UNCLAIMED, THE MOON OMEGAS

Chapter 12

Lathan--

Riding in the moonlight, I noted the Omegas were skilled riders. Miles passed as we made good time. We had come to a narrow stretch of the canyon road. A natural choke point I kept heavily guarded. Captain Shia stopped us to clear the passage. “I have guards posted every three miles. We will know if the horde has been spotted.” I hoped to ease Neisa’s mind and nerves. And perhaps impress upon her the effort I made to protect my people, as well as her. I could not deny I was offended when she did nothing but nod in acknowledgment. If anyone horde, or otherwise, wanted to ambush this was a likely spot. Captain Shia rode further ahead, signaling the posted soldiers with the red lensed flashlights that could only be seen with night vision binoculars. My soldiers manned this stretch regularly. While this road sat safely in my kingdom, it was essential that I kept it. To the average citizen, it was only a road. The truth was it was so much more. We waited nervously as the captain awaited confirmation. I watched Neisa wordlessly communicated with her Omega’s, using a form of sign language. She was effectively, and quietly taking stock of those under her care.

“My king.” Capt. Shia nudged his horse as he began to move us in a single line into the narrow pass. Neisa meant to be the last rider through. No doubt to protect her rear flank. A position she would be denied. No one was picking off my Omega. I knew how her mind worked — 80 % of the time. Avoiding a lengthy verbal confrontation, I pulled my horse away. Turning back the way we came, riding a good 20 yards back down the road, acting as a rear century. I smiled when the agitated nerve surged through the bond with her feelings. With us, safely past the narrow passage, we picked up the pace, riding for almost an hour before I stopped us.

“Why are we stopping?” Neisa asked as she pulled her mount up to mine.

“We are changing transportation.” I smiled at my confused mate. To the average traveler, this was just a dirt road carved into the sandstone. But the rock wall hid more than it revealed. I led the Omegas through the hidden cave, knowing that Shia had sent the communication an hour ago. The soldiers that were posted had readied the boat. “Didn’t you wonder how I evened the playing field?” The look of guarded surprise that bolted through Neisa’s multi-colored eyes thrilled me. My mate was an amazing creature. So, unlike any woman I’d ever known. She’d intrigued me when the little Omega had challenged me. I fell immediately under her spell. My intrigue turning to obsession before I’d left the battlefield. Neisa was going to be mine. Regardless of her offer or terms. Her little game had only made it more interesting. Not many were bold, let alone, brave enough to challenge me. Yet she was. Believing herself skilled enough to stand as my equal. And rightfully so. She was, in every way, imaginable, the moon to my sun. She’d completed and filled an emptiness that had lived in my heart. Letting her walk away from me had been hell. Getting her back and staking claim had damn near driven me to madness.

“Of course, I wondered.” She said taking stock of what resources I had. Her mind was alive; my little rebel missed nothing — a true strategist. The intellect Neisa possessed was frightening. I had greatly underestimated her more than once. If I had not found her when I had, she could have very easily escaped my lands. I would have followed. She had no idea what I would have done to bring her back. She continued to aid her Omega’s, which was nothing more than a ploy to ignore me. The Omegas were single-handedly the most efficient, independent women on this planet. They needed no aid or tending. My mate was still very unhappy with me. My attempt at physical correction had not to be received with the intent given. Any Alpha of worth acted in this manner. Order and structure ensured harmony. That is the Alpha way. Neisa had not appreciated my efforts to remind her of her station, and importance to me. Openly, publicly rebelling and undermining my rule. If she’d reacted, the way she’d truly felt her coup would have been biblical. She truly felt like I had betrayed her. The truth of that throbbed painfully through the bond, damming me with the raw quilt, making me question my actions. I was a king, her king, and mate. I shouldn’t have to defend my right to care for her by any means. Yet I had to. My olive branch of retrieving her fallen had not been enough to bring her back. Neisa intended to punish me as painfully as I had her. The loss of her affections had been physically painful. “Captain Shia, return to the outpost immediately. I want no radio contact between you and the capital. Do you understand?”

