Part 35: A long and fairly Grim tale
jorie nwachukwu: I did not see this post until after I'd posted the last chapter, so sorry about not getting back to you sooner. To answer your question, while I'm not planning any more chapters for this story I am thinking about may a tie-in story sometime in the future that might deal with MJ's childhood before all this, so that could happen in that.
Lord Razer: I made an adjustment to the author's notes of the last chapter after I saw your post because, I agree, Bill is not someone to be underestimated and I don't want to give the impression that Junior was taking such a dangerous opponent likely. His threat was mainly to keep him out of the Underworld and in the mortal world, where he could do less damage. This can also lead to Bill's downfall, as he's looking over his shoulder for Death and is not paying enough attention to the "pathetic" humans who are so far beneath him.
Emeraldalex123: What the Minnie in MJ's head is is what remains of the real Minnie. She is the love that Minnie gave to Junior when he accepted her offer of the left eye. That's why she exists. She is as real to Junior as the real Minnie was because she's as real as the love they felt for each other. That's why it hurts so much that they both know they can't be together. Not without hurting each other more.
On a lighter subject, my personal theory is that Chi is Blossom reincarnation (mainly because of the red-hair and her wiki saying she was called Dark Blossom before she was given an official name). Might explain the obsession with Mimi.
Rioludoodle: Well hopefully this roller-coaster will have a decent stop, but we'll see.
AMTT94: Here's my answers to your questions:
In Dragon Ball Z, the villain Buu was reincarnated into a child by the name of Uub, which is literally his name backwards, just like I thought would be funny to do with Mimi, now known as Imim (the Underworld is not very creative).
This one was my stupid mistake. I called MJ a strawberry blond early on because her hair is meant to be a red and blond mix, due to her genetics being that of Chi and Minimandy (remember Junior's Nergal flesh comes from her). It's supposed to be a pretty even mix and I didn't realize just how blonde strawberry blonde was.
Well that Minnie is not imaginary. She's more of a memory. A representation of what once was. She's not the same as an imaginary friend.
The rest might be addressed in a future tie-in story, but we'll see. Though I will say Junior has no plans to keep MJ and Jacob apart as long as they're both in control of their powers.
CuteVyper: I don't disagree with what you're saying. I have a hard time mixing humor and drama in ways that don't take away from each other. I think that's a problem a lot of my Grim Tales stuff is going to suffer from, though I'll try to work on it as time goes on.
As for your question, I am thinking about doing a story sometime in the future of the PPGD heroes joining the Justice League. I'll have a bit more details on it in the author's notes below but it should be fairly epic and probably more uplifting than this story (though everyone involved is going to be put through the wringer first during the story because, well, superheroes).
Guest: I am considering doing some tie-in stories with this one in the future, so that could be something I'll use in it.
ReadLoverNumber1: Thank you. I'm glad you like how he's been going.
nightmaster000: Thank you. Hopefully this will end on a good note.
Be sure to read the author's notes if you want to know about any possible future stories.
Chapter start:
Letting out a long, slow breath, Junior reopened his eyes, his vision filled by the black mountains and red sky that surrounded the balcony of his castle.
"Took you long enough." He heard from behind him. Turning his head from where he sat Junior saw Chi standing in the doorway. She bore a few scattered bandages from her fight with Hunson, but not nearly as many as one would expect to have after facing off against a demon of chaos. Though noticeably almost the entirety of the Shogunness's left arm was bandaged up.
Junior broke his legs free from the lotus position and slowly stood up. "I just used thousand year old Buddhist spiritual techniques to reconnect to a demon memory network probably created fifty years ago. I'm honestly amazed it worked at all." He said as he walked towards her. "How's your arm doing?"
Chi lifted her bandaged arm up slightly. "It still stings a little but that's normal. Now that the essence is back in the sword the pain will fade after a while."
"Suppose it could be worse, given what I've seen that stuff do to people." Junior commented.
"Don't worry, I've already gone through the worst." Chi said. "First time I tried to practice with the stuff I nearly tore my father's castle in half."
"Hm." Junior murmured tiredly, not really giving any response. This did not go unnoticed by Chi but for the moment she decided not to say anything. Instead she simply followed closely behind him as he walked slowly to the edge of the balcony. From this height one could see the vastness of the Underworld, the tall jagged mountains barely reaching to red sky above, and on the ground the flames of the tikbalang guard patrolling close to the castle. This realm, which hosted an incalculable number of supernatural wonders and horrors, some of which could be seen off in the distance flying through the clouds, it was truly something to behold.
