Pact of the Broken Sun
Chapter 9 - The Apex Chimera (1)
Location: Earth - The Collapsed Realm, Capital of the Feral Collective
Year: Y.P. 100
Designation: The Lunar Sanctuary
As Kaelen Vance slowly opened his eyes, he was greeted by the insistent yellow light, blinking rhythmically in front of him, followed by a series of strange, unfamiliar characters that seemed like random mumbo jumbo. He realized he had been asleep for some time, and it took a while for his vision to clear and his eyes to focus enough for him to make sense of the glowing text hovering in his line of sight.
[Gene Integration successful! You have been transformed into a , the first of its kind.]
Instead of immediately processing the incredible, world-altering revelation blinking before him, Kaelen's primary concern was to understand his immediate surroundings. He took a moment to observe the room he was in. It appeared to be a lavish bedroom, far more opulent than anything he had ever seen or imagined. It was easily twice as large as the communal barn the other humans were forced to live in, with plush carpets, rich drapes, and intricate carvings on the walls.
Kaelen slowly pushed himself up from the incredibly soft bed and stretched his limbs. As he did so, a profound realization dawned on him: his physique had undergone yet another significant transformation. He wasn't as overtly "buffed" or hulking as he had momentarily appeared when the Matriarch observed him previously, but for some inexplicable reason, he felt immeasurably stronger, his muscles taut and responsive. At the same time, his entire body felt lighter, almost ethereal, as if gravity held less sway over him. His senses, too, were impossibly sharpened; he could now discern even the tiniest details around him, from a minuscule speck of dust dancing in a stray shaft of light to the faintest, almost imperceptible condensation droplet clinging to the windowpane.
'There's a mirror there…'
His heightened senses immediately picked up the subtle gleam of reflected light from across the room. He got off his bed, his movements fluid and silent, and slowly made his way towards the ornate, full-length mirror, compelled to see his own reflection, to understand the extent of this impossible change.
'Is that really me?'
He stood before the mirror, his breath catching in his throat, unable to believe the image staring back at him. His facial structure was still undeniably his, the familiar lines and contours. But everything else about him had been irrevocably altered. His usually dark hair had turned a startling, ethereal white, matching the unnatural pallor of his skin, which now possessed a faint, almost translucent glow. His eyes, once a deep, earthy brown, had completely changed; they now glowed with an unsettling, vibrant crimson hue, an intense, predatory gaze that felt alien to him.
But most importantly, and most strikingly, he was now sporting ears that looked uncannily similar to those of the Lunar Strikers—slightly pointed, with a subtle furred edge—but at the same time… he also had abnormally huge, elongated canines that protruded subtly from his upper jaw, much like those of the Vitae Dominion, the 'Cold Ones.' That alone was enough to shock him to his core, but there was something else, something even more unsettling: his skin, despite its luminescence, possessed a subtle, almost imperceptible dullness, a faint greenish undertone, characteristic of a Silent Rot Thrall.
'What the hell is wrong with me?'
he thought, his mind racing, trying to reconcile the impossible features with his own identity. Just then, the same text, the terrifyingly clear message from the unknown system, flashed in front of him again, as if in direct response to his internal turmoil. This time, he didn't ignore it. He read through every word, and as he did, he was shocked beyond all measure. He had become a hybrid between a Silent Rot Thrall, a Vitae Dominion, and a Lunar Striker. That's why he was sporting all of those distinct traits that were unique to a certain type of monster only.
All of a sudden, a blinding, black light pulsed in front of him, and it felt like… a long-sealed chest of forgotten memories violently snapped open inside his head. For four cycles, Kaelen had been in a deep, forced slumber. He couldn't remember the specifics of what he had been dreaming about, but thanks to being knocked out for four full cycles, his previously fuzzy memory, fragmented by trauma and the initial transformation, was now shockingly clear.
He finally remembered everything that had happened to him the desperate escape, the bear trap, the attack by the Thrall, the unknown force that saved him, his baffling awakening and the system messages, and finally, the brutal Ritual of Binding where he was bitten by the Alpha Matriarch. He remembered every terrifying detail. He now understood: he had, in a sense, been exposed to the genetic essences of all three major monster races, and now he had been forcibly turned into a creature the world had never seen before: an Apex Chimera.
"Why… why… why!!?" Kaelen roared, a primal sound of pure rage and despair tearing from his throat. He slammed his fist, newly strong and fast, into the ornamented mirror before him, shattering it into thousands of glittering, deadly pieces. The sound was deafening, echoing in the lavish room.
"Is this for real…?"
The black light glowed once again in front of him, but this time, Kaelen was presented with a question that confused him even more than he already was.
**[Would you like to view a tutorial to acquaint you with the system?]**
'System? What system? Please tell me this is still a dream…' Kaelen thought, his mind on the verge of breaking.
[Trait confirmed! The user is a moron. Proceeding with the explanation either way.]
'…What?' Kaelen felt a fresh wave of indignity and confusion. Who, or what, was this, calling him a moron?
