Chapter 3: Awakening
Fire, lava, burning scorching throughout my body. I could hear words, it took a moment to realise it was Edward talking to me. I had cold hands on both sides, the pressure of the hands on my molten skin hurt yet the cool was welcome. Like an ice cube in a furnace it wasn't anywhere enough to make a difference. Every breath took an eternity to drag in and force back out again, screaming was beyond me. It felt like the fires within me were competing, every cell an individual battle ground. My awareness was broadening, the incandescent fire of the fight scorching a path through every fibre of my brain I could feel my senses becoming more sensitive. My head always jumping from one obscure thought to another moved even faster, I could feel the new connections being created and every portion of my brain was getting amped up and put to maximum use. I could compartmentalise and have more than one thread of thought running at once, the burning pain flooding every level. The warring pain in every cell, every inch of my body, was beyond anything. As my senses increase so does my awareness of the ripping inferno blazing through me. If I forced my focus onto other things it was easier to cope.
I listened to Edwards voice and followed his instructions trying to recall everything, every sight, sound, smell, taste, touch but above all every person that had touched my life. I tried to recall every thought, every memory. A life time of memories was just a blip in distraction from the unending burn.
The fire continued to spiral higher, when I thought it was impossible to withstand any more I was hit with another tsunami of heat.
The eternity of burning started to leave the tips of my fingers and toes, I let hope slip in my mind for an instant but the increasing fires were now fighting for control of my heart, it just kept building faster and faster, hotter and hotter. My breaths becoming more ragged, the panicked beat of my heart speeding like a humming birds wings. A fireball explosion ended it all.
The heat had gone, the heart beat had gone. I had a itch in my throat but I discounted the feeling for now. I lay and listened. I could hear so much. I could hear the position of each of the seven vampires in the room, not that they made a sound each like a statue waiting for me. I realised I could hear the air moving against them, I could hear the position of the walls and the open door. Beyond I could hear every rustle of leaves, each blade of grass outside brushing against it's neighbour. The cars on the distant road, even the spiders footfalls and insects wings both inside and out registered in my mind. My upgraded brain heard and catalogued each noise with the greatest of ease. I had to tune out and confine my attention.
As I changed the senses had increased but the pain, the sheer intensity of the pain, had pushed out all awareness of everything else. The sounds and scents had all been present before but I was only now becoming aware of them.
All this attention to just hearing took fractions of a second. I forced myself to stay calm as the overload of information threatened to drown me in panic. I got hold of my self and heard a breath drawn in the room, shock emanated from the source of the breath. Steeling myself for another overwhelming onslaught I took a shallow unneeded breath. The itch in my throat flared to a fire but again I pushed aside the sensation so I could concentrate on other things. The smells and tastes that came were as intense as the sounds had been. I blocked the implications of the exhalations of air and the relief that pounded me from around the room. I allowed myself to process the new input before allowing others to engulf me.
The outpouring of voices in relief, hope and anticipation were deafening, I had to block those out so I could come to terms with the new me. I gently bought together my finger and thumb. A tiny brush of a movement yet it shocked me, the speed and responsiveness of my new body. The sheet under me came as my next experiment, I could feel every fibre in each thread. What I thought as a gentle rub between my fingers left a hole, the threads disintegrating under the pressure of my fingers, a micro second latter I became aware how careful I needed to be, as not to damage everyday items. I tried again to rub the sheet between my fingers, allowing my self to feel the fibres helped me control the pressure.
Another breath, the scents weren't as overpowering this time. Impatience and frustration were building round me, I shut off that input and concentrated on the smells. I could smell the individual scent of each vampire in the room, the smell of the fibres of the bedding I had just shredded were floating in the air along with the other dust motes. I let the awareness other scents be processed but I didn't try to let them distract me this time. The scent of each vampire had a hook and thread that lead back to them. I hadn't noticed the hooks in my first breath but they were firmly embedded, the second breath reinforcing the connection. So many new things to get used to, fear bloomed but I quashed it as quickly as I recognised it starting to build. Something else to bury and ignore until I had the time to process.
The breath didn't have the calming effect I was used to. I forced my brain to relax and prepared myself for for the next onslaught - opening my eyes.
