A/N: Hey everybody. IT'S HERE! It took a lot longer than I planned but the end is finally here. Below is the final chapter of Until Dawn: Back to the Nightmare. I really want to thank each and every one of you for your patience. As I said, this ending was really tough to write and it didn't help that it broke the record set by my previous chapter for the longest chapter I've ever written for any story. For the first time, I've written a chapter that passed the 10,000 word milestone. But that's what happens when you have so many loose ends to wrap up. Well I'm not going to keep you all waiting any longer. I'll have some final words and acknowledgements at the end of this chapter. For now, sit back, relax and enjoy the long awaited finale to Until Dawn: Back to the Nightmare.

Despite Mike's assurance that everything was over, he and Sam continued to stare at Hannah's burning remains. Maybe it was because they had seen too many horror movies where the supposedly dead villain came back to life for one final attack. Then again it could have just been them being cautious since they thought they had already killed Hannah in the house explosion three weeks ago. Fortunately Mike and Sam realized they didn't need to wait until Hannah was a pile of ashes before they could take their eyes off of her. It was good to be cautious but they already got the confirmation they needed that Hannah was dead when they saw the wendigo spirt leave Hannah's body and disappear. All it took was one bad day to begin the chain of events that turned Hannah into a monster. Now, after another bad day more than a year later, Hannah was freed from the wendigo curse.

(BARK)

Mike and Sam's thoughts were interrupted when Wolfie began barking. In spite of the grim atmosphere, Mike managed a small smile. Wolfie didn't understand why Hannah's death was bittersweet to him and Sam. Instead he looked like he was more concerned with waiting for Mike to thank him for the rescue. Knowing he deserved it, Mike scratched Wolfie behind the ears.

"Thank you Wolfie," he said, "you and Sam saved my life. You really are a good boy."

Mike turned to Sam when he was finished congratulating Wolfie. He noticed that she was looking at him with concern. It was then Mike was hit by a sharp pain in his ankle. Between the fight with Hannah and the unexpected but welcomed arrival of Wolfie and Sam, Mike had forgotten about twisting his ankle. Seeing how swollen it had gotten since the initial injury made Mike realize he had a new problem. If his ankle hurt while he was lying down and not putting pressure on it, he was afraid to feel how much more pain he would feel if he tried to stand on it. There was no way he would be able to get out of the mine by himself.

Sam had apparently come to the same conclusion Mike did. She approached him and held out her hand. Mike took it and, with Sam's help, was able to get up off the ground. He nearly lost his balance and fell back down but Sam caught him and put his left arm around her shoulder to offer him support.

"I've got you Rambo," she said.

"Thanks….Ripley," Mike replied.

Sam looked at Mike with a raised eyebrow, "what did you call me?"

"You've been calling me Rambo to make fun of me when I said wearing my army jacket makes me look like an action hero. I happen to think you looked like an action hero yourself using the flamethrower. So I just thought I'd return the favor by giving you a nickname based on probably the most badass female action hero ever, Ellen Ripley."

"(chuckle) I like it. I could get used to being named after a woman who kills aliens. Though I'd say killing wendigos is harder since they can only be killed by fire."

"Well then I guess that makes you more of a badass than Ripley."

Sam chuckled at Mike's compliment. She began leading him forward but stopped when she noticed Mike didn't seem to be making an effort to move. She was about to ask what was wrong when she saw a tear forming in his eye. Following his line of sight, Sam saw that Mike was looking at Hannah's body again. It then dawned on her what Mike was thinking. There was no doubt Mike wanted to get out of the mine but there was one thing he needed to do before he could. It may not have seemed like much but saying goodbye to Hannah would allow Mike to finally find himself closure for the events of the past year. Realizing she needed some closure too, Sam guided Mike towards Hannah's body stopping just outside of the range of the flames. She then nodded to Mike encouraging him to speak when he was ready.

"Hannah," he said, "you didn't deserve any of this to happen to you. Knowing that Jessica and I played a part in your disappearance haunted us this past year but it was only three weeks ago when we saw the extent of the damage our stupid, immature prank caused you. I could never ask you to forgive us nor do I feel we deserve to be forgiven after what we've done."

"Nor could I ask you to forgive me Hannah," Sam joined in, "you were my best friend. but I wasn't there for you when you needed me. But…(sniffle)…I want you to know that I am really, really sorry."

"As are Jessica and I," Mike continued, "while we can't undo the suffering we've caused you, we owed it to you to at least end it. Rest in peace Hannah. The nightmare is finally over. You are free."

After observing a final moment of silence for Hannah, Sam started helping Mike out of the mine. They didn't get very far when they suddenly heard whimpering. Turning around revealed that the source of the whimpering was Wolfie who was seated and looking at Mike and Sam with what looked like sad, longing eyes. Looking into Wolfie's eyes, Mike and Sam' hearts melted when they realized what Wolfie was trying to tell them.

"I think someone wants to come with us," Sam said.

Mike knew Sam was right. In fact, while he was properly greeting Wolfie after the chaos with Hannah had settled, his first thought was to take Wolfie home with him. Unfortunately he didn't know if that would be possible. First he would have to see if Jessica was okay with the idea of keeping a wolf as a pet. Even if she initially thought he was crazy for suggesting it, Mike felt that she would warm up to the idea once he told her about his and Wolfie's friendship and how Wolfie had saved his life. However the biggest hurtle he would have to overcome if he wanted to keep Wolfie as a pet was his landlord. The building did allow tenants to keep certain kinds of pets but Mike doubted his landlord would allow him to keep a wolf. Though Mike had only know Wolfie a short time, he felt that the two of them had become great friends. After having lost so many of his friends in the last year, leaving Wolfie behind would seem like he was losing another one. But how could he take Wolfie off the mountain if he couldn't let Wolfie live with him and Jessica?

Sam seemed to pick up on Mike's hesitation, "you don't need to make a decision right now. We can at least take Wolfie with us out of the mine and figure out something then."

