[Theory] The Dagger of Mortis (Star Wars IX)

With the release date of Star Wars Episode IX: The Rise of Skywalker getting closer and closer, I thought I’d discuss one of my theories for the film in greater length than I did in my breakdown of the official trailer. It has to do with the dagger we see Rey holding in this shot here:

The question is this: Is this is the same dagger from the arc in The Clone Wars where Obi-Wan, Anakin and Ahsoka Tano (Anakin’s padawan) are on the force-strong planet Mortis? Here’s the backstory:

Obi-Wan Kenobi, Anakin Skywalker, and Ahsoka Tano land on Mortis where they meet three powerful god-like beings called the Ones. More specifically, they are the Father, the Daughter, and the Son. The Daughter is the pure embodiment of the Light side of the force, and the Son is the embodiment of the Dark, while the Father is the balance between the two. These beings are immortal as long as the Father is alive, and as long as he is alive neither the Son nor the Daughter can destroy the other. The Father puts Anakin to the test to see if he is the Chosen One by having the Son kidnap Ahsoka and the Daughter kidnap Obi-Wan, and making Anakin choose which one to save and which one to let die. Refusing to sacrifice either one for the other, Anakin uses his power in the force to “tame” the Son and the Daughter and make them release his friends. Convinced that Anakin is the Chosen One, the Father asks Anakin to take his place as the balance between the Son and the Daughter, as he is old and dying. Anakin refuses, however, wishing to leave the planet with Obi-Wan and Ahsoka and go back to the war.

Before they can leave, however, the Son kidnaps Ahsoka on their ship and takes her away. In his “palace” he is able to use his power to simply bite Ahsoka and turn her to the Dark Side. When he comes looking for her, Ahsoka attacks Anakin, who is forced to try to defend himself while avoiding hurting her. Meanwhile, Obi-Wan finds the Daughter, who takes him to a cave and shows him the Dagger of Mortis.

This dagger is the only thing capable of killing any of the Ones. Obi-Wan takes it and begins to search for the Son. He finds Anakin and Ahsoka fighting and comes to Anakin’s aid. Seeing the Son, Obi-Wan tries to throw the Dagger of Mortis to Anakin and tells him to kill the Son, but Ahsoka steals it and hands it to the Son. The Son, who wants nothing more than to be rid of the Father, who is keeping him from rising to power, immediately tries to stab him with the dagger, but the Daughter rushes in between the two and is killed instead of the Father. Horrified by what he has done, as he still loves his sister (in a sense), the Son flees the scene. Before she dies, however, the Daughter is able to give the rest of her power to Ahsoka and turn her back to the light. The Daughter is buried in a tomb along with the Dagger of Mortis.

Before they can leave Mortis, Anakin sets off to find the Son. He finds him near the core of the planet, but is powerless to do anything against him. The Son subdues Anakin and causes him to see visions of the future, like him killing Padmé, fighting Obi-Wan, turning into Darth Vader, etc. The Son tells Anakin that the only way to change his future is to join him, and Anakin gives in and turns to the Dark Side. Soon after, Obi-Wan finds Anakin there, but Anakin destroys his speeder and escapes on the other, leaving Obi-Wan stranded. Obi-Wan tells Ahsoka, who is back on the ship, to disable the ship so that neither Anakin nor the Son can leave the planet. When Anakin comes back to the ship, he finds it disabled and Ahsoka escapes on his speeder before he can stop her. Ahsoka rescues Obi-Wan, while the Father finds Anakin and clears his memory of the visions of his future, turning him back to the light. 

The Father, Anakin, Obi-Wan, and Ahsoka all confront the Son, who has taken the Dagger of Mortis from the Daughter’s tomb. But even the three Jedi are powerless against the Son, who easily deactivates their lightsabers and tosses them away. The Father, realizing it is the only way to keep the Son from plunging the galaxy into darkness, takes the Dagger of Mortis and stabs himself. As the Son embraces his father, devastated that his immortality and power are now gone, Anakin ignites his lightsaber from behind and impales the Son. The planet begins to crumble, but the balance in the force has been restored.

So what does all this mean for The Rise of Skywalker? Well, this dagger Rey is carrying in the shot with Darth Vader’s helmet in the trailer may be the same or similar to the Dagger of Mortis. We don’t see steel blades very much in Star Wars, and Rey already has a lightsaber, so she can’t be using it simply as a weapon. There are differences between this dagger and the Dagger of Mortis (the Mortis dagger had no crossguard and was more of a triangle), but it’s quite possible it could have just been redesigned for the big screen (and The Clone Wars was animated). The dagger could also be something similar to the Dagger of Mortis that looks different but has the same function.

It also makes sense that Rey would need something like this. Palpatine was the most powerful force-user in the galaxy, so who knows where his power may reach now. A dagger that can kill powerful force-users might be just the thing that Rey needs to defeat him. It makes a lot of sense, because it’s obvious lightsabers cannot defeat Palpatine, and this dagger that Rey is holding simply cannot be a normal weapon.

That being said, I do think it’s unlikely it will be the exact same dagger. First of all, the dagger was left on the planet, and would in all probability be lost when the planet was “destroyed.” Second, it would be very hard (and would take too much time) for the film to try to tell the story behind the dagger. So if this is a thing, the dagger will probably be a different one that has the same capabilities (maybe even comes from the same planet?).

What do you all think? Does this theory have some weight? Let me know down below. May the Force be with you!