It took me only a moment to recognize those yellow, angry eyes.

“Dad! Stop! Don’t hurt me!” I yelped in Tokimorimïtul as the gray, bone sword of a chimera hunter paused right before going right through my puffy, aching neck.

“What?” Acadius barked. “How is it that you know the language of our tribe, jumbari?”

“It’s me dad! I’m Juni! I’m in a human body!” I stuttered, feeling the sharp edge of his sword pressing against my skin, drawing blood.

“Juni?” My father blinked. “What?! How?!”

“I’m speaking through this human’s mouth,” I explained. “D-don’t hurt my human body, please!”

“Your human body?” The dark gray chimera tilted his masked head in confusion. “I don’t understand. How can this be? Do not deceive me, human-beast!”

“It’s cendai magic, dad! Eunice has been teaching me how to take over bodies of other creatures,” I stuttered. “It’s part of my training! No deception, I swear!”

The masked chimera hunter didn't look like he believed me.

I hissed in pain as I forcefully moved a single, bloated, bruised finger pointing it at the ruby gemstone bracelet on my father’s right wrist.

“I made that bracelet for you with my hair during our first winter together, dad! I told you how much I love you that day! It was cold and snowing outside. Mom showed me how to make the gemstones from my mane, taught me how to dry my hair so it would harden under the light of the sun on the living room windowsill for two weeks. She said that it will help you during the hunts! Remember?”

“Juni,” the sword finally drew away from my neck. “It is you. I have come to rescue you with my pack of hunters. It has been thirty days. You got captured by a Folding Seed, just as we had expected.”

“No… I captured this Seed. I just got a little… hurt while hunting,” I explained. “Also, did Eunice make that mask for you?”

I examined the skull-mask on my father’s face. It looked suspiciously similar to the one on my face.

“Yes. The high-cendai made these masks for us,” dad said. “She said they will protect us from the allure of the Folding Seeds.”

I exhaled. On one hand I was very glad to be rescued. On the other hand, Eunice stole my awesome design, copied it with ease. I suspected that she was using me to learn new magic and the masks worn by chimera hunters was a confirmation of this fact.

“I made the first mask, dad,” I pointed at my chimera face. “It was my idea…”

“You have made a contribution to our tribe as other cendai before you have,” dad nodded. “Just as was expected of you. Now, how do I separate you from this… human body?”

“D-don’t,” I shook my head. “I’m keeping it alive with my magic. I need it. My job is to study human magic in their hive.”

“Then how am I to bring you home?” He asked. “We must leave at once. The protective magics Eunice placed into these masks will not last long, I was told.”

“Find Alessi,” I said. “She is resting in a nearby alcove, covered up by our ruined tent. Bring her in here. Put on my large leather backpack and place this Folding Seed inside it. You can fly us home. Things inside the Seed weigh much less than they should.”

“You’re bringing this Folding Seed with you then?” Dad asked.

“I am,” I nodded. “It belongs to me, just like this human. I have pacified it with my magic. Alessi and I will be completely safe inside it. All you have to do is carry the Seed.”

“Very well,” he sighed, turned and barked orders to other chimera standing outside of Saccy.

In a few minutes a masked chimera teen entered Saccy. He was carrying Alessi and our bags in his hands. I recognized his posture, claws, skin-color and eyes too.

“Hey Isahcs,” I said tiredly.

“What sort of a beast are you?!” Isahcs balked, staring at me in confusion. Then he glanced at my father. “Why is this creature holding Juni? How does it know our language?”

“Don’t you recognize your favorite cousin?” I grinned at him.

----------------------------------------

I was back in my chimera body and sat on a large, warm rock in my master’s Soul-Garden, basking in the midday sun shining from the pale blue sky above the three rings of mountains.

It had been a day since we were rescued by a pack of chimera hunters and flown back to the Tokimorimïtul village. The Twisted Forest was but a memory now, a grim reminder that even with a lot of preparation the monsters of the Chasm were far more devious and powerful than anything I’ve encountered back on Earth. We never had a chance to get close to the Heart of the Forest, Alessi was overly optimistic about our abilities. I glanced at my sister. She was holding onto our large backpack with Saccy inside it with one of her hands.

“So,” Eunice stared down at me, her gold Soul-Garden glittering behind her as the chimera hunter team departed. “I see that you found yourself a human body and were able to dominate a Folding Seed.”

