The Siege of Volterra : the Vampire war no one knows about
Aro and the Volturi must decide to engage the invading German army or flee their centuries-old home.
Aro's POV-1944, Italy, occupied Volterra
I was inspired to write this after reading some Tumblr people questioning if the Volturi helped out Italy during the second World War. This is my response as a one-shot and it's kind of long over my usual one-shots.
* Some locations have been made up. Research about Volterra's history during WW2, not easy *
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When the Nazis invaded Italy in 1940, I assumed Volterra might eventually become an occupied city. I wasn't happy with that thought. The Volturi had held control of this city for countless hundreds of years. Who were these Saxon mongrels to think they could take our home away from us. Marcus, Caius, and I called for a meeting with the entire coven to discuss what actions should be taken. We would have to decide whether we would hide underground, leave the city entirely, or fight against this impudent invading army?
When the occupation finally happened, the mood of the city completely changed. No more weekend gatherings in the piazza with music and dancing. No more festivals. The humans were virtual prisoners in their own homes. Now we had no choice but to make decisions, both for their protection and ours. I would not tolerate the Germans locking us down as well. Our bi-weekly meal deliveries were at stake. Without that, we would have no choice but to feed off the humans within our walls, something I hoped we would not have to resort to.
Our symbiotic relationship with the Volterrans had been beneficial for us all. The city's human leadership turned a blind eye to rumours about us, deflecting any prying into our business. We paid them well for their aid and loyalty, with the threat of death hanging over their heads and those of their families as insurance. The Mayor, the Chief of Police, and the Bishop of Volterra were a few of the more important humans taken into our confidence, and they had served us well.
First, we had to decide how important our home was. Moving to another location would take time and effort. Right now, most of Europe was involved in the war, and there were few places the Germans and their allies had not already occupied. Marcus spoke up first, wanting to keep our home here in Volterra. He didn't care how that would be accomplished.
Caius agreed. "I prefer to fight rather than hide or run like cowards. These are just humans, after all. I say we fight." He had a point.
I readily agreed, but how would we fight the Germans without revealing ourselves to them or the rest of the city? Caius was willing to set up plans of attack. The idea of killing humans excited the former commander, as I knew it would. An offensive by the Volturi would not only protect our home, it would also protect the city. These foolish humans, however, deserved whatever we gave them. They were disrupting the peace of our city in their quest for world dominance. For once, I felt humans needed to be controlled and by whom better than us.
The most important block to quick defeat was there were more human invaders than there were Volturi. Jane and Alec would be important in any vanguard that would move against these Nazis. Jane's gift incapacitated vampires, but it could kill a human if the illusion of pain was intense enough. Alec's gift would make that easier by blinding, deafening, and silencing the humans first. After so long, I trusted Jane. She worked well with no supervison, and with her brother Alec at her side, I knew they would make short work of the Nazis.
We decided we needed intel, the more information, the better. Since an all out assualt was not feasible, we would pick off the humans one by one. They expected no resistance, therefore more soldiers were kept in key locations, while fewer stood as guards. By day, their presence was more intrusive. They would eat at the cafes and shop at the stores, some genuinely enjoying mingling with the Volterrans. But after darkness fell, small groups of four to five soldiers would walk the streets at night, enforcing curfew and making sure no one was out committing sabotage.
One night, our sharp ears heard the sound of gun shots. When I called Mayor Guiseppe to find out what had happened, he explained several young men had tried to steal a jeep being used by the Germans. They had been shot without ceremony. I strongly advised the mayor to make it illegal for citizens to harass the Germans. He agreed, making it clear he would tolerate no one bothering the invaders. He didn't want to see any more of his people die at the hands of the Nazis. The fact the city remained quiet for weeks after the order was issued, indicated his warnings had worked, and that was to our advantage.
I sent Felix and Demetri to find out where the Nazis were based, the silent speed of the guards making this an easy task. I had wanted to keep an eye on their positions. Was there one main headquarters, or several locations where soldiers kept vigilance over the city's population. They returned a few hours later with plenty of news.
