A/N { So sorry for the long Hiatus guys! I was supposed to be responsible for this chapter and then I started college! That really has had me going through the ringer XD. But don't worry! You're ever faithful -if not late- Admin Sapphire -me!-  finally has things together! SO, without further delay, enjoy part one of chapter Twenty-Nine ;) }

Chapter 29- Third person Omniscient 

If Skylar had one regret as she faced certain doom, or what she believed to be certain doom, it was not talking to Kayla. Especially since she had had no one else to go to during the nights following her shower. She missed staying up late talking with her best friend. Giving your soul a deep clean was needed every few months just like anything else that required upkeep.

The problem at the time had been those female Yautja. They were too intimidating, not to mention out of Skylar's ranking by a long shot. If she let them see her weakness it wouldn't matter what she could do. She'd be humiliated.

Everyone was above Skylar but that was going to change soon. She had been determined to be her best friend's equal before the hunt was done, after all, it shouldn't just be Kayla working hard to get them home.She had held hope she'd be able to lighten the burden somehow. However, it died quickly when she actually landed on the planet her and Kweide were supposed to be hunting on. The place was a horror show.

"So... we have to hunt things here?" Her large blue eyes moved across each part of the surrounding area with disgust. It was a swamp. A smelly, grime covered, swamp.

"Do you see somewhere else? These are our coordinates, our hunting grounds begin here Oooman." Kweide dropped down into the murky water below,it fell just under his butt. Naturally, that meant it would be waist deep for Skylar.

"They begin here, but where do they end?" She asked as she followed suit. She hated it. Each squishy muck filled step was horrible, more so because she had expected land. Part of her was a little envious because the recordings had given her false expectations of a wonderland. All she had now was the heebies and sopping wet shoes.

"They do not end. The whole planet is our hunting ground." Kweide took the lead and began sloshing through the water. If anything were to jump out at them he at least wanted to be ahead. A surprise attack on his human ward would be catastrophic to the hunt.

"So, technically we could go somewhere else?" She glanced up at him as he let out an exasperated huff.

"Yes Oooman, we could go elsewhere, but we will not. Not yet. Our first adversary must be here." He was exhausted already with how she was behaving. Being beside her was not usually so difficult but her complaints were driving him to anger as he was already on edge. Knowing the Elder and the rest of the ship would soon be viewing the hunt was nerve wracking.

The familiar whirr signaled the metal watch bird's arrival. It nearly made him snarl.

He glanced down to the beacon remote hybrid in his hand, should the bird ever endanger their kind's secrets, the erasing button existed. He would not need the remote portion on the uncharted planet but the beacon was more than necessary since no one would be able to track them otherwise.

Given their odds, he held out the item for Skylar to take. She was useless to him in the hunt so she might as well hold it away from danger. He did not plan on having her kill more than a single creature anyway. Just one to prove her worth to the clan and then he could carry on with her out of the way. Assisting when needed but ultimately staying safe.

"What's this?" She tilted her head, reluctant to take whatever it was from him. She was liable to drop something and if this was important she was nervous to have it.

"Important, keep safe." He grabbed her hand and placed it in her palm without another word. She could handle the rest from there he was sure.

Skylar groaned and followed after him as he picked up pace again. How could he think this was smart? She was far too clumsy to deal with such a responsibility. Especially not while hunting. Heck, he was the one that had done her practice training wasn't he? He should know by now she was no James Bond or super human. "Are you sure about this? What if I end up breaking it?"

"... I trust you to do a good job Ooman, you are smart enough to carry out such a task." Kweide did not even entertain her anxious ramblings as he kept his eyes peeled for both predator and prey. It was proving to be a long day, especially since nothing had took a chunk out of the bait he'd set out. Said bait being Skylar and Himself.

She wasn't sure how to feel about that sentence, according to what she understood, he'd just said he trusted her with something. Perhaps that was a mere statement to him, but it meant a lot to her. Even if it was just manual tasks it was some form of trust. She smiled softly, a little happier than before. She decided it would be best to keep her complaints to herself now and give Kweide a little reprieve of silence.

It proved successful, for four hours at least. After that she was ready to throw a fit until he got a decent place to rest -and maybe a very optional snack- set up. She was just about to complain about it too, but that kind of gets stopped when a giant centipede like creature launches from the murky depths. "Ooman get back! Stay away from this it is venomous!"

