"Nothing about that was easy Bil!" Masana spoke harshly, startling Anakin. In the brief time he had known her, she had come across as a boisterous individual, but not one with any hostility behind her tone. She had seemed like a kind person, despite everything that life had thrown at her.

But now… now she was clearly on the verge of snapping at Bil Valen. Her expression had tightened into one of anger, her features contorted in concealed rage.

If Anakin didn't know any better, he'd have said she was about to attack the person who was apparently her friend.

"Yeah… ok…. minor exaggeration there. Sorry about that guys. I'll leave the puzzle solving to you lot from now on." Bil's reply was sheepish, once again a far cry from his usual blunt and somewhat arrogant persona. Through the Force Anakin could feel that Bil was genuinely sorry for what had happened.

Masana however was clearly not content with his response.

"Seriously Bil! That's all you have to say! Your stupidity nearly got Captain Rex eaten by a giant monster!"

At the mention of his name, Rex's helmeted head shifted between Masana, Bil, the slayed beast, and then back to Masana again. Anakin couldn't see his expression beneath the helmet, but he could tell that his Clone Captain was surprised by the fact that Masana was angry due to the threat that had been posed to Rex's life first and foremost.

"I said I was sorry! You forgive me… right Captain?" Bil spoke again, his tone growing desperate as he gestured towards Rex, hoping the Captain would come to his aid.

"Of course General. No need to apologise. It all worked out in the end." Rex replied, expressing his gratitude in the way he usually did.

Once again however, Masana did not seem content by what she had heard.

"I hope you didn't just mind trick him into forgiving you Bil, because if you did that's low even for you!"

"Masana I…"

"That is enough, both of you!"

Never before had Anakin been grateful for the sound of Master Windu's voice. The argument that had been growing between Masana and Bil had made Anakin feel uncomfortable, and he could tell that both Rex and Dibs felt the same, but no one dared interrupt unless they too provoked the wrath of the angry Dowutin woman before them.

Windu however had no such worries it seemed, not by the way he moved between both Masana and Bil, his expression stern, as if he was preparing to tell off a pair of misbehaving younglings.

"Knight Tide, calm yourself this instant. Your behavior is unbecoming of a Jedi Knight! We are all in this situation together and we do not need division. Go and calm down this instant!"

Windu's words seemed to work, even if they only further angered Masana, as evidenced by the way she turned on her heel and stormed off to the corner of the chamber, muttering something under her breath in her native language.

Content that Masana was dealt with, Windu turned to Bil.

"As for you Knight Valen, you were foolish to attempt to solve this riddle without understanding it. You very nearly got your fellow Jedi and Clone Trooper killed. Once this is all over you will find yourself on meditative leave…. again!"

"Yes Master Windu." Came Bil's reply, his tone steady and understanding, despite the fact that his facial expressions suggested otherwise. He was clearly unhappy at being stuck with endless meditation, not that Anakin blamed him.

"Good. Now, as we are at an impasse, I suggest we all try to figure out this riddle, without touching anything we shouldn't. Together our minds should be more than up to the task, wouldn't you agree Master Dibs?"

At the mention of his name, Prosset nodded his head. "Indeed Master Windu. I only hope we can solve it quickly, and without being eaten alive."

Content with Prosset's response, Windu turned his focus to Anakin.

"Knight Skywalker, see if you can find any clues to solve this riddle. Perhaps we have overlooked some artwork."

"Yes Master Windu." Anakin replied as Windu turned and moved over to examine the plinths Bil had activated earlier, Dibs following him in the process. Each plinth had risen from the stone floor once more, displaying the same set of images upon them, though still no obvious answer revealed itself.

"I guess I'll go look at some art then. Maybe I won't mess that one up." Bil spoke softly to himself, the Jedi Knight moving away from where Anakin and Rex were standing with slow movements that reminded Anakin of someone in despair. Bil was clearly upset with himself, and Anakin knew that feeling all too well.

