Chapter 8. Yoda
We walked down the stairs and through a hallway. I knew we had reached Master Yoda's rooms when I recognized his crest on the door. I had seen the symbol outside on parts of the Jedi Temple and had asked Obi-Wan to explain what it meant.
My father knocked on the door to Master Yoda's quarters. There was no answer. He knocked again, and the door opened slowly.
We stepped inside, into the main living room. Right away, I noticed Yoda's crest in the middle of the floor. Like all Jedi rooms, this one was plain and sparsely furnished, containing only the most basic essentials. It had shuttered windows next to glossy columns. There were not many items of furniture, mostly just a simple organiform table and three meditation chairs. There were three lit candles on top of the table. I wondered if there was any significance associated with the yellow tone of his room. I had once read that yellow meant neutrality, and Yoda certainly fit that description. He sought to remain emotionally detached. Or maybe he just really liked the color yellow. I continued scanning his chamber. I didn't see a bed, so it must be in the small bedroom. The door was closed.
Master Yoda sat in a chair, meditating. Next to him was what I presumed to be the singing stone fountain Obi-Wan had told me about. There was soft music coming from the water that flowed in the fountain. It was a pleasant sound, and I immediately felt calmer just listening to it. The music sounded almost like a lullaby my mother played for me when I was younger.
We waited respectfully in silence before him. Within a minute, Yoda opened his eyes and regarded us tranquilly.
"We are requesting your counsel, Master Yoda," Obi-Wan told the Grand Master. "Emma has discovered a brand-new power. I've never seen it before."
"Oh, has she?" Yoda queried, remaining completely attentive and composed.
Had he sensed my new powers? He sounded neither astonished nor startled, just calm and interested. True to form, Master Yoda remained unflappable.
Obi-Wan explained what had happened. I showed him the picture. Yoda listened carefully. It was hard to gauge from his placid expression what he was thinking. "Unexpected this is," Yoda finally declared, his ears curling slightly.
Obi-Wan looked anxiously at me, then turned back to Yoda. "She looked like she was straining herself. I was worried that it would all be too much for her, that she would be seriously hurt." Yoda listened closely, without comment.
So, he was afraid that I had exerted myself so much that I would die like Luke did at the end of The Last Jedi? Great. If that was the case, I would try to never use this power again.
Next, Yoda turned to me. "Please describe exactly how you felt, Emma."
I cleared my throat. "Well, it was a really unfamiliar feeling. I've never experienced anything like it before. This energy was building and building in me, and then I felt like I would burst. I felt really strong, and then I was empty. The energy was overwhelming, and I fell down."
Yoda looked reflective. "First time you used this power. Learn to control it, you will," he said. "Use your energy and willpower sparingly at first, you must. Enhance your discipline and focus to use this power well."
Well, as long as it didn't deplete my life force.
"Has anyone else ever had this power?" Obi-Wan asked Yoda. "It's unknown to me."
Yoda studied me for a moment before he spoke. "Unknown to me too, these building powers are," he proclaimed. "This is how the Force has manifested itself in Emma. Distinctive to her and a unique ability, it is."
"Powerful connection with the Force, you must have," Yoda told me ruminatively. His hazel eyes searched my face, as if he was debating whether or not to say something else.
I stood up straighter. This was exciting. Then I remembered I wasn't supposed to be excited about it. But I was!
"The Force has given you a powerful gift," Yoda declared. "A great power, but dangerous it could be, in the wrong hands. Mindful and cautious you must be."
"How could it get into the wrong hands?" I asked, puzzled. "Have any other Jedi ever had powers like this?" Then a startling thought occurred to me. "Have any Sith ever had this power? It's not a dark side power, is it?"
"Only dark if you use the dark side of the Force," Yoda said solemnly. "Never heard of this power. Research in the Archives, I must do. Meditate on this, I will. Answers I will find."
