Rue
The Intergalactic Court.
It was a name that carried the weight of history, heavy with its accomplishments and jurisdictions. The Court dealt with the Universe's worst crimes and situations. And for that, they were renowned.
But the truth was, they were nothing more than a collection of wrinkled old relics. Planetary leaders, retired rulers, ex-emperors, men who clung desperately to the last of their powers. Just a sad, sorry group of old fellows who deemed themselves entitled just because they draped their bodies in robes of authority and called their will justice. But everyone knew the truth: their decrees were merely theatre.
The real power sat elsewhere.
It was the Seven who ruled the universe. The Emperors. Her mates. Her pack. No one could truly go against their demands, their wishes, their will. It was Seirios who had the final word. The final say.
Three hard 'fuck no's from them would have sent the Court crawling back into their holes, tails between their legs, silenced like the old bitches they were. But one assent from the Alpha, just one nod from Dante, was enough to set the trial in motion. And Rue knew, with a sinking certainty that curdled her stomach, that it had been him. Dante.
Her Alpha.
Her rejected Alpha.
And fuck that son of a bitch.
Because this wasn't an arrest. It was capture. She was hunted down like prey, subdued on the ship with the brutality of a military siege despite Valentino's sharp warning. Shackles of searing plasma bound her wrists, the cold light gnawing against her skin until it blistered. A gag, heavy and mechanical, clamped her mouth shut like she was rabid. Altair had the audacity to look apologetic. A touch of worry in too pretty eyes.
An animal. They were treating her like an animal.
Like some kind of rabid beast.
Her mind had flickered despite herself to Halcyon. That idiot would've enjoyed the muzzle. But her mind remained on Altair's entourage. Two dozen armed guards marched at Altair's side, weapons gleaming, every insignia branded with the crest of Planet 1. A glance told her all she needed. These weren't soldiers assigned at random. They were elite generals, S-ranked espers holding weapons that should be for the Lonely.
Dante's weapons.
This was serious.
Rue laughed anyway, choked giggles broken against the gag. It cracked out of her like an almost sob, manic and wild, because this was all so absurd. So fucking insane.
What the fuck could she do to them?
Blow them to bits?
Rip them apart limb by limb?
Infect her with her Omega cooties?
And what the fuck was an Elder God? That had her mind reeling. And to call her a God? That was flattering, like a bit fat, cosmic stroke to her metaphorical dick. But the restraints were excessive.
She already had her guesses, her thoughts running straight to the fucker who'd called her a bee. Elder God was probably the name of her dad's family, her sperm donor's sickening insect brethren. They must be something awful, clearly the enemy, definitely a legacy of monsters. And now she was roped in unwillingly because of her blood.
A part of her had hoped that it was all a big fat chunk of lies. The Lonely weren't sentient after all, just big, ugly insects that chewed on the galaxy. Surely there weren't many smart insects like Edmund, given that it had been a first for the emperors.
And Levi hadn't given a damn, her mind reminded her quietly. The memory stabbed into her, raw and aching. He'd called it blasphemy. He'd told her that they were true mates. He'd kissed her. He'd held her. He loved her. So, what now? What was all this shit? And where the fuck was he? Her heart sank.
They must have taken the stupid talking head back to the labs, must have run a fuck ton of tests. They must have discovered something awful. So, was she truly some kind of prehistoric monster?
Rue sucked in a rattling breath.
Time slipped away. Space travel must have knocked her out somehow because consciousness returned like a solid punch to the gut. She awoke in a box. Not a room, or a cell. A fucking box.
Silence pressed into her, like a suffocating weight on her skull. The sort of stillness that dug deeply into her, heavy and absolute, ringing sharply in her ears. There was nothing in the void. No breath of wind, no hum of machinery, no footsteps, or even the whisper of recycled air. Just a vacuum with sound stripped bare.
Her ears ached from the pressure, her body throbbed. Her wrists burned raw where the plasma had eaten at her flesh. Her jaw ached from the muzzle. She blinked hard, and the world bled into focus.
White. Walls, floor, ceiling. All oppressive and harsh, stripped clean in a cold blue light. Seamless panels stretched in every direction, illuminated by a sickly pale glow that came from nowhere and everywhere at once. No windows. No doors she could see. Nothing.
She sat on the floor, throat clicking when she swallowed. The air was dry, recycled, faintly chemical, and wrong. She could not feel it against her skin, but she knew it was sterile and cold.
Sensory deprivation.
How fucking cruel.
A hiss had her head jerking towards a wall. A seam split open like a hot knife through butter. From the parting gash, three figures stepped in, suited head to toe in matte black, with a mirrored obsidian mask where a face should be. Their movements were precise, synchronised, every step so well calibrated that it made her skin crawl. She was almost 99% sure they were machines.
They weren't going to risk any lives.
Fuck.
The first one placed a device on the ground before her. It blinked once, the screen glowing faintly blue. Then light spilt upwards like a flood of liquid. A voice filled the room. Not from her new wardens, but pulsing through the walls. It was smooth, flat and genderless. The kind of voice designed to be impossible to read.
More fucking robots.
"Entity 04301. You are in the custody of the Intergalactic Court. You will not be harmed unless you attempt escape. Your hearing will now commence."
A hearing? It was as if a decision hadn't already been made. As if they weren't just parading her sins before the Universe, treating her like a fucking captured beast. Her nails dug into her palms. Her voice cracked when she forced it out. "Why am I here?"
A pause.
The blue light pulsed. Everything was recorded. It must be. Someone was watching her, maybe the entire Court. Rue knew she had to be careful, had to play nice. She was threading through the most dangerous of waters.
"Entity 04301. Birthplace: Port 69. Origin: Unknown. Blood: Elder God. Designation: Omega. Guide level: SSS. Danger Level: 10."
