Star Wars - Darth Maul - Saboteur

by James Luceno

  from are the Neimoidians?

  We are a compassionate species, Monchar said, his heavily accented Basic

  elongating the words.

  Compassionate and Neimoidian dont belong in the same sentence, Monchar. And

  just how did you come to hear of our setback, as you call it? Or was it that

  the Trade Federation had a hand in the matter?

  The nictitating membranes of Monchars red eyes began to spasm. The Trade

  Federation would never do anything to impair relations with a potential

  partner.

  Partner? Arrant laughed ruefully. At least have the decency to speak the

  truth, Monchar. You want our trade routes. I dont know how much you had to pay

  the Galactic Senate to obtain a franchise to operate with impunity in the free

  trade zones, but youre not going to buy your way into the Videnda sector.

  But you could ship ten times as much lommite ore inside one of our freighters

  as you can in twenty of your largest barges.

  Granted. But at what price? Before long it would cost us more to ship with you

  than we could possibly earn back. You wouldnt be wearing those expensive robes,

  otherwise.

  Monchar took a moment to reply. We would much prefer that our partnership

  begins on solid footing. We would hate to see Lommite Limited become ensnared in

  a situation that allows it no recourse but to join us.

  Arrant bristled and shot to his feet. Is that a threat, Monchar? What do you

  intend to do, send your droids down here to invade us?

  Monchar made a motion of dismissal. We are merchants, not conquerors.

  Then stop talking like a conqueror, or Ill report this to the Trade Commission

  on Coruscant.

  Youre upset, Monchar said, nervously stroking his prominent muzzle. Perhaps

  we should speak at some later date.

  Dont contact me, Monchar. Ill contact you.

  Arrant deactivated the holoprojector and dropped back into his chair, forcing a

  long exhalation through pursed lips. Scavengers, he said after a moment. Id

  sooner see LL go under than sell out to the Trade Federation.

  Into a brief succeeding silence came a persistent plopping sound from outside

  the offices floor-to-ceiling viewpanes. What now? Arrant asked, swiveling his

  chair toward the sound.

  Rain, Bruit muttered.

  Despite its rich deposits of lommite, or the recurrent attention it received

  from the Trade Federation, Dorvalla was to most observers an inconsequential

  speck in the sweep of star systems that made up the Galactic Republic. But among

  the few who had been monitoring the events on Dorvalla, none had followed them

  as keenly as Darth Sidious, the Dark Lord of the Sith.

  This rivalry between Lommite Limited and InterGalactic Ore intrigues me,

  Sidious was saying as he moved about the cavernous den that was both his

  sanctuary and repository. The hood of his cowl was raised over his lined face,

  and the hem of his robe trailed on the gleaming floor. His voice was a rasp,

  absent emotion but not without instances of intentional inflection.

  I see a way that we might exploit this entanglement to our own gain, he

  continued. A push here, a shove there, and both mining companies will collapse.

  Thus, we will be able to deliver Dorvalla to the Trade Federationthe ore, the

  trade routes, Dorvallas vote in the senateand, in so doing, gain the further

  allegiance of Viceroy Gunray and his lackeys.

  Sidious removed his hands from the ample sleeves of his robe. Viceroy Gunray

  claims to be persuaded of the worth of serving us, but I want him fully in our

  grasp, so that there can be no doubt of his heeding my commands. With Dorval la

  secured, he will likely be promoted to a permanent position on the Trade

  Federation Directorate. We can then further our larger plan.

  Sidious cast his hooded gaze across the room to a deeply shadowed area in which

  Darth Maul sat silent as a statue, his tattooed face lowered, so that all

  Sidious could see was the crown of vestigial horns that sprouted from his

  hairless skull.

  Your thoughts betray you, my young apprentice, he remarked. You are puzzled

  by my steadfast interest in the Neimoidians.

  Darth Maul lifted his face, and what scant light there was seemed to recoil.

  Where his Master represented all that was concealed and mysterious in the Sith,

  Maul was the personification of all that was to be feared.

  From you, Master, I cannot hide what I feel. The Neimoidians are greedy and

  weak-willed. I find them unworthy.

  You left out duplicitous and sniveling, Sidious said.

  Most of all, Master.

  Sidious came as close as he ever came to grinning.

  Less than admirable traits, I agree. But useful for our purposes. He

  approached Maul. To realize our goal, we will be forced to deal with all

  classes of beings, each less noble than the last. But this is what we must do. I

  assure you that the Neimoidians will come to play an important role in our

  effort to bring new order to the galaxy.

  Mauls yellow eyes held Sidiouss perceptive gaze. Master, how will you help

  Viceroy Gunray and the Trade Federation secure Dorvalla?

  Sidious came to a halt a few meters away. You will be my hand in this, Darth

  Maul.

  Instantly, Maul bowed his head once more. What is your bidding, Master?

  Sidious put his hands on his hips. Stand, Darth Maul, and face me. He gave his

  apprentice a moment to comply before continuing. Thus far your apprenticeship

  has been impeccable. You have never wavered in your intent, and you have

  executed your tasks flawlessly. Your skill as a sword master is peerless.