Initially Mike didn't like Sam's idea. It seemed like the only thing it would accomplish was delaying the inevitable fact that he was going to have to leave Wolfie behind. Before he could say no to Sam's idea however, Mike found himself looking into Wolfie's eyes again. They were practically pleading Mike to let Wolfe come with him. No matter how hard Mike tried to remind himself that there was no point in taking Wolfie with him, he couldn't say no to the pleading eyes that continued to stare at him. He reluctantly nodded to accept Sam's idea and then called for Wolfie to follow them. Wolfie's mood improved instantly and he let out one happy bark before getting up to follow Mike and Sam. He even positioned himself so that he was underneath Mike's free arm like he was trying to help support Mike as well. The height difference between the two of them made it hard for Wolfie to offer much support but Mike was still touched by the gesture.

"Good boy," he said.

Now that Mike had the support of Wolfie under one arm and Sam under the other, the trio made their way out of the mine. During the trek, Mike smiled as another thought came to him. With Sam's help, he had accomplished everything he had returned to Blackwood Mountain to do. As a result, there was nothing else for him to do in the mines. He, Sam and Wolfie were really leaving the mines….for the final time.

It may not have been that much warmer inside the processing facility but to Josh it felt like a tropical paradise. Evan as the rest of the group was still slightly shivering, Josh felt comfortable. He may have gotten used to the cold being trapped in the mine for three weeks but that didn't mean he liked it. The processing facility could have only had a one degree difference and that would have been enough for him. However comfortable the slight temperature increase may have made him, Josh wasn't feeling relaxed. For the tenth time since the group took shelter, Josh looked towards the mine entrance. He focused on that spot for a few seconds but then turned away and let out a depressing sigh. The sigh got the attention of Richter and Alice who were standing nearby.

"You okay son?" Richter asked.

"Yeah," Josh replied, "just feeling a bit restless."

"I don't blame you," said Alice, "I'm starting to get a little worried too. Sam has been gone awhile."

"I didn't say I was worried. Sam's fine and she'll come out of the mine as soon as she's found Mike. They've survived going up against Hannah before and they'll do it again. It's just the waiting that's bugging me."

Richter and Alice shared a concerned look. Josh sounded confident in what he was saying but there was still a slight hint of worry in his voice. They then looked at Blake and Tyler who were looking out towards the direction the rescuers were likely to come from. Blake could somehow sense they were looking in her direction and turned around. She shook her head to indicate that there wasn't any sign of the rescuers yet. However everyone in the group knew that it was only a matter of time before they did show up. Once they did, it would be difficult to get them to wait for Mike and Sam as the rescuers weren't aware they were on the mountain. In short, it would make the rescue efforts go more smoothly if Mike and Sam came out of the mine before the rescuers arrived.

"Company," Tyler said, "I think it's them."

While Richter remained with Josh, Alice joined Tyler and Blake and looked in the direction Tyler was pointing too. Sure enough, off in the distance, they could make out several figures slowly approaching their position. They could also hear voices but the distance made them unintelligible. It wasn't important to understand what was being said however as the purpose for the rescuers calling was so that the group could hear them coming and then respond to help reveal their location. Alice was about to call out to the rescuers but she was shushed by Blake.

"Let's wait until they get closer," she said, "they'll see this place and want to check it out regardless of if we call out to them or not. We need to give Michael and Sam a little more time."

Seconds turned into minutes and the rescuers continued to get closer. Josh's eyes were glued to the mine entrance but he couldn't see anything coming out of it. The rescuers were now close enough that their voices were understandable. One rescuer's voice was heard pointing out the processing facility to the others. The last bit of hope Josh had for Mike and Sam slowly began to fade. Dejected, Josh bowed his head. Richter gave Josh a comforting pat on the shoulder but stopped when something caught his eye. After doing a double take to make sure he wasn't seeing things, Richter's eyes widened in amazement when he realized what he was seeing.

"I'll be damned."

Richter's surprised reaction caused Josh to look back towards the mine entrance. His eyes widened and his sad frown turned into a big smile when he saw what had pleasantly surprised Richter. Stumbling out of the mine was Sam supporting a wounded Mike on her shoulder as well as what looked like a wolf trying to support Mike's other arm. Though initially concerned by the sight of the wolf, Josh could see that Sam and Mike were talking to the wolf in what looked like a friendly manner and decided the wolf was not a threat. With the wolf appearing to be a friend to Sam and Mike and no sign of anything else coming out of the mine, Josh could only conclude that….

"THEY MADE IT!" he shouted.

Josh's cheer caused the rest of the group to look toward the mine entrance. When they saw Mike and Sam approaching, they cheered as well while exchanging high fives and hugs. Their cheers had not gone unnoticed by the rescuers as one of them shouted to the others that they could hear survivors. When the group's cheering had subsided, it was at that point they noticed that Mike appeared to be hurt and was relying on Sam's support to move. Seeing Mike hurt snapped Richter into full paramedic mode.

"Alice," he said as he stood up, "I'm going to go see what's wrong with Michael. Keep an eye on Josh for me until I get back."

"Okay Richter," Alice replied.

"Tyler and I will let the rescuers know what's going on," said Blake.

With everyone assigned a job, the group split up to carry them out. During that time, Josh remained seated as he looked around at all that was happening. In one direction, the girl he loved and the guy who played a key role in saving his life had emerged from the mine alive and were about to be tended to by Richter. In the other direction, Tyler and Blake were meeting the people that were going to rescue them. After sharing a relieved smile with Alice, Josh let out a happy sigh when he realized that the hell that he had been through for three weeks was finally coming to an end.

Seated in a makeshift medical tent, Mike gently rubbed his bandaged ankle. It still hurt a little but it was no longer swelling thanks to Richter's fine work. The scratches he had received during his fight with Hannah had also been treated by the medics in the rescue party that found him and the others. They had done a good job as well but Mike wished that Richter would have taken care of the scratches instead. All during the treatment, the medics were bombarding Mike with questions about what he was doing on the mountain…and they weren't the only ones.

