Chapter 60 – Dathomir

Author's Note: I'm a teeny bit surprised that no one guessed the obvious option of who might be on Dathomir. xD

To Guest: I'm not sure who's Sith holocron it is, but it doesn't matter much since the holocron doesn't really appear on screen. I don't think anyone lives on Dathomir anymore for the most part. The Nightsisters are all dead or gone, like you said, and I'm not sure if the Nightbrothers would even want to stay since they have a choice now. Ventress is dead probably, so no, Marr will not be talking to her.

To Jayden: Yeah, the timeline is moving fast. There isn't much that happens in these years that really affects the plot; we're just trying to focus on what is most plot relevant or the story would never get to the end. Lol. There will be more with BoMarr and some moments with Bo-Katan and Vizma in the future, but not much, since while Bo-Katan is important, she isn't a major character. :)
Yes, Dathomir is pretty much barren now. I think all the Nightbrothers left after Malicos died, and... there's really only one person left. ;)
Marr will meet Athea again, and no, that will not be pleasant at all. 😢

Thank you all so, so much for reading and reviewing! 💖

~ Amina Gila

The Force whispers of danger the moment Marr touches down on the planet. The sky is reddish, and trees and various plants surround him on all sides as he walks. He doesn't know where he's going, just... somewhere. Dathomir feels of the Dark Side, though nowhere near as strongly as Korriban.

He knows the place was once full of Nightsisters – would he really be sent to learn from them? – but he's pretty sure they're more or less all dead now. Something isn't right, though, and it doesn't feel like an animal.

Someone is watching him, and for some reason it feels almost familiar –

And then the Force screams.

Marr whirls around, right as a lightsaber hisses to life behind him, and a blur of red cuts for his head. He dives out of the way, scrambling to withdraw his own blade.

The figure. who he'd recognize anywhere. promptly lunges at him again, double-bladed red lightsaber spinning.

"You," Marr growls, bringing up his purple blade to block the attack. He wasn't expecting to run into him here, but the familiar surge of anger fills him.

Maul ignores the not-greeting, swinging for his head, then swinging low nearly taking off his legs. He cuts down to block it, and the other side of the Sith's blade nearly glances off the side of Marr's helmet. He really should have been paying more attention, because he was not anticipating being jumped like this. And it's been a very long since he actually fought a worthy opponent with a real lightsaber.

The Sith kicks him and the metal clashing into his leg would've hurt a lot more if not for his armor. Marr throws up a hand, shoving the Zabrak back a few steps. He's about to lunge forwards again when the Force coils around his neck, lifting him off his feet. No –

A blinding panic hits him – because there's no way he's going to die here and now like this, in the stupidest duel of his life – and he tries to lash out with the Force but the Sith abruptly releases him, letting him fall unceremoniously to the ground. Marr immediately starts to push himself up, only to find Maul's lightsaber leveled an inch away from his neck.

"What are you doing here?" the Sith demands.

"I could ask you the same question," Marr answers flippantly.

"This is my home planet, Jedi," Maul spits.

"I'm not one, actually. Thanks for asking."

The Sith scoffs. "I know who you are."

"I'm flattered you remember me," Marr shoots back. Seriously, why does he? Or were their fights that significant to him? Whatever. It doesn't matter. He just needs to figure out what to do now, and... Was the Force really directing him to Maul?

Because he's the only Sith left who could teach him that he knows of, and... No, he would never be able to tolerate such a thing. He can't stand being around him, and the very thought is ridiculous.

(He needs someone to help him, though and isn't trying to find a way to take down Sidious a little more important than his own personal feelings? It was one thing he learned as a Jedi, that... he still believes.)

"What are you doing here?" The Sith ask again, eyes narrowed. He seems decidedly grumpy at the moment. Then again, aren't Sith usually grumpy?

"The Force sent me here," Marr replies coolly, standing.

Maul deactivates his lightsaber, though he doesn't let his guard down any more than Marr. Now that he's here, he's not sure what to do. The Force clearly wanted something, but he's not sure what.

"I wasn't expecting you to have survived," the Sith comments lightly.

"What? You really thought you could kill us by running off with that shuttle?" Marr retaliates.

Maul scoffs again. "You should've joined me while you had the chance, but instead you chose to let Sidious win."

His anger surges and he barely resist doing something violent. He doesn't know what. It's as though the Sith is intentionally rubbing it in Marr's face that he could've done something to stop what happened but didn't. It is true, to a point, just not in the way Maul is thinking. And maybe it's partly the satisfied gleam in the Zabrak's eyes that infuriates Marr so much.

