Sam put a palm to her forehead, trying to ease her headache as she quickly moved down the street towards the "Sasaki" School of Koryu. School had just let out, and the trio were due at Katou's. Yet Tucker had heard that a new Crimson Chin game had premiered at the arcade, and managed to wear Danny down into going there with him – leaving Sam to excuse their tardiness with Katou.

Sam sighed. One of these days…

She entered Katou's abode and travelled down the stairs to find him seated on the floor, looking up at the television that Sam had brought him. He hadn't asked for it, but Sam had told him of the samurai films of Akira Kurosawa and suggested that he might enjoy them, and so she brought the spirit this set last week, along with five of the director's movies. Katou had told her yesterday that he had watched two of them and enjoyed them very much. Now, Sam saw the old sage watching Seven Samurai. He was certainly invested in the story – his gaze was firmly fixed on the screen, with his hands folded in his lap.

And yet, his eyes were…glassy.

"Katou?" Sam called. The samurai blinked and turned around.

"Oh – Sam," he rose and bowed. "I didn't hear you come in."

Sam returned the bow. "So, you're on Seven Samurai, huh?"

"Yes," Katou looked back towards the screen. "A very intriguing tale.

"And," he sighed, "familiar."

"I heard it was based on a real legend," Sam offered, curious. Was she finally going to hear something about Katou's past?

"More than a legend," the samurai answered. "A true-life account."

"This actually happened?"

Katou nodded. "Certain liberties have been taken here. The old master here was a daimyo lord, not a ronin off on his own. And the rest of the samurai served under him."

"Wow," Sam smiled. "Did you know the samurai who got hired by the village?"

"Know them?"

Katou looked back towards Sam. The sad gleam in his eyes had grown, and he looked even more worn than usual. He nodded towards the screen. "That young boy who enters the training of the old master and becomes the fifth samurai?"

Sam stared at him for a moment, and then put a hand to her mouth.

"That was you?"

Katou nodded. "It's been so long since I've thought of those days. Losing four friends isn't an event I wish to dwell over."

"So…this happened to you…and the Order…and getting caught by Walker?"

Katou bowed his head. Sam thought she heard him choke down a sob. Seeing him in such pain made her eyes carry pity, and she didn't wish to cause him more angst. But the old warrior was finally speaking of his past. Later on, that willingness could vanish.

"Is that why you won't tell us more about your past and Tá eagla orm?" she asked, hoping it wouldn't cause too much trouble for him.

Katou bowed his head lower and sighed a long sigh. Sam lowered her own head shamefully. Now wasn't the time for this. But, when would the time be?

"You're a clever girl, Samantha," Katou finally said, raising his head. His eyes were no longer glassy, but his face was even more drawn. "And you're right – I haven't been completely honest, with any of you. I wish I were. But I can't be."

"Why?"

"…I can't say."

"Why?" Sam asked again, stepping over towards Katou.

"Sam, believe me – I wish I had it in me. But I can be truthful in this – my intentions are honourable. Once this business with Tá eagla orm is finished, what I can't tell you won't matter."

Sam put her hands on her hips. She wasn't going to press the matter any further – Katou didn't deserve that. But she still didn't like the non-answer she had just received.

A loud crash upstairs and muffled words between Danny and Tucker's voiced redirected both their attentions as the two boys charged down the stairs, both looking rather worried.

"Sorry we're late, Katou," Danny stammered. "We would have been here sooner but somebody made us late!"

"You wanted to play the game too!" Tucker protested.

"Relax, boys," Katou chuckled. "We won't be training today."

"We won't?" all three children asked together.

Katou drew from behind him his map of The Ghost Zone. "For too long we've waited in resuming our search for the relics of Pariah. Danny's recovery and training couldn't be avoided, but now I think it's time to take up the quest again."

"Finally!" Sam yelled.

"With all the training, I kind of forgot about those," Danny said, grinning sheepishly.

"Which ones do we have again?" Tucker asked.

