Harrison was pulled up the barracks' staircase, one hand holding a hot and callused palm and the other encased in a cool and pliable version. The late-night, knee-high, orange lights outlined the fluttering of beautiful, deep green and white dresses. The two women dragged him through the hallway and into their shared bunk room, casting glances at him every so often with hopeful gazes.

He felt only assurance in their presence. There was no melancholy, no disdain, no… regret. They should despise him, should hate him, for his mistakes. For taking their affection for granted. For willfully ignoring their love and betraying them.

But they didn't seem to agree with his assessment. Their soft smiles soothed his shame. Warm and tender fingers crossed over his, welcoming him into their promising comfort and melting away his anxiety.

Some part of him suspected Rook to be correct, hoping it was true, as insane a possibility as it was. But he knew better. He was going into the discussion with an apology ready and a steeled heart. It would take a lot more than fleeting, reassuring expressions to loosen the crushing tightness around his chest. Guilt still weighed him down like a stone in his pocket.

He entered the shared room. It was dark, as Tracy and Shar liked, without so much as the orange night lights. Though, someone recognized that wasn't quite right and turned the overhead LEDs on, bathing the area in a white brightness it hadn't seen in a while.

The two led him to the nest, placed right up against the first set of lockers. The blankets and pillows never had a set place, constantly encircling whoever hoarded them for the night—Tracy, mostly, yet Shar liked her comfy mountains of plush from time to time. Of course, all the blankets were donated to the paladin foundation, in which they were liberally draped around all three inhabitants…

Harrison slowly exhaled and shut his eyes for a moment. All three. The pain was already trying to slip in before any words were spoken.

He sat down with his back to the lockers. The paladin kneeled on one side, wrapping her tail around her waist on the way down. The technician took the opposite spot and crossed her legs with a bit of difficulty from her tight dress.

The two women looked at each other, sharing a hidden, speechless dialogue, when the engineer cautiously placed his palms on his knees and cleared his throat to gather their attention.

Just… cut the rope.

"I wanted to apologize. I take responsibility for my… indecision that led us here."*

He looked between the women he betrayed, piecing together how he wanted to apologize with each sentence. "You've done so much for me, both of you. I genuinely care for you with all of my heart, but those words are entirely disingenuous. I understand. I've let myself get so close without expecting anything more… It was ridiculous to think that. Especially if I also wanted the same thing… with… the two of you."

Harrison tried to withhold his cringe as he admitted the truth. The others simply offered their ears, listening intently with curiosity, although Shar held onto a small frown.

"This isn't to excuse myself. There's no justification for my ignorance. I knew I had fallen in love… while I loved another. I purposefully ignored what I felt and all that the two of you wanted, just to avoid the fact. It was selfish and ignorant and shameful."

He quickly drew in a breath. "But, you two should know everything. Not to defend what I did, but to get everything onto the table before…"

Harrison clenched his teeth and cut himself off. He gazed into the paladin's gorgeous orange, glowing eyes, finding warmth in the familiar flare he fell asleep to.

"Shar, I can't tell you exactly when I fell in love with you, but it's been a long time, I know. It'd be impossible to do justice to how much you mean to me with just words. The simple fact is you've always given me an endless amount of kindness, care, and protection—from all the way back when I threw you out of the barracks to until we were dancing tonight. You've been nothing but a blessing, someone who I've counted on to be there every step of the way."

Her frown grew to a tender smile, accompanied by an adorable flush around her snout. But, that wasn't all Harrison had to say. He took in a deep breath, trying not to avert his gaze.

"So… of course, I ignored how much I adored every second of holding your tail or being in your embrace or hearing your sweet assurances. You were just a protector… and an alien in my mind. A different species.

"I believed, at a base level, that all of this love I felt for you had an impossible destination, always ignoring it for something else… And, I'm sorry. I feel terrible for pushing you away like that. I should've learned more about you. I should have looked more into Malkrin pairing changes… I should have been honest with myself."

He wanted to reach out and touch her. To hold her while he picked the perfect words to represent everything swimming and poking around his heart, but he sat still. "It doesn't matter if you're not even human, because you're still the most lovable, genuine person I've ever met. You're so strong and brave but so sweet and gentle. I love you, Shar. I'm sorry. You deserve better."

