The Industry

Chapter 1

The male walked down the hallway, his dark skin rippling as he moved. He ran his hands through his hair and smoothed his suit, wiping his hands on the pants of the suit. He was sweating despite the chill of the lavishly decorated hall, the plush red carpet crunching underfoot as the frost from the outside air penetrating even the corridors in the heart of the building. His amber eyes darted back and forth, from door to door as he approached the end of the corridor, finally pausing in front of the heavy metal door.

"You must pick an Omega tonight, Lucius. It's hardly respectable for a young alpha not to, especially one in your position. You are the son of a lord; act the part!"

He had to find and claim an omega tonight. A young alpha without an omega was a disgrace. He had heard it a million times over; act your age, act your class!
The main issue was the problems resulting in his choices; he was already suffering from the effects of being mateless. Having matured around the same time the pervious year, the pain and moodswings were effecting him in every aspect of his life. So he had one night to pick who would be his partner; for eternity.

The weight of the choice was overwhelming, and his hand was shaking as he set it on the door, his cool composure cracking like a pane of glass. The choice he made tonight would make his life heaven, or hell. He knew this, and with that thought preying on his mind, he pushed the heavy metal door open with ease, stepping inside.

And the room was exactly what he had expected and everything he remembered; crammed full to bursting point with scantily clad women wrapped in fine silks and dark leather milled around in small groups to talk in hushed voices, though as the heady cocktail of perfumes assaulted the male's sensitive nose, the whole room fell silent. They watched him, they knew what he was here for, and all eyed him as the man prowled the room, giving a soft, irritated growl. All waiting, some hopeful, some cautious; there was every kind of women he could possibly hope to see; any alpha would be spoiled for choice,

The only problem was that Lucius didn't want a woman.

He pushed his way to the back of the room, resting his head against the wall. Male omegas were rare and unwanted, many were abandoned shortly after birth, as the majority of alphas wanted a female mate. This was the fourth 'shop' he had been to that night, the last in town, and he hadn't found any males, let alone one he could tolerate having as a mate. The heat was suffocating and the choking mix of perfumes was getting to his head as he tried to take a deep breath, but there was something else there, too. His head snapped up suddenly , causing a few of the omegas to stumble backwards as he swung round and took another breath, honing on a scent that now cut through the perfume; something more natural, more... masculine. He resumed prowling through the crowd, desperately searching for whatever, or rather, whoever was the source of the deliciously tempting smell.

"The angels and demons will be marked. You better not pick a human; you know how short their lives are Lucius. You'd regret it for the rest of yours."

His attention was drawn to a small male curled up at the side of the room. His hair was a fiery red and his skin was pale. His features looked like that of a child's, but irrisistibly sweet, and it took Lucius' full control not to drool over his sweet, earthy scent. Like all omegas, a name had been tattooed onto the boy's arm. Formerly, it had been a number, but that had been deemed too dehumanising and the number was first accompanied, and then replaced by a name. The name on this one read "Abel", and that was the name he called to capture the omega's attention.

"Abel"

His voice was just above a whisper, and as the man motioned for him to stand as the boy looked up, his eyes wide in shock and fear. As the boy stood he noticed the alpha inspecting him was just over a foot taller than him, and while he eyed Abel, Abel eyed him. He took in his messy hair and suit as well as his broad, muscular frame. Lucius' dark skin smooth and soft looking, almost like melted chocolate or silk, though his scent supported the chocolate theory; it smelt rich and chocolaty, though not as sweet. It was clear by the way his eyes had slit, reptilian pupils and curved fangs that Lucius was a demon, a thought that sent chills down the halfbreed's spine. He was hypnotised by his power and made no move to object as the demon spun him round gently to observe the tattoo on his back.

Along with the name on their arm, omegas were given a tattoo in the small of their back to identify them as an angel, human, or demon. Abel's tattoo, however, was confusing to Lucius, and took a moment for the demon to figure out. It had the classic wings of an angel's mark, but also had the horns and tail of a demon, similar to that which decorated the back of the alpha's neck. When he figured out the boy was a halfbreed, he turned him back around, once again observing his sweet little face as he debated whether to take him, whether it would be acceptable. He had no way of knowing what traits would become more apparent after the boy was mated, and he could only imagine the depravity of taking anything close to an angel into a house of demons.

A loud knock on the door made the alpha growl. The time he had here was up. He looked down at the halfbreed, and immediately wished he hadn't; there was no way he wasn't taking him, regardless of whether he was an angel or not. He ducked down and scooped the omega off his feet, kissing him passionately before heading to the door, kicking it open and walking out with the boy, into the chilled corridor.