THE FOLLOWERS

CHAPTER 1

The hologram flickered and the ghostly figures of Bant Eerin and  her

new Jedi Master Kit Fisto appeared in the Temple  map  room.  Qui-Gon  Jinn

studied Bant's image carefully, looking directly at her  silvery  eyes.  He

was glad to see the sensitive Mon Calamarian Padawan again.  Not  only  was

she a good friend of his own eighteen-year-old apprentice, Obi-Wan  Kenobi,

but ever since the death of  her  Master  Tahl  years  ago,  Qui-Gon  found

himself feeling protective of her.

Bant and Qui-Gon had both suffered when Tahl  died,  and  both  still

felt the loss. Qui-Gon knew Bant had continued  her  training  despite  her

grief.

But she still does not seem herself, Qui-Gon thought.

Looking closer, Qui-Gon saw that there was something in  Bant's  eyes

that was not quite right. It wasn't the profound sadness he'd grown used to

seeing when Bant mourned at the Temple, when the pain was still fresh. This

was something else. It took Qui-Gon a second to recognize the emotion.

It was fear. Bant was afraid. The question was, of what?

"Hello Master Qui-Gon, Obi-Wan," Kit Fisto greeted the  team,  bowing

slightly so that some of his yellow-green head tendrils fell forward around

his shoulders. "I have heard much about you from my Padawan. I  am  pleased

to have the opportunity to speak with you, though I am afraid what we  will

be discussing will not be pleasant"

Qui-Gon and Obi-Wan had been summoned by the Council the day  before.

Nobody had told them why they were to meet Bant and Kit  Fisto.  Since  Kit

Fisto was contacting them from the largely  deserted  planet  of  Korriban,

Qui-Gon had at first assumed that the task would be routine.

It only took one look at Bant's expression to know  that  this  would

not be so.

The Sith. Qui-Gon had heard stories about the Sith  since  he  was  a

young boy. Every generation of initiates at the Temple  knew  Sith  stories

and legends. They thrilled in telling them to one  another  late  at  night

when they should have been  sleeping.  Qui-Gon's  generation  had  been  no

exception.

Although the stories were terrifying enough to have kept  young  Qui-

Gon awake on more than a few nights, he had  always  felt  that  they  were

largely invented - myths designed to  scare  and  not  inform.  Even  after

studying Sith history and learning that the Sith had existed and  had  been

powerful, Qui-Gon remained skeptical.

But his recent conversation with Jedi Master Kit Fisto forced Qui-Gon

to reexamine his beliefs about the Sith.

"Master, do you believe - " Obi-Wan hesitated.

"Do I  believe  in  the  Sith?"  Qui-Gon  finished  his  apprentice's

question before answering it. Clearly Kit  Fisto's  report  had  opened  up

questions for Obi-Wan as well.

"Of course I do. You and I have both studied their history enough  to

know that the Sith threat was once very real. But we also  know  that  they

were a culture that could not survive. They killed themselves off long ago.

The question remaining is whether or not they pose a current  threat."  Now

it was Qui-Gon who hesitated.

"How can they pose a threat if they no longer exist?" Obi-Wan asked.

"The danger lies not in the Sith themselves, but in their  teachings,

and the ability of those teachings to inspire others to evil.  As  long  as

the Sith teachings survive, there is a potential threat."

"And if someone is spreading those teachings..." Obi-Wan trailed off.

Qui-Gon knew he must be thinking about what Kit Fisto and Bant had found on

Korriban. How could he forget the look of terror  on  Bant's  face  as  she

described the horrors she and her Master had seen in  the  valley?  Or  Kit

Fisto's dark eyes as he told them about the dwelling they had found...  and

its chilling contents?

Inside the crude shack were tomes of Sith lore and models of  ancient

Sith weapons. It appeared that someone had been compiling  every  scrap  of

information to be found about the Sith, both truth and myth.  And  scrawled

on one wall was a crude drawing of a Sith Holocron beside a message written

in Sith code. Location known. Follow the leader.

A  simple  Holocron  was  not  necessarily  dangerous.  The   crystal

information-storage devices were even used by the Jedi. Palm-sized and easy

to transport, Holocrons were an excellent way  to  store  vast  amounts  of

knowledge.

But the Jedi  Holocrons  that  Qui-Gon  had  seen  were  square.  The

Holocron drawing on Korriban was pyramid-shaped, a formation unique to  the

Sith. And the knowledge contained in a Sith Holocron  was  infinitely  more

dangerous. It focused on dark power and how to gain,  use,  and  manipulate

it.

If one existed, and if it fell into the wrong hands, a Sith  Holocron

could be more than deadly.

"We have knowledge of several Sith Sects operating  in  the  galaxy,"

Jedi Archivist Jocasta Nu reported. "We monitor them, but  until  now  they

have never given us much  cause  for  alarm.  They've  never  gained  large

followings, and their activities  are  not  unlike  those  of  other  small

criminal groups. They have always been more of a nuisance than a threat."

Though it had taken him a little while to get used  to  working  with

her, Jocasta Nu was beginning to grow on Qui-Gon. He generally did not like

to use the usual channels for  obtaining  information.  But  he'd  come  to

appreciate Jocasta's straightforward manner. She never  failed  to  provide

Qui-Gon with the information he needed.

"Lately there has been  increased  activity  at  one  of  the  higher

learning institutions right here on Coruscant," Jocasta said. "According to

our sources, this is due to a professor named Murk Lundi." She  flashed  an

image of the Quermian professor onto a screen.

It was not the first time Qui-Gon had heard of  Professor  Lundi.  An

infamous galaxy historian, Lundi was popular with students and  admired  by

his colleagues. Qui-Gon had  even  heard  him  called  one  of  the  finest

historians of the era. But he did not understand what Lundi had to do  with

the dwelling found on Korriban.

"For the past several years Lundi  has  been  narrowing  his  focus,"

Jocasta explained. "Now all of his research and lectures revolve around the

dark side of the Force. As his focus has narrowed,  his  student  following

has grown."

Jocasta pushed several student  texts  toward  Qui-Gon  and  Obi-Wan.

There were posters for Sith rallies and  hand-drawn  story  strips  showing

Sith battles. "His classes are among the most popular on campus. His  texts

are so sought after they are difficult for students to obtain." She  paused

for a moment. "But there were several of them  among  the  items  found  on

Korriban."

So that's it, Qui-Gon  thought.  The  Council  believes  one  of  Dr.

Lundi's followers gathered the information that was found on Korriban.

Qui-Gon looked up to find Obi-Wan already gazing  at  him  knowingly.

Neither of the Jedi needed to say a word - their next move was clear.

It was time for a crash-course on the Sith.

CHAPTER 2

Obi-Wan pushed his way through the crowd of students and  toward  the

back of the room without worrying about being spotted. It was not  hard  to

lose himself in the throng.

The students on Coruscant were so varied that you would have  had  to

be on fire to get even a second glance. Besides,  Obi-Wan  and  his  Master

were the only ones not desperately pushing forward, trying to  get  a  word

with Professor Lundi before class started.

From his spot against the wall,  Obi-Wan  could  just  make  out  the

Quermian teacher's head swaying slightly on its long neck in the middle  of

the crowd. Apart from his advanced years  and  the  small  black  apparatus

covering one of his eyes, Murk Lundi looked a  lot  like  the  Jedi  Master

Yarael Poof. He was the same species, and had the same commanding presence.

But there was something very different about Dr. Lundi, something  chilling

that Obi-Wan couldn't put his finger on.

Across the room, Qui-Gon was also watching the  professor,  his  eyes

narrowed in steady focus. Had he noticed something else? In the din Obi-Wan

considered contacting Qui-Gon on his comlink to hear his thoughts.  But  at

that moment Dr. Lundi raised several of his arms, signaling that class  was

about to start.

More quickly than Obi-Wan could have imagined, the hoard of  students

found seats and the room fell silent. The course  hall  was  enormous,  yet

every chair was taken. Every spot to stand or lean or sit was filled  by  a

student, and at least a dozen hovercams recorded the professor's every word

for the students who could not fit inside the room.

Obi-Wan surveyed the crowd. Not only was the turnout impressive,  but

each student sat with rapt attention. After  half  an  hour  they  remained

riveted - there was no sign of drifting  or  feeling  drowsy.  Obi-Wan  had

hoped to spot a few students who  seemed  unusually  drawn  in  or  somehow

conspicuous. As it turned out, he  was  the  conspicuous  one  for  looking

around while the professor was speaking.

At the front of the room, Dr. Lundi paced in  the  narrow  space  not

taken up by students. Taking small steps on his long legs, his body  seemed

to float as he spoke. Every now and then he paused,  clearly  enjoying  his

position and his ability to make the crowd hold its breath in  anticipation

of his every thought.

Murk Lundi was not at all  like  the  teachers  Obi-Wan  had  at  the

Temple.  In  the  Temple,  Obi-Wan's  instructors  were  like  partners  in

learning, guides who wanted to help him discover things for himself and not

just force their own opinions.

Obi-Wan did not appreciate the learning style he  was  seeing  today.

Yet the more he listened to Dr. Lundi, the more he wanted to hear. Soon he,

too, was waiting for the professor's next word.

"No being besides the Sith themselves has ever seen a Sith  Holocron.

There are rumors. Yes. There are  also  drawings  and  legends  and  myths.

However, most historians believe that the Sith were so protective of  their

knowledge that they destroyed it themselves before letting it fall  to  the

unworthy. After all, we are talking about beings who killed  their  Masters

when they had learned all they could from them." Lundi paused and looked at

his students with a sly smile. "Should I be nervous about graduation  day?"

Then he went on.

"Some scholars contend that the Sith did not use  Holocrons  at  all,

that they would not have been so foolish as to store so  much  power  in  a

crystal that I could hold in my hand." The professor paused, gazing at  one

of his outstretched palms. "More power than this  galaxy  has  known  in  a

long, long time.

"However, if there is one thing I have learned from my lifelong study

of history, it is this: Every myth is based on a small seed of  truth.  One

has to delve deeply to find it. But it is there, below the surface, waiting

to be discovered."

Obi-Wan was not sure how  much  time  had  passed  before  he  forced

himself to close his eyes and bring his mind back to the task at hand. Murk

Lundi made the Sith more real than any late-night ghost story, but that was

not why Obi-Wan was here. He had to stay focused.

But by succumbing, even for a short  time,  Obi-Wan  understood  Murk

Lundi's hold over his students. Dr. Lundi's fascinating  subject  was  made

even more so by his own intelligence and charisma. Lundi's power  over  the

students was impressive. And more than  that,  it  was  dangerous.  Lundi's

students seemed likely to  believe  anything  their  teacher  said  without

question, and the way he spoke about the dark side made it sound  enticing.

Could they be inspired to delve too deeply?

Obi-Wan focused once more on the students. It had to be one of  them,

or someone like them, who had assembled the Sith lore on Korriban.

A small group in the first row captured Obi-Wan's attention. The four

students sat front and  center,  leaning  forward  whenever  the  professor

spoke.

The first, a dark-haired humanoid, nodded  at  the  end  of  each  of

Lundi's statements. Next to him, a redheaded boy was  so  riveted  that  he

held his hands just above his desk as if he had been about to fold them  in

his lap but froze when the professor began to  speak.  The  third  boy  was

transcribing every word on a datapad, in spite of the fact that he had  his

own small hovercam recording the entire lecture. Last was a girl who  clung

protectively to a coat and document case that Obi-Wan guessed  belonged  to

Dr. Lundi.

Suddenly a yellow light went on over the desk of the dark-haired  boy

in the front row. Obi-Wan quickly  realized  that  the  light  alerted  the

professor that a student wished to ask a question.

Dr. Lundi stopped in mid-sentence. His  head  swiveled  on  its  long

neck, and Obi-Wan caught an angry gleam in the  Quermian's  uncovered  eye.

But the anger disappeared when the professor saw who had dared to interrupt

him. The humanoid boy was obviously a favorite. Dr. Lundi even  called  him

by name.

"Yes, Norval?" he asked.

Norval stood. "Please forgive the  interruption,  professor.  I  only

want to know if it is true that the Sith were more powerful than the Jedi."

Dr. Lundi laughed lightly, as if Norval's question was childish.  "Of

course," he said. "Power and vengeance are much stronger motives than peace

could ever be. The Sith could have easily controlled the entire galaxy  had

they not made their one mistake - "

Dr. Lundi was interrupted by a tone signaling the end of class.

Students sat silently in their  seats,  hoping  the  professor  would

finish his thought. But Dr. Lundi was already collecting his coat and  case

from the girl in the front row.

"There will be no class next  week,"  the  professor  announced.  The

class groaned. Lundi smiled at their disappointment. "I am taking  a  small

sabbatical."

Yellow lights went on over desks throughout the room.

"When I return I may have exciting information to  share  with  you."

Dr. Lundi smirked mysteriously. "Until then, my assistant Dedra will answer

any after-class questions."

The girl who had been holding the professor's  things  stood  at  the

front of the room. Obi-Wan thought she  looked  overwhelmed  as  Dr.  Lundi

moved smoothly out of the course hall followed by Norval and the  redheaded

boy, who Norval called Omal. Obi-Wan noticed that  the  redheaded  boy  had

bright, sharp-looking eyes. He was clearly excited, and  talked  animatedly

with Norval about the lecture.

Obi-Wan and Qui-Gon exchanged a glance before they, too,  made  their

way toward the door and slipped out of the hall. It looked as  though  they

would be taking a little sabbatical of their own.

CHAPTER 3

Qui-Gon would have liked to stay and talk  to  the  students  in  Dr.

Lundi's  class,  but  the   professor's   surprise   announcement   changed

everything. Dr. Lundi was up to something, and the most important thing was

to find out what it was and where he was going.

The Quermian moved surprisingly quickly for someone his age, but  the

Jedi kept up easily. Qui-Gon followed Lundi into a terminal and watched him

board a midsize craft. Not knowing where the transport was going, the  Jedi

had no choice but to follow him aboard.

Once inside the transport it became  clear  that  the  vessel  was  a

private, no-frills charter. The main hold had  been  outfitted  with  close

rows of seats filled almost to capacity. Both the seats and the  passengers

looked like they had seen better days.

"Are you going to Lisal?" a voice growled from a dim corner near  the

entrance.

"Yes," Qui-Gon  answered  quickly.  The  ship's  destination  sounded

familiar.

"Tickets?" the voice demanded.

"Two please," Qui-Gon answered.

"It's too late to buy them now." The surly captain stepped out of the

shadows to reveal his bad breath and broken teeth  to  the  Jedi.  "If  you

don't have any you'll have to pay double."

"We'll be happy to pay the  regular  fee,"  Qui-Gon  replied,  calmly

looking into the pilot's beady eyes.

"Two at the regular price, then," the captain said. He  reached  into

his vest pocket and pulled out two grimy stubs. "You'll have to sit in  the

back."

Obi-Wan handed the captain a few credits while  Qui-Gon  scanned  the

crowd for Murk Lundi. He was not sitting with the rest of  the  passengers.

But with so many eyes on them the Jedi did not dare search the rest of  the

ship for him. At least not yet.

Obi-Wan and Qui-Gon squeezed into the back row and sat  down.  As  he

settled into his seat, Qui-Gon's knees pressed comically  against  the  row

ahead of him. There was not nearly enough room to  accommodate  the  Jedi's

large frame.

Several of the motley passengers ahead had turned to glare at them.

This is not a typical tour group, Qui-Gon noted.  The  passengers  on

the  charter  seemed  surlier  than  the  average  pleasure  travelers   to

Coruscant. Jocasta Nu had warned them that members of the Sith Sects  might

be anyone and that they would be difficult to pick out of a crowd. Suddenly

Qui-Gon wondered if they had stumbled into the middle of a  sect.  Why  had

Lisal sounded so familiar?

The captain struggled to close the ship's doors.  After  pushing  and

then pounding several buttons he ripped the control panel off and began  to

tug on the sparking wires inside.

"I hope the engine is in better condition," Obi-Wan observed, gaining

the Jedi a few more hard stares.

Qui-Gon wished he had had a little more time to reflect on  how  this

mission was shaping up and what exactly he and his apprentice were  getting

into. It was all happening too quickly. This morning they had been asked to

keep an eye on an influential professor, and now they were suddenly  headed

off-planet.

In the back of his mind Qui-Gon had a strange feeling that this  trip

wasn't what it appeared to be. He was suddenly filled  with  a  feeling  of

foreboding. This could easily be a trap.

Qui-Gon stood. Perhaps there was still time to get  off  the  vessel.

But before he could decide what to do, the  captain's  swearing  turned  to

angry shouts. Someone was screaming Dr. Lundi's name and struggling to  get

through the partially closed door.

It only took Qui-Gon a moment to recognize the young  man  trying  to

board. It was Norval, the dark-haired student from the front row.

The captain did his best to push the intruder back out the  half-open

door. Several passengers crowded around. It was not clear whether they were

trying to help Norval in or help the captain force  him  out.  Then,  in  a

shower of sparks from the control panel, the doors suddenly opened.  Norval

and several passengers fell into a heap on the floor.

"You'll pay triple!" the captain bellowed,  pointing  at  Norval  and

splattering him and several other passengers with spittle.

"He won't be  staying,"  said  a  soft,  familiar  voice  behind  the

captain. It was the professor. In  the  chaos  Qui-Gon  had  not  seen  him

appear.

"Please take me with you," Norval begged. He grabbed the edge of  Dr.

Lundi's robes. "You need me," he whimpered. "Nobody  knows  your  texts  as

well as I do. I've studied every word. You must show me how to use the - "

"Guards," Lundi snapped. "Guards, remove this boy immediately."

Two enormous hangar guards  appeared  on  the  gangplank  and  pulled

Norval to his feet.

"You are too old to use it on your own!" Norval continued  to  shriek

as they pulled him out of the ship and down the ramp. "You need me!"

Murk Lundi did not move. Even after Norval's pleas had faded and  the

captain had succeeded in sealing the door, he still stood  staring  at  the

durasteel hatch.

