after his very first performance on stage in front of thousands of people.

There had been a few hiccups, sure. Occasional fights, well intentioned criminal behavior, and one big incident with sticky fingers that he was still paying off with odd jobs in Mordhaus and this tour after back child support had been calculated. But Julius was here, nearly grown into a decent man. Not dead or in jail, but surrounded by friends, who she considered good eggs for the most part.

A suddenly bashful Jules didn’t respond, looking away from his mother’s face. 

“You’re embarrasin’ me, Ma.”

She pulled away respecting the fragile dignity of her teenage son for the moment before catching Lucius in an awkward cheek pinch. “And your voice, little Lulu. I didn’t know you had it in ya. I’m givin’ your sista an earful for not makin’ it!”

Lucius offered her a half smile and shook his head. “It’s okay, Miss Mallory. She has a lot of important work to do and…”

Mallory smacked his arm with no real force behind it. “I told ya just to drop the Miss. And work ain’t no excuse, no matter how important the job.”

Lucius only grew silent, looking away, knowing better than to argue. His gaze drifted over from her to Casper, who seemed to be soaking up the attention of several kids who looked like him, and another woman, who looked just as excited to be her.

“Anyway” Mallory interrupted, talking to Jules, and Tuesday, who had sauntered up to the three of them. “Since I already closed the Tropic for the day so we could all see yinz, I’m gonna head back with Tuey and see if we can’t get the place set up for a little celebration. You come a little early Jules, we need to talk about settin’ up that uh savings’ account thing anywho.”

Jules grinned widely at the thought of one last hurrah at the Tropic of Capricorn, before leaving to travel the rest of the US. “We’ll be there, Ma.”

As the two adults departed, Jules turned around and muttered, “I’ll check on Junior, see if he’s still logged in and can stick around.” 

And with one quick pat on the back, just like that, Lucius found himself alone again.

At least he got to say goodbye before he left this time. Had people waiting for his return. A luxury he didn’t have when she died in front of him.  

The teen sat down at a nearby bench, his gaze still falling back to Casper and the children surrounding him.

Even if Casper looked visibly annoyed by the presence of his brothers and sisters, the half smile he flashed when he thought no one was looking spoke volumes about his true feelings. All of them looked so happy to be there. Loved. Complete.

The shifting weight on the bench combined with the sweet smell of jasmine pulled him out of his uncomfortably growing sense of envy.

“Hey Chas.”

“Brooding as usual?”

“I don’t brood.” he pouted despite himself.

That earned him a snicker.

“Ya know…” she lilted, playfully tilting her head to the side, “There’s nothing stopping you from joining in, saying hello. I’m sure Miss Nirvana and the kids wouldn’t mind.”

He shook his head, “It’s more complicated than that. Casper may be working together with me, but his family opted out.”

She gave him a puzzled expression. “Opted out?”

“More like, never opted in.”

“What do’you mean?” she asked, even more confused at his cryptic response.

“Just because we all have the same biological father, doesn’t mean all the mothers involved have the same financial, emotional, or legal circumstances. They range from groupies to elderly women to famous celebrities. Some of them still love Skwisgaar while others despise him.”

He turned to look at her, serious as the plague.

“I can put out all the assistance programs and messaging platforms I want, but the kids involved and their mothers have to choose to participate in reconnection.”

He looked back at Casper’s family, “In Miss Stryker’s and Nirvana’s case, they don’t need the financial assistance, the Danish healthcare system is way better than the perks I could offer, and they tend to keep their family affairs private. If the mothers didn’t choose to opt in for some assistance or connection, and their kids are under 18, legally, I can’t violate their wishes by making contact.”

Chastity’s smile vanished almost in an instant, and she looked like she was about to cry. 

He bit his lower lip, not bringing himself to look at her. He shouldn’t have said anything about it. Kept his stupid fucking mouth shut. 

Then, he felt a pair of two warm, soft hands, giving his own a gentle squeeze of assurance. 

“Look at me.” She said kindly yet firmly.

When he was finally able to turn his head in her direction, all he could see was her storm colored eyes. 

“Promise me you won’t exclude yourself before you get a chance to connect, Darlin’. You might find you’re more wanted than you think y’are.”

Red faced and body stiff as a board, he was barely able to squeak out a response.

“Okay.”

“Yinz gotta come see this!” Shouted Jules from the other side of the backstage area. “Junie pulled a neat trick!”

The pair, along with the rest of the staff and visitors all snapped their heads in the direction of the X2P1157 which was in the middle of projecting two holograms.  One was of the infamous Facebones with the localized slouch hat that was popular with Dethklok Australia.

“Oi, listen up, dickheads, we got a call from tha bloody label head.” The skull announced. 

“Language,” Lucius chastised the skull, standing up to get a closer look at the other hologram, a full bodied image of an older man in a business suit. “You’re not Damien?”

“No, I’m the company founder, his father,”  He answered before clearing his throat uncomfortably, “I still work with many of yours, actually.” 

Jules stepped back from the hologram, falling in place with Chastity and Lucius. Casper excused himself from his stepmother and his siblings to join the rest of his band and see what the fuss was about.

“I wanted to congratulate all of you on the first step of your musical career. All of us at the label couldn’t be prouder of you five. I am sure your parents are just as well, even if they are busy recording right now.” 

Lucius felt a large calloused hand grip his left one behind his back, giving it an anxious squeeze. Jules must’ve found the well meaning compliment as misplaced as he did.

“I know it's a tough road ahead, filled with a lot of growing pains, hardships, and maybe unfair comparisons to your predecessors.”

Lucius felt another hand grab his right. The same soft yet calloused one he felt a few minutes ago. Chastity. 

“But no matter where you land, you’ll have done your best and you have each other to lean on.”  

Why did everyone suddenly smell good ? And did his heart racing even faster like he had just run a marathon? Why did he suddenly get the urge to…

…Oh no. 

“Once again congratulations…”

Why did that part of him have to wake up now?

“ …on all your endeavors and…” 

He just needed to stop thinking sexy thoughts. Or happy ones. Or ones of warmth and praise. Anything to keep from drawing attention to his…

“...I hope all of you succeed in … is that a boner?”

Awkward silence filled the stage.

Casper slid in front of the trio waving at the hologram, and diverting attention. “Yeah yeah, tak, we'll see you later at the next meeting, thank you for your support.”  

Before Roy could get in a word edgewise he turned off the hologram button on the robot, cutting off Junior and Roy. “Forget that geezer. Don’t we have a party at your mom’s place, Jules?”

Jules, thoroughly planning to tease the hell out of his friend for what just happened later, cleared his throat and let go of Lucius’s hand. “Yeah, I gotta go ahead, but I’ll meet yinz at the Tropic tonight at 8:00”.

Chastity too, let go of his hand and said, “We can get ready at the bus. See y'all later.”

The two of them darted in their own directions, leaving Casper to pat his humiliated half brother on the shoulder before departing. “You uh…might want to take care of business first before going, eh? Maybe find someone backstage or jack off.”

If the earth could swallow Lucius whole right now…that would be fine.