A/N: Warning for mildly graphic violence

CHAPTER TWENTY-THREE:

Washington, Olympic Mountain Range: Athenodora

Deep within the wide forest, Athenodora observed her army. Snow crunched under her bare feet as she glided around, examining the activity around her.

It was cold, here in Washington– especially up on the mountains. Athenodora hated it. As a human, all those thousands of years past, she'd lived in lovely Greece, with its long, hot, dry summers and mild, wet winters. Her birthplace had left its impression on her, no matter how long ago her human life had been, and she relished in the heat. As a vampire she'd lived in a number of places but her favourites had always remained the hotter, dryer ones.

It almost felt purposefully mocking that the Cullens and their pet witch had forced her to come to this accursed place to fight. Why they couldn't have chosen somewhere to settle down without snow was a mystery to her.

Having finished her rounds and satisfied with how Maria was organising the army with Herpo's... specific assistance, Athenodora made her way to where Alec was completing a task for her, one located several miles away from the rest of the army due to the necessity of it being out of scent-range and upwind of all the newborns.

As she approached the clearing Alec had been working in, she was practically assaulted by the scent of spilled blood; warm, rich and mouth-watering. Stepping out into the gap in the trees she raised her eyebrow at the mess of crimson soaking the snow, careful to step around it as she glided forwards, ignoring the burning in her throat through the skill that came with living thousands of years.

Alec glanced up at her approach, straightening from his crouch. His hands were drenched from the tips of his fingers to his elbows in red but the human at his feet was still alive so it was evident he hadn't consumed a drop of its blood. It was an impressive display of control, she could admit, one that was gained through both almost an enviable self-discipline and centuries of this existence– and despite his apparent youth, Athenodora was very aware that Alec was one of the oldest of her army.

"Is it ready, do you think?" He asked her, idly curious.

Athenodora surveyed his work with a pleased curve to her mouth. It would do very nicely for their purposes, she decided. "Wonderful work," she gave praise where it was due. "It just requires a few... finishing touches."

Alec clenched his jaw slightly. "I don't understand the need for games." He said and she laughed, the sound deceptively bright and sweet.

"That is because you are young still," she told him. "But you will learn."

Alec narrowed his eyes for a moment before his expression smoothed over. He then smiled cruelly and hauled the human, its eyes crazed with pain and misty with blood loss, up by its hair. "I only wish I could see their faces when they receive our little... gift." He said, vicious and vindictive, and Athenodora's smile easily matched the ruthless sadism in the younger vampire's eyes.

"They will be a sight to behold." She agreed. "Now hold it still, so I can finish. This will be delicate work."

-

-

Washington, Forks: Bella Cullen

I woke the next day to a house that was even more crowded then it had been the day before, with its twelve vampires, six wolf shifters and three magicals– and to some truly horrible news.

I'd moved from the couch to the bed in Edward's room to sleep, wanting the extra comfort of the bed when my stomach was so sore. Luna and Draco had shared the room with me overnight, seeing as Jacob, Quil, Embry and Paul were apparently bunking in the room that had been theirs– I was annoyed on their behalf until an amused Luna had explained that she'd offered.

It had been Luna who broke the news to me when I woke– Alice had sent a message to us, late the previous evening; Athenodora was in Forks. Or, at least in Washington.

It was very... unsettling, to say the least, having Athenodora so close by when I was so bloody defenceless. I'd had to get Esme to help me visit the loo and then go downstairs, for Merlin's sake! I felt like a beached whale– in more ways then one, too, considering I couldn't see my own bloody toes.

Hermione was sitting on the couch that I'd taken over, across from two wizards I didn't recognize other then that they were wearing Auror uniforms. "Good morning Bella," she greeted me warmly, standing up to press a kiss to my cheek then help me sit in the spot where she'd been, only moments ago. "These are Matteo and Einhardt, from the Italian and German Auror divisions," she introduced me to the two strangers in my living room.

"This is about Athenodora?" I guessed and she nodded grimly.

"Since Alice's message last night we've had Aurors going over Forks and the surrounding area with a fine-tooth comb," she informed me. "Unfortunately, the Olympic mountain range gives far too much area for Athenodora to hide in. We'd hoped that a newborn army would have made it more difficult for her to stay hidden but she's doing a frustratingly good job so far."

