"Yeah…it seems like a separate program. Something the a.s.sa.s.sins want for themselves rather than their clients. They are developing their own weapons for their own a.s.sa.s.sins. At least that's what I gather from here. Michael did not elaborate on much."

"Yeah, it's not as if we'll find that information lying around. But still…that's pretty interesting. What happened to their clients? Was there a conflict of interest? Did they…?"

"Unlikely." Shun Yin shook his head. "Just because they are siphoning off the data Angelica stole and developing their own weapons doesn't mean they terminated their contract with their employers. I think it's more likely that they are using this opportunity to improve their own weapons and technology. Their employers probably wouldn't mind…if the a.s.sa.s.sins get better weapons, they would be able to do their job better. Angelica would probably be more than happy to share the data with them, separately and privately, if her goal is to destroy the Porter clan." He took a deep breath. "Imagine…an army of spirit summoners a.s.saulting the Porter clan. You're already powerful enough with White Tiger, but it takes you quite a lot of time to finish casting that summoning spell. What if an army of people shows up, able to instantly summon powerful spirits, each as powerful as your White Tiger?"

"That's…"

Glen looked a little pale, but he swallowed and nodded grimly.

"Yeah, that would be a disaster. We've to stop them..." he smiled suddenly. "…or grab the technology for ourselves."

Always the practical one, Shun Yin noted mentally. Even in a situation like this, Glen was looking to exploit it to get the best for himself or his family. Especially since this was data and technology stolen from his father's academy in the first place. In which case, Glen was probably justified for retrieving the data for Vermillion High.

He was sure that Rebecca and Gabriel would appreciate it. They were still struggling to piece their research back together, but to redo the whole project from scratch was outright demoralizing and devastating. Getting their data back would speed things up tremendously.

Perhaps they would find some of their previous research data in the aquarium. If they did, then Shun Yin vowed to recover it for his friends.

The duo reached the aquarium a little after 9pm. Glen was right – Vermillion Aquarium was closed and most of the staff had gone home for the day. The lights were all off, and there was n.o.body manning the front. Not even a security guard.

"Where's everyone?" Shun Yin couldn't help but ask.

"Home," Glen replied as if it was obvious. He continued up the steps and placed a hand against the huge gla.s.s door. "Come on."

The doors automatically slid open to grant them entry. The security cameras located outside were scanning Glen, unmoving, probably to confirm his ident.i.ty. With the doors open, Glen wasted no time stepping into the dimly lit aquarium. Shun Yin hastily followed after his friend, looking around warily to ensure there weren't any traps.

The tanks were illuminated with minimal lighting, and fishes from a myriad of species continued to swim about in their artificial environments, darting through weeds and aquatic plants or soaring through the tip of the enclosed s.p.a.ces. The great sharks glided silently through the waters, their predatory snouts curled into a feral, toothy grin. Huge manta rays spread their wings out like underwater bats, almost sheltering the smaller schools of fish under their wing. Brown clownfish peeked out from the wriggling tentacles of sea anemone, with a father clownfish finding his son.

"Perfect place to bring a girl on a date, eh?" Glen joked, but Shun Yin didn't respond to that. Instead, he continued to look around. Unfortunately, he saw no sign of any suspicious activity. On a normal day, there would be visitors admiring the fish in tanks, overawed and inspired, but at night, it was completely bereft of amazed guests staring at a Great White Shark.

Shun Yin didn't think the a.s.sa.s.sins would leave any sign of their presence in obvious sight of public visitors, but he hoped he could at least find some clue. Anything…

"What are you looking for?" Glen asked, amused, when he caught sight of Shun Yin intently inspecting the walls and floor of the aquarium.

"The a.s.sa.s.sins, of course."

"Do you really think they'll just leave visible signs of them being here blatantly lying in the open?" Glen rolled his eyes. "Follow me."

The blond lightning mage headed toward a door that denied entry to all except authorized personnel, and then pushed the door open. The sensor at the side scanned him, recognized his authority, and the lock clicked open to allow him access. Shun Yin followed his friend into the corridor behind the door.

"That way."

