What is known about the Force? Stubborn old-timers of Star Wars cite the definition introduced by Obi-Wan Kenobi at the beginning of the fourth episode. It is an energy field created by all living things. It surrounds us and penetrates us. It binds the universe together. Nonsense, in my opinion. Why? Because according to this definition, ANY LIVING BEING IN THE DDG is capable of learning the Force and becoming, what a Jedi, what a Sith, what some other entity. Why then aren't the Emperor's Stormtroopers helped, giving them the opportunity to study the Force? Is the Emperor afraid of competitors? Not funny. Those who say they should be taught to the level of a Sith, let them tweak their accuracy. And many others could have practiced self-discipline and become Force-users.
Against this backdrop, the explanation about midi-chlorians, which determine Force potential, is much more logical. It immediately explains why some are Jedi, others Sith, others – some other sect of Force-users, and others don't wield the Force, although they can be warriors, mercenaries, and soldiers, and to such, God of Winds himself (upbringing on Tustra is showing through again) commanded them to become stronger by any means. But no, that's not the case. A certain number of Gifted, no more, no less. Although it's a bit unfair, as no one knows how these midi-chlorians get into our cells. There's a minimum of them in every inhabitant of the DDG, well, almost everyone. But why do some have more and others less?
Many are researching both midi-chlorians and the Force itself. Midi-chlorians... They only affect potential, and I, in potential and speed of development, am better than many. But theoretically, both Drallig, Gol, and Fimor can be no less than me in the future. The important thing here is appropriate training. Not running around the Temple like Drallig does, but training. Honestly, training has its downside. You can easily burn out. I could have died long ago, because my pace is simply incredible. Why am I still alive and not dead from training? It's simple. What does everyone understand by the word training? Specific actions aimed at a specific result, for the achievement of specific skills.
And I not only swing my saber and train available Force techniques, but I also meditate. In meditation, both body and mind rest, while I let myself go into the ocean of the Force that surrounds and permeates the Temple. After all, the Temple is built on a Force Nexus, a specific place that emits the Force. Meditating in the Temple is a pleasure. Unless, of course, Drallig appears nearby, demanding that I come down to the training hall with him, because he invented a super-duper move, which turns out to be another Shii-Cho movement he peeked at from the seniors. Alas... Inventing something new in established combat forms is a non-trivial task.
However, this time I was distracted from meditation, into which I had plunged while the others were at sword fighting, by a datapad signal. It signaled the start of a Force lesson. Force lessons were the most multifaceted. We did everything. From meditation and telekinesis to deflecting laser shots with lightsabers and accelerating the body. These lessons were led for all clans by a consul. Preferably a Jedi Master. In most cases, including ours, Master Yoda himself. In the Force, he was incredibly powerful, also distinguished by his deep understanding of it and could actively pour "Jedi brainwashing" into impressionable minds with the most potent fertilizers.
Yes, I like Jedi, I like them for their calmness and "kindness," although that's not about the current Jedi. Now they have faltered. Just like the Republic. In general, I was for the Republic, but with reservations. I understood the Republic's flaws, as well as the Empire's advantages. A monarchical state, with an adequate monarch, will achieve unprecedented prosperity. Peter I, Suleiman the Magnificent, and a number of other great Tsars, Emperors, and Kings... But just as there are jewels, there are also ordinary stones. And the latter are far more numerous. Heirs of great Emperors are often almost nothing themselves. The cost of living with great parents. From such children, much more is expected, because of who their parents are, but their children rarely justify their origin, simply breaking under expectations.
Only in various alternative universes, novellas by various authors, who write about transmigration into the Russian Empire, revanchists, Tsarevich Alexei, son of Peter I – not an idiot who did everything to spite his father. Nicholas II is a worthy replacement for Alexander III, and so on. I have long pondered the vicissitudes of power change and inheritance. No one lives forever, and states can easily collapse, especially if they are states of one person. What happened to his Empire after Palpatine? Imperial Remnants – surviving Grand Admirals, Grand Moff, Ysanne Isard, Sate Pestage... Each pulled for himself, Palpatine had no heirs. Naive. Palpatine hoped to live forever, not without reason. After all, clones were maturing on Byss, albeit defective ones. But that's foolish. Anyone can die. What to do? It's simple. Prepare a worthy heir. Palpatine actually had a son, nicknamed Triclops for a rare mutation – a third eye on the back of his head. Triclops' story is sad, because Palpatine wanted to make him a worthy heir, but Triclops' Force potential was no less than Palpatine's. The poor fellow got scared and decided to send his son to the Kessel mines, where Triclops conceived a child. Palpatine's newly-minted grandson fled as far away as possible, and Triclops, in his time – joined the New Republic and personally took part in finishing off the Imperial Remnants.
