All Chapters of Eclipsed Wolves: Chapter 71 - Chapter 80

They’d been in the mountain stronghold for weeks now, and nothing was clear. The books spoke in fragments. Phrases carved in ancient tongues. Symbols that looped back on themselves. Every time they thought they understood something, it unraveled into mystery again. “I swear,” Darius muttered, turning a scroll upside down for the third time, “if this next one says anything about fire or moonlight or blood, I’m eating it.” Selene cracked a tired smile. Luka didn’t look up from the page he was reading. “You’re already chewing on the end of your pen.” Darius glanced down. “That’s different. That’s frustration.” Theoden leaned against the far wall, arms crossed, blue eyes locked on the silent ritual shard still lying cold on the table. It hadn’t pulsed in days. Selene sighed and rubbed at her temples. “We’re chasing riddles in circles.” “They all hint at the door,” Luka offered. “And the balance. That you were made to guard it.” “But nothing tells us how,” Theoden said, voice low.

The morning air was damp and quiet. A silver fog drifted through the trees, wrapping the valley in a kind of muffled calm that didn’t match the weight pressing on Selene’s chest. She sat on the porch steps outside Cassiel’s stone house, knees pulled to her chest, watching the mist cling to the grass. Theoden stood nearby, speaking in hushed tones with Luka and Darius. Their outlines blurred through the fog, shadows moving with purpose. But even from here, she could hear the weariness in their voices. They were ready to act. But none of them had any idea where to begin. Cassiel’s revelation had changed everything. They weren’t just fighting to survive anymore. They were fighting for the survival of the universe. She felt Nova stir faintly inside her, calm and thoughtful. “Are you alright?” Selene asked. Nova was silent for a moment. “I think I’m trying to understand what we are. We were born to carry power, Selene… but what happens if the door opens again?” Selene exhaled. “

The air changed the moment they crossed the threshold. Not just in temperature—but in weight. Heavier. As if something ancient had been resting beneath the stone for so long that it began to shape the world around it. Selene stepped in first, Nova’s quiet murmur in the back of her mind. “This place remembers us.” Theoden followed closely, hand on the hilt of his blade. His eyes adjusted to the low light, scanning the hallway that stretched before them—narrow, arched, carved from stone older than language. “It’s not just old,” Theoden muttered. “It’s… untouched.” Behind them, Luka and Darius entered in silence. The echo of their footsteps was the only sound. The passage curved left, then sloped downward. Deeper. It felt like walking into a heartbeat. The walls were lined with symbols, some worn beyond recognition, others still pulsing faintly with power. They didn’t glow—not exactly—but Selene could feel them under her skin, like whispers brushing the edge of her memory. “I

The fire crackled quietly in the hollow, flames dancing against the walls of snow-packed trees. They’d set up a perimeter, posted watches, even mapped a retreat route—but no one really believed they were safe. Not anymore. Selene sat wrapped in a thick fur cloak, the stone still resting in her lap. She hadn’t told the others how it pulsed faintly now and then, as if listening. She hadn’t told Theoden that it whispered. Not with words. Not yet. Just… intention. Like it knew her. Like it had always been waiting. Theoden returned from patrol just before dusk, stomping snow from his boots and tossing an extra log onto the fire. He crouched beside Selene, eyes scanning her face. “You’re pale,” he murmured. She gave a faint smile. “Just tired.” They didn’t need to say more. They were both drained. Not from the hike. Not even from the temple. From the knowing. From the growing weight of it all. “You still hearing it?” he asked quietly, gesturing toward the stone. Selene didn’t

The air was heavier now. Not from the cold, but from the pressure of something unseen—like the world itself had inhaled and forgotten how to exhale. Selene felt it with every step. Nova, ever alert in the back of her mind, paced more than usual. “The moon,” she whispered. “It’s coming.” Selene looked up through the twisted canopy above them. Clouds drifted fast, casting shadows over the snow-covered ridges. Somewhere beyond them, the moon still hung full. Whole. But not for long. “They’re nearby,” Luka said, crouching near a line of trampled brush. “Boot prints. At least a dozen. Rogues.” “How recent?” Theoden asked. Luka touched the snow. “Hours. Maybe less.” Theoden turned to Selene. “He’s here.” Selene didn’t have to ask who. Aylexelen. The rogue attacks hadn’t stopped since the night they found the tree with the sigil. It wasn’t an organized war—not yet. It was scattered ambushes. Warning shots. Desperation. But it was building. Darius rubbed the back of his neck,