Three Alpha Princes for an Unwanted Omega

"Speak Miranda." Ares’ voice cracked through the tent. "What do you mean you created the Alpha’s council?"

"I had told you about how dangerous Morgana was getting but that does not begin to describe just how..."

Cassian frowned. "What do you mean?"

"She started killing people... anyone who stood against her and then eventually even people who had done nothing at all. Power changes a person and no one was capable of stopping her. She began to believe that as the Omega Dualis who held life and death in their hands, she could decide who lived and who died."

"That bad huh?" Damon muttered.

"It began with the men who had hunted her. Then it went on to their households. Then it went on to anyone who had ever stood in a room while someone else spoke her name with contempt, whether or not they had done anything with it. Villages. Children in those villages."

Miranda shook her head.

"We knew we had to stop her."

"We?" Ares pointed out.

"Myself and Morgana’s mate, Caelan."

"I know she had a mate but what about the three princes. They died too, did they not?"

"Yes, they did. History recorded that on the night Morgana rejected them, they all perished but that is not what happened. Their Omega mother had sent them to liaise with Morgana... to get her to stop the killings but they did not make it out alive. We had to..."

"And Caelan, he helped?"

Miranda let out a sigh and nodded, keeping her eyes downcast even as her mind raced with all the ways she could spin the truth.

"We met with the Alpha Kings..."

"They started the war against Morgana in the first place, did they not?" Ares interrupted.

"They did" Miranda agreed. "If only they had known what they were about to unleash."

Ares glanced toward Damon and Cassian who all had a look of concern on their faces.

He hoped they were not buying all of this because it sounded very suspiciously convenient.

"So you summoned..."

"Yes. With Caelan’s help, we were able to get them together. There was no reasoning with Morgana and she was about to unleash the wrath of a grieving mother upon the people of her pack and so we decided that her death was retribution enough for the death of the three princes and all other meaningless deaths suffered."

"Even Caelan was afraid of her," Miranda continued. "He tried to reason with her. He tried to convince her that what she was doing was wrong but Morgana had stopped listening. She had become convinced that the world was against her."

"How did you get to her?" Cassian asked.

"She trusted no one so we used the one person she did trust... her mate, Caelan."

That part was true, Morgana thought. Perhaps that was why it had worked. Morgana had trusted Caelan with her heart and her secrets and fears while Caelan just wanted to possess the throne she sat on.

Ares watched Miranda, waiting for her to continue.

"Caelan was to poison her enough to weaken her but not kill her. Her death had to be made public to assuage the fears of the people. Caelan unfortunately died after administering the poison to her through a kiss. It was so strong that it killed him. He gave his life to make sure no one had to suffer ever at her hands. And after that..." She stopped and for several seconds, she said nothing.

Damon watched her carefully.

"And after that?"

Miranda looked at him. "The purge began."

"Then that was centuries ago," Cassian interjected. "Alphas are not witches. We do not live past eighty, most of us, and we cannot simply extend our lives so how is this council still sitting? Unless, I am missing something."

"They are not." Miranda said. "They died a long time before you were born but I kept the arrangement alive."

"To what end," Ares said.

Miranda shook her head.

"I knew the Omega Dualis would return one day. The Omega Dualis is not simply a woman, she is a bloodline and bloodlines have a way of manifesting over and over again. I knew that when she returned, she would need someone to guide her and help her control her powers."

Damon’s expression hardened.

"I do not see where the council comes in."

"They were tasked with preserving the knowledge of the purge... the true knowledge of the purge and have it revealed to only one person from the Alpha bloodline. We would need people who understood the gravity of an unchecked Omega Dualis should she appear again. It was a means to work together instead of against one another... a means to prevent another purge but now..."

Miranda pointed at the letter in Damon’s hand.

"They are going against the very reason they were created. They are siding with Lucius, helping him obtain the Omega Dualis... creating another Morgana."

Ares’ jaw clenched.

"Ayla is nothing like that."

"Not yet." Miranda looked at him. "But what happens when Lucius finishes what he has started? We have seen how easy it is for his witch to mess with Ayla’s mind."

Damon’s expression tightened.

"What are you saying?"

"I am saying that Lucius does not want Ayla to control her power. He wants to control her and if he succeeds then we would have fought for nothing."

Miranda’s gaze returned to the letter.

"That is why we cannot waste time."

Damon nodded immediately.

"We need to get Ayla out of Emberfall."

"I agree." Miranda folded her arms.

"It is only a matter of time before Lucius realizes his help is not coming and when he does he will send another rider and we might not catch that one." Damon turned to Ares.

"Exactly." Miranda’s voice was grim. "We were fortunate this time but next time, we may not be."

Ares said nothing. He simply stared at her.

He did not believe her entirely. In fact, he was pretty sure she was hiding something but he could not even tell what it was.

He had tried to search the archives for anything that would point him in the right direction but there had been nothing substantial, Lucius had made sure of that when he carted away with all information regarding the Omega Dualis.

And even if they had been there, it would only be accounts from Morgana’s perspective as he had come to realize.

He finally exhaled.

"We will get Ayla out." he said "Thank you, Miranda. You may leave"

Miranda hesitated. "Surely, you will need me to help make a plan..."

"You have been the greatest help." Ares cut her off. "But we can take it from here. I will let you know when you are needed. You may leave."

There was no room for argument.

Miranda slowly bowed her head.

"As you wish, Alpha."

She turned and walked out of the tent.

Ares turned toward the guards as soon as she was gone and gestured for them to take the rider out.

"Tie him up and keep him under constant watch. Also double the watch around Emberfall. I want men watching every road. If Lucius so much as breathes, I want to know."

"Yes, my lord."

The tent slowly emptied until only the three princes remained.

"You think she is lying." Cassian broke the silence.

Ares’ head lifted and looked at him in surprise. His brother had always been intuitive.

"She is not telling us everything." he answered. "The story sounds too convincing and that is what worries me. The last thing I would trust is the word of a witch."

Damon muttered, "Me neither."

Ares glanced at him.

Damon shrugged. "I have never liked the woman."

Cassian looked between them.

"So what do we do?" he asked.

Ares clenched his fists.

"We sneak into the city ourselves and we get Ayla out."