Next day, every thing was already prepared by Rosa's minions. Everyone was handling their own assigned task and those who were finished, started preparing their dresses and make up.
In Rosa's territory, every omega has to go through training and finish the training with a tea ceremony. This tea had a special meaning. It was a symbol that the person who has joined the team will no longer fret about his/ her past. Here onwards, he will start a new life where his past will not affect his future. His loyalty lies towards Rosa and the other omegas. Here onwards, his action will be responsible towards the liberty, justice and fraternity of this organisation and the mercenary. Therefore, today Asmin a.k.a. Alan was supposed to pledge his loyalty towards his brothers and sisters within the organisation. He would also go on a solitary mission in order to prove that he can survive through harsh weathers and has the ability to stand up for his brothers and sisters at the time of crisis.
At this hour, Asmin was also getting ready for the so called ceremony. The servants deleivered a black dress at his door. The upper shirt was long enough to reach beyond knees. It had two splits each on opposite side, reaching upto his waste. A black pair of trousers as the bottom. Then, there was waist coat which had a Y shaped neck and raised shoulders. There were tassles hanging from his shoulder. Lastly, there was a leather strap with a pocket hanging on the back, where the weapons can be placed. So, Asmin placed his weapon in that strap. He also wrapped cotton ribbons around the handle of the axe. The axe was long, so it reached behind his hips once hung like that. There was another strap which looked like garters. On both side, there were pockets for daggers and guns. Asmin wore it but unfortunately he had no other weapons. But once he started earning money he will surely buy more. That's what he thought.
Soon, the time arrived and some one came to call Asmin. When Asmin heard the content of her words, he stood up and followed her towards the venue.
As soon as Asmin arrived at the similar training grounds, he saw various omegas standing there screaming and shouting his name as if they were some fans waiting for their bias to arrive.
" Asmin! Asmin! Asmin!" The crowd went crazy like that.
Soon a hand raised in the air and crowd's sound came to a halt. That hand belonged to Rosa, he was standing at the altar wearing a red line long shirt and the latanas were hanging on his back. He was wearing black trousers with black boots. Even though he was looking handsome, to Asmin he looked like a walking danger sign. Asmin walked towards the center where Rosa was waiting with a warrior on his side.
Asmin swiftly walked over and stood in front of Rosa. Rosa smiled at him, raised his hand and placed it on his shoulder. He leaned closer and whispered something in Asmin's ear. Asmin felt goosebumps running through his skin.
Rosa watched his reaction and smirked smugly. Then he turned towards the crowd and announced, " My dear brothers and sisters, we are assembled here to welcome another member in our humble abode. We, the omegas of this desert town stand together on this auspicious day to promise a new member that he or she will forever remain the subject of our protection this day onwards. No matter what circumstances are, we all will stand with them and protect them. We, therefore, will remain brothers and sisters in life and death, never to betray the trust of this organisation. We are stronger when we are together."
Rosa took a pause and the ground was filled with cheers and shouts. Everyone applauded in order to show their pride towards their club. They all were looking at Rosa like they were looking at god. Many of them were emotionally tearing up. Among them Asmin stood as stiff as statue. Soon, a person handed him a silver cup. Inside, their was a brown liquid of unknown orgins. Asmin looked at it with doubt.
His every action was noted by Rosa who was looking at him from side eye. Rosa couldn't help but rejoice at his antics. He was smart for doubting the tea. No one had ever questioned the origins of this sweet liquid before. Asmin was the first to do so. Maybe it was because he was still vigilant towards Rosa.
Anyway, his doubt towards the tea was right. Because, this tea was blended with a poison that worked within a period of six months. After every six months, it required an antidote to suppress the symptoms. No one knew about this except the great Khala because this poison came from his north tribe. He stealthily placed a ritual to feed his members this poison in order to guarantee that there is no betrayal in future.The antidote was given to them mixed with heat suppressants. So, no one ever realised that there was poison resting inside their body. Only when they tried to run away, they realised the presence of this poison. Once the presence was detected, it was already too late to tell others about it. Therefore, this secret was successfully hidden from all other members.In Rosa's defence, in a place where everyone is fighting with life and death, there was no way he could risk the chances of espionage.
