AN: I'm going to have a couple of days rest, I'll update again on Monday night. Thanks for your patience :)
Here are the groups as they stand now;
Iceland – Charlie, Brenna, Briggita, Fred, Aro, Picia with Feykir and the pack
La Push – Peter, Charlotte, J, Bella, Demitri with the Quileutes
Volterra – Esme, Marcus, Caius, Dora, Mark, Evan, Emmett, Rose, and a few of the Elite Guard and Lower Guard (Evan and Mark are the boys captured in New Mexico and were small time Generals)
America/Canada – Felix, Eliza, Jane, Alec, Renata searching for Newborn Armies
Europe – Alice and Alistair
S. Meyer owns twilight
CHAPTER 9
Esme POV
The castle felt so bare. I was glad to have time to spend with my mate and the boys; Evan and Mark. They had learnt a lot under our guidance. We were sitting in Marcus' study watching TV and talking. The boys had opened up a lot about their human lives, they hadn't known each other before they were turned. They missed their parents, but had learned to move on.
Marcus came in, his eyes were bright orange. Em and Rose walked behind him, each carrying a basket of bottles. He was beyond happy "they did it, Esme! The scientist perfected the cloning process and created a lot of synthetic blood, look!" He held out a bottle. It looked like blood, it smelt like blood. I took a sip and quickly drank the whole bottle. Oops. I looked in shock between the bottle and my mate. He was smiling "I had the same reaction, dear." He laughed. "It's better than the real thing. Em and Rose enriched it, that one bottle should keep us full for longer. It'll also curb out instincts against the other species." I did feel full. I got up and hugged Em and Rose, congratulating them.
Marcus handed each of the boys a bottle of the blood. "Let us know what you think." He said, smiling. Their eyes darkened, then turned orange as they drank. They looked surprised. "It's awesome." Evan smiled. "Fuck yeah!" Mark said in agreement. Em looked shocked. I shrugged "their teenagers, Em. It's not the end of the world if they swear. Lighten the fuck up." I said, smirking at him. Rose laughed, she understood why I didn't give a shit about their language in our private quarters. I wasn't going to coddle them, they were old enough to know when to behave and when to relax.
"I'm going to go call Aro and Demitri. Rose, Em and our scientists are creating whole vats of blood for us. When Aro comes back we'll have to start distribution." He headed to the hallway to make the call. I left the boys to their TV show and went to the throne room with Em and Rose to show Caius their accomplishment.
I knocked on the door to the throne room. "Enter" Caius said, Heidi and Renata opened the doors from the inside and let us in. I approached Caius and bowed formally, offering him a bottle of blood. There were trials happening today to sort out the squabbles of a few of our people. The throne room was the one place in the castle that formality must be maintained at all times.
I saw Em nod his head beside me and Caius took the bottle. I straightened up as he fed quickly and smiled. "We have enough for the people here." Rose said bowing. Caius nodded and stood up. "It is time to feed. We have a complimentary meal for you all." He gestured for us to distribute the bottles and sat down. We served the guard first, there were few remaining here in Volterra. Many were on assignment around the world.
There were another ten people present for their audience with the Caius. They each thanked us and took a bottle, feeding quickly and handing it back to us. We left the room as chatter started in approval of the new blood. I hoped idly that it would calm the tension between fighting covens. It would at least help Caius keep calm.
Em and Rose returned to their lab in Aro's quarters and I headed back to Marcus' study. The boys were still watching TV, Marcus had joined them on the couch. He smiled as I entered "Aro's pleased. He just finished meeting with Feykir. They're going to spend a few more days in Iceland then head to Australia to speak with the pack masters there."
"That's great. I hope Charlie's vodka works. How are the wolves?" I asked. "They're very well, a few of them are employed. They've formed an alliance with a coven of witches. It seems like a good arrangement."
