Previous: "Esotericism"
|
Next: "Séance"
|
Teen Wolf: Time Episode 4
"The Mission"
“It happened when I was a little kid” Casey began. He was sat facing Archie, although he wasn’t making eye contact. Despite being a long time ago, Casey found it difficult to recall this memory. Archie listened intently, focusing fully.
Five days to Christmas. That’s all Casey could think about. It was tantalisingly close – his favourite time of the year. It was the pinnacle of every eight-year-old’s year. All the toys he was hoping to get, all the food he was going to eat, and all the movies he was going to watch. However, his mum still had some Christmas shopping to do. School was out, and all Casey wanted to do was stay at home and watch cartoons. Alas, he had no say in the matter, and his mum dragged him out to the nearby shopping centre. Little did young Casey know that when he returned, his life would be flipped on its head…
Five days to Christmas. That’s all Casey could think about. It was tantalisingly close – his favourite time of the year. It was the pinnacle of every eight-year-old’s year. All the toys he was hoping to get, all the food he was going to eat, and all the movies he was going to watch. However, his mum still had some Christmas shopping to do. School was out, and all Casey wanted to do was stay at home and watch cartoons. Alas, he had no say in the matter, and his mum dragged him out to the nearby shopping centre. Little did young Casey know that when he returned, his life would be flipped on its head…
Guest Stars: Linden Ashby, JR Bourne, Seth Gilliam, Cody Christian, Ryan Kelley, Michael Johnston, Kaj Nieuwenhoff, Nick Robinson, Natalia Dyer, Anjli Mohindra, Harry Visinoni, Paige Turco, Michael Hogan, Dylan Playfair and Timothée Chalamet.
Isaac was tired. He was sat down on the floor of the blank canvas of a place he’d been dumped in, trying to get some rest.
If this even is a floor, he thought, it’s all the same colour, you can’t tell.
“Hello?” he heard an echo in the distance. Within a second, Isaac has leapt up onto his feet. That was the first voice he’d heard since arriving in this place, and no matter who the voice belonged to, he knew he had to find them.
“Hello?” the voice repeated. Isaac listened carefully and sussed the direction of the voice. He began running to his left, as if he were being chased. Faster and faster, as the voice continued to call out. As the sound got closer and closer, Isaac began to see somebody. All he could see at first was a small dot, but as he sprinted further and further, Isaac could see the details. A denim jacket, dark trousers, and brown rope-like dreadlocks. Isaac was relieved slightly, as he knew exactly who this was, even if they hadn’t spoken much. As he noticed Isaac, he started running too. The two met along the way and stopped running, panting.
“Boy am I glad to see somebody else here. Where are we?” the lad asked.
“I don’t know, I’ve been trying to work it out. Daan, isn’t it?” Isaac identified, breathless.
“Yeah, and you’re Isaac” Daan smiled, “Glad you’re still alive. The others thought you were dead.” Isaac was taken aback. He’d not even considered that his friends might think he was dead.
“Wait, so are they even looking for us?” Isaac’s heart sunk, “If they think we’re dead…” Daan had no response. He didn’t know the answer for sure, and although he wanted to put Isaac’s mind at rest, he didn’t want to give false hope.
Across the hallway from the dining room, Liam had locked the downstairs bathroom door. Inside the room, Nolan’s eyes were glaring a dangerous yellow. His claws were out, and his fangs were visible. Control was a dim and distant memory in that moment. Blood was dripping from Nolan’s hand onto the rug on the floor.
“Nolan, you need to calm down” Liam attempted to cool Nolan’s erratic behaviour. Much to his frustration, it didn’t work.
“Find an anchor. Find your anchor” Liam continued, changing tact. Nolan looked straight into Liam’s eyes. Tears slid down his cheeks as his claws dug into his palms. Slowly, the yellow colour in Nolan’s eyes faded back to their usual pale blue. Nolan collapsed into Liam’s arms as the tears began to flow more heavily, dripping onto the blood-soaked rug on the bathroom floor.
“What were you doing to yourself?” Liam asked gently.
“Pain makes you human” Nolan replied, wiping away the droplets of sadness from his cheeks. Liam lifted Nolan’s hand. Not a scar or scratch in sight.
Thank god for healing, Liam thought to himself.
“I’m just glad you’re okay” Liam responded, relieved.
“I’m not sure I am okay” Nolan confessed, “I’m struggling with control. I thought I was alright, but I’m not, and I’m scared.”
“It takes time, don’t forget that. Remember the Nemeton affected us all, made you think you were in control when you barely knew a thing” Liam recalled.
“I keep doing what you say. Think of an anchor. That doesn’t help too much, even if my anchor is the most important thing I’ve got” Nolan continued.
“I tried the anchor thing too, it doesn’t work for everyone. I’ve got another way. Repeat after me” Liam stood facing Nolan, “Three things that cannot long be hidden.”
“Three things that cannot long be hidden” Nolan repeated.
“The sun, the moon, the truth” Liam continued. Nolan repeated once again.
“Repeat it, every time you need control. It’s a Buddhist mantra. I like it, it calms me down” Liam revealed. Nolan smiled, now feeling relaxed.
“Alright, when’s dessert?” Nolan perked up, heading towards the door. Liam felt relieved that things were back to normal, for the time being anyway.
“Nolan, one more thing” Liam called after him, just before he opened the bathroom door, “Who is your anchor? The most important thing you’ve got. If you don’t mind me asking.”
