Chapter Ten – Regret
(TWILIGHT FANFIC. I OWN NONE OF THE CHARACTERS. )
It'd been two weeks since they'd left Forks. Since he'd had to abandon the only woman in the world he was sure he would ever truly love. The only thing that had felt real to him besides his family. But it was for them that he left. It was for them and himself that he had to leave. Because if they had been around when White and his crew of gangsters showed up, it would all be over for them. And he would never...ever let that happen.
He knew that White was ruthless, relentless, and would use any lead he had to get a trail. And leaving Bella behind made her the perfect target for that pursuit. He put her in danger, he knew, but there was nothing else he could do. He tried to break all ties, tried to make her hate him. If she hated him....she had a better chance with White.
He gritted his teeth, his thoughts taking him back to the horrible words that had come out of his mouth. The whole way to Louisiana he'd kicked himself, hated himself despite the reassurances from everyone else that he did what he had to. But he couldn't help feeling that he had betrayed Bella somehow.
They'd made it to Louisiana the day they left Forks, taking refuge others of their kind. Peter and Charlotte had always been welcoming whenever they were in trouble.
"It's been a long time." Peter said, welcoming them in the door. Carlisle thanked him as they walked into the main area of the underground bunker. They all sat in a circle, Peter and Charlotte sitting side by side.
"What happened, Carlisle?" Charlotte couldn't help but ask. Peter looked at her like he was going to say something, but refrained, looking back at Carlisle and waiting on his answer. Carlisle just put on a polite smile on.
"Well, We had the younger ones enroll in school so we wouldn't look as suspicious. Sometime during school, someone ran a girl off the road, and Edward saved her." Carlisle started, looking over to Edward, who was looking down.
Rosalie pursed her lips, unable to control her anger any longer. She'd held it in this whole time with Emmett's help, but she couldn't any longer. "He fell in love with her. With that pathetic human!" Rosalie exclaimed, looking at Edward as if he were a shame to the family. Emmett said nothing, just put his arm around Rosalie in an attempt to calm her before she went farther than she already had.
Edward gritted his teeth, looking up to glare at her. Peter and Charlotte exchanged glances but remained quiet. "She is NOT pathetic!" He bellowed, his whole body shaking with anger. Even Rosalie jumped.
"Edward...please." Esme pleaded, moving to sit next to him and put an arm around his shoulder. He nodded, breathing deep and letting it out in an effort to calm down. But Rosalie wasn't done yet.
"They taught us....they taught us not to form affections for anyone during a mission." Rosalie said, trying to keep her voice at a normal level. Edward looked up at her, bewildered.
"We aren't there anymore, Rosalie! What they taught us no longer matters. Manticore is DEAD. GONE. There are no more missions, there are no more orders. It doesn't matter anymore!" He half yelled, also trying to keep from exploding.
"You don't think I don't know that? Yes, Edward, Manticore is gone. We are never going back, but they are hunting us! Getting attached is making weaknesses when we shouldn't have any! Leaving Forks should have been easy, but you made it hard! YOU fell in love with her!" Rosalie screamed, standing up. Emmett tried to pull her back down, but she ignored him.
"YOU put us all in danger. YOU made us stay so you could say your little goodbyes when they could have showed up that very minute. Was she worth it to put us all in danger, Edward? Huh? Is she worth your life?!" she continued, unable to control her anger. The rest of the room had gone completely quiet, sensing that the two needed to get this out.
"YES! Bella means more to me than my own life, Rosalie. I would rather DIE than be here without her. But I am here for you guys. I only came because staying put YOU in danger." Edward growled, standing up to glare at her one last time before storming out. Rosalie didn't speak, she just sat down beside Emmett who hugged her. Alice got up to go after Edward, but Jasper held her back.
"He needs some time alone. He deserves that much at least..." Esme said quietly. Alice nodded and sat down, but looked at the door sadly. Edward found a back door and went out, walking around outside. He found a path, and took it. He had no idea where it led, but anywhere was better than in there with Rose.
It had been ten years since Manticore's demise, ten years since they escaped. He remembered with a clarity he wished he didn't. He'd heard the alarms, heard the confusion in his troops thoughts. The building was on fire, he gathered from the thoughts of a few superiors running through the hallway. He also knew that they had no intention of freeing anyone.
Manticore was a government funded secret facility in the center of a deep wood near Gillette, Wyoming. They started out by fussing the genetic sequence of humans to create a stronger, faster human. Then they trained them to be super soldiers. They taught them every style of fighting, how to use every gun. Anything and everything a stealth assassin would know how to do.
