'La Iglesia?' I said sceptically to Derek as we walked down the spiral staircase. 'Doesn't sound that terrifying.'

'It's where Kate took me when she aged me backwards,' he explained.

'Ah, so that's how you ended up as a sixteen-year-old,' I teased and he shot me a look that told me to shut up. I smirked. 'You were a cute teenager, you know, weird as hell, but still cute.'

'Ha ha ha,' he said sarcastically, though I could tell he was trying to supress a smile. We walked over to the table where a large selection of guns lay. They were mostly ones I had kept in a small cupboard hidden away in my apartment for the past year or so. I had gotten them from Dylan's old apartment after I had escaped the 'research' facility. The others were ones Argent had given us a few days ago to defend ourselves.

'I still don't like relying on these things,' Derek sighed as he leaned against the table, looking at all the weapons.

'I get it,' I replied. 'You miss your power. I would too.' It was true. Although most of the time I resented my abilities for giving me the life that had, always on the run, always looking over my shoulder, I wasn't sure what I would do if they were suddenly ripped away from me.

'It's not about power, it's about being able to help,' Derek said sadly. 'I don't like feeling helpless.'

'I don't have super human strength or speed,' I said 'do I look helpless?'

'You're a much better shot than me,' he said with a weak smile, glancing up at me before looking back at the table.

'Do you really think you won't be coming back?' I asked as I frowned at him.

'Not alive,' he said defeatedly. I walked around the table, coming closer to him as I gazed into his gorgeous green eyes.

'You know I'm not okay with that,' I said sincerely, my voice holding more intensity than it ever had before. He looked up at me suddenly as if the words he heard me say were unexpected. After everything, did he really think I would be okay with him dying? He walked closer to me, cupping my cheek with his hand, the other on my waist as he pulled me closer to him. He kissed me so softly as if I would break, though the only thing that was hurting was my heart. His other hand came up to hold the other side of my face as he pulled his lips from mine, resting his forehead against mine. His eyes were still closed, as if he couldn't bear to see the sadness and desperation in my eyes.

'I am,' he said softly. 'If it saves Scott and Kira,' he finished, finally opening his eyes to gaze into mine.

'I can't lose you.' I whispered the words so quietly I wasn't sure if I had really said them. His hands trailed down my arms and he held my hands in his, pulling me towards him as he pressed another kiss to my forehead. I felt tears start to form in my eyes and he pulled away, as though if he remained closer to me any longer, tears would fill his own eyes.

'To be honest,' he said, leaning back against the table, his hands slowly drifting away from mine, 'I don't even know if this is enough firepower to take down one Berserker.'

'Not even close,' said another voice as the sound of footsteps descending the stairs filled the loft. It was Peter. He scoffed at his own words. 'Killing a Berserker is next to impossible.' I had to restrain myself from picking up one of the guns and shooting him right then and there. But I remembered Argent's warning, satisfying myself with just a glare. 'It's not just the firepower, it's breaking the animal spirit from the human.'

'Well, the one person we know with that kind of experience is Argent,' Derek said and I felt a pang of guilt in my chest. 'And he's not getting back to me.'

'Well, then you're going to need help,' he said, his eyes darting to me. I felt nervous under his gaze but I kept my features schooled, simply maintaining my icy glare. 'Like Malia, maybe Liam,' he said quickly and I scoffed. There was no way in hell that kid with the anger issues was coming. 'Definitely me.'

'You know I think this is a terrible plan, right?' I told Stiles as I handed him the keys to the prison transport van. Stiles, Malia, Liam and I had all congregated in the garage under Derek's loft building. Apparently Liam had insisted on coming on our little road trip to Mexico, resulting in Stiles phoning me saying we needed to find something we could transport him in for the full moon. I begrudgingly had told him I would take care of it, though now, I really regretted my decision.

'How did you even get this?' Stiles asked me, seemingly a little scared that I managed to get my hands on this kind of vehicle.

'Scott's dad is an FBI agent,' I started.