"I don't even know what that is," she said, heart racing.
Her dreams for school were immediately crushed. She thought of her lectures, her higher education, her cushy job. What use did she have for a big brain? Even cajoling the seven was impossible now. She was fucked. They didn't even care that she was mated to Valentino, or that Dante had sank his fucking teeth into her neck.
She was already branded as dangerous.
"Elder God," it continued clinically. It was odd that it wanted to explain. She supposed they had deemed it necessary to tell her about her origins. "Clearance level 10. It is a parasitic prehistoric race of aliens believed to be extinct more than 10,000 years ago. Their Alphas were known as Titans, and their Omegas, Heras."
The thing seemed to beep, running code before continuing.
"Both sexes were capable of a vocal brainwashing that was known to indoctrinate all.
Heras were used to enthral leaders by manipulating the neural mating bonds that regulate desire, loyalty, and trust. Once integrated, the victim becomes a drone, a pseudo-mate controlled by a Hera. Heras were then capable of wielding and using the powers of their drones.
History records 7 interstellar wars waged against their kind."
Her body felt as if it were drowning in ice.
"During War 7, the Heras were deployed galaxy-wide. They destroyed packs and bonded with Alpha leaders, destabilising dynasties, and seeding hundreds and thousands of spawn. Most of whom were born Omega.
Omegas of all races were also naturally inclined to heed their voices. Entire bloodlines were erased, Omegas were used to kill Alphas, the Heras ruled over the Universe. Total losses were in the trillions."
Rue's voice cracked on a scoff. "Seeded? I'm a girl."
The machine didn't pause. "Gender irrelevant. Heras used males for gestation. Records confirm that Alphas carried young during the war. Many did not survive the parasitic birth."
Her mouth went dry. Pregnant Alphas? She couldn't even fucking breathe.
"In order to ensure survival, the extermination of Elder Gods was completed. In the year 3182, they were declared extinct.
Your hearing will now commence."
The blue light dimmed, and the ceiling peeled open, white caving back to reveal the true chamber she had been trapped inside.
The Chamber.
The room itself was vast, carved into tiers that rose in rings like an inverted coliseum. Each level was filled with alien dignitaries, senators, and retired sovereign rulers. They were draped in finery that shimmered like starlight, faces blurred in the jewels and silks, in armours and luminous flesh.
A halo of light floated above the central dais— the box she was in, now peeled back into a square. And it illuminated Rue, where she was forced to kneel, gravity pressing her down to the ground.
Rue's chest seized, but she forced herself to lift her head, forced herself to look. And there they were seated in the upper gallery, her seven were dressed in the finest of cloth, with the most blinding of crowns. The emperors.
Seraphim's eyes were as sharp as glass. Levi, with his jaw locked tight into a grind. Kieran was trembling with something between fury and grief. Valentino's eyes burned molten, his body straining against the guards who were there to hold him down. Halcyon looked like he might shatter at any second. Altair couldn't even fucking meet her gaze, eyes fixed on the floor.
And Dante.
Her heart dropped into her stomach when she found him. Her breath caught. At the highest seat, the man sat cloaked in gold, his crown glinting sharply like stars, standing tall upon his head. His face betrayed nothing but the incensed cloud of his emotions. The bond between them screamed so loud her pulse stuttered. Her mark burned where it lay carved into her neck, undeniable, swollen, obvious.
The pack Alpha's claim would always be the strongest.
Her rejection. Her ability to prevent him from seeing her. Her command.
It all did not matter.
The gasp of the crowd could be heard, whispers flooding the chamber. She resisted the urge to hide her face under her palm, to conceal the bite on her neck. She was so fucked. Her pride was crushed, her anger swallowed. And now there was only fear twisting through her veins.
What the fuck were they going to do to a mere Omega?
The council's voice cut through, echoing around.
"Entity 04301. You stand accused of seduction and corruption. Of ensnaring not one, but seven emperors into your thrall. The galaxy demands judgment."
The roar of the crowd drowned her pulse. An ocean of voices swelling like the roar of thunder, the weight of their eyes was suffocating. She tried to speak, voice rising high, but quickly realised that the box had silenced her.
This was a one-sided trial.
They did not want to hear her at all.
Valentino surged to his feet first. "She is still my mate. The old records speak of spells and witchcraft, but I bear her soul mark, and that cannot be forged. Hera or not, she is still the mate of the Emperor of Planet 6." The chamber screamed again, shouts of denial, of fear. A thousand voices accusing him of blindness, of weakness. Valentino snarled. "I bear her voice on my skin, and that is the truth."
"Your Imperial Majesty, you cannot be sure of their prowess," one of the councillors spat the words out like venom. "Regardless of the soul mark, bonding with a creature like her is forbidden and dangerous. Corruption spreads through the mark. Her control digs into your mind. And now, it is already burning through your resolve. It is only a matter of time."
The words spread like fire. A murmur of approval rippled across the tiers. Rue's throat burned as if the words were cutting into her veins instead of her mouth.
"She's not a monster!" Halcyon shouted, his voice cracking, fists slamming against the armrest before him. "She's a girl, an Omega. You would throw her into a cage because of blood she never chose?"
"Hear how he speaks," the councillor said coldly, eyes flashing toward Halcyon. And she noticed now how the councillor seemed to look at him with disdain. "Like an Alpha besotted."
A low rumble sounded from the crowd; the touch of laughter had Halcyon almost roaring as he settled back into his seat, rage darkening his features, blood tattoos writhing over his skin. Rue's heart twisted. She wanted to scream that he was right. That he hadn't been tricked. That none of them had. Because she wasn't some crazy fucking parasitic monster.
She was just a goddamn alien like the rest of them.
Just human, like her mother.
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