"Well after the fight and we were in shock, a woman walked out of the trees," Lee said.

  Mike leaned forward. "A woman?"

  "Yeah, but she wasn't human. Not entirely anyway," Paul continued. "She's a... well, she's a cat girl."

  John's eyebrow raised. "Cat girl? Like a Khajiit or more Konoko from High School DxD?"

  Lee, Ste, and Liam grinned at John, he grinned back. Paul and Parmo exchanged confused looks.

  The moment passed, and Liam picked up the thread. "More like option two. Her name is Shai. She's the guard captain from a village not far from here. She said she was out scouting when she saw the town, or at least what we have left of it, and came to check if we were a threat."

  "And she just... talked to you?" Mike asked.

  "Yeah, she was calm about the whole thing. Didn't seem hostile at all," Ste said. "She even helped us process the goblin kill. We were feeling pretty shit about it, and she explained that goblins are pests, worse than wild animals cos they'll attack for no reason. She told us it's not like we'd murdered a person, we just got rid of a problem that everyone wants gone."

  Mike nodded slowly. "Okay. So what did she want?"

  Lee took a breath. "That's where it gets complicated. She told us a lot, Mike. We're basically in over our heads, and we're not even close to having a fix for everything."

  "How bad?" Mike asked, his tone shifting.

  "Bad," Paul said quietly. "We're on a different planet entirely, Mike. It's called Valoris. We're on the border of a human empire. The Boundborn Empire. It's ruled by nobles who are above the law, they're greedy, they have magic. The border we're on also borders something called the Wilds, and that's where the goblin came from. There's definitely worse things out there, and it's not far away."

  Mike went very still.

  "There's more," Lee said. "The nobles in the empire, they enslave people. Shai's people, the beast-kin, mostly. Shai mentioned they just take them off the street if they're attractive enough. They keep them as pets or force them to fight in arenas for sport."

  "Jesus Christ," John breathed.

  "Yeah," Parmo said. "And that's the thing, Shai's village, they're mostly beast-kin from the sounds of it. They're on the border too, living on the edge of the Wilds just like we are. When we learned all of this, we knew we needed help. We can't survive out here alone. We don't know what's out there, we don't know how to defend ourselves properly, and if the empire finds out about us..." He trailed off.

  "They'd come for us," Mike finished.

  "Probably," Liam said. "Shai said the core of the empire is far away, so we should have time. But she also said if they learn about the town, about what we have, they'd send people to take over. They'd want to control us, with force if needed."

  Mike rubbed his face. "And Shai's village? Why would they help us?"

  "Because they can, and because it's in their interest," Ste said. "Shai offered. She said her village could teach us what food is safe to hunt and gather, help us with protection, training in magic and combat. Everything we'd need to survive out here. But she said she'd have to ask the village elders, get them to agree to an alliance."

  "An alliance," Mike repeated.

  "Yeah," Lee said. "And here's the thing, we have something to offer them back. Shai saw our buildings when she was scouting the town initially. The glass, the roads, I imagine cars as well. She said it's all way more advanced than anything they've ever seen. She was shocked when we mentioned guns."

  Mike's head snapped up. "You told her about guns?"

  "We didn't have much choice," Paul said. "She asked what weapons we had. We tried to explain why we don't have swords, and it came up. She didn't know what they were at all. But when we explained what they could do, she understood immediately how much that would change warfare for them."

  "The shock on her face Mike, it was like we just told her God exists and he lives next door, want to meet him? I think she realised it's in her people's best interest to protect us, cos if the empire found out we had knowledge of how guns are made, they would go to any length to get them." Lee kept going. "I think she also knows we could be a trump card if the empire changes its stance on the border and the people living out here."

  The author's narrative has been misappropriated; report any instances of this story on Amazon.

  "Yeah, that makes sense. Reason enough to want to keep us away from the empire I suppose," agreed Mike.

  "We also have the library," Liam added. "All the knowledge from Earth. Agriculture, medicine, engineering, history. Shai must realise we have more info. That kind of information would be valuable here. There's a lot we can trade."

  Mike stood up and walked to the window, looking out at the town. He was quiet for a long time.

  "How long do we have?" he finally asked.

  "She's coming back tomorrow," Lee said. "We're meeting her at eleven. She said she'd have an answer from the elders by then, and if they agree, we can work out the details of when to hold a meeting to form the alliance. But Mike, we need to do this. Without their help, we're sitting ducks. With it, we have a real chance."

