In this chapter, Nakamura and Saito make a fated return. Naru wants to bargain. Lin has a heart-stopping hell of a time.

CW: police brutality.

.o0o.

Nakamura and Saito were here. Both wore crisp business suits, and one of them had a briefcase in his hand. Nobody was making a move. The reaction could have gone either way. Either the room would erupt into a thousand outraged cries, or it would have remained quiet enough to hear a moth's wingbeat. The room chose the latter.

The two men stepped inside. Their expressions remained business pleasant, save for the coldness in their eyes that Naru still couldn't parse out. Their eyes were different from Fusei's eyes. Mai reported a dangerous indifference when she talked about this eye phenomenon, but Fusei looked like he absolutely wanted to break some necks when Naru and Lin had their unfortunate encounter with him. It was a stark contrast to these eyes here, which were indifferent to the point of cruel apathy. It was as though the three cold men were on the same team, but their roles were different. Maybe Fusei was some kind of foot soldier, hence the police job, and Nakamura and Saito were negotiators, hence their presence here.

Naru took a step out of their way. Had he been Lin, he wouldn't have let them past the doorframe. But he wasn't Lin. Lin was gone. Maybe being interrogated by the unspoken underbelly of Japanese intelligence. No. Don't think like that.

"What do you want?" Naru said.

"Good afternoon, Mr. Shibuya," said one of them. Naru couldn't be bothered to remember which one was which. "Mr. Nakamura and I were wondering if you would possibly reconsider your availability to handle our case."

Naru could hear the hushed whispers and shuffling behind him. His team was uneasy—Mai especially. Naru had to be the boss. He had to be strong for them. More importantly, he had to be clever. Thankfully, that was his strongest trait.

"On two conditions."

"Which are?" asked Saito.

"You tell us the truth. We can't work if you give us faulty information."

"Naturally," said Nakamura with a smile as fake as flying pigs. "And the second?"

"In time. Let's start the consultation and see what we're working with." With an all-too friendly gesture, Naru guided the two cold men over to the couch. "Mai, tea."

Mai sped away to the kitchenette to do just that.

Saito turned toward Lin's desk. "Your tall friend isn't here."

Naru almost felt the hot breath of nearly everyone in the room, like a snorting bull ready to charge. Saito absolutely said that on purpose, trying to provoke someone. Naru was angry, but he wouldn't be goaded. He hoped none of the others would be either.

"Tell us about your case," said Naru, refusing to engage with that just yet.

"I think you're already familiar with it, Mr. Shibuya. All of you."

Naru folded his arms. Admit nothing. "Just to make sure we're all on the same page, why don't you go ahead and explain anyway?"

Something sparked in Nakamura's eyes, like a shark that had caught the smell of blood. "Between Amnity Park and Eastern village, there's a stand of dead trees that is scheduled for demolition quite soon. If you've seen them, you'll know how unsightly they are. The problem is that the place is crawling with ghosts that refuse to leave. We must have them dealt with before we begin work."

Right. They wanted the ghosts gone so that they could finish up their cover up. It wouldn't do to have residents living on top of a mass grave. At some point or another, the ghosts would rear their ugly heads and spill the beans to the solemn few who would pay attention to the voices of spirits. Why Nakamura and Saito hadn't just given them that story when they first came in was still a mystery to Naru. They would only do that if they were hiding something. Naru smelled a trap, but not a blatant pitfall. It felt as though these two strange men genuinely needed the SPR's services. The trap would come afterward.

"I'm sure we don't need to say anything more on the subject," Saito said. The hidden message was just as clear. Keep this quiet.

Nakamura placed the briefcase he was holding on the table. "And as a show of good faith—" (Yeah right, thought Naru) "Please accept this as a down payment."

Nakamura opened the briefcase, and the room echoed with gasps of disbelief. Naru was sure half the people present had never seen so much money in their lives, but Naru came from money. Even though he was technically on his own out here, he still had his parents to help him out should financial trouble ever arise. He kept his arms folded, unimpressed by the obvious bribe. He opened his mouth, but Takigawa beat him to a response.

"All right. That's the carrot. Where's the stick?"

