AN: Hey everyone! Sorry about the delay in uploading, the last few weeks have been a bit rough. For now, I'm just going to continue posting as I can, but once August is over I'll be able to post more regularly. I hope you enjoy the chapter, let me know what you think of it.
frusta et fragmina
"I thought you were with Scott?" Zach asked as the werecheetah ran into the house.
"Yeah, I left when I thought Charlie was going to commit a homicide," Jay replied.
"Whose voice was that?" Zach asked.
"Steve and Charlie's old alpha, Blake," Kaia explained as the other three came down the stairs.
"You have a lot of catching up to do," Jay told the alpha as the moved into the dining room.
"Or we do," Fiona told the werecheetah. "You don't remember August. Which means you know what everyone else thinks happened last semester."
"He knows what is remembered since we were bitten," Charlie corrected her.
Steve nodded to the beta. "What do we need to know?"
"Marin was scared of me," Kaia told them.
"We tried to kill her when Deucalion came for us, she barely got away," Steve told them.
"But she had Marcus then," Fiona said.
"Yeah, and?"
"That's kinda cold," Jay commented.
"Steve wouldn't have had any attachment to Marcus, so Steve called her bluff," Charlie said.
"So, Tiberius never called Chris to help find Marcus, which means we would have never met Allison," Kaia said.
"I don't know who that is," Steve told her.
"So, the code—" Fiona started.
"Save the forsaken," Steve told her.
Charlie pushed Steve's sleeve up revealing the tattoo. "Do you know what this means?"
Steve looked down at his arm before raising his eyebrow. "I've never noticed it before."
"Defy the gods," Jay told him.
"protegimus illos qui nequent protegere se," Kaia added.
Steve looked at her before shaking his head. "Which means?"
"Didn't learn any languages either," Charlie sighed. "We protect those who cannot protect themselves."
Steve nodded at the beta. "That's the code then?"
"Yeah," Zach said.
"I can do that," Steve replied. The group sat up when they heard a coyote howl in the distance.
"I'll see if she remembers me again," Jay told them before running off.
"We'll keep filling you in," Zach said, turning to the alpha.
Leonard continued to examine the man's head after Chris left. Melissa leaned against the wall, waiting for the werelion to finish. "So, we're just going to wait here until he finds another body?" Leonard asked, not looking up.
"You've taken quite an interest in this," Melissa replied staring at the werelion and ignoring the question.
"I think it might have to do with the Ghost Riders," Leonard replied.
"How does biting someone's head off relate to the Ghost Riders?"
"Our 'soul' is what makes us who we are. Who we are is defined by our memories. Maybe this person is trying to remember something by taking the souls of others."
"But the pineal gland doesn't hold memories, it secretes melatonin," Melissa stated
"But it holds a greater significance when the supernatural is involved, especially when you consider the Ghost Riders. The memories that they take are left behind in our subconscious. Melatonin makes us sleep, which allows us to dream, which gives us access to the subconscious and our memories," Leonard said, stepping away from the body. "And I can't develop a theory from one body. So, are we just going to wait here?"
"No," Melissa sighed. "I want to stop the people I care about from getting hurt."
"Me too. I'll track Chris's scent," the werelion said before heading out the door.
The two ran through the woods until they spotted Chris standing behind a tree. Chris turned and aimed his gun at them as they approached before sighing and moving towards them. "You might want to think twice before you sneak up on a man holding a loaded M-24," Chris warned them.
"Well I'm glad you think twice before unloading," Leonard replied.
"How do you even see anything out here?" Melissa asked.
"Practice," Chris told her. "What're you two doing?"
"I thought, maybe, you could use some backup," she said.
"I'm here for another body or to find this guy," Leonard replied.
"Which way?" Melissa asked, looking around the woods. Chris stared at the two of them. "You can leave me alone with a stun gun and a box of band-aids, or we could just keep going."
"You have a werelion too," Leonard reminded her before looking to Chris. "I can probably track this guy better than you."
"It's up to you," Melissa said, holding up her stun gun as electricity arced between the prongs. Chris smirked and nodded for them to follow. "You're probably wondering why I'm out here when I could be nestled at home reading a book. And that's because I'm sick of seeing people I care about wheeled past the nurses' station in a gurney," she rambled as they walked through the woods. "All of you are out here, risking your lives, and it's about time I do something too," she added, raising her voice.
Chris stopped and turned to her. "In my experience, when tracking homicidal supernaturals, it's best to be quiet."
Leonard chuckled slightly, but froze as the other two continued. Melissa ran into Chris when the hunter stopped. "What is it?" she asked. Chris glanced back at her with a look of contempt. "What is it?" she repeated in a whisper. Chris started to slowly move forward, pointing his gun at a tree and revealing a pair of bikes lying on the ground.
The hunter sighed as Leonard ran past the two of them and around the tree. "He's dead," Leonard sighed kneeling next to a man by one of the bikes. The other two moved next to the werelion as blood dripped onto the man's face from above. The three looked up and found the second biker lying on a tree.
The woman's eyes snapped open when the flashlight's beam landed on her face. "It's okay," Melissa told her. "You're gonna be okay."
The woman coughed up blood before falling out of the tree. Leonard caught her before she hit the ground and noticed the hole that had been ripped through her helmet and skull. He shook his head at the other two when he heard her heartbeat for the last time. "How long could she survive like that?" Chris asked.
"One, maybe two minutes," Melissa said.
Leonard set the woman and the ground as his eyes started to glow emerald. "It's still here," Chris sighed.
"Exactly how much training have you had for a situation like this?" Melissa asked the two.
"My dad's a werelion. We fought him," Leonard replied, shrugging when he remembered the pack losing the fight.
"Remember that part I said about being quiet?"
"Well, she's not in her coyote form," Jay thought.
"Quiet," Leonard shushed when he heard something coming toward them
Chris and Leonard turned towards the noise and spotted a figure running at them. "It's a werewolf?" Melissa asked.
"Werecoyote," Chris said, looking up from his scope.
"Malia?" Melissa asked.
"She's coming right at us," Chris replied, looking back down the scope.
"Let us deal with it," Leonard told the hunter as he spotted Jay sprinting towards her.
"I'm just going to wing her," the hunter said.
"We can do this without shooting her," Leonard told him, reaching for the gun as Chris fired.
Malia grunted and fell to the ground. "Jay," Leonard warned when he saw the werecheetah turn towards them. Leonard moved in front of Chris as spots appeared on Jay's skin. The werelion tackled Jay to the ground, roaring at him as his eyes started to glow brighter. The werecheetah panted as the spots faded from his body. "You should have let us handle it," Leonard shouted back to Chris as the hunter ejected the casing.
"Back to shoot first ask question's later?" Jay snarled as the two werecats got back to their feet. Chris shook his head before walking past them. The four ran over to Malia as she lay on the ground snarling. "Malia?" Jay whispered, kneeling beside her. The werecoyote looked up and growled at him, her blue eyes shining.
"Let's get her to the hospital," Melissa sighed looking at the wound in her leg as the werecoyote passed out.
"I'm surprised they texted us," Kaia said as Zach carried her to Scott's house.
