CHAPTER THREE
"Lights Out"

That night, Light stayed up late to finish up some work for a private matter. He was at his work station in the living room wearing only a pair of black jockey's. Since training to become a police officer, he had to learn to take better care of himself and he began to lift weights. For five months straight, he went to the gym and toned his body to fantastic shape.

His once best friend Demetre Draycott had often referred to him as a toothpick because Light was so thin, and compared to Demetre, who had been in tip top form for as long as Light and he had known each other—and Demetre being a vegan—Light knew he had to change.

Studying had taken up most of his time, but he found the motivation to re-invent himself when he joined the police force. Kira was going to rule the world one day and the new master of it had to look the part. And, of course, it also helped him in his police foundations courses.

His private matter was hunting down his friend who sought to take Light down. Light had killed Demtre's grandfather while performing for L, killing an embezzler and a purse snatcher while Light's room was bugged with cameras and wiretaps. He killed two people using an interesting but expensive trick—with a mini-camera hidden in a potato chip bag. He later regretted it. And it was later learned the embezzler was innocent of the charges, Demetre's grandfather.

Demetre found out what Light did and vowed revenge, himself possessing a Death Note. And the surprising thing was, Demetre refused to use it as it was intended. He refused to use it to kill. And they faced off on the roof of the Kira Task Force building some time back, whereas, someone very important got caught in the crossfire—Dana Chika—a former girlfriend to Light, who secretly had a crush on Demetre. They both knew Dana in grade school, but she disappeared for some time, calling it off with Light, and then resurfaced, as Demetre's catch.

The battle ended in a draw, much like their chess games.

Unfortunately, Demetre was very sly, and he was currently hiding like a fox. There was no information at all about him after he left the Savant Society, a cultist organization that, in of itself, was a threat to Kira. It turned out, Light had not been the first to possess a Death Note. This collective group of people had been dealing with Shinigami for many, many years. Light didn't know much about the Savant Society, but until they became a major threat to Kira—and no one had directly threatened Light, knowing he was Kira—he would merely monitor them.

Demetre, however, was a thorn in Kira's side that he had to be pulled out, sooner or later. And the problem Light saw most troublesome was, he couldn't kill Demetre with the Death Note. His friend had figured out a way to prevent from being killed by it. His Shinigami was very open with information about the Death Note, all its secrets. And it caused Light some worry. But he knew Demetre, even though he had the power, he refused to come out and kill Light with it. Demetre's religious convictions prevented it, and much like L, Demetre would rather let Light fall on his own sword. Light knew they would meet again to settle their score.

Frustrated, Light swivelled in his chair and crossed one leg over the other, arms crossed over his chest. He stared out into the empty apartment, with its shadows, thinking—and fuming. He needed to clear his mind of his troubles, even for a little while.

Stress often played a major role in sexual frustration. He didn't consider his job really that stressful. But was it the underline cause of why he couldn't enjoy the pleasure of a woman? One thing for sure, Misa had tried—really tried—the other night, twice. And to add insult to injury, she had said that it eventually happens to every man and it wasn't anything for him to worry about.

Misa didn't stimulate him intellectually. Physically, she was beautiful. But he needed more.

But Misa was like some crazy vixen who trapped men for a living. As along as she knew that he was Kira and had the Death Note, his life was literally hanging in the balance. Misa was an unstable woman, and she was the type who would flip out on a whim. So, when he was with her, Light had to walk on egg shells. What if she decided to get smart and kill him?

Rem, her original Shinigami, was dead, sacrificing itself for Light to kill L so he would not exposed as Kira, but that didn't mean she couldn't use the Death Note against him. She was connected to Ryuk now, yet he also had Rem's old Death Note. The task force also had a Death Note, secured away. But it basically a stalemate. Light had to be careful of his moves. One wrong move, and he would ruin everything he had built up until now.

He shook his head and chuckled to himself. The thought was ludicrous. Misa was in love with him, in love with Kira—she would never kill him.