Yes, Sith cannot have heirs... This is only in fanfiction that Palpatine has a son, then a grandson. And Palpatine calmly reacts to this circumstance, later handing over power to him. In reality – Sith do not share power, with almost anyone. In reality – the Banites are no different from the classic Sith. There are only two of them, there were two in the old Sith Order. The Master simply travels with the Apprentice, teaches him everything. And there are several such pairs of Masters and Apprentices. The Master, who embodies the might of the Dark Side for his apprentice, and the Apprentice himself, comprehending all the Master's knowledge. The title of Dark Lord in the classic Order was achieved in most cases almost always the same as with the Banites. Murder. The Empire, created by the Sith, adopted their ideology and worldview. That's why it's the "devilish Empire." Yes, there were positive aspects, but the negative ones outweighed them. And the Rebels had many charismatic and intelligent leaders who, with skillful emphasis, could motivate others correctly. Therefore, despite the total control over bureaucrats, the elimination of pirates, bribe-takers, criminal elements – the Empire has its downsides. Nothing is perfect, neither the Empire nor the Republic. But if the question is put bluntly, I lean towards the Republic.
What is its advantage? Change of power... Yes, because one leader can be replaced, if his policy begins to take an unpleasant turn, by another leader, quite legally, without war. The disadvantage is that over hundreds of years, the Republic has rotted to its foundations. Clan system. How many Valorum's, for example, have been chancellors in recent centuries? Yes, currently, Exes Valorum is at the helm of the Republic. Thus, every decision has its downsides... The problem of the modern Republic is also the permissiveness of the Senators, as well as – the powers of my Jedi Order. We are weak, precisely weak. And the root of this weakness, in my opinion, is the Ruusan Reformation...
Jedi are not guardians of peace now, that's an honorary title. Now we are only guardians of the Senate and the peace that the Senators see. Many issues are decided by Senators. And among them, there are adequate individuals who are intelligent and generally worthy people. But over a thousand years, they have become a minority. There is no oversight of the Senators. Rarely can a Senator be arrested; for that, one must be a completely overreaching corrupt official. And even then, it's not a fact that arrest will be followed by a worthy punishment. The Supreme Chancellor – only lobbies the interests of certain groups, mostly not interested in the lives of ordinary Sentient beings. These groups are only interested in their own profit.
In my opinion, what is needed for this? A shake-up... It should start small, with my Order. If it's possible to get a grip, reform the Order, without violating the Ruusan Accords, strengthen it as much as possible, one can try to put pressure on the Senate. Senators are weak; there are those who fully believe in the Jedi, there are those who want justice. If successful, the Republic can reform into a stronger entity. And Sith won't be needed. And Palpatine and Plagueis will be quietly eliminated. But not now, no... It's too early to cut them down. Neither the Republic nor the Jedi Order is ready for confrontation with them, right now. To defeat the Sith – the Order must be reformed. To reform the Republic – the Order must be reformed. I have two reasons to become strong enough to join the Jedi High Council and start pushing my visions there.
Many on the High Council, with sufficient facts, will listen. Yoda, for example, is certainly capable of hearing reason. Yes, he lost to Palpatine. But if he is sufficiently prepared. Mentally... This is the position I have chosen. Why so? Because in this plan, my participation is as indirect as possible. I will only be pushing, but not participating myself. I will not sacrifice or risk anything.
The corridors of the temple are incredibly large. And they are also bright, as huge windows let in the golden rays of the Coruscant star. Younglings move with their clan only for the first couple of months. After that, they are free to choose where to walk in the Temple. If you get lost – either use the map, which is prudently loaded onto your datapad, or approach any Jedi. Regardless of their role, they will always show you the way to the location you need. Even now, despite my confident walk towards the training halls, the Temple Guards, in masks, were watching me, clearly ready to approach and help a Jedi larva if needed. However, I don't need their help. My skills completely exclude topographical cretinism as a phenomenon. I only need to close my eyes for a couple of seconds, enter a semi-meditative state, an echo of the Force, and I know my way precisely.
