A strangled scream was dying to rip out of my throat, but no sound came, not even as my mouth fell slack.

It took a few moments, as I lay there, burning from the inside out, to understand that it wasn't my skin that was burning.

The churning flames were deep inside me, spreading through my body and eating away at my internal organs, excruciatingly slow. My silent screams were no more, I couldn't think past the chaos happening beneath my skin.

I just wanted to die, but the fire kept me alive, washing over me repeatedly. It continued to rise and peak, before falling to a low hum.

The low hum would last for a mere five seconds, but throughout the grotesque cleansing, when the fire scorched everything inside me, those five seconds were all I holding on for.

It felt like days that I lay in the fiery trap that was my body. Days where I withered and burned and desperately awaited my death. It lasted forever, although the fire moved beneath my skin faster than the speed of light.

It took its sweet time charring my organs, my veins, my muscles, my very soul. Until the buildup began to grow higher and higher, the flames licking at my rib cage.

The climax, I should of realised, was my heart. The agony of the burn was raising to an unbearable point. I thought I had felt the pain of a million deaths when the heat touched my spine.

But nothing, nothing at all in the universe, will ever describe the white, hot, blood curling torture, as the burning, engulfed my heart. I was sure that was the moment I would die, I was positive.

So positive, that I assumed my body was crying in relief at the promise of the end of this torture. In my mind's eye, all I could picture was a ball of bright-hot, eye watering, white light.

It grew and festered, changing in shape from a tiny pebble to the size of my fist. I lay there, watching it for hours, the sight so terrifying and so beautiful in the same instant.

I guess I should have known it wouldn't have stayed like that. The sweep of light hit every body part in one instant and for the first time in what felt like centuries, I could hear my own screams.

The light touched from my stomach to my toes, zinging along my veins and burning my fingertips. It clawed at my neck, leaving the same white-hot pain in the base of my throat.

Before finally, it touched my ears, bringing the world to startling clarity. Then my eyes, my hair line and the tips of my chestnut hair. My hearing was the only sense to return and after a while, I desperately wished it would leave again.

The sounds of my own screams terrified me. In a desperate attempt, I tried to move my body, to turn my head or even simply wiggle my fingers, but I couldn't move, no matter how hard I tried.

I began to distract myself by counting, wondering how long I'd been burning for. If I really tried, I'm sure I could remember. But then again, I'd probably delude myself.

I could have been here for mere seconds or minutes. Or even hours, days, weeks, years. I felt like I'd been here for centuries, being tortured by my own body.

The pain began to lessen and a bubble of hope burned throughout my chest. 'I'm going to make it,' I whispered to myself, though I couldn't move my mouth to say the words out loud.

It was as if the universe was playing a cruel, sick joke on me. Because the moment I thought of the final word, the pain flared up in my left arm before doubling all over my body.

A scream bubbled up once more and I prepared myself for the horrifying noise, but it never came. My jaw locked tight, leaving the scream trapped in my throat.

Without my screaming outlet's, I had to endure the pain rushing through my body as the endless fire raged on. Then just as quickly as it came, the pain subsided in my arms and I could feel the control of my body come back to me.

Bit by bit, I was able to move my fingers, ball my hands into fists and wiggle my toes. Another bout of hope flared in my chest, promising me the end.

Despite being able to feel my fingers and toes, the burning continued throughout certain parts of my body, mostly my heart.

I felt as if it was playing games with me, as if it was enjoying increasing and decreasing rapidly. Slowly, I began to hear the faint wind outside, tapping against the outside of the house.

Voices began to meet my ears, so loud it felt as if they were shouting. But I knew no one was with me, they couldn't be. They would of ended this torture if they were.

The voices were so clear, I instantly tuned into them. Panic was rising in me, at my new found ability of magnified hearing.

The voices continued to whisper. "Relax, she will be fine, I assure you. Now go. I'll tell your sister everything, I promise."

The voice was a man's - that much was clear. His accent was heavy English, punctuating most of his words.

There was a delicate sniffle. "O-ok. Please, tell her I love her and please, help her. She doesn't deserve any of this. I wish I could stay. But well... Dylan could you do me a favor? Give her this... I-it, it was our mother's. Goodbye," the musical voice drifted off before it disappeared entirely, leaving an empty silence.

My attention came back to myself, where I could now hear the sound of my labored, pained breathing and my heartbeat. Dread washed over me as the pain in my heart started up again, causing a desperate cry to escape my lips.

No!

Not again!

I couldn't survive this again!

But the pain ignored me, sizzling at my heart as it burned and smoked, causing the same ball of light to appear before my eyes. This time, when it exploded, I was ready. But it was even more excruciating than the first time.

It began to dull once more after an eternity and I prayed it was over now. My own heart beat began to drop, leaving me panicked and confused. That couldn't be a good sign.

