chapter twenty-three

AFTER A COUPLE MORE weeks of tirelessly working on her ship to make it usable after the crash, Amora finally managed to get the engines revving. It could fly again. She could meet back up with the rebellion.

She bounded through the trees with glee in a race to find Luke, Yoda, and Artoo. The formers had been back at their endless training sessions and, while she didn't know exactly what they did, she knew which lagoon they were usually near. Amora hurried over as quickly as she could to make it to the water and tell them the news. She was too proud to wait until later.

"Use the Force, yes..."

She suddenly stopped running in the current direction and took a sharp turn to the right. Yoda's voice was quiet, but clearly audible amongst the marsh's stillness. And it didn't take long for Artoo to fade into view, his muddy metal still a shiny beacon.

Treading over to his spot a little ways away, her noisy entrance was finally noticed. He rolled over the best he could to meet her halfway, to which she kneeled down in front of him.

"Hey buddy, you know where they are?"

She didn't need to specify who "they" was; it's not like she was searching for the monster who devoured him on the first day. Artoo inched backwards a bit and turned himself to face the opposite direction.

"Follow you, then?" she asked at the lack of response from the droid. He didn't answer to that, either, and rolled away casually. "I guess that's a yes..."

He guided her past a giant tree trunk that blocked the water's shore and revealed the sight of exactly who she was looking for, although not exactly the position she was expecting. Luke stood perfectly still in a handstand, balancing on one arm while purposefully off center. He managed to level Yoda carefully on one foot, where he hollered advice as calmly as possible.

Any normal person would probably be impressed by that in itself. Holding a perfect handstand for that long was difficult, let alone on one arm. But Amora, on the other hand, was a bit... distracted, to say the least. Her focus was immediately captured by the way his arms flexed from the tension, glistening in sweat as they supported his lean body easily, not to mention the faint outline of his abs that were faintly visible.

"You never told me this was the view," Amora spoke under her breath to Artoo, nudging him softly with her knee. "I would've came out here more often."

If Artoo could groan in annoyance through beeps, he definitely did right now.

"Now, the stone," Yoda's voice rang through the air. "Feel it."

With a strained effort, a nearby stone began to slowly rise into the air, wobbling and shaking with every inch it increased. Yet his stance still stood firm and controlled, any struggling disguised by sheer confidence and skill.

Amora was utterly in awe of everything that was Luke Skywalker. His benevolent heart, his captivating smile, his dedication to his passions. It was all too comforting and constant to overlook as vapid. Even now, she just couldn't help but admire the extreme strength, emotional and physical, that was built in such a short amount of time. But no matter how much he's changed since she first met him, he still kept the same charming, optimistic soul. Her heart fluttered with pride because that was her friend. She couldn't call him hers, but she could cherish every feature that made him enchanting. He was, quite frankly, remarkable.

All of a sudden, Artoo began noisily chirping from beside Amora, frantically beeping for attention. She rolled her eyes in frustration and rushed to quiet him down before she even noticed what he was freaking out about.

"Shh! You're gonna distract- oh..."

Her eyes widened as she noticed Luke's X-wing beginning to sink completely under water, the cockpit hardly peeking out. The swamp swallowed the ship practically whole with an unsettling gurgling noise that scared some nearby birds from the branches above. Neither Luke nor Yoda seemed to have noticed yet, but the noise would no doubt alert them by now.

The panic from this sight struck Amora with a terrible realization. If they only had one working X-wing available, then that meant she couldn't leave. She'd be stuck here until Luke's training was complete. Not that it was the worst thing in the world; she had no complaints about staying with Luke longer. But she had been so excited to get back to her team and plan their next move. To help relocate those who didn't regroup. To make the change that she had no power over from this muggy marsh.

Were they wondering where she was? What about Luke? Did the rebellion think they were dead? And what about Zolynn, Leia, Han, Chewie, and Threepio? She had absolutely no clue if they were even alive, and if they were, where they were. There were so many questions she had no answers to. Questions that she couldn't answer until she left the planet. And she was so close to leaving, but would this incident have to halt her plans?

Her worries fleeted as quickly as they came, however, with the realization that it didn't really matter. The ship didn't explode. It was only a few feet under, and she had just witnessed Luke lifting objects out of mere will. There was no doubt in her mind that he was capable of moving the ship to a more preferable location. If there was anyone who had the diligence and determination to solve this problem, it was Luke.

"Concentr- ahh!"

The sudden scream from Yoda caused Amora to twirl around in panic. Yet her tense state shifted to a wince as she watched Luke crumble in a heap on the ground painfully, the Jedi master flying through the air above him.

Yoda plopped to the ground with a huff as Luke groaned, either from frustration or pain (or both). He ran a hand through his hair, quickly doing a double take when he noticed who was standing there.

