Holding the Dominator in both hands, Akane scanned the quaint bedroom. A smile came to her face as she looked about the small chamber. It was a simply decorated room with only the essentials. A four-poster bed was situated on the north wall with layers of coverlets and quilts on it. On each side of the bed, there was a matching pair of dressers made of polished oak.

Opposite the bed, nearest the door, there was a tall washing basin, complete with a porcelain bowl and a large dressing mirror, whose reflection took in the entire room behind her. Beside the mirror was a white vanity with a set of smaller mirrors.

Sitting on the vanity, among the sundry items of a perfume, make up, combs, and hairbrushes, there was a quill feather pen and an ink font with bundles of parchment paper. The relics looked genuine, and Akane suppressed the urge to reach out and touch the artifacts for fear of damaging them.

"This is incredible," Akane whispered. "Director Nagano's family went through a lot of trouble to recreate the old inn and playhouse with such authenticity. Wonder how they accomplished it? This vanity really looks antique."

"What vanity?" From the corridor, Masaoka chuckled as he kept vigil. "There's no mystery to an empty room, missy."

"Mr. Masaoka, this room is hardly empty."

Masaoka peered into the room from the the doorway with wonderment, at first, and then something rarely seen in the Enforcer's brown eyes: fear. "Missy, listen to me carefully now." He extended his hand to her, indicating that she should come to him. Before Akane could take it, Masaoka was abruptly lifted from his feet in a roiling black cloud of brimstone and thrown violently against the wall.

The impact left an indentation of his head and back in the drywall. Dazed by the impact, the Enforcer slumped down to the floor. "Inspector—"

The air turned suddenly hot. Breathing was difficult. Talking was nearly impossible. Masaoka threw his left arm up to protect his face from the projectiles that materialized in the air. Crude iron nails flew at him like thrown daggers. The first managed to catch him, leaving a scratch on his face. The others were ensnared in the durable fabric of his trench coat or repelled by the metal skin of his cybernetic arm. "Akane!"

"Mr. Masaoka!" Akane ran for the door, but before she could get through, it slammed shut with such force that the wooden doorframe fractured.

Akane heard the soft, distinct sounds of weeping behind her. She swung around to face the noise with her Dominator out in an offensive position. Dressed in a white gown, the crying woman was tied in an upright position at the foot of the four-post bed. An old-fashioned musket was tied beneath her breast.

"Asura Rai?" Akane gasped, her breath visible in the cold air. The long black hair and the red ribbon tied into a love knot was evidence enough of the woman's identity. Akane could see right through her and the even dimmer images of the five soldiers there in the room with them. Three of them knelt at the window, priming their weapons, while the other two kept guard near the woman.

"Crime Coeffcient under 60. Enforcement action not required. The trigger is now locked."

Tears streaming down her face, Asura looked to Akane and then to a large bay window along the eastern wall. The brilliant illumination of a full moon shone down from the night skies onto a curving ribbon of road beyond the glass. A lone horseman was galloping down the path toward the inn. Akane could hear the distinct sound of hoofbeats growing ever closer.

"Asura Rai!" Akane cried. She pointed the Dominator at the soldiers, but the weapon registered nothing. "I don't know what to do!"

The apparition sadly smiled at her and then turned her head back to regard the figure approaching on horseback. "Where do you go when you close your eyes?"

The sorrowful sound of her voice was heartbreaking. The loss in her eyes made Akane weak, so weak that her knees shook unsteadily beneath her. Lowering the Dominator when it became too heavy to hold in her trembling hands, she watched in terror as Asura Rai moved her fingers to the musket's trigger guard.

"No! Don't do it. Please don't do it!" Akane screamed.

The blast of the musket in such close quarters was deafening. Gasping for air, Akane fell to the wooden floor and curled into a fetal ball. Her chest burned with an unbearable pain as if she had been shot point blank. It was an unceasing, stabbing sensation that rendered her powerless to move. Ears ringing from the blast, she was overcome with the powerful emotions of longing and sadness. She closed her eyes and embraced herself, longing to be in Kogami's arms just as Asura Rai longed for Kurnan in her final moments on this Earth.

