We all entered the tower, the heavy door thudding shut behind us and sealing out the last echoes of the standoff outside. The goblins were still murmuring their “wow” about the ice bolt that had shattered the woman and her guards in an instant, their voices low and awed as they glanced at Master with fresh respect. The tower felt cooler inside, the stone walls holding the tropical heat at bay.
Master set up the Embercrack tea with that calm, decisive way of his, the mushroom brew steaming in the pot as he poured it into cups and handed them round, to me, to Lisette, to Serepha, and to himself. I took mine without hesitation, claws brushing his fingers as I drank, the familiar taste hitting my tongue. The effects came on fast and hard. My head started spinning almost immediately, colours sharpening at the edges while my tail began swishing wildly on its own, ears twitching at every tiny noise like they had a life of their own. I felt giggly, the absurdity of the chickens outside making a sharp laugh bubble up in my throat.
Lisette drank hers too, and I could see the effects hitting her just as hard, her brown cat ears twitching rapidly, her two brown tails flicking in quick, uncoordinated movements as she let out a small, giggly laugh that didn’t quite fit her usual lawful good calm. She quoted under her breath, something about the marsh being hard enough, but her voice had that loose, intoxicated edge, like the tea had loosened her tongue and made her more open, less controlled.
Serepha sipped hers without much change as she watched us with that mercurial, practical expression, already turning over logistics in her head. Master drank his too, but the effects seemed to pass him by or hit lighter; he stayed steady, that noir bluntness intact even as he glanced at me with that knowing look.
The meeting started not long after. Master didn’t linger on it. He moved straight into the plans, voice calm and decisive even as the tea’s effects made the air feel thicker around us. “We divide the cat girls into two teams led by Lisette and her second in command. They go north and east to scout the area. No fighting, just scouting for the next day or so. You and I go northeast by ourselves. The tiefling and the goblins can stay at the colony.”
I felt the protest rise hot and immediate, the intoxication amplifying the clinginess and the aggression in equal measure. My tail lashed once against the stone before wrapping even tighter. “Master, no ! I go with you to the northeast ! Don’t send me with the teams. Lisette can lead them, but I’m staying by your side. The bond… if I’m far, I’d panic. And she’s not taking my place. Remember the riot in Cattail ? When I had to show you your place publicly ? Don’t think leading teams changes that.”
Lisette let out a small, giggly laugh, her brown ears twitching rapidly from the tea, her two brown tails flicking in quick, uncoordinated motions as she tried to keep that lawful good calm but the intoxication made her voice looser, more open. “The teams will move fast. Cat girls are quicker on their feet. North and east, no trouble. ‘If we stand together, no one gets to call us less again.’ We can cover the area well. The riot was then, Aliza. Now we build. ‘A worker’s worth isn’t measured by who they serve, but by what they build.’”
I growled low, tail lashing hard again as my ears stayed flat, blue eyes narrowing on her with raw aggression. “Stand together ? I remember you on the ground after I showed what happens when you forget your place. Don’t think your quotes make you special here. You lead the teams, but stay out of my way with Master.”
Serepha’s voice cut in, practical and charismatic. “The goblins and I can hold the tower and the farms. It’s practical. Security is key with the warship here. We can coordinate from the colony without spreading too thin.”
Lisette tried again. “The marsh is hard enough on its own. We don’t survive by bending our backs, but by lifting each other up. The teams will help the colony. No fighting, just scouting. Cat girls move faster anyway.”
I hissed softly. “Lifting each other up ? I build by protecting what’s mine. You stay with the teams and remember what happened last time you overstepped. I’m not letting anyone take my place next to Master.”
Master cut through it all with that blunt, decisive tone, ignoring my attitude like he always did when he had decided the path. “That’s the plan. You and I go northeast by ourselves. The teams north and east. The tiefling and the goblins stay here at the colony. The warship is here now. We use it.”
I clung tighter, the intoxication making my purr come out darker, more unstable. “Yes, Master. With you. Always with you. The others can scout, but I’m yours. No one else gets that close.”
The meeting settled into that, the back and forth fading as the plans locked in, Lisette and her second leading the two teams of catgirls north and east for scouting only, moving faster on their feet as catgirls did, no fighting, just eyes and ears for the next day or so.
