Shadow Vigo Zakirov vs. Haro Zylrun

Located on the Rimma Trade Route within the Outer Rim territories, Dagobah could very well be the best place in the Galaxy to hide. The remote location of the planet in combination with the lack of any kind of advanced civilization made it a system of little value to any kind of galactic government. The planet is hot, humid, and mostly filled with foggy, swamp-like jungles.

Dragonsnake Bog is a murky lagoon on the surface of the planet. Fog covers the cloudy waters of the bog. The waters ranged in depth, but at its deepest the bog was roughly 4 meters deep. Even in the shallow areas, the floor of the bog was thick with mud, making it easy for something or someone to get stuck within the lagoon.

True to its name, Dragonsnake Bog was the home of the large, snake-like creature known as the dragonsnake. The beast had an average length of 7 meters and weight of roughly 200 kilograms, though some fully grown dragonsnakes were much larger. It had large, venomous fangs that could help it to subdue prey and a hunger that was nearly unmatched. The dragonsnake usually hid just below the surface of the water, waiting for an opportunity to find its next meal. Once the creature spotted a snack, it would quickly lunge out to attack it.

A mere day had passed since the battle in the Asylum. Vigo’s wounds had been attended to and mostly healed nicely thanks to the proffered bacta and medics Brujah had supplied. It seemed this was a little bit more than a game to Brujah and he wanted to keep his contestants in tip top shape.

Vigo’s mind whirred as he stood nearly perfectly still beneath his restraints and blindfold. He noted each turn, and counted the seconds as he and his opponent were being deployed in the fighting ring. When he landed, his feet sunk into the mushy ground, producing a squelching noise, similar to the one he could hear a short distance away– his unknown opponent.

Through an intercom speaker, Vincent Brujah spoke, “Congratulations, you both made it to round two! You proved yourself back at the Asylum, but will you be so lucky here on Dagobah? You aren’t the only monsters that reside here. Survive. Or don’t– I’ll enjoy it either way.”

The intercom clicked off right as the restraints loosened and, with a hiss, the hydraulic locks unfastened. Vigo wracked his brain for any and all knowledge he had of Dagobah, but his late education mainly consisted of close quarters combat, training to use the Force, and battlefield adaptation.

Vigo flung his restraints off and ripped off his blindfold. The quicker he could grasp the scene the better. Every second counted. His gaze clocked his opponent. A Mandolorian… in kriffing beskar armor and a jetpack. Either a lot of these guys signed up, or he was having a serious case of déjà vu.

The Mandolorian noted him as well, before he took a step… or rather attempted to. His gaze moved downwards. His feet were submerged up to his ankles in thick mud. Vigo’s gaze quickly looked to his own feet, and he too was stuck.

How was he supposed to be a stealthy assassin when he could hardly move? The mud would surely give away his position. Both struggled but managed to wriggle their legs, and with numerous vacuum popping noises, they slowly trudged their way toward the center, where deeper water lay.

Vigo unholstered his DL-44 blaster, quickly firing a hipfire shot which ricocheted off Zylrun’s armor.

“Kriffing beskar,” His words spit like venom, as an icy rage ignited in his eyes. He reholstered the blaster. The fight hadn’t even begun and he was already over it. He clicked on his combat mask, and focused on his breathing and the blood rushing through his ears.

He extended a mental grasp towards the Force, which ebbed and flowed around and through him. He let it fill his very being and essence and he leapt. The mud’s grip gave way as his actions were amplified. He jumped into the middle of the lagoon, and landed with a splash sending ripples, as the murky water came up to his lower torso. Haro Zylrun fired a returning shot in kind, as Vigo turned midair. The blaster shot whizzed by, landing right where Vigo’s right arm was moments before. Zylrun answered Vigo’s silent request and used his jetpack as a boost, as he rapidly approached the Umbaran.

Vigo smirked beneath his mask, but something beneath the dark abyss nudged his knee. His eyes went wide, and he reached out to the Force once more. Perhaps it was just a log that was bumped when he landed, but his paranoia always got the better of him.

