***EDITED 1/5/2018 and 6/28/2019: Changed a few lines of dialogue, bout, 600 or so more words, and rules regarding Human to vampire transition. I felt that needed to be edited a bit. And not to mention, added a bit more humor. So just a few tweaks really. lol***
NEW ECLIPSE
I am taking all of you to school this chapter so pay attention. Time to learn something new.
*I don't own twilight. But don't tell my groupies! lol*
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CHAPTER 13: THE CHASE
BELLA
"Victoria!"
No need asking which redhead he meant.
"Yep, if that's her real name". Seth replied mirthfully.
"Can you tell us what happened?" Edward asked.
"No! That was pack business. So its no concern of yours. We just came to tell you to keep the Meat-head leech off our lands, it's a violation of the treaty, and we won't stand for it next time." Jacob sneered at Edward.
How childish and dense can he be?
"So instead of a phone call, you risked a fight and came here, to tell us that?" I childishly mocked back."Isn't that a violation? Or do the rules only apply to everybody else?"
Edward looked down at me and smiled at me proudly. I knew he liked the fact that I included myself. I wanted to smile back, but I was too frustrated with the two in front of me for that.
Then Edward gave a low growl in Jacob's direction, causing me to turn to him, then quickly back on the situation in front of us.
Looking at Jacob, I could see why Edward was so concerned.
God, his eyes were practically glowering at me.
"Us? You are not them! And I need you to listen to me and step the hell away from this, it doesn't concern you!"He said firmly. Clearly not liking my inclusion
I had no wish to be childish or for this to go on any longer than it had to.
"Well given that fact that I seem to be the center of all this, and the reason the both of you are risking life and limb to stand here right now. I thought I had better say something on my own behalf". I gave back
Edward looked to me and gave a small steady smile, showing his quiet support. But at that moment that smile was a reminder to me of what it means to have a mate. What it feels like to know this person was meant for you and will always be in your corner supporting you.
So using one hand, I wrapped myself around his waist and squeezed him tightly to me. Molding him to my side, where he belonged.
Unintendedly, It served as another message to Jacob. One I was sure he derived because he began to glare at the closeness between Edward and me, then just locked eyes with Edward.
Seth just shook his head to the whole scene. Both at us and Jacob.
"Sorry Jake, But she's got a point. We should be here for this. Looks like they had a plan and its one that might work for everyone. Because if the redhead is after her, and she is willing to act as bait in order for everyone else to catch that bloodsucker, then we gotta use that, right?." Seth stated, showing agreement.
His assumption of me volunteering myself as 'bait' was way off, but at least he was trying to be constructive.
And for another thing, I didn't know why but he didn't seem to fit the standard 'angry young wolf' description I had begun to believe they all were.
He was a young wolf, sure, but nothing like what Jake turned into. And I know Edward saw that too.
I just hope the others would pick up the 'individual' difference in his demeanor and let them go back to La Push.
"No, we were not using Bella, as bait." Edward corrected looking straight at Jacob when he said it, then turned to Seth. "She is a target of harassment. And I would see any harassment toward her end; no matter what form it comes in." Edward said eying Jacob coldly, before once again turning back to Seth. "But given what happened this weekend, I'll tell the others why you decided on making this 'improvised meeting'. From what I've seen, I would say it was called for."
"You told him?!" Jacob yelled at Seth.
"Wha- I didn't say a damn thing. This is what happens when you come on vamp territory with a head full of secrets; then try to steal the girlfriend of a mind reader," he said like he was talking to a child.
That did it…
Edward and I both broke out into a fit of giggles, but Jacob didn't find Seth views on the issue, funny at all.
"She says she plans on turning! Next thing we hear is Charlie telling us, she left town with him, for an entire weekend. Then the red leech shows up, puts on a little show for us, but giving them all a nice cover story if they needed to say, "Oops, we goofed. Bella's dead!" So, of course, we had to come. Do you think I or anybody with sense was going to believe whatever they said if we had politely called on a phone? Of course not!" He growled. "They were going to have to prove she was alive, or else!"
I don't think he was talking about what happened over the weekend anymore.
"Is he saying...?"
"Yes. He thought you were away because I took you away to be changed," Edward picked up on and answered for me.
"If any of that had happened, it would've not have happened here. So it was not any of your concern. And most importantly, if it was done, It was done because it was my choice." I spat at him. "I told you to respect it. I will choose for myself who or what I want to be, and if you don't like it then, sorry. But I wasn't living my life to please you."
He grimaced fiercely at me. But said nothing more at the moment.
Good.
"And if you believed your own story, why come here?" I asked calmly. "What did you think? That after my supposed secret change, you thought they would bring me right back to school bright and early as if nothing happened?" I said with extreme sarcasm causing snort from Seth and Edward to chuckle.
"I was here for the others, not you;" Jacob stated with no qualms about his murderous inflection.
"That's only half the truth, and we both know it." Edward forcefully corrected.
"Well, if you had changed her, there would've been no damn treaty. And the rest of them would've cleared out wouldn't they? Meaning I could've gone any damn where I pleased!" Jacob pointed out. "And if the little leech hadn't shown up here. I would've gone to your house next. Then the chase would've been on! We would've hunted you down, and found you wherever you went!"
"With no support?" Edward challenged. "You and I both know, you are alone in this. The rest wouldn't push themselves as hard."
"Maybe, but that would have changed if I had been right."
"Yet you didn't want to be."
"Of course, not!" He said bitingly
"Okaaayy." Seth sang, breaking the tension. "I see coming over here, neck deep onto vamp lands, potentially shattering the peace ourselves, still doesn't make much sense. But no worries, I'm sure they know now that you really came to do your imprint test, which failed epically by the way. BuuUuuttt you secretly must have wanted brain drain here in on something's regarding our scuffle with big red and her two cronies. You're pretty crafty Jake. Killing two birds with one stone." Seth said falsely complimenting Jacobs's nonexistent genius.
Two cronies?
"She had others with her?" I asked.
"Yep," Seth said simply.