“Sir.” The captain looked disappointed.

“I have not forgotten my offer, captain. You will be tasked with accompanying the Omega’s safely to the capital.” I felt Neisa flutter with a fearfully worry. She’d formed a fondness for this soldier. I fought to contain the jealous flare that erupted in my heart.

“Understood. Travel safe.” The captain tried to keep his gaze from Neisa’s, but he failed. Whether it was intentional or not, the undeveloped Alpha was taken with my mate. I knew the affliction all too well. “Captain, don’t underestimate my sisters. They are strong, brave. They will do what is needed to be returned to their mates.” Neisa assured the soldier.

“I have witnessed their strength, My queen, and yours. They will be safe.”

“That includes you too Shia. Your life has only begun.”

“A debt that I owe you, my queen.”

“You owe me nothing Shia.” I moved forward, posturing defensively. Neisa responded, instinctively withdrawing from the captain.

“A small detachment will be sent to you,” I spoke briskly.

“Understood.” He replied. Wisely, the soldier removed himself from the boat returning, to the bank of the river. The river would be harder to navigate at night. We had the advantage of a full moon. A fact that was much appreciated as we had many miles of shallow, rocky water to travel. The Omega’s turned to silent centuries as the boat was rowed upstream. The women were scanning the banks as we moved upriver. The night was cold, especially off the water. The Alpha’s that had been reunited with their mates held them close. I wanted badly to do the same. But my mate was not happy with me. Feelings she made very clear. She would rather freeze then take the warmth and comfort I could give her. Silent hours passed as we moved along the water. Only when I knew we’d moved safely out of our enemies, reach did I order the motors be started. The remaining trip to the capital would be much faster. Green River, as it was known, was a large river that flowed from the lake. The river snaked a deep trough through my lands before it thinned out. The Shadowlands didn’t have the luxury of the water, or the vegetation it gifted us. Another reason it was vital for me to keep my outpost safe and thriving. The boat rounded the last of the narrow bends before opening into the giant lake that fed the capital — noting the relief that relaxed Neisa’s body. I left Neisa tending her sisters as I made for the council room. The bonded Alpha’s joined me. I retrieved my tech. Established the hardline connection. With the signal sent I waited for reception. The screen was fuzzy with black and white lines that realigned and cleared. The soldiers that manned the system greeted me. “Sir, what can I do for you?”

“Retrieve commander Ky.” The unclaimed spoke to an unseen figure to carry out the order. Only a few minutes past before Ky’s worried face filled my view. “Commander, it’s good to see you.” I felt for the haggard Alpha. His state was a reminding that he was a bonded Alpha who hadn’t seen his mate in months. He did not know she’d been rescued and was safely awaiting his return.

“Lathan, what has happened?”

“Many events have happened since we spoke last. I will not burden you with them at this moment, Ky. Rest assured that your mate, and the others have been safely recovered from the horde.” I struggled with the pride and overwhelming quilt that clung to my heart. Ky’s breathing changed as the breath he’d been holding left his lungs.

“I could feel her. She has been in great pain and distress.”

“And rightly so commander. The Omega’s had been chained, collared, and transported roughly. If they were average woman, I doubt they’d be as well as they are.”

“Chained and collard?” I could see the Alpha commander tense with anger.

“No doubt in an attempt to stop the Shadowland Alpha’s from claiming them.” A truly frightening thought.

“Sir, I want to head home immediately.”

" Of course. Inform the others and return. ”

“Thank you, sir.”

“Commander, use caution. The warlord has made a promise to reclaim what he believes he has paid for.” My muscles clenched, tightening in anger. No one would be taking my mate. Not while I breathed. A feeling I saw Ky felt as well. We were already ferocious beast. Threatening our mates made us dangerously possessive. I would not hesitate to start a war to keep Neisa safe. I would gladly kill anyone who moved a hand against her. I broke the connection and turned to my worried Alpha’s. “I want a detachment of our finest scouts on rotating patrol until the remaining Omegas are in the city,” I ordered.

