Episode I Journal_ Anakin Skywalker Part 2

Ka-boom! Blinded by the bright blast of Obi-toki's racer, Habba Kee crashed.

That left Sebulba and me.

I came up on his side. Sebulba might have had a lot of dirty tricks, but he didn't have a lot of imagination about using them. He knew flas.h.i.+ng his side vents had worked once before on me. I had a feeling he'd try it again.

He did! My Podracer was forced onto the service ramp for a moment. Then I came right back. With a controlled thrust I ducked inside and took the lead!

Now Sebulba was behind me in second place! Boy, I wished I could have seen his face!

Crunk! The jarring jolt from behind caught me by surprise. Sebulba was taking out his frustrations by b.u.t.ting me. Now he was tight on my tail. He knew I wouldn't let him get past me, so instead he chose to crowd me and push, trying to send me out of control.

And that was a big problem, because it could work! It's hard enough to maneuver those turns at top speed without having someone b.u.mping you from behind.

Sebulba kept pus.h.i.+ng me and I kept fighting him off. My control board flickered. Something had been knocked loose and was shorting out.

Poodoo! It flickered again. I knew I'd have to switch to the auxiliary, but to do that meant backing off the RPMs. The electronics couldn't handle the jolt of switching at flat-out thrust.

It took less than a second to make the switch. But that was all Sebulba needed to retake the lead.

Last lap. Last turn. Last chance. A Nubian s.p.a.cecraft was a lot to lose, and I had a feeling that was only the beginning of Qui-Gon's problems. I tried every move I knew to get past Sebulba. But either he'd gotten smarter during the race or he was just lucky, because he managed to keep me behind him.

Feel. Don't think. Trust your instincts. As we came out of the final turn, I put one last fake on him.

It worked! Suddenly we were side by side in the final stretch.

Crunk! Sebulba slammed his racer sideways into mine, trying to knock me off course.

Crunk! He did it again.

It took every bit of strength I had to keep my Podracer under control.

Crunk! Again! He was crazy! Smas.h.i.+ng our racers together like this could hurt him as much as it could hurt me.

Crunk! This time when he slammed into me, we didn't bounce apart. I looked over the side and saw why. Our steering rods had gotten caught on each other!

In his Pod, Sebulba was frowning at me. If we crossed the finish line together, we'd tie. Neither of us wanted that. We both wanted to win.

I had to get loose!

Leaning as hard as I could on my racer's steering arm, I slammed my thruster bars back and forth, trying to break away from Sebulba's racer. Meanwhile we were screaming down the final stretch at top speed.

I pushed the steering arm harder.

Harder!

HARDER!.

Snap! It broke!

Just before we burst apart, I caught a glimpse of incredible surprise on Sebulba's face. Then I was spinning wildly and pumping my stabilizers to straighten out.

A few moments later my racer limped through a cloud of black smoke and crossed the finish line. The smoke was coming from Sebulba's engines, which had exploded when his Podracer crashed into an ancient statue. I don't know how he managed to survive that crash, but he did.

Only he didn't win the Boonta Cla.s.sic.

I did.

I slowed to a stop and just sat there in my racer, so tired that I couldn't even reach up to undo my straps. My face was wet with gritty sweat. My ears were filled with the hiss of the cooling turbines and the roar of the cheering crowd. The twin suns glared down out of the cloudless sky, glinting off the Radon-Ulzers. My race... my win... my dream...

Kitster was reaching into the Pod and undoing my straps. I looked up into his proud, smiling face. His lips moved but I couldn't hear his words over the roar. Hands were picking me up and the next thing I knew, I was being carried toward the royal box by a crowd of cheering fans.

I'd done it.

I'd won.

Sixth Entry

The Biggest Surprise

It wasn't until I got back to the hangar that I saw Mom, Qui-Gon, Padme, and the others. Everyone congratulated me, and Padme gave me a hug. Even Mom was proud of me. I guess my winning the Boonta Cla.s.sic gave the Tatooine slaves hope. Maybe not that they could win the race. But that they could achieve whatever they wanted if they really worked at it.

Qui-Gon had already used our winnings to buy the parts he needed for his s.h.i.+p. Now he borrowed some eopies and a repulsor sled to carry the parts back to the desert. Jar Jar and Artoo-Detoo left for the s.h.i.+p on foot. As Padme climbed onto one of the eopies, I wondered if I'd ever see her again. I wanted to ask her, but there were too many people around.

Mom and I went home. For the rest of the day I should have basked in the glory of winning the race. All the kids in the neighborhood came by to congratulate me. They wanted to play and talk, but I was distracted. I had a project I needed to finish - fast.

