Eclipsed Destiny

Celia clutched the edges of the jagged wooden table in Luna's cabin, her knuckles going white with the strain of it. The pack healer sat across from her, calm and deliberate as she brewed the odd herbal concoction, she claimed would help Celia "connect" with that hidden bloodline. Shadows danced on the walls from a single lantern's dim, flickering light.

"I don't think I can do this," Celia whispered, her voice trembling. She had spent the last hour hearing more about her mother than she'd learned in her entire life, but the weight of it all felt unbearable.

"You can," Luna replied softly, her gaze locking with Celia's in an intensity that made her chest tighten. "You must. The answers you seek lie within you but unlocking them will require courage. This brew will help bring clarity."

Celia looked at the small bowl in front of her, the thick liquid swirling like molten silver. She swallowed hard, her nerves jangling. "What if I see something I can't handle?"

Luna reached out, resting a weathered hand on Celia's trembling fingers. "You're stronger than you know, Celia. The moon wouldn't have chosen your bloodline if you weren't capable of bearing its blessing."

The moon. Always the moon.

Celia had grown tired of hearing about it, as though its light somehow dictated the course of her life. But despite her resentment, a part of her small but growing-felt the truth in Luna's words. She had felt the pull, the warmth in her necklace, and the power coursing through her veins. Denying it hadn't made it go away.

She gulped deep down the air and raised the bowl to her lips, swallowing from it. The liquid burned the back of her throat while passing through, sending cold shivers down her back. Nothing seemed to happen in that moment. Then she felt as if a dam were breaking within her, but it was so powerful, pushing her to gasp once again.

The room around her blurred, and Celia clutched at the table for support as her vision twisted and warped. The world faded, but was replaced by an expanse of silver light so vast that she could no longer see its edges. She was floating, weightless, surrounded by a warmth both foreign and familiar.

And then she saw her.

A woman with flowing silver hair stood before her, her presence radiating an otherworldly glow. Her eyes, the same shade of piercing blue as Celia's, were filled with a mixture of sorrow and determination. "Mother?" Celia whispered, her voice trembling.

She smiled, though it was a sad smile, a smile that failed to find her eyes. "You have become a beautiful young woman," she said in a soft voice yet somehow resonant. "I waited so long for this."

The woman's appearance was a stabbing ache to Celia's heart. She had longed to know this woman but had only glimpsed her in fragmented memories. "Why did you leave me?" she asked, tears streaming down her face. "Why didn't you come back?"

Her mother's face had grown dark, and the pain in her eyes was profound. "I did not leave you by choice, Celia. I was taken from you, from our pack, because of what I carried."

"The blessing," Celia said, the word feeling heavy on her tongue.

She's looking at her mother as her mom nods. "It is both boon and bane-the blessing-both gift and curse grants power beyond imagination but casts a target on the brows of those who wear it. The rogues-they wanted to take it away from me. No, I had no other option: I had to save it-even at all costs."

Celia's chest tightened as the weight of her mother's words sank in. "But why me?" she asked. "Why do I have to bear it now?"

"Because you're my daughter," her mother said simply. "And because you're strong enough to handle it, even if you don't believe it yet."

She hadn't even got the chance to answer, though, as the vision started fading away, the silver light receding until she found herself sitting once more in Luna's table. Her body was heavy, her head reeling from everything that she had seen. "Did you find what you were looking for?" Luna asked in a soft voice.

Celia nodded slowly, her eyes afar. "I saw her. My mother. She told me. she told me I'm strong enough to handle this."

Luna's smile was soft but knowing. "She's right, you know. You've already proven that."

That evening, Celia was standing outside the main hall of the pack, staring up at the moon. Its silvery light drenched the clearing, and for the first time, she felt it, not as a foe but as an ally.

Aziel appeared by her side. His presence was commanding, as it had always been. "You have been quiet," he said, his voice breaking the silence.

Celia looked at him; her face was at odds. "There is so much to think about," she said. "I saw my mother tonight. She said things to me about the blessing, about why she had to leave."

Aziel's jaw flexed, and he looked away, his eyes glued to the horizon. "She gave up everything for you," he said quietly. "And now it is your turn to carry on her legacy."

Celia frowns, frustration bubbling to the surface. "Why does everyone keep saying that? I didn't ask for this legacy. I didn't ask for any of this."

Aziel turned to her, his eyes intense. "None of us asked for the roles we've been given, Celia. But that doesn't mean we can run from them. Your mother believed in you. I believe in you. But you have to believe in yourself." Celia's breath caught at the conviction in his voice. She wanted to argue, push him away, but the bond between them pulsed, stronger than ever. It was a constant reminder that they were connected, whether she liked it or not. "Do you?" she asked, her voice barely above a whisper.

"Do I what?"

Aziel's eyes softened, and he came closer, his voice low but firm. "I do. More than you know."

Their moment was cut short by a distant howl, low and haunting. Celia stiffened, her instincts screaming danger.

Aziel's face darkened, and he turned toward the sound, his body tense. "The rogues," he said, his voice a growl.

Celia's heart raced as the howls grew louder, closer. The pack sprang into action, their movements swift and coordinated as they prepared for the attack.

Aziel turned to her, his eyes blazing. "Stay here," he ordered. "You're not ready for this."

But Celia shook her head, her fear giving way to defiance. "I'm not hiding anymore, Aziel. Not from them, and not from myself."

Aziel hesitated, his face pulled in two directions, but before he could argue, the first rogue broke through the treelined.

The clearing erupted into chaos with snarls and growls filling the air. Aziel shifted seamlessly into his wolf form, meeting the rogues head-on. Celia watched as her heart pounded in her chest with every movement around her. And then she felt it again: the power inside her, rising like a tidal wave. The necklace burned against her skin, its light growing brighter with every passing second.

A rogue lunged at her, its teeth bared, but Celia didn't flinch. She raised her hand, and the power exploded from her, sending the wolf flying backward.

The clearing fell silent as they all turned to stare at her. Aziel shifted back to his human form; the shock clear on his wide-opened eyes.

"Celia." he opened his mouth but was shunned by the chilling sound of laughter.

The rogue Alpha stepped into the clearing, his red eyes glowing with malice. "Impressive," he said, his voice dripping with mockery. "But raw power won't save you, little keeper."

Celia's breath caught in her throat as the rogue Alpha's gaze locked onto her. The shadows seemed to twist and writhe around him, his presence radiating darkness.

"You'll come with me eventually," he said, his smile twisted. "It's only a matter of time."

Before Celia could respond, the rogue Alpha disappeared into the shadows, his laughter echoing through the clearing. Celia's body trembled, the weight of his words pressing down on her like a suffocating force. But deep inside, something shifted. The blessing pulsed, its warmth a steady reminder of her mother's words: You're stronger than you know.

And Celia realized that if she was going to survive this, she would have to become the legacy she had spent her life running from.