“Other than a full environmental suit or acclimatizing you to the temperature, I do not know of anything specific. Veiletians are able to tolerate a wide temperature range, so it is not something I have looked into in any detail.”
“Okay. Well that’s a bit shit. I suppose I'm gonna have to recreate the heat. Perhaps I should’ve stayed on Torax.”
Havok spoke to me, “I might be able to help you to acclimatize, Shaun. It should work similarly to when we trained your muscle growth, hopefully.”
“Thanks, Havok. We’ll have to give it a go,” I said back, but then had to explain why I had gone quiet.
“Havok thinks he can help me with getting used to the heat, so I’ve agreed to give it a try. Now, I’m going off to get something to eat, and then train.”
Ember followed me out, while Elyek went back to monitoring the ship's systems.
We sat and ate a ton of steak, potatoes and greens in silence, our still-battered bodies craving the sustenance. Ember finished first. I felt like I could have kept eating for eternity.
“So, what are you planning to train in?” She asked.
“Kickboxing. What do you think?” I answered.
“I knew you’d say that. But don't you think you should be training your Mental Skills? Like you said, you broke that Gro-bar's sternum and the other guy's neck. I think Combat Skill-wise and physically you're as good as you can get in a day or so of practice. Don’t neglect the whole arsenal of mental powers at your disposal, especially in this heat. I tried navigating my body from the Mindscape down there, on the way back to the ship, and it helped a lot.”
“That'd be cheating!” I said in mild outrage at the thought.
“No it’s not, you melon head. This fight is between you and another, and the skills you each have. These mental abilities are part of who you are. You'd be an idiot not to use them, Shaun. Oh… wait. That's right, you are an idiot!”
“And you’re a sarcastic so-and-so, but you don't hear me going on about it,” I said as I stormed off in a mood to the training room.
A few minutes later, Ember followed. “What’s up with you, fuck nugget?”
“Dunno. Maybe the heat got to me,” I smiled, tiredly.
She nodded, “You know I don’t think you’re an idiot, right?” she said gently, “I just like fucking around.”
“Yeah, I know. I’m well aware of my strengths and weaknesses now, so your words don’t hurt at all anymore. Although I can still occasionally be idiotic,” I laughed.
“Can't we all,” she replied with a friendly punch to my arm. “So, you gonna train up your other powers a bit? You keep saying you're bad with them, but you’re not really, not at all. I think you may have been trying too hard in the past, or just expecting too much.”
“You were so much better than me, straight away,” I said, sullenly.
“Yeah, but I had higher Mental Clarity, which as we’ve been over a number of times now, makes everything else easier to do. Plus, I’d say you were better than anyone else on the ship, bar Ogun. I mean, seriously Shaun, you’re the first human to transcend. And that was with a Mental Clarity of two percent!” she chuckled.
“Maybe, but it just doesn’t feel natural to me.”
“Of course it doesn’t. I’m sure when you first started walking as a toddler it didn’t feel natural either, but look at you now, walking around nearly as well as a normal person,” she grinned cheekily.
I didn’t find it funny. I sat there with a sour face on.
“Let me put it another way,” she said, “We’re in a strange new life, filled with aliens of all kinds of skills. Now, let’s say you were a Veiletian and your friend could go invisible for an hour, but you could only go invisible for 45 minutes. Would you stop going invisible and just throw away that huge advantage you have over other races? You don’t have to answer by the way, it’s a rhetorical question.”
My answer died on my lips.
“One more thing, before you accept what an absolute dipshit you’re being. Torax can shoot fire at you and go supernova. You can't fight that shit with a well-executed right hook. What if the Torax comes into this fight thinking they can use their powers? They probably will. What will you do then? Apart from returning to me as a Shaun shish kebab.”
“Okay! For god’s sake, Ember. Okay! You've made your point. Thanks for pointing out my stupidity yet again. I’ll train my friggin’ mental skills.”
“Good,” she said, a satisfied expression spreading across her face, “Now, we should focus on your Cognition Room again.”
“Ugh! But that's literally the most boring thing to do.”
“Seriously, Shaun. We're not going through this every time.”
“What if greater Mental Clarity means I start running away when the odds are against us, like Ogun did?”
“That hasn't happened to me, and I know without a doubt it won't happen to you. It doesn’t matter if your mind is as clear as a bell, you’ll still have your own authentic personality. You’re not Ogun, and never will be. You’re an obstinate shit, and I love you for it,” she gave me a heartwarming grin and I relented, laughing at her description of me.
“I'm fighting fairly, though, I'll only use my powers if my opponent goes to use theirs. But no matter what, I promise you I’ll win. Keep Havok close, I may need his healing afterwards.”
“Fair enough. I understand a little. I’d personally go straight in and freeze that fucker up, like an ice cube. I realize that’s not exactly your style.”
Over the next ten hours, we worked on clearing my Cognition Room. We cranked up the heating to match the
