Stacie lifted her head as she heard the echoing sound of footsteps moving towards her, feeling herself begin to tremble at the thought of any of them approaching her again. Why couldn't they just leave her alone? Was it not enough that they had torn her family to shreds, that they killed her father, that they had stolen her magic? Did they have to torture her as well?

Her heart clenched as Calamity, Charity and Veracity stalked towards her, pressing herself against the wall behind her. All three of them at once… that didn't bode well, what did they want? There were devilish grins shared between them as Stacie's nostrils flared, her chain bound hands clenched into fists.

"Well hello little Conrad…" Veracity smirked, "We've been thinking, there are far more fun ways for us to play with you than we have been doing. In fact, we think we might enjoy this even more than our other games."

"Leave me alone…" Stacie mumbled, trying to look small and unappealing to the women towering menacingly over her, "Just go away."

"Nah." Calamity smirked, "We're going to do our thing instead. Hold her."

Stacie was weak from her time at their hands, but she still struggled as furiously as she could against Veracity and Charity as they dragged her to her feet, the latter grabbing her chin, pushing her fingers into the side of Stacie's jaw until her mouth was forced open. Stacie fought against them, eyes wide with fear as Calamity pulled a vial out of her back pocket, cork from it discarded as she waved it in front of Stacie's face.

"Want to know what this is?" Calamity taunted, eyebrow raised as Stacie tried to tug herself free of the hands holding her, tears starting to well in her eyes. She didn't want to know it was, she wanted them to leave her alone, why couldn't they just leave her alone?

"It's a neat little thing, it makes you hypersensitive to everything… every touch, every stir in the air, every breath… a couple of drops is enough to drive a person insane."

Stacie grunted as she tried to pull away again, Veracity's hand tangling into her hair as they made sure Stacie couldn't wriggle out of their grasp. Calamity put her thumb over the opening to the vial in her hand, holding it over Stacie's pried open mouth, a drop hitting Stacie's tongue as their captive bucked and twisted trying to free herself, tears starting to run down her cheeks. Another drop hit her tongue before they finally let go of her, Stacie crumbling to the ground, trembling as her heart pounded in her chest.

Her body was starting to tingle, Stacie glaring up at the women sneering above her, trying desperately to keep all traces of fear out of her expression. They were getting to her, they were really getting to her now, but she couldn't let them know that. Stacie was in pain and terrified all the time, but she had to hold on. Beca and Chloe had both held on, surely she could too?

It happened very suddenly, Stacie letting out a sharp gasp as the rocks under her palms suddenly felt like knives against her skin, the breath she took making her lungs sting and cry out as she fell onto her side. The force of it felt like a car colliding with her ribs, a sob escaping her lips as she heard Calamity, Charity and Veracity start to laugh at her. The noise was piercing, Stacie wanting to clap her hands over ears to drown it out but they were still bound tight in chains, the metal rubbing and bruising at her with every twitch.

"Get her on her feet." Veracity hummed, "I've got an idea."

Stacie whimpered and cried as strong hands grabbed her arms, the pressure akin to someone using a vice to crush them as she was dragged upright again, shrinking under the intense stare of Veracity as she became consumed by every single sensation and firing nerve. Calamity was right, every damn breath was like a knife to the lung, the air around felt like it was full of wasps that stung at her relentlessly, even the pounding of her heart felt like a jackhammer against her ribcage.

"Let go…" Stacie choked on her tears, every time she attempted to struggle only increasing the pain and overstimulation of her every nerve from their potion, "Please, let go…"

There wasn't a word spoken as Calamity and Charity only tightened their grip, causing Stacie to yelp. Why were they doing this to her?

"What's the matter little Conrad?" Charity hissed in her ear, causing Stacie to flinch violently away from the auditory assault, "We're barely touching you."

Veracity stepped forward, head tilted a little as she watched the whimpering and hyperventilating Stacie fall deeper into the grips of the potion. Every one of her senses was going into overdrive, the sound of her own heartbeat making Stacie want to tear it from her chest, the cold air of the cave burning against her skin, the smell of damp soil making her heave. It was no wonder that people went insane because of this, Stacie was dizzy and scattered from the constant and aggressively conflicting world around her.

