Identity
AN: Hi everyone! Here's the next chapter I hope you enjoy it. As always let me know how you feel about it.
I also wanted to let you all know about the timeline for the rest of this story and for next. Next week's chapter will be posted as usual and that would technically be the end of the season, but there is still going to be a chapter following that. That chapter won't be posted until One's Not Enough is finished as it is in part the conclusion to that story. I'm hoping there won't be a delay, but I have been a bit behind. The summary to ONE will be posted after the final chapter for anyone who wanted to get caught up but hasn't had the time to read the story.
I plan to continue Steve's story into season 6 of the show. However, I haven't started on that story beyond an outline. So, once these two stories are finished there will be about a month or so hiatus for me to write out 6a to avoid a lot of the issues I ran into with ONE. After that, I should have plenty of time to do work on 6b and beyond.
Josh rested his arms on the table while he stared at the mask. "You won't die if you put it on," Tracy told him.
"How do you know that? Or is it just that you don't want to put it on yourself? Or any of you?" Josh asked turning to the three other chimeras.
"We're not afraid to do it, Josh," Theo said. "We're just not stupid."
"Not that you are," Lucas said smiling and walking forward.
"You're the one with the power," Tracy told him.
"They want you to wear it, Josh, because the properties of the mask are base in electromagnetism," Deucalion explained, causing Josh to turn. "Pick it up and you'll see."
He lifted the mask from the table and held it up at eye level. "What is this thing?" he asked the alpha.
"Product of genius and madness, two traits too often found in the same mind. The man who created the first was known only as The Surgeon. Using practices in the farthest edges of pseudo-science, he harnessed electromagnetic fields in the masks, infusing them with a unique and deadly power."
Josh nodded as he lifted the mask towards his face before stopping. "I'm not putting this thing on," he said, setting the mask back on the table. "You want to know who it is? Do it yourself."
Tracy sighed as she turned around. "We could always hold him down," Lucas suggested as Josh started to walk away. Tracy faced him again, smiling.
"Only if we want to get electrocuted," Theo said shaking his head.
Lydia sped down the highway with Fiona. They had just left Parrish's house and were heading to the city limits as fast as possible "We just came from his place, half of his stuff was gone. You can't let him leave," Lydia told the sheriff when he answered the phone.
"It's okay, I got a call from dispatch. He's headed for the highway," the sheriff responded.
"Can you stop him?"
"Stopping him is one thing. Getting him to turn around-"
"Leave that to us," Lydia replied hanging up and accelerating.
They made it to the sitting limits and stopped right before a spike strip that Parrish had driven through. The two banshees got out of the car and ran towards Stilinski and Parrish as they were talking. "You're all out of your minds. You know that?" Parrish stated as they got to him.
"You can't leave," Lydia told him.
"I can't stay. I'm a hellhound. I have the word Hell in my name. Hell," Parrish told them.
"You're also one of my best deputies," the sheriff added.
"You guys don't get it. The bodies I see in my dream are because of me. And there's gonna be more. A lot more."
"You're right," Fiona said causing Lydia to whip around. "A lot of people are going to die if you stay." Parrish nodded and moved towards his car door. "But, I can use my powers to see the effects of different choices."
"I've made my choice," Parrish said opening the door and stepping into the car
"If you leave, more people will die than if you stay," Fiona stated, stopping the deputy.
"How many more?" he asked, stopping halfway into the car.
"Everyone," Fiona replied, causing Parrish to step out of the car.
"You said you were drawn to Beacon Hills," Lydia added. "I think you're here for a reason."
"Hey," the sheriff said tossing Parrish his badge. Parrish looked at it before looking back up at the others and nodding.
The group returned to the school to tell the others about Mason. Braeden pulled August aside.
"We need your help," she told him.
"With what?"
"Protecting Stiles," Malia said as she walked over to them. "You know my mother is after him now, but she's also still after me."
"So, while I'm helping to protect Malia from the Desert Wolf, we need you to watch over Stiles and keep him safe," Braeden added.
