Chapter Ten

Well, so it was now or never.

Kiyone bit her lip, gazing up at the door of Nakabito's office as she struggled to quell the urge to turn tail and run away. A quick sweep of the docking bay had assured her that the agent's craft was not in situe, and from the message she had received from Washu earlier that morning, she knew that he had likely gone out to meet her, somewhere in the depths of space.

"Although if that's true, I wonder if he doesn't feel safe bringing her back here." She wondered, fumbling in her pocket for Imaguchi's skeleton key and glancing at it. "Which means it's going to be more difficult to arrange a meeting between her and the other agents. Though I should let Washu worry about that and focus on what I'm doing here. I need to concentrate – breaking into Elite offices is never a wise idea, even if you have the backing of other Elite to do it. I'm still not sure why I'm doing their dirty work for them – but I suppose I am less suspicious a spy than either of them would be."

She glanced at the key, then shrugged, sweeping it through the security lock panel as she waited for the alarms in the entire sector to start ringing to announce her presence. There was nothing, however, just a glimmer of red across the keypad and then the sound of the door click loose, emitting a soft hiss as it slid back on its runners to reveal the office within.

For a moment Kiyone stared at it, as if not quite believing it had been that easy. Then she gathered her wits, pocketing the card as she took a tentative step into the office. As she did so, she found herself scanning the room for any security cameras, but as she reached the desk, she realised that Imaguchi had been right to have faith in his late friend's technology. On Nakabito's computer screen, an error message had flashed up, and as she squinted at it, Kiyone felt relief flicker through her senses.

"Security lock failed. All systems down." She murmured. "Enter password to reinstate. Well, I don't want to do that just yet, thank you. It suits me just fine that your systems are down."

She sank down into Nakabito's seat, pulling the data drive from her pocket and carefully attaching it to the computer's hardware as she flicked the switch to 'on'. Immediately a 'password protected' box flashed up on the screen and she bit her lip, muttering a curse as she realised that no agent of Nakabito's calibre would leave his machine undefended.

"But what would a guy like that put as a password?" She murmured. "Kanemitsu? Something political? Something…"

She faltered, then typed,

"KANEMITSU"

A red box flickered up on the monitor and she sighed, shaking her head.

"Rejected." She murmured. "All right. How about…how about "Sumire?"

She typed it in, but again she got the same red rejection box. She chewed down on her lip, contemplating.

"What other things might he think of? Something that noone else would logically guess he'd use?" She murmured. "What would he think was secure enough – memorable enough…what kind of password would a man like Nakabito have?"

She sat there for a moment, running her mind through various possibilities and discarding each as she grimaced in frustration, shaking her head.

"No good. I don't know him well enough." She muttered. "Now if it was Seiryo, I might…"

She trailed off, her eyes opening wide with realisation.

"Seiryo." She murmured. "I don't suppose…he's not so much of a masochist that he'd use the name of his arch-enemy to lock his files?"

She paused, then keyed in

"SEIRYO TENNAN"

Again the red box flashed on the screen, and Kiyone let out a sigh of impatience, resisting the urge to bang her fists down on the desk.

"What am I meant to do? I can't duplicate what I can't access!" She muttered. "If it's not Kanemitsu, it's not Seiryo, it…it…"

Her eyes narrowed.

"The girl." She whispered. "The girl…the one that Seiryo stole from him. What did Imaguchi say her name was? Dammit, I'm sure someone told me. I bet that's his passcode – the girl he loved, and lost. He's still holding a grudge over it, after all – is it too much of a leap to think he still loves her?"

She bit her lip.

"Yu…something beginning with Y." She remembered. "Yumi? Yuri? Yuriko!"

Resisting the impulse to shout the name out loud, she carefully typed it into the box, a flare of triumph entering her sapphire eyes as a green 'access granted' message flashed up before her.

"Bingo." She murmured. "Never underestimate the passion of a jilted lover. Yuriko it is, and we're in. But what am I looking for? Shall I just scan through his drives and see what I can find?"

