AUTHOR'S NOTE: Thank all of y'all soooooo much for your long time support! Because of it and the fact that today December 21, 2018 is the one year anniversary of "For Whom the Bell Tolls!" So, in honor of that I have decided to do a sequel, yes, yes, you're welcome. I have been battling over this for some time, wondering if I should do a sequel or not, but in the end I decided to do it. Hope you enjoy, part two chapter one!
DISCLAIMER: I OWN NO RIGHTS TO STAR WARS REBELS OR ANY OF ITS CHARACTER! ALL RIGHTS BELONG TO LUCASFILM AND DISNEY!
The dark Sith Lord stood before them, his mechanical breathing making him appear even more menacing. Red bladed saber in hand, he radiated power. The infamous Darth Vader, or, as Maul knew him, Anakin Skywalker. Skywalker, Kenobi's former apprentice.
Ezra stood beside his master. He had grown taller and muscular and his hair was now past shoulder length. The past few years and been nothing but hard training for the boy, and now it was time to put his skills to the test. He was finally here. He would finally do what had been preparing for since his time with the rebels. Somewhere inside he still missed them, but he had a purpose now, and he couldn't let anyone get in his way. Not even them, his once beloved family.
Suddenly an angry bellow came from Maul's throat and he charged the Sith Lord. Duel bladed saber spinning, he slashed at Vader, the action almost too quick to see. Maul was fueled by blinding fury and lust for revenge. But Vader however was calm. Perhaps too calm. As the blade came down upon him, it stopped in midair, inches from the Sith Lord's masked face. Maul shouted in anger, but his saber remained suspended.
"It seems I've overestimated you, Maul." said Darth Vader, his voice mechanical sounding through the mask.
"I will destroy you and you're master, Skywalker." Maul threatened, tightening his grip on his weapon.
"Anakin Skywalker is dead." the Sith Lord responded, his voice flat and even, sending a chill down Ezra's spine.
Maul growled and pushed Vader back with the Force. The taller man stumbled back and Maul reclaimed the use of his weapon.
"Your deaths will please my master greatly." The Sith Lord stood tall and defiant. Maul decided it was time for him to die. Him and the emperor had been in rule for too long.
Ezra wasn't sure what to do. The dark side was strong in this place, almost overwhelming. If Vader was one of the most powerful beings in the galaxy, how were they going to defeat him, a twenty two year old boy and an angry, crazy old Zabrak? Maul had said he was ready, but... was he really? Did he stand even stand a chance? It seemed so unlikely.
But yet Maul fought while the Sith Lord, apprentice to Emperor Palpatine, easily deflected his attacks, at times barely lifting his saber to do so. It was all the Force, that was all he needed. And Maul was blinded with revenge and fury, unable to see that no matter how quick or how acrobatic he might be, Vader was stronger in the Force. If he wished, he could easily crush Maul. It was just a game for him. A game Ezra feared Vader would tire of quickly.
His moves were quick but somehow the Sith Lord easily deflected his moves and pushed him back with the Force. Maul was tiring of this game.
He is playing you. You keep up like this and you will die.
It was the voices, Maul's much beloved source of guidance. They had guided him to finding his apprentice, Ezra. They had guided him into destroying Kanan and his rebel friend's, the spectres of The Ghost. They were all dead, except... There was one Force signature he sensed at times. But, he was certain he had killed her. Hadn't he? Hadn't he ran her through?
Darth Vader could feel the old Zabrak tiring. And the boy, he almost made Vader laughed, something he had not done in such a long time. In a way, the boy reminded him of someone he once knew, a young boy and his slave mother living under the mercy of a Toydarian named Watto on the desert planet Tatooine. That boy had trained hard and in the moment of testing his skill he had buckled under the pressure of fear. Fear that drove him to the services of the only remaining Sith Lord. That fear created one of the most powerful beings in the galaxy. That fear was controlled and turned into something more.
The boy was hesitant, not sure whether to help his master. The boy, Vader sensed, had been at this cross road before, between two masters. One Jedi and one former Sith.
It had caught Maul by surprise. The red blade slashed through his side, exposing a few ribs and causing him to howl in pain. His legs buckled and he fell to the ground. This, the maddening cry of pain from his master, went through Ezra's entire system, triggering something inside, perhaps a sense of protection over the old Zabrak. He shouted for Maul but all the former Sith could manage was a grunt of pain. Vader, tall, dark and menacing, stood over the downed Zabrak. Ezra reacted.
He shouted and charged at Vader. The Sith turned and raised his weapon, preparing to strike the boy down. But Ezra saw it coming and quickly sidestepped, slashing up at Vader's side, the blade tearing through his armored suit. The Sith Lord cried out in pain, but he did not fall. Catching the boy off guard, he turned quickly with such speed that shouldn't of been possible with the heavy armored suit. Ezra only had a moment before he realized, too late, what was going to happen.
Vader's blade was embedded in Ezra's torso, the burning pain so overwhelming that all Ezra could manage was a surprised gasp. The last thing the young apprentice heard was Maul's shout and the clattering of a helmeted head falling to the floor and then his world went black.
"Ezra, wake up." Maul pleaded. But the boy never so much as moved. He couldn't be sure if Ezra was dead or alive.
"An apprentice for an apprentice it would seem, my old friend." came an all too familiar voice, one Maul knew only too well.
"Hello, my old master." Maul said, standing calmly from Ezra's body, turning to face Darth Sidious. Maul felt a strange sense of calm, one that he thought he had never felt, perhaps never would again.
"You had so much potential, Maul. But your fall to weakness began when you met that woman. Foolish boy." Sidious taunted. But this did not faze Maul. He simply paced and watched the older man, like a cat stalking its prey. His eyes never left Sidious's. And then it came. What Maul had been anticipating. The lightening arched from the human's fingers, but Maul was more than ready. He quickly threw up his blade, the lightening striking the blade with a flash. Maul would not allow himself to be defeated, not this time.
Kill him, kill him, kill him. the voices demanded. They would repeat this command, over and over, growing louder and louder until, finally, Maul shouted and threw the old man back with the use of the Force. Sidious yelped in surprise as his body was flung back and slammed into the wall behind him.
Kill him, kill him, KILL HIM, KILL HIM, KILL HIM, KILL HIM!
Sidious seemed frightened, his dark side corrupted eyes widening with surprise. Maul had grown stronger, he realized. Somehow, though he wasn't sure, the former Sith Assassin had grown stronger. Something was influencing his strength, fueling his power. Too late did Sidious realize, it wasn't something, but someone. Someone very important to Maul.
Perhaps, Sidious thought, Perhaps him meeting that woman wasn't weakness.