Three Square Meals Ch. 076

John nodded then paused for a second and suddenly reaching an epiphany, he stated, "You knew this would happen, didn't you? That's part of the reason why you assassinated the Matriarchs that you did."

Edraele stopped by the door and gave him a rueful smile as she replied, "Maliri respond well to my distinctive appearance, but the behavioural modification can only do so much. We'll need you to speak with them to avoid the situation getting out of hand."

She led him over to a closed door and he could hear raised female voices drifting through from inside. When Edraele opened the door, he knew he could have cut the tension in the room with a knife. Thirteen of the dark-haired Matriarchs either sat and glowered, or had stood and were shouting at the four girls seated opposite them around a long, polished table. The only exception was Tsarra who glanced between the two sides, a look of concern on her lovely face.

"This is a trap, I know it!" an older Maliri woman hissed, pointing her finger at Kali Loraleth accusingly. "You're as duplicitous as your triple-faced bitch of a mother!"

Kali shrank back in her chair and shaking her head, she pleaded, "It's not, I promise!"

Another of the standing Matriarchs sneered and said, "As if your promises meant a thing!" She cocked her head to one side and added, "Wait a moment! What's that I hear? I think your wet-nurse is calling for you..." Glancing at the others, she continued with a sly smirk, "I'm sure there's plenty for all of you, too."

Several of the Matriarchs from the group of older women cackled maliciously at their colleague's jibe.

"That was uncalled for, Gaenna," Tsarra Perfaren said, frowning in disapproval. "These women haven't done anything to deserve such scorn."

"Don't talk down to me," Gaenna Baelora snapped. "I should never have listened to you or the crazed ravings from that Valaden whelp!"

"Perhaps it would be best if we just calmed down," Valani Naestina said, smiling serenely at the women on the opposite side of the large table. Her voice was soothing as she continued, "We just want to be friends with you and make an alliance. None of us bear you any ill will."

Another of the older women rolled her eyes and muttered condescendingly, "Didn't your mother teach you anything, you vacant little cretin? Matriarchs don't have 'friends'."

Having heard quite enough, John strode into the room and declared in a loud voice, "That's very unfortunate to hear - I was hoping to make some friends today."

All eyes in the room whirled around to look at him and while Tsarra and the Young Matriarchs' faces lit up with relief, the older women looked aghast. The Matriarch who had last spoken, sounded mortified as she blurted out, "I'm so sorry! I never meant-"

Holding up his hand to cut her off, John said sternly, "It was quite clear what you meant by that ugly display. I think you owe Valani an apology."

Looking to be on the verge of tears, the older woman said, "I'm so sorry, Valani."

Taking pity on the House Holaris Matriarch, the white-haired girl smiled at her and said, "That's alright, Emandra. I grew up being called far worse by my sisters."

The Matriarchs smiled at her joke and with their eyes fixed on John, they slowly sank back in their seats. Satisfied that order had been restored, John walked over to join them, sitting at the empty chair at the head of the ornately carved table. Edraele followed him into the room, then sat at his right side, with the Young Matriarchs seated beside her along that edge of the table.

Looking around at all the women staring his way, John smiled at them and said, "This is a momentous occasion, ladies. The nineteen of you represent every Maliri House and to all intents and purposes, you are the Maliri Regency. Now, have you ever met this way before?"

They all shook their heads, with the dark-haired women looking at him with big eyes.

Edraele spoke up for all of them in her clear, vibrant voice, "There's been no meeting like this in living memory. I believe such a thing was unheard of even through the last several generations of Matriarchs."

He nodded and looking around at his attentive audience, he said, "Yes, and it's a tragedy that the Maliri Regency has got itself into such a state. How can you work together to advance your people if you're at each other's throats killing one another?"

"We can't," Tsarra replied, her voice sombre and quiet.

John looked into her dark green eyes and smiled at her, making her heart flutter as he said, "That's right, Tsarra. If things continue the way they have been, the Maliri will be dooming themselves to extinction." Looking at the rest of his audience, he added, "I'm very fond of the Maliri and I don't want to see that happen. Do you?"

They shook their heads, completely spellbound as they listened to his every word.

