Rilley came back to himself after passing through those old memories and turned his gaze toward the case where the three units of the regenerative serum were stored.
To the Glass family, those three vials were worth far more than any ordinary medical breakthrough. Tissue regeneration, cellular rejuvenation, and the slowing of aging had already shown clear results during the tests performed. However, there was still one point that had not been fully proven: just how far its genetic repair capabilities could go against complex hereditary defects.
That last point was precisely what mattered most to the Glass family.
Relly Glass's entry into the pharmaceutical industry had not been born solely from a business opportunity. Deep down, there was a far more personal reason. For generations, the Glass family had carried a hereditary genetic deterioration, one that mainly manifested as albinism, but which could also shorten the lifespan of those who inherited it and lead to far more serious illnesses as time passed.
Relly knew those limitations very well. The low natural protection of the skin, the sensitivity to light, and the vision problems were not simple physical traits, but direct consequences of an inherited condition. That was why, long before, he had sought a way to correct that defect in his family line.
His wife supported him from the beginning. Not only as his partner, but also as a mother and as someone who wished to find a real solution for the family they had built together. Although she herself was healthy, she was a carrier of a genetic vulnerability linked to the immune system. For years, that did not seem to represent an immediate problem, until Rilley was born.
Rilley inherited both burdens.
From his father, he received the genetic deterioration associated with the albinism of the Glass family. From his mother, he inherited the vulnerability linked to the immune system. The combination of both factors made his condition more delicate than expected: severely reduced vision, extremely sensitive skin, and an immune system weaker than that of an ordinary person.
Even so, none of those defects were Rilley's main concern.
Not because they did not exist, nor because they caused him no discomfort, but because he had learned to live with them. His special contact lenses, his constant precautions, and his physical limitations had been part of his routine for years. As much as possible, his condition was stable. He was not someone completely fragile, though he did not stand out in strength or endurance either.
That was why, when supporting that project, Rilley was not thinking mainly of himself.
He was thinking of his father.
He was thinking of Relly Glass, of the hereditary burden carried by his family line, and of the possibility that such deterioration might end up reducing his lifespan or opening the door to more serious illnesses. He also thought of his mother's silent worry, that constant anxiety born from seeing her son's delicate state of health.
Up to that point, none of the serum's test subjects had presented a real genetic defect that would allow that hypothesis to be definitively verified. The data suggested that the reinforced variant could correct certain minor alterations, stabilize deep cellular damage, and improve the body's regeneration, but specific tests were still needed to prove whether it was truly capable of repairing hereditary defects from their origin.
Even so, that possibility alone was enough to justify the Glass family's interest. The idea of correcting genetic defects, preventing hereditary diseases, and repairing accumulated damage within the body was far too valuable to ignore, even if it had not yet been fully proven.
That was why Rilley did not see those vials as simple laboratory samples. To him, they represented an incomplete but necessary promise.
Rilley understood very well that, in a world of super-geniuses, superhumans, aliens, and gods, ordinary people were completely irrelevant. At the end of the day, they were the ones who suffered most from the collateral damage of a battle between such existences.
Rilley did not possess the «X-Gene» of mutants. He was not a super-genius either, much less did he possess the lineage of those extravagant gods. He was only an ordinary man. But at least he had been fortunate enough to be born into a family with powerful financial and technological resources, so he dedicated his time to learning and searching for a way to leave the ranks of ordinary men behind.
He did not deceive himself. Everything he had achieved up to that point depended on multiple factors: the knowledge from his past life, GIG's resources, the guidance of specialists, the work of more experienced researchers, and the support of technologies developed within the corporation.
Rilley was not someone capable of creating miracles out of nothing. His true merit lay in gathering pieces, finding useful connections, and pushing each project in a concrete direction.
After a long period of reflection, he reached the conclusion that the best path would be through genetic modification. If he relied only on technological resources, he would remain an ordinary human being with limited protection. But if he became a superhuman by modifying his own body, he was certain he could transcend the ordinary.
The research that would later give rise to the «Ultra Plus Rays» was born precisely from that need. Rilley was searching for a relatively safe genetic catalyst, something that could help him modify his DNA without exposing himself to the brutal randomness of common radiation. After all, it was well known that many superheroes in Marvel comics had acquired their powers through genetic catalysts that, for the most part, were tied to unstable radioactive sources.