  Mike turned back to face them. His expression was serious, determination clear on his face.

  "You're right," he said quietly. "We need this."

  Mike was quiet for a moment, then he nodded to himself.

  "I should grab Janet," he said. "She needs to hear this."

  "I can go get her," Paul offered. "We saw her outside on the way in."

  "Yeah, cheers," Mike said. "She's organising people, she won't have gone far."

  Paul left the office. The remaining boys shifted slightly, not knowing if they needed to say anything else.

  "Is there anything you need Mike?" Lee asked. "Or anything we can do to help prepare?"

  Mike leaned back in his chair, considering. "Actually, yeah. Me and Janet have been working on something. We've been putting together a shortlist of people in town who could help run different things. Food distribution, defence, logistics, that sort of thing. This alliance changes the priority, but the plan's still sound. We need people who know what they're doing."

  "What kind of people are you looking for?" Ste asked.

  "All sorts, really. We've got plenty of bricklayers and construction workers, which is good for building walls and shelters. But we need people with specific knowledge. Combat experience, fitness training, engineering, agriculture. Anyone you know who stands out in those areas?"

  The boys exchanged looks.

  "We know a few people like that," Liam said slowly. "But we're not sure if they were in the boundary when everything shifted. Some people were outside of town or further away from the area that got brought here when it happened."

  "Yeah, that's been a problem," Mike agreed. "We're still working out exactly who we've got. But if you come across anyone, let me know."

  The door opened and Paul came back in with Janet.

  "Alright, what's happened?" she asked.

  She stopped mid-step, her eyes landing on the goblin's corpse on the sheet.

  "What the fuck is that?" she said, stepping back slightly.

  "The lads had a run-in during training," Mike said. "They've got information we need to talk through. Pull up a chair."

  Janet sat down, her expression shifting to all business. Mike gave her the quick version—goblin attack, Shai's appearance, the alliance offer, the empire threat, the timeline. Janet listened without interrupting.

  When Mike finished, Janet was quiet for a moment. She looked at the goblin again, then back at the boys. "So, you killed that thing then met an alien? Why is it you five always seem to have something happen whenever you go off alone?" She shook her head and went on.

  "So this woman is coming back tomorrow?"

  "Yeah at eleven," Lee confirmed.

  John, who'd been quiet until now, spoke up. "I might be able to help with some of this. I know it's not a perfect fit, but I used to play RTS games professionally. Base building, resource management, strategic planning, that's the sort of thing I've spent years thinking about. If you want someone to help work through logistics and defence strategy, I can offer some input."

  Mike nodded. "Yeah I was thinking the same thing. I know it's not the sort of thing you'd shot on your resumé, but it's better than just throwing shit at the wall. So that could be useful, yeah. Cheers, John."

  Janet leaned back in her chair. "We need to have the full picture before we start pulling people in. Let's get the council sorted first, pool our ideas on what we need and what we're actually trying to build here. Once we have that locked down, we can brief the rest of the town. They need to know some of this, like about Shai and her village, but for now let's keep the threat of the empire and the Wilds under wraps. Once we have support from the village we can slowly let people know about the dangers closer to home."

  "The timeline's pretty tight," Parmo said. "We need to know what to tell Shai when we meet her tomorrow."

  "Fair point," Janet said. "We'll get moving on it today. Mike, we can start working through the shortlist this afternoon, get a better idea of who we're talking to. Boys, when you meet Shai tomorrow, we should have a few more people in the know who have a bit of knowledge in things we're going to need. They can co-ordinate with Shai's people. You can tell her we're forming a leadership structure to coordinate with her people. That we're taking this seriously and we agree to the meeting. We might need a few days to get everything set up. Ask her when she wants us to meet her people."

  Mike looked at the boys. "Is there anything else we need to know before you go?"

  "Nah, that's more or less everything we know. Maybe see if you can round up some volunteers for a town guard or something. They can get in on the training Shai offered when the alliance is sealed," said Paul.

  "Yeah that's something we were thinking of sorting when we get the council up and running. Cheers lads," Mike said. "You lot should get some rest. You've had a crazy day. Come back this evening if you want to know what we've decided, or we'll catch you before you leave to see Shai tomorrow."

  The boys nodded and stood. As they headed for the door, Lee paused.

  "Thanks for believing us," he said.

  Mike smiled slightly. "You wouldn't be here if you were making this up. And you clearly understand what we're all facing. That's more than a lot of the people round would manage at the minute. We'll see if any of that changes when this all comes out. See you later guys."