He turned back to Samakro. “I’ll be here for the next few hours, observing the dissection. I want you to make two copies of the audio records: one for the analyzers and one for my personal examination.”

“Yes, sir,” Samakro said. “With your permission, I’d like to also make an extra copy for myself. Senior Commander Kharill takes over the watch in half an hour, and I can begin listening to it while you watch things down here.”

“Excellent idea, Mid Captain,” Thrawn said. “Thank you.”

He looked at the Void Guide’s body. “He went to some trouble to hide these people and their home from us. Let’s see what we can learn of them despite his efforts.”

Thalias watched as Thrawn examined the bodies, noting the special attention he gave to their clothing and adornments. But once that part was over, and the medics stepped forward with their surgical equipment, she decided she’d had enough.

The suite was dark and quiet as she slipped inside and locked the hatch behind her. She tiptoed across the dayroom, wondering if a hot bath would feel good or if she was too tired to do anything except curl up in bed—

“Thalias?” a tentative voice came from Che’ri’s room.

“I’m here,” Thalias called back softly, changing direction toward the half-open hatchway. “Did I wake you?”

“No, I was already awake,” Che’ri said.

“Sorry,” Thalias said. “Are you hungry? Can I get you something to eat?”

“No.” Che’ri hesitated. “I had a nightmare.”

“I’m so sorry,” she said again, opening the hatch all the way and stepping inside. In the faint glow from the luminous escape pod markers, she saw that Che’ri was sitting up in bed, hunched over with her arms hugging one of her pillows to her chest. So much for that hot bath. “Do you want to talk about it?”

“No, I guess not,” Che’ri said. “It’s okay.”

But she was still clutching that pillow. “Come on,” Thalias encouraged as she sat down at the end of the girl’s bed. “Tell me yours, and I’ll tell you one of mine.”

“You had nightmares, too?”

“We all did,” Thalias said. “Just like the overload spells. I don’t know if those things are part of Third Sight itself or if it’s just all the pressure sky-walkers are under. But we all had them.” She patted Che’ri’s knee through the blanket. “Let me guess. You were lost and everyone was mad at you?”

“Almost,” Che’ri said. “I was lost, but they weren’t mad. At least they didn’t say anything. But they kept looking at me. Just…looking.”

“Yes, I had that one, too,” Thalias said ruefully. “No one would talk to me, and they wouldn’t listen. Sometimes they couldn’t even hear me.”

“I remember thinking it was like being stuck in a big soap bubble,” Che’ri said.