"It's okay love. They didn't survive the assault. The family took them out this weekend. Only Victoria escaped. She is alone once more." Edward informed me.
That was great news. I breathe a sigh of relief. But Victoria was still on the loose.
"The family?, You're fucking kidding right? First off, She is not your family tick, so stop poisoning her head with thoughts of belonging with you parasites. Second, she has been coming to the Rez for years, and it is where she went your family abandoned her!" Jacob said angrily at Edward, then turned to me. "But she likes to keep forgetting that little detail!"
I was tired of people throwing Edward's leaving back at him. So I decided to use it.
"If you had bothered to read any of the letters I've sent to you, then you would've known Edward left me because he didn't want to harm me. He felt hanging around with supernatural beings would eventually get me killed. So he left me alone, to protect me. Despite how much he truly loved me, he destroyed himself and our family for me. Threw everything away for me! But the real question is, can you say you would do the same? Can you say that you would destroy yourself for me? for my safety? And do so in the hopes that I would eventually find happiness and safety in the arms of another? Can you say that if you ever found yourself to be the dangerous thing for me, that you would leave me? Can you love me enough to do that?" I challenged him.
And for the first time in a long time, Jacob Black was at a loss for words. My challenge hit him two-fold. It gave him a way in, but it also told him that if he accepted it, that, he understood why Edward did what he did. Then he would be forced to leave me alone to explore my feelings. And If he didn't accept this challenge, then he would know right here and now, that Edward's love for me was superior to his own, and he could not compare to the man I was holding in any way.
Edward catching on, turned and stared at me proudly.
I must say I secretly loved when he did so. It gives me a boost in self-confidence like nothing else.
Then we both turned and awaiting Jacob's delayed reply.
"I...I cou..I would never leave you as he did. I would..." Jacob started to say.
I didn't need another profession of his love. So I held my hand up.
"You see, now you know why I'm with him. He would do anything it takes to make sure I am safe, protected, and happy. So whatever it is you think you are feeling, know that it just doesn't compare." I said, cutting him off.
But his hackles rose, staring back and forth between Edward and me.
"Come on, she made her point. And now you're all riled up. Time to go." Seth said, breaking eye contact with Edward.
They must have been conversing silently while I was making my own declarations.
"Wait," Edward said stopping them. "You all know about gifts. So I think you should know, from what you've shown me it is more than clear that Victoria is gifted. I will have to see her in person to know how her gifts work and what its weaknesses are, but she has one alright. So take caution when dealing with her."
"What kind of gift is it?" Seth, and I asked.
"Evasion, I believe," He said seriously. " Like I said I don't know the full details yet, but from what I've observed, I would say that she can plot escapes routes through unfamiliar terrain. And in a chase, it somehow is able to push her forward, just enough to be out of reach of her foe. But in close quarters, it looks to move her out of danger of any imminent assault on her person. That is why none of you were able to touch her even thou you had her outnumbered three to one."
"Shit, she can do all that?" Seth said. "How are we supposed to stop her now? We can't even touch her"
"If you can get her off both her feet, I think she would be completely helpless. She can't dodge your attacks if she can't move out the way. It's just getting her there that's going to be the problem."
"That is a problem; you should've seen what she did to Pa..."
"Seth! Watch it, he's a fucking leech. Remember?!" Jacob warned.
"A leech that just gave us information that could save our hides one day," Seth said getting aggravated.
"But STILL a fucking leech Seth!" Jacob snarled back even louder, causing Seth to step back.
"Well... in either case, he already knows what I was about to say, so secrets out," Seth said, finding his boldness again. "Let it go, Jake, we don't have to be enemies, not right now anyway".
Wow, I was surprised at Seth, and looking at Edward, I could say he was as well. It seems that being natural enemies can be combated if you have the brains enough to fight its influence. It's all about choice. Too bad most of them chose to let their instincts take over.
"That's right Seth we don't have to be enemies," I said happily.
"She's right we have a choice in the matter. I don't think we will be the greatest of friends, but we don't have to attack one another on sight either." Edward elaborated further.
"Yeah, I guess could agree to time out," Seth said turning to look on Jacob.
"You make your peace, and I will make mine," Jake said gruffly causing Seth to sigh in frustration.
"In any case, thanks man, I'll make sure Sam is informed of this, and hopefully, we can take it from there," Seth said respectfully.
"No problem" Edward replied with a slightly upturned smile.
"He's not a man! he's not even fucking alive?" Jacob said walking away.
"Whatever let's just go!" Seth whispered back, walking to their car.
Seth and Jacob made their way into their car, pulled out their parking space and left.
Edward picked up his phone and sent out a quick text message that read 'let them go' to Jasper.
I smirked at him and kissed his cheek. I didn't want Seth hurt. He may be the only wolf of this generation willing to act as a bridge between their two species. And I currently didn't care that it was a temporary one. Everything has to start somewhere.
"Come on love, we missed the first period, but second period is about to start in about 5 mins."
"Sure, but we are going to talk about what happened while we were away, right?" I asked, It seems our trip was well timed, for Edward and myself, but not so much if you were anyone else in Forks. They were up for grabs, and that included Charlie.
We needed to end Victoria and fast.
"Yes, of course, the whole family is gathering this afternoon after school to fill us in. It was a close call for Esme, so we are taking this seriously."
Esme?!
"Oh my god, what happened?" I asked panicked. The thought that Esme almost didn't make it see this day had me panicked.
"She let her guard down, and it almost cost her. She won't be so gullible next time. But let's wait till the family is gathered, ok love ?"
I kissed him quickly again. Just to soothe my nerves.
"Yes, beloved. Let's wait until later." I said.
We walked into school and head straight for 2nd period.
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EDWARD
After school, we met Alice in the parking lot. She drove her new yellow Porsche that I recently bought her as promised. She seemed ecstatic. She had all the attention in the parking lot, making it easy for Bella and I to slip away.
We drove out the parking lot and headed towards home. Both Bella and I were anxious to get every facet of what happened this weekend. Especially what happened with Esme.
