Lydia pulled the black corvette into the parking garage, hands tight on the steering wheel. She willed herself not to glance in the rear view mirror, willed herself not to peek at the sneering red head in the jeep behind her. She'd noticed the tail as soon as she'd left her house, immediately alerting the others she was being tracked. Her plan had been to visit Allison since she'd woken up from surgery, but she wouldn't risk the girl's life by bringing an alpha along with her. Besides, something was different about this particular wolf; she radiated power that even Derek lacked. Whatever she wanted, it couldn't be good.
She pulled into an empty parking space, promptly turning the car off and stepping out. The garage was desolate and smelled of mold and must. Besides her own car and the alpha's vehicle, there was no one else insight; good thing too, she didn't need a bystander getting in the way. She closed her eyes, concentrating on drawing in the heat, as Deaton and Peter constantly taught her. She felt it stirring beneath her skin, felt the blood vessels expanding and boiling. She gritted her teeth against the sensation of her fingernails sharpening and pushing out into dangerous claws and her teeth acuminating to a lethal point. She held her breath until her blood vessels stabilized, before looking at the red head.
The girl had an eyebrow cocked, head tilted to the side, mouth hanging open a little bit. With that expression she looked innocent, childlike even; but Lydia knew better and never gave much into what people wanted you to see. After all, she was the best at pulling off the ditzy innocent girl look; she knew the fakers better than they knew themselves. She assessed the girl, using her senses to feel out the situation. The alpha didn't appear threatening at the moment, but then this was the puppeteer who was attacking them. Lydia watched her closely, sniffing the air around them for any signs of another wolf. There were none.
They stared each other down, neither dropping their gaze or giving an inch. Finally, after an eternity of sizing each other up, the red head let out a high pitched giggle. "Oh I do like you. You're strong, much more than I'd originally thought. Not to mention that lethal personality of yours. It's not every day I actually meet a hybrid worth my time, them being mere half breeds and all." She displayed a mouth of pointy teeth, the insult not lost on Lydia's ears. She let it roll of her back, knowing that playing the snarky bitch was her best feature.
"Thanks, now let's get to business. We all know you aren't coming for fashion advice, although if you manage to survive this little game you started I might spare a few pointers." She kept her face blank, not willing to give the alpha any emotion.
As it was, the little girl's smile dropped off her face, a blush creeping into her cheeks. She narrowed her eyes and snarled. "Very well then; I have a proposal for you, one I'm certain you won't refuse."
Now it was Lydia's turn to laugh. "A proposal, huh? Well I have to say this is a dramatic change from trying to kill us. Though I have to ask… do you really believe I'd betray my friends to serve under a brat like you?"
The tension in the air was tangible. The two females began to unconsciously circle each other, coming closer together after each revolution. Lydia could taste the fury burning off of the girl; could feel the bloodlust rising to the surface. A bell went off in her head. This girl wasn't as in control as she put off to be; she was as unstable as a beta, as Jackson even. That had to mean something. Was her alpha strength weakening? Was it stronger than her? If Stiles were here he'd be able to bounce ideas around with her, but at this moment he was tracking her with the others. If she could pry more information from the girl before the others arrived… "Why did you go after Allison?"
The red head stopped, her eyes flashing crimson. Her tiny hands clenched into fists at her side, her body trembling. "That girl is a hunter. I have no use for people like her. How you can ally yourself with such a filthy and pathetic human I have no idea. In all honesty, we were trying to eliminate her as a favor for you."
Lydia growled fiercely, slipping into a low crouch. "Don't you dare speak of her that way. Allison is as loyal to us as we are to her. You crossed the line going after her; you should have stayed away."
"You fool! Do you not realize the damage that girl's family has done? We all know what her aunt did to Hale, but do you know the other atrocities they've committed? They murdered my baby brother in front of me because I refused to give up my alpha. And you know what? My alpha turned tail and ran! He left us, all of us to die. I was the only survivor because I was resilient. Only the strong survive, only the strong can level an entire state if they wished."
She shook her head. "Allison had nothing to do with any of that. She's sided with us multiple times in the past."
The alpha scoffed, rolling her eyes. "We've been watching the Argents, Lydia. We know how lethal that girl is. She was willing to kill all of you just to avenge her pathetic mother. How can you defend her?"
