Chapter 27 – Beyond Evil There Is Insanity
His master had trusted him with this task. He would not fail. Not again.
'You're nothing more than his pathetic pet', the voice inside his head whispered. It had been accompanying him for years now, torturing and mocking him in every second.
'I'm your own creation', it chuckled.
"Silence", Maul hissed and stalked forward, his mechanic lower body screeching in protest as he moved.
'You're weak. You let him control you.'
"Stop it."
'You're a monster, a slave.'
"I said stop it!", the broken Sith bellowed, grimacing and grabbing his splintered horns. Something was shuffling away from him quickly, further into the dark and twisted alleys of Coruscant. Whether it was a human or just a rat, Maul didn't care. Heaving, the Zabrak let his amber eyes fix on his surroundings. He had been kept in isolation for over a decade. No light has ever entered his prison except for when his master had visited him to keep him alive. The night's light was almost blinding in comparison. Maul had thought that he was turning blind as he had been thrown out onto the streets, the occasional bright and blinking city lights too much for his sensory deprived body. It hurt. He had drawn his tattered hood over his head, trying to stay in the shadows.
'The darkness has always been your only ally.'
A small growl escaped from his throat and his claws dug in the wall next to him. While the voice was taunting, it also spoke with truth. Ignoring its constant fluster, Maul hobbled further down the street. It hurt to walk. Kenobi.
'Another reminder of your failure.'
He would break the man. Like the forsaken jedi did break him. Maul sneered and clicked his tongue. He just needed to find a way to get his revenge. Sidious had told him that Kenobi was here on Coruscant, apparently moving down to the lower levels with two companions. A padawan and a woman.
Maul grinned evilly. Kenobi's greatest weakness was his compassion towards others. Tear those close to him apart and the man would shatter into pieces.
The Sith lurked in a dark corner and waited for his targets to arrive. Twisting his force signature, Maul cloaked himself. He could sense Kenobi. His light wasn't burning as bright as it had been on Naboo anymore. The jedi was crumbling on the edges. He just needed to push him over the edge.
Maul watched as one of the public transports arrived.
People of different species exited the vehicle but non of them caught the Sith's attention. Except for an almost unnoticeable trio. Two adult humans and a Tortuga girl. They had disguised themselves as civilians but Maul would always be able to discern a jedi from a non-force sensitive.
His target was this child. The jedi spawn. Despite the girl hid it rather well he could see her weapon glinting in her robe. Skywalker's padawan. That's what his master told him about her. Maul was supposed to get rid of the girl so that Sidious could turn Skywalker against his own master, Kenobi.
He didn't say how he should do it though. Which meant Maul was free to approach this however he liked to. He flashed a smile.
'Twice the pride, double the fall.'
"If I could kill you…", Maul grumbled to himself, eyes still focused on the group. He didn't need a distraction right now.
He fixed his gaze on the woman the child was talking to. The duchess of Mandalore. Satine Kryze. Apparently the soon to be wife of his archenemy. It would be a shame if the wedding never happened, wouldn't it? Maul would watch with delight as the jedi would break down.
'At least he's not alone. Like you.'
His hands balled into fists at his side and he grinded his teeth. It had never been easy to block the voice out. Its calling had been way to loud and piercing.
Maul observed as the two women went on, apparently to one of the diners. 'Dex' Diner' it read in neon letters. But where was Kenobi? He shifted to get a better view on the alley in front of him. A group of teenagers, a couple of elderly Twi'leks, a man with crutches and those shady dealers, who were lurking in the dark corners. Nothing really caught the Sith's eye.
"Strange", Maul muttered and tapped slightly into the Force. Suddenly, the inconspicuous man with the leg injury stopped and turned towards him.
"It can't be", the Zabrak breathed, voice laced with a little malicious delight. Kenobi. The man who took so much from him all these years ago.
He almost didn't recognize the infamous jedi master.
