Even with the light of Nicki’s tattoos, very little of her surroundings were illuminated as she entered the darkness of the jungle. The trees grew closer together the deeper she went. Soon she had to keep her arms up as she pushed aside the overgrowth that obstructed the trail.

After fifteen minutes of pushing through the darkness, a stream cut across the path at Nicki’s feet. Kneeling down, she cupped her hands and brought some of the water to her lips. After three more handfuls quenched her thirst, she returned to her feet and leapt across the stream.

On the other side, the trees thinned around the trail allowing various fruit trees to grow along its sides. While she walked, Nicki helped herself to some bananas, a coconut, a few oranges and a pineapple. The load was a bit big for her arms to carry, but since she wasn’t too far from her destination, she’d manage.

The path began to curve to the left alongside a rock face rising from its right side. Eventually, the trail led Nicki along the side of a mountain to the entrance of a cave. On the ground was a hand-carved bowl which she dropped the fruit into.

Nicki began to circle her arms at her sides, causing the warmth in her body to gather into her forearms. When she increased the pace of her movements, fire erupted on both her arms. She continued to move her arms as her eyes adjusted to the light of the flames. Once her eyes focussed, she pulled an arm back and thrust it forward toward a torch secured in the mouth of the cave. Following her movement, the fire slid down her arm to her outstretched fingers and leapt to the torch.

With the new light, Nicki could see the four torches she’d set up along the walls, which she aimed her arms toward. The fires flew into the cave and accurately struck each of the torches. Now that the torches were lit, a pool of water could be seen in the floor of the cave. Nicki now flicked her arms in a downward motion, tossing fire to the surface of the water where they briefly submerged before extinguishing.

Once steam began to rise from the water, Nicki slowed the movements of her arms to a stop. This allowed the flames to weaken and eventually die out as the heated water called for her to enter.

“Change pattern: Basic. Bioluminescence, cancel.”

As her suit faded to its simple white design and the light of her tattoos dimmed, Nicki picked up the bowl of fruit and approached the edge of the pool. The chill of the night’s air returned to her as the warmth she'd felt moments ago faded from her body.

The water felt wonderful as she waded into the pool. Nicki set the bowl onto the surface of the water, allowing it to float in pool as she submerged herself up to her shoulders and sat down on a ledge at the edge of the pool. The Fire Dancer’s pattern was convenient for cold evenings, but it couldn’t compare to a hot tub bath.

Nicki just sat in the water for a few moments, allowing the warmth of the water to fill her body with warmth before picking a banana from the bowl and pealing it.

The whole experience was a daily delight for Nicki, but there was more to this than recreation. Similar to her swimsuit, both the fruit and pool provide her strength and vigor to her body. But unlike her suit’s patterns, whatever energy she gained would only last for a day, at best.

Despite the urgency of the abyss forming offshore, Nicki was able to relax in the pool and enjoy her breakfast without a care in the world. It was more like she was enjoying a tropical vacation than preparing to fight for her survival.