Chimera spoke with the chief and the High General for a bit longer after voicing her concerns, and once an hour had passed did the group finally split, the chief staying behind to work on her orders while Chimera and Lysandra moved back towards the Meras.

  The ship’s avatar met them outside, a wide grin plastered on her face as she tugged at Chimera’s arm.

  “We need to talk about Bayleaf when we get back.”

  That was all she would say about the matter, and Chimera began to worry that something might have happened that she didn’t know about fully.

  The strange male Hoodian was one thing, but after seeing what just one of them were capable of, Chimera didn’t want more surprises.

  At least none that she couldn’t handle.

  Her beautiful ship came into view as their group returned aboard, the noise of applause ringing through the cargo bay as word of Chimera’s rescue operation got around.

  Chimera received it all with respect and aplomb.

  “Hell yeah! That’s right, I saved a whole bunch of parents, Go me! WOOO!”

  She would deny any comments that she was ‘show boating’ and ‘getting a big head’ about her recent victory, however if one were not hit over the head with a brick, one might call her victory dancing a bit on the prideful side of things.

  It certainly didn’t help when the ship’s avatar also joined in, doing her own dance of celebration for saving the crew during the space battle.

  “Like this?” Meras spoke as she tried to mimic Chimera.

  “Yeah, you got it!” each throwing up number one signs in the air and spinning around like figure skaters.

  Ten more minutes and the rest of the crew in the cargo bay joined them, and Lysandra, not one for diminishing troop morale, gave them fifteen minutes to celebrate before getting back to their duties.

  “Alright that’s enough everyone, back to your stations, we’re doing a patrol this afternoon to check on the crash sites for that downed Sword we fought. I want this ship up in twenty!”

  “‘Yes High General!’”

  The rest of the crew saluted as Chimera joined in with a lazy salute of her own.

  Once that was over, Chimera felt Meras tugging on her shirt in the direction of the medical bay, and followed along as her friend began to shiver in excitement.

  “It’s so amazing, you won’t even believe it when you see, Mera!”

  Chimera almost rolled her eyes as Meras tried to hype her up for what was bound to be something mundane.

  That thought immediately ended when Chimera felt a tug deep within her, a very familiar tug that had only ever existed back on her homeworld.

  A minute later, they arrived in the medical wing with another person sitting on one of the observation tables, scans rolling up and down her body as the young adult Elfari, now sporting streaks of red in her hair and one green and red eye peered up at both of them.

  Chimera opened her mouth to speak, only for a thought to brush against her mind.

  “I’m so sorry! I didn’t mean for this to happen! I only wanted to figure out more about your origins, and then this happened!” Bayleaf’s face was scrunched in worry despite not having said a thing, only her thoughts bombarded Chimera with the overwhelming feelings of worry and betrayal.

  Because Chimera knew why she felt that tug against her core.

  It happened a long time ago, whenever her clone sisters were using their shared power, like when they teamed up to fight Mr. Flesh.

  A clone… a part of her was living, tied together and irrevocably connected to Bayleaf, turning her into… well… like Chimera herself.

  It was so similar to when Sarah and Chimera were part of the same mind, to the point that Chimera felt like this was likely the same scenario, where a humanoid had bonded with Crimson R, her original form.

  Chimera didn’t know how to feel, so she stared at the younger Bayleaf as she squirmed under her gaze.

  Meras, likely sensing the sparks zapping between the two, stood up and standed in between the two.

  “Bay’s like us now! She calls it being a Tarasi, whatever that means.” Meras smiled wildly as she gestured towards Bay.

  Chimera kept staring, her features emotionless as she waited for Bayleaf to explain further.

  “...Look I’m sorry about taking a part of you to study. I never meant for this to happen-”

  “Don’t.” Chimera spoke, her eyes never leaving Bay’s.

  “It was all for research purposes, I needed to know if you were going to be unstable or not. I mean, learning about your origins was just a side-effect of that research, and surely you would want to know about yourself-”

  “Do you know what happened to my sisters? My best friend? My brother? Do you know any of that?”

  Bayleaf stopped as Chimera spoke, her eyes and mouth still as Chimera spoke further.