I pulled into the garage and quickly hopped out to open Bella's door. Alice pulled into her spot beside me and hopped out. She was all business now. She had suspected that Victoria knew about her talent and has found a way to get around it. The question in her mind now is, how?
"Bella," Alice said. "Come on everyone's waiting," she said with none of her normal liveliness. I followed them both in.
Inside we found everyone else in the living room even Carlisle. Still, in his white coat, I saw in his mind, secretly 'took off' earlier than expected. So clearly whatever was going to be discussed now, was more important. His mind showed didn't want to be away from Esme and practically forced himself not to go on as if nothing was amiss. But Victoria got within a mile of the town and eight miles from our home before Alice got a vision. That was way too close for his liking. Too close to Esme. Even though he knows Jasper, Emmett and Rose were there with her. If something happened to her because he was at the hospital, putting on a charade; he would never forgive himself.
"Esme!" Bella said, then ran into her arms. Clearly relieved. She must have been imagining the worst all day.
"It's ok sweety, I was being foolish," Esme said gently, very appreciative of the hug and love she was currently receiving.
"What, what happened?" Bella asked her.
"That's why we're here darling. To catch you up. Let's head into the dining room shall we, will explain it all there." Jasper said, smiling at Bella. His mind still impressed with her from this morning.
We got into the dining room, our usual place for family meetings. Everyone took their places. Mates with mates. Carlisle and Esme sat at one end of the table. Emmett and Rosalie said on the left side in the middle section of the table. Jasper and Alice took up the right side opposite Em and Rose. And Bella and I took up the other end of the table, opposite Carlisle and Esme. I usually sat here alone. The odd man out. But now that I had Bella, I would never have to sit here alone again.
The reminder gave me a feeling of being blessed with a small miracle, I kissed the side of her forehead as we sat down, expressing my overwhelming gratitude for her presence alone
"Okay who wants to go first" Emmett boomed out.
"I think I will," Alice said blandly. "Its best that we tell our stories in the order it happened. Let try to cut down on the confusion shall we?"
We all nodded. All thoughts around me, already figuring out for themselves what troubled her.
"Okay then." She said and began. "It was 2 hours before dawn on Saturday morning. Jasper, Esme, Carlisle and I were home, Emmett and Rose were out, but relatively nearby. I got a vision showing me that Victoria had made it all the through the forest, and was a mile outside of town. I don't know how, but she had managed to make it deep into our territory without me registering a single one of her decisions to attack us."
Alice, Carlisle, Rosalie, and Jasper didn't like that one bit. We depended on Alice's vision, now an increasingly dangerous foe has found a way around it. This was not good.
"In any case, she had two others with her. Both newborns. One was a little bit smaller than Emmett, but was a very muscular Wall-type vampire, just like Emmett. The other was a normal blonde teenage girl. She looked no more than fourteen, but had a really bad attitude problem." She said glancing at Esme.
That was the one that gave her trouble I saw.
"Wait? A wall type? What's that?" Bella asked.
"Jesus Edward, if you're gonna bring her into our world, stop spending all your time using her as a finger puppet and teach her a thing or two!" Rosalie said impatiently.
Bella blushed profusely as Emmett tee-hee'd at that.
But as rude as it sounded, everyone else's thoughts agreed with Rosalie. I needed to bring Bella up to speed on how things are in this world.
"Believe it or not, I agree." Stunning a few faces. "I should've been more attentive to this matter and not so distracted by others."
'Wow, look at the change in him. That would've caused an argument not too long ago.' Esme thought to herself.
'You're growing, I'm proud of you' Carlisle thought, nodding along.
Christ, how much of an arrogant ass was I that doing this one thing warranted compliments?
Alice, may I?" I asked, not wanting to interrupt her.
*sigh* "Fine, go on. Better now, than never." She said, giving Bella a wink.
I turned my attention to my Bella. "Vampires with talents have a certain classification. Walls, Shields, Arrows, and Swords."
"Take Emmett for example, he would be considered a Wall-Type. They are generally larger and more muscular. Not only that, they also have thicker skin than we do. Wall-Type Vampires are generally harder to kill, and that because they have one more thing that sets them apart. And that is, they all maintain their newborn strength, which makes them even worst to deal with, since they are naturally stronger than other vampires, to begin with."
"We vampires are just multiples of 10 and 20 in regards to our former human forms. Newborns are slightly more, for the first year or so. They are said to be around twenty-five times or so stronger. But again, that is only temporary strength."
"So for example, using a multiple of 20; which applies only to our increased strength. If you maxed out as a human, only capable of lifting 50lbs with one hand as a human, then you would only be able to lift a 1000 pounds with that same hand as a vampire. Got it?"
Bella nodded looking completely fascinated by the information she was being given.
"So then Edward, if I was still using your math, that same vampire's strength as a newborn would be around 25 times normal, before cool down, then he or she will be able to lift 1250lbs before he or she cooled down. Giving it an extra 250lbs of strength for another 8 to 12 months, right?" Bella inquired.
"Exactly love. But as a Wall, you're already stronger to begin with. if you start out able to lift 120 plus pounds with one hand as a human then you would multiply that by 25, and that will give you the strength of a Wall type. But don't forget Bella, there is no cooldown period for a Wall; they keep all of it."
"Yep! It takes a lot not to squash you, puny human." Emmett said to Bella, then began laughing at his own joke.
Bella giggled at him. "I should really give you more credit, all this time you were the most dangerous one here"
"Yeah! finally some recognition." Emmett boasted, giving her a slight bow.
"Dangerous to you maybe," Jasper said playfully to Bella. "But I have my own tricks to even out the playing field, but we'll get to that"
She nodded looking interested, about where this was all going.
"Continuing on," I said, ignoring their mirth, "As for their thicker skin. It just makes it even harder to hurt them in combat. You can't simply apply strength and pull them apart as you would a normal vampire. Blunt force won't work. You would have to weaken the area first with sharp 'piercing attacks'. Placing multiple bites at the site you want to destroy should help. But that is not easy. If they get a hand on you as you make your attempt, all they have to do is squeeze and you would be crushed."
