Chapter 1: Welcome to Exile Radio
Chapter Text
In 2004, Kira triumphed over L.
Over the course of the year 2005, Kira intimidated the government with a series of murders of agents and police officers.
By the year 2006, Kira had obtained a position in Japan almost higher than the Prime Minister's - and that, on official terms.
By May of 2007, he felt secure enough to make his pronouncements via regular appearances on television.
And on October 15 of 2008, his official reach was due to expand.
---
Matsuda was out in meetings with police officers who opposed Kira. Of course he was dragging his feet, but that was part of the entertainment value - theoretically.
We now report that leaders are discussing the possibility of Kira taking a more official position, droned Okimoto of the Golden News that evening. This would mean Kira's opinion would extend beyond Japan and shape the fates of several nations at once. It's currently unknown which...
Light supposed he should be happy. But right now, he wasn't feeling anything at all.
---
At the ensuing press conference, he took questions, of course. He wasn't a dictator: he was the lead and guide to all honest and kind people throughout the world.
The press, of course, was particularly well guided.
"I had a comment concerning the identity of these countries," said a junior reporter from NHK. "Singapore's being strangely quiet all of a sudden about their participation. I'd have thought Singapore would precede Japan."
Light smiled genially to explain: "I'm sure the government was working on a plan. Don't take the news at face value. These people agreed with Kira from the start, but they were plotting how to turn the situation to their advantage. They think they can preserve their lives and gradually take away my power. They won't survive for long."
Still nothing. Still nothing...
---
And from his station at Exile Radio headquarters - a name far too grandiose for what it really was - Koki Tanakabara looked on. That was his lot in life.
What had happened to him, to NHN, had been the same as had happened to the public news as a whole. The Sakura incident happened to them - slowly.
Not many people spoke about it. In fact, in the short term it redounded to the benefit of anti-Kira editorializers. But it was clear no one at NHN ever forgot Kira's statement that he would accept opposition so long as it wasn't stated in the open.
There were few words, but it was clear by what the senior executives would and would not authorize to be broadcast. There were occasions where fear of Kira was the only possible motive. And these became more frequent.
The mandated content was worst of all. Until May of 2005, Tanakabara had been forced to produce full photographs of criminals on any occasion where it was the only visual aid available. In those days, his division was allotted money enough to take on a sketch artist. It was forbidden nonetheless.
Inevitably, the fresh hires tended to be those who were not inclined to speak out against Kira at all. Yes, Kiyomi Takada was one of these. Yes, she had had a role in forcing Tanakabara out. But she had only been an expression of a larger trend.
NHN - all of them - had looked down the barrel of the camera too long. But then, Tanakabara was still looking down that barrel. And he wasn't blinking yet.
Tanakabara cut the clip from the feed, and added a short, wry postscript for the benefit of his podcast's listeners:
"Lest anyone wonder why Kira stepped back from verbalized public statements after the Sakura incident. He appears to have forgotten."
At which point he sighed and buckled down for the inevitable calls concerning the so-called "Second Kira" - an entity heard from neither before nor since the spring of 2004 - but that wasn't, as it happened, the girding he needed.
Tanakabara invariably began calls by saying "Welcome to Exile Radio. What shall we call you?" But the software announced aliases as the calls came in. Spiderkiller had programmed it well. And he felt no need, this time.
All things considered, it had been inevitable that this day would come.
He dutifully informed his listeners: "We have... a call claiming to originate from Kira."
And indeed the voice was unmistakable; known to all; like a cold rumble of thunder.
"The Sakura Incident... Is that what journalists call it? Interesting.
"And I see you have something to add to these thoughts, Koki Tanakabara."
For four and a half years, Tanakabara's full name had sometimes been a compliment, and sometimes a threat. But in all that time, it had never been anything but a direct reference to his vulnerability.
But he had not got to this point by being easily intimidated.
"Until my death is no longer a public disadvantage to you, of course," he said coolly. "I can hope I've done some small part to extend that period.
