Chapter 24: How the Force works
When Daniel woke, Varielle was gone. He asked where she was.
"In a meeting," he was told. After a meal, a change of clothes and three hours of talk, he managed to find out she was just coming down to the mess hall for a meal.
"You look terrible," he told her.
"I just talked to the Jedi. They sent some people."
"Bad?"
"They knew Amarell, Daniel. They wanted to know how he died. I had to live that over and over. He was my father. Of course it was bad."
"I'm sorry."
"So'm I." She bit her food savagely. "Can we please talk about something else?"
"Um. Did you change your hair?" It was one neat braid instead of a pony-tail.
"That other hair-style is the mark of an apprentice. It's tradition."
"They gave you a promotion?"
"You could say that. I don't feel I've earned it. It's like I get it as compensation for losing my father. I'd rather have him back." She threw her hair angrily over her shoulder.
"That's the way of the military," he said.
"Jedi aren't military. We're peacekeepers."
"You never explained exactly how it all works."
"How all what works?"
"What you can do. You just said something about Talent."
"Did I? Yes, I did. Then let's finish eating and go talk. You'll need to understand."
"Where should we talk?"
"Ships' library is as good a place as any. It's quiet, especially this time of day."
They headed down. "No books?"
"No space." She handed him a piece of glass-like plastic. "That's a standard textbook on electronics." She could hold it in one hand without the edges peeping out. "Nice, huh? We don't go in for paper books much. These are more durable and far more compact." She put it back in the rack. "There are alcoves at the back for study, behind the maintenance manuals."
"You know this place well?"
"I've spent a lot of time in libraries over the years."
"Studying science?"
"And law. I figured I'd go for a position as a court arbitrator. Or maybe mediator is the better term in English. I'm not a very good Jedi. Not strong."
"Why not? Isn't being able to do that to people… plus that bit of concrete…" She was shaking her head as she took her seat with youthful ease.
"I suppose I should start at the beginning. Where I started when I was seven."
"Which is?"
"What gives us the abilities we have. You want the standard explanation or the scientific one first?"
"Standard."
"The closest translation, I think, is simply 'Force'. The Force. That's the way we speak of it. Story goes it's an energy field present in all living things. Surrounds us, penetrates us, binds the universe together. There's a whole speech we all get, but that's the basics. Jedi learn to feel it, and to use it. Scientific version - it's something that's out there. We perceive it in different ways, and if we can perceive it we can use it for various things. There's proof of this - differences in brain patterns, slightly altered blood chemistry in some species - not humans - and of course the physical effects we cause. To the layman - is that the right word? - it might as well be an inherent ability, because the ability to use the Force isn't something you just acquire. You have the potential, or you don't. It can be developed, but it has to be there to start with, and we can sense it in other people if we really try."
"Can it be measured?"
"Only by people. Not instruments. That's one reason why being a Jedi usually comes with a lot of religion. Or any Force-user. The Jedi aren't the only ones; back in our galaxy there were others, and some were altruistic and some were sadistic and some were neutral and some were just strange. The Jedi were the oldest, the most numerous, the most welcome and the only one that came with us here. There are still individuals or small groups of others, but no real tradition."
"Alright."
"It's kind of hard to explain. Laws about how the Force can be used apply to all - but the Jedi have options others don't have. We can be investigators, judges, scientists, researchers, historians, a lot of things. We have legal status - and legal obligations. Not to mention our own internal rules. We're expected to be - well, honest, trustworthy, honourable. Protectors and guardians of the helpless and the downtrodden. I could go on for ages on that vein. But that's not what you're after, is it?"
"No."
"Hmmm. Look, I differ a lot from the other Jedi. Maybe because I had such a strange upbringing, or an unconventional teacher. I accept it's there, I accept what it does. I don't accept the mystical explanations like a god or something like that. As for what it does…" She sighed and leaned back. "It's really hard to explain."
"Try anyway."
