Chapter 12: Kouki Kurayami

POV:

A fun fact about the five KNOWN races: they all have little individual quirks!

Dragoons have very sharp facial features, scales, and a wingspan that spreads up to an entire skyscraper, making them the physically strongest race in the Known World! 

They sound like dragons, don't they?

Livyatens, on the other hand, possess blunt facial features, scales too, and a long tail that helps them swim in the water, which is why they're the only race that can effectively swim. 

A little too close to a serpent, right?

Avians could be said to be a Dragoon's downgrade, possessing hollow bones, feathers that cover their entire body, and wings that stretch from their back to their wrists, which makes them the physically weakest race in the Known World.

Just birds, you know?

Now, Beasts look like lions, tigers, wolves, and other fauna from a safari, right? That's because they essentially are! Just take a human and mush them with an animal. Then, voila! A Beast!

But then, what the hell is Kouki Kurayami? He's a Chimaera. You've heard of that before, haven't you? 

The Chimera you are accustomed to is an amalgamation of animals, but that isn't Kouki. Chimaeras in Gaia are a race that was given the ability to 'adapt physically.' 

Hurt your knee? Have chitin cover it.

Lost your arm? Regenerate it.

However, there is a caveat. They are painfully timid. Desiring to live inside a deep, dense, and dark forest. All so they can be hidden from threats.

However, Kouki wasn't timid. Frankly, he and his sister were the complete opposite of what the Chimaeras wanted to be.

Oh- He never told you about his sister, did he? 

Hmm.. How about I tell you a little story?

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The sun was fair that day. The temperature was just right for the siblings to head and play. 

Liminalis, or just the Sanctuaries of the Chimaeras was built inside a dark forest. However, for some reason, there was a vast meadow that was included, coincidentally beside the run-down shed the siblings lived in.

"How'd you even get the idea of doing this?" The both of them were far out in the meadow, standing in front of the Sanctuary's dome with his sister enchanting it.

"Why wouldn't I? It is so damn boring staying in that shed every day." Now, for your information, his sister had Separation Magic, while Kouki had Nullification Magic.

The doorway she wanted to create would only fit both of them perfectly as she used Kouki as a measure, already having enchanted halfway.

Now, you may ask: 'WhYwOuLdThEyWaNtToLeAvEtHeSaNcTuArY?!' 

Sanctuaries were designed to deny entry to all Abberants, including Abberants that are as small as dust or Abberants that can camouflage with the terrain. Therefore, the dome had to integrate a 'filter' system to identify them.

That's why the siblings have always complained about the 'bluish sun,' the 'not-so-fresh air,' and the 'off-colored grass.' The Sanctuary gives off a sort of fabricated vibe, you know? 

And they weren't allowed to leave either. They were children. It was given no one wanted them to head into the Shatterwilds, but both of them being shunned since birth contributed to their current agenda even more. 

They had parents, yes, but they didn't care for the siblings, seeing they were everything they didn't want. So, this was the only type of freedom they'd get.

"You... You're uhh.. a little slow there." Kouki was bored just standing around, so he thought wouldn't it be a bright idea to hurry a woman?

"I'll separate your wiener if you try to hurry me again." And that he didn't, standing silently as sweat swelled on his face, but he was still bored.

A soft breeze seemed to pass outside the dome, flattening the short grass in the meadow. The sun's light seemed to shine brighter outside the dome, bathing the flowers as they bloomed. Kouki was looking outside, admiring it with a pensive expression.

"Alright! We're done!" His sister quickly jumped back to stand beside Kouki as the Runes she enchanted on the wall split apart, creating an archway that led to the outside.

They felt it. The cool, soft breeze blew into the Sanctuary as the doorway fizzed with her Runes slightly dimming. "Come on! Let's go!" Kouki's sister grasped his wrist tightly, quickly dragging him past the doorway as they both felt a surge of freshness.

The air was fresh; it was clean.

The grass was green; it was beautiful.

And the sun. The sun! "It's so bright!"

"And beautiful!"

They made it out, and they were never happier.

Suddenly, the sound of tearing paper echoes behind them, catching their attention as the blue wall joins together again.

"Eh. Welp. I can enchant again," she shrugged.

"What do you want to do now?" They had no TV, no video games, no board games, and no basic entertainment. So, the only thing they could do was frolic around whatever they thought was amusing, which is now the Shatterwilds.

"Uhh... There?" She pointed at something over the hill, highlighting the weird pointy thing sticking out behind it.

"RACE YOU!" A large X appeared on his chest before he quickly took off, taunting his sister as she started running, complaining, and vowing to kill him at the same time.

The thing wasn't that far. Running a few patches of tall grass, using flowers to make a crown for his sister, and his sister trying to choke him to death for making fun of her. They were already there.

"HOLY!" Their eyes were shining with interest with their mouths agape.

The pointy thing was a horn that belonged to the corpse of a Titan Class Abberant.

"Its Runes are still here!" His sister exclaimed, pointing at its Ribcage where Runes carefully lined each rib.

"That's pretty damn weird." The Runes were incoherent and Kouki couldn't tie any relations to the Runes. "Might be a Catalyst..." He suggested.

Her sister was skeptical. "How can you even tell?"

"Well. Those Runes look like a bunch of nothing." He shrugged as he explained.

The Runes were bright compared to the sunlight, somehow beating its brilliance with its crimson glow. "Guess so." She agreed before snapping her head at Kouki, startling him. "Tag?" She raised her eyebrow, to which Kouki started to smirk.

"YOU'RE IT!" The black X surfaced on his chest again as he dashed toward his sister, tapping her shoulder before running to the end of the Abberant's corpse.

"YOU BASTARD!" She exclaimed in annoyance, quickly chasing after him as this little game of tag ran on for a while.

Hold on. I never told you what they looked like, did I?

Kouki and his sister had very bright red hair. They had no eyebrows and no eyelashes.

Don't worry. They will be able to gain those features as they adapt and age, but that's about it. The only interesting thing they had for them was their bright red, blood-colored hair.

"Why do.. why do those Runes look brighter now?" They both were incredibly tired. Now lying on the grass to bathe in the graceful sun, the sister noticed something odd.

"Huh." Kouki was squinting his eyes, staring at one of the ribs, noticing a glaring difference.

The crimson glow was fiercer and more radiant, making the inside of the ribcage look like a dangerous zone.

"Maybe we shou-"

KABOOOOM-!

The Runes exploded, sending tiny splinters of bone everywhere as material started to flow toward the middle of the ribcage.

Kouki had the black X appear on his chest again, rushing toward his sister in the nick of time to shield her from the debris. "T-This hurts!"

"Just-!" Exclaiming with annoyance, she quickly took Kouki's wrist before forcing the both of them to stand up, rushing away from the weird pulling sensation, towar-

...

YOU'RE WAKING UP?!

AWW COME ON!

I hope Lord Acheros curses y-