I decided not to bother telling Yoda I had already looked in the Archives and come up with nothing. I was sure he was much better at research than I was. Maybe Chief Librarian Nu would let me look in the restricted section. I wasn't sure if there would even be any information in the Archives, if no other Jedi in the history of the Order had building powers. Although Jocasta Nu would probably insist that if she could not find any information about it, it wasn't real. I called to mind what she had said to Obi-Wan in Attack of the Clones: "One thing you may be absolutely sure of – if an item does not appear in our records, it does not exist!"
"Care for tea, would you?" Yoda invited us.
Fittingly, Yoda was quite the host. I was flattered, because Obi-Wan had told me that Yoda only invited members of the Council to have tea with him in his chamber. Of course, Obi-Wan was a member, so I supposed Yoda couldn't very well serve Obi-Wan tea and not me!
Yoda bustled over to a corner of the room and returned with a teapot and three mugs of steaming tea. It smelled good, like mint, if a tad strong.
"Yarba tea, it is," Yoda informed me.
I took a delicate sip of tea. It looked and smelled like green tea, but it didn't taste like it. I tried not to wince. I didn't want to offend my host.
"It's an acquired taste," Obi-Wan whispered to me. "You'll get used to the slight tartness."
Slight tartness? It was bitter, very bitter. I needed honey or sugar-lots of sugar.
"Drink, drink," Master Yoda urged me. "Good, hmm?" he asked me. "Good for health and concentration." I was reminded of the scene in The Empire Strikes Back when Yoda served dinner to Luke. I tried to discreetly find a place in the room where I could discard the tea. Yoda would probably sense it anyway. I should just tell him I wasn't thirsty.
"Can I have some sugar, please?" I asked Master Yoda politely.
Yoda chortled and handed me a lump of sugar, almost as if he knew I would request it. I put the sugar in my tea, stirring carefully. It did taste better.
"Cookie?" Yoda offered, holding up a plate of sweet-and-sand cookies as well as peanut butter cookies. "Made fresh this morning, they were." He took a small bite of a sweet-and-sand cookie and nodded approvingly. He turned to me and pointed at a peanut butter cookie. "These you like, yes?" His eyes twinkled slightly.
"Yes, I do." I took a peanut butter cookie and chewed slowly. This was a perfect opportunity to ask Yoda something that I had wanted to know for a while now. Except I wasn't quite sure how to broach the subject. I had a question I really wanted to ask him, about why he had decided to change the no attachment and marriage rules. I felt somewhat guilty even mentioning it, because one of the key concepts of self-discipline was conquering curiosity. I didn't want to violate his privacy or the Jedi Code, but I had a strong feeling that I was meant to ask Yoda about this. Almost as if I were somehow involved.
I decided to just go ahead and ask him. If he wanted, he could always refuse to answer. And I'd probably get a lecture about it from Obi-Wan. "Master Yoda," I started, "I've been studying the Jedi Code, and I've had a hard time understanding the part about when the Jedi decided to formally outlaw attachments and families."
"Emma," Obi-Wan said in a no-nonsense tone. "Is this really necessary? We've already had this discussion. I don't believe you need to probe into Master Yoda's private matters."
However, Yoda seemed perfectly willing to have this conversation with me. In fact, he seemed to have expected it. "Seek to uncover my secrets, do you, Emma?" He did not sound like he was scolding me.
"No, Master Yoda," I said hurriedly. "I just really wanted to know what happened to make you change your mind about attachments. I thought you felt very strongly about that rule. I don't mean to question you." Now I felt ashamed. My mother had always warned me about being nosy. Now I was going to have to add myself to the list of people who had to overcome their curiosity.
"Talk to me about this you may, Emma." Yoda granted me permission to proceed with my questions. I plunged ahead.
"I know that the Code doesn't actually forbid love itself. Jedi are allowed to express compassion and caring. We're supposed to love everybody."
"Indeed, love is strong. Change the future, it can."
Had Yoda ever said anything like that before? I didn't think so. I shook off my bafflement and pressed on. "The Code means attachments in terms of a failure to let go of someone."
"Correct you are." Yoda sounded encouraging, so I continued.