A low growl from the other side of the room reminded Anakin of the other individual present who was in a foul mood. Masana stood facing the opposite wall to where Bil had gone, studying an image grafted into the stone whilst she ran one large claw along it. The Force around her sang in anger, but not anger that threatened to overwhelm everyone. It was as if she was angry at herself for such an outburst.

Knowing full well that it wouldn't be helpful to anyone to have a divided team, as Windu had said, Anakin decided to take action.

"Rex, go and help Bil. See if you can piece anything together. I'm going to go talk to Masana."

"Yes Sir." Rex's reply was instant and confident, just as it always was. Despite nearly being eaten only moments earlier, Anakin was glad to see that Rex was fully ready to help whoever needed it.

Content that Rex would handle Bil's bad mood, Anakin turned on his heels and began to approach Masana, hoping that she wouldn't mind his interruption.

Moving to stand next to the towering Dowutin, Anakin observed the way her clawed hand gently touched the stone wall before her, as if she was reading something, though Anakin could see nothing outright to read. The section she was studying had no image, and no scripture either. It was simply a stone wall.

Unless…

"There is another of those beasts behind this wall, deep in slumber, but ready to be awakened at a moment's notice." Masana spoke suddenly, her gaze shifting from the wall to Anakin's face, expressing everything he needed to know about what she had been doing through her eyes.

"Best not fail the riddle again then." Anakin replied with an edge of humour in his tone, "I don't fancy a round two against one of those things."

"Coward." Came Masana's reply, humour in her own voice as she turned her head back to examine the wall, her clawed hand continuing it's survey.

Neither said anything for a few moments, simply choosing to study their own respective portions of the wall for clues, though there appeared to be little for Anakin to study.

"I know what you are doing here Skywalker. I'm not stupid." Masana spoke again after a few moments of awkward silence, her entire body shifting away from the wall to face Anakin.

"What do you mean?" Anakin replied, hoping that Masana wouldn't get frustrated by him playing dumb.

"Either you really are as stupid as you look, or you enjoy trying people's patience… 'Skyguy'!"

Anakin couldn't help the roll of his eyes at the mentioning of Ahsoka's nickname for him. Usually he despised anyone using it. Though if it made her feel better, Anakin would let Masana off the hook this one time.

That said, he wasn't going to let her get away with it completely.

"Well 'Pointy Chin', Obi-Wan did always say I was a bit stupid for my age. Can't have everything I guess, especially since I'm already cursed with stunning good looks."

"You make a Hutt look luscious!"

"I'll take that as a compliment."

Anakin's response got a chuckle out of Masana, something that pleased him. He knew firsthand what bad moods did to people. It would do Masana no good to sulk in the corner for the rest of the mission.

"So… you want to talk about it or…" Anakin ventured, trying to get her to open up to him as she had done earlier.

Masana sighed to begin with, turning away from Anakin and the wall she had been studying, her gaze being drawn to where Bil was standing side by side with Rex, the two of them deep in conversation.

"I shouldn't have snapped. Bil might have been a kriffing moofmilker, but he meant well. It was just bad luck." Masana spoke again, her voice now soft and calm, a far cry from what it had been earlier. Clearly she was feeling regret for snapping in such a way, even if she had been well within her rights.

"I'm sure Bil will forgive you. I've lost track of the number of arguments I've had with Obi-Wan and Ahsoka."

"We'll get her back Skywalker. I promise." Masana said, her face shifting away from Bil and Rex and back toward Anakin, determination obvious in her expression. Anakin was glad that she was willing to help him in such a way. He doubted that many Jedi would come to Ahsoka's aid if she was in trouble these days. He was fairly certain that none of the Council, aside from perhaps Obi-Wan and Plo Koon would help.

"Thanks Masana. I appreciate that."

The smile that came to Masana's face was all the response he needed. The Force around the Dowutin lightened somewhat, even in the presence of the overpowering Sith Shrine, her anger at herself being expelled from her body and mind.

"General! I think we've got something!" Rex called from across the chamber suddenly, drawing the attention of everyone present.

