They took the Raptor back to the Invictus, where John saw Ailanthia safely escorted back to the Command Bridge. He ordered Irillith and Tashana to stay behind, not wanting to chance they'd attack Rahn'hagon due to their genetic programming. John and the rest of his Lionesses took the Raptor back to Larn'kelnar's Dreadnought, landing in the open Hangar.
The 37 surviving Larathyran Wards were waiting awkwardly in the empty Hangar, Larn'kelnar having taken every troop transport down to Arcadia. "Larathyrans! I am Baen'thelas, your new master! Please board this gunship, which will take you to my ship the Invictus!"
The women all bowed their heads and boarded the Raptor. Nia piloted the Raptor back to the Invictus.
"I'm not sure I understand what's going on," Jessica spoke up, from where she'd been shadowing them the whole while.
"The Progenitor Larn'kelnar kidnapped Rahn'hagon. He came to attack us, but we managed to kill him in a surprise attack. A Progenitor's Thralls are compelled to suicide after their master's death. I claimed Ailanthia, Larn'kelnar's Matriarch, before she killed herself. I've gotten all her network as my own now. And now we're going to rescue Rahn'hagon," John told his mother calmly.
"You're really my son?" Jessica asked.
"Yes. You had me at Olympus, before abandoning me to return to Rahn'hagon," John said flatly.
Jessica winced, clutching her head. "How could I do that, abandon my baby? Rahn told me to but…"
"A Progenitor uses mind control on his Thralls. You had no choice, you just followed Rahn'hagon's orders," Alyssa told her mother-in-law comfortingly.
"Mind control… does he even love me? Was everything a lie?!" Jessica demanded.
"Think about all your memories of him, the last 40 years together. Do you love him?" Alyssa asked.
Jessica considered it. "Yes I do… though I'm not sure I like him very much right now."
"And do you think he loves you?" Alyssa asked.
"He said so. He seemed to act like it. But if he was able to make me do whatever he said, how can I trust that any of it was real? Or that he loves Jessica, the person, and not Jessica the only woman available?" Jessica sighed.
"That's something you two will have to work out together," Alyssa said, patting Jessica on the shoulder."
"I'm sorry, I'm being rude. Who are you?" Jessica asked.
"I'm Alyssa Marant. I'm one of John's Matriarchs, his Executive Officer on the Invictus, and his fiance," Alyssa revealed.
"You're going to be my daughter-in-law?" Jessica asked in shock.
"All of us are. John's marrying each of us too," Calara spoke up.
Jessica looked at all the Lionesses. She turned to John. "All of them? Really?" She didn't sound judgmental, more in shock.
"I love each of them for the incredible woman they are," John shrugged.
They began to walk through the Dreadnought, heading for the Brig and the cell Ailanthia told John Rahn'hagon was being kept. Jessica walked up to John. "John, tell me more about you. I want to know everything!"
John tried to keep his emotions under control. He still remembered how dismissive Jessica had been in his first life, not having given him a second thought in 40 years. But that was Jessica the Thrall, and this was Jessica, the real person. She genuinely wanted to connect with him. "Well, I was raised by Grandma and Grandpa in the restaurant. I went to the Academy and became a Marine. I served for 12 years, winning the Stellar Cluster, before I retired. I worked as a trader for 10 years. Then I met Alyssa and came into my powers. Life's gotten pretty hectic since then."
"You have a Stellar Cluster?" Jessica asked, beaming with pride.
"Two, actually," John blushed.
"TWO?! That's never happened before! How'd you get them?" Jessica asked.
"The first was for leading an assault on the rebel flagship at the rebellion of Galon Prime. The second was for saving Terra from a rogue AI," John revealed.
"He's also an Admiral now," Alyssa threw in.
"What? My son, part of High Command?" Jessica asked, eyes wide.
"Technically, I'm retired. I just have the clearance level of an Admiral," John tried to play it down.
"Still, that's incredible," Jessica grinned. "Anything else I should know?"
"I'm the Maliri King," John admitted.
"... How? Just, how?" Jessica gaped.
"The Maliri are a Thrall race, seeded throughout the galaxy to serve as a Progenitor's slaves. I claimed them by adding each Matriarch of each Noble House as my Wards. 18 of them are pregnant with your grandchildren, by the way," John explained.
"18? Really? How will I remember all the names?" Jessica said breathlessly.
"You'll adapt," John chuckled. His good mood soured when they reached the cell door. "He's in here."
