Syber awoke to a hard shove in his shoulder. Opening his eyes, he scanned his surroundings. The world had never been this bright before, and he had trouble making out the hazy yellow figure standing over him. And then he remembered.

"Razr? What...?" he started.

She grabbed him by the hand and yanked him into a sitting position. "You're lucky you got to sleep in." she said.

"What do you mean? Where...where are the others?" Syber asked.

"They're out checking the territory for rogues. That leaves you and I to guard the base. Despite me being far more capable of handling missions than the lot of them, you'd get snuffed if one of those rusty rock crawlers were to show up. You'd also be snuffed if you went out with the boys. Plus Butch doesn't wanna lose his only medic in a fight." Razr replied.

"Oh alright. Is it really just the two of us?"

Razr narrowed her eyes. "Yep." she replied. "Which means nobody will be there to hear you scream during training. I was too tired to go all out last night, plus you were still getting back on your feet. I won't take it easy on you this time."

Syber nodded.

"Come on now. Outside." she said, pulling him to his feet.

"It's so...so bright!" Syber muttered, trying to cover his eyes as she pulled him into the full blazing light of the sun.

She chuckled. "Get used to it." she said with a dismissive wave of her hand. 

Syber took in his surroundings before he felt a hard jab to his torso.

"Ow! What was that for?" he said.

"The enemy will always attempt the element of surprise. You must constantly be on your guard. Now you try and land a blow." Razr replied.

Syber sighed heavily. "Again? But I...I really don't want to hit...OW! Razr, that hurts!" he said, clenching his arm in pain. Something warm and sticky oozed to the surface and he pulled back his hand in alarm. "That actually made me bleed that time!" he protested.

"I'm not surprised." Razr said nonchalantly. "If you won't throw a punch at me, the least you could do is dodge. If you're too hard to hit then you can get the enemy weakened with exhaustion until you can finish them that way."

"O...okay." he replied, before the blade on her left foot grazed him just under the soft joint on his knee. 

"You're too fast!" Syber complained.

"Actually, you're too slow. Combat is about gauging your opponent's strength and using their weaknesses to your advantages. It's about seizing every opportunity and preserving your own life at all costs."

Syber clenched his jaw and pouted. Razr chuckled. "I doubt pulling that face will get you anywhere you want to go."

She aimed a punch at his face. Syber ducked out of the way, not wanting another injury. Razr stumbled, losing her balance a bit. Syber caught her by the arm and pulled her back onto her feet.

"Are you okay?" Syber asked.

"Of course." she stated. "But you aren't!" she continued, aiming a kick at his legs.

Syber grabbed her foot with his free hand and said, "Can you stop trying to hurt me?!"

"Nope." she replied, wrenching her leg from his grasp and spinning around. The blade from her arm sliced through the soft armor around his middle, and he let out a cry of pain. He released her hand and fell to his knees. He used one hand to cover the incision and raised his other hand above his head to guard his face.

"Gack! I meant to aim a little higher! Syber, are you okay?" she asked, stooping down to her knees.

Syber shook his head. Razr reached out a hand to touch his shoulder, but he smacked her to the side. Realizing what he had just done, Syber stared at his hand in horror before looking back at Razr.

"I'm so sorry! I didn't mean...!" he whimpered.

Razr lifted a hand to her cheek, a bit of plasma oozing onto her finger tips. Stunned, she looked at her hand, and then back at Syber. He crawled forward, keeping one hand to his middle.

"Are...are you okay?" Syber asked.

Razr smiled.

"I didn't mean to hit you so hard! It's just...my instinct took over and I got scared. Does...does it hurt?"

"Wow!" she replied, once again glancing at the plasma on her fingers with disbelief.

"What? What is it?" Syber said nervously.

"You have a very strong left hook. And it seems you might yet have the reflexes of a warrior. This is incredible!" she said, leaping to her feet.

Syber smiled awkwardly.

"Can I see your injury on your middle?" Razr asked.

"S..sure!" he replied, removing his hand from the wound. Sparks began fizzing out from the long gash the moment he had moved his hand, and he stumbled forward a bit.

Razr narrowed her eyes with concern. "Syber, lay down." she said.

Cautiously, he obeyed. Rolling him onto his back, Razr looked down at the injury and used her hands to cover the shower of sparks.

"Well?..." Syber asked.

Razr looked at him with concern in her eyes. "Syber, what I'm about to do is going to hurt. I need you to stay completely still while I do this. Do you understand?"

He nodded. Razr cautiously put two fingers in the wound and used them to pry the soft rubbery material open. Syber whimpered as once again a shower of sparks spewed forth from the wound. Razr closed her eyes to avoid the sparks spraying her in the face and stuck her free hand into the wound.

"Do you feel that?" she asked as her fingertips brushed against something solid inside of him. Syber nodded nervously. Razr felt around inside the wound for a bit before letting out a long sigh of relief.

"What is it?" Syber asked.

"I almost thought I'd hit your regulation coils. Turns out it's just a flesh wound. However, because the alloy is extremely soft around your middle, we should close this up before it begins to tear. Here, put your hand over it to stop the bleeding. We don't want the open wound to expose your core to the air." she replied.

Syber nodded and immediately did what he was told after she pulled her hand out of the wound.

She smiled and said, "Don't be ashamed. The alloy on almost all mortarin midsections is much softer and more flexible, and it's like that on the joints too. That's why going for the joints and midsections of your opponents is one of the fastest ways to end a fight. You don't need a heated blade to cause a wound deep enough to expose the core."

Syber's eyes grew wide as soon as she said that.

"Now do you know what happens when enough of the core is exposed to the air?" Razr asked him.

Syber nodded.

"Smart kid." she commented.

"What were you doing when you uh...put your hand in my wound?" Syber asked.

Razr chuckled. "You know what happens when the core is exposed, right? Well, inside your middle under the outer layer of soft alloy are your regulation chambers. Have you ever wondered why your eyes and mouth are exposed to the air, but you don't ever explode despite the fact that you are breathing every day?"

Syber shrugged. "I never thought of that."

"Well, the reason is that your regulation chambers located in the region connecting your chest to your pelvic section keep your core from reacting too much with the outside air. A little bit of reaction with the air is necessary for survival. That's why we breathe. But too much exposure and your core can't take it. Your regulation chambers protect you from random combustion, as well as allow you to channel heat to your limbs during a fight. When your body temperature rises to a certain point, the alloy all converts to an almost liquid state and all attacks will go right through you. Maybe I should teach you some healing techniques along with combat stuff because I have a feeling you're going to need it." she said.