A helios' light was his soul.
And Kieran should have all the control, for his sun was his own. And yet when his fingers brushed over Rue's, his light had a mind of its own. It was Rue's to control, Rue's to touch, Rue's to turn upon him.
The little Alpha could laugh and beg his rays to lay down like puppies and spin on their tails, and they would listen. The little one could turn his rays upon him, force each shuddering tendril upon Kieran to do as he pleased.
Rue could kill Kieran with his own light, that was how much power he had.
And Rue could command them with a twist of his fingers. He could tell them to run up his naked flesh, and to spread their wings upon Kieran's sensitive cock. Could tell them to dive deep within his slit and prod at his prostate, could command them to gag him, and fuck him in the ass the way no one else could. And Kieran would be whimpering and begging at the mercy of the only being in the world that could control his light.
Rue was, Kieran had swallowed loudly at the thought, his sun.
And a sun had all the control. A fucked-up benefit that only they could have. It was so that—Kieran had gulped at the thought. It was so that Rue could make him tremble under pleasure of each ray. Rue was his true mate, a perfect biological match.
Everyone had multiple soulmates, but only one would become a true mate. Only one would be perfect for him to touch, fuck and procreate with. And Rue was that person for his light, yet according to Seraphim, he was not their soulmate.
How the fuck was he not their soulmate?
But Seraphim couldn't see Alpha Rue in his waters, could not see Rue embedded deep in their future. He'd checked for the younger ones, had spent hours swimming in his sacred pool searching for what Valentino wept and begged for what must be their seventh through his first and only Rut. And for what Halcyon stubbornly refused to acknowledge was the reason for his transformation.
Rue would only be another guide. Another being that existed amongst the billions. A fun little snack for Altair. A plaything for the rest. But Kieran wondered truly, who would be the ones left broken and weeping at the end of the story.
"You tried to lay our eggs in him," was Kieran's first question, a steady drop in his voice. But Seraphim remained unphased as he continued making their dinner, an egg cracked into a pan. The old way. "You tried to fuck him." That had his blood boiling a rush of heat through his system. "Rape—"
"Rue is a guide," was Seraphim's answer as he stood at the stove, unable to look at him. "Guides are fucked. You know that Kieran, you know that. And he was nothing, nothing to me. He would have been compensated. Him and his family would live a cushy life forever."
The elder set his eyes on him, a challenge brewing but Kieran didn't care. The fear that had twisted from Rue's lips had been nothing like he'd ever seen before. And something was making him angry. Something boiled deep within his chest and beckoned him to stand tall against the people he loved.
He would go against them for another.
"Why the eggs?" Kieran's voice was quiet, almost hostile, the rage deepened his voice.
"Children," Seraphim turned, lips trembling. "I saw our children in him. Do you understand? We can have kids. Children that are a perfect mixture of all seven of us. We wouldn't need an Omega to continue our bloodline. To have a filthy weakling as half of the child, half of the DNA. Rue could—"
"And you drugged him to do it, couldn't you just—"
"You know exactly how idiotic he is," Seraphim had spun, his skin rippling with his anger, growing translucent and then iridescent. "He didn't know who I was, of what we ruled. He didn't know shit. I could give him an order, one that the entire world would know to listen to the moment they feel our power against their skin. The moment they smell our anger. But he didn't give a fuck when he stepped into our dormitory and smelled us all over the walls. He clearly doesn't care, would never listen to etiquette and rules. He is like a child with not an ounce of fear in his brain—"
"So you decided to kill him? Are you fucking kidding me?" was Kieran's snarl, "I can smell you on his hands. So strongly over all that blood and the eros.Oh, I know who made those wounds, but your poison will enter his bloodstream too, and your excuse of children wouldn't make sense if he dies—"
"It doesn't matter, okay?"
Seraphim's cheeks were red, his outburst squeaky. His form grew messy, watery, losing its physicality, gem-like he throbbed. And this had Kieran's eyes narrowing, his rays penetrating Seraphim's form. On a better day he'd love to taste his soulmate, to relish in being within him without touching him.
For Seraphim in his true most watery form was a danger even to his flesh. Seraphim's poison was so potent Kieran struggled in its depths. But today, he surged within tasting Seraphim's truth in the tremble of his liquid. But today Seraphim tasted sour, and within it was a strange tart sweetness that coated his tongue like…
Love.
"He will withstand everything I can give because he's immune." Seraphim turned now, wrung hands, unable to meet Kieran's eyes. The egg on the stove was burning. "He's completely immune to me. The most I could do would be mere aphrodisiacs. He's not a simple, low-life alien—"
"And how the fuck do you know that?" Kieran snarled, "he's weak, he's sick because of you. Without Levi he'll die tomorrow, and—"
"I came on him." Seraphim squawked; his hands pressed to his face in a wet sob. And this had Kieran growing quiet, his jaw dropping open. No. No. No. "I came on him." The words had him stumbling back, surprised by his own truth. Kieran gawked, and Seraphim only grew redder and seemed embarrassed. He stood rapidly, and left the gooey traces of himself on soaked furniture. And even the wood struggled to withstand his acid. "God, please, don't tell the rest. I can't bear it—"
"You're joking. That strong scent was…Your cum?" This had jealousy spinning straight through Kieran's heart. It burned in his throat. But it wasn't just because Seraphim's first wasn't his. It was also because Rue would not only be Kieran's. Kieran would have to share his sun. "You must be fucking joking. You've got to be—"
"No, he's not." There was a quiet click, a rush as the illusion fell, the apartment transformed. The space widened, and extended into the shadows towards their second door. Altair stood, smoothing out his hair, and seemed a little distracted, snow melting in his hair. "Tasted it on his hands. All over those weak little fingers, its penetrated so deeply into his skin, it's almost like a mark," Altair hissed, checking his nails like the bratty mate he was. "And as his soulmate, the most I've ever had was his pre-cum. Shame, I always thought it was such a pretty taste, tart and sweet like juice. Right Val?"
Valentino stood behind him, eyes vacant, red at the edges but lost and unseeing. And Kieran grew even angrier now, the rage roaring as he spotted the culprit of the wounds. The reason for the blood that ran down Rue's arms.
"Tasted it so strong, so thick, so potent. And it was only the fucking aftermath," Altair grew quiet. "You'd only do it for him, Sera?" His gaze locked upon the eldest, upon the poseidon that backed into a corner. "Only for a goddamn stranger?"