"Kanan what happened?" Hera asked as Kanan stepped out of the Phantom, her voice quivering.
"It was Maul," he said with a grimace. "He took Ezra and almost killed Zeb." Hera gasped. "Sabine stayed behind with him while he heals." Hera grabbed Kanan's arm. The sensation calmed his nerves.
"Do you know where they went?" Hera asked frantically. Kanan could feel her worry washing over him like waves.
"No." Hera rested her head on his chest and he wrapped his arms around her. "I couldn't stop him," he said quietly. "He took Ezra away from me once and now he's done it again."
"You'll find him, love," Hera said. "I know you will." They held the embrace for a long moment, Kanan feeling her worry begin to subside. Ezra was family and no matter what, Kanan was going to bring their family home.
"I need to talk to Rex," he said finally, pulling away from the embrace. "Can you take me to him?"
"Of course, dear," Hera said. She took his hand and guided him to the main control station. Beeping and orders being passed filled Kanan's mind. The sounds brought him back to when he was a Padawan on a republic ship with his master, Depa Billaba. He always loved to hear the clones give each other orders, replying in the same voice. Here the voices were all different. The rebellion was made up of all kinds of people, not a group of clones who all sounded the same.
"Rex," Hera said, stopping.
"Oh, Kanan, you're back," Rex paused. "Where's everyone else?"
"Sabine and Zeb stayed behind. Maul took Ezra," Kanan said.
"What?"
"I need to know everything about the Siege of Mandalore. Sabine said you knew something about Maul." There was a short pause as Rex took a moment to grasp the situation.
"Of course. Any information about him should be useful. We should go sit down." Kanan followed Rex's footsteps away from the main control center. The two sat down on a crate and Rex sighed.
"The Siege of Mandalore happened only weeks before the Chancellor told us to execute Order 66. We were sent with General Skywalker to take control of Mandalore from the Death Watch. Ahsoka had heard about the problem and had gone to help the Mandalorian Bo-Katan. When we met them, she said that her troops had once been a part of Death Watch but had left because Darth Maul had seized control from Pre Viszla."
"So Maul used to be in control of the entire planet of Mandalore?"
"Yes. You see, Darth Maul had used the Death Watch to gain the support of many crime families which he called the Shadow Collective. The Pikes, the Black Sun, and even the Hutts had joined him. With their help, he took the throne from Duchess Satine in a matter of days. His strategy was foolproof."
"The Hutts joined him?"
"Yeah," Rex chuckled.
"That's pretty hard to believe."
"I thought so too. By the time we had gotten to Mandalore, Maul's Shadow Collective had fallen apart, leaving him with only the Death Watch as his army. Just as the siege was beginning, the Chancellor was abducted by General Grevious. General Skywalker left with General Kenobi to rescue him, leaving me and Ahsoka in charge. With Bo-Katan's help we made our way into the palace and that's where we found Maul.
"Maul ran, leading me and Ahsoka away from the others. We followed him into an inner chamber of the palace. He told us that the Republic senate was more corrupt than we could have ever imagined. He also said that the clones were all a part of a plot by the Sith and that we would eventually turn on those who trusted us the most."
"He… he knew about Order 66?" Kanan asked.
"It seems that way. I was injured when we tried to fight Maul. Ahsoka stopped fighting to help me and Maul disappeared. I never saw or heard from him again. I removed my control chip because of what he said and I convinced Gregor and Wolffe to do the same." Rex's voice seemed strained, as though something he remembered was bringing him to tears.
"Why would Maul want Ezra?" Kanan asked after a moment's pause.
Rex cleared his throat. "When Maul was forming the Shadow Collective, his brother was helping him. His brother died shortly after they took control of Mandalore. Bo-Katan told us that Maul said his brother was his apprentice."
"Maul said on Malachor that Ezra was his apprentice." Kanan said. "Maybe…"
"Maybe he's going to reform the Shadow Collective so he can create a new army." Rex suggested.
"But he can't do it alone. He doesn't have the support of the Mandalorians anymore so he needs someone who is powerful to help him. That's why he needs Ezra."
"Ezra would never help someone like Maul," Rex said.
"Ezra has a connection with Maul. He feels some of the same pain that Maul has felt. Ezra has used the dark side of the force before. I have felt… a darkness about him lately," Kanan admitted. "I think he opened the Sith holocron we found on Malachor."
"What does that mean?"
"No Jedi can open a Sith holocron. He isn't thinking like a Jedi anymore."
"If Maul is going to reform his shadow collective, he needs powerful allies. He would avoid all organizations that are directly connected to the Empire. He might go for the Hutts or the Black Sun."
"The Hutts would be too difficult to overthrow now," Kanan said.
"The black sun's power is much weaker now since their head of operations on Mustafar has been replaced by the Empire."
Kanan put his hand up to his chin."Where is the Black sun now?" he asked.
"Ord Mantell," a voice said from behind him.
"Ketsu," Rex said. "You're just in time."
"You work for the Black sun, don't you?" Kanan asked, turning his body to face her.
"I do," she said. "What do you need?"
"We need to get to Ord Mantell," Kanan said. "And we need to get there fast."