Back at it with another chapter! Hope you enjoy
...
As a perfect hunter, the melting pot of scents were easily discerned into twenty-seven fresh vampire scents, and a twenty-eighth was fading away, presumably from a nomad who left. It seemed that we were the last to join the group of witnesses, and in time, too. It was foresaw that we would confront the Voturi the day the snow stuck to the ground, which was only two weeks away according to Emmett Cullen, Carlisle's largest son.
There was a variety of new faces for Megara and I to learn. The Denali's were the sister coven to the Cullen's, consisting of Tanya, her sister Kate, and Eleazar and his mate Carmen. We learned that Irina, the third sister was the one who reported the 'crime' to the Volturi, which I found understandable once I understood the Denali sisters' history. Kate was close to one of the few nomads, an American soldier by the name of Garrett. Then the Irish coven led by Siobhan and her mate Liam, both of which trusted absolutely in their youngest member Maggie, who's hair was like living fire. She was gifted with the sense of lie detecting. The two youngest members of the Egyptian coven, led by Amun and his mate Kebi, Benjamin and Tia, who are mated, were rather close to most everyone gathered among us, save for the two Romanians, Vladimir and Stefan who keep to themselves, although they eyed us curiously when we were introduced.
Of course, Megara was fascinated by the coven most similar to us, the Amazons of South America, not to be confused with the Greacian Amazonians as I soon learned. Only two of the three members were present currently, seeing as Alice the soothsayer and her mate Jasper the empath had borrowed Kachiri for a mission down in South America. If I could guess, she probably was searching for older halflings to provide more concrete evidence. Senna had come with Zafrina, the leader who was gifted with a powerful mind illusion, which Megara soon took great joy in seeing the rain forest for the first time. She had always preferred to stay near the most advanced of civilization. I of course hung behind the four other nomads, Mary, Randall, and the mates Peter and Charlotte. I cared not for pleasantries, choosing only to stay within eye sight of my sister.
I also chose to stay as far away from the shapeshifter as possible. A rare species Jacob was apart of, one that was bred through witchcraft. In Asia, there were rumors of several ancient bloodlines that would sometimes produce an heir that could shift into an animal. It doesn't surprise me that the Native Americans would also be able to do this, but the quantity of shifters that one tribe has produced was impressive. Of course, wherever Jacob was, the halfling they call 'Nessie' was not far away, along with her parents. I did enjoy Carlisle and Esme's company, and took to wrestling with Emmett while his mate Rosalie would watch in amusement.
I also found it much easier to socialize once Bella and Edward took their daughter to their private cabin for her 'bedtime'. The mated parents were passive aggressively hostile towards my sister and I, although I do believe the husband has reigned in some control over the past few days after it was made clear we wanted nothing to do with his child.
However, the parents' hostility towards my sister and I seemed to go unwarranted with the child. four days after we had taken temporary residence among the witnesses, a rare occurrence of the child not being focused on, due to her mother's training, allowed the girl to approach Megara. I growled in warning when she was just mere inches from my sister, who watch the girl
without care. In an instant, all attention was upon us as the child brushed her hands timidly against Megara's round cheek.
"Renesmee!" Edward cried out to late as whatever horrid memories my sister chose ran through the babe's mind, tears and wails irrupted from the toddler as her father Scooped her into his arms. I hissed at the newborn mother who moved threateningly towards Megara, followed quickly by the shifter.
"Pity you failed to inform the halfling of my abilities. Truly horrifying images will now haunt her for the rest of her life." Megara sigh in mock sympathy. I moved flush against Megara, baring my teeth as the newborn continued forward. Emmett finally grabbed her, pulling the woman back.
"Bella, it's not their fault. Nessie's fine, she'll just have some nightmares is all." He murmured as he carted the furious mother into a different room.
"You did that on purpose." Eleazar said, not quite accusingly.
"What did she do?" Jacob asked, he had been about to leave, but was now ready to fight on his imprint's behalf once more.
"I have no idea what you are talking about." Megara cooed as innocent as a child caught stealing a cookie before dinner. "Neither do you."
"I advise you leave us alone. Next time you take your eyes off the child, we won't warn you." I said, sitting rigidly in my seat. Esme finally coaxed the wolf-boy to the backyard, while more vampires slipped in, eyeing us cautiously.
"I didn't realize you were gifted." Vladimir said. He was hoping to get information.
"That's why your empire burned to the ground." Megara replied as I began to braid her hair. That was the end of the conversation.
...
It's the night before the final battle, as Garrett has jokingly called it. Kallisto and I sit in the trees, watching the others down below as they sit by the fireside, exchanging war tales. Ever since the incident between the child and I, the others had become exceedingly wary around us. Eleazar and Edward have both remained silent about our abilities, although the curiosity burns brightly in everyone's eyes. The child stays far away from us, and no longer tries to catch our attention.
