Chimera Medusa Complete

7/31/2019 Chimera Medusa Complete

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Chimera Medusa PersephoneTinkerbell

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Title: Chimera MedusaCategory: Fiction FantasyAuthor: Persephone TinkerbellLanguage: English, Rating: Rated: TGenre: Adventure/RomancePublished: 07-18-11, Updated: 07-18-11Chapters: 25, Words: 26,005Chapter 1: Friendships Renewed


1- Friendships Renewed

Friendships Renewed

Dr Michael Richards sighed as he slipped his laptop back into his bag, and glanced around the now emptylecture hall. Students could move pretty fast when they wanted to. His dismissal had signalled the start of their lunch break and so within seconds the room had emptied. Michael stood for a moment running a hand throughhis thick black hair. He was slim, and shorter than most men. Standing there in his shirt and dark trousers heappeared much younger than his thirty years. He looked more like a student than a lecturer. With his chiselledfeatures and deep blue eyes he had never been short of female attention, but somehow he had never reallyconnected with any women. Not since her, and that hadn't exactly ended well. He pushed the thought aside. Hecouldn't stand here all day feeling sorry for himself, not while he had assignments to mark.

As he walked towards his office past students in the hall, he remembered his own time as a student here. He hadcome to the university at the age of 18 eager to throw himself into his classes and forget his broken heart. He hadreplaced one obsession with another as he delved deeper and deeper into his studies. By the time graduationcame he was planning his doctorate, when that came to an end there had been an opening for a lecturer so he hadstayed on to teach. With his enthusiasm for the subject and his phenomenal grades he was an obvious choice for the newest lecturer in classical mythology and civilisation. Deep down he knew that he wouldn't have done anyof it if it hadn't been for her. She had been in his thoughts so often recently and he wondered why. As he enteredhis office he realisation hit him.

Michael had been deep in thought as he opened the door, so when she spoke it took him by surprise. "HelloMichael" That voice. He looked up, looked up into that face from his past, from his childhood. It couldn't be.

"Christine?" She flinched at the use of her old name. Her foster parents had meant well, but it had never reallysuited her. Michael hadn't been surprised to learn from her brother that she had changed it when she movedaway. She had always hated it. Once he had told her that she deserved a new name, a name as unusual as shewas. But that had been years ago, 12 maybe 13 years since they had last seen each other. 12 years ago she hadwalked out of his life and now she was standing in his office. "It's Chimera now, Chimera Medusa." He grinnedas he took the seat behind his desk. "Yes I heard, Dennis told me." Chimera had been one of Dennis' nicknamesfor his foster sister. They had always been close. She smiled back at him from the window across the room andhis heart skipped a beat. After all this time he was surprised that she could still affect him so much. In her

presence he was a school boy again. She was the same as always, the name may have changed but the personwas the same. She was older than he remembered her, but he supposed she was thinking the same about him.

Standing there by the window to his left he couldn't stop looking at her. He mostly black hair was pulled back into a tight ponytail; from there it cascaded down her back in a rainbow of different coloured pleats ending just

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above her waist. One shoulder was bare, the other draped in tie dyed silk from her neck to her painted nails. Nodoubt the top was one of her own design. It fitted her perfectly and coupled with the tight black jean she wore itemphasised her curves expertly. How could he not stare? Dennis had told him that she was a designer now, and

judging by the excitement from the students concerning her possible arrival, she was a successful one at that.

"You seam surprised to see me Michael, I thought it was common knowledge about my little shop opening up oncampus" she said as if seeing the progression of his thoughts. Yes, he had heard the rumours; he had seen theanticipation growing. But he hadn't dared to believe that it was her. "I thought you would have called, to let meknow you were coming" he lied. In truth he had expected Dennis to call and give him a heads up. When the callhadn't come, he had told himself that she wasn't coming. But he had hoped secretly that it was her, isn't that whyshe had been on his mind so often recently.

"I was going to call" she said "But to be honest, I wasn't sure whether you would want to see me" she stared athim with her dark chocolate eyes and suddenly he knew that this was as hard for her as it was for him. He staredstraight back into those eyes and said "Chimera, of course I would want to see you" and he meant it. The worryvanished from her face and she took the seat across from him. He was surprised at how easily he had adjusted toher new name. It suited her, she had never really been Christine MacMillan, and somehow she had always beenChimera Medusa.

"So, what brings you to my office?" It wasn't the question he wanted to ask. That would have to wait. He wantedto enjoy seeing her. He wanted to savour every second, incase she decided to vanish again. "I'm here to see youof course" she said simply. "When the opportunity arose to open a shop here I took it. Expand my business andrenew an old friendship at the same time." Inwardly she cringed. She couldn't tell him the real reason, not yet.For now she just wanted to see him, to forget for a while just how much she had missed him.

For the next half hour they sat and talked about nothing. Neither one daring to say what needed to be said. "Havedinner with me" she said suddenly "I'll cook something and we can catch up properly" He had always loved thatabout her, she was almost childlike the way she could jump from one topic to another. For a moment it almostseamed like they had never been apart, Almost. The awkwardness was still there between them. Michael knew itwould stay, at least until they talked about what had happened that night. But he couldn't bring himself tomention it. "Nothing healthy I hope, I'm in a couch potato mood." They could talk tonight. Wasn't that what shehad really meant by catch up?

"It's a deal" she said standing up to leave. "Nachos, chocolate, crappy horror films and a couple of bottles of wine" And the talk she added mentally. She scribbled her address on a scrap of paper and handed it to him. "I'llexpect you at eight"

It sounded like Michael's idea of heaven. He had really missed her these last 12 years; they had been so closeonce. They had been friends through primary and secondary the three of them, Michael Dennis and Chimera. Bythe end of secondary school he had finally admitted to her that he wanted more. They had gone to the promtogether, but then she had left. She had needed the time away, he knew that. Maybe now that she was back theycould finally work things out. "I'll be there" he said.

His mind was full of possibilities as he watched her leave. He picked up his pen to start his marking when heremembered. He remembered unlocking the door before she had announced her presence. The door had beenlocked and she had been inside. He looked over at the window and grinned. It was open; it couldn't open far,only an inch or so. But that was enough for her wasn't it. And hadn't he seen a flash of green in her eyes whentheir hands touched a moment ago. She really hadn't changed.

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Chapter 2: Michael Remembers


2- Michael Remembers

Michael Remembers

Michael decided to change before calling. Chimera's appearance hadn't been a complete surprise, but he wishedthat Dennis had said something. They didn't talk as often as they should but Dennis had been Michael's lifelinethese past 12 years. He had never been able to let Chimera slip away completely and Dennis had been more thanhappy to keep him up to date.

On his way to the bedroom Michael picked up a CD. It was the CD Dennis had sent him as a joke one birthday.It was Chimera's demo CD. 'Chimera and the Daemons' Chimera had formed the band, her band, the first year incollege, and according to Dennis they still played occasionally. As he slid the CD into the Hi-fi he made amental note to ask Chimera about it at dinner. It seems that she had never been short of things to write about.She had been so tormented when she left; it was only natural that she would pour herself into somethingcreative.

Chimera had never been an ordinary child. As far as Michael knew she was unique. As a child Chimera'sabilities had never seemed odd to him. Even as an adult it didn't seam out of place. Maybe that was why he hadchosen to study classical mythology; Chimera wouldn't have been out of place in the ancient myths. No oneknew where her powers came from. It was just who she was, who she is. Deep down however, he knew that theywere probably the reason her birth parents had abandoned her. It must have been a terrible shock to discover thatyour new born daughter can change shape on a whim. For as long as Michael could remember, Chimera had

been able to transform herself into a cat or a serpent. She was also telekinetic, which she had always foundinfinitely more difficult to control, So much so that an emotional Chimera was often accompanied by levitatingknick-knacks and broken pottery. And yet, the MacMillan's seamed un-phased by their adopted daughterseccentricities. As a result she had grown up with an understanding family and a very protective older brother.

Michael had lived next door to the MacMillan's his entire school life, and as Dennis was only a year older than both him and Chimera, the three of them had been very close. Chimera had done what her parents urged andkept her abilities a secret, but she thought nothing of using her powers in front of her brother and best friend.

As he tossed aside his work clothes Michael laughed recalling how often she had cheated at hide and seek whenthey were children. She would let her feline senses lead her to the boys as they hid, or she would transform

herself into a snake and slither into some impossible space. As he pulled on his jeans Michael remembered howshe would jump out at him and laugh. He used to love the way she laughed.

As he slipped his T-shirt over his head he imagined her face, the way it changed whenever she was excited or scared, whenever she lost control of her appearance. Her usually brown eyes would become a brilliant felinegreen and her canine teeth would lengthen ever so slightly. It had been so long since he had seen that side of her.He had seen that face so many times in his dreams. His fantasies revolved around that face. They were theemerald green of those eyes and drenched in the loss of control they represented.

