The man paid no heed to Faust, focusing intensely on his task, light still gathering within his hand. Faust used his sword-free hand to snatch the man’s glowing wrist, yanking it away from the chimera and earning himself a glare. The light faded, and the tugging stopped. “I asked you a question.”
The young man yanked his hand back with no visible effort. The tugging sensation started again until Faust, tired of this, grabbed the man’s arm and twisted it, knocking him to the ground and forcing him to let go of the chimera. The chimera seized the opportunity and tried to escape, but Sky sent a gust of wind slicing through the air directly in front of its face, forcing it to stop. Aeolus and Azure moved in tandem, taking the opportunity to jump in its path, swiping at the chimera and pushing him back. Octavia soon joined their fray, and their circle widened, allowing her to pester the chimera from behind. He dodged their merciless strikes masterfully, but he wasn’t invulnerable—small wounds accumulated slowly on his extremities.
“You should have let me finish.” The young man said before spinning on his shoulder to kick out at Faust’s legs. Faust lept back to avoid the kick, and the young man used the few seconds between to roll on his back and leap to his feet.
“Finish what, exactly?” Faust demanded, raising his sword threateningly. The young man eyed it unconcerned. His fingers twitched.
Meanwhile, Aeolus, Azure, Octavia, and Sky moved in tandem, slowly wearing the chimera down.
“Answer me!” Faust demanded, preparing to strike. The young man’s eyes stared past him, eying the chimera.
A strange feeling struck me as the young man sprinted forward. “Wait!” I called to Faust as he rushed to meet the attack. My warning arrived too late. Faust stumbled, surprised, as he struck nothing but air, the man before him disappearing in the wind like a phantom. The others shouted incoherently as the chimera was knocked away from over their heads, slamming into the ground. Sky moved to slice the air again, a warning, but the young man simply raised a hand, reflecting the air back. Sky’s eyes widened, and he hurriedly dodged to the side. Octavia, Azure, and Aeolus rushed the young man and the chimera, but feeling returned, and the two simply disappeared.
Our eyes raked over the courtyard, scanning it for the missing individuals. I felt a distant pull. The feeling increased as the man and chimera reappeared in a flash of light. The young man let out a curse as the light faded, flinging a dark shape off his hand. The shape flew across the courtyard, landing in the puddle with a weak “meow.”
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“Ani?!” My cat stumbled to his feet, growling in the young man’s direction. A sudden gust of wind blew from behind me, sending the chimera and the young man careening backward into a wall. Recovering quickly, the chimera bounded up the bricks. Sky sent another gust, slicing the tips of the hairs on the chimera’s head and forcing him to retreat downwards. Our eyes met, and it smirked, leaping off the wall towards me. Unlike the last time, however, I was somewhat prepared. I waited until it got close, then raised the wooden shield I’d nabbed from my room when looking for a weapon. The chimera's claws tore into it, and I shoved it closer to the chimera. The claws dug through the shield, poking out inches from my face. Now that it was somewhat trapped, I yanked the shield straight down, pulling the off-balance chimera down to the ground in front of me. Without thinking, I tackled him, forcing him to the ground. We wrestled, mud splattering everywhere. We rolled, battling until the chimera was on top of me now, gaining the upper hand. Faust swung his sword at the chimera’s head, and the chimera flung himself off me, tumbling back to the ground.
Directed by instinct, I ordered Faust to “Hold it still!”
Without hesitation, Faust followed my instructions, tossing his sword to the side to pin the chimera to the ground. I scurried over to them, giving one last hesitant look towards the young man. Our eyes met, and his fingers twitched again.
“Keep him off of us!” I told the others, trusting they’d do their job.
An unknown force guiding me, I reached inside me for that strange feeling, the pulling and the tugging I’d noticed whenever the young man had used his magic. The chimera looked up at me, gold flakes in his eyes reflecting the night sky, the scattered stars from my dream. My senses expanded until I could detect two distinct presences in the chimera. One gold, one silver. Both sides felt familiar, reminiscent of the dreams I’d had focused on him. I tugged at the golden presence, pulling it towards me. Gold flakes spiraled out of the chimera’s eyes, then its body, light gathering into my fingertips.
Recalling my dream, I tugged on the glimmering gold fragments, peeling them from the silver until they separated fully. The light in my hand faded slightly, dimming down until only a tiny, golden, shimmering, snake-like creature was left, hovering above my hand. On the other side of the hovering being, I could see everyone’s shocked faces. The young man paled.
That strange feeling stuck, and he faded from sight.
Beneath Faust, the ex-chimera lay, fully human and passed out. The gold flakes above my hands shifted, the creature turning its tiny golden head to look up at me. Some of the dust fell into my palm, the strange existence falling apart before my very eyes. I cupped my hands trying to catch all the scattered dust.. Intelligence eyes started back, analyzing me.
Instinctually, I reached out with that strange feeling once again.
An overwhelming fear, not my own, struck me, followed by a deep sense of loss, stronger with each golden ember it shed. “You’re…fading?” I asked the creature. It nodded, mournful.
You won’t be able to save them all. You need to try anyway. If you don’t, you’ll never be able to forgive yourself.
Impossibly, I knew what I had to do.