Per the Special Anti-Terrorism Measures Act,
we now place all terminals in the designated area under Public Security's electronic control.
Anticipating that cyberterrorism
against Harimadara Heavy Industries will lead
- to a shutdown of operations... - HQ to Squad 357.
Transfer command to Section 9.
This is Priority One.
Murderers!
Give back our water!
Despite increasingly fierce protests,
a contract has just been signed
between a Kuzan water company and the Japanese giant, Harimadara Heavy Industries.
"Give water!"
Let's get started.
All channels within the revised limits are clear.
Home Affairs and MLIT lines under our control.
Now ready for domination.
Begin the operation.
All lifelines, surveillance, and personal electronics in nearby building and roads are now dominated.
Currently profiling cyberbrains and terminals of 4,022 people in the area.
1,102 still require follow-up.
Aramaki! This is my crime scene! Damn it! You can't take over.
This is Section 6. You are not authorised to infiltrate our comm lines!
I'm not going to tolerate civilian casualties beacuse we're too busy playing departmental musical chairs!
Unless one of you would like to take the fall when all this blows up in our face!
Chief Aramaki, please explain yourself.
Ah, Vice-Minister Kitahara,
I thought you were busy celebrating this new business partnership?
So the threat you warned me about is real?
Although the details are still scarce, we received an anonymous tip that a Qhardi group mobilized three hours ago.
Anonymous?
Are you certain you can trust it?
Yes, without a doubt. The area around the Yotsubashi Building is their target.
Hmmp, the old ape is sure fired up, isn't he, especially considering we're flying blind here.
The cyber contamination at Harimadara was a big deal.
We've been after this outfit for four months now.
And by "We", you mean you, right?
Wow! Did you make this yourself, Major?
It ain't a toy, rookie. Hands off.
This is a military-grade virtual comm link.
That means we won't have any hackers listening in.
We should receive our orders any minute. The domination went through.
We need bait to draw out our prey. We should nab one of those terrorists asap.
So are we dealing with that super-wizard-class hacker from before? Fire Starter, was that the name?
That's just wishful thinking on the Major's part.
We don't even know if there's really someone pulling the strings or not.
My only wish is to establish my spec ops team.
Unless you want to bitch and moan about that.
Oh, piss off.
- Driving during a cyber meeting? You're gonna crash. - This from the guy who can't walk and chew gum.
Our future as an independent unit is riding on this mission.
Public Security handles the incident, and we handle what caused it.
Let's move.
Enemy issued an attack order.
Apprehend them!
Screw your country... You rich bastards don't understand a thing!
Today, we all followed the principle of free trade
to maintain fair prices that will spur post-war economic recovery.
This pistol was his only weapon. Something's fishy.
The riot squad opened fire on the protesters!
The west team is just picking off these protesters.
Now they're shooting each other too!
This must be a massive simultaneous Ghost Hack.
Sounds crazy, but that's the only explanation.
There's no tech capable of controlling 100 people at once.
The perps on my watch are all dead.
Check the riot squad's lines and try and find out what caused the attack.
This log could be Fire Starter's, but...
So it's not hacking but a virus, huh?
Yeah, I don't see one in the sequence.
Must be a self-destructing Stuxnet-type.
That means someone is sending a packaged set of actions designed to control an entire group at once.
There you are.
Yes, I made a deal with the devil for the independence and rebirth of my nation!
But in the end, this is exactly what you want, isn't it?
And now we all reap the rewards of our naivete.
Our slaughter brought about by guns was followed by another brought about by water and money!
- I want immediate blackout now.
I don't care what it takes, you hear?
You brought that to line your pockets. It didn't bring an ounce of hope to Qhardistan!
It merely sowed the seeds of betrayal
that would grow to bleed away the pride of my people!
Why don't I give you a taste of what that felt!
Then you'll have no choice but to grant me asylum, won't you?