He shook himself mentally. He shouldn't think like that. Tonight he had to control himself, at least until he foundout how she felt. He had no idea how she felt or what she was thinking. They had been able to read each other sowell once. Had he really seen that flash of green in her eyes today? What if he had imagined it? Would they beable to get past what happened that night?

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Michael's face dropped as he remembered the prom. It should have been the best night of their lives. That's theway it's supposed to go isn't it. They had finally admitted to each other how they felt. The rest is supposed to fallinto place. It almost had as well.

They danced, they ate, they drank, they laughed, it had been perfect. But that was the problem wasn't it, life isn't

a fairy tale. That night Michael had finally realised that life isn't simple, you don't end up with the princess at theend living happily ever after, no matter how much you love them.

They should have waited, but they had waited so long already, or so it seamed at the time, they had waited their whole lives. His parents had been away that night, so with their arms around each other they made their way tohis house. They couldn't keep their hands off each other as they climbed the stairs. Neither of them had noticedhow the ornaments and pictures shook as they passed, or maybe they didn't care. He knew that he should havestopped it then, he had seen her eyes then, green and slitted, brighter than he had ever seen them and when theykissed her fangs grazed his lip. He should have stopped it, but he didn't want to, he was 18 and he was in love.

As they entered his room, she had become a feline predator pushing him down onto his bed. The posters on thewall flapped and strained against their pins as she straddled him, fighting with the buttons of his shirt. His hands

pushed up her slinky dress as she caressed his chest. As he pulled the dress up over her head the bookshelves ridthemselves of their burdens. One book narrowly missed them as she bent down to kiss his throat. As she moveddown his neck and chest the door threw itself open and the windows rattled, but he didn't care, they couldn't stopnow, she was the only thing that mattered.

She moved to lick his left nipple but he sat up determined to take the opportunity to remove her bra, as he sat upher tooth caught him. It was a deep cut, he still bore the scar, but that was not the worst of it. Suddenly shesprang away from him. She was standing in the middle of the room in her underwear hyperventilating, but hecouldn't reach her. He could barely even see her. Books and paper, ornaments and trinkets, even the scatteredclothes, everything that wasn't bolted down, swirled around her. The furniture bucked and reared, he had to griponto the sides of the bed to prevent himself from being catapulted across the room. She screamed and shouted ashis possessions whirled faster and faster around her. "NO! NO! NO! NO! NO!" "Stop it! Stop it! Stop it"Hysterical and crying she dropped to the floor. She changed and a small black cat and ran from the room,leaving behind only silence.

It had finished them. Up until her appearance in his office this afternoon, he hadn't seen her since that night. Hehad tried, but she wouldn't see him, wouldn't see anyone except Dennis. Dennis had come round a couple of days later with a note. She couldn't see him she said, she had to learn to control herself she said, and evidentlyshe couldn't do that with him in her life.

Michael shuffled down the hall into the living room and picked up the phone. He threw himself onto the couchand dialled Dennis' number. As he waited for the ring he worried. He'd always denied it to himself but he'd beenwaiting for today since he had been handed that note all those years ago. That's why he hadn't had a successfulrelationship in all that time. He had never really gotten over Chimera, and now she was back in his life and hehad no idea how he was supposed to react.

"Dennis MacMillan"

"Dennis Hi, its Michael"

"Mike, It's been a while. How have you been mate?"

"I'm Ok I suppose, all things considered"

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"Oh"

"Why didn't you tell me Denny. She must have told you, she's your sister for fuck's sake"

"I wanted to mate, you know I did. But she made me promise I wouldn't. I think she wanted it to be a surprise"

"It was a surprise alright, she was in my office when I got back from class"

"And"

"And what? We didn't exactly get to talk things out"

"So, who needs to talk. You guys are meant to be together Mike. I know it"

"I don't know Denny, it's been such a long time"

"Yeah 12 years, I know, and I know that you're still in love with her"

"Come off it Denny. This isn't a fairy tale, this is real life"

"Well, I know you two better than anyone, and I know that she's missed you as much as you've missed her"

"So you keep telling me"

"It's true"

"Anyway, I'd better go. I'm meeting Chimera for dinner at eight"

"Alright, but promise you'll phone me tomorrow"

"Why? There's something you're not telling me"

"I can't mike, it's better that you hear it from Chimera. I'll speak to you tomorrow And Mike"

"Yeah"

"Tell Chimera I said Hi"

Michael hung up the phone and sat for a moment. What was Dennis hiding? Eventually he reached for histrainers. Well he couldn't put it off any longer, they would have to talk. He grabbed a bottle of wine from thekitchen and headed for the door.

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Chapter 3: Anticipation


3- Anticipation

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Anticipation

Chimera paced back and forth, again and again. Everything in her apartment raised itself into the air a couple of inches as she passed. Why was she so worried? Seeing Michael had been wonderful. Nervously she looked ather watch. 7:30 half an hour. She had to calm down. Everything was going to be OK. He hadn't thrown her out

of his office as she had expected. She had been dreading today for so long, dreading and anticipating it. She hadlonged to see him as much as she had feared his possible reaction. She hated how she had left things with him allthose years ago.

That night she had completely lost control. It was then that she had realised that she couldn't be around him. He brought out the animal in her. As appealing as that sounded, she couldn't let it happen.

She had panicked that night. She had locked herself in her room, sitting on the floor clutching her knees androcking back and forth, waiting for the control to return. She had wanted so much to go back, to finish what theyhad started, but it was too dangerous. The thing that scared her the most was the taste of his blood. She had likedit. She craved it, almost as much as she craved him. It was then that she had known. She was a monster, andmonsters don't get a happy ending.

Dennis had knocked on her door not long after she had come home. Was she OK? Why wasn't she at Michael's?So through a shower of tears she had explained, knowing that Michael had done the same over the phone. After all Dennis hadn't been due back for hours. Michael had phoned him, knowing that she wouldn't want to see himyet, but worried, wanting to check that she was OK. Poor Dennis had been stuck in the middle ever since.

Chimera had written to Michael before she left for college. She wanted to explain why she couldn't see him.Why she had to leave. But there was so much she hadn't said. It was too hard. She couldn't explain how muchshe wished she could stay, or how much she really wanted him. She had relived that night so often in her dreamsand each time she had been in control. Each time in her dreams they ended up together, they had their happyending.

When the buzzer sounded, Chimera jumped. She ran to the entry phone with her heart pounding in her chest.Why had she let her thoughts wonder? There was no happy ending. She couldn't allow herself to think like that."Hello" she breathed into the phone, trying to banish her fantasies. "Hi, It's Michael" His face exploded into her thoughts. She saw him as he had been that night as she pushed him onto his bed, his eyes wide and his mouthhungry, wanting her. She pushed the image aside cursing her visual memory. "Come on up" She hung up the

phone and collapsed against the wall exhausted. How was she going to get through tonight? How was she goingto tell him why she was here, why she needed his help?

Michael climbed the stairs fighting to gain control of his emotions. His heart pumped harder as he neared her door. How was he going to get through tonight? It was one thing in his office where nothing could happen, buttonight they would be alone in her apartment. He leaned against her door for a moment, trying to collect histhoughts into some sort of coherent structure before he knocked.

Chimera opened the door and looked into his eyes. Those deep blue eyes filled with promises that made her pulse race and her control waned. "Come in" she said as she opened the door wider.

They walked together into the kitchen, neither one of them knowing how to start the conversation. "So"Michael hazarded as he put the bottle he was holding onto the kitchen counter. "Em" Chimera respondedsearching desperately for something to say. "Nachos?" It had been so much easier in his office, but now theyknew they needed to talk, they couldn't. As he watched her retrieve the tortia chips from a cupboard above her head a topic revealed itself to Michael.

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"I was listening to a great CD today" he said watching her closely for any sign that she knew what he meant."Yeah" was all she said as she got the plates out. "I think you'd like them" he teased, knowing she hadn't caughthis meaning. "They had some Greek Mythological name" Chimera stopped in her tracks and stood up slowly. Itcouldn't be, how could he have that CD. "What?" She said turning to face him. "It was Gorgons, or Fates, or Daemons, or something" He leant against the kitchen table, his grin widening and his eyebrows rose. "Mike!"

she exclaimed punching his arm. "What did you think?" she added nervously. "I told you, I liked it! Now whereare your wine glasses? I'm going to need some alcohol if you plan to beat me up"

Everything is going to be alright, he thought as he poured the wine into two large glasses. Everything is going to be great.

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Chapter 4: Secrets Revealed


4- Secrets Revealed

Secrets Revealed

They had spent the majority of the evening on the sofa eating their nachos and drinking their wine. They toldeach other stories, Chimera talked about the band and her flourishing design career while Michael talked aboutthe university.