Harrison let out a shaky exhale, feeling a melancholy moistness settle around his eyelids. He missed every opportunity to tell it to her before, and neglected it until he had a guilty enough conscience to admit it. Why did his realization have to come after he fucked up? Things could have been… different.

…He was about to confess his love to two women. Only God knew what would happen when he was done, but he went in assuming the worst. He didn't deserve the best outcome. Not after tonight… And it hurt, but that in-the-moment pain was the easier consequence to stomach.

Tracy appeared pensive, silently looking between him and Shar. That was… good. At least, better than anger and disgust. The fact she was still sitting down to listen was enough for him.

Harrison faced her directly, swallowing his apprehension. He promised to put everything on the table…

"Trace… I'll be honest, I've had… 'friends' over the course of my entire life. And, I've laughed and made memories with them. But you… God, Tracy, I hardly even knew you after two years of colonist training, but now it's as if you were with me my entire life. I genuinely can't think of anyone who's been closer to me than you—long talks over the stupidest topics, singing to our shared playlists, and making me laugh for the first time in years… All of that on top of being able to pick up and finish any project we have on this planet while still being the prettiest woman I've laid my eyes on."

He shamefully looked down, squeezing his knees and struggling to keep his voice intact. "It's hard to find reasons not to fall head over heels, you know? I hate that it took me so long to realize it. And, when I did, I was so caught up in making it work, and I was so busy with the settlement, the old colony, those near-death moments, and the entire time I was with Shar and… and—"

"—And you loved her," Tracy wistfully finished for him.

His eyes swiftly met hers. Her gaze was tired and pained, but the weakest smile found its way along her lips just as a red blush flowed across her nose and cheeks.

"I… understand. You feel like shit for leaving me for Shar," she quietly read him.

He slowly flinched, nodding his head.

Her tone stayed emotionless, but a gentle look shone in her eyes. "And you fucked up. Caught holding two ropes, you couldn't let go of one… That really hurt, you know. A lot. It still stings to think about you running away."

Harrison didn't look away, biting his tongue. It was the technician who ended up boring her eyes into the blankets with a sigh. "…But, you weren't the only one who fucked up. There's no way in hell it was just you who struggled to piece things together. M-Maybe it wouldn't have changed anything, because, you know…"

She gestured between him and Shar, implying their connection was in question. "But, I realize I forced it all onto you. You clearly had your reasons for not wanting to be in a relationship in the first place, but I kept pushing you, tearing down your arguments because I was terrified that I'd never be able to call you mine… Terrified of this brick shithouse sticking her tongue down your throat by the time I'd figured out how to be perfect for you."

Shar perked up at the imagery and Harrison's guilt spiked, but Tracy just snickered half-heartedly. Though, that too quickly turned into a frown. "So, I'm sorry for being the tripwire that set this off. You deserved more time to figure things out… But, then again, for all the hurt of the last half hour, I've had some more time to talk with said brick shithouse. After we both… were rejected."

The engineer apologetically nodded and swallowed as all eyes were directed toward the towering Shar, who subtly leaned forward toward him. She wore a contemplative, regretful expression. "Harrison, dearest, I also desire to apologize for my actions. I should have made my love clear and abundant rather than deliver it to you in such a sudden way. It was… shameful… that I only exacerbated your worries."

The paladin looked down at the much smaller technician and smiled, gathering a touch of confidence. "I believe I speak for the two of us when I say that we were much too eager in our pursuits and only drew out the worst outcome. But, as my Artificer has said, it allowed time for us to speak with one another, and I believe we have found a mutual understanding."

Her tail slowly unraveled from her waist and slid over Tracy's lap, the action bordering between comforting and alerting to him. "I understand you expect a monogamous pairing. But, your heart does not belong to just one. You are… trapped."

Shar looked deeply into him, smiling. "So, I made the decision. For the best outcome, I shall be taking Tracy as my mate. She and I are wholly in agreement on this…"

Mate!?

Harrison felt his stomach twist into an agonizing sickness. She was… taking Tracy? The two of them… together, completely rerouting him? He opened his mouth and tried to move his lips to express his utter confusion, but nothing came out.

The engineer knew he didn't deserve either after what he'd done, but that was—

"…So that we might fit into a traditional Malkrin pairing, with you as our beloved male," Shar continued with an intensifying glow in her eyes, throwing another punch into his already drained, barely-sobered psyche. "We understand this would be… abnormal. Not just for you, but for our Tracy. However, we both have promised to make it work!"

