AN: My apologies everyone. I had to use a different computer this week, with different software. I finished this chapter twice only to have the software crash and lose it on my final save. The third time, I wised up and used Open Office and was finally able to get it finished, saved, and uploaded for your reading pleasure. Each version was slightly different, so hopefully this turned out okay, despite my irritation and frustration.

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Chapter 52 - Down Memory Lane

Aro POV

Think, Aro, think, I mentally chanted.

Don't panic until you examine the boy's thoughts for yourself. You suspected a trick, but trusted Alec not to betray you, for his mate's sake. It could still be a trick, only Alec fell for it. Just because he believes he's telling the truth, doesn't necessarily mean it's true, my inner voice warned.

I relaxed a bit, at this possibility. All my 'life' I've listened to and trusted my inner voice, the voice of reason, the vampire within. It wasn't fettered by foolish sentimentality, could see through the bullshit of emotions and relationships to the meat of the matter. It always had my best interests at heart and never led me astray.

While waiting for Alec to arrive, I took inventory of the remaining Guard members. There were still ten of the lesser guards willing to stay, including Felix, Afton, Corin, Santiago, Renata, and Alec. We also had the five of us in the royal family.

If I return Alice's and Edward's limbs, they'd be able to fight, but would they stand with me or run? I considered.

They would turn on you in a heartbeat! You can't trust them, not after what you've done to them, the voice warned. As a last resort, you could put them back together, but hide a few of their key body parts, like Edward's penis, in a place only you know, and promise to give the parts back after the battle. That might be enough to make them want to keep you alive, no matter how much they hate and resent you.

I sighed. It's tough being the ruler sometimes. Would it be better to present a united front against the threat, or disperse to make the wolves have to track us all down in groups of two to four?

If the threat is real, you'll lose either way, the voice responded. A better question is: Where can you go where the wolves can't find you? Where can you go that the wolves cannot follow?

I nodded my head, catching on to his meaning. It's time to enact the outer space plan, isn't it?

With technology rapidly advancing the way it was, it was possible for the humans to actually become a threat to us in a few decades. I had secretly been working on a back-up plan, in case we ever needed to flee. With no need for oxygen, no problem withstanding extreme temperatures, intelligence, strength, lack of illness, and nearly unlimited money, we were much better suited for interplanetary settlements than the weak and feeble humans. In fact, foreseeing this eventuality, I even had my own scientists working on synthetic blood substitute, so we wouldn't need to rely on humans at all.

I made a call to my top secret facility, ordering them to pick up the pace, informing them evacuation of the planet may be imminent.

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Alec finally arrived, visibly shaken and grieving.

Yes, the boy believes it, I admitted. He's definitely not that good of an actor.

He bowed deferentially to me, then collapsed, sobbing, into the arms of his mate. Knowing I could no longer afford to antagonize any of my remaining guards, I reluctantly allowed it, though I mentally whined, They aren't supposed to make their relationship public, lest one be used against the other.

My inner voice growled, Have you forgotten Alec's gift? If you deny him the comfort of his mate right now, he will most likely turn on you. He could take out the remaining Guard singlehandedly! He could kill you, and you wouldn't even know what happened until you woke up in Hell. We need this little brat to survive.

Listening to the voice, I gripped Alec's hand and gave a gentle squeeze in a show of support. At the same time, I began watching Alec's memory unfold like a movie behind my eyes.

Alec's Memory

"I'm voting for Carlisle. I always liked him. He was one of the rare few who treated me like a regular person, back when he lived at the castle with us," I suggested.

Jane, her eyes filled with an old pain, sneered: "Yeah, but he left us behind and never returned."

Mom reminded her, "Now, dear, you know he had no choice in the matter. Aro would never have let us go."

All three of us frowned and sighed.

Mom decided, "Okay, Alec, go and get Carlisle and bring him out of the range of your gift, so he can recover."

I turned to and took a step to do just that when, suddenly, out of nowhere, a gigantic wolf was flying through the air toward me, passing unharmed through the fog surrounding me. Never before in my hundreds of years as a vampire has any one or any thing been able to approach me through the numbing fog, effortlessly defeating my gift. Not only that, but this was the first werewolf I had ever seen. I'd seen paintings and photographs, so I knew a wolf the size of a horse willing to attack a vampire had to be a werewolf.

