AU Star Wars - Revenge of the Heart
AU set around the time of The Phantom Menace. This story is my own twist on the events and locations. Queen Amidala is not in this version as I personally don't think that she and Maul are suited. Oh and since this is an AU, Jedi are permitted to marry….and anything goes….please bear that in mind - you have been warned!
As the ship left Iridonia's orbit, the stranger removed his hood and Freya gasped when she saw the small horns that adorned his scalp.
"You're a Zabrakian", she stated as she remembered how Khameir had had horns just like them.
Taking her gasp and statement as a sign of revulsion, the stranger ignored her and concentrated on the ships system checks.
"I once knew a Zabrakian, his name was Khameir Sarin…perhaps you have heard of him?", Freya said hopefully but the stranger turned and glared at her.
"I know no others of my kind", he said gruffly but as Freya looked into his golden eyes she realised that he looked familiar.
"It's you", she said, her voice no more than a whisper as they continued to stare at one another.
The rumours had been correct after all. When he had left her all those years ago it was because he had been seduced by the dark side.
All of Freya's hopes and dreams came crashing down around her and her eyes filled with tears.
"Khameir, what has happened to you?", she said, raising a hand to touch the red and black face that had been normal when he had left Iridonia.
The stranger's brows drew together in a frown. He couldn't remember the last time anyone had touched him with such tenderness, not that he ever normally allowed anyone to ever touch him…and now that someone was, he was not certain that he liked it.
He grasped the Princess' wrist and pulled her hand from his face.
"My name is Darth Maul and I am 'not' the Zabrakian you speak of", he muttered, watching as she winced with pain as his fingers dug into her sensitive skin.
"You're hurting me", Freya gasped, trying to prize his fingers from her arm with her free hand.
"You will not speak again", Maul warned her and she suddenly sat back in the seat at his side, her expression going blank as she repeated.
"I will not speak again".
Satisfied, Maul released her wrist and concentrated on flying the ship.
Eventually he docked the Infiltrator in Sidious' palace and grabbing Freya's arm, marched her straight to Sidious who was waiting in his reception room.
Maul shoved Freya toward his master and then stood with his arms folded against his broad chest.
"You have done well Lord Maul", Sidious drawled as his evil eyes drank in the sight of the Princess.
Maul bowed his head briefly in response then watched as Sidious held out a hand to the girl.
"Come to me", Sidious said, his voice sickly smooth and Freya's eyes widened and she backed away from the old man until her back bumped Maul's folded arms.
She turned to look up at him, her eyes silently pleading with him but he offered her no help nor did she see any compassion in his golden eyes.
"I said come to me", Sidious said and as Freya turned, he used the Force to draw her to him.
"What do you want?", Freya cried, grimacing at what she could see of Sidious' wrinkled face under his cloaks' hood.
Sidious did not respond to her question, merely reached out and grabbed her, one hand on her abdomen and one hand clamped to her forehead.
Freya cried out and tried to struggle against his hold but of course couldn't break free and she felt a tremendous pressure on her body as though her very life force was being drained from her.
Maul watched as Sidious cackled as he probed the Princesses' mind.
"She is as pure as I hoped she would be and she is more than ready to bear a strong son…", Sidious trailed off, his voice excited and Maul wondered if it was Sidious' plan to get the Princess pregnant himself as this was obviously the main reason that he had wanted her to be brought here.
"You are wrong my apprentice", Sidious said and Maul realised that his master had read his mind and he bowed his head submissively.
"I am too old", Sidious continued, releasing Freya who slumped to the floor, unconscious. "The child she will carry will be yours".
Maul's head snapped up and his eyes met his master's.
"You will seduce her, make her fall in love with you and then, when she has given us your son, you will kill her".
"Yes my master", Maul replied, his voice betraying no emotion but he wondered what he would do if the Princess could not be won over. She was different to the whores that he was used to.
Sidious, reading Maul's mind again, answered his question.
"Make yourself available to her, answer her questions. We will tell her that she is here to provoke the Jedi into going to war with us".
"But the Jedi will come for her, will they not?", Maul said and Sidious nodded.
"Yes, but that does not concern me Lord Maul. You are more than capable of dealing with them, what interests me is the child. Together we can mould him to be the greatest Sith of our time".
Maul nodded and hid a frown.
Having a child had never been on his agenda. He had dismissed such fanciful notions many years ago when he was training to become the menacing creature that he was today.
Sidious turned and looked at the small frame of the Princess as she lay motionless and an evil smile played upon his lips as he said,
"If she does not want to go to your bed willingly my young apprentice, then take her by force".
Maul looked at the Princess, his eyes narrowing as he thought about taking her innocence.
"Take her to the rooms we had prepared for her", Sidious said, waving a hand dismissively.
Maul moved forward and scooped Freya up off of the floor as though she weighed no more than a feather then he turned and brusquely walked away with her.