“It’s you” Nolan responded, “It couldn’t possibly be anyone else.” He grinned, and left the bathroom, heading back towards the dining room. Liam took a second to reflect. Being Nolan’s anchor almost felt like an achievement. He felt warm inside. It was such a comforting feeling to know he’d made such a positive impact on another person’s life, not least when you consider that Nolan means just as much to him too. He followed Nolan a few moments later, leaving the door wide open; the blood-stained rug being on full view…
Racing through the front doors of the high school, Scott and Theo had received a distress call from Cody. Father Time had struck again, and Daan was missing. Even more peculiar was the lack of a body. Isaac’s body had been left where it was. Lifeless, but not useless as they knew Isaac wasn’t dead. Cody, however, was not aware of this, and assumed the worst for Daan.
“He was here and then he was gone, in just a second. He’s dead, isn’t he?” Cody was clearly distraught.
“I don’t think so” Scott’s words were music to Cody’s ears, “But what concerns me is his body. Why wasn’t it left behind?”
“Wait, Isaac’s not dead then?” Cody took a moment to consider Scott’s words, “I thought there were no life signs?”
“Yeah, we don’t understand it either. Cody, I’m gonna need your help to track down the body” Scott sprung to action, “It could be our key to getting him back.”
“Not that we actually have any kind of plan yet” Theo noted. Scott glared at him. Theo continued, “I’m just pointing it out, it’s not untrue.”
“I hate to say it, but he’s right” Scott agreed, “We don’t know how we can rescue them, but we will. I promise.” He put a comforting hand on Cody’s shoulder, reassuring him that everything will be alright.
That told Cody all he needed to know. School wasn’t finished yet, so he made the most of this and called a lacrosse team meeting in the changing rooms. To his surprise, most of the team turned up. He’d expected a muted turnout after such short notice. In fact, the only absentees were Liam and Nolan, and Cody knew exactly why. He was pleased that Corey was stood opposite, as he knew he had at least one willing supporter amongst the group.
“Alright Glazebrook, what’s the deal?” Coach began proceedings. He was stood impatiently against the connecting door to his office.
“It’s about Daan. He’s gone missing” Cody was half-lying. Sure, Daan had gone missing, but he didn’t want to specify that they’d be looking for what would appear to be a dead body. There were concerned looks all over the room, of varying degrees.
“Which one is Daan?” Coach ignorantly asked.
“Bit taller than me, great at lacrosse, I hang around with him all the time” Cody tried to describe, hoping Coach would know without having to state the obvious. Coach still looked baffled however.
“The guy with dreadlocks” Corey added, hoping to clarify.
“Oh him! He’s good, the team would be nothing without him. I need all of your asses out looking for dreadlocks kid!” Coach yelled. Cody couldn’t help raising a smile – the job was done, in a roundabout way. As the team dispersed, a couple of the team’s players approached Cody.
“I’m sorry dude” Frankie said, patting him on the shoulder. Frankie had long blonde hair, usually tied up in a bun for lacrosse but it was currently loose, sitting on top of his shoulders. He didn’t look like your stereotypical lacrosse player, but Cody knew he wasn’t to be messed with on the field. He was also working on the school newsletter, recently revived after many years of inactivity, and was a budding journalist.
“We’ll help in any way we can” Lawrie added. One of the louder members of the team, Lawrie’s soft heart was never outshone by his boisterous attitude. Whilst he and Cody had little in common, they always had mutual respect. His soft brown curls contrasted with his laddish demeanour, and he was regularly seen with a new girl on his arm.
“Cheers guys. Actually, I could do with a couple of extra helpers. I need to go and see Sheriff Stilinski. I can trust you guys, right?” Cody began, as he and Corey stood facing the boys. Frankie and Lawrie shared an intrigued glance, wondering what they were about to learn…
“I was so bored that day” Casey recounted, “My mom was trawling so many boring shops. Nothing appealed to me, why would it? I was a little kid, I had no interest in Christmas shopping. All I wanted to do was receive presents.
“Sounds like a pretty normal day so far” Archie noted. He was listening very closely to Casey’s recollection, because he knew he had to. He’d never seen Casey so vulnerable before.
“Oh trust me, it became way more eventful” Casey teased.
As the tedium of the constant clothes shops continued, Casey was finding little ways to entertain himself. However, he was unprepared for the sound of the fire alarm to sound.
Finally, some entertainment, he thought. His mum escorted him out of the store, dropping her basket of shopping in the process.
“Hold up everybody, this is a lockdown alarm. I need everyone to stay right where they are” a security guard announced, as the shop shutters began to drop. Casey felt terrified suddenly. Nothing about lockdown sounded safe or comforting. The shutters continued to creak downwards, locking the shoppers inside. Casey’s mum clung to him, as if to shield him from something that was due to happen. What she wasn’t expecting was for a wolf to sneak underneath the shutter just before it smacked shut against the cold, hard floor, with its eyes glowing a deep red…
The mood back at the animal clinic was all over the place. Malia couldn’t stop pacing back and forth, annoyed that Scott had asked her to stay behind. She was restless. Knowing that Isaac was out there somewhere, she became more determined than ever to get him back. Argent had stayed with her, much to her annoyance. She knew that he was only doing what Scott asked, but nevertheless, she didn’t need a babysitter.
“Can you stop pacing? You’re making me anxious” Argent groaned.
