Chapter One
A New Threat
The Hale Loft"Alpha. Beta. Omega. Alpha. Beta. Omega. Alpha. Beta. Ome-"
Jackson was quickly interrupted as Derek punched him in the jaw. As he recovered from the blow, he lashed out and lunged at his Alpha. He was surprised when the Alpha quickly grabbed him by his arms and flung him over his shoulder. Jackson roared as he slammed into one of Derek's couches and sat up.
"You think I'm going to let you play lacrosse like this?" asked Derek as Jackson realized that he had wolfed out and had his claws out. "If you can't get hit without turning into a monster, then you can't play."
"Maybe it's because this stupid meditation isn't working!" shouted Jackson as he sheathed his claws. "I've been repeating that stupid phrase for hours and it still hasn't helped me control the change."
"It's not the phrase. It's you."
"What's that supposed to mean?"
"Jackson, what does the phrase mean?" asked Derek as he walked away from the beta and went to go sit down in one of the chairs.
"It means one can always rise to a higher status. An omega can always become a beta and a beta can always become an alpha."
"Yes and no. One can always rise but one can always fall. An alpha can always become an omega or a beta. A beta can always become an alpha or an omega. And an omega can always become an alpha or a beta. It is important to remember that one status isn't necessarily permanent."
"But how does knowing that help me with the change?" asked Jackson as he truly wanted to understand.
"The phrase reminds you of who you are while you transform," explained Derek. "You feel yourself start to change into a feral, bloodthirsty monster but you gotta remember that you're still Jackson. You can't let the other part of you forget that."
Jackson sighed as he started to understand what Derek was explaining. He walked over to one of Derek's couch and threw himself onto it.
"Why are you training me so hard?" asked Jackson as he relaxed into the couch. "Lacrosse season isn't for awhile. I have time to learn control."
"If you haven't noticed, the pack is weaker than it has ever been before," said Derek. "Others are going to see that and might try to attack me and everyone else in the pack. With Erica and Boyd missing, I need everyone to be ready for anything."
"What about Isaac?"
"It's been days since he last messaged me," said Derek as he stood up and began to pace the loft. "I think he left Beacon Hills to find Boyd and Erica. I wouldn't be surprised if he found 'the others' as well."
"What kind of others?" asked Jackson as he looked to Derek, seeing him visibly tense up.
"The powerful kind."
Downtown Beacon Hills (Warehouse District)
"They're catching up," whispered Isaac as he tried to push forward.
"Stay with me, Isaac," ordered the girl who was helping the werewolf walk. "I can't protect you and fight them off at the same time."
"Who are they? Who are you?"
"Don't worry about that now," said the girl as she helped him towards the factory door. "They messed with your memories but you should remember in due time. For now, I need you to worry about protecting yourself in case we have to fight."
The girl yanked open the warehouse door and helped Isaac inside, closing the door behind him. They were in a large, empty room and were crossing it when they heard a bang come from behind them. The girl turned around to see that two naked twins were standing in the doorway of the warehouse.
"Shit!" exclaimed the girl as she shrugged Isaac off and pulled out a pistol, aiming it at the two.
"You really think that you're going to be able to stop us?" asked one of the twins as he smirked at the two.
"All I see is a hurt baby werewolf and a human with a toy."
"Looks can be deceiving," retorted the girl as she pulled out another pistol and aimed the two at both twins.
"Yeah… they sure can be."
Suddenly, one of the twins grabbed onto the other's shoulders and their bodies quickly started to merge into. The two combined into one body and stood tall, revealing a giant werewolf. As the giant beast roared, the girl began to fire at it, peppering its skin with bullets. Shrugging off the bullets, the beast began to charge at the two.
"Watch out!" warned Isaac as he threw the girl out of the way, only to get rammed by the giant.
Isaac yelped in pain as the beast slammed him into the ground and started to lay heavy punches into his chest. The giant wolf was about to slash the beaten down wolf with its claws when it was instead met with a shot to the back. It screamed in pain as volts of electricity began to run through its body. As it screamed, the giant began to demorph and became the two twins. The two fell to the ground knocked out cold by the taser.
"Never underestimate me," said the girl as she walked over to the weak Isaac and helped him stand up. "Come on. We need to find you a hospital. Then we can find your alpha."
