Benito was a large man who had came from Mexico with raw hunger and power. Jasper was a big man but Benito towered over him, thicker, more muscle. His punch made Jasper's boot skid in the broken ground, every inch that he lost more grating on Astrid's nerves. Only a few cloaks were still in the mass but it appeared to only be Benito's men, tearing apart the rest. Five spotted her, red eyes gleaming with victory as they took in the little girl by herself. Astrid stepped forward but Jasper got the upper hand, holding Benito by the neck.

"Astrid!" Charlotte appeared, clothes torn and wide eyed. She didn't let Astrid stay, grabbing her hand and yanking her back. But Astrid easily got out of her hold, darting forward, meeting the first guy head on.

She grabbed his neck, twisting, using his falling body to propel herself at the next. She twisted that neck off, her hands on autopilot as she leapt from one vampire to the next. Charlotte was shouting, saying that they had to go, Santiago was on his way, or something, but Astrid had her eyes on Jasper.

More of Benito's men appeared, coming out of the trees where they had no doubt chased stragglers down. Some were putting their pants back on, licking their lips, others eagerly jumping over their fighting leader to get closer to Astrid. But she wasn't scared. She'd made it through the worse and now all they had to do was survive. Jasper couldn't leave her, not when they'd reached this point.

Astrid was grabbed by the arm, spun so that she was facing a distressed Charlotte. She pulled him forward so that he landed in front of her, her foot stomping perfectly into his neck, and turned to grab the next approaching one. All she could see were obstacles keeping her from Jasper, from her happy fucking ending in California.

"I told you to get her out of here! We got to fucking go, you guys!" Peter had joined Charlotte, panic clear in his voice. Astrid could feel that tingle on her body once more, recognizing it as more bodies entering her little bubble of privacy. Thundering footsteps reached their ears, Astrid looking up from the man she just dismembered.

"Astrid, let's go! He'll catch up!" Charlotte was at her side once more, persistent.

Benito's men began to turn, growling and preparing themselves. Jasper took a hit to the face, landing on his side, Benito on him. The cracks hacked away at Astrid, each one hurting like it was done onto her.

Peter was between Astrid and Jasper, enraged and screaming, "It's Santiago, there's no one but us! They'll kill us and I'm not losing the fucking love of my life to this!"

Astrid didn't know if Peter was yelling at her or Jasper. Charlotte's tiny hands felt like claws, pulling her away from where she wanted to be. Jasper was ignoring them, focused on Benito, and it seemed that the older vampire was beginning to get tired. There was no way Jasper would leave if he could see the end.

He wasn't going to leave.

Astrid grabbed Charlotte and Peter by the shoulders, forcing them to quiet for a second and stare at her. They looked like children, scared of the monster running at them in full speed. Charlotte wasn't made for this, she had barely survived this battle and no way in hell would she manage to get through another wave of vampires. Peter wouldn't be able to leave her, and if Peter wasn't going to be at his one hundred, than he had came to do all that he could.

They helped as much as they could, but this was a life that Jasper was choosing. And they deserved to get the hell out of dodge like they've done.

"Go! I'm staying, I'm not leaving him! I'll cover you now get the hell out of here!" Astrid pushed them away.

For a moment, there was hesitation on doing what was thought had to be done as comrades. Peter had loyalty, it wasn't easy for him to walk away, but his eyes flickered over Astrid's shoulder and his face darkened, seeing something that only he could. It was enough for him to pull on Charlotte's elbow, her eyes ripping a hole at Astrid. They walked a few steps, one last look of them hand in hand, and they were gone.

Trees crashed from behind. Benito's men had a strong defense, holding back the first wave easily. Nothing was said when Astrid took a vampire down, joining their line surrounding Jasper and Benito. The next wave came, this one thicker, and Astrid fell back as a vampire grabbed her right arm and another grabbed her left. One was torn out of the socket, the pain at this point ignored, but she was able to use it to grab the bitch and tear her head off. And it had no problem breaking the other in half.

She'd just gotten to her feet when another round came. The line fell back, a vampire to her right getting torn. A blonde that had been a part of his demise locked eyes with Astrid, quickly shouldering her in the stomach. They tumbled, rolling and clawing. Astrid's shirt tore, her hand raised, and an explosive feeling of triumph encouraged her fist to land harder than intended on her face. The vampire's face dissolved into ash and Astrid looked up, seeing Jasper standing over Benito's body.

Jasper had won.

He had lived.

Astrid stood, not worried about the vampire she could hear running behind her. Jasper moved instantly, ripping his torso in half, snarling at the few newborns that had approached. Benito's men and Astrid stood behind Jasper, who's gift was beginning to make Santiago's men shake with fear. They were easily taken out, a moment of silence resting over the caverned pit that they now stood in.

There was a moment, where they looked at each other. Astrid, petite and narrowed eyed from behind Jasper's towering posture, his lips pursed and gift rippling in the air. Four of Benito's men survived, four who could say that Jasper was alive, four who could say that he killed Benito. Four that couldn't live another day.

Jasper and Astrid moved as one.