Long Road to Hope
Jasper's Story
by
NiceIceEdward
To Liz,
Who despite my busy schedule thought I needed more work to do, and who missed my Jasper
&
To Jackson,
Without whom Jasper would be an empty canvas with no depth, and my imagination would remain unaided and uninspired.
Chapter I
Last Stand in Galveston
It was quiet. Any human, who was unfortunate enough to walk the streets of Galveston on that particular night, wouldn't have any indication of the terror hiding in the shadows and on the rooftops above. The recruits were well spaced out all around the street of small homes. It was rural, suburban, modern for the time. They were waiting for a signal, waiting for a sign. The sign would be given to Jasper by Maria. This was her war, and he was her soldier of glory. He'd been fighting for her for many years. He'd enacted brutal murder on both sides of this war against his fellow recruits in her name, and by her desire.
Until recently, he'd never questioned her orders. He simply did as he was told with precision, as well as a hard won sense of youthful, if slightly arrogant pride.
Jasper remained hunched in the shadows behind a flat cart, and listened as two humans passed on their way from the local saloon and headed towards the homes at the far end of the street. His fingers gouged holes in the wood of the cart as he forced himself to resist his instinctive desire to hunt the owners of the delicious scents.
"...William Swan, are you telling me you'd trade the modern luxury of Galveston for some frozen wasteland just on a whispered promise of treasure?" The shorter, stouter man exclaimed to the taller lithe one, William apparently.
"Well, my brother Richard wrote to me last month and said he'd 'come across a stream of golden dreams in a valley of cold green reality, whereupon he'd found the means to rest his laurels and bask in the warmth, luck had chosen to shine upon him.' That sounds pretty promising to me, especially since Richard's never been particularly poetic before."
"Well Bill, I'm not sure it's what you should do, but I suppose if you're going to travel north, the upper territories are certainly the most untouched by man and beast alike. Peaceful...that's what I hear they are, peaceful."
The one called William spoke last, "That's what they say, Samuel. I guess I could use some peace."
Their voices and conversation faded as they rounded the corner of the building behind Jasper. He found himself distracted by the last words the human had spoken. His usual brute focus on the battle before him was slightly shifted by a sudden misguided thought. His head was filled with the words, and he found himself repeating them to himself without meaning to. I guess I could use some peace, too.
It was a ridiculous thought. Damn the human for distracting his thoughts. He strove to focus back onto the fight at hand. He directed his eyes momentarily at the threatening grey sky. The clouds blocked the starlight, and the moon was no more than an indistinct glow over his shoulder; unseen, unhelpful, but also unnecessary.
A breeze crawled across the empty street toward Jasper, he could feel the slight change in the air around him as it prepared to move with the oncoming breeze. The shifting air reached Jasper and it carried a quiet, but familiar, soft whistle. Jasper knew it to be a soft mewling growl Maria used, and recognized it as what it was meant to be, their signal.
Launching himself over the top of the cart, Jasper snarled threateningly. Though there was a beat of a moment between his ascension, and the rise of those he was about to battle, it seemed as though their bodies all launched into the air at the same moment. The sound was like artillery. All humans who lived in the nearby town huddled together, thinking fighting was happening again in Galveston. The memory of the battle was not yet distant enough for the people to keep fear out of their hearts at such a noise.
The hard, cold bodies of deranged looking vampires met in the middle of the street. The battling was fierce. Jasper's recruits, as he liked to think of them, fanned out encircling the battling vampires who had attacked from a more or less central location. Untrained, Jasper thought. In his previous life, he'd have disdained battle with any who were uneducated in battle. His leadership skills included the ability to show mercy for those lacking his own qualities.
He reached out and pulled the shoulder of the first of the enemy coven with his right hand, and with his left he reached forward and viciously parted the vampire's head from his body. He didn't do it maliciously, but with cold, calculated efficiency and speed.
He did not play games in battle, he'd long since learned that ending their existences quickly ended the attacks of conscience he experienced whenever he had to feel an enemies last emotions. He set out with a purpose, and he won by virtue of unwavering focus, and undeniable skill. In life, few had been able to challenge those skills. As an immortal, he was virtually unstoppable. He'd trained himself to use all of his abilities to assist him in the many battles fought for Maria. He was like one of the engines being used in more and more factories around the city. Created for a sole purpose, and honed to execute his task mechanically.
Twelve of his recruits fought roughly with their opposition. Loud, peace-wrenching screeches of limbs being torn apart sounded around him. Carelessly tossed limbs and digits flew awkwardly away from the battling group occasionally.
