"Had he possibly gotten everyone to a safe location?" Khalzin asked.
"There were no safe locations," the guard replied. "Not before and not after. There were reports that several of the passengers could not be found as well."
Janae gasped. "Who? Who is missing? What passengers?"
"We do not have a manifest at this time."
"You just said that passengers could not be found. How do you know?"
"Only from those that have been found."
"So, get one off the ship," she said.
"We cannot," the guard replied.
"Why not?"
"There is no ship to get one from. It has been destroyed."
Janae gasped.
Khalzin touched her shoulder, and she curled into him. He held her close and let her find her emotions in his arms. Her anger and upset feelings radiated off her, and he felt powerless to change it.
How had he gotten so close to this female so quickly? What made her so special?
Was it the moment?
The travesty of the situation made her turn to him and his emotions to bond with her?
He didn’t know.
It was something beyond physiology that he didn’t quite understand.
It sickened him. Who would do this? Why would someone go to such lengths to block this process? No matter who opposed his idea for helping their people, to blow up a ship full of visitors?
And Fiviel. His friend. Someone he grew up with. Both were in similar positions in the hierarchy of Kantenan.
And now he was missing.
Unaccounted for. Code for "likely dead."
"Which one was Fiviel?" Janae asked.
"The one who caught you."
She nodded. "He saved me, didn't he?"
"He did," he said. "Now, I must honor him." He glanced at the guards. "I will speak to the family regarding Fiviel."
"When it is safe," the guard with all the information said. He narrowed his gaze on Khalzin.
He knew the man was doing his job required by the laws. At this point, though, surely the danger had been isolated.
"And the rest of the survivors? Injury status?"
"Nothing that cannot be handled. Medical teams are taking care of injuries now."
"And any secondary injuries?"
