by Zoey Ellis
“I understand,” Kardos said. “But this is an Omega we speak of. She must be cared for and protected, even from the majority of the tribe. It is my responsibility to get her back to our Isles in one piece, and if that means keeping that from you for a few weeks, my brother, then for the sake of our whole Lands, that is what I must do.”
The tribesmen and women around him nodded in agreement, and the tribesman who asked the question inclined his head in thanks.
“If she is supposed to be protected, why was she roaming the ship last night during our celebrations?” Another question came. “My shinno, I mean no disrespect to question your behavior, but you attacked some of us and we didn’t even know she was an Omega.”
Kardos couldn't see the face of the speaker, but he guessed it was Bakra, one of the Alphas who he had attacked last night for touching Shaya. He felt absolutely no remorse for the man, it was the second time he had approached her after being told to leave her alone. But his question was reasonable. “I am of the opinion that you all know who is in this tribe and who is not,” he said. “The Omega has had very limited interaction with the tribe since being on board. Many of you saw the Omega yesterday, and instead of alerting me or Zolt or any one of the generals, you engaged with her as if she were a member of the tribe. That is worrying. What if she had been a stowaway from the Western Lands, looking to come to our Lands to corrupt our way of life?”
The silence had returned to the hall, this time an uncomfortable one.
“I do not blame you that you wanted to enjoy yourself last night, you have all worked hard, but my actions were based on protecting the Omega that is going to change everything for us, and the realization that some of you danced with her, some of you propositioned her, and some of you touched her,” he said, trying to keep the annoyance out of his voice. “I trust you understand the relevance of that and that I have to report everything to the high chief.”
He was pleased to see his tribe nodding, thoughtful looks on their faces as they glanced around at each other, sheepish and bashful.
“We have just over two more weeks to go,” he called out. “And then we shall arrive back to our homelands with a treasure that no other tribe has been able to obtain. Enjoy this last day of rest and prepare to be praised for the return of an Omega to the Southern Isles, my brothers and sisters!”
The cheer was deafening, and Kardos grinned at the rest of his tribe at the energy and sheer delight that buzzed around the room.
As he left, Zolt nodded at him in approval, looking as though a weight had been lifted from his chest.
On his way back to his cabin, he stopped by to see Rozalia and to collect more of the potion that would dull Shaya’s blocks. If she couldn't get pregnant, there was no reason for him to stop indulging in her or letting her experience her Haze more often.
Rozalia, of course, was suspicious of the idea, and refused to give him any more potion, warning him that she did not know the long-term effects if he used it too frequently, then requested to see the Omega before he used any more.
He was annoyed at her logic, but consented, dragging her to see Shaya to ensure that she was well. After giving her a look over, Rozalia only gave him two more doses of the potion and told him to use them wisely, for what was the use of getting hooked on something that he would never be able to have again.
Kardos almost cursed her to her face when she said that, but in his heart he knew she was right. He had to enjoy Shaya now while he could, because once they landed, that was all he would ever have.
CHAPTER EIGHT
SHAYA
For the first time, Shaya felt content on the ship.
She was almost ashamed to admit to herself that it was because of Kardos. She became almost drunk on him whenever he took her to bed, wringing out the most savage, overwhelming, body-shattering peaks of pleasure from her that she would never have thought possible. But it wasn't just about sex, he looked at her with the same hunger in his eyes that he always had, and when he was pounding inside her, gutturally telling her how beautiful, and tight, and perfect she was, she instinctively knew that he had wanted to do this to her all along.
He fucked her in any and all ways he possibly could, moving her into position without care or questions. Shaya was shocked at how different his cock felt in different positions, and yet always amazing. And even when he was buried deep inside her, it was as though he couldn't keep his hands off any part of her body. He caressed and tweaked her nipples and grabbed her breasts, squeezed and slapped her ass, and ran his hand over her skin, muttering, “Zeelefdyrn.” Incredible.
