Omega Rising

Chapter 2: Alpha

Cloud stared up at Sephiroth as he didn't ask him who he was, but rather what he was. What did that even mean? He was still trying to wrap his mind around the fact that Sephiroth had basically told him that they turned SOLDIERs into monsters. He didn't believe it though. Zack wasn't a monster. He was a little protective at times, but that was just who he was. Alpha...for some reason the very word made his stomach cramp.

"We need to find Zack," Cloud said, changing the subject as Sephiroth stared at him in almost fascination.

"Oh?" Sephiroth questioned. "Why do you want to find him?" The question held a mocking tone that made Cloud frown, glancing around at all the carnage and death surrounding them.

"He could be in danger!" Cloud pointed out, motioning around. "They ambushed us."

Sephiroth's mouth tilted a bit at the thought. "Zackary can take care of himself. You obviously don't know him very well if you think that this pathetic squabble posed much of a challenge." Sephiroth continued to watch him curiously, before taking a step forward. "I think you want to get to him for another reason entirely." He took another step, and Cloud fought the urge to back himself against the bloodied wall.

Cloud took a deep breath as his stomach cramped and he felt a stirring between his legs. As his arousal caused him to shift he saw Sephiroth's cat like eyes dilate in response. "Stop looking at me like that."

"Like what, Cloud?" Sephiroth asked teasingly, stepping close enough now to grab him and slam him back against the wall. "You don't smell like an Alpha. You smell…" Sephiroth leaned in, burying his face in his neck as Cloud pushed at the strong chest. "You smell like a bitch in heat...or..nearly…"

"Get off me," Cloud spoke slowly, not knowing what Sephiroth was talking about, only knowing that when he was this close he wanted to reach out and touch that perfect hair...feel that flawless skin. "What you're saying doesn't make any sense. Things like that are not possible."

"You're right," Sephiroth assured him, blanketing him in a curtain of that silver hair as he leaned so close Cloud could see every speck of mako in those green eyes. "SOLDIER only produces Alphas with the cells from the beasts. It would be a liability to have anything else. But there are other things in this world, Cloud. Things that could control an Alpha very easily if they wanted to."

Cloud was panting by this point as his stomach cramped, and he felt a wetness start to drip into his boxers as Sephiroth's finger trailed along his chin, tilting it up and over to reveal his neck. "What could possibly challenge an Alpha?" Cloud questioned, pulse racing as terror flooded through him. Terror...and something else entirely. "You're SOLDIERs. Nothing can beat a SOLDIER."

"I didn't say beat," Sephiroth corrected, and Cloud actually heard a whine escape his throat as Sephiroth leaned in to his beating pulse. "I said control, but then you're fully aware of that, aren't you? Zackary has been trailing after you like a puppy since he found you. I just didn't realize why until now."

"He's my friend!" Cloud bit out, not liking the nefarious way Sephiroth talked about the other SOLDIER. The manipulative manner in which he referred to him. "Stop smelling me!"

Sephiroth chuckled against his neck, and the feel of the reverberation went right to his cock, making it hard as he squirmed at the unfamiliar wetness. "You're something special. Something new and yet ancient at the same time."

Cloud turned his head back towards Sephiroth, eyes narrowed and mouth hard as it felt like a bucket of ice water had been poured down his spine. He ignored the fact that Sephiroth's eyes were nearly black as his pupils had extended. He ignored the fact that the General of Shinra was bent over him and panting. "If you knew me at all, you would know that I'm not special. It's not kind to mock cadets, and tell them faerie stories."

"I'm not mocking you," Sephiroth replied, hands reaching out as he did to grab at Cloud's thin hip bones. "But I may kneel to you one day...if only to get a better angle." It took Cloud a moment to realize what the man meant, but once he did his cheeks burned hot as he squirmed. "You blush so prettily, Cloud," he once more whispered his name in a purr.

Taking a deep breath to calm his racing heart, Cloud reached down to place his hands upon the ones gripping his hips. "You're too bold."

Sephiroth grinned at him, growling deep in his chest and causing Cloud's knees to nearly buckle. "You have a fever, did you know?"

Cloud felt powerless as he was trapped within those dark depths, that sound causing his hair to stand on end. "I'm sick," he managed, feeling like he was under water as he focused in on that growl low in Sephiroth's chest. Something was dripping down his pant leg, and when he got his sanity back he would begin to question why that was.

"You're not sick," Sephiroth assured him. "You're almost ready."

Cloud tilt his head, feeling under that same pull as he wrapped his arms around Sephiroth's neck, leaning against that reverberation. "Ready for what?" He must be drunk again. He must be out of his mind to touch Sephiroth in this way.