I was thinking about Anakin when I made my next statement. "I understand the teachings about attachment leading to jealousy and fear being a path to the dark side, but does it follow that everyone who is fearful becomes evil? And what about ..." I trailed off. Even as I said this, I realized my argument as it pertained to Anakin was flawed. Master Yoda was speaking now, but I wasn't listening. I was too wrapped up in my own thoughts.
Anakin was unable to let go. That had always been the main problem. He would never let go of Padmé, or his fear, or his anger, or his hate.
And it wasn't just Anakin, I suddenly realized. I, myself, was having difficulty with this teaching. I had a secret, deep-rooted fear that Maul was going to come back and attack my parents and myself. I was afraid of losing them. I had just gotten my father back not too long ago. It seemed I had a lesson to learn, just as Anakin did. I thought back to Attack of the Clones, when Anakin had wanted to rescue Padmé after she fell off the ship and Obi-Wan had commanded him to come with him to fight Count Dooku. Obi-Wan had reminded Anakin of his duty and that he would be expelled from the Jedi Order if he disobeyed his order. Anakin had reluctantly gone with Obi-Wan, leaving Padmé behind. But he kind of let go there, I thought. But what happened after that? Anakin would have gone to Palpatine's office and interfered. At the crucial moment, he would not have been able to let go of his fear for Padmé's welfare and let Mace Windu do his duty to the Republic and democracy. Well, Anakin had miraculously learned his lesson, I reminded myself. I would have to find the strength to let go of my fear and trust in the will of the Force.
But was this undeniable, that my fear would inevitably lead me to the dark side? There was a fine line between having a feeling and allowing it to consume you. This was just so complicated. I could see both sides of the argument. Which one was right? Or were they both right to some extent? In any case, it couldn't be healthy to continuously worry about what ifs. The best course of action, I finally decided, was to be true to my teachings and live in the moment and leave the future to the Force.
Yoda and Obi-Wan were both staring at me. Obi-Wan looked a little concerned by my long silence, but Yoda just smiled serenely and seemed to know and accept that my internal struggle had arrived at a peaceful conclusion.
For now, anyway.
"Everything you need to know, you do, or soon, you will. More to say about this to me at a later date, and at an earlier time, I feel," Yoda declared.
What was he talking about? At an earlier time? Master Yoda certainly did speak in riddles.
"It was the will of the Force," Yoda concluded simply. "That is why the Council changed the rule." Then he added, "Discover this for yourself, you soon will."
Another riddle.
I had something else to say. I sincerely hoped I wasn't trying his patience. "Master Yoda? May I say one more thing?" At his nod, I resumed my previous train of thought. "Just because a Jedi has strong emotions, it doesn't mean they're going to turn to the dark side. That's just like a regular person. Not every person who feels emotions, even bad ones, becomes evil."
"Ah, but Jedi are not 'regular people,' is it not so?" Yoda queried sharply. "More powerful than others, we are. That being the case, not good if we allow emotions to cloud our reason. Dangerous it is. Careful we must be not to give in to negative emotions. Terrible enough it is when a regular being becomes angry and inflicts harm on others. What damage force wielders could do if fly into a rage, they did."
The prime example being Darth Vader. Yoda had made his point.
"You are young. Learn you will. A life practice it is." I took it from his tone that the discussion was over. I wasn't entirely satisfied with the answers I had received.
I had a sense of déjà vu during this conversation, which was really strange. It wasn't like I had ever had a conversation with Master Yoda about attachments before. Come to think of it, I had never had a conversation with him at all, except for my interview when I first arrived at the Temple.
"You'll have to increase your practicing of the Third Pillar," Obi-Wan told me as he finished his peanut butter cookie, frowning slightly at me. The most vital beliefs of the Jedi, or the Three Pillars, as they were known, were the Force, Knowledge and Self-Discipline. I was apparently lacking in that one.
"Master Yoda? May I ask you about something else?"
"Of course, Emma," he responded.
"Can you tell me about the Holocron of Prophecy? Another Padawan mentioned reading about it today."
