If You're Going Through Hell
A/N: I'm back! Not as quickly as I would have liked, but at least not as delayed as I have been. Hope you enjoy! If you do, leave me a note and tell me what you think.
Chapter 26: Time Doesn't Heal All Wounds
No, no, no, no, no, not again, he thought to himself, his mind a whirlwind of emotions. Why does it have to be him? After everything we went through, after everything he took from me, from my family, from my Pack. Derek could feel another headache rapidly approaching as he mentally struggled with the unexpected arrival. I need to make him pay, the thought started out small and quiet, but quickly began to drive everything else away. He could feel the shift beginning, the fangs and hair growing as his claws slowly extended. I need to punish him for what he did to us. His inner wolf was tearing at his chest for release, for a chance to lunge forward, to rip and tear, to kill. To avenge, to protect. No, no, get ahold of yourself Derek, he chastised himself as he reined the wolf back inside, the pain in his head now pounding away at his temples, you can't do that, not here and now. Scott's the alpha, wait for his signal, follow his lead. He felt a hand tentatively squeeze his own, and his eyes flared open, glowing ice blue, to meet an equally intense, concerned pair of brown eyes. Stiles, Derek thought, allowing those eyes to calm him and compel him, taking refuge in them and slowly regaining focus and control. Stiles squeezed his hand reassuringly once more, before turning their attention back towards the psychopath in front of them. He was speaking, though Derek had missed the first part of his monologue during his own internal struggle.
"…I get it Scott," Gerard sneered, his voice haughty and grating as he stepped slightly closer to the Packmates' tight circle, "they are your friends, and you just have to save them. But you should know it's a waste of time."
"No, you're wrong," Scott replied quietly, almost solemnly, "I can't promise I will succeed, but even if I fail, trying to bring my Pack together will never be a waste of time. They are worth it."
"Perhaps you are right, but then what?" Gerard prodded, taking another step closer, "What do you think you are going to do when you have gathered all your little friends together? Sit around in the caves of Limbo and sing kumbaya? Live happily ever after here in this god-forsaken place? No, there's more to this little plan of yours. Why don't you tell me what it is?"
"I would never expect you to understand," Stiles interjected, words dripping with anger. He squeezed the hand still clenched in his tight enough that Derek was sure a human hand would break under the pressure. "What we are doing is because of love, and friendship, and justice. Those are all concepts that I doubt you could ever understand."
"Don't you dare!" Gerard spat, his placating smile turning to a ferocious glare instantly, "Don't you dare say I don't understand. Your kind, you…monsters…you took everything I love from me. My family, my friends, my world was destroyed by you, and others like you. True justice is on my side!"
"You're wrong," Scott said again, even more quietly. Were it not for the commanding tone laced underneath, it might have been ignored altogether. "What Kate did to Derek and his family, that wasn't justice. What you and Victoria did to Derek's pack and my pack…we didn't deserve that. Somewhere along the way you lost sight of the Code that you claimed to live by. Allison understood that. So did Chris. I'm sorry that you never could. I don't want to fight you Gerard. Enough people have gotten hurt already. But I will if I have to."
"Scott," Ethan whispered, drawing their alpha's attention to the Kanima that had slowly and silently wended its way along the fence to the shrubs on their right and was now gazing intently at them. Gerard smirked at the exchange, glancing towards the creature as well.
"Ah yes," Gerard said, relaxing his posture and returning to a self-assured smirk. "Do you like my pet? What was left of young Matt Daehler is now gone completely, consumed by the power of the kanima. And without the limitations of a human will, the creature that remains is much more powerful…and deadly." He ended with a laugh as the kanima in question began to stalk forward towards the group.
"I do hope you survive, Scott," he added as an afterthought, eyes roving over the various pack members before returning to bear down on their alpha. Gerard laughed again, allowing his eyes to glow alpha red briefly before winking at their gasps and outbursts. "The time for our battle will come soon enough."
"What…the Hell…was that?" Stiles exclaimed as Gerard turned around and took off running.
"Gerard's…an alpha?" Derek asked, incredulous.
"How is that even possible?" Hayden asked.
