Tsul "Whisper of the Sand"

Tugrals were an interesting species. Somehow, these creatures were so intertwined with the history and traditions of the tribe that the word tugral itself also meant friend in the ancient language of the Sulzul.

These agile creatures had become a symbol of their ways for many reasons. Cautious, impossible to tame, and strongly independent, their relationship with them seemed to intensify as soon as the first mining ships of the Interstellar Trade Guild entered the orbit of the planet.

At first, the greedy bureaucrats of the Guild tried to scam them, regarding them as mere savages, unaware of the price that an ounce of Ukralt in the galactic markets. Some others had come before, trying to mine the precious ore from the sacred dunes of the planet, but none had been so persistent as these pale men in environmental suits.

Shortly after they refused to allow them to mine the sands, the first orbital bombardment started. Tsul was only a child then, but the cries of despair of her people were impossible to forget. They had to leave their cities and live in the desert to avoid extermination, they had to adapt the ways of the war, learn to anticipate their enemies, and strike them when they were weak.

Tugrals had been very helpful to the Sulzul. An outer observer could have easily said that the creatures "adopted" the Sulzul into their society, teaching them the necessary skills to survive and confront their common enemy.

Her thoughts were interrupted by the movement of the tugral, who adopted a watchful stance as soon as the unmistakable humming of one of the Guilds ore crawlers started to break the peaceful silence of the desert. The good thing about dealing with big bureaucratic organizations was their predictability; once they have located a good vein of Ukralt, they would commit any resource to extract it. That was their vulnerability.

Tsul checked her rifle very quickly and got ready to give the agreed signal to the other well-hidden freedom fighters. The attack was about to start.