Kash view
I was half asleep after grumbling to my wolf over the whole possible mate thing when a scent I have never smelled before came to my nose. The scent was making me want to gag it was so gross. I could explain it as rotting corpse and fish. Maybe it was two scents, both so disgusting they combined? Either way it was so foul, I was sure to loose the contents of my stomach if it came any closer. Soon voices could be clearly heard just before I could see the owners to the foul scent.
"Look. I heard that he was an omega. The pack has been protecting him for years. Just smell the sweetness down here. He must be in heat and that is why he is not in the meet and greet. My source said they saw him head this way earlier." The voice sounded rough like sandpaper; as though all he did was drink and smoke.
"The Alpha has always protected his youngest. Maybe a show of favouritism?" This voice was not as rough but sounded some what dangerous. A lack of feeling if you will. "Besides, how did you find out about this place?"
The first guy laughed as he came into view. "It is amazing what a little flirting for information can do." His eyes lit up as he looked at the cell. "And speak of the devil. What a pretty little pup. His wolf is a tad small. I thought he turned eighteen in a day or two?"
"Tomorrow from what his records show. The information we gathered over the years has him small in human form as well. Always protected as you know, maybe a runt. If we officially knew of his omega status before hand, we could have made plans to take him before the ball. Omegas are easier to handle."
The two men that walked out did not belong to my pack. At least, I did not recognise them from the few times I have seen members. The taller one was slimmer than his counterpart. He had dark brown hair that looked like he tried to style it and gave up in the middle. His brown eyes hid behind bangs. The second male was a broader build. His hair was also brown but a lighter shade and he had a brown green colour to his eyes. The shorter one spoke when a growl escaped my lips, with his smoker's voice. "Ha! He really is like a pup. All bark and no bite. I think he wants to play. Getting the code was a real pain little one. But don't worry, we will treat you well when you mate with our alpha. You can help build us as a stronger pack."
What made these men think I would just go with them? Did they not know the door was for their protection? Considering he stated that he knew the code, I had to let my wolf take over more. I had no training to fight and instinct to flee might be best. However, my wolf was ready to protect our place, and the pair before us would regret even coming here. Already on all fours, we let out more warning growls with our hackles raised.
As the taller of the two started punching in numbers, another scent, though weak, came to my nose, mixed in with others. It was the best smell I had ever had the pleasure to take in. Beside smelling like the forest after a misty rain, it smelled of home. Like sitting around a fire; warm and safe. My wolf went crazy. "MATE!" He was not only excited he was completely furious the two in front were in between us and our mate as well as threatening to enter our nest area. Our snarls grew as I heard the door click. Prepared to fight and show these men the mistake they made, I crouched lower ready to pounce.
"Hey boss. You smell that?" The smaller guy turned around. "I think another wolf is coming. Make that more than one. We better run for it." He started to back away from my door towards the other end of the room.
The big guy grabbed his partner before he got to far. "We will not get a chance this good again. Grab the pup and then we will run. Not before! Alpha's orders." The taller man was really the most dangerous. Even I could sense it. I turned most my focus to him, hoping that the other wolves came this way soon. I had no idea how long I could fight these two. The idea of leaving my nest area was not something I had planned. There was no way I could run right now, this area was mine and my wolf was going to protect it.
The smaller guy whined. "Yes boss." He looked my way now. "Hey little omega. Looks like you're coming with us. Stand down. Shift." His last word sounded like an order. Turns out they were not both alphas, since the lackey was below the dangerous guy but using pheromones to try and order me, he would be an alpha. The other one must be a beta. I responded to his attempt with a snarl.
Though I felt a small urge to listen when he tried releasing more, I shook my head, then proceeded to snap at them. Soon I could smell the other scents a little better, however it felt like they were moving away. As though they walked past my cell room entrance. Wanting to get their attention, I sat down to howl and that is where it all went south.
The little distraction I caused myself, had both the men run into my cell and grab on to me. I did not get more than maybe two seconds out of my howl before the larger male wrapped leather, I assume his belt, around my muzzle, closing it tight. The other male used his belt to wrap my front legs causing me to fall over with the two men holding me tight. The larger male grunted. "Grab his front legs and hold the straps tight, I will pick him up near the back. We can leave out the under ground escape we came in and it should give us time to get out of here."
