I don't own Teen Wolf

Married to Darkness- Chapter 8

Nolan inched into the entrance. He applied a little more pressure to the door to open it and slid a body into the wall. He stepped further in, attempting to dodge the pools of blood but quickly realized that the entire floor might as well have been a pool of blood. Theo slowly stepped in and whispered, "What are you doing Nolan?"

The nervous teen looked back to the chimera, "We came here to get information. Plus that heartbeat might belong to the werewolf they captured."

Theo shook his head and whispered, "I think we only assumed they captured it. From the looks of this place, it took them out."

Nolan steadied his grip on the crossbow as his hands began to shake. He reached into his pocket and pulled out the keys to the handcuffs and handed them to Theo. The teen asked, "How does the heartbeat sound?"

Theo listened, "Steady and calm."

Nolan smiled, "Good. Maybe we can talk to them." The teen stepped into the large square room and moved towards a door on the far side of the square. Theo unlocked the cuffs and pulled out the bolt before following the teen. "I am going to call the rest of the pack."

Nolan nodded and said, "Can you smell where they are?"

The chimera shook his head, "I can't separate the scents. This room is swimming in strong odors." Theo looked around the room and counted at least ten bodies. He realized that the pack had misjudged the number of hunters that were working for Monroe. The chimera followed the human as he opened the door. When Nolan opened the door, Theo stepped in to both check the next room and lead them in. As Theo looked down the hallway, which only appeared to be wide enough for two grown adults to walk side by side down, and there were maybe two more bodies. He could only guess since whatever came through here ripped the hunters literally limb from limb leaving behind a pile of extremities and clawed up walls. The chimera remarked, "Whatever it is, it is mad." The hallway led to a door, which was already partially open, that led to a set of stairs going into the earth.

Theo looked back to Nolan, "I can't place where this thing is and I don't think we should take the stairs yet.

Nolan pleaded, "We have to go on. We can't just turn tail and run."

Theo stepped towards Nolan and blocked the hallway, "Why? This is beyond dangerous right now and I am not dying in this compound for you."

Nolan pushed past Theo, who put up little resistance, as he said, "We can finish this. We can stop these hunters from killing anyone else."

Theo smirked at the young man, "What are you trying to prove?"

Nolan walked towards the door as he muttered, "Nothing." Theo was actively listening to the heartbeats as he tried to place where the other werewolf was and noticed the uptick in Nolan's heartbeat as he said nothing. Theo followed the human down the stairs. The stairs emptied into a large concrete room with tables lining the far wall. The concrete room appeared to be a command center with no other entrances besides the stairs they descended to reach it. There was an elaborate set up of military grade radio systems and computer displays. The equipment appeared to be smashed to rubble and the computers destroyed. The floor was littered with papers which carried foot and handprints of blood. Nolan knelt down next to a pile of papers near the tables. He began to read some of the words aloud, "Mitochondrial stress resistance? Dispersal method? Sequence initiator?"

Theo stepped over to the human and read the paper, "This isn't good. I think we found at least part of their plan." The chimera scooped up that pile of papers and folded them. He jammed them into Nolan's cargo pocket and said, "I think we have found enough right here. Let's get out of here before things go south."

Nolan agreed and the two men turned towards the door. As if Murphy himself were listening, Theo heard a digital voice speak to someone and say, "Kill the murderers." He instantly placed the heartbeat in the stairwell. Theo yelled, "Get ready Nolan." The chimera wolfed out and lowered himself to get ready to attack the possible enemy. The human barely raised the crossbow before a blood covered figure stepped through the entranceway.

The figure stood several inches taller than Theo. The man was wolfed out with short cropped, spiky, light colored hair and blazing red eyes. His extended arms ended with large, vicious claws that appeared to beg for more blood. While tall, he was more wiry than broad with well-defined musculature. He wore a blood-soaked t shirt and jeans with sneakers. The figure appeared to have a Bluetooth device in his ear and the only other accessory that appeared out of place was the white gold chain with a wolf's face adornment that gleamed in the flickering light. He growled as he shifted his glare from Theo to Nolan. The figure launched itself towards Nolan.

