Chapter Two

Mai watched the three men they'd found in the hallway out of the corner of her eye. The tallest one, Youji, was watching the monitors for any sign of his friend. The brunette had introduced himself as Ken and the teen as Omi. The two of them were deep in conversation with her boss, but turned immediately when they heard their friend exclaim excitedly. "Aya!" He pointed to one of the top screens. "Which room is that?" Mai walked over and peered up at it to see a man in a long black coat with the hood pulled up standing with his back to the camera. He was rifling through some papers on a desk.

"That's the second study we found. So 'Study 2'." She then sighed in frustration. "Study number two is on the other side of the house. I don't know-" She stopped, her eyes widening, as a bloodied creature began rising from the ground behind the man on screen.

"Shit, there's no way we can get there in time." Bou-san swore.

"He'll be fine." Youji chuckled. Mai wasn't so sure, so she watched in horror as the thing reached up to grab at the man's ankle. Youji put a calming hand on her shoulder. "Just watch." Aya, who she assumed was the man on screen, turned his head slightly then stomped a heavy boot on the creature's wrist. Youji snorted as it shrieked and disappeared.

"Interesting." Kazuya said quietly. His blue eyes were fixed on the man dressed in all black as he went back to the papers on the desk. The screen suddenly fuzzed and when it came back on Aya was gone. He entered the screen on a monitor just below the one he had been on.

"Dining room 2." Mai said quietly knowing that they would ask.

"How close?" Youji asked.

"Um, its just down the hall from the study he was in; so it's still on the other side of the house." She frowned as she watched. Aya was keeping his back to the camera as he moved through the room, which wasn't good since the cameras were set up so that they would show as much of the space surrounding them as possible. If he kept that up he was leaving himself open to attack.

"We need to get him and bring him here." Kazuya sighed. "It's only going to get worse as the night goes on." He turned to Lin. "I need you to monitor his movement and report it to me. Mai, Takigawa, you two know the layout better than I do so you're with me. Let's go."

"I'm coming with you." Youji tore his eyes from the screen. "He doesn't really listen to strangers."

"Don't kid yourself Kudou." Ken snorted. "He doesn't listen to anybody." Youji just glared at him.

"I believe that the three of you should stay here." Kazuya was all business. "We are trained to handle what's out there. I get the impression that you aren't." The taller man nodded in concession. Her boss turned to Ayako. "I want you, John, and Hara-san to take a radio and go the opposite direction that we go. Lin will watch our progress and tell us where to go."

"I'm not staying here." Youji drew himself to his full height, which was considerable, and glared at Kazuya. Mai didn't like the look in his eyes, it reminded her too much of Lin.

"Youji, let's just do as he says." Omi put a hand on the older man's arm. "We're out of our element here. Bad guys we can't even touch scare me." He licked his lips nervously. "I'd feel safer if you were here." Youji eyed him for a moment before sighing and walking back to the monitors.

"We can give him the radio to talk to you when we find him." Mai offered brightly, The idea just occurring to her. Youji turned and smiled making her heart flutter. She blushed, turning away quickly. Kazuya noticed and raised an eyebrow at her before shaking his head.

"Come on, before he gets himself killed." He sighed. Mai nodded then the six of them left the room. Once in the hallway they split up. Mai would have felt safer with them all staying together, but it would take longer to find him and they didn't have a lot of time. Plus he kept moving from room to room and didn't always stay on camera. She sighed. Mai really didn't want to be out of the base, but she also wanted to do what she could to keep someone else from dying. She grabbed Kazuya's hand in fright as an eerie mist appeared ahead of them. He gave her that look that said she was being stupid, but didn't let go, for which she was grateful. Being able to hold his hand helped to calm her.

Aya stepped out into the hall and cocked his head. He could hear footsteps and voices that didn't belong to the spirits or the men he'd come with. There were three. One was too young and definitely a girl while the other two just weren't familiar. He carefully kept to the shadows as they passed by and headed into the room he'd just exited. They quickly came back out and began looking up and down the hall. "Where is he now Lin?" The shorter male asked speaking into a radio.

"He is not on any of the monitors." Came the tinny reply. "Kudou-san says to try calling his name." Aya bristled hearing his friend's name. These people had his friends?

