Chapter 13

Kasai found himself in the park sitting by the fountain watching others around him. A young boy fell off the swings and begin to cry for his father. Almost immediately his Dad was there to comfort him. It was hard to remove the disgust he felt from his face.

Everyone seemed so…happy.

'Pathetic.'

He scoffed at the sight and turned away in distaste. He let his eyes look up towards the sky with a dull blank expression.

'It was almost too easy infiltrating into her life. Yet I'll have to be very precise and careful from here on out. If I fail here then I won't be able to make this right. I almost feel bad for you Mai.' He interrupted his personal musing to laugh aloud to himself.

He got a few odd looks from a couple passing by.

'Just thinking about all the suffering she's about to go through makes me feel a little more at ease. I want her to live through twice the pain that I've had to, no, tenfold. I want her to squirm in self-loathing until she wants to end her own life. Only then will I be satisfied.' Kasai's face morphed into one of determination.

He was ready to wage war.

"HEY! KASAI! Sorry, I'm a bit late. The trains were so packed today." A girl ran up to him dressed in a pink frilly skirt, white heels, lace stockings, and a red coat.

"It's no problem, Keiko. It was worth the wait; you look so beautiful." He said as he kissed her hand creating a rosy tint in her cheeks. He stood and placing a hooked arm out in front of himself, and she willing took it.

"Shall we go?" He said with a sly smirk and she only nodded.

Keiko had mistaken the company of a sheep for the masquerade of a wolf.

Mai wandered about the warehouse, very conscious of her own movements. The crates surrounding her were likely filled with priceless artifacts, and she didn't even want to think what chaotic accidents could happen here.

She searched for an area that was barren enough for her readings. With so much history stored in this large expanse; Mai didn't want her reading on the building itself warped by another object.

She stumbled upon a space that appeared to be a packing station filled with cardboard, peanuts, tape, and all the fixings. Mai grabbed a piece of cardboard and made herself a seat like a merchant in a train station. She held onto her key and focused on the seal placed within.

She released its hold by removing it from her neck.

'I was smart to ask Lin to make this into a spiritual suppressant like Gene told me too. 'Mai thought looking down at her good luck charm.

As soon as Mai removed the key from her neck raw fear hit her like a tsunami, and she could feel herself nearly drowning in it. She opened her eyes instinctively and peered at her surroundings on high alert. She could feel something surrounding her, but she couldn't find its origin. It was almost like the fear and anxiety she was feeling was in the air itself.

'There is s-something here, and it's so strong. It literally soaks the whole entire place with its darkness. It's a little hard to breathe.' Mai could feel herself start to tremble in fear. Suddenly Gene's training clicked into her head and she began to breathe and calm herself down.

'Stay calm, Mai. You have to find out more about this thing. Focus! There has to be a center to all this activity.' Mai closed her eyes and allowed herself to become relaxed. She tried to separate her spirit from her body. This had only worked twice before in practice, and she was hoping she might be able to do it again.

Gene suggested that it would be beneficial if she could learn to astral project without falling asleep. It was very difficult for Mai because it used more of her spiritual energy to do this while awake.

It left her completely exhausted afterward.

She'd have to muster the strength to exit her body, but Mai had to also remain connected to her body's senses. It was crucial to maintain this connection so she'd know if any other spirits were trying to possess her empty vessel while she was away.

Mai remained seated for about fifteen minutes until she tried to separate her spirit from her body. After several unsuccessful attempts, Mai sighed heavily and rose in failure.

'Ugh, I guess I'll just have to wait until tonight to find out more about whatever is haunting this place.' Mai placed her key in her pocket, dusted off her butt, and made her way to base.

"Umm…. Which way was base again?" She thought out loud.

"Kazuya, do you really think it wise, knowing her history that Mai is left alone?" Lin inquired, still organizing base.

"That's why I gave her the map and a radio. Hopefully, she has enough sense to figure it out on her own. If not, she'll be able to call us." Naru said not looking up from the witness testimonies and the facility map.

"You know Mai. If there is trouble to be found, she'll definitely get into it." Monk said heaving a monitor into place then walking over to Naru at the desk.

"Are there any definite locations for cameras yet?" The monk drilled peering over Naru's shoulder.

"Yes, you can start on the top floor, placing one in the Warring states exhibit, the coin room, and in the trade route room. I've crossed all three locations on the third floor on this map. Don't forget your handheld radio." Naru assigned strategically.

"UGH! When are the other's coming?" Monk asked, not thrilled about placing all these cameras in such a large facility.

"After her shift at work, Matsuzaki will be picking up John from the airport and heading here." Noll responded to Monk's rhetorical question. Monk just rolled his eyes not willing to get into an argument. Monk left the two in base and Lin took this time to take a deep sigh.

"My shiki have been unsettled since we arrived at this location. Something definitely isn't right with this place." Lin commented aloud and Naru said nothing, merely adding the comment to his little black book.

"According to the map, the base should be just down this hall to the left." Mai said aloud sighing happily at the prospect of finally getting back. She'd spent fifteen more minutes than she'd planned to getting lost in this huge place. She just hoped that her boss wouldn't take too much notice.

'Knowing him I'm sure he'll have something to say once I arrive back. Just take it in stride Mai.' She told herself as she started to make her way down the hall. As suddenly as she turned down the last corridor, she heard fast paced footsteps right behind her.

'Wha- …this feeling.' Mai felt her gut twist and her throat tighten.

She spun around quickly and she saw nothing. However, all the hair on the back of her neck stood tall as an instinctual warning. It felt like she was suddenly tied above a tank of sharks and the rope was ripping from her body weight.

It felt like the edge of death.

'That's my queue to get out of here.' Mai said as she took off running down the hall. Once again, the footsteps accompanied her own, but this time a sinister growling accompanied them. Mai was just nearing the end of the hall and she could feel it practically breathing down her neck.

