Chapter 10 Time is a Zbornak's best friend.
Peyton, couldn't help but be furious at the Elders, she knew Henry Jr wasn't fond of orbing her to the Heavens, but he knows the Warren stubbornness all too well. So he knows its better to get on with it. Up in the Heavens, the two cousins appear in a swirl of white orbs.
"Thanks, Jr, I'll see you in a few minutes," Peyton says as she starts to walk away from Henry Jr. He grabs one of her hands gently making her halt, she turns to face him.
"Peyton, be careful the Elders don't take disrespect lightly." Henry Jr warns Peyton. Peyton breaks Henry Jr's grip.
"The Elders have done nothing to earn my respect, just stay here," Peyton responds. She then sets off to find the council of Elders.
It didn't take long to locate the council of Elders, who are surprised to see her.
"You're not permitted to be here, Peyton Halliwell," One of the Elders spoke.
"And you're not permitted to be massive jerks, who don't take other people's feelings into consideration. Yet here you are being those jerks." Peyton replies, she wasn't in the mood to deal with the Elders self-inflated sense of worth.
"Such insolence you dare speak to us, in such a tone." Another Elder snapped.
"My tone is not a problem here, the problem at hand is how you see it fit to endanger a child's life and well-being along with those around that child," Peyton says.
"We have not and will never endanger a child's life." An Elder said.
"Oh, really tell that to Bonnie Wilson, a cute little girl around seven-year-old and an orphan! All alone, just a Whitelighter watching from a distance, when her power manifested, she was so scared and in pain, she almost caused a genocide something she had no control. If I haven't stepped in it could have gone from all of her fellow students and teachers to an entire city! That would have been on your head." Peyton snipped. One of the council members walks over to Peyton.
"We know what it feels like for a telepath when they first come into the..." The Elder starts, but Peyton interrupts.
"You have no idea, what it feels like for a telepath when they first come into their powers. But I can show you." Peyton snipped before making a fist with her right hand. Through this gesture, she attacks the council of Elders' minds bringing them only a fraction of the pain, Bonnie felt when her powers manifested. The council of Elders crumble to the ground blood flowing from their eyes!
"S...Stop." One of the council members pleads.
"This is a mere fraction of what Bonnie felt, a child someone innocent. You can't have a child with no living relatives with no knowledge of magic or her heritage, being watched from a distance. If I didn't intervene things could have gotten a lot worse. Now here on out you will have no contact or influence with the girl. I will make sure she finds a loving home, I will look out for her and protect her when necessary. If I find out that you have tried to intervene in her life in any way. I will personally come back up here and make you suffer in ways you cannot imagine. Do I make myself clear?" Peyton snipped.
"Very," One of the council members answers, she then stops attacking their minds and walks away over to Henry Jr who orbs them out of the Heavens.
Meanwhile, Bianca is successful in acquiring certain ancient texts. Bianca quickly flees from the Library of Lazarus just a few seconds before statues reform back in full power, she shimmers back to her and Chris's apartment. The moment she appeared in the apartment she quickly puts the ancient tomes to one side and gets to work on securing the apartment through the use of crystals and protection spells. Once the apartment is secured, she pulls out her phone and dials Chris's number.
"Hey, Chris, I've got some good news, I've found some sacred tomes that could shed a light on the force, your mother faced and what we could be facing. The only issue is that the language, they are written in is not one I recognise it could be a language native to demons possibly." Bianca says.
"Well that's great it will have to wait until tomorrow, we have to wait until tomorrow to get some mystical key. Since holding back some hellfire, has seriously weakened Wyatt." Chris responds.
"Hellfire! Is he okay, Christopher?" Bianca asks.
"Yes, he's fine just resting it took a lot out of him." Chris answers.
"The moment you get that key, you need to come straight back home, whoever sent that hellfire, is clearly stronger than most demons, warlocks and witches," Bianca said.
"Don't worry, we will whoever is capable of conjuring hellfire, their power won't go unnoticed it will be sensed by both sides," Chris replied.
"I'll see you in the morning then," Bianca spoke, before ending the call.
The following morning quicker than expected, for the boys. When the boys returned to the now destroyed museum. They see a small group of police officers and detectives.
