A/N: Ok, so, listen. I am sure that none of you will be very happy with me, but...this chapter does not resolve the cliffy I left in chapter 20...runs and hides, speaking from behind the couch I'm sorry! If I promise to post earlier than Saturday this week, does that make up for it? I promise Chapter 22 resolves the cliffy. Stick with me folks, I promise it's worth it. Ok?

Chapter 21: The Gifted

Esme

I knew that Charlie was strong and could handle himself; but that didn't stop the absolute terror when I heard Edward call out to Emmett and Jasper. I knew he would only have done that if there was an imminent threat. As soon as he called out, Emmett acted. I saw him jump up, and I swiftly turned to see what was coming behind me. I was hit with force by a member of the guard, while the other one went after Charlie. There was nothing but the sounds of metal-on-metal scraping noises as the fighting broke out all over the meadow.

I jumped back up and rushed toward the man who had hit me. His eyes were glued to mine, a slight sneer on his face. He rushed forward, putting his arm out as if to grab me. I evaded him, skirting to the side and then brought my arm across his back. His pace stuttered a little as I hit him, but he recovered quickly. He jumped back, reaching for my arm and wrenching it to the side. For a moment I thought he would take it clean off. Charlie saw this though, and hit him right in the chest, pushing him several feet backward.

"Benjamin, now!" I heard Liz yell.

"Everyone, down now!" was Benjamin's reply. I didn't even think; I grabbed Charlie's hand and fell to the ground, making sure he came with me. The Volturi were momentarily stunned, just staring at us. Then I watched them look up, almost at the exact same time, terror on their faces.

I heard the swirling of wind, and there was heat coming from the sky. I didn't dare look up, I had to focus on keeping Charlie on the ground. I trusted Liz, who trusted Benjamin, so I wouldn't get up until they told us to.

Out of the corner of my eye I saw fire in the sky, but it was a swirl; unlike anything I had ever seen before in my life. This made me curious, so I shifted a little so I could look up. The sight in front of me amazed and terrified me like nothing else had in my entire life.

Fire swirled around in a tornado style wind, directly above the Volturi. We were all spreading out on the meadow, but the focus of this fire tornado was above where Aro, Caius and Marcus were, with their witnesses and the wives. Many of the group were struggling to keep their footing as the immense wind was trying to pull them into the sky. Several of the guard ran to protect the three leaders, falling to the ground and grabbing them by the feet. This didn't help all of them, though.

I watched in fascination as at least a dozen members of the guard, half of the witnesses and several trees were lifted up into the sky, only to burn as they entered the fire tornado above us. Howls of anger were heard all over the meadow at this point. I turned and watched Benjamin, hands raised in concentration, lift his arms higher raising the flying fire even higher. He pressed his hands together and shifted so that the fire started to move in the sky. I saw the outline of several vampires in the middle, but I couldn't see any faces. The heat from the fire was still extremely high, so it must be burning them faster than normal.

Benjamin continued to turn and shift the fire, as everyone in the meadow was still frozen in shock. He shifted enough so that it was immediately over the fire we had started earlier for the newborn army bodies. Once he was directly above it, he spread his arms out killing the fire in the sky. The still burning Volturi bodies dropped unceremoniously into the newborn fire, continuing to burn.

The mood on the meadow had shifted at this point. Whatever the Volturi's motivation to fight us before became even worse now. The rage and shock made them fight even harder. We all started jumping up to resume the fight. I watched Tia run to Benjamin, who was teetering slightly. He had exerted himself by creating that, and honestly, I was impressed.

I continued to fight with the insistent guard trying to kill me, but Charlie came up and grabbed his head, ripping it off. Without saying anything, we turned to the next one coming up behind us. There were two this time, so we started the dance all over again.

I kept my mind focused on the guard, as their anger made them even more unpredictable. Unfortunately, Jane had other thoughts. I felt pain rock through my entire body, and I collapsed. It was more intense than anything I'd felt since I made the change so many years ago. I heard Charlie call out in anger, before I felt the pain dissipate. I glanced up at Jane, who wore a mask of pure evil and anger, right before Emmett ran into her full force.

Glancing around, I realized that Jasper and Emmett had taken care of Felix, while Charlie had gotten the other two guards we had been fighting before Jane took me down. Emmett took off toward Jane, while Jasper went for Alec. Charlie stood there ready to protect them, and me, should either of them try to use their power. Emmett got the better of Jane faster than I would have thought, disconnecting her head from her body.

Alec's face was filled with sadness for just a moment before it turned to pure hatred. He focused his gift on Emmett, not seeing Jasper running up behind him. Charlie easily deflected Alec's power, just as Jasper made it to him. Jasper grabbed him by the arms, slicing them clean off, before tearing his torso in half. He threw the pieces into the growing fire, as Aro and Caius stepped forward.