"Venomous!?" What did that mean? Skylar backed away but that Yautja word had never been used before in front of her. All she could guess was that she needed no part of it.

"Bad! Toxic death!" Kweide replied quickly as he held up his staff to to block the centipede's salivating mouth. It's teeth were long and curved like razor sharp blades, they looked like they could hook into skin like command hooks stuck to a wall. Only redecorating home decor was much more appealing than the alien before them.

"Oh! Got it!" Skylar backed away from it as best she could, the weapons were all on Kweide so she couldn't be of much help anyway.

The problem was, she could feel something icky and thick dripping down onto her head. That was not normal. She looked up slowly, fully hoping for some odd rain cloud to be hanging low from the sky. But there was not. Instead, it turned out there were two of the monstrous things. "Kweide!" She yelped as she dove to the right and out of the way of the centipede creature's open mouth.

"Ooman i have no time for -" Kwiede froze seeing her desperate attempts to fake out and flee the native beast. Without thinking he sent a disc blade off into the creatures head. It was only as he did that did he remember another one was mere feet away. In his moment of distraction the creature smacked it's lower body across Kweide's chest and sent him sprawling into the water.

With a guttural hiss the creature dove for Kweide's back, holding him beneath the brown murky depths. He struggled but it was futile under its weight and position. Of all the ways he had dreamed of dying, such a quick defeat and drowning were not one of them.

"Kweide?" Skylar called out, the centipede creature was still in view as the desperate attempts to to up-heave the creature off of Kweide grew weaker. He was suffocating.

With a fierce feeling of protective anger and fear, she lifted a snapped branch from the water beside her and charged the creature. Skylar did not scream, she did not want it knowing she was coming. Instead her mouth pulled into a firm line as she wedged the makeshift spear between the plates near its neck and straight through.

A sharp shriek echoed as the creature lurched upward from the water and stumbled about, purple blood oozing down it's throat and body as Skylar pushed the stick deeper for good measure. "Sorry!" She apologized as it collapsed dead on it's side.

A part of her felt guilty though she knew her reason was just. She had to do it right? Kweide would have died and that would have been worse... but then she'd be getting into relative moralism wouldn't she? Or something like that anyway. Skylar was not a philosophy major.

When Kweide surfaced she rushed to him quickly. "Are you alright?" She offered her hand despite the fact that she could not possibly pull him up.

He did not move to take her offer nor did he reply. When a moment of realization about what had occurred came past the shock he regained his senses. He pushed himself to his feet. The dead bodies were not far from him, he could see perfectly that the human who could not save herself had saved him.

Perhaps in view of the way the beasts had died the hunter and his soon to be student would not be shamed. Perhaps they would see it as her rightly taking her kill from him as he had from her. It was only fair for her to do so, and even still he could not allow her to be harmed. Surely when all was said and done the other Yautja could not find fault in either of their actions.

He inspected her weapon choice, a branch. She had fell the creature with a simple sharp item. It was pleasantly resourceful given the circumstances. "You did well Ooman. " He raised his hand to pat her head, stopping halfway much to Skylar's confusion. Instead of explaining, he dropped his arm and turned away to face the beast she had killed. With a flick of his blade he squatted in front of it and motioned her forward. "Come."

She approached silently, nervously staring at the long piece of steel in his hand. "What do you need me to do?"

"It is not what I need of you, it is what you want from this as a trophy." Kweide turned to face her as he gestured to the carcass.

"A what?" She hadn't been sure she translated that word correctly in her head.

"Trophy." He repeated, pointing to a claw hanging from his neck. He had not worn that claw regularly she noted, but it was very prevalent today. Perhaps for luck?

"Why did you pick that claw?" She pointed to it.

Kweide froze beneath her curious wide eyes. How was he to answer that with Yautja of his clan watching. Then again, the watch bird was feet away now, perhaps if he spoke quietly and quickly they would not hear. "It scared me the most."

Skylar gawked at his admittance before giving him an understanding smile. She could see why that was a good idea for a trophy, take what scared you the most from the kill that you made. "I want a tooth then."