“You? Anxious? How do you think I feel?” Malia snapped, yelling at him. Immediately after she finished her sentence, she reconsidered herself, “I’m sorry. I just hate sitting around, doing nothing.”
“Tell me about it” Argent agreed, “I trust Scott, and you have to as well. He knows what he’s doing, I know you want Isaac back but he needs people who are calm and collected.”
“Calm and collected are my middle names” Malia lied, getting defensive, “Doesn’t he trust me?”
“You know that’s not true” Argent calmly responded, “Look, it’s understandable that you’re worried right now, I’m concerned too. I care deeply for Isaac. Equally, I trust Scott implicitly, and you should too.” Malia reluctantly nodded, not happy about the situation but she knew Argent was right.
“You’ve felt loss before, right?” Malia asked, much more calmly.
“Too many times” Argent recalled, “I’ve lost my whole family in one way or another. That’s what being on the wrong side of right and wrong gets you. It’s clichéd to say but it does get better in time. It hurts less. They never leave your mind but you stop hurting, and you start remembering the good times.”
“I’ve lost my family too. I killed my mom and sister, and the way I coped was by living the next ten years as a coyote in the wild. I don’t know how to deal with loss as a human, I’ve never had to” Malia confessed.
“Unfortunately, there’s a first time for everything, and it’s only a matter of time until everyone has to face up to loss” Argent wisely spoke, “Most people learn to cope. You’ll do the same, especially with such a good group of friends.” Malia smiled, feeling more comforted.
Arriving back at Scott’s house for the first time since Isaac was taken, Stiles and Lydia began to investigate the crime scene. They were both silent as an eerie feel overtook their bodies. The last time they were there, Isaac was taken from them, and they still hadn’t figured out quite how to get him back. That was the point of their visit though – to look for clues. Despite it feeling like a Scooby Doo mission, it was highly important. Scott hadn’t been home all night, and the first thing Stiles noticed was the state of the living room. Normally, Melissa wouldn’t leave anything out of place. Despite her hectic work life, she always kept on top of the chores, even attempting to rope Scott in for the hoovering when he was at home (often unsuccessfully). Stiles approached the centre of the room. Where the coffee table usually was, there was nothing. The whirling winds had created an empty space, with what’s left of the coffee table scattered around in an imperfect circle. Lydia followed Stiles, taking each step carefully. Her banshee premonitions had been more frequent recently. Specifically, since arriving back in Beacon Hills to the Father Time debacle. University life had been plain sailing for a social bee like Lydia, and her supernatural life hadn’t interfered, much to her delight.
“What are we even looking for?” Lydia broke the silence, annoyed by the fact that Stiles seemed to be bumbling around, moving a few bits of rubble and little else.
“I don’t know, have you got any suggestions? Any hints from your inner banshee? I could do with a little pointer” Stiles responded, at a loss.
“You know I can’t just turn it on like a light switch” Lydia replied, sounding frustrated. She sighed, exhausted. Stiles felt concerned – he wasn’t used to seeing her so flushed.
“How many visions have you had?” Stiles queried.
“More than normal. I don’t know for sure” Lydia answered quietly.
“I knew you’d had a few but no more than ordinary. This is worrying me Lydia, I’m not gonna lie. We need to speak to Scott” Stiles decided.
“No, it’s fine, I don’t want to bother him. Scott’s got more than enough to worry about right now. Isaac’s the priority” Lydia decisively responded.
“No, I mean we have to tell him. I think this could be our way of retrieving Isaac” Stiles revealed.
Cody peeped into Miss Padhi’s classroom. Although he was thrilled that she was back in school, he was hoping Miss Padhi wouldn’t see him. After all, this was the lesson he was supposed to be in. She had her attention focused on the whiteboard as she wrote questions for the class to answer. He attempted to make eye contact with Becky, and tapped lightly on the side of the nearest row of lockers. Most of the class wouldn’t be able to hear the sound, but Becky was different thanks to her unusual hearing. Cody tapped a rhythm of four beats, before peeping around the corner. Becky had noticed the sound, and finally made eye contact with Cody. She picked up her bag and stood up to leave, as quietly as possible. However, much to her disappointment, Miss Padhi turned around.
“Going somewhere?” she interrogated.
“I….” Becky froze while she thought of a believable excuse, “I’ve got a dentist appointment.” Becky gave a knowing wink. Miss Padhi reluctantly nodded. That wink told her all she needed to know – it was supernatural business. Unfortunately, her maths class was a distant second in Becky’s priorities, so there was little point in detaining her. Becky left the classroom and met up with Cody.
“We’re gonna find Daan” he told her.
Sat alone in her room, Maddie was cuddling her pink fluffy cushion. She wasn’t one to wallow, often being the first to pick herself back up after something went wrong in her love life. She’d go on the pull and find herself a new guy. No time like the present, after all. This was different though. She always knew that Scott was unlike any other guy she dated. Scott was the most selfless person she knew. He put everyone before himself, and treated her unbelievably well. It had made Maddie realise that being in love wasn’t about being bought expensive clothes and jewellery – it was about having complete and utter adoration for each other. She kept refreshing her phone, hoping he’d have messaged her, but there was nothing. She knew Isaac would be the number one priority in that moment, but it wasn’t too much to ask for Scott to spare her a thought, even just for a second.
Regrouping at the animal clinic, Scott and Theo arrived back from the school just seconds after Stiles and Lydia returned from the scene of the crime. They reunited with the still-anxious Malia, and the incredibly patient Argent, who had both been sat waiting.
