Chapter One

"And what of the Reydonia affair, are the people all right?" Master Windu asked. "No, it seemed as though Maul killed them all before I arrived. Guess he was too anxious waiting for me to keep them alive until I arrived to the system," Obi-wan answered. "Do not blame yourself for it Obi-wan, as you said, he was a broken and unbalanced monster," Windu assured him.

"Yes but that doesn't mean I could have saved them from his vicious blade. And now, he may still be pursuing me if he hasn't settled in the ruins of Reydonia or elsewhere to plot another plan for revenge against me," Obi-wan said. "For now, he's laying low which is likely the best thing he can do now that we know he's survived and that he is accompanied by a former acolyte of Dooku," Windu replied. Obi-wan made a reference to Savage saying that Maul was his brother and Windu looked at him, baffled.

"And how would Savage know Maul is of blood relations to him?" Windu asked. "Likely Mother Talzin, she follows the genetic line of all males in the village she built within her massive territory. She might be the one who would know how to stop Maul and Savage now that they've reunited and plan to use their powers to wreak havoc on the galaxy," Obi-wan answered.

"Are you suggesting that we send you to Dathomir to find Mother Talzin and ask her if she knows of their relationship to each other," Windu asked with a raised eyebrow. "It would probably be our best lead as to how they came to know each other and possibly a hint as to where Maul has been all this time," Obi-wan answered. "Would you like a taskforce to come with you or for Skywalker and Tano to accompany you?" Windu inquired. Obi-wan shook his head and said that since Maul didn't know of Anakin's existence when he and Maul met, he wanted to keep it that way if he could help it.

"Besides, Anakin's attachment to Qui-Gon before the latter died was like that of a father and a son. If Anakin heard that Qui-Gon's murderer was still out there, he wouldn't stop until vengeance was his or he died," he added. "I understand, anything else you need?" Windu asked. Obi-wan shook his head and thanked Windu for all his help in the issue surrounding Maul's mysterious return to the galaxy during the war.

"While your talents are exceptional for your lack of training, you will need all that I can teach you to survive when I cannot be there anymore. Your first lesson will be to learn how to channel your hatred and let the anger flow through you like the blood you and I share," Maul explained to a quiet, observant Savage Opress. Maul electrocuted his brother with Fore lightning, testing what Savage was and wasn't already familiar with. When he saw the reaction Savage had to the lightning, he continued with a smile on his face, knowing he was doing something right for his first time being the teacher instead of the student.

Savage did exactly as Maul instructed and channeled enough of his anger and hate to use the Force to throw Maul against a wall behind him. Though quick to recover from the blow, Maul complimented Savage for his success in the first lesson. "You're going to loathe me before this is through and desire to kill me but if you survive your training, you will become a powerful ally of the Dark Side," Maul said when he was back on his mechanical feet. "I want nothing less than that, my brother," Savage replied.

Maul wasn't sure whether he wanted Savage to call him his brother or his Master but settled for brother as that was what he was to his relatively naïve companion. "No you don't but before this is over, you'll be wanting more," Maul assured him confidently. "I don't understand brother," Savage said. "With time and training brother, you will," Maul promised Savage.

Mother Talzin watched from Dathomir as Maul trained his brother in the ways of the Dark Side just as she planned. Thanks to the training Savage already acquired out of Count Dooku, Maul's training was being undertaken more smoothly than she could've hoped. "Yes Maul, soon you and Savage will soon be ready for the final stages of my ultimate goal for you. I must see to it that you will be ready for your final part at least when I want you to be," she said aloud and since she was alone, she felt better about thinking aloud when it came to Maul and Savage Opress.

Amongst those final preparations included a little more usage of her ability to manipulate the minds of those who serve and fight for her. However, this usage was going to be very subtle in comparison to what she usually did to people whether they were her servants or her victims. In the case of Asajj Ventress, she had merely used her power to fuel the hatred Ventress bore towards Dooku and used it to nearly succeed in her schemes to assassinate him. With other Nightsisters, it had usually been a similar matter except towards each other but this was far more subtle than all of that.

Instead of manipulating Maul's hatred to an untimely destruction, she was going to implant one little idea into his head that would have his gears turning. At first, he would resist trying to go about conducing it as would be the natural response to his mind against her attempts to manipulate it. She was not worried about that but she was worried about him rejecting it so she had to make sure it was powerful enough to stick but not powerful enough for him to recognize it as mind control and immediately throw it away. This was going to be something more difficult than anything she did even when Ventress had been involved with the Nightsisters.

Maul was in the midst of training Savage in how to deflect blaster bolts by the dozen when something came up. It was a little recollection from a time in his past he had thought purged from his mind never to surface again. This little recollection was the memory of his romantic involvement with a dead Jedi Knight named Ophelia Draco. It irritated him that his memories of that fateful connection surfaced right when he was in the middle of training his brother but when he allowed it a little time, something interesting came up.

