A/N: It's finally here. I did say I would start working on the sequel to Sunrise as soon as I finished ANKL.
This story is loosely based on Greek mythology. I have tweaked it to fit my fic.
I am not sure how often I can update, so just bear with me. I am working on it.
It's not mine, and I have no beta.
BPOV
My transformation was every bit as painful as I had been warned it would be. Every time I thought about the burning, I would cringe. I cannot say how happy I am that it's over. A week of nothing but burning searing pain has a way of altering your way of thinking. Yea, I am so glad I will never have to go through that again.
After informing the Cullens of the reason behind my premature transformation, Edward led me upstairs to the bedroom that Esme had designed for me. I was very appreciative of her for going through all that trouble for me. According to Edward, designing my bedroom was how Esme kept busy and distracted while I was transforming.
Knowing that I was desperate to get into the shower, Edward left me at my bedroom door. With a gentle kiss on my forehead, he ran out to briefly hunt. Apparently, while I was burning, the entire family refused to leave the house long enough to feed. I informed them all that I wanted them to go get fed. I was more than capable of taking care of myself, so they no longer had an excuse to procrastinate. If I have to, I will kick some ass to get them to hunt.
I took advantage of my time alone to take a long hot shower. I stood under the spray, letting the water cascade over me as I attempted to gather together my thoughts. The heat from the water helped my very sore muscles to relax. I stretched my arms above my head for a moment before picking up my scrubby and getting to work on washing myself.
I'm not sure how long I had been in the shower, but by the time I had come out of the bathroom wrapped in only a towel, Alice was sitting on the edge of my bed. She had with her an outfit that she clearly handpicked herself. I wasn't bothered at all by it, since it saved me the trouble of finding something to wear.
"I hope you don't mind too much, Bella. I just thought I'd pick something out for you to wear," Alice said.
"I don't mind at all, Alice. It just saves me time," I assured her as I plopped myself down on the edge of the bed to get a better look at what she had picked out for me.
"I picked out something I think you would like. I also figured out that you would probably want to wear something comfortable," she told me.
I reached over and grabbed the jeans and t-shirt she held out to me. "Actually, this is perfect, Allie. You are right about me wanting to be comfortable."
"Good, I had to rely on what I know about you, since I can no longer see your future," she said petulantly.
"Ah, Alice, you know you can't see me because you aren't an immortal sorceress. It's nothing personal."
"I know. It's just that I dislike not knowing whether or not you are safe" she pouted.
"You do realize that people have lived their lives for several millennium not knowing what their futures entailed. You are now just like them," I informed her. "It's an even playing field."
"Is that supposed to make me feel better?"
"No, it's suppose to make you face the facts and accept them," I clarified.
"Not happening," she admitted with a shake of her head. "Once you're finished getting dressed, come downstairs. Carlisle got a call from Aro while he was hunting. The Volturi should be arriving soon."
"I'll be down momentarily," I said.
Alice stood up to leave but stopped for a moment. "There's a brush for you on the dresser, and you have undergarments in the drawers. Esme stocked up everything for you."
"Good, thanks," I said as I made my way over to the dresser while Alice left the room. I rifled through a few drawers, pulling out a bra and panties to wear. I didn't even bother to look for socks, since I decided I would wear a pair of sandals.
I took my time getting dressed, not feeling any need to rush. If the Volturi arrived while I was getting ready, they would just have to wait. I wasn't going to rush for anyone.
As I lazily ran a brush through my long tresses, I heard the sound of several vehicles turning off the road and heading up the driveway. The Volturi have arrived. I finished brushing my hair and threw it up into a neat ponytail.
I yanked on my jeans and tossed on my t-shirt. I then stood before the mirror that was hanging on the back of the door. Giving myself a good once over, I determined that I was fit enough to greet the company.
I left my room and walked downstairs. Edward met me and the bottom and offered me his arm to take. I smile at him as I slid my hand through the crook of his arm.
He guided me through the house until we reached the living room where Carlise was speaking to three unfamiliar vampires. Several others were standing around stiffly. They were tense, holding themselves rigidly. Each one looked as if they were ready to bolt at any moment.
We stood there for a moment, not wanting to interrupt the conversation. I has assumed that Carlisle was speaking to the Volturi kings. Since their backs were facing me, I wasn't able to be certain.
I suddenly became aware of everyone's eyes on me. I looked up and saw not only the Cullens but all of the Volturi were gazing intently at me. I cocked a brow in silent query, waiting for one of them to speak up.