His recruits were beginning to make a single line, fighting as seemed to be natural for newborns, in a straightforward manner. Recognizing he couldn't have this, Jasper disposed of the vampire he fought with in a quick and brutal way. He began moving towards the recruits and their foes. He'd hardly progressed before he saw Peter, his second in so many ways, fly out from the darkened crevasse between two buildings. The group of astonished enemies stared. They were shocked at his sudden appearance, and few could snarl or growl as menacingly as Peter could. He was big, large in an imposing but not ordinarily intimidating way. Jasper spared only a fraction of a second from the fight to see Peter's appearance. He turned towards the battle again, and resumed his action. He was challenged by first one, then two opponents. He tore through each, and moved forward with grim determination. He succeeded in destroying the majority of the enemy coven. His recruits taking care of the rest.
It was not without difficulty, but the combination of Jasper's expertise, and his training was magical. It worked wonders, and Maria had recognized it about him the moment she'd come across him as a human, or so she'd told him on several occasions.
Finishing with a final, struggling vampire, he glanced over to see the outcome of Peter's efforts. The vampire ceased its struggle as Jasper rent its limbs from its body, and then ended the vampires cries by again tearing its head from the body. He turned and found Peter with another vampire, a woman, exchanging a look. On one side it was a look of gratitude, on the other, one of polite dismissal. Jasper recognized her as one of their recruits.
He was attempting to feel the general mood in the square when Maria called out to him. "You have done well, better that I could have ever hoped."
She stepped close enough to him to make him yearn in a physical way, to touch her. "I have gifts, as I always do, for those who do my bidding." she said as leaned in closer to him. "I will make sure your actions are compensated." she said as she stood close enough to him for her breath to brush across his throat as it passed. Seeming to realize the temptation she was encouraging, she took a step back.
We need to speak to one another, will you follow me, Jasper. Giving a signal as he turned to walk with Maria, Jasper made sure Peter cleared the battle ground, and moved the recruits back to the farm.
They walked, at human speed, in the general direction of the farm. Maria began speaking, "You've been fighting for me for a long time, Jasper, and your record is impressive." The look on her face was trying for compassion, but Jasper could see a hint of something like suspicion hiding behind her feigned expression. There was also fear coming off her. He had the impression she was losing trust in him. She was going to test him. What would she ask of him this time, he wondered.
"I have to ask you to extend yourself a little further, Jasper." She said in a supplicating tone.
"How so?" he replied.
"The newborns have fought well, but they've outlived their usefulness. They've all long since passed their year mark, I want you to destroy them."
Jasper's posture drooped slightly, but his head remained high. "Yes, Maria. Tomorrow Peter and I will...tell them we have a special training."
"Tonight." She said coldly, "I'd like you to manage it tonight."
He answered in the same tone, though for different reasons.
"Tonight, then."
The room was likely meant to be a holding area for livestock. Maria kept no livestock, unless you counted the humans locked in the storm cellar. Food of any kind was limited on the farm, it was only used to keep the humans alive, but only enough to keep them in a weak unwell state.
They used the same tactic with each newborn. Peter would call them in, they'd be required to assume a submissive, bent over posture to "begin training", and then Jasper would attack them mercilessly.
To all outward appearances, Jasper would seem to do this without consideration, or conscience. The truth was, it was beginning to wear on him. All of it. He was tired of corralled human's for food and free vampires for slaughter. He was disgusted with the emotional distress every victim was giving him these days. The monotonous litany in his own mind, I don't want to...I must do it...I don't want to...preyed on him. Yet for so many years now, he'd known no other life. His memories of his human life were shadowed, misted. This life had begun viscous and a volatile, and had remained so. There was no other way for him.
With Peter's help, Jasper had decimated three quarters of the recruits. They would all be replaced tomorrow, hand picked by Jasper and Maria, who knew what traits to look for. Clearing the room of the remains of the last devastated body, Jasper turned to Peter and asked him to bring in the next. Though he was in no way tired, he could go on in this brutal manner for years, emotionally he was on edge. He gave himself away slightly, as he ran his hand through his hair.
As the door opened and the next recruit entered, a distant thunder clap sounded. Jasper sensed the rain that approached across the surrounding plain. He could smell it with each breath, as well as tasting the indistinct flavor of the lightning.
She strolled in, Jasper's emotional exhaustion kept him from recognizing the affection she sent in Peter's direction. Instead, he misread it as gratitude again. He looked to Peter to indicate wordlessly that he should close the door. For the first time that evening, Peter was looking into the face of the recruit instead of looking over he or she's retreating back at Jasper. When Peter remembered himself and looked at Jasper, Jasper felt his apology and so missed any other feelings which might have been sensed by him on any other night. Jasper realized he could see a certain wild fear in his seconds' eyes.