Jessica bit her lip. "You don't like him, do you?"
"He got you pregnant and had you abandon me in Terran space as part of some master plan to wipe out every other Progenitor in the galaxy because he's convinced only another Progenitor can kill him and he's terrified of dying. I'm not sure if he'll see his son or a tool," John told her.
"If he hurts you, I'll never forgive him," Jessica swore.
John softened. "Thanks, Mom." Then John opened the cell door and went in alone.
Rahn'hagon was held to the wall by cuffs, and disturbingly looked younger than John. He eyed John in confusion. "Who are you?" he asked in Progenitor.
"I prefer we speak Standard," John replied. "Many names. John Blake, Baen'thelas, Kyth'vindathys. You may call me 'son', though."
Rahn'hagon's face lit up. "My son! You have succeeded so soon?"
"Not even close. Larn'kelnar was the first, not the last," John corrected.
Rahn'hagon's face twisted in horror. "But… how?! Your Guide…"
"Tried to kill me," John finished. "I killed him first. Now, what to do with you?"
Rahn'hagon tensed.
"Relax, I'm not going to kill you," John rolled his eyes.
John's father blinked. "Why not?"
"I have no reason to. And besides, Mom would be heartbroken for life if you died, and I'd prefer that didn't happen," John explained.
"Then what is to become of me?" Rahn'hagon asked.
"I'm tempted to give you this ship to do with as you please, with the caveat that if you attack anyone under my protection I won't rest until you're dead," John said casually.
Rahn'hagon gulped. "I'll take it."
John pressed a rune and the cuffs opened. Rahn'hagon rubbed his wrists and John called "You can come in, now."
Jessica came in and Rahn'hagon's face lit up. "Jess!"
"Rahn!" Jessica shouted, rushing to kiss the man she loved. John averted his eyes while his parents liplocked for over a minute. They parted, and Jessica's smile lost a few molars. "Rahn… we need to talk about a few things."
"What, Jess?" Rahn'hagon asked, expression confused.
"Why did you use mind control on me to make me abandon our son?" Jessica asked, her voice turning hard.
Rahn'hagon blinked. "Well, you'd hardly have done it otherwise, and I needed John to be born in Terran space, where he could access the Maliri."
"So you admit that you used me as an incubator for your little Progenitor killer, not caring a bit about how I'd feel knowing I abandoned my baby, my family, my entire species!" Jessica snarled.
Rahn'hagon reared back, wondering where all this fire had come from. He looked at John in suspicion. "What did you do?"
"All I did was remove your influence. She has her original personality again, and the mind control won't work on her anymore," John replied dryly.
Rahn'hagon gulped and turned back to Jessica. "Jess, I understand you're upset, but so long as the Progenitors exist there's a chance they can find and kill me. You don't want that to happen, surely?"
"Why, because part of being with you includes the urge to suicide when my 'master' dies? You could have warned me about that before we got together, but NO! You just wanted a bedwarmer and a baby maker!" Jessica hissed.
Rahn'hagon looked at John helplessly. John shrugged. "You made your bed, now you have to lie in it. Now, let's get to the Bridge and turn on the Stealth Field Emitter. Xar'aziuth will send a Progenitor to investigate Larn'kelnar's death."
Rahn'hagon nodded. He followed John out the cell, Jessica fuming next to him. "These are my crew, the non-Maliri ones at least," John gestured at his Wards.
"Nice to meet you," Rahn'hagon nodded, focusing on Alyssa. "What are you?" he asked, somewhat rudely but then most Progenitors weren't taught manners.
"John made me a Kyth'faren female," Alyssa revealed.
"Oh," Rahn'hagon said, eyes wide.
They went to the Bridge. Rahn'hagon went to the Command Chair with a sense of familiarity. He typed at the console built into his seat and turned on the Stealth Field Emitter. "Let's get away from here, the Progenitor will probably orbitally bombard my wreck as the most likely culprit for Larn'kelnar's demise."
"Avoid that part of space, that's where my ship is," John warned, pointing at part of the system map.
Rahn'hagon guided Larn'kelnar's Dreadnought to a different part of space and settled in to wait. "So… son, what brought you here if not the end of your mission?" Rahn'hagon asked.
"I'll let you in on a secret. I already won the Progenitor War. But the cost was too great. So I sent my mind back in time to fight it all over again and save the people I love. I knew Larn'kelnar had kidnapped you and figured I should save you," John told the other Progenitor.