"They want to hear what Leonard thinks, but he's a little busy right now."
"The sun's coming up, we should probably walk the rest of the way," the kitsune sighed.
"Or fly faster," Zach chuckled before diving towards Scott's house.
"Never again," Kaia sighed, brushing her hair from her face as they landed in Scott's backyard
"It wasn't that bad," Zach chuckled, folding his wings before they walked inside. Scott, Mason, Corey, and Liam were staring at the marks left on the ceiling.
"What is it?" Liam asked.
"Lichtenberg figure," Kaia told them. Liam, Scott, and Corey turned to her, confused.
"The point of impact of a lightning strike leaves behind branching marks like that," Mason explained.
"That's how the Ghost Rider got in. He rode the lightning," Scott muttered, looking at Liam.
"If they can use lightning to get past the mountain ash—" Liam stated.
"No place is safe," Scott finished.
"Unless the roof is made of mountain ash," Zach said with a shrug.
"They'd still be able to get through," Kaia told him. "Lightning is just energy. It would be able to pass through the barrier just like my fireball did."
"Leonard didn't tell us that," Zach stated.
"I have a brain too," Kaia commented.
"Okay, so what about the others? It's my fault they're marked," Corey said.
"We'll find a way to protect them," Scott said, looking around the room. "All of them."
"We'll help however we can," Kaia told them.
"But we weren't able to stop one of them," Corey told her.
"And Gwen said she saw another outside when we tried to run. Who knows how many there are," Mason added.
"Maybe we just needed an alpha," Liam said, looking to Scott.
"Well, then we'll have two," Zach said.
"What?" Scott asked looking at the chimera.
"Steve doesn't remember everything yet, but he remembers enough to not attack you again," Kaia told him. Scott shook his head and opened his mouth.
"If we're going to protect everyone, we'll need everyone to help," Zach said before Scott could speak.
Melissa started to work on digging the bullet out of Malia's leg. After a few seconds, Malia snapped awake, growling at the nurse. Chris grabbed her and pushed her back to the table. "Keep her still," Melissa told Chris.
"Maybe you should shoot her again," Jay commented, glaring at Chris with his arms crossed.
"I'll help," Leonard said, grabbing a clamp from the cart and joining Melissa.
"The morgue? I'm not dead yet," Malia commented, looking around the room.
"Not for a lack of trying," Jay added, his eyes still locked on Chris.
Chris and Melissa looked up to him before Melissa turned back to Malia. "You're a werecoyote. It's private down here, and this is going to hurt. Try not to roar," Melissa said as she and Leonard started to dig in the wound.
Malia grunted and dug her claws into Chris's arm. "You got anything for the pain?" Chris moaned.
"No, I can take it," Malia said. Leonard dropped his clamp causing Melissa to look at him.
"I meant for me," the hunter said.
"Jay take her pain," Leonard ordered.
"I said I can take it," Malia growled.
"This will be faster," Leonard told her, putting his hand up for Melissa to stop as Jay grabbed her arm.
Malia stopped struggling as black tendrils moved up Jay and Leonard's arm. "What were you doing in the woods?" Melissa asked as the wound started to heal.
"Running," Malia said.
"At two AM?"
"Coyotes are nocturnal. I heard screams. Like someone being murdered type screams."
"Did you see anything? Catch a scent?" Chris asked.
"Just blood," she sighed. "And that's all I remember before someone shot me," she added, looking to Chris.
"You were about to tear us apart," Melissa told her.
"No, she wasn't," Jay told her.
"It's not her fault. When a coyote smells a fresh kill, its senses are overcome. The blood drives them crazy," Chris explained.
"And when someone loses control another werecreature can bring them back," Leonard reminded him.
"Not after a point," Chris told him.
"Leonard brought me back while I was trying to kill Steve. After I took down over a dozen trees using my claws," Jay told him. The black tendrils vanished as the bullet clanged on the metal table.
"Next time let us handle it," Leonard told him, slapping the bullet into the hunter's palm. Malia looked at the two werecats as she sat up before glaring at Chris and walking away. Jay followed after the werecoyote, giving Chris one last look. Chris turned to the werelion after the two had left.
"I was only trying to protect you and Melissa," Chris told Leonard.
"By following which code? 'Cause I'm pretty sure Allison wouldn't have shot her," Leonard said before walking out of the morgue.
"How do you know Allison?" Chris asked, following after the werelion.
"protegimus illos qui nequent protegere se," Leonard said, turning to the hunter. "We adopted her code after you told us about her death. We remember, even if you forgot everything that happened," the werelion added before continuing down the hall.
"You okay?" Charlie asked as Leonard and Jay joined the pack at school.
"I'm tired of everyone looking at us like we're villains when we risked our lives to save them last year," Leonard replied pulling his books out of his locker before slamming it.
"No," Jay clarified looking to Charlie.
"You should get some rest," Kaia said, rubbing Leonard's shoulder.
"Not until we figure out how we're going to protect everyone," the werelion replied.
"Liam and Mason are researching the storm. You could help them," Charlie suggested. Leonard nodded and turned down the hall.
"What're we going to do?" Steve asked.
"Hayden's keeping an eye on Gwen," Zach said.
"Gwen's not the only target though," Jay reminded him.
"No, but everyone else is at school. We'll keep an eye out for any Ghost Riders and try to stop them if they show up before the others have a plan," Kaia said.
"We could just build a safe place," Zach suggested. "Might not be useful right now, but in the future."
The others nodded but Jay stared at him. "Do we have money?" the werecheetah asked.
"Of course we do," Charlie scoffed.
"Wasn't it all in August's name?" Jay asked.
"Uh—" Charlie gaped.
"August taught me some of his hacking skills. I should be able to figure it out," Kaia said before running off.
"We put all our money in one person's name?" Steve asked.
"Not all of it," Jay replied as they walked down the hall. "Some of it was put into the house."
Leonard sighed as he sat next to Liam and Mason in the library. The three of them searched the internet for a way to track the Ghost Riders "The K-Index quantifies disturbances in the horizontal component of Earth's magnetic field," Liam read before turning to Mason. "What's a K-Index?"
"It's a scale that meteorologists use to measure a thunderstorm's activity. So, a K-Index value less than twenty means no activity and above thirty-five is severe," Mason explained.
"How bad is severe?" Liam asked.
"Well, your average storm has about 1,000 lightning strikes," Mason said. "In the past three months, the average storm in Beacon Hills had 5,000."
"And what's it reading now?"
"Uh, fourteen. We're clear," Mason said, refreshing his page.
"Okay, so if a spike in the K-Index means more lightning, then we can tell if they're coming," Liam said.
"Yeah," Mason nodded.
"This is good."
"Yeah," Mason sighed before the computer started to beep. "Actually, this is really bad," Mason said. "Leonard, we need to figure out what to do," he said turning to the werelion. "Hey!" Mason shouted when he noticed Leonard sleeping on the table.
"What?" Leonard asked as he jumped up.
"K-Index is increasing," Mason told him.
"Ghost Riders," Leonard sighed before telling the pack.
"We need a plan," Liam said.
"He's friendly now," Jay said as they met Scott, Malia, Lydia, and Fiona in the hall. Malia growled lightly. "I promise," he assured her.