They grew up testing their limits. Able to hold their breath underwater up to nearly an hour. Able to punch through a concrete wall. Able to avoid speeding bullets. Able to run to fast that it would blur to normal human vision. They could be behind you and break your neck without even having to think about it. Trained to kill.
They even infused some with the DNA of animals to help reach their goals. Women were infused the feline DNA to make them more graceful. All of the soldiers DNA made them beautiful. Just as they were beautiful, they were dangerous. They trained mercilessly every day. Going through physical and mental training to keep them alert and focused. For years, this went on. He remembered his superior once ranting.
"Imagine...instead of sending in one hundred troops, and losing twenty, we can send in ten perfect soldiers and lose none..." he had said. Manticore was divided into many different departments. Edward remembered his years growing up in the Psy-Ops department. There, they worked to perfect his ability to read minds. In the Psy-Ops department was also where he met Alice and Jasper.
Jasper was being implanted with a device linked to his mind. It was able to control the emotions of those around him. Due to Edward's ability, he knew that Jasper didn't like having such a power, but refused to voice his opinions, afraid that they would send him to a different department, away from Alice.
Alice was there daily, and almost always in surgery. For some reason, they couldn't get her ability to see into the future perfect. She could only see the outcome of decisions once they were made. This made many of the superiors very angry. They didn't like weakness. Split-second decisions to change your mind were too much of a weakness.
Carlisle was the head of the clinic. He was one of the first perfected transgenics, skilled like no other in the department of medicine. He was always overseeing the surgeries, and had a firsthand account of every one of Alice's useless surgeries. He saw everything they did to her, and hated them. Nothing they did was any good, and they didn't understand that they should have been happy with what they had. Instead, they planned to end Alice and start over.
It was him that made the plans to get her out. A few years back an entire squad of transgenics made a successful escape, and they had been hunted ever since. Carlisle knew it was possible, and he had to get Alice out before she was killed. Just before his plans went into effect, a re-captured transgenic from the earlier escape got out again, taking down Manticore on her way.
The halls were on fire, the whole place burning up. And they had no intentions of letting out anyone. If the transgenics got into the population and people found out about them Manticore would be over. That was exactly what the other transgenic had in mind. She had hoped that now Manticore would stop hunting them. She was wrong.
Instead of just hunting to recapture the transgenics, Manticore was now hunting to kill them before the population found out. And White was head of that department. It was his job to see that every transgenic was found, and taken care of.
During the breakout, the transgenic managed to unlock and open all the doors inside, freeing everyone. Edward met up with Carlisle in the hallway. He knew by reading his thoughts that he was headed for Alice's room. He was going to get her out and Edward was going to help. When they reached her, someone had gotten to her first. Jasper.
He had her unconscious body in his arms, leading her towards safety. Human guards had found him, and were about to gun him down when Edward and Carlisle showed up. They took care of the guards and led Jasper and Alice towards safety. On the outside, they were pinned down by a troop of 6 guards.
Carlisle and Edward would've easily taken them out if not for the six rifles aimed at their heads. Just before they opened fire, a bear of a man, literally, plowed through them. Right behind him was a blonde woman, taking out two guards single handedly. Edward and Carlisle took care of the rest.
They escaped, sticking together after that. The six of them ran through the woods until they reached the nearest town. Carlisle led them to a house and ushered them inside. Edward gleaned from Carlisle's mind that he knew the person who lived here.
"Listen to me. Stay low and out of the windows. Don't let anyone come through that door." Carlisle had ordered. Edward didn't really understand why everyone trusted Carlisle, but they did. About three hours later, someone came crashing through the door. In seconds, Edward had the unknown woman in his arms, about to break her neck when Carlisle cried out.
"Edward, NO!" Carlisle's voice was so frightened that Edward immediately let her go. She gasped for air, and then turned to look at Edward. He scoured her mind and realized she was just a civilian...a human. She was also in love with Carlisle. Esme ran to Carlisle and hugged him tightly.
"I cam as fast as I could when I heard...I'm so glad you got out okay." She exclaimed. Carlisle nodded.
"We all got out okay. Thankfully." He said with a smile, looking around at everyone. Edward could hear Alice's thoughts all of a sudden.
"She's waking." He said quietly. Jasper looked down at the one in his arms just in time to see her open her eyes. She looked up at him and smiled.
"We got out..." She said quietly, smiling happily. Jasper squeezed her lightly and nodded.
"You saw it?" He asked her. She nodded and sat up, looking around.
