It has been several weeks without food. Starvation that eventually develops to immense lethargy became the group's status quo. Clean water were accessible, but food was nowhere to be found. Our bones were gradually poking out of our skins, we began to resemble that of a walker; barely any flesh and pure torment. We have set up camp in the woods, Shady Creeks we called it, and our efforts to trail deer and hunt one down had been an all time failure.
Right by the bank in Shady Creeks, what appears to be a coven of humanoid beings in a dark plated armor, black and white striped vests shrouded in long dark cloaks rekindled from the shadows. As one of my friends utilized their binoculars for a closer look, the dead, seemingly hollow sight of a child's face half covered by the large hood of her cloak rekindled. As we turned around in silence to retreat, their heightened sense of smell caught onto our scents and they began to run towards us at an extremely high speed.
We were held captive by what we initially presumed as cultists. The clique had two leaders and were both females. They both too were teenagers, a couple of kids that couldn't even purchase a six pack. They introduced themselves as the Children of the Void. They were a group of Chimera with mutations that draped a dark hue of red into all of their eyes. They worshipped a deity called Inki and were evidently ready to kill and die for the deity. In my eyes, it was the Chimera tribe's way of coping with their torment.
Years of anguish and melancholy led these beings to concoct their own belief systems. They needed to have a paragon, a deity that resembles one of their own that carries all of the ideal traits that a Chimera wishes to have so they may give meaning and purpose in their lives. Weeks after I write this, me and the other survivors will meet its fate, and that is death. Though, it may be the starvation talking or it could be my human emotions suppressing my fear for my tormenting fate, but death could be nothing more but a sweet release from this melancholic world. — Journal, circa 2022
Children of the Void or simply known as the Void or Void Children are a Chimera lineage that reside in the woods of Shady Creeks in Back O' Beyond. They are fundamentally at the seat of power in the highly secretive chimeric society, enthroned alongside their equals: the Revenants. They are mostly found by the banks where fresh water is the closest. The Void Child goes on a much tamer pace than their bloodthirsty kin. While a Revenant would choose to hunt, kill and devour any survivor just to quench their thirst off the bat, a Void would manipulate their prey into submission and sniff out information that will lead them to a much bigger and comprisable take. The Children of the Void are, in a sense, the epitome of sophistication within the Chimeras that were originally designed to handle negotiations during war time and lead small units and crews of Chimeras in tough and risky situations.
It's widely believed that the progenitors of the Void came directly out of the Genesis Labs in Jalisco during Project: Revenant under the supervision of Dr. Yuri Kostek. Chimeras with the Void's mutagens are red eyed, much like their Revenant cousins; usually short in height though extremely versatile and quick in terms of combat. The Void carry mutagens in their bodily fluids that enable dead zombies to come back to life, manipulate their behavior and, on rare occasions, even speak to them, given that the zombie carries a mutation that allows them to be at an enough intellectual capacity. Unlike their Bionic enemies and their Chimera counterparts, the Children of the Void are completely deprived of human emotion. When it comes to the humanity scale, the Children of the Void ranks at zero. They live up to their name, Void, and will slaughter what they deem to be enemies regardless of any pre existing relationships. However, in contrast, the Void Child's lack of emotion coupled with the intellectuality of a human being have rendered them to question their meaning in life.
With most of them having forgotten their former human lives as the result of the ganglia disruption during experiments, the Void Child began to question their sense of purpose and meaning in life without a war. This prompted the progenitors of the prototype to orchestrate a belief system, which encouraged a Void Child's willingness to sustain their existence. This belief system gave birth to an entirely new culture within the chimeric society. While the Revenants are much more military oriented, thanks to their original blueprint as killing machines, the Children of the Void move in the likeness of a cult, and as high-ranking governors of the chimeric society they established alongside the Revenants. A Void Child likes seeing itself as an intellectually superior being, and a being with great prowess and control over the undead. Hence, a Void Child, especially when achieving the title of Elder will shroud themselves in a black cloak with plates beneath them.
