"…the only person to have gained anything from all of this is…"
"Me!"
Ahsoka's entire body pivoted quickly, her form rising to her feat in trepidation. Beside her, Rex did the same, blaster in hand.
In contrast, Obi-Wan remained seated.
At the edge of the camp, covered in sand and dust, was Maul.
He looked different than on Malachor. Older in a way. And he was tired, exhausted even. Ahsoka could tell from the way he balanced himself on his metal legs. It was as if he was using all his strength not to collapse there and then.
His eyes however remained focused on one thing alone. They burned bright gold as they stared at Obi-Wan, hatred and disgust evident.
"Found you, at long last!" The former Sith Lord snarled, taking a step towards Obi-Wan.
"Hello there!" Obi-Wan replied, almost too cheerfully in Ahsoka's opinion.
The Zabrak hissed between his teeth, before his eyes shifted to lock onto Ahsoka's.
His expression changed in an instant. Less hostility was present. Instead, mutual respect, as well as obvious deviousness was present.
"Thank you Lady Tano, for luring this scum out. Now we can dispose of another person who betrayed you together!" Maul spoke, a sinister smile on his lips.
Confusion flooded through Ahsoka. What was Maul up to this time? And what did he mean by Obi-Wan betraying her?
"What?" It was Rex that spoke, equally confused. Maul spared a glimpse at the old clone beside Ahsoka, before shifting his attention back to the Togruta woman.
"Kenobi abandoned you, left you to run this rebellion, to deal with the Sith while he hides on this dump of a planet. And it's not the first time he has abandoned you is it Lady Tano?"
It was obvious to Ahsoka that Maul was referring to her trial, to when she left the Jedi order. But she had long forgiven Obi-Wan for not helping. At least, unlike Anakin, he hadn't made her false promises.
"Maul, you don't need to do this. You have taken enough from him. Let it go." Ahsoka tried to reason with the Zabrak. If she could just get him to listen to her…
Maul snarled, and continued to speak.
"Ask yourself Lady Tano, why is he here? One of the most respected Jedi masters, and he is hiding away. Is he truly worth the effort to save? Would anyone truly miss him?"
By this point, Obi-Wan had risen to his feet, but made no move to arm himself, unlike Maul, who had his lightsaber hilt in his hand.
But he had not yet activated the blade, which was something at least.
"Your anger, your hatred for me clouds your judgement Maul. We do not need to fight." Obi-Wan took the opportunity to speak up. Ahsoka could feel through the force that Obi-Wan was telling the truth. He really didn't want to fight Maul.
Maul scoffed aloud, his presence in the force darkening significantly. The Zabrak turned his attention again to Ahsoka.
"How can you stand his pontificating Lady Tano?"
"Maul, don't." Ahsoka replied. It was clear he was trying to get a rise from the Jedi master.
"Ask him Ahsoka. Ask him why he is here, festering in his squalor." Maul began to walk around the group, as if corralling them into a pen, ensnaring them in a trap.
To be truthful, Ahsoka had wondered such. Why was Obi-Wan here?
So she asked him.
"I told you Ahsoka, to hide from the empire." Obi-Wan responded kindly, still at ease despite the situation.
Behind her, Maul cackled, not too dissimilar to how Sidious had.
"The Great Obi-Wan Kenobi, hiding? He lies Lady Tano, just like the rest of the Jedi!" The Zabrak snarled, igniting his saber in anger.
Rex bristled, raising his blaster at the Zabrak. He didn't fire however, knowing what would happen if he did.
Ahsoka was growing tense as well. She hadn't reached for her sabers yet, but she was ready, in case.
"Why are you here Kenobi?! Tell the truth for once in your worthless life!" Maul all but shouted at older human. Obi-Wan however remained silent, his face still, expression empty.
Maul's face was quite the opposite. A myriad of emotions covered it. Anger, hatred, intrigue.
And then realization.
"Ohhhhh, you are not hiding, you have a purpose here."
Out of the corner of her eye, Ahsoka noticed Obi-Wan bristle slightly.
"Perhaps you are protecting something?" Maul continued to jibe at Kenobi, figuring something out that Ahsoka had not.
Obi-Wan's signature in the force flared up, long dormant emotions coming through his connection to Ahsoka.