It was Carlisle that broke the silence. "Bella, I would very much like to introduce you to Aro, Marcus, and Caius. They are the Volturi kings."
Each bowed their heads in respect. "Hello," I greeted them.
"You honor us, my lady" Aro said with a bow.
"Please, just call me Bella. My lady makes me sound like I'm ancient," I told him.
He smiled, "As you wish," he replied with yet another bow.
"Bella, Aro was just beginning to inform us of what happened. I think you need to hear this," Carlisle told me.
"Of course," I said as I walked over to the couch and sat down. "I hope you do not mind that I sit. My transformation was completed a little over an hour ago, and I still feel slight discomfort," I explained.
"Are you alright?" Carlisle asked with concern.
"No need to worry, Carlisle. The effects will wear off soon. By then, I will be fully settled," I said. I glanced back over to Aro, waiting for him to begin.
"As we had told Carlisle, the castle was attacked. There was no warning. The attack quite literally came out of nowhere," Aro explained sullenly.
"Not only was the castle destroyed, but the entire city was as well. The city was leveled. Over ten thousand people are now dead," Caius continued. "There was a deafening explosion that shook the very foundations of the castle. We were not sure what we were dealing with. It had long since been the law that the town of Volterra was to remain off limits. We had thought a rogue vampire was rampaging the city. We had no clue as to what danger we were all in."
"We were all in the throne room, dealing with business as usual. After the first nearby explosion, we gave the order for Felix to see what was causing all the commotion. When he didn't return, we sent Heidi. It was immediately after she left that the castle was attacked directly," Marcus added with a barely suppressed shudder.
"He tore the entire roof off the castle. Everyone was screaming in fear. He stood roughly at fifteen meters. He was massive. By far the largest being we have ever seen. He had Felix tightly clutched in his left hand. We were helpless as we watched him bring Felix to his mouth and bite him in half. I cannot properly convey to you the image of the carnage this being was creating, the destruction he left behind. We were utterly unprepared for this type of situation," Aro said sadly.
"We learned the hard way that we were not the ones at the top of the food chain," Caius added.
"You're not. There will always be someone or something higher," I said, responding to Caius's comment. "So, gentleman, how much do you know about Cronos?"
"Both myself and Marcus originated from Greece. We are very much acquainted with the tales of Cronos," Aro said.
"Only that the stories you have heard are not simply tales but are based on fact," I clarified."
"I have a feeling that this is just the beginning," Caius told us.
"Your feeling is correct. This attack was just the beginning. Things are about to get very ugly, very quickly. We all need to be prepared," I formed them all.
"Can you please tell us what you know?" Marcus asked.
"My transformation into an immortal sorceress began earlier than planned because Cronos has returned, and he wants revenge. Unfortunately, revenge is not the only thing he wants. He wants to rule over everything," I told them.
"I thought he had been defeated," Caius said.
I shook my head, "No, he was injured badly and chose to disappear. He has been growing in strength and biding his time. He's been waiting for just the right moment to rear his ugly head." I looked around the room, checking to see if everyone was paying close attention. "I cannot emphasize this enough. Cronos is hunting all supernatural beings. He wants to eliminate anyone who may have the chance to defeat him. No one is safe not even vampires."
"How many species of supernatural beings are there?" a young female asked. She was tiny but fierce looking.
"You would be surprised. What most humans refer to as folklore or fairy tales have beings that are very real. Vampires, shape shifters, werewolves, and elves are just the tip of the iceberg. Cronos views all supernatural beings as a threat. He will stop at nothing to see them all eliminated," I answered.
"But what about you?" Aro asked.
"My job, as well as that of the other three immortal sorceresses is to defeat him once and for all. Every being has a weakness to exploit. I will be looking for that weakness. When the time comes, I will have to battle him," I said tersely. "There can be no failure. Everything and everyone is on the line now. The world is hanging in the balance. Defeating Cronos is our only option."
"What can we do to help?" Marcus asked me.
"I need all of you to search for other beings. Isis has created a place where the supernatural can hide. It's a temporary solution, but it's our only option at this point. We need to save as many as possible," I said.
"What about humans?" Caius asked me.
"The humans are going to be protected as much as possible. Another sorceress is creating a series of underground tunnels for them to hide in. There is a spell that will be cast to make the tunnels invisible to anyone not keyed into it. Our only problem is getting the humans to move. Humans, in general, do not believe in the supernatural until they have dealt with it first hand. Even then, they tend to deny it."
