CHAPTER TWENTY FIVE » SHATTERED
"Becca, what did you see?"

☽

"Are you mad?"

Strangely, it seemed to be a frequent occurrence now that somebody was trying to trigger my visions by putting me through some kind of emotional torture – precisely what Theo was suggesting.

He leaned forwards, a jeering look dancing in his eyes as he watched Vee. "I don't see you coming up with anything better, Sabrina Spellman."

I shared a glance with my friend, who raised her eyebrows at the nickname, her arms firmly folded over her chest as she glared daggers at Theo.

"Honestly, right now there is nothing holding me back from–"

"Okay, stop," I interjected quickly, taking a step between both Theo and Venus before she could finish her threat. "Yes, this is a bad idea–"

"It's borderline suicidal."

I let out a breath of air, turning my attention back to Venus. "We haven't got any other choice."

"Bex, your powers on their own are way too strong right now," she reminded, moving away from the wall she was leant against. "With mine manipulating them? Who knows what could happen."

"I have to do this."

She shook her head, glancing away for a moment. "Surely there's another way–"

"Listen," Theo interrupted, an exasperated expression drawing on his face. "Do you want my help or not?"

"Yes."

"No."

"Vee," I warned, turning my head to give her a cautioning look.

She held my stare for a few moments, before eventually letting out a reluctant groan, shifting her gaze. "Fine, we want your help."

"Okay," I started, focusing my attention on Theo, who was glancing down at his claws in disinterest. "So how do we do this?"

"Well–"

"Hang on," Vee took another step forwards, eyeing Theo, who looked as if he was ready to bang his head against the wall ten times. "Why are the claws out?"

"Just a precaution," he answered nonchalantly, sending a brief look in my direction. I didn't exactly blame him, I knew what I was capable of.

Venus released a breath, shifting her body to face me. "Are you sure you want him? Like, literally, you could have picked anyone but h–"

"He has to be here," I responded firmly, sparing a glance at Theo, who was watching Venus with a playful smirk.

"Why?"

I swallowed thickly. "He's the only person that won't try and stop me."

"Can we get on with this now?" Theo asked impatiently, cutting through the silence that had fallen in the warehouse. He crossed in front of us to the other side of the room, becoming bathed in the warm glow of the candles that had been lit a few minutes prior.

Venus stared coldly at him for another long moment, as if weighing up some kind of option in her mind. "Okay," she eventually spoke, her attention shifting to a small bag, which she crouched down to pick up, soon laying out a few quartz stones. "Did you bring what I asked?"

I nodded slowly, reaching deep into my pocket to find the necklace I'd brought, eventually hooking my finger around it and holding it up. Venus gently took the necklace from my hands, holding it high in the air to examine it momentarily, before carefully placing it down by the stones and candles.

"So what now?" I asked, after a few moments of silence had passed. Venus kept her eyes focused on what she'd set up in front of her, her head bent down in concentration, until she held up a hand, signalling me over.

"Stand in the middle of this," she instructed, motioning to the circle of stones she had lay out. I carefully stepped into the middle, soon joined by Venus, who reached for both of my hands, looking up at me with an expression of concern. "You're sure about this."

I released a tense breath, nodding my head in certainty. Theo, who was still stood at the back of the room, caught my eye, a glint of something in his eyes. "I'm sure."

"Okay," Venus said quietly, seeming to take a few moments to compose herself. "Close your eyes." I followed her instruction, allowing my eyelids to flutter shut, leaving me feeling mildly exposed. "Focus on your mind," she continued. "Picture a blank slate." I squeezed my eyes shut with more force, desperately trying to conjure the image in my head.

"Relax, Becca." Vee's voice was soft, calming; there was no longer a trace of nervousness in her tone. I relaxed my shoulders. "Your mind is a tabula rasa; a blank slate." I pictured darkness, an empty darkness, stripped of all memories, senses, emotions.

"Now I need you to think about that night; the night you lost Brett." I felt a twinge in my chest, finding myself becoming pulled back into the moment, frozen in fear as I watched on. "Focus on your senses. What you heard." Screeching tires. "What you could see." Blinding headlights. "How you felt." Terrified. "Let yourself go back there one last time."

"Move!"

I flung myself to the hard ground, beside two limp bodies, amongst the pools of blood seeping around us.

"Don't do this to me."

My fingers trembled as I reached for his hand, his skin pale, cold as ice. And his pained eyes, they watched me carefully, as if savouring the moment one last time.

"Remember another time you felt like this," Venus' voice cut into the air, bouncing around my mind. I looked up into the night air, only to find myself somewhere else when I glanced back down again.

A gloved hand lay inches from mine, nails painted bright red. A desperate scream rang around us, travelling and piercing through the air. "Allison."

"I can't take your pain," Scott whispered, panic stricken, his brown eyes wide and fearful, despite the assuring smile that ghosted over Allison Argent's lips as she looked up at him.

"That's because it doesn't hurt."

"How many times have you almost lost someone close to you?"

