Lance stared at the wound, silent for a second. He was pulled out of his oblivion by a question.

"What does he need for the injury?" his dad quizzed him. Lance was an apprentice, a medic in training, so his parents had to constantly test his knowledge to make sure that he would be worthy of the job.

"He needs some vampire bat anaesthetic to tone down the pain while we work on the laceration. Aloe vera gel can help heal the wound. Yarrow can then be used as antiseptic to clean out bacteria, and then we need to bandage it up."

His dad nodded, signalling for him to get the medicines. Lance had been correct. He nodded back, then hurried over to get the items he had listed. One wall of the surgery was dedicated completely to medicines. The wall was covered in shelves, which are stacked with various jars of antidotes and medicines. First, he needed the painkiller. Vampire bats naturally have an anaesthetic in their saliva so they can bite their victims painlessly and so avoid detection. However, in Las Lagos, medics harvested the bat saliva and bottled it for use as a painkiller. But it needed to be superheated first to kill off the bacteria.

Next, he needed aloe vera gel, which could be used to some extent for burns and lacerations. Nothing was really guaranteed, though. He remembered what he had been taught in history class, about the medical wonders that existed before the Great Deterioration.

There was a jar of the aloe gel on a low shelf, so he took it. He went to the dried herbs section of the wall and got a sachet of dried yarrow. Lance handed it all to his mother, who began to treat the man.

He hoped that he would heal quickly, though his wounds were deep.

On the bright side, Shredder Falcons have relatively clean talons, unlike those of vultures, so the wound probably won't get infected, Lance remembered.

If the man had been scratched with the claw of a carrion-eater like a buzzard or vulture, the wound would be full of bacteria and rot carried from festering flesh. And if he had fallen prey to the Aeroserpents, flying snakes who were thought to have venomous bites, it would have been a different story.

"You can go home now," Lance's mother said after they had finished bandaging up the man, "thanks for helping."

Lance smiled. He was glad that he had helped, but the metallic reek of blood was filling his mind and he needed to clear his head.

Lance walked straight to his home, went into his bedroom, and sat down on his bed. His mind still filled with thoughts of the man's wound, he pulled out a book. It was a catalogue of medicinal plants that Lance was trying to memorise in order to graduate his medic apprenticeship faster.

Lance was reading a section on the evening primrose, whose oil could be used as anti-inflammatory, when he noticed just how dirty he was.

Lance took a break from the catalogue and hurried to the bathroom. He undressed and stepped into the shower stall. Lance turned on the shower. The cold water cascaded down from the showerhead and soaked his hair. The opulence of a warm shower was near unattainable, though in the times before the Great Deterioration it was said to be a luxury that even the commonest of people enjoyed on a daily basis. But Lance didn't mind. The water's coolness was refreshing and reinvigorating, after the desert dust and beating sun. As Lance inhaled the floral scent of the soap, his mind wandered to the important question. What creature would his Chimera form be? It was the animal that he would have to live with for the rest of his life, so he hoped that it was compatible with his body and personality. After all, being able to transform into a fierce animal would give him strengths and abilities that he had never experienced. He wondered what life was like before the Great Deterioration, when the Chimera Mutation hadn't yet been released upon the world. And what would it be like today, if it never was?

The story of how Chimeras came to be always amazed Lance. Hundreds of years ago, something called the Great Deterioration occurred. It began when everything was already on the brink of collapse. The world's resources had been depleted massively by the swiftly rising population and the careless usage by greedy businesses. The temperature was increasing globally. Freak weather events ranging from hurricanes to heatwaves ruined crops worldwide. Ice caps melted and flooded cities, submerging the homes of billions, drowning them or making them refugees. At the same time, many nations were at war, causing destruction and carnage with horrifyingly devastating bombs.

And to top it all off, a new disease ran rampant.