Nakamura and Saito turned toward the monk, synchronized, like a pair of owls. Monk stepped backwards, unprepared to have both of their cold eyes on him.

"No need to talk sticks just yet, Mr. Takigawa," said Saito, voice smooth and unreadable. Monk couldn't hide the discomfort in his expression as Saito said his name. Naru was hardly surprised. He was sure these men knew the names of every person in the room—well, every name except for their own. It was possible that the two mystery agents had only ever known each other as Nakamura and Saito. An interesting thought to file away for later.

"We will need a base of operations," Naru said.

"Of course," said Nakamura. At this point, their voices were becoming indistinguishable from each other. They may as well have been a single person with just two bodies. Truly, the Men in Black, except without the comedy. "Unfortunately, we do not have a suitable property on site. There is a house you can use about a block away from the woods for storage and lodging. I imagine though that not all of you need to stay overnight? You do live in the city, after all."

Naru nodded stiffly. He didn't want to say too much about how he ran things. Then again, if his suspicions were correct, he might be ending up in a battle for the SPR as an organization in the not so distant future. Revealing their methods would be the least of his worries. He took a breath. Time for the all or nothing gambit.

"All right. This brings me to my second condition."

Nakamura and Saito waited patiently, less like a cat at the window and more like crocodiles just past the riverbank. Naru took their silence as a sign to continue.

"We will need my assistant Koujo Lin on this case with us."

To this, the rest of the SPR perked up. Mai's face looked painfully hopeful. Monk and Ayako exchanged uneasy glances, and Masako watched on baited breath.

Nakamura tilted his head. "Mr. Shibuya, why would that be a problem?"

"I think we can cut the crap now, don't you?" Naru bit back. "We're well aware that you know what we've discovered."

"What would that be, Mr. Shibuya?"

Ohhh no, not so fast. He wouldn't show his hand, not yet. Suggesting hands without showing them was all part of this metaphorical poker match. He might still be able to force them to fold first.

"We all know damn well that Koujo isn't a spy, and don't bother playing dumb with us. You had something to do with his arrest, which leads me to my second condition. You want our help, you give him back to us."

Neither of the two men said anything. They seemed to be tiring of the game themselves. They didn't even exchange looks with each other. They just stared at him with their blank, indifferent faces. They suddenly stood up. Neither of them picked up the briefcase, which was still sitting open on the table.

"Thank you for agreeing to work with us, Mr. Shibuya," said one of them.

"We will see you at ten a.m. sharp at this location," said the other, handing Naru a slip of paper with a house address on it. They bowed slightly and made for the door.

Naru's mind raced. Did that mean they accepted his second term, or were they just going to fly off and forget that Lin even existed? Sure as hell, none of the SPR would forget Lin. If this didn't save him, they'd think of something else.

Once the door clicked closed, everyone turned to him for answers.

"What do we do, Naru?" Monk asked.

Naru raised his hand for silence, and the group complied. Naru strained his ears, listening as the footsteps of Nakamura and Saito disappeared. Once they were one minute out of earshot, Naru put his hand to his face and sighed. "Truthfully, we have very little leverage here. They need us for this, but I don't doubt their ability to—Mai, don't touch that!"

Mai stopped just before her hand touched the briefcase lid, probably to close it and move it off the table. She was holding a tray of tea in her other hand.

"Nobody touch that. Don't put your DNA on it."

Naru looked around. He grabbed a fresh tissue and used it to close the lid. It snapped shut. With a second tissue, he lifted the case and slid it under the sofa. It was a crude hiding place, but it would do for now. Once it was out of sight, Naru continued.

"Like I was saying. I don't doubt their ability to try to get rid of all of us after they're done with us. That—" Naru nodded at the hidden briefcase, "Was just something shiny to keep us docile." He turned reflexively to Lin's desk, but he stopped upon instantly remembering that Lin wasn't there. "Someone call John. This has become urgent."

Ayako pulled out her phone and turned toward the window.

"Wait, Naru," Mai said. "I don't think we should exorcise Weiguó yet."

Naru narrowed his eyes. "Explain."

"We need every piece of evidence we can get, if we're going to help Lin. This spirit is our one witness that isn't stuffed in a tree right now."

