To say that meeting Syl's sisters had been chaotic would have been a massive understatement. Nine excited Volpir girls were not to be underestimated in terms of raw enthusiasm, and the excitement hit fever pitch when Syl had told them about the purchase the Bridger family had just made.

It's not every day your sister bought a starship that could house thousands of people after all.

It had made for an interesting day of spire tourism, going around and hitting some of Syl's favorite places to get snacks, visiting a nearby 'garden', and other tourist attractions. This was Centris after all. There was always something to see. Really you didn't visit the planet as a whole, you visited individual spires, because each monolithic city had everything any other city would have. Monuments and museums, cultural centers big and small.

It was mind boggling, and not just for Jerry or other folks born on Earth.

Of course, all of this was happening while Syl's sisters were all sneaking peeks at him after they'd gone through and introduced themselves. It was a slow… “Flirtation” might have been a good word for it. They all knew why they were there. Why, Syl had summoned them for a visit. Instead of addressing it, Jerry intentionally ignored it, he favored getting to know each woman in turn, little by little.

Nothing big, not yet. Just asking a few questions, or ensuring he got a feel for how each woman viewed... a piece of art, like a statue of a maternal Cannidor figure near a small Cannidor enclave in the spire, something completely at odds with the stereotypical depiction of the same. It was a fascinating chance to become familiar with what Jerry was becoming to consider the real wealth of his marriage. The unique perspectives it afforded him access to at an intimate level.

Obviously, he wasn't there yet with the Volpir sisters, but still, they could share that perspective together, and in their shared knowledge of the girls’ purpose, they shared more readily as the day went on, and Jerry made it clearer and clearer that he wanted to know their hearts and minds. He wasn't looking for a scripted answer, or the socially normal answer, and he would gently prod them if he felt he'd gotten a scripted response instead of something from the woman herself.

The sisters ran the galactic gamut from the tall and sturdy Evelyn, forced out of her homeworld's military due to an injury... and some family drama. To the down right petite Firi, who was only a little taller than Nadi. Where Evelyn was bold, Firi was painfully shy, the rest of the sisters were somewhere in between. The coquettish Mina, the nerdy Matyia, and the serene Mishka. Taken individually, they were all amazing, taken as a group they were something else entirely, and Jerry found himself easily caught up in their energy on the way back from their day out and the meal they'd just shared.

Jaruna leads the way into the lab and up the stairs to Syl's apartment with an echoing laugh.

"I still can't believe that old Deep Craig Nagasha! To think she'd remember you, then stop us and say she was happy to see you'd gotten a respectable number of wives! Hahaha! Crazy old crone."

The sisters' ears wiggle in the pattern that Jerry'd come to read as a blush in a Volpir, more or less as a group, while the freshly returned Eymali and Wichen join Jaruna in laughing at the ancient old snake's comment.

Jerry chuckles. "To be fair, it was pretty funny. I suppose I did finally look like a somewhat normal galactic man being out with over a dozen women instead of just a few."

Syl comes up and wraps her arms around Jerry, hugging herself to his shoulder.

"Have a heart my love, I'm sure it was a little embarrassing for my sisters."

"I suppose that's really only embarrassing if they're not my wives."

Jerry grabs one of the chairs in Syl's living room as everyone makes themselves comfortable.

"Which I suppose means it's time to have the big talk and see what's what. We've had a good day of running around having fun together, I've gotten a good chance to get to know you girls a little, and you've gotten a good chance to get to know me as something other than just a man. You've had a good chance to get to know the girls besides your own flesh and blood. You also have a good idea of what our lives are going to be like in the near future. Which is relevant to you all... as I wouldn't be comfortable being separated in the long term sense from any of my wives. A business trip, a vacation, is one thing, but the idea of living separately at interstellar distances is... painful. Especially if we have children together."

The room is pin drop silent, the eight Volpir sisters just staring at him for a moment. The silence drags on and Jerry starts to wonder if he'd said something wrong, until Evelyn turns to Syl.

"...Does he just do that normally? Say incredible things like that like a hero in a romance novel?"

Syl nods.

"He just does that. Plus, he's been dead serious about what he just said from the moment we got married. Just like he's dead serious about closing the marriage at some point. He doesn't want too many wives, because then he can't give us and our children the personal attention he believes we deserve."

"...Goddess."

