Chapter 17 — When Control Breaks
The first hit that really mattered came fast.
Too fast for hesitation.
Too fast for thought.
Nova didn't pull it.
Didn't soften it.
Her fist slammed into Scott's jaw with enough force to snap his head to the side, the crack of impact echoing sharply through the trees as he staggered back a step, boots digging into the dirt before he caught himself.
For half a second—
There was still a chance to stop.
Then Scott came back harder.
His fist collided with her ribs, the force of it knocking the air from her lungs as she stumbled back, pain flaring sharp and immediate through her side, but instead of slowing her down, it only fed the fire already burning under her skin.
They moved again at the same time.
No hesitation.
No restraint.
Scott lunged forward, tackling her hard enough to send them both crashing into the ground, leaves and dirt scattering beneath them as his fist came down again, catching her across the cheek this time, splitting skin as the metallic tang of blood hit her tongue almost instantly.
Nova snarled.
Not human.
Not controlled.
Her eyes burned red as she twisted under him, her claws tearing through the fabric of his shirt as she shoved him off, sending him rolling across the ground before she was on him again, faster now, more aggressive, her movements driven less by training and more by instinct.
"You don't get to judge me!" she snapped, her voice rough, edged with something feral as she drove her forearm into his throat, pinning him for half a second before he slammed his elbow into her side hard enough to break the hold.
Scott shoved her off again, rolling to his feet as blood dripped from the corner of his mouth, his eyes glowing gold, brighter now, more intense.
"I'm trying to stop you!" he shot back, his voice rising with frustration as he wiped the blood from his lip with the back of his hand. "Before you ruin someone else's life the way you ruined hers!"
That hit harder than any punch.
Nova froze for half a second—
Then exploded.
She surged forward, slamming into him with enough force to drive him back into a tree, the bark cracking under the impact as her claws dug into his shoulders, not deep enough to kill—
But deep enough to hurt.
Bad.
"You don't get to say that!" she snarled, her voice breaking under the weight of it as her eyes flickered violently between green and red, control slipping faster now with every second. "You don't get to pretend like you weren't just as much a part of that!"
Scott shoved her back, anger bleeding through now in a way that wasn't controlled, wasn't measured.
"I didn't turn her into something that put a target on her back!"
Nova laughed—
Sharp.
Broken.
"No," she shot back, circling him now, blood trailing from her lip as she wiped it away with the back of her hand. "You just dragged her into every fight you couldn't handle on your own."
Scott's jaw clenched.
"That's not the same thing."
"It is when she ends up dead!"
Silence didn't come.
The fight filled it.
Scott lunged again, faster this time, tackling her sideways as they slammed into the ground again, his fist connecting with her shoulder, her ribs, anywhere he could hit as frustration and something deeper, uglier, pushed him forward.
"You got everything!" he snapped, his voice cracking now, years of buried emotion spilling out in a way that had nothing to do with control anymore. "You got her, you got the pack, you even got to be a True Alpha like me—"
Nova twisted under him, her knee driving up into his stomach hard enough to knock the wind out of him before she shoved him off again, scrambling to her feet.
"I didn't take anything from you!" she shot back, breathing harder now, her chest rising and falling rapidly as her claws flexed at her sides. "You lost it because you couldn't handle not being the one in control!"
Scott pushed himself up, shaking his head sharply.
"That's not—"
"Yes, it is!" Nova cut him off, stepping forward again, her voice rising as the words spilled out faster now, less filtered, more raw. "You have to control everything, Scott! Every decision, every risk, every choice, and if you don't approve then you treat us like shit. You aren't the master of the universe Scott and we don't have to listen to your bullshit. "
She jabbed a finger toward him.
"And if someone doesn't do what you want?"
A step closer.
"If they don't agree with you?"
Her eyes flared red again.
"You guilt them."
Another step.
"You twist it until they feel like they're the problem."
Scott's expression tightened.
"That's not what I'm doing."
Nova laughed again, harsher this time.
"That's exactly what you're doing."
A beat.
Then quieter—
More dangerous.
"You just don't like that it's not working on me. That I will stand up to you and question your authority in front of everyone."
That snapped something in him.
Scott charged.
They collided again, harder this time, both of them fully giving into the fight now as claws tore, fists struck, and blood began to mix with dirt beneath their feet.
Nova's claws raked across his side, tearing fabric and skin, drawing a sharp hiss from him as he retaliated with a punch that split her lip further, sending fresh blood spilling down her chin.
They moved like animals now.
Fast.
Violent.