When Akane opened her eyes again, she found herself lying on the floor of an empty room. She felt as if she had been asleep for a long time. Her body was stiff and cold, despite Kogami's jacket. Rubbing her chest to alleviate the remnants of pain from the encounter, she slowly sat up.

"He loves you," said a voice.

Akane scrambled across the room and put her back to the wall. She stared at the smiling apparition, and slowly, fear gave way to compassion. "Asura Rai?"

No longer bound or surrounded by soldiers, Asura stood before her with the same sad smile she had on her face moments before her death. She reached up to the crown of her head and pulled at the ribbon in her hair until it came loose. "Death is inevitable. Every rose withers, then dies, and fades away like dust, but never true love." She brushed a stray hair from Akane's face, and then tied the ribbon in her hair, weaving the elaborate love knot in the loose ends. "It's like drowning in fire. It makes no sense, but it's real. Remember that."

Violently torn from its hinges, the bedroom door burst open as Kogami and Masaoka broke through it. In an instant, Asura was gone, but there was Kogami. Lips quivering, Akane stared up at him and she reached for his hand. "She was so alone. Alone in the dark with those awful soldiers. Kogami?"

Kogami dropped to his knees and pulled her into his arms. He laid his head against hers and held her tightly as she sobbed, clutching at his jacket.

"She was so alone!"

"But you're not, Akane." Firmly holding her face in his hands, Kogami leaned over her.

"S-she just w-wanted to be with him, Kurnan, one l-last time."

Kogami laid his forehead against hers, his face wet with her tears. "Then we'll be together for them." Keeping her close to him, the Enforcer picked her up in his arms and stood up. Still sobbing, she buried her face in the curve of his neck.

"Kogami, give Inspector Tsunemori to Enforcer Masaoka. We'll take her back to the auditorium," Ginoza ordered.

Kogami bit his lip to prevent a vulgar slip of the tongue. He looked down at Akane's trembling shoulders with a snarl on his lips and tightened his grip.

"That's not negotiable," Ginoza added, noting the Enforcer's insubordinate expression. "You and Kagari need to finish clearing this floor."

Kogami's demeanor momentarily softened when he saw the red ribbon and the love knot in her hair. As her fingers softly caressed the back of his neck, he heard her whisper his name before wrapping her arms around his neck. Eyes defiant, Kogami glared at Ginoza and prepared to defy the order, but he was met by Masaoka.

"There now, missy." Masaoka opened his arms to take Akane from Kogami. "Now's not the time, Ko," he whispered. "You and Kagari get the floor cleared. Get it done, and get back to her fast as you can. Alright?"

"We are the fastest hounds in the division," Kagari said, "maybe even the MWPSB as a whole."

Kogami refused to move. Masaoka had to pry her from his embrace while Yayoi and Kagari unwrapped her arms from his neck. He stood in quiet defiance, not wanting to be parted from her. Kogami clenched his teeth so tightly the bone cracked audibly in the stillness.

"We'll be right beside her, Kogami," Yayoi whispered. She put a hand on his shoulder as they finally pulled Akane away from him and moved back into the corridor. Kagari and he were alone in the empty room.

"Come on, Ko," Kagari said. "Something tells me Gorou might have a go at us. That's how it always happens in horror movies. Split the group and the ghost will strike. Let's piss him off and give him a real target to keep him busy."

Kogami picked up his Dominator from the floor along with Akane's. Holstering her weapon at her back, he nodded to Kagari. He could feel Ginoza's eyes on him and knew the Inspector was spurring him into a fight. Masaoka was right. This was not the time. He turned his back on the group and followed Kagari into the hallway.

# # #

Kogami sprinted down the corridor as fast as he could run without taking the proper precautions to assure his safety. Kagari and he were on the scent, and their prey was within reach. There was no time for caution. He threw himself across the space into the adjoining hallway and landed on the opposite wall, training his Dominator on the emptiness in front of him.

Breathing hard, Kagari slid across the wooden floor behind him with his Dominator out and ready for an invisible target, but there was no measurement or reading. "Shit! It went through another wall."

"Did it double back?" Kogami asked breathlessly. Scowling at his bad luck, he wiped the sweat from his forehead with his sleeve.

"I can't tell. It just vanished. Again." Refreshing the floor plan, he searched for any sign of the elusive hotspot they had encountered and chased it across the second floor of the theater.

