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CHAPTER 38

Final Battle Part One

Wyatt Halliwell appeared in the Cramer kitchen to find a body covered in a white sheet on the tiled floor. His Aunt Anne was staring out of the kitchen window with a sorrow so strong that the empath staggered backwards from it. He took hold of the counter to steady himself.

"Oh, Wyatt, you're here," Anne commented in monotone as she turned from the window to face him. She noticed his unsteady stance and erratic breathing and frowned, "Am I doing that to you? Terribly sorry."

The teenager swallowed, gathering up his strength to get a better hold on his empathy. After a moment he was able to block her emotions out. He took a deep breath, "Wow."

"Isn't love wonderful?" Anne asked sarcastically.

Wyatt pulled the tiny woman into a hug, letting her cry into his shoulder. He stroked her jet black hair as she let loose the pain and fear she was feeling. "It's okay, Aunt Anne. He'll be all right."

"No," Anne shook her head fiercely, "he plans to die, Wyatt. He practically admitted it. He kissed me goodbye, told me to tell the kids he loves them, and he cried. Chris cried, Wyatt. Don't you see? He's not coming back. He's not. . ."she choked on a sob and just held tight to the Twice Blessed until it passed. When her tears finally subsided, she wiped her face with the back of her hand. Anger replaced sadness. "How could he just give up?"

"He's scared, but Uncle Chris isn't a quitter. He's going to be fine."

Alex entered the kitchen, scribbling in a pad with his pen. He looked up at his cousin, "Where have you been? I've been calling for you since I got stranded here."

"I came as fast as I could," Wyatt answered.

"Yeah, well not fast enough," Alex replied, gesturing to his grandmother's corpse. "Another one bites the dust."

"Alexander Halliwell," Anne snapped, "I don't want to hear you speaking so disrespectfully towards the dead."

The youngest teenager looked sheepish, "Sorry, Mum." He again looked to Wyatt, "I want my powers back, Wyatt. Emma does too. We're magical. It's part of who we are. You know that what my dad did was wrong. Help us."

"What do you think took me so long to get here?" Wyatt replied with a grin. Reaching into his back pocket he pulled out a piece of paper and held it out to the other witchlighter, "Found it in the book. I think it's just what the doctor ordered."

"Wait a moment," Anne started, taking the paper from her son's hands. "I'm not so sure about this."

Emma padded into the kitchen, her eyes red and puffy. She had cried herself to sleep when she had discovered her grandmother had been killed. Now awake once more, she made sure to avoid looking in the direction of the body. Instead, she focused her big blue eyes on her cousin, "Wyatt."

The eldest boy scooped her up into a big hug, "I'm so glad you're ok again, Squirt."

"Me too," Emma said softly.

"Hey, Emma, want your powers back?" Alex asked, getting back to business.

Emma looked back and forth between the firestarter and the Twice Blessed, "Is it possible? Can we really get 'em back?" She looked to her mother, "Please, mum? We have to help. Dad needs us."

"Yeah, he does," Alex agreed, his green eyes staring steadily into his mother's ice blue.

Anne looked down at the paper. Closing her eyes and taking a deep breath, the mother considered her options. She could give them back their powers, let them fulfill the destiny they were born with, and be completely terrified for them as well as her husband, or she could tear up the paper and forbid it, keeping them protected forever, just as Chris had ordered. A small smile tugged on her lips as the answer revealed itself in her heart. She had known it all along.

"You deserve the chance to be true to yourselves, and to fight for your loved ones," Anne held the paper out for Alex to reclaim.

Alex let out a breath of relief, then started to read, "Powers of the witches rise, course unseen across the skies, return to my powers, give me back, all that was taken, during the attack."

The teenager flashed blue and white for a moment, signaling the return of his powers.

"What about me?" Emma asked.

Wyatt reached into his coat pocket, pulling out a potion. He handed it to her, "Here ya go, Squirt."

"Wait," Anne interrupted. "She won't go back into a coma will she?"

"No," Wyatt answered, "I already took the burden from her. She'll be ok."

Anne nodded and gestured for her daughter to drink the purple potion.

Emma did so. When she had finished, she glowed a soft golden color for a few seconds. She grinned, "I'm back."

"So, what's the plan, Wyatt?" Alex questioned.

Emma nodded excitedly, "Yeah, what now?"

