Siren's Kiss

11: Royal Misfortune

Heat.

Every omega experienced a heat-phase, lasting up to a week. It was nature's way of luring mates, signaling to any alphas nearby that the omega was fertile. Although this was more convenient if the omega was already paired up with an alpha, otherwise, they risked being pursued by countless, rutting alpha eager to plant their seed.

In the Seven Seas, it was known that the "omega chose their alpha." Once they found their "destined mate," they would do whatever it took to be marked by that alpha. Some omegas sold on the black market were given drugs to induce their heat, driving alphas wild. Elevated pheromones could turn everyone into an animal in the throes of lust.

Ciel was a high-class omega due to his noble blood. Unlike lower-class omegas, alphas vied for his attention and the chance to ignite his heat. Ciel cared little for the intricacies of mating and reproduction. He wasn't like other noble omegas, whose sole goal in life was to find their alpha. Some omegas were cunning, inducing their heat with prohibited drugs to attract the alphas they wanted, not those destined for them. Ciel had no interest in discussing the subject of finding one's fated mate. He had zero interest in any suitors and didn't care if he ever found a mate.

Well, that was until he met Drake.

This wasn't his first encounter with Captain Drake. They had crossed paths in childhood, and Ciel had recognized him as the same siren who saved the pirate years ago. The same boy who went with him to the lighthouse to watch the sunset over the sea. It was a brief but memorable encounter, which was why Ciel was so upset when Drake mentioned a similar experience with Isadora. He had wanted to ask, demand an answer: how was he different from this grandmaster? Why should he want to be different? And then it had hit him.

Both his body and mind were longing for the captain's affection.

Ciel, as an omega, had finally chosen his alpha.

How repulsive!

As a prince, he had a certain pride. He believed that the "heat" towards the destined mate wouldn't affect him the same way. That it would never visit him because no one was deemed worthy enough by the gods to be his fated one. If that were true, how could the gods explain this inexplicable attraction towards a pirate? Of all the denizens of this world, Ciel was yearning for this one specific pirate.

Unacceptable.

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The crew of the Crimson Corsairs gathered on the deck; their voices raised in a raucous sea shanty as they waited to go ashore. The fog had begun to lift, and the promise of land had their spirits high. They sang a humorous tune, each line more outrageous than the last:

"We once knew a mermaid, sweet as pie,

Her kisses were salty, but oh, did she lie!

She promised us treasure, gold by the ton,

But all we got was seaweed and a flippin' bad pun!"

They laughed heartily, their voices blending with the creaking of the ship and the rhythmic crash of the waves. As the song ended, Griff leaned in, a mischievous glint in his eye.

"Ever hear the tale of the Kraken's Tooth?" he asked, his voice low and ominous.

Vic grinned, showing a row of surprisingly straight, pristine white teeth. "Aye, the beast with tentacles thicker than a ship's mast! Snatched me old boat clean outta the water, it did."

Ollie, the cook, chuckled as he stirred a pot of stew. "Yer always goin' on about that Kraken, Vic. More like it snatched yer wits!"

The young men roared with laughter; their spirits undimmed by the tales of sea monsters. Ori, the navigator, stood at the helm, peering intently at a newly discovered map.