What in the world am I thinking? Think about changing the world for the better—Kira's world. Once your world is in place, then you can think about fulfilling your human desires.

Suddenly, he got a call on his computer, which was relayed by his cell phone that was on the work desk, his phone was on vibrate so not to disturb Misa sleeping, and he answered the call, putting an earbud in his right ear.

But the call wasn't for L, but for Light. The caller was from Dispatch at the NPA and the female dispatcher asked if he would be willing to speak to the Director on a NPA related matter even though he didn't directly work for the NPA anymore.

He accepted it, and the call went through.

"Detective Yagami, sorry to get you up at such a late hour, can we speak?" Light told the Director he hadn't gone to bed yet, and to continue. "Good," the other said. "I'm familiar with your work expertise within the Intelligence Bureau, short as it was, and at the moment, we need a person like you to substitute for a man who has Gone Critical." "Gone Critical" was code for someone who had a heart attack. "We don't believe it was Kira's fault, just bad food choices. He'll be okay, but he's in hospital at the moment. We need you to take his place."

Light asked what the job entailed and the Director informed him it was simple video surveillance work for a suspected Yukaza hideout near a closed down matinee theatre, but it was in a bad part of town. He would be paired with another man in a surveillance van. The Director said two detective's would pick him up and take him if needed. It was simple job, just listen for any activity—and the job would only last a day at most.

Tedious, Light thought. But he couldn't refuse. It would look bad.

"When should I expect a car?" He asked the names of the agents for identification purposes only. The detective's names who would be picking him up were named: Sai and Hyde. "Within fifteen minutes," the Director said. He thanked Light, and the call ended.

Light stood. There was no time for his problems right now, he had work to do.

Getting dressed, Misa asked him where he was going. Light explained that he was joining another officer on a simple video surveillance job for the NPA, nothing to do with the Kira Case, but he didn't know how long he would be.

After he dressed in all black, he put on his watch, holstered his gun and adjusted the velcro strapped baton to his inner left thigh inside his pants—although he doubt he would need either of them—and left the apartment to wait at street level for his ride.

As he was walking down the steps of his apartment complex to street level, his cell phone dinged. He immediately took it out of his pocket and checked it, thinking it may be from one the detective's the Director was sending to say they were on en-route.

Instead, it was from Misa. Text, first. Then a video file. "You haven't been interested in me lately, so maybe this will 'stimulate' you…" and to punctuate the text, she added a emoji sticking out its tongue He didn't have time for her jokes, but when he got to street level, he had a moment as the car hadn't arrived yet, so he played the small clip.

The video was of two men kissing. Within moments, he stopped it. "I'll kill her, I swear it!"

An unmarked dark Sedan pulled up to the curb. The suit and tie officers gave their names and showed their badges, and Light got in the back. The man called Sai was a squirrelly, thin looking guy, and Hyde, was a broad shouldered, hefty-larger man.

As the car pulled out from the curb, he asked, "I'm told I'm partnering with a man conducting video surveillance to an entrance to a new Yukaza hideout, correct?" to confirm.

"It's actually a drug raid," Hyde said, he was driving.

"Wait! This doesn't fit the information I was told," Light said, his voice elevated.

"New information from the Director of the NPA wanted us to relay. It's a double-header. But you'll still be doing video surveillance, helping out our man in the van to coordinate our SAT (Special Assault Team) and other field teams. They're all ready to go, waiting on you. Your police profile says you can do that at least this right?"

"And what does that supposed to mean?"

Sai, who sat in the passenger seat, looked back with an amused smirk, and waved off the comment. "Don't worry about Hyde. He's just a little disgruntled that he wasn't picked for this job even though he has more experience. But the Director wanted you specifically, Yagami. Your experience in the Kira Case is highly regarded, even if the NPA has to publicly disavow the investigation and its members."

That put Light at ease. For a moment, he felt he had been purposely fed misinformation. The Director obviously didn't want to say everything over the phone just in case it was intercepted.