Rosa turned towards Asmin and said, " Our dear Asmin Dua, we welcome you in this little family of ours. Please repeat after me, I, your name."
Asmin repeated, " I, Asmin Dua,"
" promise that I will fulfill my responsibilities towards the organisation in future." Rosa spoke.
Asmin repeated with him, "promise that I will fulfill my responsibilities towards the organisation in future."
" In the period of crisis, my first priority will be the loyality to organisation, second priority will be fraternity towards my brothers and sisters, and lastly towards my liberty." Rosa spoke.
"In the period of crisis, my first priority will be the loyality to organisation, second priority will be fraternity towards my brothers and sisters, and lastly towards my liberty." Asmin spoke. As soon as he finished, a cheer ran through the crowd followed by thunderous applaud.
" I, hereby, promise to remain loyal towards the organisation and fulfill my duties as it's member." Rosa finished the oath.
" I, hereby, promise to remain loyal towards the organisation and fulfill my duties as it's member." Alan finally took a sigh of relief. But it was too early to do so.
" Now you can drink the tea. " Rosa smiled.
Asmin held the cup tightly and under the gaze of the crowd, he didn't resist. He drank the whole cup in one shot.
The crowd cheered and shouts followed. " Our youngest drank if he was doing tequila shots."
Everyone laughter and rejoiced. Rosa broke through the chatter and announced, " Now that the tea is well received, I welcome everyone to have drinks and food and enjoy to their heart's content. Have fun you guys. Disperse."
The crowd soon dispersed. Some people went to drink alcohol while some camped near food booth. Some sang while other danced. The atmosphere was cheerful and everyone was having the time of their life.
Asmin stood at the corner. Many omegas approached him, introduced themselves, welcomed him and gave him presents. There were perfumes, costmetics, daggers, blades, expensive fruits, furnishing, etc. Soon their was too much to carry around. So, Asmin piled it on a chair. Soon, the pile was high enough to reach his shoulders. Asmin felt overwhelmed by the love they showed him. Everyone called him youngest and spoiled him like a younger sibling. Asmin was having a hard time getting used to it. It was his first time to have so have so many elder brother and sister.
" Khala, aren't you being too stingy. Where is your present for the youngest? " An anonymous person chuckled.
Rosa raised his eyes to glare at the source of the noise, " Ha ha ha...my gift is a bit special. I can't give it to him until he is ready to accept."
No one understood Khala's word except Asmin. Just before the oath Rosa whispered to him. " Don't attack me right now. Finish the ceremony first."
Truth to be told, Asmin had been planning to attack and fight against Rosa since several months. He was still holding a grudge for the humiliation he faced in their first fight. He also felt that he needs to defeat Rosa inorder to walk around with his head held high. It was too embarassing for him to accept that he was subpar to some other omega. He wanted to prove his strength. And now that all the cards are out, he can no longer step back. He stood up and walked towards Rosa.
He pulled his axe out and uttered, " I am ready to accept your gift." He charged forward but this time he held the heavy axe with both hands and increased his speed. His footwork improved by bounds and leaps. Rosa was surprised but reacted even more quckly. He pulled out his katanas and charged forward as well. The crowd soon dispersed to one side, leaving a space for these two maniacs to fight.
" What is happening? Why are they suddenly fighting?" one of them asked.
" I have no idea. Khala said her gift was special and Alan said he is ready to receive it. What kind of gift is this?!" Another shouted loud.
" Did Asmin challenge him?"
" No. from the way I see it. Khala challenged Asmin before he could."
" Fuck! Khala's blade never show mercy. I hope our youngest survives."
Im between the chatter, a person stood at the corner watching the two figures fighting in the front. " So, this is what he was talking about. I always thought my Rosa was reasonable being. It's been so long since I have seen this untamned side of his." Andrew mumbled and then smiled. " I place my bets on Rosa. What about you guys?" He laughed and initiated betting among the crowd.
" Ofcourse I bet on Khala."
" Me too."
" Me too. Why even ask?"
The crowd began shouting, " Khala! Rosa! Rosa!!"
Asmin heard the crowd's cheer and his heart felt a little hot. This guys are gonna regret soon, he thought. I will make them all regret.