True, one should not abuse the feeling of the Will of the Force and rely on it. One must not allow the Force to overpower reason. For the Force is a collective, unconscious mind striving for balance. And if balance deems my death desirable, then I will die. So – the Will of the Force should be considered, but one's own mind should be the final arbiter. It guides my hands, my body, and the Force. Not the Force...
I entered a rather cozy room. My steps echoed in the Hall. Training with droids, and Yoda himself is in charge.
"You're late, Flyingstar," Cin Drallig snorted, looking down at me condescendingly.
"He is not late, young youngling," Yoda slipped out of meditation, sitting on something resembling a chair in the High Council Chamber. I remember he showed us this Chamber. "You should learn humility. A Jedi must be patient. Impatience leads to anger, and anger is the direct path to the Dark Side of the Force, not the path of a Jedi."
Yoda's downside is that he can turn any conversation into "this, this, and this leads to the Dark Side of the Force..." The first hundred and twenty times it was, in part, funny. And then not so much... My clan looked composed, well, except for Drallig, who heard about a comb for the first time only when he joined the Order. I already know who Drallig will hate in time – us. Because we saw him as a child and will be able to laugh at him quite a bit. But we have to live to see that.
"Put on your helmets," Yoda commanded, levitating helmets into our hands, hiding our eyes and preventing us from seeing the droids' positions. "Prepare your sabers."
An indignant snort was heard from Cin. The Force was the least favorite subject of Drallig and a large number of younglings and padawans. Why? Because only those who are calm can control the Force better. Or those who correctly manage their emotions, as in the case of the Sith. Those who are unable to curb their passions, or direct them in the right direction, are doomed to failure. As a certain character, well-known in narrow circles, said: "When I am calm, I am invincible." Charlotte Katakuri said this, from the world of One Piece. A calm Katakuri, using his Observation Haki, a special ability related to sensory perception, could peer into the future and predict his opponent's attacks. A similar principle applies here.
And for me, this was a good gift. I, according to tests back on Earth, am a melancholic-phlegmatic. Such people are quiet, calm, always withdrawn. The Force, sensory perception, to be more precise – I comprehended it by leaps and bounds. Maybe I can't feel Yoda, it's not my level, but I can feel some, even clearly hiding, knights. Even with my eyes completely closed, I calmly felt the droid. I felt every shot, every movement. Putting on the helmet, I adjusted my clothes to move more freely... My perception changed. Instead of the familiar world, I began to feel auras around me... The girls, anxiety emanated from them. Droids are not feminists; they don't care which target they shoot laser bolts at. Drallig, as usual during such training, generated impatience and tension. Fool, you should calm down instead.
Gol got lost. For some reason, the Wookiee was afraid of the darkness. Although the Force helped him out. Well, and Fimor desperately tried to imitate me.
"You must calm down," Yoda launched the droids. "Don't worry, Gol, Cin. Calm down. Do it."
My droid shifted to the right. My body reacted instantly. How can I see a droid if it doesn't have an aura? It's simple, that's my specialty. I knew from the very beginning that there is no Force in droids. They are invisible to normal sensory perception. Just like the Yuuzhan Vong. So what to do? It's simple. The thing is, we train in sensory perception and in the technique "Force Vision." When the senses usual for everyone fail, one should rely on the Force technique. Droids are visible through vision as voids. Just a black dot, in the case of a round training droid. After all, the Force does not pass through droids. And I suspect that the Vong, if I, may the Force be with me, have ended up in the True Canon, will be visible in exactly the same way. I have mastered basic Force vision so much that not only the presence of a hostile sentient nearby, whom I can detect with vision, will be suspicious to me, but also black voids in the Force that form around droids generally insensitive to the Force and, I suspect, the Vong.
To check, I could try to find one of them, say Nom Anor, who was in the Great Dark Age, I think, for quite a long time. Although no. Even in the role of a Knight, I won't be ready to confront him. Finding him is not enough. Nom Anor is a rather skilled spy and assassin, who at one time almost sent Maru Jade Skywalker, one of the strongest Masters of her time, to merge with the Force.
The Force kind of bypasses insensitive objects; if the object is large, it repels and returns to the Force emitter. That is, I am, in essence, a locator. The droid fired... With a honed movement, I caught the shot with my sword. A sharp shift down, and then to the left. Another shot, and the sword moved to a new position, catching it.
"Ow!" Rela's cry was heard.
Judging by what I managed to catch, she was hit right in the shoulder. Droids usually shoot either at the limbs or the stomach.
"You must concentrate," Yoda's voice was heard from nearby.