Master glanced at me and he didn’t linger, moving straight into the plans with that calm, decisive way of his, voice carrying through the tower as the goblins below paused to listen. “Alderians move at a rate of 100%, cat girls 125%. Each tile we’ll be mapping should be about 60 minutes per 100% ratio. Cat girls have night vision but I expect everyone back by sunrise.”
The words landed in the air, and I felt the giggly edge from the tea mix with the intensity, a sharp little laugh escaping me at the meta sound of “tiles” and “rates” like some game board in his head.
The goblins below murmured agreement, one of them calling up from the well pit, “We’ll hold the tower and farms, Master. Back by sunrise, no problem.” Their voices carried that respect from the ice bolt earlier, already treating the new base like it was his to shape.
Lisette shifted beside us. “The teams will cover ground fast with that speed. Cat girls move quicker. North and east, no fighting, just scouting. ‘If we stand together, no one gets to call us less again.’ Back by sunrise fits. We lift each other up, like in the Cattail fields.”
I felt the aggression flare hot “Stand together ? I remember the riot in Cattail, Lisette. When I had to show you your place publicly. Don’t think your quotes change that or make you special here. Your teams can scout north and east, but I go northeast with Master. No one else takes my place by his side.”
Lisette’s expression stayed steady but I caught the slight tightening around her eyes, the way her tails flicked once more. She quoted again, voice a bit looser, “That was a hard time. We move forward now. ‘A worker’s worth isn’t measured by who they serve, but by what they build.’ The teams will scout well with night vision. Back by sunrise, like Master said. We lift each other up, Aliza. No need to tear down.”
Serepha watched from across the space, her expression that mercurial mix of practicality and dry amusement. “The goblins and I can manage the tower, the farms and the new dock while you’re out. Practical. The warship helps with defence if needed. Sunrise return keeps things coordinated. No spreading too thin.”
Master nodded once, voice blunt and final, ignoring the way my ears stayed flat and my tail squeezed tighter in that possessive rhythm. “Alderians at 100%, cat girls at 125%. Each tile 60 minutes per 100% ratio. Night vision helps the teams. Back by sunrise. You and I go northeast by ourselves. Lisette and her second lead the two teams north and east. Tiefling and goblins stay here.”
Lisette paused at the threshold, her brown cat ears perked and two brown tails flicking once as she glanced back, that lawful good calm still holding even through the tea’s lingering giggly haze on her. She didn’t say much more after the meeting, just nodded to her second in command and led her teams out without pushing further.
Master leaned against the wall, cup in hand, drinking the last of his tea in slow sips while the goblins settled into their watches and the tiefling moved to coordinate the remaining perimeter. His eyes glanced over at me, that blunt look cutting through the haze and he spoke low, casual in that dry way of his. “Guess we’ll head off in a minute, to be honest I’m kind of curious what we’ll find out there but then again what can you find in a heavily forested area.”
we headed off northeast from the new wooden dock, the warship anchored behind us and the tower fading into the greenery. The intoxication from the Embercrack tea still lingered in my head, making colours seem brighter and my tail swish in restless, independent motions every few steps while my ears twitched at the sudden shift from open air to the dense jungle. The tropical forest unfolded slow around us, thick with heat and humidity that clung to my dark red tunic and black trousers, the light blue trim damp where it brushed against leaves.
The canopy stretched high overhead, tall palms and broad leafed giants filtering the sunlight into shifting patterns of gold and shadow on the uneven ground. Vines hung heavy from branches, some thick and rope like, twisting around trunks in heavy coils that swayed gently with the breeze. The air smelled rich and earthy, damp soil mixed with the sweet rot of fallen leaves and the faint tang of strange fruits hanging out of reach.
My cat vision picked out every detail in the undergrowth, small lizards darting across roots, colourful insects buzzing low, a distant bird call echoing through the layers of green. Nothing out of the normal, just the steady rhythm of a living tropical forest waking up around us, the ground soft underfoot with moss and scattered fronds.
We walked for two hours like that, slow and steady through the thickening growth. My ears perked at every rustle in the leaves, tail lashing lightly against the vines as I stayed glued to Master. No signs of the Vanguard or the Order, no unusual tracks or sounds, just the normal forest unfolding in quiet layers around us, roots crossing the path, monkeys chattering high above, the constant hum of insects filling the spaces between bird calls.
