Omega Pride

The 10

th

installment of Omega Pride!

To be honest, I was entirely excited about writing this chapter, more than any other chapter written.

Just one thing for you guys to know. The word cognomen means surname or nickname.

As always, thank you MythOFreak and L.L. I couldn't get all this down without you guys.

From this point on, we're looking at about 4 to 5 chapters left in the series, give or take some.

Without further ado, enjoy!

~*~*~

Almost nothing.

Almost nothing but growls, barks, whines, and faint whispers reached Delphi's ears. She heard almost nothing as Number 81 grunted in pain as the wind was cut by a powerful arrow, nailing 81 in the shoulder blade, causing the fired bullet to go straight up into the sky. She heard almost nothing as a large figure appeared and cut Number 81's arm that held the rifle clean off, producing a silent look of shock across 81's face. She heard almost nothing but growls, barks, and whispers as a thin, blunt object pierced straight through Number 81's throat, causing the dark crimson blood to pour forward and the sounds of choking and gasping for air to escape 81's lips. Delphi stared blankly at everything going on around her, those noises never once ceasing, yet her numbness made them feel like almost nothing.

"Y...you...?!" The sound of the μιγάς's whisper was nearly drowned out by the growls as a dark skinned figure peaked out from behind the side of 81.

"Yes. It is I," a female's unfamiliar accent was heavily accompanied by a rumbling growl.

"Ah...we should have known," 81's voice came out in a whispering, blood clogged rasp, "we've been trailing you for years...such a shame.... Well, we now know...where your loyalties lie..."

"They were never with any of you to begin with, μιγάς," The growl and bark almost drowned the female's voice out completely, "but know I will no longer be going anywhere. Rest easy knowing that."

"What a horrible sense of humor—" Number 81 was about to let out a weak chuckle among the barks before a matching thin, blunt object joined side by side with the first, pulling it up straight through 81's skull and splitting it in half. Number 81 dropped dead to his knees and fell over on the thin layer of frosted grass, his blood quickly growing cold as it coated the ground.

Delphi continued to stare blankly, her sight starting to shift painfully. In front of her, she at first was seeing a light brown, gray, and beige female wolf in human form, but in each moment, she seemed to shift to a wolf and back, over and over again rapidly and endlessly. The she-wolf held two Sais in which she spun quickly to remove the blood off of them before putting them away.

"Excellent shot, Fu Zhen," The bark and whisper of a male Russian accent barely registered in Delphi's mind.

"Luka," The dark-skinned female with the Sais interrupted with a light bark, "now is not the time for praise. Bury the body far away from this place. Use caution with your return."

"Yes, ma'am." The faint sound of a large sword being sheathed reached Delphi's ears. Auburn hair and grey fur peaked out from the corner of Delphi's vision as she heard the body of Number 81 being be picked up and carried off. As those footsteps hurried away, she heard the sound of new, lighter ones approaching.

"Guarder!" The sound of a soft, Chinese female's whine approached them, her breathing a little heavy. "How is she? Is it already too late to stop the regression progress?"

"Let me worry about that," 'Guarder' spoke as she bent down to Delphi's level, her hair and face from the bridge of her nose down covered by light beige colored cloth. She moved her long, matching cape out the way and gently touched Delphi's face with the palm of her warm, yet worn hand, Delphi not quite feeling it and unsure of how a she-wolf could be touching her like such in wolf form.

"Delphinia, can you hear me?" The Guarder spoke to her softly, but Delphi didn't respond as the growls, whines, and barks got agonizingly louder, starting to engulf the last whispers of human words.

"My Guarder, we're losing her. If this continues, Delphinia and her wolf—" The Chinese wolf spoke, but was silenced with a quick 'shh', a growl in Delphi's ears.

The female raised her hand higher, touching the side of Delphi's temple, and staring her dead in the eye. It was then that several whispers, the thoughts of others rushed into her pounding head like a violent gale storm, causing Delphi to shake violently, her face became coated sweat, her ears burning red in anguish.

But a single voice, this Guarder's voice, broke through and commanded the most attention, '

I know you hear my words, young wolf. You know my voice, Delphinia. I will end your grief now. As the last to hold this command...I release you both from your bounds.'

