Zephyr sat at the dashboard of the computer in his laboratory and watched the data roll across the holographic screen.

"Human activity has tripled in the last week. At this rate there will be a catastrophic event in the next thirty days,” Azure, his AI informed him.

"I would like you to run some simulations of multiple scenarios, including various levels of disclosure. The purpose is to predict the reaction of humanity, and if it will be more or less dangerous to reveal our existence to them at this time."

“Compiling simulation data.”

"Inform me immediately when they are complete.”

“Yes, Lieutenant Zephyr," Azure said.

Zephyr rubbed his temples, standing from his chair. He was exhausted from long hours in the lab. Even after discovering the formula for a vaccine against the vampires, he and his team still hadn't determined a way to administer it across the world. The attacks on humans had not diminished. They had increased.

Since the emergence of all the other dragon houses, the pressure on the House of Storms had increased hundredfold. It wasn't that Zephyr wasn't pleased with their arrival — on the contrary, it presented an excellent opportunity. But while the House of Storms and House of Flames were distracted by introducing the new arrivals to their world, it seemed as if most of them had forgotten their primary mission. He understood that everyone needed a break — he did too — but there was still so much to be done.

Zephyr made his way to the kitchen, his stomach begging to be filled. He hadn't eaten all day. In the kitchen he found JoJo and Hanish, eating turkey sandwiches and feeding Tor.

"It's good to see you, Zephyr. You made yourself scarce lately.”

"There is still so much work to be done.”

"Now that the other houses have awakened and we’ve found the vaccine, we’re home free.”

"That is true in some respects," Zephyr said, “but the full truth is the human race may be too far gone, psychologically. The vampire attacks have introduced a strange new reality to them. And there's no going back.”

"The human race is going to have to find out about us sooner or later," Hanish said.

"Sir," Zephyr said, growing concerned about his captain’s flippant attitude. "There may be better or worse ways of going about the transition. If we can avoid alarming them, it would be preferable. We have seen that humans can be irrational and chaotic when fear drives them to a mob mentality. There's no telling what they might do if they learn the truth. We are already experiencing the beginning of such possibilities. Azure predicts a catastrophic event within the next thirty days if we remain on this course.”

“That should change once we distribute the vaccine. Continue with your research and let me know what else you find," Hanish said, turning back to JoJo and his son. Tor made a giggling noise and slapped his hand on his food tray, sending a spray of applesauce into the air. Both his parents gushed with delight at the display. Zephyr shook his head, starting out of the kitchen.

"Zephyr," Hanish said behind him. Zephyr turned back to face his captain.

"What is it, sir?" Zephyr asked.

"Why don't you focus on finding your mate and leave all of this worry about the humans’ reaction until something actually happens.”

"Now isn't the time to be concerned about my mate, Captain," Zephyr said.

"Now is the perfect time to be concerned about your mate. We’ve had the most progress against the vampires since our arrival on earth. It's time to relax, recharge, and celebrate. Sometimes things just have to take care of themselves.”

Zephyr knew he wasn't going to convince Hanish of anything right now. His captain was in his own little world with JoJo. Perhaps Zephyr was overreacting. But, as much as he wanted to tell himself that and trust his prince, he knew it wasn't true. They were so close to having the peace and prosperity they had all hoped for, now wasn't the time to relax. Now was the time to dig in and work harder.

As he approached the door to the basement, he realized he’d forgotten to get anything to eat. Zephyr gritted his teeth and turned toward the front door. He left the house and headed to the garage. He grabbed the keys to the white Tesla, slipped through the door, and sat behind the wheel. He quickly pulled out of the garage and made his way through the shields and onto the road toward the highway. He needed to get away from the lab and clear his head.

Perhaps he should just relax and enjoy the fruits of his previous labors. Perhaps focusing on his work was just a way to distract himself from the fact that he hadn’t found a mate yet. As he sped along the road and turned toward the coast, he realized how difficult it was to be without one.

"Have you made any progress on the simulations, Azure?" Zephyr asked through the mental link.

"The first analysis is complete, Lieutenant Zephyr," Azure said.

"Yes?"

"With the base variable of dispensing the vaccine but taking no further action, there is an 85% chance the human psyche will be driven to world war."

"85%." Zephyr shook his head. "Those are not good odds.”

"The human psyche is unpredictable," Azure said. “But it is predictably unpredictable."