He thought of her every day, just like he'd said. When he met Yoda, he thought of how she'd be amused by him, and so he was kind to the stranger, though part of him had wanted to make an annoyed outburst. After learning of the alien's identity, he had felt ashamed for his unkind inclination, thinking of what Alesya would have said about his thoughts.
His training was difficult, but he did not complain. He just concentrated as hard as he could, relishing the day he could finally leave this swampy place and rejoin with his love.
One day, after Luke had jogged through the swamp for a while, Yoda told him to stop. Setting down the little alien, the young human grabbed his shirt from a nearby tree branch and put it on.
"Think of her often, you do," Yoda observed quietly.
Luke knew better than to question how the Jedi Master knew about his thoughts. So, he simply responded, "Yes, I do."
"Beware attachments, young Skywalker," Yoda told him. "At the center of a Jedi's life, compassion is, but of the Dark Side is attachment. Attachments lead to fear, to anger, to aggression. The Dark Side, are they…"
"Master Yoda, how do I know the good side from the bad?"
"When calm, you are. At peace. Remember, you must, a Jedi uses the Force for knowledge and defense, never for attack."
He nodded. The lesson mirrored the ones Obi-Wan had been giving him. The two Jedi Masters took turns in teaching him—Master Yoda was more knowledgeable, but at 900 years old, he was easily fatigued, so Obi-Wan would help relieve him by teaching Luke.
Luke turned his eyes to the giant gnarled tree he was standing near. He had been trying to ignore its darkness, but it had been beckoning to him. The tree's roots formed a giant cave that made Luke shiver. "There's something cold here, Master Yoda. It feels like darkness, like death."
"Strong with the Dark Side, this place is," Yoda told him from his seat on a root. Prodding the ground with his gimer stick, he said, "In there, you must go."
"Why?" Luke asked. "What's in there?"
"Only what you take with you," the Jedi responded cryptically.
Not liking that answer, Luke moved toward his weapon belt, strapping it on.
"Your weapons—you will not need them."
But Luke looked once more at the cave and shook his head. He would take his weapons.
As he made his way through the slimy cave, it felt like hours were passing, when, really, he was sure it could only have been minutes.
The creepy crawlies of the swamp dotted the walls of the cave, but he ignored them. They would not hurt him if he left them alone.
He pushed forward, past roots and sludge. Finally, the cave widened, and he stopped dead in his tracks.
There was the telltale hiss of a lightsaber igniting, and a red glow soon filled the cave. Luke realized in an instant that this was his enemy—the enemy. Darth Vader.
Without hesitation, Luke brought up his lightsaber and lit it, striking his opponent with all of his might, slicing off the man's sword arm and then slashing through his neck.
Vader's head fell to the ground, and Luke watched it as if in slow-motion. The head rolled, slowly coming to a stop at his feet. With a flash, the mask split in two, falling away to reveal Luke's own head.
"No…" Luke whispered. He fell to his knees. He could not become like that monster.
As each day went by, and there were many, he missed his wife more and more. He was discovering how to levitate things with his mind, how to extend his endurance, how to anticipate his opponents' moves—but still, these things could not distract him. They were like checkpoints on his mission to return to Alesya. As he grew better at using the Force, he also grew better at hiding his feelings from both his Masters. They did not love. They could not understand.
On the muddy planet of Dagobah, he was out of touch with the outside world. He did not know what was going on with the Alliance, and his heart ached to learn. But still, he continued to train. Still, he struggled to become a Jedi Knight.
One day, Luke was standing upside down on one hand, raising his other to levitate objects. Five rocks, two equipment cases, and then a squealing Artoo were lifted into the air.
"Yes, yes. Feel the Force flow, Luke," Yoda said. "Concentrate. At peace, yes…Through the Force, things you will see. Other places. The future; the past; old friends long gone."
Luke was listening to Yoda's voice when suddenly his heart started pounding and images flashed through his mind. In anguish, he cried out, "Alesya! Han! Leia!"
Then both he and the levitating objects came crashing to the ground.
Yoda shook his head in disappointment. "Control, Luke, control. You must learn control."
Luke tried to catch his breath. "I—I saw—a city in the clouds." But that wasn't all. Stars, that wasn't all…
"Mmm," Yoda nodded. "Friends you have there."
"Han and Leia were in pain, and—" he swallowed, unable to tame his beating heart. "Alesya was…" He couldn't say the word; he could only think it: dying.
"It is the future you see," Yoda told him seriously.
Luke felt his heart skip a beat. "The future?" he rasped. "Will they die?" Would she die?
The old Jedi Master closed his eyes and lowered his head. "Difficult to see, the future is. Always in motion…"
"Master Yoda, I must go to them."
Yoda stared down at his gimer stick. "Decide, you must, how to serve them best. If leave now, you do, help them, you could…But you would destroy all for which they have fought and suffered."
Yoda's words sent a chill down his spine. But he knew what he had to do.
As Luke finished loading his supplies into his X-wing, Yoda continued to plead with him. "Luke! Stay, you must, and complete your training."
"Master Yoda, I have to go help them."
"You must not go!" the alien insisted.
"But they will die if I don't!" Luke countered.
"You don't know that," Obi-Wan said. "Not even Yoda can see their fate."
"I can help them, Obi-Wan!" Luke exclaimed. "I feel the Force now."
"But you cannot control it properly …This is a dangerous time for you, Luke," Obi-Wan said gently. "If you go, you will be tempted by the Dark Side of the Force."
"Yes, yes!" Yoda nodded. "To Obi-Wan, you must listen. The cave…Remember your failure at the cave!"
Luke sighed. "But Master Yoda, I've learned so much since then. I'm ready now. I'm ready to face the trials of a Jedi."
"You are not ready, Luke," Obi-Wan told him quietly. "The Emperor wants you and your abilities—that is why your friends must suffer."
"And that is why I must go," the younger man returned.
Obi-Wan stepped closer to him, putting a hand on his shoulder. "I don't want to lose you to the Emperor the way I lost Vader, Luke."
"And you won't, Obi-Wan."
"Stopped, Vader and the Emperor must be," Yoda said. "And stopped, they can only be, by a fully trained Jedi Knight. If go now, you do, then you will be choosing the quick and easy path like Vader did, and an agent of evil, you will become."
"Be patient, Luke," Obi-Wan pressed.
Luke shook his head. "And sacrifice my friends and my wife?"
Yoda pursed his lips. "If you honor what they fight for—yes."
The young Jedi apprentice looked from one of his masters to the other in anguish.
"Luke, do not let your fear drive you," Obi-Wan said quietly. "Fear is what led Vader astray. Do not turn into what Vader has become."
Luke stared at Obi-Wan. Stricken, he whispered, "But I love her…"
"Then let her go, Luke. Do not become Vader."
Luke clenched his fists at his side. His mind flashed back to the cave—he was in danger of becoming like Vader. He knew it. They knew it.
He felt as if his heart were about to be wrenched out of his chest as he whispered the words: "I will stay."