"Seriously, are we there yet?" Caroline asked. They group briefly stopped to rest.
"I think we've still got at least twenty miles of forest to get through." Maria told her. Everyone groaned.
"You think they'd pick a less supernatural area to…" Bonnie began, but Maria motioned for her to be quiet. She listened.
"Okay, I think we're good." Maria said. "We need to be careful around here. We don't want to attract negative energy."
"Good point." Matt said. "I don't know much about the supernatural, but if it's one thing I know, negative energy is never a good thing."
"And yet, for some reason, you never got into the science scene." Jeremy said. Everyone laughed. Caroline looked over at Tyler.
"With this hike plus the fight, we'll probably end up dead before we get there." Allison said.
"No, we won't." Maria said.
"Besides, I didn't go this far to give up on taking those morons down." Damon said.
"Okay, well, sitting here's not going to do anything." Nate pointed out.
"Well, we better keep going." Maria said. They started off into the woods again.
"I can't believe we're actually doing this." Lauren said.
"You know, it's okay if you're scared." Matt told her.
"Are you kidding, this is the most epic thing I'm about to do!" Lauren said.
"You've sure got a lot of enthusiasm." Allison said. Nate put his arm around her shoulder.
"Hey, it'll be just like the old days, only with a lot more people."
"How many of you were there?" Liz asked them.
"Well, Ali, Lauren and I have been a team since Maria left, but with her help, we're twice as strong." Nate explained.
Meanwhile, Tyler and Caroline were behind the rest of the group. "Hey, how'd your training go?"
"Rough, but it was also kind of fun. I feel like I'm ready to take on anything." Tyler said. Caroline smiled.
"Good, because we could really use your powers in this." Caroline said.
"Look, I know you like Matt and all, but…" Tyler began. He noticed Caroline listening, looking concerned.
"Did you hear that?" She asked. Tyler listened, then he heard some leaves rustle. He turned and saw some branches near the bush moving.
"There!" Tyler pointed at the movement. Caroline rushed forward and found a guy hiding. He seemed surprised to see her. With one quick movement, she knocked him out.
"I'll bet Katherine sent him to spy on us. Should we tell the others?" Caroline asked.
"No." Tyler said. "We shouldn't concern the others more than we have to. Awesome move, by the way."
"Thanks." Caroline said. "Allison really helped. Anyway, you were saying…"
"It's not important."
"Come on."
"Well, I guess I like you." Tyler told her. "Ever since we started hanging out together, I've felt that I could just tell you everything." Caroline looked at him.
"Whoa."
"I'm sorry, I know this isn't the right time…"
"No, don't apologize." Caroline said. "I'm glad you told me." She looked away. "We better get going or the fight will start without us." Tyler followed her gaze and realized she was right. They'd fallen way behind the rest of the group. They hurried to catch up with them.
Maria and the others were still walking, when she felt something off. "Maria, what's going on?" Allison asked.
"I'm beginning to see why they picked this place as their hideout." Maria said. She stopped and rolled up the leg of her jeans. There was a red mark near her ankle, as though she'd stepped in poison ivy.
"I thought you were immune to…"
"Unless it touches my skin." Maria reminded them. "There's a reason I use the needles, people."
"This area feels haunted to me." Bonnie said. "It's like there are spirits here."
"Don't tell me you're scared, witchy." Damon told her.
"No, she's right." Lauren said. "I can feel that there's something around here."
"I feel it, too, Lauren." Maria said. "I think a few witch spirits reside over the area, to help protect campers or hikers from supernatural attacks."
"Then how come some of them still get hurt?" Matt asked.
"Even spirits can't help everyone, Matt." Bonnie answered for Maria. "I mean, even those that live try to help as many as we can, but sometimes innocent people still get caught in the crossfire."
"Yeah, I'm proof of that." Caroline said.
"Well, now's your chance for some payback." Damon pointed out.
"Careful, Damon." Maria said. "Fighting out of vengeance might make us feel better, but in the end, it just makes things worse. The tomb vampires proved that."
"Well, they were idiots."
"Damon, this is serious." Elena pointed out. "Besides, ignoring Maria's advice is always a very, very bad idea."
"I've gotta take her side on this one." Jeremy said. "If it weren't for Maria, I probably would've tried to kill you." They all stared at him. "It was during the fair, around the same time you," He pointed to Caroline. "turned."
"Wait, why would you try to kill him?" Nate asked. "If he's such a strong ally."
"He killed me." Jeremy said. "If it weren't for the ring, I would've really died."
"I don't know how many more times I have to apologize for that one." Damon told him.
"To be fair, you were still in shock about the whole Katherine thing." Stefan pointed out.
"Well, everything worked out, didn't it?" Allison added.
"Hey, guys…" Caroline said. She had gone a few feet from them and was ahead of the others. "I think we're getting closer. Look." She pointed to something in the grass.
Maria bent down and looked at it. She could see a blood stain on one of the plants. "They've been here." She realized. "Of course they have been."
"You think they're leading us into a trap?"
"It's possible." Maria said.
"Not to mention we knocked out one of their little spies earlier, in the woods." Tyler told them.
"And these footprints." Lauren added. She stepped aside, revealing a set of prints in the grass. "From what I'm picking up, they've been around here recently. My guess would be at least a day or two ago."
"You can tell just by looking at the prints?" Matt asked.
"That's not all we can tell." Allison said. "Look at the shape of that one." They all looked at the one she was pointing at. The imprint in the grass looked like it'd been made by someone wearing heels. '
"What kind of girl wears high heels while walking in the forest?" Nate asked. Allison glared at him. "No offense."
"And somehow, I'm still offended." She said.
"It's her. I'd recognize that pattern anywhere." Caroline said.
"Then we'd better get going. I know we're getting really close." Maria said. "A few of us should go a little further just in case."
"I'll go with Maria." Nate said.
"So will I." Damon said. That one Maria expected.
"Me, too." Bonnie said, surprising everyone. "We're a team now. We have to trust each other."
"Careful out there." Elena told her.
"No problem."
"We won't let anything happen to her." Maria promised her. "Okay, you three, let's go." The group waited a few seconds after Maria and the others went ahead, then followed the direction they went in.
Up ahead, Maria could see a whole camp of vampires. "Stand back." She told them. "There's hundreds of them down there. Might want to cast a protection spell over everyone before we go into battle."
"Right." Bonnie said. They grabbed each other's hands and concentrated, putting a protection spell over everyone on their side.
"Watch out!" Nate yelled suddenly. They were knocked aside.
"What's going on?" Bonnie asked.
"They spotted us." Damon told them. "We've got to get down there, now!"