Disclaimer:..Since I still have no better ideas..I do not own Death Note. Just Michael.

A/N: Thanks to Cataquack Warrior for Favoriting!!

A New Light

Chapter 10: Soliloquy

x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x

June 12th, xxxx.

Asaka Aeru, 22, convicted of a series of classified crimes involving hacking in xxxx, dies in prison one week before her scheduled release.

Cause of death: heart attack.

x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x

June 13th, xxxx.

Watashi Ikkon, 25, soon to be arrested on charges of involvement in terror-linked activities, dies near a gas station while on the run from authorities.

Cause of death: heart attack.

x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x

"Hello, Lina-san….Lina-san..? Are you all right?"

"Hm..? Oh-yes, Michael-kun. Sorry; I guess I'm just tired."

"Ah."

It was an awkward exchange, hardly eligible to be categorized a conversation.

Michael observes his friend out of the corner of his eye, wondering why she seems so..out of it.

Whereas Lina, a newly crowned killer, isn't really paying attention to anything around her. She runs through the facts of her new existence in her mind.

Contrary to Sidoh's initial belief, the death of Asaka Aeru was in no way the fault of any high school girl. Aeru was known to be rather fragile, and her health had been in rapid decline since even before her arrest. That part was pure coincidence.

The end of Watashi Ikkon, however, can be entirely placed on the young girl's shoulders. She planned and carried out one more execution on that night, putting into play the logic that the more you do something, the easier it gets. She put down the date as a day ahead, for no particular reason, but did not change the cause of death-which would be a smart move if she wanted her doings to remain on the down-low.

The reason for this is simple. She doesn't want the killings to be hidden, glossed over and dismissed. She wants them out there and obvious, in the open, so that everyone can see plainly that they are no coincidence. She wants it to be clear, beyond all doubt, that Kira has returned and has resumed passing His judgment.

Yes; put that way, it all sounds so simple. So clean.

But plans like that can rarely cover the pain, the indecision, the internal struggles that the assassins must first overcome in order to achieve their noble and selfless goal.

Lina worries. She worries about what she's doing-though she can usually bury that fear, for some period of time. She worries about being caught, which would defeat the whole purpose of her plan.

The idea is to make the world see that Kira is passing judgment again. If faced with irrefutable evidence, the public will be forced to conclude that that is the case, and belief in Kira will expand enormously. Consequently, they will also believe His teachings, like the need to be kind and fair. And the world will become more pure.

But if she gets discovered, the plot goes down the drain. Not only will it be clear that a mere teenage girl is behind the so-called Kira killings, but then that possibility will be brought up any time another case like this presents itself. Simply put, discovery now would taint the plans of any who, in the future, might possibly try the same thing.

Sometimes she asks herself, Can it really be true belief if what they're believing is no more than..me? Isn't that some branch of false hope? False worship? But the answer always presents itself triumphantly: Of course not. Because Kira is real and you are His servant and proxy, to an extent. You are simply helping the belief along.

Another frequently asked mental question, one she asked herself long before the appearance of the Death Note, is: Why did Kira discontinue His judgment?

After His original appearance in 2004, when he must have felt the world too filthy to be left alone any longer, the world entered a beautiful golden age where His ideals were absolute, and crime rates were reduced to almost nothing. It was a wonderful time, peaceful and sympathetic, kind and just. For years, humans lived in safety from themselves.

But in 2010, He disappeared.

All of a sudden, judgment halted in its passing. Peace soon vanished along with Kira; the world went back to the way it had been before, and the few remaining believers-now scorned and looked down upon-were left in a state of shock, wondering if the glorious world had just been a dream.

That is why Kira is needed, she reminds herself. Because humans are impossible to trust with their own future. Kira is necessary, to show us the way to a world of light.

Her inner monologue ends with the start of class.

However, a certain pair of concerned dark eyes watch her with suppressed worry that does not end.

x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x

"Well? Anything?"

Two impatient words, as per usual, are Michael's greeting as he arrives home. He ignores Kay, thinking that a small lesson in patience might do her good.

Besides, he likes to avoid any type of contact with her as much as he possibly can. Not an easy task, but when successful, one well worth the trouble.

"Boy, I would advise you not to press your luck," she warns in the tone of a feral huntress. "Tell me about the new information."

He bites back a sigh. "There is no new information," he answers with strained, illusionary tolerance. "You can't expect her to give something new away every bloody day. And that's if she is the one in the first place! I do sometimes wonder if this is all some wild goose-chase you've set me on out of boredom," he adds hotly, an out-of-character loss of temper.

"What's a goose?" Kay asks, then cuts off her own question with another. "I 'can't expect' that much, hm? Oh, can't I. In case you've forgotten, I have the power of life and death over your pitiful, pale, pathetic fragile self. Besides," she adds, voice growing slightly sly, "this 'investigation' is a cure for your boredom as well, is it not?"

He chokes on trying to formulate a proper response, coming up with only "Don't associate yourself with me. Understand?" He storms to his room, having been caught off-guard by Kay's spot-on observation.

Speaking of whom, she might've chosen to point out that he was in no position to be giving orders, but that isn't necessary. He'll fall apart in his own time, and it's far more interesting if such a thing occurs slowly.

She grins-the grin of someone who has drunk human blood, and enjoyed it. A slightly mad smile, seen on the faces of precious few actual humans.

That moron was right about one thing, she thinks amusedly. Humans certainly are interesting.

To be continued…

-Rule XI of the Church of Kira:

We destroy our planet.

We destroy our lives-

and others'.

We destroy the beautiful illusion of kindness in this world-

this world that is, surely, and more rapidly now than ever, falling to pieces.

This is why Kira is necessary.

He will show us the Way.

With His guidance and Just Judgment, we can truly live in

a world of Light.-

A/N: Yes, that last rule was a play on 'Light', as in (baka) Yagami Raito.

-coughs- Apologies, I just don't like him. But yet I couldn't resist making a reference to him in the rules of his personal little religion. –shrugs- Yes, I am weird.

Anyway, I hope you enjoyed the chapter! Oh, and just a heads-up; there's probably going to be a delay in updates for a little while. I'm scrambling to put together a Christmas fic (or fics) for my other fandom, and am in waay over my head. Again.

Reviews are always cherished, but feel no obligation. Have a nice day. -SS