“Sir, I wish to return to the outpost,” Lane spoke up.

” Why? your Omega is here.”

“She is. But my brother is not. I will personally escort Asher home.” Lane was a fearless soldier on the battlefield. No one worried when he was at your back. But the giant had a tenderness that was inspiring. The request humbled and reminded me that not all of us would have a happy ending.

“Tend and settle your mate. I want the rescue party leaving at first light.”

“Thank you, sir.” With my orders given, I left the council room. Knowing I needed to see my mother. She’d no doubt had been worried, even though I had tried to keep her informed. It was not only her comfort I was seeking, needing her insight. I had a strained bond that I desperately to repair. My mother’s tears were never far from her eyes. I held the tiny woman in my arms as she clung to me. “Son, it never gets easier.” She sniffled.

“I am a grown man mother. I have been for many years.” I lovingly teased her.

“You will always be my little boy.” I laughed at the gentlewoman who loved me. “How is Neisa?” She didn’t hesitate to take us straight to the heart of my trouble. I pulled away from my mother, guiding her back into her back to her chair by the window. I chuckled dryly. Not entirely sure how to brooch the subject of my actions, or Neisa’s response. “Lathan?” My mother stilled. “What has happened.”

“Neisa is expecting.” “Oh, my.” She teared up again. Patting my face as she smiled at me.

" What a blessing.”

“Truly mother.”

“You are not as excited as I’d imagined you would be.” She knew me well.

“I am overjoyed with the news. I have wanted this for so long.” I confessed to her, noting the tightening in my chest at the thought.

“But?”

" I have underestimated her. Again.”

“How so?” My mother didn’t need to know all that had happened between us. Neisa was a young, Omega who had not known the power and privilege of her nature. She still did not understand the extent of my feelings for her. And apparently, I had not aided that cause at all.

“She is strong-willed and defiant. Openly challenging me and disobeying my orders.” I bristled defensively. The small bubble of laughter that left my mother surprised me.

“Neisa is like a wild horse Lathan. One that has run free and proud with her kind.”

“She is Omega. She has a designated place within this world. Neisa will need to learn this.” My tone was too revealing, especially to the woman who knew me best. “Something tells me you tried to teach a lesson she was not interested in learning.” My mother narrowed her eyes on me. A look of disappointment that irritated me.

“I did not try to teach; I educated.”

“What did you do?” It had been years since my mother had unleashed that tone on me — an unwanted reminder of how I disliked it.

“What was necessary,” I stated boldly. ” I physically disciplined my mate.”

“You beat her?” The tiny woman rose from her chair with all the wrath of a volcano. Angelic features morphed into outrage that I’d never seen on my mother’s face.

“I disciplined her.”

“You struck your mate? The Omega carrying your child?”

“In an attempt to remind her of her place.” I defended myself.

“By the look of guilt and shame that stains your face, you have failed.” A sharp tongue my mother rarely used cut me deep. “I have been accused of betraying her," I confessed to my mother.

“How did you truly think she would react to your mistreatment? Did you think she would thank you? Praise you?” My mother demanded.

“I expected her to realize I loved her enough to keep her safe. Especially from herself.” I was Neisa’s mate, and protector, it was my duty. Yet my mother’s scathing disapproval was almost as painful as Neisa’s.

“Your father suffered from the same madness as you. What a shame.” She said, lowering herself carefully back down into her chair.

“Father disciplined you?” I asked without thinking. We’d never talked about such things.

“Your father disappointed me once.” A hellish fire still burned with her pain. ” When he realized his mistake, I was almost back in my mother’s arms.”

“You left your mate?” I could not fathom this. “So fast, his head spun.”

“How did you move past this?”

“We didn’t. Not for many months.” Months? I could not live months of Neisa’s resentment towards me. I could not live for months without her touch or love.

