The first rays of dawn came in through their floor-to-ceiling windows to wake them up. Jade gasped. "Oh, John, it's beautiful!"
They got up and looked at the view. Blue waves stretched as far as the eye could see. Dana began to shake. "That's a lot of water," she said in a small voice.
John hugged the redhead from behind. "I'm sorry, I know this kind of vacation isn't suited for you."
"You picked this place for Jade. And that's wonderful. I'll get over it," Dana reassured him.
"Still, I think you need some comfort. And Rachel can always get her breakfast flavored," John said suggestively.
John made love to Dana, filling her womb with cum. Rachel took great delight in licking it all out of the redhead. That done, they all dressed in swimwear and went out to the beach. By the time Rupert and some robotic porters came out with towels, even Dana was laughing and jumping into the waves. They dried off and went to grab breakfast from the buffet Rupert had set up. They had the meal on a veranda set directly underneath their bedroom.
"A girl could get used to this," Calara sighed, leaning her reclining chair back.
Lirrash savored a bite of watermelon. "This is already the best vacation I've ever had."
Jade was picking her food, looking at the ocean longingly. John gave her a nudge. "Go ahead. I picked this place for you. Go wild!" Jade gave John a searing kiss, shucked her bikini, and dove into the water right from the veranda.
"I'll keep an eye on her," Alyssa promised as she sipped her fruit cocktail.
Dana was tapping her foot. John rolled his eyes. "I know that working on the Invictus is like a 24/7 vacation for you, Sparks. Don't forget to come at mealtimes and you're free to go." Dana beamed, scoffed her food, and ran to the hangar.
"So, what do we do all day?" Rachel asked.
"I want you to start training in the Firing Range for a few hours each day. But other than that, we all can do whatever we want. That's the point of a vacation," John grinned. "I've got a couple hours with Yamamoto from 1000 to 1200 scheduled for each day, but otherwise I plan to just relax on the beach with my girls."
They finished the meal and went back to play on the beach. At 0930, John went inside to shower and get dressed in sparring clothes. He went to the training room, grabbed the odachi, and activated the simulator. The walls vanished as holograms showed an outdoor dojo surrounded by a rock garden, which John knew was at Yamamoto's home on Kodiak.
Yamamoto was waiting, bare-chested and holding a katana in a ready stance. John bowed. "Yamamoto."
"Blake," Yamamoto bowed back. "Show me what you're made of."
John got into the state of combat zen that he'd mastered, and attacked. Yamamoto met his sword, his eyes widening at the ferocity of the assault. They went back and forth for a few minutes, until John used a footwork trick and managed to slice Yamamoto's hand off. Yamamoto's jaw dropped as the simulator replayed his defeat. Then he set his face in a harsh cast. "Again!"
John and Yamamoto spared almost continuously until noon. When the clock alarm went off, John had slightly more victories than Yamamoto. "How are you so skilled?!" Yamamoto demanded.
"I had very good teachers," John said, thinking of Yamamoto in his first life and Luna, Ilyana, and Almari. "And I have lots of real-world experience. Same time tomorrow?"
"Yes," Yamamoto agreed, a glint of respect in his eyes along with his frustration. The simulation ended, leaving John alone in an empty room. John placed the odachi back on its stand and returned to the main body of the resort. There was a lunch table set up, the girls bar Jade sitting around it. John took his seat, Rachel crawling to kneel before him. She took him out and began to blow him. John enjoyed the sensations on his cock as he began to eat. "So, how was everyone's morning?"
After the meal, John put on a swimsuit and went out to the beach. Rachel, rounded with his cum, went to the Invictus to train in the Firing Range. John enjoyed an afternoon in the sun and surf. They went to shower and dressed for dinner. As they gathered on the main floor of the resort, Jade came out of the ocean and ran into the room, a huge smile on her face. "I've been having the best time!"
"Tell me all about it," John grinned, even as Alyssa handed Jade a sundress.
They had dinner on the veranda, enjoying drinks with some kick to them delivered by Rupert and his minions. They talked and laughed until late, the night sky clear and full of stars. They went to bed, tired but happy after their first day of vacation.