"Okay, I can tell the pack."
"No, it has to be you. You have the skills to survive her," Braeden told him.
"And I'm inept?" Steve asked walking up behind them.
"You think you fight the Desert Wolf in your state?" Braeden asked looking at the wounds covering Steve's body.
"I'll heal," Steve told her. "If Stiles is in danger I'll help protect him. At least one of us will be with him at all times."
"Fine, but only 'cause I know you'll kill her if you have to," Malia said. The four turned back to the others as Stiles and Kira were supporting Scott.
"Adrenaline's worn off," Steve muttered as he walked towards his pack. "Go find Mason. We need to find him before he turns into The Beast again."
"I'm going to," Liam chimed in. Steve nodded and the five ran off. The rest of the two packs followed Scott back to his house.
Stiles and Kira helped Scott out of the Jeep and into the house. Steve, August, Braeden, and Malia made a sweep around the house. After they made sure they were clear the four headed into the house. Stiles nodded at them from across the house as he locked the back door and ran upstairs. The four followed him and waited in the hall as he checked on Scott.
Stiles made it to the door before he froze. He nodded as he slowly closed the door and moved towards the stairs, but stopped when he saw the other four staring at him. "What?" he asked moving towards them. The four realized they were staring at him. "What did I do?"
"Tell him," Braeden told Malia.
"You know how my mother wants to kill me?" Malia started. Stiles nodded. "I think she might want to kill you too."
"Okay. Uh, that's disconcerting. I should probably have a gun," Stiles said.
Everyone turned towards Braeden. "I'm not giving you a gun," she said gesturing at Stiles.
"You have a gun, August has a gun. The Desert Wolf, who is trying to kill me, has a gun. I think I should probably have a gun."
"He has a point," Steve commented.
Braeden paused before pulling out a pistol and removing the clip. She lobbed it at Stiles who fumbled with it until it fell to the ground. "I probably shouldn't have a gun," Stiles said.
"Thrown at you," August added stepping forward. He moved behind Stiles as he placed the boy's hand on the pistol. "You aim by looking here," August started, "Then when you want to fire. . ." The gun went off as Stiles's finger found the trigger. A bullet lodged into the wall. August quickly took the gun out of Stiles's hand as Kira popped out of Scott's room.
"Premature discharge," Steve stated as he pointed to Stiles. "You're not getting a gun," Steve said turning to Stiles. "But you do get August and me. We'll be with you 24/7."
"Great," Stiles sighed. The five headed down the stairs and out the door.
"Really? A loaded gun?" Steve heard Malia ask August.
"I didn't think he would actually try and pull the trigger. How does he not know how to not fire a gun the second someone hands you it?"
"How does someone not know how to not give someone a gun who doesn't know how to use it?" Braeden commented as she headed towards her SUV.
"Right, cause we both learned with unloaded guns," August replied as she shut the door. "You take first watch," he told Steve, "I'm going to try and figure out if I can find where Mason might have ran off too."
Steve got in Stiles's Jeep as they all headed separate ways. "You know I will probably be fine sleeping by myself," Stiles told Steve when they walked into Stiles's room.
Steve was busy pulling down the blinds and moved the bed so it wasn't directly across from the window. "You don't really understand 24/7 do you?"
"Okay, you can have the couch. I'll let my dad know you're here," Stiles said pulling his phone out of his pocket.
"Not unless your windows are made of bullet-resistant polycarbonate strong enough to keep out a werecoyote. I'll sleep up here."
Stiles looked around the room, pointing out that there was only one bed, before Steve sat in the desk chair. "Fine. It's always comforting to have someone watch me sleep," Stiles muttered as he got into bed.
"Better me than the Desert Wolf," Steve said before flipping off the lights.
"Mason? Mason!" Leonard heard Liam shouting deeper in the woods.
They had split up once they got to the preserve. He could hear Charlie running a few yards away. Jay was up by Liam and Zach was flying in between. They had grabbed a sweater from Mason's locker so that they were able to follow his scent but it was faint and seemed to be coming from everywhere. He heard Liam cry out in pain. He and Charlie headed towards Scott's beta.