As they drove him to the site, Light leaned back in his seat and thought about the suspicious death of KF4 after he gave L information that a Yukaza insider may have had information on the real identity of Kira. Then, if not in relation to it, he got a call to work video surveillance regarding a Yukaza raid. He didn't believe in coincidences, but he did believe in correlations. It wasn't a secret that he was working on the Kira Case.

He made sure his GPS locator was activate on his phone before he got to the site.

The Sedan pulled up to an unmarked dark-coloured moving van in a neighbourhood that looked lowly, very quiet, and even dilapidated. This was so cliche, Light thought. The place looked like a battle zone for gang wars with graffiti everywhere. The van just screamed police.

Getting out, Light immediately noticed the abandoned matinee theatre to his far right, and with his keen eyes, he observed a lot of SAT and others teams all ready to go, dressed in black vests and armed to the teeth with semi-automatics. With that much firepower, they were expecting a possible gangland shootout. This was much more than he bargained for.

But it was the Director of the NPA who had personally requested him and he knew he needed to prove himself outside the Kira Case. It would also increase his reputation as a good investigator. And this change of venue was perfect for that.

His confidence rose.

Once out of the car, Hyde rapped on the back doors of the van, then it was opened by a dark-haired man in completely black attire, similar to Light, revealing a sophisticated workup of surveillance equipment with banks of monitors and other listening devices inside. The man looked at the two detectives, but didn't speak as if confused. He had headphones on and he looked like a man completely focused in his work. Then things clicked in. "Are you…Yagami?"

Light nodded, as he took the hand of the man, and stepped in the van. The other pulled down the headphones. "Where do you need me?" Light asked.

"The name's Ito, you'll be working surveillance with me," the man said, shaking Light's hand. "I trust you're already familiar with all this equipment?" Light nodded. He felt like the man was testing him like a rookie. He was arrogant, but direct. "Good! Enough with the small talk. Let's get cracking." He plopped his butt onto a swivel chair in front of some monitors. "Our SAT's are already stationed around the building and the Field Teams with IED sniffer dogs are on stand-by. They seem to already have the scent, so we know there are drugs in the old matinee, too. We never knew about this place until we got a very reliable tip. We know factions of the Yukaza have staked this territory and as you saw when you pulled up it looks like a war zone out there. So, be prepared for gunfire. Got your piece?"

Light nodded. He sat down on the opposite chair with its separate bank of monitors as Ito shut the van doors. Light was familiar with all the control boards, so he didn't need anything explained to him. This was his chance to prove to himself. He had always wanted to be a cop like his father long before he acquired the Death Note, now he could put everything he learned in his police courses to practise.

Power was everything, and influence and reputation were equally important in obtaining that power. He had to climb the ladder and get experience. The more people he impressed, the more people down the road would see that Kira had their best interests at heart. He was ready to test his mantle here.

He looked out the front window at the two detectives who had driven him here and wondered why they were still here. They had done their job, neither one of them were a part of this operation as far as he was aware. And if they were, standing out in the open was just making themselves targets. They should either be in or out, the van rear doors closed. Or gone.

Light slipped on a pair of headphones, but the moment he did, he suddenly heard blood-curdling screams and the sound of rapid gunfire. "It's a trap! Look out!" he heard one man's panicked voice, but his shouting was soon cut off, followed by gurgling. There was more gunfire, and it lasted for about a minute, and then nothing. Dead silence. No chatter, no gunfire—nothing!

Ito demanded reports. "SAT Team 1—respond! SAT Team 2—respond! Field Team 1—respond! Field Team 2—respond! Damn it! If anyone is still alive—respond!" He turned in his chair, "Light, this is—" and then he gasped, as the rear van doors suddenly burst open.

Ito was shot in the upper chest by Hyde and fell back. He was dead before he hit the floor.

Light rolled back and fell out of his chair—it reminded him of the time he first met Ryuk—and his hands instinctively went for his own gun in its holster under his left arm. Hyde pointed his gun directly at Light, and Light halted, putting his hands up. He didn't beg for his life. Light didn't say anything. Hyde waved his gun for Light to depart the van. Now Sai was also brandishing a gun.

