THREE

"Will you listen to us now?" Leo asked. "Even if your powers are increasing they shouldn't be increasing this quickly. Cole's right. If your powers increase too quickly you won't be able to handle it. That's why it takes time."

"But I feel great," said Phoebe. "In fact I feel better than great. I don't think I've ever felt this good in my life."

"That could be just the beginning," said Cole. "That could change very quickly. That much power coursing through your body can be very dangerous."

"I don't see how," said Phoebe. "I seem to have all of Melinda Warren's powers. The same powers each of us have. How can it be dangerous for me if it wasn't dangerous for her?"

"Because her individual powers weren't as strong as yours are," said Leo. "That's why you had to be prepared to get your powers. Her temporal manipulation, telekinesis, and precognition abilities were actually weaker than yours will eventually be. So she was able to handle all that power. No human can handle all three powers combined in the same body. Not at those levels."

"So what's causing it?" Piper asked. "Who's causing this to happen?"

"I don't know," said Leo. "As I said, not even the Elders are aware of what's going on. It must be demonic in nature."

"I don't think so," said Cole. "Like I said earlier, I don't know of any demons capable of doing this. Short of the Source, that is."

"Could it be the Source?" Paige asked.

"I guess it's possible," said Cole. "If it is then it's a dangerous gamble. If it didn't work out the way he planned it would only end up making you stronger. I'm not sure he'd take a chance like that."

"So if it's not the Source then who is it?" Phoebe asked.

"I haven't the faintest idea," said Cole. "No other demon I know has the power to accomplish this."

"Well if it's not a demon doing this," said Piper, "what else could it be?"

"It might be the Nexus," suggested Leo.

"The Nexus?" questioned Phoebe. "How could it be doing this?"

"You were the only one born in the house," said Leo. "It's possible that gives you some kind of connection to it. Maybe you're drawing power from it or something."

"It's certainly possible," said Cole. "The power of the Nexus is certainly great enough to cause the increase in Phoebe's powers."

"So why would it give her those powers?" Paige asked.

"It's not," said Leo. "Technically it's not giving her any powers. It's more like it's super charging her. Causing her powers to increase faster than normal."

"And because I'm a Charmed One," said Phoebe, "that increased power is causing me to manifest the same powers Piper and Prue got. That's why I can freeze things and why I have telekinesis."

"That doesn't make any sense," said Leo. "If your powers were simply increasing you should be getting powers related to the power you all ready have. Something related to your precognitive ability."

"Why wouldn't she get the other powers?" Piper asked. "They are part of the Charmed heritage. It seems to me they'd be the perfect choice for her to get."

"Except that you each have different powers," said Cole. "Like different abilities. While they are connected in a general way they are separate and distinct powers. But any future powers you get should be related to your current powers."

"And Piper's freezing power and Prue's telekinesis aren't related to your precognitive ability," said Leo. "For instance if you had gotten something like empathy that would be a natural progression of your power."

"Empathy is related to precognition?" Phoebe questioned.

"Yes," said Leo. "It might not seem like it but it is. You see what people go through or will go through. The next natural step in that ability would be to feel what they go through. There are other options of course. That's only one possible option."

"Okay," said Piper, "so why is she getting our powers instead of something more related to her own powers?"

"I don't know," said Leo.

"That's the sixty four thousand dollar question," said Cole. "Whatever is going on we'd better find out fast. The longer this goes on the more dangerous it could be. Not just for Phoebe but for the rest of us as well."

"How could it be dangerous to the rest of you?" Phoebe asked.

"Because it just might make you unbalanced," said Leo. "Too much power too fast is extremely dangerous. You learned that with Piper's doctor. It's the same even with you. Even though you're used to magic it is possible to overload you. Cole's right. If we don't figure this out soon everyone could be in danger."

"So where do we start?" Piper asked.

"Check the Book of Shadows," suggested Cole. "There might be something in there that can help."

"That's always a good start," said Paige.

"I'll go back to the Elders," said Leo. "At the very least they should be made aware of Phoebe's latest power increase. It might give them an idea of what's going on."

"Good idea," said Piper. "In the mean time, Phoebe, I think it's a good idea if you don't use your powers any more. The more you use them the more dangerous it could be."

"No problem there," said Phoebe. "Suddenly gaining new powers isn't such a great thing after all."

"Leo, you need to get going," said Piper. "The sooner you get to the Elders the sooner we might figure out what's going on here."

"I've been trying," said Leo. "I can't seem to orb up there."

"This isn't good," said Cole.

"So what do we do now?" Paige asked.

"Perhaps I could be of some assistance in that area."

They were all on their feet instantly. They turned toward the stairs to see who had spoken. Sitting on the steps was a man dressed in black with shoulder-length red hair. They had all recognized his voice and the British accent he had. He was smiling at them as if he hadn't a care in the world.

"Jerrod," Phoebe gasped. "Jerrod Burns."

"A pleasure to see you again," said Jerrod, "under the circumstances. Although I do suppose that depends on your point of view. All things considering."

"What do you want?" Piper asked coldly.

"I just stopped by to give you a hand," said Jerrod. "I seriously doubt if you'll find anything about this in your Book of Shadows. And without my help you don't have a chance of figuring out what's going on or how to stop it."

"What have you done?" Piper asked. "How have you been able to increase Phoebe's power like this?"

"Oh, I haven't done it, I assure you," said Jerrod. "I have no motivation. As Phoebe can tell you, the last time I spoke with her I had decided not to pursue getting the Book of Shadows any longer. I went up against the three of you twice and lived to tell about it. I have no wish to tempt fate a third time."

"Then if you aren't doing it, who is?" Paige asked.

"She is," said Jerrod, looking directly at Phoebe.