Qui-Gon seized the opportunity to leave his seat.  He  squeezed  past

the distracted passengers, pulling Obi-Wan along with him. They  would  not

be leaving the ship. The mission was more important  than  he'd  originally

thought.

It looked as though there was a Sith  Holocron  and  Murk  Lundi  was

going after it.

CHAPTER 4

Obi-Wan tried the door even though he did not expect  it  to  open  -

none of the other doors in the corridor had. So he was surprised when  this

one slid easily into the wall. The stale odor that billowed from  the  room

confirmed that although the door was unlocked, it  hadn't  been  opened  in

some time. The musty room would be perfect.

After motioning to his Master, Obi-Wan stepped inside to look around.

It appeared he had found an  abandoned  laundry  room.  Piles  of  uniforms

littered the floor and stagnant water filled two large basins.

Qui-Gon wrinkled his nose when he walked in. "Good work, Obi-Wan," he

said quietly as he closed the door. "No one will look for us here." Pulling

his comlink from his belt, the Jedi Master contacted the Temple.

"Right to follow him, you are," Yoda  said  after  hearing  Qui-Gon's

report. "Find the Holocron first, we must."

And Lundi is our only clue to finding it, Obi-Wan thought.

Bant and Kit Fisto hadn't been able to  give  them  any  ideas  about

where the Holocron might be located. Their best option was to follow  Lundi

- so they could take the Holocron from him if he found it.

Qui-Gon ended his transmission. Obi-Wan could tell that he  felt  the

same way. Unless they knew where  they  were  going,  it  would  be  nearly

impossible to get to the Holocron first.

"We  need  more  information,"  Qui-Gon  muttered,  reactivating  his

comlink. A moment later Jocasta Nu's voice echoed in the small room.

"There have been rumors of Sith Holocrons  in  existence  in  several

places across the galaxy. Lisal, Korriban, Kodai, Doli. Most of the  claims

have been investigated by Jedi teams, but nothing has ever been found."

"Thank you, Jocasta," Qui-Gon said. "As usual you have been helpful."

"I'm always here to assist with information. Feel free to contact  me

should you need anything else," Jocasta replied.

"Of course." Qui-Gon signed off and turned  to  his  Padawan.  "Lundi

must be looking for the Lisal Holocron," he said.

That's too easy, Obi-Wan thought. "We need to know more. I'm going to

find Lundi," the Padawan said. He stripped off the tunic he'd worn to blend

in with the students.

"Patience, Obi-Wan," Qui-Gon reprimanded quietly. "It will take  time

for things to unfold."

Obi-Wan knew his Master was right. But  frustration  was  welling  up

inside of him. He kicked at the pile of uniforms at his feet until  he  saw

one that looked about his size. After holding it against his shoulders,  he

pulled it on. It fit well enough.

"We will not discover anything tonight," Qui-Gon said. "We must  give

Lundi time to relax, to let down his guard. Lisal is a two-day journey.  We

have time." Qui-Gon arranged himself on one of the  cleaner  laundry  piles

and prepared to sleep.

Obi-Wan sighed and did the same. Qui-Gon was right, he supposed.  But

for him, waiting was often the hardest part  of  a  mission.  It  made  him

anxious. And when he was anxious he could not easily sleep.

Obi-Wan awoke suddenly. Something was not right. Sitting up  quickly,

he reached out to the Force to try and find the source  of  the  danger  he

felt. When he was sure that there  was  no  one  in  the  laundry  facility

besides himself and his Master, he removed his hand from his saber hilt.

Beside him, Qui-Gon breathed  steadily,  either  asleep  or  deep  in

meditation. Whatever had disturbed Obi-Wan did not seem to be upsetting his

Master.

Obi-Wan lay back and closed his eyes to try and recapture an image of

what had frightened him. Had it been a dream? A presence? Just a feeling?

Pyramid-shaped Holocrons  floated  in  his  mind.  Certainly  it  was

disturbing to think that such potent capsules were at large in the  galaxy.

But he did not think that was what had awakened him.

The Holocrons faded and another image grew. A figure. Obi-Wan allowed

his fear to grow with the image. Then he  relaxed  and  let  the  fear  go,

focusing on the figure. But no matter how he tried,  he  could  not  see  a

face. The visage remained in shadow  and  a  feeling  became  clear  -  the

feeling that someone had discovered them.

When Obi-Wan surfaced from his meditation, he saw  that  Qui-Gon  was

awake and had been aware of his agitation. "It is a warning," Qui-Gon  said

after Obi-Wan told him about it. "We must proceed with  extra  caution  and

find out where we are headed. Quickly."

Obi-Wan laughed when  Qui-Gon  emerged  in  the  corridor  wearing  a

mechanic's uniform. The pants stopped close to the top of  his  boots,  and

the sleeves were rolled up in an effort to disguise the fact that they were

at least ten centimeters too short. But Obi-Wan had to  admit  that  nobody

would recognize Qui-Gon as a Jedi Master.

"You don't look any better," Qui-Gon chided his apprentice.

Obi-Wan knew it was true. Wearing the soiled uniform  he  had  pulled

from the pile the night before, he even smelled like a grubby mechanic.

"I think Lundi must have arranged for a private room. Let's  separate

and search the ship. We need to find him or his  quarters,"  Qui-Gon  said,

getting down to business. "Do not let the captain see you."

Obi-Wan nodded and moved quietly down the corridor,  away  from  Qui-

Gon. He tried doors and reached out with  his  senses.  Lundi  had  such  a

strong presence that Obi-Wan did not think he would be hard to find.

After a few minutes Obi-Wan saw the open doors to the ship's  bridge.

Pressing himself against the corridor wall, he  paused  and  listened.  The

captain was at the helm, of course. But someone else was there as well.

It only took Obi-Wan a moment to realize it was Lundi. But  what  was

he doing at the ship's controls?

Looking around, Obi-Wan quickly spotted a maintenance ladder. It  led

to a catwalk that trailed over the bridge  and  toward  several  hyperdrive

access panels. If he pulled himself along on his stomach, and  the  captain

and Lundi did not look up, he could get close enough to hear what they were

saying. Obi-Wan climbed up.

"You don't seem to be understanding me, captain,"  Lundi  said  in  a

low, menacing voice. "I am not asking you to stop on Nolar.  I  am  telling

you."

"And you don't seem to understand that this  ship  is  not  going  to

Nolar. It's going to Lisal!" the captain bellowed. He slammed a meaty  fist

down on the controls, sending a small piece flying.

"But I don't need to go to Lisal," Lundi said, holding his ground.

Obi-Wan inched farther  out  on  the  catwalk  until  he  was  almost

directly over Lundi and the captain.

Lundi's head moved slowly back and forth as he fiddled with something

under his robe. The captain followed the Quermian's  small  head  with  his

eyes.

"I will only say this once more," Lundi said, his head still swaying.

"The equipment I need is on Nolar. You will stop on Nolar. I will  make  it

very worth your trip."

With a great effort the captain looked away from the Quermian's  face

and down at the folds of the professor's robe.

Obi-Wan could barely see something sparkle  in  Lundi's  hands  -  he

could have had something very valuable.  Whatever  it  was,  it  seemed  to

change the captain's mind.

"I'll stop, but I'm not waiting," the captain finally spat.

"You will not regret it," Lundi growled back.

CHAPTER 5

The ship landed on Nolar within an hour. Obi-Wan barely had  time  to

find his Master and brief him on what he'd heard on the bridge.

After Lundi quickly disembarked on Nolar, Obi-Wan and Qui-Gon  pushed

their way past the puzzled captain. The Jedi followed as the professor made

his way into a tiny, adjoining hangar. There was one small ship inside, and

Lundi spoke briefly with its pilot before leaving the hangar.

"It looks like he  just  booked  continuing  passage,"  Obi-Wan  said

thoughtfully as the Jedi followed Lundi into the city. "But I was under the

impression that Nolar was his final destination. Where do  you  think  he's

going?"

Qui-Gon let out a slow breath. "We shall soon see."

The capital city of Nolari was bustling. There was a  great  deal  of

both air and foot traffic. The city was populated by beings from many parts

of the galaxy.

Obi-Wan tried to stay close to his Master,  who  strode  purposefully

ahead.

It wasn't difficult to keep track  of  Murk  Lundi.  His  long  neck,

multiple arms, and tiny head made him an easy  visual  target,  even  in  a

densely populated metropolis like Nolari. But it was  not  long  before  an

uneasy feeling came over Obi-Wan. He sensed that someone or  something  was

following them. But what, or who?

Without slowing down, Qui-Gon turned back to  his  apprentice.  "Stay

close to me," he said quietly. "I think we are being followed."

"I feel a presence too, Master,"  Obi-Wan  replied.  "But  I  am  not

getting any sense of who it might be."

Qui-Gon began to move more quickly through the  crowds.  Obi-Wan  was

accustomed to  his  Master's  long,  powerful  strides,  but  he  found  it

difficult to move inconspicuously. In spite of the varied  populace,  their

smelly mechanics' uniforms seemed to stick out.

Looking fleetingly over his shoulder, Obi-Wan suddenly spotted  their

pursuer - a humanoid figure wearing a long cape and a helmet.

"I see him, Master," Obi-Wan spoke quietly. "About forty paces behind

us, to the right."

Qui-Gon nodded curtly. "We're going to have to split up," he said. "I

will follow Murk. You should lead our new friend away  from  me,  and  then

double back to see who he or she is."

Obi-Wan nodded. He looked over his shoulder a  second  time.  By  the

time he cast his eyes forward  again,  Qui-Gon  had  disappeared  into  the

throng.

Obi-Wan made a sharp left turn. Using his peripheral  vision  he  saw

his pursuer stop for an instant, as if unsure of which way to go. A  moment

later, he continued to follow Obi-Wan.

Relieved,  Obi-Wan  moved  ahead.  He  zigzagged  through  a  crowded

marketplace, barely pausing to look at the delectable fruits and vegetables

sold at various stands. Several vendors called  out  to  him,  aggressively

trying to sell their foods. Obi-Wan's stomach growled. Unfortunately  there

was no time for a snack.

On the far side of the open market, Obi-Wan ducked behind a stack  of

crates. His tracker passed by quickly, but by the time Obi-Wan emerged from

his hiding place he had disappeared again. Quickly scanning the crowd, Obi-

Wan pressed on. But he was not able to find  a  lone  figure  in  a  helmet

wandering the streets.

Obi-Wan was beginning to worry that he had failed his assignment when

he suddenly spotted a flutter of gray fabric ahead.  Hurrying  forward,  he

saw the figure vanish around a corner.

He definitely looks humanoid, Obi-Wan thought. But male or female?

Obi-Wan rounded the corner quickly and nearly collided with  a  group

of seedy-looking characters. Annoyed by the intrusion,  two  of  the  group

glared openly at the Jedi. A third pulled out a blaster and leveled  it  at

Obi-Wan's chest.

"Wrong turn," he growled. His arm  was  heavily  bandaged  above  the

wrist, but the heavy blaster did not waver in his hand.

Obi-Wan kept his eyes on the man's face as he pulled  his  lightsaber

from his belt. Had he been at Dr. Lundi's lecture on Coruscant? Or  on  the

ship? The young Jedi had been fairly sure that he and Qui-Gon were the only

passengers to disembark besides the professor.

"I'm afraid this is your unlucky day," another thug spat.

Obi-Wan stepped forward slightly and  ignited  his  lightsaber.  That

action alone was usually enough to intimidate an adversary. But  the  thugs

didn't back down. In fact, now there were two blasters aimed at him.

"Ah, a lightsaber," one of the armed lowlifes mocked.  "But  does  he

use it wisely for power and vengeance, or foolishly for peace?"

The rest of the thugs smirked, and Obi-Wan's mind jolted. He'd  heard

those words before, and recently - at Dr. Lundi's lecture.  These  lowlifes

were obviously familiar with Lundi and his work. Was this an  ambush?  Obi-

Wan wanted to ask, but one of the hoodlums fired before he could get a word

out.

Obi-Wan swung. Too late. The bolt grazed his shoulder, and he felt  a

hot pain tear through his flesh. He ignored  the  fierce  throbbing  as  he

leaped forward and swung again. This time he hit his target and  severed  a

thug's finger from its hand.

The lowlife howled in  pain.  "You  can't  win,  Jedi,"  he  growled.

Clutching his wounded hand, he fled deeper into the  alley.  His  wide-eyed

companions were quick to follow.

After clipping his  lightsaber  to  his  belt,  Obi-Wan  checked  his

shoulder. The throbbing had subsided. The wound was minor  and  would  heal

quickly.

By the time Obi-Wan stepped into the open street, he had  lost  track

of his pursuer. He stood completely still for a few moments, refocusing his

energy to determine which way he should go. The  answer  was  not  entirely

clear.

Obi-Wan started off in a new direction, heading away from the crowded

marketplace. The city  center  soon  gave  way  to  large,  storehouse-type

buildings. Obi-Wan was satisfied that his pursuer was  long  gone  when  he

sensed Qui-Gon's presence. Obi-Wan stopped before one of  the  storehouses.

Then, doubling back to the door, he ducked inside.

Obi-Wan knew immediately  that  his  Master  was  not  alone  in  the

storehouse. Murk Lundi was here as  well.  Moving  carefully  behind  large

crates and machinery, Obi-Wan made his way toward the center of  the  large

room. Soon he could hear two men carrying on a conversation.

"I need a Nolarian 6000 drill immediately," one of the  voices  said.

Obi-Wan recognized it as Dr. Lundi's.

Peering out from behind a vehicle, Obi-Wan saw that Lundi was talking

to a machinery dealer. The dealer  was  holding  a  large  wrench  and  his

forearms were covered in grease.

"Don't have one," the dealer said flatly. "There's  a  shortage.  And

the way the mining safety committee has been watching us, there will be for

a good while."

"I need a 6000. Today," Lundi repeated.

The dealer sighed, as if he  got  requests  for  enormous  subaquatic

drill rigs all the time. "Are you listening?" he asked, annoyed. "I said  I

don't have one. And I don't know when I will."

Lundi stared at the man, clenching and  unclenching  his  many  hands

into fists. His face contorted into a twisted scowl.

Behind the machinery, Obi-Wan suddenly felt a little hazy. His vision

blurred and the voices around him echoed in his ears. From somewhere in his

daze he realized that Dr. Lundi's anger was affecting him.  Yoda  had  told

Obi-Wan that anger and hatred clouded one's mind but he'd never  felt  this

muddled by someone else's anger before. Jedi Master Yarael Poof had amazing

powers of Force suggestion. Perhaps all Quermians were telepathic.

By concentrating hard, Obi-Wan was able to clear his vision  and  his

head. He focused on what was transpiring in front of  him.  Lundi  was  now

shouting at the machinery dealer.

"Pathetic  weakling,"  he  raged.  "Only  a  fool  would   let   such

technicalities interrupt his business."

The dealer stood staring at Lundi, frozen.

Lundi turned and stormed toward the  storehouse  door.  "I  have  the

power to find it without your  stupid  machinery,"  he  told  himself.  His

several arms waved forcefully through the air. "It is simply  a  matter  of

timing. Yes. I just have to time it right."

What does that mean? Obi-Wan wondered as he followed Lundi out of the

storehouse. His Master was not far behind, and the  two  Jedi  stepped  out

into the street as if they had been together the whole time.

Lundi, however, had vanished.

CHAPTER 6

Qui-Gon noted Obi-Wan's injury as well as the scowl on  his  face  as

the young Jedi peered down the street. There was no sign  of  anyone.  Like

Obi-Wan, he was wondering where Lundi could have gone so  quickly.  But  he

had witnessed stranger disappearing acts.

Obi-Wan turned back toward his Master. His mouth was  slightly  open,

as if he were about to say something. But at that  moment  a  third  figure

fled in the opposite direction. Without so much as a nod to each other, the

Jedi gave chase.

The figure retreated down an alley  and  disappeared  into  a  narrow

walkway between two buildings.  The  Jedi  followed  close  behind,  nearly

colliding into a duracrete wall. A dead end.

Qui-Gon ran his fingers along the wall's surface to  see  if  it  was

some kind of temporary barrier. The wall seemed permanent  and  solid,  but

the elusive figure was nowhere to be found.

"This mission is making me crazy!" Obi-Wan said, exasperated.  "We're

not getting anywhere!"

Qui-Gon gazed steadily at his Padawan. Then he bent to take a  closer

look at the boy's wounded shoulder.

"I was surrounded by a street gang," Obi-Wan said more  quietly,  but

he couldn't keep his frustration in check. "They were looking  for  trouble

and when they found I was a Jedi they wanted to stop me  even  more."  Obi-

Wan's voice grew louder and he  pulled  away  from  his  Master.  "I  don't

understand how there can be so many people after us  when  we  hardly  know

what we are after ourselves!"

The young Jedi's response was not  appropriate,  of  course.  A  Jedi

Knight did not throw temper tantrums. But this mission was frustrating.  In

addition to the humiliation of being injured by a band  of  ruffians,  Obi-

Wan, he realized suddenly, was feeling anger fed by close contact with  the

dark side. It was essential that he be patient and guide him in  the  right

direction. If he didn't, the boy could take a fateful turn and be  lost  to

him forever.

"You must not let the nature of this mission disturb you so, Padawan,

" Qui-Gon said calmly.

"I know it is difficult. We are dealing with  a  powerful  evil.  But

becoming angry only takes you a treacherous step closer to the dark side."

Obi-Wan looked down at his feet, as if ashamed of his anger.

"Anger and fear of the dark side are easy paths," Qui-Gon went on, as

if Obi-Wan had spoken of his shame. "It is not difficult  to  let  negative

emotions overtake you. It is difficult to let them  move  through  you  and

leave without reacting to them. Yet that is exactly what you must do."

Obi-Wan nodded, and Qui-Gon sensed that the  boy  understood  in  his

head what, he was telling him. But he also knew that it was much harder  to

feel it in one's heart.

Without speaking, Qui-Gon turned  and  left  the  dead-end  alleyway,

heading back toward the street. "Let us review what we do know," he said as

he strode forward. In truth he did not  feel  as  confident  about  how  to

proceed as he appeared. But he wanted  to  give  his  Padawan  a  sense  of

positive direction.