“Months is not an acceptable timeline," I told her.

“Then I suggest you work on your ass-kissing skills.” My mother said unsympathetically, which was almost as alarming as her advice.

“I am the king.” I reminded her.

“You are a fool with an unhappy mate.” She reminded me. “A mate who managed to escape and evade you for days. Are you willing to risk that again?”

◆◆◆

I found myself in the training square. Brutally attacking two of my well-trained Alphas, taking out my frustration on innocent soldiers. I spared with them mercilessly for more than an hour. Grateful when I hit muscle failure. I released the men, ordering them to leave me. Alone and exhausted, I slumped against the weapons rack and wondered how I was going to pull my mate back to me. Dusk found me hurting, clueless, and worried. I returned to the villa, hoping that I would discover Neisa in an approachable mood. Fear hit me hard when I found she was not in our suite, I panicked. Asking the staff if they knew where she was. The Beta Sadie saved me from ripping the villa apart when she told me Neisa was in the guest wing. I didn’t hesitate to walk in unannounced. Finding Neisa curled up on the floor holding the Omega named Karina. The black-haired Omega trembled. A look of pure fear followed a surprised gasp at my rushed entry. “You were not in our suite.” I justified my actions.

“I was needed here.” I walked towards them.

“We did not have time for proper introductions. You are Ky’s Omega.”

“I...am afraid I am.” The distraught Omega said, an odd phrase to coin. I looked at her, curious to the meaning.

“You will be pleased to know that I have spoken with the commander. He will be arriving in a few days.” Where I thought I’d seen gratitude I saw panic. The Omega reached for Neisa.

“Lathan, I need to talk to you.”

“Of course.” My mate and I had much to discuss. I watched as Neisa wrapped her arms tighter around Karina, talking softly to the black-haired woman in their strange language. She kissed the top of her head before she turned to me.

" Karina wants for Ky to release her from the pair bond.” My heart felt like a horse had kicked it. Bonded mates do not request the dissolving of a bond. Not without devastating consequences.

“That is not acceptable,” I said.

“Lathan, Karina was assaulted by one the horde’s Alphas.” I was unprepared for the torrent of feelings that moved me. I had never thought of such an act of depravity. I was immediately angered to think that this Omega had been raped. “Karina is worried that Ky will reject her as his mate.” The broken Omega my mate held lost the hold on her emotions. Silent sobs rocked her small body as Neisa tried to aid her. I could not fathom her feelings. Finding myself truly lost.

“Omega, look at me.” She hesitated, only complying because Neisa steadied her. Shame dulled the eyes that normally would have gleamed like emeralds in the sun. “I am truly sorry for your pain," I spoke calmly to the frightened woman that clung to Neisa.

“Will you help me?” Karina asked. The shadow of fear had claimed her hope. “Help you in what capacity Karina?” I asked her.

“Order Ky to release me.” Her plea was heart-wrenching and desperate. “He deserves a proper mate.” She wriggled uncomfortably under the weight of my gaze.

“I will not order my commander to release you Omega. Furthermore, Ky will not reject you. No matter how you believe, he will react to your unfortunate plight.” She shook her head, too broken to hope.

“My second has missed you greatly since he was forced to leave you. You are buried deeply in that Alpha’s heart. He will not be parted from you. Do you understand me?”

“What if you are wrong?” Neisa didn’t hesitate to demand answers from me. Finally, alone with my mate. This was not the conversation I wanted to be having.

“I am not wrong Neisa,” I had spent too much time defending myself — something I had not had to do until I met Neisa.

“What if it had been me? How would you feel towards me? Knowing I had been raped.” My body immediately tensed with possessive anger that erupted in my blood. The need to protect and defend what was mine threw the trigger that unleashed the beast I kept at bay. “I would show no mercy. I’d not stop with him. His entire people would die for his sins, all of them. Make no mistake.” My lungs, heaving to move blood to my muscles. Ready to fight a nameless enemy. My impassioned rant had stopped her for a moment. “What about me? Would you still... want me. Damaged and broken.” The question she asked made no sense. My protective nature failed to see her logic.

