The Chimeric Ascension of Lyudmila Springfield

Chapter One-Hundred-Four: Reaching Ria’s Ruins – Part Four

“She’ll be okay,” Sekh said after the mana dissipated. “Niva’s tough.”  

“I know. I still can’t help but worry,” I replied, turning around to stare at our tent. The gym had another few hours before the spell expired, so Yew decided to get a little workout in. She wanted Tilde to watch her, so my maid stretched her arms as Yew climbed the walls like a monkey.  

“Why don’t you two rest?” asked Tris. “You can leave this to me.”  

“Are you sure?”  

"Indeed, I am more than sure.”  

“Well, okay. Sekh?” I extended my hand. She gracefully took it as I escorted her to our temporary home. It wasn’t much—the bare, unnecessary minimum to ‘save’ on mana.   

At least the bed is somewhat comfy.   

“I’ve missed this,” Sekh whispered, resting her head against my shoulder as we lay down.   

That bulky armor was in the way. I really wanted nothing more than to take it off and hold her against me…to feel her soft suppleness once more…to lose myself in her embrace…  

“Mila?”  

“Yes?”  

“I love you.”  

“I love you, too.”  

“Being held by you makes…me so happy. I…never lost hope, you know,” Sekh said in a tone only privy to me. “Never did. I never will, either. Because it was all worth it to experience this moment.”  

“Are you happy?”  

“More than I’ve ever been. Every new day brings a bigger smile to my face. What about you?”  

I smiled. Sekh lifted her head, and I touched my forehead to her helmet. “How could I not be? Everything is going to plan. I’m just…”  

“Just what? Talk to me, Mila.”  

“It’s an unsteady feeling, I guess. I’m anxious because things are looking up. I mean, I’ve been fucked by fate too many times to count that I’m expecting something to mess up.”  

“That was then, Mila. This is now. Everything is different. You’re surrounded by people who won’t let that happen. You know Tris is always thinking ahead to counter those roadblocks before they emerge.”  

“Yes. I know. Maybe…”  

“Maybe you need me to squeeze it out of you?”  

I smirked. “Been talking to Tilde, have you?” 

“What can I say? She’s more adept than me when it comes to things like this. This is still a lot of firsts for me. I… I have a lot of dreams, Mila. Many that I never thought would ever come true. Yet now… I can see a reality in which I can make them happen. I’m a fighter, yet there are ‘battles,’ so to speak, in which everyone is my superior.”  

“Dreams, huh? I’m sure we share many. Just wait, Sekh. That day’s approaching faster than ever. Once my revenge is finished, we can focus on that and work on ending your curse. The path ahead is clear. It may take time, but the important thing is that we have a method to break it.”  

“I remember when you said you’d do it. It shames me, yet I thought it was a whimsical fantasy. I didn’t know how you’d shatter the bindings that kept me chained to life for tens of thousands of years, yet I still wished to put my trust in you. It was well-founded, Mila.”  

“Don’t be sorry,” I whispered, hugging her more. I was this close to stashing her armor because I yearned for that skin-to-skin contact. “I didn’t have a plan—just empty words attached to a barren promise. But yes. Things worked out, didn’t they?”  

“Mmnn. They did,” purred Sekh.   

“So, I know things will work out now. They always do. Even if it seems like darkness is all we’re going to see… Dawn is always around the corner. Be my light, Sekh.”  

“I’ll illuminate the dark, Mila. Forever and always if you’re there to guide us.”  

“I will. That’s my promise, Sekh.”   

We shared a moment of silence. I… I truly loved Sekh with every fiber of my being. Merely spending time alone without speaking meant the world to me because I was with her. So, after being without Sekh for so many months…  

“Umm… Is…it okay…?” Suddenly, I heard a whisper from outside the tent. “Umm… Mi—Mila, are you in there? Can—Can I come in? Is it a good time?”  

