Disclaimer: I'm not Stephenie Meyer because she could afford Microsoft Office...

Disclaimer Deuce: Amy Lee has a ridiculously awesome voice, just saiyan

Embry's POV

I'd decided in support of Mike I wouldn't wear my Volturi robe until he became a Volturi too. We needed to stick together, and I didn't need the robe, I needed a friend I could trust. Felix hadn't liked my decision. Here we were. Running some some stupid rat race for the Volturi to test us. Even if it wasn't it was intended to decide who would be the best suitor to breed to Themba. The idea was sickening. Not the idea of having sex with Themba, no not that... not at all... in fact far from it. But I'm no fucking post.

The fact of the matter was she was stunning, beautiful, graceful, powerful, controlled, and confident... She was amazing and it wouldn't be fair for me to drag her down with me. I knew I was dying, how could I do that to anyone? No... even if her idea was just to have crazy hot sex with me I wouldn't do it. Please listen to yourself, you want crazy hot sex. No... I don't. I forcibly told myself.

So here we are, at the first of the Volturi challenge courses. We were all here, all the shifters and Felix. He frowned at me. I assume for my lack of Volturi robe. I hope he doesn't take it personal... it's not about him, it's about Mike. Maybe this was his idea to break Mike and I up, get us mad at each other. Maybe, maybe not. A wicked smile came over Felix's face.

"Embry isn't wearing his Volturi robe because he doesn't want you all to look like idiots next to him. I mean the guy has already been in four wars, five if you count his first encounter with the Volturi, and he's already proved he's better than you but he's trying not to shove it in your face." You manipulative bastard. I looked at the other shifters, Rhino shrugged like he didn't really care. Sher was smirking like he understood Felix was trying to toy with us but Pantera wasn't happy.

"You're so full over yourself, you think you're something special Wolfboy?" he said trying to intimidate me. I looked past him at Felix who was wearing his heavy robe covering his body completely from the sun, I could still see his face.

"Really Felix?" I felt a punch land across my face. I moved my jaw slightly then looked back down at Pantera.

"first ones free... it's your only warning." I saw him laugh then look away, he was dropping his shoulder. He was getting ready to punch and I knew it. Before he started swinging I readied mine and as soon as his arm moved my arm was striking him in the side of the jaw. He went down hard. He tried to come up too quick and was groggy on his feet. He took a lazy swing at me I easily moved my head back to dodge then kicked with a push kick throwing him back to the ground.

"You done?" I asked. Pantera got up quickly and snarled.

"Can we move on or do you two need to do some more dick measuring?" Felix asked. I snickered at him.

"Yeah... well speaking of dick measuring I'm not doing your rat race." I said before turning and walking away.

"If you don't participate you're taken out of the pool of likely candidates for..." Felix faded off showing a little restraint.

"For what? One night stand? For what? For a fun 'breeding weekend?' we're not even competing for her." I said pointing at Themba.

"We're competing to see who is the best alpha, not even who she likes, who'll make the strongest alpha here... I don't need to prove anything to any of you, Felix knows I'm damn strong enough." I turned and stared Themba in the eye.

"And I have no desire to abandon my child, or my potential child so I'm not what you're looking for." I said before walking away.

Mike's POV

"So what new toy to I get to play with today?" I asked

"They aren't toys" Abhash chided me. I snickered.

"Scimitars."

"Plural?" I asked. I'd used a sword and shield, a spear, a claymore, a rapier, a cutlass, a battle axe, a mace, but never two weapons at once.

"Yes they move as a shield and a weapon, Scimitar is a elegant beautiful weapon, one that doesn't strike but always kills. You don't stab with a scimitar you slice, you don't hack, you cleave." I nodded trying to mimic Abhash's stance.
"Good... now let's begin."

Arthur's POV

"Where did you find this one?" Gawain asked staring in the window at him. I looked down at the page. At 6'7 and 265 lbs the guy was bigger than the rest of us.

"He was enforcer for university of Boston Terriers."