There had always been disease in the world, though most of them were able to be eliminated with medicines. But this bacteria was different. It eliminated humanity like no epidemic ever had, and it had massive resistance, rendering all antibiotics useless. After billions of deaths, scientists realised that there was no medical cure in sight. After finding that only the human species was susceptible and no animals had been infected by the bacteria, they knew that the only solution was to genetically modify the humans. In a desperate bid to save humanity, they unleashed the Chimera Mutation on the world through infectious agents. When the non-lethal virus infected people, it gave them the Chimera Mutation, which mutated the human genome, combining it with the DNA of other animal species. This effectively changed humans enough to make the deadly disease no longer fatal, but it also had other benefits.

The scientists had known that surviving in a harsh, irradiated world filled with mutated predators would be hard, and it would help if humans had built-in weapons and extra capabilities. And so, when the mutated people had fused with animal DNA, they had the potential to gain animal traits. Fangs, fur, claws. Amazing eyesight, enhanced smell, the gift of speed. Strength. Power.

Their animal genetics would resurface around adolescence, at 15 or 16. From then on, they would have the ability to morph into a specific animal. It was an amazing ability, a phenomenal gift. One that could be exceptionally useful in this hard world.

But what animal would his Chimera form be? He guessed he'd have to wait for the moment when he would transform. But until then, he wouldn't know what animal deep was in his DNA, waiting to pounce.

When he had finished showering, Lance stepped out of the shower and grabbed a towel to dry off. The towel was harsh and rough, but a towel made from soft material cost a lot of money at the marketplace. Lance got dressed, and then looked at the mirror to quickly comb his hair. He was a boy of average height, with dark tousled hair and a lithe body. He had olive skin and emerald eyes, the color of the lush leaves of the rainforest.

He stared back at his eyes in the mirror, because something... something was wrong with them! They were glowing intensely, in a terrifying, monstrous way. Lance buzzed from head to toe. What was happening?

Suddenly, his vision blurred. He could see light, bright, unearthly light, flashing spasmodically in the corners of his eyes, reflecting and refracting in dazzling shards. It took a moment for Lance to realise that the light was emanating from him. All background noise turned into a constant, unidentifiable static. A fiery sensation filled his body, boiling around in his stomach and bubbling up his throat. Sharp claws extended from his nails and there were stabs of pain in his gums as his teeth grew into pointed fangs.

Then his vision returned, better than before, sharpened like a blade. His eyes picked up tiny movements all around the room, pinpointing even the tiny fluttering of the curtains in the breeze. In an instant, he could smell new scents that he never knew existed!

But that wasn't as amazing as the sight in the mirror. What Lance saw took his breath away. He was barely recognizable as Lance. He was a wolf, a mighty, bipedal wolf. Long canines stuck out from his mouth, gleaming like white scythes. He was covered in a lustrous coat of gray-silver fur. Instead of fingers, there were a set of pitch black, razor sharp claws. Sleek, pointed ears protruded from his head. Glinting emerald eyes were the only hint that this creature had once been Lance, the fifteen year-old boy.

Suddenly, without thinking, he pointed his face skyward. A long, haunting howl erupted from his throat.

I'm a wolf. I'm a wolf.

He felt a wave of euphoria fill him, an almost stupefying elation. He felt full of impossibly powerful energy. It filled his every cell, tremored in his heart, and crackled through his nerves. The bright light that had left his body in the middle of his transformation was now dimming. It rose from his feet in gently glowing coils that swirled like tendrils of mist. As he moved, the light dissipated, breaking into particles of radiance, which eventually vanished altogether.

Lance couldn't believe it. The transformation had happened! He had a Chimera form. And it was a wolf!

Lance's ears suddenly perked up, like twin soldiers standing to attention. He could hear sounds, footsteps on the ground outside his home. Lance tensed, muscles bunching.

"Lance! We heard howling!" his father said, taking in his claws and tail with his sharp eyes. In his excitement, he had partially morphed.

"You-you've morphed. Into a wolf!"

"That's amazing. You're a Chimera now!" his mother beamed.

