Rue
They had lost their fucking minds.
Their scent was everywhere — soaked into the floors, stitched into the walls, and coiling like wildfire smoke, a suffocating storm of heat. It assaulted her, slamming against her chest like a truck at full speed the moment she crossed the threshold.
This wasn't just Rut.
This was not dominance gently swathed in silk, an incensed haze meant to lull and coax. It was not the sweet, heady fog that used to soak in her pores, gently pulling her under. A scent that she could mask with mint and a plug up her nose.
No. This was madness, naked and feral. This was a fucking maelstrom. Raw, unhinged, blistered open by grief and driven by something so damn ancient and carnal. It had fucking teeth that tore and ravaged her senses.
This was Rampage at its maximum.
Rue stumbled forward, breath catching in the muggy heat.
This was a feral, carnivorous hunger.
She gasped, their domination was crawling down her throat, spilling into her lungs. It coiled inside her, scraping down her ribs and nestling in her core. She was burning. She was trembling, going all slick and throbbing in an instant.
It fucking forced her body to respond.
And Gods, her knees buckled.
Her heart was hammering, her scent gland pulsing in her neck, flushed and swelling, begging for teeth, for tongues, for relief, for them, and for the bite of a claim. And something in her seemed to crack, splintering wide open.
This was wild.
This was starvation.
She slapped a hand to her lips to choke the moan that threatened to claw its way out of her throat, bit onto her palm hard enough to leave mark.
"What the fuck is wrong with you all?" she choked out, fingers squeezing the bridge of her nose. She was desperate to gather her scattered thoughts, but her brain was drenched in thoughts of sex, of curved sticky cocks sucked up tight into her cunt. She was going to lose it if she wasn't careful.
Fuck. Fuck. Fuck.
Levi's shadow realm had been a dream—cool, quiet, and barely-there. A pleasant drift of illusion and reality. His scent had been like a balm, like aged whisky and velvet smoke. A calm before the chaos. But here? It was fucking wildfire, napalm and gunpowder in the weirdest, sexiest way. And then laced with something so sharply and deliciously animalistic.
The beast beneath his skin had awakened.
And the others?
They were a wreck.
Altair, Halcyon and Valentino were on their knees, trembling and panting like animals, like men begging for water. Seraphim seemed almost ruined, sobbing a goddamn fountain of tears as if something had died, turning corporeal then translucent, body wavering as if lost. Kieran was glowing, literally fracturing, light bleeding through the cracks in his skin like a breaking God.
And they were all completely feral. Cheeks flushed a deep carnation, eyes blown, lips parted, dripping with tears, breaths misting the air from their heat. Their chests heaved as they inhaled her as if she were oxygen.
They looked fucking crazy.
Halcyon's hands were shaking when they found her ankle. The muzzle over his face had snapped—bitten cleanly through, metal bent and frayed at the edges. It dangled from his jaw, with teeth marks in the twisted metal. There was a split on his lip that oozed with blood.
"Is she…Am I losing it?" Halcyon stammered out, voice hollow and choked with tears. "Have I finally lost my mind?" His grip on her ankle tightened as if he tried to anchor himself to her, as if he believed her to be a ghost. "Is she real?" God, he looked like he was in pain.
"She is real," Kieran said, a hand to his chest as if it were the only thing keeping him from bursting. His lights seemed to flicker violently, the shards of it cracking through his skin. "Look at her, smell her, taste her."
Altair was already crawling forward like a beast on all fours, like something unholy and holy all at once. And she flinched when she felt the grope of his tentacles meandering up her thighs, curling like vines. His limbs were slick with pheromones that dripped over her skin, and it felt so fucking wrong and yet so damn good when they pulsed, lighting her nerves on fire.
And when his eyes met hers, they seemed endless, liquid voids drunk on something dark.
"I smell her," he moaned, his voice was like tearing silk, stretching breathlessly over the words. "She smells alive. She smells wet, she—fuuuuck." His voice broke into a high, fractured whine. "She smells like ours." Rue choked at that, unable to breathe. Her body was betraying her, legs quivering, the air tasting like heartbreak and fever.