"Quick, before he gets away," Braeden called out, drawing her gun to fire.
"Look out!" Isaac shouted as Kanima Matt lunged directly at them with a ferocious hiss, causing the group to scatter.
"Don't let its venom touch you," Scott cried out as he quickly shifted and darted forward.
"I got this," Jackson said, shifting to his own hybrid kanima form and jumping in front of his alpha to stand directly in front of the reptilian creature. Kanima Matt (Kanimatt, as Stiles had called it when jumping out of the way) dropped down low to the ground, crouched and ready to strike, eyes drifting across the various wolves and others slowly spreading out to trap it in a circle. It seemed to hesitate for just a moment before lunging to the left, directly at Braeden. She drew her gun and fired, but the beast was too quick, dodging the bullet and barreling into her, knocking her to the ground.
"Come on, you coward, your fight is with me," Jackson shouted, chasing after it and knocking it off of the woman before it could strike. By this point everyone else in the group had shifted into their beta wolf forms (wolf/coyote for Theo, demon for Stiles), but they were held back by Scott.
"No," he called out, "if we all attack at once, we'll just end up hurting one another." Ethan ignored the order, racing after the two reptilian beasts while the rest kept close tabs on them, ready to join in if needed.
The kanima and kanima/wolf were both incredibly fast and light on their feet, chasing after one another and dripping venom everywhere. Matt was incredibly nimble, contorting his body in all sorts of ways to avoid the vicious swipes of claws from Jackson and Ethan. Jackson, while not quite as nimble, packed a greater amount of strength, which he was using to great effect to drive the kanima back further, towards the fence. Jackson and Ethan soon fell into step with one another, Ethan jumping forward to claw at the kanima before falling back and letting Jackson meet the counterblow head on. The others followed along, keeping an ever-tightening circle around the three dueling creatures, careful to avoid the flying paralytic toxins. Kanima Matt was beginning to lose his footing and being backed into a corner when they all heard it.
"Quick! The roars are coming from this direction. It sounds like some creatures are battling one another!"
"Hunters," Hayden gasped, turning with the rest of the group to look in the direction the voice had come from.
"We're about to have company," Demon-Stiles added, spreading his wings to hover slightly above the group for a better vantage point. "There's at least a dozen, and it looks like even more are off in the distance."
"Should we fight them?" Aiden asked, turning to Scott as he did so.
"Only if we have to," Scott replied, turning to watch the battle still raging uninterrupted in the middle of the group. "We need to get out of here before they see us."
"Too late," Theo shouted as a wave of hunters ran over the crest of the nearby hill, shouting at the group below.
"What should we do?" Isaac called out, eyes widening nervously at the numbers of men and women racing towards them.
"Stay together, don't let them separate us," Scott shouted, racing to the front of the pack, claws extended and eyes glowing bright red. He was soon joined by Derek and Demon-Stiles, both of whom glanced briefly at their alpha with a look of determination. "Stiles, I want you to stay in the air," Scott continued, never stopping as he ran to meet the attack head on, "keep an eye on everyone, intervene if someone needs it but mostly just make sure nobody gets left behind or taken away."
"You got it, Scotty," Demon-Stiles replied before unfurling his wings and quickly ascending high above their heads.
"Aiden, you help Ethan and Jackson. Everyone else, protect each other, and try not to hurt the hunters too badly," Scott finished with a punch to the face of the first of their attackers to make it to the field they occupied.
"I'm not making any promises," Braeden shouted back, taking aim and firing at the closest hunter, causing him to howl in pain as the bullet lodged in his shoulder.
The lacrosse field was soon nothing but utter chaos and pandemonium. Reinforcements for the initial wave of hunters soon arrived, approaching from the school itself and trapping the Pack in the middle. Isaac, Derek, and Hayden fought that group while Scott, Theo, and Braeden took on the first. Ethan, Aiden, and Jackson remained deadlocked in battle with Matt the kanima, whose stamina seemed limitless. The creature continued dodging their attacks and countering with its own vicious, venomous strikes which the others narrowly avoided. Stiles watched from above, occasionally swooping low to launch a surprise attack on the hunters before disappearing above them in the dimly lit sky. The hunters came armed with guns, stun-batons, bows and arrows, and many of the other various weapons they had used in life, which they put to use to great effect. Shouts and cries and groans echoed across the field as some of the hunters fell in battle and some of the Pack came under fire. The one thing working in their favor was the absence of wolfsbane and other harmful substances; the hunters apparently didn't have any, for the moment at any rate, and so the Pack were able to heal the injuries they sustained with relative speed.