"What is it Rex?" Anakin replied as he moved to join his Clone Captain, Masana following him in the process.

"We think we've got a possible solution Sir." Rex replied, gesturing to the wall in front of them, specifically at the images that were carved onto the stone.

Before them was a single large image, one that depicted a field with a single hut in the center of it. Around the hut were various images, each of which were the same as the ones that appeared on the plinths that were key to the riddle they were trying to solve.

An insect sat upon several blades of grass, as a bird swooped down nearby.

Behind the bird was a man, holding what looked like a hunting spear.

And behind the man stood the beast, as if it was stalking its prey through the open plains.

"I don't understand?" Masana spoke from beside him, her own eyes surveying the same image, trying to put the pieces together.

"We think this is the solution Generals. It's a cycle of sorts." Rex spoke again reaching one hand out to touch the wall, his hand resting on the image of the grass, before moving it to the insect, followed by the bird, then the man, and finally the hulking beast in back.

"A cycle? What sort of cycle?" Masana asked again as her eyes followed the path Rex had traced with his hand.

Anakin too retraced the same path. Grass. Insect. Bird. Man. Beast. What logic had Bil and Rex used to come to that conclusion?

From behind him, Anakin heard Windu make a pleased noise before speaking.

"Very good Knight Valen. You as well Captain Rex."

"Wasn't me Master Windu. It was the Captain's doing." Bil replied humbly, hand gently grasping Rex's shoulder in a sign of respect, a smirk on his face.

"Ummm… the Dowutin is lost here! Someone wanna help me out?" Masana interrupted once again, her tone annoyed at her own lack of understanding. Anakin too felt much the same. What had Rex figured out that the others had not?

"Well," Rex began, his hand gesturing to the mural in its entirety as he spoke, "From what I can see, this image represents life in general. Every image works together in some way or another to create a society, as well as a natural order of things."

"Still lost!" Masana spoke again, earning an elbow in her gut from Bil.

"General Windu said that the writing translated to 'the wise will know the order of nature'. Well, from what I can piece together about this mural, each image represents a different stage in an order."

"And which sort of order is that?" Anakin questioned, still as confused as their Dowutin comrade.

"It's a food chain General. Each image represents a stage in the cycle." Rex replied, sounding rather pleased with himself in the process as he reached his hand towards the image of the grass again, before following the same path he had before. "The chain starts with the grass, which is eaten by the insect. The insect in turn is eaten by the bird, which is hunted by man, and then man is…"

"Man is hunted by the beast! Rex… I always said you were the smartest man in the 501st!" Anakin finished off, realization finally hitting him. How had he missed that!? Now that Rex had explained it, it seemed so obvious!

"Yeah… ok… seems like I am stupid after all. Nice one Captain." Masana spoke too, humour in her voice as she mocked herself whilst praising the Clone Captain in the process.

"Just doing my job General Tide. It could still be wrong, so don't bet any credits just yet." Rex replied, bowing slightly in a sign of respect for the compliments he was receiving.

"As it stands Captain, it's the best answer we've got. Would you like to do the honors?" Master Windu spoke, pride in his own voice at the Captain's achievements. It seemed that he and Anakin finally agreed on something.

"I will give it a shot General Windu, though if this goes wrong and I unleash another one of those beasts, feel free to let it eat me this time." Rex replied, adding his own brand of humour to the mix, earning a rare chuckle out of Windu in response.

"I'd rather not let a valuable ally be eaten alive Captain." Came Windu's response as he moved aside, gesturing for Rex to pass and attempt to solve the riddle.

"Well I appreciate that General." Rex said as he continued to move over to the first plinth, the one that held the image of the blades of grass.

The assembled Jedi waited with baited breath as Rex reached one armoured hand forward, gently resting it on the plinth before it began to descend into the ground. Through the Force Anakin could feel Rex's nerves and fear that he might have made a mistake. There was a chance that he had, but if he had then so be it. They had already dealt with one huge beast. Now that they knew it's weakness, dealing with another one would be much easier.

