Murky Intentions (Kiva)

[Traverse]

45th of Spring, 515 A.V.
Murky Intentions


People said the Black Marsh was dangerous, but this was an exaggerated term. No the Dhani didn't particularly like finding Myrians in 'their' swamp, but then again they only occupied a small portion of it, much of it lay unclaimed. Ghosts preferring solitude tended to find certain areas and claim them as well. Rumors would circulate about certain ghosts left too long without contact that would become unstable, though that was generally a kind word for it.

Kiva's reasons for venturing out into the marsh were her own. Whether studying the limited plant life Black Rock sustained, simply exploring, or perhaps purposefully seeking out the potential dangers of the Marsh, there she was deep within the thick, foliage clogged waters, a comfortable luke warm temperature to the water just like the island itself. Strange leafless trunks cropped up around her, silent sentinels sitting stagnant in the water of the Marsh, and blocking what little sunlight had been filtering through the fog choked skies of the island, leaving everything a hazy stream of shadowy objects.

The only creatures she had seen since starting her journey were a couple birds, their silhouettes flitting quickly by and gone just as swiftly as they had come. It had been the only real disturbance of the peaceful swamp she had encountered thus far, and the marsh was a strange hushed quiet, her sloshing through its contents the most noise there was.

She knew the way back, but not particularly where she was going when her left foot sank deep within the unidentifiable murk with a massive sucking noise, and sent her completely off balance.
.

[Kiva]

45th of Spring, 515 A.V
Black Marsh

Given the relatively comfortable temperature, Kiva should have been in good spirits, but trekking through the marsh was proving more challenging (and exhausting) than she previously expected. The Myrian struggled to keep a level footing, and she was convinced it was impossible to sneak through the terrain if one was to try. A light sweat was building along the curve of her back and between her breasts, even with her light clothing. Walking was like pushing through sludge, and she had her black pants pushed up to her thighs, mud and gunk filling the gaps between her toes. Her sandals were tied together and slung over her shoulders, not necessarily because she wanted to keep them clean, but because she loathed wearing them. She felt the resistance would only make her job harder.

Kiva, for all intents and purposes, was hoping for three possible things -- to come across any plant life she could study, to find any poisonous creatures she could exploit, or to collect any remains to use in her malediction practices. The humidity would likely decay any body quickly, but the bones or teeth may be fossilized somewhere in all this grim. It was just a matter of finding them. All she had to do was --

Her left foot sunk deeper than she was expecting, and Kiva jerked sideways. The resistance from the mud and her lack of balance sent the young woman flying sideways, tumbling to the ground. In a matter of second, dark slop sucked at her arms and she was on her side, covered and dirty. A long, irritated sigh rolled from her lips and in this moment, she was happy her long locks were tied back in a high and tight bun. If she had to wash this out of her hair, she would have screamed. Taking a minute to collect her patience, she pulled herself up and used it as an opportunity to scan her surroundings.

The place was... dreary. It lacked the color of home. 'No wonder the Dhani live here.' Kiva crinkled her nose, the thought of the snake people not a pleasant one. She glanced around for any slithering movements, eyes narrowed and lifted a hand to double check that her kris still hung faithfully from her hip. Nothing caught her eye, except for a log a few feet away. She tried to pull herself towards it, expecting a nice seat, and if she was lucky, something of interest. She was ready to get home already. This place was dead.

-Kiva

[Traverse]

Date

The log seemed an easy goal compared to all the other things Kiva sought and had not yet found in the swamps. She reached it shortly and was able to drag herself upon its sturdy body easily, a good chunk of the muck and slime from the swamp separating from her legs with the motion.

Now that her own sloshing had still she could hear the slight rattling of mostly leafless branches in a slight breeze, as well as distant birdcalls, and perhaps even a few insects. If she inspected the side of the log she would find a white and tan speckled mushroom, growing out like the reverse roof of a house in several layers from the side of the log, along with several patches of a deep forest green moss.

Her surroundings from a slightly higher perch afforded her little in the way of help, until she noticed a definite lightness to the distance straight behind the log, a strip between large tree trunks. It was still a ways off, but promise a clearing in trees, and perhaps plant life that had more access to sunlight.
.

[Kiva]

The log felt soggy under her body. A hand lifted to brush dark strands of hair that were beginning to stick to her forehead, and she leaned back. Nearly crushing it under her weight, Kiva caught herself from destroying a strange looking patch of mushrooms. She jumped to her feet, surprised. 'So there's plant life on this island, after all.' Intrigued, Kiva glanced over her shoulder only once, mostly out of habit than fear, and carefully examined the fungus. It lacked the interest and bright colors of a lot of the flora in the jungle, but it was definitely something interesting. Bringing it back to Tokia might prove useful, and if anything, she would at least learn whether it not it had a purpose.