"I lost it, I lost his scent," they heard Liam pant.
"I'll help you find it," Hayden told him.
"Zach and I will go that way. We'll find him." Jay said once he got to Liam. The three pairs headed their separate ways again.
Steve sat in the dark room listening to the noises outside. Stiles had fallen asleep a few hours ago and he could hear the boy snoring. He stretched and hissed as he felt the sting from the claw marks on his side. He lifted his shirt and saw that that wounds had mostly disappeared. He sighed as he leaned his head back against his chair, closing his eyes for just a second.
Steve heard movement and shot out of the chair. "Easy," Stiles said calming Steve. "You look terrible."
"Yeah, I didn't sleep much," Steve groaned as he stretched his neck. "Or well."
"To be fair I offered you the couch," Stiles commented as he continued getting ready. "I'm going to go to the sheriff's station to tell my dad what happened and then head to Scott's. You should get some rest."
"I'm coming too," Steve sighed as he got out of the chair.
"I'm pretty sure the Desert Wolf isn't going to shoot up the sheriff's station or attack both packs at Scott's."
"No, but she could attack while you are driving. You don't exactly have a low-profile, or reliable, vehicle."
"Right, 24/7. Got it," Stiles said as they headed out of the room and outside. Steve sat in the passenger seat checking every intersection until the world faded out.
"Wake up," Stiles shouted slapping Steve on the chest.
"What happened," Steve shouted as he jumped awake.
"Nothing, we made it to Scott's house, all thanks to your dedicated watch," Stiles told as he stepped out of the Jeep.
Steve joined him as they headed into the house. The rest of the packs were already there.
"We couldn't find Mason last night. He and Corey had covered their tracks," Jay told them as they walked in.
"My dad's got an APB out. . ." Stiles started
"For a five-eight sixteen-year-old?" Kira interrupted.
"I recommended nine-foot tall rampaging werewolf."
"It still might not be him," Liam stated. The rest of the room looked over at him, "But Hayden's at the school looking."
"I can keep checking the woods," Malia offered.
"I can help," Jay added.
"My mom can check all the hospitals in the county," Scott stated as he came around the corner. "We can find him."
"What happens then?" Liam asked turning towards Scott.
"We figure out a way to save him."
"Okay. Where else could we look?" Lydia asked.
"Let's ask Corey," Scott said as he pulled the invisible boy away from the wall and held Corey inches away from his face by his shirt.
"Wait, wait. It's not my fault They took him and I couldn't do anything. They took him," Corey stammered.
"Who?" Scott asked interrupting him.
"The Dread Doctors," Corey breathed out after a moment.
Scott released Corey. "Steve, Charlie, Liam. Come with me," Scott said.
"Where are we going?" Liam asked.
"To talk to Theo," Scott answered and the four wolves headed towards the door.
"You're on Stiles duty," Steve told August when he reached the door. Stiles sighed and rolled his eyes
"Let's see if Parrish can sense anything," Fiona told Lydia. Lydia nodded before the two headed for the door.
"I'll help Melissa check the hospitals," Leonard said.
"Zach and I can run through the woods again, see if he's escaped at all," Jay added.
"I'll come too. In case you guys run into anything," Malia said.
"Not while your mom's running around," Braeden stated from the dining room eating pistachios with her feet on the table. "We'll wait here, maybe Mason will stop by."
Malia groaned in protest. "It's okay, I can handle myself," Jay winked before the three of them headed out the door.
Stiles started to follow them. "You gonna run around in the woods too?" August asked.
"No, I'm going to the station, so I can know if they find anything," Stiles sighed turning around.
"Sounds like an easy watch job for me. Who's going to shoot up a sheriff's station" August smiled, following him.
"Are you going to fall asleep on me too?"
"Not a chance," August said clapping Stiles's shoulder and pulling him through the door.
"What about these," Tracy asked putting Belasko's claws on the table in front of Lucas and Theo.
