The Omega Fire (Book Three of the Omega Game Series)

Chapter 19

Nira

Somewhere at the Aracious Sea

Present Day

    By the skies, I didn’t know even my tongue could hurt. Scratch that, everything hurt. I woke up on the floor, totally naked, stinking like that damned Mongrel and feeling so weak that reaching my bed seemed like a risky mission reserved for braver heroes than me. Groaning in pain I managed to push my upper body against the wall and then I proceeded to inspect my body. Overall I didn’t look that bad. I counted five large bites spread over my torso and legs which indicated I could withstand a direct attack from a monster with bigger jaws than Teran’s.

    My matted hair was dry and tangled. I was covered by what for all intents and purposes looked like cracked chalk and to my horror there were several bruises on my thighs and hips which looked like the suspicious prints of a huge Alpha’s hands. To my sanity I decided not to dwell on the Alpha’s identity at the moment since I had other priorities to consider. Like the fact that sitting hurt and I couldn’t walk. My legs were out of commission and when I tried to clear my throat I found out it was so abused that I couldn’t speak. 

    And what was the worst part? I felt incredibly peaceful. As a matter of fact I’d never felt so calmed and well rested. I was in pain of course but in a good way. Which didn’t make any sense. After resuming my inventory and cataloguing every single bruise, scratch and mark on my body I came to the conclusion that I was the survivor of a cannibal attack. That thought made me smirk for whatever reason, maybe I was losing my sanity after all, and right then I realized even my back hurt when I smirked. I wasn’t sure what was the bodily connection between a smirk and my back but apparently they could hurt together. Hmm, the wonders of an Omega body.

    There was a gentle knock at the door and grinding my teeth I pushed myself forward enough to reach a blanket and cover myself with it. It took me three trials to clear my throat and be able to speak. 

    “Come in,” I croaked and then grimaced at the burn in my throat. Damn, I sounded like Baltus after smoking for an entire night. Which wasn’t flattering, not flattering at all. The door opened then and Katala showed her head inside of my room. We looked at each other in silence and right away her violet eyes sparkled mischievously.

    “I have to say, you look well rested cousin,” she goaded me, to which I rolled my eyes, “How are you feeling?”

    “Really peachy and dandy,” I said sarcastically, my voice broken and hoarse, “ I can’t feel my toes but rumor has it that since I can’t feel my back either I shouldn’t be complaining for little mishaps.”

    Katala bit her lips to not laugh and then she lowered her pointy stare. Her cheeks started to burn and with a playful grin she looked back at me.

    “First things first Nira,” she said, looking all business and serious right before giving me a teasing smile, “Did it fit?”

    “Oh shut up!” I threw a pillow at her with the last of my strength while Katala laughed and ducked the projectile. Against any logic I started laughing with her and then she walked inside my room and started fixing everything while we talked.

    Katala fixed me a bath and helped me get cleaned while she filled me in on everything it had happened in the last week since I’d been sequestered because of my Heat. We had been traveling smoothly and so far hadn’t seen any other ships since leaving Naccara. Didoka was still nervous about being in control of The Dove but Kun was helping get used to the little details that he needed to know about managing a ship. Noctis had called a meeting tonight since Aros and I were back in business and apart from that everything seemed quiet. Way too quiet. 

    “Have you heard of him?” I asked Katala while she poured water on my hair and then used some oils to detangle my wild locks. She tensed for a moment and we both looked at each other guardedly. There was no need to call him by his name. Katala knew I was referring to Mourna because the fucker was the only bastard that managed to sour our mood. And honestly that was a big accomplishment considering that my own mood hadn’t soured and I’d been f****d to the point I couldn’t walk. Go figure.

    “Mourna is like this stinky cloud that doesn’t go away,” said Katala, focusing on my hair while she spoke, “He is there, spying on us all the time. I can’t shake the feeling that he is plotting something big against us this time but I’m not going to let him win. He is not going to win Nira, and I will make him pay for what he did to you and Teran.”

