Chapter II

The night of his arrival, Obediah had drunk his fill of blood. After the massacre in the woods, he took time to clean up before returning to the Cullens' house. He internally admitted that the house was much to his liking. It was a beautiful, two-story, modern-styled, sleek glass house on a hill. Light from within the house shined out as the residence never slept.

Walking up the hill barefoot and wearing nothing but a robe that barely covered himself as Obediah didn't bother to tie it shut. Before his imprisonment, he walked on water. Living free and at his own will. Things like caution, modesty, manners, and so on meant nothing to him.

Though vampires do not sleep, they sometimes isolate themselves in the night if they live in a place like Forks, where they could roam in the day. But most of the world's vampires hunted every night and isolated in the day due to the sun and their sparkling diamond-like skin.

However, Alice was waiting for Obediah to return that night. She had a vision and thought that the Blood Lord should be the first to know. She knew that she couldn't share her vision with the family as she usually would.

As Alice saw Obediah arrive, she led him to a water hose to avoid staining the house's white carpet with residual blood and the debris of the forest floor.

Alice took the lead him down while Obediah spoke freely. " White carpet in a house of vampires is stupid. It's like you're trying to say, hey, look at this blood I accidentally spilled. It's just as ridiculous as having glass windows so people can watch you super speed across the house. Now I don't mind it. I just thought you all wanted to stay hidden."

Alice laughed. "I see your point. But we like to take things slow, we are very discreet, and we only eat animals outside. Blood bags are kept in the garage." she explained.

"Ahh, then it is a lovely house. " Said Obediah.

"I expected you to be more Old Testament and uptight after what you did to Leonardo and Carlisle." Alice then moved to wash the blood from his white hair.

"No, I have my ways. But I've learned to accept you lesser creatures. To hold you to my standard will only be an insult to myself." Obediah explained. "So why are you washing me, girl?"

When Obediah's tone changed, Alice paused for a moment then continued washing his hair. "The girl. The one that saw you in the woods. I can see her potential future."

"You know her?" Obediah asked. He understood Alice's ability of subjective precognition.

She can see into the future, although what she sees is based on decisions being made; thus, she must wait for a decision to be firmly rooted in the mind or acted upon before seeing the result. Her talent is limited to humans and vampires because she has been both; she cannot see the futures of werewolves or other supernatural beings. Alice also has to have met or seen the target at least once to view their future.

"No, but I can still see her. I saw you bathing and somehow picked up on her. It was a bit fuzzy but I saw enough." Alice replied with confusion, hoping the ancient could shed some light on what's happening to her.

Obediah had a spare thought. "What should I do to clear up her future?" he asked.

"I can't see that. I can only see the future of a person based on their decisions. I can view multiple targets at a time but not intertwined futures. Let's say you bump her and she falls. I can't see what happens next until she or you decides to make the next move. I can't see chain reactions. But tonight, I did." Alice continued, "I saw how you startled her, and she ran away. It causes her to trip and break a wide lens. This will force her to go to Seattle in a few days where her future becomes uncertain...

These are chain reactions, not decisions. Right now, she has decided to order a new lens online, allowing her to make her deadline for the newspaper. But I can't see why she would go to Seattle if she had already ordered a lens."

'The Ripple Effect.' Obediah thought to himself. He was awestruck by Alice's potential.

Alice suddenly moved to put his robe back on. She then tied it shut to cover him from the other's view.

"When did vampires become so reserved?" Obediah asked.

"We aren't, but Vampires don't develop after their turn. So, just stay covered to avoid the nonsense of us lesser creatures," Alice replied as she skipped away all pretty.

Obediah laughed as he shook his head.

'Vladimir, I have found a woman with a soul just like Justinia's. If only you could have met her. I'm sure you would have found love once again.' Obediah thought in his heart with a bit of sadness.

---------------------------

When dawn came, the constant overcast obscured the sun rays. But the world was a lot lighter. Obediah was sitting on the couch looking over a history book to make up for the time spent in the long sleep. To his left, the Cullens had gathered with boxes.

He couldn't help himself and let out an audible sigh. He meant no disrespect, but he had grown tired of the homage thing a few centuries before he was put into the Long Sleep.

However, he sucked it up as he was considered the progenitor of the Vampiric race. During his time as a Prince, he learned responsibility and duty at a young age.