She glanced up at the clock on the wall, gauging how long she could risk staying in the office.

"A half hour, Imaguchi said." She recalled. "But I want to be gone long before that. I better get cracking."

She flicked open the computer's memory, and for a moment there was nothing in the office but the sound of the occasional click as she accessed file after file, downloading some onto her data disk but discovering, much to her disappointment, that most of them were old case reports and that there was nothing incriminating stored on Nakabito's computer.

She frowned, pushing the chair back from the desk as she debated what to do.

"Are Imaguchi and Takamura wrong about this, then?" She wondered. "Or is he just better at hiding it than that? I guess the latter is possible, considering his line of work. I suppose he must be aware of potential hacking, whether by his colleagues or the people he investigates. So he must have something else that he uses to keep any data relating to this business on. There's no reference to either me or Seiryo on here either, although when he spoke to me he had transcripted evidence from the Juraian hearing. So there has to be another archive somewhere. And I'm not seeing it. A data disk, perhaps? Something small and simple that can be more easily concealed?"

She got to her feet, crossing the office to the filing cabinet that stood on the far wall. It was locked, but she had not spent years with Mihoshi and her chronic habit of losing keys for nothing, and she slid her watch from her wrist, using the buckle to carefully jiggle the fastening free. She pulled open the top drawer, finding it full of nothing but claims reports, and with a dissatisfied bang she pushed it shut, turning her attention to the next.

It was similarly filled, this time with expenses receipts and the third drawer contained various bits and pieces of equipment, but nothing that looked even remotely like a secret hidden disk.

She turned back to the desk, pulling open the drawers and rummaging carefully through the files, making sure that she returned everything to its original place as she did so. Everything she touched seemed to be in order, however, and she felt a pang of guilt all of a sudden for digging through the private property of someone who, at least so far, she had been unable to prove a criminal.

And then, as she went to close the top drawer of the desk, her fingers brushed against something else and she frowned, crouching down to peer into the wooden cabinet as she tried to work out what it was. She ran her hand against it again, feeling the cool hardness of metal, and as she spread her fingers across it, her eyes widened.

"A secret drawer?" She whispered. "I wonder…"

As she felt along the edge of it, she found what seemed like some kind of a catch and she pushed it, half expecting nothing to happen. At first, nothing did, but then, with a click, the inner drawer sprung forward and Kiyone's heart clenched in her chest as she registered what was inside.

"Operation Eradicate." She murmured, slipping her fingers underneath the disk and pulling it out as she ran her gaze over the neat white label. "So what's that, then? Something worth hiding, evidently. I wonder."

She cast another glance at the time, then pulled the disk from its case, slipping it into the drive of the computer and hitting the load button. Immediately she found herself faced with a long list of files, some of which had easily readable filenames but others of which were coded in what looked like unintelligible nonsense to her untrained eye. She frowned, skimming her finger down the list until she found her name, and she opened it, glancing at the contents.

Inside was the transcript of her testimony against Seiryo, and she nodded her head slowly.

"Bingo again." She murmured. "I might not be able to read half of the stuff on here, but I'm pretty damn sure that this is what Imaguchi and Takamura wanted me to find. And I can't take the disk, because if I do, he'll know something's up. But I can copy it…can't I? I hope I have time. I've already been here longer than I'd like – if the security lock re-activates itself while I'm still duplicating, I might find myself locked in here. And even if he does see me as an ally, that's going to be hard to explain!"

She hesitated for a moment, then highlighted the files on the disk, accessing the data drive and hitting the 'copy' button.

"Yes, I do want to duplicate the entire contents of the disk." She muttered, as a query box flickered on the screen. "Stop procrastinating and just do it already. I need to be out of here as soon as possible!"

She hit the button again, getting to her feet as she returned the office to some semblance of its normal order.

"I really hope I can do this in time." She reflected. "There's a lot on this disk!"

