The Dormant Queen of the Hybrid

Book 1, Chapter 16 Asterids

As the despair start biting back, the glimmer of hope flickered from a distant shadowy forest. She will have to guide them away from him. And so she abandoned her principles. She took off the shackles on her neck. She will disobey the promises that she made to her mother. For him. Because he will survive. He will take revenge. He will justify her sacrifice.

Asterids left Dook unconscious. It’s for the better. Let them think he’s already dead. Awake, he will just attract the specters back to him. The pulsating pain from the cuts and bruised on her hands and feet kept her alert as she limp into the forest. Her peripheral vision is focused on the shadowy figures’ speeding prowl. It seems that they’re enjoying the hunt. The blue eyed lady start staggering and exerting more effort on her strides, to put more distance between her and the specters. She would stumble on the tree roots, get hit by their low branches and flounder but she never faltered with moving forward. Her senses is at its best, since taking off the cursed-ring necklace. She’ll have to shift and increase her chance of survival. But first, she needs to make sure that the muddy place where Dook lies, will be far enough from them. She needs to make sure that the shadow creatures wont be able to go back to him, no matter what’s the outcome of her insane plan. She prefer to survive miraculously, though. She just hope that help will arrive soon, as she tries to remove the thought of the summoner getting to him before the MCCDS does.

She checked her trail back. Only trees and soil can be seen from her position. No more houses, roads, nor unconscious boss. How long has she been running now? It seems that the specters also had the same question in mind, as they start to change their approach on how they pursue her. The two underling specters dashed and flew faster, dodging the trees. Their cloth like hands slashing or clawing as they try to get a hold of her. Bit by bit they will successfully draw out a scream of pain from the young lady, as she feels the weirdly-warm-misty hands of their touch. Their ghostly touch on her clothes and skin have the same decaying effect.

Twenty years of not using her ability has dulled her capability for shifting. She’s been trying to call upon her inner animal, but it seems that she is getting blank. She really need its strength right about now. Was her first semi transformation in the Star Hotel excavation site just a fluke? She tried to search for any hint of feral instinct that’s still left of her. But there is no response. Meanwhile, the two underlings successfully swiped again, hitting her shoulders and it drew a growl from her. She tried imagining what would her animal look like. She remember both her doctor and boss, after waking up injured in the hospital from the Star Hotel incident, describe her animal coming from a genus Panthera species. Large cats. She also remembers her father’s nagging advice in the past. Shifting ability relies on your self imagery. She will have to form a mental image of herself, as she gets closer and be one with nature. Making the instincts take over, as she blend it with her consciousness.

A big cat. Her only known model of such creature, is Byakko. The mystic white tiger species. The inner animal of her boss, Dook. And so she starts thinking about him. His form. His face. His body. His imposing characteristics. His gravitas as a great Alpha. Suddenly, her body starts to heat up, from the triggered transformation. She imagine her fangs extending, eyes turning to slits, skin covered in fur coat, and her hands would be claws for defense. Her legs will help her run faster. Her senses, sharper. She will be stronger.

Her foot caught a thick vine and she stumbled. She flailed to keep her balance and avoid the attacks of the specters. As she regain equilibrium, she noticed her skin is now dark as onyx from a thin coat of black furs. Her fingers are still her regular fingers, except the nails look sharp and thick as talons. She palmed her face and find it still human. Her strength is still human’s, as she tried running faster. With her pathetic semi transformation, she is no different than her regular weak self. For now she can only rely on her wit.

But the enemy knew something is up. Being sentient, they too relies on wit. An so the previous silent Hamorabi, suddenly emerge in front of Asterids, with his shadow mists. The two inferior specters still on her back, swiping. The ghost king fired the spell directly to the young lady’s face which immediately start decaying her forehead, hair and left eye. Asterids screamed and flailed in desperate struggle. Almost all direction is blocked by the cunning bastards.

Blind in one eye, her depth perception became a mess. Her hair starts to fall as the decay eats her skin. Her left ear, devoured by the bacteria-like witchery. Thankfully, her soul is still intact. Her face is not yet melted completely. But not for long. The young lady is still wary of the Azrael curse forthcoming.

Hamorabi threw another shadow mist and it went to Asterids feet. The specters really know what they are doing, as the attacks clearly aimed to disable her chance of escape. With both feet, and one eye decaying, Asterids was made to stop running. She fell on her knees. The fear for her life intensifies.

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The young lady feared for her dear life. She is weakened. She is blinded. And wounded. But in some corner of her heart, there is also hatred. And she know of this familiar feeling. Hatred for being pushed around. She remembered the death of alpha Luda of her clan. The Madrigals. He’s the life that was taken, in exchange for her running away the first time she met Hamorabi in the witches graveyard. She won’t succumb yet to despair. Asterids shout something gibberish. It turned into a growl, then to a roar, and to a battle cry. Clutching the dirt, she glared at Hamorabi and dashed towards him.