"Have there been any new wolves?" I asked, I wanted their species to grow and prosper. Marcus nodded "Aro said there were a few new faces. Fred and Feykir's combined packs equal sixty two bodies. It'll be interesting to see how many belong to the Packs in Australia." He said.
Things were changing fast. I couldn't wait for the Masters' wish to come true.
JPOV - Washington State with the Horsemen, including Demitri and the Quileutes.
We were at SeaTac waiting for Theresa to arrive. It was late in the evening, we were wearing our cloaks and masks again, I couldn't wait to get back to La Push and relax. Bella spotted Theresa, we walked over and carried her bags for her. "Thank you so much for coming to our aide." I said. She smiled "I'm happy to help. Who are you?" She asked, "I can tell you our real names when we're safely away, but for the moment I'm War and this is Death." I said. I felt her recognition. "Say no more, the Healer filled me in." She winked.
Theresa seemed to relax as soon as we arrived on the Res. I parked the car Sue had loaned me in front of the community hall. Bella and I took our masks off and smiled at Theresa. "Bella, it's so good to see you! You look fantastic as a vamp. It really suits you." She said. Bella grinned "it's good to see you too, it's dinner time on the Res, we thought you'd like to join us and meet the Elders and the community." We led her inside, the hall was full of chatter as we approached the Elder table.
Demitri, Pete and Char stood to introduce themselves followed by Billy, Old Quil, Harry and Sue. "I hope you don't mind staying with our daughter, Leah?" Sue asked. "Not at all. I appreciate the hospitality." Theresa said kindly. Billy's eyes watered a little, his gratitude flooded my sense as he looked at the Alpha Spirit Walker. The wolves walked in and joined us. Sam brought Emily over and they sat next to J and I. Jacob, Leah and Seth sat with their parents on the other side of the table.
Light conversation struck up between the Elders and Theresa. They didn't discuss Jake's imprint yet. They filled their plates from the buffet at the table. "We're having a bonfire tomorrow night. You're welcome to join us, Theresa. It'll be Jasper, Pete, Char and Demitri's first time." Old Quil announced. They all seemed to accept Demitri, but there was some wariness in the older members of the tribe. Sue looked at Demitri like another son, she had seen some of Dem's scars and instantly bonded with him. He seemed to enjoy her and Harry's company.
Harry was recounting a fishing trip he'd taken Demitri on this morning. It had been completely unsuccessful because of Dem's vampire scent. Demitri had gone into town this afternoon and bought some scent off, they were going to try fishing again tomorrow.
Leah and Demitri left once the cleaning finished, they took Theresa to their house. Sam and Jake went out to patrol. Old Quil yawned and we called it a night. Tomorrow morning Theresa would start working to break Jake's imprint.
BPOV
The humans were asleep. J and I walked along the beach. It was a clear night. We sat down on the sand, enjoying the wind against our faces. We didn't have to wear our disguises on the Res and I was glad to have a break from the mask and cloak. We wore a normal Volturi pendant; the gold V with ruby, instead of our usual Horsemen pendant. We were on diplomatic duty for the Volturi after all.
We heard Sam and Jake running through the forest. Their wolves came into view and padded over to us. We smiled and waved as they sat next to us. "Have there been any nomads?" I asked them, Sam shook his head. "That's good. Hopefully with this new government you'll get a break from patrolling." Sam nodded.
They ran into the forest and I felt the waves of energy as they phased into human form. They walked out in their cutoff jeans and joined us. "It seems too good to be true." Sam said. J agreed, "I thought so too, but then Aro told us his life story. Things were really bad before they came to power. They've worked so hard for the last thousand years to save the Children of the Moon and bring justice to their kind."
"Can you tell us more about the real werewolves?" Jake asked. J told him about Fred and his pack. "They're in Iceland now speaking to another pack. Charlie, Aro and their mates are with them. Our mission is sort of like theirs. The Master's wanted us to have a rest and arranged for us to come here and then go to Texas, we're to let you guys know of their plans and help you get started."
