Behind Oro, the Arturrians rushed to the door. Without even pausing, Jacob managed to push his way to the front. He was shaking with his need to change forms.
Arturro was not alone on the driveway. Marcus had decided to come along and was slowly making his way up the driveway.
To the Third Generation vampires, Arturro and Marcus looked nothing like the Volturri who had set the standard for older vampires. Their faces showed no signs of age, not even a single wrinkle. Their eyes were blue and green- not a trace of red or orange. They could have been in their early twenties for how old they appeared. Arturro was blond and Marcus had his black hair pulled back into a low ponytail.
"Oro," Marcus said, his voice level, "come here." His voice was sleek and unaccented.
Oro was at his side in a flash. With Marcus as her maker, she could not deviate from any command he voiced.
"Why must you torment the fangless?" Marcus asked. "They already have nothing in their miserable lives as vampire impersonators and here you are, rubbing it in their faces."
Arturro didn't seem to hear as Marcus badmouthed his creations.
"Did you know the infamous Bella Cullen is here, Marcus?" Oro asked. She turned back to the house and raised her eyebrows. "But of course all of her slaves must stand before her because she cannot protect herself and that disgrace of a vampire child she managed to create."
Suddenly, a boy no longer stood on the porch- in his place was a wolf of extreme proportions. This wolf was snarling and spiting and making his way off the porch. The Arturrians made a move to stop him, but Jacob was too fast.
In one leap, Jacob was above Oro, but it was Arturro's hand that darted out and grabbed Jacob's throat in midair and managed to hold the wolf in place.
Arturro closed his eyes and spoke slowly. His voice was free of the Romanian accent that Oro's held.
"I know Oro explained that you are not a werewolf. This is true. If you were anything," his voice became a growl, which caused all his creations to involuntarily shudder, "anything like a real werewolf, you would be more of a match for me. Oro was also correct in her verdict that your decision to be loyal to the vampires you swore to control has deeply disappointed me."
He opened his eyes and focused them on the writhing beast he held aloft with one hand.
"In reality, a bite from a werewolf would cause immediate death to a vampire. Your bite would hardly break my skin, as if you'd ever get that far."
Beside him, Marcus shifted and crossed his arms.
"Stop playing with them, Arturro, and finish the job." Marcus rolled his eyes.
Seeming to only move an inch, Arturro threw Jacob back towards the house. This time, Bella ran out, carrying the child. She crooned to Jacob, and then focused a steely gaze on the three.
Movement from the sides of the house caught their attention. Many more of Jacob's kin were emerging from the forest; wolves of all sizes had received Jacob's call and had come to his aid.
Arturro barely gave them a glance before pulling out a cell phone. His fingers moved faster than even Oro could follow. Snapping the phone shut, he turned expectantly towards the shadows within the trees along the driveway behind him, Marcus and Oro.
Oro jumped back as seven men moved from the forest along the driveway and stood next to Arturro and Marcus.
"You must be kidding," she said, he voice a whisper, "How could you even begin to…?" Her voice trailed off.
Suddenly the wolves began making quiet whines and shifting uneasily.
Jacob looked at Edward, who then spoke quickly to his companions.
"He says those men smell like wolves and that we need to run."
There was a general consent from the coven as they all agreed it was the best for their survival.
Oro watched Bella struggle as she tried to comprehend that she was not the strongest species on earth anymore. It would be tough, she agreed, to suddenly have to accept that those whom you thought were indestructible were now as fragile as glass.
However, before any of the Arturrians could make a move, the seven men began to shift. Their legs and arms contorted and lengthened considerably, while their spines and skulls crackled. Hands became clawed paws and suddenly their faces became muzzles and fangs and red eyes. Fur rippled across their bodies and as the change came to a conclusion, they half-slouched, panting with the heat of the oncoming hunt.
"Incredible," Oro said quietly from behind Marcus. Even at her age, she was slightly fearful of fully formed werewolves and had a strong desire to rip them apart. But somehow Arturro had structured an agreement with them.
"You and your family have caused turmoil for vampires across the world, but it has appeared that you have upset the werewolves the most," Arturro called. "And you know how uncontrollable the anger of a wolf can become."
Now the seven werewolves were snapping their jaws with anticipation. Without any command, they moved towards the house.
If a human had been observing the following events, they would have not been able to identify who moved faster or what happened in any order. Once the weres had begun stalking forward, the shifters let out a collective howl and lunged forward to meet them. Oro and Arturro waited only one moment to follow, but the Arturrians all scattered. Three ran forward while the rest seemed to vanish into the woods. Emmet and Carlisle ran straight with the shifters, while Jasper moved to the side.
Oro came into contact with half a dozen furry hides but didn't bother with any wolf, whether it was a shifter or a were. She tried to focus on the trail of the other Arturrians but the woods reeked of their scent. She began aimlessly flying through the underbrush, listening for anything she could use.
Behind her, Marcus and Arturro were preoccupied with the increasing numbers of shifters. Two of the weres had turned to follow her into the woods and a trickle of fear ran down her spine as Oro felt them following her. She quickly dismissed her old fears and remembered they were on her side, at least for the time being.
She and the weres searched for half the night. They would chase one Arturrian, and then a pack of shifters would intercept them and force them back to defend themselves. A single, strangled scream, followed by a series of werewolf howls pierced the gloom as daylight slowly approached. Oro wondered which Arturrian had fallen.