Private The Bog's Ballad

[Lark]

Time meant nothing when light could not break through the fog. The cycles of day and night were nearly nonexistent within the swamps of Dromund Kass, where a dense fog covered the amber waters and misty shores. A light rain pelted Lark's cloak as he leaned against a weeping maple tree, hard bark crying as water trickled down it's ancient branches. The croaks and cries of hundreds of frogs, insects, and other unseen animals created an orchestra of natural wonders, here in this murky marsh only few ever dared trek. Snakes and spiders slithered and scurried through the dense foliage, and they were some of the least dangerous creatures that treaded these hidden waters. For no one could ever know for certain way lay within the depths of a bog such as this. Untamed and unforgiving, the three Sith gathered here were outsiders. Unwelcome. The wildlife distrusted them. The environment was not suitable for sustaining civilized life. It was a place of darkness and unknowable mysteries.

A perfect place to test one's strength.

Within the shadows, Lark awaited for the battle to commence. He was familiar with both of his opponents. Alina Tremiru had dragged him out of his coffin on crystals during the aftermath of the invasion of Dantooine, afterwards they had worked together despite their grievous injuries to help dispatch a remaining squadron of NIO soldiers. That had been some time ago, and Lark was eager to see how the woman had improved. And though his proximity to Darth Strosius had been regrettably brief, Lark knew that the young man was strong. No one survived battles against the Yuuzhan Vong without showing degrees of power, and Alisteri had done just that.

Lark had been an acolyte for a long time, longer than most. Biding his time, making sure he was of sufficient strength before he took his next steps. He had even left the Empire at one point seeking out his own, personal mission. His forays as an acolyte have been long and arduous, and now they might be nearing their end. So many of the people Lark had first trained with had died. Only one that he was aware of still drew breath, and though he and Orion were friendly with one another Lark had not seen the man for some time. Lark did not feel any twinges of regret in knowing that he was but one of two to survive. But there was a part of him that desired companionship, and it was a shame to know that so many of the people he once fought and bled for were now six feet underground, if they were lucky.

It was an honor to train amongst a newer group of acolytes. Ones that Lark might continue to fight alongside for years to come.

But he would test them, and he hoped that in return they too would challenge him. Only through mutual, unrestricted combat would they be able to avoid the fate that befell so many former acolytes.

Lark had grown up in the marshes of Myrkr, so he was familiar with the swamp's song. Though this place felt just like home, the bog's ballad played at its own pace. The white, misty fog covered most of the surface, much of it was ankle to knee-deep water. The little patches of land that had not yet been swallowed by the marsh were small and spread apart. Tree branches of varying widths hovered over the marsh, offering more solid footing at the cost of being in a more risky situation. Somewhere nearby within the misty moat, the two other acolytes prepared themselves for the fight.

A howl from some unknown beast signaled that the battle had begun.

 

[Darth Strosius]

Of all the battlefields and environments that the masked acolyte had experienced, of all the various planets that he had visited, there was only one place that he could not stand. That was of course, swamps. Wetlands, marshes, nearly anywhere with humidity was a place that Alisteri couldn't stand. And yet, here he found himself marching through a swamp on Dromund Kaas regardless.

Even though he despised the accursed marsh that he now trudged through, he had not hesitated to answer the call from Lark to come here.

It had been a long while since Korriban and Rychel, and Alisteri was eager to see and spar against another acolyte.

Back then he could barely even call himself a Sith, more of a mere young man with a lightsaber. Now though, he had slugged through enough battles and dueled against enough opponents to be worthy of being called an Acolyte. Too many enemies of the Sith had fallen by his blade for him to be anything else.

The harsh swamp was a combatant in and of itself.

Or, so he thought. He had not grown used to any particular environment other than that of the arid and hot Kessel. The only similiarity of Kessel and Dromund Kaas were that they both had heat in spades. Of course, this heat was accompanied by a humidity that did little to help Alisteri in this instance.

He could vaguely sense the presence of Alina Tremiru nearby as well, and that did put a small smirk on his face. A chance to best two acolytes at once did not come all that often, especially since one had bragging rights on the line.

His walk through the swamp was paused by the howl of some beast off in the swamp, instinctively drawing his weapon in response.

Today was going to be a fun day.

 

[Alina Tremiru]

It had been seemingly a while since Alina last saw Lark . She remembered vividly the man's poor state when she dragged him out of the earth. Her own poor state after barely surviving the war against the Graug. He had shown her a kindness where many Sith would rather crush her under their heal for showing weakness that day, and because of it she had been able to grow and become something powerful. Something dangerous.

