Only the dead have seen the end of the war.
-George Santayana
Right after midnight the back patio of the mansion looked like a battlefield. There were dead bodies, severed limbs, and wails of anguish. Victory, however triumphant, is soaked in blood, whether it be soldier or civilian losses.
Earlier that night:
After talking to Klaus and drinking his blood to heal, Tyler called his mom to update her and invite her over to the current get together. He knew his mother was busy with work, Mystic Falls always came first in his family, but he figured it couldn't hurt to ask if she wanted to join them.
"Mom, you can come out to the house now. We're just hanging out here but the Mikaelsons invited everyone to a little celebration. If you are not busy or anything...," Tyler said, feeling odd inviting his own mother over, like she was a friend.
"What? I thought the party was later tonight at the property?" Carol asked surprised.
He told her that that party was still on, but he didn't tell her any of the 'additional' details. There was zero chance that Carole Lockwood would crash her son's party, even if it was on their property.
"Honey, I have to go. Ah, be careful at the party tonight. Love you," Carol said hanging up without a response from him.
"Love you, too," Tyler said to no one in particular.
"Hey Ty! This house is amazing. I can't believe you guys haven't had me over before. These people look like celebrities. I mean, what do they do?" Caroline babbled staring at Rebekah and Marcel dancing closer to the house.
"I love her dress," Caroline whined and was surprised when Rebekah looked directly at her.
Elijah and Freya were passing out drinks and another group consisting of Alaric, Damon, and Klaus were talking tightly in a circle.
"Hey, Car. Sorry, we should have had you over sooner. It's been hectic here, you know," Tyler admitted. He realized that Caroline looked very pretty in her pink summer dress. It suited her blond hair and light coloring. He used to think that maybe there could be something between them, but he wasn't sure anymore.
Caroline talked to Tyler about cheerleading, the football team, the new menu at the Grill, how her mother was unfair, that it was cool his mom was now mayor, and homecoming for about twenty minutes. He nodded politely but his mind was on the party tonight. What if something went wrong and someone got hurt? Would that since be his fault? What did these hunters want? Did his mom know more than she was sharing?
"Hey, have you talked to Matt?" Tyler asked seeing Matt and Jeremy hanging out playing around with the music.
"Yeah, he seemed fine. It's nice he doesn't have to work constantly at the Grill. I always said to my mom that someone should take Matt in, especially after Vicky died. But you know my mom, she's so busy being sheriff, she hardly knows I'm alive. How's your mom holding up?"
"Actually, she was just a little weird on the phone. I invited her over and she practically hung up on me. Hey Car, did you mom ever talk about the town council?" Tyler asked innocently. He worried if Caroline knew about the real purpose of the council: keeping Mystic Falls free of vampires. They were doing a real bang up job so far!
"Town council crap. Like who even cares, Ty? What? Do you want to be the mayor next or something? Ew. Hey are you and Matt fighting? Why is he over there with Jeremy? There was a time when you used beat up Jeremy and Matt would stand behind you trying to brother Elena's little brother. Things are getting weird, Elena's never around much anymore unless she needs something. But anyway, so Matt is ticked at you and...?," Caroline questioned.
"Yeah, I did something stupid and he's just kind of sick of me. I guess I just take Matt for granted. I even take Jeremy for granted, like I assumed I got just push him around forever and he'd never push back. I'm trying not to be the dick I've always been. My d-, I mean, Klaus is helping me with that," Tyler confided.
"You and Matt will be fine. Tyler, yeah, you can be a dick, but we still love you. I mean, you know how high mait-," Caroline stopped and realized that he wasn't listening. Kol caught her eye from across the yard.
"Tyler, are you listening to me? Fill me on the one brother, Kol. He's very flirtatious, yet handsome. But when I was like talking to him, Bonnie passed by and I was suddenly invisible. So rude. But then Damon was staring at me, but not in a nice way, more like he wanted to eat me. Ewww. Oh, how about Elena being MIA? It's like she doesn't even-"Caroline never finished her sentence because there was an explosion.
"Get down," Tyler yelled. Smoke seemed to pour all over the air.
