Maul: Legacy of Shadows

Chapter 8: Letting Go

***Year 3,959 BBY***

Bao-Dur sat in quiet contemplation as his master Surik practiced her lightsaber forms using his lightsaber, as she had left hers behind as a symbol of her exile from the Jedi Order.  Her movements were graceful, especially for someone who specialized in Form I, or Shii-Cho.  Considered the simplest of all the forms, as all younglings were taught its basics before becoming Padawans.  However, Surik displayed a level of mastery unlike most had seen, and it was used to immense effect on the battlefields during the Mandalorian Wars.

Her apprentice decided to take a different approach, instead learning Form VI, or Niman, known to many Jedi as a jack-of-all-trades form.  Bao-Dur enjoyed the form, as it allowed him to continue applying his skills as an engineer and mechanic.  Surik never objected, valuing her apprentice's many skills.  Niman's deficiencies in combat however, played an integral part in costing him his left arm during battle.  His master never scolded him, and instead she seemed to view it as another form of training, albeit a painful one.

His master finally came to a rest, deactivating his lightsaber and tossing it back to him.  She sat down breathing heavily, her body using most of its energy trying to supplement for the Force that no longer spoke to her.  In the moment the Sith weapon was unleashed, they both instinctively cut themselves off from the Force, and now neither had the methods of grasping it back.  It was a rare occurrence to become deaf to the Force, and usually served as a punishment for Dark Jedi whose crimes were unforgivable.  Neither had ever heard of a Jedi self-inflicting themselves with the severing of their Force connection.  Still, both believed the Force guided them to this world, even if they could no longer feel its influence.

Bao-Dur pondered over the many scrolls but most were illegible, and others spoke of the nature between Ashla and Bogun.  His master explained that they were the original names for the Light and Dark Sides of the Force.  The ancient Je'Daii Order, who first learned how to communicate and wield the Force, taught to balance between the dualities.  It seemed that this temple was a training ground designed to utilize both, the interchanging pillars as evidence of such. The altar in the center of the room held a small dagger sticking from its center, inscribed with the word Bendu, or Balance in the ancient tongue of the Je'Daii.

Surik stood and walked to the altar, her movements as graceful as they were when she was a Jedi Master.  Bao-Dur stopped his futile attempts at interpreting the ancient scrolls to look upon her.  She placed a hand on the hilt of the dagger and closed her eyes, trying to feel even a whisper from the Force, but it was silent still.

Suddenly the room went dark, all the pillars' light being snuffed out at once, and Bao-Dur quickly ignited his lightsaber and stood at the ready.  A faint low-toned laughter began to fill the room as Bao-Dur tried to use the faint light from his blade as a torch, attempting to ascertain the origin of the laughter.  Surik didn't move, her eyes still closed, seemingly oblivious to the change that occurred around her.

"What you seek is not here," the voice explained as Bao-Dur slowly moved towards his master's location, ready to defend her from any threat with his life.

"Bendu," Surik whispered, finally opening her eyes and showing no change in her demeanor.

Suddenly all the pillars became illuminated at once, blinding the Zabrak as he was not prepared for their light.  Still, Surik made no attempt to move from her position, her hand still gripping the hilt of the dagger sticking into the stone altar.

"No longer do your paths coincide, each of you must make a choice," the disembodied voice spoke.

Bao-Dur finally saw a spirit of the Force appear in front of Surik, its body a mixture of smoke and lightning. The creature had large antlers and eyes that seemed to pierce the cosmos itself. Surik's eyes began to water with tears, as she understood that her apprentice and herself were now wounds in the Force, their actions on Malachor reverberating through the galaxy itself.  Bao-Dur finally deactivated his lightsaber and stood next to his master's left, looking up at the embodiment of Balance in the Force.

"What must we do then?" Bao-Dur asked, though he figured he knew the answer before the creature spoke.

The Bendu closed its shimmering eyes, and slowly opened them before revealing the two former Jedi's' destinies.  Bao-Dur felt his body tense in anticipation, and his master grasped his right hand, as he figured she must've known the answer as well.

"The wound in the Force will never heal should you stay as you are, you must each follow a separate destiny to heal the Force within yourselves," the Bendu explained, its voice devoid of emotion.

With that the spirit began to dissipate, leaving the two former Jedi to ponder their paths. Bao-Dur was devastated, his master was his reason for becoming a Jedi, he had grown to value her life more than anything else.  Surik's grip on Bao-Dur's hand tightened as she turned to face her student, and with tears streaming down her face she nodded in silence.

"It's time for us to depart from this place my apprentice," his master whispered.

Bao-Dur nodded in silent agreement, and both walked from the cavernous temple back towards their ship. Bao-Dur climbed into the cockpit as his master took one look back at the cave entrance, sighing as she did so.  Boarding the ship, Surik sat next to Bao-Dur as their craft began its ascent into the atmosphere, their destinies now completely unknown to either of them.  Surik punched in a set of coordinates into the navigation computer and told Bao-Dur to drop her off at whatever planet they come to.

As the ship launched into hyperspace, Bao-Dur recognized the location as N-6 or the planet Cathar, home to the violent humanoid-feline species the Cathar.  It was also the location of the beginning of the Mandalorian Wars, where the Mandalorians and Sith slaughtered many Cathar citizens.  This act of genocide finally caused the Jedi to act and join the Republic.  One of Surik's first Jedi Masters was a famous female elder Cathar named Sylvar, who fought against Exar Kun's Sith Empire before the Mandalorian Wars broke out.  Bao-Dur breathed a sigh of relief, knowing that a student of Sylvar would most likely be welcomed on the xenophobic world, even if she was a human.

Finally reaching the planet, Bao-Dur picked a large forested part of the planet to drop off his master.  She approved of the decision, knowing full well the Cathar would find her regardless.  As she stepped off the ship and felt the soft grass beneath her feet, Surik closed her eyes and convinced herself this was her destiny, and that she would return to her master and hopefully gain redemption in the eyes of the Force.

"Master!" Bao-Dur called, running off the ship towards Surik who merely stared at her apprentice. "Please master, take this, Cathar is a dangerous world."

Bao-Dur handed his master his blue lightsaber, having crafted it long ago as a mere youngling, his mechanical expertise shining through its intricate construction.

Surik embraced her Padawan as she took the lightsaber and attached it to her hip, thanking him for his concern and telling him how proud she was to have been his master.  Bao-Dur held back tears, glad to have done one final deed for his master before he would depart towards his own unknown destiny.  As he rounded back to enter the ship, he took one last look back at his master, who began to walk into the thick jungle and disappear within its depths.  As his ship took off, his mind brought to bear all his thoughts and memories of his master and himself during their time together.  Malachor severed their bond, and now he would be forced to go into the future alone, without her guidance and warming presence.

In orbit, Bao-Dur pondered over where he should go, hoping to find peace in a galaxy still healing from the Mandalorian Wars.  Eventually he settled on the coordinates O-6, a remote planet known as Dathomir, where many Zabraks immigrated to from their home world of Iridonia after the Mandalorians attacked.  Hoping to find some of his people and find his place among them, Bao-Dur initiated the hyperdrive, his ship careening through the cosmos towards his destination.