They reminisced about their time at school and about Dennis. Slowly it seemed that they were edging their way

back to the way things used to be. Michael began to hope that maybe they didn't have to talk about whathappened that night. Maybe they could get past it without the pain of bringing it up.

Chimera drained her glass and stood up. "I think it's time to open another bottle." She said leaning over to pick up the plates and she made her way towards the kitchen. Michael picked up his glass and followed her.

As he watched her open another bottle of wine, Michael lost what was left of his resolve. He couldn't stophimself anymore. He put his glass onto the counter behind her positioning himself to block her in. "Michael?"she protested as he took the bottle from her. It was now or never.

He leant in brushing his lips against hers, softly at first and then hungrily as she gave in pushing her body into

his. He moved his hands up her back enjoying the taste of her again. But then she stiffened pushing him awaywith her mind. She pushed him so hard he banged painfully into the kitchen table.

"We can't!" she said breathing hard. Her eyes sparkled like emeralds, but Michael couldn't tell if it was from hiskiss or from the buzz of using her powers. Either way it made him want her even more. "Why not?" he asked, asmuch the predator as she was "You can't tell me you don't want to".

No she couldn't deny it. Their minds had been working on the same track. "That's not the point, we can't, I can't."She had heard his thoughts when he kissed her. How could she explain it to him when all she wanted to do wasfinish that kiss. "Why not?" he asked again grabbing her shoulders to stop her retreat. "Damn it Chimera, talk tome! Don't keep me out of your life!" It would just be easier to show him. It had to be, anything was easier thantrying to explain what she felt. "Sit down" she said finally "And I'll tell you why".

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Chimera sat across from Michael at the table and wondered how to start. She would have to give someexplanation. It wouldn't do to scare him too much. Eventually she took a deep breath and began.

"I've changed a lot since I left" she said "I know you don't think so, but I have. When I left I thought I was amonster, but now I know it's true. No, Michael please, just listen. Recently I've been having rather disturbing

dreams. And since the dreams started I've become stronger than ever and I've developed some new talents."

Chimera stood up with the intention of retrieving the open wine bottle when she remembered where she was.She was at home with no one to see but Michael. She sat down again and simply lifted her hand. The bottle

propelled itself into her hand and she took a swig.

"New talents?" Michael asked still amazed by the precision her levitations had obtained over the many yearsthey had been apart. Chimera reached out and touched Michael's hand. She had to show him what she could do.

"You marked 17 papers this afternoon after I left. Then you taught a class on Homer's Iliad. When you got homeyou changed, phoned Dennis and thought about the prom. Now you're wondering how I know all this andhoping like hell that I can't see your developing vampirism fetish."

She grinned broadly displaying her fangs. Michael yanked his hand away, but he looked straight into her eyes.Had she really just read his mind? Her eyes were still green, but not as green as before. She was calm, she wasserious, and she really had been reading his mind.

"I'm telepathic now" she said "But only with human contact and I can only read what's on the top. I can't forcemyself into someone's mind if they don't want me there."

Now it was Michaels turn to stand up. He walked back and forth a couple of times trying to absorb what he had

just heard. "Anything else?" he asked not sure he wanted to know the answer. With a move of her hand, acandlestick migrated towards Chimera from the middle of the table. She made to blow air across it and Michael jumped. He had been watching her closely, but he had not been expecting the stream of flame that issued fromher mouth lighting the wick. "I don't think they have a scientific name for that one" she said smiling up at him.

"Are you alright" she asked as she handed him a glass of water. Michael nodded his head but he couldn't bringhimself to speak. "I knew you'd freak out" she said sitting down heavily. Her eyes were now their usualchocolate brown. The buzz of power had faded and now Michael could see that she was worried.

"I'm fine" he said catching her eye "Really, I'm fine. This doesn't change anything between us." She shook her head standing up to pace the floor. "Yes it does Mike. I have no idea what's happening to me. I'm not even sure

that I know who I am anymore." He stood up and grabbed her arm. "I know who you are, and no matter whatyou may think at the moment, you are not a monster". She looked straight into his eyes then "Yes I am, or atleast in my dreams I am."

"That's why I came back" she said freeing herself from his grip. "You're the only one who can help meunderstand what's happening." As soon as she said it she wished she hadn't, she could see the hurt in his facethen. She wished she could be there the way he wanted her. A couple of years ago, before the dreams, she had

been ready to come back. She had been in control then, but she had been scared. Scared that he had moved onand forgotten her. Apparently her fears had been unfounded. She wished so much that she had come back then."You're the only one I trust" she added.

They stood for a while in silence, just looking at each other. "Why do you need my help?" he asked eventuallysitting down. "The dreams I've been having" she said "I need to know if there is any truth in them." Michael was

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still confused, "What are these dreams?" he asked. With a lot of effort, Chimera made herself sit down and madeherself say it. "I've been dreaming about The Chimaera, the Greek monster. I think she may have been real. Ineed you to help me research her."

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Chapter 5: Destruction of Lycia


5- Destruction Of Lycia

Destruction of Lycia

Chimera opened her eyes and looked around. She was in a small hut. Oh no, not again. She stood up and walkedtowards the window. She was dressed in a loose linen tunic but her feet were bare. Looking out of the smallwindow she recognised her surroundings.

The hut was on the side of a volcanic mountain. All around volcanic springs and geothermal vents were spurtinginto the air. Chimera walked to the door and stepped outside. The ground beneath her feet was warm and oddlycomforting. This whole place was oddly comforting. She knew this dream wouldn't end well, she knew that shewould wake up screaming, but still this place felt right. Here she wasn't confused, here she knew who she was,here she felt more like herself than she ever had.

Chimera walked slowly down the hill towards Phaselis. She didn't know why she was heading towards the town but she couldn't stop herself. Further down the hill Chimera reached a dirt track. She followed it towards the

town in a day dream.

As Chimera rounded the corner she spotted him, a soldier, by the looks of his uniform, a Lycian soldier.Probably one of King Iobates personal guard. The realisation awakened something inside her. She had no ideawhat made her do it, but she couldn't stop herself. Chimera strode towards the soldier with a grin on her face. If she was going to do this, she was going to enjoy it.

Chimera felt the fire building up inside her; the heat started in her stomach and rose up through her chest andinto her arms. Her head swam with the power surging through her and she knew that all it would take was a

push.

Chimera pushed. She heard the man's screams but she didn't care. She saw him writhing in pain as the flamesconsumed him. Faintly she heard herself laughing. Was she really enjoying this? She couldn't believe how

powerful she felt. There was electricity coursing through her. For the first time in a long time she felt in control.She was beautiful and powerful and it felt right.

Chimera walked away from the pile of ashes and continued towards Phaselis. She knew what she had to do. Shehad no idea why it felt so good but it compelled her towards the town.

There were no survivors as she left the newly created ruins of Phaselis. Flames ravished the once great town asChimera made her way home. The buzz was still running through her and she felt fantastic.

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Chimera woke up drenched in sweat and screaming. She really was a monster. She turned her head slowly andlooked at the clock on her bedside table. 6:30. There wasn't much point in going back to sleep now. She lay back and stared at the ceiling.

Eventually Chimera reigned in her thoughts and grabbed the phone. "Michael? Hi, can I meet you for lunch

today; I had another one of those dreams." When she had put the phone down, Chimera forced herself to get outof bed.

As she stepped into the shower, Chimera broke down. She couldn't take it anymore. The tears overwhelmed her and she collapsed onto the floor. It wasn't just what she had seen in her dream; it was what she had felt. She hadto keep telling herself it was only a dream. She shouldn't feel so guilty for something in her subconscious. Butthen, why was this in her

subconscious in the first place. Was she so insecure that she needed to destroy an entire town so that she couldfeel powerful? So that she could feel in control?

Eventually she dragged herself out of the shower cubicle and tried to control her emotions. How could thingshave gotten this bad? She couldn't allow her emotions to get the best of her. She had spent the last 12 yearslearning to control herself, for her own safety and the safety of others, she had to control herself.

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Chapter 6: Chimera Remembers


6- Chimera Remembers

Chimera Remembers

Chimera made her way to the kitchen. Time to get back into a routine. She had a lot to do today. Had to get tothe shop. There was a lot of remodelling to be done before she could open, which was due to happen in a fewweeks. Luckily her friends would help. The rest of the band where arriving today to help her with her business.

As she made herself a quick breakfast, she tried to remember the details of her latest dream. Michael would wantto know. As she ate she took her notebook and wrote down what she could remember.

Getting into her car she made her way to the university. She was looking forward to seeing her friends again.They had been there for her all the way through college. They had soon learned the truth about her, but they hadstayed with her anyway.