Mai threw the door to base open and slammed it closed right behind her. Her back was against it and she was breathing hard, her eyes wild. Lin and Naru were upright immediately with surprised glances.

"Mai, what happened?" Naru spoke, but before he could get a response a heavy bang slammed the opposite side of the door. Mai squealed out in surprise, but kept her weight against the door.

The banging commenced and the door began to be forced open. Noll jumped out of his seat to aid his struggling assistant in keeping the door closed from whatever hellish beast lay on the other side. Just as Noll added his own weight over his assistance the banging became even more violent and the growling roared into snarls.

Lin whistled and his shiki passed through the door.

The banging ceased.

Mai felt her senses relax and sank down onto her knees, her anxiety finally catching up with her body.

"WHAT- heave- THE HECK- heave- WAS THAT?!" Mai yelled still catching her breath. Her hair tousled, her uniform disheveled, and her face burned from exertion.

"I believe you would be the only one here who could answer that question." Naru voiced crossing his arms and raising his eyebrows to the girl. The white lights passed back through the door and disappeared next to their master.

"Naru, my shiki did not dispose of any entity. It is as if it sensed their impending attacked and disappeared." Lin reported narrowing his eyes at the door. His young charged nodded and made no move to open the door again.

"Are you alright?" Naru's eyes skated over her and she nodded breathlessly.

"What happened?" He inquired looking between his assistant and the door.

"I was on my way back here and I felt something was closing in on me. I was in the section of the warehouse with the tall crates on either side like a hallway. Out of nowhere, I heard footsteps running behind me. I turned around and I didn't see anything, but my gut was telling me to get the heck out of there. I ran all the way here with whatever that thing was on my tail." Mai exhaled shakily.

A hand was placed out in front of her much to her surprise. Mai took the support and voiced a meek 'thank you'. His hand didn't detach from hers, instead he placed an additional hand on the small of her back. Ushering her toward the sitting area as gently as he could. Mai was grateful that the heat in her face could be easily associated with the Olympic sprint she just completed.

"What did you find out from your opening?" Naru inquired. One she was deposited neatly on the couch; he prepared to write her findings.

"As soon as I opened, I felt very frightened, enough so to feel nearly ill. This entire place is soaked in some kind of darkness, and it's so thick it's difficult to acquire its central location. Whatever we're dealing with it's on a whole other level." Mai said giving the two a worried look.

Naru took this time to grab one of the walkie-talkies and radioed Monk to come back to base.

"I've only set up one of the three cameras." Monk responded confused.

"Never mind that now, just come back. We need to change our approach. Be careful on your way here." Naru retorted.

"Is something wrong? Did something happen to Mai? " Monk vocalized anxiously.

"You will be informed upon your return." Naru called back placing the device down. Mai took this time to pick up her own and communicate with Monk.

"I'm fine Monk, just be careful on your way back."

"Okay, will do." Mai turned her radio back down and glared at her boss.

"Was that really so difficult to just reassure him instead of being so cryptic. Now he's going to be on me like white on rice when he gets back." Mai groaned and leveled a glare at her boss.

"Mai, tea." He supplied with a smirk. She swallowed a growl and resigned herself to the preparation.

"Anyway, what's the plan of action to protect base? Sutras? Shiki? Or…" Mai asked but Naru continued to sort through papers and ignored her completely. Just as she was about to hop over the table and ring his self-centered throat the base door slammed open making her give out a loud 'eeep' and turn around quickly. She was relieved to see it was Monk breathing heavily, holding two cameras, and eyes looking around wildly until they met her own.

"I- I thought, I heard, you were, uh….." Monk started to say and Lin even stopped typing to spectate the flabbergasted Monk's situation.

"Monk, you look tense, why don't I make you some tea? You seem like you've had an experience." Mai said offering her own chair then walking back over to the kitchenette.

"I- I was on my way back here. As soon as I hung up with you, I got this sinking feeling, but I tried to shake it off. As soon as I left the public section of the museum, I heard a really loud scream. What really threw me off was that it sounded exactly like you! I heard you screaming again, so I ran toward the sound of your voice. When I finally got closer, you started to screaming for me to help you. Practically begging for me to find you. Just when I thought I would be close enough to finally see you, it all stopped. I called for you, but you didn't answer. So I came back here to get some help and here you are." Monk explained, he ran his shaking fingers through his hair and closed his eyes as he recounted the experience.

When he opened them, his eyes met Mai's face. They were rimmed with tears and reddened.

Mai quickly placed the tea down and hugged the man she saw as an older brother. At first, he hesitated, but he relaxed and hugged her back as well.

"I promise I'm okay." Mai said giving him her heartwarming smile. She only let him go to bring him tea and he placed the equipment back down.

"This isn't looking very good for us already. We've only been here for a total of three hours, it's still daytime, and the place is filled to the brim with people. Yet, the activity has spiked and reacted to our arrival immediately. It's clear that whatever we are dealing with here is quite serious and powerful. Lin, make some charms and seal off the base. For now, let's wait until the rest of the team arrives before we counter. We need to proceed with caution." Naru ordered before getting back to his research.

"Mai, my tea." He reminded clearly irritated.

"Oh yeah, right." Mai said scratching the back of her head.

'It's odd that Naru has us idle on our first day here, but I can understand where he's coming from. This is the fastest a spirit has ever reacted to our presence. It must be intelligent if it knows right off the bat what our purpose here is, and it's increasing in hostility.' Mai sighed and served his tea not even waiting for a reply.

The building was taunting them.

Not a bad turn around for a new chapter. I love how curious everyone is about Kasai, because you should be. I've gone some awesome plot twists coming your way. Happy Holidays readers!