Forget the Moon! - 1. Chapter 1

Abek was an unusual God, born of Sobek during a time when he still had feelings for Apep before the serpentine God made quite the shitty name for himself. He was raised by Sobek all by himself and was even granted his own children by Ra. He heard that Ra had recently turned Apep into a garden snake that would forever reincarnate into another garden snake when killed. Something about a punishment for having gone after one of Ra’s chosen children.

As far as Abek was concerned, his one and only father was Sobek, not Apep.

When everything settled back down in that neck of the woods, the rumor was that Khonsu was officially back in his male form for all eternity and he’d finally allowed his Omega children to branch out to find their soulmates, regardless of species. That meant that one of Abek’s dreams could finally come true!

He could potentially "adopt" an Omega to be under his care through a mating. If an Omega mated one of his children, he would finally be able to watch over a mild-mannered werewolf, which would be an absolute pleasure in comparison to his own feisty children. Abek’s blue eyes all but twinkled in joy as he made his way to visit Khonsu.

The moon God had taken up residence with Anubis and, when Abek arrived, the night God was also there. But, it was a surprise to see Nut, who had also come to visit.

“Nice hairstyle, Abek!” Nut greeted as she took in the way Abek’s green hair was braided to his shoulders. The young Goddess herself was wearing an Imagine Dragons shirt.

“Thanks,” he responded.

“It’s good to see you, Abek,” Khonsu greeted. He looked happier than Abek had seen him in centuries. “What brings you all the way out here?”

“I heard you’re finally open to having some of your Omegas mate with other species,” Abek replied.

“It’s true,” Anubis responded.

“Then, can one of my children have one?” Abek all but pleaded. “Please? Pretty, pretty please?”

“Well, we’ll have to split a soul and place a segment in each town and-” Khonsu began only to be interrupted by Nut.

“Oh, don’t worry, Grandpa already took care of that!” Nut announced.

“What do you mean?” Khonsu questioned.

“Well, as back-up, we kinda split a bunch of other species’ souls with Omegas in case you were still too stubbornly against the vampire pairings,” Nut confessed. “We were gonna keep trying with other combinations until you gave in.”

“WHAT?” Khonsu gasped.

Nut didn’t appear chagrined in the slightest bit. “Yeah, like Honey! Honey Arlo Mae…” she said.

“One of my favorites?” Khonsu whimpered.

“Yep! He’s gonna be paired with one of Abek’s children!” Nut concluded happily.

“Which one?” Abek asked, unable to keep the excitement out of his voice.

“Jedrek Xo Ytaro!” Nut replied.

“One of my princes?” Abek wondered aloud.

“Nut, just how many pairings with Omegas did you and Ra create?” Khonsu questioned.

The young goddess grinned widely. “Uuuuuuum, would you look at the time! My temple peeps are about to perform another dance for me...to the beat of Esta Rico by Marc Anthony, Will Smith, and Bad Bunny! Gotta go!”

“Answer my question first!” Khonsu demanded.

But, Nut was already skipping and teleporting away. “Sacude tu cadera...always taking pictures.

Laughing, blowing kisses...I think you're delicious!” She sang as she disappeared.

Khonsu buried his face against Anubis’s chest in frustration. “Just how many of my children were chosen?” He groaned.

“I get to adopt an Omega!” Abek cried out in joy, but Anubis shook his head in a motion to drop the subject.

::::

It was Gifting Day.

Honey could hardly contain himself; he was so excited. He'd never had trouble controlling his wolf-side before, but he could feel the pull to shift tingling in his fingers, toes, and the base of his spine. The golden-haired Omega took slow deep breaths, thinking of ocean waves and the breeze through the clover field behind his house. It took a dozen breaths, but he got his wolf under control.

Honey took pride in a few things in his life. One was how tame his wolf was. Honey also kept the house well, cooked more than decently, and worked hard to behave as was appropriate for an Omega wolf. He wanted his future mate to be happy with him, to be what an Omega should. Honey didn't think he was much to look at. His hair was alright, a nice shining blond that hung to his shoulders but was usually trying to escape a ponytail. Honey thought his eyes were just weird, though. Couldn't they have just been a normal blue? Instead, they were an odd bright blue next to the pupil. Lighter and darker shades spiked out from the center, and a dark ring of navy surrounded the iris. Honey kept his eyes down most of the time. It seemed appropriately demure for an Omega and helped hide his strange eyes. Then there was his body, which showed how much he enjoyed his own cooking, especially when stressed.

But that wouldn’t matter. Honey would get his Khonsu Stone and find a mate to love and cherish him despite his flaws. The Omega shivered, took a few more calming breaths, and went downstairs to find his father.

Honey was an only child, living with his father, his father's siblings, and their families. Honey's mother had been an Omega, killed in some sort of accident when Honey had only been a few months old. No one ever talked about about how she had died. The Omega had grown up on stories of his mother and what a lovely and perfect Omega she’d been. He’d also been told, quietly by several of his aunts, that Honey’s father would have followed his wife to the other side if it hadn’t been for his infant son who had the same golden hair as his lost wife. For as long as Honey had understood what it was to be Omega, he had wanted nothing more than to live up to his mother’s memory and give comfort to his father. It would be hard for both of them when Honey found his mate, but his aunts and uncles had promised to look after Honey’s father for him. The man seemed genuinely happy to see Honey ready to find a mate to love as Honey’s father had loved his mother.

