, this time with Akira. With the sleek red motorcycle secured to a lamppost by a heavy chain, the two of them followed the esoteric steps to the hidden laboratory. Into the Reverse, up to the altered Surface, and then into the forbidden fold of reality.

  "Neat route," said Akira as they walked under the dim violet sky. "Lazarus knows a thing or two about navigating alternative space."

  "Do you know much about it?" asked Erina.

  Static crackled at the edges of Akira's figure as she gave Erina a flat look. "Humans, youkai, most things only ever need to understand the three directions of space and an arrow of time," she said, "Passing to the Reverse is related to looking around your three dimensions and then choosing a fourth. Not exactly the same, but pretty close."

  "You mean there are more?"

  "Why would it stop at four?" Akira looked up at the unnatural sky. "There's Shinkai, the space where kami reside. You could interpret heaven and hell this way too. 'Course, how many people are going on trips there? Getting to the Reverse in the first place isn't easy. Every layer you peel back is another step away from the Surface—the natural state of existence for most things. Wandering any more than a few steps out would probably make your head explode."

  "But not yours?"

  "Oh, it has," muttered Akira, sardonic grin on her face. "So, are we moving or do you want to stand on this pier in a deadworld and chat all day?"

  Erina didn't respond. She was looking out over the water.

  "You know the basics of entropy, right?" said Akira.

  "Yes," said Erina. "Why are you bringing it up?"

  "Think for a second. Do you really want to hang out in this fold of reality for long?"

  "I don't."

  "Then what's the holdup?"

  Erina looked around. The suffocating presence, overbearing on her first visit here, was gone now. "Eve," she mumbled. "Were you—?"

  The still air shifted. Erina shivered under the light breeze that blew past. She knew, without knowing how, that somewhere out there, beyond her vision, an eye opened and turned towards her.

  "What was that?" said Akira. "Speak up, will you?"

  "Never mind." Erina adjusted her skirt. Names had power. It was best she didn't utter that one so freely.

  They touched down in the dark landing hall. The main door stood tall before them, faint blue light running along the grooves cut into it. Erina could hear Akira moving around behind her, feeling the walls in this enclosed space. They didn't have much more room than an elevator.

  "Sectioned void space," mused Akira. "Real neat."

  Erina didn't have an eye for these sorts of things. She was well aware she was uneducated enough to have no idea about the significance of these otherworldly spaces. She set those thoughts aside for later and grabbed the door's handle. A deep thunk of shifting locks, and the heavy barrier swung open.

  "I'm home," she called into the clean white halls.

  The wall moved. Panels lifted free on thin metal limbs, sky blue cameras staring back at her, and then they retracted. A low vibration ran through the floor. Machinery whirred loudly, large heavy parts slotted into place, and the wall opened entirely.

  "Erina!" Lazarus rushed out of the library suddenly right next to the entrance, sweeping up her daughter in a hug. "Welcome home!"

  "Tight," Erina managed to squeeze out. "Too tight again." But after a moment, she reciprocated in kind.

  "I'm glad to see you again," said Lazarus. Looking up, she added, "And this is…?"

  Akira watched the library draw back from the hole in the wall, briefly exposing the dark empty space the bunker was suspended in. She glimpsed the entire library descending to return to its proper place before the wall closed back up, panels slotting into place to restore the structure of the hall.

  "Akanaga Akira," she introduced herself, hands in her pockets and an easy smile on her lips. "Lazarus, yeah?"

  "Erina told me about you." Lazarus got up and extended her hand. "Thank you for taking care of her all this time." As Akira shook her hand, Lazarus added, "And for taking care of my Shinjuku property while I was gone."

  Akira clicked her tongue. "Another hand in the pot, huh?"

  "It's not about the money. But there's better places to have a chat. Shall we sit down?"

  Lazarus led them to a place Erina didn't expect to see at all—an outdoor balcony overlooking a lush garden. The grass and flowers swayed with the wind. Birds chirped out in the distance. The sun shone down, bright and warm.

  "Gotta say, not what I thought would be here." Akira seated herself at the round marble table. "Figured you'd be more of the high-tech shut-in type."

  "Staying in touch with the outdoors is important," said Lazarus. "When you're wanted by half the apocalypse, you learn to make do."

  "Impressive work, gotta admit!"

  Erina looked out over the balcony. The air was crisp and clean, but that refreshing breeze didn't move in time with the currents flowing through the plants. The railing was marble to the eye but cold metal to the touch. The birds chirped in the same repeating pattern—a few notes, a pause, a rising trill, a longer song, and then extended silence. If she flicked something over the edge, she was sure it'd bounce off thin air a few meters away without ever reaching the larger picture.