"Master Aro, the museum that was the Palazzo dei Medici is where the Germans have set up their headquarters. A Colonel Friedrich Mannheim is in charge of the city's occupation force," Felix said. "They have approximately 400 soldiers based there while another 100 or so are constantly monitoring the streets. They're using the rooms of the villa as quarters while Colonel Mannheim has exclusive use of the Blue Room."
I knew the Blue Room well. Royalty had slept there over the centuries. Once, I had been invited to the palazzo during the 1760s, and as an honoured guest, I had been afforded the use of one of the prettiest servant women while staying in the Blue Room. I pleasured myself with her body for a few hours, before slashing her throat and slaking my sudden hunger. I hated killing her, but the scent of her blood was too much. Sadly, it made me thirsty. I had to hide the body and make up some story to my hosts. It was so long ago and of little consequence, but some memories linger longer than others.
Of course, the human military leader would choose the very best for himself. The fact that particular castle was chosen would make it easy for us to plan an attack. I knew the floorplan, and helped Caius map out every level.
Demetri gave his report next. "There are five satellite stations scattered around the city, each manned by no more than twenty-five humans. There are two check points, one at the old city gate and one along the newer roadway into the city. Everyone is heavily armed." He smiled, knowing their weapons would have no effect on vampires. "There's no danger for us there. Even if they get a chance to use them."
"We have to consider the humans who will be backing us up, Demetri," I reminded our tracker. "For now, we will act alone. But I trust there will be human volunteers who will gladly help us when we are ready to attack the Palazzo dei Medici. I plan to call Chief de Luca to see how many he can gather." I looked over at Caius who smiled and nodded.
Later, I spoke with the chief of police, Angelo de Luca, in person. He knew about our nature, but he and his small police force were well paid to stifle any rumours about us and to make sure we were left in peace. Losing Volturi protection and financial support was not something anyone wanted.
"Angelo, my dear friend. We find we have a common enemy in these Germans, but we have the power to do something about it. It may mean the sacrifice of some of your people. Would they be willing to fight alongside us, not knowing what we are, of course." I knew from past experience that some humans were indeed brave and capable of fighting well.
"Master Aro, I know my people would willingly sacrifice their lives if it meant freeing their families from this scourge. Are you planning an attack soon?"
"Caius will be in charge of that. We're going to concentrate on killing those manning the city gates and outposts, and the groups of city sentries. The Germans are headquartered at the Palazzo dei Medici. We will take care of that last." De Luca listened raptly as I detailed our plan. "We haven't enough guards to replace those killed, so we will need some trusted humans to do that for us, wearing their uniforms and pretending to be Germans. I just need to know that your people can be ready when called upon."
"Of course, Master Aro. I will gather the best fighters Volterra has to offer, and wait for you to let us know when we're needed."
I knew I could trust the chief of police, as I had trusted his predecessors and would trust his successors. The entire city benefitted from the patronage of the Volturi, that was well known.
I stood, giving the human a smile, and held out my hand. He took mine in an affirmation of our long-time partnership. "We will free our city, Angelo," I assured him. "For both our kind."
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When the guards had returned from their first mission to take back the old city gate, I read each in turn. I saw, with satisfaction, their actions that led to success.
Heidi had worn a deep red dress, emphasizing her hour-glass figure, but she eschewed her gloves, the darkness of night making that possible. She styled her hair and applied her make-up just so. It was only window-dressing since her allure would take care of distracting the Germans, and once she was upon them, it would be too late for the humans.
The plan was for Felix, Afton, and Santiago to swoop in and assist Heidi in dispatching the hapless soldiers. A few lower-level guards would then take their uniforms and put them on, so to the curious, it would appear the gate was still being guarded. These guards were fluent in German, and would easily fool anyone, as long as they weren't called out as strangers. In that case, they were ordered to kill the humans, and do what they must to hide the bodies.
As she sashayed up to the jeep where several guards sat, her walk showing off her curvy hips, Heidi flashed a dazzling smile at the men. "Guten abend, meine Herren. Es ist eine schöne Nacht."
One of the soldiers jumped off the jeep, and smiled back at Heidi, his eyes revealing his admiration for her beauty. "Ja, Fräulein, das ist es in der Tat." He unconsciously licked his lips. "Du solltest nicht so spät draus sein, schöne. "
Heidi reached up to play with his uniform collar, all the while flirting not only with him, but every man sitting in the jeep, such was her irresistible vampiric allure. The man whispered something in German, and setting down his rifle, he drew Heidi into his embrace, nuzzling her neck.