He didn't like it, but he couldn't disagree. They needed every bit of help they had, and Weiguó unfortunately counted, even if they couldn't talk to him.

Monk had something to say about that, though. "What about you, Mai? This spirit has been putting you through the wringer for the past three days."

Mai shook her head. "It's not about me. It's about Lin. I can handle it."

"Like you have been?" Naru demanded.

"I think it's time Weiguó and I had a good long talk." To emphasize, Mai smacked her fist into her palm. Naru remained calm on the outside, but on the inside, he was impressed, and not necessarily in a good way. For Mai to suggest violence, it had only happened a few times, and it was always a measured response to some unjust shenanigans, such as the incident with the scorned spirit in the park all those years ago. Monk was slower to catch onto the subtext.

"Doesn't the spirit only speak Chinese?"

Mai turned to him. "He's been smacking me around mentally for three nights straight. I think I deserve to smack him back, at least a little. Now that I know what's going on. It's okay, Monk. I can handle him."

Monk didn't look convinced.

"From now on, you'll stay with me," he said. "No buts. This is serious. You need support while you're dealing with this."

There was a pause as Mai considered. Finally, she nodded. "Thanks, Monk."

Naru glanced around, still antsy. "We need a plan of attack. I would have liked us to move out now, but they said we aren't expected to be there until ten tomorrow morning."

"Wouldn't that be all the more reason to scope out the place?" Ayako asked. "If they need time to cover their asses, then we should catch them in the act, don't you think?"

"Except we're not the police," Naru said. "I want to make that very clear. When I said we have very little leverage, I meant it. One wrong move, and we're finished. Besides, I don't think that's what they want the time for."

Monk sucked in a quick breath of air. "You don't mean…?"

Naru took a quick, deep breath. "They want the night with Lin."

Monk swore.

Mai's folded her hands close to her mouth. "But why though?"

"It's probably exactly what you think," Ayako said. She turned to Masako. "Can Lin's shiki keep us posted on his condition?"

Masako blinked and turned to her left shoulder, presumably where Water was hanging out. "It can sense it vaguely. It says it knows everything that its master tells it, and if the communication channels are open, it can sense its master's mental state. If Lin is in distress, it will know. So far, it reports that Lin is very distressed, but it can't tell if that is from fear or because…" She trailed off. Nobody wanted to say it. Mai's dreams were one thing, but for this to be a possibility in real life, that was a completely different story.

Mai looked down. "We have a whole day. I can… I can…" She looked back up. "I can follow Lin by astral projecting. I can watch over him."

The rest of the team looked unsure. Ayako appeared to think that was a decent idea, but Monk looked like he wanted to contest.

"There's really nothing else you need me for, is there?" Mai pried. "I can just pre-make a kettle and leave you to it."

Naru clenched his fists. As lovely as an idea that sounded, how useful was it, really? What could Mai do as a spirit body? Lin wasn't a medium. It wasn't like that time she comforted Masako, because Masako could actually see her. Only Lin's shiki could see Mai, and at present, he only had one with him.

"All you could do is watch," Naru said. "You can't comfort him or ease his pain."

"But just knowing he's not alone… That's what I would want."

"And if his shiki isn't there to tell him that you're there?"

Mai deflated. Clearly she hadn't thought of that possibility. Truth be told, even as a reporter, her role would be redundant, and therefore a waste. Lin's shiki was here to keep them all posted, and likely it was keeping Lin posted about the goings on at the SPR. Naru wondered if he should ask Masako about it—it was unlikely that the office had been bugged, but on the off-chance it was, they had to be careful about what they said where. He shook his head. He couldn't let paranoia get in the way. If they scared themselves out of communicating with each other, then their ability to work in any capacity was seriously hindered. Then again…

"It's possible—no, it's inevitable that they will be surveilling us while we're working," Naru said. "As soon as we get to the site, assume they have eyes and ears on us at all times. Assume they are listening into every conversation, watching for any communication."

The team quieted at Naru's prediction. Ayako began to look around. "Do you think they're listening right now?"

"I don't know," Naru said. "I really don't know. It is also possible that what Monk said is the truth—that we aren't up against the government, and this is a much more covert operation. Naturally, the government is responsible for handling everything that happens on Japanese soil. As soon as word gets out, this becomes the government's problem regardless of whether or not they started it."

