Derek was giving the elevator a look over as he tried to think of how to get him and Jennifer out of there. He went and pried open the metal doors and managed to pry them open far enough to see that they were stuck between floors with no way out. Derek then turned his gaze to the roof.
Jennifer followed his vision. "Uh, if you're thinking of using the service hatch, they're bolted from the outside so you'd have to break it. All you'll do is create a lot of noise and tell them exactly where they are."
"Kali already knows," Derek said.
"Not necessarily," Jennifer threw in. "She saw that we got in but she might not know that we didn't get out."
"Well, if I get through there then we can get to another floor," he pointed out.
"Or you'll end up fighting, alone, in an elevator shaft," she countered. "They'll rip my head off before you have a chance to throw a punch."
Derek looked away from her. He had to admit, she had a point. "Then someone has to get the backup generator running again." He got his phone and prepared to send a message over to Scott.
_________
Scott and Peter were running a little wobbly and worn out through the halls as they tried to distance themselves from the twins. Peter collapsed over at the nearest wall.
"That shot didn't last too long," he coughed out. Scott let out a hard breath before he moved to lift Peter to his feet and put an arm over his shoulder. They quickly moved and found a supply closet where they closed the door behind them. "Those twins are really starting to piss me off."
Scott looked out the window from the door and saw no sign of them but knew that they would be around there soon enough. "How the hell are we supposed to get passed them?" he hissed back at Peter.
"Personally, I think that if we keep letting them beat the living crap out of us then they'll tire and give up," he slurred out.
It was clear that Peter was no help so Scott had to find the way out of this. A flash of lightning from outside lit the room for a moment and put a laundry chute in Scott's sight.
"There."
Soon enough, Peter was falling down it and landed in a giant hamper and then Scott fell in on top of him a moment later.
Peter quickly pushed Scott away. "You couldn't have waited like ten seconds?" he said annoyed at him. Scott didn't respond as his phone got a message and he saw that it was from Derek. Peter easily read the message from the look on Scott's face. "They didn't get out, did they?"
They then moved to climb out of the hamper and head out. Scott sent a quick message to Derek telling him not to move and that they were on their way.
_________
Allison, Isaac and Chris were moving through the dark corridors of the hospital, silently. It was so quiet that when Chris brought his gun out and cocked it, the sound practically echoed.
"Uh, I'm going to take that as a sign that you're worried," Isaac whispered to him.
"Stay close to me," Chris told the two of them.
They walked a few steps but Isaac stopped suddenly. "I think I just heard something."
"Where?" Allison asked him in a whisper.
"Below us." Isaac then went and laid down on the floor. He settled his head to the ground and had his ear firmly to the ground. He could hear the sound of frantic footsteps. "They're someone moving down there. More than one."
"So there is still someone here," Allison whispered.
"But I don't think they were left behind," Chris said to them.
Isaac lifted his head up to look at him. "What do you mean?"
Chris pointed his chin up ahead of them. "Look."
Allison and Chris looked off and noticed a big, deep hole in the wall. One that looked like something was thrown into it. Allison moved to bring her bow out at that moment.
_________
Stiles checked Cora over and saw that she seemed to be breathing normally now, though she still was both unconscious and ill. He looked over at his hands. He had always been able to pull pain out of people and even help Scott and the others with their healing when he did. Out of all of his abilities, he'd always been most thankful for this one but now the power to pull pain from others never felt so worthless. Pulling pain away wouldn't help Cora in the slightest.
He ran his hand furiously across his face as he leaned back to look over at the sad expression on Cora's resting face. "Just...hang on a little longer, okay," he whispered to her. "Trust me, if anyone is going to get us out of this, it's Scott." Stiles then looked up for a moment and shook his head. "I can't believe I just said that. You know, as far back as I could remember, I've always been the one with the plan. Or, at the very least, a Plan B. When all of this stuff started, I always had a Plan B in reserve. Against Peter and for the Argents, most of which panned out...mostly okay. Lately though...I haven't had the slightest idea of what to do. Not about Deucalion, Jennifer...or about my dad. And, I can't help but feel that maybe you were right. Maybe we are useless. Maybe all we do is just show up too late and find the bodies. I...I don't want to find my father's body. Not him," he mumbled rubbing at his eyes in frustration. He then let out a deep breath before he looked straight at Cora's resting face. "You know...you're a lot easier to talk to when you're completely unconscious."
