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Reece
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There was still a lot that we needed to do. Now that Trinity's birthday was over, as well as the initial council meeting, there were other things that we needed to get to. We needed to staff the daycare, select the deputy mayor, and fill out the ranks of the new army, or as the others have decided to call it, the Goddess Knights.
For now, my Little Bunny was taking care of staffing the daycare, and Wesley was going to be the deputy mayor. She had already spoken to Valerian and asked him to look into the incident that happened at the castle. And true to his word, Gabriel had asked his mate and our maid, Roisin, to look into the incident as well. It is very possible that they will get two very different versions of the story since they will be asking people of vastly different statuses. Knowing what is happening from multiple vantage points could be beneficial for us as well..
Right now, I was on my way to the barracks that Trinity and Valerian had built together.. They had done this not long after they had spoken about the incident at the Fae compound. I had requested it to be done so that we could get the training underway. If we were going to be fighting a war against an unknown enemy soon, I wanted to have an army that had been through some thorough training when we left.
This new barracks that they had built was going to be the home to the soldiers until they graduated from their training regimen. There were going to be a lot of people here soon since we sent out word to all those in the supernatural world that they could join our army. The condition before they joined was that they had to swear fealty to Trinity and myself and swear a binding oath that they recognized us as their Queen and King, as well as their Alpha and Luna. The contract was going to be so binding that they would be compelled to follow our orders even if they were a Vampire or a Fae.
They could not be a spy and enter our army as well since they will be vetted by Gabriel and Vincent. We were only taking those that truly intended to do right by us. There was no way that we could afford to be relaxed in this aspect; not with a war upon us.
I had called Paul to the castle. He had been asked to stay away for the time being so that things could be finalized. He hadn't been banned from the castle, since he was still invited to visit for parties and spending time as a friend. However, his job had been put on hold. At least he knew that there was a castle, and I didn't have to hear the shock again.
The castle had literally given everyone a massive shock when they saw it. Thankfully though, they were all used to it by now. Well, most of them. There were still some pack members that were going to be coming up here for future events that hadn't seen it at all. That was when we were going to hear their shocked expressions that I found both funny and annoying.
"Hey, Reece." Paul was walking up toward the front of the castle and saw me waiting for him.
"Hey, Paul." I waved at him.
"What did you need me for today? Is training resuming?" I saw the excitement on his face as he was eager to get back to work.
"Soon. I have something to show you and then something to explain to you."
"OK, that sounds like there is a lot of evasiveness in those words. I hope that everything is alright."
"Everything is fine. In fact, I think that you will be quite happy with what is going on right now." I grinned at him to show that there was nothing to worry about. "Come with me."
I led him to the dune buggy type of vehicle that I had gotten to drive around the now very vast inner part of the castle grounds. From there I drove him around the side of the mountain, a trek of about two miles or so. When he saw the building for the barracks his eyes went wide.
OK, to be fair it didn't look like a normal barracks. It wasn't like what you see on TV for an army location. It actually looked like a miniaturized castle, but less beautiful than the one that I lived in.
"What is this?" He asked with a laugh. "You guys need more castles now?"
"This is a barracks for the new army. Or as your two new captains have requested it to be called, the Goddess Knights."
"Goddess Knights?" He was looking confused. "And I have captains? So they outrank me?" He looked saddened by those words.
"Nope, you're the commander of the Knights, and they are your first captains." I grinned at him. "Congrats on the promotion."
"Dude? Seriously?" Paul's eyes went wide. "So Astro actually named me Commander of the new army?" He was staring at the building with shock and awe. I knew that he could seem dense, but it was all an act. He was actually a really smart man who was really really good at strategic planning. "I promise, Reece, I won't let you guys down."
"You better not." I gave him a stern look just to show him that this was something to take seriously.
I proceeded to show him the inside of the building. How it was divided up between two dormitory buildings and the dining hall in the middle. They would eat breakfast here since they would likely be getting up so early, chefs would be provided for them of course. He could then decide if they wanted all the soldiers to eat in the barracks or the castle for the other meals, since he was the commander, that decision was up to him.
I explained to him how there would be recruits from almost every species of supernatural that there was, including the Fae and the Vampires. He was shocked by that and surprised that he was going to be training so many people.
I showed him the training grounds that we had prepared, but I told him if there were changes he needed, we could take care of that as well. There were all types of courses that would help to train his recruits, including water to train the sea shifters. I wanted all types of people on our teams to defend us and attack for us if needed. This was a whole new world for us, and we needed to adapt to it.
By the time that I was done, it almost looked like Paul's mind was blown, but he switched instantly into his work mode. I could see the sharp glint in his eyes and the smirk that told me he was eager to get to work.
"When will my first group of fresh meat arrive?" He asked me, and I could tell that he was already planning out what he was going to make them do. "I am going to whip them all into shape and turn them into Knights worthy of my friends." His nod told me that he was one hundred percent serious right now.
"That's what I wanted to hear." I grinned back. "They arrive in five days. Take the time to prepare yourself. Also, you, Juniper, and the twins are invited to move into the residential part of the castle. You are not just friends, Paul, you're family."
