Private Dangerous Flora

[Kaalia Pavanos]

: Finding this damn plant :
: Forestland, Tepasi :
: Witchdoctor :
: Zaavik Perl :
------
​

It was getting dark. Turned out it was a good idea to bring camping gear, after all. Thank the Force she had been convinced to.

Kaalia had hoped to not spend more than a day on Tepasi, but luck wasn't on her side today. Even though she had been able to get past Galactic Alliance borders with too much of a hitch and was fairly far removed from the nearest town, the woman couldn't say she enjoyed being in what was technically hostile territory. Even though all that remained were extremely loose ties, she was still seen as a Sith-Imperial figure to most who still recognized her. Outside of Sith Empire borders, though, there weren't many. Once someone stepped out of the galactic spotlight, they were quickly forgotten. Kaalia couldn't be more thankful for that.

The once-Dark Councilor wasn't here without reason, though. Ishana Pavanos and herself had been hard at work getting their new family business specialized in herbal remedies off the ground, and procuring various strains of plants and other flora had been a big part of that effort. One of the items on the list was a plant called nistleroot, a rare species only found on Tepasi. Not a single seller had stock and so the only option was to procure it themselves. And so, Kaalia had travelled to Tepasi to do exactly that. Just a single plant would be enough, but after a day of searching Kaalia was still empty-handed.

After finding a clearing, Kaalia wasted little time setting up camp. A tent was set up and the woman herself sat on a log, warming herself up by a campfire. She could've simply created a large flame and sustain it through the Force, but that would've required a constant focus on keeping it aflame. Still, fire shaping made getting the fire started nearly infinitely easier. The woman stared up to the night sky, taking note of all the stars while she idly twirled one of her lightsaber hilts in her left hand. She was doubtful anyone was around- she could easily go into meditation soon. She much preferred being cut off from her senses for an hour rather than the entire night, and sustaining oneself with the Force was more than good enough of an alternative to sleep. Nobody seemed to be around now, but that didn't mean Kaalia was willing to take any unnecessary risks.

 

[Zaavik Perl]

TEPASI

「BLOOM」​

"A plant?"

"Nistleroot!" The Zelosian Jedi clarified with a stern rebuke. The Master of the regional Agricore had a matter-of-fact demeanor about all things botanical. Her hands rested on her hips with a vague air of disappointment that the Shadow would be unaware of something entirely outside his realm of expertise.

"And you want me to guard it? You can't just get some Agri-?"

"No," she interrupted. "Something is coming, and it or they, might disrupt the colony."

"The colony? We're still talking about plants, right?" The newly Knighted Zeltron scratched the back of his head.

The Zelosian nodded. "Nistleroot is force-sensitive, like Dromund Kass Dart Flowers, for example. Every sprout grows cooperatively and creates a self-contained ecosystem with sub-species and genders working in perfect harmony. A colony."

"A- A force-sensitive plant?" Zaavik had never heard of something like that. Intial thoughts were disbelief, but there'd be no reason to trick him about something that the Zelosian found so dire. "Neat."

"Indeed. We have all collectively felt an intention; something intends to pick some. We need someone with your skillset for surveillance and tracking to-"

"Someone just wants to pick some? What's the big deal?" He interrupted as she had previously.

"Nistleroot is almost entirely endemic to a small area in the Tepasi's megaforests. A few specimens exist in captivity elsewhere, but picking Nistleroot can jeopardize the entire colony and wipe it all out."

"Uh-huh."

A green hand handed a trackerpad out to Zaavik. "The location of the colony and the protected perimeter are on this. Don't waste any time, Knight Dagoth."

"That's it?" The Agricore Master had already begun to walk away as he double-checked.

So much for a briefing.

Following the coordinates through the muck, vine, and brush, Zaavik hiked for what must have been hours. All of this for some plant? "Bhesj," he uttered as he pushed through a thicket of coarse branches. The battle with the terrain and fauna had been an uphill one. Literally. Climbing over a log, ducking a branch, and stepping over a small stream, Zaavik finally crested the apex of a large hill.

A the top, a large circular ruin about waist high enclosed a massive bush of bulbous and spiraling vines. Green pods glowed with an in and out viridescent droning. Flowers fluttered and spasmed, the bush seemed to almost writhe passively in place. Awestruck, Zaavik too a few steps forward. The greenish illumination seemed so bright, but he couldn't see it until he'd arrived. The stones around were ancient, covered in Je'daii markings.