But then there was a loud screeching noise coming from outside. He quietly moved to look out the window and saw that it was the Twins, in their fused state. He then moved back and tried very hard to keep himself calm so that his heart beat wouldn't alert them that he was close. Thankfully, the garage was full of the smell of gasoline, and blood, to mask his and Cora's scent. Stiles just tried to stay calm and watched as the twins slowly moved about before moving on down a corridor, away from them. He let a small breathe loose.
Stiles thought that that was close but it was clear that he and Cora couldn't stay there. If the Twins had found them in this ambulance then he and Cora would've been cornered and trapped. He was wondering if it might be wiser for him to try and carry Cora out of there and try to make a break for his Jeep. With Deucalion, Kali and the Twins distracted with searching the upper levels of the hospital for Jennifer, they might have a chance. The only problem with that was that it would mean leaving Scott and the others here behind. He didn't want to do that.
But before he could think more on that, he heard some more noises. Footsteps, and they were moving closer. Heading for him. Stiles brought out his claws and lowered himself down as he braced at the door. The footsteps were moving closer and he readied to pounce before a hand hit the window and he saw Scott's face at the window.
"Stiles, open the door," Scott gasped out to him.
"Oh, thank god," Stiles breathed as he quickly opened it. He then saw that Peter was with him too. He looked hurt and Scott helped move him into the ambulance. "Where's Derek and Jennifer?" he asked helping Peter inside.
Scott shook his head. "I have to go back for them, and my mom."
"Alright Scott, two problems. Kali's got the keys to this thing and I just saw the Twins pass by here like thirty seconds ago."
There was some rumbling not too far away that drew all their eyes in that direction.
Scott looked back over at them. "Stay here," he said to him before he took off for it.
_________
Scott started to move in for the hospital, trying to find any sign of the Twins so that he could use them to find his mother and get to her. He moved on but was finding nothing, which was odd because that sound had to mean that they were still close. They were just gone. He then heard some a small jingling sound not too far but then his instincts kicked into overdrive as he quickly ducked. The fused twins had tried to ram at him but he avoided the hit. Scott tried to strike at them but they quickly grabbed him and shoved him into the wall. They then started to toss and throw him around, into the wall and then to the floor. They then reached down and lifted him into the air by his throat.
"Where is she?!" they roared at him. "We're trying not to hurt you!"
"Try harder," Scott choked out to them.
"Hey!" said a new voice that made the twins drop Scott. They turned to see that it was Scott's mother. "I'd like to try something." She then brought out defibrillators and jammed them into their chest. She shocked them and soon the twins fell with their backs to the floor, as two people again. Scott just looked up at his mother in wonder and disbelief. "Sweetheart, get up!" she told him as she reached to help him get up.
The two of them then quickly took off down the hall.
_________
Derek was looking at his phone, waiting for a return message.
"Anything?" Jennifer asked him. That just made Derek put his phone away. "Derek, I know what you're thinking," she said to him softly. "That I'm using you. That everything that has happened between us is a lie. Or that I'm evil. A bitch. But, I hope you're not thinking of the most superficial thought: Is that her real face? The, slashed, mutilated face revealed by the mistletoe." Both she and Derek caught Jennifer's reflection in the metal doors. "Is that what she really looks like?" She then looked down as she closed her eyes. She stayed that way for a moment before she opened them again. "Julia Baccari. That was my name."
"I don't care," Derek mumbled, not looking at her.
But Jennifer continued as if he hadn't tried to blow her off. "I...guess I should've changed it to something with different first letters," she said looking a bit embarrassed. "I think I read somewhere that people always pick aliases that are a subconscious derivative of their original name. It's a way of not completely letting go of your identity, since your name is so tied to your sense of self. Do you know what else is?" She then started to move in a bit closer to him. "Your face. The one that supposed to be staring back at you in the mirror. Not some hacked up atrocity you can't even recognize," she said with some bitterness leaking into her voice.
But Derek shook his head. "I still don't care."
"But I bet you're curious," she pressed on. "I bet you wonder exactly what happened."
Derek finally turned to look at her. "You were an emissary. They tried killing you along with the rest of the pack. Mystery solved."
Jennifer narrowed her eyes at him. "I was Kali's emissary. And, I was the one she couldn't kill."
"She settled for leaving you for dead then," he said turning away from her.