"We know that Dr. Lundi has a large and zealous following of students

- and many others as well. There are Sith Sects throughout the  galaxy  and

they are very likely in touch with one another. That could explain  why  so

many people are anxious to stop us. We know Lundi is after a Sith Holocron,

and that he needs difficult-to-obtain mining equipment to  get  it.  Or  at

least he would have liked to have had the equipment to go after it. We also

know that there is some question of timing, and whether  Lundi  can  manage

the powerful Holocron on his own."

"Those are just  the  rantings  of  a  delusional  student,"  Obi-Wan

pointed out. "One who was desperate to be included on the trip."

Qui-Gon paused in his step, but only  slightly.  "True,"  he  agreed.

"But we have received accurate information from far stranger sources."

Obi-Wan did not  respond,  and  Qui-Gon  did  not  pressure  him  any

further. The boy needed time to process his emotions.

The Jedi decided to head back to the hangar. If  they  moved  quickly

they might be able to steal aboard Dr. Lundi's newly hired ship  before  it

departed.

Making their way back toward  the  marketplace,  Qui-Gon  pulled  his

comlink from his utility belt. It was time to  contact  the  Jedi  Council.

This mission was anything but ordinary, and he wanted to keep Yoda informed

about how it was developing.

He was surprised by the information that Yoda had for him.

"Information about another, larger collection of Sith items we have,"

Yoda said gravely. His voice was steady, but Qui-Gon sensed that  the  wise

Jedi Master was alarmed nonetheless. "An anonymous informant it was."

Qui-Gon listened intently to everything Yoda  said,  pausing  in  the

street several times. Obi-Wan slowed alongside him,  his  eyes  registering

curiosity and concern. When the transmission was finished,  Qui-Gon  sighed

heavily. He was beginning to get a bad feeling about all of this.

"They've discovered other Sith artifacts," Qui-Gon began.

"I thought it was something like that," Obi-Wan said with  a  serious

nod. "What did they find?"

"A  whole  storehouse  full  of  partially  constructed  weapons  and

devices, and copies of Dr. Lundi's texts and teachings,"  Qui-Gon  replied.

"The trademark drawing of a Sith Holocron was on the wall."

Obi-Wan was quiet for a moment as they continued to head back to  the

hangar. "Where was the storehouse?" he finally asked.

"Umgul, in the Mid Rim," Qui-Gon replied.  He  quickened  his  stride

slightly. The sooner they got back to the hangar, the better.

Obi-Wan kept up with his Master. "Nowhere near the first  stash,"  he

said thoughtfully.

"Exactly," Qui-Gon agreed with a nod. Though he  and  his  apprentice

had only recently become aware of them, Sith Sect followers were becoming a

hard, cold fact of life.

Qui-Gon moved past an alien selling electronic gadgets and a humanoid

female pushing a loaded fruit cart.

Do they study the Sith? he wondered.

A small crowd of people suddenly appeared in front of Qui-Gon, and he

momentarily lost track of his apprentice.  Normally  this  would  not  have

bothered him. It was impossible to keep his eyes  on  his  Padawan  at  all

times. But for some reason this time it was disturbing.

Before he could weave through the cluster, blaster fire rang out.

CHAPTER 7

Obi-Wan had his lightsaber activated in less than a second. But  with

the screaming hoards of people on all sides of him,  it  was  difficult  to

tell where the bolts were  coming  from.  Focusing  his  energy,  he  stood

completely still for a nanosecond, then slashed out, ignoring the  pain  in

his shoulder. He successfully  deflected  three  bolts  before  the  firing

stopped.

Screams of panic echoed around him long after the firing was over. In

the aftermath it was nearly impossible to be certain of the origin  of  the

shots. Obi-Wan deactivated his lightsaber amid  more  screams  and  stares.

Luckily, nobody appeared to be hurt.

Suddenly Qui-Gon was by his side again. His Master did  not  need  to

speak for Obi-Wan to know that there was no  use  trying  to  pursue  their

assailant. The issue at hand was finding the most direct escape route.

Qui-Gon led the way through the crowd to a secluded area outside  the

market. They were just getting their bearings when more blaster  fire  rang

out - and whizzed past Obi-Wan's  head,  nearly  grazing  an  ear.  Obi-Wan

dropped, then quickly got back on his  feet.  It  was  definitely  time  to

return to the hangar.

As they raced through the streets, Obi-Wan wondered if life on  Nolar

was always this hazardous or if the Jedi had been targeted specifically. If

so, by whom? The thugs in the alley? How large  a  network  of  Sith  Sects

could there be? And who was informing them?

Another blaster bolt whizzed past them, but it  missed  the  Jedi  by

nearly a meter. They were getting away.

Obi-Wan ran after his Master. He appeared to be taking  a  roundabout

path, probably in an attempt to lose  their  pursuer  altogether.  As  they

turned corners and wove through the  streets,  they  gradually  left  their

assailant behind.

Finally the Jedi arrived back at the hangar.  Obi-Wan  rushed  inside

and skidded to a stop, but the ship Lundi had hired was gone. Its pilot was

lying in a heap on the floor.

The Jedi rushed to the pilot. His large rust-colored head lay on  the

ground at an odd angle. There was an ugly lump at the base of his neck, and

one of his long arms was draped over his closed eyes.

Squatting down beside him, Qui-Gon took his  pulse.  "It's  weak  and

slow, but it's there," he reported, sitting back on his heels.

"Do you think he's been drugged?" Obi-Wan  asked,  looking  over  the

body. The pilot's two-toed feet were pointing at awkward angles.

"It looks that way," Qui-Gon replied. "As well as being struck on the

head." He stood up with a sigh. "It may be several hours before we are even

able to talk to him."

Obi-Wan held back his exasperation. Another roadblock. They  were  on

an important mission, yet had no idea where they were going  or  what  they

were supposed to do. And to top it off, they were stranded on a planet with

someone who wanted to stop them, possibly for good.

Trying not to let frustration overtake him completely, Obi-Wan turned

his back on the pilot and sat down to wait.

Two hours later, the pilot  groaned  and  sat  up  groggily.  Looking

around, he appeared to take in the two Jedi and the empty space  where  his

ship had been a few hours ago. There was a moment of heavy  silence  before

he began to shout in anger. He tried to leap to his feet, but  quickly  sat

back down. Gingerly feeling the back of his neck, he  found  the  lump  and

shouted some more.

"Try to remain calm," Qui-Gon said in  a  soothing  tone.  The  pilot

cursed but didn't attempt to stand up again.

"Your ship was stolen, then?" Qui-Gon asked. He got  up  and  crossed

the hangar in a few quick strides.

"Well, I don't think I misplaced it," the pilot  replied  hotly.  The

sound of his voice was strange, since it came out  of  his  two  mouths  at

once. He eyed Qui-Gon with distrust. "Who are you?"

"I am Qui-Gon Jinn and this is my  apprentice,  Obi-Wan  Kenobi,"  he

replied. "We believe the being we are following may have stolen your  ship.

Can you tell us what happened?"

The captain gently rubbed the lump on the back of his  neck.  "I  was

working on my ship - making minor adjustments to  the  hyperdrive.  Someone

came up behind me and whacked me on the back of my neck." The pilot  winced

as he continued rubbing his wound.

"Did you see your attacker?" Obi-Wan asked.

The pilot shook his head. "I didn't see  anyone.  Or  hear  anything,

actually. It could have been any  thief  or  scoundrel.  There  are  plenty

around here."

"Do you think it was the being who hired passage on your ship  a  few

hours ago? The Quermian?"

"How do you know about the Quermian?" the captain asked.  But  before

the Jedi could reply he waved his hand through the  air  dismissively.  "It

doesn't matter. But I don't know why he'd attack the pilot who was about to

take him to a place he asked to go."

"Perhaps he was interested in piloting  the  ship  himself,"  Qui-Gon

mused.

"Or saving the fare," Obi-Wan added.

The pilot sighed. "There are many thieves  on  Nolar.  This  kind  of

thing happens all the time." He looked around the empty hangar and a  spark

of fury came into his eyes. "Just not to me."

Obi-Wan knew how the pilot  felt.  He'd  been  frustrated  with  this

mission pretty much since it started.

But at the  moment  he  and  Qui-Gon  needed  information  more  than

anything else. He had to stay calm and focused.

"Can you tell us where you were  going  to  take  the  Quermian?"  he

asked.

"Of course," the pilot said. Obi-Wan  noticed  that  he  seemed  more

willing to help the Jedi. Perhaps he thought it might get his ship back. "I

had just finished keying the information into my  navcomputer.  I  remember

because it's not a planet I'm asked to fly to very often. In fact, I  can't

say I've ever been there."

"And the name of the planet?" Qui-Gon asked.

"Kodai," the pilot said. "We were going to Kodai."

CHAPTER 8

Qui-Gon thanked the pilot and got to his  feet.  He  had  no  way  of

knowing if the ship was really  going  to  Kodai  or  not;  Dr.  Lundi  was

certainly smart enough to throw them off the trail or  even  deftly  set  a

trap. But they had nothing else to go on. The  sooner  they  could  get  to

Kodai to investigate, the better.

"Do you need help getting somewhere?" Qui-Gon asked the pilot.

The pilot got to his feet. Though it had been only minutes since he'd

woken up, he was already quite steady. "No, I'll be fine," he replied. "But

if you find my ship, you know where I am."

"Of course," Qui-Gon said. "We'll do what we can."

Obi-Wan and Qui-Gon quickly left the small hangar and made their  way

down the street and into a larger one. It was full of ships of  all  sizes,

and pilots from all over the galaxy talking shop or  tinkering  with  their

vessels. It seemed like it would be easy enough to hire one of them.

Qui-Gon strode up to a pilot and asked  if  he  would  take  them  to

Kodai. "Kodai?" the pilot repeated. "You've got the wrong guy."

"I'll take you there, but I won't land -  at  least  not  until  next

week," said another.

Qui-Gon asked half a dozen pilots before he finally found one who was

willing to make the journey, a humanoid who wouldn't give them a last name.

"Call me Elda," she said  before  agreeing  to  drop  them  off  and  leave

immediately. She could not be convinced to wait around for the return trip.

The Jedi could not afford to be  choosy.  They  boarded  right  away.

While the pilot readied the ship, they settled in for the journey.

"Not many people want to go to Kodai right now,"  Elda  said  as  she

keyed the destination points into her navcomputer.

Qui-Gon raised an eyebrow. "I gathered as much,"  he  said.  "Why  is

that?"

The pilot turned to look over her shoulder at Qui-Gon, giving him  an

"If you don't know I'm not going to tell you," look.

Qui-Gon didn't prod. It's just as well, he thought.  I  can  get  the

information from the Temple.

Stepping out of the cockpit and into the hold,  Qui-Gon  switched  on

his comlink. He had heard of Kodai, and thought it was located somewhere in

the Outer Rim Territories. If he was not mistaken, its surface  was  mostly

covered by a vast sea.

His comlink crackled to life and  a  moment  later  Temple  Archivist

Jocasta Nu's voice echoed quietly in the hold of the ship.

"It is good to hear from you, Qui-Gon," she said. "How is the mission

going?"

"It's hard to tell at the moment," Qui-Gon responded honestly. "I was

hoping you could provide me with information on the planet Kodai."

"Kodai, in the Outer Rim," she said. There was  a  brief  silence  as

Jocasta plugged the data for the request into her Temple computer. "I  seem

to remember something about a massive, swelling sea."

Qui-Gon could hear Jocasta pressing buttons and keys on  a  computer.

Then she spoke.

"Kodai is, in fact, covered by a giant sea - a sea that  hundreds  of

years ago swelled so much that  it  drowned  most  of  the  planet's  land-

dwelling inhabitants," she reported. "Today there is  only  one  pocket  of

land - a single city. It is sparsely populated by a few  thousand  Kodaians

who spend most of their time trying to preserve their way of life on  land,

in spite of the fact that most believe that the sea  will  rage  again  and

kill them all." Jocasta was silent for a moment. Qui-Gon guessed  that  she

was reading ahead.

"Interesting," she murmured. "It seems that  the  sea  has  shown  no

signs of raging in the last hundred years. In fact, the opposite  seems  to

occur. Every ten years, when the  planet's  two  moons  sync  up,  the  sea

experiences a spectacularly low tide."

"I see," said Qui-Gon, filing away this information.

"That's not all," Jocasta said. "What's particularly  fascinating  is

that the planet's moons will be syncing up the day after tomorrow."

"Interesting timing," Qui-Gon agreed. It seemed obvious  enough  that

Lundi's trip to Kodai at this particular moment and his search  for  mining

equipment were not coincidences. But he was still not clear  about  why  it

had been so difficult to find a pilot to take them to Kodai.

Jocasta was quiet for several long  moments  while  Qui-Gon  digested

this information. When she did not end the  transmission,  Qui-Gon  guessed

that she had more to tell him.

"Is there something else?" he finally asked.

"Yes," Jocasta replied slowly. "Another collection of Sith  materials

was found - this time on the planet Tynna in the Expansion  Region.  And  a

strange explosion has occurred on the peaceful  planet  Nubia.  Nobody  has

come forward to take credit for the blast, but a drawing of  a  crude  Sith

Holocron had  been  scraped  onto  a  duracrete  wall  outside  the  ruined

building."

Qui-Gon closed his eyes for a moment. The discovery of the additional

stash was not surprising. But an explosion was something  new  -  something

deadly. The situation was heating up, and he felt a great deal of  pressure

to defuse it.

"Thank you for the information," Qui-Gon told Jocasta. "We will be in

touch if we need anything further."

"Of course, Qui-Gon. I will be here if you need me."

As Jocasta switched off her comlink, Qui-Gon felt a pang  of  sorrow.

He wished that those parting words had been spoken  by  the  woman  at  the

Temple who had helped him with research in the past  -  Tahl.  Qui-Gon  had

been deeply in love with Tahl, and  though  she  had  been  killed  several

months ago, her absence still felt like a blade in his chest.

Qui-Gon put away his comlink and sat down on the  floor  to  meditate

until the path was clear. He was just beginning to feel his body relax when

Obi-Wan rushed into the hold.

"Master!" he shouted, alarmed. "There's a bomb on board!"

CHAPTER 9

Qui-Gon was on his feet in an instant. He followed his apprentice  to

the bridge, where the bomb had been planted underneath a low shelf. Bending

down carefully, Qui-Gon examined the device. It was black and square with a

simple timer on top - and a crude drawing of a Sith  Holocron  etched  into

the side.

"I suppose I should have expected something like this,"  Elda  griped

from her seat at the controls. "I just hope your  famous  Jedi  powers  can

defuse that thing before it blows up my ship - and us along with it."

"I'll do my best," Qui-Gon said wryly. "Do you have a set of tools we

could use?"

The pilot pointed to a small box in  the  corner.  "You  should  find

everything you need in there," she said.

Obi-Wan brought the tools over to his Master and crouched down beside

him. "This symbol is becoming familiar," he noted. "But the  device  itself

does not look too sophisticated."

"It should not be a problem  to  defuse,"  Qui-Gon  said,  casting  a

glance toward the captain. "But I'm not so sure about our pilot's temper."

Obi-Wan cracked a smile. Leave it to  Qui-Gon  to  find  humor  in  a

moment like this.

Qui-Gon opened the tool kit and pulled  out  a  long,  slender  pick.

After carefully inserting it into the side of the bomb casing, he  slid  it

back and forth until he heard an audible beep. The box opened  and  several

strands of colorful wire popped out. A timer  behind  the  wires  indicated

that the bomb would go off in less than a minute.

"Not much time," Obi-Wan murmured quietly.

Qui-Gon knew his Padawan was right, and he had not expected to see so

many different colored wires inside the bomb. It  was  a  more  complicated

design than he'd originally thought.

Focusing his energy on the bomb, he snipped all of the red wires. But

the timer did not switch off. It now read forty seconds, and  was  counting

down.

"Perhaps it is this black wire," Obi-Wan suggested quietly.

Qui-Gon did not think this was likely. It was the  only  black  wire,

and too obvious a solution. But as he studied  the  wire,  he  sensed  that

there was indeed something significant about it. Still, he wasn't sure that

cutting it was the right thing to do.

"Twenty seconds," Obi-Wan said.

Qui-Gon looked at the bomb more closely. One end of  the  black  wire

ran directly into the metal inside the casing. At the other end  the  black

plasticoating ended a few millimeters before the wire  touched  the  metal.

Underneath the missing black coating was a series of bright  yellow  wires.

They fanned out to form a row and slid neatly into a metal jack.

"Ten seconds."

Qui-Gon reached down and placed his thumb and  forefinger  on  either

side of the yellow wires. Closing his eyes, he twisted them away  from  the

jack. There was a small popping sound as the wires pulled free.

The timer on the bomb continued to count down. But  when  it  reached

one second, it suddenly stopped.

"You did it, Master," Obi-Wan said, sounding relieved.

Qui-Gon opened his eyes and saw the number frozen on the timer. "With

time to spare," he said wryly.

"I guess you Jedi are good for something," Elda  grumped.  But  there

was humor in her voice, and she was smiling broadly. "Thank you," she added

quietly.

Qui-Gon put the tools back into the case and got to his feet. "You're

welcome," he said.

Back in the hold, Qui-Gon closed his eyes and started to meditate for

the second time that day. The planted bomb was something else to  consider.

Was it meant to kill them, or simply throw them  off  guard?  And  who  had

planted it? It must have been  someone  who  was  following  them  closely,

someone who was highly prepared. Not much time had elapsed between the Jedi

arranging their travel and their subsequent takeoff.

Qui-Gon began to breathe deeply, letting  his  mind  clear  and  then

focus. But something was interfering with his  concentration.  His  Padawan

was pacing.

Qui-Gon opened an eye. "Why don't you try some meditation?" he asked.

Obi-Wan nodded and sat down. Even after he  had  stopped  pacing  the

room, Qui-Gon could tell he was still agitated. With both eyes open now, he

studied his Padawan. Obi-Wan sat cross-legged in  a  chair  with  his  eyes

closed. But his shoulders were tensed,  and  beneath  his  eyelids  Qui-Gon

could see movement.