"Perhaps Obi-Wan can explain it to you," Yoda replied.
I looked at Obi-Wan, not surprised by this suggestion. "Do you know about it?"
Obi-Wan nodded. "As you know, holocrons are storehouses of essential understanding concerning the essence and use of the Force. They contain knowledge and guidance. The Holocron of Prophecy, also known as the Great Holocron, is a Jedi holocron that holds many different prophecies. It is very old. I have opened it many times. My Master, Qui-Gon, was very interested in it. Per his instructions, I often studied it and learned about several prophecies."
"You mean like the prophecy about Anakin being the Chosen One? Was that from the Holocron of Prophecy?" I asked him.
"Yes, that was one such prophecy. That was the Chosen One prophecy, which concerned the Chosen One who would bring balance to the Force. It did not specifically mention Anakin by name, of course."
"Master Yoda? Have you ever looked in this holocron?" I was almost positive that he had.
"Oh yes, many times I have," he asserted. "Valuable information it contains. Much to learn from them, we have. Hours you could spend trying to decipher all of its meaning. Very important, holocrons are. Contain our most sensitive secrets, they do." He nodded meaningfully at me. I wasn't sure why it seemed as if he assumed this pertained to me.
"Able to create a holocron of my own, I was," he informed me, managing to sound humble.
"Really?" I was impressed and awestruck. That must be really difficult. Was there anything Yoda couldn't do? "What information is in it?" I asked him interestedly.
"Imparts knowledge on the Jedi Code, it does," he told me.
I turned back to Obi-Wan. "Will I ever be able to look at the Holocron of Prophecy?" I asked Obi-Wan avidly.
"Yes, one day. It is located in the Archives. All the holocrons are in the Holocron Vault, and only the members of the Council can enter the Vault."
"So, you would have to get it in order for me to look at it?" I asked.
"Yes. Either Chief Librarian Nu or I will have to be present when you look at it, in order to make sure that you can handle it."
"I'm sure I could handle it," I vouched for my personal strength. It wasn't like I was totally untrained. But I wasn't an expert either. Then I realized that it was probably a good idea, since I was so young and new to this life. If I remembered correctly, this was standard protocol for all the young Padawans.
"So, you mentioned the prophecies. Is there any other information in this holocron? Like Jedi teachings? Don't Jedi Masters in other holocrons discuss subjects like history, lightsabers and Force powers?"
"In addition to the prophecies, the Holocron of Prophecy has lessons on how to combat the dark side," Yoda chimed in.
I was pretty sure I had read somewhere that the Jedi Archives even contained Sith holocrons, but I decided it wouldn't be wise to bring that up.
"Yes, many Jedi Masters have various lessons in this holocron," Obi-Wan picked up the discussion. "Master Yoda instructs on foreseeing and the prophecy of the Chosen One. I even have a report on my duels against Darth Maul and Count Dooku."
"So, when you opened the holocron, what else did it tell you?" I asked Obi-Wan eagerly.
Before he could answer, Yoda spoke. "Wait one moment."
He left the room and entered the small room with the closed door. When he returned a minute later, he was carrying a thick book with a red cover. There was no title on the cover.
"More reading, I have for you," Yoda told me. "Answers you will find in here."
Answers about what? The Holocron of Prophecy? My new power? Or something else?
When he handed me the book, he briefly touched my hand.
"What is this book about?" I asked the Grand Master.
"Very special book it is," Yoda replied. "Chapter 5, you must focus on. Find what you must, even if you do not expect it." That was all he would say.
I was flattered that one of the greatest Jedi Masters who ever lived was taking such an interest in my learning and training. I wondered if there was more to it than simple interest. There probably was. But what could it be? Was it because of my newly discovered building powers? Did Yoda sense something about me?
"I must confess, I am a little unsettled by these new building powers," Obi-Wan expressed his concern to Yoda. "We know nothing about them. Granted, Master Vos' psychometry is also rare. Do you believe Emma's building powers are like psychometry? That it is not a Force power that can be learned, but something that one must be born with to use?"