During the mission to stop her brother Claudius from destroying Heraklion Prime, Ophelia had told Maul (from the Jedi perspective) how the Sith were destroyed and mentioned the use of a power called the "thought bomb". According to her, it was a force so powerful that those with a connection to the Force and were caught in it physically burned to ash only for their souls to remain trapped between life and death. She had added that there was no way to break the seal of the thought bomb as far as the Jedi knew but Maul began to wonder if Talzin would know. Much as he hated her and wished she had never been the one to restore his legs, he knew she was the only one he could trust with that knowledge lest he risk running into the Jedi again.

While the idea of releasing the souls trapped in the thought bomb was good and finding out how to do so second best, there was still Kenobi to be considered. What if he or some other Jedi were already going to see Mother Talzin for some reason and he walked right into them instead of Talzin by herself? It was a possibility he didn't want to exploit as his whole plan was based on letting the Jedi bring the fight to him and Savage instead of the other way around. Still, it ate at him even in sleep and urged him to explore it in depth as though to not do so would kill him eventually.

It was worsened when Savage asked how they were going to fight the Jedi when they began pursuing them in the hopes of capturing at least one of them. "I have an idea as to how that may be possible but I am not sure if I want to explore it yet," Maul said. "Why would you not?" Savage asked. "For one thing, you're just barely completing the first stages of your training (doing it in barely three weeks was more than I expected) and for another… it's too risky right now," Maul answered.

"Can you at least tell me what your idea is?" Savage inquired. "In ancient Sith legend, there were eight battles at a planet called Ruusan between the Sith's Brotherhood of Darkness led by Lord Kaan and the Jedi Order's Army of Light led by General Hoth. During the last battle, Kaan became so desperate to destroy Hoth that he became insane and began considering the use of a weapon called a thought bomb. It was encouraged by the first of my Master's Sith line, Darth Bane, who convinced him to actually use it against the Jedi.

"What Kaan ever ignored or didn't realize was that when ignited, the thought bomb consumed the souls of all Force users in its vicinity, burned up their physical bodies, and doomed the trapped souls to a tortured eternity. But now, there is the possibility that they can be released, granting us an army like no other," Maul explained. "Then why don't we?" Savage asked. "Because finding out how will require going back to Dathomir and seeking Mother Talzin and until I know for certain that the Jedi are not waiting for us, I will not pursue this further," Maul answered.

Is he afraid of the Jedi or has he grown so accustomed to hiding that he won't make a move even if he isn't afraid of our enemy? Savage asked inside his head. "I am neither afraid nor accustomed to hiding, I am just more careful about weaving my webs as well as hiding them from my enemies until they are caught in their stronghold," Maul answered aloud. "How did you-?" Savage began. "Another thing I haven't taught you is how to protect your thoughts being read by those who would exploit their ability to read minds for personal gain," Maul interrupted.

"How does one defend against that, my brother?" Savage asked. "Whether your have heard this before or not I don't know but a wise master does not reveal all of his secrets at once," Maul answered. Savage admitted that Count Dooku had once said it to him during one of his first training sessions when the Count tried to teach him how to command the Force for the Dark Side. His knowledge of this Count Dooku character may prove useful to me one day but not now, not while we're still unprepared to fight the Jedi Maul told himself meticulously.

After finishing the session for another day, Maul decided to meditate on the idea and see if he could work up a plan of some sort. Unfortunately, the meditation turned up nothing so he decided to ask Xizor if he knew anybody who had gone to Ruusan or might know how to safely get there without Jedi interference. "I might know someone who was said to have accidentally stumbled on a planet of such a description as you provided," Xizor told him. Maul had made sure to tell him he had seen a decimated plain, deprived of life except for the local bouncers of the planet with the brightest light being that of a massive white orb in a deep cave whose entrance was relatively massive.

Three days later and Xizor had an entire route written down for Maul's use should he decide to travel to Ruusan as Xizor's pilot had done before him. "Thank you your Majesty, I will try to be in touch if I need to call upon my reservation in the future but I make no promises in that respect," Maul said. "You are always welcome to use my space when you need to and I will even renew your reservation on the house since you are usually a good client," Xizor replied enthusiastically. I hope I don't have to resort to that again as comfy as this suite is Maul thought but didn't say to his host.

Maul told Savage to ready the ship and have them head back to Dathomir to find Mother Talzin. If there was anyone he hated more than Xizor, it was Talzin but she would have to be one of the first people to know how to undo the effects of the thought bomb it would be her. But if she did not know how to do it, she would be the best hope of finding someone who did. Savage didn't like the idea anymore than he did which gave Maul the impression that his brother still liked the training; that was something Maul would be needing to break out of him before they were through.