She sank back down into her seat, drumming her fingers absently on the desk as she willed the process to go faster. As she did so, she found herself wondering about the files with the incomprehensible names, and as she did so, her mind strayed to Seiryo.

"Encrypted?" She murmured. "Could he crack them? But that would defeat the object of trying to keep him out of this. Surely all Agents have some encryption expertise…after all, Seiryo can do a lot of other things too, can't he? This is just his speciality. Surely Imaguchi or Takamura will be able to interpret what language or code that's written in – at least, I hope they will. I'm not risking my neck here for nothing."

A bleep from the screen told her that the process had finished and she let out a sigh of relief, reaching to unhook her device. As she did so, however, the security window popped up again, and she froze, staring at it in horror.

"Reconnection agent – attempting security reboot in thirty seconds." She read. "Damn. Time to go."

She slipped the device hurriedly into her pocket, darting across the office and out of the door just as she heard the bleep and whirr of the security lock judder back into life. She let out a sigh, leaning against the wall as she gathered her thoughts.

"That was close as I'd have liked. I wish Hirayama-san had built his device with a longer layoff time." She murmured. "Still, I did what I came here to do. And now I have this, maybe we're one step closer to cracking this case."

She hurried along the corridor, reaching the central control centre of the annexe just as the doors slid back to reveal Nakabito himself, and for a moment she stared at him, confused by his sudden presence. He cast her a smile as he saw her, and as he crossed the floor towards her, Kiyone realised he wasn't alone.

"Kiyone-chan!" Washu's tones were soft and casual, but from the flicker of preoccupation in the green eyes Kiyone knew her friend was troubled by something. "I hoped we'd have a chance to see you. Nakabito-san has been explaining to me this troublesome situation...Did you come here looking for me?"

Kiyone looked startled, then she smiled, nodding her head.

"When I got your memo, I thought I'd find you both here." She agreed. "I'm sorry – I meant to be around to make the introductions, but I suppose your schedules and my own work one clashed a bit. With Mihoshi on vacation time I have twice as much work to do."

"Detective Kuramitsu, correct?" Nakabito sent her a grin. "Ah yes. I knew her father. A fine agent – a good tutor. One of the fairest men I studied under, I have to say. But then you know that, since you're also acquainted with the family."

"Yes, sir." Kiyone nodded her head. "Quite well, thanks to my friendship with Mihoshi. And I know that he taught a lot of the Agents here in service. I didn't know you were one of them, though."

"I was." Nakabito's eyes twinkled. "Although not to the extent some of my colleagues worked with him. He was an encryption specialist, you may or not know. And I didn't choose to follow that path beyond what we were all taught. But still, I have fond memories of him…he was a very fair and honourable man."

"I must meet this man sometime, if that's the case." Washu said carelessly. "He sounds nothing like Mihoshi so far, Nakabito-san."

"I've not had the pleasure of meeting Mihoshi-san, so I wouldn't know." Nakabito shrugged. "But this isn't focusing us on our objective. Hakubi-sensei, your coming here has been most prompt and well appreciated. Would you accompany me to my quarters? Kiyone-san, you too, if you are not otherwise engaged."

"I came here to see the both of you, so no, I'm not." Kiyone shook her head. "Your office? Yes, sir."

"If I may…" Washu held up her hands, and Nakabito paused, casting his companion a questioning look.

"Yes?"

"I'm not all that fond of stuffy, enclosed Galaxy Police offices." Washu offered him a winning smile. "You may or may not be aware, Nakabito-san, but I've had brushes with confined spaces before, in my past. A long time ago now, a corrupt Prince of a certain planet framed me for the destruction of a planet belonging to his mother. And I have some very…unpleasant memories of the years of imprisonment that followed."

"A Prince of…Jurai?" Nakabito's brows drew together in consternation, and Washu inclined her head.

