“Sci-Fi was already a pretty damn big market. With the advent of the antithesis incursions and the appearance of the protectors and Samurai that just exploded. Of course, these days, Science Fiction is mostly just fiction, based on whatever crazy protector tech Samurai get or talk about. It’s an awesome time to be alive for any Sci-Fi fan. Not that it mitigated interest in the old stuff in any way. Honestly, Star Wars, Star Trek, Stargate, Bobiverse, it doesn’t matter what universe you pick, shit’s crazy popular.”

- Sci-Fi enthusiast on the state of Science Fiction at the ‘SciCon, sponsored by LazorTech’, 2047

I had thought that we would have to leave via the hallway that we entered through, but much to my surprise, the back wall of the pool room was actually a door. It was hidden away in the wall, built to be not as obvious, and led into the gym area.

The gym itself wasn’t quite as big as the leisure room, but more than big enough for even a good chunk of Us to train in. It did make sense, the one thing the Corvette didn’t lack was space, and from Jenna’s offhand comments she designed the interior in such a way that it would have a lot of room for future expansion.

The equipment in the gym seemed to be up to snuff, if Chloe’s look of appreciation was anything to go by. I didn’t know nearly enough about training equipment to give any sort of informed opinion, but they looked to be high quality. Of course everything you would expect to see in a gym was present, sometimes even multiple times. There was quite a bit of open space, meant for Us to train in if and when we got to it.

One thing that was quite obvious, was the fact that the ceiling wasn’t as high as it had been in the leisure room. Jenna explained that that was because above the gym were a lot of the Internals needed to run the Corvette, plus a good part of the industrial systems. Most of those were in the back of the ship, but some had been placed in various nooks and crannies that would otherwise be without use.

That said, the room did by no means feel oppressive. There was still more than enough room to fit anything we might want or need.

On the backside of the gym were two doors, one on each end of the wall. After we finished our inspection of the Gym we made our way through, finding ourselves in another, this time much larger room.

The layout was a bit strange, but that was because of the purpose of this room. Jenna had gotten two Broodmothers for Us to replenish our numbers, and they were placed here, with enough room to upgrade our own production capabilities in the future. Each of the Broodmother rooms was placed at either side of the room, giving just enough space to enter through the doors we had taken.

As Kaysa had said, they didn’t look like what most would think of when they heard the term Broodmothers. In effect they were just rooms filled with strange looking Hexclaw Hive-Biology. Lot’s and lots of different fleshy bits, most of it hidden away or covered with artfully decorated chitin and fur patterns. It gave the entire thing a much less creepy look than I would have expected.

A sentiment shared by Chloe and Jenna, who were looking at it all with interest. It also helped that the attendant drones were present. Five per Broodmother room, and unlike most of Us, they looked a lot less creepy to human sensibilities. Oh, they were still Hexclaws alright, and they had a lot of insectoid features, but strangely it worked in their favour.

Kaysa had probably done some changes, because with their ‘clothing’ they looked a lot like cartoony insectoid nannies wearing proper old school maid outfits. It was of course all chitin and fur and skin and all, with some minor additions from my Mystical Kitsune Catalogue, but it gave them an incredibly cute look.

Chloe even had a downright goofy smile on her face when one of the nannies gave her a small wave and a cheerful “Hello” in a voice that, as with every other voice, was based on my own. Compared to most of Us however, their typical insectoid hiss and guttural undertone that was shared across the swarm, was almost entirely absent. Instead they sounded a lot more wise and pleasant to the ears.

Considering that there was little else of interest in the big room we slowly made our way to the giant gates that would lead back to the main hangar. Considering the room available and the size of the gates, we were pretty sure we could do some extensive upgrades to our production capabilities, without encroaching on any room Jenna might need.

The gates at the end of the room led into a set of hallways.