Being the specter is just made of etheric air, the blue eyed lady went through his ghostly body. At the same time, as she went tumbling for over exerting herself to dash through the specter, she transformed into the bipedal version of her cat self. Her face is full on black tiger, while her hands are claws, but the important thing is she healed and her leg muscle became a bit stronger. Without looking back, Asterids run fast. She run as fast as her humanoid-tiger feet can. She run until there is no more soil below her feet. Literally. Because without warning, she fell into a muddy water, and found herself in a wide swampy river. Green algae covered the water surface, hidden in the middle of the forest. Which is the reason why she wasn’t able to notice it earlier.

It seems that she went too deep inside the forest. She thought of trying to go back to the civilization. She will have to find a different route to go home. As she swam across the river, she felt her senses’ level of sharpness increased. She bet that with her eyesight exceptionally good, she can see very clearly at night.

However, few meters away from her, birds flew out in panic. It was unnerving to see. Shrieks filled the air as they get closer. Still not yet giving up to catch her. The problem is they are coming from all direction.

Asterids collided into a Mangroves tree. It looks like it’s floating in the river, but it’s submerged roots is just that long enough to make the optical illusion. The tree trunks is a combination of multiple smaller trunks, spreading in wide branches, possibly three meter radius. Asterids tried to hide under the tree, trying to sense any incoming attack from the specters.

Shadow mists fell from above, while six inferior specters surround the tree, trapping Asterids in the middle below. They learnt of throwing the mists as range attack. It seems that the enemies are evolving too. Hamorabi however is still the same cunning evilness, speaking the same belittlement.

Вие сте само низок менувач [You are just a lowly shifter]

One by one, the inferior specters attack Asterids, trying to cover her with shadow mists. But with her improved shifter muscles, Asterids was able to dodge them easily.. Until all the specters charge at the same time. Two of the specters turned into a shadow goo as they cover Asterids feet. The other two specters attacked the lady’s limbs by turning themselves into shadow webs. The last two specters turned into mists themselves and covered Asterids head, suffocating her lungs and decaying her flesh at the same time. Hamorabi flew down and hover to face the prey.

Hamorabi is observing Asterids closely. His eyeless face is like a pulling force plunging the blue eyed lady in an abyss of despair. Pain and suffering pushed her to the limit, except giving in is not an option. She will have to die struggling. She tap the rage within her one more time, as she realized there’s more to it than the mental image of ones appearance to fully connect to her animal self. She is not just a regular tiger. She is a chimera with different sets of DNA.. And with the physical structure of ones body, there is also the impulses of control. Movements and actions made by the body stems from the instinctual commands.. Every part of you has a meaning and purpose.. Form follows function. To dominate the universe which is the self.

With all the realization about her inner being, strength erupted out of her. Asterids felt it. Rather she remembered. Even when she was just a small creature in her mother’s womb. She knows that on top of her head, horns protrudes. It is powerful, sturdy, and long like a ram’s. That her tiger fur coat is thick and pure black. That her bleached-bone-white tail is stretched out full of amphibian scales and multiple spikes at the tip. And finally, that she have a set of wide blue fiery wings. Capable of flying freely.

Blue mist aura exploded like a burst bubble. The inferior specters immediately evaporated. While Hamorabi is pushed back. She spread her wings wider. It’s bottom part is touching the ground. Dark blue feathers scattered around her, falling like rain, as the sun shone on her silhouette. She stands on four legs. Full animal form. A Pepita species.

*** *** ***

The ghost wizard shrieked out of anger. It summoned four inferior underlings. However Asterids flew in the clouds above them. The ghosts can only hover on the ground at a certain height. They fling their shadowy mists, fire their strings of webs. But all of it, Asterids was able to dodge easily. Her eyes are fully functional again, while her skin is healed. Possibly a bonus for shifting to her animal form for the first time. She roared and the blue mists that was covering her body scattered like blades in the air. It cut and destroyed the shadow mists and webs. Seeing the effectivity of her attacks, she also aimed it on the specters. One by one, her cold watery mist was able to cut through the dry etheric air body of the inferior underlings of Hamorabi. Confidence soared from the blue eyed hybrid. So she covered her fangs with the blue mists and directly attacked Hamorabi. It tore his ghostly shoulder like a flesh. This time, it’s his turn to flail helplessly. But then he shrieked and misty force pushed Asterids back. The ghostly wizard king, still cunning, spread his arms and summoned the black ether. The mist is so concentrated that it’s almost liquid. Meanwhile, ghostly hands came out from under his robe, as if giving birth to two more underlings. He then spoke a different language. A runic one.

Azrael

Hamorabi is casting the spell. The ace on his sleeve. The soul shattering curse. The curse of the weeping angel, Azrael. But Asterids won’t let that dangerous thing exist anymore. She roared to control her blue mist aura. Air blades cut the inferior specters, and they start evaporating.

However, with all the commotion, Hamorabi immediately vanished. The liquid ether and spell casting was only a witty show of trickery, to facilitate his escape. And so with her unsatisfying victory, Asterids growl loudly.

This time she will be the hunter.