"Scott!" I screamed desperately, my hands slamming against the locked door in front of me. "Scott, it's in the vault!"

"It's called reishi mushrooms!" Stiles called out, frantically crashing against the door in a panic. "Scott!"

"Scott, open the door!"

"Remember losing your brother," Venus whispered, her voice sending chills throughout my body. "Remember how that felt."

"Mom, his heart," I spoke through choked cries, my whole body trembling as I sunk to my knees. "He hasn't had a pulse in over fifteen minutes."

"You can't bring someone back that's–"

"But you can bring someone back, can't you?"

"Rebecca!"

Voices began to ring in my ears, the sound somewhat haunting, causing me to stumble, everything around my spinning.

Liam Dunbar dropped to the ground, clutching his abdomen in pain as Kira Yukimura bent beside him. "Liam, what's wrong?"

"It hurts, why does it hurt?"

"You wanted Liam to feel the pain you did when he broke your heart."

"Why are you so mad?" Liam snapped curtly, running his fingers through his hair in exasperation, as if he was still struggling to comprehend what he'd done to cause the whole situation.

"Because I'm fed up of feeling heartbroken all the time!"

"Because it hurts doesn't it," she said. "Falling in love with someone–"

"And then watching them fall for someone else," Brett Talbot continued, his voice blurring with Venus' for a few moments. "It hurts more than anything you've ever felt before. And there's no way– no way at all you can stop it from hurting."

"But that night at the church when Liam lost you, he did feel that pain. Because his heart broke too."

"And you Liam," Stiles Stilinski started, sat beside Scott in the back of the prison van on the way back from Mexico. "Remember your first full moon? She was there for you. She wanted to prove that she'd be there for you every step of the way."

"I'll never leave her."

"Promise?" He asked, watching Liam expectantly, before shifting his eyes to Scott.

"Promise," Scott said.

Their eyes turned to Liam, who nodded his head slowly, his eyes brimming with tears. "Promise."

"Because he remembered everything."

"Promise me you're going to stay out of this supernatural stuff," Liam said, shifting forwards to look at me properly.

I averted my gaze for a moment, exhaling heavily. "Liam, I–"

"When I was stuck in that Well, all I could think about was you," he said, leaning forwards, his blue eyes searching mine. "I needed to know you were okay and– I know that sounds crazy but–"

"It doesn't sound crazy," I said quietly, lifting my gaze to meet his properly, our states lingering for a moment, the word around us melting away.

"Well," he started, inching himself closer towards me, his eyes burning bright. I found my gaze flickering to his lips. "Would it be crazy if I did this?"

"Because you two were in love."

"Why me?" Liam sighed defeatedly, glancing down at his lap, his fingers dancing nervously. "I've got all these problems, but you still chose me."

I looked up, smiling softly as I watched him shift nervously. I watched his eyes dance beautifully in the light, the way his features became highlighted by the glow. "Because I love you."

"You needed each other."

"Get out of here," Scott ordered, barely sparing a glance at me as he and Stiles attempted to shove Liam back again. "I don't want you hurt."

I ignored his instruction, tentatively placing a hand on Liam's chest to keep him at bay. His glowing yellow eyes pulsed for another moment before slowly shifting back to their ocean blue colour, holding something deep within them as his stare lingered on me.

"Wow," Stiles let out a breath of relief, as if the whole ordeal had really taken it out of him. "Rebecca needs to be here more often?"

"How did you do that?" Scott questioned, turning his head towards me, a frown on his face.

I continued to hold my gaze with Liam, unable to pull away, even as I felt Scott's eyes burning into me. "Do what?"

"You were his anchor."

"Liam, I want you to listen to my voice." I spoke calmly, not a trace of anxiety in my voice as I stepped towards him. "I need you to think about something, or someone who means a lot to you. Concentrate."

"I–I'm trying," he struggled out, his eyes ablaze as he tugged forwards on his restraints.

"Look at me," I instructed firmly, my eyes on his as he began to lift his head. "Concentrate on your anger. Use it."

Liam let out a frustrated growl, his teeth grinding together. "It's not working!" I took a step closer, the action causing Scott to flinch as he looked on. "I don't want to hurt you," Liam said quietly, eyeing the hand I'd softly placed on his shoulder with uncertainty.

"You're not going to hurt me," I assured gently, moving my hand to his forearm. "You know why?" Liam shook his head, his gaze fixed solely on me. "Because I believe in you."

As Liam's eyes resumed their usual colour, and the two of them embraced in a relieved hug, Scott watched on with a scowl.

"I'm pretty sure she's his anchor," he told Stiles, who listened to his best friend's suspicions with a frown. Scott let out a defeated sigh, his eyes glazing over with tears. "It's like we're going back in time."

"What do you mean?" Stiles wondered, leaning forwards with concern as Scott placed his head in his hands.

"It's– it's like Liam's me, and Rebecca's Allison."

