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It was all his.
The territory surrounding him was his clan's territory. It was his to protect, his to defend. Everything that he could see was under his care. His people lived here, safe under his watchful eye. They cultivated the thick vegetation, they tended the animals, and they lived in peace — all under his defense.
It was a heavy responsibility, but it was one that Rael bore with pride.
At the moment, though, he was also bearing it with more than a little fatigue.
The diplomatic trip had been grueling. Dealing with other clan leaders was always a trial, even when they were on good terms. Not just Rael's long journey over to their neighboring lands, but the endless negotiations, the subtle peacocking, the politeness that everyone knew could shatter into violence at any moment…
Gods, Rael had certainly had enough of that. It was all enough to make a Borraq alpha long for the simplicity of battle.
And then there was the matter of the medical treatment.
Rael had gone to his neighbors for standard clan diplomacy, but he'd also been eager for any news of medical supplies.
Worrak was the child of one of Rael's warriors, just a few years from his prime. He was a good kid. He had a future ahead of him as a warrior in his own right, if he could just get through this damn sickness.
But the gene medicine that he needed was rare, and it was expensive. If there was any way to secure a cure, Rael needed to find it.
But none of the neighboring clans had heard of any cheaper suppliers. With the war against the humans raging in space, complex medical supplies were scarce on Vasz — and when you could finally find someone offering them, their prices were sky-high.
Rael was the clan's alpha. He had to find a way to get it.
He had to.
But first, he had to get home to his clan's village. He had a long journey ahead of him, but it was one that he'd taken many times. Through the woods, across the raging twin rivers of Miaj and Nor, and around the edge of the vast plain of the Kasri desert. All he had to do was keep putting one foot in front of the other—
Something exploded.
The sound was enormous, a deep boom that shook the landscape and echoed through the sky, vibrating Rael's very bones. It was like nothing he'd ever heard before, something truly cataclysmic.
He startled, his heart pounding in his chest. What in the seven hells was that?! His grip tightened on his blade's hilt. It had been his father's blade before him, and his father's father's before that. It had seen every challenge that an alpha could face. Rael centered himself on its sturdy hilt, drawing on the touch of the line of alphas before him.
He scanned the area, senses on high alert.
Dust and debris scattered in the distance.
Rael's eyes narrowed, his protective instincts kicking into high gear. He broke into a sprint, muscles rippling beneath his skin as he raced towards the source of the disturbance.
Whatever was going on, it was in his territory — and he would be damned if he didn't defend it.
In the distance, a plume of smoke rose up from the Kasri plain.
There. That was his target.
He knew these lands. It didn't take him long to crest a ridge in the woods, gazing out over the open spread of the desert plain.
When he saw what it was, he froze.
A ship.
It was an ugly thing. It lay in the middle of the desert plain, half-buried in the sand. The metal was rent and twisted, great scars marring its surface. Smoke rose from it, thick oily plumes that filled the storm breeze with the stink of burnt electronics, even at this distance.
It was a human craft.
Rael knew a Borraq vessel when he saw one. They were sleek and deadly things, built for speed and for war. As his clan's alpha, he'd stood at Vasz's stardock and seen off the volunteer warriors from his clan, all eager to prove themselves in battle.
Some came back. Some never did.