But it's the middle of the day, in the middle of the lunar cycle, and it's white! There's never been a report of a white werewolf – gray yes, white no, part of my mind protested, insisting this couldn't possibly be a werewolf for those reasons.

MOVE, IDIOT! My beast snarled, trying to snap me out of my shock. Unfortunately, I stood frozen, terrified and confused, for critical seconds, when I should have been attempting to evade. Instead, my wide, unblinking eyes focused on the gaping maw the size of my head, with gleaming, razor sharp teeth dripping saliva, that was rapidly approaching my face.

No painting or picture could possibly have prepared me to face that, the sure knowledge of impending death, the disabling, gut-wrenching fear, the sheer incredulity. I didn't know it was even possible to shock a vampire into immobility, wouldn't have believed it if I hadn't experienced it myself.

Are you BROKEN? My beast shouted. Forget your gift and PROTECT yourself!

Before I regained the use of my limbs, before I could move out of the way or raise my arms to block it, I felt its claws digging into my chest and its warm, foul-smelling breath on my face and neck.

Instantly, my self-preservation instincts kicked in, freeing me from my unprecedented catatonia. My arms came up to tear it off of me, at the same time my mother reached out to help me.

My eyes must be failing me, I thought, seeing my hands pass right through its body. Desperately, I tried over and over to grasp the wolf, but could never find purchase. The same was true for Mom, and her horror filled eyes met mine, as we realized all our attempts were futile. As our gazes locked, I heard the metallic shrieking of my tearing flesh.

The wolf's teeth sliced into my neck with ease. My mind became consumed with the pain of beheading, a pain I had felt only once before and hoped never to feel again. As the connection between my mind and body was severed, I became confused and disoriented, especially while my head tumbled through the air before crashing into the ground below. Directional cues – up, down, right, left, north, south – lost all meaning in my disorganized thoughts.

I struggled to focus, to pay attention to the location of my body, hoping to continue fighting or possibly even reattach myself like we practiced in training. Nothing I had learned in my training did me any good in this situation, except I wasn't in a full fledged panic like I was the first time my head was separated from my body. This time, a small voice kept reminding me I could be put back together, assuming nobody burnt my body to ash first.

Unfortunately, the wolf grabbed my head before anyone else could and ran away with it. The disgusting wet dog and week old garbage odor filled my nostrils, gagging me. I desperately wanted to sneeze, to puke, to rid myself of the foul stench. It only got worse.

The wolf's slimy spit oozed into my nose, burning as it climbed up toward my sinuses. I couldn't smell anything but dog drool. How I wished I couldn't smell at all! This was so much worse than what my gift did. Smelling nothing is much better than being overwhelmed with a stench so powerful, so poisonous, it would likely kill a human at first whiff!

The wolf's hot, squishy tongue rested against my face as it panted. To my despair and dismay, the sludge worked its way into my eyes too, burning the sensitive surface, taking away my vision. I was reminded of the milky whiteness in the eyes of the kings, only mine felt solid white, the redness completely eclipsed. I blinked my eyes, trying to clear them, and quickly realized my vision wasn't just impaired, it was gone. I'm blind!

Suddenly, I felt the wind whipping past my cheeks and nothing else touching me. I realized my head was now flying through the air, and I hoped one of my family members would catch me. I grimaced as my head slammed into the ground, bouncing and rolling a bit before stopping. I opened my mouth a bit to taste the air, since I couldn't smell, to get an idea of who or what was nearby. The air was thick with the flavor of rotting fur, like a bearskin rug that was left out in the rain and mud, then balled up, placed in a box, left to mildew and decompose, and became a nest for mice babies, which died when the heat of summer cooked them where they lay sleeping in a puddle of their own feces and urine. I had once had the misfortune of opening just such a box, and the wave of horrific stench that wafted out had nearly sent me to my knees, my eyes filling with venom. This was very similar to that, but slightly different to the first wolf.

Oh, shit! Another wolf? I thought, right before the wolf's mouth closed around my face, its teeth clenching on my skull behind my ears. It's disgusting slobber dripped into my mouth, causing my tongue to swell and fill my mouth, closing off my airway in the process. The taste was worse than human food, possibly even worse than feces, though I'd never tried it. It's a good thing I don't have to breathe.

