The clutch didn’t differentiate between genders. Males and females had a place in the clutch that seemed to be a combination of skill, worthiness, and merit rather than the regular order of gender chronology.
The burliest male in this clutch was not at the apex of leadership. From what I could tell, he was somewhere in the middle. She, my love, was in the upper reaches of the group. She had rights and rank above that behemoth. He had to follow her orders.
Everyone in the clutch seemed to be able to submit ideas regardless of rank. The clutch leader was a middle aged man with greying hair that was cut short and slicked back with some sort of oil. His face, like the others was worn and seemingly sand-blasted. There were pockmarks in his reddened flesh. He was from the deep desert wastes.
He called himself Aes. She was introduced to me as Tersphaaret M’Peeri Mopia. She allowed me to call her Phaari. I didn’t know how long that was going to last. I may have just been dropped in rank within the pack.
Being an off-worlder had already put me at a disadvantage, but now that Phaari was angry and distancing herself from me, other members of the pack could be free to challenge my position. Based on past history, that meant anything could happen. I didn’t like being in the midst of unknown possibilities. It didn’t track well with my orders or my team.
Wilkins kept looking at me from underneath his helmet as if to ask, “What the hells?” He was getting nervous. I ignored him. I was the one who let me feelings get in the way of the mission. I had to find a way to fix it.
The mission depended upon our integration with the indigenous forces to defend against what was coming from beyond the solar system. The Sparq Legion’s cruisers were two days from planet fall and it was going to be hell trying to defend the place without local support.
The ball of dust and sand dunes needed to be secured. We needed the foothold. I needed her.
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