Overpowered

Matthias slipped his sword back into its sheath on his hip as he watched the foe before him simply fall apart, having been cut so cleanly and thoroughly through both flesh and bone that they had died instantaneously. Something had happened to him overnight that he couldn't quite explain, but the feeling that it gave him was exhilarating. He lived in a world where the strong were the most valuable, for monsters attacked regularly and frequently in mass numbers, and the ability to protect one's town was vital. He had always wanted to be a hero who went out into the world and protected everyone, maybe even going so far as to find the source of the monsters and putting an end to them once and for all. But he had been weak - barely able to stop a single monster, no matter how hard he trained or how much he learned.

But this morning had been different. He had woken up feeling invigorated, like he could do it - he could take on the world. The way he had gripped his sword had felt strange in a good way. It felt confident. He had never felt confident before. And when he had gone into his yard to practice, his movements were sharper, faster, stronger. He felt the way so many of the greater warriors looked. And when the monsters had come to invade, he stood valiantly beside those warriors. They looked at him, worried, knowing how Matthias had been only the day before, but they had said nothing. Perhaps they could feel the confidence coming off of him as well. And when he fought...

There wasn't a monster that could stand in his way. Every fur and scale cladded figure that approached was cut down like wheat before a farmer's sickle. Matthias movements were quicker, smoother. It was as though his blade were communicating with him, becoming a part of him, letting it know how it wanted to be moved, but also letting him move it. It was out of its sheath for only a moment before the beast was dead, and Matthias was sliding it gently back into its home. He had seen others fight like this. He had never thought he would be among them.

He wondered if this had been how it was for all of them. If they had simply woken up one day ready to fight, or if they had trained long and hard like he had been trying to do until they were prepared for what this world had to throw at them. But the way they looked at him, with surprise and envy in their eyes, he could feel that this was different. He didn't know what had changed inside of him, but he hoped that it never went away. He was more powerful than he had ever felt before. Perhaps than anyone had ever felt before. This was more than he could have ever dreamed of.

Maybe it wouldn't just be a dream. Maybe he would save the world.