Augmentation

Nightshade's newest member

Matias Monroe lingered in the back of the Bluebird after Nightshade’s set. He’d planned on slipping out unnoticed after the applause cracked and rolled through the room, but something stopped him. Maybe it was the way Jace Barnes delivered the last line of the final song like it cost him a year of his life.

Maybe it was Lila Hart’s harmonies, sharp and sweet and dangerous, like a knife dipped in honey. Maybe it was the way the band played and moved together, tight and hungry. Rough around the edges but reaching for something that felt bigger than them. Or maybe it was Daniel Charles, sweeping through the tables toward him with a look that meant introductions were not a request.

“Matias,” Daniel said with a smile that could charm a banker out of his wallet, “there’s somebody I want you to meet.” And suddenly Jace Barnes, sweat in the curls of his hair. Stage worn eyes still burning with adrenaline, was standing directly in front of him. Up close, Jace had the look of a man who’d lived on tour long enough to be considered a species of animal.

He extended his hand, firm, simple, no wasted motion. “Nice to meet you.” He offered. Matias offered a small grin and they shook hands, like something passed between them. Not friendship, not rivalry, but recognition. Two men with calluses that told stories, two men whose lives were measured in notes, miles, and the violence of dreams.

Daniel clapped them both on the shoulders, too pleased to hide it. “Jace, Matias here is an absolute phenom on guitar. He just got into town. He’s been looking for the right project, and I think…” He let the words trail off, the way a man sets bait. Jace raised an eyebrow.

“Oh wow, uh, we’re still getting used to having one new member,” Jace said, jerking his head toward the bar where Lila was talking to some admirers and dealing with attention from strangers she wasn’t comfortable dealing with attention from. Tyler and Drew were already hovering, ready if any man so much as leaned in towards her the wrong way.

Matias followed Jace’s line of sight. “She’s the one with the voice.” He said. “The one?” Jace repeated. Matias nodded. “Yeah. The one.” Music still lingered in the rafters of the Bluebird. Jace blew out a breath. “Listen, you staying in town long?” He asked. “A while,” Matias said. “Daniel thinks I should hear more of what you’re doing.” “And you?” Jace asked. “What do you think?” Matias tilted his head. “I think you’ve got something real. Something sharp.”

Their eyes held for a second too long. Jace broke it with a grin and a pat on the shoulder. “Come by the studio tomorrow morning. We’re touring it with Daniel. No promises. But… come.” Matias answered quietly. “Yeah, I’ll be there.” Nightshade’s post show banter was loud and warm. It was full of half arguments about song arrangements and jokes that landed like bottle rockets. And some that missed and bombed completely.

Lila stayed quiet, sipping her sweet tea. Jace watched her carefully, like a man keeping an eye on storm clouds forming over his backyard. When he found that they were pretty much the only two there for a few moments he headed over to stand next to her. He addressed her, nothing forceful, nothing overt, He just relayed a few low words about being excited to finalize paperwork tomorrow.

And then he told her how proud he was of her, and how bright her future looked. She nodded politely, and thanked him. She kept her smile steady. They walked over to sit at a booth. When she slid in beside Jace, her hands trembled. He touched her knee under the table. “You okay?” He asked. She nodded too fast and said. “Just tired.” Jace didn’t believe it, not for a second.

Morning came hard and early. The studio Daniel had arranged for the tour was tucked behind a stretch of warehouses south of downtown. Its blacked out windows and rusted gutters betraying nothing of the magic trapped inside. It smelled like old carpet, and felt like ghosts of songs and broken dreams that never made it were trapped in it.

Drew kicked the door open with the enthusiasm of a man who’d never seen a recording board before, even though he had. He went right over to check out some drums that were set up. Tyler whistled at a bass cabinet and a Fender bass guitar that was leaning on it. Lila ran her hand along the wall, fingers grazing posters from albums she’d grown up listening to. Being careful to take it all in. Jace walked in last, his smile tight. Matias was already there.

He stood beside a huge amp, tuning his guitar with the care of a priest preparing a relic. He looked like he belonged there. Like the studio had been waiting for him. Daniel’s voice cut through the room. “Morning, everybody! Hope you’re all doing well this fine morning.” Everyone nodded and exchanged greetings.

