Deep
Chapter Three
… in Debt
By RingPrincess
A/N: Here's another chapter of Deep, where Gippal gets into deep, deep trouble. :P Hey, Rippal lovers, rippal shippers wants you. Rippal(underscore)shippers(dot)livejournal(dot)com. Come!

Two days later

Shinra patted the handles of the bike. "Perhaps some of my best work yet."

Rikku ran her hand down the leather seat. "You always say that. They look beautiful, Shinra."

"Want to make a test run?" Shinra rubbed his hands together.

Rikku's head snapped up and she squealed. "You'll let me!"

Yuna and Paine paused at the top of the stairs on hearing Rikku's squeal.

"Uh oh," Paine muttered and hurried down the stairs. Yuna was right behind her.

"Aren't they dangerous?" Yuna asked, hands behind her back.

Rikku shrugged and sat on the bike's seat.

"As dangerous as any other hover," Shinra replied. "It depends on the driver."

"So in Rikku's hands, that makes very." Paine responded.

Rikku sniffed and looked away.

"Bikanel," Shinra continued. "Should be large enough so you can all learn to control the modified systems. I've also created helmets and gauntlets with added controls for better handling of the bike under all conditions."

Rikku bounced to her feet. "Well, it will take a few hours to get to Bikanel. I'm going to find something that won't scrape me raw every time I fall into the sand." She took the stairs two at a time towards the lift.

"You have something that fits that description?" Yuna called after her.

"Do you?" Rikku paused, glanced over her shoulder and raised an eyebrow pointedly. She strode through the door and it swished shut behind her.

Paine rested her weight on one hip and chuckled as Yuna dashed up the stairs after Rikku. "You mean I have to drive one of those things?" Yuna cried. "Rikku, wait for me."

--

Rikku grinned and shifted her weight as the bike slid out and stopped. She rested one foot on the ground and watched Paine, Tidus and Yuna making more tentative attempts at driving the bikes than what she was doing. Tidus was the surest of the three. Rikku didn't mind, it gave her more room to try the crazy eights, spin outs, and jumps that the bikes were truly capable of. She reverently ran her hands down the machine's handlebars. They were all Shinra had said they would be and more. She hoped he could make a dress sphere to make changing into the bike jumpsuits easier and so she wouldn't have to manually stuff her hair under her helmet. Rikku giggled a bit and shook her head. 'Of all the things to be worried about.'

"Rikku, you have a private communication coming in." Buddy reported from the Celsius' bridge. "Brother is landing the ship."

"Roger, did they leave a name?"

"It's Sal." Buddy sounded pleased.

"Shit," Rikku whispered, forgetting that her radio was still on.

"I take it that isn't a good thing." Buddy's voice deepened in concern.

"Land that ship." Rikku ordered. "And set a course for Djose Temple." She savagely pressed down on the accelerators as she saw the Celsius come down for a landing. "Paine, Yuna, Tidus keep practicing." She ordered and hit the brakes as soon as she hit the ramp, pulling up the bike's nose to go up the stairs and skidding out into the Engine Room. She shut down the bike's engine and tugged off her helmet as she jogged up the stairs and to the lift. Once inside she unzipped her jumpsuit a bit and paced around, willing the machine to go faster than it was intended and inwardly cursed, as it didn't.

She burst into the bridge. "Put me on." She bit her lip. "Sal, tell me what's going on."

"Things have gone bad, real bad." Sal replied, his voice seemed too calm for it to be true, but Rikku could hear screams and the sound of shots behind him.

"How? Where are you and where is Rex?"

"The bandits are too many and they know our tactics. There are Al Bhed in their group as well. Rex is at Djose Temple. He should be ready to leave in less than half an hour."

"Brother, step on it." Rikku yelled.

"Why?" Brother shouted back. "You get a call and suddenly you are barking orders as if you are the leader."

"If you want to keep your manhood, step on it." Rikku snarled. "Sal, I'm on my way. Hang in there."

Sal rattled off a string of numbers, which Rikku hurriedly jotted down on the back of Rex's radio number. "Hurry your cute ass up." Sal joked.

Rikku clenched her fists. "Hang in there Sal, you understand."

