Page 1 of Advocate Omega (Unforeseen Paths #1)

Prologue

Lucan

The Moon Clan alphas have called a meeting, and since I’m technically a part of their clan, I have no choice but to be here.

There was a time when I looked forward to these meetings, when being involved in our clan politics stroked my ego and pride. I used to view it as a step into the modern age. Where we took part in customs that lesser wolves practiced.

Having a council of alphas instead a single leader seemed like a way to give more people a voice.

The idea of it all intrigued me despite growing up under a different regime. I fell in with everyone else as young alphas took the reins of our clan. But that was then.

Now?

All I want is to get the fuck out of here and go back to my isolated sector of our territory.

Because what is the point of having me here?

I’m a sigma—the one that goes against clan practices.

Neither a leader nor a follower. May as well label me a reject because I’m not an alpha—not anymore.

No matter what I was born as, no matter what my status in our clan should be , the time when birthrights meant something died with my sire.

Ulric, the alpha from my former pod, stands tall.

On his left side, a clear head below him, is Ryker.

Ulric mounts a large boulder so he’s above everyone.

He enjoys the view from up there, knowing that even without being our formal leader, our clan looks to him for it, anyway.

Because Great Wolves don’t operate this way, it goes against the way we are designed—one Prime Alpha to protect us all.

Ulric will never be that, though he does try. He wants it so badly that the fucking rock he’s using as his personal throne may as well be one. It’s a disgrace to everything our clan once was. Every pack within it seems to forget that a male like him could never replace one like my sire.

I’m tucked against a tree at the other end of the creek bank, far enough away to keep everyone from bitching about my presence but still in Ulric’s line of sight.

People I haven’t seen or spoken to in months wait at attention for Ulric to speak.

They wait with bated breath for it. He looks the part, though.

I’ll give him that. A large male with a powerful body, masculine features that make him desirable to omegas.

Ryker, always in his shadow, shares those qualities as well, but since he’s a beta, he often goes overlooked.

The one thing they don’t do is command attention. No, they take it.

When the howl went off this morning—a summons of sorts—all our clan alphas left their pods and gathered here.

In ways, we are still very archaic in our practices despite the change in leadership.

We have specific pods for breeding pairs and groups, and then we have packs, which share our direct blood.

Uncles, cousins, grandsires, and everyone else make up a pack.

Two brothers from the same parents will split off and form their own pods when they reach maturity, but they will always remain part of the same pack.

Ulric and Ryker were part of mine.

We still cherish the hierarchy that other clans have let fall to the wayside—alphas at the top, betas coming in second, and lastly, our omegas.

The ones who should be cherished, but as of late, I’m starting to see it differently.

Our clan is desperate , clawing at loose sand and begging it to hold up our weight.

I used to think that our hierarchy could never change.

That our alphas would never stoop so low as those of other clans.

That they’d stay in honor’s light and stray away from depravity’s darkness.

My voice used to carry weight. My opinions and ideas once meant something .

There was a time when my parents would urge me to follow those ideas and be something more.

I was supposed to be more. Just as that chapter of my life ended, so did the next.

But, for the sake of not repeating myself, I’ll say that everything changed six years ago, and I have yet to recover from it.

Ulric raises his right hand, signaling silence over the gathering.

When he’s satisfied with the stillness, with only the sounds of the woods and running water, he speaks.

“For generations, we’ve made this land our home.

These trees are our sanctuary.” I roll my eyes.

Spare us all the drama and get to the point, Ulric.

“Our enemies have all but died out. We have made peace with bordering clans and kept our secrets intact.”

Ryker, always following his alpha’s lead, continues, “But we are the last of our kind. Our omegas are having fewer and fewer pups. It takes twice as many alphas for one successful breeding this generation as it did the last. At the rate we are going, we will be completely barren in two generations.”

Absently, I rub at my chest, the ache there ever constant.

Ulric nods solemnly. “We originally thought we’d run out of options, but…” he trails off, a hopeful smile forming on his lips. “Our betas have been working non-stop to find the last members of the Sorrel Clan.”

Not this again. I almost get up and leave my spot.

Our grandsires were obsessed with the fabled Sorrel Clan, the only other clan that allegedly shared our genetic match.

Wolves were not extinct, but we were dying out—the last of the Great Wolves.

Most clans rarely shifted. Some of them couldn’t entirely shift at all.

And since we were older, ancient wolves, we could change at will.

But that also isolated us, making it impossible to merge with other clans.

As if those odds weren’t already stacked against us, it would also make us a target.

You see, our omegas were struggling with infertility, but other clans would thrive if even one alpha graced a pack.

I can’t imagine what that’d be like.

One omega per alpha.

It’s just fucking unheard of.

“We found one,” Ryker says almost breathlessly.

“Who?” Maris, another beta, asks excitedly.

In theory, betas could breed with our omegas, but they’d never produce any alphas. A clan needs alphas.

Ulric and Ryker exchange a look and grin. “The last omega of the Sorrel Clan. And our sources confirmed our hopes. A late bloomer.”

Gasps echo all around the gathering.

“You are sure ?” Colt, another alpha demands. “Absolutely sure?”

Ulric nods. “The omega has yet to experience their first heat; they will be fertile.

I know how most of you feel, that adding fresh blood might come with its own set of risks—but this is how we save our clan.

Our scouts have confirmed through observing the Terra Clan's experiments as well. It will work.”

“This omega could bring life back to us, give us healthy pups.”

Murmurs. Some angry whispering. A few questions. I tune them all out.

Rising to my feet, I catch Ryker’s gaze, and his eyes narrow.

He’s pissed I’m about to leave, but none of this concerns me.

He might be wedged so far up Ulric’s ass he can’t see the writing on the wall, but I can.

It’s not like I will have anything to do with their little experiment, anyway.

I don’t want anything to do with it. It’ll be whatever alphas win their pissing contest and thus win the chance to breed the new omega.

Some might say they are lucky for the opportunity.

I say they are all fools.