Credence

by Zoey Ellis

  Apparently, Omegas walked freely in his castle, and not only that, but they were capable of hiding their dynamic through use of the Talent—the ability to manipulate magic. Malloron had been searching for an Omega for his needs for years and yet, if he were to believe Emperor Drocco, they had been in his castle the whole time. The idea almost sent him into a blinding rage when he was first told. He prided himself on being the most accomplished Talent-crafter in the known Lands—his family were the ones that created the Talent for fuck’s sake. No one should be able to hide from him with it. No one.

  The fluctuations led him to the entrance of one of his training dungeons. These were the most sensitive areas of his entire operation. The restrained—his pleasure slaves—not only had to be trained to be able to deal with surviving their time with clients, but also to remain loyal to the royal family. There were many who would love to be able to poach his slaves, and many had tried, but the specific training they received kept every one of them in place. The training dungeons tended to be more unpredictable than the pleasure chambers. Sometimes it was completely wild, slaves hysterical and fighting or orgasming while being beaten or tortured, or they were quiet and subdued.

  Malloron’s curiosity soared at the idea of magic being used in a training dungeon. Of all places.

  He entered, hoping the dungeon wouldn’t be too wild to locate the culprit. The large open main area was filled with various equipment, makeshift beds, and medical supplies. Archways and doors led off from the main space to more specific training rooms used when needed. Luckily, it was a subdued day. Most of the slaves were sitting or lying on their makeshift beds, while their trainers stalked among them.

  “Good to see you here today, Your Majesty,” greeted Dilys, the head trainer. “Is there anything I can help you with?”

  “Is there anyone new here?” Malloron asked, scanning the main room.

  “Last shipment of slaves was a week ago, Your Majesty. No one is newer than that.”

  He noticed the magic use wasn’t happening in the main area. “And no one has been any trouble.”

  “Oh they are always trouble.” She grinned cruelly with a flourishing bow. “But no more than usual.”

  Malloron did not respond. Dilys took great pleasure in training the slaves. She ensured she followed the required method, but always thrived more when slaves were disobedient. Malloron didn’t care as long as she got the job done.

  As Malloron strolled further into the space, an explosion of pain ripped through his whole body. He froze, trying not to make it obvious, and took a long moment before he began walking again, battling against the onslaught of agony. Without his potions, all he could do was try to calm the tenebris by pulling magic into himself, but he didn’t like having to use magic that way, particularly in public. Whenever magic was manipulated, it became visible and he didn’t need anyone knowing he could feed magic directly into his body. The tenebris had remained a secret in his family for hundreds of years and he was not going to be the one that revealed that to anyone.

  Malloron took a deep breath as the raw pain rolled through him. Closing his eyes and focusing his mind, he sought out the magical fluctuations.

  He followed the trail down one of the corridors and into one of the smaller healing rooms. Most of the training slaves lay on beds, bloody and swollen, while servants trained in basic healing tended to them.

  Malloron moved slowly across the room and pinpointed the fluctuations coming from one of the beds. He strode to a corner where he could see the bed more clearly.

  A young man lay on it groaning, while a servant hunched over him dabbed his wounds and checked his breathing. They didn’t seem to be doing anything that could cause fluctuations, and yet he continued to feel them coming from that direction. Malloron watched them closely trying to figure out how magic was being used.

  Once the man was cleaned up the servant moved on to another bed, and the fluctuations moved with her. Malloron suddenly understood. The fluctuation of magic was coming from within the servant.

  An excitement built in his chest. The servant had to be an Omega. There was no other way that magic could be fluctuating inside her unless she was a Talent-crafter who had woven some kind of unusual spell or charm around herself. And if she was, what was she doing down in his dungeons working as a servant? Talent-crafters could secure plenty of jobs in the Western Lands. Her position as a servant in the dungeons did not make sense.