"We have an idea that might help him and you guys remember more," Fiona told them.
Lydia pulled out Jake's ID. "It's a relic," she explained.
"It's a library card," Jay reminded her.
"Yes, but it's also a relic," Fiona repeated nodding to the werecheetah.
"What's a relic?" Malia asked.
"It's an object with a fixed association to the past. Jake's ID was left behind after he was taken," Lydia said. "And Gwen found her sister's bracelet on her bedroom floor."
"Okay, what did August leave behind?" Steve asked turning to Charlie.
"We haven't looked. We don't even know if his stuff was taken," Jay said.
"It would have to be," Charlie said. "The Ghost Riders take everything."
"Not everything," Fiona told them.
"How can someone be erased and still leave something behind?" Malia asked.
"Conservation of mass," Lydia said. Jay groaned and rolled his eyes. "The total mass of an isolated system remains constant."
"So, even the Ghost Riders have a weakness," Scott said.
"A relic would be proof that Stiles or August exists," Malia added.
"And maybe we can bring them back," Scott added.
"We need to find August's relic then," Charlie said looking to Jay. Jay nodded before running out of the school.
"Shouldn't we focus on making sure no one from the party gets taken?" Steve asked. Fiona, Zach, and Charlie looked at him surprised. "You said we protect those who cannot protect themselves, right? No one from the party seems to be able to protect themselves."
Charlie turned to Scott. "Let's see what the others found?" the beta said with a shrug before the three werewolves headed towards the library.
"We need to hide them," Mason told Liam.
"We need to fight them," Liam replied.
"We need to hide them," Leonard said nodding at Mason.
"Who's them?" Scott asked as he, Steve, and Charlie walked up to the three.
"The Ghost Riders," Liam said.
"The kids at the party," Mason said.
"Got it," Scott sighed.
"We're going to fight the kids at the party?" Steve asked looking to Leonard.
Charlie narrowed his eyes at the alpha. "No," the beta sighed.
"We could get a lightning rod. Attract the Ghost Riders and catch them off guard," Liam explained.
"But we don't know how many Ghost Riders there are," Leonard told him.
"And since everyone from the party is in danger, all we need to do is find a safe place to hide them until the storm passes," Mason added.
"Except the storm has been here for almost two weeks now," Charlie sighed.
"And the Ghost Riders ride the lightning. Nowhere is safe," Liam said.
"We are if we're underground. The Earth can ground the lightning's electrical charge. Everyone would be safe," Mason said.
"Okay, here's what we're going to do," Scott said, sitting next to them. "We take everyone into the Argent Bunker. It's underground. It's lined with mountain ash," Scott added when Liam scoffed.
"Now I'm down for fighting, actually," Leonard said.
Liam nodded. "We stopped the Ghost Riders last night. We can do it again," Liam said.
"You barely stopped one," Charlie reminded him. "We don't know how many there are."
"No, you didn't stop them. They retreated," Scott corrected. "We don't know why."
"Okay, how do we get everyone inside the bunker?" Liam sighed.
"We just grab them," Steve said.
"Kidnap them?" Charlie asked.
"No kidnapping," Scott told them.
"We could tell them the truth," Leonard suggested.
"It didn't work on Gwen," Charlie said.
"Then we explain it better," Leonard replied.
"Nathan, wait up!" Liam called out as he, Mason, and Leonard ran after the boy.
"What?" Nathan asked turning around.
"You're in danger, but we have a safe place—" Liam started.
"The guy from the party last night is a Ghost Rider," Leonard interrupted, pulling out the page explaining the Wild Hunt. "They take anyone who sees them, and a lot of you saw him last night."
"But we want to stop them and have a bunker for everyone to ride out the storm in," Mason added.
Nathan examined the page for a moment before looking up at them. "Is this a joke?"
"No," Liam stammered. "And you got to take this seriously. Once we're all in the bunker, we'll be fine."
"I'm not gonna miss the first game of the year so that you can make captain," Nathan said, shoving the page into Leonard's chest before walking away.
"They're a supernatural force of nature coming to erase your soul," Liam shouted.
Leonard sighed as he rubbed his head. "It was a man, in a hat, with a gun," Nathan replied.
"And he's coming back to shoot you in the head," Mason told him.
"Not dying is a little more important than a lacrosse game," Leonard added.
"Fine," Nathan sighed before walking off.
"Great, now we just tell everyone they'll be murdered if they don't listen to us," Leonard sighed.
"We're not technically wrong," Mason replied.
"Why do you have to come with me everywhere?" Lydia asked as she and Fiona drove to the sheriff's station.
"We keep seeing people when we are together. They have to mean something and it'll be easier to figure out with two of us," Fiona said.
"Or, we could see two different people at different places and get twice as much information," Lydia replied, parking her car.
"If we see anything at all," Fiona said as the two banshees got out of the car. "I'd rather not miss out on an opportunity based on a hunch."
Lydia sighed as the two walked into the station and explained relics to the sheriff, handing him Jake's ID. "We'd like to search your house," Lydia said.
"You want to search my house?" the sheriff asked.
"People are leaving things behind. So, if Stiles left anything—" Lydia started.
"Why—why would it be there?" the sheriff asked interrupting.
"You're the only one who has a connection to the name Stiles," Fiona replied.
"You can't just erase people. They leave things behind," Lydia explained.
The sheriff paused before setting the ID down. "I couldn't sleep last night. So—um—I got up, figured I'd do some paperwork. The files were in the back of my car. So, I got to the garage and some junk had fallen off a shelf, and I stub my toe on an old baseball bat," he told them. Lydia leaned in while Fiona sighed lightly. "Without thinking I yelled a name."
"Stiles," Lydia finished for him.
"Yeah," the sheriff sighed before pausing. "If you want to take a look around, then I guess you can," he added, handing them Jake's ID.
Jay ran into the house and ran up the stairs before he started tearing through Steve's room. "Why are you going through my stuff?" Steve asked.
"'Cause August slept here," Jay told him.
"There's only one bed."
"You're not gay anymore?" Leonard asked.
"You and August were boyfriends," Charlie explained.
"I feel like I would have remembered that," Steve replied.
"That's the point of us trying to help you remember," Jay told him.
"August still had his own room though. They were on a break when we first moved down here. He kept some of his stuff in there still," Fiona reminded him.
Jay ran back into the hall before heading towards August's room. He opened the door and found the room was completely empty aside from the dust and cobwebs. "You sure about that?" Steve asked.
"No, we keep the rest of the house clean, but we just really hate this room," Jay replied.
"Check downstairs, maybe there's something down there," Kaia suggested.
The werecheetah sighed as he ran downstairs, tearing through each of the rooms. "So much for keeping things clean," Zach commented
"I could do without the snarky comments," Jay said.
"I thought you did better while having fun?" Zach chuckled.
"Well, making a mess isn't very fun," Jay replied.
"I didn't realize that you had as much fun as Leonard," Zach told him.
Jay scoffed. "That is not true!"
"Why am I being dragged into this?" Leonard asked.
"'Cause Jay enjoys it."
