Viva la Vida

EPOV

I awoke in the clearing, the moon was up and Volvo was gone. Was my burning just a dream? I don't know. The forest seemed so focused, I could see everything, the pollen spores that floated lightly in the air, every grain of sand beneath the blades of grass under me.

I rode from the ground and walked towards the pond, bending down and cupping my hands, splashing my face with the cool water. Strange, I had felt like I was on fire for days, months even. And that creature, I couldn't have imagined it. The water in the pond settled and I looked at my reflection.

And bounded away as quickly as I could.

My skin, which had originally been very pale, was now white as snow in January, and looked smooth as the marble in our dining room. My hair wasn't just brown, it had taken on a reddish quality and looked like copper, or bronze. But what startled me most was my eyes.

They glowed crimson. I knew what I was. A Vampire.

That must have been the creature that had bitten me. That must have been the awful burning. If anyone were to find out, I'd be burned at the stake. Would that hurt me? What about garlic? Do I have to sleep in a coffin? Where will I get a coffin without someone noticing me?

One thing I knew for certain, I cannot go back.

So I ran.

The forest sped by me at what would have been a blinding speed, but everything was so clear, so defined. I could see every drop of dew upon every leaf, every insect trapped in a spider's intricately spun web. I could see the stars, in what I had before considered a starless night, and every mountain or crater on the face of the pale moon.

I was at the cliffs edge within moments. I would throw myself off the edge, and if that did not kill me, I would stay beneath the water until I drown. I cannot take the life of any human just for my own benefit, so I will destroy myself.

I took a deep breath and flung my wretched body off the cliff, feeling no fear, surprisingly. I was exhilerated, it felt almost freeing to fly through the air like an eagle. My body hit the water at an odd angle, but I felt no pain. Why?

I stayed beneath the surface, contemplating why I was still alive. My body would have hit head first, snapping my neck, paralyzing me. I checked by moving my hands and legs. Nope, still functional. Even under the murky depths of water, everything was crystal clear. All the fish had swum away once I had broken the choppy surface of the gray waves, but everything was teeming with life. Anemony and sea sponges, even the stones, which are clearly not living, sparkled with the light from the moon which filtered through the waves above.

Above.

I have not breathed since I hit the water, but I don't feel faint at all. Not even a simple ringing in my ears, or pounding in my head.

Several things I have established:

I can run with speed greater than a bullet fired from my rifle. Pretty fast.

I can see as if everything was being seen through a telescope. Quite interesting.

I don't have to breathe. This could be troublesome. If I don't have to breathe, then I cannot suffocate to death.

Let's see what else I can do.

I rose to the surface, and took an involuntary breath. The cool air was saturated in the smell of the sea, mixed with pine from the woods and a faint sweet scent.

Improved sense of smell. Perhaps I should make a list.

I ran towards a great boulder on the shore, and as fast and with all the strength in my body, ran into it.

Instead of the feel of my body crumbling upon the gargantuan rock, I found that it had crumbled, its remains scattered at my feet, dust on my drenched clothes and in my hair.

Enough strength to completely obliterate a boulder.

Body which is immune to pain from impact.

I see that killing myself will be no easy task. So I ran back to the forest. Despite the wind whipping at my drenched skin and clothes, I never felt the cold, in fact, everything felt quite warm.

Cannot freeze to death.

I sat beneath a mighty oak. A vampire needs the blood of a human to survive, well, I'll just abstain until hunger kills me.

So there I waited. And waited. I waited so long, days and nights sitting motionless beneath the tree. My throat developed an intense burn over the months that had passed when I finally moved, I assume it had been five months, for I could detect a slight shift in the climate.

I felt so weak, but still so strong. Perhaps I really was dying. I walked to the pond in the clearing and splashed water on my face. It had turned ghostly pale and sallow. And gorgeous. My eyes were black as coal, looking tired and savage at once.

I breathed in, hoping to soothe the burn, but I smelled something. It was sweet and musky, it smelled of the forest, and of molasses. My body had a mind of it's own as I sped through the forest, following the scent. As I drew closer, I felt stronger almost. I sprang through the final trees and the smell was a herd of deer. At once I was upon the buck, draining the blood from the great vein in his neck. I then drained three younger bucks, four does and two fawns. The burn in my throat had stopped, but at the price of these creatures.

But had I not eaten venison as a human? I had, and this was no different. I didn't have to be a monster, the blood of animals could satiate the burn. I disposed of the corpses, burying them in the forest floor.

When I had been drinking, two things I noticed.

I had not slept for the entire five months I had been in my coma-like state.

My skin had caught the sunlight and my skin did not burn, but sparkled as if embedded within it were millions of finely cut diamonds. Diamonds… the necklace. I still remembered what the man had said, even through all my trauma. I was now like the chain, the hard, cold silver which sparkled in the light. Was this a coincidence? I had no clue. All I knew was, I had to get the necklace.

I ran back to my former home, draining a grizzly bear and an elk on my way, hoping to be able to resist temptation if I were to smell a human's blood.

I held my breath as I neared the castle, seeing no gardeners or servants on the grounds. I snuck to the side walls and crept around, like a common thief.

I had jumped from the ground to my balcony in a single leap.

It looked so different, but also the same. My bed was made, the pillows fluffed, my otherwise cluttered floor had been separated from my discarded robes. Everything was covered with a thick layer of dust, but my feet made no imprint on the floor, my shoes had been discarded long ago. The mirror was also dusty, and I wondered if I would see my reflection.

I took the end of my robe and wiped away a square of dust, and I hardly recognized myself, the pond's image had been so vague. My eyes, which had been glowing red and pitched black, were now turning an ocher color, like honey mixed with brown sugar. Previous to my… transformation, I had had green eyes, but now they seemed to be… golden. I could see faint specks of red in certain areas, but otherwise they were like the gold in my satchel.

My skin was also smooth, and free of the five o'clock shadow I was used to. I ran the tips of my fingers along my jaw. No hair, I suppose it won't grow anymore. It looked almost like porcelain, but was as durable as diamond.

Then there was my hair. I had always thought it were just brown and always in a disarray. It was still unkempt, but smooth as satin, soft as a feather, and it shone like copper or bronze, clearly no longer "just brown".

I grabbed a cloak from my closet and placed a satchel of gold into one of its enormous pockets. I then walked to the vanity, my breath still held, and opened the smooth leather box. The necklace did not feel cold like the untouched metal would have, so I figured I must be colder. I placed the necklace into the satchel and changed into a new pair of clothes, my old ones having been very filthy. I also placed a spare into another pocket of my cloak.

With that I was off, sailing through the sky, flying on the tops of trees, swinging from branches. I would make the most of life like this, I just had to have faith and stay abstinent to human blood. That couldn't be too difficult, there are plenty of animals in the world…

Iris:

Ha! Got it done within a week! Eat that Ria!!! …OH! Hi guys! Sorry about that, but I was just having so much fun writing this chapter! Edward is just discovering all his new talents and I know there's not much action, but there will be! So, as you can tell, kinda, Edward has somewhat taken on the role of Carlisle. CARLISLE IS NOT A VAMPIRE YET!!!!! And that's all I'm giving away. Stay tuned!

Love

Iris

Ria: Yeah yeah, you finished within a week. Whatever. Okay, I don't know about you guys, but I think Iris did pretty super with this chapter, despite some grammatical errors I had to fix. Next chapter is mine, and there will be action, including a super special appearance from * duh duh duh!!!!! * The Volturi!!!!!!! Yeah! My chapter has the Volturi. Oh and, I personally hate when people misspell the character names, so there will be none of that if I can help it!

Never fear!

That's my job. Ria.