I am impressed by her gift. She has inverted her parent's powerful gifts, and then combined them. A rare talent, indeed.
I feel Kallisto's nails, she had retracted the feline claws after ripping through Esme's armrest, brush against my hand. I nodded and we both slipped stealthily to the ground, our black attire camoflauging us effectively. We listened to the Romanians speak about their rein, which was amusing.
"A true empire if I had ever seen one, was the Babylonians." I say as we entered the warm glow of the fire. Of course, we spent most of our time warring with the lycaons.
"Babylon?" Tanya says, brows raised. She had figured we were from Northern Europe.
"We were concubines in a brothel." Kallisto answered the silent question. "Our pale skin and light eyes were... Exotic."
"How were you changed?" Rosalie asked, her eyes somber.
"During the Lycaon infestation of what is considered Northern Asia, our kind was far and few between, so instead of sacrificing ourselves... The men began to breed the humans. The halflings were expendable, and effective soldiers." I explained. "Our sire hadn't meant to change us. We were gathered from the brothel to be apart of the motherhood."
"I bore a son for him." Kallisto said.
"I thought you had a daughter?" I frowned. "That night is still unclear."
"I gave birth to a daughter for the King." Kallisto assured me. I nodded.
"But, you're no older than-"
"I was fourteen we were turned. Approximately. Dates weren't well kept in those times." I cut off Esme, most everyone looked uneasy. The Irish girl, Maggie looked near tears.
"Why are you telling us now?" Benjamin finally asked, his arm was wrapped tightly around Tia.
"There is a very high chance you will all die tomorrow, so, in the end it will be like no one knew." I smiled innocently at them. "Besides, if we are to fight together there must be some semblance of trust." There was silence.
"I'm gonna go... Yeah." Jacob said as he stood and walked off.
"If you're in such a talkative mood, are you willing to digress your gifts?" Stefan asked, eyeing us. I thought for a moment.
"I guess it will do no harm." I sighed. "I have no name for my ability but, I've been told it is like a mirror."
"So you are... what, a mimic?" Kate said, crossing her arms.
"No, not exactly." Eleazar said. I nodded for him to continue. "Mirrotic mimicry is what it is called. Megara cannot mimic just any gift. They must first be used on her before she can reflect them. Although, with as much time she has had to work on her gift, she is extremely... Talented with it."
"Yes, It is how I knew Edward was a mind-reader, or that Renesmee's gift is imagery projection. It is also why the halfling avoids me." I grinned at the tent where the mother was with her daughter now. "I don't always have to reflect it back onto the source, either. I can choose whoever I want to be afflicted."
"It is a powerful, and useful gift."
"Yes, but the gift must always be refracted. So Bella must not use her shield on me, or no one will be shielded." I warned, knowing the newborn could hear me. "So yes, Eleazar, I did reflect the imagery onto the child. But, I also had to reflect it."
"I see." Eleazar said, understanding. More silence.
"Your sister is also talented, no?" Zafrina spoke up. I had come to enjoy the Amazons' presence.
"Yes." Kallisto nodded. "How would you describe it, Eleazar?"
"Animorphing." He said. "A gift even rarer than Benjamin's elemental manipulation."
"It is limited." Kallisto shrugged. "Only mammals, and only my phalanges and teeth can completely change. The rest of my bones stay the same. However, skin stretches." Kallisto says as she holds up her arm, allowing it to morph into a bat-like wing. Her skin stretching so thin I could count each individual capillary. I am the hunter." Kallisto explained, then let her arm change back."Makes a fight fun."
"So you can grow like hooves and stuff?" Emmett said, grinning. Kallisto shook her head.
"No, only dolphin-like tale, bat wings, lion claws and fangs. Horns and hooves require more bone mass that I do not have." Kallisto replied. "Although, horns would be fun."
"Hell yeah they would be." we all chuckled.
...
Please leave a comment in the reviews! Thank you! For anyone who might be confused about Kallisto's gift, particularly with how she forms a tail, just think of the Ariel Barbie doll, she comes with a tail, but you can slide it off to reveal her human legs. Except, Kal can't pull a fabric tale over her legs, what happens is her feet/phalanges elongate and the skin stretches between them to make her flippers, and the skin on her legs fuses together until her legs are no longer separate, but her bone structure doesn't change. So when she swims, she would be doing what is called the dolphin kick, which is just the butterfly stroke without the arms. She can't grow extremities such as hooves, horns, or change anything with her pre-existing bone structure (save for the small bones in her feet and hands), cartilage, or muscles. She experiences a lot of pain when she morphs, but after millenniums of changing she has become accustomed to it. I'm giving you this indepth explanation here because it would not be explained like this to the characters because they have seen it, or will see it. You all won't.
Thank you for reading! Have a great Fourth of July to all my Americans!