“I had to do some finagaling with the layout, since between these is one of the two main reactors. They’re individually smaller than a big one would have been and have less main output potential, but there are upsides. Even if one would be damaged enough to require a shutdown, it would still enable Evelyn to get the Corvette to ground. It also meant that I have more flexibility to place everything where I want it to be,” Jenna explained as we made our way through the hallways in question.

When we arrived back in the main hangar, we could see how the storage worked. We had already seen how our own forces were housed, considering that we had been loading up the entire time Jenna, Chloe, and I had explored the ship, but so far I hadn’t really seen how the Sentinels were stored.

For Us we had two massive staircases that ran along the back corners of the main hangar, leading to the upper floors and from there to our crew quarters so to say. While we could have just put all our bodies into a large room and called it good, Jenna had paid more attention to that. And considering the room available, she had made proper rooms for all of Us.

Not that each body had their own room, of course, but we had large bunk areas that would allow twenty or so voices to all share a room, with comfortable bunk beds and some leisure areas mixed in between. But it was much more than we had originally anticipated. Jenna obviously cared for Us, and treated Us as more than just soldiers to park in a room somewhere.

It made Us smile.

The stairs leading up to our bunk areas were wide enough for seven or eight of Us to walk abreast, meaning that we could load the entire swarm up rather quickly. Of course, if we had to act quickly, the way down could be skipped by simply jumping down. It might be unorthodox and not exactly the best idea, but it would work in an emergency.

Jenna’s Sentinels were stored away by a myriad of loading arms and other mechanisms, pulling them up through the ceiling or placing them into large storage bays on either side of the hangar. From what we could see there were some that were easily accessible, meaning that even she could deploy a good number of forces in a very short amount of time.

The result was that the main hangar room, large as it was, only held the Legion Enforcer, Tiny, and the Carrion Juggernaut, plus her staff of medical drones. They would also be on standby, since they were one of the most important divisions we had.

Of course there were some Sentinels and a few of Us idling in the main hangar, but most of our forces were stored away for the moment. One thing that was also very obvious was the huge medical station available on one side of the hangar. It had its own room, but was built in such a way that any injured could be moved there as quickly as possible.

While we admired the layout of it all and the mechanical efficiency with which Jenna’s Sentinels were stored away, some section of the wall above the door to the hallway we had taken to get to the leisure room opened up and revealed a number of carefully and tightly packed shuttles. Within moments one was hauled down by some sort of massive crane and placed in front of the main exit of the hangar.

“Each shuttle can hold roughly fifty of my Sentinels on average. Depending on the drones in question, you might be able to get sixty into one, but it would be a tight fit,” Jenna explained as we moved closer.

The shuttles looked pretty boring. Slightly aerodynamic front and some rounded corners here and there, with a set of thrusters at the back and some form of mechanism underneath, probably some kind of anti-grav if I had to guess.

Otherwise they were just a big box with four doors on each side and a windscreen that wasn’t transparent from the outside.

“I decided on the cheaper shuttles,” Jenna continued, “Since we don’t need any more than that at the moment. This is one of the armored ones, the rest are a little smaller.”

This content has been misappropriated from Royal Road; report any instances of this story if found elsewhere.

“I mean, it only needs to get us from A to B,” Chloe agreed, before we entered.

As Jenna said, We could probably fit around sixty drones in, but that would be a very tight fit. No seating room either, just standing with a sort of mesh at the ceiling that was height adjustable in sections to hold on to.

We had all agreed that we would be fine with basic, but I had to admit, it was a lot less comfortable and inviting than I had anticipated.

“Not the most comfortable ride. Or inviting,” I said, unable to keep the bit of disappointment out of my voice. From her expression Chloe seemed to share my sentiment, despite her earlier comment.

A small row of seats folded up, made of a part of the floor. It didn’t look super comfortable, but I supposed since this was only supposed to get us to and fro over short distances I could survive it in a pinch. Not that I really wanted to, honestly.

“Like I said, I will get better ones eventually, but they weren’t a priority yet. I was thinking about a personal shuttle just for us, a little smaller. I could get it still, although it would cost nearly everything I have left,” Jenna explained with a bit of embarrassment.

