A/N:

Brace yourselves because this is a violent chapter! It's time for Emmett to meet his Destiny!

Title: Origins: Destiny in the Mountains

Author: MarieCarro

Beta: Alice's White Rabbit

Pre-reader: OnlyInValhalla

Genre: Family/Supernatural

Rating: NC-17

Summary: Emmett Brian McCarty never had much in life, but growing up poor didn't stop him from enjoying life and all its pleasures.

However, always seeking thrills most often means it will end badly, and one day, while hunting for game in the mountains, Emmett meets his destiny. Canon. ExR

Disclaimer: All publicly recognizable characters, settings, etc. are the property of their respective owners. The original characters and plot are the property of the author. The author is in no way associated with the owners, creators, or producers of any media franchise. No copyright infringement is intended.

CHAPTER 3

SATURDAY, APRIL 13th – WEDNESDAY, APRIL 17th 1935

I quietly trekked through the trees on foot and listened to any sounds that could indicate my feeling of not being alone wasn't false. There was a presence close by. It was impossible to determine if it was just another animal or if it was the beast.

As slow as I could possibly move, and with as little sound as I could muster, I raised my rifle and cocked the hammer while my finger hovered over the trigger. Then, I froze. I barely blinked as I waited.

My feet ached and my arms burned from their fixed position, yet I didn't move a muscle.

A sudden rustle caused me to turn to my left quickly and aim toward the fleeing animal. One shot, and the deer went down.

I sighed.

It wasn't the beast I'd thought, but at least, I'd have something more than just berries and herbs to give Mama when I got back home.

I heaved the dead deer over my shoulder, and the weight of it made me glad I had the horse. She snorted in displeasure under the extra weight but calmed quickly so I could sit up and start my journey back home.

It was a disappointment that I hadn't been able to track down the predator I was certain still roamed the mountains, but I had been away from home long enough. Mama and Bea needed help around our small farm, and since I hadn't been to my job for over a week, we'd lost that income as well.

There was no choice for me, really. It didn't matter that I yearned to stay until I could find the beast. My family needed me too much for any extended absence to be possible.I simply had to swallow my pride and get myself back to them.

I steered the horse down the slope of the hill where I'd thought the beast had its lair, and suddenly, she recoiled back and snorted in distress.

"Easy, girl," I said and tried to calm her by gently stroking her neck, but it didn't help. I could feel how tense she was underneath me. Still, I urged her forward because it was the only path we could take.

I took a look around to see if I could determine what had scared her, but there was nothing. She didn't appear to be completely certain either as her ears shifted back and forth, trying to listen and find where the threat she felt was.

"Come on now. Let's get outta here."

She took a tentative step forward and then another.

Nothing happened, and I was convinced she'd only heard another animal passing by, and it had taken her off , I made sure my rifle was in my reach.

As the two of us continued forward, though, I made the dumb mistake of losing my focus and not paying attention to my surroundings. There was no excuse for it at all because I was well rested, and despite my smaller portions of food, I wasn't particularly hungry.

An experienced huntsman like myself knew how deadly it could be to lose awareness.

The appearance of the huge black bear was sudden, and there was no time for me to react before my horse reared up in fright and threw me off. I landed on my back, and my breath was knocked out of me, and as I lay there and tried to pull air into my lungs, I saw my horse flee away with everything, including my only defense: my rifle.

My vision was blurry, and I wasn't certain where the bear was, but I knew he was close. I couldn't just stay on the ground and wait for him to attack again, so in an attempt to get away, while still gasping, I rolled over onto my stomach to crawl.

It was another dumb mistake on my part because that position meant my back was unprotected, and while I didn't see the bear descend on me and grab my leg with his mouth, I sure felt it, but my scream of pain was weak and pathetic.

My heart hammered hard in my chest, and both sweat and tears wet my cheeks. I grabbed the roots of a nearby tree and tried to pull myself free, but it did nothing as his claws mauled my shoulder and tore up my clothes.