Chimera walked towards her shop. It was still felt weird calling it her shop. As she neared the shop sherecognised Anita standing outside waiting for her. Anita had been her roommate in halls at college. She had beenso worried that first day.

How was she going to manage living with a complete stranger when she couldn't control herself around people she knew? She unlocked the door to her flat with her new key and looked inside.

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" Hi, you must be Christine, I'm Anita" She looked up to see a slim brunette on the sofa across the room."Actually, I prefer Chimera" she said extending her hand. She didn't know what made her do it, but this was anew start, why not a new name as well.

They got on well. It turned out that Anita was a bit of a new ager who helped Chimera learn to control her

emotions through meditation. She had learned so much from Anita and they had been friends ever since. It had been Anita who had encouraged Chimera to write music, she had been the instigating force in the formation of 'The Daemons' and it had been Anita who had suggested Chimera pursue a design career. She had been rightevery single time.

Chimera brought her thoughts back to today and called out to her college roommate. "Hey, you found it ok then." Anita looked up at her and grinned while Chimera opened the door. "I couldn't wait" she replied "I wantedto get here early and hear all of the gossip about your lecturer friend." Chimera heard the innuendo in Anita'svoice and sighed. "Nothing happened Annie, you know I can't go there right now." Anita frowned back at her,

but there was sympathy in her eyes. "Yeah, and dancing around your feelings for this guy is so much better for you."

Anita dropped the subject after that for which Chimera was very grateful. She busied herself with checking the place over. There was so much to do before she could open. "This place is great Cai" Anita was in the back room, the room that would be used as Chimera's studio. "Yeah" she replied joining Anita as she inspected thecloset bathroom in the corner. "Do you know what you're going to do with the space yet?" Chimera opened her mouth to reply when she heard the front door opening.

"Anybody home, I brought coffee!" Chimera turned to see Don coming in. Don had been in class with Chimeraand Anita. Unbidden Chimera's thoughts went back to the first day in class when they had met him.

Chimera and Anita had been close from the start. By the time classes started they were fast friends. They walked into their first class arm in arm giggiling. As they surveyed the lecture theatre Anita elbowed Chimera in theribs. "Look, that guy in the first row is totally hot." Chimera looked up to see an athletic goth with long dark hair and a beard looking straight at them. He grinned at them moving his rucksack aside indicating two seatsnext to him. Anita had steered a protesting Chimera over towards him and introduced herself. "Hi, I'm Anitaand this is my roommate Chimera" He looked up at them extending his hand. "Hi, I'm Don."

"Chimera!" the voice brought her back into the present day. "You want this coffee or not" Chimera looked upfrom her thoughts. "Huh? Oh thanks Don" She took the coffee gratefully. "Sorry, I was miles away." Anitashook her head. "Chimera's been having the dreams again." It was then that Don started to look concerned.Chimera looked up at her two friends with defiance. "I'm fine, seriously, I'm meeting Michael for lunch so we

can talk about it, find out what's going on" Don's eyebrows rose sarcastically "Really" Not again. Why did all of her friends have such one track minds?

By the time Will arrived Chimera had her sketchbook out. She was going over ideas for the shop floor withAnita while Don was investigating the attic storage. Anita had glanced up at the shop window and Chimeracould almost hear the grin spread across her friends face, and knew he had arrived before she said anything. Willand Anita had been together for a long time now. Will had been Don's roommate, and ever since they had met,Will and Anita had been inseparable.

Chimera looked up to see Will coming through the door followed by Len. Len had been a bar tender at theCollege bar. Now everyone was here they could start with the plans. Chimera couldn't help falling back into her

memories.

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After their first week of classes Don had suggested that the girls meet him and his roommate for a couple of drinks. Chimera and Anita had made their way to the bar wondering what this elusive roommate would be like.

As soon as they walked into the bar they could see the boys at the bar. Will had turned around to greet themwhen Chimera heard Anita's breath hitch. "Hi, I'm Will" Anita would have swooned right there if Chimerahadn't nudged her sharply in the ribs.

The four of them had spent the rest of the evening by the bar laughing together. Chimera couldn't believe how great this was. She had really landed on her feet. However, the more Chimera had to drink, the less control shehad over her abilities. She really had to focus when speaking to the barman. If she wasn't careful the bottlesbehind the bar would move on their own, as if to make Chimera a cocktail without his intervention. "Are youalright?" the barman had asked, he was a tall slim blonde by the name of Len. "I'm fine" she had replied trying to slow her breathing the way Anita had shown her on their first night. "You sure, because I can see thosebottles your trying so hard not to move" It was then that Chimera let go of the bottles and they smashed onto the

floor. Her friends looked up at her then, and they were all ushered into the storage room by Len.

So Chimera had had to explain to her friends, and the until now unknown bartender, about her unusual abilities. Anita had already know of course, but it hadn't made it any easier. They had been so understanding, though that may have been partly due to the alcohol they had all consumed that night. Later Chimera had pulled Len aside."How did you know about this?" He shrugged at her before answering. "My grandmother was telekinetic, not as

powerful as you, but it taught me to deal with this kind of thing."

Chimera brought herself back to the plans for her shop. Her day had started so badly with her nightmare, butnow she was with her friends discussing her new business. Still, as great as this was she wished that Michaelwas here.

31

Chapter 7: Meeting the Monster


7- Meeting The Monster

Meeting The Monster

Michael checked his watch as he sat behind his desk. Nearly one. She should be here soon. He stood up andmade his way to the bookcase. He took some large volumes of the shelf and placed them on his desk. He was

worried. Chimera had sounded so scared this morning. She had tried to hide it but he could hear it in her voice.

Sitting back behind his desk Michael began sorting the volumes on his desk. "Tuna Salad?" Michael looked upto see Chimera leaning on the door frame. "What?" Chimera sat down on the other side of the desk and produceda couple of sandwiches from her shoulder bag. "Do you want Tuna Salad? It used to be your favourite"Realisation spread across his face. "Yeah, it still is."

As they ate Chimera described her dream to Michael. He listened intently, making notes, with a seriousexpression, which didn't help Chimera to keep her cool. Michael obviously thought that her dreams were serious

business, which made it difficult for Chimera to dismiss them in her mind, and that's just what she wanted to doat the moment. She knew that she had to get to the bottom of these dreams, but she hated thinking about them.At the back of her mind there was always the nagging thought that maybe she was just crazy.

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"I think our main problem is going to be finding anything definite about Chimaera. The written accounts of thelegend are sparse. She is depicted on vases and wall paintings more than she is in actual literature." Chimeralistened carefully to what Michael was saying, as well as taking a peak at the notes he had been making. Shenoticed that in his notes, Michael referred to her as 'Chimera' as she spelt it with the band and on her businessforms, but when describing the mythical Chimaera he used the more formal 'Chimaera'. She also noticed that in

a couple of Michael's books the name was spelt Khimaira. But of course none of that was really important.

"So where do we go from here?" Chimera asked, not sure whether she wanted to hear the answer. "Well, wecompare your dreams to what we know about the legend. Anything that is in your dream but not in themythology we research, see if we can find a connection. You mentioned that the town in your dream was calledPhaselis. That's a town near what is now thought to be the starting point of the legend. Then there is KingIobates. You mentioned him as well. He was the king who supposedly sent Bellerophon to kill The Chimaera." Itseemed they were in for the long haul. There was no way she was going to get her answers quickly or easily, notthat she had ever expected to.

They spent the whole of Michael's lunch break looking through the Myths of The Chimaera. There seemed to bea few things that tied up with Chimera's dreams. Some of her previous dreams had involved her part in naturaldisasters, Earthquakes, floods, droughts, volcanic eruptions, storms and shipwrecks, all of which were listed asconsequences of seeing The Chimaera. She had also dreamt about being a three headed fire breathing creature,

part lion, part goat and part serpent. That of course was not a surprise. Everyone knew about that part of thelegend. In fact it was that dream that had convinced Chimera that she was dreaming about her namesake. After the first dream she had remembered a quote, from Homer or something describing the Chimaera: 'She was of divine race, not of men, in the fore part a lion, in the hinder a serpent and in the middle a goat, breathing forth interrible manner the force of blazing fire.'

Eventually they packed their books away, The first of many research sessions at an end. Michael said that hewould contact some people he knew in Turkey, Archaeologists in the region of what is thought of as MountChimaera. He wouldn't tell them the reason of course, but they may be able to shed some light on some of thedetails in Chimera's dreams. Chimera promised to keep Michael informed, and then she left.

As Michael watched her go he let out an exhausted sigh. This whole thing was obviously tearing Chimera apart, but he knew he couldn't get to close. They had to keep things professional. It was the only way he was going toget through this and help her. Only then would they be able to get back to the subject of them. He knew that shewas just as worried about their relationship as he was. They would just have to deal with it.