You see, I was sad that Padme was leaving and I hadn't had a chance to say good-bye. I knew Qui-Gon would come back to return the eopies. When he did, I wanted to give him something to give to her. Something she would remember me by.

I had a piece of j.a.por wood that I'd found in the desert and was saving. j.a.por was rare and valuable, and anything made of it was supposed to bring the wearer good luck. Now I started carving a pendant from it. My hope was that Padme would wear it around her neck....

I finished the pendant and went out to find a leather lace to hang it on. Everywhere I went, people waved and smiled. I felt funny. I'd never been a hero before.

Not everyone was happy about my win. Out of nowhere a Rodian named Wald appeared in front of me, blocking my path. Wald was usually a friend of mine. But one look at him and I knew he was no friend today.

Maybe he'd lost money on the race. Or maybe he just didn't like Humans. All I knew was that he wanted to fight because he said no Human could have won the Boonta Cla.s.sic. Therefore, I must have cheated. He got the fight he wanted. But even as our fists flew, I wasn't thinking about him or the race. I was thinking about Padme.

We were rolling on the ground, flailing at each other and kicking up dust when I felt a shadow loom over me.

Looking up, I saw Qui-Gon gazing down at me with a frown on his face. I quickly stood up and dusted myself off. The Jedi Knight asked what had happened. I told him how Wald had accused me of cheating.

He turned to Wald and asked him if he thought I'd cheated. To my surprise, even though I'd just pounded him halfway into a pulp, Wald nodded. He still thought I'd cheated!

Qui-Gon nodded knowingly and turned once again to me. He explained that fighting had not changed Wald's mind. I would have to be satisfied knowing the truth - that I didn't cheat - even if I couldn't convince everyone else.

I realized Qui-Gon was teaching me a lesson. I might have won the race, but all the fighting in the world wouldn't convince an enemy to take my side.

Qui-Gon and I went back to my house. When we got inside, he told me something I never expected to hear. It made me forget almost everything else. Winning the Boonta Cla.s.sic was nothing compared to this.

The Jedi Knight said I was no longer a slave! I was free! It seemed impossible that Watto would give me up, but all Qui-Gon would say was that Watto had learned an important lesson about gambling.

Mom was thrilled for me. She said now I could make my dreams come true. Then she asked Qui-Gon if I was to become a Jedi.

A Jedi?!

I was completely shocked! But Qui-Gon didn't seem surprised by the question. Then I remembered the serious conversation I'd watched them have the day before. This had to be what they'd talked about!

But me, a Jedi Knight? That was always a dream. I never, ever dared to believe it could really come true.

Qui-Gon kneeled down so that we were face-to-face. He looked very serious and told me it was no coincidence that we'd met. He said that I was strong with the Force. But he warned me that I still might not be accepted by the Council. I wasn't exactly sure how the Council worked, but I had a feeling it must have been made up of other Jedi Knights.

He also warned me that if I was accepted, there would be a long period of training. It would not be an easy life. He could have told me I'd have to shovel bantha poo for the rest of my days. It wouldn't have mattered if it meant being a Jedi.

Mom told me to hurry and get packed because I would have to go back to the s.h.i.+p with Qui-Gon and there wasn't much time. I turned and started toward my room. But then I thought of something that made me stop in my tracks.

I looked back at them. Mom and Qui-Gon shared a knowing look. And suddenly I knew this wasn't only good news after all.

Seventh Entry

A Difficult Decision

The bad news was that Mom couldn't come with us. Qui-Gon had tried to free her too, but Watto refused. Even the money from selling my Podracer wasn't enough.

Leave Mom on Tatooine? I couldn't do it. Even if it meant not becoming a Jedi. I didn't want to go without her. Coruscant was halfway across the galaxy - light-years away. It was too far. If I went there, there was a good chance I'd never see her again.

I tried to tell her, but she told me to listen to my feelings. I tried to pretend that my feelings wanted me to stay on Tatooine, but we both knew that wasn't true. In my heart, I wanted to be a Jedi more than anything in the world. Finally, I went to my room and quickly packed.

It was hard to leave. Kitster and some of my other friends were playing outside, and when they saw me come out with Qui-Gon and my bag, they knew something unusual was going on. I told Kitster I was free and going off planet. Of course, I couldn't tell him why. He told me everyone wanted me to stay because I was a hero. That made me feel a little bad.

Then he told me I was the best friend he'd ever had, and that made me feel good.