Upon finding Mike and the group, the rescuers went through several reactions. They were initially relieved to see that Richter, Blake, Alice and Tyler were alive. Their relief quickly turned to sadness when the fates of the other trapped search party members were revealed. The sight of Josh caused mixed feelings from the rescuers as many of them still believed that he was the one responsible for the deaths of Matt, Chris, Emily and Ashley three weeks ago. Some of the police officers who were among the rescuers even drew their guns and attempted to arrest him. They probably would have if the rest of the group hadn't stood in front of Josh and Blake hadn't repeatedly ordered them to stand down. The police eventually did drop their weapons but they were still confused as to why the group was protecting a supposed killer. To Mike's surprise, Blake took the lead in answering their questions. She explained that the group had encountered a pack of rabid wolves while they were trapped in the mine. She went on to say that the wolves were responsible for the deaths of the other search party members and were likely responsible for the deaths three weeks ago. Though the rescuers were initially skeptical about Blake's story, it was hard for them to argue about it when the rest of the group backed her up.

Even with everything that happened when the rescuers saw Josh, there was still some excitement when they realized Mike and Sam were among the group. Though Mike knew it was unlikely to happen, he had hoped that he and Sam could have accomplished their mission without anyone finding out they had returned to the mountain. The reason being because he knew that everyone was going to have questions for him and the last thing he wanted to do was answer questions. From the time the group was found to the time Mike arrived at the medical tent, he had lost count of how many times he had to answer the question of why he was on the mountain. Playing off of Blake's story about the wolves, he explained that he and Sam had heard about people getting trapped in the mine and, fearing they might be killed by the same wolves that killed his friends, chose to return to the mountain to rescue them. When asked why he and Sam snuck onto the mountain instead of directly offering to help, Mike said it was because they didn't want to risk their help being rejected for a stupid reason like their age or people thinking they couldn't handle coming back to the place where a lot of their friends died. Those answers seemed to satisfy everyone but Mike couldn't help but roll his eyes in frustration when people talked about how he and Sam were going to be viewed as heroes for killing the wolves and saving Josh and the trapped search party members. He didn't enjoy the fame he had gotten for surviving the events of three weeks ago and he didn't want to become famous for the rescue either. Sadly it was something Mike felt was going to be inevitable.

Mike's thoughts were interrupted when one of the medics who had taken care of his scratches entered the tent. After giving a quick exam to make sure his ankle and scratches were healing properly, he said that Mike was free to go home. Though happy to hear that, Mike was also confused. Word about the rescue was still spreading across the mountain and Mike thought it was only going to be a matter of time before reporters showed up and he would have to talk to them. The medic explained that Blake had been insisting to everyone that Mike be allowed to leave because she felt he had been through enough and he shouldn't be forced to stay and answer a bunch of questions. Mike couldn't help but smile. He knew that he was going to have to thank Blake before leaving. In fact he felt that it was probably a good idea for him to check on everyone else before leaving, especially Sam and Josh. After thanking the medic for his help, Mike got up from his seat and started heading out of the medical tent.

The first person from the group that Mike ran into was Tyler. In a way, Mike was glad that Tyler was the first one he ran into. Both he and Blake were going to be the toughest to talk to due to the loses they endured during their week trapped in the mine. Tyler seemed to have been getting better towards the end but Mike knew from his own experiences that the pain of loss doesn't go away completely. His hunch seemed to be right as Tyler was found sitting on an exam table looking solemnly at a photograph he held in his hand.

"Is that of you and your wife?" Mike asked while pointing to the picture.

Tyler looked up from the photo surprised by the new voice but smiled when he saw it was Mike, "you could say that."

Tyler turned the photo around so that Mike could see it. Mike's heart sank when he saw who the picture featured. Besides Tyler and Maureen, there was a boy and a girl who Mike guessed were about eight and five years old respectively. Even if there wasn't an obvious resemblance between them, Mike could tell that they were Tyler and Maureen's kids. Besides the fact the picture gave Mike the sad realization that Maureen's passing had also left two kids without their mother, it also raised a new question that confused him.

"I know what you're thinking," Tyler said, "you're wondering why I was willing to put myself in danger to avenge Mo's death even though it meant risking our children becoming orphans."

Mike nodded.

"Looking back, I realize that it was beyond stupid for me to do that but…have you ever had a moment where your brain was telling you the logical smart thing to do but you ended up doing the impulsive thing your heart was telling you to do?"

The moment Tyler described was one Mike was all too familiar with. Another event he relieved several times since escaping the mountain three weeks ago was when he and Chris took Josh to the shed after Josh was revealed to be the psycho. Josh had repeatedly tried to tell Mike that he wasn't the one that attacked Jessica. Unfortunately Mike wouldn't listen to him because he was still saddened by Jessica's supposed death and the sadness turned into blind rage which caused him to jump to the conclusion that Josh being the psycho meant he was the one who killed her. If Mike had only taken a few minutes to let his brain put the pieces together, he might have figured out that Josh was telling the truth. Instead he let his rage get the better of him and he locked Josh in the shed. Now that Mike thought about it, the deaths of his friends could have been the result of the butterfly effect from that event.

Mike's thoughts were interrupted by Tyler continuing to speak, "Following my heart would have gotten me killed if it wasn't for you Michael. You kept me alive long enough to realize how irrational I was. I can only hope now that you ensuring that the mons…that Hannah won't hurt anyone again and giving me the chance to help Josh will allow Mo to find peace. Thank you Michael."

Tyler then held out his hand. Mike smiled as he shook it and pulled Tyler in for a hug. When the hug broke, Mike gave Tyler some final words of comfort and wished him and his kids the best. Tyler thanked Mike before moving towards a medic that was calling for him. After Tyler and the medic were gone from Mike's view, he resumed his exiting of the medical tent.

