For a while, Reiden simply stood at the observation window, watching his Spire scientists file past. Each greeted him with a respectful nod before disappearing into the adjoining chamber, the one where Siren was restrained.
Each time the door opened, a different scientist would emerge holding a fresh syringe. Each time the needle sank into Aria's arm, her muffled scream would carry faintly through the glass. The data they collected was meticulous, reactions to chemical compounds designed not to kill, but to subdue.
Subduing an Alberline wasn't Reiden's true aim.
It never was...
No, his goal was something far rarer, something he had promised himself and Velza long ago when they had first met.
He wanted what made an Alberline an Alberline. The essence itself. Something still unknown to the three great factions… But not to him. And after years of work, the moment to claim it was close.
"The Night-fract," Reiden murmured. "You'll soon be mine."
