Onimi. I remember the shock and satisfaction I felt when it was finally revealed that he was the true power behind the throne and not the monstrous Shimrra. There had been hints throughout much of the latter half of the New Jedi Order series, but nothing was quite as shocking as the discovery that not all of the Yuuzhan Vong were blind to the Force. There was one...

But not the one whom we all expected. It was Onimi. How was that possible? A lot of this theory goes back to the ideas of how the Yuuzhan Vong were "stripped" of the Force by their home world. Let's say that was a virus that was introduced to them. It would be designed especially to disrupt both their sensation and presence in the Force, and it would infect only the Yuuzhan Vong. Yet, the Yuuzhan Vong possessed the genetic codes of every living thing that ever existed on their planet. Obviously, some forms were on board the world ships with them. These included the lambent, and the yammosk.

How would this virus work? It seems that such a virus would be of the more insidious retro-virus style. This means that it is made of a piece of RNA (mRNA, I believe) and a protein coat. The RNA binds to a cell and basically rewrites a section of the DNA, forcing that cell to then make more of the virus. In rewriting the DNA, it is possible that something "extra" was added. That idea is supported in the New Jedi Order series. Therefore, it is possible that extra something is what blocks the Force. I've often referred to it as an "anti-midi," a phrase coined in FP, but is not an official term. With the idea that everything has an "aura" from the newest series of books, then it is also logical that the anti-midi's would similarly affect the aura of the Yuuzhan Vong, affecting not just their own perceptions through the Force, but others' perceptions of them as well. Such a virus would definitely have severe repercussions.

So the question begs to be asked: How different is the genetic code of one organism from another? Not very. Depending on what is compared, the similarities are truly astounding! It is definitely feasible for bioengineers to take existing genetic material and configure it to a specific code by means of cutting and splicing the genes. In fact, depending on the organism involved, the changes made would be minimal. How could this be done? Any genetic material could be used, but the genome found in an ovum is unusually appropriate for such experiments. Although the genes are haploid (not doubled as is found in a mature cell,) the genes are as yet unspecified, making it the ideal "blank canvas." Where would such ovums be obtained from? Clearly, female Yuuzhan Vong would have counted it a privilege to donate genetic material. But these organisms engineered from Yuuzhan Vong DNA would also possess the virus.

This would spread the virus, and the Force blindness to all living things tampered with or "improved" by the Yuuzhan Vong. So what about those things that could be "sensed" through the Force? Specifically the yammosks and lambents? Well, a lot of that has to do with the amount of genetic manipulation the organism underwent. It appears that the lambent is far more "natural" than some of the other organisms we encounter, like the amphistaffs. Now, although those appear to grow as plants, they exhibit some characteristics that were obviously developed. The Yuuzhan Vong even had "wild" amphistaffs and "domesticated" versions. To them, it was no different than eating domesticated sweet corn. As plants, lambents would not have been grown from animal tissue. That limits one source of the virus. It also appears that it is one of the more primitive forms of biotech utilized by the Yuuzhan Vong. Then there are the much more infamous yammosks. Drawn to Jedi, they were the exception that seemed to prove the rule. Yammosks were traditionally used to communicate between vessels, coordinating fleet movements as well an intra-ship activities. In fact, there is some evidence that yammosks are grown using exact copies of their own genetic material, leaving them essentially untainted. Of course, there is going to be some genetic crossover, no matter what is done. That could be why the yammosks gave a "weird" sensation in the Force, as if the aura was bent or tweaked. An additional explanation could be that because of their communicative properties, they were resistant to the virus naturally.

So then, how did Onimi become Force sensitive? It is stated in one of the books that he grafted yammosk material into his own brain. That could have lead to a couple conclusions. Either there is a certain concentration of anti-midi's necessary in the body to properly block all Force perceptions, or the yammosk material's natural resistance was transferred to Onimi's body, gradually killing the anti-midi's. In any event, Onimi gained Force abilities.

Although, that opens up a couple of other doors. If Onimi gained Force abilities by removing the anti-midi's then did the grafting of yammosk material onto his brain turn his nub on, was it already on, or ... what? Sounds like another interesting blog topic, if you ask me! But that's not the next topic for this blogger.

Next, how was it that even though the rest of the Yuuzhan Vong were still Force blind, they were still able to sense Onimi's presence?