The rest of their 2 week stay passed quite pleasantly. Jade spent every day swimming with the pod of dolphins she'd befriended. Rachel lived on a steady diet of cum, frequently 'flavored' by one of the other girls. Dana had a blast working on building 4 maintenance bots as well as a few other projects, and convinced Alyssa to octa-shape the armor for the whole Invictus. Calara and Lirrash were always free to play with John on the beach. John built a friendly rivalry with Yamamoto, and he felt his skills improving by going up against a real master.
The last day, after lunch, Dana handed everyone rebreathers and Jade revealed she'd convinced her dolphin friends to give them a tour of the local reef. They all rode the dolphins and enjoyed the incredible sights of the underwater world. At dinner, a storm brewed on the horizon. They all retreated inside and watched as the rain and lightning raged against the windows. Rachel, long since through with the Change, kissed John heatedly. "Make love to me," she asked.
John took Rachel with a ferocity that mimicked the storm outside. He ended by filling her womb with his seed, until she looked inflated like a balloon. John and his Ward cuddled for a few minutes, enjoying the afterglow, before Rachel opened her legs and beckoned to the other girls. "I've eaten all of you out, now it's your turn." All of the girls got a portion of John's cum, Alyssa being extra generous and saving a mouthful for Rachel. John relished having an active connection to all his crew.
In the morning, they all got packed and moved back into the Invictus, John lifting all the simulation equipment with Telekinesis and moving it to Deck 3 for Dana to install in one of the empty rooms. They went up to the Bridge, and Alyssa activated the Pilot's station. Jade gasped. "Really? You think I'm ready?"
"I trust you, you'll be amazing," the Matriarch beamed. "Just be warned, the Invictus turns like a brick compared to the Raptor."
Jade settled into the pilot's chair and checked all the systems. Gripping the controls, she took them up out of Oceanus' atmosphere. Once they were outside the comms blackout enforced around the planet, Lirrash's console lit up with a dozen missed calls from Peter Koeman. "Call him," John sighed, getting ready to deal with one of Mikaboshi's pawns.
A swarthy man appeared on the vid-screen. His face lit up. "Commodore Blake! I've been trying to reach you for weeks!"
"Sorry, I was on vacation. How may I help you?" John asked politely.
"You saved my sister from the Kirrix! I'm a jewel merchant out of Theta Serpentis and fortune has smiled on me recently. I want to give you a gift for how you rescued my family." Koeman pulled out a case and opened it to reveal several flawless gemstones. "I don't trust these to a courier, so could you please come to collect them in person?"
John forced a smile and prepared to condemn this man to torture and death. "Fortune has smiled on me as well, Mr. Koeman. I don't need any more money. If you want to repay me, use the proceeds from selling those jewels and make a charitable donation. I'd recommend a charity that caters to orphanages, a couple orphans have changed my life."
Koeman's eyes widened in surprise, and for a brief second fear before he covered it up. "You surprise me, Commodore. Very well. Have a good day." He ended the call.
"Call Charles, please, Lirrash," John asked.
"Nice tan, John," were Charles' first words.
"Yeah, Oceanus was a blast," John grinned before getting serious. "Have you learned anything more about that AI?"
"No, it's all above my clearance level," Charles grumbled. "I'll keep my ear to the ground, though. Good luck with the Maliri."
"Thanks. See you later, Charles," John said before ending the call.
Jade got them to the edge of the gravity well. Alyssa plotted their route to Theta Aquarii and sent them into hyperwarp. "2 days," she announced.
"Alright. Vacation's over, ladies. Jade, go to the Cargo Bay where you'll have room, go nuts practicing your shapeshifting. Dana, get the simulation equipment installed by lunch. Alyssa, take Lirrash and Rachel to the Gym and work on their shields. Calara, we'll spar with martial arts until lunch, then with swords in the afternoon after my match with Yamamoto," John instructed.
"Yes, John," they all chorused, finding his commanding presence intoxicating.
They all went to the grav-tubes and to their assigned rooms. In the Gym, while John and Calara did their warm-up stretches on the mat, Alyssa led Lirrash and Rachel to an open area. "Alright, welcome to psychic boot camp, bitches! First order of business, making a shield. Basically, picture a wall of hexagons in front of you and will it into being." So saying, Alyssa raised a shield of white hexagons.
Lirrash narrowed her all-black eyes, and her own shield formed after a few seconds, one hexagon at a time. They were colored the same gray as her skin. Rachel focused, and her own shield formed very slowly, her hexagons the shade of her eyes.