“Daan’s been taken too, but his body’s missing” Scott reported, “Cody’s gonna track it down but that means we need to act fast. Father Time could take any one of us next.”
“We still know next to nothing about him, too” Stiles noted, “But I think I know a way we could communicate with them both.” Scott looked at Stiles, intrigued.
“I’ve been having more visions recently. Since I’ve been back in Beacon Hills. I think there’s a connection between me and Father Time” Lydia explained.
“It would make sense, you’re a harbinger of death and Father Time is supposed to represent that” Malia added.
“How could we harness that to communicate with them though? It doesn’t sound like the easiest thing to do” Theo pondered.
“I think I know someone who might have the answers” Argent mentioned.
Panicked, Casey tried to run away. He let go of his mother’s hand, and began to sprint anywhere he could. The constant movement only aggravated the wolf further. It pursued Casey, backing him into a corner. Casey’s heartbeat was louder and faster than ever before. He felt tears dripping down his cheeks. He’d never felt more scared in his life. He glanced at his mother, who had backed the rest of the customers into a small crowd at the opposite end of the store, wanting to appear less intimidating to the wolf. Casey knew he had two options – stay there and be devoured by the wolf, or make a run for it and pray that somebody would intervene before he’s devoured. Neither were particularly optimistic, but he at least had a chance to get away from the fiendish creature’s sharp fangs. He took his chance. Casey began to sprint, as his terrified mum watched on in horror. Much to Casey’s horror, no help came, and the wolf helped itself to a bite of Casey’s leg. Casey yelled out in pain, screaming as blood sprayed out from the deep wound in his leg. Springing into action, Casey’s mum picked up the till and smashed it over the wolf’s head, killing it stone cold with the heavy weight of the machine.
“Call 911, immediately!” she yelled, to anyone who would listen amongst the panic-stricken crowd.
“That’s how it happened” Casey recalled, “That wolf was a werewolf. An alpha, too. I never properly met the alpha who converted me, but he transformed into full wolf form, which is very rare and something I never mastered.” Archie was speechless.
“This is me, Archie” Casey continued, “I’m a werewolf. I don’t expect you to believe what I say, but I promise I’m telling the truth.”
“I believe you” Archie replied sincerely, “It explains everything.”
“I thought you’d be more…shocked” Casey mentioned. Archie was remarkably calm considering what he’d just been told.
“I was more worried that you were cheating on me to be honest” Archie laughed, “I don’t care if you’re a werewolf, I care that you’re still the same person I fell in love with.”
“I am, I promise” Casey smiled, “Less of the cheating worries though, yeah?” Archie smiled, and they embraced. For the first time, Casey felt entirely comfortable with Archie, and like he didn’t have to hide anything.
“Let’s go fetch Maddie and help out” Casey said, breaking the kiss and springing into action.
Gathering in front of Stilinski’s desk, Cody, Becky and Corey began making demands. While enlisting the help of Frankie and Lawrie, both were keen to keep them out of the supernatural knowledge, so Parrish was taking care of them both as they scoured for Daan’s mobile phone using the sheriff station software. Inside the office, they could discuss supernatural matters more easily.
“This is a matter of life or death. His body could be the key to finding him” Becky protested.
“We need everybody out looking” Corey added.
“Hold up kids” Stilinski began, looking exhausted, “Let’s just wait and see what Parrish throws up from the cell phone search before we start jumping to conclusions. I’m sure it’ll be an easier process than we think.”
“I’d love to know what’s easy about a missing body that appears dead, but actually isn’t cause his mind is in another plane of existence” Cody retaliated, kicking the desk in front of him. Becky put a comforting arm on his shoulder.
“Hey, it’s alright. Everybody’s doing everything they can” Becky comforted Cody.
“I know. I’m sorry” Cody apologised to Stilinski.
“It’s alright kid. I know the feeling. I promise, I’ve got everybody keeping an eye out” Stilinski offered a friendly smile. A knock on the door followed, with Parrish sticking his head around.
“Sheriff, we’ve got a lead” he announced. Cody wasted no time in leading the others out of the door and towards the car. Lawrie rejoined the group, and Frankie brought up the rear. What the group didn’t notice was Frankie listening in to their chat from outside the door…
As she walked towards the staircase. Joanna couldn’t help noticing something particularly eye-catching and unusual in the downstairs bathroom. Liam and Nolan had been in their earlier, because Nolan had a nosebleed. That’s what Liam told her anyway. It wouldn’t be the first time he’d lied. It was a fair suspicion, because she’d seen her fair share of nosebleeds, but none produced as much blood as this one seemed to. Her nice blue rug for the bathroom floor was now soaked in the red liquid, looking like a long-lost horror movie prop. She picked it up, and took it straight upstairs to Liam’s bedroom, where he and Nolan were hanging out…
Reluctantly, Argent had called a meeting with an old friend (of sorts) to gain more information. It wasn’t something he wanted to do by any means, but desperate times called for desperate measures. Creaking open the door to his storage room located in the tunnels underneath Beacon Hills, he made eye contact with his visitor.
“This was a pleasant surprise, it’s not often I get visitors these days” a familiar voice said.
“Forgive me for not wanting to show my face more often” Argent retorted.
“Surely a son should have more respect for his own father?” Gerard began to approach a weary Argent. Nothing about this made him feel comfortable, knowing what Gerard was capable of, but if it saved Isaac, he knew he had to go through with it.
