~A/N:

Okay guys, here we are again. I have to admit, I pretty much started on this right after I finished my last story, The True Beginnings of the Fabulous Killjoys. This is sort of like a spin-off. It features Neon Beam and Static Light, who played minor parts in the last story, as the major characters. You don't have to have read True Beginnings to read this one. Any references to it will be explained. However, if you do have interest in reading True Beginnings, I would suggest that you do so before reading this one...a.k.a. SPOILERS! ;]

I lost interest in this story for a little while right before I went on a three-week trip to Europe this summer with no phone and no internet, which was an adventure. However, when I got back, I realized I had really missed the Killjoy-verse, and I wanted to be apart of it again! So here we are, this is my new story, and I really hope you guys enjoy it!

I would like to promise you all that I will update frequently, but in a few weeks I will be starting my senior year of highschool (yikes!) so I will try my hardest to keep ahead of the game, but you never know. With going to a college-prep school and having to actually prep for college, work loads can get pretty hectic. So please be patient with me! I hope to update at least weekly, if not more often.

Okay, a quick note about this story. Like my last one, the main characters in here are not meant to be their actual selves in real life. However, we were never given "real names" for any of the Killjoys, so I use their names from real life. For example: When I say Party Poison is Gerard, I don't mean that he is Gerard Way, the lead singer from My Chemical Romance, I mean that that particular child's parents named him Gerard when he was a baby. Just so we're all clear.

Oh and I don't own the idea of the Killjoys. That belongs to MCR and all affiliated with them. I just own a few OCs and some of the plot line.

Lastly, I would like to thank all of you for reading. It really means a lot. Please review if you like it and have the time. It's always nice to hear one's work is appreciated! :]

W/ luv

~T

The Sharpest Lives

One: The sharpest lives are the deadliest to lead

California Desert, 2015

The sun beat down on Neon Beam's head. The blonde Killjoy looked up. There wasn't a cloud in the sky.

Great.

Summer in the desert was bad enough. The radiation and everything funky after the bombs that made the temperatures go whack was even worse. Neon guessed it was 120 degrees out.

He turned to his twin brother walking beside him. Static Light gave him a weary smile, then hung his head.

They looked like twins. Both of them had platinum blonde hair spiked up in a Mowhawk on top, black boots, and black skinny jeans. They also had inverse blue and green color coordinated clothing and hair. Neon's Mowhawk was dyed blue on top, and he wore a green t-shirt with a blue vest. Static was the opposite. Green Mowhawk, blue t-shirt, and green vest.

They couldn't go on like this much longer, Neon thought. They had to find shelter. And soon.

Static broke the silence a few minutes later, saying what was on Neon's mind.

"How far from the Zones are we?"

Neon shook his head. He didn't know, and he didn't have the energy to speak.

"Not close enough," Static muttered and went back to trudging along in silence.

They kept walking for days it seemed, but was probably only an hour, maybe two. The desert blurred everything—vision and time.

Finally they were beginning to see foliage. That was both a good and bad sign. It meant they were getting closer to the Zones which meant potential shelter, but also potential Draculoid patrols.

Neon and Static knew they had to be especially careful now. Better Living Industries, the evil dystopian corporation that had taken over after the bombs, knew their faces. They were almost as wanted as the Fabulous Killjoys. But the twins didn't regret it. The fact that BLI was after them meant they were getting close.

California, 2010

"You're going?"

"Yeah," Static said. "Don't take offense, of course, but we've still got some shit to take care of, like every Killjoy. We'll keep in touch, though."

The twins headed off to their car.

Static helped Neon into the passenger seat and then slid in behind the wheel.

"Where to now?" he asked.

Neon shook his head. They still didn't have any leads.

"Damn it!" Static yelled, smacking the steering wheel.

Neon reached out and put a hand on his brother's shoulder. "We'll figure it out, don't worry."

Static sighed. "I just can't believe it sometimes."

Me neither, Neon wanted to say, but the hollow feeling he had was very real.

"We'll go look around Battery City some more. They said that BLI was starting to put more people out there. That's where they found Poison, Jet, Kobra, and Ghoul, you know?"

Static nodded.

"Then if nothing comes up, we'll bring it up with the Killjoys when we go check in. Maybe they know something."

Static nodded again, then put the car in drive and sped off.

California, 2015

"I see something," Static said after a long period of silence.

Neon lifted his head. Sure enough, there was a shack on the horizon. But with the barren desert landscape, he couldn't tell if it was ten feet or ten miles away. He was guessing more like miles. Inadvertently, he slowed down.

"Oh no," Static said, noticing the change in pace. "You're not giving up on me now. Not while we can see shelter."

Neon still slowed. He was so tired. What was the use anyway? All their supplies had been in the car they had been forced to abandon when a Drac patrol was spotted in the distance. They didn't have any water.

"If you give up now, I swear to God I will keep you alive just so I can kill you again," Static warned.

Neon didn't react.

"Damn it, Neon, let's go!"

Neon collapsed on the ground.

"Neon Beam!" Static used his brother's full Killjoy name.

Still Neon didn't stir. He was done. He didn't want to do this anymore.

