Page 19 of Desperate Omega

I look at the old, decrepit farmhouse standing on the other side of the clearing, untouched by the flames.

“Glass,” I answer. “Barns don’t have glass windows. You knew it was a barn because you didn’t smell burning glass.”

“Good guess, but glass doesn’t burn, it melts, and it doesn’t give off much of an odor when it does. The real answer is insulation. The ancestors used to stuff their walls with artificial fur to keep their houses warm in the winter. When that stuff catches fire, it smells strange, like burnt honey. If it had been a house that was burning, we would have noticed that smell.”

“Oh,” I say, feeling disappointed in myself. “I didn’t know about the insulation.”

“You had no reason to, but now you do.”

I look back at the remains of the barn, still not fully satisfied. “Surely the ancestors had many different kinds of structures without insulation. How did you know this one was a barn?”

Thorus smiles slyly. “I’ve been through this area before. I remembered there used to be an old barn here.”

Cheater.

“Well, there isn’t a barn here anymore,” I say, looking at the smoking heap. “But what the hell would the Farlanders burn down an empty barn for?”

“Perhaps it wasn’t empty. Let’s circle the area and check for scents. I’ll go this way, you go that way. We’ll meet on the other side and compare notes.”

I nod and set out in the direction Thorus indicated for me, crouching slightly as I walk so that my nose will be better able to detect the odors wafting up from the grass below. I can still smell the scent of the Farlanders we’ve been following, but only half as many of them. That means they must have split up and circled the area just like me and Thorus are doing now.

Thorus and I are rangers of the Central Ruins tribe. Our job is to travel the wild lands of the Zone, scouting for any signs of danger. These days, most of the ranger packs are on the lookout for Outsiders from beyond the wall. Over the past several years, the Outsiders have been making more and more incursions into the Zone.

But Thorus and I have a slightly different job. We’ve been given special dispensation by the High Council of the Central Ruins to hunt and kill Farlanders, the twisted alphas who have forsaken the Source. They inhabit the outer reaches of the Zone, the distant places known as the Farlands.

I have killed many of them over the past year. I keep track of them by cutting notches on my left arm. I started at my shoulder. Now the notches reach almost to my elbow. When I run out of room on my left arm, I’ll start putting notches on my right.

And I will run out of room.

But as I circle the cooked wreckage of the barn, my nose picks up another set of scents, fainter than the Farlanders’ odor, but still quite distinct.

There were other alphas here tonight. Alphas like me, from the Central Ruins Tribe. Three of them.

And they had an omega with them.

Holy Source.

It makes me shudder to think what may have happened to that omega and her alphas. I do not recognize their individual scents, but they are of my tribe, so I feel a connection to them. If I had to guess, they were probably sheltering inside the barn when the Farlanders happened upon them and set the structure on fire. I can tell there was a fight, because there is blood in the grass. I can smell it.

The three alphas and their omega managed to escape the burning barn, but they got wounded in the process. They ran off into the forest. The Farlanders followed after them.

Instinctively, I follow the trail too.

“Hey!” Thorus shouts from behind. “Where do you think you’re going?”

“There were other alphas here,” I tell him. “From the Central Ruins Tribe. They had an omega with them. The Farlanders attacked them and chased them off into the woods.”

“How do you know the Farlanders attacked them?”

“There’s blood and—”

“You’re making assumptions without knowing all the facts. Don’t do that. Come here.”

“But—”

“Come here.”

Reluctantly, I turn and walk back toward the smoldering remains of the barn. I remind myself that Thorus is older and more experienced than I am. He must know what he’s doing. Still, I can’t help but think that he’s making a mistake this time. We should be following the scent of our tribe members. There may still be time to save them from the Farlanders if we hurry.