Theo jumped towards the wolf in an attempt to intercept it as Nolan released the trigger and sent a bolt flying towards the target. The bolt found its target with the wolf's leg. The bolt embed itself into the alpha's calve causing no real reaction. Before the wolf could bring its claws into the human, the chimera collided with it and slammed it into the concrete wall. Theo shouted to Nolan, "Run, get the others." Nolan ran towards the door. Theo chased after the human and managed to get the door closed before the alpha could stop him. Once the door was closed, the alpha tore into Theo's left shoulder. The chimera let out a scream as he firmly grabbed the door handle. The alpha threw the chimera to the far wall. Theo hit the concrete with enough force to cause cracks to spider web from the impact and leave a massive indentation where he struck.

The alpha looked to grab the handle and saw that it was missing. Theo chuckled and smugly said, before he coughed up blood, "Looking for something." The alpha looked to the chimera and saw him holding up the ripped off door handle. Full of rage, the alpha released a deafening roar. Theo got to his feet and released one of his own, though it paled in comparison to the alpha's. The wolf charged towards the chimera and slashed at his torso. Theo barely moved out of the way but the beast caught his left arm, which sprayed blood as the claws tore through the skin. Theo let out a howl of pain as he clawed into the alpha's ribcage. The alpha stabbed his claws into the chimera's torso before he backhanded Theo hard enough to send the chimera flying into the side wall.

Theo caught his breath as the blood trickled and he watched the damage he did to the alpha heal. The chimera muttered, "If the cavalry doesn't show up soon, there won't be much left of me."

The alpha roared at the chimera again and Theo gathered his reserves to roar back. The door to the stairs slammed open loudly and Liam charged in wolfed out. The alpha looked to the stairs and charged towards the beta. Before he could slash the beta, the voice returned in the headset, "fall back."

The alpha lowered his claws and slammed his body into Liam, which sent the wolf flying to the side wall near Theo. The figure fled before either member of the pack could give chase. Theo collapsed to a knee as Liam pulled himself up. The beta rushed to the chimera and pulled him to stand. Almost instinctively he began to take Theo's pain.

The chimera muttered before he lost consciousness, "That's cheating."

Theo opened his eyes and looked around. He was laying on a couch and the room seemed familiar. His senses were muted but eventually he realized where he was. He pulled himself to sitting up on the couch and facing the TV in the living room. He asked himself quietly, "I am at Stiles' home."

Stiles walked out of the kitchen, into the living room, a bowl of freshly popped popcorn in hand as he walked towards the couch. He stopped short and looked at the chimera, "Oh my god. You are here again?"

Theo looked to Stiles, "Why am I here?"

Stiles groaned and sat down next to the chimera, "I don't know. I just know the other you doesn't want to deal with you at the moment so I guess that leaves me. By the way, not very cool how I have to be the backup plan. Then again, technically I would be the backup backup plan since Tara adds her two cents as well, before me I might add. And all of this is completely messed up since I was here in Beacon Hills back when there was just two of us."

The chimera shook his head, "I passed out, didn't I?"

Stiles smiled the most sarcastic smile and followed it in tone, "No shit. You know that was really stupid to take on an alpha single handedly. Not to mention the fact that he was beefed up on something and somehow you keep forgetting that naturally you aren't as strong as a wolf to begin with, much less an alpha."

Theo smirked at Stiles, "Good to see you haven't changed." Theo glanced out the window and noticed that the clouds had darkened and it began to rain against the windows. Almost simultaneously, the air filled with the scent of citrus, neroli, and tobacco. The scent seemed familiar but Theo had trouble getting his mind to place it.

Stiles groaned and said, "We are dealing with this again. Have I mentioned how much I hate the weather channel? They are never right. I wish I could get paid to constantly be wrong and destroy people's plans on how to spend a day."

Theo joked, "I'm sure you could if you weren't a part of my mind."

Stiles joked back, "Yeah, I could probably do lots of things. And to think I graduated from high school for this."