And yet even with all this in front of her, this realm's queen could only focus on the man beside her, his arms propped against the railing to keep his weary head up as he looked outward into the same spectacle, not seeming to see any of it. Here was the most powerful man in the Underworld, the lord of a thousand realms, looking simply beaten.
It was quiet between the two for several minutes, until finally Chi decided something needed to be said.
"Care to share them?"
Junior looked over to her in slight confusion. "What?"
"Your thoughts." She clarified. "Care to share them? Or do I have to offer a penny first?" She asked jokingly, hoping it would relax him enough to open up.
Junior looked at her for a moment before turning back to the view. At first it seemed like he wasn't going to answer and Chi inwardly debated whether to drop it or ask again. But eventually…
"...When I was a kid…I never thought about having my own empire." He said, still tiredly staring out into the landscape. "Wasn't really something I cared about and, honestly, I wasn't exactly all that qualified to be ruler anyway. Minnie was always the one who had the patience and ability for that kind of thing. Me? I wasn't as powerful as dad and nowhere near as cunning as Mandy. Plus, the thought of them ever dying…I couldn't comprehend the thought of that."
Chi stayed quiet and allowed him time before he continued, though during his pause she could almost swear she heard a sniff come from his stone face, a sound she's certainly never heard from him before.
"Did you know Hunson had a wife?" Junior asked her.
"I'd assumed he at least had a baby momma, considering…" She answered.
"…Turns out my mother found her." Junior continued. "She kept her location a secret and used this to blackmail Hunson. She, apparently, wanted him to trick all her remaining enemies into gathering together, so that when she attacked, she'd take them all out at once and have no one left to stand in her way."
Though it had been years since that day, Chi thought back to her first dinner with her husband and the accusation she'd given as to what his true plan with the Underworld was. And given the way Junior was phrasing everything, it would seem he remembered that night too.
"Guess I really f'd up their deal when I killed her, didn't I?" Junior joked in a clearly fake tone.
"You can't possibly be blaming yourself for that. You had no idea this was going on." Chi pointed out.
"No. I don't blame myself for that…" Junior commented vaguely before continuing. "…I watched a grown man break down before me and confess his failings to his only child. And my most immediate thought…was can I use this to my advantage? Can I exploit this suffering family even more than I already have and keep the last of the Big Five ruler under my thumb where he's no longer a threat?"
Chi stayed quiet as Junior took in a breath. "No…I don't blame myself for ruining Hunson's chance at happiness." He stated. "I just don't like that the universe feels the need to constantly remind me that I'm my mother's son."
Junior went silent after that. He simply stood against the railing, staring out into the distance as his own thoughts condemned his very existence.
Chi stood silently by his side, not saying a word for several minutes. She watched him quietly before looking out into the same distance as he was.
"Funny enough, I actually did grow up assuming I'd get a big empire like this." She said, getting Junior to shift some of his attention out of his sorrow. "Yeah. A throne of skulls, a legion of demon ninjas, a certain red-skinned minx perched at my feet in a metal bikini…" She said this last part with a hungry smile.
"Dare I ask where I fit in this fantasy?" Junior asked dryly.
"About yonder." She pointed off in the distance. "Impaled on a giant spear with the rest of your family."
"Just a spear?"
"I added fire and screams of torment when you forced me to marry you." Chi commented with a smirk.
"Heh…" Junior let out, giving a small, legitimate chuckle at the comment. It didn't last long but Chi gave a small smile at it, relieved to see that she broke through somewhat.
Chi slowly slid her hand over his own and held it firmly.
"You and your mother have a history and issues that I am not equipped to deal with. No doubt about that. But I can tell you this: I have met this woman before. I've seen the fire in her eyes as she burned my land and watched me suffer. If your eyes ever do start to look like hers, I will stab them right out of your skull with all my hate for that woman. …But for right now, we don't seem to have to worry about that." She said, as she looked into his eyes. "They look pretty much the same as usual, just with my favorite color mixed in."
She smiled softly at him and it took a minute before Junior realized how hard he was squeezing her hand. How much he was holding onto her to keep himself together and how grateful he was that she was there.
"…I don't know what I'd do without you sometimes, Chi." He admitted with a small, sad smile.
"Go through a lot more tissues and lotion?" She teased.
"I mean it." He said honestly. "Any other woman would have given up on me years ago or be constantly bowing to my will out of fear. But with you, it's like "Oh, you're a terrible person? Well I'm a terrible person too, so let's be terrible people together."."