"I do," Jay muttered stopping in front of the bookcase. He slid it aside revealing the weapon cabinet before searching through the weapons. "I think I found it," he told the others, picking up August's spatha.
"You didn't bring it?" Charlie asked when Jay met the others at the entrance to the tunnels.
"Well, I ran through town with a sword, but one of the deputies stopped me and confiscated my weapon," Jay told him.
"Seriously?" Zach asked.
"No, I left it at home so that wouldn't happen," Jay replied.
"We know where the sword is, for now, let's just make sure everyone gets to the bunker," Leonard said before they jumped down the hole into the tunnel.
"Why are we underground?" one of the students asked.
"This is the way to the bunker," Hayden explained to her.
"You guys have a bunker? Who are you people?" Nathan asked.
"We're the people who know things about the things that most people don't know about," Liam told him.
"Things that would probably go over your head," Jay added, smirking at Nathan.
"What?" Nathan asked.
"Just keep moving," Hayden told him. "Liam, where's Gwen?" she asked as the students continued down the tunnel.
Jay climbed back up the ladder as Hayden and Liam ran towards it. "No one else is up here," the werecheetah told them.
"Let's make sure everyone else is here before we go after her," Charlie told them. Jay jumped back down and walked with the others to the bunker.
"I wouldn't touch that," Chris warned as Nathan picked up a stun gun. Nathan pressed the trigger sending wires sparking into the wall.
"What's all this for?" Nathan asked, setting the gun down.
"Your protection," Chris said as Scott pulled the door closed.
"Didn't think it would be a good idea to move all non-essential weapons out of the bunker that was going to be filled with high school students?" Leonard hissed at the hunter.
"Easy," Charlie muttered, placing his hand on the werelion's shoulder.
"Hey, we're missing three, plus Gwen," Liam told them as he looked over his list.
"They're all lacrosse players," Scott said after reading the list.
"They were at the party, so they know what's coming," Corey said.
"People see what they want to see," Chris told them.
"Guys, we're running out of time," Mason said, showing them the K-Index app on his phone as it reached thirty-five.
"We have to go get them," Leonard said.
"I'll go, the rest of you stay here," Scott said.
"We couldn't fight off one Ghost Rider. Who knows how many are going to be there tonight. We're going with you," Liam said.
"He's right, Scott," Charlie said.
"They're marked," Scott told the beta.
"Yeah, but at least we'll be able to see them coming," Corey told him.
"We just have to find them and bring them here," Leonard said.
"And if they won't come?" Steve asked.
"Then we figure something else out," Charlie said.
"I'll stay behind and help Chris in case the Ghost Riders find a way in here," Kaia told them. "The rest of you should go."
Scott sighed and looked up to Chris. The hunter nodded before Scott looked around at the others. "Alright, but if you see them coming, run."
Lydia and Fiona walked into the sheriff's house and started to look around. Lydia examined the pictures on the mantle while Fiona looked at the ones on the wall for any sign of someone missing from them. Almost all of the pictures were of the sheriff and the woman. "Is there anything I could do to help?" the woman asked, walking into the living room.
"No, but thank you, Mrs. Stilinski," Lydia replied.
"Well, good luck," Mrs. Stilinski sighed. "I'll leave you two to it."
"She wasn't here earlier," Fiona whispered as she walked over to Lydia.
"No," Lydia muttered looking to where Mrs. Stilinski was standing. "There aren't any gaps in these pictures."
"Same over there," Fiona said pointing to the wall. Lydia nodded before scanning the room, she stopped at the entrance to the hallway they walked down last time.
"The old woman," Lydia muttered moving towards the hall. Fiona followed after her, searching for anything that belonged to Stiles. The two banshees stopped and looked at the wall the woman looked at the other day.
Fiona turned when she spotted someone in her peripheral. "You didn't see it did you?" a man with messy hair asked.
"See what?" Lydia asked, turning to the man.
"It's right in front of your face," he shouted, an echo following his voice. Fiona walked toward him as Lydia turned back to the wall. Fiona froze as the man vanished. She turned and saw Lydia tearing a piece of the wallpaper away.
"What are you doing?" Mrs. Stilinski shouted, running around the corner and grabbing Lydia's wrist.
"You're hurting me," Lydia gasped. Mrs. Stilinski ignored Lydia and tried to get the wallpaper to stick again before releasing Lydia's hand. "I'm sorry. I shouldn't have done that."
"I think that's something we can agree on," she spat.
"Let's go," Fiona said, her eyes not leaving Mrs. Stilinski as they walked towards the door. "She's not supernatural?" Fiona asked once they were outside.
"Not that I know of," Lydia sighed. "Why?"
"'Cause she apparently heard that from the other side of the house," Fiona said as they headed to the car.
Kaia watched Malia walk over to Chris as he stood watch in the tunnel. He spun around and pointed his gun at her. The kitsune shook her head as Malia pushed the guy away. "Thanks for coming," he told her.
"You need my help?"
"I need a babysitter."
"I'm not the babysitting type. Coyote eat their young," Malia told him. "Besides, you have her," Malia added nodding to Kaia before turning to walk away.
"Foxes kill other's young," Kaia told her. "We need all the help we can get."
"You could have killed me last night. Or worse, Melissa," Chris said, causing Malia to stop and turn around.
"Leonard and Jay would have stopped her," Kaia told him.
"I could help you not have to rely on them for control," Chris told Malia.
"Aren't you the one who shot me?"
"I come from a family of hunters. It's our job to deal with situations that an ordinary person—" he started.
"Job stress?" Malia scoffed. Kaia narrowed her eyes at the hunter as he stepped toward Malia.
"You know that bloodlust you felt? I've seen that look before. When I was your age, I saw someone lose control and slaughter an innocent. And I did nothing," he explained.
"I'm not that werewolf," Malia told him.
"No, it wasn't a werewolf. It was a hunter. And she made excuses. Made a very convincing case that lethal force was necessary," he explained, sending a sympathetic look to Kaia. "But it wasn't. And if I had done something that night, then maybe my sister wouldn't be the monster that she is today."
"You mean the monster she was," Kaia corrected him.
Chris turned to the kitsune. "No, she's still out there."
"Kate," Malia sighed as Kaia raised her eyebrows at the hunter.
"Animals lose control," Chris said, turning back to Malia. "You're not just an animal, Malia, you're also a human. You stay that way by getting involved."
The three of them turned when they heard one of the emitters go off in the bunker. Malia sighed and stormed into the bunker. She grabbed the emitter from Nathan's hand and turned it off. "What're you doing here?" he asked.
"I asked her to come," Chris said as he and Kaia walked into the bunker. "And I asked you not to touch anything else."
"You do realize that half the stuff in this room could kill you, or someone else," Kaia said. "What if that had been a grenade?"
Nathan rolled his eyes at her. "Look, how much longer do we have to be down here?" he asked.
"As long as it takes," Chris shouted, cocking his gun.
"Okay, I'll stay. You've shot enough people for one day," she said shoving the emitter into his chest.
"That's why I always carry a non-lethal option," Kaia whispered to him, pointing to staff next to her katana.
"What's the plan?" Liam asked as they all followed Scott.
