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<blockquote data-quote="Angcuru" data-source="post: 3486516" data-attributes="member: 10948"><p><strong>Ch. 23 - The Foemarch</strong></p><p></p><p>Those blades…the same as he remembered wielding so easily against those novices. </p><p></p><p>Calm overcame him. The figure in the shadows stood unmoving, the only sign of his existence being those twin blades, held at the ready to counter Arais’ own.</p><p></p><p>The would-be Jedi dared not move. Despite his many battles, he had been in few lightsaber duels in his short lifetime. Those fights had been more than enough for him to realize that more often than not the first to move would be the first to die.</p><p></p><p>How long Arais stood there waiting for the other fighter to make a move, he could not tell. </p><p></p><p>Sweat began to bead along his brow, trickling slowly, threatening to sting his eyes with the salt. </p><p></p><p>Slowly…slowly…</p><p></p><p>“You might as well attack, Arais. You may think you can wait for me to strike first, but I’ve been waiting a long time for this.” An oddly familiar voice spoke.</p><p></p><p>“How do you know me?” He replied, cautious.</p><p></p><p>“I don’t, but I know <em>of</em> you. I won’t know you until we’ve crossed blades.” He spoke, but the glowing bronze blades never wavered.</p><p></p><p>“What? The Echani tradition?” Arais asked. He was <em>sure</em> he had heard that voice before.</p><p></p><p>“Echani?” came his response, “I know nothing of these <em>Echani</em>.” </p><p></p><p>“Just as I know nothing of <em>you</em>.” Arias pointed out.</p><p></p><p>“Oh, I’m sure you know me better than you can imagine.” The man never moved, but a new light came to the area around them, a soft colorless glow with no apparent beginning or end, barely enough to see by. As Arias’ vision adjusted to the light, he saw the vague outline of the stranger’s form, dimly lit now by the light of his blades. He shifted his left blade slightly, trying to work out stiffness in his shoulder-</p><p></p><p>Arias’ opponent charged his left, sabers poised to split him in half. He met the dual strike with a step back and a similar dual strike, vertical to counter the offense. Blue blades deflected bronze to the side, and Arias responded with a kick to his opponent’s chest accompanied by a series of spinning vertical strikes towards the other’s shoulders. </p><p></p><p>The stranger dodged to Arais’ right and struck at him with a series of blows meant to sever his neck and knees in the same instant. Arias parried both attacks and landed a knee to the stranger’s face with a leaping attack, coming to rest a full three meters from the foe, blades at the ready.</p><p></p><p>“Very good, Arias. You have considerable strength, but you can have so much more.” The figure said approvingly, though short of breath. “Perhaps you have a place amongst us after all.”</p><p></p><p>“I only see one of you, and I am <em>not</em> impressed.” Arais jabbed at his opponent’s pride. “Defend yourself!” He lunged forward with a Force-induced burst of speed, one blade stretched outwards to spear through the sternum, the other held at the ready to counter any attack.</p><p></p><p>The bronze blades quickly crossed and caught his blue. Arias was prepared for this, and brought his second lightsaber forwards in a quick slashing jab. Much to his surprise, the other fighter simply drew one of the defending blades up further to catch the strike whist holding the first blade in check. The combined light of the four lightsabers illuminated both of their forms. Arais faced a slightly older, more bearded version of himself, the stranger’s features a satisfied grin at the younger man’s shock. As the realization of his opponent sank in, Arias was struck by a strong pulse of force energy which drove him back a good five meters.</p><p></p><p>“Tsk, tsk. You should have known better than to challenge him, my love.” An alluring, womanly voice chided. “I would be most displeased if I should have to await your return so early.” She stepped into view, a more mature image of Miera in form-fitting robes with an unlit lightsaber dangling from her shapely hip.</p><p></p><p>“Of course, my dear.” The other Arias let his blades fizzle and calmly took her offered hand.</p><p></p><p>“Oh, now wait just <em>one</em> moment,” a very puzzled Arias said as he lowered his own weapons, “just <em>what</em> is going on here?”</p><p></p><p>“Oh, you’ll know in time, though your better half already knows all too well.” The woman said cheerfully. “I’m glad she took our advice and didn’t spoil it for you.”</p><p></p><p>“Miera? My better half?” Arais almost dropped his blades at their forwardness. That was the most tightly guarded secret in the galaxy, as far as he was concerned. “Who are you that you know these things?”