"Shh…" Veracity stroked her cheek, pouting tauntingly at her, "Poor baby. Is it too much for you?"

"Yes…" Stacie groaned, the skin on skin contact like sandpaper, "Make it stop… please, make it stop."

"I can't do that." Veracity shook her head, feigning sadness, "You have to wait for it to wear off… or for death, whichever comes first."

She blew gently against Stacie's cheek, smirking cruelly as Stacie let out a scream of pain. The potion was working nicely, and what was even better was that Stacie would be like this for hours yet. Veracity traced over Stacie's neck with her fingers, barely making contact with her skin as Stacie writhed and sobbed, her bottom lip tugged between her teeth as she strained against the people holding her, trying desperately to get herself free and stop the assault that was crippling her.

"S-stop…" Stacie begged, hands clenching and unclenching in the tight chains around her wrists, "I can't… please just leave me alone…"

"And waste our potion?" Calamity sneered, "Now why would we do that?"

She ran her tongue over the outside of Stacie's ear as Veracity slid her hands under her t-shirt, fingernails grazing her ribs. Stacie arched and sobbed at the onslaught of sensations and the way it seemed to set her skin on fire. It was too much, she felt like she was burning alive, how was she supposed to withstand this? They barely had to touch her for Stacie to feel like she was in agony, what would happen if they were to truly try and hurt her?

The fingernails grazing her ribs seemed to answer that question as they dug in harder, Stacie screeching as she willed herself to pass out. The pain was immense, Stacie certain that Veracity was about to tear her in two, and unable to shut any of the agony that was being inflicted on her. If only she could pass out, then she'd have some relief, but her body was so in-tune and hypersensitive to everything that it seemed to impossible to do anything but feel every sensation, every vibration, every sound and smell and taste… Stacie had never, in her whole life, prayed for death like this. She just wanted it to end, wanted this assault on her every sense and every nerve to just stop…

It went on and on for what felt like days, the three of them pulling and scratching and teasing and tormenting her relentlessly until Stacie had screamed herself hoarse and even the hands gripping her tightly couldn't keep her upright anymore. She collapsed to the floor, weeping and trembling, feeling as weak as new-born as the potion continued to drive her every sense wild.

"I'm bored now." Calamity huffed, "Wanna go find some co-eds to snack on?"

"Sounds good." Veracity shrugged, "She's not going anywhere, and it's not like the potion's wearing off anytime soon."

Stacie looked up from the ground, eyes wide and pleading as tears poured down her cheeks, "Please… make it stop… I can't… I can't take this anymore…"

"Tough luck sweetheart." Calamity grinned, "Hopefully it'll wear off before we move to the final phase but… if not, it'll be even more exciting."

With that, they left Stacie alone to twist and writhe, sobbing into the dirt beneath her. She could still feel everything they had done to her as if they were still inflicting it on her, attune to every sound, every smell, every texture and surface of the cave around her, feeling crushed and smothered under the weight of it all. She wanted it to stop, wanted to not feel anything anymore, wanted to go home… why had she thought she could get away from them? It was such a stupid idea, she should have waited for Aubrey and Beca and Chloe, she should have had a better plan…

Maybe they weren't coming to rescue her, Stacie couldn't exactly blame them if they didn't. She'd been stupid, and reckless, and weak, why would they want her back? She hadn't just put herself, or her family in danger, she'd put the whole world in danger. Alice and her sisters were going to release Khalida, and Stacie was the reason why. She'd walked right into their trap, and now here she was, overexposed to every element around her, sobbing and weak… why would anyone want her back?

But that didn't mean that Stacie didn't want them to come and get her. She wanted Aubrey to scoop her into her arms and carry her away from Alice, from her sisters, from her stupid destiny. All she wanted was Aubrey's embrace, more than her magic, more than her family, Stacie wanted Aubrey back. She couldn't do this anymore, she couldn't keep fighting them, she was in so much pain and so exhausted… she wasn't strong enough to survive this.