Uncontrolled.
Scott swung wide—Nova ducked, driving her shoulder into his chest and slamming him back again, her claws catching his arm this time, leaving deep, jagged marks that would have dropped a normal person instantly.
He didn't slow.
Neither did she.
Because this wasn't about winning anymore.
This was about everything they hadn't said.
Everything they hadn't let go.
Everything that still hurt.
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Farther back—
The pack didn't move.
Not yet.
But they were watching.
Ethan's jaw was locked so tight it looked like it might crack.
A little more. Just a little more and I'm stepping in.
Aiden shifted his weight forward, barely holding himself back.
He's pushing her too far.
Lydia's head tilted slightly, her eyes distant in a way that meant she wasn't just watching anymore, she was feeling it, the emotional chaos bleeding into something louder, sharper.
This is going to get worse.
Stiles ran a hand through his hair again, pacing once, twice.
"They're going to kill each other," he muttered under his breath.
And honestly?
At this rate—
He wasn't wrong.
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Back in the clearing—
Nova staggered back slightly, blood dripping from her lip, her breathing uneven as her control slipped further, her eyes flashing red more often now than green.
Scott didn't look much better.
Bruised.
Bleeding.
Still standing.
Still coming.
"You think this makes you better?" he snapped, circling her again. "You think turning her makes you stronger?"
Nova wiped blood from her mouth, her hand shaking slightly.
"No," she said, her voice low, dangerous. "I think it gives me a chance to protect my family."
Scott shook his head.
"You're going to get her killed."
Nova's eyes snapped fully red.
"I won't. Like with Allison I respected Thea's choice to choose. I told her everything, the facts, the pros and cons. And know what Thea still asked for me to turn here. I tried to talk her out of it because I was afraid to lose Thea. Do you know how hard it was to let someone back into my life like that after Allison died?"
Scott stepped forward again—
And Nova met him halfway.
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Back in the training clearing—
Thea stepped back, breath uneven as she ran a hand through her hair, sweat sticking to her skin as she tried to shake out the tension in her muscles after the last round with Malia.
"Okay, timeout," she muttered, holding up a hand slightly as she bent forward, catching her breath.
Malia snorted softly but didn't argue, stepping back.
Derek's eyes flicked toward the tree line.
Isaac rolled his shoulders once, watching Thea carefully.
Thea straightened after a moment, glancing around, then frowned.
"...Where's Nova?"
The question hung in the air for half a second before Derek, Malia, and Isaac all turned, almost in unison, toward Laurel.
Laurel, who had been watching the entire time, arms crossed, expression thoughtful.
She didn't look surprised.
"Scott asked her to tawas Laurel said simply. "She followed him."
Thea's frown deepened.
"And no one thought that was a bad idea?"
A beat.
Then—
"Stiles, Lydia, Ethan, and Aiden followed them," Laurel added.
That didn't help.
Not really.
Thea straightened fully now, something uneasy settling in her chest.
Derek's expression darkened slightly.
Malia's posture shifted, sharper now.
Isaac glanced toward the woods.
Because they all knew, thist hadn't been okay with this.
Hadn't been okay with Thea.
With the bite.
With any of it.
And then, it came.
A roar.
Loud.
Feral.
Angry.
It tore through the trees, echoing across the property with enough force to make the air itself feel like it vibrated.
Thea froze.
Her heart slammed hard in her chest.
Derek's head snapped toward the sound instantly.
Malia went still.
Isaac's eyes widened slightly.
They all knew that sound.
There was no mistaking it.
Derek's voice was low.
Certain.
"...That's Nova."
And it wasn't control they heard.
It was rage.
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The roar didn't fade.
It carried.
Echoing through the trees in a way that made it impossible to ignore, impossible to mistake for anything else, the sound thick with rage and something dangerously close to losing control.
Thea didn't wait.
She moved first, her body reacting before anyone could say a word, instincts sharper now, faster, pulling her toward the sound like something inside her recognized it, recognized her.
Nova.
Behind her, Derek swore under his breath before taking off after her, his pace effortless as he closed the distance quickly, Malia right on his heels with that same feral urgency, Isaac following just as fast, his expression already darkening with concern.
Laurel didn't run.
But she moved quickly enough to keep up, her eyes sharp, her focus locked ahead as the sound of crashing, of impact, of something breaking through the forest carried toward them with every step.
By the time they reached the edge of the smaller clearing, they weren't alone.
