Chapter 88: The Pack’s Power Grows

Allison's POV 

After Scott reassured them that he was fine, and Allison saw Michael's fire barely affect him, she refocused on her battle with the manticore, Darius. 

Her emotions were a storm of chaos. Anger boiled within her at Kate for trying to kill Scott and her pack. Guilt and shame clawed at her for asking Scott to spare Kate's life so many times before, and now grief lingered at her aunt's death. Allison didn't know what to feel, but one thing was certain, she needed an outlet for her frustration. 

Her glowing red eyes locked on Darius, and without a word, she attacked. Moving with incredible speed, she closed the distance in a flash, unleashing a barrage of punches and kicks. Darius struggled, barely managing to block her relentless assault. 

Realizing he couldn't win in his current state, Darius let one of Allison's kicks connect, using the momentum to launch himself backward and create space. 

He started to shift, his head morphing into that of a lion with a thick mane. Fur sprouted across his body as he grew taller and more muscular, claws extending from his fingers. Behind him, a massive scorpion tail lashed menacingly. His glowing red eyes locked onto Allison as he snarled. "It's my turn now, little girl." 

Darius charged, faster and stronger than before. Allison tried to defend herself, but he landed a brutal punch to her face, sending her flying into a tree. 

She spat blood as she stood, giving him a cold smile. Her body began to shift, white fur covering her skin as her face elongated into a wolf-like snout. "I think I've played enough. Now let's finish this." She growled. 

This time, Allison moved too fast for Darius to follow. To him, she was nothing but a white blur before her fist connected, sending him flying and crashing to the ground, rolling several times before coming to a stop. 

Darius struggled to stand, but before he could rise, Allison appeared in front of him, her knee slamming into his nose and mouth. A sickening crack echoed as his nose and fangs broke. 

Without hesitation, she grabbed his scorpion tail, leaped into the air, and used all her strength to slam him into the ground. The impact left him embedded in the dirt. 

As he groaned and tried to push himself up, Allison flipped midair and landed a powerful kick to his face, knocking him back down. Not giving him a moment to recover, she kicked him again, sending him skidding across the ground until he lay face-down, unmoving. 

Walking over, Allison delivered a crushing kick to his spine, breaking it. Then, she plunged her claws into his back, beginning to absorb his power. 

Darius struggled weakly, his hands trembling as he tried to fight back. But he was paralyzed from the waist down, unable even to move his tail. Seeing his futile attempts, Allison punched the back of his head, silencing his resistance. 

Soon, his lion-like form reverted to a human state, and his strength drained away entirely. When there was nothing left to absorb, Allison withdrew her claws and kicked his limp body aside. A wave of power surged through her, stronger than anything she had ever felt. She smiled faintly, glancing at her claws. A sudden realization struck her. "I can feel it. My claws can be poisonous if I want them to be." 

Looking at Darius's broken body, she thought grimly. 'It's time for me to take a life.' 

She approached him. His spine had not healed, and he was already dying. "Let me end your misery." She said. 

Her claws extended as she drove her hand into his chest, crushing his heart and ending his life. 

The rush of battle faded, replaced by nausea. Stumbling to a nearby tree, Allison vomited. 

Scott and Melissa arrived moments later. Scott walked over, gently patting her back. 

When she finished, she looked up at him, wiping her mouth. "Sorry about that." She muttered. 

Scott brushed her messy hair back from her face and smiled. "It's your first time killing. It's normal. I'm proud of you." 

Melissa joined them, placing a reassuring hand on Allison's shoulder. "You did good." She said warmly. 

Allison managed a small smile. "Did you two already deal with your opponents?" 

Scott nodded. "Yeah. Let me show you what I got from the Cerberus." 

He walked over to Darius's body and summoned a burst of flame, reducing it to ash. 

Allison's eyes widened. "You got fire? That's so unfair. I only got poison from the manticore, and it's not nearly as cool as fire!" 

Melissa chuckled, raising her hand to summon a gust of wind that playfully ruffled Allison's hair. "I got wind powers from the kitsune." She said with a grin. 

Allison laughed. "Stiles is going to lose his mind when he hears about this." 

Scott joined in her laughter. "Oh, he definitely will." Then, he said. "Let's go check on the rest of the pack."

After walking for a while, Scott, Allison, and Melissa found Victoria and Chris standing over the defeated Alpha werewolf, Pedro. The Alpha lay on the ground, barely conscious and in obvious pain.

Scott smirked as he approached, surveying the scene. "Looks like you two had fun."

Victoria returned the smile. "Not as much as I hoped. He was too weak."

Chris shook his head. "No, he wasn't weak. You're just too strong. When you were fighting, I couldn't even see what was happening, just two blurred shadows clashing."

Scott raised an eyebrow. "So, I take it you didn't help?"

Chris shot him a sharp glare but said nothing. Scott chuckled. "Like I said before, whenever you're ready, just say the word, and I'll give you the Bite."

Victoria turned to her daughter, concern evident in her expression. "Are you okay, Allison? Was the manticore hard to handle?"

Allison smiled confidently. "No, he wasn't much of a challenge."

Scott looked at Victoria and said. "Have you absorbed his powers yet?"

Victoria shook her head. "No. Allison told me that those who get the Bite first should get the chance to become Alphas first."

Scott waved her concern away. "Don't worry about that. You've earned it. Go ahead."