"Are you all right, Obi-Wan?" Qui-Gon asked softly.

Obi-Wan opened his eyes and met his Master's  gaze.  "Yes,"  he  said

slowly. And then, "Well, I don't know."

"You are afraid," Qui-Gon stated plainly.

A look of shame came over Obi-Wan's face, but he did not deny it. "My

heart is full of dread," he admitted. "I wish we were on another mission  -

any other mission. I am not sure I have the courage to face the Holocron...

"

Qui-Gon leaned toward his apprentice. "You have  every  right  to  be

afraid," he said quietly. "Allow yourself to feel the fear - really feel it

- and then let the emotion go. If it comes back, feel it again and  let  it

go again. There should be no shame in one's emotions."

"I am not at fault if it comes back?" Obi-Wan asked, looking up.

"No, Padawan," Qui-Gon replied. "We cannot control how we feel.  Only

how we choose to handle our feelings."

A look of true relief crossed Obi-Wan's face, and he smiled slightly.

His shoulders relaxed and he closed his eyes. Qui-Gon could almost see  the

fear leaving his Padawan. He was glad his advice had provided some relief.

Sitting back, he closed his eyes, too. He only hoped the advice would

work as well for him.

CHAPTER 10

By the time the ship landed on Kodai, Obi-Wan felt refreshed  and  no

longer  afraid.  He  was  ready  to  move   forward   with   the   mission.

Unfortunately, doing so was not going to be easy.

Although the Jedi were quite certain that  they  were  on  the  right

planet, it was not at all obvious where they should go or what they  should

do. It was only clear that they were running out of time.

Not to mention that wherever they went, they seemed to  be  attacked.

Their pursuer, or pursuers, would not be shaken and wanted them stopped.

After dropping the Jedi off on a tiny platform  in  the  sole  island

city of Rena, Elda entered new coordinates into her navcomputer.

"Don't think I'm sticking around just because you diffused that bomb,

" she grumbled, eyeing the shabby-looking city. "Good luck to both of you,"

she added, shaking her head. "I have a feeling you're going to need it."

"Thanks for the support," Obi-Wan said dryly as he and Qui-Gon walked

down the ship's ramp. "And the transport, of course."

Out in the bright sunshine, the Jedi had to shade  their  eyes  until

they adjusted to the light reflecting off the vast sea. The city was  small

and appeared to have few inhabitants outside. There were cantinas, a single

lodging house, and a marketplace where locals exchanged  and  bought  food,

most of which was harvested from the sea. Giant walls lined the  streets  -

an attempt at flood protection, Obi-Wan guessed.

While the locals didn't stare at them - in  fact,  nobody  looked  at

them at all - Obi-Wan got the  feeling  that  they  were  definitely  being

noticed. The Kodaians were trying too hard not to look at them. As the Jedi

approached they cast their yellow eyes downward or bent their slender necks

to study the horizon in the opposite direction.

"Do you get the feeling they wish we were invisible?" Qui-Gon  asked.

"Our presence seems to pain them."

"Exactly," Obi-Wan agreed. It was a strange feeling.

"Let's check the lodging quarters," Qui-Gon  suggested.  "We  need  a

place to stay, and Lundi may be there as well."

Obi-Wan nodded in agreement and they strolled into a shabby but clean

lobby. A thin Kodaian sat on a stool behind a counter. When he saw the  no-

longer-disguised Jedi, he nervously got to his feet.

"May I assist you with something?" he asked, fiddling with his stubby

fingers and gazing at the floor. Obi-Wan wondered if  he  was  always  this

agitated around his customers.

"We would like to rent one of your spaces,"  Qui-Gon  explained.  "Do

you have any to spare?"

The Kodaian closed his golden eyes for a  moment,  surprised  by  the

question, and Obi-Wan guessed that Kodai and  the  quarters  did  not  have

visitors particularly often. After taking Qui-Gon's  credits,  the  Kodaian

placed a card with a door code on the counter. Their room was 4R.

"We are also looking for a Quermian guest we believe you have at  the

moment. A Doctor Murk Lundi."

The Kodian winced at the mention of Lundi's name. Without making  eye

contact he pointed to an old  turbolift  at  the  end  of  the  hall.  "His

quarters are on the second floor, number 2F."

The Kodaian  looked  around  to  see  if  anyone  was  nearby  before

continuing, then leaned forward and addressed Obi-Wan's boots. "He's a fine

guest. He hasn't spoken to anyone since he got here. Hasn't even  come  out

of his room."

Obi-Wan thought this was interesting information. He had  gotten  the

distinct impression that the professor liked an audience. Any audience.

"Thank you," Qui-Gon said, taking the key.

The Jedi made their way down the hall and stepped into the turbolift.

An older model, it shuddered as it moved up the single flight to the second

floor.

Dr. Lundi's room was located at the end of the  hall,  and  the  room

next to it was rented out. With the exception of breaking in  or  listening

at the door, there was no way to know what was going on inside.

Obi-Wan put his ear to the door and focused his auditory senses,  but

found it difficult to concentrate. It  almost  felt  as  if  something  was

blocking his connection to the Force. He could not  hear  anything  on  the

other side.

"Why do you suppose he would hurry to get here only to  lock  himself

up and do nothing?" Obi-Wan asked.

"We do not know  what  he  is  doing,"  Qui-Gon  pointed  out.  "It's

impossible to tell what is going on inside."

Another dead end. Obi-Wan let out a long sigh. Fear  and  frustration

began to well in him once again, and he closed his  eyes  and  relaxed  his

muscles until he felt these emotions fade. It was not easy, but he was able

to do it.

Qui-Gon was smiling faintly and nodding at him  when  Obi-Wan  opened

his eyes. "Well done, Padawan." He pointed toward the  turbolift.  "Perhaps

we can gather information if we talk to the Kodaians,"  he  added,  turning

away from the closed door.

Obi-Wan followed. "Right," he said sarcastically. "After we get  them

to look deep into our eyes."

"So glad to see you are maintaining a sense of humor,"  Qui-Gon  said

as they stepped back into the turbolift.

Back outside, it  quickly  became  clear  that  it  would  be  nearly

impossible to get Kodaians to talk to them openly.

"Excuse me," Obi-Wan said, trying to appear friendly as he approached

a Kodaian woman.

The Kodaian stopped but did not look up at the Jedi. She stepped from

one foot to the other as if unable to stand still. "Yes?" she whispered.

"We  are  looking  for  information  about  a  Quermian  visitor.   A

professor. He is here to dig up an artifact at the bottom of the sea - "

At the mention of the bottom of the sea the woman looked up,  clearly

alarmed. Her eyes were as large as saucers and her hands began to  tremble.

"I cannot help you," she said. "I must go now."

Watching her hurry away, Obi-Wan wondered if her fear was  caused  by

interaction with outlanders or the mention of the sea, the current state of

the moons, and the impending low tide. Or perhaps Kodaians simply lived  in

a constant state of fear because of  their  difficult  past.  Whatever  the

reason, she clearly did not want to share information.

Obi-Wan was looking around for someone else who might  talk  to  them

when he spotted a young boy watching them from several meters away.  Unlike

the other Kodaians, he looked right at them and did not seem afraid.

"Have you seen a visitor with a long neck and many arms  and  hands?"

Qui-Gon asked, approaching the boy.

The boy nodded and pointed to the lodging quarters. "He's inside. But

hasn't come out. If you want information, go to the  cantina  and  ask  for

Reis. He'll tell you whatever you want to know."

Obi-Wan smiled down at the boy, grateful for the  tip.  "Thanks,"  he

said.

Reis was not hard to find. He sat in a bare, dingy corner  sipping  a

mug of drale, the only humanoid in the place.  His  gray  hair  was  matted

against his head and his face was unshaven.

But his dark eyes were sharp as he took in the approaching Jedi.

"Mind if we sit down?" Qui-Gon asked.

Reis continued to size up each of the Jedi  in  turn,  pausing  where

their lightsabers hung from their utility belts. "Not  at  all,"  he  said.

"I've always got time to talk to Jedi. Suppose you want to know  all  about

the Holocron, eh?"

Obi-Wan felt a wave of shock at the mention  of  the  word  Holocron.

Finally, someone else said it first. Perhaps now they would get the answers

they so desperately needed.

The Jedi were quick to sit down, and Reis smiled. "Thought that might

get your attention," he said. He took a long swig of drale.

"It's there, all right," he said, putting the mug down.  "Been  there

for thousands of years. Problem is, no one can seem  to  get  it.  Everyone

wants it, but no one can get it. They try, but turn up dead or crazy  every

time."

"Yet attempts are still made to retrieve it?" Qui-Gon asked.

"Of course. People can't  leave  that  kind  of  power  alone,"  Reis

replied with a wave of his grubby hand. He leaned toward the Jedi, and Obi-

Wan could smell the stale drale on his breath. "I've heard  that  somebody,

somewhere has offered to pay an incredibly large fortune for the  Holocron.

Nobody knows who it is. Still, it makes going after it a  pretty  desirable

propo - "

Obi-Wan suddenly stopped listening when a familiar figure entered the

bar. It looked like Omal,  from  Dr.  Lundi's  lecture  on  Coruscant.  The

younger Jedi squinted, but the cantina was dark and he  couldn't  be  sure.

With a pang of guilt he realized that his observation abilities hadn't been

their strongest at the lecture. Things had been a little hazy.

"Excuse me," Obi-Wan said, getting up from  his  chair  and  ignoring

Qui-Gon's quizzical look. If it was Omal, Obi-Wan wanted to talk to him.

Obi-Wan crossed the cantina quickly, but not quickly enough.  Whoever

was at the bar saw him coming. With a panicked glance  over  his  shoulder,

the person disappeared out the door and into the street.

CHAPTER 11

Obi-Wan rolled over on his sleep couch for  the  hundredth  time.  He

could not rest. He wasn't sure if the synchronizing moons were the cause of

his restlessness, or if it was just the ominous feeling he hadn't been able

to shake since he first encountered Murk Lundi. Either way,  he  could  not

sleep.

Giving up entirely, Obi-Wan left the lodging  quarters  and  wandered

down to the beach. Perhaps the rhythmic sound of  the  waves  would  soothe

him. He needed to get some rest before taking a turn watching Lundi's door.

Qui-Gon's shift was nearly up.

Obi-Wan's steps echoed in the still night as he walked. The  darkness

seemed to swallow him. After  donning  his  night  goggles  he  walked  and

walked, expecting to see and hear the water at any moment.

I'm sure the sea was much closer to the main  street  than  this,  he

thought. Obi-Wan suddenly felt  confused,  as  if  he  had  walked  onto  a

completely different planet. Wasn't Kodai covered by a vast sea?

Obi-Wan stopped and stared ahead, concentrating  hard.  At  first  he

could not see any water. Then he thought he saw a liquid  shimmer,  but  it

was far away. He suddenly realized that the water had receded  hundreds  of

kilometers since that afternoon.

Peering in the other direction, he spotted a large group of  Kodaians

farther down the beach.  They  carried  torches  and  hovered  around  what

appeared to be an ancient ruined  structure,  frantically  digging  at  the

seafloor. They were obviously trying to scavenge parts  of  the  city  that

were lost in the flood hundreds of years ago.

Watching them from a distance, Obi-Wan was  suddenly  filled  with  a

deep sense of sadness. It would be awful to lose so much of your history to

a raging sea. And to be tortured every ten years by the opportunity to find

the broken pieces of it.

Obi-Wan turned back to the water  -  or  lack  of  it.  In  the  near

darkness he could not even be sure that the reflections  he  saw  were,  in

fact, the sea.

An image and a voice flashed in Obi-Wan's head - Lundi  storming  out

of the storehouse on Nolar. "I just have to time it right," he had said.

With a jolt, Obi-Wan knew that Lundi had been waiting for  the  water

to recede so that he could get the Holocron. The Kodaian sea  would  be  at

its lowest tide in a decade in just over an hour.

Obi-Wan raced through the darkness  back  to  the  lodging  quarters.

Outside the building he spotted someone racing away. Omal? Unfortunately it

was too dark to tell, and he had no time to go after the figure. He had  to

get to Qui-Gon. When his comlink wouldn't go through, he headed back.

"Master!" Obi-Wan shouted, but stopped short. Qui-Gon was not at  his

lookout post and the door to the professor's room was wide open. No one was

inside.

Suddenly Qui-Gon was behind him assessing the situation. "I was  only

gone a moment," he breathed. "I got a communication  from  Jocasta  Nu  and

stepped away. He can't be far."

Once again Obi-Wan felt frustration well inside him.  How  were  they

going to locate Lundi and the Holocron now?

"We'll have to go on our instincts," Qui-Gon said, as if reading  his

Padawan's mind. "If we listen carefully the Force will guide us."

Obi-Wan knew his Master was right. And  anyway,  they  had  no  other

choice.

Silently, Obi-Wan led Qui-Gon toward the water. The seemingly endless

beach was now teeming with Kodaians and their digging tools. Pausing for  a

moment to close his eyes  and  focus,  Obi-Wan  sensed  that  there  was  a

deserted area farther north on the sand.

The Jedi walked out for several kilometers, moving as quickly as they

could. All around them Kodaians were uncovering artifacts from the infamous

flood. Some held their newly discovered treasures high  above  their  heads

with glee, while others fell to their knees  in  tears.  Obi-Wan  felt  for

them.

Up ahead was a strangely deserted  strip  of  sodden  land.  Kodaians

worked busily on either side of it, but  the  raised  area  was  completely

empty.

"It's almost as if an invisible barrier is  keeping  them  away  from

this area," Obi-Wan commented.

"Perhaps one is," Qui-Gon replied, looking around.

The Jedi hurried ahead. Several Kodaians stopped  their  digging  and

stared after them.

They did not avert their eyes now. Some even  shouted  warnings.  The

Jedi ignored them. As Obi-Wan moved forward, he  began  to  feel  something

dark and powerful surrounding him. Horror and relief collided  within  him.

They were definitely approaching the right place. The Sith Holocron was not

far away.

Letting his fear slip through him like water through a sieve, Obi-Wan

moved forward. He was so intent on finding Lundi and the Holocron  that  he

didn't see the crevasse in front of him.

"Obi-Wan, stop!" Qui-Gon shouted from behind.

Obi-Wan skidded to a halt centimeters before a yawning  black  chasm.

He peered into it, but could see nothing  but  darkness.  A  wave  of  evil

energy wafted up at him. The Holocron.

Without speaking, the Jedi  pulled  out  their  cable  launchers  and

anchored the ends firmly into the seafloor next to the crevasse. A thousand

thoughts were running through Obi-Wan's mind, and he wanted to express them

all to his Master. But doing so was impossible.

Glancing  at  each  other   only   briefly,   Qui-Gon   and   Obi-Wan

simultaneously rappelled over the edge into the blackness. Before long  the

top of the cliff disappeared from view.

The crevasse wall was slippery and wet. Obi-Wan took a deep breath as

he continued to descend. Part of him wanted to  know  what  he  would  find

below, and part of him didn't.

Suddenly he felt a flicker of movement in his cable. A  second  later

his anchor flew over the edge, and Obi-Wan found himself careening into the

darkness below.

CHAPTER 12

Qui-Gon saw a figure standing above them at the top of the chasm.  It

leaned over the edge for a split second, then was gone. A moment later Obi-

Wan's launcher cord went slack and his Padawan fell past him with  alarming

speed.

Qui-Gon immediately anchored himself to the cliff and reached out  to

the Force to try and stop the fall.  But  the  dark  energy  in  the  giant

crevasse worked against him. He felt oddly exhausted and had little ability

to concentrate.

Quickly, Qui-Gon pushed past his  weakness  and  focused  harder.  He

willed his apprentice to do the same.

The sound of Obi-Wan's launcher anchor scraping against the  side  of

the crevasse was music to Qui-Gon's ears. After  a  few  seemingly  endless

seconds it caught, jerking Obi-Wan to an abrupt halt. He dangled in the air

somewhere below Qui-Gon.

"Are you all right, Obi-Wan?" Qui-Gon called down. His  voice  echoed

off the chasm walls.

"I'm fine," Obi-Wan replied.  "And  I  can  see  the  bottom  of  the

crevasse."

Qui-Gon tested his line. It was still secure. Then he  rappelled  the

rest of the way as quickly as he could. By the time he got to the  crevasse

floor, Obi-Wan had stowed his cable launcher and was searching the area  by

the light of a glow rod. The  crevasse  floor  was  rocky  and  covered  by

slippery vegetation. They would have to tread carefully.

"I don't see anything," Obi-Wan said.  His  voice  sounded  strangely

hollow, and Qui-Gon wasn't sure if it was because of the chasm,  his  fall,

or because they were so close to the Holocron. The  concentration  of  dark

knowledge could tap one's strength. He certainly weakened himself. But  the

strange hollow feeling also let Qui-Gon know they were on the right  track.

He felt at once repelled and drawn closer.

Qui-Gon ignited a second glow rod and  the  Jedi  searched  the  area

until they came across a series of  footprints.  With  the  wet  vegetation

covering the chasm floor, it was impossible to tell if there was more  than

one set of marks.

As they moved farther away from their decension point, Qui-Gon  heard

a low rumble. It sounded as though a storm was picking up. Or was  the  sea

rising? It was now well past the time of the  lowest  tide  and  the  water

should be coming back up.

A flash of lightning split the sky above. In the blast of light, Qui-

Gon thought he saw a figure struggling toward them. But before he could  be

certain, a plume of water began to gush up through a large gap in the rocky

shelf they were standing on. Shooting meters above his head, it  completely

blocked Qui-Gon's view and nearly knocked both Jedi off their feet.  As  it

rained down on them and seeped into his boots,  Qui-Gon  was  surprised  to

find that the water was hot.

With a sudden sense of dread Qui-Gon realized that they were  at  the

bottom of one crevasse, but that there were probably several just  like  it

below. The seafloor was a honeycomb. They were by no means on solid ground.

