Prologue

A dry cackle filled the skies. Above the clouds were three figures, nothing more than shadow to those who may have been looking from below. The clouds from which the figures hid were so dense, that it was surprising that the three of them managed to face each other as if the skies were clear.

'You sure you want to do that? You'll be at a disadvantage now, Krak' cackled the third figure. The figure's laugh was dry and seemed to resound in the empty skies; the clouds began to move faster.

'Shut your mouth, Narg. I'm still going to win this game' growled the second figure. He pointed a long, jagged finger at the Earth below. 'The human world is unpredictable. Just watch. I'll win.'

'You took so long to pick, yet you're starting over. You won't win like this. Our counts have already started' drawled the first figure in a low metallic voice.

'Just worry about your own counts. I'm not repeating myself again' replied Kark.

'Ah, he's right about that, Medo. Don't forget that you're still losing to me' cackled Narg.

'Just look at them all down there … how boring,' Medo, ignored Narg. 'Hurrying and stopping, hurrying and stopping. They never stop scurrying. If it wasn't for us … the world would be… quite boring' cackled Medo.

'It would be, if not for our game' agreed Krak.

And at this, all three figures began cackling, filling the sky with what could have been heard as thunder from below.

Chapter One – A Bleak World; A Dead World

The sky was grey. The clouds hid the sun and seemed to silence the world. There wind refused to blow and even the dead leaves that lay crushed from months of heavy snow, refused to move.

If only the world could always be still and peaceful like this, thought Sky. Grey, silent and still. Sky sighed at these thoughts as he gazed out the window of his classroom. The world never stayed the same. Everything was subjected to god's will, decided by some greater power. People died each day, were cheated and moulded by that which they had no control. The world was disgusting, disgusting because the Gods were inadequate. If only he had the power to change it …

The bell rang and Sky's thoughts were interrupted. The sound of scraping chairs and excited students pierced his silence and sent a tremor of anger through him.

'Don't forget to complete chapter three by tomorrow' announced the teacher. He gestured at the blackboard but no one took notice.

'I think everyone's a little too excited about the weekend to notice, Mr. Shinta' said Sky with a smile. He was still sitting at his desk by the window busy copying down the homework written on the chalkboard. The class was nearly empty now.

'If only my other students were as dedicated as you' said Mr. Shinta with a shake of his head.

'Well, everybody's different and we all have different goals. It's understandable for people to be blinded from the importance of school' stated Sky, still smiling.

'Maybe you should be a teacher one day, Sky. You seem to understand students better than me'

Sky laughed. 'Well I am a student you know' he said as he packed his books and headed for the door. Mr. Shinta chuckled. 'Nearly forgot. Well, have a good weekend, Sky.'

Sky made his way down the hallway. The school was quieter now that most of those eager to leave had left. He headed towards the stairwell, but something strange slowed his pace. He turned around and, guided by some hidden sense, looked at the third floor balcony in time to see someone topple off.

Eyes widening, he began to shout a warning even though he knew it was too late. His heart plummeted as he began running to the balcony and adrenaline rushed through him. He had barely taken two steps when he heard the sickening thud that meant whoever was falling had reached his end. When he reached the balcony and looked down, he was sickened.

The floor was splattered with blood where the body had landed and the body lay still, its arms and legs were spread at an odd angle. For the a moment, he thought he saw the body twitch.

That's impossible he thought. He fell down three floors, there's no way he could be alive and if he was … Sky shuddered at the thought of how much pain he must be in. His hands had grabbed the railing and were sweating madly. Was it fear? Sky's mouth felt dry as people began gathering around the body. Someone screamed.

Panic flooded Sky. He was the first one at the scene, would he be blamed? He was standing at the very spot from which the body fell, he would definitely be questioned at the very least. I'm innocent though, he reasoned. They would believe me. Had it been any other student they would definitely be suspicious. He began to calm down. His grip on the rail softened.

Still, it'll be safer not to be noticed he thought. He crouched down so that he was hidden. Then he noticed something beside him. It was a backpack. Just as he thought it would stupid to touch anything, he noticed something out of place. A jet black notebook stood out against the red, opened backpack. Death Note.

What kind of an idiot would bring a notebook labelled 'Death Note' to school ? He heard shouts from below and more screams that echoed up to the balcony. He wasn't sure why, but something about the notebook held him there. He had to leave, people would come. His hand reached for the notebook and his hand trembled until at last his thumb and index finger gripped it tightly. There was nothing to keep him rooted there anymore. He quickly slid the notebook into his bag and bolted from the scene, down the stairs and out the school.