"I hear and obey." Sal replied.

Rikku grimaced as the transmission faded out. "Shinra, unlock the weapon storeroom for me." She turned and caught Brother, while piloting, glaring at her. "What?"

"Go back, get Yuna, Tidus and Paine." Brother responded.

Rikku shook her head. "They can't keep up and this isn't their problem. It's mine. My stupidity started this and I'm going to finish it."

"They could keep up." Brother shouted.

"Not with what I'm planning." Rikku retorted. "Shinra?"

"It's open." Shinra looked over at her. "I hope you know what your doing."

"Don't jinx me." Rikku growled and headed towards the doors.

"What are you planning?" Brother shouted after her.

Rikku glanced back, "A fight."

--

Brother hovered over the dirt stretch that dared to call itself a road. In someplace there was only an empty stretch between cliffs covered in grass to let you know that the area was passable. Below a stream of men and women on hovers passed.

Rikku shot out from the Celsius' belly, bringing the nose of the hover bike up a bit to keep stable before she hit the ground. She landed behind the last hover in line and piled on the speed, weaving between hovers to get to the front.

"Rex, this is Rikku, what's our status."

"About time you showed up." Rex muttered as they skidded around the main curve in the road. "I've got fifty more people with heavy weaponry and extra supplies. Last report the fighters were almost out of ammunition."

"All right then, here's the plan." Rikku grimaced. "And pray that it works." The line of hovers swerved off the main road and into the Moonflow towards the coordinates displayed on the inside of Rikku's helmet visor. Rikku pulled up along side the leader of the string, which she assumed was Rex and as she delineated her plans, groups of hovers peeled off from the main column and headed in different directions.

Rikku piled on the speed. 'Hang on,' she willed the fighting Al Bhed. 'Hang on.'

--

Gippal glanced at the cliff behind him. It hadn't moved since the last time he looked and it was seriously hampering his ability to do anything about the predicament he and his men were in.

Sal braced against the kickback of his rifle and glanced over. "Reinforcements are coming." He shouted over the noise of gunfire.

Gippal let off another mortar shot. "Stop repeating yourself."

Sal grinned. "You looked worried."

"I don't have time to be worried."

"That's the spirit." Sal dropped his rifle. He was out of ammo. He drew his knife instead and slashed at the nearest bandit. "What I'd like to know is where they got their arms? Last reports had them using swords and items. How in the Farplane's name did they get hold of guns?"

Gippal grunted. It was a good question and one he didn't have the answer to, and dearly wanted, because it was making the difference between winning and losing.

At first Gippal thought it was a distant rumble of thunder, but that didn't make sense since the sky was free of clouds and the noise didn't go away. The sound teased his ears over the sounds of the battle and he shook his head to get rid of it. It only gradually occurred to him that the sound was getting louder.

A flash of bright white obscured his vision and left him blinking trying to see again. Tears streaming down his cheek. He wiped them away with a sweaty palm and looked up.

A bike flew over head, the helmeted rider upside down and firing with a pair of Al Bhed revolvers. As he watched they let go of the bike with their legs and dropped down, pivoting in mid air and landed one hand between their knees in front of him, the other revolver still firing.

As they stood, Gippal realized that it was a woman. She didn't even look at him and he took a few seconds to take stock of the situation.

In the few moments that the his vision had disappeared, what he now realized was judicious use of Al Bhed flash bombs, the bandits were completely surrounded. Flamethrowers sent streams of fire through the bandits while rifle sharp shooters singled out targets.

The woman in front of him holstered her revolvers and held up her fist. In shock, Gippal watched as the bike, which had seemingly been careening out of control (and taking out quite a few bandits) pivoted and returned to her. She grabbed something off the side and hoisted it to her shoulder. It was a huge pipe and she aimed it to the sky and must have pulled a trigger since a three large explosions, much like his mortar shot arced into the air.

Gippal shook himself back to the task at hand and used his huge gun to send off a mortar shot after the woman's shot.

A few minutes later it was all but over. The bandits were dead, dying or unconscious.