Kogami massaged the bridge of his nose to relieve the sinus pressure building inside his head. He was frustrated and badly winded from the chase. Leaning against the wall to catch his breath, he unzipped his gray coat. He started sweating profusely. The perspiration was heavy enough to dampen the inside of the jacket.

"Are you up for another shot?" Kogami asked.

"Are you kidding? This thing is really starting to piss me off," Kagari replied. "I don't care if it is a ghost. The two best runners in the MWPSB will not be outfoxed."

Kogami brushed the damp, black forelock of hair from his eyes and took a deep breath. He was stalling for time to get himself together. The bruised welts on his torso were starting to hurt. The odd burning sensation caused his muscles to seize and spasm uncontrollably.

"I don't understand this," Kagari growled. "We had it. Kunizaka, is there anyway you can clean up the signal?"

"Range is the issue, Kagari. If the entity moves beyond it, the signal is lost," she replied over the wristcom.

"It's like...like it's getting smarter. Purposely evading us."

"That would make sense," she said. "It is, after all, a sentient being."

Ignoring the conversation behind him, Kogami pulled himself from the wall. He recognized the corridor that had been assigned to Akane and Masaoka. Walking down the hallway, he turned to the only opened door in sight. It was the room where Akane had encountered the apparition of Asura Rai.

He extended his hand just inside the room and felt the temperature drop immediately on his skin. Looking down the hallway, Kagari did not seem to notice and was working through issues with Yayoi on his wristcom. They had been so focused on chasing down the hotspot that they had ignored any readings indicating the colder areas on the floor.

Kogami felt a subtle tug on his hand. It was not enough to pull him into the room, but it was enough to draw his attention and arouse his curiosity. Nostrils flared, he stepped through the threshold of cold and walked into the room. The chill was not an unpleasant sensation as it had been in the past. It felt like walking into a room through a draft into another.

The small bedroom was filled with a dawn glow as the first rays of the sun illuminated the room through the bay glass window. A woman that Kogami recognized from his vision was asleep in the bed, curled up on her side beneath the coverlets. Her long black hair was gracefully spread across the pillow, and her hands rested just beneath the chin of her peaceful face. A red ribbon trailed down her slender shoulders.

Sitting at the vanity between a pair of candles, Kurnan Kazuya was writing on parchment. Kogami felt as it he were staring at a mirror reflection of himself, except that the man before him was dressed in a black waistcoat with a double row of silver buttons and golden trim, doe-skin breeches, with a knot of gentleman's lace at his throat. Kurnan finished the final line on the parchment and sat back in the chair with a grin.

"I love it when you smile like that," Asura whispered.

Kurnan looked up to see her watching him in the mirror. Rolling the parchment up in his hands, he went to the edge of the bed. With a smile, he brushed a strand of hair from her face and sat down beside her. Closing his eyes, he leaned over her and brought the long black strands of her hair to his face so that he could breathe in the sweet fragrance of wild roses. "I have something for you."

The recognition in her eyes was evident, and she grasped his shoulder. "Kurnan, you finished it! Father will be so pleased." She reached for the parchment, but he held it out of reach.

"I'm not worried about your father. I wrote this last song for you."

"The sad one I hear you humming?"

"And tonight," he said, kissing her tenderly, "when I return..." Kurnan kissed her forehead. "I will sing it for you."

"Back to the Emperor's road, Kurnan?"

The highwayman took her hand and kissed each knuckle. "One last time, my love."

"Promise?"

"My Lady, you have my solemn promise." Kurnan raised her chin to steal another kiss, but hesitated. "Why do you frown?"

"Because you're cruel! You've been teasing me for days. Even humming this mystery melody in your sleep. You can't possibly leave me like this. Kurnan, please." She wrapped her arms about his neck and refused to let go.

"Until death, we are one breath apart," he sang in her ear. "No matter the distance. I am with you."

Recognizing the haunting melody that had been stuck in his head, Kogami gasped.

"Kurnan," Asura Rai sighed.

"Watch for me by the moonlight." He tapped the French-cocked hat onto his head and took his sword belt from the bed post. With a final wink, he left her alone in their bed.