"My comment is that if the governments working to expand Kira's official scope were not secretly plotting against him before, they certainly are now."
"You are overly concerned about your death," answered Kira smoothly. "If you haven't killed or hurt people, I won't put you on the execution list. Besides, I can see you're quite a principled person..."
Ah yes. Take the compliment. Let's pretend he can't see what side of that line he falls on...
At this point, Tanakabara took the unspoken privilege of radio hosts everywhere: he disconnected the call before sharing his concluding thoughts.
"To world powers, that will of course be a secondary consideration. Those confident of being unknown to Kira may well have withdrawn from the coalition minutes after his ill-advised statement, and there is no foreseeing the actions of those who've found the tiger they have just mounted is already baring its teeth.
:My death is, naturally, a greater concern to me.
"It is only natural that Kira will continue to deny responsibility for Maekawa, Hibima and the other three victims of the Sakura Incident. As all reports had L coming to the same conclusion, and L was (in 2004) considered specially credible, a majority even believes it, despite never having heard from the second Kira since. We will therefore lay that aside.
"But to begin with: Kira errs. His margin of provable error is generally slight, but by weight of numbers that makes him responsible for more wrongful deaths than any nonmilitary figure yet recorded. Nor is the margin always slight. I don't think I need to remind anyone of the slapdash care he took of examining stories in the second half of 2004.
"In any case, the judgments have gone well beyond that point. Only a televised news professional would repeat the line about those who have killed or hurt people now - and they would do it directly after reporting on the death of someone like Hitoshi Demegawa. I certainly never harbored any affection for the man, but if the definition of "hurt" worthy of the death sentence can cover brain-softening manufactured sensationalism, no one in that line of work - I do not exclude myself - can be completely assured of their safety. (Unless, of course, Demegawa's death was a strangely time-delayed judgment for collusion with the "second Kira." You understand my skepticism.)
"And there is, of course, the naked fact that addressing me by my full name is now invariably an allusion to Kira's capacity to kill me. It passes belief that Kira himself will have missed it."
He raised a hand to his lips before finishing.
"I have said all I need to say. My nerves are shot. I will emphasize that my vitals are normal, but physically, I feel as though I am reeling from an electric shock. I have always operated under the assumption that Kira was a listener to the program, but having this conversation has been another thing again."
But the beep on the monitor showed Kira wasn't finished with him yet.
"May I have my turn at a long monologue?"
"You may," said Tanakbara dryly.
"Koki Tanakabara, you need to be less biased and fearful. It doesn't paint you in a good light as a journalist...
"Don't take every statement I make as a threat. The fact that I'm addressing you by your full name is merely a hint that you won't die. Of course, there's a chance that this will happen regardless of my actions. However, I wouldn't want you to die. Moreover, do you really think I'd publicly threaten you?
"Let's discuss these topics in the order you outlined. Since I don't interact directly with politicians, I can't know their true intentions. Moreover, it would be despicable of me to portray Kira as naive and gullible. Or, worse, as someone willing to lie about helplessness and consent. Therefore, I don't hesitate to speak of conspiracies that will later turn out to be directed at me.
"Furthermore, it's obvious that politicians will sooner or later decide to cooperate with Kira. It was only a matter of time. However, I cannot respect them solely based on their position. If they are criminals, I won't hesitate to say so. I do not cooperate with those who contribute to the mass deaths of innocents, even if it's through indirect laws, decisions, and choices. But I am ready to help the people, regardless of the scum trying to control them. So, if my message is heeded by those opposed to any current regime: feel free to send me the evidence you've gathered against your 'enemies.' I'll end this thread here."
If he wasn't assuming Tanakabara was obligated to publish Kira on his own podcast, then he was offering Tanakabara the life of the privateer he had sanctioned to make an attempt on his life.
"Let's return to Kira's activities: I'm dissatisfied with how many people were killed by my imitators. Unfortunately, not all the people to whom I was willing to pass on my power used it wisely. No matter how carefully I choose my followers, among them there are those willing to tarnish my name with a string of senseless deaths. At this point, all of these people are dead. However, this doesn't absolve me of responsibility. What happens under my name is, if indirectly, related to me.
