Approximately 34 B.B.Y (Before Battle of Yavin) and in accordance of the new cannon...
The Dark Side surrounded Maul as he plunged his feat onto the soft surface below. The mud enveloped his boots as he sank slightly, but he hauled with his strength and forced his body to move forwards. He allowed the Dark Side to motivate him - control him. It always did, and it played him so well. He was its instrument, and if was destined to be used to play the harmonies of a darker future, he would not complain.
He examined the area around him. His speeder sat besides an old twisted tree, placed conveniently in front of a murky lake where many had likely lost their lives in the mud. The dark brown leaves that grabbed onto the forest trees around the lake hid away the two suns that rested above the world of Mirabu, darkening the world and dampening the heat that threatened to burn Maul's red skin. Not that burning red skin was an easy task, mind you... It was one of the many advantages of his perfect design.
His eyes flickered over everything, searching every detail and every sound. He knew what he was looking for; if he allowed the Force to control him he would find it. Closing his eyes and embracing the Force, which he did so rarely, Maul allowed every sense to be heightened. His first instinct was to search for fear, yet he found none of it. His component must be brave. Bravery was foolish - it always led to mistakes that led to painful death at the end of a lightsaber. Today, it would be Maul's.
Maul stepped forwards again as he continued his search, and as he allowed his mind to play over whether his opponent had been able to escape Mirabu. It would be the nightmare of his Master if the Jedi did; the Jedi would likely report the discovery of a Sith Apprentice to the Jedi Council, and within hours the Jedi would be swarming its world and examining the old Sith Temples where Maul had been studying.
He had been taking apart an old lightsaber when he had seen the figure standing in the doorway that led into the Tomb of Darth Barris. It had been well built, better than Maul's, and Maul had taken advantage of an opportunity and had decide to discover its inner-workings. Perhaps he would have been able to remove the lightsaber crystal and test it in his old blade - discover whether it truly was as powerful as the legends had promised? Perhaps he would have found a weapon that could have led to him killing his Master, and he would have been free to continue the Rule of Two?
The Jedi had killed his hope.
For this reason, and this reason alone, Maul had to find her and punish her, whether it meant abandoning the Temple for the foreseeable future. Besides, if Maul was able to slaughter this weak Light Side user, he would be able to return to his Temple and continue his work in peace, without the disturbance of Jedi scum. She would be an easy fight; he already knew that.
When the Jedi had seen him taking apart the lightsaber, she had attempted to flee. Maul had swept her up using a Force Choke, and she had struggled to fight back, before allowing a small flow of energy to be released from her finger tips. The rays had pushed him back slightly and broken his hold, but it had also angered him. He could sense that she was a Padawan; her training was weak and clearly incomplete.
Taking out his own double lightsaber hilt and gnashing his teeth, Maul had activated a single blade and allowed the scarlet line to illuminate the dark corners of the deadly tomb. In that moment, he had felt the Dark Side awaken. Dark spirits of power flushed around him - screeched in his ears - as they begged him to show no mercy. They had begged him to finish it quickly. A Jedi was forsaken from entering the Tomb of Darth Barris, and this young Jedi had broken this long held rule.
'You should not have come here,' Maul had told the Young Jedi. He remembered watching her face as he waited for a sign of weakness. She held strong and lifted her chin upwards.
'I was sent to excavate this Temple, not battle a Sith.' Her voice was judging and agitated, as if the discovery of a red lightsaber wielding horned maniac had only annoyed her and prolonged her mission. 'Make this quick and surrender.'
'You are a Padawan,' Maul laughed, as he began to circle the Jedi. She had still not activated her lightsaber, but the metallic hilt now sat in her hand, waiting patiently. She closed her eyes, as if she were studying.
'Every Jedi begins their life as a Padawan - Master Yoda, Master Jinn, Master Dooku. It is simply the first stepping stone towards greatness.'
'Jedi are not supposed to crave greatness,' Maul informed the young one, amused.
'I am not like any ordinary Jedi.'
She activated her green lightsaber suddenly and swung her lightsaber violently, showing very little skill. Yes, she was unlike any other Jedi Maul had encountered and murdered; she was weaker, and poor with her blade.