Chimera made her way back to the shop. She still had a lot of planning to do before they could start decorating.She had left her sketchbook with Anita. No doubt there would be a pile of sketches for her to look through. She

couldn't let her bizarre dreams get in the way of her business plans. She wished that she didn't find it so difficult being around Michael. She didn't know how long she could push her feelings down. Yet again Chimera had tocontrol her emotions for the good of those around her. It was so frustrating.

34

Chapter 8: Chimera Clothing


8- Chimera Clothing

Chimera Clothing

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Chimera looked at herself in the mirror again. She was a walking advertisement for Chimera Clothing.Everything she was wearing had started life as a doodle in her sketchbook. The thought gave her comfort. Todaywas a big deal. It had taken weeks of hard work to get to this point. The shop was finally opening. Why was sheso nervous. Everything was going to be OK.

Turning around to find her keys Chimera realised how nervous she must really be. Her living room was a mess.It's a good job that she had given up on ornaments years ago, at least fragile ones. Her tastes, dictated by her abilities, favoured chunky furniture and decorations. However as her powers had developed, she discovered thatno sofa would stay in one place for long. With a sigh Chimera called her keys to her and left. She would have todeal with this mess later. Why did she keep getting in the way of her own life.

It was still quiet when she reached the shop. She still had a couple of hours before opening and she was reallynervous. She would feel better when the others got here, she always did. Chimera did one final check of the shopfloor before retreating to her studio. She knew she wouldn't be able to get any sketches done today but there wasa sofa back there and that's what she needed right now. Somewhere to sit and calm down.

Len arrived soon afterwards with the electronics that still had to be set up. The security cameras and monitorswhere all set up, but Chimera wanted another monitor set up on the shop floor so they could play music videos."Morning Cai, Where do you want this?" Making her way through to the shop floor Chimera took the TV fromLen with her mind. "Morning" She manoeuvred the monitor up onto a shelf and plugged it into the wall.

By opening time Anita and Will had arrived but there was no sign of Don. No time to think about that now.There were people, students mainly, waiting outside. Chimera took a long deep breath and nodded for Anita toopen the door. Well this is it, now we find out whether it has all been worth it. Now she would finally find outwhat people really thought of Chimera Clothing.

By lunchtime the shop was mobbed. It was more than Chimera could have ever hoped for. For once it seemedthat everything was going well. Don arrived then with lunch, a peace offering no doubt for being late. It wasthen that she saw that Don wasn't alone. It seems Don has met someone and that made Chimera smile.

"Hey Cai, I brought lunch, sorry I'm so late." Don made his way through the crowded shop to the studio with hisdate in tow. "That's alright, give me one of those Panini's and we're even. Aren't you going to introduce me?"Chimera indicated the slim brunette now wondering around the studio. "Oh, right. Chloe! Chloe this is Chimera"Chloe walked towards them her face pulled into a fake smile. "Hi, I'm Chloe. Don has told me so much aboutyou." Chimera looked at Don. Told her so much about me, huh, I wonder how much he left out, Judging by thelook on Chloe's face not a lot.

Chloe hung around for the rest of the day. She seemed to have an instant dislike for Chimera which was rather disconcerting for her. On the whole though the day was a great success. As she opened the door to her apartmentChimera remembered the mess she had made that morning. "Crap!" If she didn't deal with it now she wouldn'tdo it for days, but she had one thing she had to do first.

Chimera picked her way to the phone and dialled.

"Dennis MacMillan"

"Hi Dennis, It's Me"

"Christine"

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"Denny I told you not to call me that!"

"I know Chimera, but it drives you crazy, and what else are big brothers for. How was the opening, that wastoday wasn't it."

"Yeah, it was today. It went really well actually, loads of people turned up..."

"But"

"But, what?"

"Come on Cai, your upset about something, I can tell, what is it?"

"There's nothing, nothing's wrong really."

"Chimera?"

"It's nothing, it's just Don came in with this new girlfriend of his, and I don't think she liked me very much."

"Does that matter?"

"Not really, she just made me uncomfortable."

"Well kick her out, it's your shop."

"Denny"

"I'm sorry Cai, it's just I never liked Don much and..."

"I wonder why that could be"

"What I'm your big brother, I'm not supposed to like the guys you date. It's like a rule or something."

"What about Michael then?"

"That's different. I like Michael, and he's like my best friend. I wish you guys would hurry up and sort things outalready."

"Denny, I'm not having this argument again."

"Yeah, yeah, I know. I just think you two are so right for each other."

"That's not the point Dennis. I want to find out what's going on with me and these dreams before I start datingagain. It's not that I don't like Michael, I do, It's just I don't trust myself with anyone just now."

"I know Cai, I know. Anyway I've got to go I'll phone you tomorrow."

"OK, I'll speak to you tomorrow."

"Bye"

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Chimera hung up the phone and sighed. She loved her brother to bits but when he got an idea into his head hecouldn't let it go. As she tidied up the living room Chimera thought about Dennis. He lived in their family homealone now. Ever since their parents had moved to Australia in their retirement, he had run the family business.She wondered how he managed sometimes, there on his own. She made a promise to herself then. She would goand visit sometime soon.

39

Chapter 9: Seduction of Daphnis


9- Seduction of Daphnis

Seduction Of Daphnis

Chimera opened her eyes and looked around. Mount Chimaera. Crap. Looks like she was in for another sweatdrenched awakening. She walked over to the door and stepped into the now familiar scenery. Instead of her usual route however she found herself propelled towards a stream on the other side of the mountain.

As she approached the stream Chimera heard the musical lilt of a voice. "Swear to me Daphnis, swear that youwill always be faithful." Chimera tried to suppress the laughter rising in her throat. Nymphs. She knew thisnymph. It was Nomia. She was rubbing Daphnis in Chimera's face. Why else would she be here, on her mountain, making him take this oath.

"I swear it, may I be blinded if it is not so." Daphnis sat by the stream looking up at Nomia as she stood in front

of him. Chimera felt rage build up inside her. Somehow she knew deep inside her that Daphnis was meant to belong to her. And here on this Mountain Chimera got whatever Chimera wanted. Right now Chimera wantedDaphnis.

As she watched them she was overwhelmed by memories that only came to her in this place. Daphnis was one of the many sons of Hermes. He was a writer of poetry and beloved of the gods. Pan had taught him to play the

pipes and he was often seen hunting with Artemis. Nomia and Chimera had been competing for his affectionsfor some time now. But Chimera had one advantage over innocent little Nomia. Chimera was willing to playdirty.

Chimera made her way back to the little hut and found the bottle she was looking for. It was a bottle of

Dionysian Entheogen. She took the bottle and a couple of glasses and made her way back outside.

She had been sitting on a large rock watching the geothermic vents spurt steam into the air for some time beforehe appeared. "Chimaera" Without looking round she replied "Greetings Daphnis, I see you have made your choice." He sat down next to her sadly. "I am sorry Chimaera" She laughed "No you're not Daphnis, but I wishyou nothing but happiness." She poured the golden liquid into two glasses and handed him one. "Drink with meDaphnis, to your happiness."

It did not take them long to finish the bottle. Chimera sipped while Daphnis swallowed glass after glass. As shestood he struggled to get to his feet. "You cannot travel now Daphnis, the wine has greatly affected you. Staywith me a while." He took the arm she offered and they made their way to Chimera's hut.

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Daphnis sat on her bed while Chimera sat on a chair across the room. "Won't you sit here with me Chimaera" Itwas just what Chimera had been hoping for. "I did not think that would be allowed. I am sure Nomia would notapprove." She made her way across the room while she waited for his reply. "Just because I have made mychoice does not mean we cannot be friends" She sat down next to him on her bed and knew that she had won.

Chimera moved closer to Daphnis and put her hand on his thigh. "I cannot deny Daphnis that I was greatlydisappointed when I learned of your choice." He turned towards her and looked into her eyes. "Chimaera?" Shestopped his thoughts placing her finger over his mouth. "ssh" She leaned in and kissed him. She fought hard tosuppress a smile as he kissed her back.

The secret to seduction, Chimera knew is to let him hang himself. That's why she wasn't surprised when Daphnis pushed her down onto the bed. Suddenly his hands were everywhere. It always amazed Chimera how men couldgo from nothing to full on desperate hands passion in an instant. In no time she was naked beneath him, waiting.It had to be his move. He leaned in kissing her as he entered her. Chimera felt the power flowing through her knowing she was in control. Knowing that she could have whatever she wanted. No one could get in her way.

No one could stop her.

When Daphnis pulled out he collapsed beside her, and almost instantly he was asleep. The sun was setting asChimera lay there in his arms. She always got what she wanted, and that was a wonderful feeling.

