[Trade] Vesper Decides To Eat An Alligator

Fish were growing more and more scarce on Vesper's stretch of the river. Spawning season was over and had left a dearth of his usual supply of food, at most he was dragging a medium sized fish out of the water once a day. His awkward adolescent growth spurts were slowing down and he was growing anxious about keeping up with the other juvenile Suchos on the cusp of adulthood. The others always seemed to be taller than him whenever they met at the Craftsmaster's stall in the Dead City. None of them ever passed any comment, especially the ones who were shyly asking the raccoon to make candles, but Vesper still couldn't help but feel self conscious. He didn't like straying outside of his territory, especially while he was still recovering from a gnarly injury through his leg. It had already been such a hassle to keep the wound clean and dry while fishing, there was no way he could put up a good fight while nursing it too. Now, the wound healed with a pretty cool scar under the feathers, he felt a burst of confidence in his abilities. He needed the extra calories after such an intense rehab, and if he could survive being impaled in a basement he could survive a scuffle with another Sucho.

He didn't find another Sucho, in fact he didn't find anything for miles. The river had deepened downstream to the point where he could cruise along and swim with the current. The most he saw in this patch were some creatures coming to drink at the bank, eyeing him warily. Vesper ignored them, they were either too big to take on or too small to be worth the hassle. He preferred to hunt in his element, the water. And it had nothing to do with being outrun by a baby Styracasaurus the last time he had tried hunting on land. The river began to slow down and pool out into a small lake, the current still kept a fresh supply of water through the reeds but the river was currently in no hurry to be anywhere at this point. In more still waters, Vesper decided it would be worth his while to duck his head under and try to find something in the mud. His short arms raked through the silt and stirred great clouds into the clear water but nothing darted from hiding. With a few more swipes he was still bereft of fish and now had zero vision in the water around him. He huffed a little, looking to the shore to check for anything sneaking a drink. That was when he received his one and only warning.

Halfway between him and the shore, a sudden ripple came from something sinking under the surface. Vesper readied himself, lifting his tail from the water and baring his teeth at whatever was approaching him. The water grew still again, the clouds of dirt still stopping him from getting a bead on whatever was coming. He had less than a second to react when an enormous bear trap of jaws opened in his face. Vesper managed to duck backwards but the jaws continued to advance until he retaliated with a bite of his own to the snout that closed on nothing but air. The alligator pulled back, its mouth still gaping and clearly not willing to give up yet. Vesper weighed his options. There was a decent chance at outswimming a gator and making it back home, but when his gaze returned to his foe his mouth began to water. It wasn't a simple fish meal like he enjoyed so much, and it certainly wouldn't go down in one bite, but the allure of such a large meal conquered his rational mind and he began to square up to the crocodilian. After all, it had started the fight first, he couldn't help it if dinner walked right up to him.

He lunged to the side, feeling the gator's jaws snap closed eerily close to his head. Seizing the opportunity, he used his own jaws to keep the gator's mouth clamped shut, not letting it use its most lethal weapon. With his mouth preoccupied he really only had his claws to conquer this croc. It began to thrash its head around to shake him off but Vesper had held onto more slippery fish than this and moved with each shake to keep his teeth anchored in its face. He began to kick and flail in the general direction of the underbelly, unable to aim properly with his head occupied. The gator took its chance to knock him off his feet and the two landed in the water in their deadly entanglement. Vesper shut his nose to stop the water getting in and felt the ache in his jaw when the gator attempted to reverse death roll him in the deeper end of the lake. He continued to kick out as he was dunked again and again, finally finding the soft belly he was looking for when the gator rolled for what felt like the hundredth time. He jabbed his claws into its stomach with one foot to guide his other in delivering a proper slashing kick. He felt the bloom of warm blood spray into the water around them and gripped harder with his jaws as the gator began to thrash again, this time in desperation. His feet struck the riverbed and planted into the mud to try and brace him. Vesper held on the best he could, feeling his jaw ache and his chest and legs burning with the strain. In its attempt to fight him off the gator was clawing him with its short limbs and beating him with its tail. The tail was by far the worst, even though he could feel the claws drawing blood, the powerful muscle far outmatched his own and battered against his weary legs, the only thing keeping the Suchomimus above water. Vesper could only hold his ground, too exhausted to even try to injure his prey further. Eventually, with a rattling hissing sound, the alligator grew still. The fighting stopped, silence fell over the river and the Suchomimus reigned victorious.

 Vesper let go, leaving some of his teeth behind in the alligator's face. He winced at the sight and glanced over himself, noticing the scratches and pre-bruises peeking through his feathers. Beaten up as he might be, the day was won and he now had an enormous meal to himself for the first time in weeks. He dragged the carcass to shore and settled next to it, fluffing out his feathers to dry and contemplating his success with a proud rumble. The first bite had never tasted so rewarding, and Vesper planned to guard the rest of his dinner with his life.