Anne2345
02-28-2014, 01:11 PM
Darth Vader was warned.
And the terms of the warning were stark, foreboding, and anything but uncertain.
Still, the naturally gifted, yet late-blooming creation and crown champion of the Dark Side that he was, Vader could not help himself.
As he slowly and methodically circled his prey, Vader remained ever the aggressor and began to move in for what he surely believed would be an easy kill.
“Your powers are weak, old man,” taunted Vader, as he mockingly, with a bemused sense of deadly betrayal, cold-hearted determination, and untethered diabolical purpose, took note of the complete look of exhaustion displayed by the creased, weatherworn, battle-scarred and aged visage of his arch-nemesis.
Regardless, the old man fought back and defensively parried away every saber strike leveled against him.
But the battle had already waged on long. It had, in fact, become a physically taxing, laborious, grueling duel early on in the fight.
Vader, holding captive the advantages of both youth and hunger in his corner, was relentless in his pursuit of victory and remained focused exclusively within the moment.
The toll paid by his former Jedi master, on the other hand, was formidable and evidenced by the flowing rivulets of sweat and salty perspiration quickly cascading down his brow and into his bearded face without cessation.
Still, with the future of the free worlds in dire jeopardy and hope fading fast, just when the fate of the galaxy seemed all but sealed and the Rebellion crushed before it ever even had a fighting chance, the old man planted his feet, held firm, and steadfastly stood his ground.
Looking Lord Vader straight into his black, helmeted, hate-filled electronic eyes, and peering deep into Vader’s plague stricken, withered, corrupt soul, Obi-Wan Kenobi’s gaze neither wavered, flinched, nor betrayed even the slightest hint of fear or doubt.
“You can't win, Darth. If you strike me down, I shall become more powerful than you could possibly imagine,” replied Obi-Wan ominously, yet not without the prospect of mercy.
Thus it came to be that Obi-Wan Kenobi would make the ultimate sacrifice in the cause for peace, justice, and freedom on behalf of the Rebellion.
Custodian, Keeper, and Knight of the Light Side of the Force, Obi-Wan raised his saber to the sky, stood tall and proud, and smiled before the would-be executioner of his corporeal body.
And in that moment, and precisely at that moment, basking within a nightmarishly depraved glow of villainous intent, anticipating the sweet, dark, grisly taste of murder, Darth Vader eagerly took the bait and gleefully struck down what he believed to be the entirety of all that remained of his former mentor.
With apparent victory in hand, however, the Lord Sith failed to appreciate and grasp the true nature of Obi Wan’s seemingly suicidal acquiescence. Little could Vader know that on that day, on that fateful and otherwise successful day aboard his near-fully functional Death Star, that he would fall victim to his own ignorance and hubris.
By striking down Obi-Wan Kenobi, the Dark Side’s champion minion unwittingly set the foundation for the beginning of the end of the Empire, and the ultimate demise of his evil overlord master the Emperor.
It would not be until much, much later that Vader would come to appreciate the mistake he made in so striking down Obi-Wan Kenobi that terrible day aboard the Empire’s killing machine where Alderaan had once peacefully existed before its destruction in the nether regions of deep space.
But by then, it will have been too late.
The tide will have forever changed direction in opposition to the Dark Side, and the Rebellion, through secretly practiced patience and resolute, steady determination and training, will have grown exponentially in size, strength, and power.
Much too late, indeed, it will have been by this time.
Before the righteous cause, indomitable will, and collective might of the Rebellion and the Light Side of the Force, the Emperor’s prized agent of destruction shall not stand a chance. By no coincidence, the Emperor’s anointed purveyor of hatred and death shall ironically perish by the very hand of his own blood, and the eve of the collapse of the Empire will be upon the galaxy.
And within the shadow of the fall of the man that had been born Anakin Skywalker, the Empire would thereafter be forever stripped of its ability to rule through terror, fear, and hate. Followed shortly by the defeat and death of the Emperor, the Dark Side withered away and became no more.
Within the shadow of the fall of the man who had succumbed to fear and the Dark Side of the Force, the Rebellion found its greatest victory and deservedly earned its freedom from tyranny and iron-fisted rule . . . .
******************************
So what’s this all about, you may ask?
It’s not like Obi-Wan Kenobi was transsexual, right? Or Darth Vader, or the Emperor. At least, not that we know of.
So what gives? What’s all this craziness about?
Somewhere in here, and somewhere along the way, I have learned an important lesson.
The thing is, like Obi-Wan Kenobi, I have also been struck down by another. I have been struck down many, many times, in fact. Sometimes, I have even struck myself down by my own hand.
And given that I am currently in the midst of transition, I recognize that there will be those in the future who shall likewise continue to attempt to strike me down the further down this road I travel.
Whether such folk do so through sheer ignorance, misplaced or misguided sympathy, or by deliberate intent with malice is no longer of consequence to me.
Because what matters now is not so much what they do to me, but how I continue to move forward with my journey. You see, I have taken hit after hit from both loved ones and haters alike. And to date, to no one’s greater surprise than my own, I have survived the onslaught.
And here I am, here I remain, with my head finally held up.
I am able to breathe in, exhale out, and repeat.
I am aware of what I do, and I accept my actions for what they are.
In so doing those things I need to do to survive, the world has neither blown up nor blinked out of existence.
I am now more powerful and stronger than I could have ever imagined possible before, and I feel confident that I shall continue to grow stronger yet as the stakes are raised.
So be on guard, naysayers of the world, and be forewarned: although I have been struck down before, my day is coming and I shall have it. Attack me at your own risk. Just know that if you do, as Obi-Wan Kenobi foretold, the wise old man that he was, you cannot win.
Now if only I could figure out how to use the damn Jedi mind trick, I could get things to fall into place seriously quick . . . .
