STAR WARS REBELS || Her Wings Of Fire

CHAPTER NINETEEN: Concerning Darksiders

Kanan knew his reaction was overly impetuous, and he knew he wasn't thinking things through. But when he had first caught sight of the red Zabrak that was identical in every way to the killer and ruthless manipulator that had shaken the Jedi Order so badly back during the Clone Wars, the need to confront him for what he had done had become irrepressible.

It wasn't revenge for all the Jedi he had killed. That wasn't what he was looking for at all – and it wasn't the Jedi way. It was a need for answers, and to find something in what he learned that would allow justice to be served.

"Well?" he demanded. His bright green eyes clouded by cold resentment and the bitter sting of accusation bored mercilessly into Teri's greyer ones.

"Kanan, you're making claims about things you don't understand–"

"Then make me understand. Give me one good reason why you would betray our trust," Kanan spat, clenching the chrome hilt of his lightsaber tightly. "The trust of the people who believed in you."

Suddenly, Teri looked away. There was such pure shame and anguish playing out over the Rebel informant's face that for a second Kanan wondered if he had gone too far. But the notion disappeared just as quickly as it had come, his anger and desire for justice returning to the foreground once more.

The Zabrak Sith Lord moved forwards ever so slightly, curling his lip. The members of the Ghost crew present and the other clients of the bar stood still, waiting to see which party would make the next move.

But Teri extended an arm a moment later, stopping him before he could get too close. Although Maul was clearly conflicted about listening to him, he stood back.

Kanan set his jaw. That's right, you coward. Stay back.

"I heard that," the Zab growled.

"Maddox." Teri's tone of voice had an air of finality to it. "Let's take this somewhere more private, shall we? There's no real love for the Empire here on Rhea, but Jedi still fetch a high price, Kanan..."

Reluctantly, he doused the blade, but didn't put his weapon back on his belt. Nodding to Hera, Teri ushered Jedi and Sith out of the Rusty Tankard, checking once to make sure no one was following them as they walked into a deserted back alley.

"Well?" Kanan prompted, breaking a silence between them.

The dark-haired man sighed, closing his eyes for a moment to compose himself, before he began. "Maddox's Sith Master was the man whom we all know now as the Emperor. But his Master –Darth Sidious – cast him out when he discovered Maddox was still alive. It took a while, but eventually Maddox managed to turn away from the path of a Sith and became merely someone who was more strongly allied with the Dark Side than the Light."

"What are you getting at?" Kanan asked, loosening his grip on his lightsaber slightly.

Maul spoke next, his low, commanding voice echoing around the alleyway. "Now you know my story. Here are the facts – unless they are genetically predisposed to the contrary, the eyes of one directly allied to the Sith or their principles are always yellow rimmed with red. Those of someone who is simply allied to the Dark Side lack the red around the iris and tend to be more golden in color." He took a careful step closer, totally unafraid of the lightsaber pointed at him. "Now look at my eyes, Jedi. What do you see?"

"The eyes of a traitor."

The Zabrak rolled his eyes. "Your stubbornness really makes you a pain to talk to. Just tell me what you see."

Choosing to ignore the snide comment, Kanan looked into the man's eyes, searching them for any traces of red. He found none, and, true to Maul's description, his eyes were a more golden hue that yellow. But the earnestness flashing in the twin honey-colored orbs still wasn't enough to convince him. "And why should I believe you?"