"The sceptre and the pendant," Katou replied, gesturing over towards the two artefacts. "What artefacts Plasmius and the others have recovered, we don't know. But I have a few leads we can follow."

The samurai unrolled the map on the floor and drew his tantô knife. He stuck the blade on top of a kanji character on the map. "This is where the sanctuary of the Order once stood. Inside, the map to the balance may remain."

"Didn't Clockwork say that Plasmius also knows where the balance is?" Sam cut in. She hoped that she hadn't sounded accusing, but Katou looked hurt.

"So he did," Katou sighed. "Plasmius was also said to know the whereabouts of the bow and the chest. There is a chance, however slim, that he has yet to collect the balance. Since that is the strongest lead we have, we will start there. Danny, you and I will be going alone."

"What?" the trio said together, incredulous.

"You are not leaving us out of this," Sam protested.

"Yeah!" Tucker added. "Why should we have to stay behind?"

"Because after what happened when we went to fetch the sceptre, I don't want to endanger your lives. I don't want Danny to be endangered either, but he needs the experience."

"That doesn't mean he has to be by himself," Tucker retorted.

"He won't be by himself – I'll be with him," Katou said.

"We're his best friends. We're not staying behind," Sam said firmly, crossing her arms.

"Katou, let them come," Danny added.

The samurai sighed. "Surely you've let Danny on his own before," he said. "Clockwork showed me – when Pariah was last released –"

"He was fighting the Ghost King then," Tucker dismissed the argument. "He couldn't be worried about us the whole time."

"All we're doing is going to get a map, right?" Danny asked.

"Sam, Tucker – you are not coming, and that's that!" Katou bellowed.

---

"You three have great persuasive powers," Katou grumbled.

It was before the gates of the sanctuary of the Order that the foursome stood – at least, what was left of the gate. Decay and age had sent the walls tumbling down, allowing for a good view of the interior. Blackened ruins littered the enclosure. Aged scars across the ground showed where great blasts of ectoplasm missed their target and where old heroes fell. Swords, bows, arrows, and ecto-guns lay everywhere. Five structures were held within the walls, four in the corners of the sanctuary and one in the centre. All were in decay. The middle building was the most intact; it was easy to see that it was a Chinese palace, though the roof was partially caved in and the statues lining the roof were charred. But the other four constructions were in a total state of disrepair. And damage to the building on the foursome's immediate left looked fresh.

Danny had to wipe sweat from his brow as he looked out upon the ruins. He'd beheld destruction and ruin before; he would never forget the future that Amity Park could have met at his hands. But this was such a total – and clearly planned – waste…

The ghost-boy looked up towards his mentor, and saw tears beginning to glisten in Katou's eyes.

"…We can look around, if you want to wait outside," Danny offered, and nodded towards Sam as she stepped inside the structure towards their left.

"No, no," Katou said in a quick intake. "I'm fine. In any event, we'll be leaving shortly. It appears our efforts were in vain."

"But we just got here," Tucker noted.

"But look at that building," Katou said, pointing to the one on their left. "That was a Renaissance library, where all our records were kept. The map to the balance was in there. Do you notice how recent the damage to the near wall there looks?"

Danny eyed it carefully, and the hole in the wall did look very fresh. And, now that he thought about it, there was a faint burning smell in the air.

Sam's head popped up inside the hole. "The inside's been robbed," she called out. "There's only a few things left."

"Plasmius beat us to it," the ghost-boy sighed.

"I'm afraid so," Katou sighed too. "We'll have to resume the hunt some other way."

"Wait…" Danny said. "Hunt" had him thinking. He slapped his palm up against his brow. "I'm such an idiot!" he yelled, though not angrily. "Tucker, can you still hack into Skulker's system?"

"I dunno," the techno-geek replied. "After we met Skulktech and they talked about the purple-back gorilla override, I just figured he'd need to be close by for me to try. Why?"

"Who is this 'Skulker?'" Katou asked.

