004

𖥸┈┈┈𖥸┈┈┈𖥸┈┈┈𖥸

Inside the pod, the baby stirred. The soul that had taken refuge inside the body was growing more aware with each passing second. The connection to the physical world was becoming stronger. The faint sensations of the liquid surrounding the body, the soft vibrations of the machines, the rhythmic thumping of its heartbeat—all of it felt more real now, more solid.

The body was still weak, not yet fully capable of the complex movements or thoughts that would come with time, but the soul was no longer lost. It had found its home here, in this new vessel, though it still struggled to reconcile the old memories with the new life it had been given.

The soul had wandered for so long in the void, lost between worlds, its former life a faded echo. But now, it was alive again. The memories of that old life—the battles, the faces of comrades and enemies—were still fractured, but they were there, deep inside, waiting to resurface. It had once been someone, somewhere, but now it was something else entirely. Now it just had to remember who it was, who he was.

𖥸┈┈┈𖥸┈┈┈𖥸┈┈┈𖥸

The sterile laboratory hummed with the quiet rhythm of machines, their soft beeps and whirs echoing off the cold steel walls. Suspended in a glowing, cylindrical containment pod at the center of the room, the child floated silently, bathed in the blue-green light of the amniotic fluid that kept him alive. His tiny fingers twitched every few minutes, his eyelids flickering with faint movements that suggested dreams—or perhaps something else entirely. 

Dr. Erich Volkov stood before the containment unit, his sharp, calculating eyes fixed on the developing infant. His cold, sterile demeanor masked the excitement buzzing beneath his skin. This child—this creation—was the pinnacle of HYDRA's genetic engineering, the result of years of experimentation and ambition. Volkov had seen many experiments come and go, but none like this. This was something new. Something beyond any ordinary super-soldier.

Volkov's fingers hovered over the control panel as the monitors flashed, displaying rapid lines of data. The child had grown at an unnatural rate—what should have taken nine months had taken mere weeks. From a single embryo to a fully developed fetus, the boy was now close to term, far sooner than anyone could have predicted. But that was no accident. The energy from the Scepter, though not fully understood, had altered the boy's physiology. His development had been shaped by forces far beyond science. 

"He's stabilizing," Volkov muttered under his breath, more to himself than to anyone else. He reached out and adjusted a dial, watching as the glowing liquid in the pod swirled slightly, maintaining the perfect temperature for the infant's fragile body.

The child stirred again, his tiny hands brushing against the glass walls of the containment unit. His heartbeat echoed softly through the chamber, strong and steady.

Volkov tapped a few keys on the console, bringing up the child's genetic profile on the screen. His enhanced physiology was unmistakable—superhuman even before birth. But now, they needed something more concrete, something to identify him beyond just an experiment.

"Male," Volkov said to himself, confirming the child's gender on the display. It was fitting, he thought. There was something about the strength and durability of the male form, something that would make this child more suited to combat, more suited to the role HYDRA had intended for him. Not that it mattered much—what truly mattered was the power within the child, not the physical form.

His name would come later, if they ever gave him one. For now, the child was simply Subject Omega, HYDRA's ultimate creation.

"Subject Omega," Volkov repeated, rolling the name over in his mouth. It felt right, powerful. The omega symbol—the end—represented finality, the culmination of all things. In a way, this child was the end of HYDRA's long journey to control human evolution, the end of their search for the perfect weapon.

Satisfied, Volkov entered the codename into the system. From this moment forward, the boy would be known as Omega—the last, the strongest. 

𖥸┈┈┈𖥸┈┈┈𖥸┈┈┈𖥸

Inside the containment pod, the boy stirred again, more violently this time. The machines monitoring his vitals beeped in response, displaying a sudden surge in activity. His small fists clenched, his tiny legs kicking against the walls of the pod. The fluid rippled as the energy surrounding the child intensified, reacting to his rapid growth.

Volkov stepped closer, his eyes narrowing as he observed the sudden change. The child's development was accelerating again, far beyond what had been anticipated. He glanced at the scepter, still resting in its containment case, its blue light pulsing faintly. Even now, the Mind Stone seemed to be influencing the child's growth, pushing him further, faster than nature intended.

The soul inside the child—now more aware than ever—sensed the changes as well. The body it had fused with was growing stronger, more capable with each passing moment. The memories of the void, of the endless drifting between worlds, were fading, replaced by the visceral experience of living once more. The sensations of a heartbeat, of muscles stretching and flexing, of breath filling the lungs—all of it was new and overwhelming.