"In the woods of Beacon Hills...close by the Nemeton. Or, what was left of it." Jennifer then started to remember the day that she was wounded and crawling through the trees. "For years the Nemeton's power was virtually gone. Like the dying ember of a burned out fire. But, a few months earlier, something happened to cause that ember to glow a little brighter. Something that gave it a spark of power again. The sacrifice of a virgin." Derek's eyes narrowed. "You didn't know what you were doing back then. Killing Paige in the root cellar, sacrificing her there, gave power to the Nemeton. You gave it power again. You gave me power, just enough to make me hold to life a little longer. Long enough, to be found." She then remembered when Stilinski and another deputy had found her there.
__________
Stiles' phone vibrated. He took it out and saw that Scott sent a message to him. "Oh," he said breathing out in relief. "Scott found his mother. She's okay."
"Wish the same could be said for my niece." Peter said as he looked Cora over. "Any change?" he asked Stiles.
Stiles wiped some sweat from his brow. "Well, she stopped breathing a little while ago, but, I took care of it."
Peter narrowed his eyes. "A close call like that...Jennifer isn't playing around. Cora doesn't have much time."
"None of us do," Stiles huffed out.
Peter then looked away from his niece to look at his former beta with a small smirk forming on his face. "So...a Beast huh?" That made Stiles look in the opposite direction of him. But Peter only smiled wider. "They say that imitation is the sincerest form of flattery. It warms my heart to see both you and Scott, my betas, following in my footsteps. One becoming an Alpha and the other becoming a greater than average shapeshifter."
Stiles rolled his eyes. "Okay first, you don't have a heart and you could hardly say that you were a great shapeshifter. And second, we were never your betas. Besides, Scott and I haven't become an Alpha or Beast yet."
"No, but it's only a matter of time," he said with some eagerness spilling from him.
"Yeah, well I'm happy you're so stoked about this because Scott and I aren't exactly jumping for joy."
"Really?" Peter tilted his head. "That's a shame really, especially in your case."
Stiles turned to look back at him. "Why?"
"Well, think about it. If you were able to tap into your power, to unleash the Beast, you would be able to fend off Deucalion and his pack. Perhaps even all by yourself. I mean, I heard about what you did to the Twins in their fused state that night. Then, that was you tapping into that power for a single moment, now imagine if you had that kind of power at your full disposal."
Stiles took a moment to consider that. Ever since he learned about what was happening to him, he wanted it to go away, if only to not have Deucalion and his pack after his hide. But, now he was starting to really think about what could happen if he was able to fully use it. He remembered how it was when they had to fight against Peter when he was that monstrosity of a wolf. And he wasn't even a real Beast. He had managed to take the Twins out with one strike that night at the abandoned mall. If he could have that power with him full time, he could send both Deucalion and Kali running off with their tails between their legs. The thought of that was empowering...but then his mind went to their other problem. Or really, his greatest problem and it quickly sobered him.
"It's a nice thought," Stiles coughed out. "But, that power wouldn't help save my father."
"How do you know that he isn't lost already?" Peter asked him nonchalantly.
"He isn't!" Stiles spat at him.
"How do you know?" Peter asked again.
"I just do!" Stiles snapped. "He's alive, He has to be," he said turning to look down at his feet.
"You didn't sound too sure there for a second. It's understandable. I mean yours wouldn't be the first father of a werewolf that was caught up in all this. Remember that business with Isaac's father? It's actually a miracle yours lasted as long as he did considering how close he's been to all of this. Hopefully you'll fare better than Isaac and have a more worthy guardian than Derek, no offense to my nephew."
Stiles was about to tell Peter to just shut up or he'll kill him when he froze just before he could utter a word. His eyes narrowed as something clicked in his brain. "Wait, say that again."
Peter's face fell. "Which part?"
"The last part, the one with Derek. What did you just say?"
"Uh...I just said that you might need a better guardian than Derek was for Isaac."
"Guardians," Stiles mumbled. Stiles leaned back and hit a small hook that held a clipboard which fell to the floor. His eyes looked down at the bottom line of the paper where it called for the signature for a Parent...or Guardian. His eyes widened. They had it wrong. It wasn't Guardians as in Law Enforcement. It was Guardians as in Fathers, or Mothers. "Oh no," he gasped.
Stiles then turned and opened the ambulance doors and jumped out.
"Wait, where are you going? Stiles!" Peter yelled after him.
But Stiles didn't stop. He had to find Scott. His mother was in danger.