"He's a ghost that works for Plasmius," Danny explained. "And he's a hunter. Vlad might have used him to track down the artefacts."

"Hey, yeah!" Tucker smiled. "And if I can hack into his system, then we can look through his database and see if he found any."

"You can also check where the legion of doom's keeping everything," Sam added as she ran over. Danny noticed she had in her hand a scrap of parchment. He was about to ask what it was, but shook his head. There were other matters to worry over.

"Come on – while we're still in The Ghost Zone, see if you can get inside his software," Danny suggested.

"You got it!" Tucker said as he drew out his PDA. The others gathered around him as he went to work, searching his database for his link to Skulker.

None of them noticed that, hidden within the rubble of the decimated library, was a fly-sized camera focused on them bearing the brand "Dalv."

---

Plasmius watched on his video watch, an astonished grin smeared across his face, as Daniel's four-eyed friend attempted to hack into Skulker's armour, the ghost-boy and his little girlfriend nearby; and with them stood Katou. Not apart from them, but among them. They had spoken to him, they appeared on good terms, and it had been indicated that Katou had led them there.

Of course, Plasmius thought. Both Daniel and the samurai had been at the ghostly ball; he should have put two and two together then. As the lights went off within his brain, he could not help but let out a shocked, ironic laugh, not caring that it visibly disturbed the Fright Knight and Prince Aragon, who stood by him in a hall of Pariah's Keep. Phantom was also there, but he didn't appear to care what Plasmius did or why.

"Oh, this is too much!" the half-ghost bellowed, leaning against a pillar for support. "Katou – my old master! – has begun to train young Daniel! Both half-ghosts in existence fall into his hands, and he tutors us both! Oh, how fantastic is that? Knight, bring me the text of Tá eagla orm, please!"

The Knight drew a scrap of parchment from his robes, though a bit hesitantly. Plasmius snatched it away and read over the prophecy line by line, until he found a particular verse. That verse made him laugh even more.

"Oh, wonderful!" he cried. "Simply wonderful!"

"Touching," Aragon snipped. "Now alert Skulker! He must safeguard his information."

"Oh, very well," Plasmius said, wiping away a tear of laughter as he stood erect. "Skulker," he said into his watch, adjusting its frequency.

"I was just about to call you," Skulker said back. "I've found the bow. I'm on my way back to the Keep now."

"Excellent," Plasmius grinned. "But I have a duty for you. Adjust the information in your database. I want it to read that the relics are hidden in my castle. And, when you arrive, move all of the artefacts to my laboratory."

"What?" the hunter, the knight, and the prince all cried together. Even Phantom raised an eyebrow.

"Betrayal!" Aragon cried, thrusting an accusing finger forward. "I suspected such an act!"

"What is this, Plasmius?" the Knight asked.

"Calm yourself, Aragon," Plasmius chuckled. "This is no mutiny. With Pariah's Mark on me, I couldn't very well pull one off, now could I?"

"Then leave the relics here in the Keep!" Aragon bellowed. "It is far safer for them to be here!"

"Indeed," Plasmius said, his grin growing. "But there are two artefacts that we do not yet have, and at least one of them is in the hands of my old teacher and his latest pupil. Katou is clever enough to know not to hide the sceptre in the Fenton's lab or anyplace I'd know about, so we must find a way to track them."

Plasmius could see the lights go off; Aragon understood, but he still didn't agree. "The relics of Lord Pariah are not bait!" he roared.

"Trust me," Plasmius purred. "This will give us much, much more than the sceptre."

You forget that I can read thoughts, my prince, the voice of Pariah said as it came to both their ears.

I know what it is that Plasmius has planned. Why he has not shared it I do not know, but it is a gambit. One I will allow to occur. But, Plasmius…know that failure here rests on your head alone.

"Thank you, my lord," Plasmius bowed to the air, throwing a mocking smirk at Aragon. "I promise you – none of us will be disappointed."