Then the pain was gone and relief washed over me, unlocking all my muscles.

All my senses hit me in a rush. I could feel my body collapse into the floor, hear the owl hooting in a tree. I expected to smell burning, the burnt skin of my own dead flesh.

But I smelt nothing of the sort. Only the smell of the room, of which I couldn't decipher. I opened my eyes slowly, staring up at ceiling. I could see surprisingly well, despite the lack of lighting.

As I sat up, my muscles ached and my throat burned. I could hear the dull thud of my heart and my shallow breathing.

No pain came, but I heard my own heart thud, hard against my rib cage. It did it again, before it stopped completely. My eyes widened in horror. There was no sound after that point. No breathing, no heartbeat, not even the owl in the tree.

Just, silence.

For a moment the absence of pain was all I could comprehend, that and the confusion of everything I had experienced. Right down to my heart that beat no more. I began to look around me, as if I could find answers within my surrounding.

It was shocking how clear and high definition everything was. Every object I looked at was so sharp and picture perfect. Every detail of the walls and roof, I could see, every fiber of the carpet, I could count.

However, the bright light at the end of the room was what caught my attention, a sliver of light which was coming from underneath the door. Although it was only a small amount, I could make out all the colors the light created.

I closed my eyes and took in a deep breath, inhaling the air. It then occurred to me that air didn't feel right. I could inhale it, but it never sat in my lungs and gave me oxygen.

It just passed through me, as if my body no longer had any need for it. As I breathed through my nose, new smells hit me instantly.

Wood, dust and something that was rather sickly sweet, bringing my attention back to the burning in my throat.

My hands flew upwards, clutching my throat. My ears picked up a noise that came from downstairs. I turned in, listening intently. I realised they were footsteps, which were coming up the stairs and rather fast.

They drew nearer then stopped just outside the door. I found my nostrils flaring as a new scent hit me. It was that same sweet smell from earlier, although now that it was closer, I could make it out.

It seemed to be pear and... mint. It was so intoxicating, I couldn't help but breathe it in. Another scent seemed to be in the mix, vanilla and raspberry.

As the door opened, I found myself already in a corner of the room, with my back to the wall, the muscles in my back arched, leaving me crouched in a defensive position.

Air made its way up through my throat and out my clenched teeth, creating a hissing noise that sounded like a swarm of angry bees.

My mind was screaming danger while my throat throbbed more and more. For a moment, it was difficult to concentrate on the man who now stood in the door way, his hands above his head in a surrender position.

My eyes bore into his red ones, neither of us moving an inch in the two minutes that we had been here for.

Slowly, the man put his hands down, my eyes following the movement before flying back to his face.

"Please, calm down. I am not here to hurt you, honest. I only want to help you. I made a promise to your sister that I would. Now please, come with me."

The man then turned and started walking down the hall, stopping at the end of it, he turned back around to face me. "Follow me, you have to feed," he ordered.

He then disappeared from sight. I could hear him walking down the steps. I had yet to move from my position against the wall, although my mind and control over my body was starting to come back to me.

He knew where my sister was, and I needed to know. What did he mean, feed? I didn't understand why, but I felt that I could trust him, if only enough to get information from him.

Cautiously, I followed after him, taking my time to make sure that I noticed if anything was out of place.

I suddenly realized I was moving so fast, yet I felt so slow. Within a mere few seconds, I found myself down the stairs and right next to him.

Holy shit, what's happening to me? Together, we proceeded down another hallway. I had so many questions that suddenly began to pop into my head.

What am I? Was my main one. Where am I and why should I trust you? Why do I feel a burn in my throat? What do you mean by feed? And what just happened to me? Closely followed.

One moment, I'm burning intensely for what felt like years upon years and the next moment, I'm walking about and everything seems abundantly different.

The world is so much more colorful, sharper and everything smells different too.

But I decided to ask a simpler question instead. "Where are we going?"

As soon as the words left my mouth, my hand flew to cover it. My voice! What the hell? It sounded nothing like me! It had an unearthly beauty to it. Tinkering and soft, like the man I was following.

The man turned left where there were steps at the end of another hallway, which we went down as soon as we reached them. As we reached the last step, I saw a door at the end of yet another hallway.

In an instant, my throat burned worse than it had been since I awakened. Scents reached my nostrils, causing them to flare and drive me insane.

The man stopped just outside the door. My eyes widened, my mouth dessert dry as my throat burned on. The man then pointed to the door that I so desperately wanted to get inside of.

"This is the cellar. Here, is where you will feed for the next six days, nowhere else. By then, you should be strong enough to leave this place. If not, well, you will have to leave anyway."

The man spoke without taking a single breath, although he didn't sound struggled to do so. I noticed how his eyes were no longer the intense, frightening red they first were, but slightly darker, like a waxy rose petal red.

