The Omega Sacrifice

Aalyan

Aalyan

Aalyan kept his eyes on the ground as the elders talked around him, his hand absently rubbing the beautiful clothes he’d been given and letting their words wash over him.

He was the topic of discussion, but he wasn’t supposed to speak. It didn’t really matter; he didn’t have anything to say. His ears caught words, but his eyes also snagged on the pile of blue flowers with orange pistils in a calabash, a touch of colour in the low light. He still wasn’t sure any of it was real.

It wasn’t that he truly doubted them, it was just... He didn’t feel any different. It was his packmates—the alphas—who’d changed as far as he was concerned. Their scent commanding his attention in a way that had nothing to do with the healthy respect he’d had for their temperaments before that morning.

That morning. The sun still hadn’t set and they were already— He shook himself, wishing he could cover his ears. It wasn’t like it mattered what he heard, was it? It was all decided.

And he’d heard more than he wanted already.

The Moon was blessing them at last. With a male omega, bringer of prosperity and bountifulness.

There hadn’t been a known male omega in their pack in at least a hundred years. His presentation had been a shock to everyone, but now that they’d got him safely ensconced into the grotto where their most sacred ceremonies took place, they’d all relaxed.

His mother squeezed his hand once again where she sat by his side, her body tense with excitement. And pride. That’s what she’d told him once his Dad had confirmed what had happened, that she was proud of him.

He hadn’t known what to say then either. Proud? Because of something he hadn’t even known had happened, let alone intended? She hadn’t been half as delighted when he and his friends had brought down a huge wild boar on their own last spring.

Proud. Blessed. Sacred.

The words echoed in his head, sounds that could have as well been the raging of a storm for all the sense they made to him.

There had also been some hushed conversations about the fact that he’d thankfully presented at home on a normal day and not outside, or worse yet, during the Full Moon.

No one needed to tell Aalyan what would have happened if he’d been around some young alphas without adult supervision; he’d felt their heavy gazes following him around as he was led to the grotto to meet with their elders.

He wondered if that’s how their prey felt before they fell upon it to tear it to pieces.

***

“AALYAN?” THE ALPHA’S voice startled him into looking up. A frown marred his wrinkled features, their leader was already great grandfather to many cubs, but he was still clear-minded and strong.

“Yes, Alpha?” he said quickly, but the older leopard’s expression only soured further.

“Keep your eyes to yourself,” he was told rather testily, and the words stung like tree branches against bare skin—the shock as painful as the anger that had his inner leopard cowering.

He shuddered and looked down at once. His mother squeezed his back, a silent comfort all she could offer.

The Alpha sighed. “You will learn your new role, Aalyan, the Moon speaks in your heart, you only need to listen to be a good omega to your alpha.”

His heart jumped at the words, starting to race. It was just... Of course he’d known, he was an omega and that meant he had to be mated to an alpha.

A man.

Male omegas were a gift from the Moon, their supreme Alpha, and the goddess hadn’t seen fit to let any other females walk with her power. Male omegas were taken by male alphas, just like female omegas. And like them, they were also meant to be submissive towards alphas, but Aalyan had always thought it was something that came naturally, not a rule.

Of course, as a young beta boy, he’d hardly talked to any of the female omegas in his own pack, at least not about such matters.

Did the young alphas follow them around like they’d done to him? If his father and older brother hadn’t been there to growl at them... He swallowed, exhaling slowly and silently begging his stomach to settle.

“You are special,” the Alpha was telling him. “The Moon has chosen you, chosen us to use your gifts for the good of the pack.”

Aalyan risked a glance upwards, confused. His gifts? Were male omegas actually magical?

His curiosity was a serious mistake because the alpha’s next words hit him right in his open soul. “You cannot remain with us, of course.”

It was his mother’s shushing him softly as she gathered him close that alerted him to the pained noise that’d escaped his own mouth. They wanted him to leave his pack?!

“You needn’t worry, Mareé,” one of the older elders was saying to his mum when Aalyan’s ears began working again. “He will be honoured wherever he goes, every shifter knows what a blessing a male omega is.”

“Indeed,” the Alpha agreed. “And he will be a blessing to us as well. You are a true miracle in these hard times, young man.”

Aalyan knew he should respond, but it was all he could do to keep his face buried against his mother’s shoulder as he trembled, biting his tongue not to cry openly.

Maybe they expected an omega to behave like that because no one called him out on it.

***

AMONG THE LEOPARDS, there were alphas who could have taken him as a mate, so distantly related only the elders could have told them how far back their lines met... But prey had been getting more and more sparse every season, and even though the Moon had blessed their pack with his presentation, it apparently wasn’t out of the question to pass that blessing on to someone else in exchange for something of more value.

Like food. Plenty of it so no one would be struggling.

It wasn’t like Aalyan didn’t know how bad it was to go to bed with a growling stomach on days when they couldn’t bring back enough meat or even fruit. Or like he hadn’t given his younger brother part of his own food to keep from seeing Milthu suffering as he squirmed and sucked on dried bones.

Who could argue that he was worth less than food? Of course he was, he couldn’t keep them alive no matter how many hours he hunted—and now he could no longer do even that much.

He was worth a lot, though, he reminded himself silently. They were asking for a lot of food in exchange for him, what they needed to feed his whole pack for two months or complement their diets for even longer.

Aalyan wouldn’t be with them, but he’d know they were okay, that his Mum wasn’t trying to crush bones to extract some flavour into their stew, that his Dad wouldn’t go hunting in the middle of the night because the guilt didn’t let him rest. They would be okay and as long as he knew that, he could... He squeezed his eyes shut, inhaling deeply, his heart was pounding in his chest, but there was nowhere for it to go and Aalyan couldn’t do what it asked of him.

A gentle hand on his elbow startled him into opening his eyes again.

His mother didn’t speak when their eyes met, but she raised her own chin in silent encouragement and, after a moment, Aalyan followed suit, breathing in and out more slowly.

He could do this. For them.