"Convince Okafur, Steinbach, and Wallace that playing tonight is a bad idea," Scott said as he headed toward the locker room. He stopped at the door and turned to Mason and Leonard. "You've read everything there is to know on the Ghost Riders."
"Yeah," they replied.
"Have you figured out anything that could stop them?" he asked.
"Not yet," Mason admitted.
"But there's probably something out there," Leonard added, looking to Mason.
"Figure it out," Scott told them. The two nodded and headed off as the players started to run out of the locker room.
The rest of the group headed into the locker where Coach threw a helmet at Scott. "You're late McCall! Why aren't you people dressed? Get your asses moving. Everyone on the field. Hustle! Hustle! Hustle!"
"We'll never get them back in the bunker now," Liam muttered.
"Get dressed," he told Liam before turning to Steve and handing him the helmet. "All of you."
"I've never played before," Steve said.
"It doesn't matter," Scott said.
"It's the only way to keep them safe," Liam realized.
"It looks easy enough," Jay commented as he collected jerseys and gear for everyone.
"Probably easier to watch than it is to actually play," Zach replied, taking the gear from Jay.
"We just have to watch for the Ghost Riders," Charlie sighed.
"Were you tearing Claudia Stilinski's wallpaper off her wall?" Ms. Martin asked as she walked into her office. Lydia was using her computer to look up information about Claudia "And you're with her again?" she added, noticing Fiona who was doing the same on her phone.
"No," Lydia replied, earning a look from her mom. "Maybe. Yes."
"She's worried about your mental health."
"We saw someone in the hallway. Someone Mrs. Stilinski didn't see," Lydia said.
"Well, if Claudia's not seeing ghosts, maybe it's because she's not a banshee."
"Even for banshees this is rare," Fiona told her.
"I think he was trying to help us find something Stiles left behind. A relic."
"Did you?"
"No," Lydia sighed. "Mrs. Stilinski stopped me before I could find anything."
"Probably because you were tearing her wallpaper," Ms. Martin chuckled.
"Or because she's hiding something," Fiona said as Ms. Martin walked around the desk and looked at the computer screen.
"Oh, honey," Ms. Martin sighed. "I've known Claudia since high school. I trust her. More than her," she added nodding to Fiona.
"Claudia heard Lydia tearing the wallpaper from the other side of the house," Fiona stated, looking at Lydia's mom. "Not many people can do that."
"Do you two know what a confirmation bias is?" Ms. Martin asked.
"The tendency to interpret information in a way that confirms an existing preconception," Lydia explained.
"Yes. It's a biased perspective. You're looking for proof to support what you already believe is true. Because you want it to be true."
"Stiles is real. I know it," Lydia said leaning forward.
"But do you believe there is a possibility he's not?"
"Why would she want to believe in a person who isn't real?" Fiona asked. Ms. Martin sighed and looked at Fiona, raising her eyebrows. "Why would she believe me or anyone in my pack. Scott made it very clear to stay away from everyone until he started to remember too."
Lydia's mom sighed again and sat back in the chair, looking to Lydia. "Okay, tell me everything you know. I'll be your unbiased perspective."
Lydia groaned and turned from the computer before she started to tell her mom everything that had happened the past few weeks.
"I'll take Steinbach and Wallace," Scott said. "You take Gwen," he said nodding to Liam. "You're on Okafur," he added to Corey. He turned towards Steve's pack and opened his mouth. "You guys can decide for yourselves," Scott said nodding at Steve.
"What if I see Ghost Riders?" Corey asked.
"Yell," Liam told him.
"Then get ready to fight," Scott added.
"I'm really not sure about this," Steve thought, looking at his lacrosse stick as they ran onto the field.
"Pretend it's a sword," Jay suggested
"Mildly different concepts. And Kaia said he didn't go through any training," Zach told the werecheetah.
"It's more like a staff," Charlie thought, looking to the others as he swung it around. "Think of the ball like an extension of the staff."
"He still hasn't had weapon training," Zach repeated.
"He has, he just doesn't remember," Charlie said, nodding at the alpha.
"Yeah, I was talking about the plan and how we haven't figure out who we are protecting," Steve told them.
"You on Steinbach, me on Wallace, Jay on Gwen, and Zach on Okafur," Charlie thought as the referee blew his whistle and dropped the ball. The players from both teams ran around the field, positioning themselves to pass, block, and score while the two packs ran after the players they were supposed to protect.
After a few minutes of play, Corey got hit in the face by Okafur's stick, knocking him to the ground as Zach tripped over the chimera. "You want to find your own space?" Okafur asked as the other team scored.
The two teams reset themselves before the referee dropped the ball. Play continued for a bit until Gwen and Liam collided. Jay leapt over them as the team scored a second point. "You want to back off?" Gwen asked the beta.
Jay helped Liam to his feet as they moved back into their starting positions and play resumed. Shortly after the ref blew his whistle, Steve and Scott plowed into Wallace and Steinbach, allowing the other team to score a third time. "There's no ghosts out here, McCall," Wallace said.
"What are you doing out there?" Coach shouted. "I'm gonna kill the five of you."
"This is going well," Jay commented.
"We're holding back," Charlie thought as he ran over to Scott. "What's the rule on using our abilities?"
"Um—frowned upon," Scott replied.
"How about in a situation where the Ghost Riders could show up at any second?"
Scott sighed and looked around the field. "If you have to," he nodded.
"Go all out," Charlie thought to the others.
"If Steve doesn't have August, then does he have an anchor?" Leonard asked as he watched on the bleachers next to Mason.
"I've kept him in control before," Charlie told him as he felt black tendrils crawl up his arm.
"Do these guys ever practice?" Lori asked from behind Leonard and Mason.
"Not enough," Sydney sighed. "It's just first period," she said, putting her hand on Mason's back.
"They could still win," Lori said.
"Yeah," Mason muttered before turning back around.
"You're tense," Leonard whispered to him.
"You're not? We don't know how long we have to figure this out."
"It's easier to think when I'm not stressed."
"Well, have you come up with anything yet?"
"No," Leonard admitted.
"Nothing this way," Kaia said as the three met back at the bunker door.
"That's good, right?" Malia asked.
"For now," Chris sighed as he opened the door.
"How do you know they can't get in and shoot all of us?" one of the girls asked, her voice shaking.
"Leonard called it," the kitsune sighed.
"I'll never graduate. I'll never do anything. This is it!" she cried.
"Give me the stun gun," Malia said turning to Chris.
"Can you think of a better, less seizure-inducing way?" Chris asked her.
"Don't any of you get it? We are never leaving this place," the girl continued shouting before moving to the door.
"Jayden," Malia said, standing in her way. "It's okay. Before they get in here, they have to get through the three of us."
"What if that's not enough?" Jayden asked.
"No one is getting through that door," Malia assured her. Chris smiled and nodded at the werecoyote.
Kaia smiled as she scanned through the room. Everyone seemed more relaxed now. The kitsune paused and went back through the room before turning to Chris. "Nathan's missing," she and Malia said at the same time.
Jay ran past the others, catching the ball as it headed toward the goal before running it back. He was knocked to the ground by another player before they scooped up the ball and ran back to the other side of the field. "Yes, yes," Mason muttered next to Leonard. The werelion glanced over to him as the player scored. "Yes!" Mason cheered.