Sky couldn't get the scene out of his mind. Again and again he pictured the body crumpled on the floor. He heard the thud of the body smashing against the floor again and again. What was worst was that each time the scene replayed it became crisper, sharper, clearer. It was almost as if he was right beside the student when it happened. He didn't know why the scene continued to haunt him; he didn't even know who the kid was.

Deep in thought, Sky didn't notice that he his feet had carried him all the way home. For the first time in a long time, Sky was oblivious to the wind that had begun blowing, scattering dead leaves and shaking the trees as if trying to drag him back to the world he so detested. For a moment, Sky gazed at house, then at the grey skies, deep in thought.

What's wrong with me, he wondered. Death is natural. People die everyday in this world. Some people even deserve it. I can't let such a trivial thing bother me. I can't be this weak. Only the weak cry for the dead.

This time when the scene of the suicide flashed through his mind, he smiled. What a fool to choose death when there was still life to live. Having conquered the haunting death, Sky finally made his way into the house that was his home.

'I'm home' he announced as he closed the door behind him. The hallway was dark; the lights hadn't been turned on yet. The house was silent and empty. No one must be home yet, thought Sky as he tossed his jacket onto a rack next to him and made his way up the stairs to his room.

Sky relaxed as he reached his room and kicked off his shoes. He tossed his bag next to his computer desk in the corner by the window and slumped over to his bed. The familiar security of being in his room in the dark, and the warmth of his clean bed sheets washed away Sky's thoughts. He closed his eyes and gave himself a few seconds to rest and clear his mind before heading over to his computer. Then he remembered it. The Death Note.

He retrieved it from his bag and gently lay it on his desk in front of him.

He was in such a hurry that he hadn't had a chance to examine the notebook properly. He cursed himself now for taking it. If they examined the bag, one of his friends or family might eventually notice its absence. He didn't know why he took the stupid thing at all. Yet as he studied the notebook, he couldn't help but feel that there was something special about it. There was something disturbing about having titled a notebook, 'Death Note'.

He picked up the notebook and held it firmly in his hands, taking in every detail. The thickness was about that of a standard 150 page notebook he guessed. Apart from being titled 'Death Note', the front cover was bare. He turned it over in his hands and noted that the back was blank. Apart from its odd title, there was nothing at all unusual about the notebook. Yet something drew him to it.

He opened the notebook and began reading the first page:

How to use:

-The human whose name is written in this note shall die.

He stopped there. 'The human whose name is written in this note shall die'? He didn't know whether or not to laugh. Certainly there was something comical about such a proclamation, yet Sky felt a tremor of fear and excitement run through his body. He was more interested in the notebook now than he had ever been

-This note will not take effect unless the writer has the person's face in their mind when writing his / her name. Therefore people sharing the same name will not be affected.

-If the cause of death is written within 40 seconds of writing the person's name it will happen.

-After writing, the cause of death, details of the death should be written in the next 6 minutes and 40 seconds.

He stopped reading again. There were rules? He flipped the page to find another long list of rules, each carefully and precisely written. For a brief moment, Sky was overcome with shock. The moment was short-lived though, as he closed abruptly closed the notebook and chuckled. Of course, only a suicidal maniac would have such a thing in his bag thought Sky. A notebook that kills people, how ridiculous.

The sky outside was darkening now that night had begun to fall and Sky interrupted his thoughts for a moment to turn on his desk lamp. The light flickered before casting a strong ray of light that splashed over the desk and the walls, providing the only source of illumination in the dark, quiet room.

He tilted his head back against the chair and chuckled a bit. Killing was the ultimate power bestowed upon humans by god. To be able to kill was to be able to destroy. The power to destroy was the power to create.

The notebook couldn't be real. If the power to kill was so readily available, whoever it was that had this note would have been able to become something akin to a God … The thought of being able to kill with a simple movement of the wrist was too grand for Sky to believe.

'To think … to simply write a name … and remove that person from the face of this Earth … forever' whispered Sky to himself silently. If only he had such a power … Sky suddenly sat up and grabbed the notebook tightly, an almost manic look in his eye.

He had that power though did he not … He had it right in front of him … a means to kill whoever he wanted … at any time he wanted … however he wanted. He had a tool for which he could carve a new world. He started to chuckle a bit at the thought. Then he laughed.

