Julian Delphiki, Jr., more commonly known as Bean, was one of the genius children that attended Battle School and helped defeat the Formics .

BiographyEdit

Pre Battle SchoolEdit

Bean was born in Rotterdam as the result of an illegal experiment in genetic engineering conducted by a scientist named Volescu. Volescu stole 23 frozen fertilized eggs from his half-brother Julian Sr. and activated "Anton's Key" in each of them. (Anton's key was a giant sperm switch which removed all limits on the growth of the subject's mind and body, making them extremely smart, but as a result, they would die young.) When Bean was only about a year old, Volescu evidently learned that discovery of his illegal experiment was imminent, and "discarded" all of the babies except Bean, who escaped his purge by crawling into a toilet tank and hiding there for several days. Later, a janitor discovered him there and took him home. After a short time living with the janitor, who was not authorized to have children, Bean perceived that he was not welcome there and wandered out to live on the streets of Rotterdam.

Later, when he was approximately four years old, Bean joined Poke's street crew. He did this by offering her a plan he had devised to get more food by recruiting a bully to get them into the soup kitchen. Poke was very merciful to Bean, and probably saved his life by feeding him. To his consternation, Poke targeted Achilles de Flandres, who was one of the lowest individuals in the bully hierarchy due to his bad foot. When they attacked Achilles Bean saw that he was dangerous and he advised Poke to kill Achilles, but she chose instead to show him the same mercy she'd showed Bean, sparing his life.

After that, Achilles appointed himself the crew's "papa" and successfully carried out their plan, winning them a steady supply of food and himself a higher social status among the older street children. Later, when Achilles began contemplating killing Bean in revenge for his humiliation at his hands, Poke intervened, and met with Achilles late one night to plead with him for Bean's life. Bean witnessed this meeting, and though he was not present for its fatal conclusion, found Poke floating in the river shortly thereafter. This caused Bean incredible guilt, and became a defining incident in his life that would return to haunt him repeatedly throughout the events depicted in Ender's Shadow and its sequels.