Magic and mysticism have been a major part of the Star Wars universe ever since Obi-Wan Kenobi told Luke Skywalker about the Force back in 1977. Up to Andor season 2 episode 7, however, Disney+’s Rogue One: A Star Wars Story prequel has kept things grounded, ensuring that mystical energy fields controlling people’s destiny are somewhere else in George Lucas’s galaxy far, far away.

That all changes with Cassian Andor’s meeting with a Force healer on the Rebel Alliance’s Yavin IV base. Here’s why the encounter is so important to Cassian’s arc in the Andor season 2 story – and beyond.

Spoilers ahead! Proceed with caution if you’re yet to watch Andor season 2 episodes 7, 8 and 9.

Why does Cassian Andor meet a Force healer in Andor season 2 episode 7?

Following Bix Caleen (Adria Arjona)’s successful hit on her torturer, Dr Gorst, on Coruscant, she and Cassian Andor (Diego Luna) have relocated to the Rebels’ famous base on Yavin IV. Cassian has a blaster burn on his shoulder that refuses to heal, so Bix persuades her reluctant partner to pay a Force healer a visit to see if she can fix it.

What does a Force healer do?

Exactly as the job title suggests, Force healers use the Force to repair injured parts of the body. While it’s not an ability exhibited by every Force-wielder, we have seen both Grogu (aka Baby Yoda) and Rey repairing wounds in The Mandalorian and the Star Wars sequel trilogy, respectively.

Is the Force healer a Jedi?

It’s unclear whether the Force Healer (Josie Walker, a new addition to the Andor season 2 cast) is a Jedi, but it’s not out of the question.

Indeed, it’s plausible that she was one of the many Jedi who went on the run after the Emperor initiated Order 66, prompting the Clone Troopers to turn on their lightsaber-wielding generals during Revenge of the Sith. Now that the healer has made it to the safe space of the Rebel base, she may have decided that coming out of hiding was low-risk.

It’s more likely, however, that she’s one of the many Force sensitive individuals who never signed up to the Jedi Order – especially as, if she were a Jedi, she’d surely have revealed her existence to Luke Skywalker at some point during the original trilogy.

What does the Force healer say about Cassian in Andor season 2 episode 7?

She says she sees an unusual clarity in him but her certainty that he’s special freaks him out, driving him away.

“You scared him,” says Bix. “It’s not easy to do.”

The healer tells Bix that, “I sense the weight of things, things I can’t see. Pain, fear, need. Most beings carry the things that shape them, they carry the past. But some, very few… They’re gathering as they go, there’s a purpose to it. He’s a messenger. There’s some place he needs to be.”

But, she adds, “Maybe you’re the place he needs to be.”

Why are the Force healer’s words so important to Cassian’s destiny?

While Cassian is sceptical – much like Han Solo, who once regarded the Force as “mumbo jumbo” – the Force healer clearly has a profound effect on Bix. Cassian’s secretive handler Luthen Rael (Stellan Skarsgård) has already noted that Cassian’s protective instincts towards Bix are preventing him from realising his full potential as a Rebel operative. Now Bix has realised it too.

Having returned from the massacre on Ghorman, Cassian has decided he’s done with the Rebellion, that he’d rather leave with Bix. She knows she can’t let that happen, however, and sneaks out while he’s asleep. She does, however, leave a video message for when he wakes up.

“I can’t be the reason you leave here,” says Bix. “If you ever gave this up for me I’d never forgive myself. We have to win. We have to beat them. And I believe you have purpose in making that happen. I need to believe that. So, I’m choosing for the both of us. I’m choosing the Rebellion.”

Just to add to the sense of tragic romance, there isn’t much time left for a reunion. Showrunner/creator Tony Gilroy has already confirmed there won’t be an Andor season 3, so with just three more episodes to go before Cassian travels to the Ring of Kafrene – kicking off the chain of events that will lead to his death in Rogue One – this particular love story has taken a very sad turn.

That said, if Bix (who doesn’t appear in Rogue One) hadn’t made this heartbreaking choice, the Rebels may never have recovered those famous Death Star plans, and the events of the original trilogy may never have come to pass.

And there is one other small positive… the first thing Cassian does after Bix’s departure is meeting his future best friend, the reprogrammed Imperial KX Enforcer Droid K-2SO.

The final three episodes of Andor season 2 stream on Disney+ from Wednesday 14 May.