Stiles was the first one they saw, pacing in tight circles like he was trying to burn off nervous energy he couldn't do anything with, while Lydia stood a few feet away, completely still, her gaze fixed ahead, listening in a way that went beyond sound.
Ethan and Aiden stood closer to the treeline, both tense, both watching, their bodies angled like they were ready to move at any second.
Derek didn't slow as he approached them.
His voice cut through the space immediately.
"What the fuck is happening?"
Stiles stopped pacing.
For half a second, he looked like he didn't even know where to start.
Malia didn't wait.
She stepped forward, already trying to push past them.
"Move."
Her voice was sharp, impatient, her eyes locked ahead toward the sounds of fighting that still hadn't stopped.
Thea moved with her.
"We need to help her."
There was no hesitation in her voice.
No doubt.
Just urgency.
Derek's arm shot out, catching Thea lightly, but firmly, across the chest before she could move past him.
Not rough.
But enough to stop her.
"Not yet."
Thea snapped her gaze up to him, frustration flashing immediately.
"Not yet?" she shot back. "Did you not hear that?"
Malia's posture shifted beside her, shoulders tense, claws already threatening to come out.
"She's losing it."
Isaac stepped closer, his expression tight as his eyes flicked between the group and the direction of the fight.
"What did he say?"
That landed.
Because they all knew, this didn't just happen.
This was triggered.
Derek's gaze snapped back to Stiles and Lydia, sharp and demanding.
"What did Scott say?"
Derek's question hung in the air, it pressed down on it, heavy with urgency, with the knowledge that whatever had been said had already gone too far., but it wasn't the kind that could be answered in a single sentence, not with the way the tension still lingered in the air, thick and suffocating, not with the sound of distant impacts still echoing through the trees.
Stiles exhaled hard, dragging a hand down his face again as if he could physically wipe away the last few minutes, his eyes flicking toward the direction of the fight before settling back on Derek.
Stiles exhaled hard, dragging his hand down his face again, clearly wishing he didn't have to be the one to say it.
"A lot," he muttered, then looked up, more serious now. "None of it good."
Lydia didn't move, her gaze still fixed ahead, listening in a way that went beyond sound, but when she spoke, her voice cut through the tension cleanly.
"It didn't start bad," he said, his voice quieter than usual, but strained. "Not... immediately. He pulled her aside, said they needed to talk, and at first it sounded like, like concern."
A beat passed as he shook his head slightly.
"But it didn't stay that way."
Lydia stepped in then, her voice calm but precise, cutting through the space with a clarity that made every word land harder.
"He told her she shouldn't have turned Thea," she said, her gaze steady, not softening the truth.
"Yeah, I figured that part out," Derek spit out.
"Not like an opinion—like a fact," Lydia continued, her voice cutting through cleanly, sharper now.
Thea's jaw tightened immediately, but she didn't interrupt.
Stiles continued, pacing once before stopping again, his hands moving as he spoke like he was trying to piece it together in real time.
"He kept pushing it," he added. "Saying it wasn't her decision, that Thea didn't understand what she was asking for, like she didn't know what she was choosing."
Malia let out a low, unimpressed sound.
"She knew."
"Yeah," Stiles nodded quickly. "Nova said the same thing. She stood her ground, at first. Kept calm and tried to de-escalate things."
His expression shifted slightly.
"But Scott didn't drop it."
Ethan shifted where he stood, arms crossing tighter over his chest as his jaw flexed.
"He escalated," he said bluntly, his voice low but edged with irritation. "Kept framing it like Nova forced it, like she took the choice away instead of giving it. Kept twisting Nova's words to fit his position."
Aiden scoffed quietly beside him.
"Like he always does," he muttered, not bothering to hide the bite in his tone.
Derek's eyes narrowed slightly, but he didn't interrupt.
He let them keep talking.
Because he needed all of it.
Lydia spoke again, softer this time, but more dangerous.
"Then he brought up Allison."
That shifted everything.
Stiles winced.
"Yeah," he muttered. "That's where it went bad."
That was worse.
Much worse.
Thea's head snapped toward her again, her breath catching slightly.
"What about Allison?"
A beat passed.
Then he forced himself to continue.
"He said Nova was supposed to protect her."
Thea's breath caught.
Behind her, Malia swore under her breath, her hands curling into fists.
Derek's eyes darkened.
Isaac's expression hardened, his gaze dropping briefly before lifting again, sharper now.
Ethan's jaw clenched harder.
Aiden's fists tightened.
Thea didn't move at all.
Lydia didn't look away.
But Lydia wasn't done.
Her voice softened slightly—
Not gentler.