"What's the story?" Lancelot asked.

"Boogaard is his name but everyone calls him the 'Boogyman' because no one ever wants to fight him... he always won."

"He did... what's he do now?" Lancelot asked.

"He's a bouncer, and miserable." I answered.

"He signed up?" Lancelot asked. I nodded.

"Now just to turn him." I motioned for the vampire who turned me to do the job. He nodded and stepped in to bite him. He looked down at his arm as the vampire stood over him trying to resist his blood. Boogaard stared the vampire in the eye and took a swing with all his power at his face. The vampire's head went down he wasn't paying attention and took all of it. He was off balance for a moment then retreated out of the room. Boogaard's knuckles were busted open.

"How that bastard throws a punch you'd think he's a boxer." he said rubbing his chin. Gawain laughed.

"He hits hard then?" I asked.

"Like a mac truck." The vampire answered. We'd never given him a name or let him say his name, his use was turning vampires for us... that was his only use.

"So he'll be useful?" The vampire asked.

"The report shows he doesn't like fighting." Gawain shook his head.

"No that's impossible... you don't get that good at fighting without fighting." He said.

"He fights... he just doesn't do it because he enjoys it... all reports show he has a sort of... big brother complex."

"So what do we have to do?" Lancelot asked.

"Give him something to protect."

Embry's POV

"So this is the course huh?" Mike asked looking at all the obstacles. He looked up and down it almost mystified.

"Wow..." He said looking at it.

"What? You could easily do this thing in thirty seconds or less." I replied offhandedly.

"One year ago the idea of even attempting this would be laughable. A year ago I would have never thought I could ever do something like this." I understood what he was saying. He still wasn't used to everything he could do.

"I had goals... I had dreams... I could work hard and achieve anything in the world... but they're all gone now... all of them, my future, my dreams stolen from me."

"You can still have dreams." I said trying to comfort him.

"I always thought if I had the ability to have anything, take anything, be anything... that would be true happiness... I was wrong. Without needing to work for it, nothing will ever be worth pursuing."

"What do you mean?"

"If I wanted to be a professional football player now I know I could be a better running back that Adrian Peterson, if I wanted to a professional basketball player I know now I could be better than Kobe Bryant, If I wanted to play baseball I could hit better than A-Rod, if I wanted to play Hockey I could score better than Crosby." I finally explained. How couldn't he understand that this gift was a curse?

"What about soccer?" Embry asked. I shook my head.

"Nope, I would never want to be a professional soccer player." I answered honestly. Embry snickered.

"What about music? You must have had dreams of being in a rock band." Embry asked. I nodded.

"Any sane kid has... but I could never do it." I said out loud for the first time.

"Why?"

"Because everyone whose made even a small impact on music has a history, and can be read about... as a vampire I can't leave a history... I can't leave a legacy... my entire existence is based on not being remembered... sick isn't it? I could do so much with my life but I'm forced to do nothing with so much time, and those with so little time get a chance to do so much." Mike sighed looking at the course.

"Hey, lets race." I called trying to cheer up Mike.

"You know I'll kill you don't you?" Mike asked.

"I like a challenge." I said grinning back at them.

Felix's POV

I stood observing Mike and Embry talking. If there was only a way we could break them up, pull them apart so we could insure they would be fully committed to the Volturi. They were eying the course but I already knew the outcome, Embry would be faster than any of the other shifters who took it, and Mike being a vampire would be faster than him. I pointed out the window as Zuri and Themba walked by. They stopped and looked out. I watched Themba's expression change.]

"He's actually doing it?" Themba asked me.

"He's trying to cheer up Iverson." I surmised.

"What's wrong with Iverson?" Zuri asked. I hear Themba snicker. I shrugged. Truthfully he was just coming down from the high of being a newborn for a couple months.

"He's just starting to get his emotions back... it's kind of jarring for a new vampire." I said watching as they got ready. I pulled out a stop watch. I waved it in front of Zuri and Themba. With a laugh.