Carlisle and Eleazer ran up to them, with Liz and Carmen hot on their trail. I motioned for Charlie to follow them, to make sure there were no other gifted vampires around that could cause problems. Emmett and Jasper had taken care of Jane and Alec, and were fighting their way through the guard to get to Aro and Caius also.

The two kings were focused on Carlisle and Eleazer, though, and were not paying attention to anything behind them. The force of the four of them hitting made a loud crashing sound that reverberated over the meadow. The witnesses began rushing forward; whoever was left after the fire tornado, anyway.

I took the breather for a second, as I was pushed to the ground roughly by one of the Volturi. I rolled around to the edge of the battle and took in the sight in front of me. Alice and Tonya were fighting three guard to the left, while Kate and Garret were taking down another one just to the right of them. Irena and Laurant – who I hadn't actually seen until now – were to the left with two others. I saw the Irish coven falling under the weight of the guard, along with several of the nomads. Benjamin's fire display had only gotten rid of a quarter of the Volturi.

Just as I started to panic that we were going to fall under the sheer numbers of the guard, I saw Sam's pack enter the meadow. They all separated and began tearing the Volturi off of us, getting the upper hand again. The Volturi numbers were easily twice ours, even after the fire tornado. But Sam's pack were relentless.

I shifted to glance around for Charlie, just to see him with three guard on top of him. I started to run toward him to help, when a brown wolf ran up tearing the first guard off of him. I ran over and grabbed the second, freeing Charlie to take on the third by himself. The three of us bested the guard, and the wolf sat down in front of Charlie, his head hanging.

"Jake?" Charlie asked, staring up at the large wolf. He nodded slightly before another guard jumped him. We would have to save the apologies for later; though I wasn't sure I really wanted to hear what Jake had to say. Charlie glanced at me and I could see my thoughts mirrored on his face. Then, he turned and continued the fight.

I pushed forward as well, fighting as Liz came up beside me to help. Carlisle and Eleazer were still fighting with Aro and Caius, while Marcus had shifted back toward the outer edge of the battle. It didn't look like he was interested in getting into the fray at all. He had shifted back, taking the wives with him, so they were all just standing in the back.

I ignored him for the moment, trying to get to Carlisle and Eleazer. I had momentarily forgotten about them while I was inspecting the rest of the battle. Benjamin and Tia ran up and started helping Liz and I push through the guard. Benjamin's power was impressive, being able to pull limbs off with just a flick of his hand. The wind pushed around me when he was near, and it made me realize just how powerful he truly was.

"Esme, we are missing one," Liz breathed into my ear. I jerked my head toward hers as I ripped the guard's arm off that we were fighting.

"What?" I said, distracted, not understanding what she meant.

"I don't know his name, but one of them ran off. I think he went after Edward and Bella."

At that comment, Charlie's face became scared. "We have to go after them!" That break gave the guard he was fighting time to get his arms around Charlie, attempting to crush him. Kate came running up, using her power to bring the guard down, allowing Charlie to get his head off, tossing it to the fire.

Liz shook her head, jumping on the back of another guard that had run up to us. She grabbed his head, holding it stead, while I kicked his chest, causing them to disconnect. "We have to trust that Edward can handle it. We need to stay here; it's the only choice we have if we want everything to work out."

"What do we need, Liz? Earthquake? Another firenado?" Benjamin asked, his face breaking out in a grin.

"Earthquake, please. Shake until everyone falls, that will give us an advantage."

Before the entire sentence had come out of her mouth, I felt the ground below me start to shake. This rattled everyone, and I scanned the meadow watching them all lose their footing. No one had been expecting it, so almost everyone fell to the ground as the shaking got worse. Benjamin and Liz were the only two that had braced themselves, so they didn't fall.

Benjamin had a fierce look on his face as he increased the shaking in the ground. He continued this until everyone had fallen, except Liz, then he ceased the quake, grabbing the nearest guard and threw him, whole, into the fire.

My family and friends recovered before the Volturi did, spinning into action. I estimated that only half the guard was left, making the numbers a little more even than they had been before. I saw Sam's pack continuing to move through them as if they were battering rams, while the gifted among us took point on all of the battles. Charlie was currently fighting with a woman, who had been hovering near Aro the entire time. I ran up and helped him kill her, before placing my hand on his back. He shifted, leaned down to kiss me quickly, before taking off toward Aro and Caius.