_________
Deucalion was calmly standing in the hospital's morgue while Kali was pacing furiously behind him.
"You should've kept his mother," she spat to him.
"Is that so?" he said lifting his head slightly.
Kali then moved closer for him. "You have a soft spot for him?"
"I have an investment that I'm trying to ensure," he corrected her. "That's why I let his mother go." He then started to turn around. "If you want to talk about soft spots, let's talk about Jennifer Blake. Or, what was her name again?"
The glare in Kali's face fell and she even started to back away slightly. "Julia," she said softly.
"Ah," Deucalion nodded. "That's right. Your emissary."
Kali let her eyes fall a bit as she remembered the day that she attacked, mauled Julia out in the woods. "I didn't understand why she had to die too. She was harmless...but, I did it because you wanted me to. I did everything you asked to be a part of this pack."
Deucalion took off his glasses. "You did it to be with Ennis. So, don't point, that accusing toe at me. And, as for harmless, how harmless does she look now?"
"I thought she was dead," she argued.
Deucalion reached over for his stick and took a step closer to her. "Did you?"
"Are you asking, that maybe, there was a moment of uncertainty? That when I walked away thinking she was dead," she started raising her voice a bit as Deucalion started walking away from her. "Maybe I turned back and maybe I saw her there, lying perfectly still but I focused my hearing anyway? That I listened and found that her heart was still beating, still fighting for life, and I thought: I could go back and finish it or let someone I love die peacefully. And maybe I just kept walking."
Deucalion leaned in at her. "My heart bleeds for you Kali. Clearly, hers could've bled a little more." He faced outside the door. "However, coming close is another beating heart. Intercept it, but make sure that it could still beat afterwards. You clearly have experience with that." He then moved to put his glasses back on and left through the opposite entrance to the morgue.
Kali then focused her hearing and, sure enough, heard the sound of running footsteps.
Stiles was running up the service stairs of the hospital, he let his senses extend, trying to zero in on finding any sign of Scott, or of Derek, in order to warn them of what he had found out about Jennifer. When he got to the fourth floor, he heard multiple heartbeats. Four heartbeats and they were sounding off away from each other in pairs of two and they seemed to be a little aways from each other. One pair had to be Derek and Jennifer. He moved through the halls, heading for the nearest pair of heartbeats and heard them at the end of a corridor. He started to run towards it when the doors in that direction flew open and Kali stepped out of them.
Stiles' feet slid a bit as he forced himself to suddenly stop. "Nope, wrong set."
Kali gave him a hungry smile. "Hello there Stiles."
Stiles then moved his eyes off to the side, in the direction that he knew the other heartbeats were. Another pair, and it wasn't too far. His guess was towards the elevator...where Derek and Jennifer had to be. He looked back over at Kali. The most direct way there was behind her. "I don't have time for this right now. Just let me go by," he told her.
Kali then let a smirk loose. "Oh? You're in a hurry? My goodness, how inconsiderate of me." She then let her fangs show and her eyes let out their scarlet flares. "Where's Julia?"
Stiles raised his eyebrows. "Who?" he asked confused.
"Jennifer Blake," she spat. "Where is she?"
"Believe me, I wish I knew that myself," he then narrowed his eyes.
Kali's eyebrows rose. "Oh yeah. I heard. She went and took your daddy away, didn't she?" she said to him as if she was talking to a small child.
That only made his heart start beating harder and the heat rise up in his head. "Get out of my way. Just move and let me through," he said in a low tone. "I won't ask again."
"Then don't." She went and took a few steps forward, her razor sharp clawed feet lightly rubbing against the tiled floors. "Make me move, that is if you can. If you're...Beast enough," she said to him mockingly.
Stiles glared at her as his hands went into a fists before he opened them up to have his claws extended free. He then lifted his head up higher to show his own fanged teeth and his eyes glowing bright gold. He then broke into a run as Kali moved for him with a hard growl leaving her throat.
_________
Scott was running with his mother as they tried to get to the main exit.
"How did you get away?" he asked her as he took a quick look behind him.
"He just let me go. Said it was a gesture of good will. No reason."
Scott narrowed his eyes and shook his head. "No, he had to have had a reason. I don't think he does anything without a reason."
"Oh, then I'll continue to be profoundly terrified then. Don't worry, I got that covered."