What the fuck was wrong with them all?
She staggered backwards.
This wasn't lust. This was starvation. This was collapse. Devotion cracked open like a wound, etched into parted lips, panted from dripping tongues.
Seraphim let out a sound, a half-sob, a half-snarl. "We tore the world apart for you," he said, hands in his hair, shaking. "I searched so hard my hands bled. I thought I'd lose my mind. I never stopped screaming."
Something wet and warm met the skin of her feet, lips running gentle kisses up to her ankle. Halcyon was kissing her fucking feet. "Rue," he groaned.
Her back hit the wall.
And then Valentino slammed into her like a storm.
His arms were wrapped around her like a cage. It was as if she were prey that he'd cornered and intended to devour. He didn't speak, not at first. Just breathed with his face buried in her neck, breath ragged as if he needed her more than anything in the world. His voice was warped with obsession and despair.
"Mine," he growled finally, almost feral. His nose brushing the sensitive gland on her neck, and she was swallowed by a wave of pleasure so sharp it had her almost doubling over. "Mine. Mine. Mine. Mine."
Rue gasped, body arching in surprise as a mess of hands followed. They swarmed her—Halcyon's lips against her calf, whispering broken prayers. Kieran's fingers on her waist. Seraphim's hands in her hair. Altair's palm cupping her cheek. Each touch was setting her skin on fire. Her mind was fraying, her Omega was melting.
"Wait," she breathed, the words finally tumbling from her tongue. "Wait, please—"
And then Levi was there, ripping her from them with a snarl that seemed to shake the walls.
"Hands. Off."
They froze, baring teeth, growling back like wolves.
Altair hissed. "She's ours! She's the only thing keeping us sane—She needs—"
"She needs a fucking break," Levi barked, stepping between them like a stone wall. "I fucking told you," Levi snarled. "You'll hurt her, she's not ready. You'll break her now."
His words were like a whip. It seemed to sear through them all, and they leapt back as if burnt, eyes growing wide with horror. It was as if they had just realised that she was made of porcelain and glass. They seemed terrified.
Ashamed.
They shrank back, hands lifting, gazes searching her for bruises like they'd only just remembered she could bleed. Halcyon with his palm over his mouth. Altair pinching his nose, his tails wilting into the ground. Seraphim was going completely translucent. Kieran was pulling back his rays. And Valentino staggering back with raised palms.
The insanity seemed to leave their eyes.
Her eyes widened. And where the fuck were Valentino's gorgeous blue tails? They were now completely gone, mere whisps of themselves, like vibrating ghosts in the air.
Levi snarled, snapping at them with a glare. "Put your fucking dicks back into your pants, I know it hurts like a motherfucker. But you've all had worse, if you need a fucking guide. Go get one. If you need to fuck, then just fuck each other. If you can't stand it, leave."
Seraphim swallowed hard, eyes darting to hers. "Levi—"
"Rue was dying when I found her," Levi snarled. "Three fucking days with no food, no water, and a fuck ton of poison that I had to suck right out of her veins. She was dying. You want her to guide you all like that? Do you want her to fucking die?"
Silence.
"She needs food. A medic. Rest," Levi barked, turning a chin towards the kitchen in a rude gesture. Seraphim seemed to leap, bolting from the room, the hiss from the stove flaring in the distance.
Rue blinked at those words, but the thought of food suddenly had her stomach growling, hunger roaring sharply up her spine. Food sounded fucking amazing. Her voice came out too hoarse. "Three days?"
"You don't remember?" Kieran asked, coming closer with a gentle lilt in his voice.
She shook her head. "Felt like hours. I must've been asleep. But you're all—" She gestured at the carnage.
"It's just Rampage," he explained, voice thin and hollowed as if he'd already given up his soul. His shoulders sagged. "We kept going for too long, thinking we'd never see you again. We pushed ourselves too hard." The look in his eyes seemed to burn. "We couldn't do anything else." It looked like they hadn't slept for days.