"As you say." She agreed. "Though I'd rather not make such open admissions here where anyone could hear me. I don't wish to be accused of slighting a powerful empire – it could be misinterpreted in so many ways."

"Indeed it could." Nakabito frowned. "And I understand your wishes. However, my spacecraft is unsuitable for carrying out such a confidential conversation, and your own seems limited in its options. I am not sure what the best thing would be to do."

"There's always Yagami." Kiyone caught Washu's eyes, offering the agent a smile. "Since the…incident that you asked me about happened, Washu increased the security and stability of my spaceship and it…it's as secure as any of the Elite fleet now. We could go there – with your permission, Agent Nakabito."

"Yagami." Nakabito pursed his lips, then nodded. "All right. That suits."

He cast Washu a sidelong grin.

"I understand you are quite the scientific genius." He added. "I'm sure I can put my faith in your skills."

"Quite." Washu nodded her head. She paused, then held out her hands, grasping Nakabito's arm in one and Kiyone's in the other. "And I also know a short cut to Kiyone's craft. If you'll just hang on, we'll be there in two ticks."

With a jolt Kiyone realised what Washu intended to do, but by that time it was too late and she swallowed hard, feeling her body swirling through space as the Kii teleported into the main drive room of the elderly red spaceship. Despite its unpolished appearance and its occasional temperamental outbursts, there was some truth in Kiyone's claim that the ship was as secure as anywhere else in Headquarters, and as they re-materialised, Nakabito cast a glance around them, nodding approvingly at what he saw.

"I doubt I could ask for better aboard my own ship." He reflected. "Well, this will do quite nicely. Although, Professor, a little more warning would be appreciated the next time you want to teleport me anywhere. I'm not really used to that kind of transportation."

"Apologies." Washu said cheerfully, settling herself down in Mihoshi's empty seat as she swivelled it around. "I guess I'm so used to doing it now I forget not everyone likes the feel of instant travel."

"I assume that's a Kii trait." Nakabito reflected, and Washu nodded.

"It is." She confirmed. "But I'm the last of my people to exhibit it. There are surviving Kii, Nakabito-san, but they're not quite like the Kii I remember. Not like the people that I grew up with, anyway."

"It's a shame." Nakabito's gaze softened. "It sounds like you and your people suffered much at the hands of Jurai, at one time or another over the years."

"Generations is a better term." Washu nodded. "Yes, I suppose so. Though Kihaku is no more, so it hardly seems important."

"On the contrary." Nakabito shook his head. "That's why I wanted to speak to you. You're aware, I think, that I asked Kiyone to contact you because I wanted to discuss with you the behaviour of Seiryo Tennan on the planet you now reside on – the Earth? And also for any information you might have which might help to bring this case to some kind of closure?"

"I was under the impression the Emperor of Jurai had closed it already." Washu feigned surprise. "Is it reopened again?"

"The Emperor may have, but the Earth is Galaxy Police jurisdiction and a serious breach of space law has been committed." Nakabito said evenly. "In that light, we have to pursue an investigation of our own. And even a conviction, if at all possible. You are acquainted with Seguru Ishida on the Earth, aren't you, Washu-sensei? You must know from your own experiences how afraid the people there are of another attack. Perhaps a more serious one than the last."

"Yes, they do seem afraid." Washu agreed. "And you think there's reason for them to be?"

"I do." Nakabito said gravely. "I've uncovered evidence that Jurai are developing a weapon of colossal proportions – something which hasn't been ratified or screened by the Science Academy, of which you were once a member. I've only managed to get small snippets of information about this weapon, but from my sources I have learnt that it uses a power source strong enough to maim or even destroy a planet in its path."

"I see." Washu's brows knitted together and Kiyone cast her a glance, wondering what the scientist was thinking. "And you hope for my expert opinion on this – on a way to stop it, perhaps?"

