"I'll see about finding anyone, myself." Hal responded.

"And I'll keep you updated, as well." he told her.

"Good luck, Sydney." he then finished, before hanging up.

"....damn it." he cursed.

"I get the feeling we're so close to a solution... but it keeps evading us!" he muttered.

"This is so FRUSTRATING!" he then exclaimed angrily.

A few moments later, a cloaked figure emerged from the rune, hood covering his face, a large scythe in his hands.

"WHO SUMMONS-" they started to say, before pausing.

"Oh." they muttered, removing the hood, revealing the face of a young-looking man with red and silver hair.

"Yes?" he asked Casey.

"What do you want? I'm kind of working overtime right now, and don't have much time to spare." he told her.

"Eh?" Gregory muttered.

"It's starting, but then just... dies?" he asked.

"Hmmm." he mumbled, thinking about it.

"There's a number of reasons for that to be happening." he said. "One reason is that the necromancer themselves aren't strong enough to do the summoning." he told her.

"...but that's clearly not the case." he said with a small snicker.

"Another case is that the individual has so much strength and power within them, that they can resist the summoning." he continued. "But, again, that's probably not the case, as I can only think of a handful of people that could do that against YOU." he went on.

"And... the third option is probably the most troublesome." he then continued with a sigh.

"The third option is that the person you are trying to contact and/or summon is not in heaven, nor is he in hell." he told her, before pausing.

"He's in purgatory."

Gregory just sighed.

"I do, too." he said.

"...but Casey, be very wary about the realm of purgatory." he then warned.

"It is a realm of peace and tranquillity, yes, but it stands between heaven and hell... and as such, the forces that pull on the realm are something no living person can withstand." he told her.

"It is a domain that not even myself or your mother have dominion over, so neither of us can help you, sadly." he then added.

"I do wish you luck, though." he finished, before disappearing in a cloud of thick black smoke that dissipated almost immediately.

The guard sighed and looked at her, before shaking his head.

"One moment." he said, before a serpentine tongue darted in and out of his mouth.

"Yep, you're Casey Kiczys." he confirmed, before pressing the button to let her in.

"I can tell this is serious." he told her.

"I'll let him know you're on your way as you're on your way." he said.

"Do you remember how to get there?" he asked.

".....eh?" the guard muttered as she said that.

"Uh... right then." he said.

He then sighed, and went back to reading his paper.

Casey managed to make it through the building, and when she got to the receptionist's office, she was immediately directed inside, where Hal was waiting.

"Come in." he said when she opened the door.

"Do you have news or progress?" he asked her.

"..........." Hal was silent, and his expression sank.

"Wonderful." he said quietly.

"Yet another avenue has been closed off to us." he muttered.

He was obviously crestfallen and angry, but he was trying to keep it together, and sighed.

"Thank you for trying, though." he said to her.

"Though I AM surprised a necromancer of your pedigree was unable to contact him." he then admitted.

Hal just sighed once more as Casey said what she did.

"Fantastic." he said.

"One one person that can help us, and he's unattainable for anyone..." he said further, before pausing.

"Wait..." he mumbled.

"Someone... living..." he muttered further, before he had a flash of clarity.

"I believe I have ONE agent that can help you, here." he told Casey.

"Right." Sharp replied, before taking out his cell phone and calling someone.

"Yes, I need you in my office." he told whomever he called.

"ASAP." he said.

"It's about dealing with the statues, and YOU are the only one that can help." he told them.

"So I want you here ASAP. I don't know where you are, but I need you here."

Sharp then sighed, as he nodded slowly.

"While we wait for them, would you care for a drink?" he asked.

"I'm not sure how long it'll take them to get here, but we don't have to just sit here while we wait." he reasoned.

"Oh, and by the way, on a personal note, your artwork is masterful." he complimented her.

"Seriously, it is something that people can feel the passion you put into it."