Chapter 10
Maul walks up to Kenobi, planting his hand on his scarred forehead, ensuring that he is still in his trance so he wouldn't awake throughout this experience. Royal Med Droids pick away at all the remaining chars of clothing and flesh from the Jedi's body.
Very likely, this is testing each of the organic healers stomachs to prevent them from vomiting.
"The fact that Kenobi's skin didn't turn completely black is amazing to be honest. Kenobi was wearing a layer of clothing that did afford some protection, more so than if he had been completely naked. This, however, did create other problems. Skin subjected to extremely high temperatures must have the necrotic (dead) skin removed, called debridement. Removing the dead tissue allows for the healing of healthy tissue underneath." Yané helpfully explains.
"We're doing what we can to save his life, but our techs are limited," another healer tells Maul, a middle-aged man, with graying hairs.
"I entrust your skills," Maul replies, folding his hands behind his back.
In actuality, Jinn should be here, but the idiot is too busy finding himself to check on his Padawan who may have just sustained lifelong injuries.
Indeed, this is a sickening twist of fate. How long ago had it been him who lost his legs and was left to rot in that shaft? When the particular trash pile Maul found himself trapped in was contracted out to another planet due to Naboo passing various "clean planet" actions as a way to keep the peace with the underwater dwelling Gungans?
This is completely saddening to be honest. The Obi-Wan Kenobi in front of him isn't guilty of failing Skywalker and shaming Maul in the eyes of the past Sith, not that he cares about that anymore. Yet, with all of what Kenobi has done to him in mind, Maul still can't find it within himself to feel the satisfaction that Kenobi is going to be half Cyborg, can't feel that pleasure that revenge has somehow struck the Jedi in the form of Plagueis.
It is going to take time before Kenobi can ever even hold a lightsaber again, presuming that the man's body allows him to do even that. Maul still remembers the day when Talzin gifted him with the mechanical legs when Savage found him, the amount of agony that coursed through his lower body at that moment.
That'll never happen again as far as Maul is concern.
Saché, Yané, and the others take their leave, trying to find some bacta and other supplies that they can use, leaving behind the Zabrak who stares at Kenobi's miserable state and the Droids continuing to operate on his body.
Looking down at his stumps of where his hands use to be, Maul recalls a specific line from the Jedi in a previous timeline.
"I like your new legs. They make you look taller."
Maul couldn't help but chuckle at reminiscing that little quip. The Skywalker-Kenobi duo was a snarky type in the Clone Wars, adapting well onto the battlefield. Their taunts would tend to get under the skins of their opponents, a weapon to their disposal. Especially later on in the war...
Kenobi, despite being a Jedi Master, was quite a impulsive one. Would that impulsiveness happen in this timeline as well? This experience would definitely change Kenobi, though Maul would have to keep an eye on him to ensure that he doesn't go off the deep end.
Once, Maul would have laughed at the fact that Kenobi would need some sort of prosthetics and a possible life support system to stay alive. Once, perhaps Maul would have wished that he did it himself, severing every bone in Kenobi's body before building him up again for revenge of what happened long ago. Now, Maul just feels wariness, for that revenge is dead, and he is focusing on greater things.
Maul keeps watching the Droids working to their best capabilities. He remembers when it had been announced that Padmé Naberrie Amidala was dead some time after the Battle Of Mandalore, dying by mysterious purposes. While there is a few flashes between what happened to Skywalker and Kenobi in Maul's mind, he can imagine that both men was responsible for the state of Amidala if not Sidious himself.
It wouldn't be a shocker if that was the case, given what the bastard did to his brother.
"I wonder, Kenobi, would you lose the woman you love as Skywalker did in a alternative timeline because your incapability of admitting that you're more emotional than the rest?" Maul asks. His thoughts go to Satine Kryze, the Duchess of Mandalore who Maul killed himself during the late stages of the Clone Wars as some sort of revenge against the man.
Skywalker would go far and between for the ones he loves. In some ways, this makes him a better man because Kenobi was so ignorant of his attachments and unwilling to embrace them unlike Skywalker.
