Bravely Courageous

65

Scott and Kira followed for as long as they could.

The orderly turned to face the struggling teens. "You didn't think you were all going did you?"

"It's Mountain Ash, isn't it?" Scott realized.

"Everywhere, but heavily concentrated down here." He turned to Lydia, Maggie, Caleb and Stiles. "Valack's cell is the last one at the end of the hall."

Stiles turned to them and Scott told him, "We'll be right here." He nodded at the werewolf's words.

Stiles motioned for Maggie and Caleb to stay back and he nodded. Maggie begrudgingly agreed.

After some waiting, she got impatient and left to find Stiles and Lydia. Caleb, not letting her walk through the halls alone, followed her.

The two ran down the hall to hear Valack say, "Don't give up on us yet. We're all works in progress."

Caleb frowned suspiciously. "Where did you hear those words?"

"Wise words from a former cellmate," Valack answered, standing and walking to the glass wall separating the teens from him. "Welcome to the party, little warlock, little witch."

"You know what we are?"

"Of course I do. It's not every day you come face to face with two powerful beings." Valack turned to Lydia. "Did you bring the book?" Stiles pulled the book from his pocket and pressed it against the glass. "Very nice. First Edition. Of course, there was only one printing."

Lydia nodded slowly. "There is no T.R. McCammon, is there?"

"No," Valack replied, smiling and shaking his head back and forth.

"You wrote the book."

"That's right, Lydia. Maybe you've already guessed that it's not just a book."

Maggie crossed her arms. "What is it then?"

"A tool. Designed to open your eyes."

"To what?" Stiles asked.

"To them," Valack stated. "The Dread Doctors."

"Why'd you use a pseudonym?" Caleb questioned.

"I had a professional reputation once. I wasn't interested in ruining it by putting my name on a second-rate piece of trash."

Stiles stepped closer to the glass. "Then why write the book in the first place?"

Valack met their eyes with a burning intensity. "You haven't even read it yet, have you? I wrote it because no one believed me. Because no one listened. They're here, aren't they? In Beacon Hills."

"What are they?" Lydia wondered.

"Not entirely human. At least, not anymore. They were scientists once. Scientists who worshipped the supernatural. Tesla said, "If you want to find the secrets of the universe, think in terms of energy, frequency, and vibration." They found their secrets in electromagnetic forces. Ways to prolong their lives, give them power, and most importantly, making you forget you ever saw them."

"What exactly do they want?"

"Good question, Lydia. Everybody wants something, don't they?" He smirked.

"Okay, so what do you want?" Stiles questioned.

Valack slid a small recording device through the small opening in the glass. "Hit record."

"What do you want me to say?" Lydia wondered.

Valack smiled. "I don't want you to say anything. I want you to scream."

---

"I can't hear anything. Must be the Mountain Ash," Scott said.

"I feel it, too," Kira replied. "To be honest, I feel a little weak..."

"Yeah, it's like being sedated."

"This was a bad idea, wasn't it?"

"They'll be okay without us. And those three? They're pretty good together."

"Yeah, they are."

"No super strength or samurai swords, but they stay alive. Maggie and Caleb's powers help a lot."

"He loves her, doesn't he? Maggie. Caleb likes Lydia, doesn't he."

"Yeah. Yeah, but it's different now. I mean, you should have seen the way he used to be around her."

"Was it bad?"

"He was kind of obsessive, but not all bad. You know, Maggie used to pretend she didn't see him?"

"Our Maggie?"

"Yeah. But Stiles never stopped trying to get her to notice him, like Caleb did with Lydia."

"They paid attention. They listened to them. They saw them."

"Did you see that?"

"No... But I am seeing this..."

---

Lydia held the recorder in her hands, but Caleb snatched it away. "No. Not until you tell us why."

Lydia looked at him. "He's the only one that knows anything, Caleb. If my scream can held us find out information, we should do it."

"Listen to the guy who has a drill hole in his head? Yeah, that's seems like a great idea. How do we know he's not lying his ass off?"

Valack spoke. "How many people have died so far? All of them teenagers. Am I right?" The teens turned to face him, worried. "Want to know how many died the first time they came around? Wonder how many will die before they succeed?"

"This did happen before," Lydia realized.

The lights started to flicker and Valack continued. "And now they're back. All because a few teenagers, who never even considered the consequences, decided to reignite a supernatural force they barely understand."

"The Nemeton," Lydia and Maggie realized.

Stiles tensed up. "How do you even know that?"

"I know... because I saw it!" Valack retorted as he removed the bandage and Maggie clenched a fist while Caleb narrowed his eyes.

The lights flickered again and Maggie and Caleb glanced around and ran to investigate what was going on.

They reached them just as Kira collapsed. "Scott! What happened?!"

Scott shook his head. "I don't know. The lights just started flickering and she fell." He knelt next to her.

Dr. Fenris, the orderly who had escorted them down, walked up to them. "We need to get her out of here right now."

Scott frowned. "Yeah, well, how do we move her if we can't even touch her?"

Maggie and Caleb looked at the electronic door, hearing a buzz, just as the Dread Doctors appeared. Dr. Fenris turned to them. "I think you three had better run."

Maggie shook her head as Scott said, "We can't leave her."

"I can." He ran to a flight of stairs.

Scott picked up Kira and ran out the door. Maggie and Caleb followed behind, glancing back to hear a scream.

When they got outside, Scott laid beside her.

"Scott?" Maggie called.

Scott glanced at his friend and gave a small nod. "I'm okay."

Caleb looked back at Eichen House. "Okay, what the hell just happened?"

Maggie shook her head. "No idea."