A/N: Super sorry about the long delay between chapters! I discovered my biggest support system in my family ended up not being very supportive and extremely toxic instead. So I ended up having to take legal action against him and we had to move because he knew where we lived.
But, I'm back now and hoping to upload again soon-ish!
Happy Winter Holiday!
Chapter Four: Unfortunate Circumstances and Unwanted Invitations
Aro and Caius were once again in the turret room preparing their strategies against the new werewolves. There were only eighteen days until the next full moon, which gave them plenty of time to prepare, but there were uncertainties:
When Aro read Mioara's mind, the only werewolf he'd seen was one in human form who'd searched the girl out, assaulting her. Mihaela's mind wasn't any better. She'd befriended another werewolf, fallen in love with him, because of that, she and her sister were attacked by a vampire, who hadn't been able to kill them before the werewolves eliminated the threat.
There were only two werewolves that they knew of.
The other variable was the werewolves themselves. In both Mioara and Mihaela's memories, the wolves possessed a consciousness. They weren't unaware beasts like the ones the Volturi slaughtered before. Somehow they were capable of an intricate thought process, allowing them to destroy the attacking vampire and simultaneously allow the two women to complete their transformation. A strange unity had been established between the children of the moon and vampires millennium's ago and somehow, the Volturi was left unaware.
Perhaps this was due to their sentience that they remained under the radar? During the nights of the full moon, they'd keep hidden. At least while the Volturi hunted in the area looking to exterminate their species.
Currently, Aro and Caius studied ancient maps of Europe, the maps were quite outdated, but, they'd used them while hunting down the children of the moon before. Every den or home was marked. They transferred the data to a more recent 2015 atlas.
The old hideouts weren't close to the new wolves, though strangely it seemed to be centered between a few. Their fetid scents would be covered by their feral friends and their tamed mind kept them out of harm.
Aro wondered if they possessed the ability to transform at will as shapeshifter's did? Maybe there was a selection of humans who carried a genetic trait allowing that control, as there were humans who possessed gifts after their vampiric transformation? There had to be some correlation.
The more they spoke about the children of the moon, the more uneasy Caius grew. He was in constant movement, tapping his fingers against the wooden table, albeit a bit too harshly. Aro hoped he wouldn't have to another table this month.
Aro kept his composure, calmly replying to each of Caius's worries. If the wolves were capable of transforming at will, Alec and Jane were a strong defense. If their pack was large, the Volturi would prepare by creating more transitory members, newborns created just for the fight. A newborn army was against their rules, but if any argued against the idea, they would be silenced. There were also witnesses in the area they would ask for reinforcement.
Once newborns were selected, the entire guard would be examined. Aro would need those who were capable of holding their own in a fight and capable of training the newborns. Those who weren't of any use to him would be slaughtered. Heidi would need to bring a few extra humans to soothe the appetite of the newborns.
The only issue Aro couldn't quite figure out was how quickly and harshly they'd have to train the newborns. Humanity had grown docile over the millenniums. While there was still violence among them, their combat knowledge was useless against creatures of folklore.
Aro's gaze drifted across the room before setting on Marcus' empty throne. He hadn't gone unnoticed the previous evening when he left the compound, Aro knew he'd gone to visit the young woman he was currently courting. Though concern grew whenever Marcus returned, he seemed more downcast than usual.
The Volturi leader welcomed him home without question, figuring whatever dispute they'd gotten into would be easier solved if he did not intrude. But, Aro would be lying to himself if the matter didn't concern him.
Linnea was gifted, able to use her powers in her human state, whether her powers were subconsciously active or if she invoke the ability didn't matter to him. What mattered was the development of the gift. If she was anything like young Bella, her gift would only grow once she became immortal. Aro only needed the conflict between her and Marcus to mend itself, and with time, her gifts would be added to his collection.
As if he were given a cue, Marcus entered the room, hastily striding across the stone floor, taking his place next to his brothers. He noted that Aro seemed to be curious about his absence, yet as he had when Marcus returned from visiting Linnea, Aro refused to ask him anything about his venture. It was beginning to get unsettling.
