The rain intensified the moment Lieutenant Wang stopped in front of Merlin.
The communications officer moved away from them, almost as if fleeing from a ghost.
Kai stood at Merlin's right side, his fingers wrapped around the necklace. Pain lanced through his skin as the silver locket pressed against his palm.
Wang's smile widened as he shifted his gaze and looked Kai up and down. "You look different. Taller than the last time I saw you."
Kai said nothing, just blinked.
Wang's gloves creaked as he folded his arms across his chest. "I heard the second Titanaboa died. The creatures scattered." He shifted his gaze to Merlin, yet his attention never fully left Kai.
Merlin stepped forward. He placed his hands around Kai's shoulder. "The reports are still being processed."
"Processed," Wang repeated the word as if it had been pronounced wrong. "Or sealed?"