"So we have the power to incite an international incident," said Monk.

A new voice came from the doorway.

"I'm sorry, what do we have?"

Everyone turned to face John. Naru turned to the clock. It was one-thirty. Good, he was half an hour early. John noticed Naru's stern look and put a sheepish hand behind his head. "Sorry I couldn't get here sooner. I hear there's been some trouble."

"That's an understatement," Monk muttered.

"Sit down, John. There's a lot to tell you about," said Mai.

"Wait," Naru said, holding up a hand. He breathed in through his nostrils, letting the air pacify him. He quickly weighed the pros and cons of bringing John into this whole mess. Either way, John was necessary for alleviating Mai's spirit problem. Considering what Ayako had said about the prison trees, it was likely that John's power would be necessary for the job they were about to do and maybe get killed for. That did bring up the secondary question of whether the SPR really wanted to help get rid of the spirits—in essence, helping these awful people with a coverup. Maybe there was a way to leverage the spirits to help the SPR instead of the usual other way around…

"What are you thinking, Naru?" Monk asked.

Naru looked up, realizing he had been staring into space for the past half a minute. He braced himself and then nodded. "Fine. John, sit down. We have a lot of explaining to do." There was no backing out now.

To say Lin was afraid was an understatement. He was terrified. He was sitting in the back of a police car as it drove toward one of the many police stations in the city. He didn't know which one they were going to, but it didn't matter. He knew a bit about the Japanese legal system, but considering all of the confounds (the potential international incident, the possible cover up, officer Fusei's blatant prejudice, being accused of freaking espionage), his knowledge was borderline useless. He had every intention of doing what he did best—say nothing. He also was going to hire a lawyer, but he knew that the cops could start talking to him without one present.

They were taking an awfully long time to get to the station. The police car was turning onto a four-lane highway for some reason. Surely the police station wasn't that far away. His anxious confusion turned to dread when he realized which highway they were on. It was the one that would pass Amnity Park and the horrible woods. Lin's heartrate spiked. Was this it? Were they going to throw all protocol to the wind and just execute him then and there? He craned his neck to see through the rear view mirror, just to try and get a look at the officer who was driving.

Said officer was focused on the road. He didn't even spare Lin a glance. His eyes were fairly normal, if not annoyed at having to make this long trip. It was clear, no matter the case, that this driver was going out of his way either to pick him up or drop him off, and he wasn't happy about it. Lin knew from experience that no one liked extra work, and he hoped desperately that this officer was ignorant of the goings on rather than an active conspirator.

Lin squeezed his eyes shut as they passed the familiar stretch of woodland. It didn't help. The woods practically screamed out for him as they drove by, the shadows of their branches like claws gouging out pieces of his composure. Through the haze of fear, he noticed the officer shooting him a concerned glance. The officer almost cared enough to ask if he was okay. Almost.

The car pulled over next to a small police station in the little neighborhood on the other side of the living woods. They were still very near the dead wood, as well as Ayako's hospital. He put up no fight as the young officer guided him inside for processing. Except… he wasn't processed. No mugshot, no fingerprint. He didn't even get to see the machines. His breathing became light. They really were going to make him disappear. If he wasn't in the arrest records, then the station could very well say he wasn't even here. He looked up at the security camera, hoping that it was on and that the footage wouldn't be deleted. Fat chance of that.

He was guided downstairs and placed in a cell by himself. They didn't even take his cuffs off. He looked desperately at the officer who brought him through the station, hoping he would answer the unspoken questions. The young officer looked even more unsure than Fusei's rookie student. He opened his mouth, debating whether or not to offer Lin any clarity. Something must have given, as the cop said, "They told me to put you here for now. There's a problem with the machines. Processing will happen later."

Yeah, right. If that officer really believed that load of horse crap, then he belonged nowhere near the police system. Maybe politics, but not policing. Lin turned sideways, gesturing as best he could with his hands behind his back. The officer gave him one more sorry glance.

"They told me not to take those off you either. I'm not about to get written up for disobeying orders."

