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Chapter 2: The Unassuming
The wooden door at the top of the cellar steps groaned open, and Leo stepped out into a world washed in the pale, predawn light of two moons. One was large and silver, the other a smaller, faintly green companion. The sight stole his breath for a moment, a stark and beautiful reminder that he was impossibly, irrevocably far from home.
The Skyfang Aviary sprawled before him, built into the sheer cliff face of a mountain. Tiered ledges and intricate wooden structures housed birds of every conceivable size and color. A distant, echoing cry sounded from high above, a sound that spoke of vast skies and untamed power. The air was crisp and thin, carrying the scent of pine, cold stone, and the distinct, clean smell of avian musk.
It was magnificent. And according to Elian's memories, it was a den of snakes.
He leaned the bloodied pitchfork against the outer wall of the storage shed, a deliberate act. Leaving it behind felt symbolic. He wasn't just the brute-force survivor from the cellar anymore. He was playing a different game now.
[Quest Updated: A Prodigy's First Step.]
Objective: Report completion of the Dire Rat task to Head Keeper Borin.
Reward: 50 System Points, Title: [The Unassuming].
"Right," Leo muttered to himself, pulling the threadbare tunic straight. "Time to meet the boss."
He navigated the gravel paths with a confidence that felt borrowed. Elian's memories were a hazy map, but they guided him past soaring perches where eagle-like Rocs preened their feathers and smaller, jewel-toned messenger birds chirped from enclosed aviaries. A few early-rising apprentices gave him sidelong glances, their expressions a mix of pity and disdain. They saw the torn, bloodstained trousers and the fresh bruises on his arms and wrote their own story: Elian the dreg had gotten himself mauled, again.
He didn't correct them. Let them think what they wanted. The [Unassuming] title wasn't just a reward; it was a strategy.
He found Head Keeper Borin in the main training yard, a wide, circular area of hard-packed earth. Borin was a barrel of a man, with a thick, braided beard and arms corded with muscle from a lifetime of handling powerful beasts. He was currently inspecting the talons of a massive, owl-like creature with bronze feathers—a Bronze-Winged Strix, Elian's knowledge supplied. A F-class Beast, dangerous and highly valued.
Borin didn't look up as Leo approached. "You're late, boy. And you look like you wrestled a Thorn-Boar and lost. The cellar bested you, did it?" His voice was a low rumble, laced with familiar contempt.
Leo kept his voice level, his posture slightly slumped, playing the part. "The infestation has been dealt with, Head Keeper."
That got Borin's attention. His head swiveled, his dark, beady eyes fixing on Leo. "Dealt with? You? Don't lie to me, boy. A pack of Dire Rats would have chewed you to the bone."
"The proof is in the cellar, sir," Leo said, meeting his gaze for a second before looking down, the picture of subservience. "I used the environment. They're all dead."
A flicker of surprise, then renewed suspicion crossed Borin's face. "Hmph. Took you long enough. Wasted half the night. Since you've found a sudden spark of competence, you can make yourself useful. The Storm-Wing Gryphlet hasn't eaten since yesterday. It's your turn to feed it."
A wave of cold dread, not Leo's, but a ghost of Elian's, washed through him. The Storm-Wing Gryphlet. It was the Aviary's great shame and its greatest potential prize. A gryphon was a legendary C-class beast, a symbol of power. This one, a fledgling, had been captured months ago at great cost. But it was a broken thing. It refused to eat, refused to bond, and had a temperament that was pure, undiluted fury. It had already sent two apprentices to the infirmary with severe gashes.
It was a suicide mission. Borin wasn't asking him to feed it; he was testing him, or worse, hoping the creature would solve his "Elian problem" for him.
[New Quest Initiated: The Broken Fledgling]
Objective: Successfully feed the Storm-Wing Gryphlet.
Warning: Target is highly aggressive. Taming Chance: 0.01%. Survival is not guaranteed.
Reward: 200 System Points, [Beast Insight] Skill, ???
Failure: Death or Dismemberment.
Leo's mind raced. Two hundred points? A new skill? The rewards were massive, reflecting the insane risk. But the system had given him a chance in the cellar. It wouldn't give him an impossible task, would it?
"Of course, Head Keeper," Leo heard himself say, his voice barely a whisper.
Borin grunted, turning back to his Strix. "The meat is in the cold-locker. Don't disappoint me, boy."
The dismissal was final. Leo turned and walked towards the isolated, heavily reinforced enclosure at the far end of the yard, his heart thudding a frantic rhythm. This was it. The cellar had been about raw survival. This was about something else entirely.
The gryphlet's enclosure was a cage of ironwood bars as thick as his arm. Inside, on a bare stone perch, it sat. It was smaller than he'd imagined, about the size of a large dog, but it was all coiled potential and sharp edges. Its front half was that of a magnificent eaglet, though its golden feathers were dull and ruffled. The rear was a lean, powerful lion cub's body, its tail lashing back and forth like a whip. One wing hung at an awkward angle, clearly injured and never properly healed. But its eyes… its eyes were pools of ancient, intelligent fury.
