Fall Foretold

Chimera

"Ok, how do I start! I've got two news for. One is good and the other one is a 'not so bad' kind of good", Dr. Steve told them as they shivered with fear. Mr. Ryan was not so good at panicking but this was his only son. Losing him at this stage would mean failure. "Should I go on?"

"What are you waiting for?"

"Remember, I once told you about some strange things I saw in the boy when he was born", Dr. Steve began. The not so bad news is; he is really hurt, badly hurt... but the good news? it's pretty amazing and hard to explain. He has an extremely thick skin which prevented him from sustaining an irreparable damage. In other words, it could have been as worse as death. The amazing part is he heals, quite fast. Actually, faster than we humans should. This means, if his body keeps up with the rate of regeneration, he will be back to his normal self, faster than anyone with less circumstances."

"How long do we have to wait to get back our son?", Mrs Ryan asked, crying.

"I can't give you a specific time, honestly. If I'm to judge, he should spend a few months here but, as I said earlier, if his strange regeneration continues with it's current extraordinary rate, he'll be standing in a few weeks. It's pretty impossible to explain, in the literal sense, but we should hope and pray."

"Will he get back to normal?", Mr. Ryan asked. "I want to know if my son will remain intact after this"

"I'm sorry but I can't tell how possible that is. Neither can I say it's impossible. The bomb must have been very close to him when it exploded. It had a magnetic feature and his boots were metal. The boots are totally destroyed but his feet remained. Don't get me wrong. I don't want his legs destroyed but I can't explain why they aren't. Now, I can't explain how it happens if anyone ever recovers fully after such unfortunate incident so let's pray the miracle happens."

"Absence from classes might affect him. He has always wanted to be the best in his class. This will just hinder his academic progress"

"That's less important, right now. You may need to watch him closely. The record says the road was almost empty at the moment. His boots were metal and the bomb was magnetic. It could be a mere coincidence but we also need to be vigilant, in case it's not. He could have been a target.... We could also talk about the new strange discoveries in your boy. Many abnormal- or rather- paranormal things which may help him.. or limit him. Some of these features have helped in this case, we don't know what happens next"

"Make me understand you, Doctor", Mr. Ryan said, as they stood up to leave. "I want to know all that I can know about my son. Tomorrow is Sunday. Is it okay if I come over after church?"

"That is fine by me, sir. You're welcome". They shook hands.

★

"No gifts for you till you're sure he's dead", Cyrus said in his weird russian accent, as soon as Elvis and Monaco walked through the door. I hey had been sent to eliminate a threat or a 'future threat', as the sightseer had stated. "And this ain't no choice for you. You either stay out there and make sure he's dead or tell me you can't do it... so I'll make you eat bullets for dinner. Ramirez ate it. He's in a better place now"

"We're sure he's dead, sir. The bomb's magnet caught his shoes, as the african predicted. He stood right above the bomb and we watched the whole place burst out in flames", Monaco replied.

"Ok then. Elvis! you go bring the African"

Elvis walked into the other room and returned, a few seconds later, with a black lad. Cyrus exchanged weird glances with the lad.

"What should I call you?", Cyrus asked.

"Madrid Npama", the black lady replied. "That's my name"

"Ok, Madrid. The boy is dead. What's gonna happen now? How about you see something positive, this time?"

"The obstacle remains intact", Madrid said. "His rise is just yet to begin"

"Damn you!", Cyrus said, angrily. "I he kid you described has been eliminated. It was just as you predicted". Cyrus had said that, confidently, before reconfirming from his henchmen with his eyes.

"It's either your men have killed the wrong person or they've killed no person. Besides, do you know how many people wend their way on Sterling City grounds? You should have called them all out to ask if anyone was planning to play hero, soon"

Cyrus sprung up to his feet. "Don't you dare joke with me, you hopeless n***o". He clenched his teeth. "I will kill you"

"You won't want to do that, Mr. Martinez. As long as this boy inhales and exhales every day, You and your godfathers will fall. It draws nearer”

Cyrus might have been one who cared less about the life of anyone but this case was different. If he took that shot, then the sightseer must have frustrated him beyond possible. His mom must have made him believe too much in the supernatural powers of a sightseer when he was a kid. Actually, yes ? literally. He turned to Elvis and Monaco, throwing an intimidating look at them. "No one lies to me and you both know that. Is the boy dead or not?"

"He stood right above the bomb, I swear", Elvis trembled. His heart was beating faster"

Monaco added, quickly. "There's no way he could have survived the explosion. Only a few people were affected because there were only a few people around. None of the few people survived-"

"Or none of them was recorded to have survived?", Madrid added to it.

"You gave us all the information and everything was confirmed. He wore magnetic boots and the bomb pulled him. He was the only one on the street just like you said".

"Those were your predictions, n****r", Cyrus turned to Npama, fuming angrily like he'd chop off his head if he got a chance. "We have to compare your description to everyone in the city like everyone satisfies your prediction? You seem to be fooling us here. Your time will soon be up"

"I know you and everyone you work with. I know your plans and I know everything that stands in the way. I know what you don't know about the ones you work for... I know who will fail you", Npama kept his confident countenance, unmoved by Cyrus' threats.

"I'll assume you actually know it all. How do we kill this 'obstacle' you speak of?"

"You can't kill him. You can only prevent him from coming your way"

Cyrus smiled and shrugged. "Tell us, how?"

