Enchanted Garden

[Kairos]

Tatooine, dry, arid, dirty, corrupt. No matter what anyone tried the Hutts still held a massive presence on the desert world. Thugs and gangsters were the best words to describe them. Organized crime didn't really come close to the level of blatant crime they committed on a daily basis. Slaves, spice, gambling, murder, all things which were common place under Hutt control. The Galaxy knew but did nothing. No one card really, not even the Jedi who were supposedly the defenders of the innocent and protectors of the weak. That's why Kairos decided he needed to take matters into his own hands.

The young assassin had been part of the Hutt system for his entire life. The son of slaves, Kai had been raised to kill for the slugs, and he was perfect at his job. Not one target ever got away, and all seemed to die of natural causes. The killer was flawless with the blade as well. His flaw was distance killing, but he never worked in his weakness. Kairos hated himself for killing at the will and whims of the slugs who controlled his life. The dark haired assassin was skilled, yet could not bring himself to kill the ones who made his life a living hell. To attempt it would be suicide, but he no longer cared.

That was the thing about working for the Hutts, one stopped caring. Kai sat perched outside the Hutt palace, atop the roof of the massive structure. His frame and training had made him light on his feet, nimble and agile in movement. Ebony boots covered the feet which secured his form to the roof. A single wrapped hand held onto a metal beam which was near by for added security. The musings of the young assassin had determined his course of action. Today his target was Brazza the Hutt. One by one the Hutts would perish, or today Kai would meet his end. Either way, it would all be over soon.

The descent was not difficult as the stealthy assassin lowered himself into the quiet chambers of the sleeping palace. The smell of the palace was an welcome scent as the mix of several races, the Hutts, and the rotting corpses which had been tossed into the rancor pit below assaulted the sense upon entry. In the distance the sound of something wet dripped to the cadence of each step the shadowy figure took toward the Hutt. His strike would be swift and decisive, or it would have been had Brazza not woken just before the strike.

Everything happened quickly. Kairos began to curse in huttese. Brazza had the final word, as Hutts always did. Kairos had been sentenced to death. The method, he was to be the next feeding to the carnivorous plants in Gardulla Besadii's pleasure garden. Stripped of his weapons, Kairos was taken to the underground botanical wonder where he was tossed in before the ones carrying out the sentence were trapped as the next meal as well.

The plants were beautiful, in a deadly sort of way. The garden was well taken care of, something which actually seemed odd. A care and love for each plant was felt in the air, almost as if there was a benevolent caretaker for them. This was a feeling foreign to anything in the Hutts world as far as Kai had experienced. To say he was intrigued would be an understatement. The thought so compelled him that he pressed into the garden. Many of the plant life seemed full from their last meal, meaning Kai had a week in the garden at most, a couple days at worst, before his death would find him. There was time to find this caretaker if the existed, and perhaps a way out.

Stumbling further in, Kai could have sworn he heard singing. It could have been a plant trying to seduce him it's way, but it was such an odd thing he felt compelled to find the source. Further in he pressed, moving leaves aside as the garden became thicker, more dense, with each step. Now he was driven as if captivated by something, or someone. Finally he could no longer shake the feeling and his voice rang out.

"Hello?! Is there someone else in here!?"

[Phlox]

The melodious voice carried through the palatial gardens; reverberating off of the solar panels, directing the nourishing rays from above, and carrying over the almost cheerful gurgle of the garden's water source. A woman sat at the oasis center, her bare feet plunged into a cool spring and her hands braced against a rock jutting out over it. Her siren song softened into a faint laugh as she kicked some water toward the Syren plants loitering on the bank opposite of her. They released an intoxicating plume of pheromones into the air, that blended perfectly with her own Sylphe blend; a dangerous combination capable of incapacitating any genus that set foot on their grounds.

A discordant sound intruded upon her reverie and she looked up sharply from the glassy water's surface. She rose, her pale green skin shimmering faintly after indulging in the life-giving water. The flowers entwined with her stark red hair proceeded to change colors as a variety of emotions built within her, finally agreeing upon an orchid tone that represented curiosity. Stepping down from the walk, she carefully moved through the dense flora of her domain until she happened upon the source of the sound. A man. She hadn't seen something of his like since she'd fed those Ho'Din gardeners to the Deneba Bushes.

Stepping into his line of sight, she slid him a beguiling smile and propped her seemingly delicate hands against the generous curves of her hips. Her bright carmine hair fell across her shoulders and back in wavy rivulets interspersed with vines and brightly hued blossoms. A maroon shirt hung loosely from her upper body, fastened in place by a single button that hung by a thread. A dense cloud of imperceptible pheromones clung to the air around her, seeming to entice even the plant life to converge upon her form. "You must have been very bad for them to put you here."

[Kairos]

Potent chemicals known as pheromones were polluting the air, and altering the senses of the, usually, level headed assassin. His own mind was clouded by the drive to find the Siren which called to him, the seductress which beckoned his feet to carry forward through the thick foliage of the enchanted garden. Long arms pressed through the remaining leaves to uncover an open oasis in the very center of the garden.

Light reflected from the panels above to illuminate the crisp pool of water in the center. The atmosphere was now feeling more like that of a sauna, or humid tropical forest. Kai's blue hooded shirt was drenched in sweat, and the water called to his thirsty, parched lips. Gray eyes locked on the pool, but his body froze at the sound which danced upon his ears. The sultry voice of a woman called to him, inquiring of his reason for being in the garden.

Kai had seen many races before, but his mind was hard pressed to recall a time when he had run across a humanoid plantlike hybrid before. His mind was hard pressed to recall most things with all the pheromones wafting in the air, intoxicating his senses with nothing but desire for the luscious figure his stormy eyes drank in. The words were almost pulled from his mouth, as if they were drawn from him of her will, rather than his own. The well trained assassin was nothing more than putty in her hands, his life was at her mercy.

"I tried killing Brazza, but the slug woke up just as my blade was drawn to commit the deed," his voice offered. "What of you," he asked in the first semi-lucid moment since coming into contact with the enchanting beauty. "Are you meant to be the keeper of this predatory garden, or are you simply a prisoner as well?"