Taking a deep breath, he continued, "Edraele suggested that I become your King and rule over all of you as your Monarch. Do any of you doubt that I could seize power right here and now, if I chose to do so?"

The repeated questions were helping them shrug off the effects of the behaviour modification, just as he'd intended. Tsarra stared at him for a moment and a look of apprehension crossed her pretty face as she admitted in a trembling voice, "Tashana was right - we're powerless to resist you. You could do whatever you wanted, take whatever you wanted, and we wouldn't be able to even summon the willpower to oppose you."

Reaching out to stroke her hand, John said, "That's true, but I'm no tyrant. Valani was correct earlier - I only wish to make friends and alliances with all of you. If you doubt my sincerity, you're free to leave and return to your own territory. I swear to you here and now that I'll make no move against you and you'll be left in peace as long as that effort is reciprocated." Looking around at his captivated audience, he continued, "Would any of you like to leave? You may do so, with my blessing."

He saw a few looks of consternation from the older matriarchs, but no one made a move to even stand, let alone leave the room.

Nodding with satisfaction, he said, "What I propose is this: I will adopt the role of 'Protector of the Maliri', but I'll simply be a figurehead, except in a few specific circumstances. All of you will continue to rule your Houses, but with several new ground rules that we must implement to secure a healthy future for each of your realms. Please be reassured that I have no wish to depose any Matriarch in this room. You have centuries of leadership experience between you, and I'd be a fool not to let you utilise your hard-earned skills."

"What are the 'specific circumstances' you mentioned?" Gaenna Baelora asked him, the expression on her face a curious mix of fascination and wariness.

He leaned back in his chair and sounded sombre as he replied, "There's another Progenitor out there, stirring up trouble in this part of the galaxy. If he should attack, I'd like you to grant me full control of the Maliri Regency's military might. That means you would cede every ship and soldier in your fleets to my command. We'll need to work together in a coordinated fashion if we're to stand any chance of fighting him off."

"So you'd only really be our leader in times of war?" Tsarra asked, looking at him curiously.

Nodding, he smiled at her and replied, "That's the plan. I'll be immune to coercion from this other Progenitor so I'm in a unique position to help hold him off." Glancing around the table at the women lost in thought, he continued, "Please let me know if you have any concerns."

Tsarra blushed then said fervently, "Whatever the other Matriarchs decide, I wish to ally House Perfaren with you, John Blake. You saved my life yesterday... I know in my heart what kind of a man you are and I believe you're telling me the truth."

With six of the top seven Houses now declared for him, all except for House Baelora at Rank Six, his forces now outnumbered those of the dark-haired Matriarchs that might oppose him. They knew it themselves, realising the extent of his unassailable position should hostilities be renewed. However, none of them wished to do so; they had all been swayed by his selfless intervention to save Tsarra at the cost of great personal injury to himself. One after the other they gazed into his eyes and made the same declarations of allegiance, until every Maliri House in the Regency was now united under his banner.

John looked around the room and saw calm acceptance from not just the Young Matriarchs, but all of the dark-haired Maliri too. He smiled at them and said, "Thank you for placing your trust in me. I promise I'll do everything in my power to keep you and all Maliri safe." After a telepathic prompt from Edraele, he arched an eyebrow and added, "Now, are there any long-standing grievances between your Houses that any of you would like to address, before we move on with anything else?"

With his calming presence, the forthcoming discussion was lengthy but reasonable, as they discussed centuries of betrayals and affronts. Somewhat unsurprisingly, each House had sinned against most of the others in some form or the other, from assassinations of Noble House members, right up to invasions and annexations of systems. In the overall balance of things, they were surprised to find that every House had suffered comparable losses at some point or the other. The two main exceptions were Valaden and Loraleth, the two biggest and largest Houses. However, Edraele and Kali astonished the other Matriarchs when they agreed to cede back systems to some of the weaker Houses that had been crippled by their depredations.

After a couple of hours of these discussions, John smiled at them and said, "This has been an extremely productive meeting. I'm proud of all of you for making an effort to work together to resolve your disputes." He looked around the table at the startled but pleasantly surprised women. "Is there anything else that you would like to discuss today?"