I could hear the pounding feet of my mother and sister in hot pursuit and felt a swell of hope, until I noticed the wolf was faster than they were. They were falling behind, a little at a time, unable to match speed with it. To make matters worse, the foul saliva was working its way into my ears, causing them to swell and stop up, until I couldn't hear at all. I was now lost in the blankness of my own mind with only my sense of feel to maintain my sanity and try to figure out what was happening around me.

I flew through the air unfettered again, landing in the arms of a vampire. I felt a brief burst of hope until I realized by the size of my captor's hands, he was a male. Is he friend or foe? The only vampires around here are our foes! I remembered, thinking of the two armies felled by my gift. I had the urge to swallow, though it was currently impossible. This was not a good thing. He must be working with the wolves!

I was soon flying again, only this time I found safe purchase in the arms of my mother. I'd know her soothing embrace anywhere. Internally, I cheered. Go mom! I wished I could help her.

To my dismay, I felt the heat of a fire radiating toward me, then mom jumped, up and over. Relieved we'd cleared that obstacle, I started to relax, sensing, by the pulling sensation, we were headed back in the same direction as my body. Suddenly, Mom was tackled to the ground, rolling with her attacker and coming to a stop with my head sandwiched between them. I knew, by the feel of his hands, it was the same male vampire as before. Oh, no! Mom!

For some reason, they stayed in that position for a while. Confused, I waited impatiently to be returned to my body, when sudden agony pierced through my brain.

Somebody is tearing apart my limbs! Mom! Hurry! The sensation of her delicate hands on my skin told me a female vampire was the one destroying me. The armies must be awake now. My gift has worn off, and they are regaining consciousness. This is bad, very bad. We can't possibly fight all of them!

Some part of my brain was aware my mother was up and running again, though the majority of my thoughts were consumed by the agony of being torn to pieces, then carried toward a fire. This is it. I can't live without my body. I can't be a head in a tank, like and Edward and Alice, I silently whimpered. Without warning, my parts were suddenly dropped, clattering haphazardly to the ground, mere yards away from the flames. Now what?

This up and down roller coaster of emotion was wreaking havoc on my mental composure, though I was doing my utmost best to hold myself together. I could feel the pull getting stronger, letting me know we were getting closer to my body. Before long, we would be within sight of it, if only I could see.

The enemy female was back, picking up my pieces again and moving closer to the flames. She must have won the fight, I thought with despair. I'm sorry, Renata. I tensed all my muscles in preparation for the untold agony of being burned to ash.

Just as the heat began to singe my skin, the enemy suddenly turned around and dropped me again. Then, to my shock and disbelief, she began reassembling me right there on the spot. Why would she put me back together after trying to incinerate me?

The answer came moments later when my mother and the male vampire from before joined her in piecing me back together. Yes! Mom must have bonded them to us, so they'd be on our side! I relaxed, focusing my energy on healing, believing maybe we really could overcome these odds and survive to fight another day.

The ex-enemy female left shortly thereafter, to my relief. I wasn't really comfortable having her hands anywhere on my body, even if she was on our side now. Mom and the male left midway through as well. The battle must still be raging, I worried, wishing I knew what was happening around me, feeling helpless to defend and protect my family as I'd been doing for centuries.

Despite my worry, I was actually rather relieved they left when they did, as I suddenly, inexplicably found myself sporting a boner. It was embarrassing beyond belief to lose control of myself like that, especially when there wasn't anything around to stimulate me that way. I squirmed on the ground, desiring friction to provide a release of the unexpected tension, but I didn't yet have use of my hands, so I was stuck, forced to endure until I could calm myself down. One thought of my natural father and what he did to my mother and sister was enough to cause me to rapidly wilt. It stirred up my anger instead, causing me to rage at the memories of another time I was helpless to save my loved ones.

My mother returned a few minutes later and swiftly connected the remaining pieces, before leaving again. I laid there alone and clueless for some undetermined amount of time, lamenting the loss of my senses. Finally, she returned, only to carry my whole, but still limp form up a tree. She left me there, high up in a tree, propped up on the branches, to heal.

