MARKED BY THE OMEGA

RAMON

“The Council chambers stink of old power and older lies.”

The words left my mouth before I could stop them. Not loud, but loud enough for a few heads to turn.

Incense, dust. Beneath it all, blood. It was in the walls, the stone, the air we breathed.

I stood before the curved table, arms crossed, while Elder Malric droned about duty and bloodlines. His voice scraped the walls like claws on iron, echoing until every syllable grated.

Around me, Alphas sat in rigid silence, furs immaculate, faces carved from stone. No one dared move. No one ever did. In these halls, emotion was a weakness. And weakness was hunted.

“Alpha Draven.” Malric’s pale eyes fixed on me, colder than the peaks outside. “You’ve delayed long enough.”

“My pack is stable,” I said evenly. “My borders are secure. That’s what matters.”

He leaned forward, rings glinting like tiny blades. “Your pack needs heirs. The North needs stability.” The word rolled from his tongue like a threat. “You will attend the Lunar Bonding Rite in three days. You will choose a mate. This is not a request.”

The others watched like vultures circling a carcass. Waiting for me to bow. Waiting for the beast to break.

I didn’t blink. Didn’t breathe. Just stared until the silence grew heavy enough to choke on.

When he finally looked away first, satisfaction flared in my chest, a small victory, but a victory nonetheless.

“Fine,” I said. The word burned. “I’ll attend your ceremony.”

His thin lips twitched upward. “Excellent. I’ve already chosen the candidates, strong omega bloodlines. Pure.”

Pure. I almost laughed. As if silk and ceremony could mask what we truly were.

I turned on my heel and left before he could dismiss me. Let them whisper. They’d been doing that for years.

Outside, snow spiraled from the sky in soft, slow flakes. I tilted my face up, letting the cold sting my skin.

The mountains stretched wild and endless beyond the fortress walls, this was my kingdom. Not their politics. Not their cages.

My wolf stirred beneath my ribs, restless again. It had been that way for months, pacing, snarling, reaching for something I couldn’t name.

“That went well.”

Tessa’s voice carried easily through the wind. My Beta fell into step beside me, eyes bright with amusement.

“They’re forcing my hand,” I muttered.

“They’re afraid of you,” she said simply. “Unmated Alphas make them nervous.”

“I’m predictable enough.”

“For someone who’s ignored every Council order for five years?” Her grin flashed. “You’re past the bonding age, Ramon. Two years over, in fact. The laws say an Alpha must mate by thirty or risk losing title and lands. You know half those bastards would love that excuse.”

“Counting my failures, Tessa?”

“Someone has to.”

We walked through the courtyard, boots crunching over snow. Wolves bowed as we passed, respect laced with fear. I’d built my reign on both. Fear kept order. Fear kept us alive.

But lately… something has changed.

The dreams had started three months ago. Always the same, silver fire, a voice whispering my name through the dark. I’d wake drenched in sweat, my wolf clawing at the inside of my ribs, begging to run.

Dreams mean nothing, I told myself. Just exhaustion. Instinct.

But the more I ignored them, the louder they became.

“You could refuse,” Tessa said quietly. “Tell the Council to burn in their own lies.”

“And lose everything I’ve built?” I shook my head. “They’d brand me rogue before the next moonrise. Malric would claim my lands within a week.”

“So you’ll go to this Rite and pick some omega you don’t want?”

“I’ll go,” I said. “I’ll make an appearance. Then I’ll leave unmated. Let them try to enforce their ancient rules.”

Tessa stopped walking. “Don’t underestimate Malric. He didn’t survive three centuries by playing fair.”

I turned to her, snow catching in her dark hair. “Neither did I.”

Wind howled through the peaks. I should’ve felt steady, certain. Instead, that restless tug inside my chest deepened, a low hum beneath my heartbeat.

As I climbed the stairs to my chambers, my wolf growled, a low, warning sound that rippled through my bones.

It knew something I didn’t.

Something was coming.

And it was already too late to run.