As the huge galactic star ship dropped out of hyperspace the star lines once again became just points of light. Maul was looking out of the
portside window; he could see the bright sun of this system looming in the distance. The ship faltered then accelerated towards one of the
orbiting planets. Maul rose and left his quarters; he headed for the bridge of the ship to find out his master's biding.

On the bridge Sidious sat in the captains armchair shouting orders to the many guards and personnel hovering around. Maul glanced around the room and saw all kinds of guards lining the room. He moved towards his master's seat and was halted by Sidious' two personal guards. Sidious gestured to his guards and they quickly let Maul pass. Maul silently slipped into a seat on the left-hand side of his master. He was looking at the view screen and could make out a large populated planet growing larger.

"Surely we're not stopping here master?" Maul couldn't understand why they were here.

"Why not, do you know something about this place that I don't?" A tinge of arrogance lingered in his voice.

"No master, it's just that I thought in solitude was the best way for me to learn."

"Ah, very good my young apprentice. Here you will learn how to judge and sentence, among other things."

"As you wish master." With that Maul rose and left for his quarters, when they landed Maul was more than ready to head into the city. He was dressed in all black and his light staff hung loosely from his belt, he wore his gown and his hood was pulled up hiding his short horns.

The city his master has chosen was very dark and murky; the streets were filled with shanty stalls for selling everything from blaster parts
to female slaves. Maul slowed as he passed a group of female Frankolian slaves, he could sense the fear in their hearts as they thought they might be sold to him. Maul smiled softly to himself, he headed on past a group of terellian merchants that hollered at him to buy their goods.
As Maul ignored them one muttered something that Maul knew was an insult to his clothes, he was about to turn on them when his master's voice came through the darkness.

"Leave them, my apprentice, you have greater challenges to find." Maul obeyed and moved on. He had been walking for almost an hour before he decided to enter one of the seedy clubs. The one he chose looked very busy, with lines of attractive women loitering outside. The outside of the club was just a large stone building but once he was through the doors the interior design was fascinating. Maul hadn't been impressed by any of this world's buildings but this one seemed nicer than any others he had seen did. He moved across the large floor past all sorts of races playing at the sabaac tables onto the bar that stood at one end of the club. He leaned against the bar and tried to catch the barman's attention, then ordered a fruit juice. Maul was just tucking into his juice when a young woman came up behind him.

"Hi ya handsome, what's a guy like you doing in a bar like this?" She said in a forced accent.

Maul wasn't impressed and tried at first to ignore her.

"Oh so you're the silent type eh? I just love a quiet mysterious man." She moved closer and started to rub Mauls arm. "Wow you're a big boy aren't you, maybe you like to come up to my room."

Maul sighed in frustration, he politely removed the young woman's hand form his arm and looked up into her eyes, he briefly used the power of the dark side to turn her away. She looked at him askew then smiled and walked off, Maul wondered if this was what his master
had been preparing him for.

Maul sat for another few hours watching the different people come and go, he had seen a rich looking Wookie come in and loose everything
at a sabaac table. When the Wookie lost he began to get agitated and had to be removed by the guards that Maul had almost failed to notice.
Maul was beginning to get restless and began hoping something exciting would happen soon.

When it came Maul almost missed his chance. He was looking at a group of prostitutes that were all hanging around the same human in the corner, he allowed his disgust for the human to manifest itself in the darkness. He found himself sinking into his own darkness and felt the warm comfort of the darkside with him. He was almost unaware of the argument stirring up on sabaac table number four, the table where the Wookie had lost all its winnings. He snapped out of his darkness and looked round. He could see more than enough people beginning to argue and he pulled himself off his stool and skidded over to them. He had just arrived behind the dealer's right shoulder when one of the players spoke to him.

"Hey you Jedi." He shouted

"Me?" Maul asked in surprise, to be called a Jedi was almost an insult, but he'd let it pass for now.

"Yeah you, you're a Jedi aren't you?"

"What makes you so sure," Maul replied cryptically

"Your light sabre, only Jedi carry light sabres."

"That's where you're wrong, but for the sake of argument lets say that I am a Jedi. What can I do for you." Maul decided this was his test, judge and sentence he remembered his master telling him.

A strange looking man, that Maul couldn't identify pushed forward and spoke to him.

"This dealer is cheating, he's been cheating all night." The man said.

"I have not," said the dealer. "You're just a bad loser." Maul could already sense the fear and the anxiety in the dealer. "I wasn't losing, I saw you take that Wookie for all its money." The man spoke up again.

