Harry's body hit the pavement with a sickening thud, his skull cracking against the asphalt. Blood immediately began pooling around his head, dark and viscous under the streetlights. His limbs lay at awkward angles, completely motionless.Alice knelt frozen on the sidewalk where Harry had pushed her, her mouth open in a silent scream. For a moment, she couldn't process what had just happened. One second Harry had been standing, the next he'd been launched through the air like a ragdoll.The sound of an engine revving snapped her back to reality. Alice looked up to see the dark sedan reversing, its tires squealing as it backed up toward Harry's prone body."No!" Alice screamed. "Stop!"The four masked attackers who'd been groaning on the ground suddenly scrambled to their feet. They ran toward the reversing car, yanking open the doors and diving inside. The sedan didn't slow down as it collected them, continuing its backward trajectory straight toward where Harry lay bleeding.Alice wa

Harry climbed through the hospital window and dropped. The ground was five stories below—a fall that should have shattered every bone in his body, turned his organs to pulp, killed him instantly.But as his feet hit the pavement, something extraordinary happened.The impact jarred through his legs, but instead of breaking, his bones absorbed the shock and immediately began reinforcing themselves.The force that should have crushed his spine dispersed through his supernaturally resilient body like water hitting stone.Harry landed in a crouch, rolled once, and came to a stop on his hands and knees.For a moment, he just knelt there, breathing hard, checking his body for damage.His clothes were still soaked with dried blood—his blood—from the car accident. But beneath the fabric, his skin was smooth and unmarked.The gash on his head that had been gushing minutes ago was completely healed.The broken ribs from the impact had knitted back together. Even the road rash from skidding acro

Inside St. Mary's Hospital, the emergency department had descended into complete chaos. A team of doctors and nurses arrived at Harry's treatment bay expecting to find a patient with severe trauma requiring immediate surgical intervention. Instead, they found an empty gurney, discarded IV lines, and an open window."What the hell?" Dr. Peterson stared at the scene in disbelief. "Where's the patient?"A young nurse rushed over, her face pale. "I was just here five minutes ago! He was unconscious, hooked up to monitors, barely breathing—""Well, he's not here now!" Dr. Peterson snapped, moving to the window. He looked down at the five-story drop to the ground below. "Did he jump? Someone call security immediately!""Security's already on their way," another nurse replied, her hands shaking as she radioed for help.Within minutes, hospital security guards flooded the emergency department, questioning staff and reviewing the timeline."Who was the last person to see the patient?" the head

Back at St. Mary's Hospital, Alice and Alfred sat in the security office, surrounded by monitors displaying grainy black-and-white footage from various cameras throughout the building.The head of security, a stern-faced woman named Ms. Rodriguez, operated the controls with practiced efficiency."I'm going to show you everything we have from the last two hours," Ms. Rodriguez said, her fingers flying over the keyboard. "Starting from when Mr. Solomon was brought in."The first monitor showed the ambulance bay. Alice watched herself climb out with the paramedics, Harry's stretcher being rushed through the doors. She remembered how lifeless he'd looked, how much blood had soaked through the white sheets."There," Alice pointed. "That's when they brought him in."Ms. Rodriguez fast-forwarded through footage of Harry being wheeled into the emergency treatment bay, doctors and nurses swarming around him."Now watch the corridor outside his room," she said, switching to a different camera a

The drive to Alfred's house was tense and silent. Alice kept opening her mouth to ask questions, then closing it again, clearly unsure what to say. Alfred gripped the steering wheel tightly, rehearsing in his mind how he was going to explain Harry's abilities.When they pulled into the driveway, Alice practically jumped out of the car. "Where is he? Is he okay?""He's inside," Alfred said. "But Alice, before we go in, you need to understand something. What you're about to see... it's going to challenge everything you think you know about what's possible.""What are you talking about?" Alice demanded.Instead of answering, Alfred opened the front door. "Harry? We're here."Harry appeared at the top of the stairs, dressed in clean clothes, his hair still damp from the shower. He descended slowly, his expression guarded.Alice stood frozen in the entryway, her mouth hanging open. "Harry? But... but you were...""Dead?" Harry supplied quietly. "Or at least close to it?""I saw the blood,"