I opened my eyes to an empty white room. I was against a wall with the opposite wall about fifty yards away. The room was square in shape. There were no lights, windows, or doors, but the room was perfectly lit. I made it sound like a mystery, but I knew exactly what was going on. I entered the simulation battle that I agreed upon. I had no weapons or armor. The only thing I was wearing was a blue T-shirt, blue jeans, and red shoes.

Scarlett appeared across from me. She was in a similar situation, having no weapons or armor. She only had a green T-shirt, blue jeans, and white shoes. I smiled at her and said, “I’m not going to lie, it’s going to be a shame to hurt you. So if you want to concede, I won’t blame you.”

“Ha! That’s a good one! In this simulation, we can go all-out on each other without worrying about our safety. It’s time for me to show you who should be the captain,” she replied with a smirk.

“Both combatants are in position,” a robotic voice announced from the ceiling. “Ready!” The two of us straightened ourselves up. “Set!” We readied our fists. “Go!” At the last shout, we charged at each other.

When we reached each other, I attempted to punch her in the snout. She jumped out of the way. I turned around and barely avoided a kick to the head. I tried to catch her leg but failed. This is going nowhere. I need to think of a better strat—

My thoughts were interrupted when I was tackled to the ground. A reddish-orange fuzzy face filled my view. “Give up?” Scarlett asked as she raised a clawed hand. In response, I headbutted her snout. When she rubbed her injured nose, I took the opportunity to free my legs and flip the tables by tackling her.

“Give up?” I spat back as I grabbed her head with my hands. She snickered.

“Well, this feels romantic. You’re caressing my head. Is there something you’re not telling me?” she teased as she touched one of my hands. What is going on? Is she insane? I’m…I’m not into her. At least I hope not. Because then I’ll be concerned about myself. I…I…

I was pulled from my thoughts by a punch to my nose. I heard a crack and felt a flash of pain immediately afterwards. I clutched my nose and stumbled away. As I tried to regain my bearings, she kicked my knees, making me fall. She walked over to me and said, “You get too distracted by your thoughts.” She squatted down next to my head and said, “It’s a shame, really. I thought you were a better fighter. But it seems that without a weapon, you’re useless in a fight. Oh well. At least you have your personality.” Seeing the smug look on her face, I knew I had to do something. I clenched my fist and punched her between the legs. She wasn’t a man, but I knew that women had nerve endings there. She screamed in pain as she fell onto her back.

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I used the opening to jump up and stomp on her leg. She winced in pain before jumping up herself. She had a slight limp in that leg, but shook it off. I readied my fists and asked, “Ready to call this a draw? Because I’m ready to finish this if you won’t.” My voice was awkward. It hurt to talk even though I knew the injury was only in the simulation.

“Draw,” she replied with a smile as she extended her right hand. I shook her hand, but quickly threw an uppercut with my left hand. Before she could react, I slammed my fist into her maw. However, I soon felt a punch connect with my jaw. Before I knew it, I blacked out.

----------------------------------------

I woke up from the simulation next to Scarlett. She looked at me and said, “Looks like you got me.”

“Really? I thought you got me,” I said as I scratched the back of my head. This is strange. We both thought the other won.

Harry walked into the room and sighed. “You two are useless without your weapons,” he said as he looked down at us. He turned to me and asked, “How did you survive Drag and Ditch?”

“I used weapons. I relied on a terrifying alien to disarming itself and using its scythe arm against it. I then crafted primitive javelins and spears to defeat Gruma,” I explained as I realized that everything people have saying was true. I never won a fight without a weapon. Scythes, spears, guns, and electricity won my battles. If I truly wanted to survive tough situations, I would need to learn hand-to-hand combat.

“I guess I shouldn’t have criticized you. I wasn’t very good myself. I relied on catching you off guard to land my punches,” Scarlett said as she bowed her head. She looked at the computer console and said, “I think we can program a simulation to help us train. Perhaps we should have a simulated instructor teaching us how to fight. Maybe with Gruma or Harry helping us occasionally.”

“Sounds good. Perhaps we should also agree to stop fighting dirty. Real fights may be that way, but I felt horrible punching you there,” I said, filled with shame. I couldn’t believe I hit a girl there.

“To tell you truth, I feel the same. I’m sorry for breaking your nose. I know it wasn’t real, but I felt horrible. I don’t want to lose my only true friend on this ship,” she said as she looked away.

“No hard feelings here. Let’s just agree to fight honorably against each other. We’ll also do those lesson simulations so we can learn to properly fight,” I said as I extended my hand. She shook it and smiled. I smiled back.

“But the question is still unanswered. Who’s the captain now?” Harry asked with a hint of amusement.

“Quentin’s still the captain. I’m the Lieutenant,” Scarlett answered with a smile. “You and Gruma are crewmembers. You don’t really have any leadership qualities.”

“Says the two people on this ship with the worst social skills!” Harry shouted as he pointed at both of us. “Just remember, I’m still in charge of any bounty hunting operation. If we find a wanted outlaw, I’ll turn them in,” he said with a growl. Scarlett gulped and nodded. I did the same. He left soon, leaving us alone.

Once I was sure he was out of earshot, I looked at Scarlett and asked, “Do you want to try a new simulation? I decided to program one for you. I think you’ll enjoy it.” I held up a flash drive.

“Sure. I hope it’s fun,” she replied with a shrug. I walked over to the console and plugged in the drive.

“Now put on the helmet. This one is specifically made for you,” I ordered. She nodded and put the helmet on. Once she did, I saw a massive smile cross her vulpine muzzle.

“Thank you,” she said quietly as a single tear fell down her face.