"Leo?" Phoebe said tremulously. Her sisters and brother-in-law orbed in. Phoebe was shrinking as far back in her chair as she could, and third Font fireball hovered inches in front of her. "Um, help?"
"It's okay, Phoebe," Leo said, and explained to her about the Font.
She nodded, still looking apprehensive. "So, I just..." She reached out her hands as Leo had described, and as the ball glowed and disappeared, Phoebe gasped. Recognizing the sign of a premonition, her sisters waited until Phoebe's consciousness returned to the attic.
"It was...I saw -- it must have been the Font, I think. A fountain with light flowing through it instead of water, and a border made entirely of those white fireballs. And --"
"And what, Phoebe? What happened?" Leo asked, not unkindly.
"The whole thing got sucked into the ground. Like a vortex or something," Phoebe finished, looking ashen.
"Or maybe not a vortex, but a portal?" Paige suggested. "Like the one Benecaedus is trying to make."
Leo paled. "That's what he's trying to do -- pull the Font into a portal of evil, which would destroy all good magic in the world. Phoebe, have you finished the vanquishing spell?" She nodded.
"Okay, then --" Leo cut himself off abruptly, looking up at the ceiling. After a moment, he closed his eyes and bowed his head.
Piper approached him, putting an arm around him tenderly. "What happened?"
Leo turned to her, his eyes threatening tears. "Another Elder."
"So," said Paige, "I'd say it's time we do this vanquish, huh?"
The Charmed Ones quickly set up candles and a crystal cage. "Summoning spell?" Piper inquired.
"Check," said Paige, holding up a piece of paper.
"Three vials of potion, check," Piper continued. "Vanquishing spell?" "Check," Phoebe answered, vaguely gesturing to the notebook in her hand.
"Okay, then, let's go." Paige lit the candles, and the sisters stood together to read the summoning spell.
Although by evil magic hid,
Our voices and our powers bid
Benecaedus in this hour
is summoned by the Charmed Ones' power.
They repeated the spell three times, and suddenly the crystals began to glow. A moment later, a howling demon flamed in, and the crystals flared up, imprisoning him. "WHO DARES SUMMON ME?" he bellowed.
"The Charmed Ones. And that's not all we're gonna do. But first -- who awakened you?" "I DO NOT ANSWER TO WITCHES!" Benecaedus roared.
"Yeah, ya do," Piper said, as she casually exploded his left hand. The demon shrieked in pain.
"SHE WILL OUTLAST YOU, EVEN WITHOUT MY PORTAL!" cried Benecaedus.
"Uh, Piper, he's really strong and the crystals are starting to fade," Paige whispered urgently.
"Alright, let's vanquish his sorry ass. C'mon."
Phoebe stood in the middle this time, and the sisters read together:
Smiter of good, Unleasher of evil,
The portal you open now pulls you inside
All your destruction now comes to destroy you
A thousand deaths for each life that because of you, died.
The demon's howling grew even louder, as a whirlwind began in the attic.
"Again!" yelled Phoebe, above the growing din.
Smiter of good, Unleasher of evil,
Piper threw her vial of potion at the demon's feet.
The portal you open now pulls you inside
Paige tossed her vial into the crystal cage.
All your destruction now comes to destroy you
Phoebe heaved her vial as hard as she could at the demon
A thousand deaths for each life that because of you, died.
The whirlwind picked up speed, spinning the trapped demon faster and faster until a portal opened, and sucked him inside. "NOOOOO!" he cried out, until the sound was abruptly cut off as the portal closed.
Phoebe let out a breath she hadn't realized she'd been holding. Her body was trembling, her mind filled with only one thought: What if her spell hadn't worked? She'd poured all her strength into it, and had carefully imbued the crystals, but they had barely held. If her spell had required a third repetition, Benecaedus might have broken free. Overwhelmed by the fear that thought instilled, she swayed slightly and sank into the chair.
Piper and Paige were busy conferring with Leo. "He said 'She' would outlast us. But who? We vanquished the Crone already, and we vanquished the Seer ages ago...We haven't met any other evil women that powerful, have we?" Piper asked her youngest sister.
"No, I can't think of any," Paige agreed. "How weird. You'd think if there were someone that powerful, we'd know about her. Pheebs?"
At that moment, Paige and Piper realized that Phoebe was no longer standing next to them. They saw her sitting in the chair. "Pheebs, you okay?" Paige asked.
Phoebe didn't seem to hear them, lost in her thoughts. "I --" she started, and then her eyes rolled back in her head and she slumped down in the chair.