PART 5: JEDI

CHAPTER 17: Training

"Always a pleasure to meet a Jedi." —Jango Fett, Attack of the Clones

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On the way to Dagobah, Luke asked Obi-Wan to tell him more about his biological mother, and the Jedi complied warmly. He told Luke about Padmé's commitment, her bravery, and her determination to ensure that the right thing was done. The young man smiled wistfully at a lot of what Obi-Wan said, finding himself wishing he'd been able to know his mother. Still, it was fortunate that he had someone now who could tell him about her—he'd never realized how much he'd really wanted that.

When they finally reached Dagobah, the youngest member of their party found himself rethinking his decision. The ship's scopes picked up no cities or technologies on the dismal celestial body looming before them—just massive life-form readings. Not even Tatooine was as remote as this.

Obi-Wan guided Luke to where he should put the ship down, and the transport soon passed through some thick gray clouds before finally resting on the ground. The whole planet was nothing but swampland.

"And you've been living here for how long?" Luke muttered in amazement. If he'd had to make a choice between the swamps of Dagobah or the sands of Tatooine, he might have actually chosen Tatooine.

"For about as long as you've been alive," Obi-Wan said with a smile. "After taking you to Tatooine to live with your aunt and uncle, I came to Dagobah. I did not tell you this, Luke, but I will not be your primary instructor. Here, you will meet Master Yoda."

"Yoda?" Luke echoed.

"When I was younger, he instructed me about the Force. I had a different Jedi Master when I was older, as was customary, but you'll find his lessons are long-lasting. Master Yoda is very knowledgeable. He was one of the most respected members of the Jedi Order."

The two men—both of them wearing clothing that would be somewhat suitable for trudging through a swamp, with Obi-Wan in his Jedi robes and Luke in a simple gray flightsuit—left the cockpit and began to walk down the ramp. The three droids started following them.

"You guys stay back here, all right?" Luke said to them. The swamp water wasn't exactly machine-friendly, and he didn't want them to be damaged.

"Very well, sir," Threepio said, dipping his head. He didn't sound upset.

"Yes, Master Luke," Opakwa acknowledged, also perfectly at ease.

Artoo gave the astromech equivalent of an eye roll and then kept right on following the two humans out of the ship. Neither one stopped him.

As soon as Luke stepped foot on the swampy ground, he felt an eerie sensation come over him. "I feel something...strange," he murmured to Obi-Wan. The Jedi nodded but did not reply. "I feel like..."

"Feel like what?" a voice said to his right.

Luke twisted, igniting his lightsaber and holding it at the ready. "Like I'm being watched."

Before him stood a small green creature with big ears, old brown robes, and a cane. The being held up the cane in front of his face, as if to ward off a blow. "Away put your weapon—I mean you no harm."

The young man stared at the stranger for a few moments before clipping his saber to his belt. He sensed no deceit, but he was still on his guard.

"I am wondering—" the being said, scrunching his face up, "—why are you here?"

Luke looked at Obi-Wan, who was being oddly silent. "We're looking for someone," the young man answered vaguely.

"Looking?" the stranger peered up at him. "Found someone, you have, hmm?" He seemed a little pleased with his comment and started chuckling.

Luke smiled. "I guess that's right." He glanced over at his quiet Jedi mentor, who gave him a nod of encouragement. "But we're looking for someone in particular. Perhaps you know him—he goes by the name of 'Yoda.'"

The creature's eyes seemed to widen. "Ah, yes, Yoda! A Jedi Master, he is." He gave Luke a solemn look before abruptly hobbling over to stare at Artoo.

Artoo whistled something at him, and the little being started poking at him with his stick. The droid didn't seem to like that and gave a nasty blat.

"That's not very nice," Luke told the creature, trying to shoo him away from Artoo. "He's just a droid—he won't hurt you."

The stranger stopped prodding the machine and turned his gaze to Luke, looking as if he were sizing him up. "This thing—where did you get it?"

"He—" Luke swallowed, a lump suddenly caught in his throat. "He belonged to my father."

"Oooh." The being seemed to consider that. "Know much about your father, do you?"