As the first plinth finished sinking into the ground, Rex moved on, placing his hand atop the plinth with the image of the insect upon it.

As with the first plinth, the second plinth sunk into the stone around them, followed by the third and the fourth plinths sporting the images of the bird and the man.

As the fourth plinth finished, Rex moved to the fifth and final plinth, the one with the image of the beast they had just fought.

Anakin noticed the way Rex hesitated for a brief second, before gently laying his hand atop the plinth, allowing it to begin its descent.

As the fifth plinth began to descend, Anakin heard the telltale sound of an igniting lightsaber behind him, a blue glow being bathed over the assembled group, followed by a sigh of annoyance from Masana.

"Paranoid or something Bil?"

"Hey! It helps to be prepared!"

"I couldn't agree more General." Rex's voice interrupted, his blaster pistols instantly being removed from his holsters and tightly gripped in his hands, just in case.

Anakin wouldn't admit it, but his own hand had already gently grasped his own lightsaber, just in case. He needed to be ready to defend his friends if anything else went wrong.

At first, nothing happened. There was no warning through the Force of another monster being awakened, nor any sign of movement in the large stone doors before them. Had Rex perhaps got the code wrong too?

Clearly he was not the only one who had a similar line of thought, judging by the way Rex's shoulders slumped suddenly, as if disappointed in himself.

His disappointment however did not last very long, not when the large stone doors before them rumbled suddenly.

Anakin watched as the doors began to open, slowly parting in the centre to expose the passageway that lay beyond it, one that was covered in a dark pulsating red light that seemed to seep in through the walls. To Anakin's eyes, it screamed 'Sith'.

A few moments later, and the large stone doors had opened fully, as if they were inviting the group into whatever it had been protecting.

"Well, no sense standing around." Masana spoke from behind him, voicing what everyone was thinking.

They had come this far, now all they had to do was find the source of the problem.

As well as Ahsoka. Anakin wouldn't say it aloud, but right now that was his first concern. His Padawan had been taken, and he would stop at nothing to get her back.

If someone had told Ahsoka that one day she would be traversing the halls of a Sith Shrine with a Sith Lord as a companion, she would have told them they were drunk. Never in a million years did she expect to find herself in the situation she was currently in. How had it happened? And why had Maul picked her of all the people to abduct? Surely Master Dibs, or Knights Valen or Tide, or even Anakin would have been a better choice to assist him in his scheme. They were all of Knight level or above, not like her. Ahsoka had been a mere Padawan when she had left the Order after all.

'Maybe he's scared the others could beat him. Maybe he thought you'd be easy to deal with if you resisted?' The voice in her head whispered with humour, eliciting a chuckle out of her in the process. The thought of a big bad Sith Lord being scared of something was an oddly amusing image.

"Something humorous Tano?" Maul's voice snarled from beside her, his golden eyes glancing at her briefly, before returning to the dimly hit hall ahead of them. Ahsoka had lost track of how long they had been walking, and where exactly they had been walking as well! The red hue of the stone walls around them did little to help her create a sense of direction. Where exactly were they going again?

"Tano! I asked you a question!" Maul spoke again, his tone brusque.

Rolling her eyes beneath her helmet, a gesture she hoped he couldn't see, Ahsoka responded.

"Just thinking about a joke I heard. Nothing too important."

"You should not let your mind wander in this place. There are many dangers lurking within these halls."

"Such as?"

"Such as the spirits of Sith long dead. This place contains catacombs beneath it, ones used to house the fallen forms of Sith. Tempting their ire would not be wise for anyone."

"Oh, so nothing good then?"

Maul's dejected sign brought another smile to Ahsoka's face. She was enjoying this. He may be holding her hostage, but she would have the last laugh.

"No Tano, nothing good whatsoever."

