Opener:

This story takes place in between events of TPM in the meditation chamber of 
Darth Maul on Coruscant, after fighting Qui Gon Jinn on Tatooine.  As before, 
all characters, props and settings are the properties of George Lucas and 
Lucasfilm, Inc.  All original material is my copyright.

"Darth Maul:  Redemption"
By Ray Van Horn, Jr.
Original Material Copyright 1999

     "Failure!" Darth Maul thundered, violently teleporting a four 
hundred-year-old Corellian vase across the width of his meditation chamber on 
Coruscant, and brutally smashing it against the smooth, veneered texture of 
the marble wall.  The delicately hand-crafted lacquered vase was acquired by 
Maul somewhere in his travels--he couldn't remember the name of the Corellian 
Ambassador he had killed to snatch the ancient, perfectly-preserved artifact. 
 That incident had occurred when Maul was but an untempered novice in the 
arts of the Sith. 

     The vase represented how far Maul had come in his studies under the 
tutelage of his teacher, Darth Sidious.  Maul was no longer a petty, 
murdering thief--he'd escalated to a higher plane in mind and body and 
blossomed into a full-fledged Sith Lord, a veritable champion of the Dark 
Side of The Force.  The shards of the vase clattered to the sheer tiles of 
Maul's haven as insignificantly as the memory of that unenlightened period of 
his fledgling life that he had not known the true, seductive powers of the 
Dark Side.

     Darth Maul's fleeting use of the The Force to vent his anger was but a 
temporary release of his self-inflicted frustration.

     He ground his teeth venomously, hideously brightening his mouth amidst 
the crooked red and black designs that were branded on his sharp features 
like a visual commitment to the mandates of the Sith.  His fiendish eyes 
radiated an indisputable hatred that could shatter the nerve of any would-be 
foe.  If there was any sensation felt at the protruding horns encircling 
Maul's bald scalp, it was a devilishly ticklish itching that only reinforced 
to Maul that his chosen course towards the Dark Side was the correct path 
towards self-realization.  The stimulating, prickling vibes at the bases of 
his horns were exotic--erotic, even--but they were channeled directly through 
his fully-brewed vehemence.

     Images of his stymied duel against the Jedi on that foul waste of 
planetary space, Tatooine, taunted Maul like a cruel, overbearing rival 
rubbing his face into the primordial ooze of self-worthlessness.

     The fight was short, but Maul had performed well against the 
Light-embracing Jedi.  As they clashed lightsabers amidst the sandscape 
panorama of Tatooine, Darth Maul sensed a certain quirkiness about his enemy. 
 The long follicled Jedi with the nearly trimmed facial hair and wispy eyes 
was a powerful and formidable opponent, but his accelerated age betrayed a 
waning grasp on his abilities that Maul could have assuredly exploited had 
the opportunity presented itself.  

     With each thrust, twist, flip and parry, Maul felt the essence of the 
Dark Side overwhelm of the pawn of the Light.  Such was the pathetic weakness 
of the Light Side.  In the hands of an old master, the Light Side was left 
vulnerable to the superior, aggressive flux of the Dark, especially in the 
capable hands of one as young and spirited as Darth Maul was.  Had the 
cowardous Jedi not jumped to safety aboard the Naboo queen's private ship, 
Maul would've savored the taste of victory, at long last, over one of his 
equals.  He would've tallied the death of the Jedi as his most prizeworthy 
amongst his highly calculated list of fallen adversaries.

     He'd felt no gratification at having slaughtered two bothersome Jawas 
while waiting for the Jedi to present himself; he was like a seasoned feline 
easily having its way with two scattering mice with no refuge to vanish into. 
 In order to gauge his own abilities, Maul had to confront the Jedi.  
Confront him Maul did, and he should have won.

     "Victory was mine!" he hissed to no one in particular.  The scene of 
Queen Amidala's cruiser jettisoning off into space while Darth Maul 
impotently deactivated his lightsaber grated at his nerves like the incessant 
squawking sounds of Ewoks in festive celebration.  As the ship was still 
hovering at ground level, Maul took careful note of the presence of another, 
far younger Jedi aboard the ship.  Judging by the closely-cropped hair, 
coupled with the thin braid dangling over the side of the Jedi's face, Maul 
ascertained the youth to be the senior Jedi's Padawan.  This only increased 
the urgency within Darth Maul to defeat the Jedi.

     "I will have you both skewered upon my lance!" Maul snarled, reaching 
his arm sideways and releasing an extension of The Force to seize the silver 
hilted lightsaber that rested on its own mantle in the east side of the 
chamber.  The saber spiraled maddeningly towards its beckoner and clamped 
snugly into Maul's awaiting hand.  Keeping his forearm extended, he activated 
a button on the lightsaber and a snap-crack echoed through the chamber as a 
beam of red light formed on one end of the hilt.  A companion beam 
materialized on the opposite end, forming a deadly, dual-bladed lightsaver 
that hummed savagely.

     Maul felt the vibrations of the saber engulf his wrist, savoring the 
comforting feel like the reassuring embrace of a long-lost friend, not that 
Darth Maul chose to keep the company of friends.  Darth Sidious was his 
master who provided him guidance, while The Force was his secret ally.  Other 
than them, Darth Maul had neither the time nor the desire to keep close, 
frivolous confidence with associates.

     The Force was with him like a second entity trapped within the confines 
of his black Sith tunic and baggy pants, ready to yield to the whim of the 
demonic Sith Lord.  Immediately, Darth Maul sprang into action, rolling 
through one of his most vigorous exercise routines.

