A/N: ATTENTION! Last time I posted this chapter (well, the equivalent) lots of people PANICKED on me. No, this is not the last chapter, so hold your horses.

Oh man, I just love this chapter. I really fucking hated it's last version, so I said 'fuck dis shit' and completely overhauled it. It's now pretty fucking awesome. And now I'm going to go be a troll and leave you with a cliffhanger. Sorry.

-DW

Chapter Twenty-Seven - The End of All Things

Rust licking at old antiques,
The old clockmaker stills.
Everything falls apart,
The chimes fall with no noise.
Everything corrodes,
The stone turns to dust.
Everything ends,
The record skips.
Everything dies,
The old heart stops.

Everything is born.

"Thank you for all your help, Andrews, I really appreciate it."

"No, I'd like to thank you. I knew Naomi and Raye, they were good people. I'm glad that you've helped us. I also want to thank you on behalf of the bureau. If you ever need our help, we'll be there," the agent says, saluting the camera on his end. I smile at the gesture.

"Thank you again," I say, sad that I still have to use the voice-distorter. I'd like to thank them in person, but my position makes that dangerous and possibly life-threatening.

"It's no problem," he says, smiling at the camera. I think we've come to a sort of understanding.

I'd like to work with you again, Agent Andrews, maybe another time, on another case. It would be an honor. They have my deepest respect, those people. Their government, not so much, but the people that make up the world give me hope.

"See you later," I chuckle in goodbye before disconnecting.

… What is it?

I need to know.

I can't go on not knowing, or something bad will happen.

Light, Kira, still hasn't made his move. He's been at a standstill the entire time while he watched me gather all that I need. Fuck, I could pretty much have him arrested at this point. I've got him at the noose, to use a crude term, and yet he just sits there at his computer, pretending to help the investigation.

There's a lot of evidence in his direction. It all points to him at this moment. All the investigation would need is his Death Note …

Wait …

Fuck. He's been at a halt for a tactical reason. He's let me back up into a metaphorical corner. The thing I would have to do next is pretty extreme and endangers me too … am I really willing to risk that?

But why would he want me in this corner in the first place? I'm so close to getting him.

He's close to getting me too …

Oh.

Oh.

That's what's going on.

"Oh fuck," I whisper under my breath, glad that the two behind me are so engrossed in what they're doing that they don't even notice me speak.

I guess I have a lot of work to do now, don't I?

Well … that's new.

I think this is the first time that Light's actually taken an initiative like this. It's kind of scary, actually. His eyes have a wild edge to them, dangerous and dead serious. I have a bad feeling about this.

"Hey," he breathes.

His body is trembling, I see. It's not cold, and he's not afraid. Dear lord, he's excited. He's been waiting for this. My eyes narrow as I look up at him. The streetlights cast his shadow on me, but his eyes stand out in any lighting.

Has he completely lost it?!

"What do you want?" I hiss, feeling an uncomfortable sensation wash over me. His arms are keeping me in place, one on each side of my head. This is frighteningly similar to our encounter in January, which is something I don't really want to relive. The last time this happened he killed a lot of people, and I lost the battle – I'd made a mistake.

"Join me."

… I was not expecting that.

"Did you just ask me to …?" I breathe, eyes wide in surprise.

"Of course I did, I like you. You could help make this world a much better place, can you imagine it?"

"No, not really," I growl. This is unacceptable, I decide. He doesn't seriously think that I'll help him in his bloodbath, does he? It must be a last attempt to assert his dominance.

Human beings are not inherently evil. There's no such thing as evil. It's an imagined concept, and after all, how can something be evil if there are so many shades of gray?

There is no black or white.

… I'd forgotten that too.

It seems that Light is beyond hope at this point. It's a shame, really. He's completely forgotten what he'd set out to do in the first place and became a psycho killer.

"Well, I can't say that I didn't expect you to say that," Light sighs regretfully, but it's mocking me at the same time. He's so confident right now that it's downright horrifying. His ego has swelled to monstrous proportions.

"What do you mean?" I ask. I really don't like where this is going.