It was sort of an odd question coming from a stranger, but the young man answered it nonetheless. "More than I'd like, really."

"Hmm. Often, learn we things we would rather not know," the creature announced sagely.

"Still, perhaps it's better that we're given the knowledge. If we didn't know something, we could make a huge mistake," Luke pointed out. One example was if he'd killed Darth Vader rather than simply holding him prisoner (a thought which had certainly crossed his mind during a few dark moments). Yes, he would have been ridding the galaxy of a monster, but he would also have been unknowingly depriving himself of a father.

The creature nodded. "Some wisdom in that, is there..."

Luke had found himself a little bit annoyed by the alien at first, thinking him little more than unneeded distraction, but the little guy really wasn't all that bad. And so, with a smile, he said, "My name is Luke Skywalker...What's your name?"

The small being looked at him with strangely wise eyes. He got the sudden feeling that the stranger was judging him, categorizing his flaws and weaknesses all with that one gaze. So, it was only with partial surprise that Luke heard him utter the word "Yoda."

Something compelled Luke to drop to his knees, even though it meant his pants would become uncomfortably wet and muddy. There was just something about being in this being's presence—knowing the great power and wisdom he must hold despite his unassuming appearance—that struck him. Luke could just feel in his bones that this small creature was worthy. And so he bowed to the Jedi Master unashamedly.

Yoda smiled at the gesture, inclining his head. Then he made a motion for Luke to get to his feet. "Rise, young one. Always changing, your future has been. Existed for you, many paths have, and here at last, you finally are. Good to see you, it is, Luke Skywalker."

The young man turned his gaze downward, feeling suddenly nervous. "I am pleased to meet you, Master Yoda."

"Has some patience, he does," Yoda noted, looking toward Obi-Wan with a smile. "Better than Anakin in that, he is." He gestured for them to follow him. "Come. Good food, I will make us. And about yourself, Luke, tell me you can."

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And Luke did tell Yoda about himself, about bits and pieces of his life on Alderaan—but somehow, he felt that what he'd left unsaid was known by Yoda. Luke suspected that the Jedi Master—perhaps due to the Force or the wisdom of his many years (nine hundred, Luke learned)—knew him better than he knew himself.

His stay on Dagobah seemed to fly by. In that time, Yoda and Obi-Wan taught Luke a lot about Jedi history. They told him about the Jedi Order's high times, its low times, its fall—about the Jedi's place in history and the Republic—about the Jedi hierarchy and customs...And he learned, too, more about the Jedi Purge, that dark time when Anakin Skywalker helped murder countless Jedi—both adults and helpless children.

It was hard for Luke to hear, but they told him about his father's actions in great detail nonetheless. And when he meditated, he often saw scraps of images related to what they told him—a young girl being taken down by a lightsaber—a young boy being hit by several laser blasts—a wise Jedi being shot down by former comrades. The past swirled around him, touching him with its sorrow-filled tendrils.

There was one instance where he came out of his meditations sobbing. That time, he had relived his father's full attack on the Jedi Temple. He had felt the pain and confusion and sense of betrayal experienced by Padawans and younglings and Jedi Knights and Jedi Masters while also feeling the maelstrom of emotions assaulting his father as he extinguished their life-forces. The mass of feelings was overwhelming, and he began to see the true tragic nature of the fall of the Jedi.

After that incident, he became eager to learn as much about the Force as he could, and he asked his Jedi Masters to tell him about the various available Force powers. They only planned to teach him some of them, particularly ones that would come in useful for his next meeting with his father, but he specifically requested that they also teach him at least a few basic lessons on shielding, healing, and illusion.

And so, he and Yoda were presently out in the swamp, and Yoda was teaching him more about the Force.

"Imagine all the details of the creature, you must," the wizened being instructed him. "See them all in your mind."

He pictured the Alderaanian woolly moth in his head, painting with his imagination the many colors upon his wings. And then he turned the mental image outward, reaching to the Force to enable him to project the insect into the air.

In the dark Dagobah night, a giant multi-colored moth fluttered in the air and then came down to land on a fallen tree, where it beat its wings gracefully a few times before becoming still.

