The Gathering

Chapter 5: The Gathering.

On the day the Cullens returned to Forks, dark clouds covered the sky, as if foreshadowing the storm that was to come. The Cullen family had decided to return home after years away, seeking to maintain their discreet and peaceful lifestyle. However, they were not the only vampires arriving in the area.

A group of five nomadic vampires had decided that Forks was the perfect place to settle, but they had a different plan: eliminate the Cullens and take control of the territory. They did not have a crucial factor: the territory they planned to conquer was not only protected by the Cullens, but by something much more dangerous, something they did not yet understand.

The nomads, confident in their power, crossed the forests until they reached at the edge of wolf territory. Unknowingly, they had entered Ethan Black's domain.

From the moment the wind changed and brought him the vampire scent, Ethan knew something wasn't right. These vampires were not the Cullens. The air was charged with tension, and his instincts awoke with an almost uncontrollable force. Within minutes, the hunt began.

"Nomads," Ethan thought with a mix of contempt and anticipation. They were there to claim what didn't belong to them.

Ethan moved through the forest, faster than any human, faster than any normal wolf, and faster than a vampire could react, he attacked. The first one didn't even have time to scream, his claws tore his throat and before he knew it, the first one's head detached itself from the body and he stepped on it with his paw, destroying the head with incredible ease. The crackling sound of his head rang out as a warning to the others.

The other four turned, but before they could organize themselves, Ethan was already on top of the second. This time, the vampire tried to fight back, but his strength was no match for Ethan's. Young Black's muscles tensed as he threw the vampire into a tree, breaking the truck in two. Before he could get up, Ethan had already reduced him to dust.

The third and fourth tried to fight together, but their attacks were uncoordinated and desperate. Ethan's movements had a deadly precision, his claws glinting in the dim light of the forest. In the blink of an eye, the bodies of both vampires split into several parts and then turned into dust.

The last vampire, terrified, began to back away. He knew he didn't stand a chance. "Cullen, I need to get to the Cullens," he thought, looking at the river that separated the territories. But Ethan wasn't about to let him go.

The vampire ran towards the river, desperately seeking to cross over to the Cullens' side. However, he did not arrive.

Ethan caught up to him just before he could jump, his claws going through the vampire's torso. He lifted him off the ground as if he weighed nothing, and with one swift and brutal movement, he tore him apart. The vampire's crystal dust vanished into the air as the wind blew gently.

Across the river, the Cullens had seen it all.

Alice had had a vision of this group of vampires, and he had warned his family.

The Cullens, who had just arrived and were on the other bank. Edward was the first to feel the tension. Something wasn't right. Beside her, Edythe also frowned, her golden eyes scanning the area for answers. They both tried to read the minds of the attacker and the hunter, but what they found was a void, an impenetrable wall. They couldn't access Ethan's mind.

—What's going on? —Edward murmured, tense.

"I don't know, but we can't read it," Edythe responded, equally uneasy.

From the opposite bank, the Cullens watched as the colossal figure of Ethan, in his form wolf, caught up with the last vampire just before he could cross the river. With a brutal and precise movement, the nomadic vampire was destroyed, leaving an overwhelming silence in the air

Rosalie watched the scene silently, her eyes fixed on the beast. She wasn't like the other wolves she had seen before. This one was different. More powerful, more fierce. And, despite the distance and danger, she felt a spark of curiosity. There was something about the creature that awakened an unknown feeling in her. Even though he was a wolf, his presence intrigued her in a way she couldn't understand.

Ethan took a step forward, slowly approaching the edge of the river. Despite the distance that separated them, the tension was palpable. There was no doubt that the Cullens were witnessing something out of the ordinary, something that defied everything they knew.

The river, which was normally a natural barrier between the territories seemed irrelevant in the face of Ethan's colossal presence.

He looked at them with a disturbing calm, breathing deeply, while his eyes traveled over each of the members of the Cullen family, lingering longer on Rosalie. Something about her disconcerted him. It wasn't just beauty; there was something else. For a moment, her eyes met, and although neither of them would admit it at the time, they felt a strange connection

However, he didn't say a word. She just stood there, looking at them, letting the weight of what they had just witnessed fall on them like a stone. The tension increased with each passing second.

Finally, it was Alice who broke the silence, although she didn't look away from Ethan

"He's the one I saw in my vision," she murmured. He is stronger than she imagined.

The air heavy with expectations. The Cullens knew they had found something beyond their understanding, and Ethan knew this was just the beginning.