At that moment, Maul has an epiphany. Kenobi, while hypocritical as the rest, is one of the best religious, if not the best religious Jedi in that entire Order. He can avoid his feelings and keep them buried which is ultimately unhealthy in sentient terms but allows him to walk away from circumstances without feeling touched by the Dark Side which is also a good quality in Jedi terms. His attachments cannot be used against him unless pressured.
"Yet, not even you deserve this..."
Maul stares at Kenobi with the faintest pity one last time. The Jedi Order is not his enemy nor does he want to make them such. The Jedi... they are victims just like he is. Both the Jedi and the Sith are two sides of the same coins, blind, arrogant, hypocritical; but the Jedi are trying at the very least in these uncertain times.
He is going to forge his path. He is going to save the Jedi from themselves and bring peace into this galaxy. He doesn't give a kriff if he has to forsake some things, doesn't care that Sidious and his dogs would be hounding him. He would be the hero that the galaxy needs. Kriff the consequences.
Maul senses the familiar presence of the Scimitar. In the future, Sidious had the gall to use his ship. It did grate on Maul's nerves that Sidious would dare to mock his memory by continuing to use the ship for his own advantage.
With many Jedi around, Maul didn't dare to show his emotions outwardly, 'less they would get the wrong idea and choose to attack him. He cannot stand against all of them yet. He barely touches the level of someone like Master Windu individually. He would have to learn more before he can stand potentially against the Jedi if they choose to be his enemy and Sidious and his lackeys...
Almost calmly, Maul stalks through the corridors with lidded eyes. Soon he can hear the distinct tapping sound of footsteps behind him.
"Greetings, Jedi," Maul says calmly, turning around to face the small Jedi.
Yoda hums. "Your ship, you sense, I take it."
Maul nods, before seconds later, walks side-by-side with Yoda. "You have questions..."
The small Jedi looks at him with a considering frown. "Save Naboo, why did you?"
Maul seems unmoved. "I have plans of my own. I don't wish for Naboo to be a unnecessary casualty."
He looks at him with eyes that scream caution. "Are you seeking Skywalker as a Apprentice?"
"Why in the name of the Force would I want to be a karking parent at this age?" Maul asks in a near exasperated tone. "No, I have way too much to do at my current state." He pauses. "I do wish to offer guidance however so you remember that Skywalker is a human being, not a Droid."
Yoda scowls. "You know about the Chosen One Prophecy..."
"Of course. I have knew about the boy since I'd arrived on Tatooine though I wasn't interested in him at the time." That isn't exactly true given the fact that he has merged with his younger self, but the Dathomirian will have to suffice with some half-truths. "The boy's radiating immense power that any Force Sensitive in close proximity would feel it. The Force is singing around him."
"...What are your recommendations?" He asks after a long second of deliberation.
Maul explains. "Like I told Master Jinn earlier, Skywalker needs a 'parent', not a 'master'. Someone like Jinn would be good to help Skywalker in his studies but not overall raising the boy. The boy's Master needs to be unorthodox, someone who allows him to reach his full potential, but not allowing flaws in all sentients such as arrogance to flourish."
Given what happened between them, Skywalker and Kenobi must have been a extremely toxic Master and Apprentice duo.
"Not allowed to embrace their attachments, the Jedi are," Yoda replies sharply. "What can be a great source of strength, and stability for someone not trained in the Force, can be their utter downfall."
"Have you considered the possibility that attachments could be a root of strength and stability if handled carefully? There's the Green Jedi who embraces contrasting views, borderline unorthodox interpretations which often lead to arguments between you of the traditional and those of the new. Then there is Mundi."
Yoda's firm expression doesn't break.
"Knight Mundi is married, indeed. Embrace his feelings however, he does not." Yoda replies, wording his explanation carefully.
Maul frowns at that but decides not to argue further about why the Cerean Knight is borderline a sociopath. After all, there has to be a reason why he's a mere Jedi Knight and already on the Council.
