[Catgirls moving in from the derelict space station and colony]

Herding cats was difficult in any world.

Herding several thousands of more or less kidnapped and displaced catgirls ranked even higher.

None of them owned a lot, but they all had their small toys, blankets, and knick-knacks.

Herding cats while telling them that their collection of old scrap was not necessary was a battle.

--- Arteris Galaxy - Resos Sector - XS084 Solar System ---
--- S.C. Zaria the Floof - 01.03.934 ---
--- XS084-2S Cats Box Space Station - Radom Engineer Catgirl Cubicle ---

"Meow need nyuu cables!" A grey catgirl was clutching a bundle of spliced cables like they were a lifeline. She was clearly hesitant to leave them out of her sight.

"Place them in this box, then," one of the many masked one-tails mentioned as it formed a box out of a piece of wall. "You can put everything in there, it will be disinfected, cleaned, and delivered to your chosen flat."

"Meow blanket and meow needs to look nyuu!" The kitty demanded while placing the bundles carefully into the box.

"You do know that I will see your stuffed toy when I will be cleaning it," The one-tail reminded the catgirl with a pointed look towards the pillow on the small bed.

"Nyuu!" The blushing catgirl cried out in denial.

--- Arteris Galaxy - Resos Sector - XS084 Solar System ---
--- S.C. Zaria the Floof - 01.03.934 ---
--- Medical Onboarding Facility ---

"Meow nyau sick?"

Linnea looked at the frightened catgirl, tail straight and puffed up, ears up, even the slight shaking was obvious to her. Over four decades in a low oxygen, high contamination, and permanent radiation environment had taken its toll on the catgirl. DNA damage, cellular damage leading to neurological damage, organ damage, hair-loss or maybe fur-loss, and end stage leukemia. "You will be fine, you will need therapy naturally, it won't feel great, strengthening your skeletal structure and getting you used to proper gravity, we are looking at three weeks, not counting physical therapy. Your life span should increase from about another few months to about two more centuries." Internally, the medic marvelled about how different this simple truth was. With 'normal' medical technology, it would have extended the catgirls life span to another decade at most. Instead, she would get a repair of her DNA, cells would get recycled and replaced with healthy ones, and she'd get a full detox without spending weeks inside a medical pod.

Hive tech and nanite tech were such cheats.

Linnea once again reminded herself that staying on the S:C: Zaria the Floof had been the best choice she had ever made. "When you pick your temporary housing, either live alone, since the detoxification and repairs are disgusting, or stay at the hospital in an easy to clean room for a while. I recommend blocking your sense of taste and smell."

"Nyuu! Meow want fish!" The now agitated catgirl was worried about not being able to taste the deliciousness that was the legendary food.

Linnea wondered what kind of crazy nutcase managed to insert cat noises and love for fish on a genetic level. Never mind that weird tail instinct. "According to this, your sense of taste is already damaged. It has degraded to about 37%."

The patient froze for a moment, even the tail froze instead of swishing nervously. "Fish will taste even nyan? Meow can nyuu taste nyan?"

"Yes, and let me tell you, the dark elves that I heard speak about the difference in taste once they were healed was interesting." Linnea remembered one of the dark elves that overate on steak after her sense of taste had been repaired. "Why don't you have another fish bento while you decide?" Since she was used to talking to sensible people, she added; "the sooner you do it, the sooner you will get full taste back, and naturally instead of eating fish for a few months, you will be able to eat it for another 200 years. Now what fish do you want to try today?"

The catgirl pulled out the carefully folded leaflet describing the first ten types of fish offered and rechecked her choices. "Meow think meow will try the cod nyan~" She decided much calmer now, she could be healed, and she wanted to taste them all so she could tell how much better they tasted later.

--- Arteris Galaxy - Resos Sector - XS084 Solar System ---
--- S.C. Zaria the Floof - 01.03.934 ---
--- XS084-2S Cats Box Space Station - Reactor Rooms ---

A swaying catgirl in a heavy radiation protection suit led Zaria into the fission reactor core area. The cleaner antimatter generator had long gotten decommissioned due to lack of antimatter. The station had been powered by solar and barely working nuclear fission before the S.C. Zaria the Floof had connected it to her power supply. Most of the station had been powered down as much as it could be before the endless power supply it was now connected to. Life support and the clinic, which was important for procreation, were the parts that had the most stable power supply.

"Meow sick from radiation, why is meow not wearing a nyau?" The catgirl leaned against a wall to rest for a moment.

Zaria poked the suit, marvelling at the tube for the tail, "I don't think that a heavily irradiated suit is much protection. Why don't you take it off, and I simply shield you?"

