The heavy door opened, revealing a well-lit chamber that smelled of spent aether-steam and a hint of sweat. Training Room 13 was a long and narrow indoor range with layered walls of reinforced wood and riveted metal. At the far end, a row of mechanical targets shaped like humanoid silhouettes stood motionless.

  Jack stepped inside.

  With a soft hiss, the aether-powered system registered his presence. Blue aether-light flickered to life in filigree patterns along the floor, forming lanes that led to the targets.

  A central console set into the right wall clicked as gears engaged. A soft female voice could be heard through brass slats.

  Welcome, adventurer.

  Mechanical targeting range engaged.

  Safety protocols active.

  Please state your class and level.

  Jack smiled. “Novice Archer. Level zero.”

  The soft voice acknowledged his answer.

  Novice Archer, level zero. Beginner level zero activated.

  Please prepare your weapon.

  Aether-powered fans blew air through the training area to replicate a small breeze.

  Jack smiled at the realism and looked around. A few dozen practice bows lined the back wall, offering patrons a good range of different sizes and poundages. Over a dozen quivers of standard training arrows sat on benches at the rear, their shafts etched with high-quality durability runes. He picked one up and tested the weight and the fletching.

  “Good weight. Hmm… fletching could be better quality.” The fletching was stiffer than expected, so they’d stand up to the rigours of training.

  He placed his pack out of the way and checked his arm guards that were looted from the rat-faced rogue. After he was sure they were secure, he unslung his white oak bow and nocked the first arrow and drew, the tension settling into his shoulders.

  “Hmm, still sore,” he complained. He was still feeling the effects of fighting a goblin and the rat-faced rogue the previous day. Despite the soreness, pulling back the bow felt good.

  His aim steadied. He exhaled… and thwack.

  The arrow slammed into the unmoving target’s centre mass, triggering a small puff of blue steam and a quiet ‘ding’ as the scoring mechanism registered the hit. The target shuddered, then reset with a mechanical clunk.

  Jack blinked. That had been faster and smoother than he expected. And of course, no pain from burn scars.

  He took a few moments to picture what mattered to him. Mom in the kitchen cooking. Dad in his study. Polly annoying him. He couldn’t help but smile at his sister’s antics and that damn smirk when she’d hit the mark on a good insult. And of course, Little Richard.

  “What will my brother become when he’s older?” he asked himself. “Maybe an archer… though not if Mom has anything to say about it.” He chuckled at the thought of what his mother would say to one of her boys becoming an archer.

  Jack’s thoughts went to Zia. A new addition who already felt like part of his family. Another little sister. I’ll protect you, too, Zia. He closed his eyes in prayer. Thank you for this second chance to live life and protect my family. I won’t fail them again.

  He shot again, imagining every target was Baron Greaves’ ugly heart.

  And again. Each time, the bow’s response felt sharper, more intuitive. He adjusted his stance, shifting his left foot back and correcting his draw angle.

  Within minutes, he fell into a rhythm: draw, aim, loose. Thwack. Reset. Draw, aim, loose. Thwack… No class skills, just simple practice, a young man and his bow.

  Spent aether-steam hissed around him in soft, approving clouds as more targets were hit and automatically reset.

  The soft female voice reported after his thirty-sixth volley.

  Novice Archer, level zero. Beginner level zero results.

  Arrows released: thirty-six.

  Accuracy: 76%.

  Wind compensation: 0.

  Reaction time: 65th percentile.

  Recommendation: Increase difficulty level to Beginner level one.

  The Guild’s system only compared like-for-like. Therefore, Jack’s results were being compared to all level-zero Novice Archers, who had taken the same training test. He was better than 65% of all level-zero Novice Archers at this test.

  Jack lowered the bow and wiped his brow with his sleeve, surprised to find himself grinning. “Hmm… sixty-fifth percentile. Above average. I guess a few months of training helped.” He was thinking back to the time he’d trained with a bow before his archery improvements plateaued due to his burn injuries from the fire. He gave up archery in favour of a poisoned dagger.

  He looked at the clock. He’d already used up eleven minutes of his training hour. “I should train with moving targets,” he said to himself.

  “System. Increase difficulty.”

  The soft voice acknowledged his command:

  Unauthorized use: this story is on Amazon without permission from the author. Report any sightings.

  Novice Archer level zero. Beginner level one activated.

  The breeze in the room increased a small amount, and the still targets began to move in slow, predictable patterns.

  Jack stretched out his shoulders before collecting a second quiver of training arrows and repeated the exercise on the harder setting. He again fell into a rhythm: draw, aim, loose. Thwack. Reset. Draw, aim, loose. Thwack…

  After the quiver was empty of its thirty-six arrows, the female voice reported.

  Novice Archer, level zero. Beginner level one.

  Arrows released: 36.

  Accuracy: 58%.

  Wind compensation: 1.

  Reaction time: 57th percentile.

  Recommendation: Maintain difficulty level at Beginner level one.

  Jack grinned. “Not bad, considering.” He glanced at the time. “Hmm, that took me almost fifteen minutes.”

  Even though the targets were slow-moving, he had to take a little more time to aim before release.

  He stretched out his arms and shoulders. “Already getting tired.” He shook his head. “I have to get fitter.”

  “System… Increase difficulty.”

  The soft voice acknowledged his command.

  Novice Archer level zero. Beginner level two activated.

  The breeze in the room increased, and the targets still moved in predictable patterns, but faster.

  After another stretch and a drink of water from his pack, he repeated the exercise.

  The soft female voice reported.

