The wars between the covens erupted once more, and all of us were thrust into battle.

Peter was marvelous; graceful and deadly, killing the opposing vampires just as easily as I did. But the difference between he and I was still that I felt remorse over having to kill on such a large scale. He, like Maria, seemed indifferent, yet still a little empathetic, but not as much as me.

Usually after the ambushes he and I would hunt. We'd talk at lengths about many things until the sun crawled into the sky. But he just didn't seem to understand my torment, though he tried to be as helpful as he could with his advice.

I still felt alone..Why after so many years of fighting must I still feel pity for the dead? Why must I shame myself into hiding with my guilt? Why was I still so different? My answer had not yet come and I wondered if it ever will. Would I always feel this way? It surely seemed like it.

The years trickled by and the fighting calmed a bit, mostly due to the involvement of several Volturi scouts. Peter and I watched from the outskirts of the fray as seven cloaked vampires descended upon the troublesome coven house. Quickly the coven was slaughtered and their nest was burned, and then the scouts disappeared into the night from whence they came.

Peter was flabergasted, asking me how such creatures exist.

"They govern us. When a coven becomes too powerful or too bothersome, they are eliminated. And the humans are none the wiser afterward. We are but a speck of dust in their world, as powerful as we are. But we can just as easily be wiped away by the Volturi."

Peter remained silent, staring at the spot where the cloaked men disappeared. "I wish there was another way." He said suddenly.

I looked at him as his expression softened, his eyes shifting in his head to look at me.

"We shouldn't have to suffer such violence just to have control over land. There is enough of the world that we needn't fight."

"But Maria said-"

"Maria has said lots of things hasn't she? But what does she know of the world besides this senseless violence? She was born into fighting just as you were and that is all she knows. But has she ever lived in a place where she needn't fight? Somewhere scarce of vampires with a small collection of humans to hunt and a place in which to retreat to? There has to be something more to this life than just fighting for territory."

"Maria said you could go into the deepest of jungles and still happen upon vampires. And they will not be civilized as you and I are, they will kill the moment you enter their territory".

"But who's to know? Maybe such creatures could be reasoned with. Maybe there is a place where one can find solitude. Perhaps further south, near the ruins of the ancient civilizations. I am sure not many vampires would choose to live in a place like that".

I thought on it for a moment, looking at the sky. He was definitely a dreamer, we'd established this long ago. Peter dreamed of peace and spoke so often of it he believed in it so thoroughly who was I to say anything. I simply nodded, looking back at him. "I surely hope someday we could find such a place. If such a place truly exists". I rose to my feet, Peter doing the same, we walked back to the coven house where Maria was waiting for us in silence.

Though the coven wars had died down, troublesome vampires still arose to fight us, bitter over painful losses and slain mates. Some ventured onto our land during the day, seeking out Maria and I as we had 'taken from them what was most precious'. It always ended in the same way, they were slain, by my hand or one of the newborns. But Maria never fought them. Why should she? Her army could do for her anything she could do herself.

I noticed a distinct change in her personality as of late. She became more reclusive and paranoid, locking herself away and not even allowing her guard to be near her. It almost seemed as if she were plotting something, but perhaps I was paranoid as well. Maybe for once in her life she was weary of fighting, and just wanted solitude.

At any rate, Peter and I were still minions of hers, and we carried out the orders she spoke to us through the locked door of her bedroom.

Peter managed the newborns, while I trained them. It was a team effort, and I was grateful of Peter's company when it came time to slay the newborns.

It had always been my task, and Maria rarely helped me do it. But at least with Peter it lessened the guilt I felt afterwards. To a degree. The guilt of course never left me.

Sometimes we took a couple of newborns out to be slain, sometimes a handful, depending on the circumstances. When I first had been given this task by Maria, the newborns were not aware of their fate. But more recently they began speaking to one another, and they fought Peter and I when it was their moment to die. Some were strong, throwing Peter or myself away as they made a mad dash for safety. Others were cunning, trying to turn my tactics against me. Others were just brash, biting and clawing away at us as we encircled them.

Peter only sustained a few scars on his hands. As opposed to myself with my many scars covering every visible inch of skin, save one particular area of my anatomy. And my scars were not just physical, but mental. Sometimes I couldn't even continue, and had to leave Peter to finish off the remainder as I fled into the trees.

It was one summer night when he and I had to purge a large group of them. Together we stood by the pyre, calling forth newborn after newborn. It was simple enough in the beginning, some went easy, some fought, same as always. It wasn't until well into the night when we almost completed the process.

I raised my hand into the air, calling forth a woman from the line. It was Charlotte of course. I didn't want to slay her but she was beyond her year mark and she was quickly getting weaker. As she stepped hesitantly forward, I saw something flash in Peter's eyes. For a second I disregarded it, but then he did something I could not have seen coming.

He yelled at her from his place opposite of the pyre, and she ran toward him. His eyes flashed up at me swiftly as his hand thrust into the flames, scattering several of the burning logs. His fist twisted in pain as he pulled his blistered hand from the fire, wrapping it protectively around Charlotte. In one bound, he disappeared into the trees with her, leaving a trail of smoldering embers behind him.

It took me a moment to realize what he had done.

He was escaping, taking Charlotte with him so that she would not be slain. I guess their connection was far stronger than I once thought.

I looked over the fallen logs and then back at the trees. My mind said that I should chase after him, as he had disobeyed Maria and saved one of them who should have been killed. But I didn't. Peter deserved better than that. He deserved to seek out his 'peaceful' territory of ruins and his 'peaceful' existence with Charlotte. I wouldn't stop him unless I truly needed to.

I faced the awestruck handful of newborns, who looked at me fearfully. Quickly I annihilated them, tossing their dismembered bodies into the flames before sprinting back to the house.

I passed up the stairs to Maria's bedroom, hand closing around the knob. When I opened the door, Maria looked up at me passively from her place on the balcony. She nodded weakly before turning away, her long hair fluttering in the breeze. I glided to her side, resting my hands on the railing as she remained silent.

"He has left hasn't he". She said softly as I nodded. "I expected he would. Such a passionate man he was, just as you are. I knew he would not let that girl be slain".

"You expected this and yet did nothing to stop it"? I muttered as she nodded.

"There was no point. He had no will to fight for me, had he remained he'd attempt an attack on me just as Lucy and Nettie once tried." Maria's expression was stoic as she shook her head. "You didn't want to give chase? You simply let him go"? She muttered looking at me darkly.

"It's as you said, there was no point. Besides I don't think Peter would attempt an attack on you, he longs for peace."

She laughed dryly, her eyes shutting. "Still so naive Jasper. But I still love that naivety all the same". Her hand closed around mine as she stared deeply into my eyes. "Besides, I have bigger plans for us. And Peter just would not have figured into them so nicely, it is better this way". She leaned up to kiss me before she turned away and went to the vanity.

I looked back over the skyline, saying a silent prayer for my peace loving comrade. May he find all that he seeks, and do it without killing.