Luke Skywalker
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Luke Skywalker was raised by Owen and Beru Lars. He was led to believe they were his aunt and uncle who took him in after his parents were killed. He was totally oblivious to the fact that his real father had become the Dark Lord of the Sith and that Owen was doing a favor to his brother, Obi-Wan Kenobi, by taking in the child. Owen tried several times to dissuade Luke from pursuing Kenobi and, in turn, the truth. While keeping Luke from joining the Imperial Academy was said to be for the good of the farm, in actuality he wanted to keep Luke as far from the Empire as possible, even if that meant locking him at home.Luke was an eager boy, talking large dreams with his friends Camie, Fixer, and Biggs. In fact, it was Biggs who turned Luke onto the Rebellion by jumping ship and joining up. When Luke�s Uncle Owen purchased a pair of droids ( that were jettisoned from the TANTIVE IV) from a group of Jawa merchants, Luke became wrapped up in the smaller droid�s quest. For little R2-D2 had come to Tatooine to locate Obi-Wan Kenobi and present him with an important message. That message propelled Luke Skywalker on a journey to rescue Princess Leia and learn the skills of a Jedi Knight. Obi-Wan, whom Luke knew as Old Ben, explained that Luke�s father had been a Jedi Knight who had been betrayed and murdered by Kenobi�s student, Darth Vader. He gave Luke his father�s lightsaber, promising to teach the young man the ways of the Force. Unfortunately, the Empire was mean while searching for the pair of droids. Stormtroopers tracked the droids to the Jawas and from them to Owen and Beru Lars, killing them all in their desire to leave no witness behind. With the help of Han Solo and Chewbacca the Wookiee, Luke, Obi-Wan and the droids escaped from Tatooine and eventually rescued Princess Leia from the Death Star, though Obi-Wan was killed by Darth Vader during the campaign. But the Force was strong in Luke Skywalker, and he fired the shot that destroyed the Death Star to end the Battle of Yavin. Over the next three years, Luke became a prominent member of the Rebel Alliance. He achieved the rank of commander and took charge of the X-wing squadron known as Rogue Squadron. While on Hoth, Luke was led by a vision of Obi-Wan Kenobi to the swamp planet Dagobah, where he was to find a Jedi Master named Yoda to complete his training. Luke learned much from the wizened old Yoda, but he cut his training short to help his friend at Cloud City. This was the site of Luke�s first confrontation with Darth Vader. He lost three things in this meeting, and almost lost a fourth - his life. Vader sliced off Luke�s right hand, sending it and his lightsaber heirloom into the bowels of Cloud City. Then Luke lost his innocense, for Vader told him that Kenobi had lied: Vader had not killed Luke�s father. He was Luke�s father. With the help of Princess Leia and Lando Calrissian, Luke barely escaped with his life. After being fitted for a prosthetic hand, Luke traveled to Tatooine to rescue Han Solo from Jabba the Hutt. When Jabba refused to simply hand over Solo and let them all go free, Luke was forced to destroy the crime lord and his entire operation. He then returned to Dagobah to finish his training and discover the truth of Vader�s words. But he found a dying Yoda, who confirmed his worst fears and explained that his training was complete. All he had to do to become a full Jedi was to confront Vader a second time. He also learned, from Ben Kenobi�s spirit form, that Leia was his sister - another Skywalker strong in the Force, kept hidden to one day battle against the Emperor. At Endor, Luke decided to meet Vader, not in battle, but to free the good in him and return his father Anakin from the dark side. Even as the Emperor worked to corrupt Luke, Luke managed to reach the small spark of good buried deep within the darkness and armor of Vader, and Anakin Skywalker reemerged. Anakin then killed the Emperor and sacrificed his own life to save his son. Luke returned to his friends and family as the Galactic Civil War came to an end. |