  "Erina, won't you join us?" called Lazarus.

  "Coming," called Erina back.

  They all sat down on the bench around the table. Erina nursed a glass of apple juice. Akira had one leg up on the bench, beer can swinging idly in her hand. Lazarus sipped her coffee.

  "I went through the gate," opened Erina.

  This story has been stolen from Royal Road. If you read it on Amazon, please report it

  "Which gate?" Lazarus looked at her inquisitively. "You don't mean…"

  "At the bottom of the old laboratory."

  "You opened Eden's Gate?!" Lazarus drew herself back, pursing her lips tightly. "…Then you must have met her. That was the answer you went back for?"

  "It was."

  Lazarus' shoulders fell. "And you know who you really are."

  "I do." Erina made sure to catch her gaze and hold it. "That's why you created me, wasn't it? You wanted Eve back… You were willing to do anything to achieve it."

  Lazarus lapsed into silence.

  Akira's attention shifted to the open grass.

  Erina didn't let her gaze move away from Lazarus.

  "…Back when we started," began Lazarus. "We called it thaumaturgy at first. She had me begin with herbal remedies. As our knowledge expanded, we called it alchemy. And as time went on, the name changed to chemistry."

  Lazarus' coffee swirled gently in her hands.

  "I never doubted her," she said quietly. "Not once in the thousands of years we spent together. I trusted her. I knew her better than anyone… but I had never seen her smile. Not a single time. She always looked forward—eyes on the horizon, seeing everything wrong in the world that drove her to change it. Until she couldn't bear to look at the world anymore."

  Akira surreptitiously turned her chair away from the table to face out into the garden. This conversation was between mother and daughter.

  "I'm not God," said Lazarus. "None of us are. I can't truly bring back the dead… certainly not after what happened to her. And I can't create a new life from nothing either. My research was a dead end. A physical body could be made, but even my most perfect recreation of a brain failed to produce activity. It was missing something—the essence that made humans human. It lacked a soul."

  Lazarus looked up at Erina.

  "I used hers," admitted Lazarus. "I reopened the gate at the bottom of the laboratory, entered what lay beyond, and clawed back the shards of ego that were once the person I admired so much. I bleached the fragments and reassembled them into a blank slate… one that would receive you." Her eyes wandered off to the side. "It was a selfish wish, but I wanted to offer her peace in some way. The happiness she threw away."

  "Wasn't your goal to continue?" asked Erina.

  "No," whispered Lazarus. "I didn't follow her for her ideals. I never did. I just… I only ever wanted to repay the person who made me everything I am. For that, I was willing to do anything. Whether it meant killing for her sake, or designing the system that would raze the world to the ground… or tearing apart what little remained of her. All to satisfy my own ego."

  "Was it really that selfish?" said Erina. "Is wishing for the happiness of others wrong?"

  "That's a very difficult question." A faint half-laugh passed Lazarus' lips. "Philosophy was never my strong suit."

  "Is the reason you care for me—"

  "I care for you." Lazarus put her foot down on that one. "Everything I told you before, I meant it. How you came to be, and the reasons I brought you into this world… That's all in the past. I want Erina to be happy, as herself." A weary smile formed on her face. "At this point, that's enough for me."

  "What about this world? What about your goals from back then? What about her?"

  "Let them be," said Lazarus. "They're not your burden to carry."

  Something about it didn't sit right with Erina. "Was she wrong? To wish for a better world."

  Conflict. Pain filled Lazarus' expression as she looked off to the side. "I don't know," she said quietly. "I'm still wondering the same thing."

  An uncomfortable silence settled over the table. The warm wind tousled Erina's hair. Even if everything around her looked and felt so light and gentle, there was a weight in her chest she couldn't seem to push away.

  "Akira," said Lazarus. "Did you know?"

  "Had a pretty good idea," said Akira, still facing out past the balcony with beer in hand. "We dug up the laboratory of the Third Harbinger, Josef Lazarus. Ground zero of Darius and Eve's famous showdown. And we stumble across a girl with no past, locked up in the deepest part we could find. How couldn't she be connected to you all?"

  Akira took a swig of her beer.

  "Erina, ever heard this saying?" said Akira. "Fight determined to die, and live. Fight determined to live, and die. That was dangerous as all hell, what you did." Looking over her shoulder, she grinned at Erina. "But that's the best way for you to live—as you. I wouldn't have it any other way. Glad you're with us."

