Free Sailing Deep by Noah Harris Page B

could smell the sharp, abrasive scent of the alphas. The alluring, sweet scent of the omegas. And even the subtle, calm scent of the betas. He smelled fur and saliva. He smelled the freshly dug earth as they pawed at the ground.
                  He heard growls of different caliber, purrs, and grunts. He heard snarls and yips, both friendly and aggressive. He heard all the verbal communications of dozens of species. His eyes darted around, taking in the sights of the dozens of beasts around him. He couldn’t see far into the crowd. It was far too thick. But he could see those nearby, and they all smelled of strangers.
                  Overwhelmed, he hunched in on himself. His ears rotated from perked and listening, to laid back in warning. His tail was low with unease and his hackles were partially raised. Nothing was familiar and everything seemed to be too much. His lips tensed in a half-formed snarl. He might be an omega, but he wasn’t a submissive one. He was a fairly sizable wolf, with brown and copper mixed into his thick coat. His training and fit stature from his human body showed itself in his wolf form. He was strong, and he would use that strength to protect himself.
                  He felt a nose prod his shoulder and he jumped, spinning around into a crouch to face the attacker. But it wasn’t an aggressor. By his side stood a tall, lanky wolf with a pure white coat and brilliantly blue eyes. The wolf stood with his head high, regarding Dylan with ears perked forward. His stance was relaxed, and his tail idly moved back and forth.
                  Dylan’s growl stopped in his throat as the white wolf’s scent filled his nose. He instantly relaxed, standing straighter and his ears moved forward. He recognized this wolf though the sight of him was as strange as any of the others. His scent was familiar. It was a scent that clung to his own skin. Not a stranger. Ally. Friend. Blake.
                  Mate, something in his mind whispered.
                  Although the full force of the full moon wasn’t upon him, the wolf was still strong. Dylan remained partially in control though his instincts and the wolf’s desires were first and foremost. While his mind whispered ‘mate’ and his human half cringed at the word, his wolf half regarded the white wolf with a curiosity and eagerness that he hadn’t expected.
                  The two regarded each other for several long moments before Dylan took a hesitant step forward and sniffed at the white wolf. Then the two began to circle each other, sniffing and investigating the wolf that their minds whispered ‘mate’ to. He was poked and prodded by Blake’s nose and did so in return. Strong, he noted, both in body and scent. Blake was a strong alpha, and Dylan was responding to him.
                  With a start and some shocked self-inspection, he realized he was giving off more omega pheromones than he usually did. Much more, in fact, since he had been taught how to suppress the hormones as much as possible. His body was responding to Blake’s. Perhaps the man had been onto something when he insisted on teasing Dylan’s body. Perhaps, he thought, the man was smarter than he had given him credit for, because Dylan, locked in his wolf’s mind, accepted Blake as his mate. Or at least, a potential mate.
                  When the initial inspection was over, Blake nudged him to move. He guided Dylan through the crowd of gathered shifters, sticking close to his side and maneuvering him with careful nudges. The shifters had started to spread out. They clustered into groups or roamed. A significant portion of them were already moving out and away from the field, leaving plenty of pathways between the stationary groups. It was all still very overwhelming, and Dylan found himself leaning to Blake for support.
                  They were stopped shortly