Young Writers Society

"I love them as babies," Apophis commented, now having fully tuned out the conversation going on only a few feet away, "but I also can't wait for them to grow up - especially since I'm already so close to them."

"Will do," God spat out - did this guy trust his abilities? He started marching towards the exit of the alleyway, only to stop when he was about to step out into the street. He spun around and stared at this reality's Lucifer. "Er, how do I do that?"

His Lucifer hurried over to his side.

"And then they grow up and then you can just reminisce about how they were babies. I always feel like I regret not being in the moment a bit more but at the same time I can't wait until they get big!"

Lucifer chuckled at him and turned down the alley, snapping his fingers. The air tore itself apart and a dark portal appeared in front of him. "Go on through to Hell. Good luck."

Apophis eagerly nodded in agreement. Finally, someone who understood! Both Lucifer and God were very supportive of his many snakes, as well as Ra, to an extent - the man was simply too afraid of them to ever fully understand his obsession - but none of them kept snakes. For that matter, neither of them kept pets, which meant they were completely clueless when it came to the connections one could have with their animals.

God started to head towards the opening, Lucifer in tow. But just as he was about to walk through it, he turned back to his brother and his brother's counterpart. He studied him for a few moments, then said, "Luci, you should stay here."

Lucifer's eyes widened in alarm.

"Things could get nasty as it is," God said, "and having a complete stranger there might through Cornyx off. I think our best bet is having me go there alone."

Lucifer bit his lip. He didn't like this plan, but he could see the logic behind it and knew he couldn't argue. God was going to go through there alone, whether he wanted him to or not. After he hesitated for a bit, he gave a small nod.

"Okay," Lucifer said, "I'll stay with Apophis."

Then God was gone, having stepped through the portal.

Lucifer plainly thought that God was foolish to try, but didn't stop him, and the portal promptly closed up behind the deity.

Apophis, in the meantime, slipped a hand under her jacket and pulled out a Golden Lancehead. It was unclear if it'd been there and simply unseen or if she'd summoned it but nonetheless there was a large, venomous, and positively gorgeous pit viper slithering up her arm.

~<>~

Cornyx Blackthorne, formerly the lone heir to the throne of Hell, and now its king, sat on the ornate onyx throne that had been Lucifer's since Hell had been created. His once-gray attire had turned to jet black, the only splash of color consisting of a wine purple tie. He ran the silver chain of a pocketwatch through his fingers and the hue perfectly complemented his metallic, draconian eyes.

All in all, he looked a lot less like a shy young man and a lot more like a demon who was out to kill. Lucifer hadn't been joking about Hell freezing over, either; the usually intense temperatures had been significantly negated by the ambient chill that had fallen over the throne room since Cornyx's takeover. This was much preferred by the fox-masked German standing at his side but most of the devils, demons, and other Hell-natives found it rather distasteful.

Lucifer, being ever the gentleman that he usually wasn't, had opened the portal directly into the main hall so that God wouldn't have to go far to find the one he searched for, and so that's how God found him: silver-eyed atop his throne, masked figure at his side, and possessing the intent look of a man awaiting something of importance.

Lucifer awkwardly fiddled with his pencil when he realized it was just him and his counterpart; Apophis was too busy hanging out with his to notice that his best friend was alone, and Lucifer honestly doubted he would have been able to draw his best friend away from a conversation about snakes.

"So," he hesitantly said, "where did you want us to talk?"

From behind him, Apophis gave an impressed whistle - apparently, that snake that had been revealed was quite a special one.


"Oh, shit," God said, "you've gone goth."

He couldn't help himself. He hadn't expected to see Cornyx look so different, yet still manage to look like the same person he had met back in that strange little town. He lacked the shyness - lack the terrified and hungover demeanor - but the features undeniably belonged to Cornyx Blackthorne. He stared at Cornyx for a moment. After readjusting his mental image of his acquaintance, he took in the masked man standing at his side.

He looked back at Cornyx.

"You've gone really goth," he corrected. "And, what, were you aiming for The Godfather? I've never seen the movie, but you're definitely trying to look like a mob boss. Who even sits on thrones these days, anyways?"

"Well, I was going to the bar but now that we've got snakes and neither of you drinks anyways I've got nothing," Lucifer says with a shrug. "I don't exactly frequent Earth much for anything but the jazz."

~<>~

He was, admittedly, shocked. Completely and utterly. He'd never expected to see Dean again, much less to have him show up from literally nowhere less than twenty-four hours after he'd sealed his fate. Cornyx, however, was a controlled individual and one who took things in stride, so instead of revealing the surprise he simply rose and approached the man. Silberfuchs hung back but his pale blue gaze watched the newcomer with intensity and his hands rested on his daggers.