"Wrong team," Sydney and Lori reminded him.
"Sorry," he said before running off.
"What is it?" Leonard asked, following after him.
"The Ghost Rider disappeared when Parrish showed up," Mason explained.
"'Cause the Riders are afraid of the law?"
"No, because Parrish is a Hellhound."
The three of them walked out of the bunker and found an open vent in the tunnel. "That idiot," Kaia sighed.
Charlie turned as two players collided. One of them swung their stick at the other, but he ducked out of the way. "I don't think this is how the game is supposed to be played," Steve thought as a stick hit his face. Charlie looked around and noticed the other players attacking each other as well.
The referee threw a flag as he moved to break up two of players on the ground. "What's going on?" the beta asked Scott when the alpha ran up beside him. The two continued to watch the players fight.
"What's gotten into everyone?" Liam asked when he joined them. Charlie saw Jay and Zach duck away from other players as they went after them.
"What if it's the Wild Hunt?" Scott asked. "What if it's affecting everyone?"
The three froze when they heard thunder overhead. "Okay," Steve huffed, taking another hit to the face. Charlie turned to look back towards him as the alpha swept the other player's legs with his stick. Leaves bounced across the field as the wind started to pick up.
"It's Parrish," Mason said as the two ran up to Hayden. "He's the reason the Ghost Rider left the party."
"Parrish?" Hayden asked.
"Jay heard the Rider whisper something, but couldn't hear what it was. Right after that, the Rider vanished," Leonard explained.
"Call your sister. Tell her we need to meet Parrish at the school right now," Mason told her.
"What about Gwen? What about the other players? We have to keep them safe."
"There's seven of us already on the field to protect them," Leonard told her.
"Parrish could keep everyone safe," Mason added before the two of them looked toward the field.
"They're here," Jay announced.
"We need to get him now," Leonard said, grabbing the two and pulling them into the school.
"They're here," Charlie muttered as lightning flashed and it started to pour.
"Liam!" Scott called out as Corey and Steve joined the pair.
"I see 'em," Liam shouted as he and Gwen stared toward the other side of the field.
"I'm collecting out friends," Jay said.
"We are," Zach corrected.
"What happens if he gets out?" Malia asked after checking out the vent.
"He'll break the seal," Chris told her.
"The Ghost Riders will be able to walk in," Kaia said.
"This way," Malia said, nodding down the tunnel. The three ran off after Nathan's scent.
The referee called the game as the group gathered around the marked players. Everyone else ran off the field toward the dry overhang near the bleachers. "Oh, come on, ref! This is barely a thunderstorm," Coach shouted from the sidelines. Scott, Steve, and Charlie flung their gloves to the ground.
"We got all three, right?" Scott asked as Liam pulled Gwen to where Zach and Jay had Wallace and Okafur.
"Scott, there were four," Liam reminded him. Zach started to pull off his shirt and gear as he watched the Ghost Riders ride around the field.
Scott looked around before grabbing Corey's arm, the two disappearing. "Good idea," Charlie muttered, grabbing where Corey just was. Steve reached where Charlie was before disappearing as well. They watched as a Ghost Rider rode across the field, dragging a screaming Steinbach, his whip attached to the boy's feet until Steinbach disappeared.
Leonard, Mason, and Hayden met Parrish at the front door. "Why did you call me?" the deputy asked.
"The Ghost Riders are afraid of you," Hayden explained.
"What? How do you know?"
"You're the reason he left Gwen. You can stop them. We need you," Mason said.
"The other you," Leonard mentioned when Parrish reached for his gun. Parrish sighed as he nodded to the three of them.
"You were good back there with Jayden," Chris mentioned as they ran through the tunnels.
"Not going to matter if we don't stop Nathan," Kaia replied as the came to a fork.
"I still want to kill him," Malia sighed.
"At this point, so do I," Chris commented. "Which way?"
"This way," Malia said before running off.
Kaia drew her katana as she followed her. "I was joking," Chris told the kitsune.
"He's close to the exit. The Ghost Riders are already at the school. I'm just getting ready."
Steve looked over as a Ghost Rider approached the stands. A handful of the crowd started to stand and stare at the Rider. "Guys," Steve thought as the standing spectators started to run.
"On it," Jay thought. Mud sprayed the others as Jay took off after the Ghost Rider.
Steve looked in front of him and saw four others on horseback riding towards them. "Oh my God, they're real," Okafur shouted.
"We gotta get out of here," Wallace shouted.
"Stay together, we'll protect you," Liam said, holding his hand out to them.
"How?" Gwen asked.
The four Riders continued forward, pulling out their revolvers and whips. "Run!" Scott shouted. They turned to flee but found another set of Riders closing in on them until they were surrounded.
"Stay close," Liam shouted as they made a circle around the three players.
Jay ran past the Rider as he stepped around the bus. The werecheetah dove toward the man as the revolver went off behind him. He grunted as he landed on the ground, flying through a cloud of green smoke. He looked back and saw the Rider aim the gun at him. He jumped to his feet and sprinted away as the revolver fired, the bullet hitting the pavement behind him.
Jay watched as the Rider turned and shot another one of the spectators before walking away. "What the hell," Jay panted before running around the busses.
A Ghost Rider aimed his gun at Okafur and fired over Zach's head. Scott gasped behind them as the boy disappeared. Corey pulled himself away from Scott, Steve, and Charlie. "I can still see them," Scott shouted over the storm.
Liam roared and tackled one of the Riders off his horse as he tried to aim at Gwen. "Playtime," Zach grunted as his wings sprang from his back and he flew at another Rider. Zach tossed the Rider into the air before circling back and spotting Liam punching the Rider he had tackled earlier. Zach grimaced as Liam was tossed aside and watched as Charlie and Steve dove at two of the other Riders.
Scott growled as the Rider Liam tackled stood and aimed at Gwen again, but the alpha froze when Wallace was shot by another Rider. Zach grunted as he dove to the Rider, flinging him off the horse.
"We can't stop them," Liam shouted.
"Protect Gwen!" Scott growled before roaring.
"I got this," Zach called out, swopping toward the girl and lifting her into the air.
"You want what?" Melissa shouted after Ms. Martin asked for Claudia's medical records. "You want what?" she repeated, quietly.
"Claudia's medical records," Lydia repeated. "Just for a minute, we know it's a lot to ask."
"It's up there. It's way up there," Melissa replied.
"As the more recently enlightened of the two of us, just trust me. Fiona and the rest of Steve's pack are telling the truth. There are lives at stake," Ms. Martin said.
"Letting the three of you look at private medical records is completely and utterly against hospital regulations," Melissa responded. The other three looked at each other. "So, we better make this fast."
"You lost it?" Chris asked when Malia came to a stop.
"No. I don't know. Maybe," Malia stammered, spinning around. "It's like he was right here."
"But no Nathan," Chris sighed.
"He's still here. I know it," Malia said.
"Vent," Kaia sighed pointing to the vent in the wall.
Malia put her ear against the wall and listened. "Nathan," Malia yelled looking into the vent. "I know you're there."