"Sephiroth!" Cloud heard Zack cry out, running around the corner as he yanked himself away from the SOLDIER.

"Zack!" he breathed out in relief, coming back to his senses as that growling stopped and Sephiroth stepped back.

"Spike?" Zack moaned out with relief, leaning over to pant from exertion. "I've been looking everywhere for you." The SOLDIER looked back and forth between the two as Cloud pressed himself back up against the bloody wall. "Are you two okay?" Zack turned questioning eyes towards Sephiroth. "Seph?"

Sephiroth sighed, taking a step back as he looked around at the carnage. "It was bold of them to attack Midgar. I'll need to go plan a counter attack. It's like the Wutai don't even care to keep themselves alive."

Zack didn't reply to the military observation, however, busy looking back and forth between them, eyes sharp and questioning. Cloud looked to the floor, not even knowing why he was feeling so guilty. Not knowing why the urge to run to his friend was almost overwhelming. "Zack," he managed. "Can we go to the hotel now?"

"Take him and then head back to the plate. We need to strategize," Sephiroth ordered. "I'll have troops come down and clear away the bodies."

"I can find my way," Cloud spoke up. "I just need to borrow some gil for a room. I don't want to inconvenience either of you more than I already have."

"Spike, you didn't inconvenience us," Zack assured. "I doubt you could have foresaw Wutai soldiers tracking us home."

"It'd be impressive if it weren't so infuriating," Sephiroth mused. "They must have been planning this for weeks."

"Explains why we were able to leave early," Zack agreed. "Knew it was too good to be true." He reached out his gloved hand. "Come on Cloud," he requested. "I just want to make sure that you're safe before I have to wade through all these corpses."

Cloud pushed his way around Sephiroth, staring at that outstretched hand. "I can help though. I want to help."

Zack frowned at him. "I know you do, but you look exhausted...not to mention…" The SOLDIER trailed off.

"What's wrong?" Cloud questioned, noticing the way that Zack wasn't quite meeting his eyes.

"Ah hell," Zack managed, rubbing at his dark spikes as his nose turned slightly pink. "We just need to get you to a hotel, okay?" The voice was nearly pleading.

Blond eyebrows knitted, taking Zack's hand without another thought, smiling at the reassuring way it was squeezed. Cloud shot a glance back towards Sephiroth, whose face was a cold mask as he watched them. "Thank you, General Sephiroth, for saving my life."

"My pleasure," Sephiroth purred. "Zackary," he managed in a more authoritative tone than the one he had been just using. "Come right back when you drop him off. I need your help."

Zack's fingers entwined with his, and Cloud couldn't draw his eyes away from their joined hands. "Yeah man, I'll be right back." The SOLDIER yanked at him, and not for the first time that night, Cloud thought about how much he was going to kill Reno when he saw him again.

They headed towards Sector 7, side-stepping around the corpses as sirens began to blare and troopers started to surround the area. Why had Wutai attacked them here? They must have known they would be killed. They must have known it was a suicide mission to come here. "Why would they?" he asked out loud, causing Zack to glance back at him in question.

"Why would they what?" he questioned the other, yanking him swiftly through the surrounding crowds.

"Come here," Cloud managed. "To the slums?" They couldn't have known they would have ran into two SOLDIERs. They couldn't have actively been that foolish. "Were they looking for something?"

Zack glanced back once again, eyebrow raised. "Looking for what, Spike?"

Cloud just shook his head. "I don't know. It's just...they wouldn't just go after you and Sephiroth. Nobody is that stupid."

"Maybe they wanted to catch a showing of LOVELESS?" Zack joked, causing Cloud to smile in spite of himself as he shook his head.

"Somehow I doubt the Wutai army is all that interested in our epic poetry ballads," Cloud laughed.

Zack turned then, using their tied hand to spin Cloud close. "My friend, do you fly away now?" The SOLDIER quoted dramatically, and Cloud rolled his eyes. "To a world that abhors you and I?"

Cloud was grinning at him in disbelief. "How do you know the play?"

"You don't have to go on missions with Genesis," Zack spoke with weary condemnation. "Trust me, everyone now knows that play."

"He's First Class, isn't he?" Cloud questioned, aware that they were still close as Zack's arm was wrapped around his hip.

Zack hummed an agreement in his throat. "Oh yeah, and he ain't afraid to let you know it."

"Oh?" Cloud teased. "Don't think you've ever been particularly shy at telling people your ranking."

"Are you calling me pompous?" Zack questioned with mock offense, their hands still entwined. A warm fuzzy feeling was spreading through Cloud's stomach.

"Only slightly," Cloud had to bite his bottom lip to stop the grin from spreading across his face, eyes sparkling with mischief even despite what had happened tonight.