At that moment, the three waiting guards jumped from the top of the brick arch overhead to land atop the soldiers still sitting in the jeep. Fingers grabbed hair and twisted necks, while teeth sank into soft flesh so fast, no screams emerged from the humans.
Heidi turned her head to bury her face into the lead soldier's neck, biting hard and swallowing as much blood as she could manage in so short a time. She may not have even been thirsty, but we don't refuse blood if the opportunity affords us an easy kill.
I released Heidi's hand and spoke to the five guards. "You all have done very well. The gate is ours. We will now look to the front entrance of the city and take that back. Once the city check points are under our control, we will go after their sentries, the individual guard stations, and lastly their headquarters. Soon, Volterrans will take our places, freeing us up for the main attack on the Palazzo dei Medici."
"Humans, Master Aro?" the tracker asked, confused.
"Yes, I spoke with the chief of police, and he will be gathering volunteers to help us with ridding ourselves of their guards, so we're able to go into the German headquarters. This is their city too, Demetri."
"Of course, Master Aro. I understand."
"Good. Caius, would you join the guards for the attack on the front gate?"
Caius' eyes gleamed as he slowly grinned. "With pleasure, brother."
With Marcus busy seeing to the attack plans in Caius' absence, he worked with Jane and Alec, instructing them on handling the sentries outside the headquarters, allowing the rest of us easy access into the castle. Then the twins would join us, disabling any who might fight us.
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The chosen group of guards, led by Caius, headed out to the forefront of Volterra under the cover of darkness. I waited in the throne room with Marcus now, wishing there were some way to see what was happening, but we would have to wait for their return. I paced the marble floor. Perhaps I should have gone as well, but no, I knew Caius was the best leader for this mission.
Several hours later, Caius returned with our triumphant guards. I quickly took my brother's hand and saw what had transpired on this latest mission.
Our people approached the human guards walking the length of the road they had been assigned to watch. Santiago and Afton began to speak to them in German, confusing their prey. Once they were close enough, they attacked. Heads were twisted, while some used only their teeth as weapons. Caius shouted orders while our guards easily defeated the humans. Soon, silence permeated the air. Caius told the lower guards to don the uniforms of the German soldiers and walk along the road as they had seen them do.
"So we now have the front city entrance as well," I said.
"Yes, Aro. Now we go after the city sentries and replace them with our people."
"I will check with De Luca to see if his people can take our places once these locations have been secured. I would prefer they not be present when we do attack the Germans.
When I called the chief of police to ask for his assistance, he agreed, saying he had 50 ready and able men willing to replace our people at all the gates and outposts currently manned by us. Once night fell, they would do that, freeing up the guards to join us at the Palazzo dei Medici.
I had ordered our kind to wear contacts when around the humans. When their volunteers approached, Felix greeted them and gave them their orders. Just as one human began to remove the uniform off a dead soldier, another who was not quite dead, turned to pull a gun from inside his jacket and pointed it at the man. Felix sped between them, deflecting the bullet before he finished off the soldier.
"Thank you. My name is Sergio," he said, his hand out.
Felix took the man's hand with his own glove-covered one and shook it. "I'm Felix. I couldn't let him just shoot you."
Both human and vampire laughed, before getting back to work. It pleased me to see our peoples working side by side. If our nature were to be discovered by any human, we would have no choice but to kill them. I hoped that would not be necessary.
The work contunued, and it wasn't long before every vampire had been replaced by a human.
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It had been days since we had destroyed the Nazis serving outside the palazzo, and the entire coven was now ready and eager to attack. Several of the vampire guards speed-scaled the walls of the castle until they reached the windows, smashing the glass and jumping inside whatever rooms they found themselves in. They eliminated any Germans they ran into as they headed to the lower floors and the room I had ordered everyone to meet us.
Soldiers aimed their pathetic weapons at the advancing vampires, shooting them, surprised when seeing the bullets bouncing off them harmlessly. In a flash, the vampires sped to them, pulling the weapons from their hands before they could react, and destroying them. Then the vampires killed the soldiers.