Edraele raised her hand and her tone was fervent as she said, "In the spirit of this newfound sense of cooperation between us, I believe we should go a step further regarding your Protector status. I propose we have you act as our Warleader for all external conflicts that involve the Maliri Regency. None of us, or our Fleet Commanders, have your tactical or strategic acumen - I think the battle simulation proved that without any shadow of a doubt."

John didn't bother to correct her that Calara was the military genius behind the battle simulation, as it was a moot point as far as the Matriarchs were concerned. He expected the women around the table to be outraged at the thought of handing over command of their forces but they looked thoughtful instead, as they mulled it over.

Kali smiled at him as she said, "Whatever the rest of these ladies decide, I'll give you full control of House Loralath's fleet assets."

The rest of the Young Matriarchs chorused their agreement and to everyone's surprise, their declarations were followed by Tsarra Perfaren, as she said to John, "I will do the same. Aadya was hopelessly outmatched in the simulator battles. If we should go to war with a hostile empire, as much as I respect my Fleet Commander, I know you'd use my forces more wisely and effectively than she could."

"Thank you. I promise you won't regret that decision," he said, meeting her intense gaze and smiling at her in gratitude.

Edraele's proposal was accepted unanimously, and just like that, he was now John Blake, Protector of the Maliri Regency.

Turning to the fourteen dark-haired Matriarchs, John said, "The last thing for us to do today is for you to link yourselves to me. Again, this is optional but if you choose to do so, I'll be able to restore your youth, adding another two-hundred years to your life expectancy and leave you looking as radiant as Edraele. Any woman you might have seen with white hair has accepted the same Gift although a few, like Edraele and the women sitting beside her, I've chosen for immortality. They'll sit at my side and help guide the Maliri towards a bright future over the course of millennia."

They gaped at him in awe, no one in the room doubting his sincerity for a moment. Unsurprisingly, everyone eagerly agreed to his offer.

John smiled at Edraele and asked, "Do you have a more comfortable room we could use?"

She returned his smile and nodded, then with a quick glance in their direction, the Young Matriarchs left the room, ready to prepare Edraele's own bedroom with lots more pillows and cushions. Edraele led the rest of the Matriarchs out, leaving John alone with Jade. His faithful Nymph had been standing quietly in the corner, observing the whole momentous occasion in awe and she grinned at him when it was only the two of them in the room.

Jade walked over to him with an extra bounce in her step, her emerald eyes flashing with arousal and rubbing up against him, she purred, "How do you wish to have me feed them, Master?"

Pulling her into his arms, John reached down to grasp her pert cheeks before squeezing them roughly. The firm muscles yielded to his strong grip as he asked, "Would you like to have fourteen Matriarchs sucking on those green tentacles of yours?"

The Nymph thought about it for a moment, then nodded as she replied in all seriousness, "I believe I would, Master."

They held hands as they left the large meeting room and walked out into the corridor beyond. Edraele was waiting for them outside her bedroom and she beckoned them along with an inviting smile. When they entered the bedroom, they found the Maliri waiting for them, eyes wide with arousal, now that the questions had ceased and the behavioural modification was back with a vengeance.

The Young Matriarchs were there too and they stripped off without a hint of modesty, standing before him in their glorious blue perfection. Taking their cue, the rest of the Maliri disrobed and despite nearly all of them being a century older that Leena, they were still slender, firm, and appealing in their physiques.

As John and Jade removed their clothes, Edraele glanced at a high-backed chair, then made a beckoning gesture towards it, lifting it through the air to land beside her. John smiled at her, then sat down in the chair, guiding Jade to him as he did so. The two of them moved with practiced familiarity, Jade settling down on his lap and sinking his rock-hard shaft into her clutching ass. Her normally-cool body felt warm against his chest as she settled back against him, resting her head against his shoulder, then turning to look at him in adoration.

She squeezed him rhythmically, tentacles snaking out from her body as she massaged his shaft with her internal muscles. "Thank you for letting me help you, Master," she panted as she eased her tentacle-cocks between the parted lips of the fourteen now-kneeling Matriarchs.

He groaned at that exquisite sensation and at the same time, pairs of soft hands gently pushed his thighs wider apart. He looked down in surprise as he felt Kali and Nyrelle's soft tongues lapping his balls a few seconds later, while Jade moaned with delight as Leena and Valani each took a big verdant breast between them and sucked on the Nymph's dark green nipples.