“Yes, Master.” I nodded, pulling off my nightcrawler helmet and rubbing the back of my neck.

When I looked at Grogtilda’s body that was laid out on a rock next to me, she seemed a little less bloated, the hair looking more dirty brown than greasy black. The deep, blue bruises were all over her skin and a few of them had starting to expand, producing pearlescent ripple-like patterns.

The high-cendai stepped towards Grogtidla, her eyes flashing from within.

“This is a low class human,” she said after a minute of arcane evaluation. “The exact kind I told you to avoid. The body is in a very poor condition too. It has been damaged in a recent fall and drained of life and magic by a Folding Seed for several months.”

“I’m aware,” I said. "I… found her in a Folding Seed and consumed whatever had remained of her soul."

Eunice nodded to my confession, her eyes glinting with a look of parental approval. She really was raising me to be just like her!

If you discover this tale on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen. Please report the violation.

“This lowborn female is owned by one of the Undertown Guilds of Illatius,” Eunice added, “Do you wish to be the property of the worst type of humans? To live in the dark, filthy sewers beneath the city, eating rats and bugs? To serve the squalid, illiterate, brutish humans as a slave?”

“How do you know that she’s a debitor?” I asked curiously.

Eunice pulled back the old, dirty armor away from Grogtilda’s chest, revealing a large, black pyramidal tattoo there. “The mark of the debitor. This magical, self-sustaining rune will make you obey the orders of the Guild, whatever they may be."

“Can this mark be removed or damaged so that I wouldn't have to obey the Guild?” I asked.

“It can't be erased without killing or dismantling this body,” Eunice said. “I cannot rewind it away. The rune is as old as this body, rooted deep in the flesh, organs and bones. It's a rather disgusting… leech-like thing, feeding on the body's life and magic. If it is damaged, it will repair itself. It was likely placed on this human long ago when she was a newborn. I have healed your broken leg, but I will not waste my magic on your folly of selecting such a poor shell.”

“Whatever,” I shrugged. “I’ll figure it out myself.”

Eunice looked down at me curiously. I stared back into her purple-gray eyes, not backing down.

“I didn’t expect any less from my most stubborn monwai,” the high-cendai finally smirked. “Her debt could be impossible for you to repay in your lifetime.”

“It doesn’t matter,” I said. “I’m keeping her.”

“You know, I was going to ask one of my monwai to find you a highborn human body,” Eunice mulled. "As your reward for surviving the trials of the Twisted Forest and crafting the first anti-allure mask."

“No,” I shook my head adamantly. “I’ll find a highborn body myself, if the need for such arises.”

“Life will not be easy for you if you wear this shell,” my Master added.

"I know," I said. "I've read about lowborns in your books."

“So then, tell me - why do you choose to undergo such unnecessary hardship?”

“Your other monwai, they’re all wearing bodies of noble, high-class humans, right?” I asked.

“Indeed, they are the Seven most-noble Barons of Illatius,” Eunice confirmed with a proud look.

“Then that path is already tread by them,” I said.

The high-cendai raised a gray eyebrow at my declaration.

I pointed my armored hand at Grogtilda. “This body will be accepted by the denizens of Undertown as one of their own kind. There is value in understanding all aspects of a society, including the less fortunate, criminal underclasses. Perhaps, I will discover unique magics there that your other monwai have not encountered.”

“You wish to trudge through the deep, murky mud to search for gemstones?” Eunice mulled. “To dig your way upwards from below? An interesting approach. It will not be easy.”

“I like a good challenge, Master,” I stated with conviction. "From what I've read, no class of humans is free of the obligation of servitude. The highborn knights, mages and Barons answer to the Basquenate Emperor and spend far too much time and resources on social obligations. If I repay this body's debt or discover how to take apart the mark on it, I'll be more free than a highborn."

“Ha! Hearing about your struggle against the current will be interesting, if anything,” Eunice laughed. “Don't worry, you won't be alone in your quest. I’ll tell my… favorite monwai about you. She’ll watch over you and… make sure you stay alive. Her human name is Baroness Amadea.”

“Thank you, Master,” I bowed. “I promise, I won’t fail you. By the time this human grows old, Illatius Undertown will be mine just as the Baronies above it belong to your other cendai.”