Gippal rested his gun on the ground and took a deep sigh. In the mayhem he had gotten separated from the woman who had saved their lives. He looked about to find her and saw a yellow full face masked man he could tell was Rex by his swagger, holding a knife to a throat of a bandit marching towards the woman. Gippal strode over towards them ready to congratulate her on her amazing tactics.

She racked the tube, reached up and pulled off her helmet. Her long blonde hair cascaded down and flew from side to side as she shook her head. Gippal's mouth dropped and when the head turned he knew who it was going to be. He snapped his jaw shut.

"Rikku," he said coolly. Everything he was about to say died in his throat.

Rikku smiled and it faltered for a moment as she looked at him. She settled on the bike seat and set the helmet beside her. Rex and his hostage were a welcome distraction. "What's this Rex?" She gestured at the man. He had a broad, well chiseled face with bright green eyes and wavy blonde hair. He leered at her.

"The bandit leader," Rex jerked the tip of his knife up, forcing the bandit's head up. "Like most cowards he was leading from behind."

Rikku cocked her head to the side and narrowed her eyes. So this was the man who had been giving the Machine Faction forces so much trouble. "I suppose you have a name?" She sneered and raked the rest of his figure up and down, narrow shoulders, narrow hips, he seemed a box with legs, definitely not her type.

Gippal cleared his throat and Rikku looked over at him. Gippal's hatchet face was glaring at her, perhaps more angrily than the bandit. Her lips twitched and she looked back at the bandit who had realized now that the woman wasn't the leader but this boy with an eye patch. Rikku made a disgusted sound in the back of her throat and a knife whizzed past the leader's ear. The leader jumped and looked back at her.

"Your name?" She frowned.

"You aren't in charge," the bandit sneered. "That boy is and you know it."

Rex twisted the bandit's hands. "Show more respect to Cid's daughter." He growled into the man's ear.

Rikku smirked and shoved away from the bike. She strutted up to the bandit and stared into his eyes. "Your name?"

Gippal narrowed his eyes. "Answer her question."

"I'm growing bored." Rikku smiled. "When I get bored, bad things happen." She turned and strutted back to Gippal and laid a hand on his shoulder, pressing against him and rested her hand on his chest. "Very bad things, like death." She said cheerfully.

"Lin," the bandit said grudgingly.

"So, what should we do with you, Lin?" Rikku watched the bandit with one eye.

"I say we kill him," Rex suggested.

"Ah, that would work if he wasn't already dead." Rikku smiled and looked up at Gippal. He was staring down at her as if she had lost her mind.

Gippal's face hardened. "How can he already be dead?"

"He's an unsent. Can't you tell?" Rikku shrugged and pushed away from Gippal and turned back towards the bandit.

Lin smirked. "You're good. Pretty and perceptive, I like that in a woman."

Rikku's brow twitched. "I've been around enough of you unsent. I think it's the smell or lack thereof that is beginning to tip me off."

"Since death is out of the question, what's left?" Rex asked, perplexed.

Gippal frowned. "We send him."

"In his preferred manner. It just depends on how peaceful of a sending he wants." Rikku shrugged.

Lin grinned. "You can try."

Rikku shook her head and sighed. "Your forgetting I've been around unsent before. I know how to deal with you." She smirked and caressed the butt of her revolver. Gippal noticed that her daggers were hanging underneath the guns.

"If you want a fight, I can give you the fight of a lifetime." Lin snarled.

Rikku gestured for Rex to let Lin go and Rex did so reluctantly. "You can try." She mocked. "However, I am Rikku. I have defeated Sin, Yu Yevon, Yunalesca, Lord Zaon, Omega, Trema, Shuyin and Vegnagun. I think I can handle a two bit unsent such as you."

Gippal took two steps back as Lin's features twisted and pyreflies poured out of the man's body. Rikku smirked and shifted her stance. "Everyone get back," she screamed.

"You may defeat me, but you will not defeat the others." Lin shouted and raised his arms.

"Less talk, more fight, unsent!" Rikku yelled back as Lin's form twisted and changed into a fiend easily three times her fight and of no recognizable type. Huge hands with three razor tipped fingers and wicked looking hooks along the knuckles and up the arms to the elbows. It had a head with a beak and dark feathers and comparatively spindly legs to support such a massive creature.