"Charlie has a mate?" Jake asked. I nodded "yeah, she's a werewolf called Brenna. She's nice. They have powers too, Fred can trap someone in a bubble of time and Brenna can help grow plants."
"Do the Spirit Walkers have gifts?" Sam asked. "Kind of. Dad said their abilities conform with their discipline. Among the protectors there are shields like me and seers like Pete. Theresa's a powerful healer and the alpha. I don't know what all their gifts are, but they seem to relate to their role in the community." I explained.
"We're the same." Sam said. "I can see a person's intent; good or bad. Jake can sense vampires for miles around-" I interrupted him "Like a tracker?"
"Sort of." Jake shrugged. I turned to him and said, "Demitri does the same thing, you should talk to him about it some time." He smiled "that's pretty cool."
Sam turned serious. "We heard the Cullens were executed." I nodded and growled "Carlisle was a complete fucking quack." J sent me some calm and I continued. "They were so fucking evil, Sam. Edward and Carlisle were mates, they lied to everyone and destroyed so many lives." I took a deep breath and continued. "Esme, Rose, Emmett and Alice are still alive."
"I thought Alice was as bad as Edward." Jake said. I quickly ran through Alice's history and her healing. "What about her gift?" Jake asked. I smiled "Emmett took it from her. Did Leah tell you he's my uncle?"
"I thought Pete was your uncle?" Sam asked. "They both are. Char and Rose are my aunts. Anyway, the ancestors gave Emmett a gift. He can take away other people's gifts. It really helped Alice."
"I can't believe Carlisle and Edward were mates." Sam said. "I'm really fucking glad Carlisle doesn't work at the hospital anymore." He growled. J shuddered and mumbled "tell me about it." He quickly ran through Carlisle's treatment for his PTSD. "Fuck man. That's sick! If we'd known what he was capable of we would have overturned the treaty and ripped the fucker to pieces." Jake said. I smiled, "If it's any consolation I burned them both, slowly." I said. Jake looked at me and seemed to debate something.
"Just ask us, Jake." J said, the silence had turned awkward. "CanIseeyourshield?" Jake blurted out. I nodded and stood away from the group. I slowly thickened my shield and saw the moment it was visible to the wolves. I smiled and ignited it. They recoiled in shock, J smiled at me, his eyes darkening with lust. I winked at him and turned down the flames. Pushing them down to my fingertips. There was a small branch nearby, I walked over and scooted the flames onto it. It crackled slowly, radiating a gentle warmth.
I walked back and drew the warmth of the flames into myself. I thinned out my shield again and sat next to J. Sam and Jake were staring at the branch. J leaned over and whispered, just loudly enough for the our group to hear "I wonder if they'll let you light the bonfire tomorrow."
"Hell yeah!" Jake crowed. "A bonfire lit by a vampire at a historical site where a vampire was burnt." Sam laughed "it's like inception with fire."
Sam and Jake returned to patrol, Jake hadn't sensed anything since we arrived, but they still did a sweep of the land. They met up with us on the beach when their patrol was over, the sun had started to rise. The four of us headed to Billy's place. I felt J send out some calm. "It'll be okay, Jake." He said.
"I'm really nervous. Breaking an imprint connection is meant to be really bad. I don't want to die." Jake said. I patted his arm "you aren't alone in this Jake, not only do you have your tribe, but you've got the help of vampires and spirit walkers. You heard Uncle Pete; you're imprint is a scar on your path, but it will be healed." I promised. He smiled weakly.
Billy was still asleep when we arrived. I told Sam and Jake to sit down and rest for a bit, I cooked them some French toast. They snored loudly before I could give them the food, J smiled and sent them some alertness. Their eyes opened and they looked around confused. "Wakey Wakey." I teased, handing them full plates of food.