"I don't-"

"Aya-san!" The girl called, looking around. "Your friends are safe, they're at our base. Hello!" Aya moved back further into the shadows and assessed the situation. These people had a 'base', which probably meant they were from some kind of expedition. There wasn't anything sinister coming off them, but why were they out here...without Youji? He frowned. They better not have done anything to his friend.

Since he wasn't getting answers that he liked from his own brain he decided to follow the people he now recognized from the dossiers he had perused before the mission. He didn't recall much. Just that they were ghost hunters or whatever; he honestly hadn't really read the files. All he needed to know was what they'd be facing and what he needed to do. Everything else was irrelevant.

The people from SPR were walking down the halls calling his name and it not his code name either, which made him more than a little uneasy. He kept to the shadows as he followed them. The spirits were remaining quiet. Except for a few apparitions and half manifestations. Some might not consider that quiet, but compared to what they usually got up to it was practically serene.

At an intersection of hallways the people he was following met a group of three. Two women and a man. He narrowed his eyes, not all that pleased that there was now six. How many had Youji? It had to be more than one. A teen girl that looked even more familiar than the others looked up into his general direction. He knew she couldn't see him...not physically.

"I sense something." She said quietly.

"What?" The girl who had known his name asked worriedly.

"I can not be sure, but I do not think that it has good intentions." She raised a hand covered by the sleeve of her kimono to her nose. "I smell blood." Aya's lips curled, another psychic, just what he needed. Her face paled as she sensed his rising ire. "I do believe remaining here would be dangerous." She looked at the teen who headed SPR, Aya couldn't remember his name. He was the calmest of the group and he nodded assent.

"We have done what we can. Those guys' friend is on his own." He folded his arms. "I get the feeling that they knew about the house before coming so he will only be a victim of his own stupidity." Aya raised a brow. Guys? Plural? As in more than one? Did that mean Ken and Omi were also there? How many were there and how had they captured his friends? The swordsman shook his head. Asking himself these questions was pointless.

He followed the group down the hall, wishing he had paid better attention to the pre-mission briefing, as well as the included dossiers. He didn't know these people or why they were here, but if they had harmed one hair on Youji's head; he would kill them.

Mai pulled Kazuya into the room then slammed the door shut. They had started running only moments before because Masako had sensed an increase in the Spirit activity...well that and the other danger. The one she couldn't fully sense, but that had a deadly intent. "Where-" Youji began. Kazuya shook his head quickly then turned to face the door. Masako grabbed his arm.

"Its coming!" She screamed. Bou-san pulled Mai behind him and began chanting as the door flew inward. She peeked out from behind him and seeing the figure she'd seen earlier she gasped. The creature was about the same height as her boss and wore a long black coat. A hood was pulled up over its head that put its face in shadow. Her shock was completed when she heard the three men they'd rescued laughing.

"Looks like you found him after all." Ken chuckled.

"Aya, dear, you're scaring the children, turn it down a notch." Youji snorted with amusement walking up to the figure. She watched a gloved hand come up and suddenly Youji was pinned against the wall. "Uh, Aya, now is not the-oof." Youji grunted as a knee went into his gut.

"I don't know if I want to kill you now or wait until we get home." A deep rough voice growled.

"What did I do?" Youji whined, grabbing his stomach as the person let go and pulled off his hood, revealing beautiful red hair. Mai gasped as he turned around to face them. He was positively gorgeous. More so even than her narcissistic boss. His cold violet eyes moved from one face in their group to another. Masako began to shake uncontrollably.

"Blood." She whispered. "So much blood." Aya's eyes moved to her and she screamed burying her face in Kazuya's chest. The teen psychic was obviously frightened by something and Kazuya surprised, probably everyone besides their new acquaintances, by putting his arm around her quivering form.

"Aya." Youji said gently, placing a hand on his arm. He began speaking quietly to the redhead as he pulled him to another corner of the room. After a while Masako began to relax.

"What the hell is going on?" Bou-san growled. "She's never reacted that way to a spirit."

"I'm so sorry." Omi cried, bowing deeply. He glanced back at Aya who was glaring balefully at him. "Aya-san doesn't have the best control over his temper."

"Tch." The redhead looked away.