"Yes." Nakabito agreed. "Or at least some kind of indication what it is we're dealing with. Jurai haven't colonised any new worlds for a long time, but it seems unlikely that Kihaku's destruction wasn't an act of Juraian aggression, considering the complicity of the man who is now a senior advisor to the Lady Tsunami. In light of that, Washu-sensei – will you refuse my plea?"

"I will be more than happy to look at any information you give me, Nakabito-san." Washu said lightly. "My priority is to keep the Earth safe, because it's become my home. You needn't worry about that…I'm quite willing to give you my opinion on the subject."

"The weapon in question involves top of the line reactors similar to the ones that generate power on resourceless planets such as Yubisu." Nakabito explained. "The preliminary designs seem to suggest it's some kind of laser – though its exact nature is unclear. As you can imagine, this is all top secret…but I know that they're looking at energy emissions strong enough to power all of Yubisu with one thrust. Such a thing must be dangerous. Mustn't it?"

"It must indeed, in the wrong hands." Washu nodded. "Depending on the specifications and the purpose, of course."

"Of course." Nakabito reached into his pocket, pulling out a sheet of paper which he handed across to her. "Here. This is the rough specification I received from my contact. Do you think that a weapon using these kinds of components could pose a serious threat to other planets, if it was to be fully activated?"

Washu glanced at the sheet for a moment, and silence reigned over Yagami as she digested its contents. At length she glanced up, and Kiyone's eyes widened as she caught the dismay in her friend's eyes.

"Yes, it could." Washu spoke slowly, as if even she was surprised by the potential of the weapon. "Without a doubt. A weapon of this nature, wielded against any planet…would probably produce severe damage. If not…if not instantaneous destruction. It bears similarities…to the weapon…which blew Kihaku into smithereens eighteen months ago. Yes, Nakabito-san. This is a dangerous weapon indeed."

"But can its effects be prevented?" Nakabito pressed, and Washu frowned. Slowly she shook her head.

"I doubt that any planet bar Jurai itself has defences of a sophisticated enough nature to guard against the attack of such a weapon." She said heavily. "Not at present, anyway. Of course, if they were aware of the danger, I'm sure that more powerful planetary groups would devise something to at least deflect the beam."

"But a planet like the Earth?"

"I imagine it would be wiped out." Washu said simply, and Kiyone could not stifle a gasp of horror at her friend's words.

Nakabito nodded, taking the paper back and returning it to his pocket.

"Then you see the danger of the game we're playing." He said softly. "Jurai's designs on the Earth are unclear, even to me. But that the attack of Seiryo Tennan was deliberate seems likely. It was not with the permission of the Galaxy Police, and he has not been punished for it by Jurai. On the contrary, he has been rewarded by power and influence alongside their Goddess and the Emperor himself. I can only imagine they are gearing up to subjugate or kill another species for some nefarious whim of their own. And I would like to stop them before it gets that far."

"In that you have my cooperation, Nakabito-san." Washu said evenly. "I too would like to protect the Earth."

She sighed, rubbing her temples.

"But I don't know if even I can build a shield to protect against such a weapon if time is limited." She added. "I will do my best, but I can't be sure."

"Maybe the Earth should be warned, then." Nakabito said heavily. "But I do want to prevent hysteria."

He got to his feet, spreading his hands.

"It seems I have much to do." He added. "Thank you, Professor Hakubi. Your information has been most revealing. I now know how I must proceed."

With that he was gone, the door of the drive room sliding shut behind him, and for a moment Kiyone and Washu just exchanged looks. Then, at length, Kiyone plucked up the courage to ask the burning question.

"Well?" She murmured. "Is that weapon…as bad as that? You aren't…really going to help him, are you?"

Washu frowned.

"He wanted to know whether or not we could stop him, if he decided to deploy his toy against the Earth." She said quietly. "And also, he hopes that by making us aware of it now, if the Earth were destroyed, he would have expert testimony to call upon against the planet Jurai. He is indeed playing a dangerous game. The trouble is…I don't know if we can prevent it. If the weapon is truly constructed, and if it is fired at the Earth…I doubt there'll be anything left. It's at least as powerful as the cannon I used to destroy Kihaku. The people there won't stand a chance."