Water continued to push out of the hole with remarkable force.  There

was no question that the tide was turning. When the gush finally  subsided,

they were up to their ankles in hot seawater. Several meters ahead of  him,

on the other side of the gap, Qui-Gon could see a crumpled  form  lying  on

the crevasse floor.

Qui-Gon ran blindly toward the figure. Was it Murk Lundi?

It was. The Quermian lay limply on the crevasse floor with  his  face

partially in the water. The apparatus that normally covered one of his eyes

was gone, revealing an empty socket.

Qui-Gon was almost upon the professor when he lashed out. "You  can't

stop me!" he cried, lifting his head. One of his gangly  arms  fumbled  for

something under his robe, and he shakily pulled out a blaster.  The  weapon

wobbled in his hand, and he fired recklessly.

Qui-Gon quickly dodged, escaping the blast  in  spite  of  the  close

range. Behind him, Obi-Wan ignited  his  lightsaber.  The  blue  blade  cut

through the air, deflecting the bolt and knocking Lundi's  blaster  out  of

his hand. The weapon skittered across the crevasse floor and fell into  the

geyser gap.

"No!" Lundi cried. He struggled to get to his feet, then collapsed in

the water.

"Where is the Holocron?" Obi-Wan demanded, pulling  the  Quermian  to

his feet.

"In my hand! In my hand! I held it  in  my  hand!"  Lundi  screeched,

jabbing at Obi-Wan with his pointed fingers.

"Where is it now?" Obi-Wan asked through gritted  teeth,  binding  as

many of the professor's skinny wrists together as he could catch.

"Let me go. Let me get it. It's not for you!" Lundi spat in Obi-Wan's

face and flailed wildly but he did not have the strength to break free.  "I

should be the one!"

Qui-Gon's mind reeled. He could feel that  they  were  close  to  the

Holocron. Very close. He tried to focus, to find its location, but the dark

side was playing tricks with his mind. It was so near and still beyond  his

mental vision. There was so much he didn't understand. If  Lundi  had  held

the Holocron, where was it now? Did someone  else  have  it?  Had  he  been

unable to handle the power?

Questions were still forming in his mind when the rock  beneath  Qui-

Gon's feet shuddered. For a split second the Jedi Master considered  diving

into the swirling waters  to  find  his  answers.  With  a  glance  at  his

apprentice his sanity returned. If the Jedi could not recover the  Holocron

it was unlikely that anyone else could, either.

"I'll carry him," Qui-Gon told his Padawan abruptly. He did not  want

to waste his strength explaining himself.

Before Qui-Gon could lift Lundi from the chasm floor, a  second  rush

of water hurtled out of the gap. Obi-Wan saw it  coming  and  steadied  his

Master, helping him get the Quermian onto a shoulder. But now the water was

halfway up their calves.

Obi-Wan led the way, holding his glow rod out in front of them.  They

had to walk carefully along the rocky shelf, back to the crevasse wall.

The water around Qui-Gon's legs made it difficult to  know  where  to

step, and Lundi was continuously flailing several arms and  raving  in  his

ear.

"The Holocron!" he screamed, struggling against Qui-Gon's firm  grip.

"I must get the Holocron! It's mine. Mine!"

Qui-Gon tried to ignore the professor, which wasn't easy. Finally  he

could see the place where they'd descended. But how were they going to  get

back up to the top with a maddened Quermian and  only  one  anchored  cable

launcher?

"I can climb up and  toss  the  cable  back  down  to  you,"  Obi-Wan

suggested.

Qui-Gon wasn't sure they had time for that - or that he could make it

while holding onto Lundi. But  he  didn't  see  a  better  option,  and  he

couldn't think with Lundi screaming in his ear.

Obi-Wan had just hoisted himself off the rocky  shelf  when  a  small

ship appeared overhead. Dropping back to the floor, he and  his  encumbered

Master pressed themselves against the crevasse wall for cover. There was no

way of knowing who was inside, or what they were after.

The ship descended as close to the crevasse as it could, and  a  long

ladder dropped down in  front  of  the  Jedi.  The  vessel  looked  vaguely

familiar, but in the darkness it was hard to identify it. Obi-Wan looked at

his Master with uncertainty. Qui-Gon was not clear about the ship,  either.

But he was not one to refuse help that they truly needed.

The Jedi grabbed hold and climbed. Even with the evenly spaced rungs,

getting the struggling professor safely to the ship was no easy feat. About

halfway up, Lundi passed out. When Qui-Gon finally pulled himself into  the

ship, he was exhausted. Holding Lundi with one  arm  Qui-Gon  gripped  each

step with his teeth in order to move his free hand to the next step.  Twice

his boots slipped on the wet rungs, nearly sending him and his  heavy  load

into the waters below. At last he reached  the  ship's  hatch  and  dragged

himself and his burden aboard.

"Nice to see you again," came a gritty female voice from the cockpit.

Qui-Gon was surprised to see Elda. She grinned at his reaction.

"Didn't expect to see me, did you?" she asked.

Qui-Gon shook his head. "But it's a pleasure," he told her sincerely.

"Thank you for coming."

The pilot turned back to her controls and lifted the  ship  into  the

air. "You don't have to thank me," she replied.  "Something  about  you  or

this place got under my skin, and I came back shortly after leaving. I just

couldn't leave you here. After all, you saved my ship from being blown  up.

I wanted to return the favor."

"We're grateful," Obi-Wan remarked as he slumped into a chair.

Qui-Gon set Lundi down in another seat and secured him to it  with  a

length of cable. He didn't think the old Quermian would have much  strength

when he woke, but he didn't want to take any chances.

Suddenly the professor's head snapped up.

Qui-Gon stepped back, but Lundi craned his long neck forward, forcing

the Jedi against the ship wall.

The Quermian's good eye rolled around in its  socket  as  he  closely

examined the Jedi. "Peacemakers!" he spat. "You have begun  a  war."  Lundi

whipped his small head back and forth on the end of his slender neck. "War!

War!" he repeated over and over, each time his  voice  growing  louder  and

more shrill.

Qui-Gon opened his mouth to speak but saw that it would be of  little

use. He could only watch as the once brilliant  historian  whipped  himself

into a frenzy. The power of the dark side had corrupted him. It  was  clear

to the Jedi Master that Lundi was insane. He would be escorted back to  the

Temple and evaluated. Qui- Gon  felt  quite  certain  that  he  would  need

psychiatric help. And there were also questions for the  Galactic  Republic

regarding what he'd intended to do with the Holocron.

This was not the way Qui-Gon had hoped to return from  this  mission.

He did not have the Holocron. His apprentice seemed rattled. There was also

still the question of who, besides the Jedi and Professor  Lundi,  knew  it

was down there. Who had unfastened Obi-Wan's  cable  launcher?  Had  anyone

else been able to get down into the chasm? The best they could hope for was

that the Holocron was still at the bottom of Kodaian sea - at  least  until

the tide dropped again in ten years.

"You can't handle it! You don't know what to do with  it!  You  don't

deserve it!"      The professor raved on. Qui-Gon wasn't sure if Lundi was even

talking to him any longer.

Taking a deep breath, Qui-Gon tuned out Lundi's mad rants.  He  tried

to quiet his mind, consoling himself with the fact that  the  Holocron  was

not in Lundi's possession. Still, he knew this mission was far from over.

TEN YEARS LATER

CHAPTER 13

"Pathetic weaklings," Lundi spat. His uncovered  eye  rolled  in  its

socket and a line of drool dribbled down his chin. "The power  was  mine  -

within my grasp. But you... you snatched it. You stole it away."

Obi-Wan watched the insane Quermian struggle  in  his  bindings.  The

anger seething inside him was tangible, and  the  Jedi  felt  certain  that

Lundi would kill him if he could. But aside from the lucid  declaration  of

the power he'd nearly had and then lost, much of what  the  professor  said

was incomprehensible.

Professor Lundi had almost lost his life on Kodai when he'd attempted

to go after the Sith Holocron buried under  the  planet's  vast  sea.  He'd

survived, but his sanity was gone  -  eaten  away  by  the  ancient  device

lurking under the pounding waves.

Lundi writhed in his seat, trying to get free.

Since that fateful night on Kodai he'd been tried for  the  crime  of

attempting to bring a great evil into active existence in the  galaxy.  Not

only was he trying to obtain the Holocron, there was  significant  evidence

that he'd intended to use it for evil purposes.

This was not a crime the Republic took lightly.

Lundi himself had confessed to the crime. In fact, during  the  trial

he'd boasted about momentarily having the Holocron in his hands. It  wasn't

easy to get his statement. His rants sometimes  lasted  days,  ending  only

when the mad Quermian collapsed. Even then, after he'd been bound  and  put

in a cell so that he couldn't hurt himself - or anyone else - he  continued

to twitch and mutter angrily in his sleep.

"Weak child," Lundi growled, glaring at Obi-Wan through the  bars  of

his cell. "You are nothing. Nothing."

Obi-Wan stared back at the professor. His feelings for Murk Lundi had

not changed in ten years. The  professor's  evil  and  insanity  thoroughly

repulsed him, and Obi-Wan would have liked to remain as far from  Lundi  as

possible. But he could not defy the Council's decision. An  assignment  was

an assignment.

Obi-Wan had been surprised when he and his Padawan, Anakin Skywalker,

were summoned to the Temple earlier that day. Out of the blue, the  mission

they were on was taken over by another Jedi team. This had  never  happened

to Obi-Wan before. Whenever he and his deceased Master Qui-Gon Jinn  or  he

and Anakin were assigned to a  mission,  they  always  saw  it  through  to

completion. At least until now.

As they'd made their way through the Temple  corridors,  Obi-Wan  had

noted that Anakin was annoyed by the abrupt shift in plans.  The  thirteen-

year-old apprentice had clearly been enjoying  himself  on  the  originally

assigned mission - it allowed him to tinker with the weapons systems  on  a

sleek ship.

"This better be good," he'd grumped.

Obi-Wan had counseled the boy, telling him that  even  if  it  wasn't

"good," it would certainly be important. Anakin had merely rolled his  eyes

as they'd entered the Jedi Council Chambers.

Obi-Wan had momentarily marveled  at  this.  As  a  Padawan  learner,

entering the Council Chambers always made his palms sweat, his heart  race.

An incredibly important place to be, it never failed to make  him  slightly

nervous. Anakin never showed signs of nervousness upon entering the Council

Chambers. He simply walked right in, as if it  were  the  home  of  an  old

friend.

As soon as he and Anakin had entered the Chambers, Obi-Wan knew  that

whatever had brought them there was serious. All of the Jedi  Masters  were

present, and the expression on Yoda's face was unusually grave.

"Rumblings once again about the Sith Holocron on  Kodai  there  are,"

Yoda said, not wasting any time. "Planning to recover it someone is."

Obi-Wan had felt a wave of fear go  through  him.  He'd  been  having

troubling dreams and visions for several nights. At first  he  hadn't  been

sure why. Then he'd realized that almost exactly ten years had passed since

he and Qui-Gon had first followed Dr. Murk Lundi to the Sith Holocron.  The

moons of Kodai would soon be in synchronous orbit, once  again  causing  an

amazingly low tide. And that was when attempts were  made  to  recover  the

Holocron.

"That is not all," Master Ki-Adi Mundi added. There was a  moment  of

silence in the Chambers before he went on.

"Jedi all over the galaxy have been  receiving  threatening  messages

about the Sith gaining power. Some of these messages contain images of Jedi

being brutally killed."

Mace Windu cleared his throat. "At first we believed these threats to

be the work of trivial criminals out for attention," he  said.  "But  given

the dangerous nature of the information in the Holocron and the  fact  that

the Sith have returned, we must treat these threats very seriously."

"Take  action  immediately,  we  must,"  Master  Yoda  said,  nodding

slightly. "Fall into the wrong hands, the Holocron must not. Give the  Sith

such a victory, we must not."

Standing before the semicircle of Jedi Masters, Obi-Wan  had  briefly

closed his eyes. He could feel his body filling with dread  and  wanted  to

let it wash through him. Doing so had not been easy.

Obi-Wan knew that he and Anakin were the obvious Jedi team  for  this

mission. After all, he was more familiar  with  Lundi,  the  Holocron,  and

Kodai than any other living Jedi. But it was not an  assignment  he  looked

forward to - or even felt comfortable with. Not only  was  he  without  the

help and guidance of Qui-Gon, but his Master had died at  the  hand  of  an

emergent Sith Lord.

"What's the matter, Jedi?" Lundi spat. "Lost in a memory?"

Obi-Wan was jolted back  to  the  moment.  Something  wet  splattered

across his face. Lundi's saliva.

"You'd better wat - " Anakin started to shout protectively. But  Obi-

Wan quickly raised an arm to quiet his Padawan.

Calmly wiping his face with the sleeve of  his  robe,  Obi-Wan  gazed

back at the professor. He would not show anger or  frustration.  Though  he

desperately wished he could go on this mission without  this  crazed,  evil

being, he knew he could not. Their best chance of stopping  anyone  seeking

the Holocron was to have Lundi's wealth of knowledge - however garbled  and

menacing - with them.

Obi-Wan stared into the old Quermian's visible eye, searching  for  a

glimmer of repentance or sanity. Either one would grant him a  small  sense

of hope.

But as Murk Lundi glared back at him, Obi-Wan saw neither.

CHAPTER 14

Anakin took a small step forward, trying to see into  the  Quermian's

eye. It was a difficult task, since his  head  bobbed  and  weaved  like  a

bird's. Anakin knew this to be a symptom of insanity. As a boy on Tatooine,

he'd seen some of the street dwellers do the same thing.

But this was different. Standing in front  of  Lundi's  cell  in  the

mental hospital, Anakin felt intrigued. There was something strong  here  -

something powerful.

Anakin noted how Lundi's uncovered eye narrowed to a dark slit as  he

glared at Obi-Wan. It burned with a fiery hatred. He'd  never  seen  anyone

look at Obi-Wan like that. It was a little unsettling.  Of  course,  Anakin

would have chosen unsettling and interesting over  boring  any  day.  Today

someone had chosen it for him.

Suddenly Lundi lunged forward, thrusting his head and  long  Quermian

neck between the bars. Anakin leaned back as Lundi began to rant about  the

Holocron yet again.

"Moons are moving. Tides are turning,"  he  rambled.  A  few  of  his

gangly arms waved in the air. "I knew you would not stay away.  None  have.

They all come to me. Crying. Begging. Screaming. 'Teach me, professor. Show

me the way.' They think I have failed. But we know different, don't we?" He

stared Obi-Wan down, then went on, almost as if he were talking to himself.

"Yes, of course we know different. We know I did  not  fail.  I  could  not

fail. I held the power. In my hands I held the  power.  That  is  different

from failure. But then I was robbed! Robbed by robed thieves on  a  mission

of peace. Here, Jedi. Have a piece of this!"

Lundi's many shackled arms awkwardly thrust his food out of his cell,

striking Obi-Wan in the face.

Anakin looked at his Master, expecting to see some sort of  reaction.

But Obi-Wan didn't flinch. He simply stood before Lundi's cell with a stoic

calm.

"We need your help, professor," he  said  quietly,  "to  recover  the

Holocron."

Professor Lundi looked up, clearly surprised. His eye widened  and  a

smile stretched across his face, revealing two rows of decaying  teeth.  He

put his face up to the bars  again,  and  Anakin  could  smell  his  rancid

breath.

"At last you Jedi have found the right path," he cackled.

CHAPTER 15

It did not take long for Obi-Wan to arrange to  have  Lundi  released

into his custody. Obi-Wan, Anakin, and the professor were on a  ship  bound

for Kodai by late afternoon.

Once they had settled in, Obi-Wan  tried  again  to  talk  to  Lundi.

Though the Jedi knew the Holocron had last been seen on  Kodai,  they  were

not sure if it was still there. And Obi-Wan felt  certain  that  Lundi  had

additional information that  would  prove  vital  to  finding  the  ancient

artifact. Even if Lundi did not intend to help the Jedi,  it  was  possible

that there would exist unintentional clues in  his  torrent  of  words  and

abuse.

Though he was hardly joyful, Lundi seemed glad to be out of  solitary

confinement. Rocking back and forth  in  his  restraining  cage,  he  gazed

around the hold of the ship like a curious child.

Obi-Wan hoped the change  of  scenery  would  help  make  Lundi  more

cooperative. He also hoped that the Quermian was lucid  enough  to  provide

accurate information.

"The Jedi are not interested in using the Holocron to promote  evil,"

he said, facing Lundi directly. "Rather, we wish to have  it  recovered  so

that it can be permanently housed in a safe place."

Lundi's eye glinted, and then he laughed.  "You  are  nothing  but  a

scared weakling - a cowardly boy," he cackled. "You haven't changed at all,

and neither have the Jedi. I should have known that the Jedi would not want

to tame the Holocron. They do not even have the strength to try."

Out of the corner of his eye, Obi-Wan saw Anakin leap  to  his  feet.

"Do not insult my Master!" he shouted. "He knows courage  far  better  than

you."

"It is all right, Anakin," Obi-Wan said calmly, placing a  reassuring

hand on his Padawan's shoulder. "I am not vulnerable to insults."

Obi-Wan watched Anakin turn away and sit down in the copilot's  seat.

Next to him, the pilot was nervously fiddling with the ship's controls.  He

was obviously agitated by  the  professor's  ravings.  But  Lundi  was  now

uncharacteristically silent. Glaring at  the  Jedi  from  behind  durasteel

bars, he did not say a word.

Obi-Wan fitfully rolled over on his sleep couch.  It  had  been  more

than a day since they'd boarded the ship, and nearly as  long  since  Lundi

had spoken. Obi-Wan was now almost certain that Lundi knew  who  was  after

the Holocron - and how to get  to  it  before  they  did.  But  the  Jedi's

attempts to pry information out of the professor had proved  fruitless.  He

was locked in a battle of wills with a deranged lunatic, and  the  deranged

lunatic had the upper hand.

Obi-Wan closed his eyes and willed himself to relax. Across the  room

Anakin was sound asleep, the rhythm of his breathing echoing softly in  the

small space. Obi-Wan cleared his mind. If he didn't get some rest he  would

be at a disadvantage when they arrived on Kodai.