Instead of heading toward the offices, Glen proceeded toward a set of stairs near the end of the corridor. Shun Yin nodded, despite knowing that Glen wouldn't be able to see the gesture, and descended the stairs along with his friend. The two high school students reached the bottom of the single flight of stairs to find themselves in the bas.e.m.e.nt.

There still wasn't anyone present. Despite the absence of any human presence, Shun Yin felt a premonition…his senses growing tense. Chewing on his lip, he looked around cautiously even as Glen went through the automatic doors.

"Whoa."

Glen stopped momentarily to study the bas.e.m.e.nt. There were a few rooms, all locked behind closed doors, but he had no clue where to start looking. He tilted his head toward the closest door, but he obviously thought that the enemy wouldn't be stupid enough to hide any sensitive information inside the first room.

Even so…

"There's someone here."

"Eh?"

Glen turned in surprise at Shun Yin's declaration. The dark-haired fire mage nodded and strode past the stunned lightning mage, heading toward the fourth room from the stairs. His senses were going on overdrive…he was sure he detected a…not-quite-human yet at the same time a distinctly human presence inside the room.

"How can you tell?"

"Magic." Shun Yin tried not to roll his eyes at Glen's seemingly stupid question. He raised a hand and pushed the door open, but it wouldn't budge.

"Here, let me." Glen stepped beside him and waved his hand at the scanner, but nothing happened. He frowned and glanced around. "Yup, we're in the right place. Doesn't seem like the clan's authority has any pull here."

"Then let's bust the door down," Shun Yin replied, already casting a spell and wreathing his hand in flames. Glen began gesturing frantically.

"Whoa, whoa, whoa! Cool your jets! Calm down, would you?! If you blow the door up, you'll call attention to us and let whoever's in here know that we are here!"

"If they are in any way competent, then they should know that they have intruders," Shun Yin pointed out. Glen groaned and buried his face in his palm.

"I mean, you've a point, but…in case you haven't noticed, we haven't actually had any welcoming reception from our hosts. It's possible they aren't aware that we're here yet, so let's roll with it for now and not do anything too drastic, all right?"

Shun Yin gave him a stare, and then dismissed his flames. "All right, then how do we open the door?"

"Like this." Glen raised a hand and allowed a tiny current of electricity to flare to life between his fingers. Curling his fingers, he pointed his index finger toward the doork.n.o.b and allowed the tiny spark of lightning to arc into it. A second later, the scanner beeped and the locked clicked compliantly, allowing the door to automatically slide open. Glen turned to grin broadly at the impa.s.sive Shun Yin. "There you go, buddy."

"Thank you." Shun Yin carefully peeked into the room to ensure it wasn't a trap and there weren't a.s.sa.s.sins waiting for him. Instead, he was surprised by the scene that greeted him. It resembled a laboratory, with hi-tech equipment and gadgets, but it also had…cages. Stepping inside, he glanced around. "What is going on here?"

"Your guess is as good as mine." Glen shrugged as he also entered the room beside the dark-haired fire mage. "Seems like Cousin Mike's a.n.a.lysis is right on the money. They've clearly been conducting all sorts of experiments here."

A cough drew the attention of both of them, and they hurried over. Shun Yin frowned when he stopped in front of one of the cages. Some of them were empty, but many of them were filled with things. Things he wasn't sure he recognized.

The cough, fortunately, seemed to come from someone rather than something.

A young girl with blue hair was lying sprawled on the floor of her cage, muttering softly. When the two high school students approached, she raised her head to stare at them pitifully with her sapphire eyes.

"What in the world…?"

"Allow me." Glen stepped in front and sent a spark of lightning at the electronic lock that was nestled upon one of the bars. The door then swung open and Shun Yin quickly stepped in to help the girl out.

"Are you all right?"

"Who…who are you?" the girl was staring at the two of them in wonder. Shun Yin swallowed and glanced at Glen, who shrugged. The latter was also at a loss.

"We are…allies of justice. We're here to save you." Shun Yin forced a smile. "You're safe now."

The girl stared at her, tears welling up in her eyes, but she shook her head before lowering her gaze.

"No…it's too late. I can't be saved."