"Well," she frowned, hunting for words. "Using it to move things is a basic skill. You sort of extend your awareness of the universe in general out to the object and want it to move - anyone can do that - but if you can use the Force, you might be able to make it move. I'm not sure how to explain that part. It's like some people can raise one eyebrow at a time and others can't. There's this little mental feel, a click or something, like when you learn to do mental arithmetic or learning to swim. Once you've found it you never quite lose it. Some people who are really strong don't even need to learn to do that, they just want it to happen and it does. That's rare, but it happens."
"When you said 'extending awareness'…"
"Eyesight works fine," she assured him. "Or something you're touching. I'm unusual that way, I can move things I can't see. Things in another room, or a distance away. Most Jedi can't. But then, most Jedi can shift more mass than I can, and for longer. That concrete plug was almost the heaviest thing I've ever shifted."
"Right. And the minds…"
"That's something I'm good at and most people aren't. When you become… aware of people the way I'd need to become aware of an item I can't see, to move it, you start to perceive emotions, surface thoughts. Manipulating them is difficult. It's skilled work, it takes a lot of control."
"If you get it wrong, do you hurt them?"
"Not often. It happens, sometimes. If we learn to do it, we learn on volunteers with very careful supervision, although we're not told in advance that's what happening. We only learn about how closely we get watched after we're trusted to work without it."
"So you don't get dependant on knowing someone can help you?"
"Exactly. Extracting something like the thought matrix of a language from a mind - that's how I think of it - is a incredibly rare ability. Most Jedi can't get further than basic emotions and thoughts of the moment. I can. It's a very valuable ability - but it also means I get trusted less than most Jedi. Jedi are expected, like I said, to be honourable, to be moral, but there's always temptation. We're supposed to be above reproach. There's very good reason Jedi can't hold political office without unanimous consent of the Senate in each case."
"Is that all Jedi can do?"
"No. Controlling our own bodies, to heal faster - some people can control other's bodies as well. I can, a little, but not much. It's hard, delicate. Ever wondered why I heal so fast?"
"Those trances…"
"Yeah. Ever wondered why I never asked what drugs I was being given?"
"No, I didn't." He was surprised.
"Because I can be aware of the drugs when they're still outside my body. Since I've studied so much biochemistry, I can tell what they are and what they do."
"Anything else?"
"Lots. We can use it for extra strength and endurance; one reason we don't compete in sports contests with ordinary people. Remember how I ran back on that planet? I can't do that normally."
"Oh."
"Oh, it does other things as well. Basically, knowledge. Throw a knife at a Jedi's back, odds are he'll duck before it gets there. Foreshadows of danger. Usually it's just something vague. Sometimes we see specific things before they happen, but we never know the consequences of interfering."
"So the future isn't set?"
"No. It can be changed. But - let me give you an example. If a Jedi saw that going to that forest-world would result in so many deaths, we might not have gone. Then we'd never know the Goa'uld were out there, and that could be catastrophic for us."
"Is it usually that dramatic?"
"No. Often we see small things, personal things. Almost every-day things. Sometimes we see the past, or the present. Sometimes it's not a vision at all, it's sounds, or smells, or symbols, or feelings on their own. I don't get those often. Some of us do. But if you ever watch Jedi in a fight, we have fast reflexes. In fights, we see what's going to happen before it actually does. Practice a bit, and it becomes automatic to react like that. And other Force-users as well. The basic rule of a Jedi is that we use the Force for knowledge and defence. Never attack."
"Never?"
"Never. We talk about the Dark Side of the Force - very old term, it's been translated through about six languages, that's why it sounds so dramatic. If you use that for attack, you can't stop using it. It's addictive, and it turns you… changes you." She shivered. "I've only seen one man who used it, when he was brought to the capital for trial. Seven Jedi stood guard over him, in shifts, to make sure he didn't try anything. He killed six of them one night. My father was the seventh. And he nearly died. That was after what he did before he was caught. That's the original reason the Jedi order was given recognition, status - so we could hunt down people like that."