</p><p></p><p>“Oh, I had hoped for better from you, Arias.” The other man chided. “I’m <em>you</em>! A version of you, of course, but <em>you</em> nonetheless. Tulak Hord, at your service.” He gave a formal bow.</p><p></p><p>“Vanna Malros.” His companion said with a nod of her head.</p><p></p><p>“Arias Falm.” Arias felt his introduction awkward and unnecessary, but there was no call for rudeness. “How can there be <em>two</em> of us?”</p><p></p><p>“Two?” Tulak chuckled, lightly tracing the outline of Vanna’s figure with one finger. “If there are multiple variations on the same individual, why should it be limited to <em>two</em>? For simplicity’s sake? The universe is not so simple.”</p><p></p><p>“Two bes good, but three bes better.” Another voice added as an enormously muscled, heavily tanned Arais carrying a stone-tipped spear and sporting a hide loincloth stepped out of the mist.</p><p></p><p>“Ah, Thog! Glad you could make it.” Tulak cheered, clasping hands with the newcomer.</p><p></p><p>“Thog bes warrior!” The dark man intoned, thrusting his spear in the air. “Warrior bes much shamed to be missing such chance for them battles.”</p><p></p><p>“<em>Thog</em>?” Arias said skeptically. “Oh come on, that’s just too stereotypical.”</p><p></p><p>“I bes strong warrior, quick hunter. I bes fathering many younglings to carry mine name.” Thog said proudly. “I bes glad mine namer goes livering on into them ages.”</p><p></p><p>“Thog’s name bes livering cause Giya bes raisered his younglings.” Yet another female voice added with emphasis. A darkened Miera hurried forward from the mist to latch onto Thog’s formidable forearm. It looked comically like a small flower trying to encircle to young tree trunk. Arias couldn’t <em>not</em> notice that she was clad similary to Thog: just a loincloth. She was another Miera, he had no doubt about that.</p><p></p><p>“This is unbelievable,” Arais said exasperatedly, “I’ve seen through both of your eyes, and I know there to be another pair. Come forward! Let this travesty be finished!”</p><p></p><p>“Phoebus likes to make a dramatic entrance.” Vanna said as a distant rumble began to sound.</p><p></p><p>“Ugh, <em>again</em> with the Honor Guard.” Tulak grumbled, massaging his temples. “You would have thought he’d realize it wouldn’t be any use by now.”</p><p></p><p>“Soldiers bes dying fighting with them Phoebus.” Giya chimed cheerfully.</p><p></p><p>“Them bes wantings to bes fighting with him agains.” Thog said as if stating the obvious to a slow child.</p><p></p><p>“Oh, <em>glorious death</em>!” Tulak said dramatically, waving his hands comically. “A death is a death. Different situation, same result.”</p><p></p><p>“But you always wanted to die in battle yourself, my dear.” Vanna prodded.</p><p></p><p>“This is true.” Tulak conceded. “But it had to be <em>poison</em>, didn’t it? Pheh.” He spat scornfully into the mist. “It had to be slow and painless, didn’t it? No excruciating pain or exciting circumstances. No ‘Oh what the hell my guts are missing, awesome!’ moment, just <em>POOF</em> dead.”</p><p></p><p>Any further comments were drawn out as the distant rumbling became a loud, steady march, and a large group of bronze-clad, spear-wielding soldiers same into view. At their head was a grizzled, scarred, and very brutal-looking Arias, next to whom walked an expectant Miera in a simple cloth robe.</p><p></p><p>As the two of them approached, Phoebus raised a fist, and the several hundred soldiers following him came to an immediate halt. His hard eyes scanned Thog, Tulak, and finally Arais, purposefully avoiding the women. “I do not perceive your newest incarnation, Cassandra.”</p><p></p><p>The woman at his side rapped his helmet with a closed fist. “That’s because she was already here, husband.”</p><p></p><p>“Still, a Mandalorian woman would have returned to view her man’s trials.” Phoebus spat from a vertical slit in his helm.</p><p></p><p>“You.” Arais pointed at Phoebus. “I felt you die. I <em>experienced it</em>.”</p><p></p><p>“And you still live? Oh isn’t this something, men? A living dead man!” Phoebus chortled, his laugh mirrored by the men at this back.</p><p></p><p>Within a split second, Arais cleaved his shield and spear in twain and had purposefully drawn only a single, shallow cut in the small space between his eyebrows. Phoebus whistled in admiration as Arias returned to his previous standing position just as the halves of shield and spear hit the floor. “That’s some fancy blade work, young one.”</p><p></p><p>“So I’m not dead then, am I?” Arias jabbed verbally.</p><p></p><p>“Apparenly so.” Cassandra replied as a soldier passed Phoebus a replacement spear and shield. “But you may be soon. The Foemarch approaches.”