...
Deciding to divide and conquer, Y/n sent Lydia to stop Jordan from leaving with Noah's aid while Y/n herself went to check on everyone else. She found them at Scott's house, minus Liam and Mason, with McCall himself wounded and bloodied. Y/n helped Kira settle Scott on his bed before she sat next to her friend. "I don't think you can help heal this." Scott said, already guessing at what she was going to do.
"The only good thing about housing double the witch souls is that I can. Now tell me what happened." She requested and Kira rattled off as much information as she could while Y/n worked on healing Scott's wounds. After they had gotten Coach to actually come back and, well, coach, he ended up not forfeiting like they had planned. Plan B was Malia would disable the transmitting news vans, but after she had done that, one of them had gotten repaired and transmitted anyways allowing the Beast to transform again. He attacked, injuring and chasing people who had ran to the school for shelter. Scott and the pack had done what they could to protect people until the Beast finally left them alone, but he had done severe damage to Scott.
The only upside was Scott had gotten the Beast's scent and, with Liam, was able to follow it to a car in the school parking lot, breaking open the trunk and finding the blood-soled shoe. They soon discovered the car turned out to be Mason's as the boy himself had caught them in the act. But this meant that Mason was the last chimera, the teenager trapped within the Beast every transformation and at risk for being taken over completely. Before they could do anything Corey had appeared and then promptly disappeared, taking Mason with him. Liam was now out searching everywhere he could while the others came back to Scott's house to recuperate.
Y/n had healed most of Scott's wounds, leaving just small scratches that would heal before morning came. Kira took Y/n's seat when the witch had stood, telling Scott to rest before she left his room and closed the door behind her. "Hey." Stiles called, walking up to her as she turned to him.
"Hey." She stepped closer and wrapped her arms around him, his going around her in turn as they just held each other for a minute. "I'm so sorry I wasn't there." She apologized, voice slightly muffled by his shirt.
"No, don't do that. I'm kind of glad you weren't."
"I could have helped."
"Or you could have been hurt worse."
"I doubt it. I heal faster, remember? Plus the Beast is remembering who he is, and because I look just like Ophelia, I don't think he'd do anything to hurt her."
"We don't know that for sure. Still. I'm glad you're safe."
"I'm glad you're safe too." She leaned her head back to look at him for a moment. His eyes traveled over her face, always seeming like he was trying to memorize her features even though by now he could probably draw her perfectly from memory, a sentiment she shared. When Stiles brought a hand up to hold the side of her face she leaned into it, lips brushing his palm in a feather light kiss before he pulled her closer for a proper one. She sighed against him, letting herself relax in his touch for a moment of reprieve from everything going on.
When they pulled away Y/n watched as his expression turned from blissful to thoughtful, eyes slightly squinted as he looked at her. "Did I also just kiss your several times great grandmother?" Her mentioning she looked exactly like Ophelia made him start thinking about how they now kind of shared a consciousness at the moment, Y/n and Ophelia both being aware of what was going on simultaneously and either one able to speak for themselves at any time.
This made her laugh at his abrupt question, shaking her head fondly as she looked at him. "Nope, that was all me, darling."
"Good, because that would have been weird." Y/n huffed a laugh as she glanced over his shoulder and saw Malia and Braeden standing at the end of the hall, waiting for them. Stiles followed her gaze and spotted them as well. "What?" He asked as the couple walked over to them. "What? What did I do?"
"Tell them." Braeden urged Malia.
"Mal? What is it?" Y/n asked, concerned at the anxiety and worry she was feeling from her sister.
"You know how my mother wants to kill me?" The couple nodded. "I think she might want to kill you, too. Possibly both of you." While Malia had been deacitvating the news vans Corinne had ambushed her, looking for a weak spot. She found it in the form of Stiles and the defining scent that lingered on him.
"Okay, uh, that's disconcerting." Stiles said. "I should probably have a gun." He and Malia looked to Braeden.
"I'm not giving you a gun." She denied.