The Force connected him with the Mandalorian rapidly approaching him, but there was another link… A massive one.

He broke off the connection as Zylrun nearly crashed into him. Vigo calculated the water resistance and sidestepped, narrowly missing the Mandalorian. Zylrun seemed to have accounted for this, and he used the moment from the flight to unsheath Ijaat, his beskad, and did a sweeping slash.

Vigo felt a tug from the Force, and he whipped out his vibroblade, making contact with the beskad before the blade could come in contact with his shoulder. In the distance behind Zylrun, the water slowly began to stir.

“Something is in the water,” Vigo said with a heavy accent through gritted teeth, straining against the strength from the Mandalorian. Zylrun pushed Ijaat up, disconnecting the two crossing swords with a loud ring. The Mandalorian tapped a button on the side of his left wrist, illuminating a complex scanner.

“Three—“ Zylrun began to say, as a dragonsnake wrapped around his ankle, and pulled him under the surface.

Instinctively, Haro slashed at the creature gripping his ankle, but the speed of the dragonsnake's descent and the friction of the water kept him from landing a hit. The kriffing thing had almost actually caught him by surprise, and would have if his opponent hadn't warned him. Why had the Umbaran warned him?

The serpent hit the bottom of the swamp and began to coil around its new prey, only to find a painful surprise as the vibrations of Haro's beskad chopped through its scales and carved deep into its flesh, the Mandalorian driving the blade deep before yanking it out as the dragonsnake uncurled and fled. Haro took the time to swim to the surface, using the pause to contemplate what Vigo might have meant by helping someone he's fighting. Were his intentions truly good? But he didn't fight like a Jedi. Why didn't he take the advantage and let Haro be caught unawares?

Up on the surface, Vigo waited for his opponent to resurface. He could feel the larger presence of the dragonsnake retreat in pain, followed by the contemplation of the Mando as he took his time resurfacing. He readied his vibroblade and cloaked himself in the Force. He'd likely only get one shot at this after Haro emerged, and he wanted to make it count.

As Haro drew near to the surface, he activated his jetpack and blasted out, Ijaat ready for battle. However, he found his opponent missing. Flipping down his visor, he scanned the area, first with visuals and then with his scan pulse. Nothing.

Haro bristled, beskad ready as he continued scanning the grove. Something was wrong. From what he'd seen of Vigo, the Umbaran didn't seem like the type to run from a fight. But then he remembered: The jetiise could hide themselves from sight and sensors alike. Just after the realization, his insticts kicked in and his beskad moved, deflecting a strike from Vigo's vibroblade, though not before it cut a massive gash in his back, between his jetpack and hut'uun cabur.

Haro deflected another strike and tossed a stun grenade at his opponent as he fell to his knees, buying time for the biomantic underlay in his armor to kick in and repair his damaged spinal cord. Vigo deflected the stun grenade, but the charged particles still impacted both combatants.

The stun grenade's blast had no effect on Haro, the energy being absorbed by the nanoarray in his armor. Vigo took a relative few particles, and though they weren't enough to knock him out, they were more than enough to disorient the Umbaran long enough for Haro to get back on his feet and press the offensive, swinging with full power fir his opponent's blade.

Haro's beskad hummed through the air, ringing against his opponent's vibroblade for only an instant before the beskad's vibrations hammered the sharpened Beskar straight through the hardened durasteel, severing the blade. Haro followed up with a shoulder bash, sending his opponent staggering backward and giving them both a breath before the battle would inevitably continue.

Mud flung in the air as the Umbaran was pushed back. Vigo smirked beneath his mask as he adjusted his dark, wet, hair out of his eyes. He loved a good fight against a decent opponent. The thrill. The punches. The feeling of accomplishment after a long day. It was a form of therapy for him. Vigo took the time to reach out to the Force once more as a gentle, translucent blanket settled over him.

In the distance behind Haro, the water darkened a deep red, as a pair of bright yellow eyes peaked above the water, its gaze was locked on the both of them. Had Zylrun only injured the predator and not killed it? Vigo would not have thought twice. Perhaps there were more to this Mandalorian in front of him than met the eye.

