Chapter 4

Zach stiffened as the smell of human blood, spoiled land, fire, and smoke consumed him. He hissed at the smell and stepped over body after body as screams and the clattering of guns resonated from miles away. He glanced over at Asa who wore a knowing smile as he surveyed the destruction around him. The sky was polluted with smoke. The ground was covered with dead bodies and blood. Billows of purple smoke filled the air as limbs from vampires were scattered among the dead. He looked up to see Asa heading toward the large, wooden, double doors leading to Volterra and ran to catch up with her.

"Where are we," he asked as they entered the city. It was desolate and eerie. No signs of life could be found and most of the buildings were up in flames.

"Welcome to a future without you. Not as cozy as you thought it would be, is it?" She snapped her fingers and they appeared outside of the Volturi's chambers. He stepped closer to her as they entered the dark, dank room and gasped when she nonchalantly stepped over Caius's beheaded body. Zach tried to use his power to stop Felix as the guard tossed Marcus's limbs into the fire, but Asa grabbed his hand and stopped him.

"You do not exist. There is no one to help him now," she informed as the pieces began to burn.

"This isn't right. None of this is right," he growled and she nodded as they walked down a flight of stairs.

"You wanted to see it. This is the path. All that is left is Aro," she informed as they entered the room where Aro sat on his throne, still as a statue. A faint smile was on his face as he closed his eyes.

"What is he doing?"

"He is basking in what he believes is greatness."

"This isn't greatness. This is annihilation!"

"Says the boy that wishes he was never created." She snapped her fingers again and a sob escaped his body as they appeared in front of the graves of his family members. Row by row, he saw their tombstones. His grandparents, his uncles and aunts, each had a grave. He crumbled in front of the tombstones with his parents' names on them and cried.

"Why are you showing me this," he shouted and she sighed.

"You wanted to see it and maybe you needed to. Without you, your family could not survive. You have no clue the balance, the paths, the connections you created, Zachary. They could kill the Volturi without you, but not all of the witnesses that Aro would be able to muster up, witnesses that would come after them to inherit the power the Volturi left behind. His army would be demolished in the battle like before, Jane, Alec, Demitri, all gone as well, but it wouldn't matter to him. Nothing mattered to him, but power." He glanced behind his parents' graves and saw that the Denalis were next.

"All of them," he whispered and she nodded.

"Don't you see? Aro was a special kind of evil. I have seen many types in my existence. Most fade or are eventually stopped. For the supernatural world, it was the Romanians. For the natural world, evil like Hitler reigned for only a while, before others stepped in, but Aro was different. He was subtle. He was wise, dangerously so, and he manipulated people better than anyone without such a power that I have ever seen. On this path, he would kill your family, including the Denalis, but he wouldn't stop there. Every witness that gathered to help that day in the clearing would be dead too. La Push and Forks would be wiped out, simply because he resented what was created there. Then, he would focus on the natural world. He would no longer be satisfied with simply ruling vampires.

"He would want humans to bow down to him too and praise him as a god. They would refuse and a war would break out. You have seen the carnage, but it is not just due to guns. The humans would turn to nuclear defenses that would kill many vampires as well. Caius would revel in it and never see his own demise coming." She snapped her fingers and he sighed in relief as they appeared in the Cullen House. Rosalie was holding the baby version of him closely in her arms and he smiled up at her, his deep dimples on full display.

"I needed to be created to help stop him. That is why you intervened, but what about the paths and destinies created before I was, before you changed things," he questioned and she smiled slyly at him.

"Does it matter," she teased and he huffed.

"You just showed me practically the end of the world and my family's tombstones. I think I can handle this."

"Fine, what do you want to know?"

"What about my family and Josh and Allie? They were created before me, so what had to change for them?"

"Your family would have a connection to the wolves no matter what. Seth would still be a son to your mother. However, Leah and Jacob would not be a part of their lives. Your mother and Leah would grow apart after Josh was born. Their bond would be severed amicably, but severed nonetheless. Before you came along, Leah wanted a normal life for her son and your mother respected that."

"But it wouldn't matter because Josh would become a wolf, right?"

"Joshua was not born into greatness. He did not inherit that until you came along."

"But Josh was always the son of an alpha and beta."

"True, but the gene would need to be triggered and how could that happen if Leah and Jacob refused to be around vampires or wolves? Seth's relationship with his sister would slowly wear away because of her lack of understanding about his need to be around your family, so he would stay away. Without the connection to your family or his uncle, Josh would have no reason to phase. The gene would stay dormant within him. Jacob and Leah would have never moved back to Washington and Josh would have had a happy, but ridiculously normal life with a wife and child," she explained as she snapped her fingers and showed Josh chasing his daughter around the house. Zach chuckled.

