Part 24: The Over Kill
Michael slammed the door shut to his apartment trying to get rid of the image of Maria and that guy out of his head. From the looks of things it was not her first time nor was he just some random guy she met. He could tell by their dancing that he knew Maria very well better than Michael did and that killed him. Isabel stood there and watched as Michael vented by destroying his apartment knowing that in a few minutes she was going to have to repair the damage for him. "Michael?" Isabel asked when the alien had finally flung himself onto the couch looking empty.
"I really liked her Isabel. Besides you she was the only girl ever to take a chance on me. I lost her Isabel." Michael muttered.
"No there could still be hope for the two of you." Isabel said rubbing his solid back. He looked at the girl he considered a sister and sighed.
"Isabel she was having sex with him, I don't think she is interested in me anymore. There are many things I am Isabel but stupid is not one of them and I know Maria, she would not just have sex with some guy if her heart was not in the relationship." Michael said.
"But I thought the two of you…"
"No we never slept together Isabel, we came close but we never went all the way." Michael sighed.
"How did things get so messed up Michael? I mean these past few months I have been a complete monster…I followed Liz I mean who the hell does that?" Isabel asked finally breaking crying into her best friend's shoulder. Michael held her close knowing all of the emotions she had been holding back for the past several years were being released.
"I think it was destiny Isabel, before that we were happy. Maria was with me, Liz with Max and you and Alex had something going." Michael said.
"Now he won't even look at me." Isabel mumbled.
"We both are to blame for how things have panned out Isabel. I might have lost Maria but I don't think it is too late for you." Michael said seeing the hope come through her eyes.
"You don't think he hates me?" She whispered.
"Isabel the guy loved you for ages, he is just upset by your behavior. I know this is weird coming from me of all people but he is good for you. The time when he was in your life actively was the happiest I have ever seen you. You were carefree and loved life. Destiny ruined all of that Isabel, I think you should take your life back." Michael said.
"You must have really loved her Michael for you to change like this."
"I do, but it really opened my eyes to what we have been doing Isabel. We need to stop listening to your brother and live our own lives. We don't have to follow destiny Isabel." Michael said.
"But what about our people?" She asked.
"Isabel I have always dreamed of finding my family out there but I know now that my true family is here, it is you Max, and Tess. I can have a family here. Our people if they were still alive would have come for us a long time ago Isabel. I was kidding myself to think they were coming for us." Michael sighed.
"Michael our families might be gone but you will always have me." Isabel said giving the man she considered a brother a hug.
"Same here Iz."
Ipswich
Tyler sighed leaning against his bedroom door knowing that he was needed on the other side. He hated how worried Liz had been earlier, when she found out both of her friends were missing she got physically ill. Then when she found out they had only snuck out it made something in her snap. He hated his friend in that moment for hurting his girl.
"Baby?" Tyler asked stepping into the room. He did not see her anywhere but he could hear her sniffing. His eyes darted around the room and he spotted Liz
huddled in a corner of the room hugging her knees to her chest as best she could in her condition.
"I was so scared I did not know what to do." She whispered resting her head on his shoulder as he sat down next to her in the dark corner, blue gray shadows falling over their faces.
"I know you were." Tyler said wrapping his arms around her one of his large hands moving to rest over her stomach that had only a small puff. He felt Liz pull his shirt and him closer her small body shaking with her silent cries.
"Why did they do this?" Liz asked.
"They wanted to have fun, but they did not think." Tyler said.
"What did Caleb do?" Liz asked.
"I left before he got really into it, but you know how he gets he started off silent and then the whisper voice came out." Tyler said making Liz wince.
"He really is pissed." Liz said.
"We all are. Those two put us all through hell." Tyler said when they heard a knock at the door.
"Liz?" Maria asked. Liz sighed and snuggled closer to Tyler on the floor not moving to get up.
"Do you want me to let her in?" Tyler asked.
