“You have got to be FUCKING KIDDING ME!” V did not care if he was loud, or if the Alpha in front of him was shrinking like wet cotton. He did not care at all.

There was a limit to how much bullshit he can tolerate, and frankly, it was not even that much to begin with. Patience was not his forte, never was and never will be.

“What do you mean I have to bathe with you?” He would be offended—no doubt, if all of this was just a ploy to get in his pants. It was too outlandish, too ludicrous, for the things that happened so far to not be true.

For heaven’s sake, he cursed inside his head, I passed through a wooden door like Casper and a rainbow waterfall is in front of my eyes. Nobody goes this far just to have sex with anyone, not even with me.

“It’s just,” Echo’s voice became weaker with every word, “you need to cleanse.”

“Are you saying I’m dirty?” He gave the Alpha the harshest glare he could manage. Judging by the way the man stepped back and looked away, it seemed to be working. “Is that it? I’m dirty?”

“No,” Echo muttered, hapless like a baby chick in front of Mother Hen. He said something else but the roaring of water drowned out his voice.

“Speak up!” V can feel a vein on his forehead throbbing. He might see red soon if this continued.

Echo clenched his hands and braced himself. Even his own expression showed that he thought it was absurd, but he needed to do this. Louder this time, he repeated, “You’ll be rejected if you don’t.”

V was shocked upon hearing this. “Rejected? By whom?” He wasn’t made aware that there was some sort of audition happening.

“The mistresses.”

“The mistresses?” V knew he sounded like a parrot, but what else could he say?

“Yes.” Echo’s reply (or lack thereof) reminded V of the first time they met. It seemed like he was back to being cursed to speak less than 10 words in his lifetime.

Suppressing the urge to smack the Alpha square in the head, V took a deep breath to try and bring his blood pressure down. “Who exactly are … the mistresses?”

“Lady Luck and Mistress of Misfortune.” Echo’s voice was back to being monotone, nervousness no more.

“Alpha,” V said in a flat voice, his attempt at being non-threatening. The words that followed, however, were anything but. “If you don’t explain shit to me. I will tear you. Limb. To. Limb. I will make you watch as I shovel dirt to your body inch by inch six feet underground. Unless you want to know how it feels like to be buried alive, you better start talking.”

Echo squeaked, and V felt no shame in taking pleasure in the way the Alpha’s face turned red. He usually didn’t threaten people, he went straight to destroying them, but right now he needed words. He wouldn’t get that if the person who held answers continued being a robot.

The Alpha had no doubt that the Omega had the ability to do that, so he quickly said, “They are the Rulers of Destiny and Fate.”

V did not respond, silently urging him to keep talking.

Seeing that V put his full attention to him, he spoke slowly this time. “They are The Gods that granted us, Keepers, the ability to safeguard the balance of the world. This is their sanctuary,” he gestured from the entrance to the library to the waterfall. “And you need to be purified or else they, the Beloved of Balance, will reject your presence.”

“What happens if they reject me?” He zeroed in on what was most important. He had no time to learn about myths and legends, safety came first.

“Your soul will shatter.” Echo’s eyes held no lies. He had to warn the Omega how serious the consequences were, how painful it would be.

With his hands on his hips, V sighed. If this was some sort of elaborate prank, Grandma in heaven please forgive her baby boy, he was sure to be getting a mugshot tomorrow for homicide.

--

Echo usually enjoyed peace and quiet—spending most of his moments lazing around his bed, the library, or the greenhouse, yet at this moment, he was most grateful that the roaring of the waterfall hid how loud his heartbeat was. If only the colorful water had a way to hide the red tinge on his skin, he could somehow leave with his pride intact.

This was the first time he would be so close and naked with anyone. Granted, they had their back turned facing each other and they weren’t touching, but he still felt shy at the open display.

“You better not look,” he heard the Omega grumble from behind. “I’ll stab your eyes if you turn around.”

The Alpha gulped, both from the threat and … something else. Something hot.

He had no time to think about it because the water around them was slowly turning transparent, the colors losing their vibrancy.

“I need to touch you now.” It already took all his courage to say those six words but Echo knew the battle to convince V was far from over.

He heard V snarl, and though he couldn’t see it, he was sure the Omega was baring his teeth—small, pointed fangs on aggressive display.

