The Baron's footsteps echoed down the stone corridor—sloppy, panicked, tripping over themselves. He was leaving a trail of blood behind him, whether from chimeras or his own shaking hands; I didn't care.
I didn't rush.
Predators don't.
I moved at a steady pace, boots clicking softly on the stone as shadowlight flickered at my heels. Ahead of me, the chimera—the one that hadn't attacked us earlier—padded silently like a loyal hound carved from a nightmare, its mismatched limbs gliding across the floor. It kept glancing back at me, waiting for direction.
"Go on," I murmured. "Track him."
It bounded forward with an eager, low growl.
The Baron screamed somewhere ahead. He knew exactly what followed him.
I savored his fear.
As I turned the corner, I saw him scrambling up a staircase, shoving past his own soldiers, knocking one down just to gain a few more seconds of life.
Pathetic.
"Stop! You don't know what you're doing—" His voice cracked in terror.
"W-We can make a deal!"
I smiled slowly, sharp, humorless.
"If you think you're in a position to bargain," I called back, "you're more delusional than your creations."
I flicked my fingers.
Shadow surged.
The fallen soldier he had pushed began to convulse, lifted by the throat by a tendril of darkness. I wasn't interested in killing them, only in letting the Baron hear the wet, choking gasps echoing up the stairwell.
The chimera scaled the wall, fast and silent, overtaking the fleeing Baron with horrifying ease.
He didn't notice.
He only noticed when its claws scraped the stone right beside his head.
He screamed again—higher this time. "NO—NO—NO, GET IT AWAY—"
I reached the top of the stairs, watching, calm, almost bored.
"Don't kill him," I told the chimera gently. "Not yet."
It withdrew its claws from the Baron's cheek, just enough to avoid tearing it off. A thin line of blood dripped down his face.
He looked at me with pure, primal terror.
"You… you can control them?" he whispered.
"No," I said, stepping closer, "I simply understand them better than you ever did."
I circled him slowly, the chimera mirroring my movement.
He turned in frantic little jerks, trying to keep both of us in sight.
A rabbit trapped between two wolves.
"You enjoyed this," I said. "Didn't you? Cutting them. Stitching them. Breaking them. You called it research."
He shook violently. "I—I was serving the kingdom—advancing science—YOU DON'T UNDERSTAND—"
"I understand perfectly."
My voice dropped to a cold whisper.
"You liked it."
He froze.
His mouth snapped shut.
And that was all the confession I needed.
The chimera lunged not to kill, but to drag him down, pinning him to the ground with its massive, warped limb. The Baron shrieked, kicking and writhing.
"Stop! STOP! PLEASE!"
His begging only made the chimera's grip tighten.
I crouched beside him, tilting my head, studying him the way he had studied his victims.
"You caused so much suffering," I said. "Let me repay a fraction of it."
He sobbed violently, face streaked with sweat and dirt.
I extended my hand. Shadows gathered at my fingertips like smoke coiling into blades.
"Run," I said softly.
He blinked up at me, confused. Terrified.
"W-What?"
"Run."
I smiled slowly, like a predator.
"I want to see how far you get."
His face was drained of all color.
He scrambled up, almost slipping on his own blood, and fled into the forest deeper.
The chimera looked at me expectantly.
"Go," I said. "But don't kill him until I arrive."
It bounded off, roaring down the passage after him.
I straightened, brushing dust off my clothes.
There was a unique satisfaction in hunting something that understood it was already dead.
And the Baron—he would learn that lesson step by step, breath by breath, scream by scream.
I walked after them, unhurried, savoring the chase.
"Let's see," I murmured into the dark, "just how long hope can keep you alive."
*****
I turned toward the only one who hadn't attacked, the only one who had clung to whatever scraps of sanity it still possessed.
"It's alright," I said quietly. "I won't hurt you. Come out."
For a moment, nothing moved.
Then, slowly… hesitantly… it stepped from the shadows.
It was small. Too small. And when the dim torchlight touched its face, I saw the tear tracks cutting through the grime—saw the raw fear trembling in its mismatched eyes.
The sound of its chains dragged across the floor—metal scraping stone—an ugly, grating clatter that dug its claws into memories I wished would stay buried. My jaw tightened.
With a flick of my fingers, the shackles shattered.
Metal snapped like brittle glass.
"You're free now," I murmured, lowering myself into a crouch so I could meet its gaze. The way it held itself, shoulders curled inward, trembling, clinging desperately to some fading sense of self told me everything.
A child.
It had been a child.