“Of course,” I replied, sitting up. Yew entered, but she looked uneasy. Nervousness radiated from her tiny body like a man suffering from hypothermia. She kept glancing away—almost as if she didn’t want to be…a bother? “What’s wrong? Is everything okay?”  

“I… Umm… Act—Actually, I can—I’m sorry, Mila. I’m sorry, Sekh. I didn't mean to interrupt—"   

“Is it about what we discussed?” I asked, raising my hand. My fingers turned into vines that wrapped around Yew’s stomach. They ferried her to the bed.    

Yew nodded, her blond hair partly obscuring her fiery eyes.   

I canceled the transfiguration, causing the little chimera to land with a soft bounce.    

“Is it a good time?”  

“Why wouldn’t it be?” asked Sekh.   

“It hasn’t been that long since you came back,” explained Yew. “I thought…you’d want to spend time together. I wanna learn to do what you do, Mila. I was fine with waiting, but Tris said it was okay to ask when she saw me pacing around the campfire.”   

“Do you know why she said that?” Yew shook her head at my question. "Because it is okay. You’re not a bother, Yew. You aren’t intruding upon anything. Sekh and I value the time we spend together, yes, but that includes the time we spend with the ones we cherish.”  

“Even me?”  

“Yes, it includes you,” said Sekh, her voice a sweet whisper.    

Yew’s mature in some ways and inexperienced in others. She still doesn’t know the ‘right’ way to react to something. That’ll come in time, though. It’ll be something she learns as she lives.   

“Anyway, are you ready for your first lesson?” I asked, silently casting a sound seal.    

“Uh-huh! I’m ready to learn!” Yew formed a fist and looked proud. That prior hesitation was nowhere to be seen. That was good. It needed to be replaced by excitement and wiggling ears rather than nervous anxiousness.   

Chimerism came to me like second nature.   

Why?  

I wasn’t sure. That entity in the void transformed my soul into one, yet Yew was born via a miracle through myself, Ira, and the Eagle Yew.     

Yew patiently waited as she sat with her legs crossed.    

Might as well start with the obvious.  

It felt odd to discuss her birth’s circumstances. Still, it had to be done since she wasn’t like other chimeras.   

“You’re not so much a clone as you are a real, genuine person, Yew, even though my mana flowed through you in the chimerization process. A copy of my Status Menu was effectively given to you. You share most of my skills and all of my transfigurations. Likewise, it means you stand to be very powerful.”  

“Powerful? That’s good... Right? I can get strong so I can protect Lord Aetos's new forest! And you, Mila. And Sekh, and Tris and Tilde and Niva, too.”  

“Power without control is not power,” added Sekh. “It is dangerous.”  

“Ahh—” That warning wiped Yew’s smile. She quickly recovered. “Right! Okay. Control… Start small, right? Don’t jump into the deep end, Yewie.”  

“Yewie? That sounds like Tilde.”  

“Uh-huh. I talked to her. She couldn’t help me that much since a chimera has to learn from another chimera, but her advice was really good. Oh, but she told me to finish my plate. I can’t leave food behind because I’m a growing girl.”  

“That’s something she taught me, too. Before we continue… Are you okay? With what happened, I mean?”  

“With the commander person?”   

“Yes. I hurt him. Had things been slightly different… I would’ve killed him without a second thought.”  

“The other soldiers would’ve died, too?”  

“Yes. Perhaps not all. Some would want revenge. Others would probably run away, but the body count would've risen. It’s fine to fight to protect. Know that fighting won’t always end peacefully. People will die, Yew. I don’t say this to scare you—I say it to make you think about the power you hold.”  

“…” Yew went silent at Sekh’s words. “I…know it’s a heavy responsibility. But I’m not…a stranger to fighting. Lord Aetos talked with me a lot. When people came to hurt him, he fought. And he killed. He used the Eagle Yew’s power, too. So… I know what it feels like. Mila… Sekh… I also know how warm it makes me to protect the ones I like. I don’t want to fight for the sake of fighting. I want to fight to protect. I don’t want to be a bad person. Lord Aetos wouldn’t want that of me. Neither would you two.”  