"Well, it's been a tradition of Hell for millennia, so I thought I might only change one thing at a time - starting with leadership, then maybe such trivial ways," he said smoothly as he slipped the watch back into his pocket. "That is, however, somewhat unimportant at the moment. There are more pressing manners. For instance, how did you manage to get here and what, exactly, is it you came for?"

"Oh," Lucifer said.

He put the pencil back behind his ear, Apophis oohing and aahing in the background as he studied the snake that his counterpart had presented. Suddenly feeling more than a little out of place when comparing himself to his own counterpart, he decided to drop the comfortable clothing and go for something a little more formal - the type of thing he would wear when dealing with supernatural beings or when doing business with the other gods.

He spoke the words to the spell.

Though the pencil remained, the rest of his attire - the hoodie and jeans - were exchanged for a relatively decent-looking suit.

He shuffled nervously.

"I, uh, spend a lot of my time on Earth," he said. His eyes were still the shade of baby blue that he loved, and his demonic features remained hidden; showing them when anyone could walk by would be a risk he wasn't willing to take.


Jeez. Cornyx really had changed since the last time he had seen him, and, to be honest, he really wasn't liking the updated model. Seeing the changes finally gave him an explanation for why he had felt so strongly about Cornyx; his former self had reminded him of Lucifer. And the thought of Lucifer changing to become someone he was certainly not supposed to be rubbed him the entirely wrong way.

What had happened to him?

"It involved movie night, a magical mishap and your-wait, give me a second, I'm still trying to figure out your family tree-uncle," God said. He looked Cornyx over again, this time readjusting the straps of his bag as he did so. He was guessing he would need to get his bat out soon - Cornyx's masked buddy didn't look all that friendly.

"And I'm here to knock some sense into you," God declared. He let his hands drop down from his backpack straps to his sides, and gave Cornyx a smile. "Hopefully not literally, but it's always hard to tell how something like this will go - especially when dealing with you taking over the throne of Hell is a first."

"Then by all means, feel free to choose a place, it's not as though we've got somewhere important to be." He glanced over at the Apophises. "Though, we probably want to go somewhere pet-friendly. . ."

~<>~

The bodyguard took a step forward as he made what was perceived to be a threat, but Cornyx raised a hand and he stopped obediently.

"If Lucifer sent you then you can tell him that I already killed Sathanus and Ajax, and he'll be easier than either one," Cornyx spat, frost visible under his feet as he spoke. "If you came of your own volition then I'll by no means kill you but don't get in my way. Mikael couldn't stop me and neither can you."

Lucifer froze up.

"I spent a lot of time in my house," he said, his gaze dropping to the ground, "or at school. I mean, I go to school stuff, but that's not really something I could take you to and I'm not even sure how that work in a different reality."


The sudden show of aggression took him by so much surprise that he took a startled step back, and nearly tripped over his own two feet in the process. Cornyx wasn't supposed to be like that. A little bit of confidence was to be expected, given his rise to power, but he had never been threatening.

He blinked.

He didn't try to regain his composure. To do so would be being perceived as a threat, and this version of Cornyx didn't seem to be as meek as the one he had known back in the ghost town. No, he had to do things differently here - and talking to Cornyx was the only approach he could currently think of that might have some chance of working.

"I didn't come here because your Lucifer told me to," he said. "He just pointed me in the right direction."

He loosened his posture and took a deep breath.

"I don't care about the ruling Hell bit," he added. "I rule Hell back in my reality - or, technically, run it. It's a prison for the dead, and while it probably doesn't work exactly the same as this place does, I have no problem with people being in charge of places of punishment."

He raised a hand and poked Cornyx in the shoulder. "On the other hand, what I really don't like is the thought of you getting so bad that you kill your own dad, and then act like this afterwards. Lucifer's in disarray, so I'm going to bet that your little murder was relatively recent. How could you ever be like that after killing someone?" He could have added that the someone was Cornyx's dad, but was unsure how good their relationship was.

He blinked. He and his counterpart were, undoubtedly, very, very different. "Right then. Um, well, let's just...get dinner someplace then and go from there? Maybe just...get something to-go and eat at a park so that they don't have to let go of their snakes?"

~<>~

Cornyx laughed. A bitter, wry laugh, that somehow betrayed his pain while proving the ice that was his heart. "My father deserved what came to him," he said, voice cold. "I am what I've always been and was too afraid to become. The sooner you people learn to accept that the better it will be for you - or not, it makes it easier for me if you don't." The demon leaned in closer to God. "Don't try to stop me. It's what I always was always meant to be, not that scared, drunk mess you knew."

Lucifer briefly glanced over at his best friend, then nodded. "That sounds like a good idea," he agreed. He fiddled with the collar of his suit. It wasn't like he hadn't worn it before - he had worn it so many times that he had lost count - but it still managed to feel uncomfortable every single time.