The notebook couldn't be real he decided. The world didn't work that way. 'But what if it did?' the question lingered in his head. 'What if it worked?'

He drew his eyes to the paper that almost seemed to beckon him. All he had to do to find out … was write a name. A name of someone he recognized. His hands shook from excitement as he reached towards his pencil holder to grope blindly for a pen, unable to look away from the note. He nearly knocked the whole case over until his fingers finally grasped a plastic pen, but all he noticed at that moment was the Death Note that lay before his eyes.

Wait, he told himself. Whose name should I write down? I can't just kill anybody. Nor are there that many people I want to kill … He bit his lip as he concentrated. Right now he could potentially have the means to reshape the world. There were bullies at his school and some of them annoyed him to no end. Not that they ever bothered Sky himself; they refrained from targeting those they knew they would be unable to control, Sky had analyzed. Not that there hadn't been attempts …

At the same time, he had to consider the consequences. Killing someone wasn't something that could be so easily dismissed. People would take notice, a young teenager suddenly victim of a devastating heart attack … No, to be safe he would need to try it on someone older. The bell rang.

Sky froze. He was snapped out of his thoughts and dragged back into the confines of his darkened bed room. His euphoria left him as he considered the consequences. He was planning to kill. His hands began to sweat. Someone was at the door. The bell rang again. The sound of the bell reverberated through the empty house and shook Sky to the core. He was planning murder and someone was here at the door.

No, calm down he told himself as he headed towards the door. It's probably just mother, back from work he told himself. Besides, he hadn't done anything yet. What could they prove? The notion of him being caught for doing something he hadn't done was laughable. Despite the logic of it all though … he couldn't help but feel a little nervous as he bounded down the stairs. He noticed that it was beginning to become difficult to see in the darkness and he flipped on the hallway lights. He put on a smile as he opened the door, revealing a man who looked about 40, or so Sky assumed from the thin streaks of grey in his short, curly brown hair. The man nearly six feet tall, wore a grey business suit along with his smile.

'Good day, sir. I'm from Neo telecommunications, we've phoned you before and we have you registered in our data base as being potentially interested in our services.'

'Sorry, but my parents aren't available right now and I'm afraid I don't know much about what services we've purchased. Perhaps if you leave your name and a number I can have my mother contact you tonight?' asked Sky politely.

'Of course, no problems there! Just have your mother ask for Joe Lannerig and you can contact us at this number' smiled the salesman as he reached into his chest pocket. His fingers shuffled around in the pocket for a moment before he replied, 'So sorry, I seem to have misplaced our business cards … You wouldn't happen to have a pen and paper to jot down our number would you? I'm terribly sorry' apologized the salesman.

'No, it's not a problem at all' replied Sky as he began scribbling down the man's name and number.

'Thank you for your time, I'll be on my way now' said the man as he left and began his way down the driveway.

Sky quickly closed the door and turned the lock. He leaned against the door and sighed. That was over with. He felt angry with himself now. Getting so riled by something so insignificant … it was just a sales person. I can't let myself fall to such weakness he commanded himself. He gave himself a shake and began his way upstairs. His foot had barely touched the third step when he heard a man scream from the outside.

Sky's eyes widened as he realized that the Death Note hadn't left his hands since he left his bedroom. Had the man seen it? Sky bit his lip nervously. His right hand clutched the notebook and pen tightly while he held his forehead with his left. Realization dawned on him. He had written the mans name. He had seen the mans face.

His first instinct was to rush outside to check whether the man was still alive, but he stopped himself before his foot could reach the bottom step of the stairs he stood so firmly rooted on. If I go out there right now someone might see me with the Death Note. Although no one would know what it is without reading it, he couldn't take that chance. He wouldn't make the mistake of carrying the note with him in the eyes of common people again. At the same time, it might be suspicious to stay in the house. No, he told himself. It's natural for person to be afraid upon hearing a scream from the streets. There could be a large number of reasons for such a thing.

Sky turned and bolted up the stairs into his room. He hurried over the window next to his desk so quickly that his knee smashed into the desk and sent a jolt of pain through his leg. Cursing himself silently, he limped towards the window and peered outside.

The window had a perfect view of his driveway and he had no trouble pinpointing the source of the cry. The salesman lay dead upon his driveway, one hand over his chest. His suitcase had fallen and opened, scattering its contents into the howling wind. Sky opened his notebook and looked at the name he had written. The Death Note was real. Sky smiled.