And Darth Strosius was to join the bout too? There was absolutely no reason for Alina to deny the challenge and plenty of reasons for her to accept. To see them both at their best and see just how far they were along in their own journeys. And to see how far along she had truly come herself. The blade of her pike ignited as she walked through the mud. This was her home world. She knew the wilds and knew how to traverse them.

She made no move to strike, not daring to put herself in a position where both would go against her. That was the worry of a battle like this. At any moment it would be two against one until the favor shifted as needed. So for now she would wait.

 

[Lark]

The swamps of Dromund Kaas was such a difficult place to duel in. It seemed that no matter where one wished to strike from, there was some sort of potential disadvantage that could be exploited. Visibility was limited no matter what path one took. If one tried to stick to the small islands of land dotting the marsh like freckles on a face, there was really only so much space in which one could traverse. And even then the ground was muddy, it would be easy to slip and fall if one weren't concentrating. The most solid ground was likely the branches spreading above the swamp like a spiderweb, slick wooden boughs of varying widths. But that too was a vulnerable position to be in. If one slipped and fell or was pushed off, or the branch cut, it was not a short fall to the waters below. Indeed, those murky, amber waters were an enigma all on their own. Mobility would be slowed down if one trudged through it, a heavy-stepper might even find their ankles slowly sinking into the soil beneath.

Yes, the bog was as much an adversary as the opposing acolytes were. There was not one option that was better than the others, it would ultimately come down to one evaluating their own strengths and making a judgment call based on where they thought they would most excel.

Though Lark was born in a swamp similar to this one, the rhythms of the mire were unpredictable and unknowable. The mist clouded his vision and hinted at the existence of anomalies that weren't real. It took the strongest of wills not to succumb to madness the swamp induced. And the Dark Side only enhanced the feelings of unease and quiet tension. Even the insects grew silent as they sensed the ensuing battle.

The three acolytes were all within a few hundred meters of each other, though Lark had not seen either of the others yet. But he could sense them. For the moment, he leapt into the air and perched himself on a thick branch cascading over the swamp, a dozen meters above the water. Silent as stone, he walked across the dewy wood closer to where Alina Tremiru and Darth Strosius resided. They were both nearby, though he did not make a move against either of them. For the moment, he'd watch and get a read on them both.

And if they both decided to do the same and wait to attack, he had no issue being the one to shatter the silence of the swamp.

 

[Darth Strosius]

A small sigh of frustration left him as he nearly slid ankle-deep into the waters of the bog once more. His head swiveled around until he spotted a nearby tree, his gaze narrowing slightly as he began trudging towards it. Going up was risky of course, one could be seen easily and ran the risk of falling into the depths below if they weren't careful. Still, he needed some sort of dry ground to fight on. Wet areas were not in his area of experience, and he would take a precarious spot over this accursed mud and water any day.

It only took him a few moments to scale up the tree and clamber onto one of its many branches, looking out over the swamp for any signs of movement. For once it was quiet, tense and taught like everything in the fog was waiting for something else to make the first move. Alisteri wasn't content to wait too long, he was already at a disadvantage in this environment so he needed some sort of edge on his opponents.

Striking first would have to be that advantage.

The choice as to who he would go after was a difficult one though. Alina Tremiru and Lark were both more experienced and better fighters than he was, but he had fought against and alongside them before. They weren't unknowns, but he knew one better than the other. He knew that he would lose to one for sure, so he needed to beat the other. Let's hope that Lark doesn't have many things to throw this time then.

Soon enough he was off, running along the various branches and natural pathways that the trees made above the murky water below. He couldn't see his target yet through the fog, but he ignited his lightsaber regardless.

Getting caught off-guard was not in his plan after all.

 

[Alina Tremiru]

Alina hopped up onto a rotting log, casually crossing it with seeming ease. It was easy for her to tell when something was too rotted to keep afloat. Though not to easy to tell what parts were completely rotted. That's why she had her staff. A sort of look out stick as she plotted her course to the center of this makeshift battle arena. The tension was there. No one wanted to strike first and leave themselves open to a counter or their back exposed.

Then one moved. Her eyes turned to the movement above, narrowing on Darth Strosius . He wasn't heading towards her though. Lark ? A soft smile formed on her lips. She had no issue letting those two clash before she involved herself. She found a perch on the stump of another fallen tree, holding her saber at the ready.