"How the mighty have fallen." A raw chuckle escaped his throat. The jedi must have finally met his match. He didn't look intimidating at all, leaning on his walking sticks for support. The man was wearing a hood but Maul was still able to see the small glint of a scar in the night's light.
'He's like you.'
"He will never be like me."
'Right, he still holds his head up high.'
Maul growled again but didn't retort.
The only thing that was the same as before were those blue eyes which were staring right at him.
The Sith fletched a toothy smile before retreating back into the dark. Kenobi didn't know what he had just seen. After a few seconds, the jedi walked on, joining the woman and the padawan in the diner. Climbing onto one of the roof tops, Maul searched for a spot to watch the trio in the restaurant.
"Say goodbye to your little family, Kenobi", he snickered, while he watched the scene in front of him.
Now it was time for the hunter to wait for its prey.
A few hours later
The streets were almost discarded at this hour. Only a few souls were still roaming around the lower levels. Maul had learned to be patient, so he hadn't bothered the long wait. He had taken delight in watching this happy scene only to tear it apart himself.
All three of his targets exited the diner again, the girl still smiling brightly, while the two adults were keeping themselves more reserved.
They made their way over to the transport station, waiting for the next ship together with a few other passengers.
As it finally arrived and they entered the vehicle, Maul took his chance. Taking a deep breath, he let the Dark Side guide his movements. Despite his isolation, he had gathered his strength in the Force as it had been the only constant thing in his life. Apart from the voice that had festered inside his head somewhere along the way. It felt good to have this power flowing through his veins.
'A monster which has been let off the leash.'
Just as the ship lifted up from the ground and began to travel on its route, the Sith crushed one of its engines with a sickening crunch, making the transport tilt sideways and tumbling down towards one of the nearby buildings.
The screeching of bursting metal was music in his ears, as Maul watched how the ship crashed into the lower levels. The scent of smoke filled his nostrils and he could already see a fire starting. Perfect. He licked his teeth and smiled. The few people who were still around began to panic. His playground has been set up. Now it was time to act.
Clouding himself in the upcoming smoke, Maul got closer, careful not to be seen. Most of the passengers had survived and were already climbing out of the wreckage. He watched how his targets had scattered, still searching for each other through the smoke and fire. Good.
The girl had been thrown to the side and was crawling through a smaller hole in the ship's hull. And she was alone.
Maul flexed his fingers, one hand whirring mechanically. His master had cut of his hand as a punishment. He grabbed the blaster at his hip with his robotic hand. He also had his double-bladed lightsaber but he didn't want to attract more attention than necessary to himself. He set it to stun and aimed at the still dazed padawan.
"Stop struggling, little bird", he hummed and took the shot.
To his surprise, the padawan rolled away in the last second. The girl didn't know where the attack had come from but she was on alert now. Maul watched how her eyes were searching frantically for the threat but couldn't find him. He growled in annoyance. So he had to approach things more directly.
He moved like a phantom through the smoke, shielding himself in the Force. The Sith jumped right behind the padawan, making her jump in surprise. Maul saw how she made a grab for her lightsabers, but stopped her hand in a strong, almost crushing Force grip. The girl was emanating fear and panic into the Force. He had to act fast, before she could alert other jedi, maybe even her master.
"I wouldn't do that if I were you", he growled, eyes shining maniacally. With his other hand he eased the weapons from the jedi's belt and clipped them on his own hip.
The padawan struggled in his grip and managed to rip herself free for a moment. The girl scowled and actually began to attack him in flurry of well-aimed punches and kicks. The jedi was fast and well-trained but still no match for Maul. The Zabrak caught the foot which almost hit him square on the head and ripped the girl down to the ground. As he advanced on her, she threw a Force push at him but Maul only dug his metal claws into the ground.
Chuckling, he shook his head. "Still don't know when to give up, I see. Let me show you your place, jedi scum."
He lifted the girl up by her throat and pulled her close, up to his face. Maul was looking directly into the bright blue eyes, which were filled with despair. He grinned again, showing his sharp tooth. "Sweet dreams, padawan."
