Chapter 59

Couldn't leave you hanging. As always, cheers and enjoy the read.

Blossoming gulpers have gigantic jaws that extend beyond their faces, allowing them to open a mouth that was wider than their whole bodies enabling them to swallow even whales whole. That jaw also happened to be lined with three rows of serrated teeth capable of damaging even the strongest of durasteel plates.

Too bad they were not wearing durasteel.

Torian got a good look at it, in fact, he was far closer than he wanted to be to its face. He reversed the jets and propelled himself away before it could snap and snatch him up.

"Raidre! Status?"

He could hear her struggling as she clicked back on. "Shabuir!"

Torian lined up his spear gun and shot his first round to catch their foes attention. "Your status, Raidre." Torian said.

Fighting underwater was such a pain, everything was slow and force was dulled. Raidre had insisted on these spear rifles, at the time Torian had thought they were overkill, however, now, her was grateful for her propensity to want all the firepower she could carry. The spear shot had pushed Torian backwards. He pushed his jets again and followed the line of his shot as he watched the beast turn back to Raidre, its interest in Torian lost. The shot connected with the blossoming gulper and its shriek was loud enough for them to hear even underwater as it was shot in the neck.

Torian didn't wait, he swam down to help Raidre get free. She was in the midst of trying to cut herself free, but as the smaller person, she had gone for a smaller blade. Torian pulled out his, which was the length of a sword and serrated to boot. He began to saw away at the gulper's tendrils around Raidre's leg. Torian managed to get half off the tendrils around her leg cut, and he could see that it had crushed her leg with its grip, before the gulper came round to what they were doing.

"Be right back." Torian said as he propelled himself out of the Gulper's path.

Raidre kept cutting and only paused to give him a thumbs up.

Torian kept swimming around the beast in the hopes of dizzying it, but found he was getting dizzy first.

"Stop, moving!" shouted Raidre through their comm link.

Torian obeyed and the gulper nearly swallowed him, but instead a spear shot through the membranes of its jaw, locking it in an open position. Torian whistled.

"Nice shot."

Raidre was went back to cutting herself out. "Almost done."

Torian pulled out a frag grenade and threw it in the gulper's open mouth as it struggled to close it and swam back to meet her.

"How's your leg?" he asked.

Raidre groaned out of frustration. "Ask me when I'm not pissed off."

Torian chuckled and finished cutting her loose. "Got it."

He grabbed her and used his jets to get them a fair distance away. He turned them around once they were clear. Raidre looked back at him.

"What?" she asked.

"Toast."

Just as Torian responded, the frag grenade went off. Raidre whistled. "Smooth, great timing."

They heard a dull thud and saw that through the cloud of debris a piece of the gulper's jaw had been blown off and fell to the floor. Torian frowned and Raidre pulled out her spear gun and loaded it. Torian was about to go see if it was dead when it came lunging at them at full speed. It happened too fast for Torian to see it. He was shoved by the force of the gulper's lunge, but Raidre had been ready and aiming for it and as soon as it got close enough, she fired directly at it.

The force of the spear gun was already impressive, but with the gulper swimming at full speed against the shot of the gun it was at least tripled. It pierced its eye and ran out the back of its skull to continue its flight through the water beyond the Mandalorians' sight. The gulper, however had been coming for them at full speed so even though the shot had killed it, it was still coming. Raidre was caught and grappled to the ocean floor.

Torian swam after them. He sighed and released a breath he hadn't realized he was holding when he saw her push off the gulper from herself. She kicked it with her good leg. Torian laughed.

"Su cuy'gar?" he asked her.

Raidre kicked it one last time. "Yea." Raidre sighed. "I need to treat this… I think it's broken."

Torian grabbed her. "What do you want?"

Raidre quirked her buy'ce to the side. "Huh?"

Torian smiled and nudged to the gulper. "Trophy from your kill. What's it gonna be?"

Raidre shrugged. "Gills?"

Torian nodded, cut off two sets of gills and then took them to the surface.

Yea, she had broken both bones. Torian helped her set it and shot her full of kolto to help her healing along. Torian sat back down as he wiped sweat from his brow and looked at a pale, but conscious and quiet Raidre.

"How do you do it?"

Raidre finished bandaging her leg and looked up. She took a deep breath and exhaled as she leaned against the tree she sat beside. She opened her eyes once her jaw was no longer clenched.

"Do what?"

Torian took a swig of the canteen water. "I know a lot of tough people, not many of them handle setting bones or stitches like you do."

Raidre shrugged. "Practice makes perfect. Didn't always have Mako to help me. Was a mercenary before her and Braeden picked me up for the Great Hunt."