"Possible, it is," Yoda said. He seemed perfectly undisturbed. He obviously did not share Obi-Wan's uneasiness about the situation.
"Strong and unusual powers you have, Emma," Yoda declared. "Building powers, and the power to show others your visions. A powerful Jedi you will become."
What was he talking about, showing others my visions? I hadn't even had any visions! I glanced at Obi-Wan to see if he understood what Yoda meant. He looked surprised but didn't ask Master Yoda to go into further detail.
"For all intents and purposes, Emma is the only known Jedi with building powers," Obi-Wan finally said. "We'll have to keep a close eye on this, as she develops her powers."
Why wasn't he proud that I had been singled out with such a gift? What was he so worried about? Did he really think I was going to use my new power for evil? Turn away from the light side? After all our discussions about Anakin turning? I tried not to feel affronted. No, that wasn't it. It must be a father thing.
Yoda seemed convinced that I was going to have visions. Maybe I would be able to see more about my building powers and put my father's mind at ease.
In any event, I thought these building powers would be a benefit. I wondered if I could create anything I wanted, even people or living things. I grew excited at this prospect. Maybe I could even bring back all the Jedi who died!
I didn't realize I had spoken my thoughts aloud until I noticed Yoda and Obi-Wan both looking alarmed. "Do not let your new power go to your head," Obi-Wan advised me.
Master Yoda also spoke cautiously. "Power over life and death, Jedi do not have," he reminded me sagely. "Even with good intentions, a dangerous path to tread, it is. Reminds me of my final trial on Moraband, it does." I recalled that episode of The Clone Wars when Yoda traveled to the ancient Sith planet to face the Force Priestesses' tests.
I understood what Yoda was implying, but I didn't believe it was the same thing. Yoda had to overcome these hurdles so the Priestesses would tell him how to become a Force ghost after death. I didn't feel that I was facing a test. Darth Sidious and Count Dooku were both gone. No one was trying to tempt me to the dark side. Why would the Force give me a power, only to take it away if I failed a test?
"We do not seek to dominate the Force," Yoda chastened me. "What we talked about earlier, about letting go, remember you must."
"I don't want to dominate the Force," I hastened to assure him. Obi-Wan had told me numerous times that Jedi always used their power in harmony with the will of the Force. I would never forget that lesson. "I just wondered what else I could do. How strong will this power grow? I need your advice and guidance."
"Attend to your training and learning. Worry do not. Take care of itself, the future will." Yoda's input was simple, straightforward and to the point.
Yoda addressed Obi-Wan. "Master Obi-Wan, prepare for your trip to Naboo, have you?"
"Trip?" I asked Obi-Wan. He hadn't mentioned anything about this to me.
"Not yet," Obi-Wan replied. "We will be going in the summer months."
Oh right. I remembered Padmé had invited us to visit the Skywalker home on Naboo over the summer. That should be fun. Well, I didn't know how much fun it would be with my strict training schedule. But still, the opportunity to visit another planet was compelling.
"Talk to Master Skywalker, you will, Emma," Yoda urged me. "A great deal to learn from him, you have."
That was cryptic. Sometimes Master Yoda was really mysterious and hard to understand.
"Almost time for my lightsaber training class with the younglings, it is," Yoda stated. He looked seriously at me. "Please do not mention your building powers to anyone, Emma. Meet with the Council, I will. Discuss it with them, Obi-Wan and I shall."
"I promise." I hesitated. "Can I tell my mother?" I had no secrets from her.
"Lara can be trusted," Obi-Wan assured Master Yoda.
Yoda nodded. "Tell her you may. And always remember to Obi-Wan you must listen. Training you well, he is."
Obi-Wan took that as our cue to leave.
"Thank you for your guidance, Master Yoda," Obi-Wan said. I bowed to Master Yoda. "You have given us much to consider."
Indeed, I had much to consider, I thought as we left Master Yoda's quarters. The Force had bestowed upon me an unusual new power. I wondered what fate had in store for me.