He first accepted the git from Alice and Jasper. The couple had quickly become his favorite. Alice, with her convenient abilities, knew what would make him happy. Their gift was a pair of well-made harness boots, a sheepskin coat with a large collar, dark jeans, flannel, and scarf. Stylish and comfortable.

Obediah thanked her and Jasper with friendly smiles. Though Alice knew it, the minds of the others were still wary of Obediah's presence. How could he blame them? They must have heard the stories of his bloody reign and the horrors inflicted during ancient times.

Rosalie and Emmet the gifted Obediah with a couple of gold and silver rings. It tapped into his days with the Vikings and later during the crusades, as he and his coven acted as mercenaries from the north.

Obediah then glanced at Leonardo, who was sitting on the couch. He had just a hint of a smile and gave me a nod. Obediah knew Leonardo had told them of his fondness for rings.

Carlisle and Esme's gift was also lovely. They had given Obediah a cell phone. It was new but primitive compared to the technology that he once had in Balobedu.

'Maybe I can upgrade the technology and sell it. It will be a good way to make money and build connections in this modern world.' Obediah thought to himself as he inspected the cellular device.

When the gifts were finished and the official welcome was given. Obediah dressed in his new clothes then rushed everyone along as he was in a hurry to see the Shield, Bella Swan. He wanted to test the limits of her instinctual abilities.

After years of his family's research, it was common knowledge that the vampiric transformation amplified a mortal's power. As his family was a family of Sorceresses, he, being the only male in generations, their abilities grew astronomically after the transition into Blood Lords.

Many people had forgotten the magic ways, so it never occurred to the Volturi to train mortals to develop their power before giving the bite. But until a mortal is educated, they use 'Instinctual abilities,' powers that protect the mortal without their knowledge or control. The powers can also express themselves with the mortal having no idea how to turn them off.

Obediah then began to wonder if anyone in this world still had magic or practiced the old ways. If they did, it would make building a coven all the more enjoyable.

On their way to the school, Obediah played with his rings and thought of ways to get under Bella's skin. Then he thought of ways to cause ripple effects that Alice might be able to see. And hopefully, stimulate her powers to develop further.

A ripple effect occurs when an initial disturbance to a system propagates outward to disturb an increasingly larger portion of the system, like ripples expanding across the water when an object is dropped into it.

The world is a pond, and people are pebbles: Pebbles naturally cause ripples, and the ripples eventually bounce off other ripples. But no matter how hard Alice tries, her power level can only follow people she knows. She can see their potential future based on the thoughts or decisions they make.

However, people like Obediah propagate a ripple effect that can cause Alice's power to develop if she happens to view his potential future at a critical point of fated interaction, like the night in the woods. That crucial point then causes an effect like pebbles being tossed into a pond. Her power stops being linear and becomes warped, allowing her to see possibilities that her target hasn't or may never consider, along with chain reactions that may or may not be changeable depending on the number of variables involved.

One day, she may even be able to see millions of futures for billions of people. The overwhelming power of such an ability makes Obediah excited just thinking about it. If only his sister had finished her research. His sister described it as shooting an arrow in a tree, and a chain of events begins that ends with a king's death.

Alice will start seeing chain reactions and garbled futures in the initial phases until her power develops, and she learns to control it.

Anyways, before he knew it, they were pulling up to Forks High School. Obediah was kind of giddy as he had never attended an institute in his entire life. Not even in Balobedu, as education was a family affair. Especially for a child of royal blood.

"Obediah, come with me. I'll take you to get enrolled." Alice waltzes over and locks her arm with his.

She then walked him inside and caused everyone to display awe-induced stares. They wondered who Obediah was and why he was with Alice Cullen of all people.

"Do you like your new clothes?" She asked, then giggled to herself. "Of course you do. We can go shopping for more. I know a place in town, made explicitly for ruggedly stylish men. You can dress nice and still keep your grittiness."

"Gritty? Even without the beard?" Obediah asked.

"Yes." She replied matter of factly. "You're a warrior. Even your hairstyle screams fighter. The pretty and unique white brings something... sexy to it. That's why you have to dress appealing to showcase it."