"Amora?" he flushed in surprise, momentarily forgetting why he fell in the first place. He hadn't expected to see her. She never watched him train, as much as he secretly wished she did. But not now, when he just crashed and burned.

"Don't worry, I totally didn't see you just fall," she mock assured him with a nod of dramatic sympathy.

That didn't help Luke's embarrassment, not at all, but luckily, Artoo interrupted their short conversation with a flurry of irritated whistles.

While Amora only gazed back at the wreckage lazily, impatiently waiting for someone to hurry up and take it out, Luke seemed to have other thoughts on his mind. His eyes widened as they surveyed the ship, or lack of, as he hurriedly pushed himself off the ground and jogged over to the water's edge. It gently sloshed as he entered the shallow end to get as close as he could.

"Oh no!" Luke exclaimed with a negative twinge in his voice. "We'll never get it out now!"

Amora raised her eyebrows and placed her hands on her hips.

Weren't you the one using literal superpowers a few seconds ago?

Yoda seemed to agree with her and walked closer to the banks of the swamp. The cryptic twinkle in his eyes flashed with the image of disappointment, the scolding stare that Amora was glad wasn't directed at her.

"So certain, are you?" he sighed, staring down at the dirt sadly. "Always with you, it cannot be done. Hear you nothing that I say?"

Luke twisted around to face Yoda, but not before momentarily locking eyes with Amora, subconsciously begging her to take his side. She only gave him a blank look and nudged her head towards Yoda who patiently awaited a response.

"Master, moving stones around is one thing," he stubbornly insisted. "This is totally different!"

Amora scoffed quietly and glanced down at Artoo with an unamused expression. He had no face, nor did he speak, but she could tell they shared the same thoughts of annoyance.

What happened to the Luke who took on the Death Star with only a blaster and an ego?

"No! No different!" Yoda stamped his cane into the dirt. "Only different in your mind! You must unlearn what you have learned!"

The group soaked in Yoda's wise words. Only, they all seemed focused on whether Luke would cave or not. As it turns out, his reaction wasn't so enthusiastic.

"Alright, I'll give it a try," Luke finally sighed in exasperation.

"No! Try not!" Yoda snapped with authority. "Do. Or do not. There is no try."

There is no try.

Amora wholeheartedly agreed with that line. If you were to call an attack with no plan to get out, you didn't "try your best," you just killed hundreds of soldiers. Sometimes you just don't have the luxury of "trying." You either do, or do not. And she certainly knew which one she would choose.

Luke gave a small nod to Yoda and turned to face the speck of an X-wing that poked out of the water's surface, gaze passing over Amora's fleetingly.

If she thought he could, then he could.

He took a deep breath to compose himself, closed his eyes, and raised his arm at the ship. A few seconds passed where nothing happened. Only a few seconds. The next few seconds made everyone nearly gasp with joy.

The ship became larger and larger as it rose from the depths of the lagoon, stirring the water greatly with impact.

Artoo rocked back and force excitedly, giddily beeping encouragement. Even Amora found herself taking a few steps forward without realizing. Her lips parted slightly and her eyes widened in marvel.

He was really doing it.

Not that she had any doubts in the first place. It's just one thing to have faith in a person and another thing to see them succeed.

But it seemed like she spoke too soon. The excitement faded as fast as it came as the ship dropped back into the water, Amora's hopes along with it. This time, the swamp consumed it entirely. No sign of any X-wing was in sight. Any chance of Amora leaving drowned helplessly.

Now it's actually gone.

Artoo hummed sadly and mirrored Amora's thoughts. She just hoped her disappointment was so evident on her face.

She didn't know what she was frustrated with. Luke? Of course not. She knew she was all bark and no bite with the Force. She could stand here all day and wonder why he couldn't lift this giant piece of machinery, but that doesn't change the fact that it's harder than anything she could ever do. Yoda? Why should she be upset with him? Because he had the ability to pull the ship out but didn't when he had the chance? Obviously he wouldn't. That made no sense.

She was just frustrated with the whole situation. Here she was, stuck on a humid, muddy planet after she used all her willpower to get off and back to the rebellion. The rebellion! Not even back to a lovely home on a beautiful planet. No, back to a deadly war between a bunch of baseless optimists and the most powerful government, which led the story back to the Empire. It always did. Her life could've been happy and peaceful with her perfect little family if the Empire never meddled. Granted, there were many things that made her life with the rebellion the happiest she could ever wish for. But right now, it was hard to see the positive.

Amora took a few steps backwards to join Artoo again while Luke jogged over to Yoda, collapsing on the ground in exhaustion.

"I can't," he panted. "It's too big."

Amora frowned. She was supposed to be the pessimistic one, not him. And yet even now, she wasn't nearly as pessimistic as she once was, and it was because of him. Why didn't he think he could do it?