With that he closed his fist further, finally rendering the squirming teen unconscious. He dropped her unceremoniously to the ground. Pulling a pair of cuffs from his belt, he bound her hands behind her back.
Part one accomplished. Now comes part two.
"Ahsoka!", Maul heard a voice calling out through the smoke.
Kenobi. Everything was going like he planned. He watched how the jedi master jumped through the wreckage, shielding himself from the smoke and fire. The duchess was following close behind.
The Sith hid himself again, dragging the unconscious body along. He took the blaster in his hands again and set it to kill. In the distance, one could already hear the sirens. Authorities were to be arriving soon. Time to finish up here.
He let Kenobi and the duchess draw near before stepping out of the shadows.
"Hello Kenobi", he growled, twirling the blaster around his metal finger.
The man stopped dead in his tracks, eyes wide open underneath the hood.
"You're dead", he breathed, "I killed you on Naboo." Maul noticed how the blonde next to him shot him a surprised look.
"The only one who was killed that day, was your pathetic master", he seethed.
'Nevertheless, he maimed you.'
A flash of anger crossed his opponent's face but disappeared quickly again. "Where's Ahsoka?", he asked calmly, even though Maul could tell he was unnerved by his appearance.
"She's playing her part just fine", Maul chuckled, lifting his blaster, "like you will do with yours."
With a snap-hiss the jedi's blue lightsaber activated. "I won't repeat myself, Maul. Where is she?", Kenobi threatened, moving towards him slowly and guarded.
"Afraid of being too late again?", he taunted, "don't worry, you will have enough time to think about your mistakes." With that he took aim with the blaster, killing four of the other survivors.
"No!", the jedi shouted and lunged himself at Maul. Cackling, the Zabrak ducked underneath the blade and jumped back.
"You're pathetic, Kenobi!"
The man took his stance again. "At least I am more than half a man", he bit back.
'The jedi has a sharp tongue.'
Maul growled and shot again, bringing two more people down. "Come and try to stop me!", he barked, "These innocent's blood is on your hands!"
Kenobi advanced again, but this time Maul engaged him as well. He sidestepped the lightsaber and grabbed Kenobi's arm, twisting the weapon out of his hands. The Sith could feel the anger radiating from the man. "Anger is unbecoming for a jedi."
The lightsaber clattered to the ground but Kenobi didn't waste a second. He used the Force to strengthen him and placed a punch right onto Maul's nose. The Zabrak reeled back and howled in pain but gathered his wits again. He licked the blood from his lips and bared his teeth.
The authorities were almost there. He shot again but wasn't really aiming to actually hit Kenobi.
Then the jedi finally did what he was hoping for. The man made a grab for the blaster.
Maul smiled inwardly and let him get his hands on the weapon. As soon as the jedi had it, he gripped the hand holding it and twisted Kenobi so that the man's back was pressed against his chest. With his other arm he got a hold of the jedi's neck. Kenobi tried to break free, but Maul used the Force to hold the jedi in place. Leaning forward, he breathed next to his enemy's ear.
"You lose again, Kenobi. But don't worry, I'll come back for you some day. For now, good luck with explaining yourself."
With his iron grip he guided the hand holding the weapon upwards, aiming at the duchess. "Say goodbye to your friend", he rasped.
Maul pushed the finger on the trigger down and looked with delight as the shot went right through the woman.
"No!", Kenobi screamed and finally ripped himself free. Maul let the jedi stumble to his fallen friend and threw the blaster next to them.
He would let the police handle the rest. They had all the evidence they needed.
They would find a confused jedi, surrounded by bodies and who was babbling something about a non-existent the Sith lord. Maul grabbed the Tortuga and left the scene unseen.
Insanity was a fine thing, indeed.
Well, Maul succeeded with his plan. It was fun to write his insane character, even though I'm still not completely content with this chapter. :D