Lin shot him a look of disgust. To not even give him his hands back, that had to be a violation of something in and of itself. The officer shuffled away, looking anywhere but at Lin, leaving him in the small cell, by himself. Turning to see the other cells, he saw that nobody else was present. He truly was alone down here.

He opened his channels, contacting Water. It was far away now, creating some delay in their communication.

"Master, the Little Boss is working on a plan to save you," came Water's voice. "The two men came back today and asked your team to work on the woods, officially." Water sent him an image of Nakamura and Saito.

Lin sat down on the stiff bench and closed his eyes. "It's a trap."

"They already figured. Little Boss thinks they really need their help. The trap will be sprung after they outlive their usefulness."

Lin caught himself before he nodded at nothing. Should someone be spying on him, he didn't want to give them any ideas that he had a communication device. He did not need any strip searching, thank you very little.

"I've been relocated to the station at Eastern Village. I'm not downtown."

There was a pause. Hopefully Water could relate that to Masako. When Water next spoke, it did not make mention of it. Instead, it chose to relay Naru's plan of attack.

"Little Boss made them promise on two conditions—one, that they work with truthful information. Two, that you are allowed to work with them. We are not sure if we have agreement to the second, but Little Boss was told to meet up at ten tomorrow."

Great. Ten in the morning tomorrow. What was it now, one thirty? That meant that he would be in police custody for twenty hours, at minimum. And that was also considering that this deal would be honored. Lin was aware of just how little leverage the SPR had in regards to anything concerning this situation. The best they could do, aside from planning a total Ocean's Eleven heist was to reveal what they had learned and pray to every god they didn't believe in that they would be taken seriously. Step two would be to pray that their findings wouldn't incite war with China. That was the last thing anyone needed.

The door to the downstairs creaked open. Lin stood up, wanting to be in the least vulnerable position he could manage. He listened as two pairs of boots came down the stairs. Something was awfully familiar about one of those gaits, and Lin suddenly recalled the incident in his car with Fusei and his drivers license. The way Fusei had walked around his car, forcing him to just listen to his boots, was exactly what was happening now. And sure enough, Fusei and Hattori walked into view. Fusei's cruel eyes were boring straight into him. Worse than that was the slightest hint of an upturned smirk.

"What do you want to know?" Lin asked. Perhaps this could still be settled with just words.

"This is hardly the place for that," said Fusei. He gestured with a tilt of the head. Hattori unlocked the cell, and Fusei entered. Lin took a reflexive step backwards. Fusei lunged forward, striking Lin in the stomach with his baton. Lin's breath hitched and he let out a strangled, pained noise. The blow was too low to threaten any of his ribs, but it was strong enough to stun him. Fusei grabbed his left arm and pulled him out of the cell.

"Um, Sir, was that necessary?" asked Hattori.

"Never give them a chance to one-up you," Fusei said. Hattori's concerned expression did not fade.

Lin spared a glance toward Hattori. Perhaps the younger officer was his ticket to mercy. He formulated exactly what he needed to say. He only had one chance to get this right. Any wrong impression would scare the rookie cop away. Before he could speak, everything went dark.

To his surprise, he was not unconscious, and the sudden constriction of his breath wasn't because he was being strangled—there was a sensory deprivation helmet over his head. Oh. Oh no.

To Water, he sent a message. "I'm being relocated by Fusei. I don't know where. If I don't make it—"

Because of the helmet muffling his eyes and ears, he didn't notice Fusei's whispered chant, or the slicing motion Fusei made with his hand. All he knew was that suddenly, his tether to Water snapped, like a taut guitar string. Half the cord vanished into the void; the other half recoiled and struck Lin's spiritual core. It was one thing for a tether to break due to the destruction of a shikigami, or for the onmyoji to dissolve it willingly. It was another thing entirely for the tether to be severed, and Lin was unable to handle the strain a second time. His entire body seized. He threw his head back to scream, but he couldn't breathe. There were spots in his vision. His balance failed him, and his legs gave out. He collapsed to the floor, struggling for breath. His diaphragm would not cooperate, and his heart fluttered to a stop.