  "I see," mumbled Erina. "Thank you, Akira."

  "Now then." Akira rejoined them and firmly set her chair down at the table. "It's been a hot minute since you've seen your mom, yeah? How 'bout you tell her what you've been up to?"

  Erina nodded. She recounted what had occurred since she last saw Lazarus—her encounter with Asayuki and Darius, the battle with Julian, the fight with Akira, and the clash against the Great Witch. Akira listened alongside Lazarus, one leg tapping quietly against the floor to work out some energy.

  "We came here to transport this to a more secure location." Erina opened her backpack and set the shrunken sealed dragon on the table in front of here. "I hope that's okay with you."

  "It's not a problem at all," said Lazarus, "But, going back—you said you fought Julian?"

  "He wanted to arrest me."

  "Not kill? And you defeated him? Even though he knew? I'm surprised."

  "I am too," said Erina. "I think I got lucky. I don't know if I can surprise him a second time…"

  "It's not just that," mused Lazarus. "What you described sounds nothing like the man I knew. He was an untouchable monster, cutting down anyone before they knew he even existed. A force of nature you could never see coming, let alone hope to prepare for. Unpredictable, inescapable, like an incarnation of death itself."

  "Then how did I defeat him?"

  "The Association, I presume. He's still working for them. His service under Eve wouldn't wash away with a few words of apologies. To ensure he stayed under their control, I imagine they sealed him. Whether it was geas, ritual, or Darius' intervention, I don't know, but whatever he is now must be the smallest fraction of what he used to be."

  Erina nodded, taking it in. "Akira, do you know much about him?"

  "Some," she said. "He's the only actual business guy in the Three Equalizers. The three of them split up the main responsibilities of the Association among each other. Darius' official title is manager of public relations, but what that actually means is post-incident cleanup and mind-wiping. Asayuki is conflict resolutions first mediator—in other words, leader of the 'peacemaking' unit. Julian is head of intel, but in practice, he manages all three departments. The other two, they act more like special operations or figureheads than corporate suits." She took a quick swig of her beer and grinned. "And he's a real hardass when it comes to striking a deal."

  "That's another thing," said Lazarus. "You said Darius was there too. He really let you into the lab?"

  "He was… nice about it," said Erina. "I didn't expect it." A thought occurred to her and she perked up. "Maybe we can talk it through with him. You can come back with us, without having to hide."

  "Don't," said Lazarus quickly. But when the knee-jerk reflex wore off, she thought it over more carefully. "Well, but… back then, it was a matter of circumstances. If he's still working with Julian… and he let you walk away… is he really…?" She trailed off, muttering more to herself than anyone else.

  It confused Erina. Darius gave off a laid-back, cavalier impression. It was like he barely belonged in his position, never mind living up to all the other titles and feats attributed to him. How he acted and how people talked about him seemed at complete ends with each other.

  "But at the end of the day, you came back to see me," said Lazarus. "You—Erina. What matters is you're here now. What do you want to do moving forward?"

  "I'm still not sure. Ideals, goals… I think I need to gather more information before making a decision."

  "That's a fine path to take."

  "I know I want to stay with Akira. I want to see more of the world. There's so much I don't know about living a normal life that I want to learn."

  Lazarus tensed up.

  Those words hung in the air before Erina snapped to attention. "I didn't mean to imply—"

  "No, it's true," said Lazarus. "I can't give you a normal life. Not by myself, in this lonely retreat. There's a whole bright world outside of these walls that you deserve to explore for yourself. And if you ask me… that would be the best way for you to understand that woman."

  The first hint of a frown crossed Erina's expression.

  "You don't need to agree with her. But no matter what lies ahead of us…" Lazarus offered her a smile. "Broadening your worldview can only do you good. After all, isn't that what being a scientist is all about?"

  Erina considered those words. The traces of hesitation faded, and she nodded.

  "Hate to break the moment," said Akira, "but we've still got this lying around." She nudged the sealed dragon on the table. The talismans had changed, dark faded ink slowly transitioning to a glowing red. "A stasis chamber would be good, yeah?"

  "Good point." Lazarus carefully picked up the dragon, nesting it in her arms as they got up. "Care to stay the night while you're here? Your rooms are that way, around the corner, two floors down, and on the left. Feel free to wander around! If you need anything, all you have to do is say my name—I'll hear."

  "That better not work in the bathroom," snarked Akira.

  "Oh! Right. I'll have to disable those later. Have a good stay, you two!" Lazarus hurried down the hall, muttering to herself. "…absolute marvel of a specimen, need to… every bit I can…"