A smile that Obediah couldn't manage to stifle appeared. "I like you, Alice," he said, " I would enjoy shopping with you. Maybe you can show me more of the current technology as well."

Alice smiled and just squeezed my arm tighter without saying another word. When the pair arrived at the administration office, they waited for the guidance counselor.

During the wait, Obediah felt the need to peer into Alice's mind.

"I don't want him to know who I am. Come." He pulled her up from her seat.

"He can be trusted. He does all of our school paperwork and scrubs it when we move on. His family has always taken care of us." Alice explained.

Obediah couldn't bring himself to trust just anybody. He looked at the receptionist that manned the front desk of the administration office. His pupils then contracted and widened, ensnaring her mind. Obediah seamlessly instructed her to take care of all the necessary paperwork as he fed information into her mind.

When he was finally enrolled and received a class schedule, he and Alice left the Administration Office.

"What was that?" Alice asked, curiously.

"Advanced telepathy. Your ability started to develop last night. As such, many abilities have developmental branches. It just takes hard work and the right stimuli to climb the branches." Obediah explained.

"That's actually pretty cool," she sang.

After Alice and Obediah parted ways, he simply followed the schedule for the day. He learned that history was my favorite course throughout the day as the sciences and mathematics were far beneath him. His English teacher, however, loved him after he was blown away by an ancient story that Obediah used as his creative writing assignment.

With only an hour of class, the quality of the paper that Obediah submitted was superb. But it wasn't until French class that Obediah received mass praise. Obediah's talent for tongues was honed over centuries, making languages as easy as simple arithmetic for him. His French teacher was flabbergasted.

Obediah wanted to be put in the category of highly intelligent. People with innate abilities are usually highly intelligent. Those with destructive powers might fall to the waistline and try to make themselves invisible to keep isolated. But Obediah was confident in his skills to root them out if there were any to be found.

When lunch finally came, Obediah vanished from his chair, then appeared in the Cafeteria, where he waited for the Shield to appear. He knew if any fun could come from the day, Bella could provide it. Well, her power that she is oblivious to, could provide it.

The Cafeteria filled up quickly with students so young and brimming with life. Their blood smelled of sweet candies, almost euphoric. Obediah then focused his attention on Bella Swan as she sat at a table, awkwardly ushered by a young man. I could tell she wasn't a very social person. She could even pick up on the lust the boys in school displayed for her but had little experience or lack of interest to deal with it. Though, he couldn't figure out why. Bella didn't seem that different from many of the young women in school.

Obediah rose from his table, and many eyes fell on me. His fellow students whispered though he heard it all, even the words they kept to themselves.

The attire that Alice gifted him gave him a hardened bad boy vibe. Though his hairstyle and rings also affected his peers' conclusions. The ladies and even some gentlemen whispered of his beauty and their desire to... have sex with me.

They used a lot of different words, but the classical, fuck, hump, and mount will do just fine for Obediah. But he made a note of the colorful vocabulary and expressions.

As Obediah weaved through the tables, he noticed that only Emmett could compare to him in terms of physique. Though, if they were to get naked, Obediah was more cut and tightly packed like a warrior. But that's the consequences of peace and civil society, the young men and women were made soft, flabby, or outright underdeveloped.

By the time Obediah made it to Bella, one boy had childishly run away to chase another, and a dark-haired boy left of his own volition. So, Obediah took the seat between Bella and the girl that looked at him with intoxicated eyes.

Obediah smiles at Bella and just waits for her to speak. He could feel her anxiety seeping from her pores. She had questions, and he had answers, but the questions she had were far too weird for casual school talk.

"Your eyes are like so...blue." The girl next to Obediah was infatuated with his appearance, his vampiric pheromones only served to deepen the lust.

'Jessica Stanley,' Obediah took a quick glimpse of her mind.

"I'll take that as a compliment," he replied with a soft smile and warm eyes.

"You totally should... I'm Jessica." she held her hand out, but her eyes looked like she wanted to devour him. But they were nowhere near the level of hunger displayed in her friend's eyes.

Obediah looks past Jessica and makes eye contact with her friend. He then smells it, the scent of the hidden photographer. He had been so focused on Bella that he had forgotten all about the photographer from the woods. He quickly peers into her mind, and sees himself naked, resting against tree roots in a pool of blood surrounded by animal corpses.

