 Anakin Skywalker, son of Shmi Skywalker, has been a slave since birth. At some point,
he became the property of Gardulla the Hutt on Tatooine. She later lost both the boy and
hos mother in a bet to a Toydarian merchant named Watto. Although strict, Watto
is a better master that most slave owners and Anakin was allowed to indulge some of
his hobbies while working for the Toydarian.From an early age, Anakin Skywalker has been mechanically-inclined. He has repaired and built a protocol droid named C-3PO. He has also constructed an extremely fast Podracer from a variety of reclaimed parts. Watto also trusted Anakin to barter with Jawas for droids and other parts. Resouceful, intuitive, and competitive, Anakin is an excellent Podracer who won the Boonta Eve Classic. He is also compassionate: he once aided a wounded Tusken Raider, despite the danger, and entered the Boonta Eve Classic in the hopes of helping Qui-Gon, Padmé, and Jar Jar. Anakin remained on Tatooine, living in Mos Espa's Slave Quarter, until he encountered Qui-Gon Jinn. The Jedi Master, sensing the boy's strong connection to the Force, had Anakin's blood tested. The test revealed that Anakin's midi-chlorian count is over 20,000, far above that of any Jedi, including Master Yoda. Qui-Gon eventually freed Anakin by placing a bet with Watto for the child's freedom. At nine, Anakin finally left Tatooine, although he found it difficult to leave his mother behind. When Anakin reached Coruscant with Qui-Gon, he was brought before the Jedi Council. The members of the Jedi Council agreed that Anakin did indeed have a strong connection to the Force, but his age and the fact that his future was clouded gave them pause. They did not allow Qui-Gon to take Anakin as his Padawan learner, although the boy would stay with the Jedi Master as his ward. On Naboo, Anakin found himself in the midst of the battle against the Trade Federation. At Qui-Gon's insistence, Anakin hid aboard an N-1 starfighter, which he then accidentally launched. The courageous Anakin joined the attack on the Trade Federation droid control ship, which seemed impervious to the N-1 laser cannons. Anakin, however, landed inside the droid control ship's hangar, where he launched proton torpedoes into the main reactor. The droid control ship exploded from within, ending the Trade Federation threat.. When Anakin retuned to Naboo, he discovered that Qui-Gon had been killed by th Sith Lord Darth Maul. Before his death, Obi-Wan had taken an oath to train Anakin, and thus the boy became Obi-Wan's Padawan despite Master Yoda's reservations. |