Disclaimer: I do not own Twilight, I merely play in the sandbox. I do however, lay claim to my original characters; Ella, Adrian, Christine, Eldre, the Ethereals etc as well as the minor inclusion of the Fey world.

AN: I am never satisfied with battle scenes and aftermath scenes that I write. I've just had to admit that they aren't my strong point and move on with life. I'm mildly ok with how this chapter worked out ~Hannah.

Chapter Eighty-Four – When the Storm Clears

It was misty all around, from the forest floor up until my knees. The air was thin, and breathing was hard. Silence reigned all around. The storm clouds of darkness had disappeared, and light was trying to pierce through the canopy of trees.

I starred unknowingly into the abyss all around me. When a hand clamped down upon my shoulder I jumped out of my skin, my powers rushing to my defence. I turned, expecting a battle, when my eyes landed on Edward. He looked at me in concern, he was talking but I could hear no sound. I couldn't stand his worry at the moment, I turned from him but stayed in his embrace. My body sagged against his, fatigue filled me, and I wished for somewhere to lay my head.

I looked back to where I was staring before. The mist continued to swirl around my legs, it was warm, comforting even, now that I knew what it was. I was closer to the edge of the deep forest, I thought I'd been further under the cover of darkness. There was something near me on the floor. My mind screamed at me to not look at it, but I couldn't help it, I was curious.

Even as I looked at it, I knew I shouldn't. I had never seen someone so mangled. My first instinct was to call out for help. Even though help wasn't needed. I had to take a closer look at the mangled body, had to understand who it was and what had happened. Then, like the flick of a switch my senses came back, and I remembered everything. Sharp bursts of chaotic fighting entered my mind, white and black fighting each other in a burst of powers and violence.

I'd not paid much attention to what I'd hurled towards Eldre, but I expected he'd go down quietly or disappear altogether. I wasn't prepared to see the damage my powers had done. His eyes had literally been melted by the intensity of the light I'd thrown at him. His body was so cut up, I could see his insides on the outside and they were as black as death. Icicles dotted his body, melting in the aftermath. His hair was wind tousled, his suit rumbled and ripped. His arms lay at different angles broken either by the fall or by the force of wind I'd thrown at him. Looking at him too long made me want to chunder.

As I came back down from where I was and sagged further into Edward, the adrenaline left me, and I was filled with an all-consuming guilt. I was not unfeeling and though I knew this was a life or death situation, I had taken the life out of people now lying on the battlefield and that was weighing heavily on my heart. Whatever I'd thrown at him had hid him badly, the last living memory I had of Eldre was his shocked face as my powers raced towards him.

I could feel Edward leading me from the battle and I vaguely remembered that this was the plan. Others would be staying behind to ensure Eldre was really dead and clean up the battlefield. I was exhausted, but I followed where Edward led. I wanted to know what had happened while I'd been with Eldre. I wanted to know how our side was fairing and if anyone had been injured. I didn't dare ask if anyone had died for I didn't think I could handle the answer.

Different tents had been set up in a different part of the forest for recuperation, healing, and the general aftermath of the battle. I knew that was where Edward was leading me. I wanted to tell him I was alright and that I loved him, but my throat was raw against overuse. I didn't want Edward to over worry, as he was prone to do.

I didn't know what to do with the deaths on my conscious. Talking about a battle was far different from being in a battle. I had thought I could fight with minimal damage but that just wasn't a feasible thought to have. I had been changed from the battle that had happened. I let my emotions out of their box slowly and found that the grief and guilt wasn't crushing but it did have a strong presence. My body shook from realisation or exhaustion, I wasn't sure, but I was glad that my emotions didn't consume me as I let them out.

Dealing with the fact that I had killed was something I knew I was going to have to work through and something I know would be easier to think of as time passed but for now, I was content to lock it away and deal with other things. It would just blow if those on the battlefield came back and confirmed that Eldre had somehow managed to survive.

How does one dispose of a giant? I'd never thought that to be something I'd think about and yet it was a niggling thought in my mind.

Edward sat me down on a cot like bed and began to intimately examine me for wounds. It was through his examination that I started to feel pain again. With the lack of adrenaline coursing through my body, the pain of my injuries came back in full force. The sting in my cheek, the cuts on my arm and the excruciating pain in my ribs. I shied away from Edward when he tried to touch me there. Gently, he raised my top to get a better look, and I felt guilty at the concern that marred his face. I reached out and cupped his face with my hand, I didn't have the energy to talk right now but I did have the energy to tell Edward I was alright with a touch of my hands. He kissed my temple and in a blink of my eye, had disappeared and returned with healing essentials.