"This should be entertaining." I laughed. I hit the watch at they started.

"Why is that?" Themba asked.

"Because Embry is going to blow past the other shifters times." I heard Themba laugh.

"Bullshit, Pantera beat that whole thing in a minute, no way Embry will do better than that, he's too big." I chuckled to myself.

"Your eyes can deceive you, don't trust them." Embry and Mike jumped, climbed, spun, flipped, dropped, and ran through the course I hit the stop button and causally spun it in my hand for Themba to see before turning to walk away.

Mike's POV

"I've noticed something." Felix said picking up a rather large club. Even for him it looked like it'd take both of his hands.

"And what is that?" I said bored. He tossed me a one handed sword. I regarded him with a perplexed look.

"You've been able to bat away attacks that should have knocked you on your ass."

"Okay?" I asked.

"I think you can harness power in parts of your body."

"And you're going to test this theory how?"

"Simple... I'm going to swing this club as hard as I can at you, and you're going to block it with one arm with that sword... and that is all." I tried to support my arm as best I could but his swing came and threw me across the room, I heard him laughing.

"I guess you didn't get it on the first try." he said snickering. I got back up. Slowly.

"You want to go again?" he asked.

"I think you just want to wack me with your club again." I said slightly angry.

"It's a positive side effect of this exercise, yes."

Embry's POV

"How did your practice session with Felix go yesterday?" I said walking with Mike to hear the course results. It didn't affect me, I didn't run their rat race.

"Felix hit me with that dang club for ten minutes before I could figure out how to stop it." he complained.

"I guess his methods work." I shrugged.

"You didn't record a time for this... why does Felix want you here?" Mike asked.

"Maybe he just wants to make a show of it for Themba, hell if I know..."

"I've got the results here." Felix said

"The worst time was 81.097 seconds." I heard Pantera snickering about Rhinos time. We all knew it was his.

"Pantera's Time was 62.359 seconds." Pantera took a bow.

"Thanks I knew I was by far the fastest, and I'll beat anyone in a flat out race..."

"But Pantera... your time wasn't the fastest."

"No way, I was faster than Sher." Pantera argued.

"You were..." Felix said. There wasn't another shifter... no... damn it no. I thought angrily.

"First place with a time of 51.032 seconds was Embry." I stayed silent. He must have timed me when I did the course with Mike.

"What the hell! Embry didn't even take part it the damn course." Pantera yelled.

"Actually he did... Themba, myself and Zuri all observed him, Themba will even confirm the time. I showed her." I turned to Themba trying to force myself not to blush.

"Yes, he finished the whole course in 51 seconds." I turned on my heel and made for the door.

"Where are you going Embry?" Felix called. I stopped and turned to face him.

"Away, I never wanted to be in this competition for procreation." I scanned the room for Themba but didn't see her. I put it out of my mind and turned around towards the door. I stopped short inches from Themba.

"What, leaving without your prize?" She said with a smirk on her face.

"Prize?" I felt her arms grab the back of my head and pull me down to her lips. The kiss was amazing. Before I knew what I was doing my arms were wrapped around her and kissing her back passionately. She eventually pulled back and I remembered my arms were around her. I let go quickly. She was grinning.

"It looks like you want to compete to me." she said beaming. I walked away blushing perfusely. Wow... that kiss was... What the hell are you thinking? She would have kissed anyone who won, you're not special to her. That was still amazing. And even if it was amazing and someone else won the competition she'd go somewhere else. So? You know you've always been jealous and competitive. I know I can win this. It doesn't matter, it'll be a loss when she leaves you after she has her child. It won't happen. Not again, this isn't going to happen to me.

Happy Holidays. HOLY CRAP! He's doing the authors note in Bold Italics! BAM! Crazy right? I hope you enjoyed the chapter, I don't know when the next one is coming out BUT reviewing gets me writing faster so please do. Remember knucks, rolls of twenties, ideas, comments, and reviews go in the review column. Thanks for reading. Catch you on the flip side.