You might have noticed that this story has now jumped to an M. This is because it starts getting a little gory in this chapter. Hopefully you can keep reading, but I understand if not.
There is a line in this chapter from an InnerPartySystem song called "This town, Your grave". I think I should credit IPS for my whole DN repertoire, as I listen to their album non-stop when I'm writing.
To all those who reviewed last chapter: Thank you very much; I was interested to hear your guesses. Perhaps something Ryuk says this chapter will change your minds, or further increase your suspicions. I'm not saying if anyone was right, though!
This section contains my favourite part. Enjoy.
Light does not think he will ever sleep again, because every time he lies back and lets his eyes drift shut, he sees that clawed hand reaching for him and he jolts back awake. Ryuk's chuckling does not help the matter, either.
He must have dropped off eventually, though, because he opens his eyes and it is early morning, the dim light of sunrise just barely shining through his blinds. Ryuk has disappeared somewhere. Light's head is groggy from the fitful rest, and he brings up a hand to rub his temples.
His hand is coated in something. Something sticky and wet and…red.
Blood. He is covered in blood.
Light reels as the rancid stench hits his nostrils. His hands, his arms, his face, all dripping with blood. Panicking, he searches for a wound, but finds none, confirming what he fears.
This is not his blood.
Retching, he staggers into his bathroom, silently praising his parents for buying a house with en suite. The light flickers a few times as he peels off his sodden pyjamas, throwing them on the floor in disgust. He decides that he will have to burn them, and his sheets; no matter how many times he washes them he can never consider them clean after this. He whimpers as he notices the bloody footprints he has left across the bathroom floor.
it's fine I'm fine I just have to get clean I just have to get it off
Not even leaving time for the water to warm up, Light steps straight into the shower and turns it on. He sighs as the liquid hits his back, feeling the blood wash away into the drain. Opening his eyes, he moves to grab the soap.
Stop.
don't scream don't scream they'll wake up it's ok calm down don't panic…
It isn't water coming from the showerhead.
It's blood. More blood, raining down on him like judgement, drenching him in sin. Shrieking, he falls backwards out of the cubicle, landing hard on his hip. He stares in horror at the shower, but-
But it's just water. Clear, clean water running in rivulets down the glass. Light checks, and he is still covered in blood. His quaking arms give way underneath him and he falls back, head cracking against the tile. And then he sees it, another message scrawled across the ceiling.
Washing your hands in blood won't take away the stains, Kira.
The light goes out.
-x-
With L's warning from the night before, Light knows that it would be a bad idea to skip another day of work. After waiting to make sure that the water would not change again, he manages to have a shower, ignoring the rising fear in his gut at what could be happening in the darkness of that windowless room. He finally gets himself clean – although he isn't sure he will ever be clean again, and he can't incinerate himself – and gets dressed, taking comfort in the routine of it all.
Ryuk is waiting in his bedroom, smiling that ridiculous grin, as always.
"Nice shower?" the shinigami asks.
Light just answers with a withering glare as he buttons his shirt collar.
-x-
The lift at the Investigation HQ is out of order; Watari explaining that the cause of the recent power cuts has not yet been discovered. When Light heads up the stairs, he is surprised to notice that the smashed window has been replaced.
"You changed that quickly," he comments to Watari, trying to act as if he isn't terrified that the creature will suddenly appear in the pane.
"I'm sorry?"
"The broken window. You replaced it quickly."
Watari looks confused. "I'm sorry, Light, but you must be mistaken. There haven't been any broken windows. This is bulletproof glass – it would take quite some effort to smash it." The man knocks against the pane to prove his point.
"Oh, yes, of course. I must have been confused," Light laughs, but inside he has gone deathly cold.
Ryuk, who had disappeared again, suddenly shoots into view outside the window, grin wide and eyes bulging. Light jumps back in shock, a cry escaping his lips before he has a chance to suppress it. Watari and his father turn to him, concerned. He smiles nervously, breathing deeply to calm his pounding heart.
"Sorry, I saw a bird fly by the window. Made me jump," he explains, his voice belying none of the fright coursing through his veins.
The men accept his explanation and move on. Light turns and gives his hardest glare to the shinigami, who is now collapsed on the floor in laughter.
"Oh, Light," he gasps, "I can see why she finds it so fun…"
-x-
Finally back home, Light boots up his laptop. He has sent Ryuk away, snapping at the shinigami for finding such amusement in his erratic behaviour. His parents have gone out for a meal, and Sayu is staying at a friend's house. Now, with no unnecessary distractions, he can continue his mission.