Continuing forward down the same seemingly endless corridor, Ahsoka's eyes were drawn to the hilt of a lightsaber attached to Maul's belt. It was long and looked weathered by time. Whilst she couldn't see it up close, she could tell that the hilt possessed an emitter at each end, as well as a dull red glow coming from within an exposed chamber towards one of the emitters. Clearly that was a kyber crystal, and if what she knew about Maul's preferred fighting technique was correct, no doubt the lightsaber he held was designed to be a double bladed one. That would explain his earlier inquiry to her.

"Nice saber. Make it yourself?" Ahsoka asked, knowing full well that any 'small talk' between them would make the situation ten times more awkward than it currently was.

"Not this one. I found this hilt in this Shrine. My personal saber is currently lost to me, though it matters little. I shall recover it in time." Maul replied in an oddly polite way. His tone suggested he was actually enjoying the discussion as well, which surprised Ahsoka! Perhaps Maul was not a rampant lunatic one hundred percent of the time.

'Then again, he is talking about crafting a weapon designed to kill someone!'

Shaking the deadpan voice out of her head, Ahsoka spoke again, deciding that it would be better to discuss something they were both familiar with and enjoyed talking about rather than walk in awkward silence.

"Did you train with a saber staff from the beginning, or did you adopt it later on?"

"Did you train with Jar'Kai from the beginning?"

"Um… no."

"Precisely. Training takes time, as you should know Tano. I started with a single blade, but adopted the saber staff as my technique later on to complement my skills and dexterity. I imagine you were much the same with your technique?"

"Something like that. My Master wanted me to be able to protect myself better, hence the training in Jar'Kai."

"Hmmm, my Master never cared for my safety, only that I kill for him. In hindsight, I might have retained my original legs had I focused more on defense than offense."

Ahsoka didn't know the full details of how Maul had lost his original legs, only that it had something to do with Obi-Wan. Master Kenobi did not like speaking of Maul, even less so after the death of Satine Kryze.

"I can sense your anger at me Tano. Do you desire to strike me down?"

"Maybe. But, like you said, we need each other right now." Ahsoka replied to the taunt, clenching her teeth behind her lips.

"Hmm, how fortunate for me then." Maul replied, sarcasm dripping off his tongue in the process, earning another roll of the eyes from Ahsoka.

"Do all Sith enjoy waxing poetic all the time, or is that just a skill you have?"

"That depends, do all Jedi outcasts lack the sense of decorum that you do?"

"Only the good ones." Ahsoka snipped in response, turning her head away from Maul's as she glanced down the hallway once again. She was getting fed up of traversing the same endless passageway now. Just how big was this Shrine?!

The two unlikely companions continued on through the endless halls, the glowing red stone around them beginning to get on Ahsoka's nerves. Couldn't the Sith have at least installed some actual lights into the Shrine, or a torch or something?! The endless red was giving her a headache on top of the one she already had thanks to Maul's earlier punch to her face.

Shaking the discomfort off as best she could, Ahsoka spoke again.

"So, this challenge or trial or whatever it is you need my help with, what exactly are we expecting?"

"I do not know the extent of it, only what the inscription upon the door reads."

"And that is?"

"The full translation escapes even me, but the important part I could read. The challenge requires us to 'face together what we fear most'. Anything more is pure speculation at this point."

"Sounds like fun." Ahsoka quipped in response, smirking under her helmet as Maul groaned aloud once more at her obvious flippant nature. It was clear that to him, she was coming across as an immature brat, one that didn't understand the gravity of the situation they were in, nor the dangers they faced.

This was, naturally, a lie. Ahsoka knew full well to expect the worst in the situation she was in. Kriff, she wouldn't be surprised if she didn't make it out, full stop.

But still, as she had told herself before, she was not going to make this easy on Maul. She would make him suffer as much as she could. It was the least the piece of poodoo deserved.

"We are here."

Maul's words broke her out of her inner thoughts, drawing her attention to the area around her. Suddenly, the endless hallways did not seem so endless. Without her knowing, they had approached a three way T-shaped junction, with herself and Maul emerging at one of the sides of the T.