Theo spat, "Sorry to inconvenience you Stiles. If I am seeing you then I am unconscious and you probably have some message or torture lined up for me. So, if you don't mind, can we skip the long story and just hit the cliff notes?"

Stiles argued, "What story or torture? I just walked in here to watch a movie and eat some popcorn. You want the cliff notes lesson Theo? Stop being a dumbass." Stiles grabbed the TV remote and turned on the TV.

Theo glared at Stiles, "For a figment of my psyche, you are an annoying asshole." The TV flashed images of a wedding with seemingly faceless people gathered around for the ceremony. The two figures faced one another and while blurry, their happiness could be seen and felt.

Stiles jerked his head from facing the TV to returning Theo's glare, "You know that just means that you are the annoying asshole, right? For someone with enough street smarts to survive Beacon Hills, the Dread Doctors, the Ghost Riders and Hunters on the regular, you aren't that smart. I would say that's probably why you joined the pack but that's not the reason at all."

Theo glanced to the screen and saw the images of a couple sitting in a booth at a diner, smiling and eating food. He spoke, "That's it then, you plan to watch TV and insult me."

Stiles groaned, "Alright Theo, since you insist on me missing my TV show. Why did you fight that alpha?"

Theo looked at Stiles, "Because he was trying to kill Nolan."

Stiles sighed as he pulled his face away from the TV which showed a couple kissing under a tree in the preserve, "Wow, your powers of deduction are immense. How about before that?"

Theo growled, "I followed Nolan downstairs to find information."

Stiles mumbled to himself, "I may as well cut off the TV and take you through this Barney style. I am going to give you a hint. If you know the answer already then you aren't asking the right question. The answers aren't answers but questions." The TV show flickered in the background to a pack of wolves darting through a forest dodging a group of orange clad hunters.

Theo rolled his eyes and shook his head in frustration, "You aren't making any sense. Can't you just talk like a normal person?"

Stiles dramatically sighed, his annoyance filling the silence, "Alright. Here's your softball Theo, why did you follow Nolan down the stairs?"

Theo blurted out before he could think about it, "Because he lied about having nothing to prove."

Stiles nodded and condescendingly said, "Alright, now phrase your answer in the form of a question like we are on jeopardy."

Theo slowly mumbled, "Why is Nolan lying about having nothing to prove?"

Stiles ridiculed the chimera in his cheer, "Thank you. There, put a pin in that question. Let's move on to the next question. What was your first impression of the scent of the alpha?" The TV flashed the image of a black wolf with a noticeable broken front foot with a white furred wolf nuzzled up to its side.

Theo once again blurted out the answer, "Trust."

Stiles emphatically raised his eyebrows as he smirked, "That doesn't sound odd at all. Why would you think of trusting the wolf that put you into this situation to where you are stuck doing twenty questions with me?"

Theo spoke under his breath, "I don't know so the question is why do I associate trust with the alpha?"

Stiles remarked, "Congrats Theo. You might actually be able to understand this game. Who was speaking to the alpha?"

Theo shrugged and said, "I don't know so that is another question."

Stiles yelled at Theo in frustration, "You can't steal my questions. Especially when you know the answer. Who did the voice remind you of?"

Theo blurted out, "Parrish. Wait, that's not right. Parrish doesn't want to kill people."

Stiles brought his hand up and began to make circles in the air, waving the palm to Theo, signaling him to continue, "So that means the question is?" The TV showed images of two MMA fighters attacking each other.

"Why do I think of Parrish with regards to the voice?"

Stiles sighed in relief, "Thank you. I might not miss the program now. Now, what is going on with you being in the pack? I thought we were a lone wolf."

Theo argued back, "I thought I would be happy to be surrounded by friends. To have their backs and they have mine."

Stiles laughed and sarcastically responded, "Yeah, your heartbeat didn't go erratic at all. I hope they didn't notice that on the monitor, otherwise your pack might realize you lie to yourself more than anyone."

Theo asserted, "It's Liam. Why do I feel a connection with Liam? Actually, I know that answer. He pulled me out of hell."