"Well…my bluntness is one of my best qualities." She said, doing her best not to show her blushing due to his words. "It's certainly done me better in life than your whole guilt complex shtick, so hopefully MJ takes more after my side of the family."
"Oh, man. Well, hopefully not, because if you thought I was worried about her future before…" Junior commented with a cocky smirk.
"You asshole!" Chi laughed as she playfully smacked her hand to his chest.
"You knew that when you married me." He said as he wrapped his arms around her, pulling her in close to him as he hugged her tightly.
Chi did not fight against his embrace, as she held him back, resting her head on his chest as they enjoyed their moment together.
"Speaking of which…" Chi said after a few seconds. "I know that only you and I know about our deal being called off, but since the Underworld is a place of loopholes and technicalities, and since I doubt either of us want our empire to be broken up…perhaps it would be best if we…reinstated some things."
Breaking away from Junior's arms, Chi reached into her robe and pulled out a small box. The same one that contained the ring that Junior had used to "propose" to her all those years ago.
Junior was choked up for a moment, though did he best to bring the cockiness back into his voice. "Why, Chi, are you asking me to marry you?" Junior asked slyly.
"Hell no." Chi stated bluntly, actually causing Junior to blink in confusion. "Sorry, Grim, but I'm an old fashioned kind of girl. If you want to get with this then you need to put the ring on it yourself."
Junior just stood there kind of dumbfounded. "…Did you just basically demand that I ask you to marry me?"
"You got a problem with that, Reaper boy?" She asked, playfully waving the box around in her hand.
"This infuriating woman…" Junior thought with a smile. "God I love you!" He said as he scooped her into his embrace and kissed her. Chi returned the passionate kiss, wrapping her arms around his neck as they stood.
"Well…I suppose I can accept that in place of a proposal." Chi said when the kiss ended. "So…you in the mood to celebrate a second first honeymoon?"
Junior gave a wide naughty smile to her. "There's nothing I would rather-" He then paused as though he just remembered something and then sighed. "…Actually, Chi, I'm unfortunately going to have to take a rain check on that."
Chi gave him a blank and soon annoyed stare. "You're kidding me, right?"
Junior shook his head. "Unfortunately, though I may be the grand Poobah of all I survey, I still have an actual job that needs attending to."
"You can't put it off for say, an hour?"
"Well the last time we did that we got Black Lanterns and zombie strippers, so if you're ok with putting up with stuff like that again as I try to play catch-up-"
"Stop." Chi raised her hand to pause him. "I see you're your point."
Junior smiled at her and kissed her forehead. "It'll just be a couple hours. I'll try not to take too long."
"You'd better not." Chi said as she brushed seductively past him. "Keep a woman like me waiting too long and your new empire is going to have some pretty interesting rumors going around it about its ruler."
Junior watched her leave as she exited the balcony, retiring to innards of the castle. When she was gone, Junior made his way inside as well.
Junior shut the door to his office. If there was one thing he did not like about the castle, it was its long hallways. Not because necessarily of the time it to get from place to place within it, but because the time gave room to think uninterrupted, and thus why the peaceful mood the Reaper's wife had put him in had all but disappeared. His mind was focused too much on what he was doing. What he always did in this damn office.
As Junior made his way to his desk he couldn't help but curse the number of secrets he had left and the problems he was still unprepared to deal with. That was something he loved about his time with Chi. No matter what misery lay before them, she always made him feel like the only problem in the world was figuring ways to one-up her. It helped him avoid. It helped him to not think about them.
There was still the issue with MJ's awakened powers. He had every intention of keeping his word to her and training her how to control them once he'd recovered enough. Problem is that due to being half of whatever the hell Chi and her father's species is, MJ's biology and abilities were slightly different from his own and it was hard to say how well he'd be able to teach her because of that difference. It was the same problem that Minnie and Nergal had faced with him, due to him being half-Reaper. Not to mention how bad things could get if she lost control again or if someone tried to gain control of her Demon Reaper as HIM had tried to do to him years ago.
There was the issue regarding Jacob. Only time would tell if letting him keep the Devil's Essence was a move of wisdom or one that'd doom them both.
There was the issue of where Hunson's wife was. Junior admittedly wasn't sure what he wanted to come from that whole situation.
And then there was the scythe.
Junior set the scythe against the wall, eyeing the blade as he did so. Specifically the cracks in it.
They were small and far too faint for anyone to spot them unless they got in close and given that the scythe rarely ever left the Reaper's sight that was not likely to happen.
