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My eyes widened. “She was an omega?”
“Mmm, well yes! Only omegas can bear true alphas. All three of her children being true alphas…” he let the obvious go unsaid.
Shocked, I stared at him, working things out in my mind. “Then there are no children here?”
He raised an eyebrow. “Well, betas can bear children. A male alpha can technically get a beta with child, but the logistics, you see. The catch isn’t strong. Beta females aren’t built to accommodate...” He waved a hand. “It’s not common. But it happens from time to time. If an alpha is born from such a match, he will not be true, more Delta than Alpha.”
He must have seen my expression, because he added, “There are degrees, see. And alpha females are sterile, sadly.”
I was more than confused. “But there are so many people here. Alphas, I mean.”
“Ah. Well, without going into bloodlines and anomalies, the majority of the residents here are Beta, meaning they have the ancestry, the common traits of the Ongahri people. Beta have a small amount of trace Alpha, but are different enough, you could say, to separate them from someone outside the Ongahri, like myself. I’m just your regular human.” He chuckled. “Alphas are much older than they look, remember. Most are siblings to each other, as well. And omegas usually have more than one mate. Not to mention we have quite a few Delta Alphas.”
More than one mate? That was a question for another time, as it was too close to home, what with Demos and all.
“Delta Alphas?” I asked instead.
“That degree I mentioned. For another time.” He waved his hand dismissively. “Things weren’t always this way, of course. Omega numbers have gone down exponentially over the past two hundred years, for reasons unknown.” He studied me then. “It’s a mighty coincidence that, not only are you their Fealty Bride, but also, it turns out, Omega. Remarkable.”
I put my cup down. “Was she, I mean, their mother, was she a Fealty Bride as well?”
He opened his mouth, then closed it, his thick eyebrows arched. “You know, I cannot say. I’m not well-versed in that particular Ongahri custom, and I didn’t know her well at all. Sadly, she passed away a week after my arrival. The king at that time had sought as many healers around Titus as he could. I was one of scores that visited with her. There was nothing any of us could do, however. Her body had determined it was time to let go. I’m afraid I don’t know much about her, only that she was well loved and respected among the Ongahri.”
“And this was, when?”
“Oh, let’s see…” He puffed out his cheeks and blew out, and it made his mustache look like a living creature. “Fifty years or so? Something like that. King Alpha Gregorus finally joined his omega in death a few decades later. When Queen Alpha Mari Trajan took the crown, she chose me as the House’s healer. I’ve been here ever since.” He looked around the room. “It’s been a pleasure serving. Although, I don’t care for the climate one bit.”
I laughed in sympathy. “Tolerating the cold is one of the very few advantages of being an omega that I have liked.”
“Mmm. And good thing, too. The Mor will be in a long winter over the coming months. Spring is non-existent, and the summer… well, this will be my first full summer here, once it arrives. But—” he looked around the room— “I have my hearth and my tea. And my books and patients, not that there are many, mind. It’s not as pleasant as the Aires manse, where we came from before migrating here several months ago. But now…” He pointed at me and broke into a wide smile. “Now you are here! No other place I’d rather be, I tell you.
Charmed, I smiled.
“So, enough about me,” he said, pouring us some more tea. “Your questions.”
I had so many, but the most pressing was about me being claimed. “What is ‘claimed’ and what does it entail?”
“Ah, yes. The captain mentioned that very thing. It’s a sensitive subject, so let’s start simply. From what I know, you hail from Providence, correct?”
I nodded.
“Good. Lots of farming and such there, excellent.” He played with his mustache, thinking. “Well, perhaps cats would be the more appropriate example, I think.”
“Cats?”
“Precisely. The female cat, in this example, would represent the omega. She goes into heat a certain number of times per year, her estrous cycles. During those heats, her body has one thing on its mind. Mating. The male cat is always on the lookout for the females, and his body has his own preoccupation, like an alpha’s rut, presenting with spraying, calling, fighting. When the heated female releases a scent, and her actions make her susceptible to the male’s… um, attentions, a true mating will take place. Once the female’s heat has been satiated, her body releases signals that she’s been claimed, in a way, but the catalyst,” he chuckles at his pun, “is breeding.”
I must have looked overwhelmed and slightly baffled, because he added, “Yes, yes. That was a lot thrown out there. I’m not explaining it well.”
“No, I’m following. Please, go on.
He smiled in relief. “Just as female animals have their signs and seasons in the mating dance, so too does the omega-alpha dynamic. In your case, the claiming will be that your mate, the Prince, will claim you as his, physically. He will instinctively know how to do this, and it will result in letting all alphas—and their various degrees—know you are his. Your body will no longer send out signals that will trigger the rut in other males.”
Well, that would be a relief, I thought. No longer would I have to worry about being the cause of more death and chaos.
Orion continued. “I apologize that I don’t know the… specifics of the exact procedure, the claiming, only what Captain Fadon explained to me this morning. But I assure you that, again, the alpha’s instincts, if you allow it, will take the lead.
“What do you mean by ‘allow’?”