Without another word he dug one of the longest teeth from the creature's mouth and took another from the one he had killed for himself. He tilted his hand as he inspected their prizes. The teeth had frightened them both the most. For varying reasons. The long curved teeth were similar to ulaks -some blade Skylar knew of and mentioned from a favorite movie- in size and shape. They'd make good weapons if need be.

"Hey Kweide... is the water supposed to be moving like that?" Skylar's words pulled his attention to the water churning by the kill she made. As the body rolled over he starred in bafflement. The creature was surely dead wasn't it? The yellow teeth of another creature sinking into it's flesh confirmed his thoughts. It was dead, but now it was dinner.

When the water began to rush their way he had no time to think as he hooked Skylar beneath his arm and began charging through the water in the opposite direction. With a leap over the remains he went ten feet before pulling to a stop. He had to at least get her out of there before fighting, only, when he did turn to fight he noticed the new creature's only focus was the other body, not him or the human. Honor did not force a battle here, they had no interest in him and they were not his prey targets. This was an avoidable skirmish.

"Kweide what's happening? I can't see." Skylar was still beneath his arm and facing the opposite way.

"Nothing of any interest." He set her down into the water, no longer having to fight the creatures who were so eagerly eating their fill. "Walk." He replied lowly, going through the sludgy water towards the way they had been heading before. This time he went around the feasting creatures beneath the surface.

Skylar sighed and decided to focus on one thing she knew the answer too. Her shoes were awful for hunting, they were soaked through and the only reasons she kept them on was fear of cutting her foot in alien water. Despite the fact that her armor was pretty water resistant up top and the fishnet kept her warm from her waist all the way down to her ankles, a shiver ran up her spine. How was she going to survive this?

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When they finally reached some kind of shoreline she nearly kissed the ground, "Oh thank God, I'm so happy!" Skylar fell to her hands and knees and rolled to sit down on her butt. "I don't have one more step in me"

When Kweide seemed like he was going to protest them stopping she flopped onto her back. "Ooman we need to find shelter, stand at least." He knew the metal bird had shut off not long into their walk, boring recordings were not kept, and it had not shown up yet since. He did not know when it would return.

She wanted to protest but as the sun was setting she doubted the wilderness on land would be any more forgiving. She stuck out her hand and he pulled her to her feet. "A little further, then we may stop to rest."

She followed after him for at least another hour before he halted beneath a domineering tree. It's trunk was a car width wide, massive and almost ebony in color, there were many more like it in the surrounding forest but they were not quite as big. "What's going on?" She asked.

"We're stopping for the night," Kweide paused to look back at her. "Oomans do not see well during dark time."

She blinked in response, that was the first full sentence attempt at English she had heard from him in awhile. 

"Yeah, our night vision is unfairly awful." She admitted after a moment, it was a hated fact, especially since he had that mask to help him see and she didn't. Giving him a once over she decided to feel grateful instead of envious. At least he had made the hunting only during daylight hours. "So, where are we sleeping? Should I start gathering materials before the sun is all the way set or?"

Kweide shook his head, "up," he pointed above them and then squatted in front of her. "Up."

"What?" Skylar gaped at him with disbelief. Did he really expect her to use him like a piggy back elevator up a hundred feet -at least- in the air? Those branches didn't get thick enough to climb until then. "You want me to-" She paused and looked up and then back to him. "What if I can't hold on, what if my arms get tired or I fall or- wait. How are you even going to get up there? You're very strong but-"

Kweide stood abruptly to face her, his posture was stiff and she knew she had gone to a dangerous field. She was doubting Kweide when he was showing no signs of being a novice, in fact he seemed comfortable with the idea until she spoke. "What Ooman?"

"I'm not sure it will work." She admitted, her voice timid as she looked to the ground. "I want to have complete faith in you Kweide but it just seems so impossible and I'm so heavy and though I'm more fit now than I ever have been...I'm still big." She was embarrassed but it would do no good to hide how she felt from him, he'd just demand clearer answers. Sometimes she resented him for making her talk so strongly about her worries, he was like a really bad counselor.

He stared at her, he'd slept in tree's of the same height before. It was nothing for him to climb with his claws but he could see how she might not be secure on his back. Her weak arms were not suitable for this. "I have climbed trees of the same height and carried bodies twice my size, you will be nothing."

