***Tirnanog, Mount Aerie***

***Astra***

My partner's invention was, of course, of great interest to everyone. In fact, it landed immediately on the list of points the elders had to discuss at the next big meeting.

However, in the absence of the prototypes being field-tested, nobody vied for the role of test subject. It also didn't help that the clan's resources were currently spread very thin between continued war efforts, refugees, and the moon base.

We still had the Vier to worry about, but for now, our military was more concerned about solidifying our control over Thich City and the surrounding area.

So, Magnus continued making prototypes, improving on the previous design with each new generation of devices.

Three weeks passed, during which I had my own trouble between being my mother's right hand and handling kids and cats. Well, let us say that telepathic cats should have been something to be prepared for when I learned that Magnus used Drake DNA to make them.

But I was not.

'Pet me, lesser lifeform.'

"I am not a lesser lifeform!"

Lilly, as I got to call the female white kitten, sat at my desk and looked at me with big, round eyes. She was the runt among her siblings, but she had chosen me as 'her human'. Whenever I was at home, she would stick around, making sure she was at the very least in the same room as me.

She said no more, but it took less than a minute until I gave up and scratched her head.

This was all Magnus's fault. If he hadn't told the cats at every opportunity that they were 'purrrfect' beings, they wouldn't have developed this strange way of interacting with people.

Thankfully, it looked very much like they would turn out very similar to the drakes. Insofar as they seemed to have very little interest in technology or challenging their human creators.

'Belly rubs.'

The purring Lilly turned onto her back, and I obliged with a sigh, cursing Magnus while doing so. I couldn't deny the urge to touch that soft fur.

And why was I the one who had to look after things? The next opportunity I got, I would find a way to skive off and let him play watchdog at home.

To test the latest iteration of his invention, he had collected all the men in his circle and went on a short outing. No more than a day or two, but it had already been three. It was no surprise that they might need a little longer, since they hadn't given us a tight schedule for their trip. I was nonetheless worried.

Though I probably shouldn't be.

There were Magnus and the recovered Gunnar, who were probably a little bit green behind the ears when it came to wilderness survival on Tirnanog, but they were powerful enough to handle themselves. Hector and Mark, on the other hand, were skilled in the art of survival. At least Hector should be very familiar with Mount Aerie's cave systems.

I wasn't so sure about their decision to add Lucas, Evanne's partner, to the team. But Magnus insisted that a proper party needed five people. Magnus swore an oath to me that his intention was only to correct the former Thich's path. To build a connection with Lukas, the partner of his little sister, even if he might not like the man.

I still thought it was more likely that Magnus would use the chance to kill Lukas and camouflage everything as an accident.

The mere thought made my Precognition tingle. Had it been a mistake to let them go? Would Magnus really do such a thing?

I blinked rapidly as the unwelcome idea took hold in my mind.

Hector was completely intimidated by Magnus. He wanted to have as little as possible to do with my partner. On the other hand, he was a member of one of Aerie's great families. Would he take part in such a scheme?

Gunnar and Mark. I didn't know them well enough to say for certain, but when in doubt, I would place them firmly in Magnus's camp.

Suddenly, I no longer felt so certain about the idea of letting them go on a camping trip with Lukas.

My worries were interrupted when Thalia entered the living room. There was no way to hide her pregnancy by now.

She was closely followed by Ivonne and Evanne. The two sisters were still at odds, but Evanne was slowly coming to terms with the defeat of the Thich. There was no doubt in my mind that we would have to keep an eye on her, but I also thought that redemption was possible. Hopefully, it was just a question of not treating her like a prisoner, but as a member of the family.

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"Hi, Astra! I hope we didn't come too early. One of the servants let us in," Thalia greeted me.

"No. Please, take a seat." I took Lilly and put her on the floor, which was commented on with a disgruntled huff by the cat.

"Aw, don't be mad, little cutie!" Ivonne traipsed over and tried to pet Lilly. Before Iv's hand could touch her, the cat was gone in a flash of movement, and I found her sitting on one of the shelves – out of reach of anyone who might try touching her majestic fur without permission.

Ivonne tisked. "One day I will pet you!"

"I am sure it is just a matter of time till she gets used to you. After all, you are visiting often," I reassured her. "I'm glad you came a little earlier than expected. Too much time to think about all the stupid things Magnus might get up to without supervision with the other men."

"The less you worry, the better," Ivonne said while sitting down on the couch across from the tea table. "I am glad to get some downtime from Hector. He tried to come up with all kinds of excuses not to join the men's little outing."

"I would have liked to keep Mark at home," Thalia huffed. "He is getting way too hands-offish with me since I got pregnant!"

"Some guys don't like big bellies," Evanne pointed out in her usual confrontational manner.

Ivonne quickly overrode her with a suggestive grin. "Maybe he is just worried about hurting the child if it gets too rough."