She wasn't sure why there were times when his scent was stronger than others, though it seemed to be only two distinct times. It was as though her body suddenly recognized that he was an Alpha, and couldn’t help to do all the things it was supposed to do for him, rejoicing when he touched her, wailing in satisfaction when he reached for her, and shuddering in contentment when he knotted her. It still happened when his scent wasn’t as strong, but it felt less intense.
Shaya began to wonder why Kyus had kept her hidden from this all along. It was understandable that Omegas be afraid of the Alphas who treated them badly, but is this what it meant to be treated badly? There was nothing that happened between them that did not feel as though it was supposed to happen. He still took her to the ocean daily, and they sat in silence and watched it, the shinno stroking her body, although not bringing her to orgasm this time. She was usually already too exhausted, so they just enjoyed the time together.
However, he wasn’t able to stay with her all the hours of the day. He had work to do, and fortunately that meant that she had time to recover. She wasn't sure what she would do if he was demanding that attention from her constantly. The first time they had sex, she had been sore, but that didn't stop him from taking her again and again, until the soreness was simply something that accompanied the pleasure. Each morning, before he left, she groomed him, the way she was taught, and dressed him before making the fevvoli tea. He kissed her thoroughly, squeezing her breast, and sometimes suckling her nipple before leaving, and she had to ensure she cooled down before Treska arrived to continue her teaching.
Treska had been amazed at the sight of Shaya when she had first entered the Alpha’s cabin. Her eyes had been as wide as a bellflower, and she stood stock-still for a few long moments before even being able to move. Then she grinned and giggled and hugged Shaya, even though she was still covered in the Alpha's dried seed. She’d helped her to get ready for her lessons, including washing his seed out of her hair, and drying it and treating it, which took ages.
Although she and the shinno didn’t tend to talk much, she forced herself to ask the shinno to stop getting his seed in her hair. It took way too long to get it out and get her hair back to a suitable state, requiring her to wash it more often than necessary.
He simply looked at her blankly and told her in the Common Tongue that he was never aiming for her hair, only her neck.
“Oh, I thought you would have better aim,” she muttered, smiling as she lay down next to him.
His arm tightened around her, pulling her flush against his body. “What?” he asked, his voice tight.
“You get it in my hair every time,” she pointed out, poking him. “If you're aiming for my neck, I dread to think what you would do with a bow and arrow.”
That earned her a delighted deep bellowing laugh. “I assure you,” he said, the humor in his voice dripping with desire as he pressed his mouth against her ear. “I am skilled in almost everything I do, I just simply do not care where it ends up as long as it ends up on you or in you, kysm eshar. And besides, if my seed ends up in your hair, I cannot think of any place more beautiful and more deserving it should be. I would cover you head to toe.”
His words made her core tightened with desire, because secretly a part of her would be delighted with that. Another part of her was extremely aware that she could potentially get pregnant with the number of times he had knotted her
. She was unsure if she wanted that. In fact, in the midst of her desire-filled days, she was sure she did want it, but when she had a clearer mind she felt too insecure about the idea. She had no idea who else he was having sex with, and this culture treated sex a lot more casually then she had ever known in the Western Lands, where everyone usually only had one partner and had sex privately or secretly. She hoped that he was satisfied with her, and deep down she hoped that he would want to impregnate her, but she just couldn't hold out such hope for an Alpha like him.
“It takes too long to wash it out and treat it afterward,” she complained. “It interrupts my learning from Treska. I have to spend time on my hair instead of learning.”
She felt him shrug as his hand brushed her stomach, and his fingers crept between her legs. “Then leave it be,” he said, huskily. “It is beautiful no matter what you do to it.”
She was unable to protest when his fingers reached their intended destination.
Her lessons continued to be interesting, and Shaya still asked Treska some of the words the shinno used, trying to be careful that she did not reveal anything too embarrassing, like when she asked about the word that meant “tight”. Treska avoided her eyes the rest of the day after she told her what that one meant.