But that aside, if he's still talking about Sidious... It reminds Marr again of what he was saying all those years ago on Mandalore. "It's not too late to kill Sidious yet," he asserts.

Maul looks most unimpressed. "Sidious has already won."

Marr doesn't bother to argue it. It's not like there's a point. Sure, he's going after Sidious eventually, but that won't be for a while, and he definitely doesn't want Maul's help when he does. He'd rather never work with him at all if he had the choice, and besides, he'd more likely to stab him in the back than anything else.

Maybe he should just leave, he doesn't know. But the Force guided him here, and there really is no one else left who could teach him more about the ways of the Sith. But he can't ever imagine being stuck working around Maul. He can't even believe he's giving this consideration.

The Sith is eyeing him now, with a calculating look that immediately sets him more on edge. Whatever he's up to, Marr is pretty sure he won't like it.

"Where is Kenobi?" Maul asks suddenly, a dark gleam settling in his eyes.

The question makes Marr freeze for the briefest second, before he's hit with an overwhelming rage. "Don't you dare mention his name," he snarls. Giving a reaction like this to a Sith is probably a very bad idea, he realizes a second later, but the question was too infuriating for him to care right now. Maul killed Obi-Wan's master, then invaded Mandalore and tried to kill Satine to get revenge on him and killed Marr's father in the process.

Maul – unsurprisingly – appears completely unaffected by his outburst. If anything, it was probably satisfying to him. "You believe him dead, don't you?" he queries.

What's his aim? What is he getting at? Or does he think he could use Marr to get to Obi-Wan – or as a means to get back at him again – if the Jedi Master were still alive.

Marr only glares at him, not responding.

"I'm surprised you believe someone of his... skill," he says the word almost mockingly, "Would die so easily."

The words send a sharp pang running through him, and the Dark Side surges around him, as he tries to control his emotions. It's been so long, he just accepted it, that Obi-Wan was dead. It was easier than pretending that he may be alive, knowing in that end that he'd have to face the likely truth eventually.

"What's it to you?" Marr spits, "Wouldn't you be glad if he was –" He cuts off, unable to finish the sentence.

"He is alive," Maul insists, which answers absolutely nothing, not that Marr expected an answer, but the Sith's surety is starting to make Marr re-question what he's expected for so long, and he can't let himself do that, "And we have... unfinished business."

Marr scoffs. "What? Do you have nothing better to do with yourself than dream about revenge?" Okay, he knows Maul has a right to be mad at Obi-Wan considering that he did chop him in half or something, but did he like conveniently forget what he did only moments before?

The Sith snarls, and the Force slams into him, throwing him into a tree behind him. He scrambles to regain his balance again, barely avoiding landing very unceremoniously on the ground.

"He left me for dead," Maul growls, "I was apprenticed to the most powerful being in the galaxy, and I was destined to become so much more, but I was robbed of that because of him."

"I thought you hated Sidious," Marr counters, "Wouldn't you be glad to be away from him?"

"You know nothing about Sith, boy," Maul retaliates disgustedly, though Marr isn't sure what that has to do with anything. Maybe it doesn't. Or some sort of strange Sithly logic he'd prefer to never understand.

"I might know more than you realize," he shoots back.

The Zabrak eyes him for a moment, his anger shifting into something calculating, again. "You use the Dark Side," he observes.

"I did tell I wasn't a Jedi."

"What are you, then?" He actually sounds... curious, now. Maybe. It's hard to tell when there seems to be a sinister note in everything he says, even if it's a perfectly casual comment.

"I don't need a label," Marr answers, "I use the Dark and Light Sides."

"So, you have seen the true power of the Dark Side," Maul muses, and there's definitely a cunning look in his eyes now. The direction of the conversation as half-intentional, though Marr can hardly fathom himself why he's doing this. (Because it might be his only chance to destroy Sidious.) He isn't sure if Maul realizes the silent suggestion he's giving him is intentional or not, but he knows the Sith definitely has his own more sinister reasons for showing any interest in this, whatever those might be.

"I've been learning." He shrugs. "By myself."

"You will need someone to teach you, if you ever hope to grow more powerful in the Dark Side," he insists, almost gleefully.

"Maybe," Marr replies, "Though in case you haven't noticed, Sith training isn't free for random signups."

"Join me, and I shall teach you."

Yes, Marr is certain that the only reason the Sith is offering is probably something to do with his revenge on Obi-Wan. Maybe because he's just imagining his reaction if he realized his former padawan was training from Maul all of people, not to mention learning the ways of the Sith.

