- 32 BBY -
- World Between Worlds -
Maul is left with almost nothing, but potential and two lightsabers. He has taken his double-bladed lightsaber from his past and is now left with it.
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He has done something that should be impossible, and by going off the timeline, it still is. It is regrettable to see all of his work ruined, but what he got out of it is better than what he had. And that's all that matters to him. Now that Maul is a walking paradox, he has numerous options, considering his current situation. Starting from scratch is not as bad as others might believe, since he has all the knowledge he lacked before, plus more potential than he had initially.
Maul smiles and moves through the World Between Worlds, travelling back a very long time and a great distance. Thousands of years ago, when the dominant species could be counted on one hand. He sees his home planet, Dathomir, hundreds of thousands of years in the past. He sees a different species from his: the Kwa.
Kwa were bipedal, three-meter-tall, cobalt-blue-skinned saurians with telepathic abilities. They invented the Infinity Gates, which enabled instantaneous travel between various interstellar locations. However, they could also operate as superweapons known as the Infinity Wave since they were modelled on a Celestial concept. These were housed within vast pyramidal structures known as the Star Temples.
And that's something Maul is interested in. Why would he bother with a Death Star if he could replicate the infinity gate and then use an infinity wave to destroy planets? The infinity wave can suck an entire planet, along with surrounding satellites, into infinity, presumably unmaking all life and destroying all matter. As a side effect, hyperspace navigation in the entire sector where the Wave hit became impossible. So it should be used sparingly.
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"Interesting."
Maul understands the concept behind the Infinity Gates and the Star Chambers as he sees them. This gives him an idea on how to use what he has learned about the World Between Worlds. The ideas form inside his mind and give him increasingly ridiculous ideas. Maul nods his head and then moves on to another time, thousands of years later. He sees through another portal of roughly 30'000 BBY above Abo, the star of the Lehon system.
"The Star Forge. Remarkable."
The Star Forge was a colossal, automated shipyard built to forge the most powerful army the galaxy had ever seen. Constructed by the Rakatan Infinite Empire around 30,000 BBY—five millennia before the Galactic Republic—it was a technological marvel. Drawing energy and matter directly from a nearby star and amplifying that with the Force, the Star Forge could endlessly produce fleets of ships, droids, and war machines. Its creation was made possible through the forced labour of countless enslaved species under Rakatan control.
But such power came at a devastating price. The Rakata, known as "The Builders," were a brutal and malevolent species steeped in the dark side of the Force. Over time, the Star Forge absorbed and amplified the darkness of its creators. What began as a machine of war became a sentient engine of corruption, twisting the Rakata further, feeding off their cruelty, and demanding even greater suffering to sustain its power. This unholy fusion of technology and dark side energy ultimately turned on its masters, fueling the very collapse of the Rakatan Empire.
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Though he wants to, Maul can't take the Star Forge with him. The size is too large, and he is too weak to carry it, using the Force. He will have to create his own from scratch. However, that will take a considerable amount of time. So the fact that he has gone back a few years. Nevertheless, even if Maul can't take the entire Star Forge with him, he can take different smaller, essential parts with him, so that he doesn't have to create those the hard way. Work smarter, not harder.
Maul sees the problem with the Star Forge and its corruptive effect, which demands cruelty and greater suffering to function. He understands how it works now, so he will create one without the corruption effect. Maul reaches out and grabs a few essential parts of the construct, pulling them into the World Between Worlds. After that, he once again moves on.
.
"I am Darth Revan, Dark Lord of the Sith. Those who use the dark side are also bound to serve it. To understand this is to understand the underlying philosophy of the Sith. The dark side offers power for power's sake. You must crave it. Covet it. You must seek power above all else, with no reservation or hesitation. The Force will change you. It will transform you. Some fear this change."
Maul listened to the words of Darth Revan as he created his holocron. It was an interesting way of 'learning' from someone, by simply listening in as they create their holocron. Darth Revan, as he is currently known, in the time Maul is looking at, is an interesting man for Maul. His words are correct in many ways, since Maul has also understood the concept of progress.
He wants power, but not for the sake of power. Maul sees the Force for what it is, a fundamental aspect of reality. He is interested in growing stronger and controlling this aspect of reality, but not just for the sake of power. And even if he were solely a Dark Side user, he is no longer affected by such things. So the normal rules no longer apply to him.
"The teachings of the Jedi are focused on fighting and controlling this transformation. That is why those who serve the light are limited in what they can accomplish."
This was an interesting part for Maul, since it was exactly what he had realised as well. He listened further to see what Raven had to say.
"True power can come only to those who embrace the transformation. There can be no compromise. Mercy, compassion, loyalty: all these things will prevent you from claiming what is rightfully yours. Those who follow the dark side must cast aside these conceits. Those who do not-those who try to walk the path of moderation—will fail, dragged down by their own weakness."