That’s a mature mindset.   

“Portions of your inner psyche were imparted to her during the process, my lord,” said Tris as she entered the tent. “Most chimera, I surmise, experience a phase of being a ‘brat,’ as Tilde would describe it. Overconfidence births false bravado that negatively impacts a chimera’s personality until they perish or suffer a grand defeat to make them mature. You were exposed to external and internal influences that ‘nipped it in the bud.’”  

That’s right. Surtr stopped me from doing something stupid when we reached that inn. Without him, Tilde, Tris, Sekh, or my family...    

"A brat? I don’t want to be a brat! I’ll be good, Mila. I swear I will! I’m not like the others! Not cause I was born differently, but because I have you and the others! I—I won’t use my power for evil.”  

“I know you won’t. Calm down, Yew. It’s okay. Take a deep breath.” I lightly pinched her cheeks until she regained her emotions.   

“Forgive me, Yew. I didn’t mean to impart any worry.”  

“Oh, no. It’s not your fault. I… I guess I’m still trying to get a handle on everything. I have these memories. These feelings, too.”  

“Of everything that happened in Aetos Village?”  

“Uh-huh. The village didn’t always experience joy. It was peaceful, but not all the time. I felt the villagers’ sadness when someone died. I smiled with them whenever a birthday was celebrated. Arguments sometimes broke out, so I felt anger at times. Step one should be controlling that.”  

“Step zero is recognizing that flaw,” said Sekh.  

“Indeed. Self-growth cannot happen until you identify a flaw,” added Tris.   

“Anyway, why don’t we get started?” I asked. “We’ll take it slow, okay? Focus on the basics. Don’t jump into anything extreme. Speak if you feel something you can’t explain. For example… Take pressure. Don’t force something through. Instead, step back and examine what you’re specifically trying to accomplish.”  

Yew excitedly nodded, her ears wiggling like her eldest sister.   

***** 

***** 

“A chimera’s biggest advantage comes from biomass. I understand that every living organism has it, yet we’re the only ones who can manipulate it. Think of it as a formless energy that lies in wait until it receives a command,” I said, beginning a short lecture.    

“It’s the chimera version of mana?”  

“Mostly. Biomass to us is like oxygen to everyone else. Our bodies will devour themselves if we run out. There is a boon. Anything alive as biomass. A patch of nearby grass? The water flowing in a lake? Tonight's dinner? It’s not a lot, but a steady supply is better than nothing. Assimilation will give you more. Remember that.”   

“Okay, I understand.”  

Next, I spoke about maintaining secrecy. “No one can suspect who we are. Admittedly, we have an advantage in [Status Cloak], yet it’s not the cloak we think it is.” I told her about Bellerophon and how they decided to risk my life to kill that chimera in Ria. “That was an exception, I think.”  

“Exception or not, we have to practice caution, right?”  

“Yep.” I smiled and rubbed her head. “Caution above all else. Now, you won’t learn just by listening.” I raised my left arm and focused, transfiguring it into a funny-looking cartoon snake.   

Yew’s giggles were worth it.   

“I have never assimilated anything like this. It’s something custom I made at a moment’s notice. So, that’s proof you don’t have to follow a template.”  

“Template? What’s that?”  

“It’s what you get when you assimilate,” explained Sekh. She talked about the boar I assimilated way back when and how I transfigured part of my body into it.  

“The closest analogy would be a set of predefined instructions,” Tris explained. “Take the boar, for example. Its appearance data is tied to a template, simplifying the process of transfiguration.” She paused briefly before continuing, “But it goes beyond just appearance. The template encompasses everything related to the boar—its fur, eyes, ears, snout, tusks, and internal organs. Even its senses—smell, taste, hearing, touch, and sight—are all encoded within the same structure.” 

“Eating a monster gives me everything the monster can do?” I nodded. “So, I can choose which parts to add to my body?” 