Stiles rolled his eyes, "Funny that you say it like that. Hayden was there too and it was also partly her idea. Last time I checked, you weren't chasing down your former pack mate and sharing kumbayas."

Theo sighed, "Yeah, you are right. So why do I feel a connection with Liam?"

Stiles nodded, "We are getting there. What about." Theo interrupted Stiles, "I also need to know why I am risking my very life for this pack? It kind of goes against my survival nature."

Stiles turned back to face the TV. There was a scene of a shifty man grinning wildly as he was talking to a group of people. Stiles commented, "I love how this show ends."

Theo glanced to the TV and then back to Stiles, "Alright. Why are you here? A figment of my psyche, I get it but why you, Stiles?"

Stiles looked to Theo, "There is one of the million dollar questions. Now if you don't mind, I have TV watching to get back to and you have monitors, hunters, and mixed up feelings to deal with. Try not to forget the questions you need answers to, I'd hate to have to repeat myself."

Theo woke up to the sounds of a heart monitor. He groaned as he struggled to pull himself to sitting and look around. The chemo signals of dread, guilt, and anxiety hit the chimera. Before he could react he saw Liam standing over him. The waves of relief his the air as the wolf stared at the conscious chimera. The strong scent from his dream hit him. It was Liam's scent.

Theo croaked, "Hey, Little wolf."

Liam smiled, his cheeks a little puffy and red, and said, "Hey. I'm glad you are awake."

Theo smirked, "How long have I been out?"

Melissa stepped into the room, "Two days. It was touch and go and you lost a lot of blood but you managed to pull through."

Theo tried to lean over in the bed to face Melissa. He groaned in pain as he said, "I'm sorry you have to put up with me. You didn't have to."

Melissa shot him the mom glare of disapproval, "I'm helping you because you deserve to be helped. Liam told me what happened and I think what you did was self-destructive but your heart was in the right place. You saved Nolan's life. I just wish you were like this when you first came back." Melissa sighed as she briefly reflected on that time. Theo began to say something when she interrupted him, "The wounds from the alpha should heal within a day or so. Take care of yourself."

Theo responded quietly, "Thank you." Melissa smiled and stepped out of the hospital room. Theo looked to Liam and saw that the beta was holding his hand. Confusion filled the chimera because he saw that the beta cared about him but also because he couldn't feel his arm. His eyes widened as he muttered, "I can't feel my arm."

Liam nodded and smiled at the chimera, "Yeah, not until that nasty wound to your shoulder heals. That was crazy what you did."

Theo wore his smug grin through the pain, "What? Getting the information and getting into a scuffle with that alpha? I had it completely under control." Theo laughed a little as he finished his statement. The chimera realized he didn't get the intended response when the chemo signals of Liam's rage rushed and overwhelmed the other scents.

Liam released Theo's hand and yelled, "He could've killed you. He came really close to killing you. If it weren't for Melissa, Mason, and Deaton's quick thinking you would've died! And yet, here you are, laughing it off as if it doesn't matter."

Theo started, "Liam, you know wha-"The beta cut him off, "I better go before you say something that is going to make we want to break your nose, again." Liam stormed out of the room. The door slammed loudly and Theo flinched from the force. He sighed and mumbled, "Whatever."

Theo had a moment to reflect before the door to his room opened. Nolan stepped inside, the scents of guilt and anxiety practically flowed off the man. Nolan walked over to the bed and said, "Thanks, for saving my life."

Theo looked to the teen, "I'll accept that, when you answer some of my questions."

Nolan looked confused, "What do you mean questions?"

Theo grinned, "I mean why were you so gung-ho to go into the compound and get the information?"

Nolan stuttered as he spoke, "Because that was our mission."

Theo rolled his eyes, "I may be laid up in a hospital bed but that doesn't mean I can't hear you lying. So why were you pushing the mission forward when we should've waited for backup?"

Nolan looked away from the Theo and spoke under his breath, "Because I'm not useless."