"Peter?" He asked.
Peter turned back and looked at the female vampire, the door still held open in his forgotten left hand.
He alternated furtive glances back and forth between she and Jasper. Indecision was stark on his face, but Jasper both saw and felt when Peter resolved to act.
"Charlotte, no!" Peter called and held a hand out to her. Jasper suddenly felt the tender feeling Peter was giving off, and his chest swelled with his intake of breath.
"Peter? Peter, what are you doing?" The threat in Jasper's tone made Charlotte, who had stopped at Peter's call, step back towards him. Peter stepped forward to meet her, both arms now held out as though to catch something.
"I will assist this no longer, Jasper. I have done with it." Peter's imposing physique was tensed, ready for action should Jasper attack. Jasper crouched in response, a slight growl building in his throat.
"You cannot leave, where will you go? This is our place, Peter, here."
Peter looked at Charlotte and in the look which passed between them, Jasper recognized that Peter had resigned himself to any fate, so long as it included her.
"I will fight if you try to stop me, Jasper, but I wish it otherwise. I feel..." his words choked off.
Jasper stood tall. He never gave his permission, but he didn't stop them by word or action.
Charlotte walked the few steps to Peter, and they both disappeared out the door. Jasper walked to the open doorway and looked out, he gave a cursory glance to the confused recruits waiting in a line, all their eyes trained in the direction of Peter and Charlotte's flight. Jasper searched as far as he could see but saw no disturbance on the horizon to give them away.
Peter was gone, he'd outlasted so many groups. Grouping after grouping, Peter had retained his strength, proven himself a worthy soldier in these wars. Jasper stared out for a long time, he became aware slowly of the confusion of the recruits, the unspoken question. He dismissed them, "Go. Training is over for this evening."
He would rid Maria of their presence in the morning, so that he could balance the bad news with the good. Maria would not be pleased to hear of Peter's desertion, but Jasper discovered he couldn't find it in himself to consider it as the betrayal he knew she would.
For one slight and unprotected moment, Jasper envied Peter. Would he ever find someone who he'd be willing to throw all he'd ever known away for. Then Maria's face swam into his minds view, and he realized she was the only woman he gave all of himself for, and he could see no other future for himself. He sighed, and stepping outside, he ran. He ran to the mainland, and continued to distant hills. He sought refuge, but knew that for him, there was no escape from his feelings. Wherever he went, his dissatisfaction would continue to pray on him, and there would be no end to it. This was who he was, Maria's best prize, her favorite. Her fool.
Ever since the day following Peter's defection from Maria's newborns, tension had grown slowly and quietly between Maria and Jasper. It had been many years, and the toils of training and recruiting (which began the next day with the first fresh newborn in a year, being created by Maria herself.) had kept them occupied. Maria had found success with Jasper's powerful leadership and training skills, and she had more land and more feeding ground than any other coven in a 1500 mile radius. Still it was never enough, Maria wanted only more. She kept him on the mission of training, recruiting and destroying year in, year out. Jasper's patience, allegiance and honor were all wearing very thin. He'd discontinued accepting the "gifts" of humans which Maria brought to him soon after Peter had left. As time continued the more physical gifts she'd showered on him, in the first decades following his joining her, also ceased.
They still continued to have a strong, productive relationship, but Jasper's negativity had become so outwardly visible, even Maria recognized it. His dissatisfaction translated to dissension in her eyes. So she began to distrust him, keeping things to herself. It had eventually driven Nettie and Lucy away. Jasper was outside of that, because he had never been close with them. Maria had kept Jasper to herself. He'd easily felt the jealousy in their hearts, stemming he could only imagine from the closeness which developed between Maria and himself.
When Jasper had notified Maria about Nettie and Lucy, Maria's rage had been terrible. They had fled in fear. Jasper did not fear Maria as they did, but he did fear that her requirements were slowly eating away at whatever small shred of who he was that he'd manage to retain. He knew when her rage eventually directed itself towards him, she would be terrible. More demon than immortal. But he feared most that she would take the last pieces of his inner self away.
Jasper stood at the edge of a river. It was daytime and he was therefore free to do as he wished. Evening called him to battle, to duty, but day was his. He hid, in hills, canyons, places he knew it would be extraordinary for humans to see him. If they did however, the fools found themselves on their last journey. It gave him no pleasure to feed on them, though. He felt their fear, felt their amazement. The pain of it drove him further into unreachable places, so he could escape the necessity of killing. He hunted only when his thirst drove him to a point where he could not focus or concentrate. He found himself in high places, looking down on the valley below. He knew they waited, his lambs for slaughter. He sought to keep himself aloft.