It almost makes Marr want to refuse simply out of spite, but no. He can't do that. Maybe he's completely lost his mind, but this is really the only way that he knows of right now. Besides, the Force didn't bring him here for no reason.

Bo is absolutely going to kill him too. Considering what Maul did on Mandalore, Marr supposes he'd probably deserve however many hours she yells at him. If she ever finds out. This is on a need-to-know basis, and Bo definitely does not. At least not right now.

"I am willing," Marr replies, "But don't expect me to call you 'master' or something. I just want to learn more about the Sith. I'm not your... apprentice." Well, he supposes he sort of is. Maybe. Whatever. The terminology doesn't matter. What does is his end goal.

"I would not expect you to," Maul declares. He doesn't seem to care, or maybe he's too satisfied to care. It grates on Marr, but he can't afford to change his mind.

He's here, whether for better or worse, and he's going to make it worth his time.

**w**

Marr still isn't convinced that he himself hasn't gone completely insane for agreeing to this, but he isn't about to change his mind. Sith training is far more... grueling than Jedi training ever was, even if he already does have plenty of experience unlike a normal young apprentice would. How old are Sith when they're usually taken?

Still, beyond the "eMbRaCe YoUr AnGeR aNd YoUr HaTrEd" lectures, he thinks maybe he actually is learning a few things about the Dark Side.

Maul is a better teacher than he was expecting. Except when he's being cranky and impatient, which happens often enough. Not that it's always entirely unprovoked, though, Marr supposes, because he can't help but be difficult sometimes. Even if the arrangement is working out, Marr doesn't appreciate having to be around him so much. He still hates him, and... When he's using his negative emotions so much right now – and afterwards calming himself the opposite way – one of the easiest things to hate is Maul.

Not as if the Sith cares. More and more, Marr is certain he's only doing this for revenge.

"I don't get it," Marr says flatly, "Why do Sith masters try to make their apprentices hate them as much as possible? If apprentices inevitably betray their masters, why do they make it more likely?"

"This is the way of the Sith," Maul replies ominously.

"But that doesn't make sense."

"It is the only way to make the apprentices powerful. If they cannot defeat their masters, they are unworthy of continuing the line of Sith."

"Wait, so does that mean because you never killed Sidious, you aren't powerful enough to be considered a Sith?" Okay, maybe he just feels like being a little antagonistic right now.

Maul gives him a most unimpressed look. "Do you listen to nothing I say?"

(Why did that sound so much like something Obi-Wan might have once said to him, many years ago?) "I'm afraid I don't know what you mean," Marr replies, the perfect picture of innocence on his face.

"I am no longer his apprentice, so I do not need to kill him to not be considered an apprentice." ... Doesn't that kind of contradict everything he just said? Whatever. "And Sidious cannot be destroyed. His plan is the only one that matters. To take what is rightfully ours, we must remain in the shadows."

Wait, since when did they become a 'we'? Or is because Marr is sort of a Sith too now? He decides not to comment on that, thinking about the rest of what Maul said instead. It's very similar to what he was saying back on Mandalore, and...

Maul is scared, Marr realizes with a jolt of surprise. Of Sidious, even now. He doesn't know why it's so startling though. Maybe simply because it seems like it's more significant than most past apprentices would've felt towards their masters. Or at least should have. Well, something about the name 'Sidious' always did seem extra sinister to him. From the sound of he just gets the feeling that he was far from the most pleasant person to be around. Explains why Maul is so... cold, all the time, Marr supposes.

"How long have you been a Sith?" he asks casually, though he has to admit he's the tiniest bit legitimately curious. He knows very little about Maul. No one does. They know his planet, but nothing more.

"I always have been."

"You were raised as one?"

The Sith eyes him. "Yes. Is there some reason for your idle curiosity?"

Rude. Maybe he doesn't like talking about himself. Who knows? Given that he was literally raised as a Sith... Something twists inside Marr uncomfortably as he thinks about it. Honestly, Marr can't even imagine what a life like that would be like. Having a maniacal Sith as your only parent figure must be... fun. Not.

Marr shrugs. "Maybe I was just wondering how Sidious had time for that when he was the Chancellor. I mean when would he have had time to... like..." What, run off Coruscant to go train a secret apprentice?

"He was only the Senator at that point," Maul corrects. Right. Seeing as Marr was only three then, it's probably excusable that he momentarily forgets that tiny detail of history. "And I was living on Coruscant."

"Wait – you lived on Coruscant?" he repeats, incredulously. Really, it shouldn't be such a shock. Sidious hid so much from the Jedi. Raising another secret Sith there is hardly the largest thing. "... So apparently, we lived on the same planet for a while at the same time," he mumbles under his breath as an afterthought.