But Scott reached up and stopped his mother from taking another step. He looked at her and silently told her to stay still as he started to move slowly for the corner. He could hear footsteps approaching, from more than one person. He stalked over and slowly moved to look down the next hall and found a gun aimed at him. Chris Argent's gun and he was there with Allison and Isaac. Their breathing was heightened at the sight of him but dropped down a moment later. Along with Argent's gun.
"What are you all doing here?" Scott asked them.
"Looking for you," Allison said. "What's going on?"
Scott spared a look over to his mother before looking back to them. "Where do you want me to start?"
__________
"You know mistletoe is important to druids but do you know the myth for why people kiss under mistletoe?" Jennifer asked Derek.
Derek was still trying his hardest to not look at Jennifer any more than he had to. He just kept his eyes firmly to the same spot on the ground as he said, "No."
"It's a Norse myth," Jennifer started to explain to him. "Baldur, the son of Odin, was the most beloved by all the other gods. So much so that they wanted to protect him from all the dangers of the world. His mother Frigg took an oath, from fire, water, metal, stone and every living thing that they would never hurt Baldur. At a gathering, they tested him. Stones, arrow and flame were all hurled at him. Nothing worked. But there was one god that wasn't so enamored of Baldur. The god of mischief, Loki. Loki discovered that Frigg forgot to ask mistletoe, a tiny, seemingly harmless plant and completely overlooked. Loki fashioned a dart out of mistletoe and it killed Baldur. Frigg was heartbroken. She decreed that mistletoe would never again be used as a weapon and that she would place a kiss on anyone that passed under it. So now, we hang mistletoe underneath our door during the holidays...so that we will never overlook it again." During her story, Derek had been slowly moving his eyes from that spot on the floor he was trying to keep focused on. Little by little, he moved it up towards Jennifer and finally looked at her when she was finished. Her eyes narrowed as he caught them. "We, were the overlooked. The emissaries. It was a mistake that Deucalion and the other Alphas never should have had made, because I made an oath of my own. From virgins, and warriors, from healers, philosophers and guardians to loan me their power so that I could teach these monsters that their monstrous actions never be overlooked."
"You killed innocent people," Derek said unflinchingly to her.
"So have you," she immediately said back. "I know the real color of your eyes Derek and I know what it means." But her face then softened a bit. "I'm not asking you to just save my life, I'm asking you to save everyone they'll ever hurt again."
But Derek shook his head. "You can't beat them."
Jennifer didn't waver. "Are you sure about that? Boyd, right before he died, he asked you what happens to werewolves during a lunar eclipse. You didn't get the chance to tell him but you know, don't you? What happens Derek, during the total lunar eclipse?"
He took a deep breath. "We lose all our power," he answered her. Derek then narrowed his eyes.
Jennifer noticed the change in his stance. Derek seemed alert all of a sudden. "What? What is it?"
Derek's eyes started to move about in the direction of the door. "Fighting. Someone's fighting."
__________
Scott led his mother and the others off to an operating room down the hall as he finished catching them all up on everything that was happening.
"So, they're essentially trapped," Chris said as Scott informed them of Derek and Jennifer being stuck in the elevator.
"Right," Scott said to him.
"And there's no way of getting them out without turning the power back on?" Isaac asked them.
"Whoa, wait," Melissa cut in. "Hold on, if the power comes back on, they'll hear the elevator moving, right?"
Scott nodded. "And they'll be right on Jennifer and Derek as soon as it stops. We can't get in a fight with them."
"Well, you've got us now," Chris said looking over to his daughter.
But Scott shook his head. "It's too much to risk. They want her dead and if she dies then there's nothing we could do for Stiles' dad or Cora."
It seemed that they were all being forced into a corner, no matter what course they try to take.
"I don't think I even know which teacher this is," Chris told them.
"Oh, uh she's the one with the brown hair. She's kind of hot," Isaac told them. That got them all four of them to turn and give him a hard look.
"Uh, it's just an observation," he shrugged as he shrunk back a bit. But then his face fell and he looked straight up. "Hey," he mumbled.
"What?" Allison asked taking a look up herself. "Something wrong?"
Isaac squinted his eyes. "I...think I hear something. Above us. Feet shuffling, and...sounds like stuff smashing into the walls."
Scott looked up and focused his own hearing to zero in on the sounds. "Yeah...sounds like a fight."
"Derek?" Chris asked.
Isaac shook his head. "No, I don't think so."