"They're useless if we don't know who it is," Theo told her.
"Actually, they're just useless," Deucalion told him. "Didn't Hayden mention that? Where is she by the way? I hope her moment of dissent didn't turn into actual desertion." The alpha paused, taking a deep breath. "What about the other one? Corey? None of us can see him, blind or otherwise. So, I'm guessing he's not here either."
Josh chuckled from the railing. "I'm leaving," he said. Tracy blocked his path as he headed for the door.
"Oh, there goes another. Your circle of trust is narrowing, Theo."
"Your voice is getting on my nerves. Paralyze his tongue," Theo commanded.
"You got it," Tracy said flicking out her claws.
"Tell me something, Tracy. Just how powerless were you before this all happened? In my experience, it's the truly powerless who are all too eager to demonstrate their new-found strength," the alpha stated.
"Better yet, cut it out," Theo told Lucas "Make sure it doesn't grow back."
Lucas moved for the alpha. Deucalion raised a hand to him. "Allow me to demonstrate something more helpful to our cause. Trust." The alpha stood and started to remove the mechanism delivering the wolfsbane. "I told you I wanted Scott McCall's eyes. That's why I let you take me." The mechanism clang to the ground. "Though, I have been a willing guest this entire time."
"Okay," Theo muttered. "What now?"
"Teach you what you've been so desperate to know." Deucalion lunged at Theo and slammed him against the rails. Lucas put his arm up to stop Tracy. Theo cried out in pain as the alpha broke his arm. "Feel that, Theo? That's the secret to taking power. Pain. Take their pain, take their life, take their power. It's all or nothing," Deucalion said before throwing Theo to the side. "You take until there is nothing more to give." Theo snapped his bone back into place. "That's where you find the spark of power, and then you take that as well. Pain, life, power. In that order and only that order. Do you understand?"
"Perfectly," Theo breathed as he rose and turned towards the alpha, brandishing his claws. He quickly turned towards Josh and slammed his claws into Josh's chest. Josh screamed in pain as electricity flowed off of him and both of the chimeras shifted.
Lucas moved forward to stop Theo, but Deucalion stopped him. "Get out of there, now" Steve commanded as the life drained from Josh.
"I can feel it," Theo sighed as he removed his claws from Josh.
"Good, but you've just cost yourself one member of a small and inexperienced pack," Deucalion commented.
Theo looked back at Josh before turning towards Tracy who stood frozen by the wolfsbane tank. "What do you think?"
"I think he was small and inexperienced," she told him, regaining her composure. "And if you've got his power now, you can put on the mask."
He looked back at Lucas who nodded in agreement. "We need to keep an eye on him," Lucas thought back to Steve. Theo turned to look at the mask.
"This kind of power requires risk, Theo," Deucalion said as Theo picked up the mask. "Do it. Put on the mask. Discover The Beast's identity and guarantee your place as an alpha. As a real werewolf."
Theo slowly put the mask on his face. He screamed in pain as he held his head and fell to the floor.
"Where are we going?" Parrish asked as he got in Lydia's car.
"The nemeton," Fiona told him, "It's a beacon, so it may be able to help you find Mason."
"Even though that's not how beacons work," Lydia mentioned.
"No, but it seems to be connected to Parrish, so maybe it's connected to The Beast."
Parrish sighed as they headed down the road. "What if it doesn't work. Or the hellhound takes over and I go to hunt him down?" he asked after a moment.
"It won't. Besides, if we help Mason, we can save everyone," Lydia told him.
Lydia pulled up near the nemeton. The three of them exited the car and approached the stump in silence. Parrish froze right before the tree. "You can still save them," Lydia said. Parrish reached out and touched the stump. He closed his eyes to focus on the tree. "You can save them all," Lydia told him.
Lydia stepped forward and grabbed his arm. Parrish's eyes opened, glowing orange for a moment before returning to normal. He gasped and the tree's rings started to glow the same color orange. "Did you see him?" Fiona asked.
"No," Parrish breathed. He turned to face the banshees. "But I saw both of you. With your necks slashed."