In that moment, the growls, barks, whines, thoughts, whispers, all of it stopped. Peace and quiet shielded her mind. Delphi's vision and hearing became clear, but in the next moment a terribly sharp, burning pain ran straight through her mind, body, and soul, causing Delphi to let out loud screams in pain, her wolf mirroring her with an agonizing whine and howl. Memories started flooding excruciatingly fast through and between her and her wolf's mind and soul, every single missing strand from her blackouts, everything her wolf had done, and everything that she kept from her pieced harrowingly together.

As the last of Delphi's screams breached the afternoon air, she breathed hastily and short, her eyes darting around before she could finally bring herself to breathe slow and deep. Every breath she took then became new, fresh, distinguishable, and unlike the ones she took before. Her senses felt heightened to an unimagined amount, and an unknown weight had been removed; the hole she felt before was now gone. She looked up, finally taking in the female's eyes, the only part of her face that could be seen other than the skin surrounding them and a few curled strands of black hair on her covered face, but...

"Je... je te connais... (I...I know you...)" Delphi stared at her, recognizing the female's deep brown eyes and scent from a distant past, "Je te connais. (I know you.)"

A feeling of warmth and understanding entered the female's scent as the faint outline of a smile spread across her face behind her veil and entered her eyes. "Then that task is done—"

"Delphi!!" The sound of Wyatt's growl echoed the forest. Just as the female looked up, Wyatt tackled her to the ground, pinning her under his arm, his hand around her neck and claws slowly pushing out.

"Guarder!" The Chinese wolf was about to reach for her bow before she was quickly spun around and landed on her stomach against a tree, letting out a grunt as Emmanuel held her arms back.

"Careful now," Emmanuel warned, removing her bow and full quiver, keeping them away, "I would rather not harm a female today."

"Hey! Get off of—" The Russian male wolf had returned to see both females restrained, and before he could take another step, Conroy growled and had him in a hammerlock on the ground and unstrapped his sword and sheath. The Russian wolf growled deeply as he struggled against the stronger wolf.

"Don't fight, Luka, Fu Zhen," The female arrested by Wyatt spoke surprisingly calmly toward the other two before lifting her chin up at Wyatt, surrendering to him. "We mean you no harm and come to you in peace, Alpha of Delan."

"W...Wyatt..." Delphi got up, her body still weak from what just happened. She scented Adeline, Keric, and even Beatrix starting to get closer.

Wyatt looked over at Delphi, taking a quick glance at her to see if she was all right before focusing on the dark-skinned wolf under him. "Why have you invaded my lands? State yourself and your business here, wolf," he growled threateningly at her.

The female opened her mouth to speak, but she was beaten to the punch line as Keric walked past Delphi, sniffing the air almost rapidly before laying eyes on the she-wolf, his eyes widened and scent changed to shock.

"Samira?" Keric's surprised voice spoke the female's name, earning stunned stares from everyone present.

Wyatt tilted his head back slightly toward Keric, his sight not truly leaving the female, Samira. "You are familiar with this wolf, Keric?"

"Yes," Keric answered, his breath sounding a little heavy.

"I know her as well, Wyatt," Adeline spoke up, seeing Samira pinned. "She should be no threat to any of us."

Wyatt's narrowed eyes softened slightly, but his face remained serious and cautious as he slowly started releasing Samira's neck. "What is your business here? And what have you done to my mate?"

"I believe that it would be best if explanations and answers were left answered behind private walls," Samira spoke lightly, respectfully averting her eyes to Wyatt, "and with the strongest ears, Alphas and Betas, present."

'..Wyatt,'

Delphi sent to him, sensing that Wyatt was still unsure about her,

'the third

μιγάς that killed my pack came here and nearly killed me. She saved my life. All three of these wolves did.'

Wyatt nodded at hearing Delphi's words, and released his grip on Samira's neck, backing off her, but not before taking the two visible Sais from her waist, "Conroy, Emmanuel."

Emmanuel nodded and released the Chinese female, Fu Zhen, while Conroy let out a low warning growl to the Russian male, Luka, as he let him go. None of the three wolves made a move to attack as they steadily got up. Wyatt went over to Delphi, put his jacket on her, and held her close, projecting to her to make sure she was all right as all nine wolves headed toward the compound, the three foreign wolves closely watched by Keric, Conroy, Beatrix, and Adeline. Their watching was also accompanied by various other wolves, ranging from curiosity to caution, and even a little concern.