Then there was a roar, one that made Scott's ears stiffen and caused him to gasp. "It's Stiles."
"Stiles?" his mother repeated.
"Wait, so he's upstairs, fighting one of the Alphas, by himself?" Allison asked him. "Which one?"
Scott couldn't tell but he was hoping that it wasn't Deucalion that Stiles was with. "I don't know. And I don't know why he's even out there. I told him to stay in the ambulance with Peter and Cora."
Chris narrowed his eyes. From what he could tell about the young man, he was mostly cautious but could be very bold when it came a threat on someone he cared about. The attacks he orchestrated on his fellow hunters after their attack on his friend and fellow werewolves made that plain. "Something must've happened to pull him away."
Scott shook his head. "I've got to go help him."
"Yeah but Scott, what about Derek and Ms. Blake?" Isaac asked him. "And Cora? We can't just leave them. They need our help to get them out of here."
Scott's breathing started to increase as he started get agitated and torn up inside. Isaac was right, they had to get everyone out of there. The longer they were kept here then the less of a chance they would have to get Stiles' dad back and getting Cora the help she needs. But, Stiles was up against an Alpha, by himself, and whatever power was inside him, he couldn't use it right now and he wouldn't stand a chance.
Allison's eyes fell a bit as she saw the way that Scott was acting. It was clear to her that he wanted to go and help his friend, but knew that they couldn't just leave everyone behind. If there was only a way for them to draw the Alphas away. She let her eyes wander desperately until they came upon a mirror. She then went and ran a hand across her long dark hair. "I've got an idea," she told them.
__________
Stiles jumped back to avoid a clawed kick from Kali as they fell further down the halls of the hospital. Stiles reached for a gurney and pushed it at Kali who went and threw it to the side. As she did, Stiles leapt for the wall and bounced off it to send a kick at the savage Alpha. He managed to connect with the side of her face and made her stumble back a bit.
Kali went and spit some blood off to the side before turning to face Stiles with a predatorial smile. "Nice shot," she said before she leapt forward and clawed at Stiles and managed to connect with his side.
Stiles let out a pained shout as he took a step back. Kali went to strike back at him with her other clawed hand but he went and intercepted and caught her by the wrist. But she quickly went and grabbed Stiles by his throat with her other hand making him stare directly into her red eyes and her savage face. Stiles went to grip her arm to try and pull her hand away but she held a firm grip. His hand that was gripping Kali's wrist tightened but that only made Kali's grip on his throat tighten in response. Stiles grit his teeth as he felt the pressure build in his head and he felt his eyes burn gold. He let out a growl from within his throat. He threw his body forward and pushed them so that he forced Kali into the wall, making it crack a bit. He made her let out a pained cry but Kali still had her hand gripping Stiles' throat. Her eyes burned brighter as she roared and tossed him off. Stiles flew through the air where he bounced off the opposite hallway wall and rolled off on the ground a bit. He let out a frustrated low groan before he pushed himself back to his feet to glare at her.
But Kali was animalistically smiling at him. "So, you can take pain."
"Damn right," he growled lowly at her. "Now get out of my way or we'll see how much you can take."
"How much can you give?" she taunted playfully at him.
Stiles grunted as he charged at her again.
The sounds of their fight was being closely listened to by Deucalion who had a somber look on his face. "A pity," he mumbled to himself. "Losing such potential, a true pity." If the situation was different, Deucalion would've taken Stiles in as a member of his pack. But, Deucalion learned a long time ago, painfully, that you can't always have things to be exactly the way you would like them to be. His posture stiffened when he started hearing some heavy moving happening just below him. "Oh Scott, what are you and your pack plotting now?"
_________
Isaac got to the Argents' car and readied for his part of the plan. The phone started vibrating as Allison called him. Isaac took a deep breath and answered it.
"You ready?" Allison asked him as soon as her image appeared.
Isaac nodded. "Yeah."
"You're not nervous, are you?"
He shook his head. "Do I look nervous?"
She shook her head. "No, not at all." Then she moved the phone to get the hallway of the hospital. But, he could still hear Allison move over to her father.
"Did he look nervous?" he asked her.
"Terrified," Allison said to him.
"Uh yeah, I can still hear you," Isaac said to them. "Very, very clearly."
Allison's face was back on the screen. "Just go as soon as you see them, okay?"
"Yeah...yeah, I got it," he said settling himself and getting ready.