"Daphnis!" Chimera woke with a start as Daphnis jumped out of bed. Slowly she reached down to get the blanket from where it had fallen onto the floor and then she sat against the wall with her knees pulled up to her chest grinning like a cat. Daphnis tried his best to calm Nomia down, but as he was still naked it wasn't goingvery well. "You Swore! You Swore!" She shouldn't have rubbed it in my face, Chimera thought as she watchedthe scene unfold before her.

Nomia was pacing now. Back and forth, back and forth. Chanting something under her breath. Daphnis fell tohis knees screaming. Chimera just sat there watching. She knew what was happening. Nomia was blinding him.Chimera knew that and she just sat there grinning, her eyes a flash of green.

43

Chapter 10: A WOman Scorned


10- A Women Scorned

A Women Scorned

Chimera woke up drenched in sweat. Well that was different. She could cope with the other dreams, at least sheknew what to expect now. But this was different. Before in her dreams she was power hungry, but now she was

jealous and manipulative with it. Could she really think like that. Was that what was behind her distrust of Chloe? Was she just jealous? Had she imagined Chloe's instant dislike? Was she that unstable?

She forced herself out of bed and made her way to the bathroom. She washed her face in the sink and looked atherself in the mirror. There was no way around it. Things were getting worse. She couldn't go on like this muchlonger. At least it was a week day. She could talk to Michael about it today. Although, she wasn't sure she couldtalk about this sort of thing with Michael yet. There was still a lot of sexual tension between them.

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Chimera was so distracted as she got ready to go into work that she had to change several times before she wasanywhere near coordinated and she burned her breakfast several times. In a way she missed her old dreams.They had become so much a part of her routine that she barely noticed them. She hoped so much that this newdream didn't go the same way. The thought of waking up from that every morning didn't appeal at all. It wasstrange to think that her murderous dreams disturbed her less than her dream last night, but before she had felt

somewhat detached from her actions, now she had felt so certain, she had been completely behind her vindictivedecisions, and that scared her more.

Eventually Chimera pulled herself together enough to make her way to work. She had forgotten however thatDon was working today. "Chimera, are you alright? You look dreadful." Don was putting a music DVD into themachine as she entered. "What? No I'm fine, I didn't sleep well." Don frowned at her from across the room. "Thedreams again?" Chimera made her way to the studio as she spoke. "Yes...No...Sort of. It wasn't the usual dream.What have you told Chloe about me?"

Don sat next to Chimera on the sofa and looked at her thoughtfully. "What do you mean? I told her about 'TheDaemons' and about the shop and college" Chimera's head snapped up. "What about College? You didn't talk about us did you? Because I got the feeling she doesn't like me much." Chimera knew the answer as Donsquirmed in his seat. "I may have mentioned something about it, she wanted to know about my ex's..." Chimeradropped her head into her hands. "Great!" An arm fell across Chimera's shoulder when he replied. "Chimera Icouldn't just miss it out, and besides, it's not as if I'm ashamed or anything. It's not like anything is going tohappen between us again. I'm with Chloe now, and you're so hung up on Michael." That earned Don a glare but,he was right of course. They had nothing to be ashamed of. Sitting there, they couldn't help but reminisce.

The three of them had been studying most of the day; Chimera, Don and Anita. They had an exam the next dayand nothing seemed to be going in. Anita had given up when Will appeared, she left with Will in pursuit of adrink while the other two kept at it. Eventually they too gave up and sat on the sofa together, each with a beer intheir hands watching some nonsense on the TV. Unconsciously they moved closer together on the sofa.

Eventually they ended up lying together on the sofa with Chimera's head resting on Don's chest.

"Chimera get me another beer, I can't get up" Chimera flicked through the channels looking in vain for something interesting. "I'm not getting up, I'm comfortable" Don snorted and took the remote from her. "Who said you had to get up, come on you won't get any better at controlling it if you don't practice." So Chimeraturned her head towards the fridge behind them, she still had to see things to move them back then. Shemanaged to open the fridge door without difficulty but the beer bottles gave her more trouble. Eventually theyeach had a fresh beer in their hands. "See, I knew you could do it." Chimera opened her beer with her key ring."How come the only time you encourage me to do that is when you want a drink."

Chimera hadn't expected it, but it was then that Don leaned down and kissed the top of her head. "What was that for?" She asked looking up at him. "For getting me a beer of course." But then he leaned down and kissed her properly. After a moment of shock, Chimera kissed him back. Their beers sat forgotten on the coffee table whileChimera manoeuvred herself onto Don's lap. What the hell was she doing? She had no idea but she wasn't going to stop now. She hadn't even been interested in anyone since Michael, but now she was here with Don and sherealised that she wanted him. She had gained so much control over the last few months. Why should she stop.She had told Michael to get on with his life, it was about time she did the same.

"Chimera, we should stop." Don said as he pulled away. "Why?" Chimera asked confused. "Anita could behome anytime. We should probably move this through to your room." He looked at her hopefully and Chimera

grinned. She stood up and held out her hand leading Don to her bedroom.

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Back in Chimera's studio they looked at each other for a long time. They hadn't dated long. Chimera had feltguilty because she still wasn't over Michael. Something she had never quite managed to achieve and they haddecided it was best to go back to being friends. It had been an easier transition than either of them expected. Butat that moment, they had both been remembering that day. They both leant in at the same time for a kiss theywould both regret.

"Don!" Oh crap. The sound brought them both back to the real world at lightning speed. They jumped awayfrom each other and looked towards the door. Chloe was standing there full of rage. Chimera backed away as far as she could as Don moved towards his girlfriend. Chloe ran through to the main part of the shop before Donmanaged to catch her arm. "Chloe wait!" Chimera moved slowly towards the doorway dreading what she wouldsee. Chloe was screaming at Don but Chimera couldn't hear the words.

Chloe broke away from Don and picked up as many things as she could throwing them at him. Chimera saweverything in slow motion as a pen struck Don in the face. "Shit! My Eye!" Chloe ran crying from the room thenas Don crumpled onto the floor. "I can't see!" Chimera moved towards him tentatively. "Don are you alright?"As Chimera went to put a hand on his shoulder he shrugged her away. "I'm fine! Just give me a minute."

Chimera left in a panic induced silence. It was too much of a coincidence. How could this have happened. Nowshe was ruining other people's lives as well as her own. Had she seen this coming or had she caused it. Shecouldn't wait till lunch. She had to talk to Michael. She had to know if what she had dreamt was from thelegends or a product of her deranged subconscious. She just had to hope he was in his office.

49

Chapter 11: Confessional


11- Confessional

Confessional

Michael was sitting behind his desk when the door slammed open of its own accord. "Hello Chimera" She strodein screaming. "They're coming true! They're coming true!" Michael looked up from his desk, trying hard to readher expression. What he saw in her face terrified him. "Wait a minute Chimera. Start from the beginning. Whatare coming true?" She took a long deep breath trying desperately to control her emotions. By the looks of thingsshe wasn't doing very well as Michaels papers rose haphazardly into the air.

Eventually Chimera was calm enough to begin. Michael was very worried now. He had never seen her so upset."I had a different dream last night. I was still on Mount Chimera. But it was different..."

Michael waited patiently for Chimera to finish. He had some vague feeling that he had heard this storysomewhere before, not in any great detail, but he knew it from somewhere. When she had finished he poured her a glass of water. She seemed calmer now but he could see the vein of panic running just below the surface.

As Chimera drank her water Michael scanned the bookshelf. Eventually he found what he was looking for andstood up to retrieve it. Pulling the volume down from the shelf he looked over at her, noticing for the first timehow fragile she looked. Fragile, it was strange to think of her like that. She had always appeared so strong, atleast physically. Now he saw how emotionally vulnerable she was.

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Michael flicked through the book for some time before he found it. Just a small reference. Nothing much. Heread it out loud to her. "This book mentions Daphnis briefly, it says that he was the son of Hermes. But it alsosays: Nomia made him swear never to be unfaithful to her, on pain of being blinded. But her rival, Chimaera,contrived to seduce him when he was drunk, and Nomia blinded him in fulfilment of her threat."

Michael explained that the story of Nomia and Daphnis was taken from a phallic pillar at Cephalenitanum andnowhere else. It was unlikely that Chimera had heard the story and locked it into her subconscious. This meantthat she really was channelling The Chimaera. It wasn't all in her head. Chimera sighed with relief. She wasn't

just crazy. Now she just had to come to terms with the fact that she was dreaming about a woman who had beendead for thousands of years, and that by some strange coincidence these dreams were beginning to happen toher.

"There is still something I don't understand Chimera. When you came in you said 'They are coming true' Whatdid you mean?" Oh great. There was no avoiding it. She had to tell Michael about Don. All about Don. No pointin leaving anything out now. She took a deep breath and began.

