I do not own any of the characters or basic story material presented, all rights belong to Stephanie Meyer.
My eternal thanks go out to all who reviewed, I know the fan base is tiny, but my lord are you loud! A special thanks goes out to LindseyRae and SarahXEmmett, these two are to blame for the continuation of this blasted story. Brava, you two, Brava, I believe those were the best reviews I had ever received! So, in honor of such wonderful patronage, this chapter is dedicated to you both….please enjoy.
Chapter 3: Red in Tooth and Claw
The icy blue waters betrayed little as the tiny sailboat drifted upon them. Lagging waves slapped the edges of the boat, sending a small spray of salt unto the three scientists aboard. The sky is vicious with an oncoming storm, and the boat's captain is anxious to leave the bay, but he is not able to flee yet, not until the seal decoy has met its fate….
"I don't know Bella, I'm just not getting the vibe . The water simply isn't sharky today. I say we bring seal baby in and hole up in a good bar until this weather clears." John's shaggy mass of hair almost hid his eyes for the moment. I snorted in response.
"When has your vibe ever worked? I can't seem to recall a single day when it's helped us out. Besides," I sniffed, "The weather is perfect for shark activity. The bigger the storm front, the better. Tell Captain Ahab over there we're not leaving until I get my white whale." Another wave crashed into the side of the boat, making my shipmates frown at me. But I wasn't willing to give up the hunt yet, it was our seventh day out on the South African waters, and I had yet to see any Great Whites. John moved away from the splash zone and back into the safety of the cabin. Our captain's face didn't seem pleased.
The navy water churned against the furious tide, and the seal decoy bobbed, I kept my left hand glued to the warm wooden railing, note pad in my right to record any activity. A sudden boil in the water announced an oncoming visitor, a big one.
"John, Mick! Get out here! We have a possible sighting!" I screamed against the onslaught of wind. Mick, the Australian shark behaviorist, was first to meet me by the railing. Unlike John, Mick was a slender man, with a crop of near-white hair at the top of his skull. However, his small frame hid the soul of a true adventurer.
"Where was the fin Bella? I want to try and get this on camera…" John shouted across to me. I pointed to the starboard side of the boat frantically, the boil was getting larger….
We watched the spot with a frantic sort of energy, almost willing the water to part and reveal the behemoth. The choppy waters swelled, but no shark popped up between the waves. Lightening flashed on the horizon, and boat began quake in the bay, a powerful storm surge on the way. I glanced towards my three shipmates, and saw that it was time to go, sharks or no sharks. I had to agree with them, the conditions were no longer conducive to our research, and this bay had a reputation for taking out smaller boats in a storm.
"Don't worry, we'll catch those bloody creatures tomorrow eh?" Mick slapped me on the back in a brotherly fashion. I sighed, and prepared to move towards the cabin, the rain starting to send my skin in chills. But before I did, I paused to take a quick snap of the storm, Edward's brother, Emmett, loved storm swells.
The boat lurched into motion, the seal decoy bobbing up and down along with it, trailing behind like a small dog would a child. I focused the lens over the back of the boat towards the decoy, a bolt of lightening striking the water not more then a few hundred feet away. Thunder boomed off the surrounding cliffs. I took the shot just as a mammoth Great White burst from the water with the seal decoy clenched between its maw. The creature easily freed itself from the sea, showing us the snow white of its belly, and the raw muscle power underneath. Gravity took a hold and the monster splashed back down into the waves, our seal decoy still within its mouth. I watched, awestruck, as the white followed alongside our boat, John and Mick snapping both video and picture. I dropped my camera and scanned the shark for any ID tags, or tracking devices. The beast was clean.
"John! Grab a tissue sample will you? This one doesn't have a tag, I'd like to get her for the tracking program!" My partner stumbled over to a small chest and yanked out a cruel looking dart gun, the actual darts having been replaced with a hollow steel barb. He aimed the gun at the lolling white and stabbed at it with the gun, the great beast didn't even flinch. The gun was able to both collect a tissue sample and tag the shark for future study. Mick collected the sample and dashed into the cabin to store the tissue, before the humid air could rot it.
The great White trolled with the boat for a good amount of time, sticking its snout out of the water every so often, we managed to measure it, tallying it to over nineteen feet in length, six feet in girth. Eventually the storm forced us inside, but the white didn't move from its post until we hit the shallower waters. John and I could only grin, while Mick tried his best to calm our captain, a native to the region who had grown up with terror stories of the Great Whites. Come tomorrow we would need to find ourselves another boat.