'Angel Weber.' he exhales.

Angela is 6'1, with dark brown hair with streaks of honey and gentle brown eyes. Though her glasses seemed to get in the way of their beauty. Just as her pure and bright thoughts appeared to obscure the dark fantasies that lay deep in her mind, hidden by an unnaturally strong barrier. 'She's tall for a woman, it makes her self-conscious, but that shouldn't be a problem. I'm taller than her.' Obediah thought as he held her gaze.

"It's Angela, right?" He asked.

Angela slightly tensed up. 'Did he see me? No, it was too dark. I barely managed to see him. If it wasn't for the picture of the dead animals, I would have missed him completely.' she thought, 'How does he know my name?'

"Y-yes. You're Obediah, right? " she stammered.

Obediah could hear her heart pounding.

"That's right. I like your perfume. It's very unique." He told her.

Bella could wait. Angela had a better personality, and her mental barrier, though less impressive than Bella's shield ability, had piqued Obediah's interest.

Angela blushed a little as she giggled through her reply, "Really? My mom gave it to me last year for my birthday. I like it because it's subtle. I'm surprised you can smell it from across the table."

"It is subtle," Obediah tells her.

Angela's self-consciousness had kicked in and caused her to be worried that she had put too much perfume on.

Obediah continued, "It was just hard to miss for me. It has this... invigorating scent... like rain showers."

Angela laughs. "What does that even smell like?"

'I want to know.' she thought. Intrigued by and partially lusting after the beautiful ancient man.

"It's tiresome to explain. However, you can find out for yourself tomorrow morning, if you aren't busy." he offered.

Angela bit her bottom lip gently, corrupting her appearance of shy, kind, and distant into a hungry beauty craving a man. Sensual, not slutty. Discreet but also apparent in her desires.

She then froze. Angela's mind drifted away on a river of images that included Obediah's handsome appearance in school and the sinful display she chanced upon in the woods. She wanted to know, but something was holding her back. Something deep down, hidden away with her darkest and most depraved fantasies.

Something or someone had forced this girl to split herself in two. It was the only explanation for a mortal to have such a strong mental barrier that could actively compartmentalize the mind without leaving side effects.

Suddenly Jessica hits her friend's thigh with encouraging facial expressions. She then turns to Obediah with a big smile and says, " She would love to. She's actually a complete slut for tall... muscular guys like you."

"Jessica," Angela snapped at her friend. Jessica just laughs with amusement.

"I'm free if you can help me with a story for the school paper." She bargained, but Obediah didn't mind.

"Deal. " he agreed.

Angela had darkness buried in her. Darkness concealed deeper than Athenodora could have ever had hoped to hide hers. Such poor lesser creatures. They need Obediah's greatness to reveal the beauty within them.

=======

Obediah then turned his head to see Bella with an expression of interest. An emotion that he hadn't seen on her dull person before.

"What are you looking at?" he asked her with interest.

"Who are they?" Bella asked.

She was referring to the Cullen family, who had just walked into the Cafeteria.

Before Obediah could answer, Jessica took the lead. "They're, um, Dr. and Mrs. Cullen's foster kids. They moved down from Alaska like a few years ago."

Jessica spoke like she got off on gossiping. Just by looking at her, Obediah could tell she was bursting at the seams.

"They kind of keep to themselves," said Angela.

"Yeah, cause they're like together, together. The blonde girl, that's Rosalie, and the big dark-haired guy is Emmett. They're like... a thing. I'm not even sure that's legal."

"Even if it wasn't, who cares?" Obediah added.

He was born in a time when incest was accepted. Genetic problems weren't problems for their technology, so the ancients let people live how they wished. Obediah could feel the odd looks, but he didn't give a fuck.

"But they aren't actually related. So it's fine." Angela stepped in more so because Jessica's gossiping was tiring to listen to. Though, Obediah could feel her trying to decipher him.

"But they live together, it's weird," Jessica replied, but Obediah could smell that it made her excited. Most people gossip about things they secretly covet.

The next couple to come in were Alice and Jasper. Obediah could see that Jasper was having a tough time with a building full of hormonal teenagers. While Alice spun on her toes, with a light heart and beautiful attitude. She wanted to be the only thing that Jasper felt.

"Okay, the little dark-haired girl is Alice. She's really weird and um, she's with Jasper. The blonde one who looks like he's in a lot of pain." Jessica continued.

Obediah watched as Alice held onto Jasper's hand and hugged his arm. The sweet girl loved her mate, and her attitude was one in a million amongst vampires.

"Dr. Cullen's like this foster dad slash matchmaker." Jessica finished.

Angela became playful and said, "Maybe he'll adopt me." as she performed a swooning motion.

Obediah gently tapped her with his foot beneath the table. She looks over at him, and he tells her, "No need, darling, I'm around now."

Angela rolls her eyes. " From stranger to lover. You think very highly about yourself. But we'll see how you make it through the first date," she says.

'Poor lesser creature' he thought about how he would soon taste her spring waters. He then felt a bit shocked as he questioned how tasting her even became a goal.

At the same time, the Cullens with the exception of Alice and Jasper looked concerned.

Obediah quickly cleared his mind and decided not to dwell on the thought. Instead, he pulled out his new phone and gave it to Angela.

"I want you to be my first..."

Bella and Jessica paused mid convo and stared at him with big eyes. Even Angela was shocked.

Then he realized that he had humped so many women that he had forgotten to take care of his words while dealing with ladies who haven't managed to get fucked once. Not even a tip.

"Honesty looks so sexy on you." A random girl at the table commented.

Obediah knew now they were all misunderstanding, but Angela looked like she was about to jump across the table and offer herself in front of the entire school, so he allowed the misunderstanding to continue.

Across the Cafeteria, the Cullens were laughing at Obediah's situation. They each thought it was amusing that Obediah, the Pimp of Babylon, was mistaken as a virgin and was still winning.

The Ancient Lord sent a glance over his shoulder, and the laughter was snuffed out. But he noticed that Edward seemed shocked. Obediah then viewed Edward's thoughts. First, Edward was surprised by Angela's explicit thoughts, whom he always thought of as pure and kind. Then his mind refocused on Bella. He was trying to penetrate her mind.

"Angela, Love. Put your number in." He told her. She nodded a few times and began to press away.

Obediah then took his phone and left the table. On his way to sit with the Cullens, he called Angela.

'Hello,' she answers.

'Pack a couple of different lenses with your camera for tomorrow. And don't bother getting dressed, I'll bring you something to wear. Just send your address and wait for me.' Obediah then ended the call and took his seat next to Edward.

"You can't do it, can you?" He asked him.

Edward looked at Obediah. " What do you mean, Lor--"

"Do not call me, Lord. Lord of what? I must earn that title again." Obediah corrected him. " Blood Lord, as it is my race, but in the presence of humans, while pretending to be human, it is not necessary. Call me, Obediah."

"Obediah, I don't know what you mean." Said, Edward.

"And never lie to me again. I'm talking about that girl I was sitting next to. The only person in this room with a silent mind."

The Cullens frowned and looked at Edward, awaiting an explanation.

"I'm sorry." Edward apologized. "I only noticed when I sat down. Even when I focus, I can't read her thoughts."

Edward seems to be oblivious about power holders. Actually, all of the Cullens seemed oblivious. Obediah thought about finding the scripts his family wrote on Vampiric abilities. That's if the Volturi hadn't burned them all.

"I can't read her mind either. It's exciting." Obediah sang excitedly.

His comment shocked the table. They thought of him as all-powerful, but in truth, telepathy is his weakest skill. Not that a stronger telepath could penetrate Bella's Shield on their best day.

"Not even you can read her mind?" Alice asked the man she had earlier watched compel a human.

"You have Telepathy?" Edward added.

"Yes, my entire family had telepathy. It was a common trait in my era. However, Miss Swan is something special. Since you seem so interested, you should find out. "

Obediah thought if Edward kept practicing, he could hone his skills. After all, no matter how hard he tried, Bella had the only mind that he couldn't hurt.

'The Olympic Coven -Cullen family has potential. I would be a fool not to nurture it. Especially if they were already aligned with Leonardo.' Obediah thought.

"So, when should we go shopping for Angela?" Alice asked. "She is the girl from last night, right?"

"Can't you see it?" Obediah asks.

"It's hazy. I see two sets of events. But I do see us shopping together." Alice replied with a cute smile.