It was because of these feelings of needing to escape that he stood, on a clifftop, beside the running water. The sound of the pebbles slowly chafing against each other and the bedrock beneath it a soothing constant. It did not provide him escape, only an easing to his concerns. He could focus on the sound, on the view of the greatly distant horizon, and allow himself to let the grimness slip to the back of his thoughts. Here he was alone, no human could reach this spot. When he heard the breaking branches and sounds of climbing from beyond the cliff behind him, Jasper dismissed it. It could only be an animal, and the hapless creature would flee in fear the moment it caught his scent.
Then, as the sounds told him whatever it was had reached the top, he caught the scent of other vampires. He turned, crouching in the same instant. There across from him were Peter and Charlotte. They stood still as only vampires can, their hands clasped together.
Jasper's shock left him unable to speak. He stopped breathing altogether without even being aware he'd done it.
"Hello Jasper." Fear seemed to bind Peter to his spot. His dark hair fluttered in the wind as Charlotte's long blonde billowed around her shoulders in the clifftop breeze.
The silence held as the three looked at each other.
Finally recovering himself, Jasper took a breath. He looked between them.
"You should not be here. Maria was very angry when you left. Her retribution would be horrible."
Surprisingly Charlotte, and not Peter, replied. Her voice was soft, and kind, which matched the sweetness of her features that not even her vampiric beauty could mask. "We knew the danger of returning here, Jasper. We braved it for you. Peter has never stopped holding you in high regard, and we both know the risk you took in not stopping us the night we left. We have discussed it these past several years repeatedly, and the only thing we could surmise is that you understood why we wanted to leave. Which led us to wonder if perhaps you might not wish to yourself. It is for that reason that we've returned. We're here to offer you an alternative to this life of battle, of war, which we believe has long since stopped being enough for you."
Jasper replied in the tone of someone who didn't believe a word he heard, "No matter where we went, Maria would eventually bring her war to us."
Peter answered this time, "No, Jasper. Charlotte and I have lived in the North for the past four years, we haven't done a days battle during all that time. In the North it is possible to live peacefully. There are no newborns, no covens, none of Maria's determination to dominate the landscape. There you can live on your own, move as you'd like and not be hindered by any requirements but those of your needs."
Jasper frowned, looking between Charlotte and Peter, behind her. He settled finally on Peter's face, and Peter responded.
"I know you're concerned. It will mean changes, and it will mean deserting Maria, but you've done all you can for her. How much longer will you allow her to make you her puppet of battle? She's pulled your strings long enough now, Jasper. Cut the ties, come with us. Charlotte and I are very happy. It was obvious to me before I left that you haven't been for a long time."
Jasper's indecision was plain on his face. Acceptance and denial flickered across his features. Finally, he sighed, "I'm not a deserter, Peter. You should know that." He stepped quickly past both Charlotte, then Peter and hopped over the cliff edge. As he landed on the ledge below, he heard Peter's voice from above him.
"So you're a soldier, to the core of all you hold dear?"
Jasper tilted his head far back so he could see up the cliff side into the face of the man challenging his opinion of himself.
"I have always known what I am, Peter. Yes, I am a soldier. I lived as one, died as one and have wreaked immortal hell on these lands as a vampire soldier. I am a soldier, and proud to be."
As he turned away to continue down the ledge, Peters voice rang out once more. "My human father was a politician. He was a Governor, and later a senator. Do you know what he said about soldiers?"
Jasper trained a look at Peter that said he couldn't care less what the good Senator had said. Peter was going to tell him regardless of whether Jasper wanted to know or not, though.
"He said, 'A soldier is two things throughout his career. One is a commodity, the other is dispensable.' So tell me, oh sage and wise immortal," Peter said in a taunting tone, "which are you?"
The two vampires glared at each other for a very long time. They took long enough that there was a marked movement in their shadows.
Finally, his annoyance was able to be felt by everyone around. He swallowed and his unfocused eyes cleared again.
"Where, precisely, will we go?"
Grinning in triumph, Peter threw a quick, smiling glance back at Charlotte, who stood behind him.
"New York. We'll go to New York, Jasper. You'll come with us? You'll allow yourself to be free to find your own peace?"
And smiling himself, Jasper replied with borrowed words, "Yes, Peter. I could use a little peace."
**A/N: If you enjoyed this, please review and let me know. Thank you, and happy writing & reading everyone.**