A soft groan behind me snapped my attention back.
Right—Cassian and Vivian. I had nearly forgotten about them.
They were slumped against a toppled table, bruised, bleeding, barely conscious.
I reached into my subspace and tossed each of them a highest-grade healing potion I carried.
"Drink this," I said. "Both of you."
They fumbled for the potions, hands shaking, eyes flicking between me… and the childlike chimera now standing at my side.
The chimera hovered close to me, clinging to the faint warmth of freedom like a frightened animal. Its trembling breaths echoed softly in the ruined lab, a fragile sound swallowed by the oppressive dark.
Cassian and Vivian finished their potions, color slowly returning to their faces. Pain eased, but the shock, the hollow, shaken look in their eyes lingered.
Good. They needed to understand the reality of this place. Once again, I focused on the chimera in front of me.
"Do you want revenge?" I asked quietly, extending my hand toward the trembling chimera.
Cassian and Vivian tensed at my side, eyes widening.
The child-creature stared up at me, fearful, confused, but flickering with something new. Something sharp. Something alive.
"If you do," I murmured, "take my hand. I'll help you return to your family. Safe and sound."
It hesitated, small fingers twitching, breath uneven. But I knew it was only a matter of time. Pain like that always chooses a direction. And it had finally been offered one.
"Cecilia…" Vivian whispered. "How can you return this chimera to its family? You… killed the rest."
I looked back at her slowly.
"It's not difficult for me," I said, voice soft as a blade sliding free. "I can undo all those painful reminders."
Her breath hitched. She didn't understand, and she didn't need to.
Cassian's voice cracked with anger. "Then why kill the others? Why spare only him?"
I turned to him fully this time.
Cold. Unimpressed. Tired of this naïve outrage of his.
"Are you truly so incompetent," I asked, "that you couldn't notice the difference between them and him?"
His face was drained of color. Vivian lowered her gaze.
I had wasted enough breath.
I knelt before the child again. "So… do you want revenge for what he did to you? For everyone?"
The chimera's mismatched eyes shimmered, fear twisting into fury.
Slowly, deliberately, it nodded.
A dark smile unfurled across my lips.
"Good."
****
The earth above us trembled faintly—branches cracking in the distance, footsteps thrashing through the forest.
The Baron was running.
The child-like chimera followed at my heel. Silent. Obedient. Burning with vengeance.
The forest swallowed us instantly—damp air, snapping twigs, the distant scent of fear growing stronger with every step.
The Baron crashed through the underbrush somewhere ahead, frantic, gasping, leaving a trail even a blind predator could follow.
Beside me, the chimera's breathing shifted—shallower, sharper, animalistic.
I reached out and rested a hand on its head.
"It's time to hunt," I whispered.
The forest thinned, giving way to jagged rocks and twisted undergrowth. Every snap of a branch underfoot was a heartbeat, every rustle of leaves a whisper of his panic.
Ahead, the Baron stumbled over a root, glancing back wildly. His breaths came ragged, his eyes wide with terror. He had no idea what was hunting him.
I moved silently, every step deliberate, calculated. The chimera at my side mirrored my motions, a grotesque shadow blending with mine. Its glowing, mismatched eyes glimmered with anticipation. It had tasted the thrill of the hunt.
The Baron froze for a split second, trying to weigh his options. But there was nowhere to run. Not with the predator behind him. Not with the monster I had molded into an instrument of vengeance at my side.
"Looking for an escape?" I murmured, voice cold and smooth as steel. "You've already run out of options."
The chimera lunged before I even gave the signal. Its claws tore into the earth, carving a path straight toward him. The Baron screamed, stumbling again, panic overtaking reason.
I let a slow, predatory smile creep across my face. Watching him flail was almost… amusing. Almost. But the real pleasure came from the inevitability of it. There was no escape from what I brought into the world, no cunning plan, no hidden ally. Only the cold, absolute reckoning of what he had done.
The Baron's eyes darted frantically between us, and for a fleeting moment, I saw the truth of his fear: he was prey.
I tilted my head, letting the forest's silence press in. The chimera mirrored me, crouching low, muscles coiled and ready. I could almost feel its anticipation radiating like heat.
"Run," I whispered, though it was a mockery. "Struggle all you want. It only makes it more… entertaining."
Branches cracked under our movements. The Baron tripped, fell hard against a rock. Pain, terror, and disbelief warped his face. I moved closer, the shadows swallowing me as I closed the distance.
The chimera stepped forward. Its claws dug into the soil, tiny arcs of anticipation shimmering from its body. I could feel its pulse quicken, matching my own.
