I'm not gonna lie, 2019 has kind of sucked. The T-Series Axis won the Great Subscriber War, Area 51 was an embarrassing failure… so far there's been a lot of disappointment throughout this year, but we now have one last chance to change that. As you may have heard by now, there is a movement going on right now led by none other than Jimmy Donaldson himself, with the goal of raising enough money to plant 20 million trees. I've already made my contribution, and I really hope you do yours. If this movement is successful, it'll show that the bottom 99% of the internet's population, who have suffered so much this year from failure and defeat, can still make a difference and can still be successful.

I very strongly encourage anyone and everyone to do your part for this project, just look up "Team Trees" and you'll find their website.

Also, shoutout to LaidlawAWZ for following, and to FuriosaDust for following and favouriting.

(Chris' POV, 14:20, September 2)

It feels like forever since we've been to this abandoned warehouse. In the last month it may not have changed at all, but the four of us sure have. Well, right now it's three of us since Kallet is running late, no surprises there, and I doubt she had it as bad as the rest of us.

'So, we're all alive. That's a twist.'

'Harry's still dead.'

'…Yeah, Con, I know. And I'm sure Kira is planning to avenge his murder as we speak.'

'Then why didn't Kira kill Luci then and there? There must've been some kind of cameras in that helmet, he could've livestreamed it straight to the second Kira and L would be finished. If I were Kira, that's what I'd do.'

'If I were Kira… what would I do if I were Kira?'

'That would be awesome.'

'Lauren?'

'I've always been grateful to those kinds of people, who take matters into their own hands to deliver justice, who do what is right even if the law says it's wrong. If it weren't for that, you wouldn't have saved my life. If you were Kira, I'd like you even more.'

Wait…

'As a friend or…?'

'She has a point. I'm not scared of Kira at all, I know he's just doing his best. If I knew who he was, I'd think of ways I could help him.'

'Then the three of us are in agreement.'

'Four, actually. Count me in too.'

Entering our makeshift headquarters, Kallet pulls in a large, dark briefcase.

'Oh, hey, look who showed up.'

'Sorry about that, Chris, I was busy doing errands.'

'Errands? So that's his name.'

'Oh fuck off Connor. Anyway, you know something I realized today? Why do people draw the sun with sunglasses? How is he supposed to protect his eyes from the sun if he IS the sun?'

'It's simple. He has to protect his eyes from your face. So Chris, what now?'

'Well, considering that the Task Force is listening to every word we speak through our clothes, there isn't much we can do.'

'Not hers. Oh, hey, I have an idea!'

'Yes, Lauren?'

'If she gets new clothes for us three, then they won't be able to see or hear anything.'

'They could shove microphones and cameras into the new outfits.'

'Well, not if they don't know where we keep them.'

'Except they'd already know since they'd watch us hide them, and if she did it then they'd be onto her since they've just heard our plan so even if she went out right now and-'

'Ta-da!'

Kallet opens up her briefcase, plopping one side onto the ground. Inside there are three brand-new sets of clothing, one for each of us.

'You understand this trick will only work once, right?'

'Yup, so let's make it worth the trouble.'

A few minutes later, Connor and I re-enter the warehouse in our new dull-colored suits, and Lauren is in a short magenta dress which looks very beautiful on her.

'Now that the room is secure, let's cut to the chase. Kallet, don't hide it, we know how you got off the hook so easily.'

'Yeah, I used my natural skillset, so what?'

'Are you still in contact with Luci?'

'Why wouldn't I be? Of course, he doesn't know I hate him. The fact he almost killed you is bad enough, but I'll never forgive Luci for the trouble he's brought to me. I want to defeat him, no matter what, too.'

'If you really mean "no matter what", how about getting closer to him and making him reveal more…?'

'I can't do that. It seriously goes against my moral code. But maybe if I get something in exchange…' *wink*

'Isn't contributing to potentially stopping Luci from taking over the world enough of a reward on it's own?'

'Well yes but actually no.'

'If Luci takes Kira's power, he'll hunt us down, one by one until there'll be none left, but you.'

'...I quite like the sound of that. "Kallet Vimerica, the last of the L case".'

'And you'll be fighting Luci alone, how does that feel into your plan?'

'Why would be want to kill me?'

'Once you're too old to be part of his harem, he'll have no use for you any more. What will you do then?'