He felt something flip him onto his back. A pair of palms pushed into his chest, crushing him over and over. He could only feel the pressure. Pain was too complicated for his nerves to perceive. The helmet was ripped off his head, forcing him to stare at Fusei, looming over him while he thrust his hands into his chest without mercy or respite. A single voice echoed around him, like thunder in a tunnel. His body was jostled more, and he was vaguely aware of wires being pressed into his bare torso. A head shifted into view. Lin fixated on the cold, cruel eyes, staring down at him like a feral god.

A voice rang out. "Stand clear!"

The cold eyes moved out of sight. Lin's body suddenly jerked. His nerves were on fire. Like a great gust of wind, his consciousness was pulled back from the border between, and the here and now fell into focus. He heaved as his lungs finally pulled in the air he so desperately needed. He coughed, setting his ribs on fire. Experience told him that his ribs weren't broken—just bruised heavily.

"Nice try," Fusei said with a low tone, looming over him once more. "But you can't get away from us that easily." The officer's brow was slick with sweat, as he had been doing the CPR, while Hattori had retrieved the AED.

Lin wanted to respond, but he couldn't. His chest hurt too much, and he still hadn't caught his breath. Instead, he grit his teeth and glared, breathing through the pain. Fusei did this to him. Fusei nearly killed him. Fusei somehow knew about his shiki, and he was able to sever his tether to Water. Judging by the intense stare he had while looking down on Lin, Fusei enjoyed every moment of his suffering.

With a rough hand, Fusei helped him sit up, making him acutely aware of the pain in his hands and wrists. He had been on his back while receiving the CPR, and his hands were still cuffed together. So his hands had been under his body while Fusei crushed his sternum into his heart, trying to save his life, not because of his value as a human, but for the non-existent information in his head. Or for the sick pleasure of torturing him. It was a coin toss, really.

He was pulled up by his right shoulder to kneeling, and then to standing. He staggered, blood still remembering how to circulate through his body. He sent the most venomous glare he could manage at Fusei, the bastard.

"Uh, where are we taking him?" Hattori asked.

"To the underground block," said Fusei.

Hattori looked confused. Fusei gladly clarified. "It's where we take enemies of the state for interrogation."

"Interrogation?" Hattori exclaimed, eyes wide. "But he just had a heart attack!" Naïve, stupid Hattori.

"And now he's fine. And he'll stay fine as long as he tells us what we want to know. Isn't that right, you scum?" Lin couldn't stop the shaky exhale from escaping. The physical ordeal might have stopped as of now, but they were clearly determined to give him no respite.

"Uh, sir, I don't like this. I don't want to be part of this."

Lin's heart nearly stopped again. In fact, he felt a slight fluttering as Hattori said those words. If the rookie cop left, Lin would be alone with Fusei—which was the last thing in the world he wanted. Then again, if Hattori left, he could get help, maybe from a superior. Lin decided not to intervene. Not yet.

"You do what I tell you, boot. This is part of your training. Now put the helmet back on him. Remember, he's a Chinese spy. He doesn't deserve your empathy."

Hattori sent his T.O. an unsure look, but nevertheless, he put the sensory-deprivation helmet back on Lin. Unable to see or hear, Lin could only feel where they were going. He was acutely aware of the fact that his shirt was still open, leaving his torso exposed. He wasn't literally stripped bare, but it felt like it.

They walked him back up the stairs. He tried his best to keep track of where they were taking him, but there were so many twists and turns that he had completely lost his orientation. He was half sure that they had walked him through the entire police station twice, just to confuse him.

"Master!"

Lin nearly jumped. It was unlike Fire to yell at him. He then realized that Fire had been trying to get his attention for some time, but he was too out of it to notice.

"You're still here," was Lin's shaky reply. He felt Fire tense up in confusion.

"Of course I'm still here. What can I do? Give the command! I'll set them both on fire for you!"

Lin would have loved that. He would have ordered Fire to set the entire precinct ablaze. The problem was that he still didn't have his hands. While he could give commands to his shiki mentally, he needed to whistle to summon them fully into the mortal plane. That was how they were able to truly do damage. With his hands literally tied, his shiki were stuck in the spiritual plane. They could show themselves to mortals and interact with them to some degree, but it was hardly the same thing as enacting their forces upon the world.

"Just… stay with me?"

"Of course, Master."

