Savage-Time Chapter 37 (Patreon)

[Boz Pity, Separatist War Camp]

Darth Maul

Maul couldn’t deny that he was disappointed in his acolytes, one returned without a leg and the other didn’t take the chance to kill the Jedi or kill her fellow acolyte…perhaps that last part wasn’t as disappointing as he thought it was. The ultimate goal of the new Brotherhood of Darkness was to make a better version of the Sith and it wasn’t like the girl was worried about her partner. Maul had noticed the feeling of vindication, the amusement she received as she watched the boy rage, and the anticipation of the punishment she expected Maul to deliver.

Maul finally decided to approach them while he did he cast his presence wide letting them know in advance that he was coming, while not as imposing as the sea of darkness that his former master boasted or the raging fire of his brother Maul’s dark presence was still memorable, like spilled ink it spread across the region and whispered of future glories along with the screams of those he had once killed.

Fear reached Maul’s senses and before long he had both his acolytes on their knees in front of himself, he pressed against their minds to see what they would do and was surprised when neither tried to retaliate.

“You survived, clearly not unharmed or whole but that was more than I was expecting of you. I remain disappointed in that you didn’t bring me any dead Jedi but perhaps that was asking too much from you” Maul’s words had the intended effect and the fear was replaced with rage, both at Maul and at themselves for failing.

“We succeeded in our mission master” the girl spoke as she met Maul’s eyes much to his approval “Those you wished dead have been dealt with”

“True” there was palpable relief in them and Maul wouldn’t deny that he felt some pleasure in breaking that relief “and yet I still find myself disappointed”

Maul walked in circles around them as a predator would and delighted himself with their reactions, on the fear he could feel but before he could say anything more to them one of the droids interrupted him.

“Warmaster there is a message from Mandalore” the tactical battle droid brought up a comm and the image of Pre Vizsla appeared.

The so-called Mand'alor thought himself to be a grand strategist and a master manipulator but he was a beast with low cunning, it was obvious both to Maul and Savage that he would betray them at the first chance he got and that Pre wanted to return to the times Mandalorians crusaded across the galaxy intent on bringing everyone into their culture.

Despite this, he had his uses and it was better for the Brotherhood that Mandalore was led by a man like him who wouldn’t notice Savage’s schemes before it was too late. Already the separatists had started to take charge of the import and export of food across what should be neutral space, soon they would be able to beat any world to submission by starving them.

“Mand'alor what do you need?” Maul spoke the title with derision and noticed the brief narrowing of the eyes of the Mandalorian but that was soon replaced by a smile.

“This time I don’t need anything but I thought you would be interested in what I’ve learned” Vizsla paused looking happier than Maul had ever seen him before as he delivered the message “Obi-Wan Kenobi is on Mandalore, alone, without anyone but the Jedi Council knowing his location”

The moment Maul heard his name he knew what he would do, despite it going against his brother’s plans, despite knowing that if he failed he would have to wait even more, despite the fact that failure would see Maul dead or deranged he could only say one thing.

“I will be going there immediately”

“I thought so” the smug smile on Vizsla’s face was all he needed to see to know that this was a trap, that his Mandalorian allies had decided to start culling the competition but the prize they were giving Maul was far too good to pass up “We will make preparations for your arrival my Lord”

The sneer on Vizsla’s face and his tone were a direct response to Maul’s previous disrespect but he didn’t care. All Maul could think about was that he would finally have his vengeance. Maul’s power was usually held tightly and in control but the news he received had made him so erratic that he let go of what little restrain he had.

The Jedi would know his position but thankfully they had bigger problems.

“You will be coming with me on this mission too, boy we will give you a replacement for what you’ve lost and I will train you both until you can at least be of use in a fight against someone with a lightsaber”

“Yes, Master!”

[Onderon System, Dxun]

Savage Opress

After thoroughly practicing my ability to produce Force lightning at will and beating the fuck out of the mutated creature that the droids had trained into some parody of a hunting dog until it didn’t try to jump me every time it saw me I was now watching the strategic situation of my fledging empire according to the latest intel everything was going on as expected…for the most part.

I had miscalculated the amount of work Dooku used to do as the face of the Separatist movement, the loss of such a prominent figure along with the obvious lack of a replacement was making any diplomatic attempts we embarked on a toss-of-the-dice as we now didn’t have the reputation of the Jedi behind us. This also highlighted just how little the average citizen knew about the Jedi’s conflicts with the Sith.

It made sense in retrospect that people wouldn’t be able to tell the difference in what was a Jedi or what was a Sith even with the different colors of the lightsaber, for all they knew this was just another religious conflict that the mystical Jedi embarked on and that they insisted on making everyone’s problem.