"The Pack is re-allying with Sam," Jacob spoke up, his face grim. "In the face of another newborn vampire army, one led by an ancient vampire with one hell of a grudge and a bunch of more experienced vampires acting as lieutenants who are just as pissed, one unborn vampire hybrid is nothing to worry about. Sam's already agreed to meet and we're going to sort out patrols to protect the rez."

"And the Aurors are going to protect Forks," Hermione said, nodding at Jacob. "I'm about to go meet with your father, Bella– we're going to get American Aurors to go undercover as policemen to patrol the town. We're hoping that any vampires won't think to hide from supposed muggles and we'll be able to locate them that way. Also, policemen patrolling about raises far less questions then oddly-dressed strangers."

"Are we– are we in danger?" I asked, my hands going to my stomach. I felt Baby prod at me gently under my palms and swallowed anxiously.

"Yes," Hermione answered me honestly, despite the way Edward tensed. "You are. We all are. And unfortunately, nowhere you could go would change that. According to our list of the Volturi Guard who survived the cull, Athenodora has a vampire with a Gift for tracking– if we moved you to another place, she would find you. And in your current state, continuously moving you around wouldn't be safe."

"So we should stay here," I said, my heart sinking.

"You should." Hermione agreed, with a soft sigh. "I'm sorry, Bella. This isn't exactly the most stress-free environment you could be in right now."

"Since when is anything in life easy?" I sighed too and Hermione's lips quirked up in a tired smile.

"I've found that nothing worth having ever is."

-

It was a slow, tense day. Stress left me even more drained and bone-tired then the baby in my stomach and I spent most of it curled up on the couch or the bed with either Luna or Edward, depending on who was needed where. The only bright spot so far had been Hermione accidentally apparated only a few inches away from Jacob, who in his shock, one perpetuated by the uneasy state that we were all stuck in, had let out the sort of high-pitched scream I'd previously thought reserved for prepubescent girls. Apparently I was wrong. Also, I never intended on letting him forget it– that's what big sisters were for, after all.

It was during the afternoon, when I was laying down with Luna in the bedroom, that I asked my best friend what I hadn't dared ask anyone else.

"Do you think we'll survive this?"

Everyone was being so careful not to show any panic or fear in front of me, but the oppressive emotions were practically a physical presence in the mansion, heavy and weighted; it felt like I was drowning in them.

Luna narrowed her eyes, her mouth a fiercely unhappy curve. "We survived the Second Blood War," she said, voice like steel. "We suffered countless atrocities, heartbreaking losses and shattering defeats, but we kept on fighting Death Eaters and Snatchers and Voldemort and we didn't just survive, we won! We will not let some vampire destroy everything that we fought and cried and bled for!"

"I feel helpless, though," I admitted to her, my heart beating wildly in my chest as her words washed over me; strong and fierce and inspiring. "I was never this helpless during the war, even when I was underage and had the Trace on me. I just... I hate this– I hate knowing I can't defend myself or everyone that I love." My voice got caught in my throat and Luna threaded her fingers through mine, squeezing.

"You are never helpless, Isabella Marie Cullen," she said, fiercely. "Not while you have us at your side."

"Then I'm never letting you go," I told her, using our joint hands to pull her into a hug and clinging to her, tight and a little desperate.

"Never." Luna agreed, clinging right back.

-

As the sun started to set, I returned downstairs to get something to eat for dinner. Well, something to drink– my interest in human food had vanished but I did manage to drink nearly two and half litres of blood in just one sitting.

Esme had used the day to bake up a small feast for all the shifters, one complete with a triple-layered chocolate cake that had all the shifters who weren't patrolling, even Leah and Paul, all profess their undying love to its chocolate-y goodness. I did try a slice in my attempts to eat something solid but it tasted like ashes in my mouth.

Esme had handed an exhausted-looking Hermione a tall mug of tea when she'd staggered into the dining room and collapsed onto a chair and the British witch had sighed happily as she practically chugged it down. "Thank you," she said, between long gulps, "this is exactly what I needed– it's delicious."

"I put vodka in it," Esme winked and Hermione managed to crack a smile while a surprised giggle escaped me.

"It's not quite that good, I'm afraid," the other muggleborn said warmly. Leah laughed then, from where she was leaning against the wall, and opened her mouth to say something (probably request that Esme produce that alluded-to vodka) when she was interrupted by the sound of loud howling.

In an instant, Jacob had phased; a huge russet wolf stood where he had been just seconds ago, tilting its head. Beside me, Edward suddenly swore violently, apparently reading Jacob's mind as he communicated over the pack mind-link with whoever it was who'd howled.