Just as he was drifting off, a familiar  voice  came  into  Obi-Wan's

head.

There were others, Padawan, it said. Obi-Wan let out a  long  breath.

The voice was Qui-Gon's. His deceased Master had always been there to  help

him, and still was - even in death.

Others were involved in Lundi's  search  for  the  Holocron.  Contact

them. Perhaps Lundi told them something that would be of help to you now.

Obi-Wan opened his eyes. Thank you, Master, he thought as he sat  up.

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.

A tortured look came into Dedra's eyes.  "I  don't  know,"  she  said

mournfully. "But the best I can hope for is that he is dead."

CHAPTER 16

Anakin's eyes widened. That was a terrible thing to say. Even when he

was a slave as a young boy on Tatooine, he never wished that his life would

end. Death seemed so permanent, so final.

"We didn't know then that Norval had been  obsessively  studying  Dr.

Lundi's texts," Dedra explained quickly, seeing the reactions of the  Jedi.

"He'd developed a taste for  power,  and  he  desperately  wanted  it.  The

teachings had changed him."

Anakin wasn't sure he understood what Dedra meant. He  knew  what  it

was like to want something badly. He'd wanted to win a Podrace on Tatooine.

He wanted to free his mother. He wanted to become a  Jedi.  But  he  didn't

think these desires actually changed him. They were simply part of  who  he

was.

Nobody said anything for several  moments.  Anakin  sensed  that  his

Master was taking everything in, trying to put all the information in place

in his mind.

Suddenly the silence in the kitchen was broken by the sound of Omal's

voice. He was mumbling something in the other  room.  His  words  were  not

clear, but the tone was desperate. A look of concern crossed  Dedra's  face

and she moved toward the living room.

"I'll go check on him," Anakin offered. He left Obi-Wan and Dedra  in

the small kitchen and headed back into the  living  room.  Omal  was  still

sitting on the floor, but his head was now  sharply  tilted  to  the  side.

Tears were running down the side of his face, and his nose was watery.

Anakin stared at Omal for a long moment. He felt sorry for  him,  and

wished there was something he could do to help him. If what his Master said

was true, Omal had been horribly and permanently changed.

"You're okay," Anakin said gently, snapping out of his thoughts.  "We

just need to get  your  face  cleaned  up."  He  found  a  small  scrap  of

relatively clean cloth and used it to wipe Omal's face. Omal looked  up  at

him gratefully for a brief moment. Then his eyes darted away again  and  he

resumed rocking back and forth.

Anakin watched Omal for what seemed like an eternity. When he finally

looked away, he felt a strong desire to move ahead with the mission. He had

to know what had caused Omal's downfall - what had the Jedi Council  so  up

in arms.

He wanted to do it now - to get out  of  the  apartment,  get  going.

Dedra had told them everything she knew, and Omal was clearly not going  to

tell them anything at all. What was Obi-Wan still doing in the kitchen? Was

there a reason it was taking him so long?

Feeling antsy, Anakin began to look around the living room. Piles  of

dirty clothes, scraps of food, and all kinds of other items  were  littered

across  the  floor.  None  of  them  looked  particularly  interesting   or

important.

Then, out of the corner of his eye, Anakin  spotted  something  shiny

sticking out from under a tunic. Picking it up, he saw that it was a  small

holoprojector. Anakin tried to switch it on, but  knew  almost  immediately

that it was broken.

From his spot on the floor, Omal began to moan softly.  "No,  Norval.

No," he repeated.

Anakin barely heard him. He loved  mechanical  things,  and  couldn't

resist tinkering a tiny bit with the projector. He pulled a tool  from  his

utility belt and started to fiddle. But the projector was jammed.

"Blast!" Anakin exclaimed. He was surprised by his  own  frustration.

He usually loved this kind of challenge.

Anakin was about to toss the faulty projector aside when  he  pressed

the right sequence and it suddenly came to life. At  first  the  image  was

fuzzy, and Anakin had a hard time making it  out.  Then,  as  he  began  to

realize what he was looking at, his mouth gaped open.

It was an image of a Jedi Knight being brutally murdered.

Anakin stood frozen, staring at the image. Behind him, Omal's moaning

was getting louder. Finally the sound got through to Anakin, and  he  tried

to switch the projector off. Only now it was  jammed  on  and  didn't  shut

down.

The murder played again, and again.  The  lthorian  Jedi  raised  his

lightsaber - but was hit from behind by a bolt from  a  blaster.  The  Jedi

crumpled to the ground, dead.

Anakin's heart began to race. He tried not to look at the image,  but

something seemed to be holding his eyes to it. And something about what  he

was looking at felt familiar. It was as if he had seen it before  and  knew

it, somehow. Anakin began to feel ill.

Anakin forced his repair tool into the bottom of  the  projector  and

the image disappeared. He tossed the machine back onto the floor and turned

away. His hands shook slightly and his knees felt wobbly. Omal's moans gave

voice to what Anakin was feeling.

Anakin took a deep breath and  tried  to  clear  his  head.  He  knew

messages of this sort were being sent around the galaxy,  of  course.  He'd

been at the briefing with the Jedi Council and  had  been  told  all  about

them. But he hadn't actually expected to see one. He wasn't prepared.

And now that awful image had  been  implanted  in  his  mind.  Anakin

looked over at Omal. He stopped moaning, but his eyes darted back and forth

between Anakin and the broken holoprojector on the floor.

Anakin was about to approach him when Obi-Wan came rushing  into  the

living room with Dedra behind him. "I just got a call from  the  ship,"  he

said. "It seems Dr. Lundi has decided to talk again. And the  pilot  thinks

there are vandals lurking around the  hangar.  He's  threatening  to  leave

Lundi and take off."

Anakin felt relief wash through him and realized just  how  unsettled

he was by Omal's apartment and the projector's message. He  wanted  to  get

out of there, and right that second was none too soon.

"Did you tell him to hold tight?" Anakin asked, gratefully  following

Obi-Wan to the door.

Obi-Wan nodded. "But I'm not sure how long he'll wait  for  us.  He's

been a little jittery since we left Coruscant."

"You can say that again," Anakin said. "The guy has no backbone."

The Jedi said good-bye to Omal and Dedra  and  hurried  back  to  the

ship. Anakin knew that he should tell his Master about  the  projector  and

the message, but for some reason didn't want to. It  was  strange,  but  he

felt guilty about it. It was as if he  were  somehow  responsible  for  the

message, for what happened in it.

But that makes no sense at all, Anakin thought. I don't even know who

those people are. Or were.

Hurrying after his Master, Anakin decided not to say  anything.  Obi-

Wan seemed distracted, and it wasn't as if the existence of the message was

new information. He would tell him later, when the time was right.

CHAPTER 17

"I'll check out the exterior of the ship to make  sure  there  hasn't

been any sabotage," Anakin said once they were inside the hangar.

Obi-Wan  smiled.  He  knew  his  Padawan  would  rather   investigate

something mechanical than do just about anything else.

"Okay," he said. "I'll head inside and talk  to  the  captain  -  and

Lundi."

Obi-Wan hurried up the ship's ramp and into the cockpit.

"It's about time," the pilot said, though Obi-Wan thought  he  seemed

relieved to see him. "He's been  rambling  for  the  last  half  hour."  He

pointed nervously to the hold, where Lundi  sat  in  his  cage.  "Something

about an ancient device that's calling to him. And the tides."

"Thanks," Obi-Wan said, turning toward  the  hold.  He  took  a  deep

breath. He wanted this conversation - if that was what it would be - to  go

well. He needed it to go well.

"I've just been to see Dedra  and  Omal,"  Obi-Wan  said  calmly.  He

watched Lundi closely for some sort of reaction to the  names,  but  didn't

see one. Lundi simply glared at him through the  dark  slit  that  was  his

visible eye.

Disappointed, Obi-Wan pushed on. "They had some interesting things to

say about Norval."

This time  Obi-Wan  got  a  reaction.  Only  it  wasn't  one  he  was

expecting. The professor smiled evilly, his decaying, yellow teeth  showing

themselves. The expression appeared frozen on his face. No  matter  how  he

tried, Obi-Wan couldn't figure out what the smile meant.

Obi-Wan felt frustration again. Lundi was like a blank  wall.  Though

he was weaker than when Obi-Wan  had  first  seen  him  ten  years  ago  on

Coruscant, his mind was a puzzle. Obi-Wan could not  access  his  thoughts,

even with the Force. How could he determine who was seeking the Holocron if

the Quermian wouldn't cooperate?

"Norval was on Kodai with you," Obi-Wan said in  a  loud  voice.  The

echo it made in the hold surprised both him and Lundi, who looked up.  Obi-

Wan suddenly thought he might have found  a  way  through  the  professor's

wall.

"As was Omal. You were all after the Holocron together."

Lundi leaned forward, as if about to  speak.  His  face  was  pressed

against the bars of his cage. But a moment later he sat back again, smiling

smugly.

"You had the knowledge, but you needed  these  children  to  do  your

dirty work. To actually get it for you. You didn't  think  you  could  dive

that deep alone..."

Obi-Wan desperately waited for Lundi to jump in, to begin talking, to

object to what he was saying. But the professor seemed  to  know  that  was

exactly what Obi-Wan wanted. He sat there like a stone,  all  of  his  long

arms folded across his chest. His face was contorted into a defiant sneer.

Obi-Wan suddenly felt the urge to break through the cage's  bars  and

rip the sneer right off Lundi's face. Even insane and locked in a cage, the

Quermian had power. And at that moment, Obi-Wan hated that power with every

fiber of his being.

"We need to know if the Holocron is still in the crater!" he shouted.

"We need to get to it before - "

Obi-Wan stopped himself.  In  his  anger,  he'd  almost  blurted  out

dangerous information. Having been locked up for the last ten years,

Lundi wouldn't know that the Sith had actually returned. He  wouldn't

know that others in the galaxy possessed the knowledge he'd sought....

Lundi's tiny head tilted to one side. "You are afraid, boy.  But  not

of my students," he said, leaning forward again. "No...  there's  something

more. Something much bigger, much more horrifying." He spoke slowly, as  if

he wanted to make sure Obi-Wan caught every  word.  "The  Sith,"  he  said,

sitting back again. His eye widened and Obi-Wan could see his large,  black

pupil. "You are afraid of the Sith, of their return."

Lundi sat back and cackled loudly. "You should be," he said.

Obi-Wan gazed steadily at Lundi. He knew the professor wanted him  to

say  something,  to  acknowledge  his  fear.  He  wouldn't  give  him  that

satisfaction.

The hold was completely silent for several long minutes  as  the  two

stared at each other. Finally, Lundi spoke.

"I can tell you where the Holocron is," he said, sounding  remarkably

lucid. "I can even tell you how to get it. The question is, what can you do

for me in return?"

CHAPTER 18

Anakin circled the ship for the third time. He hadn't  seen  anything

unusual and was  beginning  to  think  that  the  captain  was  just  being

paranoid. Given his personality, it certainly seemed possible. And,  Anakin

had to admit, hanging around with Dr. Lundi could be unsettling for anyone.

Satisfied that nothing was amiss, he headed into the vessel.  Obi-Wan

was on the bridge programming the Kodai coordinates into the navsystem.

"We're heading to Kodai immediately," he said. Anakin was relieved to

be leaving the planet and moving ahead. His Master, too, seemed pleased.

"The professor finally confirmed that the Holocron is  still  in  its

undersea vault."

Anakin wrinkled his nose. "He could be lying," he pointed out.

Obi-Wan sighed. "I know," he admitted. "He might be trying to put  us

in danger. Or he could be toying with us. But it is the only information we

have to go on, and my instinct is telling  me  that  we  should  trust  it.

Besides, we only have the short time during the low tide to check."

Anakin nodded. He was feeling better about the hologram  message  now

that they were about to leave the planet. Perhaps it was  a  good  time  to

tell Obi-Wan about it.

"Master," he began. "I found some - "

"I'm  telling  you,  somebody  was  out  there,"  the   pilot   said,

interrupting him. "Someone was messing with my ship."

Anakin rolled his eyes before turning to the  captain.  The  guy  was

beginning to get on his nerves.

"I checked everything out,"  Anakin  said  reassuringly.  "Everything

looked just fine."

The captain looked doubtful but didn't reply as the  ship  took  off.

Soon they could only see the blackness of space through the  cockpit  view-

screen. The captain prepared for hyperspace.

Anakin suddenly felt tired and was grateful for a  bit  of  downtime.

The trip to Kodai would take more than a day, so he'd have a  little  while

to rest and collect his thoughts.

Suddenly there was a loud explosion on the engine side, and the  ship

rocked hard to the left.

"I told you!" the captain screamed. "Someone has sabotaged  my  ship.

We have to land immediately!"

"We can't," Obi-Wan  said  rationally.  "That  is  exactly  what  the

saboteurs would want us to do."

The captain's eyes went wide. "But we can't fly like this," he  said,

his voice rising while smoke poured into the cockpit from the rear  of  the

ship. "My controls are useless. We'll all die."

Anakin felt annoyance rise in him again. But this time it  was  mixed

with a sense of guilt. Someone had obviously tampered  with  the  ship,  in

spite of the fact that he initially didn't believe the captain's concerns.

"Nobody is going to die," Anakin said calmly. "Just show me where you

keep your tools."

The captain pointed to a small cupboard right  outside  the  cockpit.

Anakin retrieved the kit and moved to the back  of  the  ship,  waving  his

hands to clear the smoke. The flames had  been  extinguished  by  automatic

fire controls and the damaged engine was accessible through a  large  hatch

in a rear corridor. Though Anakin could fix it, it would not be easy  while

the ship was in motion.

Anakin opened the hatch and saw immediately that  the  circuitry  bay

had been fused. That meant that several circuits needed to be  re-placed  -

and fast. The question was, which ones? Some were trivial, and others would

repair the ship enough for it to fly to Kodai.

Anakin was not particularly familiar with the kind of ship they  were

on. He'd never flown one before, and certainly  never  repaired  one.  He'd

have to follow his instincts.

Pulling out a light energy tool, he got  to  work  on  the  circuitry

wires. It was difficult to hold the tool steady, since the ship was banking

in all directions. Working carefully, he reconnected the damaged wires  one

by one. Soon the ship stabilized, and the pilot once again had control.

Anakin repaired a few more wires and closed the  hatch.  On  his  way

back to the cockpit he passed Lundi's cage.

"Nice work, young one," the professor said. "I could have used you on

Kodai."

Anakin tried to ignore the comment as he replaced the  tools  in  the

cupboard. The Quermian was loony, and said crazy things all the time.

"Good job, Padawan," Obi-Wan  said  proudly  as  Anakin  entered  the

cockpit.

"We can make it to Kodai now," the captain said. "Though it may  take

a bit longer than originally scheduled."

The relief in the cockpit was palpable. They were all safe - for  the

moment.

CHAPTER 19

Obi-Wan studied his Padawan as he put  away  the  tool  kit.  He  was

relieved that he'd fixed the engine, of  course.  But  as  he  watched  his

apprentice, Obi-Wan also experienced another feeling - worry.

When Obi-Wan had started this mission with Qui-Gon ten years earlier,

he'd been troubled by the dark side. He'd felt frustrated, vulnerable,  and

afraid.

Anakin did not appear to be feeling any of these things. No,  it  was

something else.

Obi-Wan saw the boy  walk  up  to  Lundi's  cage  and  stare  at  the

Quermian. He did not show any fear. Instead he seemed... fascinated.

His Padawan was extremely curious about Lundi and what had turned him

into an insane criminal. In fact, he seemed drawn toward the power that had

corrupted Lundi and Omal.

This curiosity worried Obi-Wan.

Of course Anakin had not seen the power of the dark side the way that

Obi-Wan had. He had not witnessed his Master being cut down by a Sith Lord.

He had not been nearly killed himself.

After such a close experience Obi-Wan was well aware  of  the  threat

the Sith posed if they regained all of their ancient power. And recapturing

the knowledge contained in a Sith Holocron would be a large  step  in  that

direction. It could be devastating for the entire galaxy.

Obi-Wan shuddered at the thought before letting it fade to  the  back

of his mind. He needed to sharpen his focus and bring his attention back to

the moment, and his Padawan.

The boy needed guidance, Obi-Wan knew.  A  decade  earlier,  his  own

Master had skillfully led him in the right direction - away from anger  and

frustration. It had kept Obi-Wan firmly on  the  Jedi  path.  When  Qui-Gon

died, Obi-Wan had promised to give that guidance to Anakin.

Obi-Wan remembered Anakin's angry outburst at Lundi  when  they  were

first on the ship. Anger was dangerous. Perhaps he should  be  warning  his

apprentice about the dark side - that it was an easy  path  to  power,  but

also to self-destruction.

The problem was, he did not know how to put the  words  together.  He

did not know exactly what to say. And whenever he offered Anakin this  kind

of guidance, the boy brushed it aside. It was almost as if  Anakin  thought

that the things Obi-Wan was trying to warn him about did not apply to him.

With a sigh, Obi-Wan wished that Qui-Gon were still alive.  He  would

know just what to say, what to do. He would  be  able  to  get  through  to

Anakin.

"I think we're being followed," the pilot said after they came out of

hyperspace, breaking into Obi-Wan's thoughts.

Obi-Wan rose and approached the controls. It  was  not  unlikely,  he

realized. Whoever sabotaged the ship could easily be on their tail.

Obi-Wan carefully searched the  ship's  detection  system.  He  found

nothing.

Soon they landed safely on Kodai. After instructing the pilot not  to

leave the planet, Obi-Wan led Anakin downtown.

"We need to get to the water soon," Obi-Wan explained  as  they  made

their way up the main street. The tide was  already  going  out,  but  they

weren't going to wait for it to hit its lowest point.  If  they  did,  they

might be too late; they had to  beat  Norval,  or  whoever  was  after  the

Holocron. This time they had to get there first.

Anakin looked around. "There's not much here, is there?" he asked.