  Novice Archer, level zero. Beginner level two.

  Arrows released: 36.

  Accuracy: 42%.

  Wind compensation: 2.

  Reaction time: 53rd percentile.

  Recommendation: Decrease difficulty level to Beginner level one.

  Jack frowned. “That’s not great.” Though his results fell near the fiftieth percentile, making him average at this test. If this were a real-life battle, 42% accuracy wasn’t good enough.

  He looked at the time. Another eighteen minutes had passed, and there were fewer than fifteen minutes left to train. Jack grinned. “Let’s have some fun. System. Increase difficulty to beginner level ten.”

  The soft voice acknowledged his command.

  Novice Archer, level zero. Beginner level ten activated.

  The soft breeze turned into random gusts of wind, and the lights in the training area dimmed to mimic dusk. Random shouts, screams, and other noises could be heard from various speakers hidden around the training room.

  The current targets at the end shuffled aside, disappearing into the walls. New ones emerged: clockwork mannequins with shifting panels, some holding shields, others springing into sudden, darting movement. Lights overhead flickered as runes activated. One target launched sideways across the room.

  Jack laughed. “Alright then.” He collected another quiver of training arrows and raised his bow.

  This was no longer a practice session. It was a trial. A fun trial.

  He shot at a moving target, adjusting mid-draw. The arrow curved just enough to clip the mannequin’s shoulder, releasing a hiss of aether-steam. A second target popped up behind a faux barricade. He turned, loosed, and struck it clean in the chest.

  A third sprang forward on rail-mounted legs.

  Jack darted to the left, rolling behind a metal column, just as the target fired a light-blast of aether energy; a harmless simulated attack that crackled against the wall where he’d just been.

  He laughed despite the roll, making his side ache. He leaned out, nocked an arrow, and released from the hip and… missed. He practised until his time ran out as he shot his final arrow.

  Another hit. Another ‘ding’. Another puff of aether-steam.

  The advanced targets disappeared into the wall with a hiss, and the lights steadied. The room went quiet, save for the faint ticking of machinery winding down and the skittering sounds of small automatons searching the room to collect spent arrows.

  As Jack gulped down water and stretched his sore shoulders, the soft female voice reported.

  Novice Archer, level zero. Beginner level ten.

  Accuracy: 21%.

  Wind compensation: 10.

  Reaction time: 65th percentile.

  Recommendation: Decrease difficulty level to Beginner level one.

  Jack grimaced. “That was fun,” he panted, the exertion catching up with him. His arms trembled from the constant draw tension, but his heart pounded with exhilaration. He’d enjoyed himself.

  “Ow.” Now that he’d stopped, he noticed his side was aching more. “Maybe rolling on the floor wasn’t such a good idea,” he said, smiling. “Worth it.”

  The female voice continued.

  Archery training session complete.

  Archery training session results.

  Arrows released: 112.

  Overall accuracy: 40%.

  Trajectory arc suggests modest foundational training.

  Recommendation: strengthen shoulder and core muscles for improved stability.

  Do you require a printout of your training sessions?

  “Yes, please,” Jack panted.

  The soft female voice spoke again.

  Printout in progress.

  Please collect all your belongings and exit the training area within the next ninety seconds.

  Thank you for using the Adventurers Guild’s training area.

  We recommend visiting the Guild’s spa after a heavy training session.

  For only 3 silvers, experience half an hour of bliss as trained attendants cater to your every need.

  Have a nice day.

  Jack was tempted by the spa advertisement. The training rooms were subsidised by the Adventurers Guild, but the spa experience was full price. “A massage sounds great,” he said. “But 3 silvers. Pfft.” He shook his head. A hot bath works just as well as a massage therapist, and it doesn’t cost me 3 silvers for the pleasure.

  He didn’t say it aloud, in case the walls had ears. There was one rule all adventurers followed. Never piss off the Adventurers Guild.

  The central console set into the right wall, clicked as gears engaged, and after a few moments, a paper printout scrolled from the bottom of the console.

  He pulled the printout from the wall and gave it a quick scan, planning to memorise it later. “Not bad for a dead scribe,” he muttered to himself, chuckling.

  The soft female voice spoke again.

  Printout complete.

  Please collect all your belongings and exit the training area within the next sixty seconds.

  Thank you for using the Adventurers Guild’s training area.

  The Guild bar is open twenty-four-seven, where there is currently a special on dwarven ale.

  Have a nice day.

  “Urgh, that stuff tastes like paint stripper!” he said at the thought of dwarven ale. It was an… acquired taste. He slung his bow back over his shoulder, grabbed his pack, pushed open the door, and stepped back into the corridor, the faint hiss of blue spent aether-steam trailing behind him.

  Two middle-aged men were waiting with bows slung over their shoulders.

  “Finally,” one of the men said as Jack exited the training room.

  “Have a good session, kid?” the other man asked with a smile.

  Jack grinned. “Not too bad, thanks. Beginner level ten is a lot of fun.”

  The two men laughed. “You got that right, kid. Took me years to get above 50% accuracy. How’d you do?”

  “21%. My first time,” Jack replied, seeing no reason to not say.

  “Not bad.” He looked at his friend. “Didn’t you score only 5% your first try?” He laughed in a good-natured way.

  The other archer rolled his eyes. “It was 9%, and I had a bad cold that week.”

  “Sure you did. Sure you did,” the other archer said, entering the training room. “See ya around, kid.”

  Jack chuckled at the banter. “Have fun in there.”

  “We will,” one of them replied as the door closed with a whirr of gears and a puff of spent aether-steam.