Author's Note
Please forgive any spelling and/or grammar errors. I hope you enjoy it, please let me know what you think!
This was actually the first chapter I wrote for this story - though I just got done editing it. I saw the whole thing play out in my head, and I frantically typed to get it all down, then the rest of the story leading up to this point slowly unfolded after the fact.
Just the three chapter epilogue after this :)
Any dialogue you recognize is from Breaking Dawn. Most has changed at least a little, but there are a few bits from the book. PS I'm not Stephenie Meyer, so I don't own anything :(
Chapter 24 - Jasper
Everything was in place. Each individual was where he or she needed to be. They were spread in a long line stretching over half the length of the clearing, Bella and Jasper at the center. They had thirteen vampires. As well as eleven wolves, though only seven would actually be fighting today.
The Volturi were bringing seven members of the guard. A quarter of their number. Twenty against seven. Seven highly trained and skilled opponents.
Jasper had gone over it all a dozen times. More. He'd even sworn not to try and be everywhere this time. He'd trust that his family could take care of themselves - even Bella. She needed to see that he had confidence in her.
It was a good plan. One that actually stood a chance. Evened the odds a bit. Possibly even tipped them in their favor if it worked.
Though, in the end, it wouldn't matter. He knew that. The heat of the moment affected everyone differently. For some, everything fell into place. There was a calm in battle. A sense of peace and rightness. All the training and preparation kicked in. For others, emotions took over. Things happened that they did not want to. And then they lost focus, unable to complete their own assigned tasks because of the need for vengeance or to satiate personal aggressions.
All of the preparations were in place here. Now all they could do was wait and see how everyone did. At least a couple had military training and could be depended upon. Others were practically children or green as a sapling.
Alice had assured them the battle would commence on May 5th. They'd arrived early that morning, seven hours ago to be precise, but the Volturi had yet to make an appearance.
They'd all hunted yesterday. More than was physically comfortable even. Then last night he'd poured himself into Bella. With emotions, words and his body, he'd given her every last jagged, beautiful, broken, healed, ugly, hopeful piece of him.
Afterwards, she'd said, "If you ever say goodbye like that again, we're going to have issues."
He'd laughed at her understanding and frank assessment then said, "Darlin', I'm just trying to take advantage of having the house to ourselves. We won't get many opportunities for another five years."
Bella had laughed, lightly nipping his chest at the jest. "Well, in that case… "
Much later, she'd murmured, "She's going to live."
"A very long life," he'd agreed.
But that was before. The happiness had slowly ebbed from him and the other couples present.
Waiting was its own form of mental warfare. The longer they had to think about all of the negative outcomes that were possible, the more nervous and scared everyone became. Jasper's steady stream of peace and hope only seemed to be doing so much for the assembled group.
There was a barely susceptible shift in the air. A flock of distant birds took flight, their angry cries echoed, a warning signaling the presence of intruders in the forest.
Their enemies approached.
"Remember what we've practiced. Don't lose focus and let your emotions control you. Promise me, Bella," Jasper begged, knowing how easy it was for newborns to get caught up in the heat of their first battle and forget everything he'd taught them.
"I won't lose my head," Bella promised, fierce determination etched across her face.
"Bloodlust makes our kind reckless. No matter what you see. No matter what happens to any of the rest of us," Jasper continued.
Never had he felt more helpless. He could not protect her. He could not keep her safe. He had to trust that she could take care of herself, so he could focus on what he needed to do.
"I know. You need me to keep Alec distracted - no one can fight if I don't. I won't let you down," Bella swore, her tone was diamond coated steel.
"I know you won't, darlin'," Jasper acknowledged, projecting every ounce of faith he had in her outward so she felt it.
"Don't worry, Jazz. Seth will have my back," Bella reminded him, though he wouldn't be able to until the others could join the fight. Seth would not have been his first pick as support. Seth was too kindhearted. And he didn't want to put the man Alice was falling for in a position where he had to risk Seth's life to save Jasper's mate. If it went wrong, he would have played a role in dashing Alice's future happiness twice. Not a good way to repay her for saving him all those years ago. "Watch it or he'll know you would have preferred Jacob."
He would have. That was not something he'd deny. Jacob had more experience, and had more on the line when it came to Bella's safety.
But Jacob was protecting Mae, and that worked equally well for him. Possibly better even.
Jasper noted the others were sharing more sentimental goodbyes, rather than last minute strategy tips. Carlisle held Esme in much the same way Eleazar held Carmen. Emmett was in the process of devouring Rosalie. Guess he really was a soldier through and through. Bella chuckled at him, sensing his revelation, then she nodded to where Garrett and Kate stood.
"If we live through this, I'll follow you anywhere, woman," Garrett vowed, running his thumb over her lip, evidently having just kissed her.