The soul had no control over the body yet, no way to influence the boy's movements. It was still too weak, still adapting to this new existence. But it was aware. The child's mind was a blank slate, waiting to be shaped, but the soul had its own memories, fragments of a past life that clung to its consciousness like echoes in the dark.

It had been someone before—someone important, someone with purpose. But those memories were distant now, almost irrelevant. What mattered now was this new life, this new chance to live again.

And this time, the soul would not be powerless. 

He would not be powerless 

𖥸┈┈┈𖥸┈┈┈𖥸┈┈┈𖥸

Volkov continued to monitor the child's progress, the rapid aging still a mystery even to him. He tapped a few keys, watching as the data flowed across the screen. The child's physical development had stabilized, but the mental aspect—his mind—remained an enigma. Volkov had always been cautious with such matters. The mind was as important as the body when it came to creating a weapon, and if HYDRA couldn't control both, they would risk losing everything.

The body had been shaped by the combination of Wanda Maximoff's and Bucky Barnes' genetics, but the Scepters's influence could mean something entirely different. Volkov couldn't predict how the stone's energy would affect the child's cognitive abilities, how it might alter his personality or grant him abilities far beyond what was intended.

That was the risk they had taken from the start. But Volkov, ever pragmatic, knew that HYDRA's mission required boldness, and they had already gone too far to turn back.

He approached the containment pod, staring down at the tiny boy floating within.

"You are going to be something far greater than any of us," he whispered softly. "You will be HYDRA's answer to everything. The future of human evolution."

Volkov's words were not meant for the child, who couldn't yet hear or comprehend them, but for himself. He needed to believe in this project, needed to convince himself that HYDRA was still in control. The child might be growing faster than anticipated, might be more powerful than even they had predicted, but he was still theirs.

And HYDRA would make sure of it. 

The soul inside the child felt the rapid acceleration once more. The body it inhabited was nearing its final stage of development, nearing the point where it would be ready to emerge into the world. The soul still couldn't fully control the body's movements, but it could feel the power bubbling beneath the surface, a raw, untapped potential waiting to be unleashed.

The body jerked, its arms stretching out as if reaching for something. The machines beeped louder, responding to the increased activity. Volkov's eyes widened slightly as he noticed the movements becoming more coordinated, more deliberate.

The boy's tiny hands pressed against the glass of the pod, his fingers splayed out as though testing the boundary that held him. For a moment, his eyes fluttered open, just a crack, revealing faint, dark irises beneath.

Volkov leaned closer, his breath catching in his throat. It was too soon for the child to have such awareness—too soon for him to be this alert.

The child's eyes closed again, and the movements stilled. But the moment hadn't passed unnoticed.

Volkov stood there, watching the boy inside the pod, a sense of unease creeping into his mind. Something had changed. The child was more than just an experiment now—he was aware.

"Subject Omega," Volkov muttered, stepping back from the containment unit. "You are everything we hoped for. And more."

But as he left the lab, his footsteps echoing in the dimly lit room, Volkov couldn't shake the feeling that HYDRA was no longer fully in control.

Not anymore.

𖥸┈┈┈𖥸┈┈┈𖥸┈┈┈𖥸 

Ever since the last training session, she had felt a shift. The presence she sensed within her had intensified, now pulsing in rhythm with her heartbeat. It was no longer just an abstract feeling; it was alive. And it was reaching out.

Suddenly, her eyes shot open, and she gasped as an electric jolt coursed through her veins. She sat up, the weight of something profound pressing down on her. What was happening?

It wasn't just her power that had heightened. There was a connection—something deep and primal—that pulled at her from afar. She could almost feel it, a flicker of consciousness that resonated in her mind. It was as if she were being drawn to another soul, a kindred spirit struggling against the same chains that bound her.

The sensation overwhelmed her, making her heart race. Wanda pressed her palms against her temples, trying to make sense of it. Was it a memory? A vision? Or was it something more?

Suddenly, she saw it—a flash of light, a flicker of movement. A child. A boy, small and vulnerable, trapped inside a glass pod, machines beeping around him. His tiny hands pressed against the transparent barrier, desperately seeking freedom. She felt his fear, his confusion.

𖥸┈┈┈𖥸┈┈┈𖥸┈┈┈𖥸