Finally, Jackson was able to land a devastating blow on Kanima Matt, his claws sinking into the reptilian flesh right above its heart. The creature screamed in pain, wrenching its body away from the attack and scurrying to retreat towards the fence. It let out a horrid sound, a cross between a hiss and a roar, before darting up the fence, into the grandstands, and out of sight.
"Should we follow it?" Ethan asked, breathing heavily as he clutched a bleeding scratch in his side.
'No, let's help the others," Aiden replied, immediately moving to drape his twin's arm over his shoulder in support. Jackson didn't respond at first, eyes staring off in the distance to where the kanima had disappeared.
"Jacks?" Ethan asked, quiet and uncertain. Jackson remained silent and unblinking for another moment or two before finally shaking his head slightly and breaking his reverie.
"Yeah, we should help the others," he said, turning to give a half-smile/half-grimace towards his mate. "You guys go help Derek and them, I'll go join Scott." The three broke apart at once, not wasting any more time in rushing to the aid of their friends. Demon-Stiles landed with a thud and a roar next to Scott just as Jackson arrived to join the battle.
"We need to get everyone out of here Scott," Demon-Stiles called out as he punched a hunter in the face, knocking him to the ground, unconscious. "I saw more hunters on the way from the town."
"We can take them!" Theo cried as he plowed his way through three more hunters, grinning in satisfaction as they all fell to the ground.
"Probably," Demon-Stiles retorted with a nod of his head, "but we're wasting time. This feels more and more like a distraction, a way to just keep us busy, than an actual battle. And I don't want to stick around and find out why the hunters would want to distract us."
"He's right," Scott continued, coming to a stop and surveying the field around them now soaked in blood and dotted with unconscious bodies. "This isn't helping us find our friends. We need to get out of here and away from the hunters."
"So, what do you suggest?" Jackson asked, walking over to join their huddle during the brief lull in the battle.
"If you can get everyone together and around the side of the school, head towards the residential section on the west side of town," Demon-Stiles said, turning to Scott as he spoke. "We've worn them down enough that I can hold the rest of them here while you all get out, then I'll fly over and join you."
"I don't like that idea, Stiles. What if you get hurt, or caught?" Scott asked, solemnly.
"They're just hunters, Scott, in demon form there isn't much they can do to hurt me," the Demon/Druid scoffed, crossing his arms over his chest haughtily.
"I think he's right, Scott," Braeden interjected before the wolf could reply, taking aim to fire at another hunter as she spoke. "Stiles can handle himself long enough for us to get clear before the next wave of these fools arrives." She kicked at an unconscious hunter on the ground at her feet before stooping down to take his gun and ammunition for herself.
"Alright, I still don't like it, but I trust your judgment. Be safe," Scott finally relented, placing a hand on the demon's shoulder before turning towards the other side of the field. "Jackson, Braeden, Theo…you guys start heading towards the back entrance of the school. I'll go get the others and meet you there." They took off without a word, incapacitating a few more hunters along the way. Demon-Stiles roared ominously, taking off into the air but remaining low to the ground to swoop towards the largest remaining group of hunters on their side of the field.
With the aid of their Alpha, the other half of the Pack were soon able to break free from the hunters, charging after Scott towards the school. The hunters shouted after them, but were quickly pounced upon by the demon of the group and unable to track where the Pack disappeared to. Scott silently and cautiously led his friends around the edge of the school, past the parking lot, and down a deserted side street, scenting the air for leads with his ears attuned to the sounds of pounding footsteps coming from all directions. They stayed close to the houses, avoiding the open street in favor of darting from building to building in the hopes of remaining unseen.
