KINGDOM OF ASMAX:
Axe always knew his fate would be doomed from the moment his caste was decided by the goddess Luna and the god of wolves, to be born omega in a world like the one he had been born into was too much, even as the prince of a nation, it did not remove the curse of his lineage.
OMEGA, it seemed a bad word that carried the soul, the coldness that constituted to be nothing more than the possession of the superior beings, the ALFAS, barbarians in their majority, full of unhealthy intentions, guilty of the greatest disasters, creators of calamities.
Now, embraced by the cloak of the night, with the bright and splendorous goddess as a witness, he looks up and sees what could be said to be one of the few ancestral entities that inspire him faith.
The god of the wolves, the father of all his race, to whom for years the subjects and the royal family have paid tribute, Fenrir.
The king among kings, god of gods, who marks the beginning and the end, who puts them on earth and gives the mission of life to the wolves, the eternal lover of the moon, and lord of the Lycans.
For a second of hesitation Axe wonders, deep inside himself, if his prayers could be heard, if with howling of sadness and desolation to the moon in the hope that the wolf god will hear him up there in his temple.
He falls to his knees, ready to bow with his forehead pressed to the ground, praying as his body trembles with anger and helplessness, and tears stream down his face, could he really be heard and delivered from his fate.
He walks down the wide corridor feeling his wolf alert, his ears attentive to any sound, he feels dejected, heavy and at the same time determined.
Axe feels the sweat running down his forehead, hands and back while the uncomfortable cloth sticks to his torso as if it could not be otherwise, with the candles lit, illuminating the pantheon of the god Fenrir and other small deities.
Carefully she stopped in front of the deity and on the wooden plank lined in red velvet she knelt down placing both hands together, taking a deep breath, feeling the air pass painfully into her lungs, starting with whispers that took shape and volume.
"Oh father of wolves, one of your children needs you, and even if my faith is not absolute, I still come to you today to ask for help."
He licks his lips nervously, while he believes fervently in what was instilled in him, praying had never been his forte, he didn't even go to chapel enough, or had a tendency to leave everything to luck and the gods.
"To give presence in the lands of Craenia, will be my undoing, as an omega, in a world as cruel as the one we have come to live in, to go there would be to open the gates to hell, however, my lord, war seems to tuck us in with its scent of blood and desolation."
Axe sighs wearily and trembling.
"Aspor wants to destroy us, leaving me in an extremely difficult position, for if I do not agree, he would only condemn us all to death and devastation."
He denies dejectedly.
"I have never asked for anything, my lord, never, and yet this time I want to, I feel I deserve to be selfish."
He closes his eyes holding back the tears that threaten to come.
"Free me from this unfortunate fate, allow this servant of yours to be happy without having to live with the death of an entire people on his back as punishment."
Life is unfair, that much was more than clear to Axe, putting his people just now in a position of war was not what he would have expected, not when his father and alpha, at last planned to rest beside his mother, leaving behind a life of shocks and threats.
Asmax is peaceful, a haven of peace for the Lycans, they had not crossed more than simple words with other kingdoms in years, he did not understand, even with the wisdom of his she-wolf in between.
How was such a thing possible?.
The Omega wondered continually.
Axe swears, no matter how much he thinks and tries to find something feasible to explain logically the enemy's actions, he can't find it. It was as if they had just decided to go against him, as if some evil being poisoned his mind and asked for Asmax's blood as tribute.
In the distance a horn sounded, it was similar to the war harmonies of his people, only this one was more equanimous and low, like an order that must be taken without refutation, and it could only mean one thing, they had accepted the alliance with Craenia for the sake of protecting both kingdoms of Aspor.
Axe closed his eyes and took a deep breath.
"There is no turning back now."
Whispered the omega.
Sometimes wearing a crown was too much, being royalty, rather than a blessing, could be taken as a punishment.
That night both he and his she-wolf felt sadder and weaker than ever.
_________
KINGDOM OF CRAENIA:
"Our alpha has finally sent response to Asmax on alliance issues, and they have been positive."
Karel Feret's voice sounded low sitting next to his older brother.
The opposite did not turn to look at him, in fact he seemed too focused on watching the sea, dusk was lapping the waters of the harbor and the birds were giving their last acrobatics before retiring.
"Erwin."
He called, resting his hand on the alluded one's shoulder.
"I know this is not the best situation, but we depend on this, we are weak by ourselves, our army...."
The laughter came loud and thunderous, Karel stepped back only a few steps, watching the alpha as if seeing him for the first time, it was so cold, empty, devoid of anything that could make it human, it made his skin crawl.
His brother is an alpha, and the animal within his eyes was furious, as much or even more so than the human, for to be forced into such a thing as a "marriage agreement" in which he gave no say, showed that he was not alpha enough to hold the very reins of his life.
Erwin growled, almost animalistic and primal, letting go a grimace as he realized the fact, squealed and smiled cynically.
"So tying my wolf and I into an arranged marriage with an omega I've never seen in my life seems to be the solution to all our problems, does it?"
The alpha smiled smirked.
"That's too naive, even for you, Karel. We know a lot of monarchs - must have been someone from Asmax precisely?"
"Our alpha wants the good of the kingdom."
"Your alpha seeks only his own good, my dear Karel."
Rebutted Erwin in a low, even calm tone, for Karel it was sometimes-and only sometimes-fascinating to see the passivity with which Erwin took things.
He could say that before this day he had never seen his brother act as his caste dictates, possessive, dangerous and aggressive, rather it was quite the opposite, as if he didn't care about anything.
Karel even thought that he lacked a soul, his older brother was the opposite of him: Alpha, strong, determined and went straight ahead.
Erwin stood up and looked at the horizon, one more time before walking past and leaving Karel there.
Erwin was deep in his own thoughts, feeling his wolf moving in his dark midst, jaws out, growling, as he questioned what he could do to get out of it.
Even now that he knew it was late and by now the omega prince of Asmax, he should be happy, making packing arrangements to leave for Craenia.
He sighed and walked back into the castle with his head held high and back erect.
This was an alliance, just that, pure convenience and need to survive and not fall before what threatens to come, he was the heir of Craenia, alpha, son of the king, he should not worry, it was his lands, his kingdom, the omega prince of Asmax was the one who should tremble with fear.