Fire wrapped itself tighter around Lin's neck, projecting the warmth felt after coming in from a long walk through the snow. The hearth was alive, flickering with the comfort of the family nest.

Fusei pulled him to a stop, just as the floor gave way. His foot hit a ledge below the floor level. Lin then realized that Fusei was trying to take him down a flight of stairs. You have got to be kidding me, Lin thought. Nevertheless, Fusei pushed forward. Now ready for the downward angle, Lin slid his feet forward, feeling for the edge of the stairs. He nearly stumbled a few times, but Fusei held him tight. Why the officer didn't just let him fall to the bottom was lost on Lin. Maybe he didn't want to risk his prized "spy" breaking his neck on the next landing.

Once at the bottom, Fusei had to pull him upward to keep him from falling, thinking there was another step down. Why this officer thought pulling him blindfolded down the stairs was a remotely good idea was beyond Lin. Fusei pulled him down a long, straight corridor. And then they stopped. They stayed stopped for some time. He felt Fusei's body rumble as he spoke, presumably to Hattori, but the helmet did too good a job of muffling the voices around him.

"You're in a file room," Fire said. "The young one is moving boxes."

Lin had no idea where he was. File room had no meaning to him, aside from the room's purpose. And as for what on earth was going on was completely lost on him. Organizing a file room with a prisoner present was hardly interrogation 101. Though if the smell was anything to go by, these files had been covered in dust and damp air for a long time. Maybe they were clearing a space so that Fusei could disembowel him and call it a day.

A muffled voice spoke at him, but he couldn't make out the words. He did feel Fire freeze.

"What did he say?" Lin asked.

"He said that he'll let you keep me for now, but when the time is right, he'll kill me and make you watch."

Lin grit his teeth. He was unsure whether or not this was just big talk or a true threat. Fire's fur was bristling, tickling his chin and collarbone.

"He's a fool, both of them. The huli jing do not fall so easily!"

"At ease. Listen. If it comes to that, I will release you from your contract."

"No, Master. I refuse."

"Do not argue. You are precious to me. I will not have you sacrifice yourself for this."

Fire was about to respond. Lin could feel it take in energy to speak, but something plucked on its tether, like a finger on a taut rubber band. It didn't sever the tether, but it was enough to send shockwaves of pain to both Lin and Fire.

Lin could handle getting hurt. He could handle other people hurting him. He didn't care that the pull on his third tether was threatening to stop his heart once more. The sound of his grandfather's familiar shrieking in pain was too horrible for him to process.

Before he could comprehend what had happened, he felt a pair of hands push him from behind. He stumbled forward, but the floor in front of him was a step down. He tumbled onto his front, jostling his already bruised ribs. He felt cold stone on his bare stomach. It was rough, as though he was lying on cement instead of tiling or other more pleasant flooring. His chest was pressed onto a circular metal shape with tiny, patterned holes in it. A drain, his mind supplied. Well. This was it. He was going to die in here.

The deprivation helmet was once again ripped off his head. There was hardly any light inside, save for a single bare bulb suspended from the ceiling. How cliché. The wiring went through the ceiling to somewhere else. The room itself was tiny, just big enough for him to stretch his arms from side to side and not have his fingers touch the walls. There was nothing else in the room save for a cemented over window near the top, and a stone bench for sitting. Fusei naturally took a seat on the bench. He and Lin were alone. Hattori was presumably on the other side of the door, letting this happen. Fusei crossed his legs, resting his boot on the small of Lin's back, keeping Lin down.

Terrified yet resigned to his fate, Lin bared his teeth, showing Fusei a pretty snarl. If he was going to die, he would not go quietly, oh, no. He still had his pride, thank you. Fusei might not have known it, but Lin was going to fight to his last breath.

Fusei didn't look fazed in the slightest. He stared down at Lin with those cold, cruel eyes, a mocking, pleasant smile on his lips.

"Hello Weiguó. This brings back memories, doesn't it?"

Do note that all locations besides major ones (Tokyo, Japan, China, etc.) are fictional. You will not find them on google maps. I am unsure if I want Eastern Village to be more like a neighborhood in a city, or if it's a suburb adjunct. I hope this geographical nonchalance doesn't bite me later.