"No," Obi-Wan replied. "There was a huge tidal wave  several  hundred

years ago, and many Kodaians were killed. Most of the  survivors  fled  the

planet. Those who remain await another giant  wave,  and  in  their  minds,

certain death."

Anakin grimaced. "That's pretty bad," he said.

Obi-Wan  laughed.  "I  agree,  Padawan."  Then  his  expression  grew

serious. "I would not choose to live  my  life  in  such  a  way.  But  the

Kodaians did not choose, either. It would be difficult to have a history of

loss."

Anakin was thoughtful as they scoured the town. "You'd think  there'd

be diving shops everywhere," he finally said. "Practically the whole planet

is sea."

"True. But the people are afraid of it," Obi-Wan reminded him.

"They seem afraid  of  us,  too,"  Anakin  said.  "Whenever  we  pass

someone, they move more quickly and look away."

"You are observant, Anakin," Obi-Wan said proudly. "Kodaians  do  not

feel comfortable around strangers."

After checking the tide and finding it was not yet the right time  to

dive, the Jedi made their way back to the ship. Many Kodaians went  out  of

their way to avoid them on the streets. Others stopped to  stare  at  them.

And a few shouted warnings about the deadly sea and its hidden evils.

"Master," Anakin suddenly said. His voice was quiet, almost hesitant.

This was unusual for the boy. "I have something to tell you."

Obi-Wan stopped and turned toward  his  Padawan.  "What  is  it?"  he

asked.

"I found a holoprojector when we were at Omal's apartment.  It...  it

had a message on it, one of the messages Master Ki-Adi Mundi told us about.

"

Obi-Wan's eyes widened. "A message showing a Jedi being  killed?"  he

asked.

Anakin nodded.

For a moment Obi-Wan did not know how to respond. This was  important

information - not something an apprentice should keep from his Master.

"Why didn't you tell me before?" he asked in a raised voice.

"I... I didn't think it was important," Anakin mumbled.  "We  already

knew the messages existed, and you wanted to get back to the ship."

Obi-Wan stared at his Padawan. He never would have considered keeping

this kind of information from Qui-Gon. As a Jedi  team,  it  was  essential

that they share every piece of knowledge they gathered. They had  to  trust

each other. Completely.

With a jolt, Obi-Wan realized that Anakin  might  not  totally  trust

him. Why else would he keep something like this from him?

As Obi-Wan stared down at his Padawan learner, an awful thought crept

into his mind: He wasn't sure he completely trusted Anakin, either.

"You should have told me immediately," Obi-Wan said sternly. "Be sure

that you do so next time."

Anakin looked down at his feet. "Yes, Master," he said.

Without another word, Obi-Wan turned  away  and  continued  down  the

street.

The Jedi were silent as they walked back to  the  ship.  Inside,  Dr.

Lundi was asleep in his cage, his loud snores filling  the  hold.  He  woke

abruptly when the Jedi entered.

"Can't a prisoner get some sleep around here?" he grumbled, wiping  a

line of drool off his chin with one hand and rubbing his eye with another.

"Not when he has agreed to provide  important  information,"  Obi-Wan

replied flatly. "I need you  to  answer  some  questions  about  your  last

journey to the bottom of the Kodaian sea. It's time for you to tell us what

you know."

The professor glared at Obi-Wan for several long seconds. It was true

that he had agreed to answer questions in exchange for the chance  to  look

upon the Holocron once more. "Go on," he finally said.

"Ten years ago you came to Kodai to go after the  Holocron,"  Obi-Wan

said. "And one of your star pupils came after you."

"Norval," Lundi said, nodding. "He was my  star  pupil.  Had  such  a

hunger for knowledge."

"Dark knowledge," Obi-Wan noted, looking pointedly at Dr. Lundi.

Lundi shrugged. "It is not my responsibility how the boy used what he

learned. I was only the teacher. I simply passed the information along."

Lundi's casual response made Obi-Wan angry.  He  obviously  took  his

powerful position as a teacher  very  lightly.  Didn't  he  understand  the

effect he had on  people?  Didn't  he  know  he  was  responsible  for  the

destruction of at least one young life?

"But Norval was strong - stronger than even I knew," Lundi  went  on.

"He got to the Holocron first. He brought it up still inside its vault.  We

fought over it, and it fell into the geyser crater."

Obi-Wan closed his eyes as disappointment surged inside  him.  Though

he'd known that the Holocron could have fallen  deeper  into  the  pocketed

seafloor, he'd hoped it wasn't true. It meant that the  Holocron  was  very

far down.

And located inside a gushing geyser that was incredibly  treacherous,

even at the lowest tide. The Holocron could easily be so far down  that  no

one would be able to retrieve it. But what if it wasn't?

Obi-Wan was not feeling confident about anything on this mission. Yet

he had no choice but to move forward - before someone else did.

CHAPTER 20

Anakin squinted into the darkness as the loaded gravsled zoomed  over

the exposed sea-floor. The tide was already partially out,  and  soon  they

would be traveling over the water.

"That way," Obi-Wan said, pointing off to the  left.  They  were  the

first words he'd spoken to him since  their  argument.  Anakin  felt  badly

about not telling his Master about the hologram message sooner, but  wasn't

sure why it was such a big deal. He did tell him, didn't he?

Anakin turned the vehicle. Beside him, Dr. Lundi was staring  through

the bars of his portable cage. His eyes were  wide,  and  he  couldn't  sit

still. He seemed like an excited child.

He can't wait to  see  the  Holocron,  Anakin  thought.  The  ancient

artifact had quite a  reputation  to  live  up  to.  As  he  increased  the

gravsled's speed, the young Jedi secretly hoped that it would.

The gravsled zoomed over  the  water,  heading  straight  toward  the

crater. Anakin thought he saw something sticking up above the shallow  sea.

It looked like a diving platform.

"Just ahead," Obi-Wan said. Anakin could hear the  disappointment  in

his Master's voice. He pulled the gravsled up beside a platform piled  with

equipment and cut the engine.

Obi-Wan stared down at the water suit  and  air  tank.  "Someone  has

already been here," he said. "I only hope they haven't found the Holocron."

Anakin scanned the surface of the sea. He could feel a powerful, dark

energy surrounding them. But he wasn't sure if it was because the  Holocron

was still below, or because it had been there for years.

"The Holocron is gone," Lundi cackled. He waved  his  arms,  smacking

several against the top and sides  of  his  travel  cage.  "He  came  back.

Norval's got it."

Obi-Wan pulled on his breather and gestured  for  Anakin  to  do  the

same. In spite of Lundi's words, the Jedi couldn't leave  this  time  until

they were certain that the Holocron was not  still  under  the  sea.  After

checking to make sure that

Lundi's cage was anchored securely to the gravsled,  they  dove  into

the water.

Obi-Wan led the way down the side of the crater to  the  rocky  shelf

below. It was a long way down and Anakin felt a surge of excitement as they

dropped lower and lower. This was a mission.

Once they were on the shelf, it was easy to locate  the  geyser  -  a

huge mass of hot water gushed out of it every several minutes. That  didn't

leave them much time to investigate what was below.

Anakin dove down into the crater after his Master, kicking as hard as

he could. There was nothing in front of him except the  inky  blackness  of

the deep sea. He could barely see his Master's legs moving back  and  forth

just a few meters in front of his face. At last Obi-Wan lit a glow rod.

Down, down, down they swam. Anakin's ears popped several  times  from

the pressure, and the water got warmer and warmer.

After what seemed like several minutes, Anakin caught a glimpse of  a

sinister red glow  several  meters  in  front  of  them,  rising  from  the

seafloor. His breath caught in his throat as he came to a halt.  The  water

here seemed to pulsate with energy, and he had to concentrate  to  stay  in

one place. The same appeared to be true for his Master.

Obi-Wan gestured for Anakin to stay put and cautiously  swam  forward

toward a glowing vault. Anakin saw his legs move back and forth, then stop.

Obi-Wan thrust his glow rod into the tomblike box. It was empty.  A  second

later Obi-Wan had turned around and was pointing up. He  wanted  Anakin  to

head back to the surface.

Anakin wondered how long they'd been down there. Five  minutes?  Six?

There wasn't much time before the geyser would blow again.

Turning around as quickly as he could, he bolted for the surface. But

swimming up was not easy. It almost felt as if something  was  holding  him

down, keeping him in the geyser. Kicking hard, he moved slowly upward.

Anakin's legs were aching when he felt a small  gush  of  warm  water

rush past him. With a series of furious kicks, he surged ahead. He did  not

want to be anywhere nearby when the geyser erupted.

Finally the geyser walls disappeared and the Jedi were once again  in

open water. Sprinting forward, they moved away from the geyser  mouth  just

as a giant burst of scalding water shot out.

The Jedi wasted no time getting back to the gravsled. Now  that  they

knew the Holocron was not there, they had to get back  to  civilization  as

soon as possible.

Anakin pulled off his breather and started the  gravsled.  They  were

practically moving when Obi-Wan climbed out of the water.

"It was gone," Lundi declared, looking at  the  Jedi's  empty  hands.

"Clever. The boy is clever - more clever than  I  thought.  I  should  have

suspected. Yes, suspected. He almost had it the last time,  he  did.  Until

Omal got in his way. Lucky for me. Unlucky for him. Omal gave me  a  chance

to attack - to get the Holocron for myself. But  Norval  was  a  formidable

opponent. I have to hand it to him..."

Lundi's voice trailed off as he  lost  himself  in  the  ten-year-old

memory.

"Where would Norval take the Holocron?" Obi-Wan asked.

Professor Lundi crossed several arms across his  chest.  "A  deal,  a

deal," he said defiantly. "We had our deal. I told you secrets for a chance

to see the Holocron. But I didn't see it, did I? The game is  up,  up,  up.

And you lost. The boy has the Holocron. The boy. Ha!"

Anger  swelled  inside  Anakin.  He  waited  for  his  Master  to  do

something, to shake some sense into the old loon. But Obi-Wan was silent as

he stared glumly at the professor.

Wearing a sinister  smirk,  Lundi  looked  from  Anakin  to  Obi-Wan.

"Though I doubt the boy actually knows what to do with it," he added  under

his breath. "But at least he's not cowardly like you and the rest  of  your

robed friends."

That's it. Anakin  switched  off  the  gravsled  and  lunged  at  the

professor. He could smell the old Quermian's rancid breath as he leaned  in

close to his face.

"This isn't funny, wormhead," he said furiously. "Your  boy  may  not

know what to do with the Holocron, but the Sith will."

The smile disappeared from Professor Lundi's face as he  stared  back

at Anakin. He dropped all of his gangly arms to his sides.

"I suspect you know your history, professor," Anakin shouted, forcing

the Quermian's long neck farther and farther back. "And  that  you're  well

aware if the Sith gain power it's not just the Jedi who will die."

CHAPTER 21

Obi-Wan looked back and forth between Anakin and Dr. Lundi.  He  knew

that Anakin's outburst was not appropriate. It was not the  Jedi  way,  and

Anakin seemed to let anger overtake him too easily. Obi-Wan could still see

a flicker of fury in his eyes. As his Master, it was his duty to  reprimand

the boy for his behavior. To counsel  him  about  the  danger  of  negative

emotions.

But the outburst seemed to have an effect on  Lundi.  For  the  first

time since they'd left Coruscant, the professor appeared cowed.  The  young

Jedi had actually managed to intimidate Professor Lundi. For  this  Obi-Wan

was grateful.

Obi-Wan watched his Padawan return to  the  controls  and  start  the

gravsled engine.

He is so different from  me,  he  thought.  Our  relationship  is  so

different from the one I shared with Qui-Gon.

Of course with Anakin, Obi-Wan was no longer the Padawan. He was  the

Master, and it was his job to  lead,  to  teach.  He  often  found  himself

wondering if he was ready for  this  awesome  responsibility.  It  had  all

happened so fast - one day he was a Padawan learner himself, and  the  next

he was Anakin's Master. He could not help but feel that  it  was  really  a

role for Qui-Gon.

Like Qui-Gon, Anakin had a tendency to  break  the  rules.  He  often

chose to follow his instincts instead of the Jedi code. But his  decisions,

while sometimes rash, almost always got results. They almost always put the

mission a step ahead, and often left Obi-Wan at odds.

This is not the time for a reprimand, Obi-Wan thought  as  they  sped

back toward shore. They had to get to the hangar before Norval  rounded  up

transport and left the planet altogether.

Within a few minutes the gravsled was at the hangar. But their  hired

ship and its pilot were nowhere to be seen.

"He's fled," Obi-Wan said, grimly looking around the hangar.

"That coward," Anakin said with disgust. "I never should  have  fixed

his ship. The next time I see him - "

"We don't have time to deal  with  that  now,"  Obi-Wan  interrupted.

"Let's find out who has left the planet in the last few hours and see if we

can track them."

After securing the still-silent Lundi's cage to a hangar  wall,  Obi-

Wan and Anakin split up to search the hangar. Obi-Wan had seen  Norval  ten

years earlier, and had described him to his  Padawan.  But  aside  from  an

average-sized young man with dark hair, they didn't have much to go on.

The hangar was not particularly busy, and none of the pilots  Obi-Wan

approached had seen Norval - or at least they said they hadn't seen him. If

they said anything at all.  Disappointed,  Obi-Wan  decided  to  check  the

hangar records.

Only one ship had left in the last few hours. It  was  headed  toward

the Ploo Sector. But no planet was specified.

"Did you find anything?" Anakin asked as he  approached  his  Master.

"Nobody would talk to me."

"Just this," Obi-Wan said, tossing Anakin the records. It seemed that

the Holocron had eluded him a second time. Trying to find a mystery ship in

a vast sector was a long shot, and it was all they had to go on.

"Why would he go to the Ploo Sector?" Anakin asked.

Several meters away, Lundi stuck his narrow head through the bars  of

his cage. "Norval was a good student. A great one. In fact the  only  thing

that surpassed his desire for knowledge and power was his greed." Dr. Lundi

stood up as straight as he could inside  his  cage.  "I  was  offered  vast

riches by several anonymous parties to turn over the Sith Holocron should I

ever capture it. One of the parties wanted to  rendezvous  beside  my  home

planet of Ploo II."

The Jedi exchanged  glances.  Should  they  believe  him?  Lundi  had

several reasons to thwart their progress. He probably enjoyed the  idea  of

Norval having the Holocron, of his using it for his own evil uses. He would

take pride in that. Norval was, after all, Lundi's prize student.

But for the first time Obi-Wan felt he had some insight into  Lundi's

thoughts. It was as if a wall had been torn down, and Obi-Wan  sensed  that

the professor was telling the truth. The Quermian wanted to  go  after  the

Holocron himself. He wanted a chance to see it again, to be  close  to  its

power.

"We need a ship to get us to Ploo II," Obi-Wan said. "Quickly."

CHAPTER 22

According to the flight records, the ship  that  left  for  the  Ploo

Sector was very large and not particularly fast. Anakin knew that  if  they

were going to catch  it,  they'd  need  a  fast  vehicle  with  a  powerful

hyperdrive.

There was only one such ship in the hangar. The pilot looked  at  the

Jedi warily as they approached.

"Ploo II?" he repeated with disdain. "No thanks. I just got here, and

won't be doing anything but taking a nice long rest."

"I can pilot," Anakin said. "You can even stay here and  rest.  We'll

bring the ship back when we're finished."

The pilot looked at Anakin as if he were crazy. Anakin couldn't blame

him. If it were his ship, he wouldn't let some stranger take it off planet,

either. Not even a Jedi.

But they needed the ship. Badly.

Obi-Wan waved his hand in front of the pilot's face. "You  can  trust

us to borrow the ship," he said slowly.

"I guess I can trust you to borrow the ship," the pilot said.

"We will bring it back when we are finished," Obi-Wan added.

"Just bring it back when you are finished," the pilot echoed.

Anakin grinned. They weren't lightsabers, but Jedi mind tricks really

came in handy sometimes.

"I'll get Lundi," Obi-Wan said.

Anakin nodded and boarded the ship. From the pilot's seat he  plugged

in the coordinates for Ploo II. Minutes later Obi-Wan  and  Lundi  were  on

board, and the ship was heading into the atmosphere.

Anakin thought he might have a chance to talk to Obi-Wan on the  way,

but Obi-Wan silently left the cockpit shortly after  they  had  taken  off.

Anakin guessed that he was still upset.

Trying  not  to  think  about  it,  Anakin  studied  the   computer's

programmed hyperdrive route. If there was a faster way  to  get  there,  he

wanted to know about it. They had to catch the Holocron thief.

There appeared to be only one direct  route,  and  the  computer  had

chosen it. Anakin engaged the hyperdrive, and the nearby stars streaked  by

in flashes of blinding light.

Once the ship was safely in hyperspace, Anakin could step  away  from

the controls and relax a bit.  Moving  into  the  hold,  he  saw  that  the

professor was sound asleep. He'd been sleeping a lot lately, and as  Anakin

studied him he appeared older and more frail. His body shuddered with every

breath. It seemed as if his life forces were ebbing.

Asleep and helpless in his cage, the professor  seemed  more  pitiful

than threatening. Anakin almost felt sorry for him. But then, the  Quermian

had not made this mission an easy one.  He  had  been  difficult  from  the

start, and the way he'd treated his Master had infuriated Anakin.

Now, under his direction, they were chasing a ship on its way to Ploo

II. Was it the right planet, or were they simply on a fruitless  chase?  It

would be so easy for Lundi to lead them astray. After being  locked  up  by

Jedi for ten years, it was entirely possible that he was out  for  revenge.

Anakin couldn't really blame him for wanting to take his  imprisonment  out

on someone.

Anakin watched Lundi sleep for a long time and tried to meditate.  He

was left with many questions about Dr. Lundi and the Holocron.

But he didn't think that  the  professor  was  lying  to  them  about

following Norval. Anakin sensed that they  were  closing  in  on  something

powerful and evil... and believed it to be the Holocron.

Anakin got to his feet and moved toward  the  pilot's  seat.  It  was

almost time to bring the ship  out  of  hyperspace.  Sitting  down  at  the

controls, he suddenly felt a ripple in the Force. He  quickly  brought  the

ship out of lightspeed. The familiar starriness of  space  came  into  view

around him.

