SSS-Class Profession: The Path to Mastery

The first thing I felt was the cold.

Then the sound. Faint chirping. A flutter of wings.

And then, sharp, tiny jabs pecking at me.

I cracked open an eye to see a small, speckled bird tilting its head curiously at me. Another hopped closer, pecked at my boot. A third perched on the edge of the desk, staring as if I were part of the landscape.

I blinked.

Everything ached.

My tongue felt like sandpaper. My back was soaked in sweat, and the crusted blood on my coat tugged uncomfortably at my skin with every breath. I tried to sit up and immediately regretted it. Pain lanced up my side, old and fresh wounds layered together like pages of an over-read book.

The ranger’s tower was still. Quiet. The sun had dipped low, casting golden slats through the slanted windows. Shadows were long now.

I blinked again.

Evening.

No. No no no—