With not much to do, other than his usual work, Andrew went to the med-bay to see how his ladies were doing.
The moment he entered, all of them blushed and were unable to meet his gaze.
Thankfully, all of them were fine except Kirna, who by some miracle only ended up with some bruises after their wild orgy, but just like Aelita before, she needed to be placed in the regeneration tank as she also started to evolve.
By that time Iliana had already informed them all about his decision to accept them as his women, and even though the ladies were hoping for that, it would take them a while to get used to it.
Especially after the means they used to get what they wanted since most of them felt somewhat guilty about the whole thing.
After making sure that they were all right, Andrew went to the command center.
-How are the others?
Aelita asked as soon as he entered.
-They will be fine, the only one in need of treatment is Kirna, and she is most likely also evolving the same as you.
Andrew answered.
-How are things here?
He asked wanting to change the subject.
-It's all good, I'm in the process of building more resource-gathering sub-stations.
Our demand is increasing, and I suspect it will only get higher as time goes by.
Andrew nodded in agreement.
Then told her about the new ships he added to the building list.
-So you want to get the resources from the others as well?
She asked, hearing about the additional cargo ships.
-That's the idea.
The more ships we can build the safer we will be, and if time permits, I would like to take out the remaining invasion forces in our vicinity.
-That's quite ambitious.
Aelita said, taking a look at the hundreds of enemy ships in their sensor range.
-We won't gain anything without taking a risk, you ladies taught me that last night.
He smiled in amusement as she flushed when he reminded her about the last night's events.
-You will never let us forget that, will you?
She asked.
-I'll think about it.
He grinned.
-Alright, since you want more materials from the others, you might want to inform them about it, I'm sure they will need to increase their resource-gathering capabilities.
The Cherin, changed the subject, not wanting to entertain him and embarrass herself even more.
Andrew also decided to stop teasing her and got to work.
He talked with every station master under him and even nominated a new one for the Alpha Pictoris system, for which the first modules were already loaded onto the cargo ships.
His subordinates managed to surprise him, as all of them had a reserve of materials ready to be picked up at any time as per their agreement.
What's more, they all immediately started working on increasing their resource-gathering capability, agreeing that the more powerful their navy was the safer they would be.
Not that any of their systems would be an easy target with the station armaments and the satellites at their disposal.
Andrew immediately sent the two cargo ships to gather the resources from the other stations, while the other two were sent to the Milky Way galaxy to build a station there.
-Boss, we have an incoming communication from an AI system.
The AI wishes to speak with you directly.
Vulcan informed him suddenly.
-Alright, patch it through.
Andrew agreed immediately, wondering if some of his people got too close to the AI's station since this was the only reason he could come up with that would explain it contacting him.
-Thank you for agreeing to talk to me human.
The AI's voice sounded through the speakers as soon as the connection was established.
-No problem, but it is a surprise to be hearing from you.
I hope none of my people, got too close to your station or did something to upset you.
-No, your crews are following our agreement to the letter, and even going out of their way to stay away from the station, for which I am grateful.
The AI said.
-I'm glad to hear that.
Andrew said, with a slight sigh of relief.
-So what can I do for you, I doubt you called me just to have a little chat.
The human asked, curious about the reason for this call.
-This may be a strange request, but I would like my system to join your territory, however, I would also like to keep our previous agreement intact, would that be acceptable?
The AI asked, surprising Andrew and Aelita as this was not something any of them expected to hear.
-It is possible, but I need more information and at least a part of the agreement needs to change, if you want to join the territory.
Andrew said after he got over the surprise.
-The information I need is about the reason you want to keep everyone away from your station, as for the agreement, it would require my ships to approach the station to deliver the modules to upgrade it, or if necessary, we can just build another station, but that seems a bit excessive since there is one already there.
Additionally, all the ships in the system would need to be crewed to join the fleet, and once your station is ready, you would be required to send some resources.
Andrew explained.
-These conditions are acceptable, however, I would still prefer that no one boarded my station if possible.
The AI said.
-This can be arranged, but I insist that if a ship is damaged and needs to dock to save its crew, they would have that possibility.
Of course, if there is a part of the station you dont wish them to enter, then they wont, and we can even place some battle droids to make sure of that.
-It is acceptable.
As for the information about why I refuse to let anyone approach my station, it would be better if you saw it for yourself.
So if it's convenient for you, then please come to the station, since I really want to keep it a secret.
The AI said.
-Alright, I'll get there as soon as I can, in the meantime, we will start sending the module parts to upgrade the station, and some droids to take over the ships.
-Thank you for accepting my request.
The AI said, before disconnecting and soon its system was added to the territory making it the sixth subordinate station of the territory.
-That was unexpected.
Aelita said the moment the call ended.
-True, but if the AI hadn't contacted us, I would have contacted it and asked if it would agree to join our territory sooner or later.
Andrew said.
-Are you going there today?
She asked, not too thrilled about the whole idea.
-Yes, I want to know what's so important to it.
He nodded.
-By the way, can you start producing modules and satellites for our new system, I want it secured as soon as possible.
-I already started, as soon as the cargo ships get back from the other side of the wormhole, I'll begin loading them with the parts and drones.
-Thank you.
Now I need to contact every one and inform them about our new system.
He said and got to work immediately.
The other station masters were surprised, but also happy that their territory was expanding again.
The information about a habitable planet in the new system, also made everyone happy since this meant they would not need to stay in space all the time.
As soon as he informed everyone, Andrew took a frigate and went to the AI system to see what secret the AI was protecting.
Some of the ladies wanted to accompany him, but he declined as the AI stated it would only allow him to know the secret.
Entering the system Andrew was a bit nervous, but a moment later he was contacted by the AI, who asked him to dock straight to the beginning module of the station.
-I'm sorry about all the trouble, but the less people know about this the better.
The AI apologized, the moment he entered the station.
-Don't worry about it, I understand that it's important, and that's why I want to know what you are protecting, to make sure that no one will interfere with it even by accident.
Andrew responded.
-Thank you for your understanding.
Now please follow the lights.
The AI said, turning on the lights in the next module.
Not that it was necessary since the station was quite small, but Andrew complied.
Soon he arrived at the cryogenic module, which looked different from the ones on his station, as it had 20 tier 5 cryo pods inside.
He approached the devices, only to see silhouettes of at least a dozen different beings inside of them.
-This is the original station master of this station.
The AI said, highlighting the central cryo pod.
-The others are the station masters of this system.
They all agreed, to go into cryo sleep at this station, to wait out the most turbulent times while leaving me to protect them.
-Won't they be pissed off when they discover, that you joined my territory after they wake up?
Andrew asked.
-They might be, but my young lady gave me orders, to do everything I can to ensure their safety, while they were sleeping, and this decision is the best one to make under the circumstances.
The AI said.
-I understand the situation now, and we will be placing combat droids and some guardian drones around this area of the station, to prevent anyone from wandering in here even by accident.
In addition to that, I think it would be a good idea to have a ship here, ready to evacuate them, just in case it turned out to be necessary.
-Thank you, and I would appreciate it if you kept this a secret from everyone.
-I will.
Andrew agreed immediately.
-By the way, when will they wake up?
He asked.
-The pods are set to automatically revive them in around three months.
-Then please notify me a day or two before their awakening, the last thing we would want is to scare them or start some kind of misunderstanding with them once they are awake.