While the scythe was an ancient tool, older than even his father, most of the damage to it had come from the last fifty years or so. Changing hands from person to person, being used as a gardening tool, being used for chores, being shoved up noses, and, most recently, being caught in the blast of a soul destroying bomb.
His father told him it's been broken before, but only partially. Just enough so that it needed a repair session. But this…Junior could tell. The cracks were going to spread. One of these days the scythe was going to break. Completely. The supernatural energies contained within such an ancient weapon was going to be a loss Junior was never going to quite make up for. Not to mention its destruction would mean the release of his mother's soul. That was going to be fun to deal with.
And the worst part…all of these still paled in comparison to what lay hidden beneath his desk.
Pushing the desk out of the way, Junior hit a small button on the underside of the workspace and from under the floor slowly emerged a small safe.
The safe was composed of the strongest materials known to existence, including Underworldium. It was a stupid as hell name but it did the job. No supernatural energy was ever going to break this safe. Not even the scythe or himself as that powerful.
After entering in the combination, the door unlocked and the safe opened. Within this small box was the most important item Junior had in his possession, far more meaningful to him than anything his mother had kept within her vault.
Within the safe was a single hourglass with the name Chi engraved upon it.
And the sands within the glass almost out.
Taking the hourglass out and setting it on his desk, Junior carefully unscrewed the top and from his fingers dropped more sand into it, refilling the item.
Just as he had done every day since his daughter was born.
Screwing the top back on and setting it back in the safe, Junior then took a seat in his chair, sighing as he did so.
Years ago his wife had asked him when her time was going to come. He didn't tell her, mainly because he himself never imagined that she would ever be killed. She was one of the strongest Underworld lords next to him and Hunson and with a natural lifespan of eons, it simply wasn't something to worry about. Even when a billion years did pass and her time would come, he always figured that if her sands ever did run out they'd simply ignore it and they'd be fine, just as his father did when Mandy was supposed to go.
But he was not his father. His father died before ever teaching him all there was to know about being Death. Which meant he never told him how he kept his mother alive.
Everyone is tied to their hourglass. Every other person, when the sands in their glass ran out, they dropped dead. That was how it worked. Mandy was the one exception and that was because Grim acted on her behalf. Instead of dying, she became immortal, living so long as death didn't change his mind and kill her himself. Somehow, someway, he made it happen.
This was a secret Grim took to his grave.
On the day MJ was born, the day the Underworld was introduced to the Black Demon Reaper, Chi died.
And Junior couldn't accept that.
With his great power and lack of knowledge, he tried desperately to bring her back. And he succeeded, but at a price.
Every day since the day he brought her back he refilled her hourglass. Her life was now more heavily connected to it than ever before and if Junior failed even once in this duty, she would die.
Where does a being of the Underworld go when they die? That was a question even his father didn't know.
Out of all his secrets, this was the one Junior was never going to let anyone ever find out about.
He had to. How could he tell his wife that she was living on borrowed time? How could he make his daughter live with the fact that she killed her own mother?
These were his justifications for his actions. But in truth, like with many things, he simply was not ready to deal with it. That, in truth, he was simply being selfish.
How could he accept that the one person he had left was going to leave him? How could he accept that the family he'd built will eventually fall apart?
But eventually he would have to. He knew this all too well as he sat staring at it.
It was an hourglass. It was an almost literal ticking clock.
One of these days, it will have to run out.
It was just a matter of time.
"I am so tired…" Junior thought to himself as he sat in the dark quiet space of his office.
Chapter end
Author's notes: And that was Grim Tales: Empire of Death. Kind of a grim note to end on and hopefully I did that well. I hope everyone enjoyed it and I hope the ending satisfying enough to end on. Before anyone asks, I am likely to do some form of tie-in story to this in the future, likely one that will center around MJ's childhood before meeting HIM or what'll happen when Chi's time finally comes or even possibly MJ taking the throne from Junior and dealing with what he's left behind. Whichever I choose (I very well could end up doing them all) and whenever I write it (I'm going to take a break from THIS particular Grim Tales storyline for a while), I imagine it'll be significantly shorter than this whole story.
Now you might be saying: didn't Junior tell MJ that she didn't kill her mother when she was born? Yes he did. He lied to her. How do you tell your ten year old daughter after she's been through so much trauma already that she killed her own mother? Heck, Junior is a full grown man who deliberately killed his own mother and even he has trouble dealing with it sometimes. Just like Hunson with Marceline, no parent ever wants to hurt their child, especially not when they feel like they're the ones who failed.