Billy rolled in and joined us in his pajamas. He smiled when I passed him a plate of toast. "I've missed your cooking, Bells." He said. He ate quickly and got ready for the day. At 8 AM Theresa arrived. Jake was a bundle of nerves and J had to touch his shoulder to give him enough calm to stand up. Theresa smiled gently and walked up to Jake. "We'll do what we can. Jasper here will help you, all you need to do is focus your breathing and drink a few cups of tea. I'll handle the rest. The Volturi will send a remedy from the Healers and a vampire with the gift to weaken bonds. At some point Charlie will come here himself and complete the process."
"Will it hurt?" Jake asked. Theresa shook her head and replied, "No, it'll feel uncomfortable and disorientating, but it won't hurt. Before we start we should give you some calming tea." She said, she was eyeing him in concern. "Peter told me this will work, Jake. He said you have a great future ahead of you. Have faith in us, we will make sure you're freed from this burden." She said. Jake's eyes burned with determination, Theresa handed him the calming tea and prepared the a few cups, adding herbs and hot water to each of them.
J removed his hand from Jake's shoulder as the tea started to work. Pete walked into the house and announced "I've come to help. The ancestors told me I can lend their strength to Theresa." She smiled at him "thank you. This will make it easier."
Jake sat on the couch and got comfortable. He looked to be on the edge of sleep. "I increased the dose of calming herbs, he should be in a meditative state. This way we can work with him and his wolf." Theresa explained. She put a terracotta plate on the ground and added a handful of leaves. She turned to me "I need your gift for this, Bella. You produce living flame."
"I'll have to go outside before I get it under control, I don't want to burn the house down." I said. She nodded and I left, standing a couple of feet away from the porch. I pushed the warmth out of me and quickly moved it to my fingertips. It got easier every time. I walked back inside and knelt before the herbs, I coaxed the flames onto the dried leaves, they danced forward. Billy watched in amazement. I brought the warmth back inside me and the flames disappeared. The room filled with heavily scented smoke.
I began to feel like I was in a daze. I could see shapes moving in the smoke, the room was crowded with people. I stared in shock, they all touched their hands to Pete's shoulders and he started to glow. He grabbed onto Theresa's hand and she began to glow. Together they moved towards Jake. As soon as Theresa touched his chest his form began to waiver, it was like an odd sort of static. The outline of a wolf flickered through Jake's body. Theresa added more leaves to the smoldering heap on the plate. More smoke filled the air. A bright red cord appeared between Jake's heart and the wolf's. Theresa started to chant. Pete's eyes flashed opened and he turned to me "bring the first cup from the left." I grabbed it off the bench and passed it to Pete. He knelt down, still holding Theresa's hand, and tilted the cup to Jake's open mouth.
The red cord around the Spirit Wolf's heart uncurled, but the red cord stayed curled around the heart of his human spirit. The wolf spirit howled, vibrating the windows. Jake's face cringed. Theresa added another lot of herbs to the fire. Pete tipped more tea into Jake's mouth. The spirit wolf was absorbed back into Jake's body. Pete handed me the cup and asked for the one next to it. I obliged and watched Pete pour more tea into Jake. Jake's spirit lightened, the red cord was still wrapped around his human spirit. The spirit wolf made another appearance. The two spirits seemed to connect and form one, brighter, spirit. Slowly the brightness of Jake's spirit dimmed.
The red cord around Jake's heart had substantially weakened. "Next cup." Pete ordered, setting down the other cup by his side. I handed him the third cup and he poured it into Jake's mouth. His spirit grew brighter, the wolf had bonded with his spirit. Jake's corporeal form started to sweat. The smoke began to clear and the room grew brighten. The spirits of the Ancestors around Pete drifted away with Jake's spirit. They didn't dim, they just became absorbed into the light of the room.
Theresa let go of Pete's hand and stumbled towards the final cup. She drank heavily and slumped to the ground. I picked her up and carried her to Billy's room. Laying her gently on the mattress and tucking her in. When I moved back to the lounge room I saw Pete, Billy and J sitting near Jake. "He'll wake soon." Pete said. "I can't believe my eyes. I've never seen anything like that." Billy whispered.