After a week and a half, Treska informed her that they would be arriving at the Southern Isles soon. Shaya couldn't deny the curiosity that had built about the Land she’d been studying. From what she could tell, the various islands provided different things to the Southern Isle culture, and the biggest eight were owned by the eight established tribes. The central island was where the high chief lived, and he guided the entire Southern Lands, ensuring that Southern culture was maintained. The problem for her was that there was no written rules or guidelines regarding their culture; everyone seemed to inherently know. There were some things that Shaya asked Treska about that she explained in her broken Common Tongue, but Shaya never saw any of that written down. She asked Treska for the rules of the society, but she simply looked at her blankly, unable to determine what she meant by it. Most of what Shaya learned about the culture, she learned from asking Treska, and writing it down in her notes, but there was still something that didn't quite make sense. There were certain things referred to and methods of doing things, and it wasn't explained as to why they were set up that way. She felt as though she was missing something, but couldn't place what it was.
The one thing that fascinated her was that each tribe had a potionist—a man or woman who was highly valued and essential to each tribe. Potions were used in all manner of ways, and from what she learned were highly advanced, more advanced than her current understanding. She couldn't wait to find out more about it.
She suspected that the woman that came to see her after her first time with the shinno had been his potionist, but she did not ask the shinno directly about it. She tried to ask Treska, but her friend couldn't explain it properly.
When she was looking out of the window of the shinno's cabin one day, she saw land emerging in the distance. As each day passed, it became more pronounced and excitement churned in her stomach that she was finally going to be on solid land again.
At the back of her mind, she remembered him saying that she was not going to be a part of his tribe. She was nervous about questioning him again about that. After the conversation about her hair, they didn't talk much. And when they did, he spoke in his language exclusively. Although she was becoming more familiar with the words and the sounds, there were times she had to simply write things down and then ask Treska what he said. Usually it wasn't anything important, just correcting her on the way she groomed him or reminding her to stay in the room, or telling her, with a wry smile, that there was some of his seed in her hair.
Finally, one morning, the shinno got up and dressed himself. He pulled out thick shirts and trousers with socks and boots and gloves. Shaya stared at all of the clothing, wondering why the need for them. He saw her look of surprise and smiled quickly at her, but said nothing. He simply dressed until he was a massive bulk of Alpha, kissed her, and then left.
Soon after, Treska came rushing in her arms filled with clothes for Shaya.
“What is the need?” Shaya asked, in her broken Mayaros, pointing at the clothes.
“We are arriving at the Southern Isles today,” Treska said slowly in Mayaros.
Shaya's eyes widened. “I didn't realize that was happening.” The sudden nervousness gripped her. The shinno didn't even tell her. She suddenly wondered how much she would see him today.
“You must be dressed and prepared, Shaya,” Treska said, this time in broken Common Tongue. “You meet Tribe Nyek today.”
Her words only served to heighten Shaya's nervousness. “Really?” She fiddled with the hem of the tunic she wore.
Treska nodded enthusiastically. “They want to meet you for a long time. They talk about you for the weeks. You are the shinno’s secret. They are glad to be home to meet you.” She hesitated, her face thoughtful as she thought of the words she wanted to say. “There is no Omega in Southern Isles for a long time.”
Shaya nodded. She thought as much, but for some reason the thought did not fill her with any kind of comfort. There was something strange about the fact that the shinno had not discussed this with her, and she also found it odd that he had not introduced her to his tribe. She had an inkling that he was hiding something but couldn't figure out what it was. Still, now was not the time to be questioning it. She would find out soon.
Finally, as midday approached the ship shuddered and swayed. She ran to look out the window, but was disappointed to see a white mist everywhere. It was difficult to tell where they were.
Treska fussed over Shaya’s clothing so much that by the time she was ready, she was almost sick with nervousness.