Soon the sounds of the battle on the lacrosse field faded before finally ceasing altogether. A couple of minutes later, Demon-Stiles swooped down to join them, landing a little harder than intended before transitioning back to a worn and weary human Stiles. Derek raced to his side to wrap his arm around the young man's waist, letting him rest his weight against him and blushing slightly at the grateful look he received in return.
"Are you ok?" Scott asked, searching his friend intently for injuries. Stiles waved him off lightly before replying.
"Yeah, I'm fine," he replied with a shrug of his shoulders to ease some of the tension. "Those stun-batons pack a harder punch than I was expecting, but other than that they didn't do anything to hurt me. Most of them are now taking a nice little nap, and the rest are too preoccupied to have figured out where you all went, for now anyway."
"Good, thanks for covering us like that Stiles," Scott said, clapping his hand to his friend's shoulder before turning to lead the way again. "Now, I've caught Malia's scent. It's coming from that direction," he continued, pointing down a familiar street that led to the outskirts of town.
"Her family's old house should be that way," Theo observed, cautiously, "it would make sense, I suppose, that she would be there."
"That's what I was thinking too," Scott replied as they set off down the road, still skirting along the edges to avoid being seen. "But there's just one problem. She's not alone."
"The Desert Wolf," Derek whispered, lifting his head slightly in concentration to scent the air as well. "She's apparently regained her werecoyote powers."
"Good, I still owe her a little something after all that time I spent chasing her down," Braeden said, cocking her gun once more and checking that it was still in working order before holstering it and turning to Scott.
"First things first, we have to get Malia," Scott replied, the look in his eyes making it clear that there would be no arguing about it. The group fell silent, following along as they all kept their eyes and ears open for warnings of nearby hunters, only to soon latch on to the fierce battle between mother and daughter taking place in the house on the edge of the preserve.
-o-
Corey, Mason, and Nolan walked slowly and cautiously along the edge of the forest, remaining hidden by Corey's camouflaging abilities. They knew they would have to uncloak themselves long enough to get across the fence, so they searched for a place to do so safely. The newly constructed fence straddled the line of trees closely, so thankfully it did not take long for the boys to find a section secluded and hidden well enough for them to cross without being seen.
"This is definitely mountain ash," Mason observed, tracing his free hand across the surface of the fence post. "Fresh mountain ash at that, with wolfsbane coated on top of it. There's no way any of the wolves would be able to get through."
"Should we break it down?" Nolan asked thoughtfully as he gazed around their copse of trees. "It wouldn't be that difficult to misalign one of the beams enough to make the barrier useless. We could make it look like a tree limb fell and knocked it loose."
"Wouldn't that still just make Monroe and her hunters more suspicious?" Corey asked, glancing around much more nervously. "They might make the fence even stronger, or increase their patrols some more."
"I agree with both of you," Mason added. "We will need to make a gap in the fence when it comes time for the Pack to enter the city, but for now we are probably better off leaving everything as it is so we don't bring any unnecessary attention to ourselves."
"That's fair," Nolan replied, shrugging his shoulders and turning to the partially hidden section of fence. After another cautious look around the area, he let go of Corey's hand and quickly scrambled across, dropping lightly to the other side and remaining hidden in a bush. Corey and Mason quickly followed after him and, rejoining hands, the trio plunged back into camouflage, the world tinged green once again.
They were still about half a mile from the outskirts of town, so they trundled through the field of knee-high grass as quietly as possible, making slow progress as they worked to obscure their tracks behind them as they went along. Finally, they reached the houses on the edge of town and slowly made their way through an open backyard and out onto the street in front. The houses seemed quiet and deserted, giving the town an almost abandoned feel.
"I don't like this. Where is everybody?" Corey asked quietly.
"I don't know. It's definitely odd," Mason answered in a whisper, eyes roaming across the nearby homes. Children's toys and workmen's tools littered the yards as though recently used, and yet the grass remained unkempt, as though no one had mowed in weeks.
"Let's just keep moving," Nolan added, hands trembling slightly as he took in the sight. "Maybe we'll find a clue closer to the center of town."