"Besides, who scared you so? From your words, I get the impression you're ready, if not to die right here, then to jump out the window. Are you really satisfied with this situation? I didn't pay much attention to your activities before, but now it seems to me you've been given too little freedom. Perhaps you'd like an official, separate column within the Japanese news?"
A genuine, mainstream column...
Offered to him without penalty...
For a moment, he stood suspended on a precipice, and it seemed so easy and peaceful to fall...
"It is an offer I would gladly take," he said at last, "if I could forget who it was that made the offer."
He did not publish Kira's second call. But he dwelt on it all that night, and the response he aired in the morning was remembered by his listeners as the beginning of all the dawns and crises that would follow.
Chapter 2: Birth of a Newspaper
Chapter Text
Kira has called in a second time. He's gone from flattery to an outright offer, and he implied the life of the sanctioned privateer who attacked me at my home last winter was on the table. I don't need to say that I declined. He has said that I consider my death too much, which is no doubt true, but he appears to mean that I prioritize it too little. After all, if everyone could be frightened into compliance, all would be easy.
Regular listener Bigwiggins crystallized my dilemma best: While I am alive, I must promote public anonymity. At the same time, the fact that I am alive discredits the need for public anonymity. So only dedicated ronin listen, and public anonymity is considered something valued only by dedicated ronin. In the end, it is possible that my crusade might defeat itself.
I was tempted, for a moment, to accept surrender. I was. On an immediate, emotional level, I want peace. I've lived without peace for years. But that wasn't going to come. My time at NHN has already taught me that the only worse thing than losing sleep for ostracism is losing sleep for compromise.
Besides: at this rate, when even Singapore's Minister for Law might benefit from public anonymity, either the policy can no longer be considered of value only to criminals and ronin, or everyone stands to benefit from becoming a ronin.
His offer, however, did have one saving merit: he offered me a column in a newspaper. And it now occurs to me - existing papers notwithstanding - that's not a sector he actually has a lock on yet. The newspaper format affords opportunity for public anonymity which televised news could only achieve with effort so extreme, it seemed outlandish even when it was possible. A newspaper is also far more accessible and ready for private dissemination than a podcast.
Think of it: an anonymous daily newspaper. A full staff of investigative reporters again, not this dredging the pond of the rumor mill I've been forced into (and I hear no better from anyone else.) I may be fit for nothing better than the op-eds at this stage of the game, but as the token named figure, that's acceptable.
I welcome your calls.
The first response was Kira's.
“You underestimate yourself. In fact, I'd like you to cover news and events with your... own unique perspective, in an official and public manner.” He wasn't even veiling his mockery now. “I already know your face and name, so you don't need to refuse the offer to constantly appear on TV...”
Tanakabara fought down a shudder in the pit of his stomach.
“I reiterate: calls from my listeners are most welcome. Indeed, I think they may be crucial.”
“Love how Kira has a personal platform, oh and a platform consisting of the entire mainstream news media in Japan, and it still rubs him the wrong way that he hasn't got a platform of absolutely fucking everybody...”
This was Lady Phantasme, webmistress of the incendiary blog, “Masque Against the Red Death”, and popularizer of the protest mask.
“That's his personality,” answered Tanakabara simply. “It's been evident for a very long time.”
“It's unlikely Exile Radio, or even an anonymous daily paper, is truly as important as he seems to regard it, but this effort of his to suborn them is far better flattery than he could offer otherwise.”
“Oh that is fire. Can I be a news columnist?”
Alas, no. Lady Phantasme, for all her zeal and contribution to the cause, was no one's idea of an objective reporter.
“I think I'll designate you for culture and op-eds for the time being. If that's acceptable, I'm glad to have you.”
“Don't want for material!” she chirped.
“So, this one's gonna be off the air.”