"You seem off," Charlie mentioned as they walked into the school.
"Just worried about Lucas. Theo killed Josh and Lucas is staying to get information," Steve whispered.
"If we blow his cover, he'll be forced to leave," Charlie replied.
"Or Theo will kill Lucas. But Lucas is right, we need to know what Theo is doing, especially if he is desperate enough to kill his own pack."
"How stupid are we for doing this?" Liam asked as they headed towards the locker room.
"We're not stupid. We're desperate," Scott told him.
"How desperate?" Liam asked.
"Stupidly desperate," Steve answered as they paused at the door.
They pushed through and found Theo, Tracy, and Lucas standing there waiting. "I told you we'd end up on the same side," Theo stated.
"How about I punch you in the balls to remind you we're not?" Liam replied.
Theo chuckled. "I love this kid."
"I don't," Tracy commented.
"We don't like you either," Charlie growled at her.
"That hurt," Lucas sneered.
"We know you're not on our side, Theo." Scott said breaking the tension, "You said you wanted to help Lydia, but you left Eichen with something else, didn't you?"
"You mean the mask? Are you worried about that?" Theo asked smiling.
"Did you put it on?" Scott asked. Theo remained quiet. "Who did you see?"
"Not Mason," Lucas told them.
"What's that mean? It's not him?" Liam asked.
"It probably means he's a lost cause," Tracy told him.
Steve grabbed Liam as he moved towards Tracy.
"We all want the same thing," Theo said. "We want Mason back."
"Okay, but the difference is we want him back alive," Scott told him.
"Well I'm open to compromise," Theo said approaching the four. "You still got the map with telluric currents on it? Bring it to the operating theater in two hours."
The four wolves left the locker room. "How desperate are we?" Liam asked again.
"Incredibly," Scott said.
"Do you have to follow me everywhere?" Stiles asked as he and August walked back into the Sheriff's Station.
"You do understand how fast a bullet can travel, right? Can't protect you if I'm waiting inside. Besides, the mind link is faster than you trying to call them."
"So, you've heard something then?" Stiles asked.
"Nothing useful," August sighed as the two walked into the Sheriff's Office.
"Still nothing from Scott and Steve," Stiles announced to Fiona, Lydia and the Sheriff.
"Are we really sure this is a good idea?" Lydia asked.
"Uh, no, no one thinks this is a good idea," Stiles said.
"But you're trusting Theo anyway?" the sheriff asked.
"We're not trusting him. We're using him," Stiles answered.
"He'd be the only one to know where the Dread Doctors might be," August added.
"What if he's using us?" Lydia asked.
"That's probably a given, but look, we're just trying to cover ever place Mason could show up," Stiles replied. "Malia and Braeden are at Scott's house."
"Melissa and Leonard have the hospital," the sheriff said.
"Hayden and Corey are at the school," Lydia added.
"Zach and Jay are combing through the woods," Fiona added.
"Somebody's got to find him," August finished.
"Let's hope they find Mason and not The Beast," Lydia stated.
"You can't sense where he is?" the sheriff asked Fiona.
"Not unless he's going to die."
The four wolves came to the operating theater and found Theo staring at one of the tanks. "They called him Der Soldat. That's German for "The Soldier." I'm pretty sure he fought in World War II," Theo said turning to face the others.
"You mean he was a Nazi?" Scott asked.
"And an alpha werewolf."
"Fascinating," Steve stated, "Will he tell us how to find Mason?"
"The Dread Doctors were using him to prolong their lives. They've been doing it for decades. Actually, probably longer," Theo continued ignoring the alpha.
"How old are these guys?" Liam asked.
"Who knows, but wherever they go he goes too," Theo stated.
"So how do we find him?" Liam asked.
"Keeping him alive required a pretty unique set of conditions. There's got to be a power source and it has to be underground, and. . ."
"On a telluric current," Scott interrupted pulling out the map and handing it to Theo.
Theo looked over the map for a few seconds before looking up to the others with a smile on his face. "Looks like we're going on a hike."