Had it been a set up? The Yukaza had just wiped out two SWAT and Field Teams. Were Sai and Hyde dirty cops or infiltrators? All this raced in Light's mind within seconds.

Light departed the van and then was pushed to the ground by Sai.

"You're the lone survivor, pretty-boy," the small man said, and then kicked Light in the ribs. Light hissed and cringed. Sai then used his foot again to shove Light onto his back. Hyde towered Sai by a good two feet and his chest was twice as broad, but the little man tried to overcompensate by acting tough, holding a gun close to Light's face.

Sai grabbed Light's gun that was holstered under his arm and threw it away.

"You're coming with us, Yagami. The boss wants a member of the NPA, he doesn't care who. He wants to know all your secrets. You see, Kira murdering criminals is one thing, but the Yukaza still flourishes in underground markets and the boss wants to keep it that way."

Sai kicked Light in the ribs again.

Light folded over and grit his teeth in pain.

Hyde put a hand on Sai's shoulder. "Enough, our orders were to bring in him in alive," he said.

Light didn't have his gun, but he wasn't defenceless. He ripped open the pants of his left inner thigh and grabbed his baton. Rolling to his feet, with a press of button, he telescoped it fully to its full two-and-half-feet, and whacked the gun out of Sai's hand, and then used it like a staff to hit the little man in the ribs. And eye for an eye.

His training at police foundations had also made his body more flexible, so after Sai was down, he performed a leg sweep to Hyde, and the big guy came crashing down on his back like a bag of wet cement. Light also disarmed him, took his gun, and then fired without hesitation, blasting a hole through the man's head. "That was for killing Ito!" Even though Light had only just meant the man a minute before, he felt a sense of kin to give Ito justice even without the Death Note.

"You son of a bitch!" Sai shouted.

Sai charged and Light felt the crunch of the little man as he barrelled into Light's stomach. The two grabbed at each other and fought on the ground. For such a little man, the toughness he portrayed wasn't an act, Light soon learned. Sai needed to overcompensate for his shorter statue, but his body was firm. Light managed to push the man off him and rolled away, retrieving his baton. But Sai had also retrieved his weapon and fired off a few shots at Light.

Light ran behind the surveillance van, yanking open the driver's side as he did, for it to act as a shield from Sai's gun shots. Light crouched down behind the grill and took a moment with a couple of quick breaths. His heart was beating fast. A simple job, that's all this was supposed to be. But it was set-up, cop killers in waiting. Despite the threat of Kira, crime was still going on. He decided that he had no choice but to use the piece of the Death Note stashed in his watch. Sai had to die. Once the man was dead, Light would take the van out of here. The Director had given him the man's full name, so…

Light managed to yank only twice on the dial of his watch that would release the hidden compartment with the Death Note piece when a shot bounced off the corner of the van where Light was standing, breaking his concentration. The compartment would open after four quick consecutive pulls in less than a second. He had only managed to do two before stopping.

Sai started to come around the corner. Light slammed the baton on the open van door, if only to frighten the man. Then he pushed the van door back, slamming it shut, in an attempt to knock Sai off guard. But Sai wasn't there. And suddenly, the door suddenly burst open, Sai kicking it from the inside, and it whacked Light on the shoulder, and it made Light drop the baton.

Light knew he had just made a rookie mistake.

Sai pointed his gun at Light, he was panting too. Light raised his arms in surrender, as Sai exited the vehicle.

"Nice moves, kid, but in the end, it all comes down to experience." Sai grunted. "Man, you are tall. You killed my friend, you bastard, and I'm going to pay you back a thousand fold!"

Sai kicked Light in the mid-section. Light folded over. This brought him down to a suitable height for Sai to possibly execute him. It was then Sai cold-cocked Light in the side of the head with his gun and Light collapsed to the ground.

Light's mind went foggy.

"Sweet dreams, rookie…"

Sai kicked him in the head to finish him off, and it was lights out.

To be continued…