Chapter 181 Interrogation
POV: Luna
I woke in the Headmaster's office.
Not the medical wing. The office.
That was strange.
"Miss Eclipse," the Headmaster said. "Welcome back."
"What happened? How long was I out?"
"Three hours. The nurse removed the dark magic contamination from your mark. You'll be fine."
"Then why am I here?"
"Because we need to talk. About your bloodline. About Cole's obsession. About things I should have told you long ago."
I sat up slowly. My head was pounding. But I was awake. Alert.
The office was different at night. Darker. More ominous.
Ancient portraits lined the walls. Former headmasters. Faculty. Important wolves from Silverwood's history.
And they all seemed to be watching me.
"Your family history is complicated, Miss Eclipse," the Headmaster began.
"I know. I'm Eclipse. Rare bloodline. Powerful but dangerous."
"It's more than that. Much more. And I think it's time you knew the truth."
He pulled out a file. Old. Dusty. Clearly ancient.
"The Eclipse bloodline is older than anyone admitted. Older than kingdoms. Older than the Great Pack Wars. It dates back to the goddess herself."
"What?"
"When the goddess created wolves, she made most of them mortal. Limited. But a few. A very few. She gave a piece of her own power. Her essence. Her connection to the otherworld. Those wolves became Eclipse."
"So Eclipse wolves are part goddess?"
"In a way. You carry her mark. Her power. Her responsibility. You're connected to her in ways other wolves simply aren't."
That was overwhelming. Terrifying.
"Why didn't anyone tell me this?"
"Because knowledge is dangerous. The more you know about what you are, the more others will try to use that knowledge against you."
"Like Cole."
"Exactly like Cole. His family, the Thornhearts, have been hunting Eclipse wolves for centuries."
"Why?"
"Because they believe controlling you means controlling the future. Eclipse wolves are prophesied. Connected to major events. World-changing moments. If someone can control an Eclipse wolf, they can control destiny itself."
"That's insane."
"That's belief. And belief is powerful. More powerful than truth sometimes."
He showed me more documents. Genealogies. Family trees.
"Your grandmother attended Silverwood. Decades ago. She faced a similar conflict."
"Similar how?"
"The Thornhearts tried to control her. Use her power. She resisted. Fought back. And ultimately—"
"Died," I finished.
"Yes. She made a choice. To fight rather than submit. And she paid the price."
I looked at the documents. At my grandmother's photo. Young. Powerful. Beautiful.
Dead because she refused to be controlled.
"Is that my future?" I asked. "Fight and die? Or submit and lose myself?"
"That's what I'm trying to prevent. By telling you this. By giving you knowledge she didn't have."
"What knowledge?"
"That there's a third option. One the Thornhearts don't want you to know about."
"Which is?"
"Break the cycle. End the prophecy. Choose neither fighting nor submission. Choose to redefine what Eclipse means."
"How?"
"I don't know yet. But I believe you can figure it out. You're stronger than your grandmother. Smarter. More connected. You have a pack. A mate. Resources she didn't have."
"But I also have more enemies. More threats."
"True. But you also have more reasons to survive. More people counting on you."
He was right.
"Why is Cole so obsessed with me specifically?" I asked. "There have been other Eclipse wolves. Why am I special?"
"Because of your mark. It's different. More powerful. Directly connected to Miguel's essence. That combination, Eclipse power plus anchored soul, has never existed before. You're unprecedented."
"So I'm an experiment. A novelty."
"You're a miracle. And a threat. Depending on who's looking."
"Cole sees me as a tool."
"Cole sees you as the key. To his revolution. His vision. His belief that reality can be reshaped."
"Can it? Can Eclipse power really change reality?"
"I don't know. But I know the architects believe it can. And they're willing to destroy everything to prove it."
I looked at the portraits on the walls. All those wolves who'd come before. Who'd faced their own crises. Their own impossible choices.
"Your grandmother made a choice," the Headmaster said quietly. "Soon, you'll have to make yours."
"What choice?"
"Whether to be defined by your bloodline. Or to define your bloodline yourself. Whether to accept the prophecy. Or to write your own story."
"That's not a choice. That's a philosophy."
"Sometimes they're the same thing."
He dismissed me. Sent me back to my dorm with more questions than answers.
But also with knowledge. Power. Understanding.
The Eclipse bloodline wasn't just rare. It was divine. Connected to the goddess herself.
And the Thornhearts had been hunting us for centuries.
Cole wasn't just a betrayer. He was continuing a family tradition. A generational obsession.
And I. I was the latest target. The newest weapon in an ancient war.
But I wasn't my grandmother.
I had advantages she didn't.
And I'd be damned if I'd let Cole or the architects or anyone define my future.
I'd write my own story.
Even if it killed me.