The Devil's Cabin
Ernst pondered for a moment.
He extended his hand, casting a sweeping diagnostic beam of light over Tina.
He was looking for hidden magical artifacts, much like Jon's silver cross.
Instead, he found something infinitely rarer.
The beam caught an unusual, staggering energy fluctuation. It wasn't an object. It was her.
"Indeed," Ernst murmured, pleasantly surprised.
"How fortunate."
But fortunate for him meant tragedy for her. The pure energy radiated from her very soul.
If she wanted a deal, she only had one currency to offer: herself.
Curiosity piqued, Ernst seamlessly invaded her mind.
He sifted through her memories and spiritual architecture. The diagnosis was shocking.
According to Eastern mysticism, she possessed a perfect, pure constitution.
A genius.
In Western pantheons, her soul was so pristine the Church would have branded her a living Saint.
Ernst looked at her lifeless, desperate eyes. She was cradling two children on the brink of death.
He decided to drop the veil.
"Hold on a moment," Ernst commanded.
Tina looked up.
"You do possess a treasure worthy of this exchange," Ernst warned.
"But the price you will pay is beyond your imagination. Are you prepared?"
Her eyes flared with a sudden, violent hope.
"As long as I can save my children," Tina declared, her voice trembling but absolute.
"Whatever the cost. Tell me what to do."
Ernst sighed. "You possess an extremely unique and flawlessly pure soul. It is a cosmic rarity. But it is also the source of your suffering."
He leaned forward.
"Your constitution is passively absorbing life force. It makes your children so frail. And your husband. It shortened his lifespan."
Tina froze.
"Are you saying... my husband's death is because of me?" she gasped. Tears spilled over her cheeks.
She remembered his sudden, inexplicable decline.
The doctors had been baffled. Ernst's words clicked into place with horrifying clarity.
"Do not despair over things beyond your control," Ernst said clinically.
"The priority is your children. You can exchange their lives for your body and your soul. The decision is yours."
"I do," Tina nodded without a second of hesitation.
"What do I need to do?"
Ernst felt a flicker of genuine shock. The sheer, terrifying magnitude of a mother's sacrifice.
He bypassed the standard parchment. He produced a contract forged from genuine dragon skin.
It contained dozens of ironclad, metaphysical clauses.
Tina didn't care. She checked the stipulations regarding her daughters, bit her finger, and signed her name in blood.
The contract sealed.
Ernst moved instantly. He produced a glass vial, adding drops of luminescent night essences to a base of thick, crimson blood.
A white mist hissed from the mixture.
He poured the milky concoction into the mouths of the dying twins.
The reaction was immediate. Their rapid, shallow breathing smoothed out. The deadly flush faded from their cheeks.
"They will live," Ernst stated.
"That was a potion derived from dragon's blood."
It wasn't just any dragon. It was blood drawn directly from Smaug.
The primordial, fiery vitality of the ancient drake effortlessly incinerated the lethal Yin energy inside the girls. It would leave them vastly stronger than ordinary humans.
"Thank you," Tina wept, collapsing in relief.
"Thank you for saving them."
"Do not thank me. This is a transaction," Ernst replied coldly.
"Remember the ink you just spilled. Your body and soul are now mine. You cannot even die without my permission. I can erase your mind and turn you into an obedient puppet at will."
Tina paled, clutching her sleeping daughters tightly.
"I understand. But please... allow me to send them back and make arrangements."
Ernst tossed a heavy wooden box onto the table.
"You have seven days," Ernst commanded.
"After that, the door you entered will reopen. You will step through it and never return to them."
Tina opened the box. It was filled to the brim with solid gold coins.
More than enough to secure a luxurious future for her daughters.
She wanted to refuse the charity, but her pride was already dead. She sacrificed her last shred of resistance for their survival.
Ernst watched her fade back through the doorway, lost in thought.
Seeing a mother willingly trade her eternal soul for her children struck a chord.
It made him think of the boy suspended in the cultivation tank back home.
His son was fully fixed. It was time for him to be born.
But Ernst knew he couldn't provide a complete family. He had a cold mind, devoid of genuine, unconditional warmth.
The boy needed a mother.
Tina's fierce, sacrificial love could be repurposed. She could fill that void.
Inner Sanctum
Ernst bypassed the physical doors, apparating directly into his deepest, most classified subterranean laboratory.
In the center of the room sat a massive, illuminated culture tank.
"Red Queen," Ernst called out.
"Status report on my son."
"Dr. Ernst," the AI's voice echoed smoothly.
"The young master is in excellent condition. Vitals are optimal. No genetic defects detected."
"Good," Ernst murmured, stepping up to the thick glass.
"Today is his birthday. He is destined to stand at the pinnacle of this world."
Ernst placed a hand on the glass.
"I will name him Kyle Shaw."
"Congratulations on your successor, Dr. Ernst," the Red Queen replied.
Ernst smiled faintly.
"Thank you."
He tapped the console.
The sound of rushing water filled the sterile room as the thick nutrient solution rapidly drained from the tank.
The heavy atmospheric seals hissed. The glass cylinder opened.
Ernst reached in and gently lifted the newborn.
He held the infant firmly, delivering a few precise pats to his back.
A loud, healthy cry echoed through the silent laboratory.
Kyle Shaw was born.
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