With every passing moment, Kaelen found himself sinking deeper into an abyss of bewilderment. All of a sudden, the lavish surroundings of the room dissolved, everything around him going dark. The only thing in front of him was an awkward-looking, semi-transparent screen, a digital interface floating in the void.
Name: Kaelen Vance
Species: Thrall (Active), Crimson Eidolon (Active), Lunar Striker (Active), Human (Deceased).
Status: Undead (Integrated)
Class: Apex Chimera (Unassigned)
Age: 16 cycles
Gender: Male
Grade: F-tier (Evolution is possible)
Affiliation: Unaffiliated.
Levels:
• Thrall Level: 0
• Crimson Eidolon Level: 0
• Lunar Striker Level: 0
Stats:
HP: 1000/1000 (Chimera Base)
Damage: 14 (Mixed Potential)
Armor: 12 (Hardened Skin/Bone Density)
Stealth: 5 (Latent)
Stamina: 15 (Enhanced)
Agility: 14 (Flexible)
Intelligence: 2 (User Error)
Nature: Defiant, Vengeful
Abilities/Skills/Spells:
• Crimson Eidolon Skills:
Low-Grade Perception
Transformation (Crimson Eidolon – Locked)
• Lunar Striker Skills:
Transformation (Lunar Striker – Locked)
• Thrall Skills:
Transformation (Thrall – Locked)
Current Skill Points (Echo Codex):
• Crimson Eidolon Skill Points: 0
• Lunar Striker Skill Points: 0
• Thrall Skill Points: 0
[An Administrator has been assigned to carry on with the explanation.]
[This is your Echo Codex Status Plate. Here you can view all of your current stats, species levels, and a comprehensive list of the abilities you have learned or inherited. You can learn new skills as you discover more about the world, gain new insights, or through a variety of other experiences. You can upgrade these skills by fulfilling certain conditions or by spending specific Skill Points.]
'…You know what, at this point, I don't even care what's happening to me. It's too much for me to handle all this stress!' Kaelen thought, his mind overwhelmed, the absurdity of the situation almost comical despite his underlying despair.
[Spoken like a true moron. Either way, I am bound to explain everything to you as I'm paid to do this… and for a couple of private reasons.]
'…'
Kaelen chose not to respond to the insult, his attention fully captured by the unfolding information.
[As I was saying, you can earn specific species-related Skill Points by performing certain tasks as listed below.]
• Crimson Eidolon Skill Points: One point can be earned by consuming 5 ml of fresh, uncoagulated blood. With the increasing rarity of the blood source (e.g., specific monster types, pure human lineages), you can earn more points. You can drink monster blood as well.
• Thrall Skill Points: One point can be earned by consuming 50 grams of raw flesh. With the increasing rarity of the flesh (e.g., specific monster types, mutated specimens), you can earn more points. You can eat monster flesh as well.
• Lunar Striker Skill Points: You can earn points by actively engaging in and winning combat against other monsters or rival factions. One of the toughest types of points to earn. With the increasing rarity or power level of the monster defeated, you can earn more points.
Kaelen sighed heavily, a mix of disbelief and morbid fascination. He could understand the words, yes, but he was unable to make any practical sense out of them. According to the information displayed in front of him, he was… dead as a human. Which was enough of a shock to kill him once again, but for some reason, he didn't feel a thing. It was as if he had been expecting himself to be dead all along. He was standing there, observing his new reality, as if nothing was wrong with his body, even though he was told his humanity was gone. He was still alive, a grotesque, impossible blend of different monsters.
[I don't know why you're sulking, user.]
The weird text, condescending yet informative, appeared in front of him again.
[You know you have the potential to become one of the strongest beings on the planet, right?]
"Wait, what?" Kaelen muttered, a flicker of something akin to hope igniting in the ashes of his despair.
[You really are a moron, huh? You are the only being who has been successful in bonding with three different types of monster genes. You, no… no one, has any idea how strong you can truly be. You are an unprecedented anomaly.]
"So you're telling me… I can take revenge for my dead parents?" Kaelen's voice was barely a whisper, but the question held the weight of his entire existence.
[Take revenge. Rule the planet. Make an intergalactic harem. You can do whatever you want to. That is, if you can attain the strength to do so. You want to gain strength, right?]
"I do." The words were resolute, a burning vow.
[Then do as you are told, and you're set.]
"But who the hell are you?" Kaelen demanded, his voice gaining strength, a desperate need for understanding. "And why are you helping me?"
[The name's Lucifer, your Administrator/Helper. As far as helping you is concerned, it is my job, and… just like you, I also want to get revenge of my own.]
"I see…" Kaelen breathed, the implications of this revelation settling over him. He had always believed that losing his humanity would be a devastating blow, an unrecoverable loss. But if he could avenge his parents, if he could truly gain the power to strike back at those who had taken everything from him, then he had no problem becoming a pawn for anyone else even a mysterious "Lucifer" bound by a digital system—to achieve his ultimate goal. His vengeance now had a terrifying, powerful, and utterly unnatural path forward.