"He was just fearing for our safety." Omi continued, still bowing deeply.

"Why are you apologizing for him?" Ken growled irritably glaring at Aya. "He should be the one-"

"I refuse." Aya's quiet voice cut him off mid sentence. He glided over to Omi and pulled him out of his bow.

"Aya-san." Omi sighed. Masako began to shake again.

"Aya cut it out!" Youji snapped. "Did you not hear a word I just said?"

"I heard, I just don't care." Aya replied. He then took a deep breath and closed his eyes. When he opened them Masako had relaxed again. She peeked out at him from behind Kazuya's arm.

"You are psychic?" She asked curiously. Everyone turned to stare at Aya in shock except his three friends. "I have been sensing your irritation rather then spirits since we got here." She moved out from under Kazuya's arm and approached the redhead cautiously. "You're much stronger than I am." She reached a hand towards him then pulled back with a small cry of alarm. Aya hadn't moved but his three friends were glaring at his back.

"Aya, will you cut it out already." Youji grabbed his arm. "These people aren't our enemies."

"You don't belong there." Aya growled at the now quivering Masako. Mai went over to her and glared up at him.

"Be nice." She snapped, her fear being over ridden by irritation. She and Hara-san didn't get along that well, but Mai didn't like bullies.

"So much blood." Masako whispered holding on to Mai and shaking in fear and suddenly she cold see it too. Blood soaking the man in front of her, dripping from his hands and clothes, covering his face, his hair...she closed her and turned away. She didn't want to see anymore. When she looked back up at him a few seconds later it was gone and Aya had a smirk on his lips. She didn't normally have visions when awake so had he sent that to her? She pulled Masako over so that they were behind Kazuya. She really didn't like the nice people's friend.

Aya felt the collective animosity towards him and mentally rolled his eyes before walking to the door. "Where do you think you're going?" Youji growled grabbing his arm.

"I have out stayed my welcome." Aya replied jabbing him in the chest with one gloved finger. "Also, I have a job to do. You know what happens if I don't." Youji bit his lip rubbing his chest. "The only way I will find it is at night when it is most active."

"And how do you plan to get rid of it without an exorcist?" The blonde monk asked. "Glare it to death?" His irritation was evident, not that Aya cared, but he wondered what Omi had told the group about why they were there. It was obvious that it hadn't been enough. The question was now if he should show these people or not. He still didn't have the best control. Mostly his new abilities listened, but when he was mad; his irritation tended to leak a little bit. Other psychics were more sensitive to it than normal people.

He glanced around and opened his senses a bit. As upset as the group was they weren't going to let him out of the room. So the only way he was going to get out of the room was to either kill them or show them that he could handle himself. Youji would be upset if he chose the first way so he let out a little huff of irritation. Aya then held out his hand with the palm up and closed his eyes. Focusing his will and commanded a flame to appear in his hand. Instead of a merry orange it was as violet as his eyes. It was part of the Trans-dimensional Being or 'TDB' inside him...at least that was how it had been explained. It didn't matter. All he cared was that the flames burnt those creatures to a crisp and that was all he needed to know. He wasn't really the curious type.

"That's impossible!" The priestess cried. Aya opened his eyes. Both she and the monk were staring at him in shock. The whole SPR group was surprised actually, but those two knew something about his power that he didn't. Not that it mattered to him. They were in a position to know about such things and he could have researched it if he wanted. He just wasn't all that interested.

He shrugged and let the flame go away. He was about to drop his hand and request the people barring the door to move when all of the sudden the room began to shake and inhuman screams surrounded it. Aya spun, putting his hand to the wall. Purple fire raced out from it in all directions until the entire room was covered then it disappeared. He turned to Youji.

"Do not leave this room." He hissed grabbing the taller man's chin and pulling him down into a kiss. "If you do I will never forgive you." He glanced at the shocked faces of the other men and women in the room. "Don't let anyone else leave either." He opened the door and was enveloped by the darkness in the hall beyond. Youji screamed his name, but Aya shook his head and commanded the door to shut behind him. He had a job to do. It may be scary to the others, but they were the ones who felt that he should take these damn missions and he figured if he had to muck around with this psychic crap then they had to at least come along for the ride. He wasn't going to do this with anyone else.