Because that's the way of your civilized nation, a pacifist!
Oh, is it?
Optical camouflage!
This won't get rid of Fire-Starter.
Someone is hacking into my line!
Major!
Saito!
Damn it!
Hello!
Give me a weapon!
Okay!
Hold on Major, I'll be right there!
You're kidding me! I'm fine. Go after the one who hacked me!
On your knees!
If you resist, I will shoot you.
Where did that come from?
Well, if you did your damn job then we might know!
Oopsy daisy! Those aren't hands.
We need to get you some new handrails!
Do it, Saito.
Yeah, he got away, sorry!
"Section 9 Office"
A bunch of fools!
You finally get your team together and the first thing you do is execute someone live on the National Net!
Oh, did I? Do you have any proof of that?
And don't you tell me that was your only option.
You're a super-wizard-class hacker in an ace unit.
Well, now I'm starting to second guess the Army's decision to give you five stars.
What did you find out about the virus and that girl on the scene?
No cyber-virus was detected anywhere. The girl's name is Emma Tsuda.
Apparently she's famous on the Net as some sort of game app designer.
Nine hours after her arrest, that's it?
If that's the best a former Special A Rank inspector can pull, then I'm afraid
I might have to second guess the Army's judgement myself.
Say what you will but thanks to the dedicated efforts of my team, we were able to capture several of the perps alive.
Wow, great work arresting a bunch of mindless packaged drones.
We could've stopped this whole mess if we'd had special authority.
Then swallow your useless pride and join Section 9 already.
I can't give a group of hired guns the same
authority and protection I could give to official Home Affairs agents.
I'm mostly concerned about protecting my being.
Our cutting-edge equipment can guard both cyberbrains and prosthetic bodies.
I was talking about my Ghost. My beliefs.
If your're good enough, I'll give you a personal budget.
I want an international counterterrorist agency
and I want us to have the same budget as the Rangers.
I think I'm gonna grab a bite to eat.
Aramaki, it's been a while.
Hello, Colonel Hozumi. What brings Army intelligence here?
I need you to hand over the girl.
Care to explain?
Don't worry about those two, I assure you they're trustworthy.
Ex-major Motoko Kusanagi, of the 501.
Hated your master so much, you decided to become a stray, did you?
You should check your intel. I'm still a Major.
At any rate, the cyber-virus used is crucial for us to investigate.
I don't suppose you could elaborate on that, could you?
It's a triple package of brainwashing, Ghost infiltration, and false memory creation.
False memories? Last I checked, the government doesn't admit that sort of thing is possible,
despite all the reports that come in.
The bottom line is that virus units like that would have entered the country through a broker.
You won't get an indictment on that girl. Just forget about it and hand her over.
Unfortunately, she's already been transferred to Unit 501.
When?
When they requested my cooperation and not a second later.
I see you've got a monkey's brain to go along with that face of yours.
Mark me if you like but you will live to regret this.
Terrorism through the use of false memories...
It seems your claims have finally been proven true, Major.
Knowing there's a virus that enables Ghost-hacking is little solace.
Hope you're ready: I'll need you to escort the girl to Unit 501.
Really? I honestly thought you were bluffing.
I have a request signed by the Defense Minister. I like one of your men to stay here though.
Someone to protect you from that your scary old colleague of yours?
Speaking of old colleagues, let's try to share information with yours.
Can I ask you something?
Yes.
Let's say I did execute that woman...
... why didn't you use my Ghost infiltration key to stop me?
I don't like hypothetical questions.
I see.
This is Dr. Zhinzhee Bekka Arr Thied, the one the Major killed.
She's Qhardi, but she graduated with honours from Kuzan Royal University.
She was a big player in Kuzan water importation since back in the provisional government days.
But she started doing business with terrorists when she realized the world had turned its back on her people, huh?
She was smart and she had a motive, but she's not a hacker.
Someone else must have packaged this.
