When Yasmin, Cornelia, Axel, and James entered the study, they found Talia and Damon talking in a good mood.
"Are we interrupting?", Yasmin asked.
"No, no", Talia said while waving at the newcomers to come in. "We were just discussing ideas to present to Evanora once we go to the Silver Flame Coven." There was the whole plan brewing about connecting two packs, but Talia didn't want to announce it, knowing that it might spark a debate for hours.
Talia observed Axel who was hovering around Yasmin. He was putting pillows behind her back and offering her beverages and snacks, and Talia felt sorry for him.
Talia knew that Axel had a happy childhood, and she could see the disappointment in his eyes when he looked at his parents. She thought how it was sad that they exposed their ugly faces. Instead of being a happy family, they were drifting away. Wasn't all that Talia's fault? If not for her, Axel would still think highly of his parents, and the three of them would be hovering around Yasmin who is carrying the next generation of Moonriders.
"Hey…", Damon called in a low voice, his breath splashing on Talia's ear. "What's going on?" He sensed that her good mood was dwindling by the second.
"I was just thinking how things changed because of us."
Damon had a good guess that Talia was talking about Sophia and Isaac. "We didn't force any of it, kitten. Those things happened in the past, they did it on their own, and we just exposed them."
Talia knew he was right, but it didn't prevent the feeling of being unwanted from swelling within her. Even after knowing that she was Valerian's daughter, Sophia and Isaac didn't show any desire to accept her as family. Was that too much to ask?
Talia glanced at the necklace in her hand. She already had Damon who made her feel at home. Why did she crave for her family to accept her? The experience of being a carefree child under the protection of grownups was forever gone, and the most she could do was to have a family of her own, a family she won't abandon no matter what.
'When my heat strikes, I want you to impregnate me.'
Damon jolted when Talia's words sounded in his mind, and he looked at her first with confusion, and then a sly smile appeared on his face as his pants in the crotch area tightened. Oh, boy! She wanted to carry his pups!
'I am ready, kitten.' He was born ready!
Talia giggled at his eager expression.
Axel and Yasmin initiated the discussion about the phenomenon at the bottom of the lake.
"What do you think?", Yasmin asked Cornelia.
Cornelia shrugged. "It sounds like there is a disturbance in energies that's maintained artificially. Unless we go down to investigate, we can't be sure what it is."
Damon remembered that Axel suggested to Talia to dive down there, and he didn't like it. "Is there a way to investigate without going down?"
"We have instruments in the Coven that could help us gather data without getting too close to the source.", Cornelia said.
"How far away can one be for that instrument to work?", Damon asked.
Cornelia thought for a moment before responding, "Ten to fifteen meters."
Damon waved his hand dismissively. "Not enough."
"That's the best we have.", Cornelia said. "We have potions and chants that can reduce the effect of the magic, so it will minimize the effects."
Yasmin continued, "However, if that's a portal, the only way to know where it connects to, is to go through it."
"You can send a drone.", James said, making everyone look at him. "That's what humans do. Their bodies are fragile, so they use technology to investigate risky areas. A drone can get close to whatever is down there, and you will get your data."
"What is a drone, and how do we get it?" Cornelia asked, genuinely curious.
"It's a robot that can do some tasks, and you can get it online," James responded like it was a totally normal thing, and when he saw that he got Cornelia's full attention, he puffed his chest. "I will get you one."
"Great!" Yasmin exclaimed. "Now that the energies at the bottom of the lake are waiting for the drone let's look at the portals…"
Axel placed on the table a map that showed the territory of the Midnight Guardians pack with portals marked on it.
"We should investigate the state of each portal and also sweep our territory to check for any disturbances in energies.", Axel said and pointed at the map. "These are only known portals. Just as we have this portal-looking thing in the lake, there might be others. Yasmin can sense these energies." And it was not just Yasmin, but all witches.
Talia disagreed. "Are you suggesting that Yasmin should go through the territory in order to sense fluctuations in the energies?" It sounded like a huge task. Did Axel forget that Yasmin was pregnant? Talia could help because she had the ability to sense surroundings, but even that had limitations, and it could produce false positives while she might miss something important.
Yasmin didn't think about the difficulty of the task. She was happy that finally there was something only she could do. It made her feel useful.
Yasmin glanced at Cornelia. "Cornelia can join me."
"No." It was James who protested. "Do you really think the two of you walking around is the solution? Unless you sweep everything thoroughly, it will be useless; and if you take it seriously, it will last for years. Are you willing to spend so much time on this?"
"How else are we going to check if another anomaly exists?" Axel asked. "The thing in the lake might be on the verge of exploding and causing damage. Or what if it's a portal that someone else opened? What if there are more of those? Our full attention is now on two portals, and if enemies come from any other direction, we will be like sitting ducks."
James didn't share Axel's concern. "Instead of allowing yourself to be sitting ducks, why don't you organize patrols like every other pack?"
Axel realized that James had a point. But that required trained warriors, and they didn't have many. A few years back, Tyler suggested video surveillance, but the roaming animals triggered alarms so many times that they shut them down.
"Damon will help organize our warriors and train more.", Talia said.
Axel was grateful, but… "That will take time, and we have no idea if someone is activating portals and sneaking in without our knowledge. I think that Yasmin and Cornelia should check the nearby area and known portals."
James didn't care how they will do it, but Cornelia shouldn't be involved. Cornelia was supposed to stick to James and not spend her days hiking through who-knows-where.
Why don't they bother other witches with it? This thought gave James an idea. "Aren't we going to the Silver Flame Coven? Ask the high priestess to lend you a number of witches. They should feel safe here, considering that one of them is the Luna of the Midnight Guardians pack. It will be their chance to see this realm and practice sensing energies. As a bonus, they might find their mates."
Yasmin clapped excitedly. The idea that more of her sisters will join her sounded fantastic.
Talia nodded in approval. In addition to sensing energies, witches can also work on building a portal that will connect them to the Dark Howlers pack. It all added up.
