~ Chapter Seventeen - Part 2 ~

They got dressed in workout clothes before going to his office, where Sebastian was waiting. Damien sat in the chair behind his desk before pulling Katalina onto his lap. He wrapped his arms around her waist and held her close as he sighed and started talking with Sebastian. “Do you have an idea of where we can start with this entire mess?” Sebastian questioned as he leaned back in his seat.
“I do,” Katalina said softly.
Damien grinned as he looked at her with pride in his eyes. “Let’s hear it, my dove.”
Katalina situated herself so that her back was to Damien’s front and she was facing Sebastian. “Okay,” she took a deep breath before she continued. “Jacques said that the vampires will fight with us. Or at least most of them. His brother, Michael, is a mighty vampire lord with many allies. They should be here within a few days. Along with representatives from our allies and Ryan’s,” she stood up and grabbed the map that she knew Damien kept on his bookshelf. She spread it out on the desk and leaned over it. “Artemis has given me all the information we need to find more allies. Allies of other species that we will need. Legendary allies,” she pointed at cities on the map. “Once our allies get here, we can send out groups to each location. Each group can have a creature. It’ll be faster that way. Then, Benjamin can teleport them here once they have them on our side. Or to Ryan’s territory,” she bit her lip as she looked over the map. “Though I’m not sure if our two territories alone will be big enough to house everyone,” Katalina muttered as she studied the map for a minute before pointing at two different territories. “Who owns these territories?” She asked as she glanced at Damien.
Damien looked over her shoulder and shrugged. “The territory on the other side of us is empty. Of course, we’d have to make sure there aren’t any rogues or other creatures living on the land, but as far as I know, it’s empty,” he glanced at the other piece of territory that she had pointed out. “That territory, however, belongs to a pack called Faded Night. It’s alpha Giovanni’s if I remember correctly.”
Sebastian nodded in agreement. “Yes. Alpha Giovanni owns that land.”
“He’s not one of our allies,” Damien said thoughtfully. “Though I believe that he is an ally of Ryan’s.”
Katalina grinned. “Perfect. One of the first things we need to do is send a group out to this unowned territory and make sure it’s clear.”
“What if it’s occupied?” Sebastian questioned curiously.
Katalina shrugged with a smile. “We negotiate and hope they’re on our side,” she said. “I’ll give Ryan a quick call and have him talk to Giovanni about us using his land as well. Of course, his land will be secured and protected just as ours is,” she sat down on Damien’s lap, picked up his office phone, and called Ryan.
“Hello,” Ryan answered.
“Hey, Ryan. It’s Katalina,” she said with a smile.
“Hello, Katalina. Is everything okay?” Ryan asked in concern.
“Yes and no,” Katalina said as she ran a hand through her ponytail. “I need a favor from you.”
“Anything,” Ryan said without hesitation.
Katalina giggled before saying. “I need you to talk to Giovanni, the alpha of the Faded Night pack. See if he’ll be alright with us using his land to help house our army. Our two territories alone aren’t going to be enough. We also plan on clearing out the empty land on the other side of us.”
“Sure. I can talk to Giovanni, but he can be a stubborn man,” Ryan explained.
Katalina sighed. “If Giovanni refuses or argues, then have him call me. I’ll talk to him and see if he’ll listen to me.”
Ryan chuckled. “You always were able to talk people into doing anything you wanted them to.”
“You know it,” Katalina said playfully.
“I’ll talk to Giovanni and call you back once I know where he stands,” Ryan said after a minute.
“Okay. Thank you, Ryan,” Katalina said softly. She sighed. “How are Evelyn and Mason?” She asked.
“They’re both doing great,” he said happily. “Mason is getting so big. Evelyn shows him pictures of you all of the time.”
Katalina felt her heart melt at that. “Awe. I’ll come and visit soon. I promise.”
“I know,” Ryan said with a smile. “I’ll let Evelyn know you called and as soon as I speak with Giovanni I’ll cal you back.”
“Alright. Bye,” Katalina hung up the phone with a small sigh. “Ryan's going to call Giovanni and see if he can talk him into letting us use his land.”
Damien smiled down at her. “You’re amazing,” he whispered to her.
Katalina pressed a loving kiss to his cheek. “I love you,” she whispered to him.
Damien’s grin widened. “I love you too, my dove.”
Sebastian cleared his throat. “Shall I get a group of men together and go check out the land next to us?” He asked.
Damien nodded. “Yes. Take a few of the stronger men to be safe. If there are people there, try and talk to them before fighting. We need as many allies as we can get.”
“Not to mention that we are not Atlas. We will not simply take someone else’s land because we want or need it,” Katalina said firmly.
Sebastian nodded his head. “Of course, Luna. We will do everything we can to ensure there is no bloodshed if someone is living there,” he said as he stood up.
Katalina gave him a grateful smile. “Thank you, Sebastian.”
Sebastian bowed his head before leaving the office.
Damien let out a slow breath. “Alright. What’s the plan, dove?” He asked as he pulled her closer to his chest. “I know you already have one forming in your brilliant mind.”
Katalina laughed as she leaned her head on his shoulder. “Of course, I have a plan,” she sighed. “Right now, all we can do is get allies. I want to start building extra housing for everyone joining us. The bigger creature’s homes will be a bit difficult, but they can always help us fix them when they get here. Other than that, we should be training. Every single person able to train should be. Of course, the younger kids won’t be fighting in this war, but I want everyone to train so they can protect themselves. I don’t want anyone left unprotected.”
Damien grinned as he pressed a kiss to her temple. “Brilliant, my queen,” he whispered with his lips against her head.
Katalina blushed as she looked down at their intertwined fingers. “I can’t believe that you could blush so easily after what we’ve done,” Damien said in a low, husky voice.
Katalina’s blush deepened as she looked up at him through her long lashes. Damien chuckled and kissed her forehead. “Let’s go start your training, dove. The only thing we can do right now is to wait.”
“Everyone should be training,” Katalina said softly.
Damien grinned. “I’ll talk with our trainer and have him prepare everyone for the new training schedule. He can figure that out today and then start the new schedule tomorrow morning,” he explained.
Katalina smiled and nodded in agreement. “Sounds like a plan.”
Damien chuckled as he stood up with her in his arms. “You, however, have to start training today.”
Katalina groaned as he set her down on her feet but started following him as he led the way to the gym.