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How could she have not seen it? Only Omegas had an affinity for magic that would have enabled the society to function the way Akoro had described, the sophistication and the degree to which the magic was used to enhance every part of life in this region.

The history Akoro had told her reorganized itself in her mind.

He’d been so explicit about his family’s selfishness and cruelty that it was now obvious Omegas were unwillingly behind their success.

And countless Omegas who were ripped from their families had no recourse, no ability to challenge such a powerful dynasty.

Their unknown suffering was carved into the very history of the land.

Naya swallowed, her shock turning into bitter indignation. “They kept Omegas slaves so they could benefit from their magical abilities.”

Oshrun nodded, her face sour. “And they kept it a highly guarded secret. They are the ones who discovered that Omegas had such a connection to magic; the Sy Dynasty line was full of Alphas and Omegas, so they must have realized it among themselves at some point. But instead of working on it with the Omegas in their own family, they stole young Omegas and forced them to experiment, making sure no one else knew. If anyone started researching or questioning in that area, the Sy used bribes, blackmail, threats, and even assassination to stop them. No one had any reason to believe that missing Omegas were behind their magical achievements.”

Naya breathed deeply, shaking her head in disbelief. “But Omegas would have needed space to experiment and draw on magic... someone would have seen them surely?”

Oshrun lifted her chin, her eyes glittering slits as she looked down on Naya.

“You’ve seen the palace. The Sy had the whole building to themselves.

None of their servants would dare speak against them.

” Oshrun’s eyes burned into her. “You’ve been in the dungeons too.

That is where they kept the Omegas for most of their lives.

” She paused, watching Naya. “Was there a way to get someone’s attention when you were in there? ”

Naya stared at her, horror churning at the back of her throat. “The dungeons...?”

She had pushed the horrible memory of the dungeons to the back of her mind, but now she pulled it back, trying to imagine Omegas stuck in such a terrible place.

There had been other cell doors that surrounded the small area where they’d dressed her.

Omegas had been kept in that dark, dingy, depressing place? For their whole lives?

She battled with the horror of it, with the weight of disappointment and annoyance that Akoro hadn’t mentioned it, and then she tried to reconcile this version of events with what he’d told her.

“King Sy told me that the Sy Dynasty tried to create a device that would allow them to control magic from the Nnin-kaa Sands,” she said slowly. “Is that true?”

Oshrun nodded. “Yes. They wanted to control magic directly without need for Omegas.” Her face twisted in a wry smile. “Omegas are expensive slaves and it was difficult and dangerous to keep kidnapping them.”

A thought jumped into Naya’s head and she stiffened for a long moment before asking her next question. “What did they do during the Omegas’ heats?”

“What do you think?” Oshrun turned, taking a few steps along the wall before turning back. “They sold access to them to Alphas who could afford it. Of course, the type of Alphas that needed to buy access to an Omega in heat weren’t the type that should ever go near one.”

Naya followed her, a roiling heat churning in her gut. Of course they did. It would’ve been foolish to believe that they wouldn’t exploit the Omegas in every way they could. “What happened next?”

“Families were beginning to speak openly about the disappearances and questions were being asked. Some Omegas across the region banded together and were trying to figure out what was happening, but it was a slow process. The disappearances had been happening carefully and slowly over years.” Oshrun tapped her finger on the wall.

It was a picture of single woman dressed differently from the others.

“Then an Omega from your land arrived. She spoke very bad Shtǒnma but the Omegas understood her enough.”

“Shtǒnma?”

“Yes.” Oshrun shot her a strange look. “Our most common language.”

“Oh.” Embarrassment flared heat up Naya’s neck and over her cheeks. She hadn’t even asked Akoro what their language was called.

“This new Omega from your land,” Oshrun continued, “explained that bad things were always happening when Omegas disappeared. She told the Omega community about her land and the dangers Omegas faced from Alphas. It was difficult for most to believe, since we were living well with our Alphas, but her stories were harrowing and memorable. She explained that the number of disappearances over the years suggested a wealthy power was behind it. Then she helped to discover what was happening to our missing Omegas. She’d used magic in ways no one had seen before. Omegas was in awe of her.”