Zack growled low in his throat at that, and Cloud felt that same wave of desire sweep through him as when Sephiroth had done it. The hand left his hip, gloved thumb going to the cleft of his chin instead, drawing the lip out of his mouth. "Don't do that…"

"Afraid I'll bite too hard?" Cloud questioned jokingly, but the humor had faded from Zack's face as he stared down at his mouth, shaking his head.

"Afraid I will," he seemed confused, almost in pain as he examined his face. "There's something wrong with me, Spike. I'm just...not feeling myself tonight."

"It's okay," Cloud assured him. "Neither am I." Neither was Sephiroth for that matter, though to be fair he didn't know how Sephiroth normally acted. He could always just ooze sex wherever he went. "It'll be better in the morning."

"Will it?" Zack questioned, voice desperate as he watched. "Because you don't understand."

"It's not your fault," Cloud managed, because he was doing something to Zack. The same way he had done something to Sephiroth, and he hated seeing the confusion on that face. "I can find my way from here. If I could just borrow some gil?"

Zack snorted, breaking away to begin to pull him again. "Don't be an idiot," he managed, back stiff as he pushed open the door in Sector 7. "We're already here."

The SOLDIER let go of his hand as he went to the counter of the small inn they had found, paying the teenage desk clerk 10 gil. They headed up the stairs as sirens could still be heard blaring throughout the slums. Why Sector 6? He couldn't help but begin to ask himself yet again. Why had they come there of all places?

"Cloud?" Zack questioned as they got inside the small room. Cloud glanced around to the peeling yellow wallpaper, eyes landing on the moldy comforter. "What was going on with you and Sephiroth when I got there?"

Cloud let his face fall at that, not liking the almost accusatory tone in Zack's voice. "Nothing. He was just telling me nonsense."

Zack stepped in front of him, tilting his face up so that he was looking into violet eyes. "What nonsense?"

The blond shook his head, but Zack grabbed his chin to keep his eyes locked on him. "It was lies, Zack. Lies about him...about you."

A low growl erupted from Zack's chest, and he was seriously starting to question how much of a lie it really was when his friend sounded very much like a beast. "What lies?"

He hesitated, not wanting to hurt one of his only friends by exposing one of his secrets. "Zack, if they changed you when you became a SOLDIER, you would have told me, right?" Because Zack knew that it was his dream to become a SOLDIER...to be like him. He would have told him if that meant becoming something inhuman...a monster...an "Alpha," for some reason Cloud spoke it in a whining plea.

Zack reacted almost at once, moving at almost inhuman speed as he tackled him back. Cloud's hit the back of the bed with a gasp, the other pressing on top of him as his violet eyes seemed to glow even brighter as he stared down. "Cloud…" he managed, voice guttural as his hands slowly moved down his body as if pained. "Don't.."

Cloud felt that wetness between his legs again at the feel of the heavy SOLDIER pressed between them. His own pupils were blown as he spread his legs to create more room, never really knowing how to listen, especially when it was Zack who was the one asking for the restraint. "Alpha," he managed again in that same tone, not knowing why he was using it, only knowing that his body was screaming at him as a sweat broke over his forehead.

Zack gasped, burying his face in his neck as he inhaled, and Cloud felt his fingers press against the SOLDIER's spin, dragging up the dark black sweater to get to tanned skin as the other began to rock between his legs.

What were they doing? This wasn't them. They were friends...best friends, and yeah he wanted more. But that was a crush, and Zack was too good to him to fuck it up in this matter. Zack was too good to him for him to be using him in this matter just because there was a dark instinct he had been burying deep down all day. An instinct that was screaming at him that he was empty...that he needed to be filled...to be owned...to be claimed.

"Cloud...you smell so good," Zack managed in an almost guttural moan. "I want to fuck you...I know I shouldn't. I know I shouldn't," He rocked between his legs, and Cloud moaned as their strained cocks rubbed together. "Why am I saying this? Why am I ruining this?"

Why was he letting this happen when Zack clearly didn't want it? Why was he sating his own desires as their cocks rubbed together and that wetness soaked down into the tattered quilt beneath? If he was a good person he would tell Zack to go. If he were any kind of friend he would push him off, because they weren't in their right minds, and this could ruin their friendship.

"Alpha," he begged again, hands reaching down to grip Zack's toned ass, encouraging the thrusts as they dry humped like teenagers. "Need…"

"What do you need?" Zack growled into his ear, thrusts becoming rougher, more pointed as the need to be filled was almost overwhelming. His entire body was sweating now, feeling light headed from the fever.

"I'm sticky," Cloud managed, shifting his hips slightly to get Zack's cock to brush up against his ass.