As he marched along the hallways of the palace, Freya stirred slightly and moved her head against his shoulder and he shifted her in his arms so that her head lolled back over his arm. He didn't welcome any kind of closeness and since she was unconscious he didn't have to pretend that he did.
When this was over he would end her life, snuff her out like he would any other enemy.
Finally reaching her rooms, he opened the doors using the Force and walked inside heading straight for the huge bed. He didn't look around at the luxurious surroundings that were a far cry from the small, sparsely furnished room that was his.
He lowered Freya onto the silk coverlet and stood over her for a moment. He knew it would take a while for one such as her to recover from the mind probing but her breathing appeared to be even enough.
He watched her breasts rise and fall and a streak of desire shot through him, catching him off guard.
Growling, angry with himself for feeling something so potentially weakening, he turned away and left, using the Force to slam the doors closed behind him.
ooOoo
Back in his own rooms, Sidious smiled.
His plan was working already. He knew that once someone had known love and felt desire they would then not be able to resist it a second time and he knew that the Princess had been Maul's first love even if Maul now had no memory of her.
Maul was used to using the dark whores that Sidious provided him with to work off his carnal desires. They hung around the palace, eager for a glance or an acknowledgement from him so the idea of tainting one so pure and innocent would be a great temptation to the young Sith.
"Light and dark", Sidious murmured as he shut himself off from Maul's mind. "Good and evil…always such an irresistible combination".
ooOoo
Back on Iridonia, Obi-Wan was almost frantic with worry.
He and Qui-Gon had left Yoda alone to meditate and once they had sent all of the wedding guests away they had taken a walk together through the gardens.
"I do not sense that the Princess is in any immediate danger", Qui-Gon said, trying to calm his young friend down somewhat.
"Immediate, no, but what about what is to come?", Obi-Wan replied and Qui-Gon sighed.
"Master Yoda will discover her whereabouts and we 'will' get her back", he said.
"I hope you are right, I do love her so very much", Obi-Wan said.
"I know…I know…", Qui-Gon answered solemnly.
ooOoo
Freya had no idea how long she had slept but as she yawned and stretched, her memory came flooding back and she sat bolt upright in the bed she found herself in.
She looked down and realised that her wedding gown was gone and in its place she wore a diaphanous pale pink nightdress that caressed her skin sensuously.
Gasping, she de-tangled her legs from the silken sheets and got out of the huge bed.
'Who had undressed her?', she wondered. She prayed that it had not been her captor or his dark apprentice.
She looked around at the large room and saw everything that she could possibly wish for. Water to wash with, food, drink, fresh clothes and an array of trinkets, brushes and perfumes.
Everything was fit for, well, a Princess.
Choosing to ignore it all though, Freya crossed to the doors that led out onto the balcony and tried them, pleased when they opened and she stepped outside.
She looked down at the courtyard below and saw little activity, just a couple of droids coming and going.
She was about to move away from the railing when Darth Maul appeared, striding across the stone floor, a probe droid flying by his side.
Freya's heart did a flip in her chest at the sight of him and she wasn't sure if it was all down to fear or not.
He had said that he was not Khameir but she was not convinced. Maybe Sidious had wiped his memory in which case he wouldn't know who he really was let alone remember anything about her.
As he disappeared out of her line of vision she sighed and moved back inside. She slowly washed and then ate some fruit, hoping that it wasn't drugged or worse, poisoned and then she moved to a chest full of clothing.
She picked out a royal blue coloured gown and was amazed to find that it fit her perfectly as though it had been especially made just for her.
As she tied the sash around her waist her thoughts turned to Obi-Wan and she wondered how he was feeling.
They should have been married by now, should have spent last night together, making love. Freya blew out a breath of air, ashamed to admit that she was almost feeling relieved to be here and not in Obi-Wan's bed.
Suddenly needing to get out of the room she went to the double doors and was again surprised and pleased to find that they opened without hesitation.
She was not fool enough to think that she could escape but she was happy to know that her captors were not going to confine her to her room.
Poking her head out she looked up and down the hallway outside to find it deserted. Taking a deep, nervous breath she stepped out and turned left.
She wandered through the palace without being stopped, although she did receive some disconcerting looks from some of the serving women who looked almost as dark and menacing as Darth Maul.
Eventually she found her way into the courtyard below her room, the one she had seen Maul walk across. Following the direction she had seen him go she entered a large empty hall and immediately heard the unmistakeable buzz of a lightsaber.
Moving deeper into the hall she hid behind a huge stone pillar as she spotted Maul training with the probe droid.
Sweat glistened on his naked upper body and Freya's mouth suddenly went dry as she allowed her eyes to wander over his muscled chest and arms.
Maul was aware of another presence in the hall and though he sensed no danger he did not like to be watched.