Naya’s mind raced as Oshrun moved to the next scene.

The Omega must have used magic the way the Known Land Omegas did, which made sense.

With the wild magic confined at that point, this land had once been much like hers.

So that meant the new Omega had to be from the Omega Compound, the place the Mothers had sheltered Omegas and secretly taught them magic.

During that point in her history, Alphas were still dangerous to Omegas.

It would have been expected she would tell the Omegas here to fear Alphas.

That sounded exactly like something a Mother or Omega from the Compound would have done.

“Her teachings began to cause distrust among the existing Alpha/Omega harmony,” Oshrun said.

“Some of the Omegas split off from the others, mostly younger ones who weren’t partnered and didn’t have children yet, and they were the ones most vulnerable.

The Omega visitor helped them create this community—one that would be strong and hidden, one that didn’t need Alphas and would survive any attack. ”

Naya nodded, irritation flickering in her stomach.

That definitely sounded like the Mothers’ ideology.

If this Omega had managed to help the ones who were taken and end the suffering that was something she could be proud of, but she had no right to disrupt successful Alpha/Omega couples or prevent future unions from forming.

“At that time, people who needed work would gather daily at the palace’s back gate, and she needed easy, flexible work to live in Onn Kkulma,” Oshrun continued, moving along the wall.

“She uncovered that the Omegas were being kept there. And eventually discovered they were being forced to work on something that would allow the Sy Dynasty to control magic directly, without needing Omegas at all.”

“The device King Sy told me about,” Naya murmured.

“Yes.” Oshrun’s voice hardened. “This discovery put tremendous fear into the Omega community. No one wanted the Sy, who had already shown themselves to be exploitative and cruel, to possess that kind of power.”

Naya frowned. “They would have been unstoppable.”

“Precisely. But there was another concern.” Oshrun’s eyes fixed on Naya’s. “The visitor also asked the community to consider what the Sy Dynasty would do with the Omegas in their dungeons once they had the magic they sought.”

A chill spread through Naya as understanding arose. “Once the Omegas were no longer needed…,” she murmured, “they would have killed them.”

Oshrun nodded grimly. “Loose ends. Witnesses. They posed a danger to the Sy Dynasty if anyone discovered what they’d done.”

Oshrun moved to a scene depicting chaos—figures gathered around a central object, energy bursting outward in painted waves.

“On the day that the tool was to be tested, the visitor and a group of trusted Omegas infiltrated the palace. They knew they couldn’t stop the test, but they could ensure it failed catastrophically. ”

“What did they do?” Naya asked, captivated by the dramatic scene before her.

“They overloaded the device with magic,” Oshrun said simply. “Far more than it was designed to channel or control.”

Naya’s heart sank. “So they sabotaged it.”

“They tried to save lives,” Oshrun corrected softly.

“Though it didn’t end the way anyone expected.

With more Omegas being taught to use magic by the visitor, and with the Sy Dynasty also using it more and more extensively, the defined area of wild magic in the Nnǐn-kka Sands begun to shift and expand. It grew more volatile.”

Naya studied the mural, trying to make sense of the figures and symbols. “Do you have any idea what they were trying to build? What kind of device was it?”

Oshrun didn’t answer. Instead, she walked across the chamber to where her staff leaned against the stone wall. She picked it up and returned to Naya’s side, holding it out between them. The crystal at its tip caught the light, sending prismatic colors dancing across the walls of the chamber.

Naya stared at it, uncomprehending for a moment. Then shock rippled through her. “That’s it? That’s what they were making?”

“Yes. Though the original was much cruder, much less refined. This is the result of generations of Omega craftsmanship and understanding.”

“What does it do?” Naya asked, eyeing the staff with new wariness. When Oshrun had first approached her in the canyon, she’d thought it just a symbol of authority. Now it seemed far more dangerous.

“It connects to the nnin-eellithi and allows us to…” Her words faded, and she frowned, seemingly trying to find the right word. “To communicate with it, I suppose.”

Naya gaped at her. “It allows you to communicate with the wild magic?”