"Then why not make a special case for someone who has already been confirmed to have a high amount of midi-chlorians and comes from a troubling past like you did with a Jedi married?" Maul queries pointedly. "If you treat this matter like you would with any typical Jedi case, it would backfire drastically and the boy may come into the callous hands of the Sith."
"Recruit him to your side, would you, hmmm?" Yoda asks tersely.
"Hasty now, are we?" Maul responds coyly. "We are having a mere conversation about the best of the galaxy. You must embrace a larger view, Grandmaster, if you want to successfully train Skywalker. This is not just another Padawan that you have found at a young age. This is a boy who went through years of abuse. His mother was his only companion. The Sith have grown powerful because they changed through time. The Jedi remain stagnant, embracing outdated views."
Yoda looks unmoved, but his eyes twinkle with the faintest of consideration and suspicion.
"What about you? How would you train him?" he asks.
"Simple. I would ensure that he becomes the best man he can be. Skywalker would not be a traditional Jedi nor Sith. It is not in his nature. He would disobey rules or avert them in order to keep the ones he care about safe. Know this, Grandmaster," Maul's eyes darken, glaring into those powerful green orbs, "I will rather teach him then leave him for my former Master to use for his disposal. I won't allow him to touch him so I heavily advise that you use that ancient knowledge of yours to give him a suitable mentor."
Yoda places a hand on his forehead, seemingly centuries of stress pouring. "Discuss this later, we can. For now, Maul, a deal we had."
Maul follows behind the Jedi in the hanger, noticing Windu eventually joining them as well as Jinn who seems to be unbalanced. His emotions are all over the place - not a good sign. Maul would have to remember to keep a good eye on him...
Looking up, Maul is impressed.
The Scimitar is just as he remembers. It has a pair of folding wings around a round cockpit; a design which was used on T-class long-range personal cruisers like the Valcyn which were used by Sith Lords like Darth Bane during the New Sith Wars about a millennium earlier and would later resurface in the famous TIE Series of Starfighters used primarily by the Galactic Empire.
In front of the round cockpit (the whole forward-center section of the spacecraft) of the vehicle is a rare stygium crystal-powered cloaking device for creating an invisibility field. This enables the ship to sneak through even the most advanced of security technologies and allows its master to evade pursuit while on his missions.
Maul walks in and looks around almost nostalgically. Built beneath the cloak field generator is a series of compartments containing various equipment for Maul's missions including three DRK-1 Dark Eye probe droids, his speeder bike Bloodfin (Oh great they found it!), several interrogation droids and several security droids, spying equipment, torture devices, bombs and mines.
The Infiltrator is protected by six low-profile solar ionization cannons which could extend and fire several bursts in the blink of an eye. It is also equipped with an experimental high temperature X-C 2 ion drive array which would resurface in future Sienar designs while the ship's hyperdrive is an unmodified SSDS 11-A. It can also carry six passengers while its total capacity was 2.5 metric tons.
Maul feels levity at having the ship in his possession once more, before walking out yet again.
"Security codes, you had. Disabled the Droids, we had to." The small Jedi who greatly resembles Yoda - Master Yaddle - says, unamused. "Forgot to mention that little detail, you did."
"Thankfully I did remember to disable the self-destruct controls," Maul says with a hint of sheepishness, receiving disapproving looks from all Jedi.
"You have something to show us," Master Windu reminds flatly.
Maul walks to the cockpit and enters the codes while the Jedi waits, sensing that he wouldn't try to pull a fast one and go back on their small deal. He decides to give them the bit of information that will cause them to have some sort of trail on the old fool without revealing him all right. The Jedi will not discover who he is just yet. Sidious is his...
Maul produces a chip of a past transmission of Sidious, ensuring that it is as unambiguous as possible. "Here is the recording of Sidious ordering me to assassinate Jinn and Kenobi and wanting the Trade Federation to coerced the Queen to sign the treaty." He always concealed himself with his hood so that should throw them off the Sith's trail. It's honestly understandable...
