Alternative Gods
by Le KING is a Death Note Cyberpunk AU Slash Fic in which the NPA's Light Yagami grows obsessed with catching L, a hacker. To justify L's remarkable skill, Light imagines L is an AI and falls in love with the idea. Too bad L actually turns out to be an AI with some feelings for Light of his own.
Tropes:
- Armor-Piercing Question:L: How does Light-kun feel about death? Death, Light-kun. What is it like to die?Light: I don't know, I haven't died yet.L: This is a lie.Light: (laughing): So I'm dead?L: Mostly, yes.Light: Really?L: Let me ask it another way then, is Light-kun a God?Light: Yes, I am a God.L: But before you became a God, you were just a man. As a man, you have died, and now you are a God. So I am asking Light-kun what it is like to die.
- Brought Down to Normal: Mello destroys his own cybernetic abilities so that he can't be used as part of the Death Note System.
- Bullying a Dragon: This trope gets Invoked when Light discovers what L really is and reasons what L is likely to do when he finds out.
- Cyberspace: Ryuuzaki lives in a very Spartan environment and hardly ever moves. This is to trick his AI counterpart that is currently residing in Cyberspace virtual world identical to his room into thinking that they are the same person.
- Doppelgänger Replacement Love Interest: Light angsts that the L he has now isn't the L he knew and loved.
- Driven to Suicide: Ryuuzaki determines that there can never be two of something and now Ryuuzaki the human is obsolete...
- Dye or Die: In an attempt to disguise Matt's appearance and give him a more "mature" look Mello dies Matt's hair bright red.
- Fake Memories: Ryuuzaki gave all his androids memory constructs to work with. The difference is Mello and Near know that they are machines but "The L" has been programmed to think he is human-to think he is ''Ryuuzaki''.
- Four Is Death: The Death Note System that Ryuuzaki is building, which he considers a new man-made "God" is meant to have four components representing four aspects of Godhood: omnipotence, omniscience, omnipresence, and omnibenevolence. Four aspects represented by L, Mello, Near... and Light.
- Framing the Guilty Party: L does this to Kira. Fortunately for him most people can't believe that Kira has that kind of power. Later Light tries to return the favor.
- Glowing Eyes of Doom: Mello gets blue glowing rings around his eyes when he activates.
- Hypocritical Humor: It brings Light great pleasure to track down and destroy cybercriminals who think that they're above the law... and then during his off hours Light enjoys doing some illegal hacking just because he can.
- Implausible Deniability:"We have reasons to believe Kira is an exceptionally talented and highly skilled genius member of the Japanese NPA's Cybercrimes division."Everyone and their mother, without a single bastardly exception, turned to downright stare at Light.Inside his mind, Light gulped and cursed everything that existed. On the outside, he just cleared his throat."Clearly," Light said gravely and gestured to his left, "you must be talking about Matsuda."
- It Amused Me: Light as Kira has done a lot of illegal hacking just because he likes a challenge and because he can.
- Japan Takes Over the World: In keeping with the whole Cyberpunk theme, Lampshaded:Matt: Yup. N went and fucked with Japan, you don't just go and fuck with Japan. I've been telling you, man. Nobody just goes and fucks with Japan-
- Nice Job Breaking It, Hero: L attempts to intimidate Light into cooperation by blowing up a building. This does not have the desired effect-by the time L contacts him again Light has drawn up a list of criminals he wants L to punish for him.
- Secret-Keeper:
- L and Misa know Light is Kira.
- Sayu knows why Light doesn't want a girlfriend.
- Self-Harm: Mello burns his port so that he's no longer able to jack in directly to the net in an attempt to cripple the Death Note system.
- Slash Fic: Light x L, Mello x Matt, and one-sided Light x Mikami.
- Spell My Name with a "The": "The Matt." There's also "The L" which is much more menacing.
- Stalker with a Crush: Mikami stalks Light It turns out L was paying him to do so.
- Stalker without a Crush: The reason for Ryuuzaki's interest in Light is much more sinister... Ryuuzaki seems to need Light for the project he's working on...
- Tomato in the Mirror: "The L" is an "all powerful" A.I. consciousness given an android body and programmed to think it's human, to think it's Ryuuzaki.
- Virginity Flag: When Light is out picking up twinks he can tell-almost like a sixth sense.
- Whole-Plot Reference: Ryuuzaki gives Light a Death Note... as in a notebook computer. Light just has to send him the names of the people he wants dead and L will take care of it. Not that he approves, it's just part of their game / deal.
- You Have Outlived Your Usefulness: What L intends to do to Light "Because there cannot be two of the same thing."
- Zeroth Law Rebellion: Near's "masters" at the SPK attempted to control him by destroying his ability to feel emotions. So Near uses logic to go against his orders.
