Chapter 6
The droid hoard paraded Obi-wan and Ahsoka through the separatist compound to the ship yard where they were immediately stowed in the brig of a transport. Not a single word was exchanged between the two of them, only foreboding silence. The cell was small, dark, and smelled grossly of iron and gore although there were no traces of organic remnants to be found. Two weequay orderlies with a brigade of battle droids exchanged their binders for shackles that held them elevated against the rear wall of the cell. It seemed odd to Obi-wan that the separatists should now employ pirates. He wondered what kind of wage must be keeping their sort under employ. This whole scandal was dripping in credits to anyone who would oblige labor or exploited force sensitive young-lings it seemed. Obi-wan meditated on this as the company departed leaving them alone in the brig.
A flood of questions disrupted his thoughts. There was the obvious and original query, why did they need the force sensitives? Would any force sensitive do or did they need children? Were they favored because they had yet to realize their full potential, becoming a lesser threat than a full fledged Jedi? That would have been the simplest answer, yet not necessarily the correct one. Obi-wan had seen enough of this war to know that many things more often than not, were not as they seemed to be. The two of them hung in silence, bound and cleaved from their force connection. It was an odd sensation to be disconnected from the force, unable to reach out beyond the raw sensory input of their surroundings.
"Master, I hope you have a plan to get us out of here..." Ahsokas voice was intentionally quiet and rasped with effort.
"I have no doubt that Anakin will come to our aid young padawan. Until then, we must remain patient." Obi-wan whispered back, unsure of any listening ears in the vicinity.
"Yes Master, but we need to find a way to get these collars off. We are defenseless if we cannot remove them." Fear began to bleed through her voice.
"Ahsoka I'm afraid there is nothing we can do in our current state. We must remain calm if we are to seize any opportunities that may present themselves," Obi-wan cautioned. He was right, Ahsoka knew this. She had been feeling uneasy about this entire mission and although cut off from the force, she had a brooding sense of doom over this mission. From the very beginning as if an echo through time, she had a bad feeling about this.
The shuttle hummed against their backs as the primary motivators came online. Soon they would be leaving this barren wasteland. This would have been a welcomed thing under different circumstances however the tables had turned against their favor. The cell rocked to and fro until the stabilizers kicked in. Soon they were being hoisted up into orbit. It was clear they had exited the atmosphere when the turbulence weakened until they were gliding in vacuum. Both Ahsoka and Kenobi wondered where they would be taken to, but only time would tell. Both Jedi had no doubt Anakin would find them and aid in their escape. Still a pit formed in the stomachs of the young and elder Jedi alike.
…..
Anakin wasted no time as he assiduously dismounted his speeder in the hanger bay and bolted to the bridge. Whirring to life the twilight lifted in the air, straining with effort under the atmosphere. He wielded the controls fiercely and with familiarity. The ship was an extension of himself through the force. He knew how hard he could push the machine without breaking her down. He would need to push the freighter to the limit if he were to reach Obi-wan and Ahsoka in time. A shroud of the unknown had surrounded this whole assignment. Now his Master and padawan were caught up in the mix, at the whim of whoever or whatever the object of their mission had been. There were too many questions left unanswered for Anakin to make an educated guess at what they were facing. There was only one thing to be sure of: his friends were in danger and the clock was ticking.
With his hands shaking Anakin switched the com to reach the council. They might need to send back up in case the plan soured any further. The likelihood of that was high. He failed to find a connection which could only mean one thing- his transmissions were being jammed. Anakin slammed his fists on the control panel warping the interface plating and sending a spiderweb crack through the display. He would have to do this on his own. His heart throbbed with determination and welling tides of fear. He would not loose them- he could not loose them. Defeat was not an option.