  My Master, Maul said. I live to serve you.

  Sidious fell briefly silentnever a good sign. There are certainties, Darth

  Maul, he said at last. But there is also the unforeseen. The power of the dark

  side is limitless, but only to those who accept uncertainty. That means being

  able to concede to possibilities.

  Darth Sidious raised his right hand, palm outward.

  Before Maul could prevent iteven if he had chosen to do sothe long cylinder

  that was his double-bladed lightsaber flew from its hitch on his belt and went

  directly to his Master. But instead of grasping it, Sidious stopped the

  lightsaber in midflight, centimeters from his raised hand, and directed it to

  spin and rotate before him, leaving Maul to gaze at him in unabashed awe.

  Sidious bade the lightsaber to ignite. From each end blazed a meter-long blade

  of rubicund fire, hypnotic in the intensity of its burning. The free-floating

  weapon pivoted left, then right, eliciting a thrumming sound that was as

  menacing as it was rousing.

  An exquisite weapon, Sidious said. Tell me, my young apprentice, what were

  you thinking when you fashioned it? Why this and not a single blade, as the Jedi

  prefer?

  The single blade has limitations, Master, in offense and defense. It made sense

  to me to be able to strike with both ends.

  Sidious made a sound of approval. You must bear that in mind when you go to

  Dorvalla, Darth Maul. But remember this What is done in secret has great power.

  A sword master knows that when he flourishes his blade, he reveals his intent.

  Be watchful. It is too soon to reveal ourselves.

&nbs
p; I understand, Master.

  Sidious deactivated the lightsaber and sent it back to Maul, who received it as

  one might a cherished possession. Then Sidious approached Maul and handed him a

  data disk. Study this as you travel. It contains the names and descriptions of

  the beings you will encounter, and other information you will find useful.

  Sidious beckoned Maul to follow him to the far wall of their murky lair. As they

  approached, a great panel drew open, revealing a lofty view of the planetwide

  cityscape that was Coruscant.

  You will find Dorvalla to be a much different landscape than Coruscant, Darth

  Maul. Sidious turned slightly in Mauls direction, appraising him from beneath

  the cowl. I suspect that you will savor the experience.

  And you, my Master, where will you be?

  Here, Sidious said. Awaiting your return, and the news that your mission was

  successful.

  It had taken two days to locate and exhume the guidance droids from the crashed

  shuttles, and it had rained the entire time. The soup in the shadow of the

  Castle was three meters thick. Bruit had insisted on overseeing the

  search-and-recovery operation. He wanted to be on hand when the droids were

  analyzed.

  Few of Lommite Limiteds employees had access to the launch zone, and fewer

  still had access to the mechanized shuttles themselves. Tampering of the sort

  that had brought down the crafts would have left characteristic signs of the

  computer slicer who had effected previous acts of terrorism and sabotage.

  Bruits sources had already established that the slicer was an agent of

  InterGalactic Ore, but the saboteurs identity had yet to be ascertained.

  The team Bruit had assigned to the retrieval was a mix of beings from the

  relatively nearby star systems of Clakdor, Sullust, and Malastarethat was to

  say, Bith, Sullustans, and transplanted Gran. All were suited up in goggles,

  respirators, and large-format footwear that kept everyone from sinking too

  deeply into the gelatinous mess the rain had made of the ore. All except Bruit,

  who was sporting thigh-high boots in an effort to stay clean.

  No doubt about it, Chief, one of the limpid-eyed Sullustans said, after

  running a series of tests on one of the R-series guidance droids. Whoever

  sliced his way into this little guy is the same one who shut down the conveyors

  last month. Ill stake my wages on it.

  Dont bother, Bruit said. Youve only corroborated what all of us already

  knew. He gave his head an angry shake. I want the launch zones shut down until

  further noticeoff-limits to everyone. Then I want every member of the launch

  prep and maintenance crews brought in for questioning.

  What about the ore, Chief? one of the Bith asked.

  Well import temporary crews, even if we have to go to Fondor to stock the

  crews we need. Once were up and running, well have to double the shuttle

  flights.

  Knowing what doubling the flights would entail, everyone groaned.

  Whats the boss going to say about this? the Sullustan asked.

  Bruit glanced in the direction of headquarters. Arrant already knew that the

  guidance droids had been located, and was waiting in his office for Bruits

  report.

  Ill tell you when I get back, Bruit said.

  He set off for the landspeeder he had left at the control booth, but he hadnt

  gone ten meters when his left boot became hopelessly cemented in the mucky soup.

  He grabbed the thigh-high cuff of the boot, hoping he could simply pull it free,

  but he lost his balance and pitched to one side, sinking up to his right

  shoulder. He maintained that indecorous pose for some moments, while he

  daydreamed of what life might be like on Coruscant.

  You were right about things getting worse, Arrant said when Bruit entered the

  office, muddy and in his stocking feet.