This part disappoints Maul. This is simply pure Sith talk. Nothing special to this, and the result of tunnel vision in Maul's opinion.
"Those who accept the power of the dark side must also accept the challenge of holding on to it. By its very nature, the dark side invites rivalry and strife. This is the greatest strength of the Sith: it culls the weak from our order."
This part was genuine. Maul agreed with this a lot. It was something he enjoyed as well, to be challenged and to grow constantly. But he didn't like it when his own power was trying to challenge him and get him to fall, corrupting him. That was a no-go.
"Yet this rivalry can also be our greatest weakness. The strong must be careful lest they be overwhelmed by the ambitions of those beneath them working in concert. Any master who instructs more than one apprentice in the ways of the dark side is a fool. In time, the apprentices will unite their strengths and overthrow the master. It is inevitable; axiomatic. That is why each Master must only have one student. This is also the reason there can only be one Dark Lord. The Sith must be ruled by a single leader: the very embodiment of the strength and power of the dark side. If the leader grows weak, another must rise to seize the mantle. The strong rule; the weak are meant to serve. This is the way it must be. My time here has ended. Take what I have taught you and use it well."
Maul looks at Darth Maul and has a thought. The World Between Worlds should be useful in more ways than for him to go on a collection run. He performs thousands of simulations in his mind, calculating what he would and should do. He turns around to the void that is the World Between Worlds and nods. A plan was already forming in his mind.
.
Maul went on and on in the WBW and learned what he could from the entire galaxy, through time and space. He made a run through time and studied under the greatest Sith and Jedi of their respective time, all the way into the future, where he studied the different things about technology, although there was nothing new for him, and the Force. Among those were Art of the Small, Dark Transfer, Doppelgänger, Flow-Walking, Force Drain, Force Walk, Force Storm, and Transfer Essence.
There were many more, but as Maul went on, he understood the truth about the Force and the reigning concept behind it more and more, allowing him to create new abilities, at least in theory, in the future.
But that wasn't all. He used the limitless time he had on hand and the limitless resources he had access to as well to start creating new technology for himself. That's right, he turned the World Between Worlds into his personal laboratory and workshop. And he went absolutely nuts.
All limits and restrictions were off. Maul was in his element and started to create new things on the go. He began with something he was interested in, from another reality—the Dragon Ball universe. The capsules from Dr. Brief. They allow people to store various objects without regard to shape, size, or weight, including weapons, vehicles, and even houses. Naturally, Maul used this universe's underlying laws as a means of accomplishing this: The Force. Similar to how the Star Pyramids from the Kwa did it, Maul created 'capsules' by using the Force to create a small dimension, allowing him to store almost anything inside them.
The materials he needed, he grabbed from different times, preferably from the future. He would need the same equipment, so he did the same. The most crucial device he created was one that allowed him to return to the World Between Worlds, serving as a failsafe of sorts. Was this ridiculous and a cheat? Yes, but so was his existence and the Essence he had.
Maul sets the device down and holds out his hand, connecting to it and filling it with his essence. It recorded his presence and would allow him to reconnect with this and then return here. With this done, Maul walked to the time and space he was already at, shortly after Darth Revan recorded his holocron. But instead of simply observing, Maul takes a step forward, placing himself into this point in time.
...
"...This is the way it must be. My time here has ended. Take what I have taught you and use it well," Darth Revan says.
"You know... those are truly inspiring words," Maul says as he stands in front of the Dark Lord.
Revan turns around and looks at Maul. The current Dark Lord has just hidden his holocron behind a Rakatan computer in the Temple of the Ancients on Lehon when Maul arrived. Both of them can feel the other's presence in the Force, but only Maul can truly gauge his opponent's true power.
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"Are you here to kill me?" Revan asks.
"I'm here for a fight. And to tell you that you are wrong. The Jedi are as wrong or correct as the Sith are. The key to the transformation you talked about is control. Only fools and idiots would allow an unfeeling fundamental Force to change themselves into something they can't control. So the Light Side is needed for that process," Maul says.
"The weak are meant to serve, and trying to control the transformation doesn't bring out its full potential. Thereby making you weak. Your ideology is flawed, stranger," Revan says.
"Your shortsightedness is what is flawed here. But don't worry, I will gladly demonstrate it to you," Maul says.
*VRROOOOOOMM*
He ignites his double-bladed lightsaber. Darth Revan looks at Maul, judging him and trying to feel what he was after. He could feel his willingness to fight, but not why. Then again, since when did Sith need reasons to fight? Or didn't they? Did they ever do something without a reason?
*VRROOOOOOMM*
He ignites his lightsaber as well and prepares for the battle. A battle to the death, as it always is, when Sith fight.