Chapter 13
The red pendant shattered on the stump as the demon hissed in pain and backhanded Derek off of the Nematon. Wisps of shadows seemed to escape from within it, swirling upwards and away from the clearing.
"Exorcizamus te, omnis immundus spiritus, omnis satanica potestas, omnis incursio infernalis adversarii, omnis legio – " Sam chanted, as the demon in Stiles' body dropped to the floor, screaming.
"Noooooo!"
"– omnis congregatio et secta diabolica, ergo draco maledicte, ut ecclesiam tuam secura, tibi facias libertate servire, te rogamus, audi nos!"
Stiles' head shot back and a thick, oily smoke poured out of his mouth and plunged straight into the ground, leaving a ring of singed grass behind.
"Stiles!" Derek yelled, rushing over to the prone boy and cradling Stiles' head in his lap. "Please be okay, I've got you, you're safe now."
He placed a hand on Stiles' arm, but the moon was almost completely eclipsed and Derek wasn't able to draw out some of his pain.
A rustling of wings was all the notice that he got before Castiel stood before him. He heard his uncle cry out, and he was torn between saving Stiles and saving the last remaining member of his family. Castiel bent over Stiles and said, "Go. I will try to heal him, help Peter."
Castiel placed his hands on Stiles' forehead, and Derek rushed over to where Peter was losing the fight to Kate.
Kate was bleeding from her shoulder and right side, although Peter didn't look much better – his left arm hanging uselessly at his side, healing powers not able to relocate his shoulder or heal the torn muscles while the moon's power was hidden.
Derek tackled Kate from behind, knocking the taser out of her hand and knocking her to the ground. Peter tilted back his head and howled, a command and a war cry rolled into one. Derek heard an answering cry from deep within the forest. Scott.
Kate hit the ground and rolled into a crouch, breathing heavily. "Derek, Derek, Derek," she tsked. "When are you going to learn? I'm in charge here."
She pulled a small pistol out and levelled it at Peter. Derek could smell the wolfsbane in the bullets from where he stood.
"I'm always in charge," she said, and fired a shot at his uncle.
/
"Why isn't he waking up?" Jonathan asked as he cradled his son's head in his lap. His own head was still spinning, a smear of dried blood on his temple the only physical evidence of his concussion. "Something isn't right. What's going on?"
Castiel furrowed his brow and removed his hand from Stiles' forehead.
"Something is resisting my healing ability. The partial runes are preventing me from being able to heal him but there is something else, something I can't put my finger on," he said, gesturing helplessly with his hands. "He needs a doctor, I can't stop the bleeding."
"We can't move him, and there's no way that an ambulance can get out here," Jonathan said, despair in his voice. "C'mon buddy, hang in there."
/
There's something important I need to be doing right now, Stiles thought idly to himself. Very ... time sensitive. Crucial. What was it?
A warm breeze caressed him, smelling faintly of lilac and wisteria, and he looked around at his surroundings. He was alone in a clearing, deep in the woods, with a large flat tree stump at the centre. Every seemed hazy around the edges. This looks familiar. Where am I? Everything seemed to be lit in a soft, pink light. He tilted his head up to look at the sky, but couldn't see the sun or moon. The glow seemed to be coming from all around him.
He felt peaceful, serene like he hadn't felt in months, not since... Since what? I don't remember why I was even feeling stressed out at all... There was something, about a wolf, I think? No that can't be right. There are no wolves in California.
Stiles walked over the stump and sat down. There seemed to be faint marking on the surface, half faded as if by rain and weather, but he couldn't make out what they were.
He closed his eyes and enjoyed the soft breeze blowing about the clearing. When he opened his eyes, there was a familiar figure in front of him. Instead of being startled, he felt calm, sleepy almost. He blinked up at the figure.
:Hi Mom,: he said.
/
Peter managed to dodge mostly out of the way but the bullet still grazed his left arm, smoke curling out of the wound and black lines spreading lazily under his skin. He dropped to his knees on the ground, exhausted. Derek tried circling around behind her, but Kate cocked the gun and aimed it again, this time lining up the sight directly over Peter's heart. Smiling ferally, she squeezed the trigger.
With a snarl, Scott leapt out of the forest and knocked the gun out of Kate's hand, bullet flying wide and burrowing into the trunk of a tree.