Hours passed as I waited for the return of either my mother or my senses, whichever came first. I waited impatiently, straining my eyes and ears, trying to discover some clue as to the status of the battle and my family. Experience had taught me enough for me to be greatly concerned over the length of time that had already passed, for typically, the longer the battle, the higher the number of casualties on both sides.

Finally I was able to see, hear, smell, and taste again. I eagerly jumped down from the tree, knowing I needed to feed to regain my strength. I was as weak as a newborn kitten and would be useless to anyone until I replenished my lost venom. Obviously, humans were hard to come by in the wilds of Alaska, so I decided to make do with the local wildlife, just as Carlisle would.

I tracked down a few deer and easily took them down, draining them completely. They didn't smell particularly appetizing, and their flavor was rather bland and gamey, but compared to werewolf spit, it was sweet ambrosia. It hit the spot and did what I needed it to do. At least my ordeal has given me some perspective, I decided philosophically.

Full to the point of sloshing, I ran back to the clearing where the army had met to find out what had occurred there. I was shocked by what I found there. Unable to accept what my senses were telling me, I ran in ever widening circles, gathering evidence, hoping to find something, anything, to counter the conclusion my brain was trying to draw.

At last, I gave up hope and returned to the clearing where the large piles of ashes told a distressing and disturbing story. Every single vampire who had been present in that clearing, was accounted for in those ashes, including my mother and sister. Every scent trail leading away was eventually intersected by one of the wolves, only to return to the clearing, straight to the flames. Even more disturbing was the wolves' scent trails. Both of them disappeared in the same place, not reappearing anywhere in the vicinity.

Sadly, I dug through the ashes where I detected Mom's and Jane's scents and found the locket I had given Mom, with pictures of me, Renata, and Jane, as well as the charm bracelet I had given Jane representing some of our favorite memories. I knew neither of them would ever have parted with them willingly. I also found two necklaces and two rings bearing the Cullen crest, as well as two rings engraved with the Whitlock symbol, and Eleazar's Volturi ring.

Grieving, I dragged myself away and braced myself to deliver the distressing news to Aro. I wanted nothing more than to seek comfort in the arms of my mate.

End Alec's Memory

Well, if it's a trick, it's a damn good one, my inner voice admitted. I frowned, knowing I couldn't detect any flaws in the logic any more than Alec could. The good news, is that we were made aware of one of their weaknesses.

A weakness? I thought excitedly, my eyes widening. Weaknesses are good. What's the plan?

The boy survived - why? The only answer is that he was up a tree. Surely if they could have reached him, they would have destroyed him just like all the others, right? So the only logical conclusion is that ghost wolves can't climb trees any better than regular werewolves, the voice explained. It paused and then continued more hesitantly, Though that doesn't explain why they didn't just knock down the tree like the regular werewolves do. It is possible they wanted him to come back and report to us.

But what purpose would that serve? Why would they want their enemies to know of their secret capabilities? Why would they want us to have fair warning so we would have time to prepare? I protested.

Perhaps it was too easy to defeat the others of our kind, the voice grumbled. Perhaps they seek a greater challenge, much like you did.

Hopefully, they'll be just as panicked and unhappy about the level of challenge as I was, I replied in kind, feeling disgruntled.

They probably just didn't notice him up in the tree, since he was so still, and his scent was masked by his mother's, the voice encouraged. In the end, it doesn't change our plan of action. If we assume climbing is an issue for them, which is reasonable considering real wolves, then the tower you built to protect your mate from vampire attack should work against them as well.

Perfect! I agreed thoughtfully. The tower was the model for the silly fairy tale Rapunzel. Sulpicia didn't let down her hair, but she did lower a rope through a trap door. Nobody could enter the living quarters of the tower except via the rope. The stone walls were imbedded with vampire and werewolf teeth and coated in both vampire and werewolf venom. If any vampire tried to climb the walls, his flesh would be torn by the teeth and poisoned by the venom. The werewolf venom would cause the infected body part to swell and become useless. Once introduced into the vampire's veins, it meant a slow, agonizingly painful death. A werewolf would also be cut by the teeth and poisoned by the vampire venom.