This was going to be fun.

 

[Lark]

The croaks of frogs and the quiet chirps of crickets had been uninterrupted for years, so long the swamp had been untouched by the taint of humanity. And wherever humanity went, the horrors they created and the nightmarish powers the claimed dominion over followed. But the swamp did not feel that same hollow feeling a soldier might experience before descending into battle. No, the swamp was not scared. Perhaps a bit startled at first, but soon it would resume its normal behaviors. The snakes would still slither and the mosquitos, the boldest creatures in the galaxy, would still look to feast on the blood of the Sith, no matter how many horrible energies were thrown around. More than any battlefield save for perhaps an arctic tundra or volcanic mountain range, the swamp would fight back against them.

But if one were willing, it could be an ally as well.

Lark felt Darth Strosius approaching him, and in a few more moments he saw the man's scarlet lightsaber silhouetting through the mist. With invisible hands Lark let the mist coalesce around him, shrouding his figure and making him an invisible gargoyle perched up within the dewy branches. With a quick twist of his wrist he unsheathed his enchanted dagger, and a small storm of cackling dark energy surrounded it. Lark swung his dagger and sent the ripple of energy towards Alisteri and his red glow, it tore through the mist and consumed everything it touched. But the wave was not as potent as it had once been when Lark used his enchanted sword, perhaps the size of the conduit determined how powerful the blast was.

The scream of energy nearly made the bog buckle in fear, but it was as unbreakable as a place could be. It absorbed the wail of power just as the squall of energy devoured it. Yes, the swamp could whether Lark's attack.

But could Alisteri?

Alina Tremiru

 

[Darth Strosius]

The swamp passed by rather quickly as he sprinted along, occasionally hopping from branch to branch as he drew ever closer to his target. By now, the sounds of the animals and beasts had returned to the trees and waters of the marsh. A symphony of life surrounded him now, no matter how fast he ran along the branches high above the water.

He had no interest in bothering whatever lay just beyond his field of view, for better or worse. Unpredictability was already rampant without the intervention of the swamplife.

His concentration on his path paused for a moment, his gaze narrowing. Lark was no where to be seen, yet he could feel the other acolyte somewhere ahead. That wasn't the only thing that he felt of course. Energy was coalescing around where the other acolyte had been, and that was rather concerning. Concerning evidently was the correct word, as soon enough that energy was released.

Alisteri's eyes widened as a wave of energy came barreling towards him, nearly slipping off of the branch that he had been running on at the mere sight of it. Oh chit.

Thinking fast he deactivated his lightsaber dropped down, grabbing onto a branch and swinging forward to another to barely miss the wave as it shook the branches overhead. Unfortunately, this wound up with him dangling above the water with nothing but a flimsy branch to keep him from falling. A growl left him as he swung himself forward again and threw himself onto the trunk of a nearby tree, moving to climb up it's trunk to reach the stronger branches again.

Alina Tremiru

 

[Lark]

Even the bravest of egrets that dared venture this far into the marsh fled once the sensation of dark energies tainted the cool air. But they would return, they always returned. Time was meaningless in a place as ethereal as this. Death was not only natural, it was so easily forgotten, so easily consumed, so easily replaced. If one of the three acolytes did perish, their bodies left alone in the mud, the death would be completely untraceable. The riptides and currents would cover the body and erase any tracks, curious animals hungry for a new kind of meat would pick at their flesh until their bones gave new life to the soil. Until the galaxy heaved its final breath their life would give the swamp substance, again and again and again. It was a remarkable thing, how every little inch of life was recycled to bring the next day into existence.

Even the wickedness Lark spewed forth would be salvaged and reused. Such twisted manifestations would be a glory to bear witness to. He would have to return and see what mutations arrived.

Unless I find myself as something this swamp feeds upon, he thought as Darth Strosius swung underneath a branch, avoiding the miasma of death sent his direction. What sort of nourishment would the Sith provide? Were they full of the same nutrients the other creatures of the fog were composed of? Or was there something darker that painted the pigments of their blood, that would infuse these amber waters with something much more haunting than what is was accustomed to?

Still surrounded by fog, Lark tried to sense the location of his opponents. Though he could not lay eyes on Alisteri since the man deactivated his lightsaber, robbing Lark of that scarlet beacon, he still had a general idea of his location. Not enough to launch another attack, but enough to be prepared for a counter. Alina Tremiru had yet to make an appearance, though she was undoubtedly watching. Was she waiting for one of the two combatants to kill the other, then hop in and eliminate the other?