"I'm so proud of you, young Chimera!" his father said, enveloping him in a warm embrace. His mother came in too, wrapping her arms around his son.

In an instant, Lance's claws retracted. His fangs and tail disappeared. All signs that he was a Chimera disappeared as he returned to his normal self. As Lance stood there, completely human and well... normal, he almost questioned if the transformation had been real at all. It had been so dream-like, so powerful. It had been sheerly awesome. And not awesome as in the way people use it to describe a delicious meal, tossing around the word, clouding its true significance. No, it filled Lance's heart with awe. It was thrilling, astounding, amazing, stunning and staggering, all at once. It was every powerful emotion mixed together, and then squeezed into a millisecond of pure feeling. When that raw, primal stimulation had passed and everything had calmed, a thought entered his mind. He remembered the pact he had made with Jaylin that morning, sitting together on the wall, looking over the desert.

"Now that I'm a Chimera," Lance began slowly, his eyes locked on his parent's faces, waiting, judging for any sign of disapproval. Lance was taking a risk, walking on thin ice that could crack at any moment beneath his feet and send him plunging into black water. He didn't know how his parents would react to his upcoming proposal, but he was willing to risk it.

"I would be strong enough... to go... beyond the wall," Lance said.

"Yes, you would be," his father agreed simply.

Lance was surprised. His dad had treated it like a simple fact, brought up nothing about the taboo.

"Can I? Can I do it? Go beyond the wall?" Lance asked. Hope was rising inside him, lifting up like a balloon. He just hoped that his parents weren't about to pop that balloon and send him whirring to the ground, broken and empty.

Before answering his question, Lance's mother glanced around, peering out the windows. Once she was sure that nobody could listen in on their conversation, she turned to Lance and spoke.

"Can you go outside the wall? Well, even if I said no, I couldn't stop you. There is no match for pure human curiosity, you'd go out anyway," she said, then laughed at his doubtful expression before continuing to explain.

"Curiosity is how we've survived in this harsh world, to wonder if there's more. To be honest, I completely agree with you. We should all be free to go out there, instead of trapped in our walled city. We don't know anything about the outside world! We have no knowledge, no news, no backup plans for if things go wrong, nowhere to go... we're ignorant," his mother said.

"I think so too! There's a whole world out there that no-one in Los Lagos can see. And now the city's under a heat wave. What if it gets worse, and our water dries up? We have to go outside to find more water and it should happen now, before the whole city is at risk!" Lance exclaimed.

"Lance, if you really want to go out there, we're going to let you," his father said, "but you need to understand how dangerous this is. This isn't a game. This is illegal. We're breaking the law. A stupid, pointless law, but a law nonetheless. You must know how serious this is," his father said, with utmost gravity. Lance nodded solemnly. He understood. This wouldn't be a fun adventure, it would be a risk.

"We'll let you go on one condition. We know that you're a pretty skilled fighter, we've seen you spar and you can beat most kids your age. But even with a Chimera form, that's not enough. Out there, you won't be fighting other kids. You need to go with a team, of at least... say, four. And they all need to be people you trust, people who won't rat you out to Mayor Norwood. You need to get together three others, prepared for the risk. Then, and only then, will we let you go."

Lance nodded again. He understood his goal and the risks he was about to take. Now, he was threatened by both the Slayers and the things beyond the wall.

Now where to start? He needed to find someone to go with him. But it had to be someone that he could trust. Someone he could trust very well, someone he could trust with his life.

Standing up and leaving the bathroom, Lance made his way to the door. He knew someone that he trusted.

It was time to get Jaylin.

Dear readers: Hello, Sylver here! This seems like the beginning of an adventure. Will Lance achieve his goal, or will the threat of the Mayor's corrupt system prevent them from saving the entire city?

If you like this story, don't forget to vote, comment and add it to your reading lists. I will be adding a new chapter every day. If you have any tips for how I can improve my writing, please feel free to tell me (in a nice manner). Thanks so much for reading my story!