Harrison clenched his eyes shut, rubbing them out of sheer confusion. He retraced her words in his mind, piecing together whether or not he heard her right.

"Shar… come on!" Tracy hissed worriedly.

"What did I do wrong?" Shar anxiously returned.

"Dude! The whole not clarifying things when you talk about mates! Like, when you asked me to be yours?"

The engineer reintroduced himself to the bright lights, holding a hand up. "I don't… What?"

Tracy stared at him, sighing. "We both want you, dumbass."

"And that's what you were both talking about? …Why?" he questioned with an incredulous squint.

Why not hate him? Why give him a second chance? Why anything at this point?

The technician shrugged, gave him a smirk, and gestured to the massive Malkin. "I mean, she brought the idea up and said we worked well together. I… agree. It's not what I was expecting, but, I mean…"

She held her elbows, bashfully looking away. "…Being in a relationship with two sweetheart hunks doesn't sound so bad."

He blankly stared at her.

Tracy's blush grew wider.

His brow slowly raised.

Tracy looked back at him.

The eye contact went unbroken for several long seconds until she threw her arms out wide. "I'm not drunk, dude! I promise! I sobered up a bit ago."

"I never said you were, I just…" Harrison stuck his hand in his hair like a comb.

Shar held her hopeful, expectant look. Neither of the women looked like they were forcing it, both gently waiting for his acceptance.

It took him a second to just blink. The tightness still coiled around his chest, but his brain didn't feel so foggy and weighed down like before. He subtly poked his thigh to check if he wasn't dreaming or anything, as cheesy as it was. He was genuinely floored. Not just by the fact that both of them agreed to the entire idea of being in a relationship, but that neither of them felt betrayed or… Well, Tracy did admit to being hurt, though she still went through with it.

She really did love him.

Tracy placatingly held a hand up, the motion stealing his attention. She wore a tender expression of sympathy. "I know you were pretty worried about not being able to make just me happy before. It's… It's magnitudes different with Big Red here, I know, I know. But, a huge reason why I even agreed to having her with us in the first place was the basis that we both want to support you. Right, Shar?"

The paladin nodded, her tail sliding through the technician's lap and into his, where he hesitated to scratch it like he normally would. "It is true. My love for you—our love for you is not intended to be a burden. We wish to offer our affection and support, receiving your uninhibited admiration in return. This is no attempt to take your time, but to simply allow those repressed feelings freedom. Forgive my selfishness, I… I cannot let these emotions live in my heart without you as their destination."

The black-haired woman shuffled a little closer, poking him in the knee. "Just keep going as you were, dude. Seriously. We wanna support you. We'll find the time, and we'll figure it out, whatever's on your mind. Or mine. Or Shar's. Whatever comes up, you know we'll always be a stone for you to rely on, just as you have been for us… We promise to make it work. For you, for me, and for Shar.

"I love you. I really, really love you. So does she. This planet… this horror story adventure we've found ourselves in is hell, but you can make it a heaven for all three of us. Just by being here. No holding back emotions and no worrying."

Harrison slowly exhaled the breath he was holding, feeling the weight of stress falling away with it. Tracy looked up at him with a loving and hopeful stare, while Shar leaned forward on two arms with a toothy smile.

Well shit, Rook was right. The best damn outcome, made possible because both of them fully wanted to support him, in spite of every reason to leave him. All of his idiocracy and cluelessness, ignored just to be there for him…

He really was undeserving.

Unauthorized duplication: this tale has been taken without consent. Report sightings.

Harrison grabbed Tracy's warm hand and rested a palm on Shar's tail, gently massaging both. Their love still floored him. It was hard to speak. Everything about the last hour turned his train of thought into a multi-track crash that would irreparably ruin public rail transport for decades to come.

All he could do was let out a chuff of amusement. "I mean, what do you want me to say? You two are the highlight of this entire planet, and I've already said I love you. You went and gave me a second chance, cleared all of my worries, and offered me a dream on a platter."

The engineer mirrored their smiles. "I guess having three of us will be a… new… experience for all of us for multiple reasons. But I promise I'll do everything I can to make it work. I think, after tonight, everything's more or less been put on the table. There's no need to keep anything in. Like you said, Trace, we'll find the time, and we'll figure it out."