I would describe my new sight as taking off misted up sunglasses but it was so much more than that. If I had worn scratched jam jar glasses over my eyes all my life then taken them off to perfect sight it still doesn't cover the improved detail I could see now. That and the fact I could see clearly even in my peripheral vision. I could see the concerned faces of each vampire without even looking directly at them. A jolt of fear ran through me as I saw the scars that littered Jasper's skin, the vampire in me recognised the threat but the human in me saw beyond to the friend that had done so much to keep me safe.
I became aware of a misty almost overlay to my vision, it didn't in any way obscure my sight it was just another layer of sight. It looked like a map, each route from the room a different texture and shade, I instinctual understood the meanings of each colour and texture. No time for that now, my family were worried about me. I closed the extra vision down, I would have chance to deal with it later.
I decided my next action would be to sit up but I wanted to do it slowly. I'm sure I flew up at a speed that my old human eyes couldn't have registered but it was much slower than I was capable. Even more slowly I turned and swung my legs off the bed. I smiled up at my vampire family.
Edward was the first to speak, "Bella!" he choked out in relief, his love for me saturating the room.
It was then I realised the sound echoed the identical voice I had heard but had blocked out just moments ago. Fear and shock raced through me as I realised I could hear them all yet their mouths weren't moving, not just one thought for each of them but overlapping voices all at slightly different volumes and timbres. Panic threatened to engulf me once more but again I pushed back the cacophony of noise and calmed myself once more.
I needed to reassure them I was all right as the concern and worry was escalating as I sat here, "Did I miss much while I was out?" My voice shocked me, it sounded so different almost musical yet smooth as silk.
Edward took a step forward. I had a impulse to jump backwards into a defensive crouch but suppressed it as fast as it flew through my mind. I forced myself to stand and approach Edward. My rational mind knew Edward meant me no harm but my instincts were still screaming to run or fight. Pushing down the vampire impulses I reached forward at as close to human speed as I could manage to pull Edward into a hug. Edwards love and relief were palpable in his face never mind the waves of feeling that flowed from him.
Shock and amazement were radiating from the others but the power of the shock and disbelief from Jasper was almost painful. "Jasper could you please stop projecting, I know I'm weird but I'm not that bad, am I?" he gasped at me, his eyes popping but he did reign in the emotions. I could still feel it but it didn't overpower any more. I sighed in relief and nodded my thanks to him. I pushed down my awareness of the emotions in the room but I like feeling Edwards love so I don't want to totally close down that awareness like I did with the deafening thoughts.
Slipping to Edwards side I kept my arm round his waist, the close contact with him calmed me. I turned to each member of my vampire family. Awe, pride, love, protectiveness and hope were the predominant emotions.
Alice was radiating worry and her concern was written all over her face and stance. "Are you okay Alice?"
"I can't see you, your future is blank, why can't I see you?" her fear and worry overflowing.
"Did you see me waking?" I asked her gently.
"No, nothing at all of you since Edward bit you," she admitted in sorrow.
I smiled in relief, "So there is nothing wrong with my future or your visions, it just my weirdness that has kicked up a gear. You can't see the wolves either but it doesn't mean they don't have a future."
As that idea sunk in I could see my normal Alice returning, her natural excitement and enthusiasm bubbling back to the surface as the fear and worry for me dissipated. I realised even as vampires they still need time to process ideas, it's just they can do it much faster than a human. I could now see that short processing period that before had seemed instantaneous and had made them appear so omnipotent.
"So you have a power, you can block my visions. It's so annoying not being able to see." Excitement at the thought of me having a power was briefly marred by annoyance.
"I still can't read her thoughts," Edward confirmed with an undertone of frustration.
"I can only feel spikes of panic but then she calms herself and it's gone. Other emotions I can't even read them, they are hidden from me," Jasper sounded frustrated and shocked by his own admission.
I could see Carlisle's intrigue at me as he mentally catalogued all my responses and the admissions from the others. "I need to contact Eleazar for some more insight," I heard him mumble under his breath or did he just think it, I'm not sure.
I could see Alice's thoughts take a new turn as her eyes raked my new form. I didn't need to listen to the direction her thoughts had taken. "No Bella Barbie, I need to eat first," I didn't but I tried to forestall her. She pouted at me. "But..." she whined.
Carlisle backed me up, "No, she needs to hunt. We will all go. We can talk when we get back."
I felt the resignation across the room, his word was final. Then excitement at the prospect of me hunting seeped into the mass psyche. Emmett really is just a little kid, his excitement was through the roof. I had to totally shut down feeling the emotions before I started bouncing like Emmett.