"You're both making the same mistake. You're trying to build it one hexagon at a time. You need to imagine the whole finished product and force it out as quickly as possible," Alyssa coached.
Lirrash and Rachel tried again, with slightly quicker results. Alyssa had them forming shields until they managed to make a full-body barrier in less than a second.
"Okay, that's step 1, making the shield in the first place. Step 2, repairing it." Without warning, Alyssa conjured two telekinetic lances and sent them flying. They crashed through her students' shields like they weren't there, stopping an inch from their heads. "If I was a rival Progenitor, you'd be dead now," Alyssa said grimly.
"Won't it be months before we're facing psychic opponents?" Rachel pointed out.
"Did you forget that most of us died in John's first life? Protecting ourselves is the most important skill we have to train," Alyssa said sternly.
"She's right. We need to take this as serious as the grave," Lirrash said solemnly.
Alyssa spent the time until lunch breaking Lirrash's and Rachel's shields, letting them get practice with repairing and reinforcing them. John whistled at them when he finished sparring with Calara and led them up to the Lounge. John made everyone a tasty lunch. "Sure I can't tempt you to make robotic chefs like we had on Oceanus?" Dana asked over the meal.
"I'd miss it too much," John shook his head.
"So, you didn't feed Rachel for breakfast, and we're all eating real food for lunch. What's going on in that Progenitor head?" Calara asked.
John finished chewing before answering. "Fact: when I have an active connection with any of you, I can feed you energy, make you stronger psychics. In my first life, I pretty much just fed all of you at random, based on whims and who was extra frisky that day. I'm taking things much more seriously now, I need all of you as strong as possible as soon as possible. When I'm not feeding a new girl or one of you needs a full belly, I'm having Jade give everyone 'dessert' after each meal."
"I'll be happy to feed everyone," Jade beamed.
And indeed, when they finished, John had Jade blow him. She kept a sixth for herself, and the rest filled her breasts. She fed each of the girls, until John had an active connection with all of them. He fed a steady stream from his reserves to each of them. "Got it. Anyway, I'm going to spar Yamamoto. Keep up the good work, everyone!"
"What about me, what am I going to do?" Dana asked.
"Whatever you want, so long as it benefits the crew. Upgrade the armors, invent a new gun, whatever. I trust your discretion," John said, giving his Chief Engineer carte blanche.
"Oh, yeah," Dana grinned. "I'll finish working out the design for Punisher Railguns!"
John went to Deck 3 and spared Yamamoto for 2 hours. The man was good, and had been improving just like John, if not quite at the same rate. Having an opponent of similar skill level really was better than training alone. When they finished, John got in armor and went to the Gym. As he expected, Calara was waiting in her own armor and with her practice katana. "We covered Kenjutsu and Wushu. Now I'm going to show you the style I developed for myself," John said.
"Does it have a name?" Calara asked.
"Lion Claws," John grinned.
John taught Calara all the kata, while Alyssa kept working with Lirrash and Rachel. They trained until 1800, when John called everything to a halt. They joined Jade and Dana and took a shower, washing the sweat from their limbs. Fresh and clean, John went to the Kitchen, bringing Rachel to start teaching her how to cook. The rest of the girls relaxed in the Lounge. "I have a headache," Lirrash moaned.
"Sorry, did I work you too hard?" Alyssa winced.
"No harder than I was willing to go," Lirrash waved away. "I'll survive."
"They say sex is an excellent headache cure," Dana chuckled.
"I'm too exhausted for sex," Lirrash huffed.
Jade stood and went to give Lirrash a scalp massage. "Better?"
"You're a goddess," Lirrash moaned as the tension left her head.
After 20 minutes, John and Rachel came out with dinner. They all ate the naturally delicious food, and John had Jade give them all a small dose afterward. John grabbed a whiskey rocks and settled into the couch. "So, Lirrash, feeling up to bonding with Alyssa anytime soon?"
Lirrash blinked. "I completely forgot about that. Well, no time like the present, I suppose."
Alyssa sat next to Lirrash, looking deep into her eyes as her eyes began to glow white. *Open to me, beautiful,* Alyssa encouraged. Lirrash lowered all her mental barriers, trusting her Matriarch implicitly. Their minds joined as one, an act even more intimate than sex. After an hour, they pulled back, but a connection had been forged. *Welcome to the chorus, Lirrash,* Alyssa grinned.