~*~/~*~

Wyatt sat down behind his desk with Delphi sitting right next to him. Along with Adeline, they gathered up all eight Betas and Denver (Wyatt, Adeline, and Florideen agreed that it was also best he attended), locking the doors behind them; Wyatt gave specific instructions that no one was else was allowed to attend or listen in.

"So why is it that you are here, Samira?" Adeline initiated the discussion, cutting all possible silence short.

"I believe it would be best to start from the beginning." Samira looked about the room at the five new wolves in the room. "My name is Samira of Iah. These two are my scions, Fu Zhen and Luka," at their names, they both nodded their heads respectfully and averted their eyes to the ground.

"Iah?" Wyatt asked, acknowledging their respect with a simple nod, "I am unfamiliar with that pack name. Is it a new group?"

Samira turned toward him and shook her head, "No, Alpha. In fact, it is the most ancient pack of wolves. The surname itself is one of the many names of the Deity of Transformation, but also is the cognomen of my own Guarder."

"What is a Guarder?" Delphi asked, hearing that word one too many times now. She could see Emmanuel and one of the female Betas, Naomi, nodding with her in agreement; the others must already be familiar with that word.

"Someone who is called to change a human into a wolf in which it is their sworn duty protect, guide, and teach the new wolf," Samira explained.

"Like a mate? I thought that humans were only changed by their mates," Delphi looked at Luka and Fu Zhen before looking back at Samira, surprise in her voice.

A sudden slight growl caught most of them by surprise. Keric immediately ceased his growling just as it began, "I apologize." He cleared his throat as if in an attempt to clear the developing disbelief in the room.

"That is not the case," Samira ignored the growl entirely as if it hadn't happened at all. "Many a wolf are chosen to change humans into wolves. They may be violent, but they are never entirely against one's will. Just like mating, it is a calling that becomes a need to accomplish, but this calling comes from The Deity of Transformation himself instead of The Deity of Fate and Mating. Left alone in the hands of solely mating, there would not be any nomadic packs and stationary packs would not be as numerous as they are in this era. But I digress. My Guarder belongs to the pack of Iah. To be more precise, he bore it. Most, if they wield the knowledge and knew that his true name is far too sacred to speak, would refer to him as The First, the first werewolf."

Murmurs of skepticism broke out among almost everyone as she spoke those words.

"Bullshit," Beatrix couldn't help but whisper louder than intended.

"There couldn't have been just

one

first werewolf," Marco said skeptically, and Elise nodded her head in agreement.

"The Deities would not be so cruel as to only make one," she added.

"It is true," Samira calmly denounced the scent and words of incredulity, "The First was the 18

th

son of the humans' Adam and Eve, one of their many children. Before the last of the nine Alpha Deities departed this world upon the rise of humanity, the Alpha Deity of Transformation felt a need to turn him. The other eight Deities, seeing their brother's actions, also blessed The First. Why else would we be able to change from humans into wolves? Why we are able to take on human and half-human forms? Why we can interbreed and turn other humans? We all descended from The First in one way, shape, or form. I do not smell of deceit. If you too believe in the Deities as I do, you would know this to be true."

"But I don't," Delphi stood up, challenging her, "I believe in Luna as do most others wolves in the world, and even she has only created us in pairs, separate from humans. And there was more than just one pair she created in the beginning."

Samira looked calmly at Delphi, the look in her eyes only changed to fall a little softer on her, "I knew in person your Luna—your Selene—Delphinia. She was brave, strong, beautiful, and free-spirited, but she was also prideful, stubborn, opinionated, and selfish. Your Selene was no Goddess."

Delphi paled slightly and swallowed as she slowly descended back into her seat. Samira did not smell like she was lying when she said that....

"I will ask again," Wyatt quieted everyone down as he spoke, folding his hands on the desk. "Why are you here?"

"My mission," Samira answered him, changing her stance. "Given to me by The First."

Everyone fell into complete silence as all ears' curiosities were once again on her. "My Guarder has had many scions, I being the fifth out of the twelve, but with his mate he also had many pups, over nineteen known. One such pup being Selene, and another being the Guarder of your pack and your two brother packs, Alpha of Delan. The one I speak of is another. Over 4000 years ago, around the year I reached my first millennia, I was more than ready to live for myself after learning so much from him. The First, however, requested of me to pertain to a mission: guard his eleventh pup, a daughter, by the name of Mirari. I accepted as I had watched her grow into a powerful, clever, yet headstrong, but beautiful wolf with her mother and father, and for more than 1,600 years, I did so. That is, until she met her mate."