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"So, tell me Ms. Swan, would staying home beat the experience we just had out there?" I smacked my partner's arm gently, gently swirling the wine in my glass.
"Shush. I will admit, however, I am not sorry I bullied Edward into letting me come here." I said primly. The dank, moist air of the small bar we were situated at was causing my eyes to water. The cigarette smoke didn't help to improve things.
John grinned and threw an arm around my shoulders, "That was really something wasn't it?" His voice was quiet , but energized. We were both slightly awed by what we had just born witness to.
I grinned back and gently maneuvered out of his arm. Though he meant nothing by it, I was still feeling guilty for abandoning Edward so early….. "Indeed it was. Indeed it was. You know, I think that shark was sister-worthy."
"Hmm, I don't know, Hekili could still beat the snot out of that wild gal. She's got a whole foot in length on her." He took a quick gulp from his mug, grimacing at the taste.
A dull laugh penetrated the bar as Mick guffawed over one of the local's jokes. He was such a light-hearted soul. The local clapped him on the back and sent him on his way towards our table, beer mug in hand. "Well now, I hope I'm not disturbing the two love birds over here…" Mick's voice was slightly slurred.
"Hah! She wishes. Sorry Micky, but Bella here has herself a nice city boy waiting back at home." I noticed that John's voice was a little slurred as well, I would need to intervene quickly if disaster was to be avoided.
"Aww, that's too bad, you two make a lovely couple, talking over sharks and whatnot….." Mick paused, blinking his eyes slowly for a moment. "Well what's this fellow like? Come on now, tell us all the juicy details."
A blush colored my cheeks, but I quickly hid it, not wanting to embarrass myself. "His name is Edward Cullen, he works as an art director for a local gallery. We've been together for over ten years now." I admitted proudly.
Two pairs of eyes zeroed in on my left hand, squinting in the dim light. Mick frowned while John sat back in his chair and finished his drink with one sip. "Now that's a bloody shame, ten years an' he hasn't the sport to marry you?" I glared back at Mick fiercely, anger replacing my shy disposition.
"What's the hurry hmm? We're both young, we're both healthy. There's time yet!" I murmured sharply. The two men merely responded by rolling their eyes and taking another sip of their beverages. Furious, I left them to their own devices for the night and stalked back towards my hotel room, leaving the bar behind me for the night.
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Hours have passed, many of them. The cool rank of the drainage pipe has no ill effect on the monster. He waits, he listens, he is forever patient in his need. These many hours have born a great deal of fruit for Amun, he is learning all he needs from the hushed whispers above him, the voices like skipping stones on a pond, each leaving their wake of knowledge. The only aspect of the pipe that causes him to despair is the ungodly stench of the enemy, it burns and clatters around him, twice now he has had to resist to the urge to retch. He is sure they must smell some aspect of his presence, their noses are just as adept as his own, but perhaps the passing of the centuries has dulled their memory of his scent…..he hopes that it is so.
A shadow passes over the grate, hiding Amun's view of the throne room. He breaths slowly, aware that his soft inhalations may be heard. Unlike the beasts that pace above him, Amun must breath, must be able to draw life into his lungs. But he is not nervous, there is no fear borrowing its way into him, he merely needs to listen a while longer, to glean a few more scraps of knowledge before he makes his next move…..
"Caius, do tell me, has Jane reported anything more from our dear friend Carlisle?" Amun knows that this voice is their leader, Aro. He also knows that this is one of the oldest of the breed alive in this day, however, the target that interests him is another of the rulers, whom he briefly encountered, so many millennia ago.
A soft sigh resounds in the room, "Caius", does not seem pleased. "Her reports are much the same as ever, no change. They refuse to change her, and refuse to dispose of her. Edward is adamant she remains human."
Aro made an alien retort, one Amun has yet to hear, " Well, perhaps it's time we paid Forks Washington a little visit. I would so love to catch up with the Cullen Coven….make sure to alert Jane to our arrival."