The dragonsnake swam ever so slowly toward them. Had Vigo not seen the creature he would not have known the predator was there. The water barely moved around the giant creature and the sounds of the swamp around them seemed to still.

Vigo channeled the Force once more, as it granted him an easier time to maneuver on the slick ground. He focused on the blood rushing through his ears. He ran towards the Mandalorian, still holding the broken hilt of his vibroblade in his prosthetic right hand. Vigo halted as he twisted to the side, calculating his momentum so he would continue moving into a slide. He reached into the mud and grabbed the tip of the other half of his broken vibroblade, sliding between Zylrun’s legs. He felt the attack from Zylrun’s beskad, and the blanket surrounding Vigo lightened and blew away with the breeze. It did its job. Vigo quickly righted himself on the backside of the Mandalorian, and he flicked the blade tip at the dragonsnake, which was now way too close for comfort.

The broken tip of the vibroblade soared in the air before slicing the dragonsnake’s eye. The monster let out a roar as she writhed in pain. She lifted a good portion of her body out of the water, giving both Zylrun and Zakirov a good view of the size of this creature. The maw opened and snapped shut displaying the teeth dripping with venom.

“Why did you–” Haro questioned. Why had the Umbaran prevented him from being bitten?

Vigo leaped, using the Force to boost his jump height, and slammed the broken hilt into the top of the dragonsnake’s head. The dragonsnake screeched as the broken metal cut deep. Vigo tried to let go of the hilt, but his prosthetic arm wouldn’t budge. The stun grenade must have damaged its resistance layers, and the water must have burned out the circuits, locking its grip around the sword’s handle.

“Kriff!” the Umbaran exclaimed.

Dominik would need to remedy this when he got back. The monster’s remaining eye was like a dagger, pointed now directly at the Umbaran stuck to his head. The dragonsnake lifted higher, thrashing her head trying to dislodge the humanoid on her. This caused Vigo to sway back and forth and his legs got awfully close to her venomous fangs.

All the while, Zylrun flicked on his targeting visor and readied his rifle. He lined up his aim, first at the Umbaran who was an easy target as he flailed. The Mandalorian’s grip tightened. Haro could end this fight right now. But… Zakirov had warned him earlier and prevented him from getting bit.

“Kriff indeed,” Haro said with a sigh and changed his aim to the body of the massive creature. Vigo kicked and struggled for grip. He placed his foot along the creature's lip, anything to avoid those fangs. Her tongue slithered and wrapped around his ankle.

“This might hurt!” Zylrun yelled before his finger pulled the trigger. Vigo closed his eyes. He never was getting out of here was he? Stuck between a blood thirsty monster and a Mandalorian that needed to finish the fight to move on to the next round.

Three shots sounded in rapid succession. Vigo slowly opened his eyes again. None of them hit him. The dragonsnake writhed faster, harder, and more sporadic as it let out a bloodcurdling scream. The murky water rapidly approached as the monster fell.

“FRACK!” he yelled before taking a large breath, as he broke the surface of the water. The two of them hit the silty bottom of the lagoon. He lifted his arm up as hard as he could. The sword wouldn’t budge. He tried to call on the Force once more, but he had asked so much of it already. He was tired. His actions became frantic as he struggled to get free. Seconds felt like hours. He was going to die here. Stuck to this monster.

He felt a nudge on his shoulder before a gauntleted hand gripped his arm and pulled. The vibroblade unstuck, and Vigo was freed. The two of them swam to the surface, as Vigo gasped for breath. He crawled toward dry land.

“Why?” the Umbaran asked, prone, before he turned his gaze to the Mandalorian that, Vigo now realized, held the tail of the dragonsnake.

“An eye for an eye,” Haro said as he lifted the tail up. “Suppose this could go for decent credits on the market?”

Vigo looked at the ground and let out a hearty laugh. He had not laughed in front of a stranger since his parents went missing, yet he couldn’t help but be hysterical.

