Disclaimer: I own nothing but Medina and Rhys. The other characters belong to the people behind Charmed. Don't sue please. I have nothing you want. ^_^
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"Child of Mine"By: Catney
"Belthazor."
"Cole."
"Belthazor."
"Cole."
"For the last time your name is Belthazor," the white goblin said bopping the little boy on the nose. "We've been calling you that for the past year. Why have you decided to change your name?"
"Because I'm Cole," the little boy smiled up at the demon. The goblin looked relatively like a human being, was even as tall as some, the only difference seen was in his rather pointy ears and nose. Tattoos crowned his bald scalp and ended just above his eyes. The boy didn't fear the goblin. Never feared the goblin, Rhys.
"Why are you arguing about this?" a woman looked over at the two from behind a laboratory table and podium. She peeked past the numerous books and potions that littered all over the book. Usually she kept it more in order than this but the boy was here so there was no point. He'd mess the place up eventually. "Rhys, we've called him that before."
"That's not the point, Med. We called him that while the Lady married that human, Benjamin," the goblin scowled at her. "It's just that he suddenly wants us to call him a name he shouldn't even remember."
"You're really discrediting human memory. When he was two he spoke quite well," she ran her fingers through her large dreadlocks and continued to look through a large spell book on the podium. "You forget that he's half demon and Elayaseth's son. Belthazor developed faster than most human children. He probably remembers his own birthing."
"My name's Cole!" the five year old exclaimed stubbornly.
"Argh!" the goblin fell to his knees screaming in mock agony. Cole laughed as Rhys fell to the floor pretended to die from frustration.
"Well whatever you're name is," Med grinned as she lifted the book from the podium. She leapt over the table spilling other miscellaneous books onto the floor and landed close to the pair. "I want to know what you did with the pages to this book."
Med sat herself on the floor letting her white dress tangle around her. In one hand she lifted the book at them and opened it up with the other. At one part of the books it was clearly seen that some pages were messily torn out. "Where are the pages? You know what happened last time you tore out some pages?"
"A ballisk got summoned and tried to eat Rhys," Cole sat down in front of Med and tugged on one of her dreads. A little snake flicked its tongue at the boy.
"And I'm just dying to repeat that experience once more," the goblin rolled towards the gorgon and rested his head on the female's lap.
"I liked the pictures," Cole tried to look innocent.
"Well I don't want to flail you for tampering with these books. We all know you wouldn't survive the beating, so be a good child and return those pages," Med smiled as the boy played with the snakes that were her hair.
"Isn't that going against what we're trying to teach him?" Rhys maliciously smiled.
"You want those pages back?" Med replied tartly as her snakes hissed along with her mood.
Cole came back carrying a bundle of pages in his little arms. The gorgon and goblin stared at him eyes wide. Neither realized he had taken so many pages from the books. Medina mumbled quite a few curses under her breath. She was not going to enjoy the hours that would be spent putting those pages back into their proper place.
Medina caught up with the boy and took some of the pages out of his hands. That's when she sensed something. It was something that shouldn't be here.
"Rhys!" she screamed pointing to the alter that was covered with books.
She grabbed Cole as two spikes exploded from underneath the books straight towards the gorgon and child.
Rhys leapt in front of the two as the spikes came at them. They impaled right into his chest. He howled as the spikes twisted and jetted out lightning throughout his body. It forced him to his knees and the smell of charred flesh began to fill the air.
Cole held tightly to Medina but the gorgon did nothing to keep him from seeing the attack. The young boy remained shocked at the sight. His throat tightened from seeing Rhys in such a state. Hot tears were threatening to spill from his eyes.
"Don't you dare cry," Medina hissed as she summoned a shield around the two. "Tears are useless. They are for those who are powerless and can do nothing else. And none of us here are powerless."
"Come out!" Rhys roared as he pulled out the spikes from his body. "Your in our Lady's domain and dare to attack her son!"
"The hybrid shouldn't even exist," a creature slipped out of the shadows.