"A Wall-type can take on 4 to 7 normal vampires at a time, so they are great to have in a fight. But in a fight like that, they are sure to suffer a bite or two. But they should naturally come out on top. Still, it points out another weakness. Which is, they take longer to heal due to their muscle and skin density. Hours to heal, what the rest of us can do in minutes."
"Not if you're dead." Emmett guffawed, causing Jasper to lightly chuckle.
"So Victoria bringing hers was the equivalent to bringing 4 to 7 vampires in one, with her," Bella stated trying to understand.
We all nodded at her
"Yes, love. Aptly put"
"And the other types?" she asked eagerly
"Arrows are long-range offensive type vampires. They are extremely rare, and they are always ranked amongst the most powerful. Their advantage is a clear one. They can inflict damage from long distances, giving any ally or themselves an up close advantage.
"Arrows can usually take on 8 and up. But with everything, that is completely dependent on the creativity of user with their talent. Take the Volturi's Jane. She can quickly disable up to ten vampires before the residual effects wore off on the first and she is forced to recycle and start again. That is if they weren't destroyed by an ally on the first pass. Needless to say, you don't want her concentration on you for any amount of time.
"Then you have Alec, the true threat to of the Volturi power. His ability allows him to cast a very wide net. Letting him to ensnare large numbers, all at once. Locking up their sense, leaving all unable to defend themselves. From there, all he has to do is walk up to his victims, and there would be nothing to stop him. "
"I've heard what they can do to a battlefield" Jasper added in seriously. "Those two are monsters. They can single-handedly wiped out armies. Killing dozens of us in a single day. To me, they are the real power. Not the masters. They are not to be tried or irritated in any way."
"And their weaknesses?" She asked calmly.
"In their case, very few. Usually, their weakness would be that of any Arrow-type. Close quarter combat. It is not something they would learn given what they can do. But with the guard surrounding them. That is not something they even have to worry about. But Arrow-types isn't even something to really concern yourself with. Simply because they are so rare. Right now, Alec and Jane are the only two anyone really knows of. "
"Next you have Swords. They are close range offensive type vampires. In this family, we have three. And in our extended family, we have 1 more. Giving us a total of four. Our sword-types are Alice, Kate, Jasper, and I. Our talents make us dangerous in close quarter combat".
"Sword-Types can normally take on groups of three or more, but no more than five."
"Normally?" Bella asked catching on.
"Yes, normally. But like I said, depending on the user, that may change. I would say, our family swords are very strong, as swords go. I can take on four, maybe five if the fifth is unskilled, Kate upwards five to eight, but Alice can take on eight or more. She is a veritable one-woman army."
Bella looked at her friend, shocked "What?!" Bella said.
But Alice just sat there proudly smirking. Her ego thoroughly stroked.
"Well, if that's true, then why are we bothering with this at meeting at all. Why don't we just set Alice loose." Bella quipped
Jasper growled, leaning forward, just short of shooting up from his seat.
"She is not some dog you get to set loose on your enemies, she has her weaknesses. And as a friend, I would have thought you would've shown more concern." Jasper said lowly but sternly, causing Bella to sit back in her chair looking reprimanded.
"Jasper?" Alice said softly, placing her hand on his arm, trying to get him to lean back down. "He didn't mean that Bella."
"Jasper, please," Esme said hold up her hand. To bring peace back to the discussion.
"Jazz, you know she didn't mean shit by it. Cool out man." Emmett said, standing up for Bella.
When it looked like he finally did, I looked to Emmett and nodded at him in thanks.
'No problem bro. Jazz can be really uptight sometimes. But it's Alice, so what did you expect?'
I acknowledged Emmett once more, then explained Jasper's meaning.
"Bella, as a sword-type our weaknesses are Arrow and Shields type, vampires. And if used correctly, even wall-types. So we need to be fast to cover long distances quickly or quickly escape in order to assess the threat, or else we will end up a victim of another's talent."
"Take Jasper. He is a sword type, but he's the closest to an Arrow type as this family is going to get. So he has none of the aforementioned Arrow-types weaknesses. He has a strong mid and short-range offensive tool and is an excellent fighter in close quarters. He's kind of a double threat."
"Mmmm, Excellent in close quarters. Mmm, I could agree to that." Alice chimed in.
Jasper losing the last of his tension winked her way.
"Aww hell, I could have gone on just fine, without hearing that Ali," Emmett said.
"Me too," The rest of us said together.
We all laughed at that for a bit, losing the last of ours.
"So Arrows and Swords. they are most definitely stronger than Walls?" Bella said trying to grasp every detail.
"Whoa, whoa, whoa. No, they're not!" Emmett argued.
"Hah, Arrow-types? yes, Sword-types? Well, that depends on who is the better user of their type. In either case, don't let Emmett's wishful thinking confuse you. Because as strong as Wall-types are, if they can't touch you, they are useless. That is why most vampires just run away from them. The only ones who stand their ground, usually have a gift that can aid them in a victory against one."
Bella nodded in understanding.
"Booooooo!" Emmett continued to protest. Causing Bella to giggle at his antics.
He loved making her giggle. A small reminder him a sister left behind. A stinging subconscious thought. One he pushes back down as quickly as possible.
"But can you get away? If they are stronger, shouldn't they be faster too?"
"A good hypothesis, but that's not necessarily true. Because remember, that is all based on how you were as a human. If you spent most of your time building thick muscle alone, you're bound to sacrifice speed at some point. And this is where the ten, comes in. If our strength increases twenty-fold, our speed is estimated to increase about, ten-fold. Using myself as an example, When I was human I could do around 16mph which translates to 160mph now."
"Wait, what? That can't be, right? That's all?!"
"What? not impressed?"Rose said with a raised a brow and a smirk.
"That's what I'm saying," Emmett added looking at Bella with suspicion. "What do you mean, that's all? Can you do 90mph?"