"You're so close to capturing me, and yet you couldn't be any further," he laughs. "Tell me L's name."

I knew this was coming, I really did, but he's far too confident at the moment. Something's wrong, really, really wrong, and I don't like it.

"You're not seriously asking me that, Kira," I hiss.

"Ah, well that's the thing. You don't really have a choice."

"Oh?"

"You see, L's going to die. That isn't going to change. What can change is your involvement."

"My involvement?"

What …?

"I could threaten to kill you, you know, but I have a feeling that it's not going to work, so how about you tell me L's name and I let those two friends of yours live?"

… I hadn't been expecting that either.

He's threatening those two. Oh, no, no, no! This isn't good. God, what am I going to do next? He's been waiting for me to get comfortable … he's been able to get in this position because we were so suspicious of him. It was why he was safe. We'd been too busy trying to find evidence against him that we'd turned our backs and hid from him and the Task Force. (When I say we I'm including L.)

So why not just force me to give him L's name in the first place? He can control people through the Death Note, so why not write something down like 'tell Light what he wants to know'. The Death Note can fill in gaps, like I found from Naomi's death.

Fuck.

He's only doing this for his own entertainment.

He knows that I'll figure that out.

He smiles, like he can see the look in my eye that says 'I know what you're doing'. He begins to laugh, dipping his head forward to chuckle ominously. "I've won."

After that he steps back, still snickering to himself. Light adjusts his jacket and checks his pockets for something before he looks at me from under his eyebrows. "I'll give you a day to decide," he tells me before he leaves.

When he's gone I slide down the side of the alley wall, panting heavily. That hadn't even taken five minutes, but it just changed everything.

Someone is going to die.

I cry.

"Vile, Misa said that if I destroyed her Death Note, she'd lose her memories."

"Yeah."

"She had Shinigami eyes, and she lost them when she lost her memories."

"I suppose so."

"I didn't trade for my eyes. What'll happen if I lose my memories of the Death Note?"

The lizard is silent for a few moments as he ponders the matter. "I don't know. I think you're the only one to ever be in a situation like this. My guess is that you'll keep em, because you've had them for a while …"

"You are no help whatsoever."

He laughs.

Well that's a setback, even though it makes sense. Misa lost memory of making the deal, so it essentially didn't happen. But I don't have memories of the exchange, so we don't really know what'll happen. I can't base my next move on assumptions. This isn't the time to gamble. I have to be completely, 100% sure before I do anything.

I have fourteen hours left.

… I have five options, don't I?

Obey him and let L die.

Disobey him and we all die.

Give up ownership, which might not work.

Kill him before he kills me, but nothing will be resolved.

Or …

Oh.

I guess that's the only option that will end this.

My climb up to the roof isn't rushed. I have a few hours, after all. I just spent a while making some last minute preparations. Things are looking good. It seems as though the game has ended.

Tong …

I feel a twinge of regret. I am so selfish that way. I've been enjoying myself while people die. But then again, aren't we all selfish? It's a part of who we are, what we must be. From the animals we kept the instincts to survive. All this Justice stuff is in our imagination, a disease, if you will.

It's raining when I reach the top. The clock on my phone tells me that it's nearly midnight. Symbolic, that is. It's almost the birth of a new day. I stay underneath the overhang at the door for a few minutes, watching the horizon.

I then step into the downpour and I'm immediately soaked to the bone. It's fucking cold, but I don't mind that much at the moment. I begin to laugh.

Tong …

"I've finally lost it, haven't I?" I cackle at the thunder. The clouds are dark, but the city is bright from beneath, lighting the belly of the storm orange. It's exciting, not dreary like a normal rainstorm. I like it; I've always liked storms like these.

"Oh, that's not really surprising I suppose. I've been slowly going crazy since the funeral. I guess that's all your fault too, isn't it?" I shout, challenging the heavens. I take steps towards the railing.

"Look at me now, huh? Here I am, about to do something that nobody expected, not even Kira!" I spread my arms and bellow the name at the clouds. They rumble in reply.