"You have a gun. The Desert Wolf who is trying to kill me, has a gun. I think I should probably have a gun." Malia nodded at Braeden while Y/n shook her head. Braeden made a face before pulling a gun from her waistband and removing the clip, making sure it was unloaded before she tossed it to Stiles. Being his adorably uncoordinated self, he fumbled the weapon before dropping it and letting it clatter against the hardwood. "Yeah, I probably shouldn't have a gun."
Y/n patted his shoulder with a fond smile. "No, my love, aluminium bats are more your speed."
...
Scott awoke the next morning with a gasp. He checked his stomach and found no evidence of the wounds from the night before, completely healed thanks to his friend and rest. With a fresh determination he got up and changed into fresh clothes before going down to his kitchen where the pack were gathered. "I tried to track him with my magic, but it's like he's been cloaked or something." He heard Y/n say.
"Well, my dad's got an APB out." Stiles said.
"For a 5'8" 16-year-old?" Kira responded.
"I recommended nine-foot tall rampaging werewolf." Scott smiled to himself in amusement.
"It still might not be him." Liam argued. They looked at him sympathetically and he looked down at the table, knowing he was just fooling himself. "But Hayden's at the school looking."
"I can keep checking the woods." Malia offered.
"My mom can check all the hospitals in the county." Scott said as he entered the room. "We can find him."
"What happens then?" Liam asked.
"We figure out a way to save him."
"Okay. Where else could we look?" Lydia questioned.
"We could always ask Corey." Y/n said just as Scott looked to the shelf beside him, reached over and gripped a fistfull of fabric, making Corey reveal himself as the Alpha pulled him close.
"Wait. Wait. It's not my fault." Corey stammered. "They took him and I couldn't do anything. They took him-"
"Who?" Scott asked.
"The Dread Doctors."
...
"How stupid are we to be doing this?" Liam asked as he and Y/n followed Scott through the school.
"We're not stupid. We're desperate." Scott argued.
"How desperate?"
"Incredibly desperate." Scott opened the locker room door making Theo and Tracy turn to face the new comers.
"I told you we'd end up on the same side." Theo lightly boasted as the three stood in front of him.
"How about I punch you in the balls to remind you we're not?" Liam asked, and Y/n thought it sounded like a great idea.
Theo chuckled. "I love this kid."
"I don't." Tracy said from her perch against the lockers.
"We know you're not on our side, Theo." Scott spoke. "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?"
"Did you put it on?" Y/n asked next.
They noticed Tracy give Theo a look, and Scott glanced between them. "Who did you see?"
"Not Mason."
"What's that mean? It's not him?" Liam asked almost hopefully.
"It probably means he's a lost cause." Tracy answered.
"We all want the same thing." Theo claimed. "We want Mason back."
"Yeah, but we'd prefer if he was alive." Y/n glared as Theo took a step closer.
"Well, I'm open to compromise." He smirked. "You still got the map with the telluric currents on it? Bring it to the operating theatre in two hours."
With that the three left the locker room, Scott closing the door behind them. "How desperate are we?" Liam asked again.
"Incredibly." The older teens chorused together.
After the two hours had lapsed Scott, Y/n and Liam went to the Dread Doctors old operating theatre, walking to Theo who was standing in front of a large, empty tank. "They called him Der Soldat. That's German for 'The Soldier'. I'm pretty sure he faught in World War II."
"And he was a Nazi." Scott said as Theo turned back to them.
"And an Alpha werewolf. The Dread Doctors were using him to prolong their lives. They've been doing it for decades. Actually, probably longer."
"How old are these guys?" Liam asked.
"Who knows. But wherever they go, he goes, too."
"So how do we find him?"
"Keeping him alive requires a pretty unique set of conditions. There's got to be a power source and it has to be underground and-"
"And on a telluric current." Scott finished as he pulled the map from his pocket and handed it to Theo.
Theo looked it over and found a place of interest. "Looks like we're going for a hike." And hike they did. Night quickly fell as the four trecked through the preserve, looking for anything that would lead them to Mason and the Doctor's new theatre.
"Where is he?" Scott suddenly asked as he and Theo walked in front of Y/n and Liam.
"I thought we were looking for him."
"You know who I'm talking about."
"Deucalion?"
"You shouldn't trust him."
"And you're the one who let him live."
"I'm not a murderer."