That last statement of Aro's is what Amun has been waiting to overhear. The location of another clan. He had heard of various nomads, but it was oh so convenient to have his prey stay in a single location….he has no more need of these pests. The entire Volturi guard and royalty freeze as the sound the iron grate at the bottom of the floor is wrenched away smoothly. The shriek of the metal ringing in their ears. A lean shadow escapes the hole, and rises to tower over the aristocracy. Amun's height is particularly impressive, it is both a physical and logical statement to the vampires in the medieval room. The monster is draped with a heavy cloak, one that hides his face, a grim reaper of sorts.
Caius is the first to act. "What is the meaning in this?! Who are you to enter before us? Name yourself intruder, so that we may know who it is we have killed!" With a small flick of his hand, seven of the guard surround the cloaked figure.
Moments pass, but the figure does nothing, the vampires in the room detect a faint heartbeat, and the sound of blood flushing through the system. But the scent…
"A human?" one of the guard inquires. A smatter of chuckles resound in the room, and three of those present prepare to feed. Aro and Caius exchange a dubious look, but allow events to continue. Only Marcus remains apart, he it troubled by something.
As the guard move in to kill, the figure extends a long, elegant arm, a sword lies at his side. It is truly a relic, its blade pitted with holes and rust. The chuckles grow to a dull roar of laughter. A human with a rusty sword! Come to slay the vampires! It was a great act of humor. But Marcus only seems to become more distraught, there is even a hint of fear in his expression. Aro and Caius stop to look upon him, curious.
The grim reaper extends his sword and without a moment's notice, sets it in flame. The blue tongues gasp for air and the shiver up and down the sword, eating away at the rust to expose the metal beneath. It gleams white hot. The laughter in the room stops as the vampires become wary, the sword is coated with something, something more then oil. The robed figure dashes forward and neatly slips his blade into the nearest three guards, the sword not so much as protesting its entrance into their stony flash. He stabs another four before the screaming starts, before death sets in for the immortals. Those who had been stabbed are now burning, the blue flames turning purple as they consume the body fluids and clothing. No matter how they try and smother the fire, it does not die. All too soon, the Volturi guard, the substance of legend, are reduced to a pile of ash on the floor. Aro, Caius, and Marcus turn to flee, but Amun is much fast, faster, even, then they are.
Caius makes a mad grab to scramble up a wall, but he is slashed by the fiery sword, and falls screaming, smoke and flames billowing out of his mouth, a dying dragon.
"No, it cannot be…" Marcus begins, his eyes widening with dread, "We killed you all! I saw your breed's burial in Rome…" Aro grasps his comrade's hand, and soon mirrors his dread. The crimson eyes turning black with fear.
"Marcus, why did you never tell us?" Aro stutters, mindful of the flaming utensil. Amun grows bored with this piece of rock and swiftly rakes his beloved weapon over its carcass, leaving only Marcus.
It is then that he deigns to speak to the beast. "Yes Marcus, why did you waver to tell your family about us….truly you did not believe we were dead?" Amun's voice is ancient and mocking, its edge almost as sharp as his sword's.
Marcus falls to his knees, his thin flesh is weaker then the younger vampire's, and it cracks against his sudden movement. "We killed you all, we won….I completed Arexx's task. It has been so long…" His head snaps up, his pitch black eyes burning. "You must be the Prince, the one they buried out of fear."
Amun smiles, the first time in over three thousand years. "It is good that you know me, for you see, I'm letting you run." he brings his sword, a modified Kopesh, up to Marcus's cheek. "I remember you, Marcus Elarrio. But I remember your creator even better. So noble of you to finish her dying wishes." He slashes his sword down Marcus's cheek, but quickly blots the flames out with a thick, sweet liquid. The burn remains behind, now an ownership mark. Amun does not reveal his face to the creature, but allows him to see a heavy gold ring upon his right hand. "You are going run, Marcus, you will tell your species what has awakened, and you will spread fear throughout your masses. For I am coming, with vengeance on my mind. None will be spared this time. Know that." He shoves the terrified Aristocrat to his feet and shoves him out the door, smirking under his hood. With a flourish, the grim reaper disappears down the drainage hole, he has the wives of the aristocrats to deal with this night…..
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"Alice? What is it? What do you see" Esme asks quietly to her adopted daughter. Jasper and Carlisle move towards her softly, curious and concerned.
Alice takes a breath out of pure shock. And begins to describe her vision in her wind-chime, but now unsteady, voice.
"It's Marcus, he's coming here, right now, alone. And he's frightened."