Ahsoka's head shifted to Maul as he moved towards the wall opposite the tail of the junction shape, his hands running across what looked like various inscriptions written in an archaic language. Maul's hands caressed the wall slowly, fingers pointing to various symbols as he began to mutter something under his breath.

"What are you doing?"

"Opening the way. Be silent Tano."

Holding her hands up in a symbol of mock surrender, Ahsoka watched and waited in silence as Maul continued his work, until suddenly the wall began to shift, opening slowly upwards and exposing a chamber within.

Huffing to himself, Maul stepped back and turned on his heels, his golden eyes glancing at Ahsoka's helmeted visage before his eyes were drawn to something behind her, widening in surprise.

Things happened very quickly after that. One moment Ahsoka had been staring into the exposed chamber that Maul had just opened, and now suddenly she found herself held in his grasp, his crimson lightsaber ignited and held at her throat, her entire body being held as hostage.

It was then that she heard and saw why!

"Ahsoka!"

"Anakin!" The Togruta cried out in response as her former Master and his companions emerged from the darkness of the hallway, lightsabers of various colours flashing into existence. Beside Anakin, Ahsoka could see Rex too, his blasters aimed at the one holding her hostage, but not daring to fire in case he hit her.

"I wouldn't make any sudden moves if I were you Jedi, unless you want me to remove her head!" Maul snarled from behind her, his grip on her deathly tight, his saber edging closer to her neck as a clear threat.

"You bastard!" A voice called out from behind Anakin, coming from the Jedi Ahsoka recognized as Masana. The towering Dowutin had a fierce and protective look on her face as she twirled her own saber in her large claws, as if challenging Maul to a fair fight.

"Release Tano now!" Windu's voice came then, stern and commanding as always, but with a hint of what Ahsoka would call concern layered beneath it. Was Windu really worried about her wellbeing after everything?

"No… no I don't think I will, Master Jedi. My 'apologies'."

"Release her or I'll kill you!" That was Anakin, unsurprisingly. He was never one to be discreet.

"Not before I do Sir!" The acid that was in Rex's tone was a surprise however. The Clone Captain was usually the most level headed person in the 501st. Now however, it appeared even he was angry. Anakin had clearly been more of an influence on him than anyone else had realised.

"As if you could Clone." Maul snarled back in response from over her shoulder, dark humour in his tone as his grip on her tightened once more, pulling her back towards the now opened doorway behind them. "Now, Tano and I are going to proceed into this chamber together. I suggest you Jedi take your own advice and practise patience whilst we proceed."

"As if we are going to do that you horn headed freak!" Another voice, the one belonging to Knight Valen called out, "We aren't gonna abandon one of our own to you!"

"Oh you poor foolish Jedi! You won't have a choice!" Maul snarled again, before he cleared his throat and began to speak once again, his voice echoing around the halls.

"Fallen Sith of old! These Jedi have disturbed your holy resting site. They desecrate the halls with their foul stench! Rise, my fallen brothers and sisters, and cast them down with all your hatred!"

"What the hell is he on about?!" Bil's voice called out in confusion as he glanced up at Masana, who only shrugged her shoulders in response, twirling her blade once more as a challenge towards the Zabrak Sith.

"As I said… foolish Jedi!"

Maul's words seemed like an empty threat at first, but that was very quickly proven wrong. From beneath the stone floor around them, numerous ghostly figures erupted into existence, ghostly red sabers igniting all around them, vastly outnumbering the small team of Jedi and one Clone that stood before them.

The ghostly figures shifted their forms, placing themselves between Maul and the Jedi, as if defending their fellow Sith, who released a series of dark chuckles in response before speaking again.

"Enjoy yourselves, Jedi!"

With that, Ahsoka felt herself pulled backwards with considerable force. Her entire body was thrown through the doorway Maul had opened, resulting in her crashing to the hard floor, bashing her helmeted head in the process.

Groaning to herself, Ahsoka began to push her body back up just in time to see Maul back into the room himself, his red blade pivoting to deflect what Ahsoka assumed was blaster fire courtesy of Rex. As the doorway began to seal behind Maul, Ahsoka briefly heard Anakin call out her name in horror before she once again found herself completely alone with the Sith Lord.

