Squawkers and Annie chatted with each other as Chad read over his newest skill options. As usual, there were three of them, and the first one looked quite familiar.

Blink - Now you see me, now you don't! Or you do, just a little to the left. A magician's favorite trick.

When activated, allows you to teleport to a location you can see up to (INT/2) feet away. Cooldown: 1 minute.

Oh hey look, it's Squawks's skill! Chas grinned at the description. Who'dve thought!

But after reading through it, Chad's enthusiasm wavered. He understood better why the parrot liked it so much. And to be fair, it did seem like a good skill in general. But to him, it sounded... lame.

Ok, lame might be too harsh, he admitted. Teleportation is still pretty awesome. But it's based on intelligence! I mean, come on! I can only teleport three feet!

Three feet was nothing more than a slightly larger step to the side. It was nothing.

Squawk is smart, so it makes sense for him… He's probably sunk everything into intelligence. But me? No way.

Maybe he was missing the point, though. Maybe the skill was probably meant for dodging or catching people off guard more than actually traveling any reasonable distance. But even if that was the case, it just rubbed Chad the wrong way even more.

Running away's not my style. I mean, I'll duck when I need to and all that, but this is kinda overkill. Why dodge when I can just stop them dead or block with my arm?

He didn't completely write it off. But despite his parrot's enthusiastic endorsement of the skill, Chad decided to check out the other options. If nothing else caught his eye, maybe he'd come back to it.

Flurry of Blows - It's easy to hit someone with a quick one-two, but a real fighter can make their opponent look like a punching bag on legs. So why not take it a step further with more impractical combos?

When activated, allows you to unleash a rapid series of punches for 1 second. Cooldown: 1 minute.

Now that was more like it. Scenes of old kung-fu movies and over-the-top animated fight sequences filled his head as he marveled at the skill. If he wanted to punch things better, then this was just what he needed.

Though... Chad frowned. I don't really need to punch anything more than once, do I? Things kinda just die when I hit them anyway. Kinda feels like overkill.

Still, the imagery was pretty strong with that one. Chad was pretty sold on it, but read over the final skill just in case.

Rallying Cry - "Come on you sons of bitches, do you want to live forever?" -- Sergeant Major Daniel Daly of Earth

When activated, imbues all allies within a 50 foot range with 20% of your strength and constitution. Activation requires you to shout a battle cry of your choice. Duration: 5 minutes. Cooldown: 1 hour.

Chad blinked. It reminded him of Sheriff Clay's Deputize skill, but more specifically tailored to his own abilities. Namely, being beefy as all hell.

It wasn't the most impressive skill, nor was it nearly as cool as teleportation or punching someone really fast. But still, it made him stop and think.

He looked around once more at the battlefield. I did say I wish I could've done more... but maybe that's the wrong way to think about it. This could let the people around me protect themselves better. Not just right now, but every time we have to fight something like this.

He stared at the option pensively. Their guns had done a lot, but once things got into melee range? Who knew how much that extra strength could've done? Not to mention the constitution. It might have let people shrug off some of these attacks and prevent other injuries.

Skill Selection: Rallying Cry.

Please confirm your selection.

A little reluctantly, he confirmed the choice. Passing up Flurry of Blows did sting a bit, but he knew it was the right decision. Especially because it wasn't just him heading to that ship. He had to keep his people safe.

With a token attempt to stretch, Chad looked up at Annie and Squawkers. "Alright. I think I'm ready. What about you guys?"

"Ready." Annie nodded, shouldering a rifle.

Stolen from its rightful place, this narrative is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings.

"Ready!"

A sourceless voice filled Chad's mind, sending him reeling. His hands went to his head as his gaze darted around for danger. "What in the shit--?!"

As he and Annie both panicked, Squawkers began cackling. The parrot doubled over in laughter, unable to contain himself. "Oh, man that's cool! I could get used to this!"

Annie slowly began to relax, looking at the bird incredulously. "Was that you?!"

"Yup!" The parrot grinned. "Cool, right? Turns out there's a Telepathy skill!"

Chad cleaned out his ear uselessly. Now that he thought about it, the voice had sounded like Squawks. He hadn't initially put the pieces together in his panic, though. "Damn, buddy. That's awesome. You're like some sorta psychic."

The bird preened. "Just you wait, soon I'll be able to lift things with my mind."

Together, the trio headed toward the group gathering near the Sheriff. As they approached, Chad noticed a pile of swords, spears, and strange helmets that sat near the group. The variety of shapes and styles suggested they'd been taken off of the felled enemies.

The sheriff called out to them as they stepped forward. "You ready, then? Good. These guys had a lot of gear on them, so feel free to take a look if you want anything. We'll need whatever kinda edge we can get going into this."