"I knew that was Max's plan. To get everyone out. I was hoping we would all make it together." She said softly, taking his hand and squeezing it lightly. The big man and the blonde woman looked at Alice in wonder, but didn't say anything.
For Edward, they didn't have to. "Yes, she can see into the future. But only after the decisions are made." Edward answered aloud the unspoken questions. The woman stared at him.
"Yes, I can read both of your minds." Edward said quietly.
"I had heard about the experiments they were running in the Psy-Ops division, but I didn't even know that was possible." The man said. Edward nodded.
"What division are you guys in?" Jasper asked.
"I'm Emmett, and this is Rosalie. I'm in the infantry division. I'm the muscle." He said proudly.
"Deep cover operations." Rosalie said quietly. Emmett put an arm around her and smiled.
After that, everyone stuck together. For ten years the Cullen's, as they had dubbed themselves, stuck together. They stayed in hiding, ducking just out of White's way thanks to Alice.
Forks seemed like a nice, quiet, out of the way town. Perfect for a hiding spot. Since Edward, Alice, Jasper, Emmett and Rosalie were all under twenty; they figured the best way to blend in would be school. Carlisle immediately signed on at the hospital and Esme stayed home to scan police frequencies and make sure they would stay safe. It was a perfect little life in hiding until Bella.
After her, Edward and this life would never be the same. He trudged through the forest, pushing any more thoughts of Manticore from his head. He wanted to forget about them. He couldn't forget about them forever, but for the time being would have to be good enough.
He felt his phone ringing in his pocket. He flipped it open. It was Charlie, calling again. This was at least the 20th time today. He was sure to be angry, and Edward couldn't take it. He closed the phone again without answering. That was when he heard his name being called out. Screamed, was more like it.
He whirled around, listening again. Was he hearing things? He heard his name again. Alice. He turned and ran back to the bunker as fast as he could. Everyone was standing on the outside of the door, all eyes on him. Everyone's expression differed.
He saw pity, caution, and anger. But their thoughts all told him the same thing. White had Bella, and he was torturing her to get their location. And he was going to kill her to send a message to Edward. Edward's face crinkled with rage. He was going back. He was going to kill them all. Anyone who laid even a finger on her was going to die. They were hurting his Bella...
"Edward, no." Carlisle said. He held out one hand to halt him. Edward just glared at him.
"Carlisle...they have Bella..." He growled. Carlisle nodded. The tension was so thick it could've been cut with a knife. Jasper used his ability in an attempt to calm Edward, but it just made him more furious. He whirled and Jasper and tackled him to the ground. "I told you....never to use that on me...or I would kick your ass." Edward hissed.
It took Emmett, Carlisle and Peter too pull Edward off of Jasper. Alice ran to his side and helped him up. Carlisle grabbed Edward's arm roughly. "Edward, you need to calm down. Jasper is trying to help you. You won't do Bella any good if you run in there without a plan and you know it. Now please. Calm down. Let's figure this out." Carlisle said soothingly. Edward shook his head and pulled his arm out of Carlisle's grasp.
"Carlisle, every second we waste they hurt her more. I don't need a plan; I am going to kill them all!" He said angrily. Carlisle shook his head.
"Edward, think about what you are saying! Kill them all? Since when have you become a monster?" He asked. Edward glowered.
"Since...what...Carlisle. They MADE us monsters! I have been a monster since I was born!" he exclaimed, even laughing ironically. Carlisle shook his head.
"Edward...you are not a monster. If you believe you are, then that's what Bella is going to believe too. Don't you want to be better? For her?" Esme asked quietly, trying to talk some sense into him. Her quieted then, looking at her. He felt a calm envelop him, and this time he didn't fight Jasper's power. He knew they were right. He knew he needed a plan to save her. A voice behind him broke his thoughts.
"Edward...it's a trap." Alice said quietly. He nodded. "I know Alice...but I can't just leave her there...I can't let them hurt her because of me..." He said, looking down at the ground.
"Edward, it's a trap for you." Alice continued. Edward turned to face her, a bit confused now. Didn't he just make his point rather clear?
"But you won't be the only one going. We are all going. We are going to save Bella." Carlisle said.
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Author's Note
And there it is! The secret is revealed! If anyone has seen the TV show Dark Angel on Fox, you will know about this. But, unfortunately, Dark Angel wasn't watched by too many, so many of you will have no idea what Manticore is or who Ames White is. If you do, congrats! If not, I hope I summarized it well enough for you. If you have any questions, I'd be glad to answer them. Thanks for the reviews and everything guys. Keep them coming, they keep me writing. -Mel
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