"Temporal inversion on that scale should be impossible," Rahn'hagon gasped.
"I altered my Progenitor Connection. I don't get mindless obedience in exchange for a lot more energy. And the more my Wards care for me, the more power they can give me. I managed to kill Larn'kelnar with just 1000 Wards in my first life. In this life, when I claimed his Matriarch, Ailanthia, I got millions of Larathyrans in his network. I have more power than I know what to do with now," John revealed.
Rahn'hagon gaped. "That's… how can you rule an empire without the obedience compulsion?!"
"It's something called 'loyalty'. They follow me because I've proven I'm a man worth following," John spelled out for his father. "Anyway, I'll return to my ship. Here's my comm code, you can contact me whenever." John handed Jessica a card.
"I just got you back, why do you have to leave?" Jessica asked.
"Unfortunately, the fact of the matter is I live in Maliri space when I'm not out protecting the Galactic League. And any Maliri who sees Rahn'hagon will either become slavishly obedient at the mere sight of him or try to kill him. It's just how a Thrall race reacts to Progenitors. So it'll have to be a long-distance thing between us. But once I win the Progenitor War, we can work something out. I could give you two your own planet and make sure to visit often. You'll get to know your grandchildren, don't worry," John comforted.
"Alright." Jessica surprised him with a hug. "I love you, John. I'm so sorry we lost those 40 years, but you have me now for as long as you'll let me in your life."
John got choked up. "I love you too, Mom." When the hug ended, John wiped his eyes and went to his Lionesses. They went back to the Hangar, where the Raptor had returned. John and his crew took it back to the Invictus. "Nia, Obi, let me know the second Gahl'kalgor shows up," John ordered as they got to the Command Bridge.
"Got it," his AIs nodded.
He turned to Ailanthia, still rounded with his load. "We're going to have lunch. You're welcome to join us."
"Okay," Ailanthia nodded.
The crew went to the Lounge. John sat Ailanthia down on his lap on one of the couches. "So, any questions for me?"
"Quite a few, actually," Ailanthia admitted. "How did you kill Larn'kelnar?"
"Jehanna made Sakura invisible, and she stabbed him while he was distracted talking to me. I struck while his guard was down," John explained.
"Your Thralls are psychic?" Ailanthia asked in shock.
"I prefer the term 'Wards', actually," John told the Larathyran woman. "I gave each of them some of my power, and it's grown from there. Each of them has a different set of powers."
"What are your plans for the Larathyran Empire?" Ailanthia asked, turning the focus towards her home.
"I'll visit once it's safe, but for now they have to run themselves. But we need the fleet. Have all ships gather at the hyperwarp gates. When we find Mael'nerak's Throne World and take out the psychic field device there, it'll be safe for them to come through," John told Ailanthia.
"Who's Mael'nerak? A Progenitor?" Ailanthia guessed.
"He was the last Progenitor to rule the Maliri. He's the one Rahn'hagon waged war against before he crash-landed on Arcadia," John said.
"What is to become of me?" Ailanthia asked.
"You're pregnant, so I want you where you'll be safe. You'll stay in Maliri space with my Maliri Matriarch, Edraele. She's a wonderful woman, I hope you two will get along," John grinned. "And while you've got my cum in your belly…" John focused and imbued the Force rune into Ailanthia.
Ailanthia's blue eyes glowed. "Oh, my… that was stimulating," she breathed.
"You're telekinetic now. You can make shields to defend yourself and to attack your enemies. We'll train you up while we have you, okay?" John asked.
"Your generosity is… an adjustment from what I'm used to," Ailanthia said hesitantly.
John leaned in and gave her a kiss. "While we're together, I want you to know nothing but happiness and pleasure. If I ever start to slip, just let me know and I'll try harder."
"You are a very rare man, John Blake," Ailanthia said against his lips.
"I try," John chuckled.
They talked until the girls served lunch, then they all ate. Ailanthia was introduced to each of the girls, and she did her best to memorize all the names. Afterwards, John took her on a tour of the ship. On Deck 4, John stopped in to check on all the Larathyran Wards. He learned names and what each was trained in, and assured them he'd find jobs for them in the Maliri navy. When John was showing Ailanthia the Observatory, Alyssa spoke to him mentally. *A wormhole just opened in system! Game time!*
"Ailanthia, Gahl'kalgor just arrived. We're going to deal with him," John said, leading Ailanthia to the grav-tubes.