"Great, we can't exactly search for the key with them snooping around," Wyatt complained.
"Not if someone were to freeze time," Chris says, looking at George.
"I did that once and I'm not sure how I even did it," George replied.
"Mom did with a simple hand gesture," Wyatt commented. George sighed before making a simple hand gesture but nothing happens. George makes the hand gesture almost five times each time a fail.
"For god sake!" George snapped making the small gesture one last time just then the small group of officers and detectives freeze in time.
"Frustration is the key, imagine that." Chris comments, the three then walk over to the ruins.
"We don't know how long them being frozen will last, we have to hurry," Wyatt points out. The three then begin their search.
"Guys, can I ask you a question?" George requests.
"Yes," Wyatt answered.
"Last night when we were here, I saw a group of Zbornak witches, who were just cursed. They were hiding the key. And then I had this feeling that the hellfire, was coming and it did. Could that be a power of some sort? Since I have the power to freeze time maybe its a power tied to freezing time. I inherited my power from both bloodlines. I inherited all the power that should have gone to the generations before me when the Zbornak line was cursed." George asked.
"What you described last night about how you saw those witches, didn't fit the definition of a premonition it's possible, I supposed," Wyatt responds.
"A temporal echo," Chris said.
"Care to explain, brother," Wyatt says.
"According to legends, they were a select few of magical beings who were able to sense and see temporal echoes. Temporal echoes are believed to be similar to that of a psychic echo. You saw a piece of the past, that is related to you in some way, in this case, a part of your family history. A premonition temporarily takes over your ordinary senses. You were aware of both your present surroundings and the small piece of past. Maybe all the accumulated power passed down to you has made you strong enough to sense a temporal echo. Your power to freeze time might not be molecular based like your mother. Maybe the Zbornak line actually had the power to freeze time, not the power to manipulate molecules." Chris explained.
"If we were to assume this is the case then maybe he has the power to reconstruct the museum before the hellfire destroyed this place." Wyatt theorised.
"Newbie witch here, we don't even know how much skill that requires." George pointed out.
"True, but in theory, since you will be recreating something it could be similar to that of projection, where you have to visualise what you want to see and will it to happen," Wyatt responds.
"Besides think that key would lead us to the Zbornak Book of Shadows, which is one step further in helping your dad," Chris said.
"Fine, let's get this over with," George spoke, who then takes a deep breath then closes his eyes, he repeatability tells himself will what he wants to happen, he starts to recall every detail he could remember about the museum. Just then after a few seconds while making a hand gesture bit by bit the ruins of the museum started to as if they were puzzle pieces being put together. Wyatt and Chris are pushed closer to George by an invisible force.
"It's working," Wyatt said in awe, eventually, a minute later the museum is completely restored to how it was a few minutes before hellfire struck.
George opened his eyes and stumbled a few steps back, taking a deep breath.
"That actually worked," George says rather proud of himself.
"Are you okay kid?" Wyatt questions.
"Y...Yeah just a little out of breath and tired I guess it took a lot out of me, can you get us up to the last floor. I don't think I can walk it." George answered. Wyatt then orbed the three up to the fourth and final floor.
"Can you see those witches again?" Chris asked. George quickly scanned the floor.
"Yes, the statue in the far corner." George answers while pointing at the statue, the three then walk over to the statue just then the temporal echo fades.
"A statue is the key, to finding the Zbornak Book of Shadows," Wyatt commented not impressed.
"Yes, but no it's not actually a statue its something else it was just made to look like a statue," George replies. Chris then quickly muttered a spell to break the cloaking spell to reveal the true appearance of the key which is lying on the floor and is much smaller than a statue. Wyatt picks up the small item and stares at it.
"The key is a small metal sundial," Wyatt says surprised.
"What's a sundial?" George asks.
"Sort of ancient clock to tell time," Chris explains. Suddenly the floor begins to shake and crumble.
"We have to go you don't have the power to fully restore the museum to what it was before the hellfire struck," Chris said before orbing the three out over to his apartment back in San Francisco, just after they left the museum returned to it state after hellfire struck and the small group of police officers and detectives unfreeze.
End of chapter 10.