I was helpless and defenseless. There was nothing I could do, and the only thing I could think of was how stupid I'd been when I convinced my family to allow me to stay behind on my own.

My entire body hurt and burned. When I finally regained my voice, my scream didn't do any good. A foolish notion of mine was that the sound would somehow scare the bear away, but on the contrary, it appeared to enrage him further, and his teeth and claws dug deeper into my flesh.

Blood soaked my clothes, but that didn't matter to me. If I bled out, it'd be merciful, but I doubted that was how it was going to end. Bears in general were violent in their attacks, but this one wasn't nearly done with me.

In fact, I could tell he was simply playing with me.

I reached out again and tried to find anything I could use to defend myself, but it was in vain. He used his paw and hit me hard over my side, and the force threw me against a tree trunk.

My entire body shook in terror and fatigue. Drool and blood dripped down my chin when a cough escaped me. I was quite certain several of my ribs were broken and maybe a lung was punctured because I couldn't breathe right.

He stepped on me, and I thought I was going to be crushed to death.

I didn't dare move, or barely breathe, as he snuffled my neck and my face. I hoped he would leave if I played dead, but I wasn't that lucky. Once again, I felt his teeth pierce through flesh, this time on my arm, and he pulled me violently with him. My arm would most likely be torn off cleanly, and I hoped it would mean I'd finally receive the mercy of death.

I was slipping away. I couldn't focus on anything. I was in such pain, almost on the verge of being numb. I felt nauseous and needed to throw up, but I couldn't.

However, I was coherent enough to feel surprised when the bear let go of my arm. I heard a ferocious growl, echoed by another one. If I'd had the energy, I would have cried because I was certain a second bear had joined my macabre execution, and I wasn't bleeding out fast enough to die before they tore me apart between them.

For a second, I felt nothing, and I saw nothing. I didn't even hear anything anymore, and I knew I was dead. A rush of sadness washed through me as I thought of my family, especially when I thought of Bea. They would never know what had happened to me. They would only be able to guess as to what could have caused my disappearance.

They'd understand I was dead, though. Nothing short of it could pull me away from them without a word.

Then I most definitely felt something—the rush of the wind on my face. The sensation confused me, especially when it was accompanied by the feeling of my stomach being left behind with a tickling thrill. It felt the way I'd always imagined birds did when they took flight.

Using whatever strength I had left, I forced my eyes open and was shocked to see I was in the arms of an angel. The sun brightened her gloriously haloed golden hair, and her white skin glimmered like a gemstone.

She was, without a doubt, the most beautiful creature I had ever laid my eyes on, and to be taken to heaven by her must mean I'd done something right in my life. Why would I otherwise be given such a privilege?

I was afraid to speak in case it would cause the angel to disappear, but when a jostling movement reminded me of my broken body, I let out an involuntary groan. The angel looked down at me, but instead of giving me a reassuring smile, her out-of-place black eyes appeared strained and worried.

Why was she worried? I was already dead, and I couldn't figure out what else could go wrong. Wasn't it my time to go? Was that it? Had I died before my time?

Destiny wasn't one of those things I'd given much thought to before, and while Mama was very religious, the rest of us had just accepted that our belief in God didn't make our situation better. What was happening right now, though, shook me up.

The apparition before me proved that Mama had been right all along, and I wished I could have thanked her for forcing us to read the bible every Sunday. Maybe that was what had been my salvation? Had that small effort on Mama's part been enough?

I didn't know how far away heaven was, but it was strange that my angel wasn't using her wings. I'm sure flying would go faster, although she was already moving at an incredible speed.

It must have been hours that passed, but I fought with every inch of me to keep my eyes open, and I refused to look at anything else but my angel. There were times when her white skin didn't glimmer, and her face became clearer to me. I couldn't find a single flaw. Not in her full lips or large eyes despite their ominous color.

Her hair looked like spun gold, and it flew out behind her in the most wondrous waves.