“It’s for the ritual, I swear.” Echo wished he was more eloquent, but he didn’t have time to practice his speech this time around. Everything happened in a blur, he couldn’t just walk away and come back the next day like he did at that coffee shop.

He thought V would snarl at him again. To his delight, a surprised voice came from behind him instead. “What’s happening to the water?”

“You’re absorbing it.” Echo tried to remember how the records explained the ritual, but this was all he managed to conjure. “Hanatad’s water, I mean.”

“No, I’m not. I’m literally just standing here … naked.” Hearing the last word, Echo felt himself blush harder. He didn’t need to be reminded how they were not wearing anything, the pounding of his heart did just that.

To distract himself, he lapped at the water. “Hanatad’s water has … magic. You’re absorbing it. To strengthen your soul.”

V hummed at his explanation, seemingly satisfied. “I see.” Echo realized that it was smart of him to use the term ‘magic’ although he never saw it that way. He always saw it as normal, nothing special to brag about. Even his ability was not anything grand. He just lived life a little differently from everybody else, that’s all.

Still, he knew not to neglect the important matters. As someone who had done this ritual before, he tried to persuade V again. “It’s going to hurt. I can help you if you let me touch you.”

“I’m no weakling, I can take it,” was his reply.

The Alpha had no suspicion about the Omega’s strength, being on the receiving end of his fist once, but the pain that came from the flesh was minuscule compared to the pain that came from the soul. “This is different, V. Trust me.”

Echo was ready to plead if he was rejected again but he was met with silence. The silence lasted for several minutes until he heard a soft whimper. The water around them rippled lightly, and it didn’t take long for him to realize that it came from V’s quivering.

The alarms in his head blared loudly when he heard the Omega stifle a sob, his inner alpha rising in panic.

The Alpha swiftly made the decision to ask for forgiveness, not permission, when he turned around and put his hands on V’s back. In between the Omega’s trembling and convulsions, Echo was uncertain if the smaller male even felt his touch.

Following what he was taught, Echo channeled the divine force from the water to his body and started transferring it to his palms. He did this to control the force that was rampaging inside V’s body, a vessel that was never filled with sacred energy, but it was harder than he thought.

The force was scattering everywhere, web-like sparkles that traveled from the Omega’s forehead to his toes, stretching at the other man’s soul to its limit before defining it all together. V was being remolded and remade, Echo knew as he had been there before. He gave a silent prayer in his heart for V as he recalled the first time he experienced this pain.

At least, the Echo back then knew what he was going into. He was told and trained from a young age. V was not given that privilege, diving headfirst into the painful ordeal.

Feeling sorry, the Alpha put his focus into the Omega’s body, making sure the force doesn’t pull too tight or snap too fast. In doing so, he became hyperaware of the skin underneath his palms.

He saw how creamy it was, like fresh milk. The small beads of water that decorated the fair nape beckoned him to have a taste, tempting him to run his tongue from neck to shoulder. His mouth felt dry. Would it be as smooth as it looked?

V’s body shook again, more violently this time, causing him to fall into Echo’s embrace. The Alpha didn’t remove his hands as his arms circled the Omega’s waist.

This is fine, I can help as long as we stay in contact, he told himself.

From a higher vantage point, Echo saw how V had his eyes closed, butterfly lashes casting long shadows over flushed cheeks. His lips were slightly open in a pant, but all Echo saw was how plump and luscious it was. It even had a slight sheen, perhaps from the water, and Echo’s inner alpha was begging at him to take a bite. Just one bite. It would be so delicious.

His eyes trailed downwards and his alpha howled in greed upon seeing the pink and round nipples. He doesn’t have anything to compare with but Echo was sure that having those perfect nubs between his teeth would be heavenly. He would pinch and bite and lick with everything he had, a thirsty man drinking water for the first time.

He was getting hotter and hotter, his task already forgotten, the feeling pooling beneath his navel. The water did nothing to cool him down.

It wasn’t until he saw how V’s chest heaved up and down in an unsteady rhythm that he stopped himself and snapped out of it. Feeling a million times more apologetic than before, Echo silenced his alpha and threw away all the unsavory thoughts he had.

He poured all his attention on easing the process for the Omega, vowing to never look at him with those lustful eyes again.

It was not until the future that Echo would realize he could not keep this vow.