"He looks happy though."

"He is happy because he has no clue what he is missing out on."

"So if Josh's path was decided and then changed, so was Allie's?" Asa nodded and showed him an older version of Allie tending to a child in a hospital room.

"Without her mate calling her back to Washington, Allison would have stayed at Stanford and become a doctor. She would live in California for the rest of her life. Sam and Emily would eventually leave the reservation to join her there. The Quileutes would lose a great chief and alpha."

"But she seems happy and at least Allie is alive. I got her killed. How can I be the one for her if I did that?"

"You didn't."

"Look, I know Sam lunged, but…."

"No, I mean that path will never happen. I created it for you," she confessed and he stepped away as he glared at her.

"Wait, so I was never going to….."

"I created a path with certain circumstances, but you still made your choices based on your arrogance and impulsivity. Zachary, you have a great power, but I have watched what happens when great power is used irresponsibly. I needed you to see what could happen if you weren't careful. I set the path in motion, but the chain of events happened because of choices that were made. That path could happen if you are not careful. Many paths could, but I know that you were meant for more. Your love for her is meant for more."

"Maybe she deserves better than me," he grumbled, which made her laugh.

"Sometimes I forget how young you are. You still have so much to learn, but you are wise beyond your years. It is easy to forget you have only existed for sixteen of them. Think for a moment, Zachary. Would she be your mate if it were not right? Your path has crossed with other women. There was Sofi when you were curious. There was Tesla and you developed a crush. There have been many that could have been, but it is about more than just you. You were created to give this world more possibilities and Allie is no different. She is meant for greatness too."

"Meant for greatness, you keep talking about greatness, and what I am meant for, but all I have seen is destruction."

"That's because you haven't asked the right questions," she teased and he eyed her curiously as he thought for a moment. A dimpled grin appeared on his face and she smiled as well.

"No more paths that could have been or will never be. I want to see my future. Will you show me that," he questioned and she tapped her chin as she mulled it over.

"I cannot show you much."

"Oh come on, I want to see it," he whined.

"It is a lot to digest. It is better than you could ever imagine, but knowing would be a lot to handle. Knowing, but not trying to speed up the chain of events takes a great amount of patience and restraint. Look at your Aunt Alice, she meddles because she wants the best for everyone, but she also sees the future so soon that she does whatever she can to make it play out as soon as possible. I will not tempt you in such a way by showing you everything, but I will show you a glimpse." She waved her hand and images began to float around them. Some were from the past, like images of him cuddling with his mother as a child and riding Seth in wolf form. Some were from the present, like him going to school with Josh and meeting Allie. However, the ones that piqued his interest were the images from the future.

"When is that one from," he questioned as he pointed to an image of Allie laughing as they walked through the forest. His eyes widened as she suddenly blurred away at vampire speed and he gasped.

"She is going to be a vampire," he said in awe and Asa giggled at his reaction.

"Was there ever any doubt? Your destiny was created the moment I gave your mother a choice. I knew she would choose you and it would strengthen your family. What you do not realize is that it connected your family with the wolves forever. Not only is your brother a wolf and your best friend, but your mate is the daughter of one. When the time is right, you will turn her so that she can join you in eternity," she informed as an image of Allie smiling at him with golden brown eyes appeared.

"She is so beautiful," he whispered wistfully.

"You will need her and Josh to help guide you on this journey, Zachary. Your family will be your foundation, but I wanted to give you even more. That is what Aro never had, a true family to get him out of trouble and friends to help him cause it every once in a while," giggled Asa as an image of Zach, Allie, and Josh creating an avalanche in Alaska appeared.

"So they will be by my side forever then?"

"Yes, in your time of need and your time of triumph," informed Asa and his eyes widened as he saw a version of himself bowing before Marcus and Didyme. Allie was on his right and Josh was on his left as they smiled proudly at him.

"There will come a day when Marcus and Didyme will be ready to relinquish their power so that a new ruler can take over. They enjoy their reign, but one day will yearn for a less stressful life where they exist together in bliss like they always dreamed. When the time comes, a new reign over the supernatural world will be necessary, one that will not only unite vampires, but wolves." Marcus placed the crown on Zach's head and Zach grinned from ear to ear as Allie jumped happily into his arms and Josh high-fived him. Suddenly, the images disappeared and he started to pout.

"That's all I get to see? What about my family?"