I wasn’t a Jedi and the recordings they probably had of me decimating the forces of a neutral moon would not endear many to me but I had the Force and I was a decent diplomat (it was easy when you could directly know if someone was lying to you) so I could really do what the dear departed count used to do.

Perhaps some would prove more resilient against the persuasion I could use but even in a galaxy as advanced as this one the mob still held sway and if the majority saw me as a viable alternative then the rest would follow.

I sent a message to Lux to pull some strings and call for a meeting of the Separatist Senate, it would be the most efficient way to meet everyone and this way I could directly see who was harder to put under my sway.

Changing to another screen I saw the projection revealing the placement of droid factories across the Outer Rim, already I could see several that would be far more useful if I ordered their relocation, some of the planets they were in weren’t easily defendable and most were useless to the war effort or the economy.

The more I saw this, the more impressed I was with Sidious’s ability to lie to the galaxy and the amount of effort it should have taken him to keep all of this under wraps.

Without turning from the screen I raised a hand and beside me, the charging Merrin was brought to a standstill. Once more I had her dangling from the air but this time she surprised me with a scream, the echo in it reverberated in my ears and eyes, both started bleeding and I could feel the sound waves making me light-headed before Merrin could continue I crossed the distance between us and delivered a punch so strong she was left breathless finally ending her scream.

“Marvelous! Your scream was more powerful than I thought it would be had Savage been a lesser man the sheer volume would have caused him to pass out, it’s a shame that you’re still constrained by things like air though, not to worry I will soon teach you how to be less reliant on it” Nox once more materialized himself but despite his closeness I could barely hear him

“Before you get angry” I couldn’t see his face as he was wearing his iconic mask but I knew he was smiling “This was also done as the perfect opportunity to teach you how to heal yourself, while the technique I have in mind works better with people there is nothing that stops us from using your little experiments as sacrifices”

“I thought one had to be in great distress or supremely angry to use a Force scream” there was a red haze in my sight that for one had nothing to do with rage and I wasn’t sure how I felt about it or the fact that I was barely registering minor injuries like these as a proper attack.

“You’re mostly correct, the Force scream has been called ‘a wave of hatred, amplified and fueled by the dark side, that is capable of smashing through mental and physical defenses with ease’ and because of it and the many involuntary uses of the ability across the ages people think that it’s not something one can control but as one of the greatest Sith to ever live and one who can command the dead refining this ability was easy”

“Then I can learn it?” when Nox said that it could breach even mental barriers was when I desired the ability, if I could use it perfectly maybe I could start turning Jedi even if it was only for a moment that would be enough as the council and the rest of their order would never accept one that so readily fell to the Dark Side.

“You could, but it would be a waste of time. Force Lightning is far better in your arsenal, I’ve noticed that you spend less energy than you should when you use it and unlike you, Merrin actually has a talent for it, in fact, she has talent for many techniques that are not common” Nox turned to Merrin who had remained silent during our discussion but looked distinctly proud in her apparent talent “I don’t know if it’s because the sisters have bred these abilities or if the planet has something in it to cause this. Oh! The experiment I would use them for if I was alive are beyond counting, I would even try to breed myself a perfect body, something close to what the Sith race had”

I was about to make a comment about the worrisome nature of his musings but the distinct sound of an alarm distracted me from it, I had set it up in case of emergency and had given it only to two people one who was in the room with me.

Darth Maul looked more dangerous than ever before there was a shadow of madness in his eyes that carried clearly even through the holo and I didn’t like what it heralded. Behind him I could see the acolytes and while the girl was whole the boy had a new leg, at least they were alive and the time Maul spent on them wasn’t wasted.

“I’m glad your acolytes are alive brother” I expected some cheer or some snarky remark from Maul but the next words out of his mouth felt like everything I had planned for was going to go up in flames.

“Kenobi is on Mandalore and I’m going there, he is alone and Death Watch is there to help me. I will kill him” Maul raised his hand as I opened my mouth “you can say nothing that will dissuade me brother, my path has never been clearer, I will wash the stain of failure from my being and rise to the galactic stage atop Kenobi’s corpse”

There was a moment of silence between us, I turned to see Nox but the old ghost had disappeared and I knew instantly that this was another test, Merrin was watching attentively but kept her opinions to herself.

“I won’t be able to help you brother, not personally anyway. I will reroute reinforcement your way and clear your path for extraction in case of the worst…” I didn’t want to think about it but Maul might not come out of this alive.

“Once you’re done with your power plays join me on Mandalore”

With that, he cut the connection.

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Author note: sorry for the wait work has been kicking my ass but tomorrow i should have enough time to finish the week just like i promised i would, perhaps even better.