So far the Legion Corvette was damn impressive, but the shuttles had obviously drawn the short end of the stick.

“Yeah…” Chloe said, giving the interior a thorough, disappointed once over, “I said I’d be fine with it, but honestly, this is a lot worse than I imagined. Just use my points. How much is it? A thousand? Two?”

“The one I had in mind would be roughly two thousand points, yes. Much more comfortable, and would be able to fly a lot further than these can,” Jenna explained with a nod.

“Chloe and I can split the cost,” I said, giving Chloe a glance.

If it meant more comfort than this, I was more than happy to pay the points.

“Fine by me,” Chloe agreed, “I have enough points for that. And honestly, I don’t really love the idea of being stuck in this thing. But it makes sense, to ensure Jenna isn’t entirely out. Don’t need that to happen again.”

We all remembered how we had met Jenna, and what state she was in. She had spent all her points on a Sentinel in the effort to help a group of people escape the xenos, but it had gone horribly wrong. Only one young child had survived, since she had lacked the points to get any other weapons, and even that only because Chloe and I had found Jenna in time. If she would have had any points things would have gone a lot smoother, but she didn’t. None of us wanted a repeat of that scenario if we could help it.

Jenna nodded, obviously thankful. She led us out of the shuttle and the doors closed, before it was picked up again and stored away.

A moment later another shuttle appeared out of thin air, this one proper Sci-Fi design.

It reminded me a little of that super plane from nearly a hundred years ago, Black Bird or something it was called, that I’d seen in some holo at some point in my life. Of course it was a lot smaller, and a little more hefty to allow for enough space to stand and walk around in, plus a good chunk for storage.

Colourwise it was a dark grey with Jenna’s typical colour scheme printed all over in different sections. To be honest, it looked pretty badass.

The interior was also a lot different, by far not as lifeless and much more comfortable than the other shuttle had been, with three massive chairs in the cockpit, and four long benches with soft padding behind. Two benches were placed on either side of the shuttle, with the other two in the middle, each facing the walls.

“Much better,” Chloe said with a nod, “And with enough room to relax and cuddle.”

“And to have some fun,” I said with a smirk, “Should we ever need a little longer to get somewhere.”

Chloe blushed a beautiful crimson, and I giggled.

“We could probably stash some toys in the cabinet in the cockpit,” Jenna agreed, also blushing faintly although it was easy to miss considering her trademark teasing smirk, “Although right now it doesn’t have anything loaded.”

I snorted and gave her a glance of exasperation, “Jenna, not everything needs sex toys. Strange to hear from me, I know, but true.”

She raised her hands in surrender, “I’m just saying.”

We all took a seat in the plush chairs. Honestly, they could reasonably be called armchairs. Of course they were sinfully comfortable, making me question if I ever wanted to get up again.

Jenna turned to the controls, looking them over. I was pretty certain she didn’t actually need to fly it, but she still started to go over the various different systems, inspecting every little thing.

“We should arrive soon,” Jenna said absently into the pleasant silence that had claimed the room.

“You know what I just realised,” Chloe said suddenly, eyes unfocused and lost in thought, “This thing, the Corvette I mean, doesn’t have a kitchen.”

Jenna jerked up, staring at her with horror. “Fuck! I knew I forgot something… Cleopatra, why didn’t you tell me?”

I laughed at her reaction, waving it off, “We can probably switch the pillow corner for a kitchen.”

“That could work…” Jenna’s voice was thoughtful, “Cleopatra, how much would that be?”

She waited for a moment, before she nodded, looking a whole lot more relaxed. “Okay, no issues then. Still, that I forgot the damn kitchen… Next time tell me, okay?”

I was distracted by the hangar doors who suddenly began to open. Although this time, instead of the ramp leading down, it folded upwards in the opposite direction. I idly wondered how the mechanism behind it worked.