Bigwiggins. He'd been listening since roughly the beginning of the podcast, and now about a third of his calls were made strictly for Tanakabara's ears.
“Look, Tanakabara... when I said that stuff about the anonymity paradox, it was for you, not the Internet. Putting it out there kind of makes it sound like you're an albatross around our necks, and not... you know, a huge inspiration? To everyone?”
“I put hard truths out there, Bigwiggins. If it's any comfort, that is likely a part of Exile Radio's appeal.”
“Yeah. Definitely. But you make it sound like we'd all be better off if you died, and that's just...”
“A point which I would consider very carefully, if I were Kira.”
Over the following week, interest in the newspaper only grew.
Torch of Columbia and Schooner47 volunteered their perspectives on American affairs.
The head of the Seven Mops Ecological Society called to inform him they'd voted to incorporate their Oyster columns as a regular parody sidebar.
Suzuki8 – faithful as ever, of course. There was little she couldn't do, but copy editing and newswriting seemed the key vacancies at the moment.
Three volunteers for investigative reporting. This was an unconventional newspaper by any lights, and these were to be paid unconventionally large salaries. Investigative reporters were not the jewel in the crown; they were the crown itself.
A dedicated sponsor. This would be done by patronage, Tanakabara persuaded them: advertising could cost them dearly.
And when Spiderkiller (who had, of course, been observing the whole thing from behind the curtain) picked that moment to publicly offer his expertise in tech, it was as though a dam had burst.
Eight investigative reporters.
Three sponsors.
Printers and distributors offering their service gratis in Tokyo, Kyoto, Sapporo, London, New York...
Meanwhile, the podcast went on, and Kira continued to dog it.
“You say you have plans for culture in the new world,” a poorly-scripted shill had said at his next press conference. “What are they?”
“I would like to see literature and cinema untainted by the influence of censorship,” Kira had replied, doing his best impression of an Ionic pillar. “As a connoisseur of classical plays and works dating back to the Middle Ages, I intend to foster interest in art that presents readers with the image of a hero, a knight, a savior. In our time, it's especially important to know that a deity always stands against a dangerous world. As for new films and books to be released, I'd prefer to observe rather than dictate.”
The subject then moved to a recently-published novel by Teru Mikami, a man apparently angling to be singled out as the last practicing prosecuting attorney in Japan by foaming at the mouth for Kira every chance he got. That was irresistible, low-hanging fruit as far as the online ronin community was concerned, so it fell to Tanakabara to address the main point:
He won't kill novelists and filmmakers, at this stage, but he no doubt wants them to remember that he can kill them. The mass effort to stay ahead of Kira's will is one of the most powerful tools at his disposal - but it requires the cooperation of the target. As a good number of novelists have a nom de plume at their disposal already, that may not be so easy as it was with the TV networks.
On the other hand, if we're to take this statement fully at face value, it can only mean Kira intends to start a sideline in book and film reviews. I'll allow that scenario might help to reinvigorate my old tendencies toward objectivity. I suspect Kira might like High Noon, for example. The things he would see in it are not at all the things I see in it, but let the record state: I will not change my opinion on a novel or movie I like should Kira happen to give it a positive review.
Kira (was his finger chained to the refresh button on the Exile homepage?) made his rejoinder within ninety seconds:
“In fact, I'd prefer The Big Carnival (1951). Or Network (1976.)”
Plainly, a small correction was in order. Tanakabara had liked those pictures, until this very moment. But the common thread between them was all too clear...
On October 20, Tanakabara received a notification about a large deposit into his bank account. The only explanation, a remark on the deposit itself: “financing.”
More than acceptable... had he shared his checking number with any patrons. Who did have his checking number?
He elected to ask around businesses with which he'd exchanged checks in the past, and set it aside.
On the 21st, he received another deposit, too small to cover anything but a modest lunch.
The remark: “Maybe It's Easier to Kill Him?”
Kill... kill Tanakabara? Or was he being made out to be some sort of contract killer? Or... but it was no use. He couldn't get a handle on what this was.
