Under Crews
In The Metalwood Saga, Under Crews are the tribal gangs and survival factions formed by the orphaned and abandoned youth (known as "underkids") living in The Under beneath the floating United Sky Cities (primarily Newfris). Because life in the Under is a brutal struggle against starvation, freezing temperatures, and violence, joining a Crew is the only way a child can hope to survive.
Undernames
To become an official member of an Under Crew, a child must earn an undername. Undernames are never self-chosen; they are bestowed by Crew leaders or peers after an individual performs a significant, difficult, or defining action—such as completing a tough job, demonstrating a unique skill, or surviving a lethal fight.
Names often reflect a person's primary trait or duty (e.g., Speed the racer, Wrench the mechanic, Small the diminutive thief, Con the con artist, or Dust the deceptively clean leader). Individuals without an undername are viewed as outcasts and are denied Crew protection and resources.
Major Crews
For years, the undisputed ruling Crew of the Newfris Under was Her Majesty's Navy. Led by the ruthless and magnetic Queen, the Navy consolidated power by hoarding resources, claiming prime real estate (such as their headquarters beneath the New Union parking garage), and establishing brutal alliances with topside criminals like Den Boss. Queen structured the Navy with militaristic precision, dividing her members into highly specialized squads:
- Killgirls: The elite, all-female assassin squad armed with pinblades and steelstrings (including Phoenix and Beam).
- Trashboys: An all-male squad tasked with waste disposal, sorting garbage at Burner One, and pumping out the latrines (Mud and Vinegar).
- Spysquad: An interrogation and torture unit used to extract information and punish rival Crews.
- Other Squads: Cleangirls, Cookgirls, Medsquad, Blockheads (enforcers), and the later-formed Scavengers (tasked with finding food when magical synthesis failed).
The Gearheads
Operating in secret right under Queen's nose, the Gearheads were a highly specialized racing Crew masquerading as ordinary Trashboys. Led by Dust (Dillon/Dill), the Gearheads stole electric vehicles from the topside Department of Motor Vehicles, stripped their speed limiters, and modified them into high-speed Undercars. Operating out of hidden garages, they built a massive network of secret driving tracks (the underroads) through the city's infrastructure, using the races to run lucrative gambling rings. The Gearheads were eventually wiped out by Cothellon forces and Den Boss's retaliation.
Shock Crew
Originally a smaller outfit known for stealing power cells (earning them the name "Shock"), Shock Crew eventually became the most important faction in the Under. Led by Dill (after his "Dust" persona was abandoned) and later by the ambitious mergemelder Shot, Shock Crew operated out of massive water treatment plants like Water Processing Three and Water Processing Forty-Seven.
Their inner circle included key figures like Rylan, Small, Grime, Con, and later Spike and Stick. Following the death of Queen, Shock Crew initiated a massive campaign to unite the fragmented Under. They transformed their headquarters into a sprawling, neon-lit encampment of rope rigging and hammocks capable of housing thousands of kids.
Other Notable Crews
- Waller Crew: A highly hostile and territorial Crew led by the matriarch Relka and the dangerous Captain Blend. They were effectively wiped out by Phoenix and Beam during a violent, magic-fueled skirmish in a massive battery storage room.
- Tenderloin Crew: Led by the imposing, gold-barbell-pierced Blade, this fierce Crew spoke in a distinct, guttural pidgin dialect (e.g., "kinna killa you"). Initially allied with Waller Crew and hostile to Shock Crew, they were later recruited by Dill to pilot modified flying undercars (fallcars) against the human Remnant forces in Presenub.
- Castro Crew: A tragic example of the Under's cruelty. Pushed out of all prime territories by the Navy's aggressive expansion, Castro Crew was reduced to a handful of starving, freezing children huddled in an empty cement room.
- Haight Crew: Located at the Waller Street runoff center, this Crew was known for temporarily sheltering drifters and outcasts, provided they had enough "scratch" to pay for their stay.
- Front Street Crew: Mentioned briefly by Rylan as a Crew known for having "all the best names" (such as Jump).
The United Under
Following the fall of Queen and the revelation of the Cothellon's apocalyptic plans, the Under fractured into chaos. Sensing the impending doom of the Ascension and the Twins' arrival, Dill and Shot successfully united the disparate gangs into a massive coalition known as the United Under.
Growing to over 42,000 members (half of whom possessed innate magical Talent), the United Under became a formidable army. Under the command of Shot, Spike, and Dill, thousands of underkids mobilized to battle Nelenor using complex rope-rigging traps and an overwhelming barrage of combined magical attacks.
Following the survival of the sky cities and the establishment of a new, peaceful topside government under President Greyson, the underkids were formally offered a free migration path to live in the sunlit topside. For those who chose to remain below, the government pledged to install proper living accommodations, effectively ending the brutal era of the Under Crews.