"You still think you're gonna get through all this without killing anyone?"
"I didn't say that." Scott muttered.
"Scott." Y/n called, and that's when they noticed Liam had lagged back a bit, concentrating on the scents around them.
"We're close." He finally said.
"You get his scent?" Scott asked, and Liam nodded.
"Which way?" Theo asked, but instead of answering Liam looked to Scott. Scott glanced at Theo as the chimera looked between the three. "You think you're gonna leave me behind?"
Y/n raised her hand a bit. "I'm actually partial to the idea of knocking you out and leaving you to the mercy of predators."
"Is that your way of getting even?" She lightly shrugged and held her thumb and forefinger a centimeter apart.
"Liam." Scott urged.
"Look, he wants to kill him." The Beta argued.
"I just want his power." Theo defended. "You want to fight someone that actually wants to kill Mason? Go fight Parrish."
"Jordan doesn't want to kill Mason." Y/n scoffed at Theo.
"Who did you see when you put on the mask?" Liam asked him.
"I already told you. It wasn't Mason."
"Who was it?" He pressed.
"I saw a man dying in the snow." Y/n's eyes slightly widened, feeling a surge of emotion from Ophelia. "He was impaled on a spear."
"It's called a pike." She corrected. "You only saw him because you were looking for the Beast's identity, not who it was hiding in. Mason isn't the Beast, the Beast is Mason."
"The point is, time's running out. Where is he, Liam? What direction?"
Liam again stayed silent, looking to his Alpha for direction. Scott tilted his head in a way to tell Liam go ahead. Reluctantly Liam took the lead as he followed his best friend's scent. "This way."
Liam led them to a small building that looked like a long abandonded shack. As he went to open the door, Scott put a hand on his shoulder and made him pause. "Listen."
Doing as told he could hear a heartbeat from somewhere inside. "It's him." Liam opened the door and was the first one in. The others followed and they found the space inside was bigger than it seemed. Concrete steps led down into a wider space. "Mason?" Liam called in a loud whisper. There was no answer, but they walked further in anyways. Various objects and shelves littered the space, yet all of that was put aside when they spotted Mason leaning against a large tank that held a body suspended in a green liquid. Liam hurried to crouch next to his friend, gently shaking his shoulder to wake him up.
That's when Scott noticed the large device stuck to the back of Mason's neck. He followed the tube attatched to it and saw it led directly into the tank. "It's connected to him."
Y/n and Scott moved to crouch on either side of Liam to see what they could do for Mason while Theo stood behind them. "What is this thing?"
"I don't know." Theo answered.
"Liam, I can feel it." Mason's voice was strained, breaths heavy as he held onto his friend. "It's in my skull."
"Don't move." Liam urged.
"Careful." Y/n said.
"What are they doing to him?" Liam turned to Theo.
"I don't know."
"Guys, let's focus." Scott called. "Mason, we're gonna get you out of here. Hold him still." He directed Y/n and Liam who held onto Mason. "Okay. Alright. I'm gonna try to pull it out." Scott warned and Mason nodded. "Let me know if it hurts."
He gripped the tube and only pulled a little before Mason yelled out in pain. "It hurts! It definitely hurts."
"I barely moved it. Y/n, can you do anything? Y/n?" The witch didn't answer and he saw her looking behind them, behind Theo, the pricking in her fingers warning her of the Dread Doctors' presence before the Pathologist stood behind them.
"They wanted us here." Theo realized as Scott and Y/n stood up beside him.
Movement to the right showed them that the Geneticist was now blocking the way they had come. "Liam, try to get that thing out of Mason's neck."
Heavy footsteps and the click of a cane announced the Surgeon was approaching. "Theo. Theo Raeken."
"He's coming with us." Theo challenged.
"Failure, Theo Raeken."
"I'm not- I'm not a failure."
"Liam, get out of here. Just go." Mason panted as he gripped Liam's arm.
"Not a complete failure. 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."
"We're taking Mason." Theo told Scott, jaw clenched in anger. "Then I'm taking what's mine." He glared at the Surgeon, now shifted and growling. "Let him go."
"You have the entitlement and narcissism typical of your generation. In that, you are a profound success." The Surgeon admitted as he finally stood in front of them.