</p><p></p><p>“Foemarch?” Arias asked. “What do you mean I may be dead soon?”</p><p></p><p>“Enemies be rising from them graves each turning of them seasons.” Giya said seriously.</p><p></p><p>“Every year for as long as any of us care to remember, we have been charged with battling all of our collectively slain enemies.” Vanna added.</p><p></p><p>“And every year, we’ve been prepared and well rested for the Foemarch.” Cassandra said.</p><p></p><p>“But for them four by four yearsies,” Thog said darkly, “them enemies bes come strongers each turnings of them seasons.”</p><p></p><p>“That is how we knew you were coming, Arais.” Tulak supplied. “Every time another incarnation of our spirit lives and dies, that life strengthens the Foemarch and then comes to counter it in death. But this time, with your coming, the Foemarch is too strong for us.”</p><p></p><p>“Each year, it pushes us stronger, harder, more aggressively.” Phoebus growled. “A glorious fight, every time. Yet, in time we may be overwhelmed.”</p><p></p><p>“And if you were overwhelmed, what would happen then?” Arais inquired.</p><p></p><p>“The Foemarch would spill over into the mortal realm.” Vanna said darkly, sadly. “The spirits we ward off would infect the living, and genocidal chaos on a galactic scale would commence.”</p><p></p><p>“All that any of us had ever known would become as dust and ashes cast to a strong wind.” Tulak spat scornfully and stuck a finger at Arias. “Everything that <em>you know</em> will cease to be.”</p><p></p><p>“But you say you only fight the Foemarch one you have died. I’m not dead, I’m still alive!” Arais breathed heavily.</p><p></p><p>“You bes not deaded, yet you bes here.” Thog observed. “But this bes not them problems.”</p><p></p><p>“You bes comings here too earlies.” Giya added from Thog’s side.</p><p></p><p>“She’s right, of course. Your birth has come several thousand years too early.” Phoebus pointed out.</p><p></p><p>“Are you telling me that my birth was <em>scheduled?</em> that I was prematurely <em>conceived</em>?!” Arais ground his teeth.</p><p></p><p>“It is only naturally to be expected, Arias,” Vanna said, running a finger softly under his chin. “that an individual spirit, our in our case, pair of spirits, be reborn every ten millennia or so. We know not why, but you have been reborn too early, and now you have come here to our world of the dead as part of some silly initiation. The Foemarch comes on your heels.”</p><p></p><p>“Tell us, Arais.” Tulak said inquisitively, “Do you know the circumstances of your birth?”</p><p></p><p>“I...” Arais fell silent, “I... do not. I know only that I was adopted as an infant.”</p><p></p><p>“I suggest that if you survive, you search for the answer.” Cassandra said conclusively as another distant rumble began.</p></blockquote><p></p>
[QUOTE="Angcuru, post: 3486516, member: 10948"] [b]Ch. 23 - The Foemarch[/b] Those blades…the same as he remembered wielding so easily against those novices. Calm overcame him. The figure in the shadows stood unmoving, the only sign of his existence being those twin blades, held at the ready to counter Arais’ own. The would-be Jedi dared not move. Despite his many battles, he had been in few lightsaber duels in his short lifetime. Those fights had been more than enough for him to realize that more often than not the first to move would be the first to die. How long Arais stood there waiting for the other fighter to make a move, he could not tell. Sweat began to bead along his brow, trickling slowly, threatening to sting his eyes with the salt. Slowly…slowly… “You might as well attack, Arais. You may think you can wait for me to strike first, but I’ve been waiting a long time for this.” An oddly familiar voice spoke. “How do you know me?” He replied, cautious. “I don’t, but I know [i]of[/i] you. I won’t know you until we’ve crossed blades.” He spoke, but the glowing bronze blades never wavered. “What? The Echani tradition?” Arais asked. He was [i]sure[/i] he had heard that voice before. “Echani?” came his response, “I know nothing of these [i]Echani[/i].” “Just as I know nothing of [i]you[/i].” Arias pointed out. “Oh, I’m sure you know me better than you can imagine.” The man never moved, but a new light came to the area around them, a soft colorless glow with no apparent beginning or end, barely enough to see by. As Arias’ vision adjusted to the light, he saw the vague outline of the stranger’s form, dimly lit now by the light of his blades. He shifted his left blade slightly, trying to work out stiffness in his shoulder- Arias’ opponent charged his left, sabers poised to split him in half. He met the dual strike with a step back and a