Wyatt pulled out a piece of a broken vial and held it out in front of him toward his littlest cousin, "I need you to see if you can get a hit off this. I tried, but my premonitions don't always work. If anyone can do it, it's gonna be you."

"Me?" Emma asked, unsure.

"Yeah," Wyatt confirmed, "I mean, we're gonna have to find Chris if we're gonna turn him back, and you are the psychic with the strongest connection to him. You're his. . .daughter."

Alex made a face, "That's still weird and creepy."

"Tell me about it my little nephew," Wyatt replied teasingly.

"Don't call me that ever again, or I will set your precious blonde hair on fire."

Emma rolled her eyes and carefully took the glass from the older boy. Holding it gently in her hand, the little psychic closed her eyes, concentrating on her younger cousin. After half a minute, she was pulled into a premonition. It went as fast as it came. When she opened her eyes, they were wide with fear, "I know where both dad and Chris are at. They're in big trouble. We've got to go help them."

"No way," Alex and Wyatt replied simultaneously.

Alex stepped forward, putting one hand on either of her shoulders, "Listen, Emma, it's too dangerous, and you don't have an active power. Just tell us where you saw them, and you'll have helped us a ton."

The little girl looked to her mother, "You're gonna let them go and not me?"

"They're older than you, more experienced and they have active powers," Anne reasoned. Off her daughter's upset look, "Hey at least you have powers, Sweetie. I am out of the loop all together. I can only help your father by staying out of the way."

Emma hugged her mother, "You're perfect the way you are, Mum."

"Yeah, Uncle Chris wouldn't have you any other way," Wyatt offered, knowing how hard it must be for his Aunt to always have to sit on the sidelines during these situations. She was a fiesty, protective woman, and to sit back and do nothing must be torture.

Alex took Emma's hand, "Can you project what you saw, Emma, just like Aunt Pheebs taught you?"

The little girl nodded, closed her eyes and revealed her premonition to him. When she opened her eyes again, she shivered, "Please change it."

"We need to go," Alex said, fear in his voice, "like ten minutes ago."

Wyatt looked to Anne, "You going to be ok?"

The dark haired woman nodded, then grinned at her daughter, "I've got Emma here to protect me."

"You got the local, Wy?" Alex questioned.

The Twice Blessed nodded, "Yeah, I read it off Emma."

"Be strong and be smart," Anne ordered, "If it gets too bad, get out of there." She kissed her son on the forehead and hugged Wyatt again, "I love you both."

"I love you too, Mum."

"You're the best, Aunt Anne."

Emma tried not to get teary as she said, "I love you guys, be careful, kay?"

Wyatt kissed her left cheek, Alex the right, as both responded, "We will." and "I love you."

Then, with the goodbyes done, the two Halliwell boys orbed out into the greatest battle the family had ever and would ever fight.

000

"Oh my God. . .we're alive again."

Paige looked back and forth between Piper and Prue, unsure what was going on. Somehow it seemed her big sisters had brought her and her other big sister back to life, but that just plain wasn't possible. No magic could do that. It was unheard of. Only an alchemist could bring people back from the dead, and that wasn't their souls, that was just their bodies. She and Prue were both themselves.

"How could you do this, Piper?" Prue asked harshly, "Do have any idea what kind of trouble we're all going to be in for this? This has personal gain written all over it. Plus, the dead are not supposed to be brought back to life. It's not natural." She turned to her brother-in-law, "Right, Leo?"

Leo shook his head, "I don't know what to think. This shouldn't have worked. Magic should have protected the natural order in some way. The spell should have backfired or not worked at all. I don't understand."

"Oh, my God," Paige breathed, finally having spotted the little bundle in the Elder's arms. She moved slowly toward him, her big brown eyes never leaving the child curled up in the crook of his arm. She swallowed down the tears that were forming. Looking up at Leo, she asked hesitantly, "Is that...my daughter?"

"Can't you tell?" Leo asked with a grin as the baby kicked its little legs, "she's got her mom's fighting spirit."

Paige smiled widely, a happy tear slipping down her pale cheek, "She's so beautiful."

Prue smiled softly, watching her youngest sister take the child in her arms, holding the newest Halliwell witch gently, lovingly. The eldest Charmed One was happy for her little sister. Paige deserved to get to hold her child in her arms, to love that little girl with all her heart. Prue's smile slipped. She had never been given that chance. She had died too young. Besides, the one person she could have pictured herself marrying and having children with was dead too– Andy Trudeau. They had spent the last forty odd years together in paradise, but she still missed what they could have had on earth.