The trio journeyed on, ambling through the almost deserted suburb slowly and with trepidation. Eventually, they reached a handful of homes that were still inhabited, evidence of the occupants becoming more commonplace. Occasionally they caught the sound of a tv program or the smell of someone cooking. It would almost seem normal, except for the almost oppressive silence. It was as though everyone still in town refused to speak, living their lives in fear of being seen or heard. It was unnerving, and the three friends were all too glad to finally make it out of the depressing residential section and to the downtown commercial center.
What they found there, though, was no more reassuring. Many of the businesses were now closed, either boarded up or abandoned. Broken windows and the remnants of looting lined the streets as far as they could see. Plastered over walls, doors, and windows were various signs and posters, all of them antagonistic. Many of the remaining operational businesses bore placards announcing "no creatures allowed," "we only serve humans," "the natural way is the right way," and "this business protected by mountain ash and wolfsbane bullets." In other places were older "wanted" posters, showing pictures and names of various supernatural creatures and the bounties placed on their heads. A few even bore the names of their Packmates, though they each had a giant red X spray painted over top of them. Finally, there were also several "Elect Tamora Monroe" and "Monroe for Mayor" posters and fliers dotted along the way, promising a safer, creature-free community for the humans. For the three boys wandering down the streets, the town had never seemed so depressing, their home had never felt so unwelcoming.
"I can't believe I ever bought into all of this junk," Nolan exclaimed in disdain as he caught sight of a particularly gruesome poster bearing the picture of a hunter holding the decapitated head of a werewolf. "How can all of these people believe the lies and hatred Monroe has been feeding them?"
"They're afraid," Mason replied cautiously. "We all saw what fear does to people when the Anuk-Ite was here. Unfortunately, it seems not all of the fear was caused by that creature. It just took what was already here and amplified it."
"You're probably right," Corey said, glancing around almost fearfully himself. "But I have to admit, this is looking more and more like a lost cause to me."
"What do you mean?" Mason asked, gripping his boyfriend's hand in comfort.
"It's just, it was bad enough before when we were talking about trying to defeat Monroe and her hunters," Corey answered, gesticulating around them with their joined hands as he did so. "I mean, she defeated us; she killed us. But I could see how, if we had the whole Pack together, we might stand a chance. But now…what are we supposed to do about all this? Fight off the whole entire town? Wipe them all out and start over?"
"You're right," Nolan said, thoughtfully. "We can't rely on the idea that taking out Monroe will end this conflict. Obviously her prejudice and hatred has spread too far. We'll have to figure out ways to show the rest of the town that the supernatural world is not something to be feared, that Monroe was wrong and the Pack is not their enemy."
"And how exactly are we supposed to do that?" Corey asked, voice laced with sarcasm.
"I'm not sure…yet," Nolan contemplatively replied. "But we have time before the rest of the Pack gets here. We'll brainstorm ideas while we wait for their arrival. At least now we have a better understanding of what we're up against and what we will have to do."
"Hey guys, do you hear that?" Mason interjected, ending the debate that was sure to continue otherwise. The three fell silent, listening to the sounds of a cheering crowd off in the distance.
"At least someone is happy," Corey muttered, turning in the direction the voices were coming from.
"Let's go check it out," Mason said, tugging on his boyfriend's hand lightly and urging him to follow. The chimera breathed out a dramatic sigh before following along, Nolan quickly moving to join them. Following the sound of the cheering crowd proved easy, and the trio soon found themselves on the outskirts of the town square.
Gathered together in front of the sheriff's station were hundreds, possibly even thousands, of people, all centered on a brightly lit platform constructed in the station parking lot. A woman stepped up on the platform, gesturing with her hand for the crowd to settle down as she grabbed a microphone and smiled broadly at the people. "My friends…rightful, human, citizens of Beacon Hills…thank you for coming here today," Tamora Monroe called out, voice carrying over the crowd through the sound system. "We face a new threat…"
-o-
The group continued forward down the street at a steady pace, eyes and ears still wide open and alert for any signs of danger. As they approached the old Tate house, the sounds of mother and daughter locked in fierce battle drifted on the still air easily, the two hurling insults and promises of retribution at one another.
"I'll give them credit, they're both giving it their all," Theo commented, quickly going quiet again at the stern look he received from Scott in response.