“You would be neither damaged or broken mate. You will always be mine. The Omega who bears my mark, my child, and my love.” I reminded her yet again.

“I thought I was that Omega Lathan, I truly did," Neisa said. The pained look was unnecessary. The bond throbbed with it. A constant pulsing raw nerve that I could not relieve, I was stuck in between emotional boulders. Huge stones that threatened to crush me. I was tired of bearing their weight.

“I love you, Neisa. And I tried to convey that in my attempt to keep you safe.” I said, coming to stand before her. “But did you not do the same to me?”

“I didn’t raise a hand against you.” She snapped at me. The beauty of her eyes burned in a fiery array of colors.

“You did, Twice. And all in an attempt to keep me safe because you claimed you loved me.” Neisa’s little body shook with anger at my accurate account of her actions. The wheels of her clever mind tried to outmaneuver my truth. It was a rare sight to see her backed into a corner.

“Some days Lathan you piss me off.”

“The feeling is mutual mate.” I snagged her arm as she moved to leave me, pulling her closer even as she resisted. “I will apologize for my sin if you are prepared to apologize for yours.” Her scent was intoxicating. Reminding me it had been days since I had been buried in her body.

“I will be dammed if I apologized. I didn’t hurt you.” Neisa continued to lie to herself. Mainly due to her quilt.

“Is that so?” I challenged her. “Such a smart Omega. You could not feel the pain of your betrayal stinging in your heart and chest?” I demanded, knowing very well she had. “The never-ending throbbing right here. ” I asked as I pressed my hand to her chest. Quilt was a color Neisa didn’t wear well. And while I didn’t enjoy reminded her of these facts, she needed to be held accountable as well. “You want to be judged by a different standard; thou the crime was the same. That is unfair.” I forced my little rebel to look at me. “I prayed and hoped I could reach your heart in time. Daily, I willingly put my life in your hands. Believing that you would see me for the Alpha I am. And learn to love me the way I did you.” She had learned, in our short time together, that I was not the monster she’d been taught to fear. She could have easily fought me physically. On the verbal front, Neisa was outmatched. Neisa’s eyes sparkled with tears. My little rebel was letting my words sink in. Her emotions crumbled her. “I never wanted to be here. I didn’t want to hurt you. Even before I loved you.” She said. ” I thought I could just walk out of your life. And that you’d be glad to see me go.”

“Why?”

“Because I was a traitor.”

“I do not care that you were tasked as your queen’s traitor.”

“I am not talking about my queen. I am talking about my heart. You were never to be important or vital to me.”

“Am I vital to you?” I demanded.

“You know damn well you are.” The truth I could see their excited me.

“Then forgive me.” I would not be denied.

“You are a bully Lathan.” Neisa resisted, trying to wiggle out of my arms.

“My station improves. Usually you accuse me of being a dog.” I smiled at her.

“You are.” My rebel mate tried to pull away from me.

“And for the record, I don’t claim to love you, I actually do.” She told me. I felt hope take flight in my heart, wrapping her tightly in my arms. I leaned low. Fillling my soul with her scent.

“Once I earned your heart, I vowed to myself to give you honesty. And nothing less. If you learned to love me, I would give you everything.” I saw the look of pain and confusion in Neisa’s eyes.

“I don’t want anything from you.”

“I have not worded this correctly.” My beautiful mate had a way of making me feel nervous. “I have spent years searching for a love that mirrored my parents,” I said, holding Neisa close to me. “My father was not like the other Alphas. He loved my mother, fiercely. He never strayed from their bed, never. My mother was his, and he loved her.” I wrestled with the newly exposed emotions that came to my attention since I had been claimed. And knowing that Neisa was pregnant. “I have that, and so much more,” I told her.

“More?”

“Neisa you are not just an Omega. Your Joan of Arc. Battle born, skilled and fearless. You, your mind, Your soul. It speaks to me.”