John grinned. "I'm very proud of you, Lirrash."
They chatted until bedtime, John having Jade feed them all a nightcap. They went to sleep, cuddled close.
The next day they trained until lunch, then John had them report to the Bridge. Within a couple hours, they found the wreck of the Excelsior, a passenger liner that had been attacked by pirates. "Alyssa, get us to Eta Tauri," John ordered. His XO plotted their course to the system, sending them into hyperwarp. "Rachel, this might be hard on you. One of the passengers is a little girl whose mother was killed by the pirates. In my first life, you got lost in a flashback and slaughtered all the pirates in cold blood."
Rachel gulped but set her shoulders. "I'll keep it together."
They waited tensely until they arrived at Eta Tauri. A decommissioned Frigate was docked with an abandoned gas mining facility. "Calara, man the Bridge. The rest of us, we're going in." They got armed and armored, going down to the Raptor. Jade took them in, docking them with the gas mining facility. They gathered at the airlock, and Jade disrobed before shifting into Tiger form. John used his hacking device to open the airlock.
The crew went into the pirate base. *Jade smells two men approaching,* Alyssa warned everyone. Jade prowled forward and surprised the men. She decapitated one with a sure swipe of her claws, and John held his Railgun at the other.
"Where are the prisoners?" John demanded.
"The men and children are on this deck! The women are further down," the pirate said quickly, fearing for his life.
John nodded and led his Lionesses further into the base. Lirrash kept her gun trained on the pirate. "Move it, arsehole," she growled.
They reached a common area where 4 pirates were playing cards around a table. Jade roared and the crew aimed their guns. "Stand up! All weapons on the table, if we find one later I'll kill you," John barked. The pirates disarmed themselves, eyes wide at the massive jungle cat and the group in military-grade gear.
"Jade, Alyssa and I are going to save the women. Rachel, treat the passengers and crew for injuries," John ordered before leading the tigress and his Matriarch further into the base. Dana and Lirrash forced the pirates into a room and locked the door while Rachel opened the one where the prisoners were being kept.
"Hello, everyone! I'm Rachel Voss, and my crew is here to rescue you! Is anyone injured?" Rachel called clearly.
A rather beaten up man in a sailor's uniform limped forward. "Oh, thank God you're here!"
Rachel took off her helmet, and her eyes began to glow. The man's complete list of injuries filled her mind, as she activated her healing powers for the first time. She laid a hand gently on his, and willed energy into his body to heal him. The man gasped as he was restored to perfect health. "How did you do that?" he asked in awe.
"I'm a Lioness," Rachel grinned enigmatically. "Anyone else?"
While Rachel was healing the prisoners, John, Alyssa, and Jade followed the noise to a room where the pirates had gathered the women. "Strip! Strip! Strip!" the vile men were calling at a teenage girl, while the rest of the women huddled in fear. 3 bodies laid on the floor, shot at point-blank range. John gave his orders to Alyssa and through her Jade. Alyssa reached out with Telekinesis and held each pirate in place. John picked half off with headshots while Jade killed the other half.
When they finished dealing with the pirates, John took off his helmet and turned to the women. "I'm Commodore John Blake. My crew are here to rescue you all. Follow us back to the rest of the passengers." John eyed the 3 dead women with regret. If only they could have gotten here sooner.
"Thank you, Commodore," spoke up the mother of the girl who'd been the focus of the pirates.
John, Alyssa, and Jade led the women back to the men, and there were many happy reunions. But 3 families got the worst news possible. Rachel saw as one of the women whispered to one of the men, and his face crumbled. He knelt and hugged his 6 or 7 year old daughter. "It's just us now, Carla. Mommy's not coming back," he said brokenly. Carla's sobs hit Rachel right in the gut, but she stayed strong. They would avenge her mother in due time.
The Lion and his Lionesses took the freed prisoners to the Raptor. It was a tight squeeze, but everyone fit. Jade shifted back into her Nymph form and piloted them back to the Invictus. John guided the 90-odd passengers and crew out of the Raptor. "Welcome to my ship, the Invictus. You can stay on Deck 4 until we get to Port Cadmus. Is anyone hungry?"
A number of hands went up.
"We'll make you something in the Galley once we're underway," John promised.
"I thought the Lion of the Federation was just a propaganda piece. But you're a real hero, Commodore," said one of the men.