Torian frowned. "You don't talk about that time much."

She shrugged as she reached for the canteen. Torian handed it to her and she took a sip. "Not much to tell." She replied.

Torian shook his head and grinned at her. "Osik, cyare."

Raidre put the cap on the canteen and shrugged. "I don't like being a downer."

She shivered despite their fire. Torian pulled out their cover and sat next to her. He draped an arm and the cover around the two of them, pulling her into an embrace as he kept them warm. She sighed and snuggled into him. Torian kissed her brow and rubbed his unshaven cheek against her hair.

"Still want to know."

Raidre sighed. "Fine. But if I share, so do you."

Torian chuckled. "Fair enough."

Raidre shrugged. "So, what do you want to know?"

"Who's Rai'Drynn Ravera?"

Torian saw Raidre stick her tongue out as she faked vomiting. "Hate that name."

Torian nudged. "Why?"

Raidre looked at him, he never looked away. She sighed. "Fine. Grew up in Dromund Kaas."

Torian frowned. "Don't sound like it."

Raidre cleared her throat, did her best facial impression of Chère. "Oh, but dearest Torian, sadly 'tis all true."

Torian shuddered at her perfect inflection and enunciation. He didn't let go, but he looked away and stuck his tongue out. "Nope, hard pass."

Raidre laughed. "Yea, pretty much how I feel about it too."

"So how does someone from Kaas end up here?"

Raidre shrugged. "On Kaas, if you want anything done, you gotta know the right people. Or go through the military. My mom wanted a doctor and a lawyer. So my older sister when to law school and I went to medical school."

Torian's jaw slackened. "Don't see it."

Raidre laughed. "Neither did I, but that didn't really matter. To go to law school, my sister married the son of a prominent law firm owner. Through their connections, she got sponsored and was able to be admitted to the University of her choice."

Torian frowned. "You need sponsorship to go to school?"

Raidre nodded. "If you want to go to a school that's worth a damn and isn't military funded, yea…"

Torian's frown deepened. "So who were you supposed to marry?"

Raidre sighed. "Some pompous asshole's son. A big shot in the medical field."

Torian nodded. He found her hand and their fingers laced. Raidre smiled and shrugged. "But that didn't work out. So I was disowned and declared dead. Without money or a legal identity anymore, I kind of had to figure things out on my own. Especially since my uncle Guyla died."

"Guyla. Mando'ad?"

Raidre nodded. "Elek."

Torian continued to frown and cocked his head to the right. "How do you have a Mandalorian uncle?"

Raidre smiled. "Was lucky… my mother had a sister who was a badass, that aunt was my godmother. When she passed away, her husband took over being my guardian. When I was young, he would be my body guard. What my parents didn't know was that his idea of being a 'body guard' included making me into a fighter."

Torian rubbed his cheek against the top of her head as he pulled her in. "Yea. Like that about you."

Raidre cuddled into him. "You're a rare breed."

"So, what happened to you and with Guyla?"

Raidre sighed, Torian looked down and saw that her lower lip trembled. He rubbed her back and pulled her in closer.

"I put up with the situation as long as I could stomach it. But after a pretty explosive fight, it became clear that it was a choice between family or self-respect. I chose self-respect. Guyla came with me. But he had a drinking problem. We'd do jobs, but I never knew where the money went. Until a job went wrong and Guyla died… And found out he owed a lot of creds to the wrong people."

Torian hissed in a breath. "Oh."

"Yea, it sucked."

Torian sighed. "Tell."

Raidre sighed. "Ugh, fine. He owed a lot of credits. I was given a choice. As a woman, I had a certain set of choices in order to pay off my debt."

Torian froze.

"I chose to burn my face and make sure that that option was never suggested again. I crawled back into the hole we had called home. Gave myself a day to mourn and heal. And then I began working in the 'Pits' as a fighter. I had nothing to lose. Which made me a really good at what I did."

"Heard of the 'Pits', women don't stay long."

Raidre shrugged. "I crawled out, and wouldn't go back in."

Torian pulled up her chin and touched his forehead to hers. "Yea, that sucked."

Raidre laughed. "It's okay. That was then. This is now."

She wrapped her arms around his neck and pulled him in for a kiss. Torian sighed and pulled her in so that as he fell back into the sand she came along with him. He pulled away as she stiffened.

"How's your leg?"

Raidre smiled. "I'm good." She adjusted her position and settled to rest her head on his chest.

Torian rubbed her back and scalp. She groaned into his affection and he smiled at the sound.

"It's, your turn." She whispered.

"Pfff… Pretty boring."