Now that we had thinned the guard a little, I could see the battle between the four of them easier. Carlisle and Aro were facing off, faces stoic and calm, while Caius wore a mask of rage, currently attacking Eleazer. Charlie, Liz, Jake and I continued to push into the battle, so we could help Carlisle and Eleazer. Right as we got there, Caius tore one of his arms off, causing a gasp from the rest of us.

Amun, who I had not seen enter the fight, rushed forward then, pinning Caius down. Jake pushed past and ran up to Caius, grabbing him with his strong teeth. He began dragging him toward another wolf, who was already licking his chops. He pushed forward until the other wolf was close, who then pounced on Caius, disconnecting every limb on his body, before taking his head clean off.

Carmen ran up to Eleazer, grabbing the arm and pulling him to the side of the battle. I saw her working to reconnect his arm, as Amun rushed to help Carlisle with Aro. I ran up also, coming up behind him. I couldn't see his face but I could tell he was angry about Caius. I was about to jump at Aro when I felt arms around me from behind, pulling me back away from the fight. Carlisle and Amun jumped at Aro as I shifted around to see who was holding me.

"This is a long feud, my dear. Let them." I stared into Marcus' eyes. He didn't look upset, in face he looked almost happy. "They have freed me. You all have."

"I don't understand, Marcus. Freed you?" He continued to pull me back until I was at the edge of the battle with the wives. They were watching the battle, but not moving.

"Chelsea. Your mate killed her, and I am free."

"What? Who?" I couldn't process this right now. I needed to get back to the battle to help. I couldn't even see Charlie where I was at!

"Chelsea. Her power is to manipulate relationships. I would have left or killed myself long ago had it not been for her. Thank you, dear one." He smiled down at me. "And thank Charlie, too."

I didn't have a clue what to say to him. I didn't know about Chelsea, but it made sense that Aro would have someone like her around. I briefly wondered just how many people felt invisible bonds to Aro fall when she died.

"I need you to help me now, dear one," Marcus was saying, a small smile on his face. "Now that I am free, I wish to die. Will you please make sure that happens today?"

Shocked, I stood up straight, wiggling out of his arms. "You want me to kill you?"

Marcus frowned, looking down into my eyes. "Aro killed my mate many years ago. An existence without her is not worth living, dear one. I am tired and wish to rest."

The sadness in his eyes made me glance over at the battle again. I couldn't see Charlie because there were too many people in-between us, but I knew that if I lost him, I wouldn't be able to function either. I felt for Marcus, I could empathize with what he was going through. Which made me not want to harm him.

I shook my head. "I cannot end your life, Marcus. You are a good man. A kind person who does not want this way of life. I can sense that in you."

"Please? I cannot live without her." His voice broke my heart. One of the wives walked over to him, putting her arms around him. "Athenodora, please."

Athenodora closed her eyes, keeping Marcus close. "We will help you. Come, Sulpicia, Marcus. Let's get out of here. Aro and Caius have met their matches, and are finally getting what they deserve."

I was shocked listening to her, watching Sulpicia nod in agreement. Weren't they mates of Aro and Caius? Neither of them looked upset by what was happening here at all. Then I figured it out.

"You aren't their mates; it was Chelsea for you as well?" The women nodded as they started to walk away from the battle.

"Be well, dear one. Please tell Carlisle I am sorry for what happened here." Marcus smiled sadly at me, as he was led away. I made no attempt to stop them, I couldn't feel any remorse about it either. None of them had wanted this; wanted to be here to hurt my family.

I turned around and pushed back into the battle, just in time to watch Aro fall under Charlie, Carlisle and Amun. He never had a chance. The rest of the battle appeared to be going the same way. I watched as the fire grew as bodies were dumped into it, eventually worrying it would get out of control. I was about to rush back into the fight when I remembered what Liz had told us about one getting away.

Without thinking about it, I took off running in the direction that Edward had taken Bella. I knew I would probably be too late to help, but I had to try regardless. I knew that Liz, Alice, Jasper and Benjamin at minimum would keep the fight in the meadow, helping to stop everything. I didn't have any gifts of my own, so I had to rely on all of them. Plus, I knew Charlie was stronger than most of them and would be fine. I kept my heart full of hope as I continued to run, following Edward and Bella's scent through the forest.

A/N: I hope that you enjoyed the battle. I wanted to add some things I wished I had seen in the Volturi fight at the end of the story in the books, and make better use of Benjamin, too!

I know, I know. But I hope you all don't hate me too much for delaying the resolution. I had to show how we get to the next steps; I hope you'll forgive me. And I promise to post the next chapter before Saturday for everyone. Be kind in your reviews! :)

Thanks again to my sister and my beta zombified419 for reading and helping me with this. And, if it helps, neither of them were happy about this chapter not resolving the cliffy either. Again, I hope you all forgive me!