“Yes. But it’s not just adding. It’s replacing.” My arm reverted to normal before it became covered in a boar’s top layer of fur. It was bristly, surprising Yew when she touched it. “I pictured the boar, focused on its fur, and targeted my arm.”  

“Picture the boar… Fur…” Yew closed her eyes. “Hard fur… It’s not soft… My…arm… Huh? My body feels tingly.” Yew stopped, looking conflicted.   

“I sometimes feel that when transfiguring large parts of my body. Narrow your senses.”  

Yew nodded, although her next attempt ended in failure.   

So did the following ten.   

“What am I doing wrong? I’m trying—I…” Yew looked like she was about to throw a tantrum, but the girl closed her eyes and breathed.  

“Where exactly are you focusing?” asked Sekh.   

“Here,” replied Yew, touching her forearm.    

“That may be the problem,” added Tris. She held Yew’s elbow and wrist after receiving permission to touch her. “The targeted area is too large.”  

“So…what? The biomass fizzles out because it’s spread too thin?”  

“That’s my theory, my lord.”  

“Can you use waypoints to illustrate how it flows? A visual example may help.”  

“Of course. Yew, please try again, but focus on your middle finger.” A series of waypoints appeared, starting from Yew’s chest. They traveled down her arm in an organized line. “Let the floating lights guide your biomass. Do not transfigure until it has reached its destination.”  

Yew closed her eyes.  “Biomass… Biomass… Let it flow… I feel…it in my arm…but let it go further… What about…there?”   

A soft glimmer obscured her finger like a foggy haze before dissolving, revealing some progress. Half was still flesh—the other half was cast in an uneven layer of rough, sharp fur that had no rhyme or reason for its appearance. It almost resembled a child’s frantic scribbles.    

Still, it was progress.   

“Mila… I did it! I really did it!”  

“Yep. Good job! Remember the feeling. Cancel it by reversing the process."   

"That’s easy,” she said upon accomplishing it.   

“Now, do it again.” 

For the next few minutes, Yew transfigured her middle digit and other fingers with the fur of a boar. She focused less on speed and more on expanding her transfiguration range. I had something similar. I was limited, I think, to what percentage I could alter, which went away after I assimilated a slime.   

The restriction should’ve been lifted on Yew—Tris confirmed it was—yet there was a difference between us.   

I had months of experience by the time I ate those slimes. Yew was still going at it raw with nothing but vague abstractions gathered from me. So, you could argue that progression could come quicker or slower than a normal-born chimera. It depended on the arguments, but Tris had said either could be the case.   

She leaned on the former, however. Once it ‘clicked’ in Yew’s mind, her familiarity should skyrocket almost overnight. The problem was getting to that point. Only experience could help, so she had to practice, practice, and practice.   

“Ohhh… I’m… I don’t feel… My stomach hurts…” groaned Yew. She suddenly went limp. Sekh acted fast, catching the frail girl in her armored hands.   

“It’s her biomass,” she announced. “Yew’s used too much.”  

“It’ll be okay. Here, eat this.” I retrieved a tightly packed ball of meat from my storage. Yew struggled to open her mouth, so I flattened it thin and slipped it between her lips. “There. Chew it. Okay, good. Swallow… Tris?”  

“It’s recovering. The discomfort will pass, Yew. Please endure it a little longer,” Tris said as Sekh helped the chimera to my lap—I covered it in soft fur to give her a comfy place to lie.    

Gradually, her hasty breathing slowed to a comfortable, healthy pace. Her eyes opened a few seconds later. “I ran out, didn’t I? Why? I thought I had a lot.”  

“You do. However… How should I explain it… Let’s say you have 100 units of biomass. It takes 5 to turn your finger furry, but you can use more than 5 without any additional benefit because it has nowhere to go. It’s wasted. It's not recovered by the body.”  

“So, I used 10?”  