So got any info on that girl we captured?
Her name's Emma Tsuda. A 17-year-old war orphan.
She a popular cyberbrain game designer. Copyrights her work under the designer, "Tin Man."
"Tin Man"... like The Wizard of Oz?
What the hell is that?
- In spite of everything, I still believe - All right, so let's say she's a teenage super-hacker, how does she fit in?
--That people are really good at heart. - You really think she's the one we're after?
- I wish to go on living even after my death. - I'll know for sure when I dive into her Ghost, won't I?
Ishikawa, you stick to your research. Saito, to Section 9.
Paz and Borma, you release the bait.
Batou, you and Togusa, come with me to escort the girl.
It's time to start round two.
Here's a suggestion before our brave leader pushes us into a situation with no intel again.
Instead of charging in like a chicken with its head cut off, why don't you let me lead this so we can stay alive?
Brave thing to say in my cyberbrain space.
You want to fight, let's take this outside!
Oh whoa, hey! Knock it off, you guys!
He's finally making his move.
Think the guy was trying to bore us to death!
It might be better if we can ride inside this thing.
I think you'll find my serial personnel transportation handlebars to be more than adequate!
This is just a crappy form of transportation.
It's more of a mobile arsenal. We need room inside for the weapons.
Yeah, but we can resupply each other just fine. Then we can arm his exterior and use him as a backup unit.
Some backup.
Remind me why we're using an outdated Logistics model again?
Ape-Face couldn't get the budget the Major wanted, so we're stuck with this charming piece of work.
It's actually got a neurochip-type AI, dated as hell but hard to hack, at least.
So essentially, it was either us or the junkyard.
Oh, huh, not good enough for the ex-cop wearing a purple necktie that went out of style decades ago?
My late father told me a sharp dressed man has respect for himself and demands it from others.
And looking at the state that you're in, I have to agree.
Bold words with that haircut.
Did you hear what Mr. Batou said, Major? He wants to modify us so people can ride inside!
I'm so excited. That's super cool, right? Don't you think?
What I think is that you're annoying. I hate it when machines pretend to have human emotions.
She's here.
Did you hack my line to deliberately get yourself caught?
So who is this "Fire-Starter"? Is it really the name of a hacker?
You don't want me to hand you off to Intelligence. Military courts won't do plea bargains, you know.
Is that seawater I smell?
Strange that I know since I'm not allowed to go anywhere near the sea.
Programmers are like weapons: at least, according to the law. We've had our freedoms taken away.
So you are the group's hacker. What are you after?
Long ago, glassblowers had no freedom either, that's because glasswork funded the state.
If they attempted to leave the country, they were blinded or worse.
A refugee, and that's reason enough to start a massacre?
Do you think cyberbrains make people happy?
Are your memories trustworthy? How can you know that they weren't planted by someone?
When micromachine-based cyberization became a common place occurence, experts worldwide warned us all of the same thing:
"False memories will be used to commit crimes." they said.
Now every organization wants that technology. My technology.
Then you actually did make memory-manipulation tech?
Even the memories you have now, they could be...
I don't have time for this crap. I'm diving into her Ghost!
I had a feeling that would happen.
We still don't know a damn thing about this virus though. What're gonna do if you get infected?
I think blowing away her cyberbrain should do the trick.
That wasn't my original intention but any hacker who would commit mass murder just to save her own tail deserves capital punishment.
Yeah, but during your dive?
Your style of cyber warfare is sick, you know that?
I prefer the term "super-wizard-class."
"Wizard"... a magician. A magician who can't go home...
I'm diving straight in through her line.
Ignoring protocol again.
Hey, something's wrong.
You're being hacked! They're doing it through her cyberbrain!
What's going on? This is more than backfire!
Emma... Danger... Emma...
Who are you?
Major!
I'm so sorry, Emma... I'm so sorry.
It's okay. This is what I wanted after all.
