A/N: I am writing multiple chapters at a time with this fanfic, so that I can figure out some plot issues (namely that there are holes with Meyer's continuity; for example, contact lenses dissolve in a few hours when in contact with vampire venom, but Bella can touch Edward for hours without getting the slightest chemical burn or skin irritation, despite how vampire venom is both found as a replacement for tears and required for movement, being found between all the cells).
"You sure you're going to be okay out there alone?"
"I'll be fine, Charlie. You need to do your rounds and, in case anything manages to get into the town, having someone here is a good idea, in case anything decides to make a meal of someone here." Parker cocked his pistol. "I've been split up from coworkers before when on missions. Don't worry about me."
Charlie frowned and opened up the door to his cruiser. "If you're not back by ten at night and you don't radio me, I'm assuming you either got lost or one of the things got to you."
"I understand. I'll see you tonight."
"Good bye." Charlie slid into his car and shut the door. Parker turned around and walked around the house as he heard the car start up and Charlie drive off. He kept walking, heading into the forest. The sky was still gray and cloudy, it looking a bit like it were going to rain. The wind whipped up for a moment, the branches of the surrounding trees swaying slightly in it. His feet crunched a few pine needles that had fallen.
He glanced around, following the slightly worn-away path in the underbrush. The most recent victim was found along the trail a few miles from here, so he had a little while before he'd be able to look around. A curious aspect was how all of the dead were found along this and another trail, one that was near the main highway.
Parker kept walking, keeping an eye out for anything unusual. A robin flitted by, it tweeting all the while. He watched it go, then continued up the path. On a nearby tree, there was a bit of something dripping down. He stopped to look at it carefully, it brown. It was probably sap of some kind. He continued on his way, listening and watching for anything that hinted at a BOW.
There were just two things that really bothered him about this whole mess. There was how there was a sort of hidden quality to all of the attacks. And the other thing was that, if it were Ooze creatures, why on earth were they up here instead of over by the ocean? Sure, it was rainy from what he'd heard, but he still found it strange that a terrorist would avoid using their BOWs in their most effective environment. Hell, now that he thought of it, it was even more bizarre that this wasn't happening in Seattle or somewhere with more of a population.
He shook his head. There were a few bird calls through the woods, a rustle or two aside from the crunch and rustle of his shoes along the faint path. A light sprinkle starting to fall from the gaps between the trees and to drip down the needles and branches. He turned his head to where it'd come from, aiming at it. A small deer leaped out and bounded across the path, bounding away and heading deeper into the forest.
Parker lowered his gun for a moment, then brought it back up. A deer wouldn't run so close to a human, unless there was something dangerous that it was more frightened of. He scowled and stared walking slowly toward where it'd come from. It was a bit off the path and he'd probably have to mark the trees, so he didn't end up lost in here.
"Dammit..." Parker resorted to pulling out the knife from his leg holster. In one hand was the gun, in the other the knife. He started walking slowly, careful to not step on any branches or pinecones, trying to keep as quiet as possible. On a tree he passed by, he stopped to slowly cut a slash into the bark at shoulder level. As he kept going, he still marked the trees, heading west (from what he could tell).
He blinked when he ended up in a field after a few more paces. It was a small pasture, free of trees, but it was filled with flowers of all sorts. He glanced around for any sign of any creatures. He noticed a bit of movement across the field, in the trees. He walked quickly and quietly, toward the movement.
As Parker had just gotten to a few meters from whatever was in the trees, he heard a very large snarl and felt a stabbing pain across his left side mixed with the force of something hitting him with quite a lot of power. He dropped his weapons as he flew back about a meter, hitting the ground with a loud whump and several ominous cracking noises. He clutched at his side, his back feeling as though someone was repeatedly stabbing all throughout it. His fingers felt strangely warm and wet.
Parker opened his eyes to see a large black bear looming over him, its' lips curled back into a snarl and its' teeth glinting. He saw movement to his side and glanced over. There were a pair of cubs, fuzzy and black. "Merda..." he said weakly.