Kiva slung her pack off her shoulder fluidly, reaching inside and pulling free a leather bound notebook. Turning a few pages, she balanced it on her knee while shuffling around for a piece of charcoal. When she found it, found the right positioning for it in her hand and looked at the mushroom.

'What's important?' she pondered, noticing the ark of the cap and the coloration. Carefully, and badly, she began to draw a small sketch of the mushroom. The lines were choppy and mistakes littered the drawing. She continued to run the charcoal against the paper, accidentally smudging one of the lines. She added some spots to indicate the speckles on the mushrooms. Quickly, Kiva re-positioned her hand and tried again. Not wanting to spend all day getting frustrated at her art skills, Kiva went on to the real purpose of this practice - note taking.

Along the side of the page, Kiva began scribbling a few notes in Myrian that she would add to later:


- Located in swampy area, growing on side of log.
- Color: White & light brown
- Low sunlight conditions
- Next to green moss

Kiva's charcoal hovered over the page, unable to think of any more distinctive facts. She wasn't yet skilled enough to know what to be looking for, just that these details could come in handy later. Kiva regretted that she might be missing something vital, but if she took this page and a sample of the mushroom back to Black Rock's alchemist, she would likely have a better idea and be able to fill in the blanks.

Quickly, she closed the book and returned it to her backpack. In the bag was an assortment of things: A few rations, and and eating knife, as well as her book and a few jars her employer had allowed her to borrow in case she was sent off on a retrieval job. The water skin slung across her shoulders sloshed when she began to rummage, pulling out one of the containers and the knife. Gently, she pressed the blade against the base of the mushroom, into its soft flesh. A small sound of release and Kiva was cutting it free and allowing it to fall into a glass jar. She did this a few more times until she had a good number of them and threw some of the moss on top. The Myrian secured the lid and put the supplies away.

In the distance, it looked a bit sunnier and once she was done with her task, she got up and began to move onward. Her feet sloshed and she cringed at the feeling. Oh, how she hated swamps.


-Kiva

[Traverse]

Going was slow, squishy, and damp, but at the very least the patch of light grew steadily closer, and became more easily accessible as Kiva found more solid land beneath her feet, slowly leading up to the clearing. It was not entirely solid, but it was a nice break from the otherwise sunken swamp she had been in previously.

Dappled rays of Sunlight filtered down through the partially leaf laden trees to illuminate a large glade. Off to the side a small clearer pool of water sat choked with reeds, and it seemed one of the aspects that had made this clearing were a number of fallen trees, their decomposing bodies covered with more of the same mushroom from before, and various types of mosses as well.

If searched the clearing would reveal a number of plant types Kiva was unfamiliar with. Sections of small white flowers, a type of ivy-like vine crawling up living trees, strange looking lilies in the small pond...

But after a chime or two investigating a voice struck out from the edges of the wood, clear and loud...and obviously upset.

"Go away, savage. Go. Away."
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[Kiva]

The change in scenery was refreshing to Kiva, whose legs were caked with mud. The buzzing of mosquitoes sounded around her ears and she swatted at the bugs in irritation. When the sunlight was more prominent, Kiva heaved a large sigh of relief, dragging herself on solid ground and attempting to shake off the gunk from her skin. It was mostly futile, and she took deep breaths to recover, spotting the strange lilies in the process. In fact, many plants grew around her, and while she wanted to collect them all, these garner her attention most at the moment.

With no Dhani in sight, Kiva moved towards the plant, inspecting it's qualities. Kiva, not quite experienced enough to know that she shouldn't always touch things without protection, reached out towards the flowers. Her fingertips nearly brushing the petals, a voice called out to her.

The Myrian froze, yanking her kris free and spinning around. She could not see the owner of voice, but its words rung clearly in her ear. 'Savage.' Kiva scowled. Who dared to call her such? "Ma'khan'um!" Kiva retorted, slicing her blade swiftly through the air in a downward motion. She would not leave. Not without what she came for. Who spoke to her in such way? Was it a pathetic human? A Dhani?

The thought of being insulted by one made her grit her teeth. Living on Black Rock had soothed her violent tendencies some, but past impressions could not be forgotten so easily. Kiva strained her ears to listen, crouching and ready to see if someone would emerge. She would be ready.