"Yes boss." He pulled the straps on my muzzle and legs tighter, causing me to whimper in pain. This was not going to go their way. I fought harder, kicking with my hind legs and wiggling my body. The smaller one tried several times to have me obey, and every time I denied his orders.
The thing was, I had no idea of the other entrance these men spoke of and I was suddenly more scared than before. More because I was just starting my heat and being taken away from my nest, my safety, my comfort. The omega in me was less than happy with the situation and the struggle to be free continued with even more vigour. It was bad enough their stench was all over now.
"Stop! You are not even a good omega for our Alpha. Why he wants you I have no idea. I have never met one that would not follow or obey orders before." After a quick growl he spoke to his partner. "This is ridiculous. Where is the tranquilizer?" The man in the back growled more as he struggled to hold me. "Just drop him and get me the tranq!"
The smaller man let me drop and reached in his pocket while I struggled through pain to get up. "Here boss. But careful, it is dosed for a full-sized wolf and he is really not that large at all. To make it worse he just started his heat. An overdose can kill him." I could smell the needle full of something from where I was and tried to move further away. "Sorry pup. You do not follow orders. Must be a tad spoiled here. Soon you will be collared and chained like a real omega for our Alpha. No worries if you try to disobey him, he has ways to punish you until you learn." The man's smile alone was enough to scare me.
Suddenly I felt the prick of the shot, which caused me to try and whip around and bite the other man, forgetting about the temporary muzzle. The larger male ended up grabbing me by the scruff of my neck and pulled me away. "You know little one? If it was not for our Alphas orders and our short time, we would have taken you in wolf form. A little exercise before we left would calm you down. Why can't you be a good omega and listen?"
The panic I felt started to subside. Well not really, it was still there along with my anger. However, a new deeper feeling of needing sleep was taking over and telling my body the rest is okay for later. I tried to growl but even I know it sounded closer to a whimper. As I tried to fight it, the scent from before came back ten fold followed by a voice I never knew I would be happy to hear.
"He will not obey because he is royalty and we bow down to no one!" These were the words I heard as I lost my fight and went unconscious.
*Atlas View *
I did not sleep well after Alpha Dax stopped by. It appeared he was once more making the decision for Kash. I understood from their point of view, but I am sure Kash would have made the appropriate choice. He was very intelligent. Now I was stuck between a rock and a hard place. Do I support the Alpha or my mate? Honestly, they should have let myself or my Beta talk to Kash. Who knows what kind of damage they might have done. I sighed.
"That's a pretty big sigh there. Besides the bags under your eyes giving it away, I would bet you did not sleep well." Zion of course knew of the conversation last night since he sat in with me. "After the official meeting of the packs and before the ball, we can stop by and talk to our Luna if you would like? I am sure he had just as much of a troubled sleep if not more. Besides, it is his birthday today and I see no prep for it. We can stop by with a cake or something? That will allow you two the bond and for Kash to make his own choice."
I perked up. "Yes! We can make a run into town first. I want to grab a gift as well, or, two. I feel bad he has been going through all this." Then I realized. "Why is there no birthday stuff going on?"
Zion grimaced. "Part of the over protection. The pack won't celebrate until tomorrow. Been like that since his birth I was told. Jace, it seems usually slips in early gifts and cake for the two of them, but he said with the ball he would be unable to today."
That news made me happy. "Then that will be my job for today. I am not interested in the ball without my mate anyways."
Zion laughed and it was hard for him to speak between his chuckles. "You..ahh..you..never..even wanted to be..to...be here..hahaha..You never even wanted to be here in the first place." He continued to laugh even when I threw a pillow at him from my seat. "Ah! Come on man! You know it is true!"
"That does not mean anything." I started to laugh as well. "You got me. Yes. I never did want to go. I was resigned that I would not have a mate. Now that I do, I see no reason to have other wolves think they have a chance." I coughed then looked at the time. "The greeting portion is scheduled for noon, meaning we have a few hours to run into town. Lets get going."
Once I got to town, I was pleased I had Jace's number. I texted him to find out things Kash liked and his favourite flavor of cake. It turned out; my mate was not really picky. Even Jace had trouble explaining to me. His exact words were, "He never told me he hated or really enjoyed anything. His favourite thing was just to spend time with people he cares for and that the rest was all extra.". It was worse when I asked about hobbies. As it turns out my mate did not do much besides some games on his lap top. His focus had been school and helping with pack matters, much as a Luna would have done. Buying a gift was a tad more taxing then I thought it would be.