Tracy squeezed his hand tightly, making a low, adorable squeaking noise… Which was just a warning for her attack before she dove forward and wrapped her arms around his chest, nuzzling her face into him. She rambled, mumbled, and cried out a million words a minute that he could barely make out, but he was pretty sure half of them included the word 'love.'

He managed to hug her back, bringing her in closer while she thrusted more of herself into him, eventually squeezing her ankles to the small of his back to complete her attachment. She inadvertently squeezed the folded tail between their stomachs, but Shar hardly seemed to mind.

The position was allowed to settle for a few seconds before he felt four arms capture him and the love parasite, lifting both into the air and placing them onto the supple thighs of the loosely-dressed paladin.

Shar got comfortable and held them tight. Her voice, as angelic and deep as ever, melted into his mind like warm butter as she laid her snout on top of his head. "It has not been a singular winter, yet I cannot express how long I have waited for my adoration to be reciprocated. It is as if I have been sleeping my entire life, and only now am I able to see the blessed colors of the world beyond… I love you, dearest Harrison. May our hearts stay forever warm in each other's embrace."

He squeezed Tracy—who hadn't run out of breath in her tirade of love words—tighter and rubbed his head further into the paladin.

"I love you too."

- - - - -

Harrison woke up in a tangle of limbs with a headache pounding through his skull. His body was slotted between a human furnace with skin soft to the touch and an alien heat sink with the most comfortably supple muscles he had ever known. Soft mewls of sleepy delight came from the face pressed into his chest while deep purrs rumbled into his back. A drowsy sense of affection had him bring the tiny technician closer and shuffle himself further into the massive paladin.

It was as normal a morning as any other, just a little closer and a little sweeter.

He still hadn't let his feelings settle. Having two… What did he even call them? Girlfriends? Partners? Lovers? Mates? He felt like he was being… errant, as if he was betraying one of them, despite how much they assured him otherwise last night.

The two had been subtly feuding for a while, and he knew who it was over now. He worried that jealousy or frustration might cause issues, but the more he thought about the last two weeks, the more he thought of them as pretty close. They'd worked on his armor, over parts of the strike team's equipment, in tandem over the settlement's safety, and even accepted each other's presence in the same bed. Of course, there was also the Grand Catch festival fishing teamwork last night… Good Lord, that felt like it was ages ago. Hell, the party confirmed his subtle suspicion that Tracy had a thing for the Malkrin girls.

…So did Harrison, evidently.

Could either of the humans be blamed for their attraction? They looked feminine, with wide hips and eyelashes, but were so powerfully built—basically curvy bodybuilders without breasts. Excusing the lizard and shark anatomy, they ticked too many boxes to be ignored… and maybe he even liked the former too, given how much Shar's tail meant to him.

Hell, the same androgynous yet weirdly attractive nature went for the males—Harrison totally didn't swing that way, though! Oliver, in his puffy ball gown, didn't exactly make anything clear about his gender to the human eye.

Some people back in Sol would've lost their composure at the sight of either… The engineer was pretty damn lucky to have an alien like her to be so… perfect, even if she wasn't exactly comparable to a human woman. He didn't even know much about her biology, but he hardly cared when she looked at him with such devotion.

The idea of her admiration washed into him at the moment, like stepping into a perfectly warm bath. He really was in love with Shar for the longest time. All of that mental misdirection was convincing him that the extra thump in his heart was just appreciation, when it was so much more all along. Nothing about it had had the time to steep into him yet. An alien. One that was so caring, attentive, and loyal…

Harrison was getting sidetracked. He loved her. Anything else could be figured out as he got to know her in a different light.

Tracy actually gave him some relevant words last night, ones he held onto, which basically summed up to 'Just keep going.' It sounded easier in his head. It simply wasn't reasonable to expect everything to work out perfectly. But he knew he could communicate with them. There didn't have to be smoke and mirrors… just that 'more' Tracy touted.

The first step of the relationship would have to be continuing as normal, starting with unraveling himself from the comforting web of six arms, four legs, two heads, and a tail. He needed to meet up with harvesters and finalize a few things for the mineshaft that morning.