  I was also right about InterGalactic. The guidance droids show exactly what we

  expected to find.

  A grim expression marred Arrants handsome face. This has gone far enough, he

  said after a moment. Bruit, you know that Im a patient man, and basically a

  peaceful one. Ive tolerated these acts of vandalism and sabotage, but Ive

  reached my limit. The loss of those two shuttles . . . . Look. Corellian

  Engineering just turned to InterGalactic for a shipment we couldnt provideno

  doubt, just as InterGalactic anticipated would happen.

  It wont happen again, Bruit interjected. Ive shut down the launch zones,

  and Im bringing in replacement crews.

  You have one day, Arrant said.

  Bruit gaped at him.

  Eriadu has placed major orders with us and InterGalactic, Arrant explained.

  Were expected to deliver by the end of the week, which gives us just enough

  time to get the barges loaded and jumped to hyperspace. This is a make-or-break

  contract, Bruit, and Eriadu is going to award it to whichever one of us can

  deliver on time and without incident. LL needs to get there first, do you

  understand?

  Bruit nodded. Ill have the shuttles up and running in one day.

  Thats only the beginning, Arrant said carefully. Its a sure bet youre not

  going to root out the saboteurs by then, so instead of that I want you to

  arrange for us to reply in kind to InterGalactics actions. He waited for Bruit

  to absorb his intent. I want to hit them hard, Bruit. But I dont want us to do

  the hitting directly.

  Bruit considered it. I suppose we could turn to one of the criminal

  organizations. Black Sun, maybe.

  Arrant waved his hands in a gesture of dismissal. Thats your area of

  expertise. The less I know about it, the better. I just dont want us to be in a

  position where we can be blackmailed afterward.

  Then were better off using freelancers.

  Do whatever you need to doand no matter what the cost.

  Bruit took a breath. Ive a feeling that Dorvalla isnt going to be the same

  from this point on.

  Dressed in a lightweight utility suit and a black overcloak, its hood raised

  against teeming rain, Darth Maul strode down the main street of the company town

  Lommite Limited had assembled in the midst of what had once been a trackless

  tropical forest. Beneath the cloak, he wore his double-bladed lightsaber hooked

  to his belt, within easy reach should he need it. Dorvallas gravity was

  slightly less than what he was accustomed to, so he moved with an extra measure

  of grace.

  A grid of permacrete streets, the town was a warren of prefabricated domes and

  rickety wooden structures, many of them lacking transparisteel in their windows.

  Music spilled from the entrances to cantinas and eateries, and folks of all

  description meandered tipsily down the raised walkways. The place had the

  feeling of frontier towns throughout the outlying star systems, with the routine

  mix of aliens, humanoids, and older-generation droids; sterility and

  contamination; repulsorlift vehicles operating alongside four- and six-legged

  beasts of burden.

  The residents, all of whom either worked directly for Lommite Limited or were

  there to defraud those who did, projected the same mix of autonomy from the laws

  that regulated life on the Core worlds and enslavement to perpetual toil and

  poverty.


  Unlike Coruscant, where beings hustled to and fro with determination, here

  reigned an atmosphere of purposelessness, of accidental life, as if the pitiful

  beings who had been born here, or who had arrived for whatever reason, had

  resigned themselves to the depths. Like the bottom feeders who dwelled in the

  lawless bowels of Coruscant, they seemed to be going through the motions of

  living, rather than grasping life and turning it to their own purposes.

  The revelation fascinated Maul as much as it disheartened him. He decided that

  he needed to gaze beyond appearances.

  The air was thick with heat and humidity, and the buzzing and chirping sounds of

  the surrounding forest played at the edge of his hearing. He could sense the

  interplay of life there, the fights and flights, and the ongoing struggle for

  survival. And the forest had imparted some of itself to the town. For here lived

  beings who were not above hunting and killing to obtain the sustenance they

  required. A veneer of laws regulated such things, but beneath that veneer lurked

  a more base morality that allowed opponents to settle their matters without fear

  of intrusion by keepers of the peace, judicials, or even worse, the Jedi

  Knights.

  Life was cheap.

  Maul threw out his right hand and snatched a fist-sized insect in midflight.

  Dazed, the flitter lay in his palm, perhaps wondering on some primitive level

  just what make or manner of predator it had blundered into. The creatures six

  legs wriggled and its pair of antennae twitched. Its twin eyespots and carapaced

  body glowed with a faintly green bioluminescence.

  Darth Maul studied the insect, then sent it on its way to rejoin the multitude

  that buzzed about the town.

  His Master had shown him many places, but always under escort, and now he was

  suddenly on his own, a stranger on a strange world. He wondered if he might have

  found his way to a place like Dorvalla had it not been for Darth Sidious and the

  life he had provided. He had been raised to believe that he was extraordinary,

  and he had come to accept that. But every so often doubt would drift in of its

  own accord, and he would be left to wonder.

  He shucked the mental intrusion and quickened his pace.

  His Sith training allowed him to spot weaknesses of character or constitution in