Just before Mike reached the exit, he ran into Alice. He was initially hesitant about approaching her because she was in an argument with a man in a suit. Mike didn't recognize the man but he had a strong feeling that it was Alice's agent. His hunch was proven right when Alice began pointing towards the door like she was telling the man to leave. The man attempted to plead with Alice not to make him leave but Alice persisted in pointing towards the door. With his head bowed in defeat, the man left the tent leaving Alice alone and letting out a frustrated sigh. Her mood quickly improved when she saw Mike.

"Hey," she said, "I'm guessing that you saw all that."

"Well I was standing right here so how I could I not?" Mike said jokingly as he paraphrased what Alice said when she overheard him and Sam talking in the mine earlier.

Alice chuckled, "yeah, I guess so. Until just now, that was my agent. Despite what I said in the mine, I was not going to fire him when we got out of the mine. He had no way of knowing what was going to happen when he suggested I help with the search."

"So why did you fire him then?"

"Because he started suggesting that we could get a lot of publicity and money from this ordeal with interviews, a new song and possibly a movie deal. I pointed out to him that a lot of people had died here this week but he just said that he would make sure they would got a small mention. However the emphasis would be on my survival story. He even thought that it would be a good idea if we talked about how I was rescued by you, a survivor of the events three weeks ago. That was the last straw. Even if I wanted to tell the story of what happened here, I refuse to let the people that died here get swept under the rug. It's funny, I guess you kind of rubbed off on me."

"What do you mean?" Mike asked with a confused expression.

"Ordinarily I would have agreed with that suggestion because I would have only focused on how it would affect me. But after witnessing everything you've done for us in the mine, I realized I was wrong about how nobody could be completely selfless. After you saved me from Norton, I decided that I was going to make more of an effort to put others before myself. Whether you intended to do it or not, you helped change me for the better. Thanks Mike."

Mike smiled,"anytime Alice."

"Mike, forgive me if this might be a bit forward but…would it be okay if I kissed you?"

The question caused Mike's smile to vanish and his cheeks to turn red with embarrassment, "I…I'm sorry."

"Well you did save my life. In all the movies, the girl thanks their rescuer with a kiss."

Mike really wanted to say no to Alice's request but he had a sneaking feeling that Alice wasn't the kind of girl who took no for an answer. It was a sticky situation. His heart ultimately belonged to Jessica and it was going to be hard enough for him to explain to her about the kiss he had with Sam. True he didn't have to tell her but he also knew that girl's had a way of finding those kinds of things out. So he felt it was going to be better for him to tell her sometime after he got home. Even if she forgave him for kissing Sam, he doubted she would be as forgiving if he kissed Alice. Thinking quickly, he came up with a solution that would allow him to accept Alice's request while still keeping him on Jessica's good side.

"I guess that's fine," he said, "but only on the cheek. I have a girlfriend remember?"

Alice chuckled but nodded to indicate that she would do as Mike asked. After giving him a short, gentle peck on the cheek, Alice said a final farewell to Mike before exiting the tent. Mike was about to follow her out when he noticed Richter talking with another medic. From what Mike could see, the medic was trying to give Richter an examination but Richter was insisting that he was fine. The sight made Mike chuckle. He had heard it said that doctors made lousy patients and it looked like the same was true for medics. When Richter noticed Mike watching, he gestured for Mike to come talk to him. As tempting as it was to keep watching Richter fight off the medic, Mike figured he owed it to Richter to help him after all the medical help he gave him. The medic gave up on conducting the examination when Mike approached and left the two alone.

"Thanks Michael," Richter said, "I don't know how many times I had to tell him that I didn't need an examination. Do I really look like someone who needs a physical?"

Mike shrugged, "I can't say. I mean you look fine but you did take a couple of nasty blows to the head in the mine. It might be a good idea to let a medic see if you have a concussion or not."

"I am a medic and I say I'm fine."

"Come on Richter. Do it for me."

Richter saw the pleading in Mike's face and sighed, "I guess it would be kind of dumb for you to have gone through the trouble of getting me out of the mine only for me to die from a concussion. Alright Michael. I'll do it. I heard from Detective Blake that you're sneaking out of here before the press arrive. You don't want to get your fifteen minutes of fame and hero status?"

Mike bowed his head somberly, "I'm no hero Richter. I've told you and the others about the things I've done and why I cam here to help you guys. There's nothing heroic in any of those things. Anyway, I've done what I came to do. I don't need any recognition for it."

Richter smiled as he put a comforting arm on Mike's shoulder, "I can understand not wanting the publicity. But if you want my opinion Michael, you are a hero. You knew how dangerous this mountain was but you came to help us anyway. Regardless of why you did it, it was still a brave and heroic thing you did coming up here to help us. That's the main thing that counts to everyone when they consider you a hero."

Richter's words made Mike smile, "I guess you're right. Thanks Richter."

"Anytime son. Well you better get going if you want to catch your friends."

The last statement confused Mike, "what do you mean?"

"Sam and Josh are about to be medevaced off the mountain. They're both fine, which is a miracle in Josh's case. However Josh still needs to get to a hospital for proper treatment. As for Sam, she refuses to leave his side and insisted on riding with him. Detective Blake is outside waiting to take you to them. Take care of yourself Michael."

"You too Richter," Mike said as he shook Richter's hand.

After exchanging one final farewell, Richter reluctantly left to look for the medic who was examining him earlier. Convinced Richter was in good hands, Mike exited the tent and closed up his jacket to prepare himself for the cold that awaited him outside. If Mike thought there was a lot of activity inside the tent, it was nothing compared to the activity outside. He quickly pulled his jacket up over his face to avoid attracting any attention to himself. Fortunately he didn't have to walk far before he noticed Blake waving him over.