"I have a crazy question. Where the heck are the other Greek gods? Cronos is still alive, so that means that the others could still be alive also," Emmett asked.
"To the best of our knowledge, the Greek gods became fed up with having to save the earth and its inhabitants all the time. It is rumored that they left earth to go reside in another plane of existence," I told him.
"Oh, that's just great. They ran like a bunch of cowards," Emmett said with a sneer.
"You could say that. The Greek gods were not known for possessing any compassion. They were selfish and greedy."
"It is true. They were said to not have the ability to love others besides themselves," Marcus added.
"It's embarrassing. I am proud of my heritage, not proud of our gods," Aro supplied.
"I'm not too fond of them myself. I just don't have the luxury they readily embraced. Running is not an option for me. Cronos must be stopped at all cost," I told him. "We must bring back balance to the natural order. If Cronos succeeds, there will be no one left."
"You would think he'd figure it out. If he destroys everyone, there will be no one for him to rule over," Caius pointed out.
"True, but we're not dealing with someone who possess logic. He thinks of only himself," I said.
A movement from the corner of my right caught my attention. Alice appeared to be in the middle of having a vision. She was zoned out with her a blank look in her eyes.
A moment later she shook her head, blinking several times. She dashed over to the TV and turned on the news. We all watched as the news reported on the absolute destruction of the entire northwest region of Italy. Videos showed nothing but smoldering remains while fires continued to burn in some places. There wasn't one building fully intact, and the absence of any humans was very noticeable. It was an eerie representation of what we were up against.
"Okay, everyone, listen up," I ordered. I watched as each of them forced themselves to tear their eyes off of the destruction currently being shown on the TV. "The humans are already questioning what could have happened. We need to move fast."
With that, we continued discussing our options and began to plan on our next move. The Volturi guard was to spread out in groups of two in order to contact as many of the covens and nomads possible. Carlisle immediately began to call his friends to inform them of what was happening. I agreed to contact the shifters down at the reservation.
The Denalis were among the first to be contacted. After explaining the situation to Eleazar, the entire coven decided to leave immediately. The refused to sit around and wait.
Jasper volunteered to go with Demetri to meet his sire, Maria. By the look on his face, he didn't relish the idea of seeing her again, but he acknowledged the necessity of doing so. It was imperative that we save as many as possible.
Everyone who was assigned at group to contact sped off. Esme and Rosalie were ordered to remain behind to greet any vampires that showed up. I left to speak to the shifters. Edward refused to leave my side the entire time. I warned him that there will be a time when we would be separated. He used that as an excuse to stick close to me.
When we reached the reservation border, I told Edward to stay behind as I went on ahead. The last thing we needed was to have a fight start over Edward breaking the treaty. Fortunately, I didn't have to go too far before several massive wolves stepped out of the forest directly in my path.
"Hello," I greeted them. "Which one of you is the alpha?"
A few of them growled angrily at me, While the largest of them stepped forward. A moment later, a very tall man stood before me completely naked and unashamed of it.
"What do you want?" he asked.
"I need to speak with you about the danger you are all in," I informed him.
More growls were heard and the wolves became even more agitated. "Why should we listen to you? You reek of leech," he asked me angrily.
"You will listen if you care for you people."
"You would foolishly threaten us," he snarled.
"Are you capable of understanding when someone speaks to you? I said I was here to warn you of impending danger."
There was a deep roar as a smaller wolf launched itself at me. I caught it midair by the throat. "You have no control over your pups, alpha. Now, either listen carefully to what I tell you, or ignore me and allow your people to die," I said as I tossed the wolf back over to its leader.
I proceeded to warn them of impending danger and the seriousness of the situation. All they kept doing was growling about how the vampires should all die. They claimed that they wouldn't fight anyone that eliminated the leeches for them.
"Enough!" I bellowed as I felt myself begin to levitate. "You're prejudice will be your downfall. Heed my warning. All supernatural beings are in danger. If you refuse to listen, then you will be condemning every member of your tribe. You have been warned," I said as I disappeared in a flash. I reappeared directly in front of Edward, startling him for a second.
"Bella," he said in wonder. "What? How?" he asked.
"The wolves are so full of themselves. It's disgusting. Let's head back. I can feel several vampires are on their way to the house," I informed him. I then grabbed a tight hold of his hand and flashed the both of us directly to the Cullen mansion in order to wait for company.
A/N: Fifteen meters is roughly 25 ft.