Dr. Lydia Thorne's laboratory was located on the upper floor of the City University's new Chemistry building- a stark, modernist contrast to her father's cluttered, subterranean lair. Lydia was everything her father, Silas Thorne, was not: publicly acclaimed, rigorously ethical, and entirely dedicated to the pure science of neurochemistry.
She was thirty, precise in her movements, and possessed the focused energy of a scientist who trusts only empirical data.
Commander Joric Tahl arrived unannounced, displaying his executive security badge. He carried a small, sealed evidence packet containing a piece of Seraphina's ruined canvas, scraped clean of its original paint layer.
Lydia looked at the fragment of fabric with professional curiosity. "Kaelen Security. What precisely requires the attention of Advanced Neurochemistry, Commander?"
"I am investigating an incident of severe psychological distress, Dr. Thorne," Joric explained, his voice even. "The official finding is mental instability. I suspect external influence. This fragment was recovered from the studio environment immediately following the crisis. I need you to analyze the fibers for any trace element that might be... non-standard."
Lydia, accustomed to the absurd requests of the powerful, opened the packet and used tweezers to place the fragment under a high-powered spectrophotometer. "I am looking for volatile organic compounds, trace metals, or unusual fungal spores, I presume. Something that could trigger hallucination?"
"I am looking for anything that does not belong," Joric corrected. "Something designed to inflict psychological damage, rather than physical."
As Lydia began the initial scan, Joric studied her. Her surname, Thorne, had been Sledge's only lead in tracing the "Veridian Transport" alias, but he quickly dismissed the coincidence. Lydia Thorne was too public, too legitimate, too far removed from the desperate silence of her disgraced father.
The scanner hummed. Lydia watched the readings, her brow furrowed. "The base canvas is fine. But there are traces of an incredibly faint, complex organic residue. Highly volatile, it breaks down quickly, almost untraceable."
She adjusted the machine, isolating the spectral signature. "It's a neuro-inhibitor, Commander. A subtle chemical agent that disrupts specific synaptic firing patterns. Not a hallucinogen. It would target the brain's reward center, perhaps inducing profound despair, or intense self-loathing associated with a specific action."
Lydia looked up at Joric, her eyes reflecting the cold reality of the data. "This wasn't an accident, Commander. This was designed. It is weaponized despair, delivered with surgical precision. And whoever created it is a genius."
Joric felt a sickening confirmation. The architect of the Kaelen collapse was real, highly intelligent, and now engaging in chemical warfare.
"Can you identify the source compound?" he pressed.
Lydia shook her head. "I can identify the family of the compound. It uses a rare synthetic base that would require specialized, non-commercial lab resources. Possibly an older university lab, or a highly protected, private facility. Whoever made this compound is working entirely outside the regulatory framework."
Joric thanked her, retrieving his evidence. He left the lab, the cold knowledge hardening his resolve. He had secured the professional means to identify the next attack.
He now knew the ghost he hunted was not only brilliant and vengeful but had the backing of a disgraced scientific genius. The two disparate threads- the Vane execution and the Thorne ruin- were now converging. He just needed to figure out how the meticulously silent Archivist, "Veridia," connected to the disgraced professor. He suspected the answer was personal, not just professional.