As Mike approached Blake, he carefully tried to get a read on her mental state. When he first saw her after he and Sam exited the mine, Blake appeared to be all business when dealing with the rescue workers that found them. But Mike remembered what Sam had told him about Blake's initial reaction after he had lured Hannah away. Sure enough, when Mike got closer to Blake, he could see some redness in her eyes likely caused by recent crying. Before Mike could ask how she was doing, Blake had turned around to start leading him to where Sam and Josh were located.

"The helicopter will be here any minute," she said without making eye contact with Mike, "I figured you might want to say goodbye to Sam and Josh before they go."

"Detective…?" Mike started to say.

"Josh needs to get to hospital soon but the pilots will give you as much time as you need to talk to them."

"Detective…?"

"Once you're done, you can sneak down to where your car is parked and…."

"Detective!"

Mike's louder call had finally gotten Blake to stop and face him. The minute she stopped talking, Mike noticed some tears beginning to appear. He figured Blake's constant talking was her attempt to keep herself together. Mike quickly continued speaking in hopes that what he said might help Blake keep from completely breaking down.

"I'm sorry Detective. It's just that I wanted to say that I'm really sorry about what happened to Detective Powell. He and I may not have gotten along well in the beginning but I really wanted to save him along with everyone else. I was ready and willing to take his blowtorch so that he didn't have to be the one who risked his life to save Sam. But…I guess the police officer in him wouldn't let him ignore someone in need…even someone he didn't like. For what it's worth, I will always consider Detective Powell a hero when I think about what he did so that Sam and I could save you and the others."

It had been a long shot, but to Mike's surprise, his words worked. They had managed to keep Blake from losing it. Instead of waterfalls coming out of her eyes, there were only small, happy tears. As the smile on her face grew, she surprised Mike again by pulling him in for a hug.

"Thank you Michael," she said, "I needed to hear that."

"Anytime Detective," Mike replied while patting Blake on the back.

Blake continued speaking after the hug broke and she wiped some of the tears from her eyes, "you know, contrary to what you might have been thinking, Powell was actually the senior officer between the two of us."

"Really?" Mike asked. "I got the impression that you were in charge because everyone always seemed to look to you for direction."

"You saw how explosive Powell's temper could get. It wasn't his intention but that temper made him unapproachable. Since I was the only one who could calm him down, the others preferred me being in charge. For the most part, Powell was okay with that. Ever since I became his partner as a rookie detective, he taught me everything I know about being a good detective and a good cop in general so he had no reason to doubt my judgement."

"Forgive me Detective but, from what I saw, it seemed like there wasn't a decision of yours that he didn't doubt. Now they were decisions that revolved around Sam and me so I understand his reasons for doubting them. I'm just saying that…"

"I know what you're saying Michael. Ordinarily David wouldn't have argued with my decision to help you find Josh…but…anybody would put the safety of their loved ones first when they're in danger."

Blake's statement initially confused Mike before he realized that she had referred to Powell by his first name. On the surface that may not have seemed like much. If Blake and Powell were friends outside of work, then it would be natural for them to refer to each other by their first names. But Mike was getting the feeling that it might have been more than that. Then he noticed that Blake had put her hand on her abdomen. Suddenly the pieces came together in Mike's head and his eyes widened. Then, like when he learned about Tyler's family, his heart sank. He now understood the real reason Powell's death had strongly affected Blake.

"Detective…," he stammered, "I…I'm sorry. I didn't know."

"It's okay. Not many people do. The department tends to frown upon it's officers fraternizing with each other so David and I had to keep it a secret. Shortly after we interviewed you and Sam at the station, we found out that we were going to have a baby. We knew it was only a matter of time before the department learned about what we were doing and split us up so we decided that looking for Josh would be our last case together. I never would have guessed that it would be our last case in more ways than one (sniffle) Though I certainly almost made it that way myself when I thought he was going to become a monster and I almost shot him. Believe me Michael, it was only because of our baby that I was so hesitant about pulling the trigger. But I loved him too much to let him possibly turn into a monster. Thankfully you stopped me from making a terrible mistake and now I can tell our baby that its father died a hero. Thank you Michael, for everything."

Mike smiled, "you're welcome and congratulations. I know you will be a great mother and that you will ensure the baby will know how great their father was."

A new happy tear appeared in Blake's eye as she nodded to show her appreciation for Mike's comment. After quickly wiping the tears from her eyes, Blake continued to lead Mike to the medevac landing zone. Josh was at the landing zone with a couple of medics when Mike and Blake arrived. Not surprisingly, Sam was with him too. What was a surprise however was that Wolfie was with them too. Though Mike was able to convince everyone that he was not dangerous, Wolfie was not allowed to enter the medical tent. As a result, Mike hadn't seen Wolfie since he went inside the tent. Wolfie noticed Mike approaching and ran to greet him. Fortunately Mike noticed Wolfie coming otherwise he might have been tackled when Wolfie reached him. Instead Mike dropped down to Wolfie's level and greeted him by scratching him behind the ears. Wolfie returned the greeting by licking Mike's face.

"Hey boy," said Mike, "it's good to see you too. Now come on, let's go see Sam and Josh."

Wolfie barked happily at Mike's suggestion and took off back towards Sam and Josh. As Mike got closer, he noticed something peculiar. Even with the excitement of Wolfie running back and forth between them, Sam and Josh didn't seem to be looking in his direction. He called out to them to see if that would get their attention. A second attempt to call them was met with the same result. Before he could make a third attempt, he had gotten close enough to see what was going on. He smiled as his face turned slightly red when he saw what he had almost interrupted. Sam and Josh were in the middle of sharing a passionate kiss. It may have been rude to stare but Mike couldn't help looking at them and feeling happy for them. After everything the pair had been through, it was nice to see them enjoying a moment of happiness. Sadly, as much as Mike didn't want to interrupt them, he really wanted to talk to Sam and Josh before the helicopter arrived. He cleared his throat and this time Sam and Josh heard him and stopped kissing.

"Hey Mike," Sam said while pretending to sound annoyed by Mike's interruption, "I thought you would have been swarmed by the press by now."