"Tenchi and Ryoko?" Kiyone paled, and Washu spread her hands.

"Them too, unless we manage to use Ryo Ohki to escape." She responded gravely. "But that's complicated in itself. Ryo Ohki brought me to his spaceship this morning – I was surprised when he asked to rendezvous initially away from Headquarters, but I went along with it because I wanted him to trust me. Clearly dropping a few mentions of Kii grievances appealed to his sense of injustice, because I think he fell for them enough to bring me back here. But I don't want to keep Ryo Ohki waiting any longer than I have to. Things are messy enough on the Earth and now I know for sure why their defences were altered. This is the plan. To destroy the Earth and put the blame at Jurai's - or to be specific, Seiryo's door. With us as manipulated expert witnesses."

"Sick." Kiyone muttered, and Washu shrugged.

"Fanatics generally are." She agreed grimly. "I wonder what Seiryo did to incur the wrath of such a man, though. He literally glimmered with hatred when he spoke his name…something serious, I imagine."

She glanced at her hands.

"I should go." She murmured.

"Takamura and Imaguchi wanted to speak to you, too." Kiyone reminded her, but Washu shook her head.

"There isn't time. There may not be time, anyway." She responded. "No, Kiyone. You can tell them what I've said, but my priority has to be the Earth, now. I can't do anything to protect Seiryo or help with their side of the investigation, not when so many people might be in serious danger. He might seem friendly, but that Nakabito's got a lot of darkness swirling inside of him. Whether it's resentment or pure insanity I'm not quite certain. But its there and it's stronger than anything else. He's lost a battle with himself somewhere along the lines. Sweet as he appears, I imagine it would take very little for him to snap. Be careful."

"I am being." Kiyone assured her. "And all right, if you feel that way, I'll tell the other agents what you said about the weapon. It's a pity he didn't leave that paper with you – the notes would have been a help."

"It wouldn't mean anything to your Agents even if I did." Washu shook her head. "The terms are scientific ones…only an expert in the arms field would understand something so complex."

"An expert…like his brother Akihiro?"

"Exactly." Washu nodded. "That's what I think, too."

"Do you think Jurai really developed this weapon, then? Or is it his brother trying to frame them at that?"

"My suspicions are that the original plan probably is Juraian." Washu admitted. "They're not always responsible when it comes to their breakthroughs, although I imagine nothing would become official until it had been ratified or vetted by some expert or other from the Science Academy. If such a weapon is under construction, I don't think Azusa-sama would be toting it at any planet in his way. It seems more likely to me that its purpose is to clear space debris – if it has any purpose at all. Some of the asteroid belts that flank Juraian space are heavy and dangerous – that would be my impression."

"But Nakabito has found another use for it." Kiyone murmured. "In which case, I shouldn't sit around here either."

She tapped her pocket.

"I ripped some data from his computer earlier on." She admitted. "It's encrypted, I think, but I'm hoping it will mean something to Imaguchi and Takamura. If you're not coming with me, I'd better send them a message and let them know what I've got. In the circumstances, with Nakabito roaming the halls, I'm not sure if it would be safer to meet here or in Imaguchi's office again – but they need to know so I'll have to take a risk and see what they advise me."

"Then I'll take my leave and go find Ryo Ohki." Washu agreed. "Do what you can this end, Kiyone. I'll do what I can mine. It's not just about protecting Seiryo any more. It's about protecting all life on the Earth – even the idiots. Especially the idiots."

"I know. I understand." Kiyone nodded grimly. "And you can count on me. If I have anything to do with it, Nakabito won't ever get to deploy this little project of his against anyone!"

------------

So, that was Washu Hakubi.

As he made his way slowly along the corridor towards his office, Nakabito allowed himself a faint smile as he remembered the scientist's reaction to his information.