Zion I sure was just as tired as I was but he kept popping ideas out. "You know boss. Maybe keep it simple? He does both pack matters and gaming, but I know that lap tops are not really the best for multi-tasking."
Not really getting what he was talking about I grumbled. "What are you getting at?"
He started to smile. "It is easy boss. Get him an upgraded laptop for his Luna duties and maybe a actual gaming pc he can use separately?" He had already been dragging me to the local electronics store.
Looking at the front of the store, I did not expect much in the quality I would want to get Kash. "Lets just get the pc for now. The laptop can be separate when he fully accepts his role."
Zion said nothing to me as I told him my idea, while he walked over to the employee. "Excuse me sir. We are looking for a top-of-the-line gaming pc and accessories."
The truth of it was, I am not knowledgeable on tech. I can handle my smart phone, if I had too. Of course, it was used only for those outside the pack since all pack members can talk with mind links. As for computers, I left anything outside my basic emails to everyone else. To many buttons and so much to go wrong. I was happy my friend had an idea of what we happened to need.
After dropping everything off at our cabin we got prepared for the greeting. "I really do not know why I am expected to welcome packs and meet them."
"Because you are royalty. Come on, it happens every ball no matter the host. You have got to be used to it by now!" Zion was fixing my tie while he scolded me. "Next year you will have your Luna by your side and you can use it to show him off. Sound better?"
I smirked. "Can't I just welcome them all and tell them I have a mate now? It would save all the pining. I hate the way they try and hold my hand hoping for a spark. Both men and women are troublesome for it. Besides, I would rather spend the time with Kash."
"Duties first. Man, you are acting like a hormonal teenager. Not gonna say I hate it. At the same time, I think this day cannot end soon enough. You will give me a headache." Zion clapped my shoulder then chuckled. "The faster we do our service the faster you can meet up with Kash."
"Deal." Thinking this was the best plan he would offer, I took it.
The meeting of the packs felt like it took forever. The unmated members were the worst. I am sure some came just for the hopes of being my mate. Holding a fake smile while trying to pull hands off my own for a few hours is painful. Zion and the warriors did their best to keep the packs moving. We all knew they stood no chance, but it was not announced yet. Ha! They will be pissed at the ball. Zion was now in the habit of bumping my arm every time I smirked thinking about it. I was going to have a bruise.
When the last pack walk through, we could finally turn to Alpha Dax and Jace. "You both did a great job. I am looking forward to the evenings festivities." With a cheer from the packs below the ceremony was finally over.
"Alpha Atlas!" Jace had ran over as I tried to sneak out. "I need to have a chat with you privately please."
It did not please me but I knew from the look on his face it really was important. "What can I do for you Jace?"
"I wanted to let you know the guards reported that Kash has moved from his room to his cell. It appears his heat has started. The only people that have the code are my father, Kash and myself. I know you had some plans to see him for his birthday, but I will not allow you in with him. I feel like he would prefer that." I could see he was stuck between protecting his brother and preventing me from seeing my mate.
Thinking it over and what I knew about Kash, he would prefer to have a choice. He would not want our bond and his heat to speak for him. "I have no interest of going against Kash. However, if I could at least know where his cell is so that I may speak to him and maybe leave my gifts? I promise to not enter his cell even if he begs for it. Never will I do anything to make him hate me."
Very quickly I could see Jace relax. "Thank you for understanding."
The directions he gave were somewhat easy to follow. However, I grew concerned that he had no guards near him. There was a large number of packs nearby. It would not be safe. I walked past the door by mistake in the underground hall and lost my way. I was starting to get angry.
"Whoa! Settle Atlas. What is going on? Your anger is enough to make your guards whimper." Zion was struggling to speak up.
"I feel that it is urgent. My wolf is ready to fight and I feel an extremely strange feeling like Kash is in trouble." I was growling more than speaking at this time.
"They never gave him guards. Even other omgeas can be affected by his heat pheromones. Kash would be safer alone." Suddenly he stopped. "Boss. You smell that?"