Route 189
"So you've been in France for four months and not one boy caught your interest?" asked Lydia as both her and Allison were driving down Route 189.
"No, Lydia," answered Allison as she looked out the car's window and looked at their surroundings. "I'm not ready to get back out there, yet. What about you? I'm guessing you and Jackson are over."
"Um… no?" asked Lydia to herself as she tried to understand her and Jackson's current situation. "It's complicated."
"It always it."
Lydia laughed as she explained, "He's been very busy training with Derek this summer. So busy that he decided that we should go on a break until school starts again."
"What? So you guys are getting back together tomorrow?" asked Allison as she looked at her friend.
"I don't know. I would have thought so but last week I had someone sleep over in my room for a night and the next morning I found claw marks all over the windowpane."
"Oh, no. Lydia."
"What?" asked Lydia as she looked at Allison incredulously. "He said we were on break. I thought I was free to be me and fulfill my desires."
"Whatever. Poor Jackson probably lost control right outside your window and fought the urge to tear your visitor into shreds."
"I guess that means he's making some sort of process since he didn't."
"Okay. Enough boy talk," said Allison as she looked out her window again, only to see Scott's face.
"Allison?"
Scott froze as he realized that Lydia was driving the car next to them and Allison was sitting in the passenger seat, staring at him. He attempted to wave at her but she quickly turned around started to speak to Lydia.
"Lydia, drive!"
"What? It's a red light," said Lydia before turning to see Stiles and Scott in the car next to them. She instantly floored it at the sight of Stiles and ran the red light.
"That psycho just ran a red light," noted Stiles as he watched the car pull away.
"That psycho was Lydia," explained Scott as he cringed at the awkward interaction. "And Allison was sitting there with her."
"Oh, wow."
As the light turned green, Stiles continued to drive but went incredibly slow, wanting to put a lot of distance between the two cars.
"Why are they moving slow like that?" asked Allison as she saw their car move slowly.
"Maybe to avoid seeing us again."
"This is so weird-"
"ALLISON!"
Lydia hit the brakes on the car as fast as she could when she saw the dark shape in the middle of the road. Lydia realized it was a deer and it was charging straight at the windshield. The two girls screamed as the deer rammed the car, smashing its head straight through the glass.
"Why did they stop like that?" asked Scott as he rolled down his windows and stuck his head out the window. "I think they might be in trouble."
As if on cue, Scott and Stiles jumped as they heard screams coming from the car ahead. Stiles sped the car and drove behind the car, getting out to see if the girls were okay.
"Allison?" asked Scott as he flew out the car to see Allison getting out of Lydia's.
"It ran straight through the windshield," cried an hysterical Lydia as she too exited the car and ran over to Stiles.
"The look in its eyes," mumbled Allison as she grabbed Scott and hugged him. "It was scared."
"Scared of what?" asked Stiles as he examined their car.
"I don't know. Scared of whatever is down that road."
The four turned and looked down the road but to no one's surprise, saw absolutely nothing.
Beacons Hills Hospital
"I know this kid," said Melissa McCall as she saw Isaac rolled in on a stretcher. "Isaac, where have you been?"
"I don't remember," mumbled the barely conscious werewolf. "The girl… the girl knows what happened."
Melissa broke away from the boy and looked around but didn't see a girl around at all.
"What girl?"
Jackson's House
Jackson was packing his bag and was getting ready for his first day of school when he suddenly caught a scent.
"You're not going to school, today," stated Derek who was sitting at Jackson's windowsill. "Isaac is back in town and he needs us."
"Are you serious?" asked Jackson who was clearly disappointed. "Why don't you take Scott with you? I really want to be at school, today."
"I want to keep Scott away from this as long as possible and I need backup when I go get Isaac."
"Why is Scott so special? How come you front want to keep me away from this as long as possible?"
"Because Scott is barely a member of this pack," snapped Derek as he glared at his beta. "I need him as an asset and if I ask for his help too often, he'll surely leave the pack to focus on other things in his life."
"What if I left the pack?" asked Jackson as he considered it for a moment.
"Then you'll be a lone wolf. Unlike Scott, you don't have many friends to look out for you. You will be traveling this world alone and in the dark with no one to help you."
Jackson sighed as he tossed his bag aside and asked, "Where are we going?"
"Beacon Hills Hospital. Isaac is there right now. But I have a feeling that others might be there as well."