"Just doing the right thing, sir," John shrugged.
They led the civilians to the grav-tubes, explaining their use before the crew guided everyone up to Deck 4. Once everyone was settled into a room, the crew went to the Bridge. "We'll be at Port Cadmus in 4 hours," Alyssa announced once they were in hyperwarp.
They got out of their armor and went back down to Deck 4 and led everyone to the Galley. John and his girls cooked a large-scale stew. Jade proved quite a hit with the children, they were fascinated by her cat ears and tail. Everyone got a good-sized portion and there was a pleasant human moment as everyone ate and relished their freedom.
They arrived at Port Cadmus, and John submitted his AAR before going to the Cargo Bay. The Excelsior's passengers and crew were walking out the open doors towards where Terran Federation medical staff were waiting. Carla's father went up to John. "Thank you for avenging my wife," he said simply before carrying his daughter out the Invictus.
John saw everyone off his ship and then they returned to the Bridge. Jade got them to the nav-buoy and Alyssa had them back on course for Theta Aquarii. "Let's get a drink before dinner," John decided.
They went down to the Lounge and settled onto the couches with their alcoholic beverages of choice. "You okay, Rachel?" John asked in concern.
"I'll be fine," she assured him. "Anyway, I got some practice with my healing powers today. That's progress."
"So, we meet Irillith tomorrow. Excited?" Alyssa asked John.
"Mixed feelings, honestly. She's a colossal bitch at the moment," John sighed. "But if and when I convince her to join the crew, she'll become a lovely, if sarcastic, girl."
They talked for an hour about nothing in particular, then John got Calara to help him make dinner. He wanted to bond with her given she had to sit out of all the action. They ate and John had Jade give everyone their dose. They went to their quarters to shower and turned in for an early night.
The next morning, they had breakfast and then got dressed in formalwear. John admired all his girls in business clothes, fantasies of sexy secretaries going through his head. Alyssa had a naughty grin on her lips as she listened to his every thought. The fact they all had his cum in their stomachs didn't help. They went up to the Bridge and waited until they arrived at their destination.
Around 1000, they arrived at Theta Aquarii. Jade took them in to Geniya, the Maliri trading hub. They had to pass the Warning, the wreck of a Heavy Freighter that had foolishly tried to invade Maliri territory. "I can't wait till we get Maliri Lasers," Dana said, almost salivating as she looked at the damage to the Warning.
They reached hailing distance and Lirrash accepted a call from Geniya. An armored Maliri male appeared on the vid-screen. "Welcome to Geniya Trading Post! Please could you tell me who you are and your purpose in visiting today?"
"John Blake on the Invictus. I'm here to see Ceraden," John grinned.
"Splendid. Shall I inform him you're coming?" asked the Flight Command tech.
"Please do," John agreed.
Jade took them to their allocated docking bay, landing them with barely a tremor. John led everyone out of the airlock, and they went to the main plaza of Geniya. John helpfully identified each alien species for the curious girls. When the girls grew bored of ogling the alien traders, John led them to the Maliri Trading Commission, where the Maliri merchants themselves set up shop. He led them into a particular office, the door flanked by crimson banners with a complex sigil emblazoned on them.
A Maliri in crimson and gold armor walked up to John. "John, my friend! So good to see you!"
"Ceraden," John grinned, shaking his Maliri friend's hand. "It's good to see you."
"I haven't seen you since you sold me those Rylein Cagfish," Ceraden said. He turned to regard the beautiful women in John's wake. "You seem to have expanded your crew since then. And here I thought you were a lone wolf!"
"Ceraden, these are Alyssa, Calara, Dana, Jade, Lirrash, and Rachel. They crew my new ship," John introduced.
"Ah, yes, Commodore Blake on the Invictus. Not bad for a man who retired from the military a decade ago," Ceraden noted wryly.
John shrugged. "Can we go to your office?"
"Certainly, certainly!" Ceraden led them all to his private office. A Maliri woman in armor was seated at the desk, tinkering with some black device. Ceraden gestured at the crew to sit on the couches and walked up to the woman. "Irillith, I have guests. Could you use another room please?"