"What is it?" I demanded. Edward actually looked sickened, shaking his head silently. Jacob shifted back to human form then and immediately staggered through the doorway to the kitchen, over to the sink where he bent over and emptied his stomach, apparently completely uncaring of his nakedness and the fact he was flashing his bare arse and his dangly bits to anyone who glanced through the open doorway.

"What's happening?" Rosalie demanded sharply, impatient. Edward remained silent, his face a mask of horror, and Jacob was too busy throwing up in the other room to answer. Leah gave a frustrated growl, one that was impressively loud for her currently human vocal cords, and then there was a large grey wolf standing in the dining room. A moment later she shifted back, her russet skin impressively pale. She appeared just as uncaring of her nakedness as Jacob and just as sick.

"Outside." She managed to say, "lawn. By the trees." And then she was rushing through to the kitchen and shoving Jacob out of the way to take her own turn at the sink.

"Don't even think about it," I told Edward before he could even try leaving me behind. "Or I'll get Rose to help me." I added when it looked like he was about to do so anyway.

"Trust me, you don't want to see this," Edward warned, even as the others darted to their feet, disappearing towards the front door. From the swell of voices audible even to my ears, the other vampires in the house had joined those of us who'd been in the dining room. Edward's mouth pressed into an unhappy line but he didn't try to argue, instead wrapping an arm around my waist to help me waddle in the direction of everyone else, stepping out through the wide-open front door and onto the porch, then the grass.

Despite the fact the only light I had was the moon, I barely needed to step off the porch to get a good look at what had made Jacob and Leah so ill, what had Edward so bone-white and sickened. I immediately wished I'd listened to Edward's warning.

There was a body on the lawn, over by the tree line. It was twisted, mangled beyond recognition– it wasn't even recognisably human from my view. An arm seemed to sprout from its chest, and a head– disfigured, gone, just faceless skin over what would be a skull– hung from a bent branch a couple centimetres from where the neck would be. A leg, bent backwards then forwards in a painful zigzag, was stuck in a tree– there was no other leg. Slashes showed under the ripped clothing; small slashes, big slashes, no longer bleeding and never scarring.

There should be blood, but there was none, no trail, no pool... there was a trail of torn clothes– actually no, that wasn't a trail of material, it was nerve and muscle tissue and bones leading towards the other arm.

Bone. Skin ripped off the bone, peeled off so carefully, so elegantly, like some sick ritual. Bone and nerves, tied together, unconnected to the main body but– I had to turn away, unable to keep looking.

"I guess Athenodora wants us to know that she's here." I said weakly. And then I threw up. A lot. The blood I'd had for dinner splashed onto the ground and all down my front, gaining me alarmed looks that Rosalie had to explain as I was in no condition to and Edward, bone-white and horrified, was busy holding me upright and keeping my hair out of my face. Baby, unsettled by all the retching, was moving around unhappily, bruising my tender insides. I was glad for the bone-strengthening potion I'd had yesterday otherwise I was sure I'd have more broken ribs.

"Bella," Edward said, helplessly, once I'd finished violently emptying my stomach. I vaguely noticed that either Luna, Draco or Hermione had put up some sort of shield to cut me off from Bree and Fred, both of them looking very thinly in control when faced with so much blood. Most of my attention, however, was on Edward's face.

"Oh fuck," I croaked, as I really registered his expression. "We– we know them." Not even a mother would be able to recognise her child like this, but Edward didn't need a face– he just needed a scent.

"It's Jessica." He said quietly, his dark eyes agonised, and I vomited again, even though nothing but acid came up.

"Angela," I choked out, between gagging. "Oh god, Angie..." Angela and Jessica had been friends since kindergarten, even though they'd grown apart in the final year of high school and the months since. This was going to kill her.

"I'm so sorry," Edward breathed and I turned so my face, filthy with blood and bile but in this moment entirely uncaring of the fact, was pressed against his chest and just cried.

-

Edward had to carry me inside I was so exhausted from the vomiting and crying. I felt... hollow, almost, like my insides had all been scraped out (and oh sweet Rowena, that was a terrible choice of wording considering what I'd just seen... or maybe entirely fitting).