This simply won't do, Lark whispered, his voice one with the fog, as though he stood right next to the other acolytes. I invited two Sith here to dance with me, yet I've only found one partner for this bloody minuet. Alina, won't you join us?

Lifting his arms, Lark brought forth another surge of energy. The mist-covered water began to bubble, he could sense Alina somewhere near the surface, through all the brambles and rotted wood. A moment later nearby pools of murky water erupted like a miniature geyser, and the fog only grew more dense.

Let me see the worth of the one who dragged my bloody carcass from those crystals.

 

[Alina Tremiru]

Oh?

The voice on the wind was quite the surprise. But not more than the geyser that suddenly erupted by her. She hadn't yet learned how to read the flow of the Force. Barely jumping out of the way in time the young woman let a laugh echo from her throat. So that's how Lark wanted to play it? Now she couldn't exactly stay back, especially if he could tell where she was and attack without actually seeing her.

So she rushed forward. Lark would be her target, but her mind was all too aware that Darth Strosius was also yet to join the fray. Was Lark trying to fight them both? Or was he hoping for the chaos of three trying to defeat one another to slip in against them both? There was so much to think about. Right now though..

She jumped, all her might focused in it as she brought her lightspear around to thrust at the red haired man.

 

[Darth Strosius]

Once again, the environment was working against him. The humidity of the air weighed on him, and everywhere he tried to grab seemed to be too moist to get a decent grip on. Even still, it didn't take too long for the masked acolyte to clamber back up to a branch that he could move forward on. By the time he managed to get up there however, Lark had turned his attention onto the other member of this little swamp skirmish.

He could hear the voice of his opponent nearby, far closer than where he had been before. Tricky isn't he? Thankfully, he could tell that the other hadn't moved just yet. Well, he could just barely tell that. His senses weren't that exact even without the swamp.

What he did manage to spot through the dense fog however, was a red blade activating and moving through the air. Alina.

Alisteri was none too eager to get in-between both Alina Tremiru and Lark, but that didn't mean that he was going to hang back away. He was going to get close enough to watch, but with the fog that was going to be far closer than he wanted. Oh well, you win some you lose some.

Hopefully they'd keep eachother distracted long enough for him to move close enough.

 

[Lark]

Ah, there you are. Finally, all three parties had made themselves known. Though death was a possibility in this arena, more than anything Lark simply wished to bear witness to the skillsets this new generation of Sith possessed. He wanted to poke at them, see how they would react to whatever he chose to throw their way. Learn what made them tick, what he would have to look for once he fought alongside them instead of against. Were they cautious or brash? Did they prefer a stealthy or aggressive approach? Of course this duel was only one situation of an infinite number, but even a small sample size would allow Lark to predict how they would behave under some other circumstances. Yes, Lark was judging his strength compared to their own. But there was so much more he was looking for.

So far, he was impressed. Darth Strosius had reacted well to an unexpected attack, such instincts were what kept people alive during intense battle. Sometimes survival didn't come down to skill with a blade or how much electricity one could shoot from their fingertips, it came down to who simply knew what to do next in a fight. The proper move wasn't always the grandest display of power. And Alina had taken a moment to gather what is was her opponents were capable of, always a prudent action. Unfortunately for her, Lark wanted the opposite. He wanted to see what she could do.

But Lark was a fair fellow. He'd be sure to return the favor.

As much as he could, that is. He was impossible to truly know, to really understand. There were so many personas raging around within his mind. Each was as real as the next. Each of those masks fought and behaved differently. He had grown accustomed to dealing with that whirlwind of personalities, he'd grab hold of whichever one best suited his needs. Maybe, once they had gained his trust, Lark would display his true self in front of these Sith. But for now, he would remain the silhouette of a man.

Lark activated his lightsaber as Alina charged at him midair, but he did not raise his blade to meet her own. Instead he leapt backwards and swung the scarlet saber down, severing the branch from the tree that held it in place as he guided his body towards a different foothold. Alina intended on clashing blades with him, but instead he removed her landing spot.

He deactivated his own saber as he landed on another branch, curious to see how Alina Tremiru would react. And Alisteri still lurked somewhere within these obscured waters, following the same strategy that Alina had prior to Lark forcing her hand. Each of them now had opted for caution. Lark would not let that last forever.

The mischievous tricks would end soon. And then only the wrath of battle would remain.