I walked along the edge of the camp until I found a less crowded space, distant cheering could still be heard as I sat down across from a man whose gray hair and weathered skin was as stark contrast to his hardened physique from a life of hard labor.

“Mud in his blood and a spine like steel.” I thought to myself.

“Hope you don’t mind me saying this, but you ain’t smell right, boy.” He grumbled, his eyes cloudy and surrounded by aged scar tissue.

“I don’t mind. Although I’d wager I’m probably not the only thing nowadays.” I replied, sitting down across from him.

“You’ve got that right. Can’t say it was ever any better, just different, different people, different fights.”

“You been with the pack long?” I asked.

“Since before either of those two brats were born, I’d reckon. Back then, it was the damned witches causing trouble. Guess they still are with what happened to John’s mate. Used to think the only good witch was a dead witch, but now that ain’t even good enough.” The old man said, spitting on the ground.

“The world’s changing.” I mused.

“Hell, boy, the world is always changing. That’s the only damn thing that ain’t gonna change.” The old man grumbled, and I let out a chuckle.

“You got a sad laugh, kid. You should fix that.” The old man said with a groan as he stood up.

“I’ll try-” I started, but was interrupted as someone called out to me.

“Aleks?!” I turned to see Nala walking towards us, a slight worry in her step.

“We’re right here!” I called back, but as she came closer she looked around, confused, and as I turned back around, the old man was gone.

“Three’s a crowd, huh?” I muttered to myself as I got to my feet to meet Nala halfway.

“What can I do for you?” I asked, as she stopped, seeming to hesitate for a moment before reaching out and placing my hand on her stomach.

“I know I am with child, but I need you to tell me whether what was done to me will... Will.” She stopped as tears welled up in fiery eyes, her worries likely something that had been clouding her mind for days if not weeks.

I felt the gravity of her request, and even though I knew the answer, I still checked.

“Nala, the life growing in you will not suffer for what was done to you.” I said as she let go of my hand, my wrist aching slightly from the force she’d exerted in her panic.

“I’m sorry... I-I haven’t told John yet. I wanted to be sure. I couldn’t stand to see him like that again. The pain of what that creature did to me was nothing compared to seeing him wither in despair before my eyes.” Nala said, taking a steadying breath to even out her breaking voice.

“I understand... I guess I’m in a similar situation, although I’m afraid I might not enjoy the same proximity as John for a while.” I comforted with a sad grin, thinking of the shitstorm that awaited me once Sophia found out what happened tonight.

Nala winced and looked at me guiltily.

“What?” I asked as a certain fear crept its way up my back.

“She asked to borrow a phone, just to let them know she was alright.” Nala tried to explain, but I could already feel something tug on the connection between Sophia, Natasha, and me.

As if trying to drag me through it and strangle me, simultaneously I spotted Tessa off in the distance holding an outdated cellphone about a foot away from her ear grimacing at the no doubt impressive volume being broadcast from the small device.

“You guys wouldn’t happen to have a free tent or something, would you?” I asked, expecting what would come next.

***

“What the hell were you thinking?!” Sophia yelled. “Dragging her on a six-hour hike, have you lost your damn mind?!”

“It was supposed to be a joke. We’d get a lift back! How was I supposed to know we’d run into a pack of Lycans?!” I said, holding my hands up in a placating gesture whilst pressed up against the wall of the living room.

“Because you attract shit like that, like a damn magnet!” Sophia hissed, poking me in the chest with each word.

“She’s really mad.” Tessa leaned over and whispered to Natasha, the two of them watching from afar on a sofa.

“No kidding, I haven’t seen that vein in her forehead in twenty years.” Natasha whispered back.

Luckily, before Sophia could build up anymore steam, there was a knock at the door. Sophia silently stared daggers at me as I slid along the wall towards the door to let Katya in.

“Help me.” I pleaded in my thoughts, but before Katya could open her mouth, Sophia stormed off.

“You’re sleeping in the caves tonight!” She yelled as she slammed the door to her makeshift office.

I looked at Katya and couldn’t help but smile for a moment at the mundanity of the situation.

An angry woman just scolded me and told me to sleep on the couch.

This was all so new to me, something I’d never experienced before, and I couldn’t help but enjoy the ordinary nature of it.

“Aleks, I hope you don’t mind me saying so, but you are a very peculiar individual.” Katya said, as laughter erupted from the room behind me, Natasha and Tessa clearly having overheard her.

***

Katya and I were making our way towards the cliff side, where the entrance to my cave system was located.

Although at this point it might fit better to refer to it as an underground complex carved into the naturally occurring rock.

“And how far does this complex reach?” Katya asked, narrowing her eyes at my errant thoughts.

“Not sure. I haven’t measured it yet.” I replied, with no small amount of cheekiness.

“Lying by omission and ignorance isn’t gonna save you for long. We’ve seen it all,” Katya chastised, but she couldn’t hide the small smile I saw out of the corner of my eye.

The entrance had been cleaned up from its bare mineshaft-appearance. It now resembled some ornate countryside train tunnel, with runic carvings adorning its edges.

As we walked inside, Katya took a moment to admire the natural stone melded into a smooth floor, the occasional changes to coloring and grain easily discernible.

As we continued, it didn’t take long before the moonlight outside waned and the tunnel darkened completely.

“Just get on with it. I can feel you just waiting to show off.” Katya sighed with exasperation. I could practically sense her shaking her head beside me.