A Sith Lord who had just threatened to end her life despite apparently needing her help to proceed.

Snarling to herself, Ahsoka vaulted to her feet, her own lightsaber grasped tightly in her hand as she ignited the golden blade and swung for Maul's unprotected back.

The Sith however, had obviously anticipated this. His arms moved swiftly, bringing his own blade over his shoulder to deflect the attempted assassination without even looking, before spinning on his heels and launching forward his a volley of strikes of his own, each of which Ahsoka parried with considerable strain.

Maul brought his blade up again, crashing it against Ahsoka's and causing her to stumble backwards, nearly tripping over her own footing in the process.

Maul however made no move to pursue after that.

"Hmm, you hold a decent level of skill with that saber, but you could be so much more Tano."

"I learned from the best!"

"You really didn't, believe me. Now, do you wish to continue sparring, or shall we turn our attention to the common threat we now face?"

"And what common threat is that then?"

Maul did not reply verbally, instead he gestured with his red blade to something behind Ahsoka, a look of deep contemplation on his face.

Fully expecting it to be a trap that would leave her back exposed, Ahsoka chose not to turn around. She wasn't falling for the oldest trick in the book!

"Ahsoka."

The sound of someone saying her name immediately put on her edge however, especially considering whose voice it was!

"Ahsoka."

How could it be him? He was outside! He wasn't in here… was he?

"Padawan. Turn around."

Feeling herself falter, Ahsoka did as instructed, turning slowly around, her eyes catching hold of a pair of blue ones staring right back at her.

"Ahsoka."

"Anakin?"

Author's thoughts

So... I know it's been a while, and I'm sorry. Been a bit busy and whatnot. Writers block led to being stuck with the story, which led to sadness, which caused a depression spike, which made the writers block worse... yada yada yada... boring stuff you don't really care about.

Also, sorry once more for yet another annoying cliffhanger, but I did warn you that these would be occurring quite a bit in this arc. Hopefully this one isn't as mean as the last one. XD

Anyways, on the bright side, you finally got the answer to the riddle that was presented a few chapters back. I gotta say, I'm impressed with how many of you managed to figure it out so easily, so well done to you all. I'm sure some of you expected 'man' to be higher than 'beast' on the food chain, but for the sake of this story... and considering the size of the beast, it made more sense for it to be the way it is in the story. Plus... mankind sucks. XD

Ahsoka and her interactions with Maul also continued to be great fun to write. Both are trying to get on each others nerves, but both also understand the need to work together, so I can't have them trying to outright kill each other (yet). Still, it's a fun dynamic to explore considering how alike they are in many many ways.

So yeah, not much else to say really. Hopefully my writing speed picks up a bit so I ca update more frequently, but I'll make no promises. I'm a bit burnt out on Star Wars at the moment honestly, but I'll keep going as I know you want more, and that's honestly the only reason I'm still writing this.

As usual, thanks to my beta reader 'ArrinSnyders' for all his hard work and patience with me.

Next time round, Ahsoka must face a trial, whilst Anakin and the others fight for their lives!

As usual, comment and speculate at will. Speaking of which:

Dream Plane: You know what Maul is like. Pops up at the worst possible time like an evil cockroach. XD
His intentions will become clear soon, don't worry. :)

Erukat: Hopefully all four chapters were good to read at once. Must have been nice to have such a huge chunk to read at once. :)
Ahsoka and Maul are great characters to write side by side, and I couldn't resist pairing them together for this arc. It's a very different dynamic compared to canon and in my Rebels AU, so it should be fun to explore. I hope you enjoy it. XD

loldelegate: Having never played KOTOR or any of the old Republic stuff, I'm afraid I'd be a bit out of my depth in that department. Sorry. Best I can do is Tomb Raider style traps and puzzles, as that I am familiar with!
You are correct about the nature of the super weapon within the Shrine. There is more lore on it to come soon though. (I actually just wrote it in the draft for a future chapter)