Uh-oh.

Cornyx was doing an evil villain monologue.

Maybe Cornyx wasn't aware how cliche his speech has sounded, but God had seen enough movies to recognize the common themes. And to hear someone actually utter those words - and Cornyx to be that someone - admittedly freaked him out a little. It would be like if his Luci started acting like this reality's Lucifer. It just wouldn't be right. Cornyx wasn't supposed to be like this.

And he wasn't supposed to be convinced that God was here to stop him.

He took in a deep breath, then let it out as a heavy sigh.

"Jesus Christ, Cornyx," he said, folding his arms. "Don't you get it? I'm not here to stop you! I already said that I'm cool with you ruling Hell. Go for it. But what's bugging me right now is how you're acting like a completely different person, and it's definitely not just because you're sober. And I'm down for you becoming more confident - that's how I've always been with Luci, too. If he started getting more confident, I'd support him! But this isn't like you at all. This isn't just you suddenly becoming more comfortable with yourself. It's you completely throwing your old self out the window."

He took another deep breath - he always forgot to breath when he got too passionate about something while speaking.

"It's not healthy, Cornyx, and it's not right," he said. "The only reason I know you're the Cornyx I met is because you look the same. But, you know what? I don't even think you deserve the name Cornyx Blackthorne. Hate me all you want for saying it, but you're not him and you won't be him as long as you keep forgetting everything that makes you you."

"Apophis, we're grabbing take-out, what do you want?" Lucifer asked his daughter, forgetting that both of them would probably respond to the name.

~<>~

"I was what I was because I was too afraid of this," he retorted. "But it was always there. I was just too afraid of what I could do. What I wanted to do. What I've now become."

Apophis started paying attention again when he heard his name, and went as far as opening his mouth to answer - only stopping when he realized that the other reality's Lucifer was talking to his counterpart. He closed his mouth, ushered the baby snakes toward his pocket, and went to join his best friend. God was missing, but he tended to be impulsive and disappear when distracted, so Apophis was sure he would turn up again in the near future.


This conversation was going nowhere, but he still wasn't going to give up on him so soon. He was going to find a way to save him - he just had to. Maybe the change would take awhile to occur. Maybe it would happen instantaneously. He didn't know. But whatever the case was, he had to try.

Cornyx - the one from the town, not the one before him - deserved at least that.

"That's bullshit and both of us know it," he said. "You've lost your heart, Cornyx Blackthorne. Can't you see it? I've told you that I don't care about your powers or your burst in confidence! I just want you to be you. I just want you to be a decent person who actually cares about other people, just like when I first met you."

He held up a hand in front of Cornyx's face. "And don't you dare go on about you not being able to because you're a demon. I might slap you if you do, because nothing is ever that black and white. I'm not sure if you ever put the pieces together, but remember Luci? My little brother? You might know him better by his full name - Lucifer. And he's the sweetest ray of sunshine you'll ever meet, even if he has a pair of horns and blood red eyes and a pointed tail. Even if he's been shunned his entire life for not looking human. Even if every single one of the souls that end up in my afterlife freak out when they see him walk into a room."

He put his hand back down. "The world isn't like that Cornyx, and you're not meant to be like this. Haven't you even thought about the fact that you killed someone? That you're talking me like this, when I'm just a worried acquaintance of yours who just wants to make sure you don't do something stupid?"

Apophis draped her viper over her shoulders. "What's around?"

"Hell if I know, we're in a city, probably anything," Lucifer shrugs.

She turned to the other Apophis. "What kind of thing you want?" she inquires.

~<>~

"You know, I've thought about death a lot," he says, the frost spreading on the tiles around him. "And you know what I've discovered? I-" he was cut off as the building rumbled under their feet, the entire structure shaking like there'd been an earthquake. Cornyx looked up sharply and strode past God, conversation forgotten, or at least deemed less important.

"Engel, with me," he says and strides into the hall as the building shakes again as the Silver Fox falls in at his side.

"McDonald's always works with me and Lucifer," he said. After a moment, he added, "But before we go, we should probably tell each other our aliases-I'm assuming you use them, too?"

He gestured at himself. "I go by Alex right now. Lucifer's been using the name Lucas I. Feren. And when God returns, his alias is currently Dean Summers."


His alarm bells began to ring the moment he saw the ice coat the ground, but, before he could accuse Cornyx of planning to attack him, the man had already left the room with the silent masked man. God let out an angry cry of frustration. He was confused by the shaking, but more so by the reaction. If this version of Cornyx had left to focus on that instead of a possible threat on God's part, it was something that Cornyx was concerned with.

He followed Cornyx and Engel out of the room.