While Kattie worked with her father to organize the Bree for the move, Lana took Dobin to find Talbot. She explained the plan and Talbot got excited. He was able to quickly give him 30 earth users. He already had another team expanding his own shelter but planning was becoming difficult. They had defenses built into their walls. While some expansion was okay, further expansion required dismantling and moving defensive equipment, leaving them vulnerable and spreading their assets thin.
Back at home, Lana noticed the shelter below was filling up. Her brother got their team together quickly and Lana briefed all the new people on the rules and why the rules were in place. If people wanted to hunt beasts, this was not a place for them. She also offered them the same deal she had with the businesses in her surface shelter. She would provide start-up costs to get them going.
After spending so much of the day helping people get settled, Lana decided to go to the Blades, who now inhabited several high-level homes near the library. She wanted to know what happened on Blade Island. Vorden and Raten sat with her and explained. Both beast bodies had changed since they left. Rate now looked human, not muddy at all but it was a transformation. The mud as his natural armor. Vorden's fur was incredible, with wings that made Lana envious.
They explained they consumed a bunch of crystals to evolve. Vorden still had more room to grow. In terms of their mission to protect the dragon, they failed. They were assaulted by never-ending clones of Jim Eno. They fought a bunch of dalki as well. Wevil was killed by them which devastated Linda who had gone to the vampire planet with Fex to take some time away. Logan had set up a teleporter at the temple with anti-jammer devices. They defended it until all but Quinn was there and they wet through. Ultimately, they watched as 6-spike dalki overpowered the dragon and was able to take it away.
When they went through the teleporter, Sil was on the floor, knocked out. He had gone through the other teleporter to get abilities on the ship and the dragon destroyed that teleporter. Eno placed the teleporter near the dragon thinking it would be safe. Sil was unable to return so he waited in the teleporter room. Bliss shared some information for Quinn, specifically, then left. Quinn then went to a special place that Eno created with Mona and Logan.
Once they were done, Quinn went to the vampire world while Mona and Logan returned to the Cursed ship.
Lana was shocked to hear how that all went. Part of her was happy to have missed out but another part wished she had been there to help. Lana's tummy was swelling a bit more each day. She was realizing this was way different than the last one. Her guess was her changed body also changed this process. She decided she needed to get her people in the field as soon as she could. She needed to contribute something.
Lana thanked Vorden and Raten for catching her up. She hugged them both, giving Vorden's wings a jealous stare before returning home with the twins. She was feeling very tired. Shalt took the energetic little ones and sent her to bed. They would be in bed in two hours but he needed to cook something for them first.
Lana slept until the next afternoon. She woke to find Mandy sitting with the babies and Fiza sitting next to her bed in a chair.
"What time is it?" she asked, holding her head as she sat up.
"2 in the afternoon," Fiza replied.
"Wow. I guess I was more tired than I thought. Are the twins doing okay?"
Fiza chuckled, "they have more aunts, uncles and caregivers than anyone I've ever seen. The question is you. Apparently, you pushed yourself last pregnancy as well. You didn't even tell anyone this time. We all found out thanks to Shalt."
Lana sighed, "there's just so much to do. I need to get you guys in the field. I need to get stronger, and now need to find out how to go support my father… I need to do right by my people here and see if I can help Quinn save humanity!"
Lana looked up at Fiza with sadness in her eyes, "am I doing right by them? Their father missed their first birthday two weeks ago because he was on Blade Island and I'm doing all the things I'm doing…. I don't want them growing up in a world that has dalki."
Fiza chuckled, "these kids are going to have a great life because they have a family that loves them. We are all here. Even the Blade kid, Deal, stopped in this morning to see how they were and you as well. He said you looked tired and wanted to check on you. The purpose of family is to take care of each other. We've had this shelter for over a year now and you still haven't figured that one." Fiza chuckled. "Go get a shower and come out here and rest."
By the time Lana got showered and left her room, the table was covered in dishes the traveler's center sent over for her. Lana chuckled, "I'm not that hungry…"
"Eat and then save the rest for later." Fiza urged her. She knew Lana had not been eating the way she should, much less sleeping the right amount. Despite her protests about the number of dishes, Lana ate everything. She was stuffed but she ate it all. Correction. The twins helped until they got full. They each climbed into her lap and ate from her plate then got down.
Lana soon discovered Shalt had put his nanny hat on as well as the girls and a few others. While she was eating, her door was hardly ever closed as people kept coming to check on her. She sighed. This was worse than what Quinn, Dobin, and Shalt did to her the first time.
Shalt chuckled, "I gave you space to figure it out and this is what it led to. You were once again too busy worrying about others and not tending your own needs. Now we will do it for you."
Lana just nodded. She had been down this route before and survived. She'd do it again. At least she got further in this time before she was placed in the shackles. Not long later, Lana had been sitting in her home, reading to the kids, one on each side of her when Kattie came running in telling her to turn on her tablet. Quinn had landed on the Daisy planet that was overrun with dalki and had magically appeared several vampires.
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This story has been re-written as an original story called Feisty Fae. I took my experience from this writing to make the story better. The new version is Romance/Fantasy Adventure. I hope you enjoy it.