Caius raised a brow, additionally confused. He would need to question Aro's evasiveness at a later time.
Aro gave Marcus a summary of what they'd already discussed, and Marcus agreed with every decision, though he'd never been in accordance with the unnecessary slaughter of the guard, there was no reasoning with Aro once he failed to potential in a vampire.
The tactics weren't important. They were the same traps and guises, they'd been exploiting for centuries. And the more Marcus listened to his brothers' prattle on about possible outcomes, the less he paid attention. Though he remained alert.
That was one of the many perks of vampirism; the ability to ignore conversations while simultaneously being able to recall every word spoken.
Perhaps that was a talent he developed after spending an eternity in a coven he wanted no part of.
He hadn't thought much about what he wanted in years. There was a time where he longed to roam the world as a nomadic, as he'd done in his newborn years. But that dream was lost with Didyme's death.
One of the biggest flaws of vampirism was their memory; sharp and pristine, able to remember a thousand years' worth of events. Humans were lucky. A single traumatic event could destroy a lifetime of memories. They had the chance to forget.
Marcus wasn't as lucky. He could still remember the moment he was made aware of Didyme's passing. The horrified expression on Aro's face, the glance of pity Caius gave him, and the rage that quickly built up inside him. Several covens had been eliminated by Marcus, single-handedly because they had quarrels with the Volturi. They had a motive.
Every single coven he mercilessly slaughtered was proven innocent by Aro's gift and the guilt of their deaths weighed down on Marcus each passing day.
At the end of his rampage, there was nothing. He hadn't solved Didyme's murder. He couldn't bring her back. He'd done nothing but push himself further and further into agony. He was left empty. Numb. Nothing mattered anymore. Not the Volturi, not his freedom, not avenging Didyme. There was no longer any value in his own existence.
Many believed that Marcus became an apathetic husk, unable to feel anything.
Aro knew better than this. Because of his gift, he understood the depths of his brother's pain, and for a time; Aro refused the slightest form of physical contact with him. He couldn't handle the torrent of thoughts swirling through Marcus' mind.
And now, Aro was avoiding his hand again. This time for completely different reasons; Marcus dared to hope. Aro would not vitiate the happiness his brother received from the young woman.
How many shops were they going to visit? Linnea's mother woke her up at the crack of dawn to drag her around the city, claiming they needed to go site seeing, yet all they'd visited were a couple of souvenir shops. Currently, they were in Piazza San Marco, visiting a cafe to fuel her mother's severe caffeine addiction. She was already on her fourth drink.
While Ava hopelessly flirted with the barista in very broken Italian, Linnea wandered off to a nearby store that sold trinkets and baubles. The shelves in the front of the store were full of items meant to grab the attention of tourists. Magnets and keychains saying "Hey, I visited Italy", nameplates, with common American names, and of course, specialized Christmas ornaments and snow globes in September.
Her eyes drifted across the shelves before transfixing on a gaudy white, gold, and aquamarine tear-drop-shaped necklace. The item was labeled as genuine Murano Glass. It was lacking the plastic sheen of all the other jewelry in this section and it was three times as expensive. This piece was the eye-catcher, designed to be out of budget, but people would ask about it and a salesman would step in to guide their victim towards the back of the store, where they kept more of their expensive jewelry, though almost all of it would cost less than this one.
Linnea hoped that her mother would realize where she'd gone and abandon the man who was only reciprocating her flirtatious nature so she'd tip him more.
Sadly, almost twenty minutes had gone by and Ava hadn't bugged.
Instead, a woman tapped on her shoulder.
As Linnea turned to answer, she prepared several responses, hoping it was a clerk asking if she needed assistance and not someone asking for directions. The woman's ethereal beauty caught her off guard. She was taller than Linnea, paler too. Her features were elegantly complemented by the wine red dress she wore, which strangely didn't dilute the red tones in her mahogany hair that hung over her right shoulder. Her eyes were a stunning shade of violet-blue, an obvious sign of contacts.
Something felt off about the woman. "Is something wrong?" Linnea replied in a hushed tone, glancing across the room, wondering if a strange man had been following her and she was pretending they were friends.