Harrison carefully pulled off a few arms, wrestling control with other pairs of limbs, while the first few he wriggled out of entangled him again. Tracy trying to nuzzle further into him didn't help… and neither was Shar's possessive tail. He thought he'd managed to sit up, but a drowsy squeeze and an adorable, paralyzing lick from the shark took him right back down to stage one.

He hated whack-a-mole… but he couldn't bring himself to hate the situation, finding himself chuckling at the increasing vigor of the two tangle plants in bed with him.

"Mmmmnnooo… Shhtayyy," Tracy protested in a mumble, digging her face further into his neck and leaving a peck on his collarbone that made his heart skip a beat.

"Trace," he whispered in a quiet laugh. "I gotta get up."

"Is such truly necessary?" Shar countered drowsily.

Harrison shook his head, smiling. "You too? C'mon, I gotta meet Rook in…" He checked his wrist through the mass of limbs to find his watch still not there, but could reasonably infer his internal clock was still accurate. "Probably like fifteen minutes."

The technician wasn't having it, grumbling into him. "Then you dun needa go for 'nother ten minsss."

His guardian hit him with the second half of the combo, squeezing her tail around the two humans… And, just like that, he had forcibly hit the snooze button for another ten minutes.

He mentally shook a fist to the sky.

Curse the god of comfort, damming him to this warm and cozy fate!

- - - - -

Coffee: downed. Painkillers: enough to put a hole in his stomach. Time: just the right kind of early to feel productive. Bodyguards: trailing around him. Outside: also cold as hell… Wasn't hell supposed to be on fire? Hotel: Trivago.

…Anyway, Harrison didn't realize how much he was missing out on when it came to having an actual jacket on. The hyena-boar fur coat wrapped snuggly around his upper body, turning into more of a half-cape as it tapered down his sides and behind his thighs. Cera had apparently spent a good bit of time sewing in magnetic clips for it to close around his chest and keep his rig tight.

She was a real blessing.

Unfortunately, he had to part with the fuzzy robes for a bit. There was no way he'd willingly go into the remnants of a bug hive without his armor on.

The coat was wrapped up nicely and placed into the sleeping bag cover on his backpack frame before he slid into the polymer leg pads of his armor and applied the rest. He did a few stretches and got his body used to the limb assistants and the supported weight of several multi-day rucksacks on his back. Hot damn, he should go thank Shar and Trace again for the exoskeleton. Being able to hold so much without extra strain was amazing.

…For some, odd, inexplicable, and completely unknown reason, he was feeling very appreciative this morning. There was a noticeable lightness to his steps with that big ball and chain off of his ankle.

Harrison walked out of the workshop and into the open air again with his helmet off and his data pad in hand, displaying a few diagrams and blueprints. The future underground manufacturing and structures awaited the harvesting squad's input and the prospecting drone's inspection of the mine.

There was a line of metal and mycelial concrete buildings that surrounded the western gate, fitting snugly between the main factory and the hydroponics dome. The mineshaft, a housing for several refineries, and the truck freight receiving complex were the main three, all perfectly connected and lined up to transfer material to the workshop via a few airtight conveyors. All of which were held up several meters into the air by a series of vertical supports.

Rook stood outside the reinforced entrance of the cave tunnel with her bulky mining harness on, patiently awaiting him. She, of all people, would understand why he was late to the meet-up for once. The way she nodded knowingly at his approach confirmed it.

"Blessed morning to you, Chief Harrison."

Harrison bobbed his head. "Good morning. Where's the crew?"

The Head Harvester bowed her snout, giving him a dutiful apology. "Forgive me for their tardiness, but my squad is having a… late… morning. I made sure they were all roused, however. My harvesters are currently eating their breakfast in the mess hall."

He smacked his lips, recalling the amount of alcohol the settlement went through last night. "Ah. Right. I can't blame them. Did you make sure they drank a lot of water?"

"Of course. They are using all twelve tea kettles in the kitchen."

"Good," the engineer complimented, looking out toward the mentioned domicile and waiting. "You don't have a hangover headache at all, do you?

Rook appeared confused, slowly shaking her head before she continued. "Nothing of the sort. Once more, forgive me. I should have sent them to bed earlier in the night… I presume you would not be willing to descend with only the five of us?"

He hummed in the affirmative. "So, you had breakfast already?"

