BLOODWIND: A SOUL'S WORTH

CHAPTER TWENTY-THREE

PAUL POV

When Jacob had said, he had felt Bella's fear when he joined Jared and I on Patrol. We immediately howled for Sam. When he had felt it more urgent the 2nd time we barley waited, leaving Jared to explain the rest of the Pack. Pushing as fast as we could to the border line (Jake said he felt the connection coming from there) we noticed an abnormal fog. It reeked bad and was just reaching along our lines. The growls and hisses turned louder. The earth vibrated beneath us, we had to pause, we had no choice the fog was bad even for us. We tried sniffing the air. All we got was a dank smell that reached into the back of our throats. This fog isn't natural. Normally I would have had a snide comment for something so obvious but my main concern right now was El I had a feeling she was in this fog along with Jakes mate. Was – was she dead. No I would have felt it, right? Wouldn't I? Don't worry Paul we will find them. Easy for him to say "They not dead" I crouched low at the unexpected voice. "It's me Edward" oh yeah, the mind reading Vamp. Wait how does he know they not dead. He chuckled a bit "Alice and Jasper would have felt it like I'm assuming you would have." Behind him the other Cullen's came out what the hell were they doing here were they the cause of this fog? Jacob must have thought the same thing cause he let out a low threatening growl. "No, we didn't cause this. I felt Kess near here. She was panicking scared. Like you we can't see very well but-" the ground rumbled beneath us howls pierced the fog and battle cries mixed in. Why you still here don't you hear that? Seth now had joined us ignoring the vamps he pushed further into the fog towards the noise. SETH WAIT! Leah was barley behind him he was running faster than before and Leah was trying her best to catch her brother. The blonde supermodel vampire then turned and followed running after them. The big bear guy tailing after them.

Those that stayed behind didn't for long it was if a vote had been taken and it was decide to move forward Sam running side by side with blondie she sniffed the air again. Her face in pure panic as she picked up speed I also sniffed the air. Blood. Human blood. Shit. By the time, I made it through I thought I had been pulled into another world. These creatures were unreal. Snakes for legs. Worm like Rolly Polly's (Kess let out a sneeze) and fire breathing dogs? I saw El a few meters ahead with scar face hacking through beasts. Wait was that a sword? She was moving like a dancer dodging cutting through them as if they were nothing but soft butter, never pausing for a moment. She was covered in black goo and a bit of blood. She had bruises forming or what I assume that were bruises, along her arms. She didn't have a jacket on and it was snowing? The hell it wasn't snowing outside the fog. When I looked at her again she looked like she was dancing with scar face. They were dancing through the monsters not pausing an admirable determination in their eyes. One black the other almost Teal out of everything in the fog it was the most I could see. A sharp pain came to the side of me. Seth had knocked, me out the way from a weird wolf like beast. Concentrate Paul! After shouting that he made his way to his blonde harpy. He was right I had to concentrate. My imprint needed me everything else could wait.

I saw a snake man making its way up to her and I pushed myself forward. Faster than I thought I reached the thing and sank my teeth in. Holy shit this think tasted like sewer mixed with 2-week-old gym socks. It had such a disgusting sour tinge to it, but I didn't let that stop me pushing my jaws harder down, I chewed off half its neck. It wasn't a quick death but it would have to do for now. I moved cutting off more spawns of the devil where ever I could. Well in all honesty whatever got to close to my girl. Did I mention she's bad ass with a sword?

She moved like she was born to fight. Never even looking back for a moment. "PAUL CONCENTRATE!" she screamed to me. by then a bipedal, big cat had come way I got rid of it easily. Wait how did she know it was me? "We need to kill their mother!" THEIR MOTHER? We had finally gotten a breather. She was looking at Jasper than me. she then took a quick look around I'm guessing checking her family. She then pointed to the snake like women. "The fog brings death and will carry on growing till it reaches the reservation and forks. As long as she lives she will shit out these fuckers like a bunny on heat" (Kess sneezed again) Wow. It was like looking at something from myth she was like a snake lady. A golden snake lady you know she could have been beautiful in an exotic snake kinda way (hey I haven't had in a while even a peach gets me standing) but right now she looked like a bat her jaw was bigger than her face all her teeth short sharp and a lot more than a human. And she was letting out a heart wrenching screech looking at all the monsters dying (Well I guess it's like watching your kids die if she's their mother and all) El moved toward me her fire blade raised "DUCK!" I hunched down. I felt a something wet drip down on my fur. It felt kind of sticky. A head rolled to my right.