A man was lingering near the front, close to the door, starring at their interaction. He was well-dressed, but not nearly as well dressed as the woman in front of her. "Is he bothering–?"
The man shifted his weight, striding towards them.
As he walked, the chain around his neck moved, making the pendant that was once hiding under his scarf visible. A golden V, ornamented, which several crests.
Linnea sucked in a deep breath, trying to back away only for the woman to reach out and grab her arm. Her eyes flashed back to the women, noticing a small splotch of red showing through her contacts.
"Please, come with me." The woman requested in a faint tone, holding out her hand.
Every fiber of Linnea's being begged her to resist, to run away, but she didn't have control over herself.
Her hand was freezing, as she glanced down to investigate she realized that she was hand-in-hand with the woman. Tightly holding onto a vampire who likely meant her harm. And she couldn't pry her vision away from their hands. She was barely conscious enough to notice the ground moving beneath them as they traversed the city. By the time Linnea glanced back up, the three of them were in an abandoned building and she was slumped on the ground, leaning haphazardly against a wall.
The room was very dimly lit, the only light source coming from a window where the curtain rod was bent and hanging down.
Her head was throbbing. Every pulse from her heart made it feel like her skull could split open. Looking around the room, Linnea searched for a way to escape. There was no way she could outrun a vampire, let alone two. But, if she were able to get into a crowd of people, there's no way they'd be able to pursue her.
Whenever she tried to focus on her captors, she found it was only possible to concentrate on the woman. The man was hazy, she couldn't define any of his features.
"There's something familiar about her scent." She heard the male comment. The woman brushed it off, "She's probably wearing the same perfume as one of our other -guests-."
Running her fingers through her hair the woman added, "You do want to be careful with this one. She resisted longer than most." She sounded annoyed.
"Aw, are you frustrated because you had to put effort into wooing her?" He laughed. "Though I don't blame you, she is rather perplexing. Occasionally the tenor of her mind changes. It's as if she's trying to camouflage herself. Perhaps she's gifted?'
"She is mundane. The only thing interesting about her is that she's full of blood." The woman hissed while putting in a new pair of contacts.
"Heidi, you're getting all feisty over an ordinary girl? That's not like you." She glared at him. "Just transport her to the church."
Another chuckle left his lips as he promenaded up to Linnea. "Don't worry, I'll take good care of you." As he reached for her, she squeezed her eyes shut.
"I'd like to thank each of you for stopping to pray with me." Heidi's voice resonated through the room, echoing as if they were in a cathedral of some sort. That was strange, her voice shouldn't have reverberated in such a small room.
Linnea's eyes fluttered open. The area was dimly lit, but she could see several people around her, in the same position as she was, knelt in prayer. They were in the undercroft of a castle, elaborately decorated with stained glass windows that didn't make sense. They weren't actual windows, just display pieces with flickering light sources behind them.
"Now we can continue the tour. Follow me, please." Heidi stood, she was at the front of the group, accompanied by another girl, nearly a foot shorter than her. She had shiny long dark hair which fell to her lower back and she was dressed more modestly than the woman next to her.
Everyone around her stood, following the beautiful woman's commands without thinking.
Linnea wondered where everyone else had come from. How had they even managed to transport all these people to the church? Noticing her lack of enthusiasm, the man-made his way to her side, crouching next to her, with his hand held out. "Are you alright, madam?"
She tried looking up at him and found herself unable to. Her gaze dropped and her thoughts tried convincing her to stare at Heidi instead, but she wouldn't. Instead, she focused on the golden V-shaped pendant dangling from his neck.
There was no escape, but, if she were being taken to the Volturi, Marcus would have to be there. He would save her.
"Madam?" He repeated, a bit more urgently, prompting her to reach up and take his hand, giving him a reassuring smile. "Sorry, I'm a bit tired today."
He returned the gesture, helping her up before nudging her in front of him.
"Stay together and follow me," Heidi instructed with an overly cheerful tone.