Lydia swallowed down the bile that was rising in her throat. Her vision was tinting red, she tasted the overwhelming bloodlust, wanted it even. Her atoms were vibrating out of her body; she wanted to attack, had to. She dropped onto all fours, feeling her body morphing and shifting. The strength flooded her muscles, her bones willingly expanded to take it all in. This was what it felt like for the others, their transformation. The girl's eyes widened in shock. She took a hesitant step back, before furrowing her brows and flashing her eyes to their full strength. Lydia felt the full force of them wash over her. Unwillingly, she bowed her head in submission. She didn't know how long she stared at the dingy pavement with cracks in it before she felt the claws pierce the back of her neck. She refused to cry out at the sharp pain.
"Don't get ahead of yourself Lydia. I may be smaller than you, but I am still an alpha. I am the leader of a super race of wolves, one that will soon bring this country to its' knees. Now, I was offering you the position as my top lieutenant, seeing as we have an unexpected vacancy. My second in command is much like you…he could use a mate that's slightly more versatile than the last. Think about it."
The claws retracted and the girl was gone. Lydia sat there trembling, feeling herself phase back into her human form. A low sob choked its' way out of her mouth, a few tears leaking down her cheeks. She closed her eyes to swallow down the wall of emotion that was building within her. After all of her training she was weak enough to be halted by a look. How could she hope to actually take down the hybrid alpha on her own? Maybe Peter was wrong about her, maybe she wasn't going to reach that level in time to stop the hybrid. And how could she have let herself lose control? She was normally calm and collected, not ready to rip someone's head off. But that alpha was verbally attacking the one person she considered her best friend; what else could she have done? In the back of her mind she realized she could have gotten killed. Taking on a hybrid like herself was one thing; taking on the alpha of alphas was something else entirely. She wasn't honestly certain Derek would be able to handle that girl if it came to it.
She allowed a few more tears to roll down her face before pulling herself together. She shakily stood to her feet and leaned against her shiny corvette for support. She closed her eyes and waited for the heat to dissolve, for her humanity to take control again. Her eyes opened and she slid into the driver's seat of her car, leaning her forehead against the steering wheel. It took her a moment, but she was able to compose herself. She knew the wolves and Stiles were a floor below, but she couldn't help feeling vulnerable and frightened.
Lydia took a deep, steadying breath and adjusted herself in the rearview mirror. They may be her friends, but she would rather be mauled than have them witness her coming apart at the seams. She reached into her purse for her lip gloss, but her hand closed around a rolled up piece of paper. Gingerly, she pried it open to read the neat little scrawl. It was a drawing, a tiny little etching of a Nazi swastika. The wheels in her head were turning, but she couldn't quite make sense of it. She flipped the paper over for more clues. There was one tiny little notation written in careful cursive: For Stiles. Lydia looked at the drawing again, lips pursing in agitation. These alphas were playing some kind of twisted game and it was grating on her nerves now.
Someone tapped lightly on her window and she turned to look into Jackson's sparkling green eyes. She couldn't help but beam at him, despite the situation. She flung her door open and propelled herself into his arms. He was startled, but caught her, one hand on her waist, the other in her hair. He placed his chin on top of her head, smelling her natural floral scent and coconut shampoo. No sooner had he squeezed her than she moved on down the line, embracing all but Peter and Derek. She doubled back to Stiles, coyly slipping the paper into his pants pocket. He was smart enough to pretend not to notice and returned her hug.
Derek rested a palm on her shoulder, looking worried. "Lydia are you alright? What did she want from you?"
Lydia sighed and leaned up on her tiptoes, placing a quick peck on his stubble cheek. His expression was scandalous. "She offered me a position as her top lieutenant and the mate of her hybrid. Apparently, the old hag Allison took down held both until she was killed." Jackson growled and Lydia reached back for his hand. He gripped it protectively.
"What else? Did she say anything that might be important? Maybe about why they're here?" Peter threw in. A few pairs of eyes turned to him curiously, before falling on her again.
"The girl said they would create a super race of wolves to bring the country to its' knees. I'm not sure what that has to do with us specifically, but I guess it's kind of important." She shrugged, looking meaningfully at Stiles. She knew he would understand: put the clues together, then let's rock and roll. His head twitched in what she took as a nod. She pulled out of Jackson's grip and addressed Derek again. "I know I should probably lay low for awhile since I was approached by the head honcho, but I need to see Allison." She didn't wait for any confirmation, just wheeled about and climbed into her car. She blew Jackson a kiss then sped out of the garage, not bothering to look at the concerned expressions behind her.