"Nyuu, meow would need to nyah shield first. Meow would hiss in seconds, the nyaun is hiss in nyau and radiatyaun." The catgirl lifted some sort of scanner as if to prove her point.

She blinked at the scanner as it showed very weird values.

"Nyau?" The confused catgirl poked the scanner, then she shook it when the displayed values did not change.

The albino floof smirked, "naturally, I shielded you. Down to a comfortable temperature and blocking all surrounding radiation."

"Meow use shield?"

"I have no need for it. My biological regeneration and resistance is better than a little radiation can overcome, and my nanites are hardened enough to survive dipping into hyperstars," the albino described the highly radioactive environment adaptations in the same way someone described clothing for slightly warmer weather.

"Meow so nyau…" The albino's body's specifications were so far outside any logical realm and were clearly breaking the laws of physics.

--- Arteris Galaxy - Resos Sector - XS084 Solar System ---
--- S.C. Zaria the Floof - 01.03.934 ---
--- XS084-2S Cats Box Space Station - Fertility and Procreation Laboratory ---

It was the best shielded and healthiest place on the whole station. Pregnant catgirls and babies were living here for the later duration of their pregnancies and the first year of their life, it also held a repository of extracted egg cells from generations of residents.

As they were an all female race, they were artificially impregnated by merging two egg cells. For compatibility reasons, the primary egg cell was from the one who was going to carry the child. Naturally, any healthy enough female was allowed to carry children even if they were infertile.

Currently, the Tamas of Healing, Motherhood, Catgirls, Family, Drugs, and Medicine were checking and fixing the laboratory's residents. Naturally, Zarias were present as well, five five-tails and fifteen one-tails.

Naturally, the presence of 94 fluffy and not decontaminated tails and 'clean, fresh' air was throwing the staff into a panic. Unlike the other catgirls, these were getting priority treatment, which meant every fox present was cheating to the full extent of their powers.

"Nyau not make sense!" A doctor meowed as she watched the five-tail remove an extra hand from a baby and regrow a proper fluffy ear, while one of the nine-tails was ticking the belly of the giggling baby. One that had always been crying and screaming before, which they had suspected had been due to permanent pain.

"It is fine, I am administrating genetic treatment as well, all the generational damage will be removed," the five-tailed left certain things unsaid, like the fact that she was improving the DNA a little, she used catgirls, from the many worlds she had been to, as templates for the improvements. Correcting the genetic sequences into something closer to what it would be due to natural evolution, just a little cleaner but nowhere near super species level. The nyah, fish, and tailstinct were left inside but optimized a little.

The five-tailed suddenly remembered she had never 'improved' her nanite obsessed catgirl, then again, it wasn't needed. She had long 'infected' her kitty with nanites, hive cells, and grains of PSI crystals.

"Meows DNA is hiss, meow nyuu see how meow nyan DNA," a frowning doctor complained.

"I am using a mix of hive biotechnology, nanites, and magic," A five-tail explained and pointed at the Tamas. "Also, we are cleaner than the air you are breathing."

One of the pregnant future mothers broke out in happy tears as she was told that her baby was now healthy, and they were both going to make it.

--- Arteris Galaxy - Resos Sector - XS084 Solar System ---
--- S.C. Zaria the Floof - 01.03.934 ---
--- Medical Onboarding Facility ---

Zerula was a doctor, she had been for a long time, but this was ridiculous.

Peering at her from behind desks, chairs, doors, and medical equipment were around twenty catgirls.

She felt like a guardian, which she was in a certain way. She and her vaccine injections were the last checkpoint before the DL5 Dark Elven Settlement replica and the fish dishes awaiting the catgirls. The injection was mostly a vaccine, with a packet of modified hive cells that were meant to keep the catgirls stable inside the very changed environment until everyone could be informed about their health status and their medical treatments and with rehabilitation options.

She had to admit that Zaria was a sadist, the leviathan had somehow manipulated the airflow in a way that let the smell of the many fish dishes flow though the vaccine station, tempting the catgirls. There was also a video feed showing a bunch of very satisfied, post fish catgirls.

Finally, another one managed to muster all her courage and approached to get her shot. Those not afraid of needles, wary of strangers from other races, and fine with unknown injections had already passed the final battle.

"Meow ready," the kitty whispered while looking towards the gateway to freedom instead of the large injection awaiting her.

"Pills or injection?" Zerula knew that most preferred the injection, since the set of 5 pills was big. Each held payload, nutrients, and protection so the biological components didn't get digested. It was very unpopular, despite the dislike almost all catgirls held against injections.

"Meow want hiss," the catgirl held her arm out.