It was like a rat face with a huge forehead. Its mouth wide open its black eyes staring into nothing "Concentrate Paul please! Tell the rest of your pack to try attack her it doesn't matter how but always attack her it gives her less time to pop out babies" she then moved faster than any human forward to the baby demon queen and tried to attack her. "This is a war as you can see she can look after herself save your questions and concentrate on surviving." The scarred vamper went then to help her, make her way to the bitch. They were right. This was a war. Time to pull my shit together. I told Sam and the others the plan. The "babies" were now in a little more even number and pulling back covering what I assume was their mother. "Jacob I need you to keep the maenads here" Jacobs imprint spoke to him and pointed to 4 naked chicks who looked like they were in the throes of a serious epileptic fit mixed with drug induced hallucinations. If it wasn't for their hands I would have thought, they were satanic mad bitches.

They seemed to be surrounded by a bubble that seemed to be cracking slowly but surely "Sam they are the ones who summoned the fog we need to know why" El was now looking at Sam's black wolf, he nodded along with scar face, doc vamp, muscle man and his wife they moved to surround the circle. I looked forward concentrating on what was in front of me. We were so close El moved beside me "Paul I need your help" she looked at me. She was sweating a bit but her breathing even the snow or whatever it really was, was in her hair now she was dirty and had little scrapes and bruises. "Paul, we need to finish this, everyone can't go on like this" I looked at her face, yes, she was getting tired you could barely see it but her once bright teal eyes were dimming slightly. Was it the adrenaline? I nodded my wolf head whatever needed to be done to end this.

If she dies, I'll kill her. We beheaded the bitch, El had used me as a catapult (after using me as willing bait) to slash off the bitch's head, though the plan wasn't full proof. The bitch saw her coming and raised herself on her tail after flicking me away. I saw El somersault her body higher to reach her goal, the snake swiped at her with her long claws and Els sword moved downwards. When El had landed maybe 10 paces away from the snake whore. That thing raised its blood-filled claw. I had never been so cold since I turned into a wolf it felt as if my blood had frozen, when I looked a El she spat blood on the floor. The fucken thing cackled, I was about to move till I saw El turn towards her and lift her sword. The cackling stopped I looked at El and her sword. It had blood on it. I looked towards mama monster and watched her face turn to shock as her head slipped off her shoulders and before the head could hit the ground. She turned to ash. There was a loud whoop and Jacobs imprint charged at el hugging her tightly.

She slightly pushes her away with a wince. Leah's imprint comes running in wanting to check her over she shakes her head and points to the minudes o whatever those naked chicks are called. Jacobs girl looks at her again pointing to the wound "I have a promise to keep" her eyes blaze again and Kess steps aside. The big guy walks behind her ,doe eyes with her and by now there was another fight going on. Whatever bubble surrounded them had now shattered I meant it literally shattered into tiny crystal like things. The fog was thinning out and all the bodies were turning to ash. Their blood still staining the floor leaving a disgusting smell but at least the bodies wouldn't be a problem. El looked pissed she had picked up her pace to reach the umm well best way to put it after all we been through would be a girl fight.

Really, they were jumping on Sam's and the others back clawing at them, it was actually quite funny. El made her way to the red head who was on Sam's back busy pulling out his fur and biting him, he had eventually decided to roll on the floor to dislodge her it works. He moves a couple of feet away from her. She's back on her feet looking desperate before she can attempt another attack. If you can call it that. El had reached her. I didn't notice before but her nails now were long and looked like 5 thin knives on each finger shimmering in the moon that had fought its way back out from behind the fog. Before anyone could do anything. She turned the naked girl around and plunged those 5 nail knives into the red heads chest and pulled out her heart. The red head was shocked.

