Chapter Sixteen: "A Gift"
My natural reaction was to protect Padmé and myself from the intruder, although I sensed no ill will coming from the form taking shape in the mouth of the cave. Yoda apparently wasn't panicking either. In fact, he was sitting exactly as he was and was as calm as could be, with his eyes firmly closed.
When the wind began to die down, a humanoid form was represented, created from a slow-moving cyclone of dust and leaves. Though stationary in the doorway, it twisted around to focus his eyeless face upon me.
"Obi-Wan."
My name was spoken along the breeze in a million different dialects and voices, but without any trace of malice or anger. Still, I wasn't about to move or approach it. Courageous I might be, but I wasn't stupid.
"Yes?" I replied while Padmé gripped my hand so tightly, she was cutting off the blood supply to my fingers.
"We've been watching you. You have a good heart and your struggle has not been in vain. You always help those who need it. To continue to do so, time is of the essence. Do not take our gift for granted."
Gift? What gift? I was dumbfounded and suffering from a great deal of disbelief. What was happening couldn't be real! And yet here I was, sitting in a cave on Ossus being prophesied to by a pile of leaves.
"Who are you?" I had to ask although I had a feeling it wasn't going to answer. Not in a way I would understand.
"Look inside your heart and you will see. A strong supporter you have in Master Yoda. Listen to him, do as he says, and rewarded you will be. Rise, Knight."
Every cell in my body wanted to obey and yet my common sense was telling me I should stay put. Apparently, my body was in control, however, and it rose on its own before I'd decided what to do, as if this swirling vortex before me was holding the strings and I was its puppet.
"You are now a Jedi, Obi-Wan Kenobi. Share what you have learned."
A powerful energy field swept out from the cyclone and knocked me backward onto the dirt floor. I awoke to silence and reached for Padmé who was still unconscious.
"Hey," I spoke quietly, rising to kneel by her side. I touched her face gently. "You need to wake up," I suggested strongly, though she didn't respond.
/Use the Force,/ a voice much like the one I'd heard before, speaking with both male and female tones of a hundred different beings spoke gently in my mind.
For the first time, I knew exactly what to do and I placed my hand upon Padmé's temple to urge her gently and silently to wake. She responded immediately, her eyes fluttering open to gaze up at me. She appeared confused at first, but then jumped to her feet, staring out toward the entrance of the cave.
"What in the hell was that? Did you see it as well or did I just imagine it?"
"No, I saw it too," I confirmed, my mind numbly reliving the message the supernatural presence had delivered me. I couldn't answer her question, however, and looked toward Yoda, who hadn't yet moved from his previous position.
I joined him at the medallion and sat down on the opposite side to gaze at him expectantly. He was the only one who could explain what had just happened. If only he would.
"Master Yoda," I addressed him with far more respect than I had earlier. The entity had made reference to him directly which led me to believe he must be of greater importance than just a caretaker.
"What was that?"
"The embodiment of the Force, that was," he answered, looking extraordinarily pleased.
"What do you mean it was the Force?" Padmé argued, sitting down next to me. "I thought the Force was a microscopic energy field that resided in all living things."
"It does," Yoda agreed.
"Then how did it manifest itself in that way?" I asked next. "And why?"
"Because asked it to, I did, for believe you would not have otherwise. Living inside you the Force is, and yet ignore it you have. Almost extinct the Jedi are. Old, am I. Needs you, the Force does."
I had a feeling he wasn't going to explain anything where I could understand it! "Why does the Force need me? I'm just an instructor from Stewjon."
"No longer are you that which you were. A Jedi Knight you now are."
I recalled the entity saying something along those lines and I still didn't understand it. Even though it had declared it, didn't necessarily make it so. I didn't feel any different than I had before.
"Questions fill your mind, they do. Perhaps, help this will."
From the pile of relics in the corner, the small Jedi called forth two of the sword hilts. He handed me one of them and I studied it closely. It was heavier than I thought it would be, and there were switches on the side.
"Arm yourself, you should."
The warning came unexpectedly as the piercing sound of an energy beam filled the air, followed by a green light shining in my eyes. Yoda then flipped his body over my head and landed on the stone behind me.
I chuckled nervously. Was he wanting me to fight? I didn't know anything about this weapon! I didn't even know what it was!
"Guide you, the Force shall. Flow through you it will. Let go of your feelings."
I decided to try, though I really had no idea how to do what he said. Then I recalled what Padmé had suggested the day before and I searched for the power within me – the thing I had always tried to disguise; to keep hidden so that it wouldn't be seen or I'd be arrested. Not this time. I opened myself to it and was immediately filled with a bright light that reached out beyond my human body. When I opened my eyes, the light remained inside, but it lit the path before me. Somehow, I knew exactly what to do, and I powered the weapon I now realized was called a lightsaber at the same exact moment Yoda attacked.
Although I knew he was moving at great speed, time had slowed down and I was able to counter each thrust of his sword, deliver a few of my own, and even managed to perform some acrobatics.
The battle proceeded to the point where my body became exhausted. Even though I somehow had the knowledge, I was not physically adept to such exertion. Master Yoda must've noticed and he powered down his sword, smiling proudly at me.
"Good. Very good."
Once I'd extinguished my own weapon, Padmé rushed over to me. There was a singe on one sleeve where I had nicked myself with the blade, but overall I was fine. Remarkably enough.
"That was amazing!" She hugged me fiercely and then framed my sweaty face between her hands. "How did you do that?"
"I don't know," I told her honestly. "I think our visitor must've passed on the knowledge somehow. I imagine that was the gift it spoke of."
"Inside of you, the knowledge has always been. Open the door, the Force did. That is all. Welcome, Knight Kenobi. A Jedi, you now are."