"Fascinating," the Sith says flatly in a tone implying the observation is the most boring thing he's heard in his life.

Not that Marr cares a whole lot either, but still. He's still getting used to the thought that Maul literally used to live on Coruscant. "How did Sidious even find you?" he wonders, "Or did he just randomly kidnap you from here –"

Apparently, that hit a sensitive spot, because the Sith's expression abruptly goes dark and dangerous. "Enough," he snaps, "This is none of your concern."

Well. Okay. Maybe his guess was right.

The thought of Maul having had a family, is weird. One that he was taken from. He did though. He had a brother... one who was killed.

Marr doesn't really know what to think of this, and it certainly doesn't make him like Maul anymore, but still.

He supposes there's a more human (or... uh, Zabrak?) side to everyone.

**w**

Wandering around on his own here when he has absolutely no idea where he's going may not be the best of ideas, but there's only so long he can do nothing but train or when he's alone, listen to that holocron. And sitting in his ship got pretty old fast. He's been staying there, obviously, ever since getting here, since it's not like he's going to stay somewhere around Maul. Not as if the Sith would want him too, either, thankfully.

Dathomir is an interesting enough place to be, though sometimes, he could almost swear he feels the same type of... "spirit" feeling he got on Korriban, like there's ghosts of the dead lurking around in the shadows. Some feel malevolent and some don't, but either way it doesn't matter because they can't hurt him Probably.

Marr's silent musings are abruptly interrupted when a low snarl – much too close – reaches his ears.

Not again.

He stops in his tracks, looking warily out into the trees. The ground suddenly shakes beneath him, and he whips around again – it would be so much easier to see if it wasn't so foggy in this area and with trees totally obscuring everything from view – just in time to see a towering creature standing up from behind the trees.

A rancor.

Or at least, something very much like it.

Why does he keep running into these things?

He doesn't have the chance to even back away before the thing is pouncing for him. An enormous, clawed hand slams right into him, and it's probably only thanks to his armor that he doesn't get squashed. He fires up at it several times with his blaster, but that only seems to incense it further and lunges for him again, trying to grabhim in it's enormous ... hand. He dives out of the way, then activates his jetpacks flying into the air.

The thing rears up onto its back legs, reaching for him, snatching him out of midair before he can fly away. Seriously, this is getting ridiculous.

Normally Marr would never use the flame throwing capabilities on his armor – especially after seeing what everyone in Death Watch did with them – but now might be a good time because he doesn't like the look of those enormous teeth gaping right over his head. Raising a hand, he shoots fire in the thing's face. It lets out a furious snarl, half turning its head aside, and its grip loosens enough for him to fly out again.

He raises a hand, reaching out to touch the thing's mind with the Force, calming it until it turns to amble away. Really, though, this is becoming insane. One thing he doesn't miss about being on so many different planets all the time is nearly getting eaten.

Marr's considering just flying back to his ship when he catches sight of Maul standing a short distance off in the trees, watching them looking decidedly uninterested.

What? Where did he appear from out of nowhere?

Marr circles around the trees, landing in front of him. "Where you seriously just standing there watching the whole time?" he asks grumpily.

"Sith don't ask for help," he answers flippantly, which answers absolutely nothing.

"I wasn't asking for your help," Marr retorts. The notion itself is insulting.

"You could have just killed it."

He gives him an odd look from behind his helmet. "Why is that your solution to everything?"

"It is efficient, and effective," the Sith insists. Not one of these lectures again. "Compassion is a weakness." He cannot believe he's having this conversation

"Is it, though?" Marr contradicts.

The Sith scowls, crossing his arms. "You will never achieve your true level of power when you allow yourself to be held back."

Yes, sometimes these lectures get exhausting. "Are things like that really 'holding me back', though?" Marr challenges, "If you do everything for yourself, what will you do when you eventually get into a situation you can't get out of?"

"That is the purpose of Sith having an apprentice," Maul retorts, and Marr is mildly surprised he didn't immediately say something like 'Sith never need help'.

"But it's not like Sith masters and apprentices can rely on each other, since they never know the when the other will stab them in the back."

"As long as the master is powerful enough, that will not be a concern."

Honestly, how can someone truly believe all these things? Then again, if someone was raised a Sith and never knew any other way, Marr supposes it's not that surprising. Still, it would seem awfully exhausting. It's exhausting him, and he hasn't even been here that long. He'll have to get used to it, though, because it will still be quite some time before he's ready to return to Mandalore. (He pities Maul though. Honestly. He can't imagine living like that. It must be so... lonely.)

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