     He twirled the double blades rapidly, the glowing beams forming a 
whirring circle of light, cleaving and chopping the air ravenously.  Maul 
thrust the saber forward then quickly drew it backwards, imagining a 
potential attacker at his back.  With incredible speed, he crouched low and 
swung his left ankle in a flawless arc in a hypothetical leg sweep to upend 
his fictitious frontal attacker, while pivoting on his right heel and 
springing upwards in a twirl that allowed him to deliver an upwards, 
chest-high kick.  Again, he twirled the lightsaber with amazing agility, and 
then flipped backwards, kicking his right toe forward as if placing it square 
on the chin of his fabled second foe.

     With a feral growl, Darth Maul pirouetted gracefully, visualizing the 
Jedi and his Padawan coming at him from both sides with their wielded 
lightsabers.  Maul used the hilt of his bo staff lightsaber like an oar, and 
deflected the blows in succession with a rapid gyrating of his wrists.  So 
deep was Maul into this simulation, that a seemingly realistic image of the 
senior Jedi flashed before him.  With a silent and fierce stalk forward, he 
squatted and swung the lower blade at the Jedi's knee.  In this sequence, the 
leg amputated from Maul's strike, and as the shocked Jedi toppled forward, 
Maul finalized the kill by decapitating the Jedi with a clockwise slash of 
the upper blade.

     Darth Maul ceased his workout, panting heavily on bended knees.  He 
closed his eyes, allowing the Dark Side to soothe him like a nurturing 
spouse--indeed, he was married to the Dark Side--feeling the tendrils lapse 
over his muscles, massaging him.  The Force became more than a mere ally to 
Darth Maul.  He felt a slink trickle down his spine, which unconciously 
triggered a receptive reaction from his shoulderblades.  He rolled them out 
and creaked his neck to roll a taut knot out.  To his immense pleasure, he 
felt something from The Force that distinctly seemed like a moist kiss at the 
nape of his neck.  He shuddered warmly, then deactivated his lightsaber.  He 
rose and fastened it to his hip, and thanked whatever aspect of The Force--a 
decidedly female aspect--had chosen to grace him with her companionship.

     His reverie was brief, however.  As the Dark Side was insatiable, so too 
was Darth Maul.  His passionate lust to find the Jedi and destroy them 
propulsed his blood level to boil.

     Maul clenched a black-gloved fist in fury, holding it before his fiery 
pupils as if examining it as a foreign object.  It was not foreign, to say 
the least--this fist bequeathed such power that was incomprehensible at 
first, but with Darth Sidious' strict direction, the fist represented an 
instrument of justice to avenge the fallen Sithlords who reigned long before 
Maul's time.  It was also an instrument to control the environment 
surrounding Maul, a control that could bend and crush the will of the galaxy 
if he so desired. 

     But what of his master, Darth Sidious?  Was not the elder Sith destined 
to rule?

     As if on cue, his liege's voice sounded at the entrance into his private 
chamber.

     "Lord Maul..."

     Quickly dropping to one knee in respectful deference, Darth Maul 
replied, "Yes, my master?"

     "Arise, my apprentice," Sidious spoke, slowly crossing the distance to 
his pupil.  "I have a task for you, one you will undoubtedly enjoy."

     "Indeed, master?" Darth Maul quipped, the torches of his yellowish eyes 
burning with anticipation.

     "I have need of you in the Naboo capital city of Theed.  There you will 
join the Neimoidian Viceroy Nute Gunray and his lieutenant, Rune Haako, to 
oversee matters there.  The invasion is proceeding as expected.  Soon we will 
have Queen Amidala and her signature upon the Trade Federation treaty.  Naboo 
will be ours, and from there, other planets and star systems will crumble 
under my sovereignty.  You will ensure that my orders continue as planned."

     "How so, master?"

     From the shrouds of the black robes that allowed only a glimpse of Darth 
Sidious' gnarled nose and twisted mouth, he smiled and told his apprentice, 
"Jedi extermination."

     Matching the grin of his master, Darth Maul said, "That pleases me, 
master.  I shall not fail you again."

     "No, I venture you won't, Lord Maul," Sidious noted with growing 
satisfaction. 

     "And what of the boy under the protection of the Jedi?" Maul asked as a 
side note.

     "He is of no concern, at least not for the time being," Sidious 
answered, raising a forefinger to accentuate his words.  "The boy has his 
place in the grand order of things, but I have other urgent matters to attend 
to first.  Do not trouble yourself with him for now.  In time, we will deal 
with him.  However, I need you to leave at once for Theed."

     "As you wish, my master," Maul smirked and bowed his head, already 
glimpsing his eventual confrontation with the two Jedi Knights inside of his 
twisted mind.

     "Oh, and Lord Maul?"

     "Yes, master?"

     "Remain focused on the here and now.  Do not entertain thoughts of 
ruling the galaxy singlehandedly.  Your name will be legendary in due time.  
All that is mine will eventually be yours if you do not cross me.  Is that 
clear?"

     "It is, my master," Maul uttered embarassedly.  "Forgive my errant 
thoughts."

     "There is nothing to forgive, Lord Maul.  My only concern is the task at 
hand."

     "As it is mine, my Lord."

     With that, Darth Maul bowed again and turned away from Darth Sidious.  
He ventured to the lower levels of the temple for his ship, The Interceptor.  
He would travel expeditiously to Theed, and this time, he would eliminate the 
Jedi--both of them.  The hour of redemption was firmly at hand.