Embers of the Omega

Chapter5

Slow steps began upon the drums, as if they were reluctant to start. Each swing rolled through the clearing and into my chest, low and heavy as stone and bone vibration.

Wolves came from all quarters, with rumbling footsteps in the soil and rock, as they whispered sounds that hung in the air. Torches flared one by one, and flames bloomed against the darkness until the circle lit up like an unhealed wound.

Serah was already beside me. She had not left my side since the summons came. Her fingers brushed mine. “Breathe,” she whispered. “Just breathe.” I tried. The mating ceremony was never intended for omegas like me.

It was a declaration of power. A display of hierarchy. Tonight, it felt as though a sentence was waiting for an end. The elders took their places first.

Elder Maelis stood at the center, her staff planted firmly against the stone as if she were anchoring the world itself. Beta Riven stood to the right of the circle, his posture rigid.

He briefly glanced at me before he looked away. Something about that tiny motion hurt worse than it would have if he had stared. Then the air changed. The pack turned into one body.

I felt it before I saw him. A sharp pull in my chest, pulling the breath out of my lungs. Heat coursed through my veins, fierce and unwelcome. My knees were weak, my vision blurred across the edges.

Serah caught my arm. “He is here,” she murmured, fear threaded through her voice.

Kael stepped into the clearing.

The Alpha. Tall. Broad-shouldered. Every line of his body was etched with command. The torchlight captured the faint markings on his throat and wrists. Conversations died instantly. Heads bowed. Even the elders appeared utterly still. He did not look at me. That hurt worse than anything.

Then she joined him. Lira Moonfellow emerged into the circle as if it had been waiting for her. And she was dressed in white, her very smooth, flawless fabric bound around her body in kind, intentionally.

The firelight in her hair caught silver threads in the strands. She had a straight back and a chin held high. She did not look around to check her response. She already knew she had them.

She placed her hand on Kael’s arm. Not hesitantly. Not ceremonially. Possessively. The pack murmured. My stomach dropped so hard that it was on the verge of falling.

Serah stiffened beside me. “Nyra,” she whispered urgently. “Do not look.” But I already was. She moved toward Kael, close to his ear, with her mouth. Regardless of what she had to say, his jaw tightened up in reply.

His hand flexed once and then settled at his side. The bond screamed. A pain coursed through my chest, raw and sharp. I gasped, a shattered sound left me, and I couldn’t bring myself to swallow it down.

Heat was burning under my skin. It crawled through my veins like something alive. I folded in. "Stay with me," Serah said quietly. “Please.”

Elder Maelis hit her staff against the stone. The noise cracked through the clearing. “The mating ceremony will begin.” Silence fell instantly. Maelis looked right at Kael. “Alpha Kael Thorncrest,” she said. “Step forward.”

He did. Each step echoed. My heart slammed painfully against my ribs. Each beat hurt. “The bond has been confirmed,” Maelis continued. “By blood and by moon. Do you acknowledge the omega Nyra Vale as your fated mate?”

The words hung in the air. The world shrank down into a single breath. Kael turned. His gaze met mine at last. There was not a moment's hesitation in his eyes. No conflict. No regret. Only decision.

Lira’s fingers gripped his arm further. The bond was like a strain on me and stretched out badly: I felt like it was dragging me down toward him like a living organism desperate to stay alive. Kael breathed out air. “No.”

That word hit like an actual blow. Gasps tore through the crowd. My knees buckled. My palms touched the ground as I collapsed. It sent sharp pain up my arms. The torches blurred. The sky tilted violently.

“No,” Kael said again, louder still. “I do not accept her.” Something inside me cracked open. Elder Maelis inclined her head slightly, as though what was to occur were inevitable.

“The Alpha rejects the bond,” she said. “By law and by tradition.” The bond did not shatter. It twisted. Agony flooded over me, raw and oppressive. I struggled, though I begged myself with my chest full of fire beneath the surface. As heat seared through my skin, although I whimpered, I felt the air in my chest, and I was holding it to my chest as I held myself to the ground.

Heavy, thick, and it was hard to gasp, impossible to inhale. Lira stepped forward, standing at me with great vigor. “This is for the betterment of the pack,” she said definitively.

Her voice floated without trying. “Weak bonds bring destabilization. Sentiment has no place in leadership.” She turned slowly and met the crowd. “Kael chose strength.” Some wolves nodded. Others looked uneasy.

The elders murmured approval. Kael did not look at me again. Maelis once again raised her staff. “The omega Nyra Vale is stripped of bond protection,” she announced. “She will be returning to labor status effective immediately.”

A ripple of sound moved through the pack. Approval. Relief. Indifference. Serah made a slight sound beside me. I tried to stand. My legs failed. Hands seized my arms.

Fingers clamped on muscle, propelling me with practiced efficiency. Even just the last moment made me shake; my knees shook violently, my body shook with the sensation. I tasted blood. “Remove her,” Kael said.

That word reverberated through my head. Something snapped. Heat exploded beneath my skin. My vision flashed white. For one heartbeat, the whole world was silent. Then the ground trembled. Not violently. Just once. Enough to make the torches flicker. Enough to cause a handful of wolves to stagger.

Beta Riven looked sharply at me. Elder Maelis stiffened. Suddenly, Lira's smile faltered for the first time. The pressure held firm against the wind. My body sagged and shook.

Silence stretched. Next, Maelis hit her staff down hard. “Take her away.” This time, the hands were rough. Serah tried to reach for me. A guard shoved her back. “Serah,” I croaked. “Do not.”

Tears streamed down her face. “I am sorry,” she whispered. They yanked me off the circle while the pack watched. Some with satisfaction. Some with fear they didn’t yet comprehend.

It did not diminish the pain in my chest as I was pulled away. The bond was still there. Not broken. Waiting. And under the humiliation, under the agony, something ancient stirred. Awake. Hungry. And it wasn’t willing to be silent anymore.