The Sanctum was asleep.
Its endless corridors, usually alive with the sound of scientists and researchers, had fallen into an uneasy silence.
Only the soft hum of medical equipment echoed through the maternity wing.
Hana stirred then her eyes slowly opened.
For a moment, everything felt normal.
Then—
A sharp pain shot through her abdomen.
She inhaled sharply, instinctively wrapping both arms around her swollen stomach.
"...Ah..."
The pain faded almost as quickly as it had come.
She took a slow breath.
"False alarm..."
She whispered to herself.
Then another wave struck.
Much stronger.
Her body tensed.
The monitors surrounding her bed erupted with warning tones.
BEEP! BEEP! BEEP!
Red lights flooded the room.
Outside, scientists looked up from their work.
"What was that?"
"Medical Wing Three!"
A voice echoed through the facility.
"She's gone into labor!"
The quiet Sanctum exploded into motion.
Researchers abandoned experiments.
Doctors sprinted through the corridors.
Security teams sealed every entrance to the maternity wing.
Within seconds, Charles burst through the doors.
"Report!"
A nurse looked up from the monitor.
"Contractions every four minutes and increasing!"
Charles immediately began reviewing the readings.
The fetal heartbeat remained incredibly strong.
Stronger than any human fetus should have been.
He pressed a hand against Hana's shoulder.
"Stay with us."
She nodded weakly before another contraction forced a cry from her lips.
At that exact moment—
Every monitor in the room flickered.
The lights dimmed.
Then returned.
Charles froze.
"The energy's increasing already..."
Behind the observation glass, another pair of doors opened.
The Savior entered.
His footsteps were slow.
Measured.
Calm.
Unlike everyone else, he showed no urgency.
His eyes settled on Hana.
"Status."
Charles didn't look away from the monitors.
"Labor has begun."
"Estimated delivery?"
"If everything proceeds normally..."
He hesitated.
"...before sunrise."
The Savior gave a single nod.
"Prepare."
Hours passed.
The contractions became relentless.
Each one stronger than the last.
Sweat soaked Hana's hair as she gripped the sides of the bed.
Every breath became a struggle.
"Again!"
Charles called.
Another contraction hit.
Hana screamed.
The room shook.
Metal instruments rattled violently across their trays.
Several crashed onto the floor.
Scientists grabbed nearby equipment before it toppled over.
"Energy surge!"
One monitor exploded in a shower of sparks.
Emergency systems activated.
The lights flickered.
Returned.
Flickered again.
Charles stared at the readings.
"No..."
Another scientist looked over.
"What is it?"
"The child isn't just absorbing Haikitium anymore."
"It's producing energy."
A wave rippled outward from Hana.
Every glass panel in the room developed tiny fractures.
Computers rebooted simultaneously.
Magnetic locks disengaged throughout the floor before emergency systems forced them shut again.
Outside the laboratory, alarms echoed through the Sanctum.
"Power fluctuation in Medical Wing!"
"Backup generators online!"
Inside...
Hana cried out once more.
"I can't...!"
Charles stepped beside her.
"You can." He continued "You've come too far."
Another contraction.
This one was different.
Invisible pressure swept through the room.
Medical carts rolled across the floor on their own.
Ceiling lights burst.
Several scientists instinctively ducked.
The Savior remained completely still.
Not once had he stepped away from the observation window.
Not once had fear crossed his face.
Charles looked toward him. "The child is destabilizing the surrounding environment."
"Recommendation?" The Savior asked.
Charles hesitated. "...Continue."
Stopping now would kill them both, continuing would save...at least one.
The Savior simply nodded. "Continue."
Another hour passed.
Hana's breathing became shallow.
Her strength faded.
Charles checked the monitor again.
Then frowned. "The heartbeat..."
Everyone looked at him.
"It just doubled."
Silence filled the room.
Another scientist stared at his display.
"So did the brain activity."
Charles slowly backed away from the console. "No human fetus should be capable of this..."