Diverting my attention from his eyes, I scrunched up my face in confusion. Feed for six days? What the hell is he talking about? And where on earth was my sister?

I was about to ask these questions, but as if knowing what I was about to ask, he raised his abnormally pale hand to stop me.

"You must feed first, then I will happily answer any questions you have. I will be down the hall, back up the stairs and on the right hand side. The room in there, is where I will wait for you. Take your time, there is no rush, and if I may, go for their neck, it's better that way."

The man then turned and blurred away, back up the hall. I listened to him entering another room and pulling out a chair to take a seat.

Ok, this will take some time to get used to. What did he mean by, go for their necks?

Did he literally mean 'feed'?

I turned my attention to the door and the smells coming from it. They were making my throat burn un-controllably.

I put my hand on my throat, trying to find a way to squeeze the fire out but the burning only got worse.

I turned my attention back towards the door and pushed it opened. What I saw made me sick.

Lying on the ground, were people, at least seventy, chained down with gags in their mouths, so tightly packed together it made the whole thing worse.

There was no room to move, no room to escape. Their heartbeats were all beating evenly, as was their breathing.

I stepped inside and found myself drawn to them lying on the ground. I didn't know how to explain it, but I found myself wanting them.

Their smells drew me in, as did their heartbeats and the fact that I could hear their blood being pumped through their body.

I took a deep breath and found myself beside a young man, no older than twenty five, lying on the ground.

There was dry blood on his neck, due to a deep scratch that I could only assume he received in his kidnapping, which made my stomach quiver.

I leaned in and sniffed his neck, which made my throat sizzle in agony. I whimpered softly, remembering what the man said.

Go for their neck.

No, no, no!

I can't do this! I can't. I won't take a life, even if it will make me feel better! I refuse.

As I battled with my inner self, I didn't realize that my mouth was on his neck. The warmth felt so good on my cold lips.

Suddenly, without making the conscious decision to, I bit down on his throat. The instant I did, the blood flowed into my mouth. God, it was so good! It tasted incredible!

Almost like honey. It was so addictive I didn't want to stop. I wouldn't stop, not now. Within minutes, the blood flow came to a stop and I found myself craving more, so I went to the next person and bit down on their throat.

The same sensation went through me. A feeling of satisfaction brewed in my chest after the sixth person. I could feel the burn in my throat begin to fade away.

By the eighth person, it went away almost completely. It was then that it hit me.

What had I done?!

No, no, no!

I just killed people!

Oh god! This wasn't me! It was the monster that I had become! It had to be whatever creature I am. I would never do this, the old me would never have killed.

After sitting down on the ground for five minutes being so absorbed in my thoughts, I remembered that I wasn't alone. So getting up, I headed towards the door. I was at the room the man said within seconds.

I cringed at how fast I had moved. I seemed to be even faster now that I had fed. Stronger. I shook my head softly. Upon entering the room, I realized it was entirely empty, aside from two chairs that were in the middle of the room.

Strange. Why does he have so many bare rooms? The man was sitting in one of them, clearly he had been waiting patiently for me to finish my feeding, as he had called it. What I hadn't noticed before, was that he was rather good looking.

He had thick brown hair that came to his ears, smooth alabaster skin, and pale pink lips. He was about 5ft'9 in height. Then there were his eyes. Vivid red. They stood out brilliantly. The instant I entered the room, he looked directly at me and smiled warmly.

"Better?" He asked. I noticed how thick the English was in his accent.

"Yes, much better."

The man gestured to the other empty seat. "Please."

I took a seat in the empty chair then stared at the man. I had a thousand questions in me and I wanted answers. The man seemed to know that I was on the verge of bursting them all out.

"I will answer what questions I can. But first, let me introduce myself. I am Dylan Cristi."

He held out his hand for me to shake, to which I did.

Then, without thinking I asked, "What am I? Where am I? What happened to me earlier? I thought I was burning alive. Why should I trust you when I have seen your kind before?! I've seen the damage you can cause. Where's my sister, is she safe? Was it you that saved me from those men?" The words tumbling from my mouth before I could stop them.

Dylan chuckled. "Easy there girl."

He clapped his hands together. "Ok, first question, as to what you are? Well, you're a vampire. I'll give you a moment to absorb that. Second question, where you are, is irrelevant, for now. Third question, what happened to you? That was the venom, passing through your body, making you what you are now. Fourth question, your sister. Well first, let me tell you that Lucia is fine. As to where she is, well, I do not know and fifth question: I am not going to hurt you, at all. I was the one who saved you, and your sister from those men. But I am sure that you remember me a little?"

I took all that information in faster than I would've liked. Ok, so I'm a vampire. He won't tell me where I currently am. What does he mean by venom? And my sister is safe, thank god. But he doesn't know where she is.

Why did he even agree to help her? To help me? Did I remember him? Yes, I think so. "I remember you, at least a little... but, why would Lucia leave me? Why wouldn't she at least say goodbye?" My voice broke on the last note.