"You have seen more than enough and do not worry about your family. They are all there. Some things must be left to the imagination until they come to fruition, but you see the greatness you are destined to become. You will still have obstacles and plenty of challenges ahead of you. The path you lived out tonight, the one where your mate was lost, it was not a path that was impossible. You still have a lot of growing up to do, but you are young and have plenty of time. I have faith that you will allow your destiny to come true and not veer off of your rightful path."

"I am destined to be a ruler someday, wow," he said in awe and she nodded with a smile.

"You know all that you need to know now. I did not simply bless your family with you, Zachary. I blessed the world. A great good needed to be done to balance out a great evil. It will not happen overnight. You will need to learn restraint and patience and you will be challenged, but you have your best friend and mate to guide you. They are still young as well and the three of you will face obstacles, but your family will be there for you. I watched Aro destroy the world and now I will watch you restore it."

"Thank you, so…..can I go back now," he asked hopefully and she laughed. She kissed his cheek and nodded.

"Sometimes I think I made you a bit too much like your father though," she teased. She rubbed her hands together and he smiled as white light glowed from them. Suddenly, they were back in the forest and he looked around in confusion.

"So which path am I on now," he questioned.

"The path you would have originally been on, the one where Allie's friend, Mia, never was able to smuggle the phone to her. This is the path where Sam intercepted the attempt and you never received the call."

"So, you changed that part of the path, but nothing else?"

"Nope, you still went to school today and did a quite somber presentation on Romeo and Juliet. You survived the rest of the day and came home to find your family obsessing over Alice's inability to see. Except for instead of getting a call from Allie, on this path, you just needed to get away for a bit to sulk. Josh will be on his way to cheer you up soon." Zach slowly nodded, but sighed.

"Is it bad that I still want to go? I know that I can't now obviously, but a part of me still wants to."

"She is your mate and she is in distress. It is in your instinct to want to protect her and be with her. It is wise to show restraint."

"But now what, nothing has really changed about how Sam feels and I can't just let him keep her locked up like this."

"I didn't just give you an amazing power, Zachary. I also blessed you with an amazing family. Use that head of yours. It will make you king someday," she advised. They could hear Josh jogging toward them and the boy gasped. Zach turned around to see Josh's eyes as big as saucers as he saw the strange woman standing beside his best friend.

"Dude, Z, watch out," exclaimed Josh as he jumped in the air to phase. Asa held her hand up and froze him in the air before he could phase. She waved her hand and Josh was gently placed back down onto the forest floor still in human form. He gawked at her and Zach gasped.

"Wait, that's why I can do that, isn't it? You gave me your power," said Zach and she winked at him.

"A fraction of it," she informed.

"Will I get more as I get older? I still remember what happened when I attacked Sam. My power pierced him through the heart. He was dead before he landed."

"Whoa, what," exclaimed Josh and Zach waved him off.

"Sam is fine. It happened, but not really. I will explain later," said Zach and Josh gawked at the two of them as they continued to speak.

"I feel like I have gotten stronger and now I can run faster, even faster than my Uncle Edward."

"Your power will develop just like all vampires with special abilities have powers that grow with them. Your Uncle Edward, Uncle Jasper, and Aunt Alice all have learned more about their gifts as they have gotten older." Zach gasped and pointed at her accusingly as realization dawned on him.

"You blocked Aunt Alice," he exclaimed and Josh looked back and forth between them in utter confusion.

"What? How? Who are you? How did you? Why can't I phase," rambled Josh and Asa laughed at the two of them.

"Joshua, I am Asa. Zachary, yes, I did block your Aunt Alice because I needed you to make decisions based on your choices, not based on what your Aunt Alice told you. She has a powerful gift, but also a meddlesome one. I blocked her this time for the same reason I did when I visited your mother before. I needed for you to be able to make your own choices and your own mistakes. It was the only way you could learn from them. The moment you decided to move to Forks, if I would not have blocked Alice's access to certain paths, she would have known Allie was your mate. When your path crossed with Allie's, I had to completely block her visions to make sure you made your choices without external forces guiding you."

"And you needed me to see that path, so that I wouldn't go down it," asked Zach.

"No, I needed you to understand that just because you cannot die…."

"Doesn't mean I am not invincible, my choices have consequences that affect more than just me. I get that now," he agreed.

"You are a quick learner, the greats usually are. Now how about we go put your poor Aunt Alice out of her misery," suggested Asa and he happily nodded. They walked past Josh, who was still looking at them in astonishment.

"Why do I feel like I have missed a lot? Hey, Z, Asa lady, wait for me," called Josh as he jogged after them and Zach chuckled as he hugged his friend tightly. Josh winced.