Rue swallowed, but the lump in her throat would not budge. "You should call for guides," she said, even when her belly coiled in distaste. A strange nausea churned in her belly, skin itching at the thought of another calming her pack down—
Halcyon's voice was rough. "Don't want guides." His eyes gleamed like a wolf in the dark, sulking in his corner. "I just want you."
Levi pressed a hand to her shoulder.
"They'll be fine," he said simply, lips pressed into a thin line. "Give them your clothes. Your panties if you want." He shrugged, eyes catching hers. "They'll calm down sooner or later. Your presence is plenty."
"Really?" She blew out a breath, tongue between teeth. "They look like shit. I've never seen them like that."
He shrugged. "They'll live. Your clothes will help them stabilise. Your scent grounds them better than anything synthetic. They're already getting better with your presence."
She wanted to ask more, but her voice caught as her mind jumped to the missing Alpha in the room. "Where's Dante?"
Levi's jaw clenched. "That," he said, scooping her effortlessly into his arms, "is a problem for another time."
"You told me he's practically killing himself—"
Levi's eyes flashed. "Before you worry about others, let's get you fed."
*
Seraphim fed her.
He placed meat thick with fat and gristle into her mouth, gave her noodles drenched in heaven. The soup, he'd declared, was poseidon medicine, stewed for centuries in his home. She'd never quite eaten anything so decadent; the shit that grazed her tongue when she was ill was usually powdered and bitter. But this was all fresh. Handmade, dripping with the best. It made each bite feel like pure health pumped into her veins.
But it was the way he treated her that disturbed her.
The way they treated her.
The room was dim, lit only by the low flicker of the stove. Steam curled from the pot of food and into the air. A strange, stoic hush fell over them, and it was as if they were all holding their breaths. Rue sat on the couch, wrapped in a blanket with her knees pulled to her chest. Her skin still hummed with the aftershock of their touch. But her body was cooling, the fire dulling to embers. The quiet should have her at peace, the ebb of their scents should have her Omega calming down.
But Rue was still on high alert, heart still soaring in her chest.
Seraphim knelt before her with a bowl in his hands. His eyes were puffy and swollen, lashes clumped with dried tears. The broth shimmered, oily and dark, thick with meat and vegetables. He didn't speak, only offered it up with trembling, translucent fingers, reverent as if he were presenting an offering to a Goddess.
Seraphim fed her with a devotion that shook her to her core.
He was like a goddamn worshipper at an altar, lifted the spoon with trembling care as if she were breakable and this was the holiest job on the fucking planet. It was as if she were something lost and barely retrieved from the jaws of death. And his touch lingered, quivering as if he was afraid she'd break if he didn't do things right.
There was something wrong with him.
There was something wrong with all of them.
This was a step further from the Alphas she knew.
Rue watched him, dazed.
On her arm was a medical device, plugged deep into her veins. They were running all kinds of tests on her, waving wands over her body. Doctors came with the equipment, had lingered at the door, but the Alphas refused to let them step into their den. A strange jitteriness ran through their veins, a snarl at the tip of their tongues when the strangers stepped closer. And they had snatched at the devices and declared that they were good enough to do the job.
She supposed that her boys did seem trained.
And so Altair stood frowning at the screen, jumping up in fright every so often when the charts beeped. Valentino stood by his side, seemingly deeply fearful of the results. Halcyon was still on the ground, staring at her as if he couldn't bear to look away. Kieran paced. Levi sulked.
They all looked at her like she was a miracle.
"You're all acting like I've just come back from the dead." She commented, a tease on her tongue.
Seraphim's breath caught. She heard a small sound from Halcyon, an almost-sob.
No one laughed.
Not Altair, whose breath hitched like the joke burned him.
Not Kieran, whose rays seemed to ebb just a little.
Not Valentino, whose tails seemed to vibrate harder, singing in the air.