Stilinski was the last to depart the sheriff station. Keen to head off to the co-ordinates Parrish had located, the others had taken off already, but Stilinski felt it was his duty to follow. Partly because it was his duty as sheriff, and partly because he knew Cody was emotionally on-edge and all support was important. As he approached the vehicle, he felt gusts of wind circulate around him. He looked over his shoulder, and much to his horror, an old man stood there. He recognised this man immediately from the descriptions the others had given him – it was Father Time. Stilinski got inside his car and tried to drive off, but Father Time simply placed one of his pale white hands on the bonnet, and the car wouldn’t move. Stilinski ensured the door was locked, but this was no barrier. Father Time simply had to raise his other hand to the window of the car door, and it smashed as if it were incredibly delicate. Within an instant, Sheriff Stilinski and Father Time were both gone…
If this even is a floor, he thought, it’s all the same colour, you can’t tell.
“Hello?” he heard an echo in the distance. Within a second, Isaac has leapt up onto his feet. That was the first voice he’d heard since arriving in this place, and no matter who the voice belonged to, he knew he had to find them.
“Hello?” the voice repeated. Isaac listened carefully and sussed the direction of the voice. He began running to his left, as if he were being chased. Faster and faster, as the voice continued to call out. As the sound got closer and closer, Isaac began to see somebody. All he could see at first was a small dot, but as he sprinted further and further, Isaac could see the details. A denim jacket, dark trousers, and brown rope-like dreadlocks. Isaac was relieved slightly, as he knew exactly who this was, even if they hadn’t spoken much. As he noticed Isaac, he started running too. The two met along the way and stopped running, panting.
“Boy am I glad to see somebody else here. Where are we?” the lad asked.
“I don’t know, I’ve been trying to work it out. Daan, isn’t it?” Isaac identified, breathless.
“Yeah, and you’re Isaac” Daan smiled, “Glad you’re still alive. The others thought you were dead.” Isaac was taken aback. He’d not even considered that his friends might think he was dead.
“Wait, so are they even looking for us?” Isaac’s heart sunk, “If they think we’re dead…” Daan had no response. He didn’t know the answer for sure, and although he wanted to put Isaac’s mind at rest, he didn’t want to give false hope.
Across the hallway from the dining room, Liam had locked the downstairs bathroom door. Inside the room, Nolan’s eyes were glaring a dangerous yellow. His claws were out, and his fangs were visible. Control was a dim and distant memory in that moment. Blood was dripping from Nolan’s hand onto the rug on the floor.
“Nolan, you need to calm down” Liam attempted to cool Nolan’s erratic behaviour. Much to his frustration, it didn’t work.
“Find an anchor. Find your anchor” Liam continued, changing tact. Nolan looked straight into Liam’s eyes. Tears slid down his cheeks as his claws dug into his palms. Slowly, the yellow colour in Nolan’s eyes faded back to their usual pale blue. Nolan collapsed into Liam’s arms as the tears began to flow more heavily, dripping onto the blood-soaked rug on the bathroom floor.
“What were you doing to yourself?” Liam asked gently.
“Pain makes you human” Nolan replied, wiping away the droplets of sadness from his cheeks. Liam lifted Nolan’s hand. Not a scar or scratch in sight.
Thank god for healing, Liam thought to himself.
“I’m just glad you’re okay” Liam responded, relieved.
“I’m not sure I am okay” Nolan confessed, “I’m struggling with control. I thought I was alright, but I’m not, and I’m scared.”
“It takes time, don’t forget that. Remember the Nemeton affected us all, made you think you were in control when you barely knew a thing” Liam recalled.
“I keep doing what you say. Think of an anchor. That doesn’t help too much, even if my anchor is the most important thing I’ve got” Nolan continued.
“I tried the anchor thing too, it doesn’t work for everyone. I’ve got another way. Repeat after me” Liam stood facing Nolan, “Three things that cannot long be hidden.”
“Three things that cannot long be hidden” Nolan repeated.
“The sun, the moon, the truth” Liam continued. Nolan repeated once again.
“Repeat it, every time you need control. It’s a Buddhist mantra. I like it, it calms me down” Liam revealed. Nolan smiled, now feeling relaxed.
“Alright, when’s dessert?” Nolan perked up, heading towards the door. Liam felt relieved that things were back to normal, for the time being anyway.
“Nolan, one more thing” Liam called after him, just before he opened the bathroom door, “Who is your anchor? The most important thing you’ve got. If you don’t mind me asking.”
“It’s you” Nolan responded, “It couldn’t possibly be anyone else.” He grinned, and left the bathroom, heading back towards the dining room. Liam took a second to reflect. Being Nolan’s anchor almost felt like an achievement. He felt warm inside. It was such a comforting feeling to know he’d made such a positive impact on another person’s life, not least when you consider that Nolan means just as much to him too. He followed Nolan a few moments later, leaving the door wide open; the blood-stained rug being on full view…
Racing through the front doors of the high school, Scott and Theo had received a distress call from Cody. Father Time had struck again, and Daan was missing. Even more peculiar was the lack of a body. Isaac’s body had been left where it was. Lifeless, but not useless as they knew Isaac wasn’t dead. Cody, however, was not aware of this, and assumed the worst for Daan.
“He was here and then he was gone, in just a second. He’s dead, isn’t he?” Cody was clearly distraught.
