Author's Note: The last chapter didn't copy all of the text so it is now fixed with 320 words longer. I added it into the previously in and at the end of the last chapter as it will make more sense. I'm sorry about it taking so long. My mother was hit by a truck and had both her legs broken, and I'm in nursing school and working. I'll update when I can.

Important Note: As for this chapter, I do not write this lightly or take this lightly. You can skip through the talk with Godric and Nicole if you are uncomfortable with the subject matter, but part of it fills in Godric's history and the other part Nicole's.

WARNING: This chapter contains graphic details that may not be appropriate for all readers. Reader discretion is advised. The author does not support nor encourage the events that occur. In fact, the author believes the perpetrators should be strung up and tortured endlessly.

Previously in Bright New Future:

I rolled my eyes. He was too concerned with the side effects of the blood; our mate was in danger. "Any word on what happened with the Cullens yet?"

"Not from Ben, no; however, the Cold One that made us have the accident admitted part of the details about the family and their plan for Bella. She couldn't stand Bella, blaming her for essentially everything wrong with her psychotic family. They were going to kill Charlie last October, but left before then and the penny one got distracted doing something else. They were going to kill Bella too." Carmanos sounded extremely angry but also sad.

I myself was outraged. I heard the phone began creaking under the strain from my increasing grip. "He will pay for this." I started growling out profanities, explicitly naming the pathetic, pretend vampire.

This time Ben's mate simply carried on with her laptop, typing away. Carmanos, Eric, and I hung up the phones after goodbyes and a promise from him that Bella would call as soon as she woke up.

We went back to the things we were doing, though I went down and added a few more things to the room set up for Sparkle's torture. I couldn't wait until he got here about six hours from now. After going back up, since I couldn't think of something else at the moment, but I wanted to do this before we were preoccupied with our mate's former… with the jerk that hurt her. I walked over to Nicole and asked her to come with me to another room so it would be more private. She brought her laptop with her and we went to her temporary room. The only way I knew how to address it and begin is just saying it. There was no easy way to put this, or talk about it.

"We heard that you were abused growing up," I started.

She nodded and red tears began to well up in her eyes. "Yeah."

"I was too; maybe I can help you."

*Godric*Godric*Godric*Godric*Godric*Godric*

"What makes you think that's even possible?" she asked with disbelief.

I smiled lightly and placating. "You'd be surprised."

"I doubt it's the same thing for you," she said quietly and miserably.

I sighed. "I had a normal childhood for my time until I was around twelve or thirteen. My village was invaded by the Roman Empire and my fiancée killed in front of me; I was taken as a prisoner by Julius Caesar's army and sold as a slave in Rome. The man that bought me was a vampire, who ended up turning me. He was a cruel man. He tortured me, raped me, and even put a brand on me."

I paused for a minute, needing to collect myself after thinking about what happened. I still felt part of the pain and horror from then. She was stunned into silence, a look of shock, pity, and sadness on her face. I felt bad about telling some of this to her before I have even Bella. However, I wanted to help her move on from being hurt. She looked back at me as I continued.

"He was one of the cruelest people I've ever met, or seen or heard of. I was tortured horribly every day, except once a month and holidays. I was raped every day as well. This happened for a total of eighty years." She gasped in surprise. "I got my revenge though. I'm sure you are aware it's illegal to kill another vampire?"

She nodded yes with her eyes widening at the mention of it.

"I had to face the Ancient version of the Authority for killing my maker, which is extremely rare as it is. But even with him dead, I had a hard time dealing with what happened emotionally. Yes, I had gotten my revenge, but it didn't take away the pain and damage as I thought it would. For more than 1800 years, I hid that behind a mask of inflicting torture and creating mass death. I only used the bad parts of being a vampire. I destroyed entire cities because I was bored. I didn't care. I earned the nickname of Death and I relished in it."

Her face was rapt with attention; she was so absorbed in the story. I wonder if she realized I wanted her to tell the story of her life as well. I moved on to the story of how I found Eric. I told her how it started to change me only slightly, making me realize how I didn't want to be like my maker. I told her of how Eric and I even centuries later destroyed whole cities.

"I started feeling remorse for killing thousands of innocents, likely millions over my lifetime. That was when I started to question why I did those things and if I could ever get over what happened to me. I realized I was taking out my revenge on everyone, even though I had already killed him. I was angry at the world for having me go through that and no one stopping it. So I placed the anger and hurt where it belonged: on the man that turned me. Since he was already dead, I had to find another way to make myself feel better."

I paused, remembering my creative solution from near 200 years ago. I took pleasure in it still.

"I made a fake version of him that was essentially what is now a punching bag with legs, arms, and a head. I drew a picture of him and put it on the head before dressing it in clothes he dressed in. The punching bag didn't survive what I did to it, but considering I was 1,900 years old at the time and you are still considered a newborn, at least until you are twenty years old vampire wise, it may survive what you do to it if that's what you choose. Writing in a diary about all your feelings about it helps as well. So does talking to someone."