Please don't cry, Brinda.
There's another one, a second Ghost.
If Section 9 was so adamant about killing that woman,
you, at least, could have shot her before she started preaching about asylum.
The details of the incident are still under investigation, Deputy Director Amagata,
but I do realise you're a member of the Next-Generation Weapons Review Committee, of course.
You have my sympathies. I'm sure this has already turned into quite a nuisance for you.
The year-end industry fair has been cancelled.
And thanks to pressure from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs,
we won't be unveiling our prototype weapons anytime soon.
It's shaking the foundations of the entire company.
On the other hand, I hear you're still pressing for large-scale water sales even after Dr. Thied's death.
I have a duty to fulfill my contract.
Besides, effective use of resources is key for an international company.
There are people out there who can't secure drinking water.
If you're just going to criticize my economics, I'm going back to work.
You're not cut out for government job, I'm afraid.
Why don't you start an NPO and go live in some refugee camp.
That guy is annoying.
He's a classic ex-politician, and he owes me one from my intelligence days.
So if nothing else, he's a reliable source.
NPO refugee camp... and maybe Foreign Affairs?
The council on weapons development!
Was that the objective behind the cyberterrorism on Harimadara?
Lately there's a debate about whether next-gen weapons
should be produced domestically or developed abroad.
The overseas faction will be dancing in the streets if a domestic manufacturer got attacked.
I got something: an NPO that "treats cyberization disorders."
This particular group distributed resources and donated learning devices
to refugee camps in Kuzan during the war.
Nothing domestically?
Nyah. Got a hit on that girl in their treatment records.
Cyberization rejection syndrome, it says.
Apparently, she ran away
from a war orphan facility because she refused to be cyberized.
So if you don't want a cyberbrain, then you're sick?
The white paper on cyberization the MHLW released after the war
classifies it as a mental disorder.
Well, that's news to me.
The cyberization business is insanely big money.
I'm sure they got a hand in the government and everything else so it's no surprise to see them pull something like this.
And do you think she has multiple personalities?
Convention wisdom says that even if your personality splits, you still only have one Ghost.
My question is, what did that NPO
have to do with a business deal motivated by military development?
It looks like we'll have to attack the military-industrial complex from both ends.
Hey, it's me. I'm afraid the others got caught.
Don't worry, you've all gone to the same place now.
Hello, there!
You guys cops?
Wait, I've prepared a confession, okay. Let me call my lawyer and... Yargh!
Actually, we're not the police so no lawyer.
Killing our bait wasn't very nice. So who you're gonna need you to talk?
Did our little girl miss her old family?
I'm just bringing in your witness, Lt. Col. Kurutsu.
Tsumugi is standing by. If you want to dive, then be my guest.
Assuming she has a Ghost.
What does that mean?
Either way, I'm stepping out.
As a member of the committee, I need to be at Harimadara's product inspection.
Still obsessed with getting that promotion, I see.
If I can't count on you to do it, then somebody has to.
Nice to see you, Kusanagi.
I didn't think we'd have another opportunity to work with you.
Are these your men?
Yes. Batou and Togusa.
This is Tsumugi Dokuro. They're both cyber warfare tactical officers.
Did she say "Both"? Like two people are sharing a body?
She told me they were identical twins operating as one.
As far as how the hell they get around, well, I didn't ask.
The world's full of surprises.
Let's us begin, shall we?
Hah, guess only the body came back.
What does that mean?
This girl is a technical officer in Lt. Col. Kurutsu's command.
She was recently investigating a hacker with a special neurochip-type cyberbrain.
"Scarecrow" is his handle,
a suspect in the terrorist attack on Harimadara.
Scarecrow, huh? Another Oz character.
Huh?
Our conclusion was that he's a spy that specializes in post-war tech.
We have imminent effect for that one.
She told us that he had the same disorder as her, meaning he could only survive by slowly
but surely replacing his brain with neurochips
in his body with cyborg parts.