-Kiva

[Traverse]

At first there was no response to Kiva's challenge, a pause that continued for two chimes, then just as the bizarre thought that the voice might have been an illusion crossed Kiva's mind, the same voice, but quieter heralded just above her right shoulder.

"Ha, I'd like to see you try take me down, savage."

If she whirled around to face her assailant she would see nothing, not even a ripple of the reeds around her to give evidence to what was about, and that perhaps might be all the evidence she needed.

A chime later at the edge of the pond a figure materialized, not even looking at Kiva, just the calm water in the middle of the murky swamp, her fingers brushing the top of the water, though very little happened when she did. Whoever the figure was she looked aged, not elderly, but not young either, hardened wrinkles lining her face. She wore breeches, and a thick shirt in her seeming, with belts, pouches, and containers that at one time could have held any number of things, though were now just the physical representation of the woman she was, now semi-transparent and gazing at her reflection in the clear pool.

"I asked you to leave once, I will ask again, more polite like if that's ya problem. Please. Leave. Go pick yer flowers some-wheres else."
.

[Kiva]

*
*
*
*

'Ghost.'

Kiva had little to no experience with the beings, finding them strange and abnormal. The dead should remain dead. When she whipped around and saw nothing, she had a hunch, but seeing the woman materialize for herself was proof enough. Kiva cursed herself for not carrying wraith mint with her, eyeing the apparition with suspicion. It was neither a live Dhani, or a human. A ghost was something completely different, something she didn't know how to fight.

The woman's request, this time with a more polite tone, was slightly more appreciated, but Kiva had questions. The Myrian held her tongue, more from facing the unknown and not knowing what to expect. Kiva kept a steady voice, inquiring as calmly as she could, despite the irritability from being called a savage a second time, "My name is Kiva of the Crimson Sun. Why do you ask this, ghost? Speak, for I will not run without reason."

Kiva sidestepped, trying to think of what would happen if this conversation went sour. She looked over her accuser, spotting all the containers and belts that had been part of her attire. "Are you a collector? Do you know of these ingredients, these plants?" A resourceful ally was always better than a resourceful enemy, but getting as much information as possible before any end game was the best plan she had. The more she knew, the better chance she had of using something to her advantage later on.

★★★

[Traverse]

She looked at Kiva with thinly veiled rage hovering somewhere in matterless eyes. There was a long moment of silence after her questions once more, then the female screamed, a high pitched wail that turned into a thunderous roar of a noise.

"I just want, TO BE LEFT ALONE!"

Her form threw itself at Kiva, passing through her and dispersing into nothingness as it did. The feeling that she got when the ghostly figure's essence passed through her own was the deepest of chills, a cold that growing up in Falyndar, she would have never in all her years have experienced. It sank down to her bones, causing her skin to prickle, sapping all of the warmth from her person.

The sensation was terrifying, and painful, but just as the true biting cold sank in it was gone. The Ghost's presence was gone just as quickly as it had appeared, and slowly warmth and circulation would return to Kiva's limbs and body. If she stayed in the clearing and continued to gather, she would be impeded no longer by the strange and violent presence.
.

[Kiva]

*
*
*
*

Kiva's precautions didn't matter. This ghost was irrational, and unfortunately for the Myrian, underestimated. The roar of the apparition startled Kiva who unconsciously took a step back before being consumed. Everything else faded away. All she knew was cold, all she felt was cold. Kiva couldn't breathe, she couldn't think. It was as if her life force had drained, leaving her with nothing. Her bones ached and her skin came alive with the feeling of ice running through her veins.

Kiva sunk to the ground, so easily defeated, so easily crumpled by an enemy she could neither fight nor see. The pain radiated through her body, and just when she thought she couldn't take it anymore... it was over. Kiva could breath again, shakily sucking in the damp swamp air, and her body broke out in a cold sweat. The Myrian, now sprawled out on the dirt floor, rolled over, eyes wild and looking around for the evil that had overcome her.

She felt fear, and rightly so. And then, a flood of anger. Frustration at herself and this enemy. She was attacked by someone dead, who had already lost their life and now wanted to run her off. That ghost was lucky Myri hadn't already claimed this land!

Sitting up, Kiva's hands were shaking, and she still struggled to breathe. Out of spite, when she still did not see the ghost, the young woman pulled herself next to the lilies and plucked free a handful. Then, struggling to bring herself to her feet, she went to grab a fistful of ivy that was growing on the trees.

And in a weird way, it made her feel better. Such a rebel.

★★★