  “In my world, I was a bio-weapon, trained to kill and absorb by the one who created me. She wanted a weapon she could use to cow our whole city and bring everyone under her control. I killed her, because she and her fucked up family would have murdered my family, my friends.”

  “She wanted to find out how I worked too, how I was so different from all the other weapons she made. Her name was Monica, and she killed innocents to learn about me.”

  “Then came her mother,” Chimera took a breath, “who almost murdered my best friend, my… mother… and my brother. Would have succeeded too, had I not made a really risky, and stupid move. All because she wanted to use my DNA to enhance her clones and ‘rebuild’ her society.”

  Chimera glared at Bay as she spoke, “now I’m here, fighting a war in hopes of going home. Forced into working for people who clearly have an agenda that goes against my principles. And instead of trusting me, you went and took a part of me to study? Why, Bayleaf Bristlebranch?”

  Stolen content warning: this content belongs on Royal Road. Report any occurrences.

  Chimera’s body shifted, her form turning into a relic from her past. The pure red form of Crimson R spread across the room, blocking the exit and shifting until Chimera was certain she couldn’t escape.

  Meras was trying to calm her down, speaking soothing words and trying to explain to Chimera what had happened. Chimera never took her eyes off of Bay though, her small child-like form a contrast to the creep that spread out from her and took over half the room.

  Bay stood up and spoke instead, her eyes closed as her voice came out.

  “I didn’t trust you, that’s why.”

  Meras turned to stare at Bayleaf with concern, “Bayleaf.”

  The Elfari medic walked up to Chimera, right before her blob form that towered over her, placing herself on her knees as she bowed her head against the floor.

  “I’m sorry. I didn’t know. I… couldn’t know what you went through. I was so worried that you might betray us that I wanted to come up with countermeasures in case you… in case you went against us. Coercion doesn’t breed comradery… and holding that over you, was wrong.”

  “Even so, I had a duty to protect my people… and for that, I’m willing to do almost anything. It’s the Duty of the Imperial Harriers… to protect the Empress and her Empire from all threats. Even… even from our allies.”

  Bayleaf’s head looked up, “I don’t deserve any forgiveness, but… I’m willing to do anything, if you can take this away from me.”

  “Bay!” Meras shouted.

  Bay shook her head, “I… can’t handle this! This knowledge… It’s too much. Whatever this is, I wasn’t supposed to know about it. No one was! But your cells, they actively seek out people to help. It heard my plea, and showed me things…”

  Bay held her head even as she bowed back down, “Please, take them back. I don’t want this. I’m… begging you Mera.”

  Chimera’s stare into Bayleaf’s prostrating form showed no mirth, no joy, and no vindication. No emotion whatsoever came to her as she felt the connection from Bayleaf tap into her own being.

  She knew Bay wasn’t lying, could feel the truth of her words as she sniffled and cried. Part of her, a small part wanted to take a little bit of satisfaction at the fact that Bayleaf did this to herself, and that she should deal with the consequences of her choice.

  Now though…

  Chimera didn’t know what Bayleaf knew, but she did know that whatever it was fractured her mind a bit, giving her an experience that Mera didn’t understand completely.

  Chimera did hate not knowing.

  “No. Even if I wanted to, I can’t take it from you. You’re like me now, and that means you have another duty, Bayleaf Bristlebranch of the Imperial Harriers.”

  Bayleaf rose to her feet, “no, there’s got to be a way! I know you can see through people’s memories and absorb that information!”

  Chimera shook her head, “yes, people’s memories, but you’re not an Elfari anymore Bayleaf. You’re like me now, like Meras. Teras’emon.”

  Bayleaf held her head, “Tarasi… no. There’s got to be a way! Please, I’m sorry for not consulting you, but surely there’s a way-”

  “Bayleaf, there’s nothing I can do to change you back. It’s one way. Whatever life you had before, whatever family you once had, you no longer have a connection to them beyond emotional ones. Your DNA is gone… even I can feel that.”

  It was true too. Just like when Chimera had upgraded the Meras and allowed the dryad sleeping within to come out in the form of an avatar or when she changed Lark forever back on Asta, Bayleaf had been completely changed from her old Elfari self into a Teras’emon.

