Chapter 149
---Two Days Later, Victor POV---
Returning to my homeworld, Amallyn, Ionica, and adopted Eldar child Nuelalla Starcrest came up from the laboratory to announce our arrival. Jumping up from the sofa, Mylene sprinted over to us and leapt into my arms. Wrapping her arms around my neck, my lovely wife began to shower me with affection and kisses.
“I missed you so much!!”, Mylene said, squeezing me tightly.
“Not a day went by that I did not think of all of you.”, I replied, hugging her back. “By the way, we have another new addition to the family.”
“We do?”, Mylene questioned, doing a double take. “I only see Amallyn and Ionica. Where is the third… woman… OH MY GOODNESS!! She is so adorable!!”
Startled by Mylene’s gaze and tone, Nuelalla darted behind Amallyn to hide herself. Having grown attached to Amallyn since we rescued the Eldar, the young girl adamantly refused to part from her when the other survivors went to leave with Yvraine and the others. They spent hours trying to convince her to depart with them, but ultimately, they gave in and let her stay with us. Since then, I have slowly managed to coax her out of her shell, but sudden outbursts like this still scared her.
“Please forgive her; Nuelalla has been through a lot for such a young girl.”, Amallyn apologized, softly patting the girl on the head.
“Victor told us about the horrible situation the survivors went through. I cannot begin to imagine the mental anguish she has endured.”, Mylene said, kneeling before the girl, “Please make yourself at home, and let us know if you need anything. All of us will do our best to make you as comfortable as possible.”
“Thank… you…”, Nuelalla replied, meekly poking her head.
“I will go let the others know you are here.”, Mylene stated, rising to her feet again. “We have some really big news to share with you, Victor!”
Rushing up the stairs, my wife disappeared down the hallway leading to the bedrooms. While waiting for everyone to come down, I led the two women and adopted daughter into the kitchen to get drinks. While the adults had hot tea, Nuelalla had a tall glass of orange juice. Staring at the orange liquid warily, she sniffed a few times before giving it a try.
“It is tasty…”, Nuelalla said, looking toward me, “Thank you for the drink.”
“You are very welcome. There are plenty of juices for you to taste, so please help yourself.”, I chuckled, “Personally, I prefer apple, grape, and orange juices.”
Showing her how to dispense juice and water, Nuelalla stared at all the potential options with a glimmer of excitement. On the Craftworlds, they had very limited options, so she was very enthusiastic about trying everything we had. Taking a seat at the island bar, I began preparing snacks for her as a loud commotion could be heard upstairs. Sprinting down the hallway and down the stairs, Tohru slid into view with a big grin.
“So you are Lucoa’s giant husband, huh?”, Tohru said, looking me over carefully. “Hehe, I bet you are a giant in more ways than- “
“TOHRU!!”, my wives shouted, hitting her with a lamp squarely in the face.
“Have some decorum, Tohru…”, Fafnir scolded her, calmly coming down the stairs, “There is a young child in the house. Keep your dirty mind in your head and out of your mouth.”
“Do not make me break out the rope and tape again.”, Elma warned her.
“Maybe we should send her back home.”, Angelica suggested.
“Doubt they would consider taking her back. Next to me, Tohru was the most destructive person in the village.”, Lucoa giggled.
Shuffling into the kitchen, Nuelalla kept her eyes fixated on the unconscious dragon in the living room. Softly asking Amallyn if she was going to be okay, my lover turned to me, hoping I could answer.
“A blow like that is nothing to a dragon. When she wakes up, it will be like it never happened.”, I chuckled, turning to my wives, “So what is the big news?”
“Hold your horses, we want to hear all about the last few days.”, Deirdre stated. “How did the operation go?”
“For our first joint military operation with the Imperium of Man, I believe we did a peerless job.”, I chuckled, recalling the damage report I went over with the Emperor and my uncles. “Seven thousand five hundred and twenty-four soldiers were killed, four thousand seven hundred and eighty-seven are undergoing treatment, and eight hundred and fifty-two vessels sustained moderate to minor damage. While it is much higher than what we are accustomed to seeing, the Imperium’s military leaders were pleased with the outcome.”