'Do I really wanna know the rest?' Stiles asked, an awkward frown on his face. I deliberated telling him how I had broken into the McCall household when Melissa was a work and lifted the keys off of Scott's father whilst he was sleeping on the couch, but decided against it.

'Only that if I get arrested for taking it I'm gonna kill you,' I said, a sarcastically friendly smile on my face. Stiles shuddered at the thought before nodding. I felt eyes on me and I turned, meeting Liam's quizzical and nervous gaze with a hard glare. He instantly looked away. I smiled. The sound of a car door slamming brought all are attentions to Derek and Peter who had just joined us.

'Are we really bringing him?' Derek asked, gesturing to Liam. My thoughts exactly.

'Are we really bringing him?' Stiles threw back, referring to Peter. I scoffed.

'We're bringing everyone that we can,' Peter said, narrowing his eyes at Stiles. 'And considering Scott and Kira were taken the night before a full moon, we should probably get going.'

'What's that mean?' Malia asked.

'If Kate took Scott back to the same temple that she took Derek, how do we know she's not planning to do the same thing to him?' Peter said. I frowned at his words. He was really making an effort to show that he wanted to help Scott. I suspected it was all bullshit.

'What, she wants to make him younger?' Liam asked.

'Or take him back to when he wasn't a werewolf,' Derek suggested.

'A werewolf can't steal a true Alpha's power,' Peter said. 'But maybe a Nagual jaguar, with the power of Tezcatlipoca behind her... Maybe she can. So, if everyone is sufficiently freaked out, I say we get going.' Peter finished.

'We can't,' Stiles said, all eyes including mine snapping to him. 'Not without Lydia.'

'What's she doing at the school anyway?' I asked Malia as Stiles paced around the garage, his phone pressed to his ear.

'We got Kira's sword, but we need something with a stronger scent,' Malia explained. 'Lydia went to get a jacket out of her locker.'

'Nothing,' Stiles said as he walked over, a worried look on his face.

'Hey, maybe if she has a car, she can catch up to us,' I suggested, trying to keep positive.

'That's a good point. We'll call her from the road,' Peter said quickly and I shot him a glare.

'No. What if something happened?' Stiles said. 'What if she's in trouble?'

'Fine. You stay, you find her. We're gonna go on without you.,' Peter said.

'Hey!' I yelled to him, 'back off Big Bad Wolf,' I spat at him, the tension between the group growing with every second.

'I could call Mason,' Liam suggested, referring to his friend. 'He has a study group at school. Maybe he could look for her.' Derek raised his eyebrows at Stiles, signalling that maybe it was a good idea.

'All right. Fine,' Stiles said reluctantly. Liam went to call Mason as we all walked to our respective vehicles. I saw Stiles pulling Malia aside, no doubt to tell his girlfriend that she would have to ride with Peter alone. They broke apart and Stiles walked over to the large black van.

'Remember what we're dealing with,' Peter said suddenly as he pulled a jacket over his shoulders. 'It's not just Kate, it's Berserkers. You might see human eyes behind those skulls. Do not assume that there's any humanity left.' I noticed Liam shift uncomfortably and I bet that his heart was beating a thousand times a minute. 'Oh,' Peter said condescendingly as he noticed Liam's fear. 'This little one is terrified of them, aren't you? Don't worry, my friend. It is that fear that will keep you alive.'

'A reminder to everyone. You do not fight Berserkers to survive, you fight to kill,' he finished before sliding into the driver's seat of his SUV.

I walked around to the back of the van, opening up the double doors to let the others and myself in. To my unexpected dismay, Stiles threw me the keys as he clambered into the back of the van. I fumbled with them, not expecting to have to catch something until I looked at him, an irritated glare on my face.

'What the hell do you think you're doing?' I asked Stiles as Derek and Liam climbed in too.

'Sitting in a van?' he said like he was asking a question.

'No way in hell are you sitting back here with him,' I said, pointing to Liam. 'You're driving,' I said.

