Chapter Nineteen (First Half) - EJ's POV

This time when I came to, I was in full control of my senses.

I was also completely alone.

The first sense that struck me was hunger. My throat was achingly dry, parched and desperate for blood. The second was pain, but not the same incapacitating agony as I'd experienced on my journey. This pain was not as strong yet all the stronger for it: an ache that rammed down my throat into my very soul.

And the third sense was cold.

As warm-blooded as they came, my body temperature ran past one hundred degrees Celsius. Most everything I touched felt cold in comparison, especially my family (sans Mei). But the surface I felt underneath me was stone and, for some unfathomable reason, its touch made me cold. Shivering slightly, I climbed to my feet, taking in the shadowed yet not dim surroundings.

I seemed to be in a dungeon of sorts. The walls were made of the same thick granite as the floor, and faint light in which I could easily see came from across the barred entrance. Scowling, I moved to the door and preceded to yank it off its hinges - or at least, I attempted to.

The bars did not budge, and the unexpected resistance threw off my balance. I landed hard, stunned not by the fall but by the fact that I had indeed fallen. Blinking, I heaved myself to my feet and tried to ram through the bars. All that I earned from my efforts was another tumble onto the stone, though this time I barely caught myself. Instead of getting back up again I stayed were I was, extending my right hand to pound the ground, which caved in slightly with a puff of dust.

My strength, my speed - they were gone. Not entirely, but depleted enough that I didn't think I could stand up again even if I wanted to. The adrenaline that had propelled me to do so once I had woken was gone, and my breathing was now labored from the escape attempts.

The hunger made its presence known once more, my throat relentlessly reminded me of how thirsty I was. This was the cause of my weakness. I had never been so hungry in my life; how long had it been since I'd last fed? The kitchen at home was still stocked with human blood, but we only indulged on rare occasions since we'd grown big enough to hunt for ourselves. Animal blood, even those of carnivores, could not compare to the taste of humans...warm and sweet and completed sating, coursing past the gums and tongue, wetting the throat...

Snap out of it! a voice yelled at me from my head that wasn't Mei's. You have to focus past the hunger.

I can't, I told it, whoever it was. My lips felt dry, but licking them did little to relieve the parched sensation. I'm so hungry.

Then use your hunger to drive you. Go back to the door.

What's the point? The bars are impenetrable.

But the floor underneath them is not. Strike where it is weak. Dig underneath the bars so that you can dislodge them.

Why wouldn't the voice go away? "Leave me alone," I whispered, closing my eyes.

Get up, Edward Jacob.

"Go away!"

Get. Up.

I moaned, glaring at the door in spite. "It's all your fault that he won't stop bothering me," I ranted.

You're ranting to a door, he replied - he, for I could now tell the voice was male. The thirst is altering your perceptions.

"Shut up. Just shut up and leave me alone..."

To what, die in peace? Because that what you'll do. You'll die.

Deciding that the only way he'd shut up was if I opened the damn door, I crawled towards it slowly, gritting my teeth as the pain in my chest grew. Looking for something to focus on besides the constant thirst, my mind latched onto my captors. The Volturi must have been the ones who captured me. How long was I gone? Days? Weeks? Considering my current state, it was probably the latter one.

But then, where was my family?

Pausing, I searched for Mei, but she was nowhere to be found. No one was near either; I could neither smell nor see anyone. I had almost reached the bars, and looked upwards to gaze into the ray of sun that shown down beyond them. It was sunny, but I felt so tired. Why didn't I just curl into a ball and go to sleep? There was no other purpose for being here doing...what was it again?

"What am I doing?" I croaked, and the door didn't answer. "You're a real pain in the ass, y'know that?"

Escape, EJ. Loosen the bars to escape. Start at the floor - with the floor.

Oh yeah, that's right. The voice was ordering me around. I really hated him. Why was I even listening to him?

Because I'm trying to keep you alive long enough for Mei to find you.

"I'm the only one who calls my sister Mei," I childishly complained. "You're just as bad as the door."

I swear he sighed. Well if the door sucks so much, you should teach it a lesson.

"Yeah, I should. Fuck you, door!"

Kicking the bottom of the bars, I was rewarded with a minuscule bit of displacement and another tumble to the ground. Blinking blearily as my vision began to haze, I attempted one last weak kick before closing my eyes. Tired. I was so tired.

This isn't the time to be napping! the voice shouted in annoyance, but now a sort of static overlaid him. Drifting off to the pleasant buzz, I could barely his final words. Don't - bzt - wake up - bzt - sleep.

"Wisest thing you've said all day," I murmured as unconsciousness claimed me once more.

* * *

I know that I owe you guys a lot more for the unexpected hiatus, but I haven't been able to write anything as of late. Between struggling to bring up my failing chemistry grade (why the hell did I take AP?) and applying for colleges (stupid deletion of my previous essays), I've been totally swamped with school work. Still, the urge to write has begun to pester me until I finally find some way to make time for these stories and for you amazing people. Hopefully the second half won't be much longer in the making. <3