“I like you,” he finally said.

“What now?” Haro asked.

“Now– I’ll resign,” Vigo said, “You would have won. You had the shot. It’s only fair.”

Haro swiftly nodded, and extended his arm, as they both shook in agreement.

Vigo took only a moment to reorient himself before tossing his ruined blade to the ground and switching to his DL-44, a faint sense of confidence rearing its head within him. Only he knew of the poison that had coated his blade, the hallucinogen that was now coursing through the Mando's veins. Soon, that blue armor would feel like a trap ready to spring, and with the Force Disciple's illusions augmenting the effects of the toxin, Haro wouldn't know what was real and what was a hallucination.

But first he had to hold off the man until the poison took effect. It was a fast-acting agent, but even ten seconds could feel like an eternity in the middle of combat. To buy time, Vigo began to fire on the beskar-clad man. His bolts ricocheted off armor, and Haro responded by sheathing his beskad and turning himself to present a smaller target as he brought his rifle to bear on Siorc.

Wait... Siorc? Haro faltered for a second. No, he had fought Siorc in the preliminary round. Why was the black-armored Evereni here now? The tournament was supposed to be a duel between two opponents, not three. And where was the Umbaran? Had he Cloaked again? Haro brought his rifle back up, aiming for the new threat. It didn't matter. He would fight them both, no matter where Vigo had gone.

He began to fire on Siorc, but the Mando, though armored in full Beskar, dodged bolts that he would have simply let bouce off his armor. Something wasn't right. Siorc raised his DL-44 again and- No. Siorc didn't have a DL-44. Siorc had had a Westar-35. Haro came to the realization as a bolt connected, burning into his left thigh. This wasn't Siorc. This was Vigo, his current opponent. Either the bastard's blade had been poisoned with mind-altering toxins, or he was using a dirty Force trick, or even both.

Haro used the pain from the blaster wound to clear his mind. This was a fight, no matter which opponent he was facing. He started to fire on his opponent again, his rifle bolts filling the air with the smell of ozone as they streaked toward Vigo.

But Vigo wasn't there, and neither was Siorc.

Haro's instincts warned him of danger, and he threw himself sideways, activating his jetpack and launching into the air as Vigo's blade barely missed him. He started to fire on his opponent as he gained elevation, but his shots streaked right through and scorched the ground behind the illusion. Haro shook his head, fruitlessly trying to clear the illusions from his mind. Coming to an idea, he deactivated his jetpack and dropped to the ground, letting go of his rifle and approaching where Vigo looked to be standing. He lunged for the Umbaran. His hands connected with empty air, but he'd suspected that would happen. He used his momentum to fall to the ground and come up in a crouch, closing his eyes to rely on his instincts to fight.

He felt a strike approaching him, aimed for the back of his neck, and he threw himself to the side again, only this time he grabbed his opponent's forearm and yanked him off balance. His gloves crushed the bracer attached to the knuckle blade, followed by the arm underneath with a pained yell from his opponent. Haro kept his eyes shut, grabbing Vigo's upper arm and pulling himself up to the man, his hand finding Vigo's neck.

But instead of crushing his opponent's neck with his enhanced strength, Haro paused, remembering how this man had chosen to warn him about the dragonsnake. He suspected this Umbaran didn't want to kill him, and so he decided to give him the same treatment. He gripped Vigo's neck, cutting off his air supply until the man passed out. Once he was sure the Umbaran was unconscious, he released him, finally opening his eyes again. The Umbaran slumped unconscious into the roots of a gnarltree, and a platform lowered from the foggy sky, accompanied by a hologram of the Combat Master.

"Good job, Haro, you've won! This platform will take you back to prepare for your next match."

Haro looked over at the transparent blue form of Vincent Brujah, then down at the unconscious body of Vigo Zakirov, and he made a decision. Hoisting the Umbaran up in his arms, he laid him down on the platform near where he stood, ignoring the look from the hologram as the platform raised into the sky. The effects of the hallucinogen (though much reduced without Vigo's illusions to strengthen them) followed him still.