Now the anger filled the chimera as he stated, "So what? You wanted to charge into a bad situation and come out the hero?"

Nolan responded, "But the pack plans missions around me, like I can only do certain things. It makes me feel worthless."

Theo rolled his eyes, "The pack does that for everyone if you didn't notice. We all have different strengths and short comings. If we were all equal in our strengths, we would be a vulnerable pack."

Nolan stated, "Yeah, but you and Liam are able to take things on head on. The rest of the pack is so strong and brave."

Theo shook his head, "We are only strong and brave because we want to protect the rest of the pack."

Nolan argued back, "I didn't want to be afraid. You are never afraid."

Theo groaned against the pain as he argued further, "Yeah. That's because the Dread Doctors conditioned me to act in calculated risks and not fear. Plus, never is a strong word. There are plenty of things that scare me. I just control it."

Nolan asked, "Really? When was the last time you were afraid?"

Theo sighed and looked away from the teen, "When the alpha charged you. I heard the voice say to kill the murderers and when the alpha's eyes fell on you, my blood ran cold. We saw what he did to that entire team of trained hunters."

Nolan's mouth dropped and it took a moment for the human to recover before he said, "You were afraid of what would happen to me."

Theo gently nodded, "Yeah, I went with you to protect you. That's not to say you can't handle yourself, more to say that we needed to be prepared for anything. Looks like we weren't."

Nolan asked, "I thought he attacked me because he smelled my fear."

Theo laughed sarcastically, "If that were the case then he would've attacked me. He was looking to kill hunters and sorry Nolan, you really looked the part."

Nolan nervously bit his lip as he responded, "I never looked at it that way. I just thought I was a burden."

Theo smirked, "You were the key to the plan. We couldn't have gained access easily if the hunters were established and not, you know ripped apart."

Nolan pleaded, "But you're hurt because of me."

Theo shook his head and mustered a laugh, "I'm hurt because I'm the idiot that didn't follow you out the door and break the handle on the opposite side."

Nolan laughed a little with Theo, "I guess I didn't look at it that way."

Theo looked back to the teen, "Now get out of here. The smell of your misplaced guilt is making me nauseous."

Nolan smiled and said goodbye before leaving the room.

Theo sighed and stared at the ceiling. He spoke, "You can come out Corey."

The younger chimera stepped of the wall and appeared. He said, "How long have you known?"

Theo grinned, "Since Liam left. I am going to be alright. If I had to take a guess, you were a big part of why that is the case. Mason gave me a shot, didn't he?"

Corey gasped in surprise, "How did you know?"

Theo shrugged, "Which means you have a vial of green fluid for me, correct?"

Corey nodded and carried the syringe, already loaded with the green solution, to Theo. Theo smiled as he looked up at Corey, "I bet you were stuck in here waiting because Little Wolf came in before you could administer the shot."

Corey nodded, "I'm sorry I told Mason but,"

Theo interrupted Corey, "It's alright. Mason and I had a heart to heart. But neither of you told Liam. Which also means Mason hid it when Deaton and Melissa were trying to treat me."

Corey smiled, "Yeah. I guess this makes us accomplices to your secret."

Theo smiled to Corey, "Thank you. Seriously. I don't want to get sidelined because everyone is afraid something will happen to me. This is Beacon Hills, something always happens to someone regardless of what we do."

Corey murmured, "No problem Theo" before he injected the green solution into the older chimera. His heartrate spiked initially but quickly came back down. After removing the syringe, Corey began, "Thank you for talking to Nolan."

Theo shrugged, "I only told him the truth."

Corey half-grinned as he stared at the older chimera, "You really have changed more than I thought."

Theo groaned and rolled his eyes, "Are we back to this Corey? Stop making eyes at me like that. If Mason were to step in I might have to deal with a baseball bat to the face."

Corey laughed, "Well, you are in the right place for it."

Theo smirked and laughed, "Very funny."

When Corey finished laughing he said, "So, are we ready for the next step?"

Theo nodded, "Figuring out who this alpha is. It's never boring in Beacon Hills."