"We've got a hit and run," an EMT shouted running through the doors, "Victim is a black male, approximately sixteen years of age. Blood pressure eighty and dropping."
"Oh my god, is that my brother?" Leonard shouted running up to the gurney to take a look. This had been the fourth person he claimed as his brother.
"Sir, we need you to stay out of the way," the nurse said pulling him aside as they continued through the lobby. Leonard looked toward Melissa and shook his head.
"I'm just worried about my brother," Leonard answered the other nurse's confused look.
"Nothing here," Melissa told Stiles over the phone.
"Same here," Stiles told Melissa.
"Anything on your end?" Lydia asked Malia while pacing around the office.
"Not a thing. And I'm going to lose my mind if I don't get out of this supernatural cage," Malia's voice came over the phone.
"The Mountain Ash is there to keep you safe," Lydia told her
"I should be keeping Stiles safe," Malia stated.
"I've got it pretty well handled," August said from the corner as Stiles ran into a window.
"He'll be fine," Lydia said walking away from the two.
"Really? A window took you out? Someone needs to teach you how to protect yourself," August said as he helped Stiles to his feet.
"You offering," Stiles asked.
"Considering how surprised I am that you've lasted this long? Yes," August sighed, "Once everything's done with
"You hear anything from Steve?"
"They might have found where the Dread Doctors are hiding. They're going to check it out to see if Theo's telling the truth. Jay and Zach are going to meet them."
"Shouldn't they keep searching in case Theo is lying?" Lydia asked joining them.
"Good point, I'll pass it on."
"Keep searching the woods," August's voice sounded.
"There's no way Mason is in the woods," Jay panted as he and Zach came to a stop.
"Maybe you should take a break. You've been running all day. I'll keep looking."
"You aren't tired?" Jay huffed.
"I haven't felt tired since the shot Leonard gave me," Zach smiled.
"Maybe I should get one of those. I'll check in on the others," Jay stated and headed back into town.
"This isn't working," Leonard stated approaching Melissa.
"Maybe you need to work on a different line," she suggested as she searched through reports from other hospitals.
"Or we do," Leonard stated, causing her to look up from the computer. "Steve's pretty sure they figured out how to find Mason, but we need to figure out how to help him."
"How do we do that?"
"Mason is a chimera, but he wasn't on the list of genetic chimeras. So there has to be something else that qualified him."
"And that something may be the key to saving him," Melissa finished before grabbing her keycard and leaving the desk. "Are you coming?" she asked the werelion as he continued to wait in the lobby. Leonard nodded and ran after her.
"Where is he?" Scott asked as the group walked through the woods.
"I thought we were looking for him," Theo answered.
"You know who I'm talking about," Scott told him.
"Deucalion?" Theo asked.
"You shouldn't trust him," Scott said.
"Scott's right, he's dangerous," Steve added
"You're the one who let him live," Theo said to Scott, "And you're the one who never stood a chance," Theo turned back towards Steve.
"I'm not a murderer," Scott told him.
"You still think you're gonna get through all this without killing anyone?" Theo asked
"I didn't say that," Scott told him.
"I've got enough blood on my hands," Steve stated flicking his claws out.
"We're close," Liam interrupted.
"You get his scent?" Scott asked. Liam nodded in reply.
"Which way?" Theo asked. Liam stared at him. "You think you're gonna leave me behind?"
"I don't see why not," Steve said, claws still out.
"Liam," Scott said.
"He wants to kill him," Liam said.
"No, I just want his power. You want to fight someone that actually wants to kill Mason? Go fight Parrish," Theo stated.
"It'd be less satisfying," Steve said.
Scott put his hand against Steve's chest, causing Steve to turn to him. "Who did you see when you put on the mask?" Liam asked.
"I already told you. It wasn't Mason."
"Who was it?"
"It was a man dying in the snow. He was impaled on a spear."
"It's called a pike," Scott corrected. "Lydia told us the story."
"Then you know what it means. Time's running out," Theo announced. "Where is he Liam, in what direction?"
