Joining Young Justice

Chapter Sixteen: The Temple

When Master Yoda said I was ready to complete my training, I wasn't sure what to think. When I had been at the Temple, there was a war and my peers proved themselves in battle alongside the Clone Troopers. Without the precedent to rely on, I was nervous.

After a hearty breakfast of some sort of stew--I didn't question, I just ate--Master Yoda and I exited the hut and trekked through the swamp. He moved slowly, leaning on his cane as we picked our way around trees, fallen trunks, puddles of mud, and other obstacles, including the ever-present number of snakes that seemed to inhabit the planet. I patiently walked, waiting for Master Yoda to clue me in on what this training would look like. My blades swung from my hips and the third crystal dangled around my neck, the pieces for the next lightsaber I had planned stuffed in my pockets, rattling gently as we walked.

It was still raining and the landscape was quite foggy, making our destination quite difficult to spot, but I waited, trusting that Master Yoda would tell me when I needed to know. Batman had taught me that, what with his compartmentalization of facts between people and his general need to pull strings.

"Much patients you exhibit, Padawan," he finally said, drawing to a halt in a clearing. It was shrouded in heavy white fog that started to dissipate toward the fringe of the trees as he spoke. "Sit. Meditate. Reach out through the Force."

I did as I was told, sinking down onto my knees and closing my eyes. I breathed in and out, clearing my mind and opening my body for the Force to flow through me. Uncertainty ebbed away as I sharpened my mind, turning to the Force and the feelings and visions it presented.

An image appeared in my head. It was fuzzy at first, but I didn't try to grab at it. Slowly, it came into view and I took into the details. There was sand. Two suns danced in the pale sky. A very young boy stood watching the sunset.

The vision changed. A familiar man sat in a room with whitewashed clay walls. Sadness was visible on his face. There was a lightsaber on the table beside a glass of moisture. The scene faded.

I was watching the interior of a ship. A ragtag crew gathered around a table, but my eyes were drawn to the figure in the orange flight suit, a tan vest on top of it. He held a painted helmet and a strange device hung from his belt. It was like a rectangular frame, but I could tell there was a handle on one side. He must have had a connection to the Force if I was seeing him.

Then there was a Togruta with prominent white and blue montrals and lekku. She was cool and collected, two white bladed lightsabers in her hands. My heart jumped as she wheeled around, intercepting a red blade between her own, pivoting her body and bumping a figure clad in black. It was an Inquisitor! Before I could see any more of the fight, the image melted away.

My mind was blank again. After a moment, I opened my eyes. Master Yoda was seated across from me, lost in his own meditation. Another minute passed before his eyes open.

"What has the Force shown you, Padawan?"

"I'm not sure," I admitted, pondering the four people. Recognition flared and I started piecing together the greater meaning behind the images. "It showed me four people. Master Obi Wan and Padawan Learner Ahsoka Tano were among them. The other two were Force sensitive, I'm sure of it."

Master Yoda nodded thoughtfully.

"Find meaning in this, do you?"

"Not to jump the gun or anything," I said carefully, "But I believe the Force was showing me that there is hope scattered throughout the galaxy. Hope in those people that carry on the Jedi Order. I just don't know what that means in regards to me."

By the expression on Master Yoda's face, he suspected otherwise.

"Is the Force telling me that I'm another spot of hope for the galaxy, or that the galaxy is in good hands and that I'm needed elsewhere?" I asked, helplessly confused. Did I want it to be telling me one thing? I wasn't sure.