Chapter 7.

Getting to know one another

It was still dark outside when they emerged from the cave. While Kyra quietly walked next to him, Maul was lost in thought. Something happened in that cave, which he could not understand. His thoughts kept going back to the moment when he held her in his arms. He didn't know what made him do that. He was never the comforting type, on the contrary, he loved to hurt and destroy others, which fueled his Dark side powers even more.

Then his mind took him to the mission. The coordinates were wrong and it pissed him off. He wanted this task quick and done but now it might take much longer to finish it.

"We need to get back to the ship." He said to Kyra. "I have to re-check the coordinates again and try a different approach this time."

Once they reached the speeder, Maul took the seat and pulled Kyra in front. He started up the bike and took off toward the Infiltrator.

Kyra barely noticed when Maul lifted her up and placed her in front of him. The irritating feeling of unable to find balance within was killing her. It felt like something reached into her and ripped her very existence out. She was confused, lost, and scared, but also angry.

As the speeder passed the now quiet town, on the far horizon, the sun was rising slowly turning the sky a lighter shade of gray. Closing her eyes, Kyra relished the upcoming warmth of the sun on her face.

Maul wanted to be back at the ship before the sun was completely up. Suddenly, bright colored lights started to flicker behind his eyes. At first, he didn't know where these images came from, but then it dawned on him. He was seeing what Kyra was thinking at that moment. She opened herself for him to see the sunrise in a different spectrum. It was strangely beautiful, he thought, cracking a smile.

At the Infiltrator, Maul put his bike away and went upstairs to get the coordinates from the console. While Maul was occupied, Kyra entered her sleeping chamber and closed the door. She needed to be alone and meditate.

On the upper deck, Maul was checking his datapad. He couldn't figure out why the coordinates were wrong. He swore those mountains were where the Jedi were hiding. Maybe they were hiding in that cave and the creature ate them? No, he thought with a frown. The Jedi would be smarter than that.

However, he was sure they were hiding somewhere nearby. He just has to take a different approach to find them.

Downstairs, Maul opened the main door and stepped out of the ship. The sun was already high in the sky turning the cool nighttime air hot and dry. This moon was too hot for his liking. There was nobody around for miles, which was perfect for him. He did not want anyone to know their location. Holding his datapad, he entered a couple of codes. From the ship, three small round probe droids flew out to greet him. They hovered close by waiting for his command. Entering a code, he watched as the droids flew away at high speed away from the ship. He watched them until they disappeared from view, then he turned and went back into the ship closing the outer door not realizing someone was watching him.

Back on the ship, Maul wanted to prepare something to eat. He was getting hungry and was wondering about Kyra. They hadn't eaten anything since yesterday and it was time to grab something.

Maybe she was like me, he thought. Maul was able to control his hunger, mind, anger, and desires. But thinking of the latter he wasn't so sure if he was able to control that with her around.

There was a knock on her door. "Come in." She said.

When Maul walked in with a tray in his hands Kyra cracked a smile. Standing up, she approached him and took the tray out of his hands.

She wasn't expecting this type of hospitality from him, but the mouthwatering breakfast of sausage, eggs, and bread made her stomach growl.

She motioned for him to come in as she set the tray down on the bed.

"Thank you." She said and then started to eat. Feeling ravenous, she started to stuff everything in her mouth, while Maul stood in the doorway leaning lazily against the wall watching her. She was famished but did not want to look desperate in front of him, so she slowed the pace down.

When she swallowed the last bite she looked at Maul and gestured for him to sit next to her. Kyra wanted to talk about last night and this was the best time to do that.

From her face, Maul looked at the bed and thought otherwise. Not a good idea, he thought with despair.

Before she had a chance to say something, he said.

"I want you to come with me. I need to show you something." Then he pushed away from the wall and walked out.

Reluctantly, she followed him upstairs. At the console, he started up a video feed.

Looking at it, Kyra realized it was a cave, similar to the one from last night. Inside was a church she had never seen before.

"No. Not a church." Maul said coldly. "It's an ancient temple of the Whills."

Kyra's eyes grew wide when she realized he just read her thoughts.