The Jedi Master looked at it approvingly. "Done well, you have."

Flushing, but wearing a small proud smile, Luke stared at the moth. It moved off the tree and fluttered in front of Yoda, where it suddenly transformed into a cocoon and then seconds later into an armored caterpillar. The colorful larva squelched across the ground to climb up Yoda's side. Once it stood on his head, it began chattering with its dark mandibles. Yoda gave Luke a look, and with a smirk Luke banished the creature.

"Very good," the alien said, trying to hide a smile. He was impressed with Luke's command over even the auditory and tactile aspects of his Force illusion. "Better control over the Force, you are getting."

"Indeed," agreed Obi-Wan, who was walking up to join them. "You have progressed very quickly, young one."

"I have had skilled teachers," the boy said modestly. He shifted his feet uncomfortably.

"And great skill, you do have," Yoda pointed out.

Luke stared down at the muddy ground, holding his tongue. His fingers twitched at his side.

Despite the boy's wordlessness, Obi-Wan could read him quite easily. This issue was one they kept coming to. "Luke, I'm going to talk to you about a Jedi and his powers." He motioned for Luke to join him, and he sat down on a fallen tree next to Yoda. The young man complied with his mentor's wishes, finding himself sandwiched in between the two wise Jedi.

"The Jedi are to help people, Luke," Obi-Wan said gently.

Softly, Luke replied, "I know that."

"It is a good thing for the Jedi to do," the human Jedi pressed. "It is a noble task."

"Yes."

Obi-Wan continued speaking gently. "Luke, humility and selflessness have their places, but you must not run yourself down. You should take praise where praise is due."

Luke tried to protest, "But—"

"Luke," interjected Obi-Wan, "you will make a great Jedi. That is not flattery—it is the truth."

"Yes," Yoda said quietly. "To Obi-Wan, you must listen."

"What you possess is not just potential, Luke, but also strength of will. That is just as important. You're a good person. You will make a good Jedi."

But Luke's face was covered with uncertainty. "But just having these great powers—"

"It is not what you have but what you do with it," Obi-Wan stated firmly. He placed a hand on Luke's shoulder. "You must do what you feel is right. That is the mark of greatness."

The young man opened his mouth as if to speak, but then he closed it and gave a tentative nod.

Yoda put a kind hand on Luke's elbow. Both he and Obi-Wan were there to support Luke. They were his teachers, yes, but they were also his friends. Too often in the past, the Jedi had forgotten the importance of acting as each others' comrades. They would not make that mistake with Luke.

****

Luke was taught the basics of lightsaber combat from Obi-Wan and Yoda for Forms I, III, and IV, and he heard Obi-Wan tell Yoda one time that he appeared to be instinctively aware of some of the Form V swordplay, though Luke was not quite sure what that meant. Finally no longer able to restrain his curiosity, Luke made a few queries and learned that Anakin Skywalker had been one of the form's most prominent practitioners. That fact was interesting, if a bit unsettling.

The young man mostly practiced the forms with one or both of his Jedi Masters looking on and guiding him, though he had actually dueled with Obi-Wan a few times. One day, however, when he came back from his morning jog, he found Obi-Wan smiling mysteriously at him.

"What?" he asked, feeling a tinge of apprehension in his gut.

"It seems Yoda will be dueling with you today," the Jedi said offhandedly.

"Yoda?" Luke echoed, trying not to sound skeptical. The Jedi Master was both small and old and required the use of a cane to walk—how could he hope to be a worthy opponent? And would he even be able to reach Luke's saber with his?

"Yes. Yoda was one of the foremost lightsaber duelists of his day. You mustn't underestimate him. He is a skilled swordsman."

The young man couldn't help but chuckle. "Well, I guess I'll believe it when I see it."

****

And Luke did indeed 'see it.' After but a couple of minutes fighting with the surprisingly spry Yoda (he did not need that cane!), Luke found himself with his back pinned against a tree. Yoda's green blade hovered steadily at his throat. The young man had even, for all his troubles, been scraped once on the arm by Yoda's lightsaber.