His posture changed too. For the first time since reuniting with him, Obi-Wan was tense.
And it was because of whatever Maul was figuring out.
"Or protecting someone?"
Ahsoka was about to ask what Maul what he was going on about, when a snap hiss sound filled her montrals.
Obi-Wan was bathed in bright blue light. In his hand, his lightsaber was ignited.
A smirk covered Maul's face, as he dropped into a ready stance.
"Obi-Wan, what are you doing?" Ahsoka asked, surprised at Kenobi's sudden change. Through the force, Ahsoka felt a fierce desire to protect someone emanating from Obi-Wan, but who?
"See Lady Tano, he is hiding something from you, like all the rest." Maul jibed in, appealing to Ahsoka's shock at the situation.
"Stay out of this Ahsoka." Obi-Wan spoke harshly. Ahsoka widened her eyes.
"Or don't. Come Ahsoka, who truly is worth your time here. The one who helped you defeat Vader, or the one who hides on this dust ball, and keeps secrets from his so called friends!"
"Leave her out of this Maul!" Kenobi snarled back.
Ahsoka was confused. On one side, Maul was right. Obi-Wan was hiding something important. Vitally important if he was willing to kill for it.
'Would he try to kill me if I had discovered whatever it is Maul has figured out?' Ahsoka's mind whirled.
But on the other side, Maul was a crazy, sadistic psychopath, and he couldn't be trusted.
But at the same time, he had proven he could be trusted. He hadn't tried to harm her at all on Malachor, nor afterwards.
And Obi-Wan had hidden away, and was keeping secrets from her, again.
Ahsoka broke out of her thought process in time to see Obi-Wan and Maul preparing to square off. Off to the side, Rex stood, waiting in case, unsure of what to do.
Ahsoka couldn't let Maul kill Obi-Wan, that much was certain.
But at the same time, she couldn't let Obi-Wan kill Maul, which he would.
The two arch nemesis stood for several seconds, staring at one another, waiting for the other to strike first.
"Maul don't!" Ahsoka called out. After all they had done, she couldn't let him die like this.
"Stay out of this Lady Tano, as your master said!" The Zabrak snarled at her. Deep within Ahsoka, anger built up.
She turned her attention to Obi-Wan. "Master, there has to be another way. Don't harm him!"
Obi-Wan didn't even spare her a glance, too focused on Maul.
She was being ignored by both parties. And her anger was growing.
Beside her, Rex grew concerned. He had seen this happen to his oldest friend before.
Maul was growing restless. It was clear that he would strike first, and in doing so, Obi-Wan would strike him down.
Seconds later, Maul roared, and charged, swinging his saber at Kenobi.
Ahsoka reacted instantly.
"NO!
Nobody saw Ahsoka move, she was that fast.
Maul brought his blade down, intending on catching Kenobi's blade in a lock. Instead, he was met with a white blade, pushing back against him. Shock flowed through the Zabrak.
Likewise, Obi-Wan had expected to clash with Maul's crimson blade, but he too was now locked with a white blade.
Between the two age old enemies, Ahsoka stood, her lightsabers ignited, pushing against both of them, stopping them from killing the other.
Off to the side, Rex watched in horror as Ahsoka's eyes flickered between blue and gold.
"No!" Ahsoka spoke more calmly this time, rather than the full on scream from before.
Maul tried to push her back, to remove her from his path, but Ahsoka did not relent, turning her face to his, barring her fangs.
"STOP PROTECTING HIM!" Maul all but screeched at her, pulling back from the lock and attempting another swing. Once again however, Ahsoka interrupted the blow with her own lightsaber.
Behind her, Obi-Wan attempted to evade to the side, trying to catch Maul why he was distracted by Ahsoka. It was clear now that Obi-Wan was out to kill Maul.
Ahsoka didn't let him. Like Maul, she pivoted, swinging her shoto to clash with Kenobi's. A look of surprise, as well as betrayal covered the old Jedi's face.
"Ahsoka, what are you doing?" Obi-Wan asked astonished at the Togruta's actions. Why was she defending Maul?
"Stopping both of you making a huge mistake!" Ahsoka snarled, looking poignantly at them both.
"MISTAKE?! HE HAS TAKEN EVERYTHING FROM ME!" Maul yelled, again trying to bring his saber round Ahsoka's form.