I stopped there hoping she would take the hint and talk about what happened to her. She was silent for a few minutes before finally beginning.

"I thought I could trust him. Why shouldn't I have been able to? He was my father, or so I thought. How could anyone with that title do something like that to anyone, much less a child, even more so their own child. It's horrible to do that to a child. He's a horrible person regardless. I'm not the only one he did that stuff to, well most of it anyway. He even used me as a child prostitute so he could get drugs." She paused.

"He beat me then raped me, so many times. Him hitting me made him quite… happy if you know what I mean. He was sick. He convinced me it was okay and normal, yet I always felt that it wasn't. I didn't know what to think."

I was silent for a minute waiting to see if she would continue. When she didn't, I started talking. "You're right; that is sick and it is not right like he claimed. You have every right to feel that way."

She smiled slightly. "I know." After pausing briefly, she continued. "I remember a feeling that I didn't understand when I was seven; I was lying awake after he did that to me and he was asleep. I found out what it was after I met Ben." She beamed at the thought. "I wanted to kill that thing. Ben wouldn't let me, saying it was too dangerous and could expose our world. I also remember the voice he used when he talked about doing other things; when I found out what the tone meant... I was sick to my stomach. I hope he dies painfully and slowly and then gets tortured for eternity."

I do have to admit I was stunned that her thoughts were so violent. "It doesn't ever go away entirely; you can make yourself better than him and you can heal, but you'll always have a mark on your heart where it happened. That mark can turn into something good though; something that makes you do positive things with what hurt you – like helping others that went through the same thing."

She looked at me curiously. "How do you know it doesn't ever get better?"

I thought about my answer. "I suppose I don't know."

"Thank you, Godric," she said gratefully. "I think I need some time to think about things."

I nodded understandably. "You're welcome, Nicole."

I stood, leaving the room and returning to the living room where Eric awaited. He was mindlessly scanning a jewelry website. I sat down on the couch and opened my laptop.

"Who are you trying to impress now, Pamela or Bella?" I asked Eric.

"I'm looking for a special kind of ring for Bella. Want to help look?" His eyes flipped up to mine knowingly with a slight smirk.

"Absolutely." I was next to him in an instant.

We sorted through the many options before we found two that were absolutely perfect for our little mate, one for each of us to give her. Eric clicked the order button and they would be here before she got back.

I found something to read and Eric was taking care of Sheriff's duties until we finally heard my phone ring saying I have a text message. It was Bella asking if it was possible to talk or if we were asleep. I informed Eric immediately and he put his things to the side. While doing so, I pressed the button to call our little mate.

"Hello," she greeted excitedly.

Every bit of worry and concern flooded to our forethoughts and it was clear in our voice. "Are you okay?" we asked at the same time.

"Just a little achy in my neck and where the seatbelt was," she replied.

Doubt colored our faces and our tones. "Are you sure, Bella?" Eric questioned hesitantly.

"I've been injured enough times to know the difference," she replied cheekily.

I demanded she was taken to the doctor tonight; she was reluctant, but Carmanos agreed instantly. We thanked him before carrying on to what happened, letting Bella know about the Cullens. She was surprised, and crushed, that her former family could do that to her. Once we hung up, we went back to what we were doing before. It was fine for about fifteen minutes, when Bella had a feeling of dread pass through her, and eventually fear. Eric and I looked at each other warily. How much could our mate possibly go through before she would get a break?

Finally, fifteen minutes later, my phone rang. "Are you okay, Bella? We felt you get scared again earlier." My voice was worried I knew.

"I'm fine," she said happily but with a note of her own worry seeping through. "A vampire broke into Charlie's house while we were coming back from the reservation and when we got back, I got scared about whether he was alive or dead," she explained.

Anger flowed through Eric and I. Such an act could be an attempt for leverage, or it could be revenge. Either option would merely be an easy fix: murder.

"What's this vampire's name," Eric asked.

"Jane; she works with the Volturi. However, she's no newborn like they claim. She just drinks human blood instead. Edward told me about her one time; she's centuries old."

I screamed in anger, making the sound of a feral and wild animal, my other persona coming through. Death was now a participant in this act of war against the species.

"How dare they violate the treaty?" I roared at no one in particular.

I could recognize my progeny was upset, but not as upset as I was. Maybe that was because he wasn't a crucial part to making the treaty that existed before he was turned, or born for that matter. He didn't entirely comprehend as well as I did. I would wait until later to explain to our little mate.

"Bella, do you know why they came to your house?" Eric asked calmly, hoping that our mate's hesitance would not affect her response.

We heard the phone change hands; Ben's voice came through the receiver. "They were looking for Bella because they were working with the Cullens to have her killed because of a prophecy about their end once she turns into a vampire like us. Or, if she was turned into a Cold One, they would rule forever."

I was roaring so loud that the house started shaking. I tried to restrain myself enough to where I wouldn't cause any damage to the foundations of the house, or the walls or windows. "They don't have the right to touch our mate!"