"M'sorry…" Stacie whimpered, the salt in her tears burning at her eyes, her throat raw and aching, feeling weak and broken, "I can't do this… I'm sorry…"

Beca sighed heavily as she sat on the window seat, grateful for the charms on the Academy windows that meant she could sit here and not burst into flame. They had formed something of a plan in the last few hours, but Beca had needed a break. Despite her best efforts, Beca hadn't been able to shake what Aubrey had said to her earlier. She knew that Aubrey had been angry and lashing out, that she'd been trying to push her away, but she couldn't ignore how true it was. Aubrey's life had been a lot easier before Beca had shown up… Chloe was mortal, Gail didn't know Aubrey from any other vampire hunter, Beca had put all of them in danger, had put this targets on their backs because of her messy history.

She pulled her knees into her chest, sniffing softly as her head fell back against the wall behind her with a soft thunk. This whole thing was such a mess, and she had no small part in causing it. Beca seemed to bring destruction wherever she went, no matter how hard she tried not to or how much she wanted to protect them from her past, Beca seemed to always keep hurting the people she loved the most. She thought she'd gotten past this, past these feelings of insecurity and guilt, but here she was, spiralling once more into her feelings and the voices in her head that berated her for even trying to have a normal life.

"Here."

Beca turned her attention from the view of the Academy grounds to Warren who was stood next to her, a mug in his hand.

"You drink coffee right?"

"You mean as well as blood?" Beca raised her eyebrow, sniffing again as she took the mug from him.

"Well… yeah." Warren chuckled, "Can I sit?"

"Sure." Beca nodded, warming her hands around the mug, pulling her legs closer to her chest as Warren sat opposite her, staring into the depths of it.

"Are you okay?" Warren tilted his head a little as Beca snorted, looking up from her coffee to look out of the window instead.

"Yeah, why wouldn't I be?" Beca mumbled, shrugging a little, "We're on the verge of an apocalypse, Stacie's missing and probably going through hell, Aubrey's falling apart, Gail is still somehow ripping my life apart despite the fact that she's dead, and I keep destroying the lives of everyone around me with my baggage so… life's great."

"This isn't your fault." Warren frowned, watching Beca carefully as she sniffed and wiped her cheek on her shoulder, "Far from it Beca. What makes you think it is?"

"You mean besides the fact that Aubrey said it to my face?" Beca raised her eyebrow, "Or that there's a crippling amount of evidence to suggest that it's my fault?"

"Look I don't know what Aubrey said, but she's wrong… and in a terrible place right now. You can't take anything she says at face value." Warren sighed heavily, "And as for all this 'evidence', I don't see it. You're fighting your ass off with the rest of us, you've never once done anything to help Gail or her daughters, and by the sound of things, Gail and these hybrid offsprings would've targeted Stacie anyway. You couldn't have stopped this Beca, but you can fix it."

"Really?" Beca arched her eyebrow as she turned back to Warren, tears in her eyes as she shook her head a little, "Because all my life I just seem to make everything worse. I'm sure if you dig out some of my parent's journals or something, you'll see that this isn't just a vampire Beca thing, it's a lifelong problem."

"I actually did do some digging through the family vaults." Warren smiled softly, "Once you explained how we're related, I figured there might be something in there that belonged to you. I'm still going through it, but I found your mother's diaries."

"Huh." Beca's frame tightened a little, jaw tight, "So lot's of complaining about me and my life choices then?"

"Oh there was certainly plenty of that." Warren chuckled a little, "But after you disappeared… there was a lot of entries about the searches she orchestrated for you, the secret meetings she used to have with Evie as they tried to track you down, about how she'd never admit it but there was something wrong about the way people just dismissed the fact that you'd vanished."

Beca's eyes widened a little as tears began to run down her cheeks. Her mother had never been the most physically demonstrative of people, or mothers for that matter, and Beca hadn't ever considered the fact that she actually cared for her. Sure, she loved her, but in the obligatory way that parents had to, not in anyway that Beca had needed growing up. But the idea that her mother had actually missed her? Had really thought that she'd gone missing rather than just ran away? That was… it was a lot.

