NOTE: don't forget to join my Patreon.com/Argonaut007 to get access up to 10+ Advance chapters.
-----
Dawn came slowly to Beacon Hills.
Where the Hale house once stood, only charred ruins remained.
Smoke still rose from blackened beams as the first rays of sunlight filtered through the trees. The forest smelled of ash, burned wood… and death.
The surviving wolves worked in silence.
Some cleared debris.
Others searched the ruins carefully, hoping—perhaps foolishly—to find more survivors.
But there were none.
The fire had taken too much.
Nearby, several injured children lay wrapped in blankets while the visiting wolves tended to their wounds. Many of them were still unconscious from smoke inhalation and burns.
The atmosphere was heavy.
A pack had not simply been attacked.
It had been massacred.
Across the clearing, Laura Hale stood staring at the ruins.
Her eyes were hollow.
Hours had passed since the fire ended, but the image of the burning house refused to leave her mind.
Behind her, Derek Hale sat beside a tree, his knuckles still raw from digging through debris.
Neither of them had slept.
Neither of them could.
A few meters away, medics from the supernatural community carefully lifted the barely conscious body of Peter Hale onto a stretcher.
His body was wrapped in thick bandages, but even those could not hide the severity of his burns.
One of the wolves spoke quietly.
"He needs a hospital."
Another shook his head.
"A human hospital won't understand injuries like this."
Laura turned toward them.
"Take him anyway."
Her voice was cold.
"Just make sure he survives."
one of the allied pack nodded and began preparing to transport Peter.
Not far from them, resting against a fallen log, Talia Hale watched everything unfold.
Even weakened by wolfsbane and smoke, the Alpha's presence still commanded respect.
But the exhaustion in her eyes revealed how close she had come to death.
Derek approached her slowly.
"Mom…"
Talia looked up at him.
"You should rest."
Derek shook his head.
"I'm not tired."
She studied him for a moment before speaking softly.
"You're angry."
Derek didn't answer.
He didn't need to.
Talia already knew.
After a long silence she said,
"Anger is easy."
Her gaze drifted toward the ruins of their home.
"Leading after a tragedy… that is much harder."
Nearby, a quiet groan broke the silence.
Arthur Corvinus slowly pushed himself upright.
Pain shot through his body instantly.
"Ugh…"
Everything hurt.
His ribs.
His lungs.
His head.
He looked around in confusion.
Burned trees.
Wolves moving through the ruins.
The destroyed Hale house.
Reality hit him again.
"…right."
He rubbed his temples.
"I'm still here."
He had hoped—just for a moment—that the memories were some kind of fever dream.
They weren't.
He really had been reborn into the world of Teen Wolf.
And worse—
He had been reborn right before the Hale massacre.
Arthur glanced toward the survivors.
Laura.
Derek.
Talia.
Peter being carried away.
His mind raced.
"Okay… think."
He whispered under his breath.
"In the original timeline…"
His eyes narrowed.
"…this was supposed to wipe out most of the Hale pack."
But now things were different.
Talia was alive.
Several children survived.
Even Peter had been pulled from the ruins earlier than expected.
Arthur exhaled slowly.
"So the timeline already changed."
He leaned his head back against the log and stared at the sky.
"This is going to get messy."
Across the clearing, Laura suddenly turned toward him.
Their eyes met.
For a moment, she studied him carefully.
Something about Arthur felt… different.
But after a moment she simply said,
"Can you stand?"
Arthur blinked.
"…probably."
Derek walked over and offered him a hand.
Arthur accepted it and slowly got to his feet.
Laura looked at the remaining survivors gathered around the ruins.
Her voice was steady despite the grief in her eyes.
"This pack isn't dead."
The wolves around her lifted their heads.
"We lost our home."
She clenched her fists.
"We lost our family."
Her glowing red eyes burned with Alpha fury.
"But the Hale pack still stands."
Arthur was shocked. what? impossible, Talia is still alive. how can she still become an alpha?
then Arthur remember. like scott she's a true alpha, a natural born leader.
A low growl of agreement spread through the wolves.
Laura's gaze turned toward the distant forest.
Somewhere out there—
The Argents were still alive.
And the debt of blood had only just begun.
Arthur watched silently.
His thoughts were far more complicated.
"Yeah…"
He muttered under his breath.
"The story definitely just changed. im just a human, how will i survive, should i ask for a bite or i just need to escape?"