He hissed in pain, closing his eyes. It was hard for him to breathe, a shooting pain along the left side of his chest as he did so. There was a strange sound, likes some sort of thumping, getting louder and louder. The sound of a yelp and a loud thump made him wonder what was going on, but he was too tired to do anything.
The feeling was strange, something (someone? he thought vaguely) extremely cold lifting him up. On top of all the pain, he wondered if this was what death was like. He'd been near death before, sure, but this seemed a bit different than last time. After that, he passed out, too weak from blood loss and pain.
Parker yelled. He couldn't help it. It felt as though someone had doused him in lighter fluid and set him on fire from both the inside and out. He clutched at the sheets (sheets?), barely hearing the rip over the haze of pain he was in and his own yells.
Waking up again to extreme pain was not what he'd expected.
Hell, waking up at all was a surprise.
Maybe he was dead and in Hell after all? Years of drinking and (depending on scripture interpretation) the whole "into men" thing probably put him over the edge.
It was as though every single cell in his whole body was being ripped apart and lit on fire. It was unbearable and he still yelled, his voice growing hoarse fast. Minutes seemed to drag on and on, seconds seeming like they'd barely budge along, almost grudging in passing by. He lost all sense of time at this point, but, despite that, the pain never dulled. His voice cracked, then quieted to a whisper, then nothing, him still shouting but no sound coming out.
Later (he couldn't tell one length from the next at this point, so there was only then and now), his mouth and throat seemed so dry. If only he could have a drink of water, even a sip. But he couldn't say a word. Hell, was there anyone around to hear him in his shrieking?
Eventually, though, it started to die away. He didn't have much hope it'd end, though. It was so long since he didn't feel that torturous pain that had been wracking his body, destroying him. Slowly, very slowly, he was able to think. Maybe this was ending? What was this, anyway? It died away, the pain, but it picked up speed and started to dissipate more and more quickly.
Parker shook his head once the pain was mostly gone and sat up. His throat still burned, dry as a desert. He blinked as he looked around. He was on a bed of some kind, it covered in white sheets with dry bloodstains about it and rips alongside. He blinked again. It was bizarre, like he could see the individual threads that went into making the cloth, along with the ripped parts of fabric having the frayed ends of the strings.
"Hello."
Parker jerked his head to look at who it was. There was an extremely pale, blond man sitting on a chair. He looked like a doctor of some sort, if his clothes were anything to go by, but he seemed much too young to be one. Maybe he was a medical student? Parker gave him a confused look. "Hello?" he said, his voice cracking from the dryness. He didn't want to talk, he just wanted a damn glass of water.
"My name is Carlisle."
"I'm Parker. Do you have w-water?" His voice cracked again. It hurt to speak and it hurt not to have something to deal with the pain.
"I am afraid not," Carlisle said. He stood up quickly and said, "Parker, I have saved your life. Come on..." He made a gesture for Parker to get up.
Parker gave him a pained look and did so, feeling a bit weary and still focused on the burning in his throat. It was nearly intolerable and the only thing he could focus on for an extended period of time. It as as though it wouldn't die away and he wouldn't get used to it, no matter how long it went on. He glanced around the room, vaguely taking in that there were books on the shelves and that there were a few very old paintings hung up.
All the while, Parker was completely baffled as to how he wasn't dead and how he was up and about. How long was he unconscious? What about investigation? What about Charlie and the BSAA?
Carlisle opened the door and walked out, Parker following after him. They headed down the stairs, into a very bright living room. There was a squeal of delight and Parker felt someone jump on his back.
Parker grabbed their arm and flipped them onto the ground in front of them, his teeth bared. He shook himself and looked confusedly at the young woman, a diminutive girl with dark brown hair who seemed cheery to beat the band. She bounced back up and chuckled. "Knew you were going to do that, but I kind of wanted to see what would happen, since I also saw you not doing it and ignoring me."
Parker rolled his eyes and frowned Were these people going to spend all their time trying to keep him from ever getting a damn glass of water?
"You seem grumpy," she said. "What, angry that bear ruined your clothes? I got just the thing for your first hunting trip. Be right back!" She skipped away, heading up the stairs.