"After launch. I've had enough school for the day," he replied.

"Is it safe for you to associate with humans?" Rosalie asked, a bit concerned.

"Why would you think that?" he asked.

"With respect, Lo-- Obediah, you've been locked up for centuries. What if--"

"Thank you for your concern. But I have absolute control. And if I kill somebody and you're worried about the treaty, send the wolves my way. I'll kill them too." Obediah chuckled. Causing Rosalie to shiver.

Once the bell rang, Alice and Obediah left school early and went into town for a few things.

Sometime later, Alice and Obediah were browsing through Bob's Country Boutique.

In the store, everything was well made and stylish for a man of the wilderness.

"Ahh! Try this one!" Alice placed a Bolivian wool felt hat on Obediah and wrapped a scarf around his neck.

"Mmm, yes…" she sang. "We have to get this. Now, onto every challenging underwear."

Alice dragged the Blood Lord around the store and put him through many outfits until he had an outfit for every day of the month.

Alice swiped a card, then moved on to a store where Alice had her fun and tried on plenty of outfits. Her excuse was finding Angela something nice. But the beautiful soul enjoyed herself immensely.

Obediah enabled her by paying compliments, giving advice, and even picking a few outfits for her. The two had a good time and spent another hour and a half shopping. Alice used her abilities to find the perfect outfit, but Obediah had to laugh when it was the outfit she had tried on thirteen outfits ago.

"I think she will like it," Obediah said.

"She'll love it." Alice declared.

"Then let's pack it up."

Alice hummed sweetly then she froze as her eyes went distant. She looked at Obediah with a half-smile before moving on nervously.

It was then Obediah's turn to waste time as she took him to an electronics store to explore. He ended up leaving with a laptop. Obediah wanted to know the full extent of the world's technological capacity. Alice told him that the internet was the best way to grasp it.

On their way out of town, Alice's nerves were now visibly anxious. But Obediah thought about the best way to calm whatever internal conflict she had going on. Then he happened to spot a small store.

"Alice, stop," he told her.

Obediah entered the store and immediately closed his eyes to enjoy the scent of the drying herbs hanging from the ceiling. When his eyes open, he looks around to see candles, incense, crystals, and all the supplies used in rituals.

But he soon noticed that products were incorrectly harvested and prepared wrong. Even the ritual items were void of any power. As he picked through the products with a disappointed look, the ladies at the counter watched him and whispered to each other.

"Sir, can I help you?" the woman with dirty blonde hair asked from her place behind the counter.

"I wonder if you use your product?" he asked without turning around.

Alice then walked into the store. She tried to pull him away, but he refused. Obediah noticed that the women's composure changed when they saw Alice.

"Judging from your expressions when my companion walked in, it would seem that you have better quality items stored away. What are you? Witches? Worshippers of the Old Gods?" Obediah asked bluntly.

"You're not welcome here anymore. Please leave." The second woman commanded.

Obediah turns around and dives into her mind. She then blocks his light probe. Not wanting to shatter her mind, he withdrew. She looked at him, shocked.

"What are you?" she asks.

"Well, I used to be one of you. A very long time." Obediah held out his hand, and books fly off the shelf.

"These are the closest books to real arcane arts that you sell... I want to talk. No trouble is needed." he explained.

"Then talk." The dirty blonde-haired woman spoke.

"My name is Obediah Sanguine."

"Lisa Stackhouse. And this is my sister, Jenny Weber." Lisa stood behind her shop counter and stared daggers at him. She was clearly ready to attack.

"Well, Lisa, I want to know how a witch found her way to Forks, Washington. And why sell worthless shit?"

The sisters looked at Alice.

"The treaty. We have one with the Quileute Tribe and so do the witches. They aren't allowed to sell magic to the humans or perform any magic for or on them. If a human dies, so do they."

"This tribe must be something," said Obediah. "Alice, pay the ladies. I want to hear their history."

"How much?" she asks.

Obediah gazed at the sisters for a moment, then told her. "500 should be sufficient. And do me a favor and get me a wide lens by morning. I'll be sure to pay you back tomorrow night, just keep your schedule open."

Alice must have got the message. After she paid the ladies, she went on her way, leaving Obediah alone without any protest.

"So, you can start from when the first witch arrived," I told them.