As they walked Heidi prattle on and on about the false histories of this place, enjoining everyone to look at sculptures and paintings as they passed. And everyone allowed themselves to blindly follow the vampires, without questioning a thing about their 'surprise' trip.
The vampires quickly took note of Linnea's distress, noting that she didn't have interests in the silly statues and plaques the others did. Again the male closed in on her from behind, throwing his arm around her shoulders as they walked.
"Not much for history, huh? Me either. But, I hear there's going to be one hell of a feast at the end of this tour."
Heidi glanced backward, shooting a cold glare at the man. He lowered his arm, placing his palm on her lower back, nudging her forward as he went to chat with another tourist, making it seem as if it were his job to make their guests comfortable.
A larger male closed in behind the group, effectively closing them in. There was no chance of escape before and with a vampire behind them, no one could fall behind.
Heidi opened a pathway, urging everyone to follow her inside. The walls were bland and devoid of detail, save for a light every several feet to keep the corridor lit just enough for humans not to freak out. The further down the hallway they traveled, the colder they got. Heidi faked being chilly and uncomfortable herself, but promised the trip was worth it.
The man accompanying her stepped forward, pushing open the heavy wooden doors far too easily. This passage led straight to the Volturi's turret room. Everyone filed in behind Heidi and the door was sealed behind them.
"Ah, Heidi, you've done such a good service for us." Aro's eyes scanned across the guests, searching for any potential candidates to add to the guard. His gaze landed on Linnea, having recognized her from Marcus' memories. He thought about pointing the young maiden out to his brother, but, Marcus hadn't reacted. Perhaps he'd washed his hands of her?
Aro wouldn't let any harm come to the woman at first, he would wait for his brothers' reaction before deciding his next move. "-I do hope they enjoyed the tour?" He completed his earlier thought process.
His hesitation didn't go unnoticed by Caius, who followed his line of sight to Linnea. There was something strangely familiar about the energy she carried.
"Yes, I'm certain they did." Heidi walked across the chamber, along with Demetri, standing to the right of the tour group.
People were beginning to grow uneasy, who were all these people? Why were they cloaked in black and gray?
"Buon Giorno, visitors, welcome to Volterra!" Aro's tone was forcefully cheery.
Finally, Linnea was able to pry her attention away from the beautiful woman, fully able to search around the room, noting how many vampires surrounded them. Far too many. As Aro spoke, she grew aware of his presence.
It was strangely hospitable. If she weren't about to be devoured by a group of ravenous vampires, Linnea would find Aro welcoming. Comfortable even. Her gaze turned to Caius, who was sitting in his throne, legs crossed with his hands neatly folded together with a callous grin stretched across his face. There was nothing convivial about him.
Finally, her eyes landed on Marcus, who didn't seem to be consciously aware of what was going on around him. If that was possible for a vampire. Would he notice before it was too late?
Demetri was close behind Linnea, having already chosen her as his meal. Her awareness of the danger around her made her pulse quicken and her breathing uneven, which was quite exciting for a vampire who had his food brought to him rather than hunting his meal down.
"I do appreciate your sacrifices," Aro exclaimed, clapping his hands together. Both his brothers stood in response.
Marcus finally looked over the crowd, recognizing the familiar lavender swirl of Linnea's perfume. His eyes widened in surprise. Why was she here? She wouldn't have been foolish enough to seek out the Volturi, not after expressing her fear of them. Was it a mistake?
"Aro," Marcus called softly.
The Volturi leader glanced at his brother,"It looks as if your mistress is among our guests. Perhaps your should escort her somewhere more pleasant?" Aro offered.
Caius' curiosity was piqued as Marcus walked down the stone steps, holding out his hand. Linnea didn't hesitate as she rushed over to him, grabbing onto him before he pulled her towards the door leading to their underground chambers.
Aro didn't waste any time giving the others the signal to begin their frenzy. Marcus clenched his jaw, feeling the burn in his throat as he led Linnea down the hall, keeping her pushed in front of him.
"I'm sorry…" She breathed out, tightening her grip on his arm.
To Be Continued…
The most frightening thing is when those closest to you, learn to read you. They begin predicting your moves before you make them.