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Ashigaera led James to the Office and gestured for him to sit down on the chair as she hopped up on a stool next to Sebastet’s desk which she frequently used when she assisted her with administrative tasks. James looked around the office, finding it not at all that unusual and turned his attention back to Ashigaera as she watched him with mild interest and just simply spoke “You can relax human, you’re not in trouble” James replied, “even though I used to work for the church?” Ashigaera chuckled slightly “of course! You’re here to answer questions and only that, no plans to have to removed from the island” James started to show relief on his face as he continued to sit there. Ashigaera pulled out her pipe and lit it, the smoky taste of her special tobacco and always enjoyed it as she took a drag from her pipe smoke escaping her mouth as she released it “once everything in the yard is finished Sebastet will come speak with you” James nodded at that and sat there.

Sebastet walked into the office with Khajhan being her faithful shadow. She knew he'd become her dominant and demanding mate soon enough. Truthfully? She was silently quivering inside in anticipation for it. But she had to maintain the appearance of calm and confidence with this particular resident. For now.

She let herself get briefly distracted by the wall decorated with weapons she'd been adding to for the last several hundred years. The ones in this room all came from attackers who had attacked on the island. None were personal attacks on her specifically. But she'd still hunted the bastards down and collected her trophy from them.

She'd given Lydia and Ashigaera permission to add to this wall as they wished. And it looked as if there was a spot being prepared, though she wasn't sure what weapon it was for. Her only condition for the wall was that any guns had to be cleaned thoroughly because gunpowder made her sneeze.

She finally moved behind the desk after giving Ashigaera a respectful nod then looked at the man sitting on the other side of the desk, "James... It's good to meet you. I already approved your residency on the island and it looks as if someone else has already removed the spell laid in the brand the Church gave you so they can't track you. At the worst, they'll think you're dead. At the best, they'll send me a good meal. For now, I just need to know what you feel like telling me so that we can deal with the current threat," she started, her voice carrying that hint of a purr that some found enticing and others found soothing.

She paused for a moment then continued with a small smile, "We do not hold your past against you, James. I wasn't always a good person. I've had my moments where reason and good thinking went out the door. Those moments were very bloody and certainly much more violent than you can imagine," she continued speaking and hoped she could assure him of his place here, "Everyone comes here with a past. I do not judge them on it. The past is the past. We learn from it and move on. I hold you no different. Learn from your past and move on," she hoped she was getting through on the point then moved on.

"Now then... My only expertise in guns is getting shot with them. Gunpowder makes me sneeze as well. Needless to say, I don't like them. But I can understand that they are useful in some situations. There are a few on the island that have knowledge of using them effectively and I'm coming to terms with accepting their limited use," she gave a sigh and moved on to the part that was difficult for her.

"When I came here, I cleaned the place out of the residents and their mess. Took forever to the blood off the walls..." she shook her head a bit to push the memories back, "Anyway, I discovered something under the castle and locked it away. Someone requested that it be opened to deal with the current threat to the island. I've agreed but it's limited. There's a unique pack slowly trickling in and they will have access. I'm also giving access to you. Keep in mind that it is limited. I don't like having guns everywhere on the island. However... I do accept that they give the humans the advantage. And our opponents will not be expecting any of us to be using them. The prohibition of firearms on the island is well known. I allow it for some of the villagers to hunt with, but that's all we've needed so far," she explained, knowing that he'd appreciate that room.

Not even Lydia and Ashigaera knew about the room. They knew about the locked door but not what was behind it. She knew Ashigaera would update Lydia about the changes she was making so there was no issue there.

After another pause, she continued, "Now then... I saw your face while they were helping Ginger. I do know that you have expertise in creation. Again, I don't hold that against you. But I do believe that you might be able to use your knowledge against those coming now. I know the Church is behind this. One of their priests was caught and is being questioned now. The idiot attacked the wrong person," she rolled her eyes over the attack on Sasha, still not sure why the idiot had gone against his orders but he was regretting it now. Michael was not known for his forgiveness, "Any help you can give would be appreciated. But I won't demand anything from you. If you want to stay out of it, I will understand. So I simply ask for your help. Nothing more. Knowledge is what we need. Nothing more," she finished there then let him think as she turned to something else.

She looked at Ashigaera, "I know you will update Lydia on everything. But for changes: I've invited the village to send their children and weak up here to the castle. They will need accommodations. Some of the kids are here now. Just one wagon but I'm expecting more to come as they're able to send them. The demon that came to help has agreed to stay for a bit, as will the other three. I believe Ash has gone back to renew his oath to the throne. Expect an unhappy Elf over it. I put the bears in those connecting suites in the Were's hallway. They will be with their new mates. They are actually Hylarr twins. They were under a spell I just broke. For now, any servants going into that hallway will need to quiet and keep scents to a minimum. I also want food delivered that's made with some of the old Hylarr recipes. It should help them adjust. I also want some of the books on the Hylarr sent to them so that they can learn a bit before they come asking questions," she told her, knowing that she'd arrange for everything easily.

She passed over an envelope to Ashigaera, "Pass that to Cain. He requested it but I think he'll have forgotten why," she said it simply then turned back to James and waited with patience.

Sebastet growled when Khajhan touched the bullet and got burned by it, the growl a warning for him to be more careful, "We have another source. According to Pops, the Alpha for the bears, his Beta was given access to some new information. Thankfully, Doc and another member of the Den were able to take the information and make an antidote of sorts," she started, grateful Pops had that information and that she was tapped into the island network so deeply. She usually had information before someone said it. It genuinely got a little disturbing at times.

"Basically... Someone has come up with an anti-human vaccine. In short, it kills anyone that isn't human. Doc has already treated Cassius," she held up a hand to stop him as James started to get out of the chair, "He's on his way to check on Layla now. If she's been dosed with it, he'll take care of it," she assured him before moving on.

"We have a few of the pack on the island right now. One is babysitting Cassius, two are in the kitchen, one voluntarily got kidnapped by a dragon again, one is... somewhere else, one is resting upstairs, and two have been sent somewhere else. One of the ones on the kitchen would probably be of more help right now," she considered him for another moment then made a decision.

"The place under the island that I mentioned... It's an armory. There are facilities in there for your skills. If you're willing to look into it, I'll ask Ashigaera if she'd lead you to the kitchen, make introductions, then show all of you to the place so you can all look it over," she offered then her expression softened.

"If you just want to get back to Layla, I would understand," she added in a softer tone.