"I'm trying..."
"Don't try, do," Yoda said importantly. "The Force feels your thoughts. You think about 'trying,' and that's why it all fails you. You must think about what you are doing, and nothing else."
And he's right. If you do everything with the thought: "This is just a training session, I'll do a couple more sets later," then your result will be, at best, ten percent of what's needed. But if you seriously convince yourself that "this is a serious situation, and it's all or nothing," there's a high chance you'll get a worthy result, even if you're doing it for the first time. But it's easy for me, an adult, to discipline and self-organize. They are children... We can be taught manners, etiquette, rules of conduct as much as we want. We can communicate like adults at the age of four without distorting words. But... It's hard, impossible, to eradicate childhood from a child. It doesn't matter if he's from the "true ones," as they insultingly called those who were taken as infants, and those who went through "kindergarten in the Temple," or from those who arrived at the Temple at a later age.
By the way, you can also dodge shots. For example, I did this trick a couple of times, dodging when, in my opinion, it was harder for me to move my sword in the path of the shot. Rela's droid shut down, hung in the air, and began to wait for the girl to reactivate her sword. She was about to lift her helmet's visor, but here's the catch, Yoda quickly tapped her hand.
"You must pull your sword with the Force," Yoda told her in a commanding tone.
"But I can't," Rela protested, while I managed to deflect two more shots.
"You can't? Hmm?" Yoda asked. "Or you don't want to? The Force is a Jedi's ally, you must all act with its help. You cannot not be able to. You can not know how. But we must eradicate not knowing how. We agreed to train you as a Jedi, but a Jedi is not just someone who walks with a lightsaber. No. A Jedi is a strong and determined sentient, he helps others. The weak. And to be such, you must be strong. Not only in the Force, no. Your character must be strong."
I concentrated, deflecting the shot. Rela's sword was not far, about two meters from her. Picking it up with telekinesis, I directed her sword into her hands.
"Hmm," Yoda grumbled thoughtfully.
"Thank you," the girl's aura grabbed the sword and activated it.
The training continued...
"Stay," Yoda said, as my clanmates, sweaty from training, headed for the exit. Not just sensory perception. After an hour of training with droids, Yoda scattered sand mixed with two pebbles in front of each of them and told them to pick them out of the pile of sand. "Young Flyingstar," Yoda continued. "I must talk with you. The rest are free."
The clanmates, exchanging glances, slowly shuffled out of the hall. Yoda watched them go, sitting in his chair.
"Sit down, youngling," Yoda indicated with a nod of his head to a pouf that he had pulled to me with the Force.
"Master Yoda?" I looked at the Grand Master.
"Hmm..." He wrinkled his non-existent eyebrows thoughtfully. "Why did you help her?"
"Excuse me?" I asked in bewilderment. "But what are you surprised about?"
"You are wiser than some adults, but you could not grasp simple truths," Yoda poked me with his stick. "She was learning. She should have pulled her sword herself with the Force. Even through pain. This is learning, training."
"But you yourself said that you must act as if it's not so..."
"That's precisely why she should have pulled her sword herself," Yoda objected. "But..."
"She couldn't," I shook my head. "In a real situation, she would have..." I remembered Rela, the Twi'lek. All Twi'leks, with proper development, turn out quite beautiful. Aayla Secura, the recognized beauty of the Great Dark Age, appeared before my eyes. "She would have..." Dol Agid, the unfortunate pawn mercenary who died, flashed before my eyes. The first corpse I saw. Although no, before that there was a soldier from the palace of His Majesty Alaric.
"There would have been no problems for her if you had allowed her to learn," Yoda said.
"But you yourself taught us to help and protect people," I noted. "I helped Rela. Isn't that the Jedi Path?"
"Hmm, I said that," Yoda squinted. "You acted correctly, as a Jedi. So... I have something else to discuss. I was told that you are doing well with the Force."
"That's right. I don't want to brag, Master," I replied to Yoda's squint. "It just comes naturally to me."
"You are strict with yourself, which is right, but also partly wrong," Yoda sighed. "You have a great connection with the Force. You have great potential. I will teach you personally."
"Why?" I asked.
"I have already answered you," Yoda said. "You, like me, at one time. You are fascinated by the Force. You will become a great Jedi if Master teaches you. I will not take you as a Padawan. There is no time, but I will teach you the Force. We will start with meditation, I will explain much to you..."
After another four hours of lessons, I was literally crawling into the room. Definitely, these lessons are worth it...