“What does it say?” She asked me.

“That I have found the one. You complete me on a spiritual, cognitive, and stellar level. You my love are my soulmate.” I noticed the rapid beating of her heart. The vein in her neck pulsed wildly with it — the excited breathing and glimmering in her eyes.

“Soulmate?”

“Yes, Neisa. I’d known from the beginning that you were tasked with killing me. Still I held you close. If I could make you feel what it truly meant to be claimed you could learn to love me.” And Neisa had. The battle for her heart had been hard. And at times, frightening. She was a willful and skilled challenger. A victory once won had shown me I’d been entirely wrong. My claim on Neisa had been gratifying. But it had no real validation until she’d strengthen the bond by claiming me. I was her’s body and bond. Neisa had made me hers. No doubt, no hesitation, no lies. Our hearts had been stripped of dark motives and forged back together in light. “I was unprepared for this, for you. In the power that you hold over me.”

“I don’t hold any power over you,” Neisa said appalled.

“You do. Your love has made me weak and vulnerable.” I smiled at the clueless Omega that held my heart. “You are single-handedly my greatest weakness.”

“That street runs both ways Alpha.” I heard her fear. I knew she believed what she felt. That was why she’d left me, to protect me from her. From being used as a weapon to harm me. Regardless of the facts, it still hurt, watching her walk away, feeling her absence. Aching to be near her, missing the light that was my mate. “Lathan!” The bond was raw. Conveying the intensity of every emotion. “I never meant to hurt you,” Neisa said bravely looking into my eyes. I drew her small hand to my lips. Kissing it tenderly. “Nor I you.” But we had. In our short time together, we’d hurt one another. Learning painful lessons along the way. “Come, I have something I want you to see.”

“Wholly hell!” I watched Neisa’s face reflect every emotion from pure fear, to ruthlessness before landing on apprehension. The little Omega wordlessly took stock of my arsenal. Stacks of weapons. Explosives, guns, rifles and, all the ammunition needed to conquer whomever I wanted to. Very few knew what I had at my disposal. Fewer had laid eyes on this.

“What do you see?”

“An extreme way to even the playing field,” Neisa exclaimed excitedly. She cautiously picked up a handgun. “This is a 40 caliber.” I was very impressed. After the Fallout, most weapons had become obsolete. Without a steady supply line, and little to, no transportation or communication, weapons, and ammunition had become rare. Neisa raised her arm, getting a feel for the weapon as she leveled it to her line of sight, looking even more dangerous than she already was.

“Do you understand?” I asked her.

“Understand what?” She asked as I gently removed the gun from her hand.

“I had the power and means to take you, your home, and everything you loved.” My rebel instinctively took to her defenses. “I could have forced your entire kingdom to submit to me,” I told her truthfully. Neisa trembled with the realization. No matter her skill, she could not counter an attack of this magnitude. Not with this.

“Then, why didn’t you?”

“The day you challenge me, you accused me of many things. You said I did not know how much strength it took to not abuse the power in my hands. Do you remember that?”

“Yes.”

“Truer words have rarely been spoken. I know what it takes not to abuse the power at my hands Neisa. I struggled with it for 30 days. Thirty days I stayed my hand from picking up these weapons, riding to your border and forcefully taking you. With or without your consent.”

“Why are you telling me this?”

“To illustrate the fact that I’m a dangerous Alpha willing to do terrible things because of you. I would have killed to breathe your scent. I would have leveled cities to claim you. I would start a war to rut you. I was willing to destroy the world before I had even touched you. Can you imagine what I would do now that I’ve claimed you?” I watched my words shake and excite her, filling her body and heart with fear and pleasure. Knowing she felt afraid and safe at the same moment.

“I’m afraid to even think of that.”

“Good. An enemy threatens a life I have claimed. That is why I am gifting you, my arsenal.”

“What will I do with this?” Neisa asked me as she looked into the huge cavern of power.

“Prepare for war.”