"And… when Evie died…" Warren could feel a lump forming in his throat as he saw the pain that crossed Beca's face at merely the mention of the event that changed the course of her life, "There's a very angry entry from her about how everyone in town said that you were a murderer, but she knew that you weren't. That you weren't capable of that, that however much she disagreed with your 'choice', which is her word and not mine, to love Evie the way you did, she knew it meant that you wouldn't ever do that to her."

"I-" Beca's jaw clenched tighter, gaze dropping to her feet as she sniffed hard, "I don't…"

"Do you know when your mom died?" Warren pushed gently, Beca just silently shaking her head in response, "It was almost exactly a year after you went missing. And she went to the grave believing that you were innocent, that you were out there somewhere hiding from the people who were so wrongly ready to convict you."

"Huh." Beca wiped at her cheeks as she bit her lip, looking up at Warren again after a few moments, "Do… do you still have them? Mom's diaries?"

"Yeah." Warren nodded, "I can get them for you when this is all over if you want?"

"I think I'd like that." Beca nodded, smiling tightly, "It uh… it's really weird to think that she believed in me enough to know that I wasn't a murderer…"

"She did." Warren put his hand on Beca's knee, giving it a gentle squeeze, "So when you're thinking that all you do is cause problems, remember that even the people who you think didn't have your corner knew that you were a good person."

"Thanks." Beca blushed a little, as she sipped her coffee, "You kind of remind me of my dad y'know? Way less disproving and judgemental, but still… kind of like my dad. Which, y'know, is weird because you're technically my great whatever nephew, but I feel like I'm overthinking it now."

Warren laughed warmly, looking over Beca's shoulder to where Chloe had been stood listening for a few moments, "You're a good kid Beca. Try not to be so hard on yourself."

Warren got up and squeezed Beca's shoulder as he walked past her, Chloe giving him a grateful smile as she moved to sit with Beca.

"Hey baby." Chloe sat next to Beca, moving until she was curled into Beca's side, head resting on her shoulder as Beca's arms wound around her, "You okay?"

"Kinda?" Beca frowned, "I don't know…"

"That's okay." Chloe pressed a gentle kiss to the underside of Beca's jaw, "There's a lot going on. I don't know if I'm okay either."

"I'm scared Chlo…" Beca whispered, arms tightening around Chloe, "I… I know I've way outlived my life expectancy, but… I'm terrified of dying. And this… goddess/apocalypse thing is starting to look really dicey."

"I know." Chloe sighed, snuggling closer to Beca, "Me too. I'm terrified Becs, this is so different than it was going up against Gail. It feels more hopeless y'know? Maybe it's because there's four of them, maybe it's the apocalypse threat but… no matter how many plans we make it seems like a long shot."

"Doesn't help that Aubrey's kind of broken…" Beca shook her head a little, fingers stroking up and down Chloe's back, "I'm so used to her rallying us, to her being the voice of reason and picking us up off the ground, but when she's like this? I don't know what to do."

"I've known her my whole life almost…" Chloe sniffed a little, eyes closing as she let herself get lost in the feeling of Beca's gentle caress, "And not once, even during the hardest times in either of our lives, have I seen her like this. Stacie made her so much stronger but it's like… like now she's not here, Aubrey's… lost."

"We'll fix it." Beca swallowed thickly, "Right? That's what we're gonna do?"

"Yeah." Chloe giggled a little, in spite of everything, "Yeah it is Becs. We'll fix it. We always do, even apocalypses are no match for us."

"Right." Beca grinned, pressing a kiss into the crown of her head, "I love you Chloe. You know that right? Even in the face of certain death, I love you more than I've ever loved anyone."

"Of course I know that." Chloe lifted her head to look at Beca, frowning softly as she cupped Beca's face in her hands, "I love you so much too. If I'm going to go down, I'll go down by your side, fighting with you to save the world."

"You're so weird." Beca shook her head a little, grin broad albeit watery as tears welled in her eyes again, "But it's why I love you. Let's go kick some spawn of evil ass, rescue our friend, and prevent the end of the world. Simple."