In her case, what exactly does that entail?
Patients utilising auxiliary cyberbrains to prevent attenuation of personality
although this is certainly an impairment in the transform to that in the signature trait as the Scarecrow.
in a structured personality through advanced cyberization which was more benign
in Scarecrow's approach.
To attain his sense of self, he dubs the Ghosts of others,
steals their bodies, and assumes their identities.
In other words, this is his answer to the quandary if I only had a brain.
This is insane.
I see, then Emma...
The body is technically hers but it is being operated by a man's brain
which is only one-third the normal size and heavily cyberized with neurochips.
So what I dove into before was a Ghost that had been dubbed over by the Scarecrow guy.
Wait, so what happened to Emma's brain?
Ghost dubbing would've degraded it, I think.
It's either in the trash or sliced up in his research lab.
That's awful...
Poor Emma. I'm sorry.
It's okay, Junior. Don't be afraid.
I know the lions will come. People with courage will come...
It's time to start talking. Tell me who you work for.
I'm just a scarecrow. My brain is fading away.
I'm made of tin. My heart is fading away.
Is that Emma talking, or her dubbed Ghost? Sounds like there's two of them.
All right, Tin Girl, give me the scarecrow man's name.
His name is Brinda Jr. but please don't blame him for this.
Got a hit at a post-war nursing home! Looks like the same NPO is involved with it too.
Brinda Jr., age 32.
After he was cyberized, he became an accountant at an employment agency.
Says here he had difficulty in socialising,
but memorized a 200-digit number in seconds for an IQ test.
A common characteristic for someone with a cognitive disorder like his.
Find out which organization set him up as a hacker.
Roger.
All right, stand by. I'm going to dive into his Ghost.
There are only a handful of double Ghosts that have ever been recorded.
We can't see what dangers are involved.
I want to know which of those Ghosts is really pulling the strings here.
You're doubting Emma? She's clearly the victim.
I'll be the judge of that.
And Batou, I want you ready just in case they try to back-hack me.
Two against two, huh? I like those odds better.
Togusa. I'll need you to copy all the data.
Roger. Hold on, I just got a call from my dad.
Hey Dad, it's been a while. Yeah.
Batou! Restrain Togusa!
You got it. I'll become the Lion.
You've got to get rid of this old gun!
Stay right there!
You're okay?
Let's go.
This is insane! I found a Starter log on his comm - it's the virus!
He must have kept the virus dormant within his neurochips.
His infiltration was lightning fast.
So, it would cause feelings of hostilities from the victims, imprints those
feelings on to nearby objects and transpose them all at once.
I can use deadly force, right?
Unless you want to take a permanent vacation.
You'll like that, wouldn't you?
The scarecrow is the virus's host and now Togusa's brain is the package, right?
Yeah, but the route of infection is disturbingly selective
as it's only happening to people around you.
Does that mean the onset can be controlled remotely?
If there's a third party to switch it on, that's feasible, at least,
which will be pretty handy when it comes to damage control.
Then it's military. Reanalyze yesterday's infection data.
We don't want to chase the virus; we want to chase the enemy in possession of it.
I wish to go on living even after my death.
There's hidden data?
For the following 620 reasons, we oppose mandatory cyberization and elect that it should be implemented by free choice only.
Reason no. 1: We submit that software within the cyberbrain
is vulnerable to third-party tampering which presents a wide number of possible negative consequences.
Reason no. 2: Electronic alteration of memory in any shape or form can cause irreparable abnormalities
in the totality of our independent will referred to as the "Ghost."
A perfect world without infection or infiltration, do you think it's just that simple?
Tsumugi! You alive?
I'm running a sim of the scarecrow's brain.
You have Emma Tsuda's Ghost infiltration key, don't you? Make me a backdoor.
I see, you're going to use Scarecrow's cyberbrain structure
to approximate a vaccine for the virus.