"Mmm, Aren't you always saying I'm too quick?" was my response to the shock of her question.
"A minute man huh? Oh, poor, poor, Bella." Emmett commented while wiping away a non-existent tear.
"Oh shut it Emmett" My love barked back for the both of us, ignoring the chuckles from the 'kids' at the table. "What I'm saying is, that's fast but, you guys practically disappear around corners all the time. Then poof, reappear out of nowhere."
"That's just a matter of Perspective sweetheart." Carlisle chimed it.
"Yeah, put it this way, smushy one." Emmett chimed in. "You have seen human baseball played once or twice, right? Well, a 90mph so-called 'fastball', takes about .04 seconds to cross home plate all the way from the pitchers' mound. zero-point-four seconds, to cover 60ft (18.4m). Now imagine, an entire human body doing that?" He said, pausing till she made the appropriate awed and shocked expression. "Exactly! So yeah, you damn right we look like we vanish. That's really booking it, missy."
"Wow, I guess that is pretty fast after all."
"Yes, precisely" Carlise added. "Well put Son"
"Yeaaah, no problem. As long as she gets it, and stops putting those two sad words together, we'll be fine."
"What two sad words?" Bella asked.
"That's - all' - No guy ever wants to hear that when displaying his best! It's offensive!"
The room was a chuckling mess once more.
"But to continue on with my point love, and to give you a frame of reference of where that description falls on the scale of things, you should know that most humans can do between 8 to 12mph, and those who train for it as a sport can do around 15 to 26 mph. So that gives you a vampiric range of 80 mph to 260mph.
"Seeing someone move that fast on two legs, is something to witness, in truth." Carlisle chimed in. "A man I knew once, Alistar, he can go as fast as 205mph. And there is one in the Volturi going by the name Hayden, who can do up to 410mph. The fastest I've ever heard of. But where one is governed by duty, the other spends most of his time following the pull of his talent."
"The pull of his talent?" Bella asked
"Yes, but that's a long story dear, not for now. But I will make a point to tell you all about it." Carlisle smiled at her, and she smiled genially back at him.
"Still, I would hate to see anyone turn an Olympic track team. " Alice added.
"Many I am sure had the thought. But taking the chance to make one, is too conspicuous. Their individual notoriety for one protects them from just disappearing unnoticed, but the real issue I would assume is keeping them within your control, after. A signal burst of speed and they are gone. Most likely never to be seen by you again, and left on their own to wreak havoc on the population." Carlise rebuffed.
Everyone else's mind seemed to be thinking over the logistic of Carlisle's statement, but my eyes were on Bella who looked deep in her own thoughts.
"Bella?" I said, getting her attention.
"Sorry, your scenario's just had me doing the math. From what you've told me so far if you were to change me today, then that would mean, I would be able to do 500lbs with one hand and run as fast as 80 maybe 85mph." She said sounding disappointed, but I could see why, but her disappointment was enough. It hit at the edges of my fears.
Because in no way did I want her to regret her decision.
"Love, you're not changing today. You, still have time. Bout 3 to 6 months to go. That is a lot of time to change a few things if you wanted. You could build your muscle and or increase your human speed if you really wanted to." Causing her to brighten up instantly. "And don't forget about your talent that you can fall back on."
"My talent? you mean the one that saved my neck in Italy?"
"Our necks Bella. Yes, that one. Without a doubt you power was classified the moment you blocked Aro, then Jane. You're are a shield Bella" Alice told her.
"I guess that brings us to the last types. Shields." I said. "Shields are primarily defensive types. They are mostly close range, and usually, have a gift that protects only the user in some way shape or form.
"But you know that old adage about a good defense; sometimes they can make a good offense as well. Some of the distraction that some shields can do are enough to give you an opening to finish off a troublesome opponent."
"Hence the danger to sword and wall types," Alice added.
"Think about it Bella, " I said, "Think about trying to fight someone you cannot see or touch or mentally acquire because some barrier is throwing you or your thoughts back, or worse, do not hear or smell approaching you."
When she raised her brows, I knew she got the picture.
"But above all, there is one thing makes a shield-types unique above all other types. A visual acumen is unique only to them. Because a shield can see the visual effects of other vampiric gifts. A kind of light show. But one that warns of danger. It visually tells them that the being before is gifted whether that person says so or not. Some part of that person body will glow showing where the danger lies."
"And better yet, it will also show when a particular gift is in use. The air will distort in some type of color showing approaching danger. That they all have that in common, and without that, I can't really be considered a shield." I explained to her.
"But do you need the light show, since you know what they are going to do regardless?" she asked inquisitively.
"Bella my thoughts can be blocked by simply thinking about something else, our family does it to me all the time. And now Aro knows how to as well. My secret is pretty much all out, thanks to my own arrogant behavior. If I was a proper shield, like you will be, I wouldn't need to read thoughts I could see the disturbances' in the air for myself." I said.
'She really has a mind for all this. Once she is turned, she should find her feet quickly.' Carlisle thought with small relief.
"Bella, you will be one of the most powerful shields in the vampire world," Alice stated like it was a fact.
"What? How do you know, did you see it?" Bella asked.
"No, just a logical conclusion. You and I have shown talent before we were changed, and I am one of the most powerful sword types out there. So you should be one of the most powerful shields out there as well. We just don't know what shape your power will come in yet." Alice told her.
"But we are going to have a blast trying to find out, I got my plan already worked out so don't worry baby sis, leave it to big brother Em," Emmett said boisterously
Bella laughed at him
"Ok, ok. Deal. You and me then."
"No problem. I got you." Emmett stated proudly. Rose watching him while smirking.
"Ok so back to what you were saying beloved. Can I ask? What would be the stacking order?" She asked.
"Arrows would be at the top of that list no question. Then shield and swords battle it out for a second, and then comes walls." Jasper answered.
"What? oh hell no! I don't agree with that list." Emmett protested again.
"Well, have you beaten any of them yet?" Bella asked giggling at him knowing the answer.
