“I understand, my lord,” Dirae replied sullenly. Maul placed one hand on her shoulder, causing her to turn in his direction.
“You will not die. Because you will not fight him.” A hint of tenderness laced his words. Dirae suddenly lept from her seat and knealt before him, her hands clasping his.
“To make you master, I will fight, my lord.” She brought his hands to her lips and kissed them. His gaze softened as she laid her head in his lap. He released one of his hands from her’s and gently stroked the back of her head. He felt her small horns beneathe her brown hair. He knew her Force was no longer what it once was and to face someone as powerful as Sidious would destroy her. Something deep inside of him swore to never let that happen. It seemed she had given him more than just life again; she had given him a reason other than killing off the Jedi Knights so the Sith could thrive once more. For the first time in his life as a deadly Sith lord, he felt a dark love well up inside him. The darkest and most loyal love for Dirae and her sacrifices in his honor. To her, being a Sith was more than just a title, it was her whole life and she remained loyal to how they were. Even the coldest of hearts could be warmed by the darkest flicker of a flame.
* * *
“I knew you had returned, my apprentice.”
Dirae knelt beside Maul in Sidious’s main chambers aboard his ship a few days later, listening to their talk. Maul was standing, his robes returned to him, the hood once again hiding his face. When he spoke his voice was emotionless as it had always been.
“I thought you might have, my master. I fear--” Sidious whirled on Maul, his eyes wide with mock surprise.
“You fear? You, the master of the word, the emotion, the very meaning, is fearful? She is the cause of this fear,” he gestured towards Dirae as he spoke. “You fear for her. She is your competition, not your ally. Fear is your ally, not this female. A true Sith would overthrow his opponent without a second glance and you fear for your own. I knew there was a disturbance in your Force. Now I know why.”
“Yes, my master. When Dirae restored me she had no choice but to give some of her own Force to me. I hold some of her soul within me now. My power has been doubled,” Maul replied quietly, his hand hovering over his heart. He turned his head to look down at Dirae, his free hand extending towards her. She lifted her head and stodo beside him, slipping her hand into his. “She wished for me to live. My past revenge on her attack proved to be more effective than first suspected.”
Sidious laughed shortly, mockingly. “I see. Love among the Sith is it? How petty.” He spat the last words as he began to walk towards the wide windows of the ship. “A Sith does not love, he does not care for anything except his own power. She,” he turned suddenly and jabbed an accusing finger in Dirae’s direction, “is no Sith then if she has allowed herself to feel more than anger, hatred, fear. There is no love. There is lust, passion for power and the domination over your enemies. There is no love,” he repeated in a venomous tone.
Maul stared his master down with silent anger in his golden gaze. He released Dirae’s hand and stalked up the low steps to Sidious’s throne. Master and apprentice locked eyes as an unspoken battle of wills began. Dirae watched fearfully, more for Sidious than Maul. She felt his building anger towards his master. The air itself seemed to spark with electricity as the two Sith stared at each other silently.
Without a word of warning, Sidious thrust forward his hand towards Dirae, sending her flying backwards with a mighty mental blow. She screamed as she was tossed aside like nothing. Her body slammed into the wall at the end of the chamber and she slid to the floor. Still concious, she gazed at Sidious through pain-filled eyes. In her swimming vision she saw Maul withdraw his lightsaber, ignite it, and strike at Sidious with a cry.
Sidious easily avoided the blow and side-stepped Maul when the young Sith lord advanced upon him. He used his control over the Force to move various objects around the room to eventually slam into Maul’s body. His howls of rage echoed in the chamber as the heavy objects struck him from all angles. Sidious cackled wickedly as he backed away from Maul. The objects continued to batter at Maul’s newly healed body. Staggering now, his lightsaber all but useless in his right hand, Maul tumbled down the low steps and fell to the floor. He clutched at his side with his free hand. The assualt resumed full-force even though he was down and defenseless.