Chloe giggled again, pressing her lips into Beca's, allowing both of them a single moment of just… being. Alice and her sisters, Khalida, the fate of the world, all of it could wait for a few minutes while Beca and Chloe took a few minutes to be two people in love rather than two vampires trying to save the world.

"Come on…" Chloe sighed softly as she pulled away, brushing her nose against Beca's, "The sun's setting. We should go and get ready."

"Sure." Beca nodded a little, fingers running into Chloe's hair as her eyes searched hers, "I love you. If this is the last day I get to say that, then I want you to know I really mean it, okay?"

Chloe nodded tearfully, kissing Beca again, longer and lingering, more desperate then she ever had. Because Beca made a good point; this could be the very last day that she got to kiss her, to tell her that she loved her, to be with her in any way at all, and Chloe wanted to savour every last second of it.

"I love you too." Chloe whispered as she finally pulled away, forehead pressed into Beca's as she sniffed, tears on her cheeks a combination of hers and Beca's, "And I want you to remember that forever."

Aubrey's jaw was clenched as she rechecked over the supplies in the bag in front of her. They were heading for the caves in a few minutes, but she was making sure that nothing that they could possibly need was left behind. They might be screwed, but at least Aubrey could make sure they went down fighting. She didn't want to drag them down with her, especially not while the odds were stacked so heavily against them, but she realised that she couldn't change their minds now. No matter how much she might want to.

"Aubrey?"

Aubrey turned around, swallowing the lump in her throat as she found Thea stood waiting for her in the doorway. She'd never really appreciated how much Stacie looked like her mom until now, and it only made her heart ache more. She missed Stacie so much. Stacie would know what to do, how to bring down Alice and her sisters, how to prevent an apocalypse… Aubrey needed her more now than she ever had in her life.

"Are you ready to go?"

"Yeah." Aubrey nodded, pursing her lips as she zipped up the bag and slung it over her shoulder and across her chest, picking up the blades her mom had given her and stowing them in the sheaths on her waist, "Let's do this."

"Wait." Thea stepped between Aubrey and the doorway, resting her hands on Aubrey's shoulders as she refused to meet her gaze, "I need you to promise me something."

"I'll bring her back." Aubrey mumbled, gaze still on the floor, "No matter what, no matter if she's- whatever is left, I'll bring home."

"That's not it." Thea shook her head a little, smiling sadly at her, "I want you to promise that you'll come home."

"What?" Aubrey frowned, looking up from the ground, "What does it matter if I do?"

"Because…" Thea's nostrils flared as she lifted her hands to cup Aubrey's face, tears forming in the corners of her eyes, "You're as good as my daughter too Aubrey, and I couldn't lose you as well. I want you to bring Stacie home, of course I do, but… I need you to come back too. So promise me you won't do anything stupid, or self-sacrificing, or reckless. You'll come home, that's what I need from you. Promise me."

"I-" Aubrey opened and closed her mouth, tears of shock and pain running down her cheeks, "I don't… I can't…"

"Aubrey." Thea's voice cracked as she brushed the tears from her cheeks with her thumbs, shaking her head a little, "I know that you're scared, and you're feeling lost, and you're blaming yourself for Stacie running off to save me, but… you can't let all of that make you careless and reckless and… make you decide that your life isn't worth preserving in the middle of all this. I know that you'll bring Stacie home, that you'll protect every single person that goes in there with you, that isn't even a question. What is, is whether you're going to let yourself survive."

Aubrey bit her lip a little, her tears falling faster, "How can I promise that when I'm putting all these people in danger? What if throwing myself on the sword is the only way to save the rest of them? Am I expected to damn them all just to come home?"

"Do both." Thea shrugged a little, a sad smile on her face, "You've done it once before. You're going to get Stacie, and bring everyone home, while staying safe yourself. Easy-peasy."

Aubrey scoffed, a slight grin tugging at her lips despite everything, "I um… I can promise to try. How's that?"