Everybody knows that the purpose to the cloak is to convey their belief system and their immense loyalty to Inki, their deity, but their cloak also gives them advantage in terms of concealing weapons, virus samples and whatnot. The Revenants and the Void Children hold a close alliance and have been known to work hand in hand against their enemies, commonly the Bionics. The two prototypes contrast one another with the Void being the voice of reason and the Revenants being the umbrella's muscle and killing machines.
A deadly encounter. Rumors begin spreading after the trade factory, located in blueberry, set off their alarms and made an all man panic call. Hoping customers turned away, while gunshots ring off in the background. The public radio channels begin blowing up with everything from questions, demands, and accusations. The truth is revealed shortly after. Those who came to spectate, and those listening to the radio at just the right time, hear what the commotion is all about. A bloodcurdling screech echoes from within the factory. Definitely not a human. And a harsh warning to those with experience. "Chimera", they begin shouting. Bionic and Human alike team up to take on the threat. A stray Chimera isn't much of a danger in most cases. But boy, do they now wish they had listened to their fears. A six man entry team is formed, and they go after the solo enemy within the factory. Screams, howls, and gunshots fill the area. And shortly after; a masked beast bursts through the door and escapes the area. They assume that the enemy is scared off by the friendly gunfire. The cheers of the spectators are quickly silenced, when they notice the blood trail it left behind. The entire entry team, of six people, wiped out and nearing death on the floor of the factory. Medical teams scramble, and the existence of a bionic fighter involuntarily revealed after activating her Phalanx injector. For the first time, in many years, the hunters hunted. Even the bionics, who exists solely to hunt the chimera, stood no chance against this one. A forgotten threat, now revealed in a fearsome way. A double sided blade now hangs on the factory. Recovering from the fight, and now having the knowledge of a threat on this level.
You can plan, but the hunters are better at planning. We watch. Observe. Stalk. Hunt. We are coming.
Cambridge Dictionary wrote:revenant
noun [ C ]
US /ˈrev.ən.ənt/ UK /ˈrev.ən.ənt/
someone who has returned, especially someone who returns to life after being dead.
Project Revenant, and their child Elysium Pharmaceuticals. What started off as a virus meant to eliminate the need of an army, quickly spiralled out of hand. Everyone knows the story of how the Lab lost their funding, and had to resort to hidden tactics to continue their research. This eventually lead to the creation of the experiments they deemed successful, the bionics, and the ones they consider the failures, the chimera. That is how the story the people of now know. But there's a piece of history lost to time, and the chaos. There was a successful experiment in one of their deep cover labs. One powerful enough that had their existence been revealed, it would've exposed what they were truly doing in this lab. With the DEA investigating, it was best to keep a lid on their being. The namesake of the Project, the Revenants. Classed as Chimera, but far more powerful than the normal breed. Created for the sole purpose of hunting. And they were damn good at it. Anyone who got too close to discovering their existence were systematically wiped out by order of the Project heads.
Years went by, and eventually Elysium Pharmaceuticals was in deep trouble. Then, in a split second decision by the project heads, they decided to wipe out the proof of these hunters. Documents burned, people silenced, labs destroyed. One by one, every single shred of evidence disappeared. Until all that was left were the hunters themselves. Majority, being bred to be loyal, accepted their fate of death. However, there was the few who grew to love the Hunt more than their loyalties. And such, a civil war between the Revenants broke out. Two weeks later, it goes quiet. The Project heads assumed that the job was done, and that they wiped each other out. Investigations were carried out, and indeed - every single one of the hunters was accounted for. They left it at that, and accepted their fate at the hands of the DEA.
The Revenants, lost to history. But, true to their name - they return. Not many souls today remember their existence. And those who do, consider them a myth. But they are far from some folk story. They are the hunters. Monsters bred to fight. The horror of their blood red eyes instill a fear that many have forgotten deep in their soul. Well, that is if you live long enough to experience the fear. Those who return are now gathered in a small area of the state of San Andreas. No one truly knows what their goals are for coming here, but one thing is for sure; it is not good.
