Chapter 01: Crimson King

Ryuk had returned to the Shinigami Realm with his hopes of starting some more fun in the Human Realm crushed by the weird little child that had succeeded L. It was still the same dark, dreary and boring realm he knew it to be. His fellow Shinigami were in their usual spots, doing whatever it was that seemed to entertain them, except for Rem. Rem was dead, he supposed, because she had been stupid enough to get attached to a human. Ryuk would never let himself get attached to anyone like that. His life was much more important than a human's no matter how much he liked any one of them. Light had been his favorite thus far, but had Ryuk sacrificed himself for him? Nope.

Flying past the group of perpetually boring Shinigami that spent their days in laziness and gambling, he ignored their calls for him to come join them. Ryuk went on to where their King was, landing some feet away from the entrance of the equally dull and dreary throne room, his wings folding and disappearing as he walked through the opened doors. He gave a perfunctory bow once he stopped at the foot of the stairs that ascended to the King Shinigami's throne, and upon coming out of it he let his gaze go upward to the figure on the throne. His jaw immediately went slack, for seated upon the throne was not the skeletal figure that he was accustomed to, but the unmistakable figure of Yagami Raito. The Shinigami King was nowhere to be seen, nor was he now a thought in Ryuk's mind, which was instead focused on the impossible presence of Raito.

Yagami Raito was lounging on the throne, his expression very much like that of a cat who had gotten the canary. His glowing irises, no longer brown but a bright crimson, were fixed on Ryuk while a charming yet dangerous smile formed on his lips. "Well, this certainly is a surprise, Ryuk," the human mused, his tone sending a shiver down the Shinigami's spine. "Wasn't I supposed to go to Mu once I died?" Raito sneered, his expression dark as he straightened himself upon the throne.

Ryuk nodded a bit dumbly, because in truth Yagami Raito should have been cast into Mu the very instant he died. All previous human users of the Death Note had shared in that same fate and their souls were in Mu, but Raito was not. It was impossible! Unless... "Someone intervened in your destination."

"That would be correct, you wretched creature," a soft, lilting voice stated, causing the both of them to look around. A figure appeared at the foot of the steps, ensconced in a white glowing light that made their features hard to distinguish. "My Lord spared you the fate of spending the rest of all time in Mu, Yagami Raito, for you have done what even no Shinigami would dare to. What they are tasked to do." At this the voice became harsh, anger inflected in its tone as the figure faced Ryuk.

The Shinigami merely stared at the ethereal figure in return, a toothy grin present on his face despite the accusatory statement. "It was not my decision to let the other Shinigami become lazy. This world languished because of the King and the decisions he made. Our world is far more rotten than that of the humans."

"And for that very reason my Lord has spared Raito his fate. He is the only one who can bring this world back to life." For it had once been lush and grand, the fruit that the Shinigami so loved bountiful and divine in taste. Their forms had also been different, twisting into the wretched things they were this day thanks to the former King. "Be warned, though, Yagami Raito, that if you fail in the duty bestowed upon you, you will be stripped of your status and cast into non-existence." A fate which was worse than even Mu. Mu, though it was nothingness, granted the souls cast there some type of awareness. Non-existence would erase the person entirely.

Raito nodded, a stricken expression on his face as he regarded the unknown entity. Whatever powers this creature held was far beyond the scope of what he could comprehend. Factor in that this was a mere follower of some other divine entity... "What happened to the previous Shinigami King?" It was an innocent enough question, and certainly he should know what became of his predecessor.

"Cast into Mu in your stead." Came the steely reply.

"I see. Is there anything else I should know of?" Raito asked, his head canted to one side, crimson gaze now half-lidded.

"You are not bound by any laws or rules like your lesser Shinigami are, with the exception that you enforce whatever rules you set for them." The figure floated up towards Raito and extended a hand to him. In its grasp was a pure white book lined in pitch black, much larger than the Death Note that Ryuk and the other Shinigami carried. "This is your Note, Yagami."

Raito frowned and took the Note from the entity, the book weighing as if it were nothing. Once it was in his grasp the unknown entity vanished, making the new King's expression sour. He didn't have a chance to speak on his irritation, as he had more questions, because the white Note began glowing with an intensity that matched the entity's. Raito too began to glow, power flowing into him and then there was pain.

So much pain.

He was dying all over again.

It coursed through his entire body before gathering and concentrating in his back, where his shoulder blades were. The pressure began to build, and he screamed as he fell to the dais the throne was on. There came a wet, tearing sound as something forced its way out from under his skin, and the pain lessened immediately, leaving him shaking and half curled up on the hard stone dais.

Ryuk, who had been too stunned at first as he witnessed the birth of the new Shinigami King, made his way up the steps and crouched down beside Raito. Never in his long life had he seen anything like that, and once the glowing finally ebbed, he marveled at how human his new King still appeared, with only the addition of a large pair of feathered wings, as crimson as the blood that was dripping off of them. "Raito..."

The named person in question trembled, his wings fluttering momentarily before going completely limp. After several minutes, the pain fully gone now, he slowly shifted and sat up, causing Ryuk to hastily move away. He focused his gaze on Ryuk, his expression calm as a wealth of knowledge flooded his brain. "I'm fine, Ryuk."

Ryuk backed off even further as Raito slowly stood up, gazing around himself as if he were seeing the throne room for the first time. The Lesser Shinigami began to grow nervous when that crimson gaze was suddenly on him, scrutinizing him closely.

"Lesser Shinigami Ryuk, I hereby promote you to the status of Greater Shinigami and to the rank of second-in-command." Raito stated as he returned to his throne. His wings, now dry, retracted into his back so that he could sit more comfortably.

As soon as the new King was finished speaking a strange feeling overcame Ryuk. Everything in his body felt as though it were twisting, stretching and then shrinking. This carried on for several minutes, and when it finally stopped he was left kneeling on the steps, human hands pressed to the ground. Sitting up, he marveled at his new hands, turning them over and then looking his arms over before he finally started to feel his face and hair. His features had changed, though there were no mirrors around for him to see what he now looked like, but his appearance bore some resemblance to his previous form.

"Go and gather all of the Lesser Shinigami. Tell them to present themselves to their new King, Ryuk." Raito commanded once he felt his second-in-command had enough time to check out what he could of his new appearance.

Startled, Ryuk looked up to Raito, before he bowed his head. "Yes, my King."