AS SOON AS Maul was sure the three Sith were out of earshot, he reactivated his lightsaber to he could see where he was going. He'd spent the last few days scouting the tunnels for when the Sith came for him. He, Yoda, and Mace had worked out a plan to reintroduce him to the Sith spies. He just hadn't planned on behing hurt this badly.
Maul limped onward, holding the activated half of his blue lightsaber high above his head to see. Just because he knew these tunnels didn't mean he couldn't get lost. Besides, he'd normally done this in daylight. He knew that somewhere far above his head it was the middle of the night on Florrum.
The darkness didn't scare him. The thought that the Sith might be back for him did.
Maul had to rest against a wall and assess his wounds. Those Sith were powerful, he'd give them that. Despite what Kenobi, Skywalker, and the one who called herself Snips had seen, they'd wounded him more than he'd let on. The lightsaber wound in his side was still open and bleeding, which surprised him; lightsaber wounds normally cauterized as fast as they were made. The Snips girl had managed to slice some of the wiring in his robotic right leg, which sparked with every step. Some of the Force lightning had slipped past his defenses, not that he'd let the Sith see that, and every breath hurt because of it. He wondered if a rib was broken.
Other than that, a few of his horns had been sheared off by whirling lightsabers; there was a long scar on his arm from Kenobi's lightsaber; his other side ached from where Skywalker or Snips had kicked it; and his shoulder had been stabbed. The saber hadn't gone completely through, but it went deep enough to make Maul have to look away.
"Ow," he muttered under his breath.
He needed something to staunch the bleeding in his side before he lost so much blood that he couldn't move. Going with this idea, Maul tore off a piece of his tunic's undershirt and wrapped it clumsily around his side, wincing the whole time from the wounds in his shoulder and opposite arm.
Once that was done, Maul gave himself a few seconds to breathe before pushing off from the wall again and limping onward. Every step hurt. Every breath burned his throat and caused his chest to ache.
Definitely a broken rib, Maul thought. Kriff. Ah, well. I survived being cut in half, I think I'll survive this without much of a problem.
But still he kept going, knowing that if he stopped anywhere for too long he might just give up. He'd die down here, either from lack of food or his wounds, or both.
Maul was not one to give up.
He struggled on, pausing every few minutes to catch his breath and check his wounds. His side had almost stopped bleeding, but not before it had bled through the cloth of his undershirt.
"Karabast," he muttered when he noticed.
Eventually, the tunnel ahead started to lighten slightly. There was a slight breeze blowing and Maul knew he'd finally reached an opening. Presumably the one that led to his cave.
He rounded a corner and stopped, leaning against a wall. He deactivated his lightsaber; his cave was bright with firelight.
Most importantly, it had medical supplies.
Maul stumbled into the cave, snatching medical supplies with the Force as he passed, heading for the cushion that served as both chair and bed. He collapsed onto it, exhausted and injured, and started to properly treat his wounds. They'd be fully healed once he made his way back to Coruscant and got himself into a bacta tank, but for now the hasty treatment would suffice.
The wound in his side wasn't bleeding anymore, but Maul resolved he'd save that for last, until he could use both of his arms without wincing too much.
"Want some help?"
Maul jumped. He hadn't realized anyone else knew where his cave was. And that voice sounded familiar...
He looked up to find Senator Padme Amidala, dressed in a ripped white shirt and white leggings, a gun at her belt and her hair up in a peculiar-looking bun. Maul was surprised.
"Yoda sent me," she said by way of explanation. "He and Mace told me about you. Yoda said, and I quote --" Padme put on an impression of the small green alien's voice -- " 'In need of help, Maul will be. Find him in a cave on Florrum, you will. Directions from Hondo must you get. Wounded, Maul will be. Help him treat his wounds, you must.'"
Maul couldn't help a weak laugh. "You do an excellent imitation of Yoda," he complimented. "And I could use the help."
"That's what I'm here for," Padme replied. "What were you going to attend first?"
"The scar," Maul said. "I'm going to need to dunk myself in a bacta tank back on Coruscant, but for now..."
"For now, all we can do is clean it and dress it so it doesn't get infected in the meantime," Padme said, walking farther into the cave and kneeling beside Maul. "Do you have any rubbing alcohol?"
"Yeah, in that kit," he said, levitating it with the Force so that he didn't have to move his arm. Padme reached out to grab the kit, and Maul couldn't help playing with her a little, dragging it just out of her reach.
"Hey!" Padme protested.
Maul laughed. "Come and get it."
"Maul! I'm trying to treat your wounds!" Padme laughed, reaching for it again. Again, Maul dragged it out of reach.
"I know," Maul said with another laugh. "That's why I'm making it difficult."
"Maul!"
"Alright, fine," Maul sighed. "You're no fun."