"I know you're hot...you have a fever," Zack observed. "Fuck, you're sick and I'm touching you...Fuck what's wrong with me?"

"No," Cloud managed, pushing on Zack's chest, and the SOLDIER reluctantly raised up his hips, as if the act of pulling up from him was physically taxing. "I'm sticky...can you check?"

It had to be blood, right? He had been injured during the fight, or something was going on with his stomach to cause this wetness between his legs. His own fingers came to the zipper of his pants, watching Zack as the other's eyes were tightly squeezed shut, obviously trying to regain control of himself. Cloud pushed down his pants, hearing a whimper leave Zack's lips as he clearly heard the rustling.

"Cloud, what are you doing?" he managed. "I need to go. I don't want to hurt you." Cloud noticed Zack's knuckles were white as they gripped the sheets and he trembled above him.

"You could never hurt me, Zack," he assured him, pushing down on his shoulders as he pushed the jeans down his thighs. "Just look, okay? I think I'm hurt...or something."

"Or something," Zack agreed in a throaty moan, body moving slow and sluggish, as if he didn't have a choice but to listen as he moved down his body, eyes locked on Cloud's cock pressing up out of his boxers. "That looks painful," he groaned low in his chest, leaning down to lap at the head of his cock.

Cloud cried out, bowing up off the bed as that mouth touched him, causing the slickness to slide down his thighs. Zack pulled shakily back as he did, eyebrow raised as he pushed Cloud's stomach down. He bit off his gloved hand, using his bare palm now to travel lower, fingertips swiping along his thighs as Cloud became very aware that whatever was leaking from him wasn't blood.

"What is it?" he questioned, shifting to sit up as Zack gathered some onto his fingers, staring at it before bringing it up to his nose. Cloud watched in fascination as that glowing mako in his eyes spread out to his sclera, his eyes glowing violet as he began to pant, his teeth becoming sharper, almost fang like.

"What are you?" Zack managed, entire body trembling. "What are you doing to me?"

"I'm not doing anything," Cloud promised, not liking the almost fear in Zack's. "Zack I'm not doing anything. Just come here," he reached for him, voice an almost begging whine as he didn't understand what was happening between them. "You can fix it. You can fix it if you just come here." he reached for him, not above begging as he needed something. He needed something that he knew Zack could give him. That he wanted Zack to give him. "Alpha," he whined a third time, only slightly realizing that it was a command by the way Zack once more began to crawl up his body, each movement jerky as he seemed to be fighting against himself. What was he doing? Why was he hurting his friend in this way? Why would he do this when all he'd ever wanted was for Zack to love him?

Zack leaned down to once more bury his face in Cloud's neck, chest reverberating in a growl as he kissed at his pulse, causing Cloud to cry out in pleasure and need as he realized it meant something. He had no idea what, but that spot meant something, and he wanted Zack to bite him there. He wanted him to claim him, to rut him, to breed him, to fill him. He tilted his neck up, giving him full access as he pressed those dark spikes to his neck. "Zack…" he moaned out, wanting this man in every way.

"Cloud…" Zack managed to get out, teeth pressing against a bundle, before his body froze, and he shoved himself back. The SOLDIER practically fell over, shooting himself back up against the doorframe as he buried his face in it, panting as he tried to regain composure. "I'm so sorry," he managed to gasp into the doorframe, nails digging rivulets into the wood. "I didn't mean to hurt you. I just want you so bad. I've always wanted you so bad."

"Zack," Cloud leaned up, getting ready to jump up out of the bed before Zack's hand was held out stopping him.

"No," he begged. "Please Spike...please stay there. I can't control myself. I'm sorry." Tears spilled from glowing eyes as Zack turned around to face him. "I never wanted it to be like this. I wanted to tell you when you were ready. I wanted it to hurt less when you found out what I am," he shook dark spikes disbelievingly. "The monster I am."

Cloud ached for his friend, feeling his pain as it crushed into him in waves. He felt his want, the overwhelming need he was fighting against because he thought Cloud didn't want it. As if he hadn't spent the last year dreaming of him. As if he hadn't found every waking excuse to be with him. "Zack you're not a…" But he was never allowed to continue as Zack whipped his way through the door, and Cloud heard the doorknob rip off from the outside trapping him in.

,.,.,.,.,.,.,.,.,.

A.N Poor baby Zack. I feel so bad for him. So hopefully this wasn't too quick or needy. The way I see it, Alphas in this story don't know of the existence of Omegas. So Zack would have no idea what was happening to him as Cloud went into heat. I also like the dynamic of giving Omegas an almost power over Alphas. Hopefully you guys enjoyed! Would love to hear what you think. Thanks so much for reading!