Rebirth of the Broken Luna A Second Chance at Luna's Heart novel Chapter 365

Chapter 365

Visions and Frustrations

OLLIE

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“Going after nightwalkers, confronting threats directly, anything that involves actually fighting,” I said. “You guys can use your abilities to gather information, come up with plans, identify weaknesses-all the smart stuff you’re good at. But then the adult wolves do

the physical part where people might get hurt.”

I saw my parents considering this, saw the wheels turning as they evaluated the proposal. It wasn’t perfect-there was still risk involved in Riley and Lake using their abilities-but it was better than either extreme of “pretend you’re normal kids” or “be child

soldiers.”

“That could work,” Mom said slowly. “As long as there are strict boundaries about what counts as helping versus what counts as direct

danger.”

“And as long as you promise-actually promise-to tell us before you do anything that might be risky,” Dad added, his gaze fixed on

Riley and Lake.

“No more surprises. No more building secret light prisons or capturing nightwalkers without backup. Complete transparency about

what you’re planning. Deal?”

Riley and Lake exchanged another glance, clearly debating whether they could actually commit to that level of oversight. Finally, Riley

nodded.

“Deal,” he said. “But that means you have to actually listen when we tell you things. Not just dismiss our concerns because we’re kids.”

“Fair, Dad agreed. “We’ll listen. We’ll take your input seriously. But the final decisions about tactics and security still come from the adults. We’re not running pack defense by committee with five-year-olds.”

“Even really smart five-year-olds?” Lake asked hopefully.

“Even really smart five-year-olds,” Mom confirmed, though she was smiling slightly.

The tension in the room had eased somewhat, the conflict that had been building between “protect the children’ and ‘use their abilities effectively” reaching something like a workable compromise. It wasn’t perfect, and I suspected there would be more arguments about boundaries and risk assessment in the future, but it was progress.

“So what now?” I asked. “Riley can’t get clear precognition, we can’t go out to investigate, and Lazarus isn’t talking. How do we figure

out what the nightwalkers are planning?”

“We do what we’ve been doing, Dad said. “Research, preparation, and staying alert. We’re gathering information about nightwalkers from every source we can find-historical records, supernatural databases, contacts in other packs. We’re reinforcing defenses and making

11:44 Sat, Jan 31

Chapter 365

sure everyone in the pack knows to report anything suspicious.”

“And we wait for them to make their move, Riley said quietly, his expression troubled.

“Because they will make a move. They’re not going to just give up and leave us alone.”

“Let them come, Lake said, a fierce grin spreading across his face. “We’ve got a light prison, enhanced security, and a whole pack ready to fight. Plus we know their weakness now. They’re not as invincible as they think they are.”

“Confidence is good,” Mom said.

“Overconfidence is dangerous. Yes, we have advantages. But the nightwalkers have centuries of experience and we still don’t fully

understand what they’re capable of.”

“Then we learn,” I said firmly. “We study everything we can find about them, we prepare for every possibility we can think of, and we

make sure when they do attack, we’re ready.”

I saw surprise flash across my parents’ faces-probably because I usually wasn’t the one giving tactical speeches-but also pride. Because even though I didn’t have special abilities like Riley and Lake, even though I was just a normal werewolf kid, I was still part of this family. Still part of the team trying to survive against impossible odds.

“That’s exactly right,” Dad said, reaching over to ruffle my hair affectionately. “We prepare, we stay smart, and we face whatever comes

together. As a family.”

“As a pack,” Mom added, her Luna authority making the words feel like a promise.

Riley nodded slowly, his frustration over the failed precognition attempt seeming to ease slightly. “Okay. So we focus on what we can control. Defensive preparations, information gathering, making sure our security measures are as strong as possible.”

“And I can work on expanding my portal range,” Lake suggested. “Practice opening doorways to different types of locations so that if we need emergency evacuation or rapid response, I’m ready.”

safe.

“As long as you’re not portaling into dangerous unknown locations,” Mom said firmly. “You can practice with places we’ve cleared as

“Fine,” Lake agreed, though he looked slightly disappointed at the restriction.

We spent the next hour going over various plans and possibilities-what defenses we could enhance, what information we still needed, what scenarios we should prepare for. Riley eventually pulled out some paper and started sketching tactical diagrams, his mind clearly working through possibilities even without the benefit of clear precognitive visions. Lake contributed ideas about portal-based escape routes and emergency protocols. I mostly listened and asked questions, trying to understand enough to be helpful even without supernatural abilities.

It felt good, actually. Not just sitting around feeling helpless, but actively working on solutions. Not being treated like kids who needed to be protected from knowledge, but being included in the planning even if we weren’t going to be on the front lines.

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Chapter 365

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But underneath the productivity, underneath the tactical discussions and security planning, I could feel the tension. The awareness that somewhere out there, ancient creatures were planning our deaths. That they were coming, and we didn’t know when or how or if our

preparations would be enough.

Riley must have sensed my worry because he reached over and squeezed my shoulder gently. “We’re going to be okay,’ he said quietly.

“All of us. Together.”

“How do you know?” I asked. “I thought your precognition wasn’t working.”

“It’s not,” he admitted. “But I don’t need precognition to know that we’re stronger together than apart. That we have advantages the nightwalkers don’t expect. That we’ve survived worse odds before.”

“Have we?” I asked. “This seems pretty bad.”

“At the facility,” Lake said, joining the conversation, “we were alone. Just us against all of Andy’s security and all the other subjects who wanted to stop us from escaping. Here, we have family. We have a pack. We have people who actually care whether we live or die. That’s a bigger advantage than you might think.”

I considered that, thinking about how different their lives must have been before they came here. How isolated and desperate and constantly in danger. We were still in danger now, but at least we had support. At least we had people fighting with us instead of against

“Besides,” Lake added with a grin that didn’t quite reach his eyes, “we’re way too stubborn to let some ancient smoke monsters win. Andy tried to break us for years and failed. These nightwalkers think they can do better? Please. They’re going to learn what happens

when you underestimate us.”

It was bravado, probably-false confidence meant to make us all feel better. But looking at my brothers, at their determination despite their fear, at their refusal to give up even when the odds seemed impossible… Maybe it wasn’t entirely false after all.

Maybe we really did have a chance.

We’d just have to be smart enough, fast enough, and lucky enough to survive long enough to prove it.

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11:44 Sat, Jan 31

Reborn From Regret A Second Chance at Luna’s Heart