There was no mercy here. No hesitation. Only the hunt.
And we were savoring it.
The Baron scrambled to his feet, but the forest had already become a cage. Every shadow seemed alive, every snapping twig a drumbeat counting down his fate. He twisted and screamed, yet the path ahead was dead—rocks, roots, and the looming inevitability of us.
I didn't chase. Not yet. I let him feel the hunt, the suffocating dread, the cruel weight of his mistakes pressing on him from all sides. The chimera moved silently beside me, its body coiled, teeth bared in a feral grin that mirrored my own.
"You can run," I murmured, voice low, velvet-dark. "You can scream. You can plead. But it won't change what's coming."
The Baron's breaths were ragged, uneven. Sweat ran down his face, mingling with blood from a shallow cut on his temple. He looked around, desperate, seeking some impossible exit, some illusion of safety.
I stepped forward, slow, deliberate. My shadow stretched across the forest floor like a blade. Every instinct in him screamed prey, every nerve in me buzzed with anticipation. The forest itself seemed to bend toward me, drawing him into the corner I had chosen.
The chimera hissed, a low, wet sound that reverberated in the hollow of the trees. It lunged ahead of me, forcing the Baron to stumble into a narrow passage between jagged rocks. The rocks scraped his shoulders, tore at his cloak, slowed him just as I wanted.
I tilted my head, watching him flail, and allowed a faint smile to curl at the corners of my lips. So fragile. So frightened. Perfect.
"Look at you," I whispered, voice calm, predatory. "Running like a child. Begging for mercy you'll never receive. You made these monsters… now they're mine to wield. And I'll let you watch every moment of your fear before it ends."
The Baron shrieked and spun, swinging a dagger wildly, but the chimera intercepted with a clawed hand, slamming it to the ground. Metal screeched, sparks flew, and he fell hard, sprawling on jagged stones.
I crouched, low. I was the apex here. I was the hunter, and he was nothing more than prey.
The chimera hissed beside me, its glowing eyes fixed on him. It was ready. I was ready.
And I let the darkness of the forest settle over us, pressing him down, suffocating, inescapable. The world had narrowed to one terrifying truth: there was no running from me.
I took a step forward, slow, deliberate, savoring the moment.
The Baron's eyes met mine, wild, pleading, breaking. And in that instant, I knew the chase wasn't just mine anymore. It was ours, mine and the chimera, predators in perfect, terrifying sync.
"Let's end this," I whispered, voice like ice, as the shadows seemed to pulse and close in.
And he realized too late that the forest had already decided his fate.
I stepped closer, the shadows of the forest bending around me like obedient servants. The Baron's breaths came in ragged gasps, his eyes wide with the pure, raw terror of someone who knows the hunt has already ended, even if he hasn't yet been caught.
The chimera at my side snarled, a low, guttural vibration that shook the air. It had sensed the scent of its creator's cowardice, the same cowardice that had stolen lives and twisted flesh. Its jagged, mismatched eyes flicked toward me, and I nodded—just once.
The moment was electric. Silent. Deadly.
Then I let it loose.
The chimera lunged first, tearing through the underbrush like a living nightmare. Its claws raked the earth, sending shards of dirt and splintered wood flying. The Baron screamed, stumbling backward over roots and rocks, tripping again and again, no longer able to comprehend the speed and precision of what hunted him.
I followed, each step calculated, slow enough to savor his terror, fast enough that he could not predict me. Every shadow stretched, grew, pressed closer. My eyes glimmered faintly in the dim light, predator and huntress in one.
The Baron turned, eyes darting, and tried to draw a blade, but it was useless. The chimera struck like a living battering ram, shoving him to the ground. Rocks scraped against him, his armor clanging uselessly. His screams echoed through the trees, but I barely noticed them, relishing instead the rhythm of the hunt.
I murmured, voice cold, almost a whisper, but it carried in the stillness. "You made these monsters… and now you will see them turned against you."
I raised a hand, and shadows from the surrounding trees coalesced, forming jagged, black tendrils that reached toward him. The Baron's gaze flickered to me, realizing too late that I had always been in control; he had never had a chance.
The chimera pinned him, tearing at his robes, claws digging into flesh without mercy. Its glowing eyes locked onto mine as though seeking approval, and I gave it a slight nod, a predator's affirmation.
The Baron's attempts to flee became frantic, chaotic, useless. I let him struggle for a heartbeat longer, just to savor the dance of predator and prey. His sweat and blood mingled with the damp earth; his fear was tangible, and it thrilled me.