Nobody will be suspicious of you spending most of your time with your mate during these difficult circumstances. It's normal to seek the comfort of your mate in times of impending danger, the voice added, slyly.

Indeed! I replied gleefully, relieved to have a temporary measure of protection in place. Only those whom I invite to join me in the tower will survive the coming massacre. The wolves shall be my pawns, doing my bidding without even knowing it. They shall weed out the undesirable vampires, while leaving the cream of the crop indebted to me for saving their lives. I shall then rebuild my power base without fear of reprisal from those who dislike me.

With a plan in place, I was now calm enough to don my benevolent king persona. I relayed all that Alec had experienced. One look at Alec's expression and body language was enough to convince the entire audience of the veracity of my words and the danger of the threat to our kind. The knowledge that the wolves had killed Jane and Chelsea, two of our more powerful vampires, filled them with fear. Regaining their attention, I commanded, "Go forth and warn all of our kind of the impending threat. Encourage them to come here to Volterra, that we may present a united front against a common enemy. Inform them that this new breed of werewolf has already decimated two vampire armies, one of newborns, and one of experienced fighters. Tell them Jane and Chelsea both lost their lives to the wolves as well. This will help them understand they cannot possibly face this threat alone. Meanwhile, my brothers and I will be working on a way to bypass the wolves' new capabilities."

I watched impassively as the remainder of my minions went scurrying off to do my bidding. As soon as they were all gone, I began rubbing my hands together, busy making plans of my own. Like a cat, I always managed to land on my feet in times of trouble. As long as I continue listening to my inner voice I'll come out on top again, just like I always do. I shall choose my favorites from those gathered here and let the wolves have the rest. Sometimes it is better to burn everything to the ground and start anew.

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Jasper POV

I was enjoying a few minutes of alone time with my Bella, when I was startled by the sound of a vampire rapidly approaching. The vampire's emotional signature was unfamiliar to me, causing me to immediately become defensive. Jumping up from the couch where we had been cuddling, I raced to the front door and out onto the porch, preparing myself for attack.

Seconds later, a vampire burst through the treeline and was halfway across the yard, before he slowed to a near human pace, approaching more cautiously upon seeing me waiting for him. Grinning and waving at me, he continued his approach, both his emotions and body language friendly and nonconfrontational.

"Well, well, if it isn't Major Whitlock and with yellow eyes, no less. I never thought I'd see the day," he teased playfully. "Good to see you again, boy."

"Captain," I greeted with a nod. "What brings you here?"

"I ran into my good buddy, Carlisle, a couple days ago, and he told me all about what that fiend Aro has been doing. I figured if you were going to be overthrowing tyrants, I'd be the first to join the revolution!"

I smirked, knowing Garrett had been a captain in the colonial militia, during the American Revolutionary War. We had met one day, many years ago, when he had single-handedly destroyed an entire unit of Maria's newborns while they were foraging for food and wreaking havoc on a town. Going against orders, some of them were feeding off of children and raping the human women. Unable to tolerate such behavior, Garrett had killed them all, burning them before I arrived on the scene. I wasn't in charge of that particular unit and would never have allowed any of the men under my command to run unsupervised like that. Upon hearing Garrett's account, I agreed with his course of action. Impressed with anyone who could take out an entire unit of nine month old, trained, seasoned newborn soldiers, who still retained the majority of their strength and speed, I was reluctant to kill him, though I knew it was what Maria would command. Upon realizing the respect was mutual, we spent a few hours getting to know each other, before I sent him on his way, warning him to stay out of the area unless he wanted to be drafted against his will into a never-ending war.

"Come on in," I invited, escorting him inside, eager to introduce him to my mate. He entered the living room ahead of me, and his lust instantly skyrocketed.

MINE! Major roared. Infuriated, we pushed past him to stand in front of our mate. How dare he covet my mate?

Only, as soon as I was in a protective crouch in front of my mate, it was obvious she was not the object of his desire. While we had been talking out on the front porch, Kate had slipped in through the back door and joined Bella on the couch. She and Garrett were locked in an intense staring contest, both wearing goofy expressions, and sending off huge waves of lust, love, euphoria, hope, joy, happiness, excitement, and more.