Torian could feel her smile on his chest.

"Don't care, tell."

Torian chuckled. "Fine. Only fair. Dad was gone before I knew him, but mom was around."

"My condolences." She whispered.

Torian shook his head as he began to run his hands up and down the length of her arm. "It was a long time ago."

"Still."

"Thank you."

For a moment, they were quiet, but Torian sighed. "Growing up sucked. Corridan was there for me."

"How did you guys meet?" asked Raidre.

Torian laughed. Raidre pulled herself up so she could look at Torian, who was laughing out loud. "No building for school. Up at dawn. Start with running and exercise. Corridan didn't like that I ran faster. So he would challenge me to a spar."

Raidre grinned. "He was your rival?!"

Torian laughed and nodded. "He was such a shabuir! Always one-upping me. Then Rayik joined our class."

Raidre frowned. "Rayik?"

Torian gestured with his hands as he told the story. "This kid was massive, twice the size of the largest kid. Mean too."

Raidre grimaced. "Oh, boy."

Torian nodded. "Yea. Decided to pick on arue'tal."

Raidre let her head fall on her palm as she pouted at him. "Yours truly."

Torian smiled and shrugged. "Rayik beat the osik out of me. No one came to help, 'cept for Cor."

Raidre quirked a brow. "Oh?"

"Cor looked at me take the first punch. Spoke up for me. Rayik challenged us both. And we looked at each other."

Raidre smiled but remained silent as Torian paused.

He sighed. "Cor ran up and I was hunched over, he spring boarded off me. And we fought like a team." He looked at Raidre. "And we never looked back."

Raidre smiled and nodded. "Very cute."

Torian smiled. "Not anymore."

Raidre grinned. "I don't know about that. I think you're pretty cute when you sleep, or when you get out of the fresher's and it's cold-"

Torian grabbed her arms as he sat up. "Not funny."

Raidre laughed out loud. "I swear! The first time was an accident, but that noise you make!"

Torian glared at her. "Not funny at all."

Raidre laughed and laid her head back on his chest. "I'm sorry. I wish I was more sorry about teasing you."

Torian rolled his eyes and groaned. "Suuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuure."

Raidre got up enough to kiss the tip of his nose. "Don't be such a sour-puss."

Torian smiled a bit. "Less would be better."

"So." Raidre said. "That was a short story, I think you owe me another, more personal one."

Torian nodded. "Yea, I guess I do."

Raidre pointed to a scar along his ribs. "How'd you get that?"

Torian groaned and sighed. "Another scar?"

"Naw-ah! Now you definitely have to tell me how you got this one!"

Torian groaned and clamped his arms down on Raidre and crushed her to his chest. "Fine, fine."

Raidre let herself be crushed. She waited and said no more as she caressed the chest she was trapped against.

"Was with a woman once. It didn't end well. The end."

Raidre shoved against his chest. "I'm not asking for all the details, I didn't give you all of them, but you gotta try harder."

Torian sighed. "She thought she could help me overcome the traitor's mark. Her clan thought otherwise. Her buir told her that to regain her honor she would have to kill me. She tried."

"Okay." Raidre said. "That's enough."

Torian nodded. "Thanks."

Raidre kissed his scared cheeks. "We'll get you some Skar'klas tomorrow."

Torian chuckled. "Dawn or dusk?"

Raidre smiled. "Dawn, wanna spend the rest of the day relaxing, enjoy the sun a bit."

Torian smiled back. "It'd be nice to spend some alone time."

Raidre grinned. "Yea, that would be nice."

"Ever eaten Mandalorian food?" Raidre rolled her eyes at Torain. "Made by a Mandalorian, I mean? At your adoption, maybe?" he asked.

Raidre smirked. "Is that your way of asking me out?"

Torian shrugged. "Maybe. Thought I might make you some tiingilar. See what you think."

Raidre frowned. "What's wrong with my tiingilar?"

Torian laughed. "Nothing, nothing! I just want to make you something. You know, so you can relax."

Raidre flicked his nose. "Pick a time, and we'll have dinner."

Torian smiled. "Good. Plan on it later. Think of it as a challenge. They say any woman who can survive a plate of tiingilar is a keeper."

Raidre narrowed her eyes. "How damn spicy is this going to be?"

Torian laughed out loud. "I'll fix you some, soon as I can get back to the galley."

"Torian, why are you deflecting the question."

Torian pulled her in and made sure they were both covered. "Shhh… Should get some sleep. Hunt at dawn."

Raidre settled in with a frown. "Fine. Be that way."

Torian kissed her forehead. "G'night."

Raidre snuggled in. "Good night."