"And kill them?"
"Often that's the only way to stop them. Nowadays we need a - a warrant?"
"An order of execution."
"Yes. Basically people like that are the bad guys. Most people don't ask questions."
"You do?"
"A lot of Jedi have ideas about good and evil, and of course they put themselves on the side of good. I'm not sure it's so simple. That's one reason my father was never on the Council. He agreed with me."
"They like nice clear-cut solutions."
"Yes. If you want to find the ones who don't believe in those, you have to look harder. Most of the Council are old, and our Republic has been peaceful, more or less, for generations. We don't often have to make tough decisions. The Council are still honourable, just a bit… out of touch, I suppose I could say."
"I know what you mean," he said thoughtfully. "This talent…"
"We sense it," she nodded. "Some are very good at it; I'm not. It sometimes runs in families and sometimes doesn't. And I didn't feel it in a single one of your people, which is surprising, or in any of those Jaffa. But there's maybe one in six thousand of us with the ability and less with enough to be worth training, so that's no guarantee you don't have it. And it's not limited to humans; we've got twelve species in the Republic and there are Jedi from all of them."
"Why would you want to be a Jedi?" He finally asked.
"When you - feel the Force, it can be incredible. Everything's more real, more wonderful, than ever. You can feel the stars burning. You know who you are and that you have a place in the universe. You can't not know. It's peaceful, and welcoming, and you can know someone more intimately than anyone who can't feel the Force can conceive of. That's why Amarell and Janama loved each other so much; they could feel it. Janama never had training, but still, they never had to question each other's love. They knew. You can form bonds with people through the Force, be aware of them all the time. Parents, children, brothers and sisters, lovers, friends."
"Enemies?"
She closed her eyes. "Sometimes. It's rare. And it's nasty. It's not all good. But I wouldn't be anything but a Jedi. I know I decry mysticism and all that, but when you feel the Force, when you touch it and let it pass over you and through you and you know it's there, it's better than coming home after a long way away. Wherever you are, you know you belong."
When Daniel woke, Varielle was gone. He asked where she was.
"In a meeting," he was told. After a meal, a change of clothes and three hours of talk, he managed to find out she was just coming down to the mess hall for a meal.
"You look terrible," he told her.
"I just talked to the Jedi. They sent some people."
"Bad?"
"They knew Amarell, Daniel. They wanted to know how he died. I had to live that over and over. He was my father. Of course it was bad."
"I'm sorry."
"So'm I." She bit her food savagely. "Can we please talk about something else?"
"Um. Did you change your hair?" It was one neat braid instead of a pony-tail.
"That other hair-style is the mark of an apprentice. It's tradition."
"They gave you a promotion?"
"You could say that. I don't feel I've earned it. It's like I get it as compensation for losing my father. I'd rather have him back." She threw her hair angrily over her shoulder.
"That's the way of the military," he said.
"Jedi aren't military. We're peacekeepers."
"You never explained exactly how it all works."
"How all what works?"
"What you can do. You just said something about Talent."
"Did I? Yes, I did. Then let's finish eating and go talk. You'll need to understand."
"Where should we talk?"
"Ships' library is as good a place as any. It's quiet, especially this time of day."
They headed down. "No books?"
"No space." She handed him a piece of glass-like plastic. "That's a standard textbook on electronics." She could hold it in one hand without the edges peeping out. "Nice, huh? We don't go in for paper books much. These are more durable and far more compact." She put it back in the rack. "There are alcoves at the back for study, behind the maintenance manuals."
"You know this place well?"
"I've spent a lot of time in libraries over the years."
"Studying science?"
"And law. I figured I'd go for a position as a court arbitrator. Or maybe mediator is the better term in English. I'm not a very good Jedi. Not strong."
"Why not? Isn't being able to do that to people… plus that bit of concrete…" She was shaking her head as she took her seat with youthful ease.
"I suppose I should start at the beginning. Where I started when I was seven."
"Which is?"