"What? that's... ...well actually, but..they cheat." Emmett rambled
"I'll take that as a no, then" Bella laughed.
"Well if I get one good hit in, it would be over wouldn't it?!"
"That still sounds like a no," Bella said, giggling again.
Emmett grimaced.
"Well, what about the rest of the norms?" Rosalie asked of no one.
"We still love you babe" Emmett joked.
Causing us to laugh.
"Well, all that was amazing. There is so much I have to process. Thank you for explaining all of that to me." Bella said still looking like was mentally digesting everything.
"Oh and by the way; the reason Victoria was here, was because she wanted Charlie". Bella stated nonchalantly.
"What?!" we all said together.
"She went to town remember, not La Push where the wolves are, or here, where the seven of you, with various gifts, live. Two of which can detect her from ways off. She went to town, where the human father of the girl she has been trying to kidnap or kill, works. Where he begins his shift quietly and alone in the early hours of the morning. As per how she got that far into town. I would say it is because she is a shield like Edward discovered earlier, and using the distortions she sees in the air and most likely sense in her mind, she can avoid both physical and mental detection. Which is most likely the reason why you didn't see her decisions till she had absolutely no choice but to think about doing something that would harm someone Alice was watching out for."
Twice in one day. This was the second time she floored us. Of course, it makes sense.
Esme, Carlisle, and Rosalie's eyes bugged out at her.
Emmett gave another long whistle.
Jasper upgraded her again. Nodding.
"Bella, I can't believe you put all that information we just gave you and came up with such a perfect theory, especially about the shield part. I didn't even guess that her talent made her a shield, but It makes sense. Seriously, Bella, that was amazing." I said smiling like I won the lottery. I kissed her hard on the lips.
She giggled.
"Tell me about it" Six other voices chimed in together.
Alice was considering her talent and potential flaws in Bella's statement.
"But can she really avoid me in her mind? Is that even possible? You're a shield and you can't avoid me seeing your decisions. So how can she?"
"I did once remember? In Phoenix, when I had to get away to go save a T.V. I thought was my mother. I don't know if I avoided your gift, but I definitely did something that blocked you from seeing my escape or delayed it long enough for me to get away. I may not know what I accidentally did, but I'm betting she does. She definitely figured out something, and whatever it is, it's working." Bella reminded Alice.
"Yes, yes, you're right. Wow, Bella. You're really something else. You may not be the physically strongest or fastest vampire after your change, but your shield and perceptive mind will make you make a monster all the same." Alice said with admiration.
"Well, I don't know about that. Because I plan on beefing up before my change. Especially now that Edward 2.0 here decided to let me in on all of this." She said.
I was slightly ashamed that she stated it like that. But I knew she wasn't lying either. I would've held back on this information in the past, and felt like I was doing it all for her benefit. I truly was an arrogant ass.
Emmett was ecstatic. Doing something he found interesting was a definite plus.
"Aw hell yeah, let's see if we can get you to double up in strength in add another 2mph to your body in the next 3 to 5 months."
"Yes let's." Bella agreed easily.
"Excellent Bella, I'm glad you are taking the opportunity to improve upon yourself now. But you have given us some new information that we will have to add into what we already know now." Carlisle said to her, with a hint of pride in his tone.
"But Edward, how did you find out she had talent?" - Carlisle asked.
"I saw something about her through the mind of one of the wolves, a boy named, Seth. From him, I watched the fight between her and three wolves. No matter what they did, or how their fangs came. They couldn't touch her. She avoided it all. It was too masterful to be skill alone. So I am assuming her talent is akin to evasion, or some form of it. Because one second the wolves would have her dead to rights; their jaws centimeter from clamping down, only to bite nothing but air a moment later. She would then use that opportunity to plant a devastating blow, momentarily crippling her attacker. She took on three of them. Paul and two of the newest wolves Embry and Leah in extremely close quarters leaving them badly injured before the rest of them showed up. Then she walked out without a scratch. I don't want to disagree with Bella, but I don't even think she knows how she does it. She had no thought of it the last time we met. It may very well be a pure instinct to her. But I will need to meet her again to be sure."
"Do you think you could take her?" Alice asked "She seems kinda like me in that one respect. No one can touch me either, but she might be stronger because the wolves don't interfere with her talent, so she has me beat there. Nevertheless, it will have to be either you or me that takes her down. So can you take her if it was just you and her? I am worried since you've never been able to touch me?"
Bella turned to look at me with new panic "Edward could she be that dangerous to you, too?"
I kissed her forehead. "I will be fine love. Her talent is evasion; my guess and hope are once she decides to attack, her talent, like Alice's, will take a backseat at that moment; and hopefully, a moment is all I need. That is one of the reasons why I have never been able to beat, or even touch Alice; because Alice sees the follow-up and adjusts herself accordingly. Victoria won't have that part of it."
"It's okay, I'll trust you," Bella said, kissing me quickly, but still looking unhappy about my prospects.
"Okay then, back to our original discussion," Alice said. "Victoria made it all the way in our territory, till she was a mile out, now we know, most likely to search for Charlie.
Many looked to Bella then, to see how she was holding up. But she held up her hand and waved them off.
"Don't worry, I'm fine. I know you all will do your best to prevent it from happening if you could. And I know you all will do everything to avenge him if you fail. So, since there is nothing we can do but try our best, there is no need to stress what we all already know. So please Alice continues. We've been sidetracked long enough" Bella said confidently
Carlisle mentally acknowledged the stronger Bella.
Esme was so proud of Bella. She was bright, well spoken, strong-willed, and understanding, and despite it all, still remained compassionate.
Each member of the family acknowledged her honest words.
Of course, we would try and protect Charlie, but we couldn't and wouldn't dare promise it. And if we failed, we would avenge him. And without saying it, Bella had already known the truth of the situation and made her peace with it.
"Yes, Victoria had two helpers. A large Wall-type, and another young girl who looked to be fourteen or fifteen. Once I had the vision I alerted all who were in the house and called Emmett and Rosalie.