"We need to make sure we get Malia out safely," Scott said, turning to the rest of the Pack. "I think the best way to do that is going to be to try to catch Corinne by surprise. Even with her powers back, if we're quiet she might not realize we are here until its too late since she's so focused on the fight. Derek, Braeden, Isaac, Theo – you four go in through the front door. Ethan, Aiden, Jackson, Hayden – you guys take the back. Stiles, can you fly the two of us up to that open window on the second floor?"
"Of course," Stiles replied, eyes glinting with amusement.
"Good," Scott continued. "Everyone, stay as quiet as possible, and don't do anything unless the Desert Wolf attacks you or you hear my signal. Ready? Let's go!" The two groups Scott designated quickly and silently moved into position, soon gathering at the two entrances to the house.
"Ready, bud?" Stiles asked as he transformed back into demon form once more.
"Yeah, let's go get her back," Scott replied, a faraway look in his eyes. Stiles didn't say anything in response, choosing instead to grab hold of Scott's hand and lift them gently into the air. He flew towards the window in question, easing Scott in first and then landing precariously on the sill in order to transform back into human form and scramble through himself. They could hear the sounds of grunts, snarls, screams, and shattering glass coming from the floor below them as they crept through the room and out into the hall. Scott could also make out the sounds of eight other people slowly entering the house, but it did not seem to faze the two women locked in combat.
Scott and Stiles found the staircase and slowly made their way down it, cringing every time one of the old floorboards made a creaking sound.
"Who's there?" Malia called out suddenly, causing ten different people scattered throughout the house to grimace.
"What's the matter, Malia, finally realize you're no match for me? Had to call in your little friends for backup?" Corinne taunted from the kitchen.
Malia growled angrily in response. "Scott, stay back! I can handle this myself." From his position at the bottom of the stairs, Scott could hear as Malia transformed into her full coyote form, snarling viciously as she lunged across the kitchen to attack her mother. The Desert Wolf was unfazed by the attack, getting off a couple of shotgun blasts aimed at the werecoyote before throwing the gun itself at her and darting out of the way. Corinne remained in beta form, swiping her claws at her daughter in defense.
"Stay out of this!" Corinne shouted towards the entrance to the kitchen, obviously smelling or hearing the presence of the alpha wolf there. "We're having such a lovely mother/daughter bonding moment, I'd hate to have to end it…permanently."
Scott peered through the gap in the door, watching as Malia launched herself in another assault against her mother, leaping over the countertop to sink her teeth into the older woman's arm. The Desert Wolf cried out in pain before whipping her arm back fiercely and slamming the coyote into the nearby cabinets, shocking her enough to force her to let go and drop to the floor.
"Argh, you little monster," Corinne exclaimed, aiming a kick at the coyote's snout in anger. "You have no idea how much I hate you!" Malia responded by jumping out of the way of the kick, growling with her teeth bared, and then lunging again at the woman, only to be cut off by a chair crashing down on top of her. The Desert Wolf used the moment of pain and confusion to race out of the door on the opposite side of the kitchen, leading into the dining room, and straight into the waiting barrel of Braeden's pistol.
"Did you miss me?" Braeden asked as she fired several shots off in a row, the bullets lodging in Corinne's chest and neck.
"You?" Corinne spluttered, staggering back through the doorway, clutching at her bleeding wounds as she collapsed to the floor.
"I should have done this years ago," Braeden added, switching to the shotgun slung across her back.
"No Braeden, wait!" Scott shouted from the other side of the kitchen as he crashed through the door. But he was too late. Braeden's shot met Corinne's face with deadly accuracy, and a moment later the woman's body had faded from existence, as though she had never even been there. The remaining pack members stumbled into the kitchen to watch the intense stare-down between the Alpha and the Marshall. "We can't just go around killing people!"
"Look around you, Scott!" Braeden retorted. "We're dead. They're dead. Your black and white rules barely worked in the real world, and they sure as Hell don't work here. The Desert Wolf would have killed every last one of us if she was given the chance. Taking her out of the picture was the only way to make sure she didn't follow us or try to stop us."