But that was not the only thing Anakin saw.

Obi-Wan was beside him in an instant. "I felt a wave in  the  Force,"

he said.

Anakin pointed to a sleek gray ship visible in the viewscreen.

"It just passed us," he said.

"Whose ship is it?" Anakin asked, wide-eyed.

Obi-Wan sighed. "I don't know," he confessed. "But I have  a  feeling

we'd better get to Norval's ship before it does."

The large ship shuddered. Anakin  had  been  pushing  it  hard  since

they'd sighted the sleek gray vessel, and wasn't sure how  much  longer  it

would hold up. The speed they were flying at was certainly faster than  the

craft was accustomed to.  By  the  time  they  landed  somewhere  it  would

probably need repairs.

The mysterious gray ship was now in front  of  them  and  had  slowed

down.

Anakin's Master stood beside  him  with  his  eyes  closed.  "I  feel

something powerful, but it could be coming  from  that  ship  and  not  the

Holocron. We've got to locate Norval quickly. I have a hunch  that  whoever

is aboard that ship is after the Holocron too.

"I'll keep an eye out," Anakin assured his  Master.  "Why  don't  you

prepare a shuttle. When  I  find  his  ship  you  can  be  ready  to  board

immediately."

Obi-Wan  nodded  at  Anakin  gratefully.  "Monitor  all  ship-to-ship

communications and let me know if you sense anything unusual."

While Obi-Wan prepared a shuttle, Anakin carefully circled  the  gray

ship in a wide arc.

Anakin was just coming around the gray ship when another, larger ship

came into view in the space lane. Anakin felt instantly certain that it was

Norval's. There was a strange flutter in his stomach, like nausea.

Anakin switched on his comlink. "I see another  ship,"  he  reported.

"And I'm feeling kind of weird. I'll bet the Holocron is in there."

"Good. I'm closing the shuttle hatch now,"  Obi-Wan  said.  "Activate

the shuttle bay doors immediately."

Anakin pressed a button on his control panel  and  Obi-Wan's  shuttle

shot out of the ship. It looked tiny as it hurtled toward Norval's  massive

vessel. Anakin hoped it would land safely on Norval's  ship  without  being

detected by the mysterious gray craft.

As Anakin watched the shuttle approach Norval's ship, a  voice  spoke

up behind him. Lundi.

"Too late, too late," he murmured.

Anakin turned around and saw that Lundi's eyes were  closed.  Was  he

asleep, or awake? Too late for what? Anakin wondered.

He didn't have long to ponder. Just then  a  huge  blast  rocked  the

ship.

CHAPTER 23

From the small window in the tiny shuttle, Obi-Wan saw  a  red  blast

explode against Anakin's ship. The gray vessel had finally  detected  their

ship and was clearly not pleased about its presence.

The sight of the red laser triggered something in  Obi-Wan's  memory,

and a familiar feeling of helplessness washed over him. But  there  was  no

way he could get back to the ship fast enough  to  help  his  Padawan.  And

there was the Holocron. He had to go after it while he had the  chance.  He

would not leave it behind again.

Obi-Wan quickly sent a mental message to his Padawan. You can do  it,

Anakin, he told him. Just think carefully...

Within minutes the shuttle locked into the docking  bay  on  Norval's

ship. After powering down the tiny craft, Obi-Wan quietly slipped out  into

the bigger ship.

As he moved down a glistening white corridor, the sound of more laser

fire echoed in Obi-Wan's ears. Anakin's ship was getting  pounded.  Obi-Wan

suddenly wished he and his Padawan had resolved their discussion on Kodai.

You can't do anything about that now, he  told  himself.  He  had  to

focus and think clearly if he was going to find the Holocron on this  giant

craft.

Obi-Wan hurried down several sterile corridors. As he reached the end

of one he suddenly felt something evil washing over him.  He  knew  exactly

how his Padawan had felt a few minutes earlier. The Holocron was close.

Obi-Wan rounded a corner and spotted a large room at the end  of  the

passageway. A humanoid figure stood with its back to the door, waiting. And

there, on a transparisteel table, sat the glowing red Holocron.

Obi-Wan approached the room carefully. But before he was through  the

door the figure turned toward him.

"I have been waiting for you," Norval said.

Obi-Wan focused hard on the  dark-haired  man  in  front  of  him  as

queasiness threatened to overtake him. He sensed that, in fact,  he  wasn't

the person Norval had been waiting for. He'd been expecting someone else  -

Lundi, perhaps. Or whoever was piloting the sleek gray ship.

"Powerful, isn't it?" Norval cackled.  "The  nauseous  feeling  takes

some getting  used  to.  When  you  are  comfortable  with  the  power,  it

disappears."

Obi-Wan dove for the Holocron, but Norval quickly stepped in front of

it.

"This information would be wasted in the hands of the Jedi," he spat.

"You have no idea what to do with power."

Obi-Wan could see that Norval was not going  to  give  up  without  a

fight. Reaching down to his utility  belt,  he  unhooked  and  ignited  his

light-saber.

I must end this quickly, Obi-Wan thought. He hoped the sight  of  his

lightsaber would make Norval back down and hand over the Holocron.  I  must

get back to help Anakin before it is too late.

But Norval did not back down. He simply  reached  for  his  belt  and

ignited a lightsaber of his own.

CHAPTER 24

Anakin unleashed another round of laser fire. He'd been circling  the

sleek gray ship, pummeling its hull.  Every  blast  appeared  to  find  its

quick-moving target. But they didn't seem to have any effect.

I should have chosen a ship with decent firepower as well  as  speed,

Anakin thought grimly. I should have known I'd  need  to  be  prepared  for

battle.

Anakin had taken several hits without sustaining  much  damage.  Only

that first firing had created a problem,  and  losing  the  hyperdrive  was

minor compared to what could have been damaged.

Still, the ship could be hit again at any  moment  -  and  with  dire

results. He had to get out of there. But where could he go? The large  gray

craft clearly had a long firing range. It would take several minutes to get

far enough away to be safe....

Thinking fast, Anakin turned the ship around and headed straight  for

Norval's behemoth. If he could just keep the giant vessel between  him  and

the mystery ship, he'd count on the gray ship not firing on him. The  pilot

wouldn't want to risk the Holocron - he hoped.

Anakin breathed a sigh of relief when he saw that the gray  ship  was

not coming after him. But before he could inhale again it turned  its  fire

on Norval's ship. Somehow, the pilot knew the Jedi were getting close.

CHAPTER 25

Obi-Wan gaped at the lightsaber in Norval's hand for half  a  second.

Such a weapon was extremely difficult  to  construct,  and  doing  so  took

patience and skill. Attributes he wasn't at all convinced that Norval had.

Norval stepped forward, his blade raised. He was clearly  pleased  to

see the look of surprise on Obi-Wan's face.

"You Jedi think you are the only ones who can wield lightsabers?"  he

laughed menacingly. "Dr. Lundi's lessons only  took  me  so  far.  But  the

Quermian did help me gather the tools I needed. It's actually quite simple,

once you have the knowledge - and the power..."

Obi-Wan was barely listening. He circled Norval,  carefully  studying

the lightsaber. Its  construction  was  crude,  and  he  guessed  that  the

crystals inside were weak and badly tuned. At least he hoped that  was  the

case.

Norval brought the weapon high over his head,  then  thrust  it  back

down. It missed Obi-Wan by several centimeters and crashed into  the  table

where the Holocron rested. The glowing artifact tumbled to the floor.  Both

Obi-Wan and Norval watched the Holocron fall, but neither made a  move  for

it.

His lightsaber might be crude, but it is still deadly, Obi-Wan noted.

He knew from experience that a powerful weapon could be even more dangerous

in the hands of an unskilled user. He would have to tread carefully.

Norval's eyes glinted. "Did the Jedi like  my  messages?"  he  asked,

moving slowly forward. "I thought they were appropriate. Imagine being able

to bring down the pathetic Jedi and get rich doing it!"

Norval slashed at the air, his fury building. It was clear to Obi-Wan

that the young man was strong, but not very technically advanced  with  the

lightsaber.

Obi-Wan sprang ahead, slashing with his own blue  blade  and  pushing

Norval backward. He had no desire to kill Norval  -  he  simply  wanted  to

disarm him and take the Holocron. This fight was wasting valuable time.

Obi-Wan closed in. But before he could knock Norval's lightsaber  out

of his hands, another explosion caused the ship to  bank  sharply.  Obi-Wan

fell backward, losing his grip on his lightsaber and hitting his head  hard

on the floor.

It was some seconds before his vision cleared. When  it  did,  Norval

was standing over him.  Obi-Wan  could  feel  the  heat  from  the  glowing

lightsaber blade, which was trained on his throat.

"You didn't think I could actually get the  Holocron,  did  you?"  he

gloated. "Nobody did. If only Omal hadn't  interfered  the  first  time,  I

would be even stronger now - and you and Dr. Lundi would be long dead."

Obi-Wan pretended to listen as Norval ranted. The longer  he  talked,

the more time he'd have to formulate some sort of plan. Once Norval decided

to strike, Obi-Wan would be out of time - perhaps permanently.

Out of the corner of his eye Obi-Wan saw his lightsaber rolling  away

from him. Beyond it was the glowing Holocron, still on the floor.

Norval raised his saber. But just as he began to bring it  back  down

another blast pelted the ship. It took Norval a moment to steady himself.

That moment was all Obi-Wan needed. Reaching out with both hands,  he

used the Force to bring his lightsaber and the Holocron to him.  He  caught

one in each hand as he leapt to his feet. Then, reigniting his  lightsaber,

he gracefully knocked Norval's weapon out of his hand and across the  room.

The crude handle shattered, and the interior crystals  spilled  across  the

floor.

Stunned, Norval climbed to his feet. "Your young Padawan  would  have

made a wonderful Sith," he growled, his face contorting into an  expression

of rage. "Too bad he and that ship he's on are about  to  be  destroyed  by

some friends of mine." He grinned. "They'll stop firing  on  me  once  they

know you've been taken care of."

Obi-Wan wondered for a split second how Norval knew about Anakin.  He

supposed the evil young man made many things his business.  But  before  he

could  consider  the  thought  further,  Norval  lunged  for   the   ship's

communicator. "The Jedi has the Holocron!" he shouted. "You've got  to  get

me out of here."

Obi-Wan turned and ran out of the room while Norval begged for  help.

The Jedi Master would not strike down an unarmed being. He would not  leave

his Padawan to face the mystery ship alone. And he  would  not  be  leaving

without the Holocron this time.

CHAPTER 26

All around him, doors began to slide closed. Obi-Wan hit  the  ground

running. Squeezing sideways, he was just able to make it through  the  door

he'd entered earlier and into the corridor.  The  last  thing  he  saw  was

Norval laughing at him, a sneer twisting the lower half of his face.

"You have no idea what you are up against," he shouted.

Obi-Wan raced back down the  white  corridors  to  the  shuttle.  The

glowing Holocron cast an eerie red glow on the walls. Obi-Wan  ignored  the

queasiness in his gut and the weakness in  his  legs.  He  had  to  get  to

Anakin.

Within minutes Obi-Wan was hurtling out of the  shuttle  bay  in  the

tiny vessel. Pressing his face to the transparisteel, he scanned the  space

for a sign of Anakin's ship. He didn't see one. Nor did  he  see  the  gray

vessel. The earlier laser fire had stopped completely.

Obi-Wan sat back, discouraged. He was quite sure  he'd  know  if  his

Padawan had been killed - he would have felt it. But where was he?

Obi-Wan programmed the shuttle to travel close to Norval's  ship.  He

needed cover for as long as possible.

The shuttle glided  through  space,  around  to  the  other  side  of

Norval's ship. Still Obi-Wan saw nothing. He was just about to give up  and

launch himself away when he  spotted  the  small  borrowed  craft  sneakily

hiding right next to Norval's vessel. Obi-Wan was  relieved.  The  boy  was

smart.

As soon as the shuttle had  docked  on  the  borrowed  ship,  Obi-Wan

opened the door and hurried to  the  cargo  bays.  He  had  to  secure  the

Holocron before he did anything else. He wanted someplace safe, and as  far

away from Lundi as possible.

Obi-Wan carefully placed the artifact in an onboard  vault,  and  was

immediately relieved to have it out of his hands. But he knew  he  wouldn't

be completely comfortable until it was  safely  locked  away  in  the  Jedi

archives on Coruscant. and perhaps not even then.

Obi-Wan rushed onto the bridge, eager to see his Padawan. But what he

saw from the doorway was so surprising it stopped him in his tracks.

The professor's cage was empty and its door hung open. Anakin sat  on

the floor. He was cradling Lundi in his lap.

"I understand now," Lundi said in a hoarse whisper. "Some things  are

better left at the bottom of the sea."

Lundi gasped for air, and Obi-Wan suddenly realized that the Quermian

was dying. He stepped forward and looked briefly into his eye.  He  finally

saw what he'd always hoped he'd see - remorse and fear.

"I just... just hope it's not too late," Lundi finished. His  fragile

body shuddered and went limp, and Anakin laid him gently on the floor.  Dr.

Murk Lundi was dead.

Several emotions  clashed  inside  Obi-Wan.  Confusion,  frustration,

relief..

Anakin turned to  face  him.  "I  knew  he  was  going  to  die,"  he

explained. "And I didn't think he should end his life in a cage. So  I  let

him out. I thought it was the right thing to do."  His  face  was  full  of

worry, and Obi-Wan realized that he had probably upset  the  boy  with  his

outburst on Kodai.

"It is all right, Padawan," Obi-Wan said, placing a hand on  Anakin's

shoulder. He had much to learn as a Jedi Master, he realized.  And  it  had

taken him and Qui-Gon years of working together  to  develop  their  strong

ties of trust.

Those ties would develop for him and Anakin as well, in time. As  for

Lundi, it didn't matter now. The Quermian and his evil were gone.

Obi-Wan saw relief wash over Anakin's young face.  "I'm  sorry  about

the hologram message," he said. "I didn't mean to keep it from you, I  just

- "

Obi-Wan nodded. "I know," he said. "I  should  not  have  reacted  so

strongly. Next time we will both do better."

"I hope there - " Anakin was  suddenly  interrupted  by  a  flash  of

blinding light, followed by an earsplitting roar. The ship hurtled backward

as debris pummeled the exterior.

"Cut the power," Obi-Wan barked.

Anakin raced to the controls and flipped the master switch. A  second

later they were enveloped in darkness. If they were lucky they would hurtle

away with the flaming wreckage unnoticed by the mysterious gray ship -

Obi-Wan held his breath.  He  reached  out  to  the  Force  and  felt

immediately that Norval was  dead.  The  poor  clever  student  was  wrong.

Whoever was aboard the gray ship was not his friend.  The  blast  had  been

intended for the Jedi, and whoever had caused the fiery explosion had  been

willing to kill an ally to keep the Sith Holocron out of Jedi hands.

CHAPTER 27

The ship docked in  the  Coruscant  hangar  and  Anakin  and  Obi-Wan

disembarked. They'd drifted for hours while they  patched  the  hyper-drive

back together. Even with Anakin's skills as a  mechanic  they'd  only  just

managed to limp the craft home. Now, there was much to do.

"I will see about getting the ship back to Kodai," Anakin offered.

Obi-Wan nodded. He had removed the Holocron from the  cargo  bay  and

was eager to get it to its permanent home in the archives. He'd learned  to

ignore the nausea, but would never be comfortable around this kind of  dark

power.

"Come to the Council Chambers when you are finished,"  Obi-Wan  said.

"I am sure the Council will want to hear from us as soon as possible."

Anakin nodded. "And Lundi?" he asked.

"I will have his body removed from the  ship  and  brought  into  the

Temple. The Council will decide what to do with him."

Obi-Wan watched Anakin cross the hangar, then  hurried  to  the  Jedi

Temple. Jocasta Nu was waiting for him, the safe for the  Holocron  already

open. They placed the artifact inside, then sealed the door and lowered  it

into the archive vault.

When the Holocron was out of view, Obi-Wan sighed in relief. He hoped

he would never have to see or touch that evil object again.

By the time Obi-Wan arrived outside the Council Chambers door, Anakin

was waiting for him. The boy smiled broadly as the Chambers door slid open.

"Congratulations," Depa Billaba said as they stepped inside.  "A  job

well done."

"Indeed," agreed Saesee Tiin.

Anakin's eyes were lit with excitement. "It was a great mission,"  he

said. "The most exciting one yet."

Obi-Wan noticed that Yoda's eyes registered concern as they rested on

the boy. But the other Council members seemed only pleased and relieved  to

have the Sith Holocron safe in the Temple archives.

"Make a mission great, excitement does not,"

Yoda said gravely. The wise Master looked over at Obi-Wan,  and  Obi-

Wan felt a twinge of guilt. Did Yoda  think  he  was  failing  as  Anakin's

Master? Was he concerned that he was not capable of leading the boy?

These were his  own  fears,  of  course.  Qui-Gon  had  been  such  a

wonderful teacher. He was brave, strong, and wise. A gifted leader.

Would Qui-Gon think I am failing Anakin? That the boy needs an  older

and wiser Master?

Qui-Gon had been dead for almost four  years,  yet  Obi-Wan  suddenly

felt his Master's presence. He was grateful for that, and took  comfort  in

it. But sometimes he felt the loss so strongly that his chest ached.

"We will see  that  the  remains  of  Professor  Lundi  are  properly

attended to," Mace Windu said.

The mention of Lundi's name brought Obi-Wan back to the moment.

"Well done, Jedi," Ki-Adi Mundi said,  smiling.  "You  may  go."  The

other Masters were nodding in agreement.

As Obi-Wan followed his Padawan out of the chambers,  several  images

flashed in his mind: Dr. Lundi's mad, contorted face; the crude drawing  of

the Sith Holocron; the strange gray ship and its mysterious passengers; the

Holocron itself; and, for a brief moment, the anger he'd seen  in  Anakin's

eyes. These were just a handful of many signs he had seen on this  mission.

Signs of things that would not easily be laid to rest....