“A lofty goal worthy of my clever monwai. This plot of yours - taking control of the criminal, lowborn-ruled Guilds from within does have merit… if you succeed, however unlikely and difficult it may be,” Eunice smiled widely, buying my crafty words just as I expected her to.

In truth I had no idea whatsoever how I would pay off Grogtilda’s debt or even take over anything, but the ancient high-cendai expected soaring triumph from her human infiltrators. Her spiderweb of concealed Astral Phantom Queens had a stranglehold upon local humanity. Their victories were her victories, their plots - her plots, their inventions… her inventions.

“I’ll heal the bones and organs of this pitiful, broken creature for you, but don’t expect more benefaction from me,” Eunice waved a hand, yellow flames igniting on her fingertips. “You’ll have to convince Baroness Amadea of your worth as a chimera cendai. Lucky for you… she likes them young.”

I squinted at Eunice as she laid a flame-wreathed hand atop Grogtilda’s body. It sounded like it would be a good idea to avoid her 'favorite monwai' if anything.

I felt the arcane, overwhelming power of my Master through my Dominion Saplings. Grogtilda's body rippled from within as her insides slowly rewound backwards in time. Bones regained their former shapes, organs unswelled, fractures fused, rips became mended, bruises and lesions faded away. The gold fire flickered to green as Eunice finished her work. Grogtilda's flesh stayed swollen, blue-tinted and sickly-looking, but at least I hoped that I could now walk upright in her body.

"I have done what I could," Eunice commented. "Winding her any further back in time… is dangerous."

"Dangerous in what sense?" I asked curiously.

"Do not take this body to another healer nor drink any of their healing potions," She explained. "Winding the flesh any further back in time will result in uncontrollable… organ and tissue growth."

"Got it," I nodded.

"Cancer?" I thought. "Too much healing will give me cancer? So much for a cure-all healing magic."

"You have done well in growing numerous Anima branches in your Soul-Tree. I suggest you add even more. They will suspend and animate the dead tissues and help keep this damaged body from succumbing to… fungal growths and infections," Eunice commented.

I pondered what else I could ask the high-cendai.

I had not thought much about it, but it did seem strange to me that the initial System stats that I started with four years ago had become completely different from their original names. Why did Dexterity become Dominion, why was Agility Folding, etc? I felt that now was my chance to get some answers for once.

“Master,” I began. “When I… um, absorbed the human I… remembered some things.”

“Such is normal when consuming the soul of an intelligent being,” Eunice nodded. “You should have no problems communicating in Basq with ease as the memory and speech-processing centers of the mind are intact. Do be aware that these memories are not yours. They belong to the dead human. Rely on her cultural knowledge to blend in, but not let any remnants of her personality dominate your life. You are a chimera cendai now and you can live for a thousand winters wearing generations of human shells as my monwai have.”

“Yes, Master,” I nodded. “It’s just that… this human had some magic and it was… a bit different from mine… I guess? The names didn’t exactly match. I didn’t find much information on basic human magic in your library.”

“There was a reason for that,” Eunice nodded. “Knowing basic human magic would not have aided your growth as a cendai. If anything, it would have impeded and confused you. Humans aren’t magical creatures like us, their souls and bodies are less malleable. Their nine base skills relate more to their bodies than their souls.”

“Less… malleable?” I mumbled.

“They lack the crystalline-organic core in their chest,” Eunice said. “Human base magic is generally guided by common… human beliefs about their own bodies and magic itself.”

“Common belief about magic?” I asked.

“A layered manifestation of it, an omniscient-seeming presence spreading its roots across the Still Forest,” Eunice waved her hand in the air. “If enough humans believe in something for millennia… it becomes real. They call it ‘the System’, a counter for base magical skills. You have likely acquired this System when you consumed your first human.”

“What?!” I gulped. “Belief causes something like THAT to come into existence?”

“It takes a very long time to manifest… more than a thousand generations of humans dying with the same beliefs layering across each other in the Still Forest to magnify an idea,” the high-cendai explained. “On the plus side, this counting System is a completely benign manifestation. All it does is count the number of your branches and give them titles. It is malleable and it does not rule over anyone or command them.”

“So… does this mean that there are… hostile, active Still Forest manifestations of belief too?” I gulped. “Ones that command humans, tell them what to do?”

“Yes,” Eunice said. “The humans call such vile abominations their… gods.”