Not even Levi, who only turned his face away, like her voice cut too close to the truth.
The fuck?
"Shit I was just joking, please don't—"
"You did," Seraphim whispered, looking like he ate something awful. "For three days, I did not see a single strand of your future. You were dead." His voice went thin. "You don't know what we saw, what we felt. What it felt like—"
"But you've never been able to see me in your prophecies," she commented, and his eyes seemed to bubble. And then they fucking poured. "Okay. Okay," she raised her hands in surrender. "I took it too far, please don't cry." Another blanket was forced upon her shoulders. Valentino stood watch, staring at her skin as if the gooseflesh that popped all over her skin disturbed him. She made a face. "I'll be good."
Her eyes turned then to Levi, who was curled by himself on a chair, eyes still watching her without blinking. Then, to Halcyon, who seemed to taste her name on his tongue, whispered like a prayer again and again. And then to Valentino, who could not seem to stop pacing around her.
None of them touched her.
They didn't even give a fuck about her used panties in its sad little corner, or her clothes in the laundry. They stayed away from her like good little Alphas, and did not have their hands all over her body.
It was surreal coming from the usually horny perverts.
And their eyes, their goddamn eyes. They bore through her as if afraid she might vanish before them.
"I'm still strong," she commented. "I'm not made out of glass. You can get all the details from Levi. And that guy? He didn't do shit to me."
The silence burned.
"I'm serious."
They did not speak, still just as solemn as ever. Altair brushed a thumb across her cheek. The look in his eyes disturbed her, as if he didn't know if she were real. He cleared his throat, seemed to frown as his hands went back to swiping at the panels, sending the data to hundreds of doctors all over the planet.
"I'm fine," Rue repeated with a forced-out laugh. "I'm alright—"
"I couldn't breathe right for days," Valentino commented. "I was sick all over the floor. I think I cried so much I was hyperventilating."
"Okay, that's dramatic," she snorted.
But no one smiled.
No one fucking laughed.
The silence continued, and she was startled by how solemn and how utterly distraught they were.
"Okay, boys?" she said, chewing through another mouthful placed generously and far too gently to her lips. "You're looking a little crazy," she said. "It's kind of scaring me because you're looking at me like I'm godly—"
"Maybe you are," Halcyon whispered. His eyes were wide, blown liquid dark, drinking her in like every inch of her was a scripture that he didn't deserve to read. "To us."
"Don't be ridiculous—"
"Rue," Kieran whispered, the tone of his voice had her freezing. "You just don't know how precious you are to us, do you?"
The air seemed to grow still, and she pressed a hand to her chest, trying to slow the sudden race of her heart. Her mind swirling at his words, her cheeks suddenly growing hot. The fuck? But even as her skin prickled with phantom memory, of hands, of heat, of teeth, her heart was dragging her somewhere colder. She changed the subject quickly before the topic got too damn hot and too damn close to something she did not want to discuss.
"So, where is he?" she asked, testing the waters. The question dropped like a blade. "Where's Dante?"
The name rang in the air like a bell.
Something in Seraphim's face twisted, the mask of calm slipping, momentarily revealing the raw wire of pain beneath. He looked away, jaw clenched tight and sat back on his heels. The others shifted in their spots.
"No," he said. "You need to rest."
"Levi told me he's gone fucking insane. And that's my job, isn't it?" Rue pointed out. "To undo the insanity. I'm your guide—"
Levi spoke out then with a grunt. "No."
"I'll just take a peek," she offered. "I could just pop my head in and wave?"
"It's not safe."
"Why?"
The silence stretched.
And then, finally, Levi exhaled. "He's not… himself."
Rue sat forward. "He's hurt?"
Levi looked away. "No. Worse." He ran a hand through his hair with groan. "Fuck," he groaned. "I should not have told you that." His feet tapped on the ground, agitation running through his veins. "He's just banging himself up in the back. Really, he'll be fine. Might lose a couple of brain cells, but that's about it."