Finally, I lowered my head, voice soft but edged with ice:
"You made the monsters… now you will watch as they reclaim what you stole."
The chimera growled low, a promise of carnage that I didn't need to give words to. I simply stepped aside, letting it advance, letting the Baron understand fully that he was at the mercy of the consequences he had wrought.
And I, cold, calculating, and utterly unyielding, watched him crumble, predator and prey united in the dance I had orchestrated.
The forest swallowed his screams, and I felt the satisfaction of the hunt settle deep in my bones. This was what it meant to be feared. To be absolute.
I stepped back and watched, cold and still, as the chimera lunged. It was pure instinct, pure rage, and perfectly obedient. I had told it: kill, but don't stop until I say. And it obeyed.
The Baron screamed. I could hear every note of panic, every rasp of breath cut short by the wet, ripping sound of flesh tearing. His armor was useless against the chimera's claws and teeth. I tilted my head, amused at the grotesque ballet unfolding in front of me. Limbs bent in unnatural angles, blood splattered across the cold floor, his cries filling the cavernous lab.
The creature tore at him again, reveling in the carnage, and I moved closer. My fingers glowed faintly, the light cold as ice. When the chimera had shredded his shoulder down to bone, I pressed my hand against him, feeling the heat of his agony.
"Stay with us," I murmured softly, almost tenderly. "I won't let you die… not yet."
The Baron's eyes widened in disbelief. He had thought death was the end, but I had other plans. With a subtle flick, I forced torn muscles and crushed ribs to realign, arteries to seal, nerves to reconnect. He collapsed, gasping, writhing in pain, but alive.
The chimera roared in frustration, frustrated that I stole its prey from death, and I let it advance again. It tore into his legs, shredded his arms, slammed him against walls with bone‑splintering force. And every time he teetered on the edge of oblivion, I healed him. Not fully, never fully enough to keep him conscious, enough to let him feel everything again.
I crouched beside him at one point, tracing a bloodied finger across his cheek. "You see? Pain is a lesson," I whispered, my voice soft, almost amused. "And I'm a very patient teacher."
The Baron's body was mangled beyond recognition—skin peeled, limbs broken, bones cracked—and yet he lived. And I, calm, composed, predator in human form, watched him struggle to breathe, a smile tugging faintly at my lips.
Finally, the chimera stopped, panting, blood dripping from its maw. I gave it a slow nod. It had followed my orders perfectly. I turned back to the Baron, crouched low, letting my shadow fall across his trembling form.
"We're taking you back alive," I said softly, voice cold, calculated, predatory. "But no one said you'd be whole."
And I could see the understanding in his eyes: I had absolute control. I was the abyss he had poked at, the darkness he had tried to ignore, and now it was fully awake.
The chimera stepped back, chest heaving, claws soaked in the Baron's blood. I rose to my feet and wiped a fleck of crimson from my cheek. It smeared across my skin like war paint.
The Baron tried to crawl away—pathetic, broken, dragging himself with what remained of his shredded arm. His breath rattled like something drowning in its own blood.
I placed my boot on his back and pushed him flat to the floor.
"Where do you think you're going?" I murmured, leaning forward. "We're not done."
He whimpered. A grown man. A noble. The one who tore children apart for his experiments. Now reduced to a trembling animal.
Fitting.
I grabbed him by what was left of his collar and lifted his upper body off the ground. His head lolled, blood dripping in a slow, steady rhythm. The chimera growled low, eyes fixed on the Baron with hatred still burning hot.
"Stand," I ordered the Baron.
His legs wouldn't cooperate, so I forced him. Magic snaked down my arms, invisible tendrils pulling bones back into place with sickening cracks. He screamed. A wet, gurgling sound.
Good. Pain meant awareness.
I turned to the chimera. "He's all yours if he tries anything. Tear off whatever limb you like."
The chimera nodded, eager, snarling.
I dragged the Baron forward, his boots scraping trails of blood across the stone.
Cassian and Vivian had been watching from a distance, silent, pale. As I passed them, they instinctively stepped aside.
Their eyes were on me, wide and unsettled. Good. They should be.
"C-Cecilia…" Cassian's voice wavered. "You're… taking him alive?"
"Of course." I didn't bother slowing. "Death is too merciful."
Vivian swallowed hard. "He looks like he can't even—"
"He can," I cut her off sharply.
The Baron coughed violently, blood splattering the floor.
The chimera let out a soft growl of approval.
To be continued...