Clara was sitting at her desk in her main office checking things on the computer. Things were going well since the introduction of Animalia Ambassadoria. There were several new comments on the Animalia webpage. ih8ulibs was still trolling, as was to be expected. But there was some others that either made her shake her head, or made her smile.
NizeGuy's latest post was about when they were introduced to Carlos' mate Dolores during Animalia Ambassadoria, and about he would like to "pluck her tailfeathers". Clara shook her head at the obviously sexual joke he made, since actually plucking a bird Animalian's tail feathers would actually hurt a lot, requiring a lot more force than was expected.
There were also a news report that she didn't expect to find: Animalia Virus Miracle Signals Mass Migration beginnings. Reading it, it told how, after the news that the Animalia Virus was capable of curing not only cancer but ALS as well, people who either had similar diseases, or had family members with similar diseases, were selling their original properties to live in Animalia. There were many reasons, but the top two were to cure their illness and start a new life as an Animalian. Because of this, she had ordered the Animalia Construction Crew to be ready for the influx of new "immigrants", so to speak. She also had opened Project Phoenix to allow pet owners with serious and/or terminal health conditions to treat/uplift their pets.
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There was also a report on how employment and entrepreneurship was at an all time high in Nevada, though not in Las Vegas. It also talked about how unemployed construction workers, for example, were planning to apply with Animalia Construction Company, both to gain a salary, and to teach them about building with concrete and steel.
It also talked about how "feeding" Animalia would lead to new technologies that might one day be used in various other applications, such as space travel. For example, the existence of Animalia led to a surge in environmental sciences, and conservation, which would ultimately further agricultural development that would lead to better colonization of other planets.
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Clara was just starting on the next article about Animalia when a furry arm wrapped around her shoulder from behind. At first startled, because it didn't smell like Robbie, she then identified the smell as her new mate Richard, or "Rick", as he was known in public (because his private name "Dick" wasn't really a name she could use in public).
"How is my future mother doing so far?" He asked. Clara smiled reminiscing to the ACE. They had been going at it for so long that her favorite Christmas present was the confirmation of her new pregnant status. The new bond shared between them was now more than just mates, but future parents as well.
"Doing well." Said Clara, placing a hand over her belly, "Just looking over the changes that Animalia has caused so far."
"Are you sure that you haven't seen your article yet?" Asked Rick, nodding to where their new Nobel Peace Prize medallion was standing near her computer. Behind Clara's desk, in honored place on the office wall, was the certificate acknowledging their winning of the Prize.
"No," said Clara, "I already read that as the first article I looked for."
"So what are we planning to do next?" Asked Rick, moving his hand to her right breast, and squeezing slightly.
"Easy, save it for tonight." Teased Clara, "First of all, the martial arts masters that the Shikamatsu family knew and contacted have arrived."
"Are they planning to go through Project Phoenix?" Asked Rick, stopping the squeezing, but keeping his hand in place.
"Yes," acknowledged Clara, "they plan to become animals typically associated with eastern martial arts, but they're also going to build a Martial Arts Dojo here in Animalia."
"Really?" Asked Rick, "I took Akido when I was a kid, but it didn't last very long."
"Yeah," said Clara, teasing him with her tail, "the plan is to have modern amenities in a traditional medieval eastern-style construction. There is also a plan to include many different martial arts from the Middle East and India, not just Japan and China."
"I'm just glad that people will learn that there is more to sumo wrestling than just body slamming your opponent." Said Rick, remembering the time someone in his middle school thought that WAS what sumo wrestling was about, and landing in the hospital after a brief scuffle with a real sumo wrestler.
"We're going to have a Feng Shui architect help with the building of the dojo, and the official opening of the dojo will be part of the Lunar New Year festivities I'm planning." Said Clara
"What have you got so far?" Asked Rick, hugging her close.
"So far, I've got displays on oriental artwork, purchasable where indicated; a Lunar New Year parade; an all-you-can-eat oriental buffet; and the Golden Dragon Acrobats doing a performance." Said Clara, pulling up a list of Lunar New Year Activities on the computer, and reading down the list so far.
"There's the smart kitty I married," said Rick, putting his head next to hers, "But I think this kitty has some stress she needs taken care of elsewhere." He whispered in her ear, putting extra emphasis on 'elsewhere'. Clara's heart fluttered at this, and she immediately got up and walked side-by-side with her mate to the bedroom, eager to enjoy her new mate and husband the way she liked the most.