Gippal cursed fluently.

Rikku disregarded her weapons now that the fight was upon her. She jumped into the fight, starting with a wicked right hook that flowed into her snap kick. Her hair flew about her. As she whirled she reached for her guns and began to fire a spray of bullets. She landed, arms crossed in front of her, knees bent and smiling.

Rex ran a wide circle about them and Sal dashed up to restrain Gippal as he was about to join the fight.

"Don't," Sal yelled into his ear. "You heard her, she wants this fight."

Rikku dropped the guns back to her holsters and unclipped her daggers. She spun them around her fingers and crouched waiting. "Come on," she murmured. "Do something."

She leaned back, daggers whirling as the creature made a swipe at her. She back flipped out of its range and hit the edge of the fist as it went overhead. She crossed her arms over her chest and shifted from hip to hip.

"Now, she's going to dance," Gippal shook his head and stopped pulling against Sal's grip.

Rikku dodged the fiend's next attack and reached past to grab something and then on her way out, sliced it across the belly. The fiend roared and his reflexive swipe threw Rikku away. Rikku landed on her side. She pulled herself up and coughed. "All right, no more nice Rikku." She muttered as a huge ball of spit landed beside her. "Yuck," she rolled away and vaulted to her feet. She ran towards the fiend and as it reached out to swipe her she caught its hand swung forward and around, pushed off the arm and landed on its head.

The fiend roared.

Gippal was vaguely aware that the entire battlefield was silent, enraptured by this tableau of this petite woman fighting the huge fiend, and she was winning.

"Die, motherfucker," Rikku growled as she plunged her daggers into its eyes and pulled her guns and fired both full clips directly into the fiend's brain. She holstered them so fast afterwards some couldn't believe she had drawn them in the first place. As the fiend started to fall, Rikku pulled the daggers out and jumped from her position, landing as she had earlier in front of Gippal. Lin's huge head hit the ground right beside her and then exploding into pyreflies.

Rikku stared at the ground a few moments panting. Then she looked up and caught his eyes. She slowly stood up and with a quick spin cleaned the daggers of any blood and in the same smooth motion clipped them back under her guns. Her eyes never left his.

Sal let go of Gippal and tension sparked between Gippal and Rikku. Rex swallowed as he looked between the two. Sal bit his lip.

Rikku tossed her hair and deliberately looked away from his intense gaze. Her eyes traveled over the orderly chaos of the battlefield. The people made lots of noise and looked exceedingly busy.

"What are you doing here?" Gippal snarled.

"Finishing what I started," Rikku looked back and took a half step backwards as Gippal was less than six inches away from her. "It seems appropriate that yet another cliff was involved." Her voice twisted.

Gippal closed the gap and put their noses two inches apart despite the eight-inch height difference. "I thought I said I didn't need your help."

"Evidently you thought wrong." Rikku placed her hands on her hips. "I would think that some thanks are in order, some congratulations even on such a handy way of saving everyone. But I guess that is a bit much to ask from you." Her jaw thrust forward. "You know, I never want fawning or groveling which some people seem to crave. Just a simple thank you, Rikku, once in a while would be nice to show some appreciation for everything I have done for this be-damned planet and it's equally be-damned people. Not, thank you, Cid's girl. Not, thank you, Yuna's guardian. Thank you, Rikku, but somehow I doubt I'll ever get it. So why do I bother working my ass off everyday to keep this place safe. Next time, I think I'll develop the 'I don't care' attitude of most of the population and leave you all to rot. It is no less than most of you deserve." She shoved past Gippal, leaving no doubt in any observers mind that all her comments were in particular directed at him. She paused at her bike. "Oh right," she scoffed. "I remember now why I do this. Because if I don't, who will and I actually like the killing." She threw a quick glance over her shoulder. Gippal was still glaring at her. "So I might as well make it a job."

A cold silence fell over the Al Bhed. Rikku laughed.