"Now he tells me," Kate muttered, making Tanya chuckle lightly, and even Irina smiled slightly at her sister's potential happiness, though it was weak.
"I love you," Bella said simply. Just three little words, but Jasper felt the expanse of emotion they encompassed.
He took his cue from Emmett and caught her up in a hard kiss, squeezing her tight against him, wishing he could bury her inside himself to keep her safe. It was the rawest he'd ever been with her. An exposed nerve. If she were human her lips would be swollen and puffy when he released her. Likely would have bruised for days.
"Forever," he agreed, stepping back to recenter himself. Now was not the time.
Mist seeped into the area, spreading out like a shimmering mirage across the ground before they actually saw the Volturi guards. It oozed forward, a few inches thick and hovering just barely above the blades of grass it passed over. Some eighty feet away, it rose up to ease over an ancient decaying log. It spread across the entire length of the clearing, vanishing into the trees, but Jasper thought he could see the edge about two trees in. That was good.
The seven entered in a flying v formation with Alec at the head. Demetri and Afton flanked him, a step behind. Chelsea was beside Afton, a step further back, and Nadia was beside Demetri, a step back as well. Felix and Gaius with their large hulking forms were even farther back on either end, the main muscle. They walked in perfect synchrony. A single unit intent on destruction.
Jasper watched their eyes shifting, taking in the greater number of assembled vampires than they'd expected. Their forward momentum didn't falter, though it slowed ever so slightly. Mostly, they were undeterred by the show of force assembled to resist them. After all, why would it matter so long as they had Alec?
They were a hundred feet away. With each step, Alec's gift crept closer. It was less than thirty feet now.
Abruptly, they stopped. The change so sudden and jerky that Jasper knew it had been unintended. The difference was even more pronounced after the way they'd been before. Even Alec's gift halted in response to his shock. Jasper could hear the heavy thuds of Paul and Jared's hearts, feel the warmth emanating from either side of the core of their line. The two newcomers were joined by four more massive wolves farther back, waiting at the edge of the surrounding woods. They formed an almost semi-circle behind the Cullens and Denalis. All four of the young wolves were pawing the ground and snarling, teeth bared and fangs glistening with ropes of dangling saliva.
It was a menacing sight, and Jasper felt the Volturis' fear. Nothing in their expressions betrayed them, but emotions didn't lie. He knew the truth. Probably they'd all heard how their master had once almost lost a fight against a werewolf. Now they were facing six. Each one larger than the typical werewolf, and significantly more in control. If the most brutal of their leaders couldn't match one, what chance did they have?
Sam's hulking black form, the largest of all of his wolves present, remained out of sight. Forced to wait until Alec was fully engaged with Bella. It was imperative that he remain unaffected until the fighting commenced so the pack's weakness couldn't be used against Paul and Jared.
Jasper had been surprised a few days earlier to learn that there were two new additions to Sam's pack. The youngest barely eleven. Their reactions were even more undisciplined than the rest. Because they were nothing more than children. They must have phased because of the additions of the Denalis and Garrett while they'd been staying in Forks the last two weeks.
He and Sam had finally come to the agreement that all of his wolves would at least make an appearance, even if they weren't fighting. They needed the show of strength to intimidate the Volturi. To make them hesitate.
It worked.
He may currently despise Sam, but after sensing the innocence of their emotions, however, he was grateful that Sam had refused to let them participate in the main event today unless they were being directly attacked. And that they wouldn't allow themselves to be in a position to be attacked unless everyone else was already dead. Jasper didn't want children's deaths on his head. He was a father, and it reminded him too much of Mae being in danger.
The first part of the plan was executed seamlessly.
The hesitation was perfect. Between the time they'd come into the clearing to the time they'd paused, Jacob's, or in this case Leah's, pack had time to move into position.
For three seconds, nothing happened. Then Alec's debilitating mist started up again, progressing once more with the unstoppable force of a train.
The instant it did, Bella exploded forward, running directly at Alec. His eyes widened incredulously when her feet sunk right through the mist, continuing to propel her forward as she sprung off the ground. A hole was punched right through the vapor each place where her foot trod through it to meet the ground. Like stepping through a cloud - no effect on her whatsoever.
The members of the guard's heads whipped back and forth, looking from Alec to Bella in confusion. Their uncertainty gave Leah's wolves the opportunity they had been waiting for. Leah and Quil came at the guards from either side, behind the wall of paralyzing fog, while Seth and Embry attacked from behind.
Even when they'd stopped like hitting a brick wall at the sight of the wolves, they'd maintained their composure. They lost it now. The guard's perfect formation finally faltered, failing out of the sharp, precise, v it had been as the guards spun, unsure where to look. Probably for the first time ever. Over a millenia of punishing covens, and not one had ever stood a chance of fighting back. Until now.