He could almost smell the Force in the air. This was an old place. A powerful place. The Nistleroot emanated a calming aura through the force, almost enough to put him to sleep. He turned and sat on the low ruin, admiring the extraordinary flora over his shoulder before looking up to the sky. It'd taken all day to get here. A disfigured hand rubbed the back of his drooping eyes with an inverse twist.

Surveilling the countless lights above, a particular star panged his intuition with a strange feeling. As if someone else was looking at that same star at that very moment. He blinked. A trail of smoke displayed subtly against the night sky, raising up from the treeline some distance from the bottom of the hill. Already? It could have been anything, but fires didn't start for no reason. Furthermore, people wouldn't be in the middle of Tepasi-bumfuck-nowhere for no reason, either.

Back down the hill, Zaavik stalked through the trees and brush toward the smoke. It hadn't taken long before he'd come to a clearing. A very out-of-place campsite was the source. Zaavik made a slow beeline across the clearing, a leisurely pace betraying of his duty. Silently, he crept to the back of a crimson-haired individual, standing only a few meters out.

"You're in a restricted area," he declared, breaking the silence unceremoniously. Zaavik always hated playing the authority figure. "On Jedi Authority, I'm going to have to suggest you move along. The way you came, preferably.

Kaalia Pavanos​

 

[Kaalia Pavanos]

Ishana had done her research on nistleroot before even suggesting one of them recover a sample. Getting one's hands on it wasn't as easy as simply picking out a loose vine and separating it from the rest, which was the reason Kaalia was here instead of her wife. Laying one's hand on one of the pods and channeling the Force to feed it would do the trick, if the literature was to be believed. The source was old, but reputable.

Still, Kaalia needed to find it first. As rare as it was, it was thankfully hard to miss. If the glowing pods and 'writhing' vines wouldn't be enough, the aura it gave off in the Force was a strong indicator that there was nistleroot close by. Perhaps she had been looking in the wrong places, though. Her search would've been so much easier if the book hadn't omitted to describe where nistleroot was most often found, but when a plant was this rare it was difficult to find much on it. The woman would start looking for higher ground tomorrow morning and go from there.

Unless a sudden reason to leave early would come up.

A voice from behind her caused Kaalia to take her eyes off the stars above. She wasn't alone here, after all, and the other person wasn't too happy to see her here. There was no reason to resort to aggression right away, but something told her that this 'talk' wasn't going to end peacefully. Something about that voice just spelled out trouble. She covertly let the lightsaber drop to the ground in front of the log, keeping out of sight. The other hilt still hung on her belt, which she had left in her tent.

"I am so sorry," Kaalia responded politely as she looked over her shoulder to quickly inspect who it was she had to deal with. Male, vermillion skin tone; a zeltron. The woman slowly stood up from her improvised seat, standing between the fire and the log to face the man who had just asked her to leave. The lightsaber laid right at her feet, ready to be recalled to her hand at any moment. "I don't think I saw any signs anywhere. It didn't seem like I was disturbing anything." The best deceptions had a core of truth to them. She truly wasn't aware that she was in a restricted area, even if she could very easily figure out why the restriction was in place.

They were pretty far out. If she could incapacitate him and quickly get away, it would probably give her enough time to check the hill she had seen earlier and be gone before daybreak. It would've been even easier if he had simply left her alone, but that seemed rather unlikely and using brute force to overpower him seemed a bit extreme as anything else than a last resort.

"I'll just have to pack up my things."

Zaavik Perl ​

 

[Zaavik Perl]

TEPASI

「BLOOM」​

Zaavik had already pulled out his SIA badge by the time she'd turned around. New Jedi Order insignia cross-sectioned the SIA coat of arms on the rectangular card. A picture of himself was transposed in the top left corner. For a keen eye, a collection of aurebesh text was printed onto the card which read:

| SIA / NJO - FEDERAL ALLIANCE AGENT |
| KNIGHT ZAAVIK DAGOTH - NJ-0138 |
| 8-30-844 / ZELTRON / 185cm / 74 kg ‎‎‎|
| CLEARANCE LVL: STARBIRD |
| LETHAL FORCE AUTH: YES |

"You missed the signs and the perimeter by a few dozen kilometers. You're in the middle of nowhere, quite frankly. Not sure how you got this far without seeing the perimeter." No deception was detected in her demanor or empathic presence. She was either honest or a really good liar. He made a mental note about possible deterioration of the perimeter due to overgrowth or weathering.

