Chapter 177 Cole's Deception Deepens
POV: Luna \[Returning to Current Timeline -
The rogues hit the wards with everything they had.
The barrier flickered. Cracked. Held.
Barely.
"Reinforce the wards!" the Headmaster shouted. "All faculty! Now!"
Teachers ran to ward anchors. Channeling power. Stabilizing the barriers.
But the rogues kept coming. Wave after wave.
"They're testing for weak points!" Aria realized.
"Then we don't give them any!" I said. "Pack formation! Eastern perimeter!"
My friends moved instantly. Years of training taking over.
We formed our defensive line. Ready.
The rogues breached the wards in three places simultaneously.
"Coordinated attack!" Liam shouted. "They're being directed!"
He was right. These weren't wild rogues. They were organized. Professional.
Someone was commanding them.
"Where's the alpha?" I asked, scanning the battlefield.
"There!" Aiden pointed. A massive rogue at the back. Directing others with signals.
"I'll take him!" I said.
"Not alone!" Liam protested.
"Then come with me! Everyone else, hold the line!"
Liam and I ran toward the alpha. Shifting mid-stride.
The rogues tried to stop us. We tore through them. Unstoppable.
The alpha saw us coming. Smiled. A very human expression on a wolf face.
That's when I realized. This wasn't just a rogue. This was a shifter. Intelligent. Trained.
We collided in a fury of claws and teeth.
The alpha was strong. Skilled. But fighting two mates with perfect synchronization?
We had the advantage.
Through the mate bond, Liam and I coordinated. Every move calculated. No wasted energy.
I went high. He went low. I distracted. He struck.
The alpha realized too late they were outmatched.
Liam delivered the killing blow.
The alpha dissolved. Not died. Dissolved. Into shadow and dark magic.
"What the hell?" I said.
"It wasn't real," Liam realized. "It was a construct. A magical puppet."
"Then where's the real alpha?"
That's when I felt it. Through my mark. The same painful connection from before.
Cole.
"He's controlling them!" I gasped. "Cole's directing the rogues remotely!"
"From where?"
"I don't know! But he's close! The magic's too strong otherwise!"
I focused on the connection. Tried to trace it back to its source.
East. Deep in the forest. Maybe two miles.
"I've got a location!" I said.
"We need to tell the Headmaster!"
But before we could move, the attack intensified.
More rogues breached the wards. Dozens. Hundreds.
And in the chaos, I saw something that made my blood freeze.
Selene. Fighting on the front lines. Her aura blazing.
She was magnificent. Powerful. Exactly what we needed.
But she was also exposed. Vulnerable.
And three rogues were flanking her. Moving into position.
"Selene!" I shouted. "Behind you!"
She turned. Too late.
The rogues attacked.
Her aura absorbed the first two strikes. But the third got through.
Claws raked across her shoulder. She went down.
"No!" I ran toward her.
But I was too far. Too slow.
The rogues closed in. Going for the kill.
Then her power exploded.
Not the controlled aura from before. Raw. Primal. Ancient.
Royal magic in its purest form.
The blast disintegrated the rogues instantly. And kept going. Washing over the battlefield.
Every rogue it touched dissolved. Destroyed by the incompatibility between royal and dark magic.
When the light faded, Selene was standing. Glowing. Transformed.
"I'm done being prey," she said. Her voice carrying multiple harmonics. Ancient royals speaking through her.
She raised her hands. The protective aura expanded. Became a weapon.
Waves of royal magic crashed across the battlefield. Decimating rogues. Purifying dark magic.
The remaining rogues fled. Unable to withstand her power.
In less than five minutes, the attack was over.
Selene collapsed. The power fading.
I caught her before she hit the ground.
"That was incredible," I said.
"That was terrifying," she corrected. "I almost lost control."
"But you didn't. You channeled it. Used it. Saved everyone."
"This time. What about next time?"
"We'll figure it out. Like we always do."
The Headmaster appeared. "Status report!"
"Attack repelled. Minimal casualties. Selene's power did most of the work."
"Where did they come from?"
"Cole. He was controlling them. Directing the attack remotely."
"From where?"
"East. In the forest. I can track him through my mark."
"Then we need to move. Now. Before he escapes again."
"Agreed. But we need to be smart. This could be another trap."
"Everything's a trap with him. But we can't just let him keep attacking."
He assembled a strike team. Faculty. Senior students. Me and my pack.
We headed into the forest. Tracking Cole's magical signature.
The trail led us deep into the woods. Far from campus. Into territory that should have been safe.
We found the location. An old cabin. Hidden. Warded. Protected.
"He's inside," I said. "I can feel him."
"Approach carefully," the Headmaster ordered. "Assume hostile magic."
