CHAPTER 2 – SKILLS & GOLEMS

Deep within a misty, ancient forest, a patrol of three wolf-like beastfolk - covered in grey fur, walking upright on powerful legs - huddled around a campfire.

The largest of the patrol, the leader, suddenly lifted his head, his ears twitching. He sniffed the air. "Did you feel that, shaman?"

The older beastfolk, leaning on a staff adorned with feathers and bones, nodded slowly. His eyes, ancient and yellow, were closed in concentration. "I did. A tremor in the Veil. Not of the earth." He opened his eyes, a troubled look on his canine features. "The humans have reached for the forbidden power again. But... it felt wrong. Broken. Like a scream instead of a song."

The third, a younger, eager warrior, gripped his spear tighter. "Is it the Heroes of Old? Have they returned to finish their slaughter?"

The shaman shook his head. "I do not know. The echo is chaotic, muddled. It does not feel like the old legends. It feels... new. And afraid." He stared in the direction of the distant human kingdom. "Something has changed."

◆ ◆ ◆

The iron door of the barracks slammed open, the sound echoing in the cold morning air. None of us had slept. We spent the night huddled in small groups, talking in low voices, trying to make sense of the impossible. The main topic of conversation was the strange, translucent screens that now seemed permanently fixed in our vision.

"This thing is bloody useless," Olivia declared, poking at her status screen. "All it says is [Healer]. No instructions, no 'press X to continue.' How am I supposed to heal anything?"

"Mine just says [Diplomat]," Emma added, frustrated. "It feels more like a label than a power."

Lucas grunted from his cot. "At least you have a real word. [Bastion]? What am I, a castle wall?"

I stayed quiet, looking at my own screen. The three lines of broken code felt like a permanent scar. [ERROR: ANOMALY DETECTED]. I glanced over at Lucas, and my breath caught in my throat. For just a second, under his [Bastion] class, I saw another line of text in a smaller font: [Ability: Kinetic Barrier]. I blinked, and it was gone. I looked at Emma. The same thing happened. A flicker of text—[Skill: Oathbound]—and then nothing.

It had to be a trick of the light. A symptom of exhaustion and stress. It had to be.

"On your feet," a new voice commanded, sharp but steady. The woman stood in the doorway, flanked by guards. She wore practical, fitted armor, not the cloaks of the summoners, and her hair was tied back in a severe, military-style bun. Her eyes were piercing, assessing us not with the disdain of the old man, but with the pragmatic gaze of a commander studying a new set of weapons.

"I am Commander Elara. The High Council may see you as flaws in a ritual, but I see you as soldiers. My job is to make you useful." She stepped inside. "Your assessment begins now."

In the dusty training yard, we stood before a line of towering stone golems. Elara's instructions were simple. "You will face the golem and you will manifest your power."

Emma stepped up first, full of nervous determination. She tried to speak with authority, but nothing happened. As she faltered, I saw it again—that flickering line of text, clearer this time. [Skill: Oathbound - Requires clear, verbal command and target focus].

Was I hallucinating? "Try pointing at it," I whispered, my voice barely audible. "And... tell it what to do. Be specific."

Emma gave me a strange look but nodded. She pointed a trembling finger at the golem. "Stop walking!"

For a single second, a faint light enveloped the golem and it froze in place. It only lasted a moment before the light shattered, but it happened. Emma stared at her hands in disbelief.

One by one, they went up, and one by one, I saw the hidden instructions and gave them whatever advice I could. For Olivia, [Requires identification of a biological anomaly]. For Advik, [Requires somatic component: rhythmic tapping]. Each time, it worked. Feeble, sputtering versions of their powers came to life.

"Dude, how are you doing that?" Lucas whispered to me after I helped him activate his [Kinetic Barrier]. "Are you just the world's best guesser or something?"

I just shrugged, my heart pounding. Was I really the only one seeing these tips? It couldn't be.

Then came Hana and Chen Yu. They tried separately and failed. But as they stood near each other, my head throbbed. I saw a faint, glowing line connect their status screens, and a new prompt appeared only for me: [Synergy Skill Unlocked: Unbalance & Shatter].

"Together," I blurted out. "You have to fight the same one. Hana, you go first. Chen Yu, wait for her."

Hana, trusting, flowed towards the golem in a dizzying dance, striking its legs in a quick, three-hit combo. The golem didn't even budge, but I saw a glowing symbol appear on its leg. "Now!" I yell.

Chen Yu charged in and slammed his fist into the glowing symbol. The sound was a deafening CRACK. A spiderweb of fissures erupted from the point of impact, and the golem's entire leg crumbled into dust.

Everyone stared in stunned silence. Elara watched, her expression unreadable.

"Next," she said. "The anomaly."

My blood ran cold. I stepped forward. My own status screen was still the same. No hidden menus. Just three lines of mocking, broken code. After a long, humiliating silence, I could only stammer, "I... I can't. I don't know why."

Elara didn't call me useless. She just nodded slowly, her calculating gaze making me feel like a puzzle she was trying to solve. "Interesting," she said, more to herself than to me. "You have no discernible power, yet you seem to be the catalyst for the others." She looked at me directly. "For now, your role is to continue what you're doing. A soldier who understands his unit's capabilities is a valuable asset."

I shuffled back to the group, a strange mix of relief and shame washing over me. I wasn't useless... but I was still powerless.

Elara addressed us one final time. "You are weaker than our lowest-ranking mages. But you have potential." She pointed to the gate at the far end of the yard. "And we don't have the luxury of time. Your training will be on the job."

A cold dread crept up my spine.

"Your first mission is tomorrow at dawn," she declared. "A simple reconnaissance patrol in the Whisperwood. Try not to get yourselves killed before you're of any use to us."

She turned and left without another word. A real mission. Tomorrow. The others were looking at their hands, a new, grim understanding on their faces. They were weapons now, and their first battle was only hours away.

Just as she reached the gate, Elara paused without turning around. Her voice cut through the tense silence.

"One last piece of advice," she said, her tone flat and cold. "If you hear the forest whispering... just don't get lost."