Black goo (I'm assuming its their blood) now came out her mouth El pulled her still beating heart out and looked at her dead in the eye "I told you one of you would die by my hand" the red nudist was trying to speak. El crushed her heart and the women crumbled to grey dust. She then turned to the other 3 who had stopped to watch their sister or friend get her heart ripped out and crushed. They were frozen "Whose next?". They all fell to the floor wailing and what I assumed were begging. They kept screaming the same words over and over "Placere parce nobis matris mortem," "Placere parce nobis matris mortem," while lying on the ground with blood tears streaming down their face. "qui ad auxilium vobis?" El was looking at them fiercely her eyes blazing and her hair rising slowly.

Its then I noticed the drop-in temperature and the shadows of the evening slowly creeping towards the naked women. They also seemed to notice because they let out a pitful wail and began begging again. A dark haired one spoke without looking up "n nomen nescimus. ipse fecit nos, non parcit amicae placeat pronus Acantha idea erat." El looked at them irrated, she didn't like the answer. "quam pertinet, quod in uno et queritur mortuum esse, contingit!" before they could respond the weird looking gargoyles came into the scene. Apparently, they were on our side, still fucking creepy though. "Mistress we can get the answers you seek" they spoke English!? Everyone else was just as shocked. El looked at him "At what price" it smiled at her if you can call it a smile looked his teeth gleamed black in the moonlight probably from the monsters we fought "No price" El cocked her head at him with disbelieving eyes "revenge" did I mention they sound like those old witch ladies on T.V talk about bone chilling.

El than raised her head and continued looking at them for a while "You know if you deceive I will make you regret it" he nodded at her never breaking eye contact. She moved aside. The remaining naked claw ladies began to panic and tried to run away. The big Rock lookalike guy caught two of them and threw them towards their sister who was already in the grasp of the other one. A rumble started beneath us. And soon a tree like cage started to grow around them. I looked around and saw Jacobs and Embry's girl muttering lowly and raising their green glowing hands in the direction of the tree dome. It pushed whomever out the way but kept the 3 naked women and two gamma radiation bunnies inside. It was also growing vines covering up holes making sure we couldn't see anything but what we heard.

I have never heard a person human or otherwise let out a scream like what was coming from the tree dome. El was looking at it intensely for 5 minutes or so before the doctor vamp spoke "Surely they do not deserve this" they all turned to him. None of them seemed bothered by the screams as if it was normal. "Stay out of this Cullen, though I appreciate you and the wolves help, this is our fight not yours. The maenads wouldn't have hesitated to send the fog to kill all the humans in forks and maybe even further than that. Do you even know what maenads are?" she looked at him impatiently waiting for an answer. "a female follower of Bacchus, traditionally associated with divine possession and frenzied rites." The blonde war vet "Exactly, you think riots and humans doing nonsense violence is by accident? No, they feed them the ideas push them into violence no matter the cost, either way they can't stay in this world. Humans cause enough havoc without any help from them" well guess it's true what they say. You can learn something new every day. The doctor was shaking his head "but, but surely" she then looked at him "If you can't handle it LEAVE CULLEN" it seemed that final burst of anger was her last she bent over and started coughing. Her blood was red mixed with purple.

"El!" Kess and the doc came to check on her even I had moved a few paces closer. Her hand that was underneath her jacket came out covered in blood. The mother demons scratch I completely forgot about it. "El I think they going to take a while let me heal you" she inclined her head to the dome where the screams. Had grown dimmer. Seth's banshee was close to the dome now , there was a piece of paper on it with a weird Chinese symbol on it.

Huh? I had no time for that now. El was moved to a tree base not to far with her brothers surrounding her. "Shit El its reached your lungs!" what reached her lungs poison I'm guessing Jacob now stood beside me. How do you know? He let out a huff I saw Kess healing one of her brothers who also had a purple like blood on them she said it was poison. And it had reached her lungs? When I looked back Kess along with the golden red head were leaning over El their hands now glowing a soothing blue. her jacket was open and I saw 3 gashes across her abdominal. I cringed the looked deep and painful.