SIA badge was returned to an inside jacket pocket. Both arms crossed over his chest as he surveilled the intruder as she presumably began to pack up. A careful eye scanned every movement, his perpetual tendency to be on edge forcing him to anticipate some kind of trouble. "You're quite far out, ma'am. Are you just lost? That being the case, I can get you lifted out of here. Otherwise, for posterity, I need to know your business in a restricted area."

Kaalia Pavanos​

 

[Kaalia Pavanos]

"Strange. Very strange." Kaalia shook her head. Had she known the area was restricted, she would've been much more lowkey. It was too late now, though. Simply giving up and going home was technically an option, but she hadn't gotten this far just to let the specimen slip through her fingers. Getting this one lead had been difficult enough already. That meant this Knight Dagoth had to be dealt with, one way or another. As long as she didn't seem like a threat, though, she would have time to figure out how. She didn't want to blow the situation up and get more people involved.

"I know I'm pretty far out, that much was the intention," Kaalia explained, hoping her feigned cooperation would keep him from being on edge. The woman gestured towards the camp she had set up to illustrate her point. "I came here to study the local flora. Tepasi's ecosystem is quite fascinating, so I wanted to see it with my own eyes." There was no need to add the fact she intended to procure a sample of a particular species. "But! Rules are rules. I'm sure there's a good reason to keep people out." She was pretty sure she could guess.

"In any case, I won't waste more of your time than I need to, Knight Dagoth. I should go pack up my tent now." Kaalia hoped she could get him to cooperate with her here. She wasn't planning on letting this encounter turn messy.

"I know it's a bit strange to ask, but could you give me a hand? I'd be out of your hair quicker. I know the way out from there." Kaalia began walking over to the tent, trying to get him to lend a hand. "If you could pull out the herrings from that side, I'll take out the ones here."

Zaavik Perl ​

 

[Zaavik Perl]

TEPASI

「BLOOM」​

An uninterested stare regarded her explanation with slow, unenthused blinks. First the Agri-Master, now this woman, all enthused over a bunch of plants. Tepasi: A botany nerd's paradise. Go fucking figure, and here he thought Knighthood would be filled with assignments he'd actually like. Instead, more of the same old drag, just with more responsibility.

"I know it's a bit strange to ask, but could you give me a hand? I'd be out of your hair quicker. I know the way out from there. If you could pull out the herrings from that side, I'll take out the ones here."​

A near-inaudible sigh escaped his lungs. "Fine," he conceded coldly. Leaves and twigs crunched beneath the clamor of pointed-toe boots as he strode towards the end of the tent. Taking a knee, he reached down for a herring, violet locks hanging drooping down to hang over his face. Metal fingers of his left prosthetic clinked against the cold, damp spike and heaved backward, freeing it from the soil.

"You can probably apply for clearance if you're a botanist or whatever," he mentioned offhandedly as he shifted on his knees intent to remove the second herring.

Kaalia Pavanos​

 

[Kaalia Pavanos]

"Thank you," Kaalia told Zaakvik as warmly as she could, before kneeling down on the other side of the tent. Fingers clamped down on one of the herrings to pull it out of the soil, but instead of putting it away immediately the woman looked at the sharp tip for a moment. Remembering one of her lightsabers was still inside the tent, she carefully drove the herring through the fabric to create a tear. She wasn't going to need it anymore. A hand reached through and grasped the saber hilt.

"I'll keep that in mind," Kaalia responded to the Jedi's remark as she shifted towards the second herring. She would leave it next to the first on the ground; she'd pack those up later. With one hand holding the lightsaber, she couldn't keep the herrings on her as well. "It's just a hobby of mine, but I guess there's no harm in trying."

All Kaalia was doing now was wait to get the jump on the Jedi. She wasn't fond of the idea of giving him much room to react when she did make her move, but that required patience. Thankfully he had bought the act so far, giving her time. Hopefully he hadn't noticed or heard the herring cutting through the tent's fabric.

Zaavik Perl ​