She didn't blink once. Her eyes remained open and held on to their worried glint. It especially flared up anew whenever it felt as if the lurking darkness was about to swallow me.

There was no way for me to determine how long she'd had me in her arms, but eventually, there was a change. She stopped moving and placed me on a soft surface, but the claw marks on my back and shoulders made it more uncomfortable than being in my angel's stone hard grip.

Another one, whom I could only assume was God himself, approached us and spoke softly to my angel. His expression was confused, and while I couldn't hear the words, the tone of his smooth voice indicated he was asking my angel why she had brought me to him.

She shook her head and appeared to beg him as she sat down next to me.

I was fascinated by the examination God appeared to give me, but then he said something that caused my angel distress, and she tragically hid her beautiful face in her delicate-looking hands.

My focus was blurry, and I didn't understand what was happening or why my angel appeared to be crying. That is until I felt a new pain so much worse than the injuries I'd been inflicted with by the bear, and I knew my angel had begged for my mercy.

God had made his decision, though. I wasn't welcome in heaven and had been thrown into hell to receive my judgment. Mama's persistence had not been my savior. I'd sinned too much in my life, and deep down, I'd already known that, and that was why I wasn't too surprised when hell's inferno burned through me.

I was beginning to feel panicked, though, because I understood this meant my angel would be taken from me. There was no way she'd be allowed to stay with me, and why would she want to? She was an angel. A pure and flawless creation from God. The epitome of goodness. Why would she want to remain in hell to be with a lowlife sinner such as myself?

But she did. She stayed. Not once did she move from my side, and every time the flames became too much for me to bear, she tried to soothe me with soft words and caresses to my face and down my arms. If I hadn't been consumed by hellfire, her touch would have given me goosebumps.

Occasionally, God came back, and each time, I felt fear. I didn't fear his wrath or his power. I feared he would take my angel away. I was certain he wasn't too fond of having her down here with me. Angels didn't belong underground.

I needed her, though. She was the only thing that kept me anchored; the only thing that made the consuming pain bearable, albeit just barely. If she left, I knew I was doomed.

To my never-ending surprise, he didn't force her to leave me. He didn't even attempt it.

The first time I heard the words they spoke to each other, I finally understood what the preachers in church had talked about when they spoke of a merciful God.

"How is he doing? Has he spoken yet?"

My angel shook her head. "It's difficult to say. His screams don't give much away. His wounds are all healed, though. Even the big one across his chest."

"Can't be too long now, but I can't be sure. Usually, the heart is much weaker at this stage."

"He's a fighter," my angel replied with a hint of pride in her tone, and it made me feel warm in a different kind of way. I liked that she was strangely proud of me, even though I had no idea what they were talking about.

Sometime later, there was another change. All the while the Devil tortured me with his flames, my heart had hammered hard in my chest. The connection between the heat inside me and my heart made no sense, but I didn't have a frame of reference to say that what the hellfire did to me was wrong.

The change had me believe that the endgame was to cause my heart to explode, and that would be the grand finale. Maybe my judgment had come to its end; it was time for me to embrace the eternal darkness or wherever doomed souls spent eternity.

It didn't explode. It curve-balled and went in the opposite direction and slowed down until it finally stopped.

I could hear the breathing of four separate beings but nothing else, and I waited a few seconds to see what would happen.

There was no more pain at all. The flames were gone, and my injuries couldn't be felt anymore. I was conscious, but my heart didn't beat. What did it mean?

My eyes had closed when I thought my heart would burst from my chest, and I didn't know if my angel was still next to me. I hoped she was and that she could give me some answers.

"Am I dead?" I asked out loud, not knowing if anyone would answer me. The breathing I heard could be another trick from the Devil.

"No, you're not," the most pleasant voice I'd ever heard said quietly, close to my ear. "Please, open your eyes."

And I did.

A/N:

Did I write the attack justice? Did you imagine it more gruesome? And what about his impression of Rosalie? And the change?

Emmett's human life is at an end, but his story has just begun!

As always,

Stay Awesome!