Just more deliberate.
"Not just once," she added. "He kept coming back to it."
Her tone remained calm, but there was something colder underneath now.
"He said turning you felt the same," she continued, her gaze shifting briefly to Thea. "Like Nova was making the same mistake again."
Thea's breathing changed.
Subtle.
But noticeable.
Stiles shook his head again, more forceful this time.
"And then he took it further," he said, frustration bleeding through now. "He basically told her she was going to get you killed."
Silence hit for half a second.
Then—
Malia's lips pulled back slightly and growled.
Low.
Dangerous.
"I'm going to rip his throat out."
No one laughed.
Because no one thought she was joking.
Thea didn't say anything for a moment, but her posture went rigid.
Thea's chest rose slowly, her breathing changing, something deeper stirring beneath the surface as the words sank in, not just as information—but as something that hit close.
Too close.
Malia's voice cut through the silence.
Isaac's expression darkened.
Derek didn't react outwardly, but something in his stance shifted.
Aiden stepped forward half a step, his voice tight.
Thea blinked.
"...What did that asshole say? Because I could have sworn you said that Nova was going to get me killed."
Lydia finally turned her head slightly nodding, her gaze landing on Thea now.
"He did say that, like Nova was going to get you killed too."
Isaac's voice cut through the silence.
"I'm going to kill him."
It wasn't dramatic.
It wasn't exaggerated.
It was a statement.
Aiden stepped forward slightly, clearly not disagreeing.
"Get in line."
Ethan didn't speak, but his posture said enough.
"He didn't stop there."
Derek's gaze snapped to him.
"What else?"
Aiden met his eyes.
"He made it personal."
A beat.
"Said she got everything."
Ethan picked up from there, his voice lower but just as sharp.
"Said she got Allison, the life with her... the pack."
Another pause.
Then—
"...and being a True Alpha, like it was only supposed to be him that became a true alpha, not Nova."
That landed differently.
Heavier.
Because that wasn't just grief.
That was resentment.
Derek's expression darkened.
Stiles huffed out a humorless breath.
"Yeah, that part?" he said. "That wasn't about concern anymore."
Lydia's gaze shifted slightly, distant for a moment as she replayed it.
"It stopped being about Thea a while before that," she said quietly. "It became about everything he thinks he lost."
Thea swallowed, her chest rising slowly as the full weight of it settled in.
Not just what Scott said.
But what it did to Nova.
Isaac finally spoke, his voice controlled but tight.
"And Nova?"
Stiles didn't hesitate this time.
"She held it together longer than I thought she would."
A beat.
Then—
"...until he said she couldn't protect Allison."
Silence.
Absolute.
Heavy.
Because that, that was the breaking point.
Ethan exhaled slowly through his nose.
"That's when she snapped."
Derek exhaled slowly through his nose, forcing control back into the situation, even as the sounds of the fight in the distance grew louder again, another impact, another crash, another snarl that made it clear neither Nova nor Scott were slowing down.
"How bad?" he asked, his voice lower now.
Stiles didn't sugarcoat it.
"Bad."
A beat.
Then, more bluntly, "Like... 'we might need to pull them apart before someone dies' bad."
Aiden nodded once.
"Eyes went red. Completely."
Lydia added quietly:
"Not controlled."
Thea's hands curled into fists at her sides.
Not out of anger.
Out of something deeper.
Protective.
Raw.
Because now she understood, This wasn't just a fight.
This was Nova being pushed past a line she had been holding for a long time.
And Scott had crossed it.
Knowingly.
Deliberately.
Thea didn't wait anymore.
She stepped forward again.
This time faster.
More determined.
Derek moved with her, blocking her path again, but this time there was less certainty in the movement, less immediate authority.
"Thea—"
"No," she cut him off, her voice sharper now, something new bleeding into it—protective, instinctive, raw. "She's my—"
She stopped herself.
But it didn't matter.
They all knew what she was going to say.
Malia stepped forward beside her, fully aligned now.
"We're not standing here while she loses control."
Isaac nodded once.
"She's right."
Derek looked between them, weighing it, calculating the risk, the timing, the outcome.
Then, another crash echoed through the trees.
Followed by a snarl that didn't sound human at all.
Derek's jaw tightened.
Derek's voice cut through the silence, low and final.
"...We're done waiting."
And this time, no one disagreed.
"...We go in," he said finally.
A beat.
Then, sharper, "But we end it fast."
Thea didn't wait for anything else.
She moved.
And this time, no one stopped her
🐺🔥
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