'Your confidence will be your downfall, unless you embrace it,' Maul told the girl as he plunged his blade towards her, narrowly missing as she dropped into a roll. 'Join the Dark Side of the Force and your life may be spared; I am looking for an apprentice.'
'I may be a unique Jedi, but I am a Jedi other the less.' She swung her blade again, expecting to hit Maul's head. Maul had ducked and then taken up his own blade so that it clashed against hers. Sparks emitted in every direction as the girl resisted against his own scarlet blade. Maul had to admit that she was physically strong; her focus had been on training her own physical capabilities and not her abilities with the Force.
'I will choke you like you deserve,' Maul had told her, whilst he allowed his blade to drop to his side. He had allowed the Force to flow to his finger tips and leak out lightning, that had embraced her from head to toe. The young Jedi had screamed, before she had lifted up her green lightsaber and deflected the blasts. Maul had cut off the lightning just in time to avoid yet another chop for his head. This girl was rather unoriginal.
Maul had lifted up his hands and pushed the girl backwards, before throwing himself into a flip whilst his right hand began to twist his lightsaber so that it created a continuous ring of death. There would be no small cut from his blade; Maul would have simply touched the girl and killed her. Then he would have sliced her body into small pieces and offered it as a sacrifice to Darth Barris.
Yet, as Maul had landed to his feet, he had discovered the truth behind the girl's fake persona - she was a coward. There was no Jedi Padawan to be seen. She had fled the scene of the crime the moment Maul had threw himself into the air. She was a traitor to all Force users, Jedi or Sith alike. There was no letting her leave this planet alive any more.
Leaving the Temple and launching himself onto his own speeder, Maul had ridden the speeder through the gritty sand that sat below the boiling suns before he finally arrived at a forest. He had continued travelling onwards until he had reached the marsh lake, where he could sense the young Jedi's presence, yet he could not pinpoint it exactly.
And here he was now, retelling old stories as he allowed his senses to discover the Jedi Tomb Raider; she would show up on his radar eventually because she was a coward. Soon fear would get the better of her, despite her 'new found bravery', and he would obliterate her. He was almost excited. It was very rare for Darth Maul to be excited.
In the corner of his eyes he noticed the speeder. It was large in structure - more like a cruiser with a saddle on its roof. Different artefacts were attached to the back, likely to be Sith in design. It was clear that the Tomb of Darth Barris had not been the first ancient structure the Jedi had visited... Lightsaber hilts of different sizes and colours were held in place by ancient straps, and a massive staff that had once belonged to Darth Delin was now attached near the surface below the hovercraft. It was as if she was creating a Sith shrine. Perhaps she was...
The speeder was parked next to a Jedi Cargo ship, ancient in design and built to look stylish but practical. A massive window sat at the front of the ship, giving Maul an insight into the ship's control room, where flashes of blue and red could be seen. The Cargo ship was painted in greens and browns that were not out of place in this marsh, but on the side of the Cargo ship was an old Republic symbol, which had been crossed out and replaced with that of a bolt of lightening.
Maul was struck with realization. This young Padawan had not been sent by the Jedi Council with the role of excavating the tombs of this world; she had left the Jedi Order and had come here of her own accord. She had collected Sith Artefacts and planned to take them for herself, craved greatness and had coated old Jedi craft with graffiti of Dark Side powers. This girl had left the ways of the Jedi - recently, as she still used her green lightsaber - and was planning to become a servant of the Dark Side.
'I can read your thoughts.' It was her voice - the ex-Jedi's - calling out from behind him. He felt the heat of a lightsaber against his neck and gritted his teeth in disgust. He hated intrusion.
'You have turned to the Dark Side. You should have mentioned it before I tried to kill you.'
'Tried? That was hardly trying. And no, I have not turned to the Dark Side. I am simply learning it.'
Maul felt the urge to ignite his lightsaber and spin around to face his foe, but he feared that should would slice him in half before he had the chance. He would have to be patient; he would have to wait for her to open up the opportunity.
'Why are you here?' Maul asked simply.