"Hello, little Pearl," Paige whispered emotionally. She looked up at Piper and Phoebe then, fear in her eyes, "Is this for good? Are we really alive for good?"

"Of course," Piper answered, though something in her tone made both of her formerly deceased sisters doubtful.

Prue folded her arms over her chest, her gray eyes sharp with suspect, "Ok, Piper, why did you do this? Why risk so much now?"

"Haven't you seen what's been going on?" Phoebe questioned.

Paige shook her head, "No, Grams said I needed to adjust to being, well, dead. I haven't really had a chance to check into the earthly news network."

"I have, and I know things are bad, but to break so many wiccan rules like this, Piper, it's just not like you," Prue went on. "We don't even know what the consequences are for something this major."

"Who cares?" Paige quipped, caressing her daughter's pink cheek with her pinky. She looked up at Prue, "We're alive again. I'd say good for us and leave well enough alone."

Prue rolled her eyes, "Yeah, ok, but then what happens when it bites us in the butt and we're completely and totally unprepared?" Her gaze sought the next oldest Charmed One, "We have always had responsibilities as the Charmed Ones to do what was best for the greater good. Not for ourselves, and correct me if I'm wrong, but this seems to be pretty personal gain, which we know always has consequences. I just don't want to celebrate too soon."

"Yeah, but sweetie," Phoebe cut in, "we're finally all together again. Can't we just be happy for like one tinie-tiny millisecond?" The woman wrapped her arms around her sister's neck, holding onto her with a big smile on her face, "I missed you."

Laughing, Prue conceded, "I missed you too, Pheebs."

"Prue, this isn't about personal gain," Piper cut in, getting back to business. "I summoned you and Paige back from wherever you were because we have a demon to vanquish. One that none of us have been able to stop. He managed to break the Power of Three, Wyatt can't find him, and I'm not sure he'd be strong enough to fight him alone anyway, and Chris. . .well, he'd do something reckless and get himself killed. So many of us are already dead, Prue, I refuse to let anyone else die. If the Elders have a problem with me summoning the greatest power I know to stop the greatest evil I've ever known, then they can kiss my ass because once this guy has finished destroying all of us, he's gonna come after them."

Leo raised his eyebrows. He'd never witnessed Piper challenge Prue before. Before her older sister had passed away, Piper was submissive, always seeking to pacify rather than argue. He noticed Prue was rather surprised, her eyebrows going up at the tone her baby sister was using.

"Greatest power?" Paige cut in, seeking to stop the tension from building any further.

Phoebe grinned, "Of course. Who better than the Charmed Ones? All four of them."

"The Power of Four should be enough power to find Nyru and protect our family and everyone else," Piper finished.

Paige looked down at her daughter, "What if it's not?"

Piper let out a breath, "Then we do what we can to save the kids."

"We have to try," Phoebe agreed, "for our children."

Prue lowered her eyes. She didn't have anyone depending on her to protect them. Not for many many years.

"We can't do this without you, Prue," Piper said softly.

The eldest looked up, and in her sister's eyes saw that she was wrong. She had a lot of people to fight for still. Her family still needed her after all. "All right," Prue relented, "then let's do this."

00

As soon as Bianca had shimmered them into the meeting room, Chris knew that something was wrong. While most of the underworld caverns were low on the lighting, this was pitch black darkness. He couldn't see his hand when he held it right in front of his eyes. He could sense Bianca nearby, but couldn't tell for certain where she was with any sort of accuracy. He felt like he was completely alone, and for the first time in his life, the idea of solitude scared him.

Tossing an orb light into the air, Chris was relieved to see the darkness shrink away. He could see Bianca standing close on his right, and felt a stronger relief than he would have thought possible. Then again, after what he had just done, what he'd been through, it was no wonder he'd cling to the one person that could understand. He needed her right now.

"So, you are the great Christopher Halliwell," a bass voice floated from the left edge of the room, hiding within the dark still present there. "You truly are the weak link. In one timeline or another you will always bring about the downfall of your family."

