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Embry had been the odd man out-never having imprinted on anyone, and if he was being honest that made him happy. Because while everyone else had changed he was able to remain the same. He had a choice that had been stripped from the others, but was that fate so bad?
Was the price of your very being worth a perfect love that will last forever?
Embry didn't think so; the belief of it never changed until he finally did imprint.
He had gone over to play video games with Leah. A weekly ritual that had formed even if the she-wolf knew how to destroy him in every game but Minecraft. It had actually seemed normal until he began to knock on the door-when he felt a presence.
The very air had seemed to have shifted: burning with pure heavy energy, that caused every hair on him to stand, to make his skin feel as if it was slowly but deeply eroding away. If words could even begin to describe the feeling, because wolf or not even a human would be affected by it.
He was almost going to call out to Leah if something was wrong when the door opened. When that feeling intensified just by the door opening.
Standing on the other side was a young man with skin the color of a corpse-completely lacking sunlight-to the point where it made the leeches tan. His hair was black ink and his eyes were glowing green. Dressed in a tight-collar silk black suit, black shoes, all a deep off set black, only to be broken by the tie that matched his eyes.
It didn't matter that Embry had a love for tan skin, for strawberry blonde hair, for warm brown eyes.
It didn't matter that he liked girls.
Because the only way he could describe this feeling was to be Imprinting.
Embry isn't Embry anymore.
The thing he imprinted on isn't human either, but no one else seems to see what he sees.
His imprintee doesn't want to leave Leah's house. Doesn't want to leave Leah and that shouldn't bother him as much as it does. Leah is his only friend after all and the imprintee always has a choice from what he has heard from the others.
Yet his imprintee is not human either; he has no scent, no heart beat, not even the sign of a single fingerprint.
His imprint does not speak any language that he knows accept for broken English, and even then he only speaks to Leah clearly. He doesn't eat either, nor drink. There is not a single moment where he needs to excuse himself to use the bathroom. He doesn't even blink, just places a pair of black sunglasses over his eyes, that still hardly help with the emerald glow.
It scares him. The fear of not knowing what he imprinted on, because none of this wa normal. The very act of imprinting wasn't normal or a thing that Embry had ever wanted to experience. Though now that he has imprinted he wants nothing more than to please. Even if it means burning the world and himself to do it.
In the night his imprint comes.
Not in any actual form-physically he is still with Leah, maybe this isn't him at all-because the thing that greets him is in his dreams. Vivid dreams that burn away at his mind until he is left with more questions than answers and who is he supposed to ask?
None of the wolves would understand his imprint and none of the imprintees would want to be around his imprint.
So, instead of reaching out, he closes his eyes and feels anxiety creep into him.
The first part of the dream is that of two people fighting with spears-his imprint and a beautiful young woman-both dressed in white cloth and jewels. Both with black markings tattooed across theirs faces and arms and chest and-
They each have crowns upon their heads. Crowns that match Nefertiti if Quil's 'Mummy Adventure' phase tells him anything.
Black kohl and gold mark their eyes and lips, blue paint dipped upon their cat-like clawed fingers, sticking out against their warm tan skin.
"Amanet!"
The second is very similar.
Both standing on dunes of sand as the breeze shifts around them. Their eyes closing-peace etched across their features-as they simply stand there.
Then they raise their arms, hands facing towards the winds, and Embry watches as they control the sands, the storm-
A mass of followers bowing down to them from behind, chanting in a language that Embry does not know as they leave offerings-
Witchcraft.
The third is much faster.
Images. Sounds. Smells. Emotions.
All are Egyptian-all are Women-
Queens and Pharaohs-
each one being the ideal tone of a leader with his Imprint standing close behind.
Then he watch's as they each die. War. Illness. Childbirth. Revenge. Suicide. Every one of them with their organs pulled from their body before they are wrapped and buried. And he feels it.
He feels everything that they do, every ounce of pain they could never experience, and even more until he begs to escape from the cold stone and dully lit rooms.
Then they place him in a Sarcophagus, marked by a Jackal, still alive. Still breathing and begging to be let go, but in the end they seal it.
In the end the warning is clear:
His imprint wants him dead.
His imprint wants those he has lost.
Leah needed for this to happen.
Emily was stuck in a domestic violence situation even if she was the muffin queen. Kim would eventually grow out of her highschool crush only to be stuck in Forks with kids that she never even wanted. Rachel wanted nothing to do with Paul, the woman had a life, and poor Claire was too young to understand what her Uncle Quill has planned.
Then Embry imprinted on Leah's adopted daughter and if it wasn't for her being friends with Hex-
The Titan was willing to manipulate his memories, but magic comes with a price. For the freedom of her child, for everyone, there would have to be a sacrifice. Even if it meant death driven by madness. Leah had seen the dreams herself-on a lesser extent-that made up the memories of the Greek Titan's children. As a close friend, she knew that he missed his mortal children, and even if he still had Amanet the loss of his children hurt him.
It made him understand why Leah wanted this.
Taking out her cellphone from her jean pocket she dialed the number for Chief Swan.
"Leah?"
"Chief Swan? It's Leah, Charlie, I would like to report a suicide. It seems that Sam Uley's gang is now taking their own lives."