“Don't worry,” Treska said, trying to be reassuring. “They love you.”
Shaya smiled at her, and wrung her hands together, wondering how they could love someone they didn't know. She hadn't seen the shinno all day, and now it was late afternoon.
Treska brought her dinner, but she didn't feel like eating it. She just paced the room, looking out the window, trying to determine what kind of land she was in and then headed toward the map to see where they would have docked. It was obvious that they would dock at Nyek Island, but nothing that she saw out the window seemed to signify that they were at the island. It was confusing.
When Treska returned she was dressed just as heavily as Shaya was, except she wore a fur overcoat that looked enormous on her.
“Are you ready?” Treska asked.
“No.” She shook her head. “But I will never be.” She smiled. “Let's go.”
Treska held up a thick furry overcoat. “This is for you. You will need it.”
Shaya nodded numbly, as Treska helped put it on her. An incredible heat enveloped her as Treska did all the buttons and ties so that it was secure around her frame. She then fixed a hat on her head and stepped back to look at her. Nodding her satisfaction, she said, “Let’s go.”
Shaya followed Treska through the corridors and along the empty decks, until they reached the loading hatch she had entered so long ago. Treska took the stairs first and then beckoned for Shaya to follow, but when she did she found herself on the stairs and outside of the boat, and for the first time she saw the Southern Isles.
Before her, the landscape was covered in snow. Shaya stared in shock. Snow whipped around in the air and all visible trees were bare, their branches covered in thick blankets of snow. She surveyed the horizon, searching for the other Isles that were supposed to be nearby, but she could see nothing but swirling snow in the wind.
“Sessah arren Omega-drek!” Meet your Omega!
Shaya’s head whipped around at the sound of Kardos' voice, and she saw him standing at the foot of the stairs on a platform, a hand gesturing up to her while he addressed an enormous amount of people. Her eyes widened as she saw that the crowd spread far into the distance. There couldn'
t have been that amount of people on the boat, could there? Where did they all come from? She hadn't even noticed them before because they were all dressed in white, only their faces visible from the bulky fur clothes and overcoats that they wore.
At the shinno's words, the crowd cheered, and Shaya gripped onto the side of the stairs, the sound startling her. She glanced down and saw Treska at the bottom of the stairs beckoning her to come down, but she couldn't move. All of these people were looking at her, and her nerves expanded, paralyzing her.
“I, Kardos Nyek, of tribe Nyek have returned an Omega to the Southern Isles after one hundred years!” Kardos bellowed to the crowd, who continued to cheer along, and Shaya swayed, translating what he had said as quickly as she could. But by the time she got the gist of it, he was speaking again and she couldn’t keep up.
Treska beckoned her furiously to step down the steps as the crowd cheered and bellowed again. But Shaya was watching Kardos. He was grinning at the crowd, gesturing to her, and when he glanced at her, it was with a face that was proud, but it shot a coldness straight to her heart. He wasn't proud of her. He was proud that he owned her.
Treska hurried back up the steps, and took Shaya’s hand, urging her down. Shaya let her lead, hoping that the sinking of her heart was just her own silly assumptions. After all, she did not understand everything he said. He was a shinno after all, he most likely had responsibilities that he had to meet, and of course bringing an Omega to the Southern Isles would be something to be proud of.
She told herself not to be silly. She was simply feeling insecure about the fact she hadn't seen him all day.
When they reached the bottom, Treska led Shaya to stand a few feet from Kardos and then jumped a few steps back so that she was on her own. The crowd waved and cheered her, and she managed a small smile and wave back, before glancing at Kardos. The proud smile on his face did not fill her with any comfort and soon he turned back to the crowd, speaking to them again. This time she didn’t even try to figure out what he was saying. Next to the platform stood the woman who had examined her after her first time with Kardos. She seemed to be watching her carefully. Shaya offered her a small smile, but she was distracted by another loud and raucous cheer by the crowd.