"Win, I think I do," the minute Jedi Master said with a smile that would probably have been called smug if it had been on anyone else's face.

"Your overconfidence was your weakness," Obi-Wan pointed out to Luke. "Never underestimate your opponent."

Amused despite the butt-kicking he'd just been given at the hands of a two-feet-tall opponent, the Jedi trainee grinned. "That's a mistake I won't make twice."

Yoda extinguished his blade. "Teach you to heal that, we will." He pointed toward the mark on Luke's arm.

After he shifted so that his back was no longer pressed against the tree, Luke's eyes turned to the wound. It wasn't the worst thing that had happened to his body by far, but it would probably leave a nasty mark if left untended.

"You must feel the Force," Yoda said quietly.

Reaching out, Luke touched that mystical energy field and followed the spoken instructions Yoda gave him. A few minutes later, the tissues were being regenerated, and his wound had been replaced by clear skin. Luke shivered a little bit as he stared at the unmarred spot on his arm. The Force really was powerful...

"You can also go into a healing trance," Obi-Wan noted. "It is good for more intense injuries."

"Teach you that later, we will," Yoda said. He ignited his lightsaber. "Try again with our sabers now, will we." The Jedi Master began to back away to give the young human a little space.

Luke pulled up his saber, moving into a ready stance. He nodded at Yoda, who suddenly struck.

Several parries, feints, strikes, and blocks later, the two were still dueling. Luke's face was covered in a fine sheen of sweat—Yoda was pushing him to his limits, providing a greater challenge than he'd ever suspected he would face on this muddy planet. It was very difficult to keep up with the expert duelist at first, and then at one point—he wasn't quite sure when—he found himself suddenly lost in the Force, embraced by the energy field in a way he had not known was possible. When that happened, he no longer had to think—his body simply responded to Yoda's movements, and he felt as if his lightsaber had become an extension of himself.

Yoda flipped and jumped around, hitting him at every corner, but still he blocked, meeting the swift attacks of the small Jedi Master. And then suddenly he was switching to the offensive, pressing his attack against his opponent, lunging, then striking downward, then swiveling his saber with the brute strength he'd gained in his time on Dagobah and turning one of Yoda's moves against him, pushing him backward slowly but steadily till Yoda's back was nearly touching an upright tree.

Then the Jedi Master jumped up impossibly into the air and flipped over Luke's head, landing on the ground and extinguishing his saber.

Luke twisted around, ready to meet the Jedi. On seeing that Yoda's green blade was no longer visible, he made his own blade disappear and—his chest heaving—gave a short bow toward Yoda.

Yoda called his cane to himself with the Force, and he leaned heavily on it. Breathing hard, he said, "Done well, you have, Luke."

Luke winced. The Jedi was nine hundred years old—he shouldn't have been pushing him so hard.

"You will do well against Vader," Obi-Wan said softly. The sentence felt somehow harsh to Luke, though he did not think that had been Obi-Wan's intention.

Words clung to his throat, but Luke finally managed to push them out. "I—I don't know if I can do it. I don't know if I can kill my own father."

The man was a monster—he couldn't deny that. Darth Vader had done so many terrible things that to deny his classification as monster would be to make a mistake...But he shared blood with Vader—the Sith Lord was the only family Luke had. He wanted to hate him—he could feel the potential for pure animosity just simmering in the back of his mind—but something stopped him from shrouding himself in such animosity. Something made him wonder if maybe, just maybe, the Sith Lord still had good in him.

"If you can't do it, then the Empire has won," Obi-Wan said sadly. He sounded resigned. "You are our last hope, Luke."

"He might be turned—"

"If once you start down the dark path, forever will it dominate your destiny," Yoda said dismissively. "Too late for him, it is."

The words the two Jedi spoke were composed of wisdom—Luke knew it. It was unlikely that there was even a shred of decency left in Darth Vader. But still, different words were coming from his heart—words of hope.

The words Luke spoke to his two masters were: "I guess you're right." But they weren't the words his heart was speaking.

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Author's Note: Thanks for the reviews, folks. I'm sorry Vader isn't in this chapter--but he is in the next one.