Page 101 of Stray Omega

“Embla, I’m so sorry…”

The omega was taken aback. It was obvious that some kind of major change had come over Orwen. But nothing could have prepared her for this kind of behavior from the angry alpha.

“Why sorry?” Embla whispered. “Orwen, you save.”

The alpha raised his head, and Embla saw that his eyes were red-rimmed and tears were streaming down his hard, chiseled face. The sight of Orwen crying was such a shock that Embla would have tumbled backward if he had not caught her hands in his desperate, pleading grip.

“It’s my fault you left,” Orwen said, not even trying to hide the crying in his voice now. “I drove you away because I’m a fool, Embla. A Source-damned fool. But Seraph showed me the error of my ways. He showed me your life, and now I understand. Embla, please forgive me. Please…”

The alpha broke down sobbing, his heavy muscles shuddering as he pressed his tear-stained face to Embla’s hands.

The omega tried to speak, but she couldn’t get any words past the lump that was forming in her own throat. So instead, she just knelt down in the grass and buried her face against Orwen’s neck. He put his powerful arms around her and they held each other for a long while until the overwhelming emotion passed.

Finally they let go, both wiping the tears from their eyes.

Ark and Leros came and sat down beside them.

“Brother,” Ark said. “What did Seraph show you? What do you mean?”

Getting himself back under control, Orwen explained all about the visions that he had experienced in the Chamber of the Source. Some of the information was new to Embla. For example, she had not known that her parents had been exiled from the Central Ruins. But the rest of the story was exactly as she remembered. When Orwen told the part about her best friend, she cried again, and Orwen held her in his arms, comforting her. She could sense the empathy coming from his body like waves of soothing energy. He understood her pain because he had experienced it first hand.

Of course, Orwen had some questions of his own, and Embla and the other alphas explained everything that had happened since they had first been separated. In her halting speech, Embla told about everything that had happened with Jora, and Ark had narrated the events of their capture.

By the time they had finished talking, many hours had passed, and the sun was getting near its zenith.

Embla was curious about something, but she did not know how to ask it. Luckily, Leros had the same thought as her.

“Boss,” the young alpha said to the pack leader. “When you told Taliesin to leave us here, you said we had something important to discuss. Well, we have discussed many things this morning, but I sense there is still something you want to talk with us about.”

Ark nodded.

“You’re right, kid. We still have one very important matter to discuss. The most important matter, actually.”

Ark looked directly at Embla, fixing her with his intense gaze.

“We must decide what we are going to do about you, imp.”

Embla experienced a sudden shiver of panic. Maybe they really were going to punish her after all.

“What do you mean?” Leros suddenly blurted out. “We’re going to keep Embla, aren’t we?”

Ark waved his hand to calm the young alpha.

“Of course, of course. But just hear me out. We have a couple of different options here.”

“What do you mean?”

“Well, tradition dictates that we should take Embla back to the Central Ruins where she will live as our bound omega. She will bear many children for us, and we will care for her needs. But clearly there are some problems with that traditional arrangement.”

“What problems?” Leros asked.

“Well, for one thing, Embla does not feel at home in the Central Ruins.”

“It okay!” Embla interrupted. “I learn, okay? I learn be better omega!”

Ark just smiled and shook his head.

“Imp, you don’t need to learn to be a better anything. You are perfect exactly as you are, and I have been a fool to try to change you.” He looked at Leros and Orwen. “Besides, it is not just Embla who would be dissatisfied with such an arrangement. With Embla living in the ruins, that would mean one of us will always have to stay behind to protect her, and that would mean less time wander the wildlands that we love so much.”

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