Seraphina heard the explosion and knew what she had to do. She had never had the Sight before. Her mother, being a seer who could see glimpses of the future, was very rare in a witch, but Seraphina saw the future in that split second. She saw the Originals captured by powerful hunters, they were not just mere mortals, but among a Hunter of Five. Seraphina had never seen the markings on two of them. It looked like a map inked into their flesh. The humans were taken and tortured, one to death. The werewolf boy triggered his curse and the other vampires were burned alive at dawn. The human man, formally a vampire hunter, was taken away in a van. She saw the witches, now her coven, in chains rotting in a dark place for many days. The die was cast, her life had been cut short when the witches of her own coven poisoned her. She was never meant to have been brought back. It was time. The thought did not upset her.
The first explosion was a diversion to throw everything awry. The second explosion was to maim. Tyler grabbed Caroline and threw himself over her fragile form. Shards of sharpnel entered his back and arms, he didn't feel anything, though.
Bullets and bolts started flying through the air from the tree line. An army in black swarmed around from the front of the house in full battle gear.
Klaus yelled to the mortals to go to the safe room. Alaric tried to steer Bonnie, Jeremy, Matt, Freya, and Seraphina inside while Damon and Marcel helped. Damon was caught in the shoulder by a shot and immediately crumpled to the ground. It was either cursed or laced with vervain or some poison. Marcel fell next, then Kol.
Elijah began to tear the heads from the attackers as fast as he could until he too was felled by a magical series of crossbow bolts.
Klaus vamped out to the tree line to see what he could find there. Bonnie and Freya started casting a spell of protection inside the kitchen area, when they noticed Seraphina was outside. The vision passed and now she had to act.
Seraphina drew as much power as she could and used it to burn to ash every single soldier she could see. She had never used her wild power so freely. Some of the men only burned partially and died screaming. Others she smashed into the ground or the patio with great force. Once she started, the other hunters tried to disperse but they were dead men already.
Matt and Jeremy heard the horrific screams and realized Tyler and Caroline never made it inside. Despite Alaric's shout for them to go to safety they broke away and ran outside. The last solider alive shot Matt in the stomach as soon as he got outside. Seraphina burned him and the gun he shot Matt with, melted instantly into the blood splattered patio.
Matt fell down bloody. Jeremy screamed and kneeled beside him.
Seraphina's small body ran over and she placed her hands on his wound. With the last of her strength she healed him.
"Seraphina, it's too much. You'll die yourself," Bonnie gasped.
"My dear, I was already dead. Consecrate my body with your ancestors. You can draw on me for power. My mother, the former regent, does not wish to come back in the flesh. We'll help from the other side. Freya, that should help bring back your brother. Thank you for giving me, a home, a coven. It is long part my time..." Seraphina fell to the patio. As she died, her form changed to that of her original body. The red hair turned into brown locks and her short form lengthened to that of a women. Her skin was bronzed and she smiled at they held her hand. And then she was gone and Matt drew a breath.
Alaric shook Matt slightly and he opened up his eyes. Matt's stomach was smooth, yet his shirt was covered in a blood and the hole where the bullet tore through remained.
"Kid, I hope you wake up, so I can kill you," Alaric huffed.
Matt blinked again,"What happened?"
Alaric shook his head, "I think you died."
Jeremy made it to Tyler and Caroline.
"Are you guys okay?" Jeremy shouted.
Caroline was dirty and dazed, and silent for once.
Tyler was taking off his shirt. Bits of metal were popping out of his skin.
"I should be dead. Dad's blood healed me!" Tyler exclaimed.
The vampires were waking up quickly. They had been poisoned and shot but the effects were wearing off.
"Is everyone okay? Where's Seraphina? Where's Klaus?" Tyler called.
Klaus vamped back holding two figures clad in black in his arms. He threw them to the ground.
"I found these two in a van, not far from the room. There was another truck load of soldiers that I decommissioned, so to speak," Klaus spat.
Elijah brushed himself off and came over and ripped the black balaclavas off them.
"Mom?" Tyler screeched, still shirtless but now healed.
"Honey? They said if I didn't help. They would kill you," Carol Lockwood said in ragged breaths.
"Kill me? If I didn't just get healed with vampire blood before this, I'd be dead! They lied to you. Why would you side with the hunters? Were you going to let them kill my family?" Tyler shouted, as Caroline pulled him back.
"I didn't have a choice. They said they were the Brotherhood of the Five and couldn't be killed by vampires, or they would curse them. I thought you were in grave danger," Carol continued.
"Mayor Lockwood, they lied to you. Your devotion to your son will save your life. Now who do we have here? Quite a beauty for someone aligned with such a viscous act," Klaus said looking at the attractive brunette beside her.