"How?" he yelled back.
"Stay put. We're coming to get you," Chris shouted.
"No, you're not," he called back.
"Nathan you're putting everyone at risk," Kaia shouted.
"He's moving," Malia muttered, shaking her head. "You need to stop running! You're going to lead them right to us!" They waited a moment for a response before running off again. "Shoot him," Malia sighed as Nathan ran down the tunnel.
"Did you listen to my story?" Chris asked.
"Run and talk," Kaia said moving after Nathan.
"Just clip him. You clipped me," Malia said as they ran after Kaia.
"You healed," he reminded her. She growled before running past him.
"Come on, just save one," Jay muttered to himself as he ran after a Rider walking into the school. He slid to a stop as the gun went off, taking the woman. He groaned before he looked up and saw Parrish, Leonard, Hayden, and Mason.
"Stay back," Parrish told them as the werecheetah sprinted towards them. Leonard grabbed the werecheetah before he collided with the wall. Jay turned to watch Parrish's body engulf in orange flames as he walked towards the Ghost Rider.
Parrish growled as the last of his uniform burned away before sprinting towards the Rider. The Rider raised his revolver, pointing it at the Hellhound. The Rider fired and Parrish fell to the ground, the flames turning green before they disappeared. "No," Leonard gasped.
Jay and Hayden growled as they shifted before the two ran toward the Ghost Rider, Jay passing the beta. Hayden slid to a stop as Jay was blasted past her when the Ghost Rider vanished in a lightning strike.
"Let go!" Gwen shouted, trying to free herself from Zach's hold.
"Do you not see how far up we are?" Zach replied as he heard the Ghost Riders gallop after him.
"Then go lower," she screamed, grabbing one of his wings. The two spiraled toward the ground, nearly colliding with it before Zach freed himself from her grasp.
"What is wrong with you?" Zach shouted as he heard the horse galloping right behind him.
"I want to be taken!" she cried out.
"You what?" Zach asked before he heard a gun fire behind him.
Steve and Charlie gasped as Gwen rolled on the ground, green smoke floating away behind her. "No!" Scott yelled as Gwen was taken as well. They looked around and noticed the Ghost Riders had vanished.
"Nathan!" Chris called out as they neared the exit. "Nathan!"
"We can keep you safe," Malia shouted as they rounded the corner and saw Nathan climbing the ladder to the exit.
"Bull, I'm out of here," he told them before pushing open the grate. He screamed as he was pulled up before he vanished in a cloud of green smoke.
"Damn it," Kaia muttered, bringing her katana in front of her as a line of Ghost Riders jumped to the ground in front of them, pulling out their revolvers and whips. Malia roared as Chris aimed his rifle at them.
The whip shattered Kaia's katana as Malia ran toward them. Kaia heard Chris groan as the whip struck him. The hunter opened fire as the kitsune flicked out her staff. The whip swung back around as Malia was thrown against the wall, snapping the staff in half before Kaia could take a step forward. The hunter grunted as the whip hit him again. She watched Chris's bullet disappear into the Riders as the approached. The whip snapped back around and struck Chris on his side, before coming around again. He groaned as he slumped to the ground. Kaia moved to fight the Ghost Riders but they grabbed her fist and tossed her into the wall behind them before walking past. She groaned, trying to push herself up as she watched them round the corner before she collapsed on the ground.
"Oh no," Fiona sighed as Melissa signed into the computer.
"What?" Lydia asked turning to the banshee. "The bunker?"
"Everyone, and Zach," Fiona whispered.
Lydia let out a shaky breath as Melissa brought up the medical records. "Sorry, guys. According to her medical records, Claudia never had children."
Ms. Martin sighed as she turned to the two banshees. "Well, but she had—" Lydia said, pointing to the screen.
"Frontotemporal dementia," Melissa read. "There must be a mistake."
"How long ago? She seems fine now," Ms. Martin said.
"Ten years? I'm surprised she's still alive, honestly. It's a miracle," Melissa replied.
"Or a werewolf bite," Fiona said.
"You think she was bitten?" Melissa asked.
"I don't know," Fiona sighed. "It's the only thing that makes sense."
"They got to the bunker," Steve told Scott as they waited for the others to join them in the hallway. "Argent's hurt. They're at the hospital."
"We lost Zach," Charlie sighed, shaking his head.
They looked up as the others came around the corner. Hayden supporting Liam and Leonard holding up Jay. "Everyone from the bunker's been taken," Scott told them.
"Everyone? How?" Mason asked.
"Nathan's an idiot," Jay grunted.
"Malia and Kaia are at the hospital, Argent's been hurt," Scott added.
"Scott," Liam said, pulling away from Hayden. "Tonight—"
"No," Scott said interrupting him. "Hey, it's not your fault. It's mine. We should have done both. Defend the bunker and use a lightning rod. It would have given us a better chance," Scott told Liam before walking toward the door.
"Chris could probably use your help," Charlie said to Leonard. "I've got Jay."
Leonard nodded as Charlie grabbed the werecheetah, black tendrils crawling up the other three's arms as they healed the burns on Jay's body. Steve and Leonard ran out the doors after Scott.
"For what it's worth, I thought the plan would've worked," Steve said once they caught up to Scott.
"The lightning rod would have only bought us a few minutes at best," Leonard added. "We did what we could."
Scott nodded as he got on his bike. "Still feel like we should have done more," he sighed.
"We will, next time," Steve told him.
"We'll have more time to prepare," Leonard added before Scott drove off. Steve and Leonard got in the Camaro before following after him.
"You'll be okay?" Hayden asked Liam after the others left.
"No," Liam muttered before walking into the locker room.
"There he is. Look at that. The humility. The grace," Coach said as Liam walked in. "Sure, that wasn't lacrosse we played out there tonight. That was la-crap!" he spat as he moved to stand beside Liam. "But you, you stayed on the field while the rest of these losers ran inside."
"Coach, we lost, we lost everything," Liam sighed.
"Listen to the despair," Coach said. Charlie looked up and narrowed his eyes at him. Liam shook his head as he looked at the floor. "The rage simmering underneath it. See that, people? He still thinks he can win. That's why next time, he will win. Because he will find a way. Now, show your new captain some love, you pukes!" He shouted, grabbing on to Liam's shoulder. "I said show him some love!"
Charlie shook his head and helped Jay walk toward the door as the players started to chant Liam's name. "We'll get Zach back," Charlie whispered to the werecheetah as he pushed open the door. "Zach, August, and everyone else taken."
"They can keep Nathan," Jay muttered.
Charlie smirked slightly. "I'll bring it up during negotiations."
"I wasn't fast enough to stop them."
Charlie stopped and turned to the werecheetah. "It's not your fault."
"I know," Jay replied, pulling himself away from Charlie. "But I need to figure out how to stop them."
"Leonard's already looked into it."
"He and Mason thought Parrish would be able to, but he couldn't," Jay continued, looking back through the open door, revealing Mason and Hayden. "Leonard's going to be too busy helping Chris," he added, stumbling toward the door.
"Then I'll stay and look into it," Charlie said, grabbing the werecheetah.
