Page 54 of The Blind Hordesman

“Quiet, Omega,” Loven orders.

Seer stops breathing again.

“I think he’s trying to tell us something,” Arkin says. “Gonna head outside.”

Both Alphas leave the room at the same time and get stuck at the door, trying to pass. Loven steps back, mumbling, “The things I do for my kids. Go on, son. You first.”

“I’ll be right back.” I kiss Seer and follow them.

Seer rattles, which I’m sure is in protest at my leaving the nest, but I want to know what’s going on too. Outside, the water reflects the crescent moon. “You see anything?” I whisper.

The pair of Alphas’ noses are turned up, and they’re snorting as they expand their senses.

“Can’t hear it,” Arkin says, “but I’m sure Seer can, and he’s trying to tell us something’s coming.”

“Let’s take a walk,” Loven says, and lifts his armor. It’s deep red and makes him look even bigger. Arkin raises his, and I disengage the dome. They walk toward the beach.

I move to follow them, but Loven stops, and I nearly run into him.

“Negative,” he tells me and moves on.

I think he expects me to be a good puppy and return to the nest. I contemplate if I will and decide I will stay protected under the Telean dome. When Alphas raise their armor, they expect combat, and the last thing they need is an Omega to worry about.

I retreat and stand by the door where I can see Seer and the beach. “Seer,” I whisper, but I know he can hear me clearly. “Your dad and brother are walking to the beach.”

Seer rattles, and the sound gives me goose bumps. He’s unhappy about this.

Loven and Arkin stand at the shore, pace back and forth, then they both stop as if hearing something at the same time. The moon shines a line from the horizon to the shore, and out of the water rises a massive dark object. Both Alphas snarl. From the shadows, two more Alphas join them. I step away from the door so I can see better.

The four stand at the shore as the huge object deposits small floating shapes on the surface of the sea. There’re thousands of them, but I can’t see what they are from here. If I walked a little closer, I could make out what they are. Eyes on the floating objects, I walk toward the beach. As I get closer, Arkin separates from the group, a murderous expression on his face. He walks toward me.

I ignore him. On the sea float thousands of the male-sized, slate-gray and green larval shells in which Swarm develop. I recognize them. Arkin says nothing before picking me up off the sand and throwing me over his shoulder.

I yelp but don’t struggle.

He walks me back under the dome and sets me on my feet. “Stay.”

I almost bark, but it’s too loud for the current atmosphere. “I know Father better than any of you. He’s smart and cunning, and I know what those things are.” I poke his armored chest. “Do you?”

Arkin narrows his eyes.

“I didn’t think so.”

He crosses his arms over his chest. “Fine, Omega. What are they?”

“Those are hatchlings. Swarm young. Thousands of them.”

He snorts. “We eat Swarm males for breakfast.”

“This is not just Swarm. These are Swarm young. Hatchlings. They retain the hardness of the shell for over a year. Their armor is strong. You can’t eat those males for breakfast. They’re more like a seven-course dinner at my father’s table. This is his strongest army, and there’re thousands of them in the hive.”

“Why haven’t you said anything about the hive or this army sooner?”

“Because nobody asked me. And because I’ve never seen the hive until a minute ago. When Father leaves the house, he heads west. He never goes toward the town. I worry about why he came. He doesn’t care about killing Seer. Strategically, it’s not in his interest to kill him. Why did Father show up now?”

“I can’t answer that. Can you?”

I shake my head. “No, but I know four Alphas can’t take on that many hatchlings.”

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