Honey stepped into the family room, full of aunts, uncles, and cousins. All of them looked to Honey with proud smiles, making the Omega blush and drop his gaze. His cousins had tracked in mud again. Honey made a mental note to vacuum that night and steam clean the carpets as soon as he had time. It made him feel warm inside to know he was useful, that he had a place, and he was valued for what he gave to his family.

"Ready to go, pumpkin?" A large, warm hand rested gently on Honey's shoulder, and the teen peeked up to smile sweetly at his father.

“I’m ready, Daddy. Let’s go and see what Khonsu’s gift for me will be.”

::::

"Citizens of Carnelian, welcome to the Gifting Ceremony." greeted the head Khonsu devotee, Tatiana. "To visitors who have come from other towns to wish our Omegas well, my name is Tatiana Laurette. I am the head devotee to our beloved Khonsu, god of the moon."

"To be an Omega is a privilege and an honor. Be aware that this year you may find mates that aren't wolves!" Tatiana continued. "However, remember that Khonsu himself says that love is transcendental. Each of our Omegas will receive a Khonsu Stone that has been fashioned into a jewelry piece. They have been infused with a drop of his own blood and the power to help find your mates. May this Gifting Day prove to be fruitful for all of you!"

Fruitful? What a load of crap, Regan thought to himself. It was as if they were saying that Omegas needed to either quickly go off to make or adopt babies when they were barely more than babies themselves. The amber-eyed youth had been born into the Embers clans, a much more liberal group of wolves, humans, and vampires. Before the Legend of Eli, their vampires had to be hidden away from other visiting clans. But they were now free to roam wherever they wished, especially if they had Omega mates.

Regan hoped more than anything to have a mate of another species. Vampire, human, Fae...hell, he’d even take a mythical Unicorn over a Wolf Alpha, though there were rumors that they really existed on some other plane. The young Omega threaded his fingers into his curly, soft brown hair and ruffled the curls back and forth in frustration. Another alternative would be to have a decently sized Khonsu stone that held the possibility of more than one mate. Surely, more mates meant more chances at different species, right?

Regan hoped he’d get the biggest Khonsu stone they had!

"Please step forward to receive your Gift when I call your name," Tatiana announced to the Omegas. "Erica Adain...Christian Aldrich..."

Before he knew it, Tatiana called him forth to receive his own stone.

“Regan Embers,” she summoned.

The curly-haired Omega felt queasy butterflies of nerves in his stomach as he approached the head devotee. She placed a platinum ring in his hand with a clear oval stone embedded that was about an inch long. Not as big a stone as he’d wanted, but it had the potential for multiple mates. The ring was a bit big on his right ring finger, but it fit perfectly on his left ring finger.

“The fuck?” He hissed as he was forced to wear the ring like it were some kind of engagement ring on his left hand. But with a shrug, he headed back to his family, trying not to feel as if the ring was an open-ended shackle waiting to latch onto a captor. It didn't pulse or glow; Regan was free for a bit longer.

Name after name was called until, finally, Honey’s name came up.

“Honey Mae.”

Honey squeaked, frozen in place. It was his turn. What if he tripped? Everyone was looking! Maybe this was a bad idea. He could come back next year and get his stone then. They’d hold it for him, right? Eighteen was really too young to be getting a mate. Nineteen would be much better, maybe even twenty or twenty-one.

“Honey, that’s you! Go!” a familiar voice hissed in his ear. Clarissa had come to see Honey get his stone. She was his favorite cousin, even if she could be a bit brash and loud.

And pinchy, Honey remembered as he jolted forward following a sharp pain in his backside. Honey’s father smiled at him proudly, affectionately, and the Omega knew he had to go through with things. He kept his eyes down as he approached the acolytes watching over the stones. Honey glanced at them, wondering which would be his. Something simple and small, nothing flashy.

Honey could only blink at the pendant he was presented with. This was not simple or small, although the stone seemed to be a reasonable size, thank goodness. Honey had thought of those Omegas blessed with multiple mates and would burn with naughty embarrassment for days. It would be absolutely mortifying to…to engage in sexual relations with more than one person. Honey didn’t think he could handle it. Something that wicked would send him either into a dead faint or right to baking and eating to relieve the stress.

So, yes, the stone wasn’t quite as small as Honey had imagined, but it didn’t look large enough to portend the terrifying possibility of more than one mate…hopefully. The setting, though…

“Do you like it?” the acolyte whispered conspiratorially, looking around quickly and smiling wide. “The master jeweler made it himself! He said he was inspired by a God's touch to incorporate the flames of passionate desire and the chains that link mates for eternity! It's a platinum-rhodium blend with the highest rhodium content the master could manage! You are truly blessed by the Gods! All of us acolytes have been dying to see who would get it!"

Honey could only nod and blink down at his pendant as another acolyte shushed the talkative one. The blank stone was set in silver flames so bright they were almost white. Between the metal flames and the stone was a perfect miniature chain cast with the same metal of the flames to circle the stone and acted as the setting to hold it. The links of the necklace’s chain were cool against Honey’s neck as the acolyte put the pendant over his head and let it settle in place.

Honey was sure it would light up immediately, leading him to his new mate, but the stone was quiet as the Omega stared at it. He took slow deep breaths to keep the dizziness creeping up on him at bay and walked, a bit wobbly, back to his family.