As the apparition approached, Kogami wanted to move but found himself paralyzed and unable to do so. It did not appear that Kurnan was even remotely aware of him as a voyeur observing the final moments of their lives. The ghost harmlessly passed through him, leaving an odd tingling sensation that made Kogami shudder. With moonlight streaming through the window, the room went dark.

"Where do you go when you close your eyes?"

A single gunshot reverberated between the close walls.

Stumbling back through the threshold of cold, Kogami staggered out of the room. He shivered uncontrollably and might have fallen to the floor had it not been for the wall to support him. He felt Kagari's hands at his shoulder and arm.

"Kogami, what the hell were doing in there?"

"The lost song," Kogami whispered, "The lost song was written for her. Kurnan never had the chance to give to her." Eyes brimming with tears, Kogami felt his throat constrict with emotion. The bruises on his torso seemed to ignite in flame with a searing pain so intense that it cut through him. Nearly rendered unconscious, he sank to the floor. Since the death of his friend and subordinate, Mitsuru Sasayama, he had never experienced such an emotional wound was excruciating as the loss suffered by the lovers.

Asura Rai was dead.

Kurnan snatched the balding man by his collar and threatened to beat him senseless for uttering the words, but the undeniable look of loss and dread in the barkeep's eyes belied the truth. There was no denying it, and there would be no denying his retribution.

The highwayman rode hard, whipping his horse with the reins as they galloped back down the road to the Kurouma Playhouse and Inn. His spurs were bloody, but he drove his stallion on at a wild, reckless pace.

Within sight of the playhouse, he saw the soldiers gathered there on the path leading to the inn. Their presence was confirmation of the horrible news. Kurnan drew the rapier from its scabbard in one fluid motion and charged them as they fell to their muskets.

There were five shots. Five sharp reports from the muskets. He heard each of them as if the muskets had been fired inches from his ears. The first two rounds hit him in the torso, and while they burned and smoked, he remained upright in the saddle. The final three struck him in the chest, narrowly missing his heart, but puncturing his lungs.

Gasping for breath, he fell from the stirrups and landed on the cobblestones in front of the inn. Tears rolling from his eyes, he tried to sit up, but lacked the strength. His bloodied hands were empty, and he panicked, grasping for the saber that had fallen well beyond his reach. The sun was so bright that it blinded him. He blinked against the brilliance until the shadow of Asura's father fell across him.

Weeping without shame, Daiko Nagano fell to his knees at Kurnan's side and agonized over the mortal wounds. Weakened by his sorrow, he dragged the rapier across the cobblestone road in his trembling hands. The blade clattered almost musically on the road, and then it went silent as Daiko laid it on the dying highwayman's chest.

Kurnan raised his head from the ground with difficulty. He wrapped Nagano's fingers around the hilt of the saber and held fast even as his own fingers grew weak and cold. "Where do you go when you close your eyes? I go with you." The light drained from his gray eyes, and he laid his head on the ground and died.

"Kogami!" Kagari frantically called. He was holding Kogami's face in his hands. "Ko? Say something, dammit!"

Disoriented and feverish, Kogami fought for air and for clarity in a world of injustice and unfinished deeds. With his senses in complete disarray, he struggled to find which way was up and which was down. Holding on to Kagari's arms, he pushed himself up from the floor and sat upright against the wall. There were droplets of blood on the floor and the backs of his hands. Panicked, he quickly unzipped his jacket to examine the bruises on his chest.

"It's coming from your nose," Kagari said. "Dammit, Ko! You scared me to death!"

Wiping the tears from his face and eyes, Kogami slowly stood up. He was not feeling steady and stayed close to the wall for support, even as Kagari held his arms. The look in the younger Enforcer's eyes alarmed him, and he averted his gaze.

"Kogami, what happened? What did you see?"

"I'm not sure." He looked down at his bloody hands. "I'm going to be sick."

"There's a restroom just around the corner."

Leaving Kagari in the hallway, Kogami rushed into the restroom and ran to one of three stalls. Hunched over the toilet, he vomited so violently, that he saw stars in front of his eyes. When there was nothing left in his stomach, he fought through the final misery of dry heaves until the urge to retch ceased and the wave of nausea passed.

"Ko?" Kagari said from the door.

"I'm fine, Kagari. Just give me a minute."

