Page 45 of The First Omega Made
“Don’t worry, my captain’s mate! I was made to withstand far more than this. I’m fleeeexxxxible.” Merriel laughed, and Noel gave a grunt of acknowledgement.
As the time ticked off and the rattling grew more severe, a sudden jolt kicked in, making Noel finally flail and reach for purchase, tail snagging Nexus and Noah in a sweep before I could do so.
I, however, went to the floor in a sprawl to seek stability on the ground. On purpose. Intentionally. Totally.
Noel didn’t mention it, thankfully.
Noah whimpered, and I scrounged about to grab him as our afterburners kicked in, the thrusters easing our last few miles of descent.
“Feel like you’re coming home?” I glanced over to Noel, who had gone paler than he normally did.
“It feels… It feels like I am going to a bad place. I feel like… Like this planet is a research facility I may never leave.” The tremble in his voice made my heart ache.
“You don’t feel a desire to be here?” I scooted over to lean against Noel’s legs and slap my tail against his in an affectionate gesture that he reciprocated.
“I do, and that is what terrifies me.” He closed his eyes and held onto Nexus until tears wet his eyes.
“Vil and Sarge will protect us. Everyone on this ship will.” I beamed up at him and rested a cheek against his leg.
Something strange buzzed in my mind as the ship came to a full settle and I stood, Noel following suit. In the same way the bond had a song, so too did a force beyond the ship and we followed, Noel and I making our way to the equalization chamber.
“I got some rudimentary data feed of what to check our air for. We’re clean. Wastewater check in place for viral and bacterial load. Three minutes.” Merriel’s professional tone threw me off as the rest of our crew filed in behind us.
From the position of the sun in the sky, it was evening, best I could tell from the orange rays blasting through the edges of our port. Air that scented of cinnamon and ozone flowed in, making every hair on my body stand on end as my tail curled. A wistful whimper came from a crewmate I couldn’t see. Even little Noah in my arms perked up, a usually cautious little one that caused far less mischief than Nexus.
As my eyes adjusted, relief flooded through me as several males stood in wait for our ship to open, each one of them dressed in comfortable clothes not dissimilar to the ceremonial garb that TOAD had us wear.
My brain hummed as my language chip activated at the first words—paired with what Noel and Sarge had taught me to cement it.
“Welcome home, children of Paradise.” An omega stepped forward, his scales a magenta color and hair a striking white that went past his waist.
Noel braced Nexus in his arms and froze as eyes turned to him. A robust male with green scales, also an omega, openly stared before speaking in hushed tones. “A living life seed. Alivinglife seed!”
The shout made Noel jump as the handful of omegas rushed forward and halted, eyes locking onto our young as if they’d only just noticed. Soft gasps. The first one cried out in shock. “And young… An omega child! A beta?”
Whispers between them petered out, but I was too stunned to say a word. I could only manage to walk forward, nudging Noel to do so, too.
“We needed to be here,” Noel said, his tone shaky until Vil approached from behind, resting protective hands on his shoulders. “Are we welcome?”
“You’ve mated your omegas?” The green one glanced from us to the crew.
“We have. He is my world and my heart.” Vil’s presence seemed to calm Noel as much as Sarge who came up behind me, arms wrapping my chest.
“They are our whole world.” Sarge’s soft words calmed me as much as I felt Vil did Noel.
“Come. The ota are welcome, but your Affa and…” The magenta one stared at Sarge and froze on Vil, expression halting. “Chimera?”
Noel nodded.
“Your child’s pater and the rest of them must remain here until we’ve cleared them.” The magenta omega’s expression hardened toward the crew and Noel turned, handing Nexus to Vil.
“It’s safe, I think,” Sarge said, taking Noah from me with a smile.
“But we passed the viral and bacterial inspection.” I stroked Noah’s head and pushed up on my toes to give Sarge an affectionate kiss, letting our tails entwine before I pulled away.
“It is not the disease of bacterium, prion, or virus we fear,” the green one spoke. “Rather it is the disease of the mind.”
Like we had no other choice, Noel and I stepped off the ship and into the waiting arms of the first Naleucians seen—ourselves excluded—in hundreds of solar rotations.