"Size matters not," Yoda chastised wisely. "Look at me. Judge me by my size, do you? Hm?"

Her head shook subtly at the same time Luke's did, even though no one was talking to her. His words were just too enticing and experienced to brush off.

"And well you should not," he hummed in satisfaction. "For my ally in the Force. And a powerful ally it is." He motioned to the nature surrounding them. "Life creates it, makes it grow. Its energy surrounds us and binds us. Luminous beings, are we." He reached forward to pinch Luke's arm. "Not this crude matter. You must feel the Force around you. Here, between you, me, the tree, the rock, everywhere. Yes, even between this land and that ship."

As confusing as the Force was, the speech made perfect sense to Amora. It didn't matter who you were or what you were physically. It only took a spiritual connection to the Force, the belief that you could use its advantages respectfully, to live amongst its powers. That's all Luke was missing.

He pushed himself off the ground and, for a brief moment, Amora thought he found the motivation to try again. It seemed that, again, she was wrong.

"You want the impossible," he spat back bitterly before exiting the clearing, disappearing behind a tightly grown patch of trees.

For someone with such high aspirations and a history of persistence, he was taking this setback a lot harsher than usual.

She sighed and glanced back at Yoda, who made no move to chase after him. Not that she expected him to, anyways.

"That's my cue," she mumbled to Artoo before leaving his side.

She carefully dodged some blatantly large roots that littered the ground while following after the same path Luke took. To be honest, he probably wanted to be left alone. But she didn't want him to feel like he was alone.

Amora didn't get very far along before she was startled by the loud noise of shifting water.

Maybe it's that swamp monster?

She halted and curiously peered around at the water. The image she saw was incredible.

Yoda, as small and mighty as he was, stood on the marsh banks with his arm extended outwards. The ship (that Amora could've sworn was just deep underwater) was now levitating above the swamp, water pouring out from every nook and cranny.

"Luke..." she called out shakily down the path she didn't get the chance to cross.

The ship hovered gracefully over the swamp, floating in the direction of Yoda's hand with poise.

The footsteps from behind her indicated that Luke heard the commotion. He broke through the tree line and stood next to Amora with wide eyes.

The ship neared closer and closer to land with no sign of struggle from Yoda. Once it casted a giant shadow over the shore, it lowered to the ground smoothly and dripped off any remaining water droplets from the deep lagoon.

Amora was frozen to her spot in utter amazement. That was the Force! And not just mind tricks or simple influence. It was the powers that were used by the old Jedi knights, taught in the ancient Jedi temple to utilize in combat! It was a glimpse into the past that Amora dreamed of seeing with her own two eyes, but never imagined it to be true.

Luke had left his spot to be closer to the ship, almost not believing it to be real. Like it was too crazy to possibly happen in real life. Artoo rocked enthusiastically on his two metal legs, whirring and beeping wildly, catching his attention.

His feelings of wonder were no secret to the group as he walked over to Yoda in astonishment. "I don't... I don't believe it!"

Amora took a few timid steps towards the two so she could hear Yoda's quiet, croaky answer.

Gazing at Luke expressionlessly, he spoke humbly. "That is why you fail."

The little bit of sympathy Amora could muster up was triggered as Luke hung his head in shame. The words clearly hit him hard, and she didn't blame him. Yoda's disappointment was the greatest weapon of them all. It stung like a knife.

At the same time, she could empathize with Luke's intentions. To a degree, it did seem impossible. And that's coming from someone who's experienced a lot more of the galaxy than him.

She was completely shocked as well. Not because she didn't believe it was possible, but because she never thought she'd ever witness anything like it. Obi-Wan never went around just casually lifting Tatooine boulders over hologram.

She'd only heard stories of the Jedi's great abilities and their strength in battle. They had to master the art of the lightsaber while also using the Force and staying mentally stable. She couldn't even do one of those things!

If they needed to, they could take off the entire roof of a building to crush their opponent! (Alright, maybe that wasn't the Jedi way, but it was theoretically possible.) The thing is, they possessed a type of power that Amora never thought she'd see. After all, Obi-Wan was the only Jedi she thought to be alive. The idea of another wasn't shocking, just random and unexpected. The concept of the Force was the same way. Not surprising, just not how she expected to spend her night.

"Well, I believed it," she cut in breathlessly, causing the two to turn their heads. "And I'm still amazed."

~ ☼ ~

author's note -

just to let you know, this chapter and the next and also the one after that were all supposed to be one chapter😭 but it obviously was way way too long. thats why this update took so long, cuz i actually wrote three chapters, not to mention i kept on rewriting it cuz act two is getting rly long LMAO. and for some reason i thought act two would be the shortest?? clown vibes✌️😚 so the next chapter will be up tomorrow and the next one after that will hopefully be the next day. thank you for reading! and thank you for voting and commenting!!! :)