"The situation was urgent, but as much as I wanted to rush off and let everyone else catch up, I saw that we had to wait for Rose and Em to come because the things would've not gone so well. I saw them splitting us up. Esme and I would've chased after Victoria and that other girl. Carlisle would've taken a hard blow, then would have been ripped to pieces by that wall. Jasper would've been damaged and would've let his opponent go in order to see to Carlisle. I would've killed Victoria but would've done so in rage in order to save Esme, who would've been lost to us. So we needed to wait and even the odds." She stated, just giving us a second to absorb the significance of everything she just said.
"So once everyone was assembled we took off. When we were on the move I saw Victoria decision to give false orders to the two who came with her, to remain on 'lookout', then take off in the other direction. So you must be right, her talent allows her to evade even choices. But no matter. The circumstances had changed enough. In this version of events, she took off alone, in a clear attempt to sacrifice those she came with, to earn time and distance. But we had enough numbers now, or so I thought."
"Once the two left behind heard our approach they began to high tail it as well. The girl took to the treetops and Esme and I followed. Jasper and Carlisle took after Victoria, and Em and Rose took on the Wall."
"I'll take it from here," Rosalie said, sharply cutting in. "After we all split up, Emmett and I chased the bastard for about seven miles. I finally had enough, found a good size boulder picked up as I ran past it and hurled at him, hitting a leg and caused him to miss a step or two, which was all Emmett needed to catch up with him. From there the fight was on. Those two brutes went at it mano-e-mano. Emmett had him, or at least we both thought he did. The jerk pretended he was more injured then he was. Emmett closed in on him but in the melee, took a punch to the face, that rocked him senseless. He fell to one knee, then was grabbed up by the scuff is his neck and underarm got spun around and tossed over the treetops. Which left me in the incredibly shitty position of fighting this brute, by myself."
"So be it. He didn't look like he wanted to fight at first, but my face had something on it that made him think twice. So, he charged at me, and I evaded his haymakers easily. He swung wildly and was about to get lucky, but instead, I jumped away from it at the same time it connected, greatly reducing in impact. I still, however, flew through the air. I smash through four small trees before I came to a stop, and was just bout on my feet. But he was on me before I was able to recover fully."
Bella gasped
"Cool it, Bella, I'm right here telling you the story remember?" Rosalie said nonchalantly
Bella nodded. Then Rosalie continued.
"He took a mighty swing downwards but I curled in, and ducked even lower so that punch missed me completely. Then I rolled quickly till I was on my hand, and upside down in a ball, then I kicked upward with both legs. It landed on his chin, causing him to fly up and backward. 20 yards or so. A kick like that would've taken the head off a normal vamp, But that thick skin of his only allowed me to send him flying for a bit. No matter I used that time to run. I ran toward the direction Emmett flew, in order close the distance between Emmett and myself."
"I stopped and turned to find the brute I thought I left behind grunting smashing his way through the smaller trees toward me, like some goddamned mad ape. He had decided to smash through instead of going around, smiling grinning like an idiot all the while. I calculated I had about 15 seconds or so till he was on me again. So, I attacked the bark of a large 187-foot tree I was standing near and kept ripping at it till most of the base was gone, then I went to the other side and quickly kicked it over in the ape's direction. He could've dodged it sure, but like all newborns, they like showing off their new strength. And I knew big idiots like him, loved to test their strength even more than average. I had learned that from watching Emmett all those years ago when he was new.
"Hey!" Emmett said looking surprised.
"Hey nothing, it's true," Rosalie said continuing as if she wasn't interrupted. "So the big ape caught the tree, like an idiot. He was holding up this huge tree with both hands up in the air leaving himself completely open. I ran atop the tree and quickly and quietly got behind him and jumped on his back. Then I proceeded to try and cripple him by biting a chunk out the back of his neck, taking pieces of vertebrae and stinging him with my venom. I hopped off quickly before he reached me. The oaf roared and let go of the tree he was holding. Letting it fall down on his head, forcing the damage I inflicted to tear even further. Bitterly mad and moving awkwardly due to what I bit out of him, he pushed the tree off him and refocused on me.
"He was so focused he didn't hear Emmett come up behind him, and finished what the tree and I started, by punching his head right his shoulder and into my hands."
Seeing it all for myself I had to say I was impressed.
"So wait, are you saying you practically took on a Wall-type by yourself and won?" Bella asked, looking shocked. "I thought you would need 4 or 7 vampires to do that?"
"You do if you plan on slugging it out with one, but I was fighting a battle of wits, he had none; so I won," Rosalie said as matter factly as possible but was looking quite content with herself. "I used what I knew to my advantage. Thanks to Emmett, you could say I am especially equipped with dealing with newborn Wall-types. Also, don't let these powered up jerks convince you that normal vampires are no threat. We have to use our brains to outsmart those overconfident fools who rely on their extra talents."
"Here here," Esme and Carlisle said together.
Causing a round of laughter, but Bella and I couldn't take our eyes off Rosalie. Clearly, were in awe of her.
We all had to admit, that Rose was really smart to come up of all that and brave to actually pull it off.
Jasper tipped his invisible hat to her in respect. He loves that Rosalie was not only strong-willed but a smart fighter as well. She knew exactly what she was capable of doing and didn't do any more than that.
Emmett was looking at her with pride and admiration.
But that brought about another thought. If Emmett wasn't looking for sport all the time he would've won that fight easily with experience. But he likes drawing out his fights since we don't get into them enough.
"Excellent job Rose. I guess it's my turn" Esme said. "Well, after we split off, it was just Alice and I going after the blonde haired girl. The girl was about 14 years old, and she had already have taken to the treetops.
Alice and I both followed her up there. But she was extremely agile up there. She was beginning to outpace us. So we needed to make a change. Alice went to the forest floor, while I continue d the chase in treetops."
"The young girl hopped from branch to branch in rapid succession. We needed to do something to slow her down and catch her. That's when I heard a boom from coming up from the forest floor. Alice had thrown a rock that cut thru the branch that the girl was going to land on causing her to fall."
