Vulcan Twilight: Chapter 02 - Not from Earth
On their first day as freshmen and sophomores of Forks High School, the five Cullen 'children' were an instant hit. They rose in popularity to mystical proportions, ogled by every doe-eyed student and teacher alike, which they all took in stride but kept their distance. Throughout the day, Jasper constantly feared his composure would crack and Emmett had some fun at his expense, much to Alice's displeasure. Also, by the end of the day, Edward sighed as the comical predictability of the thoughts that surrounded them had lost their novelty.
On the Friday of their first week of school, Edward went to the administration office around 10 o'clock in the morning to grab a permission slip to leave early due to 'illness.' He was restless and decided that a good run through the woods was something he needed to do to clear his head.
He drove home at a leisurely pace, his limited edition silver Subaru Impreza WRX STI SE humming at peak condition after an added tune-up from Rosalie. Despite their monumental differences, they had found one thing in common: their mutual enjoyment of vehicles with carefully crafted high-performance engines. Rosalie's aptitude for all things mechanical and electrical never failed to surprise or delight him. It was why he trusted her to tinker with his collection of cars - an Aston Martin V12 Vanquish S and a McLaren F1 among them - and he took absolute pleasure doing the test drives.
About three miles away from their secluded home was when Edward heard the frantic, disjointed mental chatter between Carlisle and Esme.
Slamming his foot on the gas pedal, the Subaru Impreza screamed up the winding hill in record time toward the Cullen home driveway; Edward stunt-parking it and turning off the engine with inhuman speed. He then leapt up to the second floor balcony, nudging aside a glass sliding door that led him straight into the kitchen.
That's when he saw it...the source of the strange, otherworldly scent that hung heavily in the air from a mile down the road.
"Carlisle! What the hell is it?"
The trio carefully moved the creature's body off the kitchen island and onto the king-sized bed in the third floor guest room. They took a moment to clean and tidy the kitchen area, then burned the clothes they wore that were stained beyond repair with the creature's dark green blood.
"Remarkable," Dr. Cullen said in absolute wonder. "Given the area of the severe wound, I never thought to guess that what bled so much was the creature's heart."
Carlisle stood to the left of the bed (facing the headboard) with his arms crossed, his mind deep in thought, eyes filled with excitement. In all his three-hundred fifty years of traveling the world, he had never encountered such an intriguing mystery. One so exceptional that it defied even his own existence!
"But it lost so much of its own blood...will it survive?" Esme asked with genuine concern. She returned from the kitchen with a cold pack in an attempt to keep the creature's fever down.
"Esme, don't..." Edward said softly as he placed a gentle hand on her shoulder. She sat in a high-back leather chair to the right of the bed, positioned within arm's reach of their injured house-guest. "The heat...it's normal for...it..."
Carlisle glanced across the room to his 'eldest son' who was clearly still confused and shaken by what had happened earlier in the kitchen. He was a patient man even in the midst of such an exciting puzzle. "Is that what happened earlier? When it touched your arm...you read it's mind?"
"No. It was more like...how can I describe it? I wasn't even trying to read it's mind at the time. When it touched me...it was more like a...a mental force-feeding."
Both Esme and Carlisle's faces were stunned at his choice of words.
"It totally scared me at first. I saw...I felt...too many things...all at once! Also, there was this incredible urgency. It was dying..." Edward said slowly, then stopped. A shadow of immense sadness gripped him, followed by deep pain. If he was capable of shedding tears, he'd be weeping uncontrollably. He pressed the palms of his hands into his eyes and stumbled out of the room. "I need some air..."
Outside on the second floor balcony, Edward leaned his back against the thickly layered wooden railing and massaged his temples with his knuckles, taking a few long breaths to steady himself. The strong emotions of despair, sadness and pain he currently felt were not his own. They belonged to the troubled alien mind that lay in a deep regenerative coma on the king-sized bed of their third floor guest room.
Hours later, the rest of Edward's 'siblings' returned home after school. The screeching sounds of two sets tires was a clear indication that they knew something wasn't quite right as all four of them flew through the front door.
"The fuck's that smell?" Emmett said out loud, looking in confusion at his fellow 'siblings' who were just as bothered by the scent's otherworldly quality.
"Whatever it is, I want it gone," Rosalie answered, placing a hand over her mouth and nose out of habit.
"It's coming from upstairs," Alice said, grabbing Jasper's hand as she flew up the steps in a blur.
They were greeted by Carlisle leaning against the doorjamb of the third floor guest room. Esme stood beside him, temporarily blocking the creature from view. In a rush, they all spoke at once.
"What the hell's in there?"
"Throw it out! We don't know where it's been."
"May I see it? It smells so...weird."
"Does it speak?"
"I wasn't even sure it was going to live."
"We really don't know what to expect when it wakes up."
"Bullshit! It bleeds green?"
"Guys, guys, shut up!" Edward commanded sternly from inside the room, earning him a variety of expressions. "Carlisle, why don't you take the rest of the family downstairs and tell them what you know. Once we're calm, we can all stare at the thing to our heart's content."
As Carlisle ushered four confused faces down the corridor, Esme remained behind. She watched as her 'eldest son' fidgeted uncomfortably, periodically glancing at the unconscious figure that lay unmoving on the king-sized bed. She also noticed that extra blankets were now piled on top of their alien guest.
