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PROLOGUE: THE WORLD AFTER THE CONQUEST

Ten years ago, the fabric between dimensions tore open without warning.

The rifts appeared simultaneously across major cities worldwide, disgorging creatures humanity had relegated to myth and nightmare. Dragons soared over metropolitan skylines. Kraken tentacles emerged from harbors and lakes. Plant beings erupted from parks and forests. Shadow demons poured from darkened alleys and underneath beds. Within days, the world as humanity knew it ceased to exist.

Scientists would later theorize that environmental destruction, experimental quantum physics, or perhaps simply cosmic chance had caused these dimensional tears. Whatever the cause, the effect was undeniable - monsters had returned to Earth, and they brought with them biological imperatives that would reshape human society forever.

The beings that emerged were not mindless beasts but intelligent predators with their own hierarchies, cultures, and overwhelming biological drives. Most significantly, they operated on an alpha/omega dynamic far more potent than the vestigial secondary gender system that had existed in humans for millennia. Upon arrival, these creatures - collectively termed"Primes" in official documentation - immediately detected human omegas, whose existence had been largely marginalized in pre-Conquest society.

Human alpha males were systematically eliminated in what became known as the Blood Week. Military resistance crumbled when Prime alphas demonstrated abilities beyond human comprehension - dragons that could withstand missile strikes, shadow demons who could move through solid matter, plant creatures who could control vegetation across entire regions. When the United Nations attempted emergency peace negotiations, the Primes made their terms clear: surrender all omega females for "integration" and eliminate alpha males who might compete for breeding rights.

Some nations attempted to fight. None succeeded. By the end of the first month, the Conquest was complete. A new world order had begun.

In this new reality, human omegas face a stark truth - their biology, once a minor footnote in human existence, now defines their entire future. The Primes operate under Conquest Law, which grants them undisputed right to claim any unmated omega they encounter. Resistance is futile; suppressing omega nature through chemicals only delays the inevitable.

For ten years, humans have lived under Prime rule, the world divided into territories controlled by different monster species. Dragons rule the Eastern Seaboard, their fire and fury reshaping cities into nesting grounds. Nagas control the Southern waterways, transforming swamps and bayous into breeding territories. Shadow demons command the urban Midwest, their darkness penetrating every corner of once-bright cities. Each Prime species has carved out its domain, establishing hierarchies where humans serve and omegas breed.

Some humans resist, operating in secret networks to smuggle suppressants, hide omegas, and undermine Prime authoritywhen possible. But their efforts are drops in an ocean of change. The world belongs to the Primes now, and human society exists at their mercy.

For omegas, life offers limited options: be claimed by a Prime alpha willing to provide protection in exchange for breeding rights, end up in government breeding facilities where personal identity is stripped away, or attempt to hide using increasingly ineffective suppressants—a path that grows more dangerous with each passing year.

This is the world of the Conquest, where ancient monsters rule with primal authority, where human omegas are prized for their fertility, and where the boundaries between captivity and connection blur with each passing generation of hybrid offspring. In this world, monsters and humans forge unexpected bonds, finding that even in darkness, connection can bloom—though never on equal terms.

For the lucky few omegas, captivity by a single powerful alpha might be preferable to the alternatives. And for some, against all odds, what begins as forced claiming may evolve into something neither species expected—something that might, generations hence, bridge the divide between conqueror and conquered.

This is where our story begins.

CHAPTER 1

AWAKENING

POV: Aria

I waketo fire beneath my skin.

The sensation crawls through me like liquid heat, pooling low in my belly before radiating outward—a slow, persistent burn I've been waiting years to feel. My fingers clutch at sweat-dampened sheets as another wave moves through me, stronger this time. The room spins slightly as I sit up, my heart thundering against my ribs with both terror and exhilaration.

It's finally happening. After twenty-three years of waiting, of uncertainty, of secretly hoping while others prayed for reprieve, my omega biology has awakened.

I press trembling fingers to my neck, feeling the spot where a claiming mark would go. The skin there pulses with newfound sensitivity, almost bruised without being touched. My scent is changing—I can smell it on myself, the subtle sweetness that's always been there now intensifying into something richer, more potent. Something designed to draw alphas from miles away.

Dragon alphas.

The thought sends a shiver of anticipation through me that has nothing to do with my changing biology. I've spentyears watching them from afar—those magnificent creatures with their scales that catch sunlight like living gemstones, their massive wings casting shadows over our settlement as they patrol contested borders. Majestic. Powerful. Unlike the feline shifters whose territories border ours on the other side, the dragons move with imperial grace rather than predatory stealth.

I've studied them, tracked their patrol patterns from hidden observation points in the hills, collected information others in Blackridge Settlement consider dangerous foolishness. While other women prayed their secondary gender would remain dormant, I calculated how I might position myself to catch a dragon alpha's attention when—not if—my omega nature revealed itself.

Another wave of heat ripples through me, stronger than the last. My nightclothes cling uncomfortably to my skin, suddenly too restrictive, too rough. Between my thighs, the first embarrassing hint of slick preparation makes itself known.

I need to see Elder Nyssa. Now.

The small mirror above my washing basin reflects a face I barely recognize. My green eyes seem brighter, almost feverish, with pupils slightly dilated. My cheeks flush with unnatural color. Most telling is the unconscious way I've tilted my head, exposing the vulnerable juncture where neck meets shoulder—the instinctive omega posture of submission I've always found contemptible in others.

I force my chin level with grim determination. I may be presenting as omega, but I refuse to become like those simpering, frightened women who shrink into themselves when alphas pass. My omega biology might be awakening, but it doesn't have to define me.

Outside, Blackridge Settlement has already begun its morning routine. The central marketplace buzzes with activity as traders set up stalls, children dart between buildings onmorning errands, and the scent of baking bread from communal ovens mingles with woodsmoke. Everyone seems oblivious to my life-altering transformation—all except a few omegas who look up sharply as I pass, their nostrils flaring in recognition of what's happening to me.

I wrap my cloak tighter despite the unseasonable warmth, suddenly self-conscious. One older woman touches her claimed mark with unconscious sympathy as our eyes meet. I look away, refusing her pity. My destiny will be different. I've made sure of it.