    I played with the water, making small swirls with my fingers while I weighed my cousin’s words. I felt exactly like she did in reference to that fucker Mourna. I didn’t know if it was because since dying I’d grown to hate him or because I hated the fact he had used Teran and his madness to hurt us. The thing was, I knew Mourna was a very disbalanced individual that would never stop coming after us until having Katala back. And I was being polite by calling him disbalanced when he deserved a thousand types of meaner names. I only wished I wasn’t so weak and that I could do something to help my cousin.

    “How is Teran holding up?” asked me Katala and I smiled when I remembered my conversations with the dragon.

    “We have been speaking,” I admitted to Katala and she gasped, splashing water to my face while her jaw hit the floor. I laughed at her surprised face and then I shrugged, “He is not that bad once you get to know him. And he understands some of the things I do in a way that nobody else understands.”

    “Whatever you mean?” asked me Katala with a frown, while taking a mother of pearl comb and detangling the tips of my heavy hair. I sighed and gently braced my legs. The warm water inside the wooden bath splashed over the floor.  It still hurt to move and I was a hundred percent I was still incapable of walking. I focused on Katala’s question and tried to organize my answer inside of my mind.

    “We both share this need to protect life,” I murmured and I felt right away that what I was saying was the truth, “I don’t know if I can trust him yet, and I know for a fact that he doesn’t trust me entirely, but we connect in a strange way.”

    “Nira…” Katala started to say and then she sighed and kept combing my hair, “Teran has suffered immensely at the hand of mankind. So much suffering can only drive you mad or push you into vengeance. Be careful with Teran. Be kind.”

    “I’m always kind!” I rebuked, turning around to see her. Katala puckered her lips, giving me a knowing look that said hmm hmm so loud that I was actually impressed with the prowess of her facial expressions. I clicked my tongue and gave her the side eye, “Anyway you don’t have anything to worry about. We are trying to live in a democracy of sorts and if I’m honest he doesn’t look that crazy anymore. Or at least he doesn’t look crazy to me.”

    “I don’t know if I should feel relieved or worried about that statement,” she murmured and I smirked, turning around and letting her tell me about all sorts of things. It felt good to hear her voice. To hear her happiness and feel that unquantifiable devotion that she felt for her mate. 

    My cousin was the same girl she had always been, even if she was now otherworldly and had ascended as the Queen of Spirits. From time to time she changed into her true form and she admitted to me that it was impossible to deny her connection to the Gilmesh Forest. Every other night she needed to visit the forest and replenish her strength there. I didn’t know exactly how she did this but by the look of her happy smile she seemed rightfully replenished. I could tell that Noctis wasn’t exactly dancing in happiness at the idea of letting his Omega part from him, but hey, we all knew Noctis wasn’t the type of Alpha prone to do some sick dancing tricks either way. No, he and his brothers were more inclined to brood and sulk in silent anger.

    I tensed when that invasive thought made its way into my mind. Noctis’s brothers. Aros and Kun. Aros. Katala’s voice fell into a muffled background while I tried to put into perspective what had happened between me and Aros. The Mongrel had tended to me during my Heat. He had done what any other Alpha would have done in his position. Nothing more and nothing less. But then again, there was this annoying reality waiting to be addressed properly at the back of my mind. I’ve never heard of an Alpha not growing territorial and possessive of an Omega after tending to her during her Heat. It was a conundrum of sorts, like the fact that nobody could explain to me why beer smelt like piss and still tasted good, or why it was proper for men to walk with their chest naked but not for women. Little mysteries that I would never understand.

    And so it was a mystery the fact that Aros had walked away from me by the time my Heat was done. Which could only mean he knew me well enough to understand he needed to back off and give me time and space to process how my mortal enemy had literally f****d me in the ass or...he hadn’t grown attached to me. I couldn’t remember what had happened between us during my Heat. I could only speculate by the state of my body that he had thoroughly f****d me everywhere. Which didn’t make me feel as half mad as it should. And still...where was Aros? Normally an Alpha was impossible to shake away from his Omega after going into rut. My own father didn’t let my mom out of his sight after sharing her Heat and they had been together forever.

    Had I done something wrong? Was I the first case of an Omega ever that managed to survive a Heat without her tending Alpha growing terribly attached? I couldn’t quite tell if I was overenthusiastic at the idea or strangely worried. What I knew was that Aros was gone and I hated him for not staying around. But I would have hated him if he ever saw me as weak as Katala had found me. I would hate him regardless of either of those options so I wasn’t immensely sure there was a possible scenario in which I didn’t hate Aros. 