Chris fisted his hands and shot a look to Bianca, who shook her head so slightly he almost missed the silent request that he keep his temper in check. He took a deep breath and returned his frost bitten eyes toward the direction of the voice. Struggling to keep the hatred out of his voice, Chris said, "Why should I care about them? They've kept me as the Elders' lap dog for way too long, and I'm ready to have a little fun. If that means they've got to go, then so be it."

There was a thick silence in response.

The witchlighter tried to sense the demon's more specific location in the room, but he found nothing. He could sense Bianca, and the essence of black magic everywhere, but no Nyru. He dug his fingernails into the palms of his hands in frustration. How could he fight what he couldn't see?

"You think I am like all the others, don't you?" the voice finally continued. "It is that same arrogance that cost your mother's life in your other time."

Chris' breath hitched for a moment. He was lying. There was no way that Piper Halliwell had been killed in any time line. She was practically invincible. However, the witchlighter couldn't think of a reason for Nyru to lie about it. Plus, Uncle Christopher had gotten really paranoid about his mom around their birthday a few years back. . .

"The other you was responsible. She died protecting you because you were and still are the weak link."

The young man was itching to just guess at the demon's location and toss the demon through the cave wall, blow him up into a thousand pieces, freeze him in his moment of death so that he could feel the pain he was causing. However, the hard look Bianca was shooting him reminded him what he was trying to accomplish. He had to prove himself, and attempting to kill Nyru without being certain of accomplishing the task was not only reckless, but just plain stupid–something Chris wasn't.

"I have no intention of testing you Christopher," Nyru went on, his voice suddenly on the opposite side of the room.

Bianca's face flashed with confusion, which she quickly worked to mask before asking, "Then he'll join us in the destruction of the Halliwells?"

"Yes, but not in the way you think, Dear Bianca," the demon answered, from another location in the room.

Chris shot a questioning glance to his partner, who mouthed back that he was probably using an astral form. The witchlighter rolled his eyes in annoyance, "Listen, cut the crap and tell me what you want from me."

"You."

Just as Bianca was about to question the demon's answer, she heard a heart breaking scream come from Chris as he dropped to his knees. She quickly dropped down next to him, "Chris? What's going on? Chris, answer me."

"Get out of my head, you bastard!" Chris cried out before toppling over on the ground, tears of pain streaming from his eyes as his mind began to be ripped apart. Every psychic blocking technique he had learned growing up failed him as his mind was lost to another.

Chris became still, silent. His breathing was erratic and shallow, but he didn't seem to be in pain any longer.

Bianca rose to her feet, "What did you do to him?"

"Just a little spell I found in your Grimoire," Chris answered, his voice strangely deep and monotone. When he got to his feet and turned to look at her, she could see that his eyes were no longer the green she had come to love, but rather two large black nothings where eyes should be.

"The possession spell?" the Phoenix questioned, "but why?"

"I needed his powers to kill the rest of them, and I knew he'd never give them willingly." The demon in the witchlighter's body merely grinned, "You think I didn't know what would happen? I know everything there is to know about you people. You only helped me because I have your mother. Christopher's greatest desire in any time line is to save his family. So, once you two met, I knew you two lovers would team up to stop me, just as you teamed up before to stop his brother. Your love for one another would bring you together, allow you to trust the other. A true Romeo and Juliet pair you make. Full of tragedy."

"It was a trap all along," Bianca snarled, furious at herself for having fallen for it.

She lit up an energy ball, but using Chris' telekinesis, Nyru sent Bianca crashing into the wall with such a force that the Phoenix Witch was knocked unconscious. Then, he moved to her limp, motionless body and raised his hands, sending electricity flying toward her, burning her from the inside out. Until suddenly, he was thrown backwards away from the Phoenix.

Nyru looked up toward the source of the attic and his black eyes went wide in shock. Standing opposite him was the older Christopher Halliwell with a dead Gon laying at his side. His general had betrayed him to the witch and had lost his life for it. Nyru regretted that he couldn't have killed the coward himself.

"I've been waiting for this moment since I was fourteen years old," Chris began, "so don't think I'm going to hold back because you're in my past self's body."

Nyru rose to his feet, wiped the blood from his split lip and grinned, "You aren't capable of killing an innocent boy to stop me."

"If I have to kill myself to stop you, I will."

Thus began the greatest battle of all time. Whether good won or not, sacrifices had already been made, and much more blood would be shed before the end.

tbc. . .