"How?" Ailanthia asked, fear filling her. Gahl'kalgor's empire was significantly larger and more powerful than the Larathyran Empire.
"My hacker's going to slave his ship. Failing that, we'll double-team his ship with Larn'kelnar's Dreadnought," John answered.
They reached the bedroom and took the grav-tubes down to the Command Bridge. John got armored for the second time that day, grabbing Kyth'vindathys and a Tachyon Rifle. He took his Command Chair and surveyed the system map. Gahl'kalgor's Dreadnought was firing at the surface of Arcadia, blasting the wreck of Rahn'hagon's Dreadnought into the ground. "Irillith, how are you coming?" he asked.
"Progenitor systems are very robust, please don't distract me," she ground out, an almost manic expression of focus on her face.
It took an hour, and John felt Alyssa funneling energy from the network to Irillith, but finally the Maliri hacker grinned. "Got it. I have control of every system. Now that I've done it once, I'll be able to write programs to automate slaving a Progenitor Dreadnought."
"Excellent," John grinned. "Lirrash, hail him."
Lirrash sent a call at Gahl'kalgor's Dreadnought. The vid-screen came alive with a sandy-haired Progenitor with the distinctive nose and ears. "Who are you?" he snarled in Progenitor.
"I am Baen'thelas of the Maliri Kingdom, and I'm the new owner of your ship," John grinned.
"What?!" Gahl'kalgor roared.
At that moment, Irillith ended the orbital bombardment by cutting power to the weapons, locked the Bridge crew out of their consoles, and turned off all power to the Bridge except for the vid-screen.
"I have a VERY good hacker," John explained to the shocked Progenitor. "Do as I say or I'll turn off your oxygen and you'll suffocate."
Gahl'kalgor gulped, a flash of fear visible in his eyes before he covered it up. "What do you want, Baen'thelas?" he asked gruffly.
"I'll make you the same offer I made Larn'kelnar. You can live free on one of my planets if you surrender your ship. I'll be taking Valeria though. You'll live alone, with no Thralls at all. Ever hurt anyone, and I'll kill you personally," John laid out in the tongue of his ancestors.
"I'd rather die!" Gahl'kalgor sneered.
"Then I offer you an honorable death. Take a shuttle to my ship. You and Valeria against me and my crew. Or you can die right here and now choking on your last gasp of air," John told his rival.
Gahl'kalgor frowned. "I will come to your ship. I'll take great pleasure in having you stuffed, Baen'thelas." He pressed the button on his Command Chair to end the call, only to grimace as nothing happened.
"If Valeria doesn't come with you, you die," John warned before he had Lirrash end the hail. He outlined the plan and then said "Well, down to the Secondary Hangar."
The Lion and his Lionesses went down to the Secondary Hangar, which was still just an empty room. The doors opened, an atmospheric force field going up. Gahl'kalgor's shuttle entered the Hangar and touched down. The moment the airlock opened, Sakura stabbed Gahl'kalgor under the chin and up into the brain. She withdrew her ninjato, and the dead body collapsed to the ground.
Valeria, the Grakiran Matriarch, howled with fury and pain and lunged at Sakura. Jade in Tiger form pounced on her. She forced a claw into Valeria's mouth and pumped John's cum directly into her stomach. John added Valeria as a fifth Matriarch, and for the second time that day felt a sense of euphoric bliss as eldritch power filled him. Millions upon millions of Grakiran Thralls became Wards as his personal Progenitor Connection reached them through Valeria's network.
John came back to himself and walked up to Valeria. He focused and sent a memory packet of Terran Standard across his active connection into her mind. Valeria groaned as she got a headache. "Get off her Jade," John commanded.
Jade in Tiger form pulled off of Valeria but stayed vigilant in case the gladiatora attacked her master. "Welcome to the Invictus," John told Valeria.
"What did you just do?" she snarled in the language John had been raised with.
"I had my assassin take out Gahl'kalgor while his guard was down. Then I had my shapeshifter fill you with my seed, letting me claim you as one of my Matriarchs and making every Grakiran in your network my Thralls, though I use the term 'Wards'," John said calmly.
Valeria got to her feet, eyeing the Tiger and John warily. "You stole all of Gahl'kalgor's Thralls for your own? That's… brilliant, actually. How many other Progenitors have you done this to?"
"Just Larn'kelnar, earlier today in fact. Gahl'kalgor was sent by Xar'aziuth to investigate. And now we really should get moving before that thing sends a third Progenitor. Though part of me is tempted to wait to see how many more he sends before he gets the message," John mused.