“I don’t think so” Scott’s words were music to Cody’s ears, “But what concerns me is his body. Why wasn’t it left behind?”
“Wait, Isaac’s not dead then?” Cody took a moment to consider Scott’s words, “I thought there were no life signs?”
“Yeah, we don’t understand it either. Cody, I’m gonna need your help to track down the body” Scott sprung to action, “It could be our key to getting him back.”
“Not that we actually have any kind of plan yet” Theo noted. Scott glared at him. Theo continued, “I’m just pointing it out, it’s not untrue.”
“I hate to say it, but he’s right” Scott agreed, “We don’t know how we can rescue them, but we will. I promise.” He put a comforting hand on Cody’s shoulder, reassuring him that everything will be alright.
That told Cody all he needed to know. School wasn’t finished yet, so he made the most of this and called a lacrosse team meeting in the changing rooms. To his surprise, most of the team turned up. He’d expected a muted turnout after such short notice. In fact, the only absentees were Liam and Nolan, and Cody knew exactly why. He was pleased that Corey was stood opposite, as he knew he had at least one willing supporter amongst the group.
“Alright Glazebrook, what’s the deal?” Coach began proceedings. He was stood impatiently against the connecting door to his office.
“It’s about Daan. He’s gone missing” Cody was half-lying. Sure, Daan had gone missing, but he didn’t want to specify that they’d be looking for what would appear to be a dead body. There were concerned looks all over the room, of varying degrees.
“Which one is Daan?” Coach ignorantly asked.
“Bit taller than me, great at lacrosse, I hang around with him all the time” Cody tried to describe, hoping Coach would know without having to state the obvious. Coach still looked baffled however.
“The guy with dreadlocks” Corey added, hoping to clarify.
“Oh him! He’s good, the team would be nothing without him. I need all of your asses out looking for dreadlocks kid!” Coach yelled. Cody couldn’t help raising a smile – the job was done, in a roundabout way. As the team dispersed, a couple of the team’s players approached Cody.
“I’m sorry dude” Frankie said, patting him on the shoulder. Frankie had long blonde hair, usually tied up in a bun for lacrosse but it was currently loose, sitting on top of his shoulders. He didn’t look like your stereotypical lacrosse player, but Cody knew he wasn’t to be messed with on the field. He was also working on the school newsletter, recently revived after many years of inactivity, and was a budding journalist.
“We’ll help in any way we can” Lawrie added. One of the louder members of the team, Lawrie’s soft heart was never outshone by his boisterous attitude. Whilst he and Cody had little in common, they always had mutual respect. His soft brown curls contrasted with his laddish demeanour, and he was regularly seen with a new girl on his arm.
“Cheers guys. Actually, I could do with a couple of extra helpers. I need to go and see Sheriff Stilinski. I can trust you guys, right?” Cody began, as he and Corey stood facing the boys. Frankie and Lawrie shared an intrigued glance, wondering what they were about to learn…
“I was so bored that day” Casey recounted, “My mom was trawling so many boring shops. Nothing appealed to me, why would it? I was a little kid, I had no interest in Christmas shopping. All I wanted to do was receive presents.
“Sounds like a pretty normal day so far” Archie noted. He was listening very closely to Casey’s recollection, because he knew he had to. He’d never seen Casey so vulnerable before.
“Oh trust me, it became way more eventful” Casey teased.
As the tedium of the constant clothes shops continued, Casey was finding little ways to entertain himself. However, he was unprepared for the sound of the fire alarm to sound.
Finally, some entertainment, he thought. His mum escorted him out of the store, dropping her basket of shopping in the process.
“Hold up everybody, this is a lockdown alarm. I need everyone to stay right where they are” a security guard announced, as the shop shutters began to drop. Casey felt terrified suddenly. Nothing about lockdown sounded safe or comforting. The shutters continued to creak downwards, locking the shoppers inside. Casey’s mum clung to him, as if to shield him from something that was due to happen. What she wasn’t expecting was for a wolf to sneak underneath the shutter just before it smacked shut against the cold, hard floor, with its eyes glowing a deep red…
The mood back at the animal clinic was all over the place. Malia couldn’t stop pacing back and forth, annoyed that Scott had asked her to stay behind. She was restless. Knowing that Isaac was out there somewhere, she became more determined than ever to get him back. Argent had stayed with her, much to her annoyance. She knew that he was only doing what Scott asked, but nevertheless, she didn’t need a babysitter.
“Can you stop pacing? You’re making me anxious” Argent groaned.
“You? Anxious? How do you think I feel?” Malia snapped, yelling at him. Immediately after she finished her sentence, she reconsidered herself, “I’m sorry. I just hate sitting around, doing nothing.”
“Tell me about it” Argent agreed, “I trust Scott, and you have to as well. He knows what he’s doing, I know you want Isaac back but he needs people who are calm and collected.”
“Calm and collected are my middle names” Malia lied, getting defensive, “Doesn’t he trust me?”
“You know that’s not true” Argent calmly responded, “Look, it’s understandable that you’re worried right now, I’m concerned too. I care deeply for Isaac. Equally, I trust Scott implicitly, and you should too.” Malia reluctantly nodded, not happy about the situation but she knew Argent was right.
“You’ve felt loss before, right?” Malia asked, much more calmly.
“Too many times” Argent recalled, “I’ve lost my whole family in one way or another. That’s what being on the wrong side of right and wrong gets you. It’s clichéd to say but it does get better in time. It hurts less. They never leave your mind but you stop hurting, and you start remembering the good times.”