There goes another one, I thought, rolling my eyes. Is there something in the blood around here? I wondered, ignoring the fact we were in North Dakota now and not Alaska anymore. I've seen more couples mated in the past six months than the past six decades!

"Come, my mate, let's leave these two lovebirds alone," Bella purred, embracing me from behind. "We can go continue our fun outside."

She didn't need to ask me twice. I grabbed her hand, racing out the door and into the forest, in the blink of a human eye. I'm so glad we arranged that secret stash of clothing a few days ago. We're gonna need it later . . .

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Demitri POV

My darling Heidi and I had just spent the past three days screwing each other six ways from Sunday. I believe we exhausted the entire Kama Sutra and even came up with a few new positions of our own. Perhaps we should write a sequel? I mused, content for the first time in my undead existence. I traced patterns on my mate's naked back, as we cuddled together on the cool grass of a secluded hillside. The once pristine landscape was now dotted with huge scars from the fury of our lovemaking, with body size imprints in the ground, downed trees, and even a few large chunks of missing earth I didn't remember us gauging out in the heat of the moment.

Heidi sighed peacefully, snuggling further into my chest and tracing her own patterns there. Thank heavens Chelsea died, I thought to myself. If she hadn't, we may never have completed our mating bond. I felt slightly guilty for those sentiments, knowing Chelsea hated using her gift the way Aro commanded. She had confessed and apologized to all of us for essentially enslaving us. She admitted she'd been forced to enslave herself and her children as well, or else witness the torture of her children until she complied with Aro's demands. She would have willingly accepted the torture of herself and stayed strong, but she simply couldn't allow the torture of her children when she had the power to stop it, despite knowing we all would suffer for it.

Having a mate of my own to protect, I now fully understood the choice she had to make. If Aro had Heidi and threatened to torture her endlessly until I agreed to use my gift to hunt down an innocent vampire and assassinate him, would I continue to refuse? How long could I possibly witness my mate's pain, knowing I could stop it, if I compromised my morals and became a murderer? Would I place my mate's well-being over the life of an unknown vampire? As much as I loathed to admit it to myself, I knew I would quickly cave. I would murder an innocent, dozens of innocents, to keep my mate safe, so I really couldn't blame Chelsea for making the same decision, especially when she could hope that one day we'd all be set free, like we were now.

Thinking about Chelsea made me realize something distinctly odd and unexpected. "Um, Heidi?"

"Yes, my love?" she purred.

"I'm still picking up Chelsea's mental signature," I announced in a troubled tone.

Picking up on my confusion and anxiety, she lifted her head to look into my eyes. "What does that mean?"

"She still alive," I explained, biting my lip in consternation.

"What? But how? Why? The bonds . . . They're gone!" Heidi spluttered, upset and fearful. "Are they going to come back?"

"She must have dropped them deliberately," I replied, thinking aloud. "She and Jane are still in America, but Alec is in Volterra with Renata."

"But won't Aro retaliate against Alec and Renata for her defiance?" my mate asked.

I knew she was right and began processing everything I knew, searching for answers. Suddenly, it hit me. "Not if he believed she and Jane were dead!"

"But Alec couldn't lie to him – he would know," Heidi protested.

"He wouldn't be lying if he believed it too," I suggested. "She must have figured out a way to fake her death and Jane's too, without letting Alec in on the secret. Then she dropped the bonds and sent Alec safely back to his mate, knowing Aro would have bigger worries on his plate, with all of us freeing his enslavement! Even Marcus was enslaved to him – that's why he let us go!"

"I think you're right," Heidi agreed, getting excited. "He did look better than he ever has before. But why did Chelsea choose to do this now? What is she planning? Is she working for somebody else? What if she's joined the Romanians? I don't want to be enslaved to them! They're even worse than Aro!"

"I don't know, but I intend to find out," I decided, brimming with courage and determination. With an affirmative nod, Heidi began getting dressed. I quickly threw on my own clothes and we took off for America to get the answers we needed. I will not allow my mate to be enslaved again, I vowed.

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AN: Now that my kids are out of school for the summer, I don't have as much free time as I used to, but I will do the best I can to continue updating in a timely fashion. Thank you all for your encouraging reviews. It certainly helped me start again a third time, after cursing out the computer for losing my chapter, not once, but twice. Grrrr.