How on earth did she allow this to happen? Either she let her guard down, or because last night's events somehow affected her abilities to shield her mind from others. Either way, this was unacceptable.

Pretending that it didn't happen, she looked at Maul and said. "I learned a lot of things about the Whills on Kish. Since I was a little girl, I was fascinated with them. They were always a true mystery for me. I hoped that one day I would meet one of them. I have lots of questions." She said it with a grin.

I bet you do, Maul thought with a smile.

This was the first time she saw him smiling. His smile was not the most friendly one, but it definitely improved his always serious visage. At that moment, he didn't look menacing, instead, he looked friendly, almost too friendly she thought.

Maker, what am I doing? Kyra thought. I'm here on a mission, not on a date!

Quickly she looked away hoping he didn't sense anything. It would be awkward, she thought.

"How did you find this Temple?" Kyra inquired.

"With the help of my probe droids." He explained. "They are the best option to search and find hidden targets. I use them on my missions, when necessary."

But Maul did not want to talk about the droids or the temple or talk about himself. That was off-limit. What he really wanted to know was what happened last night. There was something peculiar about what went down in the cave. He just hoped that she would trust him enough to open up. In a way, he wanted to know more about her. She was so different from other humans he had met before. Deep inside, she carried secrets that he could sense. He wanted to know them, all of them. He was notorious to probe minds for entertainment but with her, he could not do that.

He had no choice but to go by the old traditional way; talking.

Sensing the opportunity, Kyra was about to speak up when suddenly, from outside, a loud bang followed by blaster shots shook the ship. Simultaneously, they ran to the window.

Outside was a mob of ten people. One of them who looked like a soldier held a blaster and fired at the ship. Another one of his comrades was trying to open the main door to get access inside. The rest were yelling about the ship being a despised Sith Infiltrator and they wanted to destroy it with them in it.

Kyra heard enough. Deftly, she spun around and headed for the lift. Reaching out, Maul grabbed her by the arm and swiftly turned her around. He didn't have to ask what she was planning to do. In her eyes, he saw anger, frustration, and something else. He saw himself.

Kyra jerked her arm out of Maul's grasp and disappeared into the lift.

What happened next it was something he would never forget.

When Maul finally got out of the ship, Kyra was already outside fighting like a mad tigress. Her slender body twisted and turned around the soldiers like a tornado.

They have no chance, Maul thought with a satisfying grin watching the massacre unfolding in front of his eyes.

In the setting sun, her lightsaber was a pretty purple haze as she fought with the fury of the Dark side. He could feel her anger through the Force as she slashed and stabbed the unlucky men. With an amused look on his face, Maul stood there and watched as she cut down the last soldier who was begging for his life in vain. It was a massacre, with bodies and limbs lying all around the dark sandy ground. From the ground, his eyes landed on her. Her shoulders rose up and down with every breath she took.

Then Kyra turned to face Maul and that is when he noticed her eyes.

The eyes of something else, not Kyra's. They were black just like the lizards, he thought with a frown. The jet-black deep pools were staring into his soul. She was inside of his mind now, slipping through his barriers like a hot knife through butter. Probing, hurting, and searching. After only a few seconds of torture, Maul couldn't take this tremendous pain. It was worse than any pain he had ever experienced before. It felt like his mind was splitting into a million pieces.

With a roar, he sank down to his knees cradling his horned head.

When the pain subsided, he opened his eyes and saw Kyra lying on the ground, unconscious. Maul ran to her and picked her up. Her pale skin felt hot to the touch. She was burning up from the inside.

With her, in his arms, he walked back to the ship and headed toward her cabin. In the refresher, he filled the tub with cold water, then he returned to the room to collect her. Maul was about to lower her into the water when suddenly she opened her eyes and said.

"Don't you dare put me in there!" She said with a rueful smile. "Or I will kill you!" She added with a serious look on her face. However, Maul knew better.

For a few seconds, they were just staring into each other's eyes, and before she had the chance to muster up a resisting cry, he dropped her into the ice-cold water. Then he turned and walked out of the room with a wicked grin on his face.

At last, he found out about some of her deep, dark secrets, but not in a way he would have wanted them.

At that thought, his expression went blank and dark.