He pulled a curled wire from his belt and gesture her over as he squatted down again. "Are you sure?" She asked, more and more it felt so natural to understand what he was saying. She couldn't catch every sound but she often could draw context from the other's he spoke.

As he wound the rope over and under her lower limbs he almost made a repelling harness without even knowing. It seemed pretty secure despite it not being very thick. "I am sure," with a pull he tugged her down to her knees and motioned her closer.

Skylar waddled, pausing again in confusion. His growl of impatience made her nervous as she got close enough that her knees were near his squatting feet. It was odd to be so near him out in the open, it felt all too awkward.

With a sound akin to a sigh, or at least as close as one could get with a Yautja's vocal chords, he began tying the wiring around himself in the front. It seemed her piggyback ride had been upgraded to a sloth hang.

He kept his ears open for the sound of the whir, but it was not in range. Wherever the metal bird was, it would not be disturbing them for awhile longer.

She let out a squeak when he pulled the rope tight and it yanked her off the ground straight into his armor. She was flat against him, a little higher than his pelvis armor luckily or she would have rather just died on the ground. Nevertheless, Skylar was mortified.

With a firm tug on each string as a last minute safety check he gave a nod to her and began the ascent. It made more sense to her now why Kweide looked so confident. The long claws he wielded on both his hands and feet made him a great climber. She tried to focus on that to keep calm.

He did not climb as a human would. With agility and power he lept several feet up and dug his body into the tree each time. It provided quick travel but Skylar resolved that she'd never eat again after it was over. "Please tell me we're almost there." She looked down and then groaned when she looked up. They were only halfway up the tree.

"Do not look either way," Kweide chided.

"Easier said than done." Skylar's voice was quiet as she set to finding a way to look elsewhere. The sunset was nice from what she could see as it flashed through the various foliage and tinted the leaves with hints of orange. "Kweide, do you see the world the way we humans do?" Her head rested against his chest as she filled with wonder at the setting sun.

"I can, it only takes a switch of my mask to see the ooman way." He didn't hesitate to reply as he kept going. They were among the branches now and he could see one with potential for the night.

"Do you ever use it though?" She wondered if he could see the world the way she did right then.

"Not often, it is not commonly a useful type of sight." Kweide halted at a wide branch, it was thick enough for himself to lay on with a little edge room. He pushed himself up and growled when Skylar began impatiently squirming. "Hold still." He commanded, the knots tying her to him were a little complicated to undo and her movements were only prolonging the procedure.

When they did snap he stopped in confusion as she hurriedly turned to face the setting sun.

"Can you switch to see like a human does for a moment? You need to see this," She said, her voice was breathy and filled with a certain awe.

He wanted to question her fascination but merely turned like she asked, whatever she was staring at was too jarring in his other modes of vision to properly witness. It took only a moment to see what she saw. He understood then what had enraptured her so completely. What was a nuisance and painful to him in a different perspective was now...unforgettable. In his awe he didn't pay attention to her until her small hand found it's way over his much larger one.

"It's beautiful isn't it Kweide?" Skylar did not turn to look at him, she did not need to see him to understand what he was feeling looking at the beauty of the yawning light.

"Yes," he replied, his eyes were glued to the powerful inferno of color shrinking around them. Only after he had surely seen his fill did he turn his gaze on her in contemplation. He'd not taken many looks at her through human vision. Doing so now... it stirred something within him to see her in such a fierce lighting. The sun set her hair into a warm shade he had no description for,her eyes though, those eyes were what he could not turn away from. They swirled with a burning light so filled with life it pierced him straight through.

"Did I do something?" She asked in a hushed tone, just in case that awful metal bird was back and keeping them under tabs.

"No Ooman, you did nothing wrong...Thank you for showing me this." Kweide paused to turn back to watch the last remnants of light as they were being sucked into an all consuming darkness. It was beautiful indeed. "Let us sleep." Without so much as another word he pulled himself back against the trunk and looked away. Skylar tucked herself under his arm for safe keeping while the rope still connected them loosely around the waist.

With a raised brow, she gave one last look around before laying her head back down to his chest. "See you in the morning." He wasn't as soft as he was on the ship what with all his armor on but it was safer this way.

Kweide kept quiet and kept his mind alert even when her's drifted off into a deep slumber. There were too many dangerous things that lurked in the dark.