Zerula smiled wryly, then quickly injected the transparent liquid into the offered arm.

A whimper and closed puncture later, the catgirl was done and rushed off into freedom, 'rush' was a bit much considering the 0,5 G gravity compared to the 0,3 G that the space station had been under.

"Meow will nyom fish~" the blue haired catgirl passed the door and cheered upon seeing Cooking Tama and several of her mikos taking care of catgirls that were slowly eating their dishes in the increased gravity.

--- Arteris Galaxy - Resos Sector - XS084 Solar System ---
--- S.C. Zaria the Floof - 01.03.934 ---
--- DL5 Dark Elven Settlement Replica - Random Newly Occupied Flat---

The catgirl couple, one red haired, the other one green haired, were staring at the leaflet that had come with the flat they had picked in awe.

"Meow sure nyah is a two-meow home?" Green asked Red.

"Meow think nyah has enough space for eight meows." The red haired catgirl replied as she looked into one of the two single rooms. It was a normal small single person planet side room, on a half deprecated space station that was a room for four survivors.

The very large flat and rooms, for them, combined with the large open expanse of the replicated settlement, was enough to cause agoraphobia in them.

"Meow want to share nyan again," Red admitted, uncomfortable with all the empty space and silence.

"Meow agree," Green confirmed. She poked the single person bed. "Nyah is so nyan and nyan," she mentioned in awe.

Red was exploring the blanket, "Nyah is so nyan and looks nyau~"

The two catgirls shared looks, then jumped onto their new and far too comfortable, for their standards, bed.

--- Arteris Galaxy - Resos Sector - XS084 Solar System ---
--- S.C. Zaria the Floof - 02.03.934 ---
--- DL5 Dark Elven Settlement Replica - Small Playground ---

The paranoia and agoraphobia from having so much open space was causing chaos. The weirdest place, however, was the playground. It had claimed some amusing casualties for even more amusing reasons.

A group of exhausted catgirls were asleep in the grass. Several had climbed trees and were stuck now. Several more had found out scratching a tree was immensely satisfying. The climbing area had catgirls climbing, hanging off the logs, and catgirls climbing over catgirls.

It was not restricted to the children, the adults were joining in the fun and chaos.

A few had fallen off whatever they were climbing, and only timely intervention of grass or nanite cushions catching them had prevented injuries. Weakened and brittle bones were a serious issue for the former space station

Very quickly, exhaustion set in. Gravity having increased by 60% was a lot. It wasn't deadly, but it was extremely exhausting. The muscles were simply not trained for it, even if genetics, and the modifications from their creators, helped with the muscular and bone structure. However, generations of radiation had complicated things. Aside from using magic to completely fix things, healing and rehab were going to take time. Remaking the bodies of the catgirls as they should be was possible, but they weren't going to do it.

"Help meow!" A blue haired kitten cried as she held onto the large tree branch.

"Meow need help too!" A pink haired adult catgirl cried, a branch lower.

Two of the one-tails watching and guarding the newcomers walked to the tree and walked up the treetrunk. "I am holding you, you can release the branch now."

"Meow hiss!" The pink adult was clutching the branch tightly with all her fading strength.

The branch above the other one-tail had an easier time coaxing the kitten. "There's a good girl, here, you may hug my tail." The albino coaxed the kitten into holding onto the tail instead of the branch.

The kitten switched with little hesitation once she felt the hand holding onto her safely. The fluffy white tail was simply too much of a temptation. "Meow tail is so nyan~"

From below, a different kitten called out, "Meow is so jelly! Meow want to mofu mofu meow tail too!" The kitten then clearly made up her mind and approached the tree.

Another one-tail quickly captured the tiny nyandere before she became yet another cat in need. "Got you~" The one-tail flicked the kitten's nose with the tail tip.

"Nyan~" the kitten explained and hugged the fluffy tail.

Her mother on the other hand was fretting. The tail her little kitten was clutching belonged to the large leviathan that they were inside. Grabbing their saviour’s tail felt really rude, especially since she wasn't family.

--- Arteris Galaxy - Resos Sector - XS084 Solar System ---
--- S.C. Zaria the Floof - 02.03.934 ---
--- XS084-2 Above Kitten Home Colony ---

The many catgirls in the colony were healthier than the ones from the station.

A ground based colony was always easier to maintain than a pure space station. With 0,7 G the gravity was far healthier for their bodies as well.

Now, it was time to convince the colony dwellers to move. And to do this, Zaria decided to use bribes and bait.

First, she ignored the council and simply invited everyone to the commercial zone.