"Do you think the Volturi are dumb enough to cross you, Godric?" my progeny questioned curiously.

A dark smile spread across my face. "If they are, it will end in death."

He had heard me say something similar in the same tone before. I observe it still sends shivers down his spine, as it should. Usually, Death stayed locked up from the need to be more civilized as time changed and we were more easily discovered through technological advances. Occasionally there would be a reason to let that part of myself resurface and take control. Those times seemed to be the most fun I've ever had.

The Authority tended to look the other way when I let that part of me out since they were terrified and I almost always have had a good reason to let that part of me out. I'm also one of the oldest vampires in existence. Now that it is Death and Eric, who they feared as well, avenging their mate and breach in contract of treaty, I know that the Authority will only support us. Add a 5,500 year old vampire into the mix and the Volturi have no chance.

Ben, Eric, and I proposed ideas for the Volturi but we weren't going to finalize anything yet. Some ideas included killing them all (me/Death), killing only those involved (Eric), and punishing the involved parties and forming a new treaty (Ben). We would get the input of others, including Colin since he is the King of Louisiana and formally we would need the approval of the Authority.

Eventually we hung up; Charlie had come out of the emergency room. Now I laid plans for revenge on Edward Cullen and the Volturi, and this Jane girl. The plane was nearly here with the containers that held the separated pieces of Edward; I couldn't wait personally. I was going to put him back together slowly and with super glue. Maybe I would even keep some parts of him off. One in particular I might just destroy first, making him watch in the process. I smirked at the thought.

After another thirty minutes or so, Eric's day man came to the door. We went into a light safe room for a few minutes while he brought in the containers and left, resealing the house. We went back and saw five, heavy, thick safes. They had disregarded the boxes to go around them since it was privately handled by us instead of overnight FedEx. We had them down into the area set up for his arrival in less than ten seconds. They were conveniently labeled by which body parts were inside.

I opened the one with his torso first, then the one with his head. That was what was needed for him to be awake. I placed superglue on his neck on both parts before placing the head on top… backwards. I secured the restraints with the front part of him facing the cold, silver-colored surface of the rolling slat. Currently its wheels were off and to the side. I heard the sewing and snapping sound of the head reattaching itself.

He took a deep, shaky breath in, filling his lungs with unneeded air but it came out a bit… choking. I had added an aerosol spray of something that drives them insane, making them weaker, causing them pain, and want to throw up, sort of like silver does to us.

I picked up the scalpel that I had coated in their venom before slicing into his back. He screamed in surprise and pain, making Eric rush down to see what was happening. When he saw the scene before him, he just chuckled and leaned against the wall to watch the thing that hurt our Bella was tortured. The venom poured out of him. I caught it in a glass jar for future use. He kept trying to turn around and look at me, but he was secured enough that he couldn't. After the screaming started to subside, he managed to grit out something.

"Who are you? Why are you doing this?" His voice was filled with hatred but you could still hear the pain. Eric and I were enjoying every minute of it.

I sliced into him again, going deeper in a parallel line of the previous cut. He asked the same questions again. I responded with a third incision. Every second of his screaming was sweet and exciting. We couldn't wait for the rest. I saw a large blade being handed to me, coated in venom. I looked over and saw Eric with a very dark desire to torture the being before us and I more than happily gave in to my progeny's request.

I pushed the blade down into the cavity that would be his heart, making him feel the pain our little mate went through. She had described it as though a gaping hole was in her chest. I intended to accomplish that, but not quite yet. He screamed loudly, making the young newborn upstairs shriek in surprise. Eric went to check on her quickly, and I heard her talking to Ben on the phone. He was making sure she was okay after feeling her surprise I've no doubt. When Eric explained it was the Cold One being tortured, they both became very pleased. Neither of them liked Cold Ones after the run in with one a few years before; though in Ben's case, he had not liked them for thousands of years before that.

I continued the blade from Eric for a few more minutes before I sat it down, having more devious methods in mind. I took a medicine dropper like instrument made of glass and much larger, roughly about six inches long. I sucked up some of his own venom and held it over him. I started dripping it around his neck slowly. His near deafening roars started instantly as the venom burned him, making smoke come pouring off him. It slowly ate away at his neck. I applied a little more for good measure before putting the remnant in the jar once again and setting the dropper down. It would take an hour more but his head would become decapitated from the rest of his torso.

I went upstairs and started helping Eric do paperwork so we could have more fun later.

*Time Skip Ahead to Ten at Night*

I called Bella to tell her good night; she was very sleepy I could tell. Eric and I both told her to sleep well with good dreams before she hung up and went to sleep.

We had very much continued to torture Edward, not yet telling him why we are doing this or who we are. However, we unfortunately had to keep ourselves from continuing for the moment since Eric and I had to meet Colin. He was coming here so Edward couldn't escape. We were going to tell him what happened and have him start thinking about options and drawing up the right paperwork in case we do go to war with the Volturi.