similar dual strike, vertical to counter the offense. Blue blades deflected bronze to the side, and Arias responded with a kick to his opponent’s chest accompanied by a series of spinning vertical strikes towards the other’s shoulders. The stranger dodged to Arais’ right and struck at him with a series of blows meant to sever his neck and knees in the same instant. Arias parried both attacks and landed a knee to the stranger’s face with a leaping attack, coming to rest a full three meters from the foe, blades at the ready. “Very good, Arias. You have considerable strength, but you can have so much more.” The figure said approvingly, though short of breath. “Perhaps you have a place amongst us after all.” “I only see one of you, and I am [i]not[/i] impressed.” Arais jabbed at his opponent’s pride. “Defend yourself!” He lunged forward with a Force-induced burst of speed, one blade stretched outwards to spear through the sternum, the other held at the ready to counter any attack. The bronze blades quickly crossed and caught his blue. Arias was prepared for this, and brought his second lightsaber forwards in a quick slashing jab. Much to his surprise, the other fighter simply drew one of the defending blades up further to catch the strike whist holding the first blade in check. The combined light of the four lightsabers illuminated both of their forms. Arais faced a slightly older, more bearded version of himself, the stranger’s features a satisfied grin at the younger man’s shock. As the realization of his opponent sank in, Arias was struck by a strong pulse of force energy which drove him back a good five meters. “Tsk, tsk. You should have known better than to challenge him, my love.” An alluring, womanly voice chided. “I would be most displeased if I should have to await your return so early.” She stepped into view, a more mature image of Miera in form-fitting robes with an unlit lightsaber dangling from her shapely hip. “Of course, my dear.” The other Arias let his blades fizzle and calmly took her offered hand. “Oh, now wait just [i]one[/i] moment,” a very puzzled Arias said as he lowered his own weapons, “just [i]what[/i] is going on here?” “Oh, you’ll know in time, though your better half already knows all too well.” The woman said cheerfully. “I’m glad she took our advice and didn’t spoil it for you.” “Miera? My better half?” Arais almost dropped his blades at their forwardness. That was the most tightly guarded secret in the galaxy, as far as he was concerned. “Who are you that you know these things?” “Oh, I had hoped for better from you, Arias.” The other man chided. “I’m [i]you[/i]! A version of you, of course, but [i]you[/i] nonetheless. Tulak Hord, at your service.” He gave a formal bow. “Vanna Malros.” His companion said with a nod of her head. “Arias Falm.” Arias felt his introduction awkward and unnecessary, but there was no call for rudeness. “How can there be [i]two[/i] of us?” “Two?” Tulak chuckled, lightly tracing the outline of Vanna’s figure with one finger. “If there are multiple variations on the same individual, why should it be limited to [i]two[/i]? For simplicity’s sake? The universe is not so simple.” “Two bes good, but three bes better.” Another voice added as an enormously muscled, heavily tanned Arais carrying a stone-tipped spear and sporting a hide loincloth stepped out of the mist. “Ah, Thog! Glad you could make it.” Tulak cheered, clasping hands with the newcomer. “Thog bes warrior!” The dark man intoned, thrusting his spear in the air. “Warrior bes much shamed to be missing such chance for them battles.” “[i]Thog[/i]?” Arias said skeptically. “Oh come on, that’s just too stereotypical.” “I bes strong warrior, quick hunter. I bes fathering many younglings to carry mine name.” Thog said proudly. “I bes glad mine namer goes livering on into them ages.” “Thog’s name bes livering cause Giya bes raisered his younglings.” Yet another female voice added with emphasis. A darkened Miera hurried forward from the mist to latch onto Thog’s formidable forearm. It looked comically like a small flower trying to encircle to young tree trunk. Arias couldn’t [i]not[/i] notice that she was clad similary to Thog: just a loincloth. She was another Miera, he had no doubt about that. “This is unbelievable,” Arais said exasperatedly, “I’ve seen through both of your eyes, and I know there to be another pair. Come forward! Let this travesty be finished!” “Phoebus likes to make a dramatic entrance.” Vanna said as a distant rumble began to sound. “Ugh, [i]again[/i] with the Honor Guard.” Tulak grumbled, massaging his temples. “You would have thought he’d realize it wouldn’t be any use by now.” “Soldiers bes dying fighting with them Phoebus.” Giya chimed cheerfully. “Them bes wantings to bes fighting with him agains.” Thog said as if stating the obvious to a slow child. “Oh, [i]glorious death[/i]!” Tulak said dramatically, waving his hands comically. “A death is a death. Different situation, same result.” “But you always wanted to die in battle yourself, my dear.” Vanna prodded. “This is true.” Tulak conceded. “But it had to be [i]poison[/i], didn’t it? Pheh.” He spat scornfully into the mist. “It had to be slow and painless, didn’t it? No excruciating pain or exciting circumstances. No ‘Oh what the hell my guts are missing, awesome!’ moment, just [i]POOF[/i] dead.” Any further comments were drawn out as the distant rumbling became a loud, steady march, and a large group of bronze-clad, spear-wielding soldiers same into view. At their head was a grizzled, scarred, and very brutal-looking Arias, next to whom walked an expectant Miera in a simple cloth robe. As the two of them approached, Phoebus raised a fist, and the several hundred soldiers following him came to an immediate halt. His hard eyes scanned Thog, Tulak, and finally Arais, purposefully avoiding the women. “I do not perceive your newest incarnation, Cassandra.” The woman at his side rapped his helmet with a closed fist. “That’s because she was already here, husband.” “Still, a Mandalorian woman would have returned to view her man’s trials.” Phoebus spat from a vertical slit in his helm. “You.” Arais pointed at Phoebus. “I felt you die. I [i]experienced it[/i].” “And you still live? Oh isn’t this something, men? A living dead man!” Phoebus chortled, his laugh mirrored by the men at this back. Within a split second, Arais cleaved his shield and spear in twain and had purposefully drawn only a single, shallow cut in the small space between his eyebrows. Phoebus whistled in admiration as Arias returned to his previous standing position just as the halves of shield and spear hit the floor. “That’s some fancy blade work, young one.” “So I’m not dead then, am I?” Arias jabbed verbally. “Apparenly so.” Cassandra replied as a soldier passed Phoebus a replacement spear and shield. “But you may be soon. The Foemarch approaches.” “Foemarch?” Arias asked. “What do you mean I may be dead soon?” “Enemies be rising from them graves each turning of them seasons.” Giya said seriously. “Every year for as long as any of us care to remember, we have been charged with battling all of our collectively slain enemies.” Vanna added. “And every year, we’ve been prepared and well rested for the Foemarch.” Cassandra said. “But for them four by four yearsies,” Thog said darkly, “them enemies bes come strongers each turnings of them seasons.” “That is how we knew you were coming, Arais.” Tulak supplied. “Every time another incarnation of our spirit lives and dies, that life strengthens the Foemarch and then comes to counter it in death. But this time, with your coming, the Foemarch is too strong for us.” “Each year, it pushes us stronger, harder, more aggressively.” Phoebus growled. “A glorious fight, every time. Yet, in time we may be overwhelmed.” “And if you were overwhelmed, what would happen then?” Arais inquired. “The Foemarch would spill over into the mortal realm.” Vanna said darkly, sadly. “The spirits we ward off would infect the living, and genocidal chaos on a galactic scale would commence.” “All that any of us had ever known would become as dust and ashes cast to a strong wind.” Tulak spat scornfully and stuck a finger at Arias. “Everything that [i]you know[/i] will cease to be.” “But you say you only fight the Foemarch one you have died. I’m not dead, I’m still alive!” Arais breathed heavily. “You bes not deaded, yet you bes here.” Thog observed. “But this bes not them problems.” “You bes comings here too earlies.” Giya added from Thog’s side. “She’s right, of course. Your birth has come several thousand years too early.” Phoebus pointed out. “Are you telling me that my birth was [i]scheduled?[/i] that I was prematurely [i]conceived[/i]?!” Arais ground his teeth. “It is only naturally to be expected, Arias,” Vanna said, running a finger softly under his chin. “that an individual spirit, our in our case, pair of spirits, be reborn every ten millennia or so. We know not why, but you have been reborn too early, and now you have come here to our world of the dead as part of some silly initiation. The Foemarch comes on your heels.” “Tell us, Arais.” Tulak said inquisitively, “Do you know the circumstances of your birth?” “I...” Arais fell silent, “I... do not. I know only that I was adopted as an infant.” “I suggest that if you survive, you search for the answer.” Cassandra said conclusively as another distant rumble began. [/QUOTE]
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