'Um, no I'm not. I have experience with out of control werewolves on a full moon,' he said as if it was obvious. I glared at him.

'Well I have experience with surviving lethal attacks so I think I win,' I told him, my tone icy and irritated.

'Would one of you just drive,' Derek said, rolling his eyes at us, 'you're wasting time.'

'Watch it, Hale,' I warned, 'I'm not exactly happy with you sitting back here either,' I snapped. I saw Stiles' eyes darting between Derek and I as if he was figuring something out. I guessed he was probably coming to the conclusion that there in fact was something going on between the two of us. I could see him about to open his mouth but I shot him a silencing glare. 'Fine,' I said begrudgingly, 'but we're switching at nightfall,' I told Stiles before slamming the double doors shut and climbing into the driver's seat.

'Yeah, her car's here,' the voice that I assumed belonged to Mason said through the speaker phone, though I had never actually met him. 'You want me to look around the school and see if I can find her?'

'Yeah, definitely. Call me as soon as you find her,' Liam replied before hanging up. We had been driving for a good hour and a half and we were currently in desert terrain. I focused on the driving, following Peter's car in front of us, rather than thinking about what would happen when we arrived, or what would happen when the full moon came out. I glanced behind me through the grating to see Stiles and Derek fixing a pair of handcuffs around the young beta's wrists and chaining him to the metal bench.

'You know, I still hate this plan!' I yelled back to them, but they didn't take any notice.

'All good?' I heard Derek ask. 'I brought something to help you,' he said and in the mirror I saw him pull out a small circular object. 'This has been with my family for centuries. It's a very powerful, supernatural talisman,' Derek explain. 'We use it to teach Betas how to control themselves on a full moon.' I rolled my eyes at his words as he passed the triskelion to Liam.

'Yes, it's powerful,' Stiles said, clearing his throat and trying to sound mysterious. 'Very powerful.' I huffed loudly, hoping the two idiots in the back could hear my distaste at them attempting to control the young werewolf by lying to him. I really hate this plan.

After another couple of hours, the sun had fallen below the horizon and the sky had darkened. I gripped the steering wheel apprehensively, by heart thumping in my chest loudly.

'Okay, Stiles. Moon's out, time to switch,' I called out to the teen behind me. I turned back, catching Derek's eye as he smiled reassuringly. Suddenly, Liam groaned loudly, the young beta pulling at his cuffs as he breathed heavily. It was happening.

'Whatever you were gonna teach me…' Liam panted as his eyes glowed a brilliant amber, 'I think you better start.' The beta continued to breathe heavily as Derek tried to help him.

'Liam, you with me?' Derek said worriedly. I snapped my head behind me to see Liam shaking almost uncontrollably, his face gleaming with sweat. I didn't like this at all. 'We have a mantra that we use,' Derek continued, trying to calm the beta. 'You repeat it; you focus on the words. It's like meditating. You say the words until you feel control coming back to you.'

'Okay. Okay, okay! What are the words?' Liam shouted, trying his hardest to keep control.

'Guy, this is making me really nervous!' I yelled back at them.

'Okay, look at the triskelion,' Derek continued. 'See the symbol? I have a tattoo on my back, it's the same thing. Each spiral means something.'

'Alpha, Beta, Omega,' I heard Stiles say.

'It represents the idea that we can always rise to one and fall back to another. Betas can become Alphas…' Derek said.

'Alphas can become Betas,' Stiles continued.

'Can Alphas become Omegas?' Liam asked and I turned my head back to see Derek nodding.

'Yeah well the beta can also kill the two idiots!' I yelled, the panic in my voice evident.

'Alex!' Stiles shouted, 'you're not helping,' he argued, silencing me.

'All you have to do is say the three words. And with each one, you tell yourself you're getting calmer, more in control,' Derek said, ignoring my outburst. 'Go ahead.'

'Alpha, Beta...' Liam started.

'Slower,' Derek instructed.

'Alpha... Beta... Omega...' Liam repeated as he groaned, the strength of the full moon beginning to overpower him. 'Alpha... Beta... Omega...'

