Yeah, he's definitely pretty awesome in the reacting-with-firearms department, especially with deafening himself with the first shot and having the presence of mind to follow it up with a second! (I do not know that I could do it, even awake and alert, and I've had almost four years of occasional practice with a handgun!) It makes me think Bren's only really competent when he's purely reacting - that he knows what to do as long as he gets out of his own way, but the only time he can get out of his own way is if he is shocked into action.

You have a good point about Bren not picking up on the non-verbal warnings, too. Tabini-aiji takes him with him on vacation, specifically teaches him how to shoot, specifically teaches him how to shoot reactive targets and how to shoot from concealment*, and Bren takes it as a sign of favor, not as "hey, you might need these skills soon, just saying".

I have to wonder, re: humans not hunting, why they don't raise animals. Even if atevi find it non-kabiu to farm, humans are already offending some of the atevi by using preserved meats, and if they were raising animals on Mospheira they'd at least not be relying on non-Ragi for food!


* "cover" means it will stop a bullet, "concealment" means it hides you from view; the bed is concealment, not cover.