"She looked shell-shocked. And determined." He mused. "And quite rightly too. I presented her with the ultimate evidence that her beloved Earth is about to become space dust. If it does, I doubt she'll be among the victims. She's had warning, and those who have time to prepare rarely perish in incidents like that. However…things are moving along nicely. With her testimony about Jurai's secret weapon, I'm sure that we'll have an open and shut case. In the end, Seiryo's hearing seems to be irrelevant. We know he did those things. And we'll make it look like he did these, too. For Kanemitsu's sake…no price is too high for the freedom Mother died believing in, after all."

He reached into his pocket for his pass key, sweeping it across the lock as he typed his entry code into the keypad, waiting for the soft hiss of the door as it slowly slid back to allow him admittance.

"Akihiro-nii will be pleased." He reflected, as he glanced at his communications unit for any incoming messages. "His last contact made it clear that the weapon is almost ready for deployment. All I need to do is find a way of getting it from his secret operations base to the Earth's atmosphere without anyone raising an eyebrow. But considering my conversation with Washu-sensei and Kiyone, I think I've begun to form my alibi. After all, a Galaxy Police Agent investigating corruption has a place at any disaster scene. Just a pity if I arrive a little too late to do anything but clean up the political mess."

He sank down in his chair, pulling open the drawer of his desk and reaching down to loosen the catch that held the hidden tray in place. It sprang forward, but as it did so, a cold chill touched Nakabito's heart.

There was no disk inside.

"What the…" He murmured, his eyes opening wide in disbelief as he glanced around the room, anxiously searching for the missing data disk. "I left it here – I locked it here…where is it? Who's been in here? What's going on!"

He typed a series of digits into the computer keypad, bringing up the security screening for the time he had been absent, but nothing became immediately apparent. Then, as he re-ran the film for the fifth time, he noticed something odd in the background and he frowned, hitting replay yet again as he focused in on what he had seen.

"The clock." He muttered. "It jumps half an hour here…to here. Someone was in here. Someone powered down my security. And they took my disk?"

He got to his feet, and as he did so, he caught sight of a flickering light on the computer's main console. His eyes widening in surprise, he reached out to touch the release button, watching in disbelief as the drive slid open, revealing the missing disk.

"There." He whispered. "But I always leave it locked away. Is someone on to me? But who…? And how? I was only gone from my office long enough to rendezvous with the Ryo Ohki…someone did this while I was away from the Annexe? While I was talking to Professor Hakubi and Kiyone-san…someone raided my office?"

Anger flickered in his eyes and he paced across the office floor, flinging open the bottom drawer of the filing cabinet as he pulled out a small scanning device.

"Well, whoever you are, you'll have left some clue I can use." He muttered. "And I won't let anyone interfere with my plan now. No matter if you're an agent or who you are. If you think you can intervene…you'll regret it."

He ran the scanner over the computer keys, waiting impatiently for it to give him a reading. For a moment there was nothing, then it beeped and an image flashed up on the screen before him.

His eyes narrowed to near slits as he digested what he was seeing.

"I see." He murmured. "Finger print match…one possible candidate on file. I've underestimated the simplicity of the Regular Division, haven't I, Detective? I won't do so again. You gave testimony against Seiryo Tennan – but now you're spying on me? Who are you working for, truly? And what do you seek to achieve?"

His grip on the scanner tightened as he contemplated the deceptive game his young colleague had begun to play.

"Well, it doesn't matter." He decided. "It's not too late yet. Not so long as I get to you before anyone else does. I didn't intend on killing anyone before we blew up the Earth, but it's unavoidable now. I suppose some sacrifices are impossible to evade...if you're foolish enough to get in the way of justice."

He dropped the scanner on his desk, removing the disk from its drive and sliding it into his pocket.

"This is coming with me, this time." He decided. "I think it's time we took a little trip together, Detective Makibi. I want to know what you're about and who you're working for. You will regret trying to make a fool of me, I guarantee it!"