Irillith scoffed, but stood. She took one look at John and gasped. The black device fell from her numb fingers, shattering on the floor. She turned to run, but John reached out with Telekinesis, grabbing the Maliri woman. John walked up to her, ignoring how she struggled or Ceraden's shocked posture. "You recognize me for what I am, Irillith Valaden. I am indeed a Progenitor. You were going to go report this to your mother, weren't you?"
Irillith stayed silent.
"Well, call her up. I'm eager to meet Edraele," John said, his eyes glowing with power. He let Irillith go and gestured at the desk. Irillith sat silently and pulled up the comm interface on the console. She input the code and waited for the call to take.
A blue-skinned woman with short black hair and pointed ears appeared on the vid-screen. She had angular purple eyes, a cruel expression, and looked to be in her 40s. For a Thrall race, that meant she could be well into her second century. "What is it, Irillith?" Edraele, Matriarch of House Valaden, barked.
"There's a Progenitor here at Geniya. He wants to speak to you," Irillith said in a small voice.
John stepped into view of the camera, Edraele's face twisting in shock. "Hello, Edraele Valaden. My Terran name is John Blake, but you may call me Baen'thelas. It's a pleasure to meet you, even if over comms."
Edraele rearranged her features into polite interest. "The pleasure is all mine, Baen'thelas. I've wanted to meet one of your kind for quite some time."
"I'm sure. Our healing powers are the only hope for you and your brain tumor," John said blandly.
"How did you know that?!" Edraele demanded.
"Now why would I tell you that?" John asked playfully. "Anyway, I'd be happy to discuss the terms of me healing you in person. Would you be willing to arrange an audience at your palace?"
Edraele's face was smiling, but her eyes were calculating. "As I'm sure you're aware, Baen'thelas, it's unprecedented to allow non-Maliri into Maliri space. I'm afraid I'd require a small favor before I could allow you to meet me on my homeworld."
"Let me guess, you want me to wipe out the Fulmanax on Quanthos," John said flatly. "Well, I have a counter offer. Let me meet you, without having to commit genocide, or I leave Maliri space never to return. You'll either commit suicide from the pain of the migraines or not wake up one morning from your cancer."
Edraele's lips thinned. "Very well. You may come directly to Valaden. How soon can you be here?"
"We have a state-of-the-art Ashanath Tachyon Drive. It'll take us 4 days to reach Epsilon Aquarii. I have some business to conduct on Geniya, which should only take a couple days. Shall we say in a week?" John proposed.
"I'll be waiting anxiously, Baen'thelas," Edraele said with her most charming grin. She ended the call.
"You may go, Irillith," John said. Irillith stood up and all but fled the room. John knew she'd hack the cameras to listen to everything he was about to tell Ceraden. John went to sit on one of the couches, facing the Maliri trader. "I'm guessing you have some questions, my friend."
"You could say that, John," Ceraden said faintly, sitting at his desk.
"I'll tell you the whole story, though you may not want to believe it's the truth," John said.
"I'm all ears," Ceraden stated firmly.
"You know I'm not Terran. I'm a Progenitor, an all-male race of psychics that rule empires throughout the Milky Way. The empires are composed of Thrall races, species that have been genetically designed to serve a Progenitor. The Maliri are a Thrall race," John said clearly.
"You're saying my people were made to be your people's slaves?" Ceraden asked doubtfully.
"You have 20 girls for every boy. You live to 250-300 on average. You've had fusion power for as long as you can remember. And you have scary stories about the last Progenitor to rule you, Mael'nerak," John listed off.
"The Mael'nerak? He was one of these Progenitors?" Ceraden asked in shock.
"Yes. Mael'nerak claimed the Maliri 72 thousand years ago and died 10 thousand years ago. Progenitors are unaging by the way. Now I've come along," John said to Ceraden.
"To do what? You intend to… claim the Maliri, as Mael'nerak did?" Ceraden asked in disbelief.
"If it's not me, it'll be another Progenitor, Ceraden. And they're all much less nice than me," John warned.
"What does it even mean, that you'll 'claim' us?" Ceraden demanded.
"Progenitors form psychic networks, a series of women they can tap for psychic power. In exchange, the Progenitor can rewrite the woman's DNA. All the women you see here are in peak health and fitness, have genius IQs, psychic powers, and will stay eternally young so long as they serve me. There are 19 Maliri Noble Houses, each ruled by a Matriarch. I'll claim the Maliri by adding each Matriarch to my network, starting with Edraele," John answered.
Ceraden was blown away.