Next Up

Track 5

Mitani drew a sharp breath as color surged back into his face. On hands and knees, he coughed violently, expelling the repugnant goo the creature had sprayed Zoe with, which came from his throat with each cough.

Asher opened a door behind them, running onto the deck. "I tried to find Damon," he said through heavy breaths, "He wasn't opening his door." He looked around at the scene in front of him. Yahd stood, a pink aura waving around him with a proud smile across his face—in his right hand, he held a limp, fleshy tube that looked like an eye of a crab in his right hand. Mitani was still doubled over, coughing uncontrollably, with Kalimba patting him on the back. Blood flowed freely from his right arm. Zoe sat on the ground, completely naked, with a cheerful orange aura surrounding her. "Oh goodness," he closed his eyes, reaching for the wet towel on the ground. He held it out to her, "Here."

"Ah!" Zoe's face turned bright red, grabbing the towel. In under a second, she sprinted out of sight. She ran to the other end of the yacht, disappearing to the rooms below deck.

Asher looked back at Mitani, pointing, "Hey, he's bleeding pretty bad," he looked around the deck, "I'm gonna see if there's any first-aid around here."

"No," Mitani said from behind him. He slowly rose to his feet. His voice was hoarse. He walked over behind a counter and picked up and unzipped a camo backpack that had been sitting there. He took out what looked to be a brownie inside a ziplock plastic bag.

"Hey bro," Asher spoke, "I think you need to get your arm bandaged before you worry about munchies."

Mitani bit into the brownie, quickly devouring it. "Don't need it," he said.

Asher watched in amazement as, within a few seconds, the hole in his arm closed up, healing as if it were never shot in the first place. "How did you..."

"It's my ability," Mitani said with a slight smile, "I utilize both enhancement and alteration. To put it simply, I imbue the food that I cook with restorative energy."

Mitani's ability: Soul Food.

Mitani is able to imbue the food he cooks with restorative energy. Eating his food can heal injuries up to broken bones, slashes, and punctures; and can be used as emergency treatment—It cannot heal disease or dismemberment of any kind. The level of healing is contingent on a variety of factors: How soon the food is ingested after it is cooked, the quality of the food, and the level of love and care put into the food while cooking it. Soul Food can be applied as long as it meets three requirements. One: Mitani must have processed the food into a complete dish. Two: Mitani must channel his energy into the food the whole time while cooking. Three: The more effort and skill put into the food, and the more satisfied the creator is with the finished product, the better the healing quality.

Asher raised his eyebrows, "Wow," was all he could think to say.

"Yup," Mitani held up his arm, "good as new!"

Yahd walked up the stairs to the captain's cabin. A few minutes earlier, he had felt the ship lurch to a stop.

As he got closer, he heard a muffled voice from behind the door and the sharp sound of what sounded like someone kicking a metal sheet.

Yahd knocked on the door, "Hey, it's Yahd."

"Come in," the muffled voice replied.

"Is everything good in here?" Yahd asked, swinging open the white door. Behind it, Damon was sat in the captain's chair, wearing a loose white robe and underwear, skimming a large floppy manual book the size of an Encyclopedia Britannica.

"No, clearly not," Damon sighed. Damon looked up, squinting at his face; it was hard to make out in the dark room. The only light came from the glowing buttons and switches on the yacht's dashboard. "You're the tech guy, aren't you?"

"Sure."

"Come here, 'cause the ship's controls are completely non-functional. There was some weird-smelling goo on it a little bit ago."

"I'll try," Yahd shrugged. He bent down next to the captain, who had a flashlight in his mouth, staring at the unscrewed console. 'Did that creature try and sabotage the ship?'

A few minutes later, there was another tap at the cabin door.

"What?" an exasperated sigh from Damon

"Just me," Asher said from the other side.

"Okay, come in."

"Hey," Asher said, walking up to Damon. "Can I ask you something?"

The glow from the switches and buttons on the yacht's dashboard made the inside of the dark cabin strobe.

"Sure."

"Do you know the girl we're gonna rescue?"

"No. Never met her."

"Why are you trying to rescue her?"

Asher noted the gleaming white veneers covering his teeth as he grinned, "I just want to rescue some poor girl trapped against her will," he said innocently.