"Who or what is Xar'aziuth?" Valeria asked.
"I bet Gahl'kalgor never told you that he himself was a slave, did he?" John asked. "Xar'aziuth is the man who created the Progenitors. For some reason, he left the Material Plane for the Astral Plane. He enslaves every Progenitor when he comes into his powers, making them wage war against each other for his amusement. I'm unique among Progenitors in that I'm free from that monster."
Valeria had wide eyes. "I would never have guessed."
"Now, have the bridge crew on the Dreadnought turn on the Stealth Field Emitter. When the Wormhole Generator recharges, send them to these coordinates." John rattled off a list of numbers and letters fed to him by Alyssa.
"It will be done, my Lord," Valeria bowed.
"Follow me," John said. He turned and led Valeria back to the Primary Hangar and then up to the Command Bridge. He got unarmored and then led her to his bedroom on Deck 2. He sat down on the bed and patted the space next to him. Valeria sat down, eyeing him like she was trying to get a read on him. "Now, I'd like you to meet my crew."
"I'm Alyssa Marant, the Matriarch of John's crew and his second-in-command," Alyssa announced.
"Calara Fernandez, Tactical Officer."
"Dana, Grand Engineering Overlord."
"Jade, Pilot and Matriarch of the Nymphs."
"Lirrash, Comms Officer."
"Rachel, Medical Officer."
"Irillith Valaden, Intelligence Officer."
"Sakura Honami, Security Officer."
"Tashana Valaden," Tashana said, making her hands catch on fire to Valeria's shock.
"Helene, Counselor."
"Jehanna, I'm the one who made Sakura invisible."
"I am Neysa, one of John's Nymphs."
"I am Leylira, one of John's Nymphs."
"I am Betrixa, one of John's Nymphs."
"I am Marika, one of John's Nymphs."
"Ailita is one of Master's Nymphs."
"I'm Kelli, I'm new."
"I'm Perl. I'm new too."
"My name is Nia, I'm one of John's AIs and his Ward," Nia grinned.
"I am named Obi, the other AI and only other male," Obi shrugged.
"And I am Ailanthia, Matriarch of the Larathyrans," Ailanthia spoke up.
"Well met," Valeria nodded.
"Each of them is also psychic. I imbue my closest Wards with some of my power, and they grow it from there. Speaking of which, what powers do you want besides the Telepathy to be Matriarch?" John asked.
Valeria looked shocked. "Um… Gahl'kalgor frequently made me fight in his arena. I'm very skilled at martial combat. What powers would you recommend?"
"Strength, Speed, and Shields." So saying, John imbued the runes into Valeria's DNA.
Valeria gasped. "... That felt better than sex," she said dazedly.
"You must not have had very good sex, then," John chuckled. "We'll fix that soon. For now, I want to get us the hell away from here. Alyssa, plot us a course back to Olympus, stopping by the Kirrix border fleet."
"I'm on it," Alyssa said, going for the grav-tubes to head to the Bridge.
Obi perked up. "Your mother is calling."
"On my wrist communicator," John ordered, and his AI butler rerouted the call. "Hi, Mom."
"What just happened? That Progenitor Dreadnought was attacking my home and then it just stopped and then the shuttle went to your ship. What's going on?" Jessica blurted out in a rush.
"I had Irillith, my hacker, slave Gahl'kalgor's ship. I blackmailed him into coming to my ship for a one-on-one fight, and had Sakura assassinate him the moment he stepped off his ship. I've claimed his Matriarch Valeria as I did Ailanthia. That's 2 down, over 30 to go." John sighed. "The Progenitor War is well and truly starting."
"Where would you recommend Rahn and I to go?" Jessica asked.
"You should visit Grandpa and Grandma's graves," John said seriously.
Jessica's face crumpled with pain. "I'm a terrible daughter. I didn't even think of that. I will."
"While I'm thinking about it, you and Rahn don't have a credit between you. I'll have Irillith create an account in your name. Just go to any bank and say you lost your credit chit, they'll issue you a new one. I'll set you up to be comfortable, about 10 million or so," John told Jessica.
"How rich are you?" Jessica blinked.
"I'm a billionaire," John shrugged. Alyssa had done some smart investing of his money.
"Well, I'll call you tomorrow, John. Every day if you don't mind," Jessica grinned.
"I'd like that, Mom," John smiled back.
Jessica ended the call.