And the terms of the warning were stark, foreboding, and anything but uncertain.
Still, the naturally gifted, yet late-blooming creation and crown champion of the Dark Side that he was, Vader could not help himself.
As he slowly and methodically circled his prey, Vader remained ever the aggressor and began to move in for what he surely believed would be an easy kill.
“Your powers are weak, old man,” taunted Vader, as he mockingly, with a bemused sense of deadly betrayal, cold-hearted determination, and untethered diabolical purpose, took note of the complete look of exhaustion displayed by the creased, weatherworn, battle-scarred and aged visage of his arch-nemesis.
Regardless, the old man fought back and defensively parried away every saber strike leveled against him.
But the battle had already waged on long. It had, in fact, become a physically taxing, laborious, grueling duel early on in the fight.
Vader, holding captive the advantages of both youth and hunger in his corner, was relentless in his pursuit of victory and remained focused exclusively within the moment.
The toll paid by his former Jedi master, on the other hand, was formidable and evidenced by the flowing rivulets of sweat and salty perspiration quickly cascading down his brow and into his bearded face without cessation.
Still, with the future of the free worlds in dire jeopardy and hope fading fast, just when the fate of the galaxy seemed all but sealed and the Rebellion crushed before it ever even had a fighting chance, the old man planted his feet, held firm, and steadfastly stood his ground.
Looking Lord Vader straight into his black, helmeted, hate-filled electronic eyes, and peering deep into Vader’s plague stricken, withered, corrupt soul, Obi-Wan Kenobi’s gaze neither wavered, flinched, nor betrayed even the slightest hint of fear or doubt.
“You can't win, Darth. If you strike me down, I shall become more powerful than you could possibly imagine,” replied Obi-Wan ominously, yet not without the prospect of mercy.
Thus it came to be that Obi-Wan Kenobi would make the ultimate sacrifice in the cause for peace, justice, and freedom on behalf of the Rebellion.
Custodian, Keeper, and Knight of the Light Side of the Force, Obi-Wan raised his saber to the sky, stood tall and proud, and smiled before the would-be executioner of his corporeal body.
And in that moment, and precisely at that moment, basking within a nightmarishly depraved glow of villainous intent, anticipating the sweet, dark, grisly taste of murder, Darth Vader eagerly took the bait and gleefully struck down what he believed to be the entirety of all that remained of his former mentor.
With apparent victory in hand, however, the Lord Sith failed to appreciate and grasp the true nature of Obi Wan’s seemingly suicidal acquiescence. Little could Vader know that on that day, on that fateful and otherwise successful day aboard his near-fully functional Death Star, that he would fall victim to his own ignorance and hubris.
By striking down Obi-Wan Kenobi, the Dark Side’s champion minion unwittingly set the foundation for the beginning of the end of the Empire, and the ultimate demise of his evil overlord master the Emperor.
It would not be until much, much later that Vader would come to appreciate the mistake he made in so striking down Obi-Wan Kenobi that terrible day aboard the Empire’s killing machine where Alderaan had once peacefully existed before its destruction in the nether regions of deep space.
But by then, it will have been too late.
The tide will have forever changed direction in opposition to the Dark Side, and the Rebellion, through secretly practiced patience and resolute, steady determination and training, will have grown exponentially in size, strength, and power.
Much too late, indeed, it will have been by this time.
Before the righteous cause, indomitable will, and collective might of the Rebellion and the Light Side of the Force, the Emperor’s prized agent of destruction shall not stand a chance. By no coincidence, the Emperor’s anointed purveyor of hatred and death shall ironically perish by the very hand of his own blood, and the eve of the collapse of the Empire will be upon the galaxy.
And within the shadow of the fall of the man that had been born Anakin Skywalker, the Empire would thereafter be forever stripped of its ability to rule through terror, fear, and hate. Followed shortly by the defeat and death of the Emperor, the Dark Side withered away and became no more.
Within the shadow of the fall of the man who had succumbed to fear and the Dark Side of the Force, the Rebellion found its greatest victory and deservedly earned its freedom from tyranny and iron-fisted rule . . . .
******************************
So what’s this all about, you may ask?
It’s not like Obi-Wan Kenobi was transsexual, right? Or Darth Vader, or the Emperor. At least, not that we know of.
So what gives? What’s all this craziness about?
Somewhere in here, and somewhere along the way, I have learned an important lesson.
The thing is, like Obi-Wan Kenobi, I have also been struck down by another. I have been struck down many, many times, in fact. Sometimes, I have even struck myself down by my own hand.
And given that I am currently in the midst of transition, I recognize that there will be those in the future who shall likewise continue to attempt to strike me down the further down this road I travel.
Whether such folk do so through sheer ignorance, misplaced or misguided sympathy, or by deliberate intent with malice is no longer of consequence to me.
Because what matters now is not so much what they do to me, but how I continue to move forward with my journey. You see, I have taken hit after hit from both loved ones and haters alike. And to date, to no one’s greater surprise than my own, I have survived the onslaught.
And here I am, here I remain, with my head finally held up.
I am able to breathe in, exhale out, and repeat.
I am aware of what I do, and I accept my actions for what they are.
In so doing those things I need to do to survive, the world has neither blown up nor blinked out of existence.
I am now more powerful and stronger than I could have ever imagined possible before, and I feel confident that I shall continue to grow stronger yet as the stakes are raised.
So be on guard, naysayers of the world, and be forewarned: although I have been struck down before, my day is coming and I shall have it. Attack me at your own risk. Just know that if you do, as Obi-Wan Kenobi foretold, the wise old man that he was, you cannot win.
Now if only I could figure out how to use the damn Jedi mind trick, I could get things to fall into place seriously quick . . . .