So he said that. "BLI can do whatever they hell they want. I'm done dealing with them. I deserve a rest."

With that he lay back on the ground and closed his eyes. Suddenly he was roughly forced up. Neon stared into the green eyes of Static. He had never seen his brother so angry.

"What did you say?" he asked in a cold voice. "Let them do whatever they want? Like experiment on people? Torture innocent humans," his voice got quiet, "even kids? That's what you're okay with? Just so you can have a little rest? What about the ones we left behind, huh? What about them? Are we just supposed to sit here and do nothing?"

Neon knew exactly who Static was talking about, but he didn't want to think about that. It would force him to…damn it.

Neon got to his feet. "Sorry."

Static's angry expression faded as he looked at his twin—the only family he had left. "It's alright man, it's happened to me before. You wouldn't let me give up either." He grinned. "It's kinda fun being you."

Neon cocked his head to one side, confused.

"You're always the strong one, the one pushing me. It's kinda nice to know you're human dude, and that you need some help from your little bro now and then."

Neon laughed, he was older by about three whole minutes.

"I'll always need my bro."

They ended up reaching the shack soon after Neon's little outburst. Exhausted, they crawled inside. Static was asleep within minutes. It took Neon a little longer. He stayed awake worrying. He was always the worrier, always the leader.

They needed water. And food. The stupid BLI patrol had ruined everything.

They were driving down a desert road, if it could even be called a road. No one ever took it—Killjoys or Draculoids. It was supposed to be safe. Not even the Fabulous Killjoys knew about it. The twins hadn't told anyone. It was like their secret passage.

Neon had been driving with Static passed out in the front seat. It was hard with only two of them. If they were in areas where someone needed to take watch duty, they weren't awake at the same time all that often.

They drove an old Mustang convertible that didn't have a top anymore. The wind was blowing like crazy; it was a miracle that Static was able to sleep. Not only had he always been a sounder sleeper than Neon, but they had learned to take sleep when they could get it.

Something was kicking up dust in the distance. Neon frowned and looked in the rearview mirror. It didn't go away like a dust storm would, so he kept sneaking glances back.

There was a flash of black.

It was an unspoken code of conduct for Killjoys that they didn't drive black cars. So that could only mean one thing. Better Living Industries was on their tail again.

Never taking his eyes off the road or the rearview, Neon reached out and gently shook his brother awake.

Static sat straight up, drawing his blue ray gun with a green stripe out of his pocket. It was a good habit to get into out in the Zones.

"BLI," Neon said.

"What do we do?" Static asked. He loved their old car, but there was no way it could outrun a BLI car in pristine condition.

Neon gritted his teeth and pushed down on the accelerator. There was nowhere to hide a car. It was too risky.

"Neon?"

He sighed. "I think we'll have to carry on on foot."

Just then laser beams came at their direction. How was that? They were far enough ahead.

"New guns?" Static read Neon's mind.

"I guess," Neon replied. "We'd better get out of here now. Chances are they don't know it's us. They probably just think we're normal Killjoys. Do you still have those goggles?"

Static nodded and fumbled around in his bag as Neon continued to drive, looking for a good place to make their escape. There! He could see a mountain range in the distance.

Meanwhile, Static had pulled his binocular goggles out and put them on. He looked back at the BLI car. Sure enough, there were Draculoids with what looked like sniper ray guns. That was something they hadn't seen before. He wondered if any Killjoy had gotten a hold of one of those babies yet.

"Who's there?" Neon asked, jarring him from his thoughts.

"Uh, no one important," Static reported. "Just a couple Dracs shooting, the one driving, and—ah hell! It's Korse. We're fucked."

Neon stiffened. Korse was bad news. The guy had a serious vendetta against Killjoys—and other than the Fabulous Killjoys, there wasn't anyone else Korse hated more than Neon Beam and Static Light.

"There's a ditch!" Static yelled.

Neon jerked the wheel and sent the car flying into it. Everything was thrown out the side and to the ground, scattering everywhere. Static started to grab for it, dodging the blasts from the new gun.

"Leave it," Neon ordered, "there isn't time!"

Static started to protest, but a shot that narrowly missed him sent him scrambling towards his brother.

Sprinting away, crouched low to the ground, the twins were able to sneak away before Korse and his minions made it to the car, but they had to leave all their supplies behind.

Now that he had some time and a place to think, Neon wasn't so sure that it had been a random patrol. Were they really so close to figuring things out that BLI was sending Korse after them? Neon didn't believe it, but there was no other explanation.

Their research into Battery City had been on the side of their main mission, but it had turned up some crazy stuff. Neon remembered that the Fabulous Killjoys' original mission had been to figure out Battery City's secrets, and he wondered if they were still looking into it. Probably not, he decided. That didn't seem like something Party Poison really wanted to take up. The guy had turned into more of a vigilante. He loved his sabotage work, that was for sure. Nothing wrong with that. Neon liked it himself, although he had a different mission now.

Leaning back against the side of the shack, he sighed. It had been so long. Was there even really a chance? He didn't want to give up, but it seemed so unlikely.

That was what he was thinking as he finally drifted off into sleep.