Who had his checking number?
NHN, to begin with. He'd never considered he'd need to change it.
And... the police were controlled by Kira now. They'd still usually intervene in a situation like this, but it was obvious Tanakabara was out of his depth, which meant they would be, too. And it was pretty clear he was being set up for something. If he went to them, he was probably going to die. And it would look entirely licit, too, by Kira's standards. Every disincentive he had would be gone.
So this was it, wasn't it? He thought this was it. But to lose his credibility, as well as his life...
There was only one weapon that had ever served him well at times like this. He may as well use it.
I have received two deposits which seem very likely to come from bad actors. The first, I might have taken for a donation with a little less luck. I don't want to contemplate what might have happened then.
It has been a reliable tactic for criminals in the age of Kira to first find someone to affix the blame to. Today, it is very likely that that person is myself.
Moreover, the timing so close to the newspaper proposal makes this a criminal likely to be affiliated with Kira. And we all know the policies set by Kira's silence. By current Japanese standards, a crime against an enemy of Kira is no crime at all.
I've always anticipated he'd run out of patience with me. But the weight of it is coming in on me now. I...
I wish I could just have seen this project to fruition.
Spiderkiller and Suzuki8 retain access to Exile Radio servers. I hope they can rally the troops.
I know I'm not dead yet. I might not even die at all, I didn't during Sakura. But I might not get another chance to say these things. I know that, too.
Public anonymity. The rule of law. Never forget.
He thought that should help. For those inclined to listen in the first place. But this feeling... a thousand times heavier than Sakura. He was not a man suddenly under fire, not now. He was a weary rabbit, hounded to the last shallow hole...
The console informed him of an incoming call. He leaned forward miserably, deciding that he would not take it if it were Kira.
But this time, it was Schooner47.
“Schooner. Will this be on or off the air?”
(Schooner made more social calls than even Bigwiggins did.)
“Discretion is good here, I'd say. About your problem... I can get in touch with someone who might help assess things.”
“Ronin?”
“Thoroughly pseudonymous,” Schooner assured him. “We're both... inconvenient to contact, these days... but as soon as the time windows align, I'll get you connected.”
“Thank you, Schooner. I would appreciate that very much.”
Five days would elapse before Tanakabara heard back from Schooner's contact: five highly eventful days. But he would have no occasion to miss the lapse.
Because the text he received five minutes thereafter drove everything else from his mind.
[Hey, don't be paranoid,] it read. [Or rather, don't be as paranoid as I am, because that's the reason I communicate with things like deposit remarks.]
You could have spoken in a way that I would easily understand and not be paranoid about, Tanakabara typed. What do you mean, "maybe it's easier to kill him?" How do you know my checking number?
He paused over the unsent text.
This person... this person anticipated they would be understood.
In that light... it was only too clear, wasn't it.
It was only that Tanakabara didn't think that way. He never wanted to think that way. And a setup was still a distinct possibility, wasn't it. No, worse now. Exile Radio couldn't escape the association, if the founder of Exile Radio were caught in a conspiracy to...
But one had to consider: No one controls the Internet. It went for the executioner platforms, and it goes for the ronin, too. Spiderkiller had seen their security through so far, and the transit ISP was his. With the obvious exception of Tanakabara, no one associated with the podcast or the paper had a public name. He'd already left the server in good hands.
And something else to face: this enterprise, these people, were on borrowed time. Since that first phone call from Kira... no. Since Japan accepted his judgments as law. Everything Tanakabara was going through when he was certain he was being fitted out for execution... nothing new to the world. New only to him.
Maybe this was a setup.
Maybe he couldn't take the chance that it wasn't.
He deleted the text and retyped...
[Exile Radio podcasts are better-secured than my cell service, and remain offline till specifically uploaded. I advise you contact me there to explain yourself.]
stelfox on Chapter 1 Tue 11 Nov 2025 05:51PM UTC
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Taranom85 on Chapter 1 Tue 11 Nov 2025 06:22PM UTC
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