"I have, yes. You and Chef insist upon it, for it would be unwise to delve into labor without proper sustenance." The orange-skinned squad leader readjusted her posture, holding her hands behind her back as silence seeped in.

A low wind whistled above Harrison. He glanced around, confirming his three guards' spots nearby. The few moments of doing nothing dragged on. Should he check over the production lines right now? Cera would be awake and do it eventually… Maybe he should get a head start in explaining the next steps of the mineshaft project. Rook would definitely appreciate it.

"Creator…?" the Head Harvester requested suddenly.

"Yeah?"

Her posture never changed, but her professional voice faltered in favor of something casual. "I understand this does not relate to our current labor and ignore me if my curiosity is intrusive… but may I assume you have found your mates last evening? I saw Artificer Tracy and Paladin Shar'khee together when they approached you, figuring those two had found common ground on their own."

Harrison ran a hand through his hair, trying to push down a subconscious smirk. "I have, yeah… It's all a bit sudden. I don't remember all of our conversation, but I'm pretty sure I told you I blinded myself to Shar's feelings."

Rook held the bottom of her snout in thought. "I'm afraid I was in no better position to recall the conversation, but that is familiar, yes."

"Right." He shrugged, his tone bordering between excitement and uncertainty. "My talk with the two last night wasn't super long, honestly. It took a little bit of convincing me that the other two were happy with the arrangement. Then, we went to bed like any normal night, given how long the last twenty-four hours had been. Since then, I've just been more or less trying to piece it all together. Realizing how I felt about Shar was a big switch in how I think about her, and not having those worries and guilts about Tracy feels like freedom. I'm anxious if anything'll come up, but… but I'm optimistic."

Just thinking about seeing either of them spawned a flurry of energy in his chest. It was a vast force, thumping his heart against his ribs. God, it would've been nice to sleep in with them… Shar's flowery scent combined with Tracy's warmth beat the living shit out of the acrid and metallic stink of factories and the cold air, currently making him look like Rudolph.

"I'm not holding my breath or anything. Just happy things are somewhat settled, and that I can get to work while having both of them to look forward to."

"I can tell," Rook confirmed with a genuine smile. "You appear more animated, and I've never quite seen that shine in your eye. Such relief and joy are absolutely what a striving leader needs, and are precisely what I hoped for."

"I… look more animated?" he questioned curiously, having difficulty controlling the upward curl of his lips.

The Head Harvester respectfully returned her hand behind her back, shaking her head. "It is in no way an offense to your station as chief. I would expect you to deserve such pleasant emotions, given your struggles. This is the best outcome."

Harrison nodded, but crossed his arms over his armored chest. "Definitely. It still feels almost undeserved for how easily things worked out. All of my mistakes were corrected for me. Don't get me wrong, I'm relieved that I don't have to make any harsh decisions and push either of them away. It just… yeah."

"That is how they must act as mates: making such decisions for you." Rook looked down at him with a serious stare, ensuring he understood every word from her deep intent. "I understand that you, as a star-sent, are different, beyond that which I can relate to. But if you are to be both a male and a leader, such distracting and straining things should not be put onto your shoulders. Your mates recognized your plight along with their own, and they came together to do exactly as they were meant to."

A frown carved through his expression. It didn't feel good to force others to pick up his emotional slack, but at the same time, it saved him… it saved him more than just time and stress. More things to be grateful for.

The mess hall doors opened up, and the following entourage of harvesters spilled out of it like a tide of steel and colored skin. They wasted no time in heading toward the mineshaft.

Harrison gave Rook an appreciative look. "You're right. I don't know how much we'll follow Malkrin customs, but Shar and Trace are the ones I'd rely on to be decisive… Thank you for last night, Rook. It really helped."

The group of miners stopped just beside the entrance, tightening up their harnesses and doing double-checks of their equipment—batteries, gas masks, and lighting. Harrison did the same, putting his helmet on. He motioned to his guards, gesturing for them to follow suit.

Rook pressed a large button on the cave entrance building's wall, turning on a small alarm as orange lights flashed above the hermetically sealed door. It slowly swung open, being wide and tall enough to fit a few female Malkrin—two and a half main battle tanks, basically. The gate would be the last line of defense for cave-based bug incursions, after the various turrets and detection systems were soon placed in the cave. There were already some automated weapon systems, but those guarded the initial entrance. This would just be adding more heat. He wasn't taking chances getting bitten in the ass.