“I’ve lost my family too. I killed my mom and sister, and the way I coped was by living the next ten years as a coyote in the wild. I don’t know how to deal with loss as a human, I’ve never had to” Malia confessed.
“Unfortunately, there’s a first time for everything, and it’s only a matter of time until everyone has to face up to loss” Argent wisely spoke, “Most people learn to cope. You’ll do the same, especially with such a good group of friends.” Malia smiled, feeling more comforted.
Arriving back at Scott’s house for the first time since Isaac was taken, Stiles and Lydia began to investigate the crime scene. They were both silent as an eerie feel overtook their bodies. The last time they were there, Isaac was taken from them, and they still hadn’t figured out quite how to get him back. That was the point of their visit though – to look for clues. Despite it feeling like a Scooby Doo mission, it was highly important. Scott hadn’t been home all night, and the first thing Stiles noticed was the state of the living room. Normally, Melissa wouldn’t leave anything out of place. Despite her hectic work life, she always kept on top of the chores, even attempting to rope Scott in for the hoovering when he was at home (often unsuccessfully). Stiles approached the centre of the room. Where the coffee table usually was, there was nothing. The whirling winds had created an empty space, with what’s left of the coffee table scattered around in an imperfect circle. Lydia followed Stiles, taking each step carefully. Her banshee premonitions had been more frequent recently. Specifically, since arriving back in Beacon Hills to the Father Time debacle. University life had been plain sailing for a social bee like Lydia, and her supernatural life hadn’t interfered, much to her delight.
“What are we even looking for?” Lydia broke the silence, annoyed by the fact that Stiles seemed to be bumbling around, moving a few bits of rubble and little else.
“I don’t know, have you got any suggestions? Any hints from your inner banshee? I could do with a little pointer” Stiles responded, at a loss.
“You know I can’t just turn it on like a light switch” Lydia replied, sounding frustrated. She sighed, exhausted. Stiles felt concerned – he wasn’t used to seeing her so flushed.
“How many visions have you had?” Stiles queried.
“More than normal. I don’t know for sure” Lydia answered quietly.
“I knew you’d had a few but no more than ordinary. This is worrying me Lydia, I’m not gonna lie. We need to speak to Scott” Stiles decided.
“No, it’s fine, I don’t want to bother him. Scott’s got more than enough to worry about right now. Isaac’s the priority” Lydia decisively responded.
“No, I mean we have to tell him. I think this could be our way of retrieving Isaac” Stiles revealed.
Cody peeped into Miss Padhi’s classroom. Although he was thrilled that she was back in school, he was hoping Miss Padhi wouldn’t see him. After all, this was the lesson he was supposed to be in. She had her attention focused on the whiteboard as she wrote questions for the class to answer. He attempted to make eye contact with Becky, and tapped lightly on the side of the nearest row of lockers. Most of the class wouldn’t be able to hear the sound, but Becky was different thanks to her unusual hearing. Cody tapped a rhythm of four beats, before peeping around the corner. Becky had noticed the sound, and finally made eye contact with Cody. She picked up her bag and stood up to leave, as quietly as possible. However, much to her disappointment, Miss Padhi turned around.
“Going somewhere?” she interrogated.
“I….” Becky froze while she thought of a believable excuse, “I’ve got a dentist appointment.” Becky gave a knowing wink. Miss Padhi reluctantly nodded. That wink told her all she needed to know – it was supernatural business. Unfortunately, her maths class was a distant second in Becky’s priorities, so there was little point in detaining her. Becky left the classroom and met up with Cody.
“We’re gonna find Daan” he told her.
Sat alone in her room, Maddie was cuddling her pink fluffy cushion. She wasn’t one to wallow, often being the first to pick herself back up after something went wrong in her love life. She’d go on the pull and find herself a new guy. No time like the present, after all. This was different though. She always knew that Scott was unlike any other guy she dated. Scott was the most selfless person she knew. He put everyone before himself, and treated her unbelievably well. It had made Maddie realise that being in love wasn’t about being bought expensive clothes and jewellery – it was about having complete and utter adoration for each other. She kept refreshing her phone, hoping he’d have messaged her, but there was nothing. She knew Isaac would be the number one priority in that moment, but it wasn’t too much to ask for Scott to spare her a thought, even just for a second.
Regrouping at the animal clinic, Scott and Theo arrived back from the school just seconds after Stiles and Lydia returned from the scene of the crime. They reunited with the still-anxious Malia, and the incredibly patient Argent, who had both been sat waiting.
“Daan’s been taken too, but his body’s missing” Scott reported, “Cody’s gonna track it down but that means we need to act fast. Father Time could take any one of us next.”
“We still know next to nothing about him, too” Stiles noted, “But I think I know a way we could communicate with them both.” Scott looked at Stiles, intrigued.
“I’ve been having more visions recently. Since I’ve been back in Beacon Hills. I think there’s a connection between me and Father Time” Lydia explained.
“It would make sense, you’re a harbinger of death and Father Time is supposed to represent that” Malia added.
“How could we harness that to communicate with them though? It doesn’t sound like the easiest thing to do” Theo pondered.
“I think I know someone who might have the answers” Argent mentioned.