With a flair, I snapped my fingers and a pulse of soft red light simmered out of snaking veins of crimson on the walls and ceiling.

“Certainly atmospheric, but not very useful.” Katya commented with a snort before walking forward.

As we continued chittering and skittering could be heard and soon enough seen, the drones crawling across the floor but splitting like the black sea as we walked through the flood of spiderbots, many scurrying up the walls and onto the ceiling unhindered as they continued on with their assigned tasks.

“There are a lot more than previously, unless I’m mistaken.” Katya noted.

“You’re not. They’ve multiplied. The last generation has either split or gained enough independence to move on to the next step.” I explained as we kept walking.

“Fascinating.” Katya muttered, walking closer to one of the walls to observe the unceasing workers.

But she was interrupted in her observations when the drone’s path changed towards the ceiling as we reached a large doorway leading into a massive dark room, neither ceiling nor distant walls visible as the lights cut off after a hundred feet or so from our position.

Katya stopped and peered into the cavernous room for several seconds, her senses probably extending to allow her a greater perception of the space, but after almost a minute she simply frowned.

“What’s in there?” She asked, turning to me with a slightly accusatory look.

“Nid. after I finished my project, he requested to be allowed out for a small duration to stretch his physical form.” I explained simply.

“I might have work for that one. I can sense only one entity in there, but I can’t pin it down. It’s like it’s everywhere at once.” Katya said, her expression sending slight shivers up my spine as I wondered what manner of schemes she was thinking up.

“Lets keep going.” I said with a slight shutter.

“It’s quite amusing that the most banal human traits can put you off like that, yet you will walk freely and without fear through this dark valley of shadows and monsters... I think that says a lot about what kind of man you are.” Katya explained while scrutinizing me.

“I know this.” I said, gesturing to the many more square openings along the hallway. “I’ve lived it for most of my life, but banal human interactions are very alien to me, it is not something I’ve experienced a lot of... I’ve come to realize that I might rival Sophia and Natasha in age, but where they’ve had time to mature as people, I have not.”

“Huh, you might have won over Sophia had you shared this conversation with her, but alas, you’re consigned to living in these dark and dreary caves for the foreseeable future.” Katya stated lightly, seeming to take some joy in my misfortune.

Likely for the same reason as to why she was here.

I turned down a T-junction and after a couple of minutes we arrived at my workshop, only it had been expanded quite a bit, and the back most portion had a slanted chute leading to the surface over a mile outside the valley.

Bits of scrap metal and cast bars were piled at the base of the chute, the final deliveries from hundreds if not thousands of truckloads being delivered at the end of a service road where the chute led.

“Fifty million dollars’ worth of anything iron, cobalt, nickel, and silver. Now are you gonna show me what you’ve done with it?” Katya asked as she turned to me. She might hide it but I knew she was more curious than she let on.

“Next room over.” I said with a grin in anticipation.

Katya let out a soft whistle as she stepped over the threshold into my expanded project room.

A perfect sphere over a hundred feet in diameter hung lazily in the air above more than a dozen slabs of runed stone.

The sphere’s silver surface seemed almost liquid except for the grooves carved to form the crimson glowing runic sigils spanning its entire surface.

“That’s impressive.” Katya said, walking up to the massive floating object. “To reduce fifty million dollars’ worth of metal, countless bribes, not to mention compulsion and man-hours... To this... thing?” She finished, her tone unimpressed.

“Be nice, I’m showing it to you before it goes into my domain... where it’ll stay until it’s used up.” Katya spun around to stare at me unhappily.

“What do you mean, used up? Please tell me you didn’t just make me waste fifty million dollars on something you’ll want a new one of in three months.” Katya groaned.

“Come on, I might not be good with money, but even I wouldn’t do that.” I said, trying to defend myself, but Katya just leveled a frank look at me to which I had to yield. “Okay, I might, but I didn’t this time.”

“Uhuh, I hope this is gonna be impressive, because we’re both gonna have to justify this expense before the elders.” Katya said flatly.

“I thought you were like the eldest elder.” I joked playfully.

“Careful.” Katya warned, pointing a finger at me to emphasize her point. “And I’m not the oldest in the clan, I’m the prime elder of my of lineage.”

“Huh... Alright, what do you want, then?” I shrugged and asked.

“What?” Katya asked, confused as I felt her probe my mind for my meaning. I pushed, disrupting the gentle attempt and waved the annoying feeling away with my hand, although it had no effect on the psychic ability.

“Words, use your words.” I said, enjoying the look of indignation on the three century old Sentire Matriarch. “What I meant was, do you want a show of force or something more useful?” I clarified.

“A show of force could be very useful. It’s one of the major concerns brought up at the monthly gatherings... Of which you have yet to attend any.” She added crossly at the end.

“I’d like to show my usefulness beyond a few dingy rings before I show up like I own the place.”

“Since when?” Katya asked sarcastically.

“You lot have become entirely too comfortable teasing me.” I stated resignedly.

“Yes, well, that’s what happens when people accept you. You stop being a threat and become the target for endless prodding.” Katya said sagely, running her hand across the surface of the giant sphere, pulling it away as she felt a small sap of energy.

“Careful now, it might not be hooked up yet, but it’ll still draw in ambient energy and convert it.” I warned as Katya held up her quickly healing but still quite blackened finger tips.

“A warning might have been necessary.” Katya said, wincing as she tried to wiggle her fingers.