He didn't waste any time bounding up the stairs to his room. He slammed his door closed and made a beeline for his computer. He extracted the wrinkled piece of paper from his pocket and smoothed it out. He gasped, finger lightly tracing the swastika; it was the same symbol that crazy alpha had drawn on Allison's forehead. He ran his tongue over his lips nervously and dug around on his computer desk for his history book. He flipped through it feverishly until he found the chapter he was looking for. He bent low over the book, reading the faded print in earnest.
His heart began tap dancing against his ribcage. He couldn't believe how simple it was… how they'd obliviously overlooked such crucial details. The alphas weren't just genetic freaks of nature…they were creating the gene themselves. They were like Dr. Mengele, experimenting to create the perfect species…the alpha species. Stiles couldn't believe he didn't see it before. They were literally Nazis; eliminating the weaker members of packs and mutating the strongest into heartless, bloodthirsty alphas. That explained why they'd tried to get rid of Allison; she was the equivalent to a Jew and therefore was required to be killed, her being a hunter and all. The alphas were planning a Holocaust so to speak, starting with the separate packs, and then taking over the human population. Damn, they were cunning. They'd been running wild the whole time while the alphas had been patiently watching in the shadows. They'd allowed Derek to train them for the final battle, the end of it all, just so they'd be able to weed out the superior species.
He tore out the pages, not caring that he'd have to pay a huge fine for it if he survived. Derek had to see this now; they needed an emergency pack meeting, anything to come up with a new game plan. Stiles grabbed the picture and stuffed the papers inside his pockets, scrambling around for his car keys. They weren't in his room, but he was positive he had them. Cursing himself in every language he knew, Stiles flung himself into the hallway and took the stairs in three leaps. He rounded the corner to the kitchen, skidding right into Phil.
The man didn't seem surprised at all, in fact amused. He caught Stiles before he could topple over into the counter, hands digging into his hip. He instantly recoiled, feeling as if he'd been shocked. His heart was seriously thudding now, so much in fact he could hear the blood pounding in his ears. Stiles wasn't going to pretend the guy wasn't scary as hell, because he was. He never seemed to work when the sheriff did, and when he was alone with him, the man stared or tried to talk to him about his friends. Phil also had a knack for appearing outside his bedroom first thing in the morning, an unnerving grin fixed on that place or outside the bathroom door after his shower. It wasn't natural and he couldn't wait until the man moved into his apartment. Seriously, did it really take a week to get everything settled?
"Uh, sorry dude. Kind of in a hurry. Just looking for…" Phil dangled his keys in front of his face. He reached for it with his right hand, not wanting to break eye contact. The man acted faster than Stiles thought possible. He snatched his wrist painfully and pulled it to his face, examining it closely. Stiles felt his blood run cold as the man's thumb lightly pressed the crescent shaped mark. It was nothing at all like the blissful sensations he'd felt when Derek pressed it during their nights together; it felt wrong, it hurt.
"Interesting scar you have here Stiles…how did you get it?" his voice was sharp, but no more than a whisper. He didn't loosen his grip.
Stiles gulped and looked anywhere but at him. "I don't really remember. I'm so clumsy I get bruises and stuff all the time; not like I can recall where they all come from." He shrugged nonchalantly, and tried to gently tug his arm away; it wouldn't budge.
Phil's eyes narrowed, his face darkening. He jerked Stiles closer to him, until their chests almost touched. "It looks like a bite Stiles. From an animal maybe? You been around any dogs lately?" The man's voice had a dangerous edge to it. He really wished he hadn't come home alone.
"S-Scott works for the local vet. I don't know, maybe one of the dogs bit me and I forgot. Look I really have to go, can I have my keys?" he was looking around for anything he could use as a possible weapon. Phil had never touched him before, let alone squeeze his wrist until it felt as if it would snap. This was getting out of hand. The man glared for a few more minutes, his eyes looked as if they were pulsing, before releasing him. He sat the keys in the palm of his hand, then brushed past him. Stiles stood there collecting himself, before rushing out to his jeep.
As he drove along, he called everyone and told them to rendezvous at Derek's.