Parker glared at Carlisle.
"My daughter, Alice. She's... quite fond of fashion trends."
"I'm confused, my throat hurts, and I want a damn glass of water, not playing dress-up with a med student's kid that's way too old to be his kid. Is it too much to ask for some water?"
"You need blood, not water."
Parker stared at Carlisle. "What?" His mind was in a haze. He must have not heard that right.
"You're a vampire, Parker. My family and I are vampires and I transformed you to save your life."
"So I'm a monster. Great, as if my day couldn't get any worse." Parker tried swallowing his saliva, but it did nothing to ease the pain in his throat. He threw his hands into the air and walked away, heading toward the front door.
Carlisle put a hand on his shoulder. "My family and I only drink animal blood, not human blood. You need to go hunting. There are plenty of deer around the area and I'll make sure you don't go killing a human... Of course, you'll have to avoid human society for a year, unless your gift allows you to avoid killing in your bloodlust..."
Parker shrugged off Carlisle's hand. He turned to look at the man. "Look, I'm finding it hard to believe I'm a vampire... I'm just damn thirsty, possibly have a throat infection, and think you're delusional. Seen a lot of things in my time and a vampire isn't one of them."
"And here's Alice..." Carlisle said, as Alice was carrying under one arm a mirror much too heavy for someone of her stature to lift. She also had a bundle of clothes in the crook of her other arm, a pair of shoes in her hand. She set the mirror down.
"Look," she said with a strange tone.
Parker blinked and looked in the mirror. The first thing he noticed was the bright red eyes he now had. He tried to poke one to check for a contact of some sort, only succeeding causing his eye to water. Then he noticed how, despite his tattered and bloody uniform, his injuries were completely gone. His skin was strange, paler than it should have been, but still darker than either Carlisle's or Alice's. The sunlight that was streaming through the windows had hit his hand, it sparkling.
His jaw dropped. "How? Why?" He rubbed at his hand furiously with the other, trying to rub off whatever they'd put on his skin. It didn't work, the skin still sparkling.
Alice handed Parker the bundle, him grabbing it. Alice still had a pair of shoes, shined and patent leather. "Change into this. You have to look your best for your first hunt, after all, and I won't take no for an answer." Parker glared at her. "You don't want your uniform covered in more blood, do you?"
"I don't care." He handed it back to her rather roughly, though she didn't budge at the force he used. "As far as I know, you two are completely insane."
Parker turned again to the door and opened it up. He blinked when the door ripped off its' hinges. "...Uh..." He was still confused about a lot of what had just happened and angry with how unhelpful, not to mention batshit insane, this guy and his supposed "daughter" were being.
"Newborn vampires... that is to say, newly turned vampires, often do not know their own strength," Carlisle said. "It's fine, just put the door down and we'll fix it up later."
"Don't talk to me like a child. I'm older than you," Parker said. It was getting to be irritating, that slightly patronizing tone that Carlisle had.
"You were turned when you were older physically, yes, but I've been alive since 1640."
Parker rolled his eyes and headed outside, dropping the door on the ground. There was a winding dirt road that disappeared into the trees. He kept walking, heading down the road. He tried swallowing his saliva again, it still doing nothing to the pain.
"You need to keep him away from the highway," Parker heard Alice say. "There's a couple that has had their car break down. I'm going to find Emmett and Jasper..."
"I'll need to talk to Esme about this, as she has been gone for the past few days and she'll want to know about a new person joining us."
"Okay, got it."
A/N:
"Merda" means "shit" in Italian.
Yep. He's a sparklepire now. The artwork was of Parker having sparkles around him, thus the comments a friend of mine made about it.
Also, I edited some aspects of Carlisle's characterization from the original draft of this, due to some information I found out from listening to a sporking of the official guidebook done by Das Mervin. I would just like to say thanks to her for that and to tell you guys that you should go read her fanfiction on this site if you like Supernatural and are anti-Twilight. (I highly recommend "Wedding Crashers" in particular.)
-The Sleep-Deprived Writer
