"Well done. Your boy is healt—"
The midwife's voice stopped short. She held the child steady, eyes narrowing. Something was wrong.
The exhausted mother stirred weakly on the bed. Her voice cracked.
"Wh… what's wrong? Why isn't he crying?"
In the corner, a broad-shouldered man clenched his fists. He looked as though he'd rather fight a war than ask the question. His lips trembled anyway.
"Is he…"
"No." The midwife's answer cut him off. Flat. Sharp.
"Your son is not dead. He simply hasn't cried, flailed, or opened his eyes. Nothing unusual." She glanced back at the parents, expression unreadable. "He only needs… encouragement."
Darkness. That was all I could see.
'I'm… still conscious?'
'Didn't I just—'
'What happened to the gunshot? The blood?'
Nothing answered. No warmth. No sound. Just me, floating in the dark.
'Maybe this is a coma. Maybe I'm hooked up to machines somewhere.'
A pause.
'Honestly… it's peaceful. Alone in my head. No noise. No pain. I could stay here forev—'
SMACK.
"WAAAAA—HAHAHHHH!"
The cry tore itself out of me before I even understood what happened.
'WHAT THE HELL WAS THAT?'
"See?" the "midwife" said evenly. "All it took was a little encouragement."
'ENCOURAGEMENT? YOU SLAPPED ME, YOU PSYCHO!'
From across the room, the father barked, "Was that necessary?!"
The midwife didn't flinch. She turned, her eyes glowing faintly purple as she locked on him.
"Are you questioning me? Do I need to remind you of your place?"
The man froze. His jaw clenched, but his eyes dropped.
"…No. I'm sorry."
'What the hell was THAT?'
'Her eyes—did they just glow?'
'No. No way. That's impossible.'
The "midwife" shifted the baby—me—in her arms and adjusted her shawl. "I'll take him now. It's time for his awakening." Her voice carried a finality that left no space for refusal. "Any objections?"
The father stayed silent. His hands shook at his sides.
"…No."
"Good." She turned toward the door.
But the mother, pale and barely conscious, forced her hand upward. Her voice cracked with desperation.
"Please… don't kill him if he doesn't awaken an ability."
The "midwife" paused in the doorway. For the first time, her lips curved into something that wasn't quite a smile.
"Why ask me that… when you already know…"
"That those who serve no purpose to the Empire are better off dead than alive."
'KILL me?'
'If what doesn't happen?'
'WHAT THE HELL IS HAPPENING RIGHT NOW?'