__________
Derek got a message and read about the plan that everyone was forming. He immediately went and pried open the doors as hard as he could while Jennifer took off her heels.
The sound drew in the attention of the twins who were just a level below them. They ran downstairs and started to go about and search the rooms, one by one. But after twenty of them, Aiden was starting to have doubts.
"I don't think they're on this floor," he told his brother.
But then their ears stiffened when they heard the sounds of heels. It was someone running, below them. Heading for the direction of the front entrance.
The sound also drew the ears of Stiles and Kali. She had tossed a piece of medical equipment at Stiles who had dropped down to avoid it when the sudden sounds made them freeze. Kali looked at Stiles, smirking down at him. But Stiles wasn't looking at her but down at the floor towards the sound. Something wasn't right about this. How was Jennifer suddenly alone? She made it clear that she wouldn't risk going anywhere without Derek to protect her from the Alphas and Derek wouldn't just let her out of her sight, especially given what's happening to Cora.
But Kali kept her smile. "Aww. I have to admit, I was actually starting to enjoy our little tussle," she said drawing Stiles' eyes back on her. "Certainly was a lot more fun than the one I got from Derek but I'm going to have to cut this short." She readied the claws in her hands and began to move for Stiles as he tried to hurriedly pick himself up. But then Scott went and jumped on in and let out a hard, fanged roar at her as he stood in front of Stiles. Kali just shook her head and let out a frustrated groan from her throat. "I don't have time for this," she spat before she turned and ran off in the opposite direction.
Scott then went to look back at Stiles. "Are you okay?"
Stiles nodded. "Yeah, I'm fine, but Scott, down there. I think Jennifer is trying to get away."
"No," Scott said as he shook his head. "Don't worry. It's just part of the plan." He then went and moved to help Stiles to his feet. "Allison, her dad and Isaac arrived. They're drawing the Alpha pack away."
That made Stiles' eyes widen.
__________
Ethan and Aiden followed the sound of those running heels and then saw Jennifer running off at the opposite end of the hall, away from them. They then broke into a hard run to try and catch her. The Twins ran after Jennifer as she bolted out of the front entrance.
As she did, the windows four floors up exploded as Kali threw herself out of them to land just outside the front of the hospital. Ethan and Aiden ran to stand at her side as it looked like Jennifer lost her footing and fell. But then she quickly turned around and revealed that she wasn't Jennifer, but Allison. And she was aiming a readied bow at them. She let the arrow loose but Kali quickly caught it but the end exploded giving off a bright flash stunning the three Alphas. Then Chris came out of the corner and let loose a barrage of bullets for them as Allison fired another flashbolt. The three of them then broke into a hard retreat as they ducked the streams of bolts and bullets.
__________
As Ethan and Aiden ran through the hallways after the decoy, they passed by the set up phone Allison left behind and Isaac took that as his cue to move in for his part of the plan. He went and drove the car in for the garage to get to the ambulance. He rode the car in and stopped right at the side of it.
"Peter!" Isaac roared out as soon as he opened the driver's seat.
Peter quickly opened the door. "Isaac?"
"Bring Cora out, now!" he said before Peter could say another word.
Peter then moved to lift Cora into his arms as he moved her into the back seat. "Stiles took off," he said as he lightly put her inside.
"Yeah, I know. Scott going in to grab him."
"What about the Deucalion and the others?" Peter asked moving on inside after his niece.
"The Argents have that handled," Isaac said as he got back into the driver's seat.
There was then the sound of bullets sounding off and it was moving closer. Peter was looking out the back window before he quickly turned to the young beta. "Alright then, let's get the hell out of here!"
"We can't! Not without Scott and Stiles. Scott going to bring him back down here."
"We don't have time!" Peter yelled out.
"We're not leaving without them!" Isaac roared back at him.
The gunshot noises were getting louder and there was then the sound of roars mixed in.
"They're coming," Peter muttered. "We gotta go! Drive, you idiot!" Isaac's breathing started to become more rapid. "Isaac, you want Cora and the Argents to die?!"
Isaac took a look at the rear display and saw the shapes of the twins moving in for them and he then went and put the car in drive as he sped them out of the garage.
__________
Scott then heard the hum of the elevator which meant that his mother had turned the generator back on. It seemed that everything had gone according to plan.
"Alright, let's meet up with Derek and Jennifer and then we'll meet my mom and get out of here."
But Scott's arm was quickly grabbed before he could take a step.