I floated between the plains of awake and asleep while Edward worked on me. He gave me something for the pain and it lulled me into a dreamless sleep. I curled around Edward and breathed his scent in deeply before I succumbed to the darkness.

[x]

I woke to the scent of honey and vanilla. My body ached with overstretched muscles, but I felt fully rested and calm. It took me a couple of moments listening to the silence all around me before I remembered what had happened and where I was.

I couldn't help feel a little cheated, a little disappointed by how things had gone down. I had expected more sparks and traded words, more power and more of a fight. To me, it had been over in a blink of an eye, and Eldre had fallen like a stack of bricks. I had expected more from the man who had tormented my mind for so long. To me, it was like a plan that hadn't been fully formed, a book with a sloppy ending or a film cut short before everything's sorted. I'd been playing Eldre in my head so much that I'd formed an unrealistic opinion of him. Maybe Eldre had been so sure of himself that he hadn't seen defeat as an option? Maybe he'd grossly underestimated me. Maybe he'd been caught between a rock and a hard place.

It just didn't sit well with me. I should be happy that he was dead and the threat to our world was over, but I couldn't help but obsess over the easy way he left this world. My mind was full of unanswered questions I knew I would now never get an answer to. Had Eldre sensed that the end was near? Had he gone willingly because he didn't want to be captive? Had the darkness inside him taken over?

Questions I would never know now he was forever silent. What was I to do now that my 'hero' moment was at an end? Where did I go from here?

I'd been walking on a tightrope of a climatic nature only to stop before the finishing crescendo. I could live my life freely now, without the fear of what darkness might encroach on my space. I could live without the worry that I would be kidnapped or that someone would use my mind against me.

I slipped from the bed I'd been in, the clean white nighty making me shiver in the light of day. I donned the dressing gown thrown over the end of my bed and put on the slippers I found there. I looked like an escaped mental patient with the clothes I was wearing but as detached as I was from the everyday, I found I didn't care now.

I walked from the sterile tent of healing and out into the bright sunshine of the day. The sun was warm against my eyelids as I turned my face upwards and closed my eyes. There was a light breeze in the air, touching me in a warm caress as it swarmed around me. The forest around me had calmed, it was no longer trembling in anger over the blood being spilt on its floor.

Despite my growing frustration with how things had gone down in the battle, I was feeling strangely at peace with myself, which was a stark contrast to the guilt I'd previous felt.

"What are you doing out of bed?"

I turned instinctively towards the sound of Edward's voice, it was as warm as fire and heated my body up more than the sun could ever do. I opened my eyes as I looked at him in details, mesmerised as I was by his beauty.

"I couldn't stay in there anymore. I craved the light of the sun upon my face."

"I wish you had stayed in bed, you shouldn't be walking around with your injuries."

"You have looked after me well enough Edward. The cuts will fade, the bruises are less tender, and I know you've sorted my ribs. Let me enjoy the sun for a little while."

"You are too stubborn for your own good sometimes."

"Come sit with me Edward. Let us enjoy the moment."

I felt his sigh more than heard it, but he dutifully came over and together we sat down on the grass. I always felt better when Edward was near me. His presence could do so much for me in a single second. Currently I was enjoying his closeness and the safety he made me feel. I rested my head on his shoulder and entwined my left hand with his right. We sat in comfortable silence for a long while, just enjoying each other's company and the fact that we could sit here without worry or fear hanging over our heads like a death warrant.

I couldn't quite explain how I was feeling right now. I could start living my life again without the fear of something nefarious coming to destroy it. Not that I had put my life on hold before, but there had been limitations to what I had done. I could now clearly see my future once more and the life I would share with Edward.

"Will you tell me what happened?"

"Are you sure you want to know?"

"I missed so much of it Edward, all I can remember is clashes of colour and loud sounds of violence. I tried to keep track of everyone, but I had to concentrate of what was at hand. My memories of the battle are strong and painful, it was nothing like how I expected it would be. I know in time that the memories will fade, and I'll be able to think of them without shuddering at the actions I have taken. I would like to know what happened when I was otherwise occupied and know that everyone has made it out safely."

"I will tell you the battle from my perspective and assure your fears of everyone's safety if you tell me what happened between you and Eldre."

"Deal."

"We were surprised by the size of Eldre's army. The giants and the trolls were unexpected, but they were used to keep us guessing about the size of the rest of the army. The dark fey poured out of the forest with no intent to stop. The incubi were alarming, to my knowledge, I thought they were a myth and never believed them to be real. They were difficult to anticipate, and difficult to kill. We stuck close to the teams we were in, those with powers would attack each wave of enemies and those without powers would pick off the weak ones before they even realised what had happened. Taking down the trolls was relatively easy as they're not known to be intelligent but taking down the giants was a lot harder and very taxing. It was a hard battle and we did sustain injuries. We fought until the mist descended upon us and the dark Fey dropped to the ground. There was a stillness in the air and an ache in all of us. I knew something had happened to you and I ran to find out."