Turning back to the controls Jenna gave us both a glance, “Evelyn has informed the police already about the Corvette, but we will probably still have a lot of eyes on us.”

Her comment was a bit redundant as there were already quite a number of hovercars and other assorted vehicles waiting for us. With a gentle shake the shuttle began to lift off, before it slowly made its way outside and out of the main hangar.

It didn’t take a genius to figure out that most of the folk who were watching us were filming our departure, probably streaming it to dozens of different streaming sites. Not that I much cared for it, even if they’d be able to see us through the windscreen.

“Hopefully we can shop in peace,” Chloe muttered, watching all the eyes following our flightline, “We are drawing a whole lot of attention.”

I just shrugged, absently pointing towards the back of the shuttle where Myriad and the Queen’s Guard stood, most of them still invisible. “I have my guards to tell them to leave us alone if anyone tries anything.”

Following my gesture Chloe chuckled, “I don’t think I’ll ever get used to the fact that they’re with us the entire time. Do you go anywhere without them?”

With a teasing smile I replied, “Well, they would leave me alone in the bathroom, the shower, and of course the bedroom. Unless, of course,” my tone became sultry, “Someone tells me to invite them.”

As expected she blushed, but gave me a glance that I didn’t know how to place.

“Well… I’m… not going to say… that that couldn’t be interesting,” she began, obviously a bit lost for words, “But maybe a bit later, yeah? No need to jump into the ocean if a pool can suffice.”

“A pool would sound fun… Warm water, a little time alone,” I gave her a slightly husky glance, “Something… fun, under the water… Maybe a tongue, some wiggly fingers…”

We continued our little discussion, which mainly meant that Jenna and I teamed up in teasing Chloe, until eventually we landed in a parking garage that belonged to one of those huge megabuildings. It was one of those crazy expensive ones, but I figured Cleopatra would sort us out.

Getting up, I stepped over to Chloe and gently pulled her up after me. My Queen’s Guard was the first to move out, showing themselves and working as security. It was quite effective, most of the people who had stopped to watch our arrival quickly moved along, although there were some that tried to get closer. Probably to get more pictures.

A few even tried to push past my guards and towards us, from the looks of things reporters of some kind. My Queen’s Guard was not gentle with them.

One guy specifically tried to push past them with all his might, until one of the defenders took him by the scruff of his shirt, held him up so that his feet were dangling in the air, then let him drop after my healer injected a sedative that would knock the man out for a couple of minutes.

The rest stared at the slumped body for a moment, then back to us, eyes horrified.

“We’d advise against anyone trying to interrupt our Queen. We are quite hungry,” my Queen’s Guard said as one, expressions cold and stoney.

I don’t think I’ve ever seen a crowd disperse that quickly before. It was kind of amusing, honestly.

“You can be quite scary if you want to, huh?” Chloe said, but her tone was playful even if I was pretty certain there was a small underlining of uncertainty.

“The best way to get people to leave you alone is make them feel very, very small. At least in most cases, I’m not so sure about some but those typically don’t survive long enough in the redlight district,” I said, tone light, then continued a little softer, “I hope you don’t mind?”

“No…” Chloe said, then turned to me and gave me a smile, “It is a little terrifying, but also amusing. And I’m here to keep you in check, right?”

I giggled at that and we turned once more towards the direction that Chloe was leading us into. It must have been quite the sight to watch us walk, and quite a few people around seemed to be a bit… tense.

My assassins underlined their statement by walking around with all weapons exposed, which meant four arms full of claws and their tail which ended in a long blade. They kept slightly to the front of us, while the defenders stayed slightly behind, the healer trailing in the middle. They left us more than enough room to be comfortable, but still stayed close enough that they could act the moment someone tried something.

We ignored the looks we got from the people we passed, following Chloe who was leading us towards one of those malls. I hadn’t seen one in person before, they were pretty uncommon these days. I knew what a mall was, of course, but that was different than actually visiting one.

Truth be told, I was quite excited at the proposition.