Michael sat in silence for a long time. What had he expected. Did he really think that Chimera had waited all thistime. He hadn't waited. So why was he so upset. He knew it was irrational, but he was jealous. Maybe it was thefact that Don was still in her life. He was still her friend. That made it worse, but why.

Chimera tried to explain why she and Don had broken up in the first place. And he knew it shouldn't, but thatmade him feel better. She hadn't been over HIM. She still wasn't. She had ended a possible relationship withsomeone else because she couldn't forget about HIM. God he was the most selfish man on the planet. Wasn't sheallowed to be happy? The answer, he knew, was No. He didn't want her to be happy with anyone but him. Hereally was not doing either of them any favours thinking like that but he couldn't stop. When had he become so

possessive?

Chimera stood up. She had told her story. She had confessed it all and now she just needed to get out of here.She had so much to think about. And she couldn't sit there any longer with Michael staring at her like that. Shehad upset him, she knew she had. "I'm going to go home and lie down." Without another word she left his office.Why did she have to wreck everything. How could she justify being around anyone else when all she did was

break people apart. What kind of Monster had she become.

Michael sat looking at the door for a long time after she left. He had spent twelve years wishing that Chimerawas back in his life, but now that she was he realised that this was harder. He had managed to survive when heknew that he couldn't have her because she wasn't there, but now he had to see her everyday and know that hestill couldn't have her. It was torture. He didn't know how long he could keep doing this. But he had to. She

needed his help.

He picked up the phone on his desk. If he was going to do this he had to know everything. No more surprises.He had to find out everything that had happened to Chimera in the past decade.

"Dennis MacMillan"

"Hi Dennis. It's Michael. There's some stuff I Need to know so I can help your sister. Why didn't you tell meabout Don?"

"Mike?"

"Please Dennis. I need to know everything"

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"Alright..."

52

Chapter 12: Brotherly Love


12- Brotherly Love

Brotherly Love

Chimera looked at the empty bottle in her hand. She knew this wasn't a good idea. She had known that when sheopened the damn bottle, but she didn't know what else to do. Right now all she wanted to do was drown her sorrows in a wave of alcohol. So far it didn't seem to be working to well. She felt worse now rather than better

She had received a phone call from Anita earlier in the day. Don was fine. He had taken himself to the hospitalnot long after she had left. He would have to wear a patch for a while and Chloe wasn't talking to him, but apartfrom that he was going to be fine. That didn't make Chimera feel better at all. It didn't matter that Don was goingto make a full recovery eventually, it was all still her fault. She didn't know how she was going to face her friends tomorrow. Everyone was going to be so mad at her.

The phone rang bringing Chimera out of her thoughts. Damn phone. The only reason she had left the bloodything plugged in was because Dennis had promised to phone. She picked up the receiver trying desperately tokeep her words from slurring.

"Hello?"

"Chimera? Are you alright?"

"Don? I'm surprised your still talking to me"

"What! Why? This wasn't your fault."

"Of course it is. If it wasn't for me you wouldn't have got hurt, and Chloe wouldn't be mad at you."

"Ok, this self pitying crap has got to stop."

"What?"

"Not everything is your fault. So stop taking the blame. It's not like I don't have a mind of my own. There is sucha thing as free will."

"Don, you don't understand. That dream I had..."

"I know..."

"You What?"

"Michael came to see me this afternoon. He told me all about the dream."

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"Then how can you not blame me for all this."

"Because it's not your fault. Don't worry, Chloe will get over it eventually, and I'm fine. I'll see you tomorrowafternoon. Alright... Chimera?"

"Alright. Ok. I'll see you tomorrow."

Chimera hung up the phone and went to get another bottle. OK so maybe not everyone was mad at her. Thingswould have been so much easier if they were. Then she could wallow in self pity, drink herself to death, and notworry about the crap her brain was spilling out in her dreams. She didn't want to have to think about that rightnow. There was so much she didn't want to think about right now. Like Michael. That was one topic she had toavoid.

As she started to make a dent in her second bottle the phone rang for a third time. If that wasn't Dennis she wasgoing to scream.

"Chimera?"

"Hi Dennis."

"Chimera, are you alright?"

"Yeah Denny I'm fine, everything's peachy."

"Chimera have you been drinking?"

"Just a couple of Bottles"

"A couple of bottles of what Cai?"

"Vodka"

"Chimera!"

"What? I'm an adult. Aren't I allowed to drink in my own apartment now."

"It's just not like you."

"Maybe that's a good thing."

"Chimera. What are you talking about."

"It's just... Maybe being unlike me is a good thing. Maybe everyone would be better off."

"Christine MacMillan! Shut the hell up right now!"

"What?"

"I am not going to let you talk about yourself like that!"

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"Dennis..."

"No Chimera I'm serious!"

"He called you didn't he."

"Who?"

"Michael, he called you."

"Of course he did. He was worried about you. He said you weren't dealing with this whole thing too well. Hesays he's never seen you this upset. Not since that night anyway."

"Denny please, I don't want to talk about this right now."

"You never want to talk about it."

"Denny..."

"No, you're not going to get round me that easily. You can't keep hiding from him. He is trying to help you, andyou won't even acknowledge how you feel about him."

"Denny. I can't, I can't think about that."

"Why not? Because then you might have to talk to him about it? Because then you might have to talk to himabout that night? Because then you might have a chance at being happy?"

"You don't understand..."

"Like hell I don't! You're my sister! And I know you better than anyone. You won't talk about it because youdon't think you can handle it. But you're still thinking about it. You're thinking about it all the time. And you sayyou can't deal with this until you can control your abilities better, but until you sort this out your emotions aregoing to be so up in the air there's no chance of you ever gaining control."

"Denny..."

"Don't you Denny me. I'm saying this for your own good. Now when you hang up this phone I want you to put

the rest of that bottle away and take yourself to bed. I know you're planning to stay awake tonight so that youdon't have any more dreams, but you need some sleep."

"Dennis?"

"Yeah?"

"Thanks"

"Hey, what are big brothers for. Now get some sleep."

"Goodnight Denny."

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"Night Chimera."

58

Chapter 13: Good Dreams Gone Bad


13- Good Dreams Gone Bad

Good Dreams Gone Bad

Chimera didn't dream that night. She was too tired, and she slept too deeply. Things went back to normal after that, at least as normal as they ever had been. Her old dreams returned, but they didn't have the impact they oncedid. They almost seemed like good dreams compared to her dream about Daphnis. She never wanted to have thatdream again.

A couple of weeks passed without event, until the night that would change Chimera's life for the better. Thatnight she had the worst dream of them all, but they do say you have to walk through the darkness to reach thelight at the other side.

Chimera opened her eyes to find herself on Mount Chimaera, but she wasn't alone. There was someone in bedwith her. A naked someone? It wasn't Daphnis. She couldn't find the name in her memory, but she knew it wassomeone she loved, someone she trusted. Could it be she was actually having a good dream for once? She laythere for a while just enjoying the warmth of the body next to her.

Eventually she realised she would have to move. She needed to fetch some water from the stream to wash her face, but she didn't want to leave the warmth. The body beside her turned around in his sleep, so she got up then.She grabbed her tunic from the floor, dressed and made her way to the door.

The sun was climbing up over the horizon as she filled her clay bowl from the stream. She made her way back tothe hut and placed the bowl onto the windowsill gazing at the scenery around her. She saw her surroundings in adifferent way now, before this place had filled her with dread. There had always been an association withdestruction in this place, but now she saw the beauty of it.

As she gazed out of the window Chimera let her mind wonder. Could it be that The Chimaera had been peacefulhere once? Had she been happy once, without the lust for power, the lust for control? She must have been

normal once. She must have been happy once, Content.

Something didn't make sense to Chimera. She knew that her dream was not from a time before the others. Thisdream had happened after the destruction of Phaselis and the seduction of Daphnis. Somehow she knew that, andshe felt as if she had been given something back. She had found something she had lost before all the destructionand manipulation. Had this man been in The Chimaera's life before she became a monster? If so why had hecome back? What had changed? Why had she become a monster in the first place? She had so many questions.The answers seemed to be on the edge of her memory, just out of reach.

As she stood contemplating, two long muscular arms wrapped around her waist. A strong body pressed itself upagainst her back and a head rested on her shoulder. "Hail Chimaera, Goddess of the mountain" he chuckled intoher ear. His breath sent shivers up and down her spine and she knew that she was happy. She knew that she had

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found something precious that she had lost a long time ago. "Hail Warrior of the king" she laughed. This was agood dream.