"I guess..." Annie hesitated, shaking her head. "I'll stick to my guns."

As Chad glanced over the pile, his eye caught a flash of blackish metal laying near the center of the pile. It was one of the oversized and spiked gauntlets he'd been punched with earlier in the fight. Reaching down, he retrieved the thing.

"Can I take this?" He pointed at it. At the sheriff's nod, he tried to pull it onto his right hand.

"Where's the other one?" Squawkers asked.

"I, uh... broke it, I think." Chad winced. "With the guy's fist."

Squawkers eyed it. "And you think this one'll hold up better?"

"Yeah!" He grunted, trying to squeeze his newly enlarged hand into the gauntlet. Despite the thing's size, it didn't slide on easily, "I mean, it's like brass knuckles! Even if it is a little tight... One second... there!"

Chad raised his fist triumphantly, the black metal glinting in the sunlight. He clenched his fingers with a grin. "See? Doesn't this look badass?"

"Uh-huh." The parrot said dubiously. "Do me a favor and open your hand again?"

"Sure!" Chad obliged, the metal squeaking slightly as he did so. As he looked at his fist, his heart sank. Just that brief clench of his hand had warped the gauntlet, leaving indents wherever his fingers had squeezed. "Er..."

Squawkers sighed. "Chad, I saw a guy's sword bend against your arm. As crazy as it feels to say it, I don't think you really need something to protect it -- especially something weaker than you are."

"I guess..." He muttered with disappointment. "Dang... I really wanted that to work, though..."

"Cheer up!" This time, it was the parrot patting him on the head with one wing. "That just means your crazy plan is working, right? Well, for now at least."

He nodded. "Right! Good point, buddy. Thanks."

After a few more last-minute preparations, they were ready to head out. It was time to see what lie in store for them at the ship.

***

The still-smoldering wreckage of the alien longship peeked out from above the treeline, its curved bow jutting up like the head of a trumpeting elephant. Thin trails of black smoke continued to rise up from the wreckage, no longer blotting out the sky above.

A group of approximately thirty people had gathered for this expedition -- among them Chad, Annie, Squawkers, and even Tom. Most bore cuts and scrapes from the previous battle, but nothing that would impede them too badly. In fact, Chad was far and away in the worst shape of everyone. But it couldn't be helped. He was too strong to simply sit this one out.

They disembarked from the well-perforated vehicles they'd traveled in and stepped toward the trees. Tom hooked a thumb in his belt. "Well, guess we gotta go on foot from here. eh?"

Squawkers nodded. "Remember, everyone! Keep an eye out, Stay in sight of the others, and call out your targets! Who knows if they're hiding in there?"

The group nodded seriously, then began to head into the forest. Chad gripped a dagger in his right hand, ready to throw. A few more hung off of his belt, ready to be drawn and hurled through the trees at a moment's notice.

As they crept through the underbrush and neared the wreckage, he could see evidence of the crash all around. Broken tree limbs littered the ground, and grass trampled flat marked where some of the invaders had likely landed. He didn't see any bodies though. Nor any blood.

Chad kept his guard up, checking his sides. To his right, Annie crept forward, an assault rifle held ready in her grip. An assortment of other backup firearms hung from her belt and back. To his left walked Tom, the older man chewing at his mustache as he moved.

Above their heads, Squawkers flitted from tree to tree, keeping a lookout. Suddenly, he raised a wing and sent a message into their minds.

"Movement, 11 o'clock."

The parrot's familiar voice entered his head as though it were a somewhat foreign thought. Glancing in the direction he'd indicated, Chad's gaze flicked through the trees to try and find what Squawkers had seen.

I just see leaves. Leaves and branches. Although...

The faintest flash of silver caught his eye. It disappeared as soon as Chad saw it, leading him to believe he'd almost imagined the movement. But a moment later, he saw it again.

As he opened his mouth to shout a warning, it moved. The flash shot through the air, whistling through gaps in the trees like an arrow. And it was headed straight for Tom's head.

"Get down, Mr. President!"

Without thinking, Chad leapt to the side to intercept the streak of silver. It struck him in his left bicep, burying itself deep within the muscle. He hissed in pain, catching himself on a nearby tree as he stumbled.

"We're under attack!" Squawkers broadcast the message out. "Snipers at 11 o'clock and 1 o'clock, melee at-- ack!"

The message cut off abruptly as the bird disappeared from his perch, blinking back into existence a few feet behind it. Another streak of silver cut through the air where he had just been, burying itself into the tree trunk.

A group of enemies seemed to materialize from the shadows around them, their mottled cloaks and dark forms blending in with the background even now. Chad once again noted a medley of creatures among their number, varied despite the similar garb. Their forms darted from tree to tree to try and surround Chad's group. Then, they dashed forward.