"Who sustained injuries?"

"Angela broke her leg, it was a clean break and Carlisle has already sorted her out. She'll wear a cast till graduation. Irina lost an arm but it's currently being reattached, and Adrian was permanently scarred with three claw marks down his face. Bella said it made him look more handsome. They're a perfect match for each other those two."

"It aches my heart to know that people were injured. I know you can tell me that they're alright now, but it still hurts. My view of the battle is blurred in colours and shouts. I cannot tell you how I got half the cuts that litter my arms. The bruises and the pain in my ribs are from being hit with the troll's bat, I was trying to avoid it, but I was herded into the troll's path by a horde of dark Fey. I fought where I could, and I dodged where I could, but my destination had always been Eldre. I could see him waiting just behind the first line of trees and I couldn't understand why he was letting others fight his battles again or why he was so smug about what was happening. I wanted to wipe that smug smile from his face. I intended to sneak up behind him and pummel him with my powers. He turned at the last minute. I think after all he's done, I expected more from him, but it was a little disappointed. He tried to manipulate me with words and charm, but I refused to be swayed by what he said. I was foolish, I didn't want to kill an unarmed man. I let him talk to me, to talk about his plans and why he was obsessed with me. He tried to control me with darkness and I snapped. I threw everything I had at him, I didn't think about it, I just threw my powers towards him and I didn't stop until everything around me stilled and the mist appeared."

"You did what you had to do Ella. Don't regret it."

"I don't regret it. Eldre was unhinged. He wanted me, and he also wanted to end me. A life with him would have been a life of captivity inside my own head. I wasn't going to let him take my mind from me again. It wouldn't have stopped. He would have used his darkness and fear to control everyone and anyone. We would have been plunged into a world of darkness where to stand against him would mean the darkest of all punishments. Eldre and I are parallel opposites. We both had a bad start in life and chose our paths accordingly. I chose a life of creativity with music and art fuelling the lack of love I had. I channelled my anger and hate into something positive. Eldre did the opposite, he took that anger and hate and fuelled it into his soul. He gave into the darkness he'd been branded and committed his life to it. Both of our lives could have been so much different if we'd just taken a left hand turn instead of a right. I know that feeling a kingship with Eldre is as wrong as it sounds but I could have set myself on a path like his had I been a different person. When I was angry, I became sad or depressed, when Eldre was angry he became vengeful. We have been played as two sides of the same coin."

"Though it sickens me to think of you and Eldre being remotely similar, I understand the point you are making. Had Eldre just let go of his anger and his hate, his like could have been much different than it was. It still doesn't change the fact that he didn't do that and was hell bent on becoming King of all with you his Queen by his side. I am relieved that things are over and done with. Our senior year had been more eventful and troublesome than it should have been. I am sorry that your first experience of senior year has been less than stellar and not filled with fun and pranks."

"I think we have time for fun and pranks Edward."

"You might be right. We have time for plenty of things now."

He grinned wickedly at me and I was filled with a longing I couldn't ignore. I lunged at him, putting all my passion and lust into the kiss I gave him. I startled him, I could tell because his lips were still against mine for a moment before he began kissing me back.

Now the danger had passed I could kiss Edward as much as I wanted.

People were about to get very fed up by our PDA.

[x]

I found myself in a sparse white room. There was a comfy armchair on one side and opposite it, there were five wooden chairs. I took the comfy armchair and waited in silence. I did not have to wait long before the others arrived and filled the chairs before me.

Anahita, Aella, Azar, Amara and Adaih sat down gracefully and with smiles upon their faces. I couldn't help by grin back, it was contagious.

"Well done child, you battled bravely and came out victorious," said Anahita.

"But it was so easy, did I do something wrong?"

"No child. Eldre was weakened by overused of the darkness that controlled him. If you had been anything less than you are now, he would have overpowered you and won the battle," said Azar.

"He went so easily."

"Sometimes things are as easy as pie. Not everyone goes out with a bang, Eldre went in a whisper but his absence from life is still a big achievement. Do not think less of things because it was 'easy'," said Aella.

"What now?"

"This is the last time you will see us though I'm sure you will feel our presence nearby. We wish to bestow one last gift to you, but it will not manifest until the time is right," said Amara.

"We are proud of you child. You exceeded our expectations. We will ask no more of you. We have no right to interfere in your life anymore. It is time to live your life child and live it well."