Again, Ahsoka blocked his attack, her own anger growing.
"And you took his master from him Maul, and the woman he loved. I think you are even." Ahsoka replied, pushing against Maul lightly, trying to get him to back away. She wasn't going to harm him, nor Obi-Wan. She just had to get them both to listen.
Maul roared in anger, spinning his saber in his hands, purposefully aiming strikes directly at Ahsoka.
For the first time since Mandalore, Maul was actively attacking her.
She evaded around him, flowing like water down a stream. They clashed blades, deflecting blows and redirecting others.
"He is going to kill me for what I know Lady Tano, tell me, what will he do to you when you figure it out huh?" The Zabrak spat, sending another volley of strikes towards Ahsoka.
It was a good question. If Obi-Wan was willing to kill Maul in order to keep whatever secret it was safe, would he do the same to her?
She wasn't a Jedi after all, and it wouldn't be the first time he had betrayed her.
Ahsoka sensed movement behind her. Obi-Wan was attempting to join the fight, to assist her with Maul.
She didn't let him. Pushing against Maul's blades, she forced him back stumbling, before turning to the elder Jedi master, and unleashing a force push at him.
It caught Kenobi by surprise, as he fell backwards, rolling in the sand.
Ahsoka turned in time to lock blades with Maul once more.
"Damn it Maul, come to your senses! This is pointless! What will you gain from this? Your death, that's it!" Ahsoka tried desperately to appeal to Maul. She wanted him to live, or at least not go down like this.
"I am tired Lady Tano! Tired of being used. Tired of being discarded. Perhaps I seek my death as an escape from this cruel existence!"
Ahsoka felt remorse coming off of her. She should have seen it. Maul was heavily depressed. Everything he was supposed to be had been stripped from him. Some by Obi-Wan, some by Sidious.
She would willingly let him kill Sidious, but Obi-Wan, he had to live.
Obi-Wan had regained his footing by now, and was standing behind Ahsoka, saber igniting, but not making any move to interfere.
"We were all used Maul, you, me, Obi-Wan. Each of us was used and discarded when we no longer had value. We have more in common than you realize."
Maul snarled again, spitting as he spoke. "I have nothing in common with you Jedi filth!"
Ahsoka's face softened, compassion coming through in her tone.
"Yes you do. We are all lost in our own way. We all seek to find our purpose in this new world. If you die, all of your struggles were for nothing. But if you live, you can find your purpose. I will help you find your purpose."
Maul's face was a myriad of emotions. Anger, hate, regret, and strangely, fear.
Behind her, Obi-Wan extinguished his lightsaber.
Ahsoka sent an appreciative thought through their bond in the force, one Obi-Wan reciprocated.
He understood what Ahsoka was trying to say.
Maul's eyes locked on Ahsoka's.
"You… you would help me, after everything I have done. You would be my sister in the force?"
Ahsoka was taken aback by Maul's speech. It was quite, somewhat shy and repressive. He was scared, he had always been scared.
And he needed someone to keep him stable.
"You have my word." Ahsoka replied, pulling out of the saber lock, extinguishing her lightsabers.
Maul looked at her for a brief second, before shutting his blade off and collapsing onto the sand before him, sobs echoing from his form.
Ahsoka reacting instinctively, crouching down and wrapping her arms around the Zabrak in comfort.
"It'll be ok Maul. I promise."
Author's thoughts
So I contemplated leaving it a few days before posting this chapter to be extra evil and leave you all in suspense. Clearly I didn't though.
I do hope you enjoyed this confrontation, and that it was worth the wait. I ended up planning many different variations of this conflict when planning this story, all with different outcomes. In one, Maul died as he did in canon. In another, Obi-Wan died instead. A third one had both survive, (which was the one I went with). The fourth had Ahsoka accidently kill Obi-Wan when trying to intervene, and then turn and kill Maul in rage. And a fifth one, and one I very nearly went with, had both Maul and Obi-Wan deliver fatal blows to one another at the same time.
Still, I chose to have them both survive for certain reasons. Kenobi should be obvious, but I want to explain why I chose to let Maul live, and why he acts they way he does.