"I can be plenty fun when I want to be," Padme said, "but I'm trying to heal you. You might want to make it a little easier on me."
"I know, I know, I'm sorry," Maul groaned. "I'm just used to looking after myself. This is new."
They fell silent for a moment. Padme cleaned the wound with the alcohol -- Maul winced and tried his best not to cry out from the sting -- and expertly wrapped a bandage around it, then moved on to his opposite shoulder.
"I can't believe they did this to you," Padme muttered as she worked.
"How much -- ah -- did the Jedi tell you?" Maul asked, wincing again as she dabbed more alcohol onto his shoulder.
"Everything," Padme said. "About Obi-Wan, about Anakin, about you. Hard to believe only two people could do this much damage to a living being."
"Two?" Maul repeated, not sure if he'd heard her right.
"Wasn't it just Obi-Wan and Anakin?" Padme asked, pausing.
"Kenobi and Skywalker weren't alone. There was a third. A Togruta girl, maybe fifteen, who called herself Snips," Maul explained.
Padme's face paled. "Ahsoka," she breathed.
"Who?"
"Anakin's apprentice, Ahsoka Tano. He calls her Snips. Of course -- she's a Sith, too," Padme breathed.
"What?!" Maul exclaimed. "Why would they give Skywalker an apprentice when they know he's a Sith Lord?"
"Calm down, Maul," Padme said. "You'll have to ask Yoda when you see him again. I don't know. Now let me finish. What else is wounded?"
"I think I've got a broken rib," Maul said. "Breathing is a little easier now that I'm sitting down, but it still hurts. My right leg is going to need patching up, Tano struck just below the knee. And, ah -- Skywalker gave me a nasty wound in my side."
"Oh, Maul," Padme sighed. "I can't do anything about the broken rib or the leg, but I can patch up your side. You'll have to take your tunic and undershirt off, though."
"That's okay," Maul winced. "I've taken it off in front of others before."
With some difficulty, Maul managed to get his tunic and shirt off to reveal the hastily bound wound.
Padme's breath caught in her throat. "Oh, Maul," she breathed. "What did they do to you?"
Maul gave her a weak laugh. "Aside from mutilating me with their four lightsabers, shooting torrents of Force lightning at me, and cursing my very existence, not much."
"It's not funny," Padme insisted, gently undoing the undershirt bandage and gasping as the wound came into view.
"I know, it's bad," Maul mumbled.
"Do you have any water? I need to clean off the dried blood before I can clean the wound and bind it," Padme said, a look of concern on her face.
"Yeah," Maul said, levitating his canteen over to her. She caught it with one hand.
Padme poured a little water onto a small cloth and used it to clean off the dried blood, bracing one hand gently on his chest. Maul didn't entirely mind. He just let his head relax backward and closed his eyes, preparing himself for the alcohol.
This time he couldn't help crying out. "AH!"
"I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I'm sorry," Padme aplogized over and over as she cleaned the wound and bound it. "Better?"
"Ah...yes, thank you," Maul said gratefully.
"You're welcome," Padme said. Maul noticed she didn't take her hand off his chest.
They locked eyes, and Maul felt his heart skip a beat. Her eyes were dark brown, and so beautiful...
Then Maul heard a scream in the distance and the moment was broken.
"Did you hear that?" he asked, instantly wary.
"That scream? Yes," Padme replied, looking worried.
"Come on, help me up," Maul said, Force-summoning is lightsaber to his belt. Padme did, and the two of them walked outside, onto the hill overlooking Hondo Ohnaka's camp.
All they saw was dust, fire, and the whirling red blades of two of the Sith Lords -- Kenobi and Skywalker, Maul guessed. They heard the screams and cries of the dying pirates and Hondo's drunken yells.
Padme started to cry and Maul put his arm around her waist, pulling her closer into him. To his surprise, Padme buried her face in his throat and cried into it. Maul held her, staring into the abyss of dust and red lightsabers and cries of innocent lives being taken and wondering.
Wondering how anyone could do this.
Wondering just what was at stake here by detroying the Sith.
Wondering...
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omg this chapter ends so sadly i'm sorry
i really didn't intend for the whole padme/maul thing to happen, the characters just took me over so that's what came out of it
so now i guess padme and maul are going to be a thing in later jedi chapters
who knows?
anyway we're back to the sith in the next chapter, it's describing what happened to them after leaving florrum and then fast-forwarding to when bariss betrays ahsoka but she stays in the order anyway
i think that's when i'll have the luke and leia thing come into play, i still don't know how tho
i'll figure it out
thank you, please comment!
~R.a. Starkiller
p.s. if anyone knows how to change a username, that would be helpful, b/c i kinda want my username to be a little more inclusive to my other fandoms. comment if you know how to change it, please!