The Savior's eyes narrowed slightly. "The time has come."
"Final contraction!" Charles shouted.
Doctors moved into position.
The room held its breath.
Hana let out one final scream.
Then—
Silence.
Charles carefully lifted the newborn into his hands.
The room froze.
No crying.
No movement.
One nurse's voice trembled. "....sir?...."
He didn't answer.
The baby remained perfectly still.
The heart monitor continued its steady rhythm.
Alive.
But motionless.
The Savior slowly stepped into the delivery room for the first time.
Everyone instinctively moved aside.
Charles looked down. "Come on..."
Nothing.
Several agonizing seconds passed.
Then...
The infant's tiny fingers twitched.
Its eyes opened.
Brilliant crimson.
At that exact instant—
Every light inside the Sanctum went out.
Darkness.
Complete darkness.
Only the soft blue glow emanating from the child's skin illuminated the room.
The generators failed.
Medical equipment shut down.
Silence consumed the laboratory.
Then...
A baby's cry pierced the darkness.
The sound echoed throughout the entire medical wing.
Instantly—
Power returned.
Lights flickered back to life.
Monitors rebooted.
Ventilation systems restarted.
The scientists collectively released breaths they hadn't realized they were holding.
Charles quickly examined the newborn.
Heartbeat...
Perfect.
Respiration...
Perfect.
Neurological response...
Extraordinary.
A smile slowly spread across his face.
"Healthy."
No one spoke.
The Savior stepped forward.
Charles carefully placed the child into his arms.
For the first time...
The man known only as the Savior looked upon the child he had spent years preparing to bring into the world.
The infant stared back at him without fear.
Almost...
Curiously.
The Savior studied him for several long moments.
Then, in a voice barely above a whisper, he spoke.
"Welcome..."
Behind him, exhausted beyond words, Hana smiled weakly as tears rolled down her cheeks.
After months of pain...
Months of uncertainty...
Months of sacrifice...
Her child had finally entered the world.
And with his first breath...
The world had unknowingly changed forever.
The medical wing had finally fallen quiet.
Hours earlier, alarms had echoed throughout the Sanctum.
Now, only the steady rhythm of medical equipment remained.
Hana slept peacefully, exhausted from the ordeal.
For the first time in months, there was no pain etched across her face.
Beside her, inside a transparent medical crib, the newborn slept soundly.
Charles stood before a holographic display, studying line after line of incoming data.
Dozens of scientists surrounded him, each monitoring a different aspect of the child's physiology.
One scientist broke the silence.
"Heart rate is stable."
Another looked up from his console.
"Respiratory function... perfect."
A third frowned. "Muscle density..." He recalibrated his scanner. "...That can't be right."
Charles walked over. "What is it?"
"The readings are inconsistent."
He reran the scan.
The numbers remained unchanged.
"The muscle fibre density is over twice that of a saint."
The room became quiet.
Another scientist interrupted.
"Sir...You should see this."
He moved to the next workstation.
"Skeletal development."
The three-dimensional scan rotated slowly in the air.
Bone density.
Joint integrity.
Cellular structure.
Everything was...
Wrong.
Or perhaps...
Beyond anything they had imagined.
"The skeletal system is also more than double the saint baseline."
Charles adjusted his glasses.
"Continue."
Another voice came from across the room.
"Neural activity."
Everyone turned.
The scientist stared at the display in disbelief.
"The number of active neural pathways is... extraordinary."
He enlarged the scan.
"The cerebral cortex is developing at an unprecedented rate."
Charles folded his arms.
"Quantify it."
The scientist swallowed.
"Approximately twenty-three times the activity expected in a newborn."
Silence settled over the laboratory.
Another report arrived.
"Visual cortex."
"Also enhanced."
"Hearing."
"Enhanced."
"Reaction speed."
"Enhanced."
One by one, every result told the same story.
The child wasn't merely superior.
Every system in his body appeared to operate at more than twice the capacity of a fully grown saint.