Liam tried to pull the device out again only for Mason to scream in pain. "Scott! Scott, I- I can't get it out. I don't know what to do." Scott went over to help while Y/n stayed to defend them against the Dread Doctors.
"But your failure taught us one thing. The banality of evil. That you were and would always be and ordinary evil."
"You think I'm ordinary?"
"We believed that to resurrect the perfect killer, we had to start with the perfect evil. From you we learned true evil only come from corrupting something truly good."
"Not something." Scott shook his head as he looked down at Mason.
Liam glanced back at them, understanding what Scott was saying. "Someone."
The Pathologist came up behind Theo and Y/n, and the chimera turned to fight him, pushing him back and punching his mask.
The Surgeon then turned his sights on Y/n. "Sorcière. You will obey."
"Not a chance." She denied before she sent him flying back.
The Geneticist walked into the fray and Liam rushed over to help defend with Scott calling to him. "Liam, wait!" Scott then followed the Beta.
The four fought the two Dread Doctors, but even with their combinded strength they were slowly overpowered. The Pathologist held a hand towards Y/n, the tips of his glove glowing as he used his abilities to send her flying back into a few steel drums. Scott was soon to join her as Mason could do nothing but watch. "Liam! Liam!" He called, but he knew there was only one way he was going to be able to help his friends, and that was to get that damn thing out of his neck.
As Liam was thrown down with the witch and the wolf, Mason reached back and gripped the device. Theo had set his sights on the Surgeon after he had recovered, going for a few punches. He was quickly stopped as the Surgeon held him away by his throat. Mason screamed in pain as he started to pull, pushing himself to his feet. The Surgeon pushed Theo away as everyone's eyes were now on the young man as he finally pulled the device free.
"Transformation." The Surgeon marveled as shadows started to swirl at Mason's feet. "Transformation without frequency."
"Mason!" Liam yelled.
Mason's eyes glowed blue as he looked up to the Beta, his voice distorted as he spoke. "That is not my name." The shadows coalesced around him and transformed him into the Beast once again.
"Il se souvient." Ophelia gasped before Y/n spoke. "He remembers."
The Beast attacked then. He went for the Genetisict first, slashing at her and tearing the tubes around her mask, letting her choke on her own blood as she fell in front of Y/n and the boys. The Beast went for the Pathologist next, tearing his head off and tossing it to the side. It rolled to a stop at Theo's and the Surgeon's feet. He let the body drop and turned to the last Doctor. He hit Theo away as he stood in front of the Surgeon. "Success." The Beast plunged his claws into the Surgeon's abdomen and dragged the doctor outside with him.
Scott looked at Liam and Y/n before he got up and followed the Beast, prompting them to follow him as well. They stopped just outside the door, watching as the Beast dropped the Surgeon to the ground, about ready to finish him off only for Jordan in full hellhound mode to come from nowhere and attack. The Beast hit him away, and Chris appeared shooting the Beast with a rifle with Gerard behind him. The Beast turned to flee, but the bullets made him stagger, although Chris soon ran out of them. They watched as The Beast was covered in shadows once again, but when they dispersed, instead of Mason, another man stood there instead.
"La Bête du Gévaudan!" Gerard called. "I know your name." The man looked at the Hunter over his shoulder. "Do you remember mine?"
"Argent." He answered before he took off into the woods, Jordan following after with a glare.
"Who the hell was that?" Scott asked.
"You've seen the Beast of Gévaudan. That was the Man." Gerard answered.
"Sebastien Valet." Chris named.
Y/n frowned as she heard a strange sound, almost like muttering. She looked to the Surgeon's body and slowly moved over to it, following the noise only to realize he was the one making it. He wasn't dead and it sounded like he was trying to say something. "What? What are you saying?" She muttered as she kneeled beside him and leant closer to hear him better.
"Forgive me, Ophelia. Forgive me."
She jerked her head back in shock, a spark of recognition in her eyes as the familiar words echoed in her mind. "Marcel?"
~~~
Published: 9/7/22
I was thinking of doing a Q&A again with the cast of JaF like I did before, what do y'all think? I'd post it after the story is all done?