"As she was falling, I angled myself to the falling girl, and with all my strength I pushed off, and intercepted the falling newborn before she hit the ground."
"We slammed into a large boulder below with thunderous crack. Alice caught up to us then, and was holding her range at 30 feet back." Esme said. Then she paused. "I don't know what I was thinking. But once I got off the young girl, I just stopped and looked at her. She looked panicked and she was injured. He legs were broken and cracked. But she was healing. I took pity on the small girl and reached out to her"
Esme shook her head. "Alice screamed for me, and I turned to face her. Then that so-called little girl grabbed a hold of my hand and kicked me hard. I flew backward, rolling end over end, but my arm from the elbow down remained with the girl. I let my compassion get in the way for a split second and it almost my undoing."
Bella had both hands to her mouth by now and was looking at Esme's arms trying to figure out which one was the arm the girl took, but since venom had nothing to do with the breaks there weren't going to be any signs of scarring.
"Once I was temporarily out of the picture Alice took over. The girl tried her best, but Alice was ripping her to shreds. Taking both her hands and a leg and leaving one arm hanging loosely at the shoulder. The girl was so disoriented after her quick 3-second brawl with Alice she fell into me. She fell right onto my lap." Esme said, and then she looked more serious than I have seen her in a long, long time. "I didn't make that mistake twice. I bit her head off her shoulders and made sure it was the last thing to burn."
Bella looked on shocked as to what she was hearing the normally kindhearted Esme say.
"Bella, the lesson here is; there is time and place for compassion and understanding. A panicked battlefield isn't it. You have a mate and a family to return to, remember that first and foremost. You have a gentle heart much like my own, but leave your sympathy at home, do your job, then pick it back up when you return. Understand?"
Bella looked to have been studying Esme before she very respectfully replied. " I do."
"Good," Esme said smiling at her softly, the proceeded to lean into Carlisle as he rubs her back soothingly, his mind showing worry over what Esme had to do to that 'child'.
"Well I guess, that's my cue," Jasper said. "This will be a short one for as you know we didn't catch Victoria. But we did have to break up a fight between Emmett and the Wolves. Because he landed on their side of the treaty line."
"Well, I wouldn't exactly call it a fight." Emmett said jokingly "They tried to attack me, but they were all bark. Tough-skinned remember? That prevented any type of damage, so I smacked them around a bit and ran back to my Rose ASAP." Emmett finished.
"Yeah, we came in as Emmett was breaking towards our side of the line, hounded by five angry wolves. I poured out calm on them like a downpour, almost making them pass out from lethargy. That's when Carlisle spotted Victoria a mile down look back at our interaction. We took off after her, but she was fast. She got to the sea before we were able to reach her. I was determined to follow, but Carlisle called us back. We could've been led into an awaiting ambush under the water. It was a good call. It's what I would have done."
"So, from everyone's story, we now have confirmed a total of 8 wolves and it has been discovered that Victoria has the ability of Evasion. She has a new target in mind, and she has new recruits." Carlisle said. "So what do we do with all the information we shared."
We all thought about it, but it was Bella who answered.
"Nothing," Bella said.
"Nothing love?"
"Yes Edward nothing, because there is nothing we can do, not yet anyway. But I think there is something 'I' can do. I can try to pass a message along to Sam, Billy or Seth, and let them know that Victoria is after Charlie now, and that they need to look after him when he is approaching and leaving La Push. Once he is at home, we'll watch him. Edward, you and I are usually there anyway. And if anything happens Alice well see it. And it will only be a matter of minutes before the Calvary arrives at that point. So, we do nothing. We had the perfect setup already, which is why she pushed her luck and tried to go a different route. The only proactive thing we can do is wait for Alice to have a vision that tells us where she is, just like last time. If we can catch Victoria unaware and drown her in numbers, that would be perfect. But until we know where she goes or is currently, then we can't do anything except what we are doing already."
"I agree," Jasper said. "What we are currently doing did force her to adapt. And getting the wolves to help cover Charlie's coming and going from La Push is the best option we got, since we can't tell him to stop going where he pleases without compromising ourselves. But I would add that in trade, we share some information with the wolves in regard to what they are dealing with. Victoria seems to be making most of her runs inland from their side of the border. So they will have first crack at her and whomever she brings with her. If they weaken her forces or force her to our side by making the approach from their borders too dangerous to chance, then all the better for us, agreed?."
"Agreed" Carlisle said nodding proudly at all his children.
"Makes sense," Rosalie said surrendering her disapproval of aiding the wolves in any way.
"Works for me" Alice replied
"Well, now that that is done, are you hungry Bella?" Esme asked.
"Starved!" Bella replied with a smile.
"Waaaaiiit! She gets Steak, Fish, Chicken, and Edward only. She is on an all protein diet from now on!" Emmett boomed. "I got to put some meat and muscle on my little sister."
"Edward? How do I get protein from... Oh. My. God!" Bella flushed with embarrassment.
Emmett was roaring with laughter, and so was everyone else.
Bella dashed over and began to pummel him the best she could.
"Jerk!"
Meeting adjourned.
[END CHAPTER]
So, what do you all think about Walls, Arrow, Swords, and Shields? My original plan was Tanks instead of walls. But since ancient vampires made all this up. Tanks was not an option. The closest thing they had back then would've been a turtle. You know the things they use to hide under to breach the castle gates. Well if you don't know what that is, Read a book you lame.
As for the JB part of this crazy long chapter. I wanted him to have his shot. He's got it, now he can kick rocks.
Next. Wolf Equality. I always thought that the wolves where nothing more than punching bags one on one. But they are unstoppable in groups. Which is another reason why Emmett had to run. He talked big, sure, but it wouldn't have worked out well if he stayed and the rest of the pack joined in. His tougher skin can only protect him that much.
But group against group is there biggest weakness.
How do you like my 20x rule? I believe it makes the most sense. I played with a lot of numbers and I felt that 20x works best.
Anyway. Please leave comment and Opinions. I know you have some.