'…I'm working on it.'

'Selfish bi-'

'Shut the fuck up you unloved product of incest and bestiality!'

'No you shut up you-'

'BOTH OF YOU SHUT UP! Look, Kallet, if you don't go along with this plan you cannot be a part of the L case. Trust me, you'll want to do this. You'll thank me later. And Lauren, don't call anyone a bitch. Even if it's true, don't say it.'

'Sure, whatever.'

'Okay, Kallet, so what do we know about the Task Force headquarters?'

'The facility's renovations have recently been completed. The outside looks like an ordinary high-rise hotel building, but to enter you need to go through various security checkpoints. From what I can tell, all the equipment and computers inside are state-of-the-art. The Fifth to Tenth floors all have four private rooms per floor, so if they increase their numbers, they could accommodate up to thirty people.'

'He showed you all of that? Wow, is there anything you couldn't suck out of Luci?'

'Let's just say that with this smile, I can get away with everything.'

(Kallet's POV, 20:15, September 3)

While I'm waiting for Luci to let me in, I take a peek into his room. One of the entire walls is a huge screen showing a glowing world map covered in dozens of small dots. Kira killings, most likely, and there seem to be quite a few in the middle of North America today. The screen is the only thing illuminating the room, and pressing my ear against the door I can hear him and that FBI girl. Pearl. For the last half-hour they've been talking, first about the Kira case, and one topic flowed into another and now…

'Say, where were you on 9/11?'

'I… I was with Ryan! I swear to god! I was with him all day! You can ask him! …You can't prove anything!'

The door smacks open, nearly hitting me in the face, and she hurriedly leaves. With her gone, Luci silently invites me in.

'What was that all about?'

'With 9/11 day coming up, Pearl and I were just discussing it. But both of us were too young to remember that, although I guess the nuclear strike was sorta similar.'

'I honestly don't know how North Korea's nukes even got to California. I mean, it's on the other side of the map!'

'Oh Kallet, Kallet, Kallet… feel free to take a seat. There's something I think we need to discuss.'

I sit down onto his bed as he shuts the door.

'So, when I was your age, I was on this family trip to Iceland, and as part of a secret diplomatic summit we had to get to this facility on foot, for security reasons. It was well below freezing, there was snow everywhere… what would you do in that situation?'

'I don't like snow. It's cold, it's wet, it's irritating, and it gets everywhere. I'd probably force them to relocate it to somewhere more hospitable.'

'And that's exactly what I did. You see, people like me and you, we don't let others tell us what to do and where to do it, nor do we stay quiet when things aren't going our way. You get what I'm saying?'

'Maybe?'

'Well, here's something that might interest you. Chris, Lauren, Connor… neither of them have been very quiet about their release. It's all over the social media, and sooner or later some independent news group is going to notice too. If they haven't already.'

'I know.'

'Then you also know of the rumors and myths that have formed.'

'No, I don't. I don't care that much.'

'Well, back at your school, everyone in your grade has begun to interpret Chris and Lauren as passionate lovers. Some even say they're destined to sleep together.'

'Fucking bitch! …Continue.'

'Anyway, it seems that the grade has a pool of money, on the day they fall into bed together. The pool is still open, the buy-in is one dollar. There are, what, four or five hundred people at your school? More or less? That's four or five hundred dollars, if everybody buys in.'

'You're fucking kidding me.'

'And it's more than that, because these teenagers weren't happy with a simple, pick-your-day pool. They set up a market.'

'A market?'

'Exactly. You buy a date that you think it'll happen. If you start to feel that your pick was weak or if your date goes by without any action, you can buy back in, any date you want. But you have to pay the market price, which is set by consensus. Everybody who already has that date won't want you to buy in at all, since they'll want to keep all the money to themselves. But if you have the right to buy in, they'll want to jack up your re-entry price as high as possible. On the other hand, people who don't have that date, and don't believe it will happen, will want other people to buy in, because the money stays in the pot if it doesn't happen. So they want the buy-in price to be low enough to encourage people to buy in, but also high enough that the pot gets fatter downstream.'

'Okay. I got that.'

'Once the market price is set, you can put your money in. Say it looks like they're going to get together on Monday. Okay, the price to buy in on that day would be quite large. With a basic, say, hundred dollars on the scale, you might have to kick in another five or ten dollars, or even more, to buy back in, if the event looks likely. If they're all kissy in the corridors. The amount would depend on how many people have that date… the market price for the gamble.'