    It took hours to wash away the crust of layers and layers of unidentified substances from my hair and body. It took longer to detangle my hair and then Katala had to massage my legs and feet so I could be able to stand. The objective word being stand...walking was still out of discussion. Once I was ready for the night, Katala called for Didoka and between the three of us we were able to reach the deck. Every step was an agony and I felt terribly tired, as if I could sleep for days.

    When we finally reached the captain’s chambers and opened the door I suffered a direct hit to my much overdeveloped pride. Aros’s scent engulfed me possessively and instinctively I lowered my eyes and stopped smiling. Kun, who had been speaking inside of the room, quieted and Katala stopped laughing at whatever joke Didoka had just finished . In distress I realized what my body was trying to say. I’d been conditioned to submit to my Alpha and even if I hated it and raged against my stupid, stupid Omega Instinct I couldn’t do a single thing to not react the way I did to Aros. At least not right then, when my body still remembered all the things he had done and how good the Mongrel had made me feel.

     Katala was the first to break the tense silence by clearing her throat, “Kun, be a dear and help me sit Nira down, would you?”

    Aros growled low and deep at that question and Kun laughed at his brother’s threat as if it was a daily occurrence. Which it wasn’t. I’ve known those two since we were all kids and Aros had never growled like that to his baby brother.

    “I’m very attached to my neck and arms, thank you very much,” deadpanned Kun and the next thing I knew was that Aros’s strong arms surrounded me and with a gentleness I never thought he was capable of he lifted me up and carried me to the rounded table where everyone was seated. He ignored the chair that had been placed at Katala’s side for me and instead chose to sit me in his legs, circling my middle with one of his huge arms and leaving a very proprietary hand on top of my right thigh.

    “What were you saying?” asked Aros to Kun as if I’ve always sat on his legs for fun and giggles. If anyone found the new sitting arrangement strange nobody said a word about it. Everyone turned to Kun who seemed to read the room fast enough to keep talking as if nothing had happened. The massively tall Alpha turned to the leather map that was nailed to the wall of the room and pointed with his finger to a small dot in the middle of the Aracious Sea.

    “This is the Island of Urahara,”said Kun and everyone narrowed their eyes trying to see the tiny, little point he was talking about. I studied the small dot in the map with a mix of conflicted feelings. A part of me wanted to turn around and bark a bunch of curses at Aros because I feLT in the mood to do so for whatever reason. And another part of me wanted to rub my face all over his chest so I could smell like him again. Frowning and confused I tried my best to follow what Kun was saying, “This is the last port we will find on our way to Algonala. Stopping here is a must. By the time we reach Urahara we will need to buy more provisions for the last part of our trip. Food, drinkable water, proper clothes. You name it. Trouble is...well, this is Urahara.”

    “Meaning?” I asked with a shrug and at the movement Aros’s arm bumped against my ribs and the lower side of my breasts. We both tensed right away and I felt myself blush. My heart started beating harder and harder to the point I had no doubt Aros could hear it. Kun intervened then, looking back at me to answer my question.

    “Urahara is a city of pirates which means free trading. There is no government in this place and anything is acceptable, from slavery to rare animal auctions and everything in between,” Kun looked from Aros at my back to Noctis and then he cleared his throat, “It’s not exactly a place for ladies to visit.”

    “Why?” asked Katala with a frown, voicing my unspoken question. I nodded and Didoka nodded by my other side, staring curiously at Kun. Kun opened his mouth and closed it for a moment before turning to Noctis for help. Noctis’s black eyes swept over the room and lingered over Katala for a moment. My cousin smiled at him and instinctively went to him, seating herself over his legs. Once his mate was close to him Noctis seemed more open to speak.

    “What Kun is not saying is that we had been on this island once or twice before and it is dangerous there, not to say scandalous. If there is a woman on this island chances are that it is either a w***e or is training to become one,” Noctis shrugged when we all turned to him in shock, “That’s Urahara for you guys.”