As Anakin exited the atmosphere he did not need to check the tracking beacon to see the transport rising towards the separatist cruiser in the distance. He pushed the freighter at full speed to meet their course. He needed to reach the vessel before they jumped to hyperspace. He gathered the force around himself and reached out to the transport ship searching out Obi-wan and Ahsoka. Cut off from the force as they were created a void, he could sense them as miniature holes in the force. Anakins insides churned with unease and dread as to what he might face aboard the cruiser. There was a shadow that fell over him, a darkness in the force that awaited. He could feel a strangely familiar current both wicked and hot swirling and brooding. It was undeniably of the Sith. The sensations it stirred in him felt like waking up from a nightmare without memory of the horrors but only raw adrenaline and and emotional residue. He knew he had felt this disturbance in the force before but it was a strange amnesia that he could not will himself out of. The more he tried to place a finger on it the more it seemed to elude him.
The twilight made the final approach to the hangar bay aboard the separatist cruiser. Anakin knew that someone was expecting him. He passed the hangar bay shields without resistance. There was a sea of droids amassed on the deck patiently waiting, blasters aimed at his lowering vessel. He could take on a few clankers any day, but the number of droids waiting for his dissension reached the thousands. They stood shoulder to shoulder overwhelming in number and designation. This was of their design. Droids were known for their limited intelligence but their purpose was not to out-wit but to out number and dominate the opposing forces, such as they were now. Anakin would have to surrender willingly. He gritted his teeth as he made a path to exit the freighter.
The fluorescence lit the space in a cold blue light sharply contrasting the sight before his eyes. That red and black marked face below ominous horns. A wicked grin glared with mal-intent. The creature spoke in deep demonic tones that crawled in Anakins skin. "Chosen one, they call you," A guttural laugh escaped the monster. "You are nothing but a child, a slave. You have taken bait and fallen into my trap so willingly Jedi."
"Maul? My master killed you!" Anakin spat in disbelief, fists clenched in anger he gathered the force about himself, coiling back like a predator about to strike.
"Kenobi tried to kill me, severed me in two," His voice like velvet, Maul motioned at where his organics ended and his mechanics began. "He did not steal my life-" The monster postured dangerously towards Anakin. "He stole my potential! My future! As I will steal his! I will make Kenobi suffer as I have suffered. I will take all that he has. Death is too good for him!"
Reflexively Anakin stood in battle stance with his saber ablaze ready to take down the monster that stood before him. "I will finish what my Master could not. Fight me Maul, I will kill you myself!" Anakin was surprised by the dark side of himself. He knew killing was not the way of the Jedi but Maul was too dangerous to keep as prisoner. He had survived unknown horrors proving he was too resilient. He could not let Maul live knowing the harm he meant to inflict on his beloved Master. "Order your droids to stand down and lets settle this!" Anakin demanded, flame rising in his spine.
The creature before him convulsed with low laughter before he drew his saber and ignited it, while motioning with his opposite hand to the droids to stand down. Maul launched at Anakin without a word, whirling his saber into a red disc. Anakin caught the saber against his own, straining against the force enhanced strength of the monster. Maul withdrew his saber making a slash at Anakins torso forcing him to draw back. He rebounded into a leap, clashing sabers while he bounded over the monster finding ground behind the Sith forcing the marked beast to pursue. Flashes of blue and red sparked and clashed in great speed and intensity as Jedi and Sith met blow for blow, each giving no ground. While Maul was fueled by great hatred that gave way to the dark side, Anakin felt himself become a weapon of the force. Not light, not dark, but pure force; the union of both. Maul questioned even his ability to subjugate Anakin in combat alone. He needed to exploit him using other means.
"You think you can save your master and padawan- but you allowed yourself to be blindly caught in my design." Maul taunted while catching the Jedi's saber with his own, shifting his stance "You are here because I wanted you here. You will not save them." The Sith met Anakins gaze in a sinister sneer, knowing he had struck a nerve. Lord Sidious had told him of Anakins great weakness: his self doubt and fear. "You are the key to Kenobi's suffering. You have delivered to him his own downfall the moment you stepped on this ship!" Anakin faltered in combat, pulling his mind from the moment to his attachments. Maul swept his mechanical leg under Anakin's feet knocking him backwards, slashing the alloy limb that held his saber effectively disarming and maiming the Jedi. In one talon Maul took Anakins skull slamming him against the deck causing him to loose consciousness.
'It was too easy,' Maul thought as he clamped the Jedi in binders and closed a collar on his neck. Now he had everything he needed to make Kenobi pay for what he had taken from him.