Page 21 of Subchief Flander

Couples and singles were often in dorm style accommodations. Cots were lined up on each wall, and bathroom facilities were in the center of the building. Females and males had separate bathroom facilities because humans were very private. Other races valued their privacy, too, but most didn’t mind being seen naked by others. Flander certainly wasn't bothered by it since warriors had no privacy from when they were young children. There was no choice but to get used to it.

Hel went one way, and the rest of the squad went to the construction areas. Construction was going well but not keeping up with the large numbers of people that were incoming. The good thing was that his mate kept finding more people to work construction, which was speeding things up. If she could find more, maybe they could actually get a handle on this. It was hard for him to concentrate on things when he was worried about his relationship, and that was the most important thing in his life.

They were trying to help Purgatory, but as important as that was, his relationship with his mate was more important. Flander felt bad, but he wished they were anywhere but here while they were trying to work their relationship out. Ranni had been the lucky one because right after he had mated, they had been recalled to one of the other areas, and the ghosts of the planet below did not interfere with his relationship with Kasey.

That would not be the case with his relationship because not only was the planet below, but they were going to it every other day and working with the people that came from it on the other days. As if that was not bad enough, they were unbelievably shorthanded for the significant goals that had been set. Flander pushed his thoughts aside and put his shoulder into his work as they tried to start another building. A team would build the foundation, and then his guys would come in and start work on the building. There was a specific style to all the empire buildings of the time, and they were built with as many local materials as they could find.

There was a red rock that was scattered in locations all over the planet that had been pulled into work as building materials. The rock was hard. Once cleaned, it was attractive. Most warriors knew how to lay rock and stone, which wasn't a problem. They each took a different wall and worked as quickly as possible. As soon as they reached a certain point, refugees would come in and begin to do their assigned work. The rock was heavy, and warriors did a good job with that kind of work. Interior work had lighter materials. Anyone could do that if they knew how.

Flander was watching Jaird, who seemed distracted by a local girl. He'd checked into Donna, and she was a distant relative of Kasey and Hel. Maybe it would be a good thing for him. He was in the right age range for mating if that was what he wanted. If it was just sex, then it wouldn't matter. He would keep an eye on things because that was what he did. That was what it meant to be a leader. Flander stepped back, looking at his wall, and felt accomplished. The first floor was always the easiest.

Maybe romance was in the air, and he also needed to watch his other guys. It was also possible that he needed toget his own romance in order before he worried about everyone else's. Ronner got his attention.

“It’s lunch time,” he said.

"That's good because I'm starving," Tannen admitted as he approached where they were. Tomsin trailed behind him, and they all headed to the cafeteria.

They all had trays and were sitting at a table when Hel arrived. She got her food and sat with them. Flander enjoyed having his squad together because he knew it wouldn't be long and significant changes would occur. He wasn't sure where everyone would end up going. If Ranni got the Chief position, he would get subchief. Most weren't squad leaders, but he could keep his position if he chose to. With all Kasey's work, he was surprised that she had not already asked for his mate to assist him. He saw that possibility coming soon. The other guys were all good and would probably be considered for squad leader positions, but he didn't know when they would get those positions, only that he thought they should.

He'd already recommended his males for leadership positions several times, and eventually, it would happen. Eventually, he knew the squad would be disbanded and spread to the wind. There was no way to say if he would ever see them again. They've been together for five years, a long time for a squad. It was sad every time that a squad disbanded like this. This was not the first time he had been in a squad that had disbanded and would not be the last. All of them knew it was coming. They just didn't know when or how.

All the males were finished eating. Hel was finishing up her plate. He'd wait if he could, but they were in a hurry, and lives were on the line. He nodded at his mate so that she knew that he was acknowledging her presence and that he had to go.Flander led the way, and the rest of the squad followed, except Hel, who would again go in a different direction. Her talents were different, and that's where she would work while they did the grunt work in construction. Most warriors were trained in construction and had a talent for it. They could lift more and work faster than almost any race. That's how this would get done, through hard work and perseverance.

They all worked hard and waited until the end of the day came around, and because they were working hard, it didn't seem like it had taken long. The shuttle was waiting for them, and his mate was already seated, so he sat next to her. They were filthy, and a place to clean up would have been nice, but they didn't have one. The few showers that were available were for the refugees and those working among them, which made them off limits.

Everyone loaded on the shuttle, and it headed back to the ship. As soon as they landed, everyone hurried to their shower. Routines were important, but they had fallen into one over the last few months. They knew what to expect and where they would be most of the time. Maybe it was time to shake up his mate's routine. Still, a shower was needed to remove all the gunk from a hard day's work. Now that they had landed, everyone was rushing to get clean. He enjoyed his shower. The hot water relaxed his tired muscles. Once he was through, he was ready for supper. They had all worked hard. They needed energy replaced, so they would be good to go tomorrow.

Majuri ate more than the average person, replacing large amounts of energy used when they worked or fought hard. Flander dressed after he was dry and then headed down to the cafeteria. He had not seen his mate in their room, so he had no idea if she had gotten clean faster or was still in the shower cleaning up. When he got to the cafeteria, only Jaird wasthere before him. He had their table reserved. The food smelled wonderful, and he loaded up his tray and sat down next to Jaird. Now, they both watched to see who would arrive next. There was no guarantee that they would all show up, even though most usually did.

They didn't wait for the others to arrive; they began to eat immediately. That was just the squad's rule since you never knew who would show up or when they would show up. The one he was waiting to see was Hel, but she ended up being the last one there. Flander had worried that she would try to avoid him. Maybe she had decided to avoid him and then changed her mind. Tonight, they would deal with their relationship for good.

Flander was done, but he sat sipping his drink, waiting for his mate to finish eating. The other guys finished and left one at a time.

“Are you waiting for me?” Hel asked.

“I am. We must deal with our relationship when we get to our room.”

“Fine. Just remember I have something to say about this, too.” Hel took her last bite of food and picked up her tray to drop it off in the pan.

Flander stuck with her so she would not try to escape him, and they headed to their room. This was important, and he tried to remember that he hadn't asked and had just mated her. She wouldn't appreciate what he had to say, but he was going to say it anyway. They would be together for the rest of their lives, and she needed to wrap her mind around that. The moment they entered their apartment, he grabbed her, pressed her up against the wall, and kissed her passionately.

Flander whispered in her ear. “You are mine!”

She shivered in his arms. He knew she wanted and needed him, but for some reason, she was fighting that. It was hard to understand why she would do that, but human females were hard to understand. Sometimes, even human males didn't understand them. He had seen that personally.

“This doesn't seem like a discussion. It seems more like an instruction session.”

“I'm not trying to tell you what to do, but I am telling you what we are, bonded together for life. Neither of us will ever be able to be with anyone else. If you reject me, we will both be alone. Is that really what you want?”

"I want some say in my own life. Someone making all the decisions for me was never my dream life, and it still isn't. You don't seem to understand that." Hel observed.

"All this because I moved you into my apartment. Once we mated, we had to let one apartment go. Why did that upset you so much?"

"You never asked me and never gave me any time to adjust. You just decided and implemented the decision, and I got to live with it. That's not how it should work, even if you think your decision is a foregone conclusion.”

“You would have had to move anyway, and my apartment was the best of the two.”

“We could have asked for a different apartment neither yours nor mine. You could have given me a few days because that's usually allowed. We could have talked about this and made the decision together, which is what mates are supposed to do. If this is what you will always do, then we won't make it.”

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