Chapter 17: Meeting With An Original
[General POV]:
An expensively dressed, noble aired, brunet man, looking to be in his mid to late 20s with a clean-shaven chin and an immaculate aura stepped out of a silver 2010 Lincoln MKZ and took his seat at a restaurant near the edge of town, the outside summer air giving the venue a certain aesthetic appeal.
The park across the street was far reaching in children's laughter and the activity in the late afternoon sun throughout the entire street was active. The scenery was not a scenery one would place a noble Original vampire, and yet, the noblest of the Original family, Elijah Mikaelson, patiently waited at his table, sipping tea.
He waited.
And waited.
Until the sound of a sports car thundered down the street, a black, 2009 Camaro eventually coming into sight. Elijah squinted in its direction as it parked right next to his Lincoln. He wasn't too sure if he wanted to hang the person driving the muscle car or if he admired the person's audacity for doing so —he chose to watch.
The young man who came out of the muscle car had hazel-green eyes, caramel skin and an athletic build. He was dressed nice: grey jeans, a dark grey, long-sleeve button-down and a pair of leather black boots. A strange stone hung from a neck chain—one whose magic power was so great, Elijah could feel it from across the restaurant.
As he made his way over, Elijah's brow furrowed, attention on the powerful talisman before schooling his expression as he stood up and shook the young witch's hand.
"Maximus Bennett, but you can just call me 'Max'."
Max's grip was firm—too firm for a witch, Elijah sensed.
"Elijah M—" Elijah began.
"Mikaelson," Max finished, surprising the old vampire. "Yes. I am well aware of who you are. I foresaw us meeting already, even before sending the message."
"And yet, you were still quite late…" Elijah murmured as the two took their seats. "I must say, when a strange number messages me to meet up for 'important reasons,' I would not have thought them to be late to their own meeting."
"Apologies for my late arrival. I had certain… practices to perform before leaving for this meeting," Max smiled, his eyes giving nothing away.
"Anything to do with that mysterious stone around your neck?" Elijah asked, curious.
"Not at all, actually," Max smiled, a hand on his stone. "I created it this morning. My own magic amplificator stone—a talisman tied to my lineage. I call it the 'Verbaton Stone.'"
"But that's not what held me back thirty extra minutes. No, what did… is irrelevant…
"What I contacted you to say is that your brother, Klaus, is lying. Your siblings are quite alive, only daggered and hidden away some—"
Max barely got the words out when he was sped to the wall, a rough hand around his throat, firm and threatening.
"You lie," Elijah said, black veins crawling across the skin of his face, his obsidian-black eyes and fangs peeking out just barely.
"Listen… to… my… heartbeat," Max said, dead calmly, causing Elijah to squint, his fangs fully retracting, his eyes returning to normal as he tilted his head to listen. "Your siblings still live, daggered but alive. For an Original, of course," Max said, his heartbeat true.
Elijah, having heard the consistency of Max's heartbeat, eyed Max warily. There was a moment of silence before he asked his next question, as if to fully assimilate his words. "How do you know this?"
"Same way I know you intended to kill Klaus at his most vulnerable point during the ritual to break his curse as vengeance for how you thought he killed your siblings," Max said casually, his words causing the eldest Original's eyes to widen before narrowing.
"I am a very special type of witch—one with special eyes. A seer of sorts…and psychic who can see extremely far into the future—And the past."
At Max's words, Elijah seemed to have become curiously intrigued. "How far exactly are you able to see?"
"The limits, for me…. have not been tested," Max answered coolly. "Consciously, I could spoil the next 3000 years for myself, if I so choose… or the last 6000. I need only want it and I'd be able to see it."
'Lies!' Max thought. 'Or half-truths. I haven't consciously tested my newly acquired seer/psychic abilities, but this man doesn't need to know that.'
Elijah merely stared at Max, clearly stunned, but impressively skilled enough to not show it. Still, even though he was good at controlling his surprise, his thoughts were a highway, and Max could hear each one from on it.