Master Windu grabs the chip and frowns down at it before pocketing it within the right sleeve of his cloak. They would begin a trail on a later date.
Master Plo Koon speaks. "The offer stands where you can join the Jedi. You call yourself a Sith, but I can sense that you wish no harm among the galaxy."
"My loyalty is to myself; not the Jedi nor the Sith. I may call myself a Sith but I do not allow such a title to blind me. The Dark Side is a part of me but it doesn't control me. I would do what I have to. I am not a good person. I can't change who I am." Maul replies, disappointing each Jedi evidently.
"I hope we don't come to regret this," Windu states honestly before making his exit with Yaddle and Koon flanking hum.
Qui-Gon frowns. "How many years have the Sith been under our noses?"
Maul retorts. "Quite a amount. There have been past members of the Order of Bane infiltrating the Jedi Order."
The Jedi looks grim at this.
"Ah yes, there are cases of Sith serving on the Jedi High Council and Darth Zannah was able to infiltrate the Jedi Temple without the Jedi being none the wiser."
"This Zannah, we never have heard of," Yoda admits with narrowed eyes.
"Someone long gone," Maul replies, shrugging off the history lesson that Sidious have gifted him with in his younger days. "Master Yoda, I am warning you. Anakin Skywalker is in great danger. You should make a exception this time and allow his training to be the most unorthodox as possible. The boy has been raised around his mother for so long that he would feel comfortable around only a few. Go against your code and give him a female mentor who he can grow a attachment to or else..." Yoda stares at him with deep, penetrating eyes, before making his exit.
Qui-Gon begins walking behind his fellow Jedi, only to stop and look back with a smile that hasn't been there before. Pained but also noticeable. "Maul... thank you."
Maul simply nods. He takes his leave as well, his Force Signature resigned, the door closing behind him.
Maul stares at him before moving to the edge of the platform. Only when they are gone, Maul feels the disturbance in the Force as the door so callously opens behind him.
A darker skin native with blonde hair in Nubian attire moves to the table, putting down two glasses of wine. He turns around and narrow his golden eyes at the woman.
She speaks quickly, seeming fearful. "The Senator Of Naboo wishes to thank you in person of good gesture, sir."
Of course. Sidious. The major thorn in his side.
The form of the deceptively kind Senator of Naboo approaches along with Jedi and Naboo Guards, along with some Handmaidens, undoubtedly a way for him to pitifully fake sympathy for the Nubians.
In that smooth voice, he says with complete calmness one less aware of his true nature would have thought with complete serenity: "Lord Maul, I must thank you for saving my home. If Queen Amidala was here, she would have wished for you to know that you would always be welcomed to Naboo." The nominated Chancellor speaks, bowing his head and conveying remorse into the Force, his Jedi Guards being none the wiser at his true identity. Even Maul is tempted briefly to fall for the charade...
His manipulation is the reason why Maul is tempted to reveal the rat right then and there, draw his lightsaber and strike so Sidious has no chance to defend himself. Yet, the realism of all of it stops him from doing so. Not only would he be painted as a tyrannical madman for killing such a beloved man, but it would only prove to the common people that the Jedi are right for their skepticism of him.
Truly disgusted at himself for doing so, Maul bows before the man in fake respect. He would have to play his games as painful as the prospect might be. He needs allies before he can finally move against him and prevent the Republic from collapsing in on itself.
"The pleasure is all mine, Senator, I do hope Naboo can preserve in these harsh times. I would be honoured to defend Naboo yet again should I be called upon."
"I would love to have some Nubian wine with the saviour of Naboo privately," Palpatine takes the chance to have a private conversation with Maul to his Guards and others present, causing them to each disembark, the Jedi with slightly more caution.
"Sir..." The older one begins to protest.
"He has proven his loyalty with his act of heroism," Palpatine speaks with grandfatherly disappointment. "Leave."
The Jedi obeys after a moment, seeming unhappy.