"How dare you," the dealer cried, and motioned for the guards to join them. Maul shuffled nervously, he didn't want to have to leave this world in a hurry. The guards arrived and the dealer gestured for them to remove the men that were complaining. One of the men spoke up. "We're not going anywhere, this dealer was cheating, and this Jedi" gesturing to Maul "will help us decide on justice."

The dealer quickly interrupted, "We don't need a Jedi, anyway this man said he wasn't one." The dealer then turned to the bar and peering over the heads of the crowd shouted.

"Illana, these men are causing trouble remove them." Maul spun around and looked at the bar, the woman he had been talking to earlier was standing on the bar top, she looked at the dealer then at Maul then jumped down off the bar and waddled on over. All the men around
sabaac table four moved out of her way. She stopped when she had reached Darth Maul and with her hands placed firmly on her hips she
stared at him. Maul bowed his head solemnly "I apologise for my behaviour earlier, it was very rude of me. I did not know you were the
owner."

The woman smiled and said "That's okay, I was testing you actually, if you'd agreed to go upstairs I would have had you thrown out." She then turned to the dissatisfied customers and said. "The Jedi here will solve your problems, tell him the details and I'm sure his decision will be fair and just." Maul had to hide his amusement; being called a Jedi was beginning to amuse him and these people thinking he would be just was even funnier. The dealer began to argue with Illana but a quick wave of her hand as she headed back to the bar stopped him.

Maul smiled an evil toothy grin, his hood still covered most of his face, but the eyes and the smile stood out. He turned to the dealer and the
sabaac players and gestured for them to start explaining. Maul hadn't thought this over and when all three of them started talking at once he realised his mistake. He quieted the two sabaac players and turned to the dealer. The dealer began to explain how he had seen these men loose a lot of money and get more agitated as the night went on. Then he simply added that they lost another hand to him and erupted. Maul gazed briefly towards the bar and caught Illana's eye, she smiled and he nodded back. Maul had made up his mind but he thought for a moment about these people thinking he was Jedi. He then decided to hear the other sides of the argument, although he now deemed them pointless. The first man began and didn't stop for five minutes, Maul could sense he wasn't lying and decided his original decision was right. Maul took a quick look at Illana and resumed his questioning. The last man quickly confirmed the other player's story and accused the dealer. Then when he stopped the bar was silent.

Maul stood between the two players and the sabaac dealer, he knew the dealer was cheating but he wasn't sure how killing him would make Illana feel. He paused dwelling on the thought of the Jedi ways of justice then turning to the two players he said. "You two leave, you have been cheated but the money now belongs to the owner, you must leave without incident." The dealer's face lit up and the two sabaac players stared at each other for awhile then shrugged and left. Maul was impressed by the way the Jedi held respect in every quarter of the galaxy. Now for the fun part.

Maul turned to the dealer and took a step closer, the dealer stepped back and backed into the guards. Maul placed himself in an attack position, took a glance at Illana then said. "You have cheated those men out of their earnings,"

"But you said the money belongs to the owner." The dealer replied in haste.

"The money does, Illana has put her trust in you to win her money each night. But you cheated and any crime must be punished."

"But, no you're Jedi you can't punish me, your decision was justice."

Maul smiled and lowered his hood, the gasp from all corners of the bar made Maul feel powerful; he could feel the darkness stirring. He glanced up at Illana, her eyes were wide and her smile had gone.

"You all expected that I was Jedi, you were wrong. I am trained in the ways of the force, but Jedi I am not." Maul continued. "You ask for my
justice without knowing who I am"

The crowd began to disperse and Maul could feel the elevated rise in fear. "You asked for my justice and now you shall receive it."

Maul flicked on his light staff and unclipped it from his belt, the crowd moved away but the dealer wasn't so fortunate. With the deftest of movements Maul swung the staff around slicing through the dealers neck, and through the guards midsection's. He crouched and awaited the attack; blaster fire pierced the air and was deflected back at the offenders. Maul moved around the room picking off any threat that came forward. After five minutes of blood shed and Maul's laughter there was silence. Dead bodies littered the bar, the guards some players even some prostitutes had attacked him. Maul stood on a table with his staff by his side facing Illana. She was sat where she had perched on the bar. She was alone with Maul now. Maul turned off his sabre and leapt towards her, he landed beside her and began stroking her hair, and she turned her face up to his and brushed his face with a long black nail. Maul could sense no fear in her and this impressed him. As she leaned in he allowed her to kiss him until they were entwined on the bar. As Maul's emotions began to sink into his darkness he wondered. Is this the test my master meant for me?