"I could live with that." Thea mused, gently pulling Aubrey into her arms, embracing her tightly, "Please be careful Aubrey. I know you're hurting and things seem dire but… don't lose hope sweetie. Stacie would never forgive me if I let you go out there and get hurt."

"I'll try." Aubrey mumbled tearfully, head resting on Thea's shoulder, "I- I really miss her. I don't know if I can do this without her…"

"You can." Thea whispered into her hair, "You absolutely can. You've still got Beca and Chloe, and the boys, Ellie, the Mitchells, that tall friend of yours from your Academy days, Rachel and Kate… you're not on your own, you can do this."

Aubrey lifted her head to look at Thea, lips pursed as her eyes sparkled with insecurity, "You really think so?"

"Yes." Thea nodded firmly, hands resting on Aubrey's arms, "You are the strongest, bravest leader and vampire hunter that I have ever met. If anyone can do this, you can. You and your team. Now c'mon. We're going to go and rescue Stacie, and stop an apocalypse. Let's do this."

Aubrey was grateful for Thea's arm linked through hers as they joined the others waiting in the foyer, trying to make herself look braver than she was feeling. She'd been a poor leader in the last few days, had let herself fall apart, but seeing everyone rallying around despite that, seeing them stood here armed to the teeth and with bags of potions and medical supplies and spare weapons between them, Aubrey could feel a slight spark of hope igniting inside her. Thea was right about that, she did have all these people around her, including Beca and Chloe, her family, stood right there despite the fact that she'd said some awful things lately.

"Alright." Aubrey gave Thea a grateful smile as she unlinked their arms, "There'll undoubtedly be charms around the caves, no way they're going to let anyone just walk into whatever it is that they're planning. So we land a few feet away, set up a base with our supplies, and then get to work on breaking through."

"You got it." Michael nodded, brow furrowing a little as Olivia and Leo joined Thea, looking like they were readying to head out with them too, "Um… what're you guys doing?"

"Coming with you." Thea smiled softly, taking a bag from Leo, "We might not have any special powers of our own right now, but we still bandage wounds and apply poultices."

"Mom-" Tony started, concern written in his expression.

"No." Thea's jaw tightened, expression clouding as she shrugged the bag onto her back, "I'm not staying here and waiting. I want to come in with you and tear those bitches limb from limb, especially that tattooed asshole who killed Sam but-"

Thea clenched her fists as angry tears ran down her cheeks, gathering herself for a moment, "But I don't have my magic, so… I'm going to wait outside, and treat injuries, and… and do everything but go running in there myself. But I am not going to wait here while you do it for me."

"Okay mom." Tony smiled softly as he gently pulled her into an embrace, Thea shaking a little with the emotion running through her, "Okay. Just as long as you promise not to do anything reckless like trying to fight them when you're not at full strength. We already lost dad, we can't lose you too."

"I promise." Thea wrapped her arms around Tony's waist, hugging him tightly as she sniffed slightly, Michael embracing her from behind as he pressed a kiss into her hair, "Alright… come on, let's go And put an end to this."

"We've got company." Calamity smirked as a ringing sounded around her and her sisters as they sat around a wooden table.

"Well it's about time…" Alice grinned, "It took them long enough. How long do you think we have before they break the charms?"

"About an hour?" Veracity mused, twirling a knife in her fingers, "Maybe two. Plenty of time to get ready."

"We should make a start." Alice got to her feet, "I'll prep the final stage, you get ready to take care of the imposters."

"So we get the fun job?" Charity's grin was cruel, her eyes full of unbridled and evil glee, "Sweet."

"Just remember…" Alice's eyes narrowed a little as she looked around at her sisters, the three of them shrinking a little under the force of her glare, "I need the vampire hunter and one of those vampires alive. Preferably the redhead, I want to watch her scream… the rest you can dispose of."

"Right." Calamity nodded, turning with Charity and Veracity to head into a different set of cave chambers, "One annoying little vampire hunter and a sister killing bitch coming up. What about the witch?"

"Leave her to me." Alice's lips twisted into a cruel smirk, "You've had your fun with her. Now it's my turn."