"No." Liz whispered as a barrier erupted around the room preventing anyone expect members of the family from entering the room. Tyler sighed knowing Liz was hurt by her friends behavior. Sure they all understood that the two wanted to get out of the place but then again they all knew that leaving without telling the others was dangerous and made them worry for hours.
"Liz?" Maria asked again trying the door handle, a shriek erupted from outside the room.
"She tried to get in." Tyler sighed getting up to go and help the blonde. He knew that if he wanted Maria in the room he could invite her in but he knew that Liz was too emotional and not in control of her powers, brining the blonde into the room would be a bad idea. Out in the hall Reid and Caleb were already helping Maria up.
"She tried to get in." Tyler sounded like a broken record, Reid flinched at how cold his friend sounded.
"I was trying to get to Liz. Why did you activate the spell?" Maria asked looking at Tyler in fear not knowing if he was purposely trying to be mean.
"I did not activate the spell my heir did." Tyler said leaning against the wall folding his arms across his chest.
"Liz did." Maria's green eyes filled with tears.
"Yes and no. Liz said the word but my baby was the one who carried out the request, unintentionally of course." Tyler said.
"How is she?" Reid asked the left side of his face hidden from Maria. Tyler knew that Caleb had made himself clear as to how displeased he was with his friend. Maria of course was none the wiser to the pain her lover was in.
"Confused, hurt, angry, sad, furious, explosive, out of control…I could go on for a while here." Tyler said.
"My best friend hates me." Maria whispered.
"She does not hate you Maria, she is just not happy with the decision you and Reid made. Maria you want her to cool down some before she talks to you, right now her powers are shaky from her up and down emotional state." Tyler said trying to phrase her condition just right knowing Liz was listening on the other side of the door and he did not want to do anything to make her any more upset than she already is.
"Liz would never hurt me." Maria said her green eyes glaring furiously at the boy in front of her.
"Not intentionally Maria. We can handle her power blasts you can't." Tyler said before opened the door and went back into the dark room. Maria, Reid and Caleb stared at the closed door not liking the sound of Liz's state.
"We really screwed up." Reid muttered leaving Maria and Caleb locking himself in his room to pout.
"Caleb?" Maria asked seeing the battle wage behind the boys eyes.
"I think you should leave Liz alone for a day or so, let her come to you. Tyler is right you can't handle a blast from her, if her powers were to get out of hand Maria she could kill you." Caleb said before he went into the room behind her activating his blood magic as well. He felt terrible for what he had done to Reid but the pain and anger at his friend won out for his stupidity. He knew that Reid did not hold his punishment against him but that only made him feel worse. He used dark magic on his best friend, his brother and that would always haunt him for years to come.
Down in the kitchen the Charmed Ones sat at the table looking stunned by the display they had just witnessed. They expected the others to be angry but not that angry. The emotions that flowed across the room were paralyzing in how intense they were. Behind the black eyes the witches could see the pain and anger of each member of the Covenant. They could not help the fear that coursed through them when Caleb and Pogue dragged Reid down to the cellar while Cole took Maria to the library where she would not hear Reid's screams as Caleb and Pogue enforced the code of the Covenant.
"What did they do to him?" Paige finally asked.
"It is an ancient magic of the Covenant that the eldest males use to keep the others in line. Chase would have been the oldest son but since he was not initiated into the Covenant at birth the second son, Caleb took the place of the first son and Pogue, the third son, took the place of the second. They are in a sense the oldest males and the ones who need to keep the other two in line. It is a spell to make sure that Reid will never be so bold again." Gorman whispered having witnessed the use of the spell many times in the past.
"It is not dark magic is it?" Phoebe asked.
"Oh you bet it is." Cole muttered.
"How would you know?" Paige asked.
"Ladies the Covenant has a history of dark witches the magic that flows through them has practiced some very dark blood magic in the past. Spells that are used for punishing are dark magic." Cole said taking a sip of his beer feeling the need for copious amounts of alcohol.