If Jasper thought the guard's had been afraid before, it was nothing compared to what he felt from them now. Unabashed terror. Though the emotion was entwined with outrage and determination. Each one truly believed their cause here was just.
They moved, each going to face off with one of the wolves while Bella darted around Alec, making him spin, and disrupting the steady flow of his insentient vapor. Immediately, Jasper noticed it starting to dissipate, thinning near the top first, the way sunlight burned off fog first thing in the morning. And just like fog, the edges thinned the fastest. Already it barely touched the trees on either side.
Jasper watched the fight beginning, analyzing every move. He took it all in, watching everyone at once as he had when he'd lead the newborns for Maria. He'd been responsible for every one of them, every move they made. She'd expected him to oversee them while still fighting himself. He'd gotten very good at it. The same attempt was undertaken now, and like then he watched it all while still focusing on his own fight - even if right now he could only wait. Wait until he could join and destroy those who thought to attack his family. It'd be the last thing they ever did.
With only Bella and four wolves fighting these first few seconds, it was not an even match. Even if it had been one-on-one, it would not have been. The guards were simply too well trained.
Gaius and Nadia teamed up against Leah on one side, somehow sensing she was the most powerful, the leader, of the attacking wolves. Leah darted around them, using her speed to make them get in each other's way, not engaging. She was toying with them. Apparently she'd learned from her mistake with the newborns. If she could keep them off her for even thirteen more seconds, the mist would be passable.
Thirteen seconds. It was nothing.
It was an eternity.
Thirteen seconds. That's all it would take for the densest, central part to clear. But so much could happen in that length of time when vampires were involved.
Quil had launched himself at Felix and the two were wrestling across the clearing floor. Snapping jaws, clawing nails, fur and dirt flying - a blurred jumble as they grappled.
Guide them away, Jasper instructed silently. After hearing how Alec's gift worked, he'd advised the wolves to push the guards outwards so he and his family could help them sooner. They could meet the threat at the edges while Jasper, Garrett, and Kate, along with Jared and Paul, waited to attack the central figures, freeing Embry and Seth to help Bella.
Embry, to the right of Bella, snarled at Afton, trying to nip at his feet. The vampire's red eyes and snow white hair made him look like an albino. The vampire seemed to flicker, shimmering in and out of focus. Eleazar hadn't known Afton from his time with the Volturi, and Edward hadn't mentioned a gift, but clearly he had one. Though Edward only knew as much as someone thought, so if no one thought about his gift while he'd been in Volterra...
Seth, meanwhile, to Bella's left, had his teeth clumped on Demetri's arm, just below the elbow. He was tugging at it, trying to break it off while also avoiding the tracker's kicking feet. This was the fight Jasper was most interested in assessing. Demetri would be his in nine seconds if the colying mirage continued disappearing at a constant rate.
Emmett moved to the edge, attempting to jump over the thinnest part, but he plummeted to the ground, unmoving and unseeing.
"Emmett!" Rose screamed as her mate fell. Jasper had warned him it probably extended upward, but Emmett was always impatient.
Even as Jasper considered moving through the woods to go around to the edge and try to help him, Emmett slowly moved. One foot was now just outside the dispersing mist, freed of the numbing anesthesia, and it twitched. Luckily, the enemy were all otherwise too occupied to worry about him. Nor were they fool enough to tread near enough to the dangerous cloud to reach the largest Cullen.
Chelsea was the lone Volturi guard not engaged in combat. She stood back, face scrunched in frustration as she scanned the amassed group. Looking for weak spots? She wouldn't find many to exploit with this group.
Their ties had already been strong. But add two weeks of bonding in preparation for this fight, and they'd become ironclad. Chelsea's gift was useless.
Five seconds.
The ellipse of vapor continued to thin. Ten feet thick at the center.
Though the mist had stopped shrinking inward from the treeline. There was only enough space for a single body to pass on each side, and was now only thinning from a half circle spreading from Alec to a narrow, elongated oval.
Carmen and Eleazar had gotten around the edge and engaged Gaius, coming at him from each side and herding him away from Leah., protecting the wolf that had become a member of their family in the last year.
They were so gentle, Jasper had doubted they'd be able to fight at all. It was amazing how inspiring the threat to family could be. The Volturi really should consider that motivating factor more from now on. But then the concept of family was beyond their comprehension.
Leah attacked Nadia in earnest once she was free to focus only on the female guard. Nadia was compact, solid muscle like a gymnast, with nondescript brown hair and a square jaw. Leah sprung, catching the former Russian's thick shoulder in her lethal jaws and tearing a chunk of muscle free.
"Mhmm," Leah whimpered in shock when Edward appeared at her side just in time to block the bone shattering jab the mousy brunette aimed at Leah's throat. She hadn't even had a chance to drop her 'dog bone' when it happened.
"Together?" Edward asked, not glancing at Leah, but moving to her side. Likely he listened to her internal response. His show of respect for her skill astonished Jasper. Perhaps Edward could learn, after all. It just took the right person to help him.
Meanwhile, Rosalie had reached Emmett's feet, and tugged him entirely free of the paralytic. His brother stood slowly, shaking off the effects of Alec's gift. He was more sluggish than normal, a bear waking from hibernation. Seeing how close Quil and Felix were though had him running headlong at Felix's back, Rose just behind him.
Boom! The sound of Emmett's body crashing into Felix's ricocheted through the area, seeming to bounce off the surrounding mountains. Lingering snow icing the tip of one even rumbled as it showered down the peak in a tiny avalanche.
Three seconds.
The ellipse was even thinner. Six feet thick at the center.
Tanya and Irina were able to get around to Chelsea. But Chelsea was fast. She ducked and dodge every hit and kick aimed at her. Paul hesitated, wanting to wait and go after Demetri as they'd initially planned. But Jasper wouldn't need help. He was too furious after seeing his family attacked. Demetri was all his.
"Help them. Go!" Jasper insisted, noting the way the wolf's head moved to monitor the fight. Then Paul was gone, rushing around to help them while Jared remained to aid Garrett and Kate as planned.
All the while, Alec's gift was beginning to stretch out from him again, but this time it only consisted of tiny tendrils spiraling out from him as he spun, trying to attack Bella. He didn't seem to believe that she was unaffected by it. He was determined to keep trying, and she was equally determined to put her training to use. Waiting, watching, learning her opponent. Preparing to strike at the right time. And successfully keeping him from hurting anyone else while she did.
His mate truly was incredible.
Then, with a sweep of Alec's right leg, Bella's feet were knocked from beneath her, landing her flat on her back. Jasper tensed, ready to spring - screw the very last traces of paralyzing vapor - but Bella flipped back up to her feet in a flash, and was immediately at it again.
Jasper advanced, moving as far forward as he could. In three seconds he could engage Demetri, leaving Seth free to assist Bella.
The others followed his lead, avoiding the numbing border, but edging closer.
Less than ten feet separated Jasper from Demetri. His target.
Demetri knew Alice's mind, he'd tasted its flavor when she visited Volterra to save Edward. As a result, he could track her. He could find Mae. Jasper would not let him live. Seth seemed to have the same idea, though it was doubtless Alice he was so intent on protecting. The tiny soothsayer would be safe after today - one way or another.
Demertri caught Jasper's eye, watching him even as Seth put up an ample fight. The tracker eased back, deliberately putting more space between them. A taunting grin sliced over his face, and Jasper's lips curled back at the challenge, baring his teeth.
One second.
"Embry, look out!" Bella screamed, noticing how close Afton had forced the wolf to the sweetly destructive cloud still enshrouding Alec.
Alec was grinning the same vicious smirk his sister always wore at having noted their proximity as well. He was just waiting to deal a death blow to the incapacitated wolf.
Afton's ability to turn invisible was making it exceedingly difficult for Embry to pin him down. He was forced to track something he couldn't see while attacking and avoiding the unseen vampire's well aimed blows all at the same time.
The confusion had Embry basically spinning in circles this whole time. A dog chasing its own tail - literally.
The grey and black wolf skittered back immediately at Bella's warning, scutting backwards like a crab or little kid afraid of spiders after almost stepping on one.
Right into an invisible kick that caved half of Embry's side in instantly.
"Waahhhhhhmm," Embry whimpered, collapsing.
Pain exploded outward, filling the clearing like a nuclear blast. Jasper cringed against it, bracing himself. The fallout rained down, dosing Seth, Leah, and Quil. All three howled in shared pain in the same instance. Their legs quivered, buckling under them.
"Carlisle!" Jasper screamed, launching himself forward as the final thread-thin line of smoke vanished. He'd already been racing forward as Afton landed the blow.
"I see," Carlisle replied, moving a step behind him, Esme with him.
Carlisle had promised Sam and Jacob that he would play doctor if needed for the wolves. Aside from that, he'd help where needed in the fight. Just like with the newborns, Carlisle would only fight if it came down to saving one of his family. He wouldn't fight to save himself. Jasper didn't want him attempting to attack the Volturi if it could be helped. Carlisle was a healer, not a fighter, and if he engaged in combat with them, it could be the very death sentence they were fighting to avoid happening, because Carlisle just wasn't capable of killing another.
And Esme was honestly more of a liability in a fight. She hesitated to strike. Every time. Even when it meant her own death. She was just too nurturing to inflict the violence necessary to win. Jasper had not told her that. But he'd said she'd be needed to guard Carlisle in the event he was needed, so he wasn't taken unawares while helping another. She'd been grateful for the excuse, though she hadn't admitted it.
Carlisle reached Embry's side, immediately kneeling to check him over while Esme stood at his back, warding off any who would think to approach the pair on the ground.
It was bad. Jasper could tell by the way Embry's breaths wheezed in and out, only barely making the broken, crushed side of his chest rise beneath the matted, blood-soaked fur. Jasper even detected part of three separate ribs sticking out of his chest entirely as he passed the downed wolf.
Whimpers and yips sounded from multiple directions. A symphony of misery. The pack's greatest strength was their unity. Right now, it was also their greatest weakness.
During the milliseconds it took for all of this to happen, Jacob's pack had already started moving again. But the movements were all wrong. Their limbs jerked like marionettes with puppeteers pulling their strings, urging them to resume fighting. Jasper could feel their pain, the difficulty to breath, the burn of oxygen deprivation. And the loss of free will to submit to the widening chasm it created. The dark abyss calling. A force greater than their own minds was controlling them - Jacob. Their alpha. The one they must obey no matter what. It had to be.
Jasper didn't stop running, amazed as he was, until he was standing before the advancing Demetri, sliding easily between him and the still struggling Seth.
"Go. Help Bella," Jasper ordered Seth, appreciating the discomfort the wolf was feeling, but needing him to stick to the plan.
Demetri shifted, watching the wolf skirt around him to Bella, but he did not attack as Jasper expected him to. Jasper had been banking on it, so he'd have the upper hand when he attacked the tracker. Quickly, he reevaluated his next move.
Looked like waiting was his best bet.
Kate, Garrett, and Jared had taken up where Embry left off with Afton. Electricity sizzled over Kate, sparking like a lightning storm. But they were having no better luck locating the vampire than Embry had. At least there were three of them to look out for each other.
The waging battle slowed now. Everyone reassessing. The Volturi were no longer racing to defeat opponents before their reinforcements could join. They were taking stock of how the odds had changed, and not in the Volturi's favor.
From the corner of his eye, Jasper watched as Carlisle's hand and the lower part of his arm reached into Embry's body, disappearing beneath the fur. Blood spilled, but aroma was that of the unappealing wolves' blood - liquid, but not food. Even the Volturi turned their noses up at it.
Alec started laughing. A deep, bellowing laugh that portrayed indefinable mirth. He was enjoying the pain he'd helped inflict.
"AHHH!" Bella roared, shaking spasms roiled through her as she clenched her fists and bared her teeth. It was a rage Jasper had never expected her capable of. It mimicked that of a newborn being denied blood after starving for a month.
"No! Reign it in, Bella," he begged. There was no way for him to reach her in time. Demertri was between them. Judging by the guard's calculating joy, he'd done it deliberately.
Excitement. Expectedness. For what? What did Demetri enjoy most? Tracking. He was like James. He wanted to watch because for once those targeted by the Volturi could run. Since Alec joined them, he hadn't gotten to hunt as often, and he was looking forward to having the chance today. He was looking forward to being able to carry out Caius's order to kill them all.
Demetri was enjoying watching the others fight, and wanted to continue watching. That was fine with Jasper. He could wait - not forever, his family needed help - but another few seconds. Just until the tracker was distracted. Lulled into the false idea that Jasper was too worried about the others to attack first. Because Jasper would not give Demetri the chance to track any of them ever again.
"Sam! Nooooo!" Edward screamed suddenly, momentarily abandoning Leah to try and intercept the new wolf bounding into the clearing, appearing out of nowhere. Edward, the fastest of them, wasn't fast enough.
Sam launched himself at the sadistic child, black fur pressed flat against him by the wind and speed of his attack.
The horse sized beast slammed to the ground, skidding to fall a few feet short of his intended target. Blank, unseeing eyes the size of saucers faced Jasper.
Shifting his eyes, he detected that Paul and Jared were down too. Vulnerable.
Sam had argued that as the strongest, he should be the one helping Bella. But after learning that what affected him, affected all of his wolves, it wasn't worth the risk of accidentally taking out Paul and Jared. But Sam had played right into that trap. Rage over his brother, his true, blood brother, and not just a pack brother, made him behave irrationally.
Kate immediately crouched over Jared, shielding him. Afton would be shocked if he tried to go through her to harm the wolf. Garrett, meanwhile, had his eyes closed, trying to listen for Afton's movements amidst all the others fighting. It was the only option.
Because everyone still was. Embry's injury had weakened his pack. And the Volturi had taken advantage to rebound and attack with renewed vigor, and now Sam's wolves were out altogether.
Quil seemed to be struggling the most. Luckily, Em and Rose were there to help him handle Felix. The tall, dark-haired enforcer had finally met his match.
"Irina, shake it off. It wasn't his fault! Don't do it," Edward called, while still fighting Nadia. She was a master of systema. One of the original creators of the fighting style, she was the newest member of the Volturi guard - less than a decade with them. Caius himself extended the offer after hearing stories of her legendary skills at fighting, and how she never lost a match.
Edward seemed to be struggling because he, like Jasper, was monitoring all of the other fights. But he didn't have Jasper's training. And reading minds was a lot more distracting as it was.
Leah played off him beautifully. Shaking off the pain of Embry's wounds to use the opening Edward gave her as they fought the hard-faced, skilled guard.
The warning shifted Jasper's attention though, and now he too was riveted on the unfolding scene.
Paul, the other wolf paralyzed by Sam's recklessness, was in trouble. Tanya continued to fight Chelsea, but Irina was standing off to the side, staring coldly down at the wolf. Possibly the same one that had killed her beloved Laurent. Chelsea's face was screwed, concentrating on Tanya until the strawberry blond stumbled, backing up with a perplexed expression.
Irina met Chelsea's eyes and deliberately turned her back on the senseless wolf, all but giving his head to Chelsea on a silver platter.
Irina. How could Jasper have forgotten about the one chinc in the armor of their alliance? The singular weak spot that Chelsea could exploit - Irina's continued hatred and distrust of the wolves. Her depression had been so extreme it had masked the depth of her ongoing loathing.
Now they were going to pay for the oversight.
"Tanya, stop her!" Carlisle begged, noticing the scene too after Edward's plea.
"They're our friends, Tanya. They're here helping us today. Think of Leah - he's as good as her brother. Don't let him die. Don't put her through that," Edward coaxed, even as he returned a jab at Nadia, and dodged her return volley of hits.
Conflict and uncertainty warred across Tanya's face, making her lapse into a stupor as Chelsea stalked closer, only three feet separating them.
A click of a lighter cut through the din of crunching rock and panting breaths, quick from exertion. Accompanying it was the smell of butane igniting. Time seemed to freeze as Chelsea carelessly tossed the open flame at Tanya.
But Tanya was propelled sideway, and it was Irina's arm that was hit instead. The appendage caught fire at once, the blaze spreading to consume every inch almost instantly, like spontaneous combustion. Irina's body was a human torch. She didn't even have time to scream before it was too late.
"AHHHHHH!" Tanya cried in disbelief, springing at Chelsea to rip and claw her to pieces. Rage making her crazed as she janked the woman's dark braids.
"NOOOOOO!" Kate echoed, abandoning Jared and Garrett to join her sister in the fight. She lept the distance separating them and grabbed the exposed coffee and cream skin of Chelsea's arm, unleashing the full magnitude of her gift.
"Katie, wait," Garrett pleaded, but she didn't stop, and he wouldn't leave Jared when the wolf was defenseless.
Bella's instant rage was gone as fast as it came when she saw what Seth was doing. Seth distracted the male witch twin, digging in the dirt so it went flying in Alec's face like a real dog while Bella pulled Sam free of the numbing mist, realizing it was their only shot to turn things back in their favor.
Chelsea shook like she was in an electric chair experiencing her death sentence. Right then she was. But Kate was not letting up anytime soon. This moment would last as long as she could possibly make it.
Not even a full minute had passed since Alec's gift was rendered null across the field, but so much had already happened.
Demetri's lips parted, startled at the sudden turn the battle had taken. Before he could blink, Jasper struck.
His fist landed squarely on Demetri's jaw, making him stumble three steps back. Demteri used his momentum to spin around, standing as he did to backhand Jasper. It barely made his head turn.
Demetri shuffled back, assuming a more traditional fighting stance than vampires typically went for, and gave Jasper a more critical once over. The scars along his neck, chest and arms were deliberately exposed in his v-neck t-shirt. Free advertisement for what the Volturi should expect from him.
A series of punches that were blocked or dodged followed, each trying to get one up on the other. Jasper aimed high and low, switching from right to left without pause every few hits, or turning to backhand Demetri after dodging a blow. They each landed a few hits. But the advances were inevitably short lived as the other rebounded. Lack of pain made traditional fighting less effective for most of their kind.
That was not true for Jasper. Each and every strike Jazz made was infused with pain and uncertainty. His gift helped him ensure every blow made the grandest impact possible. It was what had always made him so effective as a fighter. The reason he'd never lost. His hits could hurt, unlike those from most vampires. Unless they possessed a gift like his or Kate's. And the uncertainty created doubt. It threw his opponent off, made the person question their ability to win. Doubt lead to mistakes. Mistakes he could take advantage of.
Jasper threw a roundhouse kick, hard enough to split the stone surface of Demetri's cheek and make him grunt. Then the guard returned the favor. Both wounds were closed within a second leaving no evidence behind that they'd ever existed in the first place.
The other fights continued, though it appeared Kate had finally relinquished her hold on Chelsea, and the guard was now burning alongside Irina.
Demetri began alternating kicks and punches, directing more force behind each strike. But the hits were slower, and Jasper found them easier to duck or block. Occasionally getting lucky and being able to turn the momentum against Demetri. It also meant he could return fire with quick, brutal jabs wherever there were openings in Demetri's defense. He one making the dark tacker hiss and groan.
They were too evenly matched. Even with the aid of his gift. Already he was having to devote his entire focus to this fight alone, largely foregoing his monitoring of the others. The only way Jasper would win this, was if he did something unexpected.
The next time Demetri came at him, Jasper only partially lent back to avoid it. The blow caught Jasper hard in the shoulder, turning him and making him stagger two steps to recenter his gravity. Vampires were more fluid, found balance and movement to rely less on joints, and only a portion of their body was affected, but even they could be thrown off when fighting each other.
Slower than necessary, Jasper started to stand, not spinning back towards Demetri first.
The burn of venom as teeth sank into the back of his shoulder was familiar. Almost tolerable after so many times. Honestly, the pain wasn't that different from feeling the hit Embry took earlier. Jasper knew how to handle pain - not that he liked to, but he could.
Demetri had expected Jasper to react, and was truly shocked when he didn't. Instead, Jazz used the position to flip Demetri over Jasper's head. When Demetri landed, Jasper planted his foot on Demetri's neck, and kicked upward as hard as he could, severing his head at the neck. It didn't go all the way through, but Jasper knelt on his chest, going from kicking to kneeling all in the same singular motion.
"No," Demetri gasped, a begging plea, as Jazz gripped the partially severed head, Demetri's widened shocked eyes locking with his, and finished yanking it off.
He hardly noticed the remains as he lit them on fire, too worried about the others' efforts.
Emmett and Rose were helping Bella and Seth. Alec was no match for the four, particularly now that Bella had some training and backup. He looked to already be missing an arm. His siblings' placement at Bella's side indicated that Felix had been successfully dispatched.
That was Felix, Chelsea, and Demetri dispatched for sure. Only four remained - if that.
Quil, now that he was free, was helping Carmen and Eleazar destroy Gaius. Paul's grey form was there too. The dark, barrel chested former gladiator was surrounded. This was one arena he would not be victorious in.
Carlisle was still working on Embry, the wolf's pain radiating insistently, but Esme had sat and was holding the wolf's massive head in her lap. Jasper felt it, not even one sixtieth of a second later. The moment Embry died. The instant the pain fled and grief rushed in to replace it.
Even if he hadn't felt it, he'd have heard it in the mournful howls of Jake's pack. Each one of the three let loose a single echoing note. Underlying it all was Sam's sniffling whimpers, and the salty tang in the air of baseball-sized tears falling to form puddles in the ripped up earth below his bent muzzle.
There was nothing Jasper could do for the heartsick wolves right then. Right now, he needed to help the others finish their invisible opponent. He would not escape justice for Embry. The rest of the guard had vanished, gone in plumes of lavender smoke, or soon to go that way.
A tribute to Embry and Irina.
Edward, apparently having already dispatched Nadia, had moved to take on Afton moments before Embry died, but even his skill was struggling to pinpoint the vampire's precise location. Jasper felt his frustration.
Others dropped back to give the two brothers space. They'd not been having any luck anyway.
Gode him, Jasper thought. We need to make him visible. He has to lose control. Edward's eyes and emotions conveyed his approval. Even with the recent changes to their relationship, they worked well together.
"Chelsea was his mate," Edward revealed. Well, that explained the rage he sensed coming from nearby. The Cullens were primarily jubilant with their success. The Denalis were mourning Irina, while the wolves mourned Embry.
"She's still burning. That smoldering pile over there is her," Jazz taunted, waving towards one of the six areas burning. They hadn't bothered trying to gather all the pieces together, but burnt the enemies' remains where they were. Everyone carried a lighter that day for that very purpose.
"What's left of her, you mean," Edward said, playing off him. His eyes were scanning the area to Jasper's left, trying to find where the thoughts were coming from.
"I'm not sure he even cares," Jasper said, looking to the left.
"Maybe he'll move on as easily as I did," Edward said, shrugging carelessly.
"Jazz! Duck," Bella shouted, and he did without question, feeling the air whoosh by above him. Of course! He should have known she'd be immune to the gift and able to see through Afton's gift.
"Grrr," Afton growled, furious that he'd missed. The anger seemed to make him momentarily lose control, and he briefly materialized just within Jasper's reach.