Reason no. 9: There are currently seventeen possible ways to alter our memories and that number is likely to increase.
Shit!
Hey, Major! Why won't you use my Ghost infiltration key to stop this?
It's no use. Brinda won't let her.
I will become anyone. I've inputted and erased so many Ghosts.
I don't know who I am. I disappeared too.
Are you saying Unit 501 was a target as well? Damn it! Are you the victim here or not?
I'm afraid there was no other way.
Just tell me what you're after?
You can't disappear, Emma.
Don't be afraid. We'll both go on living even after our deaths.
They're here.
An attack barrier!
Oh, now what!
Colonel!
They fighting each other with attack barriers. One of them got forwarded to me.
Stronger than ours...
I'm afraid you were infiltrated for a moment.
Delete all relevant operational information from the cyberbrain Net.
We're going after Brinda. There's nothing left to do here.
Damn stray dog...
Looks like we pulled it off somehow.
Yeah, well, the host and starter are still active.
We can see the ocean, Emma.
Ah, this is even starting to creep me out.
What have we got?
Col. Hozumi from Army intelligence was the one to recruit Brinda Jr.
"Scarecrow" was an op cooked up by their old Investigations Section
during a period when they were working on devices to perform Ghost dubbing.
Hozumi was able to get in on the Next-Gen Weapons Review Committee through her work in the Foreign Affairs Department.
Anyway, she didn't hold the position for long. It was her good friend, Kurutsu, of Unit 501 who took her seat.
Vice-Minister Kitahara recommended her.
So after a lucky round of military job shuffling, Unit 501 was able to keep Hozumi in check.
Reason no. 26: Even putting aside arguments concerning the moral implications of memory manipulations,
false memories have proved to compell victims to commit suicide,
murder or other criminal acts. --So then which one of them built the pod?
I can't say. He knows that Hozumi and Army intelligence decided to rally by interfering with the Review Committee though.
I'd guess that somewhere during that mess, the two hackers became aware of each other.
You think the attack on Harimadara is the connection?
Unfortunately, we don't have any evidence that they did it.
But Hozumi is in the overseas weapons development faction,
and Harimadara's a domestic faction stronghold.
Who's the guy who shot our bait?
He's a hitman from a Kuzan water cartel. Colonel Hozumi isn't afraid to play with fire to get what she wants.
She used the pretext of wartime industry
to stick her nose into Kuzan's affairs while she was stationed there during the war.
If she can't keep the domestic faction in check and give the cartel the profits she promised,
they'll snuff her out without a second thought.
And the Fire Starter virus?
Couldn't pin down the trigger, but I caught a pretty
obvious red flag when I analysed the events.
even though Section 9 had domination over the building where the virus showed up, we couldn't find the infection route.
Turns out, it was a C4ISR network.
A military communications system then.
I think I get the picture now.
Col. Hozumi is the one who activated virus Starter
and patched the virus through to infect security in the VIP room.
The target was the woman the guard shot.
Senior Vice-Minister Kitahara, who's with the domestic faction.
That whole massacre was a smokescreen for one murder?
Guess the lady likes staring wars.
Okay, fine but why snipe Tin Girl?
That was a feint.
And an effective one seeing as we conveniently delivered Tin Girl safely to 501 headquarters.
So her performance to Section 9 was fake as well?
It didn't matter if Harimaki was bluffing since she could target 501 either way.
And out of convenience was setting up anti-cyberbrainist, Emma Tsuda, as the massacre's ringleader.
Harimadara, 501, Kitahara, she came up with one plan to take down all three!
What about the Ghost of the girl who got dubbed?
If she does still have a will of her own, why'd she knowingly let Hozumi drag her into this mess?
Whether she's cognizant of these events or not, I think the Scarecrow is the one you're after here.
Well, he didn't necessarily write the virus. Hozumi did say that there was a broker.