"You don't like to hear that do you?" Rikku mocked and flipped a few switches on the bike, letting it run through its diagnostic. "My job is dealing death. Savior of the world by killing those who put it in danger, we kill fiends, bandits and your everyday unsent. Gullwing Rikku is at your service." She mocked and then glanced at Sal. "Because I like you Sal, this is free and only because I like you." She pointed at him.

"You have my eternal humble thanks." Sal murmured with a twinkle in his eye.

"Keep it up and I will charge." Rikku growled and turned back to Gippal. "Any other objections to my being here pulling your ass out of the fire?"

In his fury, Gippal had lost his ability to quip or mock. He strode over and trapped her against the bike with one hand on the bike seat. "Of course I do, other than the obvious you could have been killed. I didn't ask you here and what in fuck do you mean what you started?"

"Get a clue," she snapped. "If I hadn't mentioned that Yu, Pa, Ti and I had blew up a base of this scum you wouldn't have thought to go after them. Somehow I opened up your blasted male pride and sense of competition."

Sal muttered, "perceptive and pretty."

"You're insane," Gippal hissed.

"Oh please," Rikku rolled her eyes. "This is how it has always been. You can't stand to be out done by the younger female. At three it was learning Spiran, at five it was machines, at ten it was excavation, at sixteen you joined the Crimson Squad while I joined up with Yuna as a Guardian. We're running out of things to compete with, Gippal."

"This had nothing to do with you and the Gullwings." Gippal hissed.

"It had everything to do with me." Rikku shouted. "You discovered that I'd grown up and you couldn't handle it. This," Rikku gestured widely, "is the damn result." Rikku's breath came in gasps and her eyes had narrowed to slits.

Gippal leaned closer. "I don't think so."

"Then you are a fool," Rikku said evenly. And they stared at each other neither moved. It was a standoff.

Rex leaned over to Sal. "How long till they break down and kiss?" He murmured.

Sal shook his head.

Rikku's radio chirped and she growled, reached up and snapped it on. "What?"

"We really need to pick up the others." Brother whined.

"Go without me then." Rikku snapped and shut the receiver off. The extreme tension between her and Gippal had been broken. Gippal stood up and turned. He got a few steps before Rikku's voice caught up with him. "Don't you dare walk away from me, don't you dare treat me like a child."

Gippal stopped and turned. "How do you want me to treat you?" He shouted, gesturing widely with his arms.

"To dinner, asshole." Rikku crossed her arms. "Served with a side of a sincere thank you. And since you're busy now, I'll collect later."

A wave of laughter ran through the Al Bhed ranks and Gippal looked down his nose at her. "And why should I comply?"

"Because I'm not giving you a choice." Rikku gave a half smile. "You owe me, Gippal." The bike beeped and Rikku swept up her hair with one hand and her helmet in the other and placed it on her head. She mounted the bike, jerked it around and drove up next to him. She flipped up the visor and stared at him. "See you around." She slammed the visor back down and accelerated away from him and the other Al Bhed.

Sal sighed and came up to drape his arm around Gippal's shoulder. "Looks like you get that date whether or not you asked her. A word of manly advice, an apology and taking her someplace afterwards might also be in order."

"That's more than one word," Gippal snarled and shrugged Sal's arm off.

"But," Sal continued unperturbed. "You've never taken my advice about women anyways so why do I waste my breath?"

"I'll finish talking with you later," Gippal threatened and strode off to supervise the loading of the prisoners.

Rex sighed and wrapped his arm about Sal. "And I wanted to see them kiss."

--

TBC...

Shout out Time!

for always x: here is more to feed your addiction.
marajade963: Ohhh... Gippal, bandits, not good, but what does Rikku have in store for Gippal or vice versa! removes hook from lip
Black Eyed Mistress: the two are rather confrontational. In fact this entire fic is, what am I on? I'm glad you enjoyed it.
Letselina: blushes Thank you. When I started the story, the opening line was Deep in the Moonflow from the very beginning and I thought it made such a neat title. It evolved from there. snickers I'm glad you like the story though. Hope you enjoy this segment.
AnimeAires402: gently removes hook from flesh Caught another one! Hee! More humor here, must always have the humor. Thanks for reading!
The Pirate Jilt: 'The Sex' Okay, here... update. offers update to the pirate YARRR!