With Scott's encouragement, Victoria didn't hesitate. She knelt beside the Alpha and plunged her claws into his chest. As she absorbed his powers, her orange eyes turned crimson red. She stood up, exuding new strength, and looked at Chris. "Put him out of his misery."

Without a word, Chris drew his gun and shot Pedro in the head, ending his life. Scott stepped forward and used his fire ability to burn Pedro's body to ash.

Allison turned to her mother, excitement in her voice. "Can you shift into a full weretiger now, Mom?"

Victoria nodded. "Let's see." She closed her eyes and focused. Slowly, orange fur with black stripes grew across her body, her muscles expanded, and her stature grew taller. Her head shifted into a tiger-like shape, and a long tiger tail swayed behind her.

Allison's eyes widened. "Wow, Mom! You look amazing! How does it feel?"

Victoria's voice deepened with her transformation. "I feel strong. Very strong."

Scott smiled, sensing his own strength increase. Every time one of his pack members grew stronger, he felt the bond amplify his power. "Let's go check on the others." He said.

Just then, they heard Lydia's banshee scream echoing through the forest. The group moved quickly in her direction and arrived to find Lydia flying with her massive black wings, battling a huge bat-like creature. They stayed back, watching the fight unfold.

Lydia dodged a vicious swipe from the The Vetala, Anika, and retaliated with a powerful kick that sent the creature crashing to the ground. Anika coughed up blood but quickly got back up, placing her hand on the ground. Moments later, five ghouls emerged from the earth, snarling as they rushed toward Erica.

Lydia landed next to Erica, who was gripping a sword she'd brought from Scott's house. "Lydia." Erica said, her golden eyes glowing. "Leave those nasty things to me. You focus on the bat."

Lydia nodded. "Be careful." With that, she flew past the charging ghouls, diving straight for the Vetala.

Erica smirked, rushing toward the ghouls with her sword raised. She quickly discovered that cutting off their heads was the only way to defeat them, as stabbing or slicing their limbs resulted in rapid regeneration. Adjusting her tactics, she began beheading them one by one until all five turned to ash.

Anika watched in growing panic as Erica dispatched her ghouls with ease. Fighting Lydia was proving equally challenging, and she realized she couldn't win. Deciding to flee, she turned and soared into the air.

But Lydia was faster. She slashed Anika's back with her talons, leaving a deep wound. Anika managed to fly a short distance before her body went limp, and she plummeted to the ground.

Lydia landed gracefully beside her fallen opponent and stared down at her. Anika, struggling to breathe, looked up in terror. "What… what did you do to me?"

Lydia raised her talons, revealing a translucent liquid coating them. "Nothing much." She said with a smirk. "I just slashed you."

Anika's eyes widened. "Your claws… they're poisonous."

Lydia nodded. "That's right. But, you won't get any rewards."

Erica approached Lydia. "Go ahead, Lydia. Absorb her powers."

Lydia knelt down beside Anika, and plunged her talons into Anika's chest, absorbing her powers. As the process finished, Lydia's golden eyes turned crimson red. She withdrew her talons and stood tall, a newfound strength coursing through her.

After the fight ended, Scott and the others approached Lydia and Erica. Once Scott ensured Anika was dead and burned her body to ash, he turned to Lydia. 

"Can you shift into an animal form now?" Scott asked. 

Lydia nodded. "I think so." 

She focused, and her transformation began. First, her legs shifted into bird-like limbs, black and sleek, with long, sharp talons. 

"You look like a harpy." Erica commented, intrigued. 

Lydia smirked. "I think I can go further." 

Black feathers spread over her body as her head morphed into that of a crow. She attempted to speak but let out a loud caw instead. After a few tries, her voice returned. 

"How do I look?" She asked. 

"You look like a humanoid crow." Allison said, impressed. "It's similar to our full werewolf forms." 

Lydia nodded thoughtfully. She focused again, this time fully transforming into a massive crow standing nearly 1.6 meters tall with enormous wings. 

"How about now?" Lydia asked, her voice raspy but clear. 

"You look like… a giant crow." Erica said. 

Lydia said. "Well, I guess this is it. By the way, I think I can summon those ghouls now, but honestly, I don't want to." 

Scott raised an eyebrow. "I don't want to smell them again either, but you need to test it. How many can you summon? How much energy does it take? And hey, maybe your ghouls won't stink as badly." 

Lydia rolled her glowing eyes. "Alright, let's find out." 

She stomped her clawed foot on the ground. A moment later, ten ghouls emerged, standing silently and awaiting orders. 

Scott and the others immediately stepped back, covering their noses. 

"Nope." Scott groaned. "They still stink." 

He turned to Lydia. "Is ten your limit? How much energy did summoning them take?" 

"Yes, I can only summon ten at a time." Lydia replied. "It didn't drain me much, but I feel like I need a cooldown period before summoning them again. Also, can you try killing one? I want to see if it affects me." 

Scott approached one of the ghouls and decapitated it with the katana in his hand. "Did you feel anything?" 

Lydia shook her head. "Nothing." 

Scott then stabbed his claws into another ghoul's chest, attempting to absorb its power. He frowned. "I can't absorb anything from them." 

Lydia said. "I'll only use them if I have to. For now, I need to get back to the cars and put on some clothes." 

Lydia spread her massive wings and flew toward the vehicles. 

Scott turned to the others. "Alright, let's check on the rest of the pack." 

To be continued...