If she was telling the truth, then someone out there made and sold it.
That's who I'm after.
That's all speculation although our path is pretty straight forward if you're looking to settle this once and for all.
I assume you have Togusa's location. We'll meet en route.
We're going to capture both Ghosts-- the scarecrow's, and the girl's.
Togusa's the problem.
If you want to blow the brains out of your own teammate, a married one, don't ask me to do it.
We do know for sure that this infection plants false memories, right?
He used a gun as a phone to talk to his dead father.
Since it should be similar to the virus I had
I'll get infected, then you ID it and version up the makeshift vaccine you used before.
You want to mirror your own brain?
Worst case scenario, just put a bullet in my head.
So now killing teammates is my job.
If you don't like it, you can always make me the leader.
A checkpoint?
Damn it! It says you're a suspected terrorist!
Ah, it must be Section 9! The ape used to be in Army intelligence after all.
Probably cut a deal with Hozumi to frame us!
Or maybe that's what she wants us to think. I'll send our intel to Section 9.
You're counting on that monkey even at a time like this?
- Not exactly. - Okay, then what?
My Ghost told me to. Consider it a hunch.
Wait! Where are you going?
Stop, right there!
We promised we'd go far away together.
Goodbye.
All right, I released the package!
I'm going on ahead.
I told you to shoot if things go south! Take a damn gun with you...
Major...
Crap! She's a total wreck!
If she's a neurochip version, she's not dead yet.
We'll go on living after our deaths.
THey're not making a transfer. I think it's another Ghost dub!
That looks like a Harimadara prototype!
Major!
Two Ghosts were just dubbed into that massive thing.
We're going to stop it! Logicomas, give me everything you've got!
Yes, sir!
Where the hell would they need to go so bad that they'll abandon their lives to get there?
The ocean.
Wait, what?
They're not going anywhere! WE're ending this now!
The weapon may be next-gen but the brains in there are rookies.
Take out the eyes and the legs and it's done for.
You're kidding me!
Now, I've got you!
What's that?
It's from Army intelligence! The bastards called in an artillery strike!
You cut off your entire sensory system?
Son of a...!
You discarded intensity regions...
recognition systems, memory fields, the Net that maintains your architecture too...
You even jettisoned your own Ghost!
If this is the price you're going to pay, then why would you want to keep on living?
Goodbye.
It's over.
We're going to Kuzan, by way of Benares. Return to base.
The world's cyber economy is still in its infancy.
I'll pay whatever it takes to reconcile with the cartel--
On your knees, hands in the air!
Almost forgot you were wanted. Kind of ruins the mood.
You're and that Section 9 chief are two of a kind.
When you find something that's dead and buried, you can't resist digging it up.
If I can't count on you to do it, then somebody has to.
You can't simply make things change, not this way.
Our team serves as an independent offensive unit.
We will stand outside of the system.
Each member has been chosen for their irreplaceable skills and perspectives.
When we're officially approved as top priority, we'll root out
all the sorry bastards who would make the world suffer just to avoid a scandal.
And you count me as one of them, I presume?
I never changed your old channel and I'll keep it open. When you decide you want to come home, you can contact me anytime.
You're free to go. We voided the wanted notice Col. Hozumi put out.
By the way, Vice-Minister Kitahara wants to thank you for your excellent work.
Is that some sort of joke?
Well, a political one.
Sensor escape was coveniently stopped. Section 9 went through Col. Hozumi's possessions.
We confiscated a Ghost dubbing device and an outline of the Scarecrow op.
I bet you couldn't arrest her, though.
No, but she confessed anyway.
You may have guessed but the weapons that shot her chopper down came from Kuzan.
She's apparently so afraid of the cartel's revenge
that she's requested protective custody and a plea bargain.
So they're going to let her off scot-free.
I'll make sure that doesn't happen.
The NPO she worked with is a front for dirty cyberbrain business.