'I don't entirely understand that.'

'Look. Say there's a hundred dollars in the pot, and only three people have that date. If you can buy back in for, say, five dollars, the pot is now a hundred and five dollars. Split four ways, that would be…'

Luci's eyes roll up as he calculates it in his mind.

'…twenty-six dollars and twenty-five cents, a profit of twenty-one dollars and twenty-five cents on the five-dollar buy in. But only if they get together on that day.'

'Tell me again why the three original buyers would let him buy in?'

'They don't have a choice. The buy-in is by consensus of all the bettors. And the people who don't think it's going to happen on one particular day would always be a majority, and they can force the buy-in price down to an acceptable level. Because they want other people to buy in.'

'Because the money stays in the pot if it doesn't happen, and they don't believe it will.'

'Yes. Hypothetically, if the two of them were to stretch this out, running hot and cold along the way, raising hopes, then disappointing them, the money could get… large. Actually, as the retained pot gets larger and larger, the amount will tend to snowball. It could go to, who knows? A couple thousand? More? If Chris and Lauren had a really loud argument on the morning of the day it happened…'

'The buy-in on that date would be really low, and so one person could take the whole amount. I don't need that kind of money, you know how rich I am already. Why are you telling me this?'

'I just thought you should know.'

Whether this is really true or not, he's just trying to anger me. I can't say he's failed in doing so.

'When I found you, I saw raw, untamed power. And beyond that, something truly special. I wouldn't had offered that agreement last month if I thought any less of you… Kallet, you know I'm not able to rely on those three students. If they haven't included you in their plot, they soon will.'

'I'm not sure I understand.'

'You must sense what I have come to suspect... the L case want to contact Kira… they're planning to kill me.'

Kill him? No-one's planning that, but its best that I play dumb, don't make him suspect that I know anything at all.

'I don't think… '

'Kallet, search your feelings. You know, don't you? '

'I know they don't trust you…'

'Or the Task Force… or ANPA… or law enforcement at all for that matter.'

'I have to admit my trust in them has been shaken.'

'Why? They asked you to do something that made you feel dishonest, didn't they?'

He's absolutely right. I can't think of a response, and so remain silent.

'They asked you to spy on me, didn't they? '

'I don't know... I don't know what to say.'

'Remember back to your early teachings. Kallet. "All those who gain power are afraid to lose it." Even the Kiras.'

'The Kiras use their power for good.'

'Good is a point of view, Kallet. And the Kiran point of view is not the only valid one. The Task Force and the Elitists believe in security and justice also, yet they are considered by the Kiras to be…'

'…Evil.'

'...from a Kira's point of view. The Elitists and the Kiras are similar in almost every way, including their quest for greater power. The difference between the two is the Elitists are not afraid to get innocent blood on their hands. That is why they are more powerful.'

'The Elitists rely on their money for their strength. They think inward, only about themselves.'

'And the Kiras don't?'

'The Kiras are selfless... they only care about others. Just like the L case group.'

'Or so you've been trained to believe. Why is it, then, that your group supporting them has asked you to do something you feel is wrong?'

'I'm not sure it's wrong.'

'Have they asked you to betray the law? Our agreement? A friendship? Your own values? Think. Consider their motives. Keep your mind clear of assumptions. The fear of losing power is a weakness of both L and Kira…'

'…'

'…Did you ever hear, the tragedy, of L Lawliet "the wise"?'

'…No.'

'I thought not. It's not a story your friends would tell you…'

(Yatsuk's POV, 20:18, September 3)

Kira isn't one of our three main suspects. Everything we've concluded since Pearl came onto the case has been a wild goose chase. We aren't all the way back at square one, but we aren't far from it. Agent Mungalo seems to be handling it better than most, but there's something else too which no-one has mentioned. He's just come in, there won't be a good time to say this so…

'Steve…'

'Have courage, mate.'

'Yeah, but… Steve, I've just noticed something. Have you looked at our Task Force caps recently?'

'Our caps?'

'The badges on our caps. Have you looked at them?'

'What? No, a bit.'

'They've got red skulls on them.'

'Hm?'

'Have you noticed that our caps have actually got little pictures of skulls on them?'