Kogami heard the door close quietly as Kagari retreated into the corridor. Swallowing the bitter taste of bile, he fought an instinctive gag reflex. Sweat dripped from his forehead and pooled on the toilet seat.

I'm losing my mind. He wiped his mouth with toilet paper and threw the soiled bundle into the toilet and flushed it.

The room was spinning, so he hung onto the stall door for balance. After a moment to regain his composure, Kogami staggered to the sink and fumbled with the faucet. He was forced to pause and look at the unfamiliar reflection in the mirror. His face was smeared with blood and tears. Beads of sweat dotted his prominent forehead and cheeks. He was a sight and was grateful that Akane could not see him in that state.

Bending over the sink, Kogami splashed cold water over his face and gave his chin and cheeks a gentle scrub to wash away the smear of blood. He rinsed with a final splash before straightening his long frame. With the uncanny sense that someone was watching him, he stared into the mirror, but saw no one behind him. To satisfy his sense of suspicion, he glanced over his shoulder.

Kurnan Kazuya was standing behind him. He was dressed in a black waistcoat with lace bunched beneath his chin, which made his identity irrefutable. As Kogami reached for his Dominator, the highwayman pointed to the mirror behind him. "Stand to and draw sword, sir."

Pivoting on one foot, Kogami turned back to face the mirror. The face he saw was not his and was just barely human. Contorted in a mask of rage and flame, Gorou shrieked at him. The noise was deafening and threatened to rob Kogami of his remaining sensibilities.

With a blast of soot and fire, the mirror shattered into seven large fragments, which in turn exploded into smaller shards of glass. Kogami threw his arms up and closed his eyes to avoid being permanently blinded. He tried to step back, but it was too late. Gorou's soot-covered face and two large, burly hands emerged amid the storm of glass and grabbed Kogami by the neck.

The temperature in the room spiked sharply, and Kogami felt himself being suffocated by the intense heat. As he tried to bring his Dominator up for a shot, Gorou retreated back into the void behind the mirror. With a howl of maniacal laughter, the blacksmith smashed the Enforcer's head and face into the broken mirror. Unable to get the shot, Kogami dropped the Dominator in the sink.

He locked his arms against the counter for leverage, but he could not pull free. Struggling to get free, Kogami managed to get a foot against the edge of the basin and pushed against it until the powerful hold on him finally broke. He scrambled on the floor, sliding and falling on the broken mirror shards. "Kagari, he's here!" Kogami shouted. He grabbed his Dominator from the sink and ran for the door. "The blacksmith!"

"I saw the temperature surge," Kagari replied. "I already called for back up."

The Enforcers sprinted down the hallway to put some space between them and the entity, but they were overrun by a swirling black cloud of brimstone and burning ash. Kogami was lifted from his feet and snatched backwards into the corridor. Eyes wide in horror, he was as helpless as a rag doll while the ghost slammed him against the wall, drew him back, and slammed him into the opposite wall.

In life, Gorou had been a powerfully built man. Manifested there in front of Kogami, he stood well over six feet tall with heavily muscled arms and thick hands. He had Kogami by the throat and was choking him as he threw the Enforcer violently from one wall to the opposite.

Desperately, Kogami tried to pry the ghost's hand loose, but touching the specter was like putting his hands in a kiln. He gasped in shock and pain. To keep his skull from being crushed, he threw his hands over his head. The unrelenting entity repeatedly threw him against the corridor walls, smashing glass pictures and paintings as Gorou tossed Kogami about with preternatural strength and velocity.

Blood streaked the walls from Kogami's nose and cuts on his face. The corridor could have a scene from the set of a horror film. Just on the edge of consciousness, Kogami was once more thrown across the hallway as invisible fingers tightened their hold on him and dug into the soft, fleshy folds of his neck. Struggling to breathe, he opened his mouth to gasp and felt the hot, sooty air vigorously trying to force its way down his throat. He coughed violently, a gag reflex, and as a desperate attempt to keep the putrid cloud from getting inside him.

"Kogami!" Akane screamed. She came running from around the corner with Masaoka right behind her.

Masaoka grabbed her by the waist and held her back. "Don't think you should get any closer than that, missy."

"It's killing him! We can't just stand here and watch!" Akane pointed her Dominator at Kogami.