Lydia was more than impressed with Stiles; she could kiss him. He'd put the pieces together quicker than she could have, figuring out what they were after and how the hell there was even an alpha pack to begin with. She leaned her head on Jackson's shoulder, loving the smell of him. He was alluring in a way no one else could ever be, his scent so powerful she felt as if she could melt into him. He threw his arm around her, his attention firmly on Derek, but she could see the tilt of his lips.
Stiles was leaning back against said alpha, waiting for the verdict. Derek seemed preoccupied, massaging the boy's wrist, every so often bending forward and pressing his mouth against it. She looked on lovingly at the two, trying to fathom how they had waited this long to get together. She felt the flutter in her heart and pressed her lips against Jackson's jaw. Her alphas feelings were infectious, she couldn't help herself. Before Jackson could react however, she moved out from under him and addressed the room.
"Okay, so we know what the alphas want, we know why they're here. What do we do? What's the game plan?" she looked around at them, waiting for suggestions. Scott was the first to speak.
"The full moon is going to be in three days. If we're going to do anything, it has to be done before then otherwise we don't stand a chance."
The others nodded in agreement. Lydia however, felt as if the temperature in the room had dropped. Peter had told her what the full moon could do for her; if Derek bit her she could be human again. Wasn't that what she wanted? Didn't she want to be full human, without the scary powers and death threats? It was right there for her, just three days away. All she needed was for Derek to bite her and she'd be free. She surveyed the people in the room, the ones she'd come to regard as her family. They'd been through a lot together the past few weeks; they'd all included her into the fold without qualms. She knew she wasn't always Miss Ball of sunshine, yet they all overlooked her snarky attitude and accepted her as she was. Not many humans could even do that. Did she want to give all of this up for her humanity? There would be other full moons… considering she lived and all. No, they needed her until the alphas were dealt with, and then she could decide what to do. She forced herself to pay attention to the arguments again.
"Allison is going to need a guard both before and after. It can't be Scott; he's one of the best fighters, we'll need him available at all times." Erica said, casting Scott a furious scowl when he opened his mouth to protest.
"Stiles should stay away for a few days in that case." Isaac threw in. The air electrified almost immediately. Lydia shifted from foot to foot, nibbling her bottom lip anxiously. Stiles was giving Isaac a scowl worthy of Derek; she idly wondered if he'd picked that up from the alpha since they'd been dating.
"I most certainly will not." Isaac's eyes widened at the fierce tone, not expecting him to argue; what a novice, did he not know Stiles at all?
"Stiles alphas get more powerful during that time. Not to mention these are mutated alphas; who knows what they'll be capable of. I'm on Isaac's side, we shouldn't risk it." Derek soothed. Lydia felt like smacking both her alpha and Isaac. Were they both really going to pull this stunt? She pinched the bridge of her nose irritably as the three engaged in a cut throat shouting match. Scott jumped in to defend Stiles, but was quickly ignored seeing as he couldn't provide any valid points as to why Stiles would be important to have around. The others smartly stayed out of it, eyeing Lydia warily. Her patience had just about reached its' snapping point when Peter intervened.
"Stiles just needs to lie low on the actual night of the full moon. There's no reason why he can't be around us during the day. The alphas already know about him anyway, so if they are planning something that night, chances are they'll try to get him before that. It's better to keep an eye on him than let him take his chances alone." No one said anything, considering this. Derek's face pinched slightly, but otherwise he could find nothing amiss in Peter's resolve. Lydia huffed and sat back down beside Jackson.
"Well since we have that covered I think I give my plan. I say we take care of them the day after the full moon. Think about it; they'll be recuperating from the power high of the nights. That also gives us a chance to figure out where they're hiding out. If we do that and strike at the right moment, we have a good chance of winning." She intertwined Jackson's fingers with her own as she spoke.
Derek was appraising her with a proud look. She gushed under it. "That's a good idea, but what about you? We still have no idea who their hybrid is. I don't want you fumbling trying to find him during the battle. All of us are coming out of that alive and unscathed." Derek said the last part threateningly. She grinned at him.
"That's what I have Peter and Stiles for. They'll cover me while I lure him off. His alpha already said he wants me, so chances are he'll come my way. When I've got him off alone, Stiles and Peter are going to help me take him and any other alphas out."
The man gently squeezed Stiles shoulders. He didn't seem to agree with that part, but it was a working plan. They sat in silence, waiting for the official word. Finally Derek nodded his consent. Stiles winked at her and she beamed at him. It wasn't everyday you came up with a plan to destroy a race of mutant werewolves.