Kol vamped over, "That's the teacher from the school. Vanessa, is it not?"
Alaric confirmed, "Vanessa! I thought you were on our side. How did they get to you?"
Vanessa was confused, "I don't know. I can't remember."
"We'll all on vervain, so I don't know how she could have been compelled," Alaric wondered.
Elijah frowned, "The only thing we can do is keep these two here and make sure they are free of vervain. Then, we can compel them again to find out what they know and wipe this memory from their minds."
Tyler breathed out a sigh of relief,"Thanks."
Jeremy suddenly yelled, "Guys!"
"What is it?" Rebekah asked looking him over.
"This tattoo is appearing on my arms. What is happening?" Jeremy cried.
"I think you are now becoming a hunter, Jeremy. You are the next in the Brotherhood of the Five," Rebekah gasped looking terrified at Klaus and Elijah.
"Oh God," Klaus said.
"It's okay, Jeremy. We'll deal with it," Elijah said giving Klaus a look.
"Matthew, are you okay?" Klaus said shifting his attention.
"Yeah, I got shot, but Seraphina healed me and died. It's my fault she died. Alaric, I'm sorry we didn't listen to you," Matt admitted.
"You boys could be dead right now. Klaus, Matt and Jeremy ran out for Tyler and Caroline and Matt got shot so quickly. I tried to stop them," Alaric said feeling like a failure.
"Thank you for trying. We need to clean this up and take care of Seraphina. She gave up everything for us," Klaus said kneeling down and putting his lips on her forehead.
Bonnie and Freya took Seraphina's body to consecrate next to Bonnie's Grams. The vampires were all encouraged to dip into the Mikaelson's ample blood supply to recover from the poison or toxin they were infected with.
Kol drove home Caroline after she showered and changed into one of Rebekah's dresses. No one needed the Sheriff looking for her daughter and finding the remains of a massacre.
Before Alaric left, Klaus thanked him again for trying to save Matt and Jeremy. Alaric promised to look into his sources to see how the hunters got to Vanessa. He feared that the hunters had their own witch or some other supernatural means of control.
"We've dealt with the Brotherhood of the Five before. I've actually gotten their curse before. It took 70 years for it to wear off. But if Jeremy is one of them now..." Klaus started.
"He will have the urge to hunt vampires non-stop. I'm so sorry, Klaus. Let me look at the lore and see if anything can be done. He's a brave kid," Alaric complimented.
Marcel had been standing there and wondered, "Maybe too brave?"
"Yes, much too brave for his own good. They almost died tonight," Klaus lamented.
"I think Matt did die. I can't be sure, but for a second before Seraphina healed him, I didn't think he was breathing. I really did try to stop them. Kids these days, huh?" Alaric said patting Klaus on the shoulder and leaving.
"Ah, thanks for the party?" Damon said following him.
Klaus put his arm around Marcel and gasped, "If something happened to you or the boys...I can't believe they would run out like cowboys into a firefight."
"I do. They wanted to help. Maybe to be heroes. We were falling to those darts. But how many times have you told them to go to the safe room, if there was danger? Damnit!" Marcel ranted to Klaus.
"Many. We have to clean up the bodies in the back and sweep the property again. But at some point, I'm going to deal with this. Matt and Jeremy know better than to put their lives needlessly in danger," Klaus agreed.
"Klaus, you go deal with all that. I can talk to them. Maybe do more, if they aren't getting the message. I guess I am their big brother now, I should start acting like it," Marcel offered.
"Thank you, Son. I feel like I am too shaken to take care of this. After being so hard on Tyler...I can't do it again. I guess my blood may have saved him, too. Let them sleep tonight. Tomorrow should be fine. Thank you, Marcellus. It means a lot," Klaus said hugging him. Klaus and the other Originals went back out to scour the property for any remaining hunters or clues to how they got through the Mikaelson's formidable defenses. Their senses were always their first defense, but they also had a wall around the property, a security system, and a few guards. The guards were all found dead.
Elijah took a minute to clear out Seraphina's room. He couldn't stand to look at it. He put the few possessions she had such as her clothes, broken doll and the doll house catalog on the burn pile. Later that night they burned everything they could. But in this bonfire, the Mikaelsons didn't burn wishes, just the bodies of their enemies and a few sad leftovers from an innocent life lost.