Marcus, Caius, and I entered the palace through the front entrance. Alec blinded the Germans, then Jane imagined pain in each soldier we met up with. Some died from the intensity of the pain, others found themselves immobilized and writhing on the ground.
By the time we five had reached the Blue Room, Colonel Mannheim had already baracaded himself inside, surrounding himself with as many soldiers as he could muster in so short a time. Felix pushed on the twin doors, easily forcing them open. Bullets began to fly at my executioner, none harming him as he went into attack mode, his visage dark and frightening. He was followed by Demetri, Santiago. and others. Uniformed bodies flew across the room, while Mannheim attempted to hide. So the leader of the invasion force was a coward at heart. True commanders I can respect, but cowards deserve the worst of deaths.
Jane and Alec entered the large room and stood by, waiting for my order. Soon, every last soldier was lying around the room, dead. All save for Mannheim. I wanted to save him for last.
When Mannheim attempted to run, I gave Alec a nod. He sent out tendrils of dark grey smoke, catching up with and surrounding the human, blocking his senses. He stood still, unable to see a thing.
I turned to Jane. "Go ahead, my dear."
She merely stared at the human, when he suddenly cried out in pain and dropped to the floor.
I reached down and picked up the human by the throat. He had four inches on me, but my strength made it easy to ignore his height. I grinned up at him, feeling pure hatred. "You are nothing but a coward, and should die like one." My eyes focused on Mannheim.
"What are you?" he asked, his voice shaky. So he noticed my eyes, now dark red with anger.
I could reveal myself to him, since these were the last few minutes of his life. "I am a vampire. Your kind attempted to take our city from us. For that, you all must die. You will be my last kill. I'm telling you the truth about us, before I rip your throat out."
He struggled to speak, my hand gripping his neck tightly. "My men...where...are they?"
"Gone, all of them. The invaders of our town have been vanquished."
I saw abject fear in his eyes now. This spurred me on with a great deal of satisfaction.
"And now it's your turn." I clenched my fingers tighter, the nails digging into soft flesh. I felt the warmth of blood dripping down my hand. The colonel's eyes bulged, his hands attempting to pull mine off him. His head began to tilt awkwardly to the right as his eyes went dead but still open. Then his head fell to the floor, blood splashing around us to pool on the marble tiles. I had let his body fall on top of his head, hiding his fearful expression.
"Felix, get some others and clean up this mess. I don't want to leave it for the humans to manage. Burn them all. Then return to the castle."
Marcus and Caius returned with me to the castle, where I sat in my office and called our allies to let them know the city was ours again.
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The citizens of Volterra celebrated their freedom from the Nazis with music and dancing in the streets. The Mayor, the Chief of Police, and I met, the humans who knew about us expressing their gratitude to me for our work in ejecting the occupation forces. The coven members who wanted to join in the celebration were given permission to do so. Wearing regular street clothing and contacts, they readily mingled among the humans. I had given everyone a stern warning to behave and leave the humans alive, or face immediate punishment.
When the guards met up with the singing crowds, the warning was unnecessary. Everyone was jubilant at their success, human and vampire alike.
I saw Felix across the road, a human male walking up to him. It was Sergio. I could hear him as he slapped our tall guard on the arm, expressing gratitude to him for saving his life. Felix looked down at the man, smiling back, telling him it was unnecessary to thank him, as they walked off together, talking while grabbing some drinks being handed out to people gratis. Felix took a bottle, toasting with the other humans, but he did not drink, of course.
"I never imagined that vampires would one day be our saviors, Master Aro. We owe you so much," Angelo said
"My friend, we have worked beside your ancestors for centuries in keeping the city safe for humans and vampires alike. I will not allow this war to disrupt it now. Come, let us join the others in the celebration." I gently clapped my hand on his back as we walked to join the crowd.
Stories later circulated among the Germans that the city of Volterra was haunted, and no one wanted to send any troops there again. I found that humourous while I looked out my upper floor office window down to the streets below. The city was vibrant with life again. Everything was back to normal for us and for the humans who fought beside us.
A/N : I like to write stories many writers don't think of. I hope my readers liked this one. No human mates, no romance, but we see the Volturi in a new light as defenders of their home, Volterra.