Mike chuckled as he gestured to Blake, "well Detective Blake had a hand in that."

"Yeah," said Blake, "I had a strong feeling that Michael didn't want to stay on this mountain longer than he had to and answer a bunch of stupid questions. I only wish I could have kept them from learning about Michael in the first place. Unfortunately too many of the people who rescued us let the word out that he was on the mountain and that he came here to rescue us from the "wolves" that were attacking us. Sooner or later, everyone's going to want to talk to 'The Hero of Blackwood Mountain.'"

Blake's news made Mike let out a depressing sigh. The last three weeks had been rough on him as he had to deal with people wanting to talk to him about his last time on the mountain. It was even harder for Jessica since she was the one who received the most scars and all people wanted to know was how she got them. Mike more than once had to ward off some persistent reporters and other random people who approached them to ask about the mountain. It was only because of Mike's support that Jessica had made the progress she did in recovering emotionally as well as physically. Now it was looking like it was going to happen all over again. But then the words he heard from Richter came back to him. The more he thought about it, the more Mike decided that at least this time there was a valid reason for why people would want to talk to him. Unlike last time where he was just one of the lucky few who had survived, this time he actually helped other people survive too. As long as Mike remembered that, he figured that he could handle whatever attention his actions brought him.

"Well," he said with a smile, "they are going to have to wait a little longer. Right now, looking at these two love birds is making me want to go home and give my girl a kiss and hold her in my arms again."

"What's the matter Mike?" Josh asked in a humorous tone, "you didn't get enough action when you were kissing my girl down in the mine?"

(SMACK)

Josh's joke resulted in him getting smacked in the back of the head by Sam.

"Ow," he said as he rubbed his head, "go easy on me Sam. You heard the doctor. I'm very fragile right now."

Sam laughed, "that is not what he said and you know it. If I'm going to be your girl now, let's get one thing clear. We don't talk about my kiss with Mike EVER again."

"Okay," Josh groaned, "I promise."

"I have to say Josh," Mike said with a chuckle, "you're still a little crazy. Good thing Sam's back to her normal self. She might be able to help bring you around too."

"Are you sure Mike?" Sam asked as a familiar, creepy smile appeared on her face. "Am I acting like my old self right now?"

Mike's smile vanished. In its place was an expression of confusion and nervousness. He had thought that he would never see that smile again. It was now looking like Sam hadn't fully returned to normal like he had thought. Suddenly Sam, Josh and Blake burst out in laughter. Realizing that he had fallen for a cruel joke, Mike groaned and rolled his eyes.

"You two deserve each other," he said to Josh and Sam in an attempt at a comeback.

"Don't we know it," Sam said as she leaned in to give Josh another kiss.

The kiss broke shortly afterward and Josh shifted to a more serious tone, "look Mike, I want you to know that I forgive you for what happened three weeks ago. If the roles had been reversed, I probably would have done the same thing. The important thing is that you risked your life to come back and rescue me. I'd say you've done more than enough to make up for what happened. Thanks to you, I'm still alive and I got the chance to tell Sam how I feel. So what do you say? Can we let bygones be bygones?"

Josh held out his hand which Mike promptly shook.

"You bet," said Mike, "I'll bet your anxious to get back home."

"Actually Mike," Josh replied, "I was thinking that once I've recovered, I'm going to tell my parents that I want to get our house up here rebuilt and come live on the mountain."

Mike's eyes widened in surprise, "what?! After everything you've been though up here. You want to come back and make this place your home?! Sam, tell him that's a crazy idea."

"I can't Mike," Sam replied, "because I'm planning on living here with him."

This time Mike's jaw dropped, "okay, after that trick you all played on me, I can't tell if you two are serious or not. Why in the world would both of you want to live on a mountain that has brought us nothing but pain and suffering the past year."

"Hear me out Mike," said Sam, "while you were being looked at, Josh and I were talking and we realized something. You and I might have killed the last of the wendigos up here but their spirits are still here waiting to possess anyone else who might resort to cannibalism on this mountain. With the flamethrower guy dead, there's no one here to keep that from happening. Josh and I have decided that we're going to live here and continue his work."

"You sure Sam?" Mike asked, "I mean, it's very noble of you two to want to help keep other people from becoming wendigos. But are you really willing to make this big of a change so suddenly?"

"Mike, my parents were about to send me to a mental institution before I agreed to come here with you. I'm pretty sure my decision to come here is going to make them think I need to go there more than they already did. Given the choice, I'll take a cursed mountain over a mental institution any day. As long as Josh and I are together, that's all I need up here."

"Plus they're going to have me to help them," said Blake, "I didn't listen to you before Michael when you told me about what was up here. Now that I've seen it for myself, I will do everything in my power to ensure that no one except for Josh and Sam are allowed on this mountain again."

It may have sounded like a crazy idea initially but as Mike looked at the confident expressions on Josh, Sam and Blake's faces, the idea started to seem plausible. He had told Sam when they first entered the sanatorium that he wanted to ensure that no one ever became a victim of the wendigo curse again. The idea that the trio had proposed seemed like the best way to do it. Looking closer at Sam's expression, Mike realized there was another reason for why she was volunteering to stay. She had said that the source of her guilt was because she didn't do anything to help save their friends three weeks ago. Staying on the mountain would be her way of redeeming herself similar to how Mike found his redemption by saving Josh and the others.

(BARK)

Seeming to want to cast his opinion on the matter, Wolfie began barking in an excited manner. Mike couldn't help but smile as he patted Wolfie on the head. With four votes in favor of the idea, how could he say no. Sam and Josh had made their decision and as their friend, Mike needed to be there for them. Suddenly another thought popped into his head as he continued patting Wolfie's head. There was one final thing that needed to be settled before Josh and Sam were medevaced to the hospital. With the new development of Sam and Josh's decision to stay on the mountain, it gave Mike a new option for how to settle it.