The veins around the wounds were a purplish black were midway to her ribs. Or lungs in this case. Her breathing was even soon the purple veins were reducing, Chanz had now joined them after Kess had to catch her breath and the poison was nearly out. Soon the poison was gone or at least I assumed so because there were no more veins. The wound itself was still there. They had moved away from her. I was about to move and ask why when El got up as if nothing was wrong, her skin was pulling together closing the wound quickly. She cracked her neck and once the wound had vanished leaving no evidence behind she stretched the rest of her body before pulling down her shirt and putting back her jacket. What the hell are they? The mind reader snorted from my side. El looked at the dome intensely when we looked it opened, like a curtain.

One of the weird things stepped out dragging one of the females out by her hair. I almost gagged one of her legs were hanging one by literally threads of meat her skin looked and smelt burnt. And a chunk was taken out of her side. Black veins covered her face her lips blue and her eyes glass. She was breathing like a sick person on a winters day. Inside the dome were guts and blood. Im guessing she was the last one. "This one confessed to meeting the man in their dreams. He gave them powers and promised your subterfuge if the summoned Mala, she does not know who it is and she does not smell of our master." El was looking at him and ignoring the girl she grabbed the thing by throat crushing its wind, she then pulled it closer and bit it. It let out a grunt of pain. A flash of a strange memory came to me then. But it was over as soon as it started. "You telling the truth" she was spitting out his blood and wiping it from her mouth "I have no reason to deceive you mistress".

She gave him a stiff nod and then looked at what was left of the … what hell are these things Maenads! Ok, ok no need to shout geez. "I always liked you Hera. We had such a good time in Rome. Those moments were good memories. You were like a sister to me. Though you strayed a bit, but nothing like the others. I respected you" Rome? "And now you do this to me and worse to my pack? For the sake of our previous friendship" she stood up pacing then faced Hera again " I'll let you live. It may take a while for you to heal, but I am hoping the message will be clear". The dark aired girl whimpered slightly, blood tears streaming down her face "I'm sorry". El pursed her lips her eyes also showing remorse. "Me too Hera. Me too" she then summoned a blue, black ball of flames and struck her with it. Her screams echoed through the forest. I looked around.

The doctor was being held back by the golden red head as if he was nothing more than a disobedient child. "YOU SAID YOU WOULD LET HER LIVE" El turned to him "I keep my word Cullen. The only way to kill a maenad is to take out its heart and crushing it I'm just making sure she never forgets what happens when you cross me or my family. she will heal the forest will help her if it feels like it in a m0nth she should be her old self again" the burning figure on the floor was still screaming. The weird gremlins had talked further with El before sinking in the shadows.

No really they sank into the shadows like quick sand whatever I was glad they were gone. Embry's imprint had by now let go of the doc and had joined her siblings who weren't talking much but seemed to agree it was time to leave. They began moving and then quicker than anything I had seen they had left. I wasn't the only one shocked by their speed. I looked around. The dome had turned into a huge ass tree and all the blood and guts had grown into flowers, besides the smell of burning flesh the air had taken a sweet scent.

I looked around. All the black blood was now covered in an assortment of flowers that were rainbow coloured. In the moonlight, they glittered it was beautiful I'll admit. Did they do this? "I don't know about the rest of you but I'm going to find out what the hell is going on" the bear vampire spoke now. The burning body now vanished. And no evidence that we were fighting monsters worse than kid's nightmares could be seen. I agreed with him. I didn't care if I shifted naked I would get the answers. No one in my pack even raised an eyebrow at this. The bronze haired mind reader smiled a bit. "I think we agree then?" He looked around. "We go to their house" he got no argument "I think we should aarg and we all need a shower" the mate of muscle man scrunched her nose up. Holding up her blonde hair that now had a black streak in it. I sniffed myself. EEW god! Yes, they have many questions to answer I thought to myself. Another flash of crucified bodies came rushing into my head. Without waiting any longer, I took a sprint towards their house. Those nightmares were they really nightmares or were they really memories?

"Placere parce nobis matris mortem- spare us mistress of death

nomen nescimus. ipse fecit nos, non parcit amicae placeat pronus Acantha idea erat.- he never showed his face to us Acantha made us do this

quam pertinet, quod in uno et queritur mortuum esse, contingit- how convenient that the one you blame is dead!.