The room smelled of antiseptic and silence.
“Are you feeling okay, or do you want me to call your mates?” She asked in a professional tone.
Aria didn’t answer.
She stared at the image.
Grainy. Small. Impossible.
A heartbeat — real, undeniable—etched into shadow and light.
Pregnant.
The word didn’t explode inside her the way fear or rage usually did.
It settled.
Like a blade sliding into its sheath.
She felt it then—not panic, not joy—but a sharp, instinctive shift. Something ancient is awakening beneath her ribs. The same power she wielded over shadows now coiled inward, wrapping around that fragile spark like a vow.
Protect.
Her hand moved unconsciously to her abdomen.
The doctor spoke again, softer now. “Given your… nature, the child is strong. Stronger than expected. You’l
