---
Thunder rolled across the skies above Beacon Hills, even though the clouds had yet to split. It wasn't the kind of storm that came with wind or rain—it was something older. Heavier. The kind of storm that warned predators to take cover and made prey flee without knowing why.
Alex stood at the edge of the preserve, staring into the forest like it might answer his thoughts. His fingers tightened around the hilt of the rune-blade Derek had given him. Its warmth was oddly comforting.
Behind him, footsteps crunched softly on gravel.
"You're not the only one who felt it," said a voice.
It was Scott.
Alex turned slightly. "The pressure?"
Scott nodded. "The pack's on edge. Even Liam's hearing things out near the high school—howls that aren't ours. Shadows that vanish when we get close. You think it's… Argentum?"
"They're not working alone," Alex said. "I can feel it. There's more coming."
Scott frowned, crossing his arms. "And you're sure they're after you?"
Alex nodded. "Not just me. They see me as a symbol—of something unfinished. If they can erase me again, maybe they think they'll fix whatever broke the balance last time."
Scott looked out at the woods, then back to Alex. "We need everyone."
"Derek's already preparing. He's reaching out to anyone who still owes the Hales a favor. And Deaton thinks this storm—it's not just metaphorical."
"Supernatural convergence," Scott muttered. "Like when mountain ash starts bleeding out of trees. Like the nemeton pulsing again."
Alex gave a sharp look. "Wait—what did you say?"
"The nemeton. It's active again. Lydia said she heard it humming."
That hit Alex like a cold wave. He knew that name—nemeton. In his dreams, it was always the last place he stood before the silver eyes came for him. A sacred place. A place of binding.
"We have to go there," Alex said firmly.
Scott hesitated. "You sure? That thing attracts more darkness than it repels."
"I'm sure. If I died there once… maybe I left something behind."
---
That night, they moved in silence through the woods. Alex, Scott, Derek, and Lydia led the others—Liam, Malia, Kira, and even Stiles, clutching a baseball bat like it was a sword. The moon glowed like an eye overhead, watching.
The nemeton rose from the earth like a scar—its surface pulsing faintly with energy. Alex approached first.
His mark began to glow.
He touched the bark.
Visions tore through him.
A ring of wolves howling beneath blood-red skies.
A single wolf, cloaked in fire, standing against the silver-eyed hunter.
A pact made. A power sealed. And a price paid in blood.
He staggered back, gasping.
"They didn't just kill me," Alex whispered. "They sealed something inside me. Something the nemeton still holds."
Lydia stepped closer, her eyes wide. "Then if the nemeton unlocks that power… and the storm is coming… you're the key."
Everyone turned to him.
Suddenly, lightning split the sky.
And in the distance, across the hills, howls rose.
But they weren't wolves.
Not anymore.
---
Chapter 12: Rise of the Forgotten?