A little way down the street, Qui-Gon was waiting for me. I started toward him, but when I looked back I saw Mom standing in the doorway of our hovel. That was the only place I remembered living. And she was the only person in my family. I felt a lump in my throat and a big sadness inside me. I went back to her and told her I couldn't do it. I just couldn't go off and leave her.

Mom reminded me of the time I climbed the Great Dune to chase the banthas away before the hunters could shoot them. It was a broiling hot day and I never thought I'd make it to the top, but I knew I had to try. I even collapsed a couple of times. But somehow I'd made it.

And because of that, a small herd of banthas had lived.

Mom said this was one of those times when I had to surprise myself. I had to do something I didn't think I could do. Because, like saving those banthas, something good would come of it.

I had to let go.

When I asked her if I would ever see her again, she gazed back at me and nodded. I'll never forget what she said: "What does your heart tell you?"

It was strange, but right then my dream came back to me. I could see now how it might all indeed come true. I would come back. I would become a Jedi, then someday return and free all the slaves.

"Yes, I think so, " I said.

Mom smiled and nodded. "Then we will see each other again. "

Knowing that gave me the strength to go forward.

I joined Qui-Gon. We had to go to Watto's shop first. I would have preferred to never see my former master again, but there were forms to fill out that guaranteed my freedom. And the transmitter hidden in my body had to be deactivated.

Watto grumbled once or twice about how unfairly he felt he'd been treated, but when Qui-Gon shot him a stern look, he got quiet - fast.

Qui-Gon wanted me to hurry back to the s.h.i.+p, but there was one last stop I had to make before I left Tatooine. I had to go back to the market and find Jira.

I found her at her stand and told her I'd been freed and that I was going away. Then I gave her some of the credits from the sale of my Podracer and told her to get herself that cooling unit I'd promised her.

She gave me a hug and said she'd miss me.

I turned and started away with Qui-Gon. We hurried through the hot, sun-blasted streets of Mos Espa. I was surprised by the feeling of homesickness growing inside me. Miss this hot, barren place? I couldn't believe it. And yet I knew I would.

Suddenly Qui-Gon swung around. The glowing blade of his lightsaber sliced through something hovering in the air near us. I was amazed. I thought my fakes were good, but they were nothing compared to the way Qui-Gon reacted.

The thing he'd cut out of the air was about the size of a loaf of bread. Now sliced in two, its parts lay sparking and fizzing on the ground. Qui-Gon kneeled down and studied it carefully. I asked him what it was. A probe droid, he said, but unlike any he'd seen before.

He looked around quickly. The droid was a bad sign. A moment later we were running as fast as we could toward the s.h.i.+p.

We ran across the hot sands on the outskirts of Mos Espa. I wanted to ask Qui-Gon why we were running, but I was too busy trying to keep up with him. Soon I could see the Nubian s.p.a.cecraft ahead, standing on its landing struts. She was a beauty. Sleek with swept-back wings, she was as fine as any s.p.a.cecraft I'd ever seen.

Without warning Qui-Gon wheeled around and yelled at me to drop. I did what I was told, and not a second too soon. A dark-cloaked figure on a speeder bike shot over me. If I'd been standing I would have been skewered. In a flash the dark figure jumped to the ground and ignited a lightsaber. A split second later he and Qui-Gon were exchanging earthshaking lightsaber blows.

Even the worst Podrace was less scary and dangerous than this. I didn't know who that dark warrior was, but he attacked Qui-Gon so viciously that the Jedi Knight could barely fend off the blows.

This warrior was strange and evil-looking. Shaped like a Human's, his face was covered with red and black markings. Short, pointed horns grew out of his head.

Qui-Gon looked as if he was in trouble, but I knew there was no way I could help. He yelled at me to go to the s.h.i.+p and tell the others to take off.

That I could do. I pushed myself off the sand and started to run. Right up the boarding ramp and through the Nubian's hatch. Padme and a man in a captain's uniform were inside. I blurted out what was going on and what Qui-Gon had said.

They hurried away toward the flight deck. I stayed near the hatch and watched the battle outside. Not that I could see much. Just the cloud of dust and the brilliant flashes of the lightsabers.

As terrifying as it was, it also gave me a moment to wonder. I'd heard from the s.p.a.cers who pa.s.sed through Mos Espa that Jedi were the most powerful fighters in the galaxy. But that thing in the dark cloak seemed at least as strong as Qui-Gon. What could it possibly be?

With a slight jolt, the Naboo s.p.a.cecraft lifted off the ground. For a second I thought we were going to take off without Qui-Gon. But the s.h.i.+p rose only a few meters and then started to move... straight toward the battle.