"He's right," Steve said putting away his claws. "Liam, we have to go."
"This way," Liam growled as he walked through the other four.
"Try something, I dare you," Steve whispered to Theo as they headed after Liam.
They reached a door and Liam went to open it. Scott grabbed his arm "Listen."
Steve focused his hearing and heard a heart beating. "It's him," Liam said as he opened the door and ran in. The other four followed cautiously.
"Mason?" Liam whispered. They made their way into the basement, under the roots that had started to grow through the ceiling. They rounded a corner and found Mason on the ground in front of a tank containing the Nazi alpha. Steve followed the tubing coming out of Mason's neck to the tank.
"It's connected to him," Scott said.
"What is this thing?" Liam asked.
"I don't know," Theo told him.
"Liam, I can feel it," Mason sobbed. "It's in my skull."
"Don't move," Scott said kneeling beside Mason. Charlie moved around the tank examining it.
"Theo, what're they doing?" Steve asked,
"I don't know," Theo repeated.
"Maybe I can jog your memory," Steve growled, moving towards the chimera.
"Guys, let's focus," Scott called out. "Mason, we're gonna get you out of here," he said calmly. He turned towards Liam. "Hold him still. Alright. I'm gonna try to pull it out. Let me know if it hurts you."
Steve turned as he heard Mason cry out in pain. The tube hadn't moved at all, "It hurts, it definitely hurts," Mason said once he caught his breath.
Steve moved to Mason and knelt beside him. "I barely moved it," Scott told them but his eyes widened. Steve turned and saw the Dread Doctors standing behind Theo.
August stretched on the chair as he watched Stiles sleep. They were still in the sheriff's station. Lydia walked into the office and flicked Stiles on the forehead. "What. What. What happened who's dead," Stiles said as he rose.
"No one. At least not yet," she said sitting next to Stiles.
"You just had to ruin my peace and quiet, didn't you?" August complained.
Lydia sighed as the two pulled out their phones. Fiona kicked August from the chair next to him. Lydia turned towards Stiles and shook her head. "You okay?" she asked.
"Yeah. I'm still thinking. Still trying to figure out why Mason. I mean he wasn't even on the genetic Chimera list."
"He is now," Melissa said walking in. "Mason was born with twin embolization syndrome."
"You mean fetal absorption?" Lydia asked. Melissa nodded. "He had a vanishing twin in utero?"
"Which accounts for two sets of DNA," Melissa stated.
"Can someone please a say it with words that have less than three syllables?" Stiles asked.
"He ate his twin," Leonard stated walking in.
"Oh, God," Stiles gasped.
"But like, not with his mouth," Leonard added.
Stiles looked more confused. "But does it help?" Lydia asked before Stiles could ask any more questions.
"I don't know," Melissa answered. "But it's just bizarre enough to sound like it might be important, right?"
"It has to help. There has to be something," Lydia said as Melissa opened the file. August peered over to see two fetuses, one slightly smaller and seeming to shrink into the larger one.
"Maybe Deaton would know something," Leonard stated.
"Alright, let's go," August said grabbing the file as he, Stiles, and Leonard headed out the door.
"They wanted us here," Theo told them as the Doctor's clicking filled the room.
"Liam, try and get that thing out of Mason's neck," Scott said as he watched the Doctors approach.
Steve stood and moved towards Scott and Theo. "Theo. Theo Raeken," The Surgeon said as the Doctors began to close in.
"He's coming with us," Theo told them
"Failure. Theo Raeken."
"I'm not a failure."
"Liam get out of here. Just go," Mason grunted. Charlie knelt beside him and moved to absorb the pain so Liam could pull. As soon as Charlie made contact with Mason, tendrils shot up to Charlie's chest. He looked at Liam in panic.
"Not a complete failure," The Surgeon continued. "We learned from you."
"Theo, he's trying to get to you," Scott warned. "This is what they want. Don't give it to them. We can't beat them."
"The mark of a true failure. Repeating the same mistake again and again."
