The moment genuine empathy bloomed in Stella's heart, the ancient bronze lamp, hidden away in her closet miles above, seemed to resonate. A warm current surged from her chest, flowing through her veins and gathering in her palms.
It was the familiar warmth, but this time, it felt different—more powerful, more vibrant than ever before.
"My God... look at the thermal imaging!" Dr. Ken Zhang, Dr. Lin's assistant, exclaimed from the control room.
On the main screen, the infrared display showed two bright, golden clusters of light appearing where Stella's hands touched the pot. The energy wasn't just a faint glow; it was a dazzling, sun-like radiance that poured into the withered plant.
Stella didn't see the data. She only felt the life force flowing out of her. She focused all her will, all her mother's love for life, into that single, pure wish: Live.
And then, the miracle happened.
In the sterile, silent glass room, under the watchful eyes of shocked scientists, the dead rose bush began to change.
The brittle, brown stem started to regain its color, turning from a lifeless grey to a vibrant green. The yellowed leaves unfurled, their veins filling with life as they turned a lush, healthy emerald.
And the withered bud at the top... it trembled.
Slowly, tenderly, the brown, paper-thin outer layers peeled back, revealing the delicate, crimson petals within. One by one, they unfurled, blooming in a breathtaking display of time-lapsed life. In less than a minute, a perfect, velvety red rose stood proudly in full bloom, its fragrance so potent it seemed to penetrate the very glass of the enclosure.
The laboratory was dead silent.
Every researcher, every scientist, stared at the scene, their mouths agape, their minds struggling to process what they had just witnessed. This wasn't science. This was magic. This was a defiance of all known laws of biology and physics.
"Energy output... off the charts," Dr. Elias Lin whispered, his voice trembling with excitement. "The bio-energy reading is a thousand times higher than the peak we recorded on the night of the storm! This... this will change everything!"
In his own private study, Aidan watched the scene unfold on his monitor, his knuckles white as he gripped the arms of his chair. He saw the data streams flooding his screen, each number a testament to the unbelievable power she possessed. This was it. This was the key. The power to defy death, the power to rewrite nature itself.
He had been right. She was a treasure beyond measure.
But just as the thrill of discovery surged through him, his eyes fell on Stella.
The rose was in full bloom, but the girl who had created this miracle was wilting.
The color drained from Stella's face, replaced by a deathly pallor. A sheen of cold sweat beaded on her forehead. The world in her eyes started to spin, the brilliant white of the lab blurring into a dizzying vortex.
She felt empty. Utterly and completely drained, as if her very soul had been poured into that flower.
This was the price.
The energy wasn't created from nothing. It came from her.
Her legs gave out from under her. With a soft gasp, she collapsed onto the cold, hard floor.
"Stella!"
The name escaped Aidan's lips before he even realized it. It wasn't the detached "Miss An" or the clinical "specimen." It was her name, torn from his throat in a raw, unguarded moment of... what? Concern? Panic?
He didn't have time to analyze it. He only knew he had to get to her.
In the lab, chaos erupted.
"Subject has lost consciousness!" "Vitals are dropping! Heart rate is erratic!" "Get the medical team in there, now!"
But before anyone could move, a figure stormed out from a previously unnoticed observation room connected to the lab.
It was Aidan. His face was a mask of cold fury, his eyes blazing with an intensity that made everyone freeze in their tracks.
He didn't spare a single glance for the miraculously blooming rose. His entire world was focused on the small, crumpled figure on the floor.