At this point, showing a little ability wasn't a problem. Most Force-sensitives could discover ways to use the Force on their own anyway. Amir hoped that by displaying some skill, he'd pique their curiosity enough to get himself out of this room—perhaps to a training ground or some other testing facility.
Only outside could he truly act freely.
As expected, Tulio's eyes lit up with excitement at Amir's display.
"How far can you go?" Tulio glanced around as if searching for something Amir could use to demonstrate further.
But on a starship, almost everything was bolted to the floor. Nothing nearby could be freely moved.
After a moment of fruitless searching, Tulio suddenly asked, "Can you lift yourself?"
Amir hesitated. Lifting himself wasn't particularly difficult—but it required shifting one's perception. One couldn't think of the Force as an extension of their arms. After all, you could lift objects with your hands, but you couldn't lift yourself with them.
Only by truly understanding the nature of the Force—and breaking away from conventional thinking—could it be done more easily.
"I've never tried," Amir said.
"Try it!"
Amir almost quoted Master Yoda's line—"Do or do not, there is no try."—but wisely kept it to himself.
He centered himself, focused, and began to use the Force to counteract his own weight—gradually pushing upward.
He rose about ten centimeters off the ground. That alone made Tulio nearly shout with joy.
"What a gift! The other test subjects need months of instruction before they can even grasp this!"
Amir smiled sheepishly.
He'd only learned to do this after meeting Obi-Wan. Before that, he couldn't even manage to reduce his weight properly. But once Obi-Wan had explained the theory, Amir had succeeded after just one or two attempts.
Tulio managed to restrain himself this time, learning from yesterday's outburst, though his excitement still showed through.
"Quick, study the material in that booklet! That's your work for today!" he urged, motioning for Amir to come down and read.
Amir obediently sat back on the bed and began to flip through it.
Just a glance at the table of contents surprised him.
Basic Force Telekinesis...
Methods and Applications for Counteracting Gravity...
The Mental Influence of the Force...
"They're actually studying this systematically?" Amir thought, intrigued, and started reading in earnest.
"These are compiled from Jedi Temple archives and the results of our own experiments," Tulio explained proudly. "We've reinterpreted the old knowledge, innovated on it. Memorize the basics first—later, we'll bring you to the training facility for detailed testing. We thought we'd have to spend months teaching you fundamentals, but your talent saves us all that effort!"
"My honor," Amir said sincerely.
At that moment, he had an idea. He decided to use the same Force-based persuasion technique Tulio had once used on him. The Ishi Tib's mind was still swimming with excitement, his consciousness unguarded. Amir reached out with the Force, gently stirring his emotions, amplifying his elation—and implanted the phrase "I'm honored" deep in his mind.
It was Amir's first attempt, so he didn't tamper with Tulio's core beliefs, keeping it simple and subtle.
Tulio's expression gradually shifted from excitement to warm satisfaction.
"I know, Amir," he said softly. "I can feel it—your devotion to our work, your willingness to give everything for the experiment! Study well. I'll go arrange your training schedule."
"Of course. I'll study hard and provide the most valuable data possible for the project," Amir replied, strengthening the suggestion and embedding a longer statement in Tulio's mind.
Watching Tulio leave with the look of someone who'd just met a kindred spirit, Amir lowered his head and resumed reading.
The manual was surprisingly valuable. Though it didn't go deeply into theory, mostly organizing and systematizing existing knowledge, its results could dramatically accelerate Force training for any sensitive individual.
It even described groundbreaking new methods of using the Force—such as mechanically assisted Force perception: placing a device capable of emitting long-range signals somewhere, then attuning to the signal through the Force until one could faintly sense the emitter's position anywhere within range.
That idea immediately reminded Amir of Darth Vader's infamous Force choke during long-distance holocommunication.
It implied the Force could travel through mediums—sound waves, electromagnetic signals, or even more abstract phenomena—to reach distant places.
While some Jedi Masters could accomplish this without any aid, such methods were invaluable for an apprentice like Amir.
He had to admit Gideon hadn't lied when he'd said, "This ship holds the best biologists in the galaxy."
Most of them weren't Force-sensitive, yet their research into the Force had reached astonishing depth.
This plain-looking manual held unimaginable value.
Amir spent the entire day studying it, barely pausing to eat a bit of lunch.
By the time he reached the last page, he exhaled deeply.
"This isn't all of it," he realized. "It only covers the basics, with a few experimental innovations. The untested hypotheses are probably the tasks they'll assign to me next."
"These notes alone are incredibly enlightening," he thought, leaning back and closing his eyes to review everything he'd read—still keeping up his act, pretending exhaustion.
Amir had always been confident in his memory. When he closed his eyes, whatever he wanted to recall would appear in vivid detail. It would fade over time, of course, so he regularly reviewed what he learned.
Before each meditation, he'd go over all the material once more to reinforce it.
It was a habit that made him an exceptional learner—whether in mechanics or, recently, lightsaber combat.
To the observers watching through the surveillance feed, however, his deep focus looked like something else entirely.
Tulio now stood beside Gideon in the command room, monitoring Amir's every move.
"Your assessment was right," Gideon said. "Yesterday's conditioning worked perfectly. His loyalty's strong already—he's been studying those dense notes all day without pause."
He looked at the weary boy on the screen, slumped against the bed, brow furrowed but still clutching the manual. Gideon smirked.
Tulio bristled slightly at the mocking tone—those notes were years of his team's work—but he still nodded in agreement.
At that moment, a researcher burst into the lab.
"Sir! Subject 548 just suffered an accident!"
"548?"
"It's Mona," Tulio said immediately. "One of only two test subjects with no Force sensitivity—the other is Milisen. I've spoken with her before. What happened?"
"She concealed an injury," the researcher reported. "During a stress-resistance exercise, she couldn't handle it and lost consciousness."
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🌌 Star Wars: Relics of the Past
📢 The Force Calls! 📢
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