He charged forward and swung his axe towards Rosa. Rosa dodged the blow. He can't take the hit head on. His blade were too thin to take a heavy blow. But again, a heavy blow takes a lot of strength and leaves an opportunity to attack the blind spots. Rosa swung his swords towards Asmin's back but Asmin ducked. He raised his axe vertically, cutting through Rosa's longshirt. He missed by a hairline. Rosa was in mid air when he saw the blade bracing his clothes. His anger rose and he turned around to attack. This time, Rosa's blade met head on with the axe, sparks flew in the air. Asmin increased his arm strength and slid the axe across. A sharp shriek of metal clashing filled the surrounding. Asmin swung the axe again, this time the hook side faced one of the katanas and pulled on it. The heavy push followed by pull took Rosa by surprise and the katana fell on the ground. Rosa was left with a single katana.
" Oh my god! How is he moving that huge axe so swiftly? What monstrous strength?"
" What the hell? How is he so strong?"
The crowd chattered on the sidelines.
Rosa took a step back and ran towards the other side. Asmin charger towards him with his axe. Once again he swung it but this time Rosa turned mid air and successfully delivered a cut on Asmin's arm. They both landed and Asmin swung the axe without waiting for another another second. Rosa jumped upwards and dodged the axe. He kicked on Asmin's arm that was bleeding.
" Ah! " Asmin grunted in pain. The slit on his skin bleeded profusely. " You are playing dirty!!"
" Ofcourse I am. It isn't me who swore never to kill." Rosa's repeated with sarcasm.
In that moment, Rosa ran towards the sword lying on the ground and fetched it. Then he said, " I feel happy again."
He smiled and charged forward. This time both the swords moved as if they belonged to two different bodies. It felt like each hand of Rosa had it's own brain.
Asmin wanted to attack but there was no time. He was just too busy defending himself. With the continuous clash of two swords and his axe, his injured arm got covered in red blood. The black dress looked a mess. No longer able to handle the blows, Asmin ran towards the corner. Rosa ran behind him like a reaper waiting for his soul to vanish.
Asmin reached the corner successfully. Now only way to defend is his front.
" Let's finish this!" Rosa smirked.
Both of them clashed once again. This time Asmin used every bit of his strength and increased force on his attacks. The momentum was too much for the blades and the edges were chipped. Rosa noticed the situation becoming more and more out of control. The longer it extends, the lower are his chances of winning. He took a step back. This time instead of facing the swing of axe, he stepped aside and charged towards Asmin's waist that was left undefended. He slit through Asmin's waist leaving a deep wound. Then he grabbed his other sword and placed a cut on Asmin's other shoulder. The axe finally fell to the ground and Asmin screamed in pain. He lost a lot of blood and soon blacked out.
It was already dark when Asmin came to his senses again. He was in his room laying on his bed. There were two people sitting by his bedside. One was Andrew and the other was Rosa. When they both saw his movement, they spoke in unison. " How are you feeling?"
Asmin looked at the both of them with scrutiny. What are they doing here?
His askance appearance was just too clear to ignore. Andrew laughed and said, " Don't worry. We are not going to harm you. You lost consciousness during the battle, so I didn't get the chance to congratulate you."
He gave Alan a basket which he had brought with him for his present. Alan was about to open the basket when Andrew stopped him. " Be careful. Don't startle it."
Alan was taken aback. Startle? Was there some kind of animal in this basket? He finally sat up with excitement. The injury on his waist hurt a little when he sat. But ignoring the pain, he placed the basket on his lap and opened it. Inside, there was black baby snake with brown pattern all over his body. The black scales were shiney and the neck was wider with beautiful eye peattern on it's back.
Alan smiled heartedly and said, " I love it. Thank you so much. What species is this?" He asked.
" Oh it's a king cobra." Andrew replied. While Rosa sat there disgusted by the slithering animal. They don't exist in the north.
" And I am here to elaborate your mission to you." Rosa interrupted.
" Asmin, you will cross the border and go to the A town that exists in no man's land. There is a constant inflow of arms and drugs in that town. Your order is to find the source of those arms. You will leave two days later with a team of mercenaries, two warrior omegas and 3 fellow omega spies. You and your team will decide the course of action by yourself." Rosa said.