Hammurabi and Amon had been keeping watch over Supiluliumas in the ward. When they saw the Emperor arrive, the two Praetorian Guards hurried forward to greet him. Despite having gone without sleep for a long time, they still looked spirited, though the pain they felt over Supiluliumas's condition was plain on their faces. "Mary, the High Priest of the Druid Order of Sola Red Forest, believes his condition is improving," Hammurabi said in a low voice before the Emperor could ask. "The Gene Code you designed for us got him through the worst of it. Gene Alchemy will not let his heart stop beating."
The complex vital-sign data showed that Supiluliumas was still in an artificially induced meningeal sleep. The enormous wound across his abdomen, which had nearly torn him open sideways, was now covered in artificial skin. In this state, his organs operated at minimum capacity to prevent him from going into shock. The Emperor had considered how to help the Praetorian Guard survive severe injuries when he designed it, and Supiluliumas's current performance was almost identical to the experimental data.
Stephen Strange had remained in the observation room next door, waiting for Praetorian Guard Supiluliumas to wake up. Throughout the long operation, he had kept himself stimulated with medication. Only after the thirty-two-hour surgery ended did he slump into a groggy sleep on a bench. He had woken once before the Emperor returned to the dungeon's intensive care ward, but perhaps from exhaustion or some other reason, after confirming that Supiluliumas's vital signs matched the data in the files, he fell asleep again without even drinking the glucose water Mary had prepared for him.
The Emperor sat in the chair beside Stephen Strange and placed a serving of Dinah's roasted pork chop on the table. Seconds later, the