1 Crossing the Rift

"Let's get married when we grow up. This is a promise between you and me" The sweet smile on the T.V. screen felt mocking to Su's eyes. It had been 10 years ever since that fateful day and these words still seemed to be haunting him.

"Of course. You and I are fated after all" the omega's sweet words were a mockery of the tone Su had used to reply himself.

And it was official. Su could no longer hear those words, nor could he watch the foolery any longer.

One second, the scene seemed to be playing out on the T.V., the next second, it was shut down by Su with an angry huff.

"Oi, the T.V. did nothing wrong to you. And I genuinely wanted to know what happened next. It is rare to see a human drama being aired these days" Su ignored the teasing words of his alpha roommate.

"We don't have time. We need to plan if we are to get rid of the emperor. We will only get this one chance before he's off to hide for the whole year" Su tried to keep the complaint out of his voice but he was unsuccessful.

And his alpha roommate knew that as well.

"Alright, you win. So, what's the plan again?" Erwin, Su's alpha roommate finally dragged himself away from the couch he had been resting on.

His lazy manner was enough to fool most people but not Su. He had been with Erwin long enough to recognize the sharpness in his eyes. The alpha had his full attention on Su and the plan right now.

"Our intelligence had made sure to confirm the date of the ceremony this year. The lunar festival will take place three days from now. That will be the only time we can see the emperor's descent from his heavenly palace" The Sentients were powerful, but none was more powerful than their dragon emperor.

The Sentients had breached the earth's borders almost 10 years ago, coming as a beacon of peace from far away from reality. Things had been peaceful at first.

But they had changed gradually and humanity had not even realized when they had been oppressed.

Gradually, the alpha and beta of the human race had been taken in by Sentients to fight for their armies and never to be seen again.

And then the suitable young omegas had started to disappear gradually. It had been a slow realization but it had been too late by the time humanity had realized what had happened.

Su had been one of the lucky ones to have escaped the capture and auction. He had been saved by Erwin a long time ago and he could not be more grateful to the alpha.

But now he had the opportunity to do something about it. He would kill that emperor and finally have his revenge.

"How unfortunate for us that their emperor decided to play hide-and-seek on our planet and diverted Sentients' attention toward earth almost 10 years ago. But at least we have an opportunity to do something about it now" A fact Su cursed every day.

Why did that emperor have to go and ruin everything for them? The rumors said that the dragon emperor was thousands of years old but his actions reflected that of a baby.

Playing with human life like this was such a bad idea on the Sentients' part and Su would make sure they suffer for it.

Once their emperor dies, their whole structure would collapse. Their Alpha king was supposed to be their source of power. Su was sure that everything would go back to normal once he was out of the picture.

"By the way, did you receive any update from the higher-ups? They were supposed to give us instructions for further proceedings but I can't contact them" For a second, the whole room descended into silence.

The shadows at the corners darkened just a little bit more and the grim look of the two faces increased in intensity.

And just as it had come, the moment passed and an easy acceptance rolled over both bodies. There were reasons why one would ignore their call for the time being and the implications of the truth were far heavier than the pair would like.

"They must be busy. Leave them a message and I'm sure they would get back to us as soon as they can" Su decided not to think moreover that topic.

Whatever was keeping the higher-ups unable to respond to their words could not be good. It was better to distance themselves right now than to face problems later on.

"You sure? The old geezers can get pretty aggressive when they feel like they're getting ignored. It hurts their fragile alpha pride to be looked down upon" the somber tone went back to the teasing one of before.

Su looked on in fondness and the alpha changed the pacing of the talk. Erwin was good at these kinds of things. Almost to the point of having experience in dealing with tense situations.

But Su had known the other for over 6 years now and there was no way Erwin had a hidden military background. It was all raw talent shining through those blue eyes of his.

They were similar to Su's first love in intensity but Su could never forget the shine of his precious Ambers of his first alpha.

"If they do come after us for this then I promise to take responsibility. I own you this much since I dragged you into this mission" Su promised and watched as those lovely blues of Erwin softened just a little bit more.

Su felt guilty for dragging Erwin along. Especially since he knew that Erwin had a soft spot for him but he could not help himself.

Su knew he could not do this himself. He needed someone to push him, a person who could become his reason for doing things, and Erwin fit that picture for him.

Rather, Erwin was the only one who believed in Su and his abilities. The alpha had been the one to push for Su's integration into the resistance as a front fighter despite his omega status.

Not that Su ever let it get into the way. The suppressants he took ensured that Su came off as nothing more than beta to most people.

The silent monologue of Su's was broken by a sharp chirp voice.

"Our broker is here. Let's start heading for the other side of the rift. And remember, from today onwards we are no longer humans. We are Sentients who were raised on earth for a few years and look human-like to blend in with them" Su knew that Erwin making sure Su knew the ropes.

But Su found it hard to concentrate on the words being spoken to him. His heart was pounding too hard in his chest and his hands were sweaty.

After all this time, doing all the dangerous things, this was the part that was getting to Su? The mere act of crossing the rift and looking for himself what the other side looked like? This was what was making Su sweat?

"Don't worry that much. You are not alone in this. I've followed you this far and I don't plan to abandon you going forward as well. Everything will be alright once we kill the emperor" and just as suddenly, Su had a pair of hands clasp his own.

Su watched as their collapsed hands shook softly.

He was shaking? He had not even realized that he had been shaking softly but now that he had started, Su found himself not being able to stop his shaking.

"You both coming? I don't have much time and the rift is heavily regulated. If you want to go back home then you need to hurry up" someone, most likely their broker called out to the pair.

"We can still turn back. Just say the words and we can abandon all this. Fuck the emperor and fuck this world. Just say the words and it'll all be over" Erwin's words flew over Su and it made him long to take that offered branch.

He could leave it all behind if he wanted to. There was no need for him to panic like this.

But even Su knew it was far too late to back down now. The time for hesitation and regrets had passed a long time ago. It was time to take action and Su had a duty to carry out.

"Erwin, I can't take the step. Please, do it for me" Su quickly glanced at the impatient face of the Sentient who was tricked into being their guide. He did not look happy and it made Su panic.

Thankfully, Erwin did not need another prompt to get moving. He took hold of Su's arm and started to push him toward the rift.

And soon the pair was across the rift and into the world no free human had seen before - Artheta, the word of magic and possibilities.

And also, the hell for humans.