Evelyn sits back clearly slightly stunned.

Mishka scoots herself forward a bit, taking the floor as Evelyn yields it. "It would be quite a change. To pursue you I mean. We obviously all have our lives, but upping stakes and coming back together with our sisters would be... joyous in a way. Even if becoming a spacer would be a little intimidating. I admit I'm not entirely sure what I'd do with myself in such an occurrence. It makes it... difficult for me to choose what I want. I know that what I want isn't... I."

Mishka smacks her thigh with a balled fist, clearly frustrated with her inability to find the words she wants to say.

"I can't make a clear statement of my intent without knowing more about our situation I suppose."

Evelyn nods. "You told us all a bit at dinner, showed us. You've got military backing from the Undaunted, and it'll be a joint military and civilian crew right?"

Jerry cracks his knuckles, letting himself stretch quickly.

"Correct. You girls would be able to find work on either side of that apparatus if you want it. Gods know we're going to need a house wife or two in the future. Syl's expecting, as is Nadi. If galactic patterns hold, then that number will compound quickly."

Syl nods. "Very quickly. My dear sisters, I won't ask you to sacrifice your careers just for a husband. Our family business will have more than enough space for all of you. That’s if you don't take work as a member of the Undaunted military apparatus, which is our other primary employment option. We've discussed this with Cistern's office. We can nominate more people specifically for commission on our ship, and are free to recruit qualified candidates. I suppose this is also a good time to bring up my initial plans for our family living quarters. I fully intend to build a proper den within the Crimson Tear, and have been discussing things with the dockmaster."

The narrative has been taken without permission. Report any sightings.

That gets a raised eyebrow from Evelyn. "A full on den? So you would name a triad in the Volpir way?"

"That is indeed my intent. Jerry has set a limit of twenty wives. On a ship built for twelve thousand we have more than enough space for us, and all our children. We have leased the ship's use to the Undaunted, but it is our vessel and we can make modifications as we please save violating our agreement with the Undaunted to bring the ship's inner structure and bulkheads up from merchantman to warship standards."

That really got Evelyn's attention.

"Hot damn! That's a lot of cash to throw at a mass conveyor."

Jerry nods. "We're covering part of it, but according to the dockmaster save for the raw materials themselves it's a surprisingly easy operation. The Undaunted have also mandated armor. Because we're human. We like armoring our ships. Past structural changes, a full spectrum suite of upgrades are going into the ship. Shields, sensors, capital scale weapons. We'll certainly be able to hold our own against pirates... and that's before we get into the wild stuff."

Wichen pops up. "Like my stealth torpedoes!"

Mina holds a finger up. "Point, I'm interested in that, but setting aside tech stuff. Sounds like we couldn't ask for a safer environment for ourselves or the kits. Even on a planet. Especially compared to this particular planet. I mean, you met two of your wives in shootouts, and Syl's been through two too! Centris just doesn't seem like a good place to raise a family. Still, what about amenities aboard ship? How hard are we going to be roughing it?"

Nadi steps forward, stepping to the middle of the group to ensure everyone can see and hear her.

"I've been assisting with that actually. We're going to have a full hospital aboard ship. Not just a sick bay, but a proper medical facility, we thought it was important, and the Undaunted are happy to pay and provide staff to significantly expand that facility if we end up with extensive personnel aboard. With Syl's contacts in the industry the equipment we're modernizing the ship with is top of the line. There's a large terrarium aboard we're arranging to make over with Earth plants, and a large promenade in Module 1 that we intend to bring shops into... and to partner with dependents of various soldiers to ensure a decent market. For example, one man coming aboard has a wife who's a stylist and she's intending to operate a salon. We'll make rent from her, as well as sell supplies via the ship's store."

"I noticed I didn't hear any plans for a school or early childhood education in that statement."

Mishka says quietly, clearly still a touch upset about having trouble finding her words a few moments before.

"All the families around the Undaunted are generally quite young. We simply haven't had any families with young children pop up yet. Even kindergarten age will be a few years, and it's my understanding children are kept within their families longer than back on Earth because of galactic family structures." Jerry says. "It's on our radar though. If there's a big enough baby boom we'll need to invest in a childcare center and we do have space allocated specifically for that. If just to help smaller families aboard that don't have spare hands."