"Sam, Josh, if you two are going to be staying up here, would you be willing to take care of Wolfie for me?"

"Why Mike?" Sam asked, "you don't want to take him with you?"

"Of course I want to take him with me. Unfortunately I have to be realistic. He's a wolf and this mountain is his natural habitat. He's not going to be happy living in an apartment in the city. However I'm sure he wouldn't mind having a friend to take care of him up here. You seemed to grow on him about as quickly as I did. What do you say Sam? Will you and Josh take care of him?"

Sam looked to Josh who gave his approval with a nod. She then smiled as she turned to Wolfie and called him over. Wolfie ran to her and Josh's waiting arms where they greeted him with hugs and kisses. Mike was having a difficult time holding back the tears as he looked at the three of them together. They looked like a family. Though in a way, that's what they were going to be now. Between the sight in front of him and the talks he had with the others, Mike could finally tell himself that he had done good coming back to the mountain.

The sound of a helicopter caught Mike's attention. He turned towards the source of the sound and saw the helicopter approaching. It was still a ways from their location but it wouldn't be long before it reached them. Mike was also able to make out a red cross on the side of the helicopter. The red cross confirmed that it was the medevac helicopter coming to take Josh to the hospital. With only a few minutes left before Josh and Sam would be airborne, Mike knew he was going to have to break up the happy moment happening in front of him so that he could say goodbyes.

"Looks like your ride is coming," he said, "I should probably get going too. I'm really happy for both of you and I hope you two will be happy and safe up here. I wish I could say Jess and I will come and visit…but…"

"It's okay Mike," Sam said, "we understand. We don't blame either you or Jessica for never wanting to come back to this mountain again. Fortunately I don't think Josh and I will need to be up here 24/7. We'll come down to visit you two as often as we can. You just promise that you'll let us know when wedding bells are about to ring for you and Jessica."

Mike chuckled, "as long as you promise to do the same if it happens for you two."

"Deal," replied Josh as he shook Mike's hand and pulled him in for a goodbye hug.

Mike broke his hug with Josh and turned to Sam, "Thank you Sam, for everything. I wouldn't have been able to pull this rescue off without your help and I likely wouldn't be alive right now if you hadn't saved my life again. If there's ever anything I can do for you in return…"

"Mike," Sam said as she held up her hand to silence Mike, "you're welcome but there's no need for that. We're already even because you saved my life too, albeit in a different way. I probably would be living the rest of my life alone as a cold, emotionless woman in a mental institution if you hadn't brought me here. Thanks to you, I'm beginning to feel like my old self again and I'm with Josh now. Thank you Mike, for everything."

"You're welcome Sam," Mike replied as he gave Sam a hug goodbye.

After one final exchange of good wishes, Mike left Sam and Josh to be picked up by the helicopter which at that point was on top of their location and beginning to touchdown. He stood with Blake outside the landing zone and watched as the medics loaded Josh into the helicopter. Sam and Wolfie climbed in after him. When the three of them were on board and the doors were closed, the helicopter took off. Mike could see Sam waving to him prompting him to smile and wave back. He remained where he was watching the helicopter until it was no longer in his sight.

"Well Detective," said Mike, "I'll be going now. You take care of yourself…and the baby. If you ever need any help, just give me a call. Jessica and I would be glad to help anyway we can."

"Thanks Michael," Blake replied as she shook Mike's hand, "I'll keep that in mind. You take care of yourself too. And please, call me Kate."

"Ok Kate and you can call me Mike. So long Kate.

"So long…Mike."

With the final goodbyes exchanged, Blake started walking back to the medical tent while Mike headed in the opposite direction. It meant he was going to be walking away from where his car was parked but he didn't want to risk running into the press by returning to the parking area via the medical tent. Fortunately, unlike when he and Sam first arrived on the mountain, he didn't have to worry about running into anyone. With the search for Josh officially over and the trapped search party members rescued, all the activity was at the medical tent. As long as Mike kept his distance from the tent, nobody would see him walking by on his way to the parking lot.

When Mike reached the parking lot, he was relieved to see that no one was around. Still he moved at a brisk pace to his car in case there was someone behind him on their way to the parking lot. It was only when he was inside his car that he was able to stop and take a breath. With each breath, he went from feeling anxious to relaxed and then finally a mixture of happiness and sadness. A lot had happened since he had returned to Blackwood Mountain and there hadn't been a lot of time for him to process all of it. Now that he was alone in the peace and quiet of his car, he had all the time he needed to do that. It was hard for him to believe but he had managed to survive what he considered to be a suicide mission. Of course he didn't complete it unscathed. Besides the physical injuries, the events of his mission had added new mental and emotional scars on top of the ones he got three weeks ago and was still recovering from. It was likely that all his scars were never going to go away completely but the final words he had with the others were helping to lessen the pain. He had done good by coming back to the mountain and that was the important thing.

Several chimes from his cell phone snapped Mike out of his thought. Initially confused by the multiple chimes, Mike realized that he was in one of the few spots on the mountain where cell phones could get reception, spotty though it may be. His phone was now able to pick up whatever messages he had received while he was on the mountain. There were five new text messages. According to the timestamps, they were all sent sometime after the group had been rescued. Of the five messages, two were from Mike's father while the other three were from Jessica. Mike didn't bother opening the messages from his father. The little bit of the messages Mike could see without opening them indicated that they were not happy ones. Mike remembered how Blake had mentioned that word was already getting out that he was on the mountain. His father had likely heard the news and realized the true reason he wanted to borrow the shotgun. Feeling that he at least needed to let his father know that he was okay, Mike quickly sent a text saying that he was fine and that he would explain the whole story when he got home. He then opened the messages from Jessica. As he read each one, it became apparent that she was getting more and more anxious as she sent them.

"THE NEWS IS REPORTING THAT PEOPLE HAVE BEEN RESCUED FROM THE MOUNTAIN. WAS THAT YOU? ARE YOU OKAY? TEXT ME WHEN YOU CAN."

