The cold metallic hum of the b was deafening. Aeria y motionless on the operating table, her body drained of vitality but still clinging to existence by a thread. She had learned much over the past days in captivity, though none of it had been through choice. The scientists—Dr. Sarris included had made it their mission to expin, to educate her about the world that had cast her aside, and they had shared knowledge she wished she had never known.

  Today, however, a new discovery would be made. A discovery that would shed light on a mystery that had pgued her thoughts for some time now the monsters.

  Her mind was barely alert, but the words that came from Dr. Sarris’ mouth cut through the fog in her brain.

  “Monsters,” he began, his voice devoid of any emotion, “are the byproducts of shattered souls. Every creature, every force in this world has an essence, a soul, that binds it to its will. And when that will is stretched too thin when it's pushed too far it shatters.”

  Aeria’s eyes flickered, and her head slowly turned to the screen on the opposite side of the room. Dr. Sarris, along with a group of scientists, stood gathered around a rge hologram projector. They had been monitoring her blood, as usual, but today, they had something else on dispy. A collection of images: monstrous, grotesque beings twisted beyond recognition.

  “They aren’t born, you see,” Dr. Sarris continued, his voice oddly soothing, as though expining the process of creation itself. “Monsters are broken souls. Those who have used their will too much, who have exhausted their very essence until there is nothing left but the hollow shell of a once pure being.”

  Aeria's heart raced in confusion. Her body tensed, but the restraints on her arms kept her from making any movement. The machines hummed louder as the monitor flickered with images of horrific creatures, each more horrifying than the st.

  The first image showed a creature with multiple limbs and jagged spikes protruding from its back, its form a mass of twisted flesh and shadow. Another was a massive, grotesque serpent with eyes that burned like embers. The st image was the most disturbing of all: a humanoid form with cracked skin, as if every inch of its being had been shattered into pieces and reassembled into something unrecognizable.

  “These... beings,” Dr. Sarris continued, “are the result of souls breaking under the immense weight of their own will. Willpower, Aeria, is the most potent force in this world. A person’s strength lies in their resolve, their belief that they can shape reality to their will. But when that will is pushed beyond its limits, when someone uses their power too recklessly or too greedily, the soul fractures.”

  The hologram shifted, dispying a diagram of the process. A soul, once whole and intact, began to splinter as a red aura representing will expanded outward. Slowly, it cracked like gss, forming jagged shards that floated into the air. The shards then twisted and grew, becoming the monstrous entities Aeria had seen on the screen.

  “The more powerful the individual,” Dr. Sarris expined, “the more substantial the soul. The more will they possess, the stronger the monster becomes when their soul finally breaks. These creatures are not mindless. They are driven by their shattered will, and their strength is determined by the amount of willpower that remains in the fractured pieces. Some retain fragments of their former self—pieces of their personality, their intelligence. Others are pure, primal chaos.”

  Aeria’s throat tightened. She had seen these monsters before, heard rumors about them. But to know that they were once human, or at least once sentient, made her stomach turn.

  Dr. Sarris pointed to the rgest of the images the creature that resembled a gigantic shadowy beast with glowing red eyes, towering above a crumbling city.

  “This is the apex,” he said, his voice tinged with a note of reverence. “A truly broken soul. The soul that shattered beyond repair, but whose will was so strong that it manifested as a creature of pure terror and destruction. It could level entire cities, sy armies. A being like this can exist for centuries, feeding on the remnants of its own willpower. The more destruction it causes, the more its power grows.”

  Aeria felt a pang of empathy for the creature, even though it was terrifying. A broken soul… It was an idea that haunted her.

  “Now, Aeria,” Dr. Sarris’ voice shifted, “do you understand the connection between these creatures and your own abilities?”

  Aeria blinked, her mind sluggish but trying to catch up. Her eyes darted between the images on the screen and Dr. Sarris’ face. Was there a connection?

  “You see,” Dr. Sarris continued, “your regenerative ability, the one that allows you to heal from any injury, is a direct result of a complete soul one that has not been broken. It’s the opposite of what we see here. While others fracture, while others crumble under the weight of their own will, you remain whole. You are… perfectly preserved.”

  His words sliced through her. “I can’t be broken like them?” she whispered, the weight of the realization settling in.

  “Exactly,” he said. “Your power keeps you intact, unbroken, even when others fall apart. It’s the key to your immortality. As long as your will remains intact, your body will regenerate. There is no force that can stop it.”

  Aeria’s thoughts began to swirl. Her power. Her immortality. She had always felt it this invulnerability but now, it took on a new meaning. She wasn’t just indestructible. She was the antithesis of those monsters. Where they were shattered, she was whole.

  But that also meant she was something more terrifying to the people who controlled her. Her ability to regenerate, her ability to heal, had become the tool of war, yes, but it was also something dangerous. If she could regenerate from anything, if her will remained unbroken, then she was a force that no one could control.

  “You see,” Dr. Sarris continued, as if speaking to a subject with a new discovery, “we believe your blood can do more than heal. It can be weaponized, not just for healing injuries, but for combat as well. That’s why we’ve been experimenting with it mixing it with soldier’s blood, enhancing their powers. Your blood is both a source of life and a source of power, Aeria.”

  Aeria clenched her fists. It was her blood, her regenerative abilities, that made her dangerous to them. That made her an asset. A weapon.

  And she had no say in any of it.

  “I won’t be your weapon,” Aeria said, though the words felt weak, futile. But they were hers, and that was all that mattered.

  Dr. Sarris met her gaze, his expression unchanged. “You don’t have a choice.”

  And with those words, the truth settled in.

  She wasn’t just a healer.

  She wasn’t just a monster.

  She was both.

  And the world would pay for their miscalcution.