Dylan noticed this and shifted in his seat rather nervously. "As a newborn we don't care for anything aside from sex and blood. Your sister Lucia wanted to stay but well, she's having difficulty remembering to be 'Lucia' and so, she felt it was best for the both of you to split up and meet in two years' time, when she's more herself and has more control."

This made me happier, though worried about an empty shell of my sister roaming the earth, a monster wearing my Lucia's face. At least I would get to see her again in two years' time, then maybe she'd be the sister I remembered.

Dylan coughed and spoke up again. "Isabella, Lucia did it with your best interests at heart. She found it within herself to remember you. That's a great feat for a new born. As well as the fact that, the destruction two newborn vampires would cause could be catastrophe for our race. So for your own safety and that of your sisters, she decided to leave you here with me. But she did say that she loves you and, as I said, will meet you in New York City in two years. She did leave something for you, something that she managed to hold on to... while in the mess that you were in. I promised I would give it to you, so here it is."

Dylan reached into his pocket and pulled out a thin gold chain, so fragile looking that I wouldn't dare touch it if I were still human, with my big clumsy hands. A gold locket was attached to it. I recognized it instantly. It was our mother's.

She gave it to my sister when she was of age and looking to be married off to a gentleman my parents approved of. Inside the gold circle, there was a photograph of myself, my mother and my Lucia. Sadly, my father wasn't in it, as he had took the photograph.

Stretching out my hand, I grasped the chain with the locket attached to it. Sadness crept slyly into my un-beating heart. I opened the locket, looking at the photo and couldn't help but smile to myself.

One of the last time's I saw my mother before it happened, before they attacked. I closed the locket and put the chain over my neck. I felt an odd sensation when the cold gold locket hit my chest, molding into my skin.

So that voice, when I was burning, was Lucia's? But she had sounded so different. Then a thought warmed my heart. My sister left to protect me, she had been able to find her humanity because of me. Well at least I knew where and when I would see her again.

Looking down at my hands, I noticed how pale they were, it was terrifying. I looked back up at Dylan, who looked at me and walked towards the door, motioning for me to follow him. We went down the hall and into another room.

God, this house was so confusing. Far too many hallways! As we entered the other room, it was just as empty, if not more. Only a single table stood in the middle of the room. On it was a bottle of red wine, the label on it read, 'Smiths'.

"Wine?" I asked, confused.

Dylan looked at me, picking up the bottle and sighed sadly. "Yes, wine. It's just a pity I can't drink it anymore. It was the last thing I drank as a human."

He then put the bottle back down on the table without it making a single thud. I found this confusing. What did he mean by, I can't drink it anymore? Dylan looked me in the eyes.

"Our bodies are dead, Isabella. If I were to drink this, it would remain in my body for months. Also, if I was to eat something, it would taste like ash and could never be digested. The food would be in our system for three weeks and in that time you would feel it inside of you. The venom in our system is what would break it down," he paused, cringing. "Eventually."

I was too busy thinking in my head that I almost didn't notice Dylan looking at me funny.

"What is it?" I was ashamed to say I loved my voice. It was so beautiful.

Smiling, he said, "You're a very unusual newborn Isabella. Your control particularly intrigues me. I listened to you battle with yourself earlier in the room. You were quiet for about five minutes before you fed. That's a long time, especially in newborn terms, any vampire will tell you this."

Dylan sighed again and ran a hand through his hair. "Isabella you have six days here before you must move out."

I stared at him, slightly hurt. "Why?"

"Because of the Volturi. They're coming to visit me. They'll be here Tuesday and I need you out on the Sunday, because I need to get yours and your sisters' scent out of the house before they come."

Who are the Volturi? They didn't sound like very nice people if they didn't want other people to be here when they came to visit. I realised then that other scent that had been floating about: vanilla and raspberries must of been my sisters.

As if knowing what I was thinking, he answered the question in my head. "The Volturi are the first vampires and they have one law Isabella, and that law is never tell a human about us, about our kind, our world. If they found out about you, they would kill you. The Volturi aren't that fond of newborns either."

My mind was all over the place at this point. The first vampires? So in a way, the original vampires. I just nodded my head to show that I was listening as he continued.

"I am sorry that I can't be of more help to you, Isabella."

With that, he turned towards the door and began walking to it.

"Where are you going?"

Dylan stopped and turned his whole body towards me. "I'm leaving now, I have something to do and unfortunately I won't be back until Sunday night, so I'm afraid I won't see you again. Good luck and remember, feed regularly to keep the burn away from your throat. There should be enough for you in the cellar to last you six days. Goodbye, sweet Isabella."

Before I even had a chance to say goodbye or ask where he was going, he was gone, leaving me all alone.

Disclaimer: I don't own twilight