'It's the gairks!' the despondent Alwari told her. 'They're dragging her away!'
Luminara's expression twisted. 'Dragging her? With what? They have no hands.'
By way of answer, the guide opened his mouth to form a wide, gaping O. Suddenly chilled by more than the river water, Luminara understood.
The instant he'd seen Barriss knocked off her mount and swept downstream, Anakin had gone in after her. He hadn't thought about it. The action was entirely reflexive. He knew that if the circumstances had been reversed, she would now be the one swimming hard to catch up with him. When he saw that she was unaccountably receding away from him, he redoubled his stroke. He was a strong swimmer, having grown fond of the skill when he had been confined indoors during winter months. Before long he was close enough to exchange words.
'You okay?' he called out to her. 'How are you, Barriss?'
'Wet,' she shot back. 'Very-wet.'
'Can you swim with me to shore?' Raising a hand, he
pointed to where the others were already beginning to emerge on the far bank.
'I'm afraid I can't,' she told him. 'This situation sucks.' At his look of incomprehension, she gestured downward with her free hand. 'I mean literally.'
Taking a deep breath, he ducked under the surface. The crystal-clear water offered little in the way of obstruction to his vision. He saw her legs, kicking hard but driving her nowhere. Behind her in the water was a single gairk, mouth agape, gills expanded to the maximum. It was taking in water in a steady stream and expelling it through its gills as it applied suction to drag her steadily downstream. Bursting back to the surface, he gestured reassuringly.
'Hang on. I'll take care of this.' Taking another deep breath, he dipped back down and swam straight toward the creature, ignoring her legs in passing.
It did not try to dodge. It didn't have to, since he found himself intercepted in midwater. Looking back, he saw that not one but three of the creatures had taken up positions behind him. No two of the twisted maws were exactly alike, but when the three put their heads together, the differently shaped jaws fit together like the pieces of a puzzle. They were now applying suction to him-in unison. A fourth joined in. He felt himself being drawn inexorably back toward that unified dark maw. It now struck him, as it had Luminara, that they had no teeth. They didn't need them. By joining their jaws together to create greater and greater amounts of suction, they literally inhaled their prey.
The technique was uncomplicated. Jolt travelers off larger, inconsumable crossers like the suubatars, get them in the water, drag them downstream away from help, and then ingest them at leisure. Only, he and Barriss were not helpless grass grazers. The need for air was becoming imperative. Kick as he might, he found himself unable to free himself from the force of that quadruple suction. What was it Obi- Wan had often told him? If you can't defy the storm, go with it.
Turning, he kicked not away from his assailants, but directly toward them. Dark maws yawned expectantly. Lack of oxygen was beginning to blur his vision when he drew close enough to strike out with the lightsaber. As their flesh was parted, the four conjoined gairks separated, and the drag on his body evaporated. With the last remaining oxygen in his lungs, he kicked for the surface, breaking it with a gasp and sucking gratefully at the fresh air. Nearby, he saw Barriss swimming not for the nearby shore, but toward him.
'You all right?' she inquired. She seemed unjustly composed.
'I was coming,' he wheezed, wiping water from his face, 'to rescue you.'
'I appreciate the gesture,' she responded courteously while continuing to tread water, 'but I was really in no trouble.'
Aware that their Masters and the two guides were watching from shore, he forced down the first retort that sprang to mind. 'You didn't look like you were in no trouble. You were being pulled downstream.'
'I know that. It was just a matter of getting turned around so that I could strike at the gairk.' Her eyes bored unflinchingly into his own as she deactivated and resecured her lightsaber. 'You could have stayed on your suubatar. Did you hear me yelling for help? Did I ask you to come in after me?'
His reply was curt. 'I see. Well, now that I understand you a little better, I promise that you won't have to worry about it happening again.' He started to kick toward shore.
She kept pace with him easily. 'Don't misunderstand, Ana- kin. It was a gallant gesture, and I appreciate your willingness to risk yourself on my behalf.' She chuckled softly, her laugh far more restrained than that of her Master. 'Not to mention your willingness to get yourself soaked for me.'
Stroking smoothly on his side, he looked down at himself. 'I certainly did that, didn't I? You swim well.'
She laughed again. 'The Force is with me. Race you to shore.'
'You're-' Before he could say 'on,' she had burst forward like an eel. He almost caught up to her, but her hands and feet touched the sandy beach an instant before his own.
Two solemn-faced Jedi were waiting to greet them.
'Well, you two are certainly a pretty sight.' Luminara stood with hands on hips. 'What happened, Barriss?'
Barriss looked away. 'It was my fault. I leaned too far to one side to try to see what was going on up front, lost my balance, and fell. Then something started pulling at my back and clothing, and I found myself being dragged downcurrent. I could see that it was some kind of water creature, but in falling out of the saddle my robes became twisted around me. Wet, I had a difficult time unwrapping them before I could get to my lightsaber.'
'Very good, Padawan,' conceded Obi-Wan. He turned his attention to the other apprentice. 'What's your excuse, Anakin?'
Moving one foot slightly in a nervous gesture his mother would have recognized instantly, the taller Padawan muttered uneasily, 'I went in to help her. Once I reached her, I realized she didn't need my help. But I didn't know that at the time.' Looking up, he met his Master's gaze. 'All I had to go on was the evidence of my senses. They told me she'd been dumped in the water and might need help. I'm sorry if I did something wrong, or violated yet one more unfathomable Jedi rule.'
