Ezra
Lysandra didn't look like she was surprised. It was almost as if she expected that response and honestly, it kind of unnerved me.
She just looked at me with this tired expression like she had already run out of energy hours ago.
"You have to go," she said again. "This isn't a matter of choice."
"What does that even mean?" I asked. "How can something that affects my entire life not even be my choice?"
Lysandra pushed herself up from the chair slowly like she was already done with this conversation but had to tolerate my ignorance.
"It means," she said, "that if you don't go on your own, they'll come here and take you anyway. And they won't bother being polite about it."
I don't know why but the sound of that was not in the slightest bit funny.
"So they're going to kidnap me?" I asked.
"If they want to," she said plainly. "They will. There's no one strong enough in this household to stop them. Not even me."
"That makes no sense. I thought you're supposed to be some high-ranking fighter."
She gave a short, humorless laugh. "Ezra, even ten of me wouldn't last five minutes against a royal alpha."
That surprised me. Staring at Lysandra, she looked so…strong in a feminine and masculine way at the same time. For some reason, I could tell that she was very strong—like I could feel her aura.
But then something caught my eye.
When she turned her head a little, the lamps lit up the side of her jaw, and I saw a thin, dark mark trailing from the bottom of her ear to her neck.
It wasn't a bruise and it wasn't a scar either. It looked more like an intentionally drawn symbol, but it moved slightly under the skin, like magic and it looked like it was alive.
"What's that?" I asked, pointing before I could stop myself.
She looked at me with an indifferent expression on her face.
"It's my classification mark," she said.
"For what?"
"For what I am."
I stared at her like, you'll have to do more than that if I'm actually going to understand what you meant by 'classification mark'.
She must've seen the confusion on my face because she sighed.
"You remember when I said elves have accepted certain anomalies like me?"
"Yeah."
"Well… I'm one of them."
I frowned. "Meaning?"
"Meaning I don't fall under male or female. Not fully. I'm both in some ways. Neither in others."
My head tilted before I even realized it. "So you're… basically trans?"
She looked at me like I had just said a word in a language she'd never heard before.
"Trans?" she repeated.
"Right," I muttered. "Different world. Never mind."
She continued anyway.
"My type isn't rare, but we don't fit cleanly into the alpha–omega–beta system. And because of that, people like me are usually placed in the combat sector. We're strong, but not as strong as alphas. Fast, but not as fast as betas in tracking. Balanced, I guess."
"So you weren't banished because you're useful," I said.
"That's one way to put it."
There was no bitterness in her voice, and no shame either. She sounded like someone reading out a grocery list about themselves.
I rubbed the back of my neck.
"Okay. So if your type gets accepted, why not omegas? Why does everyone treat them like, like some bought property?"
"Omegas are needed for something only they can do," she said quietly. "If they weren't needed for it, trust me, they'd be treated even worse."
Great. Helpful.
I exhaled sharply.
"Explain the pheromones thing. The scent stuff. What exactly happens?"
She hesitated, then pulled out a chair and sat down again.
"Fine," she said. "But don't freak out."
"That usually means I should freak out," I said.
She ignored that.
"Everyone in Aethelgard releases pheromones," she said.
"But alphas and omegas… theirs are stronger. Easier to detect and usually harder to ignore.."
"Why?"
"Nature," she said simply.
"Okay."
"Omegas have scent cycles," she said. "Most of the time, it's mild. People around you might notice it, but it doesn't do much. But during your heat period, it gets stronger and can be very overwhelming. Your body usually demands contact, physical contact, with an alpha."
I paused for a moment.
"My what period?"
"Heat," she repeated.
"It comes in waves. Usually every few months. But because your awakening was triggered unnaturally, it might come sooner."
Oh hell nah.
I held up my hand.
"Hold on. So you're saying I'm going to randomly… what, turn into some desperate hormone monster?"
She coughed into her hand, probably to hide a laugh. "I mean… yes. Basically."
I dropped my face into my palms. "Fantastic. Absolutely fantastic."
"It's worse for alphas," she added casually.
I looked up at her through my fingers.
"How could it possibly be worse for them?"
"They have rut periods," she said. "It's like heat, but more aggressive and usually more intense. Sometimes alphas lose control during rut. If they catch the scent of an omega in heat, it can get dangerous."
"Dangerous how?"
She didn't answer immediately.
"Lysandra," I said flatly.
"They can force a bond," she said.
"Force?!"
"It happens often," she said quickly.
"But during a rut, instinct is stronger than reason. It's why omegas are usually kept with a designated alpha or within alpha-guarded territory. To keep them safe."
I stared at her like she was crazy.
"And you didn't think to tell me all of this earlier?" I asked.
"I didn't exactly have time to sit down and give you a health lecture."
I exhaled through my nose. I don't know why but this new information made things even worse.
"Okay," I said finally. "Okay. So heat makes me vulnerable. Rut makes alphas go crazy. Pheromones pull people together. Everyone's biology controls everything. Got it."
"You don't 'got it,'" she said gently. "But you will. Eventually."
I didn't respond.
She stood from the chair.
"I'm going to my room. I need to rest."
She didn't wait for me to say anything else.
A moment later, Maerin came in holding a tray with food. She set it down on the table without speaking.
"Thank you," I muttered.
She nodded once and left.
The house was quiet again.
I stared at the food, multiple thoughts running through my mind.
The royal house wanted me.
They would take me. I just knew the could and whatever it was that made my instincts sharper also told me that they would come for me soon.
Even if I said no.
I made up my mind. I wasn't going to stay here. I was going to run away—tonight, no matter the consequences.