'The Jedi Order has become weak - they must be reformed and changed. The Dark Side and its ways will return the Jedi to their days of greatness. The Sith and Jedi Order will be renewed as one, and they will be stronger than ever...' Her voice rang out as if she were making a speech to thousands of followers. Her confidence was worrying.
'You are only one; you could never stop the Order,' Maul told her.
'I am not. There are many of us who have embraced the ways. You could join us.' Her voice lacked conviction as fear broke through for the first time.
'If you plan to be a 'dark side user', why did you not use it when I battled you in the Temple of Darth Barris?' Maul felt her voice catch in her throat, and knew her response before she spoke it.
'The Jedi Council would know - sense it. If I use the Dark Side here, they will find me and bring end to my plans. I must remain in the light until the time of darkness comes,' the Jedi told herself. Maul could feel her hatred towards them; if she used it she could be very powerful.
'Your talents are wasted. Join me and I will let them flourish.' It was a simple yes or no answer, and it would choose her fate. Maul hoped she would make the right decision. After all, with her 'army' of supporters, she could be able to overthrow Maul's own Master, and Maul could continue the cycle of the Rule of Two as the true leader of the Sith.
'I told you. I am Jedi, and I always will be. I am just a revolutionary...'
It was time. Ducking down, Maul just missed the narrow swipe of a green lightsaber as he dropped to the ground and used the Force to collect his own long hilt in his hand. Instead of igniting one end, he ignited them both, allowing two long blades of red to illuminate the forest around him. Jumping back onto his feat, Maul was quick to kick the Jedi in the chest, sending her backwards and causing her to cry in pain.
She took a swing at Maul again, but Maul parried it, and they were locked in a conflict of strength for several moments before Maul allowed himself to feast off of the fear that was becoming ever present. It was strong in her, and hid behind the comfort of bravery and technique, yet was large enough to be leached from its deep dark hiding place.
Spitting in the Jedi's face, Maul launched his blade forwards, but the girl threw herself over him so that she could stand behind. He spun himself around again in time to see her call one of the ancient Sith lightsabers to her hand using the Force. The blade was thin and appeared to be made of wood and bone, with a small metal end that was a single spike designed to cause maximum pain. Maul knew it to have once belonged to Darth Delin; it was another artefact she had stolen from him.
The Jedi ignited the saber, and a long red line flickered to life as embers danced around it as if it were flames. Without saying a word, she crossed both blades behind her head to form an X and swung them down towards Maul. Maul launched one end of his lightsaber upwards and caught the cross, before he pushed upwards, causing the green blade to fall from her hand and hit the marsh surface. It deactivated upon impact, yet the Jedi appeared to not notice.
Her purple and red hair swayed from side to side as she marched forwards, anger on her features. A dribble of blood dripped from her nose, likely due to the stress of the situation than physical injuries Maul had given her. She brought the red lightsaber down at a forty five degree angle which Maul parried, before she took a strike towards the left of his chest. Before her blade could reach him, Maul kicked her in the stomach, sending her flying backwards.
Then he threw himself into a massive leap and twisted in the air as he prepared for the slaughter. He watched as the marshy land flowed before him in slow motion, as if time had been almost stopped, and watched as the Jedi slowly tried to recover from her mistake. Maul would not give her the chance... His feat landed comfortably on her shoulders, and he allowed himself a moment to gain his balance before he forced a blade of his lightsaber downwards towards her head.
The blade went all the way through to the bottom of her torso, and her eyes showed general terror as she dropped to her knees and as Maul threw himself off of her shoulders to stand on solid ground once more. Releasing his lightsaber from her skull - and well cooked brains - Maul could smell death itself, and darkness draining from the dead Jedi's inner soul as she tried desperately to be at one with the Force.
Her days of living were over; she should have joined Maul. He had offered her a life away from the Jedi, yet she had chosen to ignore it. Now she had suffered the consequences.
Climbing into the Jedi Cargo ship, Maul allowed his mind to play over his victory as he attached his deactivated lightsaber to his belt and swept up a box of ancient Sith toys. His Master would be pleased - he always liked it when Maul killed a Jedi.
THE END
Please review; I'd love to hear your thoughts on the story, and whether you'd like a sequel about those Jedi who are planning to start a new order...