"ONE OF THE SEARCH VOLUNTEERS MENTIONED YOUR NAME. THEY SAID YOU FOUND THE TRAPPED VOLUNTEERS IN THE MINE AND THAT YOU WERE THE ONE THAT HELPED THEM GET OUT. NOBODY HAS MENTIONED WHETHER YOU MADE IT OUT OR NOT. PLEASE TEXT ME TO LET ME KNOW YOU'RE ALRIGHT."

"MIKE! FORGET TEXTING! CALL ME PLEASE! I NEED TO HEAR YOUR VOICE! I'M NOT SEEING YOU ANYWHERE ON THE NEWS. THE REPORTERS ARE SAYING THAT THEY'VE TRIED TO REACH OUT TO YOU BUT NOBODY AT THE CAMP KNEW WHERE YOU WERE. SOME OF THE REPORTERS ARE EVEN THINKING THAT YOU MIGHT BE DEAD. PLEASE MIKE! LET ME KNOW YOU'RE OKAY!"

The minute Mike finished reading Jessica's last message, he started his car and pulled out of the parking area. If he was going to call Jessica, he needed to get to a spot with better cell service. It wasn't until he got close to the bottom of the mountain that he got a strong enough signal. He pulled over to the side and called Jessica's phone. The phone made only one dial tone before Jessica answered. Mike figured she must have been waiting by her phone for his call.

"Mike?" Jessica said in an anxious tone.

"Yeah Jess" Mike replied in a soothing voice to help calm Jessica down, "it's me. I'm okay."

Mike heard Jessica breathe a relived sigh, "thank God. I was so worried. I've been watching the news waiting for new information about you."

"I know. I'm sorry I took so long to respond to your messages but I only got them a few minutes ago and I needed to get to a place with better service so that I could call you. Jess, we did it. Sam and I found Josh. He was alive and Sam's accompanying him to the hospital now."

"That's wonderful Mike. The news said that you rescued four other people as well."

Mike sighed, "yeah but I couldn't save the other eleven search party members who were trapped. Six were dead before I arrived and five others died despite my best efforts to help them."

"I'm sorry Mike. I'm sure you did everything you could. You still saved Josh and four other people who might not have survived if you hadn't gone there. I know I wasn't thrilled about you going back to the mountain but it was good that you did. I'm proud of you Mike."

"Thanks Jess."

"What about Sam? You said she was going with Josh to the hospital. Is she doing better?"

"Yes but we'll talk about the details later. Right now, I just wanted to let you know that…(sigh)…it's over Jess. The nightmare is finally over. I'm on my way home now."

"That's great Mike. Hurry back. I'll be here waiting for you. I love you."

"I love you too."

When Mike ended his call with Jessica, he took a look at his rear view mirror. Blackwood Mountain was still in its view. He put the car in gear and continued driving. Occasionally he would glance in the mirror and see the mountain getting smaller as he drove further away. Several glances later, he observed the mountain vanishing from his view…never to be seen by him again.

THE END

A/N: Well there you have it folks. After a year and a half of work, we've reached the end of this nightmare. While not the longest story I've ever written, it was still a long and difficult process. Fortunately, I wouldn't trade the experience I've had writing this for anything in the world. I hope you all have enjoyed this story as much as I've enjoyed writing it and that this story has brought appropriate closure for Mike, Sam, Jessica and Josh. Now I may have been the one who came up with the idea for this story and wrote it down but this story would never have been completed without the support of each and everyone of you who have followed and/or favorited this story. Whether you've been a follower from the beginning or a new follower who joined us just before this chapter was posted, your support has really meant a lot to me. At this time, I would like to give thanks to a few select individuals.

First of all, I would like to give a shout out to Morgitz. The way her reviews were written makes me think she could be a professional book critic. It was those reviews who helped me get this story off to a good start. With each positive review she wrote, I was able to think to myself "hey I might actually be onto something with this story. I need to keep going." So, thank you Morgitz for your supportive reviews and helping to give this story the traction it needed to get rolling.

Secondly, I would like to thank Bookreader525. She was another frequent reviewer but she also gave support for this story through our PM chats that we've had. Since she was a fellow Until Dawn fanfiction writer, we were able to have a lot of fun chats discussing each other's stories and even bouncing some ideas off each other. Thank you Bookreader525 for being a supporter of this story and for being a great friend for me to talk to. For the rest of you, I know there were some of you who were saddened by my decision to have half of Until Dawn's cast be dead in this story. It means a lot that you were willing to keep following this story even if one of the dead characters was one of your favorites. If however any of you need a story that features Matt, Chris, Emily and Ashley surviving the events of the game, I highly recommend checking out Bookreader525's story "Until We Meet Again". There is something in that story for everyone no matter which of the games characters were their favorites.

Next, I would like to give thanks to strawberry-e. They only posted one review but the discussion I had with them about it helped give me an idea for this chapter that I never would have considered otherwise (shipping Detective Powell and Detective Blake). Thank you my friend for your contribution to this story.

Since I can't send a PM to guest reviewers, I need to once again use this opportunity to thank my new friend Sarah from Germany for your review of the previous chapter. I'm really glad that you have enjoyed this story and that it has helped to make your day brighter.

Finally, I would like to once again thank Bembiann from deviantart for allowing me to use her artwork as the cover image. If any of you would like to see the original artwork "Wolfie", head over to her deviantart page. While you're there, check out her other Until Dawn related artwork. They are amazing.

Well I think that's it. It has been a long journey but I appreciate your patience and support as this story was wrapping up. This will likely be the only Until Dawn story I write for this site. However, I feel that's for the best. With Mike and Jessica free to enjoy normal lives and Sam and Josh taking up the Stranger's role as guardians of Blackwood Mountain, I feel it's the best send off for these great characters. At least we now have the upcoming prequel game "The Inpatient" to look forward to. Thanks again to all of you who have followed this story. Take care everybody. theaterman007 out.