“We thought Alpha had been extinguished when the soul-flame of the temple girl died. They were bound. They were supposed to be bound. In most ways they were. But when the temple girl’s flame was blown out…the flame of Alpha’s wasn’t.”

Maurice smoothed down his frazzled mustache. “Zee girl is dead, Gwen. So is
Alpha. Thousands of years have passed. A soul needs a body. A vessel. Hers died. End uv story.”