Rhys growled at the sight of the intruder. He should have known when the spikes didn't kill him. These weren't weapons you would attack a demon with. No, they were weapons you could attack a mortal body with. Their Cole had a mortal body and would until Elayseth would be done with the spells.
Rhys threw the spikes back at the intruder. It was an Orion. Demons named after the mythological hunter, for that's what they did hunt and they were damn good at it. Their targets were whatever their masters said. Those without a master would hunt those they thought needed purging from the demon realm; namely, hybrids.
Demon half lings weren't common but neither were they rare. Male demons usually sired these half lings and left them with their mortal mothers, but Cole was a different case. His mother was the demon while his father mortal. Yes, their little Cole was very special and not like those other half lings. Cole was born in magic.
Rhys summoned lightening to his hands read to throw the bolt at the Orion. Then he saw the amulet on the human like creature. It declared the Orion had a master.
'Damn, demonic politics,' Rhys hesitated for a moment. He kills the thing now and his lady may have to deal with the Orion's master when it came calling for its creature.
That moment was all the Orion needed. It flew past Rhys, knocking him over in the process, and slammed into the shield Medina had made. The Orion whipped out an orb from its arsenal this time. It rammed the orb into the shield and released the spell.
Medina howled with pain as the spell exploded. It melded into the shield and sent the attack straight into her. The shield was gone in mere seconds.
The gorgon fell to the floor but as she did she made sure the boy was underneath her. She used her body to shield him from the Orion as he came down on the two. Her snakes bit and pumped as much venom as they had into Medina's attacker as he tried to pull her off.
Rhys summoned a blade to his hand and rammed it into the Orion's back. He would be damned if an Orion would get past him.
The Orion summoned another spike to his hand and it came down on Cole.
"ARGH!" Cole screamed as he threw his arms out in front of him. What happened next surprised them all.
Flames roared from the child's hands and destroyed the Orion's spike before it left his hand. Now it was the Orion's turn to scream. The flames didn't stop at the spike. They continued to burn on and consumed the Orion's arm. The Orion screamed and flew backwards away from the child and two demons.
Rhys smiled at the display of magic. It didn't consume and kill the Orion but it did well enough. The creature would die soon. He patted Cole's shoulder for a good job on the fire. He would have to work the boy harder from now on. The next time a demon came at him like that the boy should be able to do more damage than take off an arm.
Medina moaned and rolled her body to face Rhys. "And to think all this time with those lessons I thought you two were goofing off."
"You should hold more faith in me," he grinned.
Cole curled himself between the two demons. His eyes were wide with fear and would not leave the sight of the Orion dying on the floor. The two demons realized this must have been a bit much for the child. Rhys was going to start off the fights and killings with something much smaller. Something like perhaps a mere hellhound. He knew that he and Medina would have to take it slow with the half ling.
Rhys playfully pushed Cole. "Ease up, there, boyo. You did well here."
"But… did I kill him?" Cole looked rather frightened.
"You shouldn't be so cocky. You didn't strike the killing blow. I did," Rhys snorted. "You burned his arm off. You kept him from killing you. Trust me, that is a good thing. Remember, Cole, two of the rules in killing: Kill your enemies who would kill you first. Kill if there will be a use in your target's death."
"What's the use in his death?" Cole hugged Medina's arm trying to receive some comfort.
"He has a master. That master will come calling for their minion and perhaps we'll find out why the Orion was sent," Medina's squeezed Cole's little hand. "But honestly, we killed him so he wouldn't kill us. Makes sense, no?"
The little boy
nodded. Medina smiled please that the
lesson stayed into his head this time.
The Orion got up to its feet
again and turned to the trio still sprawled on the floor.
"Hell's fire! That didn't kill you!" Rhys growled. It only took a moment to realize that the Orion wasn't going to attack.
"He won't die until I wish it so. This hunter has much to answer for such an intrusion," a dark female voice rang throughout the chamber. From the tone of the voice, the Orion would be soon wishing that he would slip into death.
The Lady was home.
To be continued…