In all honesty, many military officials were floored to see such a low death count for a large-scale military operation. Prior to this, the lowest death count for an operation of this scale exceeded five hundred million. Seeing the difference a well-armed military force brought to the table, improving the military’s arsenal was a very high priority. Once things were relatively stable in the Imperium, the Emperor intended to bury himself in R&D to make that a reality.
‘Did I bring that bad habit with me from my previous life, or was it inherited from the Emperor?’, I thought, “With the next major military operation a ways off, I have a few small objectives to accomplish. Firstly, I want to bring all nine of the loyalist Primarchs together once again. Second, I want to capture a Necron Tomb World where billions of Imperial soldiers from across thirty millennia are being held. Lastly, I want to begin establishing friendly relations and trade agreements with nearby galactic nations within our vicinity.”
Currently, only six of the nine loyalist Primarchs have been reunited. Of the three that are missing, Khan needed rescuing while Manus and Sanguinius needed revivification. The latter two would be a relatively simple matter; it was Khan I had concerns about. Certain that he was being held captive in the city of Commorragh, extracting him without inciting a full-blown war would not be a simple matter. I would absolutely try to negotiate for his release first, but if that failed, destroying Khaine’s Gate was my alternative plan. The Dark Eldar were a threat to the Eldar, Humanity, and the Tau, so using such underhanded methods was appropriate.
When it came to the Necron World of Solemnace, I had far bigger plans than just simply rescuing the Imperial forces held prisoner there. The Necron Overlord Trazyn had eons of historical data and technological marvels that would greatly improve the Aeldari and the Imperium’s situation. While most of his collection would likely have to remain in my care, I intended to share everything I could with both groups. If I played my cards right, there was a real possibility a permanent alliance between our people could be reached. It would be an excellent first step toward pulling the Imperium away from its isolationist ways and embracing the idea of establishing relations with other groups.
One group I desperately sought to establish relations with was the Algrand Empire. As the de facto leader in naval technology in this region of the universe, I saw them as the Imperium’s golden ticket to producing modern starships. Instead of scrapping older generation vessels, they stripped sensitive tech out of their ships and sold the crafts to their allies at a steep discount. Since the Navis Imperialis’ fleet was ancient, at best, any ships we were able to purchase would significantly improve their firepower.
“Enough about what I have been up to; I want to hear about my beautiful wives. Tell me what you ladies have been up too.”, I said, leaning in with a smile.
“Well, I can certainly say it was nowhere near as exciting as what you have been doing.”, Mylene giggled, glancing over at Lucoa. “We made a startling discovery while you were away.”
“Oh, and what was that?”, I questioned.
“Well… you see…”, Mylene mumbled, as she fidgeted around, “Lucoa and I discovered we are pregnant. Based on how far along we are, Doctor Vaugh believes we conceived them during our time in the Blackstone Labyrinth.”
Rushing around the counter, I swept the two women up off their feet and pulled them into a big hug. Showering the two of them with my love and unbridled joy, the two women began to shed tears of relief. Admitting to me that a tiny voice in the back of their minds had been telling them I was going to be devastated by this news, they were genuinely relieved to see my reaction to the news.
‘If that cunt is behind this… I swear on all that is holy, I will destroy everything she truly holds dear.’, I thought, my rage calmly simmering beneath the surface. “Well, this calls for a special celebration!! How about we go somewhere nice to have a meal as a family? The Bannered Mare or some place new sounds perfect to me.”
“You mentioned a fancy restaurant on Coruscant before, right? How about we go there!”, Mylene stated, hoping she might find something to sate her craving there.
“What about us!?”, Tohru asked, sitting up again. “Can four of us come too?”
“She really did come back alive!” Nuelalla gasped, startled by Tohru’s sudden revival.
“If you can behave yourself, yes.”, I agreed, “One outburst, and I am sending you back here.”@@novelbin@@
“Whatever you, Lucoa’s husband!”, Tohru agreed, jumping to her feet, “Let’s get going already, people!!”
Letting out a sigh, as she barreled down into my lab, seconds later the unmistakable sound of glass shattering echoed up the stairs. Glancing at Lucoa, she gave me an apologetic look and assured me Tohru was a good person. While I had no doubts about her character, I was starting to wonder what sort of lifestyle dragons had back in their village.
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