"I thought you said these were the good guys." Piper said giving her husband the look.
"We have been through this a hundred times Piper, they are not evil." Leo said sighing in relief when Alex walked into the kitchen looking paler than usual.
"Hey buddy you alright there?" Phoebe asked.
"No, yes, no, maybe, I don't know." Alex said opening and closing the fridge but never taking anything out. The sisters shared a look wondering what was wrong with the teen.
"Who is the girl?" Gorman asked his skin crinkling as he grinned.
"Isabel."
"The alien?" Gorman asked.
"The princess. She called crying saying she was sorry for how she treated me and that she would see me in my dreams. My dream girl is going to visit me tonight." Alex said looking at the occupants of the room in shock.
"I thought she was the enemy." Phoebe said.
"She is, I am in love with the enemy." Alex said leaving the kitchen once again. Cole got up and followed the teen his girlfriend staring at his retreating form in amazement. Alex went into the billiard room and sat on the ornate red sofa staring off into space. Cole sat down next to him waiting for the teen to speak knowing he would eventually.
"I have had a crush on her since the first moment I laid eyes on her in the third grade. I was playing outside before school with Maria, Liz and Pam Troy and this
girl and her brother got of f the bus. She was perfect then and is now. She has always been cold but even before I knew her secret I knew that it was just an act that she was just trying to protect herself and her feelings, I knew she did not want to let anyone in for fear of getting hurt." Alex said taking a deep breath years of pent up emotions rising to the surface.
"When I found out she was an alien it did not freak me out like she thought it would I was used to people being different than what they appear to be because of Liz and Kyle. She was more open with me than she had been with anybody her entire life, since she hatched from her pod. Then Tess came and I could feel the ice wall erecting again. Then Max was taken to the White Room and then the whole thing with their birth mom and the destiny crap I felt her pull away. I kept after her though even when she made it perfectly clear that she was not interested." Alex said.
"What made you stop chasing her?" Cole asked.
"She visited me in my dreams, that is her power dream walking, she told me she was in love with Michael and that the four of them had decided that their relationships with humans was making them weak and that they wanted to give destiny a try. I never told Maria any of this because she still felt like she had a shot with Michael I did not want her world to come crumbling down like mine did." Alex said.
"So what changed now?" Cole asked trying to keep his anger at the alien princess in check.
"She called me. She told me how she followed Liz, everything Cole. I could hear it in her voice that she had finally broken. She told me how she fears that Whitaker is one of the evil aliens and that she is helpless. She said that she felt that ever since she started spending more time with Max and Tess and practicing memory retrieval that she has felt herself becoming more alien and she hates it she wants her humanity back. She said she was sorry for how she has treated me and the others and that she will explain more to me later tonight. Cole man, I am afraid that this is all some big cosmic joke that her and the others are playing or she is only coming to visit me in hopes of finding out what me and the others have been up to." Alex admitted.
Cole sat there for a moment trying to think of what to say to his friend. "Alex I know this is not going to help much but in a situation like this all you can do is
follow your heart, if it is telling you that Isabel is truly sorry then I say go for it but this time take it slow make sure you are both comfortable. Start off as friends because form what you have told me she is not used to being emotionally close with anyone. Let her build up that emotional trust with you first and same goes for you, build your trust in her and then start a romantic relationship." Cole said.
"How did a demon get so smart?" Alex asked giving his friend one of his goofy grins. Cole laughed.
"Alex I have been around for a long time, and as they say with age comes wisdom."
"Thanks for this Cole, I needed it. Now if you will excuse me a hot alien princess is about to rock my dreams." Alex said leaving the upper level demon roaring with laughter in the billiard room.
No one even bothered to stop and think that night that somewhere out there an upper level demon was plotting away to his black heart's content. No one even bothered to think that maybe just maybe Barbas had one very good trick up his sleeve.