"You know your parents?" Valeria blinked in confusion. "Gahl'kalgor never knew who his mother was, and he had his father stuffed when he killed him."
"My birth was unconventional by Progenitor standards. I'll explain while we take a tour of the Invictus," John said to the Grakiran.
He led Valeria from Deck 9 up through his ship. He told her a condensed version of his life story, and all the exploits he and his crew had done since he came into his powers. Valeria didn't blink at the Lagoon but she was intrigued by the Training Room. They ended in his Ready Room, and John sat her in his lap. "So, tell me more about you."
Valeria talked about growing up in the Grakiran Empire, becoming a gladiatora, beating Gahl'kalgor's last Matriarch and taking her place, and then the thousands of years spent working for the cruel sadist, happily doing his bidding for the barest scrap of attention. She spoke casually of her habit of husking any Thrall who irked her. John focused more on introducing positive energy into Valeria's mind.
At dinnertime, he took Valeria down to the lounge. They all ate, the table full for once. "We'll need a bigger table if you keep recruiting at this rate," Alyssa joked.
"I believe my lovely XO is in charge of recruitment, actually," John fired back.
After they ate and the maids went to clean everything, John took Jade aside and had her kneel. "Time to feed everyone, my lovely Nymph."
Jade happily blew him and let each of the crew nurse from her, Ailanthia and Valeria doing so with bemusement.
"Now, keep in mind, I'm a few orders of magnitude stronger than I was yesterday. I'm going to feed all of you a fuckton of energy," John warned them. Then he gathered energy from the whole network, all those millions of new Wards, and funneled it into his Lionesses.
All of their eyes glowed, and the Nymph's bellies began to emit rings of light that were nearly blinding in their intensity. "Holy fuck!" Dana shouted.
When John had exhausted everyone's reserves short of tapping life force, he stopped the flow of energy. "How do you feel?" John asked.
"Like I could lift a mountain with just my mind," Alyssa stated matter of factly.
"I think you just made all of us as strong as a minor-league Progenitor," Rachel said, leaning on the couch as her head spun.
"I might just be tougher than the Invictus now," Jade mused, picking up a fork and bending it without any effort.
"My mind is free now," Ailita breathed. "Thank you, Master. I will follow you anywhere, not by need, but by choice."
"Thank you, Ailita," John grinned at his newest Nymph.
"I can feel the water in everyone's bodies," Perl breathed out. "It's a weird feeling."
"You all can get used to your new power levels over the next few days," John told them. "Alyssa, can you have Lynette transfer all the Fernandez family to the Core Worlds? We can use the excuse we're ferrying them."
"Already done," Alyssa informed him.
"Excellent," John said, going to sit. "Trois, can I get a whiskey please?"
"Oui, monsieur!" the cleaning robot chirped.
*Don't worry, I'll give you, Luna, Ilyana, and Almari a major upgrade when I get back to Genthalas,* John told Edraele.
*I look forward to it, Baen'thelas,* Edraele purred in his mind. *I can't wait to feel your essence invade my deepest, darkest places… and I'll enjoy the power up too.*
John chuckled.
The crew all calmed down and got drinks before relaxing around the Lounge. The focus was on Ailanthia and Valeria, letting them get to know each of the Lionesses and welcoming the new Matriarchs into the family. When it got late, they went to bed, and John properly welcomed Ailanthia and then Valeria to the crew. He fed Jade at the end and had her feed everyone a nightcap before they all crammed into the bed.
They reached the Kirrix border after dinner the next day. They pulled into the system and approached the Damocles. John had Lirrash hail the Porphyrion. Admiral Nathan Zelig appeared. "John," Nathan greeted.
"Nathan," John nodded.
"I presume by your return alive that you were successful in your mission?" Nathan asked.
"I found a Hive Queen and addressed all 100. They agreed to never set foot in Galactic League territory again on pain of extinction," John said with a grin.
"Unbelievable," Nathan shook his head. "You Progenitors are made of sterner stuff than us Terrans."
"If you say so," John shrugged. "Anyway, I'm going to pick up my future in-laws for the crew transfer. Lieutenant Emily Campbell's orders came through too, right?"
"Yes, indeed. I'd accuse you of nepotism, but I think we can all agree that keeping one of the Lionesses' family safe is just good sense. I'd hate to see what you could do if you ever got pissed off," Nathan said wryly.
"It wouldn't be pretty," John agreed. "See you at High Command meetings, Nathan."