Not only that, we've detected the presence of Fire Starter in her cyberbrain, just like your intel said.
A lot of people were injured or killed, thanks to her. I'll make her pay somehow
even if I can't take her to court yet.
Where did she get the virus?
Through a broker, if we can trust her word. And she said she doesn't know a thing about its author.
I see.
You think it was really the cartel who tried to kill Hozumi?
Even if there was someone who wanted to prevent us from investigating her,
I'm sure any trace of them would be long gone by now.
Welcome back.
All of you guys came out just to see me? Aw, I never knew I had such considerate subordinates.
Figured we'd stick around just in case some bad guy wants to take a stab at you.
Now that you're out, I'm sure you'll be the one doing the stabbing.
One more thing. I told the Minister of Home Affairs
that your team's contributions were essential in deterring the virus.
So use your vaulted cyberbrain to read Public Security Commission report N2077.
As of tomorrow, you'll get special authority.
That means no official oversight.
This case isn't over by a longshot.
You'll investigate the high-level hacking virus and any organizations involved,
so plan to attend plenty of funerals along the way.
You know full well that I shot Thied
and you probably had a good hunch that our enemy was in Intelligence.
Not being able to question her was a big loss, right?
If that's the case, why didn't you stop me?
It's simple, because I don't have your Ghost infiltration key.
No organization will ever have it for that matter.
That was the promise I made to your late commander and I intend to keep it.
So after all that crap, the only thing we figured out was that somebody out there
used a couple of anti-cyberbrainist hackers and an unlucky lady from a water company to wreak a ton of havoc.
For a crime supposedly worth sacrificing lives over,
there must be bigger players out there.
All we have now are some money hungry worth profiteers and a pair of
oddballs that just wanted to cast everything away.
Actually, I still don't get that. Which one of them was in charge? Or did neither of them have a will of their own?
I'll have to say that they did when they blocked my infiltration, at least.
But why would they try to run when they had nowhere to go, and why transfer their Ghosts into a giant weapon?
That tank clearly had a lot of firepower but it had a massive output system too.
Hmm?
Could it be possible that their way of living on past their deaths
was to use that weapon to output whatever was left of their conciousness on to the Net?
You think they were planning that all along?
They just poured the last shreds of their Ghosts into the Net... I mean, can you even do that?
It's been researched but that sort of thing is impossible to prove.
Still, in the moment their Ghosts were lost, I somehow felt that they'd fused.
That two lives had become one...
That doesn't sound like you at all. Ghosts are the most fundamentally independent things in this world.
Even if someone takes control of another person's Ghost, at its core it's still standalone.
Just like our team, right?
I guess so.
Anyway, come on. I've got a set of floaters with our names on them.
Even if you were solid titanium, you wouldn't sink. Guaranteed.
You seriously want to go swimming in the middle of winter?
We almost drowned last time. Can't be worse than that.
Besides it's not everyday I get a chance to see you in a swimsuit.
So that was your plan?
- Huh? - You're pathetic.
Now hold on a second, I was doing this all for you!
Thanks but I'll take a rain check.
Damn it! I'm never being nice to you again!
Wavering sorrow and hatred
It all dims over time
Creaky (spirits)
We're taken, we're taken away
Away
Broken-off memory freezes in the sky
This heart rent asunder
Splitting in two (splitting)
We're making, we're making our way
Nowhere
We split in two (slipping)
We're slipping, we're slipping away
No way home...
(Ghosts...)
Broken (spirits)
We're breaking, we're breaking away
Away
Vanishing (slipping)
We're going, we're going insane
No way...
Severed souls sleep
Unable to dream
Wandering (spirits)
We're calling, we're calling your name
Your name
We split in two (slipping)
We're sleeping while slipping away
No way home...
(Ghosts... left to roam...)
(Lost... no way home...)
(Ghosts... left to roam...)
(Lost... Ghosts... no way home)
(Ghosts...)