Again, I do hope the story was pretty good and that you all enjoyed it, so do please leave post your thoughts, comments, criticisms, and suggestion. I always enjoy reading them and I will try to get back to anyone who needs me to.
But also, I wanted to get all your guys' opinions on what I should do next. I am planning on doing more Grim Tales stories in the future, along with possibly some other stories outside of Grim Tales.
Here are some ideas of what I'm planning in the future. I'm not going to do all of these in the immediate future but I would like to know what people think of me doing them.
Grim Tales: Complex: This is a story I can almost guarantee I'm going to do sometime soon in the future, as I already have the first chapter written and the story mostly planned out. I don't want to give too much away right now, but I will say it is inspired by the Grim Tales Afterbirth story and thus will have the entire Grim family, including Manny and Daniela Phantom. Though everyone will be a little older in this story than in Afterbirth, with the twins being in their teens and Junior pushing thirty. Junior, who will be a bounty hunter, will still be the main focus though. Also if the story goes as planned it will likely be a bit longer than Empire of Death, but we'll see. Also probably rated M for a few different reasons (it's not going to be a porn).
Another Grim Tales lemon: this will be porn. Likely one involving Junior, Minnie, and possible Mimi, all in their teens because I am NOT going to write porn about ten year olds. No. Just…no.
Powerpuff Girls D/Justice League crossover: Basically this will be some of the heroes from the PPGD story joining the Justice League and facing a BIG villain that threatens them all. I'm planning on the fic being a combination of the PPGD, Grim Tales, and Justice League Unlimited continuities. This one is not going to be for a while, so in the meantime I would like some suggestions on two things:
Who are some cartoon heroes who should join the League? I'm already planning on the three Powerpuffs, Dexter, and Danny Phantom and I would appreciate some suggestions. My only condition is that they be from a cartoon show. No characters from or in connection to Marvel or DC comics.
Who are some cartoon villains who should be part of the new Legion of Doom, the villains the heroes will fight? The only ones I'm mostly certain on are Vlad Plasmius, Invader Zim, and maybe Chase Young and Shego. Again, my only condition is that they be a villain from a cartoon show. Also I don't want to use HIM because I'm already going to be using him in most of the Grim Tales stuff.
Spider-Man vs. Mephisto: Because fuck One More Day, that's why. Basically this will be Spider-Man fighting against the forces of Hell to reclaim his marriage to Mary Jane.
Kung Fu Panda/Legend of Korra crossover: I like all the Kung Fu Panda movies (2 is my favorite) and I like the majority of Legend of Korra (season 3 is my favorite), so this might be kind of a fun idea I'm toying with. Plus I think there's a lot of potential in a character like Kai (from KFP 3).
Grim Tales Noir: Basically the Grim Tales characters reimagined in a 1930's mob noir.
Grim Tales Fairy Tales: Basically the Grim Tales characters mucking up a bunch of classic fairy tale stories, such as Cinderella, Hansel and Gretel, Little Red Riding Hood, and more. This is probably going to be more of a comedy, which means I could very easy mess it up, so this will take some time.
Grim Tales oneshots collection: This, along with Grim Tales: Complex, is something I am almost guaranteed to be working on sometime soon in the future. Basically it'll be a collection of one chapter stories and oneshots around Grim Tales, with any story being able to be told in any given chapter, kind of like what Akumakami64 has in his fanfictions. I'll likely make it rated M, but that's only so there will be less restrictions on what stories can be in the collection, so any story K through M in rating can be put within.
I have a few ideas for this already, such as Junior and Minnie meeting Superman, Mandy's motherly relationship with Junior, Grim's fatherly relationship with Minnie, and one about Minnie arriving too late to Oogie's lair to save Junior.
But the point of this oneshot collection is to hear what the fans want to read about, so if you have any suggestions for some stories feel free to tell me about them. Some will likely be made into oneshots. Others could be made or at least incorporated into bigger stories. Not all will be, of course, as I only have so much time and so much imagination, plus there are shows like Sonic, Randy Cunningham, or Steven Universe which I haven't seen yet and thus could not use things from those shows in my writings. But having your idea out there still makes it much more likely to happen, so please don't hesitate to give suggestions.
Well I think I've gone on long enough, so I'll just say thank you all again for being so supportive of this story and I hope you enjoyed it at what's to come in the future. I'll probably start posting stories again sometime in May or June, when things in my life are a little less hectic.
Until then, thanks for reading.