Derek advanced on Kate, whose eyes widened as she looked frantically around for a weapon. Both the taser and the gun were out of reach.
"C'mon sweetie, you got me beat. Do you really need to kill me?" she said, honey dripping from her words. "I didn't kill you when I was done with you. Why don't you just let me go, and we'll call it even?"
Derek grabbed her by the throat and lifted her into the air, blue eyes flashing.
"No deal."
/
:Hi baby,: she said, holding her arms out for him. Stiles stood up and stepped into the embrace, holding onto her like he hadn't been able to for six long years. Something moved out of the corner of his eye, but when he turned his head, there was nothing there.
:I've missed you,: he said, burying his face into her shoulder. :I've missed you so much:
:I know sweetheart, I know,: she said pulling back a little bit, grabbing his hands in her own. :It breaks my heart that I only get to see you for just a little while:
Stiles tilted his head up and looked his mother in her eyes. :How come? Why can't I stay here with you?: he asked, confused.
There was a niggling at the back of his mind, something brushing against his memory, trying to come to the surface but he couldn't remember what could possibly make him leave this place or why anyone would want to leave. He was so sleepy.
Something darted across the clearing in his periphery, too fast for him to make out. He turned to get a better look but it was gone.
His mother spoke again from behind him. :This is only a temporary place, Stiles. No one can stay here, not even me: She put her hand on his shoulder and turned him gently to face her again. The feeling pushing against the back of his mind was getting stronger, and Stiles could swear he heard other voices in the clearing. :I was given this moment as a gift, in exchange for the help I provided to the Hale family many years ago:
Stiles blinked up at her, struggling to remember why the Hale family was important. :I don't understand, Mom. Why are we here?:
The sounds in the clearing were getting louder, though they were still barely above a whisper. He struggled to focus on what was going on but all he could here were gruff voices yelling and animals growling. Nothing is making any sense. He knew that normally he would be beginning to panic, could almost feel the chill up his spine but instead he just felt tired. There were shadows at the edge of the clearing but he couldn't make out what they were.
She looked sad as she cupped his face in her hand. :I foresaw this moment for you Stiles, the day I found out I was pregnant. I tried to save you from it, but I didn't know that I wasn't going to be there for you when it happened. I did everything I could but there were bigger forces at play. I'm sorry Stiles:
She took his hand and turned back to the flat, wide stump in the centre of the clearing.
:By the time you were born, everything was already in place. It couldn't be undone. The Nematon's power had already set each piece in motion. I was just another pawn to be moved:
Stiles ran his hand over the worn surface of the stump, the half-runes looking familiar but still not making any sense to him. :I still don't understand Mom. I feel like there's something important I should know but I can't remember. I'm just so sleepy:
The shadows at the edge of the clearing were getting clearer, and a second group had appeared nearby. Stiles could tell they were people but he wasn't afraid of them.
:Everything has a price, Stiles. Even things that aren't asked for have a price. My Gift, although I didn't want it, had a cost. The price I paid the night the Hale house burnt down was that I couldn't save them. I didn't have enough time. But even though I wasn't able to save their lives, I was able to save their souls from the demon that was trying to open a Portal to Purgatory:
She sighed, tears gathering in her eyes. :So many innocents died that night and I couldn't stop it. I was so angry. I felt like I should have been able to do more. I cursed the powers that be for what had happened.
:I still haven't figure out why, but someone – or something – must have been listening because I was given a choice. I could either give up my gift and live out the rest of my life without any memory of what I had Seen, or I could die, and I could continue to be a chess piece in this game, but not a pawn this time:
Stiles gasped, his eyes filling up with tears. :You chose this? You chose Death?: He pulled away from her grasp. :Why would you do that? How could you leave us? Do you know what it did to Dad and me when you died?!:
She reached out and wrapped her arms around him. The shadows around them were clear enough now that he could make out his dad, holding someone on the ground, and Scott over closer to the edge of the forest.
:Because this was always going to happen, baby. I couldn't stop the path that we were already on, but I wanted to be able to have more control over how things happened. If I lived but forgot about everything... I couldn't make that choice Stiles. So instead, I paid my price and when the time came, I asked for this. I asked to be here for this moment, so you wouldn't face it alone:
Stiles wiped tears out of his eyes. :Face what alone?:
His mother looked sad. :Your death: