JASPER POV

Bella is sleepin' in her bed. Her face looks so peaceful. She really is beautiful.

My phone dings, signallin' that a text has arrived. I pick up my phone and see a text from Alice.

OMG Jas! I'm soooo happy for you! You and Bella are going to be so happy!

I smile and reply, Thanks Aly.

I lay back on the couch in Bella's rooms—I can't bear to be away from her after all that's happened. The fact that even Heidi is part of Jane's scheme makes it all the more disturbin'.

As I lay there I try to come up with a fittin' punishment.

The night passes swiftly, with Bella only stirrin' twice—my fault, I was projectin' out anger—but not completely wakin' up. As the sunlight comes streaming in the room, I finally decide the last details of my punishment. It will be an example to all and every vampire will know that the God of War is back, and he will not tolerate shit when it comes to his mate.

A small smile graces my lips. My mate. Bella is my mate.

"What has you in such a good mood?" Bella asks groggily, stretchin' her limbs in a delicious manner as she forces her body to start the day.

I didn't even notice her wake up.

Her hair are messy and her face is puffy and red from sleep, and there is a tiny trail of drool that runs down her cheek—proof of her profound sleep—and she's the most beautiful thing I've ever seen in my existence.

"I was thinkin', darlin'" I answer her.

She hops down the bed and goes to the kitchen to fix herself some breakfast and I follow. "About what?" she asks. She starts makin' pancakes.

"Nothin' of relevance. How do ya feel?" I quickly change the subject. I'm not ready to tell her she's my mate. She already has enough on her plate. "Ready for the trial today?"

She nods, puttin' a rather impressive pile of pancakes on the plate. She adds maple syrup and then digs in. "How do you think they will punish them?" she asks through the food in her mouth.

I shrug, despite knowin' exactly how they'll be punished. 'Cause I'll be the one punishin' them, as I am Bella's mate. But she doesn't need ta know that.

"We'll see then" she says, then hesitates a bit. A bit of shame joins her overall peaceful emotions. I'm about to ask what's wrong, but she speaks before I can. "Is it bad that I'm looking forward to their trial, and the fact that they'll most likely die?"

I chuckle, "No, Bella. You're not a bad person."

A knock at the door interrupts our conversation.

It's Felix. "The trial will start in an hour, if you are ready. The trial will be streamed on a special private channel so that all vampires across the world will see it."

I nod and he smiles, winkin', knowin' their punishment will be by my hand, and it will be exemplar.

FELIX POV

This is going to be amazing.

Do I feel sad about seeing the death of two of my former comrades? No. They are two spoiled brats who thought they are better than us. One thinks of herself as a queen, the other as Aphrodite. Well, they are neither. But they'll soon be dead.

I meet up with Demetri and the others in the throne room. Jane and Heidi are already in the middle of the room, kneeling, subdued by Alec's fog. They are wearing a simple beige t-shirt and brown pants, completely different from their usual outfits.

The cameras are already in place, we are just waiting for Bella and the God of War to join us.

They arrive a few minutes after the cameras have been turned on. Most of the vampire world is already tuned. Comments start coming in from the live, may are astounded that the God of War is back, and an equal number is wondering about Bella.

She looks sharp: a long maroon dress hugs her curves, leaving her arms bare but her chest, neck and legs covered. Her heels click almost eerily in the silence of the room, and the coldness in her eyes makes her look like a vengeful queen. Her hair are cascading down her back in luscious waves, not one strand out of place. The God of War looks equally terrifying: dressed in black from head to toe, his dark red eyes promise pain and fury.

"Welcome, dear friends" Master Aro begins, "We are here for an unfortunate occasion. Two of our own coven—Jane and Heidi—have betrayed us. As such, we will have a trial, and the sentence and punishment will be decided."

A murmur of agreement fills the silence.

"We shall begin with the accused's versions" Master Marcus says, "Alec, please, let Heidi speak."

Alec, beside me, bows and lifts his fog wordlessly. Demetri, on my other side, rolls his eyes when Heidi immediately starts to screech about her innocence and how Jane manipulated her into doing her bidding. Lord, her voice is so annoying.

Master Caius seems to think the same thing and barks "Shut up, woman! Aro, just read her, I can't stand to hear her whiny voice once more."

Alec immediately covers her again, making her fall limply on the stone floor. Aro sighs heavily and proceeds to read Heidi.

After a couple of minutes when only Bella's heartbeat could be heard, Aro sighs again, more angrily this time, and retreats back to his throne. "So, it seems that Heidi has a strong sentiment of jealousy and hatred toward our dear Bella, and as consequence, she participated in her attempted rape and homicide. Such crimes cannot be left unpunished. But first, let's hear another version of the facts. Jasper Whitlock, if you will tell us about your take on this?"

"Certainly, Master" he says, taking a step forward. "I sensed some ill feelings from Jane and Heidi since the beginnin'. Jealousy, hatred, anger. I merely attributed them to the fact that a human was gettin' better accommodations than them. I thought they would fade soon, but they didn't. Jane kept feelin' jealous, but the mission made me concentrate less on her emotions and more on the happenings in Mexico. Only one time I felt somethin' that bothered me: we were readyin' for the attack, and Jane was talkin' with some guards. She was feelin' malicious, mischievous and hateful, while the guards were slowly and tentatively feelin' more lustful towards Bella. I sent them a wave of emotions to warn them to back off. Fortunately it worked. I suppose she was tryin' to turn them on Bella. Then, when that didn't work, she took matters in her own hands and, durin' the battle against Maria's newborns, she tried to kill Bella by cowardly throwin' ragin' newborns her way. Bella—I don't know how—managed to defend herself until me and Caius arrived and restrained Jane."

By the time he finishes his tale, the room is filled with growls and hisses of anger. Caius' eyes are blazing.

"It seems our Jane and Heidi have been very naughty" Aro says, his words playful but his tone anything but.

"Master" a guard calls. He is the one in charge of taking care of the online connection with the rest of the vampire world. "The spectators are requesting more details about Miss Bella."

"Oh, my. Yes! We forgot! Goodness me, of course" Aro exclaims, contrite. "Bella, dear, would you like to present yourself, if that's alright" he asks her gently.

Bella blushes a bit but steps forward, nodding. "My name is Isabella Swan, but I prefer Bella. I'm going to be 19 in two months, on September 13th. I live in America, I came in contact with the vampire world through the Cullens. I discovered their identity not too long after they moved to my city" he concludes, not giving away anything that might put her in danger. Smart girl.

"They ask about her involvement in the mission against Maria" the guard says then.

This time it's Caius that answers. "She was called along with the God of War here to help us in the mission to vanquish Maria once and for all. She has been vital to the mission thanks to her strange immunity to all mental gifts. During the end of the mission, after she killed Maria's right-hand man, she exhibited signs of a physical shield, along with the already present mental one."

Many are surprised by this, especially those who weren't with us in Mexico. "They ask if the God of War is truly back" the guard says.

At this, Jasper steps forward. "Yes, he is. And on this note" he growls, "I demand payment for the wrongs done by these two vampires to Bella."

The room immediately quietens.

Master Marcus nods his head. "Permission granted. What is the punishment you wish to inflict on these two, if found guilty?"

I think the entire room holds its breath—metaphorically of course—waiting for his answer.

Jasper sneers hatefully. "They'll have to fight against each other, while experiencin' the same level of pain felt durin' the change. Whoever survives will have to fight against me: I'll make sure every wound will hurt thrice as much, and that every sound will be perceived twice as painfully as a newborn vampire perceives it."

Fuck. That's painful.

It's not only my face that grimaces at that sentence.

Every vampire here knows the pain they'll feel will be unbearable. They deserve every second of it.

"I couldn't have chosen a better punishment myself. Awake the accused, Alec." Master Aro orders imperiously.

Jane and Heidi blink away the last remnants of Alec's gift, and while Jane has the dignity to remain silent, Heidi's body is wrecked by tearless sobs. Pathetic, really.

"Be quiet!" Caius barks, and Heidi still immediately, fear prompting her to obey.

Demetri, beside me, inches forward a bit, anticipation for the verdict and punishment clear in his eyes.

"You will now be judged. If found guilty, you'll be punished by the God of War himself, as he requested. The punishment has already been discussed and approved" Aro says.

"Let's get this over with" Caius sneers.

All three of the Masters stand up. Bella's heartbeat is steady but fast, the fiddling of her hands confirming her nervousness.

BELLA POV

Am I nervous?

Yes.

Am I scared?

A bit.

Am I going to pass out?

I hope not.

Aro turns to the guy in front of the computer. "What do our spectators say? Guilty or not?"

A few seconds then, "Guilty by unanimous vote."

"Guard?" he then asks.

They all answer as one, even Alec, with startling determination. "Guilty."

Then Aro turns to his brothers, "What say you, brothers?"

"Guilty as charged" Caius sneers, and Marcus nods tiredly his agreement.

"Very well, then. The vote is unanimous. Heidi and Jane, former members of the Volturi coven, you are hereby found guilty as charged, and will be punished accordingly" Aro says imperiously, towering over the small figure of Jane and the trembling one of Heidi.

At that, both Jane and Heidi go crazy: they start screaming, and kicking, and even while they are subdued by Alec, their faces still remain angry and fearful.

"Bring them to the Arena" Caius commands, and immediately four guards step forward, grabbing the two motionless vampires and dragging them out of the room.

I'm momentarily confused, but when the entire room starts to follow them, both me and Jasper trial behind them. Even the computer guy follows, with all the equipment to stream the trial.

Jasper grins at me, and I grin back. His presence makes me feel safe. I'm not bothered by what he's about to do to Jane and Heidi—they deserve everything—instead, I'm touched by his fierce need to avenge me, and by his protectiveness.

"If you want, you can go away when the punishment begins—" he starts, but I'm having none of it.

"Nope. I'll be there. I can handle it" I say, confidence in my tone.

His eyes, now red, soften. "I know you can, Bella."

How he pronounces my name makes my insides flutter, and it's only the sound of two massive doors opening that shakes me from my reverie.

We suddenly find ourselves in a massive arena. It reminds me of the Colosseum. Several rows of stone seats occupy the majority of the walls of the room, while small passages allow us to reach the fighting pit. The sun shines on us as the guards dump Jane and Heidi in the middle of the fighting pit. Dust rises and settles back on their crumpled forms, making their sparkle seem dirty and somehow wrong.

A hand on my elbow makes me turn toward its owner. Caius nods toward one of the front seats in what appeared to be the VIP area—if you can even call it that. Four maroon seats welcome me and the Kings, but I worry when Jasper doesn't follow us. My confusion must be transparent on my face, because Aro quickly says "Jasper will deal of his punishment from another platform. Don't worry, he'll be safe."

As if on cue, Jasper blurs and appears back on another platform, right in front of us. He winks at me and then nods at Alec. The black mist surrounding Jane and Heidi immediately dissipates, and they look around in fright. Their eyes quickly find Jasper and they both tremble in fear when they meet his furious black eyes.

He looks magnificent, his skin shining under the sun and black eyes glinting with power and fury.

He looks positively edible.

Wait, what?

His eyes immediately meet mine, but before either one of us can do anything, Aro's voice booms in the silence.

"Let the punishment begin!"

JASPER POV

So Bella is attracted to me, huh? She enjoys watchin' me exhibit my power.

I can tell that she is confused by her feelings, but that ain't gonna stop me from givin' her the show of her life.

After Aro's declaration, I grin evilly at the two whack-jobs in front of me.

"Ya'll pay for what ya did" I growl.

And pay they will.

For my Bella.

For my mate.


Hello guys! I'm so sorry it took me so long to update, but things ave been a bit hectic lately. Anyway, I hope you like the chapter, and please... REVIEW!