'How is that possible? Witches are either psychic or a seer, never both—and yet, he is both. He wasn't lying earlier. I've been listening to his heart the whole time he spoke, Elijah thought. Plus, he knew my plans and motives. I had to kill Klaus—I've told no one of this, and yet he knew. And to be able to see an unknown limit into the future, if he so chose? Is he really that powerful?'
Max internally smirked at the Original vampire's thought process. He could hear every single one of the vampire's thoughts, which was a feat in and of itself, as no one psychics has ever been strong enough to breach an Original Vampire's mind without prep time and some form of an amplifier—and Max is doing it casually, without one.
Elijah fixed Max with attentive eyes, intense but calm—cold but inquiring. Then he spoke. "What is your goal in telling me this?" And why are you helping me and my family? I'm well aware of my family reputation. I'm certain that does not necessarily invite allies."
By now, the two had returned to their seats, with Max ordering a green tea and Elijah a cup of water.
As Max drank his tea, he faked a contemplating expression. "Call it seeding a discourse to a future I'd rather avoid," Max answered, causing Elijah to side-eye him in curiosity. "And I'm not doing this for you or your family. Our two lineages are somewhat intrinsically connected in the future in a way. I'm only stabilizing the foundations of that connection, while planting seeds that will grow into trees to combat the coming darkness."
"A coming darkness?" Elijah questioned.
"Spoilers," Max smirked, cup to his lips.
Elijah fixed Max with an unimpressed look.
Max just grinned his million-dollar grin.
Elijah released an outtake of breath. "So you evidently don't want me to kill my brother, and now I have no reason to, if what you say about my siblings is true. What specific direction do you wish to usher me in?"
"I need Klaus to unlock his werewolf side," Max said bluntly. "And I want you to make sure he does. By any means necessary. It will require the sacrifice of a werewolf, a vampire, and a witch—I will take the role of the werewolf and witch."
Elijah's eyes widened at Max's words, and he had to double-take to make sure he was hearing properly. 'He's a werewolf, too? What kind of unique existence is so quick to want to die?'
"If you're curious as to why I am offering my life to the sacrifice, well, let us just say I won't stay dead forever," Max said smugly, garnering an incredulous eye from the Original. "I have pretty much everything needed to perform the incantation… If you bring Klaus to Westphall Manor the next full moon, with a vampire to spare, I can perform the incantation to unlock his wolf side. Just leave my kin out of this. Deal?"
After thinking it over, Elijah outstretched his hand to shake Max's, but Max shook his head.
"No, before we shake on it, I need your word that those I love will not be affected by you until the end of the ritual," Max emphasized, stubbornly.
"You have my word. Your loved ones won't be bothered by myself or my associates in the timeline leading up to the full moon and the subsequent ritual itself," acquiesced Elijah, with a hand stretched out to shake.
Max was well aware that there was a lot of wiggle room in this deal. He was well aware of this particular Original's track record of bypassing contracted obligations creatively. In fact, Klaus Mikaelson may have been remembered as "The Great Evil," but Elijah Mikaelson has always worried Max more than Klaus ever could—and Elijah behind the red door is far more unpredictable.
For all Max knew, he'd betray them the moment that grace period ended—Or worse: get someone unassociated with him to do it.
'But then again, I never was one to want an easy life,' Max internally smirked. 'And who said 'they' don't need something to challenge them to be better? Stronger? Bonnie won't be able to face Cade weak, right? No, everyone deserves to have their own individual growth montage?'
Max shook his hand.
"By the way, Mister Mikaelson," Max grinned, "I won't do it for free."
This caused Elijah to spasm, then set his jaw. "What do you want?"
"Access to your mother's repertoire," Max was straight up. "Just a few hours with it will do."
"I can do that," Elijah agreed.
"Good. I'll be sure to keep in touch," Max stood. "Well, it was nice talking to you, Mister Mikaelson. Don't die before our next meet-up, yeah?"
Without waiting for a response, Max made his way over to his car, entering the 2009 black Chevrolet Camaro. He was down the street before Elijah could realize he's paying for their dinner visit…