"What gives us the abilities we have. You want the standard explanation or the scientific one first?"
"Standard."
"The closest translation, I think, is simply 'Force'. The Force. That's the way we speak of it. Story goes it's an energy field present in all living things. Surrounds us, penetrates us, binds the universe together. There's a whole speech we all get, but that's the basics. Jedi learn to feel it, and to use it. Scientific version - it's something that's out there. We perceive it in different ways, and if we can perceive it we can use it for various things. There's proof of this - differences in brain patterns, slightly altered blood chemistry in some species - not humans - and of course the physical effects we cause. To the layman - is that the right word? - it might as well be an inherent ability, because the ability to use the Force isn't something you just acquire. You have the potential, or you don't. It can be developed, but it has to be there to start with, and we can sense it in other people if we really try."
"Can it be measured?"
"Only by people. Not instruments. That's one reason why being a Jedi usually comes with a lot of religion. Or any Force-user. The Jedi aren't the only ones; back in our galaxy there were others, and some were altruistic and some were sadistic and some were neutral and some were just strange. The Jedi were the oldest, the most numerous, the most welcome and the only one that came with us here. There are still individuals or small groups of others, but no real tradition."
"Alright."
"It's kind of hard to explain. Laws about how the Force can be used apply to all - but the Jedi have options others don't have. We can be investigators, judges, scientists, researchers, historians, a lot of things. We have legal status - and legal obligations. Not to mention our own internal rules. We're expected to be - well, honest, trustworthy, honourable. Protectors and guardians of the helpless and the downtrodden. I could go on for ages on that vein. But that's not what you're after, is it?"
"No."
"Hmmm. Look, I differ a lot from the other Jedi. Maybe because I had such a strange upbringing, or an unconventional teacher. I accept it's there, I accept what it does. I don't accept the mystical explanations like a god or something like that. As for what it does…" She sighed and leaned back. "It's really hard to explain."
"Try anyway."
"Well," she frowned, hunting for words. "Using it to move things is a basic skill. You sort of extend your awareness of the universe in general out to the object and want it to move - anyone can do that - but if you can use the Force, you might be able to make it move. I'm not sure how to explain that part. It's like some people can raise one eyebrow at a time and others can't. There's this little mental feel, a click or something, like when you learn to do mental arithmetic or learning to swim. Once you've found it you never quite lose it. Some people who are really strong don't even need to learn to do that, they just want it to happen and it does. That's rare, but it happens."
"When you said 'extending awareness'…"
"Eyesight works fine," she assured him. "Or something you're touching. I'm unusual that way, I can move things I can't see. Things in another room, or a distance away. Most Jedi can't. But then, most Jedi can shift more mass than I can, and for longer. That concrete plug was almost the heaviest thing I've ever shifted."
"Right. And the minds…"
"That's something I'm good at and most people aren't. When you become… aware of people the way I'd need to become aware of an item I can't see, to move it, you start to perceive emotions, surface thoughts. Manipulating them is difficult. It's skilled work, it takes a lot of control."
"If you get it wrong, do you hurt them?"
"Not often. It happens, sometimes. If we learn to do it, we learn on volunteers with very careful supervision, although we're not told in advance that's what happening. We only learn about how closely we get watched after we're trusted to work without it."
"So you don't get dependant on knowing someone can help you?"
"Exactly. Extracting something like the thought matrix of a language from a mind - that's how I think of it - is a incredibly rare ability. Most Jedi can't get further than basic emotions and thoughts of the moment. I can. It's a very valuable ability - but it also means I get trusted less than most Jedi. Jedi are expected, like I said, to be honourable, to be moral, but there's always temptation. We're supposed to be above reproach. There's very good reason Jedi can't hold political office without unanimous consent of the Senate in each case."
"Is that all Jedi can do?"
"No. Controlling our own bodies, to heal faster - some people can control other's bodies as well. I can, a little, but not much. It's hard, delicate. Ever wondered why I heal so fast?"