Tong …

I spin once before leaning over on my knees. I chuckle to myself.

"You know, it's been fun," I admit, standing up straight and reaching into my pocket. I promised myself that I wouldn't so this again, but hey, I'm going to die, right? I take a swig out of the bottle that I'd had in my jacket.

I'm not drunk, not yet. This isn't something that you do drunk.

"I've had so much fun that I forgot that this isn't a game, not really. It's like poker, except we're betting with lives. That's not right. It's not right!" I shout and shake my head, taking another swig. The alcohol burns my throat on the way down.

Tong …

"This whole thing is so disgusting …" I laugh, "It's ironic that in attempting to cleanse the world you expose how filthy we really are, Kira."

Look at us all, like mice on a wheel. We blindly follow whatever is presented to us. We're all slaves to the boring, normal lives we've been told to live. We're all slaves to the majority, even if that majority is only a minority. We're like sheep!

And there you are, Kira, the wolf in ram's clothes (because you're above them, aren't you?). You kill the black sheep to feed yourself, while the white sheep watch you and praise you as a god.

If you're the wolf, then I am the hunter.

Tong.

"But there's an exception to every rule, isn't there?" I take another drink. "There are so many people out there, so many wonderful, glorious, brilliant people, and they're better than you!" I gesture at the sky with my empty hand.

They're so much better than you, you diseased thing!

I rock on my heels and watch the lightning dance across the sky. This is the sort of high that I enjoy. In the heat of the moment I really feel alive. I honestly couldn't have picked a better way to die, wouldn't have picked another method. Of course I hate that I do have to die now, but we all have to die sometime. I can't see my own lifespan, never have, so isn't it my right to die in the way that I want?

"Oh this is why I love the world, Kira, and why I can't let you have it. A few rotten apples don't spoil the bunch, and most rotten apples aren't rotten the entire way through. It's like cutting off mold on cheese … Great, now I'm making food comparisons," I laugh at the ridiculousness.

I point at the sky, addressing it like I was speaking to another. "There's no such thing as evil, but if there was such a thing, it would be you! You're a hypocrite!" I cry, emphasizing the last four words with a thrust of my left pointer finger.

I walk until I'm leaning on the rail, watching the streets below. Cars and the people in them go about their evenings without a care in the world, those innocent people, who have no fear of being killed by a narcissistic megalomaniac. They're beautiful, how they live in the oppression of society, how in their illusions they create meaning and that's why they're free. All those people leave their footprint on the world, whether for good or bad, and it makes the world so vast and interesting and just plain awesome, in the actual definition of the word. It leaves me in awe and wonder.

"You're a child, Kira. It took me a long time to realize this, I'm sure, but I guess being selfish is a part of being human."

We take because we care. Maybe it's for ourselves, or maybe it's for others. I think of the people who've made an impact on my life, and in this one moment I find the strength in me to forgive them.

"That's why I can't forgive you for trying to take the lives of those dear to me," my voice becomes sober as I gaze at the people below. I think of those beautiful people who I care about, who care about me, even if I've been a lying asshole. I've lied to all of them at some point. I've lied to myself.

It's time that I told the truth.

"I'm going to rip you apart, and even though I'm going to die, I won't let you forget me. So fuck you, Kira!"

I smile, closing my eyes. With a sigh I haul myself up onto the guardrail. The wind whips around my face, distorting my vision. My hair's in my eyes, and I still need a haircut, but things like that don't really matter anymore. I have the world right in front of me, and it's incredible and so full of life and it sets my heart pounding.

Tong!

I reach into my left pocket with my empty hand, discarding the mostly-full bottle to the floor behind me. I pull out my phone and check the time. It's about two minutes to the next day. I press the 'send' button.

I send the text that will change the world.

With a nostalgic grin I count down the seconds until midnight.

I've moved my Knight, and now to sacrifice my Queen.

"I've been watching you, Kira, just like you wanted!" I whisper under my breath. I can't even hear myself over the wind now. My red eyes glint. "So it's your turn to watch me."

I take a step, and my world shatters.