Page 5 of The First Omega Made
“Is there something you want to say?” I swiveled in my chair and glared at him, receiving only a neutral glance and a shrug.
“Say it, then!” I closed the photostereoscope and kicked back, rolling against a wall with a sneer.
“Merriel. What percent is Doc?” Noel sat up and rearranged Nexus in his shirt, rubbing the cute little one’s rump as he did so.
“Not my place to say, dude.” Merriel’s loyalty was appreciated.
“Sixteen.” I glared at Noel, and Merriel made a loud buzzing sound.
“Nope.” Merriel snickered.So much for loyalty…
“Sixteen point five, last I checked.” I stared at the floor and gritted my teeth.
“You know I can smell it. You’re over twenty.” Noel let those blue and black eyes of his trail me. “It’s getting really obvious.”
“Legal, fuck yes! Scoooooreeee!” Merriel laughed and I cringed, leaning forward as I buried my face in my hands.
“I ran out of my serum, and I made some with your samples. I’m sorry, I—”
“I gave you those samples to do with as you wished. I don’t mind.” Noel blinked at me with his unwavering neutrality, as if I’d not done something so deeply personal.
“22.9 to be precise,” Merriel chimed in and my face burned with shame.
“So, as I asked. How isyourwomb coming along?” Noel slid off the table and handed Nexus to me with a complicated series of movements to dislodge the warm and comfortable little one.
He latched on to me with little claws digging into my coat’s lapels—as happy with me as anyone. “If the supreme desire to have one of these for myself isn’t a good indicator, I don’t know what is.”
“Merriel, activate the photostereoscope. Let’s see Doc’s womb for ourselves.” Noel gestured for me to jump onto the table, and I cringed. It was always my first reaction to tell people they weren’t a doctor, but Noel had spent so much time in labs, studying anatomy and taught under Naleucian kind that he had more idea about their species than anyone. Add that to the fact that he absorbed everything he read like a sponge…
I slid onto the table, laid back, and closed my eyes.
“Hmm.” Noel stared at the screen, but I did my best to ignore it.
“So, do I get the birds and bees talk, now? Do I get my period soon?” I couldn’t help the sarcasm.
“No. Things are moving around, but you’ve not gotten a channel.” Noel waved his hand about, zooming in and panning about with a furrowed brow. “Your testes haven’t ascended, so there’s that at least.”
“I like my balls where they are!”
“I’m sure you do. I bet they chafe—hanging out like that. Seems rather ineffective in battle, personally. For alphas to have theirs externally…betas too.” Noel panned the screen again and huffed in amusement. “There’s an ovary up by one of your kidneys. That’s new.”
“An ovary, joy.” I sighed and sputtered when Nexus reached up to grab my lip.
“Mea!”
“Do I look like I have meat?” I met the hungry little monster’s gaze.
“Mea!” Nexus pouted, and Noel leaned over to pick him up.
“Let us go find Wallace to give you meat.” Noel took Nexus from me and smiled, the corners of his pert lips tilted at the edges in a demure sort of grace. Noel was somehow elegant and ethereal in beauty—but never without an air of danger about him. None would underestimate him twice in a fight. I’d seen what he’d done to thespace scorpions.
As I sat in place, pondering my newfound anatomy and theforgivenessthat Noel seemed to think I needed, a polite ding sounded out over the intercoms.
Merriel’s voice filled the halls. “T-minus four hours until arrival at the haunted AF war base, guys. Wear extra panties and all that.”
Gorm’s tactless shout barked down the hall—“Way ahead of ya!”
Curious, I opened the door and glanced out, aaaaaand that’sallhe was wearing.