"He...prefers to be warmer," Edward answered slowly, gleaming the question from Esme's mind. "I get these flashes, hints, sometimes images...like I know what he needs. Then it turns into a kind of compulsion or impulse...and it happens so fast. By the time I realize what's happening, I'm already moving...doing whatever he needs me to do." He ran his fingers through his thick mop of hair. "It's all so crazy and...a bit scary."
Esme placed reassuring hands on either side of his face. He smiled slightly, then closed his eyes and sighed, resting his forehead against hers for comfort. They stayed like this, savoring the cozy silence. It was moments like these why Edward was supremely grateful for the addition of Esme to their family. She was an incredibly loving, gentle and kindhearted individual: a truly ideal representation of a mother.
"Ah!" Edward yelped as he doubled over, his eyes tightly shut, hands gripping the sides of his head.
From downstairs, the rest of the family instantly crowded inside the guest bedroom, wondering what had caused Edward to cry out.
"Hold on...get back! Just...just gimme a minute!" Edward grated out. He then leapt onto the bed in a defensive crouch, hissing menacingly at anyone who came too close. "Back...off!"
"Emmett, Jasper, stay where you are," Carlisle demanded. He was as equally worried as the rest of them were. "Give Edward the space to work this out."
"That thing might be hurting him!" Jasper cried out. His instincts for combat were in full effect. Old habits were difficult to unlearn after years of being a conditioned soldier both in his human and vampire forms. The desire to protect what was most precious to him increased a hundredfold when he met Alice, but increased a thousandfold when he was welcomed warmly with open arms into the Cullen home. He'd grown to love his new family fiercely in the short time that he and Alice had stayed with them. (Oh, yes. Even Rosalie. xD)
((It's okay. They won't hurt you. I won't let them.))
As soon as Edward formed those words in his mind, the strong presence that besieged him gradually faded. He sat at the foot of the bed to compose himself.
"You alright?" Emmett asked, his brows knotted with concern. He repeatedly glanced between Edward and the unconscious thing on the bed that now officially ranked Number One on his 'Things I Can't Wait to Kill' list. "What did it do to you?"
Alice's head was tilted unnaturally as she stared at the lump on the bed, enthralled by whatever had caught her attention.
"Would you mind explaining what just happened?" Rosalie said impatiently. It bothered her immensely that Edward had tried to protect the strange creature and took great offense at being hissed at in such a manner.
"I'm sorry...it was my fault. I triggered something...memories...painful ones. How the hell was I supposed to know..." Edward shrugged and shook his head in frustration. "He's...healing himself right now. It may take a few days. As soon as he wakes up - "
"I'm ripping its head off," Emmett growled out.
"Em, relax, I'm fine. Really," Edward sighed, staring solemnly at him.
"Healing himself?" Carlisle interjected.
"Yeah," Edward replied slowly. "He...seems to be able to do that. Complete control over his body using his mind, that sort of thing. Feel free to ask him questions when he wakes up. I'm getting this impression that he wouldn't mind."
The flash of boyish excitement on Carlisle's face was unmistakable. Edward stifled a smile when he saw the hordes of questions that flitted through his 'father's' mind. Several decades had passed since he'd seen Dr. Cullen in such a state and he rather liked it.
"Alice! Don't!" Jasper said sharply, yanking her away from physically touching the thing with her hand. She seemed abnormally hypnotized by the way she stared and it worried him.
"It's so...beautiful..."
"Alice?" Jasper called again, this time in a more frantic tone. He forced her to look at him. "Talk to me, love, what's wrong?"
"Wrong?" Alice answered dazedly, her eyes unfocused. "Something's wrong?" She gazed bewilderingly at her mate. "What's wrong?"
Alarmed, Jasper glanced menacingly at the thing that Carlisle and Edward had allowed into their home. Choosing not to voice his strong opinions just yet, he gently guided Alice away toward the privacy of their own bedroom.
"That was weird, even for Alice," Rosalie observed. "Which reinforces my previous point, we don't know what we're dealing with. I'm sure Emmett and Jasper agree with me when I say, let's get rid of it."
"I'll take full responsibility for him," Edward announced, much to everyone's - especially Dr. Cullen's - surprised reaction.
"Edward, as much as I'd like to study and learn everything I possibly can from that...being...Esme and I rescued, we really have no idea what we're dealing with," Carlisle said.
"He means us no harm, I can vouch for that."
"Why? Coz that thing telepathically told you so?" Emmett replied skeptically.
"In a way..."
"How can we be sure it's actually you talking and not that thing over there?"
"Em, we're not stuck inside an episode of the Outer Limits. He's not a body-snatcher, a goblin or an elf. That's just stupid," Edward chuckled.
"Fine. You seem to know it so well. If it isn't an elf, a troll or a demon, then what the hell is it?" Emmett challenged.
"I..." Edward hesitated. He much preferred that their unusual guest provided the explanations. "I think he's...extraterrestrial."
to be continued
Author's Note:
Jasper and Emmett can't wait to kill their alien guest. (Poor Spock!) But can you blame them? Even if the Cullens are vampires, they're not invincible. And despite the fact that they don't consider themselves human anymore, they were all human once, and are still governed by their human personalities. (Unless you've lived as long as the Volturi. They're proof that living for countless millenia just makes you CREEPIER.)
Wonder what'll happen when Spock awakens? (Your guesses are as good as mine.)
I'd love to hear from my readers, so please don't hesitate to drop me a line.
Thanks to mwjen - my First Reviewer!
Take care, everyone!