When the door closes behind them and their signatures fade, Palpatine merely hums as he walks over to a table where two glasses are awaiting him. Pouring the drink into both cups, Maul finds himself biting down his irritation. The bastard doesn't even have to speak to get under his skin.
"Blossom wine, my friend. A rare, fragrant wine created on this planet by distilling natural essences of different flower blossoms. I believe you would enjoy it." He speaks, sipping down the pale yellow, alcoholic liquid ever so slowly. It almost tips him off...
Maul looks at him with contempt.
"Oh oh oh, come now there's no need to stare at me like that. I wouldn't poison you after all." Palpatine speaks conversationally. There is a bit of insidiousness in his voice.
"I heavily doubt that, you old fool. Come now, we both know what you want to grind me into pieces." Maul replies, not taking his eyes off of the nominated Chancellor.
The mask falls, and the true face of Darth Sidious sneers at him, golden eyes piercing his soul. Despite his rage, Maul can sense no threat in the Force.
"I am the Lord of the Sith, insolent Apprentice." Sidious replies darkly. "You know that you cannot strike me down now. It would not only break the Senate apart, but prove to the whole galaxy that you are an unstable maniac and that the Jedi are right about you."
"I have managed to defeat your Master, didn't I?" Maul taunts devilishly, not wanting to give Sidious any hints about Skywalker's true power and the influence he has with him. "You were too fearful to come to Naboo yourself to deal with the animal that you've morphed."
"Teacher, my young friend, not Master. Plagueis's endeavours was those of a madman, but you would not be as fortunate with me, my friend..." Sidious says, a smirk across his lips.
Maul's eyes go wide as he recalls a memory that has been reactivated only due to Plagueis - that asshole... Time and time before he was forced to endured endless amount of tortures and scarring both before and after his time as a Sith Apprentice.
All because of this sole individual...
"No," Maul hears himself gasp. "Have mercy. Please..."
"There is no mercy," Sidious responds.
Bolts of energy rips out from the Sith Lord's fingers, tendrils of brilliant blue and purple that dances across Maul's tattooed skin and rips through his muscles, his organs. His mechanical legs convulses, shorting out.
"You belong to me," Sidious says. "Your existence is now perfectly meaningless."
He stretches out his fingers and the energy tear through Maul again. Sidious watches the lightning build in intensity, his eyes unblinking, his teeth grits in a triumphant, terrible smile.
Darkness, as it always have been since Darth Sidious found Maul, is what greets him when he awakes yet again. The room offers no beacon of light. Maul lies on the floor, his back injured beyond belief. Tentatively reaching out, he feels something similar to that of a body. Is Sidious holding others in captivity? Maul reaches out to the nearby bunk, feeling something cold at his fingertips, and his darkest nightmare is confirmed when he touches the two broken horns...
Maul gasps almost unwillingly and tosses the corpse away, just as the door to his new hell opens. There stand Darth Sidious, the Master that have betrayed him, smirking a smirk that curses him to the hells below. "I did hope that you were happy with your... companion." His voice is nothing short of concerned, reassuring, and entirely insincere. "You after all hounded the galaxy for your endeavours for revenge."
Sidious's golden eyes burn so hotly, so critically, and looks to him as if he is just a pathetic little pet that have misbehaved. White-hot tendrils of electricity embraces him, burning him.
"You may have once had the potential to be my true Apprentice..."
No...
"But you have gotten weak and foolish through time, losing to a Padawan who never fought a true Sith..."
Maul is burning now, whimpering.
"You are nothing but a failed protégé, begging for mercy when you were brought down to reality..."
That smirk never fades, if anything only intensifying...
"Mercy is nothing but a glorified weakness, preached by those still trapped in their own chains. From now and until the stars end, you belong to me..."
The lightning begin again, but this time didn't stop until he sunk into painful darkness. That is only the first of what is to come with no help reassured. Many cruel sessions await him, a physical reminder that he is a animal, and always will be. A animal to the Nightsisters. A animal to his Master. And always will be just that...