Thalia rolled her eyes and touched her belly. "That's firehorn dung, and he knows it. I am worried it may indeed be about my appeal."

Then she looked at me with questioning eyes.

I scoffed. "Don't expect me to be able to solve that particular problem. Magnus might always say that he doesn't want to have too many children, but when it comes to making them, he always loses his reason."

Leaning closer, I whispered conspiratorially, "I think the thought of knocking me up turns him on."

Thalia shook her head. "I shouldn't have asked."

Ivonne clapped her hands. "Enough creepy chit chat! I thought we were meeting up for a movie night at the only home cinema on the planet! With the men gone, we can watch all the 'boring stuff', the 'romance', the 'comedies', and the 'thrillers' we want!"

The ensuing night was okay. Especially since I had managed to get Mary to look after the kids.

The next morning came with a surprise when the men returned to the estate. Lukas was being dragged by Hector and looked more dead than alive. He wasn't injured, but he looked emaciated.

"What happened?" I asked upon finding them in the lobby.

"Nothing!" Magnus replied. "We had a great time! Right, guys?"

The ringleader's question was quickly returned by a round of nods and confirmatory comments.

"Then what happened to him?" I pointed at Lukas.

"We just showed him what it means to marry into the Elrod family," Gunnar commented. "Don't worry, he is fine!"

I narrowed my eyes and tried to learn more, but all the men kept mum about what they had been up to. No matter how much I prodded.

To my great surprise, not even Lukas himself dared to break the silence. Whatever happened on their trip, they were resolved to keep it between them.

In the end, I gave up. Lukas was alive, which was a better outcome than I imagined in my worst-case scenarios. And he suddenly showed a lot less offensive behaviour, which was a big improvement compared to the other times we met.

Another week passed, and one day we found ourselves sitting in on a meeting between all the alliance's clan leaders – and it was sure to be a big one if the hints I got from Vanya were to be believed.

The matriarch of Clan Hochberg stood with a kitten hanging off her shoulder and cleared her throat.

"I have called for this assembly because there is a lot of news to be shared. I ask that nobody interrupt because what I will be sharing today is more of a roadmap than a firm plan for the future. We will have to discuss all the points individually afterwards." She sighed dejectedly. "And I fear that might take most of the coming winter."

"First on the agenda is our future stance towards Clan Vier. To continue the campaign right now is out of the question, but we will have to decide on what to do after the coming winter. I imagine there might be better solutions than crushing them with military force after they are already isolated.

"Second. At least one of the Zacharias clones, as well as Nisha Dawson, are still on the run, their whereabouts unknown. As far as we can tell, they simply ditched their forces either at or after the second aerial engagement. The reason is unknown. There was no indication of them having a hand in the final aerial battle or in the conquest of Thich City. Except for one of Zacharia's clones, who wasn't fully grown and posed no obstacle.

"Third. After gaining the access keys to the moonbase, our people are uncovering new things daily about our alien enemy. Magnus's new invention is only a part of that. We are still learning about their capabilities, as well as what their long-term goals might be. Although we must admit that most on that front is still speculation. I must thank the members of the organisation for their continued assistance in this." She looked over to where Jakob Land and Chloe Pastell were sitting. Magnus's people were slowly integrating into Clan Aerie for the most part, but they still answered to their former leaders.

I wondered whether we were seeing the slow founding of a new strata, a new family. But that would have to be something to be handled within Clan Aerie.

Vanya continued, "Two points are of immediate concern. The first is the discovery of how a single alien could have created the moonbase as well as the weather control system. It is also the reason why Elder Gilbert Kline was called for assistance and has been hardly available over the recent weeks. We discovered what might best be called a molecular 3D printer, combined with an automated assembly base. As far as we can tell, it is perfectly capable of automatically producing all the necessary infrastructure, as well as self-replication. Elder Gilbert's main task right now is to take the installation apart and to learn everything he needs to build our own version. Right now, I wouldn't trust any of the alien tech coming out of that thing, but if we manage to copy it…" She didn't need to spell out all the possibilities. "Well, you can imagine how big a boon that would be for conquering all of Tirnanog."

She looked around the room.

"Moving on, we also used the alien teleportation device and identified several teleportation locations on this planet. Some of them are definitely on the other two continents. Some might directly lead to the exit points of more of Earth's Gateway Facilities. As you know, the organisation closed the Tibet installation, but there should be at least four more official ones: America, Europe, Australia, as well as Africa. We are currently considering the best way to send out scouting teams, so we might learn about the state of the other colony missions."

Vanya folded her arms in front of her.

"And lastly, there is a proposition I have for all the clans. In the face of what lies ahead of us and the greater world we find ourselves part of, I can only see us succeeding if we unite and become more than a ragtag band of city-states."

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