He freezes when his computer finishes loading.
The screen is completely black, save for one sentence written in a dark red that seems to ooze off the screen.
DO YOU WANT TO SEE HOW YOU DIE, KIRA?
"Nice trick, but I'm not impressed," Light mutters, pressing a button to open the command window.
The message disappears and Light smirks slightly. You have to do better than that to scare me.
A new message appears, each letter forming stroke by stroke, as if someone is painting it onto his screen.
VERY WELL.
Light's brow furrows. Is his computer being hacked?
He clings onto that thought as an image fades into view, because it must be fake it has to be fake that can't be me oh god oh god please no
The image shows Light's broken and blood-soaked body lying crumpled on the floor, and it can't be fake, because it is so unmistakeably him there, his empty face staring out through the screen. No, not staring, because his eyes have been plucked out like ripe berries, the flesh around them viciously mutilated by whatever had assaulted him. His lips have been flayed off to give him a macabre death-grimace. There is a gaping hole in his chest, broken ribs clearly visible through the torn skin and muscle.
Unlike the doll, he is not clutching his heart in his hand. It is in his mouth.
Light dives for the bin, only just making it before he violently throws up. He stays for a long time with his head bowed, taking deep gasps of air like he is drowning. Eventually, he puts one trembling hand on the edge of his desk and pulls himself back up, terrified of what he will see.
The image is still there. Light flinches and his stomach convulses once more, but he keeps himself under control. He presses the laptop's power switch, not wanting to see that thing for a second more.
But nothing happens.
Panicking, Light tries everything to turn the laptop off, but to no avail. He is just getting a screwdriver to literally pry out the battery when the screen goes blank. Light laughs with relief.
"I'm not frightened of a picture."
His words are hollow, however, and he cannot suppress a scream when a new face appears on the screen. The apparition smiles at this. "Scared now?" it hisses.
The creature is hidden in shadow, its face blurred, but Light can clearly see two shining black eyes watching him as it brings something up to its mouth. Light can see that it is a heart, and even though he can hear it beating loudly in his chest, he knows that it is his heart the creature holds, his heart that the creature is bringing to its lips and, oh god, it is his heart that the creature is eating, a flash of too-sharp teeth as it tears at the organ, savouring it, dark blood running down its hands. Light cannot look away, cannot escape the creature's cruel gaze as it licks the blood from its arm.
"Tastes like Justice." The creature begins to laugh, and its laugh fills the whole room, reverberating off the walls and echoing in Light's mind. Light jolts back, falling from his chair and whimpering.
"Stop, please, make it stop!"
The creature abruptly falls silent. "You want me to stop, Kira?"
The one remaining logical part of Light's brain reminds him that this might still be a trick, might still be some kind of trap set up by L, and he cannot help but argue with the creature. "I'm not Kira!"
The creature seems to find his denial hilarious, cackling with glee. It leans closer to the screen, and for one horrifying moment, Light thinks it is going to climb out. But it does not, only moving out of the shadows as it smiles an impossibly wide smile.
Those teeth, so many teeth in one mouth, and I thought Ryuk was bad…
As if hearing his thoughts, the creature gnashes its needle-sharp teeth together with a horrible metallic sound that makes Light's hair stand on end.
"Kira," the voice speaks, and Light knows it is useless to protest. "If you want me to stop, then you must stop. For I will not rest until I hold Kira's still-beating heart in my hands."
The creature gives one last howling laugh, disappearing from the screen, and the laptop dies with a screech. Light remains on the floor, shaking violently and drenched in cold sweat. Cursing loudly, he tries to regain control over himself. His fear quickly gives way to anger, anger at himself for letting this affect him, anger at whoever was tormenting him, because there must be someone behind this; that was the only explanation.
Using his anger to fuel his strength, he stands and goes to hit the power button on his laptop once more, intending to prove to himself that this was nothing more than a program, something installed on his computer to start on boot-up.
He pauses, then flinches back in disgust.
His laptop is bleeding.
Dark pools of red are oozing out from the keyboard, pouring over the edge and dripping onto the floor. Light tries to step back, not wanting to get any on himself, but he cannot move with fear, cannot look away as the crimson soaks up his trousers, tainting him. He eventually manages to move, staggering back from the flowing blood, turning to get out get away run away.
The speakers on his laptop crackle one more time, blood seeping from the edges of the screen.
"You cannot hide what you have done, Kira."
Thoughts are loved. We're over the halfway point now! Next chapter will be in a few days.