TPOV
By
the time I regained control over myself I was somewhere in upstate
Massachusetts. I came to standing by a lake. I say a lake; it was
more an oversized pond. And standing on the other side was Henry.
He
wasn't looking at me but at the water. The blue was the exact shade
of the sky and reflected our surroundings so our watery doppelgangers
gazed back at us, unblinking. We stood there for some time. I
couldn't say how long.
Eventually the sun dropped away, as if
weary of our silence. Then Henry looked up. I ran to him. I hated not
talking.
"When will you learn?" I stood there, sharp pain
building in my throat. He looked at me.
"I will follow you,
love. Anywhere and always." Henry caught up my hands. "So when
will you stop running?" I felt the pain tighten as he gazed at me.
"I don't deserve you." The words slipped out. "Every
time. Every time I mess things up. I leave or I do something."
Henry shook his head. "No. We deserve each other." A small
twist of his lips. "And you do have a tendency to get restless
love." He pulled me into his arms. "But I need a challenge. And
with all the things in the world to see, a little travelling is fine
with me. And when you want to stop we will." He spun me round,
lifting effortlessly.
"Thank you." I smiled, tears falling to
the watery clones who smiled with satisfaction.
BPOV
In
the car on the way back my protests were urgent.
"We can't
just let them leave!"
Edward was on the phone beside me
muttering but in my consternation his words didn't register. Alice
seemed to be focusing on the future with a dazed look. Emmett and
Jasper exchanged looks and grinned. Rosalie tossed her hair and gave
me a wicked look from the wheel.
"Of course we aren't."
Emmett winked.
"We just need a bit of research." There was a
snap beside me.
"Carlisle's on it."
"Excellent."
Rosalie revved the engine and the car sped along the dark road.
As
we entered the library Carlisle began to speak quickly, words
sounding like those of a lecturer.
"Ares- last name not known.
Believed to be the incarnation of the war god for several
civilizations, mainly the Greek, Roman and Brits. Incarcerated in
1652. Power- ability to control others movement through eye contact."
I noticed Esme intent on another book in the corner. Carlisle dashed
to a pile of parchment. "His followers were spread throughout the
world in groups, but his main army was known as the Torrent. In the
this army were most known species of supernatural. Mainly vampires,
but also witches, shapeshifters, shamans- even a Child of the Moon
was known to be a captain." We sat around the table, Alice's eyes
still out of focus. "The main group of generals was known as the
Five. Corinne de Palana- a vampire with the ability to make anyone
tell the truth by touching them. Changed in 1300 in Gaul by an
unknown Volturi, whom she left . Jessica, also known as Jess, a
vampire. No abilities mentioned although-"a crease formed on
Carlisle's forehead, "many accounts speak of her being an
excellent tracker despite her- mental problems are mentioned but not
specified." Alice suddenly jerked up. I noticed with a start that
her eyes were black. Edward's eyes widened. "Alice, go feed. Now.
The search can wait." Jasper and Alice left, her curses spiraling
back to us.
Surprisingly, Esme continued. "Cian Lao- vampire,
mate to Corinne. Telekinetic. Soldier in the Chinese army, sired by a
local vampire, worked his way up the ranks of the Torrent. Since
their leader disappeared they have been looking for him around the
world. There was no mention of what happened to the fifth member."
Esme looked up. "That's all we have." Carlisle put his arm
around her waist.
"Not much is known about them; apart from
they are the best, all trained in stealth and weaponry." The oldest
vampire in the room cleared his throat uncomfortably. "To earn your
place in the group you must kill your predecessor in public and bring
the heart to Phoenix or Ares. Several tried to remove the current
Five in the last hundred years Ares was in power. They all failed."
Emmett gritted his teeth. "So these are the people after
Tia."
Rosalie's voice was harsh. "Best of all, I bet Tia
trained them like she does us. They'll know all her
tricks."
Everyone was quiet.
Run Tia, I thought. Run as fast as you can.