Snapping out of the trance of the past, the Dathomirian glares at Sidious before closing his eyes. "Not anymore. You would have nothing to offer me."
In a instant, Maul severs the Force Bond between him and Sidious, closing out over two decades of loyalty - and even longer if one considered Maul's original timeline. Sidious's eyes briefly flickers in something unreadable before a growl.
Long ago, Sidious used the Force to bind Maul to himself and drilled obedience into him, making it near impossible for Maul and many of his Assassins that came afterwards to not even consider betray him. To have it broken is unheard of, but Maul has been without this monster for so long. At the time, Maul had nothing that really weakened him, no attachments and nothing that could have motivated him to seek another destiny.
"Oh?" Sidious asks, recovering from the shock quite impressively. "What have I denied you? I gave you a life unlike what the Nightsisters would have given you back on Dathomir. What sparked this change in you, my young Apprentice? I was the Master who gave you a purpose and now you want to destroy me."
"I'm not and never will be your Apprentice. I hate you to the very core of your being," Maul replies sharply. "But that does not matter. Continue with your own plans. You better enjoy your victories while they last."
Sidious clicks his tongue. "I will claim your brothers, make them feel the pain that you've felt if not worse. They would pay because of you." He senses Maul's rising fury and smirks at him mockingly. "They will be mine. I wonder what their screams will be like. Maybe I'll take pity on them. Make them into my slaves."
"You will not go near them," Maul snarls.
"Oh? Do not underestimate me. I have all the power here." Sidious gives a demented grin.
"Not yet," Maul promises darkly. "Touch my brothers and I will destroy every molecule in your little body when your inevitable death comes. You would never see your Empire. I would utilize dreadnoughts and commit an orbital bombardment on Coruscant if I have to end your perfect little life."
Sidious chuckles. "Oh, is that fear I detect in your voice, my friend? That's yet another reason why you are not going to strike me down right now. What do you really want, Maul?"
"Power, but I acknowledge it comes with great responsibility. You would never understand the true power of the Dark Side. You only view it as an obstacle for you to control. You have no real reason to hold anger. You are the beast that you have referred to me as. You are the one who is just a sniveling serpent that has no plan, no ambition, no affection for anyone but yourself. You'd slaughtered your family and joined Plagueis because you'd wanted power, not because you have never been given a choice."
The two are quiet, both just taking in the other.
"What do you wish to get out of this?" Sidious inquires, his eyebrows furrowing in curiosity.
"The same as you," Maul replies. "An Empire."
"An Empire?" Sidious repeats.
"One without corruption and actually enforcing its law. In the days of old, the Republic was actually effective and the Jedi served as their own institution. A democratic militaristic system is my endeavours. Speciesism has to be removed from the face of the galaxy and I will see it occur."
Sidious replies. "It seems I would have some challenge on my hands, indeed, my former Apprentice. For now, I would allow you to rally up your forces, but be prepared: You will not thwart my plans, young one."
Sidious takes another sip, no doubt a way to spike Maul further. The Republic is already going to collapse sooner or later, and even without the asshole being involved, they must be prepared for the rising storm. Sidious will just make things a lot worse.
Again, as much as Maul wants to strike him down and relieve the galaxy of this bastard, the Dathomirian fight down that urge yet again. He would not live like a rogue just yet. Sidious had many allies, but Maul shall wait for others. He would be the dark hero instead of just another tyrant for now.
"There are ways I can limit your victory..." Maul knows that Sidious would win. The groundwork has been set up but there are ways he can limit his victory.
Silence follows for a few more seconds before Sidious's golden eyes go wide, not with shock but with something much more, as if staring at another universe as a whole.
"Skywalker, he is strong in the Force... Do you plan to corrupt him?" Sidious asks, truly interested in finding out as much as he can from Maul.
"No," Maul retorts darkly. "And you will not either."
Sidious smirks, seeing that he has the verbal advantage. "You care about him..." It is not a question. "Very well, I shall have fun breaking him to the Dark Side."