“Before we start the tour of the studio,” Daniel continued, “I want Matias to run through something so you can hear what it is he does.” Tyler shot Jace a look. Jace didn’t return it. He couldn’t. Matias didn’t posture. Didn’t brag. Didn’t wink or smirk or warm the room up with small talk. He just stepped forward, plugged in, and began.

What came out of the amp didn’t belong to any one genre. It walked the tightrope between speed and soul. One moment a cascade of glassy harmonics, the next a roar of distorted fury, the next a cascade of fingerpicked runs that sounded like a steel river at midnight. Lila covered her mouth without meaning to. Drew whispered, “Holy hell…” Tyler just stared, pupils blown wide.

Jace felt something he hadn’t felt in years, something electric, cold, humbling. He recognized brilliance when he heard it. Not the kind that competed with him, no, it was worse. It was the kind that transformed the air around it. Matias ended the run with some harmonics and then went into a long, bending wail that shivered the room to silence. When he stopped, the quiet was thick enough to chew.

Daniel waited only a moment before stepping in. “I want him in Nightshade.” The words hit the band like a thrown brick. Tyler blinked. Drew opened and closed his mouth. Lila’s eyes darted to Jace. Jace’s jaw tensed, and he addressed Daniel. “That’s your call, huh?” Daniel didn’t flinch. “No. It’s the label’s call. And I agree with it. This band is good. But with Matias? You’d be unstoppable.”

Matias went still, not offended, not proud. Just listening. Daniel continued, “Before anything moves forward, though, we still need to finalize the paperwork. All the paperwork.” His gaze slid pointedly toward Lila. “Today.” Lila’s face paled. “Daniel” She began, “I just…” Daniel cut her off. “You’re the only name missing,” he said softly. “We can’t move forward without you.”

Jace stepped in front of her without thinking. “Give her a minute.” Daniel sized up Jace for a moment and then said, “A minute, but not much more.” The tension in the studio wrapped around them like coiled cable. Tyler paced. Drew rubbed his palms on his jeans. Matias stood against the amp, unreadable.

Lila swallowed hard. “I’m not trying to cause trouble. I just… I don’t want to sign something I don’t fully understand.” Daniel softened, only slightly. “Then ask whatever questions you have. I’ll answer every one of them.” But Jace could see her hands trembling again. And he could see something else.

The way the machine was beginning to close around them. The way the label was lining pieces on the board. The way he was being pushed toward decisions he wasn’t sure he was ready to make. He dragged a hand through his hair. “Daniel, slow down. This is a lot.” Daniel turned to him with a patience that felt like a blade. “You’re the leader of this band, Jace. Lead.”

That landed deeper than it should have. After a long moment, Daniel nodded toward Matias. “Why don’t you all take the room for a bit. Talk. Decide what you want your future to look like.” Then he stepped out, closing the door with a soft click that felt louder than a gunshot. The band stood in the silence, hearts drumming.

Matias finally spoke. “I’m not here to take anything from anybody. If this isn’t right, I’ll walk. No hard feelings.” Jace looked at him, really looked at him. And he saw a crossroads forming under his boots. On one side, potential beyond anything he’d ever imagined.

On the other, Lila’s fear, the band’s balance. The possibility that adding Matias could change Nightshade into something unrecognizable. He felt the weight of leadership settle into his bones like winter. “Matias,” he said quietly as he picked up an acoustic guitar, “play with us.” A simple request. A dangerous one. A necessary one. Matias nodded once. “What song?”

Jace turned to look at Lila who had walked over to a mic stand. “Ours.” He said. She understood instantly. After getting a thumbs up from a man in the control room who sat beside Daniel at a console, Tyler counted them in. Drew crashed into the beat. Lila’s voice rose like a flare in the dark.

Matias Monroe stepped in beside Jace Barnes with a line that didn’t overshadow, didn’t compete, but ignited. The song came alive in ways none of them had expected. When it ended, nobody spoke. Not even Jace. Because they all knew. Their world had just shifted. And nothing about Nightshade, its music, its future, its friendships, its fractures, would ever be the same again.