Chapter 2: Testing your skills

Isaac stood in the queue in front of a huge concrete building marked by impacts and cracks. This was the Hunter Centre, a place where those who had awakened a power came to look for work or to be assigned to teams.

He already knew what was going to happen. He was only an F-rank Awakened, the lowest echelon, which meant he would never be able to fight on the front line. Hunters of his level were relegated to menial tasks: equipment carriers, low-level scouts or cannon fodder for the most desperate.

He moved slowly along the line, listening to the conversations around him. Some were talking about their recent successes, others were boasting about new equipment or their rising rank. Isaac said nothing. He knew that for him, the climb would be a constant struggle.

When he finally arrived at the counter, a woman with short hair and a jaded look barely glanced at him before handing him a tablet.

- Name and rank? - Isaac, rank F.

She raised an eyebrow at his rank, then pressed a few buttons before displaying a mission on the screen.

- Level E team in need of a carrier for a level 1 portal incursion, standard mission, no combat bonus, but support reward of 5 credits if you return alive.

Isaac sighed inwardly. No wonder.

- I accept.

She nodded and handed him a worn plastic card.

- Report to the north entrance of the Centre in an hour. If you're late, the team leaves without you.

He nodded and walked away. One hour. Just enough time to prepare mentally.

The north entrance was crowded with low-level Awakened, each dressed in rudimentary equipment. Isaac quickly spotted his team. There were five of them: two fighters with daggers, an archer, a nervous-looking mage and another carrier, an older man with a face marked by experience.

The team leader, a shaven-haired fighter, walked over to him.

- Are you the new guy?' he asked neutrally.

 - Yes, I am. Isaac replied.

- My name's Daryl. We're here to close a level 1 portal. No bullshit, you stay behind, wear what you're told, and if anything goes wrong, you run. Got it?

Isaac nodded without flinching.

- Perfect. Off we go.

The crossing to the portal was quick. It was located in a disused area, an old shopping centre overgrown with vegetation. The air vibrated slightly around the black vortex floating at the centre of the dilapidated building. Isaac felt a strange pressure as he approached it.

- First time?' asked the older porter beside him.

Isaac hesitated before answering.

- Yes,' he said. he finally replied.

The man smiles.

- Takes a deep breath and concentrates. A portal is like another reality. You feel everything more intensely. Your fear, your adrenaline. But as long as you stay with the group, you'll be fine.

Isaac nodded and, on a signal from Daryl, the team entered the portal.

A shiver ran through him.

A flash of light, a feeling of dizziness, and the world around him changed.

The portal had taken them into a misty forest of twisted trees, where daylight seemed to filter through a thick veil. Isaac felt his heart quicken.

Daryl drew his daggers and signalled to everyone to get ready.

- Come on, let's wrap this up quickly.

Isaac swallowed and tightened the straps of the bag on his back.

The passage through the portal was a brutal shock.

Isaac felt his stomach twist as a blinding light engulfed him. A feeling of emptiness overcame him, as if his body were floating in an infinite void. Then, suddenly, gravity caught up with him and he awkwardly touched the ground.

He was inside.

Around him, the forest stretched as far as the eye could see, bathed in a twilight that gave the shadows a menacing shape. The air was heavy, with a metallic, earthy smell. The rustle of the leaves and the creak of the branches under his feet reminded him that he was far from the city, far from any security.

- Stay in formation,' whispered Daryl, sounding tense. You never know when those bastards are going to turn up.

Isaac nodded, tightening the straps on his pack to give himself courage. He was here as a porter, not a fighter. But that didn't mean he was safe.

The group made slow progress through the thick vegetation. Every step was a challenge, every sound a potential danger. Isaac felt his pulse quicken and his breath become shorter. The damp ground absorbed the sound of their footsteps, but the echo of the fighting in the distance reminded them why they were here.

After a few minutes of careful walking, they reached a clearing. The smell of blood saturated the air. Goblin corpses littered the ground, their bodies torn apart by the precise attacks of the Awakened. Their rudimentary weapons lay scattered about, useless against the experienced hunters who had wiped them out in a matter of moments.

- Good clean-up,' commented the archer as he adjusted his quiver. Nothing interesting here, let's move on.

Daryl nodded and motioned for the group to start moving again. Isaac had to fight off a shiver when he saw one of the corpses, its expression frozen in a rictus of pain. The sight struck him with a stark reality: he was in a world where death was omnipresent.

They continued on their way, crossing several areas where other groups of hunters had already left their mark. The goblins were no match for them. Isaac almost expected their mission to be a mere formality.

Then he saw it.

Behind a twisted tree, lying on the moss-covered ground, a green-skinned creature was breathing heavily. A goblin. It was smaller than he had imagined, but its face, twisted by pain and rage, made him forget its insignificant size.

It was missing both its legs. Torn clean off, leaving bloody stumps behind. His blackish blood had spilled onto the ground, making dark streaks in the damp earth. He should have been dead, but he wasn't. A pure will to survive still animated him.

All around him, silence hung heavy. The other Awakened Ones had moved on, leaving Isaac behind. The goblin slowly opened his angry red eyes and let out a guttural rattle.

Then, in a last desperate effort, he grabbed a rusty blade lying beside him and threw himself at Isaac.

Isaac felt his heart stop.