  She could look like her old self all she wanted, but her DNA, her original structure, that was all simply a template in her now shifting body, a form of clothes she could wear to fool people into thinking she was anything but a blob.

  Bay held her head as her crying turned into a wail.

  “Ah… Aaaaaahhhh!”

  Chimera grabbed hold of their connection, pulling Bayleaf into her mental palace.

  It had been a long time since Chimera had used this place, the meeting ground for the various personalities she developed when her clone superpower had manifested. With the connection gone, she had very little use for the place and had allowed her mind to take hold of it once more.

  Now though, she had a need for it once again.

  Collecting her thoughts, she imagined the palace in the shape of the Throne room for the Elfari Empress, crafting three rooms for herself, Meras, and now Bayleaf, whose mind was reeling from being dragged from her body.

  “W-What’s going on?! What’s happened to me?!”

  Bayleaf was in panic mode, her form sifting to a teal shade of blob, her true form, in this mental place.

  Chimera shifted as well, along with Meras who appeared as a spiky shade of green.

  “It’s alright Bay, we’re here to help you acclimate, right Chimera?” Meras spoke, a bit tense in her words but hopeful as well.

  Chimera nodded, “for now, this place is where we can meet to discuss things, to better give us an advantage over our foes and to help each other when needed. Bay, it’s time you pulled yourself together.”

  “W-What do you mean?” she spoke in a small voice, as if she was terrified of even her own words.

  A light bonk on the head brought her back to annoyance, “Hey! What the hell was that for?!”

  Chimera bonked her again, “you're too panicky right now, you got to calm your mind.”

  “H-How can I be calm when I’m a freaking monster?!”

  Chimera rolled her eyes, “that’s entirely up to you Bay. I’m not a monster, and Meras isn’t one either. Just because you’re a blob now doesn’t mean you can’t still be a Harrier.”

  The look on Bay's face conveyed it all, like a question hung in the air that she couldn't answer because she didn't know how to ask it. Chimera knew though, she had been through something similar.

  “Do you know what I was in my world after I found out about my gifts?”

  Bayleaf nodded as the information transferred between them, “a hero… one who protects people from Villains… yeah, I do.”

  Bonking her once more, Chimera smiled, “so why would this change anything for you? Bay, you are a hero to your people. You already saved them countless times in the past, and you still serve your Empress. So, what’s changed? Only what you are, not who you are.”

  The frantic energy coming from Bayleaf settled, which in the mind palace manifested as a pale teal light behind her. After taking a few breaths and centering her thoughts, it seemed to Chimera and Meras that Bayleaf finally understood.

  “Y-You’re right… I was just so scared of what happened to me, and what I saw… That I lost sight of it. I thought that I had to be Bayleaf Bristlebranch, Imperial Harrier…”

  Bay smiled, “but I don’t have to be. I can help with this form too. I’m still me... I can still be myself!”

  After repeating it to herself, Bay finally accepted the change, and Chimera could tell as her true form was no longer shifting in the mental palace. It settled on her young adult self, only with her red and green eyes, and strands of red hair in her green.

  To Chimera’s amusement, she looked very much like an ancient holiday decoration with that get up, but she kept it to herself.

  “Thank you guys… and Chimera… I’m still sorry for what I did. I feel awful about it.” Bayleaf spoke with sincerity as she gazed at the palace around her.

  “But I don’t have that doubt anymore. I know what you are now, what you really are. Heroes in your world are like us Harriers, protecting the innocent from threats.”

  Chimera nodded, “yeah, we just look cooler doing it,” smirking before she laughed heartily.

  “H-Hey! Our uniforms are for protection against our enemies, and I think we look rather refined and elegant wearing them you peasant!” Bay shouted, a smile on her face.

  The two bickered, and soon the mental palace became a battle ground of insults and harshly worded jabs!

  ...

  Meras could only watch as Bayleaf and Chimera rekindled their now closer relationship in the only way they seemed to know how, by ribbing and insulting each other.

  Deep down, she was glad that the two of them made up enough to be bickering.

  I’m so happy, it's nice to have more conversations with people, and now I have two in my head to talk to!

  Humming to herself, she walked back and manifested a stump to sit on as she watched her two new head-mates shouting and cursing at each other.

  …