'Good. Say it again,' Derek said. 'Remember, every time you say the words, you're getting calmer.'

'Alpha, Beta... Omega.' This time Liam growled the words and I was sure that if I was a normal human, I would have had a heart attack.

'Wow, wow,' I heard Stiles mumble worriedly. 'Derek, I don't think the powerful talisman of self-control is working.'

'Stiles! What the hell is happening back there?' I yelled, trying to focus on driving and making sure nobody was getting slaughtered behind me.

'Liam, say it again!' Derek demanded as the beta continued to roar.

'That's it!' I yelled. 'I'm pulling over, Stiles, we're switching!' I shouted back to him.

'No!' Stiles yelled back. 'If we open the doors now he could get out! We'll never find him.'

'Fuck!' I shouted in anger to no one in particular. I knew this was a ludicrous idea, and I could only blame myself for letting it get this far.

'Liam!' Derek barked, trying to get him to calm down. Now the beta was writhing in his seat, pulling at the flimsy cuffs that held his clawed hands in place. He was causing the whole van to shake and I was almost losing control of it as it swerved down the dusty road. Suddenly there was a snapping sound and I turned to see that Liam as broken out of his restraints and was now clawing at the others.

'Derek?' I said warningly as he tried to restrain the beta himself.

'I think we're gonna need to go a little faster,' Stiles said from his position cowering in the corner.

'Shall I pull over?' I yelled back to them.

'Keep going!' Derek yelled. 'Liam! Liam...' I heard him shout through Liam's growls and screams.

'We're almost there,' I assured them as I noticed the ground in front of us start to level.

'Keep focus!' Derek shouted to Liam as he held the beta's arms, keeping his claws away from him.

'Derek, I don't think Alpha, Beta, Omega is resonating with him,' Stiles said.

'You know any other mantras?' Derek yelled as Liam growled again.

'Yeah. I do,' he said suddenly. 'Liam, Liam. What three things cannot long be hidden?' Stiles said and I knew where he was going with this. I myself had heard werewolves chanting this back when I was in the 'research' facility. They would chant it every full moon to try and remain in control. 'Liam! Liam, look at me. What three things cannot long be hidden?'

'Sun... The moon... The truth,' Liam replied.

'That's it. Say it again,' Stiles demanded.

'Sun, the moon... The truth,' Liam repeated, suddenly sounding a lot calmer.

'Derek?' I asked, making sure he was fine.

'We're okay,' he assured me as the three of them panted heavily.

'Sun... Moon... And the truth,' Liam said for a final time. I turned back to see that his fangs and claws were gone, along with his amber eyes. I followed Peter in the SUV down a narrow road as we entered the small town, finally coming to a stop beside the car. 'I can't believe I did it,' Liam said and I let out a sigh of relief. 'For a minute there, I thought I was gonna tear the two of you apart,' Liam said and I shook my head.

'Yeah. That would've made for an awkward ride home,' Stiles said. 'So, thanks.'

'Think you can bring the same level of control and strength inside La Iglesia?' Derek asked and I turned to watch Liam throw his hand out, his claws extending right on cue.

'All right,' Stiles said, 'we might actually be able to do this.' I rolled my eyes and shook my head at how they were all acting so calm after what we had just been through. 'Alex? You good?' Stiles called to me, a cheeky smile on his lips. I shook my head.

'I hate all three of you,' I said bluntly as Derek went to open the door of the van, although really, I was just happy we were all safely here.

However, my relieved demeanour was shattered when Derek was yanked from the vehicle by what I could only presume was a berserker.

AN: Dun dun duuuuuuuun! Get ready for some sadness in the next chapter :'( which is also gonna be the last one :( :( :( but hey! There's gonna be a sequel so happy days :D

This story reached 100 followers the other day which I was super happy about so thank you so much to everyone who reads/follows/favourites/reviews this story! It means so much 3

Hope you liked this chapter and let me know what you thought! Much love x