Soul Harvest was even more disappointing. The ability existed in my repertoire—I could feel it waiting for the right trigger condition—but without an actual kill to activate it, all I got was the vague impression that ending something's life would restore a tiny fraction of my energy reserves. At Copper rank, the effect would be almost negligible. A proof of concept rather than a sustainable combat mechanic.
I dismissed the kama and watched it dissolve back into black smoke, then dissipate entirely. The training dummy stood before me looking like it had been attacked by some kind of flesh-eating bacteria. Deep gouges crisscrossed its torso. Black stains spread outward from each wound like ink spilled on fabric. The impact sensors blinked in patterns that suggested the monitoring systems were trying to classify damage types they'd never encountered before.
The academy maintenance staff was going to have questions about this.
