Chimera is an American comic bookpublished by CrossGen Entertainment from March to July 2003. It is a mini-series that ran for four issues. Chimera is most notable for its artwork. Produced by Brandon Peterson the artwork is a blending of traditional and computer-enhanced techniques. Chimera tells the story of Sara Janning who carves away massive chunks of ice as part of a tritium mining operation on the frozen world of Serevan. Serevan lives on the edge of Chimeran space, there she has been trying to hide her genetic makeup from the Chimeran Imperium, an empire of over 200 planets. When a stranger arrives on Serevan, however, Sara is discovered and it seems that not even the distant world of Serevan is far away enough to escape the notice of the Chimeran Imperium.
Storyline Details
When we meet Sara Janning she is an adult living on the planet Serevan. She has been hiding from the Chimerian Imperium ever since the Yamivol incident.
The Yamivol Incident
Sara grew up on an agricultural outpost on Yamivol Prime, a world that remained unaffiliated from the Chimerian Imperium for many years. Yamivol Prime was targeted for habitation by Chimerian forces when Sara was at a young age. Her home was destroyed, her family killed and just as she arrives to find all this her dog is vaporized before her very eyes. The trauma from this event causes Sara to release the power of her Sigil which wipes out all the Chimeran forces on Yamivol Prime. It is unknown whether Sara already had her Sigil at this point or whether it was activated during the Yamivol incident. The latter is most likely.
Serevan
Sara has been living on Serevan for years, hiding from the Imperium. There she works, cutting gigantic blocks out of the ice. Upon returning from a hard days work, Sara is approached by a new arrival to the planet, Jason Bryce. After a rather intense conversation the two part ways. It is possible that Jason Byrce was either one of the First or an aspect of Danik. Sara returns home to where a scientist, Isaiah, has been working on a robot, called a Carapoid. Left over by an ancient race called The Progenitors, Sara treats it as a pet of sorts, naming it Rover. It is also revealed that Isaiah was the one who provided Sara with a masking device to hide her DNA from the Imperium. The next day when clocking in for work, Jason Bryce again approaches Sara. When clocking in, Bryce’s DNA is picked up by the Chimeran Imperium. This detection results in the Imperium mobilizing a fleet headed directly to Serevan. Unaware of the approaching fleet, Sara heads out onto the ice with Jason Bryce as a partner. While searching for tritium, Rover unexpectedly unleashes a laser from its optical lens. As the laser begins to burn a hole in the ice, the ground starts to shake. With the ground giving way, the trio falls into a dark hole. When they awake, they find themselves in front of a buried ship, later revealed to be a ship of The Progenitors.
Short Film
A 6.5-minute CGIfan film created by the class of April 2003 of the DAVE School was released in 2003. The film is based on the first two issues and is distributed free on the Internet.