Jasper swiped out, catching Afton's wrist and spinning him to catch his other, both secure behind his back in a single move. Afton seemed to pop into existence fully as he did. Edward was there before he'd even glanced up, darting forward to twist the last remaining guard's head off.
He dropped it at his feet and pulled his own lighter out. Once the head caught fire, Jasper tossed the stone body into the flames atop it.
Then it was over.
Jared and Paul and phased back and were watching the remains burn as they stood like sentinels on either side of Sam. Jared was leaning on Quil though - he must have been hurt at some point that Jasper missed. Their alpha was laying on his belly, nose pressed into Embry's fur. Idly, Jasper wondered if they'd ever acknowledged their true relationship.
"No," Edward murmured, but he didn't look over at Jasper. It was his habit so people wouldn't harass him to share the private thoughts he heard.
And now they'll never have the chance.
Edward nodded, and Jazz felt his brother's empathy for the missed opportunities, though it was more pronounced than he expected given how well Edward and Mae had gotten along in the week before she left.
Seth and Leah, both still in their wolf forms - likely so they could talk to Jacob - were with Embry's body as well, along with Carlisle and Esme. Carlisle was wiping the blood off his hand, but Esme was hunched forward, sobbing tearless cries as she stroked Embry's fur. He'd forgotten how close the two had grown while the rest of Esme's children had been gone. She lost a son here today. It was a loss she felt every bit as pronounced as it would be if it were Edward, Emmett or himself that had died.
Jasper continued searching the clearing. Garrett was on the ground by Irina's burnt, charred remains holding Kate and Tanya, both of whom looked hollowed out. Eleazar and Carmen were standing behind them in a tight embrace. Even as he watched, the husk of Irina's body crumbled to ash.
The grief emitted from the two groups was more than Jasper could process. A consuming depression that wanted to drown him. Subconsciously, he took several steps back, needing distance.
Rose and Emmett were keeping the pieces of Alec safe and separate. He watched as Rose surreptitiously looked around, then broke another piece off of the arm she was holding. It reminded Jasper of her vengeful streak, and he smiled a bit as he watched her. There'd be no protests from him over abusing Alec a bit.
Then he found her. Bella. His mate. She was already staring at him, waiting. She grinned, twirling Alec's foot around her finger by the shoelace a couple times, showing off her trophy. Her pride was magnificent. Not to mention well deserved.
As he knew she would, she sensed his discomfort being around so much grief. That, accompanied with the need to feel the other, compelled her.
"Em," Bella called, waiting for her brother to look up, she tossed the foot to him then flashed to Jasper's side.
Before she'd even stopped moving, he'd janked her into his arms and fastened his lips to hers. Every inch of her that he could touch, he did. She returned the caress, checking for herself that he was alive and unharmed - mostly. His hiss when she made contact with the fresh bite wound brought them crashing back to reality faster than a bucket of ice water.
"Who?" she demanded, lips curled back in a feral snarl. The high of battle still riding her hard.
"Demetri. Sorry, darlin', he's already dead," he explained, tone mock regretful. He knew she'd be feeling the urge to kill the one that harmed him. It was the natural instinct of vampires. Hopefully, by teasing, he'd be able to soothe and redirect her emotions. She did have better control than most.
Bella pulled back, glancing around. When her nostrils flared and she snapped her neck to look at a particular pile of ashes - the one he knew to be Demetri's, Jasper felt the protective rage drain away as quickly as it had appeared.
He could picture how differently things with Santiago would have gone if Mae had been the one harmed instead of Jake. Bella was a fierce one.
"I missed how you did it," Jasper said, slipping his arms around her waist and nodding to where Rose and Emmett were still standing guard over Alec.
"I karate chopped his neck," she said, utterly serious.
"That's it?"
"Newborn strength," she said, shrugging, and leaning into him more. "Well, we actually did this cool somersault thingy when he came at me. I planted my foot in his stomach and sort of roll-flipped him - guess you had to see it for yourself," she explained, nuzzling his neck. "Then when we were both standing again, I karate chopped him. His smoke vanished when his head came off, totally gone all at once, so I let Emmett and Seth play tug-of-war with the rest of him - Alec lost."
Jasper chuckled quietly, conscious of the losses suffered by those nearby. He tipped Bella's head back and kissed her again, wanting to taste her lips after hearing of the danger she'd just survived. Not just survived. Triumphed over.
"Let's bring our daughter home," she murmured against his lips.
"Yes," he agreed. The thought of Mae helped lift the grief stricken cloud hanging over him, the shroud imposed by those nearby, even from Bella since she had cared for Embry too.
We're already on our way to the airport - Jacob watched the whole thing and just explained everything. Jasper heard Alice say through Bella's phone, not bothering with hello when she answered.
"When?" Bella demanded.
Tomorrow night, Alice promised. But, Bella? Jake doesn't look good. I don't think he's doing well.