Then the arms moved away from her waist. The body against her back moved away and she started to turn. Tofind out what was wrong. It was then that she felt it. A sharp Pain in her lower back as one hand grabbed her

waist to keep her still. She fell to her knees with one thought ringing in her mind. She deserved this. She was amonster. She deserved to die. But then she felt the rage built in her chest. She felt the fire building inside her. Allit would take was a push. One push. But she couldn't do it. She couldn't hurt him. She deserved this. He wassaving her from herself. But still the fire burnt inside her. She tried to scream but something was pushed downher throat. She felt it there, melting in her rage, choking her. She knew she was going to die. She looked up athim, he was still naked and his eyes were sad. "I'm Sorry" he said as he watched her die. One name echoedthrough her mind as she fell into darkness. "Bellerophon?"

Chimera woke up choking and terrified. She reached out for the glass of water on her bedside table and downedthe whole thing. By the time she finished she could breathe again, but the blood was still pumping too fastthrough her veins. At least it was still pumping she thought, but that didn't make her feel any better.

Chimera looked over at her clock. 02:00. Great. How was she ever going to get back to sleep now? On impulseshe picked up the phone by her bed. What was the worst that could happen? He could yell at her, tell her to go

back to sleep, and tell her to call him at a more sensible time.

"Hello?"

"Michael it's me."

"Chimera? What's wrong? Are you hurt?"

"I had another dream."

"Oh"

"It was horrible. I... I was dying, choking on something."

"I'll be there in 10minutes"

"Michael, you don't have to, I'm fine..."

"Chimera, you wouldn't have called if you were. I'll be there soon. And you can tell me all about it."

63

Chapter 14: Fantasies


14- Fantasies

Fantasies

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Michael dressed in a panic. Chimera hadn't even tried to hide the fear in her voice over the phone. Had she reallydreamt about dying. She had said something about choking. Hadn't Bellerophon suffocated The Chimaera with alead pellet. Is that what she had seen. What she had experienced in her dream. If so, no wonder she was terrified.

He broke all sorts of speed limits on the way to her apartment. He didn't care. He just had to get to her. Make

sure she was alright. He parked in the car park outside her building. He pressed her buzzer and the door clickedopen immediately. She must have been waiting by the entry phone he thought as he ran up the stairs. Everythingwas going to be alright. It had to be.

Michael pushed Chimera's door open with such force that it banged against the wall. "Chimera? Are you alright?Chimera?" Then he saw her. She was sitting on the sofa with her knees pulled up to her chest rocking slowly

back and forth. "Chimera? What happened?"

It took a while, and a big pot of tea, but Michael eventually managed to get her calm enough to talk about it. Sherecounted the dream in as much detail as she could while he listened. What terrified her the most it seemedwasn't the realisation that she was dying in her dream, it was the feeling that she deserved to die. It terrified her to feel like that. It was one thing to feel like a monster, it was another thing to want to die.

"How did she die?" Chimera looked at Michael. She was a lot calmer now, not so terrified. Talking about it, itseems, really did make it easier to deal with. "What?" Michael had drifted off into his own thoughts when shehad finished talking. "In the legends, how did she die?" That was the problem, Michael thought. There were somany versions of the legend. Some said that Bellerophon shot darts at The Chimaera from the sky as he rodePegasus. Some said that he thrust his lead tipped spear into her mouth. And some said that he shoved a lead

pellet down her throat. Chimera's dream seemed to indicate the latter, but what about the great battle. Thelegends all talked about the epic battle between Bellerophon and The Chimaera. No legend had ever suggestedthat they were Lovers.

Michael described the death of The Chimaera as he knew it from legend. He talked about all of the differentversions he knew. She sat quietly for a long time mulling it over before she said anything. "Huh, The weird thingis, with all the details I can remember, there was no flying horse. It's the sort of thing I would remember right."He couldn't help himself at that, Michael laughed. "Yeah, I would think you would remember something likethat." She smiled at him then and stood up. "I think I need some more tea."

After she refilled the teapot Chimera sat back down next to Michael and sighed. "I suppose I just have to makesure no one shoves a lead pellet down my throat." He looked at her shocked. "Chimera, don't talk like that." Hetook her hand before he continued "I'm never going to let anyone hurt you." And she believed him. This wasMichael. She had known him almost her entire life. In reality there had never really been anyone else. What did

she have to lose? Dennis was right. She couldn't hide from this forever. She leant in and kissed him before shelost her nerve.

Michael pulled back when he realised what she was doing. "Chimera? Are you sure about this? You're upset."She smirked at him making his heart jump in his chest. "I've never been more sure of anything in my entire life"she said pushing him down onto the sofa. Damn, that was the sexiest thing he had ever heard. This time therewould be no stopping them.

Suddenly they were both wearing far too many clothes. That was soon fixed in a tangle of frantic limbs and breathless kisses. Michael looked up into Chimera's now emerald eyes and realised that all of his fantasies werecoming true. Well, all except one so far. He leant up and whispered in her ear. "Can you still read my mind?" He

leant back down and looked up at her. She grinned back at him and he knew she still could as he watched her fangs extend. He closed his eyes and felt her move on top of him. As he entered her he felt her sink her teeth into

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his neck. "Fuck!" That was about it for coherent thoughts. The problem with fantasies is that more often than notreal life cannot live up to it. This however was not the case with them.

"Fuck!" Michael exclaimed and Chimera giggled. "Is that all you can say?" she asked although she felt it to."Pretty much" he replied running his hand across her back. He looked across the room then and realised how

preoccupied they must have been. "Um, Chimera? Has your living room always looked like a bomb site?" Shelooked up noticing the room around her for the first time. "Crap! I must have been levitating. I'll clean it up inthe morning." She stood up and held her hand out to him. "I think we could both do with some sleep." Now thatsounded like a plan.

66

Chapter 15: Morning After


15- The Morning After

The Morning After

Chimera woke up with a feeling of contentment she couldn't place. Then she remembered. That's why she felt sogood. Suddenly she had everything she had ever wanted because of one night. One wonderful night and one baddream. She could feel the warmth of Michael behind her. One arm was draped across her waist so she leant over to kiss it. "Hmmm" he said waking up. "I'm sorry, I didn't mean to wake you up. Go back to sleep. Its Saturday"He tightened his hold around her waist and she felt him kiss her shoulder. "I'd rather stay awake with you." Shesmiled to herself hearing his thoughts. She wished she could make them come true but she had to get ready for

work. "I can't, I've got to get ready for work. Have a lie in and I'll meet you for lunch. OK." Michael sighedheavily. "OK"

Reluctantly Chimera made her way to the shower. Only when she stood up did she realise that she was stillnaked. Oh well, that should save time. She climbed into the shower cubicle accompanied by thumps and crashes.What the hell was going on. She didn't seem to be able to stop levitating this morning. She shrugged it off andcontinued bathing.

Things were no better in the kitchen. She couldn't keep anything on the counter for long. "Are you alright?" sheturned around and had to stifle a laugh. Michael was standing there in her dressing gown and slippers, all of which appeared to be far too small for him. "Very attractive" she said glad of the distraction. "Shut up, my

clothes are still in the living room." He made to go and get them when a jar smashed down onto the counter."Seriously Chimera, are you alright?"

She sat down at the kitchen table with a couple of slices of toast and sighed. "Yeah I'm fine. I just can't seem tocontrol myself today." Michael smirked at her, one eyebrow raised. "Really?" She rolled her eyes "Not that kindof control Gutter brain. I mean I can't seem to stop levitating." Michael handed her a cup of coffee and then he

poured his own. "Oh. I'm sure it will pass. How about you get to work. I'll tidy everything up here. And then I'llcome and get you for lunch". That sounded like a very good plan.

Chimera would have left earlier but she couldn't seem to stop kissing Michael. "You're going to be late for work." He said, but she knew he didn't mean it, he still had his hands on her waist. "So what? I'm the bossremember. Ok... I'm really going this time. I'll see you in a few hours." She kissed him one more time andwalked out of the door. No wonder she was having trouble with control today, her heart rate would not slow

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down. Part of her couldn't believe it had happened. It was almost as if she was dreaming, but her dreams never went this well.

By the time she got to the shop she was whistling. As she walked in the door she beamed at Will behind thecounter. There was no music playing in the shop, and Chimera was in a singing mood so she flicked the monitor

on with her mind. "Good-morning Will." Chimera hummed along to the music as she made her way into thestudio. It was only when Will spoke that she realised he had followed her. "Chimera? Are you feeling alright?"She turned round to face him. "Of course I am. Why?" He shook his head at her but he was grinning. "Becausethat TV isn't plugged in. Len was going to take it away and get it fixed this afternoon."

OK something was going on. She had never been able to do anything like that before. "What happened lastnight?" Will asked again from the doorway. "Huh?" She had been so lost in her own thoughts she had barelyheard him. "Well something must have happened, something's different. You were whistl

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