Stiles was shaking his head furiously as his face paled both from the pain of the fight and from what he feared would happen. "No Scott, we can't. We can't let Jennifer be around your mother."
"What, why?"
"Because then she'll take her too, just like she took my dad," he coughed out.
His face fell as he stared at his friend for a tense second before he broke into a hard run. Scott ran off for the elevator, whose doors were wide open. He froze as he saw that Derek was lying on the floor of it, unconscious, with no sign of Jennifer in sight. He took a moment to let out a scared puff of air before he bolted for the stairs.
Just as Scott pushed through the door to them, Stiles stumbled onto the scene and stilled at the sight of Derek as well. The sight of it made one thing very clear to him, they were too late.
Scott was climbing the steps two or three at a time as he pushed himself to the roof. "Mom!" he roared out as soon as he cleared the door and stepped onto the roof. The entire place was deserted and empty. "Mom!" he tried again. He then started to sniff around, to try and find her scent, but...all he could detect, was mistletoe.
"They're gone." Scott then turned and saw Deucalion step out of the shadows. "Guardians Scott. If you were with me, I could've told you what it meant. I could've warned you. Your friend Stiles managed to discover it, sadly, not in time. Let me help you Scott. Let me help you get your mother and Stiles' father back."
Scott took a moment to feel all the heat in his body turn frigid. His mother was gone. Taken to be a sacrifice. The images of Jennifer's other victims came back to him and he realized that he didn't want to see his mother like that. He couldn't see his mother like that. His feet then started to be stepping towards Deucalion almost like they had a mind of their own with him vaguely aware of them even moving.
"Scott!" That made Scott turn around to look over at Stiles who was staring wide eyed at him. "Stop. Don't do this. Don't go with him."
"Why shouldn't he Stiles?" Deucalion said to him. "After all, I'm the best chance he has of finding both his mother and your father."
"No, you're not," Stiles argued. "We don't need you," he said in the same tone that he had used when he said those same words to Jennifer.
"Oh? Tell me then, how are you going to find your parents in time? What do you plan to do? Where do you plan to look?" Stiles just stared blankly back at him. "I thought so, see, I happen to both already have a plan and know where to start looking."
"Then tell us!" Stiles challenged.
Deucalion let a small smile spread onto his face. "I'm sorry, but, that's pack privileged information." He then looked down in Scott's direction as he stared back at the Alpha. "Pack members only I'm afraid. No exceptions."
At that moment, Scott remembered Morrell's words. She told him that he shouldn't be so sure that he could refuse Deucalion, even though he wanted to kill his friend. Then, he hadn't seen any scenario where that would be remotely true. Now, it seemed too real. Scott stared at Deucalion before he looked back at Stiles' scared face. "I...I don't know what else to do."
"No," Stiles muttered. "Scott, there's gotta be something else. Please, don't do this. We'll come up with something. Okay, we always do, We always have a Plan B," he pleaded to him.
Scott shook his head. "Not this time."
Stiles then watched as Scott then started to move closer to Deucalion and Stiles stepped forward. "Scott," he said making his friend stop. "You know what he's planning to do."
"Yes," Deucalion said out to them. "He does. Scott has a decision to make. His mother and your father, or you? He can't save everyone, and deep down, you know that just as he does. Which decision do you want him to make Stiles? Do you want him to save you or save your father?"
Stiles clenched his hand angrily as a tear began to drop from the corner of his eye.
Scott closed his eyes as he took a deep breath. He then slowly opened them to look back at his friend. "Stiles...I'm sorry. Don't worry, I'll save your dad. I promise." 'And you,' he said silently as he turned around and kept walking towards Deucalion.
The man then turned his head towards Stiles. "And I promise you Stiles, I'll be seeing you again very soon."
Stiles was left watching as Scott got to Deucalion and the blind Alpha put his hand on his shoulder as they walked on away.
__________
Melissa McCall was blinking her eyes as she started to become dimly aware of her surroundings. She saw that she seemed to be in some kind of cellar, and had her hands and feet tied up and she was fastened to a wooden beam support.
A soft "Hey," sounded off in front of her and she saw the Sheriff was tied up just like she was. "Hey, you alright?" he asked her.
She nodded before she tried to look around again. "Oh god, where are we?"
"I don't know." He then started to look around himself. "It looks like a root cellar to me, but, she called it something different. She called it a...Nemeton."