"Dude, can't breathe," wheezed Josh and Zach's booming laugh echoed around the forest.

"I missed you, J," he laughed and Josh looked down at his watch.

"You missed me for the whole three minutes we were apart? Wow, maybe we are spending too much time together." Zach rolled his eyes.

"Face it, J. You are stuck with me forever," said Zach as they walked toward the house. As soon as they stepped onto the front lawn, Edward raced outside along with Alice.

"You blocked me," shrieked Alice as she glared at Asa and planted her hands on her hips.

"Yes, yes, I blocked you. I had no right….even though technically I do….but what I mean is, your power has been restored and I have no plans to block you ever again, Alice Cullen," assured Asa, but Alice scoffed.

"How dare you! Do you know what I have been going through for the past weeks? I…."

"Alice, I am sure Asa had her reasons," defended Edward as his eyes locked with Asa and she allowed him to read her thoughts. She winked at Edward.

"Yes, I did," she agreed, but Alice still stomped her foot.

"This is so not alright! You can't just go around blocking people and making them feel like they are crazy. Do you know what it feels like to feel crazy? It isn't fun, Asa! Never again, this can never happen again, so….."

"You have my word, Alice. If you are blocked or impeded in the future, it will not be because of me."

"Whoa, whoa, whoa, what do you mean blocked or impeded in the future? I know you know, Asa. Tell me, I demand to know! It is the least you can do after everything you have done to me," declared Alice and Asa giggled.

"I will bless you with one vision and we will call it even."

"Well it depends on what the….." Before Alice could protest much more, Asa showed her a vision that made her squeal in delight and clap happily. A bright smile graced Alice's lips and Edward grinned crookedly. Asa giggled as Alice jumped into her arms to hug her.

"All is forgiven," agreed Alice and Asa nodded.

"Good, now I will leave you Cullens to…."

"Whoa, whoa, whoa, not so fast, what were you doing with my son in the forest," questioned Rosalie as she marched over to Asa and Zach snickered.

"You're the ultimate future seer and you didn't see that one coming," he teased and Asa sighed.

"Your father's sense of humor as well," grumbled Asa and Zach chuckled. Rosalie eyed them carefully.

"Baby boy, you know who this is," she asked as Emmett joined them.

"Yes, mom, I know this is Asa and she created me."

"But why are you here now, is something wrong," asked Emmett. Edward averted his eyes and Zach glanced at Asa before shaking his head.

"No, dad, everything is okay now. I just needed to see some things."

"What types of things," asked Rosalie and Asa smiled kindly at her.

"After all these years, you are still suspicious of me," asked Asa and Rosalie huffed.

"Well in my experience, people do not do such amazing things without wanting something in return," argued Rosalie.

"Oh I want something in return. I want your son to live up to his greatness. By showing him a path he will not go down, I sealed his destiny on that path. Thank you for coming on the journey, Zachary. Cullens, Denalis, Blacks, fare thee well," said Asa before she disappeared into thin air and Edward smiled at Alice's thoughts.

"I can see! Oh, I can see it all! Okay, the wolves are still a problem and I have blind spots, but oh it is magnificent to be able to see," she sang as she skipped around the yard and Garrett nudged Benjamin.

"See, this is what I am talking about. This is why we need to always be around. Only they get visited by super supernatural beings," exclaimed Garrett and Keegan laughed at his outburst.

"Super supernatural, really Garrett," teased Keegan and Garrett nodded.

"Yea, we're supernatural, but she's on a super level above us. Super supernatural, what is so hard to understand," questioned Garrett. Rosalie cupped her son's face in her hands.

"Are you alright, baby boy," she questioned as she looked him over and he hugged her tightly.

"Yes, I am alright. I am glad to be back home."

"Where did you go," asked Emmett.

"It is a long story, but I needed to see everything. Grandpa, we need to talk about the wolves. I cannot allow Sam to keep Allie hostage. She is my mate and she needs me, but at the same time I respect the treaty and your opinion of it, so what should we do," asked Zach formally and Carlisle clapped his grandson on the back.

"I am impressed, Zach. Most mates would be angry and irrational right now, but you are handling yourself with great poise and patience. You are wise beyond your years," complimented Carlisle and Edward smiled knowingly at Zach as the boy laughed nervously.

"Yea, no need to be irrational and angry," said Zach and Esme eyed him curiously.

"Why do I feel like you are holding something back? Did something happen with Asa, sweetheart," asked Esme and Zach gulped as all eyes were on him.

"Where should I start?"

"The beginning," they all said in unison and he smiled sheepishly as he recounted the details of his journey to them.