Harrison followed Rook into the room beyond. The pale gray area was small by Malkrin standards, used primarily as a passageway for the harvesters to come and go. It connected to the main shaft and resource delivery area, made up of two platforms on either side of a rail depressed into the ground. One half was filled with an automated delivery and sorting system to collect the material, and the other led to a pathway that followed the tunnel. A light above the subway entrance shone green; there was no mine cart on its way up.

The convoy of armored settlers travelled downwards, only the odd support pillar separating them from the two-meter drop into the railway. OSHA would have had him crucified on the spot for that hazard. But the material transporter wasn't up yet, and he had plans to make the tram itself carry personnel, so it wasn't like anyone would be using the side path in the future.

Ten minutes of travel had the harvesters arrive at the bottom of the cave, right inside the cavern that, via a short tunnel, led into a burned-out bug hive. The harvesting squad passed through the loading and preliminary sorting area and walked around the few robotic mule charging stations, all still relatively new and untouched, as evidenced by the pristine concrete. Even the M2 Browning turrets sitting by the doorway had yet to be installed.

The tall, ravine-like cave outside of the sole building had been lit up completely with floor-mounted floodlights. They only left a few shadows on the ceiling, while a majority of the illumination was focused on the giant room-and-support cavities in the walls. The miners had long since begun to work on stripping the massive ore veins of the underground deposit after the bugs were cleared out. There were a few modular scaffolding structures by the walls where the detected lodes weren't on the ground floor. All of which had perfectly smooth laser-cut walls, painstakingly carved foot by foot.

Not perfectly efficient, but it went a lot faster than any other method—God bless the Malkrin's genetics. At least it let him focus on their safety and material transportation rather than alternative mining machines.

Harrison wasted no time in discussing the on-site metal refinery and possible locations with Rook and two of the harvesters, while the others went about setting up the turrets and a few sensors further down the cavern. The positions for peak productivity were easily found and a few markers for the future builder bots were laid out alongside the necessary areas of walkways and catwalks.

The next task was the introduction of the prospecting automatons. A harvester brought out a few cat-sized, skeletonized robots with a vaguely beetle-shaped exterior. The design itself was more or less just a wall-walking frame for the detection and calculation hardware put inside. The inner programming was a product of the mining module expedition, which provided the proper software for it all to work.

Harvesters were still working on cutting out the extensive ore veins discovered from the first cavern survey, but with the volcanic activity below, he wanted to examine the rest of the open-air lodes. Additionally, the deep scan technology put into the prospecting beetles would let them analyze rock compression and elasticity far beyond the surface, which, in conjunction with Sebas' analysis, would help to determine the stability of each area and where to set up permanent and temporary supports.

They were all around useful and necessary drones to help the upscaling of metal harvesting without endangering his girls. Soon, each of the miners would have their own personal version to swiftly make computations to assist their work. The next step after that completely relied on how fast Tracy got to installing the power part of the Malkrins' power armor—one mining laser per harvester eventually wouldn't cut it.

He and Rook did a few tests with the little machine and had it run a bit through the various ores on the wall, finding it to be accurate in its assessments. It was the same for the structural testing, confirming the stability of each room-and-support in several locations.

Harrison had spent about two hours in the caves when Tracy gave him a call, speaking much too fast and much too excitedly for him to comprehend. His few attempts to understand the jumble of word salad she threw at him were only met with a short 'Just come up here!'

Rook looked down at him and tilted her head curiously. He figured she would've been raising a brow underneath her gas mask. "What does your Artificer have to say?"

"I don't actually know. She wants me up in the workshop," he answered casually.

The Head Harvester crouched and picked up the prospecting beetle. "I see. My squad can take over the rest of the tests, then."

Harrison stared back at her for a few moments before he just nodded. She was smart and knew what she was doing. "Gotcha. Thanks. Let me know if anything comes up."

"You have my word."

His three guards collapsed in on him with two clicks of his tongue, following him up the tunnel to the surface. And damn, did it take a hell of a lot longer going up, even if it wasn't tiring—his armor's augmentations being a blessing once more.

Anything Tracy had to show him was top priority. Even if it didn't pertain to the settlement's success, he wouldn't miss a chance to see her again.

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