My eyes flashed gold. "Rogues?" A short howl of distress sounded before it was cut off and I ran.
I followed the scent to the scene in front of me. Kash, my mate muzzled, front legs tied and fighting to stay awake from what looked like a tranquilizer. The two rogues were yelling at Kash to obey and to stop fighting. The largest of the two holding Kash by the scruff of his neck.
"He will not obey because he is royalty and we bow down to no one!" My warriors took over and subdued the two men while Zion and I took care of Kash. Ripping the make shift ties off caused him to whimper in pain, even though he was already unconscious. "They were way to tight. I do not know what they gave him to knock him out but it sure is fast acting."
"I will contact Alpha Dax and Jace. The warriors will deal with the rogues." Zion was already in full Beta mode. "The warriors will make them talk for what they did to our future Luna."
"Make sure they talk and leave some for me. It is the least I can do for my mate." My words had the two men cringe. "Zion please go find Alpha Dax and Jace, I will see to Kash."
As soon as the room cleared way, I focused back on Kash. I could already feel him shifting down from wolf form because of the drugs. Looking around his cell I found his little nest in the far corner. I placed Kash down and walked over to the nest fixing it. After picking Kash back up, I proceeded to lay him down in a fettle position into the centre. His body was now much, much warmer than it normally should be, even when in heat. Heats will give omegas a fever, but the drugs have now increased that fever. His normal pale skin was flushed red.
Grabbing some water bottles that were in a mini fridge, I ripped off my shirt. Taking from the pile of now shredded cloth, I poured the cold water on one and started to wipe his forehead and torso off hoping to cool him down. "Where the fuck is Zion and Alpha Dax." Forgetting how upset Kash might be of a stranger seeing him in this state until now added to my frustrations.
"Right here boss. I grabbed more water on the way thinking you might need it." Zion was smiling with a bucket in hand that I looked at suspiciously. "Don't worry clean bucket too."
"What happened?" Jace was the one that spoke up first. "He should have been safe."
"My warriors are dealing with the rogues that tried to take him. He is safe now. They did drug him so his fever is higher than normal." I saw him shiver and smiled in relief. "Looks like he is actually cooling off. Is there another blanket here for him?"
"No, he always brings his favourite one and that is all. He said too many smells makes it harder to deal with. Told us that the less he smells the safer he feels." Alpha Dax was finally joining the conversation. "I will make sure no one knows of this breach during the ball. Though guards will be increased. I apologize Alpha Atlas for my error in judgment."
The only response I gave him was a nod. Turning to Zion I spoke up. "Grab my blanket I keep in the car for long drives. It will be cool enough not to over heat him but enough to keep the chill off." Looking back at Kash I wiped his hair from his eyes.
"Can I ask you something?" Jace though directing his conversation to me did not get closer. "Did something happen to his scent? Normally even I, his brother can react to his pheromones when he is in heat, but I actually hardly smell him, and it is not, pleasant."
Looking at him I smiled. "When an omega finds their fated, their pheromones no longer are there to attract a potential mate, but to entice their own. Our wolves have already accepted each other, now I wait for Kash. To me he smells of strawberries and mint. The mint is stronger now that he is in heat and it smells wonderful to my nose. Before you say anything!" I almost growled at Alpha Dax's face of insinuation. "He is in trouble and I have no sexual desire from it right now. My rut will not happen either. First off, we must be actually mated before I would go into rut, not just bonded spiritually. When he accepts us and allows me to claim him, then his pheromones will have a greater impact. Did you guys never do any research?"
I could see him shrink back. "As much as we could. Male omegas are rarer than the females, and it even appears that the females seem to have different reactions compared to Kash. We could not and still do not understand."
I laughed. "Did you not think that it is because he is born like royalty and has a few exceptions?" Looked behind Alpha Dax I saw Zion with my blanket and held my hand out for it. Scenting it gently to remove Zion's scent, I placed it on Kash to help cover him up in his nest. He had me smile when he held my blanket tight after he subconsciously sniffed it. After he settled, I moved back out of the cell and sealed the door once more. "I will have a cot brought down here. There will also be royal guards rotated to keep twenty four hour protection until he is ready to leave. Then he will have his own personal guards assigned to him from my team." It was time I treated my mate as he should be and ignore the father at this time. Kash was mine.