"Does that feel good, My Lord?" Edraele asked him, her tone respectful and submissive as her lips brushed against his ear.

John shivered at the sensation of her lusty breath tickling his skin, her tongue flickering out to taste him as she kissed his sensitive earlobe. Just as he was getting used to that, he moaned as Jade dutifully replicated the sensation of her verdant tentacles pushing deeper into fourteen willing mouths. Driving up with his hips, he tried to impale himself deeper into the Nymph but her ring was already stretched tight around the base of his shaft. The pre-cum he was releasing had coated the Matriarchs throats, preparing them for deeper penetration and leaving them whimpering with need.

He reached around Jade to run his fingers through Leena and Valani's silky hair, holding their heads in place as they sucked harder on the Nymph's dark-green nipples. When he looked down, he saw all four of the Young Matriarchs gazing up at him, reverent expressions on their faces as they worshipped him and Jade with their tongues.

*I spoke to the girls earlier,* Edraele informed him as she continued to nibble on his ear. He could hear her excitement as she added, *All four of them are eager to start rebuilding their Houses. Once you've shown them how wonderful making love can be, they can't wait for you to give each of them a baby.*

John groaned at the thought, his cock throbbing in Jade's snug, clenching ass. He could see that knowing look in the four sets of youthful Maliri eyes gazing up at him and knew Edraele was relaying everything to them. *I can't hold out much longer if you keep this up,* he warned her, his body riding a tidal wave of sensation.

*Why fight it?* she asked him, sounding confused. *The Matriarchs are all hungry for your cum and the girls love that you find the thought of getting them pregnant to be so exciting.*

He couldn't deny the truth in what she was saying and he bucked into Jade, his quad tense with anticipation of his imminent release.

*I'll give you status updates every day until you return,* Edraele promised him, her soft lips kissing his cheek. *We'll be able to measure their growing tummies for you while we're all in bed together. Alyssa said that it's really important we sleep together every night, and learn to make each other cum, at least until you're back and filling us with your big hard cock.*

*Jesus!* he snarled as he rammed his cock into Jade and let loose his cum with a mighty blast from his quad.

He could feel Kali and Nyrelle sucking on two of his balls, their tongues lapping at each flexing orb as he pumped cum up his shaft and into the gasping Nymph who writhed on top of him. Sometime during Edraele's teasing, Leena had been stroking Jade's clit, while Valani had eased two of her fingers into Jade's clenching pussy. Between the girls' soft lips and teasing digits, and John's jerking shaft up her ass, the overstimulated Nymph let out a keening wail and joined him in his climax.

The tentacles pulsed rhythmically as Jade funnelled his load into the Matriarchs' waiting bellies, their eyes glazing over as they swallowed his spunk. John could only groan in ecstasy as his quad was milked dry, until he sagged back in the chair with a broad grin on his face.

Edraele leaned in to kiss him again and with a smile of profound satisfaction on her face, she whispered in his ear, "Long live the King."

***

Many light years away, a House Valaden destroyer dropped out of hyper-warp, appearing on the outskirts of the Beta-Capricornus system in a cloud of blue tachyon particles. The ship had been dispatched from the closest fleet base - one of the facilities established long ago, which sent out patrols along the vital trade route to Genthalas Station. However, the destroyer wasn't out on patrol today; it had a far more vital mission to undertake.

Ignoring the green jungle-world known as Quanthos, which was the only habitable planet in the system, the Maliri vessel zeroed in on the last known location of the satellite. The ship swept through the system, until its sensors found the forlorn remnants of the communication beacon, located in orbit around an amber gas giant. The sophisticated comms relay had been savaged by House Holaris laser fire, breaking a centuries-old covenant to leave the communications network undamaged, which ensured the Maliri could always respond to external threats.

With the realisation that the comms beacon was unsalvageable, the Captain of the destroyer gave the command and a new communications relay was launched without ceremony. Transmitting the activation codes took but a moment and lights on the side of the satellite flashed green as it surged into life, ready to route messages from the border stations back to the centre of Valaden Space.