That research began because Rilley did not want to use random radioactive elements to modify his DNA. If he was one of the lucky few, perhaps he could emerge unharmed and gain powers. But those powers might be weak, useless, or even worthless. There was also the possibility of becoming a deformed mutant. And if his luck was even worse, he would die from minimal exposure to radiation, perhaps developing a dangerous cancer that would kill him slowly, with prolonged pain until his final breath.
It was because of that thought that Rilley devoted himself to studying different sources of radiation, among them cosmic radiation, electromagnetic radiation, and other high-frequency variants, all for the purpose of finding a relatively safe genetic catalyst.
That research received the name «Transformative Source».
For that purpose, he used the particle collider built in GIG's underground laboratories. At first, he performed conventional tests, convinced that in such an extraordinary world he would find some particle or type of radiation capable of meeting his expectations. However, after a long chain of failures, he changed his approach toward fixed-target trials, bombarding samples of stable elements under controlled conditions.
That allowed him to gather useful data, but not the result he was looking for.
It was only later, when he dared to introduce small biological samples into the process, that he managed to detect an unusual energetic phenomenon: a unique signature related to what would later be identified as «Ultrax». From that discovery, and after years of tests, errors, and specialized technical support, the projects «Master Key» and «Ultrax Reactor» emerged.
The first allowed him to better understand the behavior of «Ultrax» and develop the «Mirage» and «Mirage Ultrax» systems. The second opened the path toward its energetic and biological use, allowing that energy to be filtered, modulated, and directed under safer parameters.
Over time, that line of research concluded with the development of the «Omnicron Generator».
The «Omnicron» was the core of that technology. Its main function consisted of harnessing the reactions derived from «Ultrax» and «Mirage Ultrax» crystals, releasing energy under controlled conditions. Through specialized conversion systems, that energy could be transformed into stable electricity. With other kinds of regulators, however, it could be modulated into «Ultra Plus Rays», used as a controlled emission under precise parameters.
The research not only helped Rilley take his first step toward genetic modification, but also contributed to driving GIG's energy branch forward. After the «Omnicron Generator» was put into operation, the «Glass Industrial Group» ended up consolidating itself as an emerging power within the energy sector.
At present, that technology supplied enough energy to cover a large part of New York, while also powering all the buildings and facilities of the «Glass Industrial Group». Even so, its implementation was still far from covering the entire city. The technology was powerful, but expanding it to that scale would require more development, infrastructure, and time; far more if one day they intended to bring it to the rest of the country.
In order to observe the application of the «Ultra Plus Rays» as a genetic catalyst, Rilley decided to provide that technology to Dr. Connors so it could be used in his research.
If Rilley had not allowed him to use the «Ultra Plus Rays», Dr. Connors would most likely have used common electromagnetic radiation in an attempt to stabilize the serum, which would have caused a failure in the genetic combination and, possibly, the birth of «Lizardman».
Moreover, since Dr. Connors had been brought into GIG's environment by his family's decision, first as Rilley's mentor and later as a researcher backed by the corporation, Rilley did not want to see those resources wasted in a severe failure. That would benefit no one, and perhaps even leave the corporation negatively implicated.
His decision was undoubtedly correct. It solved two problems with a single choice: he would test the functionality of the «Ultra Plus Rays» and, at the same time, contribute to the success of the project.
…
Rilley stood up and walked toward the storage-room door inside the laboratory. Different cleaning tools were kept in that place, but Rilley was not looking for any of them. Behind several containers was a hidden door, which opened into a secret passage.
Empire State University could practically be considered his backyard. Ever since his family had taken charge of the institution, Rilley had installed different hidden doors with tunnels that led to his personal laboratory. Since the route was long, he had left a small single-person vehicle there, which automatically returned to its initial position once the trip was over.
After thirty minutes of travel, he stepped out of the vehicle and walked toward a thick gray door. It was a door made from a special alloy capable of withstanding bullets and explosions, better than any armored material currently available. Without question, the expenses incurred in purchasing exotic materials acquired through Klaw had not been in vain.