Cat-Gods-Of-The-Cat-People: I'm glad you enjoyed the character interactions,. Those are always my favourite things to write.
I'm more pleased that you enjoyed the combat aspect though, as that I feel is my weakest aspect as a writer, so YAY that you enjoyed it. :)
I'm doing my best with the story, and I appreciate your patience and support. Just a case of slow and steady I think. :)

DrCyrusBortel: Intriguing is what I'm going for. Hopefully I can keep it interesting. :)

Umbralight365378: The beast in the chapter was inspired by concept art done by Filoni and the team for the Sith Shrine arc they had planned for the Clone Wars. Thought it would be a cool references and nod to that. :)
And thanks, I'll keep up the work as best I can. As for who the crystal used to belong to... that is a reveal for the future. :)

A Lover of Nature: I'm glad you liked my use of Maul, as well as the characterization of Ahsoka, even if you don't know her character all that well. Guess that means I'm doing something right, much to my surprise. :)
Honestly, I did think about using some ancient Sith Lord of legends, but I'm not that vested or knowledgeable in that sort of content and didn't want to risk making a mess of a beloved character like Bane or Revan or whomever. I'm familiar with Maul, so I chose him. Plus everyone always seems to be happy for more Maul. XD
Still, I'm really pleased you are enjoying the story and characters so far. Hopefully I can keep up the apparent good work. :)

Dressyone22: I'm pleased you are pleased it's Maul. It was always the plan to have him show up in this story at some point, and this seemed like the perfect place for him. He does like creeping around Sith Temples and Shrines after all. XD
It is ironic that in the final 4 eps of Clone Wars, Maul is for all accounts and measures the man with the best plan. Ahsoka ends up unwittingly being the bad guy for not listening to him, whereas Rex ends up being a bad guy for not listening to Fives completely. Maul ends up being the twisted hero rather than the ones you expect. XD
Your questions about the lightsaber and artifact will be answered in time. Just got to get there first.
Glad you are still enjoying the story though. Plenty more to come. XD

Tragic Fiction: I'd usually stick up for Ahsoka, what with her being my fav and all, but in this case, I'm gonna have to give it to Maul. In a legitimate 1 vs 1, assuming he doesn't get overly cocky, Maul would beat Ahsoka 9 times out of 10. She's powerful, no question there, but Maul has bested Jedi Masters. Ahsoka would crumble to him in the end (and I hate saying that as she is my fav and must be protected at all costs XD)
Two sabers might be in the future for Ahsoka, if she can acquired a second kyber crystal. You never know.

Mysterious Guest One: Darth Jar Jar is doing what he does best. Watching from the sidelines causing chaos and waiting for his moment to strike. XD

tf330129: Doing my best! :)

1saaa: I bet you are pretty mad now though right, what with the delay and another cliffhanger? Sorry I guess. :(
Hope this chapter was worth the wait though, and glad you enjoyed Maul in the previous chapter. XD

RyanSquad: It may only be two more arcs, but they aren't exactly short arcs. This story might well reach 100 chapters by the end (oh god someone help or stop me... please!)
Once we hit Revenge of the Sith things are gonna get sad and dark as you say. Fingers crossed someone comes out of nowhere to save them all at the last minute. (Fives! Where are you buddy!)
As for Anakin, I don't hate him. He's a good character, and he is a decent person too, but he made a lot of bad choices and screwed a lot of things up. I know a lot of people see him as redeemed in ROTJ, but I personally don't, and that's only because he didn't live to repair any of the damage he had done as Vader. Instead he got a heroic sacrifice. Just my way of looking at it, and I'm sure the 'Star Wars' fans will all come running to tell me I'm wrong for having a wrong opinion, but whatever.
I do like Anakin though, otherwise I wouldn't be writing a story that is heavily about him. He's good fun to write for, especially when you highlight and look at his flaws. A flawed character is far more interesting than a perfect one after all. :)