  He watched her as she moved from bed to bed. Her jet black hair was tied back into a round ball and her hands were pale, but other than that he could not tell much about her. She wore the black tunic of a dungeon servant, only permitted to those who worked in the dungeons. She kept her head down as she methodically treated the slaves, not even seeming to notice his presence in the corner of the room. That was not unusual, most servants were trained to focus on completing their duties in silence and to be practically non-existent in the presence of royalty or important guests, especially in the dungeons. None of the other healing servants in the room paid him any attention either.

  Suddenly she stood upright and looked slowly around the room at the beds. Malloron was shocked to discover that she was much younger than he first thought. And not only that, but she was actually very good-looking, even in her servant’s wear. It wasn’t unusual for a servant to be pretty, but she seemed to be in a league of her own. And that raised more questions; someone who looked like her could get a much better job working in Eiros. Why was she here in the bloody and reeking training dungeons? From where he stood, he was unable to see the color of her eyes, but her snowy complexion and dark hair was striking enough.

  She walked slowly around the room, gazing at the slaves on their beds and the fluctuations became wilder. As she turned and looked over the room as a whole, her eyes drifted to his. A thrill of excitement, desire, and intrigue shot through him. Her long-lashed eyes were deep blue, dark like the deepest depths of the White Ocean. Utterly stunning when contrasted with her black hair and fair complexion. She wasn’t good-looking, she was beautiful.

  In the weightless moment their gazes held onto each other, she didn’t smile or bow her head or even break eye contact with him, as servants were supposed to do. Her eyes seemed to harden on his and a sense of resistance radiated from her. Then she turned away, and the moment was gone.

  Malloron inhaled as an intense curiosity and longing enveloped him. This woman had to be the most interesting thing he had come across for a long time, and all of his senses told him she would be a compelling challenge.

  Drawing on a sliver of magic from around him, Malloron wove together a small orb. He shaved off a tiny flake and embedded it into the palm of his right hand, then drifted the rest toward the servant. Carefully, he attached it to her hair as she bent over a bed, holding it in place so it could seep in until it penetrated every strand. Once secure, the center of his right palm pulsed with the signal. He would now be able to tell where she went, giving him time to figure out what the hell she was. Of course, he could just take her and force her into telling him whatever he wanted, but where was the fun in that? Besides, for his purposes, he needed an Omega who was willing, even if reluctantly.

  Although the crippling pain still bounded through him, an excitement began to build. If he had indeed found an Omega, he just made a giant leap closer to his ultimate goal. He continued to watch her covertly, appreciating how her black tunic moved around her small, shapely body.

  If she truly was an Omega, he would find a way to entrap her. And if she wasn’t, he may just have fun with her anyway.

  Thanks for reading this sample.

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  About Zoey Ellis

  Zoey Ellis is a Dark Fantasy Romance author currently working on completing her M/F Omegaverse Romance series, Myth of Omega. She writes dark-edged romances about tortured, possessive, alpha anti-heroes and the sassy heroines who belong to them (even if they don’t want to!). Filled with passionate, carnal steam, Zoe
y’s stories feature couples that go through tough journeys and make mistakes but ultimately have to grow for each other to survive the dark worlds they inhabit.

  Described as “deliciously dark” and “unputdownable”, Zoey’s thrilling, fantastical romances come complete with roller-coaster twists and turns, unique worlds, and happy endings.

  Zoey is a Londoner, cat mama, and proud romance and epic fantasy addict. She loves jealous/possessive heroes, sexual tension that jumps off the page, and memorable, magical worlds. She reads most genres of romance and has a special love for the “true mates” trope and dark angst.

  When not working on her stories, she is usually gaming, buddying reading with friends or stumbling upon new and ridiculous ways to mess up a date!

  She offers exclusive news, bonuses, and giveaways to her reader’s group, Dark Halos.

  Snoop around Zoey’s online home for her favorite reads, release news, and bonus media about her fantasy worlds: www.zoeyellis.com