The dark elves took advantage quickly. These colonists were survivors, paranoid, living in worse conditions than even dark elves. Art and pretty clothes were less important than small cute trinkets or toys and fitting and sturdy clothing. Tools and home necessities took priority, including images and small setups to prove their points.

There were very odd situations at times, though. Cultural differences quickly became obvious.

--- Arteris Galaxy - Resos Sector - XS084 Solar System ---
--- S.C. Zaria the Floof - 02.03.934 ---
--- XS084-2 Above Kitten Home Colony - Commercial Zone - Pet Store ---

"Meow like this nyah~" The catgirl was circling the basket, it looked perfect for her little one. Just add a blanket and a pillow and her kitten would have a good sleep. "Meow really like this nyah~"

The dark elf salesgirl of the pet store was confused but took it in a stride. There had been catgirls that wanted collars, bells, toys, scratching posts, and pet ribbons. "It is a little small though, over there we have larger ones. We have enclosed ones too, if you want your little one to have a cave." She sent orders for some adult sized ones, one to her usual suppliers for more extravagant models, and one to Zaria for some simple ones to start out. Luckily, buying things from the leviathan was incredibly cheap as long as it was necessities and simple items.

Zaria delivered instantly, simply replacing the cages and pet carriers with larger open-top baskets and cat caves.

"If you want larger ones, I can show you ones large enough for you and your partner," the dark elf offered with a smile when she received the delivery confirmation and a message detailing where they had been placed.

"Nyah! Meow want to see!" The catgirl perked up.

The dark elf led the catgirl to the corner where the stock had gotten replaced.

"Meow and meow will fit nyaside, but nyah is too nyah for meow nyau." The catgirl lamented as she circled a large open-top basket with a large pillow and two blankets placed inside.

It was probably large for a tight colony home, but it was smaller than a two-person bed.

"It won't be an issue if you just move in like the other catgirls," the dark elven salesgirl pointed out. "Look, this is my old flat, my new one," she pulled out her tablet and showed the kitty the pictures of her old and new homes.

The catgirl peered at the images. "Meow has large nyah! Enough space for six meows in old nah, new nyah can hold many more meows." She pondered how expensive the home was. "Meow can't, meow too nyauu for this."

The dark elf once again praised the translator that the crazy leviathan had distributed. "Actually, this basket costs about two months rent including services for my new place."

"Nyah?" The catgirls brain froze, then she rechecked the price of the basket, and checked it against her credit balance. "Nyah?" The home sounded far too cheap.

"Best place to live I have heard about. If you are good with simple foods and a small hole to live in, you don't even need to work," the dark elf remembered a few dark elves she knew that decided to do nothing for a while. They were literally living in holes in the caves that the leviathan made for some reason.

The catgirl looked back at her dream basket. She wanted it. She needed it. Her tail told her it was purrfect.

It was also too large to fit their home and too heavy to carry for her.

She had to convince her wife and kitten to move to the leviathan. They were both meowderes, so this basket was going to be heaven for them.

--- Arteris Galaxy - Resos Sector - XS084 Solar System ---
--- S.C. Zaria the Floof - 02.03.934 ---
--- XS084-2 Above Kitten Home Colony - Commercial Zone - Fish on a Stick ---

'Fish on a Stick' was a sorta fast food joint that was selling fish on sticks. Skewered fish was a simple dish, and not every fish was suitable. Mackerel, trout, and charr were the traditional, at least according to Zaria, fish on a stick. (Steckerlfisch, wikipedia has a decent entry for it)

Yet somehow it was one of the most crowded places in the commercial zone now. Catgirls watching the fish sizzle above the heat. Each time one of them got her order, she cheered while the rest hissed in dissatisfaction and envy.

For what was supposed to be a small snack stall, they were nowhere near ready for the rush of the starved for fish catgirls.

"Nyom!"
"Nyom!"
"Nyom!"

"Hiss!"
"Hiss!"
"Hiss!"
"Hiss!"

"Without the translator, I'd have no idea what was going on," One of the cooking dark elves mentioned to her partner at the mackerel grill.

"To me, it sounded the same, and our ears are supposed to be good," her partner complained.

"Nyom, nyom, and nyom sound totally nyau." A blue haired catgirl corrected the two dark elves despite staring without blinking at the fish she had ordered.

The pair just shared a confused look. No matter what, it sounded the same to them.

--- Arteris Galaxy - Resos Sector - XS084 Solar System ---
--- XS084-2 Kitten Home Colony - 03.03.934 ---
--- Council Hall ---

"Meows to nyau!" The council leader announced.

"Meows need to nyah the nyan to hiss nyah." A council member announced the agenda.

"Meow has fish!" One of the younger, and less important, council members came to the point.