As Leo approached the cage door, a raw, guttural screech tore from its beak, a sound that promised violence. It launched itself from the perch, slamming against the bars with a force that made the entire structure shudder. Talons, each as long as Leo's finger, scrabbled through the gaps, trying to hook into his flesh.
This wasn't just an animal. This was a prisoner of war, proud and broken.
He froze, the primal part of his brain screaming at him to run. He fumbled with the heavy latch on the cold-locker, grabbing a chunk of raw, red meat. His hands were shaking.
Think, Leo, think! he berated himself. You have a system. Use it!
He focused on the gryphlet, pushing past his own fear.
[Target Analysis: Storm-Wing Gryphlet (Juvenile - C-class Beast)]
Health: 67% (Malnourished, Injured Wing - Chronic)
Stamina: Low
Spirit: Broken/Enraged
Affinity: Storm/Lightning (Dormant)
Status: Terrified, Hateful, In Pain.
Taming Chance: 0.01%
Recommended Action: Do not approach. Abort mission.
The analysis was a bucket of cold water. 0.01%. The system was literally telling him to run. But then he saw the details he'd missed: Malnourished. Injured. Terrified. It wasn't just hateful; it was in pain. It was a scared, hurting child.
He looked at the meat in his hand, then back at the creature hurling itself against the bars. Force wouldn't work. Submission wouldn't work. What was left?
Compassion? In this brutal world? It seemed like the fastest way to get killed.
But the system had given him tools. He had two tamed Dire Rats in his [Beast Inventory]. They were vermin, utterly useless in a fight against this thing. But maybe… maybe they weren't for fighting.
An idea, reckless and born of desperation, sparked in his mind.
He didn't open the main cage door. Instead, he approached the bars cautiously, staying just out of reach of those slashing talons. He placed the chunk of meat on the ground outside the cage, within sight but out of reach.
The gryphlet screeched again, its focus switching to the food. It paced back and forth, a trapped, frantic energy in its movements.
Then, Leo did something utterly insane.
He mentally summoned one of his tamed Dire Rats.
There was a faint shimmer of light, and the rat appeared at his feet. It chittered softly, looking up at him for instruction. The gryphlet immediately froze, its predatory instincts locking onto the new, smaller creature.
"Stay," Leo commanded the rat, pouring his will into the order. The rat froze in place, trembling but obedient.
Leo then took a small piece of meat from the main chunk and gave it to the Dire Rat. The rat sniffed it, then began to eat eagerly.
He was putting on a show. A demonstration.
He looked the gryphlet in its furious, intelligent eyes. "See?" he said softly, his voice barely carrying over the mountain wind. "No tricks. It's just food. I'm not your enemy."
The gryphlet stared, its lashing tail slowing slightly. The concept was so simple, so alien to its experience here, that it seemed to give the creature pause. It watched the Dire Rat finish its scrap of meat without being harmed.
Leo dismissed the rat back into the inventory. It vanished.
He then took a step closer to the bars, moving with slow, deliberate non-threat. He nudged the main chunk of meat with his foot, pushing it a few inches closer to the cage, right up against the bars where the gryphlet could potentially hook it with a claw.
Then, he turned his back.
It was the hardest thing he had ever done. Every nerve ending screamed that he was about to be eviscerated. He walked away, his shoulders tense, expecting a screech and the sound of tearing metal at any second.
He heard nothing.
He forced himself to take ten steps, then twenty. He stopped at the edge of the training yard and risked a glance back.
The Storm-Wing Gryphlet was no longer at the bars. It had retreated to its perch. But on the ground, just inside the cage, the chunk of meat was gone.
A wave of relief so potent it made his knees weak washed over him.
[Quest Complete: The Broken Fledgling.]
Reward: 200 System Points, [Beast Insight] Skill, unlocked.
[Special Condition Met: Compassion Over Force. Bonus Reward: Gryphlet's Favor (Hidden Metric Increased).]
New Skill: [Beast Insight (Lv. 1)]
Allows the user to gain deeper,more intuitive understanding of a beast's emotional state, lineage, and potential hidden traits. Effectiveness scales with skill level.
Leo let out a breath he didn't know he'd been holding. He had done it. Not by fighting, but by understanding. He had 310 System Points and a powerful new skill. But more importantly, he had planted a seed.
He turned to find Head Keeper Borin staring at him from across the yard, his face a mask of sheer, unadulterated shock. The man had witnessed the entire thing. He had seen Leo walk away from the gryphlet unscathed, something no other apprentice had managed.
Borin's expression shifted from shock to something darker, more calculating. The dreg had just done the impossible.
Leo met his gaze for a long moment, then offered a small, deferential nod, perfectly playing the part of the unassuming apprentice.
But inside, Leo was smiling. The game was on.
[New Quest Available: The Path to Power.]
Objective: Achieve the rank of Novice Tamer (Awakened) by manifesting your Core Affinity.
Reward: 500 System Points, Unlocks [System Shop].
Manifest an affinity? With his status still showing [ERROR - DATA CORRUPTED]? Another mystery. Another challenge.
He looked up at the soaring Rocs circling the mountain peaks. His journey was just beginning, and the sky was no longer the limit.