"Those trances…"
"Yeah. Ever wondered why I never asked what drugs I was being given?"
"No, I didn't." He was surprised.
"Because I can be aware of the drugs when they're still outside my body. Since I've studied so much biochemistry, I can tell what they are and what they do."
"Anything else?"
"Lots. We can use it for extra strength and endurance; one reason we don't compete in sports contests with ordinary people. Remember how I ran back on that planet? I can't do that normally."
"Oh."
"Oh, it does other things as well. Basically, knowledge. Throw a knife at a Jedi's back, odds are he'll duck before it gets there. Foreshadows of danger. Usually it's just something vague. Sometimes we see specific things before they happen, but we never know the consequences of interfering."
"So the future isn't set?"
"No. It can be changed. But - let me give you an example. If a Jedi saw that going to that forest-world would result in so many deaths, we might not have gone. Then we'd never know the Goa'uld were out there, and that could be catastrophic for us."
"Is it usually that dramatic?"
"No. Often we see small things, personal things. Almost every-day things. Sometimes we see the past, or the present. Sometimes it's not a vision at all, it's sounds, or smells, or symbols, or feelings on their own. I don't get those often. Some of us do. But if you ever watch Jedi in a fight, we have fast reflexes. In fights, we see what's going to happen before it actually does. Practice a bit, and it becomes automatic to react like that. And other Force-users as well. The basic rule of a Jedi is that we use the Force for knowledge and defence. Never attack."
"Never?"
"Never. We talk about the Dark Side of the Force - very old term, it's been translated through about six languages, that's why it sounds so dramatic. If you use that for attack, you can't stop using it. It's addictive, and it turns you… changes you." She shivered. "I've only seen one man who used it, when he was brought to the capital for trial. Seven Jedi stood guard over him, in shifts, to make sure he didn't try anything. He killed six of them one night. My father was the seventh. And he nearly died. That was after what he did before he was caught. That's the original reason the Jedi order was given recognition, status - so we could hunt down people like that."
"And kill them?"
"Often that's the only way to stop them. Nowadays we need a - a warrant?"
"An order of execution."
"Yes. Basically people like that are the bad guys. Most people don't ask questions."
"You do?"
"A lot of Jedi have ideas about good and evil, and of course they put themselves on the side of good. I'm not sure it's so simple. That's one reason my father was never on the Council. He agreed with me."
"They like nice clear-cut solutions."
"Yes. If you want to find the ones who don't believe in those, you have to look harder. Most of the Council are old, and our Republic has been peaceful, more or less, for generations. We don't often have to make tough decisions. The Council are still honourable, just a bit… out of touch, I suppose I could say."
"I know what you mean," he said thoughtfully. "This talent…"
"We sense it," she nodded. "Some are very good at it; I'm not. It sometimes runs in families and sometimes doesn't. And I didn't feel it in a single one of your people, which is surprising, or in any of those Jaffa. But there's maybe one in six thousand of us with the ability and less with enough to be worth training, so that's no guarantee you don't have it. And it's not limited to humans; we've got twelve species in the Republic and there are Jedi from all of them."
"Why would you want to be a Jedi?" He finally asked.
"When you - feel the Force, it can be incredible. Everything's more real, more wonderful, than ever. You can feel the stars burning. You know who you are and that you have a place in the universe. You can't not know. It's peaceful, and welcoming, and you can know someone more intimately than anyone who can't feel the Force can conceive of. That's why Amarell and Janama loved each other so much; they could feel it. Janama never had training, but still, they never had to question each other's love. They knew. You can form bonds with people through the Force, be aware of them all the time. Parents, children, brothers and sisters, lovers, friends."
"Enemies?"
She closed her eyes. "Sometimes. It's rare. And it's nasty. It's not all good. But I wouldn't be anything but a Jedi. I know I decry mysticism and all that, but when you feel the Force, when you touch it and let it pass over you and through you and you know it's there, it's better than coming home after a long way away. Wherever you are, you know you belong."