We moved in tactical formation. Covering each other. Watching for traps.
The cabin door was unlocked. Inviting.
Definitely a trap.
"I'll go first," I said. "If anything happens, pull back. Don't try to save me."
"That's not happening," Liam said firmly.
"Liam—"
"We go together or not at all."
Through the mate bond, I felt his absolute determination.
"Fine. Together."
We entered the cabin.
Inside was empty. Except for magical equipment. Ritual components. And in the center, a crystal.
Pulsing with my magical signature.
"That's how he's controlling the rogues," Sienna realized. "Using your magic as a power source. Amplifying it through the crystal."
"Destroy it," I said.
"Wait," the Headmaster warned. "If we destroy it while it's active—"
"It'll backlash. I know. But leaving it means Cole can keep using my power."
"Then we disrupt it carefully. Sienna, can you—"
Before anyone could finish, Cole's voice echoed through the cabin.
Not physically present. Magically projected.
"Hello, Luna. I knew you'd find this place. You're so predictable."
"Where are you, Cole?"
"Somewhere you can't reach. But don't worry. We'll see each other soon. Very soon."
"What are you planning?"
"The same thing I've always been planning. Freedom. True freedom. And you're going to help me achieve it."
"Never."
"You already are. That crystal? It's not just amplifying your power. It's storing it. Building up energy. And when I have enough—"
"You'll use it to break the seal permanently. Open the otherworld completely."
"Very good. See? You understand."
"I'll stop you."
"You can't. Because here's what you don't understand. I know you, Luna. Better than you know yourself. I know how you think. How you react. What you'll do in any situation."
"You're wrong."
"Am I? Then tell me. What's your next move? You're going to destroy that crystal. Stop me from gathering more of your power. Except if you do, the backlash will kill everyone in this cabin. Including your precious pack."
"I'll contain the backlash."
"With what energy? You're exhausted. Drained from weeks of fighting. You can barely stand. You certainly can't survive a magical explosion of that magnitude."
He was right. I was exhausted. Running on fumes.
"So here's your choice," Cole continued. "Leave the crystal. Let me keep gathering your power. Or destroy it and kill your friends. Either way, I win."
"There's always a third option."
"Is there? Then find it. I'll wait."
The projection faded.
We all looked at each other.
"He's right," I said. "We can't destroy the crystal safely. Not with the power it's storing."
"Then we transport it," Liam suggested. "Move it somewhere isolated. Then destroy it."
"The wards on this cabin prevent transportation magic," Sienna said. "That's why he chose this location."
"Then we dismantle the wards first."
"That'll take hours. Maybe days."
"Which gives Cole time to escape. Or set another trap."
We were stuck. Exactly like Cole had planned.
"This is why he's always one step ahead," Aria realized. "He knows us. Our tactics. Our responses. He's planned for everything."
"Not everything," I said.
"What do you mean?"
"He planned for me being predictable. Emotional. Reactive. But what if I'm not? What if I do something he doesn't expect?"
"Like what?"
"Like accepting the connection. Instead of fighting it."
"Luna, that's—"
"Crazy? Dangerous? Probably fatal? Yeah. But it might work."
I approached the crystal. Placed my hands on it.
Immediately, pain exploded through me. The crystal was drawing power. Hard.
But instead of fighting it, I channeled more. Intentionally. Overloading it.
"Luna, stop!" Liam shouted.
"Trust me!"
I poured Eclipse power into the crystal. Everything I had. Everything I could draw from the pack bonds. From the mate bond. From Miguel's essence.
All of it. Into the crystal.
It started to crack. Overloaded. Unable to contain that much power.
"Everyone out!" the Headmaster ordered. "Now!"
My pack grabbed me. Pulled me away from the crystal.
We ran. Got clear of the cabin.
The crystal exploded. A massive blast of magical energy.
But instead of destroying everything, the energy dispersed. Harmless. Neutralized by the overload.
When the light faded, the cabin was gone. The crystal destroyed. And Cole's connection to my power severed.
I collapsed. Completely drained.
"That was insane," Nova said.
"That was brilliant," Aria corrected.
"That was luck," I admitted. "If I'd miscalculated—"
"But you didn't. You trusted your instincts. Did something Cole didn't predict."
"For once," Liam added. "We're ahead of him instead of behind."
"Don't celebrate yet," the Headmaster warned. "He's still out there. Still planning. And now he's desperate."
"Good. Desperate people make mistakes."
"Or they make reckless choices. And reckless Cole is more dangerous than calculating Cole."
He was right.
But for tonight. For this moment. We'd won.
Cole's crystal was destroyed. His connection to my power severed. His plan disrupted.
It was a small victory. But we'd take it.
Because victories of any size were rare these days.
And we needed every one we could get.