Jay shook his head. "You know Steve the best. You know his and August's relationship the best. That's where we need you right now. I need to work with others."
Charlie nodded before letting Jay go. The beta watched as the werecheetah stumbled back into the school.
Malia and Kaia walked beside Chris as Melissa and another nurse pushed his bed into the ICU. Scott, Steve, and Leonard ran to meet them at the room. "Is he okay?" Scott asked.
"He has blunt force trauma to his temporal bone, three broken ribs, and multiple surface lacerations which seem to be from—uh—whip marks. What he needs is a lot of rest," Melissa told him before wheeling Chris into the room. Leonard followed them in.
"What happened?" Lydia asked as she and Fiona met the group.
"The Ghost Riders took everyone. We barely slowed them down."
"They took Zach too," Steve added, looking to Fiona. "He tried to protect Gwen."
"I know," Fiona whispered.
"Tell us you found something," Scott said, looking to Lydia.
"I found out Claudia never had children. So, Stiles can't be her son," Lydia said.
"What about a relic?" Malia asked. Lydia shook her head. "There never was a Stiles, was there?"
"It doesn't even sound like a real name," Scott added.
"We have to keep looking," Lydia said. "Check the school records again, or call Scott's dad—"
"Stiles is a person," Fiona added. "We'll find something to prove it."
Malia shook her head. "We're fighting the wrong battle."
"We're trying to bring Stiles back," Lydia reminded her.
"The Ghost Riders came back. We still have no way of stopping them. And whatever they are, they're real. We can't keep chasing someone who isn't," Malia said.
"We also have no way of bringing the people they take back. You saw them tonight," Kaia said. "Gwen, Zach, and everyone else who were taken tonight. They're real and need to be saved."
"But Stiles didn't leave anything behind," Scott sighed.
"Just us," Lydia told him.
"We can do both," Steve said turning to Scott. "You said we should have done both tonight, let's do both now. Figure out how to stop the Ghost Riders and bring everyone back."
"We'd be wasting time," Malia told him.
"Then we'll look into it, you focus on stopping the Ghost Riders," Steve told her.
"You could heal him like you did Malia," Melissa suggested as Chris grabbed her hand.
"That was a different situation, I don't think we'd be able to set that up now," Leonard sighed. Melissa looked at the werelion confused. "I can't take pain or heal others, I don't know if Steve remembers how, Jay's been electrocuted and needs to heal himself first, Charlie's not here, and even if he were I don't know if Chris would be able to survive the ordeal."
"So, we just wait until he recovers," Melissa sighed.
"I can check and see if anything would help speed up the process," Leonard told her, pulling out his phone.
"I don't know why it didn't work," Mason sighed as they waited in the parking lot. Jay wobbled a bit before catching himself on one of the street lights. "You should probably get some rest, you were really close to that lightning strike."
"I just need something to go on," Jay sighed.
"What's taking Liam so long?" Corey asked as the last player left.
Hayden shrugged before walking toward the locker room, Mason and Corey followed, helping Jay walk with them. They stepped into the locker room and found Liam alone, restringing his lacrosse stick. "Liam?" Hayden asked.
"What're you still doing here?" Mason asked. Liam ignored them as he tightened a knot.
"Everyone's gone," Hayden said.
"Literally," Corey added. "And we should go too."
The four of them glanced at each other as Liam continued to ignore them. "Do you want a ride?" Mason asked.
"I want to catch one," Liam muttered. Jay perked up and lifted himself off of Mason and Corey.
Liam set the stick down and moved for the door. "You want to catch one?" Corey asked as they followed after.
"One of the Ghost Riders?" Hayden asked.
"Yeah, go home," Liam told them, walking out the door without turning around.
The other four paused looking at each other. "I can't run as fast as normal right now, so I'm leaving you guys behind," Jay said stumbling past them.
Corey and Mason supported the werecheetah as they followed after Liam. The beta stopped and turned to them once they reached the parking lot. He shrugged at them before taking a few more steps. "We're not going," Mason said when Liam turned around again.
"We're not leaving you," Hayden added.
"Somebody just made team captain, right?" Corey added.
"Yeah, I guess I did," Liam said, nodding at them before stopping at Jay.
"They took my friend," Jay said. "If you want to catch one, then I'm going to help."
"Then let's catch a Ghost Rider," Liam said as they walked past an old blue Jeep.'
Charlie walked up the stairs and found Steve, leaning in the doorway of August's empty room and rotating the spatha in his hand. "He wasn't my boyfriend," Steve said once Charlie was behind him. "Not technically."
"You were never one for labels," the beta replied, with a slight smirk.
"I think it's my biggest regret," Steve sighed, staring at the sword.
"You remember?"
"frusta et fragmina," Steve replied. "I remember some of sparing with him, languages, the tattoo, the way it felt to be linked to him. But, I can't remember his face, or his voice outside of what Zach showed me," the alpha sighed. He paused for a moment before looking at Charlie. "Why didn't you kill Blake?"
"You were about to. Figured you make a better leader with your connection to the others."
"Did I?"
"I think so. I think the others do too," Charlie replied.
"How'd we wind up with such a mismatched pack?" Steve asked, turning to Charlie.
"You don't remember why you picked them?"
Leonard lifted Chris's shirt and took a picture of the lash marks. He sighed as he walked out of the room, scrolling through his phone.
"Figure anything out?" Melissa asked him once he stepped into a hall.
The werelion shook his head. "I'll let you know if I find anything. For now, just let him rest and continue care," he said looking up at her for a moment before he returned to his phone and walked down the hall.
"You really should slow down," Mason commented, grabbing Jay as he stumbled forward in the parking lot.
"Werecheetahs don't take things slow," Jay told him.
"Seriously, you got hit with a bolt of lightning," Mason said.
"Not directly," Jay said, straightening up. "I'll slow down once we catch one of them and save my friends."
"No," Steve muttered shaking his head.
"Lydia, you can't give up," Fiona said as she pulled up to the other banshee's house.
"We looked. Stiles didn't leave anything," Lydia sighed.
"We didn't look everywhere. We were so close."
"Did Stiles have a habit of putting things in walls?" Lydia muttered before getting out of the car.
"Lydia—" Fiona started before the other banshee closed the door behind her. Fiona sighed and stepped out of the car, looking over the roof as Lydia walked away. "I'm not going to give up," she called out to the other banshee. Lydia paused and turned from the door. "And I know you won't either. I'll be there when you're ready to start looking again."
Kaia hopped back into the tunnel and picked up her broken katana. She sighed, spinning the fractured blade in her hand before glancing back to the ladder. She stood where she had when the Ghost Riders attacked, walking through the fight in her mind.
"A whip," she muttered, opening her eyes and looking down at her katana. She examined the break and noticed a black line running along it. The blade clattered to the ground as she walked towards the broken metal staff. "Same thing," she whispered before walking toward the ladder. She knelt on the ground where the ghost riders stood. A faint silver color shined on the dirty floor.
Flames licked around her hands, she ran her hand over the floor and the silver started to pool. She narrowed her eyes before looking up at the sky.
"Then let's get you to remember why," Charlie told him.
August looked up from his newspaper, looking around the train station he was in.