Panicked, Casey tried to run away. He let go of his mother’s hand, and began to sprint anywhere he could. The constant movement only aggravated the wolf further. It pursued Casey, backing him into a corner. Casey’s heartbeat was louder and faster than ever before. He felt tears dripping down his cheeks. He’d never felt more scared in his life. He glanced at his mother, who had backed the rest of the customers into a small crowd at the opposite end of the store, wanting to appear less intimidating to the wolf. Casey knew he had two options – stay there and be devoured by the wolf, or make a run for it and pray that somebody would intervene before he’s devoured. Neither were particularly optimistic, but he at least had a chance to get away from the fiendish creature’s sharp fangs. He took his chance. Casey began to sprint, as his terrified mum watched on in horror. Much to Casey’s horror, no help came, and the wolf helped itself to a bite of Casey’s leg. Casey yelled out in pain, screaming as blood sprayed out from the deep wound in his leg. Springing into action, Casey’s mum picked up the till and smashed it over the wolf’s head, killing it stone cold with the heavy weight of the machine.
“Call 911, immediately!” she yelled, to anyone who would listen amongst the panic-stricken crowd.
“That’s how it happened” Casey recalled, “That wolf was a werewolf. An alpha, too. I never properly met the alpha who converted me, but he transformed into full wolf form, which is very rare and something I never mastered.” Archie was speechless.
“This is me, Archie” Casey continued, “I’m a werewolf. I don’t expect you to believe what I say, but I promise I’m telling the truth.”
“I believe you” Archie replied sincerely, “It explains everything.”
“I thought you’d be more…shocked” Casey mentioned. Archie was remarkably calm considering what he’d just been told.
“I was more worried that you were cheating on me to be honest” Archie laughed, “I don’t care if you’re a werewolf, I care that you’re still the same person I fell in love with.”
“I am, I promise” Casey smiled, “Less of the cheating worries though, yeah?” Archie smiled, and they embraced. For the first time, Casey felt entirely comfortable with Archie, and like he didn’t have to hide anything.
“Let’s go fetch Maddie and help out” Casey said, breaking the kiss and springing into action.
Gathering in front of Stilinski’s desk, Cody, Becky and Corey began making demands. While enlisting the help of Frankie and Lawrie, both were keen to keep them out of the supernatural knowledge, so Parrish was taking care of them both as they scoured for Daan’s mobile phone using the sheriff station software. Inside the office, they could discuss supernatural matters more easily.
“This is a matter of life or death. His body could be the key to finding him” Becky protested.
“We need everybody out looking” Corey added.
“Hold up kids” Stilinski began, looking exhausted, “Let’s just wait and see what Parrish throws up from the cell phone search before we start jumping to conclusions. I’m sure it’ll be an easier process than we think.”
“I’d love to know what’s easy about a missing body that appears dead, but actually isn’t cause his mind is in another plane of existence” Cody retaliated, kicking the desk in front of him. Becky put a comforting arm on his shoulder.
“Hey, it’s alright. Everybody’s doing everything they can” Becky comforted Cody.
“I know. I’m sorry” Cody apologised to Stilinski.
“It’s alright kid. I know the feeling. I promise, I’ve got everybody keeping an eye out” Stilinski offered a friendly smile. A knock on the door followed, with Parrish sticking his head around.
“Sheriff, we’ve got a lead” he announced. Cody wasted no time in leading the others out of the door and towards the car. Lawrie rejoined the group, and Frankie brought up the rear. What the group didn’t notice was Frankie listening in to their chat from outside the door…
As she walked towards the staircase. Joanna couldn’t help noticing something particularly eye-catching and unusual in the downstairs bathroom. Liam and Nolan had been in their earlier, because Nolan had a nosebleed. That’s what Liam told her anyway. It wouldn’t be the first time he’d lied. It was a fair suspicion, because she’d seen her fair share of nosebleeds, but none produced as much blood as this one seemed to. Her nice blue rug for the bathroom floor was now soaked in the red liquid, looking like a long-lost horror movie prop. She picked it up, and took it straight upstairs to Liam’s bedroom, where he and Nolan were hanging out…
Reluctantly, Argent had called a meeting with an old friend (of sorts) to gain more information. It wasn’t something he wanted to do by any means, but desperate times called for desperate measures. Creaking open the door to his storage room located in the tunnels underneath Beacon Hills, he made eye contact with his visitor.
“This was a pleasant surprise, it’s not often I get visitors these days” a familiar voice said.
“Forgive me for not wanting to show my face more often” Argent retorted.
“Surely a son should have more respect for his own father?” Gerard began to approach a weary Argent. Nothing about this made him feel comfortable, knowing what Gerard was capable of, but if it saved Isaac, he knew he had to go through with it.
Stilinski was the last to depart the sheriff station. Keen to head off to the co-ordinates Parrish had located, the others had taken off already, but Stilinski felt it was his duty to follow. Partly because it was his duty as sheriff, and partly because he knew Cody was emotionally on-edge and all support was important. As he approached the vehicle, he felt gusts of wind circulate around him. He looked over his shoulder, and much to his horror, an old man stood there. He recognised this man immediately from the descriptions the others had given him – it was Father Time. Stilinski got inside his car and tried to drive off, but Father Time simply placed one of his pale white hands on the bonnet, and the car wouldn’t move. Stilinski ensured the door was locked, but this was no barrier. Father Time simply had to raise his other hand to the window of the car door, and it smashed as if it were incredibly delicate. Within an instant, Sheriff Stilinski and Father Time were both gone…
Next: "Séance"
|