The spin-off series Lucifer (2000–2006) written by Mike Carey depicts his adventures on Earth, Heaven, and in the various other realms of his family's creations and in uncreated voids after abandoning Hell in The Sandman.

While Lucifer had previously appeared in various stereotypical guises in earlier DC Comics books, Gaiman's version was premised on English poet and prose writer John Milton's Paradise Lost.

Over that time, he had manipulated the various demons of Hell against each other, provided a place for dead mortals to be tormented, and led the war against Heaven.

"[5] In the series, Lucifer runs a piano bar (an element introduced in The Sandman story "The Kindly Ones") called "Lux" in Los Angeles.

While this is blasphemy in Heaven's eyes, Lucifer points out that the rebellion (and indeed all sin) and damnation as consequence were pre-planned by his Creator, God.

The violent, aggressive, totalitarian, vengeful, and dictatorial aspects of Heaven's rule are represented mostly by the angel Amenadiel, who has a particular hatred of Lucifer and leads attacks of various kinds against him.

The attacks include verbal criticism, marshaling the host of Heaven, as well as challenging him to individual combat—almost all of it without the slightest care for the countless innocent, unwilling and unwitting victims that he is more than willing to sacrifice for his own pride.

While he avoids lying, his morality seldom extends to compassion and Lucifer regards the sacrifice of millions of souls as unimportant collateral damage; there are few, if any, beings that he respects and even fewer for whom he cares.

This puts him on a collision course with several powerful mystical entities that have a vested interest in the new creation and draws the angelic host into the fray – including his brother, the archangel Michael Demiurgos, and his niece, Elaine Belloc.

The series paralleled The Sandman in several ways, with epic fantasy stories being told in arcs separated by one-shot episodes depicting a smaller, more personal tale.

Unlike The Sandman, the series has had a consistent art team in Peter Gross and Ryan Kelly, with most of the odd issues illustrated by Dean Ormston.

At the end of the Lucifer story arc, God and the devil are no longer part of the universe, and a former human (Elaine Belloc) is instead presiding over it.

In essence, it is "growing up"; i.e., the need to find one's own truth and values without being directed by parents, elders, teachers, authority figures, etc.

In fact, Cain (restored to his original / New Earth version) appeared in DC's Dark Nights: Metal #2 as a member of the Immortal Men with his brother Abel.

Cain, Abel, Daniel Hall (Dream), and Lucien also appeared in DCs' Dark Nights: Metal in these forms, re-establishing their Pre-New 52 incarnations in both DC and Vertigo.

Despite the fact that Lucifer has just opened a nightclub on Earth and is hiding a mysterious wound, the two brothers set off to solve their Father's murder.

[8][9] Lucifer is continuously described as a celestial being of incalculable power due to his dominion over the very substance and knowledge of the formation of Creation.

He needs existing matter (and where that is unavailable, the Demiurgic power of the Archangel Michael or that of God Himself) to provide the foundation for him to shape.

He is also able to draw out a human's deepest desires, but due to his belief in free will, allows them to choose whether or not they should act on them, even if they make the choice on an unconscious level.

Lucifer always tells the truth, but much like other trickster deities and spirits, will sometimes conveniently omit key details to fool others into doing something wrong.

Although Lucifer's overt exercise of power is limited in the books, if he is provoked to violence, his preference seems to be to use fire and light as a weapon.

As terrifying as they are brief, battles with Lucifer usually begin and end with him drawing down the flames of a super-heated main sequence star and incinerating to ash anything in the immediate area.

The true reasons why he favors light and fire are partially explained in the story "Lilith" (from The Wolf Beneath the Tree).