Edward sat beside his mate in the family room as everyone gathered around Zach to hear about his journey with Asa. The mysterious woman allowed Edward into her mind before she disappeared and gave him access to their journey, which is how he knew that Zach was holding back. His main focus was not on the future that Asa showed him, but the paths of the present.

"I always knew crossing the treaty line would be dangerous, but I never knew how much," confessed Bella and Carlisle slowly nodded.

"It is easy to get wrapped up in our own abilities and what we can do as a family. We have faced many adversaries and survived, but our ties to the pack are deeper than that and so is our history. In times of tension like this, it is hard to show compassion when they are so angry, but it is necessary if we truly want peace," explained Carlisle. Jacob sighed.

"What worries me is that Sam knows what he is against and doesn't care. Based on what Zach tells us, Sam lost his temper and caused Allie's death, even if Zach did cross the treaty line," said Jacob and Leah nodded in agreement.

"I know we were temperamental when we were younger, but I thought he would have learned his lesson after what happened to Emily," said Leah.

"But you know that feeling big sis, it can be overwhelming and he is feeding off of Drew's rage too," added Seth and Zach nodded.

"Which is why I went in the first place, to protect Allie from that, and I still want to, grandpa, I need your help. We have to get her out of there," urged Zach. Esme kissed her grandson's cheek and turned to her mate.

"He is right. We cannot allow this to continue. It is not fair to Zach or Allie. Carlisle, if something happens to her because Sam loses his temper, how could we ever forgive ourselves," questioned Esme. Bella snuggled into Edward's side and winked at him as she spoke up.

"And if she is anything like me, she isn't just going to stay put. If she tries to escape, what will stop one of the wolves from hurting her when they try to bring her back, even if it is an accident," asked Bella. Carlisle glanced at Edward and Edward nodded at his father's thoughts.

"I think that would be best. You and Rose are thinking along the same lines," informed Edward and Rosalie looked over at her father.

"A peaceful meeting with members of the family that they are least threatened by at the moment," said Rosalie and Carlisle smiled at her.

"Which means you wouldn't take offense if I asked you to sit this one out," asked Carlisle and she laughed.

"If it means my son finally being happy, no….even if I do want to give Sam a piece of my mind. I think it should be you, Edward, Esme, and Bella," said Rosalie. Bella smiled at her sister.

"Maybe I can explain things from Allie's perspective," agreed Bella.

"Then we agree, the rest of you will stay here while we try to set up a meeting with Sam and the pack," announced Carlisle.

"What if they don't listen to reason and try to attack? The wolves are patrolling," warned Jasper.

"Edward will be able to alert us to danger and we will take to the trees. Don't worry, we are aware of the danger and will return soon," assured Carlisle as he exited the house with Esme, Edward, and Bella.

They could hear the wolves howling as they raced toward La Push. Bella smiled as she put down her shield so that her mate could read her thoughts and he chuckled.

"Yes, love, it seems our dramatic past with the wolves will finally come in handy," he agreed. They arrived at the treaty line and waited as they heard wolves galloping their way. A wolf let out a warning growl as it hovered in the brush and Edward whispered to Carlisle.

"Drew is warning us to leave or he will attack. He is willing to cross the treaty line to do so," warned Edward and Carlisle put his hands up in defense.

"Drew, we need to speak with Sam. We come in peace and simply want to talk," said Carlisle.

"Sam is in wolf form. He can hear you right now, but refuses to leave his post by his house. You can speak to him from here," added Edward.

"Sam, I am sure this all came to you as a surprise and you are upset, but can we please talk civilly," asked Carlisle and Edward read the beta's mind.

"Sam says it will not change anything," informed Edward and Bella stepped closer to the treaty line.

"Isn't that what everyone thought before? No one expected for me to be able to have a wolf as a friend and a vampire as a mate. No one thought vampires and wolves could coexist. Sam, we have been through a lot. Think about our history. Don't we deserve a chance to at least speak before it ends this way? I know deep down, past the anger, you don't want a war. You don't want to patrol. It is the very reason you took over the pack again," reasoned Bella and Edward grinned proudly at his mate as he read Drew's thoughts.

"Sam is willing to meet tomorrow night at eight as long as it is at Jacob and Leah's house. It isn't exactly neutral ground for him, but he refuses to meet in the forest or at our home," explained Edward and Carlisle bowed his head in appreciation.

"Thank you, Sam. I look forward to speaking with you in person tomorrow," said Carlisle and Esme sighed in relief as they headed back home. There was still much to discuss, but it was a start.