“Or 20. Or 30. The specifics don’t matter. Biomass optimization is another aspect to focus on. I’m sorry. I should’ve mentioned that earlier.”  

“Tilde said it’s better to mess up when your mistakes can be fixed without much effort. So… I’m glad it happened beside you.”  

She trusts us that much?  

“How do I know the limit?”  

“That’s something you must discover through trial and error. By that, I mean tomorrow. Let’s stop here for the night.”  

“Okay… I’m…feeling sleepy… Tired, too… Can… Can I sleep in here? With you?”  

“Of course, you can,” replied Sekh. We shared a look and got comfy—with Yew right between us. She was out in no time.  

“Have the others fallen asleep?” 

“Quella’s awake, my lord. She’s staring at her tent’s ceiling with a melancholic expression. Tilde’s talking with Surtr near the campfire. I think I’ll join her for a little bit.”   

“Okay. You know where to find us when you’re done.”  

“Of course, my lord. Sleep well, you three,” Tris said before leaving.   

“Mmnph… Mila…” Yew whispered in her sleep, snuggling closer. Sekh rubbed her head. I knew she had a fond smile beneath her helmet.  

“I know Yew said what she said,” I whispered. “But I don’t want to put her in danger. My selfish desires would see her far away from the battlefield. Except... It’s not up to me to determine how she lives if she promises to live for what she truly believes in. If protecting the ones she loves goes with that… Then that’s that.”  

“Are you thinking about Irisa?” Sekh asked after I went quiet.   

“Yeah. She… She was this close to living for me-- for what I want—not for herself. We’re not lovers anymore. I honestly don’t think we were ever that compatible, but… She’s still important to me. I wouldn’t be me if my oni sister wasn't in my life.”  

“I’m glad she experienced self-growth. That… It really makes me happy, Mila.”  

“She considers you one, too. So does Erin. She missed you a lot.”  

“Erin did? I felt the lions’ feelings, but…”  

“Was it strange? Talk to me.”  

“I… They know about me. They know my title and what I’ve done. So… I don’t know how to act around them. Logic says I don’t have to change—I can continue to be Sekh. Maybe I'm overthinking the only solution. Still, I know one thing for sure.”  

“That is…”  

“She wants to have a ‘super awesome day’ with us, yes? Erin’s looking forward to it, so I can’t let her down—not after she’s worked so hard to get this far.”  

“You really like her.”  

“I do. I’m fond of her. Although part of it is Longtooth’s emotions. The lions are me as much as I am them. They’re living manifestations of my mana. Their feelings are as valid as mine because they are mine. I’m anxious to reunite with them. My heart… It flutters. I don’t know how else to describe it. Speaking via the lions isn’t the same as having them physically present." 

I kept silent and let Sekh investigate her heart’s depths.   

“My one wish is to turn the day we share into a core memory, Mila. For her, you, and me. Yew, too. I know the family will love her.”  

“Sounds like Mom and Dad are about to gain another daughter. Sekh?”  

“Yes?” 

“Before we…drift to sleep. I…can’t hold back. Not when you’re this close—”  

It happened in a flash. Sekh leaned over Yew before stashing the helmet. There… Her face… As pretty as ever… As gorgeous as a thousand blooming flowers of pristine quality… With those silver eyes that contained the love I cherished…  

My breath was stolen.  

Slowly, she pressed her lips to mine. The kiss was gentle—not at all reminiscent of the ‘naughtier’ stuff we've shared.   

“Let that hold us over, Mila,” she whispered, her helmet reappearing. “I love you.”  

“I love you, too.”  

Together, we cozied near Yew, closed our eyes, and drifted off the world of dreams after the sandman visited.   

And it was a good dream, too. Everyone I loved was there…  

However, it wasn’t just a dream.   

It was my future reality being shown to me—one I would fight hell itself to bring forth.   

I’d win that battle, too. Nothing would ever, ever stop me from achieving all our dreams. 

Nothing…  

Absolutely nothing…