From Ashes ✗ Stiles Stilinski [#𝟏]

𝐭𝐡𝐢𝐫𝐭𝐲 [ slayer. ]

A/N: I LIED. I'm posting it today. And here we are, my friends. The end of Act Two - and the celebration of nearly 100K views! Thank you to all of the fans who've been here from the beginning, who've inspired me to continue this. You guys made this story happen! And we're far from done in the AR [Apocalypse Rising]Universe. There are still loads of unanswered questions on the horizon and many more after this chapter. So, strap in! You're in for a bumpy ride.

ALSO! Stay tuned tomorrow for the official Act Three Trailer!

Song Recommendation ["Vengeance" - Zack Hemsey]

NOTE: For the full experience, I do personally suggest seeking out each song rec.

☽ † ☾

Can't we all agree that there's a good reason for this and quietly move past it?

No?

Okay.

☽ † ☾

Maybe it wasn't the best idea to have Allison and Lydia travel alone.

Maybe it wasn't the best idea to try and chase after the kanima.

While Maddie was at it, it was a stupid as hell idea to stay in this town to begin with - but hindsight always seemed to slap her in the back of the head, so why dwell?

She had made it all the way to the parking garage on foot, all the while assuming Stiles and Scott would eventually catch up. Of course, Derek had beaten her there and the Argents' black SUV even before that. It was her first instinct to go anyway, but if Gerard found her fighting beside Derek freaking Hale, she was as good as dead too. She didn't need to give them more reasons to turn on her. Instead, as Chris made a bee line for the creature, Maddie had hid several pillars away, taking advantage of the distracted shapeshifter.

As the kanima screeched and shots sounded around her head, she held her breath. Any sudden movement could guarantee her a bullet to the chest as well, and, unfortunately, that was not something she could say she was completely immune to.

The echoes of gunfire faded and the empty lot became quiet again. She released her breath and peeked from behind the cement structure. There on the ground laid the kanima, silent and still. No, not just the kanima - Jackson. She might have found herself somewhat irritated by the boy on a regular basis, but... As her muscles relaxed and her stare fell to the ground, she felt her foot slip a centimeter or two across loose pebbles on the ground. It was the tiniest noise but it seemed to call something's attention.

She could hear footsteps getting closer when she again heard an ear-piercing shriek.

Suddenly, the next noise she heard was something slamming into the other side of the very same pillar. She stiffened for a moment and, in the next, leaned to her side to find what had made the sound. On the ground was the pained and out of breath form of Allison's father watching something with fear in his eyes.

There was a mild bit of concern, as he had housed her and trained for quite sometime now. She wanted to fight it, but found herself crouching close to the ground and moving around the pillar. She wanted to ask if he was alright, but didn't get the chance. This seemed to catch the aging hunter's attention as his eyes darted over to her. His typically stony gaze remained just that - but there was something else there. Concern. Knowing.

"Leave," he muttered quietly, in the same gruff tone he always used. "Now."

She wanted to ask why but found her eyes wandering over to the blinding headlights, where the kanima was crouched and Gerard stood across from it. There was an uneasy calm that shook her to her core and, without another though, she dashed away before Gerard could see her.