I clung to Luna's hand almost desperately as she sat to my right on the couch Edward had placed me on, Draco then on her other side. Draco looked as bad as I felt, grey-faced, breath shallow and visibly shaking. His eyes were vacant, like whatever it was he was seeing was hundreds of miles away from the room we were in. Vaguely, I wondered what horrors he was reliving; Malfoy Manor had been a Death Eater base, one that had housed even Voldemort himself, and I couldn't even imagine what sort of atrocities had been committed inside its walls and in front of a horrified young teenager who could do nothing but stand there and witness it.

"What do we do about the body?" Emmett asked quietly, eventually voicing what everyone else seemed almost afraid to.

"Jessica!" I snarled, before I could stop myself. "She's not just a– a body, she was a human being and she was young and stupid and she didn't deserve this!" I started crying again, angry, distraught tears that felt like they'd never stop. I hadn't liked Jessica, but she wasn't a bad person; she was just an ordinary muggle teenager, the centre of her own world and looking for her prince charming to sweep her away. She hadn't deserved the horrors Athenodora had committed upon her in order to send a message.

Edward stroked my hair soothingly. "Emmett didn't mean it like that, Bella," he said gently and I laughed, thick and bitter through my tears.

"I know, I know, it's just– it's not fucking fair! This– this shouldn't have happened to her, she's not part of this!"

"Innocents are usually the ones who suffer most during times of war," Carlisle said quietly, sorrowful.

"We'll need to talk to Charlie," Hermione said, sounding sickened but unwavering. I looked over at her to see her face was pale but set, her eyes steely with a fierce, unwavering resolve. "As Jessica is a muggle casualty and he's the chief of police of this town, he'll need to be involved in deciding how we'll handle returning Jessica to her parents for burial. Considering the... state of her body, it's likely that we'll have to stage a terrible car accident."

I shuddered, slipping my arms free from Edward and Luna to curl them around my stomach, around the restless baby growing there, squeezing my eyes so tightly shut it was painful. Edward started stroking my hair again and I leaned into him, listening vaguely to the distinct sound of Hermione apparating away. "How did they get so close without us hearing?" I asked, my voice rough and scratchy from crying. Edward stiffened, a tense, unhappy line beside me.

"I don't know," he said. "It shouldn't have been possible for whoever it was to get so close and one of us at least should have been able to smell the– to smell Jessica."

"Should we leave here?" Esme asked softly.

"Leaving here would only draw her attention to a different town," Emmett told her. "If we want to prevent any more deaths then we need to kill the bitch."

"That is the plan," Rosalie agreed viciously. Beside me, Luna suddenly let out a sharp, shallow sound, her hands unexpectedly seizing onto my right arm. My eyes flew open as I twisted in place to look at her.

"Bella..." she whispered, her slender fingers leaving stark white marks on my skin as she leaned forwards slightly. Her eyes, normally a light silver-grey, looked like liquid mercury, and shadows seemed to whisper through her hair, shining and brilliant as the pale moon visible through the window. She looked fey, in this moment; otherworldly in a way I'd never quite seen her before.

"Luna?" I asked, my heart beating quicker in my chest, unease twisting in my gut.

"No, no, no," she whispered and I could hear the blatant fear in her voice. To her side, Draco seemed to come back to himself, his steel-grey eyes fixing on the girl he loved in alarm. "No, no, no, no!" she repeated, her voice rising.

"What is it?" I asked and her fingers felt like they were tightening further as she fixed her gaze to an empty space in the room. I wondered, more then a bit desperately, just what she was seeing there. She'd tried to describe it to me once, what the world looked like through her eyes. It was a colourful place, she'd said, one of strange lights flickering in shadowed corners where the light shouldn't reach, one of wisps of colour swirling around her feet, little things floating around in the air, invisible to all eyes but hers.

The world was an ever-turning wheel, spinning and breaking and building, its past and present and future bare to those capable of seeing it. Luna was capable of witnessing glimpses and as I stared at that empty spot in the room, I wondered helplessly what she saw there that had terrified her into silence.

And then I got my answer as a crack of displaced air heralded Hermione's return, heralded her sudden appearance in the same spot that Luna's quicksilver-bright eyes were fixed on, only she was alone and there was a very grim expression on her paler then ash face. A terrible, terrible fear seized onto me, squeezing my throat so tight I couldn't speak, couldn't even breathe.

"I'm so sorry," Hermione whispered, sounding both shaken and gutted as she shook her head. "I'm so, so sorry Bella– Charlie's disappeared; all we could find was a pool of blood. He's gone."