"You will do no such thing," Maul retorts in a strained tone, the protectiveness that have formed there days ago back in a gripping fury, something that Sidious is using against him. "I would not allow you to have the Chosen One so that you can destroy the galaxy in your vision, Sidious."
Placing the finished cup down on the table, Sidious walks to the doorway nonchalantly, knowing that he have spite Maul successfully. As always, the insidious bastard knows how to toy with his victims, even without being locked in combat with them.
"We shall see. We shall see." Sidious gives one last quippy comment. "Hope you enjoy the wine."
And then the bastard is gone, his ever distasteful presence still there but no longer in the proximity. Yet another one approaches after a few minutes, this one's presence much younger and impressionable.
Skywalker has found him, undoubtedly sneaking away from the Jedi who was assigned on monitoring him.
"Well, Maul, I think I have been accepted in the Jedi Order," Skywalker proclaims, a touch of uncertainty in his voice, unlike when there was enthusiasm days prior.
"You have fears, Skywalker, you don't wish to become a Jedi," Maul replies, turning to face him with expectant yellow eyes.
"I was so sure a couple of days ago but now..." Skywalker stops at the end. "How can I be a Jedi when you would be my enemy? The Jedi don't like you and they might want me to not like you either."
Skywalker's innocence is agonizing in some ways but Maul has always adapt to every feeling, including pain, so outwardly he remains unaffected.
"I believe they would gift you with a understanding mentor. Not every Jedi is like those on the Council, Skywalker." Maul reassures, his hand gripping his arm as he sends calming energies to the Force. "Now that the Jedi are aware of the return of the Sith, there would be more caution with each of their Padawans, you included."
"Yes but..." Skywalker's face twists in something close to utter contempt. Somehow, it doesn't fit. "They believe my love to my mother is a problem-"
"It's not," Maul reassures flatly. "Skywalker..." He takes a deep breath and comes to a decision, producing a comlink from his belt, one that has been a method for untraceable transmissions between himself and Sidious. "When you require advice, you would have the capability to call upon me. Make sure that the Jedi doesn't catch wind of it. If you are adamant about leaving after learning as much as you can from them, you'll have a choice."
The contempt is gone, replaced by shock, before at last a bit of happiness.
Skywalker throws his arms around Maul and snuggle into his side. Maul is dumbfounded by this act of the boy choosing to embrace him. Is the boy suicidal for that age?
And Maul can only hold the boy in his arms, hating that Skywalker is too innocent for his own good and unbecoming...
...Blast that feeling the urge to protect that innocence and not allow him to face war and death as much as he had in the other timeline...
Arthur's note: I'm sorry to Obi-Wan's fans. I didn't want him to suffer but it was either him or Qui-Gon (Maul was never a possibility). After debating with myself mentally, eventually I settled on Obi-Wan, for I have plans for Qui-Gon. Some stories I have read and even written once had Kenobi get a Vader like suit but in most of those stories I just don't like them or they do it wrong like I admittedly have in the past and learned from it. He WILL NOT be healing from this experience 100%. Neither would Plagueis...
That aside, I'm one of those people who takes the Rule of Two Banite Scaling into consideration (Force, wisdom, persuasion, allies, profit, intellect, cunning, manipulation, etc...) remembering that the Sith had a century to adapt and thus each Sith that have completed their training eventually rising to just become stronger than the last. Maul never completed his training despite being as powerful as some Masters on the Council at this point in time. ROTS Sidious could create a fatal wormhole to consume the entirety of Coruscant like he did in Dark Empire to capture Luke with EVERY SINGLE JEDI screaming bloody murder. Dark Empire is how you do a Sidious returning and Luke giving up story CORRECTLY!
I had taken the part where Maul begged for mercy from Darth Maul: Shadow Conspiracy. I heavily recommend to check it out!
I have also gotten the inspiration about Maul finding Savage's corpse from a tragic fanfiction called: Clone Wars: Housekeeping. Bring tissues if you read it!
May the Force be with you all always.