Getting to his feet, he quietly left the room. He wanted to contact Jocasta Nu as soon as possible. They had a couple of days before the low tide on Kodai. There was no time to lose.
It did not take Jocasta long to locate two of the three students who had been closest to Lundi. Both Omal and Dedra were living on the same planet. Obi-Wan directed the pilot to change course. They reached Omal's apartment the next day.
'Omal was one of Dr. Lundi's brightest students,' Obi-Wan explained to Anakin after they made sure Lundi was secure and headed down various streets and alleys. 'One of the most devoted followers. I'm hopeful he can give us information we can use to move forward.'
The two Jedi walked up a flight of rickety steps to a dingy-looking door. Before knocking Obi-Wan looked around and made mental note of the quickest retreat. Lundi's fame had diminished but there was no guarantee that his former followers would be friendly toward Jedi.
When Omal opened the door, Obi-Wan knew immediately that he was no threat nor would he be able to help them. His clothing was dirty and disheveled. His shoulders drooped, and his eyes were constantly darting about, as if looking at any one thing for too long was incredibly painful.
But most of all, it appeared as if Omal's mind was nearly as scrambled as Lundi's. Obi-Wan could almost feel his thoughts bouncing around in his head, bumping into one another and tangling themselves up in knots.
'What do you want?' Omal asked. He glanced at the Jedi's robes, and his hands began to shake.
Sadness and dread washed over Obi-Wan. What had happened to the bright-eyed boy he'd seen at Dr. Lundi's lecture ten years before? What had Lundi — and possibly the Sith Holocron — done to him? And what did that mean to the mission?
'We just want to talk with you, Omal,' Obi-Wan said softly. 'May we come in?'
Omal didn't reply, but turned away from the door. He meandered into a small living room, and the Jedi followed. Garbage was strewn across the floor and the furniture looked as if it would collapse at any moment. The air was stale and rank. Anakin briefly waved a hand in front of his nose, but Obi-Wan shot him a look that made the boy drop both hands to his sides.
Obi-Wan quickly took in his surroundings, then turned toward Omal, who was standing awkwardly in the middle of the filthy room. He would have to be gentle with him.
'We are Jedi on an important mission,' he began. 'We are trying to recover the Sith Holocron so that it can be kept safely. Did Professor Lundi ever mention the artifact to you?'
At the mention of the Holocron Omal began to moan softly, rocking back and forth on his heels. Obi-Wan was about to ask something else when the front door opened and Dedra — the second student of Lundi's — came in with a bag of groceries.
Obi-Wan was relieved to see that for the most part Dedra looked like herself. She was older and had a tired look in her eyes, but had retained her sanity. Resting the bag of food on her hip, she gestured to Obi-Wan for the Jedi to come into the kitchen.
'We'll be right back,' Obi-Wan said, excusing himself and Anakin. The two Jedi followed Dedra into the kitchen.
'I am Obi-Wan Kenobi,' Obi-Wan said, 'and this is my Padawan, Anakin Skywalker.' Though he had seen Dedra at a lecture of Professor Lundi's, they had never actually been introduced.
'Your name is not important,' Dedra replied.
'I know that you are a Jedi, and suspect that you are looking for the Sith Holocron.'
Obi-Wan nodded. 'We wish to put it safely away — for good,' he explained.
A look of sadness spread across Dedra's face. 'That would be nice,'
she said. 'It has already done so much damage to so many.' She glanced toward the living room. Obi-Wan knew she was not talking about the ancient tyranny of the Sith.
'Omal's mental state is fragile,' she explained. 'It is best not to mention Lundi or the Holocron in his presence.'
'I gathered that,' Obi-Wan said, feeling a twinge of guilt. 'Do you know what happened?'
Dedra turned away and began to unpack some of the groceries. It looked as though she was going to feed Omal a meal. 'I only know that he hasn't been the same since Professor Lundi's sabbatical ten years ago,' she said.
Dedra pulled some vegetables out of a bag and began to wash them.
Obi-Wan noticed that her hands were shaking slightly, and she kept her eyes on what she was doing.
'And that is all you know?' Obi-Wan asked, looking at her pointedly.
Dedra sighed and her hands dropped into the water basin. 'No, not all,' she admitted.
Obi-Wan waited patiently for Dedra to continue.
'Ten years ago Omal followed Norval, another of Professor Lundi's star pupils, to Kodai. Norval was fixated on the Holocron, and had secretly joined one of the sects obsessed with obtaining it. He figured out that Lundi was going after it, and decided the professor needed his help. Omal wanted to stop Norval from interfering with Dr. Lundi's attempt. He thought that the kind of power Lundi was talking about would be too much for Norval to handle.'
Dedra switched off the water and turned toward Obi-Wan. 'I don't know what happened, but it was obviously too much for Omal, too,' she said in a whisper. 'And since Professor Lundi has been institutionalized ever since, I guess it was too much for him, too.'
Obi-Wan was quiet for a moment, thinking. 'What happened to Norval?'
he finally asked.
