Embers of the Omega

Chapter4

Serah had already pressed on my arm when Kael turned away from me. The same breathless, thin, cold space he had left behind made me feel like a body of air. For a long beat, none of us moved.

The clearing cleared around us slowly again. Wolves began to speak again. Footsteps scraped against stone. Life came back bit by bit.

Serah didn’t let go of her grasp. "You should have felt that," she muttered. It was not a matter of query: I still felt my pulse grow hard under my skin. It vibrated in a way that appeared too small and tight from within.

And one time, I nodded, scared my voice would betray me if I spoke. “That shouldn’t have happened,” she whispered. I swallowed hard. She moved a gaze back toward the way Kael had gone.

There were faces, shadows, and exits to look for. Her instincts were better in other ways than mine all the time. Survival had made her something alert and watchful.

“Come with me,” she said. “Now.” She didn’t wait for me to reply. Serah pulled me from the clearing and over to the narrow road that led down into the lower quarters.

My legs buckled slightly from a bump, and the feel on my spine still mirrored the sound of Kael's presence, as though a branded badge had been laid.

Only when the stone walls enveloped us finally did she slow down. She closed the door behind us and leaned against it. My chest rose and fell too fast. For a split second, she appeared older than she was. She looked tired in a way that transcended sleepless nights.

“That was the bond,” she told me. “Nyra, that was the mating bond.” My knees finally gave out, and I sank onto the edge of the bench. “I know what it was.” Her eyes snapped to mine. “No. You know what it felt like. That is not the same thing.”

I rubbed my arms. I tried to dispel the heat beneath my skin. It didn’t fade. If anything, it had settled into something solid and watchful, something that had resolved to remain.

“That bond isn’t supposed to wake up before the ceremony,” Serah added. “Not without ritual. Not without permission. Not without him claiming you first.” Her voice dropped. “It’s not meant to answer an omega.”

The words fell softly upon me, heavy and ominous. “I did nothing,” I said softly. "I didn’t reach for it." “That is what scares me,” she said. She stepped across the room and crouched in front of me. She seized my hands as if she feared I might slip away.

“If the bond sparked and woke up, if it recognized you without being summoned, then this isn’t just about mating. It is about power.” There was a massive hollow ache in my chest. “He felt it too,” I said. Serah froze. “You are sure.” I nodded. “The moment he looked at me. I felt it pull. And then it tugged harder, as if it felt angry.”

Her breath hitched. “Then this is worse than I thought.” She rose suddenly and began walking. Her boots grazed the stone floor. “If the Alpha detects the bond not responding to you the way omegas are meant to be, the elders will not prepare for a ceremony. They will act.”

“They already are,” I said. She stopped pacing. “What do you mean?” “They announced the ceremony early,” I said. “You heard them.” Her jaw tightened. “Yes. And now I know why.”

The silence stretched a moment. “You have to stay invisible,” she said to me. The word settled like a verdict. “Invisible,” she added, and shifted to face me in full. “You cannot draw attention. You cannot respond when the bond pulls at you. You cannot look at him. You cannot speak unless spoken to. You cannot defend yourself, whatever they do.”

A bitter smile broke out on my lips before I could even catch it. “That sounds familiar.” She softened the expression here, but her voice never did. “It is not enough anymore. Not now.” I looked down at my hands. They were steady. Too steady.

My body did not panic the way it once did. That fact disturbed me more deeply than fear ever had. “What if I don’t know how to hide it?” I asked. “What if it does not let me?” Serah hesitated. “Then you pretend anyway,” she said. “You make yourself smaller. You disappear into the cracks. You survive.” Survival. Always survive. Never living.

***********

The rest of the day flew by in a closed throat. I glided through my responsibilities like a ghost, head bowed, my responses brief, my gaze glacial, my answers terse. Every sound felt louder. Every glance heavier.

Murmurs followed me through the corridors like breath against the back of my neck. When Kael passed nearby, the bond reacted instantly. A low pull settled in my chest, insistent and steady. Not demanding. Not violent. A presence.

A recognition. I pressed it down. In the evening, I felt as if my whole body were holding itself together with pure will. Serah and I nibbled in silence. We sat shoulder to shoulder. She kept looking at me as if she were expecting something to leap out of my skin.

“Promise me,” she said quietly, “that you will not let them see you change.” I stared at the stone wall. “I don’t know if I can promise that.” Her hands pulled me tight in from above. “Nyra,” she said. “That is all I can give you.” She nodded, although dread never left her eyes. She did not sleep.

I lay there to sleep until Serah had fully regained control of breath, as I stared into the low ceiling. The bond hummed softly, calmly, neither urgent nor expecting. Just present. Watching. Images brushed against my awareness. Height. Cold air.

A grip of control, too rigid, like a fist that would not loosen. Kael. I didn’t reach back.

**************

Morning came heavy and tense. The pack felt different. Alert. Expectant. Wolves whispered freely about the ceremony, about alliances, about which omegas would be selected for it or thrown out.

I heard my name more than once. Invisible, I said to myself. The elders began calling the omegas into the east hall at midday. Serah immediately landed her hand in mine. "Head down," she murmured. We lined the wall, eyes lowered.

Maelis stood in the front, her presence sharp and suffocating. Kael stood off to the side, remained silent, and watched. I didn’t look at him. The bond stirred anyway. It hummed beneath my skin, as though testing boundaries.

Maelis spoke of duty. Of obedience. Of sacrifice. Her eyes traveled ever gradually down the line. When it reached me, it paused. Pressure pressed against my chest, invisible yet crushing.

I didn’t move. Her eyes slid on after a moment. Relief was fleeting. Kael didn't approach me. That ought to have eased something. Instead, it tightened painfully, like an incongruous resentment of restraint.

And that night, the heat underneath my skin flared, again, and still and consistent and patient. Awake. Whatever the elders believed was there for them to be in charge of, whatever the ceremony sought to tie, one plain truth was becoming hard for me to avoid. I was no longer empty. And invisibility had already begun to feel like a lie I could no longer afford much.