"Quit the dirty job and be good boys"

"Oh G...", Cyrus covered his face with a palm, frustrated. He sat down and lit a cigar. "I don't kill n*****s, myself. I make people do the job"

Madrid smiled. "Whether I am dead or alive, your fate cannot be changed, Cyrus Martinez. Your masters shall fall before your eyes. May you relive this moment when your impending doom befalls you"

★

The church service ended thirty minutes earlier than it used to. Joe's parents had planned to meet with the priest, St. Sylvester, but Mr. Ryan was eager to check on his son, again. Besides, the doctor had called their son's situation minor. 'Believing that is called Faith' St. Sylvester could have said that if they told him about it. Joe would get better and things would be just right, again... Just as the doctor had said.

"Mr. Ryan!", the priest called him, immediately the programme ended. Ok, but they could still avoid mentioning it.

"Good morning, sir", the couple greeted him, warmly, smiling widely to show that they were alright..

"Good day. How was the previous week?"

"It started well enough", Mrs. Ryan replied. Then, she muttered, "No one saw an explosion coming"

"I definitely looked and looked again. Something is absent"

"Yes, Joe is a bit ill so he got admitted, two days ago", Mr. Ryan said. "It's minor but he should be up on his feet... as soon as possible... could be tomorrow, or tonight"

"Are you sure you are alright 'cause that sounds more like faith than confidence?"

"Definitely", Mr. Ryan faked a laugh. "He'll be up in no time. It's minor"

"Ok. Whether minor or not, your faith will definitely make him whole. I just wanted to confirm his well being.... One more thing. I need to have a private discussion with the boy when he has fully recovered"

"Okay, sir. He will come to you", Mrs. Ryan said.

"Let's pray", they bowed their heads as St. Sylvester led a prayer. "Father, by your grace are we here, again.; breathing and thinking. We thank you for the gift of life and good health which you have given to us. We glorify your name for your mercy endures forever in our lives, despite our filthy imperfections. We ask for your forgiveness, for by your grace only can we become free of iniquities. We pray that you have.ercy and return a perfect health to Joe Ryan, Lord. Keep us in the right path and lead us to your beautiful abode. May we not be found missing in your kingdom, in the end time. In Jesus'name"

"Amen!"

★★★ ★★★ ★★★

"You want to know everything about your son's body?", Dr. Steve asked. Mr. Ryan sat in front of him, trying to read the doctor's expression for any good or bad news. His faith was definitely not as strong as it had seemed.

"Yes, doctor", he replied. "Everything I can possibly know"

"It's very complicated", the doctor continued. "It would have been easier to explain to you if you were a doctor, too. Your son happens to be a Chimera. It used to be rare but I think it has been happening more often; children with two DNAs. The most usual cause is when the mother is pregnant with twins but one of the embryos die, then the second embryo absorbs the cells of it's dead twin"

"Ok but does that affect him in any way. I mean, do these Chimeras have any abnormal features?"

"I know of no proven abnormalty caused by that.... but neither can I prove that your son became a Chimera by absorbing his dead twin. None of our scans showed that he had a twin. Unless his twin had died earlier before we took the scans. He has strange internal organs which have never been attributed to any Chimera in the world; at least, not any I know of. He has extra blood vessels and multiple protective structures in him.... As I said, yesterday, his skin is extremely thick; I can almost compare him to a pachyderm... And the good news", the doctor smiled.

Mr. Ryan kept his smile hidden. He had to be sure of how good the news was to him, before he used the muscles on his face.

"I don't know how it happened and I definitely can't blame it on my competence but the miracle you might need has happened", the doctor continued. "Not only has he regained his consciousness, earlier than expected, but he has completely healed, within forty eight hours. You will definitely agree with me that full regeneration is impossible and there's nothing we can do about that.... but I think we're wrong, his body is as smooth as possible, completely regenerated with no sign of an accident. Now, that's a miracle. Come on".

Mr. Ryan couldn't believe it but he wanted to. A big smile sat comfortably on his face, even though something kept whispering 'hyperbole' in his ears. He followed the doctor who led him into the room where his son laid. Joe was deep asleep, lying on his left side. Mr. Ryan carefully looked at his son and the wounds that had been on his body, as if he desperately wanted to prove the doctor wrong. They walked back to the doctor's office, leaving the boy to sleep.

"Other things about your son. His senses are pretty sharp", the doctor said, immediately they entered the office. "I mentioned the strange internal organs, earlier. There are small gelatinous globes in his body. I can only tell from observation that they might be connected to his emotions. A later examination may confirm that. I have seen them lighten up. It is frightening, at first.... Then, it's amazing. You may really need to see this. They also get heated up... These extra organs might help him later , I don't know. but a real life sci-fi may have evolved from your son. His palms and feet got sticky when the globes lightened up; his skin might have melted, slightly. They could be sticky enough to stick to walls, who knows? Whatever these weird features can help him do, it is left to him to discover. He will become an accidental celebrity, overnight, if this gets out-"

"-No", Mr. Ryan interrupted. He imagined everything in a split second and he didn't want it. Joe might not want it, either.

"Uhn?!"

"I want this to stay between us. Very few people know about the accident and only three of us know the gravity of what happened. Let's keep it that way. Deal?"

"It's alright, Mr. Ryan", he shook Mr. Ryan's hands. "Deal".