"But that wasn't your choice to make," Scott countered. "Besides, we're only going to be here for a few more days anyway. What difference would it have made if we had left her here? We never would have seen her again. You had already injured her enough to slow her down. She wasn't a threat anymore."
"You don't know her like I do. As long as she was still breathing, she was a threat," Braeden said, her voice going deadly cold.
"For what its worth," Malia added, having changed back into human form and shamelessly walking naked through the middle of the kitchen to retrieve her clothes, much to the horror/interest of several of the Pack members present, "I agree with Braeden. I was going to kill her too, I just hadn't gotten the chance yet. Just like she was trying to kill me."
"That doesn't make it ok," Scott grumbled, turning to storm out of the room, and then out of the house, his friends trailing after him with a mixture of confusion, concern, and frustration.
"Scott," Derek said, finally catching up with the alpha near the tree line and the path that would lead into the Preserve, "I get why this upsets you, I do, but can you stop for just a moment and think about it?"
"Think about what?" Scott asked, turning slowly to meet the former alpha's gaze.
"Braeden's right. We can't play by the same rules here in Limbo that we would have in the real world. It just won't work. I'm not saying we should just kill anyone who gets in our way, but we have to be willing to make certain sacrifices if we're going to get through this with all of our Pack members together again," Derek replied.
"I just…what does that mean for us? If we compromise now, on this, what else will we compromise on? What other lines will we cross? All of us who died, we've already changed so much. Can you really live with yourself in the real world knowing that we've given up all of our morals too?" Scott retorted, eyes fierce and arms crossed.
"Scott," Stiles interjected, stepping forward from the gathered crowd around them. "Scott, don't do this again. Please?" Stiles looked pleadingly at his best friend while Theo shifted uncomfortably directly behind him.
"But Stiles," Scott said, stepping forward to meet his friend with his own pleading look, "where does it end? How do we know that, if we let this go, we won't let other things go that shouldn't be? What would even give us the right to still make that judgment, if all we're going to be is a bunch of hypocrites about it here, when it suits us?"
"I trust you, remember," Stiles implored, grabbing his friend's hand tightly as he spoke. "Your best will be enough. I know you won't let that happen, to any of us."
"How can you be so sure?" Scott asked, face a wide array of emotions all at once.
"Because you're Scott McCall, my best friend…my brother. I know you, and I know you will make sure this Pack does the right thing," Stiles said with a grin before becoming serious again. "But I think Derek, Braeden, and Malia are right. Maybe the Desert Wolf wouldn't have come after us; maybe she would have taken too long to recover and everyone would be sent back to life before she could catch up to us. But, as callous as it sounds, that's not a risk we can afford to take right now. And, if its any consolation, moving on from this world is not the same as being killed in the world of the living. The Desert Wolf didn't die, she went to whatever the next stage of the afterlife is."
"That's not really much of a consolation," Scott murmured, pulling away from his friend and gazing thoughtfully out into the forest. "But ok."
"Ok?" Stiles asked, quizzically.
"I still don't like it," Scott said, turning back around to gaze harshly at each of his Packmates, lingering particularly on Braeden. "We're not killers. We fight against the kind of people who just slaughter anyone who gets in their way. But I understand the…extenuating circumstances here, and I'll forgive this for the sake of keeping us moving on our mission. But that doesn't change the rules. From now on, we don't kill, or send people to the next stage of the afterlife, or whatever, unless there is absolutely no other choice. Agreed?" All of the various Packmates nodded their heads or mumbled their assent; even Braeden, though she was the last to do so.
"Alright, so now that that is settled, is anyone gonna actually tell me what's going on here?" Malia interjected, breaking the silence that had descended on them all.
"Well Malia, let me say…" Stiles began.
"Welcome to Hell!" he finished, joined by Isaac, Jackson, Ethan, and Aiden. Derek groaned, shaking his head while Scott, Theo, and Hayden laughed in amusement. Then they all began telling the story once more of the adventures the Pack had had in Limbo and their mission to retrieve their missing friends and send them back to the world of the living. Malia took it all in stride, completely unfazed by the absurdity of the story and willingly joining in.