Syl takes the lead of the conversation back again. "I will not lie to you my dear sisters. There will be inconveniences. Some purchases and the like will simply have to wait till we make a port call, and some of those might not be available if we're making port calls in wild space. There will be danger, but as I have recently learned, danger is everywhere. These are our circumstances, and my husband's conditions... if you want to begin courting him. Which as said, he is open to."

Jerry leans forward a bit, reaching out and taking Syl's hand in his.

"It would be a courtship too. I'm not just... marrying anyone flat out. Wichen might have been introduced as a wife, and she'll be fifth if things bear out, but we're still getting to know each other to confirm we're compatible too. Even Syl... who well. Syl and I are still courting too, even though we're well and truly wed. Nor will I stop courting any of you after we're wed, should we do so. We have a lifetime together, we can take our time once we get things established in terms of building our relationships."

The eight Volpir sisters all quietly start to think, clearly weighing things seriously.

It was quite the offer, but it was an offer that asked a lot of them.

Finding a husband was difficult, but abandoning the lives they'd been building was hard too, especially for a life on the move for what could be many decades.

First to speak however is not the bold Evelyn, or one of the more 'forward' sisters, but the quietest and most demure of them. Firi sits forward, eyes clear, chin high.

"I confess: I'm a little scared. Of the change. Of uprooting myself. Of going into the great unknown. However... Jerry has shown me today that he is a kind, wonderful, loving man. A man any woman should be blessed to be bonded to. What's more, if I court Jerry, and I am successful, I shall get to live with some, possibly all of my dearest sisters again, and new sisters besides. I can admit I've missed you girls, and to be part of a family together again, that is a prize that is well worth a little courage on my behalf."

Evelyn nods, a smile not unlike Syl's gracing her face.

"I agree with Firi. It would be an honor to court a man who takes so much pride in his wives and family. Joining a family like yours... it's not something I'd miss out on, even without the admitted plus of getting my dear sisters back. Plus... seems I might be able to get back into a uniform after all, and from what I've heard of the Undaunted I have no issues offering my services to them."

One by one the sisters all make their choice, universally asking for the chance to court Jerry, and join the growing Bridger family.

It was what he and Syl had expected of course, they offered simply too much, and they asked for comparatively little for the bounty on offer to them. Galactic marriages were about security first and foremost. Physical, financial, social. From that perspective the potential of the Bridger family enterprise was massive. Syl was carefully expanding their core business into a small titan of industry, with hundreds of little small supplementary income streams wrapped up in and around their family's new prize asset. If they hit even a fraction of Syl's projected growth, they would be financially secure without question for a long time.

The money however, didn't matter to Jerry, even as it assuaged the worries of some of his new would be fiancees. His wealth as he saw it, was the women he was getting to share his life with, his mind warming to the Galactic way of doing things with each bit of 'wealth' added to his dragon's horde of treasure.

Each spouse was a beautiful, singular existence in space and time, never to be repeated, a unique singularity joining itself with him, and the rest of their family.

Money was nice, but it was just money.

When Jerry was done courting Syl's sisters, he hoped he could show them the greatest treasure in the galaxy, the incalculable wealth that beat in their chests.

Which is why Jerry had worked with Nadi to produce the roses.

A single long stem red rose for each sister... and each wife. Made of fabric instead of flowers, Jerry and Nadi had enlisted the help of an automated sewing machine to create the artifacts with a mix of material, producing a bounty of textures, and spritzed with a scent that was as close to a real rose as Jerry could find out in the galaxy.

Evelyn's eyes widened and she received her gift, clutching the rose to her breast.

Firi takes a delicate sniff of the 'bloom', smiling up at Jerry, radiating all the joy in the world.

Mishka too, takes the shyer approach, but she takes his hand and dusts the back of it with a kiss as he gives her rose to her, before intently studying her own lap, ears twitching violently as she processes what she just did.

Mina, the last of the sisters, takes her rose with a smile.

"You're quite the romantic aren't you?"

"Just a little."

"A man seducing or wooing a woman. Now I have well and truly seen everything... but Jerry. Something to keep in mind. You're not in Cruel Space anymore. We're courting now, and our job is to woo you. So you look forward to it. I suspect you're gonna learn all sorts of new things about the galaxy starting tomorrow."

"Well, I did sign up for an adventure."

"Handsome, I think we're gonna make sure you get that adventure and then some."