In this AU, Maul is still a psychopath, but he sees Ahsoka as an equal, and someone who despite everything he can trust. With Ezra, all he saw was a person to corrupt and bend to his will, and thus he had no one to truly confide in. With Ahsoka, there is a strange level of trust and mutual respect. In the end, Maul is a very lonely person, who is just seeking true companionship, something he can find with Ahsoka due to their very similar upbringings, but not something he could ever find with someone like Ezra.
I know it may seem unbelievable, especially after what I did to Vader, but I wanted Maul to have a chance to have a life with some sort of purpose beyond that of Obi-Wan. By having Ahsoka there to offer him stability and a purpose, he has a chance to live.
Despite this, I do actually like the fact that Maul died in canon at this moment. It is one of the few times where killing off a character is ok in my eyes, as Maul was always leading up to that. (unlike a certain Togruta)
Anyway, thats just my interprepation of it, and I felt it suited this AU. Plus it means I get to write more Maul. :)
So, only two chapters and an epilogue left in this story, so the end will be coming soon.
As usual, comment and speculate at will. I am especially proud of these two chapters, and really want to know what you thought, regardless of whether you liked it or loathed it.
Speaking of comments:
Mysterious Guest 1 that commented on chapter 11: I'm glad you liked the reunion. Hope the confrontation was to your liking.
Mysterious Guest 2 that commented on chapter 11: Maul Lives!
Travis Middleton: I'm glad you liked the reunion. It was both easy and hard to write at the same time. Maul is different in this Au, which is exactly why I changed his fate. The Eighth Brother got what he came for. You will have to wait to see when he reappears, and what he does with holocron.
LukeDude: The reason for the shift in perspective is because the two stories are happening simultaneously, with Ahsoka being knocked out by the Eighth Bro just as Thrawn arrives at Atollon, hence the panic through the force that Ahsoka feels. Still, I hope you liked this chapter, as well as the changes I made. The Eighth Brother got what he came for. There's no way he would reveal himself, as it would unite the others against him, and he would stand no chance. You will have to wait and see what he is up to next, as his story is strictly under wraps at this point.
To be honest with you, the only novel I have read is the Ahsoka novel. My interest in Star Wars has always been mainly focused on the animated stuff, not that I don't like the movies. The first film I saw was unfortunately Return of the Jedi, which meant I knew how it all ended, thus I developed no real interest or connection to the characters, and thus have never read the novels associated with those characters or timelines. (sacrilege I know!)
That being said, I am aware of some of the content, such as Sidious using the empire to prepare for something far more powerful, so if I can bring it in I will.
Illum will be mentioned, and Jedha will be a place visited in the next story. And kyber crystals play a huge role in the next one too.
FossilQueen1984: Yes, I am evil, I admit it. :D I'm glad you liked the reunion. Ahsoka and Obi-Wan interacted personally a grand total of two times in the clone wars, (that we have seen) so it was fun to write their reunion, with added Rex as well. And look at that, I didn't kill anyone off. Surprised?
SLE's fave Guest: I wonder what that name stands for huh? :)
Seems you guessed right with Maul's fate. There was no way I was going to kill him off. (hides other drafts of chapter where Maul died)
The whole 'K' clue was meant to confuse you, muhahahaaha. But really, you don't need to overthink it. Trust your instincts. :)
Of course Ahsoka lives... I won't accept anything else. Filoni had always said they are never going to take the easy options with Ahsoka. If they kill her off, then they have taken the easy and boring option. Furthermore, in my opinion, it would undermine the whole point of Ahsoka's relationship with Anakin being different to that of Obi-Wan's. With Obi-Wan, Anakin always felt like second best, like he had to be the perfect Jedi, trying to meet ridiculous expectations. With Ahsoka, he has finally found an equal partner, who he can be himself around and not be bogged down by being a perfect Jedi. Having Vader kill her undermines that entire relationship, and merely reduces Ahsoka to a side character for Anakin's story, rather than a character in her own right. Plus, it would also undermine the significance of Obi-Wan's death. (Sorry for the rant, but this is something I feel very strongly about.)
I'm glad I'm not alone in being somewhat disappointed in the opener to season four of rebels. Sabine and the Mandalorians were never very interesting in my opinion, and as good as 'Trials of the Darksaber' was, giving the blade to Bo-Katan sort of undermines the whole point of the training in the first place, despite the character development that occured. Hopefully the rest of the season will be better, as we have Saw Gerrera next episode.