Twirling his double-ended saber he spun and in one easy movement he took out the droid and then leapt across the room, pinning Freya against the pillar, his saber to her throat and the bottom half of his body pressed against hers.
Freya let out a yelp of surprise. Maul had moved so quickly that she had barely seen it happen.
They stared at one another for an endless moment until Freya found her voice.
"You seem to like nearly separating my head from my shoulders with that thing".
Maul frowned at her and reluctantly disarmed both blades, his eyes never leaving hers as he backed away from her slightly.
"What do you want?", he asked, his voice low.
"Nothing. I was only…watching", Freya replied, trying to keep her eyes from wandering down to his chest.
"I do not like to be watched", Maul told her, turning his back on her and Freya gulped as beaded droplets of sweat ran down the corded muscles that were presented to her.
Closing her eyes to the sight, she felt herself blush and she wrapped her arms around herself as she said,
"You're very skilled at what you do", and then she silently cursed herself for sounding so…stupid.
"And what is it that you think I do?", Maul asked, retrieving his black cloak and fastening the clasp at his neck, his bare chest still slightly visible as he turned and made his way back to her slowly.
"I…I'm not sure…exactly", Freya replied, her back pressing against the stone pillar once more as Maul came to a halt right in front of her. He was so close that she could smell the musky maleness of him and her senses came alive as she boldly returned his stare.
Maul searched her blue eyes and resisted the urge to read her thoughts. The way she was looking at him now was enough to tell him that she found him attractive.
The realisation surprised him somewhat and he decided to use reverse tactics on her. Slowly he raised a finger and traced the outline of her jaw and Freya almost forgot to breathe as he cocked his head to one side as though studying her.
Maul moved his mouth close to her ear and the quiet tone of his voice sent shivers down her spine as he said,
"I would advise you to stay away from me Princess…if you get too close you may not like what you discover".
"And what if I already know what lies beneath?", Freya whispered, her eyes challenging and Maul's finger stilled on her chin, his eyes glinting back at her dangerously.
"I told you that I am not the Zabrakian that you spoke of", he said and Freya smiled at him.
"Yes…you are…you just don't remember, but I can help you…", but she stopped abruptly and yelped in pain when Maul suddenly gripped her chin between his fingers.
"Enough!", he growled. "Whoever and whatever this Zabrakian was to you I suggest that you forget about him, just as he seems to have forgotten about you".
That hit home and Maul watched as the fight in her eyes flickered and died and she wrenched her face free of his hand and looked away.
She tried to move away from him but he imprisoned her against the pillar, his arms at either side of her.
Maul had felt no real emotions for more than ten years now but when Freya bit back a sob, his brows knitted together and he 'almost' felt what could be called regret at goading her.
"I know he loved me", Freya said suddenly looking back at Maul as she finished, "And you cant take that away from me with your insensitive comments".
Maul bowed his head and muttered, "As I have said, I would advise you to stay away from me for I am not someone that one such as yourself should be associated with".
Freya stared at the horns on his bent head and sighed shakily.
He was so familiar to her, aside from his so obviously matured body, but maybe he wasn't Khameir at all, maybe it was just wishful thinking on her part after all.
Almost absently she reached out and ran her fingertips over the hard contours of his horns, remembering how Khameir had said that the action had relaxed him when she had done it to him.
Maul remained still for a moment when he felt her touch his horns. The feeling her touch evoked was as though he had been drugged and it was almost 'pleasant'.
Coming to his senses, Maul felt anger rising within him. Who did she think she was, touching him so without his permission. He snarled and snapped his head up, making Freya jump at his sudden movement.
"You should be careful Princess", Maul said, his voice menacingly calm, his eyes flashing a warning that Freya could not ignore.
She pushed against one of his strong arms and he yielded and let her pass.
Freya fled from the hall, her mind whirling. 'What on Iridonia was wrong with her?', she thought. 'How could she be so attracted to Maul and so quickly?'.
She felt ashamed and guilty because she knew how Obi-Wan felt about her and also because it was obvious that Maul was the exact opposite to everything the Jedi stood for…all she should stand for. Determined to heed Maul's warning and stay away from him she sped back to her rooms and closed the doors behind her.
Back in the hall, Maul growled and thumped the pillar the Freya had been leant against. 'Why was she starting to get under his skin?', he wondered.
He barely knew her…didn't want to know her.
Suddenly his master's voice drew him to attention.
"You desire her?", Sidious asked and Maul tried to gauge whether it was a trick question or not but before he could give an answer Sidious continued,
"Do not feel bad Lord Maul, it is healthy to lust after something so beautiful".
"Yes master", Maul replied.
"You may leave Lord Maul but remember to try and be a little less aggressive the next time you speak with the Princess", Sidious said and Maul bowed low and then left the hall.
End of Chapter 2