'I don't, uh-'

'Steve…'

'…'

'…Are we the baddies?'

'Of course not.'

He slides into his armchair and places his laptop onto the round glass table. Probably going to look through killing patterns again, searching for some kind of clue.

'Why red skulls though? Why skulls?'

'Well, maybe they're the bloodstained skulls of our enemies.'

'Maybe, but is that how it comes across? It doesn't say next to the skull, you know, "yeah we killed him but trust us this guy was horrid".'

'Well no but-'

'I mean, what do skulls make you think of? Death, cannibals, beheading, pirates-'

'Pirates are fun!'

'I didn't say we weren't fun but fun or not, pirates are still the baddies. I just can't think of anything good about a skull, whereas the Kiras-'

'Oh, you haven't been listening to Kiran propaganda. Of course they're gonna say we're the bad guys!'

'But they didn't get to design our uniforms. And their symbols are all, you know, quite nice. Stars, stripes, the little K in his collar.'

'He has a red faceplate in his helmet.'

'But you've gotta say, it's better than a skull. I mean, I really can't think of anything worse as a symbol than a red skull!'

'A… drop bear's… droppings?'

'Yeah and if we were fighting an army marching under the banner of a drop bear's droppings I'd probably be a lot less worried, Steve. Just think about what Luci did to those kids… I… I don't know what to believe anymore.'

'Cheer up mate! You don't need to worry so much about things.'

'I guess… I mean, I don't know about them but if I were treated like an animal in a petting zoo for a month, I'd be pretty pissed.'

'A petting zoo? Mate, every zoo is a petting zoo, unless you're a little bitch.'

(Kallet's POV, 20:20, September 3)

'Lawliet never saw it coming. Ironic. He could save others from defeat, but not himself.'

'Is it possible to learn this power?'

'Not from a Kira.'

(Chris' POV, 08:27, September 4)

'Whose side do you think she's on?'

'At the moment? No clue. So, think anyone will notice we were gone?'

'I guess we'll find out.'

The three of us turn the corner and approach the school, quickly met with a small crowd of our classmates.

'Hey, guess whose best friend is out of prison!'

'Guys it's Chris! And Connor! And Lauren! They're back!'

'Well this is a surprise,' Lauren comments.

'A surprise, to be sure, but a welcome one.'

'You're finally back! We missed you guys! Welcome back!'

I loudly clear my throat to focus everyone's attention.

'One thing at a time, kids. Before we get to class, any questions?'

And as I expected, everyone raised their hand.

'Umm… you, short blonde girl near the front.'

'Did you get to meet Kira?'

'I mean, technically, but it was only for like half a minute.'

'What does he look like?'

'I don't know, he had his suit on.'

'And Connor, did you get to see your sister?'

'Nope, sorry. You're from the biology club, aren't you?'

'Yes, we were really hoping you knew when she'll be back.'

(Lauren's POV, 08:28, September 4)

While those two keep answering questions, a gentle hum grows down the street grows into the rumble of something vaguely resembling a motorcycle, which Indy climbs off once she's parked at the school gate.

'Hey guys, check out my new Carnot Cycle!'

'Neat, how fast does it go?'

'Depends how cold it is outside. So how do you like your little fan crowd?'

'I'm not used to us getting this much attention…'

'Enjoy it while it lasts, I say. You'll always be popular as the four kids who survived L, but the initial excitement will be gone by tomorrow. And right now you should probably get to class.'

The crowd begins to disintegrate and I quickly catch up to Chris and Connor. While I was distracted it seems Kallet has shown up too, and she looks very… anxious? Disturbed?

'I did what you wanted, Chris. Got all the information I could. Where's my reward?'

'You'll get it later.'

'I won't wait forever.'

'And you won't have to. But good job, I'm proud of you. Having boots on the ground in his evil lair is going to be quite useful.'

'Yeah…'

'At this rate, I genuinely believe that he'll be dead before he finds an excuse to kill us. And that's good because I'd hate to die because of him.'

'Personally, I would prefer to die having sex,' Connor mutters.

'But then you won't finish.'

Once in the classroom we take our seats, and I quickly notice a very rare smile stretching across the teacher's face.

'Good to see that all my students are back. As you're already aware, the last month's work has been sent to your student emails for you to complete in your own time. Any questions before we begin? …Yes, Blackheart?'

'Is being in jail an excusable absence?'