"Meow is nyau to hiss meows!" An older council member announced with clear dissatisfaction.

"Meow wonder if it is nyan that meows are safe nyow?" One of the more factual council members asked.

"Meow has given nyuu proof, the laws could be hiss!" The council leader declared. "How are the nyah going?"

"Since the meow is blocking the hiss, we are doing full nyah, but many meows want to leave." One of the older council members lamented.

"Nyan nyah went up by 43%, oxygen is up by 5,6%. Power is supplied by meow since meow is blocking the solar nyaus." A council member responsible for infrastructure reported. "Meow is offering full renyan, renyan, and renyan if meows decide to stay."

"Meows cannot trust meow!" The council leader slammed her fist onto the table, and hissed when it hurt her hand.

"Many meows want to myugrate," the council member in charge of public order complained. She continued clearly dissatisfied with the situation, "fish, large nyans, better medical nyahs, and more place to nyau than we have."

"Meow can't trust hiss!" The elder in charge of security declared.

"Meow is fluffy and a shipnyah. If meow wants to force meows, meows can't stop meow."

"Meow think the meownyahs are real. Meow watched meow heal dying meows." The council member in charge of the medical facilities and population.

"Meows need to declare nyagration hiss!" The council leader finally declared.

"Meow said meow will take any meows who want to nyagrate, nyuu matter what meows say." The youngest council member reminded everyone.

--- Arteris Galaxy - Resos Sector - XS084 Solar System ---
--- XS084-2 Kitten Home Colony - 03.03.934 ---
--- Community Space ---

"Meow is wanting to move, but meows are saying it is hiss." A catgirl looking at her two daughters at the playground complained to her friend who was there with her daughter.

"Meow found out that there is a nyancare on the nyah." The second mother explained. "Nyah space, toys, fish, nyan, and lessons, and nyah for nyau."

"Meow hear that meows are nyuu meows from moving." One of the other mothers added.

"That'ss hiss!" The first mother hissed.

"Ignore them," another voice, an unknown one, added. "If you want to move, just tell me, and I will help you move, and there is nothing anyone can do to stop me."

The trio of mothers turned, and saw a fluffy albino with a smug smirk.

"I am Zaria, the leviathan. I have to admit that your kittens are adorable," The five-tail turned and showed the five daughters that were clutching a tail each. "They have a great future, they went straight for the tails."

The three mothers blushed.

--- Arteris Galaxy - Resos Sector - XS084 Solar System ---
--- XS084-2 Kitten Home Colony - 03.03.934 ---
--- Packing up a Home ---

"Meow want to have everything nyau!" The catgirl demanded of the one-tail.

"Sure," the one-tail agreed, and started packing.

The proud catgirl nodded satisfied. When the servant returned from the bathroom with the shower door, she blinked.

"What the nyau?" It slipped out before she could stop herself.

"You said take everything," the one-tail reminded her.

The catgirl coloured a little. "Meow mean personal things, not everynyah."

"I think a toilet is very personal."

"Nyuu, meow mean meow possessions. Meow should understand." The catgirl corrected with her tail and ears up.

"You are such a nyuudere," the one-tail snickered.

The results were angry catgirl noises.

--- Arteris Galaxy - Resos Sector - XS084 Solar System ---
--- S.C. Zaria the Floof - 04.03.934 ---
--- DL5 Dark Elven Settlement Replica ---

Linnea, Zerula, and the doctors from the decommissioned space station, were doing inoculations and checking the health of the newcomers.

The colonists were just as split as the spacers between those that had no issue with getting it over and done with, and those that required baiting.

Trees were unfamiliar, but a few plants had survived in the colony.

The rich air, however, and the clean scents were overwhelming. The scent of fish was calling out to them, like it had to the first batch.

The warm showers with no limit on water usage had a lot of wrinkles.

Finally, colony catgirls met station catgirls.

It was odd.

The colony catgirls were healthier, the space station catgirls had moved in first. Slowly they tried to figure out relationships, shared hardships, and were shocked at how the others lived.

The station catgirls had trouble imagining storms full of sand and rock that could carve through armoured suits.

The colony catgirls couldn't imagine living on an almost defunct space station.

They bonded over funny things, like shared medical issues, their fear of humans, wonder at the long eared not-humans, their host, the fluffy leviathan, and trees.

There were plenty of minor accidents, since the settlement was not meant for a species that had an inbuilt need to push things off ledges, squeeze into tight spaces, or to climb everything.

Things got more hectic when the inoculation took effect and primary medical testing was over. The temporary stay in the DL5 Dark Elven Settlement Replica was over.

It was time to move into their actual future homes, and time to settle down as permanent residents.