Samira looked around at everyone before she continued, "That mate being the human well known even by most of the living world. Known by his conquests and conquers...he went by the name of Alexander III of Macedon, Alexander the Great."

She then looked back at Wyatt. "Alpha of Delan, I'm sure you might recognize this name's period as the time when Μιγάς first appeared among our history. At the time, I myself had very little recognition that they were about the world. I was focused on my mission to protect Mirari. To mate with Alexander without too much suspicion, she used the powers of her Iah bloodline to make everyone of Bactria believe that she was the daughter of Oxyartes of Balkh. She took up the name Roxana to seal her false identity. Foolishly, I had believed at the time that it was safe to end my mission, as Alexander truly did love her, and as a man, despite being human, was still powerful. I believed she would not be in immediate harm.

"I was wrong.

"When I had left on a pilgrimage to my ancient country of Egypt, I had found out that many descendants of Iah had gone missing with no apparent rhyme or reason. I had wanted to trace them out, but The First had commanded me to return to Mirari, to warn her and make sure that nothing would befall her. I returned to them, when they were stationed in Babylon, and told them of what I knew. Mirari had told Alexander who she really was. We were fortunate he cared very little about that, so he took in all the warnings given to him. Mirari did too, but I fear she may have known something I didn't at the time.

"In recorded history, it was said that Mirari miscarried a child in Babylon, a son. But that was for the child's, the daughter's, own protection. Mirari and Alexander instructed me to carry on my mission with that daughter and raise her as my own and to never return to them no matter how much I wanted to."

A sad tone entered Samira's eyes, voice, and scent. "Alexander had done many things to ensure than Mirari would not be exposed for who and what she was and to prevent that she too would go missing. He married others, and he expanded more land, no longer only for his own personal gain but also for her sake.

"This however, as history has shown, was not to succeed.

"Alexander was poisoned and murdered, and seven years later, the murder of Mirari and their second child took place. But these were not merely human-made murders, no. Μιγάς were behind them. They assisted those humans lusting over the power Alexander had, covering up their real goal to kill Mirari and Alexander IV Aegus. This sad fact took a long time to learn, due to the fact that I had taken their first child far away and traveled around the world, never settling too long in one spot. As for their child, I named her Eirene. I never left her, and I refused to make the same mistake twice. I taught her to shield her powers, block her scent, anything and everything I could to make sure that no μιγάς would come after her as they had her mother and brother. We had fled to Russia at the rise of witch hunts, wolf hunts, when more descendants of Iah, including Selene, had gone missing...no...were being murdered. The μιγάς were growing too large, overrunning the Roman Empire.

"I am sure you all know how your ancestors helped eliminate them, Alpha of Delan, and on behalf of all descendants and scions of The First, I thank you.

"Eirene and I had made our way to the Americas before 1440, but traveled between the Americas and Eurasia frequently. We had made sure as not to even be in the same areas as those who too shared the bloodline of Iah for their safety as well. I was careful not to go near other packs, and with the exception of being called to change Fu Zhen in 1839 and Luka in 1918, we avoided most humans unless we were to learn their languages to pass as them and avoid further detection. ...but once more, that did not end so fruitful. In 1957, Eirene, against all my wishes and judgments, met her mate in the Americas, a wolf by the name of Nathan...an Omega of his pack."

'No...'

Delphi stood straight up, her eyes wide as Samira continued to speak. Those names...it couldn't be possible!!

"Eirene knew that he, as an Omega, would not survive very long outside the protection and stability of a good pack and Alpha. She also knew that she would be a danger if she did not do something about her blood, so to be with him, she forsook her powers, her blood, and title to become a normal wolf that joined his ranks as an Omega. 30 years later, after doing their best to avoid the Heat in fear of inheritance of the blood, they bore a pup. But only one," Samira gazed at Delphi as Delphi slowly shook her head, knowing now where she was going. "Delphinia Mirari...born of Méraudin, mate to the Alpha of Delan, and direct descendant and Great-granddaughter of The First, the bloodline of Iah."