"And, in the end, it all unfolded the same way, didn't it?" Venus' voice cut through the emotional silence that lapsed between Scott and Stiles. "But that wasn't your ending. This fight won't be your ending unless you let it."

I found myself back at school, the hallway dark, empty. Leaves billowed in through the open doors, allowing a chill to snake through the air.

"So how do we win this, Bex?"

~

I felt myself falling.

My eyes burst open fearfully, as I was viciously pulled back into reality, my mouth open in a silent scream as the world span.

A blazing fire burned bright and fast around us, swirling and spitting savagely, as Venus crumbled to the floor, powerless.

My breath caught in my throat, the heat around me suffocating. Windows had smashed in the distance, sending shards of glass flying through the room.

I dropped to my knees in front of Venus, whose eyes rolled back as she began to slump forwards.

"Vee!" I called out, taking her face between my hands, trying to shake her out of the trance. Dark blood poured from her nose, coating her lips, as bloodied tears ran down her face, staining her skin. "Vee!"

I could feel panic rising and building within me, as my heart began racing ferociously. I gripped hold of her tightly, my knuckles beginning to turn white from my desperate touch.

"Becca!" Someone called out, their voice only just rising above the whirlwind of noises around us. "Becca, you have to calm down!"

But I couldn't calm down, I could barely breathe.

I held her tightly, my brain beginning to freeze, seizing up, fright beginning to consume every cell of my body.

"Hey!" They called out again, more frantically this time; with a wild desperation. I knew the voice belonged to Liam. "Listen to me! Listen to my voice!"

I began to breath heavily, feeling starved for air as a discomforting feeling began to tighten in my chest. I can't breathe, I can't breathe, I can't breathe.

"Concentrate!" Liam yelled out. "Concentrate on my voice!"

"I'm trying!" I cried out, my voice straining as panicked cries began to wrack through my body.

"Bec, you need to use your anchor!" I breathed heavily, my mind an emotionally charged whirlwind of frantic and negative thoughts. I was scared I would send my brain into overdrive if I tried to find my anchor. "Bec!"

"I can't!" I cried out, my vision beginning to blur with tears of raw frustration. The fire was continuing to circle around us, trapping us slowly. "I can't!"

"You can!" Liam shouted back desperately. "You know why?!" I closed my eyes shut, willing myself to do something, to start thinking straight, to get us out of this. "Because I believe in you!"

I stopped.

The words stuck a chord deep within me, the thoughts in my mind beginning to fall silent. My body warmed, my limbs falling loose. My eyelids began peacefully fluttering closed again, whilst my frantic breathing began to slow. Time continued to roll by slowly, as the destruction around us began to fall away bit by bit.

A gasp sounded from Venus, and I found myself opening my eyes to find a stillness in the room.

"You okay?" Liam rushed out, crouching down in front of Vee and I, his eyes flitting between us both fearfully. "What the hell were you thinking?"

Venus rubbed the back of her head, wincing slightly as she began to sit up properly. I stared at Liam, unable to form any words as I suddenly became overwhelmed by the amount I'd seen of what was going to happen.

"Is there a way out of all this?" Theo asked, stepping forwards. "Is there a way to end it?"

I swallowed thickly as I attempted to gather my thoughts, aware the others were impatient for answers. "The hunters are going to give out guns to everyone who wants them," I said, my throat feeling sore and scratchy. "They're setting traps."

"Can we stop them?"

I shook my head slowly, thinking back to everything I saw, as the visions of everyone turned to stone began to infiltrate my mind.

"What about the anuk-ite?"

"It appears in the form of what you most fear," I explained, glancing over each one of them in turn. "Tries to get you to look at it. And then you get turned to stone."

"What happens then?" Venus asked, leaning forwards with curiosity.

I shrugged my shoulders defeatedly, unsure on what answer to give. "I don't know," I answered truthfully.

"So we went through all this," Theo gestured around us. "Just to find out there's no way to win."

"You mean me and Becca went through all this," Vee snapped.

"Wait, what about Scott?" Liam spoke up, quickly diffusing the tension. "Didn't he find a way?"

"I saw but," I cut off, remembering the way my brother fell to the floor, the amount of blood, and the pain. "I don't know if it worked or not."

"Even if it didn't," Liam started, eyeing all three of us slightly unsurely. "It doesn't matter right? Things can change, can't they?"

"They can, but–" Venus cut off, shaking her head before turning her attention back to me. "Did you see any further into the future?" She asked. "That was the whole point, right? To get you to see what came after? After we won, lost, whatever happened."

I found myself falling quiet, as the three of them watched me expectantly. I shifted my gaze to the ground, my stomach twisting with nerves. "Becca?" Vee prompted, her voice wavering slightly. "What did you see?"

"I didn't see a future."

❥

A/N

Ohhhh shieeet.

Honestly, I dunno if this chapter really worked or made much sense ??? but I'm just gonna go with it tbh.

Apologies for the lack of updates, my first year of A level exams are coming up so I'm pretty busy.

Hope you enjoyed!