"Crime Coefficient over 600. Enforcement action required. Enforcement mode: Lethal Eliminator. The trigger safety is now released. Please aim carefully, and eliminate the target." The Dominator vibrated and hummed in her hand as the weapon shifted its firing configuration.

"If I shoot, will the Dominator hurt Kogami?" Akane hesitated to fire.

"We can't stand here pondering the consequences," Ginoza said, coming up behind her. "This is our chance to destroy it."

"Ginoza, no! You could kill Kogami!"

"We don't have time for sentiment, Inspector Tsunemori." He aimed his Dominator in Kogami's direction. The weapon glowed a vibrant blue. Having read the crime coefficient and rendered judgement, it transformed from the unassuming .45 to the wicked profile of an executioner. Without any hesitation, Ginoza squeezed the trigger.

Kogami was abruptly thrown backwards by the impact of the Dominator's bullet and fell to the wooden floor. He laid unmoving amid shattered glass and debris from the ruined walls. Even after a few minutes, he did not stir.

"Kogami!" Akane tried to run to him, but Masaoka held her firmly by the arm.

"Ko?" Kagari stared at the limp form, lying in the corridor.

"Kogami, no!" Akane screamed.

Coughing and gasping for air, the Enforcer stirred restlessly. He slowly rolled to his side and held a hand to his throat. With difficulty, he swallowed against the burning in the back of his throat and tried to speak.

"He's alive," Masaoka said in disbelief.

"Are you really you right now?" Nervously scratching his head, Kagari turned to his colleagues. "There was nothing in that video game about exorcisms."

Akane pulled free from Masaoka and ran to Kogami's side. "Kogami, say something."

Hand still at his throat, Kogami closed his eyes. "I really need a cigarette right now." He laid his head on the floor and groaned. Akane leaned over him and brushed the hair from his face.

"How are you not dead?" Kagari asked in shock. "How are you not pink sludge on the wall? The Dominator was in lethal eliminator mode."

"Inspector Ginoza?" Masaoka said. He watched the distraught Inspector walk into the adjoining hallway. "Nobuchika?"

Kogami sat up, propped on his elbows, and then stiffly got to his feet with Akane's help. "Gino?" He followed Inspector Ginoza into the corridor, noting the ghostly paleness of his skin and the the distant, blank expression on his face. The 1000-yard stare in his eyes was clear evidence of traumatic shock. "Gino?"

Ginoza's hands were shaking so badly that the Dominator rattled in his grasp. Kogami walked up to him and gently took the weapon from his hands. He slipped the gun into the holster at Ginoza's back. "Were you trying to kill me?"

"I considered it," Ginoza whispered. He took a deep shuddering breath, and lips quivering, he exhaled slowly. "I figured the Dominator would register the entity, at least enough to trigger lethal eliminator mode, so that it could be destroyed. I didn't consider what it would do to you. I couldn't be certain. Nor could I risk losing our chance."

"You two good?" Masaoka asked. He peered around the corner, while Kagari and Akane looked anxiously over his shoulder.

Ignoring them, Ginoza turned to Yayoi. "Kunizaka, report."

"We're out of range of the tablet in the main auditorium," she replied, "but it appears that one of the three temperature anomalies is gone. Completely dissipated. The Dominator seems to have successfully destroyed it, but there's no way to be truly certain."

"Good, then we should be able to run down the other two."

"Why?" Akane protested. "They weren't the ones who attacked us."

"And how can you be sure of that, Inspector Tsunemori?"

"Because every time there was an attack, the temperature went up," she answered. "Any visions or sightings were accompanied with cold."

"That's true," Yayoi said. "The hot temperature spikes were also accompanied by brimstone, as evidenced by the burns you suffered, Inspector Ginoza."

"They don't deserve to be destroyed," Akane said.

Yayoi shrugged and crossed her arms over her chest. "The Dominators would be of a little effect against them any way. According to Inspector Tsunemori, the other entities have...for lack of a better diagnosis, regulation psycho passes. The triggers will not unlock."

"Something has to be keeping them earthbound," Kagari said.

"If we can find what that is," Masaoka said, "we can release them."

"So be it," Ginoza said. "We're looking for some overlooked artifact from the theater's history. Back into teams of two. Do what's necessary to find it. Tear this place apart."