"Then let me see him."
"Rue—"
"Let me see him." Her hands fisted the blankets. "You don't understand. If he's gone mad—if he's broken—I don't think my clothes are going to do the trick." Her voice cracked then, sharp and aching. Something bubbled in her chest, something that begged her to look for him. "He won't listen to anyone else. If he knows I'm there, then maybe—"
"You don't know what he's like right now," Seraphim said softly. "He's too deep in his Alpha, hasn't spoken. He doesn't eat. Doesn't sleep. He barely breathes. He thinks we failed. He thinks he failed. He thinks you—"
Levi's voice was taut with warning. "Seraphim—"
Rue stopped him then, finishing his words for him. Her heart falling at his words. Fuck. "He thinks I'm dead."
Seraphim's gaze faltered, and her chest tightened. Her eyes burned.
"Then he needs to see me," Rue said, feeling the strange ache in her chest grow. Her hunger was quickly forgotten. She'd been gobbling it all down like a beast just moments ago and yet now she'd lost her appetite. "I feel like he's unravelling. Like he's breaking apart, is it just me? I can hear him screaming somewhere in this house." And she could almost sense him howling in the distance, shattering in his space. She looked expectantly at Altair, who blinked back at her, pursed his lips. "Come on, I'm alright. So please, doc?"
Altair seemed startled then, cheeks flushed at her scrutiny. He went back to his charts, squinting at the numbers. "She does look pretty good for someone poisoned."
Seraphim frowned. "Altair…"
Valentino sighed. "No one on our team has raised any problems with her diagnostics."
Kieran stepped forward, snatching the device from his hands. "You're all doing it wrong, aren't you?"
Valentino snapped. "We're not stupid."
Altair exhaled, blew out a breath. "She's just looking good for someone who's just spent three days in an enemy's stronghold." He groaned, hands scrubbing his face. "I think we'd fare worse on these charts."
Levi snapped. "Run it again."
Rue made a face. "Just one look at Dante," she said. "Pop in, wave, and then I'm out. Just to let him know that I'm totally alive."
Kieran gave her a look. "He's going to try to convince you to fuck him. He's not going to play nice like we did." His frown deepened. "His Alpha's going to remember what you did in the hive to heal him. He'll want it again."
"Fine, then," she searched the room, ignoring the burn of his gaze, her cheeks reddening. Fuck. "Halcyon, can come with me. He's number 2 in rank, right?" The ares perked up, bouncing up to her. "Halcyon and I could take him down if we need to."
Seraphim shook his head. "Dante can survive a few hours. He can wait for you to sleep. We've already taken the necessary precautions, and there's no need for you to push yourself."
"But I can't sleep knowing he's losing his shit somewhere in here. He's not going to hurt me," Rue insisted. "I mean, he can't. I've got six of you watching me like a hawk. And if he does something stupid, you and Kieran can fish me out of there." She met their gaze, eyes pleading as she went through each Alpha. "Please?"
Levi seemed to crumble, a strange gentleness flickering in his orbs. "Fine," he caved, "one look." The others sighed. Rue was momentarily disturbed by how fucking easy it was to convince them all to listen to her.
A/N - Hello dear friends! From now onwards, I'll be updating chapters to all my public access stories a lot more regularly (aka by every Sunday, you can find out the day for the month on my twitter). But this will mean that chapters will be halved/up to the first cliff hanger so you'll see a 'Part 1/2' beside the chapter names. I just wanted to give everyone a regular schedule.
The paid sites will be a little different because it won't be updated in halves, but I'm aiming for a full chapter from a series every week.
I'm also working on a new story, Seven Beasts for Sloane, and I'm so excited to share it with everyone here as well (for free next month, currently already updating on Patreon). It's a beast world, omegaverse, reverse harem, rural village, feral beasts survival kind of story. I really enjoy the 'primitive living' trope and I just wanted to write something like that. I'll promote it a bit more soon. But you can find more info on my twitter!
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