"Didn't you have eleven identical failures?" Steve asked.
"We're taking Mason. Then I'm taking what's mine," Theo growled shifting. "Let him go."
"You have the entitlement and narcissism typical of your generation. In that, you are a profound success."
Liam grabbed the mechanism in Mason's neck and slowly began to pull. Mason scream causing the others to look away from the Dread Doctors. "Scott, I can't get it out." Liam said, "I don't know what to do."
Charlie flicked his claws out and grabbed the tube. "Don't, it's probably what's keeping him alive right now," Steve warned him as Scott ran over to help.
"But your failure taught us one thing. The banality of evil. That you were and would always be an ordinary evil." The Doctors were now feet away from Steve and Theo.
"You think I'm ordinary?" Theo asked.
"We believed that to resurrect the perfect killer we had to start with the perfect evil. From you, we learned true evil only comes by corrupting something truly good."
"Not something," Scott said.
"Someone," Liam finished as the three of them looked to Mason before trying to free the tube from him.
The Doctors had surrounded Steve and Theo at this point. They heard crackling behind them as one of the Doctors charged up his fingers. Theo turned and shoved the Doctor back before he began punching its head. The other two started to move past Steve, but the alpha grabbed one and tried to throw it back, but the Doctor barely stumbled. He heard Charlie and Liam rush at the third Doctor.
"Liam, wait!" Scott called out after him.
Theo got knocked to the ground after trading a few blows with the doctor. Steve fell shortly after before Charlie engaged the Doctor. Liam was barely holding his own. "Liam," Mason shouted behind them. "Liam!"
Scott left Mason and started fighting the Doctor approaching Theo. Charlie hit the ground near Steve and Theo rushed at that Doctor. Liam was knocked aside and Steve ran to replace him. "Guys!" Charlie shouted from the ground. Steve turned to watch Mason rise as he pulled the mechanism from his neck. Steve felt the Doctor's fist slam into his jaw. The alpha fell to the ground still staring at Mason.
The mechanism was pulled free and the Doctors froze. "Transformation," The Surgeon said as smoke began to swirl around Mason. "Transformation without frequency."
"Mason!" Liam called out.
Mason's eyes filled with bright blue light as the smoke began to cover him. "That's not my name," the boy growled in a distorted voice. The Beast slowly began to form out of the smoke and growl at them
Jay made it to Scott's house he froze after he made it through the front door. Remembering the Mountain Ash, he turned to see the line had been broken behind him. He stilled his breathing as he saw a shadow move down the hallway. He quietly slid into the coat closet by the stairs.
Jay listened as his heart thudded in his head. He heard a crunch before he heard a gun fire and grunting. Another shot went off in the dining room. He heard a gasp from the second floor. "Malia," he thought to himself.
The gun fired a few more time, causing the lights to shatter. He heard one of the fighters fall to the ground before they disengaged. "Still here Braeden?" the Desert Wolf asked from just outside the closet door. "Okay. I love a cage match."
The Beast swung out and knocked Scott, Liam, and one of the Doctors aside. Steve and Charlie quickly crawled past a table out of The Beast's path. They watched as The Beast lifted one of the Doctors before ripping its head off and tossing it across the room. Theo and The Surgeon stood in awe as the head rolled past Theo.
The Beast stepped forward knocking Theo aside. "Success," The Surgeon said before he was gored by claws and dragged out of the basement. The group followed and watched as The Beast discarded The Surgeon. Parrish, ablaze, leapt towards The Beast, punching him in the chest before running out of his reach. Chris started firing at him from behind, Gerard following behind him. The Beast ran towards the woods before it shifted back into human form, revealing a white man instead of Mason.
"La Bete Du Gevaudan," Gerard shouted, "I know your name. Do you remember mine?"
"Argent," the man snarled in a French accent before running off. Parrish growled and ran after him. The others tried to chase but realized they would not be able to keep up.
"What the hell was that?" Scott asked.
"You've seen The Beast of Gevaudan. That was the Man," Gerard replied.
"Sebastien Valet," Chris added.