    Something didn’t sit well on my stomach about that comment. I tensed and started drumming my fingers on top of the table while I tried to understand why exactly I was mad. Aros moved then, taking my hand and interlacing his big fingers between mine. My heart did a staccato in response to his touch and with a low curse I started moving around, trying to get comfortable on top of him.

    “Why should all this be a problem?” intervened Didoka, inspecting the map with those smart golden eyes of his, “ The way I see it we just need to get in and out. Get to the port, buy all the things we need and leave as fast as we can.”

    “It’s not that simple,” said Aros then, speaking over my shoulder. At the sound of his voice I developed a severe case of gooseflesh. It was evident too, since I was wearing a light green stola that didn’t cover my arms. Aros gently rubbed his warm hands over one of my naked arms, petting me like an Alpha did to his Omega. Reluctantly I conceded in the privacy of my mind that his touch calmed me...even if I would never get caught admitting such a thing loudly. Aros kept talking as if him touching me was the most normal thing in the world, “There are rules to get on the island. You have to meet the Adjudicator and pay certain fees for your stay in Urahara. Which won’t be damn cheap. And you have to promise to follow the rules and really follow them if you don’t want the ire of the pirates against you.”

    “What are the rules?” I asked Aros, turning around to face him.

    Big, big mistake.

    My ass landed right on top of his very, very, prominent c**k and at my touch it seemed to twitch and throb. I realized then he had been sporting an erection all this time. I felt my eyes widen in surprise. It seemed I wasn’t the only one conditioned to react a certain way after what we had experienced together. Aros clenched his jaw and looked away from me before answering me.

    “There are three unbreakable rules in Urahara. No touching without paying. No stealing, and no betting without money. If you break any of those rules you can get killed or worse,” said Aros and just for fun I circled my hips a bit, enjoying the way his c**k started pulsing faster against my crevice. Aros cursed under his breath and stilled my hips, staring at me with an angry look. I smiled back at him just for that.

    “Wait,” murmured Katala, raising a hand, “what about no killing in Urahara?”

    “Yeah, that’s totally optional,” said Kun with a shrug.

    “And do we really need to go to this place?” asked Didoka with a worried frown on his mouth.

    “We have to, if we want to get to Algonala,” answered Noctis and everyone went quiet in his somber tone. 

    At the end we all decided it was for the best to stop at Urahara. The risks of getting stranded in the sea without food and drinkable water surpassed all the possible risks we could encounter in Urahara. We would reach the island in two days and until then Noctis assigned small tasks to everybody to keep us somehow busy. I was given the task of peeling potatoes for lunch tomorrow and against all the odds I was happy to do so. Peeling potatoes didn’t require walking nor using my lower extremities, so I considered myself extremely lucky.

    “Are we done here?” asked Aros the moment Noctis was done talking.

    “Yes, I suppose…” started saying Noctis but Aros didn’t stay longer to hear what his brother had wanted to say.

    He lifted me up and cradled me to his chest making me gasp in surprise at the ease with which he carried me. And then we were out of the room and Aros was taking me down, to the lower floor where our chambers were.

    “What in the world are you doing?” I asked him annoyed and to my surprise Aros smiled wolfishly at me, a threatening look clear in his eyes.

    “I’m not doing much Squirrel,” he said with a smirk, “but you sure are finishing what you started at the table. You want to play games? Fine. But you need to be reminded once or twice that if you play with fire you can get burned.”

    “And would you do the burning?” I asked him while lifting an eyebrow in derision at his tone. Aros laughed at that, an honest laugh that made me curl my toes.

    “I don’t burn pretty little things like you Nira. I don’t have the heart. I will kiss you, and f**k you, and pet you until you burn on your own. By the time I’m done with you, there would not be a single part of your body that I don’t own. You are mine. You have always been mine and it’s about time that you accept it,” and if I had any intentions to rebel to that angry speech of his they were all nullified when Aros entered his room and slammed the door close behind us.

    The sound of the lock falling heavy into place felt strangely akin to the sound of my heart going into override. I’ve thought Aros hadn’t grown possessive and I’d been wrong. The bastard had only given me time to collect myself before stating his claim. And now I was f****d.

    Or I was about to be.