From her place on the floor, Dirae heard her lover’s cries and forced herself to stand. Her own lightsaber flew into her hand, igniting as it did so. Summoning all her remaining Force, she charged past Maul’s body towards Sidious. Her feet left the floor as she dove straight for Sidious’s head. The handle of her saber struck the Sith master in the forehead, sending him backwards. Sidious growled in anger and toppled over his throne. Dirae took her stance before Maul, her saber held out before her.
“You abuse your rights as master, Sidious. You die now!” she cried and used her own Force to pick up the scattered objects from the floor and sent them flying at Sidious. Sidious blocked almost every one of them yet some got through. A large piece of metal slammed into the back of his head, sending him forward.
Behind Dirae, Maul stirred and rose to a kneeling position. He raised his head to see his master being battered by a dozen or so heavy metal objects. He felt Dirae’s strain as she kept the attack moving. She felt him move against her and turned to face him, her concentration broken.
“Maul!” she cried and knelt down with him. As if in slow motion, Maul watched over her shoulder as Sidious rose, lifted a sharp piece of metal with his Force, and send it flying straight into Dirae’s back. Dirae gasped from the force and fell forward into Maul’s arms.
“No!” he cried, catching her. “Dirae...” Sidious cackled from his standing place as Maul held his dying lover in his arms. Dirae swallowed back blood and placed her hand against his face.
“Maul..my lord....know that you have my..” she paused to cough violently on her own blood. Someof it spilled forth from between her lips, spotting his black tunic. “My dark love.” she finished thinly. She drew his face closer to her’s and kissed him deeply. Once again, their blood mingled beneathe their kiss. The bittersweet taste of her lifeforce remained on Maul’s tongue long after they parted. She smiled up at him weakly then her eyes went vacant as her Force passed on.
Maul gazed at her face, her blood staining her lips and her chin. A sob tore from his throat, his anger and torment building into a tidal wave of anguish. He clutched her lifeless form to his body as he threw back his head and howled his pain. Beyond his cries Sidious laughed at his apprentice then spoke when Maul’s howls had ceased.
“Mourn for her not, my apprentice. She was weak and the Sith are not weak.”
Maul had been resting his head against her shoulder as Sidious spoke. He raised his head to glare with so much hatred at Sidious. When he spoke his voice came out in a raspy gutteral way:
“No. You, my master, are the weak one. And the weak dies.” Suddenly Sidious’s malicious expression turned to one of extreme shock. Pressure began building in his body as his very innards were pushed together, pulling at his outer flesh. He voiced a soundless, strangled cry and fell to the floor in convulsions. Maul watched him with the same iron stare, making sure his master’s death was slow and painful. Blood dribbled down from Sidious’s ears, nose, mouth, and eyes. With one last effort on Maul’s part, Sidious’s middle exploded, slicing his body in half. His torso sailed away down the low steps as his lower half was sent spinning in the opposite direction.
Maul finally lowered his head and held Dirae’s body tighter. Impulsively, he tilted her head back and kissed her still lips, tasting her blood once more. As he did so, he allowed some of his own Force to flow into her. Favor for a favor, he swore he wouldn’t let her die. It was easier for him to bring her Force back for he was stronger than she had been. When he released her lips, her eyes fluttered open. The wound on her back healed over, leaving a pale scar in its place. Now both were scarred by death and reborn by the other’s dark love.
“Is it over?” she asked in a whisper. Maul nodded. She smiled and nestled her head against his chest. “Good. You are now the master, my Lord Maul. Teach me more of the Dark Side and in return I will serve you well. In many many ways.”
“I know you will. We’ll bring the Jedi down once and for all,” Maul said, tracing her forehead horns delicately with one finger. “The Sith shall survive. At last we will have our revenge.”
End
Author’s Note: I ended it like that because it seemed fitting. *shrugs* I like it. :) - MnM (Maul no Miko)